In
this chapter, I. Christ teaches his disciples to pray, and quickens and
encourages them to be frequent, instant, and importunate in prayer, ver.
1-13. II. He fully answers the blasphemous imputation of the Pharisees, who
charged him with casting out devils by virtue of a compact and confederacy
with Beelzebub, the prince of the devils, and shows the absurdity and
wickedness of it, ver. 14-26. III. He shows the honour of obedient disciples
to be greater than that of his own mother, ver. 27, 28. IV. He upbraids the
men of that generation for their infidelity and obstinacy, notwithstanding
all the means of conviction offered to them, ver. 29-36. V. He severely
reproves the Pharisees and consciences of those that submitted to them, and
their hating and persecuting those that witnessed against their wickedness,
ver. 37-54.
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The Disciples Taught to Pray.
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1 And it came to pass, that, as he was
praying in a certain place, when he ceased, one of his disciples said unto
him, Lord, teach us to pray, as John also taught his disciples.
2 And he said unto them, When ye pray, say, Our Father which art in heaven,
Hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done, as in heaven, so
in earth. 3 Give us day by day our daily bread. 4
And forgive us our sins; for we also forgive every one that is indebted to
us. And lead us not into temptation; but deliver us from evil. 5
And he said unto them, Which of you shall have a friend, and shall go unto
him at midnight, and say unto him, Friend, lend me three loaves;
6 For a friend of mine in his journey is come to me, and I have nothing to
set before him? 7 And he from within shall answer and say,
Trouble me not: the door is now shut, and my children are with me in bed; I
cannot rise and give thee. 8 I say unto you, Though he will not
rise and give him, because he is his friend, yet because of his importunity
he will rise and give him as many as he needeth. 9 And I say
unto you, Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock,
and it shall be opened unto you. 10 For every one that asketh
receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be
opened. 11 If a son shall ask bread of any of you that is a
father, will he give him a stone? or if he ask a fish, will he for a
fish give him a serpent? 12 Or if he shall ask an egg, will he
offer him a scorpion? 13 If ye then, being evil, know how to
give good gifts unto your children: how much more shall your heavenly
Father give the Holy Spirit to them that ask him?
Prayer is one of the great laws of natural religion. That man is a brute, is
a monster, that never prays, that never gives glory to his Maker, nor feels
his favour, nor owns his dependence upon him. One great design therefore of
Christianity is to assist us in prayer, to enforce the duty upon us,
to instruct us in it, and encourage us to expect advantage by it. Now here,
I. We find Christ himself praying in a certain place, probably where
he used to pray, v. 1. As God, he was prayed to; as man, he prayed;
and, though he was a Son, yet learned he this obedience. This evangelist has
taken particular notice of Christ's praying often, more than any
other of the evangelists: when he was baptized (ch. iii. 21), he was praying;
he withdrew into the wilderness, and prayed (ch. v. 16); he went
out into a mountain to pray, and continued all night in prayer (ch.
vi. 12); he was alone praying (ch. ix. 18); soon after, he went
up into a mountain to pray, and as he prayed he was transfigured
(ch. ix. 28, 29); and here he was praying in a certain place.
Thus, like a genuine son of David, he gave himself unto prayer, Ps.
cix. 4. Whether Christ was now alone praying, and the disciples only
knew that he was so, or whether he prayed with them, is uncertain; it is
most probable that they were joining with him.
II. His disciples applied themselves to him for direction in prayer. When he
was praying, they asked, Lord, teach us to pray. Note, The gifts and
graces of others should excite us to covet earnestly the same. Their zeal
should provoke us to a holy imitation and emulation; why should not we do as
well as they? Observe, They came to him with this request, when he
ceased; for they would not disturb him when he was at prayer, no, not
with this good motion. Every thing is beautiful in its season. One of his
disciples, in the name of the rest, and perhaps by their appointment,
said, Lord, teach us. Note, Though Christ is apt to teach, yet
he will for this be enquired of, and his disciples must attend him for
instruction.
Now, 1. Their request is, "Lord, teach us to pray; give us a
rule or model by which to go in praying, and put words into our
mouths." Note, It becomes the disciples of Christ to apply themselves
to him for instruction in prayer. Lord, teach us to pray, is itself a
good prayer, and a very needful one, for it is a hard thing to pray well
and it is Jesus Christ only that can teach us, by his word and
Spirit, how to pray. "Lord, teach me what it is to pray; Lord,
excite and quicken me to the duty; Lord, direct me what to pray for; Lord,
give me praying graces, that I may serve God acceptably in prayer; Lord,
teach me to pray in proper words; give me a mouth and wisdom in prayer, that
I may speak as I ought; teach me what I shall say."
2. Their plea is, "As John also taught his disciples. He took
care to instruct his disciples in this necessary duty, and we would be
taught as they were, for we have a better Master than they had." Dr.
Lightfoot's notion of this is, That whereas the Jews' prayers were generally
adorations, and praises of God, and doxologies, John taught his disciples
such prayers as were more filled up with petitions and requests; for it is
said of them that they did dehseiV poiountai--make
prayers, ch. v. 33. The word signifies such prayers as are
properly petitionary. "Now, Lord, teach us this, to be added to those
benedictions of the name of God which we have been accustomed to from our
childhood." According to this sense, Christ did there teach them a
prayer consisting wholly of petitions, and even omitting the doxology which
had been affixed; and the Amen, which was usually said in the giving
of thanks (1 Cor. xiv. 16), and in the Psalms, is added to doxologies
only. This disciple needed not to have urged John Baptist's example: Christ
was more ready to teach than ever John Baptist was, and particularly taught
to pray better than John did, or could, teach his disciples.
III. Christ gave them direction, much the same as he had given them before
in his sermon upon the mount, Matt. vi. 9, &c. We cannot think that they
had forgotten it, but they ought to have had further and fuller
instructions, and he did not, as yet, think fit to give them any; when the
Spirit should be poured out upon them from on high, they would find all
their requests couched in these few words, and would be able, in words of
their own, to expatiate and enlarge upon them. In Matthew he had directed
them to pray after this manner; here, When ye pray, say; which
intimates that the Lord's prayer was intended to be used both as a form of
prayer and a directory.
1. There are some differences between the Lord's prayer in Matthew and Luke,
by which it appears that it was not the design of Christ that we should be tied
up to these very words, for then there would have been no variation.
Here is one difference in the translation only, which ought not to have
been, when there is none in the original, and that is in the third petition:
As in heaven, so in earth; whereas the words are the very same, and
in the same order, as in Matthew. But there is a difference in the fourth
petition. In Matthew we pray, "Give us daily bread this
day:" here, "Give it us day by day"--kaq
hmeran. Day by day; that is, "Give us each
day the bread which our bodies require, as they call for it:" not,
"Give us this day bread for many days to come;" but as the
Israelites had manna, "Let us have bread to-day for to-day,
and to-morrow for to-morrow;" for thus we may be kept in
a continual dependence upon God, as children upon their parents, and
may have our mercies fresh from his hand daily, and may find ourselves under
fresh obligations to do the work of every day in the day, according
as the duty of the day requires, because we have from God the
supplies of every day in the day, according as the necessity of the day
requires. Here is likewise some difference in the fifth petition. In
Matthew it is, Forgive us our debts, as we forgive: here it is, Forgive
us our sins; which proves that our sins are our debts. For we
forgive; not that our forgiving those that have offended us can merit
pardon from God, or be an inducement to him to forgive us (he forgives for
his own name's sake, and his Son's sake); but this is a very necessary
qualification for forgiveness, and, if God have wrought it in us, we may
plead that work of his grace for the enforcing of our petitions for the
pardon of our sins: "Lord, forgive us, for thou hast thyself inclined
us to forgive others." There is another addition here; we plead not
only in general, We forgive our debtors, but in particular, "We
profess to forgive every one that is indebted to us, without
exception. We so forgive our debtors as not to bear malice or
ill-will to any, but true love to all, without any exception
whatsoever." Here also the doxology in the close is wholly omitted, and
the Amen; for Christ would leave them at liberty to use that or any
other doxology fetched out of David's psalms; or, rather, he left a vacuum
here, to be filled up by a doxology more peculiar to the Christian
institutes, ascribing glory to Father, Son, and Holy Ghost.
2. Yet it is, for substance, the same; and we shall therefore here only
gather up some general lessons from it.
(1.) That in prayer we ought to come to God as children to a Father,
a common Father to us and all mankind, but in a peculiar manner a
Father to all the disciples of Jesus Christ. Let us therefore in our
requests both for others and for ourselves, come to him with a humble
boldness, confiding in his power and goodness.
(2.) That at the same time, and in the same petitions, which we address to
God for ourselves, we should take in with us all the children of
men, as God's creatures and our fellow-creatures. A rooted principle of catholic
charity, and of Christian sanctified humanity, should go along
with us, and dictate to us throughout this prayer, which is so worded as to
be accommodated to that noble principle.
(3.) That in order to the confirming of the habit of heavenly-mindedness in
us, which ought to actuate and govern us in the whole course of our
conversation, we should, in all our devotions, with an eye of faith look heavenward,
and view the God we pray to as our Father in heaven, that we may make
the upper world more familiar to us, and may ourselves become better
prepared for the future state.
(4.) That in prayer, as well as in the tenour of our lives, we must seek
first the kingdom of God and the righteousness thereof, by ascribing
honour to his name, his holy name, and power to his government, both
that of his providence in the world and that of his grace in the church. O
that both the one and the other may be more manifested, and we and others
more manifestly brought into subjection to both!
(5.) That the principles and practices of the upper
world, the unseen world (which therefore by faith only we are apprized
of), are the great original--the arcetupon,
to which we should desire that the principles and practices of this lower
world, both in others and in ourselves, may be more conformable. Those
words, As in heaven, so on earth, refer to all the first three
petitions: "Father, let thy name be sanctified and glorified,
and thy kingdom prevail, and thy will be done on this earth that is now
alienated from thy service, as it is in yonder heaven that is entirely
devoted to thy service."
(6.) That those who faithfully and sincerely mind the kingdom of God, and
the righteousness thereof, may humbly hope that all other things, as
far as to Infinite Wisdom seems good, shall be added to them, and
they may in faith pray for them. If our first chief desire and care be that
God's name may be sanctified, his kingdom come, and his will be done, we may
then come boldly to the throne of grace for our daily bread, which
will then be sanctified to us when we are sanctified to God, and God
is sanctified by us.
(7.) That in our prayers for temporal blessings we must moderate our
desires, and confine them to a competency. The expression here used
of day by day is the very same with our daily bread; and
therefore some think that we must look for another signification of the word
epiousioV than that of daily,
which we give it, and that it means our necessary bread, that bread
that is suited to the craving of our nature, the fruit that is
brought out of the earth for our bodies that are made of the earth and are
earthly, Ps. civ. 14.
(8.) That sins are debts which we are daily contracting, and which therefore
we should every day pray for the forgiveness of. We are not only going
behind with our rent every day by omissions of duty and in duty, but
are daily incurring the penalty of the law, as well as the forfeiture of our
bond, by our commissions. Every day adds to the score of our guilt,
and it is a miracle of mercy that we have so much encouragement given us to
come every day to the throne of grace, to pray for the pardon of our sins of
daily infirmity. God multiplies to pardon beyond seventy times seven.
(9.) That we have no reason to expect, nor can with any confidence pray,
that God would forgive our sins against him, if we do not sincerely,
and from a truly Christian principle of charity, forgive those that
have at any time affronted us or been injurious to us. Though the words
of our mouth be even this prayer to God, if the meditation of our
heart at the same time be, as often it is, malice and revenge to our
brethren, we are not accepted, nor can we expect an answer of peace.
(10.) That temptations to sin should be as much dreaded and deprecated by us
as ruin by sin; and it should be as much our care and prayer to get the
power of sin broken in us as to get the guilt of sin removed from us; and
though temptation may be a charming, fawning, flattering thing, we must be
as earnest with God that we may not be led into it as that we may not be led
by that to sin, and by sin to ruin.
(11.) That God is to be depended upon, and sought unto, for our deliverance from
all evil; and we should pray, not only that we may not be left to
ourselves to run into evil, but that we may not be left to Satan to bring
evil upon us. Dr. Lightfoot understands it of being delivered from the
evil one, that is, the devil, and suggests that we should pray
particularly against the apparitions of the devil and his possessions. The
disciples were employed to cast out devils, and therefore were
concerned to pray that they might be guarded against the particular spite he
would always be sure to have against them.
IV. He stirs up and encourages importunity, fervency, and constancy, in
prayer, by showing,
1. That importunity will go far in our dealings with men, v. 5-8.
Suppose a man, upon a sudden emergency, goes to borrow a loaf or two of
bread of a neighbour, at an unseasonable time of night, not for himself, but
for his friend that came unexpectedly to him. His neighbour will be loth to
accommodate him, for he has wakened him with his knocking, and put him out
of humour, and he has a great deal to say in his excuse. The door is shut
and locked, his children are asleep in bed, in the same room with him, and,
if he make a noise, he shall disturb them. His servants are asleep, and he
cannot make them hear; and, for his own part, he shall catch cold if he rise
to give him. But his neighbour will have no nay, and therefore he continues knocking
still, and tells him he will do so till he has what he comes for; so that he
must give it to him, to be rid of him: He will rise, and give him as many
as he needs, because of his importunity. He speaks this parable with the
same intent that he speaks that in ch. xviii. 1: That men ought
always to pray, and not to faint. Not that God can be wrought upon by
importunity; we cannot be troublesome to him, nor by being so change his
counsels. We prevail with men by importunity because they are displeased
with it, but with God because he is pleased with it. Now this
similitude may be of use to us,
(1.) To direct us in prayer. [1.] We must come to God with boldness
and confidence for what we need, as a man does to the house of his
neighbour or friend, who, he knows, loves him, and is inclined to be kind to
him. [2.] We must come for bread, for that which is needful,
and which we cannot be without. [3.] We must come to him by prayer for
others as well as for ourselves. This man did not come for bread
for himself, but for his friend. The Lord accepted Job, when he
prayed for his friends, Job xlii. 10. We cannot come to God upon a more
pleasing errand than when we come to him for grace to enable us to do good,
to feed many with our lips, to entertain and edify those that
come to us. [4.] We may come with the more boldness to God in a strait, if
it be a strait that we have not brought ourselves into by our own folly and
carelessness, but Providence has led us into it. This man would not have
wanted bread if his friend had not come in unexpectedly. The care
which Providence casts upon us, we may with cheerfulness cast back upon
Providence. [5.] We ought to continue instant in prayer, and watch in
the same with all perseverance.
(2.) To encourage us in prayer. If importunity could prevail thus
with a man who was angry at it, much more with a God who is
infinitely more kind and ready to do good to us than we are to one
another, and is not angry at our importunity, but accepts it, especially
when it is for spiritual mercies that we are importunate. If he do not
answer our prayers presently, yet he will in due time, if we continue to
pray.
2. That God has promised to give us what we ask of him. We have not only the
goodness of nature to take comfort from, but the word which he has spoken (v.
9, 10): "Ask, and it shall be given you; either the thing itself
you shall ask or that which is equivalent; either the thorn in the flesh
removed, or grace sufficient given in."--We had this before, Matt. vii.
7, 8. I say unto you. We have it from Christ's own mouth, who knows
his Father's mind, and in whom all promises are yea and amen. We must not
only ask, but we must seek, in the use of means, must second
our prayers with our endeavours; and, in asking and seeking,
we must continue pressing, still knocking at the same door, and we
shall at length prevail, not only by our prayers in concert, but by our
particular prayers: Every one that asketh receiveth, even the meanest
saint that asks in faith. This poor man cried, and the Lord heard him,
Ps. xxxiv. 6. When we ask of God those things which Christ has here directed
us to ask, that his name may be sanctified, that his kingdom may come, and
his will be done, in these requests we must be importunate, must never
hold our peace day or night; we must not keep silence, nor give
God any rest, until he establish, until he make Jerusalem a praise in the
earth, Isa. lxii. 6, 7.
V. He gives us both instruction and encouragement in prayer from the
consideration of our relation to God as a Father. Here is,
1. An appeal to the bowels of earthly fathers:
"Let any of you that is a father, and knows the heart of a
father, a father's affection to a child and care for a child, tell me, if
his son ask bread for his breakfast, will he give him a stone
to breakfast on? If he ask a fish for his dinner (when it may be a
fish-day), will he for a fish give him a serpent, that will poison
and sting him? Or, if he shall ask an egg for his supper (an egg and
to bed), will he offer him a scorpion? You know you could not be so
unnatural to your own children," v. 11, 12.
2. An application of this to the blessings of our heavenly
Father (v. 13): If ye then, being evil, give, and know how
to give, good gifts to your children, much more shall God give you the
Spirit. He shall give good things; so it is in Matthew. Observe,
(1.) The direction he gives us what to pray for. We must ask for the Holy
Spirit, not only a necessary in order to our praying well, but as
inclusive of all the good things we are to pray for; we need no more to make
us happy, for the Spirit is the worker of spiritual life, and the earnest of
eternal life. Note, The gift of the Holy Ghost is a gift we are every one of
us concerned earnestly and constantly to pray for.
(2.) The encouragement he gives us to hope that we shall speed in
this prayer: Your heavenly Father will give. It is in his power
to give the Spirit; he has all good things to bestow, wrapped up in that
one; but that is not all, it is in his promise, the gift of the
Holy Ghost is in the covenant, Acts ii. 33, 38, and it is here inferred
from parents' readiness to supply their children's needs, and gratify
their desires, when they are natural and proper. If the child ask for
a serpent, or a scorpion, the father, in kindness, will deny
him, but not if he ask for what is needful, and will be nourishing.
When God's children ask for the Spirit, they do, in effect, ask for bread;
for the Spirit is the staff of life; nay, he is the Author of the soul's
life. If our earthly parents, though evil, be yet so kind, if they,
though weak, be yet so knowing, that they not only give, but
give with discretion, give what is best, in the best manner and time, much
more will our heavenly Father, who infinitely excels the fathers of
our flesh both in wisdom and goodness, give us his Holy Spirit. If
earthly parents be willing to lay out for the education of their children,
to whom they design to leave their estates, much more will our heavenly
Father give the spirit of sons to all those whom he has predestinated to the
inheritance of sons.
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Christ
Accused of Leaguing with Satan; Watchfulness Inculcated.
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14 And he was casting out a devil, and it was
dumb. And it came to pass, when the devil was gone out, the dumb spake; and
the people wondered. 15 But some of them said, He casteth out
devils through Beelzebub the chief of the devils. 16 And others,
tempting him, sought of him a sign from heaven. 17 But
he, knowing their thoughts, said unto them, Every kingdom divided against
itself is brought to desolation; and a house divided against a house
falleth. 18 If Satan also be divided against himself, how shall
his kingdom stand? because ye say that I cast out devils through
Beelzebub. 19 And if I by Beelzebub cast out devils, by whom do
your sons cast them out? therefore shall they be your judges.
20 But if I with the finger of God cast out devils, no doubt the kingdom of
God is come upon you. 21 When a strong man armed keepeth his
palace, his goods are in peace: 22 But when a stronger than he
shall come upon him, and overcome him, he taketh from him all his armour
wherein he trusted, and divideth his spoils. 23 He that is not
with me is against me: and he that gathereth not with me scattereth.
24 When the unclean spirit is gone out of a man, he walketh through dry
places, seeking rest; and finding none, he saith, I will return unto my
house whence I came out. 25 And when he cometh, he findeth it
swept and garnished. 26 Then goeth he, and taketh to him
seven other spirits more wicked than himself; and they enter in, and dwell
there: and the last state of that man is worse than the first.
The substance of these verses we had in Matt. xii. 22, &c. Christ is
here giving a general proof of his divine mission, by a particular proof of
his power over Satan, his conquest of whom was an indication of his great
design in coming into the world, which was, to destroy the works of the
devil. Here too he gives an earnest of the success of that undertaking.
He is here casting out a devil that made the poor possessed man dumb:
in Matthew we are told that he was blind and dumb. When the
devil was forced out by the word of Christ, the dumb spoke
immediately, echoed to Christ's word, and the lips were opened to show forth
his praise. Now,
I. Some were affected with this miracle. The people wondered;
they admired the power of God, and especially that it should be exerted by
the hand of one who made so small a figure, that one who did the work of the
Messiah should have so little of that pomp of the Messiah which they
expected.
II. Others were offended at it, and, to justify their infidelity,
suggested that it was by virtue of a league with Beelzebub, the prince of
the devils, that he did this, v. 15. It seems, in the devil's kingdom
there are chiefs, which supposes that there are subalterns. Now they would
have it thought, or said at least, that there was a
correspondence settled between Christ and the devil, that the devil should
have the advantage in the main and be victorious at last, but that in order
hereto, in particular instances, he should yield Christ the advantage and
retire by consent. Some, to corroborate this suggestion, and confront
the evidence of Christ's miraculous power, challenged him to give them a
sign from heaven (v. 16), to confirm his doctrine by some
appearance in the clouds, such as was upon mount Sinai when the law
was given; as if a sign from heaven, not disprovable by any sagacity
of theirs, could not have been given them as well by a compact and collusion
with the prince of the power of the air, who works with power and lying
wonders, as the casting out of a devil; nay, that would not have
been any present prejudice to his interest, which this manifestly was. Note,
Obstinate infidelity will never be at a loss for something to say in its own
excuse, though ever so frivolous and absurd. Now Christ here returns a full
and direct answer to this cavil of theirs; in which he shows,
1. That it can by no means be imagined that such a subtle prince as Satan is
should ever agree to measures that had such a direct tendency to his own
overthrow, and the undermining of his own kingdom, v. 17, 18. What
they objected they kept to themselves, afraid to speak it, lest it should be
answered and baffled; but Jesus knew their thoughts, even when they
industriously thought to conceal them, and he said, "You yourselves
cannot but see the groundlessness, and consequently the spitefulness, of
this charge; for it is an allowed maxim, confirmed by every day's
experience, that no interest can stand that is divided against itself; not
the more public interest of a kingdom, nor the private
interest of a house or family; if either the one or the other be divided
against itself, it cannot stand. Satan would herein act against himself;
not only by the miracle which turned him out of possession of the bodies of
people, but much more in the doctrine for the explication and confirmation
of which the miracle was wrought, which had a direct tendency to the ruin of
Satan's interest in the minds of men, by mortifying sin, and turning men to
the service of God. Now, if Satan should thus be divided against himself,
he would hasten his own overthrow, which you cannot suppose an enemy to do
that acts so subtlely for his own establishment, and is so solicitous to
have his kingdom stand."
2. That was a very partial ill-natured thing for them to impute that in him
to a compact with Satan which yet they applauded and admired in others that
were of their own nation (v. 19): "By whom do your sons cast
them out? Some of your own kindred, as Jews, nay, and some of
your own followers, as Pharisees, have undertaken, in the name of the
God of Israel, to cast out devils, and they were never charged with such a
hellish combination as I am charged with." Note, It is gross hypocrisy
to condemn that in those who reprove us which yet we allow
in those that flatter us.
3. That, in opposing the conviction of this miracle, they were enemies to
themselves, stood in their own light, and put a bar in their own door, for
they thrust from them the kingdom of God (v. 20): "If I with
the finger of God cast out devils, as you may assure yourselves I do, no
doubt the kingdom of God is come upon you, the kingdom of the Messiah
offers itself and all its advantages to you, and, if you receive it not, it
is at your peril." In Matthew it is by the Spirit of God, here by
the finger of God; the Spirit is the arm of the Lord, Isa. liii.
1. His greatest and most mighty works were wrought by his Spirit;
but, if the Spirit in this work is said to be the finger of the Lord,
it perhaps may intimate how easily Christ did and could conquer
Satan, even with the finger of God, the exerting of the divine power
in a less and lower degree than in many other instances. He needed not make
bare his everlasting arm; that roaring lion, when he pleases,
is crushed, like a moth, with a touch of a finger. Perhaps here is an
allusion to the acknowledgment of Pharaoh's magicians, when they were run
aground (Exod. viii. 19): This is the finger of God. "Now if the
kingdom of God be herein come to you, and you be found by
those cavils and blasphemies fighting against it, it will come upon you
as a victorious force which you cannot stand before."
4. That his casting out devils was really the destroying of them and their
power, for it confirmed a doctrine which had a direct tendency to the
ruining of his kingdom, v. 21, 22. Perhaps there had been some who
had cast out the inferior devils by compact with Beelzebub their chief, but
that was without any real damage or prejudice to Satan and his kingdom, what
he lost one way he gained another. The devil and such exorcists played
booty, as we say, and, while the forlorn hope of his army gave
ground, the main body thereby gained ground; the interest of
Satan in the souls of men was not weakened by it in the least. But, when
Christ cast out devils, he needed not do it by any compact with them, for he
was stronger than they, and could do it by force, and did it
so as to ruin Satan's power and blast his great design by that doctrine and
that grace which break the power of sin, and so rout Satan's main body, take
from him all his armour, and divide his spoils, which no one
devil ever did to another or ever will. Now this is applicable to Christ's
victories over Satan both in the world and in the hearts of particular
persons, by that power which went along with the preaching of his gospel,
and does still. And so we may observe here,
(1.) The miserable condition of an unconverted sinner. In his heart, which
was fitted to be a habitation of God, the devil has his palace; and all the
powers and the faculties of the soul, being employed by him in the service
of sin, are his goods. Note, [1.] The heart of every unconverted
sinner is the devil's palace, where he resides and where he rules;
he works in the children of disobedience. The heart is a palace,
a noble dwelling; but the unsanctified heart is the devil's palace.
His will is obeyed, his interests are served, and the militia is in his
hands; he usurps the throne in the soul. [2.] The devil, as a strong
man armed, keeps this palace, does all he can to secure it to himself,
and to fortify it against Christ. All the prejudices with which he hardens
men's hearts against truth and holiness are the strong-holds which he
erects for the keeping of his palace; this palace is his garrison.
[3.] There is a kind of peace in the palace of an unconverted soul,
while the devil, as a strong man armed, keeps it. The sinner has a
good opinion of himself, is very secure and merry, has no doubt concerning
the goodness of his state nor any dread of the judgment to come; he flatters
himself in his own eyes, and cries peace to himself. Before Christ appeared,
all was quiet, because all went one way; but the preaching of the
gospel disturbed the peace of the devil's palace.
(2.) The wonderful change that is made in conversion, which is Christ's
victory over this usurper. Satan is a strong man armed; but
our Lord Jesus is stronger than he, as God, as Mediator. If we
speak of strength, he is strong: more are with us than against
us. Observe, [1.] The manner of this victory: He comes upon him
by surprise, when his goods are in peace and the devil thinks it is
all his own for ever, and overcomes him. Note, The conversion
of a soul to God is Christ's victory over the devil and his power in that
soul, restoring the soul to its liberty, and recovering his own interest in
it and dominion over it. [2.] The evidences of this victory. First,
He takes from him all his armour wherein he trusted. The devil is a confident
adversary; he trusts to his armour, as Pharaoh to his rivers
(Ezek. xxix. 3): but Christ disarms him. When the power of sin and
corruption in the soul is broken, when the mistakes are rectified, the eyes
opened, the heart humbled and changed, and made serious and spiritual, then
Satan's armour is taken away. Secondly, He divides the
spoils; he takes possession of them for himself. All the
endowments of mind and body, the estate, power, interest, which before were
made use of in the service of sin and Satan, are now converted to Christ's
service and employed for him; yet this is not all; he makes a
distribution of them among his followers, and, and having conquered
Satan, gives to all believers the benefit of that victory. Hence Christ
infers that, since the whole drift of his doctrine and miracles was to break
the power of the devil, that great enemy of mankind, it was the duty of all
to join with him and to follow his guidance, to receive his gospel and come
heartily into the interests of it; for otherwise they would justly be
reckoned as siding with the enemy (v. 23): He that is not with me
is against me. Those therefore who rejected the doctrine of Christ, and
slighted his miracles, were looked upon as adversaries to him, and in the
devil's interest.
5. That there was a vast difference between the devil's going out by
compact and his being cast out by compulsion. Those out of whom
Christ cast him he never entered into again, for so was Christ's
charge (Mark ix. 25); whereas, if he had gone out, whenever he saw
fit he would have made a re-entry, for that is the way of the unclean
spirit, when he voluntarily and with design goes out of a man, v.
24-26. The prince of the devils may give leave, nay, may give
order, to his forces to retreat, or make a feint, to draw the poor
deluded soul into an ambush; but Christ, as he gives a total,
so he gives a final, defeat to the enemy. In this part of the
argument he has a further intention, which is to represent the state of
those who have had fair offers made them,--among whom, and in whom, God has
begun to break the devil's power and overthrow his kingdom,--but they reject
his counsel against themselves, and relapse into a state of subjection to
Satan. Here we have,
(1.) The condition of a formal hypocrite, his bright side and
his dark side. His heart still remains the devil's house; he
calls it his own, and he retains his interest in it; and yet, [1.] The unclean
spirit is gone out. He was not driven out by the power of
converting grace; there was none of that violence which the kingdom
of heaven suffers; but he went out, withdrew for a time, so that the
man seemed not to be under the power of Satan as formerly, nor so followed
with his temptations. Satan is gone, or has turned himself into an
angel of light. [2.] The house is swept from common pollutions,
by a forced confession of sin, as Pharaoh's--a feigned contrition for it, as
Ahab's,--and a partial reformation, as Herod's. There are those that have escaped
the pollutions of the world, and yet are still under the power of the god
of this world, 2 Pet. ii. 20. The house is swept, but it is not washed;
and Christ hath said, If I wash thee not, thou hast no part with me;
the house must be washed, or it is none of his. Sweeping takes
off only the loose dirt, while the sin that besets the sinner, the
beloved sin, is untouched. It is swept from the filth that lies open to the
eye of the world, but it is not searched and ransacked for secret
filthiness, Matt. xxiii. 25. It is swept, but the leprosy is in
the wall, and will be till something more be done. [3.] The house is garnished
with common gifts and graces. It is not furnished with any true
grace, but garnished with the pictures of all graces. Simon Magus was
garnished with faith, Balaam with good desires, Herod with a respect
for John, the Pharisees with many external performances. It is garnished,
but it is like a potsherd covered with silver dross, it is all paint
and varnish, not real, not lasting. The house is garnished, but the
property is not altered; it was never surrendered to Christ, nor inhabited
by the Spirit. Let us therefore take heed of resting in that which a man may
have and yet come short.
(2.) Here is the condition of a final apostate, into whom the devil
returns after he had gone out: Then goes he, and takes seven other
spirits more wicked than himself (v. 26); a certain number for an
uncertain, as seven devils are said to be cast out of Mary Magdalene.
Seven wicked spirits are opposed to the seven spirits of God,
Rev. iii. 1. These are said to be more wicked than himself. It seems, even
devils are not all alike wicked; probably, the degrees of their wickedness,
now that they are fallen, are as the degrees of their holiness were
while they stood. When the devil would do mischief most effectually, he
employs those that are more mischievous than himself. These enter in
without any difficulty or opposition; they are welcomed, and they dwell
there; there they work, there they rule; and the last
state of that man is worse than the first. Note, [1.] Hypocrisy is the
high road to apostasy. If the heart remains in the interest of sin and
Satan, the shows and shadows will come to nothing; those that have
not set that right will not long be stedfast. Where secret haunts of sin are
kept up, under the cloak of a visible profession, conscience is debauched,
God is provoked to withdraw his restraining grace, and the close
hypocrite commonly proves an open apostate, [2.] The last state of
such is worse than the first, in respect both of sin and punishment.
Apostates are usually the worst of men, the most vain and profligate, the
most bold and daring; their consciences are seared, and their sins of all
others the most aggravated. God often sets marks of his displeasure upon
them in this world, and in the other world they will receive the
greater damnation. Let us therefore hear, and fear, and hold fast our
integrity.
27 And it came to pass, as he spake these
things, a certain woman of the company lifted up her voice, and said unto
him, Blessed is the womb that bare thee, and the paps which thou hast
sucked. 28 But he said, Yea rather, blessed are they that
hear the word of God, and keep it.
We had not this passage in the other evangelists, nor can we tack it, as Dr.
Hammond does, to that of Christ's mother and brethren desiring to speak with
him (for this evangelist also has related that in ch. viii. 19), but
it contains an interruption much like that, and, like that, occasion is
taken from it for instruction.
1. The applause which an affectionate, honest, well-meaning woman gave to
our Lord Jesus, upon hearing his excellent discourses. While the scribes and
Pharisees despised and blasphemed them, this good woman (and probably she
was a person of some quality) admired them, and the wisdom and power with
which he spoke: As he spoke these things (v. 27), with a
convincing force and evidence, a certain woman of the company was so
pleased to hear how he had confounded the Pharisees, and conquered them, and
put them to shame, and cleared himself from their vile insinuations, that
she could not forbear crying out, "Blessed is the womb that bore
thee. What an admirable, what an excellent man is this! Surely never was
there a greater or better born of a woman: happy the woman that has him for
her son. I should have thought myself very happy to have been the mother of
one that speaks as never man spoke, that has so much of the grace of
heaven in him, and is so great a blessing to this earth." This was well
said, as it expressed her high esteem of Christ, and that for the sake
of his doctrine; and it was not amiss that it reflected honour upon the
virgin Mary his mother, for it agreed with what she herself had said (ch.
i. 48), All generations shall call me blessed; some even of this
generation, bad as it was. Note, To all that believe the word of Christ the
person of Christ is precious, and he is an honour, 1 Pet. ii. 7. Yet
we must be careful, lest, as this good woman, we too much magnify the honour
of his natural kindred, and so know him after the flesh, whereas we
must now henceforth know him so no more.
2. The occasion which Christ took from this to pronounce them more
happy who are his faithful and obedient followers than she was who bore and
nursed him. He does not deny what this woman said, nor refuse her respect to
him and his mother; but leads her from this to that which was of higher
consideration, and which more concerned her: Yea, rather, blessed are
they that hear the word of God, and keep it, v. 28. He thinks
them so; and his saying that they are so makes them so, and should make us
of his mind. This is intended partly as a check to her, for doting so
much upon his bodily presence and his human nature, partly as an encouragement
to her to hope that she might be as happy as his own mother, whose happiness
she was ready to envy, if she would hear the word of God and keep it.
Note, Though it is a great privilege to hear the word of God, yet those only
are truly blessed, that is, blessed of the Lord, that hear it and keep
it, that keep it in memory, and keep to it as their way and rule.
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The Sign of the Prophet Jonah.
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29 And when the people were gathered thick
together, he began to say, This is an evil generation: they seek a sign; and
there shall no sign be given it, but the sign of Jonas the prophet.
30 For as Jonas was a sign unto the Ninevites, so shall also the Son of man
be to this generation. 31 The queen of the south shall rise up
in the judgment with the men of this generation, and condemn them: for she
came from the utmost parts of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon; and,
behold, a greater than Solomon is here. 32 The men of
Nineve shall rise up in the judgment with this generation, and shall condemn
it: for they repented at the preaching of Jonas; and, behold, a greater than
Jonas is here. 33 No man, when he hath lighted a candle,
putteth it in a secret place, neither under a bushel, but on a
candlestick, that they which come in may see the light. 34 The
light of the body is the eye: therefore when thine eye is single, thy whole
body also is full of light; but when thine eye is evil, thy body also
is full of darkness. 35 Take heed therefore that the
light which is in thee be not darkness. 36 If thy whole body
therefore be full of light, having no part dark, the whole shall be
full of light, as when the bright shining of a candle doth give thee light.
Christ's discourse in these verses shows two things:--
I. What is the sign we may expect from God for the confirmation
of our faith. The great and most convincing proof of Christ's being
sent of God, and which they were yet to wait for, after the many signs that
had been given them, was the resurrection of Christ from the dead. Here is,
1. A reproof to the people for demanding other signs than what had already
been given them in great plenty: The people were gathered thickly
together (v. 29), a vast crowd of them, expecting not so much to
have their consciences informed by the doctrine of Christ as to have their
curiosity gratified by his miracles. Christ knew what brought such a
multitude together; they came seeking a sign, they came to gaze, to
have something to talk of when they went home; and it is an evil
generation which nothing will awaken and convince, no, not the most
sensible demonstrations of divine power and goodness.
2. A promise that yet there should be one sign more given them,
different from any that had yet been given them, even the sign of Jonas
the prophet, which in Matthew is explained as meaning the resurrection
of Christ. As Jonas being cast into the sea, and lying there three days,
and then coming up alive and preaching repentance to the Ninevites, was a
sign to them, upon which they turned from their evil way, so shall the death
and resurrection of Christ, and the preaching of his gospel immediately
after to the Gentile world, be the last warning to the Jewish nation. If
they be provoked to a holy jealousy by this, well and good; but, if
this do not work upon them, let them look for nothing but utter ruin: The
Son of Man shall be a sign to this generation (v. 30), a sign
speaking to them, though a sign spoken against by them.
3. A warning to them to improve this sign; for it was at their peril if they
did not. (1.) The queen of Sheba would rise up in judgment against
them, and condemn their unbelief, v. 31. She was a
stranger to the commonwealth of Israel, and yet so readily gave credit to
the report she heard of the glories of a king of Israel, that,
notwithstanding the prejudices we are apt to conceive against foreigners,
she came from the uttermost parts of the earth to hear his wisdom,
not only to satisfy her curiosity, but to inform her mind, especially in the
knowledge of the true God and his worship, which is upon record, to her
honour; and, behold, a greater than Solomon in here, pleion
SolomwnoV--more than a Solomon is here;
that is, says Dr. Hammond, more of wisdom and more heavenly divine doctrine
than ever was in all Solomon's words or writings; and yet these wretched
Jews will give no manner of regard to what Christ says to them, though he be
in the midst of them. (2.) The Ninevites would rise up in judgment against
them, and condemn their impenitency (v. 32): They repented at the
preaching of Jonas; but here is preaching which far exceeds that of
Jonas, is more powerful and awakening, and threatens a much sorer ruin than
that of Nineveh, and yet none are startled by it, to turn from their evil
way, as the Ninevites did.
II. What is the sign that God expects from us for the evidencing
of our faith, and that is the serious practice of that religion which we
profess to believe, and a readiness to entertain all divine truths, when
brought to us in their proper evidence. Now observe,
1. They had the light with all the advantage they could desire. For
God, having lighted the candle of the gospel, did not put it in a secret
place, or under a bushel; Christ did not preach in corners. The
apostles were ordered to preach the gospel to every creature; and both
Christ and his ministers, Wisdom and her maidens, cry in the chief places
of concourse, v. 33. It is a great privilege that the light of
the gospel is put on a candlestick, so that all that come in may see
it, and may see by it where they are and whither they are going,
and what is the true, and sure, and only way to happiness.
2. Having the light, their concern was to have the sight, or
else to what purpose had they the light? Be the object ever so clear,
if the organ be not right, we are never the better: The
light of the body is the eye (v. 34), which receives the light of
the candle when it is brought into the room. So the light of the soul is the
understanding and judgment, and its power of discerning between good and
evil, truth and falsehood. Now, according as this is, so the light of divine
revelation is to us, and our benefit by it; it is a savour of life unto
life, or of death unto death. (1.) If this eye of the soul be single,
if it see clear, see things as they are, and judge impartially
concerning them, if it aim at truth only, and seek it for its own
sake, and have not any sinister by--looks and intentions, the whole body,
that is, the whole soul, is full of light, it receives and entertains
the gospel, which will bring along with it into the soul both knowledge
and joy. This denotes the same thing with that of the good ground, receiving
the word and understanding it. If our understanding admits the
gospel in its full light, it fills the soul, and it has enough to fill
it. And if the soul be thus filled with the light of the gospel, having
no part dark,--if all its powers and faculties be subjected to the
government and influence of the gospel, and none left unsanctified,--then the
whole soul shall be full of light, full of holiness and comfort. It
was darkness itself, but now light in the Lord, as when the bright
shining of a candle doth give thee light, v. 36. Note, The gospel
will come into those souls whose doors and windows are thrown open to
receive it; and where it comes it will bring light with it. But, (2.) If the
eye of the soul be evil,--if the judgment be bribed and
biassed by the corrupt and vicious dispositions of the mind, by pride
and envy, by the love of the world and sensual pleasures,--if the
understanding be prejudiced against divine truths, and resolved not
to admit them, though brought with ever so convincing an evidence,--it is no
wonder that the whole body, the whole soul, should be full of
darkness, v. 34. How can they have instruction, information,
direction, or comfort, from the gospel, that wilfully shut their eyes
against it? and what hope is there of such? what remedy for them? The
inference hence therefore is, Take heed that the light which is in thee
be not darkness, v. 35. Take heed that the eye of the mind be not
blinded by partiality, and prejudice, and sinful aims. Be sincere in your
enquiries after truth, and ready to receive it in the light, and love, and
power of it; and not as the men of this generation to whom Christ
preached, who never sincerely desired to know God's will, nor designed
to do it, and therefore no wonder that they walked on in darkness,
wandered endlessly, and perished eternally.
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Woes
Denounced on That Generation; The Pharisees and Lawyers Reproved.
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37 And as he spake, a certain Pharisee
besought him to dine with him: and he went in, and sat down to meat.
38 And when the Pharisee saw it, he marvelled that he had not first
washed before dinner. 39 And the Lord said unto him, Now do ye
Pharisees make clean the outside of the cup and the platter; but your inward
part is full of ravening and wickedness. 40 Ye fools, did
not he that made that which is without make that which is within also?
41 But rather give alms of such things as ye have; and, behold, all things
are clean unto you. 42 But woe unto you, Pharisees! for ye tithe
mint and rue and all manner of herbs, and pass over judgment and the love of
God: these ought ye to have done, and not to leave the other undone.
43 Woe unto you, Pharisees! for ye love the uppermost seats in the
synagogues, and greetings in the markets. 44 Woe unto you,
scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye are as graves which appear not,
and the men that walk over them are not aware of them.
45 Then answered one of the lawyers, and said unto him, Master, thus saying
thou reproachest us also. 46 And he said, Woe unto you also, ye
lawyers! for ye lade men with burdens grievous to be borne, and ye
yourselves touch not the burdens with one of your fingers. 47
Woe unto you! for ye build the sepulchres of the prophets, and your fathers
killed them. 48 Truly ye bear witness that ye allow the deeds of
your fathers: for they indeed killed them, and ye build their
sepulchres. 49 Therefore also said the wisdom of God, I will
send them prophets and apostles, and some of them they shall slay and
persecute: 50 That the blood of all the prophets, which was shed
from the foundation of the world, may be required of this generation;
51 From the blood of Abel unto the blood of Zacharias, which perished
between the altar and the temple: verily I say unto you, It shall be
required of this generation. 52 Woe unto you, lawyers! for ye
have taken away the key of knowledge: ye entered not in yourselves, and them
that were entering in ye hindered. 53 And as he said these
things unto them, the scribes and the Pharisees began to urge him
vehemently, and to provoke him to speak of many things: 54
Laying wait for him, and seeking to catch something out of his mouth, that
they might accuse him.
Christ here says many of those things to a Pharisee and his guests, in a private
conversation at table, which he afterwards said in a public discourse
in the temple (Matt. xxiii.); for what he said in public and private was of
a piece. He would not say that in a corner which he durst not repeat and
stand to in the great congregation; nor would he give those reproofs to any
sort of sinners in general which he durst not apply to them in particular as
he met with them; for he was, and is, the faithful Witness. Here is,
I. Christ's going to dine with a Pharisee that very civilly invited him to
his house (v. 37); As he spoke, even while he was speaking, a certain
Pharisee interrupted him with a request to him to come and dine with
him, to come forthwith, for it was dinner-time. We are willing to
hope that the Pharisee was so well pleased with his discourse that he was
willing to show him respect, and desirous to have more of his company, and
therefore gave him this invitation and bade him truly welcome; and yet we
have some cause to suspect that it was with an ill design, to break
off his discourse to the people, and to have an opportunity of ensnaring him
and getting something out of him which might serve for matter of accusation
or reproach, v. 53, 54. We know not the mind of this Pharisee; but,
whatever it was, Christ knew it: if he meant ill, he shall know Christ does
not fear him; if well, he shall know Christ is willing to do him good: so he
went in, and sat down to meat. Note, Christ's disciples must learn of
him to be conversable, and not morose. Though we have need to
be cautious what company we keep, yet we need not be rigid,
nor must we therefore go out of the world.
II. The offence which the Pharisee took at Christ, as those of that sort had
sometimes done at the disciples of Christ, for not washing before dinner,
v. 38. He wondered that a man of his sanctity, a prophet, a man of so
much devotion, and such a strict conversation, should sit down to meat, and
not first wash his hands, especially being newly come out of a mixed
company, and there being in the Pharisee's dining-room, no doubt, all
accommodations set ready for it, so that he need not fear being troublesome;
and the Pharisee himself and all his guests, no doubt, washing, so
that he could not be singular; what, and yet not wash? What harm had
it been if he had washed? Was it not strictly commanded by the canons of
their church? It was so, and therefore Christ would not do it,
because he would witness against their assuming a power to impose that as a
matter of religion which God commanded them not. The ceremonial law
consisted in divers washings, but this was none of them, and
therefore Christ would not practise it, no not in complaisance to the
Pharisee who invited him, nor though he knew that offence would be taken at
his omitting it.
III. The sharp reproof which Christ, upon this occasion, gave to the
Pharisees, without begging pardon even of the Pharisee whose guest he now
was; for we must not flatter our best friends in any evil thing.
1. He reproves them for placing religion so much in those instances of it
which are only external, and fall under the eye of man, while those were not
only postponed, but quite expunged, which respect the soul,
and fall under the eye of God, v. 39, 40. Now observe here, (1.) The
absurdity they were guilty of: "You Pharisees make clean the outside
only, you wash your hands with water, but do not wash your hearts from
wickedness; these are full of covetousness and malice, covetousness
of men's goods, and malice against good men." Those can never be
reckoned cleanly servants that wash only the outside of the cup
out of which their master drinks, or the platter out of which he
eats, and take no care to make clean the inside, the filth of which
immediately affects the meat or drink. The frame or temper of the
mind in every religious service is as the inside of the cup and
platter; the impurity of this infects the services, and therefore to
keep ourselves free from scandalous enormities, and yet to live under the
dominion of spiritual wickedness, is as great an affront to God as it would
be for a servant to give the cup into his master's hand, clean wiped from
all the dust on the outside, but within full of cobwebs and spiders. Ravening
and wickedness, that is, reigning worldliness and reigning
spitefulness, which men think they can find some cloak and cover for,
are the dangerous damning sins of many who have made the outside of the
cup clean from the more gross, and scandalous, and inexcusable sins of
whoredom and drunkenness. (2.) A particular instance of the absurdity of it:
"Ye fools, did not he that made that which is without make that
which is within also? v. 40. Did not that God who in the law of
Moses appointed divers ceremonial washings, with which you justify
yourselves in these practices and impositions, appoint also that you should
cleanse and purify your hearts? He who made laws for that which is without,
did not he even in those laws further intend something within, and by other
laws show how little he regarded the purifying of the flesh, and the putting
away of the filth of that, if the heart be not made clean?" Or, it
may have regard to God not only as a Lawgiver, but (which the words
seem rather to import) as a Creator. Did not God, who made us these bodies
(and they are fearfully and wonderfully made), make us these souls
also, which are more fearfully and wonderfully made? Now, if he made both,
he justly expects we should take care of both; and therefore not only wash
the body, which he is the former of, and make the hands clean
in honour of his work, but wash the spirit, which he is the Father of, and
get the leprosy in the heart cleansed.
To this he subjoins a rule for making our creature-comforts clean to us (v.
41): "Instead of washing your hands before you go to meat, give
alms of such things as you have" (ta
enonta--of such things as are set before you,
and present with you); "let the poor have their share out of them,
and then all things are clean to you, and you may use them
comfortably." Here is a plain allusion to the law of Moses, by which it
was provided that certain portions of the increase of their land should be
given to the Levite, the stranger, the fatherless, and the widow;
and, when that was done, what was reserved for their own use was clean to
them, and they could in faith pray for a blessing upon it, Deut. xxvi.
12-15. Then we can with comfort enjoy the gifts of God's bounty
ourselves when we send portions to them for whom nothing is prepared,
Neh. viii. 10. Job ate not his morsel alone, but the fatherless
ate thereof, and so it was clean to him (Job xxxi. 17); clean,
that is, permitted and allowed to be used, and then only can it be used
comfortably. Note, What we have is not our own, unless God have his dues out
of it; and it is by liberality to the poor that we clear up to
ourselves our liberty to make use of our creature-comforts.
2. He reproves them for laying stress upon trifles, and neglecting the
weighty matters of the law, v. 42. (1.) Those laws which related only
to the means of religion they were very exact in the observance of,
as particularly those concerning the maintenance of the priests: Ye pay
tithe of mint and rue, pay it in kind and to the full, and will not put
off the priests with a modus decimandi or compound for it. By
this they would gain reputation with the people as strict observers of the
law, and would make an interest in the priests, in whose power it was many a
time to do them a kindness; and no wonder if the priests and the Pharisees
contrived how to strengthen one another's hands. Now Christ does not condemn
them for being so exact in paying tithes (these things ought ye to have
done), but to think that this would atone for the neglect of their
greater duties; for, (2.) Those laws which relate to the essentials of
religion they made nothing of: You pass over judgment and the love of
God, you make no conscience of giving men their dues and God your
hearts.
3. He reproves them for their pride and vanity, and affectations of
precedency and praise of men (v. 43): "Ye love the uppermost
seats in the synagogues" (or consistories where the elders met for
government); "if you have not those seats, you are ambitious of them;
if you have, you are proud of them; and you love greetings in the
markets, to be complimented by the people and to have their cap and
knee." It is not sitting uppermost, or being greeted, that is reproved,
but loving it.
4. He reproves them for their hypocrisy, and their colouring over the
wickedness of their hearts and lives with specious pretences (v. 44):
"You are as graves overgrown with grass, which therefore appear
not, and the men that walk over them are not aware of them, and
so they contract the ceremonial pollution which by the law arose from the touch
of a grave." These Pharisees were within full of abominations,
as a grave of putrefaction; full of covetousness, envy, and malice; and yet
they concealed it so artfully with a profession of devotion, that it did not
appear, so that they who conversed with them, and followed their doctrine,
were defiled with sin, infected with their corruptions and ill morals, and
yet, they making a show of piety, suspected no danger by them. The contagion
insinuated itself, and was insensibly caught, and those that
caught it thought themselves never the worse.
IV. The testimony which he bore also against the lawyers or scribes, who
made it their business to expound the law according to the tradition
of the elders, as the Pharisees did to observe the law according to
that tradition.
1. There was one of that profession who resented what he said against the
Pharisees (v. 45): "Master, thus saying thou reproachest us
also, for we are scribes; and we are therefore hypocrites?" Note,
It is a common thing for unhumbled sinners to call and count reproofs
reproaches. It is the wisdom of those who desire to have their sin mortified
to make a good use of reproaches that come from ill will, and
to turn them into reproofs. If we can in this way hear of our faults, and
amend them, it is well: but it is the folly of those who are wedded to their
sins, and resolved not to part with them, to make an ill use of the
faithful and friendly admonitions given them, which come from love, and to
have their passions provoked by them as if they were intended for reproaches,
and therefore fly in the face of their reprovers, and justify themselves in
rejecting the reproof. Thus the prophet complained (Jer. vi. 10): The
word of the Lord is to them a reproach; they have no delight in it. This
lawyer espoused the Pharisee's cause, and so made himself partaker of his
sins.
2. Our Lord Jesus thereupon took them to task (v. 46): Woe unto
you also, ye lawyers; and again (v. 52): Woe unto you lawyers.
They blessed themselves in the reputation they had among the people, who
thought them happy men, because they studied the law, and were always
conversant with that, and had the honour of instructing the people in the
knowledge of that; but Christ denounced woes against them, for he
sees not as man sees. This was just upon him for taking the Pharisee's part,
and quarrelling with Christ because he reproved them. Note, Those who
quarrel with the reproofs of others, and suspect them to be reproaches to
them, do but get woes of their own by so doing.
(1.) The lawyers are reproved for making the services of religion more burdensome
to others, but more easy to themselves, than God had made them (v.
46): "You lade men with burdens grievous to be borne, by your
traditions, which bind them out from many liberties God has allowed
them, and bind them up to many slaveries which God never enjoined
them, to show your authority, and to keep people in awe; but you
yourselves touch them not with one of your fingers;" that is, [1.]
"You will not burden yourselves with them, nor be yourselves
bound by those restraints with which you hamper others." They would
seem, by the hedges they pretended to make about the law, to be very strict
for the observance of the law; but, if you could see their practices, you
would find that they not only make nothing of those hedges themselves, but
make nothing of the law itself neither: thus the confessors of the Romish
church are said to do with their penitents. [2.] "You will not lighten
them to those you have power over; you will not touch them, that is,
either to repeal them or to dispense with them when you find them to be
burdensome and grievous to the people." They would come in with both
hands to dispense with a command of God, but not with a finger to
mitigate the rigour of any of the traditions of the elders.
(2.) They are reproved for pretending a veneration for the memory of the
prophets whom their fathers killed, when yet they hated and persecuted those
in their own day who were sent to them on the same errand, to call them to
repentance, and direct them to Christ, v. 47-49. [1.] These
hypocrites, among other pretences of piety, built the sepulchres of the
prophets; that is, they erected monuments over their graves, in honour
of them, probably with large inscriptions containing high encomiums of them.
They were not so superstitious as to enshrine their relics, or to think
their devotions the more acceptable to God for being offered at the tombs
of the martyrs; they did not burn incense or pray to them, or plead
their merits with God; they did not add that iniquity to their hypocrisy;
but, as if they owned themselves the children of the prophets, their
heirs and executors, they repaired and beautified the
monuments sacred to their pious memory. [2.] Notwithstanding this,
they had an inveterate enmity to those in their own day that
came to them in the spirit and power of those prophets; and,
though they had not yet had an opportunity of carrying it far, yet they
would soon do it, for the Wisdom of God said, that is, Christ himself
would so order it, and did now foretel it, that they would slay
and persecute the prophets and apostles that should be sent them. The
Wisdom of God would thus make trial of them, and discover their
odious hypocrisy, by sending them prophets, to reprove them for their sins
and warn them of the judgments of God. Those prophets should prove
themselves apostles, or messengers sent from heaven, by signs, and wonders,
and gifts of the Holy Ghost. Or, "I will send them prophets
under the style and title of apostles, who yet shall produce as good an
authority as any of the old prophets did; and these they shall not only
contradict and oppose, but slay and persecute, and put to
death." Christ foresaw this, and yet did not otherwise than as became
the Wisdom of God in sending them, for he knew how to bring glory to
himself in the issue, by the recompences reserved both for the persecutors
and the persecuted in the future state. [3.] That therefore God will
justly put another construction upon their building the tombs
of the prophets than what they would be thought to intend, and it shall be
interpreted their allowing the deeds of their fathers (v. 45);
for, since by their present actions it appeared that they had no true value
for their prophets, the building of their sepulchres shall have this
sense put upon it, that they resolved to keep them in their graves whom
their fathers had hurried thither. Josiah, who had a real value for
prophets, thought it enough not to disturb the grave of the man of God at
Bethel: Let no man move his bones, 2 Kings xxiii. 17, 18. If these
lawyers will carry the matter further, and will build their sepulchres,
it is such a piece of over-doing as gives cause to suspect an ill
design in it, and that it is meant as a cover for some design against
prophecy itself, like the kiss of a traitor, as he that blesseth his
friend with a loud voice, rising early in the morning, it shall be counted a
curse to him, Prov. xxvii. 14.
[4.] That they must expect no other than to be reckoned with, as the fillers
up of the measure of persecution, v. 50, 51. They keep up
the trade as it were in succession, and therefore are responsible for the debts
of the company, even those it has been contracting all along from
the blood of Abel, when the world began, to that of Zacharias, and so
forward to the end of the Jewish state; it shall all be required of this
generation, this last generation of the Jews, whose sin in persecuting
Christ's apostles would exceed any of the sins of that kind that their
fathers were guilty of, and so would bring wrath upon them to the
uttermost, 1 Thess. ii. 15, 16. Their destruction by the Romans was so
terrible that it might well be reckoned the completing of God's vengeance
upon that persecuting nation.
(3.) They are reproved for opposing the gospel of Christ, and doing all they
could to obstruct the progress and success of it, v. 52. [1.] They
had not, according to the duty of their place, faithfully expounded to the
people those scriptures of the Old Testament which pointed at the Messiah,
which if they had been led into the right understanding of by the lawyers,
they would readily have embraced him and his doctrine: but, instead of that,
they had perverted those texts, and had cast a mist before the eyes of the
people, by their corrupt glosses upon them, and this is called taking
away the key of knowledge; instead of using that key for the
people, and helping them to use it aright, they hid it from them;
this is called, in Matthew, shutting up the kingdom of heaven against
men, Matt. xxiii. 13. Note, those who take away the key of knowledge
shut up the kingdom of heaven. [2.] They themselves did not embrace
the gospel of Christ, though by their acquaintance with the Old Testament
they could not but know that the time was fulfilled, and the kingdom
of God was at hand; they saw the prophecies accomplished in that kingdom
which our Lord Jesus was about to set up, and yet would not themselves enter
into it. Nay, [3.] Them that without any guidance or assistance of
theirs were entering in they did all they could to hinder and
discourage, by threatening to cast them out of the synagogue, and
otherwise terrifying them. It is bad for people to be averse to revelation,
but much worse to be adverse to it.
Lastly, In the close of the chapter we are told how spitefully and
maliciously the scribes and Pharisees contrived to draw him into a
snare, v. 53, 54. They could not bear those cutting reproofs which
they must own to be just; but what he had said against them in particular
would not bear an action, nor could they ground upon it any criminal
accusation, and therefore, as if, because his reproofs were warm, they hoped
to stir him up to some intemperate heat and passion, so as to put him off
his guard, they began to urge him vehemently, to be very fierce upon
him, and to provoke him to speak of many things, to propose dangerous
questions to him, laying wait for something which might serve the
design they had of making him either odious to the people, or obnoxious
to the government, or both. Thus did they seek occasion against him, like
David's enemies that did every day wrest his words, Ps. lvi. 5. Evil
men dig up mischief. Note, Faithful reprovers of sin must expect to have
many enemies, and have need to set a watch before the door of their lips,
because of their observers that watch for their halting. The prophet
complains of those in his time who make a man an offender for a word, and
lay a snare for him that reproveth in the gate, Isa. xxix. 21. That we
may bear trials of this kind with patience, and get through them with
prudence, let us consider him who endured such contradiction of sinners
against himself.
