Matthew 12:21

And in his name shall the Gentiles trust.

And in his name shall the Gentiles trust. Part of His present audience were Gentiles-from Tyre and And in his name shall the Gentiles trust. Part of His present audience were Gentiles-from Tyre and Sidon-first-fruits of the great Gentile harvest, contemplated in the prophecy.

Remarks:

(1) Did Christians habitually act on the great principle by which our Lord held Himself bound-that to neglect any opportunity of doing good is to do evil-what a different face would the Church, and society, and even the world at large, soon put on! And shall not we who write, and we who read or hear these things, strive prayerfully for ourselves to act upon it?

(2) What a picture of finely-balanced sensibilities have we in the emotions of "anger" and "grief" which the conduct of the Pharisees on this occasion kindled in the bosom of Jesus! It is possible, we see, to "be angry and sin not" (Ephesians 4:26); but first, the anger must not be causeless (see the note at Matthew 5:22); and next, even though just, nay, though demanded by the occasion, as in the present case, that anger is never sinless, unless when "grief" for what kindles the "anger" mingles with and tempers it.

(3) In the remarkable command, to stretch forth a withered hand, we have an illustration of such seemingly unreasonable calls as these: "Prophesy upon these bones, and say unto them, O ye dry bones, hear the word of the Lord" (Ezekiel 37:4); "Incline your ear, and come unto me: hear, and your soul shall live" (Isaiah 55:3); "Awake thou that sleepest, and arise from the dead, and Christ shall give thee light" (Ephesians 5:14). To ask dry bones to hear and live, and call upon the dead to listen and live, and demand from the impotent an exercise of power-there is apparent mockery in all this. Yet as the dry bones, in the vision, when prophesied to as commanded, did hear and obey; and the withered hand found power to extend itself-even so, it is no vain thing to say to the dead in sin, "Hear, and your soul shall live." Your "wise and prudent" (see the note at Matthew 11:25), will demonstrate to you, that one or other of these things must be false: 'either they are not dead, or, if they be, they can't hear; and if they hear, you need not add "and your soul shall live," for they are alive already.' But if the narrative of this section be not a fable, all such reasoning is false; and as long as the Gospel History lives, this narrative will stand out at once as a directory and as a glorious encouragement, to preach to the dead in sin as the divinely appointed means of summoning them into life.

(4) Determined prejudice against the truth is only irritated by additional evidence. Of this the whole conduct of the Pharisees toward our Lord forms one varied, vivid, and affecting illustration.

(5) If the enemies of the truth, notwithstanding their mutual jealousies and discords, find it easy to unite and cooperate against the truth which they feel a common interest in crushing, how shameful is it that Christians should allow their petty differences to prevent combined action for the advancement of their common Christianity!

(6) The predicted noiselessness of Messiah's footsteps, and the gentleness of His dealings with feeble and tender souls, opens up a great general principle of moral and spiritual strength. This was grandly illustrated to Elijah. Standing on Mount Horeb, the Lord passed by, while a great and strong wind rent the mountains, and brake in pieces the rocks before him; but the Lord was not in the wind: and after the wind an earthquake; but the Lord was not in the earthquake: and after the earthquake a fire; but the Lord was not in the fire: and after the fire, a still small voice: And it was so, when Elijah heard it, that he wrapped his face in his mantle (1 Kings 19:11). Yes, in that still small voice the prophet felt the immediate presence of God, as he had not done in the wind, nor in the earthquake, nor in the fire. True power is quiet. Even "a soft answer turneth away wrath" (Proverbs 15:1); and how grand-though all noiseless and imperceptible-is the growth of the animal and vegetable world! Let the servants of Christ, then, not estimate the value of the work done in His service by the sound of their movements and the noise of the machinery, but by the steady silent purpose and the persistent activity with which they prosecute the work given them to do. The precise time of this section is uncertain. Judging from the statements with which Mark introduces it, we should conclude that it was when our Lord's popularity was approaching its zenith, and so, before the feeding of the five thousand. But, on the other hand, the advanced state of the charges brought against our Lord, and the plainness of His warnings and denunciations in reply, seem to favour the later period at which Luke introduces it. "And the multitude," says Mark (Mark 3:20), "cometh together again," referring back to the immense gathering which Mark had before recorded (Mark 2:2) - "so that they could not so much as eat bread. And when His friends" [ hoi (G3588) par' (G3844) autou (G846)] - or rather, 'relatives,' as appears from Mark 3:31, and see the note at Matthew 12:46 - "heard of it, they went out to lay hold on Him: for they said, He is beside Himself" [ exestee (G1839)]. Compare 2 Corinthians 5:13, "For whether we are beside ourselves [ exesteemen (G1839)], it is to God."