Matthew 9:1-8. Cure of a Man afflicted with Paralysis Mark 2:1-12; Luke 5:18-26 Both St Mark and St Luke notice the crowding of the people to hear Jesus, and narrate the means by which the sufferer was brought into His presence.... [ Continue Reading ]
_a ship_ As ch. Matthew 8:23, THE BOAT. _his own city_ Capernaum.... [ Continue Reading ]
_sick of the palsy_ not "grievously tormented" (see ch. Matthew 8:6), therefore suffering from a less severe type of paralysis. _lying_ The same word and tense translated "laid," ch. Matthew 8:6, where see note. _their faith_ The faith of those who brought him, as well as his own. Cp. Mark 9:23-24... [ Continue Reading ]
When Jesus said "Thy sins have been forgiven thee" the young man did not immediately rise (see Matthew 9:7). Instantly the scribes thought with a sneer "this fellow blasphemes," i. e. pretends to a divine power which he does not possess. They said in their hearts it is easy to say, "Thy sins have be... [ Continue Reading ]
_take up thy bed_ The Oriental frequently spreads a mat upon the ground and sleeps in the open air, in the morning he rolls up his mat and carries it away.... [ Continue Reading ]
The Call of St Matthew. Mark 2:14; Luke 5:27-28 St Mark has "Levi, the son of Alphæus," St Luke "a publican named Levi." The identification of Matthew with Levi can scarcely be seriously disputed. The circumstances of the call are precisely similar as narrated by the Synoptists; and it was too usua... [ Continue Reading ]
A Meal in the Evangelist's House. Mark 2:15-17; Luke 5:29-32 10. _in the house_ St Luke says "and Levi made him a great feast," which makes it clear that the meal was in Levi's house.... [ Continue Reading ]
_when the Pharisees saw it_ The Pharisees were not guests, but came into the house, a custom still prevalent in the East. A traveller writes from Damietta, "In the room where we were received, besides the divan on which we sat, there were seats all round the walls. Many came in and took their place... [ Continue Reading ]
_They that be whole_, &c. There is a touch of irony in the words. They that are "whole" are they who think themselves whole. So below, the "righteous" are those who are righteous in their own eyes.... [ Continue Reading ]
_I will have mercy_ i. e. _I_ DESIRE _mercy_. I require mercy rather than sacrifice, Hosea 6:6. It is a protest by the prophet against the unloving, insincere formalist of his day. It is closely parallel to our Lord's injunction, ch. Matthew 5:23-24. Sacrifice without mercy is no acceptable sacrific... [ Continue Reading ]
A Question about Fasting. Mark 2:18-22; Luke 5:33-39 It is not quite clear whether this further incident took place at Levi's feast. St Luke leads us to draw that inference.... [ Continue Reading ]
_the children of the bridechamber_ See note, Matthew 9:6. "The children of the bridechamber" were the bridegroom's friends or groomsmen who went to conduct the bride from her father's house (see note, ch. Matthew 25:1). The procession passed through the streets, gay with festive dress, and enlivened... [ Continue Reading ]
_No man_ Rather, BUT no man. The particle δέ (but) is omitted in E. V.; it marks a turn in the argument which is indicated still more clearly in Luke (Luke 5:36), "And (but) He spake also a parable unto them." The words of Jesus here take a wider range. He says in effect to John's disciples: "Your q... [ Continue Reading ]
_new wine into old bottles_ The Oriental bottles are skins of sheep or goats. Old bottles would crack and leak. This may be regarded as a further illustration of the doctrine taught in the preceding verse. But it is better to give it an individual application. The new wine is the new law, the freedo... [ Continue Reading ]
_a certain ruler_ From Mark and Luke we learn that he was chief ruler of the synagogue, Jairus by name. _My daughter_ "My little daughter," (Mark); "one only daughter, about twelve years of age," (Luke). _is even now dead_ "lieth at the point of death," (Mark); "lay a-dying," (Luke).... [ Continue Reading ]
The Daughter of Jairus, 18, 19 and 23 26; Mark 5:22-24; Mark 5:35-43; Luke 8:41-42; Luke 8:49-56 The Woman cured of an Issue of Blood, 20 22. Mark 5:25-34; Luke 8:43-48 Related with more detail by St Mark and St Luke. She had spent all her living on physicians. Jesus perceives that virtue has gone... [ Continue Reading ]
_hem of his garment_ See ch. Matthew 14:36 and Matthew 22:5.... [ Continue Reading ]
_she said_ The imperfect tense of the original; denotes intensity of feeling, "she kept saying over and over to herself.... [ Continue Reading ]
_thy faith hath made thee whole_ Rather, "thy faith hath SAVED thee," and not the external act of touching my garment. True faith spiritual insight will be accepted by Jesus in spite of ignorance.... [ Continue Reading ]
St Mark and St Luke mention the message to Jairus on the way, that his daughter was already dead, and name the three disciples whom Jesus permits to enter the house with him. _the minstrels and the people making a noise_ The minstrels are mentioned by St Matthew only. Cp. 2 Chronicles 35:25, "all t... [ Continue Reading ]
_is not dead, but sleepeth_ These words are reported without variation by the three Synoptists; it is open to question whether they ought not to be taken literally. The word for sleepeth (καθεύδει) does not bear the metaphorical force of κοιμᾶσθαι; and the statement of Jesus is very explicit.... [ Continue Reading ]
_Son of David_ See note ch. Matthew 1:1. The thought of the kingdom of heaven had been closely linked with the reign of a Son of David, but doubtless with many Jews the glory of the Asmonean dynasty (the Maccabees) and the established power of the Herods had tended to obscure this expectation. To ha... [ Continue Reading ]
A Cure of two Blind Men Peculiar to St Matthew. Archbp. Trench alludes to the fact that cases of blindness are far more numerous in the East than in Western countries. "The dust and flying sand enter the eyes, causing inflammations.… the sleeping in the open air, and the consequent exposure of the... [ Continue Reading ]
_straitly charged_ The word in the original is a remarkable one, Literally, TO ROAR, then (1) "to charge with vehement threats," then (2) "to enjoin strictly," (here and Mark 1:43); (3) to be loudly indignant (Mark 14:5); (4) "to groan in the spirit;" said of our Lord at the grave of Lazarus (John 1... [ Continue Reading ]
Cure of a Dumb Man possessed by an evil spirit. St Luke 11:14-15 34. _He casteth out the devils through the prince of the devils_ The answer to this charge is given, ch. Matthew 12:25-30.... [ Continue Reading ]
The Preaching of Jesus. The Harvest of the World 35. See ch. Matthew 4:23. All diseases, acute as well as chronic.... [ Continue Reading ]
_fainted_ The word in the received text has no MS. authority; read HARASSED. _scattered abroad_ Rather, perhaps, _neglected, set at nought_, rejected by the national teachers.... [ Continue Reading ]
_The harvest truly is plenteous_, &c. The same expression occurs Luke 10:2 on the occasion of sending forth the Seventy, cp. also John 4:35, "Lift up your eyes and look on the fields, for they are white already to harvest.... [ Continue Reading ]
_send forth_ The original word is more forcible, implying a strong impulse; it is used Mark 1:12. "The spirit _driveth_him into the wilderness;" and frequently of casting out evil spirits, also of casting into outer darkness (ch. Matthew 25:30).... [ Continue Reading ]