Expositor's Greek Testament (Nicoll)

Matthew 3:4

αὐτὸς δὲ ὁ Ἰ. The story returns to the historical person, John, and identifies him with the herald of prophecy. “This same John.” Then follows a description of his way of life his clothing and his food, the details conveying a life-like picture of the manner of the man: his habits congruous to his vocation. τὸ ἔνδυμα ἀπὸ τριχῶν καμήλου : his characteristic (αὐταῦ) piece of clothing was a rough rude garment woven out of camel's hair, not as some have thought, a camel's skin. We read in Hebrews 11:37, of sheep skins and goat skins worn by some of God's saints, but not of camel skins. Fritzsche takes the opposite view, and Grotius. Euthy., following Chrysostom, says: “Do not ask who wove his garment, or whence he got his girdle; for more wonderful is it that he should live from childhood to manhood in so inhospitable a climate”. John took his fashion in dress from Elijah, described (2 Kings 1:8) as “an hairy man, and girt with a girdle of leather about his loins”. It need not be doubted that the investment is historical, not a legendary creation, due to the opinion that John was Elijah redivivus. The imitation in dress does not imply a desire to pass for Elijah, but expresses similarity of mood. ἡ δὲ τροφὴ : his diet as poor as his clothing was mean. ἀκρίδες : the last of four kinds of edible locusts named in Leviticus 11:22 (Sept [13]), still it seems used by the poor in the east; legs and wings stripped off, and the remainder boiled or roasted. “The Beduins of Arabia and of East Jordan land eat many locusts, roasted, boiled or baked in cakes. In Arabia they are sold in the market. They taste not badly” (Benzinger, Hebraische Archäologie). Euthy. reports to the same effect as to his own time: many eat it in those parts τεταριχευμένον (pickled). Not pleasant food, palatable only to keen hunger. If we may trust Epiphanius, the Ebionites, in their aversion to animal food, grudged the Baptist even that poor diet, and restricted him to cakes made with honey (ἐγκρίδας ἐν μελίτι), or to honey alone. Vide Nicholson's Gospel according to the Hebrews, p. 34, and the notes there; also Suicer's Thesaurus, sub. v. ἀκρίς. μέλι ἄγριον : opinion is divided between bee honey and tree honey, i.e., honey made by wild bees in trees or holes in the rocks, or a liquid exuding from palms and fig trees. (On this also consult Nicholson, Gospel of Hebrews, p. 35.) Both were used as food, but our decision should incline to vegetable honey, on the simple ground that it was the poorer food. Bee honey was a delicacy, and is associated with milk in Scripture in descriptions of a fertile land. The vegetable product would suit best John's taste and state. “Habitatori solitudinis congruum est, non delicias ciborum, sed necessitatem humanae carnis explere.” Jerome.

[13] Septuagint.

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Expositor's Greek Testament (Nicoll)

Matthew 3:4

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