Luke 9:57,58

1 st. Luke 9:57-58.

Luke says, a certain man; in Matthew it is a scribe. Why this difference, if they follow the same document?

The homage of the man breathed a blind confidence in his own strength. The answer of Jesus is a call to self-examination. To follow such a Master whithersoever He goeth, more is needed than a good resolution; he must walk in the way of self-mortification (Luke 9:23). The word κατασκήνωσις strictly denotes shelter under foliage, as opposed to holes in the earth. Night by night Jesus received from the hand of His Father a resting-place, which He knew not in the morning; the beasts were better off in respect of comfort. The name Son of man is employed with precision here to bring out the contrast between the Lord of creation and His poorest subjects.

This offer and answer are certainly put more naturally at the time of final departure from Galilee, than at the beginning of a few hours' or a few days' excursion, as in Matthew.