Matthew 10:39

He that findeth his life, &c.— "He who makes shipwreck of faith and a good conscience to save his life, shall lose that which is really so,—his everlasting happiness; whereas he who maintains his integrity with the loss of life, and all its enjoyments, shall find what is infinitely better,—a blessed immortality." See ch. Matthew 16:24. There is in this sentence a kind of figure, whereby the same word is used in different senses, in such a manner as to convey the sentiment with greater energy to the attentive. "He who, by making a sacrifice of his duty, preserves temporal life, shall lose eternal life; and contrariwise." The like trope or figure our Lord employs in that expression, ch. Matthew 8:22. Let the dead bury their dead. Let the spiritually dead bury the naturally dead. See also ch. Matthew 13:12. In the present instance, the figure has a beauty in the original, which we cannot give in a version. See Campbell.