Matthew 8:4

See thou tell no man] According to St. Mark He dismissed the man abruptly, almost violently, with an urgent command to be silent. Only one explanation of this is at all probable. He feared, as in John 6:15, that the people would proclaim Him Messiah, and force Him to be the leader of a revolution. Offer the gift] i.e. a sacrifice of two he-lambs without blemish, and one ewe-lamb of the first year without blemish. For the details see Leviticus 14. For a testimony unto them] i.e. a proof of the genuineness of his cure. The priests, after examining him, could not refuse his gift, and their acceptance of it would be valid testimony that he had really been cured of his leprosy. In face of the injunction to tell no man, we cannot imagine that Christ intended him to notify the priests of the manner of his healing, and so challenge them to examine His claims. The man seems, however, to have disobeyed the injunction (Mark 1:45), so that this miracle helped to arouse the opposition which Christ soon afterwards encountered (Matthew 9:3; Matthew 9:11; Matthew 9:34).