Mark 1:1 The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ. These words mean, not the title of the book, but the commencement of the narrative; and so they depend upon what follows, namely, "as it is written" (καθῶς for ὠς), "even as it is written." The words "the gospel of Jesus Christ" do not signify the book which St. Mark wrote, but the evangelical teaching of Jesus Christ. St. Mark means that the gospel announcement by Jesus Christ had such a beginning as had been predicted by Isaiah and Malachi, namely, the preaching of John the Baptist, and his testimony concerning Christ, to be fully laid open by the preaching and the death of Christ. The preaching of repentance by the Baptist was the preparation and the beginning of the evangelical preaching by Christ, of whom John was the forerunner. It has been well observed that St. Matthew and St. John begin their Gospels from Christ himself; but St. Matthew from the human, and St. John from the Divine, generation of Christ. St. Mark and St. Luke commence from John the Baptist; but St. Luke from his nativity, and St, John from his preaching. The words, the Son of God, are rightly retained in the Revised Version, although they are omitted by some ancient authorities. Mark 1:2 Even as it is written in the prophets. The weight of evidence is here in favor of the reading "in Isaiah the prophet." Three of the most important uncials (à, B, and L), and twenty-six of the cursives, have the reading "Isaiah." With these agree the Italic, Coptic, and Vulgate versions. Of the Fathers, Irenaeus quotes the passage three times, twice using the words "in the prophets," and once "in Isaiah the prophet." Generally the Fathers agree that "Isaiah" is the received reading. The more natural reading would of course be "in the prophets,’’ inasmuch as two prophets are quoted; but in deciding upon readings, it constantly happens that the less likely reading is the more probable. In the case before us we can hardly account for "Isaiah" being exchanged for "the prophets," although we can quite understand "the prophets" being interpolated for "Isaiah." Assuming, then, that St. Mark wrote "in Isaiah the prophet," we may ask why he mentions Isaiah only and not Malachi? The answer would seem to be this, that here the voice of Isaiah is the more powerful of the two. But in real truth, Malachi says the same thing that Isaiah says; for the messenger sent from God to prepare the way of Christ was none other than John, crying aloud and preaching repentance as a preparation for the receiving of the grace of Christ. The oracle of Malachi is, in fact, contained in the oracle of Isaiah; for what Malachi predicted, the same had Isaiah more clearly and concisely predicted in other words. And this is the reason why St. Mark here, and other evangelists elsewhere, when they cite two prophets, and two or more sentences from different places in the same connection, cite them as one and the same testimony, each sentence appearing to be not so much two, as one and the same declaration differently worded. Mark 1:4 John came, and preached the baptism of repentance. John came, that is, that he might rouse the people to repentance, and prepare them, by the outward cleansing of their bodies, to receive the cleansing of their souls through Christ’s baptism, which was to follow his. So that the baptism of John was the profession of their penitence. Hence they who were baptized with his baptism confessed their sins, and thus made the first step towards the forgiving mercy which was to be found in Christ; and the seal of his forgiveness they were to look for in his baptism, which is a baptism for the remission of sins to all true penitents and faithful believers. Christ’s baptism was, therefore, the perfection and consummation of the baptism of John. Mark 1:6 Clothed with camel’s hair. This was a rough, coarse garment, characteristic of the doctrine which John taught, namely, penitence and contempt of the world. Camels abounded in Syria. And a leathern girdle about his loins. Not only the prophets, but the Jews and the inhabitants of Syria generally, used a girdle to keep the long flowing garment more closely about them, so as to leave them more free for journeying or for labour. Thus our Lord says (Luke 12:35), "Let your loins be girded about, and your lamps burning." And he did eat locusts and wild honey. The insect called the locust (ἀκρὶς) was permitted to be eaten (see Le John 11:22). It was used as food by the common people in Judaea. The Arabs eat them to this day; but they are considered as a common and inferior kind of food. They are a sign of temperance, poverty, and penitence. The wild honey (μέλιἄγριον) was simply honey made by wild bees, either in the trees or in the hollows of the rocks. Isidorus says that it was of an inferior flavour. Both these kinds of food were consistent with the austere life and the solemn preaching of the Baptist. Mark 1:7 The latchet of whose shoes I am not worthy to stoop down and unloose. This was the menial office of the slave, whose business it was to take off? and put on the shoes of his master, stooping down with all humility and respect for this purpose. Thus John confessed that he was the servant of Christ, and that Christ was his Lord. In a mystical sense the shoes denote the humanity of Christ, which by its union with the Word became of the highest dignity and majesty. St. Bernard says, "The majesty of the Word was shod with the sandal of our humanity." Mark 1:8 I baptized you with water; but he shall baptize you with [or in] the Holy Ghost. It is as though he said, "Christ will pour his Holy Spirit so abundantly upon you, that he will cleanse you from all your sins, and fill you with holiness and love and all his other excellent graces." Christ did this visibly on the day of Pentecost. And this he does invisibly in the. sacrament of Holy Baptism, and in the rite of Confirmation, which is the completion of the sacrament of Baptism. John baptized with water only, but Christ with water and the Holy Spirit. John baptized the body only, Christ baptizes the soul. By how much, therefore, the Holy Spirit transcends the water, and the soul excels the body, by so much is Christ’s baptism more excellent than that of John, which was only preparatory and rudimentary. If it be asked why it was needful that our Lord should be baptized with John’s baptism, the best answer is that given by Christ himself, "Suffer it to be so now; for thus it becometh us to fulfill all righteousness;" it becometh us—me in receiving this baptism, and you in imparting it. Christ was sent to do the whole will of God; and as in his circumcision, so in his baptism, "he was made to be sin for us, who knew no sin." Mark 1:10 Straightway (εὐθέως) coming up out of the water, he saw the heavens opened (σχιζομένους); literally, rent asunder. The word εὐθέως occurs more than forty times in this Gospel, and is so characteristic of St. Mark that, in the Revised Version, it is uniformly rendered by the same English synonym, "straightway." He saw. Elsewhere we are told (John 1:32) that St. John the Baptist saw this descent. The earliest heretics took advantage of this statement to represent this event as the descent of the eternal Christ upon the man Jesus for personal indwelling. Later critics have adopted this view. But it need hardly be said here that such an opinion is altogether inconsistent with all that we read elsewhere of the circumstances of the Incarnation, and of the intimate and indissoluble union of the Divine and human natures in the person of the one Christ, from the time of the "overshadowing of the Virgin Mary by the power of the Highest." The Spirit descending upon him at his baptism was not the descent of the eternal Christ upon the man Jesus. It was rather the conveyance to one who was already prepared for it as God and man, of office and authority as the great Prophet that should come into the world. St. Luke says particularly (Luke 3:21) that it was when Jesus had been baptized and was praying, that the Holy Spirit descended upon him; plainly showing us that it was not through the baptism of John, but through the meritorious obedience and the prayer of the Son of God, that the heavens were "rent asunder," and the Holy Spirit descended upon him. Mark 1:12 Driveth him (ἐκβάλλει); literally, driveth him forth. That Holy Spirit, which not long before he had received at his baptism, impelled him with great energy; so that of his own accord he went forth, armed with Divine power, into the desert, that there, as in a wrestling-place, he might contend alone with Satan. There Christ and antichrist met, and entered upon the conflict upon the issue of which our salvation depended. Mark 1:13 Forty days tempted of Satan. St. Mark gathers up the whole temptation into this one sentence; and the passage would seem to imply that the three temptations recorded by St. Matthew and St. Luke were not the only trials through which our Lord passed during those forty days, although they were no doubt the prominent and the most powerful assaults upon our Redeemer. And he was with the wild beasts (μετὰτῶνθηρίων). This shows the extreme solitude of the place. It shows also the innocence of our Lord, that there, in that wild and desolate district, amongst lions, and wolves, and leopards, and serpents, he neither feared them nor was injured by them. He dwelt amongst them as Adam lived with them in his state of innocence in Paradise. These wild beasts recognized and revered their Creater and their Lord. And the angels ministered unto him. This, as we learn from St. Matthew (Matthew 4:11), was after his temptation and victory. Some have thought that Jesus became known to the devil as the Son of God, by the reverence and adoration of the angels. Thus Jesus showed in his own person, when alone he had striven with Satan and, had overcome him, that heavenly comfort and the ministry of angels are provided by God for those who overcome temptation. Mark 1:14 Now after that John was put in prison (μετὰτὸπαραδοθῆναι); literally, was delivered up. This was our Lord’s second coming into Galilee. Galilee had been specially designated as the scene of the Divine manifestation (see Isaiah 9:1, Isaiah 9:2). The land of Galilee, or of Zebulun and Naphtali, had the misfortune to be the first in the sad calamity which fell upon the Jewish nation through the Assyrian invasion; and, in order to console them under this grievious affliction, Isaiah assures them that, by way of recompense, they, above the rest of their brethren, should have the chief share in the presence and ministry of the future promised Messiah. It seems probable that our Lord remained some time in Judaea after his baptism. From thence he went, with Andrew and Peter, two of John’s disciples, into Galilee, where he called Philip. And then it was that he turned the water into wine at the marriage feast in Cana. This was his first coming out of Judaea into Galilee, related by St. John (John 1:43, etc.). But the Passover brought him back into Judaea, that he might present himself in the temple; and then occurred his first purging of the temple (John 2:14). Then came the visit of Nicedemus to him by night; and then he began openly to preach and to baptize (John 3:26), and thus incurred the envy of the scribes and Pharisees. Therefore he left Judaea, and departed again into Galilee; and this is the departure here recorded by St. Mark and by St. Matthew (Matthew 4:12). Hence it came to pass that it was in Galilee that Christ called to himself four fishermen—Andrew and Peter, James and John. Mark 1:15 The time is fulfilled; that is, the time for the coming of Messiah and of his kingdom. The kingdom which had been shut for so many ages was now to be reopened by the preaching and the death of Christ. The time is very accurately indicated. St. Matthew tells us (Matthew 4:12) that "when Jesus had heard that John was cast into prison, he departed into Galilee;" and then presently afterwards he adds, "From that time Jesus began to preach and to say, Repent, for the kingdom of God is at hand." The time and place are also accurately specified by St. Peter (Acts 10:36, Acts 10:37), where he tells Cornelius that "the word of peace, preached by Jesus Christ, was published throughout all Judaea, and began from Galilee, after the baptism which John preached.’’ It was necessary that these circumstances should be carefully detailed, because they were among the proofs of the Messiahship of Jesus. Elias must come first; and he had come in the person of the Baptist, although the prophecy probably awaits its full accomplishment in the actual reappearance of the great prophet of Israel before the second coming of our Lord. Repent ye, and believe the gospel. These words may be regarded as a summary of the method of salvation. Repentance and faith are the conditions of admission into the Christian covenant. Repentance has a special reference to God the Father, and faith, to Jesus Christ the eternal Son. It is in the gospel that Christ is revealed to us as a Saviour; and therefore we find Jesus Christ, as the object of our faith, distinguished from the Father as the object of our repentance. Repentance of itself is not sufficient—it makes no satisfaction for the Law which we have broken; and hence, over and above repentance, there is required from us faith in the Gospel, wherein Christ is revealed to us as a propitiation for sin, and as the only way of reconciliation with the Father. Without faith repentance becomes despair, and without repentance faith becomes only presumption. Join the two together, and the faithful soul is borne onwards, like a well-balanced vessel, to the haven where it would be. Mark 1:16 Now as he walked by the sea of Galilee; a better reading is (καὶπαράγων), and passing along. Our Lord came up from the south, passing through Samaria, till he reached Cana of Galilee. He then passed along by the seashore towards Capernaum; and on his way found the four disciples whom he had previously nominated, but who were now engaged in their calling of fishermen. St. Mark then relates the circumstances of their call in the exact words of St. Matthew, which were in all probability those of apostolical tradition (’Speaker’s Commentary’). It will be seen that St. Mark’s account, in this introductory portion of his Gospel, is very concise, and that there are many things to be supplied from the first chapter of St. John; as, for example, that after our Lord’s baptism by John, and afar his fasting and temptation in the desert, the Jews sent messengers to the Baptist, to inquire of him whether he were the Christ. John at once confessed that he was not the Christ, but that there was One even then among them, though they knew him not, who was indeed the Christ And then, the very next day after, Jesus came to him, and John then said to those around him, "Behold the Lamb of God!" Upon this two of John’s disciples at once betook-themselves to Jesus. The first was Andrew, who forthwith brought his own brother Simon, afterwards called "Peter," to our Lord. Again, the day after the, our Lord called Philip, a fellow-citizen with Andrew and Peter, of Bethsaida. Then Philip brought Nathanael. Here, then, we have some more disciples nominated, who were with Jesus at the marriage in Cana of Galilee. Then Jesus retched again into Judaea; and those disciples "nominate," as we might call them, went back for a time to their occupation of fishermen. Meanwhile our Lord, while in Judaea, wrought miracles and preached, until the envy of the scribes and Pharisees constrained him to return again into Galilee. And then it was that he solemnly called Andrew and Peter, and James and John, as recorded by St. Mark here. So that St John alone gives some account of the events of the first year of our Lord’s ministry. The three synoptic Gospels give the narrative of his public ministry, commencing from the second year. He saw Simon and Andrew, the brother of Simon casting a net in the sea. (βάλλονταςἀμφίβληστρονἐντῇθαλάσση). Such was the text underlying the Authorized Version; but a better reading is (ἀμφιβάλλονταςἐντῇθαλάσση). St. Mark thinks it unnecessary to mention the net at all; though doubtless it was the ἀμφίβληστρον, or casting-net. When our Lord likens his gospel to a net, he uses the figure of the drag-net (σαγήνη), a net of a much larger size. But whether it be the casting-net or the drag-net, the comparison is a striking one. It is plain that, in the pursuit of his calling, the fisherman has no power to make any separation between the good fish and the worthless. He has little or no insight into what is going on beneath the surface of the water. So with the "fisher of men." He deals with the world spiritual and invisible; and how, then, can he be fully conscious of the results of his work? His work is pre-eminently a work of faith. It may be observed here that St. Mark, in this earlier part of his narrative, speaks of St. Peter as Simon, though afterwards (Mark 3:16) he calls him Peter. We may also notice here, once for all, St. Mark’s constant use of the word "straightway" (εὐθέως or εὐθὺς). This word occurs no less than ten times in this chapter. In the Authorized Version the word (εὐθέως)is rendered indifferently by various English synonyms, as "forthwith," "immediately," etc.; whereas in the Revised Version it has been thought fit to note this peculiarity or mannerism in St. Mark’s Gospel by the use of the same English synonym, "straightway," throughout this Gospel. The Holy Spirit, while guiding the minds of those whom he moved to write these records, did not use an overpowering influence, so as to interfere with their own natural modes of expression. Each sacred writer, while guarded against error, has reserved to him his own peculiarities of style and expression. Mark 1:19, Mark 1:20 The calling of James and John, the sons of Zebedee. St. Mark hero mentions that they left their father Zebedee in the boat with the hired servants (μετὰτῶνμισθωτῶν). This mention of the "hired servants" is peculiar to St. Mark. He often follows the narrative of St. Matthew; but he adds little details such as this, here and there, which show that he knew St. Matthew’s narrative to be true, and also that he was an independent witness. This circumstance here incidentally mentioned shows that there was a difference in position in life between Zebedee’s family and that of Simon and Andrew. It appears that all Jews had free right of fishing in the sea of Galilee, which abounded in fish. Zebedee, therefore, whose home seems to have been at Jerusalem, had a fishing establishment in Galilee, probably managed by his partners, Andrew and Simon, during his absence. But he would naturally visit the establishment from time to time With his sons, and especially before the great festivals, when a larger supply of fish than usual would be required for the visitors crowding to Jerusalem at that time. (See ’Speaker’s Commentary.’) Mark 1:21 And they went into Capernaum; literally, they go into Capernaum (εἰσπορεύονται). St. Mark is fond of the historical "present "tense, which often adds life and energy to his narrative. Who go into Capernaum? Our Lord and these four disciples, the elementary Church of God, the nucleus of that spiritual influence which is to spread wider and wider unto the perfect day. It does not follow that this going into Capernaum took place on the same day. They would not have been fishing on the sabbath day. The synagogue here spoken of was the gift of the good centurion of whom we read in St. Matthew (Matthew 8:5) and St. Luke (Luke 7:2). Thus the first synagogue in which our Lord preached was the gift of a generous Gentile officer. It was an emblem of the union of Jews and Gentiles in one fold. Mark 1:22 They were astonished at his teaching (ἐξεπλήσσοντοἐπὶτῇδιδαχῇ). The verb in the Greek is a very strong and expressive one; it is a very suitable word to express the first impressions of utter amaze-sent produced by our Lord’s "teaching." There were several things which caused his teaching (δίδαχη) to differ from that of the scribes. There was no lack of self-assertion in their teaching; but their words did not carry weight. Their teaching was based chiefly on tradition; it dwelt much on the "mint and anise and cummin" of religion, but neglected "judgment and mercy and faith." Christ’s teaching, on the contrary, was eminently spiritual. And then he practiced what he taught. Not so the scribes. Thus far St. Mark’s narrative bears the character of brevity and conciseness, suitable to an introduction. From this point his record is rich in detail and in graphic description. Mark 1:23 And straightway there was in their synagogne a man with an unclean spirit. According to the best authorities, the sentence in the Greek runs thus, Καὶεὐθὺςἦνἐντῇσυναγωγῇαὐτῶν· And straightway there was in their synagogue, etc. This word "straightway" adds much force to the sentence. It marks the immediate effect of our Lord’s preaching. A man with an unclean spirit. The words are literally, "a man in an unclean spirit" (ἐνπνεύματιἀκάθαρτῳ); in his grasp, so to speak; possessed by him. There can be no reasonable doubt as to the personality of this unclean spirit. The man was so absolutely in the power of this evil spirit that he seemed to dwell in him; just as the world is said by St. John (1 John 5:19) to lie "in the evil one" (ἐντῷπονηρῷ). And he cried out. Who cried out? Surely the unclean spirit, using the possessed man as his instrument. In the case of a true prophet, inspired by the Holy Spirit, he is permitted to use his own gifts, his reason, and even his own particular manner of speech; whereas here a false and lying spirit usurps the organs of speech, and makes them his own. Mark 1:24 The expression, Ἔα, incorrectly rendered Let us alone, has not sufficient authority to be retained here, though it is rightly retained in the parallel passage in St. Luke (Luke 4:34), where it is rendered in the Revised Version "Ah!" or "Ha!" If rendered, "Let us alone," or "Let alone," it must be assumed to be the imperative of ἐάω. It will be observed that this cry of the unclean spirit is spontaneous, before our Lord has addressed him. In real truth, the preaching of Jesus has already thrown the whole world of evil spirits into a state of excitement and alarm. The powers of darkness are beginning to tremble. They resent this intrusion into their domain. They feel that One greater than Satan has appeared, and they ask, What have we to do with thee? Wherein have we injured thee, that thou shouldest seek to drive us out of our possession? We have nothing to do with thee, thou Holy One of God; but we have a right to take possession of sinners. Beds says that the evil spirits, perceiving that "our Lord had come into the world, believed that they were about at once to be judged. They knew that dispossession would be their entrance upon a condition of torment, and therefore it is that they deprecate it." I know thee who thou art, the Holy One of God. St. Mark is very careful to bring out the hidden knowledge possessed by evil spirits, which enabled them at once to recognize the personality of Jesus. It was given to them by him who has supreme power over the spiritual as well as the material world, to know as much as he saw fit that they should know; and he was pleased to make known as much as was needful. "But he made himself known to them, not as he makes himself known to the holy angels, who know him as the Word of God, and rejoice in his eternity, of which they partake. To the evil spirits he made himself known only so far as was requisite to strike with terror the beings from whose tyranny he was about to free those who were predestinated unto his kingdom and the glory of it". Mark 1:25 Hold thy peace, and come out of him. It was necessary that our Lord should at once assert his absolute power over the evil spirits; and not only this, but also that he should show that he had nothing to do with them. Later on in his ministry it was objected to him that he cast out devils by the prince of the devils. Then, further, the time was not yet arrived when Christ was to be publicly proclaimed as the Son of God. This great truth was to be gradually unfolded, and the people were to be persuaded by many miracles. But at present they were not prepared for this, and therefore our Lord charged his apostles that they should not make him known. Mark 1:26 And when the unclean spirit had torn him; and cried with a loud voice, he came out of him (καὶσπαράξαναὐτὸν). The Greek word σπαράσσω may be rendered in the passive to be convulsed. It is so used by medical writers, as Galen. It could hardly here mean physically "laceration," for St. Luke (Luke 4:35) is careful to say that "when the devil had thrown him down in the midst, he came out of him, having done him no hurt." At all events, the expression indicates the close union of the evil spirit with the possessed man’s consciousness and with his physical frame. And the manner in which he departed showed his malignity, as though, being compelled by the supreme authority of Christ to leave the man, he would injure him as far as he was able to do so. But the power of Christ prevented him from doing any real injury. And all this was done (1) that there might be clear evidence that the man was actually possessed by the evil spirit; (2) that the anger and malice of the evil spirit might be shown; and (3) that it might be manifest that the unclean spirit came out, not of his own accord, but constrained and vanquished by Christ. We may observe also that the power of Christ restrained him from the use of any articulate words. While he was in possession he used the possessed man’s organs of speech; but when he came out there was no articulate speech—it was nothing but a cry. Mark 1:27 What thing is this? what new doctrine is this? The now generally approved text gives a different rendering, namely, What is this? a new teaching! (Τίἐστὶτοῦτοδὶδαχηκαινή). If this is the true reading—and there is excellent authority for it—it would mean that the bystanders inferred that this new and unexampled power indicated the accompanying gift of a "new teaching," a new revelation. Nay, more, it indicated that he who wrought these miracles must be the promised Messiah, the true God; for he alone by his power could rule the evil spirits. Mark 1:28 All the region round about Galilee; more literally, all the region of Galilee, round about; and the best readings add "everywhere" (πανταχοῦεἰςὅληντὴνπερίχωροντῆςΓαλιλαίας). This is, of course, said by anticipation. Mark 1:29 They came; a better reading is, he came (ἤλθεν). St. Matthew and St. Luke speak of this house as the house of Simon Peter only; but St. Mark, writing probably under St. Peter’s direction, includes Andrew as a joint owner with Simon Peter. Mark 1:30, Mark 1:31 Lay sick of a fever (κατέκειτοπυρέσσουσα). St. Luke (Luke 4:38) uses a stronger expression, "was holden with a great fever" (συνεχομένηπυρετῷμεγάλῳ). There were marshes in that district; hence the prevalence of fevers of a malignant character. There is no mention of the wife of Peter by name in the New Testament. We may infer, from the fact that his wish’s mother lived with him, that he was the head of the family. St. Paul (1 Corinthians 9:5) intimates that he was a married man, and that his wife accompanied him on his missionary tours. According to the testimony of Clement of Alexandria, and of Eusebius (Luke 3:30), she suffered martyrdom, and was led away to death in the sight of her husband, whose last words to her were, "Remember thou the Lord." St. Mark here tells us that Jesus came and took [Simon’s wife’s mother] by the hand, and raised her up. St. Luke (Luke 4:39) says that "he stood over her and rebuked the fever." Immediately the fever left her. The word "immediately" (εὐθέως), familiar as it is to St. Mark, is here omitted by the best authorities. But the omission is of no importance; for the fact that "the fever left her," and that she was at once strong enough to "minister to them," proves that it was not like an ordinary recovery from fever, which is wont to be slow and tedious. Mark 1:32 At even, when the sun did set. It was the sabbath day; and, therefore, the sick were not brought to our Lord until six o’clock, when the sabbath ended. When the sun did set (ὅτεἔδυὁἥλίος). St. Luke’s phrase is (δύνοντοςτοῦἡλίου), "When the sun was, so to speak, submerged in the sea." So in Virgil, ’Aeneid,’ lib. 7.100— "... qua sol utrumque recurrens Adspicit Oceanum;" the popular idea being that, when the sun sets, it sinks into the ocean. Mark 1:33, Mark 1:34 The whole city was gathered together at the door. This would probably be the outer door in the wall, opening into the street; so that this need not be regarded as a hyperbolic statement. It is evidently the description of an eye-witness, or of one who had it from an eye-witness. He healed all that had need of healing, and he suffered not the devils to speak, for the reasons. assigned at Mark 1:25. Mark 1:35 And in the morning, at great while before day, he rose up and went out, and departed into a desert place, and there prayed. Our Lord thus prepared himself by prayer for his first departure on a missionary tour. This would be the morning of the first day of the week. A great while before day he left the scene of excitement. That was not a time for preaching the Gospel of the Kingdom. The miracles attracted attention to him, but they were not the object for which he came. They were necessary as means of stirring and awakening men’s minds, and of fixing their attention upon him and upon the great salvation which he came to reveal. So he left the miracles to do their subordinate work; and he himself went into a desert place, that he might pray with more quiet and less distraction. He retired that he might escape the applause of men, which they were ready to lavish upon him after seeing so many miracles; that he might thus teach us to shun the praise of men. Let us learn from Christ to give the early morning to prayer, and to rise with the dawn of day, that we may have time for meditation, and give the firstfruits of the morning to God. The early morning is favorable for study; but it is specially dear to God and his angels. Mark 1:36 And Simon and they that were with him followed after him κατεδίωξαν the word implies an "earnest pursuing." They that were with him would doubtless include Andrew and James and John, and probably others whose enthusiasm had been kindled by Simon Peter. St. Luke, in the parallel passage (Luke 4:42). tells us that "the multitudes sought after him, and came unto him, and would have stayed him, that he should not go from them." Mark 1:37 All are seeking thee. The "thee" is here emphatic (πάντεςζητοῦσίσε). Mark 1:38, Mark 1:39 These two verses indicate the extent and duration of our Lord’s first missionary journey. It must have been considerable. He preached in the synagogues. This would be on successive sabbaths. According to Josephus, Galilee was a densely populated district, with upwards of two hundred villages, each containing several thousand inhabitants. Mark 1:40 The healing of the leper is recorded in all the three synoptic Gospels; but St. Mark gives more full details. From St. Matthew we learn that it took place after the sermon on the mount; and yet not at the very close of his missionary circuit, St. Luke (Luke 5:12) says that the diseased man was "full of leprosy" (πλήρηςλέπρας). The disorder was fully developed; it had spread over his whole body; he was leprous from head to foot. This leprosy was designed to be specially typical of the disease of sin. It was not infectious. It was not because it was either infectious or contagious that the leper was bidden under the Jewish Law to wars others off, in the words," Unclean! un-clean!" It was in some cases hereditary. It was a very revolting disease. It was a poisoning of the springs of life. It was a living death. It was incurable by any human art or skill. It was the awful sign of sin reaching unto death; and it was cured, as sin is cured, only by the mercy and favor of God. No wonder, then, that our Lord specially displayed his power over this terrible disease, that he might thus prove his power over the still worse malady of sin. St. Mark here tells us that this leper knelt down (καὶγονυπετῶν). St. Matthew says (Matthew 8:2) that he "worshipped him," (προσεκύνειαὐτῷ); St. Luke says (Luke 5:12) that "he fell on his face" (πεσὼνἐπὶπρόσωπον). We thus see that the scriptural idea of worship is associated with some lowly posture of the body. But with this worship of the body, the leper offered also the homage of the soul. His prostration of himself before Christ was not merely a rendering of honor to an earthly being; it was a rendering of reverence to a Divine Being. For he does not say to him, "If thou wilt ask of God, he will give it thee;" but he says, "If thou wilt, thou canst make me clean." It is as though he said, "I know that thou art of equal power with the Father, and therefore supreme Lord over diseases; so that by thy word alone thou canst remove this leprosy from me. I ask, therefore, that thou wouldst be willing to do this, and then I know that the thing is done." The leper had faith in the Divine power of Christ, partly out of his own inward illumination, and partly by the evidence of the miracles which Christ had already wrought. If thou wilt, thou east. Observe the hypothetic expression, "If thou wilt." He has no doubt as to Christ’s power, but the words, "If thou wilt" show that his desire for healing was controlled by resignation to the will of God. For bodily diseases are often necessary for the health of the soul; and this God knows, though man knows it not. Therefore, in asking for earthly blessings, it behoves us to resign ourselves to the will and wisdom of God. Mark 1:41 Observe in this verse that Jesus stretched forth his hand and touched the leper. Thus he showed that he was superior to the Law, which forbade contact with a leper. He touched him, knowing that he could not be defiled with the touch. He touched him that he might heal him, and that his Divine power of healing might be made manifest. "Thus," says Bode, "God stretched out his hand and touched the human nature in his incarnation, and restored to the Church those who had been cast out, that they might be able to offer their bodies a living sacrifice to him of whom it is said, ’Thou art a priest for ever after the order of Molchisedec.’" I will; be thou clean; literally, be thou made clean (καθαρίσθητι). It is well observed here by St. Jerome that our Lord aptly answers both the petitions of the leper. "If thou wilt;" "I will." "Thou canst make me clean;" "Be thou made clean." Indeed, Christ gives him more than he asks for. He makes him whole, not only in body, but in spirit. Thus Christ, in his loving-kindness, exceeds the wishes of his supplicants, that we may learn from him to do the same, and to enlarge our hearts, both towards God and towards our brethren. Mark 1:42 Straightway—St. Mark’s favourite word—the leprosy departed from him. There is no interval between the command and the work of Christ. "He spake, and it was done." His will is his omnipotence. By this act Christ showed that he came into the world as a great Physician, that he might cure all diseases, and cleanse us from all our defilements. The word "straightway" shows that Christ healed the leper, not by any natural means, but by a Divine power which works instantly. He is alike powerful both to commend and to do. St. Matthew says here (Matthew 8:3) that straightway "his leprosy was cleansed" (ἐκαθαρίσθηαὐτοῦἡλέπρα). There is here what is called a "hypallage," or inversion of the meaning, which is, of course, that "he was cleansed from his leprosy." Mark 1:43 And he straitly charged him. The Greek verb here (ἐμβριμησάμενος) has a tinge of severity in it, "he strictly [or sternly] charged him." Both word and action are severe. He straightway sent him out (ἐξεβάλεναὐτὸν). It may be that he had incurred this rebuke by coming so near with his defilement to the holy Saviour. Christ thus showed not only his respect for the ordinances of the Jewish Law, but also how hateful sin is to the most holy God. Mark 1:44 See thou say nothing to any man. St. Chrysostom says that our Lord gave him this charge, "to shun ostentation, and to teach us not to boast of our virtues, but to hide them." It is evident that he wished to draw the thoughts of men away from his miracles, and to fix them upon his doctrine. Go thy way, show thyself to the priest; the priest who in the order of his course presided over the rest. Our Lord sent him to the priest, that he might be seen to recognize their special office in cases of leprosy; and further, that the priest himself might have clear evidence that this leper was cleansed, not after the custom of the Law, but by the operation of grace. Mark 1:45 But he went out, and began to publish it much, and to spread abroad the matter. It seems difficult to blame the man for doing what he thought must tend to the honor of his Healer; though, no doubt, it would have been better if he had humbly obeyed. And yet it was to be expected that the knowledge of our Lord’s mighty works would be published by others. In this particular instance the effect of this man’s conduct was probably unexpected by himself; for it led to the withdrawal of Christ from Capernaum. The crowds who were attracted to him by the fame of his miracles would have hampered him, so that he could not have exercised his ministry; for even in the desert places they sought him out, and came to him from every quarter. It should be noticed here that this first chapter of St. Mark embraces, in very condensed form, about twelve months of our Lord’s public ministry, from his baptism by John. And it is a record of uninterrupted progress. The time had not then come for the opposition of the scribes and Pharisees and Herodians to show itself. It was, no doubt, wisely ordained that his gospel should take root and lay hold of the hearts and consciences of men, as it must have done in the minds of the Galilaeans more especially, before it had to encounter the envy and malice of those who ultimately would bring him to his cross. The beginning of the gospel. "The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ the Son of God." The writers of the first four books of the New Testament are called evangelists, because they gathered up, put into writing, and published to the world the accounts of the Lord Jesus which were current among the first Christians, and which were constantly repeated by the first preachers of our religion. They did this under the guidance of the Holy Spirit, and their treatises come to us with Divine authority. Not only is the record credible; it is such that it claims our attention, and demands and justifies our faith. Of these four evangelists, Mark is one—doubtless the "John whose surname was Mark"—of whom we read in the Book of the Acts that his family resided in Jerusalem, and that he himself was a fellow-labourer with the Apostle Paul. It has generally been held that Mark was especially under the influence and guidance of Peter. The opening sentence of his Gospel is brief, striking, and full of meaning and of Divine truth. I. Observe the OF THE OF THE GOSPEL. Matthew and Luke begin their narratives with a relation of the circumstances of the birth of our Lord; John commences with the pre-existence of the Word; Mark, whose treatise is the shortest, opens with the inauguration of our Lord’s ministry. This second Gospel begins with Christ’s baptism, and closes with his ascension. "The beginning" suggests the time when the gospel was not. Before the gospel was the Law. "The Law and the prophets," said Jesus, "were until John; since that time the kingdom of God is preached." What a different world it must have been to live in when there was no gospel!—at least in the full, the Christian, meaning of that term. "The beginning" suggests a foretold and appointed time. It was in the fullness of the time that the promised Messiah appeared, at the conjunction of national and of universal history foreseen by the Omniscient and indicated in prophecy. Accordingly the sacred historian at once appeals to the writings of Malachi and Isaiah to show the real continuity of sacred history. Nothing of God’s appointment occurs haphazard; he sees the end from the beginning. "The beginning" points on to the completion. "Better," says the wise man, "is the end of a thing than the beginning;" yet the beginning is necessary to the end. It was so with the earthly ministry of Christ. It grew in solemnity and spiritual power as it approached its period; yet the earlier stages were preparatory for those which followed, and indispensable. That Christ’s ministry dated—according to apostolic teaching—from the baptism of John, is apparent from Peter’s language upon the occasion of the choice of a twelfth apostle, from his discourse before Cornelius, and from Paul’s discourse at Antioch of Pisidia. II. Observe the OF THE GOSPEL—the term By which the substance of the Christian record, is here designated. The meaning, generally speaking, of the term is "good news," "glad, welcome tidings." But the Christian use of the terra—which has absorbed all the meaning attaching to this glorious word—is special. The gospel is the designation of the facts and doctrines of Christianity. We look for these facts and doctrines in the writings of Mark and of the other three evangelists. The gospel was spoken in words, e.g. as here. The gospel was embodied in deeds and sufferings, e.g. in this record of Mark, the gospel of power. The gospel came from God, who alone was able to impart the blessings it promised. The gospel came to men—sinful, needy, helpless; who, without a gospel, must have remained in wretchedness. The gospel proclaimed pardon for sin, peace for the conscience, renewal for the whole nature, guidance and strength for the spiritual career, salvation, and life eternal. III. Observe the OF THE HERE APPLIED TO HIM who is the Author, the Theme, the Substance of the gospel. 1. He is denominated Jesus—the name he bore as a human being, suggestive, therefore, of his humanity, yet in itself implying that he was the Salvation, the Help, of Jehovah. 2. He is denominated Christ—an official name, denoting his anointing and appointment by God to the discharge of the Messianic offices, as the Prophet, Priest, and King of men. (Note that the combined name, Jesus Christ, does not occur elsewhere in the first three Gospels.) 3. He is denominated the Son of God—a designation which impresses upon us his divinity and authority. Whereas Matthew opens his Gospel by showing that Jesus is the Son of David, a fact of special interest to the Hebrews, Mark takes a higher flight. These three appellations together present us with a full, delightful, instructive, and spiriting representation of our Saviour’s nature and mediatorial work and qualifications. . 1. You need this gospel. 2. This gospel is sufficient for you. 3. This gospel is adapted to you. 4. This gospel alone can bless you. 5. This gospel is offered to you. Mark 1:2-8 The ministry of the forerunner. This evangelist enters, upon his treatise with no further preface than is to be found in the first verse. He has to tell the good news concerning Jesus Christ the Son of God. And he begins his narrative at once, with an account of the ministry of that grand, heroic prophet, whose great distinction it was to be the herald of the Messiah, and whose greatness was in nothing more apparent than in this—he was willing to be superseded by his Lord, and to be lost in him: "He must increase, but I must decrease."—In these verses we have— I. A GLIMPSE OF THE ’S PERSON AND . 1. He was a priest. This we learn from St. Luke’s narrative of his parentage and birth. John owed something of the respect and acceptance he met with to this fact. Yet his ministry was not sacerdotal, though his education and his associations must all have fitted him to testify to "the Lamb of God, who taketh away the sin of the world." 2. He was a Prophet. As Christ himself bare witness, "a prophet, yea, and more than a prophet." He spoke forth the mind of God. He did not sacrifice for the people or reason with them; he declared to them the message he had received from heaven. 3. He was an ascetic in the wilderness. In his dress and mode of life he resembled Elijah the Tishbite. He lived in the wilderness of Judaea, and in the wilder parts of the valley of the Jordan. His raiment was of cloth woven from coarse camel’s hair; his food was that of a child of the desert, "locusts and wild honey." He wore no soft raiment; he was no reed shaken by the wind. Independent alike of the luxuries of life and of the approval of his fellow-men, he lived apart. 4. He was a fearless, faithful preacher. He did not ask—Is this message what the people wish to hear? but—Is this the word of the living God? When the Divine commission was entrusted to him, no power on earth could prevent him from fulfilling it. II. A THAT HIS WAS . Mark quotes from Malachi, the last of the prophets, "Behold, I will send my messenger, and he will prepare my way before me." He quotes from Isaiah, "The voice of him that crieth in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the Lord, make straight in the desert a highway for our God." The forerunner was himself conscious of this; for, disclaiming Messiahship, he claimed to be the voice of the King’s herald. Jesus, too, made the same assertion, "If ye will believe it, this is Elijah, which was to come." All was ordered and predicted beforehand by the wisdom of the Most High. III. A view OF HIS . John did no miracles. But he spoke with a Divine authority; and he exercised an influence which was felt throughout the whole nation, and which was an historical and recognized fact. The elements of his ministry were these: 1. The prediction that the kingdom of God, or of heaven, was at hand. 2. An appeal to repentance, based upon the approach of the new kingdom. 3. The administration of a rite symbolical of spiritual purification. IV. An INSIGHT INTO THE RESULTS OF THIS . 1. A general and profound impression was produced. 2. The most sinful classes shared in this moral awakening. 3. The religious leaders of the community were led to interest themselves in his message. 4. The political rulers of the land came to some extent under his influence. 5. The ardent and religious youth were at once attracted and awed by the presence and ministry of the prophet. The choice spirits of the generation rising up, the flower of the Hebrew youth, became his disciples. 6. There resulted a widespread conscience of sin, and a hope and desire for a great Saviour. V. A OF HIS GREAT OFFICE AND . Above all, John was the forerunner and the herald of the Messianic King, even Jesus. Even before he met his cousin, before he administered baptism to him, he bore witness concerning him. He witnessed: 1. To his personal superiority, speaking of him as" One mightier than I." 2. And to his ministerial superiority; for while John’s baptism was one with water unto repentance, that of Jesus was "with the Holy Spirit and with fire." Events proved the truth of this testimony. . To receive the witness of John is to acknowledge the Messiahship of Jesus, to yield heart and life to the Saviour, seeking through him the forgiveness of sins, the renewal of the heart, and the consecration of the whole being. Mark 1:9-11 The baptism of Christ. As this evangelist commences his treatise with what he terms "the beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ," it is natural that our Lord should first be introduced by him as devoted to his ministry of benevolence in the rite of baptism; for this incident in our Saviour’s life is justly held to have inaugurated his public work. What a hold the event has taken upon the Christian mind may be seen from the vast number of pictures in which the religious artists of all Christian countries have depicted the baptism. A striking scene for a painter, and a delightful theme for the preacher! I. The baptism of our Saviour exhibits HIS TO THE . The ministry of the herald preceded that of the King. Jesus was yet in the seclusion of Nazareth when John was attracting multitudes of all classes, and from all parts of the land, to his teaching and baptism in the Jordan valley. When Jesus came to John it seemed, to ordinary judgments, that the less came to the greater, the obscure to the famous. But it was not so. To all around the relation between the two was unknown. Nevertheless, to the two it was clear enough. The forerunner knew that his mission was temporary and introductory, and that "the coming One" should eclipse his light as the sun extinguishes the bright morning star. Hence the reluctance of the Baptist to do anything which might seem to militate against the just dimity of the Being in whom he recognized the Messiah. "I have need to be baptized of thee, and comest thou to me?" This was the Person whose shoe’s latchet he had declared himself unworthy to unloose. A slave would untie the thong of his master’s sandals and bear them in his hand; John deemed even such an office too honorable for himself to discharge for the anointed King of mankind. It was not only in the presence of Jesus that John felt thus; the constant conviction of his mind was this, "I must decrease, but he must increase." But the witness was not all on one side. Jesus also bore testimony to John. In the very act of submitting to the baptism of the prophet, he acknowledged that prophet’s greatness and ratified his claims. And he, in express words, testified to John’s unique position, as predicted by the ancient prophets, and of the man himself and his character and work declared, "Of men born of women there hath not arisen a greater than John the Baptist." II. The baptism of our Saviour exhibits his relation to the human race. There seems to be no way of explaining and justifying this historical fact except by admitting that Jesus was specially the representative man. In endeavoring to explain, to account for, the baptism of our Divine Saviour, we are met with a serious difficulty. The baptism of John was unto repentance and with a view to the remission of sins. Men came, and were invited to come, to receive the symbol of a cleansing which, being spiritual, could only be wrought by a spiritual process. The publicans, harlots, and soldiers, whose conscience accused them of sin, in coming to John’s baptism, confessed their wrong doing and ill desert, and professed their desire, by repentance and reformation, to escape from the trammels of evil and to live a holier life. They were warned that mere feeling, mere conformity, mere profession, mere water baptism, were all insufficient, and, if alone, worthless; and they were directed to bring forth fruit meet for repentance. Now, in the case of such persons, and, we may add, in the case of all the members of a sinful, guilty, race, a moral purification was and is indispensably necessary. But what reason, what appropriateness, what meaning, could there be in the reception of a baptism such as this by the sinless Saviour of the world, the holy and faultless and beloved Son of God? What need had he to confess and to ask pardon for sin? He had no sin to confess, no repentance to work out. If he required no spiritual purifying, to what purpose should he undergo the rite of lustration? The only answer seems to be that Jesus did this, not as a personal, but as an official and representative act. The circumstances of Christ’s life and death are not to be understood unless we bear in mind that he acted and suffered as the second Adam, as the federal head and representative of humanity, as the Son of man. So regarded, we can to some extent understand the answer of our Lord to the remonstrance of the baptizer. It became him, as our Mediator, "to fulfill all righteousness." He had mixed with the sinful population; he was to live among and to minister unto the victims of sin; he was to be betrayed into the hand of sinners; he was to be numbered, in his death, with the transgressors; he was, in a word, made sin for us, though he knew no sin. As, then, he had in infancy been circumcised, though there was no sinful nature to be put away; as he was to be put to death as a malefactor, though no fault was found in him; so he was baptized, though he had personally no need of purification, no sins to wash away. He was our Representative in his birth and ministry, in his death and burial, and, none the less, in his baptism by John in Jordan. III. The baptism of our Saviour exhibits HIS TO THE DIVINE FATHER. At the commencement of the ministry of Jesus it was appropriate that an attestation of his mission should be given from above—not only for his own sake, but rather for the sake, first of John, and then of those to whom in consequence John should bear witness. Thus the forerunner was able to declare, "I have seen, and have borne witness that this is the Son of God." There were probably no spectators of our Lord’s baptism, and we are indebted to John himself for the record of what happened and of what became the accepted tradition among the early Christians. 1. Observe what was seen. It was as Jesus went up out of the river, and whilst he was praying, that the marvellous sign was given. The heavens were rent asunder and opened, indicating the interest taken in the Redeemer’s career by the great God of heaven himself, and the Spirit, in the form and with the swift, gentle, hovering movement of a dove, descendes upon Jesus. How beautiful an emblem of the Divine power of the ministry which was thus inaugurated, and solemnly, sacredly blessed from above! Surely it is significant that Christ should be represented as the Lamb of God, and the Holy Spirit as the Dove from heaven. A lesson as to the gentleness and grace characteristic of Christ’s gospel. 2. Observe, further, what was heard. Language proceeded from the opened heavens, indicative of the Divine approval and complacency. Notice (1) the statement of relation and dignity, "Thou art my beloved Son;" and (2) the statement of satisfaction and approbation, "In thee I am well pleased." 1. Learn hence the Divine dignity of Emmanuel. 2. And, at the same time, his humility and condescension. 3. Let this marvellous combination of all mediatorial qualifications in the person of Christ encourage your faith in him and your devotion to his cause. Mark 1:12, Mark 1:13 The temptation of Christ. The portal by which our Lord entered upon his earthly ministry has two pillars—the baptism and the temptation. In his baptism the Saviour was visibly and audibly approved by God the Father. In his temptation he was manifestly put to the test by the power of evil. Consecration and probation were thus the two elements in the Redeemer’s inauguration, by which he was dedicated to the earthly ministry of humiliation, obedience, and benevolence. Mark’s narrative of the temptation is brief, but suggestive. I. The evangelist notes THE DIVINE IMPULSE which led Jesus to the place appointed for this spiritual encounter. The same Spirit who had just descended upon him like a dove now drove him forth, as with the impulse of a lion, as upon the wings of an eagle, to endure the great probation. The reason of this is to be found in the Divine intention that the Son of man should partake, not only in our human nature, but in our human experience. He did not shrink even from so keen a contest as that which awaited him. Led, driven, by the Spirit, the Divine Christ met his foe at the appointed spot, as the champion of humanity, in single combat, to submit to the fiercest assaults of Satan. II. In the fewest words is described the scene of the temptation. We often encounter the tempter in the crowded streets and in the thronged assembly. Yet those who, like the monks of Egypt, have fled to the desert to escape his assaults and elude his wiles, have ever found their error. No place is secure from spiritual conflict or from sinful suggestion. But our great Leader chose to wrestle with the adversary alone, without the countenance of human virtue or the sympathy of human friendship to assist him. This was challenging the foe to do his worst. They met face to face. The only companions of Christ in the desert solitude were those wild beasts, whose presence emphasizes the awful loneliness of the spot. III. THE tempter is mentioned by name. Satan was the foe with whom the Saviour engaged in this spiritual conflict. The tempter was brought into immediate contact with the Holy Being upon whom he exercised all his devices in vain. In ordinary cases the enemy of souls employs his emissaries, Perhaps supernatural, certainly in many cases human. Scripture teaches us that our adversary is "as a roaring lion, going about seeking whom he may devour." We, as Christians, should not be ignorant of his devices. Sometimes he is transformed, as it were, into an angel of light. But let us not be deceived; the temptation betrays whence it comes, however it may be disguised by subtlety and craft. IV. The evangelist records THE PERIOD of our Lord’s temptation. It lasted for forty days—a period agreeing with the term of very memorable events in the life of our Lord’s illustrious predecessors, Moses and Elijah. A prolonged probation, repeated assaults, variety of spiritual warfare, and a decisive issue,—all were rendered possible by the protracted period to which this desert seclusion was extended. The several temptations which occupied this term are recorded in detail by the other evangelists, Matthew and Luke. 1. A temptation appealing to ordinary bodily wants. 2. A temptation appealing to spiritual pride. 3. A temptation appealing to ambition and the love of power. V. St. Mark implies, what the other evangelists explicitly record, our SAVIOUR’S VICTORY. 1. It was gained by a holy character. The prince of this world came, and had nothing in him. 2. By a resolute and determined opposition. "Resist the devil, and he will flee from you." 3. By the use of the weapons of Scripture. If the devil quoted the Word, as he can for his purposes, Christ had ready the appropriate reply, couched in the words of inspiration. 4. It was a complete victory; for the tempter was foiled at every point. 5. Yet it was a victory which did not preserve the assailed from a renewal of attack. The devil left him for a season, only again to return to do his worst and again and finally to fail. VI. The period of conflict and resistance was succeeded by ANGELIC . The Son of God was encompassed by the services of these messengers from heaven, from his birth to his agony, and from his agony to his resurrection and ascension. How natural that those beings who minister to those who shall be heirs of salvation should minister to him who is salvation’s Author and Giver! And it is instructive to find that, as the agency of temptation was not a human agency, so the ministrations which followed were not human ministrations. In what way the angels tended their Lord and did him service, we are not told; whether, as poetic fancy has feigned, by spreading for him a table in the wilderness, or by soothing his spirit by their sympathy as he emerged from the scene of unparalleled conflict and unparalleled victory. LESSONS. 1. Let every man expect temptation; it is the common lot, from which the Son of man himself was not exempt. 2. If temptation does not come in one form it will come in another; the tempter adapts himself to age and sex, temperament and education, position and character. 3. Let the Christian, when tempted, remember that he has the sympathy and may look for the succor of the High Priest, who was tempted as we are, though without sin. 4. Let the Saviour’s mode of meeting and resisting the tempter be prayerfully pondered and copied; the Scriptures furnish the Christian’s armoury, "The sword of the Spirit is the Word of God," Mark 1:14, Mark 1:15 The Divine Preacher. Christ was known as a Prophet before he was manifested as the Priest and the King of humanity. He came preaching. In these verses is related the fact of a ministry in Galilee. The occasion was the cessation of John’s ministry; the place, that northern province which had been foretold as the scene of the Messiah’s labours, and in which he had passed the years of his youth. We have here put upon record the substance of the Saviour’s preaching. I. CHRIST WAS A . This fact seems to imply three things. 1. That Jesus regarded men as intelligent, responsible beings. He did not seek to awe or terrify them by portents. He did not attempt to cajole them by complying with their sinful tendencies and prejudices. He did not appeal to superstition. He treated men as beings having an understanding to be convinced, a heart to be affected, a moral nature rendering them susceptible to Divine motives and capable of willing obedience. 2. That Jesus had confidence in his message. It was not with that assumption of authority which disguises conscious weakness; it was not with the hesitation which betrays suspicion of the weakness of the cause; it was with the confidence of one who speaks forth words of truth and soberness,—that the great Teacher spoke. 3. That Jesus had the assurance that his message would be accepted. His was not a fruitless enterprise. He came with a Divine commission, which should not, could not, be frustrated. His words should not pass away; all should be fulfilled. And Christ’s gospel is still to be promulgated in the same manner, in the same spirit. Christ’s ministers are called upon to preach—to preach Christ crucified—to preach, whether men will hear or forbear. The religion of our Saviour is one which appeals to what is best and purest in human nature enlightened by the Spirit of God. II. CHRIST, AS A , MADE AN . This entry is longer than a Bible module can hold. The rest is at https://www.sermonindex.net/commentary/pulpit-commentary/ Mark 2:1 The first sentence of this verse is better rendered thus: And when he entered again (εἰσελθῶνπάλιν) into Capernaum after some days; literally, after days (δἰἡμερῶν). It is probable that a considerable interval had taken place since the events recorded in the former chapter. It was noised that he was in the house (ὅτιεἰςοἶκόνἐστὶ); or, if the ὅτι be regarded as recitative, it was noised, He is in the house, at home, in his usual place of residence at Capernaum. Mark 2:2 Many were gathered together, so that there was no longer room for them (ὥστεμηκέτιχωρεῖν), no, not even about the door. The description is very graphic. The house could not contain them, and even its courtyard and approaches were inconveniently thronged. This is one of the many examples of minute observation of details, so observable in St. Mark’s Gospel. And he preached (ἐλάλει)—more literally, was speaking—the word unto them. This little sentence indicates the great object of his ministry. The exercise of miraculous power was subordinated to this; the miracles being simply designed to fix the attention upon the Teacher as One sent from God. Mark 2:3, Mark 2:4 And they come, bringing unto him a man sick of the palsy, borne of four. Here again the minuteness of detail is very observable. It is also interesting to notice how the three writers of the synoptic Gospels supplement and illustrate one another. St. Matthew gives the outline, St. Mark and St. Luke fill up the picture. St. Luke (Luke 5:18) tells us how they sought means to bring the paralytic into Christ’s presence. They carried him on his bed up the flight of steps outside the house, and reaching to the roof; and then both St. Mark and St. Luke tell us how, having first removed a portion of the tiling and broken up the roof, they then let him down through the opening thus made into the midst before Jesus. The chamber into which he was thus abruptly lowered was most probably what is elsewhere called the "upper chamber," a large central room, convenient for the purpose of addressing both those who filled it and also the crowd that thronged the outer court below. Mark 2:5 Son, thy sins be forgiven thee; literally, thy sins are forgiven. The word "son" is in the Greek the more endearing word (τέκνον) "child." St. Luke uses the word "man." St. Matthew adds the words "Be of good cheer." It is here to be carefully observed that the spiritual gift, the gift of forgiveness, is first conveyed; and we must also notice the authoritative character of the address, "Thy sins are forgiven." Bede observes here that our Lord first forgives his sins, that he might show him that his suffering was ultimately due to sin. Bede also says that he was borne of four, to show that a man is carried onwards by four graces to the assured hope of healing, namely, by prudence, and courage, and righteousness, and temperance. Jesus seeing their faith. Some of the Fathers, as Jerome and Ambrose, think that this faith was in the behavers of the sick man, and in them only. But there is nothing in the words to limit them in this way. Indeed, it would seem far more natural to suppose that the paralytic must have been a consenting party. He must have approved of all that they did, otherwise we can hardly suppose that it would have been done. We may therefore more reasonably conclude, with St. Chrysostom, that it was alike their faith and his that our Lord crowned with his blessing. Thy sins are forgiven. These words of our Lord were not a mere wish only; they were this sick man’s sentence of absolution. They were far more than the word of absolution which Christ’s ambassadors are authorized to deliver to all those who "truly repent and unfeignedly believe." For Christ could read the heart, which they cannot do. And therefore his sentence is absolute, and not conditional only. It is not the announcement of a qualified gift, but the assertion of an undoubted fact. In his own name, and by his own inherent power, he there and then forgives the man his sins. Mark 2:6, Mark 2:7 The words, Why doth this man thus speak blasphemies? in accordance with the altered reading (βλασφημεῖ for βλασφημίας), should stand thus: Why doth this man thus speak? he blasphemeth. It is evident that the scribes, who were secretly amongst themselves finding fault with our Lord’s words, understood that, by the use of these words, our Lord was assuming to himself a Divine attribute. And if he had been a mere man; if he had not really been, as he assumed to be, Divine, the only begotten Son of the Father,—then no doubt they would have been right in supposing that he blasphemed. But their error was that they could not perceive in him the glory of the only begotten Son. The light was shining in the darkness, and the darkness apprehended it not. Mark 2:8-11 It does not clearly appear whether these murmurers communicated their thoughts audibly to one another. At all events, their words were evidently not heard beyond themselves. But Jesus perceived in his spirit their reasonings. He knew their thoughts, not by communication from another, as the prophets of old had things made known to them by revelation, but by his own Spirit pervading and penetrating all things. From this the Christian Fathers, against the Arians, infer the divinity of Christ, that he inspected the heart, which it is the prerogative of God alone to do. St. Chrysostom says, "Behold the evidences of the divinity of Christ. Observe that he knows the very secrets of your heart." Nor did Christ only perceive their thoughts. He perceived also the direction in which these thoughts were moving. Their feeling was no doubt this: "It is an easy thing to claim the power of forgiving sin, since this is a power which cannot be challenged by any outward sign." Now, it is to this form of unbelief that the next words of our Lord are the answer. It is as though he said, "You accuse me of blasphemy. You say that I am usurping the attributes of God when I claim the power of forgiving sin. You ask for the evidence that I really possess this power; and you say it is an easy thing to lay claim to a power which penetrates the spiritual world, and which is therefore beyond the reach of material proof. Be it so. I will now furnish that evidence. I will prove, by what I am now about to work upon the body, that what I have just said is effectual upon the spirit. I have just said to this paralytic, ’Thy sins are forgiven.’ You challenge this power; you question my authority. I will now give you outward and sensible evidence that this is no fictitious or imaginary claim. You see this poor helpless, palsied man. I will say to him in presence of you all, ’ Arise, take up thy bed, and go unto thy house.’ And if simply at my bidding his nerves are braced, and his limbs gather strength, and he rises and walks, then judge ye whether I have a right to say to him, ’Thy sins are forgiven.’ Thus, by doing that which is capable of proof, I will vindicate my power to do that which is beyond the reach of sensible evidence; and I will make manifest to you, by these visible tides of my grace, in what direction the deep under-current of my love is moving." Mark 2:12 The words are spoken, and the paralytic arose, and straightway took up the bed (ἠγέρθήκαὶεὐθὺςἄρας)—such is the most approved reading—and went forth before them all. There is a spiritual application of this miracle which it is well to notice. The paralytic lifting up himself is a figure of him who, in the strength of Christ, has lifted himself up from the lethargy of sin. He has first applied to Christ, perhaps by his own sense of his need, perhaps with the help of others. He may have had difficulty in approaching him. A multitude of sinful thoughts and cares may have thronged the door. But at length, whether alone or with the kind assistance of faithful friends, he has been brought to the feet of Jesus, and has heard those words of love and power, "Thy sins are forgiven thee." And then he will rise and walk. He will take up that whereon he lay. He will carry away those things whereon he has hitherto found satisfaction—his love of ease, his self-indulgence. His bed, whatever it may have been whereon he lay, becomes the proof of his cure. When the intemperate man becomes sober, the passionate man gentle, and the covetous man liberal, he takes up that whereon he lay. Thus does each penitent man begin a new life; setting forward with new hopes and new powers towards his true home, eternal in the heavens. We are not informed of the effect of this miracle upon the scribes and Pharisees. But it is too evident that, though they could not deny the fact, they would not acknowledge the power; while the mass of the people, more free from prejudice, and therefore more open to conviction, united in giving glory to God. Faith in Christ as sent by God was in fact increasing amongst the mass of the people; while unbelief was working its deadly result of envy and malice amongst those who ought to have been their guides and instructors. Mark 2:13, Mark 2:14 It is probable that our Lord remained some time at Capernaum before he went forth again. The word "again" refers to his former going forth. When he went forth on this occasion he appears to have traveled southwards along the sea-shore. There, not far from Capernaum, he saw Levi, the son of Alphseus, sitting at the receipt of custom (ἐπὶτὸτελώνιον); more literally, at the place of toll. This place would be in the direct line for traders from Damascus to Accho, and a convenient spot for the receipt of the duties on the shipping. It is observable that in St. Matthew’s own Gospel (Matthew 9:9) he describes himself as "a man named Matthew." St. Luke, like St. Mark, calls him Levi. The same person is no doubt meant. It is most likely that his original name was Levi, and that upon his call to be an apostle he received a new name, that of Matthew, or Mattathias, which, according to Gesenius, means "the gift of Jehovah." In his own Gospel he names himself Matthew, that he might proclaim the kindness and love of Christ towards him, in the spirit of St. Paul, where he says, "Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am chief" (1 Timothy 1:15). Follow me; me, that is, whom you have already heard preaching the gospel of the kingdom in Capernaum, and confirming it by many miracles, and especially by that conspicuous miracle spoken of by all, the healing of the paralytic. St. Chrysostom says that "our Lord called Matthew, who was already constrained by the report of his miracles." The condescension of Christ is shown in this, that he called Matthew the "publican," who on that account was odious to the Jews, not only to be a partaker of his grace, but to be one of his chosen followers, a friend, an apostle, and an evangelist. It has been urged against the truth of Christianity, by Porphyry and others, that the first disciples followed Christ blindly, as though they would have followed without reason any one who called them. But they were not men who acted upon mere impulse and without reason. The miracles, no doubt, produced an impression upon them. And then we may reasonably suppose that their moral faculties perceived the majesty of Deity shining through the countenance of the Son of God. As the magnet attracts the iron, so Christ drew Matthew and others to himself; and by this attractive power he communicated his graces and virtues to them, such as an ardent love of God, contempt of the world, and burning zeal for the salvation of souls. Mark 2:15 And it came to pass—ἐγένετο seems the best reading—as he was sitting at meat in his house. This was the house of Matthew. St. Matthew (Matthew 9:10) modestly says, "in the house," keeping himself as much as possible in the background. St. Luke, with greater fullness, says (Luke 5:29) that "Levi made him a great feast in his house." From this it appears that Matthew at once marked the occasion of his call by inviting his associates, publicans and sinners, that they too, being won by the example and teaching of Christ, might be led in like manner to follow him. Good is ever diffusive of itself; and Christian love prompts those who have experienced the love of Christ to draw others to the same fountain of mercy. We find publicans and sinners constantly associated together; for, although there is nothing necessarily unlawful in the office of a tax-gatherer, yet, since men frequently followed that calling because it offered the opportunity for fraud and extortion, hence the "publicans" were, generally speaking, odious to the Jews, and regarded as nothing better than "sinners." More-over the Jews of old maintained that they were Abraham’s seed, and protested that as a people dedicated to God, they ought not to be subject to the Romans, who were Gentiles and idolaters. They considered that it was contrary to the liberty and dignity of the children of God that they should pay tribute to them, a view which increased their prejudice against the tax-gatherers. And indeed this was one main cause of the rebellion of the Jews, which led finally to their overthrow by Titus and Vespasian. Mark 2:16 According to the most approved readings, this verse should run thus: And the scribes of the Pharisees, when they saw that he was eating with the sinners and publicans, said unto his disciples, He eateth and drinketh with publicans and sinners. The words "publicans and sinners" are thus inverted in their order in the two clauses, as though they were convertible terms. Of course, the scribes and Pharisees had not sat down at this feast, but some of them had probably found their way into the chamber in which the feast was going on, where they would comment freely upon what they saw, and condemn our Lord’s conduct as inconsistent with his character. It is as though they said, "By this conduct he transgresses the Law of God and the traditions of the elders. Why, then, do you follow him?" Mark 2:17 Jesus heard their murmurings, and his answer was, They that are whole have no need of a physician, but they that are sick. As the physician is not infected by the disease of the patient, but rather overcomes it and drives it from him, so it is no disgrace but rather an honor to the physician to associate himself with the sick, and so much the more, the greater the sickness. So that it is as though Christ said, "I who am sent from heaven by the Father, that I might be the Physician of the souls of sinners, am not defiled by their sins and spiritual diseases when I converse with them; but rather I cure and heal them, which is alike for my glory and for their good, and so much the more, the greater their sins. For I am the physician of sinners, not their companion. But you, scribes and Pharisees, are not the physicians but the companions of sinners, and so you are contaminated. Nevertheless, you desire to be thought righteous and holy; and therefore I do not associate with you, (1) because the whole, such as you think yourselves to be, need not the spiritual Physician; and (2) because your insincerity and pocrisy are an offense to me." Mark 2:18 The first sentence of this verse should be rendered thus: And the disciples of John and the Pharisees were fasting (ἧσαννηστεύοντες). In all the synoptic Gospels we find this incident following closely upon what goes before. It is not improbable that the Pharisees and the disciples of John were fasting at the very time when Matthew gave his feast. This was not one of the fasts prescribed by the Law; had it been so, it would have been observed by our Lord. There were, however, fasts observed by the Pharisees which were not required by the Law; there were two in particular of a voluntary nature, mentioned by the Pharisee (Luke 18:12), where he says, "I fast twice in the week." It was a custom, observed by the stricter Pharisees, but not of legal obligation. It was not correct to say, but thy disciples fast not. They fasted, no doubt, but in a different spirit; they did not fast to be seen of men—they followed the higher teaching of their Master. It is remarkable to find the disciples of John here associated with the Pharisees. John was now in prison in the fort of Machaerus. It is possible that jealousy of the increasing influence of Christ may have led John’s disciples to associate themselves with the Pharisees. The point of this particular attack upon Christ was this: It is as though they said, "You claim to be a new teacher sent from God, a teacher of a more perfect religion. How is it, then, that we are fasting, while your disciples are eating and drinking?" The disciples of John more especially may have urged this out of zeal for their master. Such an unworthy zeal is too often seen in good men, who love to prefer their own leader to all others, forgetting the remonstrance of St. Paul, "While there is amongst you strife and contention, are ye not carnal, and walk after the manner of men?" Mark 2:19 The Bridegroom here is Christ, because he espoused the human nature, and, through it, the Church to himself in his holy incarnation. This holy union he began by his grace on earth, and he will consummate it gloriously with his elect in heaven, when "the marriage of the Lamb shall have come, and his wife shall have made herself ready." Hence John the Baptist calls himself the friend of the Bridegroom, that is, of Christ. The sons (υἱοὶ) of the bridechamber are the special friends of the Bridegroom, those who are admitted into the closest fellowship with him. The expression is a Hebraism, like "the children of disobedience," and many other similar forms of expression. So long, then, as the bridegroom is with them they cannot fast. But the days will come when the bridegroom shall be taken away from them, and then shall they fast. It is as though our Lord said, "It is not surprising that they should not care to fast as long as they enjoy my presence; but when I am taken from thegn, then shall they fast." Mark 2:20 This is the first occasion on which our Lord alludes to his removal from them. The bridegroom shall be taken away from them. The Greek word (ἀπαρθῇ) conveys the idea of a painful severance. And then will they fast in that day (ἐνἐκείνῇτῇἡμέρα). This is the true reading. After our Lord’s death, his disciples frequently fasted as of necessity, and went through much privation and trial. And so it must be for the most part with all who will live godly in Christ Jesus, until he returns to take to himself his kingdom, when there will be a glad and everlasting festival. Mark 2:21 No man seweth a piece of new cloth—the Greek is (ῥακουςἀγνάφου) undressed cloth, cloth newly woven, and before it has been dressed by the fuller—on an old garment. The latter part of this verse is better rendered, as in the Revised Version, thus: Else that which should fill it up taketh from it, the new from the old; and a worse rent is made. The meaning of the words is this: An old garment, if it be torn, should be mended by a patch of old material; for if a patch of new material is used, its strength or fullness takes away from the old garment to which it is sewn; the old and the new do not agree, the new drags the old and tears it, and so a worse rent is made. Mark 2:22 "Bottles" in this verse is better rendered literally wine-skins (ἀσκούς). And no man putteth new wine (οἶνοννέον) into old wine-skins; else the new wine will burst the skins, and the wine perisheth, and the skins; but they put new wine into fresh wine-skins (ἀσκοὺςκαινοὺς). The sense is this: New wine, in the process of fermentation, will burst old bottles made of wine-skins not strong enough to resist the strength of the fermenting fluid; so that there is a twofold loss—both that of the bottles and that of the wine. And therefore new wine must be poured into bottles made of fresh wine-skins, which, by reason of their strength and toughness, shall be able to resist the fermenting energy of the new wine. And by these very apt illustrations our Lord teaches us that it is a vain thing to attempt to mingle together the spiritual freedom of the gospel with the old ceremonies of the Law. To attempt to engraft the living spiritual energy of the gospel upon the old legal ceremonial now about to pass away, would be as fatal a thing as to piece an old garment with new material, or to put new wine into old wineskins. There is here, therefore, a valuable lesson for the Christian Church, namely, to treat new converts with gentleness and consideration. Mark 2:23 If there is a rapid sequence in this part of the narrative, the fasting referred to in the last verses may have taken place the day before. St. Luke (Luke 6:1) here adds to St. Mark’s account the words, "and did eat, rubbing them [that is, the ears of corn] in their hands;" an incidental evidence of a simple life, that they did not here eat prepared food, but the simple grains of wheat, which they separated from the chaff by rubbing the ears of corn in their hands. This passage marks with some nicety the time of the year. The corn in that district would be ripening about May. It would, therefore, be not long after the Passover. The difficult expression in St. Luke 6:1, ἐνσαββάτῳδευτεροπρώτῳ, and which is rendered in the Authorized Version "on the second sabbath after the first," is reduced by the Revisers of 1881 to the simple phrase (ἐνσαββάτῳ), "on a sabbath," there not being sufficient evidence to persuade them to retain the word δευτεροπρώτῳ. But other evidences seem to show that the incident occurred earlier than as recorded by St. Matthew. The Fathers are fond of spiritual applications of this rubbing of the ears of corn. Bede, in remarking upon the fact of the disciples plucking the ears of corn, and rubbing them until they get rid of the husks, and obtain the food itself, says that they do this who meditate upon the Holy Scriptures, and digest them, until they find in them the kernel, the quintessence of delight; and St. Augustine blames those who merely please themselves with the flowers of Holy Scripture, but do not rub out the grain by meditation, until they obtain the real nourishment of virtue. Mark 2:24 That which is not lawful. The supposed unlawfulness was not the plucking of the ears of corn with the hand, which was expressly permitted by the Law (Deuteronomy 23:25), but the plucking and eating on the sabbath day. Mark 2:25, Mark 2:26 David … and they that were with him. This seems opposed to what we read in 1 Samuel 21:1-15., where David is stated to have been alone. But the facts appear to have been these, that David, fleeing from Saul, went alone to Ahimelech the high priest, and sought and obtained five loaves of the "shewbread," which he carried away with him to his companions in flight, and shared with them; for he says (1 Samuel 21:2), "I have appointed my servants to such and such a place." This incident actually happened in the high priesthood of Ahimelech the father of Abiathar. Bede says that they were both present when David came in his distress and obtained the shewbread. But Ahimelech having been slain, together with eighty-six priests, by Saul, Abiathar fled to David, and became his companion in his exile. Moreover, when he succeeded to the high priesthood on the death of Ahimelech, he did far more good service than his father had done, and so was worthy of being spoken of with this special commendation, and as though he was actually high priest, even though his father was then living. The words may properly mean "in the days when Abiathar was living who became high priest, and was more eminent than his father." The shewbread; literally, the bread of the face, that is, of the Divine presence, symbolizing the Divine Being who is the Bread of life. It was directed by the Law that within the sanctuary there should be a table of shittim (or acacia) wood; and every sabbath twelve newly baked loaves were placed upon it in two rows. These leaves were sprinkled with incense, and then remained there until the following sabbath. They were then replaced by twelve newly baked loaves, the old loaves being eaten by the priests in the holy place, from which it was unlawful to remove them. These twelve loaves corresponded to the twelve tribes. The force of our Lord’s reasoning is this: David, a man after God’s own heart, when sorely pressed by hunger, applied to the high priest and took some of these sacred loaves, loaves which under ordinary circumstances it was not lawful for the lay people to eat, because he wisely judged that a positive law, forbidding the laity to eat this bread, ought to yield to a law of necessity and of nature; which intimates to us that in a grave necessity of famine, life may be lawfully preserved by eating even sacred bread which has been dedicated to God. Therefore, in like manner, nay, much more, was it lawful for Christ and his disciples to pluck the ears of corn on the sabbath day, that by rubbing them in their hands they might pick out the good grain and satisfy their hunger. Mark 2:27 The sabbath was instituted for the benefit of man, that he might refresh and renew his body, fatigued and worn by six days’ labour, with the restful calm of the seventh; and that he might have leisure to apply his mind to the things which concern his everlasting salvation; to consider and meditate upon the Law of God; and rouse himself, by the remembrance of the Divine greatness and goodness, to true repentance, to gratitude, and to love. The force of the argument is this: The sabbath was made on account of man, not man on account of the sabbath. The sabbath, great and important as that institution is, is subordinate to man. If, then, the absolute rest of the sabbath becomes hurtful to man, a new departure must be taken, and some amount of labour must be undergone, that man may be benefited. Therefore was Christ justified in permitting to his disciples a little labour in plucking these ears of corn on the sabbath day, in order that they may appease their hunger. For it is better that the rest of the sabbath should be disturbed, though but a little, than that any one of those for whose sake the sabbath was instituted should perish. Mark 2:28 Therefore the Son of man is Lord also of the sabbath. "The sabbath was made for man." It is the inferior institution, man being the higher, for whose sake the sabbath was appointed. But the Son of man is Lord of all men, and of all things that pertain to man’s salvation; therefore he must of necessity be Lord even of the sabbath; so that when he sees fit he can relax or dispense with its obligations. It is true that for us Christians the first day of the week, the Lord’s day, has taken the place of the ancient Jewish sabbath; but the principle here laid down by our Lord is applicable to the "first" day no less than to the "seventh;" and it teaches us that our own moral and religious advancement and that of our brethren is the object which we should all aim at in the manner of our observance of the Christian Sunday; while we strive to "stand fast in the liberty wherewith Christ has made us free." Mark 2:1-12 Christ’s authority to pardon. Our Lord’s miracles of healing were, upon the surface and obviously, designed to relieve from suffering and to restore to health. They, at the same time, directed the attention of both those benefited, and of spectators, to the supernatural power and to the benevolence of the Divine Physician. But no Christian can fail to see in them a moral significance. Disorders of the body were symbolical of spiritual disease. And the great Healer, who pitied and relieved physical suffering, nevertheless had regard to the more serious affections of the soul, and designed by his works of healing to direct attention to himself, to excite faith in himself, as able and willing to save sinners. It was in the miracle recorded in the passage before us that the Saviour first openly avowed the spiritual purpose of his ministry and the spiritual authority he possessed to pardon and to save. I. THE CASE IN WHICH THIS WAS . A paralytic is in a condition both helpless and hopeless. Deprived by the disease of the command of his limbs, his case is one beyond the power of medical skill to deal with. This palsy may, therefore, be regarded as symbolical of the sinner’s pitiable condition and gloomy prospects. With regard to the paralytic’s state of mind, we are to presume that he was sensible of his sinfulness and of his need of pardon and acceptance; otherwise our Lord could never have treated him as he did. To the sufferer, his bodily malady was indeed afflictive; but he must have had such a "conscience of sin" as to regard his spiritual disorder as more oppressive and more pitiable still. The case, then, in which the Lord Jesus will exercise his prerogative of pardon, is the case of the sinner whose sin is a felt burden, and who brings that burden to the Divine Saviour. II. THE PRESENT WHEN CHRIST THUS HIS TO PARDON. There was a general interest and appreciation in the community; multitudes crowded to hear the Master’s words, and many applicants were urgently seeking his healing mercy. There were sentiments of pity and kindliness on the part of the sufferer’s friends, leading to practical interposition on his behalf. What these friends could do, they did; they brought the sufferer to Christ. There was faith, both in the paralytic and in his friends—faith, which took a practical form in the approach to Jesus, in the conjoined effort to bring the sufferer beneath the notice of the Healer, and especially in the perseverance so ingeniously and strikingly displayed. All these were conditions which the Saviour evidently regarded as peculiarly favorable to the public exercise of his prerogative to pardon. III. THE MANNER AND IN WHICH THE OF PARDON WAS GIVEN. There was no inquiry into the state of the paralytic’s mind; for Jesus knew what was in man, and needed not to be told. There was no assertion of a delegated power; for the Son of man had authority on earth to forgive sins. There was no hesitation, or delay, or qualification. Nor was Christ’s language a mere statement that the sins of the paralytic were forgiven; it was an actual pardon and absolution—nothing less. When Christ forgives, he forgives freely, fully, absolutely. He came to "save his people from their sins." He retains the same power still, and exercises it from the throne of his glory. IV. THE SUPPORT AND OF BY . We can hardly wonder at the captious spirit in which Christ’s claim was received, at the cavillings of unbelief. Unless they believed the speaker to be more than a prophet, more than human, they must have stumbled at his words. Their general principle a as correct and sound: "Who can forgive sins, but God only?" What was passing in their minds was, in the circumstances, natural enough. "It is easy to say, ’Thy sins are forgiven;’ but what assurance have we that the words are anything beyond words? This is ground upon which the speaker cannot be refuted, and yet upon which the hearers cannot be convinced." These reflections, which were passing in the minds of the scribes, were known to Christ. There was only one way of meeting the objection, of overcoming the difficulty. Jesus must descend to common ground, and appeal to the senses and the understanding of the bystanders. He accordingly wrought a miracle in support of his claims. In doing this, he both relieved the sufferer and vindicated his own authority in the spiritual realm. He bade the paralytic arise, take up his couch, and return home, sound and well. V. THE EFFECT BY THIS TWOFOLD OF POWER. The patient was at once pardoned and cured. With rejoicing heart, with restored powers of limb, he arose and departed to his house, free from burden of guilt, and free from the pains and infirmities of disease. The scribes were silenced; some may have been convinced, and few could have been unimpressed. The witnesses of the miracle were amazed at this exhibition of twofold authority by the Lord of nature and of spirits. They are recorded to have received the lessons aright; for they glorified God as the Author of healing and salvation in the person of his Son, and they recognized the unique authority entrusted to One human in form, in feeling, and in voice, but of authority supernatural, beneficent, Divine! . 1. The sinner may learn from this narrative in what manner, and in what spirit, to come to Jesus. 2. And he may be encouraged by the representation here given of Christ’s willingness and authority to save. Mark 2:13-17 Levi’s discipleship and hospitality. The story of Matthew illustrates the part of improbabilities in human life. Some would see in it the irony of fate; we would recognize the mystery of Providence. The evangelists tell us of a man who occupied the humble and even despised position of collector of Roman dues or customs by the shores of the little Lake of Gennesaret, who was summoned to leave this lowly occupation, for what seemed the yet humbler office of attendant and scholar to a peasant Teacher, but who, in course of time, became the chronicler of his Master’s life and teachings, and thus the writer of a treatise which stands first in the New Testament—a volume which has been more widely circulated and read than any other composition in any language spoken by man! Looking back upon the call of Matthew, we can see in it an importance which none of the bystanders could possibly have surmised. The narrative yields instructive lessons, whether we consider the conduct of Levi himself, or study the action and the very memorable language used on this occasion by our Lord. I. Taking first THE CONDUCT OF THIS TOLL-TAKER or tax-gatherer of Gennesaret, we remark in him an instance of: 1. A man forsaking a lucrative occupation in order to follow Christ. Matthew had no doubt found time, amidst his many and exacting avocations, to resort to the Saviour’s society and to listen to his public teaching. In this he furnishes us with an example of the effort and the self-denial which business men may find to be profitable to them, if they will, at some loss of time and gain, take advantage of opportunities of Christian fellowship and instruction. And when the time and the call came, the same spirit of self-sacrifice led this devout man to relinquish his secular occupation and emoluments, and to attend upon the Prophet of Nazareth, to learn his mind and to qualify for his service. Are none such called to a similar surrender to-day? See also: 2. A man using his social influence to bring his companions under the teaching of the Saviour. The feast to which Matthew invited his old associates was not merely complimentary or convivial. There can be no question that he was actuated by a high motive in inviting people of this class to meet Jesus. Probably it was the best, possibly it was the only, way in which this peculiar class could be brought into contact with the great Teacher. How well it is that those who have the means of doing so should use their hospitality for benevolent and truly Christian purposes—should bring together those who need and those who are prepared to impart some spiritual blessing, and should thus instrumentally bring together the sinner and the Saviour! II. But we have here also lessons derivable from THE CONDUCT OF CHRIST. 1. Christ’s disregard and defiance of public opinion. This is evident (1) in his selection of disciples and apostles. He not only chose the lowly and the obscure; he, in this instance especially, chose the despised. The collectors of the Roman revenue were, among the Jews, the mark of general obloquy and contempt. The Son of man, who himself came from the despised Nazareth, selected his friends from the mean and unlettered; and in the case of Matthew he took a man from a sordid and repulsive calling to be an apostle of the greatest religion of the world. It is the wont of Divine wisdom to rise "things which are not to bring to nought things which are." (2) In his companionship and social intercourse. That Jesus should eat and drink with publicans and sinners excited the surprise and the hatred of the "scribes of the Pharisees," who accounted the common people as accursed. But the rule of Jesus was to go where he could do the Father’s will, and pluck men as brands from the burning. It is not well to be a "companion of fools," yet there are occasions upon which the mature and established Christian will do well to seek the society of the ignorant and debased, with the view of instructing and elevating them by the gospel of salvation. 2. Christ’s vindication of this disregard and defiance. He had a reason for acting as he did. (1) Jesus recognized men’s spiritual need. To the scribes, the guests at Levi’s house were simply contemptible sinners, but to the holy Lord they were the spiritually sick; he saw upon them the marks of a dire disorder, the promise of approaching death. This is the just and Divine light in which to look at the misled and erring children of men. When we regard them thus, not contempt, but pity, will fill our hearts. (2) Jesus asserted his own power to heal and save and bless. He was the Divine Physician, in whom alone is help and hope for man. Bad as was the case of the "sinners," it was not beyond the power of his skill and kindness. He had purposes of mercy and power to save. And from the ranks of the sinners Jesus won over many to be soldiers of righteousness; from the pest-houses of the plague-stricken he drew forth many who, restored to spiritual health, became in turn amongst their sinful fellow-men, "ministers to minds diseased." 1. Let preachers and teachers of the gospel regard none as so base in condition, or so depraved in character, as to be beyond the power of Christ to save. 2. Let those who are humbled beneath a sense of sin and ill desert be encouraged to come to Jesus, who will both welcome them into his presence, and confer upon them all the priceless blessings of salvation and of eternal life. Mark 2:18-22 Christianity and asceticism. Strange as it seems, it is unquestionable that the very humanity of Jesus, his truly broad and human sympathies, were an offense to the religious leaders of his time. The Pharisees fasted oft; John came neither eating nor drinking; Jesus, who came that he might live among men and who associated with them in all their innocent occupations and enjoyments, excited the displeasure and malice of those who were too superficial and ceremonial to understand his large-heartedness and spirituality. Accordingly, when our Lord joined the festive party at Levi’s house, there arose questionings which issued in the explanations given in this passage of the relation between the old religion and its asceticism, and the new religion and its cheerfulness and Divine breadth. I. A personal and temporary reason why the disciples of Jesus should not be ascetic. Like a true Leader and Master, Jesus defends his followers, whereinsoever their conduct admits of defense. The figure which he employs is one which John had already used, designating his Divine successor the Bridegroom who should possess the bride. The true ground of Christian joy is, in this passage, figuratively but beautifully explained. The Jewish wedding was an occasion for festivity, rejoicing, music, and society. The companions of the bridegroom—"children of the bride-chamber "—were his choicest and most trusted and beloved friends. They were happy in their friend’s society, and rejoiced with him in his joy, and took a prominent part in the festivities appropriate to the occasion. The Lord Jesus honors his disciples by describing them as sustaining such a relationship to him, the Divine Bridegroom. Whilst he was with them, how could they be sad? how could they fast? how could they refrain from holy mirth and pious songs? There is no ground of joy so just, so sacred, as the friendship of Jesus. To have him with us alway, to hear his voice, to be assured of his interest and love,—this is the purest satisfaction and the highest gladness known to human hearts. "I have," says he to his own—"I have called you friends." "Your sorrow shall be turned into joy." Christ’s defense, then, is, that at the time and in the circumstances a-joyful spirit was natural and blameless in his companions and disciples. And this was evidently, at this period at all events, the case. To the reader of the Gospels (although M. Renan has, no doubt, exaggerated the facts), it is clear that, in their earlier "progresses" through Galilee, our Lord and his followers led a cheerful, bright, and joyous existence. Time enough to mourn when their Lord, the Bridegroom, should be taken away from them. Then, at his approaching departure, sorrow filled their hearts. Yet this was but for a season; with his return at Pentccost, the joy of the Church returned. II. A GENERAL AND REASON WHY THE OF JESUS SHOULD NOT BE ASCETIC, True, Christ has gone; so, if his personal presence alone restrained the disciples from mourning, sadness and fasting would be appropriate in the Church of the Redeemer, as the customary habit and sentiment. But the case is otherwise; our Lord himself ,has justified, in this passage, a lasting antagonism between his religion and practices of asceticism. Not that, under the Christian dispensation, fasting is unlawful; but that it Should be rather exceptional and special than distinctive of the new life. The fact is, as Christ shows in these two parables, that there is a want of harmony between the old practices and the new faith, the old garment and the new cloth, the old skins and the new wine. 1. Christianity is a religion of the spirit rather than of the form. Our Lord teaches that it is better not to appear unto men to fast; it is better to humble ourselves in secret, because of our sins and the sins of our time, before our God. There is much danger of regarding fasting as in itself, because a mortification of the flesh, acceptable to God. This is a mistaken conception, as may be learned even from some passages of Old Testament Scripture. 2. Christianity is a religion of love rather than of fear. Those who are in dread of justice may seemingly be justified in their attitude of mind, when they so give way to sentiments of abject self-abasement that they cover themselves with sackcloth and ashes, and deprive themselves of necessary food. But those who are conscious that, through Christ, they are living in the enjoyment of the Divine favor, can scarcely be expected—at least, as an habitual exercise—to mourn and fast. They "rejoice evermore;" the "joy of the Lord is their strength;" his "statutes are their song in the house of their pilgrimage." For them, "perfect love casteth out fear." 3. Christianity is a religion rather of hopefulness than of gloom. It teaches us to look forward to the future with bright anticipation, ardently to desire the return of the Lord in triumph, and cheerfully to prepare for a glorious future. The Bridegroom will return and claim his own; how can the spiritual spouse do other than look forward, hopefully and joyfully, to the glad and festive day? III. The general principle underlying our Lord’s reply is this: THE FORM OF , WITHOUT THE REALITY AND , IS VAIN, All religious observances have a tendency,—such is the weakness of human nature,—to harden into dead formalities. At first they are good, for they are the expression of sincere feeling and conviction. But by-and-by the spiritual disappears, and the mere ceremony remains. And the unspiritual mistake the form for the substance, and come to flatter themselves that they are religious and that it is well with them, when they are simply by ceremonial excuses justifying themselves for a heart and life profoundly irreligious. Thus it was with multitudes of the Jews, in the time of our Saviour and of the apostles. What stress they laid upon circumcision, upon sacrifices, upon ceremonial purity, upon tithes, upon alms, upon sabbath-keeping, upon observing sacred festivals, upon fasts appointed and traditional, upon the customs and superstitions received from their fathers! And how, at the same time, they neglected the weightier matters of the Law! Hence our Lord’s frequent upbraidings of the scribes and Pharisees. They deceived themselves, they deluded others, they hindered the hearts of men from receiving the gospel. When Christianity was established, it was threatened by the same disastrous tendency. First, the Judaizers endeavored to overlay the spirituality of the gospel with Jewish rites and customs. And afterwards, when Christianity was in the act of vanquishing paganism, it submitted to assume much that was heathen. The great system of sacerdotalism, with its sacramentarianism, its saint-worship, and its mortifications and asceticism, was acquired from heathenism. And how much of this survives even to the present day, we have only to look around us that we may see. Now, Christ in his answer supplies the true corrective and safeguard against the action of this evil tendency. Why should his disciples fast, when (as a matter of fact)they were happy and jubilant? It would have been mere formality and hypocrisy, than which nothing was more repugnant to his spiritual doctrines and the character of his religion. 1. Let those who fast, fast in spirit, and afflict the soul, and place no confidence in the flesh. 2. Let those who feast, feast as the children of God and the friends of Christ. 3. Let the demeanour of Christians be such, so glowing with sincere and hopeful cheerfulness, as to commend the glorious gospel. Mark 2:23-28 The sabbath. The grounds upon which the Pharisees and scribes took offense at our Lord and his ministry were various. Some of these—as, e.g., his claim to pardon sin—were very serious; for in such a case Jesus was either an impostor and blasphemer, or he was the Son of God. Others were very trivial, as, e.g., his neglect of some unauthorized traditions, or his preference of moral duty to observance of the ceremonial law. In this and in the following incident, the sabbath was the ground of misunderstanding, and Christ’s preference of humanity to ceremonial compliance occasioned, on the part of his adversaries, hatred, enmity, and conspiracy. Still, the malice of Christ’s foes furnished opportunities for the assertion of great religious principles. From this narrative we learn that human need should take precedence of ceremony and tradition. There is ever a danger lest the outward husk of religion should be mistaken for the precious kernel. Nowhere is this danger more stringently guarded against than in the conduct and the discourses of Christ. The principle is vindicated— I. BY AN APPEAL TO OLD HISTORY. It was a master-stroke of controversy on the part of the great Teacher to appeal to the Scriptures, which the Pharisees professed to hold in such reverence. The conduct of David, one of the great heroes and saints of their national history, was quoted in justification of the conduct of the disciples of Jesus. To eat is a necessity of human nature, and some kind of action, of rudimentary labour, is necessary in order to eating. The disciples of Jesus had plucked cars of corn, had rubbed the grain free from husk in their hands, and had eaten, in order to satisfy their hunger. Possibly in so doing they had violated the tradition of the elders, which maintained that anything approaching to labour on the sabbath day was an infraction of the Divine command. However, the Lord vindicated them by the example of David, who, for the purpose of providing food for himself and his companions, had not hesitated to take the shewbread of the sanctuary, which was reserved for the use of the priests alone; and this probably also on the sabbath day. Punctiliousness of observance must give way before those necessities which the Creator has impressed upon our human nature. II. BY THE THAT THE SABBATH IS THE MEANS TO WHICH HUMAN WELFARE IS THE END. HOW blessed an institution is the weekly day of rest! The importance of the sabbath to man’s bodily and spiritual welfare is very much overlooked by many advocates for the employment of labour on that day, and by many Christians who, in their zeal for men’s instruction and salvation, labour seven days a week instead of six. Yet, as we are here taught, we are not to make an idol of even so precious an institution. The day of rest was designed for man’s good; and it must be maintained that man’s good comes first, and the sabbath next. Thus it is allowable and it is required to perform "works of necessity and mercy" on the sabbath, and even on the Lord’s day, which may be regarded as the higher sabbath of the Christian. Those who preach and teach, who visit the sick and the afflicted, although their doing these things may make them labour seven days in the week, may make them "sabbath-breakers," are held guiltless by the application of the great principle of the text. III. BY THE CLAIM OF CHRIST TO OVER THE SABBATH DAY, Christ is indeed Lord of all. He uses his lordship not so much to institute as to abrogate ceremonies, not so much to burden the religious life with observances as to set it free from such trammels. He imparts the true sabbatic spirit; he gives the rest of heart, which is even more important than bodily repose. He sanctifies all days by his Spirit, making every day to the Christian better and more sacred than the holiest festival or the most solemn fast to the Jew of old. If the day be begun, continued, and ended in him, and if all our works be done under his lordship and by his inspiration, life itself will be a true sabbath, filled with the rest of his love and with the music of his praise. LESSONS. 1. Guard against a merely external, ceremonial religion, which is ever prone to degenerate into superstition. 2. Consider the preciousness of the weekly day of rest; it was given for our advantage; it should be used for the glory of God, in the welfare of those for whom Christ lived and died. 3. Think aright of him who, without presumption, could claim a prerogative so lofty as lordship over the sabbath. To be filled with his spirit, to yield ourselves to his authority,—this is the best means of fulfilling the spiritual law of the God who is a Spirit, and who asks for spiritual homage and service. BY A.F. MUIR Cure of the paralytic. I. ARE READILY WHERE THERE IS FAITH. The house was probably a poor one, roofed with mud and shingle. It would be easy, therefore, to dig a hole and obtain entrance in that way. But doing it required a certain amount of ingenuity and effort, which proved that the man and his friends were resolved to get to Jesus and obtain the cure. All this trouble and thoughtfulness was the outcome of faith in Christ. Their boldness was the confidence of faith. Where the heart is right, difficulties in the way of seeking or following the Saviour will only call forth keener ingenuity and higher resolution. II. FAITH EVER SECURES THE AND OF CHRIST. Christ’s first words were not chiding, but a welcome. He said, "Son [child], thy sins are forgiven." There would be tenderness and sympathy in the tone as well as in the words. He spoke as a father or an elder brother. The sick man may have been young. But in the midst of all the kindness the guilty past of the man is not forgotten. He had been a sinner, and probably his malady was but the fruit of his misdoing. A thrill of wonder and fear, mingled with more hopeful feelings, would pervade him as he listened. Here was one who knew all about him, and yet had compassion on him! The faith of the patient and his bearers (possibly relatives) was thus rewarded beyond their hopes. A greater boon was conferred than they sought. Christ is never satisfied with half measures. He goes at once to the root of the evil, and seeks to save a man altogether, in soul as well as in body and fortune. III. IN SHOWING MERCY CHRIST ASSUMES THE HIGHEST . Whilst the nature of the case before him demanded that the cure should be thus radical, the mere utterance of the words, "Thy sins are forgiven," involved a claim which those looking on were not ready to acknowledge. 1. Faith in being taxed is rewarded. The believing men were required to believe more, and more definitely, than they had already done. And to him chiefly concerned there were already inward witnesses in favor of the new claim. That Christ should have divined the secret source of the bodily weakness and mental unrest was a presumption that he was what he professed implicitly to be. Doubtless, with the rising of his spirit to the new duty of recognizing the authority of Jesus, the sick man’s conscience would receive sudden and unlooked-for relief. The tide of life would turn again in the glad flush of peace and happiness. Christ’s demands upon men to believe more than they already do are intended as conditions of his bestowing greater blessings. 2. In order to do all that he was sent to do, Christ required to be Divine. The argument was perfectly sound, which the scribes carried on "in their hearts." Only God can, in the ultimate, forgive sins. Yet his power is sometimes delegated according to fixed principles and appointments. But probably they included in their reasoning the unspoken evidence given in Christ’s manner, that he forgave out of and from himself. The entire circumstances of the case show that he must have done this. And so ever, when men come to him, it is that he may exercise this authority and power. What they did not think of was the possibility of him whom they accused being "very God of very God." IV. ARE CREATED WHERE FAITH IS ABSENT. The simple soul of the paralytic grasped the secret of Divinity which escaped the subtlety of the scribes. Their very knowledge stood in their way, because it was not spiritually acquired and employed. V. THE POWER OF CHRIST IS A OF HIS . 1. Strictly speaking, healing the paralysis of the man was not, when taken by itself, on the same level with the forgiveness of his sins; but the two actions are distinctly declared to be in connection with one another. They both appealed to the same Divine power. If, therefore, the pretension to this power made in the former utterance was blasphemous, the ability to perform the consequent miracle would not have been forthcoming. It is also possible that the visible fact of the cure may have been meant as a making good of the invisible transaction declared in the first words. They were shown thereby not to be mere words. 2. And similarly, but even more cogently, is the proof of our Lord’s divinity furnished by the spiritual experience of those whom he redeems. That they are forgiven is witnessed to in the subsequent power given to live righteously, and to continue in fellowship with a reconciled God. To those who are conscious of this inward result ("kept by the power of God through faith, unto salvation") there is no other evidence so conclusive.—M. Mark 2:13-22 Levi’s feast: the moral questions it occasioned. 1. (Mark 2:13-17.) Eating with publicans and sinners. In calling Matthew (Levi) from the receipt of custom, our Saviour made him relinquish all his old pursuits and companions, and conferred upon him an unexpected honor. The feast given by him was, therefore, partly a farewell, partly a celebration. In overstepping the boundary line of Jewish religious and social etiquette, the Lord performed an act of great significance, which was sure to call forth remark. I. , WHEN LINKED WITH MALICE, WILL PUT THE WORST UPON THE BEST ACTIONS. Conventional morality was invoked to condemn Christ in mingling with the publicans. No trouble was taken to ascertain the true character of the feast. By their criticism the Pharisees exposed their own hollowness and unspirituality. They condemned themselves in seeking to condemn Christ. For such judgments men are responsible. The greatest care and most spiritual view should be taken ere judgment is passed upon the actions of others, especially when their character is known to be good. II. IT IS THE MOTIVE WHICH IS THE TRUE KEY TO THE NATURE OF ACTIONS. 1. This applies absolutely in the case of actions in themselves indifferent, or only conventionally forbidden; but in all actions it is an indispensable canon of ultimate judgment. Even where the external nature of an action is unmistakable, the utmost care should be taken in forming an opinion. Absolute and unqualified judgment is for God alone. 2. When challenged for our conduct it is well to explain the principles upon which we act. Christ at once makes known his motives, and with no anger. Yet in so doing he judged his accusers, They pretended to be whole, and so could not object to him doing good to those who required his aid. Why were they dissatisfied, if not from secret disquietude with their own condition and attitude? Irony proceeding from deepest spiritual discernment! III. THE HOLIEST SOUGHT OUT AND WITH SINNERS THAT HE MIGHT MAKE THEM HOLY. It is only by sympathy, and by appeals to their highest nature, that sinful men can be won to God.—M. Levi’s feast: the moral questions it occasioned. 2. (Mark 2:18-22.) The rationale of fasting. I. THE ORIGIN OF THE . This seemed to be natural enough. A real perplexity was created which required to be removed. There is no malice or bitterness in the inquiry. Amongst spiritual associates all such difficulties ought to be frankly faced and kindly discussed. 1. The feast of Levi was coincident with a traditional fast. The Pharisees and the disciples of John both observed the fast, were observing it at the time the others were feasting. Now, within the band of Christ’s disciples were two sections-one formerly wholly, and still to a great extent, identified with the doctrines and observances of John; the other following without question the spiritual guidance of Christ. The contrast would, therefore, be very marked. A schism seemed to discover itself within the circle of the brethren. 2. The general life of the disciples of Christ was not so ascetic as that of John’s, and the traditional fasts of Judaism were not so strictly observed by them. The special occasion was only a striking instance of general divergence. In answering the question, then, the key would be given to the entire life which Christ desired men to lead. II. ITS . The answer was prompt and kindly, and it seemed to justify the question. It goes to the very root of the subject. No attention is given to the circumstance of fasting being a positive or conventional enactment. Its meaning and purpose are at once referred to, as alone determining the validity or otherwise of its claims to being observed. 1. Subjective conditions and aims are stated to be of chief consequence in regard to such a question. This was a new departure, a rationalizing of positive law and observance. Institutions and practices of religion are to stand or fall according to their spiritual adaptation to the needs of the human soul. 2. Circumstances which determine spiritual states are, therefore, decisive as to the obligation or otherwise of fasting. The Jews under the Law were without Christ; now he had come, and the spiritual experience of men who received him was wholly altered. Fasting would be out of keeping, because the mood of those who discerned and believed Christ (the Bridegroom) was festive and joyous. A feast rather than a fast was therefore the fitting ceremony. 3. A fundamental distinction exists between Judaism and Christianity. The one was old and ready to vanish away; the other was new and instinct with fresh, vigorous life. Any confusion of them would therefore be mutually injurious. This distinctive character of each is represented in two illustrations, viz. (1) The old garment and the new piece of cloth. It would be foolish to employ Christianity merely to make good the defects of Judaism. The combination would not only be motley; it would be disastrous, because of the difference of spiritual force in the two systems. Judaism was antiquated, full of holes and rottenness, and ready to vanish away. To patch it up with the gospel would, therefore, only hasten its destruction. Fasting was representative of the legalistic or external rites of Judaism; Christianity was as new and "unfulled" cloth, which would shrink when put upon the old garment, and make the rent worse. This is one side of the truth; and in (2) the new wine and the old bottles, we have the other. Legal forms and observances are inadequate to contain and express the fresh, spiritual, ever-expanding life of the Christian. Spiritual truth and life must create their own ritual, and dictate their own ideal of morality.—M. The sabbath made for man. I. The purpose of The sabbath IS TO BE KEPT IN VIEW IN ITS . II. RULES WHICH DO NOT HAVE REGARD TO THIS MAY VIOLATE WHAT THEY PROFESS TO . 1. The disciples were within the written permission of the Law. "To pluck and rub with the hand ears from the field of a neighbor was allowed; Moses forbade only the sickle (Deuteronomy 23:25). But the matter belonged to the thirty-nine chief classes (fathers), each of which had its subdivisions (daughters), in which the works forbidden on the sabbath were enumerated. This was their hypocritical way, to make of trifling things matters of sin and vexation to the conscience" (Braune). 2. "Men see that others neglect rules, when they see not their own violation of principles" (Godwin). III. THE BEST OF MAN ARE TO SERVED BY THE SABBATH. 1. "The sabbath was made for man, and not man for the sabbath." This is proved by an incident from the life of David. As they revered David, the allusion was an argumentum ad hominem as well as an illustration of a general principle. By that occurrence it was shown that even the sanctities of the temple were subordinated to the welfare of God’s anointed and his followers. If, then, these things bent to the highest interests of man, so must the sabbath. 2. "The Son of man is Lord of the sabbath." This is an inference from the foregoing principle. For Christ claimed this authority not merely as a man, but as "the Son of man in his inviolable holiness, and in his mysterious dignity (intimated in Daniel) as the holy Child and Head of humanity appearing in the name of God" (Lange). He summed up in his own person the highest interests of the race. And as Lord of the sabbath he uses it ever for the advancement of holiness and the development of spiritual freedom in his saints.—M. BY A. ROWLAND Mark 2:3-5 The pardon of the paralytic. This miracle is recorded also by Matthew and Luke. The former indicates its chronological position as occurring after the return from Gadara. Our gracious Lord "again entered into Capernaum," so slow is he to leave the most undeserving. The news of his arrival quickly spread; indeed, whenever he enters a home or a heart, he cannot be hid. True love and eager faith will surely find him, and in this passage we find an example of that truth. I. THE COMING OF THE is full of teaching for those who are now seeking the Saviour. This entry is longer than a Bible module can hold. The rest is at https://www.sermonindex.net/commentary/pulpit-commentary/ This chapter begins with the record of another case of healing on the sabbath day; and it closes with the notice of a combination of the Pharisees with the Herodians to bring about the destruction of the Saviour. We may observe that he again chose the sabbath for a new miracle, that he might again and again confute the error of the scribes and Pharisees with regard to the observance of the sabbath. Mark 3:1 He entered again into the synagogue. St. Matthew (Matthew 12:9) says, "their synagogue" (εἰςτὴνσυναγωγὴν) This would probably be on the next sabbath after that named at the close of the last chapter. And there was a man there which had a withered hand (ἐξηραμμένηνἔχωντὴνχεῖρα); literally, which had his hand withered, or dried up. And they watched him (παρετήρουναὐτὸν); kept watching him. There were probably scribes sent for this purpose from Jerusalem. St. Jerome informs us that in an apocryphal Gospel in use amongst the Nazarenes and Ebionites, the man whose hand was withered is described as a mason, and is said to have asked for help in the following terms:—"I was a mason, seeking my living by manual labour. I beseech thee, Jesus, to restore me the use of my hand, that I may not be compelled to beg my bread." This is so far consistent with St. Mark’s description (ἐξηραμμένηνἔχωντὴνχεῖρα) as to show that the malady was the result of disease or accident, and not congenital. St. Luke (Luke 6:6) informs us that it was the right hand. The disease probably extended through the whole arm according to the wider meaning of the Greek word It seems to have been a kind of atrophy, causing a gradual drying up of the limb; which in such a condition was beyond the reach of any mere human skill. Mark 3:2 The scribes had already the evidence that our Lord had permitted his disciples to rub the ears of corn on the sabbath day. But this was the act of the disciple, not his. What he was now preparing to do was an act of miraculous power. And here the ease was stronger, because work, which was prohibited under pain of death by the Law (Exodus 31:14), was understood to include every act not absolutely necessary. Mark 3:3, Mark 3:4 Stand forth. The words in the original are Ἔγειραιεἰςτὸμέσον Rise into the midst. In St. Matthew’s account (Matthew 12:10), the scribes and Pharisees here ask our Lord, "Is it lawful to heal on the sabbath day?" The two accounts are easily reconciled if we first suppose the scribes and Pharisees to ask this question of our Lord, and then our Lord to answer them by putting their own question to them in another form. Is it lawful on the sabbath day to do good, or to do harm? to save a life, or to kill? Our Lord’s meaning appears to be this: "If any one, baying it in his power, omits to do an act of mercy on the sabbath day-for one grievously afflicted, as this man is, if he is able to cure him, as I Christ am able, he does him a wrong; for he denies him that help which he owes him by the law of charity." Our Lord thus plainly signifies that not to do an act of kindness to a sick man on the sabbath day when you are able to do it, is really to do him a wrong. But it is never lawful to do a wrong; and therefore it is always lawful to do good, not excepting even the sabbath day, for that is dedicated to God and to good works. Whence it is a greater sin to do a wrong on the sabbath than on other days; for thus the sanctity of the sabbath is violated, just as it is all the more honoured and sanctified by doing good. In our Lord’s judgment, then, to neglect to save, when you have it in your power to do so, is to destroy. They held their peace. They could not answer him. They are obstinate indeed in their infidelity, who, when they can say nothing against the truth, refuse to say anything for it. Mark 3:5 When he had looked round about on them with anger, being grieved (συλλυπούμενος)—the word has a touch of "condolence" in it—at the hardening of their heart. All this is very characteristic of St. Mark, who is careful to notice the visible expression of our Lord’s feelings in his looks. The account is evidently from an eye-witness, or from one who had it from an eye-witness. He looked round about on them with anger. He was indignant at their blindness of heart, and their unbelief, which led them to attack the miracles of mercy wrought by him on the sabbath day as though they were a violation of the law of the sabbath. We see hero how plainly there were in Christ the passions and affections common to the human nature, only restrained and subordinated to reason. Hero is the difference between the anger of fallen man and the anger of the sinless One. With fallen man, auger is the desire of retaliating, of punishing those by whom you consider yourself unjustly treated. Hence, in other men, anger springs from self-love; in Christ it sprang from the love of God. He loved God above all things; hence he was distressed and irritated on account of the wrongs done to God by sins and sinners. So that his anger was a righteous zeal for the honour of God; and hence it was mingled with grief, because, in their blindness and obstinacy, they would not acknowledge him to be the Messiah, but misrepresented his kindnesses wrought on the sick on the sabbath day, and found fault with them as evil. Thus our Lord, by showing grief and sorrow, makes it plain that his anger did not spring from the desire of revenge. He was indeed angry at the sin, while he grieved over and with the sinners, as those whom he loved, and for whose sake he came into the world that he might redeem and save them. Stretch forth thy hand. And he stretched it forth: and his hand was restored. The words "whole as the other" (ὑγιὴςὡςἡἄλλη) are not found in the best uncials. They were probably inserted from St. Matthew. In this instance our Lord performed no outward act. "He spake, and it was done." The Divine power wrought the miracle concurrently with the act of faith on the part of the man in obeying the command. Mark 3:6 The Pharisees and the Herodians combine together against the Lord. This was a terrible crisis in his history, or rather in the history of those unbelieving men. They are now in this dilemma: they must either accept his teaching, or they must take steps against him as a sabbath-breaker. But what had he done? The miracle had been wrought by a word only. It would have been difficult, therefore, to have obtained a judgment against him. Therefore they secured some fresh allies. They had already gained to their side some of the disciples of John the Baptist (Mark 2:18), now they associate with themselves the Herodians. This is the first mention that we find made of the Herodians. They were the natural opponents of the Pharisees; but here they seem to have found some common ground of agreement, though it is not very easy to say what it was, in combining against our Lord. But it is no uncommon thing to find coalitions of men, strangely opposed to one another on most points, but united to effect some particular object; and it is easy to see how the purity and spirituality of our Lord and of his doctrine would be opposed, on the one hand, to the ceremonial formality of the Pharisee, and on the other to the worldly and secular spirit of the Herodian. Mark 3:7, Mark 3:8 Jesus with his disciples withdrew to the sea. This shows that the miracle just recorded took place in the interior of Galilee, and not at Capernaum, which was close by the sea. The chief city in Galilee at that time was Sepphoris, which Herod Antipas had made his capital. There the Herodiaus would of course be numerous, and so too would the Pharisees; since that city was one of the five places where the five Sanhedrims met. The remainder of these two verses should be read and pointed thus: And a great multitude from Galilee followed: and from Judaea, and from Jerusalem, and from Idumaea, and beyond Jordan, and about Tyre and Sidon, a great multitude, hearing what great things he did, come unto him. The meaning of the evangelist is this, that, in addition to the great multitude that followed him from the parts of Galilee which he had just been visiting, there were vast numbers from other parts who had now heard of his fame, and flocked to him from every quarter. This description sets before us in a strikingly graphic manner the mixed character of the multitude who gathered around our Lord to listen to his teaching, and to be healed by him—as many, at least, as had need of healing. Mark 3:9 And he spake to his disciples, that a small ship (πλοιάριον)—literally, a little boat—should wait on him προσκαρτερῆαὐτῷ)—literally, should be in close attendance upon him—because of the multitude, lest they should throng him. This shows in a very graphic manner how assiduously and closely the crowd pressed upon him, so that he was obliged to have a little boat always in readiness, in which he might take refuge when the pressure became too great, and so address them with greater freedom from the boat. St. Luke (Luke 5:3) says, "He sat down, and taught the people out of the ship," making the boat, so to speak, his pulpit. Mark 3:10 As many as had plagues—the Greek word is μάστιγας; literally, scourges, painful disorders—pressed upon him (ὥστεἐπιπίπτειναὐτῷ); literally, fell upon him, clung to him, hoping that the very contact with him might heal them. This expression, "scourges," reminds us that diseases are a punishment on account of our sins. Mark 3:11 And the unclean spirits, whensoever they beheld him, fell down before him, and cried, saying. It is worthy of notice that the afflicted people fell upon him (ἐπίπιπτειναὐτῷ); but the unclean spirits felt down before him (προσέπιπτεναὐτῷ), and this not out of love or devotion, but out of abject fear, dreading lest he should drive them out of the "possessed," and send them before their time to their destined torment. It is just possible that this homage paid to our Lord may have been an act of cunning—a ruse, as it were, to lead the people to suppose that our Lord was in league with evil spirits. Thou art the Son of God. Did, then, the unclean spirits really know that Jesus was the Son of God? A voice from heaven at his baptism had proclaimed him to be the Son of God, and that voice must have vibrated through the spiritual world. Then, further, they must have known him to be the Son of God by the numerous and mighty miracles which he wrought, and which they must have seen [o be real miracles, such as could only have been wrought by the supernatural power of God, and which were wrought by Christ for this very purpose, that they might prove him to be the promised Messiah, the only begotten Son of God. It may, however, be observed that they did not know this so clearly, but that, considering, on the other hand, the greatness of the mystery, they hesitated. It is probable that they were ignorant of the end and fruit of this great mystery, namely, that mankind were to be redeemed by the Incarnation, the Cross, and the Death of Christ; and so their own kingdom was to be overthrown, and the kingdom of God established. Blinded by their hatred of Jesus, whom they perceived to be a most holy Being, drawing multitudes to himself, they stirred up the passions of evil men against him, little dreaming that in promoting his destruction they were overthrowing their own kingdom. Mark 3:12 Mark 3:13 Into a mountain; literally, into the mountain (εἰςτὸὄρος). Similarly, St. Luke (Luke 6:12) says," He went out into the mountain to pray." The use of the definite article might either point to some well-known eminence, or to the high table-land as distinguished from the plain, and in which there would be many recesses, which would explain the use of the preposition Tradition indicates Mount Hatten as the place, about five miles to the west of the Sea of Galilee. The summit rises above a level space, where large numbers might stand within hearing. It is supposed, with good reason, that it was from thence that the sermon on the mount was delivered. It was at daybreak, as we learn from St. Luke (Luke 6:13), after this night of prayer, that he called unto him whom he himself would (οὓςἤθελεναὐτός): and they went unto him (καὶἀπῆλθονπρὸς); literally, they went away to him, the word implying that they forsook their former pursuits. His own will was the motive power: he called "whom he himself would;" but their will consented. "When thou saidst, Seek ye my face; my heart said unto thee, Thy face, Lord, will seek." Mark 3:14, Mark 3:15 Out of those who thus came to him, he ordained twelve literally, he made or appointed twelve. They were not solemnly ordained or consecrated to their office until after his resurrection. Their actual consecration (of all of them at least but one, namely, Judas Iscariot) took place when he breathed on them and said, "Receive ye the Holy Ghost" (John 20:22). But from this time they were his apostles "designate." They were henceforth to Be with him as his attendants and disciples. They were to go forth and preach under his direction, and by his power they were to cast out devils. Several manuscripts add here that they were "to heal sicknesses," but the words are emitted in some of the oldest authorities. The authority over unclean spirits is more formally conveyed later on, so that here St. Mark speaks by anticipation. But this shows how much importance was attached to this part of their mission; for it recognizes the spiritual world, and the special purpose of the manifestation of the Son of God, namely, that he might "destroy the works of the devil." He appointed twelve. The number twelve symbolizes perfection and universality. The number three indicates what is Divine; and the number four, created things. Three multiplied by four gives twelve, the number of those who were to go forth as apostles into the four quarters of the world—called to the faith of the holy Trinity. Mark 3:16, Mark 3:17 And Simon he surnamed Peter. Our Lord had previously declared that Simon should be so called. But St. Mark avoids as much as possible the recognition of any special honor belonging to St. Peter; so he here simply mentions the fact of this surname having been given to him, a fact which was necessary in order that he might be identified. All the early Christian writers held that Peter was virtually the author of this Gospel. Simon, or Simeon, is from a Hebrew word, meaning "to hear." James the son of Zebedee, so called to distinguish him from the other James; and John his brother. In St. Matthew’s list, Andrew is mentioned next after Peter, as his brother, and the first called. But here St. Mark mentions James and John first after Peter; these three, Peter and James and John, being the three leading apostles. Of James and John, James is mentioned first, as the eldest of the two brothers. And them he surnamed Boanerges, which is, Sons of thunder. "Boanerges" is the Aramaic pronunciation of the Hebrew B’ne-ragesh; B’ne, sons, and ragesh, thunder. The word was not intended as a term of reproach; although it fitly expressed that natural impetuosity and vehemence of character, which showed itself in their desire to bring down fire from heaven upon the Samaritan village, and in their ambitious request that they might have the highest places of honor in his coming kingdom. But their natural dispositions, under the Holy Spirit’s influence, were gradually transformed so as to serve the cause of Christ, and their fiery zeal was transmuted into the steady flame of Christian earnestness and love, so as to become an element of great power in their new life as Christians. Christ called these men "Sons of thunder" because he would make their natural dispositions, when restrained and elevated by his grace, the great instruments of spreading his Gospel. He destined them for high service in his kingdom. By their holy lives they were to be as lightning, and by their preaching they were to be as thunder to rouse unbelievers, and to bring them to repentance and a holy life. It was no doubt on account of this zeal that James fell so early a victim to the wrath of Herod. A different lot was that which fell to St. John. Spared to a ripe old age, he influenced the early Church by his writings and his teaching. His Gospel begins as with the voice of thunder, "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God." Beza and others, followed by Dr. Morisen, have thought that this distinctive name was given by our Lord to the two brothers on account of some deep-toned peculiarity of voice, which was of much service to them in impressing the message of the Gospel of the kingdom upon their hearers. Mark 3:18, Mark 3:19 Andrew is next mentioned after these eminent apostles, as the first called. The word is from the Greek, and means "manly." Bartholomew, that is, Bar-tolmai, the son of Tolmay. This is a patronymic, and not a proper name. It has been with good reason supposed that he is identical with Nathanael, of whom we first read in John 1:46, as having been found by Philip and brought to Christ. In the three synoptic Gospels we find Philip and Bartholomew enumerated together in the lists of the apostles; and certainly the mode in which Nathanael is mentioned in John 21:2 would seem to show that he was an apostle. His birthplace, too, Cana of Galilee, would point to the same conclusion. If this be so, then the name Nathanael, the "gift of God," would bear the same relation to Bartholomew that Simon does to Bar-jona. Matthew. In St Matthew’s own list of the apostles (Matthew 10:3) the epithet "the publican" is added to his name, and he places himself after Thomas. This marks the humility of the apostle, that he does not scruple to place on record what he was before he was called. The word Matthew, a contraction of Mattathias, means the "gift of Jehovah," according to Gesenius, which in Greek would be "Theodore." Thomas. Eusebius says that his real name was Judas. It is possible that Thomas may have been a surname. The word is Hebrew meaning a twin, and it is so rendered in Greek in John 11:16. James the son of Alphaeus, or Clopas (not Cleophas): called" the Less," either because he was junior in age, or rather in his call, to James the Great, the brother of John. This James, the son of Alphaeus, is called the brother of our Lord. St. Jerome says that his father Alphaeus, or Clopas, married Mary, a sister of the blessed Virgin Mary, which would make him the cousin of our Lord. This view is confirmed by Bishop Pearson (Art. 3:on the Creed). He was the writer of the Epistle which bears his name, and he became Bishop of Jerusalem. Thaddaeus, called also Lebbaeus and Judas; whence St. Jerome describes him as "trionimus," i.e. having three names. Judas would be his proper name. Lebbaeus and Thaddaeus have a kind of etymological affinity, the root of Lebbaeus being "heart," and of Thaddaeus, "breast." These names are probably recorded to distinguish him from Judas the traitor. Simon the Canaanite. The word in the Greek, according to the best authorities, is, both here and in St. Matthew (Matthew 10:4), Καναναῖος, from a Chaldean or Syriac word, Kanean, or Kanenieh. The Greek equivalent is Ζηλωτής, which we find preserved in St. Luke (Luke 6:15). It is possible, however, that Simon may have been born in Cana of Galilee. St. Jerome says that he was called a Cananaean or Zealot, by a double reference to the place of his birth and to his zeal. Judas Iscariot. Iscariot. The most probable derivation is from the Hebrew Ish-Kerioth, "a man of Kerioth,’ a city of the tribe of Judah. St. John (John 6:7) describes him as the son of Simon. If it be asked why our Lord should have chosen Judas Iscariot, the answer is that he chose him, although he knew that he would betray him, because it was his will that he should be betrayed by one that had been "his own familiar friend," and that had "eaten bread with him." Bengel says well here that "there is an election of grace from which men may fall." How far our Lord knew from the first the results of his choice of Judas belongs to the profound, unfathomable mystery of the union of the Godhead and the manhood in his sacred Person. We may notice generally, with regard to this choice by our Lord of his apostles, the germ of the principle of sending them forth by two and two. Here are Peter and Andrew, James and John, Philip and Bartholomew, and so on. Then, again, our Lord chose three pairs of brothers, Peter and Andrew, James and John, James the Less and Jude, that he might teach us how powerful an influence is brotherly love. We may also observe that Christ, in selecting his apostles, chose some of his kinsmen according to the flesh. When he took upon him our flesh, he recognized those who were near to him by nature, and he would unite them yet mere closely by grace to his Divine nature. Three of the apostles took the lead, namely, Peter and James and John, who were admitted to be witnesses of his transfiguration, of one of his greatest miracles, and of his passion. Mark 3:20, Mark 3:21 The last clause of Mar 3:19, And they went into an house, should form the opening sentence of a new paragraph, and should therefore become the first clause of Mar 3:20, as in the Revised Version. According to the most approved reading, the words are (ἐξῆλθον), He cometh into an house, or, He cometh home. There is here a considerable gap in St. Mark’s narrative. The sermon on the mount followed upon the call of the apostles, at all events so far as it affected them and their mission. Moreover, St. Matthew interposes hero two miracles wrought by our Lord after his descent from the mount, and before his return to his own house at Capernaum. St. Mark seems anxious here to hasten on to describe the treatment of our Lord by his own near relatives at this important crisis in his ministry. So that they—i.e., our Lord and his disciples—could not so much as eat bread; such was the pressure of the crowd upon them. St. Mark evidently records this, in order to show the contrast between the zeal of the multitude and the very different feelings of our Lord’s own connections. They, his friends, when they heard how he was thronged, went out to lay hold on him; for they said, He is beside himself. This little incident is mentioned only by St. Mark. When his friends saw him so bent upon his great mission as to neglect his bodily necessities, they considered that he was bereft of his reason, that too much zeal and piety had deranged his mind. His friends went out (ἐξῆλθον) to lay hold on him. They may probably have come from Nazareth. St. John (John 7:5) says that "even his brethren did not believe on him;" that is, they did not believe in him with that fuiness of trust which is of the essence of true faith. Their impression was that he was in a condition requiring that he should be put under some restraint. Mark 3:22 The scribes which came down from Jerusalem said, He hath Beelzebub, etc. These scribes had apparently been sent down by the Sanhedrim, on purpose to watch him, and, by giving their own opinion upon his claims, to undermine his influence. They gave as their authoritative judgment, "He hath Beelzebub." One of the most prominent characteristics of the public works of our Lord was the expulsion of evil spirits. There was no questioning the facts. Even modern scepticism is here at fault, and is constrained to admit the fact of sudden and complete cures of insanity. So the scribes were obliged to account for what they could not deny. "He hath Beelzebub," they say; that is, he is possessed by Beelzebub, or "the lord of the dwelling," as a source of supernatural power. They had heard it alleged against him," He hath a devil;" and so they fall in with this popular error, and give it emphasis, by saying, Not only has he a devil, but he is possessed by the chief of the devils, and therefore has authority over inferior spirits. Observe the contrast between the thoughts of the multitude and of those who professed to be their teachers, the scribes and Pharisees. The multitude, free from prejudice, and using only their natural light of reason, candidly owned the greatness of Christ’s miracles as wrought by a Divine power; whereas the Pharisees, filled with envy and malice, attributed these mighty works which he wrought by the finger of God, to the direct agency of Satan. Mark 3:23-27 How can Satan cast out Satan? Observe here that our Lord distinctly affirms the personality of Satan, and a real kingdom of evil. But then he goes on to show that if this their allegation were true, namely, that he cast out devils by the prince or the devils, then it would follow that Satan’s kingdom would be divided against itself. As a house divided against itself cannot stand, so neither could the kingdom of Satan exist in the world if one evil spirit was opposed to another for the purpose of dispossessing, the one the other, from the minds and bodies of men. Our Lord thus employs another argument to show that he casts out evil spirits, not by Beelzebub, but by the power of God. It is as though he said, "As he who invades the house of a strong man cannot succeed until he first binds the strong man; in like manner I, Christ Jesus, who spoil the kingdom of Satan, whilst I lead sinners who had been under his power to repentance and salvation, must first bind Satan himself, otherwise he would never suffer me to take his captives from him. Therefore he is my enemy, and not in league with me, not my ally in the casting out of evil spirits, as you falsely represent me to be. It behoves you, then, to understand that it is with the Spirit of God that I cast out devils, and that therefore the kingdom of God is come upon you." Mark 3:28 All their sins shall be forgiven unto the sons of men, etc. St. Mark adds the words (verse 30), "Because they said, [ἔλεγον, ’they were saying,’] He hath an unclean spirit." This helps us much to the true meaning of this declaration. Our Lord does not here speak of every sin against the Holy Spirit, but of blasphemy against the Holy Spirit. These words of St. Mark point to a sin of the tongue mere especially, although not excluding thoughts and deeds against the Holy Spirit. Observe what these scribes and Pharisees did; they cavilled at works manifestly Divine—works wrought by God for the salvation of men, by which he confirmed his faith and truth. Now, when they spake against these, and knowingly and of malice ascribed them to the evil spirit, then they blasphemed against the Holy Ghost, dishonoring God by assigning his power to Satan. What could be more hateful than this? What greater blasphemy could be imagined? And surely they must be guilty of this sin who ascribe the fruits and actions of the Holy Spirit to an impure and unholy source, and so strive to mar his work and to hinder his influence in the hearts of men. Mark 3:29 Hath never forgiveness. Not that any sinner need despair of forgiveness through the fear that he may have committed this sin; for his repentance shows that his state of mind has never been one of entire enmity, and that he has not so grieved the Holy Spirit as to have been entirely forsaken by him. But is in danger of eternal damnation. The Greek words, according to the most approved reading, are ἀλλἔνοχόςἐστιναἰωνίουἁμαρτήματος: but is guilty of an eternal sin; thus showing that there are sins of which the effects and the punishment belong to eternity. He is bound by a chain or’ sin from which he can never be loosed. (See St. John 9:41, "Therefore your sin remaineth.") Mark 3:31-33 Our Lord’s brethren and his mother had now arrived to look after him. He was in the house teaching; but the crowd was so great that they could not approach him. The multitude filled not only the room, but the courtyard and all the approaches. St. Luke (Lujke Luke 8:19) says," they could not come at him for the crowd." His brethren here spoken of were in all probability his cousins, the sons of Mary, the wife of Alphaeus or Clopas. But two of these, already chosen to be apostles, were most likely with him in the room, and of the number of those towards whom he stretched out his hand and said, "Behold, my mother and my brethren!" whilst Mary and the others had come (Mary, perhaps, induced by the others in the hope that the sight of his mother might the more move him) for the purpose of bringing him back to the quiet of Nazareth. We cannot suppose that the Virgin Mary came with any other feeling than that of a mother’s anxiety in behalf of her Son. She may have thought that he was in danger, exposed to the fickle temper of a large multitude, who might at any moment have their passions stirred against him by his enemies, the scribes and Pharisees; and so she was willingly persuaded to come and use her influence with him to induce him to escape from what appeared evidently to be a position of some danger. If so, this explains our Lord’s behavior on this occasion. The multitude was sitting about him, and he was teaching them; and then a message was brought to him from his mother and his brethren who were without, perhaps in the courtyard, perhaps beyond in the open street, calling for him. The interruption was untimely, not to say unseemly. And so he says, not without a little tone of severity in his words, Who is my mother and my brethren? Our Lord did not speak thus as denying his human relationship; as though he was not "very man," but a mere "phantom," as some early heretics taught; and still less as though he was ashamed of his earthly lationships; but partly perhaps because the messengers too boldly and inconsiderately interrupted him while he was teaching; and chiefly that he might show that his heavenly Father’s business was more to him than the affection of his earthly mother, greatly as he valued it; and thus he preferred the spiritual relationship, in which there is neither male nor female, bond nor free, but all stand alike to Christ in the relationship of brother, sister, and mother. It is remarkable, and yet the reason for the omission is obvious, that our Lord does not mention" father" in this spiritual category. Mark 3:34 Looking round on them περιβλεψάμενος which sat round about him. Here is one of the graphic touches of St. Mark, reproduced, it may be, from St. Peter. Our Lord’s intellectual and loving eye swept the inner circle of his disciples. The twelve, of course, would be with him, and others with them. His enemies were not far off. But immediately about him were those who constituted his chosen ones. As man, he had his human affections and his earthly relationships; but as the Son of God, he knew no other relatives but God’s children, to whom the performance of his will and the promotion of his glory are the first of all duties and the dominant principle of their lives. Mark 3:1-5 The withered hand. This incident serves to bring out the antagonism between the spiritual and benevolent ministry of the Lord Jesus, and the formalism, self-righteousness, and hard-heartedness of the religious leaders of the Jews. It serves to explain, not only the enmity of the Pharisees, but their resolve to league with whomsoever would help them in carrying out their purposes and plot against the very life of the Son of man. It serves to exhibit the mingled feelings of indignation and of pity with which Jesus regarded his enemies, whose hatred was directed, not only against his person, but against his works of mercy and healing. But the incident shall here be treated as a symbol of man’s need and of Christ’s authority and method as man’s Saviour. I. THE OF THIS MAN IN THE IS A SYMBOL OF THE STATE AND NEED OF MAN. He was a man "with a withered hand." 1. The hand is the symbol of man’s practical nature. The husbandman, the mechanic, the painter, the musician, every craftsman of every grade, makes use of the hand in executing works of art or fulfilling the task of toil. The right hand may be regarded as the best bodily emblem of our active, energetic nature. It is our lot, not only to think and to feel, but to will and to do. 2. The withering of the hand is symbolical of the effect of sin upon our practical nature. As this man was rendered incapable of pursuing an industrial life, so the victim of sin is crippled for holy service, is both indisposed and incapacitated for Christian work. The withering of muscle, the paralysis of nerve, is no more disastrous to bodily effort than the blighting and enfeebling power of sin is destructive of all holy acceptable service unto God. 3. The apparent hopelessness of this man’s case is an emblem of the sinner’s hopeless state. This unhappy person was probably condemned by his misfortune to poverty, privation, neglect, and helplessness. He was aware of the inability of human skill to cure him. The case of the sinner is a case of inability and sometimes of despondency. Legislation and philosophy are powerless to deal with an evil so radical and so unmanageable. Unless God have mercy, the sinner is undone! II. THE ACTION OF CHRIST ONE ASPECT OF HIS WORK. And this in two respects: 1. He saves by the impartation of power. Christ in the synagogue spoke with authority, both when addressing the spectators who cavilled, and when addressing the sufferer who doubtless welcomed his aid. Power accompanied his words—power from on high; healing virtue went forth from him. How grateful should we be that, when the Son of God came to earth with power, it was with power to heal and bless! He is "mighty to save." There was power in his person and presence, power in his words and works, power in his example and demeanour, power in his love and sacrifice. When he saves, he saves from sin and from sin’s worst results. The spiritual inefficiency and helplessness, which is man’s curse, gives place to a heavenly energy and activity. The redeemed sinner finds his right hand of service whole, restored, vigorous. Under the influence of new motives and new hopes, he consecrates his renewed nature of activity to the Lord who saved him. 2. He saves with the concurrence of human effort. Observe that the Lord Jesus addressed to this sufferer two commands. He bade him "Stand forth!" which he could do; and "Stretch forth thy hand!" which he could not do—or at least might, judging from the past, have felt and believed himself unable to do. Yet he believed that the Prophet and Healer, who spoke with such authority, and who was known to have healed many, was not uttering idle words. His faith was called forth, and his will was exercised. Without his obedience and concurrence, there is no reason to suppose that he would have been healed. So every sinner who would be saved by Christ must recognize the Divine authority of the Saviour, must avail himself of the Saviour’s compassion, and in humble faith must obey the Saviour’s command. It is not, indeed, faith which saves. It is Christ who saves, but he saves through faith; for it is by faith that the sinner lays hold upon the Saviour’s might, and comes to rejoice in the Saviour’s grace. . 1. The first requisite for a sinner who would be saved is clearly to see, and deeply to feel, his need and helplessness. 2. The next requisite is to come into the presence of the Divine Saviour. 3. Yet again, it is requisite to exercise faith in him who is mighty and willing to save. 4. And every healed and restored sinner should consecrate all his active powers to the service of his Redeemer. Mark 3:6-12 Persecution and popularity. The evangelist represents, in very graphic language, the crisis in the ministry of Jesus now reached. We learn what was the attitude towards Jesus, both of the populace and of the ruling classes. We see the scribes and Pharisees meeting with the Herodians, and plotting against the Benefactor of mankind. We see the multitudes thronging from every quarter to look upon, to listen to, the far-famed Prophet of Nazareth. It is a striking contrast. It may be to us an earnest of what was to come; of the malice that slew the Lord of glory, and of the praise that should encompass him from all lands; of the cross, and of the throne. I. WE HAVE A PICTURE OF OUR LORD’S . 1. This passage furnishes the evidence of our Lord’s popularity. The people left their cities and villages, their homes and occupations, in order to follow Jesus. From various parts of the province of Galilee, through which he had just been travelling upon an evangelistic tour, the people flocked to the neighborhood of the lake. They came also from Jerusalem and Judaea, where successive miracles had made his name and person familiar to the inhabitants of the metropolis. Not only so, but from the east side of the Jordan, and Idumaea; and (strangest of all) from Phoenicia, far away in the north-west, multitudes, attracted by the great Prophet and Physician, found their way to Gennesaret. It is plain that an immense impression had been created by the ministry of our Lord, that he was becoming the chief figure in the land, succeeding to the prominence and the popularity of John the Baptist. 2. This same passage brings before us the grounds of our Lord’s popularity. Wherever he had gone, he had so acted as to justify the name he gave himself, "the Son of man;" he had shown himself the universal Saviour and Friend. Some came grateful for healing virtue and for pardoning mercy, having themselves tasted and seen that the Lord was good. Some brought to him the maladies of themselves or their friends, hoping to experience his grace. The unclean spirits came, confessing him to be the Son of God, acknowledging his regal authority, prepared to flee at his bidding and to leave the sufferers free. Some came to see him of whom such great and delightful tidings had been spread abroad; and others hoping that they might witness some illustrations of his saving might. His ministry of teaching attracted some, and the sequel tells us how richly such were rewarded by the incomparable discourses which were delivered at this period of Christ’s career. And there were, doubtless, some few noble, devout, and ardent souls, who longed for the revelation of a spiritual kingdom, which should fulfill the promises of God and realize the ancient and prophetic visions. 3. The consequences of Christ’s popularity are no less clearly related. It is plain that at this period our Lord was quite embarrassed by the excitement and eagerness of the crowds who thronged around him. It was this embarrassment that led him, first to withdraw to the lake, and then to request that a boat might be in readiness to receive him from the pressure of the crowd, and, if necessary, to take him to the near seclusion of the eastern shore. It was this embarrassment also which led him to direct those who partook of the benefit of his compassion to refrain from celebrating his praise, and even to keep silence concerning what he had done for them. 4. But let us bear in mind that this popularity was but superficial. Jesus knew well that most who followed him did so either from curiosity or with selfish desires of benefiting from his ministry. He was not deceived by the popular interest and acclaim. He was aware that at any moment the tide might turn. At Nazareth it was proved how ungrateful and violent the people could be when once their passions were roused or their prejudices crossed. And his ministry closed amidst the clamor and the execration of the fickle multitude, upon whose minds the arts of crafty priests and politicians played, as the storm-wind plays upon the surface of the mighty sea. II. WE HAVE A PICTURE OF OUR LORD’S , THEIR PLOTS AND . At the very time that multitudes were openly thronging around Christ, there was secret consultation among men of position and influence as to the means of effecting his ruin. We observe the occasion of this hostile attitude and action. For a while there had been no opposition, but rather a general interest and expectation. The change seems to have come about as a consequence of the violation by the Lord Jesus of the customs and traditions of the ceremonial rabbis or scribes. There were deep-seated reasons for the hostility cherished against the Prophet of Nazareth by the religious leaders—scribes and Pharisees. 1. His conduct towards the common people was a grave offense. The rabbis generally held the unlearned and lower class in great contempt; in their esteem those who knew not the Law were cursed. They would not associate with them or touch them. Now, the Lord Jesus made himself at home with all classes, and accepted invitations, not only from rulers and scholars, but from publicans, at whose table he met the worldly and the sinful. He even chose one from the despised class of tax-collectors to occupy a place among his own immediate friends and followers. He ate and drank with publicans and sinners, and, when he preached, encouraged such to draw near to him. "The common people heard him gladly." That an acknowledged rabbi should act in such a way was a scandal in the view of the self-righteous and ceremonious; it was conduct likely to lower the learned in the general esteem, to bring religion and the profession of the scribes into contempt. 2. We gather from the Gospel record that the chief cause of complaint against Jesus was his neglect and violation of the ceremonial Law. This Law was to the rabbis the breath of their nostrils; and our Lord and his disciples, doubtless under his influence, were very negligent of the observances upon which the ruling class laid such stress. The Pharisees fasted, Jesus feasted; the Pharisees performed innumerable ablutions, Jesus ate bread "with unwashen hands." 3. The sabbath was, however, the most important point of difference. Many of the rigid Jewish religionists held the most narrow opinions and cherished the most absurd and ridiculous scruples with regard to what was lawful and what unlawful upon the weekly day of rest. It was not possible that Jesus, with his views as to the spirituality of worship and as to the nature of holiness, should agree with these petty and childish notions; it was not possible that he should do other than violate traditional rules and shock formal prejudices. He encouraged his disciples to pluck and eat corn on the sabbath; he performed cures upon the day which he held to be made for man; he directed those who were healed to take up their couch and return home. In all these respects he both vindicated religious liberty and asserted himself "Lord of the sabbath." The rigid ceremonialism and ritualism of the rabbis was offended, alike with the superiority which the Lord claimed over all rules, and with the disdain he showed for their usages and traditions. They hated him, as narrow and formal religionists of all schools ever hate the teachers who place religion in the heart rather than in ceremonies and creeds, and who proclaim that newness of life is the one acceptable offering and sacrifice in the sight of the Divine Searcher of hearts. 4. Our Lord’s treatment of the scribes and Pharisees was itself a cause of offense, an occasion of their enmity to him. Instead of treating them with deference, he defied their judgment, and (at a later period of his ministry) uttered denunciations and woes upon them for their hypocrisy. When about to heal the withered hand, Jesus "looked round about on them with anger, being grieved at the hardening of their heart." It was not thus that they were wont to be regarded and treated. If this treatment were continued, their influence must be undermined. 5. The cause of hostility just mentioned was a symptom of a deeper difference between Jesus and the rabbis: the spiritual quality of his teaching was such as to conflict with all their notions of religion. With them religion was an affair of the outward life alone; with him it was, first and foremost, an affair of the heart. And even with respect to outward actions there was this great difference: the rabbis thought of the attitude of prayer, Christ of the feeling and desire; the rabbis thought much of tithes and fasts, of sacrifices and services, Christ of the weightier matters of the Law; the rabbis thought much of what went as food into the man, Christ of the thoughts which expressed themselves in moral conduct. Observe the feeling that was aroused in the breasts of the Pharisees. Luke tells us "they were filled with madness," i.e. carried away by violent rage and hostility. What a revelation of human iniquity! The actions of the holy and gracious Redeemer excite the fury of those he came to benefit and save! And the hostility then felt grew and gathered as the months passed on, until it culminated in the successful plot against the Holy One and Just. Such feeling did not evaporate in words; it led to action. The enemies of Jesus retired to deliberate, to plot. There was more than indignation; there was malice, a resolve to avenge themselves upon One too holy, too authoritative, for them to bear with him. An unnatural alliance was formed between the rabbis, who represented the principles of rigid Judaism both in nationality and in religion; and the Herodiaus, who seem to have been Sadducees in religion, and in politics supporters of the house of Herod, and accordingly advocates of all possible independence upon Rome. It is not easy to understand this league. The Herodians themselves may not so much have hated Jesus as, from political motives, they desired to gain the favor of the powerful Pharisaic party, whose influence with the people generally was great, and who might be made the means of strengthening the supporters of Antipas. The aim which these confederates set before them was atrocious indeed; it was nothing less than the destruction of Jesus. Answer his reasoning they could not. Equally unable were they to find fault with his irreproachable character, his benevolent actions. Their only weapons were slander and craft and violence. How to work upon the fears of the secular authorities and the passions of the populace—this was their aim and endeavor. Mark 3:13-19 The twelve. Some of these twelve had been "called" by the Master long ago, and had already been much in his company. Others had been, for a shorter time and less intimately, associated with him. This formal appointment and commission took place upon the mount, and immediately before the delivery of the ever-memorable sermon to the disciples and the multitude. The passage is suggestive of great general truths. I. CHRIST THOUGHT FIT TO EMPLOY HUMAN AGENTS IN THE OF HIS , That he might have dispensed with all created agency, that he might have employed angelic ministers, we cannot doubt. But in becoming man—"the Son of man "—he contracted human sympathies and relationships, and undertook to work, with a Divine power indeed, yet by human means. II. CHRIST HIS AGENTS BY VIRTUE OF HIS OWN WISDOM AND . He called "whom he himself would." The Lord Jesus is the absolute Monarch in his own kingdom. Having perfect knowledge, unerring wisdom, and unfailing justice, he is fitted for supreme, unshared rule. III. CHRIST CHOSE HIS TRUSTED FROM A LOWLY OF SOCIETY. Only one of the band—and he the unworthy member—was from Judaea. All the others were Galileans; and the inhabitants of this northern province were comparatively rude, unlettered, unpolished. Some rabbis would fain have been received into the number, but the Lord would not encourage them. He preferred to deal with unsophisticated natures. Perhaps James and John and Levi were in fair circumstances; the rest were in all likelihood poor. The twelve were, in education, very different from such men as Luke and Paul. Christ chose, as he has often done since, "the weak things of the world to confound the mighty." He rejoiced and gave thanks because things, hidden from the wise and prudent, had been revealed unto babes. IV. CHRIST AGENTS WITH VARIOUS GIFTS, , AND . The three leaders among the apostles were certainly men of ability. Peter’s vigor of style was only one index to the great native force of his character; James was slain by Herod, as probably the most prominent representative of the early Christian community; and John’s writings show him to have been both profound and imaginative as a thinker. Of the other apostles, James the Less was certainly a man of inflexible will and of vigorous administrative power. In disposition these twelve men differed marvellously from one another. Two were "sons of thunder," another—Thomas—was of a doubting, melancholy spirit, and Simon was ardent and impulsive. All but Iscariot were deeply attached to Jesus, and it was not without purpose that one avaricious and treacherous person was included in the number. What various instruments our Lord employs for accomplishing his own work! V. CHRIST AND THE SPECIAL GIFTS OF HIS IN HIS OWN SERVICE. This passage brings this truth vividly before us. Simon was surnamed "The Rock"—a title to which his character especially entitled him; and the sons of Zebedee were designated "Sons of Thunder," doubtless from their ardent, impetuous zeal in the service of the Lord. There was a special work corresponding to the special endowments of each. VI. CHRIST THESE AGENTS BY KEEPING THEM IN HIS OWN SOCIETY AND BENEATH HIS OWN . "That they might be with him." How simple, yet how profound these words! What a Companion! What lessons were to be learned from his character, his demeanour, his language, his mighty works! Nothing could so qualify these men for the service of coming years as this brief period of daily and close intimacy with a Being so gracious, so holy, so wise. VII. CHRIST HIMSELF AND THESE AGENTS. They were to be "sent forth;" hence their designation, "apostles." They were to be his messengers, his heralds, his ambassadors. And what was their ministry? 1. To preach, to publish good tidings of salvation, righteousness, eternal life, through Christ. To this end it was evidently necessary that they should imbibe the Master’s spirit, as well as know the Teacher’s doctrine. It was necessary that, in due time, they should be witnesses of his resurrection and partakers of the Spirit poured out from on high. 2. To have authority to cast out demons, to carry on the work of the Lord, and to contend with the kingdom of Satan, and establish the reign of Christ, of light, of righteousness, of peace. 1. Christ’s first call is to discipleship. We must first learn that we may teach; obey and serve that we may guide and aid others. 2. We are summoned to consecrate all our gifts and acquirements to the service and cause of Immanuel. 3. It is the highest honor and the purest happiness to be employed by Christ as his agents. 4. It is necessary to be much with Christ in order that we may be fitted efficiently to work for Christ. Mark 3:20-30 Blasphemy. Great men are often misunderstood by reason of their very greatness. Aims higher than those of others need other methods than such as are commonly employed by ordinary persons. How much more must this have been the case with the Son of man! His mission was unique—was altogether his own. He could not fulfill his ministry and do the work of him who sent him, without stepping aside from the beaten tracks of conduct, and so courting criticism and obloquy. He could not well conciliate public opinion, for he came to condemn and to revolutionize it. For the most part he went his way, without noticing the misrepresentations and the calumnies of men. Yet there were occasions, like the present, when he paused to answer and to confute his adversaries. I. THE CHARGE BROUGHT AGAINST JESUS. His friends charged him with madness; his enemies attributed his works to the power of evil. In the allegation of the former there may have been some sincerity; those of the latter were animated by malice and hatred. Probably these scribes were sent down into Galilee from the authorities at Jerusalem, to check the enthusiasm which was spreading throughout the northern province with regard to the Prophet of Nazareth. The same charges were brought against him in Jerusalem; so that there may have been an understanding as to the method to be adopted in opposing the great Teacher. The scribes discredited Jesus, first, by asserting that he was possessed by Beelzebub, the Syrian Satan; and secondly, by explaining his power to dispossess demons by the league between him and the lord of the demons, whose authority the inferior spirits could not but obey. There was no attempt to deny the fact that demoniacs were cured; this would have been so monstrously false that to take such a position would have been to ruin their own influence with the people. II. THE OF THIS . 1. Our Lord’s reply was on the ground of reason—of what might be called common sense. He used two parables, by which he showed the unreasonableness, the absurdity of the allegations in question. Suppose a house or a kingdom to be divided against itself, to be rent by internal discord and faction; what is the result? It comes to ruin. And can it be believed that the crafty prince of darkness will turn his arms against his own servants and minions? So, Satan would "have an end." 2. Having refuted their argument, our Lord proceeded with his own; gave his explanation of what was the spiritual significance of his ministry, especially as regarded the "possessed." So far from being in league with Satan, the Lord Jesus was Satan’s one mighty Foe; he had already, in the temptation, overcome him, and was binding him, and now, behold! he was spoiling the house of his vanquished enemy, in expelling the demons from the wretched demoniacs of Galilee! He could not have done this had he been in league with Satan, had he not already vanquished Satan. Having effected this, he "spoiled principalities and powers." III. THE CENSURE OF THIS . Our Lord first reasoned; then he spoke with authority, as One in the secrets of Heaven, with power to declare the principles of Divine judgment. There is, he declared, an eternal and unpardonable sin. If the scribes were not committing this, they were approaching it. The sin against the Holy Ghost, the confusion of truth with error, good with evil,—is a sin, not of ignorance, Hot of misunderstanding, but of wilfulness; a sin of the whole nature; a sin against the light without and the light within. Our Saviour, in condemning this sin, speaks as the rightful Lord, the authoritative Judge, of all mankind! . "What think ye of Christ?" To think of him with indifference is unreasonable, and shows the most blameable insensibility to the great moral conflict of the universe, on one side of which Jesus is the Champion. To think of him disparagingly is blasphemy; for "he that honoureth the Son honoureth the Father," and he that honoureth not the Son honoureth not the Father. It is blasphemy to speak against the character or the authority of the Son of God. What remains, then? This: to think and speak of him with reverence and gratitude, faith, and love. This is just and right; and though Christ does not need our homage and honor, he will accept it and reward it. Mark 3:31-35 Kindred of Christ. The feeling with regard to Christ had, by this time, become extremely strong. On the one hand, the people generally were deeply interested in his teaching, were eager spectators of his mighty works, and in many cases were much attached to himself. Hence the crowd which thronged the house where Jesus was engaged in teaching—a crowd so dense that none from the outside could approach the Master. On the other hand, the opposition to the Prophet of Nazareth was growing and spreading among the scribes and Pharisees, some of whom from Jerusalem were now usually among the audience, anxiously on the watch for any utterance which they might use to the disadvantage of the bold and fearless Teacher. In these circumstances, the concern of the relatives of Jesus was natural enough. They saw that his labours were so arduous and protracted that he was in danger of exhaustion through weariness. And they feared that the attitude he was taking towards the hypocritical Pharisees was imperilling his liberty and safety. They accordingly professed to believe in his madness, and sought to lay hold on him. Hence the interruption recorded in this passage, which gave rise to this memorable and precious declaration of his spiritual affinity and kindred to all whose life is one of obedience to the Father. I. THE FACT OF KINDRED BETWEEN CHRIST AND HIS PEOPLE. Earthly relationships were admitted and honored by Jesus. Yet spiritual kindred was set above them. Under the gospel dispensation there are revealed emphatically the fatherhood of God, and the brotherhood of Christ. We are the children of God. Jesus, in his glory, "is not ashamed to call us brethren." II. THE PROOF OF KINDRED WITH CHRIST. Who are they whom Jesus commends and admits to his fellowship and confidence? They who do his Father’s will. Upon such he looks with approval. 1. His requirement is not intellectual or sentimental merely, but practical. Belief and feeling are necessary, but not sufficient. We are made to act, and in our life to carry out the Divine commands. Jesus asks the devotion of the heart, expressed in the service of the active nature. We are saved by grace, and works are the proofs of faith. Obedience proceeds from hearty confidence and sincere love. Indeed, the Lord himself has told us that this is the work of God, that we "believe on him whom he hath sent." And Christians are those who prove the sincerity of their love by a practical consecration. 2. It is the privilege of the Christian voluntarily to obey a personal, Divine will. He sees the Lawgiver behind the law. His life is not mere conformity to regulation—to some such abstract standard as "the fitness of things." It is subjection to a Being whose will enjoins a course of virtue and piety. Religion Has too often, like law, like society, summoned men to do the will of man—of fallible, fickle man. Christ calls us all away from this endeavor to a far nobler and better aim—summons us to do the will, not of man, but of God! This is a standard with which no fault can be found, no dissatisfaction can be felt. 3. Jesus looks for, not a mechanical, but a spiritual, obedience. The description of the Christian life is, "doing the will of God from the heart." 4. Christ requires not servile but filial obedience. We know from personal experience the difference between doing the will of a master or a ruler and doing the will of a father. It is to this latter kind of obedience that we are called. It is much to believe in the personality and authority of God, but it is more to live under the sense of his fatherhood; for this involves his interest in us, his care for us, his love toward us; and all these are obviously considerations which make duty both delightful and easy. The motive is not merely moral, it becomes religious. The Christian acts as a child who brings before his mind, as a ruling consideration, "my Father’s will." 5. Christ desires not occasional or fitful acts of obedience, but habitual service. One act is good, both in itself and also as making a second act easier. Obedience becomes a second nature, a law recognized and accepted; and perseverance is the one proof of true principle. III. THE OF KINDRED ASSURED BY CHRIST. Men boast of eminent ancestors, distinguished connections, powerful kinsmen; but such boast is usually foolish and vain; whereas it is in the power of the humblest Christian to glory in the Lord. The friendship of Jesus surpasses that of the greatest and the best of human friends. It is closer and more delightful, it is more honorable and more certain and enduring than the intimacy of human kindred. 1. Participation in Christ’s character. There is a family likeness; the Divine features are reproduced. 2. Enjoyment of the tender affection of Christ. 3. Intimate and confidential intercourse with Christ. These two are closely associated. This spiritual relationship involves a peculiar interest, each in the other. So far from indifference, there is mutual regard and concern. The honor of Christ is very near the Christian’s heart, and Christ engraves his people "upon the palms of his hands." There is a special tenderness in these mutual regards, very different from the ceremonial or official respect attaching to some relations. "Ye are my friends," says the Saviour. Hymns and devotional books have sometimes exaggerated this side of piety; yet with many probably the danger lies on the other side. As there is a specially confidential tone in the intercourse of the several members of a family, so is there something like this in the fellowship of the Redeemer and his redeemed ones. "All things that I have heard of the Father," says he, "I have made known unto you;" and, on the other side, the follower of the Lord Jesus pours all his intimate thoughts and wishes into the ear of his heavenly Friend and Brother. IV. THE OF KINDRED. Of these may be mentioned: 1. Reverent regard for his honor. 2. Self-denying devotion to his cause. 3. Recognition of his brethren as ours. . Observe the liberality of the language of Jesus, the wide invitation virtually given in his declaration: "Whosoever," etc. This is not limited to the learned or the great; it is open to us all. BY A.F. MUIR Mark 3:1-6 The man with the withered hand; or, keeping the sabbath. In the most sacred and joyous scenes there may be circumstances of pain and sorrow. There are often some in God’s house who are hindered in their enjoyment by personal affliction. But even these may be of service in testing the spirit and disposition of God’s professed people. I. IT IS IN SPIRIT ALONE THAT THE SABBATH IS TRULY KEPT, 1. Outward observances are of value only as expressing and fostering this. 2. Evil hearts will fail to keep the day even, whilst seemingly engaged in its special duties. 3. Institutions that were designed for the highest ends may be perverted to the worst. II. WORKS OF MERCY HONOUR THE SABBATH. 1. Because they are always urgent. 2. They exercise the holiest emotions and faculties of human nature. 3. They are the service of God. 4. They may be the means of others keeping the day and serving him. III. THE TRUE SPIRIT AND THE FALSE. The hatred manifested is all but incredible. Yet it was already in their hearts. They had been condemned where they thought to have been judges. False religion (Pharisees) and worldliness (Herodians) are united in their hatred of the spirit and work of Christ, because they are both exposed by him.—M. Mark 3:4 "But they held their peace." "There is much silence that proceeds from the Spirit of God, but there is also a devilish silence," says Quesnel; and it is not difficult to pronounce upon the character of this. I. WHAT WAS BY IT. It was evasive. Christ had propounded a dilemma which those who watched him dared not answer, since, had they done so, they would either have compromised themselves or committed themselves to approval of his action. It was doubtless intended also to suggest that the problem was too difficult for them to solve, at any rate without due consideration. This entry is longer than a Bible module can hold. The rest is at https://www.sermonindex.net/commentary/pulpit-commentary/ Mark 4:1 And again he began to teach by the seaside. This return to the seaside is mentioned by St. Mark only. From this time our Lord’s teaching began to be more public. The room and the little courtyard no longer sufficed for the multitudes that came to him. The Authorized Version says that "a great multitude was gathered unto him." The Greek adjective, according to the most approved reading, is πλεῖστος the superlative of πολὺς, and should be rendered "a very great" multitude. They bad probably been waiting for him in the neighborhood of Capernaum. He entered into a boat—probably the boat mentioned at Mark 3:9—and sat in the sea, i.e. in the boat afloat on the water, so as to be relieved of the pressure of the vast multitude (πλεῖστοςὄχλος) gathered on the shore. Mark 4:2 He taught them many things in parables. This was a new system of teaching. For some months he had taught directly. But as he found that this direct teaching was met in some quarters with unbelief and scorn, he abandoned it for the less direct method of the parable. The parable (παραβολή) is etymologically the setting forth of one thing by the side of another, so that the one may be compared with the other. The parable is the truth presented by a similitude. It differs from the proverb inasmuch as it is necessarily figurative. The proverb may be figurative, but it need not of necessity be figurative. The parable is often an expanded proverb, and the proverb a condensed parable. There is but one Hebrew word for the two English words "parable" and "proverb," which may account for their being frequently interchanged. The proverb (Latin) is a common sentiment generally accepted. The parable (Greek) is something put by the side of something else. Theologically, it is something in the world of nature which finds its counterpart in the world of spirit. The parable attracts attention, and so becomes valuable as a test of character. It reveals the seekers after truth, those who love the light. It withdraws the light from those who love darkness. And said unto them in his doctrine (ἐντῇδιδαχῇαὐτοῦ); literally, in his teaching, namely, that particular mode of teaching which he bad just introduced; "he taught them" (ἐδίδασκεν). He said, "in his teaching" (ἐντῇδιδαχῇαὐτοῦ). Mark 4:3-8 Hearken (Ακούετε). This word is introduced in St. Mark’s narrative only; and it is very suitable to the warning at verse 9, "he hath ears to hear, let him hear. The sower went forth to sow. The scope of this beautiful parable is this: Christ teaches us that he is the Sower, that is, the great Preacher of the gospel among men. 1. But not all who hear the gospel believe it and receive it; just as some of the seed sown fell by the wayside, on the hard footpath, where it could not penetrate the ground, but lay upon the surface, and so was picked up by the birds. 2. Again, not all who hear and believe persevere in the faith; some fall away; like the seed sown on rocky ground, which springs up indeed, but for want of depth of soil puts forth no root, and is soon scorched by the rising sun, and, being without root, withers away. 3. But further, not all who show faith bring forth the fruit of good works; like the seed sown among the thorns, which, growing up together with it, choked it (συνέπνιξαναὐτὸ); such is the meaning. St. Luke has the words (συμφυεῖσαιαἱἄκανθαιἀπέπνιξαν), "the thorns grew up with it and choked it." 4. But, lastly, there are those who receive the gospel in the love of it, and bring forth fruit, not, however, in equal measures, but some thirtyfold, some sixty, some a hundred; and this on account of the greater influences of grace, or on account of the more ready co-operation of the free-will of man with the sovereign grace of God. The whole parable marks a gradation. In the first case the seed produces nothing; in the second it produces only the blade; in the third it is near the point of producing fruit, but fails to bring forth to perfection; in the fourth it yields fruit, but in different measures. Mark 4:9 And he said, Who hath ears to hear, let him hear. St. Luke (Luke 8:8) bus a stronger word than (ἔλεγεν) "he said." He (Luke 8:8) has (ἐφώνει) "he cried." Our Lord uses this expression, "he that hath ears to hear," etc, when the subject-matter is figurative or obscure, as though to rouse the attention of his hearers. He has "ears to hear" who diligently attends to the words of Christ, that he may ponder and obey them. Many heard him out of curiosity, that they might bear something new, or learned, or brilliant; not that they might lay to heart the things which they heard, and endeavor to practice them in their lives. And so it is with those who go to hear sermons on account of the fame of the preacher, and not that they may learn to amend their lives; and thus the words of Jehovah to Ezekiel (Ezekiel 33:32) are fulfilled, "And, lo, thou art unto them as a very lovely song of one that hath a pleasant voice, and can play well on an instrument: for they hear thy words, but they do them not." Mark 4:10 When he was alone. These words do not appear in St. Matthew’s account. He simply says that " the disciples came and said unto him." This must have been upon some other occasion. It could not have been when be was preaching from the boat; for St. Mark says, they that were about him with the twelve. He is the only evangelist who notices this. We must not forget that, besides the twelve, there were seventy other disciples. They asked of him the parables (τὰςπαραβολάς), according to the best reading. The inquiry was a general one, although St. Mark here gives the explanation of one only. Mark 4:11, Mark 4:12 To know the mystery. The Greek verb γνῶναι, to know, is not found in the best manuscripts, in which the words are (ὑμῖντὸμυστὴριονδέδοται), unto you is given the mystery of the kingdom of God. Our Lord here explains why he spake to the mixed multitude in parables; namely, because most of them were as yet incapable of receiving the gospel: some would not believe it, others reviled it. Therefore our Lord here encourages his own disciples to search out his words spoken in parables, and humbly to inquire into their full meaning, that so they might become able ministers and efficient preachers of the gospel. Moreover, by this he shows that this efficiency cannot be obtained by our own strength, but must be humbly sought for from God. For it is his own gift which he bestows on the disciples of Christ, and denies to others, whom he leaves to the blindness of their own hearts. It is as though he said, "To you, my disciples, my apostles, it is given, since you believe in me as the Messiah, to have continually more clear revelations from me of the mysteries of God and of heaven, by which you shall day by day increase in the knowledge and love of him. But from the scribes and others, because they will not believe in me as their own Messiah, God will take away even that small knowledge which they have of him and of his kingdom. Yea, he will deprive them of all the special privileges which they have hitherto possessed." But the words are not limited in their application to those who were living on the earth when Christ sojourned here. He says to all in every age who come within the reach of his gospel, "Those who come to me with a sincere heart and a simple desire to know the truth, as you, my apostles, are doing, to them I will reveal the mysteries of my kingdom, and I will help them onwards in the path of holiness, by which they may at length attain to the heavenly kingdom. But they who have not this pure desire of truth, but indulge their own lusts and errors, from them that little knowledge of God and of Divine things will by degrees be taken away, and they will become altogether blind." Observe the expression (ἐκείνοιςδὲτοῖςἔξω), but unto them that are without. There were then, just as there are now, those who were outside the realm of spiritual things; not caring for, not understanding, not desirous of spiritual truth. Lest at any time they should be converted (μήποτεἐπιστρέψωσι)—lest haply they should turn again (the verb is active) and their sins should be forgiven them. According to the best reading, τὰἁμαρτήματα is omitted; so it runs, and it should be forgiven them. The use of the active verb brings out the sinner’s responsibility with respect to his own conversion. Mark 4:13 Know ye not this parable? and how shall ye know all the parables? that is, "How, then, can you expect to understand all parables, as they ought to do who are instructed unto the kingdom of heaven?" It is St. Mark alone who recalls and records these words. They are striking and vivid, as illustrating the condition of mind of the disciples at this time—slow of apprehension, and yet desirous to learn. Mark 4:14 The sower soweth the word. St. Matthew (Matthew 13:19) calls it "the word of the kingdom"—an expression equivalent to "the gospel of the kingdom," not merely moral truth, but spiritual and eternal. Mark 4:15 Straightway cometh Satan. St. Matthew (Matthew 13:19) says, "then cometh (ὁπονηρὸς) the evil one;" the same expression which our Lord uses in the Lord’s Prayer, and which helps to justify the English rendering in the Revised Version there. As the seed failing by the wayside is refused by the hard and well-trodden ground, and so is readily picked up by the birds; in like manner, the seed of God’s Word, falling upon a heart rendered callous by the custom of sinning, is straightway snatched away by "the evil one," urging the heart again to its accustomed sins. Well may we pray to be delivered from this "evil one." Mark 4:16, Mark 4:17 And these are they likewise which are sown on stony ground. This sentence would be better rendered, And these in like manner are they that are sown upon the rocky places, where the words "likewise," or "in like manner," mean "by a similar mode of interpretation." This is the second condition of soil on which the seed is sown—a better condition than the former; for the former plainly refused the seed, but this, having some soil layout. able to the germination of the seed, receives it, and the seed springs up, though but for a little while. So the rocky ground is like the heart of that hearer who hears the Word of God, and receives it with joy. He is delighted with its beauty, its justice, its purity; and he breaks forth with holy affections. But alas he has more of the rock than of the good soil in his heart. Hence the Word of God cannot strike a deep root into his soul. He is not constant in the faith. He endures but for a time, and in the hour of temptation he falls away. Mark 4:18 And these are they which are sown among thorns. According to the best authorities, the words are (καὶἄλλοιεἰσιν), and others are they, etc. This marks a considerable difference between the two classes. This is the third condition of soft; and it is so much better than the former, inasmuch as the thorns present less obstacles to the growth of the seed than the rocky ground does. This similitude indicates the heart of that hearer who is beset with the cares of this world and the deceitfulness of riches and the lusts of other things. Mark 4:19 The cares of the world (τοῦαἰῶνος); literally, of the age; that is, temporal and secular cares, incident to the age in which our lot is cast, and which are common to all. These, like thorns, distress and trouble, and often wound the soul; while, on the other hand, the care of the soul and the thought of heavenly things compose and establish the mind. The deceitfulness of riches. Riches are aptly compared to thorns, because, like thorns, they pierce the soul. St. Paul (1 Timothy 6:10) speaks of some who, through the love of riches, "have pierced themselves through with many sorrows." Riches are deceitful, because they often seduce the soul from God and from salvation, and are the cause of many sins. "How hardly," says our Lord, "shall a rich man enter into the kingdom of God I" They have a tendency to choke the Word of God, and to weaken the power of religion. "Those are the only true riches," says St. Gregory, "which make us rich in virtue." Mark 4:20 Those are they that were sown upon the good ground. The good ground represents the heart which receives the Word of God with joy and desire, and true devotion of spirit, and which steadfastly retains it, whether in prosperity or in adversity; and so yields fruit, "sows thirty, some sixty, and some a hundredfold." St. Jerome remarks that, as of the bad ground there were three different kinds—the way, side, the rocky, and the thorny ground; so of the good ground there is a threefold gradation indicated in the amount of its productiveness. There are differences of conditions in the hearts both of those who believe and of these who do not believe. Mark 4:21 Is a candle brought to be put under a bushel, etc.? The Greek is ὁλύχνος, and is better rendered the lamp. The figure is recorded by St. Matthew (Matthew 5:15) as used by our Lord in his sermon on the mount. It is evident that he repeated his sayings, and used them sometimes in a different connection. The lamp is here the light of Divine truth, shining in the person of Christ. Is the lamp brought to be put under the bushel? It comes to us. The light in our souls is not of our own kindling; it comes to us from God, that we may manifest it for his glory. "The bushel" (μόδιος), from the Latin medias, a measure containing flour, was the flour-bin, a part of the furniture of every house, as was the tall lampstand with its single light. St, Luke (Luke 8:16) calls it "a vessel" (καλύπτειαὐτὸνσκεύει). The light is to be set on "a lamp-stand," and in like manner the light which we have received is to shine before men. As Christians, we are Christ’s light-bearers. By this illustration our Lord teaches that he was unwilling that the mysteries of this great parable of the sower and of other parables should be concealed, but that his disciples should unfold these things to others as he had to them, although at present they might not be able to receive them. Mark 4:22 For there is nothing hid which shall not be manifested. The Greek of the latter part of this sentence, according to the best authorities, runs thus: ἐὰνμὴἵναφανερωθῇ; so the true rendering of the words is, there is nothing hid save that it should be manifested; that is, there is nothing now hid, but in order that it may be made known. There is a great principle of the Divine operations here announced by our Lord. Much, very much, is now hidden from us, in nature, in providence, and in grace. But it will not always be hidden. In natural things more and more is revealed as science advances, and in providence and in grace the mysteries of the kingdom will one day, and at the fitting time, be laid open to all. "What I tell you in the darkness, speak ye in the light" (Matthew 10:27). Mark 4:24 Take heed what ye hear. Attend, that is, to these words which ye hear from me, that ye may understand them, and commit them to memory, and so be able to communicate them effectually to others. Let none of my words escape you. Our Lord bids us to pay the greatest attention to his words, and so to digest them that we may be able to teach them to others. With what measure ye mete it shall be measured unto you: and more shall be given unto you. Our Lord’s meaning is clearly this: If you freely and plentifully communicate and preach my doctrine to others, you shall receive a corresponding reward. Nay, you shall have a return in far more abundant measure. For thus the fountains, the more water they pour out below, so much the more do they receive from above. Here, then, is great encouragement to all faithful teachers of the Word, of whatever kind; that by how much they give to others in teaching them, by so much the more shall they receive of wisdom and grace from Christ; according to those words of the apostle, "He that soweth bountifully shall reap also bountifully" (2 Corinthians 9:6). Mark 4:25 For he that hath, to him shall be given. He that uses his gifts, whether of intellect or of goodness, bestowed upon him by God, to him shall be granted an increase of those gifts. But from him who uses them not, God will gradually take them away. Christ here encourages his apostles and disciples to diligent and earnest preaching of his gospel, by promising them in return yet greater influxes of his wisdom and grace. Mark 4:26-28 This parable is recorded by St. Mark alone. It differs greatly from the parable of the sower, although both of them are founded upon the imagery of the seed cast into the ground. In both cases the seed represents the doctrine of the gospel; the field represents the hearers; the harvest the end of the world, or perhaps the death of each individual hearer. So is the kingdom of God, in its progress from its establishment to its completion. The sower casts seed upon the earth, not without careful preparation of the soil, but without further sowing. And then he pursues his ordinary business. He sleeps by night; he rises by day; he has leisure for other employment; his work as a sower is finished. Meanwhile the seed germinates and grows by its own hidden virtues, assisted by the earth, the sun, and the air, the sower knowing nothing of the mysterious process. First comes the blade, then the ear, then the full corn in the ear. Such is the preaching of the gospel. Here, therefore, the sower represents human responsibility in the work. The vitality of the seed is independent of his labour. The earth develops the plant from the seed by those natural but mysterious processes through which the Creator is ever working. So in spiritual things, the sower commences the work, and the grace of God perfects it in the heart which receives these influences. The earth beareth fruit of herself. In like manner, by degrees, the faith of Christ increases through the preaching of the gospel; and the Church grows and expands. And what is true of the Church collectively is true also of each individual member of the Church. For the heart of each faithful Christian produces first the blade, when it conceives good desires and begins to put them into action; then the ear, when it brings them to good effect; and lastly the full corn in the ear, when it brings them to their full maturity and perfection. Hence our Lord in this parable intimates that they who labour for the conversion of souls ought, with much patience, to wait for the fruit of ’their labour, as the husbandman waits with much patience for the precious fruits of the earth. Mark 4:29 But when the fruit is ripe (ὅτανδὲπαραδῷὁκαρπὸς). The verb here is active; it might be rendered delivereth up, or alloweth. It is a peculiar expression, though evidently meaning "when the fruit is ready." He putteth forth the sickle, because the harvest is come. As soon as Christ’s work is completed, whether in the Church or in the individual, "immediately" the sickle is sent forth. As soon as a Christian is ready for heaven, God calls him away; and therefore we may infer that it is unwise, if not sinful, for a Christian, pressed it may be with sickness or trouble, to be eager in wishing to leave this world. "It is one thing to be willing to go when God pleases; it is another thing to speak as though we wished to hasten our departure." "When the fruit is ripe, immediately he putteth forth the sickle." If therefore, the sickle is not yet sent forth, it is because the fruit is not yet fully ripe. The afflictions of the faithful are God’s means to ripen them for heaven. They are the dressing which the Lord of the vineyard employs to make the tree more fruitful, to make the Christian more fruitful in grace, and more ripe for glory. Mark 4:30-32 Whereunto shall we liken the kingdom of God? or with what comparison shall we compare it! In the first clause of this verse the best authorities give πῶς for τίνι, How shall we liken the kingdom of God? and in the second clause, instead of the Greek of which the Authorized Version is the rendering, the best-approved reading is (τίνιαὐτὴνπαραβολῇθῶμεν), in what parable shall we set it forth? Our Lord thus stimulates the intellect of his hearers, by making them his associates, as it were, in the search for appropriate similitudes (see Dr. Morison, in loc.). The kingdom of God, that is, his Church on earth, is like a grain of mustard seed. By this image our Lord shows the great power, fertility, and extension of the Church; inasmuch as it started from a very small and apparently insignificant beginning, and spread itself over the whole world. It is not literally and absolutely true that the grain of mustard seed is less than all seeds. There are other seeds which are less than it. But the expression may readily be allowed when we compare the smallness of the seed with the greatness of the results produced by it. It is one of the least of all seeds. And so the preaching of the Gospel and the establishment of the Church was one of the smallest of beginnings. Perhaps the well-known pungency of the seed of the mustard plant may suggest the quickening, stimulating power of the Gospel when it takes root in the heart. The mustard plant shoots out large branches, which are used as fuel in some countries, quite large enough for shadow for the birds. A traveler in South America says that it grows to so large a tree upon the slopes of the mountains of Chili that he could ride under its branches. Mark 4:33, Mark 4:34 With many such parables; such, that is, as he had just been delivering—plain and simple illustrations which all might understand; not abstruse and difficult similitudes, but sufficiently plain for them to perceive that there was heavenly and Divine truth lying hidden beneath them, so that they might be drawn onwards through that which they did understand, to search into something hidden beneath it, which at present they did not know. But privately to his own disciples he expounded (ἐπέλυε) all things. This word (ἐπιλύω) occurs nowhere else in the Gospels. But it does occur in St. Peter’s second Epistle (2 Peter 1:20), "No Scripture is of any private (ἐπιλύσεως) exposition, or interpretation." This suggests a connection between St. Mark’s Gospel and that Epistle, and may be accepted as an auxiliary evidence, however small, as to the genuineness of the Epistle. Mark 4:35, Mark 4:36 And on that day,—the day, that is, on which the parables were delivered, at least those recorded by St. Mark—when even was come, he saith unto them, Let us go over unto the other side. And leaving the multitude, they take him with them, even as he was, in the boat. It was the boat from which he had been preaching. They made no special preparation. They did not land first to obtain provisions. It would have been inconvenient to go ashore in the midst of the crowd. They made at once, as he told them to do, for the other side. And other boats were with him. This is another interesting circumstance. Probably those who were in these boats had availed themselves of them to get nearer to the great Prophet, the boatmen themselves having seen the vast crowd that was gathered on the shore, and so having been attracted thither. Thus he had a large audience on the sea as well as on the land. And not it was so ordered that he was surrounded by a fleet and by a multitude of witnesses when he stilled the tempest. Mark 4:37 And there arose a great storm of wind; literally, there ariseth (γίνεταιλαίλαψ). St. Mark often uses the historical present, which gives vigor and point to his narrative. And the waves beat into the boat, insomuch that the boat was now filling (ἤδηγεμίζεσθαι). St. Matthew says (Matthew 8:24), "the boat was covered with the waves." St. Luke (Luke 8:23), "they were filling with water, and were in jeopardy." Bede and ethers have thought that the boat in which Christ was the only boat that was tossed by this storm; in order that Christ might show his power in limiting the area of the tempest. But it is far more probable that the ether boats were subject to it; for they were very near to the boat in which Christ was. There must have been some reason for the allusion to these boats; and the wider the reach of the tempest, the greater would appear the Divine power of Christ in stilling it, and the greater the amount of testimony to the reality of the miracle. The miracle was wrought to show his power over all creation, the sea as well as the dry land; and that they, his disciples, and all who were with him might believe in him as the Omnipotent God. But further, this tempest on the sea of Galilee was a type and symbol of the trials and temptations which should come on the Church. For the Church of God is as a ship in a storm, ever tossed upon "the waves of this troublesome world." And then, moreover, as the rude storm urges the ship onwards, so that it more quickly reaches the desired haven, so afflictions and temptations quicken Christ’s disciples to the greater desire of holiness, by which they are borne onwards more speedily to "the haven where they would be." Mark 4:38 And he was in the hinder part of the ship, asleep on a pillow; more literally, he himself was in the stern (ἦναὐτὸςἐπὶτῇπρύμνῃ) asleep on the cushion (ἐπὶτὸπροσκεφάλαιονκαθεύδων). He had changed his posture. He was weary with the labour of addressing the great multitude. He had sought the momentary rest which the crossing of the lake offered to him. He was resting his head upon the low bench which served both for a seat and for a pillow. But while he slept as man, he was watchful as God. "Behold, he that keepeth Israel neither slumbers nor sleeps." Master, carest thou not that we perish? This question savours of impatience, if not of irreverence. Who so likely to have put it as St. Peter? Nor would he be likely afterwards to forget that he had put it. Hence, probably, its appearance in St. Mark’s Gospel. Mark 4:39 And he arose—literally, he awoke (διεγερθεὶς)—and rebuked the wind, and said unto the sea, Peace, be still (Σιώπαπεφίμωσο); literally, Be silent! be muzzled! The Greek perfect implies that before the word was uttered, the thing was done by the simple fiat of his will preceding the word. The combined descriptions of the synoptists show that the storm was very violent, such as no human power could have composed or stilled. So that these words indicate the supreme authority of Christ as God, ruling the sea with his mighty power. Thus Christ shows himself to be God. In like manner, Christ is able to overrule and control the persecutions of the Church and the temptations of the soul. St. Augustine says that "when we allow temptations to overcome us, Christ sleeps in us. We forget Christ at such times. Let us, then, remember him. Let us awake him. He will speak. He will rebuke the tempest in the soul, and there will be a great calm." There was a great calm. For all creation perceives its Creator. He never speaks in vain. It is observable that, as in his miracles of healing, the subjects of them usually passed at once to perfect soundness, so here, there was no gradual subsiding of the storm, as in the ordinary operations of nature, but almost before the word had escaped his lips there was a perfect calm. Mark 4:40 And he said unto them, Why are ye fearful! have ye not yet faith? Not πῶςοὐκἔχετε, but οὔπωἔχετε. If they had faith, they would have known that, though asleep, he could preserve them. Mark 4:41 And they feared exceedingly, and said one to another, Who then is this, that even the wind and the sea obey him? This would seem to have been said by the sailors, though it was doubtless assented to by all. Mark 4:1-20 Spiritual sowing. It is a picturesque and memorable sight. Multitudes of people, of all classes and from every part of the land, have assembled on the western shore of the Galilean lake, where Jesus is daily occupied in teaching and in healing. To protect himself from the pressure of the crowd, and the better to command his audience, Jesus steps into a boat, and pushes off a few yards from the beach. There, with the fair landscape before him, corn-fields covering the slopes, the birds of the air above, winging their flight over the still waters,—the great Teacher addresses the people. His language is figurative, drawn from the processes of nature and the employments of husbandry, probably at the very moment apparent to his eye. How natural that, at this moment and in this scene, our Lord should introduce a new style of teaching, should enter upon a new phase of ministry! The parable, as a vehicle for spiritual truth, had indeed been employed by Jewish teachers and prophets; but it was our Lord himself who carried this style of spiritual instruction to perfection. I. THE sower. Every man, and especially every teacher, is a sower—intellectual, moral, or both. Christ is emphatically the Sower. He was such in his ministry on earth; in his death, when the corn of wheat fell into the ground and died, he was both the Sower and the Seed; in the gospel dispensation he continues to be the Divine Sower. His apostles and all his ministers have been sowing through the long centuries, or rather he has been sowing by their hands. How wise, liberal, diligent, unwearied, is Christ in this beneficent work! II. THE SEED. This is the Word of God. All truth is spiritual seed; the truth relating to God—his will and grace—is "the seed of the kingdom." Like the seed, the gospel is comparatively small and insignificant; it has within it inherent vitality, a living germ; it is seemingly thrown away and hidden; its nature is to grow and to increase and multiply; it is tender and depends upon the treatment it meets with whether it lives or dies. III. THE sore. The human heart is adapted to receive and to cherish the spiritual seed. But as on the surface of the earth some ground is fertile and some is barren, some ground is adapted to one crop and other ground to a crop of different kind, so it is in the spiritual husbandry. Whilst all hearts are created to receive the heavenly seed, and only fulfill their end when they bear spiritual fruit, we cannot but recognize the marvellous diversity of soil into which the gospel is deposited. Yet we must not so interpret the parable as to countenance the doctrine of fatalism. IV. THE sowing. Was the sower in the parable guided, in the manner and measure of his sowing, by the likelihood or otherwise that the land would prove fruitful? No; neither should the gospel sower reckon probabilities: his Master did not. The sower should be liberal and indiscriminate, should "sow beside all waters," should remember that he "knows not which shall prosper, this or that." It is for him to do his work diligently and faithfully, and leave results to God; e.g. the mother and the child, the teacher and the class, the master and the pupil or apprentice, the preacher and the congregation, the author and the reader. V. THE GROWTH. This is not universal; for, as the parable reminds us, it comes to pass, both in the natural and the spiritual sowing, that in some cases the seed disappears and comes to nought. Yet the redemption of Christ proclaimed, and the grace of the Holy Spirit vouchsafed, co-operate oftentimes to most blessed results, even as in nature seed and soil, showers and sunshine, produce a vigorous growth. VI. THE HARVEST. What is the end of sowing and tilling, of culture and toil? It is fruit. And, in the spiritual kingdom, what is the aim and recompense of the Divine and of all human sowers? It is fruit—of holiness, obedience, love, joy, peace, eternal life. It shall not be wanting. "My word shall not return unto me void;" "They that sow in tears shall reap in joy;" "They shall bring their sheaves with them;" it may be "after many days." There is a harvest in time, and a richer, riper harvest in eternity. LESSONS. 1. One of encouragement for all gospel sowers; they are doing the Master’s work, they are following the Master’s example, they are assured of the Master’s support. 2. One of admonition to all to whom the Word is preached. Take heed what and how you hear. The seed is heavenly; is the soil kindly, prepared, grateful, fruitful? Mark 4:4, Mark 4:15 The Word stolen from the heart. Young preachers, in the strength of their convictions and the ardor of their benevolence, are often inspired with enthusiastic expectations concerning the results of the preaching of the gospel. It seems to them that the Word has only to be addressed to men’s minds in order to meet with an eager, grateful, and immediate acceptance. As their experience enlarges, and as they learn in how many cases reason and conscience are silenced by the clamor of passion and interest, or disregarded through the power of sinful habit or the influence of sinful society, they turn to this parable, and learn how just was the view and how tempered the expectations of the Divine Teacher and Saviour, as to the acceptance with which his gospel should meet. I. THE HEART BY AND SIN IS NOT OF THE WORD. 1. Wordly thoughts and cares preoccupy the mind, so that there is no response to the appeals of the gospel. When the attention is absorbed by things seen and temporal, spiritual realities appear imaginary and uninteresting. As there was no room for the babe Jesus at the inn, so the nature which welcomes every passing guest finds no place for the King and for his Word. 2. Sin shuts out the truth. There is no fellowship between light and darkness. The sinner’s heart is closed against the heavenly rays. What preacher could not, from his own observation, offer many a living illustration of the saying, "Men love darkness rather than light, because their deeds are evil" ? To revert to the figure of the text, sin loved and unrepented of treads down the heart into a hard, impenetrable pathway, where no glebe breaks up, in frost, in shower, or in sunshine, to give a welcome, a home, a cradle, to the germ of spiritual life. 3. Familiarity with truth unheeded hardens any nature against the gospel. Who are the least hopeful in our congregations? Surely they are those who have, from habit or through influence, been attending the "means of grace" for many years, to whom every statement, every appeal, every remonstrance, every warning, is an old familiar sound, "a twice-told tale." The nature becomes not only indifferent, but callous; there is no real heed, no living susceptibility, no response of faith and joy. II. THE ENEMY OF SOULS THE WORD FROM THE HEART. The condition of the sinner’s soul is such as offers to Satan an occasion for frustrating the benevolent designs of the Divine Sower. Had the seed fallen into good ground and been covered over, there would have been no invitation or opportunity for the birds to snatch it away. So it is only the worldly, sensual, or unbelieving nature that, so to speak, tempts the tempter himself. By the birds it is usually understood that the great Teacher intends to represent evil thoughts and imaginations and desires, such as possess the unspiritual and unthinking. How true to the life is this account! How many careless and unbelieving hearers of the gospel no sooner leave the church in which they have listened to the Word, than common, foolish, selfish, sinful thoughts take possession of their mind, and the Word is snatched away—is as though it had not been! The necessary result is that there is no fruit. How can there be fruit when the Word has not been mixed with faith in the heater’s heart? "Do you take care that it falls not on, but in, your souls." "Break up your fallow ground; for it is time to seek the Lord." Mark 4:5, Mark 4:6, Mark 4:16, Mark 4:17 The Word starved in the heart. The Christian preacher sometimes reason to exclaim, "Who hath believed our report?" But sometimes he has occasion to lament over those who apparently have believed but whose goodness proves, as time passes, "as the morning cloud and as the early dew, which goeth away." Our Lord warns us that we shall meet with such cases, which first excite hope and expectation, and then cloud the soul of the Christian labourer with disappointment and sorrow. Such are compared to the rocky soil, with just a scattering of earth upon the surface, where the seed may grow, but where it will never live to produce a crop. I. GROWTH EXCITES HOPE. In the cases symbolized by this part of the parable there is much to please and encourage the inexperienced sower of the Divine Word. We observe: 1. Sensibility and susceptibility. How different from the wayside hearer is this! Here we behold the truth obtaining at once a lodgment and welcome in the heart. An impressible nature is affected by the glad tidings which Christ brings from heaven. The conscience is aroused, the judgment is convinced, the heart is captivated. The first contact of the truth with the soul is of the most hopeful character. 2. Gladness follows the reception of the Word; for this is an emotional nature, responsive to the joyful tidings. This is indeed what ought to be expected; yet its occurrence is so rare as to occasion surprise and enkindle the most glowing expectations. It is especially in times of "revival" that such instances abound. A general excitement heightens the emotion of joy which springs up in the heart of the impressible hearer; it is joy as of one who finds a great treasure. 3. Precocity of growth is the natural consequence. The soil is of a "forcing" character, and yields speedy and surprising, if temporary, results. Very different from the slow, steady, gradual growth, which is most, on the whole, to be desired, is the rapid development of the religious life in the superficial convert of the apparent "revival." Extreme views, extravagant expectations, thoughtless but ardent resolves,—all testify to the quick, unhealthy growth. II. BRINGS . 1. After a while a season of trial comes. Time tries all, and affliction and persecution arise. This is the providential appointment; it is discipline which Divine wisdom deems necessary. In the early days of Christianity this was a common test, and in some form and in some measure it continues and will long continue to be so. 2. Before the scorching sun the feeble growth is withered and destroyed. The furnace which refines the gold consumes the straw. The effect at first produced was owing to novelty, excitement, company, enthusiasm. Only the surface was reached, below was nothing. The transitory joy is followed by depression, carelessness, stolidity, obduracy. Perhaps there is a hope of the renewal of excitement, which never comes. It is seen that belief is not faith, feeling is not principle, joy is not life. To endure that test there is needed an inward, hidden life, hidden with Christ in God. There is needed a soil watered continually by heavenly dews and showers. "Blessed is he that endureth!" . 1. Let sanguine preachers and teachers take a sober and scriptural view of their work, and guard against being misled by enthusiasm and extravagant expectations. 2. Let hearers of the gospel seek grace that the truth may not only touch but may penetrate their heart; let them seek the Holy Spirit’s aid that they may hear the Word of God, and keep it! Mark 4:7, Mark 4:18, Mark 4:19 The Word choked in the heart. Thorns make a good hedge but a bad crop. The soil here described was in itself rich, good soil. But it could not grow both thorns and wheat, and, when occupied by the one, failed to yield the other. I. WHAT ARE THE THORNS THAT THE SOIL? Thorns, thistles, brambles, briers, are signs of neglect. They are the emblems of the primeval curse, for the garden was by our first parents exchanged for the thorny wilderness. In our parable the thorns are explained to represent: 1. "The cares of this world." Cares, whether of State or business, of letters or science, of family or calling, may occupy the mind which has received the truth of God, to such an extent as to hinder that truth from growing up. "Care, when it once hath entered in the breast, Will have the whole possession ere it rest." Cares are distractions, and, even when concerning lawful things, if unchecked, are detrimental and disastrous. This is the special temptation of the poor and hardworking. Well are we directed to be "careful for nothing," etc., and "to take no thought for the morrow," etc. 2. "The deceitfulness of riches" is depicted under the figure of the thorns. The possession of wealth may be a curse to the rich, and the search—the race—after riches may be a curse to the avaricious and worldly. The unwary are deceived; for riches promise what they cannot give, and they sometimes draw away the heart from the treasure in heaven, which alone can truly enrich and satisfy for ever. How many, trusting in riches, have failed of the kingdom! 3. "The lusts of other things" have much of mischief laid to their charge. Pleasure is a fair and fragrant flower, but it may hide a thorn. It may be manifestly sinful, it may be doubtful, it may be innocent but unduly absorbing,—and in any such case it may choke the Word. How many are the things which men put in the place of religion ! They are left unnamed, that we may supply them from our own knowledge of our own hearts and their manifold and varied snares. To desire aught earthly overmuch is to desire things heavenly too little. II. HOW DO THESE THORNS CHOKE THE SEED? In two ways: 1. By taking up the room which the Word requires. They occupy the short and fleeting period of time allotted for our probation. The leisure for pondering and practically obeying the truth never comes. Time flies: the soul dies. They absorb attention and engage the heart. The words of the world must be listened to, and Christ must wait until "a more convenient season"—which never comes. But if the world must have our ears, must claim our hands, Christ should have our heart. Alas! men plan and toil, prosper and grow rich, respected, powerful, famous; and in doing so neglect the Word. Little know they of the mind of Paul, "To me to live is Christ." 2. By counteracting the influence of the truth. In the former case (the rocky ground) it was persecution; in this case it is the allurements of the world which prove injurious to the soul. Cares and lusts are thorns which must be choked or they choke. So thorn and corn grow side by side with a fair show. But gradually the evil gains the victory, and goodness perishes. What experienced sower has not seen and mourned over the process? Warnings are in vain. The thorns grow apace; the soul becomes insensible to all the claims of Christ, to all the appeals of the gospel. So the Word is unfruitful as before. "Stones mar the root; Thorns spoil the fruit." What poor produce there is comes to no maturity, no perfection. Labour is wasted, promise is blasted, hope is clouded, all is lost! . None who receive the Word of life are free from the danger here described. Search and find out the hindrances to vigor and fruitfulness in the spiritual life. Root them all up, that the Word may live and grow and yield abundance. Look for fruit; God looks for it as the only proof of life. Else, when the Lord comes and finds no fruit, the thorns will indeed be burned, but the ground will be exposed as fruitless and worthless, and "nigh unto cursing." Mark 4:8, Mark 4:20 The Word fruitful in the heart. Most varied results attend the preaching of the gospel. Look at our Lord’s own ministry. On the one hand, we are told, "He did there no mighty works because of their unbelief;" "yet they believed not upon him; ’and we find him exclaiming, "Woe unto you, cities!" etc. On the other hand, "the multitude heard him gladly;" of the Samaritans, "many more believed because of his word," and sometimes, in their eagerness, "they pressed upon him to hear," etc. Nor was this fact peculiar to Christ’s ministry; the apostles confessed that they were to some a savor of life, to others of death; and the historian records, as a matter of fact, that "some believed, and some believed not." So is it with Christian preachers in every age; there are instances which rejoice and recompense them, and others which disappoint and depress them. The great Teacher foretells in this part of the parable that there shall ever be cases in which the Lord’s Word "shall not return unto him void." I. THE SOIL. The good ground was in contrast with the several varieties of poor and bad soil. It was soft and yielding, as distinguished from the trodden earth of the wayside. It was deep, as distinguished from the shallow sprinkling of earth upon the rock beneath. It was clean as distinguished from the foul, weedy, thorny land. So with the honest and good heart, prepared by Divine influences and responsive to Divine culture and care. There is in this figurative language no countenance given to fatalism. We meet with good ground sometimes amongst those brought up in the Christian family and Church, as in Timothy; sometimes amongst those not specially privileged, but candid and guileless, as in Nathanael; sometimes even among the outwardly wicked, who yet may not be hardened, but may be ready to welcome deliverance from their evil ways, as in some of the publicans and sinners. Similar instances are recorded in the Acts of the Apostles. II. THE VITAL PROCESS. In the other cases, the seed sooner or later perishes; in this case it lives. It is neither stolen, nor starved, nor choked. The reason is that the soil accepts and retains the seed. So with the heart that not only receives but holds fast the Word of life, that cherishes and matures it, that gives it a resting-place, and welcomes all heavenly influences which can quicken and strengthen and prosper it. That nature will develop into Divine life and immortal fruitfulness which ponders the truth of God, assimilates it, keeps for it the place of honor, pre-eminence, and power, gives it room and scope and play, watches over it and prays for its vitality, energy, and increase. In such a nature the seed germinates and lives and grows, for it finds there congenial soil and cordial welcome and sustenance. The power of this life is that of the Holy Spirit: "God giveth the increase." III. THE HARVEST. What is meant by "fruit" ? Spiritual result for spiritual toil and agency and culture. In the case of the sinner, the first and most welcome fruit is that of conversion unto God. But the rich fruits expected are these: obedience, righteousness, holiness, Christlikeness, consecration, self-denial, usefulness. "The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace," etc. Such fruit is the only proof of life and growth. "By their fruits ye shall know them;" i.e. by the quality, the flavour, and fragrance of the moral produce. "Herein is my Father glorified, that ye bear much fruit;" i.e. by abundance alone can the husbandman be satisfied and recompensed. The multiplication of the seed is one of the many points of resemblance between the physical and the spiritual life. Who has not seen a heart changed by one sermon, a life made anew by one utterance or by one lesson of Divine providence? Seemingly an insignificant seed, yet a crop of glorious ripeness and luxuriance. And as for variety, every congregation of Christians is a living witness to this. Either because the same opportunities have been, in some eases, more diligently used, or because different advantages have been employed with equal assiduity; it results that some yield fruit thirty, some sixty, and others a hundredfold. 1. The responsibility of hearing the Word. God provides the seed; but the preparation of the soil is largely in our hands. 2. The expectation of the Sower is great in proportion to the greatness of our advantages. Nothing less than much fruit can satisfy him from you. Mark 4:10-13, Mark 4:21-25 The lamp of parabolic teaching. Probably the opposition, malignity, and misrepresentation of the scribes and Pharisees were the occasion of the commencement by our Lord of a new style of public teaching. He did not wish at present to excite so much turmoil and violence as should lead to the interruption of his ministry. His design was to introduce into men’s minds new ideas of the spiritual reign of God—ideas altogether in contradiction to their own carnal notions and hopes. He knew, however, the importance of considering the character and the mental position of the learner, in order that the mature might be thoroughly enlightened and instructed, in order that the immature might be encouraged to inquiry and to thought, in order that, for a season, the doctrine might remain concealed from the unspiritual and the unsympathetic. I. THE LAMP OF DIVINE IS TO GIVE LIGHT. The Galilean cottage had its lampstand, its bed, its corn-measure; and every peasant could see the absurdity of first kindling the lamp and then hiding it under the meal-box or the couch. Let it be put upon the lofty stand, and it will give light to all. So when Christ came, the great Teacher, the great Saviour, he came a light into the world, to be the light, of men. His words, his character, his deeds, his whole life, were an illumination from heaven. When he taught he taught for all humanity and for all time. II. THE FORM OF WAS NO . The parable hid the truth, made a secret of it, enclosed it like a jewel in a casket. But it was never intended that the truth should remain concealed; the intention was that it should be manifested, that it should come to light (Mark 4:22). And, as a matter of fact, the figurative and pictorial form has served to display and illumine rather than to hide the great truths of Christianity. To how many simple, childlike minds have the parables of our Lord Jesus brought home lessons of wisdom, grace, hope, and consolation! And what materials for reflection, what profound spiritual help and illumination, have they afforded to the thoughtful student of the Word! And what themes for the teacher, the preacher, the expositor, have these parables ever been found! They are "a mystery;" but a mystery is a truth once hidden but now made clear and published abroad. III. IN FACT, IS TO THE AND LIGHT TO THE . Like all good things, it may be used and it may be abused. When Christ speaks, there are those who do not perceive, who do not understand. Is this the fault of the Word? No, it is the fault of their own inattentive, unreceptive, unsympathizing nature. It is they, the hearers, who are to blame; not the truth which they will not appreciate (Mark 4:12). Yet are there those "who have ears to hear;" and these hear. To them the Word is as music, satisfying their souls, bringing to them the thoughts of the Divine mind, the love of the Divine heart, the secret of the Divine purposes. To them it is said, "Happy are your ears, for they hear!" IV. LEARN THE MYSTERY THAT THEY MAY PUBLISH IT. Speaking especially to his apostles, but through them to all who receive the gospel, our Lord bids those who welcome and value the truth to proclaim it far and wide. It is light intended for the world’s illumination; let it be set up on high, that all in this great dark house of humanity may see their way to God. It is meal for the hungering multitude; let it be dealt forth to every applicant with no sparing hand, no grudging heart. There is light enough for all who are in darkness; bread enough for all who are in danger of starving. It is the office of the members of Christ’s Church to hold forth the light of life, to take of the food and, as it multiplies in their hands, to give to the vast multitude in the barren wilderness. V. WE ARE BOTH FOR THE WAY IN WHICH WE RECEIVE AND FOR THE WAY IN WHICH WE IMPART DIVINE TRUTH. 1. "Take heed what and how ye hear." It is unprofitable and wrong to offer a willing ear to every teacher, to all tidings. On the other hand, it is folly and sin to turn away from him who speaketh from heaven, or to listen to him with inattention, with unconcern, with unsympathizing, unbelieving hearts. 2. "With what measure ye mete it shall be measured unto you." Be faithful, be diligent, fulfill your trust with zeal and wisdom, display benevolence towards the untaught and the unblessed, and you shall receive more—more of truth and more of spiritual enrichment and joy. On the other hand, the selfish, the unpitying, the unfaithful, shall gain nothing by spiritual niggardliness; from them shall be taken away even that which they have. Mark 4:26-29 Spiritual growth. There are common truths and a common interpretation underlying this and several other parables. In all this group the seed is the Word of God, the soil is the heart of man, the life is the spiritual history and development, the fruit is Christian character, and the harvest is eternal result and retribution. But the peculiar lesson of this parable is the nature of spiritual growth. It this case it is presumed that the seed is sown in good soil. I. IT IS HIDDEN, AND CANNOT BE TRACED AND WATCHED. Until it is deposited in the ground, seed may be beheld and examined by the eye. But then it is covered up and concealed, and germinates and begins to grow beneath the surface. In like manner you may see the truth as written, you may hear it as spoken; but when once it gets into the heart, germinates, and goes to its work, the preacher and teacher fail to follow it, and altogether lose sight of it. In the silent soul the Divine seed works in secret, lives, strives, moves, grows. Probably those reared in Christian homes cannot recollect when the truth, quickened by the Spirit, first began to live in them. Certainly you can only very dimly follow the process of growth in others. Years pass; the youth grows into the man, goes about daily duty, takes nightly rest, and all the while the hidden seed is living and developing slowly or swiftly, but unperceived even by those who planted it. How little, in some instances, preachers and teachers and parents can follow the Word, as it does its work within the hearts of those for whom they care! Yet "the kingdom of God comes without observation." Convictions of their own spiritual nature and immortal destiny, of the character and government of God, of the love and reign of Christ, are all forming within, becoming part of the spiritual being. And the vital growth, though unperceived, is giving signs of its reality. II. IT IS AND NOT TO BE . The husbandman, the gardener, "knoweth not how." Even the scientific observer cannot explain the mystery of life and growth. There is no caprice; all is reason and law, yet the process baffles our understanding. So in the working of God’s kingdom within, there is much that is mysterious. How can Divine truth, naturally so unpalatable, gain a hold upon the heart? How can it overmaster other principles so that it shall flourish as they fade? And, looking to the external, how can we account for it, that the kingdom of God, so unworldly, can advance to universal victory? The power of life must be that of the holy Spirit, acting like the sunlight and the genial warmth, the frequent showers and the morning dew. It is the Lord’s doing, invisible, incomprehensible, admirable, adorable, Divine! III. IT IS TO ITS OWN LAWS, NOT OURS. In dealing with vegetation, there is much which we can do if we work with nature. We can till the soil, expose the seed to moisture and warmth, protect it from unfavourable conditions. But we cannot work against laws of nature; we cannot make pebbles grow, acorns produce elm trees, or barley yield a crop of wheat; we cannot grow the produce of the tropics at the poles. Providence has imposed laws upon nature, and with regard to life some things are possible, and others impossible. So spiritual life follows laws which we cannot change, and much of our interference has no influence or but little. The seed grows "of itself," i.e. as God appoints for it. The truth of God is not trammelled by our notions or fancies; the Spirit of God is not hampered by our rules. Men prove their own pettiness when they attempt to prescribe how the Divine seed shall grow. The Giver of the seed and Lord of the harvest does his work in his own way and time. He carries on a heavenly process in the conscience and the heart, in the bosom of human society. Vain is our fancy that we can rule the life. "Paul plants, Apollos waters, and God gives the increase." IV. THE PROCESS IS USUALLY GRADUAL AND . There is a regular law of development, "first the blade," etc. We never get the fruit first, the blade last. Everything in its season. So in the spiritual kingdom of God. In the child or the young convert, we look first for signs of life—the blade which proves that the seed has germinated. By Christian nurture, scriptural instruction, and Divine discipline, gradual and sure progress is made. The promise is partly realized when the ear is formed; it is the time of vigor and manifest growth. Then with the long and profitable years comes the full corn—the ripeness of Christian knowledge, experience, and service. A few favorable years bring the seedling to the sapling, and the sapling to the stalwart tree; a few months cover the broad brown tilth with the golden shocks. So in the Church of Christ we see the gradual unfolding of character, the gentle ripening of experience, one stage of growth left behind in making way for that which succeeds. V. THE HARVEST IS THE END AND THE OF ALL. If the growth is unobtrusive, the harvest is conspicuous. The secret working has prepared for the open result. Life ends in fruit. It is so in the spiritual field. When there is ripeness, then the time has come for the sickle to be put in. The harvest is gathered, and the garner of God is filled with golden grain. Fruit is yielded upon earth; and the richest crop is reaped hereafter. 1. The Christian sower and labourer may learn to think humbly of himself, highly of his work. 2. There is encouragement for the "babes in Christ;" their stage of experience is the necessary preparation for the more complete fulfillment of the high purposes of God. 3. The glory must be given to God when life is vigorous and when fruit is ripe. The mustard seed. The kingdom of God has its intension and its extension, its rule over the individual soul, and its sway over human society, its invisible work within and its manifest and mighty achievement without; it transforms character and it renews the world. Perhaps it is fair to regard the preceding parable of "the seed growing secretly" as a parable of the history of the Word in the heart; and this of the mustard seed as a parable of the fortunes and destiny of the Word in the world. Our attention is here directed to— I. THE SMALL AND OF CHRIST’S KINGDOM, The suggestions of nature here are many and striking. Not only does the tree begin with a seed, the eagle comes from an egg, the river is first a little rill, the fire is ignited by a spark, and every day, however gorgeous, begins with a faint and glimmering dawn. 1. The Lord Jesus himself, in his simplicity and humiliation, seemed most unlikely to be the Founder of the greatest of all kingdoms. "Despised and rejected of men," cast out, calumniated, and crucified, Jesus was as the grain of mustard seed. 2. The apostles of the Saviour were termed "ignorant and unlearned men," and were apparently little adapted to revolutionize the world. But in them God chose "the weak things of the world to confound the mighty." 3. The early Church may well have seemed to an observer to have had a poor prospect of growing into a world-embracing community. In many a thoughtful mind, only doubt and perplexity could arise as to "whereunto this thing should grow." Few, feeble, contemned, these little societies were, however, the earnest of a universal Church. It was then "the day of small things." 4. The very characteristics of Christianity gave little promise of the diffusion of this religion throughout the world. Its defiance of worldly principles and powers, its spirituality, its dependence upon unseen might, its warfare with prevailing error and sin,—all seemed prejudicial to its prospects of progress and victory. II. THE SECRET OF THE OF CHRIST’S KINGDOM. The figurative language of the parable suggests what this is. It is the supernatural life which inspires it. Life comes from life; and the Divine vitality and growth of the Christian Church is owing to the indwelling of a heavenly principle and force. A Divine Saviour, a Divine Spirit, a Divine Word,—these account for the fact that Christianity lives and grows, expands and conquers, day by day and year by year. These alone explain its resistance alike of force and of corruption, its endurance amidst all changes of civilization, its permanence when all things else fleet, vanish, disappear. III. THE GROWTH OF CHRIST’S KINGDOM. The Oriental mustard tree, with its large, strong branches, where the birds settle and eat the pungent seeds, beneath the shadow of which men rest, serves as an emblem of the vastness and capacious hospitality and ample provision of Christianity in its ultimate perfection. The records of our religion tell of noble character, of sublime heroism, of saintly devotion, of marvellous patience, of mature wisdom, of boundless benevolence. And all have sprung from that seed which fell into the ground and died eighteen centuries ago in Judaea. The progress of Christianity during the first centuries of persecution, its conquest of the barbarian conquerors, its purification under the Reformers, its modern missions to the East and to the South,—all prove its inherent vitality, and predict its ultimate universality of dominion. The predictions alike of the Old and New Testaments are glowing and inspiriting, yet, in our own days, even calm calculation will not deem their fulfillment improbable, whilst faith beholds them already realized. The "kingdoms of this world shall become the kingdoms of our Lord and of his Christ." 1. The discouraged may learn here a lesson of patience. The growth of knowledge, virtue, and piety, may be slow, but it is sure. "The husbandman waiteth for the precious fruit." 2. All labourers in Christ’s cause may be of good cheer; for what has been beheld of progress is enough to inspire with confidence and animate to toil: "Your labour will not be in vain in the Lord." Mark 4:35-41 The storm: the two questions. This entry is longer than a Bible module can hold. The rest is at https://www.sermonindex.net/commentary/pulpit-commentary/ Mark 5:1 And they came to the other side of the sea. The other side of the sea would be the south-east side of the sea. Into the country of the Gadarenes, or rather, Gerasenes, which is now generally admitted to be the true reading, from Gerasa, Gersa, or Kersa. There was another Gerasa, situated at some distance from the sea, on the borders of Arabia Petraea. The ruins of the Gerasa, here referred to, have been recently discovered by Dr. Thomson, (’The Land and the Book’). Immediately over this spot is a lofty mountain, in which are ancient tombs; and from this mountain there is an almost perpendicular declivity, literally (κρημνός) corresponding accurately to what is required by the description in the narrative of the miracle. Dr. Farrar (’Life of Christ’) says that in the days of Eusebius and Jerome, tradition pointed to a "steep place" near "Gerasa" as the scene of the miracle. The foot of this steep is washed by the waters of the lake, which are at once very deep. Mark 5:2-5 There met him out of the tombs a man with an unclean spirit. St. Matthew says that there were two. St. Luke, like St. Mark, mentions only one, and him "possessed with devils," The cue mentioned by St. Mark was no doubt the more prominent and fierce of the two. This does not mean merely a person with a disordered intellect. No doubt, in this case, as in that of instantly, physical causes may have helped to lay the victim open to such an incursion; and this may account for cases of possession being enumerated with various sicknesses, though distinguished from them. But our Lord evidently deals with these persons, not as persons suffering from insanity, but as the subjects of an alien spiritual power, external to themselves. He addresses the unclean spirit through the man that was possessed, and says," Come forth thou unclean spirit" (Verse 8). There met him out of the tombs. The Jews did not have their burial-places in their cities, lest they should be defiled; therefore they buried their dead without the gates in the fields or mountains. Their sepulchres were frequently hewn out of the rock in the sides of the limestone hills, and they were lofty and capacious; so that the living could enter them, as into a vault. So this demoniac dwelt in the tombs, because the unclean spirit drove him thither, where the associations of the place would accord with his malady and aggravate its symptoms. St. Matthew, speaking of the two, says that they were "exceeding fierce, so that no man might pass that way." The demoniac particularly mentioned by St. Mark is described as having been possessed of that extraordinary muscular strength which maniacs so often put forth; so that all efforts to bind and restrain him had proved ineffectual. No man could any more bind him, no, not with a chain (οὐδὲἁλύσειύ). Chains and fetters had often been tried, but in vain. Frequently too, in the paroxysms of his malady, he would turn his violence against himself, crying out, and cutting himself with stones. Mark 5:6 And when he saw Jesus from afar. These words, "from afar," explain the fact of our Lord being immediately met by the man as soon as he left the boat. Mark 5:3-5 inclusive must be regarded as parenthetical. They describe the ordinary condition of the demoniac, and his sad wild life from day to day. From the high ground which he frequented he had seen the boat, in which Jesus was, nearing the shore. He had seen the other boats. Perhaps he had seen the sudden rise of the storm and its equally sudden suppression; and he, like others who witnessed it, was affected by it. So he hastened to the shore; he ran and worshipped him. He felt the power of his presence, and so he was constrained through fear to do him reverence, for "the devils also believe and shudder (φρίσσουσι)" (James 2:19). Mark 5:7 He cried with a loud voice; that is, the evil spirit cried out, using the organs of the man whom he possessed. What have I to do with thee, Jesus, thou Son of the Most High God? From hence it appears that, although at the great temptation of our Lord in the wilderness, Satan had but an imperfect knowledge of him: yet now, after the evidence of these great miracles, and more especially of his power over the evil spirits, there was a general belief amongst the hosts of evil that he was indeed the Son of God, the Messiah. I adjure thee by God, torment me not. The torment which he dreaded was that which tie might suffer after expulsion. So St. Luke says that they entreated him that he would not command them to depart into the abyss. Great as this mystery of evil is, we may believe that the evil spirits, although while they roam about upon this earth they are in misery, still it is some alleviation that they are not yet shut up in the prison-house of hell, but are suffered to wander about and their depraved pleasure in tempting men; so that, if possible, they may at last drag them down with them into the abyss. For they are full of hatred of God and envy of man; and they find a miserable satisfaction in endeavoring to keep men out of those heavenly mansions from which, through pride, they are themselves now for ever excluded. Mark 5:8, Mark 5:9 For he said unto him, Come forth, thou unclean spirit, out of the man; literally, for he was saying (ἔλεγε). The unclean spirit endeavored to arrest, before it was spoken, that word of power which he knew he must obey. So in what fellows, He was asking him (ἐπηρώτα), What is thy name? Why does our Lord ask this question? Clearly to elicit from him an answer that would reveal the multitude of the evil spirits, and so make his own power over them to be fully known. And he saith unto him, My name is Legion; for we are many. The Roman legion consisted of six thousand soldiers. But the word is here used indefinitely for a large number. St. Luke so explains it where he says (Luke 8:30), "And he said, Legion: for many devils were entered into him." This revelation is doubtless designed to teach us how great is the number as well as the malignity of the evil spirits. If one human being can be possessed by so many, how vast must be the host of those who are permitted to have access to the souls of men, and if possible lead them to destruction! Satan here imitates him who is "The Lord of hosts." He too marshals his hosts, that he may fight against God and his people. But "for this purpose was the Son of God manifested, that he might destroy the works of the devil." Mark 5:10 And he besought him much that he would not send them away out of the country. It would appear as though this evil spirit felt (speaking in the name of the other evil spirits) that if they were driven out from their present dwelling-places, their condition would be changed for the worse; and that until the time should come when they were to be cast into the abyss, their best relief was to possess some materialism, to occupy flesh and blood, and that flesh and blood tenanted by a spiritual being, through whom they might torment others. They could find no rest, no relief, but in this. "The unclean spirit, when he is gone out of the man, passeth through waterless places, seeking rest, and findeth it not" (Matthew 12:43). Even the swine were better than nothing; but that dwelling did not serve the evil spirits long. Mark 5:11 Now there was there nigh unto the mountains—literally, on the mountain side (πρὸςτὰὅρη)—a great herd of swine feeding. St. Matthew says (Matthew 8:30), "There was a good way off from them:" our Lord’s interview with the demoniac was on the seashore. "The herd of swine," two thousand in number, were at a distance, feeding on the slopes of the mountain; The Jews were not allowed to eat swine’s flesh. But Jews were not the only inhabitants of that district. It had been colonized, at least in part, by the Romans immediately after the conquest of Syria, some sixty years before Christ. It was in this district that ten cities are said to have been rebuilt by the Romans, whence the territory acquired the name of "the Decapolis." And though the Jews were forbidden their Law to eat this kind of food, yet they were not forbidden to breed swine for other uses, such as provisioning the Roman army. Mark 5:12 Send us into the swine, that we may enter into them. And he gave them leave. They could not enter even into the swine without Christ’s permission; how much less into "the sheep of his pasture"! Mark 5:13 The unclean spirits came out, and entered into the swine: and the herd ran violently down a steep place (κατὰτοῦκρημνοῦ)—literally, down the steep—into the sea,... and were choked in the sea. By this Christ shows of how little worth are earthly possessions when set in the balance with the souls of men. The recovery of this demoniac was worth far more than the value of the two thousand swine. Mark 5:14 And they that fed them fled, and told it in the city, and in the country. St. Matthew mentions only the city. St. Mark’s narrative is more full. No doubt many of these swineherds lived in the country districts; and so the fame of the miracle was spread far and wide. The swineherds would take care that the owners should understand that it was through no fault or carelessness on their part that the swine had perished; but that the destruction was caused by a power over which they had no control. And they—i.e. the owners—came to see what it was that had come to pass. Their first care was to see the extent of their loss; and this was soon revealed to them. They must have seen the carcases of the swine floating hither and thither in the now calm and tranquil sea; and when they had thus satisfied themselves as to the facts, "they came to Jesus." St. Mark here uses the historic present, "they come to Jesus," that they might behold him of whom these great things were told, as well as the man out of whom the evil spirits had gone when they entered into the swine. They were, of course, concerned to know the magnitude of their loss, and the mode in which it had happened, that they might see whether there were any means by which it might be made up to them. Mark 5:15 And they come to Jesus, and behold him that was possessed with devils sitting, clothed and in his right mind, even him that had the legion; and they were afraid. St, Luke adds that they found him sitting at the feet of Jesus. It is likely enough that the man, as soon as he found himself dispossessed, had east himself at the feet of Jesus, and was worshipping him; but that, when hidden by Christ to sit, he chose to place himself at his feet. "He was clothed, and in his right mind." What a contrast to the previous description! "And they were afraid." They dreaded Christ’s power. They saw that he was almighty; but they did not seek to know his love, and so to attain to that love which "casteth out fear." Mark 5:16, Mark 5:17 How it befell him that was pessessed with devils, and concerning the swine. The loss of the swine. They could not get over that. They thought far more of the worldly loss than of the spiritual gain; and they began to beseech him to depart from their borders. St. Luke (Luke 8:37) says that "they were taken (συνείχοντο) [literally, were holden] with great fear." This was the dominant feeling. They did not entreat him to depart out of humility, as though they felt themselves unworthy of his presence; but out of servile, slavish fear, lest his continued presence among them might bring upon them still greater losses. They saw that Jesus, a Jew according to the flesh, was holy, powerful, Divine. But they knew that they were Gentiles, aliens from the commonwealth of Israel. Wherefore they feared lest he should punish them more grievously, both on account of their being Gentiles and on account of their past sins. It was not, therefore, so much on account of hatred, as out of a timorous fear, that they besought Jesus that he would depart out of their borders. Mark 5:18-20 And as he was entering into the boat, he that had been possessed with devils besought him that he might he with him. It was natural that he should desire this. It would be grateful and soothing to him to be near to Christ, from whom he had received so great a benefit and yet hoped for more. And he suffered him not, but saith unto him; Go to thy house unto thy friends, and tell them how great things the Lord hath done for thee. Our Lord here takes a different course from what lie so often took. He saw, no doubt, that this restored demoniac was fitted for missionary work; and there was no reason to apprehend any inconvenience to himself in consequence from a people who wished to get rid of him. And he went his way, and began to publish in Decapolis—in Decapolis, i.e. through the whole district of the ten cities—how great things Jesus had done for him. This would bring him into contact alike with Gentiles and with Jews; and so this dispossessed demoniac became a missionary to both Jew and Gentile. Here he planted the standard of the cross. Mark 5:21 Jesus now crosses over the sea again, and apparently in the same boat, to the other side, the opposite shore, near to Capernaum. St. Matthew (Matthew 4:13) distinctly tells us that he had left Nazareth, and was now dwelling at Capernaum, thus fulfilling the ancient prophecy with regard to Zebulun and Nephthalim. The circumstances under which he quitted Nazareth are given by St. Luke (Luke 4:16-31). St. Matthew (Matthew 9:1) calls Capernaum his own city. Thus as Christ ennobled Bethlehem by his birth, Nazareth by his education, and Jerusalem By his death, so he honored Capernaum by making it his ordinary residence, and the focus, so to speak, of his preaching and miracles. When Jesus returned, a great multitude was gathered unto him; and he was by the sea. St. Luke says that the people welcomed him, for they were waiting for him. Again he placed himself by the sea, probably for the conveniences of addressing a multitude, and of relieving himself of the pressure, as before, by taking refuge in a boat. Mark 5:22, Mark 5:23 One of the rulers of the synagogue, Jairus by name. He appears to have been one of the "college of elders," who administered the affairs of the synagogue. The name Jairus, or "Ya eiros," is probably the Greek form of the Hebrew Jair, "he will illuminate." He fell at his feet, and besought him greatly; it is literally (πίπτεικαὶπαρεκάλει), he falleth at his feet, and beseecheth him. We picture him to ourselves, making his way through the crowd, and as he approached Jesus, kneeling down, and then bending his head towards him, until his forehead touched the ground. My little daughter is at the point of death. St. Matthew says, "is even now dead;" St. Luke says, "she Jay a dying." The broken sentences of the father are very true to nature. All the expressions point to the same conclusion, that she was in articulo mortis. In each narrative the ruler is represented as asking that Christ would hasten to his house. He had not reached the higher faith of the Gentile centurion, "Speak the word only." Mark 5:24 And he went (καὶἀπῆλθεμεταὐτοῦ)—literally, and he went away with him—and a great multitude followed him, they thronged him (συνέθλιβοναὐτόν); literally, pressed close upon him, compressed him. This is mentioned purposely by St. Mark, on account of what follows. St. Matthew says (Matthew 9:19), "And Jesus arose, and so did his disciples." Observe here the promptitude of Christ to assist the afflicted. St. Chrysostom suggests that our Lord purposely interposed some delay, by healing, as he went, the woman with the issue of blood, in order that the actual death of the daughter of Jairus might take place; and that so there might be full demonstration of his resurrection power. Mark 5:25, Mark 5:26 A woman, which had an issue of blood twelve years. All the synoptic Gospels mention the length of time during which she had been suffering. Eusebius records a tradition that she was a Gentile, a native of Caesarea Philippi. This disease was a chronic hoemorrhage, for which she had found no relief from the physicians. Lightfoot, in his ’Horae Hebraicae,’ gives a list of the remedies applied in such cases, which seem quite sufficient to account for St. Mark’s statement that she was nothing bettered, but rather grew worse. St. Luke, himself a physician, says that she "had spent all her living upon physicians, and could not be healed of any." Mark 5:27, Mark 5:28 This woman, having heard of Jesus—literally (τὰπερίτοῦἸησοῦ), the things concerning Jesus—came in the crowd behind, and touched his garment. St. Matthew and St Luke say "the border (τοῦκρασπέδου) of his garment." St. Matthew tells us that "she said within herself, If I may but touch his garment, I shall be whole." From this it appears that, though she had faith, it was an imperfect faith. She seems to have imagined that a certain magical influence was within Christ and around him. And the touching of the border of his garment (the blue fringe which the Jews were required to wear, to remind them that they were God’s people) was supposed by her to convey a special virtue. Yet her faith, though imperfect, was true in its essence, and therefore was not disappointed. Mark 5:29 And straightway—St. Mark’s favourite word—the fountain of her blood was dried up; and she felt (ἔγνω)—literally, she knew—in her body that she was healed of her plague (ὅτιἴαταιἀπὸτῆςμάστιγος); literally, that she hath been healed of her scourge, The cure was instantaneous. Mark 5:30 The words in the Greek are ἐπιγνοὺςἐνἑαυτῷτὴνἐξαὑτοῦδύναμινἐξελθοῦσαν: Jesus, perceiving in himself that the power emanating from him had gone forth, turned him about in the crowd, and said, Who touched my garments? Christ sees the invisible grace in its hidden operations; man only sees its effects, and not always these. Mark 5:31 St. Luke (Luke 8:45) adds here, "When all denied, Peter said, and they that were with him, Master, the multitudes press thee and crush thee. But Jesus said, Some one did touch me; for I perceived that power had gone forth from me." This incident shows the mysterious connection between the spiritual and the physical. The miraculous virtue or power which went forth from the Saviour was spiritual in its source and in the conditions on which it was imparted, but it was physical in its operation; and that which brought the two together was faith. Multitudes thronged the Saviour, but only one of the crowd touched him. Mark 5:32 He looked round about (περιεβλέπετο)—another favourite word of St. Mark. Mark 5:33 The woman fearing and trembling, etc. Every word in this verse is expressive. It was her own act. She seemed to herself as though without permission she had stolen a blessing from Christ; and so she could hardly venture to hope that the faith which had prompted her would be accepted. Hence her fear and terror, and her free and full confession. We thus see the gentleness of Christ in his dealings with us. Perhaps the woman had intended to escape, satisfied with a temporal benefit, which would hardly have been a blessing at all, if she had been suffered to carry it away without acknowledgment. But this her loving Saviour would not permit her to do. It was the crisis of her spiritual life. It was necessary that all around should know of the gift which she had endeavored to snatch in secret. Our Lord might have demanded from her this public confession of her faith beforehand. But, in his mercy, he made the way easy to her. The lesson, however, must not be forgotten, that it is not enough to believe with the heart. The lips must do their part, and "with the mouth confession must be made unto salvation." Mark 5:34 Our Lord here reassures this trembling woman, who feared, it may be, lest, because she had abstracted the blessing secretly, he might punish her with a return of her malady. On the contrary, he confirms the benefit, and bids her be whole of her plague. The Greek expression here is stronger than that which is given as the rendering of what she had used when we read that she said within herself, "I shall be saved (σωθήσομαι)." Here our Lord says, Go in peace, and be whole (ἴσθιὑγιὴς). It is as though he said, "It is not the mere fringe of my garment, which you have touched with great faith, and with some hope of obtaining a cure—it is not this that has cured you. You owe your healing to my omnipotence and your faith. Your faith (itself my gift) has delivered you from your issue of blood; and this deliverance I now confirm and ratify. ’Go in peace.’" The original Greek here (ὕπαγεεἰςεἰρήνην) implies more than this. It means "Go for peace." Pass into the realm, the element of peace, in which henceforth thy life shall move. It is here obvious to remark that this malady represents to us the ever-flowing bitter fountain of sin, for which no styptic treatment can be found in human philosophy. The remedy is only to be found in Christ. To touch Christ’s garment is to believe in his incarnation, whereby he has touched us, and so has enabled us by faith to touch him, and to receive his blessing of peace. Mark 5:35 Our Lord had lingered on the way to the house of Jairus, perhaps, as has already been suggested, that the crisis might first come, and that so there might be full evidence of his resurrection power. The ruler must have been agonized with the thought that, while our Lord lingered, the life of his dying child was fast ebbing away. And now comes the fatal message to him. Thy daughter is dead (ἀπέθανε); the aorist expresses that her death was now a past event. Why troublest thou the Master any further? (τίἔτισκύλλειςτὸνδιδάσκαλον). The Greek word here is very strong. It is to vex or weary; literally, to flay. The messengers from the ruler’s house had evidently abandoned all hope, and so probably would Jairus, but for the cheering words of our Lord, "Fear not, only believe." Mark 5:36 The words of the narrative, as they stand in the Authorized Version, are: As soon as Jesus heard the word that was spoken, he saith unto the ruler of the synagogue, Be not afraid, only believe. But there is good authority for the reading παρακούσας instead of εὐθέωςἀκούσας which requires the rendering, but Jesus, not heeding, or overhearing. This word (παρακούω) occurs in one other place in the Gospels, namely, in Matthew 18:17, "And if he refuse to hear them (ἐὰνδὲπαρακούσῃαὐτῶν)." Here the word can only have the meaning of "not heeding," or " refusing to hear." This seems to be a strong reason for giving the word a somewhat similar meaning in this passage. And therefore, on the whole, "not heeding" seems to be the best rendering. Indeed, it seems to cover both meanings. Our Lord would overhear, and yet not heed, the word spoken. Mark 5:37 Here we have the first occasion of the selection of three of the apostles to be witnesses of things not permitted to be seen by the rest. The other two occasions are those of the transfiguration, and of the agony in the garden. We now follow our Lord and these three favored disciples, Peter and James and John, to the house of death. They are about to witness the first earnest of the resurrection. Mark 5:38 St. Matthew here says (Matthew 9:23) that when Jesus came into the ruler’s house, he" saw the minstrels (τοὺςαὐλητὰς)," i.e. the flute-players, "and the people making a noise." This was the custom both with Jews and with Gentiles, to quicken the sorrow of the mourners by funeral dirges. The record of these attendant circumstances is important as evidence of the fact of death having actually taken place. Mark 5:39 Some have regarded the words of our Lord, the child is not dead, but sleepeth, as really meaning that she was only in a swoon. But although she was actually dead in the ordinary sense of that word, namely, that her spirit had left the body, yet Christ was pleased to speak of death as a sleep; because all live to him, and because all will rise at the last day. Hence in the Holy Scriptures the dead are constantly described as sleeping, in order that the terror of death might be mitigated, and immoderate grief for the dead be assuaged under the name of sleep, which manifestly includes the hope of the resurrection. Hence the expression with regard to a departed Christian, that "he sleeps in Jesus." Then, further, this child was not absolutely and irrecoverably dead, as the crowd supposed, as though she could not be recalled to life; since in fact our Lord, who is the Lord of life, was going at once to call her back by his almighty power from the realms of death into which she had entered. So that she did not appear to him to be dead so much as to sleep for a little while. He says elsewhere, "Our friend Lazarus sleepeth; but I go that I may awake him out of sleep." Christ, by the use of such language as this, meant to show that it is as easy with him to raise the dead from death as sleepers from their slumbers. Mark 5:40 They laughed him to scorn. He suffered this, in order that the actual death might be the more manifest, and that so they might the more wonder at her resurrection, and thus pass from wonder and amazement to a true faith in him who thus showed himself to be the Resurrection and the Life. He now put them all forth; and then, with his three apostles, Peter, James, and John, and the father and the mother of the child, he went in where the child was. The common crowd were not worthy to see that in which they would not believe. They were unworthy to witness the great reality of the resurrection; for they had been deriding him who wields this power. It is remarked by Archbishop Trench that in the same manner Elisha (2 Kings 4:33) cleared the room before he raised the son of the Shunammite. Mark 5:41 The house was now set free from the perfunctory and noisy crowd; and he goes up to the dead child, and takes her by the hand and says, Talitha cumi; literally Little maid, arise. The evangelist gives the words in the very language used by our Lord—the ipsissima verba, remembered no doubt and recorded by St. Peter; just as he gives "Ephpbatba" in another miracle. Mark 5:42, Mark 5:43 Here, as in other miracles, the restoration was immediate and complete: straightway the damsel rose up, and walked. Well might the father and the mother of the maiden and the three chosen apostles be amazed with a great amazement (ἐξέστησανἐκστάσειμεγάλῃ). And then, for the purpose of strengthening that life which he rescued from the jaws of the grave, our Lord commanded that something should be given her to eat. It has often been observed that in the examples of his resurrection power given by Christ there is a gradation: 1. The daughter of Jairus just dead. 2. The widow’s son from his bier. 3. Lazarus from his grave. The more stupendous miracle is I pledge, when "all that are in their graves yet to come, of which our Lord’s own resurrection is at once the example and the pledge, when "All that are in their graves shall hear his voice, and shall come forth." Mark 5:1-20 The Lord of spirits. There was for Christ, during his earthly ministry, no escape from personal toil—from the claims made upon his benevolence by human misery, or from man’s ingratitude. He crossed the lake to seek repose, but at once, on landing, was met by a case of the utmost wretchedness and need, demanding the exercise of his compassionate authority. His stay was brief, yet long enough to earn the thanks and the devotion of one poor liberated captive, and long enough to qualify and to commission that healed one for a sacred ministry of benevolence. I. We have here a representation of THE STATE OF THE SINNER. 1. That state is attributable to possession by an evil power. This does not, indeed, affect man’s responsibility, but it affirms the action of supernatural agency. Sinners "have fallen into the snare of the devil." 2. The signs of that state are many and distressing. Like the demoniac, the sinner is injurious to himself, is harmful to others, and consequently is unfit for society. 3. A picture is here painted of the sinner’s hopeless condition. As the demoniac’s possession was manifold ("we are legion"), was prolonged, and Was so severe that all human efforts had failed to bring relief, so was the condition of the heathen world when the Saviour came to earthen condition so debased and so confirmed in its misery that to the human eye no dawn-streak of hope was visible. And the heart, abandoned to the control of evil, is in a state for which no human relief or help is available. II. We have here a representation of THE SINNER’S MIGHTY SAVIOUR. A greater contrast than that between the wretched and raving maniac and the calm and holy Jesus it would not be possible to imagine. Yet the two came together. Divine authority and compassion encountered human sin, foulness, and degradation, and the demon was exorcised and the sufferer made whole. 1. Observe the Divine authority of the Lord is acknowledged. It is certainly remarkable that from the month of the demoniac should come the confession that Jesus is "the Son of the Most High God." This Christ is; and, were he not this, his approach would bring no comfort to the sinner’s heart. 2. In addition to this verbal acknowledgment, we observe an actual submission to and experience of Christ’s power. "The unclean spirit came out." Jesus is "mighty to save." As during his ministry, so wherever the gospel is preached, the power of Christ is proved in actual experience. However formidable the foe may be, Jesus is the Conqueror. III. We have here a representation of THE SINNER’S . 1. There is complete deliverance from the tyranny of former enemies. "Taken captive by the Lord’s servant unto the will of God"—such is the description given by an apostle of the great and spiritual emancipation which nevertheless brings souls into a new and better bondage. 2. Sanity is a consequence of our Lord’s interposition. "When he came to himself" is the description of the change which took place in the repenting prodigal. Only he who turns to God can be truly said to be "in his right mind." 3. Tranquility is a natural sign of a spiritual restoration. The Saviour is the Prince of peace, and the gospel is a gospel of peace, and peace is a fruit of the Spirit. True religion calms agitation, stills the tempests of the soul, and brings harmony to human life. IV. We have an example of the WITNESS OF THE SAVED SINNER TO THE SAVIOUR. The conduct of the healed demoniac is an emblem of the consecrated testimony of the ransomed soul to the great Deliverer. 1. It is prompted by grateful affection—A affection that would fain abide in the valued society of the Redeemer. 2. It is appointed and authorized by the Lord himself: "Go to thy house," etc. 3. It is borne especially to those nearest and dearest: "thy friends." 4. It consists of personal experience: "how great things the Lord hath done for thee." 5. It excites interest and wonder. Such testimony from such a witness cannot be without effect. The saved lead others to the same Saviour whose virtue they have themselves experienced. Mark 5:21-24, Mark 5:35-43 The maiden’s spirit recalled. This narrative is a striking example of intercession, and of its appreciation and reward by the Lord Jesus. The suppliant, Jairus, pleaded for his daughter, and he did not plead in vain. Jesus wrought upon his behalf one of the three miracles of raising from the dead which have been recorded by the evangelists. I. MAN IS , AND JESUS IS . The distress of a father’s heart, when his child lies at the point of death, is intense indeed. Jesus comprehended and entered mentally into all relations and all experiences of humanity, for he was himself the Son of man. How touching in its simplicity is the record of our Lord’s response to the ruler’s appeal: "He went with him "! He is ever the same, "touched with a feeling of our infirmities." He will go with us to the house of mourning, to the chamber of sickness, to the bed of death; and his presence will lighten the sufferer’s load and soothe the sufferer’s heart. II. MAN IS IN HASTE, AND JESUS LINGERS. The entreaty of the father and the concern of the thronging multitude are vividly portrayed. How natural that, in so critical a case, there should be a general anxiety to reach the abode where the dying maiden lay! Yet the great Physician pauses to entertain another application for relief, to speak words of grace to another—to a timid, downcast spirit. There is no haste in Christ’s methods. It often seems to those who seek him that he delays his succor. In their impatience they may think themselves unheeded. But it is not so; the Divine leisure with which the Lord of grace is wont to act should awaken our admiration and our confidence. III. MAN , AND JESUS . There was a limit to the faith which was cherished towards Christ. It was thought that he could heal the sick, but it was not dreamt that he could raise the dead. When the little maiden had breathed her last, the household was abandoned to hopeless grief. But this was the moment when the Divine Friend displayed the deepest tenderness of his nature. "Fear not, only believe." Such were his words of comfort, fitted to soothe and to inspire desponding hearts with heavenly hope. Let us learn the lesson that, where Jesus is, there is no place for despair. These words of his come to us when downcast, cheerless, and oppressed beneath the cares and woes of life. IV. MAN IS , AND JESUS IS CALM. There is a sublime contrast between the demeanour of the friends of Jairus and the demeanour of Jesus. A tumult of weeping and wailing is quite in accordance with Eastern manners, and it is in accordance with human nature that the same persons who bewailed the maiden’s death should, when another turn was given to their excited dispositions, have laughed the Lord to scorn. How noble and dignified in such a scene appears the demeanour and the language of Christ! He rebukes the noisy crowd and puts them forth, and with tranquil and anthoritative mien leads the parents, with the three favored apostles, into the sad chamber of death. "The world is for excitement, the gospel for soothing." There is but One whose presence can banish alarm and disquietude, and can shed a sweet calm over the dwelling agitated by fear and anguish. V. MAN IS , AND JESUS IS MIGHTY TO HELP AND SAVE. The anxiety of the parents, the lamentations of the mourners, were vain and powerless to save the child from death or to recall her to life; but the touch and the call of Christ summoned back the spirit that had fled. In the deepest woe the grace and might of Jesus are most conspicuous. He is able to quicken such as are dead in trespasses and sins, to breathe upon them the breath of life. The soul that hears his word, "Arise!" awakens from the long, deep lethargy of sin and lives anew. VI. MAN IS AMAZED, AND JESUS IS AND . No wonder that the parents of the girl were overwhelmed with astonishment. And how like the Lord, to display an interest so tender in the reanimated damsel as to direct that she should be supplied with food! And how like him, too, instead of seeking to increase his fame and favor with the people, to arrange that the miracle should for the present, as far as possible, be concealed! Wisdom, consideration for others, were apparent in his whole demeanour. LESSONS. 1. The incident gives us a beautiful representation of the power and the love of a Divine Saviour. 2. And an example of the necessity and the advantage of faith in Jesus, in order to spiritual life and blessing. 3. And a striking instance of the efficacy of intercessory prayer. We may well be encouraged to imitate the believing and urgent entreaties of Jairus. Mark 5:25-34 Faith conquering timidity. Far from withdrawing from scenes of distress and woe, our Lord Jesus was found wherever human sin or misery invited his compassion and invoked his aid. On this occasion he was passing towards the house of mourning, the chamber of death, and on his way paused to pity and to heal a helpless, timid, trembling sufferer. I. A PICTURE THIS OF HUMAN NEED AND . Amidst the thronging multitude were persons of various circumstances, character, and wants. In all companies there are those who have spiritual ills which only Christ can heal, spiritual desires which only Christ can satisfy. Sin and doubt, weakness, sorrow, and rear, helplessness and despondency,—these are to be found on every side. The case of this poor woman deserves special attention. 1. Her need was conscious and pitiable. 2. It was of long continuance: for twelve years had she suffered and had obtained no relief. 3. Her case was beyond human skill and power. She had gone to many physicians, had endured much in undergoing treatment, had expended all her means, and yet, instead of being better, was worse than before. And now apparently hope was taking flight, and the end seemed near. An emblem this of many a sinner’s case—conscious of sin and of a tyranny long endured, yet helpless and despairing of deliverance. II. A PICTURE THIS OF THE AND CONTACT OF FAITH, The graphic narrative of the evangelist is very suggestive as well as very impressive. 1. There was faith, in the woman’s coming to Christ at all. She might have questioned the possibility of his curing her. She might have fancied that, lost in the crowd, she should not gain his notice and help. 2. The faith, however, seems to have been imperfect. Something of superstition probably impelled her to seize the hem or sacred fringe of his garment, as though there were magic virtue in the bodily presence of the Saviour. 3. Yet the venture of faith overcame the natural shrinking and timidity she experienced. Doubt and diffidence would have kept her away; faith drew her near, and she stole to him. It was the last resource; as it were, the dying grasp. "I have tried, and tried in vain, Many ways to ease my pain; Now all other hope is past, Only this is left at last: Here before thy cross I lie; Here I live or here I die." 4. Faith led to personal contact, to the laying hold of the Redeemer. Jesus often healed with a touch, by the laying on of his hand; and here he acknowledged the grasp of trembling confidence. They that come to Jesus must come confessing their faults and needs, applying for his mercy, and laying hold upon him with cordial faith. III. A PICTURE THIS OF CHRIST’S OF A . The conduct of Christ has been recorded in detail, for the instruction and encouragement of all to whom the gospel comes. 1. Remark his recognition of the individual. This woman was one of a multitude, yet she was not unobserved by the all-seeing and affectionate Saviour. He never overlooks the one among the many; his heart can enter into every case, and succor every needy soul. 2. Remark the immediate and efficacious exercise of his healing power. What others could not accomplish in long years, the Divine Healer effected in a moment. Thus Jesus ever acts. His grace brings pardon to the penitent, justification to the guilty, cleansing to the impure. Immediate grace is the earnest of grace unfailing. 3. We see our Lord accepting grateful acknowledgments. Pleasing to him was the courage that, spite of timidity, "told him all the truth." He ever delights in the thankful tribute of his people’s praise and devotion. 4. We hear our Lord’s gracious benediction. The language is very rich and full. There is an authoritative assurance of blessing; there is the adoption of the healed one into the spiritual family, conveyed in the one word, "Daughter;" there is the recognition of her saving faith; there is the dismissal in peace; and there is the assurance that the healing is complete and permanent. . 1. Let this representation of the Saviour induce every hearer of the gospel to bring his case to Jesus. 2. Let every applicant to Christ be encouraged by the assurance of the Lord’s individual regard and interest. 3, Let faith lay firm hold of Christ, and that at once without delay. BY A.F. MUIR Legion. General question of demon-possession. An aggravated form of Satanic influence. Intelligible enough on the principle of provocation and desperation: light and darkness are strongest side by side. The advent of Christ roused to intense activity and excitement the whole demoniacal realm. In this scene there is exemplified— I. MORAL . 1. Instinctive. Spontaneous; prescient; yet furnishing no intelligible reason. "An intensified spiritual presentiment" (Lange). 2. Weakness of the demoniac shown by: (1) Excitement. (2) Self-contradiction. Attraction and repulsion alternating. (3) Use of borrowed weapons. The exorcism, doubtless so often uttered over him by magicians and ecclesiastics, is all the lore he seems to possess in the way of religion. 3. Strength of Christ proved by calmness and self-possession, and resolute pursuit of his object. 4. Utter and absolute. "What have I to do with thee?… Torment me not." II. MORAL . (Mark 5:9-13.) 1. Instant exercise of authority. Calm, self-possessed, and fearless. He had already discerned and measured his opponent, and decided as to how he would deal with him. 2. Spiritual insight and skill. The great Physician had made diagnosis of his case. Mental surgery was needed, based upon the most profound truths of psychology. The man had to be discriminated and freed from the indwelling demon. The former had little or no sense of his own personal identity. A Roman legion had probably been quartered near, and when he saw their number and power he felt that they somewhat resembled that which had quartered itself within his own nature. With maniacal vanity he readily adopted the title, "Legion." Pride and wretchedness were probably both involved in the retention of the name; it represented the dominant principle in his confused consciousness. Christ asked him, "What is thy name?" that he might rouse him to a sense of personal identity: a wise measure. 3. Rectoral discipline. "He gave them leave:" apparently their own suggestion, but granted (1) on principle of highest curative psychology—objective disenchantment; the character and distinctness of the unclean occupants of the man’s nature being thus outwardly and visibly set forth, his better self, enfranchised, would be the more likely to assert itself; (2) in pursuance of rectoral discipline. The unclean, unprincipled habits of the people in violating the Law being thus avenged. III. MORAL . (Mark 5:14-20.) The Gadarenes had to make up their minds with respect to the great Stranger. 1. The data. (—Mark 5:14-16.) Material and moral stood forth in opposition, as in so many other instances. How was their relative importance to be estimated? 2. The decision. A unanimous petition for him to depart. How could such men be expected to judge otherwise? They had grand ideas of Christ, but of the wrong sort. 3. The response. Instant departure. He took them at their word. "They believed not on him," and acting upon their unbelief urged their request. The conflict of anger and fear, fawning and obstinacy. A word was enough; nay, a wish, even unexpressed, has often secured the same result. Not the storm, not the evil repute of the people, not even the horror of the demoniac, could deter him from coming; but a word sent him away! How careful should men be in their attitude to the heavenly Visitant! He went, but not without having, in the person of the restored maniac, a monument of his saving power and grace. Every region and every heart has its witness to the same.—M. Mark 5:9, Mark 5:10 Satanic possession a destruction of personal identity. I. AND . II. OF FOR TRUE AND MORAL LIFE. III. THE OF THIS THE GREAT WORK OF CHRIST.—M. Mark 5:10; Mark 12:1-44, Mark 13:1-37; 17- 19 Prayers granted and denied. No caprice visible in our Lord’s decisions. On the contrary, great moral principles are revealed. The whole conduct of Christ on this occasion, therefore, is of importance for the practical guidance of Christians. I. THE OF THE . (Mark 13:10.) "He besought him much that he would not send them away out of the country." No heed is paid to this request, notwithstanding its passionate earnestness. Why? 1. The man himself was not praying. He was depersonalized and besotted by the possession of the devils, and not responsible for his words or actions. It was to free him from this thraldom Christ had undertaken his case. 2. It would have neutralized the intended mercy to the man to inflict the evil upon others. 3. There was no real submission in the real petitioners. They were still devils, unchanged in their character, and desirous of working further mischief. Powerless, they still desired to do evil. II. THE REQUEST OF THE DEVILS. This was granted, notwithstanding the character of those who made it. A marvel, truly; devils heard and answered by Christ! Is he in league with them? 1. It was a choke of a lesser of two evils. It seemed necessary that some visible form should receive the dispossessed spirits, that all, especially the man himself (cf. on the probable principle of cure, the preceding sketch), might be able to realize that the dispossession had actually taken place. As simply dispossessed, they might have taken up their abode in some other soul; but by giving direction to them after dispossession, they were confined to brutes; and the catastrophe that resulted was probably foreseen by Christ. In the destruction of the swine the demons were dismissed speedily right out of the terrestrial sphere. 2. And in that destruction a punishment was inflicted upon the Gadarenes, who as yet were sordid, neglectful of the Law (forbidding the rearing of swine), and unspiritual. III. THE OF THE . It was at once answered, Because: 1. It involved a deliberate and intelligent rejection of the Saviour. They had seen his wondrous moral triumph and the destruction of the swine; but in their estimate the material loss far outweighed the spiritual gain. 2. There were others elsewhere who were "waiting for him." 3. The healed demoniac might be even more effectual as a preacher than himself. He was a lasting monument of his power and grace. Time might be needed to let the miracle sink into the popular conscience. IV. THE PRAYER OF THE MAN. A natural desire under the circumstances. Fear lest the devils should return if he were left to himself, cud gratitude and love for his Benefactor, doubtless actuated him. But he is denied! This must have wounded his feelings, and disappointed him. But: 1. It was not prudent for Christ at that time to have one so closely identified with devils in his company and occupied in his service. The charge had been made (Mark 3:22) that he was in league with Satan. 2. It was not the best life for him to lead in his present condition. Privation and excitement were not suited to one who had been emaciated and weakened by the devils. 3. A work of greater use and personal obligation awaited him where he was. He was the only disciple of Christ in that benighted land. Those who had been scandalized by his previous life, and had suffered from it, were to be first considered. The home that had been desolated was to be revisited, and cheered by the kindly presence and saving influence of the redeemed one. GENERAL LESSONS. 1. Prayers may be granted in anger, and denied in love. 2. Lesser evils may be allowed to prevent greater ones. 3. Duties are to be considered before privileges.—M. Unfriendly heralds of Christ. I. OF GETTING THE GOSPEL TRULY AND . II. THIS WITH THE RAPID SPREAD OF FALSE NOTIONS ABOUT CHRIST, , ALARMS, ETC, III. . 1. The existence of Christ is made known. By-and-by his character will vindicate itself. 2. Curiosity is aroused and feeling excited. Almost anything is better than indifference. And the witnesses of his truth and grace are everywhere. 3. The disciples of Christ are compelled to vindicate their Master.—M. Monumental miracles. The tableau—Christ, and the demoniac sitting at his feet. More impressive and sublime than even the rebuking of the storm. Such trophies are better than sermons, because— I. THEY ARE AN ABIDING AND EXAMPLE. II. THEY ARE PATENT TO ALL, AND CAN BE BY ALL. "Living epistles, known and read of all men." III. THEY DEFY , AND DEMAND TO BE .—M. Mark 5:21-34 Ministries broken in upon. Seldom do we find Christ going straight through with a course of teaching or work. Interruptions constantly occurring; many ministries making up the one great ministry. The more intimate connection of Mar 5:21 is given in Matthew 9:18 ("while he yet spake these things"). Not that Matthew means that Christ was still at table, nor that Mark’s order is wrong. The feast of Matthew (Mark 2:15) is not stated by Mark to have taken place in immediate succession to the conversion, but is narrated in the second instead of the fifth chapter, because of the obvious connection of the two events. Accepting, therefore, the order of the first Gospel, we see— I. CHRIST . 1. In his teaching. (Verse 21; Matthew 9:18.) Yet how full of interest the subjects—eating with publicans, and fasting! How significant these breaks! How natural, in a world so full of disturbing and changing influences as this! 2. In his intended mercy. As he goes to the ruler’s house the incident of the woman in the crowd takes place (verses 25—34), and he is delayed. Yet the prayer of Jairus was urgent, and broken with apprehensive emotion. Only this was still more pressing, for it was (1) actual, present, long-endured suffering and shame; (2) a demand of faith on behalf of its own possessor (not, as in Jairus’s case, for another). II. THAT MAKE A GRANDER WHOLE. We have no time to lament the breaking off—the seeming incompleteness—ere we are astonished at the commentary which is furnished in the incidents that follow. He is the great Physician—to the ruler’s daughter, the woman with the issue, and the two blind men alike; the Bringer of joy, too, to many by his healing mercies and gracious words. All need him, if they only knew it; and, participating in the blessings of his presence, they cannot mourn or fast, but must needs rejoice. And so in the case of the ruler; the delay really rewarded his faith by an actual illustration of Christ’s power, and so sustained him in the higher exercise of faith. "My daughter is even now dead: but come and lay thy hand upon her, and she shall live" (Matthew 9:18). This is a picture of many lives. We cannot escape interruptions. Yet are we not therefore to abandon unity of purpose. We may fail to finish all we seek to do, or to do it as we would; but God holds the connecting harmony, and will reveal it at last—or even sooner. The sermon broken off, the merciful intention delayed or frustrated, may prove greater blessings in the event than if suffered uninterruptedly to proceed to a visible or immediate completeness within themselves. The life or work divinely interrupted, but pursued with unity of faith and purpose to the end, will be a grander, more Divine thing than otherwise it could possibly have been. 1. How infinite the resources of the Saviour! 2. His teaching is inseparable from action and life.—M. Mark 5:21-43 Jairus’s daughter; or, the uses of bereavement. I. THE NEED OF A SAVIOUR. II. THE LIFE OF THE . II. THE MERCY, , AND POWER OF CHRIST.—M. Jarius’s daughter; or, the course of a true faith. I. BY MANY EVIDENT AND OBSCURE. The general ministry of Christ, Perhaps Jairus had been a witness of the centurion’s faith. II. CALLED INTO BY GREAT AND NEED. III. OVER . IV. BY ANSWERS AND .—M. The healing of the issue of blood. The magnifying power of faith. ’Twas but a touch, humanly speaking; yet was it a means of salvation to the believing soul. I. LITTLE THINGS INTO MEANS OF GRACE. 1. Many touches, but only one touch of faith. This alone was effectual and saving. It is not human effort that saves, but the spirit of faith that lays hold of Christ. 2. Only the hem of his garment. Yet as effectual as if she had touched the body of Christ. How so? Because she touched him spiritually. All ordinances and outward means of grace are in themselves little—no better than the hem of the garment of Christ. It is the Saviour who is great when appealed to by a great faith. 3. Making use of what was within reach. Not perhaps the best means possible. But enough when accompanied by faith. II. IN EARTHLY ENDS ONES. The trembling and fearing woman not only secured the physical bond; the Saviour said, "Thy faith hath saved thee,"—a word that had a larger meaning than could be exhausted by a merely temporal relief or physical wholeness.—M. Salvation without money and without price. A figure of the spiritual experience of man. I. WITH EARTHLY OF , These are expensive because: 1. They waste the spiritual nature of man. 2. They increase rather than diminish the evil. How forlorn the poor woman! How great the contrast with the "sleeping" child! Death in life is far worse than the natural death. It is not mourned for as the latter, and has all the added sorrow of disappointment and despair. 3. They keep away from the true Saviour. II. YET IT MUST BE SOUGHT. The grace of God cannot be stolen. The Saviour knows when a sinner receives his "virtue." There is only one way—the way of faith. The salvation of God is given, not taken by force or stealth; graciously given, with a benediction and a confirming assurance. III. IT COSTS THE SINNER NOTHING, BUT THE SAVIOUR .—M. The little of things of Christ great things for men. How great an idea this woman had of Christ! If there was any fault, it was that she believed in the power, but did not trust the love of Christ. Yet her humility, which was as manifest as her faith, and her shame may account in great part for the stealth and surreptitiousness of her action. I. MEANS OF GRACE ARE NOT TO BE BECAUSE THEY APPEAR . Superstition, ritualism, etc., deprecated; yet an error incident to the opposite extreme. We are not saved by works, neither (literally) are we saved by faith. It is Christ that saves. This woman was touching Christ. God’s sufficiency so different from man’s. II. NOT THE OUTWARD OF ANY ACT, BUT THE SPIRIT IN WHICH IT IS DONE, IS TO BE CHIEFLY. The great end of religious acts is to bring us into communion with Christ. This of the woman was a mere touch, scarcely perceptible in the pressure of the crowd. The disciples had not observed it. But Christ felt that it had taken place, and had been effectual. There are manifold ways in which he reaches souls and is reached by them. The common experiences of life may be channels of greater blessing than the ordinances of the Church, when they are regarded in a believing, pious spirit. III. PIETY IS OFTEN OUT OF TO AND . 1. Small things way often bring people to Christ, or keep them away from him. 2. Faith may often discover itself in the midst of ignorance and the absence of conventional religion. 3. Spiritual privileges may hinder instead of helping religious progress if they be not spiritually used. This poor woman will rise in judgment against many who have made great show of religious observance, and condemn them. We may hear too often, if we do not lay to heart and obey. We require "grace for grace."—M. Mark 5:30-33 "Who touched me?" I. CHRIST’S SAVING GRACE IS ALWAYS . II. IT IS FAITH WHICH MAKES AND THE SINNER’S TOUCH OF THE SAVIOUR. III. THE SECRET IS TO AN OPEN . For the sake of: (1) honor; (2) spiritual health; and (3) the advantage of others.—M. "Why troublest thou the Master any further?" A complaint that gives a glimpse of the harassing nature of Christ’s work; drawn hither and thither by human distress and want, he was ever on the march, as men discovered their need of him. I. THE OF THE . A complaint very rarely occasioned, still more rarely justified. On the present occasion, however, it seemed reasonable enough. For: 1. Would not further urgency be useless? "Thy daughter is dead;" and there was an end of the matter. Nothing more could be done. The sufferer had been taken out of the power of man. Surely it could not be expected that death would yield up its prey? Circumstances like this are constantly occurring in human experience. A distinction is made, often must be made, between things in which help may be looked and prayed for, and those in which it is inadmissible to pray. Are there not desperate cases of unbelief and sin for which we have given over praying? 2. There were others requiring his attention and help. It seemed wrong to monopolize Christ, especially when nothing could be done. Our grief may become a form of selfishness if it makes us inconsiderate of those who have perhaps suffered more than ourselves. If religion does anything for us, it should take us out of ourselves, and make us sympathetic with others. 3. Christ was probably weary. It had been an exciting day. The multitude thronged and pressed him. One poor sufferer had ventured to touch his garment, and at once he detected the action. Was it because he had to husband his force that he had taken such notice of it? Perhaps there were signs of weariness in his features and gait. It was thoughtfulness and respect for him that dictated the words. "The Master: there were, therefore, disciples of Jesus in the family of Jairus" (Bengel). II. THE IT . It is obvious that a great portion of the previous considerations apply only to the human state of Christ, the days of his flesh and feebleness. But there are many objections to importunate and unceasing prayer that depend for their validity upon very human and limited conceptions of God the Son. It will be evident, therefore, that if the conduct of Jairus can be defended in "troubling the Master" when he was on earth, and subject to the conditions and infirmities of our nature, much more the urgency of those who besiege the throne of grace night and day with their requests. Doubtless Christ was often troubled by suitors for his aid and sympathy; but: 1. It troubled him more when men did not care to seek him. He reproved the unbelieving Jews: "Ye will not come to me, that ye may have life" (John 5:40). Indifference is more hateful to him than the greatest importunity. It is better to have a superstitious faith than no faith at all. let us bless the weakness or the sorrow that brings us to him, making us feel our need of him. For, whether we think it or not, we cannot do without him. 2. He himself encouraged men to "trouble" him. What bold promises were his!—"I am the bread of life: he that cometh to me shall not hunger, and he that believeth on me shall never thirst "(John 6:35); "I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth on me, though he die, yet shall he live" (John 40:25); "He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also; and greater works than these shall he do" (John 14:12); "All things are possible to him that believeth" (Mark 9:23); and how often as here, "Only believe"! How universal his invitations!—" If any man thirst, let him come unto me, and drink" (John 7:37); "Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest" (Matthew 11:28). "Ask, and it shall be given you," etc. (Matthew 7:7). 3. There is no case too desperate to bring to Christ. No disease could baffle him whilst he was amongst men; even the grave gave up its dead at his potent word. And now "all power in heaven and earth" is his. let us "trouble" him, therefore, with our sorrows and difficulties until he gives us relief. The care or desire which is not brought to him will sever us from him. We need not fear offending him; he is the Saviour, and it was that he might comfort and save men he came. Even whilst we think our ease desperate, or say within ourselves, "It is no use; it is not seemly to trouble him," we grieve his Spirit and resist his grace. The sinner who has sinned above measure, and is altogether vile, may come. How is that promise fulfilled in him, "Come now, and let us reason together, saith the Lord: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool!" (Isaiah 1:18.)—M. BY A. ROWLAND Mark 5:2-6 The demoniac of Gadara. This is the most detailed and important account given in the Gospels of demoniacal possession. Some are content to identify this phenomenon with lunacy or epilepsy, and suppose that our Lord used current phraseology upon the subject, although it expressed a popular delusion. We are slow to accept an explanation which would seem to credit him, who was always true, and himself "the Truth," with thus sanctioning error; especially as he used the same language when he was alone with his disciples, to whom he raid it was "given to know the mysteries of the kingdom". On the other hand," possession "was not identical with moral degradation. The idea that Mary Magdalene was one of peculiarly evil life, because "out of her the Lord cast seven demons," is untenable; and there is little doubt that Caiaphas, who was shrewd, callous, and self-controlled to the last, was morally worse than such sufferers. Yet a weak yielding to animal passions was possibly the primary cause of possession by evil spirits, in whose existence we cannot but believe. Good was incarnate in those days, and evil also appeared as in a special sense incarnate. Buckle shows that there have been ebb and flow in the currents of national history; and so there have been in moral history, and in the days of our Lord spiritual forces were at the flood. The more we study the works and the Word of God, the more we are convinced that the inexplicable is not to reverently thoughtful men incredible or absurd. We enter on the study of this scene not with the hope of elucidating all mystery, but with the prayer that we may gain from it some spiritual help. Depicted as it is in strong, dark colors, it may enable us to understand the nature of Christ’s work in the soul. We see here— I. A MAN UNDER BONDAGE TO evil. The expression an "unclean" spirit, and the strange willingness to enter "the swine," denote the nature of the man. By the indulgence of appetite habit had conquered will, and he had no mastery over himself. That is the essence of "possession." Modern forms of it are not difficult to find. Describe the drunkard in his downward progress. This entry is longer than a Bible module can hold. The rest is at https://www.sermonindex.net/commentary/pulpit-commentary/ Mark 6:1 Our Lord now left the neighbourhood of Capernaum, and came into his own country, the district of Nazareth, where he had been, not born indeed, but brought up, and where his kinsfolk after the flesh still lived. Nazareth would be about a day’s journey from Capernaum. This was not the first public exercise of his ministry at Nazareth. Of that and its results St. Luke gives us the account (Luke 4:16). It would seem reasonable to suppose that, after the fame which he had now acquired, he should again visit the place where he had been brought up. His sisters were still living there. St. Mark here again uses the historical present ἔρχεται, "he cometh," for which there is better authority than for ἧλθεν. His disciples follow him. Only the chosen three had been with him in the house of Jairus. The presence of the whole body of the disciples would be valuable at Nazareth. Mark 6:2 As usual, he made the sabbath the special time for his teaching. And many hearing him were astonished. They were astonished at the ability, the sublimity, the holiness of his teaching, as well as at the signs and wonders by which he confirmed it. "Many" hearing him; not all. Some listened with faith; but "the many" (there is some authority for οἱπολλοὶ)were envious of him. Whence hath this man these things? The expression, "this man," is repeated, according to the best authorities, in the next clause, What is the wisdom that is given (not "unto him," but) unto this man? There is a contemptuous tone about the expression. Mark 6:3 Is not this the carpenter? St. Matthew (Matthew 13:55) says, "the carpenter’s son." We infer from this that our Lord actually worked at the trade of a carpenter, and probably continued to do so until he entered upon his public ministry. We may also infer that Joseph was now no longer living, otherwise it would have been natural for his name to have been mentioned here. According to St. Chrysostom, our Lord made ploughs and yokes for oxen. Certain]y, he often drew his similitudes from these things. "No man putting his hand to the plough, and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God" (Luke 9:62). "Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me "(Matthew 11:29). Christ was the son of a carpenter. Yes; but he was also the Son of him who made the world at his will. Yea, he himself made the world. "All things were made by him," the Eternal Word. And he made them for us, that we might judge of the Maker by the greatness of his work. He chose to be the son of a carpenter. If he had chosen to be the sou of an emperor, then men might have ascribed his influence to the circumstances of his birth. But he chose a humble and obscure condition, for this, among other reasons, that it might be acknowledged that it was his divinity that transformed the world. Is not this the carpenter, the son of Mary, and brother of James, and Joses, and Judas, and Simon? Some have thought that these were literally brethren of our Lord, sons of Joseph and Mary. Others have considered that they were his legal half-brothers, sons of Joseph by a former marriage. This view is held by many of the Greek Fathers, and has something to recommend it. But, on the whole, the most probable opinion is that they were cousins of our Lord—sons of a sister of the Virgin Mary, also called Mary, the wife of Cleophas, Clopas, or Alpheeus. There is evidence that there were four sons of Clopas and Mary, whose names were James, and Joses, and Simon (or Symeon), and Judas. Mary the wife of Clopas is mentioned by St. Matthew (Matthew 27:56) as the mother of James the less and of Joses. Jude describes himself (Jude 1:5) as the brother of James; and Simon, or Symeon, is mentioned in Eusebius as the son of Clopas. It must be remembered also that the word ἀδελφός, like the Hebrew word which it expresses, means not only "a brother," but generally "a near kinsman." In the same way the "sisters" would be cousins of our Lord. According to a tradition recorded by Nicephorus (James 2:3), the names of these sisters or cousins were Esther and Tamar. And they were offended in him. They took it ill that one brought up amongst them as a carpenter should set himself up as a prophet and a teacher; just as there are those in every age who are apt to take it amiss if they see any one spring from a trade into the doctor’s chair. But these Nazarencs knew not that Jesus was the Son of God, who of his great love for man vouchsafed to take a low estate, that he might redeem us, and teach us humility by his example. And thus this humility and love of Christ, which ought to have excited their admiration and respect, was a stumbling-block to them, because they could not receive it, or believe that God was willing thus to humble himself. Mark 6:4 A prophet is not without honor, save in his own country, etc. One reason for this is that it is almost natural for persons to hold of less account than they ought, those with whom they have been brought up and have lived on familiar terms. Prophets are commonly least regarded, and often most envied, in their own country. However unworthy may be the feeling, the inhabitants of a district, or members of a community, do not like to see one of themselves put above them, more especially a junior over a senior, or a man of humble origin over a man well born. But it should be remembered that God abhors the envious, and will withhold the wonders of his grace from those who grudge his gifts to others. The men of Nazareth, when they saw Christ eating, and drinking, and sleeping, and working at his trade, like others, despised him when he claimed respect and reverence as a Prophet, and especially because his relations according to the flesh were of humble condition; and Joseph more particularly, whom they supposed to be his real father, for they could not imagine or believe that he was born of a virgin, and had God alone for his Father. Mark 6:5, Mark 6:6 And he could there do no mighty work. This is a remarkable expression. He could do no mighty work there. The words imply want of power—that in some sense or other he was unable to do it. He did indeed perform some miracles. He laid his hands upon a few sick folk, and healed them; but he wrought none of his greater miracles there. Of course, even these less striking miracles ought to have sufficed. in a miracle there must be the suspension of some known law of nature; and one clear instance of such suspension ought to be as conclusive as a hundred. Then it must be remembered that it is not God’s method in his dealings with his creatures to force conviction upon them when the ordinary means prove insufficient. For men’s actions must be free if they are to be made the test of judgment, and they would not be free if God constrained men to obey his will. The men of Nazareth had sufficient evidence had they not chosen to be blinded, and a greater amount of evidence would only have increased their condemnation. So their unbelief thwarted his purposes of mercy, and he went in and out amongst them like one hampered and disabled, marvelling at their unbelief, or rather marveling because of their unbelief (διὰτὴνἀπιστίαναὐτῶν). The condition of mind of these Nazarenes was what caused amazement to the Saviour. At length he turned away from Nazareth, never, so far as we know, to visit it again; for this was their second opportunity, and the second occasion which they deliberately rejected him. What, however, they refused he immediately offered to others. He was not discouraged. He went round about the villages teaching. Mark 6:7 At Mark 3:7 we had the account of our Lord’s selection of the twelve. Here we find the notice of their being first sent forth. Their names have already been recorded. He gave them authority—mark the imperfect (ἐδίδου)—over unclean spirits. St. Matthew (Matthew 10:1) adds, "and to heal all manner of sickness and all manner of disease." But St. Mark here fixes the attention upon the great central object of Christ’s mission—to contend against evil in every form, and especially to grapple with Satan in his stronghold in the hearts of men. Mark 6:8 They should take nothing for their journey, save a staff only. St. Matthew says (Matthew 10:10), according to the best authorities (μηδὲῥάβδον), they were not to take a staff. St. Luke says the same as St. Matthew. The meaning is that they were not to make any special provision for their journey, but to go forth just as they were, depending upon God. Those who bad a staff might use it; those who had not one were not to trouble themselves to procure one. The scrip (πήρα) was the wallet for food. They were to take no money in their purse (μὴεἰςτὴνζώνηνχαλκόν); literally, brass in their girdle. St. Mark, writing for Romans, uses this word for money. St. Luke, writing for Greeks, uses the term (ἀργύριον) "silver." St. Matthew (Matthew 10:9) says, "provide neither gold, nor silver, nor brass." Mark 6:9 But be shod with sandals. This is quite consistent with what St. Matthew says (Matthew 10:9), that they were not to provide themselves with shoes (μηδὲὑποδήματα). According to St. Matthew, shoes are forbidden directly; according to St. Mark, they are forbidden by implication, where he says that they were to be shod with sandals. Shoes are here forbidden which cover the whole foot, not sandals which only protect the soles of the feet lest they should be injured by the rocky ground. The soil of Judaea was rocky and rough, and the climate hot. The sandals therefore protected the soles of the feet, and yet, being open above, kept the feet more cool, and therefore fit for the journey. It is worthy of our notice that, after our Lord’s ascension, we find St. Peter using sandals when the angel, who delivered him out of prison, said to him (Acts 12:8), "Gird thyself, and bind on thy sandals." Mark 6:10 There abide, till ye depart thence. They were not to change their lodgings in any place. This direction was given to them, lest, if they did, they might appear to be fickle and restless; or lest they might hurt the feelings of those with whom they had first lodged. And they were not to stay too long anywhere, lest they should be burdensome to any. Mark 6:11 Shake off the dust (τὸνχοῦν) literally, the soil—that is under your feet. St. Matthew and St. Luke use the word (κονιορτὸν) "dust." A very significant action. The dust was shaken off as an evidence of the toil and labour of the apostles in journeying to them. It witnessed that they had entered the city and had delivered message, and that their message had been refused. The very dust, therefore, of the place was a defilement to them. "It shall be more tolerable," etc. This clause is omitted by the best authorities; it was probably copied from St. Matthew. Mark 6:12 They preached that men should repent. This was their great work, to which the miracles were subordinate. Mark 6:13 And anointed with oil many that were sick, and healed them. It is hardly possible to separate this from the reference to the use of oil for the sick, in James 5:14. Unction was employed extensively in ancient times for medicinal purposes. It is recorded of Herod the Great by Josephus (’Antiq.,’ 17:6, 5) that in one of his sicknesses he was "immersed in a bath full of oil," from which he is said to have derived much benefit. The apostles used it, no doubt not only on account of its supposed remedial virtues, but also as an outward and visible sign that the healing was effected by their instrumentality in the name of Christ, and perhaps also because the oil itself was significant of God’s mercy, of spiritual comfort and joy’’ the oil of gladness." Neither this passage nor that in St. James can properly be adduced to support the ceremony of "extreme unction;" for in both these cases the result was that the sick were restored to health. The so-called sacrament of" extreme unction "is administered immediately before death, when the sick person is in articulo morris. Mark 6:14 This Herod is called by St. Matthew (Matthew 14:1) "the tetrarch;" and so also by St. Luke (Luke 9:7); though it should be noticed that St. Matthew, in the same context, at Verse 9, calls him "king." The word "tetrarch" properly means the sovereign or ruler of the fourth part of a territory. He is known as Herod Anti-pus, son of Herod the Great, who had appointed him "tetrarch" of Galilee and Peraea. Herod Antipas had married the daughter of Arctas, King of Arabia, but deserted her for the sake of Herodias, his brother Philip’s wife. John the Baptist is risen from the dead; that is, "is risen in the person of Jesus Christ." St. Luke. (Luke 9:7) says that at first Herod was "much perplexed (διηπόρει)" "about him. At length, however, as he heard more and more of the fame of Christ’s miracles, he came to the conclusion that our Lord was none other than John the Baptist risen again. Such is the opinion of St. Chrysostom, St. Augustine, and others. At that time the views of Pythagoras respecting the transmigration of souls were generally current, and probably influenced the troubled mind of Herod. He had put to death an innocent and holy man; and it is a high testimony to the worth of the Baptist that, under the reproaches of a guilty conscience, Herod should have come to the conclusion that he had risen from the dead, thus probably giving the lie to his own opinions as a Sadducee; and terrified lest the Baptist should now avenge his own murder. "What a great thing," exclaims St. Chrysostom," is virtue! for Herod fears him, even though dead." It should not be forgotten that this is the same Herod who set Jesus at nought and mocked him, when Pilate sent him to him, in the hope of relieving himself of the terrible responsibility of condemning one whom he knew to be innocent. Mark 6:17 In prison. Josephus (’Antiq.,’ 18.5, 2) informs us that this prison was the fort of Machaerus, on the confines of Galilee and Arabia, and that there John was beheaded. Herod’s father had built a magnificent palace within that fort; and so he may have been keeping the anniversary of his birthday there, Mark 6:18, Mark 6:19 For John said unto Herod. The Greek tense (ἔλεγε) implies more than the simple expression, "he said;" it implies a repeated warning. We learn from St. Matthew (Matthew 14:5) that Herod would have killed John before, but he feared the people. Here St. Mark says that Herodias set herself against him, and desired to kill him; and she could not; for Herod feared John. There is no contradiction between the two evangelists. The case appears to have been this: that at first Herod desired to put John to death, because John had reproved him on account of Herodias. But by degrees John gained an influence over Herod by the force of his character, and by his holy life and teaching. Mark 6:20 The words in the Authorized Version are, When he heard him, he did many things (πολλὰἐποίει), and heard him gladly. But according to the best authorities the reading should be (πολλὰἠπόρει), he was much perplexed. In St. Luke, as stated above, we have (διηπόρει), "he was much perplexed." Nor is there any inconsistency in the next clause in St. Mark, if we accept this reading. Herod was not utterly depraved. There was to him a charm, not only in the character, but in the discourses of John the Baptist. But he was an inconsistent man, and was continually the victim of a conflict between the good and the evil within him, in which evil, alas! triumphed. Herodias, on the other hand, had always wished to get rid of John, as the stern and uncompromising reprover of her adultery and incest; and so at length she persuaded Herod to give way. "For," says Bede, "she feared lest Herod should at length repent, and yield to the exhortations of John, and dissolve this unreal marriage, and restore Herodias to her lawful husband.’’ Mark 6:22 The words should run thus: And when the daughter of Herodias herself came in καὶεἰσελθούσηςτῆςθυγατρὸςαὐτῆςτῆςἩρωδιάδος. The intention of the evangelist is to point out that it was Herodias’s own daughter who danced, and not a mere professional dancing-girl. Josephus mentions that dancing-women were admitted to feasts by the Jews; and Xenophon testifies to the same custom amongst the Greeks. Mark 6:24 And she went out, and said unto her mother, What shall I ask? (τίαἰτήσομαι)—according to the best authorities (τίαἰτήσωμαι), What should I ask? Mark 6:25 I will that thou forthwith give me in a charger (ἐπὶπίνακι) the head of John the Baptist. John the Baptist seems to have had a presentiment of his speedy end when he said, "He must increase, but must decrease." Mark 6:26 And the king was exceeding sorry. We cannot suppose that this was a pretended grief. The true reason is doubtless to be found in the relentless animosity of Herodias. Herod must have known well that he could not be bound by his oath in reference to a petition so unreasonable and so iniquitous. Nevertheless he thought that "the words of a king were law." St. Augustine says, "The girl dances; the mother rages. A rash oath is made amidst the excitement and the voluptuous indulgence of the feast; and the savage desires of Herodias are fulfilled." For the sake of his oaths (διὰτοὺςὅρκους); the plural shows that he repeated the rash promise once and again. Mark 6:27 He sent forth an executioner (σπεκουλάτωρα); literally, a soldier of his guard; one of his body-guard, in constant attendance as messenger or executioner. It is a Roman word from speculari, to watch. St. Jerome relates that when the head of the Baptist was brought, Herodias barbarously thrust the tongue through with a bodkin, as Fulvia is said to have done over and over again, the tongue of Cicero; thus verifying what Cicero had once said while living, that "nothing is more revengeful than a woman." Because they could not bear to hear the truth, therefore they bored through with a bodkin the tongue that had spoken the truth. Mark 6:29 The taking up of the corpse by the disciples would seem to intimate that it lay uncared for and unburied until the disciples showed their respect for it. Josephus says that after the beheading, the mutilated remains were east out of the prison and left neglected. God’s judgments at length found out Herod. For not long after this he was defeated by Aretas in a great battle, and put to an ignominious flight. Herodias herself and Herod were banished by a decree of the Roman Senate to Lyons, where they both perished miserably; and Nicephorus relates that Salome, the daughter of Herodias, died by a remarkable visitation. She fell through some treacherous ice over which she was passing, and fell through it in such a manner that her head was caught while the rest of her body sank into the water, and thus it came to pass that in her efforts to save herself her head was nearly severed by the sharp edges of the broken ice. Mark 6:30 The narrative, which had been interrupted by this parenthesis relating to John the Baptist, is now taken up again. The apostles. This is the only place where St. Mark calls them apostles. In the parallel passage, St. Luke (Luke 9:10) says that they told him all that they had done. St. Mark adds, with more detail, and whatsoever (ὅσα) they had taught. They gave him a full account of their mission. Mark 6:31 Our Lord cared for his disciples. They required rest after the labour and excitement of their ministry; and it was impossible to find the needful refreshment and repose where they were so thronged by the multitude. Mark 6:32 And they went away in the boat (τῷπλοίῳ) to a desert place apart—the boat, no doubt, which our Lord had ordered to be always in attendance upon him. We learn from St. Luke (Luke 9:10) that this desert place was near to "a city called Bethsaida." It seems that there were two places called Bethsaida—one in Galilee proper, and the other to the north-east of the Sea of Galilee. It was to the neighborhood of this latter place that our Lord here directs the boat to take him. The other Bethsaida is mentioned lower down at Verse 45. The word Bethsaida means the "fish village." Mark 6:33 This is very graphic. The Greek in the first part of this verse runs thus, according to the best authorities: Καὶεἶδοναὐτοὸςὑπάγονταςκαὶἐπέγνωσαναὐτὸνπολλοί: And they—i.e. the people—saw them going, and many knew them. They saw them departing, and observed what direction the boat took, and then hastened thither on foot, and outwent them; and so were ready to meet them again on the opposite shore when they landed. The distance by land from the place where they started would be about twenty miles. Mark 6:34 Our Lord had gone to this desert place for retirement and rest; but finding the multitude waiting For him, his compassions were stirred, and he began to teach them many things. He was moved with compassion, because they were as sheep not having a shepherd. No animal is more helpless, more stupid, more in need of a shepherd, than the sheep. St. Chrysostom observes that the scribes were not so much pastors as wolves, because, by teaching errors both by word and by example, they perverted the minds of the simple. Mark 6:35 And when the day was now far spent. The English, like the Greek, is here very idiomatic (καὶἤδηὥραςπολλῆςγενομένης). The English is retained in the Revised Version as it came through the Authorized Version from Tyndale. The present participle γενομένης appears in the Sinaitic Manuscript and in the Cambridge Codex. His disciples came unto him, and said. The best reading is (καὶἔλεγον), and were saying. St. Matthew (Matthew 14:16) says, "They need not depart; give ye them to eat." Thus our Lord prepared the way for his miracle, tie detained the multitude till the day was far spent, so that the disciples might be induced to pray him to dismiss them. This would open the way for him to direct the disciples to feed them. And thus the miracle would appear all the more evident in proportion as they found themselves in a strait, and utterly destitute of the needful supplies of food for such a multitude in the desert. St. John’s account here is much more full. He tells us (John 6:5) that Jesus, addressing Philip, said, "Whence are we to buy bread, that these may eat?" And he adds, "This he said to prove him: for he himself knew what he would do." Our Lord, it would seem, asked Philip rather than the others, because Philip was simple-minded, sincere, and teachable, rather than clever, and so was accustomed to ask things which appeared plain to others. We have an instance of this simplicity of mind in the question which he asks (John 14:8), "Lord show us the Father, and it sufficeth us." Mark 6:37 Two hundred pennyworth of bread. The penny, or "denarius," was the chief Roman silver coin, worth about eight-pence halfpenny. Upon the breaking up of the Roman empire, the states which arose upon its ruins imitated the coinage of the old imperial mints, and in general called their principal silver coin the "denarius." Thus the denarius found its way into this country through the Anglo-Saxons, and it was for a long period the only coin. Hence the introduction of the word into the Authorized Version. Two hundred pennyworth would be of the value of nearly seven pounds. But considering the constant fluctuation in the relation between money and the commodities purchased by money, it is in vain to require what number of loaves the same two hundred denarii would purchase at that time, although it was evidently the representation of a large supply of bread. Mark 6:38 Five (loaves), and two fishes. St. John tells us (John 6:9) that the loaves were of barley, and that the fishes were small (ὀψάρια); St. Mark says δύοἰχθύας. Barley bread was considered an inferior and homely kind of food, very inferior to bread made of wheat flour. The comparative value of the two kinds of bread is given in Revelation 6:6. "A measure of wheat for a penny, and three measures of barley for a penny." The psalmist alludes to the greater excellence of wheat flour: "He would have fed them also with the finest wheat flour" (Psalms 81:16). Mark 6:39 All were to sit down by companies (συμπόσιασυμπόσια)—St. Luke (Luke 9:14) says that the companies were about fifty each (ἀνὰπεντήκοντα)—upon the green grass. St. John says (John 6:10) that "there was much grass in the place." This indicates the time of the year. The grass was growing, and it was green. It would not be green in that district after April. Thus St. Mark’s account of the state of the grass at that time (an account evidently repeated from an eye-witness) coincides with the account of St. John, who says that "the Passover, a feast of the Jews, was at hand" (John 6:4). Mark 6:40 And they sat down in ranks (ἀνέπεσονπρασιαὶπρασιαὶ); literally, they reclined. The Greek word πρασια means "a garden plot" or "bed," literally, a bed of leeks. They were disposed symmetrically. Probably the English word "ranks" expresses the meaning as clearly as any could do. This arrangement was probably made, partly that the numbers might be better known, partly that all things might be done in an orderly manner, and that each might have his portion. St. Matthew’s account (Matthew 14:21) seems to imply that the "men" were separated from the "women and children." Mark 6:41 All the synoptists give our Lord’s acts in the same words. The taking of the food into the hands would seem to have been a formal act before the" blessing," or "giving of thanks," for it. Probably our Lord used the ordinary form of benediction. This is one amongst other instances showing the fitness and propriety of" grace before meat." In considering the miraculous action which followed the benediction, our reason is baffled. It eludes our grasp. It is best simply to behold in this multiplying of the food, both the bread and the fishes, an act of Divine omnipotence; not indeed now, as at the beginning, a creation out of nothing, for here there was the nucleus of the five loaves and the two fishes, but an act of creative development of the food in its best kind; for all the works of God are perfect, He gave (ἐδίδου) would be better rendered, he was giving. It was in his hands that the miracle was wrought, and the food continually multiplied. Mark 6:42, Mark 6:43 They did all eat, and were filled (ἐχορτάσθησαν). It might be rendered, were fulfilled, according to the old meaning of "fulfill." It is probable that the women and children were a considerable number; for they would be, if possible, even more eager then the men to see the great Prophet. When all had eaten and were satisfied, they took up broken pieces, twelve basketfuls, and also of the fishes. St. John tells us that this was done by the express command of Christ (John 6:12); and the existence of these fragments, far more in quantity than the original supply, was a striking testimony to the reality of the miracle, and that there was enough and more than enough for all. It does not become us to pry too curiously into the method of our Lord’s working; but the number of these baskets (κοφίνους), namely, twelve, seems to suggest that he first broke the loaves, and in breaking multiplied them, and distributed them into these baskets, one for each apostle, and that the food, as it was distributed by the disciples, was more and more multiplied, as needed, so that at length they brought back to Christ as many basketfuls of fragments as they had first received from him, and much more than the original supply. It is obvious here to remark that by this stupendous miracle our Lord showed himself to be the true Bread of life, by which the spiritual wants of all hungering souls may be supplied. "For," says St. Augustine," he was the Word of God, and all the acts of the Word are themselves words for us. They are not as pictures, merely, to look at and admire; but as letters which we must seek to read and understand." Mark 6:45 The other side. It would seem, as has already been stated, that there were two Bethsaidas (or "places of fish"—fish-villages)—one to the north-east of the Sea of Galilee, not far from where the Jordan enters it, called Bethsaida Julias; and the other on the western side of the sea itself, near to Capernaum. Again and again our Lord crossed this sea to escape the crowds who followed him about, and now wished "to take him by force and make him a king." He desired for a time to be in retirement, in order that he might pray with the greater earnestness, and freedom from interruption. He also wished to make occasion for the miracle which was to follow, namely, the stilling of the tempest. Mark 6:46, Mark 6:47 St. Mark is careful, like St. Matthew, to tell us that when the even was come he was alone on the land. Both the evangelists desire to call attention to the fact that, when night came on, the disciples were alone in their boat and Jesus alone on the land. It was nightfall; and St. John informs us that "the sea was rising by reason of a great wind that blew." Then it was that the Lord left his place of prayer on the mountain, and walked upon the sea, that he might succor his disciples now distressed by the storm. It would appear that our Lord had been obliged to use a little pressure to induce his disciples to leave him: "He constrained them (ἠνάγκασετοὺςμαθητὰςαὑτοῦ) Mark 6:46 And when he had sent them away (ἀποταξάμενος)—more literally, had taken leave of them, that is, the multitude—he departed into a mountain (εἰςτὸὄρος); literally, into the mountain; that is, the high table-land at the foot of which the multitude had been fed. Towards the north-east of the Sea of Galilee the land rises rapidly from the shore. To pray (προσεύξασθαι).This is a very full word, implying the outpouring of the heart to God. Our Lord did this that he might teach us in our prayers to shun the crowd, and to pray in silence and in secret, with collected mind. There is here, too, a special example for the clergy, namely, this: that when they have preached they should go apart and pray that God would make effectual that which they have delivered; that he would himself give the increase where they have planted and watered, and renew their spiritual strength, that they may return again to their labour refreshed by communion with him. Mark 6:47 And when even was come. It was now advancing onwards into night; the wind was rising and blowing against them. Then it was that the Lord left his place of prayer on the mountain, that he might succor his disciples in their difficulties. Mark 6:48-50 And he saw them toiling in rowing. The Greek is, according to the best readings καὶἰδὼν (not εἶδεν) αὐτοὺςβασανιξομένουςἐντῷἐλαύνειν. The word βασανιξομένους means more than "toiling;" it means literally, tormented. It is well rendered in the Revised Version by distressed. It was only by painful effort that they could make head against the driving storm blowing upon them from the west, that is, from the Mediterranean Sea. About the fourth watch of the night he cometh unto them, walking on the sea. The Jews formerly divided the night into three watches; but when Judaea became a Roman province they adopted the Roman division. The Romans changed the watches every three hours, lest through too long watches the guards might slumber at their posts. These periods were called "watches." If the night was short, they divided it into three watches; if long, into four. Therefore the fourth watch began at the tenth hour of the night, that is, at three o’clock in the morning, and continued to the twelfth, that is, to six o’clock. It would seem, therefore, that this storm lasted for nine hours. During that time the disciples had rowed about twenty-five or thirty furlongs, that is about three Roman miles—eight furlongs—making a mile. The Sea of Galilee is not more than six miles broad at its widest part. They were therefore now (ἐνμέσῳτῆςθαλάσσης) "in the midst of the sea," as St. Mark expresses it; so that, after rowing for nine hours, they had hardly crossed more than half over the sea. The Sea of Galilee is, speaking roughly, about twelve miles from north to south and six from east to west. It may be asked why our Lord suffered them to be tempest-tossed so long; and the answer is: 1. It was a trial of their faith, so as to urge them to seek more earnestly the help of God. 2. It was a lesson to accustom them to endure bard-ness. 3. It made the stilling of so tedious and dangerous a storm all the more grateful and welcome to them at last. The Fathers find a fine spiritual meaning in this. Jerome says, "The fourth watch is the last." So, too, St. Augustine, who adds that "he who has watched the ship of his Church will come at length at the fourth watch, at the end of the world, when the night of sin and evil is ended, to judge the quick and the dead." Theophylact says, "He allows his disciples to be tried by dangers, that they may be taught patience, and does not come to them till morning, that they may learn perseverance and faith." Hilary says, "The first watch was the age of the Law, the second of the prophets, the third of the gospel, the fourth of his glorious advent, when he will find her buffeted by the spirit of antichrist and by the storms of the world. And by his reception into the ship and the consequent calm is prefigured the eternal peace of the Church after his second coming" (see Wordsworth’s ’New Testament:’St. Matthew 14:1-36). He walked on the sea. This he did by his Divine power, which he possessed as God, and which, when he pleased, he could assume as man. Infidelity is at fault here. Paulus the rationalist, revived the ridiculous idea that Christ walking on the sea merely meant Christ walking on the shore, elevated above the sea; but the interpretation was rightly denounced by Lavater as "a laughable insult on logic, hermeneutics, good sense, and honesty." Was it because our Lord simply walked on the shore that the disciples "cried out and were troubled"? Was it merely for this that they were "sore amazed at themselves beyond measure and wondered"? Yet such are the shifts to which unbelief is reduced when it ventures to measure itself against the acts of Omnipotence. He would have passed by them. An expression something like that in St. Luke (Luke 24:28), "He made as though he would go further," although there the Greek in St. Luke is different (προσεποιεῖτοπορρωτέρωπορεύεσθαι). Here it is ἤθελεπαρελθεῖν: literally, he wished to pass by them; so at least it appeared to the disciples. It has been suggested that our Lord did this that the disciples might more clearly see how the wind was stilled in his presence. They supposed that it was an apparition (ἔδοξανὄτιφάντασμαεἶναι); literally, a phantom. Why did they suppose this? Partly from the idea that spectres appear in the night and in the darkness to terrify men, and partly because in the darkness they could not so readily recognize that it was Jesus. Then the fact that our Lord" would bare passed by them," flitting past them as though he eared nothing for them and had nothing to do with them, but was going elsewhere; this must have increased their terror. But now came the moment for him to calm their fears. Straightway he talked with them soothingly. Be of good cheer: it is I; be not afraid. Now, Christ did this that he might teach his disciples to conquer fear and temptation, even when they are very great, and that so the deliverance and the consolation might impress them all the more powerfully and sweetly in proportion to their former terror. "’It is I’—I, your Lord and Master, whom you know so well, and of whose goodness and omnipotence you have already had so much experience; I, your Master, who do not come to mock you as a phantom, but to deliver you both from fear and from storm." It will be observed that St. Mark omits all mention of Peter’s act of faith "in going down from the boat, and walking upon the waters to come to Jesus," as recorded by St. Matthew (Matthew 14:28). Throughout this Gospel, as already noticed, St. Peter is kept in the background. Mark 6:51, Mark 6:52 The amazement of the disciples was very great. Nor was the impression confined to them alone. St. Matthew (Matthew 14:33) tells us that they who were in the boat came and worshipped him. They felt, at least for the ’moment, that they were brought into awful nearness to One whose "way is in the sea," and whose "path is in the great waters," and whose "footsteps are not known." They needed not, however, to have been so amazed, for they had just witnessed his power in the miracle of the loaves; but they understood not (ἐπὶτοῖςἄρτοις) concerning the loaves, but their heart was (πεπωρωμένη) hardened; literally, stupefied and blinded. Mark 6:53 They came into the land of Gennesaret; literally (ἐπὶτὴνγῆνἦλθονεἰςΓεννησαρέτ), they came to the land unto Gennesaret. This was the plain on the western side of the sea sometimes called "the lake of Gennesaret." The name Gennesaret (says Cornelius a Lapide) means "a fertile garden." There was a city originally called "Chinnereth" or "Cinneroth," mentioned in Joshua 19:25, which probably gave one of its names to this lake. Mark 6:54-56 Straightaway the people knew him. Some, no doubt, had known him before, he was now the general object of interest and attraction wherever he went. They began to carry about on their beds (ἐπὶτοῖςκραββάτοις) those that were sick, where they heard he was. The original is very expressive (ὅπουἤκουονὅτιἐκεῖἐστι where they heard, He is there. But the best authorities omit ἐκεῖ. Villages, or cities, or fields (Greek, ἀγρούς); literally, country, where the pursuits of agriculture would be going on. They laid the sick in the streets (Greek, ἐνταῖςἀγοραῖς)—literally, market-places; the proper rendering—that they might touch if it were but the border of his garment. The border (κράσπεδον) means the" fringe" or "hem;" the garment was the outer robe worn over the tunic. And as many as touched him were made whole (ὅσοιἂνἤψαντοαὐτοῦἐσώζοντο); Μαρκ might mean either "him" or "it," that is, "the border of his garment." But the difference is of little importance; for it was faith in those who touched which brought the healing virtue to the sick, whether they touched the Saviour himself or only his clothes. HomilETICS Mark 6:1-6 Unbelief. Our Lord may have had two reasons for leaving Capernaum and for visiting Nazareth. One, a personal reason—to see his mother and his sisters, who seem to have been married there. The other, a ministerial reason—to escape from the busy throngs who resorted to him by the lake, and to take a new center for evangelistic labours on the part of himself and his disciples. It is singular and instructive that Nazareth should have perhaps twice furnished a striking instance of human unbelief and offense with "the Nazarene." I. THE AND OF IN CHRIST. There were several facts, which took away all excuse from the conduct of the inhabitants of Nazareth. 1. He was well known to them. They had been acquainted with him for many years, and they had seen in him nothing but truth and integrity. His claims, therefore, should have been fairly and candidly considered. 2. He brought with him a great and acknowledged reputation. In the most populous parts of Galilee he had fulfilled a ministry which had excited the deepest interest. His miracles were undeniable and undenied, He was the object of general attention and of widespread faith. 3. He came to Nazareth and taught publicly, thus giving his townsmen an opportunity of judging for themselves of his wisdom and moral authority. They confessed with astonishment the extraordinary character of his teaching. Yet they did not believe. And how many among us, who have even greater opportunity of forming a just judgment concerning Jesus, are found judging falsely, and consequently rejecting the Lord of life and of salvation! They judge against the evidence, and their conclusion-in no way damaging to him—is condemnation to themselves. II. THE GROUNDS OF IN CHRIST. It was unreasonable, but not inexplicable or arbitrary. 1. The Nazarenes were prejudiced against Jesus, because of his origin and circumstances. The son of so lowly a mother, the brother of sisters in so obscure a position, how could Jesus be regarded by his worldly townsmen with reverence? A craftsman himself, and one of an humble family, he was little likely to be received at Nazareth as he had been received elsewhere, even in the metropolis itself. 2. The other ground of prejudice was educational deficiency on the part of Jesus. He was the Prophet of Nazareth, and had not been trained in the rabbinical schools of learning. Whence had he his qualifications? What had been the source of his knowledge, the inspiration of his wisdom, the secret of his power? It was all a mystery to them—something at variance with their beliefs, and in contradiction to their prejudices. Very similar are the objections which men still make to Christ. Had he come a king, a conqueror, a philosopher, a scholar, then men might have honored and welcomed him. But he came from God; and to the unspiritual there could be no more serious and fatal ground of offense than this, III. THE REBUKE OF . "A prophet is not without honor," etc. There was sadness in Christ’s language and tones. Yet what a reproach was hereby conveyed to the unbelieving! They might be offended; there were those who would believe, who would evince gratitude and render honor. When we think how clearly our Lord must have foreseen the stupendous and eternal results of his ministry, we may appreciate the nobility and self-restraint of his attitude and language, and at the same time we may recognize the severity of his rebuke. IV. THE OF . 1. The impression upon the Saviour’s mind is briefly described: "He marvelled." An expression this, which gives us an insight into his humanity, and which reveals to us the depths of moral obliquity into which the cavillers had fallen. 2. The results to the people of the town were lamentable. The Prophet had come with power to bless, and prepared to heal and help. But he required the co-operation of faith; and, when this was withheld, "he could do no mighty work." A few sick folk were healed, but many forfeited a blessing within their reach. 3. Yet the rejection of Jesus by his fellow-townsmen was the occasion of benefit to others. Finding no congenial soil at Nazareth, Jesus proceeded elsewhere, to labour where labour might be more appreciated. "He went round about the villages teaching." The indifference or contempt of the unspiritual and self-sufficient may be the occasion of enlightenment and consolation to the lowly, the receptive, the needy. . 1. The coming of Christ to a soul, to a community, is a moral probation, involving the most serious responsibility. 2. It is the most fatal guilt and folly, in considering the claims of Christ, to overlook the wisdom and the grace of his character and ministry, and to regard circumstances at which the superficial and the carnal may take offense. Mark 6:7-13 The mission of the twelve. The twelve disciples now first became apostles. This sending forth was a prelude to their life-long mission, to be fulfilled alter their Lord’s ascension. They had now been long enough with the Master not only to have imbibed much of his spirit, but to have learned the nature of his ministry and to have entered into its methods. Their evangelistic journey would be disciplinary to themselves and profitable to the population of Galilee, and it would increase and extend the interest of the people in the ministry of the Lord. I. THE FOR THE MISSION, Wisdom and simplicity are here alike apparent, 1. The twelve were grouped into pairs. This was for the sake of companionship, and to secure that none should be unfriended and unsupported; as well as, in all likelihood, to bring about that one should supply the other’s lack. 2. They were sent as pilgrims. Two things only they were to take with them—their sandals and their staves, which were part of their natural equipment as travelers afoot. 3. Yet they were forbidden to provide for their journey. luxuries and superfluities they must not take with them, neither must they provide for their subsistence, but must act upon the expectation that the labourer would be deemed worthy of his hire. In all these respects the instructions given to the twelve were significant of the method in which our Lord desires his people to undertake their spiritual mission to mankind. The work is to be done in fellowship and with mutual sympathy and support; it is to be done in the spirit of those who are in the world but are not of the world, who are not entangled in its snares, and who mind heavenly things. II. THE NATURE AND PURPOSE OF THE MISSION. like their Lord, the apostles were enjoined to have compassion upon the varied needs of their fellow-men, to address themselves to the supply of both spiritual and temporal wants. 1. They were to summon men to repentance, the indispensable and universal condition of pardon and life to sinful, guilty men. A change of mind and heart alone could prepare men for the blessings of the Messianic kingdom. 2. At the same time they were to confront the power of evil in its most malignant manifestations, and to cast out demons in the name of that stronger One who was binding the spiritual tyrant of mankind. 3. And they were to heal the sick, both as a symbolic act, and as a proof and exercise of true and practical benevolence. All this they did efficiently and successfully, in the authority of their Divine Lord. The nature of this commission is parallel with that given by our Saviour to his whole Church; for he has put his people in charge with the welfare of mankind, both socially and temporally, and also spiritually. III. THE SPIRIT OF THE MISSION. The directions given by the Master as to the apostles’ bearing with regard to those to whom they ministered were worthy of himself. There is a beautiful combination of meekness and dignity in these instructions, very like the Lord who gave them. Wherever received with cordiality, the apostles were directed to abide with their hosts, grateful for kindness and content with their entertainment. Wherever their message was rejected and they were disregarded, the twelve were commanded to "shake off the dust under their feet" for a testimony against the unbelieving and impenitent. The servants of the Lord Jesus cannot too carefully study these counsels, in considering in what spirit they shall fulfill the commission entrusted to them in human society. On the one hand, all selfish desires, all pride and restlessness, must be repressed; on the other hand, the high vocation must be esteemed, the office must be magnified, the authority of the Redeemer must be upheld, and the responsibility of rejecting the gospel must solemnly, and with appropriate dignity, Be cast upon the unbelieving and unspiritual. LESSONS. 1. All Christians may be reminded of their position in this world as the representatives and ministers of Christ. 2. All hearers of the gospel may be admonished as to the serious responsibility they incur when a message from heaven is brought before their minds. Mark 6:14-29 Sin-hating righteousness. The growing fame of Jesus reached all parts of the land and all classes of society. Not only the poor and diseased, the neglected and the despised, heard of the compassionate heart and the mighty deeds of the Son of man; the learned were jealous of his influence with the people, and powerful rulers wondered what was the secret of his power. Many were the explanations given of the new Teacher’s authority. Whilst some traced a resemblance between him and the olden Hebrew prophets, others even deemed him the greatest of the order—Elijah himself, returning to the land of his ministry, in accordance with what was deemed the inspired prediction. But the most singular of all conjectures was that of Herod—that John the Baptist, whom he had beheaded in circumstances of atrocious dishonor to himself, had arisen from the dead. Mentioning this conjecture, the evangelist is naturally led to relate the incident of the forerunner’s violent death—one of the most awful, tragic incidents in all history. Simply tracing the narrative, we meet with successive embodiments of moral fact and law. I. THE OF A GUILTY . There seems to have been but little in the ministry of Jesus to recall that of John. John did no miracle; the fame of Jesus was largely owing to the miracles by which his ministry was continuously signalized. The power to attract multitudes was the one point obviously in common. But any association was sufficient to revive within Herod’s breast the memory of his weakness and his crime, and to reproach him with the destruction of a blameless and heroic, prophetic man. "Thus conscience doth make cowards of us all!" II. THE OF THE VICIOUS UNDER REBUKE. Antipas was guilty of a double incest and a double adultery; he married his niece, who was also his brother’s wife, that brother being still alive; and drove his own spouse from him by contracting this sinful union. Herodias was probably influenced by ambition in accepting a position so disgraceful. Amidst the silence or the applause of the courtiers, one voice arose to condemn this shameless conduct. It was the voice of the upright and dauntless John, whose rebuke was, "It is not ]awful!" No wonder that the wretched woman set herself against the stern prophet; his presence, his life, must have been to her an incessant reproach. Fain would she have killed him, fearing this influence with the king, and trembling for her own precarious position. There is no hatred so virulent and awful as the hatred of sinners against faithful and righteous rebuke. III. THE BETWEEN AnD PASSION. The unhappy Herod was torn by two conflicting forces. On the one hand, the malice of Herodias urged him to put the fearless John to death, and thus to silence his rebukes; on the other hand, he respected and feared the holy and dauntless prophet, and he was impelled to listen to his words, hearing him eagerly, yet with unsolved perplexity of mind. He kept his prisoner safely, even from the malice of his paramour, whom he would gladly have gratified had not his conscience barred the way. IV. YOUTH AND BEAUTY THE OF . There is a strange contrast between the frivolous and fascinating performances of youth and loveliness, and the dark designs in the background. Herodias watched and delighted to see the passions of her sensual husband moved at sight of her daughter’s charms, to hear the rash promise from those unrighteous lips. Base were the means, and baser still the end. When woman’s charms are used not only to provoke lust, but to induce to cruelty, can there be a more awful instance of the misuse of the fair gifts of the Creator? Yet history tells of many a tale like this, though perhaps or none so utterly and so irredeemably mournful. V. FALSE HONOUR AND WICKED PRIDE TO JUSTICE. Vengeance and malice in Herodias are fitly matched with weakness and unrighteousness in her paramour. There can be no question that it is right to break a promise when the promise involves in its fulfillment the commission of a crime. Such a promise it is wrong to make, but to fulfill it makes one wrong two. The motives of Antipas were vile and mean; he wished to gratify the malice of a woman, and to vindicate his arbitrary authority in the presence of his guests. And for such motives he was ready to sacrifice a good man’s life. VI. MALICE . The foolish word was kept; the wicked woman was gratified; the infamous deed was done. As the Lord expressed it, "Elijah came, and they did unto him whatsoever they listed." Although the world is ruled by a just Providence, righteousness does not always prosper; vice and crime are not always restrained, or even immediately and manifestly punished. The voice of just rebuke is often silenced; the head of innocence is often laid in the dust; "the godly man faileth;" the vilest men are exalted. All this is permitted that there may be scope for the exercise of faith; that virtue may be tried as in the furnace; that men may learn to look forward to a future state, in which grievances shall be redressed, and retribution shall be made, and the righteousness of the Divine Judge shall be fully vindicated. VII. THE GOOD MOURN WHOM THE BAD DESTROY. During his brief ministry John had made many disciples, had attached to him many friends. During his captivity, his admirers had been severed from him. Now came the last opportunity for manifesting their reverential affection. When the company of the Baptist’s disciples, hearing of their master’s violent death, gathered themselves together, and carried the mutilated body to the tomb, what a contrast they afforded to the company of carousers, in whose presence Herod’s foolish oath had doomed a brave, pure man to death! It is well, even if "evil entreated" by the frivolous, sensual, and malicious, to have a place in good men’s hearts, and after death to live in the remembrance of the righteous. Mark 6:30-44 No rest for Jesus. The twelve have fulfilled their brief mission of evangelization, have returned to their Master, and tell him of the incidents and results of their mission. Jesus takes occasion to rest, and to give them rest, and with this intent withdraws to a desert place. This passage shows us with what result. I. THE FOR WHICH THE Lord SEEKS . 1. Perhaps to escape from the notice of Herod, who, having heard of his fame, may seek to get him within his power, even as before he had imprisoned John. 2. To secure a brief petted of bodily repose for himself and for the twelve. Their time and attention have been so occupied, that they have had no leisure even for their meals. It is bad economy in Christian workers to neglect the claims of the body, which needs to be kept, by food, exercise, and repose, in a sound and healthy state, that work for Christ may be done vigorously and cheerfully. 3. To enjoy leisure for spiritual intercourse. The twelve need to be taught that they may teach others; and this is a kind of work which needs leisure and quiet, and uninterrupted hours. The wise and experienced may spend their time to advantage in equipping the young and active among Christ’s disciples for spiritual campaigns. II. THE INVADE THE LORD’S . 1. It is a sign of their eager interest to see and hear the great Teacher and Physician. The tidings spread; the people anticipate their Benefactor; they outrun him, and are ready to meet him when he disembarks. 2. They find him willing to sacrifice his ease for the sake of his ministry. Having perhaps taken a few hours’ repose and slumber as the boat has rocked at anchor near the shore, Jesus lands, only to find the people awaiting him upon the beach. Instead of pushing off again and seeking a remoter seclusion, Jesus readily addresses himself to his work. A lesson this in diligence and zeal! 3. The sad condition of the people awakens Christ’s commiseration. Others might have said, "The people are comfortable and cared for." But Jesus sees that spiritually they are as sheep without a shepherd, and his heart is touched at the spectacle. It needs the Spirit of Jesus to look thus upon the spiritually destitute and famishing, to penetrate through their outward guise to their souls’ needs, III. JESUS FOR THEIR WANTS. 1. He teaches them; he, the Source of wisdom, imparts from his abundance to their necessities. 2. He teaches them at length and with variety. What the "many things" were in which he instructed them we know not, but may judge from the record of his discourses. So the swift hours pass on. He speaks as never man spake, and the people hear him gladly. IV. JESUS THEIR NEEDS. 1. In this his action is in contrast with the spirit of his disciples, who would first have him dismiss the multitude, and who then put obstacles in the way of supplying their wants. We have no reason to blame the disciples, but we have reason to admire the Master. 2. Jesus uses the provision which is at hand. The bread is obviously and utterly insufficient, yet the Lord makes use of it, and chooses rather to multiply than to create. Our Divine Master here gives us a needed lesson—to turn all things to good account—to employ the circumstances, the opportunities, the gifts Providence appoints for us, rather than to grieve that we have not other means of usefulness. 3. He acts in an orderly method. His directions as to the seemly and convenient arrangement of the multitude are in consonance with Divine wisdom, and are an example and admonition for us. God is not the author of confusion in any Churches; confusion is the devil’s work. "Order is Heaven’s first law." 4. Jesus sets an example of gratitude. "looking up to heaven, he blessed." A rebuke to such as take their daily food without giving of thanks; an admonition to remember whence the most common and customary of our mercies come. 5. He makes use of his disciples. Observe the honor which the Divine Lord puts upon human agency and instrumentality. The disciples could not provide; that was no reason why they should not distribute. The feeblest can offer, to his hungering neighbors, the bread of life eternal. 6. He satisfies the need of all. It is a vast crowd; yet not one is left unfed. There is in Christ "enough for enough for each, enough for evermore." It is a symbol of the sufficiency of the Divine provision for all the spiritual necessities of mankind. The bread of heaven came down, and "giveth life unto the world." 7. The provision is even superabundant; it is more than enough. How royally and munificently the Lord of all provides for his dependent creatures! There is yet room at his table, and bread in his store, bounty in his heart, and blessing in his hands. "Come, for all things are ready!" Mark 6:45-52 "It is I." How picturesque and impressive is the scene! Jesus has dismissed the multitude, and has sent his disciples away in the boat to the western shore. He himself has retired to a mountain, by prayer to calm his spirit and to strengthen himself for his ministry. Night comes on; the wind rises from the west, and the waters of the lake are lashed into a storm. By the fitful light of the moon, breaking now and again through the drifting clouds, Jesus, as he stands upon the hilltop, observes the boat tossed upon the waves. Her sails are down, and the disciples are rowing, toiling, but are making no way against the gale. Jesus descends the hill, and, in the exercise of his supernatural power, walks upon the water. The superstitious fishermen, naturally enough, take the figure approaching them for a spectre—some foreboding spirit of the deep—and they’ cry aloud in terror. Then come the words, so authoritative and so gentle, "Be of good cheer: it is I; be not afraid!" The hearts of the disciples and the waves of the lake alike are calmed. Amazement fills every breast, and as they approach the land, the rescued mariners adore with fresh admiration their Deliverer and Lord. I. CHRIST’S PEOPLE HAVE TO PASS THROUGH A SEA OF TROUBLE. 1. Circumstances without may conspire with fears within. Christians are in trouble as other men, and they sometimes dread lest they should be overwhelmed. 2. Christians may encounter trouble in the very act of obeying Christ. Just as the twelve met the storm in fulfilling their Lord’s directions to return to Gennesaret, so we may meet with trials and dangers in the path of obedience. If so, let us not count it strange. II. CHRIST AND WITH HIS PEOPLE IN THEIR TROUBLE. They may be unconscious and forgetful of this. little did the twelve, as they toiled in rowing, imagine that the eye of their Master was upon them; but it was. From the hill-top he witnessed their struggles; he, the Lord of the waves, suffered their violence; he, his disciples’ Friend, allowed them to come into extremity, and did not prevent their fears. So he may, for good reasons, allow his people to experience distress. Yet he is not unmindful and not unmoved. He thinks of them, watches over them, sympathizes with them. He may seem absent, but he is not. III. CHRIST’S AND VOICE BRING COMFORT AND PEACE TO THE HEARTS OF THE . Faith discerns that presence, though unseen; that voice, though unheard. "’It is I!’—I, who love you; I, who died for you; I, who provide for your wants, and watch over your souls; I, who sent you on life’s voyage; it is I, who am with you always, who now come to seek and save you!" When Jesus says, "Be of good cheer; be not afraid!" his are no empty words; they are words fitted to banish fear, to instil confidence, to inspire courage, to awaken hope. IV. CHRIST’S POWER AND GRACE BRING TO HIS ONES. We are indebted to him for more than sympathy. His tender kindness, his strong promises, his unfailing faithfulness, all issue in practical aid, in gracious interposition. He is the Lord of all hearts, and can assuage the tempests of the soul. He controls all circumstances, and compels all to co-operate for his people’s good. "He maketh the storm a calm;" "So he bringeth them to the desired haven." Who, upon the troubled sea of time, would be without a Comforter so gracious, a Helper so mighty? V. CHRIST’S AWAKEN THE , , AND OF HIS PEOPLE. Like the twelve, we have often too much reason, when we experience the compassionate interference of our Lord upon our behalf, to blame ourselves because our hardness of heart has made Divine deliverance seem strange to us. This is just what we ought to have looked for, to have expected with assurance. Oh for grace, that when the voice from heaven addresses us, "It is I," we may respond, "It is Thou, indeed, O Lord, whom we honor, upon whom we call, in whom we trust! It is thou, whose presence is ever dear, whose voice is ever welcome, whose heart is never cold, and whose help is never far!" 1. An encouragement to obedience. 2. A rebuke to fear. 3. An assurance of Divine sympathy. 4. A call to grateful adoration. Mark 6:53-56 The popularity of the Divine Physician. At this time the tide of Christ’s popularity was at the flood. In a few verses, the evangelist strikingly depicts the general excitement which the presence of the Prophet of Nazareth awakened amidst the thronging and busy population. This entry is longer than a Bible module can hold. The rest is at https://www.sermonindex.net/commentary/pulpit-commentary/ Mark 7:1, Mark 7:2 These verses, according to the Greek construction, should run thus: And there are gathered together unto the Pharisees, and certain of the scribes, which had come from Jerusalem, and had seen that some of his disciples ate their bread with defiled, that is, unwashen, hands. The word (ἐμέμψαντο) translated in the Authorized Version, "they found fault," does not appear in the best authorities. It seems to have been interpolated to help the construction. St. Mark explains the meaning of the word κοιναῖς (literally, common), by the word (ἀνίπτοις) "unwashen." The disciples, doubtless, washed their hands, but they abstained from the multiplied ceremonial washings of the Pharisees, which they had received by tradition and punctiliously observed. The scribes and Pharisees, who had come from Jerusalem, were doubtless sent as spies, to watch and to report in no friendly spirit the proceedings of the great Prophet of Nazareth. Mark 7:3 Except they wash their hands oft. The Greek word here rendered "oft" is πυγμῇ: literally, with the fist, i.e. with the closed hand, rubbing one against the other. This word has caused a vast amount of criticism; and the difficulty of explaining it seems to have led to the adoption of a conjectural reading (πυκνῷς or πυκνῇ) rendered "oft;" crebro in the Vulgate. But the Syriac Peshito Version renders the Greek word by a word which means "diligently," and it is interesting and helpful, as a matter of exegesis, to know that it also renders the Greek word (ἐπιμελῶς) in Luke 15:8 by the same Syriac synonym, "diligently." The "clenched fist" implies vigor and resolution, and points to "diligence,’’ and there are very high authorities in favor of this rendering, as, Epiphanius, Isaac Casaubon, and Cornelius a Lapide, to say nothing of our best modern expositors. It is also adopted in the Revised Version. Holding the tradition of the elders. The Pharisees pretended that this tradition had been orally delivered by God to Moses on Mount Sinai, and then transmitted orally down to their time. These oral precepts were afterwards embodied in the Talmud. Mark 7:4 And when they come from the market (ἀπὸἀγορᾶς); literally, and from the market-place; there is no verb in the principal manuscripts, although the Cambridge Codex has ὅτανἔλθωσιν, and the old Latin gives redeuntes. In the market-place there would be every kind of men and things, clean and unclean, by contact with which they feared that they might be polluted; and so they considered that they had need to cleanse themselves from this impurity by a more careful and complete ablution. Another Greek word is used here, namely, βαπτίσωνται. In the former verse the word is νίψωνται, a more partial and superficial kind of washing than that implied in βαπτίζω. It should, however, be added that two of the great uncials, Vatican and Sinaitic, have ῥαντίσωνται, "sprinkle themselves," instead of βαπτίσωνται—an authority sufficient to justify the Revisers of 1881 in putting it into the margin. The washing of cups, and pots, and brasen vessels, and of tables. The words (καὶκλινῶν) wrongly rendered, "and of tables"—because they could only mean "couches"—have not sufficient authority to be retained in the text. "Cups" (ποτηρίων) mean "drinking vessels." The "pot" (ξεστὴς) is a Roman word, sextarius, a small liquid measure, the sixth part of a congius, corresponding nearly to the English gallon, so that ξεστὴς would be rather more than a pint measure. Brasen vessels. These would probably be copper vessels, such as are still used in Syria for cooking purposes. These are particularly mentioned. Earthenware vessels would be broken. Which they have received to hold (ἂπαρέλαβονκρατεῖν); literally, which they received to hold: observe the aorist. Mark 7:5 The Law of Moses prohibited contact with many things deemed to be unclean; and if any one had touched them he was counted unclean, so that he might not approach the temple until he had cleansed himself by the washing prescribed in the Law; the design being that by means of these ceremonial and bodily washings the Jews might be awakened to the necessity of spiritual cleansing. Hence the Jews, and especially the Pharisees, who wished to be esteemed more righteous than others, placing their whole religion in these external ceremonies, frequently washed themselves before their meals, and even at their meals. At the marriage feast in Cana of Galilee we read that there were placed "six waterpots of stone (λίθιναιῦδρίαι)" for these purifying purposes; so that if any Jew had by accident come into contact with any unclean thing, and so had contracted any ceremonial impurity, he might remove it. This, however, was only a custom, and not a thing of legal obligation until it was exalted into a law by the Pharisees. Now, this punctilious observance of traditions by the Pharisees and other Jews yielded little or no religious profit; for it occupied their time with external purifications, and so drew away their attention from the duty of far greater moment—the cleansing of the soul from sin. They made clean "the outside of the cup and platter," but neglected the inward cleansing of the heart. Therefore our blessed Lord, who came to put an end to the old ceremonial law, and to these vain and frivolous traditions which now overlaid it, and who wished to direct all the care of his disciples to the making of the heart clean, cared not to enforce these external washings upon his disciples, although he did not say this in so many words to the Pharisees, lest he should provoke their envy and their malice. He therefore meets their question in another way. Mark 7:6, Mark 7:7 Our Lord quotes against them a prophecy of Isaiah (Isaiah 29:13), This people honoureth me with their lips, but their heart is far from me. But in vain do they worship me, teaching as their doctrines the precepts of men. The prophet here gives the cause of the blindness of the Jews, because they honored God with their lips, while their heart was far from him; and their worship of him (for that is the meaning of "their fear") was the commandment of men, which they had been taught; that is, they worshipped God, not according to that spiritual worship which he had commanded, but after the traditions of men and of their own scribes, partly futile, partly perverse, and contrary to God’s Law. So he says, Well did Isaiah prophesy of you. The word is καλῶς, "excellently—beautifully—did he prophesy concerning you (τῶνὑποκριτῶν), the hypocrites." Not that the prophet had the hypocrites of our Saviour’s time in his mind when he uttered these words, but that the Spirit of God which was within him enabled him to describe accurately the character of those who seven centuries afterwards would be doing the same things as their forefathers. And observe how they were punished. For as they gave a lip-service only to God, praising him with their mouth indeed, but giving their heart to vanity and the world; so God on his part would give them the words only—the shell, so to speak, the letter which killeth; but take away from them the kernel the spirit and the life, so that they might not lay hold of it nor taste it. Mark 7:9 Here the word καλῶς is repeated. Full well (καλῶς) do ye reject the commandment of God, that ye may keep your tradition. It is as though our Lord said, "Your traditions are not instituted by God, or by his servants the prophets, but they are modern inventions, which you desire to defend, not out of love or reverence for them, but because you are the successors of those who invented them, and arrogate to yourselves the power of adding to them and making similar new traditions. Mark 7:10 Our Lord now gives an example of one of these human traditions. Moses said, Honour thy father and thy mother;—that is, obey and love them, and succor them, if they need it; for here "honor" means not only reverence and love, but support, as is clear from Mark 7:12—and, He that speaketh evil of father or mother, let him die the death; that is, let him "surely die," without any hope of pardon. Our Lord means this: "That if he who by words only speaks evil of his father or his mother is, by law, guilty of death, how much more is he guilty of death who wrongs them by deed, and deprives them of that support which he owes them by the law of nature; and not only so, but teaches others so from Moses’ seat, as you scribes and Pharisees do when you say, ’It is Corban.’" Mark 7:11-13. But ye say, If a man shall say to his father or his mother, That wherewith thou mightest have been profited by me is Corban, that is to say, Given to God—these words, "that is to say, Given to God," are St. Mark’s explanation of "corban"—ye no longer suffer him to do aught for his father or his mother; making void the word of God by your tradition, which ye have delivered. Now, this the scribes and Pharisees did for their own covetous ends. For most of them were priests, who received offerings made to God as his ministers, and then converted them to their own uses. In this they greatly erred; because the obligation of piety by which children are bound to support their parents when they need it, is a part of the law of nature, to which every vow, every oblation, ought to yield. Thus, if any one had devoted his goods to God, and his father or his mother became needy, those goods ought to be given to his parents and not to the temple. The word "corban" is a Hebrew word, meaning "that which is brought near," "a gift or offering to God." Hence, figuratively, the place where these offerings were deposited was called the "corbanas," or, "sacred treasury" (see Matthew 27:6, κορβανᾶν). Hence to say of anything, "It is Corban," was to say that it had a prior and more sacred destination. And when it was something that a parent might need, to say, "It is Corban," i.e. it is already appropriated to another purpose, was simply to refuse his request and to deny him assistance, and so to break one of the first of the Divine commandments. Thus the son, by crying "Corban" to his needy parents, shut their mouths, by opposing to them a scruple of conscience, and suggesting to them a superstitious fear. It was as much as to say, "That which you ask of me is a sacred thing which I have devoted to God. Beware, therefore, lest you, by asking this of me, commit sacrilege by converting it to your own uses." Thus the parents would be silenced and alarmed, choosing rather to perish of hunger than to rob God. To such extremities did these covetous scribes and Pharisees drive their victims, compelling a son to abstain from any kind offices for his father or his mother. St. Ambrose says, "God does not seek a gift wrung out of the necessities of parents." Making void (ἀκυροῦντες); literally, depriving it of its authority, annulling. In Galatians 3:17 the same word is rendered "disannul." By your traditions; the traditions, that is, by which they taught children to say "Corban" to their parents. Observe the words, "your tradition" (τῇπαρδόσειὑμῶν); your tradition, as opposed to those Divine traditions which God has sanctified, and his Church has handed down from the beginning. And many such like things ye do. This is added by St. Mark to fill up the outline, and to show that this was only a sample of the many ways in which the commandment of God was twisted, distorted, and annulled by these rabbinical traditions. Mark 7:14, Mark 7:15 In the Authorized Version the beginning of this verse runs thus: "And when he had called all the people unto him, he said." But according to the best authorities, the adverb πάλιν should be inserted, and the words will run as follows:—And he called to him the multitude again. It is probable that he had waved them from him while he held this discourse with the scribes from Jerusalem. But now he calls the people near to him again, that all might hear that which concerned all alike. It is probable, indeed, that this discussion with the scribes may have taken place in the house, into which he again returned after having made this authoritative declaration to the multitude. The words are given with more emphasis here than as recorded by St. Matthew. Every one was solemnly invited to hearken and understand, while he announced a principle of the highest importance. Our Lord did not intend to disparage the difference between clean and unclean meats as it had been laid down in the Levitical Law. His object rather was to clear that teaching from the obscurities in which it had been involved by the scribes and Pharisees, who laid stress only on external acts. His object was to show that all impurity springs from the heart; and that, unless the heart is cleansed, all external washings are in vain. It is as though he said, "The scribes teach you that it is not lawful to eat with unwashen hands because unwashen hands make the food clean, and unclean food defiles the soul. But in this they err; because not that which enters from without into the mouth, but that which proceeds from within through the mouth, and so from the heart, if it be impure,—this defiles the man;" as he more fully explains at verse 21. Mark 7:16 This verse has some good authority, but not sufficient to be retained in the text. The Revisers of 1881 have placed it in the margin. Mark 7:17 Our Lord, having proclaimed this great principle to the multitude in the presence of their teachers, the scribes and Pharisees, returned into the house (the true reading is here εἰςοἶκον, without the article). It means, of course, the house where he was lodging. And then his disciples asked of him the parable. St. Matthew (Matthew 15:15) says that the question was put to him by St. Peter speaking in the name of the other disciples—another instance of the reserve main-rained in this Gospel with reference to this apostle. Mark 7:18, Mark 7:19 Our Lord had already, in his sermon on the mount, taught his disciples fully wherein purity or impurity of heart consists, and he might, therefore, with good reason, ask them how it was that they, even they who had been so favored by being constantly with him, had forgotten or misunderstood him. Our Lord’s illustration is physically accurate. The portion carried off is that which by its removal purifies what remains. The part which is available for nourishment is, in its passage through the system, converted into chyle, the matter from which the blood is formed. What is not available for nourishment passes away into the ἀφεδρών, or draught, Purging all meats. The most approved reading here is undoubtedly the masculine (καθαρἰζων), and not the neuter (καθαρίζον). This change of reading compels a somewhat different construction. Accepting, therefore, the masculine as the true reading, the only possible rendering is that which makes this last clause a comment by the evangelist upon our Lord’s previous words, in which he indicates to the reader that our Lord intended by this illustration to show that no food, of whatever kind, when received with thanksgiving, can make a man unclean. The clause must, therefore, be connected with the preceding words, by the introduction of the words, in italics, "This he said, making all meats clean." The passage, thus rendered, becomes a very significant exposition of what has gone before. It is well worthy of notice that this explanation is to be found in St. Chrysostom (Homily on St. Matthew 15:1-39.): ὉδὲΜάρκοςφησὶνὅτικαθαρίζωντὰβρώματαταῦταἔλεγεν: "But Mark affirms that he said these things, making the meats clean." It may be added that this explanation agrees finely with the words in Acts 10:15, "What God hath cleansed, that call not thou common." Mark 7:20-23 From within, out of the heart of men; that is, from the reason and the will, of which the heart is the symbol and the labouratory. For the heart ministers the vital fore to the intellect to enable it to understand, and to the will to enable it to live, although the seat of the intellect is in the brain. St. Mark’s enumeration of evil things is in a somewhat different order from that of St. Matthew; and he adds to St. Matthew’s list (ἀφροσύνη), foolishness, showing how all evil terminates in the loss of all moral and intellectual illumination. All these evil things proceed from within: and defile the man. Dr. Morison, in his admirable commentary on St. Mark, well observes here that "these things have an inward origin, and are vomited forth from the crater of the heart or soul;" and further on he says, "In a little sphere of things, and as regards acts, though not as regards substances or essences, men may be spoken of as creators. Men, that is to say, are the efficient causes of their own choices. If they were not, they would not be really free. If it was not so, there would be no real responsibility." St. Matthew (Matthew 15:20) adds here, "But to eat with unwashen hands defileth not the man." This is the end and scope of the parable, which is to show that unwashen hands and unclean meats defile not a man, but only an impure and depraved will. It seems almost needless to observe that our Lord does not condemn the washing of the hands before meats as a thing in itself in any way wrong. All nations approve of ablutions as tending to cleanliness and health. "Dant famuli manibus lymphas, Cereremque canistris Expediunt, tousisque ferunt mantelia villis." "It was thought sordid and mean to sit down to meals with unwashen hands. Whence not the clergy only, but the people, washed their hands before prayer." The moral of all is this, how carefully is the heart to be guarded, instructed, and adorned, seeing that it is the instrument and labouratory of all evil and all good, of all vice and all virtue! "Keep thy heart with all diligent,’’ so that nothing may enter therein and nothing go out therefore and you not be conscious of it, and your reason may not approve; "for out of it are the issues of life." Mark 7:24 Our Lord now passes out of Galilee into a heathen country, Syro-phoenicia, into the borders of Tyre and Sidon, that he might begin to impart his miracles and his doctrine, which the scribes and Pharisees had rejected, to the Gentiles. There is not sufficient authority for omitting "Sidon" from the text. Both these cities were renowned for their extensive commerce and for their wealth. It is probable that the true reading in Mark 7:31, which will be noticed presently, may have led to the omission by some authorities of "Sidon" here. But there is really no inconsistency in retaining the words "and Sidon" here; and accepting the reading" through Sidon" there. Tyro, which was the capital of Phoenicia, lay to the south, bordering on Judaea; Sidon to the north: and multitudes flocked to Christ from these parts. He entered into a house, and would have no man know it: and he could not be hid. He would have no man know it, partly for the sake of quiet, and partly lest he should rouse the Jews more bitterly against him, and give them occasion to cavil that he was not the Messiah promised to the Jews, because, having left them, he had turned to the Gentiles. St. Mark (Mark 3:8) has already informed us that his fame had spread to those about Tyro and Sidon. Mark 7:25-27 The construction of this verse is Hebraistic (see Acts 15:17). Instead of ἀκούσασαγὰρ, the approved reading is ἀλλεὐθὺςἀκούσασα: But straightway a woman, whose young daughter literally, little daughter; St. Mark is fond of diminutives—had an unclean spirit. All ages were liable to this incursion of unclean spirits. The woman seems to have come from a distance. She was a Greek—that is, a Gentile—a Syro-phoenician by race, as distinguished from the Libyan Phoenicians, of Carthage. She was a descendant from those seven nations of Canaan which had been driven out by God’s command. They were called in their own language "Canaanites," And she besought him (ἠρώτα); literally, asked him. St. Matthew (Matthew 15:22) says that "she cried (ἐκραύγασεν), have mercy on me, O Lord, thou Son of David." Aristotle says that "parents love their children more than their children love them; because love descends, and because parents desire that their children should survive them, that they may live on in their children, as it were, after death; that they become, so to speak, immortal through their children, and possess that eternity, which they cannot have in themselves, in their children and their children’s children." St. Matthew (Matthew 15:23) tells us that at first "he answered her not a word," and he does not record the remarkable saying, Let the children first be filled, which in St. Mark precedes the words, it is not meet to take the children’s bread and cast it to the dogs. Dogs abound in Palestine and the surrounding districts, but they are not cared for. They go about in packs, with no particular masters and no particular homes. They seem to be chiefly useful as scavengers. Nevertheless, the dog of the East is amenable to kindness shown him by man, and there, as in England, children and young dogs soon become friendly. It is of (κυνάρια) "little dogs" that our Lord here speaks. Our Lord here speaks after the manner of the Jews, who called the Gentiles dogs, as distinguished from themselves, the children of the kingdom. Let the children first be filled. Suffer me first to heal all the Jews who need my help. Our Lord makes at first as though he would refuse her request; and yet it is not an absolute denial. There might be hope for her when the children were filled. Thus Christ oftentimes deals with holy souls, namely, by humbling and mortifying them when they desire anything at his hands, in order that with yet greater importunity and humility they may seek and obtain it. St. Chrysostom says, "Whether we obtain that which we seek for, or whether we obtain it not, let us ever persevere in prayer. And let us give thanks, not only if we obtain, but even if we fail to obtain. For when God denies us anything, it is no less a favor than if he had granted it; for we know not as he does what is most expedient for us." Mark 7:28 In this verse there is a slight change of reading, causing a change of rendering; namely, thus: Yea, Lord: even—καὶ instead of καὶγὰρ the dogs τὰκυνάρια the little dogs—under the table eat of the children’s crumbs. Observe the antithesis: "the children" (the little daughter) sitting at the table; the "little dogs" under the table. It is as though she said, "Give me, most gracious Lord, only a crumb (a small mercy compared with thy greater mercies), the healing of my little daughter, which may fall as it were obiter from thee upon us Canaanites and Gentiles, and be gratefully picked up as one of thy lesser benefits.’’ Cornelius a Lapide enlarges beautifully upon this: "Feed me, then, as a little dog. To me, a poor Gentile, let a crumb of thy grace and mercy be vouchsafed; but let the full board, the plentiful bread of grace and righteousness, be reserved for the Jewish children. I cannot leave the table of my Lord, whose little dog I am. No; if you spurn me away with your foot, or with a blow, I will go away; but I will come back again, like a little dog, through another door. I will not be driven away by blows. I will not let thee go until thou hast given me what I ask of thee.’ For this Canaanite constrains Christ, arguing her case from his own words, prudently, modestly, forcibly, and with a humble faith which perceives that he is not unwilling to be overcome by petition and by reason. Indeed, she entangles him in the meshes of his own words. So great is the plenteousness of his table, that it shall abundantly suffice for her if she may but partake of the crumbs which fall from the table of his children." Mark 7:29 St. Matthew says here (Matthew 15:28), "O woman, great is thy faith: be it done unto thee even as thou wilt. And her daughter was healed from that hour." If we suppose St. Mark’s words to come in after St. Matthew’s words "be it done unto thee even as thou wilt," the two narratives are perfectly consistent. Our Lord could no longer restrain himself, or resist these wonderful appeals of faith. Overcome by the skillful reasoning and importunity of the Canaanite, he gives her that which she asks, and more. tie heals her daughter, and he sets a crown of gold upon her head. It is here obvious to remark that this child vexed by the unclean spirit represents the soul tempted by Satan and polluted by sin. In such a condition we must distrust our own strength, and rely only on Christ, and call upon him with humility and repentance; acknowledging ourselves to be but as dogs in his sight; that is, miserable sinners; yet not such as that we should despair of pardon, but rather that we should hope for the mercy of Christ the greater we feel our misery to be. For it is worthy of a great Saviour to cleanse and save great sinners. Again, this Gentile daughter represents the Church of the Gentiles, which, shut out from salvation by the justice of God, enters the kingdom of heaven through the door of mercy. Here was a great conversion indeed; for now the Jews through their unbelief change places with the Gentiles, and, like them, can only be admitted through the same gate of Divine mercy. Mark 7:30 There is an inversion in the order of the clauses in this verse, according to the best authorities. The words should run thus: And she went away unto her house, and found the child (τὸπαιδίον) laid upon the bed, and the devil gone out. She found her little daughter set free from the possession, but exhausted by the convulsions which he caused in departing from her; weary with the violence of the struggle, but restful and composed. So the sinful soul, set free from sin by the absolution of Christ, rests upon the couch of a conscience pacified by the blood of Christ, and at peace with God. Mark 7:31 According to the most approved authorities this verse should be read thus: And again he went out from the borders of Tyre, and came through Sidon unto the sea of Galilee, through the midst of the borders of Decapolis. St. Matthew (Matthew 15:29) simply says that he "departed thence, and came nigh unto the sea of Galilee." But from the more full statement of St. Mark we learn that he made a circuit, going first northwards through Phoenicia, with Galilee on his right, as far as Sidon; and thence probably over the spurs of Libanus to Damascus, mentioned by Pliny as one of the cities of the Decapolis. This would bring him probably through Caesarea Philippi to the eastern coast of the Sea of Galilee. Here, according to St. Matthew, he remained for a time in the mountainous district above the plain; choosing this position apparently for the sake of quiet and retirement, as also that, being conspicuous to all from the mountain, he might there await the multitude coming to him, whether for instruction or for healing. Mark 7:32 They bring unto him one that was deaf, and had an impediment in his speech (πωφὸνκαὶμογιλάλον). The radical sense of κωφός (from κόπτω) is "blunt" or "dull;" and so it is used to represent both deafness and dumbness. But in St. Mark it means deafness as distinguished from dumbness. This patient, however, was not ἄλαλος absolutely, but μογιλάλος, i.e. he spoke with difficulty. Long-continued deafness is apt to produce imperfect utterance. Mark 7:33 And he took him aside from the multitude privately. This was done, no doubt, to fix the attention of the afflicted man upon himself, and upon the fact that he was about to act upon his ears and his tongue. And he put (ἔβαλε)—literally, cast or thrust—his fingers into his ears. The action was very significant. It was as though he said, "I am about to open a passage for hearing through these ears." And he spat, and touched his tongue; that is, he touched his tongue with saliva from his own sacred lips. These symbolical actions must have had a great meaning for the afflicted man. They were a tableau vivant, an acted metaphor, teaching him what he might expect from the mercy of Christ. The analogy of the miracle recorded in St. John (John 9:6) should be noticed here. It is an interesting circumstance (noticed in the ’Speaker’s Commentary’) that, in the Latin Church, the officiating priest touches the nostrils and ears of those who are to be baptized, with saliva from his own mouth. We may be assured that, in the case before us, these signs used by our Lord were intended to awaken the afflicted man’s faith, and to stir up in him the lively expectation of a blessing. Mark 7:34, Mark 7:35 And looking up to heaven, he sighed, and saith unto him, Ephphatha, that is, Be opened. He looked up to heaven, because from thence come all good things—words for the dumb, hearing for the deaf, healing for all infirmities; and thus he would teach the infirm man by a manifest sign to what quarter he was to look for the true source of his cure. he sighed (ἐστέναξε); literally, he groaned. Why did our Lord sigh at such a moment? We know indeed that he was "a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief;" hut now we might almost have expected a momentary smile of loving joy when he was about to give back to this afflicted man the use of these valuable instruments of thought and action. But he sighed even then; for he was touched with the feeling of human infirmity, and no doubt his comprehensive eye would take in the vast amount of misery, both bodily and spiritual, which has come upon the world through sin; and this, too, immediately after having looked up to heaven, and thought of the realm of bliss which for a time he had left "for us men, and for our salvation." Ephphatha, that is, Be opened. This word is, of course, addressed to the man himself; and the evangelist has retained the original Syro-Chaldaic word, as he has retained "Talitha cumi" elsewhere: so that the actual word which passed through the Saviour’s lips, and restored speech and hearing to the afflicted, might be handed on, as doubtless it will be, to the end of time. The word applies of course, primarily, though not exclusively, to the ear; for not only were his ears opened; but the bond of his tongue was loosed, and he spake plain. Mark 7:36, Mark 7:37 He charged them (διεστέλλετο). The word is a strong one: "he gave them clear and positive orders." The injunction seems to have been given, both to the deaf and dumb man, and to those who brought him. And it was given partly, no doubt, for his own sake, and for reasons connected with his gradual manifestation of himself to the world, and partly for the instruction of his disciples, and to show that he did not desire by his miracles to win the vain applause of men. St. Augustine says that "our Lord desired, by putting this restraint upon them, to teach how much more fervently they ought to preach him, whom he commissions to preach, when they who were forbidden could not be silent." He hath done all things well. He did nothing that the Pharisees, captious and envious as they were, could reasonably find fault with. St. Matthew (Matthew 15:30, Matthew 15:31) intimates that at this time our Lord exhibited a vast number of miracles, a bright galaxy of wonders, amongst which this shone out conspicuously, as a very prominent and instructive one. But, indeed, "he went about doing good." His whole life on earth was one connected, continued manifestation of loving kindness. Mark 7:1-23 Ceremonialism and spirituality. The teaching of our Lord Jesus was often in opposition to that of the religious leaders of his age and nation. The Pharisees and scribes were most religious, but their religion was of a bad type. They themselves practiced, and they inculcated upon the people, the observance of religious forms and ceremonies; whilst, generally speaking, they were negligent of the weightier matters of the Law. They laid great stress upon the outward, but they were careless of the spiritual. Our Lord’s teaching, on the contrary, exalted the spiritual, and insisted upon the supreme importance of a true, a pure, a reverent heart. The contrast between ceremonialism and spirituality is exhibited in this passage in several particulars. I. WASHING WITH WATER FOR PURITY OF HEART. Ablutions occupied an important place in the system of ritual. In addition to the washings and sprinklings required by the Law, many others were invented by the superstitious. It was a religious duty to wash the hands before eating and upon returning from market; to sprinkle and cleanse ceremonially cups and pots, vessels and furniture. In contradistinction from all these ritual purifications, our Lord laid stress upon the true baptism, the washing and purifying of the thoughts and intents of the heart. II. THE OF THE ELDERS FOR THE OF GOD. The Jews were a nation highly conservative in character and habit. They cherished their history, they revered the memory of their heroes, they treasured and superstitiously honored their sacred books, and any doctrines or practices which came down from antiquity were, by that fact, commended to their respect. Their fault here was in magnifying the precepts of men rather than the commands of God. Human interpretations, human additions, human corruptions of the Word, were put in the place of the Word itself. The Lord Jesus came not to destroy, but to fulfill the Law; yet with mere tradition he would have no truce. III. THE WORSHIP OF THE LIPS FOR THE WORSHIP OF THE HEART. This was an old error and fault. The prophet Isaiah had seen reason to complain of its prevalence among the Hebrews of his time; and, as it is the product of sinful human nature, it need not surprise us if we meet with instances of the working of the principle of formality in any nation and in any age. Our Lord Jesus had frequent occasion to censure the vain repetitions, the prayers in the market-places, which he knew were in many cases the proof, not of a devout but of a hypocritical nature. "God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship in spirit and truth." IV. A SUBTLE EVASION FOR FILIAL DUTY. Natural piety concurs with the revealed commandment, in requiring of children honor and reverence towards their parents. To support them when in old age and poverty has ever been deemed a plain duty and, indeed, a true privilege. The way in which the unrighteous but religious Jews evaded this obligation is characteristic. Whatever a parent needed, the son declared to be dedicated to God, and therefore not applicable to the relief of the parent’s wants. Such a device was hateful in the eyes of the holy and affectionate Saviour, who not only condemned unfilial conduct, but still more the mean hypocrisy which could use religion for its cloak. V. OF UNCLEAN FOOD FOR OF IMPURE AND . Even Christ’s disciples found it difficult to understand their Master’s position with regard to clean and unclean food. The distinction was in itself recognized by the Law, but additions were made by human ingenuity, and the distinction itself was exaggerated, so as to imply more than was divinely intended. In the exercise of his authority, he "made all meats clean." He taught that sin works not from without inwardly, but from within outwardly; that the heart of man needs to be guarded against sinful thoughts and desires, in order that the life may be just, peaceful, and pure. . It is possible to be, in a sense, religious, and yet, in a deeper sense, sinful, and out of harmony with the mind and will of God. It is a temptation from which none is wholly free, to substitute the external, the formal, the apparent, for what God requires—the faith, love, and loyalty of the heart. Hence the need of a good heart, which must be a new heart—the gift and the creation of God by his Spirit. The religion of the New Testament both enjoins this and provides for its acquirement. He who is "in Christ" is a new creation; and having the fountain cleansed, sends forth pure and purifying streams. Mark 7:24-30 The alien’s faith. In quest of repose and retirement, the Lord Jesus often, even during the busiest periods of his ministry withdrew from crowded cities and busy shores to some accessible seclusion. On this occasion he traveled to the borders of Phoenicia, but though so far from his accustomed resorts, he was known and sought and followed. From Tyre and Sidon people had already, attracted by his fame, found their way to the neighborhood of Capernaum, to hear his discourses and to behold his works. No wonder that now, even in these distant regions, though desiring retirement, the Divine Prophet "could not be hid." Hence the application recorded in this touching and encouraging narrative. We observe here— I. FAITH ARISING IN . A woman—described as a Canaanite, a Gentile—appealed to Jesus for help. Probably a heathen, she yet had confidence in the power of the Hebrew Rabbi and Prophet to bring her some relief. It is singular that two conspicuous instances of faith in Christ during his ministry—this, and that of the centurion—should be displayed by Gentiles. And this when many of cur Lord’s own countrymen despised and rejected the Son of David! Yet every preacher of the gospel has met with cases which show us that faith springs up where it is least expected, and in circumstances the least favorable. An inducement this for the Christian sower to "sow beside all waters." II. FAITH TO . Personal faith will lead to pleading prayer. This was the faith of a mother, concerned for her afflicted daughter, possessed by an unclean spirit. Maternal love incited to the appeal, and sustained under discouragement and rebuffs. True faith will ever lead to action, and will impel the anxious soul to lay its anxieties before a mighty and compassionate Lord. We cannot be satisfied to come to Christ for ourselves alone; for those dear to our hearts some true request will be preferred, some petition will be urged. The heart’s compassionate impulse the Lord of the heart will not despise. III. FAITH AND SORELY TRIED. The language addressed by Jesus to this woman was certainly unlike what he was wont to address to suppliants. His mission was to Israel; the bread he brought for Israel’s sons; Canaanites and all Gentiles were but as dogs, having no claim upon the provision made for the household of the favored. It is mysterious, yet it is unquestionable, that it seems good to God to "try ’ the faith of men. So Jehovah had tried Abraham, and so Jesus now tried this poor, pitiable woman. He will try your faith; but misunderstand not his treatment of you. "Ye fearful saints, fresh courage take; The clouds ye so much dread Are big with mercy, and shall break In blessings on your head." IV. FAITH . The woman neither resented the Lord’s comparison nor did she, disheartened by the reception she met with, turn away without a blessing. She took the Lord at his word, and followed out his figure. "Be it so; let the bread, the loaf, be for the children; let the dogs keep their proper place; yet, even there, surely there is some provision even for them. There are crumbs, and with these the dogs may be content; for these the dogs may be grateful." This is the way to plead with Heaven. God will have earnestness and persistency and perseverance in prayer. Christ’s grace is ever for those who seek, and who seek not fitfully, but resolutely and enduringly. V. FAITH AND . Christ was pleased because the applicant cast herself upon his compassion, because she was willing to receive the boon desired upon his own terms. "For this saying go thy way." It was a saying expressing so much humility, so much earnestness, so much faith, that the heart from which it came might not remain unsatisfied, unblest. The evangelist tells, in a way very picturesque and affecting, how, upon her return to her house, the poor woman found that the power had been exercised, that the demon had departed, and that her daughter was healed. . The narrative (1) affords encouragement to offer intercessory prayer; (2) shows the value of humility in our approach to Jesus; and (3) assures us that persevering faith shall not be unrewarded. Mark 7:31-37 The deaf hears; the dumb speaks. In this incident is much of the dramatic. It could not well be otherwise. Our Lord’s teaching was usually by speech, but this was a case in which oral language was needless and useless. Christ accordingly employed the language of gesture and action. He thus adapted himself and his ministry to the necessities of this poor man, who was doubly afflicted with privation of hearing and of speech. The condition of the sufferer and the conduct of the Healer are alike symbolical of spiritual facts and suggestive of spiritual lessons. I. A PICTURE OF THE SINNER’S STATE. 1. Here is an insight into the nature of human depravity. It is a distortion of, a departure from, the proper, the higher, and original nature. Man, in his true bodily constitution, possesses hearing and speech, and in his true spiritual constitution he has faculties which bring him into communion with the Divine. The privation of such capacity by sin is pictured by the state of this sufferer. 2. Here is insensibility to Divine realities. Voices, music, thunder, are all to the deaf as though they were not. So with the sinner; he hears not the tones of the Divine voice; the Word of God is nothing to him—has neither authority nor charm. The dumb cannot speak or sing; whatever the occasion for utterance, the occasion appeals to him in vain. So with the sinner; he has no witness to offer to the God of creation, providence, and grace. 3. Here is deprivation of the highest joys. How much of happiness is inaccessible to those who are afflicted with deafness! Nature, art, and friendly voices have no message for their ears. And, similarly, sin closes the approaches of highest spiritual joys to the spiritual nature of the children of sinful men. 4. Here is helplessness and hopelessness. It is not a pleasant or a flattering picture; but is it net true? II. A VIEW OF THE SAVIOUR AND OF THE PROCESS OF . Remark: 1. The individual character of salvation. As Jesus took this deaf man apart from the crowd, that he might deal with him privately and by himself, so the Lord ever singles out each individual whom he saves. Sometimes he lays such a one aside by affliction, quietly to converse with him and work upon his nature. 2. Salvation is through Christ’s personal contact with the soul. When Jesus put his fingers into the man’s ears and anointed his tongue with spittle, this was a striking and effective lesson to one who could not be reached by the usual channel of articulate speech. It was the touch of Christ, and the communication of his virtue, that healed. A lesson to us flint restoration to spiritual capacity and health is the effect of an immediate contact of the soul with Christ, the soul’s Saviour. 3. A profoundly compassionate Saviour. "He sighed;" not simply because of this instance which he encountered of human misery and need, but doubtless also because of all the world’s sin and misery. His was a heart moved at the spectacle of the wretchedness of this fallen race. His work of redemption was inspired by pity and by love. 4. An authoritative Saviour. The word of Jesus, "Be opened!" reminds us of the original and authoritative utterance of the Creator, "Let there be light!" It is thus that the Lord of light and vision ever speaks: he utters his royal command as one who is certain to be obeyed. III. A OF THE RESULTS OF . Simple as is the record of the mandate and summons of Immanuel, equally simple is the record of the success which attended his word. The response to the command was immediate. Similarly with the release which it is the prerogative of our Redeemer to effect for the soul of man. The nature which Christ renews becomes sensitive to those heavenly voices to which it has so long been deaf, and finds delight in holy and grateful utterances to which it has before been utterly strange. IV. AN OF THE BY THE OF CHRIST’S POWER. 1. Astonishment; for who but he can work such marvels? 2. Publication; for the healed, and the beholders of the spiritual change, are unable to restrain them-selves—are impelled to tell the story of redemption and deliverance. 3. Witness and praise; for such must needs be offered to him of whom it is said, "He hath done all things well." BY A.F. MUIR Externalism versus righteousness. In Mark 7:3, Mark 7:4 of this chapter we are furnished with an interesting piece of antiquarianism. The daily life of the devout Jew is set before us in its ceremonial aspect; not as Moses had originally ordered it, but as custom and human casuistry had gradually transformed it. The light thrown upon several questions is very searching and full of revelation, viz. the various senses in which baptism seems to have been understood by the contemporaries of Christ, and the punctilio, vigor, and detail with which ceremonial purifications were carried out. It is only as we realize the background of daily Jewish life, against which the life to which Jesus called his disciples stood out so prominently, that we are in a position to appreciate the current force of the objections raised by Pharisee and scribe. We have here— I. FROM THE POINT OF VIEW OF . (Mark 7:1-5.) The exaggerated form the latter assumed brought out the more strikingly the peculiarity and essential character of Christ’s teaching. 1. It was an age in which Jewish ceremonalism had reached its highest. The doctrine of Pharisaism had penetrated the common life of the people. They might be said to have fallen in love with it. The distinctions are artificial and super-refined, e.g. between "common," "profane," or "defiled" hands, and hands ceremonially clean. They washed "diligently" (a paraphrase of the original substituted by our revisers for "oft" of the Authorized Version, and apparently the best rendering of the difficult word in the original), "carefully," or the "many other Amongst the respectable Jews ceremonial strictness and nicety held a place very similar to what "good manners," or polite behavior and refinement, occupy with ourselves, having, of course, an additional supernatural sanction from association with the Law. Thus to-day the customs and observances of nations amongst whom civilization has long existed might equally serve as a foil for the Christian moralist; and all casuistries or secondary, customary moralities. 2. The objectors were the leaders and representatives of the religious life of the time. "Pharisees, and certain of the scribes, which had come from Jerusalem." They were the leaders and teachers of metropolitan fanatical ritualism. It is well when Christianity is judged that such men appear on the bench; there can then be no question as to the representative and authoritative character of the criticism. It would be a splendid thing if the representatives of modern political, social, and ecclesiastical life could be convened for such a purpose. 3. What, then, is the objection thus raised? It concerned an observance of daily life. Christians are now judged on the same arena. In small things as in large the difference will reveal itself. It depended upon an abstract distinction: the hand might be actually clean when it was not ceremonially so. It was, in the eyes of those who made it, the worst accusation they had it in their power to make. The moral life of the disciples was irreproachable; they "had wronged no man, corrupted no man, taken advantage of no man." The Christians of to-day ought to emulate this blamelessness; infidels can then fire only blank cartridge. II. THE TABLES TURNED. (Mark 7:6-23.) The critics are themselves reviewed. Trifling captiousness must be summarily dealt with, especially when it wears the garb of authority. The character of the objectors is of the first consequence in judging of Christ’s tone. Grave issues were at stake. The ground of the fault-finding was superficial and untrustworthy, and a truer criterion must be discovered. "Deceivers may be denounced, that the deceived may be delivered" (Godwin). The essential nature of rectitude—the grand moral foundations must be laid bare. 1. Christ begins with an appeal to Scripture. He is careful to show that the distinction between righteousness and ritualism is a scriptural one, and not of his own invention. At the same time, he gives the reference a satirical or ironical turn by making a prophetic identification! We don’t know how much is lost in ignoring the written Word of God. It is "profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, and for instruction in righteousness." 2. He next pointed out the opposition that existed between their traditions and the Law. The instance selected is a crucial one, viz. that of the fifth commandment—"the first commandment with promise." Others might have been given, but that would be sufficient. Family obligations are the inner circle in which religion most intensely operates; if a man is wrong there, he is not likely to be very righteous elsewhere. To prove their opposition to the Law was to strip them of all pretense to religion. 3. Lastly, common sense and conscience were appealed to as regarded rites and ceremonies. The "multitude" is here addressed; it is a point which the common man is supposed able to decide. There are many weapons that may thus be supplied to the evangelical armoury. If philosophy was rescued from barrenness by this method in the hands of a Socrates or a Reid, may we not hope for greater things with regard to a common-sense religion? The great foundation of all religious definitions and obligations is the true nature of man. The essential being of man is spiritual; the body is only the garment or case in which he dwells. Purity or its opposite must therefore be judged of from that standpoint. If the soul, will, spirit, inner thought of a man is pure, he is wholly pure. Spiritual and ceremonial cleanness must not be confounded. Religion is not a matter of forms, ceremonies, or anything merely outside; but of the heart. Yet the thought and will must influence the outward action, habit, and life. The spiritual is the only eternal religion (John 4:23, John 4:24). The private question of the disciples is worthy of notice. A "parable" seems to have been their common name for a difficult saying of Christ’s. Their incapacity was not intellectual but spiritual. Professed Christians themselves often require to be more fully instructed. The progressive life of the true Christian will itself solve many problems. "Had our Saviour been speaking as a physiologist, he would have admitted and contended that many things from without, if allowed to enter within, will corrupt the functions of physical life, and carry disorder and detriment into the whole fabric of the frame. But he was speaking as a moralist, and hence the antithetic statement of the next clause" (Morison).—M. The prayer of the Syro-phoenician woman. An atmosphere of publicity about Christ: crowds follow him wherever they hear of his presence, and even in strange regions his fame anticipates him. The many who took advantage of his power to heal are forgotten in the special ease which now presented itself. This may have been the spiritual result of many unsatisfactory cases in which the cure only affected the body; the rumor of them awoke at least one heart to a new sense of spiritual power. Speaking about Jesus and his work in this place or that, to one soul or another, may be a blessing in unthought-of quarters. Jesus "could not be hid" for other reasons; his disciples were with him, and, more than all, he carried about in himself a revelation of love and pity that spoke to every heart. Spiritual influence is a mysterious thing, and yet there are some conditions of its exercise which are only too plainly declared. Matthew has a fuller account, but our evangelist gives us the chief details. The Saviour was touching the great world outside of Judaism, the scene of his greater ministry in the future through the Holy Spirit. The incident is remarkable, as suggesting this universal relation of him who as yet was but a Jewish Rabbi. It tells us the nature of the limitation which hemmed in his work, and how that limitation was to be removed, when he "should open the door of faith to the Gentiles." I. AT THE DOOR OF MERCY. (Verses 25, 26.) 1. The motive. It was not for herself, but her child, whose distress she sought to relieve. The nature of this "unclean spirit." Moral parallels. A mother’s instinct: how near the human affections and family obligations bring us to the gospel! The instinct is a natural one, but tending to the spiritual. She was in the school of sorrow, noble and unselfish sorrow, which searches the heart and awakens the latent forces of the spiritual nature. How many have been brought by such sentiments and experiences to the cross! 2. The attraction. She had heard of him and his merciful works. We all stand in need of mercy, and are insensibly affected as we hear of its exercise upon others. Make known the Saviour, and proclaim his saving grace! The most unlooked-for will come. "Faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God." But now she saw and heard himself. Her great yearning, grieving heart read the lineaments of his countenance, and the character they expressed. "He will not turn me away." Christ, by his spiritual presence in the Word, ever touches human hearts thus, awaking by what he is the deepest longings and most instinctive trust. II. THE DOOR AJAR. (Verse 27.) 1. It sounds like a rebuff. What claims has she upon him? But: 2. Is really a trial of her faith. It sounds logically conclusive, yet is it intended to call forth the inmost spiritual nature. Delays and adverse experiences in prayer should not all at once be accepted as final Prayer is not a mere asking; it is a discipline. Remember Abraham’s importunity. 3. Encouragement is given even under the appearance of refusal. Matthew: tells us of a silence that preceded this; for Christ to speak was itself an omen not to be despised. "First" is a word that hints at postponement, not ultimate rejection. And the picture he sketches is not to be taken literally, but is for the spiritual imagination. As the reasoner, in making an induction, introduces an clement into his reasoning that is not in the facts in themselves, so the petitioner at Heaven’s throne must learn to interpret his experiences, and to sift the rejections that he may discover the elements of hope. Here the petitioner answers the objection by completing the picture in which it is couched. True, it would be wrong to cast the children’s "loaf" to the dogs; but that is not the only conceivable way in which the dogs may be fed. Her Greek experience comes to her assistance. Whilst the Jews hated dogs as "unclean," and could not tolerate them in their houses, the Greeks had a peculiar affection for them, and tamed and trained them to feed from the band. In many a Greek home the dog had its place beside the table or beneath it. And the "crumbs’ found their way there in various ways, either by intention or accident. The term she uses is a diminutive of endearment. The twenty-eighth verse is full of dimmutives—"little dogs," "little children’s," and "little crumbs"—which are full of subtle, tender appeal. This is her argument, then. It is a self-humiliating one, for she is willing to take the dogs’ place. She is not a Jewess—a "child;" she is only a Gentile, and her daughter is "a little dog." And here is the children’s loaf—the Bread of life—at the very edge of the table. May not some "little crumbs" fall over? To such humility, such faith, there can be no refusal; and there was never intended to be one. This is how we must all come to Heaven’s door—vile, miserable sinners, with no claim save upon the mercy of God! III. THE DOOR OPENED. (Verses 29, 30.) 1. It is opened to faith. "For this saying." It was an inspiration of faith. She had found the master-key for all time, and as she used it the door flew open. If we but "ask in faith, nothing wavering," all our petitions will be granted. 2. It is opened by Divine grace. We are not to suppose the request granted because the feeling of Christ was wrought upon. The yielding has only a superficial appearance of being due to constraint. In reality the delay was but interpolated that the faith of the woman might be developed in her own soul and manifested to the Jewish spectators; and so the final answer would be justified on every hand, and prove a blessing to others beside the recipient. The cure is already effected when she returns home. 3. It stands open for ever to such petitioners. The ground of assent to her appeal having been "evidently set forth," she becomes a precedent for all believers to plead. She is the pioneer of all who, not being Jews according to the flesh, are nevertheless children of faithful Abraham according to the spirit. To all who thus believe the invitation is given, "Ask, and ye shall receive; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you."—M. "Ephphatha." A rest, then a fresh journey ("again"). How long the interval we cannot determine. To free him from embarrassment, perhaps danger, and allow time for spiritual meditation. "Tyre and Sidon." The best manuscripts have "through Sidon," which was north of Tyre. "Decapolis:" ten cities, east and southeast of Sea of Galilee; named by the Romans b.c. 65. A favourite scene of our Lord’s labours (cf. Matthew 4:25). In Matthew 15:29-31 a multitude of cases is mentioned. Here one is singled out as an illustration. I. THE CASE. Familiar and ordinary; comparatively helpless; difficult to educate, mentally and spiritually. II. THE CURE. 1. The manner of the great Physician. "They beseech him to lay his hand upon him"—a grand expression. (1) With respect to the people. He does not like the publicity, etc., and so he withdraws the poor man from the excited crowd. (2) With respect to the patient. This step was full of consideration and delicacy. He sought to gain the confidence of the man. How deliberate and thoughtful was his mercy! 2. The means employed. (1) Of what kinds. Physical—touch, saliva. Devotional—a heavenward look, a heavenward sigh. Authoritative—a word, "Ephphatha!" Not used as a charm, but plainly intended to be otherwise understood; a word of the vernacular. (2) He spoke to the man through signs, as he could not understand words. The means were only morally necessary; that the man might have some basis for confidence, intelligence, and faith. He ever desired to be understood. III. THAT WHICH IS . The shut heart of the world, dead to spiritual things. Which is worse? Only the compassion of Christ can save us.—M. BY A. ROWLAND Mark 7:24 (first part) The seclusion of Jesus. Our Lord, during his ministry, frequently sought retirement, and the text mentions one of these occasions. Seclusion is sometimes coveted by his disciples from improper motives, but these found no lodgment in the heart of the sinless One. We sometimes withdraw from active service for God because a feeling of indolence creeps over us, but he constantly found it to be his meat and drink to do the will of his Father in heaven. We sometimes shrink back from suspicions and reproaches in a spirit of cowardice, whereas in Christ there was no trace of the fear of man, that brings a snare. Nor did he ever exhibit the slightest indication of the selfishness which leads us to shut ourselves up in the narrow circle of our petty personal interests. On the contrary, his whole life, the fact of his living here at all, the death which he could easily have averted, conclusively showed that he "came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give his life a ransom for many." We may at once and confidently set aside any explanation of Christ’s withdrawal from a place or people which is drawn from some supposed imperfection in him who was absolutely sinless. At the same time, we must remember that we cannot always discover with certainty the reasons for our Lord’s actions, not only because these are not mentioned by the evangelists, who never try to explain or justify what may be open to misrepresentation, but also because his nature transcended ours, and his acts had issues not only here but in an unseen world. So that whenever we suggest explanations of his conduct, we must say to ourselves, "Lo, these are parts of his ways: but how little a portion is heard of him!" I. WAS GOOD FOR THE LORD HIMSELF. He was as truly the Son of man as the Son of God. His life would not have been complete, it would not have touched ours at so many points, if he had always worked and never waited. Hence, though he had to do a work so stupendous that it would affect the destinies of the world, and of the unseen universe of God, there are no signs in his life of bustle or impatience. He waited thirty years before he preached the gospel; and although he allowed himself only three short years for public ministry, he broke off from it again and again; and when at work he was so unhurried that he could stop in his progress to Jerusalem to heal a blind beggar, or halt on his way to save a dying child in order to heal and teach a poor woman in the crowd that thronged him. What a lesson to us in this fast-living age! What a rebuke to our feverish anxiety and excitement! Doubtless we should have to sacrifice something to break off from work as our Master did; indeed, this is one modern form of taking up our cross to follow him. It will be a fatal mistake to let business hustle prayer out of our life. The busy Christ could sometimes be alone, and he could not have been all he is to us if he had not been so. In the wilderness of temptation he was alone, and the real struggle of every human life is fought out and won in the presence of him who sees in secret. The greatest agony of Christ was endured in solitude; and in our Gethsemane friends fail us, but our God is near. It is good to be alone, if only we are alone with God, as Jesus was. II. THE OF OUR LORD WAS GOOD FOR OTHERS. It was well for the disciples that they should be sometimes withdrawn, with their Master, from circumstances in which they would be harmed by men’s applause or overwrought by nervous excitement; but besides this, Christ’s withdrawal would benefit some who were not his disciples. 1. It was a possible means of grace to his foes. When the rage of the Pharisees was intensely aroused (and no anger is more unreasoning and devilish than that which professedly bases itself on religious conviction), it was well for them that the object of their wrath should disappear for a time. Christ’s withdrawal saved them again and again from the awful crime which they committed at last on Calvary; it allowed for the subsidence of hasty excitement, which prejudiced them, and gave them time and opportunity for recovering better and wiser thoughts about the Lord. The loving Saviour would fain have helped even those who hated him. This entry is longer than a Bible module can hold. The rest is at https://www.sermonindex.net/commentary/pulpit-commentary/ Mark 8:1, Mark 8:2 The opening words of the first verse seem to imply that our Lord remained for some time on this, the north-east, side of the Sea of Galilee. The multitude being very great. The word here rendered "very great" is παμπόλλου, a word not to be found anywhere else in the New Testament. But according to the best authorities, the true reading is πάλινπόλλου; so that the words would run, when there was again a great multitude. It has been supposed with some reason that, as an old ecclesiastical Lection began with this chapter, this may have led to the substitution of παμπόλλου for πάλινπόλλου, in order to make the Lection more complete in itself, avoiding this reference to the context. In the original Greek construction the word ὄχλος, in the singular, is disintegrated in the next clause by a passage into the plural (καὶμὴἐχόντωντίφάγουσι). This is properly marked in the Revised Version by the words, a great multitude, and they had nothing to eat. Our Lord has compassion on them. He desires not only to heal the sick, but to feed the hungry. We may here notice the burning zeal of the multitude. They were so intent upon hearing Christ, that they forgot to provide themselves with the necessaries of life. They continued with him for three days and had nothing to eat. Whatever small supplies they might have Brought with them at first were now exhausted; and still they remained, "esteeming his words to be more than their necessary food." Our Lord on his part was so. full of zeal for their good, that during all that time, with little interval, he had been preaching to them, denying himself rest, refreshment, and sleep. So true were those words of his, "My meat is to do the will of him that sent me, and to finish his work." Mark 8:3 For divers of them came from far. These words, as they stand in the Authorized Version, might be supposed to be an observation thrown in by the evangelist himself. But the correct rendering of ἥκασι, is not "came," but have come, or rather, are come and instead of τινὲςγὰρ at the beginning of the clause, the more correct reading is καὶτινὲς. This change makes the clause almost of necessity to be a part of our Lord’s own words going before. It was not until the third day that our Lord interposed with a miracle, when the people were absolutely without food, and would therefore feel more sensibly the blessing as well as the greatness of the miracle. Their extremity was his opportunity. Mark 8:4 Whence shall one be able to fill these men with bread here in a desert place? St. Matthew (Matthew 15:33) gives the question thus: "Whence should we have so many loaves in a desert place, as to fill so great a multitude?" The disciples, measuring the difficulty by human reason, thought that it was impossible to find so many loaves in the desert. But Christ in this necessity, when human resources fail, supplies Divine; and meanwhile the disciples’ estimate of the impossibility illustrates the grandeur of the miracle. Mark 8:5 The seven loaves and the few small fishes appear to have been the modest provision for our Lord and his disciples. As he often retired into the desert, they were no doubt accustomed to carry small supplies about with them, though poor and scanty. In the former miracle of the multiplying of the loaves (Mark 6:35), we find that their stock consisted of five loaves and two fishes. It was, of course, just as easy for our Lord to multiply the smaller quantity as the larger. But he chose so to order it that the original quantity of food, as well as the number requiring to be fed, should in each case be different, in order that it might be evident that they were different occasions, although the miracles were of the same kind. Mark 8:6 And he commandeth the multitude to sit down (ἀναπεσεῖν)—literally, to recline—on the ground (ἐπὶτῆςγῆς); not the green grass, as before. It was a different season of the year. "He gave thanks." In this expression is included the recognition of the Divine power to enable him to work the miracle. Christ indeed, as God, was able of his own will and by his own power to multiply the loaves. But as man he gave thanks. And yet, as Dr. Westcott excellently remarks, "The thanksgiving was not for any uncertain or unexpected gift. It was rather a proclamation of his fellowship with God. So that the true nature of prayer in the case of our blessed Lord was the conscious realization of the Divine will, and not a petition for that which was contingent." And having given thanks, he brake, and gave to his disciples (ἔκλάσεκαὶἐδίδου). Observe the aorist and the imperfect. The giving was a continual act, till all were filled. Mark 8:8 And they did eat, and were filled (ἐχορτάσθησαν). Wycliffe renders it, "were fulfilled;" according to the original meaning of "to fulfill," namely, "to fill full." And they took up, of broken pieces that remained over, seven baskets—as many as there were loaves. In the record of the other similar miracle, the number of baskets corresponded to the number of the disciples. Here, as in the former miracle, far more food remained after all were fed than the original supply on which our Lord exercised his miraculous power; for each basket would contain much more than one loaf. The Greek word here rendered "basket" (σπυρίς) is a different word from that used for "basket" in the record of the other miracle (Mark 6:43). There it is κόφινος. The κόφινος was a hand-basket of stout wicker-work. The was a much larger basket, made of a more flexible material, perhaps "rushes," like our "frail." It was by means of such a basket, called in Acts 9:25 σπυρίς, but σαργάνη in 2 Corinthians 11:33, that St. Paul was let down through a window at Damascus. This supplies another evidence, if it were needed, that these two recorded miracles took place on different occasions. Cornelius a Lapido mentions an opinion that the σπυρίς was double the size of the κόφινος, a large basket carried by two. Mark 8:10 He entered into a ship (εἰςτὸπλοῖον)—literally, into the boat; probably the same boat which he had ordered to be in attendance upon him (Matthew 3:9)—and came into the parts of Dalmanutha. (Matthew 15:39) has "the coasts of Magdala;" more properly, "the borders of Magaden." This place was in all probability about the middle of the western shore of the Sea of Galilee, where now stand the ruins of the village of El-Mejdel. Mark 8:11 And the Pharisees came forth—St. Matthew (Matthew 16:1) says that the Sadducees came with them—and began to question with him, seeking of him a sign from heaven, tempting him. They had already asked for a sign from heaven (Matthew 12:38); but now this miracle gives them occasion to ask again. For when they saw how greatly it was extolled by the multitudes who had benefited by it, it was easy for them to urge that it was an earthly sign, and might have been wrought by him who is called "the God of this world;" and so they insinuated that he had wrought this miracle as well as his other miracles by the power of Satan. Therefore they seek a sign from heaven, that he who dwells in heaven might thus bear witness that he came from God, and that his doctrine was Divine; the Pharisees probably meant that if he did this they would believe in him as the Messiah, and lead the people to the same faith. The Sadducees, who were practically atheists, thought that no sign could be given from heaven by God, seeing that in their opinion it was doubtful whether there was any God to give it. Mark 8:12 He sighed deeply in his spirit (ἀναστενάξας) Another graphic touch of this evangelist; such as he had learnt in all probability from St. Peter. The word occurs nowhere but here. It is the outcome of grief and indignation, in which, however, grief predominates. There shall no sign be given unto this generation (εἰδοθήσεταισημεῖον). This is a Hebrew idiom, based upon a form of taking an oath which prevailed amongst the Jews. The full form would be, "God do so and so to me, if so and so." Hence the hypothetical part of the clause came to be used alone, expressing a very strong form of denial or refusal. Mark 8:13 And he left them, and again embarking—ἐμβὰς for ἐμβὰςεἰςτὸπλοῖον—departed to the other side. Again and again our Lord crossed this sea, that he might instruct the Galileans dwelling on either side; in fulfillment of Isa 9:1, "The land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali,... by the way of the sea, beyond Jordan, in Galilee of the nations. The people that walked in darkness have seen a great light." Mark 8:14 And they had forgotten (ἐπελάθοντο)—literally, they forgot—to take bread (ἄρτους); loaves. The conversation which follows took place on the boat while they were crossing. The passage would take perhaps six hours. And it was during that time that they would want food; for when they reached the port, they would find it in abundance. Mark 8:15 Beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and the leaven of Herod. St. Matthew (Matthew 15:6) says, "Beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and Sadducees;" thus St. Mark identifies the leaven of the Sadducees with that of Herod. "Leaven" here means "doctrine." They were not to beware of this, so far as the Pharisees rightly taught and explained the Law of Moses; but only so far as they corrupted that Law by their own vain traditions, contrary to the Law of God, St. Luke (Luke 12:11) calls this leaven "hypocrisy;" because the Pharisees only regarded outward ceremonies, and neglected the inward sanctification of the Spirit. St. Jerome says, "This is the leaven of which the Apostle speaks where he says, ’A little leaven leaveneth the whole lump.’ Marcion and Valentinus and all heretics have had this kind of leaven, which is on every account to be avoided. Leaven has this property, that, however small it may be in quantity, it spreads its influence rapidly through the mass. And so if only a little spark of heretical doctrine be admitted into the soul, speedily a great flame arises, and envelopes the whole man." Mark 8:16 According to the most approved readings, this verse should be read thus: And they reasoned one with another, saying, We have no bread. There is something very artless and simple in this narrative. Our Lord speaks of" leaven;" and the mention of this word reminds the disciples that they had forgotten to bring bread with them in the boat; and fearing lest Christ should direct them, according to his wont, to land on some desert shore, they were in some anxiety how they might obtain what they would need; and so they disputed among themselves; one, it may be, throwing the blame upon another. Mark 8:17 And when Jesus knew it (καὶγνοὺςὁἸησοὺς)—literally and far more correctly, and Jesus perceiving it—he saith unto them, Why reason ye, because ye have no bread? Jesus perceived the direction in which their thoughts were moving, by the power of his divinity. It is as though he said, "Why reason ye because ye have no bread, as though I was referring to natural things, and speaking concerning bread for the body, and wishing you to be anxious about that; as though I could not provide that for you, if nccessary, just as easily here on the sea as I did just now in the desert?" Dr. John Lightfoot says, "The rule of the Jews was very strict as to the kind of leaven that was to be used; and the disciples supposed that our Lord was alluding to this when he cautioned them to beware of the leaven of the Pharisees." Perhaps they also thought that our Lord was conveying a silent reproof to them for not having brought a sufficient supply of bread with them. The whole incident, while it shows their transparent simplicity of character, exhibits also their dulness of apprehension. Mark 8:19, Mark 8:20 Here St. Mark is as careful as St. Matthew to mention the details of the two miracles, even to the reference to the two kinds of baskets in which the fragments were gathered up. They had a distinct recollection of the facts, but they had failed to catch their spiritual import. Mark 8:21 How is it that ye do not understand? A better reading here is οὔπω instead of πῶςου). Therefore the words should run, Do ye not yet understand? It is as though our Lord said, "You ought to have perceived, both from my words and from my actions, that I was not speaking concerning earthly leaven or earthly bread, but concerning spiritual doctrine." St. Matthew here (Matthew 16:12) is careful to tell us that this reproof of Christ quickened their intellects, and forced them to understand. Mark 8:22 This miracle is recorded by St. Mark alone. And he cometh to Bethsaida. A better reading is ἔρχονται for ἔρχεται, they come unto Bethsaida. Which Beth-saida? It seems most probable that it was Bethsaida Julias. This Bethsaida was in the tetrarchy of Philip, who improved and adorned it, and named it Julias, in honor of the emperor’s daughter Julia. A reference to Verse 27 seems to make it quite clear that it must have been this Bethsaida, and not the Galilean Bethsaida on the other side of the lake. It is not surprising that there should have been, adjoining this great lake, more than one place called Beth-saida, i.e. the "place of fish." And they bring a blind man unto him, and besought (παρακαλοῦσιν)—literally, beseech—him to touch him. St. Mark is fond of the graphic present. There is here, as at Mark 7:32, something almost like dictating the mode of cure. They seem to have imagined that the healing virtue could not go forth from Christ except by actual contact. Mark 8:23. And he took (ἐπιλαβόμενος)—literally, took hold of—the blind man by the hand, and led him—this is the rendering of ἐξήγαγεν; but a great weight of manuscript authority points to ἐξήνεγκεν as the better reading, brought him—out of the village (ἔξωτῆςκώμης). This Bethsaida was a village; but Philip had raised it to the rank of a city (πόλις), though it still seems to have retained its old appellation. Our Lord "led" or "brought" the blind man out of Beth-saida, for the same reason that he led the deaf and dumb man (Mark 7:33) away from the multitude: (1) for the sake of prayer, that he might collect his mind, and unite himself more closely to God, and pray more intently and earnestly; (2) that he might shun vain-glory and human praise, and teach us to shun it also. And when he had spit on his eyes—this act had a mystical meaning; it was the instrument by which his Deity operated—and laid his hands upon him, he asked him, Seest thou aught? Here were three acts— (1) the spitting, (2) the laying of the hands on him, (3) the questioning of him. We gather from Mark 8:25 that our Lord’s hands were applied to the blind man’s eyes. From the analogy of the miracle in the last chapter (Mark 7:33), we may perhaps infer that our Lord touched the man’s eyes with saliva on his finger, and that the hands were withdrawn before he asked him if he saw aught. Mark 8:24 And he looked up, and said, I see men as trees, walking. He looked ups natural action. He instinctively looked in the direction of the source of light. The words in the Greek of the next clause are as follows:—βλέπωτοὺςἀνθρώπουςὅτιὡςδένδραὁρῶπεριπατοῦντας: I see men; for I behold them as trees, walking; that is, "I see something confusedly and obscurely, not clearly; for I see what I think must be men, and yet so dimly that they look to me like trees, only that I know that men move from their places, whereas trees do not." The word "walking" refers to the men, and not to the trees, as is evident from the Greek. This man, as yet partially blind, saw men as in shadow, magnified by the mist, looking much larger than they really were. Mark 8:25 Then again he laid his hands upon his eyes, and made him look up—this is the Authorized Version rendering of ἐποίησεναὐτονἀναβλέψαι: but the better authenticated reading is simply καὶδιέβλεψε, and he looked steadfastly—and was restored, and saw all things clearly. Now, here it pleased our Lord, not suddenly, but by degrees, to give perfect sight to this blind man. And this he did (1) that he might give examples of different kinds of miracles, showing that" there are differences of operations," and that he, as sovereign Lord, was not absolutely tied to any one particular method of working; and (2) that he might administer his power in increasing measures, as the faith of the recipient waxed stronger; that so he might gradually kindle greater hope and desire in him. It may be that the spiritual condition of this blind man was one which specially needed this gradual method of treatment. Our Lord was a wise and skillful Physician. At first he healed him in part, as one who imperfectly believed; that he who as yet saw little with a little sight, might believe more perfectly, and so be healed at last more perfectly; and thus by this miracle Christ teaches us that for the most part the unbeliever and the sinner is by degrees illuminated by God, so as to advance step by step in the knowledge and worship of God. "By this miracle," says Bede, "Christ teaches us how great is the spiritual blindness of man, which only by degrees, and by successive stages, can come to the light of Divine knowledge." The experiences of this blind man in gradually recovering his eyesight show as in a parable the stages of the spiritual change from absolute darkness to glimmering light, and thence to bright and clear vision. Cornelius a Lapide says, "We see an example of this in children and scholars, who must be taught and instructed by degrees. Otherwise, if the master, impatient of delay and labour, seeks to deliver all things to them at once, he will overwhelm their mind and their memory, so that they will take in nothing; as wine, when it is poured into a narrow-necked vessel, if you attempt to pour in the whole at once, scarcely any will enter, but almost all is wasted." A Lapide adds the well-known Italian proverb, "Piano, piano, siva lontano." Mark 8:26 This verse, according to the best reading, runs thus: And he sent him away to his home, saying, Do not even enter into the village. It thus appears that Bethsaida was not the home of this blind man. He might naturally have wished to exhibit himself in Bethsaida, where many must have known him, and to have sung the praises of his great Benefactor. But this was far from what Christ wished. He wished to be in seclusion. He had no desire to excite more than could be helped the idle curiosity of the multitude. His miracles were for the sake of his doctrine, and not his doctrine for the sake of his miracles. The whole character of his administration was retiring and gentle. "My doctrine shall distil as the dew." "He shall not strive, nor cry; neither shall any hear his voice in the streets." Mark 8:27, Mark 8:28 And Jesus went forth, and his disciples, into the villages of Caesarea Philippi. This verse seems to corroborate the view that the Bethsaida just referred to was Bethsaida Julias. Caesarea Philippi lies at the roots of Libanus. Cornelius a Lapide says that it was originally celled Dan, the place where two little streams united, namely, Jeor and Daniel These two streamlets so united make the Jordan, whence the name Jeer-Dan, or Jordan. But since Pan, the God of shepherds, was better known to the Gentiles than Dan, a Hebrew tribe, it was hence called by them "Paneas.’ It is celled Bahias at the present day. It lay at the extreme north, as Beersheba lay at the extreme south. Hence the phrase, "from Dan even to Beersheba." On this account many neighboring Gentiles, especially the Phoenicians, flocked to this city, as is frequently the case with border towns. And so Christ visited this neighborhood, not only because it presented favorable opportunities to him for teaching Jews and Gentiles alike, but also that he might speak more freely than he could have done in Judaea concerning a Messiah, whom the Jews expected as their king. in Judaea itself, and especially in the neighborhood of Jerusalem, it would have been perilous to speak on such a subject; for the scribes would at once have accused him to the Roman power that he was seeking the kingdom. The student who wishes for further information respecting the site of Caesarea Philippi may consult with advantage Stanley’s ’Sinai and Palestine’ . A more familiar derivation of the Jordan than that given by A Lapide is that of the "descender," from Jarad, "to descend." Our Lord went from Bethsaida Julias directly northwards towards Paneas, named by Philip the Tetrach Caesarea Philippi, to distinguish it from the other Caesarea in Samaria on the Mediterranean coast. It will be observed that he went into the villages of Caesarea Philippi, avoiding the city itself. In the way thither he asked his disciples,... Who do men say that I am? This incident is mentioned also by St. Matthew and St. Luke. St. Luke (Luke 9:18) says that he was alone praying, his disciples being doubtless not far off. According to this evangelist, our Lord says, "Who do the multitudes say that I am? "thus distinguishing them more particularly from his own disciples. The common people among the Jews knew that not long after the Babylonish Captivity the gift of prophecy had ceased amongst their nation. So they thought that Christ was not a new Prophet, but one of the old. They could not but see in him the renewal of the powers of the old prophets, their miracles and their teaching; but there were very few of them who believed that he was the Messiah. The great body of them were offended at his poverty and humility; for they thought that Messiah would appear amongst them with royal state as a temporal king. So that when some said, moved it might be by the sight of his miracles, "This is that Prophet that should come into the world," they did but give utterance to a momentary and fugitive feeling, and not a firm or abiding conviction. The mass of mankind are fickle, easily led to change their opinions. Perhaps some of the Jewish multitude thought that the soul of one of the ancient prophets had entered into Christ, according to the Pythagorean notion of the transmigration of souls; or perhaps they thought that one of the old prophets had risen again in the person of Jesus. For though the Sadducees denied a resurrection, the great body of the Jews believed in it. Some thought that Christ was John the Baptist, because he resembled the Baptist in age (there was only six months difference in ago between them), as he also resembled him in holiness and in fervor of preaching. It was but a short time before, that John the Baptist had been put to death by Herod. His character and actions were fresh in their memories; and Herod himself had given currency to the idea that the Baptist had risen again in the person of our Lord. Then there was Elijah. Some thought that our Lord was Elijah, because it was known that Elijah had not died, and because there was an expectation, founded on Malachi’s prophecy (Malachi 4:5), that he would return. They thought, therefore, that Elijah had returned, and that our Lord was Elijah. Mark 8:29 By this second putting of the question, our Lord warned his disciples that they who had been better instructed ought to think greater things of him than these. It was necessary that he should show them that these current opinions and floating notions were far below his real claims. Therefore he says with emphasis, But who say ye that I am?—ye, my disciples, who, being always with me, have seen me do far greater things than they; ye, who have listened to my teaching, confirmed as it has been by those miracles; ye, who yourselves also have been enabled to work many miracles in my name;—who say ye that I am? Peter answereth and saith unto him, Thou art the Christ. St. Peter here spoke as the mouthpiece of the rest. The suddenness and terseness of the answer is eminently characteristic of St. Peter. In St. Matthew’s narrative it is given a little more in full, "Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God." But the strength of the answer really lies in St. Mark’s words, "Thou art the Christ," that is, the promised Messiah. What, however, St. Mark does omit hero—a circumstance not to be passed without notice—is the great blessing pronounced by our Lord upon St. Peter (Matthew 16:17-19) as the reward of his confession. The explanation of this omission is to be found in the fact that this Gospel is really for the most part St. Peter’s Gospel, recorded by St. Mark. It has already been observed, that, as far as it is possible to do so, considering Peter’s prominent position amongst the other apostles, he retires into the background. It was necessary that it should be recorded that he made the good confession of our Lord as the Messiah; but beyond this the evangelist suppresses all mention of the distinction subsequently conferred upon him, although the rebuke which he afterwards received is recorded in full. It is, moreover, a significant circumstance (noticed in the ’Speaker’s Commentary’) that this Gospel was written at Rome, and in the first instance for Roman readers. Mark 8:30 And he charged them (επετίμησεν)—a strong word, implying almost rebuke, he strictly charged them—that they should tell no man of him. Why was this? There were many reasons for this reticence. The state of parties in Palestine was most inexpedient for such a disclosure at that time. Those who were favorable to his cause would have wanted at once to take him by force and make him a king. In fact, some of them made no secret of their intentions (John 6:15). Those, on the other hand, who were opposed to him were only watching their opportunity to destroy him. Moreover, his own disciples had yet many things to learn; and besides all this, faith in his Godhead would be easier when his death should have been followed by his glorious resurrection and ascension. Mark 8:31 And he began to teach them, that the Son of man must suffer many things, etc. In St. Matthew’s narrative he says (Matthew 16:21), "From that time began Jesus to show unto his disciples," etc.—from the time, that is, of this great confession; from the time when he had openly acknowledged to his disciples the truth of his essential Divinity; from that time he began to instruct them as to his passion and his death. There are two great principles of faith, namely, (1) the Divinity and the humanity of Christ, and (2) his cross and passion, whereby he has redeemed the world. And it was necessary that the disciples should be thus instructed in his amazing dignity as the Son of God, lest, when they saw him put to death, they might doubt as to his Godhead. And after three days rise again. St. Matthew and St. Luke say, "on the third day"—the day of his death counting for one, and the day of his resurrection for another, with one clear day intervening. Mark 8:32 And he spake the saying openly (παῤῥησία); literally, without reserve. This sudden announcement excited St. Peter. It was a new and startling communication. Peter took him, and began to rebuke him. The word προσλαβόμενος indicates that he "took hold of him," to lead him apart, as though to have the opportunity of warning him with the greater familiarity and secrecy. So say St. Chrysostom and others. Peter would not have his own confession of Christ thus evacuated, as it were; nor does he think it possible that the Son of God could be slain. So he takes him apart, lest he should seem to reprove him in the presence of the other disciples; and then he says (Matthew 16:22), "Mercy on thee, Lord (ἵλεώςσοιΚύριε): this shall never be unto thee." Mark 8:33 But he turning about, and seeing his disciples, rebuked Peter. The words indicate a sudden movement (ὁδὲἐπιστραφεὶς), accompanied by a keen searching look at his disciples. Then he singles out Peter, and addresses to him, in their presence, the severe rebuke, Get thee behind me, Satan: for thou savourest not (οὐφρονεῖς)—literally, thou mindest not—the things of God, but the things of men. The form of words is the same as that used by our Lord to Satan himself, when he was tempted by him in the wilderness. It reminded him of that great conflict. The visions of worldly glory again floated before him. The crown without the cross was again held out to him. This explains his language. Peter was indeed rebuked; but the rebuke was aimed through him at the arch adversary who was addressing him through Peter. Here is the striking significance of his "turning about." Peter was for the moment doing the tempter’s work, and in "turning about" our Lord was again putting Satan behind him. Mark 8:34 He called unto him the multitude with his disciples. This shows that there was an interval between what had just taken place and what is now recorded. Our Lord now, without any further special reference to St. Peter, delivers a lesson of universal application; although, no doubt, he had Peter in his mind. If any man would (εἴτιςθέλει) come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me. This self-denial ought to extend to everything, even to life itself, which we ought to be willing to resign, if need be, for the sake of Christ. Take up his cross. It is as though he said, "Let him take up his cross, as I have borne my cross, that I might be the standard-bearer and Leader of all cross-bearers—I, who carried the cross on which I was to be crucified to the mount of Calvary." St. Luke (Luke 9:23) adds the words (καθἡμέραν), "daily:" "let him take up his cross daily;" thus showing that "every day," and often "at every hour," something occurs which it becomes us to bear patiently and bravely, and so on continually through our whole life. He takes up his cross who is crucified to the world. But he to whom the world is crucified follows his crucified Lord. This cross assumes various forms; such as persecution and martyrdom, affliction and sorrow of whatever kind, appointed by God; temptations of Satan, permitted by God for our trial, to increase our humility and virtue, and to make brighter our crown. Mark 8:35 Because the cross is sharp and afflicting, our Lord animates his followers to bear it by the thought of its great and everlasting rewards. The meaning of the verse is this: he who by trying to shun the cross and to escape self-denial would save his life here, will lose it hereafter. But he who loses his life here for the sake of Christ, either by dying in his cause or by denying and mortifying his lusts out of love for him, he in the life to come shall find his life in the bosom of Christ and in eternal joy. Mark 8:36 What doth it profit a man, to gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? (ζημιωθῆναι); literally, forfeit his life (ψυχή). The word ψυχή in the Greek, originally meaning simply "breath," as the sign of life, is of very comprehensive import, embracing not merely "the breath of life," but also the "soul," or immortal part of man, as distinguished from his mortal body, also the mind or understanding, as the organ of thought. "Life" seems here to be the best English synonym, as being, like the Greek ψυχή, the more comprehensive term. Mark 8:37 In exchange (ἀντάλλαγμα) for his life. The Greek term here means an "equivalent," "a compensation." The" life," in its largest sense and meaning, defies all comparison, surpasses all value. It has been bought and redeemed with the precious blood of Christ; therefore the whole world would be a poor price for the soul of one man. Mark 8:38 Our Lord here looks onward to the day of judgment. Whosoever shall be ashamed of me. "Whosoever:" the word includes all, whatever their position or circumstances may be. "Shall be ashamed of me;" that is, shall deny my faith, or blush to confess me here. Of him shall the Son of man be ashamed; that is, Christ will despise him, when he shall appear with power and great glory, in that sublime majesty which he gained by his death upon the cross. In this adulterous and sinful generation. It adds to the disgrace of being ashamed of Christ that the shame is manifested in the presence of the base and the worthless; and therefore our Lord exhibits the contrast between the mean and contemptible people in the presence of whom men are ashamed of him here, and the magnificent assemblage in whose presence he will be ashamed of them hereafter. The cross of Christ appeared to the great body of mankind to be shameful and contemptible. To the Jews it was a stumbling-block, and to the Greek’s foolishness. Hence vast numbers, whether through shame or fear, did not dare to confess it, and still less to preach it. And therefore it is that St. Paul says (Romans 1:16), "I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ." Mark 8:1-10 The Giver of bread. That the miracle of feeding the multitude should be repeated, and that two evangelists should record both events, is a testimony to the generous and considerate kindness of the Saviour, and to the instructive nature of the sign. We discern in this narrative an illustration I. CHRIST’S . A great multitude followed him to listen to his teaching, and were so absorbed in his words as to neglect attention to their bodily wants. Far from home, and without a supply of food, they hungered. Eating of the spiritual bread, they were satisfied in their souls. But they had bodily wants also. II. CHRIST’S . A man himself, Jesus was touched with a feeling of human infirmities. He had known hunger. The people had come from far; they had remained in the neighborhood where he was for three days; their little stock of provisions was exhausted, and, should he send them away fasting, many might faint upon the road. All this Jesus thought of, and his sympathy was aroused. He had compassion, not only upon their souls, but upon their bodies. III. CHRIST’S USE OF HUMAN AND MEANS. Jesus might doubtless have created bread of stones, as the tempter had once challenged him to do. But he chose to use what provisions were at hand, and to make the few loaves and fishes which the disciples held as a reserve of food, the basis, so to speak, of his miraculous action. The Lord does not despise, or dispense with, human means or human agencies. As on this occasion he directed his disciples to distribute the bread they had, so ever does he use his people and their powers and possessions as means of good to their fellow-men. IV. CHRIST’S IN . Being himself the Son of the Father, he yet, in the name of the dependent children, acknowledged the bounty and beneficence of the Giver of all. V. CHRIST’S POWER. We are not told how it came to pass, but it is recorded that the four thousand found the slender provision sufficient for all their wants. When the Saviour provides, there is always enough and more than enough for all. VI. CHRIST’S AND ECONOMY. The Lord was liberal, but not lavish. There was no waste in his arrangements. The broken pieces that remained were gathered, and doubtless saved and used. Because he miraculously supplied what was needed, it did not follow that he would suffer anything to be wasted and lost. Whence shall man’s soul be fed? God’s creatures are altogether and for ever dependent upon him. It is not now and then only that our Creator and Lord interposes upon our behalf, to supply our wants and to relieve our distresses. There are times when we specially recognize, and occasions when we specially feel, his care. But his bounty and watchfulness are, in fact, unceasing. "In him we live, and move, and have our being;" "He openeth his hand, and satisfieth the desires of every living thing." Bread for the body, and bread for the soul, alike are `from him. Our daily bread is his daily gift, and our daily remembrancer of him the Giver. In most cases the provision is so regular, by reason of fruitful seasons, by which he fills us with joy and gladness, that men take the gifts of his providence as a matter of course, and are (in instances) only now and then reminded of their dependence when he withholds his bounties. Our souls equally wait upon him, and to them he also giveth "their portion in due season." The sinless beings above doubtless receive from him abundant spiritual good, in an unceasing stream. If our human spirits are not constantly and of course enriched by his Spirit, it is not that his loving-kindness is little or intermittent; it is because our sin prevents us from receiving what is, to believing, lowly, and obedient natures, ever accessible. There is, accordingly, something altogether special in the supply provided for the deep and everlasting needs of human spirits. The unfallen angels, by reason of their purity, have constant fellowship with God, and doubtless are daily fed from his presence, and drink of the stream of his life. But we—poor, sinful children of men—need to be dealt with in a way Divine wisdom alone can devise, to suit the emergency of our position. The plenty of the Divine granary must be brought to our perishing souls by a heavenly interposition and grace. It is in Christ Jesus, the Son of the Eternal Father, that the bread of God becomes the bread of man. Needy, and therefore longing for spiritual food; sinful, and therefore unable to obtain and partake of such food, except in the way Infinite wisdom and grace may open up to us,—we are in a pitiable case until the beneficent Father sends unto us a heavenly and all-sufficient supply. No fellow-creature can give what our circumstances demand and our nature craves; no fellow-creature can satisfy the necessities of one suppliant, far less those of the unnumbered race of humanity. "From whence can a man satisfy these men with bread here in the wilderness?" I. This language suggests THE CRY OF THeE HUNGRY FOR BREAD, Man cannot "live by bread alone." Unless he change his nature, or blunt its urgencies, and stifle its voice, it calls aloud for God. "Far and wide, though all unknowing, Pants for thee each mortal breast; Human tears for thee are flowing, Human hearts in thee would rest." Oftentimes do men try to misinterpret this utterance, to persuade themselves that it is not God they want; that they are as the brutes, to which due fodder and litter and shelter suffice for satisfaction and enjoyment. When one looks upon the vain endeavours of misguided, self-deluded men, one cannot help crying aloud, in the memorable language of the Hebrew prophet, "Wherefore do ye spend money for that which is not bread, and your labour for that which satisfieth not?" There is a deep-seated longing, a recurring appetite, which prompts all men in whom is any spiritual vitality at all to look for more than earth, than man, can give. We ask for truth, for without truth—and especially truth concerning God—is no satisfaction possible to the created soul. "Oh that I knew where I might find him!"—him, my Maker, Lord, and Judge; that I might know why he has made me, why he has stationed me here on earth, what is the purpose of his wisdom concerning me! Mock me not with dust and stones, but give me bread indeed, even the true knowledge of God! And as conscience assures each child of man that, if this God whom he fain would know take any interest in him, he cannot but remark his disobedience and his errors, the heart within calls aloud for the favor and acceptance of the great King. "How shall a man be just with God?" "Wherewithal shall I come into his presence? Will he "lift the light of his countenance" upon me, and be gracious to me? Must my sins be a barrier between me and my God; or can he, will he, overturn and cast them away, and admit me to his grace and fellowship and peace? Turning his regard inward upon himself, and perceiving his own helplessness in the struggle which is not to be avoided, the poor and feeble child of man asks for strength. How shall I gain strength for duty in times of weakness and temptation? How realize the intention of the Creator concerning me, that I shall enter into the conflict, sustain its toils, brave its dangers, and come forth victorious? And when the day of suffering and the night of sorrow come, can the human soul find comfort in the lessons of human philosophy, in the balm of human sympathy? Alas! these cannot suffice. Nor can aught truly soothe and effectually succor the weak and weary, the sad and lonely, the bereaved and dying, save the hand which fashioned the soul and made it susceptible to anguish—the heart that, by a Divine sympathy and consolation, heals the wounds that it permits. And when "heart and flesh fail," who but the Creator and Saviour can prove "the Strength of the heart, and its Portion for evermore" ? No human plummet can fathom the river all must cross, no human hand uphold the feeble, trembling feet amidst the dark, cold waters. Be sure of this: as long as man retains a nature higher than that of brutes that perish, so long as his heart is subject to grief, his life is surrounded by trouble, his nature prone to sin; so long he will ever and anon cry out for supernatural succor and comfort, and call upon his God. Spiritual hunger is no fancy of the sentimental, no artificial demand of the leisurely and cultivated. It is a fact—a fact which is not to be denied, and without considering which, our view of our human nature and our knowledge of ourselves must needs be incomplete and delusive. Bread for his soul man will ask for, and, unless he have it, he will hunger, pine, and perish! II. This language suggests THE SILENCE OF THE TO THIS APPEAL. Out beyond the Lake of Tiberius, away from towns and villages, in the solitudes of the green hillsides, how was the want of the multitude to be supplied? Blades of grass were not ears of corn, stones were not bread. "Here in the wilderness" was no answer to the demand of the hungering—none! The wilderness could only leave those to perish who trusted to its tender mercies. An emblem of the world’s powerlessness to meet the case of our spiritually dependent and hungering race! The world is the scene of our trial and proving, the occasion of our manifold temptations. Of what use is it to look to it for sympathy, succor, strength, and salvation? It cannot satisfy you, search and prove it how you may. Is that rich and luscious fruit that hangs from yonder bough? Alas! it is the apple of the Dead Sea, dust and ashes between the teeth. Is that a lake of sweet, pellucid waters which gleams in the glowing sun in yonder hollow? Alas! it is the mirage of the desert, which mocks the thirsty travelers, offering them sand for water. So with the pretences of the world to satisfy the hungering soul. These pretences are vanity and delusion. Equally vain to help, though more honest, is the world, when its response is otherwise. It sometimes acknowledges its utter powerlessness: none to help, none to pity, none to deliver and to save I Whilst some who reject and despise the message of religion abandon themselves to selfish and worldly aims, and seek to still the voice of conscience and to repress the aspirations of the soul in the pursuits of pleasure, pelf, or power, there are others in whose breasts is no peace and no hope. They cry aloud in the wilderness; but no answer comes to them, save the mocking echoes from the hard, dead rock. No truth, no law, no grace, no hope, no heaven, no God! Such is their interpretation of the echoes of the desert. And we cannot wonder that, incredulous of every higher, better message, they abandon themselves to doubt, despondency, despair. From this cheerless and desolate prospect, let us turn to facts fitted to gladden every depressed and anxious heart. III. The language suggests to us THE DIVINE OF THE BREAD OF LIFE. When the disciples of Jesus asked him this question, "Whence shall one be able to satisfy these men with bread here in the wilderness?" they must have been thinking of their own inability. For they could not have forgotten how, not far from this very spot and not long since, their Master had fed five thousand men with five loaves and two fishes. If they had been there without him, they might have been as helpless as they were when the father of the lunatic boy brought his son into their presence, and entreated their compassion and aid. But the Lord Jesus was himself the answer to this inquiry. He had but to bless the bread, and distribute it by the hands of the disciples, and, for even so vast a multitude, there was "bread enough and to spare." Thousands were fed when Jesus was the Master of the feast. No miracles were more evidently and decisively than these of feeding the thousands, parables concerning Christ himself. St. John has recorded the discourse which our Saviour uttered in Capernaum, in which Jesus asserted his own mission and office and power. "My Father," said he, "giveth you the true Bread from heaven. For the Bread of God is he which cometh down from heaven, and giveth life unto the world.… I am the Bread of life: he that cometh to me shall never hunger; and he that believeth on me shall never thirst." In this language our Divine Lord evidently referred to that marvellous incident in the history of Israel when the wants of the people were supplied by daily provision of manna in the wilderness. More especially he brought before the minds of his hearers the great fact that the supply of human wants is due to the grace and interposition of God himself. Bread does not come to us from the wilderness, but it comes to us in the wilderness; and it is the Father above who sends it—none but he! Obviously, the figurative language in which Christ describes himself appeals to our best, purest, most sacred feelings. God is the Father, who will not leave his children without bread. He cares for his spiritual family, considers their wants, hears their cry, and in his wisdom and love secures for them all that he sees to be for their good. Our Lord Jesus Christ is himself the Divine provision for the needs of men. "He that eateth the flesh, and drinketh the blood of Christ, has life eternal." For it must be borne in mind that the heavenly Father who has given us his Son, has in him virtually given us all the resources of his boundless compassion and grace. "He who spared not his own Son, but delivered him up for us all, how shall he not with him also freely give us all things?" Do our hearts cry aloud for spiritual truth? God gives us this in Christ, who is himself the Truth—the revelation of the Father’s mind and will. The heart that finds "Immanuel—God with us," finds God himself—for Christ is "the brightness of the Father’s glory"—reads the writing of God’s own hand, hears the utterances of Truth Divine. "He that hath seen me," says Christ, "hath seen the Father." Is our heart restless until assured of the forgiveness and the favor of our God? Hungry for the smile of Heaven, does it turn heavenward a wistful gaze? God in Christ gives us this first great necessity of the sinful soul. Jesus came to call sinners to repentance, but he came at the same time to assure the penitent of pardon—the purchase of his precious blood. What bread is to the hungry, that is pardon to the contrite, humbled, suppliant transgressor. And this is the gift of Christ, who came with "power on earth to forgive sins." Do we feet an inner craving for a strength which we do not find within ourselves—for a power which shall uphold us in the labour and the conflict of this earthly life? Not only to know the will of God but to do it—this is the want of man’s soul. Power to do this is bread to his hungering nature. Do you not, indeed, when you best know yourselves, feel that truly to live you must have strength to live to God? And who but God himself can impart this strength? It is given in Jesus. Eat of this bread, and labour shall be sweet and work welcome. His meat and drink was to do the will of him who sent him, and to finish his work. And in his people is "the mind of Christ." Does not the sorrowful i and tempted soul—the soul oppressed by the infirmities of the flesh and the ills of life—hunger for a consolation not to be found from the wilderness? Who of us has not felt this, in seasons of grief and anxiety? Surely, God knows the heart which he has fashioned; he reads its laments, he witnesses its struggles, he comprehends its fears. It was to allay our anxiety, to assuage our griefs, that Jesus dwelt on earth, wept our tears, tasted the bitterness of our death; that he might be a "High Priest touched with the feeling of our infirmities." As long as "man is born to sorrow," so long shall the "Man of sorrows, acquainted with grief," be the dearest Friend the heart can know. Jesus is a "brother born for adversity." "But what to those who find? Ah! This Nor tongue nor pen can show; The love of Jesus, what it is None but his loved ones know," IV. This language suggests THE FOUND BY THOSE WHO PARTAKE OF THIS FOOD. We read in the Gospel that, when the great Lord of nature and of men miraculously supplied the wants of the hungering crowds," they did all eat, and were filled." In this they prefigured all who, in every land and age, should feed by faith upon the Son of God. Of him it may truly be said, "He filleth the hungry soul with goodness." Three remarks may be made upon the power of the Lord Jesus to appease the spiritual hunger and to supply the spiritual wants of men. He is sufficient for each, sufficient for all, sufficient for evermore. Each soul, however drawn or driven to Christ—driven by the desperation of want, or drawn by the excellence and abundance of the Divine supply—finds in him all that he himself has promised. To believe, to trust, to love, to follow Christ,—this is to appropriate him, to prove and learn his Divine sufficiency. "He that cometh to me," says Jesus," shall never hunger; and he that believeth on me shall never thirst." The same faith which first reveals Christ to the soul, and stays its hunger, is the means of attaching the soul to Christ and the means by which the soul finds in him all the fullness of God. For he of God is made unto his people "wisdom and righteousness, sanctification and redemption." The bounty of the Lord Jesus is unrestricted. As the vast multitude of his auditors were fed by his beneficence—as men, women, and children all ate and had enough, so that basketsful of fragments were taken up—so throughout this wide world its teeming and varied populations are all destined to find in him the Saviour of mankind. "I," said he, "if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw all men unto me." Untold myriads have feasted at the table of Christ, and none have risen hungry and dissatisfied. Still have the ministers of his grace the privilege of announcing to the starving children of men, "’ Yet there is room.’ Come ye in, that the guests may be many and the tables filled. ’Eat ye that which is good, and let your soul delight itself in fatness.’" Still further to enhance the conception of the preciousness of the great salvation, let it be remembered that it is an unfailing, an everlasting, an imperishable satisfaction which is to be found in Jesus Christ. He that eats of earthly bread and drinks of earthly streams hungers and thirsts again; but he who, by Divine mercy, feeds on heavenly food and drinks of the living water hungers and thirsts no more. For him is provided a perpetual feast, an immortal satisfaction and content. Generation succeeds generation, and age follows age. The experience of humanity is prolonged from century to century. Opportunity is given to every system, to every creed, to every philosophy, to deal with the deep and spiritual necessities of mankind. As one attempt of human wisdom succeeds another, and as each fails in its turn, we hear in our soul within us the cry arise, suggested by human effort and by human powerlessness, "From whence can a man satisfy these men with bread here in the wilderness?" There is no answer. None has been given; none can be given. Happy are we who hear a voice, Divine alike in sweetness and authority, rising above the plaint of the hungry, or breaking the silence of the baffled and the helpless, and uttering forth the welcome declaration of pity and of love, "I am the Bread of life" ! And happier still if, convinced of the sincerity and the power of this Divine and compassionate Benefactor, prompted by our human need, and guided by the Spirit of God, we respond, in faith and gratitude and poise, "Lord, evermore give us this Bread’! Mark 8:11-13 Signs. This was not an isolated case of the demands on the part of the Jewish leaders that Jesus should work some miracle which they might receive as a sign from heaven. And it was not only during our Saviour’s ministry that they preferred such a request. For Paul had occasion long afterwards to complain of the Jews that they "required a sign," and were dissatisfied with the doctrines and with the evidences of Christianity. I. THE REQUEST OF THE . These men made a point of seeing Jesus, and seem, on this as on other occasions, to have come as a deputation from his adversaries. 1. What was it they asked? Not an ordinary miracle, for such Jesus had already repeatedly and publicly performed. It was a sign, not from himself, but from heaven. Any wonder he might work they would attribute to magic or to Beelzebub. But, such was their profession, if he would furnish them with some splendid celestial portent—if he would give bread from heaven or stay the sun in its course—then they would be convinced of his Messiahship. 2. Why did they ask such a sign? They were tempting, testing him—putting him to the proof. Had he complied with their wish, they would have seen in him the Messiah they wanted—one prepared probably to wield supernatural power for personal aggrandizement and for political dominion. Should he refuse, they would be confirmed in their rejection of his claims. II. THE REFUSAL OF CHRIST. Observe: 1. The feeling with which he refused. "He sighed deeply in his spirit." Had they come asking for healing, relief, assistance, he would have joyfully complied; but it grieved him to the heart that they should come thus. And he read in their conduct the sign of a widespread carnality, unspirituality, and unbelief. 2. He disapproved of the spirit in which the request had been made. He was not only pained by it, he censured and condemned it. They who came, came to carp and criticize, and confirm themselves in their unbelief. 3. He had already given evidence enough to justify the faith of such as were candid and open to conviction. He had wrought miracles so many and of such a kind as might assure the thoughtful and spiritually susceptible that he was from God. 4. He knew that what they asked for, if granted, would not convince them. The deficiency was not in him; it was in themselves. The principle was applicable, "If they hear not Moses and the prophets," etc. 5. There was one great sign yet to be given, in God’s time—a sign that should surpass all granted in the olden days; a sign that should leave all unbelievers without excuse—his resurrection from the dead. Mark 8:14-21 Misunderstanding. The evangelists have left untold much which we would fain know, and they have recorded some things which our unwisdom would have dispensed with. The incident here recorded seems trivial, and the conversation arising upon it commonplace. Yet it was not without a purpose that two evangelists were directed to preserve this passage in our Lord’s ordinary life. I. THE WARNING WHICH THE . Christ’s ministry of teaching seems to have been one long protest against the current doctrines and practices of the religious leaders of the time. The Pharisees were very generally formalists, and the Herodians secularists, and against both tendencies our Divine Lord’s opposition was unceasing and uncompromising. Using figurative language, Jesus cautioned his disciples against the leaven, i.e. the influence, of such errors as were characteristic of these religious schools. Although they were so much in his society and so attached to his ministry, they were not deemed by the Master beyond the need of this wise and faithful admonition. II. THE WHICH THEY PUT UPON HIS WORDS. The word "leaven" reminded them of bread, and the thought of bread reminded them of their negligence in not having made proper provision for their journey. But their misunderstanding was scarcely due to their oversight; it was rather the consequence of their own slowness of mind to take in their Master’s manner of speech. We do not trace impatience, but we do trace a certain dissatisfaction and reproachfulness, in the Lord’s language: "Do yo not yet perceive, neither understand?" How often has Christ occasion thus to expostulate with his too unspiritual and inappreciative disciples! We often take Christ’s words too literally, without that discernment and sympathy which a wise and gracious Master expects from his scholars. III. THE BY WHICH CHRIST THEIR . 1. They should have known him better than so to misapprehend him. Where were their eyes, their ears, their heart? Had they been susceptible and active, surely a truer, a loftier judgment would have been formed of the Christ, the Son of God. In this case they would not have supposed that he was troubling himself or them with such a trifle as now excited their concern. 2. They should have better remembered the past, especially the occasions upon which the Lord had supplied the wants of multitudes in the exercise of his omnipotence. Such a recollection would have saved them from the misapprehension into which they had fallen. . Christ’s words are to be understood in the light of his nature and his works. To understand what Christ says we must think of him aright, and we must study his teaching in the light of the wonderful deeds which he has performed for the relief and the salvation of mankind. It is want of sympathy and of remembrance which often leads to misunderstanding. He that will do the Divine will shall know of the doctrine. Mark 8:22-26 Sight for the blind. Every form of human privation, suffering, and infirmity which came under the notice of Christ elicited his compassion and his healing mercy, and every such disorder was treated by him as a symptom of the moral malady which afflicts mankind. The diversity of his miracles of healing may serve to represent his power and willingness to restore our sinful humanity, afflicted with many and various ills, to spiritual soundness and health. In this miracle we observe— I. A SYMBOL OF THE OF . The blind man of Bethsaida may not have been born blind; but his sightless state was well known, and excited the commiseration of his neighbors and acquaintances, who led him to the great Healer and Enlightener of men, that he might touch and cure him. He is an emblem of this humanity, darkened in understanding, incapable of discerning truth, blind to moral beauty, to heavenly glory. II. A SYMBOL OF BY DIVINE CONTACT. Jesus treated this man in a way appropriate to his condition and infirmity. He appealed to the sense of touch, for there was no sense of sight to which to appeal. He led the blind man by the hand, took him apart, spat on his eyes, laid his hands upon him. All this was to make the patient feel that the Divine Physician was there, was interested in him, was working for his cure. It was to reveal his own presence and to call forth the sufferer’s faith. And there is no salvation for any by merely hearing or reading about Jesus Christ. The spiritually blind cannot experience his illuminating power except by coming to him in faith. If he enter the heart, reveal his truth and love and power, come into immediate contact with the springs of the spiritual nature and life, then the mind, before insensible to the light of Heaven, begins to appreciate the great realities of being—the nature, the character, the will, of a holy God and Father. III. A SYMBOL OF THE OF . The most noticeable feature of this miracle is the way in which the cure was wrought—gradually and progressively. Why Jesus did not effect the result at once does not appear. It may have been to teach us how difficult and slow is the process of human illumination, even by the gospel and the Spirit of God. As at first the man saw human figures, which appeared like trees, hut moved, so that even his half-recovered vision judged them men; so those to whom the light of the gospel first comes often discern but dimly those spiritual facts and relations which time and experience and Divine teaching will render more vivid and distinct. It is not to be expected that young Christians or recent converts shall understand all such truth as is comparatively clear to the mature and instructed. God’s ways herein are like his ways in other departments of his government; order and progression are characteristics of his reign. IV. A SYMBOL OF THE POWER OF CHRIST TO EFFECT . After the further application of the wonder-working hands of Jesus, it is recorded that the blind man "was restored, and saw all things clearly." So in God’s light we shall see light. He hath "shined into our hearts." We shall "see God." The vision shall brighten here; and it shall be more than bright-it shall he glorious—hereafter. BY A.F. MUIR Mark 8:1-15 —M. Seeking for a sign. Christ knew at once what this meant. He "knew what was in man," and refused to commit himself to the pretended inquirers. We have a more difficult course to pursue. I. THE OF THE DEMAND DEPENDS UPON . It may be made in an honest, inquiring spirit, or in order to injure religion. In the former case too much consideration can hardly be given to it, as it is the indispensable preliminary to rational conviction, and the gospel offers evidence for its claims. The spirit in which the inquiry is made may be determined by: 1. The character of those who inquire. Bad men may be genuine inquirers, but it is well to know their antecedents. Christ could read the underlying design of the Jews. It may reasonably be expected that inquirers should give some proof of their sincerity, especially if already furnished with many evidences. 2. The kind of sign asked for. Here it was "a sign from heaven," i.e. differing from the miracles and previous manifestations of Christ. This implied that they were insufficient, and indirectly pronounced judgment upon the previous words and works of Christ. A question may sometimes reveal a more thorough scepticism than a dogmatic denial. Whilst apparent liberty is given as to what particular sign might be produced, there is really a tone of dictation and unseemly assumption. This entry is longer than a Bible module can hold. The rest is at https://www.sermonindex.net/commentary/pulpit-commentary/ Mark 9:1 Till they see the kingdom of God come with power. In St. Matthew 16:28 the words run thus: "Till they see the Son of man coming in his kingdom." In St. Luke 9:27, "Till they see the kingdom of God." All these evangelists connect their record of the Transfiguration with these predictive words—a circumstance which must not be lost sight of in their interpretation. The question, therefore, is whether or how far the Transfiguration is to be regarded as a fulfillment of these words. One thing seems plain, that the Transfiguration, if a fulfillment at all, was not an exhaustive fulfillment of the words. The solemnity of their introduction forbids us to limit them to an event which would happen within eight days of their utterance. But there was an event impending, namely, the destruction of Jerusalem, involving the overthrow of the Jewish polity, which, coming as it did within forty or fifty years of the time when our Lord uttered these words, might reasonably have been expected to take place within the lifetime of some of those then standing there. And that great catastrophe was frequently alluded to by our Lord as a type and earnest of the great judgment at the end of the world. What relation, then, did the Transfiguration hold to these two events and to the prediction contained in this verse? It was surely a prelude and pledge of what should be hereafter, specially designed to brace and strengthen the apostles for the sight of the sufferings of their Master, and to animate them to endure the toil and the trials of the Christian life. So that the Transfiguration was an event, so to speak, parenthetic to this prediction—a preliminary manifestation, for the special advantage of those who witnessed it; though given also "for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the world are come." Such were the views of St. Hilary, St. Chrysostom, St. Ambrose, and others. "When our Lord was transfigured," says St. Jerome, "he did not lose his form and aspect, but he appeared to his apostles as he will appear at the day of judgment." And elsewhere he says, "Go forth a little out of your prison, and place before your eyes the reward of your present labor, Which ’the eye hath not seen, nor the ear heard, neither hath it entered into the heart of man.’" Mark 9:2, Mark 9:3 After six days. St. Luke 9:28 says, "About eight days after these sayings." There is no real discrepancy here. There were six whole days that intervened between our Lord’s words and the Transfiguration itself. Jesus taketh with him Peter, and James, and John. He chose these three, as the leaders amongst the disciples, and he showed to them his glory, because he intended also to show them afterwards his bitter agony in the garden. This magnificent splendor—this "excellent glory," as 2 Peter 1:17 describes it—this, together with the voice of the Father," This is my beloved Son," would assure them that Christ was truly God, but that his essential Deity was hidden by the veil of the flesh; and that, although he was about to be crucified and slain, yet his Godhead could not suffer or die. It was an evidence beforehand, a prospective evidence, that he underwent death, even the death of the cross, not constrained by infirmity or necessity, but of his own will, for the redemption of man. It was plain that, since he could thus invest his body with this Divine glory, he could have saved himself from death if he had so willed. He taketh with him Peter, and James, and John. St. Peter’s reference to the transfiguration (just alluded to) shows what a deep and abiding impression it made on his mind. St. James, too, was there, as one who was to be amongst the first to die for his sake. St. John also was with them, who, having seen the glory of the Son of God, which is subject to no limits of time, might be bold to send forth his grand testimony, "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God." And bringeth them up into a high mountain apart by themselves. "It is necessary for all," says Remigius, "who desire to contemplate God, that they should not grovel amidst low thoughts and desires, but ever be lifted up to heavenly things. And thus our Lord was teaching his disciples that they must not look for the brightness of the Divine glory in the depths of this world, but in the kingdom of heavenly blessedness. And he leads them apart, because holy men are in intention and desire separated from evil, as they will be altogether separated from it in the world to come. For they who look for the glories of the resurrection ought now in heart and mind to dwell on high, and to seek these glories by continual prayer." Into a high mountain. A tradition of the time of Jerome identifies this mountain with Tabor, in Galilee. But there are two weighty objections to this view: (1) that our Lord was at this time in the neighborhood of Caesarea Philippi, a considerable distance from Tabor, and (2) that there is strong reason for believing that Tabor had at this time a fortress on its summit. It must be remembered that Caesarea Philippi was at the foot of Libanus; and the spurs of Libanus would present several eminences answering to the description, "a high mountain (ὄροςὑψηλὸν)." The Mount of Transfiguration was in all probability Hermon, a position of extreme grandeur and beauty, its snowy peaks overlooking the whole extent of Palestine. "High up," says Dean Stanley, "on its southern slopes there must be many a point where the disciples could be taken ’apart by themselves.’ Even the transient comparison of the celestial splendor with the snow, where alone it could be seen in Palestine, should not, perhaps, be wholly overlooked. At any rate, the remote heights above the sources of the Jordan witnessed the moment when, his work in his own peculiar sphere being ended, he set his face for the last time to go up to Jerusalem." Although compelled to dismiss from our minds the old tradition of Tabor as the scene of the Transfiguration, we still think of that mountain as near to Nazareth, where our Lord was brought up; and of Hermon, where he was transfigured, as we rejoice in the fulfillment of the old prophecy, "Tabor and Hermon shall rejoice in thy Name." And he was transfigured (μετεμορφώθη) before them. The fashion of his appearance was changed. It was no illusion, no imaginary appearance, but a real transformation. It was the Divine glory within him manifesting itself through his humanity; and yet not that glory of Deity which no man hath seen or can see; but such a manifestation that the disciples might in some degree behold the glory and majesty, of Deity through the veil of his flesh. Nor, we may believe, did our Lord in his transfiguration change the essence or form of his countenance. But he assumed a mighty splendor, so that, as St. Matthew 17:2 tells us, "his face did shine as the sun." This splendor was not in the air, nor in the eyes of the disciples, but in the person of the Son of God—a splendor which communicated itself to his raiment, so that his garments became glistering (στίλβοντα), exceeding white; so as no fuller on earth can whiten them. This figure is taken from natural things. The first idea of "fuller" from the Latin fullo, is that of one who cleanses by "stamping with the feet." His business is to restore the soiled cloth to its natural whiteness. The evangelist uses an earthly thing to represent the heavenly. The heavenly Fuller gives a purity and a brightness infinitely exceeding the power of any "fuller on earth." It would almost seem as if the figure was one specially supplied by St. Peter. Mark 9:4 And there appeared unto them Elijah with Moses. Moses and Elijah were there because Moses was the lawgiver of the old covenant, and Elijah was conspicuous among the prophets; so that they were the representatives, the one of the Law, and the other of the "goodly fellowship of the prophets. They appear together to bear witness to Christ as the true Messiah, the Savior of the world, prefigured in the Law, and foretold by the prophets. They appear to bear witness to him, and then to resign their offices to the great Lawgiver and Prophet whom they foreshadowed. Then, further, Moses died, but Elijah was translated. Moses, therefore, represents the dead saints who shall rise from their graves and come forth at his coming, while Elijah represents those who shall be found alive at his advent. Our Lord brought with him, at his transfiguration, Moses who had died, and Elijah who had been translated, that he might show his power over both "the quick and the dead." St. Luke 9:31 says that Moses and Elijah "appeared in glory, and spake of his decease (τὴνἔξοδοναὐτοῦ) which he should accomplish at Jerusalem." They appeared in glory; the Divine splendor irradiated them. They "spake of his decease," literally, his departure—his departure not only out of Jerusalem, but out of this life, by his death upon the cross. The death of Christ was thus shown to be the ultimate end to which the Law and the prophets pointed. Even in that hour of his glory, on the Mount of Transfiguration, this was their theme; and thus the disciples were nerved to look with hope and faith to that which they had contemplated with dismay. Mark 9:5 Peter answereth, and saith to Jesus. We learn from St. Luke 9:33 that this happened just as Moses and Elijah were departing. Peter was excited, and there was fear mingled with his excitement. He was bewildered. His first idea was to seek that they might remain, for he saw that they were just preparing to depart. Theophylact says upon this, "Do not say with Peter, ’It is good for us to be here;’ for it behoves us ever, whilst in the flesh, to be advancing, and not to remain in one stage of virtue and contemplation, but to pass on to other degrees" It is, perhaps, too curious a question to ask how the three disciples knew them to be Moses and Elijah. The same Divine power which presented them with a vision of the other world gave them an intuitive knowledge on the subject. And we may, perhaps, infer from hence that in that world to come there will be not only recognition, but knowledge, at once imparted, of those whose faces we have not seen "in the flesh." St. Luke 9:32 says that Peter and his companions "were heavy with sleep (βεβαρημένοιὕπνῳ)." It is probable that the Transfiguration took place at night. The whole manifestation would be rendered more conspicuous and striking amidst the darkness and stillness of night. But St. Luke is careful to add, "when they were fully awake (διαγρηγορήσαντες)." This word might be rendered, "having remained awake." But whichever translation be adopted, the intention of the evangelist is evidently to show that it was not in a dream or a vision of the night that they saw this. It was a great reality, on which they looked with open eyes. Mark 9:6 They became sore afraid. There is a slight change of reading here. Instead of ἧσανγὰρἔκφοβοι the best authorities give ἔκφοβοιγὰρἐγένοντο. A sense of great awe and terror overpowered the bliss and brightness of the scene. All the revelations of the other world strike terror, even though abated as this manifestation was by the presence of their dear Lord and Savior. Mark 9:7 There came a cloud overshadowing them. The cloud enfolded them all, so that they could not be seen, it was so ample and dense, and yet so bright and shining. St. Matthew (Matthew 17:5) says it was "a ought cloud. The cloud was a symbol of the grandeur and unapproachable glory of God. The disciples were admitted within this cloud that they might have a foretaste of future glory, and that they might be witnesses of what took place under the cloud, and especially that they might be able to give evidence throughout all ages of the voice which they heard come out of the cloud from "the excellent glory" (the expression is equivalent to the Hebrew "Shechinah," and St. Peter says (2 Peter 1:18), it came from heaven), This is my beloved Son: hear ye him. But at the same time that this cloud was the symbol, it was also the veil of Deity, of the glory of Deity. "He maketh the clouds his chariot," says the psalmist (Psalms 104:3). Moreover, the cloud abated and subdued the splendor of Christ’s appearance, which otherwise the mortal eyes of the disciples could not have borne. It will be observed that St. Mark omits the words, found in St. Matthew (Matthew 17:5)," in whom I am well pleased." So does St. Luke. But it is remarkable that they are found in St. Peter (2 Peter 1:17); from whence we might have expected to find them here. In St. Luke (Luke 9:35) the most approved readings give, "This is my Son, my chosen (ἐκλελεγμένος)." The words, "my beloved Son," are impressed upon us in order that epithets so sweet and endearing might kindle our love and devotion. "Hear ye him"—not Moses, who has now departed, but Christ himself, the new Author of a new Law. "Hear ye him" was not said when our Lord was baptized, because he was then only just proclaimed to the world. But now these words signify the abolition of the old dispensation, and the establishment of the new covenant in Christ. Mark 9:8 And suddenly looking round about, they saw no one any more, save Jesus only with themselves. St. Matthew here says (Matthew 17:6), "When the disciples heard it, they fell on their face, and were sere afraid. And Jesus came and touched them, and said, Arise, and be not afraid." St. Mark omits this; but in his characteristic manner states that which implies what St. Matthew has recorded. It was the "touch" of Jesus that caused them to look round about; and then in a moment they perceived that they were alone with Jesus, as they were before this manifestation began. The order of incidents in the Transfiguration appears to have been this: Our Lord is praying. The disciples, fatigued with the ascent of the mountain, are heavy with sleep; and Christ is transfigured. Then appear Moses and Elijah; and they are talking with Jesus about his exodus—his decease to be accomplished at Jerusalem. The disciples mused from their sleep by the supernatural brightness, and by the conversation, and now, fully awake, behold the glory of Jesus, and Hoses and Elijah talking with him. As Moses and Elijah are preparing for their departure, Peter, excited, enchanted, bewildered, and yet grieved to see that they were going, seeks to detain them by the proposal to make some temporary resting-place for them. Then comes the bright overshadowing cloud, and a voice out of the cloud, "This is my beloved Son: hear ye him." At the sound of this voice the disciples fall terrified to the earth. But they are soon comforted by Christ, and, looking up, they see him alone with themselves. Mark 9:9 He charged them that they should tell no man what things they had seen, save when the Son of man should have risen again from the dead. They were not even to tell their fellow-disciples, lest it might cause vexation or envy that they had not been thus favored. The time of our Lord’s resurrection would be a fitting opportunity for revealing this mystery; and then the disciples would understand and believe it, when, after his passion and death, which were an offense to them, they should see him rising in glory, of which event the Transfiguration was a type. For, by the Resurrection they would certainly know that Christ underwent the death of the cross, not by constraint, but of his own accord, and out of his great love for us. Mark 9:10, Mark 9:11 Questioning among themselves what the rising again from the dead should mean; that is, his own rising from the dead, of which our Lord had just been speaking. No doubt the general resurrection at the end of the world was an article of faith with which the disciples were familiar. But they could not understand, when he spake of his own immediate rising from the dead. So their perplexities led them at last to ask him the question; or rather to make the remark to him, The scribes say that Elijah must first come; with a view to obtaining some clearer understanding. They had just seen Elijah in the Transfiguration, and they had seen him disappear. They wondered why he should have departed. They thought, it may be, that he ought to have remained, that he might be the forerunner of Christ and of his kingdom and glory, according to the prophecy of Malachi (Malachi 4:6). This the scribes taught; but they erred in the confusion of times, for they did not distinguish the first coming of Christ in the flesh from his second advent to judgment. The thought upon the mind of the disciples appears to have been this: They heard Christ speak of his own resurrection as close at hand, and they had seen the type of it in his transfiguration; and they thought that immediately after that, Christ’s kingdom would come, and he would reign gloriously. Why, then, had not Elijah remained, that he might be his precursor? St. Matthew (Matthew 17:13) tells us that our Lord’s words which follow showed the disciples that when he said that Elijah was to come first and restore all things, he meant them to understand" that he spake unto them of John the Baptist." Upon the question of a future coming of Elijah, it seems safest to confess our ignorance. The prophecy of Malachi was no doubt in part fulfilled in the coming of John the Baptist; but it would be rash to affirm that it may not receive another and more literal fulfillment before the second advent. A host of ancient Christian expositors have held that Elijah will appear in person before the second advent of Christ. St. Augustine, in his ’City of God’ (20:29), says, "Not without reason do we hope that before the coming of our Judge and Savior Elias will come, because we have good reason to believe that he is now alive; for, as Holy Scripture distinctly informs us, he gas taken up from this life in a chariot of fire. When, therefore, he is come he shall give a spiritual explanation of the Law which the Jews at present understand carnally, and will turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the children to the fathers; that is, the Jews who are the children will understand the Law in the same sense as their fathers the prophets understood it." Indeed, this is one of the principal reasons assigned by the Fathers for this appearance of Elijah, that he may convert the Jews. Mark 9:14 And when he earns to his disciples, he saw a great crowd around them. High authorities support the reading adopted by the Revisers, when they came to the disciples, they saw a great multitude about them. "They" would thus mean our Lord and the three chosen disciples who had been with him on the Mount of Transfiguration. "They" came to the other disciples who had been left below. St. Luke (Luke 9:37) adds "On the next day, when they were come down from the mountain." This would seem to confirm the supposition that the transfiguration took place in the night. All the synoptists agree in placing the following immediately after the transfiguration. Scribes were questioning with the disciples who had bee left behind. As they had assembled in the neigh-where Jesus was, for the purpose of watching him. Their object in questioning with the disciples was doubtless to throw discredit upon Jesus, because they, disciples, had failed to work the miracle. Mark 9:15 The multitude were favourably towards Jesus, and were glad that returned at an opportune moment to defend his disciples against the scribes. But why were they greatly amazed? The word in the Greek is ἐξεθαμβήθη. It seems most probable that they saw in his countenance, always heavenly and majestic, something even yet more Divine, retaining some traces of the glory of his transfiguration, even as the face of Moses shone when he came down from the mount (Exodus 34:29). It hardly seems likely that the amazement of the people was simply caused by our Lord having arrived at an opportune time to relieve his disciples of their difficulty. The Greek word expresses something more than would be satisfied by the fact of our Lord having come upon the scene just when he was wanted. Even if there were no remains of the transfiguration glory upon his countenance, the vivid recollection of the scene, of the conversation with Moses and Elijah, and the subject of it, and the voice of the Father, must have invested his countenance with a peculiar majesty and dignity. The same word, though without its compound (ἐθαμβοῦντο), is used further on in Mark 10:32 to express the amazement of the disciples, as he pressed eagerly onwards before them on his way to Jerusalem and to his cross. There was no doubt something then in his countenance which astonished them. The multitude running to him, saluted him. The scribes had not been able to shake their faith. In their view he was still "that Prophet that should come into the world." Mark 9:16 And he asked them; that is, the multitude. The context shows this. The reading here is αὐτούς, not τοὺςγραμματεῖς. Mark 9:17 One of the multitude answered him, Master I brought—the Greek is ἤνεγκα—unto thee my son. He brought his son, expecting to find Jesus; but failing in this, he applied to our Lord’s disciples to cast out the evil spirit, but they could not. St. Matthew (Matthew 17:14) says that the man came kneeling to Christ, "and saying, Lord, have mercy on my son: for he is lunatic." The word in the Greek there is σεληνιάζεται. Etymologically, no doubt, "lunatic" conveys the meaning of the word most nearly. But the graphic description here of St. Mark cot-responds exactly to epilepsy, and to epilepsy acted upon by an unclean spirit, who in this instance deprived the sufferer of his speech. Lunatics were so called from the prevailing impression, not without foundation, that the light and the changes of the moon have an influence upon the body, and so act through the body upon the mind. This influence seems to be recognized in Psalms 121:6, "The sun shall not smite thee by day, nor the moon by night." Mark 9:18 Wheresoever it taketh him (καταλάβη); literally, it seizeth hold of him. This is the Greek word from which comes our "catalepsy," the active form of "epilepsy." It teareth him (ῥήσσει). This is doubtless the literal meaning. But there is much evidence to show that it means hero "it striketh or throweth him down." This is the reudering of the Peshito Syriac, and of the Vulgate. The same interpretation is also given by Hesychius as one of the meanings of the word. St. Luke (Luke 9:39) describes the symptoms thus: "A spirit taketh him, and he suddenly crieth out, and it teareth him (σπαράσσειαὐτὸν) that he foameth (μετὰἀφροῦ), and it hardly departeth from him, bruising him sorely." This it will be remembered is the record of one who was himself a physician. He grindeth his teeth, and pineth away (ξηραίνεται), as though the springs of his life were dried up. The father of the boy is here minutely describing the symptoms when the fit was upon him. He seems here to express the stiffness and rigidity of the body in the approaches of the malady. And I spake to thy disciples that they should cast it out; and they were not able. They had tried and failed. This failure is attributed by our Lord (see Matthew 17:20) to their want of faith; or rather to their "little faith (διὰτὴνὀλιγοπιστίανὑμῶν)." Mark 9:19 O faithless generation. These words were no doubt intended primarily as a rebuke to the Jews and their scribes; though not without a glance at the weakness of faith of his own disciples. The words are the complaint of one weary of the unbelief of the masses and of the weakness of faith in even his own. Bring him unto me (φέρετε); literally, Bring ye him to me. Mark 9:20 And they brought him unto him. The father, it would seem, was not able of himself to bring him, so fierce and violent were the paroxysms of the disorder. And when he saw him, straightway the spirit tare him (συνεσπέραξεν)—it might be rendered, convulsed him—grievously. Observe the Greek construction (καὶἰδὼναὐτὸντὸπνεῦμα), masculine participle with neuter noun. The sight of Christ stirred the evil spirit dwelling in the child. He was irritated by the presence of Christ; for he knew his power, and feared lest he should be cast out. Then came the last and most violent convulsion. He wallowed foaming. The word "to wallow" is probably from the Latin volvo. He rolled about in his agony. St. Gregory, quoted by Trench, shows how true all this is to nature; and that "the expulsion of a deadly evil from our spiritual being is not accomplished without a terrible struggle, followed in some cases by extreme prostration." Mark 9:21, Mark 9:22 Our Lord asks the father, not the sufferer, which in this case would have been useless—he was but a lad, and he was dumb. Our Lord’s question, How long time is it since this hath come unto him? was intended, not of course for his own information, but to inspire the father with hope and confidence. The father briefly answers, From a child; and then turns to a description of the perils to which his child was continually exposed through these paroxysms. And then, half doubting, half in despair, he says, If thou canst do anything, have compassion on us, and help us. It is as though he said, "Thy disciples have failed, perhaps thy power may be greater." Mark 9:23, Mark 9:24 The most approved reading here is, not Εἴδύνασαιπιστεῦσαι, but simply Εἴδύνασαι, So that the English rendering is, If thou canst! All things are possible to him that believeth. Our Lord takes up the father’s words. It is as though he said, "Thou sayest to me, ’If thou canst do anything!’ Ah, that ’If thou canst!’ All things are possible to him that believeth." In other words, our Lord said to him, "Believe in me, and your child shall be healed." It was right that Christ should demand faith in himself; for it was not fitting that he should confer his special benefits on those who disbelieved or doubted about him—that he should thrust his blessings on those who were unworthy of them. The answer of the father is touching and beautiful. Greatly agitated, he cried out and said (we might well suppose (μετὰδακρύων "with tears," although the weight of evidence is against this addition being retained in the text), I believe; help thou mine unbelief. It is as though he said," I do believe; but my faith is weak. Do thou, therefore, increase and strengthen it; so that whatever there is in me of doubt or remaining unbelief may be taken away, and I may be counted worthy to obtain from thee this blessing for my son." Nor can we doubt that Christ heard a prayer so humble and so fervent, and took away from him the last remains of doubt and unbelief. Mark 9:25-29 The multitude had been much excited by the dispute between the scribes and our Lord’s disciples. And now, when they noticed that he had taken the father apart, as no doubt he had done, to question him they came running together (the word is ἐπισυντρέχει, an unusual word, meaning "they ran together to the place") where he was, crowding upon him. Then he came forward, and with a voice of sublime authority he said, Thou dumb and deaf spirit, I command thee, come out of him and enter no more into him. The rest of the narrative shows how malignant and powerful this evil spirit was, who dared so to resist and defy Christ that, in his departure out of the afflicted boy, he almost robbed him of life. "Most unwillingly," says Archbishop Trench, "does the evil spirit depart, seeking to destroy that which he can no longer retain." And he quotes Fuller, who says that he is "like an outgoing tenant, that cares not what mischief he does to the house that he is quitting." Some have supposed that this was an evil spirit possessed of more than ordinary power as well as malignity, and that this was the reason why our Lord’s disciples could not cast him out; so that this expulsion needed the mighty arm of One stronger than the strong. The words in the Greek are powerful, severe, and authoritative: "He rebuked (ἐπετίμησε) the unclean spirit, . Thou dumb and deaf spirit (τὸπνεῦματὸἄλαλονκαὶκωφὸν), I command thee (ἐγώσοιἐπιτάσσω), come out of him, and enter no more into him." This explains our Lord’s words when the disciples remarked afterwards, We could not out it out … This kind can come out by nothing, save by prayer; that is, this particular kind of malicious spirit. For there are different degrees of malice and energy in evil spirits as in evil men. The words "and fasting" are added in many ancient authorities. Mark 9:30 This verse informs us that our Lord and his disciples now left the neighbourhood of Caesarea Philippi. Their route would be across the Jordan above the Sea of Galilee, and so by the usual track through Galilee down to Capernaum. Our Lord now wished for privacy, that he might farther instruct his disciples with regard to his sufferings and death. Mark 9:31 For he taught his disciples (ἐδίδασκεγὰρτοὺςμαθητὰςαὑτοῦ); literally, for he was teaching (imperfect) his disciples. The Son of man is delivered (παραδίδοται) The whole is present to his mind, as though it were now taking place. And they shall kill him (ἀποκτενοῦσιν). This is a stronger form of κτείνω. And when he is killed, after three days he shall rise again (ἀναστήσεται); literally, he shall rise up. Our Lord repeats this prediction, in order that, when these events actually took place, his disciples might not be alarmed or offended, or abandon their faith in him, as though he could not be the Messiah because he underwent so terrible a death. It will be remembered that, notwithstanding these repeated warnings from their Lord, when these events actually took place, "they all forsook him and fled." It was therefore necessary that this coming event of his crucifixion should be repeatedly impressed upon them, that they might thus be assured that he was willing to undergo this bitter death; that he was not going to his cross by constraint, but as a willing Sacrifice, that he might do the will of his Father, and so redeem mankind. Therefore he repeated all this in Galilee, when he returned from his transfiguration, and after he had cast out the evil spirit from the epileptic child, and so had gained to himself great renown. He would thus restrain the excited feelings of his disciples, and impress upon them the reasons for his journey to Jerusalem, and prepare them for the dread realities which were awaiting him there. Mark 9:32 But they understood not the saying, and were afraid (ἐφοβοῦντο) to ask him; St. Matthew (Matthew 17:23) says, "They were exceeding sorry." They saw that something very dreadful was about to happen. Their Master’s words and looks showed them this. But it was a mystery to them. All his words staggered them, but especially those which spoke of his rising again. They did not understand whether it was an entrance into a higher state or a restoration to a common life. They did not understand why he was to die, and how these words of his about his death could agree with those in which he had told them that his kingdom was at hand. Perhaps, on the whole, they inclined to the view most pleasing to them, that Christ would not die; for this was what they wished and most desired. And so they tried to persuade themselves that his words respecting his sufferings and death had some other hidden meaning; and were to be understood in a figurative sense and not a literal. But anyhow, they dreaded to ask him. Mark 9:33, Mark 9:34 They have now reached Capernaum. And when he was in the house—the house, that is, which he frequented when staying in Capernaum—he asked them, What were ye reasoning in the way? The words "among yourselves," of the Authorized Version, are not found in the best authorities. St. Matthew (Matthew 18:1) does not record this question of our Lord, which brings to light the fact that they had been disputing by the way which of them should be the greatest. The Greek is (τίςμείζων) who was greater, that is, than the rest. It has been well noticed that this passage, given in substance in all the synoptic Gospels, is a striking evidence of the truthfulness and impartiality of the disciples. This dispute of theirs might easily have been suppressed as scarcely creditable to them. But in writing the Gospels the evangelists thought more of what exalted the Savior than what abased themselves. This dispute of the disciples shows how thoroughly they realized the nearness of his kingdom, and at the same time how much they had yet to learn as to the qualifications necessary for admission to it. It is not unlikely that the preference given by our Lord to Peter, James, and John may have given occasion for his contention. Mark 9:35 And he sat down, and called the twelve. He sat down, with the authority of the great Teacher, to inculcate solemnly a fundamental principle of the Christian life. If any man would be first he shall be last of all, and minister of all. These words are capable of two interpretations. They might be regarded as analogous to our Lord’s words elsewhere, "He that exalteth himself shall be abased;" as though they indicated the penalty which attaches to unworthy ambition. But it is surely far more natural to regard them as pointing out the way to real greatness, namely, by humble service for Christ’s sake. Mark 9:36 And he took a little child (παιδίον), and set him in the midst of them. St. Mark adds, what is not recorded by the other synoptists, that he took him in his arms. And taking him in his arms (ἐναγκαλισάμενος); literally, folding him in his arms; embracing him. It is probable that the house where he was was the house of Simon Peter; and it is possible that this little child might have been Simon’s. A tradition not earlier than the ninth century says that this child was Ignatius. Mark 9:37 Whosoever shall receive one of such little children in my name, receiveth me. Whosoever shall "receive;" that is, show him offices of kindness and charity. One of such little children; that is, such in simplicity, in innocence and humility, such as this little child is in age and stature. In my Name, that is, with special regard to my Name. He thus seems to link all that is good and beautiful with his Name; as all that is really good and excellent in man is a reflection of his goodness. St. Luke (Luke 9:48) says, ’Whosoever shall receive this little child in my Name receiveth me." Our Lord, therefore, speaks first, literally of a little child, and secondly, in a mystical sense, of those who are like little children; making that little child in his arms the figure and type of all those who are like little children. The sense, therefore, of his words is this: "Humility, which is the foundation and the measure of spiritual perfection, so pleases me that I delight in little children. And all who would be my disciples must become as little children, and so will they deserve to be received by all; for men will think that they receive me in them, because they receive them for my sake." Mark 9:38 This verse, according to the best authorities, should begin simply, John said unto him—although in St. Luke (Luke 9:49) they stand, "And John answered and said"—Master, we saw one casting out devils in thy name: and we forbade him, because he followed not us. The casting out of evil spirits was one of the foremost signs of apostleship; and what surprised St. John was that one who followed not Christ should have been able to work this miracle—a miracle in which, it will be remembered, the disciples had recently failed. It thus appears that our Lord’s teaching had been so influential, that some, not reckoned amongst his disciples, had shown this proof of a strong and overpowering faith. We know that there were those in our Savior’s time, of Jewish race, who cast out devils (Matthew 12:27). And Justin Martyr, in his ’Dialogue with Trypho the Jew,’ states that while exorcism, as practiced by the Jews, often failed when it was attempted to be exercised "by the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob," was eminently successful when administered "by the name of the Son of God, who was born of a virgin and crucified under Pontius Pilate" (c. 85). That spirit has power over spirit in many mysterious ways is one of those truths which science has not yet been able to explain. To return, however, to the instance here alluded to by St. John, it should be observed that they who acted thus had faith in Christ; and that by thus acting with him and for him, though not amongst his recognized followers, they contributed towards his honor who, by means of these imperfect instruments, carried out the great purpose of his manifestation, namely," to destroy the works of the devil." Then further, the disciples forbade them not out of envy or hatred, but out of zeal for Christ, as though they were thus serving his cause and upholding his honor. But this was" a zeal, not according to knowledge." They had forbidden them, without having first taken counsel of their Master. Mark 9:39 But Jesus said, Forbid him not. It is as though our Lord said, "Do not forbid him; do not hinder him from a good work—a work which does honor to me and to my cause; because, although he does not actually follow me as you do, he is nevertheless engaged in the same cause; he is celebrating my Name by the casting out of evil spirits. Therefore he is not opposing my Name; on the contrary, he is publishing and recommending it." Here is a warning against that exclusive spirit, which is eager for its own ends rather than for Christ’s glory, and would limit the exercise of his gifts and graces to its own system or school, instead of inquiring whether those whom it condemns are not working in Christ’s name and for the promotion of his glory, although it may be allowable to think that in some instances they might find a more excellent way. Mark 9:40 For he that is not against us is for us. In St. Matthew (Matthew 12:30) we find our Lord using a somewhat similar expression, only in an inverted order. He there says, "He that is not with me is against me." The lesson which both these apothegms teach is the same, that there is no such thing as neutrality in reference to Christ and his cause. We must be either with him or against him. Dr. Morison on St. Mark in this place says, "When in applied morals we sit in judgment on ourselves, we should in ordinary circumstances apply the law obversely and stringently,’ he who is not with Christ is against him.’ But when we are sitting in judgment on others, into whose hearts we cannot look directly, we should in ordinary circumstances apply the law reversely and generously, ’ He that is not against Christ is with him.’" Mark 9:41 In my name, because ye belong to Christ. The reading adopted in the Revised Version is, ἐνὀνόματιὅτιχριστοῦἐστέ: literally, in name, that ye are Christ’s; or, because ye are Christ’s. The force of this observation seems to be this: "If he who gives you a cup of water to drink in my Name, and out of regard for me, does well, and shall be rewarded of God, much more shall he be rewarded who casts out devils in my Name." The disciples are thus taught that it is contrary to the whole spirit of Christianity to disparage works of beneficence, or to suggest unworthy motives for them (see ’Speaker’s Commentary,’ in loc.). Mark 9:42 This verse stands out as the severe antithesis to what has gone before. As he who receives and encourages Christ’s little ones and those who are like little children and believe in him, receives him, and so shall receive from him the glorious rewards of Heaven; so, on the contrary, whosoever shall offend one of these little ones that believe in Christ is guilty of deadly sin; and it were better for him if a great millstone (μύλοςὀνικός)—literally, a millstone so large as to require to be turned by an ass—were hanged about his neck, and he were cast into the sea. Mark 9:43 The hand, or the foot, or the eye represents any instrument by which sin may be committed; and it applies to those who may be the means of drawing us into sin. If your relative or your friend, who is useful or dear to you as your hand, your foot, or your eye, is drawing you into sin, cut him off from you, lest he should draw you into hell, into the unquenchable Gehenna. Gehenna, or the Valley of Hinnom, lay to the south of Jerusalem. Originally a pleasant suburb of the city, it became in later times the scene of the worship of Molech, "the abomination of the children of Ammon." On this account the valley was polluted by King Josiah. It thus became the receptacle of everything that was vile and filthy. These noisome accumulations were from time to time consumed by fire; and the things which were not consumed by fire were the prey of worms. Hence "Gehenna" became the image of the place of eternal punishment, where "the worm dieth not and the fire is not quenched." These terrible images are conclusive as to the eternity of future punishment, so far as our nature is concerned and our knowledge reaches. They are the symbols of certain dreadful realities; too dreadful for human language to describe or human thought to conceive. Mark 9:44 Where their worm dieth not and the fire is not quenched. These words are a quotation from Isaiah 66:24, and they are repeated three times in the Authorized Version. But the best ancient authorities omit them in the two first places, retaining them at verse 48. The metaphor is very striking as well as awful. Ordinarily the worm feeds upon the disorganized body, and then dies. The fire consumes the fuel, and then itself expires. But here the worm never dies; the fire never goes out. The words of Cornelius a Lapide on the original passage in Isaiah are well worth recording here: "I beseech you, O reader, by the mercies of our God, by your own salvation, by that one little life entrusted to you and committed to your care, that you will ever keep before your eyes the living memory, as of eternity and of eternal torments, so also of the eternal joys on the other side offered to you by God, and concerning which you here cast the die, and that irrevocable. Let these two things never depart from your mind. In this world, ’Vanity of vanities, and all is vanity.’ Oh, what a void there is in earthly things! Oh, how vain is all our life without Christ! In the world to come, truth of truths, and all is truth; stability of stabilities, and all is stability; eternity of eternities, and all is eternity. An eternity in heaven most happy, in hell most miserable, ’ Where their worm dies not, and the. fire is not quenched.’" St. Bernard says "the worm that never dies is the memory of the past, which never ceases to gnaw the conscience of the impenitent." Mark 9:49 For every one shall be salted with fire; and every sacrifice shall be salted with salt. According to the most approved authorities, the second clause of this verse should be omitted, although it is evident that our Lord had in his mind the words in Leviticus it. 13, "Every oblation of thy meat offering shalt thou season with salt." Every one shall be salted with fire. "Every one." The statement is general in its application. There is no limitation. The good and the evil alike shall be "salted with fire." There is an apparent incongruity here. But it must be remembered that both the salt and the fire are here used in a metaphorical sense; and there is a fire which is penal, and there is a fire which purifies. In the case of the wicked the fire is penal; and the salting with fire in their case can only mean the anguish of a tormented conscience, which must be commensurate with its existence in the same moral condition. But there is a fire which purifies. St. Peter, addressing the Christians of the Dispersion (1 Peter 4:12), bids them not to think it strange concerning the "fiery trial" which was among them. This was their "salting with fire." Those persecutions which they suffered were their discipline of affliction, through which God was purifying and preserving them. This discipline is necessary for all Christians. They must arm themselves with the same mind, even though they may not live in a time of outward persecution. He who parts with the hand, or the foot, or the eye; that is, he who surrenders what is dear to him—he who parts with what, if he was only to confer with flesh and blood, he would rather keep, for the sake of Christ, is going through the discipline of self-sacrifice, which is often painful and severe, but nevertheless purifying. He is salted with fire; but he is pro-served by the power of God through faith unto salvation. Mark 9:50 Salt is good; that is, it is useful and beneficial. This is true of the literal salt. Its wholesome antiseptic properties are universally recognized. But our Lord has before his mind in this whole passage the spiritual meaning. He is thinking of the salt of Divine grace, of the salt of a spirit informed and influenced by the Holy Spirit. He had already told his disciples that they were "the salt of the earth." Not, indeed, that they could deliver the earth from corruption—that was beyond their power. But when Christ had delivered it by his mighty sacrifice and the gift of his Spirit, it was their business, as it is the duty of all Christians, to keep it in a healthy state; so that by their wisdom and purity, their holy lives and holy teaching, they might season the whole world. But if the salt have lost its saltness (ἐὰντὸἅλαςἄναλονγένηται), wherewith will ye season it? This insipid, tasteless condition of salt is familiar to travelers in the East Examples are to be found of largo masses of salt which "has lost its savor." Our Lord here applies this in a spiritual sense to his disciples. "If ye, my disciples, who are the salt of the earth,—if ye lose the true properties of salt; if your Christianity loses its heart, its quickening, stimulating influence; so that on account of the love of the world, or the fear of man, or through lust or ambition, you fall away from the heavenly doctrine and life;—who shall restore you to your former spiritual health and vigor? With what can salt itself be seasoned when its own chemical energies are lost?" Our Lord plays upon this figure of salt, and cautions his disciples, lest by any means they should lose the qualities of this mystic salt. Have salt in yourselves, and be at peace one with another. This sentence fitly winds up the whole. Have the salt of wisdom and purity, and of a Christian life, namely, humility, charity, contempt of the world, and especially peace. Do not be idly contending about place or position, as not long ago you were disputing (Mark 9:33). Our Lord foresaw that this kind of contention, these rivalries, and these ambitious aims, would prove a great scandal and a great hindranee to the progress of his Church in the future ages of the world. But he also knew that if his disciples in every ago would endeavor to "keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace," their influence would be irresistible, and they would draw all men to them and to himself, the great Centre of attraction, and "the confidence of all the ends of the earth" (Psalms 65:5). Mark 9:2-13 Transfiguration Observe the crisis of our Lord’s ministry at which this marvelous and memorable incident took place. The period of novelty, of popularity, of prosperity, was past and gone; the period of hostility, of persecution, of endurance, was commencing. Already Jesus had forewarned his disciples of the speedy approach of his death at the hands of his enemies. And it seems as though this unique and impressive display of his proper majesty, and of the affection and confidence of his Father, came exactly at the needed conjuncture. It was for his own sake, that a vivid consciousness of Divine favor might go with him to the scenes of ignominy and of suffering which awaited him. It was for the sake of the nearest and dearest among his friends, that they might carry with them, especially in those trials of their faith and attachment which were coming upon them, a conviction concerning their master’s nature and mission which might support them and preserve them, if not from weak defection, still from shameful apostasy. The close connection between the glories of the Transfiguration and the shame and wee of Calvary, is evident both from the narrative itself and from the central and critical position it occupies. Regarding the Mount of Transfiguration as a mount of witness, we observe— I. THE WITNESS CHRIST HERE BEARS TO HIMSELF. The sun in heaven is his own witness, shines by his own light, tells of his own nature and power. So with the Lord Christ. When, amidst the darkness of the night, upon the slopes of Hermon, his garments glistened, and his face shone with a dazzling radiance, his proper glory shone through the disguise of his human weakness and humiliation. For once he appeared to be what he really was—the Son of the Father, and the Lord of the world. It was testimony very powerful and very effective, and produced its impression upon those who were privileged to behold that "great sight." II. THE WITNESS HERE BORNE TO CHRIST BY THE AND THE PROPHET. After Abraham, no personages in their history were more honored and venerated by the Jews than Moses and Elijah: Moses the giver of their Law, and Elijah the head and leader of their prophets. These two had not only in life fulfilled the will of God, they had at the close of their life-service been taken to himself by their Lord in very remarkable and singular circumstances. From the seats of the blessed, and in their vesture of immortality, these illustrious and glorified saints came to converse with the Son of God regarding the decease which he was about to accomplish at Jerusalem. They had foretold him, they had prefigured him, they now gave place to him; and what more appropriate than that they should thus tender to him their homage and their admiration? 1. They manifested interest in his mission, for this gave the meaning to their own—explained in the old economy much which would otherwise have been inexplicable. 2. They acknowledged his authority, for they had already testified to a Greater than themselves who should come, and their appearance on this occasion was an evidence of the reverential honor in which they held the Divine lawgiver, the Divine Prophet. 3. They anticipated his decease; the event which he had so recently foretold, and for which he was now so deliberately, so sacredly preparing—an event of stupendous magnitude in the history of our sinful humanity. III. THE WITNESS BORNE TO CHRIST BY HIS FRIENDS AND . 1. It may be asked—Why was it appointed that the Transfiguration should be witnessed by so small and select a group, and in so secluded a spot? Why were not multitudes permitted to behold a spectacle so amazing in Itself, and so fitted to bring conviction to the minds of all beholders? Surely, it might be urged, no unbeliever, no caviller, could have withstood the evidence of our Lord’s authority which such a scene afforded! It is recorded that the leaders of the Jews, the Pharisees, asked from Jesus a sign from heaven. This he refused them. But he allowed three favored friends to behold his glory, when the customary veil was in some measure withdrawn. What is the explanation of this? It may be replied that it was not in harmony with the plans of our Lord Jesus to overpower the senses of the people with some irresistible display of supernatural power and glory. This would not have been to secure a moral result by moral means. Jesus would not have valued the admiration which was withheld from his moral character and his benevolent life, but which was accorded to the effulgence of celestial glory, striking all eyes with amazement. But there was another reason for the limitation of the witnesses of our Lord’s transfiguration. The highest revelations of God’s wisdom and holiness and love are for those only who are prepared to receive them. You may walk round the outside of a vast domain, a splendid palace; you may make the circuit of the walls, you may see the tree-tops shaken by the wind, you may catch glimpses of the lofty roofs and towers of the lordly edifice. But how little do you know of the imposing palace and its enchanting environments! If, however, you are permitted to enter the gates, to tread the stately gardens, to explore the mansion, to look through the library, to admire the sculptures and paintings, and, above all, to spend hours and days in converse with the choice spirits who make the abode their home,—then you can form a judgment, and cherish an appreciation which, so long as you were on the outside, you would never have been able to do. So with the knowledge of every high and pure and noble soul. Such a one is only to be known by those who have sympathy with him, and opportunities of fellowship with him. It cannot be otherwise than that the ignorant, the vulgar, the selfish, should misunderstand him. In like manner, but in the highest degree, it needed some sympathy with the Lord Christ in order to judge aright of him. It seems likely that when Jesus took with him only his three most intimate and congenial friends to behold his glory upon the holy mount, he did so because none others were sufficiently advanced in spiritual knowledge and appreciation to be capable of partaking and profiting by the privilege. Even the bulk of his own twelve disciples would have been, at that time, out of place upon the Mount of Transfiguration. As for the scribes and Pharisees, and all the vulgar formalists who desired a sign, they had no spiritual eyes with which to see the vision which was then and there vouchsafed to three lowly fishermen, whose hearts the Lord had touched, and whose sight the Lord had cleansed and quickened. 2. The emotions with which the favored three were affected, when they beheld Christ’s glory, deserve attention. There was awe: and this was honor-able to them, that they experienced the feeling of trembling reverence in a presence so august, and before evidence so majestic and convincing. There was delight: hence the exclamation and the proposal of Peter. They felt it "good" to be in such a scene and in such society, and they would fain have prolonged the precious opportunity, and dwelt for a season upon the mount. 3. The convictions which they formed may be known from the language of Peter in his Second Epistle, from which it is apparent that the Transfiguration produced upon the minds of the witnesses a profound and ineffaceable impression concerning their Master’s dignity and authority. IV. THE WITNESS BORNE TO CHRIST BY THE FATHER HIMSELF. In the voice which came from the Father we observe: 1. A declaration to be believed: "This is my beloved Son," Jesus was beloved: (1) For the relation he sustained to the Father; for he was "the only begotten," and was by nature what no other human being can be affirmed to have been. (2) For his congenial character; for he pleased the Father alway; his character embodied every moral excellence. (3) For his willing obedience; for, as he had undertaken his mission in the spirit of the prophetic language, "Lo, I come . to do thy will, O my God," he acted throughout his ministry in a manner comformable to the just and holy will of God the Father. (4) For his perfect submission; for he "learned obedience by the things which he suffered," and shrank not from any sufferings appointed, and refused not the cup which the Father gave. As God’s beloved Son, he was "obedient unto death, even the death of the cross." 2. An appeal to be obeyed: "Hear ye him!" As in the former clause the address is to the intelligent nature, so in this clause it is to the practical nature, of men. It is a Divine imperative. The appeal is to the sense of human obligation. Hear his teachings as your Master! Hear his promises as your Friend and Savior! Hear his commands as your Leader and Lord! Hear to rejoice, to respond, to obey! . 1. Receive this witness concerning Christ. It is the witness of the most trustworthy of men, the most competent of observers; it is the witness of the Eternal Father, of him who cannot lie. 2. Repeat this witness concerning Christ. It is the vocation of the disciple to give testimony to the master. The Church is Christ’s witness to the world. It is ours to tell who Jesus is and what he has done; it is ours to invite the faith, to require the allegiance of all mankind to him who is the Son of God. Mark 9:14-29 The lunatic boy. In Raphael’s picture of the Transfiguration, which has often been called the greatest of all paintings, the foreground is occupied by a vivid representation of this marvellous miracle wrought by our Lord upon his descent from the mountain. The conjunction of the two incidents, which are in such striking contrast with each other, seems suggestive. The native glory of the Redeemer shone forth in the presence of the three favored disciples upon the holy mount. But the redemptive work of the Son of God is brought out most prominently by his mighty work of healing, in which he shows himself able to deliver a human sufferer from the agonies of a terrible disease, and from the clutches of a cruel foe. The one incident serves to bring out the other into a bolder relief; and the two must be taken together, in order that we may obtain a fair and complete view of the nature, and especially of the ministry, of Jesus. I. OBSERVE THE CASE OF HUMAN MISERY HERE . St. Mark has depicted this whole incident with a graphic minuteness that cannot fail to impress itself upon the reader’s mind. 1. The case itself is unique in the wretchedness of its symptoms. An epileptic boy, speechless, often convulsed and sometimes flung into the fire and the water, a sufferer in this way from childhood, and now wasting away from long-continued disease,—can a more affecting picture of human misery be painted than this? Add to all the particulars related the possession by an evil spirit; and the hopelessness of the case, the powerlessness of all human endeavors, becomes apparent. 2. The anguish of the father’s heart is beyond description; his attitude, his language, declare his distress and his dejection. 3. The interest of the multitude is evident; a spectacle such as this could not fail to excite the commiseration and compassion of every feeling heart. Observe in this case a striking figure of the condition of the sinner as a captive of Satan, and of the state of this ungodly and sin-accursed humanity! II. REMARK THE OF ALL HUMAN MEANS AND TO RELIEVE THIS CASE OF . All that a father’s watchfulness and care could effect had long been tried. Doubtless the best known and most skillful physicians had exhausted the resources of their art. But all had been in vain. And now the disciples of our Lord had been appealed to with earnest entreaties. In the absence of their Master upon the mountain they had put forth their endeavors, had exercised their authority. But all was in vain. It was the assertion of the father; it was the confession of the disciples themselves: "They could not cast out" the demon. And there is no power on earth that can deal effectually with the sinner’s case—that can expel from this humanity the spirit of evil that has so long ruled, afflicted, and defiled it. III. THE WHICH WAS MADE TO JESUS AS TO THE DIVINE HEALER. How spiritually significant and instructive is the approach of the suppliant father to the Christ! The importance attached to faith comes out in this narrative perhaps more prominently than in any other part of the Gospel. We recognize: 1. The demand for faith. The father states his case, describes the sufferings of his son, implores compassion, and entreats help. His qualification, If thou canst do anything," calls forth Christ’s marvellous and memorable utterance: "If thou canst! All things are possible to him that believeth." This is, indeed, a repetition of the teaching of Scripture in every page. Faith is the posture of the heart which God approves, and which renders those who assume it capable of being blessed. Faith is the cry of the heart which God will never disregard or reject. And this condition comes out in a very impressive manner in this dialogue. 2. The assertion of faith. The poor father was driven to faith by need and suffering, by sympathy and despondency, by his repeated failures to obtain relief. He was drawn to Christ by his gracious and majestic presence as he came down from the Mount of Transfiguration. The leper had doubted the will of Christ to save; this father seems to have had confidence in the disposition and readiness of the Divine Teacher and Healer, and upon the suggestion and requirement of the Redeemer he exclaims, with fervor and with earnestness, "Lord, I believe." 3. The confession of unbelief. He doubts, or until now has doubted, Christ’s power to save, as appears from his "If thou canst," and as he himself acknowledges in his cry, "Help thou mine unbelief." If he had not believed at all, he would not have come to Jesus; if he had believed firmly, he would have come with other words and in another spirit. This combination is very true to nature. There are degrees of faith even in the faithful Where is perfect faith in Jesus? Who has not had reason to cry, "Help thou mine unbelief;" "Increase my faith"? 4. The cry for help. The earnest applicant did not wait until his faith was stronger—until more assurances and encouragements were given. He pleads as for his life, for he pleads for his child. Hating his unbelief, he struggles against it. His appeal is the utterance of his heart, which has no hope and no resource save in Immanuel, the Son of God. An example this to all hearers of the gospel, and especially to the penitent, the doubting, the timid, and the tempted. IV. REMARK THE HEALING GRACE AND POWER OF JESUS. 1. His compassion was excited. He might pause to call forth the father’s faith; but he would not withhold his sympathy from the suffering. 2. His authority was exercised over the evil spirit; for he rebuked and bade the demon to come out, and this with a commanding voice, which even so potent an agent of evil could not resist. 3. His healing, gracious aid was extended to the boy. When the sufferer seemed as if dead, by reason of the exhausting convulsions in which the departing demon displayed his malicious power, the Lord of life took him by the hand and raised him up, and he arose. How beautiful and encouraging an illustration of our Lord’s personal interest in, and spiritual contact with, those whom he commiserates, relieves, and saves! 1. There is no case of need, sin, and wretchedness beyond the power of Christ to aid. 2. There is no faith, however feeble, which will not justify an approach to Christ, and elicit his compassion and his willingness to help. 3. By spiritual discipline Christ’s people may train themselves for grappling with every form, however extreme, of human misery and helplessness. Mark 9:30-32 This entry is longer than a Bible module can hold. The rest is at https://www.sermonindex.net/commentary/pulpit-commentary/ Mark 10:1 Instead of the words, into the coasts of Judea by the farther side of Jordan, the passage, by a change of reading from διὰτοῦ to καὶ. He will run thus: into the coasts (borders) of Judaea and beyond Jordan. Our Lord was now on his last progress towards Jerusalem. It would appear from St. Luke (Luke 9:51) that in the earlier part of his journey he touched the frontier of Samaria. Putting the accounts together, we conclude that, being refused by the Samaritans, he passed eastwards along their frontier, having Galilee on his left, and Samaria on his right; and then crossed the Jordan, perhaps at Scythopolis, where was a bridge, and so entered Peraea. As Judaea and Galilee both lay west of the Jordan, this route above described would be literally coming "to the borders of Judaea and beyond Jordan." Again multitudes flocked together to him, and again he taught them. St. Matthew (Matthew 21:1) says that "he healed them." His miracles of healing and his teaching went hand in hand. Mark 10:2 And there came unto him Pharisees—the article should be omitted—and asked him—they came forward before the people, and publicly questioned him—Is it lawful for a man to put away his wife? St. Matthew (Matthew 21:3) adds to the question the words, "for every cause." There were causes for which it was lawful. They put this question to our Lord, tempting him; of course with an evil intent. This question about divorce was one which was much agitated in the time of our Lord. In the century before Christ, a learned rabbi, named Hillel, a native of Babylon, who afterwards came to Jerusalem, studied the Law with great success, and became the head of the chief school in that city. One of his disciples, named Shammai, separated from his master, and set up another school; so that in the time of our Lord the scribes and doctors of the Law were ranged in two parties, namely, the followers of Hillel, the most influential; and the followers of Shammai. These two schools differed widely on the subject of divorce. The followers of Shammai only permitted divorce in the case of moral defilement, while the followers of Hillel placed the matter entirely in the power of the husband. The object, therefore, of this artful question was to entrap our Lord, and to bring him into collision with one or other of these two opposing parties. For if he had said that it was not lawful for a man to put away his wife, he would have exposed himself to the hostility of many of the wealthy classes, who put away their wives for any cause. But if he had allowed the lawfulness of divorce at all, they would have found fault with his doctrine as imperfect and carnal, although he professed to be a spiritual Teacher of a perfect system, sent down from heaven. Mark 10:3, Mark 10:4 And he answered and said unto them, What did Moses command you? They professed much reverence for Moses; he therefore appeals to their great lawgiver. And they said, Moses suffered to write a bill of divorcement, and to put her away. If we now turn to St. Matthew (Matthew 21:4, Matthew 21:5). He we shall find that our Lord then appeals to the original institution of marriage. "Have ye not read, that he which made them from the beginning, made them male and female, and said, For this cause shall a man leave his father and mother, and shall cleave to his wife; and the twain shall become one flesh? So that they are no more twain, but one flesh. What therefore God hath joined together, let not man put asunder." He thus reminds them that marriage is a Divine institution; that as Adam and Eve were united by him in a union which was indissoluble, therefore he intended that the marriage bond should remain ever, so that the wife ought never to be separated from her husband, since she becomes by marriage a very part of her husband. To this purpose St. Augustine says (’City of God,’ bk. Matthew 14:22). He "It was not of the spirit which commands and the body which obeys, nor of the rational soul which rules and the irrational desire which is ruled, nor of the contemplative virtue which is supreme, and the active which is subject, nor of the understanding of the mind and the sense of the body; but plainly of the matrimonial union, by which the sexes are mutually bound together, that our Lord, when asked whether it were lawful for any cause to put away one’s wife, answered as in St. Matthew (Matthew 21:4, Matthew 21:5). It is certain, then, that from the first men were created as we see and know them to be now, of two sexes—male and female—and that they are called one, either on account of the matrimonial union, or on account of the origin of the woman, who was created from out of the side of the man." Mark 10:5 St. Matthew appears to give the more full account, of which St. Mark’s is an abbreviation. If we suppose the scribes here to interpose their question, "Why then did Moses permit a bill of divorcement?" t he two narratives fit exactly. Our Lord here answers their question, For your hardness of heart he wrote you this commandment. He permitted (not commanded) them to put away their wives, lest dislike might turn to hatred. From the beginning God joined them in one indissoluble bend; but man’s nature having become corrupt through sin, that sin changed and corrupted the institution, and so was the occasion of bills of divorcement, and polygamy. The Law of Moses put some restraint upon the freedom with which men had till then put away their wives; for thenceforth, a divorce could not take place until some legal steps had been taken, and a regular instrument had been drawn up; and this delay might often be the means of preventing a divorce which might otherwise have been effected in a moment of passion. Thus this legislation was adapted to the imperfect moral condition of the people, who were as yet quite unprepared for a higher moral code. Mark 10:10 The discussion with the Pharisees, related in the previous verses, had taken place in public. But now in the house, and in private, the disciples asked him again of this matter; so that what follows seems here to have been said to them privately. But it would appear from St. Matthew (Matthew 21:8) that our Lord had already said this in public; so that here he proclaims a new law, or rather affirms the sanctions of the primitive institution, abrogating the "bill of divorcement" excepting in the one case of fornication, and restoring the rite of marriage to its primaeval and indissoluble character. Mark 10:11 Committeth adultery against her (μοιχᾶταιἐπαὐτήν). This must surely mean the wife that has been put away. The adultery is against her, against her rights and interests. Mark 10:12 This verse should be read thus: And if she herself shall put away her husband, and marry another, she committeth adultery καὶἐὰναὐτὴἀπολύσασατὸνἄνδρααὑτῆςγαμήσηἄλλονμοιχᾶται. This reading is well supported. These words indicate that, according to our blessed Lord’s teaching, wives and husbands have equal rights in reference to divorce; and so the Greek, according to the best authorities, is (γαμήση) "shall marry," not (γαμηθῆ) "shall be married." Josephus, however, makes it evident that in his time husband and wife had by no means equal rights in these matters. Mark 10:13 It is worthy of notice that this touching incident follows here, as well as in the parallel passage in St. Matthew (Matthew 21:13). He immediately after the discourse about the marriage bond. And they brought unto him (προσέφερον)—literally, were bringing—little children (παιδία)—St. Luke (Luke 18:15) calls them "babes" (βρέφη)—that he should touch them (ἵναἅψηταιαὐτῶν). St. Luke has the same word (ἵναἅπτηται); but St. Matthew (Matthew 21:13) says "that he should lay his hands on them and pray." The imposition of hands implies a formal benediction; the invoking of Divine grace upon them, that they might grow up into wise and holy men and women. Why did the disciples rebuke them? Perhaps because they thought it unworthy of so great a Prophet, whose business was rather that of instructing those of full age, to be spending his time upon little children. Mark 10:14 But when Jesus saw it (ἰδὼνδὲὁἸησοῦς). The Greek shows that there was no interval between the acts of the parents and the disciples, and our Lord’s seeing it. The parents were bringing the children, the disciples were rebuking them, Jesus was perceiving. He was much displeased (ἠγανάκτησε); literally, he was moved with indignation. His words imply eagerness and earnestness: Suffer the little children to come unto me; forbid them not. The copulative καὶ is not to be found in the best authorities. The omission adds force and vividness to the words. The simplicity, candour, and innocence of little children are very attractive. This narrative shows with what care children should be educated. For of such is the kingdom of God; that is, of such little children as these. The kingdom of heaven belongs in a peculiar manner to little children. We know for certain that little children who have been brought to Christ in Holy Baptism, if they die before they are old enough for moral accountableness, are undoubtedly saved. They pass at once into a nearer position to the throne. "They are without fault before the throne of God." Mark 10:15 Verily I say unto you, Whosoever shall not receive the kingdom of God as a little child, he shall in no wise enter therein. Observe the "verily" with which our Lord introduces these words. He here adds something which extends what he has just said to those who are, not literally, but figuratively, little children. We must first receive the kingdom into our affections before we can really enter into it. It is as though Christ said, "It is not unworthy of my dignity to take little children into my arms and bless them, because by my benediction they become fit for the kingdom of heaven. And if you full-grown men would become fit for my kingdom, you must give up your ambitious aims and earthly contests, and imitate the simple unworldly ways of little children. The simplicity of the little child is the model and the rule for every one who desires, by the grace of Christ, to obtain the kingdom of heaven. Our Lord’s whole action here is a great encouragement to the receiving of little children by Holy Baptism into covenant with him. Mark 10:16 And he took them in his arms, and blessed them, laying his hands upon them. This is considered the true order of the words, according to the best authorities. The word rendered "taking in the arms" (ἐναγκαλισάμενος) has already occurred in this Gospel at Mark 9:36 (where see the note). The description here is very graphic. Our Savior would first embrace the little child,. He folding it in his arms; then he would lay his right hand upon the child’s head, and bless it. Mark 10:17 This verse should be rendered, And as he was going forth (ἐκπορευομένουαὐτοῦ)—that is, just as he was leaving the house—there ran one to him, and kneeled to him, and asked him. St. Matthew (Matthew 21:20) says that he was "a young man." St. Luke (Luke 18:18) that he was "a ruler." He had apparently been waiting for our Lord, waylaying him, though with a good intention. He showed zeal—as soon as he saw Jesus he ran to him; and he showed reverence, for he kneeled down to him. He wanted advice from one whom he must have heard of as a celebrated Teacher; and he wanted this counsel as a matter of great interest to himself. Good Master. This would be the ordinary and courteous mode of accosting a person professing to be a teacher, so as to conciliate his attention and interest. What shall I do that I may inherit eternal life? It is as though he said, "Rabbi, I know thee to be good, both as a man and as a teacher, and a prophet, well able to teach me perfectly those things which are really good, and which lead to blessedness hereafter. Tell me, therefore, What shall I do?" St. Matthew (Matthew 21:17) says, "What good thing (τίἀγαθὸνποιήσω) shall I do that I may inherit eternal life?" Mark 10:18 Why callest thou me good? According to the best authorities, the words in St. Matthew (Matthew 21:17) run thus: "Why askest thou me concerning that which is good? One there is who is good." The word "good" is the pivot on which our Lord’s answer turns, both in St. Matthew and here. The question is doubtless put to test the young ruler’s faith. If, as may be supposed, the young man used the term, "good Master," as a mere conventional expression, it was not the proper epithet to apply to our Lord, who at once transfers the praise and the goodness to God, that he might teach us to do the same. This ruler, by his mode of accosting our Lord, showed that he had not as yet a right faith in him—that he did not believe in his Godhead. Our Lord, therefore, desired to rouse him and lift him up to a higher faith. He seems to say to him, "If you call me good, believe that I am God; for no one is good, intrinsically good, but God. God alone is essentially good, and wise, and powerful, and holy. It is from him that angels and men derive a few drops, or rather some faint adumbration, of his goodness. There is none essentially, entirely, absolutely good but one, that is, God. Therefore seek after him, love him, imitate him. He alone can satisfy your longing desires, as in this life with his grace, so in the life to come with his glory; yea, with himself. For in heaven he manifested himself as the supreme good, to be tasted and enjoyed by the blessed for ever." Mark 10:19 In St. Matthew (Matthew 21:17, etc.) the record of our Lord’s conversation with the young ruler is more full; and it should be read side by side with the more condensed narrative of St. Mark. It will be observed that it is upon the commandments of the second table that our Lord here lays stress. For the love of God produces the love of our neighbor; and he who loveth not his brother whom he hath seen, how can he love God whom he hath not seen? Mark 10:20 Master, all those things have I observed from my youth (ἐφυλαξὰμην) literally, I kept, I guarded. St. Matthew adds here (Matthew 19:20). He "What lack I yet?"—"What is still wanting in me, that I may inherit the life to come in its fullness of glory and bliss? You seem, good Master, as a heavenly Teacher, to set forth a higher and more excellent way than that pointed out by our scribes and Pharisees. Tell me what that way is. Tell me what! still lack; for I earnestly desire to go forward in the right way that leadeth to everlasting life." Mark 10:21 And Jesus looking upon him loved him. (ἐμβλέψαςαὐτῶἠγάπησεναὐτόν) This is another of St. Mark’s graphic touches—an exquisite piece of word-painting, probably supplied to him by St. Peter. The words express most vividly an earnest, tender, searching look. They seem, if it may be said reverently, to combine the Divine penetration with human sympathy and compassion. The counsel of our Lord which follows was not a general command, but a particular precept, which the young ruler specially needed. One thing thou lackest. In St. Matthew (Matthew 19:21) the words are, "If thou wouldest be perfect." But our Lord’s words here, "One thing thou lackest," fit in excellently with the young ruler’s question given just before in St. Matthew, "What lack I yet?" showing a substantial unity in the narrative, with just that variety which we should expect in the account of the same incident given by two independent but equally trustworthy witnesses. The "one thing thou lackest" of St. Mark, and "if thou writ be perfect of St. Matthew, both point to the same conclusion—that our Lord’s object was to reveal this young man to himself. His stumbling-block was his wealth; and so our Savior at once pierces his besetting sin of covetousness. The precept was a special counsel to him; it directed him to do something which, as our Lord saw, was in his case necessary to his salvation. He could not follow Christ without parting with this sin, and with that which ministered to it. This was his particular spiritual difficulty. Mark 10:22 But his countenance fell at the saying (ὁδὲστυγνάσαςἐπὶτῳλόγῳ). The same word is used in St. Matthew (Matthew 16:3) for a "lowering," "frowning sky" (οὐρανὸςστυγνάζων). And he went away sorrowful (ἀπῆλθελυπούμενος)—literally, for he was one that had (ἦνγὰρἔχων)—great possessions. Mark 10:23 And Jesus looked round about, and saith unto his disciples (καὶπεριβλεψάμενοςὁΙησοῦςλέγει). St. Mark frequently uses this word περιβλέπω. Our Lord turned from the young man, who was now going away, and looked round about, no doubt with a sad and disappointed look, and said to his disciples, How hardly shall they that have riches enter into the kingdom of God! Why is this? Partly because the love of riches tempts men to heap them up, whether lawfully or unlawfully. Partly because the love of riches binds the soul to earth, so that it is less likely to think of Partly because riches are an incentive to pride and luxury and other sins. The heathen poet Ovid could speak of riches "irritamenta malorum." Poverty and contempt of riches often open that heaven which wealth and covetousness close. Mark 10:24 And the disciples were astonished (ἐθαμβοῦντο)—literally, were amazed at his words. The Greek word here implies wilderment. It is used again below at Mark 10:32. We find it also at Mark 1:27. This doctrine of our Lord was so new and strange to them. They had been accustomed to think little of the danger, and much of the advances of wealth. But Jesus answereth again, and saith unto them, Children how hard is it for them that trust in riches enter into the kingdom of God! He the enduring expression of "children" (τέκνα). He and takes off somewhat of the edge of the seventy of the expression, by changing the form of it into the words," how hard is it for them that trust in riches to enter into the kingdom of God!" There is some authority for omitting the words. "for them that trot in riches;" so to reduce the sentence to the simple form, "How hard is it to enter into the kingdom of God!" Such is the reading in the two great uncial manuscripts, the Sinaitic and the Vatican. But on the whole the balance of evidence is in favor of that which was adopted in the Authorized Version, and has been retained by the Revisers of 1881; and it is reasonable to believe that our Lord qualified the former expression, in order to relieve the minds of his amazed disciples. Mark 10:25 It is easier for a camel to go through a needle’s eye, etc. This is a strong hyperbolic proverbial expression to represent anything that is very difficult to do. Dr. John Lightfoot, in his Hebrew exercitations upon St. Matthew’s Gospel. He quotes instances from the binical writings of a very similar phrase intended to represent something that is possible. For example, he quotes one rabbi disputing with another, who says, "Perhaps thou art one of those who can make an elephant pass through the eye of a needle; that is, "who speak things that are impossible.’ St. Jerome says," It is not the absolute impossibility of the thing which is set forth, but the infrequency of it." Mark 10:26 And they were astonished exceedingly (περισσῶςἐξεπλήσσοντο). saying among themselves—according to the best reading the words are, saying unto him (πρὸςαὐτόν)—Then who can be saved? Mark 10:27 Jesus looking upon them (ἐμβλέψαςδὲαὐτοῖς). The Greek verb implies an earnest, intense looking upon them; evidently narrated by one who, like Peter, had watched his countenance. St. Chrysostom says that he looked on them in this way that he might mitigate and soothe the timid and anxious minds of his disciples. It is as though our Lord said, "It is impossible for a rich man, embarrassed and entangled with his wealth, by his own natural strength to obtain salvation; because this is a supernatural blessing, which we cannot obtain without the like supernatural aids of grace. But with God all things are possible, because God is the Author and Source, as of nature, so of grace and glory. And he enables us, by his grace, to triumph over all the difficulties and hindrances of nature; so that rich men shall not be hindered by their riches; but, by being faithful in the unrighteous mammon, shall make it the means of their being received unto ’the eternal tabernacle.’" Mark 10:28 Peter began to say unto him, Lo, we have left all, and have followed thee. Peter began to say unto him. He had been thinking of himself and his companions, the other disciples.. He in reference to these last words of our Lord. It is probable that the sacrifice which Peter and the rest of the disciples had made when they became his followers, was small, compared with the sacrifice which our Lord demanded of the rich young ruler. Nevertheless they forsook their all, whatever it was. They had forsaken their boats and their nets. They had forsaken their means of subsistence. They had forsaken things which, though they were not much in themselves, were nevertheless such things as they would have desired to keep. Cornelins a Lapide says, "Such things are forsaken by those who follow Christ, as are capable of being desired by those who do not follow him." St. Augustine says, "St. Peter not only forsook what he had, but also what he desired to have. But who does not desire daily to increase what he has? That desire is cut off. Peter forsook the whole world, and he received in return the whole world. They were as those who had nothing, and yet were possessing all things." Mark 10:29 St. Matthew (Matthew 19:28) here introduces the great promise, to be fulfilled in the regeneration, that is, at the second coming of Christ—at the second birth of the world to a new and glorious state. It may be that St. Matthew was guided to record it, inasmuch as his Gospel was written for Jews. Its omission by St. Mark and St. Luke may be explained by the fact that they were writing, the one to Romans, and the other to Gentiles generally. Omitting further notice here of this great promise recorded only by St. Matthew, St. Mark’s words seem general, common to all faithful Christians. This leaving, of house, or brethren, or sisters, etc., might be rendered necessary from various causes. But they are all covered by that one expression, for my sake, and for the gospel’s. Mark 10:30 But he shall receive a hundredfold now in this time (ἑκατονταπλασίονα). St. Luke (Luke 18:30) says (πολλαπλασίονα) "manifold more"—an indefinite increase, to show the greatness and multitude of the recompense. He who forsakes his own for the sake of Christ will find others, many in number, who will give him the love of brethren and sisters, with even greater affection; so that he will seem not to have lost or forsaken his own, but to have received them again with interest. For spiritual affections are far deeper than natural; and his love is stronger who burns with heavenly love which God has kindled, than he who is influenced by earthly love only, which only nature has planted. But in the fullest sense, he who forsakes these earthly things for the sake of Christ, receives instead, God himself. For to those who forsake all for him, he is himself father, brother, sister, and all things. So that he will have possessions far richer than what earth can supply; only with persecutions (μετὰδιωγμῶν). This is a very striking addition. Our Lord here includes "persecutions" in the number of the Christian’s blessings. And no doubt there is a noble sense in which persecutions are really amongst the blessings of the believer. "If ye be reproached for the Name of Christ, happy are ye; for the spirit of glory and of God resteth upon you" (1 Peter 4:14). St. Peter, who must have had in his mind the "with persecutions" of our Lord when he wrote these words, here shows that the blessedness of the Christian when suffering persecution is this, that he has a special sense of the abiding presence of the Spirit of God, bringing with it the assurance of future glory. "Rejoice, and be exceeding glad: far great is your reward in heaven." The words are also, of course, a warning to the disciples as to the persecutions that awaited them. And in the world to come eternal life. This is that splendid inheritance in which the blessed shall be heirs of God and joint-heirs with Christ; and so shall possess not only the heaven and the earth, and all things that are in them, hut even God himself, and all honor, all glory, all joy, not merely as occupiers, but as heirs for ever; as long as God himself shall be, who is himself "the eternal God." Mark 10:31 But many that are first shall be last; and the last first. Most fitly does our Lord add this weighty sentence to what has just gone before. For thus he places himself, his grace, and his gospel in direct opposition to the corrupt teaching of the scribes and Pharisees. Perhaps the disciples thought within themselves, "How can it come to pass that we, the poor, the unlearned, the despised, are to sit upon thrones judging the twelve tribes of Israel, amongst whom are men far our superiors in station, in learning, and in authority, such as are the scribes and Pharisees, and that rich young ruler just mentioned." Our Lord here teaches them that the future will reveal great changes—that some who are first here will be last there, and some who seem last here will be first there. The disciples, and others like them, who, having forsaken all and followed Christ, seemed to be last in this world, will be first in the world to come—most dear to Christ, the King of Heaven, in their lives; most like to him in their zeal for his cause. Mark 10:32 They were now going up from Jericho to Jerusalem, going up with Christ to his cross and his death. He went before them, eagerly leading the way for his timid disciples, who were now beginning to realize what was about to happen, and that he would be condemned and crucified. Therefore the evangelist adds, they were amazed (Greek, ἐθαμβοῦντο); the same word which is used at Mark 10:24. The words in the original, according to the best reading, make a distinction between the utter amazement of the disciples and the fear of the others who followed (οἱδὲἀκολουθοῦντεςἐφοβοῦντο). St. Mark draws a distinction between the disciples, who would be following him, though at a little distance, and the mixed company, who were also following him, though at a greater distance. The whole scene is before us. Our blessed Lord, with an awful majesty on his countenance, and eager resolution in his manner, is pressing forwards to his cross. "How am I straitened until it be accomplished!" His disciples follow him, amazed and bewildered; and even the miscellaneous crowd, who no doubt gazed upon him with keen interest as the great "Prophet that should come into the world," felt that something was going to happen, though they knew not what—some-thing very dreadful; and they too were afraid. In the case of the disciples, Bede says that the chief cause of their amazement was their own imminent fear of death. They were amazed that their Master should hasten forward with such alacrity to his cross, and they feared lest they too should have to suffer with him. He took again the twelve; and once more impressed upon them the dread realities which were awaiting him. They were still slow of apprehension; they required to be told again and again. Mark 10:35 And there come near unto him James and John, the sons of Zebedee, saying unto him, Master, we would that thou shouldest do for us whatsoever we shall ask of thee. St. Matthew (Luke 20:20) informs us that this request was made by Salome, "the mother of Zebedee’s children." The two accounts are readily reconciled if we consider that the request was made by Salome and her sons, and by her in their behalf. This request was made by them not long after they had heard our Lord’s great promise that his apostles "in the regeneration" should "sit upon thrones," judging the twelve tribes of Israel" (Matthew 19:28). He and very soon after they had heard his repeated announcement of his sufferings and death. But the thought of the glory which was to follow swallowed up the thought of the suffering that was to precede it; and so these two disciples were emboldened at once to ask for prominent positions amongst the thrones. St. Chrysostom finds an excuse for the imperfection of their faith. He says, "The mystery of the cross was not yet accomplished; nor yet was the grace of the Holy Spirit poured into their hearts. Wherefore, if you desire to know the strength of their faith, consider what they became after they had been endued with power from on high." Mark 10:38 It will be observed that in St. Matthew (Luke 20:20). He while Salome is represented as the person who makes the request, the answer is given, not to her, but to her sons. Ye know not what ye ask. Our Lord knew that the sons had spoken in the mother and by the mother. They knew not what they asked (1) because his kingdom was spiritual and heavenly, not carnal and earthly, as they supposed; (2) because they sought the glory before they had gained the victory; (3) because perhaps they thought that this kingdom was given in right of natural relationship (they were his cousins); whereas it is not given save to those who deserve it and take it by force. Are ye able to drink the cup that I drink? or to be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with? It is as though he said, "It is by my cross and passion that I am to attain to the kingdom; therefore the same way must be trodden by you who seek the same end." Our Lord here describes his passion as his cup. The "cup" everywhere in Holy Scripture, as well as in profane writers, signifies a man’s portion, which is determined for him by God, and sent to him. The figure is derived from the ancient custom at feasts, by which the ruler of the feast tempered the wine according to his own will, and appointed to each guest his own portion, which it was his duty to drink. Our Lord then proceeds to describe his passion, which he had already spoken of as his cup, as his baptism. He uses this image because he would be totally buried, immersed, so to speak, in his passion. But it seems probable that the idea of purification entered into this image. It was a baptism of fire into which he was plunged, and out of which he came forth victorious. The fire of his bitter passion and death tried him. It was his "salting with fire." It pleased God thus to "make the Captain of our salvation perfect through sufferings." Our Lord asks these ambitious disciples whether they could drink his cup of suffering, and be baptized with his fiery baptism. Mark 10:39 James and John seem to have understood the meaning of the cup; and perhaps also of the baptism. They both of them drank the cup, though in different ways. St. James, preaching Christ more boldly and fervently, became an early martyr, having been slain by the sword of Herod (Acts 12:2). St. John also drank of this cup, and was baptized with this baptism, when, if we may trust the authority of Tertullian (’De Praescript.’ c. 36.). He he was cast by order of Domitian into a caldron of boiling oil, before the Porta Latina at Rome, although the oil had no power to hurt him. Another legend states that he drank a cup of poison, and took no harm. On this account he is frequently represented with a cup in his hand. Mark 10:40 But to sit on my right hand or on my left hand is not mine to give; but it is for them for whom it hath been prepared. The Arians gathered from this that our Lord was not of one substance with the Father. But this arose from a misunderstanding of the words. For the antithesis is not here between Christ and the Father; but between James and John on the one side ambitiously seeking the pre-eminence, and those on the ether side to whom it ought of right to be given. St. Jerome wisely says, "Our Lord does not say, ’Ye shall not sit,’ lest he should put to shame these two. Neither does he say, ’Ye shall sit,’ lest the others should be envious. But by holding out the prize to all, he animates all to contend for it." Our Lord is also careful to point out that he who humbles himself shall be exalted. But Christ is the Giver, not indeed by way of favor to any one who asks, but according to the eternal and unalterable principles laid down by the Father. That Christ is the Giver is plain from St. Luke (Luke 22:29). "I appoint unto you a kingdom, even as my Father appointed unto me." Mark 10:41 And when the ten heard it, they began to be moved with indignation concerning James and John. How did they hear it? It is most likely that Salome and her two sons sought this favor secretly from Christ, lest they should excite the envy of the ethers. But they, the ten, must have noticed the approach of James and John with their mother to our Lord. They came in a formal manner, worshipping him first, and then making their request (see Matthew 20:20). The ten would naturally be desirous to know the nature of this interview; and when it was explained to them, they began to show indignation. Our Lord perceived that they were disputing; and he then called them and addressed the whole body. For he saw that they were all laboring under this disease of ambition; and he wished to apply the remedy at once to all, as we see in the words which follow. Mark 10:42 In these words our Lord does not find fault with that power or authority, whether civil or ecclesiastical, which is exercised by princes or bishops; for this is necessary in every state, and so is sanctioned by Divine and human law. What he condemns is the arbitrary and tyrannical exercise of such power, which the princes of the Gentiles were accustomed to. Mark 10:43, Mark 10:44 In these words our Lord enjoins him who is raised above others to conduct himself modestly and humbly; so as not to lord it over those beneath him, but to consider for them and to consult their security and happiness, and so to conduct himself that he may appear to be rather their minister and servant than their lord; ever remembering the golden rule, "All things whatsoever ye would that men should do to you, even so do to them." At the same time, our Lord here teaches all alike, whether superiors or inferiors, by what way we should strive to reach heaven, so as to sit at the right or left hand of Christ in his kingdom, namely, by the way of humility. For those who are the lowliest and most humble here will be the greatest and most exalted there. Mark 10:45 A ransom for many (λύτρονἀντὶπολλῶν; from λύω. to loose, or set free). Not that Christ died only for the elect. For Christ died for all; and has obtained for all the means necessary and sufficient for their salvation. Yet the fruit of his death and his full salvation comes only to those who persevere to the end. When our Lord says that he came "to give his life a ransom for many," he regards the vast multitude of those who are included within his purposes of mercy. He "is the Savior of all men, specially of them that believe." Mark 10:46 And they come to Jericho. Jericho, situated in the midst of a fertile, well-watered country, celebrated for its palm trees, was situated about seventeen English miles east-north-east of Jerusalem, and about six miles from the nearest bend of the river Jordan. In the time of our Lord it was one of the most important cities next to Jerusalem. It is now known by the name of Richa or Ericha, and is almost deserted. The journey from the Jordan to Jericho is through a fiat country; but that from Jericho to Jerusalem is very hilly. It is supposed that it was upon the rocky heights overhanging this city that our Lord’s temptation took place. Jericho derives its name, either from "the moon," or from the fragrant edours of the "balsam" plant, which was extensively cultivated in the neighborhood. Its palm groves and balsam gardens were bestowed by Anthony upon Cleopatra, from whom Herod the Great purchased them. It was here that Herod the Great died. It is now one of the most filthy and neglected places in Palestine. To this place our Lord came; and St. Luke (18 and 19.) gives a full account of his reception there. St. Matthew speaks of two blind men; but he agrees with St. Mark in saying that the cure took place as he went out from Jericho. St. Luke mentions only one; but he places the cure at the time of our Lord’s entrance into Jericho. How do we reconcile St. Mark’s account of one only, specially named, Bartimaeus, the son of Timaeus? St. Augustine says that there were two blind men; but that the one, better known, overshadowed the other. He also says that Bartimaeus was a well-known character, and that he was accustomed to sit by the wayside, not only blind, but as a beggar. It is of course possible that St. Luke may refer to another ease altogether. But on the other hand, with the exception that he mentions only one, and that he places the cure at the time of the entrance into Jericho, and not at the time of the departure, all the other circumstances are identical. May not this latter discrepancy be reconciled thus?—the blind man may have sought a cure from Christ at his first entrance into the city; but he may not have been able to be heard on account of the crowd. Or our Lord may have passed him by at first, in order to stimulate his faith and hope. So the day after, he may have placed himself at the gate of the city, close by where Christ would pass through; and there again he may have urged his request, and so obtained healing. Dr. John Lightfoot says that the careful description of Bartimaeus would seem to imply that his father may have been a person of some note. Dr. Lightfoot adds that it is possible that Timaeus, or "Thimai," may be the same with Simais, blind, from the use of the letter thau from samech, common amongst the Chaldaeans; so that Bartimaeus might mean nothing more than "blind son of a blind father." Mark 10:48 Many rebuked him, that he should hold his peace. They rebuked him, perhaps, out of reverence and regard for Christ, who might perhaps at that moment have been preaching to the people, and so might be disturbed by the blind man’s loud and noisy appeal. But the rebuke of the crowd gave additional energy to his entreaties; and he cried out the more a great deal, that his voice might be heard above them all. He was in good earnest, and would not be restrained. A useful lesson is hem suggested to all. He who desires to serve God must overcome all earthly shame and fear; for, indeed, this unworthy feeling keeps back many from Christ. Mark 10:49 And Jesus stood still (στὰςὁἸησοῦς)—literally, Jesus stood—and said, Call ye him. St. Jerome says that our Lord stood still on account of the man’s infirmity. There were many walls in Jericho; there were rough places; there were rocks and precipices over which he might stumble. Therefore the Lord stood, where there was a plain path by which the blind man might approach him. The crowd show their, sympathy. There is something very genuine as well as touching in their words, Be of good cheer: rise, he calleth thee. Mark 10:50 And he, casting away his garment, rose—the word in the Greek is ἀναπηδήσας. literally, sprang to his feet—and came to Jesus. He cast away his "garment," that is, the loose outer robe which covered his tunic. He was in haste, and desired to disengage himself from every ira-pediment, in his eagerness to approach Jesus. We seem here to have the description of a keen eye-witness, such as St. Peter would be. Mark 10:51, Mark 10:52 Our Lord well knew what he wanted; but it was necessary that he and those around him should hear from the lips of the blind man the confession of his need, and of his faith in the power that was present to heal him. And the blind man said unto him, Rabboni, that I may receive my sight. "Rabboni," or "Rabbuni," means literally, my Master. It was a more respectful mode of address than the more simple form "Rabbi." This expression shows that Bartimaeus had yet much to learn as to the Divine character of our Lord. But his faith is accepted; and he showed that it was genuine as far as it went, by forthwith following Jesus in the way. There were six occasions on which our Lord is recorded to have healed the blind: St. Matthew (Matthew 9:27; Matthew 12:22; Matthew 21:14); St. Mark; St. John (John 9:1). St. Chrysostom says of Bartimaeus, that as before this gift of healing he showed perseverance, so after it he shewed gratitude. Mark 10:1-12 Marriage and divorce. Our Lord Jesus is the great moral Legislator of humanity. His authoritative teaching applies to all classes and to all relationships of mankind. And it is to be noticed that he bases his commands and counsels both upon grounds of natural right and reason, and also upon the revealed Mosaic Law. With regard to the latter, it is observable that he professes not to destroy it, but to fulfill it—to inspire it with a new motive, and to give it a wider range; whilst he allows no authority to mere traditions and usages, but treats them simply upon their own merits. I. UPON WHAT OUR LORD BASES THE OF . It is to be observed that Jesus goes back behind the old Mosaic Law, which was universally accepted among the Jews as the authoritative standard of conduct. 1. There is reference to what we should call natural adaptation. If there is design in any arrangement or provision of nature, there is certainly design in the division of mankind (as, indeed, of other races of living beings)into two corresponding and complementary sexes. Man was made for woman, and woman for man; and the equality in numbers of male and female is evidently a natural reason both for marriage and for monogamy. 2. There is reference to the creative, historical basis of marriage. The record of Genesis is adduced, and Jesus reminds the Pharisees that marriage dated, as a matter of fact, from the beginning of the creation—that our first parents lived together in this relationship from their first introduction to each other until the close of life. 3. Jesus asserts marriage to be a Divine ordinance. "God hath joined together" husband and wife. The Law of Moses came in with its additional provisions and sanctions; but it presumed the existence of the marriage state. God, who orders all things well, had seen that it would not be good for the man to be alone; accordingly he instituted wedded life, and hallowed it. II. WHAT OUR LORD DEDUCES FROM THE OF , 1. A condemnation of the custom of facile divorce. It was a common practice for the Jews, when dissatisfied with their wives, to put them away for very trivial reasons—even because they were not pleased with them, without any offense having been committed. They were wont to appeal to a permissive provision in their law as a warrant for acting thus. In our own times, in many countries even professedly Christian, it is too common for regulations of great laxity to be made regarding divorce. In some countries even incompatibility of temper is a sufficient ground for permanent separation. Such practices are condemned by Jesus as contrary to the Divine intention regarding marriage, and as subversive of all sound morality. As the family is the unit and the basis of all communities, and of all moral unity and welfare, it is of the highest importance that the sacredness of this Divine institution should be upheld, and that all practices and sentiments which undermine it should be discountenanced and opposed. Lax views upon divorce are to be repressed, as inimical to all social welfare as well as to domestic concord. 2. A declaration that such divorce is conducive to adultery. Our Lord does not say that the remarriage of divorced persons is in all cases adulterous; but, speaking of these who are separated for trivial offenses, and for any offense short of the most serious, he declares that for such persons to marry again is nothing less than adultery. They are not really and in God’s sight released from one another, and a second union is therefore unlawful. "What therefore God hath joined together, let not man put asunder." . 1. Learn our Lord’s independence as an ethical and spiritual Teacher, and his superiority to traditional and even Mosaic authority. 2. Learn his interest in all our human relationships; he consecrates them by the regard of his grace and by the imposition of his Law. 3. Let Christians discountenance lax opinions and practices upon a question so vital to social and national well-being as the ordinance of marriage. Mark 10:13-16 Christ and the children. That three of the evangelists should have recorded this incident is proof of the impression it made upon the early Christians, and of the importance they attached to it. The Son of man interested himself in all classes and conditions of humanity; and it is not strange that he should have come into direct and tender relations with the very young. I. THE who were brought to Jesus. They were very young, for they are called "little children," and they were so small as to be taken up in the arms. Jesus had himself been a child, and had passed through the stages of infancy and boyhood, so that from his own experience he could sympathize with this age and condition of human life. These children may have been children of the house where Jesus had been staying, and of the neighbors. It should be remembered that, not long before, Jesus had taken a little child and used him as an example of simplicity and humility. We may certainly learn from this incident that no child, however young or feeble, is disregarded by our Lord Jesus. In every one he sees an immortal, God-given nature, capable of fellowship with the Creator’s mind, and of obedience to his commands. II. THE PARENTS OF THE . 1. They revered and honored Jesus themselves, or they would not have acted thus. They would not have treated another rabbi thus. There must have been something in our Lord which attracted them and induced them to believe that he would not repel them should they ask a favor on behalf of their little ones. 2. They brought their children to Jesus. The babes had neither knowledge nor strength to come of themselves; but their parents acted for them. Parents should regard it as their duty and privilege to bring their offspring to the Savior. This they may do by instructing them as to who and what Jesus is, by leading them into the society of Christ’s people. 3. They had a definite purpose in bringing the children to Jesus, viz. that he should touch them and should pray for them. To tell our children of Christ is, or should be, with a view to their personal spiritual contact with him, and with a view to their enjoying both the regard of his friendship and the benefit of his intercession: III. THE TWELVE, AND THEIR OF THE . It is instructive to observe that the very persons whose office it was to make Jesus known to men, and to introduce all the needy to his notice, and to commend them to his aid, should have on this occasion interfered with the approach of those whom Jesus would have welcomed. The twelve rebuked the parents, and forbade the children to be brought to Jesus, probably from a mistaken idea that the Lord would not care to be troubled with those so young and so helpless. How important that Christians should not interpose to prevent children from seeking Christ and the fellowship of his people! IV. JESUS, AND HIS OF THE . The narrative gives us a delightful view of the Savior’s character, as the children’s Friend. 1. What he felt. A very strong expression is used to denote our Lord’s disapproval of his disciples’ conduct. He was "moved with indignation" by their demeanour. They were both misrepresenting him and inflicting a wrong upon the applicants for blessing. 2. What he said. His language includes a special reference to the occasion, and a general statement of a Divine principle. "Suffer the children to come!" "Forbid them not!" How gracious a revelation of the Savior’s mind and disposition, and how instructive a lesson for his people! The general principle he enunciates is even more valuable: "Of such is the kingdom of heaven." The reference is doubtless to the dependence and teachableness of little children. God’s kingdom is composed of childlike natures. The proud, self-sufficient, and self-confident are out of harmony with a spiritual society which recognizes a Divine Head and is governed by Divine laws. 3. What he did. Doubtless, in these actions, Jesus was obeying the impulse of his affectionate nature. Yet he intended to teach the world how gracious is his heart, how compassionate are his purposes, how vast and widely extended are the arms of his love. He took them in his arms, verifying the prediction concerning him as the Good Shepherd. He laid his hands upon them, signifying his tender interest. He blessed them, praying for them, and pronouncing over them words of Divine benediction. 1. An encouragement to Christian parents to bring their children to the Savior. 2. An inducement to the young to look to Jesus as the Giver of true blessing. 3. An example to the Church of Christ as to the spirit in which the Lord’s people should deal with the young—with inexperienced and immature natures. impatience or contempt, but rather gentleness and consideration, should distinguish the attitude of Christ’s people towards the lambs of the flock. Mark 10:17-22 Loved, yet lacking. An interesting character this, coming in the Gospel history like a meteor out of the darkness for a brief moment, and then vanishing again, to be no more seen. An interesting conversation this, casting valuable light upon the character and the demands, of Christ, and upon the aspirations and virtues, the tests and the deficiencies, of human nature. Strange that Jesus should love one who came before him in this one short interview; stranger still that, in this loved one, he should find a lack so serious and even fatal, that such promise should issue in such disappointment! In this young ruler we have a type of a class of applicants to Christ. I. HE MANY THINGS. How much was in this young man’s favor! 1. His worldly position. Though young, he was a ruler, and the possessor of great riches. It was to his credit that, when his worldly condition and circumstances were such, he yet acted as he did, evincing a mind set upon higher blessings than this world can give. 2. His character. There is no reason to disbelieve his assertion that he had in his outward life kept the Law of the Decalogue. Christ did not charge him with hypocrisy in this profession; he rather admitted its truth in requiring more than compliance with. the rules of morality. 3. His reverence for Jesus. This is apparent in his action and attitude: "he came kneeling down on the road before Jesus;" and in his address, "Good Master," as well as in the fact that he reverently asked the judgment of the prophet of Nazareth upon a most important question. 4. His aspiration after eternal life. This was a proof of a noble dissatisfaction and a noble desire; this question which the young ruler addressed to the one Being who was able to answer and resolve it. II. HE WAS LOVED AND TESTED BY CHRIST. 1. Jesus loved him, doubtless seeing in him an ingenuous disposition, a thirst for truth, a reverence for goodness; doubtless looking back upon a pure and honorable life in the past, and forward to the bright possibilities of the future. What an insight we thus gain into the truly human nature of the Savior! And are there not now those whom he looks upon and loves, beholding in them so much that is congenial to his heart? 2. Jesus tested him. He did this in love, yet in faithfulness. And in three ways. (1) His faith in Himself. Why call him "good"? The epithet was too honorable if he were man. Was his disciple prepared to apply it to him with the clear understanding that it involved his Deity? (2) His character. This test the young ruler stood; he had "a conscience void of offense." (3) His love and devotion. Was the young ruler prepared to give up all at the Master’s bidding? This leads to the observation that— III. HE LACKED ONE THING. Consider: 1. Christ’s demand. (1) It was that he should part with his wealth, and bestow all upon the poor. Not that this is universally obligatory or desirable. It was the form of complete surrender which in this case was most appropriate. A hard test, a stern requirement; yet most necessary "to prove the sincerity of his love." (2) The promise. There was an inducement held out, of "treasure in heaven," which should more than compensate his loss. Our Lord shows his compassion upon our human nature in thus alluring to his side. (3) The call. It was to discipleship: "Follow reef What an opportunity was, in these words, opened up before this ardent, aspiring mind! Who can say what position he might have held in the circle of the apostles, in the memory of Christendom, had he responded to this heavenly summons? 2. The young ruler’s failure under trial. The saying was too hard; the test was too severe; the world was too strong! His heart sank within him, and his countenance fell. And then he went away sorrowful, grieving to leave Christ, yet feeling that the grief would be greater of leaving the riches in which he delighted and trusted. Had he given, not his admiration, his respect, only, to Christ, but his very heart, then it would have been possible to him to have "left all, and followed him." But one thing he lacked—the surrender of self, of the spiritual nature, which would have involved the surrender of all. , Christ will be satisfied with nothing less than our heart, our all. We may have many things, and yet lack the spirit of perfect surrender and consecration. The test is certain to be applied; how shall we endure it? Mark 10:23-31 Christ must be all. Sometimes our Lord gave utterance to paradox. Certainly it was so on this occasion. Any ordinary observer would have pronounced the rich young ruler blessed, and would have pitied the poor fishermen who neglected their petty craft and followed the homeless and penniless Rabbi of Nazareth. But God’s ways are not our ways. Jesus looked below the surface. To him the case of the favored of fortune and the admired of society was a sad case, and the choice of the twelve was the choice of the good part, which none can take away. I. THE AND PERILS OF WEALTH. This is not a popular or acceptable lesson; and most people would be willing to accept, without a murmur, the position of danger and temptation occupied by the affluent. However, the warnings of the Master are fully borne out by the experience of those who have watched the working of human nature under the influence of riches. 1. To have wealth is to be in danger of trusting in wealth. 2. To trust in wealth is not conducive to humility, penitence, and faith—the dispositions peculiarly suitable to those who would be saved. 3. To lack these dispositions is to be disqualified for the kingdom of God. 4. Yet the grace of God, with whom all things are pOssible, is able to overcome difficulties and temptations great as these. II. THE OF GIVING UP ALL FOR CHRIST. 1. Really and truly the Christian surrenders all he has to his Lord. That Lord may give him back, as it were, of what was his own, but even when used for himself, it is consecrated, and is still the Lord’s. (1) Christians may be called upon to give up earthly possessions. This the rich young ruler should have done, but did not; this Peter and the rest of the twelve actually did. It has often been remarked that the apostles did not give up much in order to become disciples of Jesus. But the answer is fair—What they had they gave up; it was their all. When plainly called upon to part with property, as, e.g. in times of persecution, or for the sake of charity, Christ’s people willingly make the sacrifice required. Property so lost is truly gained. (2) Christians may have to renounce earthly aims and prospects. How Often does this happen still! The convert feels constrained to break away from old associations, which might well be the stepping-stone to honor, station, emolument; and in sacrificing what the world would give, he reaps a rich reward in the approval of his conscience, the progress he makes in the Divine life, the increased opportunities of usefulness he enjoys. Such are foremost in inviting their fellow-men to the better path— "Come, learn, your follies quitting, That this world’s gain is loss; To his mild rule submitting Who bare for you! the cross." (3) They renounce the pleasures and the applause of the world. The pleasures of sin it is their aim to relinquish; the praise of men they regard with indifference; for they "have left all." (4) All this renunciation is spiritually valuable just so far as, it expresses the renunciation of self-will, and the acceptance of the will of Christ. I count all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus the Lord." 2. In so doing the Christian reaps a rich reward. This is twofold. (1) There is recompense in this life. To follow Jesus is in itself an honor and happiness. Who that loves him would not willingly share his lot? Surrender all you have to Christ, and Christ will bestow all he has on you. He not only confers upon his people the favor of his heart, he gives them to enjoy the approbation of a good conscience. And Jesus points out the provision made by God’s goodness for many of his faithful followers. It happened, as he foretold, that many of the persecuted disciples experienced marvellous interpositions and unexpected relief; that their confession of Christ was the occasion of the attachment and affection, the ministrations and gifts, of those who witnessed and admired their fidelity. (2) There is a yet richer recompense hereafter. Simply and grandly does Jesus assure his people that they shall have "in the world to come eternal life." It was an assurance which was repeated by Christ’s inspired apostles, which was addressed from the throne of his glory by the triumphant Redeemer to his struggling soldiers upon earth. "Be thou faithful unto death, and! will give thee a crown of life." Many a faithful witness and warrior has been animated by the glorious prospect, and has learned joyfully to toil and patiently to endure, with the blessed hope of the future before his eyes. The light afflictions are light, because they introduce the exceeding and eternal weight of glory. "When the shore is won at last, Who will count the billows past?" Mark 10:32-34 The reiterated prediction. This was the third occasion upon which Jesus expressly and formally intimated to his followers the approaching close of his ministry and life. The occasion was the last great journey up to Jerusalem. He wished the disciples to understand what their discipleship involved, into what scenes they were now about to follow him; that, forewarned, they might be forearmed. Observe.— I. THE FOR THIS . Mark, in a few words, graphically and vividly portrays the scene. An unusual state of excitement pervades the company. The attitude of the Master, and the expression of the disciples’ countenances, display the prevalence of common emotion. Jesus goes before, absorbed in contemplation of his approaching sufferings; the group of disciples are amazed at the prospect opened up to them in the words of warning they have just heard; and the people around are silent with dread and awe! II. JESUS THE PLACE OF HIS . They are going up to Jerusalem. The city, in which he has often preached and wrought his mighty works, is about to reject him. The metropolis is in this act to fulfill the counsels of the nation. "He came to his own, and his own received him not." "It cannot be that a prophet perish out of Jerusalem." III. IT IS WHO SHALL, BE THE OF THE . The chief priests and the scribes have opposed him at every point; have disputed with him, calumniated him, stirred up the people against him. And now it is into their hands that he is to be delivered, and they are to take the initiative in his destruction. The leaders of his own nation are to compass the violent end of him who is that nation’s Glory and Redeemer. IV. IT IS WHO SHALL BE THE AGENTS IN HIS . It is a proof of our Lord’s prophetic foresight, that he predicts that the instrumentality by which the leaders of the Jews shall effect their purpose is not a native but a foreign agency. He came "a Light to lighten the Gentiles, and the Glory of God’s people Israel;" and it was permitted that he should be "despised and rejected of men," and that both sections of the human race should conspire and concur in his martyrdom. V. JESUS THE INSULTS AND WHICH SHALL PRECEDE HIS DEATH. The circumstantial manner in which the great Sufferer describes beforehand the cruel and inhuman treatment with which he shall meet, is pathetic and instructive. He reads the very hearts of his foes, and marks their malignity and baseness, their hostility to himself and to all that is good. Death is formidable, but the prospect of such a death as this awakens horror. VI. THE IS AS THE OF THE . Christ’s death was not merely a martyrdom; it was a sacrifice. Its purpose would not have been answered had it not been shown that it was impossible that he should be holden of death. Thus was there given to the world an assurance from Heaven that this was indeed the Christ, declared to be the Son of God with power. And for the sake of the disciples themselves, the Lord Jesus foretells his approaching victory over the grave, that their hearts may be cheered and their hopes inspired, that they may learn the more truly to reverence him and the more ardently to trust him. Mark 10:35-45 True ministry is true dignity. Some of the most sacred and precious lessons which the Lord Jesus has taught mankind were suggested by incidents which occurred in his own ministry. This is true, both of lessons regarding his own grace and of lessons regarding our duty and life. His hand turns all that he touches into gold. Who would have thought that the selfish and thoughtless request of a mother and her sons could have led to one of the profoundest statements concerning the Saviours mission, and to the publication of one of the most novel and powerful laws that were to govern the subjects of the Savior’s kingdom? Yet so it is. This entry is longer than a Bible module can hold. The rest is at https://www.sermonindex.net/commentary/pulpit-commentary/ Mark 11:1 And when they drew nigh unto Jerusalem, unto Bethphage and Bethany, at the mount of Olives. St. Matthew (Matthew 21:1) says, "When they drew nigh unto Jerusalem, and came unto Bethphage." St. Mark mentions the three places together, because Bethphage and Bethany, being near together, were also both of them close to Jerusalem. The distance from Jericho to Jerusalem (about seventeen miles) would involve a journey of about seven hours. The country between Jerusalem and Jericho is hilly, rugged, and desolate. It is from the height overhanging Bethany that the finest view of Jerusalem is gained. It appears from St. John (John 12:1) that our Lord on the preceding sabbath had supped, and probably passed the night, at Bethany; and that on the following day (answering to our Palm Sunday) he had come still nearer to Jerusalem, namely, to Bethphage; and from thence he sent two of his disciples for the ass and the colt. So his way to Jerusalem was from Bethany by Bethphage, the Mount of Olives, and the Valley of Jehoshaphat. The Valley of Jehoshaphat, through which flows the brook Kedron, lies close to Jerusalem. Bethphage literally means "the house of green figs," as Bethany, lying a short distance west of it, means "the house of dates." The date palm growing in the neighbeurhood would furnish the branches with which the multitude strewed the way on the occasion of our Lord’s triumphal entry. He sendeth two of his disciples. Who were they? Bede thinks that they were Peter and Philip. Jansonius, with greater probability, thinks that they were Peter and John, because a little after this Christ sent these two to prepare for the Passover. But we know nothing certain on this point. Mark 11:2 Go your way into the village that is over against you. The village over against them would most likely be Beth-phage, towards which they were then approaching. Straightway as ye enter into it, ye shall find a colt tied, whereon no man ever yet sat. St. Mark mentions only the colt. St. Matthew mentions the ass and the colt. But St. Mark singles out the colt as that which our Lord specially needed; the mother of the animal accompanying it as a sumpter. Animals which had never before been used were alone admissible for sacred purposes. We read in Numbers (Numbers 19:2) of "the heifer on which never came yoke." Our Lord here beholds things absent and out of sight, as though they were present. So that he revealed this to his disciples by the gift of prophecy which his divinity added to his humanity. Here, therefore, is a manifest proof of his divinity. It was by the same Divine power that he revealed to Nathanael what had taken place under the fig tree. Mark 11:3 And if any one say unto you, Why do ye this? say ye, The Lord hath need of him; and straightway he will send him back hither. The Greek, according to the best authorities here, is εὐθέωςαὐτὸνἀποστελλειπάλινὧδε: literally, straightway he sendeth it back hither again, The verb here in the present may represent the verb in the future, "he will send it back." But the word "again" (πάλιν) is not quite so easily explained. There is strong authority for the insertion of this word, which necessarily changes the meaning of the sentence. Without the πάλιν, the sentence would actually mean that our Lord, by his Divine prescience, here tells his disciples that when the colt was demanded by them the owner would at once permit them to take it. But if the word πάλιν be inserted, it can only mean that this was a part of the message which our Lord directed his disciples to deliver as from himself, "The Lord hath need of him; and he, the Lord, will forthwith send him back again." The passage is so interpreted by Origen, who twice introduces the adverb in his commentary on St. Matthew. The evidence of the oldest uncials is strongly in favor of this insertion. Our Lord was unwilling that the disciples should take away the colt if the owner objected, lie might have taken the animals away in his own supreme right, but he chose to accomplish his will by his providence, powerfully and yet gently; and, if the reading here be allowed, he further influenced them by the promise that their property should be returned to them. It was the will and purpose of Christ, who for these three years had gone about on foot, and traveled over the whole of Palestine in this way, to show himself at length the King of Judah, that is, the Messiah and Heir of David; and so he resolves to enter Jerusalem, the metropolis, the city of the great King, with royal dignity. But he will not be surrounded with the" pomp and circumstance" of an earthly monarch. He rides on an ass’s colt, that he might show his kingdom to be of another kind, that is, spiritual and heavenly. And so he assumes a humble equipage, riding upon a colt, his only housings being the clothes of his disciples. And yet there was dignity as well as humility in his equipage. The ass of the East was, and is, a superior animal to that known amongst us. The judges and princes of Israel rode on "white asses," and their sons on asses’ colts. So our Lord rode upon an ass’s colt; and there were no gleaming swords in his procession, or other signs of strife and bloodshed. But there were palm branches and garments spread all along his path—the evidences of devotion to him. So he came in gentleness, not that he might be feared on account of his power, but that he might be loved on account of his goodness. Mark 11:4 By the door without, in a place where two ways met (ἐπὶτοῦἀμφόδου) literally, in the open street. Mark 11:8 Others cut down branches off the trees, etc. According to the best authorities, the words should be rendered, and others branches (or, leaves, for strewing), which thy had cut from the fields (ἄλλοιδὲστοιβάδαςκόψαντεςἐκτῶνἀγρῶν). The branches were cut in the fields; and the smaller, leafy portions of them, suitable for their purpose, were carried out. Mark 11:9 The word Hosanna literally means "Oh, save!" It may have been originally the cry of captives or rebels for mercy; and thus have passed into a general acclamation, expressive of joy and deliverance. Mark 11:10 This verse should be read thus: Blessed be the kingdom that cometh, the kingdom of our father David—that is, the kingdom of Messiah, now coming, and about to be established—Hosanna in the highest;—that is, Hosanna in the highest realms of glory and blessedness, where salvation is perfected. Mark 11:11 This visit to the temple is not mentioned by St. Matthew. It is an important addition to his narrative. The moment of our Lord’s triumphant entry into Jerusalem was not the moment for the display of his indignation against the profaners of the temple. He was then surrounded by an enthusiastic and admiring multitude; so he contented himself on this occasion with looking round about upon all things (περιβλεψάμενοςπάντα). His keen and searching eye saw at a glance all that was going on, and penetrated everything. But without any comment or action at that time, he went out unto Bethany (it was now eventide) with the twelve. No doubt the disciples, and especially Peter, saw what was involved in this visit of inspection, which prepared them for what took place on the morrow. Mark 11:12 And on the morrow, when they were come out from Bethany, he hungered. This was, therefore, the day after Paint Sunday (as we call it)—on the Monday, the 11th day of the month Nisan, which, according to our computation, would be March 21. He hungered. This showed his humanity, which he was ever wont to do when he was about to display his Divine power. The fact that he hungered would lead us to the conclusion that he had not been spending the night in the house of Martha and Mary. It is far more likely that he had been in the open air during the previous night, fasting and praying. Mark 11:13 And seeing a fig tree afar off having leaves, he came, if haply he might find anything thereon. St. Matthew (Matthew 21:19) says he saw "one fig tree" (μὶανσυκῆν), and therefore more conspicuous. Fig trees were no doubt plentiful in the neighborhood of Bethphage, "the house of figs." Dean Stanley says that "Mount Olivet is still sprinkled with fig trees." This fig tree had leaves, but no fruit; for it was not the season of figs (ὁγὰρκαιρὸςοὐκἧνσύκων). Other trees would all be bare at this early season, but the fig trees would be putting forth their broad green leaves. It is possible that this tree, standing by itself as it would seem, was more forward than the other fig trees around. It was seen "from afar," and therefore it must have had the full benefit of the sun. Our Lord says (St. Luke 21:29), "Behold the fig tree, and all the trees: when they now shoot forth, ye see it, and know of your own selves that the summer is now nigh." He puts the fig tree first, as being of its own nature the most forward to put forth its buds. But then it is peculiar to the fig tree that its fruit begins to appear before its leaves. It was, therefore, a natural supposition that on this tree, with its leaves fully developed, there might be found at least some ripened fruit. Our Lord, therefore, approaches the tree in his hunger, with the expectation of finding fruit. But as he draws near to it, and realizes the fact that the tree, though full of leaf, is absolutely fruitless, he forgets his natural hunger in the thought of the spiritual figure which this tree began to present to his mind. The accident of his hunger as a man, brought him into contact with a great parable of spiritual things, presented to him as God; and as he approached this fig tree full of leaf, but destitute of fruit, there stood before him the striking but awful image of the Jewish nation, having indeed the leaves of a great profession, but yielding no fruit. The leaves of this fig tree deceived the passer-by, who, from seeing them, would naturally expect the fruit. And so the fig tree was cursed, not for being barren, but for being false. When our Lord, being hungry, sought figs on the fig tree, he signified that he hungered after something which he did not find. The Jews were this unprofitable fig tree, full of the leaves of profession, but fruitless. Our Lord never did anything without reason; and, therefore, when he seemed to do anything without reason, he was setting forth in a figure some great reality. Nothing but his Divine yearning after the Jewish people, his spiritual hunger for their salvation, can explain this typical action with regard to the fig tree, and indeed he whole mystery of his life and death. Mark 11:14 No man eat fruit from thee henceforward for ever (εἰςτὸναἰῶνα). These words, in their application to the Jewish nation, have a merciful limitation—a limitation which lies in the original words rendered "for ever," which literally mean for the age. "No man eat fruit of thee henceforward, for the age;" until the times of the Gentiles be fulfilled. A day will doubtless come when Israel, which now says, "I am a dry tree," shall accept the words of its true Lord, "From me is thy fruit found," and shall be clothed with the richest fruits of all trees. (See Trench on the Miracles). St. Matthew (Matthew 21:19) tells us that "immediately the fig tree withered away." "Straightway a shivering fear and trembling passed through its leaves, as though it was at once struck to the heart by the malediction of its Creator." Our Lord’s disciples heard his words; but they appear not to have noticed the immediate effect of them upon the tree. It was not until the next day that they observed what had happened. This miracle would show his disciples how soon he could have withered his enemies, who were about to crucify him; but he waited with long-suffering for their salvation, by repentance and faith in him. Mark 11:15 And they come to Jerusalem: and he entered into the temple. Not the holy place, nor the holy of holies (into which the high priest might alone enter), but into the temple court; for into that the people went to pray, and to witness the sacrifices which were being offered before the holy place; for this court was, so to speak, the temple of the people. Our Lord was not a Levitical priest, because he was not sprung of Levi and Aaron. Therefore he could not enter the holy place, but only the outer court of the temple. And began to cast out (ἐκβάλλειν)—it was a forcible expulsion—them that sold and them that bought in the temple. There were two occasions on which our Lord thus purged the temple—one at the beginning of his public ministry, and the other at the end of it, four days before his death. There was a regular market in the outer court,’ the court of the Gentries, belonging to the family of the high priest. The booths of this market are mentioned in the rabbinical writings as the booths of the son of Hanan, or Annas. But this market is never mentioned in the Old Testament. It seems to have sprung up after the Captivity. Our Lord adopted these strong measures (1) because the temple courts were not the proper places for merchandise, and (2) because these transactions were often dishonest, on account of the avarice and covetousness of the priests. The priests, either themselves or by their families, sold oxen and sheep and doves to those who had need to offer them in the temple. These animals were, of course, needed for sacrifices; and there was good reason why they should be ready at hand for those who came up to worship. But the sin of the priests lay in permitting this buying and selling to go on within the sacred precincts, and in trading dishonestly. There were other things needed for the sacrifices, such as wine, and salt, and oil. Then there were also the money-changers (κολλυβιστής, from κόλλυβος, a small coin)—those who exchanged large coins for smaller, or foreign money for the half-shekel. Every Israelite, whether rich or poor, was required to give the half-shekel, neither less nor more. So when money had to be exchanged, an allowance or premium was required by the money-changer. Doves or pigeons were required on various occasions for offerings, chiefly by the poor, who could not afford more costly offerings. From these also the priests had their gain. The seats of them that sold the doves. These birds were often sold by women, who were provided with seats. Mark 11:16 And he would not suffer that any man should carry a vessel through the temple. It was a great temptation to make the temple, at least the great court of the Gentiles, a thoroughfare. It was so extensive that a long and tedious circuit would be avoided, in going from one part of the city to another, by passing through it. To those, for example, who were passing from the sheep market, Bethesda, into the upper part of the city, the shortest cut was through this court and by Solomon’s Porch. The distance would be greatly increased if they went round it. So the priests permitted servants and laborers, laden with anything, to take this shorter way through the great court of the temple. But our Lord hindered them, forbidding them with the voice of one that had authority, and restraining them with his hand, and compelling them to go back. He would have the whole of his Father’s House regarded as sacred. Mark 11:17 My house shall be called a house of prayer for all the nations (πᾶσιτοῖςἔθνεσιν). St. Mark, writing for Gentiles, assures them that the God of the Jews is the God of all the nations; and that the court of the Gentiles, which was then so profaned, was a constituent part of his house of prayer. St. Jerome notes Christ’s action in driving out the profaners of the temple as a great proof of his Divine power, that he alone should have been able to cast out so great a multitude. He says, "A fiery splendor flashed from his eyes, and the majesty of Deity shone in his countenance." The words, "My house shall be called the house of prayer," are a quotation from Isaiah 56:7; and it is a remarkable coincidence that in Isaiah 56:11 of that chapter the rulers of the people are described as looking "every one for his gain from his quarter." A den of thieves (σπήλαιονληστῶν); this should be rendered, a den of robbers. The Greek word for "thief" is κλέπτης, not ληστής. The two terms are carefully distinguished in St. John (John 10:1), "the same is a thief (κλέπτης) and a robber (λῃστής)." These priests, wholly intent upon gain, by various fraudulent acts plundered strangers and the poor, who came purchase offerings for the worship of God. Observe that the temple is called the house of God, not because he dwells in it in any corporeal sense, for "he dwelleth not in temples made with hands," but because the temple is the place set apart for the worship of God, in which he specially gives ear to the prayers of his people, and in which he specially promises his spiritual presence. Hence we learn what reverence is due to the houses of God; so that, as the master of a house resents any insult offered to his house as an insult to himself, so Christ reckons any wilful dishonor done to his house as a wrong and insult to him. Mark 11:18 And the chief priests and the scribes—this is the right order of the words—heard it (ἤκουσαν), and sought (ἐζήτουν)—began to seek, or were seeking (imperfect)—how they might destroy him (ἀπολέσουσιν). They were seeking how they might, not only put him to death, but "utterly destroy him," stamp out his name and influence as a great spiritual energy in the world. This action of his raised them to the highest pitch of fury and indignation. Their authority and their interests were attacked. But the people still acknowledged his power; and the scribes and Pharisees feared the people. Mark 11:19 And when even was come; literally, and whenever (ὅταν) evening came; that is, every evening. During these last days before his crucifixion, he remained in Jerusalem during the day, and went back to Bethany at night. St. Matthew says (Matthew 21:17), speaking of one of these days, "And he left them, and went forth out of the city to Bethany, and lodged there." So true it was that "he came unto his own, and his own received him not." No one in that city, which he loved so well, offered to receive him. The end was drawing near. But the intercourse with Martha and Mary must have been soothing to him; and Bethany was less than two miles from Jerusalem. Mark 11:20, Mark 11:21 And as they passed by in the morning, they saw the fig tree withered away from the roots. They had returned the evening before, probably after sunset, to Bethany; and so, in the twilight, had not noticed the withered tree. St. Matthew gathers the whole account of the fig tree into one notice. St. Mark disposes of the facts in their chronological order. It was on the Monday morning, the day after the triumphant entry, and when they were on their way to Jerusalem, that our Lord cursed the fig tree. Thence he passed on at once into Jerusalem, and drove out the profaners of the temple, and taught the people. In the evening he returned to Bethany; and then on the next morning, as they were on their way into the city, they saw what had happened to the fig tree. And then Peter calling to remembrance saith unto him; Rabbi, behold, the fig tree which thou cursedst is withered away (ἐξήρανται), the same Greek word as in the preceding verse. Some have thought that the fig tree was the tree forbidden to Adam and Eve in the garden of Eden. (See Cornelius a Lapide on Genesis 2:9). Mark 11:22, Mark 11:23 Have faith in God; literally, have the faith of God—full, perfect, effectual faith in him; faith like a grain of mustard seed. You may be staggered and perplexed at what you will see shortly; but "have faith in God." The Jews may seem for a time to flourish like that green fig tree; but they will "soon be cut down as the grass, and be withered as the green herb." What seems difficult to you is easy with God. Trust in the Divine omnipotence. The things which are impossible with men are possible with him. Our Lord then uses a metaphor frequently employed to indicate the accomplishment of things so difficult as to be apparently impossible. He employs a bold and vivid hyperbole; and, pointing probably to the Mount of Olives overhanging them, and on the shoulders of which they were then standing, he says, "With this faith you might say to this mountain, Be thou taken up and cast into the sea, and it shall come to pass." Mark 11:24 All things whatsoever ye pray and ask for, believe that ye have received them; and ye shall have them. But you must "ask in faith, nothing wavering." Mark 11:25 And wheresoever ye stand praying (στήκητεπροσευχόμενοι). The ordinary attitude of Eastern nations in prayer is here indicated, namely, "standing," with the head, doubtless, bowed in reverence. The promise of this text is that requests offered in prayer by a faithful heart will be granted—granted as God knows best. The connection of these verses with the former is close. One great hindrance to the faith without which there can be no spiritual power, is the presence of angry and uncharitable feelings. These must all be put away if we would hope for a favorable answer from God. Mark 11:26 There appears to be sufficient evidence to justify the Revisers in their omission of this verse; although its omission or retention does not affect the general exegesis of the passage. Mark 11:27, Mark 11:28 By what authority doest then these things? We learn from Mark 11:18 float the chief priests and scribes had already been seeking how they might destroy him, and they wanted to establish some definite charge, whether of blasphemy or of sedition, against him. They now approach him as he walked in the temple, and demand by what authority he was doing these things, such as casting out the profaners of the temple, teaching and instructing the people, accepting their Hosannas, etc. And who gave thee this authority to do these things? According to the best reading, this sentence should run, or (ἢ instead of καὶ) who gave thee, etc., instead of "and who gave thee," etc. So that the questions are directed to two things—was his authority inherent? or, was it derived? Mark 11:29 I will ask of you one question (ἐπερωτήσωὑμᾶςἕναλόγον). The verb justifies the translation, one question, for "one word." The question which our Lord put to them was one on which hung the solution of that proposed by the scribes. It is as though he said, "You do not believe me when I say that I have received power from God. Believe then John the Baptist, who bare witness of me that I was sent from God to do these things." Mark 11:30 The baptism of John, was it from heaven, or from men? By the "baptism of John" our Lord means his testimony concerning himself, his doctrine, and nil his preaching. It is a synecdoche—the part put for the whole. The argument is incontrovertible. It is this: "You ask from whence I derive my authority—from God or from men? I in my turn ask you from whom did John the Baptist derive his authority to baptize and to teach? from heaven or from men? If he had it from God, as all will confess, then I too have the same from God; for John testified of me, saying that he was but a servant, the friend of the Bridegroom; but that I was the Messiah, the Son of God: and this too when you sent messengers to him for his special purpose, that you might know from him whether he was the Messias." (See John 1:20; John 10:41.) Answer me. This is characteristic of St. Mark’s style, and of our Lord’s dignified earnestness. Mark 11:31, Mark 11:32 They reasoned with themselves, like men anxious and perplexed. If we shall say, From heaven; he will say, Why then did ye not believe him? For he told you I was the promised Messias, and bade you prepare yourselves by repentance to receive my grace and salvation. But should we say, From men—they feared the people: for all verily held John to be a prophet. This is a broken sentence, but very expressive. The evangelist leaves his reader to supply what they meant. They deemed it prudent not to finish the sentence; and probably cut it short with some significant gesture. They did not like to confess that they feared the people; although this was the true reason why they hesitated to say that John’s baptism was of men. They knew that all the people held John to be a prophet. They were thus thrown on one or other horn of a dilemma. Mark 11:33 We know not. They had seen the life of John. They had heard his holy and Divine teaching. They were witnesses to his death for the truth; and yet they lie. They might have said," We think it imprudent or inexpedient to say;" but for this they had not sufficient moral courage. Neither tell I you by what authority I do these things. You will not answer my question; neither will I therefore answer yours; because your answer to mine is the answer to your own. "He thus shows," says St. Jerome, "that they knew, but would not answer; and that he knew, but did not speak, because they were silent as to what they knew." Our Lord did thus but mete out to them the measure which they meted to him. Mark 11:1-11 The triumphal entry. Christ was a King, but his royalty was misunderstood during his ministry upon earth. The devil had offered him the kingdoms of this world, and he had refused them. The people would have taken him by force and have made him a king, but he had hidden himself from them. Yet it was right and meet that he should in some way assume a kingly state and accept royal honors. The triumphal entry interests us, because it was the acknowledgment and reception of Jesus with the joyful homage due to him as King of Israel and King of men. I. THE OF THIS HOMAGE. Our Lord Jesus knew well what was to be the issue of this his last visit to the metropolis. He foresaw, and he had foretold in the hearing of his disciples, that he was about to be put to a violent death. Notwithstanding his clear perception of this his approaching sacrifice, he had come cheerfully to the city where he was to share the fate of the prophets. It is absurd to draw from this narrative the inference that Jesus was now looking for popular and national acceptance; he was not so misled. But it is remarkable that he should choose to receive the homage of the multitude almost upon the eve of his betrayal and condemnation. In his apprehension, the Priesthood and the Kingship of the Messiah were most closely connected. And to our minds there is no discordance between the sorrows Jesus was about to endure and the honors he now consented to accept. The occasion was well chosen, and brings before us our Lord’s independence of all human standards and preconceptions. Ours was a King whose royalty suffered no tarnishing of its splendor when he rode in majesty, although he rode to death. II. THE SCENE OF THIS HOMAGE. 1. It was the scene of his ministry. In and near Jerusalem many of Christ’s mighty works had been wrought, many of his discourses had been delivered, many of his disciples had been made. It was becoming that for once, in this scene of his labors, his claims should be publicly recognized and his honor publicly displayed. 2. It was to be the scene of his martyrdom and sacrifice. It has often been noted, as a witness to human fickleness, that the same roads and public places should within a few days resound with the incongruous shouts, "Hosanna!" and "Crucify him!" How true was the language of Pilate—they crucified their King! On the one hand, it could not be that a prophet should perish out of Jerusalem; on the other hand, it was fitting that the city of David should openly welcome and acknowledge David’s Son and David’s Lord, and the establishment of the predicted kingdom. III. THE OF THE HOMAGE. There were, amongst those who welcomed Jesus, his own attendants and disciples, the villagers from Bethany, the citizens of Jerusalem, and the Galilean pilgrims who had come up to the feast. The multitude was a very varied and representative crowd; including Israelites of many classes, and doubtless differing from one another in the measure of their knowledge of Jesus and their appreciation of his character and his Claims. As is often the case when Christ is extolled and praised, some were drawn into the general enthusiasm and rejoicing by the force of example and under the inspiration of feeling. The general welcome was an anticipation of the honor which shall be rendered to Jesus, when "every tongue shall acknowledge him to be Lord, to the glory of God the Father." IV. BY WHAT ACTIONS THIS HOMAGE WAS . The simple circumstances of this entry, so natural and almost childlike, are all significant of our Savior’s dignity and majesty. In the bringing of the ass’s colt for him to ride, there was a fulfillment of an ancient prediction; and the act itself, according to the usage of the East, was becoming to royalty. In the spreading of their garments upon the foal’s back, the strewing the road with their clothes and with the branches of trees, there was a picturesque, if very simple, expression of their admiring reverence and loyalty. V. THE IN WHICH THIS HOMAGE WAS UTTERED. The unpremeditated shouts and exclamations with which Jesus was greeted were an expression of fervid, popular sentiment. Yet they were also to some extent a confession of Jesus’ Messiah-ship and an acknowledgment of his royalty. 1. Notice the character in which they hailed him: he came "in the Name of the Lord;" he brought in" the kingdom of David." Drawn from Hebrew prophecy, these appellations could not be used without a very special significance. 2. Notice the joyous language in which they hailed him. They called him Blessed! they greeted him with the cry, Hosanna in the highest! It was enthusiastic and lofty language; but meaner terms would have been inappropriate, unworthy, and unjust. Mark 11:12-14, Mark 11:19-25 The fruit of the fruitless fig tree. This action of our Lord Jesus is one of the very few he is recorded to have performed to which exception has been taken. It has been objected that the "cursing" of the fig tree was a vindictive act, and unlike and unworthy of the gracious and beneficent Redeemer. In answer to this objection, a distinction must be drawn between a vindictive and a judicial proceeding; the latter having no element of personal irritation or ill feeling. It must not be forgotten that the Lord Jesus was and is the Judge, and this symbolical action was a picture of his judicial function in exercise. It has also been objected that the doom pronounced and carried into effect was unjust, inasmuch as the season for figs had not yet come, and Jesus looked for what, in the nature of things, it was not reasonable to expect. In answer to this, it must be remembered that trees have no consciousness, and no capacity for sentient suffering; and that, in the analogous case of the barren professor of religion, no sentence of condemnation is pronounced except as the consequence of moral culpability. This passage has two distinct movements, each containing its own spiritual lesson impressively conveyed. I. HERE IS A SYMBOL OF " IN THE HOUSE OF God." 1. The fruitless fig tree is an emblem of the immoral or useless professor of Christianity. Leaves are beautiful in themselves, are indicative of life and vital vigor, and seem to promise fruit; yet, in the case of such trees as that here spoken of, it is the fruit which is the end for which the tree is allowed to occupy ground, to absorb nourishment, to engage the toil of the husbandman or gardener. So in the moral domain. The foliage corresponds to outward position, to visible standing, and audible confession. These are excellent and admirable where they are not deceptive. But where there is "nothing hut leaves" to meet the eye of the husbandman, where there is the "name to live" without the life, where there is the language of belief and of devotion with no corresponding principles and conduct,—all this is disappointing to the Divine Husbandman and Wine-dresser. 2. The withering of the fig tree is symbolical of the moral doom and destruction of the unfruitful professor of religion. The tree may live, although it bear no fruit. But the fruitless Christian carries his own condemnatiou within him. The Lord who came to earth to save, lives in heaven to reign, and finally will return to judge. It would not be just to found an argument upon what is but an illustration. Nevertheless, there is very much express teaching from our Lord’s lips as to the doom of the hypocrite. The fruitless scribes and Pharisees incurred his anger and his condemnation; and there is no reason to suppose that those more privileged, and equally false and spiritually worthless, can escape their doom. To be fruitless is to "wither away." For the barren there is no place in the vineyard of God. II. HERE IS AS TO THE POWER OF FAITH AND PRAYER. It is a lesson we should scarcely have expected to find attached to this miracle. The amazement of Peter and the other disciples was excited by this exercise of power on the part of the Master. In reply to their expressions of wonder, Jesus, who was ever ready to give to the conversation a practical and profitable turn, discoursed upon the power of faith and prayer. 1. Faith gives efficacy to effort. It removes mountains. But such is not the work of the doubter or of the vacillating. All moral miracles and spiritual triumphs are due to the faith which is placed, not in human skill or power, but in God himself. 2. Faith gives efficacy to prayer. There are those who are mighty in prayer. This is because they believe in God, to whom "all things are possible." Hesitating, half-hearted prayer is dishonoring to God. We are directed to believe that we have received, at the very moment when we offer our entreaties; which is certainly only possible to strong faith. Yet what encouragement is there so to pray! 3. The works which may in this manner be accomplished, the blessings which may thus be obtained, are described in remarkable language. Trees may be withered, mountains may be removed, all things may be had, by those who have faith. No wonder that the poet says of faith, it— "Laughs at impossibilities, And cries, ’It shall be done!" 4. Yet there is a condition of a moral kind laid down by Christ. A sincere and forgiving disposition is indispensable. If we appeal to a gracious and benignant Father, if we ask of him needed forgiveness, we must approach him with a mind unstained by wrath, by malice, by any lack of charity. Mark 11:15-18 The holy house. It is significant that our Lord should have performed the authoritative and symbolical act of cleansing the temple twice—at the commencement, and again at the close, of his ministry. We learn that no real reformation had taken place in the religious habits of the chief priests and the people who frequented the holy place; they continued to practice the abuses which had been already so justly and so sternly rebuked. And we learn also that Jesus, although hated and despised by the rulers, had abated none of his claims to authority and jurisdiction. I. THE OF CHRIST’S . 1. This was the abuse of the temple. The holy house had been erected for the manifestation of the Divine glory, the celebration of Divine worship, the realization of Divine communion. No other material structure has ever possessed the sanctity which attached to this. There were grades of sanctity, culminating in the holy of holies; yet all the precincts and courts were consecrated to the God of Israel. To turn such a building to any secular purpose was an unjustifiable abuse. 2. The profanation of the temple. Three stages of profanation were referred to: vessels used for common purposes were carried through the courts; money was exchanged—foreign money, with the images, the superscription, the symbols, which denoted heathenism, for the shekels of the sanctuary; and doves and other victims, used for sacrifice and offerings, were openly bought and sold. Turning the sacred precincts to purposes of gain was a heinous offense against the majesty of the Lord of the temple. 3. But even this was not the worst, for there is implied the violation of the temple. The traffic which took place was distinguished by injustice and fraud: "Ye have made it a den of robbers." The family of the high priest are known to have made this merchandise a source of unlawful gain. In the exchange of money there was unfairness, in the sale of animals there was extortion. It was bad enough that in the Lord’s house there should be trading, it was far worse that there should be rapacity and fraud. II. THE MANNER OF CHRIST’S AUTtI . 1. This was independent. Jesus took counsel of no one, but acted of his own accord, as One who had no superior to whom to refer. He acted in his own Name and in that of his Father. 2. It was peremptory. We feel that it was but seldom that the meek and lowly Jesus acted as on this occasion. There was an unsparing severity in his action and in his language, when rescuing the holy house from the profane intruders. He did well to be angry. 3. It was impressive. The priests, who profited by the robbery, were enraged; the scribes, who resented the exercise of authority by the Nazarene, were incensed; and the people, who witnessed this remarkable act, were astonished. III. THE BY CHRIST OF HIS . Our Lord not only acted; he taught and explained the meaning of his action. We cannot suppose that he was animated by any superstitious feelings in so acting, and the record shows us what were his motives. 1. He regarded the temple as the house of his Father, God. 2. It was in his view the house of prayer, and was to be reserved for communion between human spirits and him who is the Father of spirits. 3. And it was intended for the service of all nations, which gave it a peculiar dignity and sacredness in his eyes. These considerations show why a Teacher, whose whole teaching was peculiarly spiritual, should display a zeal for the sanctity of a local and material representation of a Divine presence. IV. THE RESULTS OF CHRIST’S . 1. Its immediate effect was to provoke the dread, the malice, and the plots of the scribes and priests. The incident occurred but a few days before our Lord’s crucifixion, and it appears to have led to that awful event. In their own interests, the religious leaders of the Jews felt themselves constrained to crush the power of One whose conduct and teaching were so inconsistent with their own. Thus one of the highest exercises of our Lord’s righteous authority was the occasion of his most cruel humiliation and shameful death. 2. Its more remote effect has been to enhance the conception entertained of Christ’s character and official dignity and power. Humanity is God’s true temple, too long defiled by the occupation of the spiritual foe, and desecrated to the service of sin. Christ is the Divine Purifier, who dispossesses the enemy, and restores the sanctuary to its destined ends, the indwelling, the worship, and the glory of the Eternal! Mark 11:27-33 Authority vindicated. The conflict between the Divine Prophet and the leaders of the Jewish people was now at its height. Jesus knew that his hour was at hand, and no longer either concealed himself, or restrained his tongue from words of merited indignation, rebuke, and almost defiance. Thus the enmity of his foes was provoked, and his condemnation was assured. I. CHRIST’S WAS AND . In three respects this was now made most plain. 1. The teaching of Jesus at this time was characterized by the assumption of a superiority of knowledge and insight which must have been galling to the pride of his questioners, and which they may have deemed altogether arrogant. 2. His public entry into Jerusalem in a kind of kingly state must have aroused their hostility; for, without courting their favor or support, he took to himself the homage due to the King of Israel 3. His cleansing of the temple was an authoritative act, which was felt all the more acutely by his enemies as an attack upon themselves, because their own practices were rebuked and their own credit was threatened, not to say that the base gains of some of them were imperilled. In these respects Christ claimed and exercised a special and vast authority. II. CHRIST’S WAS AND , It is evident that it was a formal deputation which surrounded him in the temple, and sought to overawe and silence him by the question which they put: "By what authority doest thou these things? and who gave it thee?" There was on their part the assumption of their own judicial right to inquire, to silence, to condemn. They had acted in a very similar manner with respect to John the Baptist. To us this deputation, and its inquisitorial proceedings, are interesting, because they conclusively establish the fact that the Lord Jesus did claim to act as none other acted, and thus aroused the hostility of his unsympathizing and unspiritual foes. III. CHRIST’S WAS BY HIMSELF. The way in which he did this is remarkable. 1. Why did not Jesus directly account for his actions to the priests, scribes, and elders? Because he had done no wrong; in the acts he had publicly performed there was nothing for which they dared expressly to impugn him. Because they themselves had corruptly suffered and justified one of the evils which he had redressed. To this their conscience testified. Because, being unable to defend their own position, they could not be allowed to attack his. Because, above all, being what he was, he was not accountable, either to them or to others, for his actions. 2. Why did Jesus vindicate himself by retorting upon his assailants? by reducing them to helpless silence? Because he thus made evident the agreement between John’s ministry and his own. It was well known that John had confessed Jesus to be the One who should come, the Messiah. Jesus appealed to John’s witness, at the same time claiming to have greater witness than that of John. Because he thus exhibited the utter incompetency of his enemies to judge his claims. They were not prepared publicly either to avow or to disavow sympathy with, confidence in, the ministry of the great forerunner. How, then, could any stress be laid upon their judgment with respect to him to whom John had witnessed? 3. What was the effect of this method of dealing with his assailants? It is evident that the leaders of the Jews were discredited and put to shame. It is equally evident that the minds of the people were influenced in Christ’s favor. But, above all, the true, proper, underived, and incomparable authority of Christ shines forth in unrivalled brightness and beauty. The surf beats upon the rock, but it fails off, powerless and, defeated; whilst the rock stands out in its rugged and impressive grandeur, its stability appearing all the more manifestly immovable because of the feebleness and vanity of the repeated and furious assaults of the tempestuous sea. BY A.F. MUIR The triumphal entry into Jerusalem. "To Jerusalem, to Bethphage and Bethany," the order of mention being determined by reckoning from the place whither the movement was being made. They began, therefore, with Bethany. It was familiar ground, fragrant with tender associations with both the human and the Divine. I. . The triumph was foreseen by Christ, and he made arrangements for its being celebrated with becoming order and dignity. 1. The unforeseen and unexpected was foreseen and prepared for by Christ. If Divine advents are delayed, or Divine celebrations fail of their loftiest end, it is not because of failure or unreadiness in him. He was willing to have made this triumph a real, permanent, and universal one. He is ever in advance of the event, whether it be a triumph or a crucifixion. Above all, he was ready in himself. 2. It was to his own disciples he looked for a supply of what was required for his triumph. He appealed to their recognition of his authority—" the Lord." The claim was allowed by the stranger who owned the colt. It was freely given when asked. Christians are to make ready for their Lord’s triumph. They have all that he needs, if it be but freely rendered. He will throne himself amidst their gifts if they have him enthroned in their hearts. Nothing but what is freely rendered is acceptable to him or desired by him. It should be enough for a disciple to know what the Lord will have him do and of what the Lord has need. II. THE TRIUMPH. It was a simple procession, gradually increasing in volume and excitement as it approached the city. 1. The movement was natural and spontaneous. No signs of getting it up. The enthusiasm it expressed already existed. Direction and order were imparted, but the motive was self-developed. 2. It was of a predominantly spiritual character. The attraction did not lie in the accessories, but in the central Figure. Never had the native glory of the Messiah been so manifest. The Jews, had they only known, were on the verge of an apocalypse, which only depended upon their spiritual preparedness. "Meekness is nobler and mightier than force, goodness than grandeur" (Godwin). 3. It was a manifest fulfillment of prophecy. The people were conscious of it as they shouted. Their words are a quotation from Psalms 118:1-29. "(1) ’Hosanna!’ The word was a Hebrew imperative, ’Save us, we beseech thee,’ and had come into liturgical use from Psalms 118:1-29. That psalm belonged specially to the Feast of Tabernacles, and as such was naturally associated with the palm branches; the verses from it now chanted by the people are said to have been those with which the inhabitants of Jerusalem were wont to welcome the pilgrims who came up to keep the feast. The addition of ’Hosanna to the Son of David’ made it a direct recognition of the claims of Jesus to be the Christ; that of ’Hosanna in the highest’ (comp. Luke 2:14) claimed heaven as in accord with earth in this recognition. (2) ’Blessed be [’the King,’ in St. Luke] he that cometh in the Name of the Lord.’ These words, too, received a special, personal application. The welcome was now given, not to the crowd of pilgrims, but to the King. (3) As in St. Luke, one of the cries was an echo of the angels’ hymn at the Nativity, ’Peace on earth, and glory in the highest’ (Luke 2:14). (4) As in St. Mark, ’Blessed be the kingdom of our father David.’ We have to think of these shouts as filling the air as he rides slowly on in silence. He will not check them at the bidding of the Pharisees (Luke 19:39), but his own spirit is filled with quite other thoughts than theirs" (Plumptre). Yet, because of the unpreparedness of the people, the fulfillment was only provisional, not ultimate; typical, not actual. In its spiritual idea, its universal influence ("all the city was moved"), its spontaneous acclaim, it spoke of that which is to come; in its outwardness, its question, "Who is this?" and answer, "This is Jesus, the Prophet of Nazareth of Galilee," its readiness to pass from praise to execration, it showed how distant the people were from the true realization. III. . 1. Seen in the destination to which he came. "He entered the temple." He is Priest as well as King. "Yet have I set my King upon my holy hill of Zion" (Psalms 2:6). It is from the holy place that his rule extends; and there it begins, and is most intensely and specially exercised. He is Key to all the mysteries there; Centre of all the symbols and rites. This suggests that his reign is primarily and essentially a spiritual one. As King of saints he reigns in the earth. 2. Expressed and exercised in a "look." "He looked round about upon all things." "Not simply as one might gaze who had never been there before: an arbitrary and wanton idea; but as one who had a right to inspect the condition of the place, and who was determined to assert and exercise that fight" (Morison). So is he Lord of that temple not made with hands—the body in which he dwelt, and the spirit in which he offered the eternal sacrifice; and so will he take account of the secrets of human nature in the great day, for is he not "the Son of man"?—M. "The Lord hath need of him." How singular the conjunction! Need of a colt! In what sense was such a creature necessary for the Lord of all? In what sense is anything created necessary to the Creator? As showing forth his glory, and fulfilling his purposes. I. THE THINGS HAVE SOME HIGH PURPOSE, OR OF GOD. II. IN SOME THE THINGS MAY OR MORE EXPRESS A CERTAIN PHASE OF THE DIVINE GLORY. What else could so set forth the meekness, the lowliness, of the Son of man? or the privilege and freedom the young Church, of which he was the only burden and law? In that colt the brute world had its most honored representative. So in human poverty, simplicity, weakness, and ignorance, the glory of God may be shown forth the more conspicuously. III. LET US LOOK FOR AND GIVE EFFECT TO THE GLORY OF CHRIST, i.e. OF GOD, ALL THINGS. IV. A LET US OFFER OUR OWN SELVES SO ENDOWED, IN AND EFFORT FOR THE GLORY OF God. If he had need for a colt, we cannot say he has no need for us.—M. Jesus surveying the temple. I. A SIGN OF . Supreme, absolute, spiritual. II. AN OF . Inward, unerring, and from the highest standpoint. III. AN OF GRIEF AND . There is nothing upon which the look can rest with approval and satisfaction. It goes round, but returns not. It goes through and beyond. The temple in its condition was symbolical of the people. IV. A TOKEN OF MERCY. Only a look, for the present. He has it not in his heart to inflict the final stroke at once. He will wait. A day of grace is still left. Is this our case—as a Church? as individuals?—M. Mark 11:12-14, Mark 11:20 -25 The destruction of the fig tree. I. THE REASON FOR THE ACT. 1. Not an outcome of petulance or disappointment. The idea of Christ being "in a temper" is preposterous! The difficulty as to the phrases, "if haply he might find anything thereon," and "he found nothing but leaves; for it was not the season of figs," is for the most part factitious and artificial. Our Lord was not mistaken—first expectant and then disappointed. "He came to the tree, not for the sake of eating, but for the sake of performing an adumbrative action (sed aliquid praefigurandi causa)" (Zuiugli). "His hunger, too, was the occasion that gave shape to his adumbrative action, when he went to the leafy tree to see if there was fruit on it" (Morison). 2. But neither was it an action symbolizing the penalty of spiritual barrenness. Its proximity in spirit and time to the cleansing of the temple inclines the mind to a parabolic meaning in that direction; so also Peter’s strong word "cursedst," which seems at first to convey an impression of moral displeasure. As a merely natural incident, it is hard to reduce the disproportion it exhibits between the apparently judicial sentence and its occasion. On the other hand, it is harder still to explain Christ’s total silence as to the reference to spiritual barrenness and its penalty, if such a reference had ever been intended. The circumstance that a day intervened between the sentence of Christ and Peter’s noting the result, would seem to demand that the Master should have "pointed the moral" in some more manifest way. Again, what he did teach concerning the occurrence, so far as it has been preserved, suggests that the action was "adumbrative" in a simpler and more direct sense, of that, namely, of which he spoke—the power of God commanded through faith. "The significance of this event is different from that of the parable given by St. Luke (Luke 13:6), to show the doom of impenitence. In that, the fig tree was planted in a vineyard; everything was done for its culture that could be done; and not till after years of barrenness was it cut down. Here the fig tree was growing by the road; it belonged to no one, and nothing had been done for its improvement; and it was destroyed when its uselessness was made manifest. It was fruitless, because the fruit season had not come, and no old fruit remained on the branches. It was, therefore, not a fit emblem of the impenitent Jews. But the destruction of a senseless and worthless thing made known the power of Christ, as sufficient to destroy, though used only to restore" (Godwin, ’Matthew’). As illustrative of Divine power it was splendidly significant. To wither was within the power of any one, but to wither by a word was a supernatural act only possible to one in closest fellowship with God. II. CHRIST’S OWN OF THE . "Have faith in God." 1. Greater results than it are attained by his servants if they will but believe. (1) In doing. The words "shall say unto this mountain," etc., are figurative. A magnificent promise! Not only such an act as the withering of the fig tree, but one comparable to the uprooting of the Mount of Olives on which it grew (against which, by the way, there could surely be no "judicial resentment" even in the most metaphorical sense). It is spoken of moral and spiritual difficulties met with in fulfilling the great commission, or in individual spiritual growth. (2) In receiving. Here the whole doctrine of prayer came up again for review. The answer was not to be merely looked forward to as coming, or even imminent, but was to be realized as already fulfilling itself in present experience. A secret of intense and successful devotion. 2. The ground of all such power is moral and spiritual oneness with God. The general conditions of prayer being answered, viz. agreeableness to the Divine will, advantage of the kingdom of God, etc., are all supposed. But, in addition, the boon of forgiveness is chiefly referred to as of greatest moment; and, in connection with it, the necessity of a forgiving disposition in the petitioner, as a condition of his being answered. This is one of the highest phases of spiritual or moral power, and is only possible through partaking of the Divine Spirit, in other words, through oneness with God.—M. Mark 11:15-19 Jesus cleansing the temple. A second occasion; the first occurring at the beginning of his ministry (John 2:13-17). A fulfillment of Mal 3:1, Malachi 3:2. I. THERE IS A IN THE MOST SACRED TO DECAY AND ABUSE. Most of the abominations swept away by Christ had their origin in immemorial custom, and the demands of the worshippers themselves. Traffic came to assume a religious character, and gain was excused on account of ceremonial exigencies and conveniences. This tendency recurs and culminates. How suggestive the contrast—"a house of prayer," "a den of thieves"! II. THIS IS DUE TO LOSING SIGHT OF THE SPIRIT AND PURPOSE. The essence of the old worship was simple, personal devotion, of which rites and sacrifices were only of use as the expression. Through the intrusion of the business spirit, the latter came to be regarded as important for their own sake. III. JESUS CHRIST IS THE CHIEF AUTHOR AND OF PURE WORSHIP. This act of Christ is in perfect accord with his whole character and life. It but expresses his spirit and influence. Every reform Or advance of the Church is due to his agency. IV. HE EFFECTS THIS THROUGH HIS SPIRIT, AND THE HE MAKES OF THE OF God AND THE OF SACRED THINGS. The original purpose of the temple is restated, and he emphasizes the spiritual side of worship. It is to pray, to commune with our Father, we go up into the temple. Everything which interferes with or corrupts that simple motive, is an abuse and an evil. The gospel, in recalling men to a sense of righteousness and the love of God, creates the prayer-spirit. And the Holy Ghost sustains the communion thus established. From time to time the Spirit takes of the things of God and reveals them afresh, making fresh advents to the heart, and kindling the flame of zeal and love. V. ZEAL, IN TO ITS AND , WILL PROVOKE HATRED AND IN THOSE WHOSE ARE ; BUT THERE WILL EVER BE OTHERS BY WHOM IT WILL BE . Those who are interested in the status quo will resent interference with it. Priestly importance and the spirit of selfishness are potent antagonists to true worship. But the "multitude" has within it ever some who yearn after better things. The human longing after the Divine is enshrined in the common heart of man.—M. The Church—ideal and actual. I. THE CHURCH IN ITS IDEAL. As viewed under this aspect it has: 1. A twofold character. (Isaiah 56:7.) (1) A house of prayer. This recognition of a spiritual end to be secured by the institution of the temple is most remarkable, as having taken place in an era of ceremonialism. It is not a priestly but a prophetic point of view, in which details are lost sight of in the inward and eternal. The temple was to be "called a house of prayer" as indicative not of a special but rather of an exclusive purpose; any other being a transgression and an offense. It was to be set apart for the most sacred occupations of the soul—intercourse and communion with God. An emphasis was thereby given to the Divine side of life. Men were to seek the presence of God that they might receive his grace and truth. A space was marked off from the business and secularities of life, so that, undisturbed from without, and aided by all the circumstances of devotion, the higher nature might be called forth and educated. Instead of worldly cares and competitions distracting the worshippers, they were to be engrossed for a while with their Father’s business. How important is this witness of the Church to the claims of the unseen and eternal! It is the sphere within which the highest exercise of human faculties may take place, and the noblest life may be laid hold of. There may be no immediate demand for what it provides, yet does it minister to the deepest and most lasting human needs. (2) The spiritual home of mankind. The defect of Judaism was that it was too national and exclusive: all that was to cease. From the earliest times the universality of the Divine grace was declared by the prophets. Even from within a principle of expansion began to discover itself. The presence of the "stranger" within the camp led to the recognition of the "proselytes of the gate," and by-and-by to the institution of the "court of the Gentiles" in the temple itself. The fundamental doctrine of Jehovah itself implied such an intention as ultimate if not immediate, for before him there was no respect of persons, and he was the Father of all. The promises, too, were all couched in terms that precluded a merely local or temporary enjoyment of their blessings. Even as taught in the Old Testament the doctrine of election is declared to be a temporary provision for the benefit of others besides the elect. The chief end of the temple, or the Church which it represented, could not be secured save by the conversion of the world to the knowledge of Jehovah, and the spiritual coming of mankind to Zion. It is therefore the great mission of Christianity, as the spiritual successor of Judaism, to give effect to this. The Church is a witness to the oneness of the race in its origin and destiny, and the great foster-mother of mankind. Through her charity, and not by mechanical necessities or material interests, is the unity of the world to be realized. 2. This twofold intention of the Church is certain to be fulfilled. As we have seen, it is (1) the Divine purpose: everything God wills will be; and (2) the genius of Christianity. If Judaism declared a universal brotherhood, Christianity is that brotherhood. It teaches us to say," Our Father," and realizes itself in the communion of saints. The Church is not an end in itself, but is for the world. Christianity is nothing if it is not evangelistic and aggressive. II. THE CHURCH IN ITS . In the mean time what God intended has been frustrated by the worldliness of men. The consequence has been: 1. A complete contradiction to its original purpose. Even in Jeremiah’s day the epithet, "a den of thieves," could be applied to it (Jeremiah 7:11); so soon does spiritual decay run to its term! That which was meant to be a universal good became a universal curse. The abuse of sacred things is ever the most mischievous of all abuses. Instead of Divine charity, human selfishness: the wrangling and violence of robbers where the peace of God was to be looked for. The contrast is utter, but the transition is easy and natural. The very extension of Judaism, outstripping as it did the expansion of affection in its members, sufficed to ensure its corruption. Worshippers came from distant places to offer sacrifice, and being unable to bring animals with them for the purpose, they sought for them on the spot. Gradually, therefore, the courts of the temple were invaded by cattle-dealers and their herds. Another inconvenience was felt in the difficulty of exchanging foreign money for the sacred coin which could alone be accepted in the treasury. Here the money-changer stepped in. The whole process was gradual and easily explained; but the result was none the less an evil, which required to be sternly corrected. Nor can Christians plead innocence of this sin. "The history of Christian Churches," says Plumptre, "has not been altogether without parallels that may help us to understand how such a desecration came to be permitted. Those who remember the state of the great cathedral of London, as painted in the literature of Elizabeth and James, when mules and horses, laden with market produce, were led through St. Paul’s as a matter of every-day occurrence, and bargains were struck there, and burglaries planned, and servants hired, and profligate assignations made and kept, will feel that even Christian and Protestant England has hardly the right to cast a stone at the priests and people of Jerusalem." It is a great deal, however, when it is recognized that this is not the purpose for which the sanctuary has been hallowed, and the lesson of the past is surely that of a constant watchfulness against insidious abuses, and above all of the need of a deeper and more continuous consecration of the worshippers themselves. 2. Divine anger and rejection. The wrath of the Lord of the temple was typical for all time. As the temple, so the Church or the soul which defiles itself will be visited by penal consequences. Sacred names and ceremonies will not consecrate vile ends. There is nothing more abhorrent to God than the travesty of religion, the seeking of gain under the mask of Godliness.—M. Christ’s authority challenged add defended. This was a necessary consequence of his action in the cleansing of the temple. By so doing he claimed to be the Judge of things religious and sacred, and to direct the conscience of man. This entry is longer than a Bible module can hold. The rest is at https://www.sermonindex.net/commentary/pulpit-commentary/ Mark 12:1 And he began to speak unto them in parables. This particular parable which follows was specially directed against the scribes and Pharisees; but it was uttered in the presence of a multitude of the people. "He began to speak … in parables." He had not used this form of instruction till now in Jerusalem. A man planted a vineyard. The imagery of the parable would be familiar to them from Isaiah (Isaiah 5:1). But Palestine was eminently a land of "vineyards," as well as of "oil olives." The man who planted the vineyard is no other than God himself. "Thou hast brought a vine" out of Egypt; thou hast cast out the heathen, and planted it." The imagery is specially appropriate. No property was considered to yield so rich a return as the vineyard, and none required such unceasing care and attention. The vine represents the kingdom of God in its idea and conception; not the Jewish Church in particular. The owner of this vineyard had himself made it. He had "planted it." This planting took place in the establishment of the Jewish polity in the land of Canaan, when the heathen were cast out. He set a hedge about it. This and the following descriptions are not mere ornaments of the parable. The "hedge" was an important protection to the vineyard. It might be a wall or a "quick hedge," a living fence. The vineyards in the East may now be seen often with a strong hedge planted round them. Such hedges, made of the prickly cactus, are to be seen at this day in the neighborhood of Joppa. Figuratively, this hedge would represent the middle wall of partition which then existed between the Jew and the Gentile; and in this, their separation from the idolatrous nations around them, lay the security of the Jews that they should enjoy the continued protection of God. It is well remarked by Archbishop Trench that the geographical position of Judaea was figurative of this, the spiritual separation of the people—guarded as Judaea was eastward by the river Jordan and its chain of lakes, northward by Antilibanus, southward by the desert and Idumaea, and westward by the Mediterranean Sea. Digged a place for the winepress (ληνός torcular); the words are literally, digged a pit for the winepress (ὤρυξενὑπολήνιον); the digging could only apply to the pit, a place hollowed out and then fitted with masonry. Sometimes these pits were formed out of the solid rock. Examples of these are frequent in Palestine. There were usually two pits hollowed out of the rock, one sloping to the other, and with openings between them. The grapes were placed in the upper pit; and the juice, crushed out by the feet of men, flowed into the lower pit, from whence it was taken out and put into wine-skins. "I have trodden the winepress alone." And built a tower. The tower (πύργον) was probably the watch-tower, where a watchman was placed to guard the vineyard from plunderers. Particular directions are given in the rabbinical writings (see Lightfoot) for the dimensions both of the winepress and of the tower. The tower was to be ten cubits high and four cubits square. It is described as "a high place, where the vine-dresser stands to overlook the vineyard." Such towers are still to be seen in Palestine, especially in the neighborhood of Bethlehem, of Hebron, and in the vine-growing districts of Lebanon. And let it out to husbandmen. The husbandmen would be the ordinary stated teachers of the people, though not excluding the people themselves. The Jewish nation in fact, both the teachers and the taught, represented the husbandmen, each member of the Church, then as now, being required to seek the welfare of the whole, body. And went into a far country (καὶἀπεδήμηδε); literally, and went into another country. St. Luke (Luke 20:9) adds (χρόνουςἱκανούς), "for a long time." Mark 12:2-5 And at the season he sent to the husbandmen a servant, that he might receive from the husbandmen of the fruits of the vineyard. St. Matthew (Matthew 21:34) says he sent "his servants." St. Mark mentions them in detail. These servants were the prophets, as Isaiah, Jeremiah, and others, whom the Jews persecuted and slew in different ways, as the reprovers of their vices. But the mercy of God was long-suffering, and still triumphed over their wickedness. In his account of this parable St. Mark is very minute. The first servant that was sent received no fruit, and was beaten. The second received much worse usage. According to the Authorized Version the words are, At him they cast stones, and wounded him in the head, and sent him away shamefully handled (κἀκεῖνονλιθοβολήσαντεςἐκεφαλαίωσανκαὶἀπέστειλανἠτιμωμένον). The word λιθοβολήσαντες is, however, not to be found in the best authorities; and the right reading of the next word is apparently ἐκεφαλίωσαν a very unusual word; but the context makes it plain that it expresses some injury done to the head. The other form of the word is usual enough; but it ordinarily signifies "a summing up," "a gathering up into a head." And handled shamefully ἠτιμωμένον); literally, dishonored. The third messenger they killed outright. The words run. And him they killed; and many others; beating some, and killing some. The construction here is incomplete, although the meaning is plain. The complete sentence would be, "And him they killed; and they did violence to many others, beating some and killing some." Mark 12:6-8 Having yet therefore one son, his well-beloved. There is strong evidence in favor of a different reading here: namely (ἔτιἕναεἰχενυἱὸνἀγαπητὸν), he had yet one, a beloved son. There is something very touching in this form of expression. Many messages had been sent; many means had been tried. But one other resource remained. "There is one, a beloved on. I will send him; they will, surely reverence him (ἐντραπήσονταιτὸνυἰόνμου). They will reflect, and reflection will bring shame and submission and reverence." This was the last effort of Divine mercy—the sending of the Incarnate God, whom the Jews put to death without the city. St. Mark’s words seem rather to imply that they killed him within the vineyard, and cast out the dead body. But it is possible that in his narrative he mentions the climax first—they killed him, and then returns to a detail of the dreadful tragedy; they cast him out of the vineyard, and there slew him (See Matthew 21:39.) Mark 12:9 What therefore will the lord of the vineyard do? In St. Matthew’s narrative the scribes answer this question. St. Luke, as St. Mark here, assigns the answer to our Lord. It would seem probable that the scribes first answered him, and that then he himself repeated their answer, and confirmed it by his looks and gesture; so that from thence, as well as from what followed, they might sufficiently understand that he spake these things of them. Then, according to St. Luke (Luke 20:16), they subjoined the words, "God forbid!" an expression wrung from their consciences, which accused them and told them that the parable applied to them. Here, then, we have a distinct prediction of the rejection of the Jews and the call of the Gentiles. Mark 12:10, Mark 12:11 This quotation is from Psalms 118:22, where David prophesies of Christ. The meaning is plainly this, that the chief priests and scribes, as the builders of the Jewish Church, rejected Christ from the building as a useless stone; yea, more—they condemned and crucified him. They rejected him (ἀπεδοκίμασαν). The verb in the Greek implies that the stone was first examined and then deliberately refused. But this stone, thus disallowed and set at nought by the builders, was made the head of the corner. The image here is different from that used in the Epistles, where Christ is spoken of as the chief Corner-stone in the foundation. Here he is represented as the Corner-stone in the cornice. In real truth he is both. He is the tried Foundation-stone. But he is also the Head of the corner. In the great spiritual building he is "all and in all," uniting and binding together all in one. This was the Lord’s doing (παρὰΚυρίουἐγένετοαὕτη); literally, this was from the Lord. The feminine (αὔτη) refers apparently to κεφαλή. This lifting up of the despised and rejected stone to be the Corner-stone of the cornice was God’s work; and was a fitting object for wonder and praise. Mark 12:12 The scribes and Pharisees knew, partly from the words of this psalm, and partly from the looks of Christ, that they were spoken against them. So they sought in their rage and malice to lay hold on him; but they feared the people, with whom he was still popular. Thus, however, by his rebuke of the scribes and Pharisees, he prepared the way for that death which, within three days, they brought upon him. And the counsel of God was fulfilled for the redemption of men by the blood of Christ. Mark 12:13, Mark 12:14 St. Matthew (Matthew 22:15) tells us that "the Pharisees took counsel how they might ensnare him (ὅπωςαὐτὸνπαγιδεύσωσιν) in his talk;" namely, by proposing to him captious and insidious questions, which, in whatever way he might answer them, might expose him to danger. On this occasion they enlisted the Heredians to join them in their attack upon him. These Herodians were a sect of the Jews who supported the house of Herod, and were in favor of giving tribute to the Roman Caesar. They were so called at first from Herod the Great, who was a great supporter of Caesar. Tertullian, St. Jerome, and others say that these Herodiaus thought that Herod was the promised Messiah, because they saw that in him the scepter had departed from Judah (Genesis 49:10). Herod encouraged these flatterers, and so put to death the infants at Bethlehem, that he might thus get rid of Christ, lest any other than himself might be regarded as Christ. They said at it was on this account that he rebuilt the temple with so much magnificence. The Pharisees took, of course, altogether the other side, and stood forward as the supporters of the Law of Moses and of their national freedom. So, in order that they might ensnare him, they sent to him their disciples with the Herodians, and in the most artful manner proposed to him, apparently in good faith, a question which answer it how he might, would, as they hoped, throw him upon the horns of a dilemma. If he said that tribute ought to be given to Caesar, he would expose himself to the malice of the Jewish people, who prided themselves upon their freedom. If, on the other hand, he said that tribute ought not to be given to Caesar, he would incur the wrath of Caesar and of the Roman power. Mark 12:15, Mark 12:16 St. Matthew (Matthew 22:18) says, "But Jesus perceived their wickedness, and said, Why tempt ye me, ye hypocrites?’ You pretend that you are approaching me with a good conscience, sincerely desirous to know how you ought to act in this matter; when at the same time you are enemies alike of me and of God, and are thirsting for my blood, and are doing all in your power to torment me, and to entangle me by fraud. "The first virtue," says St. Jerome, "of the respondent is to know the mind of the questioner, and to adapt his answer accordingly." These Pharisees and Heredians flatter Christ that they may destroy him; but he rebukes them, that, if possible, be might save them. Bring me a penny, that I may see it. The Roman denarius was equal to about eight-pence halfpenny. This was the coin in which the tribute money was to be paid. It had stamped upon it the image of Tiberius Caesar, the then reigning Roman emperor. The cognomen of Caesar was first given to Julius Caesar, from whom it was devolved to his successors. The current coin of the country proved the subjection of the country to him whose image was upon it. Maimonides, quoted by Dr. John Lightfoot, says, "Wheresoever the money of any king is current, there the inhabitants acknowledge that king for their lord." Mark 12:17 Render unto Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and unto God the things that are God’s. It is as though our Lord said, "Since you Jews are now subject to Caesar—and there is here this evidence of it, that his coin is current amongst you; you would not use it were you not obliged, because all Gentile rites and symbols are an abhorrence to you;—but since Caesar demands nothing of you but his tribute—the coin stamped with his own image and name—it is your duty to render to him his own denarius for tribute. But spiritual things, such as worship and obedience, give these to God; for these he demands from you as his right, and by so doing you will offend neither God nor yet Caesar." Our Lord, in his infinite wisdom, avoids the question altogether whether the Jews were rightly in subjection to the Romans. This was a doubtful question. But there could be no doubt as to the fact that they were tributary. This was made plain by the evidence of the current coin. Now, this being so, it was manifestly the duty of the Jewish people to give to Caesar the tribute money which he demanded of them for the expenses of government, and especially of supporting an army to defend them from their enemies. And it was no less their duty to give their tribute to God, which he in his own right demanded of them as his creatures and faithful subjects. The rights of Caesar are one thing, and those of God are another; and there is nothing that need clash between them. State polity is not opposed to religion, nor religion to state. Tertullian says, "’Render to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s;’ that is, give to Caesar his image stamped upon his coin, and give to God his own image stamped upon you; so that while you render to Caesar the coin which is his due, you may render your own self to God." This wonderful answer of our Lord teaches us that we ought to try to speak so wisely, and so to moderato our speech amongst those who are captious, that we may, if possible, offend neither side, but steer safely between Scylla and Charybdis. And they marvelled at him. The true Greek reading of the verb here is not ἐθαύμασαν, but ἐξεθαύμαζον, they marvelled greatly at him; they stood marvelling greatly at him. They marvelled at his wisdom and skill in extricating himself so readily out of this net in which they had hoped to entangle him. Indeed, the words of the psalmist (Psalms 9:15) were verified in them: "The wicked is snared in the work of his own hands." He vaulted over the trap set for him, leaving them entangled in it. He lifted up the question far above the petty controversy of the hour, and affirmed a great principle of natural and religious obligation which belongs alike to all times and persons and places. Mark 12:18-23 And there come unto him Sadducees, which say that there is no resurrection. Josephus states that in the time of Judas Maceabaeus there were three sects of the Jews, differing amongst themselves, namely, the Pharisees, the Sadducees, and the Essenes. The Hebrew word Zadoc, from which the Sadducees derive their name, means "just." or" righteous." These Sadducees accepted the Pentateuch, and probably more than the Pentateuch; but they rejected any oral tradition. They were known in the time of our Lord as denying those doctrines which connect us more immediately with another world, such as the existence of spirits and of angels, and the resurrection of the body. They altogether denied fate, affirming that all things are in our own power. They heard Christ preach the resurrection, and by means of it persuade men to repentance and a holy life. They therefore proposed to him a question which appeared to them to be fatal to the doctrine of a future state and a resurrection. The case supposed is that of seven brethren, who, in compliance with the Law of Moses, one after another, as each died in succession, took the same woman to wife. It is probable that such a case may actually have occurred; at any rate, it was a possible case. And the question founded upon it by the Sadducees was this—Whose wife would she be of them in the resurrection? Here, then, they hoped to entangle him, and to show that the doctrine of the resurrection was absurd. For if our Lord should say that in the resurrection she would be the wife of one only, the other brethren would have been excited to envy and continual strife. Nor could he have said that she would be common to the seven brothers. Such were the absurdities which, as they intimated, would flow out of his doctrine of the resurrection, if it could be proved. But our Lord scatters to the winds all this foolish reasoning, by adding one clause omitted by them, and overlooked by men of mere earthly minds, namely, that in the world to come this widow would be the wife of none of the seven brethren. Mark 12:24 These Sadducees erred in two ways: (1) They did not know or remember the Scriptures, such as that in Job (Job 21:25), "I know that my Redeemer liveth," etc., or in Isaiah (Isaiah 26:19), "Thy dead men shall live, together with my dead body shall they arise;" or in Daniel (Daniel 12:2), "Many of them that sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake," etc. (2) They did not know the power of God, namely, that he can raise the bodies of the dead again to life, even as at first he created them out of nothing; for a greater power is required to make that to be which was not, than to make that again to be which once was. But then the resurrection life will be a new life, spiritual, glorious, eternal, like that of the angels. So in these words our Lord struck at the double root of the error of the Sadducees: (1) ignorance of the Scriptures, which plainly teach the resurrection; and (2) ignorance of the power of God, which led them to interpret these Scriptures, which speak of the resurrection, to mean only a mystical resurrection from vice to virtue. Mark 12:25 But are as angels in heaven—not "the angels;" the οἱ is omitted. The blessed, after the resurrection, will be like angels as to purity, as to a spiritual life, as to immortality, as to happiness and glory. There will be no necessity for marriages in heaven. Here, on earth, the father dies, but he lives on in his children after death. In heaven there is no death, but every one will live and be blessed for ever; and therefore it is that St. Luke adds here, "Neither can they die any more." St. Augustine says, "Marriages are on account of children; children on account of succession; succession on account of death. But in heaven, as there is no death, neither is there any marriage." Mark 12:26 St. Mark is here careful to state that what St. Matthew describes as "the word spoken by God" was to be found in the book of Moses (Exodus 3:5), in the place concerning the Bush (ἐπὶτῆςβάτου), as it is correctly rendered in the Revised Version. Our Lord might have brought yet clearer proofs out of Job, Daniel, Ezekiel, etc.; but in his wisdom he preferred to allege this out of Moses and the Pentateuch, because, whatever the views of the Sadducees may have been as to other parts of the Old Testament, these books of Moses they readily acknowledged. I am the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob. The force of the argument is this, that "God is not the God of the dead, but of the living." Their souls are still alive; and if these patriarchs are still alive, there will be a resurrection. If men are to live for ever, they will, sooner or later, live again in the completeness of their being, namely, of body and soul and spirit. Our Lord would, therefore, say this: "In a few days you will put me to death; but in three days I shall rise again from the dead. And after that, in due time I shall raise them from the dead at the last day, and bring them in triumph with me into heaven." The Sadducees and the Epicureans denied the resurrection, because they denied the immortality of the soul; for these two doctrines hang together. For if the soul is immortal, then, since it naturally depends upon the body, it is necessary that the body should rise. Otherwise the soul would continue to exist in a dislocated state, and would only obtain a divided life and an imperfect existence. Hence our Lord here distinctly proves the resurrection of the body from the immortality of the soul. When he speaks of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, he does not speak of their souls only, but of their whole being. Therefore, though they are for a time dead to us, yet they live to God, and sleep, as it were, because ere long God will raise them from death, as from a sleep, to a blessed and endless life. For all, though they have passed out of our sight, still live to him. Mark 12:27 Ye therefore do greatly err. The Greek is, omitting the οὖν, simply ὑμεῖςπολὺπλανᾶσθε, Ye greatly err. The omission is more consistent with St. Mark’s usual style. The Sadducees entirely misunderstood the meaning of their own Scriptures. Mark 12:28 St. Matthew (Matthew 22:34) says here that the Pharisees, when they heard that he had put the Sadducees to silence, gathered themselves together, and that then one of them, who was a lawyer (νομίνος), that is, "a scribe," asked him this question, What commandment is the first of all? It appears here from St. Mark that this scribe had been present at the discussion with the Sadducees, and he had probably informed the others of what had taken place, and of the wisdom and power of our Lord’s answer; so he was naturally put forward to try our Lord with another crucial question. It does not necessarily appear that he had an evil intention in putting this question. He may, in his own mind (seeing the wisdom and skill of our Lord), have desired to hear what Christ had to say to a very difficult question on a matter deeply interesting to all true Hebrews. The question was one much mooted amongst the Jews in the time of our Lord. "For many," says Beds, "thought that the first commandment in the Law related to offerings and sacrifices, with regard to which so much is said in Leviticus, and that the right worship of God consisted in the due offering of these." On this account the Pharisees encouraged children to say "Corban" to their parents; and hence this candid and truth-loving scribe, when he heard our Lord’s answer about the love of God and of our neighbor, said that such obedience was worth "more than all whole burnt offerings and sacrifices." With regard to the love of God, St. Bernard says, "The measure of our love to God is to love him without measure; for the immense goodness of God deserves all the love that we can possibly give to him." Mark 12:31 Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself. God is to be loved above everything—above all angels, or men, or any created thing. But after God, amongst created things, our neighbor is above all to be loved. And we are to extend to our neighbor that kind of love with which we love ourselves. Our love of ourselves is not a frigid love, but a sincere and ardent love. In like manner we should love our neighbour, and desire for him all those good things both for the body and for the soul that we desire for ourselves. This is what our Lord himself teaches us. "All things whatsoever ye would that men should do to you, even so do unto them." There is none other commandment greater than these. St. Matthew (Matthew 22:40) says, "On these two commandments hang the whole Law and the prophets." There is no commandment greater than these, because all the precepts of the Divine Law are included in them. So that our Lord here teaches us that we ought continually to have these two precepts in our minds and before our eyes, and direct all our thoughts and words and actions by them, and regulate our whole life according to them. Mark 12:32 The first words of this verse should be rendered thus: Of a truth, Master, thou hast well said that he is one. In the remainder of the scribe’s answer we find a different word used in the Greek for" mind," or "understanding," from that just used by our Lord. In our Lord’s answer the word is διάνοια. Here it is σύνεσις. Both words are well rendered by "understanding." It is an act of understanding. It is the thought associating itself with the object, and "standing under" it so as to support it. Mark 12:33 Is more (περισσότερόν)—according to the most approved reading, more—than all whole burnt offerings and sacrifices. This scribe was evidently emerging out of the bondage of ceremonial things, and perceiving the supremacy of the moral law. Mark 12:34 And when Jesus saw that he answered discreetly (νουνεχῶς), he said unto him, Thou art not far from the kingdom of God. It would appear from this answer that our Lord regarded him as one who approached him with the sincere desire to know the truth, and so he encouraged him. This shows how powerful an influence our Lord’s teaching had already exercised amongst all classes of the Jews. This scribe, notwithstanding the prejudices of his class, had reached the border-land of the kingdom. He had learnt that the true way to the kingdom was by the love of God and of our neighbor. He was not far from the kingdom—not far from "the Church militant here on earth," by which is the way to the Church triumphant in heaven. He was not far from the kingdom, but still he wanted that which in the true pathway to the kingdom—faith in Christ as the Savior of the world. And no man after that durst ask him any question. St. Matthew (Matthew 22:46) places these words after the next occurrence. But there is no inconsistency in the two narratives, because in this next incident our Lord puts the question to them; and this silenced both their questioning and their answering. All felt that there was such a vast reach of wisdom and knowledge in all that he said, that it was in vain to contend with him. Mark 12:35 Our Lord was now in the temple, and he took the opportunity for instructing the scribes and Pharisees concerning his person and his dignity. Thus, as ever, he returned good for evil. He here taught them that the Messiah was not a mere man, as they supposed, but that he was i both God and man, and that therefore they ought not to wonder or to be offended because he called himself the Son of God. St. Matthew (Matthew 22:42) more fully gives their answer first, namely, that "Christ is the Son of David." They should have said that, as God, he was the Son of God, according to those words, "Thou art my Son; this day have I begotten thee;" but that, as man, he was the Son of David. Their answer was very different from that of Peter: "Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God." But they wanted the Divine knowledge which the disciples had gained. Mark 12:36 The Lord said unto my Lord. From this verse (Psalms 110:1-7.) our Lord shows that the Messiah, such as he was, was not a mere man, as the Pharisees thought, but that he was God, and therefore David’s Lord. The meaning, therefore, is this, "The Lord God said to my Lord," that is, Christ, "Sit thou at my right hand," that is, when, after his cross, his death, and his resurrection, he will exalt him far above all principality and power, and place him next to him in heaven, that he may reign with supreme happiness and power and glory over all creatures. These words show that this is a Divine decree, fixed and irrevocable. Till I make thine enemies thy footstool (ὑποπόδιοντῶνποδῶνσου); literally, the footstool of thy feet; that is, reign with me in glory until the day of judgment, when I will make the wicked, all opposing powers, subject to thee. The word "till" does not imply that Christ will then cease to reign. "Of his kingdom there shall be no end." But he will then formally deliver up the kingdom to God, even the Father, only that he may receive it again as the second Person of the Godhead. Mark 12:38, Mark 12:39 These verses are a condensation of the woes recorded at length by St. Matthew (Matthew 23:1-39.). And he said unto them in his doctrine (ἐντῇδιδαχῇαὑτοῦ)—literally, in his teaching—Beware of the scribes which desire (τῶνθελόντων) to walk in long robes (ἐνστολαῖς). The στόλη was a rich robe which reached down to the ankles, and was adorned with fringes. The scribes took pleasure in this kind of display. The salient points in their character were ostentation, avarice, and religious hypocrisy. Mark 12:40 There is a change in the construction here, which is not marked in the Authorized Version. The sentence in this fortieth verse should stand alone, and be read thus: They which devour (οἱκατεσθίοντες) widows’ houses, and for a pretense make long prayers; these shall receive greater condemnation. The sentence thus read is far more graphic. The statement thus becomes indeed more general, but the reference is still to the scribes who through their avarice swallowed up the property of helpless widows, and through their hypocrisy, in the hope of thus more effectually imposing upon their victims, lengthened out their prayers. Greater condemnation. The word in the Greek is κρίμα, that is, "judgment." A severer sentence would fall upon them in the day of judgment and a heavier condemnation, because, under the semblance of piety, they practiced iniquity, and indulged their avarice under the mask of religion. Mark 12:41 He sat down over against the treasury (γαζοφυλάκιον, from γάζα, a Persian word meaning "treasure," and φυλάττειν, to guard). This was the receptacle into which the offerings of the people were east, for the uses of the temple and for the benefit of the priests and of the poor. Hence that part of the temple in which these gifts were kept was called the treasury. He beheld (ἐθεώρει)—literally, he was beholding; he was observing—how the multitude πῶςὁὄχλος—that is, in what manner, with what motives (for he was the heart-searcher) the crowd of givers—cast money (βάλλειχαλκόν); literally, is casting· St. Luke uses the term (τὰδῶρα) "their gifts." Many that were rich cast in much (πολλά), that is, "many pieces." There were several apertures in the treasury, which from their shape were called trumpets. Some of these had special inscriptions, marking the destination of the offerings. Mark 12:42 A poor widow (μίαχήραπτωχὴ); literally, one poor widow; one specially singled out for notice. St. Luke says, εἷδεδὲκαίτιναχήρανπενιχρὰν: literally, a widow who supported herself by her own little labor. And she cast in two mites (λεπτὰ), which make a farthing. The farthing was the fourth part of an as, and ten of these made a denarius. The Greek word (λεπτὰ) means literally "thin pieces." Mark 12:43, Mark 12:44 This poor widow hath cast in more. The right reading of the verb here is ἔβαλε, not βέβληκε; this aoristic rendering has very good authority—this poor widow cast in more. Her act is completed, and has gone up for a memorial before God. She "gave" more than all the others who are casting (τῶνβαλλόντων), not "have cast in (τῶνβαλόντων)." She gave more, when she threw in those two mites, than all the others were giving—more, that is, in the estimation of him who sees not as man sees. God does not weigh the gift so much as the mind of the giver. That gift is really the greater in his sight, not which is actually of greater value, but which is greater in respect of the giver. Therefore this poor widow, when she gave her farthing, gave more than they all, because she gave all her living—all, that is, that she had beforehand for that day, trusting that the Lord would give her her bread for that day. And so she carried off the palm for liberality, Christ himself proudly present, but what you offer with being the Judge. St. Ambrose says, "That humility and devotion." which God esteems is not that which you proudly present, but what you offer with humility and devotion. Mark 12:1-12 Rebel vine-dressers. By this time there was no further prospect or possibility that the fate of Jesus might be averted. His entry into Jerusalem in state, and his cleansing of the temple, were acts that the priests, scribes, and Pharisees could not pardon, for they were a claim to authority altogether incompatible with their own. And the words of Jesus were as bold as his acts; their justice and severity enraged the rulers beyond all degree. The enemies of truth and righteousness were by this time fully resolved to strike down him whose character and ministry were the living embodiment of what they most hated. It was only a question of time and manner and instrumentalities. All this Jesus knew, and he knew that "his hour was come." There was no occasion now for reticence, and there was no longer any end to be subserved by it. His speech was always plain and faithful, but now his denunciations were unsparing, and his warnings terrible. On this Tuesday morning of his last week, our Lord summed up in this parable of "the wicked husbandmen," "the rebel vine-dressers," the rebellious history of Israel in the past, and the approaching doom of Israel in the future. It was in the temple precincts, and in the presence both of the people and of the chief priests, that the great Teacher so boldly aserted his own special mission and authority, and so emphatically foretold his own fate and the judgment which should overtake the guilty nation. The immediate application of the parable is clear enough. Israel was the vineyard planted in the election of Abraham, and hedged about and provided with all things needful, in the giving of the Law by Moses and in the settlement in Canaan under Joshua. The Eternal, who had so favored the chosen people, had sent prophets in three periods—that of Samuel, that of Elijah and Elisha, and that of Isaiah and Jeremiah—to summon Israel to a life of spirituality and obedience corresponding with their privileges. The Jews had not fulfilled the Law of God, or rendered to Heaven the fruits meet for repentance. And now he, the Son of God, was among them, the final Embassy from the throne of the great King. It was but too plain to all eyes that the unfruitfulness and rebellion of Israel reached the most awful height just when their advantages were the greatest, and the mercy of the Eternal was most conspicuous. They, who had rejected and slain the prophets, were now plotting against the very Son of God. They were about to put him to death, because he told them the truth and urged the rightful claims and demands of his Father. They might think, and did think, that this would be the end; but such an expectation was delusive: it was incompatible with the righteous government of God. And the Lord plainly foretold them that, as surely as God reigned in heaven and on earth, so surely should the rebellion of Israel be awfully and signally chastised, their special privileges come to a perpetual end, and the blessings which they were rejecting be conferred by God’s sovereign favor upon others, who should render the fruits in their seasons. Forty years afterwards Jerusalem was destroyed, the Jews were scattered, and their national life came to an end; and the kingdom of God was established among the Gentiles. The parable has lessons, not only for Israel, but for us; it embodies truth spiritual, practical, and impressive. I. OUR EARTHLY : TO TILL THE OF GOD. The figure sets forth our vocation and responsibility. It represents our life as one of privilege. It is not a wilderness, but a vineyard, which we are called to cultivate. God has done much for us, in appointing for us the circumstances and opportunities of our existence. Our life is one of work. The most favorable situation and the most fruitful soil avail little if the plot be neglected; only faithful and diligent labor on our part can secure that the purposes of the Divine Lord shall be fulfilled. It is for us to "give diligence to make our calling and election sure." The greater our privileges, the more need that we should be diligent, laborious, and prayerful. Opportunities must be used, and not neglected or abused. II. GOD’S : THAT WE SHALL YIELD HIM FRUIT. What is the crop, the produce, he desires to see? Holiness and obedience, love and praise, as far as he is concerned; and, as far as regards our fellow-men, justice and gentleness, benevolence and helpfulness. He looks for repentance from the sinner, for faith from the hearer of the gospel, for improvement in character and for usefulness in service from the Christian. Why he does this is obvious enough. He has given us the means of knowledge and the opportunities of devotion, and looks for a return. "What more," he says, "could I have done than I have done?" And this expectation is for our sake as well as for his own. Our fruitfulness is our welfare and our happiness; it brings its own reward. III. GOD’S AND DEMAND UPON MEN, BY HIS AND BY HIS SON. Our Lord appeals to us both by the Law and by the gospel. The teaching of his Word brings before us his rightful claims, and shows us how much it is for our highest advantage that we should not be unmindful of them. He summons us by the lessons of his providence, and by the counsels of our Christian friends, to a religious life. Yet there is no appeal so powerful, so persuasive, as that which God makes to us by his own "dear Son." Christ comes to us with authority; he comes to us with grace. He comes from the Father, and he comes with the deepest interest in our condition, anxious to overcome our rebelliousness, and to lead us to a holy and grateful obedience. The gospel of Jesus Christ is the one great, Divine appeal to the hearts of men. It is the method which infinite Wisdom and Mercy have devised of winning our confidence and love, and securing our ready obedience and loyal service. Those who have rejected other messengers of Heaven may justly be enjoined to receive with reverence the Son of God. IV. THE OF AND . These are described in this passage in the most affecting terms. Privileges are removed from the unfaithful. The negligent and rebellious are punished and cast out. The advantages which they have spurned are transferred to others. V. THE REWARD OF AND LOYALTY. 1. Christ is glorified, even though there may be those who reject and contemn him. Christ himself quotes a passage of Scripture, in which this great truth is set forth, though by a change of figure. "The stone which the builders rejected is become the Head of the corner." The purposes of God are accomplished, and cannot be frustrated by the guilt of man. 2. Other husbandmen are found who will deal more faithfully with the sacred trust. These shall offer the fruits of obedience, which shall be acceptable to the Lord of the vineyard. They shall be confirmed in their occupation, shall be blessed in their work, shall enjoy the Master’s favor, and shall live in the light of their Master’s glory. Mark 12:13-17 Caesar’s due. There could not have been a more decisive proof of the duplicity and hypocrisy of the Jewish leaders than that furnished by this incident. It is certain that they were opposed to the Roman sway, that they nursed in their hearts hopes of Jewish independence, that they would have eagerly welcomed such a Messiah as they looked for—one who should deliver them from the yoke of foreign bondage. Yet, in their malignity, they were ready to denounce Jesus to the Roman governor should he express an opinion adverse to the paying of tribute, just as they were ready to deliver him up to the fury of the populace should he formally approve and sanction the rights of the empire over the Jewish people. Thus— I. A JUST BUT VEILS A DESIGN. It is an astounding instance of duplicity, this method of approaching the Lord Jesus. These Pharisees and Herodians make admissions which they would never have made except as the means to an evil end. They address the Master with the acknowledgment that he is "true"—in this a striking contrast to themselves; that he is impartial, caring not for any one, nor regarding the person of men; that he taught the way of God. This was not empty, complimentary language; it was just. Whether in their hearts they believed it to be so, we cannot say; but Christ’s enemies were often unintentional witnesses, both to his virtues and to his Divine authority and mission. Their only aim was to conciliate him, so that, in an unguarded moment, he might, with natural frankness, commit himself to some judgment which they might use to his harm. II. A CRAFTY , AN SNARE, IS WISELY ELUDED. "IS it lawful to give tribute unto Caesar, or not?" A categorical answer either way would have been immediately and effectively used to his injury; he could not, after so answering, both stand well with his countrymen and remain free from the imputation of disloyalty to the then supreme power of Rome. The alternative was fairly evaded, and the snare was escaped, by the method in which Jesus dealt with the question propounded. There was something picturesque and impressive to the popular mind in his asking for the denarius, and pointing to the emperor’s image and superscription. There was manifest reasonableness in yielding to Caesar what was so obviously his own; yet it was pointed out that this might be loyally done without detriment to the higher obligations of religion. III. A OF ACTION IN THE SEVERAL OF HUMAN LIFE IS ONCE FOR ALL . 1. We have here a recognition that civil government is of Divine authority. It does not follow from this that every government deserves approval, or even that under no circumstances is it lawful to resist constituted authority. But our Lord teaches, and his apostles teach, as a general principle, that civil governors are to be obeyed, that "the powers that be are ordained of God." 2. An implication that there is a province into which civil governors may not intrude, that there are obligations which take precedence even of the duties we owe to the earthly sovereign. There are claims which the Divine Lord himself prefers, and which he regards as supreme. The apostles clearly grasped this principle, and put it into practice when the rulers interfered with their discharge of what they held to be their religious duties. When a conflict occurs between the allegiance due to the civil ruler and that due to the supreme King, our Lord’s words warrant the preference of the Divine to the human law. In times of persecution especially, the principle of our Lord’s words has often guided the wavering and sustained the feeble. "Whether it be right to obey God rather than man, judge ye!" We may say that the modern privilege of religious liberty has grown out of this incident in our Lord’s ministry, these words from our Lord’s lips. And to the same source we may attribute the growing tendency on the part of secular powers to withdraw from the province of religion, and to allow free scope to the action of conscience and full liberty for the profession and for the rites of religion. There is a province into which no earthly authority may intrude, and where the Creator reigns supreme and alone. Mark 12:18-27 Sadducees confuted. Of all the subjects which awaken the speculative curiosity and inquiry of men, none approaches, in dignity and importance, the future life. The nobler spirits, in every civilized and cultured community, have either held as an article of faith, or have cherished with fondest hope, the prospect of immortality. Annihilation is a prospect which none but the degraded and sinful can consent to accept without shuddering horror. It has often been observed as very remarkable, though not inexplicable, that the Pentateuch contains no express, explicit statement regarding a future life. It appears that the revelation of immortality was progressive; for expectations regarding a conscious existence of happiness after death are certainly found with growing frequency in the later books of the Old Testament. The psalmists and prophets rejoiced in the hope of a heavenly rest and an imperishable fellowship with the Father of spirits. At the time of our Lord’s ministry there was a division among the religious authorities of the Jewish people upon this all-important subject; the Pharisees holding to the doctrines of immortality and resurrection, and the Sadducees denying and apparently ridiculing both. Amongst the Sadducees were many of the most intellectual of the upper classes of society. They also retained in their own leading families the office of high priest. Both our Lord Christ and his apostle Paul took a very decided stand against the Sadducaic doctrine and party. During the last week of our Lord’s ministry, when the conflict with his enemies was reaching its height, many assaults were made from various quarters against Jesus and his claims and teaching. This passage records the attack of the rationalistic party upon the Divine Master, and his original and conclusive repulse of that attack. I. THE OF THE AGAINST THE OF OUR LORD UPON AND . 1. It was indirect reasoning. Instead of attacking the doctrine, they simply attacked a supposed inference from it, viz. the continuance of physical human relations in another life. 2. It was frivolous reasoning. They must have found it hard to state with serious faces a case so absurd. It would have been childish had they supposed the woman to have married twice; the suppesition that she should confront in the resurrection life the rival claims of seven husbands was ridiculous. This is not the temper in which great problems regarding human destiny should be discussed. 3. It was inconclusive; for no one of the alternative solutions of the difficulty proposed would have been incompatible with a future life. II. THE GENERAL REPLY OF THE LORD JESUS TO THIS . 1. He refutes the argument, if it can be so called, which they had adduced. Marriage is an earthly institution, and is especially adapted to a mortal race, providing that generation shall succeed generation. Love is indeed imperishable, and shall be perfected in heaven; but marriage shall no longer be necessary when men shall be equal to the angels, and shall sin and die no more. Therefore no reasoning founded upon the continuance of this physical relationship has place with reference to the life beyond the grave. 2. He bases the doctrine of the future life upon the power of God, which they strangely overlooked. It is the reasoning which was repeated by St. Paul, "Why should it be thought a thing impossible with you that God should raise the dead?" The omnipotence which first called human nature into being is surely able to revive the spirit and perpetuate its consciousness and activity. This is an unanswerable argument still against all dogmatic denial of the future life. It does not in itself establish the doctrine, but it is conclusive against those who deny it. It removes the presumption from the opponents to the upholders of immortality. 3. He refers to the Scriptures for grounds for belief in a future life. Those who admitted their authority would find it hard to reconcile such admission with disbelief in the resurrection. III. THE SPECIAL BY WHICH THE LORD JESUS FAITH IN AND A FUTURE LIFE. 1. Jesus refers to an authority which the Sadducees professed emphatically to revere—the Pentateuch. "The Law" was their especial pride, and they may have justified their scepticism by the absence of explicit teaching upon this great doctrine from the books of Moses. 2. Jesus quotes a familiar passage, in which he reads, or from which he deduces, a new and striking and convincing argument. It is upon record that God declared himself to Moses as "the God of Abraham, of Isaac, and of Jacob." Now, what did this imply? That God had been their God, but that, they having ceased to exist, he was no longer? Or, that he was the God of their mouldering or dispersed dust, which, upon the theory of annihilation, was all that remained of them? Either those who had been wont to read this passage must have passed it over without reflection, or they must have been satisfied with an interpretation crude and empty. Or else they must have drawn the inference which the great Master now drew: "God is not the God of the dead, but of the living." Once he declares himself his people’s God, he remains such for ever; and they remain his,—conscious recipients of his favor, and responsive partakers of his Divine and Fatherly love. He is a covenant God; his promises are never broken, and his declarations never fail. An immortal God involves the immortality of those whom he has created in his image, redeemed by his grace, renewed by his Spirit. If he is what he has revealed himself as being, if his people are what he has declared them to be, then death has no power over them; they are destined to "glory, honor, and immortality." For "all live in him." Mark 12:28-34 The great commandments. This passage of the Gospel affords common ground, upon which those who lay the greatest stress upon Christian doctrine may meet with conciliation and harmony those who are wont to insist most upon Christian morality. Here is a statement, upon the highest authority, as to what God requires of man, as to what man owes to God and to his fellow-men. "Do this, and thou shalt live!" It is a sublime view of the great purposes of our spiritual being. Beyond this religion cannot go; for this is the end for which our nature was framed, for which revelation was vouchsafed. Yet who can read these requirements of a holy and benevolent Creator and Ruler without feeling that by himself they have not been fulfilled? The man must be besotted by self-conceit, or must have silenced conscience, who claims to have loved God with all his powers, or to have uniformly loved his neighbor as himself. The purer, the more stringent the Law, the deeper the humiliation and contrition of the transgressor. What, then, more fitted to induce sinners to receive the gospel with faith and gratitude than these words of Jesus? What can make so welcome the tidings of Divine forgiveness secured through the redemption wrought by the Savior on the cross? And, further, as we meditate upon this ideal of a beautiful and acceptable moral life, how profoundly are we impressed with a sense of our own weakness! And surely this must lead us to seek and to accept the aid of the Spirit of God, who is the Spirit at once of power and of love! Thus the inculcation of Christian morality naturally suggests the doctrines upon which we build our hopes for time and for eternity. On the other hand, in the presence of these inspiriting words of the Master, how is it possible for the candid and the faithful to rest in that view of the gospel which represents religion as merely securing the forgiveness of sin, and immunity from wrath and punishment? Here is a summons to a spiritual, a self-denying, and a benevolent life. I. THE TO JESUS. 1. In itself it was a worthy, a noble question. Unlike the trifling and ridiculous riddle propounded by the Pharisees, it was an inquiry becoming on the part of the scribe who urged it, and fit for the consideration and judgment of the holy Master himself. It respected commandments, and thus acknowledged the rule of a just God, and the duty of man’s obedience and submission. It concerned morality—the highest of all human interests. It evinced an evident desire to do what was right, and to give precedence to what should be acknowledged best. There can be no nobler inquiry than this—What is the will of God? What is the duty of man? What shall I do? 2. In its spirit and purport, the question was commendable. The questioner observed that Jesus had answered well; that he had solved with marvellous wisdom the difficult question of the Pharisees; that he had dealt skilfully and conclusively with the cavilling of the Sadducees. The limits of civil submission are an interesting branch of study; the future life is of all speculative questions the most engrossing to the thoughtful; but of even wider interest are the foundation, the character, the means, of human goodness. The inquiry as to the first of commandments was put as a testing question, but in no captious spirit; it was the expression of a desire to learn—to learn from the highest authority, to learn the most sacred principles of moral life. And not to learn only, but doubtless to practice the lesson acquired. II. THE ANSWER OF JESUS TO THE SCRIBE. There was no hesitation in the Master’s reply to the question proposed; the challenge was at once taken up. And consummate wisdom was shown in the reference to the Mosaic Law, the very words of which were quoted. Thus the right-minded were conciliated, yet at no expense, but rather by the manifestation, of truth. And the hostile were silenced; for who of the Jewish rabbis could call in question the authority of their own sacred books? When we look into the substance of the response, several remarkable facts become apparent. 1. Love is represented as the sum of the Divine commandments. The Pentateuch contained the injunctions our Lord repeated, but they were included in a vast body of precepts and prohibitions. It could scarcely be said with justice that love was the most prominent of the Mosaic commandments. Christ’s independence, discernment, and legislative authority were shown in his fixing upon the two requirements which occur in different books and in different connections, and in bringing them out into the light of day, and exhibiting them as in his view of surpassing importance, and so promulgating them as the laws of his spiritual kingdom through all time. God himself is love; Christ is the expression and proof of the Divine love; and it is therefore natural and reasonable that love should be the law of the Divine kingdom, the badge of the spiritual family. 2. The Object of supreme love is God himself. The personality of God is assumed, for we cannot love an abstraction, a power; only a living being, who thinks, feels, and purposes. The unity of God is asserted; for although, when Jesus lived on earth, the Jews were no longer subject to the temptation to idolatry, such temptation had beset them when the Law was originally given, and for a long period subsequently. The relationship between God and man is presumed—"thy God;" for he is ours and we are his. The claims of God are implied; his character, his treatment of men, his redeeming love in Christ. "We love him, because he first loved us." 3. The description and degree of love demanded are very fully stated in the text. The expression is a very strong one: "With all thy heart, soul, mind, and strength." Attempts have been made accurately to discriminate among these. But it seems sufficient to say that the love required in such language is cordial and fervent; cordial, as distinguished from mere profession, and fervent, as distinguished from lukewarmness and indifference. The whole of our nature is expected to combine, so to speak, in this exercise. Not only so, but God is to be regarded as the supreme Object of affection and devotion. He demands the first place in our heart; and those who see his grace in Christ cannot find it hard to offer what he demands. 4. Love to man follows upon love to God. It may, indeed, in order of time, in some measure precede and prepare for it. But in the moral order, in the order of obligation, love to God comes first, and, indeed, furnishes the one sound and safe basis for human love. The designation of the objects of this love deserves notice; they are our "neighbors." We must interpret this term in the light of our Lord’s answer to an earlier question put to him by a certain lawyer: "Who is my neighbor?" In the parable of the good Samaritan Jesus then laid a broad foundation for human charity. Not our own family, or Church, or nation, but all mankind, are to be regarded with good will, and treated, not only with justice, but with kindness. Practically, those have a claim upon our kindly feeling and good offices whom Providence brings into any contact with us in human society. Remark the measure of this love: "As thyself." It is, then, right to love self; but in subordination to Divine love, and in accordance with love to neighbors. The test is an effective one, and can always be applied; the Law is parallel with the golden rule, "Do unto others as ye would they should do unto you." The dependence of this law upon the preceding is obvious. Christianity bases morality upon religion; we love our fellow-men as the children of God, because he loves them and for his sake. 5. Love, to be acceptable, must display itself in practical forms. The love we cherish toward God should lead to worship and to obedience—in a word, to a religious life. The love we entertain to our fellow-men will reveal itself in the demeanour, the language, and still more in the conduct. Helpfulness, self-denial, liberality, forbearance, are all fruits of love; which is destructive of discord, malice, and envy, of jealousy, hatred, and persecution. Here is the power to banish the vices, and the remedy to heal the spiritual maladies which afflict mankind! III. THE SCRIBE’S CONSENT TO CHRIST’S REPLY. 1. He thus proved his independence of judgment. Others, when answered and silenced by Jesus, retired discomfited, but unconvinced. This rabbi, with a mind candid and open to the truth, receives the Lord’s saying as sufficient and decisive, and renders his own consent and approbation in the words, "Thou hast well said." 2. He shows his pleasure in the grand utterances of inspiration by repeating the language which Jesus had quoted—language evidently both familiar to him and congenial to his character. 3. His boldness and spirituality are apparent in his stating, what Jesus had implied, the superiority of the heart’s affection to all service of the hands. IV. THE BY JESUS. 1. The position of the lawyer was very different from that of others. There were many who were "far" from God’s kingdom. The Pharisees for the most part by their formality, the Sadducees by their scepticism and arrogance, the publicans and sinners by their vices, the multitude by their ignorance,—these were far from the kingdom. Amongst those who may justly be so described are always some who are outwardly numbered among the religious, as well as multitudes who are without God, and manifestly have no hope. 2. There were several respects in which this scribe approached the spiritual kingdom of the Savior. (1) He was acquainted with God’s Word, and was interested in it; he explored and studied it. He appreciated the grandeur and beauty of the Divine Law, and he was bold and earnest in speaking of it. In all this he displayed sympathy with him who came to magnify and to fulfill the Law, and who bade the people search the Scriptures. (2) He thoroughly agreed with the dictum of the great Master, with regard to the first and most binding and comprehensive ordinances of the inspired Word. Whether or not he was prepared with this answer to the question he proposed, it is evident that the answer commended itself to his judgment and conscience, and that the Divine Respondent was regarded by him with reverential admiration. It is well to find the truth; but it is also well, when others have found it, to recognize and to accept it. (3) Grand indeed was this scribe’s confession, that love "is much more than whole burnt offerings and sacrifices." All religions—the true as well as the false—are corrupted by a tendency in human nature to substitute the sacrificial, the ceremonial, the verbal, for the real, the spiritual. Men think that to comply with directions, instructive and profitable in themselves, but having reference only to symbolical actions, is all important, and they give diligent attention to these, and neglect the weightier matters of the Law. It is presumed that bodily service is sufficient, in forgetfulness of the fact that God is the Searcher of hearts, and that he will be worshipped in spirit and in truth. This is a lesson which still needs to be inculcated, even in days of Christian light and evangelical fervor. Never be it forgotten that character and conduct are of supreme importance, and that the only sufficient, conclusive evidence that a man has received the benefits of redemption, and has felt the renewing power of the Spirit of God, is to be found in the reign of love within his soul, and the manifestation of love in his whole character and life. V. THE AND IN OUR LORD’S . If there was so much that was admirable in the spirit and the language of this student and expositor of the Law, what was lacking? If he was near the kingdom, what separated him from it, and prevented him from entering in? This question we cannot answer with certainty; we can only surmise. There may have been an inadequate sense of sin; his admiration of Jesus may have come short of true faith in him; and he may have been unready to make a complete surrender of himself to the Lord Jesus. At all events, we have no difficulty in enumerating various hindrances which, as a matter of fact, do keep outside of the kingdom those who are very near its confines. Christ’s dominion is one which cannot be entered except through the door of repentance and of faith. True subjects come in sincere and childlike humility, and receive the welcome promised; by the new birth they enter the new life of the kingdom. The laws of the kingdom are spiritual, and demand spiritual conformity. And the King is enthroned in the heart as well as in society. You must become as little children in order that you may enter the kingdom of God. . 1. Let faith work by love in Christian natures; and let those who love Christ prove by their spirit and their actions the sincerity of their love. 2. Let those who are near the kingdom, instead of resting in their nearness, regard this as a reason why they should, without delay, enter the gates before which they stand. "Not far from the kingdom." That this scribe should have shown so deep an admiration for the Divine Law, so clear a perception of the superiority of the spiritual to the ceremonial, so discerning an appreciation of the Divine Master,—all this was to his credit, and awakened the approval and elicited the commendation of our Lord. In the language Jesus addressed to him, a description is given of not a few hearers of the gospel, who present in their character much that is admirable, but who come short of true consecration to Christ, who are "not far from the kingdom of God." Of this class we may ask— I. HOW NEAR HAVE THEY COME TO THE KINGDOM? 1. They have been, in many cases, brought near by the action of others. A Christian education and Christian influence have moulded their habits and improved a naturally well-inclined disposition. 2. They are well acquainted with the truths of religion, have studied the Scriptures, and have mastered the doctrines as well as the facts they contain. 3. They assent to the revelation contained in the Bible, either unreflectingly or after inquiry and doubt. 4. They admire Christ’s moral character and beneficent life, his pure teaching, and his purposes of compassion towards mankind. 5. They conform to the practices of Christian worship, and even make use of the language of praise and prayer. This entry is longer than a Bible module can hold. The rest is at https://www.sermonindex.net/commentary/pulpit-commentary/ Mark 13:1 And as he went forth out of the temple, one of his disciples saith unto him Master, behold, what manner, of stones and what manner of buildings! This would be in the evening. According to St. Luke (Luke 21:37), our Lord, during the early part of this week, passed his nights upon the Mount of Olives, taking his food at Bethany with Martha and Mary, and spending his days in the temple at Jerusalem, teaching the people. It is most probable that he left the temple by the golden gate on the east, from whence the view of the temple would be particularly striking. We learn from St. Matthew (Matthew 24:1-51.) that our Lord had just been predicting the fall of Jerusalem. It was, therefore, natural for the disciples to call his attention at that moment to the grandeur and beauty of the building and its surroundings. The temple at Jerusalem was one of the wonders of the world. Josephus says that it wanted nothing that the eye and the mind could admire. It shone with a fiery splendor; so that when the eye gazed upon it, it turned away as from the rays of the sun. The size of the foundation-stones was enormous. Josephus speaks of some of the stones as forty-five cubits in length, five in height, and six in breadth. One of the foundation-stones, measured in recent times, proved to be nearly twenty-four feet in length, by four feet in depth. But all this magnificence had no effect upon our Lord, who only repeated the sentence of its downfall Mark 13:2 There shall not be left here one stone upon another, which shall not be thrown down. The word (ὧδε) "here" is rightly inserted; and the prophecy is justified by scientific investigation. The expression is not hyperbolic. Modern investigation shows that the present wall has been rebuilt, probably on the foundation of the older One. Mark 13:3 And as he sat on the mount of Olives over against the temple, Peter and James and John and Andrew asked him privately, Tell us, when shall these things be? St. Matthew and St. Luke only mention his disciples generally. St. Mark, going more into detail, gives the names of those who thus asked him; namely, Peter and James and John, already distinguished, and Andrew, who enjoyed the distinction of having been the first called. These men appear to have been our Lord’s inner council; and they asked him (κατἰδίαν) privately, or separately, not only from the multitude, but from the rest of the disciples. It was a dangerous thing to speak of the destruction of the temple, or even to inquire about such an event, for fear of the scribes and Pharisees. It was this accusation that led to the stoning of Stephen. It is evident from St. Matthew (Matthew 24:3) that the disciples closely associated together the destruction of the temple and his final coming at the end of the world. They knew from our Lord’s words that the destruction of Jerusalem was near at hand, and therefore they thought that the destruction of the world itself, and the day of judgment, were also near at hand. Hence their questions. Mark 13:5, Mark 13:6 Take heed that no man lead you astray. The Greek word is πλανήση. Their first temptation would be of this kind—that many would come in Christ’s name, saying, "I am he;" claiming, that is, the title which belonged to him alone. Such were Theudas (Acts 5:36) and Simon Magus (Acts 8:10), who, according to Jerome, said, "Ego sum Sermo Dei, ego speciosus, ego Paracletus, ego omnipotens, ego omnia." Such were Menander and the Gnostics. Mark 13:7 Wars and rumors of wars. "Rumours of wars" are mentioned, because they are often worse and more distressing than wars themselves; according to the saying, "Pejor est belle timer ipse belli." Be not troubled; be not troubled, that is, so as to let go your faith in me, through fear of the enemy, or through despair of any fruit of your apostolic labors; but persevere steadfastly to preach faith in me and in my gospel. These things must needs come to pass; but the end is not yet. There would be a succession of calamities, one leading on to another. But they must take courage, and prepare themselves for greater evils, not hoping for lasting peace on earth, but by patient endurance of evils here, reach onwards to a blessed and eternal rest in heaven. Our Lord, when his disciples asked him, as in one breath, about the destruction of their city, replied obscurely and ambiguously; mingling together the two events, in order that his disciples and the faithful through all times might be prepared, and never taken by surprise. Some of our Lord’s predictions, however, clearly refer to the generation then living on the earth. Mark 13:10 And the gospel must first be preached unto all the nations. St. Matthew (Matthew 24:14) says it shall be preached "in the whole world, for a testimony unto all the nations" (ἐνὅλῃτῇοἰκουμένῃεἰςμαρτύριον). This literally took place, as far as the inhabited world was concerned at that time, before the destruction of Jerusalem. St. Paul (Romans 10:18) reminds us that "their sound is gone out into all lands, and their words unto the ends of the world;" and he tells the Colossians (Colossians 1:6) that the gospel was come unto them, and was bearing fruit and increasing in all the world. But even if we regard these expressions as somewhat hyperbolic, it is unquestionable that before the armies of Titus entered Jerusalem, the gospel had been published through the principal parts and provinces of the then inhabited world (οἰκουμένῃ). And it is certainly a wonderful fact that within fifty years after the death of Christ, Christian Churches had been planted in almost every district of the earth as then known to the Romans. But if we extend these prophetical sayings so as to reach onwards to the end of all things, we must then understand the expression, "all the nations," in its most unrestricted sense; so that the prophecy announces the universal proclamation of the gospel over the whole inhabited earth as an event which is to precede the time of the end. It is interesting to observe the difference in the amount of knowledge possessed by us of this earth and its population at the present time, as compared with the knowledge which men had of it at the time when our Lord delivered this prediction. It was not until the beginning of the sixteenth century, nearly fifteen hundred years after Christ, that Christopher Columbus and Amerigo Vespucci laid open that other hemisphere which takes its name from Amerigo; and there are few facts more interesting to a philosophic mind than the discovery of this new continent, now so important to us in England as the chief receptacle, together with Australia, of our redundant population. But this new world, as we call it, although there are material evidences that portions of it at least were occupied in very remote times by men of high civilization, was present to the mind of our Lord when he said that "the gospel must first be preached unto all the nations." So that the prophecy expands, as the ages roll onwards and the population of this earth increases; and it still demands its fulfillment, embracing the vast multitudes now dwelling on the face of the earth to the number of about 1,450,000,000. Such a consideration may well lead us to the inference that we are now approaching sensibly nearer to the end of the world. There are no other new worlds like America or Australia now to be discovered. The whole face of the earth is now laid open to us; and there is now hardly any part of the world which has not at some time or other received the message of salvation. Mark 13:11 And when they lead you to judgment, and deliver you up, be not anxious beforehand what ye shall speak. Our Lord does not mean by this that they were not to premeditate a prudent and wise answer Rut he means that they were not to be too anxious about it. In St. Luke (Luke 21:15) he says, "I will give you a mouth and wisdom, which all your adversaries shall not be able to withstand or to gainsay." So here, it is not ye that speak, but the Holy Ghost who shall inspire you with wisdom and courage. The words "neither do ye premeditate" (μηδὲμελετᾶτε) are omitted in the Revised Version, as not having sufficient authority. Mark 13:12 Our Lord further warns his disciples that they would have to suffer persecution even from their own relations, their brethren, and their fathers, who, forgetful of natural affection, would persecute the faithful even unto death. It is related of Woodman, a martyr in Sussex, in Queen Mary’s time, that he was betrayed and taken by his father and his brother, and that he comforted himself with the thought that this very text of Scripture was verified in him. Bede says that our Lord predicted these evils, in order that his disciples, by a knowledge of them beforehand, might be the better able to bear them when they came. Mark 13:13 And ye shall be hated of all men for my name’s sake (ὑποπάντων). The faith and preaching of a crucified Savior was a new thing. Hence everywhere, the Jews, accustomed to their own Law, and the Gentiles, to their own idols, set themselves against the preachers of the gospel, and against those who were converted to it. "All men" means great numbers, perhaps the greater number. Just as, when we say, "The majority are doing anything," we say, in popular language, "Everybody does it." But he that endureth to the end, the same shall be saved (ὁδὲὑπομείναςεἰςτέλος). What is "the end" here referred to? Not, I imagine, the end of the age, but the end of the moral probation of the individual. The Greek word for "endureth" is very significant; it implies "a bearing up, and persevering under great trials." It is not enough once and again or a third time to have overcome, but, in order to obtain the crown, it is necessary to endure and to conquer, even to the end. "Be thou faithful unto death, and I will give thee a crown of life." The crown of patience is perseverance. Mark 13:14 But when ye see the abomination of desolation standing where he ought not. In the Authorized Version, after the word "desolation," the words "spoken of by Daniel the prophet," are introduced, but without sufficient authority. They were probably interpolated from St. Matthew, where there is abundant authority for them; and thus their omission by St. Mark does not affect the argument drawn from them in favor of the genuineness of the Book of Daniel, against those, whether in earlier or in later times, who reject this book, or ascribe it to some mere recent authorship. The "abomination of desolation" is a Hebrew idiom, meaning "the abomination that maketh desolate." St. Luke (Luke 21:20) does not use the expression; it would have sounded strange to his Gentile readers. He says, "When ye see Jerusalem compassed with armies, then know that her desolation is at hand." This reference to the Roman armies by St. Luke has led some commentators to suppose that "the abomination of desolation" meant the Roman eagles. But this was a sign from without; whereas "the abomination of desolation" was a sign from within, connected with the ceasing of the daily sacrifice of the temple. It is alluded to by the Prophet Daniel in three places, namely, Daniel 9:27; Daniel 11:31; Daniel 12:11. We must seek for its explanation in something within the temple. "standing in the holy place" (Matthew 24:15)—some profanation of the temple, on account of which God’s judgments would fall on Jerusalem. Now, Daniel’s prophecy had already received one fulfillment, when we read (1 Macc. 1:54) that they set up "the abomination of desolation upon the altar." This was when Antiochus Epiphanes set up the statue of Jupiter on the great altar of burnt sacrifice. But that "abomination of desolation" was the forerunner of another and a worse profanation yet to come, which our Lord, no doubt, had in his mind when he called the attention of his disciples to these predictions by Daniel. There is a remarkable passage in Josephus (’Wars of the Jews,’ 4.6), in which he refers to an ancient saying then current, that "Jerusalem would be taken, and the temple be destroyed, when it had been defiled by the hands of Jews themselves." Now, this literally took place. For while the Roman armies were investing Jerusalem, the Jews within the city were in fierce conflict amongst themselves. And it would seem most probable that our Lord had in his mind, in connection with Daniel’s prophecy, more especially that at Daniel 9:27, the irruption of the army of Zealots and Assassins into the temple, filling the holy place with the dead bodies of their own fellow-citizens. The Jews had invited these marauders to defend them against the army of the Romans; and they, by their outrages against God, were the special cause of the desolation of Jerusalem. Thus, while St. Luke points to the sign from without, namely, the Roman forces surrounding the city, St. Matthew and St. Mark refer to the more terrible sign from within, the "abomination of desolation "—the abomination that would fill up the measure of their iniquities, and cause the avenging power of Rome to come down upon them and crush them. It was after these two signs—the sign from within and the sign from without—that Jerusalem was laid prostrate. Therefore our Lord proceeds to warn both Jews and Christians alike, that when they saw these signs they should flee unto the mountains—not to the mountains of Judaea, for these were already occupied by the Roman army, but those further off, beyond Judaea. We know from Eusebius (3.15) that the Christians fled to Pella, on the other side of the Jordan. The Jews, on the other hand, as they saw the Roman army approaching nearer, betook themselves to Jerusalem, as to an asylum, thinking that there they would be under the special protection of Jehovah; but there, alas, they were imprisoned and slain. Mark 13:15 Let him that is on the house-top (ἐπὶτοῦδώματος) not go down, nor enter in, to take anything out of his house. The roofs of the houses were flat, with frequently a little "dome" (δῶμα) in the center. The people lived very much upon them; and the stairs were outside, so that a person wishing to enter the house must first descend by these outer stairs. The words, therefore, mean that he must flee suddenly, if he would save his life, even though he might lose his goods, he must escape, perhaps by crossing over the parapet of his own housetop, and so from house-top to house-top, until he could find a convenient point for flight into the hill country. Mark 13:16 And let him that is in the field not return back to take his cloke . This was the outer garment or pallium. They who worked in the field were accustomed to leave their cloak and their tunic at home; so that, half-stripped, they might be more free to labor. Therefore our Lord warns them that in this impending destruction, so suddenly would it come, they must be ready to fly just as they were. It was the direction given to Lot, "Escape for thy life; look not behind thee." Mark 13:17 But woe unto them that are with child and to them that give suck in those days! Women in this condition would be specially objects of pity, for they would be more exposed to danger. The words, "Woe to them (οὐαι)!" are an exclamation of pity, as, though it was said, "Alas! for them." Josephus (Mark 7:8) mentions that some mothers, constrained by hunger during the siege, devoured their own infants! Mark 13:18 And pray ye that it be not in the winter. According to the best authorities, "your flight" (ἡφυγὴὑμῶν) is omitted, but the meaning remains very much the same. St. Matthew (Matthew 24:20) adds, "neither on a sabbath." But this would be comparatively of little interest to those to whom St. Mark was writing. Our Lord thus specifies the winter, because at that season, on account of the cold and snow, flight would be attended with special difficulty and hardship, and would be almost impossible for the aged and infirm. Mark 13:19 For those days shall be tribulation, such as there hath not been the like from the beginning of the creation. These expressions are very remarkable. To begin with, the tribulation would be so unexampled and so severe that the days themselves would be called "tribulation." They would be known ever after as "the tribulation.’" There never had been anything like them, and there never would be again. Neither the Deluge, nor the destruction of the cities of the plain, nor the drowning of Pharaoh and his host in the Red Sea, nor the slaughter of the Canaanites, nor the destruction of Nineveh, or of Babylon, or of other great cities and nations, would be so violent and dreadful as the overthrow of Jerusalem by Titus. All this is confirmed by Josephus, who says, speaking of this overthrow, "I do not think that any state ever suffered such things, or any nation within the memory of man." St. Chrysostom assigns the cause of all this to the base and cruel treatment of the Son of God by the Jews. The destruction of their city and their temple, and their continued desolation afterwards, were the lessons by which the Jews were to be taught that the Christ had indeed come, and that this was the Christ whom they had crucified and slain. Mark 13:20 And except the Lord had shortened the days, no flesh would have been saved: but for the elect’s sake, whom he chose, he shortened the days. St. Matthew’s record (Matthew 24:22) differs from that of St. Mark in the omission of the words "the Lord," and the clause "whom he chose." If the time of the siege of Jerusalem had lasted much longer, not one of the nation could have survived; all would have perished by war, or famine, or pestilence. The Romans raged against the Jews as an obstinate and rebellious nation, and would have exterminated them. But "the Lord" shortened the time of this frightful catastrophe, for the elect’s sake, that is, partly for the sake of the Christians who could not escape from Jerusalem, and partly for that of the Jews, who, subdued by this awful visitation, were converted to Christ or would hereafter be converted to him We learn from hence how great is the love of God towards his elect, and his care for them. For their sakes he spared many Jews. For their sakes he created and preserves the whole world. Yea, for their sakes, Christ the eternal Son was made man, and became obedient unto death. "All things are yours, and ye are Christ’s, and Christ is God’s." It may be added that a number of providential circumstances combined to shorten these days of terror. Titus was himself disposed to clemency, and friendly towards Josephus. Moreover, he was attached to Bernice, a Jewess, the sister of Agrippa. All these and other circumstances conspired in the providence of God to "shorten the days." Mark 13:21, Mark 13:22 And then if any man shall say unto you, Lo, here is the Christ; or, Lo, there, believe it not; for there shall arise false Christs and false prophets. Josephus mentions one Simon of Gerasa, who, pretending to be a deliverer of the people from the Romans, gathered around him a crowd of followers, and gained admission into Jerusalem, and harassed the Jews. In like manner, Eleazar and John, leaders of the Zealots, gained admission into the holy place, under pretense of defending the city, but really that they might plunder it. But it seems as though our Lord here. looked beyond the siege of Jerusalem to the end of the world; and he warns us that as the time of his second advent approaches, deceivers will arise, to seduce, if it were possible, even the elect. The word "to seduce" (ἀποπλανᾶν) is more properly rendered, as in the Revised Version, to lead astray. Every age has produced its crop of such deceivers; and it may be expected that, as the time of the end draws nearer and nearer, their number will increase. Sometimes those idiosyncrasies in them which show themselves in lying wonders, are the result of self-delusion; but still oftener they are deliberate attempts made for the purpose of imposing on the unwary. Sometimes they are a combination of both. In the cases to which our Lord refers there is evidently an intention to lead astray, although it may have had its origin in self-deceit. In our day there is a sad tendency to lead men astray with regard to the great fundamental verities of Christianity. And the words of St. Jerome may well be remembered here: "If any would persuade you that Christ is to be found in the wilderness of unbelief or sceptical philosophy, or in the secret chambers of heresy, believe them not." Mark 13:23 But take ye heed (ὑμεῖςδὲβλέπετε). The "ye" is here emphatic. The disciples were around him, hanging upon his lips. But his admonition is meant for Christians everywhere, even to the end of the world. Mark 13:24 But in those days, after that tribulation, the sun shall be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light. St. Matthew (Matthew 24:29) has the word "immediately," before the words "after that tribulation." If this word "immediately" is to be understood literally, then the things spoken of subsequently must be understood in a figurative and spiritual sense. But it would seem more natural to understand "immediately" according to the reckoning of him with whom "a thousand years are as one day." Our Lord now passes away from the events connected with the overthrow of the Jewish polity, and proceeds to speak of things connected with the new dispensation. His mind is now turned to "the last time"—to the whole period between his first and his second advent. The things towards which he was now looking belonged, not to the end of the Jewish dispensation, but to the end of the present age and the present dispensation. Eighteen centuries have passed since the destruction of Jerusalem; and more years, it may be, will come and go before the end. Nevertheless, all this time, although it may seem long to us who are confined within the narrow limits of a short life, is nevertheless, when compared with the eternity of God, but as a moment. "The sun shall be darkened." The signs here enumerated are mentioned elsewhere as the signs that would appear before the second coming of Christ. (See Joe 2:31 and Luke 21:25, Luke 21:26.) St. Augustine (Ephesians 80, ’Ad Hesychium’) says, "The light of truth shall be obscured; because in the great tribulation that shall come on the world, many will fall from the faith, who had seemed to be bright and firm, like the sun and the stars." "And the moon," that is, the Church, "shall not give her light." Mark 13:25 And the stars shall be falling from heaven (ἔσονταιἐκτοῦοὐρανοῦπίπτοντες) and the powers that are in the heavens shall be shaken. In the great events of the creation recorded in Genesis 1:1-31 the sun and the moon and the stars did not show their light until that period which is called the fourth day. So in the end of the world, the sun and the moon and the stars are represented as withdrawing their light, perhaps figuratively, but perhaps also literally, in the course of some of the unknown physical changes which shall accompany the winding up of the present dispensation. To this agree the next words, "the powers that are in the heavens shall be shaken." The powers may here mean those great unseen forces of nature by which the universe is now held in equipoise. When the Creator wills it, these powers shall be shaken. (See Job 26:11, "The pillars of heaven tremble and are astonished at his reproof;" see also Isaiah 34:4, "And all the host of heaven shall be dissolved, and the heavens shall be rolled together as a scroll.") As the end of the world approaches, the elements will quiver and tremble. Mark 13:26 And then shall they see the Son of man coming in clouds with great power and glory. St. Matthew (Matthew 24:30) introduces here the words, "And then shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven." Many of the Fathers, as St. Chrysostom, Jerome, Bede, and others, think that this sign will be the cross. Josephus (5.3) says that shortly before the destruction of Jerusalem, a portent like a sword, glittering as a star, appeared in the heavens. But surely the sign of the Son of man at the end of the world will be the Son of man himself coming in clouds. The clouds, covering the troubled heaven and now illuminated by the brightness of his coming, will constitute "the sublime drapery of his presence" (Dr. Morison). Mark 13:27 And then shall he send forth the angels. This represents the great harvest at the end of the world, when the angel-reapers shall be sent forth to separate the wicked from the just. The elect will be gathered from the four winds (ἐκτῶνπεσσάρωνἀνέμων); literally, out of the four winds—the winds representing figuratively every corner of the world; or, from the uttermost part of the earth to the uttermost part of heaven. At its extremities, in the horizon, there appears to be the end alike of earth and of heaven, as though earth and heaven joined, and the heaven terminated by melting into the earth and becoming one with it. The expression simply means, "from horizon to horizon," or from every part of the earth. Mark 13:28, Mark 13:29 Now from the fig tree learn her parable; that is, her own particular teaching. Our Lord makes frequent mention and use of the fig tree, as we have seen already. It is probable that a fig tree may have been near to them. When her branch is now become tender, and putteth forth its leaves, ye know that the summer is nigh. The branch (κλάδος) would be the young shoot, now become tender under the quickening influences of the spring; and this was an evident sign that the summer was at hand. The Asiatic fig tree requires a considerable amount of warmth to enable it to put forth leaves and fruit. Its rich flavour requires a summer heat to mature it. Aristotle says that the fig is the choice food of bees, from which they make their richest honey. Then the fig tree does not flower after the ordinary manner; but produces flower and fruit at once from the tree, and rapidly matures the fruit. The lesson, therefore, from the fig tree is this—the speed with which she ripens her fruit when she feels the warmth of summer. In like manner, as soon as the disciples perceived the signs of Christ’s coming, they were to learn that he was close at hand, as certainly as the ripening fruit of the fig tree showed that summer was at hand. Mark 13:30 This generation shall not pass away, until all these things be accomplished. This is one of those prophecies which admit of a growing fulfillment. If the word "generation" (γανεὰ) be understood to mean the sum total of those living at any time on the earth, the prediction would hold true as far as the destruction of Jerusalem was concerned. The destruction of Jerusalem took place within the limits of the generation living in our Lord’s time; and there might be some of those whom he was then addressing who would live to see the event. His prediction amounted, in fact, to this, that the destruction of Jerusalem would take place within forty years of the time when he was speaking. But it may have a wider meaning. It may mean the Jewish people. Their city would be destroyed their power overthrown. They would be "peeled and scattered." But they would still remain a distinct and separate nation to the end of the world. And there are other prophecies which show that with their national conversion to Christianity will be associated all that is most glorious in the future Church of God. Mark 13:31 Heaven and earth shall pass away: but my words shall not pass away. Here is a distinct prediction that the present structure of the universe will pass away; that is, that it will be changed, that it will perish, as far as its present state and condition are concerned; but only that it may be refashioned in a more beautiful form. "We look for new heavens and a new earth, wherein dwelleth righteousness" (2 Peter 3:13). With this declaration of our blessed Lord all the discoveries of science coincide. Astronomy and geology alike concur in the conclusion that the whole system of the universe is moving onwards to its change. Our blessed Lord did but affirm that which is demonstrated by science. But my words shall not pass away; not merely the words which with his full self-consciousness he had just uttered respecting Jerusalem, but all his other words—all the revelation of God, all the words of him who is the Truth. Mark 13:32 But of that day or that hour knoweth no one, not even the angels in heaven, neither the Son, but the Father. He who from all eternity has decreed the time when this day is to come, is pleased to hide it in the hidden depths of his own counsels. But the eternal Son, and the Holy Spirit, both alike one with the Father, are of his counsels. They are not excluded from this knowledge; they, equally with the Father, know the day and the hour of the end, since they are of the same substance, power, and majesty. Why; then, does St. Mark here add, "neither the Son"? The answer is surely to be found in the great truth of the hypostatic union. The eternal Son, as God, by his omniscience, and as man, by knowledge imparted to him, knows perfectly the day and the hour of the future judgment. But Christ as man, and as the Messenger from God to men, did not so know it as to be able to reveal it to men. The ambassador, if he is asked concerning the secret counsels of his sovereign, may truly answer that he knows them not so as to communicate them to others. For as an ambassador he only communicates those things which are committed to him by his sovereign to deliver, and not those things which he is bidden to keep secret. Mark 13:33-37 These exhortations, which gather up in a succinct form the practical bearing of the parallel passages and parables in St. Matthew, must not be understood as implying that our Lord’s coming in judgment would be during the lifetime of his disciples. The preceding words would teach them plainly enough that the actual time of this coming was hidden from the. m. But the intention was that, while by the certainty of the event their faith and hope would be quickened, by the uncertainty of the time they might be left in a continual state of watchfulness and prayer. According to the Jewish reckoning, there were only three watches—namely, the first watch, from sunset to 10 p.m.; the second watch, from 10 p.m. to 2 a.m.; and the third watch, from 2 a.m. to sunrise. But after the establishment of the Roman power in Judaea, these watches were divided into four; and were either described as the first, second, third, and fourth respectively; or, as here, by the terms even, beginning at six and ending at nine; midnight, ending at twelve; cockcrowing, ending at three; and morning, ending at six. Mark 13:1, Mark 13:2 The downfall of the temple. Our Lord’s ministry in the temple was now over. Within those precincts he had taught the teachable, he had rebuked the selfish and profane, he had received the homage of the children, he had healed the afflicted, and he had denounced and warned the unfaithful and the hypocritical. How strange the contrast between the early days, when Jesus had taken his place in the midst of the rabbis, "both hearing them, and asking them questions," and these later days, when the same edifice witnessed his keen and truceless conflicts with the leaders of the nation, whose errors he exposed and whose vengeance he incurred! It was as Jesus left the gorgeous and consecrated building that his disciples, with national pride and affection, pointed out to his eyes the magnificence of the temple, the stupendous stones of which it was composed, and the costly gifts with which it was adorned. Upon this suggestion, Jesus uttered the prediction, which he could not have uttered without emotions of disappointment and distress, "Seest thou these great buildings? there shall not be left here one stone upon another, which shall not be thrown down." I. NOTHING EARTHLY AND HUMAN, HOWEVER STATELY AND SACRED, IS . It was, no doubt, a splendid spectacle to which his disciples directed the gaze of Jesus. "They stopped to cast upon it one last lingering gaze, and one of them was eager to call his attention to its goodly stones and splendid offerings—those nine gates overlaid with gold and silver, and the one of solid Corinthian brass yet more precious; those graceful and towering porches; those bevelled blocks of marble, forty cubits long and ten cubits high, testifying to the toil and munificence of so many generations; those double cloisters and stately pillars; that lavish adornment of sculpture and arabesque; those alternate blocks of red and white marble, recalling the crest and hollow of the sea-waves; those vast clusters of golden grapes, each cluster as large as a man, which twined their splendid luxuriance over the golden doors. They would have him gaze with them on the rising terraces of courts—the court of the Gentiles, with its monolithic columns and rich mosaic; above this, the flight of fourteen steps which led to the court of the women; then the flight of fifteen steps which led up to the court of the priests; then, once more, the twelve steps which led to the final platform, crowned by the actual holy, and holy of holies, which the rabbis fondly compared for its shape to a couchant hen, and which, with its marble whiteness and gilded roofs, looked like a glorious mountain whose snowy summit was gilded by the sun" (Farrar). Majestic, however, as was the edifice, sacred as were its purposes, ennobling as were its associations, the temple at Jerusalem was not indestructible. All things finding their foundation upon this changing earth, all things reared and fashioned by human hands, are transitory and perishing. Nothing continueth in one stay. "The solemn temples," like "the great globe itself," are destined to decay and destruction. The material perishes, and that which is spiritual alone abides. II. AN NATION’S GLORY IS, IN THE OF GOD, MADE THE SYMBOL OF ITS SHAME. There was nothing which the Jews so valued and reverenced as their temple and all the paraphernalia of the temple-worship. The national life seemed to flow from that sacred spot as from a beating heart. Not only was it, in its situation, its structure, its services, priesthoods, and sacrifices, itself most majestic and imposing; but to the Hebrew mind it was the expression of the peculiar interest and favor of the Supreme. How could the Israelite think, without a shudder of horror and dismay, of the time when the noble building should be laid in the dust; when the chants should be silenced, the altars be overturned, the priests be slain, and the services and offerings be no more? Yet this was the doom which the last and greatest Prophet now foretold—a doom which they might have averted by timely repentance and by cordial faith, but which their rejection of the Christ of God made certain and irrevocable. Thus was Israel smitten in the most vulnerable, the most sensitive point; thus was the rule of the righteous Lord awfully and sublimely vindicated; thus was a lesson of Divine government and human subjection thereto published for the benefit of all generations to come. III. ALL THAT IS IN IS TO VANISH AND . The temple at Jerusalem was the temple of the Lord; yet it served a temporary purpose, and when this purpose was accomplished it was superseded by the temple of the Lord’s Body, and by the imperishable temple constituted by consecrated spiritual natures, and inhabited by the Holy Spirit of God. Human nature is such that men are prone to lay stress upon the outward, the visible, the tangible, the material. Even the truly religious are in danger of regarding the vestment of religion rather than the form it clothes, of hallowing places, observances, offices, and institutions. But Christ’s whole teaching is a protest against this natural error and folly. The temple of Jerusalem disappeared; but its disappearance, so far from ruining the prospects and crippling the power of religion, was, in reality, the occasion of placing religion upon a sounder basis, and giving to religion a world-wide and an everlasting sway. Let not men cling too closely to the form; it is the spirit which quickeneth; it is the spirit which endures. IV. TEMPLES ALONE ENDURE FOR EVER. Even the destruction of Jerusalem and its sacred buildings did not involve a universal ruin. What was good in Judaism, what was vital and hopeful in Israel, still survived. There were truths which outlasted the forms in which they had been embodied. There were pure and faithful souls which outlived the institutions amidst which and by means of which they had been called to virtue, to piety, to God. A new Israel arose, as it were, out of the ashes of the old. A temple statelier and sublimer, based upon a more enduring foundation, and rising to loftier spiritual heights, sprang into glorious being, as the armies of Titus levelled the glory of Moriah with the ground. The living stones of which this heaven-born fabric is composed can never crumble, and the services of this sanctuary shall never cease. Time and space are spurned; earthly forces are powerless; this temple groweth "an holy temple unto the Lord." It is imperishable, because it is spiritual; it is eternal, because it is Divine. Mark 13:3-13 The witness of the persecuted. It was natural enough that the disciples, when the Lord foretold the destruction of the temple, should wish to know when an event so stupendous and awful should occur. On their way to Bethany at eventide, the little party, composed of Jesus and his four most intimate friends, paused upon the crown of Olivet, and looked back upon the glorious but guilty city, and upon that edifice which was its proudest ornament and beast. The anxious, awed disciples took this opportunity of asking at what time the disaster foretold by the Lord should take place, and by what signs they might be led to expect its approach. Jesus did not state the exact date of the impending catastrophe, but he did mention certain signs by which his disciples might be forewarned; and he took occasion to forearm them against the troubles which were at hand. His words may not have gratified their curiosity, but they must have established their confidence in their Master, and they must have prepared them for the tribulation and the trial now so near. The great lesson is that Jesus would have his people prepared, especially in times and amid circumstances of affliction and probation, to bear a firm and faithful witness to himself. Our Lord, in this language, enjoins upon his disciples— I. AMID AND , Days of trial were at hand; impostors should appear, professing that the Messiah had only now arrived; and by such deceits and pretences many should be led astray from their allegiance to Jesus. Then should the faithfulness of the disciples be tested. It is always so. Rivals come forward at all periods in history, asserting claims which they cannot substantiate, but by which they impose upon the excitable and unstable. Teachers, leaders, systems, philosophies, are ever seeking to displace the Divine Christ from the throne of the human heart, of human society. Let every Christian, when exposed to such assaults, when staggered by the success with which these are too often directed against the professed followers of Jesus, be upon his guard, and listen to the voice of the rightful and authoritative Lord sounding across the ages, "Let no man lead you astray!" II. PEACE OF MIND AMID WARS AND . The troubles and conflicts which befell the nations during the period which elapsed between the crucifixion of Christ and the fall of Jerusalem, are well known from the records of history. It could have been no easy thing for the Christians to have preserved a quiet mind amidst such constant alarms; nor can we suppose that our Lord intended to forbid or blame the natural and proper sympathy and solicitude which such circumstances must have induced. But he warned them that these events must precede the end, and must not be allowed to fill the mind with dismay, to weaken faith in Divine providence, or to deter from the fulfillment of an appointed ministry. In every age there occur events which, taken and considered alone, might appal the stoutest, bravest heart. But it is for the follower of Christ to bear in mind that light and darkness will contend until the victory of the Redeemer is complete, that the Lord reigneth, and that the convulsions of the nations are the birth-throes of the kingdom of the Christ. It is he who admonishes us, "Be not troubled!" III. AMID THE OF FOES. The first followers of Christ were forewarned that they should incur the enmity of authorities, both civil and ecclesiastical. Before councils and in synagogues, at the bar of governors and in the presence of kings, they should be arraigned upon charges true or false, but always with a temper of enmity and with purposes of malice. How were they to demean themselves in circumstances of peril? They were to remember that they were but treated as their Master had been treated before them, that they were honored by being summoned to act as his witnesses, that they were the spokesmen, so to speak, of the very Spirit of God. Amidst trials so severe, they were directed to take heed how they comported themselves—never to yield to fear, to dismiss all anxiety, and to trust to a heavenly inspiration for their defense. And there is no age in which servants of Christ are not exposed to some of the attacks of the foe, and in which there is not need for watchfulness, fortitude, and courage. Let the persecuted remember that the eye of the Divine Lord is upon them; and let them bear themselves as those who would honor their Leader and maintain his cause—quit them like men, and be strong. IV. AMID THE AND OF FRIENDS. The great Prophet foretold that discords should reveal themselves among families and social communities; that one should rise up against another. In this way was fulfilled his saying, "I am not come to send peace, but a sword." To most hearts, treason within the camp is more painful and more trying than hostility without. Yet even against this our Lord would have us proof. It is a trial to which most faithful and consistent servants of the Lord Jesus are at some time exposed; it is a trial which shakes the faith and damps the zeal of not a few. Christ calls his people, when so tried, to exercise the grace of perseverance. Whoever forsake Jesus, let their desertion only drive us closer to him we love! V. , THE GOSPEL MUST BE . It is not enough to be steadfast ourselves; we have to think of and to care for others. The glad tidings the followers of Jesus have themselves freely received, it is for them freely to communicate to their neighbors, How devotedly and valiantly the first disciples fulfilled this trust we well know. Not only the twelve, but even more notably others who were raised up in the first age, preached the gospel to all nations whom they were able by any toil and hardship to reach. The light streamed upon many a dark, benighted land, and brought hope and peace, joy and life, to many a wretched heart. The labor of the apostles and their companions was not in vain in the Lord. Far from being deterred by opposition, this seemed to act as a stimulus to new exertions and to new daring. Nor is this function of the Church peculiar to the first age. So long as there are nations unvisited by the news of salvation, so long is there a summons to engage in missionary enterprise. If this can only be done in certain cases at the risk of safety, liberty, and life, so much the more do present circumstances correspond with the predictions of our Lord. "The more danger, the more honor." There is a crown to be gained by following Christ and his apostles in the perils of the holy war. VI. UNTO . It is well known that, whilst multitudes of Jews perished in the siege and the destruction of Jerusalem, the Christians escaped. Faithful to the instructions of their Lord, they were delivered from the ruin and the death which were the fate of their fellow-countrymen. Enduring in constancy and obedience to the end, they were saved. And their exemption from disaster and death was a symbol of the salvation of all those who retain their faith and allegiance amidst the temptations and the trials of this earthly life. Endure! endure unto the end! and the unfailing promise of your Divine Lord shall be fulfilled in your experience. You shall be saved! Mark 13:14-23 Warnings. Very clearly did our Lord foresee, and very plainly did he foretell, the consequences which the Jews were bringing upon themselves by their rejection of God’s Messiah. The language here recorded is in itself sufficient to convince a candid mind of the justice of the claims of the Lord Jesus to be the Prophet and the Son of the Most High. He sets us an example here of the propriety of uttering truthful warnings, even though they may be painful to the speaker and unwelcome to the hearer. I. ARE . The severity and variety of these afflictions render this prediction one of the most awful to be met with in the whole compass of Scripture. 1. National disaster. It was upon the whole nation, and especially upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the upper and ruling classes, that the retribution fell. 2. Temple desecration. This is probably what is designated "the abomination of desolation." The fanatical pollution of the temple by the Zealots was doubtless one of the most distressing accompaniments of the awful siege. 3. Religious imposture. In times of general excitement, enthusiastic pretenders are safe to make their appearance. It was so during the uttermost calamity of Israel. And there is no age when the warnings of Mar 13:21, Mark 13:22, are not timely and appropriate. 4. Individual sufferings. Several circumstances here predicted, especially the distress in which miserable mothers should be involved (Mark 13:17), serve to deepen and darken the tone of this picture of calamity. II. ARE . Christ was not a mere Prophet of evil. He exhibited the approaching dangers, but he provided for the safety and deliverance of those who, amidst general unfaithfulness, should be faithful to him. 1. He directed flight from the scene of distress. As Noah had been sent into the ark, as Lot had been hurried out of Sodom, so the primitive Christians were directed, when Jerusalem should be besieged, to forsake the guilty city and to take refuge in the mountains. There are times when flight is prudence, when life may be preserved for future service. 2. He advised disregard of impostors. To hold to Christ is a sufficient motive for rejecting antichrist. It is condemnation enough of any pretender that he professes to be what we know the Son of God alone can be. 3. He counselled general preparation and watchfulness. "Take ye heed!" Christians are to use their own powers of observation, to exercise vigilance, to meet all circumstances with preparation and discretion. No piety, no attachment to the Savior, can absolve us from the duty of using our own faculties, of being upon the alert. "Watch and pray!" These are admonitions which are never obsolete; for the need of them is never, whilst we are upon earth, left behind. Mark 13:24-32 The second coming. It is very difficult exactly to discriminate between some words of Christ which refer to the destruction of Jerusalem, and others which refer to our Lord’s coming to judge all mankind. There seems to be a designed blending of the references to these events. We are thus taught to remember that we are called to be as men that wait for their Lord. I. THE OF CHRIST’S COMING. If his words are to be accepted, this great event of the future is not to be denied or questioned. In the fulfillment of the special prediction regarding the downfall of Jerusalem in the lifetime of the generation then living, we have the pledge of the ultimate accomplishment of the larger prophecy. At his trial Jesus reported the assurance; and his inspired apostles have foretold that he shall come again the "second time without sin unto salvation." II. THE OF THE TIME OF CHRIST’S COMING. The words in Mark 13:32 are very distinct. The date of our Lord’s return is known only to the Father. If neither the angels nor the Son himself could communicate this knowledge, how ridiculous and presumptuous is the conduct of those who, treating the Scriptures as a riddle, profess to have discovered the secret, and put forth their own fancies and follies as the declarations of the oracles of God! It is wisely hidden from us, and we show our wisdom by contented acquiescence in ignorance. III. THE SIGNS OF CHRIST’S COMING. Changes on earth and in heaven are indications of the approaching day. As the leaves of the fig tree tell that summer is nigh, so events, will occur which to the understanding mind will herald the Lord’s return. Yet even these events do not tell us when our Savior shall appear; but, since they remind us that he is at hand, they answer the purpose, for they put us upon our guard, and admonish us to be prepared. IV. THE FOR CHRIST’S COMING. 1. Heedfulness and observation. 2. Watchfulness. 3. Prayer. "Watch!" There can be no doubt as to the impression made by these and similar instructions and admonitions, uttered by the Lord Jesus towards the close of his ministry. It was understood by all his disciples that the Master, in leaving the world, retained his hold upon the world’s heart and conscience. It was currently believed in the early Church, as it has been believed ever since by all Christians, that the Lord will come again, and will take account of his servants, and especially will inquire into the way in which they have acted as his representatives and ministers among men. Hence the stress which has always been laid upon the duty to watch. The apostles not only obeyed, they repeated the commandment of their Lord. Peter admonished his readers. "Be ye therefore sober, and watch unto prayer;" John said, "Blessed is he that watcheth;" and Paul exhorted thus, "Watch ye, stand fast in your faith, be strong!" The very names which the early Christians gave to themselves and their children may be taken as an indication of the prevailing tone of feeling. Gregory among the Greeks, and Vigilantius among the Latins, both signify simply "The Watcher." I. WATCH! FOR THIS IS THE CHARGE OF CHRIST IN THE PAST. 1. We are to consider from whom this charge proceeds. It is the word of the All-wise, and of One of unique authority. Coming from Christ, this is not counsel, it is command. The general has the right to station a guard, a sentry, and to expect vigilance and fidelity. 2. The occasion of the charge gives it a peculiar power and sacredness. It was when the Lord Jesus was leaving his house—to use the figurative language of the text—to sojourn in another country. "While I was with them," were his words in prayer, "I kept them in Thy Name .. Now come I to Thee." How can we do otherwise than attach an especial force of obligation to what our Master said when he was about to leave this world, for the salvation of whose inhabitants he had lived, and was about to die? 3. Look into the charge itself. He gives to each one his work. All his people are his servants; all have a task to accomplish, a service to render, an office to fill. And every one has his own work, for which he is individually qualified, and which is committed to him and to no other. It is a practical, an elevating view of the Christian life, this which is here unfolded to us. All whom Jesus saves and redeems, he commissions and consecrates. And so long as we live here we have a trust to fulfill, a work to do. He invests each one with authority. There must be in every community a source of power, a ruling mind; the father in a family, the magistrate or the king in a state. In the Church of the Lord Jesus, he himself is the Head, the Lawgiver, the Fountain of honor, the Judge. Yet he gives authority; not making an order of men lords over his heritage, but authorizing every servant to fulfill his own special duties. The bishop rules, the teacher teaches, the evangelist preaches the gospel, nay, every member of every congregation fulfils his duties, at the bidding and by the authority of the Lord. This conviction should give dignity and devotedness to our daily toil. We are where the Lord has placed us; we are doing what he commands. And he requires each one to watch. Working and watching go together; for Christians are like the Jews in the time of Nehemiah, who built the walls of Jerusalem, whilst they were armed and on their guard against the foe. Our Master has left us in the midst of dangers, not to depress our courage, but to quicken our vigilance. This duty devolves especially upon the porter, the janitor. The house contains precious treasures, and it must not be allowed to every stranger to enter, lest the Master’s property should be stolen, and the careless keepers dispossessed, and the house occupied by foes. All must watch, that at the Lord’s return it may appear that his charge has been kept, and his possessions have been faithfully guarded. II. WATCH! FOR THERE IS A OF CHRIST’S IN THE FUTURE. Whilst we look back to the Lord’s departure, and his solemn injunctions and his sacred trust, we look forward to his return, according to his promise. 1. This is an assured fact. Our Lord’s second coming has been declared by him under many figures, each having its own shade of spiritual meaning and practical profit. He is a Householder, who will come to take account of his servants; a Proprietor, who will come to learn how his agents have traded and what they have gained; a King, who will come to make inquiry into the conduct of his citizens and great officers of state; a Judge, who will come to summon the people before his tribunal. 2. At the same time, the period of the Lord’s return is hidden from us, and we are informed that to the unprepared it will be sudden and unexpected. Men have been presumptuous enough to foretell, with foolish confidence, what neither the angels nor the very Son of God would communicate. And again and again, in the course of history, there have been out-breaks of millennial fanaticism. But it is easy to see why the close of the should be reserved as a secret in the Father’s mind. Had the Church been told that the advent was near, Christians would have been unfitted for the sober discharge of the duties of life; had the Church been assured that it was remote, such an assurance would have prompted sloth and negligence. 3. Yet we may all live under a sense of the nearness of the Lord’s return. The personal interest to us of that return lies in the glory of Christ’s kingdom, and in the acknowledgment of our own faithfulness. This life we know is short, and the day of our account is not far off. And Christ would have us live as though he had but gone from us for a season, and were about again to come to us. "And well I know That unto him who works, and feels he works, This same grand year is ever at the doors." III. WATCH! FOR THIS IS THE PLAIN DUTY OF THE PRESENT. We have spoken of the past and of the future; of the charge given by our Lord whilst yet on earth, and of the prospect of our Lord’s return from heaven. But both these aspects of our religion bear upon the life and duty of to-day. "Trust no future, howe’er pleasant; Let the dead past bury its dead: Think, act, in the living present— Heart within, and God o’erhead!" 1. Work! "Whatsoever thy band findeth to do, do it with thy might." Now, whilst strength of body and mind are continued, labor for the Lord who lived and died for you. Now, whilst you have control of your property, rise it as stewards for God. Now, whilst you have influence over your domestic and social circle, use that influence for Christ. Ministers of the gospel, parents and teachers of youth, officers of congregations, followers of Jesus in every, position of life,—be it yours to work for the Lord you love and honor! To-day is yours; to-morrow may be too late. 2. Pray This you will do, if you realize your dependence for spiritual impulse and power upon the great Source of spiritual grace and blessing. So far from there being any sistency between work and prayer, the two blend in perfect harmony. Prayer without work is mockery, and work without prayer is mechanical and powerless. 3. Watch! That is, keep guard over yourself and your trust; cherish an attitude of expectation and a feeling of responsibility. Oh for grace to live "as ever in the great Taskmaster’s eye"! "Ye know not when the time is." Watch! "lest coming suddenly he find you sleeping!" "Watch, for the night is long; Watch, for the foe is strong; Watch, for the treasure’s dear; Watch, for the Lord is near!" "Happy is that servant, whom his Lord when he cometh shall find so doing!" BY A.F. MUIR Temple admiration. In the case of the Jews a natural and venial fault, if not carried to excess. Esteemed the type and pattern of architectural excellence, and one of the wonders of the world. Herod’s rebuilding was on a scale of magnificence unknown to their ancestors. The essential features of the temple of Solomon were restored, but these were "surrounded by an inner enclosure of great strength and magnificence, measuring, as nearly as can be made out, one hundred and eighty cubits by two hundred and forty, and adorned by porches and ten gateways of great magnificence; and beyond this, again, was an outer enclosure, measuring externally four hundred cubits each way, which was adorned with porticoes of greater splendor than any we know of attached to any temple of the ancient world; all showing how strongly Roman influence was at work in enveloping with heathen magnificence the simple templar arrangements of a Shemitic people" (Smith’s ’Dictionary of the Bible’). Josephus, in his ’Antiquities,’ 15.11, 3, speaks of stones "each in length twenty-five cubits, in height eight, in breadth about twelve;" and in the ’Wars,’ 5.5, 6, of "some of the stones as forty-five cubits in length, five in height, and six in breadth." Many of these were of sculptured marble. The reply of Jesus may be read either affirmatively or interrogatively, or with a mixture of both assertion and question. The apodosis is, "There shall not be left here stone upon stone," etc. Thus their lingering gaze is quietly but grandly rebuked, and their thoughts directed with solemn, practical earnestness to the Divine future in which all that pomp of masonry and decoration was to have no place. I. THE NATURAL MIND IS MOST BY WHAT IS GREAT AND IN OUTWARD . The simple Galilean peasants were carried away with enthusiastic admiration of the princely buildings, so unparalleled in their experience. To such an extent was this the case that they were in danger of being ensnared. 1. Sensuous admiration is easily confounded with spiritual attachment. The mind, in order to correct this error, must dwell on the spiritual truths of which external objects are but the symbols, and realize that, whilst the latter shall pass away, the former must endure for ever. 2. The world, in its sensuous totality, is similarly pregnant with temptation to the soul that has not learnt to look through the visible into the invisible and eternal. II. THAT WHICH FAILS OF ITS DIVINE IDEA, OR OPPOSES THE DIVINE PURPOSE, SHALL BE . The splendid building upon which they were gazing had ceased to minister to the higher spiritual life of the people, and had, through its officers and representatives, rejected the Son of God. It had thereby sealed the warrant of its own extinction: not one stone should stand upon another. So is it with the individual, institution, or nation which fails to realize its chief end. 1. This is penal. There was no process of natural decay, no growing beautiful with age—the sensuous slowly merging into the spiritual; no succession of normal changes ensuring expansion, adaptation, and continuity; but sudden, awful destruction, accompanied by unheard-of misery. God must witness to his righteousness even in judgment. The soul that sins shall die. 2. It is in order to give place to a worthier realization of the Divine will. The "house not made with hands" was nearer when this external sanctuary, which had been defiled, was removed. "The hour cometh, when neither in this mountain, nor in Jerusalem, shall ye worship the Father God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship in spirit and truth" (John 4:21-24). Not until the temple had been destroyed would the temple’s Lord make advent to the world. Judgment must begin at the house of God (1 Peter 4:17). "But on all these points the first and great question is not what is to be done, but who is to do it. Is the reform of the Church to be consigned entirely to politicians and economists, who only look at the goodly stones and gifts of the temple, some with an anxious, others with a greedy eye, and care nothing about the service of the sanctuary nor the edification of the worshippers? Or will any part of the work be put into the hands of sincere and zealous and enlightened lovers of the Church? In the latter case we may securely hope for the best. In the other, it is to be feared that, if beneficial changes ever take place, they will have been purchased by great losses and a disastrous experience".—M. Mark 13:3-5 (and the rest of the chapter generally) The signs of the coming of the Son of man. I. THERE IS A THE FUTURE WHICH Is NATURAL AND . The disciples were not rebuked when they came with their inquiry. It was not so when Peter asked, "Lord, and what shall this man do?" (John 21:21). Some inquiries concerning the future are therefore lawful, others not. How are we to distinguish between them? We may ask concerning things the knowledge of which is necessary to the rational direction of spiritual aims and efforts. God has chosen to make known the general scheme of redemption in its evolution in the world’s history. The prophecies of Scripture ought, therefore, to be studied in the light of contemporary events. The teaching of Christ on this occasion was manifestly the germ of the Apocalypse. II. THIS IS BY OUR SAVIOUR FOR MORAL AND ENDS. The great discipline of the disciples was to take place after their Master’s death, and before the general inauguration of his kingdom. The three general directions of Christ are: (1) Take heed unto yourselves; (2) beware; (3) watch. "It does not behove us to know time and hour, but to observe the signs antecedent to the judgment of God’ (Starke). The Holy Spirit is promised, amid all trials and difficulties, to them who truly believe. The gospel itself was to receive universal proclamation, notwithstanding the perils and evils that were to take place. So that the disciples were assured, whatever might occur in the external life of the world, of ultimate glorious realization of all the spiritual ends of God’s kingdom. III. MANY EVILS WERE TO , AND TO PREPARE FOR, A DIVINE GOOD. 1. The catalogue of woe is long, detailed, and specific: spiritual delusions; wars, earthquakes, and famines; persecutions; pollution and destruction of the temple; political and cosmical revolutions. 2. These are all to pass, in their process tempered and modified by Divine mercy and guidance. This entry is longer than a Bible module can hold. The rest is at https://www.sermonindex.net/commentary/pulpit-commentary/ Mark 14:1 Now after two days was the feast of the passover and the unleavened bread; literally, the passover and the unleavened τόπάσχακαὶτὰἄζυμα. It was one and the same festival. The killing of the Paschal lamb took place on the first of the seven days during which the festival lasted, and during the whole of which they used unleavened bread. Josephus describes it as "the festival of the unleavened, called Phaska by the Jews." The chief priests and the scribes. St. Matthew (Matthew 26:3) says, "The chief priests and the elders of the people." The two classes in the Sanhedrim who actually combined to put our Lord to death were those here mentioned by St. Mark. They sought how they might take him with subtlety (ἐνδόλῳ), and kill him. It is, literally, they were seeking (ἐλήτουν). The verb with its tense implies continuous and eager desire. They used subtlety, because they feared lest he should escape out of their hands. Moreover they feared the people, lest they should fight for him, and not suffer him to be taken. Mark 14:2 For they said (ἔλεγονγὰρ) literally, for they were saying—Not during the feast, lest haply there shall be a tumult of the people. The same cause induced them to avoid the time of the feast. The feast brought a great multitude of Jews to Jerusalem, amongst whom would be many who had received bodily or spiritual benefits from Christ, and who therefore, at least, worshipped him as a Prophet; and the rulers of the people feared lest these should rise in his defense. Their first intention, therefore, was not to destroy him until after the close of the Paschal feast; but they were overruled by the course of events, all ordered by God’s never-failing providence. The sudden betrayal of our Lord by Judas led them to change their minds. For when they found that he was actually in their hands, they resolved to crucify him forthwith. And thus the Divine purpose was fulfilled that Christ should suffer at that particular time, and so the type be satisfied. For the lamb slain at the Passover was a type of the very Paschal Lamb to be sacrificed at that particular time, in the predetermined purpose of God; and to be lifted up upon the cross for the redemption of the world. St. Matthew (Matthew 26:3) tells us that they were gathered together "unto the court of the high priest, who was called Caiaphas." It was necessary to state his name, because the high priests were now frequently changed by the Roman power. Mark 14:3 And while he was in Bethany, in the house of Simon the leper, as he sat at meat, there came a woman having an alabaster cruse (ἀλάβαστρον)—literally, an alabaster; as we say, "a glass," of a vessel made of glass—of ointment of spikenard very costly (μύρουνάρδουπιστικῆςπολυτελοῦς); and she brake the cruse, and poured it over his head. This anointing of our Lord appears to have taken place on the Saturday before Palm Sunday (see John 12:1). The anointing mentioned by St. Luke (Luke 7:36) evidently has reference to some previous occasion. The narrative here and in St. Matthew and St. John would lead us to the conclusion that this was a feast given by Simon—perhaps in grateful acknowledgment of the miracle which had been wrought upon Lazarus. He is called "Simon the leper," probably because he had been a leper, and had been healed by Christ, although he still retained the name of "leper," to distinguish him from others named Simon, or Simeon, a common name amongst the Jews. There came a woman. This woman, we learn from St. John (John 12:2, John 12:3), was Mary, the sister of Martha and Lazarus. The vessel, or cruse, which she had with her was made of alabaster, a kind of soft, smooth marble, which could easily be scooped out so as to form a receptacle for ointment, which, according to Pliny (’Nat. Hist.,’ 13.3), was best preserved in vessels made of alabaster. The vessel would probably be formed with a long narrow neck, which could easily be broken, or crushed (the word in the original is συντρίψασα so as to allow of a free escape for the unguent. The ointment was made of spikenard νάρδουπιστικῆς). The Vulgate has nardi spicati. If this is the true interpretation of the word πιστικῆς, it would mean that this ointment was made from a bearded plant mentioned by Pliny (’Nat. Hist.,’ John 12:12), who says that the ointment made from this plant was most precious. The plant was called by Galen "nardi spica." Hence πιστικῆν it would mean "genuine" ointment—ointment made from the flowers of the choicest kind of plant, pliny (’Nat. Hist.,’ 12.26) says that there was an inferior article in circulation, which he calls "pseudo-nard." The Syriac Peshito Version uses an expression which means the principal, or best kind of ointment. The anointing of the head would be the more usual mark of honor. It would seem most probable that Mary first wiped the feet of Jesus, wetting them with her tears, and then wiping off the dust, and then anointing them; and that she then proceeded to break the neck of the cruse, and to pour its whole contents on his head. Mark 14:4 But there were some that had indignation—the word in the original is ἀγανακτοῦντες, ached with vexation—among themselves. St. Mark says, "there were some;" avoiding any more particular mention of them. St. Matthew (Matthew 26:8) says that the disciples generally had indignation. The murmuring seems to have been general. At length it found a definite expression in Judas Iscariot (see John 12:4). Mark 14:5 For this ointment might have been sold for above three hundred pence, and given to the poor. Three hundred pence would amount to about £10 12s. 6d. of English money. It appears from St. John (John 13:29) that the wants of the poor were carefully attended to by our Lord and his disciples. And they murmured against her ἐνεβριμῶντο); another very expressive verb in the original, they growled at her; rebuked her vehemently. Mark 14:6 It appears from St. John (John 12:7) that our Lord here addressed himself pointedly to Judas in the words, Let her alone;… she hath wrought a good work on me, a work worthy of all praise and honor. "What," says Cornelius a Lapide, "what more noble, than to anoint the feet of him who is both God and man? Who would not count himself happy, if it were permitted to him to touch the feet of Jesus and to kiss them?" Mark 14:7 Far ye have the poor always with you, and whensoever ye will ye can (δύνασθε) do them good: but me ye have not always. The little clause, "whensoever ye will ye can do them good," occurs only in St. Mark. It is as though our Lord said, "The world always abounds with poor; therefore you always have it in your power to help them; but within a week I shall have gone from you, after which you will be unable to perform any service like this for me; yea, no more to see, to hear, to touch me. Suffer, then, this woman to perform this ministry now for me, which after six days she will have no other opportunity of doing." Mark 14:8 She hath done what she could. She seized the opportunity, which might not occur again, of doing honor to her Lord by anointing him with her very best. Our Lord might have excused this action, and have praised it as a practical evidence of her gratitude, her humility, and her love for him. But instead of dwelling on these things, he said, She hath anointed my body aforehand for the burying. Our Lord here, of course, alludes to the spices and ointments with which the Jews wrapped up the bodies of their dead before their burial. Not that this was what Mary intended. She could hardly have dreamed of his death and burial so near at hand. But she was moved by the Holy Spirit to do this, at this particular time, as though in anticipation of his death and burial. Mark 14:9 Wheresoever the gospel shall be preached throughout the whole world, that also which this woman hath done shall be spoken of for a memorial of her (εἰςμνημόσυνοναὐτῆς). "Mnemosyne was the mother of the Muses, and so called because, before the invention of writing, a retentive memory was of the utmost value in every effort of literary genius". When our Lord delivered this prediction, none of the Gospels had been written; nor bad the gospel been preached at this time throughout the then known world. Now it has been published for more than eighteen centuries; and wherever, it is proclaimed, this deed of Mary’s is published with it, in continual memory of her, and to her lasting honor. Mark 14:10 And Judas Iscariot, he that was one of the twelve (ὁεἷςτῶνδώδεκα), went away unto the chief priests, that he might deliver him unto them. The betrayal follows immediately after the anointing by Mary. We may suppose that the other disciples who had murmured on account of this waste of the ointment, were brought to their senses by our Lord’s rebuke, and felt its force. But with Judas the case was very different. The rebuke, which had a salutary effect on them, only served to harden him. He had lost one opportunity of gain; he would seek another. In his cupidity and wickedness he resolves to betray his Master, and sell him to the Jews. So while the chief priests were plotting how they might destroy him, they found an apt and unexpected instrument for their purpose in one of his own disciples. Judas came to them, and the vile and hateful bargain was concluded. It marks the tremendous iniquity of the transaction that it was "one of the twelve" who betrayed him—not one of the seventy, but one of those who were in the closest intimacy and nearness to him. Mark 14:11 And they, when they heard it, were glad, and promised to give him money. And he sought (ἐζήτει)—he was seeking; he made it his business to arrange how the infamous plot might be managed—how he might conveniently deliver him unto them (πῶςεὐκαίρωςαὐτὸνπαραδῷ); literally, how at a convenient season he might betray him. And they,when they heard it, were glad; glad, because they saw the prospect of the accomplishment of their wishes; glad, because it was "one of the twelve" who covenanted to betray him. They promised to give him money. St. Matthew (Matthew 26:15) tells us the amount, namely, thirty pieces of silver, according to the prophecy of Zechariah (Zechariah 11:12), to which St. Matthew evidently refers. These pieces of silver were shekels of the sanctuary, worth about three shillings each. This would make the whole amount about £4 10s. of our money; less than half the value of the precious ointment with which Mary had anointed him. Some commentators, however, think that this was only an instalment of what they promised him if he completed his treasonable design. How he might conveniently deliver him unto them. St. Luke (Luke 22:6) explains this by saying, "in the absence of the multitude;" that is, when the people were not about him, and when he was in private with his disciples. And so he betrayed him at night, when he was alone with his disciples in the Garden of Gethsemane. Mark 14:12 And on the first day of unleavened bread, when they sacrificed the passover, his disciples said unto him, Where wilt thou that we go and make ready that thou mayest eat the passover? The first day of unleavened bread would begin on the evening of the Thursday (the 14th day of the month Nisan). Where wilt thou that we prepare? They do not inquire in what city or town. The Passover could not be sacrificed anywhere but in Jerusalem. The question was in what house it was to be prepared. Mark 14:13 And he sendeth two of his disciples. St. Luke (Luke 22:8) informs us that these two were Peter and John. It is characteristic of St. Mark’s Gospel throughout that Peter is never mentioned oftener than is necessary. Go into the city, and there shall meet you a man bearing a pitcher of water. The bearing of the pitcher of water was not without its meaning. It was a solemn religious act preparatory to the Passover. This man bearing a pitcher of water was not the master or owner of the house. The owner is distinguished afterwards by the name οἰκοδέσποτης, or "goodman of the house." The owner must, therefore, have been a man of some substance, and probably a friend if not a disciple of our Lord. Tradition says that this was the house of John whose surname was Mark; and that it was in this house that the disciples were assembled on the evening of our Lord’s resurrection, and where, also, they received the miraculous gifts of the Holy Spirit, on the day of Pentecost. It was to this house that Peter betook himself when he was delivered by the angel out of prison. Hence it was known, as one of the earliest places of Christian worship, by the name of "Coenaculum Sion; "and here was built a church, called the Church of Sion. It was the oldest church in Jerusalem, and was called by St. Cyril, "the upper church of the apostles." Mark 14:14 The Master saith, Where is my guest-chamber (κατύλυμαμοῦ); literally, my lodging. Mark 14:15 And he will himself show you a large upper room furnished and ready. He himself, that is, the goodman of the house; perhaps John Mark. This upper room was furnished and ready (ἐστρωμένονἕτοιμον); furnished, that is, with table and couches and tapestry, and in all respects ready for the purpose. Mark 14:16 And they made ready the passover. This would consist in obtaining the Paschal lamb, and taking it to the temple to be sacrificed by the priests. It would then be brought to the house to be cooked; and the unleavened bread, the bitter herbs and the wine would have to be provided, and the water for purification. After all these preparations had been made, the two disciples would return to their Master. Mark 14:17 And when it was evening he cometh with the twelve. It was in the evening that the lamb was to be eaten. Peter and John having returned from their preparation, the twelve (including Judas Iscariot) all went back with their Master to Jerusalem. Mark 14:18 Verily I say unto you, One of you shall betray me, even he that eateth with me (ὁἐσθίωνμετἐμοῦ). Much had doubtless happened before our Lord said this; but St. Mark only records the important circumstances. These words of our Lord were uttered with great solemnity. The presence of the traitor was a burden upon his spirit, and cast a gloom over this usually joyous festival. A question here arises whether Judas remained to partake of the Holy Communion when our Lord instituted it. The greater number of the Fathers, and amongst them Origen, St. Cyril, St. Chrysostom, St. Augustine, and Bede, consider that he was present; and Dionysius says that our Lord’s words to him, "That thou doest, do quickly," were intended to separate him from the rest of the twelve as one who had partaken unworthily; and that then it was that Satan entered into him, and impelled him onwards to this terrible sin. Mark 14:19 They began to be sorrowful, and to say unto him one by one, Is it I? The disciples were naturally disposed to be joyful at this great festival. But their Master’s sorrow and his words, and the solemnity with which they were uttered, cast a shadow over the whole company; and the disciples began to be sorrowful. The words, "And another said, Is it I?" are omitted by the best authorities. Mark 14:20 And he said unto them, It is one of the twelve, he that dippeth with me in the dish. St. Mark here uses the present participle (ὁἐμβαπτόμενος), bringing the action close to the time when he was speaking. St. Matthew (Matthew 26:23) has (ὁἐμβάψας) "he that dipped his hand," using the aorist form. St. Mark’s form is the more graphic. The dish probably contained a sauce called charoseth, into which they dipped their food before eating it. The following appears to have been the order of the events:—First, our Lord, before he instituted the Holy Sacrament of the Eucharist, foretold that he would be betrayed by one of his disciples but only in general terms. Then came the eager question from them, "Is it I?" Then Christ answered that the traitor was he who should dip his hand together with him in the dish. But this did not bring it home to the individual, because several who sat near to him were able to dip with him in the dish. So that our Lord had as yet only obscurely and indefinitely pointed out the traitor. Then he proceeded to institute "the Lord’s Supper;" after which he again intimated (Luke 22:21) that "the hand of him that betrayed him was with him on the table." Upon this. St. Peter hinted to St. John, who was "reclining in Jesus’ besom," that he should ask him to say definitely and by name who it was that should betray him. Our Lord then said to St. John, "He it is, for whom I shall dip the sop, and give it him" (John 13:26). Our Lord then dipped the sop, and gave it to Judas Iscariot. Then it was that our Lord said to Judas, "That thou doest, do quickly" (ὅποιεῖςποίησοντάχιον) (John 13:27). Then Judas went straightway to the house of Caiaphas, and procured the band of men and officers for the completion of his horrible design. Mark 14:21 For the Son of man goeth (ὑπάγει)—goeth, departeth from this mortal scene: the reference is, of course, to his death—even as it is written of him; as, for example, in Psalms 22:1-31 and Isaiah 41:1-29 It was foreordained by God that he was to suffer as a victim for the sins of the whole world. But this predestined purpose of God did not make the guilt any the less of those who brought the Savior to his cross. Good were it for that man if he had not been born. The Greek is καλὸνἦναὐτῷεἰοὐκἐγεννήθηὁἄνθρωποςἐκεῖνος: literally, good were it for him, if that man had not been born. Better not to have lived at all than to have lived and died ill. Existence is no blessing, but a curse, to him who consciously and wilfully defeats the purpose of his existence. St. Matthew (Matthew 26:25) here introduces Judas as asking the question, "Is it I, Rabbi?" And our Lord answers him affirmatively, "Thou hast said." This was probably said in a low voice. Had it been said so as to be heard by others, such as Peter and John, they might have risen at once to inflict summary vengeance upon the apostate traitor. Mark 14:22 The last clause of this verse should be read thus: Take ye: this is my body (Λάβετετοῦτόἐστιτὸσῶμάμοῦ). The institution of this Holy Sacrament took place at the close of the Paschal supper, but while they were yet at the table. The bread which our Lord took would most likely be unleavened bread. But this does not surely constitute a reason why unleavened bread should be used ordinarily in the celebration of the Holy Communion. The direction of the Prayer-book of the English Church is wise and practical, "It shall suffice that the Bread be such as is usual to be eaten." This is my body; that is, sacramentally. St. Augustine says, "How is the bread his body? and the cup, or that which the cup contains, how is that his blood? These are, therefore, called sacraments, because in them one thing is seen while another thing is understood". Mark 14:23 And he took a cup. There is no definite article either here or in St. Matthew. Mark 14:24 This is my blood of the covenant. There is not sufficient authority for the retaining of the word "new" (καινῆς) in the text. Mark 14:25 I will no more, drink (οὐκέτιοὐμὴπίω) of the fruit of the vine, until that day when I drink it new in the kingdom of God. It is observable that our Lord here calls the wine "the fruit (γέννημα) of the vine," after be has spoken of it as sacramentally his blood. Our Lord here refers to the time of the regeneration of all things, when the heavenly kingdom shall appear in the fullness of its glory; and when his disciples, who now feed upon him sacramentally and by faith, shall then eat at his table in his kingdom, and drink of the river of his pleasures for ever. Mark 14:26 And when they had sung a hymn, they went out unto the mount of Olives. Some suppose that this was one particular hymn out of the Jewish service-books appointed for use at the close of the Paschal supper. The word in the Greek is simply ὑμνήσαντες. What they sang was more probably the Hallel, consisting of six psalms, from Psalms 108:1-13, to Psalms 118:1-29, inclusive. They went out unto the Mount of Olives. It was our Lord’s custom, in these last days of his earthly life, to go daily to Jerusalem, and teach in the temple, and in the evening to return to Bethany and sup; and then after supper to retire to the Mount of Olives, and there to spend the night in prayer (Luke 21:37). But on this occasion he did not return to Bethany. He had supped in Jerusalem. Besides, he knew that his hour was come. So he voluntarily put himself into the way of the traitor (John 18:2). Mark 14:27 All ye shall be offended. The words which follow in the Authorized Version, "because of me this night," are not to be found in the best manuscripts and versions. They appear to have been imported from St. Matthew. Shall be offended (σκανδαλισθήσεσθε); literally, shall be caused to stumble. Our Lord was to prove "a stone of stumbling" to many, not excluding his own disciples. Even they, under the influence of terror, would for a time lose confidence and hope in him. For it is written, I will smite the shepherd, and the sheep shall be scattered abroad. This is a quotation from Zechariah (Zechariah 13:7), "Awake, O sword, against my Shepherd, and against the man that is my Fellow, saith the Lord of hosts: smite the Shepherd." This passage brings out in a remarkable manner the Divine agency in the death of Christ. The sheep shall be scattered abroad. The disciples all forsook him and fled, when they saw him actually in the hands of his enemies. They felt doubtful for the moment whether he was indeed the Son of God. "They trusted that it was he who should redeem Israel;" but now their hopes gave way to fear and doubt. They fled hither and thither like frightened sheep. But God gathered them together again, so that when our Lord rose from the dead, he found them all in the same place; and then he revived their faith and courage. Our Lord and his disciples had no settled home or friends in Jerusalem; so they had no other place to flee to than that upper chamber, where, not long before, Christ had kept the Passover with them. The owner of that house was a friend; so thither they went, and there Christ appeared to them after his resurrection. Mark 14:28 Howbeit, after I am raised up, I will go before you into Galilee. This our Lord said to reassure them. Galilee was more like home to them than Jerusalem, and they would there be less afraid of the unbelieving Jews. Mark 14:29 But Peter said unto him, Although all shall be offended, yet will not I. Our Lord had just distinctly stated that they would all be offended, and therefore these words of St. Peter were very presumptuous. Conscious of his own infirmities, he ought to have said, "I know that through my own infirmity this may easily happen. Nevertheless, I trust to thy mercy and goodness to save me." Just such is the Christian’s daily experience. We often think that we are strong in the faith, strong in purity, strong in patience. But when temptation arises, we falter and fall. The true remedy against temptation is the consciousness of our own weakness, and supplication for Divine strength. Mark 14:30 Verily I say unto thee, that thou to-day, even this night, before the cock crow twice, shalt deny me thrice. The day had begun. It began at six in the evening. It was already advanced. This second crowing of the cock is mentioned by St. Mark only; and it forms an additional aggravation of Peter’s sin. The "cockcrowing" was a term used for one of the divisions of the night. But it appears that there were three times at which the cock-crowing might be expected—namely, (1) early in the night, between eleven and twelve; (2) between one and two; and (3) between five and six. The two cock crowings here referred to would be the two last of the three here mentioned. It would probably be about 2 a.m., when the first trial of our Lord took place in the house of Caiaphas. Mark 14:31 But he spake exeseding vehemently (ἐκπερισσῶςἐλάλει), If I must die with thee (ἐάνμεδέρ), I will not deny thee. The right reading (ἐλάλει, imperfect) implies that he kept asserting over and over again. He was, no doubt, sincere in all this, but he had vet to learn his own weakness. St. Hilary says on this, "Peter was so carried away by the fervor of his zeal and love for Christ, that he regarded neither the weakness of his own flesh nor the truth of his Master’s word." Mark 14:32 And they come (ἔρχονται)—here again St. Mark’s present gives force to the narrative—unto a place which was named Gethsemane. A place (χωρίον) is, literally, an enclosed piece of ground, generally with a cottage upon it. Josephus tells us that these gardens were numerous in the suburbs of Jerusalem. St. Jerome says that "Gethsemane was at the foot of the Mount of Olives." St. John (John 18:1) calls it a garden, or orchard (κῆπος). The word "Gethsemane" means literally "the place of the olive-press," whither the olives which abounded on the slopes of the mountain were brought, in order that the oil contained in them might be pressed out. The exact position of Gethsemane is not known; although there is an enclosed spot at the foot of the western slope of the Mount of Olives which is called to this day El maniye. The real Gethsemane cannot be far from this spot. Our Lord resorted to this place for retirement and prayer, not as desiring to escape the death that awaited him. It was well known to be his favourite resort; so that he went there, as though to put himself in the way of Judas, who would naturally seek him there. Sit ye here, while I pray. St. Matthew (Matthew 26:36) says, "While I go yonder and pray." Mark 14:33 It appears that our Lord separated himself from all the disciples except Peter and James and John, and then the bitter agony began. He began to be greatly amazed, and sore troubled (ἐκθαμβεῖσθαικαὶἀδημονεῖν). These two Greek verbs are as adequately expressed above as seems possible. The first implies "utter, extreme amazement;" if the second has for its root ἄδημος, "not at home," it implies the anguish of the soul struggling to free itself from the body under the pressure of intense mental distress. The three chosen disciples were allowed to be witnesses of this awful anguish. They had been fortified to endure the sight by the glories of the transfiguration. It would have been too much for the faith of the rest. But these three witnessed it, that they might learn themselves, and be able to teach others, that the way to glory is by suffering. Mark 14:34 None but he who bore those sorrows can know what they were. It was not the apprehension of the bodily torments and the bitter death that awaited him, all foreknown by him. It was the inconceivable agony of the weight of the sins of men. The Lord was thus laying "upon him the iniquity of us all." This, and this alone, can explain it. My soul is exceeding sorrowful even unto death. Every word carries the emphasis of an overwhelming grief. It was then that "the deep waters came in," even unto his soul. "What," says Cornelius a Lapide, "must have been the voice, the countenance, the expression, as he uttered those awful words!" Mark 14:35 Our Lord now separated himself, though apparently, as St. Luke (Luke 22:41) says, only "about a stone’s cast" from the three disciples, and threw himself on the ground in mortal agony, and prayed that this hour of his supreme mental anguish might, if possible, pass from him. Mark 14:36 And he said, Abba, Father. Some commentators suppose that our Lord only used the Hebrew or Aramaic word "Abba," and that St. Mark adds the Greek and Latin synonym (πατὴρ) for the benefit of those to whom he was writing. But it is far more natural to conclude that St. Mark is here taking his narrative from an eye and ear witness, St. Peter; and that both the words were uttered by him; so that he thus, in his agony, cried to God in the name of the whole human family, the Jew first, and also the Gentile. We can quite understand why St. Matthew, writing to Jews, gives only the Hebrew word. All things are possible unto thee. Speaking absolutely, with God nothing is impossible. But the Deity is himself bound by his own laws; and hence this was impossible, consistently with his purposes of mercy for the redemption of the world. The Lord himself knew this. Therefore he does not ask for anything contrary to the will of his Father. But it was the natural craving of his humanity, which, subject to the supreme will of God, desired to be delivered from this terrible load. Remove this cup from me. The "cup," both in Holy Scripture and in profane writers, is taken to signify that lot or portion, whether good or evil, which is appointed for us by God. Hence St. John is frequently represented as holding a cup. Howbeit, not what I will, but what thou wilt. Our Lord has no sooner offered his conditional prayer than he subordinates it to the will of God. St. Luke (Luke 22:42) here says, "Nevertheless not my will, but thine, be done." Hence it appears that there was not, as the Monothelites taught, one will, partly human and partly Divine, in Christ; but there were two distinct wills, one human and the other Divine, both residing in the one Christ; and it was by the subjecting of his human will to the Divine that he wrought out our redemption. Mark 14:37 And he cometh, and findeth them sleeping, and saith unto Peter, Simon, sleepest thou? Couldest thou not watch one hour? St. Luke says (Luke 22:45) that they were "sleeping for sorrow." So on the Mount of Transfiguration he says (Luke 9:32) that they were "heavy with sleep." This rebuke, which St. Mark tells us here was pointedly addressed to Peter, seems to glance at his earnest protestations of fidelity made not long before. And our Lord calls him by his old name of Simon. In St. Matthew (Matthew 26:40) it is less pointed; for there, while our Lord looks at Peter, he addresses them all. "He saith unto Peter, What, could not ye watch with me one hour?" This is just one of those graphic little incidents which we may suppose St. Mark to have received directly from St. Peter. Mark 14:38 Watch and pray, that ye enter not into temptation. The great temptation of the disciples at that moment was to deny Christ under the influence of fear. And so our Lord gives here the true remedy against temptation of every kind; namely, watchfulness and prayer—watchfulness, against the craft and subtlety of the devil or man; and prayer, for the Divine help to overcome. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak. Here our Lord graciously finds excuses for them. It is as though he said, "I know that in heart and mind you are ready to cleave to me, even though the Jews should threaten you with death. But I know also that your flesh is weak. Pray, then, that the weakness of the flesh may not overcome the strength of the spirit." St. Jerome says, "In whatever degree we trust to the ardor of the spirit, in the same degree ought we to fear because of the infirmity of the flesh." Mark 14:39 Saying the same words. The repetition of the same words shows his fixed determination to submit to the will of his heavenly Father. Although the human nature at first asserted itself in the prayer that the cup might pass from him; yet ultimately the human will yielded to the Divine. He desired to drink this cup of bitterness appointed for him by the will of God; for his supreme desire was that the will of God might be done. Mark 14:40 And again he came, and found them sleeping, for their eyes were very heavy (καταβαρυνόμενοι): literally, weighed down. They had not deliberately yielded themselves to sleep; but an oppressive languor, the effect of great sorrow, had come over them, so that they could not watch as they desired to do; but by an involuntary action they ever and anon slumbered. They wist not what to answer him. They had no excuse, save that which he himself had found for them. Mark 14:41 And he cometh the third time, and saith unto them, Sleep on now, and take your rest: it is enough (ἀπέχει); the hour is come. Some have thought that our Lord here uses the language of irony. But it is far more consistent with his usual considerate words to suppose that, sympathizing with the infirmity of his disciples, he simply advised them, now that his bitter agony was over, to take some rest during the brief interval that remained. It is enough. Some commentators have thought that the somewhat difficult Greek verb (ἀπέχει) would be better rendered, he is at a distance; as though our Lord meant to say, "There is yet time for you to take some rest. The betrayer is some distance off." Such an interpretation would require a full. stop between the clause now rendered, "it is enough," and the clause, "the hour is come;" so that the passage would read, "Sleep on now, and take your rest; he (that is, Judas) is yet a good way off." Then there would be an interval; and then our Lord would rouse them up with the words, "The hour is come; behold, the Son of man is betrayed into the hands of sinners." This interpretation all hangs upon the true rendering of the word ἀπέχει, which, although it might be taken to. mean "he," or "it is distant," is nevertheless quite capable of the ordinary interpretation, "it sufficeth." According to the high authority of Hesychius, who explains it by the words ἀπόχρη and ἐξαρκεῖ, it seems safer on the whole to accept the ordinary meaning, "It is enough." Mark 14:43 And straightway, while he yet spake, cometh Judas, one of the twelve. How the stupendous crime is here marked! It was so startling a fact that "one of the twelve" should be the betrayer of cur Lord, that this designation of Judas became linked with his name: "Judas, one of the twelve." He comes not only as a thief and a robber, but also as a traitor; the leader of those who were thirsting for Christ’s blood. St. Luke (Luke 22:47) says that Judas "went before them," in his eagerness to accomplish his hateful errand. And with him a multitude (not a great multitude; the word πολὺς has not sufficient authority). But though not a great multitude, they would be a considerable number. There would be a band of soldiers; and there would be civil officers sent by the Sanhedrim. Thus Gentiles and Jews were united in the daring act of arresting the Son of God. St. John (John 18:3) says that they had "lanterns and torches;" although the moon was at the full. Mark 14:44 Now he that betrayed him had given them a token, saying, Whomsosver I shall kiss, that is he; take him, and lead him away safely. Why was Judas so anxious that Christ should be secured? Perhaps because he feared a rescue, or because he feared lest our Lord should hide himself by an exercise of his miraculous power; and so Judas might lose the thirty pieces of silver. Mark 14:45 And when he was come, straightway he came to him, and saith, Rabbi; and kissed him (κατεφίλησεναὐτόν); literally, kissed him much. The kiss was an ancient mode of salutation amongst the Jews, the Romans, and other nations. It is possible that this was the usual mode with which the disciples greeted Christ when they returned to him after any absence. But Judas abused this token of friendship, using it for a base and treacherous purpose. St. Chrysostom says that he felt assured by the gentleness of Christ that he would not repel him, or that, if he did, the treacherous action would have answered its purpose. Mark 14:47 But a certain one of them that stood by drew his sword, and smote the servant of the high priest, and struck off his ear (ἀφεῖλεναὐτοῦτὸὠτίον). We learn from St. John (John 18:10) that this was Peter. St. John also is the only evangelist who mentions the name (Malchus) of the high priest’s servant. Malchus would probably be prominent amongst them. St. Luke (Luke 22:51) is the only evangelist who mentions the healing of the wound by our Lord. Mark 14:48 We learn from St. Matthew (Matthew 26:52) that our Lord rebuked his disciples for their resistance; after which he proceeded to rebuke those who were bent upon apprehending him. Are ye come out, as against a robber (ὡςἐπὶλῃστὴν), with swords and staves to seize me? The order of events in the betrayal appears to have been this: First, the kiss of the traitor Judas, by which he indicated to those who were with him which was Jesus. Then follows that remarkable incident mentioned only by St. John (John 18:4-6), "Jesus … went forth, and saith unto them, Whom seek ye? They answered him, Jesus of Nazareth. Jesus saith unto them, I am he. And Judas also, which betrayed him, was standing with them. When therefore he said unto them, I am he, they went backward, and fell to the ground." The presence of Christ in his serene majesty overpowered them. There was something in his looks and manner, as he repeated these words," I am he," words often used before by him, that caused them to retreat backwards, and to prostrate themselves. It was no external force that produced this result. The Divine majesty flashed from his countenance and overawed them, at least for the moment. At all events, it was an emphatic evidence, both to his own disciples and to this crowd, that it was by his own will that he yielded himself up to them. Perhaps this incident fired the courage of St. Peter; and so, as they approached to take our Lord, he drew his sword and struck off the ear of Malchus. Then our Lord healed him. And then he turned to the multitude and said, "Are ye come out as against a robber, with swords and staves, to seize me?" Mark 14:49 But this is done that the Scriptures might be fulfilled. This, as it stands in the original, is an incomplete sentence; in St. Matthew (Matthew 26:56) the sentence occurs in its complete form. In both cases it has been questioned whether the words are those of our Lord, or whether they are the comment of the evangelist. On the whole, it would seem more probable that they are our Lord’s words, which seem almost required to conclude what he had said before. Mark 14:50 And they all left him, and fled. But soon afterwards two of them, Peter and John, took courage, and followed him to the house of the high priest. Mark 14:51 And a certain young man followed with him, having a linen cloth cast about him, over his naked body: and they lay hold on him. St. Mark is the only evangelist who mentions this incident; and there seems good reason for supposing that he here describes what happened to himself. Such is the mode in which St. John refers to himself in his Gospel, and where there can be no doubt that he is speaking of himself. If the conclusion in an earlier part of this commentary be correct, that it was at the house to which John Mark belonged that our Lord celebrated the Passover, and from whence he went out to the Mount of Olives; what more probable than that Mark had been with him on that occasion, and had perhaps a presentiment that something was about to happen to him? What more likely than that the crowd who took Jesus may have passed by this house, and that Mark may have been roused from his bed (it was now a late hour) by the tumult. Having a linen cloth (σινδόνα) cast about his naked body. The sindon was a fine linen cloth, indicating that he belonged to a family in good circumstances. It is an unusual word. In every other place of the New Testament where it is used it refers to the garment or shroud used to cover the bodies of the dead. The sindon is supposed to take its name from Sidon, where the particular kind of linen was manufactured of which the garment was made. It was a kind of light cloak frequently worn in hot weather. Mark 14:52 But he left the linen cloth, and fled naked. This somewhat ignominious flight is characteristic of what we know of St. Mark. It shows how great was the panic in reference to Christ, and how great was the hatred of the Jews against him, that they endeavored to seize a young man who was merely following with him. It shows also how readily our Lord’s enemies would have seized his own disciples if they had not taken refuge in flight. Mark 14:53 And they led Jesus away to the high priest. This high priest was Caiaphas. But we learn from St. John (John 18:13) that our Lord was first brought before Annas, the father-in-law of Caiphas. Annas and his five sons held the high priesthood in succession, Caiaphas, his son-in-law, stepping in between the first and the second son, and holding the office for twelve years. It is supposed that it was in the house of Annas that the price of the betrayal was paid to Judas. Annas, though not then high priest, must have had considerable influence in the counsels of the Sanhedrim; and this will probably explain the fact of our Lord having been first taken to him. Mark 14:54 And Peter had followed him afar off, even within, into the court (εἰςτὴναὐλὴν) of the high priest. This court was the place where the guards and servants of the high priest were assembled. Our Lord was within, in a large room, being arraigned before the council. St. John informs us (John 18:15) that he himself, being known to the high priest, had gone in with Jesus into the court of the high priest; and that he had been the means of bringing in Peter, who had been standing outside at the door leading into the court. We now see Peter among the servants, crouching over the fire. The weather was cold, for it was early springtime; and it was now after midnight. Peter was warming himself in the light of the fire (πρὸςτὸφῶς), and so his features were clearly seen in the glow of the brightly burning charcoal. Mark 14:55 Now the chief priests and the whole council sought witness against Jesus to put him to death, and found it not. Their supreme object was to put him to death; but. they wished to accomplish their object in a manner consistent with their own honor, so as not to appear to have put him to death without reason. So they sought for false witnesses against him, that they might deliver the Author of life and the Savior of the world to death. For in real truth, although they knew it not, and were the instruments in his hands, he had determined by the death of Christ to bestow on us both present and eternal life. Mark 14:56 For many bare false witness against him, and their witness agreed not together. Whatever things these witnesses brought forward were either false, or self-contradictory, or beside the purpose. Mark 14:57, Mark 14:58 And there stood up certain, and bare false witness against him, saying, We heard him say, I will destroy this temple that is made with hands, and in three days I will build another made without hands. St. Matthew (Matthew 26:60) says that they were two. What our Lord had really said was this—we read it in St. John (John 2:19)—"Destroy this temple; and in three days I will raise it up." These words the false witnesses perverted; for they assigned to Jesus the work of destruction which he left to the Jews. He did not say," I will destroy;" but "Do ye destroy, and I will rebuild." Nor did he say, "I will build another;" but "I will raise it up," that is, from the dead; for St. John tells us that "he spake of the temple of his body," in which, as in a temple, there dwelt the fullness of the Godhead.. He might have said plainly, "I will rise from the dead;" but he chose to speak as in a parable. According to their witness, however, our Lord’s words would appear as little more than an empty boast, certainly not as anything on account of which such a charge as they desired could be brought against him. Mark 14:60, Mark 14:61 And the high priest stood up in the midst, and asked Jesus, saying, Answerest thou nothing?… But he held his peace, and answered nothing. The high priest would naturally be seated at the top of the semicircle, with the members of the Sanhedrim on either side of him, and the Accused in front of him. Now he rises from his seat, and comes forward into the midst (εἰςτὸμέσον), and demands an answer. But Jesus answered nothing. It would have been a long and tedious business to answer such a charge, which involved a garbled and inaccurate statement of what he had said. It would have answered no good purpose to reply to an accusation so vague and inaccurate. Our Lord knew that, whatever his answer was, it would be twisted so as to make against him. Silence was therefore the most dignified treatment of such an accusation. Besides, he knew that his hour was come. The high priest now asks him plainly, Art thou the Christ, the son of the Blessed? Here he touches the point of the whole matter. Christ had frequently declared himself to be such. Caiaphas, therefore, now asks the question, not because he needed the information, but that he might condemn him. Mark 14:62 To this question our Lord returns a plain and candid answer, out of reverence for the Divine Name which, as St. Matthew and St. Luke tell us, had been invoked by the high priest, and also respect for the office of the high priest, by whom he had been put upon his oath. St. Chrysostom says that our Lord answered thus that he might leave without excuse all those who listened to him, who would not hereafter be able to plead in the day of judgment that, when our Lord was solemnly asked in the council whether he was the Son of God, he had either refused to answer, or had answered evasively. This answer of our Lord is full of majesty and sublimity. He is arraigned as a criminal, standing in the midst of the chief priests and scribes, his bitter enemies; and it is as though he said, "You, O Caiaphas, and you the chief priests and elders of the Jews, are now unjustly condemning me as a false prophet and a false Christ; but the day is at hand when I, who am now a prisoner at your judgment seat, shall sit on the throne of glory as the Judge of you and of all mankind. You are now about to condemn me to the death of the cross; but I shall then sit in judgment upon you, and condemn you for this terrible guilt of slaying me, who am the true God and the Judge of the world." Mark 14:63 And the high priest rent his clothes (διαῤῥήξαςτοὺςχιτῶνας); literally, his tunics.; St. Matthew (Matthew 26:65) has τὰἱμὰτια literally, his garments. None but people of rank wore two tunics. The Greek verb here rendered "rent" implies violent dramatic action. The Jewish tunic was open under the chin, and large enough to receive the head, so that it could easily be placed over the shoulders, by inserting the head. When the wearer wished to give this sign of indignation or grief, he would seize the garment at this opening with both hands, and violently tear it asunder down to the waist. But it was unlawful for the high priest to do this in a private grief (Le Matthew 10:6). Some of the Fathers think that by this action Caiaphas involuntarily typified the rending of the priesthood from himself and from the Jewish nation. Mark 14:64 They all condemned him to be worthy of death (ἔνοχονθανάτου). There were, therefore, none there but those who were known to be opposed to our Lord. It will be remembered that all these proceedings were illegal. Mark 14:65 And some began to spit on him. St. Matthew (Matthew 26:67) says, "Then did they spit in his face." That Divine face, to be reverenced and adored by every creature, was exposed to this vile contumely; and he bore it patiently. "I hid not my face from shame and spitting" (Isaiah 1:1-31:61). And the officers received him with blows of their hands (οἱὑπηρέταιῥαπίσμασιναὐτὸνἔλαβον). Mark 14:66 And as Peter was beneath in the court. The room in which the Sanhedrim were assembled was an upper chamber. Mark 14:67 And seeing (ἰδοῦσα) Peter warming himself, she looked upon him (ἐμβλέψασααὐτῷ). She looked upon him, in the light of the fire, so as to see his features distinctly. This was one of the menial servants who attended to the outer door of the court, and perhaps had been the one to let in Peter; so that she could say with some confidence, Thou wast also with the Nazarene, even Jesus. Mark 14:68 But he denied, saying, I neither know, nor understand what thou sayest. "This shows the great terror of Peter," says St. Chrysostom, "who, intimidated by the question of a poor servant-girl, denied his Lord; and who yet afterwards, when he had received the Holy Spirit, could say, ’We ought to obey God rather than man.’" I neither know, nor understand what thou sayest. Every word here is emphatic. It amounts to this: "So little do I know who this Jesus is, that I know not what you say or what you ask concerning him. I know not who or what he is or anything about him. A question has been raised as to the number of times that Peter denied our Lord. The narratives are best explained by the consideration that all the denials took place in the house of Caiaphas. Furthermore, the accounts of the evangelists may be reconciled thus: First, Peter denied the Lord in the court of the high priest, when he was first asked by the maidservant, as he sat over the fire (Matthew 24:1-51:69); secondly, he denied him with an oath; thirdly, when urged still more, he denied him with many oaths and execrations. The cock crew the first time after the first denial, when we read (Matthew 26:71) that he went out into the porch (προαύλιον). This crowing would be about one or two in the morning. The second crowing would not be until five or six. This shows us the length of time that the proceedings lasted. It was doubtless as Jesus through the court that he gave Peter that look of unutterable pain and grief which moved him at once to repentance. Mark 14:72 And when he thought thereon, he wept (καὶἐπὶβαλὼνἔκλαιε, not ἔκλαυσε,). The word implies a long and continued weeping. This concludes the preliminary trial, the whole proceedings of which were illegal. Mark 14:1, Mark 14:2 The plot. The apprehension and death of Jesus were brought about By a combination between his foes and a professed friend. The avowed enemies employed the necessary force, and secured the authority of the Roman governor for his crucifixion; and the disciple suggested the occasion, the place and time of the capture, and delivered his Master into the hands of the malignant persecutors. The events of the first three days of this Passion week had been such as to enrage the Pharisees and scribes beyond all bounds. The only way in which it seemed possible for them to retain their threatened influence, necessarily diminished and discredited by their repeated public confutation, seemed to be this—to strike an immediate and decisive blow at the Prophet whom they were unable to withstand upon the ground of argument and reason. I. THE ENEMIES WHO PLOTTED AGAINST CHRIST. These seem to have included all classes among the higher orders of society in Jerusalem, who, whatever their distinctions, rivalries, and enmities, concurred in hatred of the Holy One and the Just. The chief priests, who were largely Sadducees, the scribes, and the Pharisees, who were the most honored leaders of the people in religion, all joined in plotting against him who attacked their various errors with equal impartiality, and whose success with the people was undermining the power of them all. II. THE CRAFT AND CAUTION OF CHRIST’S ENEMIES. It was in accordance with the nature of such men that they should have recourse to stratagem. Open violence was scarcely after their manner, and was out of the question in this case; for many of the people honored the Prophet of Nazareth, and would probably have interfered to protect or to rescue him from the onset of his enemies. Upon days of great popular festivals the people thronged every public place, where Jesus might be found teaching those who resorted to him; and those who delighted to listen to Jesus would certainly resist his capture. The opposition of Christ’s enemies to his teaching had been captious, and it is not surprising to find that their plot for his destruction was cunning and secret. III. THE PURPOSE OF CHRIST’S ENEMIES—HIS . This had, indeed, been foreseen and foretold by himself; but this does not lessen the crime of those who compassed his death. The resolution to slay Jesus seems to have been taken because of the popular impression produced by the raising of Lazarus, and because of the discussions which had only just now taken place between him and the Jewish leaders, whom he had overcome in argument and put to silence. Thus, he had come up to the metropolis with the intention of so conducting his ministry as he was well aware would bring down upon him the wrath of his bitter foes. IV. THE SEASON AND OF THIS PLOT, It was at the time of the Passover assemblies and solemnities that these deliberations took place. In this there was a coincidence which was not unintended, and which did not escape the observation of the Church. "Christ our Passover"—our Paschal Lamb and Sacrifice—"was slain for us." The Lamb of God came to take away the sin of the world. His death has become the life of humanity; his sacrifice has wrought the emancipation of a sinful race. Mark 14:3-9 Tribute of grateful love. A singular interest attaches to this simple incident in Christ’s private life. Proud and foolish men have tried to turn it into ridicule, as unworthy of the memory of a great prophet. But they have not succeeded. Our Lord’s own estimate of Mary’s conduct is accepted, and the world-wide and lasting renown promised by Jesus has been secured. The record of the graceful act of the friend of Jesus is instructive, touching, and beautiful. And the commendation which the Master pronounced is an evidence of his human and sympathizing appreciation of devotion and of love. I. THE MOTIVE TO SERVICE IS HERE . Mary was prompted, not by vanity and ostentation, but by grateful love. This had been awakened both by his friendship and teaching, and by his compassionate kindness in raising her brother from the dead. What Jesus appreciated was Mary’s love. Services and gifts are valuable in Christ’s view, not for themselves, for he needs them not, but as an expression of his people’s deepest feelings. Let Christians consider what they owe to their Savior—salvation, life eternal. They may well exclaim, "We love him, because he first loved us." Acceptable obedience does not come first, for in such case it would be a form only; but if love prompts our deeds and services, they become valuable oven before Heaven. II. THE NATURAL MODES OF SERVICE. These are severally exemplified in this incident. 1. Personal ministry. Mary did not send a servant; she came herself co minister to Jesus. There is some work for Christ which most Christians must do by deputy; but there is much work which may and should be done personally. In the home, in the school, in the Church, in the hospital, we may individually, according to opportunity and ability, serve the Lord Christ. What is done for his "little ones" he takes as done for himself. 2. Substance. Mary gave costly perfume, estimated to have cost upwards of ten pounds of our money. She had property, and therefore gave. All we have is his, who, when he purchased us with his blood, purchased all our powers and possessions. It is a precious privilege to offer him his own. "It is accepted according to what a man hath." 3. Public witness. Mary anointed the Master’s feet in the presence of the company, and thus declared before all those assembled her devotion to him. It is good for ourselves that we should witness to our Savior, and it is good for others who may receive our testimony. It is a disgrace to professing Christians when they are ashamed of the Lord who redeemed them. III. THE TRUE MEASURE OF SERVICE. She did, it is recorded, what she could; she gave what she had to give. This is an example worthy of universal imitation. We are reminded, as it were paradoxically, of two apparently opposed characteristics of Christian action and liberality. 1. How much devoted friends of Christ may do! Men may do much for harm and evil; and, on the other hand, what good even one person has sometimes accomplished in private life! What can be done should be done. 2. Yet, how limited are men’s powers! If Christians could do more than they do, how vast a field of labor stretches around them! We are limited in our powers for usefulness. Our means may be small, our circle of influence restricted. Our powers of body and of mind are often a restraint upon us; our life is brief, even at the longest. The sister of Bethany could not do what others might; nevertheless, what she could do she did. And we are never to rest in inactivity and indolence, because the claims are so many, and our powers are so small, and our opportunities so few. IV. THE AND OF SERVICE. 1. The Lord accepts what his friends bring to him, as the expression of their love, in proportion to their means and powers. He is not influenced by men’s regards. Good men as well as bad men often disapprove wise and benevolent actions. He judgeth not as man judgeth. 2. The Lord rewards the grateful and devoted friends who minister unto him. He enlarges their opportunities of usefulness and service here. "To him that hath shall be given." And he will hereafter recompense them in the resurrection of the just, when he shall say, "Enter thou into the joy of thy Lord." . 1. Let Christians give love its way, and follow where it leads. There is no danger of our loving our Savior too ardently, or of our serving him too zealously. 2. If your means of showing devotion be but few, fret not; only let it be said, "They have done what they could." Mark 14:10, Mark 14:11 The traitor. That there should be a traitor in the camp of our Lord’s followers and professed friends, may be regarded as an instance of the Divine forbearance, which tolerated one so unworthy, and also as a fulfillment of the predictions of Scripture. The fact is, however, one which is fraught with instruction and warning to every disciple of the Lord. I. THE OF THE TRAITOR’S GUILT. These are to be recognized in two circumstances which have been recorded regarding Judas Iscariot. 1. He was not only a disciple and follower of Jesus; he was actually one of the twelve. These were admitted to an especial intimacy with Jesus; they knew his movements, they shared his privacy, they heard his language of friendship and partook his counsels. All this made the treachery of one of this select band the more guilty and reprehensible. 2. He was entrusted with office in the little society to which he belonged. The treasurer of the twelve—although, doubtless, their means were always small—Judas bare the bag, and made the purchases necessary for the wants of the companions, and even gave from the general poverty for the relief of those poorer than they. He was accordingly a trusted official, who abused the confidence reposed in him. II. THE MOTIVES TO THE TRAITOR’S GUILT. These were probably two. 1. Judas was dissatisfied with his Master’s methods. Doubtless his expectations were of a carnal character; he wished Jesus to declare himself a King, and to assign to his twelve friends posts honorable and lucrative in this new kingdom. It may have been to hasten on this catastrophe that the Iscariot acted as he did. 2. Judas was covetous, and was prompted in his treason by the love of money. He secured from the chief priests the thirty shekels which formed the customary price of a slave—"the price of him that was valued!" Surely it is a warning against avarice and covetousness, to find a professed friend of Jesus misled by these degrading vices! III. THE OUTCOME OF THE TRAITOR’S GUILT. 1. It might have been difficult for our Lord’s enemies to have seized him had they not been in the confidence of one of his companions. There were obvious reasons why the arrest could not have taken place at Bethany or iu Jerusalem. It was the duplicity and treachery of Judas that suggested the garden of prayer as the scene of this disgraceful apprehension. 2. To Judas the consequences were terrific. In remorse and despair he afterwards took his life. 3. Yet how was all this overruled for wise and gracious ends! The treachery of the Iscariot was the occasion of the crucifixion of Jesus, and this was the means of the salvation of the world! Mark 14:12-26 The Paschal supper. The Lord’s Supper is a distinctively Christian ordinance. Yet this record shows us that it was our Lord’s design that it should be linked on to an observance with which his disciples were already familiar. He thus took advantage of a principle in human nature, and connected the associations and recollections which to the Hebrew mind were most sacred, with what was to be one of the holiest and most pathetic engagements of his people throughout all time. I. THE AND OF THE OF THE LORD’S SUPPER, 1. The place in which this festival was first celebrated was provided by willing friendship. The circumstantial narrative points to the high probability that some wealthy friend of the Lord Jesus placed the guest-chamber of his house at Jerusalem at the disposal of the Master whom he honored. There was something very appropriate in the consecration in this manner of the offices of human love. 2. The time is very instructive and pathetic. It was evening; it was the last evening of rest and peace our Lord should enjoy; it was the evening which preceded the day of his sacrifice. 3. The company consisted of the twelve favored companions of Jesus. Judas was at the meal, but retired before the institution of the Eucharist. How sacred and congenial a gathering! How sweet and touching this calm which came before the bursting of the storm! 4. The occasion was the observance of the Paschal meal. Thus the light of the Hebrew Passover was shed upon the Christian sacrament and Eucharist. Thus it was suggested to the apostle that "Christ our Passover was slain for us." This entry is longer than a Bible module can hold. The rest is at https://www.sermonindex.net/commentary/pulpit-commentary/ Mark 15:1 And straightway in the morning the chief priests with the elders and scribes, and the whole council, held a consultation, and bound Jesus, and carried him away, and delivered him up to Pilate. Straightway in the morning (εὐθέωςπρωΐ́). The proceedings recorded in the last chapter terminated probably between five and six; the cock-crowing helps to fix the time. Now came the more formal trial. The whole Sanhedrim united in consultation. All the proceedings hitherto had been irregular and illegal. Now, for form’s sake, they tried him afresh. But there was another law which was also violated. It was now Friday. In capital cases, sentence of condemnation might not legally be pronounced on the day of the trial. Yet our Lord was tried, condemned, and crucified on the same day. They "hound him," that he might be impeded in any attempt to escape. They "carried him away" (ἀπήνεγκαν), with the semblance of force; although we know that he went "as a lamb to the slaughter." How truly might it be said of these chief priests and elders, "Their feet are swift to shed blood!" And delivered him up to Pilate. Judaea now was added to the province of Syria, and governed by procurators, of whom Pontius Pilate was the fifth. It was necessary for the Jews to deliver Christ over to the Roman power; because the power of life and death had been taken from them since they became subject to the Romans. "It is not lawful for us," they say (John 18:31) "to put any man to death;" that is to say, they could not put to death without the authority of the governor. Our Lord predicted of himself, "They shall deliver him to the Gentiles." Mark 15:2 Art thou the King of the Jews? It appears from St. Luke (Luke 23:1-5) that when Pilate demanded particularly what the charges against Jesus were, on account of which the Jews urged that he should be crucified, they alleged these three things: (1) that he perverted the nation; (2) that he forbade to give tribute to Caesar; (3) that he said that he was Christ, a King. Whereupon Pilate, who had heard by many of the blameless life, the pure doctrine, and the famous miracles of Jesus, goes at once to the point, and asks him, "Art thou the King of the Jews?"—a question which, of course, affected the position of Caesar. Our Lord’s answer, Thou sayest (σὺλέγεις), was in the affirmative, amounting to this "Thou sayest that which is true." Mark 15:3 And the chief priests accused him of many things. The words in the Authorized Version, "but he answered nothing," are not to be found here in any of the best manuscripts or versions. But they are to be found in St. Matthew (Matthew 27:12); and Pilate’s question in the next verse confirms St. Matthew’s statement, and makes the sentence unnecessary here. Our Lord answered nothing, because all that they had to say against him was manifestly false or frivolous, and unworthy of any reply. St. Augustine says on this, "The Savior, who is the Wisdom of God, knew how to overcome by keeping silence." Mark 15:4 It would seem that Pilate had led Jesus out of his palace, into which the Jewish priests could not enter (John 18:28), lest they should be defiled by entering a house from which all leaven had not been scrupulously removed. This would have been a violation of their religious scruples; and therefore he went out into the open court, and there heard the accusations of the chief priests. It is supposed that the building occupied by Pilate was the palace built or rebuilt by Herod near the gate of Jaffa, north-west of Mount Zion. It was doubtless occasionally occupied by Pilate, and it was conveniently situated, being near to Herod’s palace—the old palace of the Asmoneans, between it and the temple. Mark 15:5 Pilate marvelled. He marvelled that the innocent Savior, wise and eloquent, standing before him in peril of his life, should remain silent when thus vehemently accused by the leading men of the Jews. Pilate marvelled at his forbearance, his calmness, his contempt of death; from all of which he argued his absolute innocence and holiness, and resolved to do everything in his power to deliver him. The silence of a blameless life pleads more powerfully than any defense, however elaborate. Mark 15:6 St. Mark omits here what took place next in the order of events, namely, the sending of our Lord by Pilate to Herod (Luke 23:5). This was Herod Antipas, ruler of Galilee; and Pilate, apparently convinced of our Lord’s innocence, hoped to escape the responsibility of condemning an innocent man, by handing him over to Herod; for Pilate had heard that our Lord was a Galilean. Moreover, he hoped to accomplish another good result, namely, to recover the favor of Herod, which was desirable on political grounds. The first intention failed; for Herod sent our Lord back to Pilate in mockery, "arraying him in gorgeous apparel" (περιβαλὼνἐσθῆταλαμπρὰν). But the second succeeded: "Herod and Pilate became friends with each other that very day" (Luke 23:12). There was now, however, another resource. At the feast (καταἑορτὴν)—literally, at feast-time—he used to release unto them one prisoner, whom they asked of him ὅνπερἠτοῦντο). In St. John (John 18:39) we read that Pilate said, "Ye have a custom, that I should release unto you one at the Passover." Mark 15:7 And there was one called Barabbas, lying bound with them that had made insurrection, men who in the insurrection had committed murder. Pilate appears to have thought of Barabbas, not doubting but that, by limiting their choice between him and Jesus, he would secure the liberation of our Lord. But Pilate little knew the temper of the chief priests and scribes, and their bitter hostility to Christ. The word "Barabbas," better written "Bar-Abbas," means "son of father." Mark 15:8 And the multitude went up and Began to ask him to do as he was wont to do unto them. Went up (ἀναβὰς). This is the reading to be preferred to the old reading, "crying aloud" (ἀναβοήσας). The reading ἀναβὰς is supported by the Sinaitic, the Vatican, and the Cambridge manuscripts; also by the Old Italic, the Gothic, and other versions. The AEthiopic Version combines the two," going up and crying aloud." The geographical position of Pilate’s residence quite justifies the use of the term Mark 15:9 Pilate doubtless hoped that they would ask for Jesus. He knew that the chief priests had delivered our Lord for envy. That he could not help observing, as a shrewd Roman judge, from their gestures and manner. And then he knew also, at least by report, of the purity of Jesus, and of the holy freedom with which he rebuked their vices. So he thought, reasonably enough, that if the chief priests wished to destroy him for envy, the people, who had experienced so many kindnesses from him, would desire that he should live. Mark 15:10 Envy was the low passion that influenced the chief priests. They saw that Jesus was gaining a great and increasing influence over the people by the sublime beauty of his character, by the fame of his miracles, and the constraining power of his words. And hence they concluded that, unless he was arrested in his course, and put out of the way, their own influence would soon be gone. The whole world was going after him. Therefore he must be destroyed. Mark 15:11 But the chief priests stirred up the multitude (ἀνέσεισαντὸνὄχλον), that he should rather release Barabbas unto them. St. Matthew (Matthew 27:20) says, "They persuaded the multitudes" (ἔπεισαντοὺςὄχλους). St. Mark’s word (ἀνέσεισαν) implies a rousing of their bad passions; agitating them to a blind zeal for his crucifixion. Mark 15:12 And Pilate again answered and said unto them, What then shall I do unto him whom ye call the King of the Jews? The word "again" has the support of three great uncials, and the best of the cursives. Pilate did not give way without many an inward struggle. And now at last he puts the matter, so to speak, in their own power; so that it might be an act of their clemency, and that they might have the honor of saving our Lord’s life. But it was all in vain. For the chief priests had resolved to press for his crucifixion, little dreaming that they were doing what "God’s hand and God’s counsel had before determined to be done." Pilate puts the question before them with much shrewdness and tact. He speaks of our Lord as one whom "they called the King of the Jews." He appeals to their national pride and their national hopes. Would they degrade themselves, and extinguish their hopes, by giving up to the most ignominious of deaths one who had established such claims upon their reverence and their love? Mark 15:13 And they cried out again, Crucify him. These words might seem at first to justify the old reading, in Mark 15:8, adopted in the Authorized Version," crying aloud." But there the word was ἀναβοήσας, here it is ἔκραξαν. Moreover, in Mark 15:14, it is not (περισσοτέρως) "the more exceedingly," but (περισσῶς) "they cried exceedingly." Mark 15:15 And Pilate, wishing βουλόμενος to content the multitude, released unto them Barabbas, and delivered Jesus, when he had scourged him, to be crucified. St. Luke and St. John are more full in details here. From their narratives it appears that when Pilate found that his attempt to rescue our Lord, by putting Barabbas in contrast with him, had failed, he next hoped to move the multitude to pity by the terrible punishment of scourging, after which he trusted that they would relent. Scourging was a vile punishment, inflicted on slaves. But it was also inflicted upon those who were condemned to death, even though freemen This scourging, which was a part of the punishment of crucifixion, was of frightful severity. Horace speaks of it as "horrible flagellum." But it appears from St. John (John 21:1) that the scourging of Jesus took place before his formal condemnation to be crucified; we may therefore suppose that it was not a part of the ordinary punishment of crucifixion. At all events, there is nothing, upon a careful comparison of the narratives, to lead us to the conclusion that our blessed Lord was scourged twice. In fact, Pilate anticipated the time of the scourging, in the vain hope that he might by this means save our Lord from the capital punishment. A comparison of the narratives of St. Matthew and St. Mark with that of St. John will make this clear; for they all three refer to one and the same scourging. Recent investigations at Jerusalem have disclosed what may probably have been the place of the punishment. In a subterranean chamber, discovered by Captain Warren, on what Mr. Fergusson holds to be the site of Antonia, Pilate’s praetorium, stands a truncated column, no part of the structure itself, but just such a dwarf pillar as criminals would be tied to to be scourged. The chamber cannot be later than the time of Herod (see Professor Westcott on St. John 19:1-42.). Mark 15:16 And the soldiers led him away within the court, which is the Praetorium; and they call together the whole band. This was the principal court of the palace, where a large number of soldiers were always quartered. "The whole band" would be the "cohors praetoria" of Cicero; Pilate’s body-guard. Mark 15:17, Mark 15:18 And they clothe him with purple, and plaiting a crown of thorns, they put it on him; and they began to salute him, Hail, King of the Jews! They clothe him with purple (ἐνδύουσιναὐτὸνπορφύραν). So also says St. John (John 21:2, ἱματιονπορφυροῦν). St. Matthew says (Matthew 27:28), "They put on him a scarlet robe (περιέθηκαναὐτῷχλαμύδα)." Purple and scarlet are not such very dissimilar colors. Purple is a royal color; and the chlamys of St. Matthew was a short military cloak of scarlet, intended to be a kind of royal livery. St. Cyril says that the purple cloak symbolized the kingdom of the whole world, which Christ was about to receive, and which he was to obtain by the shedding of his most precious blood. It was designed in mockery of his claim to be a King, and it probably bad a reference to his supposed insurrection against Caesar. All this was permitted by Pilate, in order that he might the more easily, after this ignominious treatment, deliver Christ from the extreme sentence. And plaiting a crown of thorns, they put it on him. The crown of thorns was in all probability woven from the Zizyphus spina Christi (the nabk of the Arabs), which grows abundantly in Palestine, fringing the banks of the Jordan. This plant would be very suitable for the purpose, having flexible branches, with leaves very much resembling the ivy leaf in their color, and with many sharp thorns. The pain arising from the pressure of these sharp thorns upon the head must have been excruciating. And they began to salute him, Hail, King of the Jews! (ΧαῖρεβασιλεῦτῶνἸουδαίων). This word, χαῖρε, was an ancient form of salutation; here used by the soldiers in bitter mockery of his claim to be a king. Mark 15:19 And they smote his head with a reed—the same reed, according to St. Matthew (Matthew 27:29, Matthew 27:30), which they bad first put into his right hand as a scepter, to complete the mocking symbolism—and did spit upon him (ἐνέπτυοναὐτῷ). The verb is in the imperfect; they did it again and again. Mark 15:20 And when they had mocked him, they took off from him the purple, and put on him his garments. The silence of our blessed Lord during these wanton and aggravated insults is very remarkable, and also the total absence of any legal grounds for his condemnation. And they lead him out to crucify him. Assuming the palace of Pilate to have been near the gate of Jaffa, north-west of Mount Zion, and the place of crucifixion that now assigned to it, within the Church of the Holy Sepulchre,—the distance would be about one-third of a mile. Mark 15:21 And they compel one passing by Simon of Cyrene, coming from the country, the father of Alexander and Rufus, to go with them, that he might bear his cross. It seems from St. Matthew (Matthew 27:32) that our Savior bore his own cross from the palace to the gate of the city. The tablet, with the inscription afterwards attached to the cross, would be carried before him; and a certain number of soldiers would be appointed to go with him to the place of execution, and to see the sentence carried out. Having passed out through the gate of the city, they met one Simon of Cyrene, coming from the country, and they compel him (ἀγγαρεύουσι); literally, they impress him. The Cyrenians had a synagogue in Jerusalem (Acts 6:9), and this Simon may probably have been one of those who had come up to keep the Passover. He must have been a Hellenistic Jew, a native of Cyrene, on the north coast of Africa. Alexander and Rufus, his sons, were no doubt, at the time when St. Mark wrote his Gospel, well-known disciples of our Lord. St. Paul, writing to the Romans (Romans 16:13), sends a special salutation to Rufus, "chosen in the Lord, and his mother, and mine;" a delicate recognition by St. Paul of something like maternal care bestowed upon him by the mother of Rufus. It is probable that his father Simon, and perhaps his brother Alexander, may have been dead by this time. Rufus is also honorably mentioned by Polycarp in his Epistle to the Philippians. There is a tradition, mentioned by Cornelius a Lapide, that Rufus became a bishop in Spain, and that Alexander suffered martyrdom. To go with them, that he might bear his cross. St. Luke (Luke 23:26) adds the touching words, "to bear it after Jesus (φέρεινὔπισθεντοῦἸησοῦ)." Mark 15:22 And they bring him (φέρουσιν); literally, they bear him. At Mark 15:20 another word has been used ἐξάγουσιν "they lead him out." It seems as though, when they had reached the gate of the city, they saw symptoms that our Lord was fainting under his burden; and so they pressed Simon into the service, that he might be ready to assist. At first our Lord carried his own cross. Tradition says (Cornelius a Lapide) that the cross was fifteen feet long, the transverse limb being eight feet; and that he so carried it that the upper portion rested on his shoulder, while the foot of the cross trailed on the ground. When they saw that he was breaking down under the weight of the cross, they laid it on Simon, that they might the more quickly reach the place of crucifixion. The place Golgotha, which is, being interpreted, The place of a skull. "Golgotha" is a Hebrew, or rather Chaldaic, word, applied to the skull on account of its roundness, that being the idea which lies in the root of the word. The Greek equivalent to the word is Κρανίον; and this is rendered in the Vulgate, Calvaria, a skull, from calva, bald. St. Luke is the only evangelist in whose Gospel (Luke 23:33) this word is rendered "Calvary." In the Revised Version it is rendered "the skull" The place was so called, either from its having been the spot where executions ordinarily took place (though in this case we might have expected to find it called τόποςκρανίων rather than κρανίον); or, more probably, it was derived from the configuration of the place itself, perhaps a round-like mound, or knoll, sufficiently elevated to be seen at a little distance and by a large number. As to the actual site of Golgotha, recent researches seem to have done much to confirm the ancient tradition. The Bordeaux pilgrim, a.d. 333, says, "On the left side of the original Church of the Holy Sepulchre is the hillock (monticulus) Golgotha, where the Lord was crucified. Hence, about a stone’s throw distant, is the crypt where his body was deposited." St. Cyril of Jerusalem alludes to the spot frequently, and there was no doubt about it in the time of Eusebius, a.d. 315. Professor Willis says that the rock of Calvary still stands up, some fifteen feet above the pavement. "It appears likely," he says, "that in its original state this rock was part of a little swell of the ground that jutted out from the slope of Sepulchre Street, and probably always formed a somewhat abrupt view on the west and south sides" (see ’Speaker’s Commentary’ on St. Matthew). Captain Conder thinks that he shall be able to show that the traditional Golgotha is the site of the original temple of Ashtoreth, and that this temple was the Jebusite sanctuary before David took Jerusalem, and round which the sepulchres of the kings were hewn after the worship of Jehovah had consecrated the temple hill. Mark 15:23 And they offered him wine mingled with myrrh: but he received it not. There were two occasions on which drink was offered to our Lord during the agonies of his crucifixion. The first occasion is that mentioned by St. Matthew (Matthew 27:34), when they offered him wine mingled with gall. This was a kind of stupefying liquor, a strong narcotic, made of the sour wine of the country, mingled with bitter herbs, and mercifully administered to dull the sense of pain. This was offered before the actual crucifixion took place. It is to this first occasion that St. Mark here refers. The words in the original are (καὶἐδίδουναὐτῷἐσμυρνισμένονοἶνον), "they were giving, they offered him." But he received it not. He would not seek alleviation of the agonies of the crucifixion by any drugged potion which might render him insensible. He would bear the full burden consciously. The second occasion on which drink was offered to him was after he had been some hours on his cross, and when the end was drawing near; and it was then given in answer to his exclamation, "I thirst." This drink does not appear to have been mingled with any stupefying drug; and we do not read that he refused it. St. Mark does not record this second occasion. Mark 15:24 And they crucify him (καὶσταυροῦσιναὐτὸν,). Such is the most approved reading. The evangelist states the fact without staying to dwell on the painful circumstances connected with the act of nailing him to the cross; and passes on to the mention of other things. They part his garments among them, casting lots upon them, what each should take. The outer robe and the tunic would have been removed previously to the crucifixion. St. John (John 21:23) here goes into details. "They took his garments, and made four parts, to every soldier a part; and also the coat: now the coat was without seam, woven from the top through.. out." His garments (τὰἱμάτια). This would be the loose, flowing outer dress with girdle. The tunic (χιτών) was a closefitting dress, worn underneath the ἱμάτιον. There were four soldiers employed for each crucifixion. St. Cyril refers to the clothes of criminals as the perquisite of the executioners. Here was another ingredient of bitterness in our Lord’s cup, that he saw before his eyes his garments torn by the soldiery, and his tunic divided to them by lot. But he divested himself of these garments of mortality, that he might clothe us with life and immortality. Mark 15:25 And it was the third hour, and they crucified him. The third hour would literally be nine o’clock. But we gather from Mark 15:33 that our Lord was on his cross, and still alive, at the sixth hour, that is, at twelve o’clock. The simplest mode of solving the chronological difficulty seems to be this: The Jews divided their day into four parts, which they called hours, namely, the first, from six to nine; the third, from nine to twelve; the sixth, from twelve to three; and the ninth, from three to six. It was, then, within the third hour, that is, between nine and twelve, that they crucified him; and it was from the sixth to the ninth hour that he was actually upon his cross. St. John employs the Asiatic mode of computing time. Mark 15:26 And the superscription of his accusation was written over, THE KING OF THE JEWS. This would probably be the shortest form of inscription, and in Latin, "Rex Judaeorum." All the evangelists mention the inscription; but no two of them in precisely the same words. It appears by comparison of them that the whole title was, "This is Jesus of Nazareth, the King of the Jews." In the ease of remarkable prisoners the accusation was written on a white tablet, and carried before them as they went to the place of execution. It was then placed over their heads when the cross was erected. St. John tells us that our Lord’s title was written in three languages—Hebrew, Latin, and Greek. Such appears to be the proper order of the words, namely, the national, the official, and the common dialect. St. Mark, writing at Rome, would naturally mention the Latin title. It is quite possible that the superscription may have varied in the different renderings in which it was given. It is evident from St. John (John 21:19-22) that the title was much canvassed by the Jews and the chief priests. Bode says that this title was fitly placed over his head, because, although he was crucified in weakness for us, yet he shone with the majesty of a King above his cross. The title proclaimed that he was after all a King; and that from henceforth he began to reign from his cross over the Jews. And therefore Pilate was divinely restrained from making any alteration in the title, so that it should mean anything less than this. Mark 15:27 And with him they crucify two robbers (λησταί)—not "thieves" (κλέπται); St. Luke (Luke 23:32) shows that these two robbers formed a part of the procession to Calvary; but they were crucified after our Lord—one on his right hand, and one on his left. We know from St. Luke (Luke 23:40) that one of these malefactors was saved; while it would appear that the other died in his sins. And thus Christ upon his cross, between these two men, and with the title of King over his head, presented a striking and awful picture of the final judgment. Such is the view of St. Ambrose on St. Luke 22:1-71., and of St. Augustine, who says," This cross, if you mark it well, was a judgment-seat. For the Judge being placed in the midst, the one who believed was set free; the other who reviled him was condemned; and thus he signified what he will do with the quick and the dead. Some he will place on his right hand, and some on his left". Mark 15:28 This verse is omitted in the oldest manuscripts. It is supposed to have been taken from St. Luke (Luke 22:37). Mark 15:29, Mark 15:30 And they that passed by railed on him, wagging their heads. Here was another fulfillment of prophecy, and other aggravation of the misery of Christ. "All they that see me laugh me to scorn they shoot out the lip, they shake the head, saying, He trusted on the Lord that he would deliver him; let him deliver him, seeing he delighteth in him" (Psalms 22:7, Psalms 22:8). The torment of crucifixion itself was terrible; but it was a still greater torment to the Crucified to be insulted in his agony. Our Lord may well have had these words in his mind, ’"They persecute him whom thou hast smitten, and they tell of the sorrow of those whom thou hast wounded" (Psalms 69:26). They that passed by. Calvary was probably near to one of the thoroughfares leading to the city; so that there would be a continual stream of persons passing to and fro; more especially at this time, when Jerusalem was thronged with visitors. And no doubt the words of the accusation against him in its incorrect form would pass freely from mouth to mouth, Ha! thou that destroyest the temple, and buildest it in three days, save thyself. If you could make such a boast as this, show your power by coming down from the cross. Mark 15:31 The chief priests and the scribes are more bitter than the people. In fact they had all along endeavored to rouse the bad passions of the people against our Lord. And now they take advantage of this his present degraded condition to renew the old charge that his miracles of healing had been wrought by Beelzebub, because, if they had been wrought by God, God would have interposed in this his sore extremity and have set him free. He saved others. They cannot deny this fact. But they now try to turn this fact against him, by alleging that he who pretended to work miracles upon others, wrought them, not by the finger of God, but by Beelzebub, seeing that, if they had been wrought by a Divine power, the same power would now be exercised for his deliverance. They desired to take advantage of this public opportunity of exposing him as an impostor, and so they hoped to get rid of him, and at the same time to blot the very name of Christianity from out of the earth. Mark 15:32 Christ might have come down from the cross; but he would not, because it was his Father’s will that he should die upon the cross to redeem us from death. So he despised the taunts of the wicked, that he might teach us by his example to do the same. If he had chosen to descend from the cross, he would not have ascended. He knew that the death upon the cross was necessary for the salvation of men; and therefore he would go through the whole. He withheld the exercise of his power. His omnipotence restrained the natural longings of his suffering humanity to escape from these unutterable torments. So he would not come down from the cross, although within three days he would rise from the grave. And yet there was no word of indignation against his tormentors. On the contrary, he proclaimed mercy; for as he hung on his cross he said, "Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do." Mark 15:33 And when the sixth hour was come. This would be midday, twelve o’clock; and the darkness continued until the ninth hour, that is, three o’clock. This supernatural darkness came when the day is wont to be at its brightest. The moon was now at the full, so that it could not have been caused by what we call an eclipse, for when it is full moon the moon cannot intervene between the earth and the sun. This darkness was doubtless produced by the immediate interference of God. An account of it is given by Phlegon of Tralles, a freedman of the Emperor Adrian. Euse-bius, in his records of the year a.d. 33, quotes at length from Phlegon, who says that, in the fourth year of the 202nd Olympiad, there was a great and remarkable eclipse of the sun, above any that had happened before. At the sixth hour the day was turned into the darkness of night, so that stars were seen in the heaven; and there was a great earthquake in Bithynia, which overthrew many houses in the city of Nicaea. Phlegon attributes the darkness which he describes to an eclipse, which was natural enough for him to do. The knowledge of astronomy was then very imperfect. Phlegon also mentions an earthquake. This brings his account into very close correspondence with the sacred narrative. There was darkness ever the whole land (ἐφὅληντὴνγῆν). "Land" is a better rendering than "earth." We are not informed precisely how far the darkness extended. Dionysius says that he saw this phenomenon at Heliopolis, in Egypt, and he is reported to have exclaimed, "Either the God of nature, the Creator, is suffering, or the universe dissolving." St. Cyprian says, "The sun was constrained to withdraw his rays, and close his eyes, that he might not be compelled to look upon this crime of the Jews. To the same purpose St. Chrysostom, "The creature could net bear the wrong done to its Creator. Therefore the sun withdrew his rays, that he might not behold the deeds of the wicked." Mark 15:34 Eloi, Eloi, lama sabacthani? St. Mark here uses the Aramaic form St. Matthew refers to the original Hebrew. St. Mark in all probability took his form from St. Peter. It seems from hence that our Lord was in the habit of using the vernacular speech. Why hast thou forsaken me? (εἰςτίμεἐγκατέλιπες;). This might be rendered, Why didst thou forsake me? It is generally supposed that our blessed Lord, continually praying upon his cross, and offering himself a sacrifice for the sins of the whole world, recited the whole of the psalm (22.) of which these are the first words, that he might show himself to be the very Being to whom the words refer; so that the Jewish scribes and people might examine and see the cause why he would not descend from the cross; namely, because this very psalm showed that it was appointed that he should suffer these things. Mark 15:35 Notwithstanding the supernatural darkness, there were those who lingered about the cross. Indeed, the darkness would add greatly to the awfulness of the place. It was out of that darkness that the voice of Jesus was heard; and inasmuch as Elias, or Elijah, was believed to hold some relation to the Messiah, it was natural for some of those who stood by to understand the words to mean that our Lord was actually calling for Elias. Mark 15:36 There is a slight difference here in the narratives. St. Matthew (Matthew 27:49) says, "And the rest said, Let be; let us see whether Elijah cometh to save him." Here in St. Mark the words are recorded as having been spoken by him alone who offered our Lord the vinegar. According to St. John (John 21:1-25:28), the offering of the vinegar followed immediately upon the words of our Lord, "I thirst." This drink was not the stupefying potion given to criminals before their crucifixion, to lull the sense of pain, but the sour wine, the ordinary drink of the soldiers, called posen. The reed was most probably the long stalk of the hyssop plant. Dr. J. Forbes Royle, in an elaborate article on the subject, quoted in Smith’s ’Dictionary of the Bible’, arrives at the conclusion that the hyssop is none other than the caper plant, the Arabic name of which, asuf, bears a strong resemblance to the Hebrew. The plant is the Capparis spinosa of Linnaeus. The apparent difference between the narratives of St. Matthew and St. Mark may be reconciled by weaving in the narrative of St. John with those of the synoptists—the "Let be" of the soldiers in the one case being intended to restrain the individual from offering the wine; and the "Let be" of the individual, corresponding to our "Wait a moment," while he answered our Savior’s cry, "I thirst." Mark 15:37 And Jesus uttered a loud voice, and gave up the ghost. The three synoptists all mention this cry, which appears to have been something different from the words which he uttered at or about the time of his death. It was evidently something supernatural, and was so regarded by the centurion who stood by; and who had no doubt been accustomed to scenes like these. Usually the voice fails the dying, more especially when the natural forces have been weakened by long agony, as in the ease of our Lord. It seems, therefore, the right conclusion that he cried out, just before he expired, by that supernatural power which his Godhead supplied to him; and thus he showed that, although he had gone through all the pains which were sufficient in ordinary cases to produce death, yet that at length he did not die of necessity, but voluntarily, in accordance with what he had himself said, "No one taketh my life from me … I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again" (John 10:18). Victor Antiochanus, in commenting upon this chapter, says, "By this action the Lord Jesus proved that he had his whole life, and his death, in his own free power." Mark 15:38 And the veil of the temple was rent in twain from the top to the bottom. There were two veils—one before the holy place, and the other before the holy of holies. The holy place would correspond to what we call the nave of the church, in which the priests were continually present; the holy of holies would correspond to our chancel choir—the holiest part of the building. This was always kept closed; nor might any one enter it but the high priest, and that only once in the year, on the day of expiation. The veil which was rent at our Lord’s death was that which was placed before the holy of holies; it was called the καταπέτασμα. The outer veil was called κάλυμμα. It was the duty of the officiating priest, on the evening of the day of preparation, at the hour of evening prayer, which would correspond to the time of our Lord’s death, to enter into the holy place, where he would of course be between the two curtains, or veils, the outer veil, or κάλυμμα, and the inner veil, or καταπέτασμα It would then be his business to roll back the κάλυμμα, or outer veil, thus exposing the holy place to the people, who would be in the. outer court. And then and there they would see, to their amazement, the καραπέτασμα, the inner veil, rent asunder from the top to the bottom. These veils or curtains, according to Josephus, were each forty cubits in height and ten in breadth, of great substance, very massive, and richly embroidered with gold and purple. Now, this rending of the veil signified (1) that the whole of the Jewish dispensation, with its rites and ceremonies, was now unfolded by Christ; and that thenceforth the middle wall of partition was broken down, so that now, not the Jews only, but the Gentiles also might draw nigh by the blood of Christ. But (2) it further signified that the way to heaven was laid open by our Lord’s death. "When thou hadst overcome the sharpness of death, thou didst open the kingdom of heaven to all believers." The veil signified that heaven was closed to all, until Christ by his death rent this veil in twain, and laid open the way. Mark 15:39 And when the centurion, which stood by over against him (ὁπαρετηκὼςἐξἐναντίαςαὐτοῦ) saw that he so gave up the ghost. The words, "so cried out," are not in the most important authorities. It was the business of the centurion to watch all that took place, and to see that the sentence was executed. He must have been standing close under the cress; and there was that in the whole demeanour of the dying Sufferer, so different from anything that he had ever witnessed before, that it drew from him the involuntary exclamation, Truly this man was the Son of God. He had observed him through those weary hours; he had noticed the meekness and the dignity of the Sufferer; he had heard those words, so deeply impressed upon the faith and reverence of Christians, which fell from him from time to time as he hung there; and then at last he heard the piercing cry, so startling, so unexpected, which escaped him just before he yielded up his spirit; and he could come to no other conclusion than this, that he was in very deed God’s Son. It has been supposed by some that this centurion was Longiuus, who was led by the miracles which accompanied the death of Christ, to acknowledge him to be the Son of God, and to be a herald of his resurrection, and was ultimately himself put to death for the sake of Christ in Cappadocia. St. Chrysostom repeats the common report, that on account of his faith he was at last crowned with martyrdom. Mark 15:40 And there were also women holding from afar (ἀπὸμακρόθενθεωροῦσαι). St. Matthew (Matthew 27:55) says that there were many. Amongst them were Mary Magdalene, and Mary the wife of Clopas, or Alphaeus, and mother of James the less and of Joses, called brethren of our Lord, and the mother of Zebedee’s children, that is, Salerno. The mother of our Lord had been there until the time when, having with St. John crept as near the cross of Jesus as she might venture, she was consigned by our Lord to St. John’s care, and taken away by him. St. Mark mentions this to show the faith and love of these holy women, because in the very presence of the enemies of Christ they dared to stand by his cross, and shrank not from testifying their piety and devotion. St. John says that they stood near. He must have known; for at one time at least he was standing near. St. Matthew and St. Mark speak of them as at a distance. They were at a distance, no doubt, for the most part, as compared with the soldiers, whose duty it was to be in close attendance and to keep the people off. But these devoted women came as near as they could, so as to see and hear their Lord. Perhaps they were sometimes further off and sometimes nearer, as they saw opportunity, or as the humor of the officials suffered them. Mark 15:41 From this verse we learn that these women followed him, and ministered unto him when he was in Galilee; and that many other women came up with him unto Jerusalem. The sublime beauty of his character, and the spiritual, influence which he wielded, attracted them; and they were able to minister to the various needs of his humanity. Mark 15:42 And when even was now come. The sabbath commenced on the Friday evening at six o’clock. The evening commenced at three o’clock. Our Lord must be buried before six o’clock. Mark 15:43 Joseph of Arimathaea. St. Jerome says that this city was called Ramathaim-Zophim (the lofty place), where dwelt Elkanah and Hannah of old, and where Samuel was born. Joseph was most probably a native of Arimathaea; but he was now a citizen and counsellor of Jerusalem. He was an honorable counsellor (εὐσχήμωνβουλευτής), a councillor of honorable estate (Revised Version). St. Matthew says he was a rich man. It is evident that he regarded himself as a settled inhabitant of Jerusalem, since he had thus provided himself with a place of sepulture. He was waiting for (προσδεχόμενος)—literally, looking for—the kingdom of God. St. Matthew (Matthew 27:57) says that he was a disciple of Jesus. These circumstances explain his desire to bury our Lord. He boldly went in (τολμήσαςεἰσῆλθε)—literally, he took courage and went in—unto Pilate, and asked for the body of Jesus. A poor man would not have dared to approach Pilate for such a purpose as this. St. Chrysostom says, "The courage of Joseph is greatly to be admired, in that, for the love of Christ, he exposed himself to the danger of death." The fact that he was "looking for the kingdom of God" explains his conduct. It shows that he believed in Christ, and through his grace hoped for everlasting salvation; and in this hope he thought little of shelving his reverence for Christ, and so" boldly went in unto Pilate, and asked for the body of Jesus." Mark 15:44 And Pilate marvelled if he were already dead: and calling unto him the centurion, he asked him whether he had been any while dead. It must have Been somewhat early in the afternoon, probably not long after three o’clock, when Joseph went. The day being the Preparation, the Jews were anxious to satisfy the letter of the Law (Deuteronomy 21:13), and that, more especially, because the coming sabbath was a "high day." So they had gone early to Pilate to obtain permission to accelerate the deaths of the sufferers by the terrible additional punishment called σκελοκοπία. This violence was not inflicted upon our Lord, because he was already dead; and so another Scripture was fulfilled, "A bone of him shall not be broken." But it was necessary that Pilate should be assured of the fact that death had taken place before he gave up the body; and thus, in the providence of God, another evidence was given of the reality of Christ’s death. Joseph asked for the body (σῶμα). Then Pilate asked the centurion "whether he had been any while dead." The verb here is in the aorist, and the adverb means "formerly" (εἰπάλαιἀπέθανε); literally, if he died some time ago. Mark 15:45 And when he learned it of the centurion, he granted (ἐδωρήσατο) the corpse (τὸπτῶμα) to Joseph. Mark 15:46 And he bought a linen cloth (σινδόνα). This was a fine linen garment, or shroud, something like that in which the young man fled the night before. And taking him down (καθελὼναὐτὸν). It appears from these words that Joseph himself, assisted probably by Nicodemus and others, actually took the body of our Lord down from the cross. wrapped the sindon round him, and laid him in his own new tomb, which had been hewn out of the rock. The word rendered "tomb" is μνημεῖον, as being intended to be a memorial of the departed. And he rolled a stone against the door of the tomb. The door here means "the opening," or "entrance." Thus, while our Lord died with the wicked, he was with the rich in his death (Isaiah 53:9). Mark 15:47 And Mary Magdalene and Mary the mother of Joses beheld where he was laid (ἐθεώρουνποῦτίθεται); literally, were beholding where he was laid. These women were two of the group mentioned at Mark 15:40. They remained, after the body of our Lord had been deposited, in sad and silent contemplation. The women appear to have broken up into two groups. One group went alone to purchase spices and ointments, which it was necessary for them to do before six o’clock, when the sabbath commenced; in readiness for the embalming. Mary Magdalene and Mary the mother of Joses and Salome appear to have bought them after six o’clock on the Saturday night. Mark 15:1-15 The trial before Pilate. How true it is that "God spared not his own Son, but delivered him up for us all"! Jesus was first examined by Annas, then tried before Caiaphas, the high priest, then formally condemned by the Sanhedrim. But these mock-trials, with all their injustice and their indignities, were not enough to exhaust the appointed humiliation and suffering. Christ must needs be brought before the Roman governor, who had come up from Caesarea to Jerusalem to attend the Feast of the Passover. In order that he might endure the curse attaching to every one that hangeth on a tree, in order that he might fulfill his own prediction that he should die by crucifixion, he must needs be sentenced, not merely by a Hebrew, but also by a Roman tribunal. The passage before us exhibits the several agencies by which the condemnation of Christ was brought about. I. THE MALICE AND ENVY OF THE PRIESTS. Pilate "perceived that for envy the chief priests had delivered him up." They both hated the spiritual teaching of the Prophet of Nazareth, so much at variance with their own; and they were jealous of the influence which he had acquired over the people, not only in Galilee, but in Judaea. The hatred and envy of the priests, Pharisees, Sadducees, and scribes, had been abundantly shown by their treatment of Jesus for some time past, but was made more apparent by the events of the past night. Their apprehension of him in the garden, their treatment of him before the high priest, had been flagitiously malicious and unjust. And now their charge against him at the bar of Pilate—a charge virtually of political treason against the authority of the Roman empire—was a proof of the length to which their hatred and hypocrisy could proceed. They brought this charge, simply because they thought that this would tell most against him in the estimation of the procurator. II. THE AND THE CHOICE OF THE . But a few days ago the crowds in the streets of Jerusalem had welcomed the Prophet of Nazareth with the cry, "Hosanna to the Son of David; blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord." Of those who thus hailed the triumphal entry of the Nazarene, probably the greater part were Galileans. And the apprehension of Jesus had been effected at night; the trial of Jesus had been hurried on before the day, probably with this intent, that the pilgrims from the north of Palestine, who were so largely adherents of Jesus, might be prevented from taking any steps to rescue the Prisoner, or at all events from making a demonstration on his behalf. Yet the populace inhabiting and sojourning in the city cannot be acquitted of proverbial fickleness. The minions of the priesthood, no doubt, led the way, and raised the first shouts of popular outcry against Jesus. The multitude were instigated by the sacerdotal party and their adherents to this position of hostility, this ferocious howl for the blood of the Innocent. The infamous choice of the populace, who preferred Barabbas to Jesus, is one of the most distressing incidents of the awful martydom. A rioter and murderer was apparently represented as a champion of national independence, whilst "the Holy One and the Just" was charged with being the enemy of the temple and its services and solemnities. In this way the people were wrought upon to demand the death of the precious and the liberation of the vile. III. THE , , AND FEAR OF THE ROMAN . After all, the responsibility of capital punishment lay with Pilate. Had he stood firm for justice and right against lawlessness and violence, Jesus would have been saved. But so it was not to be. The governor’s own conviction of the innocence and excellence of the accused are evident, both from his language, "Why, what evil hath he done?" "I find no fault in him," and also from his repeated though unsuccessful, because irresolute, efforts to save his life. It is clear that Pilate admired and respected the Prisoner, whilst he despised the accusers and the mob. Yet he yielded to the savage outcry, from a desire to content the Jews, with whom it was his interest to stand well, and from fear lest, if he acquitted the Prisoner, his conduct might be misrepresented to the emperor to his disadvantage, and so might prove the occasion of his ruin. Desire of popularity, fear of the tyrant’s frown,—these were the two motives which, in the mind of the cynical and selfish procurator, outweighed all considerations of righteousness and humanity. So it came to pass that Jesus "suffered under Pontius Pilate." IV. THE AND THE OF CHRIST HIMSELF. The demeanour of Jesus was dignified and honorable, but far from fitted to procure his release. Silence, when false witnesses testified against him, only infuriated his foes. Before the Jewish tribunal he acknowledged that he was the Messiah and the Son of God. Before Pilate he confessed himself a King—a confession which, however explained as a claim to spiritual dominion, was an embarrassment to his well-wisher and judge. And his reminder that there was a higher, because a Divine, authority, to which all earthly authority is subordinate, was itself irritating to a proud and absolute ruler. There was a marvellous mingling of boldness and meekness in the conduct of the innocent and holy Prisoner. Morally, this demeanour exculpated him; but legally it was to his disadvantage. And his confession of royalty became his sentence of condemnation; written upon his cross for the apparent vindication, but for the real and eternal censure, of those who accused and of him who sentenced him. Thus did Jesus "witness a good confession before Pontius Pilate." . 1. Observe the force and virulence of sin taking possession of human nature, and corrupting and degrading it. The malice, bigotry, and falsehood of the priests, the fickleness and unreasoning fury of the mob, the selfishness and cowardice of the governor,—all illustrate the length to which sin can go. The innocence and benevolence of the Victim render more conspicuous the enormity of his foes. 2. Observe the faultless and beautiful spirit displayed by the Sufferer, the absence of all resentment or complaint, the meek submission to all that he needs must suffer. A Being so morally perfect demands our admiration and our worship, invites our confidence and our love. 3. Consider the price of our redemption. Jesus bore all this injustice, these insults, for man. He was condemned that we might be acquitted; he was slain that we might live. Mark 15:16-20 Christ mocked. During this awful night and morning our Lord thrice underwent the suffering and indignity of public and vulgar derision. First before the high priest, at the hands of the officers and servants of Caiaphas; then again when he was set at nought and mocked by the brutal soldiery of Herod Antipas; and now yet once more, when Pilate delivered him into the keeping of the Roman soldiers, a company of whom were about to lead him forth to crucifixion. Insult was added to insult, and his bitter cup ran over. I. THE MOCKERS. The whole band or cohort are said to have joined in the ribald sport in the Praetorium. What they did, it must be remembered, they did largely in ignorance. These Roman legionaries knew nothing of a Messiah, and were probably utterly unacquainted with the character and career of him whom Pilate had delivered over to them. Their insensibility to human suffering was equal to their indifference to human innocence and virtue. All they knew was that their master, though professedly convinced of Jesus’ blamelessness, was yet content to give him up into their hands to ill treat and to put to a shameful death. We cannot, therefore, wonder at their insolence and cruelty. Yet we cannot read the sad story without feelings of shame and of sorrow, as we remember that persons belonging to our race, and sharing our nature, should have inflicted such indignities upon "the Holy One and the Just," upon the world’s Friend and Savior. II. THE . These were many, base, and repeated. 1. Jesus was invested with a purple robe. Probably this was a military cloak, whose crimson hue might render it an emblem of the imperial purple. 2. He was crowned with a circlet of thorns, another symbol of royalty, doubtless roughly woven from the stem of a prickly shrub. 3. He was addressed as "King." Utterly incapable of understanding a moral sovereignty, a spiritual sway, these coarse soldiers, to whom force was all, insulted the meek and unresisting Sufferer by the use of a title which from their lips could be only derisive. 4. He was saluted with the semblance of honor and homage; they" bowed the knee, and worshipped him." 5. They smote his sacred head with the scepter-reed. How affecting this treatment! The very fact which should have been Christ’s claim to respect, confidence, and adoration—his royal authority over the conscience and heart of humanity—was turned into a ground of reproach and a matter of reviling. Thus men treated their Divine and rightful King. III. THE STERN REALITY TO WHICH THE MOCKERY WAS A PRELUDE AND A . Knowing what was before the Condemned, decency and humanity should have led them to spare him these insults. But when they were over, there was worse to come. The purple was stripped from his form; his own garments were placed on him; the beam of the cross was laid upon his shoulders; he was thrust into his place in the rude procession; and then was led away to crucifixion. 1. Admire the meekness of him "who, when reviled, reviled not again; when he suffered, threatened not." Never was sorrow like his sorrow, and never patience like his patience. 2. Recognize the true royalty which a spiritual judgment may discern underlying the mockery and derision here recorded. See in Jesus a King, though crowned with thorns. 3. Learn to confide in a Savior whose purpose to save was so resolute and so benevolent, as is apparent here. A salvation procured at such a cost is a salvation of which none should hear unmoved, and which none who needs it should hesitate or delay to accept. Mark 15:21-32 The crucifixion. The bigots and the mob have gained their end, and now have their own way with "the Holy One and the Just." The power of Rome is brought into the service of Jewish fanaticism and malice. All evil influences have conspired together. Now is their hour and the power of darkness. The world’s sin has culminated in the rejection of the world’s Savior. All happens as has been foreseen in the counsels of God, and foretold by inspired prophets and by the Son of man himself. The Christ of God is crucified. I. THE FOR THE . The story is very simply told; there is no endeavor to excite feeling by any other means than by the clear and artless relation of the facts. But this is enough to awaken the sympathy of every mind capable of realizing the injustice of Christ’s enemies, and the meekness, compassion, and fortitude of the Sufferer. 1. The bearing of the cross. That Jesus, exhausted by the events of the past night and of this morning, by the wakeful hours, the scourging and the insults he had endured, should now be incapable of carrying the instrument of his final sufferings, is natural enough. The soldiers, indisposed themselves to bear the burden, beneath which they see the Sufferer sinking, impress into the service a Cyrenian Israelite, who has come to the Passover now celebrating at Jerusalem, and who has been sleeping in one of the villages near the city, but is on his way to the scene of the sacred solemnities. What seems to the soldiers and to the mob a degradation, is to become an honorable and happy memory to Simon, whose family is destined in after years to hold a high place in the regard of the Christian community, and whose name is henceforth to be linked with that of the Redeemer by this sacred and touching association. 2. The approach to Golgotha. Imagination has filled the void wisely left by the evangelists; and the via dolorosa has been marked by "stations," each of which has been signalized by some episode of suffering, mercy, or sympathy. The spot where the execution of the iniquitous sentence took place may have been to the north-west of the city, and the name—"the place of a skull"—may have been derived from its form, rounded and bare. It needs no fanciful legends to endear a spot so memorable to the heart of Christendom; the pathos of the plain fact is enough. Calvary—"lovely, mournful Calvary"—was the scene of Immanuel’s passion. 3. The offering of myrrh-mingled wine. The compassion of the ladies of Jerusalem is said to have provided a soporific, stupefying, narcotic draught, to be administered in humanity to the criminals who were condemned to die a painful and lingering death, it seems to have been in conformity with custom and from motives of sympathy that the draught was offered to Jesus. "Fill high the bowl, and spice it well, and pour The dews oblivious: for the cross is sharp; The cross is sharp, and he Is tenderer than a lamb." His refusal was owing to his determination to accept to the full the lot of undeserved pain and anguish appointed for him. "Thou wilt feel all, that thou may’st pity all." He had already exclaimed, "The cup which my Father hath given me, shall I not drink it?" and it would seem that this cup of woe could not be drunk except by the retention of his faculties to the very last. 4. The parting of his garments. These were the perquisite of the executioners, who divided amongst themselves some of his raiment, and who cast lots for the seamless robe. This was not on]y the fulfillment of a prediction, but it was an element in the humiliation and self-sacrifice of the Son of man. II. THE AND ITS . "They crucified him;" such is the brief notification of the most stupendous crime committed in the history of mankind. Every circumstance recorded in such a connection is worthy of attention. 1. There is a note of time. It was the third hour, i.e. nine o’clock in the forenoon. From this we infer how hurried had been the proceedings since the break of day, and how prolonged were those sufferings, which did not close until three in the afternoon. 2. There is a memorandum of the superscription. This was the accusation, upon which, unproved and misrepresented, Pilate had been induced to sanction this legal murder. A King crucified, and crucified by his subjects; no wonder that such a crime should be disowned, or rather such a stigma resented, by the priests and elders. When Pilate persisted that the inscription should remain, he bore witness unconsciously alike to the spiritual royalty of Jesus and to the flagitious rebellion of the leaders of the Jewish nation. The cross was in truth Christ’s earthly throne, the symbol of a world-wide empire. He had said, "I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw all men unto me." 3. There is an account of his companions upon the cross. If anything could possibly add to the ignominy of our Savior’s death, it was the society in which he suffered. Barabbas had, indeed, been released; but there were two robbers condemned to death, and awaiting the execution of their sentence. Accordingly, advantage was taken of the opportunity to carry out the sentence against the Christ and the criminals upon the same occasion. Thus was he "numbered with the transgressors," and an additional stigma attached to him by his association with the vilest of the vile. No wonder that the ignorant and unspiritual made this a ground of reviling against Jesus, and of reproach against his followers. III. THE MOCKERY THAT THE . To add to the insults, the jeering, the scoffing, which Jesus had endured during his trials, it was permitted that his dying hours should be disturbed, and his dying agonies intensified, by the mockery of various classes of his foes. 1. The passers-by railed on him. With the customary contempt for the fallen and deserted, those passing in and out of the city insulted the Crucified, with gestures of derision and tones of contempt, recalling the language in which he had asserted his authority, and contrasting it with his pitiable condition, terrible sufferings, and apparent helplessness. 2. The chief priests and scribes, who had been foremost in effecting his downfall, were prominent in glorying over the work of their hands, and in scoffing at him upon whom they had wreaked their vengeance. From their lips came the language which, intended to be a reproach, was really, and has ever been deemed, one of the most glorious tributes ever paid to the Redeemer: "He saved others; himself he cannot save!" When they asked that he should come down from the cross upon which their malice had raised him, and professed their willingness upon such evidence to believe in him, we cannot doubt that their words were hollow, vulgar mockery. 3. That no element of misery might be wanting in the Savior’s anguish, it was permitted that the very thieves should join in the raillery with which Jesus was encompassed and tortured. This, indeed, only gives an additional touch of pathos to the story of the penitent thief which St. Luke tells so exquisitely, and shows, in the brighter colors of contrast, the powerful gentleness and unselfish pity of the dying Savior. 1. Admire the submission and meekness of Christ’s demeanour. 2. Consider with gratitude the redemptive purpose which animated and sustained the Sufferer. 3. Learn to glory in that cross, which, from an emblem of shame, has by Christ been transformed into a symbol of salvation. Mark 15:33-41 The death of Jesus. Jesus had, in the course of his ministry, raised the dead to life. Three such instances are recorded in the Gospels; and it is intimated that there were other cases which have not been circumstantially related. And now the time came for himself to die, to accomplish at Jerusalem the decease he had foreseen and foretold. That he might have avoided this fate is obvious; and he had himself declared that no man took his life from him. The time, however, had arrived for him to lay down that life of himself, in submitting to be, "by wicked hands, crucified and slain." I. The evangelist relates CHRIST’S DEATH. 1. The darkness which brooded over the city, and over the whole land, for the space of three hours, was apparently supernatural, and has usually been regarded as a manifest token of Nature’s sympathy with her Lord. It was an appropriate accompaniment to the sad and awful event that was transpiring. 2. The utterance of desertion and of woe. The dying Savior’s cry has ever been regarded as affording a glance into the innermost, the sacred, the unfathomable mysteries of his soul. Explain it we cannot; disregard it we dare not. Surely, this cannot be regarded as a mere exclamation of distress! Surely, it cannot have been wrung from the Redeemer by the severity of bodily pain and anguish! It has been well said that the sufferings of his soul were the soul of his sufferings. The only explanation of the cry, "My God, why hast thou forsaken me?" is that furnished by the mental agonies which the world’s Redeemer was enduring, which clouded his sense of the Father’s favor. On the one hand, we cannot suppose this language to have been a mere cry of distress; on the other hand, we cannot conceive that the Father had withdrawn his favor from his well-beloved Son, who wan now proving himself to be obedient unto death, even the death of the cross. The fact is that the burden of the world’s sins and sorrows pressed like a dense cloud upon his soul, and obscured from his view the shining of the Father’s face. This entry is longer than a Bible module can hold. The rest is at https://www.sermonindex.net/commentary/pulpit-commentary/ Mark 16:1 And when the sabbath was past, Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James, and Salome, bought spices ἠγόρασανἀρώματα) that they might come and anoint him. A hasty but lavish embalming of our Lord’s sacred body had been begun on Friday evening by Joseph and Nicodemus. They had "brought a mixture of myrrh and aloes, about a hundred pound weight" (John 19:39). This would be a compound—the gum of the myrrh tree, and a powder of the fragrant aloe wood mixed together, with which they would completely cover the body, which was then swathed with linen cloths (ὀθόνια), also steeped in the aromatic preparation. Then the sindon would he placed over all. Compare the ἐνετύλιξεν, of St. Luke (Luke 23:53), as applying to the sindon, with the ἔδησαν of St. John (John 21:1-25:40) as applying to the ὀθόνια. This verse records a further stage in the embalming. What had been done on the Friday evening had been done in haste, and yet sufficiently for the preservation of the sacred body, if that had been needful, from decay. The remaining work could be done more carefully and tenderly at the tomb. Observe the aorist in this verse (hJgo>rasan) "they bought;" not "they had bought." Mark 16:2 And very early on the first day of the week (λιάνπρωΐ́τῇμιᾶτῶνσαββάτων), they come among themselves, Who shall roll us away the stone from the door of the tomb? The usual form of tombs in Palestine was the following:—There was generally an approach to the tomb open to the sky; then a low entrance on the side of the rock, leading into a square chamber, on one side of which was a recess for the body, about three feet deep, with a low arch over it. The stone here referred to by the women would be the stone which covered the actual entrance into the vault. It would probably be not less than six feet in breadth and three in height. This great stone had been rolled By Joseph to the mouth of the tomb; and then he had departed. Now, as the women approached, "they were saying (ἔλεγον,) among themselves, Who shall roll us away (ἀποκυλίσει) the stone?" They had seen the arrangements, and had observed the size of the atone on the Friday evening. (Mark 15:47). Mark 16:4 And looking up (ἀναβλέψασαι) they see (θεωροῦσιν) that the stone is rolled back (ἀποκεκύλισται): for it was exceeding great (μέγαςσφόδρα). At this point we learn from St. John that Mary Magdalene ran away to tell Peter and John (John 20:2). Mark 16:5 And entering into the tomb, they saw a young man sitting on the right side, arrayed in a white robe; and they were amazed. They enter the tomb, the expression "tomb" including the ante-chamber They see that the stone has been rolled back, so as to expose the entrance into the place where Jesus had lain. On that stone a young man was sitting. The angel peared in the form of a young man, because youth indicates the vigor, the beauty, and the strength of angels. The good angels always appear in beauty and comeliness of form. There will be no deformity in heaven. The angel appeared as arrayed in a white robe. This white robe, or talar indicated a heavenly spiritual being. St. Matthew (Matthew 28:3) says that "his countenance was like lightning," flashing with splendor, and his raiment was as white as snow. It may be that he appeared more terrible to the keepers (Matthew 28:4), and that he abated something of his dazzling brightness when he appeared to the women; but "they were affrighted" (ἐξεθαμβήθησαν); literally, they were amazed. Amazement was the dominant feeling, though probably not unmingled with fear. Mark 16:6 And he saith unto them, Be not amazed—μὴἐκθαμβεῖσθε, the same word—ye seek Jesus, the Nazarene, which hath been crucified: he is risen; he is not here: behold, the place where they laid him; that is, here is the place where they laid him (ἴδεὁτόπος). St. Matthew (Matthew 28:6) says, "Come, see the place where the Lord lay" (Δεῦτεἴδετετὸντόπον). This seems to imply that the women actually entered the inner chamber, and saw the very place where the Lord lay. Who does not see here how irrefragable is the evidence of his resurrection? Mark 16:7 But go, tell his disciples and Peter, He goeth before you into Galilee: there shall ye see him, as he said unto you. St. Gregory (’Hom. in Evan.’) says, "If the angel had not named Peter, he would not have dared to come amongst the disciples. Therefore he is specially named, lest he should despair on account of his denial." It was evidently intended as a special message of comfort to Peter. St. Luke (Luke 24:34) records the personal appearance of our Lord first to Peter. Here St. Mark, with characteristic modesty, keeps Peter in the background. In Mark 14:28 our Lord is recorded to have said, "After I am raised up, I will go before you into Galilee." He would go before them as their Shepherd, and lead them to that part of the Holy Land which, as he had honored it before his resurrection, so he would honor it again now. Mark 16:8 And they went out—the word (ταχὺ) "quickly" is omitted—and fled from the tomb; for trembling and astonishment had come upon them (τρόμοςκαὶἔκστασις)—agitation and ecstasy; they were in a state of the utmost excitement. And they said nothing to any one; for they were afraid. The vision of angels had terrified them. They were probably afraid to say anything to any one, on account of the Jews, lest it should be said that they had stolen the body of Jesus. It has been well remarked that independent accounts of events occurring a time of supreme excitement, and related by trustworthy witnesses, but from different points of view, naturally present difficulties which cannot be cleared up without a full knowledge of all the particulars. (See ’Speaker’s Commentary’ in Matthew 28:9) Mark 16:9 Now when he was risen early on the first day of the week, he appeared first to Mary Magdalene, from whom he had cast out seven devils. St. Luke (Luke 8:2) mentions that "seven devils had gone out of her;" and St. Mark repeats it here, to show the power of love and penitence, that she was the first to be permitted to see the risen Savior. The vision of the angel had scared her, and she said nothing; but the actual sight of her risen Lord gave her confidence, and she went immediately, in obedience to his command, and told the disciples (see John 20:11-18). She had lingered about his tomb; her strong affection riveted her to the spot. Mark 16:10 She went and told (ἐκείνηπορευθεῖσαἀπήγγειλε) them that had been with him, as they mourned and wept. The aorist here indicates immediate action. This word πορεύεσθαι occurs again in Mark 16:12 and Mark 16:15, but nowhere else in St. Mark’s Gospel It is to be noticed, however, that it occurs twice in the First Epistle of St. Peter, and once in his Second Epistle. This seems to connect St. Peter with the writer of these verses. Mark 16:11 And they, when they heard that he was alive, and had been seen of her, disbelieved (ἠπίστησαν). They refused to believe on the bare statement of Mary Magdalene, although M. Renan says, "Sa grande affirmation de femme, ’Il est res-suscitei’ a ete la base de la foi de l’humanite." They did not believe her until the risen Lord stood before them., p. 297.) Mark 16:12 And after these things he was manifested in another form unto two of them, as they walked (πορευομένοις) on their way into the country. This appearance is doubtless the same as that which is related fully by St. Luke (Luke 24:13). Mark 16:13 And they went away and told it unto the rest: neither believed they them. This want of faith happened by the permission and providence of God. "This their unbelief," says St. Gregory, "was not so much their infirmity as our future constancy on the faith." Mark 16:14 And afterward (ὕστερονδὲ) he was manifested (ἐφανερώθη) unto the eleven themselves (αὐτοῖςτοῖςἔνδεκα) as they sat at meat. There is an emphasis here on the word "themselves." The former appearances had been to persons not having any official character. But now he appears to the eleven apostles, when they were all gathered together at the close of that memorable day. "Unto the eleven." If, as seems evident, this appearance refers to the day of our Lord’s resurrection, there would be only ten present; for Thomas was not then with them. Still, they might be called the eleven, because the apostolic college was reduced to eleven after the betrayal by Judas; so that they might still be called the eleven, although Thomas was absent. St. Bernard says on this, "If Christ comes and is present when we sit at meat, how much more when we kneel in prayer!" He upbraided them (ὠνείδισε). This is a strong word of rebuke. They ought to have received the testimony of competent witnesses. But their doubts were only removed by the evidence of their senses; just as afterwards in the case of Thomas. St. Mark is always careful to record the rebukes administered by our Lord to his apostles. Mark 16:15, Mark 16:16 And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to the whole creation (πάσῃτῇκτίσει). He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that disbelieveth shall be condemned. Here is a considerable interval of time, not noticed in any way by the evangelist. And he saith unto them; not on the day of his resurrection. It would seem that this charge was delivered to them in Galilee, and that it is the same as that recorded in St. Matthew (Matthew 28:19), which was again repeated immediately before his ascension from Bethany. Go ye into all the world; not into Judaea only, but everywhere. This command has expanded with the discovery in later times of new portions of the inhabited earth; and must ever be coextensive with geographic discovery. Preach the gospel to the whole creation; that is, "among all nations." Man is the noblest work of God. All the creation is gathered up in him, created after the image of the Creator. He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that disbelieveth shall be condemned. These words are very important. The first clause opposes the notion that faith alone is sufficient for salvation, without those works which are the fruit of faith. He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; that is, he that believeth, and as an evidence of his faith accepts Christ’s baptism, and fulfils the promises and vows which he then took upon himself, working out his own salvation with fear and trembling, shall be saved. But he that disbelieveth shall be condemned (ὁδὲἀπιστήσαςκατακριθήσεται,). The condemnation anticipates the doom which will be incurred by continual unbelief. Mark 16:17, Mark 16:18 And these signs shall follow them that believe. Such evidences were necessary in the first dawn of Christianity, to attract attention to the doctrine; but our Lord’s words do not mean that they were to be in perpetuity, as a continually recurring evidence of the truth of Christianity. St. Gregory (on 1 Corinthians 14:22) says, "These signs were necessary in the beginning of Christianity. In order that faith might take root and increase, it must be nourished by miracle; for so even we, when we plant shrubs, only water them until we see that they are taking root, and when we see that they have rooted themselves, we cease to water them. And this is what St. Paul means where he says ’Tongues are for a sign, not to those who believe, but to the unbelieving’ (1 Corinthians 14:22)." In my name shall they cast out devils. St. Mark, of all the evangelists, dwells most perhaps on this, as characteristic of our Lord’s work, and as the evidence of his supreme dominion over the spiritual world. They shall speak with new tongues. This was the first intimation of the great miracle to be inaugurated on the day of Pentecost. The gift was continued but for a very limited time. They shall take up serpents. The instance of St. Paul at Melita (Acts 28:3-5) would be familiar to St. Mark’s readers. And if they drink any deadly thing, it shall in no wise hurt them. There are some few traditionary notices of the fulfillment of this promise; as in the case of "Justus Barsabas," mentioned by Eusebius (’H.E.,’ 3, 19), and of St. John, mentioned by St. Augustine. It may be observed of this passage, that no one could have interpolated it after the cessation of the signs to which it refers, which took place very early. Mark 16:19 So then the Lord Jesus, after he had spoken unto them, was received up into heaven. Here is another interval. The evangelist has gathered up some few of the most important words and sayings of Christ; and now he takes his reader to Bethany, the scene of our Lord’s ascension. It has been well observed (see Bishop Wordsworth, in loc.) that the fact of the Ascension is gradually revealed in the Gospels. St. Matthew does not mention it at all. St. Mark refers to it in this brief and very simple manner. But St. Luke describes it with great fullness, both in his Gospel and in the Acts of the Apostles, throughout which book he leads his readers to contemplate Christ as ascended into heaven, and as sitting at God’s right hand, and as ruling the Church and the world from the throne of his glory. Mark 16:20 And they went forth, and preached everywhere, the Lord working with them, and confirming the word by the signs that followed. Amen. These words are alluded to in several passages by Justin Martyr, and, for the reasons given above, could not have been written later than the time of miracles being wrought. They form a fitting introduction to the Acts of the Apostles. Cornelius a Lapide concludes his Commentary upon St. Mark with the following beautiful apostrophe of St. Augustine:—"O kingdom of everlasting blessedness, where youth never grows old, where beauty never fades, where love never waxes cold, where health never fails, where joy never decreases, where life never ends!" Mark 16:1-8 The empty sepulcher. In this passage there is no direct narrative of the Savior’s resurrection. The evangelist probably tells what, and only what, he had heard from credible and well-known witnesses. There were no such witnesses to the act of the Lord’s emergence from the tomb. But the Marys and Salome had stated what they had seen and heard. They declared that, although they went early to the sepulcher, they found it both open and empty. They related their interview with the young man, the angel, who informed them that Jesus had risen. And it is upon their testimony that the evangelist bases in the first instance his gospel of the resurrection. I. LOVE WILL FIND AND WAYS OF ITSELF. In our Lord’s ministry, devout and attached women had often provided for his wants. When the end of that ministry arrived, these affectionate friends were found faithful to their Master; they were amongst the witnesses of his crucifixion and his death. Nor did they then withdraw, but lingered by the lifeless body until it was deposited in the new-hewn tomb. Even then their love was not satisfied; it remained for them to finish the rites which had been so hastily performed by Nicodemus and Joseph, and so abruptly suspended by the sunset which was the commencement of the Jewish sabbath. Behold them, accordingly, in the garden immediately after sunrise. On the past evening they have purchased spices; and they have now, at early morning, come, laden with the fragrant preparations, to perform the last offices to the body of him they have long honored and loved. The incident reminds us of the grateful and most graceful tribute offered to Jesus by the sister of Lazarus, who poured the costly perfume over the sacred feet of her Lord, her Benefactor. In both cases the value and the charm of the services are owing to the love by which they were inspired. Love followed Jesus, not only in the way, and into the dwelling, but to the cross and to the grave. They who truly love the Lord Christ will find opportunities in abundance of proving their affection.’ II. WE IMAGINE WHICH GOD HAS ALREADY SOLVED FOR US. NO wonder that these feeble women questioned one with another, "Who shall roll us away the stone?" Strong men had closed the entrance to the tomb by placing this huge stone against it; how should this barrier to the carrying out of their intentions be removed? They looked up, and lo! the stone was rolled away. This had been done at daybreak by the celestial messenger. Very similar is much of Christian experience. We perplex ourselves, it may be, with speculative difficulties. Nature and revelation teem with mysteries. To our finite and untrained, inexperienced intelligence it must be so. Our penetration is too dull, our wisdom is too short-sighted; our powers, knowledge, and opportunities are all unequal to the task. But all is clear to that Being who is infinitely wise; and when we lift up our eyes we shall in due time see the resolution of our doubts. We perplex ourselves, it may be, with practical difficulties. How shall we do our work—that work being so vast, and we so hell, less? How shall we train our family, conduct our business, discharge our responsibilities? We cannot tell. But, looking unto him, we shall be lightened. He shall bring our way to pass. We perplex ourselves, ’it may be, with difficulties as to the Church and kingdom of Christ. How shall the Lord’s people be awakened to zeal, or reconciled in unity, or qualified for the work assigned them in a dark and sinful world? Our mind is baffled by the problem, which we have no means of solving. Let us go on our way. When we come to our difficulty, we may perhaps find that it is gone. Let us leave the problems of the future to be solved by him with whom all is one eternal "now." Let us commit the distant in space and in time to him to whom belong alike the far-off and the near. There is no stone so exceeding great that he cannot roll it away; none that he will suffer to hinder or delay the execution of his own purposes. III. CHRIST MAY BE SOUGHT IN THE GRAVE, BUT HE IS FOUND IN THE RISEN LIFE, THE REALM. Notwithstanding that Jesus had foretold both his death and his resurrection, the disciples were overwhelmed with astonishment at his crucifixion, and were amazed and incredulous at the tidings of his triumph over the grave. The men do not seem to have come to the tomb until they were summoned; the women came, but they came to embalm the dead, not to welcome the living—the risen, It needed that they should be assured "He is risen; he is not here]" in order that the current of their mournful thoughts should be arrested and reversed. In the tomb they did not find him, but they met him in his glorious resurrection-body. There are many who still commit the same mistake regarding our Savior. They think of his bodily and earthly life, of its outward incidents and of its tragic close. They think of him as if his ministry and his mediation came to an end on Calvary. They do not think of him as risen, as living in human society, as working in human hearts, as governing and blessing human lives. Yet, for us, what is the significance of the Redeemer’s rising from the dead? Is it not just this—that the Savior’s resurrection-life is his moral and spiritual sway over humanity? It is not in his body that his presence consists. It is in the penetration of the world’s moral nature by his ever-present, all-pervading Spirit; it is in the transformation of the world’s moral life by the power of his sacrifice, his obedience, his self-denial, his benevolence. Many a king and conqueror has died, after a life of ambition, a career of slaughter and of oppression. The death of such has been welcome, for it has put an end to a power for mischief which has cursed the world. But every teacher, every discoverer of truth, has implanted in the soul of humanity a seed which has outlived himself. How much more does the Divine Light and Life of men continue to illumine and to inspire the world, which first rejected him, and then found out his inestimable worth, his incalculable power! IV. THE MOST WELCOME AND 1S AT FIRST WITH FEAR, , AND SILENCE. Of the women we read, "They were amazed;" "trembling and astonishment came upon them;" "they were afraid;" "they said nothing to any one." It is a strange effect to follow from such a cause. Nothing could be so welcome and so joyful as the news which greeted them. But it was too startling, too surprising, too unexpected. They "departed with fear and great joy," just as the eleven afterwards "disbelieved for joy." There is news which seems too good to be true. Even so now there are doubting souls, who fain would believe in a Divine Savior, and who withhold their faith, not from unspirituality of nature and habit, but from the intensity of their appreciation of the blessing needed—the revelation of Divine favor, and the prospect of a glorious immortality. Let such raise their minds to the height of the Divine benevolence. "Why should it be thought a thing incredible with you that God should raise the dead?" Such an interposition is surely worthy even of the Supreme! "That our faith and hope might be in God." Surely such an end may be believed to justify the most unexampled revelation and the most stupendous display of power. It is well that the tidings should be received with some sense of their amazing importance and their unique bearing upon the state and prospects of mankind. V. THE NEWS OF THE IS GOOD TIDINGS TO BE ABROAD. The faithful women were directed to act as messengers. They have been called "the apostles of the apostles." They were to find Peter and the other disciples, to tell them that Jesus had risen, and to direct them where they should meet him. This they did, and in so doing they set an example to Christians in all coming time. Whatever else may be said of the resurrection of Jesus, this must be said of it first and foremost: It is good news, worthy of all acceptation. As such the apostles received it, and as such they published it. In the record of their ministry, nothing is so prominently put forward as their preaching Jesus and the Resurrection. A risen and glorified Savior was the Savior they preached—a Savior who had died, but who liveth evermore. Glad tidings to be proclaimed in every language and to all mankind! . 1. Let us learn to live a life of faith in a risen, exalted, reigning Savior and Lord. Our religious life should receive its impulse and its motive from looking upwards to the Lord of life. 2. Let us regard it as our sacred ministry to publish as good tidings the truth that Christ is risen. This is the office and privilege of the Church of him who was dead and is alive again, and lives for evermore. Mark 16:9-14 Disbelief convinced. The day of Christ’s resurrection was a day which opened in gloom and closed with gladness. In the morning our Lord’s disciples and friends were mourning their Master’s death, were grieving at what they deemed their forsaken and friendless lot; in the evening the same persons were rejoicing in a risen and triumphant Redeemer. They had found the key to their perplexities; they had received a new impulse and aim, the power and the promise of a new life. To what was it all due? Simply to this: they exchanged unreasonable disbelief for reasonable faith. I. THE . In some cases we are justified in refusing our assent to testimony; in others we are justified in withholding that assent until the testimony is confirmed. Such was not the case on the occasion under consideration. The evidence was that of credible persons, and of persons whom the eleven knew to be credible. Mary of Magdala, and Cleopas, and his companion were well known to the company of our Lord’s friends and disciples. They were persons of unquestionable veracity. They had been themselves convinced against their own persuasions and prejudices. Mary had gone to the grave to complete the rites of burial—a proof that she was not expecting the resurrection. The two who walked to Emmaus regarded the death of Jesus as She destruction of their hopes; they were sad of countenance and slow of heart. If the testimony of Mary were rejected as that of an enthusiast, how could the testimony of the two companions be disputed? Besides, from the other Gospels we know that the other women had also borne witness to having seen Jesus, and that the Lord had appeared to Simon, who had announced the good news to the others. Testimony so varied, repeated, and credible as this deserved a better reception than was accorded to it. But whatever was said of the rising of the Lord Jesus, the disciples during that day disbelieved. II. THE OF THIS . There must have been and there were reasons, or rather motives, for the attitude of the unbelieving disciples. According to this passage, grief was one explanation. The sorrow which possessed the hearts of Christ’s friends, when they saw him insulted, tortured, and slain, was deep and poignant. Time had not elapsed for that grief to be allayed. They were still prostrate beneath the anguish which had crushed their hearts. They would hear of nothing that might alleviate and soothe them. And with grief was mingled disappointment. Their mounting hopes were smitten as with a bolt, and fell lifeless to the earth. They had looked for conquest, and they thought they saw defeat. They had looked for a kingdom, and lo! their King was slain. Doubtless, the sentiments of all were expressed in the pathetic lament, "We trusted this had been he who should have redeemed Israel." Such hopes, so crushed, could not easily arise again. Minds so amazed, staggered, utterly perplexed, were all unready to welcome tidings of encouragement. The storm-blast had passed over the tree and snapped the trunk in twain; the calm and the sunshine could not rear the prostrate head. III. THE OF THIS . When the Lord himself appeared unto them he doubtless made allowance for their feelings. Yet it is here recorded, "He upbraided them with their unbelief and hardness of heart, because they believed not them which had seen him after he was risen." This implies that they ought to have felt and acted otherwise. 1. And they would have done so had they cherished a juster view of the nature of the Lord himself. Had they remembered the witness borne to him by the Father, had they recalled his own lofty claims, had they pondered his wonderful works, and especially his miracles of raising the dead to life, then the tidings that he had risen would not have fallen upon unreceptive minds. 2. Further, the disciples should have remembered the Lord’s promises, some of which had been given in figurative language, but some of which had been couched in the plainest terms. He had said that, after being put to death, he would rise on the third day. How is it that they had so utterly forgotten a promise so express and so surprising? 3. And they should have borne in mind the predictions of the Old Testament regarding the Messianic kingdom, which should be based upon humiliation and suffering, but should be built up in glory. Jesus himself reproached them for having missed the purport of the Messianic prophecies: "Ought not Christ to have," etc.? IV. . What Christ’s messengers could not do, he did himself. What could not be wrought by testimony, was wrought by evidence of eyesight and hearing. The change which came over the disciples demands attention. Their conversion from disbelief to faith was: 1. Instantaneous. For long hours they had resisted the witness of those who had seen the risen Lord; but, upon themselves seeing him, they yielded an immediate assent. 2. It was complete and joyful There was no further questioning, and no further sadness. For a moment "they believed not for joy; but "then were the disciples glad when they saw the Lord." Their minds went quite round; from doubt they passed to confidence, from depression to exhilaration. 3. And this conversion was enduring. Never did they hesitate in their own testimony. They thenceforth regarded themselves as witnesses of the resurrection, and spake boldly of what their eyes had seen, their ears had heard, their hands had handled, of the Word of life. V. THE LESSONS OF THEIR . 1. It makes the testimony of the disciples the more valuable. Clearly, those men were not credulous, were not disposed or prepared to believe. It must have been conclusive evidence indeed which convinced them. There can be no danger in accepting the testimony of such men as these. 2. It is a rebuke to those who, through hardness of heart, believe not in a risen Savior. With the clear, full evidence which we possess, we shall indeed be blamable if we withhold our cordial faith from him who for us died and rose again. "Blessed," says the Lord, "are they who, not having seen, yet believe." Mark 16:15-18 The great commission. Whether these words were spoken at once upon one occasion, or whether they are the summing up of many words uttered by our Lord between his resurrection and ascension, one thing is clear—they are the unburdening of his great heart of what was the load chiefly pressing upon it. Why had he condescended to live upon earth, to fulfill a ministry of humiliation, to endure unequalled woes, to die a death of ignominy and of shame? Surely not that after his departure from earth all things might be as before. But rather and only that, as the great foreseen result, of his earthly advent and ministry, a new and heavenly power might be introduced into humanity, a new spiritual kingdom might be set up in the world, and a new day might dawn upon the long, dark night of time. Hence the gospel which he caused to be proclaimed, the commission which he entrusted to his disciples and especially his apostles. Hence the authority Jesus entrusted to his servants, and the vast sphere he contemplated for their labors of witness and of work. I. THE TO THE CHURCH. 1. What they were to take. "The gospel," glad tidings of salvation and eternal life through a Divine Redeemer, who died for the world’s sins, and lives for the world’s eternal life. 2. To whom they were to take it. "To the whole creation," i.e. to all mankind, of every race and every through them on his Name were entrusted with this great commission. "Freely," said Christ, "ye have received; freely give." No order of men, but the whole Church, receives this sacred trust. II. THE LAID UPON THE WORLD TO WHICH THE GOSPEL COMES. A great alternative is propounded. There is no middle course supposed. Belief and baptism are the condition of salvation; disbelief ensures condemnation. We may well admire the wisdom and the condescending compassion which determined such a condition as faith as the condition upon which the highest spiritual blessings may be enjoyed. It is possible to the youngest, to the least learned, to the feeblest of men. Yet it is a mighty principle; being able, when directed towards a Divine Savior, to secure all good which man can need and God can give, both for time and for eternity. III. THE THE OF THE GOSPEL. 1. What they were. There are enumerated: power to exorcise demons, power to speak with tongues, immunity from harm by poison or by serpent-bite, the ministry of supernatural healing. 2. Why they were given. It was to authenticate the message and the messengers. As in Christ’s ministry spiritual authority was indicated by miraculous works, so was it in the ministry of Christ’s followers and apostles. As a matter of fact, attention was thus drawn to the Word of life. 3. Why they were withdrawn. When this exactly was we cannot perhaps decide; but as the purpose of their bestowal was temporary, it is evident that when this purpose was answered, and Christianity was launched upon the waters of the world, it was in accordance with Divine wisdom that miracles should cease. Mark 16:19, Mark 16:20 Ascension. Christ ascended on high. How could it be otherwise? He came into this world in a manner and with accompaniments so remarkable, he lived in this world a life so singular and unique, that it was but appropriate that he should quit this world as none other has ever done. What is meant by his being "received up"—where "heaven" is,—this we do not know; our knowledge is limited, and our power of conceiving the eternity and infinity around us is feeble. One thing we do see, and that is, that Jesus finished his work on earth and then departed; and one other thing we see, almost as clearly, viz. that the moral, spiritual work which was the object of his mission, so far from coming to an end with his bodily departure, really then commenced, and has been proceeding ever since. How he interests himself in it and carries it on, we can only tell in general and scriptural language; that he does so, is plain to every spiritually enlightened man. St. Mark, who plunged at the outset so boldly into his task of relating "the gospel of the Son of God," here, with characteristic brevity, clearness, and vigor, tells the last portion of his narrative—the ascension of the Savior into heaven, and the consequent continuation of his work on earth. I. THE IS THE OF OUR SAVIOUR’S EARTHLY . To those who believe that the Lord Jesus arose from the dead, the narrative of the Ascension can present little difficulty. It is impossible to believe that he who consented to die, and who conquered death, could again enter the grave. It remained for him to quit the earth without dying; and what we read of his resurrection-body leads us to believe that this was not only possible, but natural and easy. In fact, the Ascension may be regarded, not as the consequence so much as the completion of the Resurrection; and, in apostolic language, the two events are sometimes referred to in one and the same expression. How explicitly had Jesus foretold this great event! Early in his ministry he had declared, "No man hath ascended into heaven, save he that descended out of heaven, even the Son of man, who is in heaven." Expostulating with the cavillers at Capernaum at a later period, he had asked them, "What then if ye should behold the Son of man ascending where he was before?" And on the day of his resurrection he had directed Mary to take to his disciples this message: "I ascend unto my Father and your Father, and my God and your God " The foresight and authority of our Savior were proved by the correspondence between his words and the event which exactly fulfilled them. The Ascension implied that all the purposes of the incarnation and advent of the Redeemer were accomplished. What he came to do, to suffer, and to say, he had already done, suffered, and said. He did not leave the earth until on earth there was no more for him to do. In his recorded intercessory prayer, addressing his Father, he said, "I have glorified thee on the earth: I have finished the work which thou gavest me to do." II. THE IS THE OF OUR SAVIOUR’S REIGN. We are too prone to think of human life as if it closes when the last breath is drawn and the heart beats no more. We forget that this is but the birth to the higher, the proper, the eternal life. Similarly with our view of the Redeemer’s ministry of service, his tenure of priestly, royal office. We are too prone to regard his life as closing with the conclusion of our Gospel narratives. We follow him in thought until the cloud, descending upon Olivet, receives him out of our sight, and then we say, "It is all over! His course is run, his work is finished!" But it is not so. The very contrary of this is the case. That Christ’s ascension draws a sharp line of demarcation, is true; but the one side is finite, the other is infinite. We can comprehend the one; the other baffles all our powers of penetration. The steps of Jesus through this earthly pilgrimage are steps which we can trace; but we lose sight of them, and faith alone can follow, when he ascends on high. This, however, is certain to us, that, with the ascension of Jesus, the second, the more spiritual, the more beneficent, the more enduring stage of this Divine ministry, commenced. He did much in his humiliation; he is doing more in his glory, tie came to found a kingdom; he went to administer it; and he must reign until his foes become his footstool. Contemplate the Son of man as he is here represented, no longer wearing the disguise of feebleness and submitting to the insults and the hatred of the wicked. His days of toil, of hunger, and of weariness, his nights of exposure and of mental conflict, are over. No more is he to endure the misrepresentations of the hypocritical and the malicious; no more to baffle the insidious snares of the crafty and the unscrupulous; no more to be patient under the cold mockery of the unspiritual and ungrateful. His deeds of mercy shall never again be attributed to the powers of evil; never again shall those he fain would benefit seek to cast him headlong from the precipice; nor shall he sigh because of the hardness of heart and insensibility of his foes. It is well that he has gone through it all; that he has been despised and rejected of men, that he has been overwhelmed with the baptism of suffering, that he has drunk to the dregs earth’s bitter cup of woe. All this is well. But it is better that it is past and over; that he takes with him into the unseen state the memory of his humiliation, his obedience, his death; that he enters upon his purchased possession; that he sees "of the travail of his soul, and is satisfied;" that he is "received up into heaven, and sits down on the right hand of God." What are we to understand when told that Christ sat down" in heaven, and by the Father’s side? The evangelist speaks here in such a way as to convey to us important religious truth· Christ’s earthly ministry had been one of unrest and homelessness; from the commencement of his public labors until those labors ended on the cross, few had been the intervals of repose. With the Ascension began the period of rest. The seat upon the throne is becoming to royalty: the monarch sits whilst the courtiers, guards, and attendants stand. So the expression implies the kingly dignity of Immanuel. He has exchanged the crown of thorns for the diadem of empire. On his head are many crowns." Further, a judge sits upon the judgment-seat, whilst the criminal stands at his bar. Jesus not long before had stood, as the vilest culprit might have done, before the malignant Caiaphas, before the vacillating, unrighteous Pilate. Now, no longer the accused, he is the just, majestic, and almighty Judge, ordained by God to be the Judge of quick and dead. How bold and plain, although metaphorical, is Mark’s language here! "The Lord Jesus sat down at the right hand of God." "The right hand of God" is one of those expressions, so frequent in Scripture, which are used, in condescension to our infirmities, to convey to us, in a striking and effective manner, truth otherwise not easily communicated. A courtier, when at the right hand of his sovereign, is near him, is readily addressed; is in a position either to give information or to receive instructions; can easily obtain a signature, or an authority or warrant under the sign-manual; is in a position to introduce to the king any applicant or petitioner; in brief, occupies a post of privilege, trust, influence, honor, and authority. And when our Savior is pictured as at the right hand of God, we are to understand that he is the Mediator, through whom the Divine power and guidance, favor and blessing, are bestowed upon those in whom he has shown himself interested by undergoing on their behalf the labors and the sacrifices of the earthly humiliation. No wonder, then, that the position occupied by Christians is described in language so rich, full, and inspiriting—that all things are declared to be theirs, for they are Christ’s, and Christ is God’s. III. THE WAS THE FOR A NEW AND ECONOMY. The bodily absence of the Redeemer was the condition of a new dispensation of spiritual power and of world-wide extent. Hitherto the evangelizing journeys of the twelve had been restricted in scope and local in range; they had gone only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel, and they had directed attention to the speedy approach of the kingdom. But the aim of Jesus was one of universal benevolence; other sheep, not of the Israelitish fold, were to be brought in; he was to draw all men unto himself. This was to be done by spiritual agencies, which were dependent upon the removal of the Lord to heaven. In fact, the ascension of the Lord Jesus was, in the Divine counsels, the condition and the occasion of the bestowal of the Holy Spirit, in the manner and measure distinctive of the new, the Christian dispensation. He himself had put this with great plainness before his disciples’ minds: "If I go not away, the Comforter will not come unto you; but if I go, I will send him unto you." This was a doctrinal statement of the nature of a revelation. What was the intelligible and manifest fact corresponding to it? Surely this—that the earthly mission of the Savior being complete, the gospel was to be preached, and should be made, by a spiritual force acting on human natures, the means of awakening men to a new conscience of sin, a new yearning for holiness, a new purpose of an unselfish and unworldly life. It is no more unreasonable to attribute the fruits of the gospel to the Spirit of God, than it is to attribute human purposes to the spirit of man. It is a spiritual universe, and things material and outward actions are nothing but the garb and utterance of what is spiritual. If there be truth declared, revealed, and if there be a nature capable of receiving, feeling, responding to truth, there is one all-sufficient explanation of this wonderful and beneficent correspondence, and that is, the presence and the action of the Holy Spirit of God. The ascension of Christ changed the life of the apostles, and through them, the history of the world. 1. Now and henceforth there was an express theme for them to publish. This was the gospel, the good tidings, which only now was complete, and so divinely perfected by all that Jesus had done and suffered, that it was adapted to fulfill the purposes of Divine wisdom. Before, the disciples had directed attention to what was to come; now, to what had occurred actually and really. Christ had died for men’s sins, according to the Scriptures; he had arisen from the dead for their justification and salvation. Around the great central facts of Christ’s birth, crucifixion, and resurrection gathered all the Divine truths which constituted the gospel. Accordingly, in the first place, the facts were related as facts abundantly attested, and as facts of interest and precious moment to all’ mankind. And, when these facts were believed, then they were explained, and (under the guidance of the Holy Spirit given from above) the inspired apostles taught their bearing upon the position and prospects of the sinful race of man. It should never be forgotten that our religion consists in something more than laws of life, sentiments of virtue, promises of help, hopes of immortality. In accordance with the constitution of things, all these depend upon and flow from the great central facts relating to the Lord Jesus Christ. 2. Besides having a theme, the apostles of our Lord now had a commission which authorized them. They did not go unbidden, without instructions, without authority, upon this errand of mercy and blessing to mankind. He who had all power in heaven and in earth had given them their commission. He had said "Go!" and they went; not in their own strength and wisdom, but in his. The same warrant and authentication abides with the Church of Christ throughout all the ages. The apostles were, as the name implies, those who were sent; in this respect, as distinguished from personal endowment and equipment, an apostolic mission is entrusted to the whole body of Christ’s followers to the end of time. 3. The sphere within which this commission was to be executed was world-wide. "Go ye into all the world," Jesus had said, "and preach the gospel to the whole creation." "Make disciples of all nations." A grand and noble design, worthy of the source whence it emanated, in the heart of him who is "the Savior of all men, specially of them that believe." The habitable globe is the field in which the Christian missionary is called to work; for the human race is the object of Divine compassion, the destined participant in the bounty of the Divine beneficence. None, however large-hearted and compassionate, can complain that the operations of mercy and benevolence are restricted and restrained. 4. In fulfilling this commission, the heralds of Christ’s gospel were assured that they should enjoy, not only personal assistance, but the assistance involved in undoubted credentials, by which they and their message should be commended to the attention of men. (1) The Lord wrought with them. They were workers, but they were fellow-workers with him. What was to be done in the renewal of human hearts, and the transformation of human character, was not to be done by the exercise of merely human power. A Divine energy and operation were alone adequate to secure results so difficult, so glorious. (2) Signs followed. Signs, i.e. of a Divine presence and energy. There were such in abundance, as is evident from the record in the Acts of the Apostles. Signs outward, manifest, obvious to every eye, as in the case of those miracles of healing which accompanied the ministrations of the first Christian preachers. Signs of a less obtrusive, but of an even more convincing character, as in the case of those Jews who were delivered from formalism, those Gentiles who were emancipated from idolatry, those flagrant transgressors of the moral law who were turned from darkness unto light, and from the service of Satan unto God. (3) Thus the Word was confirmed. Miracles, preaching, all were means to an end, and that end the establishment and extension of a spiritual kingdom. For the Word of God was no mere instrument of music to charm the ear and captivate the imagination; it was and is "the sword of the Spirit." Its work is to conquer, to subdue, to govern; and this work it does with incomparable keenness of edge, with incomparable force and efficiency. It has been promised, "My Word shall not return unto me void." It has proved itself a Word of power, a Word of salvation, a Word of life. 1. In heart, let Christ’s people ascend with their ascended Lord and Leader. "Risen with Christ," "set your affection upon things above." 2. In life, let Christians seek to execute their Master’s parting commission. He has left them a trust to fulfill, a work to do; let them not be found slothful, but diligent and watchful. 3. In hope, let all who "love his appearing," look forward to his return. For in like manner shall he come again, to receive his people to himself. "Even come, Lord Jesus!" BY A.F. MUIR Mark 16:1-14 Resurrection proofs. The last days of the manifestation of God in Christ were signalized by a great deprivation and a great recovery. A life beyond the dread confines of the grave completed the cycle of wonders associated with the earth-life of Jesus. This, although not sufficiently realized ere it actually occurred, is a part of a continuative development. It is no awkward and hasty fragment joined on to another and more legitimate narrative. To intelligent students of the life, it appears the sublimely consistent outcome of all that preceded the death. The evangelists, from the very beginning of their histories, prepare one almost unconsciously for such a denouement. It is in a sense the necessary conclusion towards which they move, and It throws into new relations and proportions all the preceding events. The earthly actions and experiences of Christ are sufficiently verified, but in describing them evangelists do not seem to think of having to furnish proof. It is only when they begin to tell us of the resurrection that all is alertness, and that conscious collation of evidence takes place. This is the arcanum of the faith which must be preserved from all uncertainty; this fact must be certified that all else may be made intelligible and morally effectual. And the moral significance of the Resurrection is even more insisted on than its physical wonder. It is the defeat of evil machinations, and a triumph over every precaution of his enemies. I. SOME OF FOR THE , The number and variety of Christ’s appearances have been noted by the evangelists. The spiritual nature perceives the supplementary effect and educative efficiency of his resurrection fellowship. There is also a marked absence of all appearance of collusion. 1. Conspirators would have striven to keep the grave sealed until its emptiness should be discovered. 2. The Roman watch was all but inviolable. 3. Those who might be expected to conspire remained at a distance, and were informed of the event. 4. Many of them at first refused to believe the news. 5. From the Emmaus and embalming incidents, we see that most of the disciples did not look for his (at all events immediate) reappearance. II. THE NATURE OF THE . The question of those who deny the physical, yet emphasize the ideal and spiritual resurrection—"What can a few pounds more or less of dust and ashes matter?"—is shallow and impertinent. 1. The senses were appealed to: sight, hearing, touch; physical results were produced; fellowship was realized with him under physical conditions (the fish and honeycomb). 2. was not recognized at first. A great change had, therefore, been produced. And such a thing might be looked for. Mary, Emmaus, Thomas and the stigmata. 3. The manner of disappearance as described is suggestive of a real body (Acts 1:9; Luke 24:50, Luke 24:51). III. THE OF THIS FACT UPON FAITH AND LIFE. In considering these, we see how the foregoing question betrays an incapacity for discussing the highest practical problems. 1. Christ came to save the entire nature—body, soul, and spirit. He is, therefore, himself the Firstfruits and the Type. There is, in his resurrection state, a hint as. to the possibilities of our material nature when completely purified and redeemed. 2. The bodily resurrection of Christ is a more signal marvel than the spiritual alone would have been, and was at the same time more susceptible of sensible demonstration. 3. It was in harmony with the method of his miracles, and the grand key to them. How the moral element in this life grew and expanded into ever more powerful effects and general relations! At last, when earnestly and carefully regarded, doubt is overwhelmed by it. How it appeals to our sense of the highest fitness, and answers the unconscious longings of the spiritual life!—M. Mark 16:3, Mark 16:4 "Who shall roll us away the stone?" Two things occurred together in attempting the last service to the buried Christ—weak, though willing and loving instruments, and a practically insurmountable difficulty. They themselves were unable to roll away the stone which closed the sepulcher, "for it was exceeding great." This experience has often been repeated. I. HOW OF IN SERVICE OFTEN ARISE. 1. By discounting the help of Christ. They thought him dead and helpless. 2. By calculating only one’s own resources. Looking inward. The healthy outward and upward look at the indications of Providence and experience. II. HOW THE GOOD OF LOVING HEARTS IS BY THE SAVIOUR. 1. By finding the difficulty which had been anticipated already removed. 2. By finding the intended service rendered unnecessary. The empty grave at first a disappointment, but afterwards a source of joy.—M. "He is not here." I. THE PLACE WHERE CHRIST HAS BEEN’ IS NOT ALWAYS THE PLACE WHERE CHRIST IS. II. IT IS A LIVING AND NOT A DEAD CHRIST THAT ARE TO SEEK. III. THEY THAT TRULY SEEK CHRIST WILL, EVEN THROUGH , LEARN WHERE TO FIND HIM. IV. THE DUTIES OF LOVE ARE BY THE DUTIES OF FAITH.—M. The gospel the Word of the ascended Lord. These words, at the end of Mark’s account, give the great sequence of our Lord’s manifestation. The Ascension was the divinely necessary result of the Resurrection; the gospel is the necessary fruit on the human side of the experience produced in the hearts of the disciples by his life and work. Such a series of events could not end in silence. As in life, so in death, resurrection, and exaltation, Jesus Christ "could not be hid." The preaching of the gospel is a result, therefore, of an express command and an inward impulse. The two verses are in sequence to the preceding account, and the one to the other, logically, spiritually, and potentially. Notice in this connection— I. THE POINT AT WHICH THE OF THE GOSPEL BEGINS. At the final withdrawal and exaltation of Jesus. 1. Its subject is a completed one. 2. The various portions of it are self-evidently connected, and mutually interpret one another. The final transcendent issues of the contest of Christ with sin and death are each representative and interpretative of what preceded and led up to them. The life and its relation to the Divine purpose, prophetic anticipation, and human yearning, would be incomprehensible without this glorious trinity of consummations: death, resurrection, and ascension. II. THE POWER IT . The power of a finished work of atonement, a victory over death and hell, and an exalted, glorified humanity. 1. The highest exaltation has been reached by him of whom it speaks, He is invested with Divine power, and executive authority in the universe of God. Whether there be any such place as the "right hand of God" may be a curious question; that there is a state which such a phrase describes is a matter of spiritual revelation and experience. "All power is given," etc. 2. Its tone is therefore authoritative in the highest degree. The gospel is a throne-word. Preachers are ambassadors. The dignities and pretensions of earth are nothing to them. The Lord through them "commands all men everywhere to repent." Herod is a sad illustration of what occurs when even a king attempts to patronize the gospel. 3. This pretension is confirmed by practical proofs. The works accompanying it and resulting from it are "signs." You cannot explain them unless on the highest ground. Although physical miracles have ceased, spiritual results are still more demonstrative and glorious. In changing the heart, renewing the nature, purifying the affections, the "Word of his power" achieves what nothing else can. And such signs are to be looked for whenever and wherever it is proclaimed. "The Lord working with them"—everywhere, because ascended and glorified. III. THE PEOPLE IT . "And they went forth, and preached everywhere." This was no accident or caprice of choice: he commanded it (verse 15). But it is also divinely fitting that this should be so. 1. The gospel is intended for all men. 2. It is adapted to all men. 3. The work of Christ’s servants is to seek the salvation of all men. Until all have had an opportunity we must continue to preach: that is our responsibility. It is not said that all will believe or be saved: that is the responsibility of those who hear. Only of this are we certain: "The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some count slackness; but is longsuffering to you-ward, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance" (2 Peter 3:9).—M. BY A. ROWLAND The stone rolled away. Day was dawning on Jerusalem when the women saw this strange sight. Day was dawning in their hearts too, for slowly and surely the darkness of doubt and grief was stealing away. And day was dawning on the whole world, and on all future ages of history, for the Sun of Righteousness had risen, bringing life and immortality to light. No three days in human history were so momentous as these of which the context speaks; for it was on them that the great conflict between death and life was fought out, and for ever won, by the Captain of our salvation. (Describe the varied feelings which swayed the minds of Christ’s foes and friends after the Crucifixion, as they thought of his quiet grave in the garden.) The resurrection of Jesus Christ was put boldly in the forefront of apostolic teaching. Of all the miracles, this was the chief; of all evidences of the supernatural, this was the most important. In almost every recorded address and extant letter, this is insisted on as the cardinal fact of the Christian faith; indeed, Paul says, "If Christ be not risen, your faith is vain." I. WE THE STONE ROLLED AWAY FROM THE AS BEING TO US A SIGN OF CHRIST’S VICTORY. 1. Accepting the fact of our Lord’s resurrection, not only as proved by the credible, concurrent, and cumulative evidence of trustworthy men, but on the ground that this fact alone will rationally account for the victory of the Christian faith over men of all nations and conditions, we do not wonder at its prominence in New Testament teaching. Because Christ has risen, his death becomes more than a martyrdom for the truth; it appears as the voluntary offering of himself on the part of One who said of his life, "I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again." It is the sign that God was still well pleased with the beloved Son, for it was the Divine reversal of the world’s judgment upon him. It is a proof that the same Jesus who once walked this weary world still lives, with the old sympathy and power to help, fulfilling his promise, "I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world." It is the pledge to us, the only pledge we have in history, that the splendid utterances of St. Paul about the resurrection of the saints will have their fulfillment. For the redeemed, as well as for their Lord, heavenly hands have rolled away the stone that once sealed the grave. 2. The victory of Christ on the Resurrection morning was dramatically complete in its details, and in this we see a suggestion of the absoluteness of his triumph over his foes. The Gentiles had mocked and crucified him; he passed by their strong guard without an effort. The Jews had accomplished their purpose against him; the seal of the Sanhedrim was broken. Death had seized upon him, and some had cried, "Himself he cannot save;" but, the Son of God, it was not possible that he should be holden of death. The grave had closed over him; but he passed through its portals resistlessly, as Samson came forth from Gaza, bearing on his shoulders its gates of brass and bars of iron. "He must reign till he hath put all enemies under his feet"—the pride that will not let us become as little children; the self-will that declares, "We will not have this man. to reign over us;" the lusts which, like the horses of the sun, would drag their victims to destruction; the death that strikes down all our defences, and tears away our dear ones from our embrace. Victory over these will be his, not ours. To the eye of faith the rolling away of the stone appears to be the loosening of the keystone in the great fortress of sin and death, of which at last there shall not be left one stone upon another. II. THE STONE ROLLED AWAY MAY ALSO BE BY US AS A OF REMOVED. It was natural enough that these feeble women should say among themselves, "Who shall roll us away the stone from the door of the sepulcher?" For a moment it appeared as if all their labor of love, in the preparation of spices, would be thrown away—that the last tender ministry must be given up. But as they went forward, trembling yet hoping, they discovered that the difficulty they had dreaded was gone. God had done for them what they could not have done for themselves. Too often we discourage ourselves by thinking of future difficulties, until they loom so large in our imagination that we turn back from the path of duty. 1. It is so with our anxieties about temporal things. But whatever lies in the future, let us go on steadfastly and trustfully, and by-and-by we shall make the conquered difficulty an Ebenezer, which shall witness to others of the fact, "Hitherto hath the Lord helped me." 2. Similarly we must deal with some difficulties respecting Christian doctrine. "Whosoever shall do the will of God shall know the doctrine." 3. So let us go on also to attempt our appointed work for God; and the difficulties which are insurmountable by us will be removed by hands mightier than our own.—A.R. BY R. GREEN Mark 16:1-18 The Resurrection. In the early dawn—"at the rising of the sun" on the morning after the sabbath—that one most wondrous sabbath, the last of the old series—hasty feet were hurrying to the sepulcher. They were those of Mary Magdalene and Mary the mother of James, and Salome. Love drew them thus early to the sacred tomb. But they were bringing "spices that they might come and anoint him," so far were they from expecting what had taken place. It does not appear that any of the disciples were looking for the Resurrection. As they neared the place a difficulty suggested itself to them: "Who shall roll us away the stone from the door of the tomb?" To their astonishment, it was rolled away. "Entering into the tomb," they found not the body as they expected; but "they saw a young man [an angel] sitting at the right side, arrayed in a white robe." Calming their affrighted spirits, he declared for the first time, "He is risen; he is not here." The few details of the excited doings of that first morning of the week—that first Lord’s day—have a deep interest, which their meagreness cannot destroy, if indeed it abates it. Again and again Jesus appears to the disciples, now in smaller, now in larger companies, and gives them as true and deeply settled an assurance of his resurrection as was before given of his death. To that resurrection we turn as to the signal incident in the life of the world’s Redeemer—the central fact in all human history. Nothing abates the significance of the Incarnation; but the raising up of the dead body into life is supreme in its bearing on the history of the human race. I. The resurrection of Christ is THE CRUCIAL TEST OF THE WORLD’S . "If Christ hath not been raised your faith is vain." Then the whole structure of Christianity is shaken to its foundations. It has no longer its present significance. It has wrought only imaginary changes. "Ye are yet in your sins." It has deluded its most devoted adherents. Itself aiming at truth, exalting, glorifying it, it has deceived and disappointed the hopes of its faithful ones. "They also which have fallen asleep in Christ have perished." The Christian Church has never shrunk from the alternative, exulting in its jubilant assurance, "But now hath Christ been raised from the dead." Herein the completeness of the atoning work of Christ is demonstrated, the warrant of faith in that atonement is presented, and the end of all is attained in the righteousness of men. With a divinely attested atonement, of which, to avail themselves, men are warranted in appropriating by faith the justification—the righteousness which they need. He "was delivered up for our offenses, and was raised for our justification." This entry is longer than a Bible module can hold. The rest is at https://www.sermonindex.net/commentary/pulpit-commentary/