Cautions against A. D. 27. CCI. 3. a ST. MATTHEW. b anxious care. A. D. 27. An. Olymp CCI. 3. A.M.40. than meat, and the body than rai- 27 Which of you by taking thought AM. 1951. An. Olymp. ment? add one cubit unto his stature? 26 Behold the fowls of the air for 28 And why take ye thought for they sow not, neither do they reap, nor gather raiment? gather raiment? Consider the lilies of the field, how into barns; yet your heavenly Father feedeth they grow; they toil not, neither do they spin: them. Are not much better than they? ye 29 And yet I say unto you, That even So a Job 38. 41. Ps. 147. 9. Luke 12. 24, &c. Verse 26. Behold the fowls of the air] The second reason why we should not be anxiously concerned about the future, is the example of the smaller animals, which the providence || of God feeds without their own labour; though he be not their father. We never knew an earthly father take care of his fowls, and neglect his children; and shall we fear this from our heavenly Father? God forbid! That man is utterly unworthy to have God for his father, who depends less upon his goodness, wisdom, and power, than upon a crop of corn, which may be spoiled either in the field or in the barn. || If our great Creator have made us capable of knowing, lov- || ing, and enjoying himself eternally, what may we not expect from him, after so great a gift? b Luke 2. 52. & 12. 25, 26.- Luke 12. 27. Cubit unto his stature?] I think " thers. Griesbach has left it in the text with a note of doubt-from distrust to apostacy is very short and easy: and a man fulness. It occurs again in the 31st verse, and there is no is not far from murmuring against Providence, who is disvariation in any of the MSS. in that place. Instead of Is not satisfied with its conduct. We should depend as fully upon the life more than, &c. we should read, Of more value; so the God for the preservation of his gifts, as for the gifts themword htio is used in Num. xxii. 15. and by the best Greek | selves. writers; and in the same sense it is used in chap. xxi. 37. should be rendered See the note there. age here, and so our Translators have rendered the word in John ix. 21. autos nλixiau ex he is of age. A very learned writer observes, that no difficulty can arise from applying xʊ a cubit, a measure of extension, to time, and the age of man: as place and time are both quantities, and capable of increase and diminution: and as no fixed material standard can be employed in the mensuration of the fleeting particles of time; it was natural and necessary in the construction of language, to apply parallel terms to the discrimination of time and place. Accordingly, we find the same words indifferently used to denote time and place in every known tongue. Lord, let me know the MEASURE of my days! Thou hast made my days HAND-BREADTHS, Psal. xxxix. 56. Many examples might be adduced from the Greek and Roman writers. Besides, it is evident, that the phrase of adding one cubit, is proverbial, denoting something minute; and is therefore applicable to the smallest possible portion of time: but, in a literal acceptation, the addition of a cubit to the stature would be a great and extraordinary accession of height. See Wakefield. Verse 28. And why take ye thought for raiment?] Or, why are ye anxiously careful about raiment? The fourth reason against such inquietudes, is the example of inanimate creatures: The herbs and flowers of the field have their being, nourishment, exquisite flavours, and beautiful hues from God himself. They are not only without anxious care, but also without care or thought of every kind. Your being, its excellence, and usefulness, do not depend on your anxious concern: they spring as truly from the beneficence and continual superintendance of God, as the flowers of the field do: and were you brought into such a situation, as to be as utterly incapable of contributing to your own preservation and support, as the lilies of the field are to theirs, your heavenly Father could augment your substance, and preserve your being, when for his glory, and your own advantage. They sow not, neither do they reap] There is a saying among the Rabbins almost similar to this" Hast thou ever seen a beast or a fowl that had a workshop? yet they are fcd without labour and without anxiety. They were created for the service of man, and man was created that he might serve his Creator. Man also would have been supported without labour and anxiety, had he not corrupted his ways. Hast thou ever seen a lion carrying burthens, a stag gathering summer fruits, a for selling merchandize, or a wolf selling oil that they might thus gain their support: and yet they are fed without care or labour. Arguing therefore from the less to the greater, if they which were created that they might serve me, are nourished without labour and anxiety, how much more I, who have been created that I might serve my Maker. What therefore is the cause, why I should be obliged to labour in order to get my daily bread? Answer, SIN." This is a curious and important extract, and is highly worthy of the Reader's attention. See Schoetgen. Verse 27. Which of you by taking thought can add one cubit unto his stature?] The third reason against these carking cares is the unprofitableness of human solicitude, unless God vouchsafe to bless it. What can our uneasiness do but render as still more unworthy of the divine care? The passage Consider] Diligently consider this, xaraμabers, lay it earnestly to heart, and let your confidence be unshaken in the God of infinite bounty and love. Exhortations to trust A. D. 27. CCI. S. 30 Wherefore, A.M. 401. An. Olymp. A. D. 27. CCI. 3. A.M. 4061. lomon in all his glory, was not arrayed shall we eat? or, What shall we drink? An. Olymp. like one of these. or, Wherewithal shall we be clothed? 32 (For after all these things do the Gentiles seek :) for your heavenly Father knoweth that ye have need of all these things. if God so clothe the grass of the field, which to day is, and tomorrow is cast into the oven, shall he not much more clothe you, "O ye of little faith? 31 Therefore take no thought, saying, What a Luke 12. 28. ch. 14. 31. Verse 29. Solomon in all his glory] Some suppose, that as the robes of state worn by the eastern kings, were usually white, as were those of the nobles among the Jews; that therefore the lily was chosen for the comparison. Verse 30. If God so clothe the grass of the field] Christ confounds both the luxury of the rich in their superfluities, and the distrust of the poor as to the necessaries of life, Let man, who is made for God and eternity, learn from a flower of the field how low the care of Providence stoops. All our inquietudes and distrusts proceed from lack of faith that supplies all wants. The poor are not really such, but because they are destitute of faith. To-morrow is cast into the oven] The inhabitants of the East, to this day, make use of dry straw, withered herbs and stabble to heat their ovens. Some have translated the original word xbox, a still; and intimate, that our Lord alludes to the distillation of herbs for medicinal purposes; but this is certainly contrary to the scope of our Lord's argument, which runs thus: If God covers, with so much glory, things of no farther value than to serve the meanest uses; will he not take care of his servants who are so precious in his sight, and designed for such important services in the world? See Harmer's Observations. Verse 31. What shall we eat, or, What shall we drink?] These three enquiries engross the whole attention of those who were living without God in the world. The belly and back of a worldling are his compound god; and these he worships in the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eye, and in the pride of life. Verse 32. For after all these things do the Gentiles seek] The fifth reason against solicitude about the future, is, that to concern ourselves about these wants with anxiety, as if there was no such thing as a providence in the world; with great affection towards earthly enjoyments, as if we expected no other; and without praying to God or consulting his will, as if we could do any thing without him. This is to imitate the worst kind of heathens, who live without hope, and without God in the world. Seek] E from, intensive, and (nrw I seek, to seek intensely, earnestly, again and again. The true characteristic of the worldly man, his soul is never satisfied-give! give! is the ceaseless language of his earth-born heart, Your heavenly Father knoweth, &c.] The sixth reason against this anxiety about the future, is, because God, our heavenly Father, is infinite in wisdom, and knows all our wants. It is the property of a wise and tender Father to provide necessaries, and not superfluities, for his children. Not to expect the former, is an offence to his goodness; to expect the latter, is injurious to his wisdom. Verse 33. But seek ye first the kingdom of God] See on Matt. iii. 7. His righteousness] That holiness of heart and purity of life which God requires of those who profess to be subjects of that spiritual kingdom mentioned above. See on chap. v. 20. The seventh reason against these worldly cares and fears is, because the business of our salvation ought to engross us entirely: hither, all our desires, cares, and inquiries ought to tend. Grace is the way to glory-holiness the way to happiness. If men be not righteous, there is no heaven to be had; if they be, they shall have heaven and earth too; for godliness has the promise of both lives. 1 Tim. vi. 3. "A All these things shall be added unto you.] The very blunt note of old Mr. Trapp, on this passage, is worthy of serious attention. All things shall be added. They shall be cast in as an overplus, or as small advantages to the main bargain; as paper and packthread are given where we buy spice and fruit, or an inch of measure to an ell of cloth." This was a very common saying among the Jews: “Seek that, to which other things are necessarily connected.” king said to his particular friend, Ask what thou wilt, and I will give it unto thee.' He thought within himself, If I ask to be made a general I shall readily obtain it. I will ask something to which all these things shall be added :' he therefore said, Give me thy daughter to wife.'This he did, knowing that all the dignities of the kingdom should be added unto this gift." See in Schoetgen. To this verse, probably, belong the following words, quoted often by Clement, Origen and Eusebius, as the words of Christ: αιτειτε τα μεγάλα, και τα μικρα υμιν προστεθήσεται αιτειτε ιτείτε τα επουράνια, και τα επίγεια προστεθήσεται υμιν. "Ask great things, and little things shall be added unto you; ask heavenly things, and earthly things shall be added unto you." και Against rash and A. D. 2. a ST. MATTHEW. A.M. 4031. and his righteousness; and all these CCI. 3. uncharitable judgments. "morrow: for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself. Suffici34 Take therefore no thought for the ent unto the day is the evil thereof. a Mark 10. 30. Luke 12. 31. Rom. 14. 17. Lev. 22. 30. Prov. 27. 1. Job 14. 1. Luke 12. 20. Verse 34. Take therefore no thought] That is, Be not future time which God would have us foresee and provide therefore anxiously careful. for, is that of judgment and eternity: and it is about this alone that we are careless! The eighth and last reason, against this preposterous conduct, is, that carking care is not only useless in itself, but renders us miserable before hand. The future, falls under the cognisance of God alone: we encroach, therefore, upon his rights, when we would fain foresee all that may happen to us, and secure ourselves from it by our cares. How much good is omitted, how many evils caused, how many duties neglected, how many innocent persons deserted, how many good works destroyed, how many truths suppressed, and how many acts of injustice authorized by those timorous forecasts, of what may happen; and those faithless apprehensions concerning the future! Let us do now what God requires of us, and trust the consequences to him. The Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof.] AgxsTv In μgα xaxia autns, Sufficient for each day is its own calamity. Each day has its peculiar trials;—we should meet them with confidence in God. As we should live but a day at a time, so we should take care to suffer no more evils in one day than are necessarily attached to it. He who neglects the present for the future, is acting opposite to the order of God, his own interest, and to every dictate of sound wisdom. Let us live for eternity, and we shall secure all that is valuable in time. There are many valuable reflexions in the Abbé Quesnel's work, on this chapter; and from it several of the preceding have been derived. CHAPTER VII. Our Lord warns men against rash judgment and uncharitable censures, 1-5. Shews that holy things must not be prophaned, 6; gives encouragement to fervent persevering prayer, 7-11. Shews how men should deal with each other, 12. Exhorts the people to enter in at the strait gate, 13, 14; to beware of false teachers, who are to be known by their fruits, 15-20. Shews that no man shall be saved by his mere profession of Christianity, however specions, 22, 23. The parable of the wise man who built his house upon a rock, 24, 25. Of the foolish man who built his house without a foundation, on the sand, 26, 27. Christ concludes his sermon, and the people are astonished at his doctrine, 28, 29. A. M. 4031. A. D. 27. An. Olymp. CCI. 3. J judged. a UDGE not, that ye be not ye shall be judged: and with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured 2 For with what judgment ye judge, to you again. a Luke 6. 37. Rom. 2. 1. & 14. 3, 4, 10, 13. 1 Cor. 4. 3, 5. Jam. 4. 11, 12. Mark 4. 24. Luke 6. 38. NOTES ON CHAP. VII. Verse 1. Judge not, that ye be not judged.] These exhorttations are pointed against rash, harsh, and uncharitable judgments, the thinking evil, where no evil seems, and speaking of it accordingly. The Jews were highly criminal here, and yet had very excellent maxims against it, as may be seen in Schoetgen. This is one of the most important exhortations in the whole of this excellent sermon. By a secret and criminal disposition of nature, man endeavours to elevate himself above others, and to do it more effectually, depresses them. His jealous and envious heart wishes that there may be no good quality found but in himself, that he alone may be esteemed. Such is the state of every unconverted man ; and it is from this criminal disposition, that evil surmises, rash judgments, precipitate decisions, and all other unjust procedures against our neighbour, flow. Verse 2. For with what judgment] He who is severe on others, will naturally excite their severity against himself. The censures and calunnies which we have suffered, are probably the just reward of those which we have dealt out to others. Directions against CHAP. VII. uncharitable censures. A. M. 4051. a 3 ' And why beholdest thou the mote || out of thine own eye; and then shalt An. Olymp. that is in thy brother's eye, but considerest not the beam that is in thine CCI. 3. own eye? 4 Or how wilt thou say to thy brother, Let me pull out the mote out of thine eye; and, behold, a beam is in thine own eye? 5 Thou hypocrite, first cast out the beam thou see clearly to cast out the mote A.M. 4031. An. Olymp. A. D. 27. CCI. 3. Cast out the mote out of thine eye, he is immediately ready to answer, Cast out the beam that is in thine own eye." This proverbial mode of speech the Gloss interprets thus: "Cast out, op kisim, the mote, that is, the little sin, that is in thy hand: to which he answered, Cast out the great sin that is in thine. So they could not reprove, because all were sin Verse 3. And why beholdest thou the mote] Kagos might be Cum tua prævideas oculis mala lippus inunctis; HOR. Sat. lib. 1. sat. 3. 1. 25-27. "When you can so readily overlook your own wickedness, why are you more clear-sighted than the eagle or serpent of Epidaurus, in spying out the failings of your friends?" But the saying was very common among the Jews, as may be seen in Lightfoot. Verse 4. Or how wilt thou say] That man is utterly unfit to shew the way of life to others, who is himself walking in the way of death. Verse 5. Thou hypocrite] A hypocrite, who professes to be what he is not, (viz. a true Christian) is obliged, for the support of the character he has assumed, to imitate all the dispositions and actions of a Christian; consequently he must reprove sin, and endeavour to shew an uncommon affection for the glory of God. Our Lord unmasks this vile pretender to saintship, and shews him that his hidden hypocrisy, covered with the garb of external sanctity, is more abominable in the sight of God, than the openly professed and practised iniquity of the profligate. Verse 6. Give not that which is holy] To ayos, the holy or sacred thing; i. e. any thing, especially of the sacrificial kind, which had been consecrated to God. The members of this sentence should be transposed thus: Give not that which is holy unto the dogs, Lest they trample them under their feet. The propriety of this transposition is self-evident. There are many such transpositions as these, both in sacred and profane writers. The following is very remarkable: "I am black but comely; "As the tents of Kedar, as the curtains of Solomon." That is, "I am black as the tents of Kedar, " Comely as the curtains of Solomon.” As a general meaning of this passage, we may just say, "The sacrament of the Lord's supper, and other holy ordinances which are only instituted for the genuine followers of Christ, are not to be dispensed to those who are continually returning like the suarling ill-natured dog to their easily predominant sins of rash judgment, barking at and tearing the characters of others by evil-speaking, back-biting and slandering; nor to him, who, like the swine, is frequently returning to wallow in the mud of sensual gratifications and impurities." Verse 7. Ask-seck-knock] These three words include the ideas of, want, loss, and earnestness. Ask: turn beggar In after times, the Jews made a very bad use of this say-at the door of Mercy, thou art destitute of all spiritual good, ing: "I wonder," said Rabbi Zarphon, "whether there be and it is God alone who can give it to thee; and thou hast any in this age that will suffer reproof? If one say to another, no claim but what his mercy has given thee on itself. 10 Or if he ask a fish, will he give him a them; for this is the law and the prophets. serpent? 13 Enter ye in at the strait gate for wide Prov. 8. 17. Jer. 29. 12, 13.-b Luke 11. 11, 12, 13. C Gen. 6. 5. & 8. 21. f Seek: Thou hast lost thy God, thy paradise, thy soul.-Look || tional eternal damnation, any creature he has made? He who about thee, leave no stone unturned;--there is no peace, no can believe that he has, may believe any thing: but still GOD final salvation for thee till thou get thy soul restored to the favour and image of God. IS LOVE. Verse 12. Therefore all things whatsoever ye would that men] This is a most sublime precept, and highly worthy of the grandeur and beneficence of the just God who gave it. The general meaning of it is this: “Guided by justice and mercy, do unto all men as you would have them to do to you, were your circumstances and theirs reversed." Yet, this saying may be misunderstood; "If the prisoner should ask the judge, whether he would be cortent to be hanged, were he in his case,' he would answer, 'No.' Then, says the prisoner, do as Verse 8. For every one that asketh receiveth] Prayer is always heard after one manner or other. No soul can pray in vain that prays as directed above. The truth and faithful-you would be done to :-neither of them must do as private ness of the Lord Jesus are pledged for it.-Ye SHALL receive— ye SHALL find-it SHALL be opened. These words are as strongly binding on the side of God, as thou shalt do no murder is on the side of man. Bring Christ's word, and Christ's sucrifice with thee, and not one of Heaven's blessings can be denied thee. See on Luke xi. 9. Verse 9. Or what man is there—whom if his son] Men are exhorted to come unto God, with the persuasion that he is a most gracious and compassionate Parent, who possesses all heavenly and earthly good; knows what is necessary for each of his creatures, and is infinitely ready to communicate that which they need most. Will he give him a stone?] Will he not readily give him bread if he have it? This was a proverb in other countries; a benefit grudgingly given by an avaricious man, is called by Seneca, panem lapidosum, stony bread. Hence that saying in Plautus: Altera manu, fert lapidem, panem ostentat altera.-in one hand he brings a stone, and stretches out bread in the other. Verse 11. If ye then, being evil] Hongos oes, who are radically and diabolically depraved, yet feel yourselves led by natural affection, to give those things to your children which are necessary to support their lives; how much more will your Father, who is in heaven, whose nature is infinite goodness, mercy, and grace, give good things-his grace and Spirit, (VEUμa ayboy, the Holy Ghost, Luke xi. 13.) to them who ask him? What a picture is here given of the goodness of God! Reader, ask thy soul, could this heavenly Father reprobate to uncondi men; but the judge must do by him, as they have publicly agreed; that is, both judge and prisoner have consented to a law, that if either of them steal, he shall be hanged.”—Selden. None but he whose heart is filled with love to God and all mankind, can keep this precept, either in its spirit or letter. Self-love will feel itself sadly cramped when brought within the limits of this precept-but God hath spoken it: it is the spirit and design of the law and the prophets; the sum of all that is laid down in the Sacred Writings, relative to mens' conduct towards each other. It seems as if God had written it upon the hearts of all men, for sayings of this kind may be found among all nations, Jewish, Christian, and Heathen. See many examples in Wetstein's notes. Verse 13. Enter ye in at the strait gate] Our Saviour seems to allude here to the distinction between the public and private ways mentioned by the Jewish lawyers. The public roads were allowed to be sixteen cubits broad, the private ways only four. The words in the original are very emphatic: Enter in (to the kingdom of heaven) through THIS strait gate, dia Tns σTens Tuans, i. e. of doing to every one as you would he should do unto you; for this alone seems to be the strait gate which our Lord alludes to. For wide is the gate] And very broad,vguxwgos, from augus, broad, and ywgos, a place, a spacious roomy place; that leadeth forward απάγουσα into THAT destruction εις την απώλειαν, meaning eternal misery, intimating, that it is much more congenial to the revengeful, covetous heart of fallen man, to take every |