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Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
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Matthew Henry |
M A T T H E W.
CHAP. IV.
John Baptist said concerning Christ, He must increase, but I must
decrease; and so it proved. For, after John had baptized Christ, and
borne his testimony to him, we hear little more of his ministry; he had
done what he came to do, and thenceforward there is as much talk of
Jesus as ever there had been of John. As the rising Sun advances, the
morning star disappears. Concerning Jesus Christ we have in this
chapter,
I. The temptation he underwent, the triple assault the tempter made
upon him, and the repulse he gave to each assault,
II. The teaching work he undertook, the places he preached in
(ver. 12-16),
and the subject he preached on,
III. His calling of disciples, Peter and Andrew, James and John,
IV. His curing diseases
(ver. 23, 24),
and the great resort of the people to him, both to be taught and to be
healed.
| The Temptation of Christ. |
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1 Then was Jesus led up of the Spirit into the wilderness to be
tempted of the devil.
2 And when he had fasted forty days and forty nights, he was
afterward an hungred.
3 And when the tempter came to him, he said, If thou be the Son
of God, command that these stones be made bread.
4 But he answered and said, It is written, Man shall not live
by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the
mouth of God.
5 Then the devil taketh him up into the holy city, and setteth
him on a pinnacle of the temple,
6 And saith unto him, If thou be the Son of God, cast thyself
down: for it is written, He shall give his angels charge
concerning thee: and in their hands they shall bear thee up,
lest at any time thou dash thy foot against a stone.
7 Jesus said unto him, It is written again, Thou shalt not
tempt the Lord thy God.
8 Again, the devil taketh him up into an exceeding high
mountain, and showeth him all the kingdoms of the world, and the
glory of them;
9 And saith unto him, All these things will I give thee, if
thou wilt fall down and worship me.
10 Then saith Jesus unto him, Get thee hence, Satan: for it is
written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt
thou serve.
11 Then the devil leaveth him, and, behold, angels came and
ministered unto him.
We have here the story of a famous duel, fought hand to hand, between
Michael and the dragon, the Seed of the woman and the seed of the
serpent, nay, the serpent himself; in which the seed of the woman
suffers, being tempted, and so has his heel bruised; but the
serpent is quite baffled in his temptations, and so has his head
broken; and our Lord Jesus comes off a Conqueror, and so secures not
only comfort, but conquest at last, to all his faithful followers.
Concerning Christ’s temptation, observe,
I. The time when it happened: Then; there is an emphasis laid
upon that. Immediately after the heavens were opened to him, and
the Spirit descended on him, and he was declared to be the Son
of God, and the Saviour of the world, the next news we hear of him is,
he is tempted; for then he is best able to grapple with
the temptation. Note,
1. Great privileges, and special tokens of divine favour, will not
secure us from being tempted. Nay,
2. After great honours put upon us, we must expect something that is
humbling; as Paul has a messenger of Satan sent to buffer him, after he
had been in the third heavens.
3. God usually prepares his people for temptation before he calls them
to it; he gives strength according to the day, and, before a
sharp trial, gives more than ordinary comfort.
4. The assurance of our sonship is the best preparative for temptation.
If the good Spirit witness to our adoption, that will furnish us with
an answer to all the suggestions of the evil spirit, designed either to
debauch or disquiet us.
Then, when he was newly come from a solemn ordinance, when he
was baptized, then he was tempted. Note, After we have
been admitted into the communion of God, we must expect to be set upon
by Satan. The enriched soul must double its guard. When thou has
eaten and art full, then beware. Then, when he began to show
himself publicly to Israel, then he was tempted, so as he
never had been while he lived in privacy. Note, The Devil has a
particular spite at useful persons, who are not only good, but given to
do good, especially at their first setting out. It is the advice of the
Son of Sirach
(Ecclesiasticus ii. 1),
My son, if thou come to serve the Lord, prepare thyself for
temptation. Let young ministers know what to expect, and arm
accordingly.
II. The place where it was; in the wilderness; probably in the
great wilderness of Sinai, where Moses and Elijah fasted
forty days, for no part of the wilderness of Judea was so
abandoned to wild beasts as this is said to have been,
When Christ was baptized, he did not go to Jerusalem, there to publish
the glories that had been put upon him, but retired into a wilderness.
After communion with God, it is good to be private awhile, lest we lose
what we have received, in the crowd and hurry of worldly business.
Christ withdrew into the wilderness,
1. To gain advantage to himself. Retirement gives an opportunity for
meditation an communion with God; even they who are called to the most
active life must yet have their contemplative hours, and must first
find time to be alone with God. Those are not fit to speak of the
things of God in public to others, who have not first conversed with
those things in secret by themselves. When Christ would appear as a
Teacher come from God, it shall not be said of him, “He is newly
come from travelling, he has been abroad, and has seen the world;” but,
“He is newly come out of the desert, he has been alone conversing with
God and his own heart.”
2. To give advantage to the tempter, that he might have a readier
access to him than he could have had in company. Note, Though solitude
is a friend to a good heart, yet Satan knows how to improve it against
us. Woe to him that is alone. Those who, under pretence of
sanctity and devotion, retire into dens and deserts, find that they are
not out of reach of their spiritual enemies, and that there they want
the benefit of the communion with saints. Christ retired,
(1.) To make his victory the more illustrious, he gave the enemy sun
and wind on his side, and yet baffled him. He might give the Devil
advantage, for the prince of this world had nothing in him; but
he has in us, and therefore we must pray not to be led into
temptation, and must keep out of harm’s way.
(2.) That he might have an opportunity to do his best himself, that he
might be exalted in his own strength; for so it was written, I have
trod the wine-press alone, and of the people there was none with
me. Christ entered the lists without a second.
III. The preparatives for it, which were two.
1. He was directed to the combat; he did not wilfully thrust himself
upon it, but he was led up of the Spirit to be tempted of the
Devil. The Spirit that descended upon him like a dove made
him meek, and yet made him bold. Note, Our care must be, not to enter
into temptation; but if God, by his providence, order us into
circumstances of temptation for our trial, we must not think it
strange, but double our guard. Be strong in the Lord, resist
stedfast in the faith, and all shall be well. If we presume upon
our own strength, and tempt the devil to tempt us, we provoke God to
leave us to ourselves; but, whithersoever God leads us, we may hope he
will go along with us, and bring us off more than
conquerors.
Christ was led to be tempted of the Devil, and of him only.
Others are tempted, when they are drawn aside of their own lust and
enticed
(Jam. i. 14);
the Devil takes hold of that handle, and ploughs with that heifer; but
our Lord Jesus had no corrupt nature, and therefore he was led
securely, without any fear or trembling, as a champion into the field,
to be tempted purely by the Devil.
Now Christ’s temptation is,
(1.) An instance of his own condescension and humiliation. Temptations
are fiery darts, thorns in the flesh, buffetings, siftings,
wrestlings, combats, all which denote hardship and suffering;
therefore Christ submitted to them, because he would humble
himself, in all things to be made like unto his brethren; thus
he gave his back to the smiters.
(2.) An occasion of Satan’s confusion. There is no conquest without a
combat. Christ was tempted, that he might overcome the tempter. Satan
tempted the first Adam, and triumphed over him; but he shall not always
triumph, the second Adam shall overcome him and lead captivity
captive.
(3.) Matter of comfort to all the saints. In the temptation of Christ
it appears, that our enemy is subtle, spiteful, and very daring in his
temptations; but it appears withal, that he is not invincible. Though
he is a strong man armed, yet the Captain of our salvation is
stronger than he. It is some comfort to us to think that Christ
suffered, being tempted; for thus it appears that temptations,
if not yielded to, are not sins, they are afflictions only, and such as
may be pleased. And we have a High Priest who knows, by experience,
what it is to be tempted, and who therefore is the more tenderly
touch with the feelings of our infirmities in an hour of
temptation,
But it is much more a comfort to think that Christ conquered, being
tempted, and conquered for us; not only that the enemy we
grapple with is a conquered, baffled, disarmed enemy, but that we are
interested in Christ’s victory over him, and through him are more
than conquerors.
2. He was dieted for the combat, as wrestlers, who are temperate in
all things
but Christ beyond any other, for he fasted forty days and forty
nights, in compliance with the type and example of Moses the great
lawgiver, and of Elias, the great reformer, of the Old Testament. John
Baptist came as Elias, in those things that were moral, but not in such
things as were miraculous
(John x. 41);
that honour was reserved for Christ. Christ needed not to fast for
mortification (he had no corrupt desires to be subdued); yet he
fasted,
(1.) That herein he might humble himself, and might seem as one
abandoned, whom no man seeketh after.
(2.) That he might give Satan both occasion and advantage against him;
and so make his victory over him the more illustrious.
(3.) That he might sanctify and recommend fasting to us, when God in
his providence calls to it, or when we are reduced to straits, and are
destitute of daily food, or when it is requisite for the keeping under
of the body, or the quickening of prayer, those excellent preparatives
for temptation. If good people are brought low, if they want friends
and succours, this may comfort them, that their Master himself was in
like manner exercised. A man may want bread, and yet be a favourite of
heaven, and under the conduct of the Spirit. The reference which the
Papists make of their lent-fast to this fasting of Christ forty
days, is a piece of foppery and superstition which the law of our
land witnesses against, Stat. 5 Eliz. chap. 5 sect. 39, 40. When he
fasted forty days he was never hungry; converse with heaven was
instead of meat and drink to him, but he was afterwards an
hungred, to show that he was really and truly Man; and he took upon
him our natural infirmities, that he might atone for us. Man fell by
eating, and that way we often sin, and therefore Christ was an
hungred.
IV. The temptations themselves. That which Satan aimed at, in all his
temptations, was, to bring him to sin against God, and so to
render him for ever incapable of being a Sacrifice for the sins of
others. Now, whatever the colours were, that which he aimed at was, to
bring him,
1. To despair of his Father’s goodness.
2. To presume upon his Father’s power.
3. To alienate his Father’s honour, by giving it to Satan. In the two
former, that which he tempted him to, seemed innocent, and there
in appeared the subtlety of the tempter; in the last, that which he
tempted him with, seemed desirable. The two former are artful
temptations, which there was need of great wisdom to discern; the last
was a strong temptation, which there was need of great resolution to
resist; yet he was baffled in them all.
1. He tempted him to despair of his Father’s goodness, and to distrust
his Father’s care concerning him.
(1.) See how the temptation was managed
(v. 3);
The tempter came to him. Note, The Devil is the tempter,
and therefore he is Satan–an adversary; for those are our worst
enemies, that entice us to sin, and are Satan’s agents, are doing his
work, and carrying on his designs. He is called emphatically the
tempter, because he was so to our first parents, and still is so,
and all other tempters are set on work by him. The tempter came
to Christ in a visible appearance, not terrible and affrighting, as
afterward in his agony in the garden; no, if ever the Devil
transformed himself into an angel of light, he did so now, and
pretended to be a good genius, a guardian angel.
Observe the subtlety of the tempter, in joining this first
temptation with what went before to make it the stronger.
[1.] Christ began to be hungry, and therefore the motion seemed very
proper, to turn stones into bread for his necessary
support. Note, It is one of the wiles of Satan to take advantage of our
outward condition, in that to plant the battery of his temptations. He
is an adversary no less watchful than spiteful; and the more ingenious
he is to take advantage against us, the more industrious we must be to
give him none. When he began to be hungry, and that in a
wilderness, where there was nothing to be had, then the Devil
assaulted him. Note, Want and poverty are a great temptation to
discontent and unbelief, and the use of unlawful means for our relief,
under pretence that necessity has no law; and it is excused with this
that hunger will break through stone walls, which yet is no excuse, for
the law of God ought to be stronger to us than stone walls. Agur prays
against poverty, not because it is an affliction and reproach, but
because it is a temptation; lest I be poor, and steal. Those
therefore who are reduced to straits, have need to double their guard;
it is better to starve to death, than live and thrive by sin.
[2.] Christ was lately declared to be the Son of God, and here
the Devil tempts him to doubt of that; If thou be the Son of
God. Had not the Devil known that the Son of God was to come into
the world, he would not have said this; and had he not suspected that
this was he, he would not have said it to him, nor durst he have said
it if Christ had not now drawn a veil over his glory, and if the Devil
had not now put on an impudent face.
First, “Thou has now an occasion to question whether thou be
the Son of God or no; for can it be, that the Son of God,
who is Heir of all things, should be reduced to such straits? If
God were thy Father, he would not see thee starve, for all the
beasts of the forest are his,
Ps. l. 10, 12.
It is true there was a voice from heaven, This is my beloved
Son, but surely it was delusion, and thou was imposed upon by it;
for either God is not thy Father, or he is a very unkind one.” Note,
1. The great thing Satan aims at, in tempting good people, is to
overthrow their relation to God as a Father, and so to cut off their
dependence on him, their duty to him, and their communion with him. The
good Spirit, as the Comforter of the brethren, witnesses that they are
the children of God; the evil spirit, as the accuser of the
brethren, does all he can to shake that testimony.
2. Outward afflictions, wants and burdens, are the great arguments
Satan uses to make the people of God question their sonship; as if
afflictions could not consist with, when really they proceed from,
God’s fatherly love. They know how to answer this temptation, who can
say with holy Job, Though he slay me, though he starve me,
yet I will trust in him, and love him as a Friend, even when he
seems to come forth against me as an Enemy.
3. The Devil aims to shake our faith in the word of God, and bring us
to question the truth of that. Thus he began with our first parents;
Yea, has God said so and so? Surely he has not. So here, Has
God said that thou art his beloved Son? Surely he did not
say so; or if he did it is not true. We then give place to the
Devil, when we question the truth of any word that God has spoken;
for his business, as the father of lies, is to oppose the true sayings
of God.
4. The Devil carries on his designs very much by possessing people with
hard thoughts of God, as if he were unkind, or unfaithful, and had
forsaken or forgotten those who had ventured their all with him. He
endeavored to beget in our first parents a notion that God forbade them
the tree of knowledge, because he grudged them the benefit of it; and
so here he insinuates to our Saviour, that his Father had cast him off,
and left him to shift for himself. But see how unreasonable this
suggestion was, and how easily answered. If Christ seemed to be a mere
Man now, because he was hungry, why was he not confessed to be more
than a Man, even the Son of God, when for forty days he
fasted, and was not hungry?
Secondly, “Thou hast now an opportunity to show that thou art
the son of God. If thou art the Son of God, prove it by this,
command these stones” (a heap of which, probably, lay now before
him) “be made bread,
v. 3.
John Baptist said but the other day, that God can out of stone raise
up children to Abraham, a divine power therefore can, no doubt, out
of stones, make bread for those children; if there thou has that power,
exert it now in a time of need for thyself.” He does not say, Pray
to thy Father that he would turn them into bread; but
command it to be done; thy Father hath forsaken thee, set up for
thyself, and be not beholden to him. The Devil is for nothing that is
humbling, but ever thing that is assuming; and gains his point, if he
can but bring men off from their dependence upon God, and possess them
with an opinion of their self-sufficiency.
(2.) See how this temptation was resisted and overcome.
[1.] Christ refused to comply with it. He would not command these
stones to be made bread; not because he could not; his power, which
soon after this turned stones into bread; but he would
not. And why would he not? At first view, the thing appears justifiable
enough, and the truth is, the more plausible a temptation is, and the
greater appearance there is of good in it, the more dangerous it is.
This matter would bear a dispute, but Christ was soon aware of the
snake in the grass, and would not do any thing, First, That
looked like questioning the truth of the voice he heard from heaven, or
putting that upon a new trial which was already settled.
Secondly, That looked like distrusting his Father’s care of him,
or limiting him to one particular way of providing for him.
Thirdly, That looked like setting up for himself, and being his
own carver; or, Fourthly, That looked like gratifying Satan, by
doing a thing at his motion. Some would have said, To give the Devil
his due, this was good counsel; but for those who wait upon God,
to consult him, is more than his due; it is like enquiring of
the god Ekron, when there is a God in Israel.
[2.] He was ready to reply to it
(v. 4);
He answered and said, It is written. This is observable, that
Christ answered and baffled all the temptations of Satan with, It is
written. He is himself the eternal Word, and could have produced
the mind of God without having recourse to the writings of Moses; but
he put honour upon the scripture, and, to set us an example, he
appealed to what was written in the law; and he says this to Satan,
taking it for granted that he knew well enough what was written. It is
possible that those who are the Devil’s children may yet know very well
what is written in God’s book; The devils believe and tremble.
This method we must take when at any time we are tempted to sin; resist
and repel the temptation with, It is written. The Word of God is
the sword of the Spirit, the only offensive weapon in all the
Christian armoury
(Eph. vi. 17);
and we may say of it as David of Goliath’s sword, None is like
that in our spiritual conflicts.
This answer, as all the rest, is taken out of the book of
Deuteronomy, which signifies the second law, and in which
there is very little ceremonial; the Levitical sacrifices and
purifications could not drive away Satan, though of divine institution,
much less holy water and the sign of the cross, which are of human
invention; but moral precepts and evangelical promises, mixed with
faith, these are mighty, through God, for the vanquishing of
Satan. This is here quoted from
where the reason given why God fed the Israelites with manna is,
because he would teach them that man shall not live by bread
alone. This Christ applies to his own case. Israel was God’s son,
whom he called out of Egypt
(Hos. xi. 1),
so was Christ
(ch. ii. 15);
Israel was then in a wilderness, Christ was so now, perhaps the same
wilderness. Now, First, The Devil would have him question his
sonship, because he was in straits; no, says he, Israel was God’s son,
and a son he was very tender of and whose manners he bore
and yet he brought them into straits; and it follows there
As a man chasteneth his son, so the Lord thy God chasteneth
thee. Christ, being a Son, thus learns obedience.
Secondly, The Devil would have him distrust his Father’s love and
care. “No,” says he, “that would be to do as Israel did, who, when they
were in want, said, Is the Lord among us? and, Can he furnish
a table in the wilderness? Can he give bread?” Thirdly, The Devil
would have him, as soon as he began to be hungry, immediately looking
out for supply; whereas God, for wise and holy ends, suffered Israel to
hunger before he fed them; to humble them, and prove them. God will
have his children, when they want, not only to wait on him, but to wait
for him. Fourthly, The Devil would have him to supply himself
with bread. “No,” says Christ, “what need is there of that? It is a
point long since settled, and incontestably proved, that man may live
without bread, as Israel in the wilderness lived forty years upon
manna.” It is true, God in his providence ordinarily maintains men by
bread out of the earth
but he can, if he please, make use of other means to keep men alive;
any word proceeding out of the mouth of God, any thing that God
shall order and appoint for that end, will be a good a livelihood for
man as bread, and will maintain him as well. As we may have
bread, and yet not be nourished, if God deny his blessing
for though bread is the staff of life, it is God’s blessing that
is the staff of bread), so we may want bread, and yet be
nourished some other way. God sustains Moses and Elias without bread,
and Christ himself just now for forty days; he sustained Israel with
bread from heaven, angels’ food; Elijah with bread sent miraculously by
ravens, and another time with the widow’s meal miraculously multiplied;
therefore Christ need not turn stones into bread, but trust God to keep
him alive some other way now that he is hungry, as he had done forty
days before he hungred. Note, As in our great abundance we must not
think to live without God, so in our greatest straits we must
learn to live upon God; and when the fig-tree does not
blossom, and the field yields no meat, when all ordinary
means of succour and support are cut off, yet then we must rejoice
in the Lord; then we must not think to command what we will, though
contrary to his command, but must humbly pray for what he thinks fit to
give us, and be thankful for the bread of our allowance, though it be a
short allowance. Let us learn of Christ here to be at God’s finding,
rather than at our own; and not to take any irregular courses for our
supply, when our wants are ever so pressing
Jehovah-jireh; some way or other the Lord will provide.
It is better to live poorly upon the fruits of God’s goodness, than
live plentifully upon the products of our own sin.
2. He tempted him to presume upon his Father’s power and protection.
See what a restless unwearied adversary the Devil is! If he fail in one
assault, he tries another.
Now in this second attempt we may observe,
(1.) What the temptation was, and how it was managed. In general,
finding Christ so confident of his Father’s care of him, in point of
nourishment, he endeavors to draw him to presume upon that care in
point of safety. Note, We are in danger of missing our way, both on the
right hand and on the left, and therefore must take heed, lest, when we
avoid one extreme, we be brought by the artifices of Satan, to run into
another; lest, by overcoming our prodigality, we fall into
covetousness. Nor are any extremes more dangerous than those of despair
and presumption, especially in the affairs of our souls. Some who have
obtained a persuasion that Christ is able and willing to save them
from their sins, are then tempted to presume that he will save
them in their sins. Thus when people begin to be zealous in
religion, Satan hurries them into bigotry and intemperate heats.
Now in this temptation we may observe,
[1.] How he made way for it. He took Christ, not by force against his
will, but moved him to go, and went along with him, to Jerusalem.
Whether Christ went upon the ground, and so went up the stairs to the
top of the temple, or whether he went in the air, is uncertain; but so
it was, that he was set upon a pinnacle, or spire; upon the
fane (so some), upon the battlements (so others), upon
the wing (so the word is), of the temple. Now observe,
First, How submissive Christ was, in suffering himself to be
hurried thus, that he might let Satan do his worst and yet conquer him.
The patience of Christ here, as afterward in his sufferings and death,
is more wonderful than the power of Satan or his instruments; for
neither he nor they could have any power against Christ but what was
given them from above. How comfortable is it, that Christ, who let
loose this power of Satan against himself, does not in like manner let
it loose against us, but restrains it, for he knows our frame!
Secondly, How subtle the Devil was, in the choice of the place for
his temptations. Intending to solicit Christ to an ostentation of his
own power, and a vain-glorious presumption upon God’s providence, he
fixes him on a public place in Jerusalem, a populous city, and the
joy of the whole earth; in the temple, one of the wonders of the
world, continually gazed upon with admiration by some one or other.
There he might make himself remarkable, and be taken notice of by
everybody, and prove himself the Son of God; not, as he was urged in
the former temptation, in the obscurities of a wilderness, but before
multitudes, upon the most eminent stage of action.
Observe,
1. That Jerusalem is here called the holy city; for so it was in
name and profession, and there was in it a holy seed, that was
the substance thereof. Note, There is no city on earth so holy
as to exempt and secure us from the Devil and his temptations. The
first Adam was tempted in the holy garden, the second in
the holy city. Let us not, therefore, in any place, be off our
watch. Nay, the holy city is the place where he does, with great
advantage and success, tempt men to pride and presumption; but, blessed
be God, into the Jerusalem above, that holy city, no unclean thing
shall enter; there we shall be for ever out of temptation.
2. That he set him upon a pinnacle of the temple, which (as
Josephus describes it, Antiq. 15. 412) was so very high, that it
would make a man’s head giddy to look down to the bottom. Note,
Pinnacles of the temple are places of temptation; I mean,
(1.) High places are so; they are slippery places; advancement in the
world makes a man a fair mark for Satan to shoot his fiery darts at.
God casts down, that he may raise up; the Devil raises up, that he may
cast down: therefore they who would take heed of falling, must
take heed of climbing.
(2.) High places in the church are, in a special manner,
dangerous. They who excel in gifts, who are in eminent stations, and
have gained great reputation, have need to keep humble; for Satan will
be sure to aim at them, to puff them up with pride, that they may
fall into the condemnation of the Devil. Those that stand
high are concerned to stand fast.
[2.] How he moved it; “If thou be the Son of God, now show
thyself to the world, and prove thyself to be so; cast thyself
down, and then,” First, “Thou wilt be admired, as under
the special protection of heaven. When they see thee receive no
hurt by a fall from such a precipice, they will say” (as the barbarous
people did of Paul) “that thou art a God.” Tradition says, that
Simon Magnus by this very thing attempted to prove himself a
god, but that his pretensions were disproved, for he fell down, and was
miserably bruised. “Nay,” Secondly, “Thou wilt be received, as
coming with a special commission from heaven. All Jerusalem will
see and acknowledge, not only that thou art more than a man, but that
thou art that Messenger, that Angel of the covenant, that
should suddenly come to the temple
(Mal. iii. 1),
and from thence descend into the streets of the holy city; and thus the
work of convincing the Jews will be cut short, and soon done.”
Observe, The Devil said, Cast thyself down. The Devil could not
cast him down, though a little thing would have done it, from the top
of a spire. Note, The power of Satan is a limited power; hitherto he
shall come, and no further. Yet, if the Devil had cast him
down, he had not gained his point; that had been his suffering
only, not his sin. Note, Whatever real mischief is done us, it is of
our own doing; the Devil can but persuade, he cannot compel; he
can but say, Cast thyself down; he cannot cast us down. Every
man is tempted, when he is drawn away of his own lust, and not forced,
but enticed. Therefore let us not hurt ourselves, and then,
blessed be God, no one else can hurt us,
[3.] How he backed this motion with a scripture; For it is written,
He shall give his angels charge concerning thee. But is Saul
also among the prophets? Is Satan so well versed in scripture, as
to be able to quote it so readily? It seems, he is. Note, It is
possible for a man to have his head full of scripture-notions, and his
mouth full of scripture-expressions, while his heart is full of
reigning enmity to God and all goodness. The knowledge which the devils
have of the scripture, increases both their mischievousness and their
torment. Never did the devil speak with more vexation to himself, than
when he said to Christ, I know thee who thou art. The devil
would persuade Christ to throw himself down, hoping that he
would be his own murderer, and that there would be an end of him and
his undertaking, which he looked upon with a jealous eye; to encourage
him to do it, he tells them, that there was no danger, that the good
angels would protect him, for so was the promise
(Ps. xci. 11),
He shall give his angels charge over thee. In this
quotation,
First, There was something right. It is true, there is
such a promise of the ministration of the angels, for the protection of
the saints. The devil knows it by experience; for he finds his attempts
against them fruitless, and he frets and rages at it, as he did at the
hedge about Job, which he speaks of so sensibly,
He was also right in applying it to Christ, for to him all the promises
of the protection of the saints primarily and eminently belong, and to
them, in and through him. That promise, that not a bone of theirs
shall be broken
was fulfilled in Christ,
The angels guard the saints for Christ’s sake,
Secondly, There was a great deal wrong in it; and perhaps
the devil had a particular spite against this promise, and perverted
it, because it often stood in his way, and baffled his mischievous
designs against the saints. See here,
1. How he misquoted it; and that was bad. The promise
is, They shall keep thee; but how? In all thy ways; not
otherwise; if we go out of our way, out of the way of our duty,
we forfeit the promise, and put ourselves out of God’s protection. Now
this word made against the tempter, and therefore he industriously left
it out. If Christ had cast himself down, he had been out of
his way, for he had no call so to expose himself. It is good for us
upon all occasions to consult the scriptures themselves, and not to
take things upon trust, that we may not be imposed upon by those that
maim and mangle the word of God; we must do as the noble
Bereans, who searched the scriptures daily.
2. How he misapplied it; and that was worse. Scripture is
abused when it is pressed to patronize sin; and when men thus wrest it
to their own temptation, they do it to their own destruction
2 Pet. iii. 16.
This promise is firm, and stands good; but the devil made an ill use of
it, when he used it as an encouragement to presume upon the divine
care. Note, It is no new thing for the grace of God to be
turned into wantonness; and for men to take encouragement in sin
from the discoveries of God’s good will to sinners. But shall we
continue in sin, that grace may abound? throw ourselves down, that
the angels may bear us up? God forbid.
(2.) How Christ overcame this temptation; he resisted and overcame it,
as he did the former, with, It is written. The devil’s
abusing of scripture did not prevent Christ from using it, but
he presently urges,
Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God. The meaning of this is
not, Therefore thou must not tempt me; but, Therefore I must not
tempt my Father. In the place whence it is quoted, it is in the
plural number, You shall not tempt; here it is singular, Thou
shalt not. Note, We are then likely to get good by the word
of God, when we hear and receive general promises as speaking to us in
particular. Satan said, It is written; Christ says, It is
written; not that one scripture contradicts another. God is one,
and his word one, and he is one mind, but that is a promise, this is a
precept, and therefore that is to be explained and applied by this; for
scripture is the best interpreter of scripture; and they who prophesy,
who expound scripture, must do it according to the proportion of faith
(Rom. xii. 6),
consistently with practical godliness.
If Christ should cast himself down, it would be the tempting of
God,
[1.] As it would be requiring a further confirmation of that
which was so well confirmed. Christ was abundantly satisfied that God
was already his Father, and took care of him, and gave his angels a
charge concerning him; and therefore to put it upon a new experiment,
would be to tempt him, as the Pharisees tempted Christ; when they had
so many signs on earth, they demanded a sign from heaven. This
is limiting the Holy One of Israel.
[2.] As it would be requiring a special preservation of him, in
doing that which he had no call to. If we expect that because God has
promised not to forsake us, therefore he should follow us out of the
way of our duty; that because he has promised to supply our wants,
therefore he should humour us, and please our fancies; that because he
has promised to keep us, we may wilfully thrust ourselves into danger,
and may expect the desired end, without using the appointed means; this
is presumption, this is tempting God. And it is an aggravation of the
sin, that he is the Lord our God; it is an abuse of the privilege we
enjoy, in having him for our God; he has thereby encouraged us to trust
him, but we are very ungrateful, if therefore we tempt him; it is
contrary to our duty to him as our God. This is to affront him whom we
ought to honour. Note, We must never promise ourselves any more than
God has promised us.
3. He tempted him to the most black and horrid idolatry, with
the proffer of the kingdoms of the world, and the glory of them.
And here we may observe,
(1.) How the devil made this push at our Saviour,
The worst temptation was reserved for the last. Note, Sometimes the
saint’s last encounter is with the sons of Anak, and the parting
blow is the sorest; therefore, whatever temptation we have been
assaulted by, still we must prepare for worse; must be armed for all
attacks, with the armour of righteousness on the right hand and on the
left.
In this temptation, we may observe,
[1.] What he showed him–all the kingdoms of the world. In order
to do this, he took him to an exceeding high mountain; in hopes
of prevailing, as Balak with Balaam, he changed his ground. The
pinnacle of the temple is not high enough; the prince of the power of
the air must have him further up into his territories. Some think this
high mountain was on the other side of Jordan, because there we find
Christ next after the temptation,
Perhaps it was mount Pisgah, whence Moses, in communion with
God, had all the kingdoms of Canaan shown him. Hither the blessed Jesus
was carried for the advantage of a prospect; as if the devil could show
him more of the world than he knew already, who made and governed it.
Thence he might discover some of the kingdoms situate about Judea,
though not the glory of them; but there was doubtless a juggle
and a delusion of Satan’s in it; it is probable that that which he
showed him, was but a landscape, an airy representation in a cloud,
such as that great deceiver could easily frame and put together;
setting forth, in proper and lively colours, the glories and the
splendid appearances of princes; their robes and crowns, their retinue,
equipage, and lifeguards; the pomp of thrones, and courts, and stately
palaces, the sumptuous buildings in cities, the gardens and fields
about the country-seats, with the various instances of their wealth,
pleasure, and gaiety; so as might be most likely to strike the fancy,
and excite the admiration and affection. Such was this show, and his
taking him up into a high mountain, was but to humour the thing,
and to colour the delusion; in which yet the blessed Jesus did not
suffer himself to be imposed upon, but saw through the cheat, only he
permitted Satan to take his own way, that his victory over him might be
the more illustrious. Hence observe, concerning Satan’s
temptations, that, First, They often come in at the
eye, which is blinded to the things it should see, and dazzled with
the vanities it should be turned from. The first sin began in the eye,
We have therefore need to make a covenant with our eyes, and to pray
that God would turn them away from beholding vanity. Secondly,
That temptations commonly take rise from the world, and the things in
it. The lust of the flesh, and of the eye, with the
pride of life, are the topics from which the devil fetches most
of his arguments. Thirdly, That it is a great cheat which
the devil puts upon poor souls, in his temptations. He deceives, and so
destroys; he imposes upon men with shadows and fast colours; shows the
world and the glory of it, and hides from men’s eyes the sin and sorrow
and death which stain the pride of all this glory, the cares and
calamities which attend great possessions, and the thorns which crowns
themselves are lined with. Fourthly, That the glory of the
world is the most charming temptation to the
unthinking and unwary, and that by which men are most
imposed upon. Laban’s sons grudge Jacob all this glory;
the pride of life is the most dangerous snare.
(2.) What he said to him
(v. 9);
All these things I will give thee, if thou wilt fall down and
worship me. See,
First, How vain the promise was. All these things I
will give thee. He seems to take it for granted, that in the former
temptations he had in part gained his point, and proved that Christ was
not the Son of God, because he had not given him those evidences
of it which he demanded; so that here he looks upon him as a mere man.
“Come,” says he, “it seems that God whose Son thou thinkest thyself to
be deserts thee, and starves thee–a sign that he is not thy Father;
but if thou wilt be ruled by me, I will provide better for thee than
so; own me for thy father, and ask my blessing, and all this will I
give thee.” Note, Satan makes an easy prey of men, when he can
persuade them to think themselves abandoned of God. The fallacy of this
promise lies in that, All this will I give thee. And what was
all that? It was but a map, a picture, a mere phantasm, that had
nothing in it real or solid, and this he would give him; a goodly
prize! Yet such are Satan’s proffers. Note, Multitudes lose the sight
of that which is, by setting their eyes on that which is not. The
devil’s baits are all a sham; they are shows and shadows with which he
deceives them, or rather they deceive themselves. The nations of the
earth had been, long before, promised to the Messiah; if he be
the Son of God, they belong to him; Satan pretends now to be a
good angel, probably one of those that were set over kingdoms, and to
have received a commission to deliver possession to him according to
promise. Note, We must take heed of receiving even that which God hath
promised, out of the devil’s hand; we do so when we precipitate the
performance, by catching at it in a sinful way.
Secondly, How vile the condition was; If thou
will fall down, and worship me. All the worship which the heathen
performed to their gods, was directed to the devil
who is therefore called the god of this world,
2 Cor. iv. 4; 1 Cor. x. 20.
And fain would he draw Christ into his interests, and persuade him, now
that he set up for a Teacher, to preach up the Gentile idolatry, and to
introduce it again among the Jews, and then the nations of the earth
would soon flock in to him. What temptation could be more hideous, more
black? Note, The best of saints may be tempted to the worst of sins,
especially when they are under the power of melancholy; as, for
instance, to atheism, blasphemy, murder, self-murder, and what not.
This is their affliction, but while there is no consent to it, nor
approbation of it, it is not their sin; Christ was tempted to worship
Satan.
(2.) See how Christ warded off the thrust, baffled the assault, and
came off a conqueror. He rejected the proposal,
[1.] With abhorrence and detestation; Get thee hence,
Satan. The two former temptations had something of colour, which
would admit a consideration, but this was so gross as not to bear a
parley; it appears abominable at the first sight, and therefore is
immediately rejected. If the best friend we have in the world suggests
such a thing as this to us, Go, serve other gods, he must not be
heard with patience,
Some temptations have their wickedness written in their forehead, they
are open before-hand; they are not to be disputed with, but rejected;
“Get thee hence, Satan. Away with it, I cannot bear the thought
of it!” While Satan tempted Christ to do himself a mischief, by casting
himself down, though he yielded not, yet he heard it; but now that the
temptation flies in the face of God, he cannot bear it; Get thee
hence, Satan. Note, It is a just indignation, which rises at the
proposal of any thing that reflects on the honour of God, and strikes
at his crown. Nay, whatever is an abominable thing, which we are sure
the Lord hates, we must thus abominate it; far be it from us that we
should have any thing to do with it. Note, It is good to be
peremptory in resisting temptation, and to stop our ears
to Satan’s charms.
[2.] With an argument fetched from scripture. Note, In order to the
strengthening of our resolutions against sin, it is good to see what a
great deal of reason there is for those resolutions. The argument is
very suitable, and exactly to the purpose, taken from
Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou
serve. Christ does not dispute whether he were an angel of light,
as he pretended, or not; but though he were, yet he must not be
worshipped, because that is an honour due to God only. Note, It is good
to make our answers to temptation as full and as brief as may be, so as
not to leave room for objections. Our Saviour has recourse to the
fundamental law in this case, which is indispensable, and universally
obligatory. Note, Religious worship is due to God only, and must not be
given to any creature; it is a flower of the crown which cannot be
alienated, a branch of God’s glory which he will not give to another,
and which he would not give to his own Son, by obliging all men to
honour the Son, even as they honour the Father, if he had not
been God, equal to him, and one with him. Christ quotes
this law concerning religious worship, and quotes it with application
to himself; First, To show that in his estate of humiliation he
was himself made under this law: though, as God, he was
worshipped, yet, as Man, he did worship God, both publicly and
privately. He obliges us to no more than what he was first pleased to
oblige himself to. Thus it became him to fulfil all righteousness.
Secondly, To show that the law of religious worship is of
eternal obligation: though he abrogated and altered many institutions
of worship, yet this fundamental law of nature–That God only is to be
worshipped, he came to ratify, and confirm, and enforce upon us.
V. We have here the end and issue of this combat,
Though the children of God may be exercised with many and great
temptations, yet God will not suffer them to be tempted above the
strength which either they have, or he will put into them,
It is but for a season that they are in heaviness, through manifold
temptations.
Now the issue was glorious, and much to Christ’s honour: for,
1. The devil was baffled, and quitted the field; Then the devil
leaveth him, forced to do so by the power that went along with that
word of command, Get thee hence, Satan. He made a shameful and
inglorious retreat, and came off with disgrace; and the more daring his
attempts had been, the more mortifying was the foil that was given him.
Magnis tamen excidit ausis–The attempt, however, in which he failed,
was daring. Then, when he had done his worst, had tempted him with
all the kingdoms of the world, and the glory of them, and found
that he was not influenced by that bait, that he could not prevail with
that temptation with which he had overthrown so many thousands of the
children of men, then he leaves him; then he gives him over as more
than a man. Since this did not move him, he despairs of moving him, and
begins to conclude, that he is the Son of God, and that it is in
vain to tempt him any further. Note, If we resist the devil, he will
flee from us; he will yield, if we keep our ground; as when
Naomi saw that Ruth was steadfastly resolved, she left off
speaking to her. When the devil left our Saviour, he owned himself
fairly beaten; his head was broken by the attempt he made to bruise
Christ’s heel. He left him because he had nothing in him,
nothing to take hold of; he saw it was to no purpose, and so gave over.
Note, The devil, though he is an enemy to all saints, is a conquered
enemy. The Captain of our salvation has defeated and disarmed him; we
have nothing to do but to pursue the victory.
2. The holy angels came and attended upon our victorious Redeemer;
Behold, angels came and ministered unto him. They came in a
visible appearance, as the devil had done in the temptation. While the
devil was making his assaults upon our Saviour, the angels stood at a
distance, and their immediate attendance and administration were
suspended, that it might appear that he vanquished Satan in his own
strength, and that his victory might be the more illustrious; and that
afterward, when Michael makes use of his angels in
fighting with the dragon and his angels, it might appear, that
it is not because he needs them, or could not do his work
without them, but because he is pleased to honour them so far as to
employ them. One angel might have served to bring him food, but here
are many attending him, to testify their respect to him, and their
readiness to receive his commands. Behold this! It is worth taking
notice of;
(1.) That as there is a world of wicked, malicious spirits that fight
against Christ and his church, and all particular believers, so there
is a world of holy, blessed spirits engaged and employed for them. In
reference to our war with devils, we may take abundance of
comfort from our communion with angels.
(2.) That Christ’s victories are the angels’ triumphs. The angels came
to congratulate Christ on his success, to rejoice with him, and to give
him the glory due to his name; for that was sung with a loud voice in
heaven, when the great dragon was cast out
Now is come salvation and strength.
(3.) That the angels ministered to the Lord Jesus, not only food, but
whatever else he wanted after this great fatigue. See how the
instances of Christ’s condescension and humiliation were balanced with
tokens of his glory. As when he was crucified in weakness, yet
he lived by the power of God; so when in weakness he was
tempted, was hungry and weary, yet by his divine power he commanded the
ministration of angels. Thus the Son of man did eat angels’ food, and,
like Elias, is fed by an angel in the wilderness,
Note, Though God may suffer his people to be brought into wants and
straits, yet he will take effectual care for their supply, and will
rather send angels to feed them, than see them perish. Trust in the
Lord, and verily thou shalt be fed,
Ps. xxxvii. 3.
Christ was thus succoured after the temptation,
[1.] For his encouragement to go on in his undertaking, that he might
see the powers of heaven siding with him, when he saw the powers of
hell set against him.
[2.] For our encouragement to trust in him; for as he knew, by
experience, what it was to suffer, being tempted, and how hard
that was, so he knew what it was to be succoured, being tempted, and
how comfortable that was; and therefore we may expect, not only that he
will sympathize with his tempted people, but that he will come in with
seasonable relief to them; as our great Melchizedec, who met Abraham
when he returned from the battle, and as the angels here ministered to
him.
| Opening of Christ’s Ministry. |
|
|
12 Now when Jesus had heard that John was cast into prison, he
departed into Galilee;
13 And leaving Nazareth, he came and dwelt in Capernaum, which
is upon the sea coast, in the borders of Zabulon and Nephthalim:
14 That it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Esaias the
prophet, saying,
15 The land of Zabulon, and the land of Nephthalim, by the
way of the sea, beyond Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles;
16 The people which sat in darkness saw great light; and to
them which sat in the region and shadow of death light is sprung
up.
17 From that time Jesus began to preach, and to say, Repent:
for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.
We have here an account of Christ’s preaching in the synagogues of
Galilee, for he came into the world to be a Preacher; the great
salvation which he wrought out, he himself began to publish
to show how much his heart was upon it, and ours should
be.
Several passages in the other gospels, especially in that of St. John,
are supposed, in the order of the story of Christ’s life, to intervene
between his temptation and his preaching in Galilee. His first
appearance after his temptation, was when John Baptist pointed to him,
saying, Behold the Lamb of God,
John i. 29.
After that, he went up to Jerusalem, to the passover
(John ii.),
discoursed with Nicodemus
(John iii.),
with the woman of Samaria
(John iv.),
and then returned into Galilee, and preached there. But Matthew, having
had his residence in Galilee, begins his story of Christ’s public
ministry with his preaching there, which here we have an account of.
Observe,
I. The time; When Jesus had heard that John was cast into
prison, then he went into Galilee,
v. 12.
Note, The cry of the saints’ sufferings comes up into the ears of the
Lord Jesus. If John be cast into prison, Jesus hears it, takes
cognizance of it, and steers his course accordingly: he remembers
the bonds and afflictions that abide his people. Observe,
1. Christ did not go into the country, till he heard of
John’s imprisonment; for he must have time given him to prepare the
way of the Lord, before the Lord himself appear. Providence wisely
ordered it, that John should be eclipsed before Christ shone
forth; otherwise the minds of people would have been distracted
between the two; one would have said, I am of John, and another,
I am of Jesus. John must be Christ’s harbinger, but not his
rival. The moon and stars are lost when the sun rises. John had done
his work by the baptism of repentance, and then he was laid aside. The
witnesses were slain when they had finished their testimony, and not
before,
2. He did go into the country as soon as he heard of John’s
imprisonment; not only to provide for his own safety, knowing that the
Pharisees in Judea were as much enemies to him as Herod was to John,
but to supply the want of John Baptist, and to build upon the good
foundation he had laid. Note, God will not leave himself without
witness, nor his church without guides; when he removes one useful
instrument, he can raise up another, for he has the residue of the
Spirit, and he will do it, if he has work to do. Moses my servant is
dead, John is cast into prison; now, therefore, Joshua, arise;
Jesus, arise.
II. The place where he preached; in Galilee, a remote part of the
country, that lay furthest from Jerusalem, as was there looked upon
with contempt, as rude and boorish. The inhabitants of that country
were reckoned stout men, fit for soldiers, but not polite men, or fit
for scholars. Thither Christ went, there he set up the standard of his
gospel; and in this, as in other things, he humbled himself.
Observe,
1. The particular city he chose for his residence; not Nazareth, where
he had been bred up; no, he left Nazareth; particular notice is taken
of that,
And with good reason did he leave Nazareth; for the men of that city
thrust him out from among them,
He made them his first, and a very fair, offer of his service, but they
rejected him and his doctrine, and were filled with indignation at him
and it; and therefore he left Nazareth, and shook off the dust of his
feet for a testimony against those there, who would not have him to
teach them. Nazareth was the first place that refused Christ, and was
therefore refused by him. Note, It is just with God, to take the gospel
and the means of grace from those that slight them, and thrust them
away. Christ will not stay long where he is not welcome. Unhappy
Nazareth! If thou hadst known in this thy day the things that
belong to thy peace, how well had it been for thee! But now they are
hid from thine eyes.
But he came and dwelt in Capernaum, which was a city of Galilee,
but many miles distant from Nazareth, a great city and of much resort.
It is said here to be on the sea coast, not the great
sea, but the sea of Tiberias, an inland water, called also the
lake of Gennesaret. Close by the falling of Jordan into the sea
stood Capernaum, in the tribe of Naphtali, but bordering upon Zebulun;
hither Christ came, and here he dwelt. Some think that his father
Joseph had a habitation here, others that he took a house or lodgings
at least; and some think it more than probable, that he dwelt in the
house of Simon Peter; however, here he fixed not constantly, for he
went about doing good; but this was for some time his head quarters:
what little rest he had, was here; here he had a place, though not a
place of his own, to lay his head on. And at Capernaum, it should seem,
he was welcome, and met with better entertainment than he had at
Nazareth. Note, If some reject Christ, yet others will receive him, and
bid him welcome. Capernaum is glad of Nazareth’s leavings. If Christ’s
own countrymen be not gathered, yet he will be glorious. “And thou,
Capernaum, has now a day of it; thou art now lifted up to heaven; be
wise for thyself, and know the time of thy visitation.”
2. The prophecy that was fulfilled is this,
It is quoted from
but with some variation. The prophet in that place is foretelling a
greater darkness of affliction to befal the contemners of Immanuel,
than befel the countries there mentioned, either in their first
captivity under Benhadad, which was but light
or in their second captivity under the Assyrian, which was much
heavier,
The punishment of the Jewish nation for rejecting the gospel should be
sorer than either (see
for those captivated places had some reviving in their bondage, and saw
a great light again,
This is Isaiah’s sense; but the Scripture has many fulfillings; and the
evangelist here takes only the latter clause, which speaks of the
return of the light of liberty and prosperity to those countries that
had been in the darkness of captivity, and applies it to the appearing
of the gospel among them.
The places are spoken of,
The land of Zebulun is rightly said to be by the sea
coast, for Zebulun was a haven of ships, and
rejoiced in her going out,
Gen. xlix. 13; Deut. xxxiii. 18.
Of Naphtali, it had been said, that he should give goodly words
and should be satisfied with favour
for from him began the gospel; goodly words indeed, and such as bring
to a soul God’s satisfying favour. The country beyond Jordan is
mentioned likewise, for there we sometimes find Christ preaching, and
Galilee of the Gentiles, the upper Galilee to which the Gentiles
resorted for traffic, and where they were mingled with the Jews; which
intimates a kindness in reserve for the poor Gentiles. When Christ
came to Capernaum, the gospel came to all those places round about;
such diffusive influences did the Sun of righteousness cast.
Now, concerning the inhabitants of these places, observe,
(1.) The posture they were in before the gospel came among them
(v. 16);
they were in darkness. Note, Those that are without Christ, are
in the dark, nay, they are darkness itself; as the darkness that was
upon the face of the deep. Nay, they were in the region and
shadow of death; which denotes not only great darkness, as
the grave is a land of darkness, but great danger. A man
that is desperately sick, and not likely to recover, is in the
valley of the shadow of death, though not quite dead; so the
poor people were on the borders of damnation, though not yet
damned-dead in law. And, which is worst of all, they were
sitting in this condition. Sitting in a continuing posture;
where we sit, we mean to stay; they were in the dark, and likely to be
so, despairing to find the way out. And it is a contented posture;
they were in the dark, and they loved darkness, they chose it rather
than light; they were willingly ignorant. Their condition was sad; it
is still the condition of many great and mighty nations, which are to
be thought of, and prayed for, with pity. But their condition is
more sad, who sit in darkness in the midst of gospel-light. He that is
in the dark because it is night, may be sure that the sun will shortly
arise; but he that is in the dark because he is blind, will not so soon
have his eyes opened. We have the light, but what will that avail us,
if we be not the light in the Lord?
(2.) The privilege they enjoyed, when Christ and his gospel came among
them; it was as great a reviving as ever light was to a benighted
traveller. Note, When the gospel comes, light comes; when it comes to
any place, when it comes to any soul, it makes day there,
Light is discovering, it is directing; so is the gospel.
It is a great light; denoting the clearness and evidence of
gospel-revelations; not like the light of a candle, but the light of
the sun when he goes forth in his strength. Great in comparison
with the light of the law, the shadows of which were now done away. It
is a great light, for it discovers great things and of vast
consequence; it will last long, and spread far. And it is a growing
light, intimated in that word, It is sprung up. It was but
spring of day with them; now the day dawned, which afterward
shone more and more. The gospel-kingdom, like a grain of
mustard-seed or the morning light, was small in its beginnings, gradual
in its growth, but great in its perfection.
Observe, the light sprang up to them; they did not go to seek
it, but were prevented with the blessings of this goodness. It came
upon them ere they were aware, at the time appointed, by the disposal
of him who commandeth the morning, and causes the day-spring
to know its place, that it may take hold of the ends of the earth,
Job xxxviii. 12, 13.
III. The text he preached upon
(v. 17):
From that time, that is, from the time of his coming into
Galilee, into the land of Zebulun and Naphtali, from that time, he
began to preach. He had been preaching, before this, in Judea, and had
made and baptized many disciples
(John iv. 1);
but his preaching was no so public and constant as now it began to be.
The work of the ministry is so great and awful, that it is fit to be
entered upon by steps and gradual advances.
The subject which Christ dwelt upon now in his preaching (and it was
indeed the sum and substance of all his preaching), was the very same
John has preached upon
(ch. iii. 2);
Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand; for the gospel is
the same for substance under various dispensations; the commands the
same, and the reasons to enforce them the same; an angel from
heaven dares not preach any other gospel
(Gal. i. 8),
and will preach this, for it is the everlasting gospel. Fear God,
and, by repentance, give honour to him,
Rev. xiv. 6, 7.
Christ put a great respect upon John’s ministry, when he preached to
the same purport that John had preached before him. By this he showed
that John was his messenger and ambassador; for when he brought the
errand himself, it was the same that he had sent by him. Thus did God
confirm the word of his messenger,
The Son came on the same errand that the servants came on
(ch. xxi. 37),
to seek fruit, fruits meet for repentance. Christ had lain in
the bosom of the Father, and could have preached sublime notions of
divine and heavenly things, that should have alarmed and amused the
learned world, but he pitches upon this old, plain text, Repent, for
the kingdom of heaven is at hand.
[1.] This he preached first upon; he began with this. Ministers
must not be ambitious of broaching new opinions, framing new schemes,
or coining new expressions, but must content themselves with plain,
practical things, with the word that is nigh us, even in our
mouth, and in our heart. We need not go up to heaven, nor
down to the deep, for matter or language in our preaching. As John
prepared Christ’s way, so Christ prepared his own, and made way for the
further discoveries he designed, with the doctrine of repentance. If
any man will do this part of his will, he shall know more of
his doctrine,
John vii. 17.
[2.] This is preached often upon; wherever he went, this was his
subject, and neither he nor his followers ever reckoned it worn
threadbare, as those would have done, that have itching ears,
and are fond of novelty and variety more than that which is truly
edifying. Note, That which has been preached and heard before, may yet
very profitably be preached and heard again; but then it should be
preached and heard better, and with new affections; what Paul had said
before, he said again, weeping,
Phil. iii. 1, 18.
[3.] This he preached as gospel; “Repent, review your ways, and return
to yourselves.” Note, The doctrine of repentance is right
gospel-doctrine. Not only the austere Baptist, who was looked upon as
a melancholy, morose man, but the sweet and gracious Jesus, whose lips
dropped as a honey-comb, preached repentance; for it is an unspeakable
privilege that room is left for repentance.
[4.] The reason is still the same; The kingdom of heaven is at
hand; for it was not reckoned to be fully come, till that pouring
out of the Spirit after Christ’s ascension. John had preached the
kingdom of heaven at hand above a year before this; but now it was so
much the stronger; now is the salvation nearer,
Rom. xiii. 11.
We should be so much the more quickened to our duty, as we see the
day approaching,
Heb. x. 25.
| Christ Calls Peter, Andrew, James, and John. |
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18 And Jesus, walking by the sea of Galilee, saw two brethren,
Simon called Peter, and Andrew his brother, casting a net into
the sea: for they were fishers.
19 And he saith unto them, Follow me, and I will make you
fishers of men.
20 And they straightway left their nets, and followed him.
21 And going on from thence, he saw other two brethren, James
the son of Zebedee, and John his brother, in a ship with
Zebedee their father, mending their nets; and he called them.
22 And they immediately left the ship and their father, and
followed him.
When Christ began to preach, he began to gather disciples, who
should now be the hearers, and hereafter the preachers,
of his doctrine, who should now be witnesses of his miracles,
and hereafter concerning them. Now, in these verses, we have an
account of the first disciples that he called into fellowship with
himself.
And this was an instance,
1. Of effectual calling to Christ. In all his preaching he gave
a common call to all the country, but in this he gave a special and
particular call to those that were given him by the Father. Let us see
and admire the power of Christ’s grace, own his word to be the rod of
his strength, and wait upon him for those powerful influences which are
necessary to the efficacy of the gospel call–those distinguishing
influences. All the country was called, but these were called
out, were redeemed from among them. Christ was so manifested
to them, as he was not manifested unto the world.
2. It was an instance of ordination, and appointment to the work
of the ministry. When Christ, as a Teacher, set up his great school,
one of his first works was to appoint ushers, or under masters, to be
employed in the work of instruction. Now he began to give gifts unto
men, to put the treasure into earthen vessels. It was an early
instance of his care for the church.
Now we may observe here,
I. Where they were called–by the sea of Galilee, where
Jesus was walking, Capernaum being situated near that sea. Concerning
this sea of Tiberias, the Jews have a saying, That of all the seven
seas that God made, he made choice of none but the sea of Gennesaret;
which is very applicable to Christ’s choice of it, to honour it, as he
often did, with his presence and his miracles. Here, on the banks of
the sea, Christ was walking for contemplation, as Isaac in the field;
hither he went to call his disciples; not to Herod’s court (for few
mighty or noble are called), not to Jerusalem, among the chief priests
and the elders, but to the sea of Galilee; surely Christ sees not as
man sees. Not but that the same power which effectually called Peter
and Andrew would have wrought upon Annas and Caiaphas, for with God
nothing is impossible; but, as in other things, so in his converse and
attendance, he would humble himself, and show that God ha chosen the
poor of this world. Galilee was a remote part of the nation, the
inhabitants were less cultivated and refined, their very language was
broad and uncouth to the curious, their speech betrayed them.
They who were picked up at the sea of Galilee, had not the advantages
and improvements, no, not of the more polished Galileans; yet thither
Christ went, to call his apostles that were to be the prime ministers
of state in his kingdom, for he chooses the foolish things of this
world, to confound the wise.
II. Who they were. We have an account of the call of two pair of
brothers in these verses–Peter and Andrew, James and John; the two
former, and, probably, the two latter also, had had acquaintance with
Christ before
but were not till now called into a close and constant attendance upon
him. Note, Christ brings poor souls by degrees into fellowship with
himself. They had been disciples of John, and so were the better
disposed to follow Christ. Note, Those who have submitted to the
discipline of repentance, shall be welcome to the joys of faith. We may
observe concerning them,
1. That they were brothers. Note, It is a blessed thing, when
they who are kinsmen according to the flesh (as the apostle
speaks,
are brought together into a spiritual alliance to Jesus Christ. It is
the honour and comfort of a house, when those that are of the
same family, are of God’s family.
2. That they were fishers. Being fishers,
(1.) They were poor men: if they had had estates, or any
considerable stock in trade, they would not have made fishing their
trade, however, they might have made it their recreation. Note, Christ
does not despise the poor, and therefore we must not; the poor are
evangelized, and the Fountain of honour sometimes gives more abundant
honour to that part which most lacked.
(2.) The were unlearned men, not bred up to books or literature
as Moses was, who was conversant with all the learning of the
Egyptians. Note, Christ sometimes chooses to endow those with the gifts
of grace who have least to show of the gifts of nature. Yet this will
not justify the bold intrusion of ignorant and unqualified men into the
work of the ministry: extraordinary gifts of knowledge and utterance
are not now to be expected, but requisite abilities must be obtained in
an ordinary way, and without a competent measure of these, none are to
be admitted to that service.
(3.) They were men of business, who had been bred up to labour.
Note, Diligence in an honest calling is pleasing to Christ, and no
hindrance to a holy life. Moses was called from keeping sheep, and
David from following the ewes, to eminent employments. Idle people lie
more open to the temptations of Satan than to the calls of God.
(4.) They were men that were accustomed to hardships and
hazards; the fisher’s trade, more than any other, is laborious and
perilous; fishermen must be often wet and cold; they must watch, and
wait, and toil, and be often in perils by waters. Note, Those
who have learned to bear hardships, and run hazards, are best prepared
for the fellowship and discipleship of Jesus Christ. Good soldiers of
Christ must endure hardness.
III. What they were doing. Peter and Andrew were then using
their nets, they were fishing; and James and John were mending their
nets, which was an instance of their industry and good husbandry.
They did not go to their father for money to buy new nets, but took
pains to mend their old ones. It is commendable to make what we have go
as far, and last as long, as may be. James and John were with their
father Zebedee, ready to assist him, and make his business easy to
him. Note, It is a happy and hopeful presage, to see children careful
of their parents, and dutiful to them. Observe,
1. They were all employed, all very busy, and none idle. Note,
When Christ comes, it is good to be found doing. “Am I in Christ?” is a
very needful question for us to ask ourselves; and, next to that, “Am I
in my calling?”
2. They were differently employed; two of them were fishing,
and two of them mending their nets. Note, Ministers should be
always employed, either in teaching or studying; they may always find
themselves something to do, if it be not their own fault; and
mending their nets, is, in its season, as necessary work as
fishing.
IV. What the call was
(v. 19);
Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men. They had followed
Christ before, as ordinary disciples
(John i. 37),
but so they might follow Christ, and follow their calling too;
therefore they were called to a more close and constant attendance, and
must leave their calling. Note, Even they who had been called to follow
Christ, have need to be called to follow on, and to follow nearer,
especially when they are designed for the work of the ministry.
Observe,
1. What Christ intended them for; I will make you fishers of
men; this alludes to their former calling. Let them be not proud of
the new honour designed them, they are still but fishers; let them not
be afraid of the new work cut out for them, for they have been used to
fishing, and fishers they are still. It was usual with Christ to speak
of spiritual and heavenly things under such allusions, and in such
expressions, as took rise from common things that offered themselves to
his view. David was called from feeding sheep to feed God’s Israel; and
when he is a king, is a shepherd. Note,
(1.) Ministers are fishers of men, not to destroy them, but to
save them, by bringing them into another element. They must fish, not
for wrath, wealth, honour, and preferment, to gain them to themselves,
but for souls, to gain them to Christ. They watch for your souls
and seek not yours, but you,
2 Cor. xii. 14, 16.
(2.) It is Jesus Christ that makes them so; I will make you fishers
of men. It is he that qualifies men for this work, calls them to
it, authorizes them in it, gives them commission to fish for souls, and
wisdom to win them. Those ministers are likely to have comfort in their
work, who are thus made by Jesus Christ.
2. What they must do in order to this; Follow me. They must
separate themselves to a diligent attendance on him, and set themselves
to a humble imitation of him; must follow him as their Leader. Note,
(1.) Those whom Christ employs in any service for him, must first be
fitted and qualified for it.
(2.) Those who would preach Christ, must first learn
Christ, and learn of him. How can we expect to bring others to the
knowledge of Christ, if we do not know him well ourselves?
(3.) Those who would get an acquaintance with Christ, must be diligent
and constant in their attendance on him. The apostles were prepared for
their work, by accompanying Christ all the time that he went in and
out among them,
Acts i. 21.
There is no learning comparable to that which is got by following
Christ. Joshua, by ministering to Moses, is fitted to be his successor.
(4.) Those who are to fish for men, must therein follow Christ, and do
it as he did, with diligence, faithfulness, and tenderness. Christ is
the great pattern for preachers, and they ought to be workers
together with him.
V. What was the success of this call. Peter and Andrew
straightway left their nets
(v. 20);
and James and John immediately left the ship and their father
(v. 22);
and they all followed him. Note, Those who would follow
Christ aright, must leave all to follow him. Every Christian
must leave all in affection, set loose to all, must hate father and
mother
(Luke xiv. 26),
must love them less than Christ, must be ready to part with his
interest in them rather than with his interest in Jesus Christ; but
those who are devoted to the work of the ministry are, in a special
manner, concerned to disentangle themselves from all the affairs of
this life, that they may give themselves wholly to that work which
requires the whole man. Now,
1. This instance of the power of the Lord Jesus gives us good
encouragement to depend upon the sufficiency of his grace. How strong
and effectual is his word! He speaks, and it is done. The same
power goes along with this word of Christ, Follow me, that went
along with that word, Lazarus, come forth; a power to make
willing,
Ps. cx. 3.
2. This instance of the pliableness of the disciples, gives us a good
example of obedience to the command of Christ. Note, It is the good
property of all Christ’s faithful servants to come when they are
called, and to follow their Master wherever he leads them. They
objected not their present employments, their engagements to their
families, the difficulties of the service they were called to, or their
own unfitness for it; but, being called, they obeyed, and, like
Abraham, went out not knowing whither they went, but knowing
very well whom they followed. James and John left their father:
it is not said what became of him; their mother Salome was a constant
follower of Christ; no doubt, their father Zebedee was a believer, but
the call to follow Christ fastened on the young ones. Youth is the
learning age, and the labouring age. The priests ministered in the
prime of their life.
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Christ Preaches in Galilee; Miracles of Christ in Galilee. |
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23 And Jesus went about all Galilee, teaching in their
synagogues, and preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing
all manner of sickness and all manner of disease among the
people.
24 And his fame went throughout all Syria: and they brought
unto him all sick people that were taken with divers diseases and
torments, and those which were possessed with devils, and those
which were lunatic, and those that had the palsy; and he healed
them.
25 And there followed him great multitudes of people from
Galilee, and from Decapolis, and from Jerusalem, and from
Judea, and from beyond Jordan.
See here,
I. What an industrious preacher Christ was; He went about all
Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, and preaching the gospel of the
kingdom. Observe,
1. What Christ preached–the gospel of the kingdom. The
kingdom of heaven, that is, of grace and glory, is emphatically
the kingdom, the kingdom that was now to come; that kingdom
which shall survive, as it doth surpass, all the kingdoms of the earth.
The gospel is the charter of that kingdom, containing the King’s
coronation oath, by which he has graciously obliged himself to pardon,
protect, and save the subjects of that kingdom; it contains also their
oath of allegiance, by which they oblige themselves to observe his
statutes and seek his honour; this is the gospel of the kingdom;
this Christ was himself the Preacher of, that our faith in it might be
confirmed.
2. Where he preached–in the synagogues; not there only,
but there chiefly, because those were the places of concourse,
where wisdom was to lift up her voice
(Prov. i. 21);
because they were places of concourse for religious worship, and
there, it was to be hoped, the minds of the people would be prepared to
receive the gospel; and there the scriptures of the Old
Testament were read, the exposition of which would easily introduce
the gospel of the kingdom.
3. What pains he took in preaching; He went about all
Galilee, teaching. He might have issued out a proclamation to
summon all to come to him; but, to show his humility, and the
condescensions of his grace, he goes to them; for he waits to be
gracious, and comes to seek and save. Josephus says, There
were above two hundred cities and towns in Galilee, and all, or most of
them, Christ visited. He went about doing good. Never was there
such an itinerant preacher, such an indefatigable one, as Christ was;
he went from town to town, to beseech poor sinners to be reconciled to
God. This is an example to ministers, to lay themselves out to do good,
and to be instant, and constant, in season, and out of
season, to preach the word.
II. What a powerful physician Christ was; he went about not only
teaching, but healing, and both with his word, that he
might magnify that above all his name. He sent his word, and healed
them. Now observe,
1. What diseases he cured–all without exception. He healed all
manner of sickness, and all manner of disease. There are diseases
which are called the reproach of physicians, being obstinate to
all the methods they can prescribe; but even those were the glory of
this Physician, for he healed them all, however inveterate. His
word was the true panpharmacon–all-heal.
Three general words are here used to intimate this; he healed every
sickness, noson, as blindness, lameness, fever, dropsy;
every disease, or languishing, malakian, as fluxes
and consumptions; and all torments, basanous, as
gout, stone, convulsions, and such like torturing distempers; whether
the disease was acute or chronical; whether it was a racking or a
wasting disease; none was too bad, none too hard, for Christ to heal
with a word’s speaking.
Three particular diseases are specified; the palsy, which is the
greatest weakness of the body; lunacy, which is the greatest
malady of the mind, and possession of the Devil, which is the
greatest misery and calamity of both, yet Christ healed all: for he is
the sovereign Physician both of soul and body, and has command of all
diseases.
2. What patients he had. A physician who was so easy of access, so sure
of success, who cured immediately, without either a painful suspense
and expectation, or such painful remedies as are worse than the
disease; who cured gratis, and took no fees, could not but have
abundance of patients. See here, what flocking there was to him from
all parts; great multitudes of people came, not only from
Galilee and the country about, but even from Jerusalem and
from Judea, which lay a great way off; for his fame went
throughout all Syria, not only among all the people of the Jews,
but among the neighbouring nations, which, by the report that now
spread far and near concerning him, would be prepared to receive his
gospel, when afterwards it should be brought them. This is given
as the reason why such multitudes came to him, because his fame had
spread so widely. Note, What we hear of Christ from others, should
invite us to him. The queen of Sheba was induced, by the fame of
Solomon, to pay him a visit. The voice of fame is “Come, and see.”
Christ both taught and healed. They who came for cures, met with
instruction concerning the things that belonged to their peace.
It is well if any thing will bring people to Christ; and they who come
to him will find more in him than they expected. These Syrians, like
Naaman the Syrian, coming to be healed of their diseases, many of them
being converts,
They sought health for the body, and obtained the salvation of the
soul; like Saul, who sought the asses, and found the kingdom. Yet it
appeared, by the issue, that many of those who rejoiced in Christ as a
Healer, forgot him as a Teacher.
Now concerning the cures which Christ wrought, let us, once for all,
observe the miracle, the mercy, and the mystery,
of them.
(1.) The miracle of them. They were wrought in such a manner, as
plainly spake them to be the immediate products of a divine and
supernatural power, and they were God’s seal to his commission. Nature
could not do these things, it was the God of nature; the cures were
many, of diseases incurable by the art of the physician, of persons
that were strangers, of all ages and conditions; the cures were wrought
openly, before many witnesses, in mixed companies of persons that would
have denied the matter of fact, if they could have had any colour for
so doing; no cure ever failed, or was afterwards called in question;
they were wrought speedily, and not (as cures by natural causes)
gradually; they were perfect cures, and wrought with a word’s speaking;
all which proves him a Teacher come from God, for, otherwise,
none could have done the works that he did,
He appeals to these as credentials,
It was expected that the Messiah should work miracles
(John vii. 31);
miracles of this nature
and we have this indisputable proof of his being the Messiah; never was
there any man that did thus; and therefore his healing and his
preaching generally went together, for the former confirmed the latter;
thus here he began to do and to teach,
(2.) The mercy of them. The miracles that Moses wrought, to
prove his mission, were most of them plagues and judgments, to intimate
the terror of that dispensation, though from God; but the miracles that
Christ wrought, were most of them cures, and all of them (except the
cursing of the barren fig tree) blessings and favours; for the gospel
dispensation is founded, and built up in love, and grace, and
sweetness; and the management is such as tends not to affright but to
allure us to obedience. Christ designed by his cures to win upon
people, and to ingratiate himself and his doctrine into their minds,
and so to draw them with the bands of love,
The miracle of them proved his doctrine a faithful saying, and
convinced men’s judgments; the mercy of them proved it worthy of all
acceptation, and wrought upon their affections. They were not only
great works, but good works, that he showed them
from his Father
(John x. 32);
and this goodness was intended to lead men to repentance
(Rom. ii. 4),
as also to show that kindness, and beneficence, and doing good to all,
to the utmost of our power and opportunity, are essential branches of
that holy religion which Christ came into the world to establish.
(3.) The mystery of them. Christ, by curing bodily
diseases, intended to show, that his great errand into the world
was to cure spiritual maladies. He is the Sun of
righteousness, that arises with this healing under his
wings. As the Converter of sinners, he is the Physician of
souls, and has taught us to call him so,
Sin is the sickness, disease, and torment of the soul;
Christ came to take away sin, and so to heal these. And the
particular stories of the cures Christ wrought, may not only be applied
spiritually, by way of allusion and illustration, but, I believe, are
very much intended to reveal to us spiritual things, and to set before
us the way and method of Christ’s dealing with souls, in their
conversion and sanctification; and those cures are recorded, that were
most significant and instructive this way; and they are therefore so to
be explained and improved, to the honour and praise of that glorious
Redeemer, who forgiveth all our iniquities, and so healeth
all our diseases.
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