Luke 6:2

6:2 by harvesting grain: The disciples were not accused of stealing grain, but of working on the Sabbath. They were breaking rules established by oral tradition.

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Luk 6:2 . τινὲς : more exact than Mt. and Mk., who say the Pharisees generally, but not necessary to make their meaning clear. Of course it was only some of the class.

The Expositor's Greek Testament, edited by W. Robertson Nicoll (1897–1910) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Verse 2. Which is not lawful] See on Mt 12:2-8.

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

2. certain of the Pharisees] On the Jewish sects see Excursus VI. As the chronological sequence of the incident is uncertain, these may be some of the spy-Pharisees who as His ministry advanced dogged His steps (Mat_15:1; Mar_3:22; Mar_7:1), in the base and demoralising desire to convict Him of heresy or violation of the Law. Perhaps they wished to see whether he would exceed the regulated Sabbath day’s journey of 2000 cubits (Exo_16:29). We have already met with some of the carping criticisms dictated by their secret hate, Luk_5:14; Luk_5:21; Luk_5:30.

Why do ye] In St Mark the question is scornfully addressed to Jesus. “See why do they do on the sabbath day that which is not lawful?”

that which is not lawful to do] The point was this. Since the Law had said that the Jews were “to do no manner of work” on the Sabbath, the Oral Law had laid down thirty-nine principal prohibitions which were assigned to the authority of the Great Synagogue and which were called abhoth ‘fathers’ or chief rules. From these were deduced a vast multitude of toldoth ‘descendants’ or derivative rules. Now ‘reaping’ and ‘threshing’ on the sabbath day were forbidden by the abhoth; and by the toldoth it was asserted that plucking corn-ears was a kind of reaping, and rubbing them a kind of threshing. But while they paid servile attention to these trivialities the Pharisees “omitted the weightier matters of the law, judgment, mercy, and faith,” Mat_22:23). The vitality of these artificial notions among the Jews is extraordinary. Abarbanel relates that when in 1492 the Jews were expelled from Spain, and were forbidden to enter the city of Fez lest they should cause a famine, they lived on grass; yet even in this state ‘religiously avoided the violation of their sabbath by plucking the grass with their hands., To avoid this they took the much more laborious method of grovelling on their knees, and cropping it with their teeth!

The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

And certain of the Pharisees said unto them,.... Unto the disciples. The Evangelists Matthew and Mark say, that they said this to Jesus: no doubt but they said it to both, first to one, and then to the other; probably last of all to Christ, who returned an answer to it:

why do ye that which is not lawful on the sabbath day? as to pluck ears of corn, and rub them, and eat them; See Gill on Mat 12:2

John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

2 And certain of the Pharisees said unto them, Why do ye that which is not lawful to do on the sabbath days?

Ver. 2. That which is not lawful] Our Saviour grants that it had not been lawful indeed, but in case of hard hunger.

John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

The Scribes and Pharisees boasted much, as do many modern teachers, of their great knowledge of Scriptures, but our Saviour often sheweth their profound ignorance. (Bristow)

George Leo Haydock (1774–1849), Haydock's Catholic Family Bible and Commentary, 1859 edition — public domain. Excludes Psalms (Douay-Rheims chapter numbering differs from Protestant) and Deuterocanonical books (Catholic canon only).

And certain of the Pharisees said unto them, Why do ye that which is not lawful to do on the sabbath days? It would seem that these Pharisees came from Jerusalem, and were no doubt privately commissioned to watch narrowly the acts of the new Teacher who was beginning to attract such general attention, and who already was openly setting at nought the numberless additions which the Jewish schools had added to the Law. Round the original "sabbath law" of Moses thirty-nine prohibitions had been laid down in the oral law; round these "thirty-nine" a vast number of smaller rules had grouped themselves. Amongst these greater and lesser sabbath restrictions were prohibitions against "reaping and threshing." Now, plucking ears of corn was defined to be a kind of "reaping," and rubbing the ears in the hands a kind of "threshing." "See," cried some of these spying Pharisees, "do thy disciples publicly break the sabbath, and dost thou not rebuke them?" The Lord"s reply does not attempt to discuss what was and what was not lawful on the sabbath, but in broad terms he expounds the great doctrine respecting the significance, limits, and purpose of every law relating to outward acts, even in the event of that law having been given by God, which was not the case in the present alleged transgression. How rigidly the stricter Jews some fourteen or fifteen centuries later still kept these strained and exaggerated traditional sabbath-day restrictions, is shown in a curious anecdote of the famous Abarbanel, "when, in 1492, the Jews were expelled from Spain, and were forbidden to enter the city of Fez, lest they should cause a famine, they lived on grass; yet even in this state religiously avoided the violation of their sabbath by plucking the grass with their hands. " To avoid this they took the much more laborious method of grovelling on their knees, and cropping it with their teeth!"

The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Why do ye - St. Matthew and Mark represent the Pharisees as proposing the question to our Lord himself. It was afterward, probably, they proposed it to his disciples.

John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.

2. τινὲς δὲ τῶν Φαρισαίων. On the Jewish sects see Excursus VI. As the chronological sequence of the incident is uncertain, these may be some of the spy-Pharisees who as Christ’s ministry advanced dogged His steps (Mat 15:1; Mar 3:22; Mar 7:1), in the base and demoralising desire to convict Him of heresy or violation of the Law. Perhaps they wished to see whether He would exceed the regulated Sabbath day’s journey of 2000 cubits (Exo 16:29). We have already met with some of the carping criticisms dictated by their secret hate, Luk 5:14; Luk 5:21; Luk 5:30.

τί ποιεῖτε; In St Mark the question is scornfully addressed to Jesus. “See why do they (pointing at the Apostles) do on the sabbath day that which is not lawful?”

ὃ οὐκ ἔξεστιν ποιεῖν. The point was this. Since the Law had said that the Jews were “to do no manner of work” on the Sabbath, the Oral Law had laid down thirty-nine principal prohibitions which were assigned to the authority of the Great Synagogue and which were called abhôth ‘fathers’ or chief rules. From these were deduced a vast multitude of toldôth ‘descendants’ or derivative rules. Now ‘reaping’ and ‘threshing’ on the Sabbath day were forbidden by the abhôth; and by the toldôth it was asserted that plucking corn-ears was a kind of reaping, and rubbing them a kind of threshing. But while they paid servile attention to these trivialities the Pharisees “omitted the weightier matters of the law, judgment, mercy, and faith” (Mat 22:23). The vitality of these artificial notions among the Jews is extraordinary. Abarbanel relates that when in 1492 the Jews were expelled from Spain, and were forbidden to enter the city of Fez lest they should cause a famine, they lived on grass; yet even in this state ‘religiously avoided the violation of their Sabbath by plucking the grass with their hands.’ To avoid this they took the much more laborious method of grovelling on their knees, and cropping it with their teeth!

Cambridge Greek Testament for Schools and Colleges (Cambridge University Press, 1896; 21 vols, various authors incl. Carr, Maclear, Plummer, Farrar, Lumby, Moule, M. R. James, Simcox) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

2.] In Matt. and Mark, the Pharisees address our Lord, ‘Why do Thy disciples,’ &c.

Henry Alford, The Greek Testament (1849–1861) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

2. If the word is genuine, what can be its meaning? Jerome put this question to Gregory Nazianzen, and the latter eleganter lusit, saying, Docebo te superhac re in ecclesia (Hieron. Ep. 52.). Of the numerous conjectures the following may be mentioned as not altogether incredible. (1) The first sabbath of the second year in a sabbatical cycle of seven years. This theory of Wieseler has won many adherents. (2) The first sabbath in Nisan. The Jewish civil year began in Tisri, while the ecclesiastical year began in Nisan; so that each year there were two first sabbaths, one according to civil, the other according to ecclesiastical reckoning: just as Advent Sunday and the first Sunday in January are each, from different points of view, the first Sunday in the year. It would be possible to call the second of the two “a second first Sunday.” But would anyone use such languale and expect to be understood? (3) The first sabbath of the second month. It is asserted that the story of David obtaining the shewbread would often be in the lesson for that sabbath. But the lectionary of the synagogues in the time of Christ is unknown. See on 4:17. For other guesses see Godet, McClellan, and Meyer. Most editors omit or bracket it. Tisch. changed his decision several times, but finally replaced it in his eighth edition.

διαπορεύεσθαι αὐτὸν διὰ σπορίμων. Excepting Rom 15:24, the verb is peculiar to Lk. (13:22, 18:36; Act 16:4). In N.T. σπόριμος occurs only here and parallels. In Theophr. (H. P. vi. 5. 4) we have ἡ σπορίμη, sc. γῆ. In Gen 1:29 it is applied to the seed, πάντα χόρτον σπόριμον σπεῖρον σπέρμα; so that like σπείρεσθαι, it can be used either of the field or of the seed.

ἔτιλλον οἱ μαθηταὶ αὐτοῦ καὶ ἤσθιον τοὺς στάχυας. For this Mk. has ἥρξαντο ὁδὸν ποιεῖν τίλλοντες τοὺς στάχυας, which has been interpreted to mean “began to make a way by plucking the ears.” But (1) all three imply that Jesus was walking in front of the disciples. What need was there for them to make a way? (2) How would plucking the ears make a path? (3) In LXX ὁδὸν ποιεῖν is used for iter facere (Jdg 17:8). All three mean that the disciples went along plucking the ears. This was allowed (Deu 23:25).

ψώχοντες ταῖς χερσίν. This and the τίλλοντες constituted the offence: it was unnecessary labour on the sabbath. According to Rabbinical notions, it was reaping, thrashing, winnowing, and preparing food all at once. Lk. alone mentions the rubbing, and the word ψώχειν seems to occur elsewhere only in the medical writer Nicander (Theriaca, 629). It is from the obsolete ψώω, a collat. form of ψάω. Comp. Hdt. iv. 75, 2. For the action described see Robinson, Res. in Pal. i. pp. 493, 499.

2. τινὲς δὲ τῶν φαρισαίων. As in 5:30, they are represented as addressing their question to the disciples. In Mar 2:24 and Mat 12:2 the charge against the disciples is addressed to Christ, while in Mar 2:16 and Mat 9:11 the charge against Christ is addressed to the disciples. The τοῖς σάββασιν may mean either “on the sabbath days” (AV. and most English Versions) or “on the sabbath day” (RV.). Although Vulg. has in sabbatis, Wic. has “in the saboth”; Cov. also “upon the sabbath.” See on 4:31,

2. οἱ πενθοῦτες, ὄτι αὐτοὶ παρακληθήσονται. 3. οἱ κλαίοντες νῦν, ὄτι γελάσετε. 3. οἱ γελῶντες νῦν, ὅτι πενθήσετε καὶ κλαύσετε.

International Critical Commentary — older volumes (1896–1929), various authors — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Not lawful. See on Mt 12:2.

Marvin R. Vincent, Word Studies in the New Testament (1887–1900) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.