Mark 9:37

Mar 9:37. Τῶν τοιούτων, of such) Little children; also those who are such in heart.—ἐμὲ, Me) Who “am lowly in heart.”—οὐκ ἐμὲ, not Me) That is, his act of reception does not terminate with this. [What a difference there is between a little child and the Supreme GOD! Yet they are joined together through Christ.—V. g.]

Bengel's Gnomon of the New Testament — English translation (T&T Clark, Edinburgh, 1860) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Mar 9:37 . f1δέξηται in the first member of the sentence, δέχηται in the second; the former (aorist subjunctive with ἂν ), the more regular in a clause expressing future possibility. Winer, xlii. 3b (a). The second member of the sentence is not in the corresponding place in Mt., but is given in Mat 10:40 .

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

He doth not only receive me, but also him that sent me.

Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain. Text via Bolls.life.

(37) Whosoever shall receive.—St. Mark omits part of what St. Matthew records, “Whosoever, therefore, shall humble himself . . .” and, with St. Luke, adds the last clause, “Whosoever shall receive Me . . .” The climax carries the truth to its completion. When we love a little child in the name of Christ, i.e., for His sake, and after His manner, we are sharers in His spirit, and when we love or receive Him who was one with the Father, we enter into fellowship with Him who is the Supreme and Eternal Love. (Comp. Joh_14:10; Joh_14:23.)

A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Whosoever shall receive one of such children,.... That is, any believer, who is like to such a child for humility, meekness, and lowliness of mind; and so the Syriac version renders it, , "one like to this child": and so the Arabic and Persic versions; for it cannot be thought that Christ's meaning is, that whoever takes up any little child, embraces, and takes notice of it, as he did, does what is after related; but that whoever shows respect, and performs the least office of love and kindness to the meanest believer, comparable to a little child, for the above excellent qualities, and he does this, says Christ,

in my name; on account that he belongs to Christ, is one of his, bears his image, partakes of his grace, is loved by him, and shall be glorified with, him: such is Christ's great regard to his humble followers, that he takes it all one as if done to himself:

he receiveth me; this humble believer, being a member of his, and like unto him, and respected by him;

and whosoever shall receive me; Christ, in any of his members:

receiveth not me; that is, not him only; for he does receive him, otherwise there would be a contradiction in the words; but his meaning is, that he does not hereby receive him, by receiving one of his, nor him so much, as his Father:

but him that sent me; for as showing respect to one of Christ's members, is showing respect to him; so showing respect to Christ, is showing respect to his Father, from whence he came, by whom he was sent, in whose name he acted, and whose work and service he was concerned in.

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

37 Whosoever shall receive one of such children in my name, receiveth me: and whosoever shall receive me, receiveth not me, but him that sent me.

Ver. 37. Receiveth not me] Non removet sed corrigit, saith Erasmus. He receiveth not me only, but him that sent me.

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.

Who followeth not us, in that special manner, as Christ’s apostles did. (Witham)

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).

Whosoever shall receive one of such little children in my name, receiveth me. Whosoever shall "receive;" that is, show him offices of kindness and charity. One of such little children; that is, such in simplicity, in innocence and humility, such as this little child is in age and stature. In my Name, that is, with special regard to my Name. He thus seems to link all that is good and beautiful with his Name; as all that is really good and excellent in man is a reflection of his goodness. St. Luke (Luk_9:48) says, "Whosoever shall receive this little child in my Name receiveth me." Our Lord, therefore, speaks first, literally of a little child, and secondly, in a mystical sense, of those who are like little children; making that little child in his arms the figure and type of all those who are like little children. The sense, therefore, of his words is this: "Humility, which is the foundation and the measure of spiritual perfection, so pleases me that I delight in little children. And all who would be my disciples must become as little children, and so will they deserve to be received by all; for men will think that they receive me in them, because they receive them for my sake."

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

One such little child - Either in years or in heart.

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

37. ἕν τῶν τοιούτων παιδίων. Anyone of similar childlike character. Nothing is said about his coming in the Name of the Lord: πᾶς δὲ ὁ ἐρχόμενος ἐν ὀνόματι Κυρίου δεχθήτω (Didache xii. 1).

δέξηται ἐπὶ τῷ ὀνόματί μου. “Receiveth on the basis of My Name,” “name” being here used in the common signification of “character.” He who does this, not because he is fond of children or of simple persons, but because they represent to him the Christlike character, has the honour of having Christ as his guest. Cf. Mar 9:39, Mar 13:6. Mk also uses ἐν τῷ ὀνόματι (Mar 9:38), ἐν ὀνόματι (Mar 9:31, Mar 11:9), and διὰ τὸ ὄνομα (Mar 13:13). See on 3Jn 1:7; also Deissmann, Bibl. St. pp. 146, 196.

οὐκ ἐμὲ δέχεται. Οὐκ = οὐ μόνον. “Not only receives Me” or “Not so much receives Me”; cf. Mar 10:45. “I will have mercy and not sacrifice” (Hos 6:6) does not condemn sacrifice but says that mercy is far better; cf. Luk 10:20; Luk 14:12; Luk 23:28; Joh 12:44. What is negatived in such expressions, as being defective, is included, with a great deal more, in the affirmative clause. Blass, § 77. 12. This Saying is Johannine in tone and carries us far in Christology; cf. Luk 10:16. Abbott, Johannine Grammar, § 25, 93. Both ἀποστέλλω (Mat 10:40; Luk 9:48; Joh 3:17, etc.) and πέμπω (Luk 12:13; Joh 4:34, etc.) are used of the mission of the Son. See on Joh 1:33.

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.

37.] See Mat 10:40.

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

37. ἕν τῶν παιδίων τοιούτων—one of such little children. The child meant by our Lord is not a child in years, but in spirit, a person possessed of the childlike quality. The child is the best example of the type just held up before the disciples by our Lord, and he is himself the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. When he says then, that to receive such a childlike person is the same as to receive him, he is affirming again, in his striking way, that humility and service are the marks of greatness in his kingdom; they are, that is, the things that identify a man with him.1

ὅς ἂν, instead of ὅς ἐὰν, Tisch. Treg. WH. א ABCDL Δ 1, 13, 28, 69. In the second clause the same, Tisch. Treg. WH. BDL Δ

ἐπὶ τῷ ὀνόματί μου—upon my name, i.e. on the strength of my name. The prep. denotes the basis, the ground of the reception. This use of the word ὄνομα to denote the various things about a person recalled by his name, especially in the phrase ἐν or ἐπὶ τῷ ὀνόματι, is not Greek, but Hebrew. The phrase indicates that a person is so connected with another, that he receives whatever consideration belongs to that other. The connection of thought, however, shows that, just as the personal consideration is excluded by this phrase, showing that the man is not received for himself, but because of Jesus; so it cannot be a mere outward connection with our Lord, but because the man’s childlikeness makes him like Jesus, so that men are reminded of Jesus when they see him. οὐκ ἐμὲ δέχεται, ἀλλὰ τὸν ἀποστείλαντά με—receives not me but him who sent me. Christ did not represent himself in the world, but the Father, a fact developed at great length in the fourth Gospel. This representative character belongs to him as the one sent by the Father into the world. But in this case also, the connection is not outward, but inward. To be sent by God is to be inspired by him, to be filled with His Spirit, and so the spirit of humility and service, in the disciple, and in Jesus himself, is here carried a step farther back, and is shown to be that of the Father. In such a child, Jesus says, you see me, yes, and God himself.

EXCLUSIVENESS CONDEMNED

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

In my name. Lit., "upon [επι] my name." See on Mt 18:5.

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