Matthew 12:21

Mat 12:21. Καὶ, κ.τ.λ., and, etc.) Jerome ad. Algasium, in the passage cited above, refers to these words those of Isaiah. He shall shine, and shall not be broken, until He establish judgment on the earth: so that, says he, the light of His preaching shall at length shine forth in the world, and [He] be consumed and overcome by the devices of no one, until He establish judgment on the earth, and that be fulfilled which was written, Thy will be done, as in heaven so on earth.—ὀνόματι, name) In the Hebrew the word is תורה, law. The whole Gospel is a discourse on the name of Christ.

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

Mat_12:21. Τῷ ὀνόματι αὐτοῦ] In Hebrew, לְתוֹרָתוֹ; LXX., ἐπὶ τῷ ὀνόμ. αὐτοῦ. Matthew and the LXX. had a different reading before them (לִשְׁמוֹ). This is the only passage in the New Testament in which ἐλπίζω is used with the dative (elsewhere and in the LXX. with ἐν, εἰς, or ἐπί); it is proved, however, to be good Greek from the fact of its occurring in Thuc. iii. 97. 2, and it is meant to indicate the object on which, as its cause, the hope (of salvation) is resting. On the ground of His name, i.e. on account (Krügers note on Thucydides, as above) of that which the name Messiah imports, the Gentiles will cherish hope.

Meyer — Critical and Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament — English translation by Peter Christie, edited by Frederick Crombie (T&T Clark, 1880) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

And in his name shall the Gentiles trust--Part of His present audience were Gentiles--from Tyre and Sidon--first-fruits of the great Gentile harvest contemplated in the prophecy.

Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

Verse 21. And in his name shall the Gentiles trust.] ελπιουσι, they shall hope. Jesus Christ is the sole hope and trust of mankind; to trust and hope in his name, JESUS, is to expect salvation and all things necessary from him alone, to despise, comparatively, all earthly promises, to esteem, love, and desire heavenly things only, and to bear with patience and tranquillity all the losses and evils of this life, upon the prospect and hope of that felicity which he has purchased for us.

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

(21) And in his name shall the Gentiles trust.—Better, shall hope. The Hebrew gives “in his law,” but St. Matthew follows the LXX.

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

21. in his name] The original Hebrew has “in his law.”

shall … trust] Rather, shall hope.

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 if Satan cast out Satan,.... That is, if Satan, the same with Beelzebub, casts out the rest of the Satans, or other devils, of which he is the prince and head,

he is divided against himself; he acts contrary to his own interest, which is to keep possession of the bodies and souls of men; and consequently it must, in course, be subversive of his power and dominion:

how shall then his kingdom stand? he will never be able to maintain his authority, and keep up the show of a government, as he does: for these words suggest, that there is a form of government among the devils, who are united in one body, under one head; and whose unity and concord are their greatest strength, as in all other governments. Our Lord's argument, and which is his first, for others follow, is, that since Satan, who is so cunning and crafty, can never be thought to act such an opposite part to himself, subversive of his kingdom and government; and which would give so much credit to Christ, and serve so much to strengthen his interest, as to assist him in the casting out of devils; the weakness, and maliciousness of such a suggestion, must be clear and evident to all.

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

21 And in his name shall the Gentiles trust.

Ver. 21. Shall the Gentiles trust] This trust is here put for the whole service of God, it being the least, and yet the best we can render to him. And the more we know of his name, the more we shall trust in him, Psa 9:10.

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.

In his name the Gentiles. Here are two words differing from those used by the prophet: in the Hebrew text we have, in his law the islands shall hope: probably the oversight of the amanuensis substituting Greek: onoma for Greek: nomo; the latter variation is of still less moment, as the prophets understand by islands, countries far removed; and also the poet, Et penitus toto divisos orbe Britannos.

And, Mittam ad insulas longe ad eos, qui non auderunt de me. (Isaias, lx. 9, and lxvi. 19)

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).

This makes some think, that the bringing of judgment unto victory refers to the final destruction of the Jews by the Romans, after which the Gentiles came more universally to receive the gospel. Though Christ be meek and gentle with men a long time, while there is any hope of their reformation, yet he will not be so meek and patient always. Neither was he so with the Jews. But the falling of them proved the rising of the Gentiles. Christ is beholden to no people for bearing the name of his church; if the Jews fail in their duty, they shall be cast off, and in his name shall the Gentiles trust. God is able of stones to raise up children unto Abraham. Isaiah saith, the isles shall wait for his law; his law, both of faith and holiness, shall be acceptable to the Gentiles. The term law here seemeth to expound that phrase, Mat 12:18, he shall show judgment to the Gentiles, that is, right things, he shall give them his law.

Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

21. Gentiles trust — The spirit of inspiration here paraphrases the words of the prophet, giving his essential meaning rather than the exact terms. In the book of Isaiah the words are, “The isles shall wait for his law.” By the isles are meant the distant nations of the earth, especially those separated by water, and so the Gentiles in general. We have here a clear prediction that the religion of the Gospel shall become universal.

Mr. Gibbon objects to the proofs from prophecy, because they so commonly predict the Messiah as a conquering warrior. The present prophecy is one of those predictions that clearly show the descriptions of his warlike victories to be truly figurative representations of the triumphs of his holy doctrines.

Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

And in his Name shall the Gentiles trust; hope (Revised Version). The evangelist thus completes the parallelism with the end of the first stanza (ver. 18) However Jews treat Messiah, Gentiles shall place their hope in his Name, which, in fact, sums up for man all that can be known of God. (Mat_6:9, note) In his Name. So even the LXX But the Hebrew, "in his Law." Onomati is possibly due to a confusion with nomw , but is more probably merely a paraphrase bringing out more clearly the fact that the Christian religion is emphatically trust in a Person. The Gentiles; rather, Gentiles, as such. This paraphrase for "isles" in the original is also found in the LXX (For the whole verse, cf. Mat_28:19, an utterance never lost sight of by the evangelist.)

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

In his name - That is, in him.

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

21. In his name. In him as the Messiah. Shall the Gentiles trust. He shall be the “Christ of the world,” and not of the Jews alone. Compare John 4:42. The prophets clearly and many times declare that the Messiah shall be, not a Jewish, but a world's Savior. The Jews strangely overlooked this.

B. W. Johnson's The People's New Testament with Notes (1889–1891) — public domain. Electronic text from the Christian Classics Ethereal Library (CCEL) ThML edition.

21. τῷ ὀνόματι αὐτοῦ. The LXX. reading, ἐπὶ τῷ ὀνόματι, nearly agrees with this. The Hebrew text has ‘for his law.’ It is hardly probable that the mistake should have arisen, as Maldonatus suggests, from the similarity of νόμῳ and ὀνόματι.

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.