Matthew 12:50

Mat 12:50. Ποιήσῃ, shall do) He does not say does, but He speaks somewhat conditionally.—τὸ θέλημα, the will) by which we are born again.[596]—ΑὐΤῸς, he) This man, and he only.—ἀδελφὸς, brother) This word is said for the third time with great force.—καὶ ἀδελφὴ, and sister) The plural appellation of brethren in Mat 12:46-49, includes sisters also.—μήτηρ, mother) The climax.

[596] Jas 1:18.—E. B.

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

Mat 12:50 . efinition of spiritual kinsmanship. The highest brotherhood based on spiritual affinity. ὅστις γὰρ ἂν ποιήσῃ : a general present supposition expressed by the subjunctive with ἂν followed by present indicative. τὸ θέλημα τ . πατρός μ . τ . ἐν οὐρανοῖς : this probably comes nearest to Christ’s actual words. In such a solemn utterance He was likely to mention His Father, whose supreme claims His filial heart ever owned. Mark has “the will of God”; Luke “those who hear and do the word of God” obviously secondary.

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

For whosoever shall do the will of my Father which is in heaven, the same is my brother, and sister, and mother--that is, "There stand here the members of a family transcending and surviving this of earth: Filial subjection to the will of My Father in heaven is the indissoluble bond of union between Me and all its members; and whosoever enters this hallowed circle becomes to Me brother, and sister, and mother!"

Next: Matthew Chapter 13

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 50. Whosoever shall do the will of my Father, c.] Those are the best acknowledged relatives of Christ who are united to him by spiritual ties, and who are become one with him by the indwelling of his Spirit. We generally suppose that Christ's relatives must have shared much of his affectionate attention and doubtless they did: but here we find that whosoever does the will of God is equally esteemed by Christ, as his brother, sister, or even his virgin mother. What an encouragement for fervent attachment to God!

1. From various facts related in this chapter, we see the nature and design of the revelation of God, and of all the ordinances and precepts contained in it-they are all calculated to do man good: to improve his understanding, to soften and change his nature, that he may love his neighbour as himself. That religion that does not inculcate and produce humanity never came from heaven.

2. We have already seen what the sin against the Holy Ghost is: no soul that fears God can commit it: perhaps it would be impossible for any but Jews to be guilty of it, and they only in the circumstances mentioned in the text; and in such circumstances, it is impossible that any person should now be found.

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

(50) Whosoever shall do the will.—This is, then, what Christ recognises as the ground of a spiritual relationship. Not outward, but inward fellowship; not the mere fact of baptism, but that which baptism signifies; that doing the will of God, which is the essence of holiness—this is that which makes the disciple as dear to the heart of Christ as was the mother whom He loved so truly.

Sister, and mother.—The special mention of the sister suggests the thought that those who bore that name had joined the mother and the brethren in their attempt to interrupt the divine work.

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

50. whosoever shall do the will of my Father] “These which hear the word of God and do it” (Luk_8:21).

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.

50 For whosoever shall do the will of my Father which is in heaven, the same is my brother, and sister, and mother.

Ver. 50. For whosoever shall do the will] Lo, here is the right way of becoming akin to Christ; and can we better prefer ourselves? It was an honour to Mark, that he was Barnabas’s sister’s son. David dare not in modesty think of being son-in-law to a king. Elymas the sorcerer affected to be held allied to Christ, and therefore styled himself Barjesus: as Darius, in his proud embassy to Alexander, called himself king of kings, and cousin to the gods. But the right way to be ennobled indeed, and inrighted to Christ and his kingdom, is, to believe in his name, and obey his will. This, this is to become Christ’s brother, and sister, and mother. Sister is named, to show that no sex is excluded. And mother last mentioned, that the prerogative of the flesh may be set aside and disacknowledged.

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.

For whosoever shall do the will of my Father which is in heaven, the same (he, Revised Version; autov : Mat_1:21, note) is my brother, and sister, and mother. He is fall; he sums up in himself all such relations. Observe that our Lord does not raise the question whether or not his mother and brethren now believed on him. He is only speaking of the claims of relationship as such. From Mar_3:21, however (which seems to refer to the same occasion), we may conclude that the motive for this endeavour to interrupt him lay in unbelief. If so, Mary was either unaware of this or had herself been over-persuaded into momentary impatience (Joh_2:3) and distrust. If the latter alternative be adopted, she forms a parallel to the Baptist. (Mat_11:3, note)

Christ"s spiritual family.

"Whosoever shall do the will of my Father which is in heaven, the same is my brother, and sister, and mother." There is nothing new or peculiarly Christian in the idea that there is a bond stronger than that of blood. It is too obvious to escape notice. Nor does the assertion cast any disparagement on the institution of the family; less is not made of blood, but more of spiritual affinity. That our Lord did not make less of family ties is shown by his care for his mother; that he made much of spiritual ties also is shown by his commending her to the care of his most sympathetic friend. The family bulks less in his life because the community, the world, bulks larger. The proportion of thought he gave to the family was smaller, the actual amount greater, than that given by most men. That which is peculiar in these words is The distinct assertion of what constitutes the bond of this more enduring, truer relationship. It is the recognition and acceptance of God"s will. This is the true basis of eternal society, the one bond we can trust to, to keep us ever united. The doing of God"s will implies an inward, deep-seated acknowledgment that his will is holy, just, and good, and that God is the Ruler of our life; it implies that devout love for God from which flows light and regeneration to every part of a man"s life and nature. Other associations dissolve, pass away, become obsolete, but all that comes of accepting God"s will from a genuine love of him abides. But Christ here indirectly presents himself as the Centre of this new spiritual family. This is so

(1) because he is the actual, visible embodiment of God"s will, in whom men can best see what that wilt is. And

(2) because it is through him they become able to do God"s will. Only by becoming brethren of Christ can we become children of God. From this truth flow several inferences.

I IT IS NOT YOUR BIRTH, BUT YOUR CHOICE, WHICH DETERMINES YOUR ETERNAL RELATIONSHIPS AND SURROUNDINGS. Every man passes judgment on himself by his affinities. You cannot judge a man by his family, his origin; but you can judge him, or he can judge himself, by the profession he chooses, the friendships he forms, the course of life he freely adopts. But the great test of men is Christ. He is set for the fall and rising of many, and by him are the thoughts of many hearts revealed. By the treatment men give him they reveal what is in them, and whether their talk about virtue is merely talk, or if they have hearty love for it when presented in actual life.

II THE FAMILY IS NOT AN ETERNAL INSTITUTION, Those affections which are developed in the family must be fed. from a more enduring root if they are to abide. They are like the bindings which join the graft to the tree; they keep us together until the vital sap knits us into one. There is no guarantee for the endurance of love but that it goes down to and roots itself in the deepest springs of our life. In family life the pain of want of sympathy is only the keener for the superficial affection. It is thus that Christ brings sometimes, not peace, but division. It is the magnet passing through the heap of dust and iron filings; the superior attraction at once produces separation. It is not that we must buy his favour by perfect submission, or propitiate his jealousy by disliking others, but that he is worthy of and can command a deeper. holier, more devoted love than any other; and the further we ourselves advance in all that is good, the more we see the necessary truth of his saying, "He that loveth father or mother more than me is not worthy of me." Let parents try to win their children to that permanent and eternal family in which the relationship lies not in the flesh, but in the deepest recesses of the spirit, and from which there are no banishments, no deaths, no separations. Death then loses the greater part of its terrors is, indeed, recognized as the apparently necessary means of purifying and deepening our natural affections.

III FROM THIS STATEMENT WE UNDERSTAND BETTER OUR OWN POSITION, IF WE BE DOING THE WILL OF GOD.

1. We have claims on Christ superior to those which can be asserted even by his relatives. He wants to be trusted, confided in, counted on.]f you would have counted it happy to be born in the same family, and would have expected from him, your own Brother, all the help he could give, you may still count on that help and with greater assurance.

2. Christ takes pleasure in us, if we are doing God"s wilt, such as he finds in nothing else. We cannot understand his longing for human love and acceptance, but we know that even as God he loved human fellowship, and when he became man we find him the same. To be closer to Christ than to father or mother, to be more truly at one with him than with any one besides, this is salvation. In his own day he could point to some anti say, "Behold my mother and my Brethren!" Surely there are among ourselves those who long above all things to be truly the brethren of the Lord Jesus Christ. D.

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

50. The same is my brother. Not those with fleshly ties, but those who do the will of his Father in heaven. Such become God's spiritual children, and thus become spiritually related to the Son of God. It will be observed that there is no hint of adoration of Mary, his mother, here, or elsewhere in the Scriptures. That she was immaculately born, as the “Queen of Heaven” and the “Mother of God,” is a Catholic fable.

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.

50. ὅστις γὰρ ἂν ποιήσῃ κ.τ.λ. ‘These which hear the word of God and do it’ (Luk 8:21).

τοῦ ἐν οὐρανοῖς. The addition is important. ‘Not those who do the will of my earthly father, but those who do the will of my heavenly Father are brethren.’ The essence of sonship is obedience, and obedience to God constitutes brotherhood to Jesus who came to do τὸ θέλημα τοῦ πέμψαντος. Joh 6:38.

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.

(M) 50. For whosoever shall do the will of My Father who is in the heavens, the same is My brother, and sister, and mother.] Mk. has: “Whosoever shall do the will of God, he is My brother, and sister, and mother.” For τοῦ πατρός μου τοῦ ἐν οὐρανοῖς, see on 5:16. Cf. Aboth 5:22 “Be bold as a leopard, and swift as an eagle, and fleet as a hart, and strong as a lion, to do the will of thy Father which is in heaven.” 2:4 “Do His will as if it were thy will, that He may do thy will as if it were His will. Annul thy will before His will, that He may annul the will of others before thy will.” B. Berakhoth 16b “Our will is to do Thy will.” See also on 6:12.

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