Matthew 8:1

VIII.

(1) We enter here on a series of events, following, in St. Matthew’s arrangement, on the great discourse. They are common to St. Mark and St. Luke, but are not narrated, as the following table will show, in the same order:—

ST. MATTHEW.ST. MARK.ST. LUKE.(1.) The leper (Mat_8:1-4).(1.) Peter’s wife’s mother (Mar_1:29-31).(1.) Peter’s wife’s mother (Luk_4:38-39).(2.) The servant of the centurion (Mat_8:5-13).(2.) The leper (Mar_1:40-45).(2.) The leper (Luk_5:12-15).(3.) Peter’s wife’s mother (Mat_8:14-15).(3.) The stilling of the storm Mark (4:35-41).(3.) The servant of the centurion (Luk_7:1-10).(4.) The excuses of two disciples (Mat_8:18-22).(4.) The Gadarene demoniac (Mar_5:1-20).(4.) The stilling of the storm (Luk_8:22-25).(5.) The stilling of the storm (Mat_8:23-27).—(5.) The Gadarene demoniac (Luk_8:26-39).(6.) The Gadarene demoniacs (Mat_8:28-33).—(6.) The excuses of two disciples (Luk_9:57-62).A comparison such as this, especially if we take into account the narratives which in St. Mark and St. Luke come between those which St. Matthew makes to follow close one upon another, and the apparent notes of succession in each case, is enough to show, once for all the difficulty of harmonising the Gospel narratives with any certainty. Three conclusions may fairly be received as all but certain. (1.) The independence of each record. It is scarcely conceivable that St. Mark or St. Luke would have departed so widely from St. Matthew’s order had they had his Gospel before them. (2.) The derivation of all three from earlier records, written or oral, each embracing some few acts or discourses of our Lord. (3.) The absence of any direct evidence as to the order of these events, so that each writer was often left to his own discretion, or to some internal principle of grouping.

In dealing with such cases, therefore, while the parallel narratives in the other Gospels will be noticed, so far as they make the record here more vivid and complete, there will seldom be any attempt to discuss elaborately the order in which they stand.

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

Mat_8:1-4

And, behold, there came a leper.

The lepers cure

I. The lepers faith.

II. Christs treatment or the leper.

1. That this disease is a type of moral corruption.

2. Gods grace alone can effect a cure.

3. We see the power of prayer. (W. Wight, M. A.)

The healing of the leper

I. The lepers opportunity. Let every hearer of the word follow Jesus Christ till he finds Him in secret.

II. The lepers defiliment.

1. The disease of leprosy seems to have appeared first in Israel while in the land of Egypt, the earliest notice of it being in the leprous hand of Moses. Sin, like leprosy, is deeply hereditary. It spreads corruption and dissolution through the entire body. It was viewed with the hopelessness of death.

2. The leprosy, selected by God as the special type of sin, #as more than other diseases sent immediately from heaven as the express punishment of sin. Thus with Gehazi.

3. The leper, alone of all the sick, was shut out from the camp of Israel. The sinner excluded from holy fellowship.

4. The leper was appointed to bewail himself as one already dead; he was to become his own mourner (Lev_13:45). These were three of the chief symbols of sorrow for the dead. The leprous sinner is dead, while he lives.

III. The lepers prayer.

1. He was convinced of Christs ability to heal him. This the chief element of saving faith.

2. There is an appeal to the compassionate will of Jesus.

IV. The lepers cleansing.

1. Jesus is moved with compassion, touches, and cleanses.

2. The thanksgiving is seasonable and acceptable in one case; the gratitude, unwise and not obedient in the other. The case of the ten lepers. (A. Moody Stuart.)

I. The individual referred to-a leper. No condition more awful and distressing. Striking representation of sin. Leprosy was generally hereditary; small in its first appearance, deep-seated and inveterate in its nature, universal in its prevalence, loathsome in its appearance, excluded from society, incurable by human power, and generally produced a most awful death.

II. His address to the redeemer. It was an address of humble respect, associated with faith, affecting appeal to his misery and Christs goodness.

III. The conduct of the saviour. Responded to his appeal; His word was omnific and conveyed His healing power; He put forth His hand to testify to his cleanness; He sent him to the priest that his recovery might be duly attested; He was to present a gift unto the Lord. See how you are to obtain healing and purity. See the way in which Christ will receive you.

1. Bless God for health of body.

2. Especially be anxious for health of soul.

3. Praise God for the means of spiritual health and felicity.

4. Come and be healed. (J. Barnis, LL. D.)

Healing of the leper

I. His lamentable condition.

II. His appropriate prayer.

III. His complete restoration.

IV. His instant dismissal. (J. T. Woodhouse.)

Christs healing touch

It was a touch

(1) of purity;

(2) of sympathy;

(3) of power. (G. Shrewsbury.)

The touch of Christ cleanseth

Blessed are the merciful, so our Lord had said; now the act follows the word.

I. How truly humble and lowly was Jesus. Free from ostentation He walked among men. Christ can heal the leprosy of pride.

II. Though lowly, the Saviour was not fearful. With all our pride, how many things we fear. We fear labour, difficulty. Let us learn from Christ what courage is. He can cleanse from the leprosy of fear.

III. Impurity is another form of leprosy.

IV. Indolence, too, is a leprosy. Christs is an active Spirit, by feeling the influence of which we shall be healed of sloth.

V. Selfishness is leprosy.

VI. We shall see in discontent an irritating leprosy, eating into our minds health and our souls peace. These are instances of our moral disease. The Saviours band can heal. (F. W. P. Greenwood, D. D.)

Christs healing touch

Notice in Christs touch of the sick.

I. His fixing and confirming faith in himself the healer. It is in condescension to human weakness that He lays His hands on sick folk; we believe in little that we cannot see. Naaman said, Behold, I thought, etc. Pain and sickness are sensible; we look for equally sensible tokens of the energy of the Restorer. Thus we are touched into attention.

II. His answer to our craving for sympathy. Had Jesus held aloof from the diseased they would never have trusted Him. His touch was healing; some touches irritate. In the Incarnation Christ touches us in sympathy. It is a comfort to be touched by Christ.

III. The symbol of His bearing our infirmities and carrying our sins. He touched our nature in all its pollution. He is not ashamed to call us brethren. (A. Mackennal, B. A.)

Touching the loathsome

A good Christian lady living in Sweden opened a home for crippled and diseased children-children whom nobody really cared about but herself-and received about twenty of them into it. Amongst them was a little boy of three years old, who was a more frightful and disagreeable object than you ever saw, or are ever likely perhaps to see in your life. He resembled skeleton. His poor skin was so covered with blotches and sores that he could not be dressed. He was always crying and whining, always peevish, and the poor little fellow gave more trouble almost than all the others put together. The good lady did her best for him; she was as kind as possible-washed him, fed him, nursed him; but the child was so repulsive in his look and ways, that she could not bring herself to like him, and her disgust, I suppose, occasionally appeared in her face. One day she was sitting on the verandah-steps with the child in her arms. The sun was shining warm, the scent of the autumn honeysuckles, the chirping of the birds, the buzzing of the insects, lulled her into a sort of sleep; and in a half-waking, half-dreaming state, she thought of herself as having changed places with the child, and lying there, only more foul, more disagreeable than he was. Over her she saw the Lord Jesus bending, looking intently and lovingly into her face, and yet with a sort of expression of gentle rebuke in it, as if He meant to say, If I can love and bear with you, who are so full of sin, surely you ought, for My sake, to love that guiltless child, who suffers for the sin of his parents. She woke up with a start, and looked in the boys face. He had waked up too, and she expected to hear him begin to cry; but be looked at her-poor little mite!-very quietly and earnestly for a long time, and then she-sorry for her past disgust, and feeling a new compassion for him, and a new interest in him-bent her face to his, and kissed his forehead as tenderly as she had ever kissed any of her own babes. With a startled look in his eyes, and a flush in his cheeks, the boy, instead of crying, gave her back a smile so sweet, that she had never seen one like it before: nor will, she thinks, till it will light up his angel features some day on their meeting in heaven. From that day forth a perfect change came over the child. Young as he was, he had hitherto read the feelings of dislike and disgust in the faces of all who approached him, and that had embittered his little heart; but the touch of human love, swept all the peevishness and ill-nature away, and woke him up to a new and happier life. (G. Calthrop, M. A.)

Christian reserve in words modified by deeds

(ver. 4):-Why was this reserve insisted on? What would have led the restored leper to act at variance with Christs command? Two motives-a desire of bearing personal witness to the miraculous power of his Benefactor: or a wish to draw the eyes of men on the favour he had received. Both these we can conceive our Lord would be likely to prohibit-the one, because it was needless; the other, because it was exposed to harm.

1. The first of these objects was prohibited for reasons of our Lords showing. He did not wish to be the idol of strong excitement.

2. It was not His purpose to take mens minds, as it were, by force. He would lay no compulsion on faith.

3. Then there was also the fact itself, clear and patent to the observation of all men. Then see, on the other hand, how the injunction of our Lord seems to have borne on the personal case of the leper himself. Go show thyself to the priest. As if our Lord had said, Be not occupied with thine own self, make no display of what I have clone, let not that distract thee from what thou oughtest to do, thy duty is more than words, more than even magnifying thy blessings. Thus our Lord prohibited words that He might enjoin actions. The full heart can seldom find adequate vent in words; deeds do not fail us. This is a comfort to the poor. (J. Puckle. M. A.)

The prudence of Jesus

(ver. 4):-Why did Jesus give this charge?

I. It may be observed that though our Saviours injunctions of silence and secresy were frequent, they were by no means constant. Many of His miracles were wrought in public. Jews expected a temporal Messiah. He wished to prevent popular rebellion. Fear did not suggest the injunction; but it was the course of courage, benevolence, and wisdom. He guarded Himself against the imputation of political intentions and of turbulence.

II. Our Lord desired To avoid all idle and unprofitable excitements. A love of display formed no part of His character. Quiet faith was the grace He loved to see. He desired obedience rather than profession. Is all need for caution gone? A due regard to circumstances and consequences no proof of a timid spirit. (F. W. P. Greenwood, D. D.)

A picture of true faith

(ver. 1-13):-

I. What it sees in Christ.

1. Both of these ,applicants assigned to Him the character of a Great Healer. Saving faith sees in Christ the attributes of a great Physician.

2. They both saw in Christ a superhuman Power. Saving faith never thinks meanly of Christ.

3. They both saw in Christ a most encouraging beneficence. True faith sees in Christ a Rewarder of them that seek Him.

II. What are the affections with which it moves toward him.

1. It despairs of help in any one but Christ.

2. True faith is also attended with feeling of great unworthiness.

3. True faith is attended with earnest and practical interest in others.

III. The manner in which the Saviour met the faith of these men.

1. He graciously entertained their applications.

2. He mercifully granted their requests.

3. He introduced them into another empire. They were to sit down with Abraham, etc. (J A. Seiss, D. D.)

Human leprosy and its Divine cure

I. The leper.

1. He comes.

2. He worships.

3. He pleads.

II. The healer

1. He puts forth His hand.

2. He touched him.

3. He spoke.

(1) It is the voice of love;

(2) of authority;

(3) of power. (Dr. Bonar.)

In the leper two things are remarkable-the weakness of his body; the virtues of his mind.

I. The weariness of his body. Weakness proceeds from wickedness. The weakness of his body brought him to the Physician of his soul. He felt his misery great; but hoped Christs mercy was greater.

II. The virtues of his mind.

1. Faith.

2. Adoration.

3. Wisdom in selecting place, not on Mount, but in valley; time, not interrupting His sermon.

4. Patience. Content to stay Gods leisure.

5. Confession.

III. Now look at the physician.

1. His mercy.

2. His might.

(1) Christ touched the leper, which was forbidden by Moses. Hence He was greater than Moses.

(2) Moral duties superior to ceremonial observances.

(3) This intimates that Christ was very man in touching, but more than a man in healing with a touch.

(4) To demonstrate that Himself and none other cured him.

(5) Christs humility in touching a leper.

1. The leper was commanded to tell no man. We must temper zeal with knowledge and obedience.

2. It was needless to tell it since his whole body, made clean, was a tongue to tell it.

3. It was absurd that he should boast he was clean, before he was so judged. (J. Bogs, D. D.)

The lepers prayer

I. The characteristics of leprosy as set forte in scripture. Loathsome-helpless-hopeless.

1. The position of this leper was one of shame and disgrace. He inspired repugnance in those around him. Sin is a disgrace. It ought to fill with shame.

2. Other maladies healed by Christ invited sympathy and help and society. The leper was reminded by everything that he was alone in the world. Each one of us alone before God.

II. His faith.

1. There was a thorough consciousness of his own misery and a perfect conviction of his own helplessness. But he knew it was not too bad for Christ to deal with successfully.

2. The concentrated force which resides in the lepers petition. His entire resignation; he is willing to leave the matter in the hands of Christ.

3. What a Divine concentration there is in the answer-I will; be thou clean. What a majestic utterance. Christ accepts the recognition of His power. The main point of the answer is, not His power, but His will. (Dean Howson, D. D.)

The lepers loneliness as indicating the souls solitude

Each one of us is alone before God. However great may be the human crowd in which we live, however closely we may be connected with one another by affection, by interest, by duty, each soul is solitary in its relation to God. Just as in those great American forests, which stretch in vast succession over mountain and plain-whatever be the interlacing of the foliage-whatever be the beauty which comes from the blending of sunlight and shade-whatever havoc may be done on a great and extensive scale by storm and tempest-each tree, rising from its own root, with its one stem, and with the outgrowth of its own branches, is a solitary tree. So is the human soul, with the outgrowth of its own words and deeds, a solitary soul. No other human soul can share its responsibility. (Dean Howson, D. D.)

Secret leprosy

I have seen a fair and well-built house, lifting its head proudly above its neighbours, and having a goodly outside presence. And I have looked within, and found that the dry rot had eaten away rafter and beam, and that the house was ready to fall to ruin. During the Crimean War, our ships suffered far more from the dry rot within their timbers, than from the outside attacks of shot and shell. How many lives there are like that grand house, or those stately ships! Outside they are fair to look upon, men envy their wealth, or position, or good fortune, and all the while the foul leprosy is within, eating away the moral nature, making that life a ruin. (Wilmot Buxton.)

The mark of the leper

Is it the leprosy of an impure life, or a selfish nature, or a cruel tongue, or a proud, rebellious spirit? Whatever it be, once more, are you willing to be made clean? Before you can find pardon, you must see your sin and hate it. (Wilmot Buxton.)

The Biblical Illustrator, edited by Joseph S. Exell (c. 1880s–1900s) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Mat 8:1. When he was come down from the mountain — Where he had delivered the divine discourse contained in the preceding chapters; great multitudes followed him — To the town toward which he went, desirous, probably, of receiving further instruction from him, or of witnessing the performance of some of his miraculous acts. And, behold, there came a leper — Leprosies, in those countries, were seldom curable by natural means, any more than palsies or lunacy. It is likely, though this leper might not mix with the people: he had heard our Lord at a distance. And worshipped him — That is, kneeled, or fell down before him; saying, Lord, if thou wilt, thou canst make me clean — Doubtless, he had seen or been informed of some of the miraculous cures which Christ had wrought. Jesus put forth his hand and touched him — Though leprosies were the most nauseous of all the distempers incident to the human body, and the most infectious, insomuch that the bare sight of a leper could not fail to raise a loathing in all who looked on him; nevertheless, Jesus, with great benignity, drew near and touched this man, and, instead of being polluted by touching him, cleansed the leper with his touch, and sent him away very joyful by reason of his cure, which rendered him agreeable to himself, and gave him access again to the society of men. Immediately his leprosy was cleansed — Immediately on Christ’s touching him, and saying, I will, be thou clean — How wonderful the power thus displayed! and how irresistible, one would suppose, must be the evidence, arising from such a fact, of the divine mission and authority of the person who performed such a cure; who restored, in a moment, to perfect soundness, the body of a man covered all over with the most loathsome disease imaginable! Observe, reader, the instruction which this miracle gives us. Our souls are by nature entirely overspread with the leprosy of sin, and where can we apply for help but to the healing power and recovering grace of this Divine Saviour? And be the malady ever so deep, spreading, or inveterate, we may surely adopt the words of this leper, and say, Lord, if thou wilt, thou canst make me clean. And we have every reason to hope, if we so apply, that his compassion will be moved in our favour, and his power exerted for our cure.

Joseph Benson's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1811–1818) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

CRITICAL NOTES

Mat_8:2. And behold, etc.—The time of this miracle seems too definitely fixed here to admit of our placing it where it stands in Mark and Luke, in whose Gospels no such precise note of time is given (Brown). Leper.—Confining ourselves to the Biblical form of the disease, we note:

1. Its probable origin in the squalor and wretchedness of the Egyptian bondage. It was the “botch, or plague of Egypt” (Deu_28:27). In the Egyptian legends of the Exodus, indeed, the Israelites were said to have been expelled because they were lepers (Jos., c. Apion, I. 26; Tacit., Hist., Mat_8:3).

2. Its main features were the appearance of a bright spot on the flesh, whiter than the rest, spreading, inflaming, cracking; an ichorous humour oozing from the cracks; the skin becoming hard, scaly, “as white as snow” (Exo_4:6; 2Ki_5:27). One so affected was regarded as unclean; his touch brought defilement (Lev_13:3; Lev_13:11; Lev_13:15). He was looked upon as smitten with a Divine plague, and cases like those of Miriam (Num_12:10), Gehazi (2Ki_5:27), and Uzziah (2Ch_26:20), gave strength to the belief. He had to live apart from his fellows, to wear on his brow the outward sign of separation, to cry out the words of warning, “Unclean, unclean” (Lev_13:45). The idea which lay at the bottom of this separation seems to have been one of abhorrence rather than precaution. The disease was loathsome, but there is no evidence that it was contagious or even believed to be contagious. At the stage in which it reached its height, and the whole body was covered with the botch and scabs, the man was, by a strange contrast, declared to be ceremonially clean (Lev_13:13), and in this state, therefore, the leper might return to his kindred, and take his place among the worshippers of the synagogue (Plumptre). Worshipped Him.—The leper regarded Jesus at least as a great prophet, though it is difficult accurately to define the measure of knowledge possessed by such believers. Hence the import of this worship, and of the designation “Lord,” differed under various circumstances (Gerlach).

Mat_8:4. The gift.—See Leviticus 14. For a testimony unto them.—Either:

1. To the priests, or:

2. To the people who were following Jesus. In either case to show that Jesus came to fulfil the law. Christ enjoins the cleansed leper to tell no one, thus instructing us that He would not have people converted by His miracles. Christ addresses Himself to men’s hearts not to their eyes or ears. He will not fling Himself from the height of the temple to persuade men (Carr).

MAIN HOMILETICS OF THE PARAGRAPH.—Mat_8:1-4

Following up.—The story here told us is a fit sequel to the Sermon on the Mount. Its introduction is so (Mat_8:1). Having gone up to the mountain (Mat_5:1) for one purpose, the Saviour now “comes down” for another. Notwithstanding the faithfulness and even severity (in appearance) of much of His teaching, such was the power of it also (Mat_7:28-29), that “great multitudes” follow Him still. In accordance with this, also, is the story itself. Alike in the leper’s request as described to us in it, and in the Saviour’s immediate reply, and in the parting injunction with which He concludes, we see that which follows up what has been told us before.

I. The leper’s request.—How remarkable this was in its nature. Leprosy before this time appears to have been regarded as a practically incurable thing. Only two instances of its cure—and those apparently miraculous ones—are mentioned before in the Bible (Num_12:11-15; 2 Kings 5.). Neither does the law of Moses, with its many injunctions about the detection and spiritual treatment of this sickness, say anything about its cure. If spoken of at all in those days it is only spoken of as a signal exercise of God’s power (2Ki_5:3; 2Ki_5:8; 2Ki_5:15). It is all the more noticeable, therefore, that in this case we see a man coming out of his way in order to ask it. He “worships Him” (Mat_8:2) because, already, he believes in Him as a “prophet.” How remarkable also, was the tone of the request. It is made in hope—in much hope—hope in every quarter but one. Given the requisite mercy, the man who asks has no doubt of the power. Great as the boon is, there is power to grant it, if there be only the will (Mat_8:2). How evidently, therefore, in this condition of things we are pointed back to the past. Pointed back by the hope. Amongst the many widely-reported “healings” of “all manner of sickness” related in Mat_4:23-24, some healings even of leprosy could hardly have been missing. Hence the “hope” in this case. If done for others, why not for me? Pointed back by the doubt. With all else that was admirable in the Sermon on the Mount, there was not conspicuous that fulness of love of which so much was afterwards shown. Therefore, apparently, in this poor leper’s case, this measure of doubt. Jesus had “come not to destroy the law, but fulfil it” (Mat_5:17). Would He, after all, only treat him as was done by the law?

II. The Saviour’s immediate reply.—How striking its mercy! Its mercy in beginning with that of which the poor suppliant was not sure. “If Thou art willing?” I am willing. Know that, to begin. Be assured that your application will not be cast out. Be assured, though so exposed to contempt, that you will meet with none at My hands. I have just pronounced a blessing on the “poor in spirit,” and the “meek,” and the “mournful” (Mat_5:2-5), and will deal in the same spirit with you. And see, I show this by putting My hand upon you (contrast 2Ki_7:3, etc.). How striking also its power! The “power” in its form. Not the word of experiment (2Ki_4:31; 2Ki_4:35); nor the word of entreaty (ibid. 33; 1Ki_17:20); nor yet of dependence on the name of another (Act_3:6); but the word of direct authority—the word of command. “I will, be thou clean.” Also the “power” in its issue. How complete the cure—“he was cleansed.” How direct—by a word and a touch; not by going away even to wash in Jordan (2Ki_5:10; 2Ki_5:13). How immediate—as the word was spoken. All these special proofs of very great power. So we read everywhere of God’s works and servants. See as to completeness Deu_32:4; as to swiftness Eze_1:14; as to directness Psa_33:4; Psa_33:9.

III. The Saviour’s parting injunction.—This has two aspects, a negative and a positive. The negative refers to Himself. The exceptional power of this miracle, to say nothing also of its exceptional mercy, was just the thing certain, if proclaimed abroad, to add to His fame. Just the thing also that the subject of this miracle, in his wonder and gratitude, would be likely to speak of with this view. But that, we find here, was just the very thing which the Saviour did not wish to have done. He did not desire, He rather strongly deprecated the mere praise of mankind. Hence the first part of His injunction. “See thou tell no man.” Hence in this also we see a further connection with the Sermon on the Mount. As He there taught His disciples to do (Mat_6:1, etc.), so He here does Himself. The positive side refers to Moses. There were certain officials to whom the man was to tell what was done. He was to go to the “priests” whom Moses had appointed. He was to submit to the examination which Moses had enjoined. He was to make the offerings which Moses had ordered (Lev_14:3-4; Lev_14:10). In other words, whilst forbidding the man in any way to magnify Himself, Jesus bids him do that which shall magnify Moses in every way. Just in accordance, therefore (so we notice once more), with what He had said a little before. “I am not come to destroy the law and the prophets, but to fulfil.” So, on the mountain He had said to the multitudes. So here, on the plain, in a different way, He now says to this man.

Thus strikingly and fitly did this conspicuous miracle—for such it appears to have been—being wrought in the presence of the multitudes who had been listening to the Sermon on the Mount—succeed to that Sermon. Thus did it both add to and confirm its teaching, and, as being also apparently the first of a very remarkable series of similar works (Mat_8:9.), prepare for teaching of a deeper and more advanced kind. That Sermon had shown Jesus to be “mighty in word”—a Man to be heard when he spoke. These miracles showed Him to be a Man “mighty in deed”—a Man to be believed when He spoke (Joh_3:2). The two together cover the whole field of what an inspired teacher requires (see Act_7:22; Luk_24:19.)

HOMILIES ON THE VERSES

Mat_8:2-4. The miracles of Jesus.—

I. Seals of His authority.

II. Exercises of His love to men.

III. Types of truth.—Conder.

The cleansing of the leper.—Let us describe:—

I. This particular instance of leprosy.—Attention is at once arrested by the leper’s faith. This is the first instance in which we are called specially to note that element. The cure of a fever patient or of a demoniac must take place with no reference to the sufferer’s state of mind. Friends, in some of these cases, brought the patients and showed faith in the Healer. Now one comes of his own motion, declaring his own confidence in the Saviour. From this point onwards the narratives are rich with references to the link between personal faith and the desired healing. This man’s faith is shown by his immediate and earnest application—“He came to Jesus, beseeching Him;” and by his rendering to Jesus something like Divine honours—“kneeling down to Him he worshipped Him.” Still more distinctly does the character of his faith come out in his words, made emphatic by their exact reproduction in all three Gospels: “Lord, if Thou wilt Thou canst make me clean.” This faith was:—

1. Original.—There had been no previous instance amid all the Judæan and Galilean healings of such a cure.

2. Courageous.—For this was no slight form of the malady. St. Luke notes that this man “was full of leprosy.” The patient honoured Jesus, therefore, in taking to Him such a case and in such a spirit. But what of this “if Thou wilt”? Usually, it is assumed that here was a defect in the man’s faith. It is at least as probable that it shows his entire and implicit trust. He says in effect, “I know not whether it is the purpose of God that under Thy mission any lepers should be cleansed. Of the power of God in Thee to do it, I have no doubt; for it is mightily witnessed; and as for the intention, I cast myself on Thy Godlike heart; if Thou wilt, Thou canst.” In most of these particulars, this man’s faith is a model for us of the faith which saves. We have not, indeed, his difficulty to overcome. We know it is our Lord’s intention to save sinners.

II. Our Lord’s method of dealing with it.—

1. St. Mark alone has the significant words, “And Jesus, moved with compassion.” We can see what an appeal there was to the Saviour-heart of Jesus in the case of such a man.

2. He “put forth His hand and touched him, saying, I will, be thou clean.” The act before the word. This was His immediate answer to the leper’s “if.” The doubt in the sufferer’s mind was mainly whether Jesus would have anything to do with outcasts from the church and commonwealth of Israel, and this was His reply. That touch was everything to the lonely outcast. It swept the barrier down that held him aloof from mankind. And this act reflected—how simply, yet grandly—the power as well as the grace of Jesus. He touched the polluted and took no pollution. Then the word; how apt! “I will;” exactly it meets and yet overpasses the leper’s prayer. He honours faith as faith honours Him. But He drives no bargain about its degree or kind. It is simply that He is trusted.—Prof. Laidlaw, D.D.

Cleansing the leper.—The Great Speaker is here the Great Healer.

I. Sorrow turns instinctively to the supernatural.—Leprosy was known among the Jews as “the finger of God.” The removal of leprosy was always considered a Divine act (2Ki_5:7). When Christ sent an answer to John, He bade the disciples tell their master that “the lepers are cleansed,” etc. It is less easy to be an atheist in sorrow than in joy. Men are less courageous at midnight than noonday.

II. Christ is never deaf to sorrow’s cry.—“I will.” Did His “will” ever run counter to the sinner’s welfare? The will of man must concur with the will of God; he who would “find” must “seek.” The great difficulty is to persuade (not logically, but morally) men to have perfect faith in the Divine will, that it is not wise only, but loving. When they feel this they will pray, “Thy will be done,” etc.

III. Christ is superior alike to material contamination and legal restriction.—He could “touch” the leper and yet feel no injury. Others touched, and the touch meant death, but He touched and yet was uncontaminated. This is a type of His relation to sin. The ceremonial law forbade that the leper was to be touched. Christ superior to ceremonial limitations.—J. Parker, D.D.

The leprosy of Scripture.—The best experts now insist on distinguishing the leprosy of Scripture, or of the Hebrews, from the so-called “true leprosy” of mediæval and modern times. This disease is one of the most formidable and hopeless of known maladies, and finds its nearest analogue in scrofula or syphilis. It is irremediable by any known human means. Though not directly contagious, there is always the terrible risk to those who mingle much with the sufferers of at last falling under its power. This was the malady known from an early period of European civilisation for which the lazarettos, or lazar-houses of the middle ages were provided.… On the other hand, every probability, derived from the terms used in Scripture and in ancient medicine, from the very full description of its symptoms in the Old Testament, and from the whole strain of the narratives in which it occurs in the sacred text, goes to show that the leprosy there meant is a totally different malady. It was a skin disease of various and complicated forms, some of which may have had a resemblance to the symptoms of the modern terror. It was of repulsive aspect, indeed, but neither usually fatal nor absolutely irrecoverable. Whether the Hebrew leprosy was always, or ever, contagious is the second point of confusion which ought to be cleared. But here the true solution is not so evident. It involves the allied question, whether the Mosaic rules for its segregation were sanitary only, or were in no respect so, but only symbolic and religious. The truth seems to lie between the two. There is no need for the antithesis. There is fair ground for concluding that this leprosy was not necessarily infectious by contact; but that it was contagious in the wider sense of being communicable by social or family interchange; also that other similar diseases really infectious were not easy to distinguish from it. The Hebrew legislation, therefore, justifies itself at once on sanitary and on ceremonial grounds.—Prof. Laidlaw, D.D.

Leprosy a type of sin.—The use of leprosy as a type for sin is quite legitimate, but the analogy requires to be handled with greater accuracy and point than is usually applied to it. The usage in the Christian pulpit and commentary dates from the Fathers themselves, who no doubt had the proper Hebrew leprosy in view. But most theological or religious teaching on the subject has been coloured by the impression of “the deep-seated, all-pervading, corrupting, and mortal character of mediæval leprosy, rather than from anything said in the Bible.” (Sir Risdon Bennet, M.D.) Yet the figure presented in the Hebrew leprosy is full of significance, full of that peculiar aptness which marks the emblems of Scripture when truthfully interpreted. All diseases, especially those which Jesus healed, have their symbolic side, but Divine legislation itself emphasised the specialities of this one. These were:—

1. Its repulsiveness—We naturally shrink from skin diseases. So, could we see our own sinful nature and life as these appear in the sight of holy beings, above all of the Holiest, we should be appalled at its loathsomeness. Then:—

2. The suggestion of impurity or defilement in leprosy is most patent.—The appropriate and almost invariable word for its removal is “cleansing” in the narratives of our Lord’s cures. It is upon its uncleanness that the emphasis of the Bible representations of leprosy depend. And this leads to the kindred idea of:—

3. Isolation or separation.—An idea burned into the Hebrew mind by the sacred legislation. Here, then, is a sufficiently expressive symbolism. Sin, like leprosy, is hideous in the sight of all pure beings. It covers the soul, as that covers the body, with a universal taint of impurity. It is incurable by any ordinary human appliances. It separates from the camp of God’s Israel because it cuts off from the fellowship of God. The dead in trespasses and sins have no place in the true church of the living God. It is discovered by the law, but it is taken away only by the Son, who was manifest to do that which the law could not do, in that it was weak through the flesh.—Ibid.

Mat_8:4. The Saviour’s injunction.—The charge was twofold:—

1. To keep silence.—The injunction, “See thou say nothing to any man,” was not unusual with Jesus in His healing miracles. The reasons for it might lie partly in the circumstances of the Master Himself. Much noise about the cure hindered His work; and in this case it proved so according to St. Mark’s pointed detail (Mar_1:45). Yet it could not be absolute concealment of the healing that the Lord intended to enjoin in this case, for it was performed in public before a multitude of people (Mat_8:1). Rather, then, the other reason for the commanded silence must be supposed the stronger one here, viz. that which concerned the moral effect upon the subject of the cure. The disposition of the man was evidently such that silence, for a time at least, was a needful discipline.

2. To go to the priest.—This throws the clearest light upon the Saviour’s intention (see Mar_1:43, R. V., and margin). It has all the effect of a paradox. The blessing hand, a moment before stretched out to the unclean, now thrusts him away when he is cleansed. This brings again into full view the precise religious significance of leprosy and its cure. Leprosy was a social and spiritual ban even more than it was a disease. Set free from the disease, this man must at once be also set free from the curse and isolation which his disease entailed. That the Lord held this essential to such cases is proved by the uniformity of His procedure (cf. the narrative of Luke 17). This miracle must have for the Worker its proper attestation, and for the subject its due legal, social, and religious fruits. These could only be attained in the way here so pointedly prescribed, by recourse to those in charge of the sacred legislation. The main design, doubtless, of this immediate despatch to the priest was to complete the benefit for the man himself. He was really not cured in the highest sense till he was socially and spiritually restored to the commonwealth of Israel, and that by obedience to the Divine requirements. So let all our spiritual work and the marvels of God’s grace among us be brought to the test of the Divine precept, to the law and to the testimony. Leprosy was a vivid type of sin in the social death which it entailed. The means appointed for its ceremonial cleansing were emblematic of a restoration which goes to the very root of the spiritual life. To honour these, as Jesus here did, was to set forth a deep truth of His salvation. His pardon, His pronouncement that the soul is clean, carries with it that complete removal of sin’s pollution and power, which the pure and impartial judgment of God’s law must attest (Psa_51:7-8; Psa_51:12).—Ibid.

The Preacher's Complete Homiletical Commentary (gen. ed. Joseph S. Exell; Funk & Wagnalls, c. 1892) — public domain (pre-1929). A full-Bible homiletical/sermon-outline anthology covering 65 of 66 books (2 John is absent from the source module). Text from a community e-Sword module.

B. CHRIST MANIFESTING HIS PROPHETIC OFFICE BY MIRACLES WHICH ATTEST HIS WORD. BUT IN HIS MIRACLES, AS IN HIS TEACHING, HE EXPERIENCES THE CONTRADICTION OF THE PHARISEES, AND IS ULTIMATELY REVILED. TRIUMPH OF CHRIST OVER THE OPPOSITION OF HIS ENEMIES, BY PREPARING TO SEND FORTH HIS TWELVE APOSTLES.—CH. 8, 9

Contents:—The miracles of the Lord, as the evidence of His prophetic office, misunderstood and reviled by the Pharisees and Sadducees. 1. Miracles of the Lord beyond the pale of the ancient theocracy: the leper and the heathen. 2. Miracles of the Lord proceeding from the circle of the new theocracy (the house of Peter): the mother-in-law of Peter, those who were possessed of evil spirits. 3. Miracles during His missionary journey: the disciples, the storm at sea. 4. Miraculous works, despite the opposition of the kingdom of darkness: the Gadarenes, the man afflicted with the palsy. 5. Miraculous works, despite the contradiction of legalism: Matthew Levi the publican, the feast with the publicans, and the twofold offence of the Pharisees and the disciples of John 6. Miraculous works in the face of utter despair and of death: the woman with the issue of blood, and the daughter of Jairus. 7. Miraculous works of Christ as the dawn of His work of redemption, in opposition to the hardening and the reviling of His enemies: the two blind men, and the person possessed with a dumb devil. 8. Royal preparation for the mission of Christ’s disciples, and triumph over those who reviled His prophetic office.

I

The leper, and the heathen, or the centurion of Capernaum. Miraculous works of Christ beyond the pale of the ancient theocracy.

Mat_8:1-13

The Gospel for the 3d Sunday after Epiphany.—Parallels:—The Leper: Mar_1:40-45; Luk_5:12-16 The Centurion of Capernaum: Luk_7:1-10)

1When he was [had] come down from the mountain, great multitudes followed him. 2And, behold, there came a leper and worshipped him, saying, Lord, if thou wilt, thou 3canst make me clean. And Jesus [he]1 put forth his hand, and touched him, saying, I will; be thou clean. And immediately his leprosy was cleansed. 4And Jesus saith unto him, See thou tell no man; but go thy way, shew thyself to the priest, and offer the gift that Moses commanded, for a testimony unto them.

5And when Jesus [he] was [had] entered into Capernaum, there came unto him a centurion, beseeching him, 6And saying, Lord, my servant lieth at home sick of the palsy, grievously tormented. 7And Jesus saith unto him, I will come and heal him. 8The centurion answered and said, Lord, I am not worthy that thou shouldest come under my roof: but speak the word only [only say in a word],2 and my servant shall be healed. 9For I am a man under authority, having soldiers under me: and I say to this man, Go, and he goeth; and to another, Come, and he cometh; and to my servant, Do this, and he doeth it. 10When Jesus heard it, he marvelled, and said to them that followed. Verily I say unto you, I have not found so great faith, no, not in Israel.3 11And I say unto you, That many shall come from the east and west, and shall sit down [recline at table]4 with Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, in the kingdom of heaven: 12But the children of the kingdom shall be cast out into [the] outer darkness: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth. 13And Jesus said unto the centurion, Go thy way; and as thou hast believed, so be it done unto thee. And his servant was healed in the selfsame hour.

EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL

Mat_8:1. When He was come down (cum autem descendisset. Vulg.).—Chronological arrangement of the narrative. We account for the circumstance, that Luke records the healing of the leper (Mat_5:12) before the Sermon on the Mount (Mat_6:20), on the ground that he wished to relate the latter in connection with the mission of the twelve Apostles. Hence, his arrangement is not in strict chronological order. Besides, the introduction of the cure of the leper in Luke breaks up the continuous narrative of the return of Jesus from the Mount of Beatitudes to Capernaum. Matthew expressly states, that the cure of the leper was performed when Christ “had come down” from the mountain. On the other hand, Luke relates, that Christ, on His journey to Capernaum, entered into a city; and that the cure of the leper there was the occasion of His retiring for a time into the wilderness, probably in consideration of the prejudices of the Jews, as the leprous person had, contrary to the injunction of the Saviour, published the fact, that Jesus had touched, and so healed him. After this temporary retirement to the wilderness, Jesus returned to Capernaum.

Mat_8:2. A leper.—(Comp. on the general subject of leprosy Michaelis: Mosaisches Recht, vol. iv. p. 227, Winer sub voce, and Ewald: Jüdische Alterthümer, p. 218.) Leprosy, צָרַעַת, λέπρα, as to its general character, is a disease peculiar to Egypt, Arabia, Palestine, and Syria, although it has penetrated as far cast as Persia and India, and as far west as Italy. A most frightful calamity, resembling in some respects the pestilence; only that the latter sweeps away its victims with great rapidity, while leprosy is slow in its ravages. These two diseases formed, so to speak the centre of all others, such as blindness, palsy, deafness, fevers, bloody flux, etc. Analogous to these physical sufferings were the various kinds of demoniacal possessions.—Causes. Leprosy is caused by bad air, want of cleanliness, bad diet, dyspepsia, infection (especially by cohabitation), or a hereditary taint. It sometimes continues to the fourth generation (2Sa_3:29), but the disease loses in intensity as it descends, and is generally confined in the fourth degree to ugly teeth, offensive breath, and sickly appearance.—Kinds and degrees. Leprosy is a form of skin disease. Four kinds of it were known—elephantiasis (an Egyptian disease, hence, ulcus Ægypti), black leprosy, white leprosy, and red leprosy. Hippocrates classified the different kinds of non-malignant eruptions as ἀλφός, λειχήν, λεύκη, and λεπραί. The first of these is the בֹּחַק of Lev_13:39, which is quite harmless in its character, and disappears, without causing any pain, in a few months or years. We also read, in Lev_13:47, of a leprosy attaching to clothes (probably from small insects); and in Mat_14:34, of one attaching to houses. The symptoms of white leprosy, Barras, also known as lepra Mosaica,—the form of the disease peculiar to the Hebrews,—are sufficiently described in Leviticus 13. When the disease is decided in its character, it is either rapidly cured, or else spreads inward. In the former case, there is a violent eruption, so that the patient is white from head to foot (Lev_13:12; 2Ki_5:27); in the latter case, the disease progresses slowly, and the symptoms are equally distressing and fatal, ending in consumption, dropsy, suffocation, and death. The effects of elephantiasis are even more sad. It chiefly affects the lower part of the body, and the patient may live for twenty years. It stiffens the ankle (making the foot like that of an elephant, hence the name), stupefies the senses, produces melancholy, sleeplessness, terrible dreams (Job_7:14), insatiable voracity, and ends in fever or sudden suffocation.—Legislation on leprosy. The Mosaic law took special notice of leprosy. The priests were commissioned carefully to watch its inroads. The object in view was to protect the healthy portion of the community, to pronounce on the harmless character of any eruption which resembled leprosy, and to readmit into the community those who had been cured. No remedy was known for the disease itself: the leper was declared unclean, and excluded from intercourse with all other persons. He had to wear the prescribed mourning garment, Lev_13:45, but was permitted to associate with other lepers. Their abodes were commonly outside the city walls (Lev_13:46; Num_5:2); but they were allowed to go about freely, providing they avoided contact with other persons; nor were they even excluded from the services of the synagogue (Lightfoot, 862). In this respect we note a great difference between the synagogue and the temple. On recovering from leprosy, several lustrations had to be performed, Leviticus 14 The main points in the prescribed rite were, to appear before the priest, and to offer a sacrifice; the latter being preceded by religious lustrations, and introduced by a symbolical ceremony, in which the two turtles or pigeons bore a striking analogy to the scape-goat and the other goat offered in sacrifice on the day of atonement, Leviticus 16—In general, the ordinances connected with leprosy may be regarded as the type of all other directions in dealing with that which was unclean.—Symbolical significance. Accordingly, leprosy was regarded as the symbol of sin and of judgment (Num_12:10; 2Ki_5:26; 2Ki_15:5; 2Ch_26:20-23); also of inscrutable visitations, Job_2:7. On the other hand, recovery from leprosy was regarded as a symbol of salvation, as in the case of Naaman, 2Ki_5:2; comp. Psa_51:9, with Lev_6:7. The uncleanness, the gradual destruction of the system, the disgusting appearance, and the unexpected recovery by a full outbreak of the eruption,—and, again, the slow but sure progress of the disease, the isolation of those who were affected by it from the society of the clean, the infectious nature of the trouble, its long duration and hopelessness,—presented a variety of views under which sin and guilt with its consequences and effects, even upon innocent individuals, might be symbolized.

Mat_8:2. And worshipped Him—fell down before Him (on his face). “As in Mat_2:2; Mat_15:25, a sign of profound reverence. The leper regarded Jesus at least as a great prophet, though it is difficult accurately to define the measure of knowledge possessed by such believers (comp. Mat_8:8-10). Hence the import of this worship, and of the designation, ‘Lord,’ differed under various circumstances. Some regarded even the promised Messiah as a mere man (?), while others were fully aware of His Divine character.” Gerlach.

Mat_8:3. His leprosy was cleansed, ἐκαθαρίσθη.—By his being brought into contact with Him who was absolute purity.

Mat_8:4. Tell no man: Mar_1:44; Luk_5:14; comp. Mat_9:30; Mat_12:16; Mar_3:12; Mar_5:43; Mar_7:36; Mar_8:26-30; Mat_16:20; Mat_17:9.—The injunction of silence upon the persons cured arose, in all instances, from the same general motives. It was primarily dictated by a regard for the spiritual and physical welfare of such persons. Besides, to prevent popular excitement, and not to endanger the ministry of Christ, it was better to keep silence on these matters. But, in each special case, there was also a particular motive. Maldonatus, Grotius, Bengel, and others, suppose that, in the present instance, it was enjoined in order that no prejudice might be raised in the mind of the officiating priest against this recovery. Fritzsche and Baumgarten-Crusius hold that it indicated that the first duty of the leper was to show himself to the priest, before proclaiming abroad the miracle. Olshausen: Jesus issued this injunction mainly to persons who were in danger of being carried away; while in other cases, especially where the individual was by nature retiring and prone to self-contemplation, He commanded an opposite course, Mar_5:19. But the principal motive, as mentioned by Meyer (following Chrysostom), was, that Jesus wished to prevent a concourse of the people, and enthusiastic outbursts on their part. This, however, is not incompatible with any of the other motives; as, in the present instance, the person cured had to undertake a journey to the temple at Jerusalem (Fritzsche, Baumgarten-Crusius, Meyer). According to Maimonides, a person restored from leprosy had, in the first instance, to submit himself to the inspection of the priest of his district. He then underwent a second inspection after the lapse of seven days, after which he performed the customary lustration; and then journeyed to Jerusalem, where he offered the prescribed sacrifice, and was pronounced clean.

Mat_8:4. Show thyself to the priest.—Comp. the ordinances of purification in Leviticus 14.

For a testimony unto them.—Meyer: i.e., “unto the people, that thou art healed.” But we must not overlook the fact, that the leper had been declared unclean by the priests who were now to certify to his restoration, and that his showing himself was the evidence of this. The remark, “for a testimony that I do not destroy the law” (Chrysostom), is inapt; as also the view of Olshausen, that the testimony here referred to was that of the priests.

Mat_8:5. Ἑκατόνταρχος, centurio, a captain over 100, in the service of Herod Antipas.—According to Mat_8:10, a Gentile, although in all probability a proselyte of the gate. Comp. the intercession of the ruler of the synagogue on his behalf, in the Gospel according to Luke.—Proselytes, גֵּרִים, προσήλυτοι, Sept. 1Ch_22:2; Mat_23:15; Act_2:10;—those Gentiles who adopted Judaism in a more or less restricted sense (Suidas: ἐξ ἐθνῶν προσεληλυθότες). According to the Gemara and the Rabbins, we distinguish,—I. Proselytes of the gate, גֵּרֵי הַשּׁעַר; i.e., strangers who lived within the gates of Israel, had adopted the religion of the patriarchs, and conformed to what were called the seven Noachic commandments, which prohibited, (a) blasphemy; (b) the worship of the heavenly bodies, or idolatry; (c) murder; (d) incest; (e) robbery; (f) rebellion; (g) eating of blood and of things strangled (Act_15:20). They were also called οἱ σεβὀμενοι (τὸν Θεόν), Joseph. Antiq. Mat_14:7; Mat_14:2; Act_13:43; Act_13:50; Act_16:14; Act_17:4, etc.—Instances: Cornelius, Lydia, the Ethiopian eunuch, etc. II. Proselytes of righteousness, גֵּרֵי הַצֶּדֶק, who had submitted to circumcision, and thus become naturalized Jews. The distinction between these two classes was kept up at the time of Christ; when, indeed, the number of proselytes of the gate had greatly increased.—The two parallel cases of the centurion at the cross (Mat_27:54) and of Cornelius (Acts 10), will at once occur to the reader.

Mat_8:6. My servant, ὁπαῖςμου.—The slave, or domestic servant, as distinguished from the common soldier, who was only officially subject to him; but not a son (Strauss, Baumgarten-Crusius). From the more detailed narrative in Luke, we learn that he was held in special esteem by his master; which, indeed, may be gathered from this passage also. The servant is distinguished from the soldiers. The latter come and go as it were mechanically, according to the word of command; while the servant doeth as he is told—his master can intrust to his care the business in hand. Evidently the centurion had only this one servant ( Mat_8:9).

Sick of the palsy, παραλυτικός.5—There is a manifest analogy between the sick of the palsy and the demoniacs. The latter were deprived of their consciousness, or of the organ of the soul; while the paralytics were deprived of the use of their bodily organs. Those afflicted with epilepsy formed a kind of intermediate link between these two ailments, being occasionally deprived of the use both of their mental and bodily capacities, and, at other times, of either the one or the other. The παραλυτικοί are as it were physically dissolved (παραλελυμένοι), and prostrated on beds (Mat_9:2; Mar_3:3, etc.). Luther translates gichtbrüchig, which signifies only a particular kind of the general disease of paralysis. “Modern physicians apply the term paralysis to the loss of voluntary motion, or of sensation in some part of the body, the muscles being entirely relaxed. This constitutes the difference between paralysis and catalepsis and the various kinds of tetanus, in which the muscles are excited and rigid. In paralysis, the circulation of the blood, animal heat, and the ordinary secretions continue. The disease frequently comes on suddenly (after a stroke of apoplexy), at other times slowly and insensibly, but in every instance is difficult to remove.” Winer.

Mat_8:9. For I am a man ὑπὸἐξουσίαν.— in service.—Meyer: “He adduces a twofold analogy: the obedience which he is bound to give, and that which he claims from his subordinates.” But the former cannot have been meant, as it would imply that Christ was also a subordinate in spiritual matters. The conclusion is, however, not simply a minori ad majus, in the sense that Christ ruled in spiritual, as the centurion in temporal matters; but also in this sense, that if he, a subordinate, could issue his commands, much more could Christ, the absolute Lord. Various opinions are entertained about the meaning which the centurion attached to the supremacy of Christ. Fritzsche understands it as applying to His sovereignty over the demons as the supposed authors of diseases; Wetstein, Olshausen, and Ewald, over angels; Baumgarten-Crusius, over ministering spirits; Meyer, over diseases, as subject to Christ. But the centurion must have referred to sway over subordinate personages, and not merely over diseases; nor could it here refer to demons, as his servant was not possessed by them. On the other hand, we can readily conceive how a Roman, who was just passing from heathenism to Judaism, would easily confound his Roman notions about genii with the idea of angels. Bengel: “sapientia fidelis ex ruditate militari pulchre elucens.” What gives such charm to the illustration is, that the centurion ever again recurs to his poor faithful servant. Some familiar servant of the Lord Jesus, he thinks, would suffice to restore his poor slave.—There was no need, he meant to say, for His personal attendance, since even he was not required always personally to superintend the execution of his orders. “Humility and faith always go hand in hand.” Meyer.

Mat_8:11. From the east and west.—Referring not only to Gentiles, but to the more distant of them, without distinction of nationality, Isa_45:6.—And shall sit down, or rather recline at table, according to Oriental fashion.—In the minds of the prophets, a symbolical meaning attached to this feast of Messiah, as portraying the blessedness enjoyed in the kingdom of heaven (Isa_25:6). In this sense Jesus here employs the simile, which He afterward expands, as in Luk_14:7; Mat_22:1; Mat_26:29. No doubt those around Him would understand the term in this manner. Meyer remarks: “According to Jewish notions, splendid banquets with the patriarchs formed part of the happiness enjoyed in Messiah’s kingdom. See Berthold, Christologie, p. 196, and Schöttgen, Hor. ad loc. The expression is employed in a figurative sense by the Lord (although His Jewish hearers would probably understand it literally).” This last clause is somewhat doubtful, as it would scarcely reflect favorably upon the wisdom of Christ. Meyer very properly calls attention to the contrast between this promise of Jesus and the pride of the Jews, as expressed in the following rabbinical saying: “In mundo futuro (dixit Deus) mensam ingentem vobis sternam, quod Gentiles videbunt et pudefient.” Schöttgen, Hor.

Mat_8:12. But the children of the kingdom.—The Jews were children of the typical kingdom, or of the theocracy, and might cherish the expectation of becoming sons of the real kingdom—that of heaven (Rom_9:5; Rom_11:16). The expression, kingdom, must here be taken generally, as embracing both economies—the promise and the possession. The term υἱός, ‍‍בֵּן, indicates relationship either in a physical or moral sense. In the present instance, it refers to the heirs which belong to the kingdom, as well as to those to whom the kingdom belongs.

Outer darkness, τὸσκό τος τὸ ἐξώτερον.—The banqueting hall is lit up, the feast is served in the evening, and outside is utter darkness. So Judas went from the supper of the Lord into the dark night, Joh_13:30. The expression is here used in a comparative sense. They are cast out into deeper, nay, into uttermost darkness. Just as the feast refers to salvation and bliss at the coming of the Lord, so this picture of night, to the darkness and the horrors of judgment. Hence the description of their sufferings, ὁκλαυθμός. “The article [which is omitted in the English C. V.] indicates that it is the well-known wretchedness experienced in hell; comp. Mat_13:42; Mat_13:50; Mat_22:13; Mat_24:51; Mat_25:30; Luk_13:28.”

Mat_8:13. In the self-same hour.—Emphatically—as soon as Jesus had spoken the word: comp. Joh_4:46. In this case, as in John 4, and in the cure of the daughter of the Syrophœnician woman, the miracle was performed by the Lord at a distance from the subject of it. Several critics (Semler, Seiffarth, Strauss, Weisse, Gfrörer, Baumgarten-Crusius, Baur) have confounded the history of the centurion of Capernaum with that of the royal courtier there (Joh_4:46). But this were completely to mistake the different characters of these two persons, and their marked moral peculiarities, as brought out in the Gospels. The courtier was weak in the faith, while the centurion was strong; the courtier deemed the presence of Christ absolutely necessary, and urged Him to come down to his house, while the centurion regarded the word of command sufficient. Hence the difference of treatment on the part of the Lord. (Comp. Lange’s Leben Jesu, ii. 2, p. 645.)

DOCTRINAL AND ETHICAL

1. The miracle.—The Lord confirmed and sealed His ministry and prophetic office by miracles. The miracle of His person is revealed in His miraculous works. It is evident that the Evangelist here groups together various miracles of the Lord, in order thereby to exhibit Him as the Wonder-worker.

On the conception of miracles consult the works on the Evidences of Christianity, and the Systems of Biblical and Systematic Theology; my Life of Jesus, ii. 1, 258; my Philos. Dogmatics, 467; Jul. Müller’s dissertation: De miraculorum Jesu Christi natura, i., Marburg, 1839; ii., Halle, 1841; and other works quoted by Meyer, p. 176.6

In the most general sense of the term, every manifestation of God is a miracle; and He does wonders, because He is wonderful. As the self-existent One, all His works are miraculous, whether in creation or in providence: i.e., He manifests Himself as the Almighty Creator, both in calling forth and forming that which is not, and in destroying, or rather transforming, that which is. His wondrous deeds are described in Psa_33:9 (Psa_148:5; Psa_115:3);—“He speaks, and it is done; He commands, and it stands fast;” and again, in Rom_4:17 : “Who quickeneth the dead, and calleth those things that be not as though they were.”—All creation is a wonder, Psa_136:4; Isa_40:26. All His administration is wonderful, Psa_89:6; Job_5:9, etc. His judgments for the deliverance of His people are wonders, Exo_15:6; Psa_77:15; Psa_9:2. So are His leadings of Israel, Psa_105:2 sqq. Such also is His advent as Saviour, Psalms 98—We have already adverted to the second or inner circle of wonders, within the first, or more general. In the ordinary course of nature and of history, God performs special miracles, for the purpose of restoring, of judging, and of delivering, Exo_34:10; Psa_105:5; Isa_25:1; Dan_6:27; Act_2:19. But these new miracles are intimately connected with His general marvellous dealings. As the Almighty and the Creator, He performs the more general miracles of His power. But His special miracles are the manifestation of those new and higher principles which break through and overstep the sphere of common life, and introduce a new and higher order of things, or, in other words, the kingdom of God. These higher miracles appear alongside of His word. Hence we distinguish in this respect between miracles of the word (predictions, prophecies) and miracles of deed (Isa_44:7; comp. Mat_8:26, etc.). The miracles of deed confirm those of the word, and distinguish them from the delusive predictions of false prophets. Similarly, however, the miracles of the word confirm those of deed, and distinguish them from the tokens of magicians.—Under the New Covenant, the distinction between miracles of word and deed merges in the person of Christ. He is the Wonderful (Isa_9:6),—the personal, the highest, the absolute Wonder,—because He is the absolute Principle of all Life manifested, the Word itself in outward deed, or God incarnate. As the absolute Wonder, and the Principle of that new and spiritual era which is destined to subdue and transform every relationship of the past, He cannot but perform miracles,—nay, all His doings are miraculous. Himself the new Creation, He performs the highest of all miracles—the wonders of regeneration. These were introduced and attested by the miraculous cures, in which He restored the mental and physical constitution, depressed through sin below the ordinary healthy level, by those almighty interpositions on His part, which we designate miracles in the special sense.

In general, a miracle is that almighty and creative action of God, in which He manifests Himself as the eternal, self-existent, and wonderful One. Creation is the miracle of deed, which is interpreted by the word.

But within this general sphere, the miracles of the kingdom of God were, so to speak, announced and prepared by the special miraculous cycles in the ordinary course of nature, in which the symbolical miracle of nature appears. Here each stage of nature prepares for a higher; which in turn may be regarded as above nature, as contrary to nature, and yet as only higher nature, since it introduces a new and higher principle of life, into the existent and nature order of things.7 It is not the law of nature which causes the principle of nature, but the principle of nature which lies at the basis of the law of nature. Each lower stage prepares for a new, in which a higher principle of life appears. This higher sphere may always be regarded as supernatural, because it goes beyond the former stage, and even as in a sense contrary to nature, because the former stage becomes, so to speak, the pabulum for this new and higher life; while in reality it is only a higher manifestation of nature which unfolds in accordance with the principles of development peculiar to itself.

Thus the chemical principle appeared as a miracle in the elementary world, as introducing a new and higher life; similarly, the principle of crystallization is a miracle with reference to the lower principle of chemical affinity; the plant, a miracle above the crystal; the animal, a miracle in reference to the plant; and man, over all the animal world. Lastly, Christ, as the second man, the God-Man, is a miracle above all the world of the first man, who is of the earth, earthy (1 Corinthians 15).

The Lord Jesus would have been an absolute miracle even in the world before the fall of Adam; much more since, instead of ascending to spirituality, man has through sin become the slave of the flesh, and thus degraded nature below its proper level. Hence Christ is not only a higher and a transforming principle in the sphere of our natural world; but, appearing among sin-laden men, He is also the Judge, the Redeemer, and the Saviour.

The New Testament miracle, then, is that working of Christ by word and deed which springs from the new principle of absolute life and salvation, and manifests itself in judgment and deliverance, in redemption and transformation.

But, as the advent of the first man was prepared and predicted by those symbolical miracles of the various stages of nature that gradually ascended toward man as their climax, so was the miraculous advent of the second man from heaven—of Christ, the Redeemer and Transformer of the world—prepared and predicted by the miracles of the Old Testament, which took place within that sphere of human life and nature, which sin had darkened. These were essentially miracles of the coming regeneration, or of the advent of the God-Man.

In the symbolical sphere of nature, the miracle appears, in the first instance, as a symbolical deed on the part of God, which only to the mind of him who is enlightened by the Spirit of God becomes transformed into a miraculous word. It is otherwise within the sphere of the ancient theocracy. Here the wondrous deed of God, and the human, but inspired word of prophecy, which in its symbolic import evokes the wondrous deed, go hand in hand (we might almost say, in a harmonica prœstabilita). Lastly, within the sphere of Christianity, the miracle, as deed, flows from the theanthropic word of the incarnate Word. In general, spiritual regeneration is always the first, and is afterward followed by miraculous cure, or transformation of nature, though in individual cases that order may seem partly reversed.

We may sketch, in the following table, the miracle in its development and varied manifestations (general expression for miracles: θαύματα, θαυμάσια, παράδοξα, miracula; נִפְלָאוֹת ,מִפְלָאוֹת , פֶלֶא).

(1) σημεῖον, τεκμήριον. signum.(2) δύναμις. virtus, potenter factum.(3) τέρας. ostentum, portentum.(4) ἔργον. factum, opus.מוֹפֵת ,אוֹת ,נֵם.גְּבוּרוֹת ,גְּבוּרָה.מוֹרָא.מִפְלָאָה, etc.Prepared sign of the approaching new principle in the kingdom of God.Supernatural effect of this principle on its appearance.Contra-natural effect of it, as compared with the former stage, especially in the fallen condition.Higher, or rather highest naturalness. Manifestation of the new, heavenly, and spiritual nature.Definition of Augustine:Thomas Aquinas:The 17th cent.; Quenstedt:Nitzsch:Portentum non fit contra naturam, sed contra quam est nota natura. (De civitate Dei, xxi. 8.)Miraculum, quod fit prœter ordinem totius naturæ creaiœ. (Summa i. quæst. 110, art. 4.)Miracula, quæ contra vim rebus naturalibus a deo inditam cursumque naturalem efficiuntur. (Syst. Theol. p. 471.)Miracles are part of a higher order of things, which, however, is also nature. (System der Christl. Lehre, p. 85.)(Prevailing view in the Gospel by Matthew.)(Prevailing view in the Gospel by Luke.)(Prevailing view in the Gospel by Mark.)(Prevailing view in the Gospel by John.)As the principle of all principles, Christ is the absolute law of all laws of nature and life. Hence, (1) There was preparation for Him. As all nature tended toward, and was a prediction of, man, so all humanity tended toward Christ and is fulfilled and perfected by Him. (2) He was supernatural in reference to the old world and to man’s ordinary nature—the new spiritual man from heaven. (3) He was contra-natural: old Adam must die, and the old world perish. But this old natural life becomes in turn the substratum and the element for a new spiritual life. (4) He is natural in the highest sense. For in Him is all nature realized, redeemed, and admitted to share in the glorious liberty of the children of God.—We notice the same features in His miracles. (1) There is the preparation of faith on the part of those who receive, or else by the affection of those who intercede for others; occasionally, also, believing anticipation, as in the demoniacs; or a waiting for the Lord, as in the case of those raised from the dead; while no miracles are performed among unbelievers, Mat_13:58. (2) They are supernatural—the manifestation of the almighty and saving power of the God-Man. (3) In a sense contra-natural, as putting an end to the existing state; as, for example, in the history of the Gadarenes, in the doom of the barren fig-tree, etc. (4) Natural in the highest sense (gradualness of the cure of the blind man at Bethsaida, use of natural means): presentation, in an outward fact, of the revival of inner life.

The series of Old Testament miracles opened, in the history of Abraham, by the miracle of word and of initial fulfilment (the wonderful birth of Isaac), long before the ordinary miracles of deed commenced with the life of Moses. The latter were in the first place symbolical miracles; they next became miracles of judgment and deliverance, and grew into miracles and healing, until, in the predictions of the prophets, they pointed forward to the period of transformation.

All these elements appear fully defined and perfected in the life of the Lord.

A. Miracles of the word and of fulfilment.B. Miracles of deed.(1) Miraculous birth of Christ to a spiritual human life in the world. He is of the Holy Ghost.(1) The miraculous birth of Christ is the regeneration of humanity. Hence it is the power of regenerating, of awakening the dead, and restoring the sick. Jesus walking on the sea. Power of the spirit over nature.2) Christ miraculously attains to full consciousness of His calling as the Redeemer at His baptism in Jordan, and is glorified from above. He has the Holy Spirit as a spiritual power.(2) Glimpse into heaven. Into the hearts (Nathanael); into the depths (the tribute penny, the draught of fishes); into the future (the colt). Miracles of judgment and deliverance. Deliverances in the sphere of mind and of nature. Conversions, casting out of evil spirits. Symbolical miracles of nature, both in judgment and deliverance. (“Parallel miracles.”) The calming of the storm.(3) Transfiguration of the Lord on the Mount. He reveals the Holy Ghost, and shines in the light of the Spirit.(3) Miracles of transfiguration. The disciples sharing the heavenly rapture. The marriage at Cana. The miraculous feeding of the multitude. Bread and wine in the kingdom of heaven.(4) The resurrection of the Lord. Transition to the second and heavenly life of man. Christ is glorified and reigns in the Holy Ghost.(4) Christ raising the dead. New spiritual life. The maid on her death-bed. The young man in the coffin. Lazarus in the grave. Movement in the world of spirits at His resurrection. (Matthew.)(5) Ascent of Christ into heaven: Christ rules far and near.(5) Miraculous cures at a distance.(6) The outpouring of the Holy Ghost upon His disciples: He sends the Holy Ghost.(6) Anointing of His people; of believing humanity. Speaking with new tongues. Spread of His wondrous power in the life of Christianity.(7) Return of Christ to judgment.(7) The withered fig-tree. The Apostles sent into all the world.Lastly, we remark, that Christianity itself shares these characteristics of the miraculous life and working of the Lord. For, 1. Being the religion of history, the fulfilment of the Old Testament and of all history, there has been due preparation for it in the course of history. 2. It is supernatural; being directly from heaven, and entirely new. 3. It is contra-natural; dooming sin and the world to death in its progress, and making use of natural life only as the element of a higher life. 4. Yet this miracle is only the highest naturalness; being the religion of true spiritual life, which leads to the transformation of the world. On the other hand, all the effects of Christianity may be arranged into miracles of formation (regeneration), and miracles of deed (the healing of the cosmos), until the goal shall be reached in the transformation of the world.

In the Sermon on the Mount, the Lord had displayed the full riches of spiritual life. He preached as one who had authority, and not as the scribes. This became evident immediately on His descent from the high pulpit, by the miracles which He performed. In the mind of the Evangelists, these miracles, however different, are connected, and form a higher unity, although their historical succession is never overlooked. But the cure of Peter’s mother-in-law, and of the great multitude of sick persons, especially demoniacs, belongs to a former period, as has already been stated. All the other miracles were performed at the time of Christ’s second stay in Capernaum. The interrupted journey to Gadara is their centre.

But just as the utterances on the Mount were Divine deeds, so these deeds by which the Great Prophet confirms His word are also oracles of God,—i.e., Divine deeds which serve as symbols of the infinite truth and grace, and of the power of the Gospel to save.

It is significant that the miraculous cures of Jesus began with that of leprosy. This cure marks the new era in life, as the Sermon on the Mount marked that in doctrine. According to the Old Testament, he who touched a leper became unclean. Jesus touches the leper, and not only remains clean Himself, but by His touch cleanses the leper.—Still more remarkable is the second miracle. It consists in help given to a Gentile, and that on the strength of a faith which is declared to surpass that of the Jews. If in the former case the cure was effected by touch, it now takes place at a distance; thus, symbolizing that the influence of the blessed Saviour extended not only to those who were near, but also to the Gentiles at a distance.—Next, we have the miraculous cure of Peter’s mother-in-law—in contradistinction to the low estimate of woman in the old world. He takes her by the hand, and, being restored, she serves Him.—Jesus has now to cope with the whole weight of demoniacal suffering in and around Capernaum; but He proves equal to the load, and removes it.—Here we reach the period of His journey to Gadara, during which the Lord, by a different mode of treatment, restored two of His professing disciples from their spiritual disease—enthusiasm in the one case, and slowness of faith in the other.—The Lord next appeases the storm at sea, and, with it, the storm of anxiety in the souls of His disciples;—on the eastern shore, in the land of the Gadarenes, He performs the cure of two demoniacs who had been the terror of the whole district. But this miracle diffused greater terror among the Gadarenes than the demoniacs had ever done. The banishment of Jesus from that territory, consequent on this cure, may be regarded as the first formal rejection of the Lord. Orthodox Israel expelled Jesus for the sake of a herd of swine. No better fate awaits Him on the western shore of the lake. The healing of one afflicted with the palsy, whose faith had overcome all obstacles intervening between Christ and him, served as the occasion of stirring up the enmity of the scribes, who denounced as blasphemy His forgiving of sin. Among these miracles, Matthew introduces his own calling. A wonder of grace this, not less than the others, that a publican, one excommunicated, should be called to the apostleship. If the Pharisees found fault because He ate with the publicans and sinners, the disciples of John objected on the ground that His disciples fasted not, as they and the Pharisees did. The former cavil the Lord rebutted by reminding the Pharisees of the contrast between sacrifice and mercy; the latter, by pointing out that between the marriage and fasting, the new wine and the old bottles. Then for the first time the Lord raised the dead, restoring the daughter of Jairus from the death-bed to life; the cure of the woman afflicted with an issue of blood being introduced by the way. Next, two blind men recovered their sight, on the distinct profession of their faith that Jesus was the Messiah (the Son of David).—We regard it as a further progress in these miracles when He heals the dumb demoniac; and by the word of His power at the same time reveals and removes the cause of his affliction. After all these miracles, the Pharisees begin to revile Him, and to say, that “He cast out devils by the prince of the devils.” These were the very worst devils with whom Christ had to contend. The blind receive their sight, but they who see become blind; the possessed recover, but those who administered healing in Israel are cast into the kingdom of Satan. Christ now passes victoriously from His prophetic to His royal administration, which commences with the mission of His Apostles.

2. We have already pointed out how significantly the series of miracles in Matthew opens with the recovery of a leper. Another point deserves, notice. The Old Testament provided no remedy for the leper, nor was he tolerated in the congregation. His disease was treated like sin; he was banished from the camp; and whosoever touched him, shared for a time that banishment. Levitical impurities, such as touching the dead, ceased after a certain period had elapsed; but the leper was excluded for an indefinite time—perhaps for ever. Their only hope of restoration to the Church lay in their recovery. Meantime the leper was left to the mercy of God. In this respect the arrangements of the synagogue were, as we have shown, less strict than those of the temple. In the Old Church, to touch an unclean person, rendered unclean; Christ, the Founder of the New Church, cleansed the leper by touching him. There is a formal disannulling of the old arrangement in this stretching forth of the hand and touching the leper, and in the words.—“I will, be thou clean!” And yet the two institutions agree in spirit, for it is the object of both to exhibit the Church pure and unspotted. But what the Old Covenant could not bestow, the Lord vouchsafed. The Old Covenant could only distinguish, but not separate, between sin and misery. This the Lord accomplished. From the moment He touched the leper with His finger, suffering became hallowed, and the Lord entered into full fellowship with it. From that moment until His death on the cross, Christ remained in continuous fellowship with the suffering of the world. True, it seems as if His contact with the leper had not led to any immediate suffering; but from the narrative in Luke we gather that such was the case. The leper related what Jesus had done for him, and traditionalism may have pronounced the Lord unclean. On this account He retired for a time into the wilderness, thence to issue to fresh manifestations of His miraculous power. If the first miracle presented a striking contrast to the old order of things, the second was still more remarkable as being performed on the heathen slave of a heathen household. True, the attachment of the centurion to the synagogue formed a kind of intermediate link of connection; but Matthew passes over this circumstance as apparently secondary, in view of the grand motive influencing the Lord—the faith of the centurion. Viewed in their combination, the two miracles show that infinite mercy reaches to the lowest depths of misery, and extends to the utmost bounds of the earth—its only conditions being personal need and believing trust.

3. The acknowledgment of proselytes of the gate may be regarded as a victory of the genuine theocratic spirit over Pharisaism, which at an earlier period had been typified in the construction of a “court of the Gentiles” in the second temple. It was not a new arrangement, but a recurrence to the faith and practice of the patriarchs, in room of the rigor of legalism. The synagogue and the court of the Gentiles were the gates by which the heathen might enter the Jewish Church; the proselytes of the gate formed the intermediate link between heathenism and the theocracy. Thus the way was opened for the Gospel. As instances of the religious movement among soldiers at that time, we mention not merely the three centurions in the Gospels and the Book of Acts, but also the soldiers who resorted to John the Baptist, Luk_3:14.

4. The judgment of outer darkness referred to the severest dispensations upon earth, and in Hades; although there is some difference between it and the final judgment of hell-fire, Matthew 25.

HOMILETICAL AND PRACTICAL

The miracles of the Lord, as confirming His prophetical word.—Christ the Great Prophet in word and deed.—The words of the Lord effectual as Divine deeds; and the deeds of the Lord also a word from heaven.—The miracles of Jesus in their blessed import: 1. As witnessing to His Gospel; 2. as works of love; 3. as seals of His power; 4. as manifestations of the liberty of the New Covenant; 5. as rays of His Divine glory.—The word of the Lord inspiring poor fallen man with fresh courage: 1. Even the leper may now hope for deliverance; 2. he presses forward among the people; 3. he casts himself at the feet of the Lord, as if he entered into the most holy place; 4. his prayer implies the conviction that there was help even for him.—The healing of the leper a sign of hope to the world: 1. The Lord can restore even where a case seems desperate; 2. He is willing to do it; 3. He does it by entering into fellowship with the sufferings of the world; 4. by His suffering He takes away ours; 5. He separates between sin and its counterpart, misery; thus taking away the strength of sin.—The Lord is able also to heal the leprosy of the inner man.—The power of death conquered by that of life.—The purity of love removing the impurity of misery.—The Lord of glory in contact with the infectious diseases of the world.—The glory of the Lord, as appearing in His mode of granting deliverance: 1. He quickly hears; 2. He briefly speaks: “I will!” 3. He sovereignly stretches forth His hand.—“Tell no man, but show thyself to the priest.” True reticence and proper publicity of our recovery.—“Show thyself to the priest:” or, how the Lord honors the Old Dispensation at the very moment when He founds the New.—Faith, whether obtrusive in its entreaties, or retiring in its complaints and prayer, is always the same in its nature.—The centurion of Capernaum a model of believing confidence: 1. In his earnest entreaty; 2. in his cordial affection; 3. in his unfeigned humility; 4. in the peculiar shape in which his profession of Christ appeared.—Faith always goes hand in hand with compassion.—Faith with its power of intercession.—Humility the crown of faith: 1. It springs from faith; 2. it rests upon faith, purifying and quickening it; 3. it manifests itself in the surrender of every claim, and in firm confidence while praying.—The distinguishing excellences of the centurion’s faith: 1. Humility, by which his military rank in the world gave place to conscious poverty before the Lord; 2. trustfulness,—his outward circumstances and position serving as a testimony to the glory of the Lord.—The pious household.—The faith of the centurion and that in Israel.—The faith of the centurion foreshadowing the bringing in of the Gentiles.—The guests of the kingdom of heaven, gathered from the four corners of the earth, and the children of the kingdom.—The great transformation of near and far in the kingdom of God: 1. In the course of history: a. at the time of Christ; b. at the time of the migration of nations; c. at the time of the Reformation. 2. Its inner lesson: a. the penitent sinner, who relinquishes every claim, hears the call of mercy afar off; b. the least appearance of self-righteousness obstructs our view of the light of salvation, however near.—The banqueting room lit up, and outer darkness.—To be cast into outer darkness implies,—1. the darkness of final judgment, in opposition to the glory and beauty of the kingdom of God; 2. the society of the spirits of darkness, in opposition to that of the patriarchs; 3. sorrow and shame, in opposition to eternal blessedness.—The three heathen centurions compared with the wise men from the East.—“I will come and heal him.”—Jesus is willing to come and heal the Gentiles.—Jesus is able to bless the Gentiles, even at a distance.—“In the self-same hour;” or, the Lord sends help at the right moment.—The hour of grace.—Loving zeal a characteristic of the kingdom of heaven: 1. The servant obeying his master from attachment and devotedness; or, Christianity in the domestic circle and in civil society. 2. The centurion serving his subordinate from esteem and compassion; or, Christian philanthropy. 3. Christ serving both; or, the kingdom of grace.

Starke:—Quesnel: Ministers must ofttimes condescend to those who are in misery, visit them in their sorrow, and point them for relief to the word of God, Act_8:30.—A blessing ever attaches to our following Jesus, Mat_19:27; Luk_8:43.—Majus: If we have tasted Christ, the Bread of life, we shall always hunger after it, and follow Him, Mat_5:6; Isa_55:1.—Zeisius: Outward leprosy a type of original sin, or of spiritual leprosy, Psa_51:7; Isa_1:6.—Bodily affliction often the occasion of leading us to Christ. O blessed sorrow! 1Pe_4:1; Jer_30:11.—The whole world a vast sick-ward.—A Christian must not insist on anything in prayer, Mat_26:39.—Zeisius: The surest and most effectual means in all our sorrows, is recourse to prayer, Dan_9:3-4; Mat_15:25.—Quesnel: Let us not despise even the greatest sinners, nor avoid meeting them, provided we beware of infection, Gal_6:1; Jam_5:19-20.—Bibl. Tub.: Jesus can and will deliver us in our most grievous afflictions, and where all human means were in vain, Psa_6:9-10.—Majus: The word of Christ is an effectual remedy for curing spiritual leprosy, Joh_15:3.—The most acceptable sacrifice on the part of those who have been restored, is new obedience, Joh_5:14; Isa_38:15.—We are bound publicly to acknowledge the goodness of God, Rom_5:11; Ps. xxvi.—The centurion, a soldier, a heathen, and a superior, cares for his subordinates, and rays for his servant, is humble, and believes in Christ. Go thou and do likewise. Rom_15:4; 1Co_10:11; Bibl. Tub.—Let us not despair of the conversion of any man, in any condition of life.—What too frequently military men are not, and what they should be.—Osiander: A genuine Christian will plead with Jesus not only for his own wants, but also for those of his neighbor.—The cross is sent even to pious families, and sometimes to the best members of them.—“The Lord is near to all that call upon Him,” Psa_145:18-19; Psa_6:10.—Lord Jesus, speak the word only!—We admire riches, beauty, power, or art; but Christ admires faith.—All men have not faith, 2Th_3:2.—Osiander: Ofttimes we find more faith with soldiers and worldly persons than in many who pretend to be saints.—Luther: Faith is not confined to time, place, or condition. God has had a people at a time when it was little thought, in places where we should not have expected to find them, and among persons whom we should not have imagined to be His.—Majus: Believers under the Old and New Testaments have all the same doctrine, the same faith, the same kingdom, and the same glory, Heb_13:8; Act_15:11.—The rejection of the Jews caused by their unbelief, Rom_11:20; Isa_53:1; Isa_6:9; Deu_9:23.—Lo, the children who trust in external service, in the temple, and in the possession of gifts, are condemned; while strangers who are sincere in the faith are received: Isa_2:4, etc.—The more light and grace we have rejected, the greater will be the condemnation and darkness awarded us.—Blessedness of intercession, Jam_5:18; 2Ki_19:34; Jer_29:7.—The stronger our faith, the less will God refuse us, especially in spiritual requests.—True faith the source of all other gifts. Quesnel.

Gerlach:—Luther (Randglosse): Faith does not know, it trusts in the mercy of God. Faith ever says, If Thou wilt; not, if Thou canst.—Weeping and gnashing of teeth: the former perhaps the expression of softer, the latter of bolder, characters.

Heubner:—Jesus can and will deliver.—Jesus is willing to come under our roof, although we be unworthy of it.—The kingdom of heaven the meeting-place of the children of God from among all nations and from all climes.—The power of a living faith in Christ: 1. Its character. Faith cleanses from sin, makes holy, and induces us to procure help for others by leading them to Christ. 2. Inferences: Beware of unbelief, but strive after true faith.—All men are equal before the Lord Jesus.

Footnotes:

[1] Mat_8:3.—Ἰησοῦς in wanting in Codd. B., C. [Cod. Sinait.], etc.

[2] Mat_8:8.—Λόγῳ (dat.) with one word, or in a ward, sustained by Codd. B., C. [Cod. Sinait.] and other weighty testimonies, instead of the λόγον (accus.), the word, of the text. receptus.

[3] Mat_8:10.—“With no one in Israel.” Cod. B. and others.

[4] Mat_8:11.—[’Ανακλιθήσονται, expressing the well known ancient custom of reclining on conches at meals and banknotes. This explains, how St. John could lean on Jesus’ bosom at the holy supper, Joh_13:23.—P. S.]

[5][The English palsy is evidently derived by contraction from the Greek παράλυσις, as alms from ἐλεημοσύνη, through the medium of the Latin.—P. S.]

[6][Comp. also R. Ch. Trench: Notes on the Miracles. Preliminary Essay. p. 9–81 (Amer. ed., 1856; in England this useful work has already gone through seven editions); Horace Bushnell. (of Hartford): Nature and the Supernatural as together constituting the one System of God. New York. 1858 (a work of rare power and genius), especially Matthew 10, 11; Dr. Ths. H. Skinner: Miracles, the Proof of Christianity. New York, 1863 (in the Amer. Presbyt. and Theol. Rev. for April, 1863. p. 177 sqq.); Prof. A. Hovey of Newton Centre: The Miracles of Christ, Boston, 1864; and a number of recent dissertations on Miracles called forth by the “Essays and Reviews” controversy, especially one by Prof. H. L. Mansel, B. D. of Oxford, in the “Aids to Faith,” Lond. and New York, 1862.—P. S.]

[7][In German: “Hier ist das Wunder der wohlvermittelte, übernatürliche, widernatürliche und höhere natürliche Durchbruch eines neuen höheren Lebensprincips durch die bereits vorhandene gesetzmessige Ordnung der Dinge.” This is a fair specimen of Dr. Lange’s style in the more doctrinal and philosophical portions of his Commentary.—P. S.]

Lange's Commentary on the Holy Scriptures (Critical, Doctrinal, and Homiletical), ed. John Peter Lange, English translation edited by Philip Schaff (1864–1880) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Mat 8:1-17.

A Group Of Miracles

In Mat 8:1 to Mat 9:34, we find a group of remarkable miracles. Having completed his sketch of the Sermon on the Mount, the Evangelist returns to the state of things described before its introduction. (Mat 4:23-25) Our Lord was making a circuit of Galilee, followed by "great multitudes" (Mat 4:25); on some occasion during the journey, moved by the presence of such crowds, (Mat 5:1) he went up into the mountain, and addressed to the disciples and them a long discourse (Matthew 5-7), designed to set forth the nature of the Messianic reign, and correct many Jewish errors concerning it. When he had finished this and descended, "great multitudes" still followed him. And now having given this great specimen of our Lord’s teaching, the Evangelist proceeds is (Mat 8:1 to Mat 9:34) to group some striking examples of his miracles, which show that if he taught as one having authority, (Mat 7:29) he acted in like manner; and which threw light on the nature of his work as Messiah. In connection with these miracles, Matthew also gives an account (Mat 9:9-17) of his own call to follow Jesus. When we compare the Gospels of Mark and Luke, we find several of these miracles, and the attendant sayings, introduced there in such connections as to show that they did not occur in the precise order in which they are here mentioned. Some of them appear to have taken place before the delivery of the Sermon on the Mount, though during this journey about Galilee (see on "Mat 5:1"), and others at various subsequent times in the course of our Lord’s labours in Galilee. They are grouped by Matthew without any particular regard to the chronological order, but in such a way as to promote the special design of his historical argument. Following upon these examples of our Lord’s teaching (Matthew 5-7), and his miracles (Matthew 8-9), we shall find (Matthew 10), an account of his sending forth the Twelve, that they likewise may teach and work miracles (See on "Mat 9:35").

The three first miracles here grouped involve the healing of very grievous diseases-leprosy, paralysis, severe fever.

I. Mat 8:2-4. Healing Of A Leper;

also given, with some additional particulars, in Mar 1:40-45 Luk 5:12-16.

Mat 8:2. And, behold. This expression by no means necessitates the supposition that the incident occurred just after the close of the Sermon on the Mount. From the connection in Mark and Luke, it seems very likely, though not certain, that it preceded the delivery of that discourse. As to the locality, Luke tells us that it was ’in one of the cities,’ i. e., of Galilee. There came to him. The words ’to him’ represent a slight correction of the common Greek text. A leper. The horrible disease of leprosy appears to have been particularly common among the Egyptians and the Israelites. The climate of Egypt was suited to aggravate the disease, and it may be that the Israelites there acquired a constitutional tendency to it, as supposed by Strabo and Tacitus. Various questions concerning leprosy still remain quite unsettled. The Greek word (lepra), from which our word is borrowed, was derived from lepis, ’a scale,’ thus signifying the scaly disease. Among the many kinds of leprosy which seem to have existed in ancient and in modern times, that of the Bible appears to have been not the elephantiasis, or knotty leprosy, now often seen in Palestine, but the "white leprosy." It began with a small spot, scab, or swelling, lying lower than the surface of the skin, and the hair within it turning white. This would spread, and raw flesh would appear. In bad cases, large portions, and sometimes the whole of the body would assume a chalky whiteness; the nails, and sometimes the hair, fell off, and in some varieties the senses became blunted, and highly offensive pus gathered on the hair and flowed from the nose. But it is not certain that all these symptoms pertained to the Bible leprosy. It does seem nearly certain that, while hereditary, often for several generations, it was not a contagious disease, at least not in ordinary cases. The law of Moses treated it (Leviticus 13-14) as an extreme form of ceremonial defilement. When the disease spread over the whole person, the sufferer was pronounced clean, (Lev 13:12-17) and could freely associate with others; which appears to be conclusive proof that it was not contagious. The regulations requiring a leper to keep away from others, to cry "Unclean, unclean," etc., simply meant that one who touched a leper would become ceremonially unclean, as if he had touched a dead body, or a person having a running issue. (Lev 15:5) All these things were to be regarded as symbolically teaching the dreadful pollution of sin, and the need of purification; and no such symbol could be more impressive than a disease so hideous. The purifications when a leper had recovered (Leviticus 14) were quite similar to those prescribed for other kinds of grave ceremonial defilement. Leprosy was incurable by any known remedies, but would sometimes wear itself out in the course of time, in the individual, or in his descendants.

Worshipped. Compare on Mat 2:2. He cannot have meant worship as of God, but a deeply reverential salutation. Luke (Luk 5:12) says he "fell on his face and besought him. "Matthew’s imperfect tense depicts him as engaged in this reverential act. In like manner, Lord, the word used in the Sept. for Jehovah, which in the Epistles commonly means Jesus and appears there to recognize his divinity, was also used in Greek (and still is) as a common form of address, and is properly translated "sir" in Mat 13:27, Mat 21:30, Mat 27:63, and often. What precise amount of respect it is to be understood as expressing in any case, must be determined from the connection. (See on "Mat 8:19".) If thou wilt, thou canst make me clean. He called the healing a cleansing, because the disease had the appearance of a defilement, and made one ceremonially unclean. He did not say, "If thou canst,"like the despairing father; (Mar 9:22) his only question was as to the Lord’s willingness. (Compare below, Mat 9:28) His language will express what is often felt by persons asking spiritual blessings; yet as to these we ought to have no doubt, either of the Saviour’s power or his willingness.

Mat 8:3. Put—or stretched—forth his hand, the circumstances minutely detailed, after the characteristic Hebrew style (compare on Mat 5:2). ’Put forth,’ Tyndale, etc., is too feeble; Rheims already has ’stretched forth.’ The word ’Jesus’ is wanting in several of the earliest MSS. and versions, and obviously was added in others to remove an apparent obscurity. So also in Mat 8:5, Mat 8:7. And touched him. This must have startled the beholders, for he seemed to be incurring ceremonial defilement; yet Jesus by touching did not receive defilement, but imparted cleansing. I will, be thou clean. "A ready echo to the leper’s mature faith. His own saying contained the words of the desired response." (Bengel.) Every other worker of miracles in the Old or the New Testament constantly ascribes the power and the glory to another; Jesus alone uses such expressions as ’I will, be thou clean,’ ’I charge thee, come out of him,’ ’I say unto thee, arise.’ (Compare on Mat 5:22) There has been much discussion upon the question whether all who received bodily healing from Jesus, also received spiritual blessings. It seems plain that in many instances such was not the case; in others, the circumstances naturally lead us to think that the faith in his power to work miracles was also attended by faith in his power to forgive sins (compare on Mat 9:2). Whether that was true of the leper here mentioned, we have no means of deciding.

Mat 8:4. See thou tell no man. Why this prohibition? Partly, perhaps, (as some think), in order that the man might hasten to Jerusalem, and let the priests declare him healed before they should hear of the miracle, as otherwise they might, through jealousy of Jesus, pretend that the cure was not real and complete. But similar prohibitions are found in Mat 9:30, Mat 12:16, Mat 16:20, Mat 17:9, etc., and there must have been some general reason. There was danger that the people would become greatly excited, upon hearing of his miracles, with the idea that he was about to set up a splendid earthly kingdom, according to their erroneous notions of Messiah’s work, (Joh 6:14 f.) and would thus arouse the hostility of the Jewish rulers and that of the Roman authorities, and interfere with his freedom in teaching. We see from Mar 1:45 (Luk 5:15) that by failing to regard this prohibition the cleansed leper actually caused a serious interruption of our Lord’s labours. The exceptional case of Mar 5:19 Luk 8:39, proves the rule. Jesus there specially bids a man to publish what had been done for him; but there was in that region (southeast of the lake) no danger of a great popular excitement in favour of making him a king, but on the contrary a very unfavourable sentiment towards him, which it was desirable to correct. At a later period we find our Lord making a series of distant journeys, for the same purpose of preventing excitement among the people, as well as for other reasons (see on "Mat 14:13", and compare on Mat 4:12). We also see from Mat 12:16-21, that his unostentatious and quiet course of action was predicted. Shew thyself, with emphasis on ’thyself,’ as seen from its position in the Greek; (compare Mar 1:44) no mere report could convince a priest—the man must show himself. For a testimony unto them. This is connected not with Moses commanded, but with what precedes. ’Them’ cannot refer to the priests, for they must decide that the man was healed before he could offer the gift. It must refer to the people in general, as suggested by ’tell no man,’ and implied in tile whole connection. Such uses of ’them,’ denoting persons or things only implied in the connection, are common in N. T. Greek (Buttm., p. 106), and indeed in the colloquial usage of all languages. The sacrifice, made after the regular examination by the priest, (Leviticus 14) would be a testimony to the people that the leper was thoroughly healed, and thus that the miracle was real; perhaps also a testimony (Chrys.) that Jesus observed the law of Moses, which they were already beginning to accuse him of disregarding. (Compare ’for a testimony’ in Mat 10:18, Mat 24:14, Rev. Ver.) For general remarks on the miracles, see on "Mat 4:24".

II. Mat 8:5-13. Healing The Centurion’s Servant;

described also in Luk 7:1-10.

The language of Luk 7:1 makes it plain that this occurred shortly after the delivery of the Sermon on the Mount.

And when Jesus,—or, when he, omitting the word ’Jesus,’ as also in Luk 7:3. Into Capernaum, now his place of residence. See on "Mat 4:13". A centurion. This was the title of one of the officers of a Roman legion, who commanded a hundred men, but had a more responsible and dignified position than our captain. It cannot be determined whether this centurion was in the service of Herod Antipas, Tetrarch of Galilee (see on "Mat 2:20"), who would doubtless have his forces organized after the Roman fashion, and sometimes commanded by Roman officers, or whether he was connected with a Roman garrison of Capernaum, such as the Romans frequently maintained in nominally independent districts. He was a heathen, but a lover of the Jews, and had shown it by building the synagogue in which they then worshipped; (Luk 7:5) probably that large synagogue the foundations of which are now seen at Tel Hum. (See on "Mat 4:13".) There were numerous instances of intelligent and right-minded heathen who, when brought in contact with the Jews, felt the superiority of their religion; e. g., Cornelius. (Act 10:1) This centurion at Capernaum had probably known of the healing of the nobleman’s son, (Joh 4:46 ff.) which took place there some time before, and this with other accounts of Jesus, had led to the fall belief that he could heal his servant. There came unto him, Luke (Luk 7:3 ff.) says that he sent the elders of the Jews, and afterwards some friends. Matthew omits these details, and represents the centurion as doing himself what he did through others. In like ’manner Mark (Mar 10:35) represents James and John as presenting to Jesus their ambitious request, without any mention of their mother, whom Matthew (Mat 20:20) declares to have come with them and acted as spokesman. In Joh 3:22, we read that Jesus ’baptized’; in Joh 4:1 f., this is explained to mean that his disciples baptized. So in Joh 19:1, it is said that Pilate ’took Jesus and scourged him,’ which of course he did not do with his own hands, but through his attendants. Compare also Mat 14:10 with Mar 6:27; and see on "Mat 14:19". Similar forms of statement are common among us, both in literature and in the language of common life; and there is a familiar law maxim, Qui facit per alium, facit per se: he who does a thing through another does it himself.

Mat 8:6. Lord (see on "Mat 8:2"), simply a very respectful address. My servant is, in Greek, clearly definite, and may mean either the only servant he possessed, or the only one he had with him at Capernaum, or the one that was then exclusively occupying his mind. ’Servant’ (pais) is literally ’boy,’ which term was used for a servant of any age, among the Hebrews, Greeks and Romans, as it was also used in the Slave States of this country;[1] compare the French garçon. (See further on "Mat 12:18".) The Rheims version here translates ’boy’; Wyc. supposed it to mean ’child,’ as all the early English versions wrongly supposed in Act 3:13, Act 3:26, Act 4:27, Act 4:30. Luke (Luk 7:2) has the term doulos, ’slave,’ which is also used by Matthew in Mat 8:9. It is idle for Weiss to take pais as here meaning ’son,’ from his mere passion for multiplying discrepancies.

[1] Seven different Greek words are in the N. T. tendered ’servant,’ as follows: (1) Diakonos, an attendant, waiter, as at table, (Joh 2:5, Joh 2:9) and sometimes a servant in general: rendered ’servant’ in Mat 22:13, Mat 23:11; ’minister’ (originally a Latin word of corresponding signification) in Mat 20:26, and often in the Epistles. This word we have borrowed as deacon, just as we borrow bishop from episkopos. (2) Therapon, a waiting-man, attendant, used in Heb 3:5, compare common text of Mat 24:45. (3) Huperetes, a rower, sailor, and in general a hand, an underling, agent, attendant, inferior officer, etc. rendered ’servant’ is Mat 26:58 (Rev. Ver. ’officer’) in Mat 5:25. These three terms might be applied either to a slave or to a free man. (4) Oikestes, a house-servant (oikos, ’house’), domestic; used in Luk 16:13; 1Pe 2:18, etc. These might be slave or free, but were usually slaves. (5) Pais, a child, boy or girl, and also servant, as above explained; rendered ’servant’ in Mat 8:6, Mat 8:8, Mat 8:13, also in Mat 12:18, Mat 14:2, and ’child’ in Mat 2:16, Mat 17:18, (Rev. Ver. ’boy’); Mat 21:15. As applied to servants this term seems to have always meant slaves; Mat 14:2 may be compared with Mat 18:3. (6) Doulos, bondman, slave. This always means a slave, though often used figuratively, as ’slaves of God,’ ’slaves of Jesus Christ.’ It is rendered ’bond’ or ’bondman’ in 1Co 12:13 Gal 3:28 Eph 6:8 Col 3:11 Rev 6:15, Rev 13:16, Rev 19:18. Where it is rendered ’servant’ the Rev. Ver. usually puts ’bond-servant’ in the margin. (7) Misthios and Misthotos, a hireling, hired man, rendered ’hired servants’ in Mar 1:20 Luk 15:17, Luk 15:19, and ’hireling’ in Joh 10:12 f. This would naturally be a free man. The English word servant is borrowed from the Latin servus, which means a bondman, just as does. But it has come in English to have a much wider use, denoting either bondmen or hired attendants. ’Slave’ is derived from the Slavic or Sclavonic race, many of whom were reduced to servitude in the southeast of Europe, as early as the eighth century. The strong dislike to slavery at the present day has associated degrading ideas with this term, so that we could hardly employ it now for the figurative uses of doulos; although the devout McCheyne writes to a friend that "it is sweet to think of ourselves as the slaves of Christ"

Luke says (Luk 7:2) ’who was dear unto him.’ Josephus tells us that the Roman soldiers were followed by many servants, who "in peace constantly engaged in the warlike exercises of their masters, and in war shared their dangers." So a "Confederate" officer and the slave who attended him in camp would often risk their lives for each other, while his other slaves at home usually took the most faithful care of his wife and children. My servant—boy—lieth, literally, is prostrate, ’bed ridden.’ Sick of the palsy—a paralytic (see on "Mat 4:24"). Grievously tormented, or, ’terribly tortured.’ Some diseases then classed as paralysis produce violent pain. Compare the case in 1Ma 9:55 f. Luke adds (Luk 7:2 B. U.) that he was ’about to die.’

Mat 8:7-9. Jesus saith, or, he says, Jesus omitted, as in Mat 8:3, Mat 8:5. I will come, with some emphasis on ’I’. This proposition, being reported to the centurion, brought out his humility and faith. A similar effect was produced on the Syro-Phoenician mother by refusal. (Mat 15:26) Worthy, literally, not fit for thee to enter,[1] etc. He may have meant (Edersheim) that he was Levitically unfit, that to enter his home would render a Jew ceremonially unclean; but the additional and stronger expression in Luk 7:7 leaves no doubt that he was also humbly thinking of his moral unworthiness. Speak the word, or, more exactly, speak ’with a word’ (Rev. Ver. margin). So the nobleman’s son there at Capernaum had been healed with a word when at a distance. (Joh 4:50) The centurion proceeds to illustrate the power of a word of command, by referring to his own experience as an officer and a master. For I also am a man[2] under authority.... and I say, etc. It is plain that ’under authority’ is opposed to ’having under myself soldiers’ (Rev. Ver.)—notice the ’myself.’ He is a subordinate commander, accustomed both to obey and to be obeyed, and he is confident that in like manner one word of command from Jesus will cure disease. There is involved a sort of personification of the disease, as in Luk 4:39, ’he rebuked the fever.’ But what is the force of ’also’? (Com. Ver. followed Geneva in neglecting ’also,’ which was given by Tyn., Great Bible, Rheims). The centurion evidently means that his case is like that of Jesus in regard to the word of command. Some think (Humphrey) that he regarded Jesus as under divine authority, while having power over disease. Or it may be that ’also’ refers to the latter part of the statement: for I also am a (subordinate) commander, and my word of command is obeyed. To my servant, slave (see on "Mat 8:6"). We cannot tell whether he meant the particular servant that was sick, or the servant to whom he spoke in any case.

[1] For this non-final use of the Greek particle that follows, see on "Mat 5:29". Compare the classical construction with ’fit’ (viz., the infinitive) in 1Co 15:9.

[2] The margin of Rev. Ver. here follows Westcott Hort in mentioning that some ancient authorities (B à and some there) insert ’set.’ But this evidently is an interpolation from Luk 7:8, and so should not have been mentioned. If genuine here, what ground can be suggested for its omission by almost all documents? It is wrong to follow B and à against the clearest internal evidence, especially when with internal evidence began the whole line of argument by which Westcott Hort have established the great general excellence of their text.

Mat 8:10. Marvelled—or—wondered. Here he wondered at faith; on another occasion, (Mar 6:6) at unbelief. We need not speculate about his wondering, nor weaken the statement by attempted explanations. Jesus wondered as a man, while as God nothing could be wonderful to him. It is only the same difficulty that we meet with in such facts as his growing in wisdom, and his not knowing the day and hour. Verily I say unto you, see on "Mat 5:18". I have not found so great faith,[1] no, not in Israel. A similar case of great faith on the part of a heathen is found in Mat 15:22 following. We feel sure that a person with such beautiful humility and such faith in the power of Jesus to work miracles, must have possessed, or would soon come to possess, faith in his power to forgive sins also. (Compare on Mat 8:3) What our Lord thus strongly commends is not his humility, but that faith which is the root of every thing spiritual. (Compare Mat 15:28 Luk 18:8) Observe that he does not express surprise at finding so great faith in a soldier. There is no warrant in Scripture for the notion of incompatibility between piety and the soldier’s life.

[1] The marginal reading of Rev. Ver. has considerable support, especially in versions, and some transcriptional probability; there would be no substantial difference in meaning.

Mat 8:11. And I say unto you (see on "Mat 5:18"), repeating the solemn affirmation of the preceding sentence, because he was about to say what the Jews would be slow to believe, and what was of the greatest importance. From the east and west, (compare Isa 45:6) from the farthest parts of the earth in every direction, from the remotest Gentile nations. Here is already an intimation that Christianity will spread to all nations. And shall sit down, literally recline (see margin Rev. Ver.), i. e., at table. The custom of the Persians, which spread to the Greeks and Romans, had also been adopted by the Jews, viz., to lie on a couch while eating. This was placed beside the table, and on it the person reclined leaning on his left elbow, so as to take food from the table with his right hand, while the feet extended obliquely to the outside of the couch. Thus the feet could be washed while one was reclining (Luk 7:38 Joh 13:4 f.); a man could lean his head back upon the breast, or lie "in the bosom" of one who reclined, behind him. (Joh 13:23, Joh 13:25, Joh 1:18 Luk 16:23) This luxurious mode of eating had not been the usage of their ancestors; (see Gen 27:19 Jdg 19:6, 1Sa 20:24 f., where the Hebrew determines it to have been really sitting) and the prophet Amos, (Amo 6:4, Amo 6:7) rebukes it as a part of the wicked luxury of the people, that they stretched themselves at their banquets. But in the time of our Lord it had become the universal custom, certainly at all formal meals, and to do otherwise would have seemed singular. Wherever in the N. T. ’sit,’ ’sit down,’ etc., are used with reference to eating, or where the phrase is ’sit at meat,’ etc., the Greek always has some word denoting ’to recline’; and it is to be regretted that Rev. Ver. did not place this in the text rather than in the margin. Wyc., Tyn., and Great Bib. had ’rest,’ Geneva and Rheims ’sit down.’ With Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. The Jews considered that their descent from these patriarchs made it certain that they would share with them the blessings of the Messianic reign; and the Rabbinical writings show that splendid entertainments, enjoyed with the patriarchs, belonged to their conception of the Messianic felicity, Here, as so often, our Saviour adapted himself to the common modes of expression. See the same image in Luk 14:15, Luk 16:28, the parables concerning feasts, and in Rev 19:9. It was specially appropriate in the present case; the Jews would not at all eat with Gentiles; yet it is here declared that many Gentiles from every direction will recline at table with the great patriarchs, while Jews themselves shall be east out. This had been foreshadowed by the prophets but Israel was too blind now to see it. The Talmud says (Schoettgen): "In the future world I will spread for you a great table, which the Gentiles will see and be ashamed." Luke does not give this saying of our Lord with reference to the centurion, but in Mat 13:39 he gives the same image as introduced on a different occasion. As to the phrase, kingdom of heaven, see on "Mat 3:2". It must here refer to the future state.

Mat 8:12. But the children—sons—of the kingdom. By a Hebrew idiom a variety of ideas of intimate relation or close connection are expressed by the use of ’sou’ or ’child’; e. g., in Old Testament ’sons of Belial (wickedness)’, as it were born of wickedness, deriving their very nature from wickedness. So with’ children of disobedience’, (Eph 2:2. Rev. Ver.) and ’children of obedience.’ (1Pe 1:14. Rev. Ver.) In ’children of wrath’, (Eph 2:3)’children of cursing’, (2Pe 2:14, Rev. Ver.) we have a very strong expression of the idea that these persons are by their very nature objects of wrath, of a curse. ’The sons of this world’ (Luk 16:8, Rev. Ver.) are wholly devoted to this world, as it were with a filial devotion. (See also on Mat 9:15, Mat 11:19, Mat 13:38, Mat 23:15, and compare 1Ma 4:2.) ’The sons of the resurrection’ (Luk 20:36, Rev. Ver.) are those who partake of it. And so ’the sons of the kingdom’ here are the persons who are considered as having a right to its privileges by reason of their birth. Our Lord tells the Jews that strangers to the kingdom would come and enjoy its privileges, while its own sons would be cast out. Into (the) outer darkness. The image is derived from a brightly lighted mansion during an evening entertainment. Persons expelled from the house would find themselves in the darkness without. So in Mat 22:13, Mat 25:30, and compare ’the blackness of darkness forever’ in Jdg 1:13, 2Pe 2:17. There shall be (the)weeping and (the) gnashing of teeth, while within is the feast of the soul, and the song of the blest. Why ’the weeping’? Probably the idea of these as belonging to the punishment of Gehenna was familiar to our Lord’s hearers. The same expression occurs six times in Matthew, (see Mat 13:42, Mat 13:50, Mat 22:13, Mat 24:51, Mat 25:30) and in Luk 13:28; always with the article, and always associated with the idea of future punishment. (Compare Butts. p. 88.) Bengel understands it to be the weeping by eminence, and adds: "In this life sorrow is not yet sorrow."

Mat 8:13. Go thy way, go along (compare Mat 8:4), said here in kindness and encouragement; quite otherwise in Mat 4:10. So be it done unto thee, more literally, so let it happen to thee, ’come to pass for thee,’ the term explained on Mat 6:10. His faith was great, and so should the blessing be. Our Lord frequently (not always) required faith in order to the reception of his miracles of healing, where there was a person capable of exercising it. But the healing cannot with any show of propriety be considered the effect of imagination, excited by credulous faith, as in some apparent cures at the present day, for in this and various other cases it was not the sufferer that believed, but some other person—and sometimes a person at a distance. (Mat 15:28 Joh 4:53) Moreover our Lord wrought miracles upon the dead, and upon inanimate nature, where such an explanation would be out of the question. In the selfsame—or, in that—hour, with some emphasis on ’that.’

III. Mat 8:14-17. Healing Of Peter’s Mother-In-Law,

and of many others. From the parallel accounts in Mar 1:29-34; Luk 4:38-41, it appears that this took place before the delivery of the Sermon on the Mount, and upon a Sabbath-day, after leaving the synagogue in Capernaum. Matthew groups these miracles with little concern for exact time and place. (See on "Mat 8:1".) Peter’s house, at Capernaum, see Mar 1:21, Mar 1:29. Andrew lived with his brother, and James and John accompanied Jesus on a visit to them. Peter and Andrew were natives of Bethsaida, (Joh 1:44) but had removed to Capernaum. (See the town described on "Mat 4:18".) It seems strange that Romanists can so insist on the celibacy of the clergy, when Peter himself, of whom the Pope is imagined to be the successor, was a married man, and not only at this time but long after, when at the height of his apostolic labours; and ’the rest of the apostles’ were likewise, except Paul. (1Co 9:5.) Sick of a fever. Malarial fevers are common, from the marshes near the mouth of the Jordan. (Thomson, Geikie.)

Mat 8:15. It seems from Mar 1:30, and Luk 4:38, that the family requested Jesus to heal her. And he touched her hand. Our Lord several times wrought miracles without touching, and even at a distance, as in the healing of the centurion’s slave in the preceding Verses; but he usually performed some act, such as touching the person, taking him by the hand, etc., which would make it evident to all concerned that he was the cause of the miraculous cure. And ministered unto them—literally, as in best texts, waited on him. The verb is explained on Mat 4:11, and the Greek tense denotes that the action was continued. ’Them,’ found in some early documents, is a manifest assimilation to Mark and Luke, where companions of Jesus are mentioned. The service would consist in supplying food, and any other needed attentions—a natural way for a woman in her home to express her gratitude. Jerome: "That hand ministered, which had been touched, and healed." (Compare Luk 10:40, where the same word is rendered ’serving.’) A severe fever (Luk 4:38) always leaves a person very weak; but so complete was the miraculous healing, that she was at once prepared for active exertion. Wordsworth: "In the case of Christ’s miracles, it was with diseases as with the sea. After the storm there is a swell, before the sea sinks into a calm. But Christ reduced the fury of the sea by a word to perfect calm, as he did the rage of the fever to perfect health."

Mat 8:16. This miracle became noised abroad, and only deepened the impression produced by the casting out of the unclean spirit that same day in the synagogue. (Mar 1:21-28) So that all the people became anxious to bring their demoniac or diseased friends to seek like miraculous relief. But the Jews were too scrupulous to do this on the Sabbath day. When the even was come. (compare Mat 14:15) Luke yet more definitely, ’when the sun was setting.’ The Jewish day was reckoned as beginning and ending at sunset; so they came the moment the Sabbath was past. Matthew says nothing to show why they waited till evening; he is simply throwing together a number of miracles without giving all the circumstances of their occurrence. It is not to be inferred that Jesus himself shared these scruples about healing on the Sabbath, a thing which he had just done (Mark and Luke), and repeatedly did afterwards. Possessed with devils, much better, demoniacs (as in margin Rev. Ver.), see on Mat 8:28 and see on "Mat 4:24". The Evangelist has already mentioned in general (Mat 4:2) that Jesus healed all the demoniacs that were brought to him during this circuit of Galilee. With his (a) word, just as he had ’with a word’ healed the centurion’s slave. (Mat 8:8) All that were sick, a general expression embracing every class of diseases, as in Mat 4:24. Kitto : "The sun which had set upon an expectant crowd of miserable creatures, arose next morning upon a city from which disease had fled." Our Lord’s miracles were very numerous. Those particularly described by the Evangelists are only specimens, and we are repeatedly told in passing, of his healing very many persons and of many diseases. Simply to read the statements in Mat 4:24, Mat 9:35; Mat 11:4 f; Mat 12:15, Mat 14:35, Mat 15:30, Mat 19:2, would be apt greatly to enlarge one’s idea of the extent of his labour of beneficence in this respect.

Mat 8:17. That it might be fulfilled. This naturally means that the events in question had been actually predicted in the prophecy quoted, and had taken place in the arrangements of Providence in order that the prediction might be fulfilled. (See on "Mat 1:22"; the particle rendered ’that’ is not the same here as there, but has practically the same force.) By Esaias.—More exactly through, as in Mat 2:5, Mat 2:17, Mat 2:23, Mat 3:3, Mat 4:14, the idea being by the Lord through the prophet, as fully expressed in Mat 1:22, Mat 2:15. ’Isaiah,’ instead of ’Esaias,’ see on "Mat 1:2". It is only Matthew that here refers to the fulfilment of a prediction, this being the sixth prophecy which he cites as being fulfilled in Jesus. (Compare Mat 1:23, Mat 2:5, Mat 2:15, Mat 2:23, Mat 4:14) Himself took our infirmities and bare our sicknesses. The quotation is from Isa 53:4, rendered in Com. Eng. Ver., ’He hath borne our griefs and carried our sorrows.’ The whole passage in Isaiah (52:13-53:12) unquestionably refers to Christ’s suffering for men as their substitute. (Compare 1Pe 2:24) There is thus difficulty in perceiving the ground of the Evangelist’s application of this prophecy to our Lord’s healing diseases. The original of Isaiah literally means ’Our diseases he took, and our pains he bore,’ with slight emphasis both times on ’our’ and ’he,’ tile word ’pains’ comprising both bodily and mental distresses. As to the words, Matthew has thus exactly followed the Hebrew (the hypothesis of his following an oral Aramaic version is believed to be without adequate support), departing from the Sept., which here renders, "He bears our sins, and is pained about us." But how as to the meaning? Christ took upon himself, and thus took away from us, sin and all the distresses produced by sin. These distresses were divinely appointed punishments of sin, and we may suppose that but for Christ’s atoning work, God’s justice would not have allowed them to cease. For believers in Christ, diseases and various mental sufferings do indeed still continue, yet not as punishments, but to discipline them for their good. What our Saviour suffered, in his life of humiliation and his death of agony, was not, as the prophet says men would think it was, the penalty of wrongdoing on his own part, but was the taking on himself of our sin, and all our consequent woe. Of course he did not endure the precise and identical sufferings, temporal or eternal, which we should otherwise have borne, but what he suffered in our stead made it right that we should be relieved, to some extent even in this life, and completely in eternity, of all the consequences of our sins. His taking away bodily diseases was thus not only a symbol (Meyer), but in some sense a part of his taking away sin. The matter may also be viewed as Plumptre does: "He himself ’took’ and ’bore’ the sufferings which he removed. He suffered with those he saw suffer. The power to heal was intimately connected with the intensity of his sympathy, and so was followed (as analogous works of love are followed, in those who are most Christ-like in their lives), by weariness and physical exhaustion. What is related by St. Mark and St. Luke of our Lord’s seeking out the refuge of solitude at the earliest dawn of the day that followed, is entirely in harmony with the view thus suggested."

Homiletical And Practical

Mat 8:2 f. This suggests by analogy the need and the means of spiritual healing. Four questions as to our salvation: (1) Is Jesus able to save? (2) Is Jesus willing to save? (3) Do we need to be saved? (4) Do we wish to be saved? Only the last question is really doubtful, and that depends on ourselves.

Mat 8:4. Do not make loud professions of what Christ has done for you, but prove it by acting according to God’s law. Schaff remarks that it is possible to make too much of the miracles—"a kind of materialism, no less than the denial of the possibility of such miracles."

Mat 8:5 f. The centurion. (1) His munificent gift to the people of God. (Luk 7:5) (2) His affectionate kindness to a servant. (Mat 8:6 Luk 7:2) (3) His poor opinion of himself. (Mat 8:8) (4) His great faith in Jesus. (Mat 8:8, Mat 8:10) (5) The exact and immediate answer to his petition.—The (Mat 8:13) three believing centurions. (1) This centurion at Capernaum. (2) The centurion who had charge of the crucifixion (Mat 27:54) (3) The centurion Cornelius.—A (Act 10:1) deeply pious soldier. Hall: "Even the bloody trade of war yielded worthy clients to Christ."—Kindness to a servant. Hall: "Had the master been sick, the faithfulest servant could have done no more. He is unworthy to be well served, that will not sometimes wait upon his followers. Conceits of inferiority may not breed in us a neglect of charitable offices. So must we look down upon our servants here on earth, as that we must still look up to our Master which is in heaven."

Mat 8:7. Developing faith. (1) By refusing all that was asked; (Mat 15:24) (2) By offering more than was asked; (3) By granting just what was asked.

Mat 8:8. It was no feigned humility with which the centurion spoke. He deeply felt himself unworthy of the presence and society of the Great Teacher. Yet the Jewish elders thought him worthy.(Luk 7:4)

They who most deserve the esteem of others are apt to have the humblest opinion of themselves; not because ignorant of any excellencies they may have attained, but because more accustomed to dwell on their faults, and more absorbed in the desire to correct them. A man may be conscious of his powers and attainments, may rejoice in his achievements, may be pleased that men praise him, and at the same time be truly humble, and full of gratitude to him who has given it all. This is difficult for human weakness, but so much the more earnestly and prayerfully must it be sought. "What is the first thing in religion? Humility. And what is the second thing in religion? Humility. And what is the third thing in religion? Humility."—Hall: "Many a one, if he had been in the centurion’s coat, would have thought well of it; a captain, a man of good ability and command, a founder of a synagogue, a patron of religion; yet he overlooks all these, and when he casts his eye upon the divine worth of Christ and his own weakness, he says, ’I am not worthy.’ While he confessed himself unworthy of any favour, he approved himself worthy of all." Edersheim: "Here was one who was in the state described in the first clauses of the Beatitudes, and to whom came the promise of the second clauses; because Christ is the connecting link between the two." Chrys.: "For because he made himself out unworthy, even to receive Christ into his house, he became worthy both of a kingdom, and of attaining unto those good things which Abraham enjoyed."

Mat 8:9. Obeying and commanding. Hall: "Oh that I could be but such a servant to mine Heavenly Master! Alas! every one of his commands says, ’Do this,’ and I do it not; every one of his inhibitions says, ’Do it not,’ and I do it. He says, ’Go from the world,’ I run to it; he says, ’Come to me,’ I run from him. Wo is me! this is not service, but enmity."

Mat 8:10. Jesus wondering: (1) At the great faith of a heathen (2) At the unbelief of his fellow-townsmen. (Mar 6:6) Believing heathen still often shame those reared in Christian lands.

Mat 8:15. What can we do for Jesus, who has done so much for us? We cannot now minister to him in the way of personal attention, but (1) We can bring others to be his followers; (Joh 1:41) (2) We can minister to his suffering brethren; (Mat 25:40) (3) In general, we can show our love by keeping his commandments. (Joh 14:15)

Mat 8:17. Steinmeyer: "As a parable shows on earthly grounds the reflex of a higher truth, in order to serve as a means of explaining the latter, so a miracle which relieves an earthly pain is the symbol of the help within reach for a deeper need. Our Lord cures the sick of the palsy; but the first words of the narrative point most expressly to a higher region. He gives sight to him that was born blind; but the concluding words of the history exclude the thought of a mere deed of compassion."

John A. Broadus, Commentary on the Gospel of Matthew (American Baptist Publication Society, 1886) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

6. The King Manifested by Signs of Divine Power.

Chapters 8-9.

CHAPTER 8

1. The Healing of the Leper. (Mat 8:1-4.)

2. The Healing of the Centurion’s Servant. (Mat 8:5-13.)

3. The Healing of Peter’s Wife’s Mother.(Mat 8:14-15.)

4. The Healing of All. (Mat 8:16-17.)

5. The Self-seeking Scribe and the Test of True Discipleship.(Mat 8:18-22.)

6. His Power over Nature. (Mat 8:23-27.)

7. His Power over the Demons. (Mat 8:28-34.)

With the eighth chapter we enter into a new section of the Gospel. This section extends to the end of the twelfth chapter. The King had declared the principles and rule of the kingdom, and now He comes down from the mountain followed by great multitudes. First of all He is to manifest Himself as the divine King, the Jehovah of the Old Testament Scriptures, who is truly come to His own. To them He offers and through His disciples likewise, the kingdom. But soon it becomes evident that His own receive Him not. They reject Him and recognize Him not as their King, and accuse Him, before whom the demons cried in terror, that His miracles were done by Beelzebub, the prince of demons. He then breaks off the relationship with His own, which we find at the end of the 12th chapter. These five chapters, from the eighth to the twelfth, contain therefore the full manifestation of Jehovah-Jesus among His people and the rejection of the King.

And how completely He manifested Himself as the King with divine power! Here we have a number of miracles, one following the other, as we Hope to show, put in perfect order by the One who is perfect in Knowledge, the Holy Spirit. Yet with these wonderful manifestations, the leper cleansed, the demons driven out, the blind made to see, the dead raised, the people deliberately reject Him, and fall not at His feet to worship Him. This shows the utter ruin and full character of the flesh, enmity against God. It is so still and never can be anything else. Even if now (as it is sometimes said it should be) signs and miracles would be done, the flesh would not be changed by them, but would still reject Him and turn away from the Lord. The antichrist, the false king, Satan’s masterpiece and counterfeit, will make his appearance in the closing days with all power and signs and lying wonders. He will mimic all the signs and miracles done by our Lord. The flesh will surely accept that false one with his strong delusions. But let us briefly point out the signs our Lord does in these chapters:

1. The cleansing of the leper, Mat 8:1-4. He touches the leper.

2. The healing of the Centurion’s servant, Mat 8:5-13. He heals by His word. Faith touches Him.

3. Peter’s wife’s mother healed of fever, Mat 8:14-15. Healing by His touch.

4. The healing of All, Mat 8:16-17. His presence among the suffering.

5. He rebukes the winds and the sea, Mat 8:23; Mat 8:27. His divine power over nature.

6. The two possessed by demons delivered, Mat 8:28-34. Demons confess Him Son of God.

7. A man sick of palsy completely restored, Mat 9:1-8. Full restoration of soul and body. “The lame man shall leap as an hart” (Is. 35:6).

8. A woman with an issue of blood healed, Mat 9:20-22. She touches Him.

9. The daughter of the ruler raised up, Mat 9:23-26. Resurrection.

10. Two blind men receive their sight, Mat 9:27-31. “He openeth the eyes of the blind” (Is. 35:5).

11. A dumb man with a demon healed, Mat 9:32-33. “The tongue of the dumb shall sing” (Is. 35:6).

12. Preaching the Gospel of the kingdom and healing every sickness and every disease, Mat 9:35 (Is. 61:1).

13. The man with the withered hand healed (Mat 12:10-13).

14. One possessed by a demon, blind and dumb, restored, Mat 12:22. His last sign of this section (Is. 35:5, 6).

In these miracles we have before us the manifestation of the King. Jehovah alone could manifest Himself thus in mercy, healing and restoring. Satan may have great power to work signs, yet never could such a manifestation come from him. “If Satan cast out Satan, he is divided against himself; how shall then his kingdom stand?” (Mat 12:26). With these words our Lord silenced the Satanic accusations of the Pharisees. What He did, furthermore, is seen in the Old Testament in connection with the kingdom. The signs manifest the King as well as the Kingdom. In Isa 35:1-10 we have a description of the kingdom as the King is to set it up. He came, and that He is the King and His Kingdom at hand, is proven by Him in doing the signs enumerated in the thirty-fifth chapter of Isaiah. The King and Kingdom is rejected, the Kingdom postponed, and Israel and the nations wait with a groaning creation for the glorious fulfilment of this chapter in Isaiah. The fulfilment will come, when the King comes back to the earth, then “the ransomed of Jehovah shall return and come to Zion with songs and everlasting joy upon their heads; they shall obtain joy and gladness, and sorrow and sighing shall flee away.”

And how full is the manifestation of His divine power! Leprosy, the awful disease and defilement, altogether gone. Winds and sea calmed. Demons banished and sent to the place where they belong. Forgiveness of sins followed by the healing of the body. The blind see, the dumb speak, the dead rise! Every sickness and every disease healed. These miracles our Lord did here to show Himself as the King are certainly also typical of the spiritual cleansing, the opening of the eyes of the blind, the sinner, the speaking in praise and worship of those who never spoke to God or of God, the raising of the dead, the power and dominion of Satan broken. The application on these lines is evident. We see in them also a foreshadowing of the redemption of the body of the believer in resurrection, as well as the blessings for Israel and the nations, in the coming age. All these features, we hope to point out as we look to the different signs, separately.

Before taking up the first part of the eighth chapter we must call the attention of our readers to another fact. If one looks for these miracles in the Gospels of Mark and Luke, and traces our Lord’s movements in them, he will be astonished to find that they are put in these Gospels in an entirely different setting. We will not go into details here. In Matthew all has its peculiar arrangement, and everything is taken out of its chronological order. This is nowhere so evident, as in the section before us. The reason is obvious. The Holy Spirit has manifested in it His divine wisdom. Infidels have ever sneered (and do even more so every day) at a verbal inspiration of the Scriptures. The utterances of some well-known “evangelical” teachers, that the New Testament contains numerous discrepancies, is generally backed up by arguments about the miracles recorded in Matthew, as happening after the sermon on the mount, when in another Gospel they are given as having occurred before the discourse of our Lord. Now that which moves the infidel and the preacher tainted with higher criticism to ridicule the divinity and infallibility of the written Word, moves the believer and diligent searcher of the Scriptures to praise, for the very argument which the denier of a verbal inspiration uses to build his infidel fabric on, is to the believer the most positive evidence of the divinity of the Bible and its verbal inspiration. It is not alone so here but all through the Word. The Holy Spirit as the writer of the first Gospel has taken certain events in the life of our Lord and grouped them together in such a way that they not only show us how the King proved Himself King and how He was rejected, but to show in the grouping of these miracles the purposes of God, and bring out some very rich yet simple dispensational teachings. The Gospel of Matthew as the Jewish Gospel is the proper place for it.

We look now at the first seventeen verses of the eighth chapter. Here we have four different signs.

The first is the cleansing of the leper, followed at once by the healing of the centurion’s servant, after which our Lord enters Peter’s house, and his mother-in-law being sick, He touches her hand and the fever leaves her. The last is the healing of all. Now in these four miracles, following one the other as they do here, we have by the Holy Spirit dispensational teachings concerning the Jews and the Gentiles. The first, the cleansing of the leper, stands for Jehovah among His people Israel . The second, where He is absent, and heals not by His touch but by His Word; this represents the Gentile dispensation which is still running. After this dispensation is passed He will enter the house again, restoring His relations with Israel , and healing the sick daughter of Zion , represented by the healing touch and raising of Peter’s mother-in-law. After this is accomplished the millennial blessings come to all in the earth when the curse of sin will be removed. We look at each but briefly.

I. The cleansing of the leper. Israel represented by the leper. Jehovah-rophe (Exo 15:1-27) among His people. Leprosy is the most loathsome disease known. There was no remedy for it in the Old Testament, nor is there a remedy for it in our times, and we may say there will never be any found. The Spirit of God has made leprosy a type of sin, and inasmuch as there is no remedy from the human side for sin, so there is none and will be none from man’s side for leprosy. Jehovah alone could heal the awful disease (Num 12:13; 2Ki 5:1-15, etc.). This man meeting our Lord as He comes from the mountain was according to Luke (and he was a physician), “A man full of leprosy” (Luk 5:12). The application of leprosy as to every sinner is so well known that we pass it over. The leper here does not alone represent the sinner, but he represents Israel . Long before the Spirit of God had made known the leprous condition of the people in the following words: “The whole head is sick, and the whole heart is faint. From the sole of the foot even unto the head, there is no soundness in it; but wounds and bruises and putrifying sores. They have not been closed, neither bound up, neither mollified with ointment” (Is. 1:5, 6). This is a most perfect description of the leper with his wounds, bruises and sores as he wanders an outcast toward still greater sufferings. Here then Israel’s Messiah, Jehovah-Jesus, the same who spoke in Exodus, “I am Jehovah, thy Healer,” meets His poor, unclean people, represented by the leper. The attitude of the leper as he fell before Him, doing Him homage, should have been Israel ‘s attitude, his prayer, “Lord, if Thou wilt, Thou art able to cleanse me,” Israel ‘s prayer. Jehovah-Jesus stretches out His hand and touches him. He speaks as Jehovah in all His omnipotent power and mercy, “I will -- be cleansed.” And immediately his leprosy was cleansed. Thus Jehovah could and would cleanse Israel . He had then manifested Himself as the “Jehovah, thy Healer,” among His people. The Lord sends the cleansed leper to the priest and asks him to offer the gift which Moses ordained. This was all proper before the death and resurrection of our Lord. Some have taken this as an evidence that the law should still be kept, but they forget that by the death and resurrection of our Lord we are delivered from the law. However, the issue here is not the continuation of the Mosaic institutions. The Lord sends the cleansed leper to the priest for a different purpose. The priest was the proper person to pronounce the cleansed one clean. How then had he become clean? Had he used any remedy? No. Had he seen some celebrated physician? No. Jesus had spoken, “I will!” He, who in prophecy, in the law (Deuteronomy), in Ezekiel and Isaiah, saith again and again, “I will,” had touched him. Who was this Jesus? There could be only one answer, He is Jehovah manifested in the flesh. The priest should have broken forth in song and praise: “Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel, because He hath visited and wrought redemption for His people!” He should have run from the sanctuary in search of Him, and having found Him adore Him as Jehovah. But the event closes abruptly. The priest alone heard the story, for the man was told not to tell it to others. The priest is silent; we hear nothing of him. He failed to recognize Jehovah in the midst of His people, and does not respond by coming forth to meet the divine King. The priest is the type of unbelieving Israel . The day, however, will come when the King will come again, and when in mercy, He will speak again to the remnant of His people, “I will.” The Sun of righteousness will rise with healing beneath His wings.

II. The Centurion’s servant healed by His Word. Grace shown to the Gentile. Not even in Israel have I found so great faith. Israel having failed to accept the King, and not recognizing Jehovah in their midst, the Gentile is introduced. Grace was to come to the Gentile. The Centurion’s servant was a paralytic -- the type of the helpless and hopeless condition of the Gentiles. The Centurion steps up with a simple, childlike faith. How different from the ritualistic priest who had no answer to Jehovah-Jesus. Jesus declared Himself willing to come and heal him. He, the One who knows the heart of man, well knew that this would bring out the faith of the Gentile. And the Centurion answered and said, “Lord, I am not fit that Thou shouldest enter under my roof: but only speak a word and my servant shall be healed.” In this simple faith there is the fullest confession that Jesus is God and able to heal by His Word, though absent from the sufferer. What a grand foreshadowing of the dispensation in which we live and of the mercy shown to the Gentiles! It is the character of the dispensation. Jesus is absent, yet in childlike faith we know Him, and by His Word He manifests His power. It is not Healing by touch, But By His Word. Upon the manifestation of “so great faith,” our Lord reveals the coming in of the Gentiles and the setting aside of Israel , “the sons of the kingdom.” “But I say unto you that many shall come from the rising and setting sun, and shall lie down at table with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob in the kingdom of the heavens; but the sons of the kingdom shall be cast out into the outer darkness: there shall be the weeping and gnashing of teeth.” There is another feature here we must not forget. In the eighteenth chapter of Genesis we read how Abraham refreshed the Lord. Here after the failure of Abraham’s seed the Gentile refreshes the heart of the Lord. What joy and comfort the blessed One had in looking upon this Gentile and “so great faith,” and then look towards the cross and beyond it; the travail of His soul must have come before Him, the blessed fruit of His death and resurrection in the coming of them afar off. And are you refreshing and comforting His heart, Him who is unseen now? And surely it is by simple faith in Himself and in His power we refresh Him.

III. Coming to the house. The suffering woman healed of fever, raised up and serving Him. Typical of Israel ‘s healing and raising up. In the healing of Peter’s mother-in-law, we see a type of what will take place after the fullness of the Gentiles has come in. The sick woman is typical of Israel . In some of the Prophets we have the comparison of Israel to a woman, a widow, one forsaken, but the promises speak of her healing and that she is to become the minister of the Lord as Peter’s mother-in-law served the Lord. We also see that He heals her by touch. So will He come again in relationship with His people and heal them.

IV. The demons cast out. All healed who were sick. The fulfilment of Isa 53:4, Millennial blessings. “And when the evening was come, they brought to Him many possessed by demons, and He cast out the spirits with a word and healed all that were ill; so that that should be fulfilled which was spoken through Esaias the prophet, saying, Himself took our infirmities and bore our diseases.” Later the demons cried out, saying, What have we to do with Thee, Son of God? Hast Thou come here before the time to torment us?” (Mat 8:29.) The day is coming, the set time, when Satan will be cast out and bound. This will be in connection with our Lord’s return and Israel ‘s restoration. Then all demons will be cast out. Now not all are healed, but then the sad results of sin will be removed. “And the inhabitant shall not say, I am sick” (Is. 33:24).

We come now to the second half of the chapter. It will not be necessary to call again attention to the arrangement of the incidents recorded, differing from the Gospel of Luke, where the scene is laid after the transfiguration. We have learned before that the Holy Spirit does not report these events chronologically, but puts all together in His own perfect, divine way. First, we meet with a scribe who desires to follow Jesus, and then a disciple is seen, who wishes to go first to bury his father before following Him. After this He and the disciples are on the stormy sea and He rebukes the winds and the sea. On the other side the two possessed of demons are delivered. We can touch upon but a little of the manifold application which can be made of these events.

“And a scribe came up and said to Him, Teacher, I will follow thee whithersoever thou mayest go.” And Jesus says to him, “The foxes have holes, and the birds of the heavens roosting places, but the Son of Man has not where to lay His head” (Mat 8:19-20).

This man was a self-seeking scribe, one whose mind was filled with idle dreams of a Kingdom to be established and, having seen the manifestation of the divine power, he desires selfishly to follow Jesus. No doubt his expectations were earthly gain, riches and glory. In this respect he may well be taken as a type of the nation itself. The Lord then gives the answer, which showed the scribe how perfectly He understood his heart and read his thoughts. Nothing is heard of the scribe afterward. It was sufficient to discourage him completely. The Messiah had nothing to offer him, and if he would follow Him, it meant that which the flesh can never do. But all brings out the fact of the coming rejection of the King. None of the multitude come to fall down before Jesus and worship Him as Jehovah, only this man comes. Our Lord was on His way to the other side, when the scribe approaches Him with his carnal request. The answer which Jesus gives is also significant. It is the first indication coming from His own lips of His rejection, and for the first time in this Gospel He speaks of Himself as “Son of Man.” This title belongs to Him both in His rejection and in His exaltation. Of course, here it refers to His rejection. The words, “The foxes have holes and the birds of the heaven roosting places, but the Son of Man has not where He may lay His head,” are generally taken to refer to His extreme earthly poverty. This is certainly correct. He who was rich became poor, that we might by His poverty become rich. He who is the creator of all things came into the earth and made a little lower than the angels, which He had created, took the place of dependence in lowliness. The Book of Psalms, which so fully reveals Him, the Son of Man, in His rejection as well as in His glory, records His voice as He would speak and as He did speak in the earth. There we read that He says: I am weak, I am weary from groaning, I am poor and needy, I am a worm and no man, I am poured out like water, I am poor and sorrowful, I am like a pelican of the wilderness, I am a sparrow alone, etc. But this word of our Lord speaks also of His death, though it is in the 16th chapter, after Peter’s confession, He reveals to His disciples fully the fact of His rejection, suffering, death, resurrection and coming again as Son of Man. The foxes have places where they find shelter when the hunters seek their lives, so have the birds roosting places where they are safe, but for the Son of Man there was to be no refuge; He came to die the death on the cross.

Many there are still who speak of “following Jesus.” What has not the flesh attempted in this direction! Some went into poverty to be as poor as He was and others tried to follow Him in His life and walk as Jesus of Nazareth, ever speaking of His earthly life as an example and of “character building” (a phrase so prominent in modern preaching), as if the flesh could ever be anything but flesh. The true “follow me” and the connection of him who has believed with the Lord in death and resurrection, is but little known and understood.

Then comes one who is a disciple. In Luke we read that the Lord spoke to him first. He called him as His disciple. Here we read, “But another of His disciples said to Him, Lord, suffer me first to go away and bury my father. But Jesus said to him, Follow me, and leave the dead to bury their own dead.” The Lord who calls asks absolute obedience. He is the first and all earthly connections are to cease. How reluctant to follow the call; how often the disciple, the believer, who is the Lord’s when there is the call to service from the Lord, says, “Suffer me first.” Some earthly thing, a certain occupation, an earthly relationship intrudes itself between the calling Lord and His disciple. Oh, for more and greater devotedness to Him, whose we are and who is our Saviour and Lord. May we be loosed from all earthly bondage and “let the dead bury their dead.”

“And He went on board ship and His disciples followed Him; and behold, the water became very agitated on the sea, so that the ship was covered by the waves; but He slept. And the disciples came and awoke Him, saying, Lord, save: we perish. And He says to them, Why are ye fearful, O ye of little faith? Then having arisen, He rebuked the winds and the sea, and there was a great calm. But the men were astonished saying, What sort of man is this, that even the winds and the sea obey Him” (Mat 8:23-28).

“He maketh the storm a calm, so that the waves thereof are still” (Psa 107:28). The “He,” who created the sea was in that ship upon the stormy sea and rose in His power and rebuked (what a word!) the winds and the sea. How suggestive it all is. He had asked devotedness and obedience of His disciples and now He shows them that He is with them and in the midst of storm and waves they are secure and are kept and saved by His power. He slept. What calm and rest was His in the midst of the turbulent element when the disciples were threatened with disaster and death. And such rest is the rest of faith. How slow we are to learn it, the simple lesson “Be anxious for nothing.” It is impossible for the flesh. Though the Lord may have sent deliverance a thousand times, whenever a new trial of faith comes, whenever a new storm arises and tribulation is before us, the flesh will always fear and tremble in unbelief. But how blessed the assurance that in the midst of all the waves and roaring, in all the attacks of Satan and the world, in all trials and adversities, we are secure, eternally secure. We can never perish. “All things work together for good to those who love God, who are called according to purpose;” and therefore “we glory in tribulations.” And the disciples with their unbelieving appeals and cries, how often we have been like them! Instead of looking to Him, who is Lord and our Lord, we looked to circumstances and cried for help where faith should have looked in rest and silence to Him, who doeth all things well. But where could we stop with the lessons and different applications of this scene! The world and the age, this present evil age, is represented by the sea and His own are upon it, so fearful and of little faith. As He arose then, so will He rise again and will rebuke in His majesty as Son of Man the winds and the sea. We speak not only of the blessed fact that in our own lives and experiences He does now often rebuke the winds and the sea, but of His coming again. Then and only then will be “a great calm.”

Coming to the other side He is met in the country of the Gergesenes by two possessed by demons, coming out of the tombs, the place of death, exceedingly dangerous, so that no one was able to pass by that way. They could not be bound, not even with chains and they cut themselves with stones (Mar 5:1-7). Not one demon, but many demons had entered into them; their name in one of them was Legion (Luk 8:30). What awful witnesses, these naked, bleeding, raving and tearing demoniacs were of the body and soul destroying power of the enemy. When our Lord appeared in the land the evil one had by the demons taken possession of large numbers of people and was driving them on to perdition. It will even be worse before His return. Satan and his angels will be cast out into the earth and his angels with him. This will be during the great tribulation. And even now those possessed by demons are continually increasing. The ever changing, as well as new forms, of insanity, many of them at least, if not all, must be connected with the influence of these evil spirits. The so-called “mediums” of Spiritism and adepts in occult “sciences” are undoubtedly demon-possessed. Surely our days, the days long ago predicted, are the latter times in which some apostatize from the faith, giving their mind (it is the mind where these evil workings begin) to deceiving spirits and teachings of demons (1Ti 4:1). And opening the soul to the deceiving spirits and teachings of demons means their dreadful entering in and taking full possession. We cannot follow here this dark theme, much as it is needed in our days. And, He, the Son of God has come to destroy the works of the Devil, and through death annul him, who has the might of death, that is, the Devil. And here the demons confess Him, that He is Son of God. “And behold they cried out, saying, What have we to do with thee, Son of God? Hast thou come here before the time to torment us?” It is the first confession of Him as Son of God we have in the Gospel. They give Him His right title. The demons believe and tremble (Jas 2:19). They see and know Him as their future Judge, but they argue that the right moment for the punishment is not yet. The knowledge of the demons according to this is threefold: They know Him as Son of God, as their Judge and that the judgment will take place at a certain time. But Satan with his lies drives his countless victims on in unbelief to deny every one of these facts that Christ is Son of God and the Judge, and the most striking thing is that the father of lies succeeds to put himself down as a myth.

He shows Himself next as the one who has power over these demons and that they may well fear Him. They cried out and then asked, “If thou cast us out send us away into the herd of swine.” He said: “Go!” What power over these legions is His! Can they ever touch Him or harm Him? No, never! And Son of God, declared by resurrection from the dead as all power in heaven and in earth and the day will be when all things shall be subjected under His feet. Then “at the name of Jesus every knee will bow, of heavenly and earthly and infernal beings.” And we are linked with Him, His victory is ours, we too can triumph over these evil beings. Thanks be to God who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. “For the rest brethren, be strong in the Lord, in the might of His strength. Put on the panoply of God, that ye may be able to stand against the artifices of the Devil; because our struggle is not against blood and flesh, but against principalities, against authorities, against the universal lords of this darkness, against spiritual power of wickedness in the heavenlies” (Eph 6:10-13).

“And they, going out, departed into the herd of swine; and lo, the whole herd of swine rushed down the steep slope into the sea, and died in the waters.” This has puzzled not a few readers of the Word. We may explain it from the dispensational side. The deliverance of the two possessed typifies the deliverance of the Jewish remnant, the apostate part of the Jewish nations is foreshadowed in the swine and they will rush on into the waters, representing judgment.

The account in Mark and Luke goes into details, showing each one of the delivered victims in their right mind. In the end of the chapter we hear that the whole city went out to meet Jesus, and when they met Him, they begged Him to go away out of their coasts. They feared perhaps the loss of other possessions, and rather have the earthly things and the swine, than the Lord. What Satanic blindness! He, the evil one, is seen here in the manifestation of His power in another form. Strange that they should be afraid of Him who is the deliverer! But Satan had completely blinded them. And as we look back over what we were, we can praise our God for such deliverance from such an enemy, for we were dead in offences and sins in which we once walked according to the age of this world, according to the ruler of the authority of the air, the spirit who works now in the sons of obedience (Eph 2:1-22).

Arno C. Gaebelein, The Annotated Bible (1913–1922) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Mat 8:1-4

Jesus and Imperfect Faith.

I. Notice the leper’s appeal to Christ. This appeal, as every other, must have had some manner of faith to rest upon. The leper believed in a healing virtue nigh at hand. When you think of this and all it involves, you will discover this faith to be by no means ordinary. He had been sadly conscious of his leprosy; he could find neither relief from the physician nor consolation from the theologian, and was therefore fastened within his leprous self by the hand of a hard and unrelenting fate. For him, then, to believe in any healing possible to him was to exercise the faith that overcometh the world, and the world which he had to overcome was a hard unsympathetic world. In the presence of the Christ this possibility flashed on and through his spirit. He believed, and therefore spoke.

II. Christ’s answer to this appeal. When the leper said, "If thou wilt," he narrowed his appeal and directed it to the will of Jesus. His faith in Christ’s power was very much stronger than his faith in His goodness. It contained much that was true, but did not contain much more that was equally true. Christ answered not according to the imperfection of the appeal, but according to its possibility of being perfected. And He touched him. He might have healed him, perhaps, without that touch; but He touched him. When, we may wonder, had that man been touched before? The leper could not forget the touch of that hand. Neither can you and I forget that the Christ has touched us, and touched us in all our possibilities. There is nothing peaceful within us which He has not touched and made still by the touch; neither is there anything painful without the impress of His hand. The deepest of our wounds has been probed by Him, and He confidently assures us of being finally healed.

J. O. Davies, Sunrise on the Soul, p. 21.

References: Mat 8:1-4.—Homiletic Quarterly, vol. 1, p. 54; Parker, Inner Life of Christ, vol. ii., p. 2. Mat 8:1-9.—Homiletic Quarterly, vol. i., p. 344. Mat 8:1-13.—Clergyman’s Magazine, vol. ii., p. 21. Mat 8:2.—Homiletic Quarterly, vol. v., p. 182. Mat 8:2, Mat 8:3.—G. Huntington, Sermons for Holy Seasons, vol. i., p. 47.

Mat 8:3

Notice in Christ’s touch of the sick—

I. His fixing and confirming faith in Himself, the Healer. It is in condescension to human weakness that He lays His hands on diseased folk; we believe in little that we cannot see. Pain and sickness are so sensible that we look for equally sensible tokens of the energy of the restorer. Christ came into the world to heal sicknesses; and faith in Him, as Healer, was essential to the cure. By His touch He fixed men’s thoughts upon Himself; this was the pledge of healing by which He stimulated and confirmed their faith.

II. His answer to our craving for sympathy. Christ’s ability to cure would have been the same, though He had never touched a sick person of them all; but the weary multitudes would not have sought to be taken to Him. A very little thing was this touch, even as an indication of kindly purpose; but it was just the little thing that a sensitive sick man needed.

III. The symbol of His bearing our infirmities and carrying our sins. He "touched" our nature in all its pollution. He shrank not from it, but took it upon Himself, and bore its shame and suffering. A thousand will subscribe to a hospital, for one who will live with the idiot or deformed; a thousand will pay the doctor and the nurse, for one who will enter the cottage of the squalid sick and spend one night there. It needs much schooling of self to suppress the instinct of revolt at sickness hideously before us. Turn now and read of Christ, that He touched the sick and healed them. You will see that in His dealing with bodily diseases He did but symbolize how entirely He had taken human sinfulness to Himself.

A. Mackennal, Christ’s Healing Touch, p. 1.

References: Mat 8:3.—Clergyman’s Magazine, vol. xiv., p. 18; H. J. Wilmot-Buxton, The Life of Duty, vol. i., p. 75; J. Keble, Sermons for Christmas and Epiphany, p. 463. Mat 8:5.—J. W. Burgon, Ninety-one Short Sermons, p. 17. Mat 8:5-12.—Homiletic Quarterly, vol. i., p. 54. Mat 8:5-13.—Parker, Inner Life of Christ, vol. ii., p. 12; Clergyman’s Magazine, vol. iii., p. 211; Ibid., vol. xii., p. 25. Mat 8:5-14.—Outline Sermons to Children, p. 116. Mat 8:7.—G. Matheson, Moments on the Mount, p. 147; Spurgeon, My Sermon Notes: Gospels and Acts, p. 18. Mat 8:7, Mat 8:13.—Ibid., Sermons, vol. xxiv., No. 1,422.

Mat 8:8

Several features of the character of this centurion are worthy of all imitation.

Notice:—

I. His singular care for his slave. We know something of the hardening effects of slavery in the United States of America. But, as the greatest of Roman historians (Mommsen) tells us, African slavery is a mere drop in the ocean in comparison with the horrors of slavery in the old Roman empire. Even so tender-hearted and amiable a man as Cicero once blushed and offered an abject apology because he so far forgot himself as to feel a twinge of regret at the painful death of a slave. It was in this corrupt and horrible atmosphere that this man cared for his slave; and I know nothing that is more noble, more indicative of the Godlike man, than a proper courtesy and thoughtfulness and a disinterested and unselfish care for those who are our social inferiors.

II. This man, who cared in so divine a way for the health even of his slave, had a regard for religion; and these two things generally go together.

III. Mark the centurion’s beautiful humility. He felt that he was unworthy that one so good and great as Christ should come under his roof; and so, as Augustine well said, in his characteristic way, accounting himself unworthy that Christ should enter into his doors, he was counted worthy that Christ should enter into his heart.

IV. This Roman soldier teaches us the great practical crowning lesson of being satisfied with the word of Christ. We need nothing but the word of Christ; for the word of Christ is not like the word of an impotent man, that falls helpless to the ground. It is mighty; the omnipotence of God is in it. The only lifeboat in this wide sea is the word of Christ. The only safe anchorage is the word of Christ. The only enduring thing is the word of Christ.

H. Price Hughes, Christian World Pulpit, vol. xxvii., p. 113.

References: Mat 8:8.—W. F. Hook, Sermons on the Miracles, vol. i., p. 158; J. N. Norton, Golden Truths, p. 82. Mat 8:8, Mat 8:9.—Expositor, 2nd series, vol. vi., p. 161. Mat 8:9-13.—W. Hay Aitken, Mission Sermons, 3rd series, p. 182.

Mat 8:10

I. Observe how this man got his faith, how it came to him. It came not in the midst of spiritual privilege, but in the midst of common life. Nay, more than this, it came from that particular field of common life which was his own. It came from his professional life as a soldier. To see the poetic side of discipline is not given to all; but to see the spiritual side is given to still fewer. And it was just this spiritual element which had been revealed to the Roman centurion. In the discharge of his daily professional duty, in the reception and transmission of the brief word of command, he could see the emblem of Divine power—power instantaneous, wholly effective, incapable of being thwarted or baffled, when once executed absolutely irreversible. And so, now, when a servant who was dear to him seemed at the point of death, he brought, as it were, his disciplined spiritual instincts into battle array. He had heard enough of Jesus to assure him of His love and power. His faith, trained as we have tried to imagine, would do the rest.

II. Note the fact that Jesus marvelled. Why did He marvel? You answer, Because the man was a Gentile. By comparison little had been given to him. He had had, as we should say, but few spiritual advantages. He had not from his youth known the true God. He had not from a child known the Holy Scriptures, or been brought up in instincts of worship, with saints and prophets and friends of God standing out in the sacred background of the distant past. And yet he was found meet for the kingdom of God. His faith was wonderful, a marvel even to Him who had given it.

III. What, after all, was the essence of the centurion’s faith? It was faith, we must remember, in an early and elementary stage. We must not expect to find the faith of a Paul or an Augustine—the faith that removes mountains, the faith that overcomes the pollutions of the world. It was a belief in Christ’s unlimited power to heal. "Speak the word only, and my servant shall be healed."

H. M. Butler, Cambridge Review, January 27th, 1886.

Mat 8:10

(with Mar 6:6)

Two Marvels—Faith and Unbelief.

I. Look first at some of the things which may lead us to marvel both at faith and at unbelief. (1) Our own nature. (2) The Bible. (3) The course of life and its events.

II. Notice some principles by which we may be helped to a decision. (1) The first thing to be realized is that God’s plan of impressing spiritual truths is not by demonstration. (2) To reach a decision in faith, we should look at things in their full breadth and in their practical bearing. (3) To have faith raised to certainty we must find it in the life.

J. Ker, Sermons, 2nd series, p. 83.

References: Mat 8:10.—Spurgeon, Sermons, vol. xvi., No. 936; Homiletic Quarterly, vol. ii., p. 262; Preacher’s Monthly, vol. iv., p. 47; F. W. Robertson, Sermons, 2nd series, p. 114; J. Keble, Sermons for Christmas and Epiphany, p. 451; C. Girdlestone, Twenty Parochial Sermons, 1st series, p. 103.

Mat 8:11

Faith the title for justification. Hearing and believing—that is, knowing, confessing, and asking—give us under the covenant of grace a title; nay, are the sole necessary right and title to receive the gifts purchased for us by our Lord Jesus Christ on the cross. And now observe what this does not imply.

I. It does not imply anything about the time or mode of our justification. Faith in the general scheme of the Gospel is what their very birth and origin is in the particular case of the children of Christians. It constitutes a claim in our case that we should be made Christians; it is an evidence, an inward spiritual token from God, that He means us to be made Christians; it is a promise from Him who is the Author and Finisher of our faith, that He means us, that He wills us, to be Christians. Him whom God gifts with faith will He also in due time gift with evangelical, justifying grace; but the first gift does not give the second gift, it does not involve it, it does not prepare for it; it does but constitute a title to it. A title is one thing, possession is another.

II. This becomes still more clear on considering that, whereas faith is in some passages made the means of gaining acceptance, prayer is in other places spoken of as the means; and, moreover, prayer is evidently the expression of faith, so that whatever is true of prayer is true of faith also. Now it is too plain to insist upon, that though success is certainly promised to prayer in the event, yet the time of succeeding is not promised; and, so far from its being immediate, we are expressly told to pray again and again, to continue instant in prayer, in order to succeed.

III. This is made a matter of certainty by the instances we find in the New Testament of justification by faith. We find that faith was not thought enough, but was made to lead on to other conditions. He who has the means of hearing the Gospel, and believes in it heartily, has not a means of gaining, but a title to receive, justification; he has within him a warrant, not that God has justified him, but that He will justify him.

J. H. Newman, Parochial and Plain Sermons, vol. vi., p. 153.

Mat 8:11-12

I. There ought to have been nothing which startled the Jews in the first part of this announcement. The name of Abraham ought to have recalled to them the covenant on which their nation stood. That covenant would have told them of a blessing to all the earth. But they had never understood what the blessing was which they had inherited, and which the families of the earth were to share with them. The Gospel of Christ’s kingdom was a sentence upon those who had imagined another kingdom for themselves. The news of salvation to the world was the judgment upon those who counted the salvation of the world a loss and curse to them.

II. The light of the world shines forth upon mankind. Those who should hail it and spread it through the world are scared by it—fly from it, hate it. Either they must establish their reign of darkness, or the light must prove itself stronger than they arc. It does prove stronger; therefore they are left to the darkness which they have chosen. It is outer darkness; it lies outside of God’s kingdom, outside of humanity. God’s order has banished it. The Word made flesh and dwelling among men opened to men a kingdom of righteousness, peace, joy; showed them how with their spirits they might enter into it; promised them the Spirit of His Father—the Spirit who had dwelt without measure in Him—that they might enter into it. The Word came to His own, and His own received Him not. They did not confess Him as the Lord of their spirits; they saw in Him only the carpenter’s son. And so more and more the invisible world became utterly obscure to them; they could perceive only that which their senses presented to them. And so more and more those great possessions of which the senses can take no account—justice, love, truth—the eternal, substantial, universal treasures, which the hearts of holy men felt that they must have or perish, were withdrawn from the apprehension of the chosen people; they became as though they were not. Shadows took their place; they passed into shadows. Then came the hubbub of parties, a Babel of unintelligible sounds, nothing clear but the passion and fury which were trying to express themselves, and which, since words proved so ineffectual, must seek for other weapons.

F. D. Maurice, Sermons, vol. iii., p. 69.

References: Mat 8:11, Mat 8:12.—Spurgeon, Sermons, vol. i., Nos. 39, 40. Mat 8:13.—Ibid., vol. xxiv., No. 1422; J. Edmunds, Sixty Sermons, p. 123; C. Girdlestone, Twenty Parochial Sermons, 1st series, p. 119; H. P. Liddon, Christian World Pulpit, vol. xxii., p. 97; R. D. B. Rawnsley, Village Sermons, 3rd series, p. 33. Mat 8:14, Mat 8:15.—Spurgeon, Sermons, vol. xxxi., No. 1836; G. Macdonald, The Miracles of our Lord, p. 25. Mat 8:14-17.—Parker, Inner Life of Christ, vol. ii., p. 21. Mat 8:16.—Preacher’s Monthly, vol. x., p. 49. Mat 8:16, Mat 8:17.—A. B. Bruce, The Training of the Twelve, p. 48; C. C. Bartholomew, Sermons Chiefly Practical, p. 417. Mat 8:17.—J. Thain Davidson, Catholic Sermons, p. 49. Mat 8:18-22.—J. O. Davies, Sunrise on the Soul, p. 55; Parker, Inner Life of Christ, vol. ii., p. 30. Mat 8:19-22.—H. W. Beecher, Christian World Pulpit, vol. iii., p. 123.

Mat 8:22

It was the answer of our Lord to one of His disciples, possibly as an old tradition tells us, to the Apostle Philip, who, before following Him, wished to go and bury his father. The extreme urgency of the command is plain, nor is its meaning mistakable: "Thou art living in a world of natural and of spiritual death; thou art called to a kingdom of life. Let the spiritually dead bury the physically dead. Follow thou Me."

I. And whither then must we follow Christ? In spirit, if not in letter. We must follow Him along the road He trod on earth; and that was a road of self-abnegation, of poverty, of homelessness, of the base man’s hatred and the proud man’s scorn. Let us not disguise it; it is no primrose path of dalliance, but a hard road—hard and yet happy; and all the highest and the noblest of earth have trodden it—all who have regarded the things eternal, not as things future, but merely as the unseen realities about them now. If we would follow Christ, we must shake off the baser objects of earthly desire as nothing better than the dust which gathers upon the cerements of mortality. So Christ taught us, and so He lived.

II. First then in self-denial; and secondly, you must follow Christ on the road of toil. It is not possible to misread lessons so clear and so heart-searching as those of the two sons and the labourers in the vineyard, and the unprofitable servant, and the stern apologue of the barren trees. It was the first law of Eden, "Work;" and though the work was changed to toil by a penal decree, even that toil by faithful obedience has been transformed into an honour and a blessing. It is, as St. Chrysostom calls it, "a bitter arrow from the gentle hand of God." But then the work must be approached in a right spirit, must be work in God’s vineyard and work for God.

III. He who would follow Christ must not only follow Him on the path of self-denial and labour, but must also follow Him in the strength of enthusiasm, must be baptized with the Holy Ghost and with fire. And herein, too, he must let the dead bury their dead. For the dead of this world hate this fiery spirit. "Above all, no zeal," said the witty, crafty, successful statesman. "Fervent in spirit," said St. Paul; or, as it should be rather rendered, "Boiling in spirit." It was not the word of a fastidious atheist or long-robed Pharisee; but rather one of those words that were thunders—one of the words that have hands and feet. And never was it more needed than now, for never more than now did the world hate enthusiasm, and never was it more certain that by a noble enthusiasm it can alone be saved.

F. W. Farrar, The Fall of Man, p. 55.

I. "Lord, suffer me first." That is the cry of nature. "First suffer me to be disappointed, and then I will follow Thee; first build my house upon the sand, and then I will come, O Rock, to Thee. First worship and waste my affections on the clay, and then I will come to Thee. Suffer me first." But Jesus answered, "Follow thou Me." (1) Follow Me. I am Life, and you seek life; but then you have only death; as long as you linger there, you do but seek the living among the dead. Let your eyes follow Me from the place of graves. (2) Follow Me. You seek love, and here nothing loves you; that which loved you has gone, and if you would regain what loved you you must follow Me. (3) Follow Me; I am the only Life; I am the only Master of the kingdom of life; I am the Way to the life.

II. Thus the great lesson our Lord intended to preach was even this: Life is not a complaint, but an action; it is not to be spent in grieving, but in doing. Life is in action, in following more than in musing. The music of the harp is beautiful, but that has not served the world so well as the music of the hammer. The past should not be a tombstone, but a garden—a place in which we bury, so that the buried may bloom.

III. It is only in our own hearts that we can find the verdict as to the sentiments with which we should regard the dead. I believe the highest love is furthest removed from the storm of passionate grief, because love is a prophecy; so I would say, Love your friends more, and you will grieve less. These words were an invocation from a living to a dead dispensation—from dead ceremonies and observances. "I am the Life." To these also might Christ have said, as He said under other circumstances, "If ye seek Me, let these go their way."

E. Paxton Hood, Sermons, p. 284.

References: Mat 8:22.—H. W. Beecher, Christian World Pulpit, vol. iv., p. 145; Ibid., Plymouth Pulpit Sermons, 10th series, p. 407.

Mat 8:23-27

The Stilling of the Tempest.

I. "Behold, there arose a great tempest in the sea." A sudden and violent squall, such as these small inland seas, surrounded with mountain gorges, are notoriously exposed to, descended on the bosom of the lake; and the ship which bore the Saviour of the world appeared to be in imminent peril. But though the danger was so real, and was ever growing more urgent, "until the waves beat into the ship, so that it was now full," their Master, weary and worn out with the toils of the day, continued sleeping still. The disciples may have hesitated long before they ventured to arouse Him; yet, at last, the extremity of the peril overcame their hesitation, and they did so, not without exclamations of haste and terror, as is evidenced by the double "Master, Master," of St. Luke.

II. "He arose, and rebuked the winds and the sea." Cæsar’s confidence that the barque which contained him and his fortunes could not sink forms an earthly counterpart to the heavenly calmness and confidence of the Lord. In the hour of her wildest uproar Nature knew the voice of Him who was her rightful Lord, and gladly returned to her allegiance to Him, and in this to her place of proper service to that race of which He had become the Head, and whose lost prerogatives He was reclaiming and reasserting once more. The chief ethical purpose of our Lord was to lead His disciples into thoughts ever higher and more awful of that Lord whom they served, more and more to teach them that in nearness to Him was safety and deliverance from every danger. The danger which exercised should likewise strengthen their faith, and they indeed had need of a mighty faith, since God, in St. Chrysostom’s words, had chosen them to be the athletes of the world.

III. The sea is evermore in Scripture the symbol of the restless and sinful world. As Noah and his family, the kernel of the whole humanity, were once contained in the ark tossed on the waters of the deluge, so the kernel of the new humanity, of the new creation, Christ and His apostles, in this little ship. And the Church of Christ has evermore resembled this tempested barque, the waves of the world raging horribly around it, yet never prevailing to overwhelm it, and this because Christ is in it.

R. C. Trench, Notes on the Miracles, p. 152.

References: Mat 8:23.—Homiletic Quarterly, vol. i., p. 392. Mat 8:23-27.—Parker, Inner Life of Christ, vol. ii., p. 39; S. Cox, An Expositor’s Notebook, p. 314. Mat 8:23-34.—Clergyman’s Magazine, vol. ii., p. 25; W. F. Hook, Sermons on the Miracles, vol. i., p. 207. Mat 8:24.—Preacher’s Monthly, vol. vii., p. 91. Mat 8:25.—J. Keble, Sermons from Advent to Christmas Eve, p. 272.

Mat 8:26

The paragraph before us has two parts. At first sight they are not distinct only—they are incongruous. When you study them you see the harmony. Both represent Christ as the Restorer and Tranquillizer. The scenery of the two manifestations is widely different. The one is a storm at sea, the other a storm in the soul. But Christ manifests Himself in each of them; in each, when He manifests Himself, there is a great calm.

I. Christ, for proof’s sake, for evidence’ sake, brought on this occasion order out of confusion and calm out of storm, proving Himself the Lord of nature here in her disorders, as elsewhere in her diseases. Thus He showed himself the Master of our life as we live it—a life of conflict and buffeting; as with stubborn elements, so with adverse circumstances, and so with warring passions. He who is omnipotent over these actualities is omnipotent over all. Christ came not to make the outward world calm, whether the world of elements or the world of circumstances. But He came, first, to show Himself by many infallible proofs supreme even over these; and He came, secondly, to introduce an inward peace at once into all these confusions. He saves, not by taking us out of difficulty, but by making us in our weakness strangely strong; not by smoothing the circumstances, but by fortifying the soul—infusing grace at the moment, and pointing to an indestructible peace beyond.

II. Thus the second half of the narrative falls into entire unity with the first. Christ in the miracles of dispossession manifests Himself as supreme over spiritual disorder. That very incident, with which the insolence of infidelity can make merry, of the destruction of the swine, is intended to set in the strongest light the completeness of the dispossession—intended to say this to us: Evil is no part of you; if it were, your case would be past hope. Evil is an alien, an invader, a usurper of humanity. As yet it may be severed, separated, divorced from us, by the power of Christ and the Spirit, so that it shall be there and we here—it "gone to its own place," in swine, sea, or abyss; and we sitting at the feet of Jesus, clothed and in our right mind.

C. J. Vaughan, Words of Hope, p. 101.

Mat 8:26

I. The storm-beaten boat on the lake is a type of our lives. For every one of us there are times when there ariseth a great tempest. The storm of sorrow sweeps over our home. We open the letter which tells us of commercial ruin; or we see some one very dear to us snatched away by death; or we ourselves are laid upon a sick-bed. Then, in that time of tempest, when the waves seem to go even over our soul, we must not be fearful. Let us, as Christians, remember that the ship in which we must cross the waves of this troublesome world is the ship of the Church, and that it carries Jesus. Take, then, as our first lesson from the text, that we must not be fearful in time of danger.

II. We must not be fearful in the storm of every-day life. We need courage for every day we live, with its countless trials, temptations, and worries. There needs, for example, "the common courage to be honest, the courage to resist temptation, the courage to speak the truth, the courage to be what we really are, and not to pretend to be what we are not, the courage to live honestly within our own means, and not dishonestly upon the means of others." If only we can feel that we have perfect faith in Jesus being with us, and that we are humbly trying to do our duty, we need fear no evil.

H. J. Wilmot-Buxton, The Life of Duty, vol. i., p. 83.

I. Constrained by Christ to embark, the Christian man, the Christian family, the Christian nation, tempts the wide waste of this world’s waters. With them and among them is He Himself, dwelling in the heart by faith—in the midst of every two or three who are assembled in His name—found of them that seek Him. And for a while, and as long as danger is only in prospect, we feel and rest on this. "God is our hope and strength," we say; "therefore we will not fear." But this our every-day trust will not do for all times. In each man’s life there are storms. The waves beat into his ship and threaten to sink it. The very present help of his God seems to have forsaken him. Well for him if even in this infirmity he flies to the apostles’ remedy, and calls upon Him who slumbers not indeed, but yet will be sought by prayer with, "Save us, Lord; we perish."

II. With the Christian family the case is similar. The voyage is not without danger and loss. In some unlooked-for shape, from some unexpected quarter, does the storm descend and the waves beat in, and the vessel seems ready to sink. Let such fly to Him in prayer, who has never forgotten them. He can make a peace, even in mourning, which passeth all understanding.

III. And the Christian nation goes on its course likewise, a vessel bound across the waste of waters, in obedience to Him who Himself is among and with the people that fear Him. There are fearful storms which befall nations, as well as families and individuals. In such cases there is but one course which the Christian citizen should take, and that course is prayer—prayer, earnest, importunate, unceasing. Your confidence has given way, your strength is small; but you have this one refuge left. Our God has not forgotten us—our Saviour slumbers not; but He loves to be called on by His faithful people, and designates Himself as One that heareth prayer. We do not value prayer enough as an element in our national prosperity. God hears and answers every desire of every earnest heart which is addressed to Him in His Son’s name.

H. Alford, Quebec Chapel Sermons, vol. v., p. 1.

References: Mat 8:26.—H. J. Wilmot-Buxton, The Life of Duty, vol. i., p. 83; B. F. Westcott, Expositor, 3rd series, vol. v., p. 466. Mat 8:27.—Spurgeon, Sermons, vol. xxviii., No. 1686; Homiletic Quarterly, vol. iv., p. 411.

Mat 8:28

Jesus and the Possessed.

I. Jesus was met with two possessed with devils. There is an evil and a good which we know to be not of ourselves. There is a devil and there is an angel to every man’s life, a tempter and a saviour, and he is now as he has yielded to the one or welcomed the other. Man must be passive before he can become positive, must take before he can give, and must have his becoming before he can have his being either for good or for bad. He is tempted before he sins, and is saved before he becomes virtuous. To be possessed of an unclean spirit is, in a very true sense, not to think aright. Evil spirits are not the idiosyncrasies of any one age, but have been common to all, not excepting our own. But evil is never seen save in the presence of the good, as darkness is not known except by its contrast with the light.

II. The two men were coming out of the tombs. These words suggest about as melancholy a picture as could be conceived. To be wrong in thought and feeling must at length lead to sorrow, and the sorrow may not be the transitory sorrow of the birth into the nobler life. The tombs were the homes of corruption, and the men lived among the tombs. The evil within man will ever seek that which is evil without him—evil companions, evil excitements, and evil ways.

III. They were exceeding fierce, so that no man might pass by that way. They seem to have been possessed of extraordinary physical powers. To have some powers developed at the expense of the others ought never to be a thing to be longed for. Let an evil thought usurp the mind and exercise its power there for long, and the moral nature will be dwarfed, the intellectual will be robbed of its strength and of its graces, and the man will become the victim of the ungovernable force which he has fostered, and the slave of the debasing passions over which he once thought himself the master. Nature in him will be divided against itself, and Satan will cast out Satan. And this will be a sufficient reason for driving him to the tombs. These were not strong men, but monsters; their energy was wild and unreasonable.

J. O. Davies, Sunrise on the Soul, p. 71.

References: Mat 8:28, Mat 8:29.—E. J. Hardy, Christian World Pulpit, vol. xxxi., p. 283; C. Girdlestone, A Course of Sermons, vol. i., p. 157.

Mat 8:28-34

I. Consider the casting out of the devils. (1) The Gospel narratives are distinctly pledged to the historic truth of these occurrences. Either they are true or the Gospels are false. (2) Nor can it be said that they represent the opinion of the time, and use words in accordance with it. This might have been difficult to answer, but that they not only give such expressions as "possessed with devils," and other like ones, but relate to us words spoken by the Lord Jesus, in which the personality and presence of the demons is distinctly implied. (See Luk 11:17-26.) (3) The question then arises—Granted the plain historical truth of possession, what was it? The demoniac was one whose being was strangely interpenetrated by one or more of those fallen spirits who are constantly asserted in the Scriptures to be the enemies and tempters of the souls of men. There appears to have been in him a double will and double consciousness—sometimes the cruel spirit thinking and speaking in him, sometimes his poor crushed self crying out to the Saviour of men for mercy; a terrible advantage taken, and a personal realization, by the malignant powers of evil, of the fierce struggle between sense and conscience in the man of morally divided life.

II. The entrance of the devils into the swine. (1) Of the reason of this permission we surely are not competent judges. Of this, however, we are sure—that if this granting of the request of the evil spirits helped in any way the cure of the men, caused them to resign their hold on them more easily, mitigated the paroxysm of their going forth, this would have been motive enough. (2) The fact itself raises a question in our minds which, though we cannot wholly answer, we may yet approximate to the solution of. How can we imagine the bestial nature capable of the reception of demoniac influence? If the unchecked indulgence of sensual appetite afforded an inlet for the powers of evil to possess the human demoniac, then we have their influence joined to that part of man’s nature which he has in common with the brutes that perish, the animal and sensual soul. We may thus conceive that the same animal and sensual soul in the brute may be receptive of similar demoniacal influence.

H. Alford, Family Treasury, 1878, p. 180

References: Mat 8:28-34.—Parker, Inner Life of Christ, vol. ii., p. 49. Mat 8:29.—H. W. Beecher, Sermons, 2nd series, p. 611; C. Kingsley, Village Sermons, p. 65. Mat 8:34.—G. Calthrop, Words Spoken to My Friends, p. 239; R. Heber, Parish Sermons, vol. i., p. 160; W. F. Hook, Sermons on the Miracles, vol. i., p. 225. Matt 8.—J. E. Vaux, Sermon Notes, 3rd series, p. 2.

The Sermon Bible, ed. William Robertson Nicoll (1888–1900) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

CHAPTER 28

JESUS HOMELESS

Mat 8:1-22, & Luk 9:57-62. “And it came to pass, they journeying on the way, a certain one said to Him, I will follow Thee whithersoever Thou mayest go, Lord; and Jesus said to him, The foxes have holes, and the birds of the air have nests, but the Son of man hath not where He may lay His head.” With the exception of the great Mediterranean plain, the plain of the Jordan, and many beautiful plains in the highlands, of which Esdraelon, between Mt. Gilead and the mountains of Gilboa, containing twelve thousand acres, is the largest, all Palestine consists of rich mountains, abounding in caves, dens, and holes. Hence it is a great place for wild animals, and especially the fox — i.e., the jackal — a larger species than the American. I saw a number of them in my travels. Hence the familiarity of the illustration. When our Lord was rejected at Nazareth, His native city, He migrated to Capernaum, on the northern coast of the Galilean Sea, and, as it is believed, made Peter’s house His home, as He says here, having none of his own. This was quite a bluff to the enthusiastic disciple, calculated to do him good by testing his faith. “And he said to another, Follow Me. And he said, Lord, permit me first, having gone away, to bury my father.” This is an Oriental expression, not altogether unheard of in this country; not signifying that the father was already dead, but was probably old, and this man felt it his duty to stay with him till he died. “And Jesus said unto him, Let the dead bury their dead; but having come away, preach the kingdom of God.” The Bible abounds in enigmatical statements in order to quicken our intellects and inspire investigation, much to our profit. The simple meaning of this statement is, “Let the spiritually dead bury the physically dead, and you come along and preach.” The sinners are always ready to bury the dead, and do it as well as we can, while they are utterly incompetent to the great and infinitely important work of preaching the gospel. “And another said, I will follow Thee, Lord; but first let me go and bid my home-folks adieu. And Jesus said to him, No one, putting his hand to the plow, and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God.” The plows in that country have but one handle. Consequently it is utterly impossible to run one of them in the right place and look back. We should all profit by this response. We have no time to waste in the useless ceremonies of paying a valedictory visit to the homefolks. One hundred thousand people die every day, as we fear most of them unprepared. O what a havoc is hell making on this poor lost world! So we have no time to wait, tinkering round home, bidding kindred and friends farewell. Write them a postal card that you are gone to Africa, and embark on the first ship.

William B. Godbey, Commentary on the New Testament (1896–1900) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Section 1. (Mat 8:1-17.)

His fore-known place.

In the first section, one of those dispensational pictures is presented to us such as we have already had in the second chapter. There it was impossible not to see in the Gentile magi coming up to worship a King of the Jews unknown in Jerusalem, the forecast of what was to come. In the present section after the leper has been healed, and sent in testimony to the priests, that they may themselves certify the divine power which is being displayed among them, the faith of a Gentile is declared by the Lord to be greater than any He has found in Israel. And thereupon He announces the coming in of the Gentiles into the Kingdom of God, while the sons of the Kingdom are cast out. Here we are left in no uncertainty, then, as to the larger meaning of what is before us. But the significance is not ended here: for in the healing of Peter’s mother-in-law we find Him healing by touch again as in the leper, Himself present therefore, while in the case of the centurion’s servant He heals at a distance, as in the present time. The touch assures us that here we have Him once more present as when He returns to Israel at a future time; while the healing of the sick of all kinds, with the reference to His human sympathy in the quotation from Isaiah, leads us out into a wider scene beyond. We seem to have Him thus in four different characters: as Son of God in the case of the leper; as Son of Abraham. in that of the centurion; as Israel’s Messiah; and as Son of man. He fills in all this His predicted place.

(1) The cure of leprosy seems to have been unknown in Israel. It was a condition that only God could reach. On this account it was the fitting type of the incurable nature of sin; and a fitting case with which to begin the Lord’s manifestation of Himself to Israel. We have seen that He could not take the Kingdom, except as the Son of God; and this was the character in which He was first of all rejected by the leaders of the people. Here He cures by a touch, which would have defiled another, and sends the healed man to the priest that he may certify the cure. But there is no response from this quarter, to which He appeals, as it were, alone, bidding the man tell it to no other. The clamor of a crowd would not have helped such an appeal, which would better be heard in the conscience as a case quietly submitted for their decision. But there is no response: Israel is dumb until her demon is cast out, and then only will she be a true witness to her glorious King.

(2) But here it is that the Gentile comes in; with a faith not found in Israel; and if the contrast with the case of the leper is plain; it is the more striking that in fact they occurred at different times* and are brought together for an evident purpose. Moreover Luke, whose Gospel is the only one that has this story besides Matthew, while giving details omitted by the latter, omits on his part the assurance to the believing Gentile of sitting down in the Kingdom of heaven, and the warning to the Jew of sons of the Kingdom being cast out, which the Jewish Gospel records. Humbling all this was to the pride of those to whom it was addressed; and because humbling, most needful, - the proud must be abased. On the other hand with the centurion there is the most thorough humility. He is not fit for Christ to come under his roof, but in this already we see the faith that animates him. As self is behind the back, the vision becomes unclouded, and thus he realizes in Him One whom all things serve. Yet Himself is come to serve and to serve such as have no worthiness - no fitness but in their need. Let Him speak the word then: every thing will do His bidding. He, the soldier, a man under authority, has yet his subordinates, the agents of his will, and knows how promptly his commands are executed. So, with a word, his servant shall be healed.

{*This can be seen by a comparison of the connections in the other gospels, where notes time are given. The healing of the centurion’s servant occurred after the sermon on mount (see Luk 7:1,) but that of the leper earlier, so that its introduction here is parenthetical. Mark evidently gives in general the historical order, while Matthew and Luke arrange and adapt for their purposes.}

The experience of the Lord’s delight has in it yet what gives rise to much grave question. Why should there be faith outside of Israel greater than any that could be found in Israel? Israel had every advantage in this respect that could have been given her. Do privileges neglected and misused tend to blight even the true faith that exists in the midst of an easy profession? When we speak approvingly of a "child-like" faith, do we not seem to mean that the faith of a man does not fulfil the promise of the child? that hardly it can be expected it should do so? If so, this surely cannot argue that a longer acquaintance with Christ will be unfavorable to development, or that there is inherent a principle of decay in faith that affects this: and if not, what else can it be that does so but the breath of the outside air, the world-atmosphere that is unfavorable to such an exotic as faith is? Yet "this is the victory that overcometh the world, even your faith!"

Without meaning to excuse it in this way, it cannot surely be doubted that the atmosphere of what may be truly called a "Christian world" is more detrimental to development than that of a heathen world would be; and that because a Christian world stands as the very ideal of compromise, and compromise has in it as a first element disloyalty to Christ and to His word. Here you are faced, not with what is openly nor even intentionally hostile to Christ, - what would put you on your guard, and rouse up in you all your power of resistance; no, you find in it truth owned, but not taken very seriously; you are to follow it, but not be too extreme about it. And how naturally we grow up just to the stature, morally or spiritually as even mentally, of the company we keep! how we read Scripture itself with such a traditional interpretation put upon it as is in this way acquired, until we lose capacity for taking it simply and straightforwardly, as it would necessarily appear to the faith of a child, or of one outside the current rendering.

Who can doubt that the large and miscellaneous Christendom about us also, like the Pharisaic, Sadducean; Herodian Judaism of our Lord’s time, is the greatest hindrance to true faith; and that the gospel is rendered so powerless as it is today, by the dead weight upon it of barren profession and the truth unfollowed and unfelt? The witnesses for Christ are just those who may be most terribly against Him, and who, however little they may mean it, can never be merely negative or neutral in their testimony.

I think we can scarcely help such an application of our Lord’s words as to the simple faith of the Gentile centurion in the midst of formal, ritualistic hollow-hearted Judaism. But how great a thing to give refreshment to the heart of Christ as this man did! And by it His soul looks out anticipatively to those gathering multitudes who from opposite quarters should come to sit down at the glad feast of welcome with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob in the Kingdom of heaven: - then, when "sons of the Kingdom," the claimants now of title to that for which they had no heart, would he cast into the outer darkness, whence God the Light would be withdrawn; into the awful unavailing weeping and gnashing of teeth.

Here the Seed of Abraham is very clearly revealed.

(3) The third miracle here, as may be seen by the account of it in both Mark and Luke, is again out of the order of time, and in fact took place before the cleansing of the leper. It must, therefore, be inserted in this place for a purpose, and we have already glanced at its significance in this respect. The Lord in this case once more heals by touch, - is Himself, therefore, personally present where He heals. Natural relationship also is owned, as we see in "Peter’s wife’s mother," and even in its being in the house, the place of relationship. No doubt, such references will be thought by some too minute and trivial to find meaning in them; but the mistake is in supposing anything in Scripture to have that character. We shall find elsewhere just such things with similar meaning and in important connections (Mat 13:1; Mat 13:36). By and by the Lord will thus come back (the fullness of the Gentiles having been brought in) into the sphere of His old relationships, to bring in healing for Israel of a deeper kind. The fever of the old life will then be subdued by His presence: He will say to the tumult of human passion; "Peace," and it shall be still; and Israel will arise in the strength of a new devotedness, to minister unto Him. That the scene here is a picture of this must be judged by its fitness to represent it and by the connection with all that goes before and follows. So judged, it seems to answer well to such a thought.

4 For Israel’s restoration will, it is certain; bring souls from every part, tormented with Satan’s tyranny to Him who has been her Deliverer; and the casting out of Satan will bring in the blessing of those millennial times, while the sympathizing pity of which Isaiah speaks, and which marks Him as true Son of man; will remove the results of sin of whatever character. The principle here will not allow of blessing limited to Israel, as in fact the Lord never did so limit it; and thus the widest, fullest out-flow may be indicated here.

This sketch, then, as a sort of title of all that follows, may well show us the Lord filling all His predicted place: Son of God, Seed of Abraham, Israel’s Messiah, Son of man. Mere picture it is not, but a display of personal characters that are found in Him, and this comes naturally in the first place, as the foundation of all else. The characters of the deliverance He brings come next, and in place as suited, and then, briefly, what is exceptional in Matthew, but needed for the full display of what He is, the presence of God is shown to be open to man; and His grace welcomes freely, the restrictions of the law set aside: the new wine is to be put into new bottles.

F. W. Grant, The Numerical Bible (4th ed., 1903) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Chapter 8

The Signs of the Kingdom - Mat_8:1-34 - Mat_9:1-35

REFERRING to Mat_4:23, we find the work of Christ at the beginning of His ministry summarised as teaching and preaching and healing all manner of diseases. Of the teaching and preaching we have had a signal illustration in what is called the Sermon on the Mount; now the other great branch of the work is set before us in a group of miracles, filling up almost the whole of the eighth and ninth chapters.

The naturalness of the sequence will be at once apparent. If men had needed nothing more than counsel, guidance, rules of life, then might the Gospel have ended when the Sermon on the Mount was concluded. There are those who think they need nothing more; but if they knew themselves they would feel their need not only of the Teachers word, but of the Healers touch, and would hail with gladness the chapters which tell how the Saviour dealt with the poor leper, the man with the palsy, the woman-with the fever, those poor creatures that were vexed with evil spirits, that dead damsel in the rulers house. We may well rejoice that the great Teacher came down from the mountain, and made Himself known on the plain and among the city crowds as the mighty Healer; that His stern demand for perfect righteousness was so soon followed by that encouraging word, so full of comfort, for such as we: "I came not to call the righteous, but sinners." {Mat_9:13} The healing, then, is quite as essential as the teaching. The Sermon points out the way, unfolds the truth; but in the touch and word of the King Himself is found the life. The Christ of God had come, not as a mere Ambassador from the court of heaven to demand submission to its laws, but as a mighty Saviour, Friend, and Comforter. Hence it was necessary that He should make full proof of His mission in this respect as well as in the other; and accordingly the noble ethics taught on the mount are followed by a series of heavenly deeds of power and lovingkindness done in the plain.

The group in chaps, 8. and 9. is well fitted to give a comprehensive view of Christs power and willingness to save. If only they were looked at in this intelligent way, how the paltry prejudices against "miracles" (a word, let it be observed, not once to be found in this Gospel) would vanish. Miracles, wonders, prodigies-how incredible in an age of enlightenment! Yes; if they were introduced as miracles, wonders, prodigies; but they are not.

They are signs of the kingdom of heaven-just such signs of it as the intelligent reason demands; for how otherwise is it possible for One Who comes to save to show that He is able to do it? How could the people have been expected to welcome Him as a Saviour, unless He had taken some means to make it evident that He had the power as well as the will to save? Accordingly, in consonance with what enlightened reason imperatively demands of such a One as He claims to be, we have a series of "mighty deeds" of love, showing forth, not only His grace, but His power-power to heal the diseases of the body, power over the realm of nature, power over the unseen world of spirit, power to forgive and save from sin, power to restore lost faculties and conquer death itself. Such are the appropriate signs of the kingdom spread before us here.

Let us look first at that which occupies the foremost place, - power to heal disease. The diseases of the body are the outward symptoms of the deep-seated malady of the spirit; hence it is fitting, that He should begin by showing in this region His will and power to save. Yet it is not a formal showing of it. It is no mere demonstration. He does not seek out the leper, set him up before them, and say, "Now you will see what I can do." All comes about in a most simple and natural way, as became Him Who was no wonder-worker, no worker of miracles in the vulgar use of that word, but a mighty Saviour from heaven with a heart of love and a hand of power.

THE LEPER. {Mat_8:1-4}

"And when He was come down from the mountain, great multitudes followed Him. And behold, there came to Him a leper." What will He do with him? Should He say to him, "Poor man, you are too late-the sermon is done?" or should He give him some of the best bits over again? No, there is not a sentence in the whole of it that would be any answer to that cry, "Lord, if Thou wilt, Thou canst make me clean." What does He do, then? "Jesus put forth His hand, and touched him, saying, I will: be thou clean. And immediately his leprosy was cleansed."

Is it, then, a great stumbling-block in your way, O nineteenth-century critic, that you are expected to believe that the Lord Jesus actually did heal this leper? Would it take the stumbling-block away to have it altered? Suppose we try it, amended to suit the "anti-supernaturalism" of the age. "And behold, there came a leper to Him, saying, Lord, if Thou wilt, Thou canst make me clean. And Jesus put out His hand, and motioned him away, saying, Poor man, you are quite mistaken, I cannot help you. I came to teach wise people, not to help poor wretches like you. There are great laws of health and disease; I advise you to find them out, and obey them: consult your doctor, and do the best you can. Farewell." Oh, what nonsense many wise people talk about the difficulty of believing in Divine power to heal! The fact is, that if Christ had not proved Himself a healer, men could not have believed in Him at all.

There could have been no better introduction to the saving work, of the Christ of God. Leprosy was of all diseases the most striking symbol of sin. This is so familiar a thought that it need not be set forth in detail. One point, however, must be mentioned, as it opens up a vein of tender beauty in the exquisite simplicity of the story-the rigorous separation of the leprous from the healthy, enforced by the ceremonial law, which made it defilement to touch a leper. Yet "Jesus stretched forth His hand, and touched him." "He was holy, harmless, undefiled, separate from sinners"; therefore He could mingle with them, contracting no stain Himself, but diffusing health around Him. He could take no defilement from the lepers touch; the current was all the other way: "virtue" went out of Him, and flowed in healing streams through the poor lepers veins. O lovely symbol of the Saviours relation to us sinners! He has in His holy Incarnation touched our leprous humanity; and remaining stainless Himself, has set flowing a fountain of healing for all who will open to Him hearts of faith and let Him touch them with His pure heart of love. Those were most wonderful words spoken on the mount: they touch the conscience to the quick and fire the soul with heavenly aspiration; but this touch of the leper goes to our hearts, for it proves to us that, though the time is coming when He shall sit as Judge and say to all the sinful, "Depart from Me," as yet He is the loving Saviour, saying, "Come unto Me, ye weary," and touching the leprous into health.

That our Saviour was totally averse to anything at all sensational, and determined rather to repress than encourage the mere thirst for marvels, is evident from the directions given to the leper to say nothing about what had happened to him, but to take the appointed method of giving thanks to God for his recovery, at the same time registering the fact, so that while his cure should not be used to gather a crowd, it might be on record with the proper authorities as a witness to the truth of which it was a sign.

THE CENTURIONS SERVANT. {Mat_8:5-13}

This case, while affording another valuable illustration of the Masters willingness and power to save, differs in several important points from the first, so that the lesson is widened. First and chiefly, the application was from a Gentile; next, it was not on his own behalf that the centurion made it, but on behalf of another, and that other his servant; and, further, it was a request to heal a patient out of sight, out of knowledge even. as it would seem. Each of these particulars might suggest a doubt. He has healed this Jew; but will He listen to that Gentile? He has responded to this mans own cry; but will He respond when there is no direct application from the patient? He has cured this man with a touch: but can he cure a patient miles away? The Saviour knew well the difficulties which must have lain in the way of this mans faith. He has evidence, moreover, that his is genuine faith, and not the credulity of superstition. One could readily imagine an ignorant person thinking that it made no difference whether the patient were present, or a thousand miles away: what difference does distance make to the mere magician? But this man is no ignorant believer in charms and incantations. He is an intelligent man, and has thought it all out. He has heard of the kingdom of heaven, and knows that this is the King. Reasoning from what he knows of the Roman kingdom, how orders given from a central authority can be despatched to the outskirts, and be executed there with as great certainty as if the Emperor himself had gone to do it, he concludes that the King of the spiritual world must in like manner have means of communication with every part of His dominion; and just as it was not necessary, even for a mere centurion, to do personally everything he wanted done, having it in his power to employ some servant to do it, so it was unreasonable to expect the King of heaven Himself to come in person and heal his servant: it was only necessary, therefore, that He should speak the word, and by some unseen agency the thing would be done. At once the Saviour recognises the mans thoughtful intelligence on the subject, and, contrasting with it the slowness of mind and heart of those of whom so much more might have been expected, "He marvelled, and said to them that followed, Verily I say unto you, I have not found so great faith, no, not in Israel."

The thought of this immediately suggests to Him the multitudes that shall exercise a similar faith in ages to come, and in lands far off; and, as on the mount, when He looked forward to the great future, His heart yearned over the mere hearers of the word shut out at last: so here He yearns with a great yearning over His unbelieving countrymen, whose exclusion at last from the heavenly kingdom would be felt with all the sharper pain that such multitudes from far less favoured lands were safe within - at home, with the patriarchs of the chosen nation - while they, the natural heirs of the kingdom, were exiles from it for evermore. Hence the wail and warning which follow His hearty appreciation of the centurions faith: "And I say unto you, that many shall come from the east and the west, and shall sit down with Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, in the kingdom of heaven: but the sons of the kingdom shall be cast forth into the outer darkness: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth."

How fared it with the centurions appeal? Was it any hindrance that he was a foreigner, that he made it not for himself but for a servant, and that the patient was so far away? None whatever. As he rightly judged, the King of heaven had resources in abundance to meet the case. Without the least hesitation, Jesus said to the centurion, "Go thy way: and as thou hast believed, so be it done unto thee. And his servant was healed in the selfsame hour."

THE FEVER PATIENT. {Mat_8:14-15}

The leprosy and palsy were symbols of sin wholly possessing its victims: the one suggestive of the state of those who are positively defiled by sin, the other of the condition of those who, though sound to all outward appearance, are simply wanting in inward life, paralysed in that part of their being which constitutes life. These two cases, then, were most suitable for setting forth the saving power of the Christ of God as regards the unconverted, be they Jew or Gentile. This third cure is within the circle of the disciples. It is a case of fever in the home of Peter. It therefore fitly suggests the diseases to which those are still liable who have come to Christ and been healed of their leprosy or palsy, the chronic disease which defiled or paralysed them in time past; but who are still liable to contagion, still exposed to attacks of fever, acute diseases which, though temporary, are most dangerous, and, just as certainly as the others, need the touch of the Great Physician for their healing. These fevers separate us from Christ and unfit us for His service; but they need not continue to do this, for if only we allow Him to enter the house and touch us, the fever will cease; and, like this patient in the home of Peter, we may at once arise and minister unto Him.

The three specific cases which have been so appropriately selected and given in detail are followed by a general enumeration of a number of similar ones dealt with in like manner, "when the even was come" - the whole experience of that eventful day leading to the joyful recognition of the fulfilment of a grand prophetic word spoken long ago of the Messiah that was to come: "Himself took our infirmities, and bare our sicknesses."

The quotation is most suggestive. It raises the question of our Lords personal relation to disease. We have seen reason to believe that disease could not contaminate His holy flesh; and certainly we never read of His suffering from any sickness of His own. Did He then know nothing personally of disease and fleshly infirmity? If not, how could He be tempted in all points like as we are? The solution seems to lie in this most interesting quotation. It is not a literal citation from the Septuagint, but it is a thoroughly fair and true reproduction of the idea of the prophet; and it clearly suggests to the mind that the Christs relation to human sickness was of the same kind as His relation to human sin. Though personally He had no sin, yet "He was made sin for us," so that He felt the intolerable weight pressing Him down as in the garden, and the awful darkness wrapping Him round as on the cross. In the same way, even though His flesh may never actually have been subjected to physical disease, He nevertheless could not remove diseases from others without bearing them Himself. Ah! it cost Him far more than we are apt to think, to say, "I will, be thou clean." It was only by the sacrifice of His life that He could take away the sin of the world; and we believe that it was only by the sacrifice of a part of His life that He could take away the disease of a sufferer. When He said, "Somebody hath touched Me, for virtue has gone out of Me," we may be sure it was no mere jostling of the crowd: it was an outflow of His life, a partial shedding, so to speak, of His precious blood. Just as later, in the words of St. Peter, "He bare our sins in His own body on the tree," so already "Himself took our infirmities and bare our sicknesses."

THE IMPULSIVE SCRIBE. {Mat_8:18-20}

The two incidents which follow, though at first sight apparently different in character from the great majority of the group, are quite in place among the mighty deeds of the Master, manifesting, as they do, His penetrating insight into character. To all appearance there could have been no better offer than that of the impulsive scribe - "Master, I will follow Thee whithersoever Thou goest"; and, had it been made with a full understanding of all it meant, it would beyond all question have been at once accepted; but He Who "knew what was in man" saw at once what manner of man this was - how he was quite unprepared for the hardships he would have to undergo; and therefore, while by no means declining the offer, He gives him fair warning of what he might expect, in these memorable words: "The foxes have holes, and the birds of the air have nests; but the Son of man hath not where to lay His head." There is infinite pathos in the words. Moreover, the form in which the truth is put, while fitted effectually to deter the selfish and faint-hearted, would be no discouragement to a truly devoted and courageous soul, but would rather fire it with a holier ardour to follow the Son of man anywhere, at whatever cost, rejoicing to be "counted worthy to suffer shame" and loss "for His name."

THE HESITATING DISCIPLE. {Mat_8:21-22}

This case is one of the opposite description. Judging from the way in which the scribe had been dealt with, it might have been expected that when this disciple asked to be excused for a time, in order to discharge a duty which seemed so urgent, the answer would have been one not only allowing but even enforcing the delay. But no. Why the difference? Again, because the Master saw "what was in man." This was no impulsive, impetuous nature which needed a word of caution, but one of those hesitating natures which need to be summoned to immediate decision. It would seem also, from the peculiar expression, "Leave the dead to bury their own dead" (R.V), that he belonged to an ungodly family, to associate again with whom at such a critical time in his history would be most prejudicial; and it must be remembered that it would not have been the mere attending of the funeral; there were the laws of uncleanness, which would oblige him, if he went, to stay many days; and meantime the golden opportunity might be gone.

Thus are we guarded against the two opposite dangers - the one besetting the eager and impulsive, the other the halting and irresolute. In neither case are we told what the result was. We may surmise that the scribe disappeared from view, and that the other joined the party in the boat; but "something sealed the lips of that Evangelist"; from which we may perhaps infer that his main object in relating the two incidents was, not to give information of them, but to show forth the glory of the Master as the Searcher of hearts; to signalise the fact that He was no less Master of the minds than of the bodies of men.

THE STORM STILLED. {Mat_8:23-27}

It was not enough that the Saviour of mankind should have power to grapple with disease and skill to search the hearts of men: He must be Master not only of life, but of its environment too. That He is becomes apparent before the boat which carries the little company reaches the other side of the lake. One of those tempests which often lash the Sea of Galilee into sudden fury has burst upon them, and the little boat is almost covered with the waves. Here is a situation beyond the reach even of the Great Physician, unless indeed He be something more. He is something more. He is Lord of nature, Master of all its forces!

Must He not be? He has come to reveal the unseen God of nature; must He not then make it manifest, now that the occasion calls for it, that winds and waves are "ministers of His, that do His pleasure?" Again, it is no mere "miracle," no mere marvel which He works in the salvation of His terrified disciples - it is a sign, an indispensable sign of the kingdom of heaven.

The story is told with exquisite simplicity, and with all the reality of manifest and transparent truthfulness. "He was asleep" - naturally enough after the fatigues of the day, notwithstanding the howling of the storm; for why should He fear wind or wave? Is there not a promise here for all His followers when tempest-tossed: "So He giveth His beloved sleep"?

His disciples let Him sleep as long as they dare; but the peril is too imminent now. So they come to Him and awake Him, saying, "Save, Lord; we perish!" Though no concern for Himself would ever have disturbed His slumber, the first cry of His disciples rouses Him at once to action. The resources of His human nature, beyond which He never went for the purpose of meeting His own personal needs, had been completely exhausted; but there is no diminution of His power to save those who call upon Him. Without any trace remaining of weariness or weakness, He hastens to relieve them. First, He quiets the tempest in the disciples hearts, rebuking their unbelief and calming their fears; then He stills the storm without, rebuking the winds and the sea; "and there was a great calm." It reads like the story of creation. No wonder the astonished disciples exclaimed: "What manner of man is this, that even the winds and the sea obey Him?"

DEMONS CAST OUT. {Mat_8:28-34}

Visible nature is not mans sole environment. There is an unseen universe besides; and He Who would be Saviour of mankind must be Master there as well. That this also is sure is now proved beyond a doubt. For it is important to observe that this is not an ordinary case of healing, otherwise its true place would have been with the group of bodily diseases at the beginning of this series. When we consider its salient features, we see that it is just in its right place, closely following, as it does, the stilling of the storm. There are storms in the spiritual world, more terrible by far than any in the realm of nature; and it is necessary that these darker storms be also subject to the control of the Saviour of mankind. "The prince of the power of the air" and all his legions must be subject to the "Son of man." And this subjection, rather than the cure of the individual sufferers, is the salient feature of the passage. It is not the men, but the demons possessing them, who cry out, "What have we to do with Thee, Jesus, Thou Son of God? art Thou come hither to torment us before the time?" Well did these evil spirits know who He was; and well, also, did they know that He was mightier than they, and that the time was coming when they would be put entirely under His feet: "Art Thou come to torment us before the time?"

The sequel has been the occasion of much cavil. It has been represented as entirely beyond the bounds of rational belief; but why? The whole subject of demoniacal possession is a most difficult one; but many of the calmest and deepest thinkers, quite apart from the testimony of the Gospel, have found themselves unable to explain a multitude of dark facts in history and experience apart from the reality of demoniacal influence. If a spirit can exercise a malign influence on a man, why not on an animal? Moreover, seeing that the keeping of these swine was an open breach of the law, what difficulty is there in supposing that Christ should allow their destruction, especially when we consider that this transference of the malign influence not only made more apparent His absolute control over the spirits of evil, but taught a most striking and instructive lesson as to their affinities? For certain persons there is no more instructive and no more needful passage in Scripture than this. The difficulty is, that those who prefer to keep their swine will not welcome the mighty Exorcist, but, like these people of old, beseech Him to "depart out of their coasts."

SINS FORGIVEN. {Mat_9:1-13}

Master of disease-Searcher of hearts-Master of the forces of nature-Master of the powers of the Unseen: is not this enough? Not yet; He must make it evident that "the Son of man hath power on earth to forgive sins." To heal the diseases of the body was a great and blessed thing to do, but it was not thorough work; for what are all these varied diseases-leprosy, fever, palsy-but symptoms of one great disorder which has its roots, not in the flesh, but in the soul, a disease belonging to that region of the unseen, in which He has now made manifest His power-the dark disease of sin. The time has now come to show that He can deal effectually with it; and immediately on His return to His own side of the lake, the opportunity presents itself. "They brought to Him a man sick of the palsy, lying on a bed."

As a case of palsy, it is not new. The centurions servant was a palsy case; and though from His treatment of it, as of the leprosy and fever, it might fairly have been inferred that He could deal also with that which was deeper, it was not enough to leave it to inference-it must be made manifest. It may have been that the disease of this man had been in some special manner connected with previous sins, so that his conscience may have been the more exercised as he looked back over his past life; but whether this was so or not, it is obvious that his conscience was at work, -that much as his palsy may have troubled him, his guilt troubled him much more. Why, otherwise, should the Saviour have addressed him as He did, making no reference to the disease, but dealing directly with his spiritual condition? Moreover, the special affection shown in the Saviours mode of address seems to indicate His recognition of that broken and contrite spirit with which the Lord is well pleased. It would scarcely be too strong to translate it thus: "My dear child, be of good cheer; thy sins are forgiven."

The Saviour is coming closer and closer to human need, dealing more and more thoroughly with the worlds want and woe. If we look at it aright, we cannot but recognise it as really a greater thing to heal the deep disease of the soul, than to heal any or all of the diseases of the body, greater even than to still the storm or rule by superior power the spirits of evil. For here there is something more needed than power or skill, even though both be infinite. We have already had a glimpse of the need there was, even in taking away human sickness, that the Healer Himself should suffer. But deeper far is this necessity if the disease of the soul is to be reached. It is only the Lamb of God that can take away the sin of the world. These scribes were right for once when they made more of this claim than of any that had gone before, saying within themselves, "This man blasphemeth"; "Who can forgive sins but God only?"

How could He prove to them His power actually to forgive the mans sins? A demonstration of this is quite impossible; but He will come as near to it as may be. He has already recognised the faith of the bearers, and the penitence of the man himself; just as quickly He discerns the thoughts of the scribes, and gives them proof that He does so by asking them, "Wherefore think ye evil in your hearts?" Then, answering their thought (which was, "He is only saying it"), He replies in effect, "It is indeed as easy to say one thing as another, if saying is all; but that you may be sure that the saying of it is not all, I shall not repeat what I said before, the result of which from the nature of the case you cannot see, but something else, the result of which you shall see presently"; whereupon, turning to the sick of the palsy, He said: "Arise, take up thy bed, and go unto thine house. And he arose, and departed to his house." With characteristic reticence, the sacred historian says nothing of the feelings of the happy man as he hied him home with a double blessing beyond the power of words to tell.

Is it possible to imagine any better proof that could have been given of Christs authority to forgive sins? Let those who have a horror of anything extraordinary suggest some way in which this assurance could have been given without any manifestation of superhuman power. If they cannot, why continue those unreasoning objections to the kind of proof He did give, when no other proof can be even suggested that would have at all suited the purpose?

The purpose was accomplished, so far at least as the people were concerned. Whether the scribes found some way of evading the conclusion, the Evangelist does not say; but he does say that "when the multitudes saw it, they marvelled," or, as the probably more correct version of the Revisers gives it, "they were afraid." This is true to nature, for now they knew that they stood in the presence of One Who could look them through and through, and touch them in their sorest spot; so it was natural that their first feeling should be one of awe. Still, they could not but be thankful at the same time that there was forgiveness within their reach; so quite consistently the narrative proceeds-And they "glorified God, which had given such power unto men."

Now that His power to deal with sin is made so apparent, it is time to let it be known that all sinners are welcome. Hence most appropriately there follows the call of one from among the most despised class to take a place among His closest followers. We can well understand how the modest Matthew, who never mentions anything else about himself, was glad to signalise the grace of the Master in seeking out the hated and despised publican. Not only does Christ welcome him, but consents to sit at meat with his former associates; {Mat_9:10} and when the self-righteous Pharisee complains, He takes occasion to speak those memorable words, so full of warning to those who think themselves righteous, so full of comfort to those who know themselves sinners: "They that be whole need not a physician, but they that are sick I am not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance."

DEATH VANQUISHED. {Mat_9:14-26}

The focal point of the passage is the chamber of death in the house of Jairus. There we earn that He Who had shown Himself to be Lord of nature and of human nature, Master of the spirits of evil, and Saviour from sin, is also Conqueror of Death. He needs no preparation for the encounter. The summons comes to Him in the midst of a discourse, yet He asks not a moments delay, but sets out at once; on the other hand, He is in no haste, for He has time to attend to another sufferer by the way; and there is no exhaustion afterwards, for He deals with another case, and still another, on His way back.

The question with which He was engaged when the summons came was one raised by the disciples of John, who, as we learn from the other accounts, were prompted by the Pharisees in the hope of exciting antagonism between the followers of John and of Jesus. Perhaps also they had the hope of setting Him at variance with Himself, for had He not declared that one jot or one tittle should not pass from the law till all was fulfilled? Why, then, did not His disciples fast? To this it might have been answered that the frequent fasts observed by Pharisees, and also by the disciples of John, were not really appointed by the law, which prescribed only one day of fasting in the year-the great atonement day. But the Saviour gives an answer of much wider scope and farther-reaching significance. There was involved, not the question of fasting only, but of the entire ceremonial law; and He disposes of it all by a series of characteristic illustrations, each of them as good as a volume on the subject could have been. The first of these illustrations sets the true principle of fasting in full, clear light by a simple question-"Can the children of the bridechamber mourn, as long as the bridegroom is with them? but the days will come, when the bridegroom shall be taken away from them, and then shall they fast." There is here much more to think of besides the answering of the question. There is a treasury of valuable suggestion in His calling Himself the Bridegroom, thus applying to Himself the rich imagery of the Old Testament on this theme; while at the same time He adopts the very figure which John himself had used in order to mark his relation to Jesus as the Bridegrooms friend; {cf. Joh_3:29} and it is especially worthy of note how this keeps up the Gospel idea, -the great joy, as of a marriage, in the yielding of the heart to Christ. No less striking is His touching reference to the dark days coming, the first distinct foreshadowing of the Cross. It has been well said by a German writer, "What man has ever looked so calmly, so lovingly (lieblich), from such a height into such an abyss!" from the position of the Bridegroom of humanity to that of the outcast on the Cross. Ah! the shadow of that Cross is never off Him, not even when He is exulting in His bridegroom joy. But these are only incidental suggestions; the main idea is the true principle of fasting, which, like all the observances of the New Testament, must be the expression of that which is in the heart. Let the heart only be true, and when the Bridegroom of the heart is present, fasting will be entirely out of the question; but when He is absent no rule will be needed-they will fast as the natural expression of their sorrow.

The two companion illustrations which follow set in the clearest light the large subject of the relation of the new dispensation to the old in respect of forms. As to substance, He had already made it plain that the old was not to be destroyed, nor even superseded, but fulfilled, to its last jot and tittle, as harvest fulfils seed-time. But as to form, the case was entirely different. The new life, while losing nothing which was in the old, was to be larger and freer, and therefore must have new garments to match. To try to piece out and patch the old would be no improvement, but much the reverse, for a worse rent would be the only result. The second illustration, suggested like the first by the associations of the marriage feast (the Saviours illustrations are never far-fetched-He always finds exactly what He needs close at hand, thus proving Himself Master of the imagination as of all else), is to the same purpose. The new wine of the kingdom of heaven, though it retains all the the excellence of the old vintage, yet having fresh properties of its own, must have fresh skins to hold it, that its natural expansion be not hindered; for to attempt to confine it in the old vessels would be to expose them to destruction and to lose the wine.

What a striking illustration of these suggestive words of warning has been the history of doctrine and of form in those churches which cling to the worn-out ritualism of the Old Testament! Old Testament forms were good in their time; but they are not good to hold the new wine of spiritual life: and to attempt to combine them, as modern ritualists do, is to injure both, to do violence to the forms by subjecting them to a strain for which they were never intended, and to lose the greater part of the life by trying to put it in moulds which were never intended for it. There is now no longer the excuse which our Lord was so ready to make, at that time of transition, for those who were slow to recognise the superiority of the new-a point which is brought out in the pendant to this illustration which the Evangelist Luke records: "No man also having drunk old wine straightway desireth new: for he saith, The old is better"; or rather, according to the more correct reading, "the old is good." Thus. while the true principle was laid down for all time, excuse was made on behalf of John and his disciples, for clinging with a natural fondness to that which had done good service in the past. A very needful lesson this for too ardent reformers, not considerate enough of what is in many respects wholesome and praiseworthy conservatism.

It was in the midst of these important teachings that the message came from the chamber of death, to which we must now again direct our thoughts: "While He spake these things unto them, behold, there came a ruler, and worshipped Him, saying, My daughter is even now dead: but come and lay Thy hand upon her, and she shall live. And Jesus arose, and followed him, and so did His disciples." This promptness is a most precious revelation of the Divine readiness to help at any moment. No need of waiting for a convenient time. Any moment is convenient for Him, to Whom the affairs even of the infinite universe are no burden.

The same lesson is still more strikingly taught by His manner of dealing with the case which met Him on the way to the rulers house. So hastily had He set out, in response to the rulers appeal, that one would have thought this of all times the most inconvenient-especially for a chronic invalid-to gain a hearing. Here is a woman who has had a disease for twelve years, and who therefore might surely be asked to wait a few hours at least, till the Physician should be at leisure! And the case is not at all forced on His attention; she does not stand in front of Him, so that He cannot pass without noticing her, - she only "came behind Him"; nor does she take any means that seem likely to arrest His attention, - she only "touched the hem of His garment." But it is enough. Slight as the indication is that some one needs His help, He at once observes it; nor does He exhibit the least sign of impatience or of haste; He turns round, and speaks in the kindest manner, assuring her, as it were, of her right to enjoy the great blessing of health, which had just come to her, for as soon as she had touched Him He had cured her of her long and weary ailment. What encouragement to the most timid soul! And what a revelation of the large sympathy and ever-ready helpfulness of our Saviour Christ, and of our heavenly Father Whom He so gloriously reveals!

The scene is now changed to the chamber of death. There are most interesting details given in the fuller account by the Evangelist Mark, but our scope is large enough here without endeavouring to bring them all in. The maid had been at the point of death when the father left the house; now it is all over, and the room is full of noisy mourners. These clamorous demonstrations were evidently very painful to the sensitive heart of Christ, not only, perhaps, on account of their unreality, but also because of their inappropriateness in view of the better hope which He was bringing into light. For we take it that in these words "Give place: for the maid is not dead, but sleepeth," there was not only a reference to His intention at once to bring the dead one back to life, but to the true nature of death-in His kingdom. In it death was to be death no longer-only a sleep, with the prospect of a speedy and blessed awaking. Therefore such heathenish lamentations were to be henceforward out of place. Perhaps, too, He wished to set these people thinking on the great subject of death-what it is, what it means, and whether after all it need be death in the sense in which alone the noisy mourners thought of it. But "they laughed Him to scorn," so they must be "put forth." The Lord of life cannot reveal Himself to such as these. Only the faithful disciples, and the parents whose hearts have been prepared for such a revelation by the discipline of genuine grief, are permitted to be present. It is probable that both parents had their hearts fully opened to the Lord; for though the mother had waited by the daughters bedside, she had no doubt gone with her husband in spirit on his hopeful errand; and the fathers faith must have been greatly confirmed by what had happened on the way back-there was nothing lost by that delay, even though in the meantime the message had come from the house that it was too late. It was not too late: it was well that the damsel had died; for now the Saviour has the opportunity to show that He is no less Master of the last great enemy than of all the other enemies of man. "He took her by the hand, and the maid arose."

LOST FACULTIES RESTORED. {Mat_9:27-34}

The raising of the dead may be regarded as the culminating point of the series; yet there is a special value in the two that follow in close succession before the series is complete. We have seen already that, occurring, as they do immediately after, they show that His power is not at all exhausted-a token this of the exhaustlessness of the Divine love and helpfulness. But, besides this, are they not resurrections too-the raising again of faculties that had long been dead? Vision is a large part of our natural life: and to lose it is to descend, so far, into the darkness of death. And as the eye is to impression, so is the tongue to expression. The one is the crown of life on its receptive side, the other on its communicative side. {cf. Psa_57:8; Psa_108:1-2} The eye, then, may well represent life on the one side of it and the tongue on the other; while the two together represent it as completely as it is possible to do. Thus these two cases really come nearer to the idea of spiritual resurrection than even the raising of the dead damsel, In the case of the daughter of Jairus there was no part left alive to make its appeal to the Lifegiver on behalf of the rest; but with the others it was different: the blind men, for example, were able to cry for mercy; {Mat_9:27} and it was possible for the Saviour to say to them, as He touched their eyes, "According to your faith be it unto you," {Mat_9:29} which He could not have said to the damsel.

Had the series ended with the raising of the daughter of Jairus, it had been made sufficiently apparent that Christ was able and willing to raise the dead; but it had still remained unrevealed by what means a man spiritually dead could secure for himself the resurrection of his lost spiritual powers. Now it is clear. The death of the spirit is parallel, not to the total death of the damsel, but to the partial death of the blind; for though the spirit of a man be dead, his mind remains alive, his heart too, his conscience even, and his body of course; there remains enough of him, so to speak, to imitate the example of these two blind men, to ask the Son of David for mercy, to follow Him till he finds it, to allow Him first to draw out the dormant faculty of faith, and then, having prepared him for the mighty boon, to pour celestial light upon his soul, bestowing on him a life so new and fresh and blessed, that it will seem to him as if it were, and it will in point of spiritual fact really be, life from the dead.

It seems more than likely that it was because He wished to subordinate the physical to the spiritual that He strictly charged them, saying, "See that no man know it." If the main thing had been the restoration of bodily sight, the more who heard of it the better. But His great purpose was far higher, - even to put an end to spiritual blindness and death; therefore He must limit His dealings with natural blindness to those who were prepared to receive the lower blessing without injuring them in their higher nature; and to make known such a case in the way of advertisement through the country-side would have been to descend from His lofty position as Saviour of men and Herald of the kingdom of heaven to that of oculist for the neighbourhood. But, though we can readily see why the Saviour should forbid the publication of the cure, it was natural enough that the men should disobey the order. They probably attributed His injunction to modesty, and thought they were showing a proper appreciation of what had been done for them by publishing it abroad. Blameworthy they certainly were; but not inexcusable.

The other case-the cure of the dumb demoniac-comes, if possible, still closer to the spiritual condition with which it was the work of the Saviour especially to deal. Like the former, it was the loss of a faculty; but, unlike it, it was not the natural loss of it, but the eclipsing of it by the malign presence of a spirit of evil. How closely parallel is this to the case of the spiritually dead. What is it that has destroyed the great faculty by which God is known and worshipped? Is it not sin? Let that demon be cast out, and not only will the eye see, but the tongue will speak; there will be a new song in the mouth, even praise to the Most High.

Furthermore, as the cure of the blind men brought into prominence the power of faith, this brings into prominence the power of Christ to save to the uttermost. For what more helpless case could there be? He could not cry, for he was dumb. He could not follow Christ as the blind men had done, for he had not control of himself; so he must be brought by others. Yet for him, as well as for them, there is full salvation, as soon as he comes into the presence of the Lord of life. No wonder the multitudes marvelled, and said, "It was never so seen in Israel!" and no wonder that the Pharisees, unable in any other way to evade the force of such a succession of manifest signs of the kingdom of heaven, should be driven to the contradictory and blasphemous suggestion, "He casteth out devils through the prince of the devils." {Mat_9:34}

The series is now complete; and, long as it has been, we could not dispense with a single case. There has been no repetition. Each case reported in detail has had its own special and peculiar value: the leper, the centurions servant, the mother-in-law of Peter, the dealings with the impulsive scribe and the hesitating disciple, the stilling of the storm and mastery of the unseen legions of evil, the forgiving of sin, and welcoming of repentant sinners, the healing of the chronic invalid by the way, the raising of the dead damsel, and the restoring of sight to the blind and speech to the dumb, -all different, all most precious, all needed to bring out some aspect of the truth concerning Jesus as the Saviour of mankind, all together giving us a most comprehensive presentation of the signs of the kingdom of heaven. And now that the nature of His work has been so fully set forth in its two great departments of teaching and of healing, the rest is left unrecorded, except in the general statement that "Jesus went about all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues, and preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing every sickness and every disease among the people." {Mat_9:35}

William Robertson Nicoll, ed., The Expositor's Bible (London: Hodder & Stoughton, 1887–1910) — public domain. 65 of 66 books (1 Corinthians is not separately keyed, as that volume carries no machine-parseable verse references); section-level commentary keyed to the opening verse. Introductory and overview sections not keyed to a specific passage are excluded.

8:1–9:34 Here the Kingdom of God is manifested with supernatural power (see 4:23-25; 11:2-6). It reaches people who had been excluded from the blessing of God: Gentiles, lepers, blind people, sick women, demoniacs, tax collectors, those with a chronic hemorrhage, and the dead. Jesus shows compassion, but the religious leaders are provoked to opposition. Jesus calls his followers to faith and discipleship.

Tyndale Open Study Notes — © Tyndale Open Resources, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

Mat 8:1. Ἠκολούθησαν, followed) They did not immediately leave Him.

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

Mat_8:1. Αὐτῷ … αὐτῷ] as in Mat_5:40, and frequently in Matthew as well as in classical writers. See Bornemann, ad Xen. Symp. iv. 63; Winer, p. 139 f. [E. T. 275].

The healing of the leper occurs in Luke (Mat_5:12 ff.) before the Sermon on the Mount, and in Mark (Mar_1:40 ff.) and Luke not till after the healing of Peters mother-in-law. It is not to be regarded as the earliest of all the miracles of healing.

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.

Mat 8:1-4 . The leper (Mar 1:40-45 ; Luk 5:12-16 ). This is the first individual act of healing reported in this Gospel, chap. Mat 4:23-24 containing only a general notice. It is a very remarkable one. No theory of moral therapeutics will avail here to eliminate the miraculous element. Leprosy is not a disease of the nerves, amenable to emotional treatment, but of the skin and the flesh, covering the body with unsightly sores. The story occurs in all three Synoptics, and, as belonging to the triple tradition, is one of the best attested. Matthew’s version is the shortest and simplest here as often, his concern being rather to report the main fact and what Christ said , than to give pictorial details. Possibly he gives it as he found it in the Apostolic Document both in form and in position , immediately after Sermon on Mount, so placed, conceivably, to illustrate Christ’s respectful attitude towards the law as stated in Mat 5:17 ( cf. Mat 8:4 and vide Weiss, Matt. Evan., p. 227).

Mat 8:1 . καταβάντος αὐτοῦ (for the reading vide above). Jesus descended from the hill towards Capernaum (Mat 8:5 ), but we must beware of supposing that the immediately following events all happened there, or at any one place or time. Mark seems to connect the cure of the leper with the preaching tour in Galilee (Mar 1:40 ), and that of the palsied man with Christ’s return therefrom (Mat 2:1 ). Jesus had ascended the hill to escape the pressure of human need. He descends, in Matt.’s narrative, to encounter it again ἠκολούθησαν , large crowds gather about and follow Him. ἰδοὺ , the sign mark of the Apostolic Document according to Weiss; its lively formula for introducing a narrative. προσεκύνει , prostrated himself to the ground, in the abject manner of salutation suitable from an inferior to one deemed much superior, and also to one who had a great favour to ask. Κύριε : not implying in the leper a higher idea than that of Master or Rabbi. ἐὰν θέλῃς : the leper’s doubt is not about the power, for he probably knows what marvellous things have been happening of late in and around Capernaum, but about the will , a doubt natural in one suffering from a loathsome disease. Besides, men more easily believe in miraculous power than in miraculous love. θέλῃς , present subjunctive, not aorist, which would express something that might happen at a future time ( vide Winer, § xlii., 2, b). καθαρίσαι of course the man means to cleanse by healing, not merely to pronounce clean. This has an important bearing on the meaning of the word in next ver. ἥψατο , touched him, not to show that He was not under the law, and that to the pure nothing is unclean (Chrys., Hom. xxv.), but to evince His willingness and sympathy. The stretching out of the hand does not mean that, in touching, He might be as far off as possible to avoid defilement and infection (Weiss-Meyer). It was action suited to the word. θέλω , “I will ,” pronounced in firm, cordial tone, carefully recorded by all the evangelists. καθαρίσθητι , naturally in the sense of the man’s request. But that would imply a real miracle, therefore naturalistic interpreters, like Paulus and Keim, are forced to take the word in the sense of pronouncing clean, the mere opinion of a shrewd observer. The narrative of Matthew barely leaves room for this hypothesis. The other evangelists so express themselves as to exclude it. ἐκαθαρίσθη : forthwith the leprosy disappeared as if by magic. The man was and looked perfectly well.

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

8:1-4.] Healing of a leper. Mar 1:40-45.Luk 5:12-14Luk 5:12-14. We have now (in this and the following chapter), as it were a solemn procession of miracles, confirming the authority with which our Lord had spoken. ἀπὸ τῆς διδασκαλίας ἐπὶ τὰ θαύματα μεταβαίνει. ἐπεὶ γὰρ ὡς ἐξουσίαν ἔχων ἐδίδασκεν, ἵνα μὴ νομισθῇ κομπάζειν καὶ ἀλαζονεύεσθαι, δείκνυσι τὴν ἐξουσίαν αὐτοῦ καὶ ἐν τοῖς ἔργοις, καὶ βεβαιοῖ τοὺς λόγους ἀπὸ τῶν πράξεων.

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

(c) Illustrations of his work, 8:1-9:34

(1) Three miracles of healing, 8:1-17

8:1-4=Mar 1:40-45.

The next section in Mk. Isa 1:23-28, the account of the demoniac in the synagogue at Capharnaum. We should expect the editor to begin his account of Christ’s miracles with this incident. But he omits it, and, postponing several verses which follow, continues with the account of the leper, which in Mar 1:40-45 is found without notice of time and place, unless we may infer from Mar 1:39 that it took place during the journey throughout Galilee there mentioned. This change in Mk.’s order is difficult to explain. We have to account for (1) the omission of the incident of the demoniac, (2) the insertion of the account of the leper immediately after the Sermon, and before the entry into Capharnaum and the incidents there. (1) The omission of the account of the demoniac is probably intentional. (a) Both Mt. and Lk. seem to have disliked the story as found in Mk. We read there that the demon obeyed the Lord’s command to come out, but not until He had “rent” the patient and “cried with a loud voice.” Lk. materially modifies this when he omits the “crying,” and adds, “having in no way injured him.” A somewhat similar modification is found in the parallels to Mar 9:14-29, where Mt. altogether omits the details that the demon after the Christ’s command “cried out and tore him much,” and that the patient “became as one dead, insomuch that the more part said, He is dead”; Whilst Lk. retains indeed the “rending,” but places it before Christ’s command, and, like Mt., omits the “becoming as one dead.” (b) Mt. takes over two of Mk.’s narratives of expulsion of demons, 5:1-20 and 9:14-29, omitting, however, from the later all traces of demoniac possession except in v. 18. Elsewhere he sometimes omits references to this subject from Mk.; cf. his omission of Mar 1:34, Mar 1:39, Mar 1:3:11. (2) In view of his habit of arranging incidents and sayings in numerical groups, it is probable that he wished to begin his illustrations of Christ’s miracles with three incidents of healing of typical diseases—leprosy, paralysis, fever. The incident of the leper, which in Mk. seems to have no expressed details of time or place, is therefore substituted for that of the demoniac, and becomes the first miracle (8:1-4). The fact that this incident illustrates Christ’s attitude towards legal ceremonies may have co-operated in influencing the editor to place it immediately after the Sermon on the Mount. A healing of a paralytic, which Lk. also has in close connection with the Sermon, is inserted as the second (8:5-13); whilst the healing of Peter’s wife’s mother, which follows the omitted incident in Mk., supplies the third.

(E)

1. And when He came down from the mountain, great multitudes followed Him.] In this way Mt. forms a connection with the following incident.

(M)

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

The first verse refers to the close of the foregoing sermon: the people that heard him were astonished at his doctrine; and the effect was, that when he came down from the mountain, great multitudes followed him; though he was so strict a Lawgiver, and so faithful a Reprover, they diligently attended him, and were loth to disperse, and go from him. Note, They to whom Christ has manifested himself, cannot but desire to be better acquainted with him. They who know much of Christ should covet to know more; and then shall we know, if we thus follow on to know the Lord. It is pleasing to see people so well affected to Christ, as to think they can never hear enough of him; so well affected to the best things, as thus to flock after good preaching, and to follow the Lamb withersoever he goes. Now was Jacob's prophecy concerning the Messiah fulfilled, that unto him shall the gathering of the people be; yet they who gathered to him did not cleave to him. They who followed him closely and constantly were but few, compared with the multitudes that were but followers at large.

In these verses we have an account of Christ's cleansing a leper. It should seem, by comparing Mar 1:40, and Luk 5:12, that this passage, though placed, by St. Matthew, after the sermon on the mount, because he would give account of his doctrine first, and then of his miracles, happened some time before; but that is not at all material. This is fitly recorded with the first of Christ's miracles, 1. Because the leprosy was looked upon, among the Jews, as a particular mark of God's displeasure: hence we find Miriam, Gehazi, and Uzziah, smitten with leprosy for some one particular sin; and therefore Christ, to show that he came to turn away the wrath of God, by taking away sin, began with the cure of a leper. 2. Because this disease, as it was supposed to come immediately from the hand of God, so also it was supposed to be removed immediately by his hand, and therefore it was not attempted to be cured by physicians, but was put under the inspection of the priests, the Lord's ministers, who waited to see what God would do. And its being in a garment, or in the walls of a house, was altogether supernatural: and it should seem to be a disease of a quite different nature from what we now call the leprosy. The king of Israel said, Am I God, that I am sent to, to recover a man of a leprosy? Kg2 5:7. Christ proved himself God, by recovering many from the leprosy, and authorizing his disciples, in his name, to do so too (Mat 10:8), and it is put among the proofs of his being the Messiah, Mat 11:5. He also showed himself to be the Saviour of his people from their sins; for though every disease is both the fruit of sin, and a figure of it, as the disorder of the soul, yet the leprosy was in a special manner so; for it contracted such a pollution, and obliged to such a separation from holy things, as no other disease did; and therefore in the laws concerning it (Lev. 13 and 14), it is treated, not as a sickness, but as an uncleanness; the priest was to pronounce the party clean or unclean, according to the indications: but the honour of making the lepers clean was reserved for Christ, who was to do it as the High Priest of our profession; he comes to do that which the law could not do, in that it was weak through the flesh, Rom 8:3. The law discovered sin (for by the law is the knowledge of sin), and pronounced sinners unclean; it shut them up (Gal 3:23), as the priest did the leper, but could go no further; it could not make the comers thereunto perfect. But Christ takes away sin; cleanses us from it, and so perfecteth for ever them that are sanctified. Now here we have,

I. The leper's address to Christ. If this happened, as it is here placed, after the sermon on the mount, we may suppose that the leper, though shut out by his disease from the cities of Israel, yet got within hearing of Christ's sermon, and was encouraged by it to make his application to him; for he that taught as one having authority, could heal so; and therefore he came and worshipped him, as one clothed with a divine power. His address is, Lord, if thou wilt, thou canst make me clean. The cleaning of him may be considered,

1. As a temporal mercy; a mercy to the body, delivering it from a disease, which, though it did not threaten life, embittered it. And so it directs us, not only to apply ourselves to Christ, who has power over bodily diseases, for the cure of them, but it also teaches us in what manner to apply ourselves to him; with an assurance of his power, believing that he is as able to cure diseases now, as he was when on earth, but with a submission to his will; Lord, if thou wilt, thou canst. As to temporal mercies, we cannot be so sure of God's will to bestow them, as we may of his power, for his power in them is unlimited by a regard to his glory and our good: when we cannot be sure of his will, we may be sure of his wisdom and mercy, to which we may cheerfully refer ourselves; Thy will be done: and this makes the expectation easy, and the event, when it comes, comfortable.

2. As a typical mercy. Sin is the leprosy of the soul; it shuts us out from communion with God, to which that we maybe restored, it is necessary that we be cleansed from this leprosy, and this ought to be our great concern. Now observe, It is our comfort when we apply ourselves to Christ, as the great Physician, that if he will, he can make us clean; and we should, with an humble, believing boldness, go to him and tell him so. That is, (1.) We must rest ourselves upon his power; we must be confident of this, that Christ can make us clean. No guilt is so great but that there is a sufficiency in his righteousness to atone for it; no corruption so strong, but there is a sufficiency in his grace to subdue it. God would not appoint a physician to his hospital that is not par negotio - every way qualified for the undertaking. (2.) We must recommend ourselves to his pity; we cannot demand it as a debt, but we must humbly request it as a favour; "Lord, if thou wilt. I throw myself at thy feet, and if I perish, I will perish there."

II. Christ's answer to this address, which was very kind, Mat 8:3.

1. He put forth his hand and touched him. The leprosy was a noisome, loathsome disease, yet Christ touched him; for he did not disdain to converse with publicans and sinners, to do them good. There was a ceremonial pollution contracted by the touch of a leper; but Christ would show, that when he conversed with sinners, he was in no danger of being infected by them, for the prince of this world had nothing in him. If we touch pitch, we are defiled; but Christ was separate from sinners, even when he lived among them.

2. He said, I will, be thou clean. He did not say, as Elisha to Naaman, Go, wash in Jordan; did not put him upon a tedious, troublesome, chargeable course of a physic, but spake the word and healed him. (1.) Here is a word of kindness, I will; I am as willing to help thee, as thou art to be helped. Note, They who by faith apply themselves to Christ for mercy and grace, may be sure that he is willing, freely willing, to give them the mercy and grace they come to him for. Christ is a Physician, that does not need to be sought for, he is always in the way; does not need to be urged, while we are yet speaking, he hears; does not need to be feed, he heals freely, not for price nor reward. he has given all possible demonstration, that he is as willing as he is able to save sinners. (2.) A word of power, Be thou clean. Both a power of authority, and a power of energy, are exerted in this word. Christ heals by a word of command to us; Be thou clean; "Be willing to be clean, and use the means; cleanse thyself from all filthiness;" but there goes along with this a word of command concerning us, a word that does the work; I will that thou be clean. Such a word as this is necessary to the cure, and effectual for it; and the Almighty grace which speaks it, shall not be wanting to those who truly desire it.

III. The happy change hereby wrought: Immediately his leprosy was cleansed. Nature works gradually, but the God of nature works immediately; he speaks it, it is done; and yet he works effectually; he commands, and it stands fast. One of the first miracles Moses wrought, was curing himself of a leprosy (Exo 4:7), for the priests under the law offered sacrifices first for their own sin; but one of Christ's first miracles was curing another of leprosy, for he had no sin of his own to atone for.

IV. The after - directions Christ gave him. It is fit that they who are cured by Christ should ever after be ruled by him.

1. See thou tell no man; "Tell no man till thou has shown thyself to the priest, and he has pronounced thee clean; and so thou hast a legal proof, both that thou wast before a leper, and art now thoroughly cleansed." Christ would have his miracles to appear in their full light and evidence, and not to be published till they could appear so. Note, They that preach the truths of Christ should be able to prove them; to defend what they preach, and convince gainsayers. "Tell no man, till thou hast showed thyself to the priest, lest if he hear who cured thee, he should out of spite deny to give thee a certificate of the cure, and so keep thee under confinement." Such were the priests in Christ's time, that they who had any thing to do with them had need to have been as wise as serpents.

2. Go show thyself to the priest, according to the law, Lev 14:2. Christ took care to have the law observed, lest he should give offence, and to show that he will have order kept up, and good discipline and respect paid to those that are in office. It may be of use to those that are cleansed of their spiritual leprosy, to have recourse to Christ's ministers, and to open their case to them, that they may assist them in their enquiries into their spiritual state, and advise, and comfort, and pray for them.

3. Offer the gift that Moses commanded, in token of thankfulness to God, and recompence to the priest for his pains; and this for a testimony unto them; either, (1.) Which Moses commanded for a testimony: the ceremonial laws were testimonies of God's authority over them, care of them, and of that grace which should afterwards be revealed. Or, (2.) "Do thou offer it for a testimony, and let the priest know who cleansed thee, and how; and it shall be a testimony, that there is one among them who does that which the high priest cannot do. Let it remain upon record as a witness of my power, and a testimony for me to them, if they will use it and improve it; but against them, if they will not:" for so Christ's word and works are testimonies.

Matthew Henry's Commentary on the Whole Bible (1708–1710) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

CHAPTER VIII.

Great multitudes follow Christ, 1.

He heals a leper, 2-4.

Heals the centurion's servant, 5-13.

Heals Peter's wife's mother, 14, 15;

and several other diseased persons, 16, 17.

Departs from that place, 18.

Two persons offer to be his disciples, 19-22.

He and his disciples are overtaken with a tempest, which he

miraculously stills, 23-27.

He cures demoniacs, and the demons which went out enter into

a herd of swine, which, rushing into the sea, perish, 28-32.

The swine-herds announce the miracle to the Gergesenes, who

request Christ to depart from their country, 33, 34.

NOTES ON CHAP. VIII.

Verse 1. From the mountain] That mountain on which he had delivered the preceding inimitable sermon.

Great multitudes followed him.] Having been deeply impressed with the glorious doctrines which they had just heard.

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

1 When he was come down from the mountain, great multitudes followed him.

Ver. 1. Great multitudes followed him] Many thousands, as Bodinius De Claritate Christi proveth out of ancient writers. This drew upon our Saviour the envy of the Pharisees, those cankered curls who, Sejanus-like, thought all lost that fell beside their own lips: as Nero, they spited all those whom the people applauded; and tiger-like, laid hold with their teeth on all the excellent spirits of their times, as it is said of Tiberius. {a}

{a} Quicquid non acquiritur damnum est. Sen. de Seiano. Nero omnium aemulus. Ammian.

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.

When he was come down from the mountain - That is, immediately on his descending from the mountain. His discourse had attracted great attention, and the fame of it drew together great multitudes, who were convinced that he had come from God. Then follows, in this chapter and the chapter succeeding, a succession of “miracles” not less remarkable than his teaching was; miracles that tended to confirm beyond a doubt the impression made by his sermon that he was sent from God.

Great multitudes followed him - Great numbers of those who had been with him in the mountain, and great numbers of others who were attracted by the fame of that discourse.

Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

And when he was come down from the mountain. St. Matthew says, that Jesus Christ ascended the mountain, and sat down to teach the people; while St. Luke affirms, that he descended, and stood in a plain place. But there is no contradiction; for he first ascended to the top of the mountain, and then descended to an even plain, which formed part of the descent. Here he stood for a while, and cured the sick, as mentioned by St. Luke; but afterwards, according to the relation of St. Matthew, he sat down, which was the usual posture of the Jewish doctors. (St. Augustine)

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).

We heard of Christ’s going up into the mountain, Mat 6:1; and of great multitudes that followed him from Decapolis, and from Judea, and from Jerusalem, and from beyond Jordan: whether the same multitude, or others, followed him upon his coming down, is not said. But behold, ( saith the evangelist),

there came a leper: both Mark and Luke have the same story, or one very like to it, Mar 1:40; Luk 5:12. Of the plague, or leprosy, we read much in the books of Moses. It was a white scab in the flesh, which gradually consumed the body, and was contagious. The leper, and he who touched him, or any thing he came near, was legally unclean: thrice we read of it inflicted as a severe punishment; upon Gehazi, for lying and taking bribes, and upon king Uzziah, for offering sacrifice. It was a disease of very difficult cure. This leper comes and worshippeth Christ. Mark saith that he kneeled down to him: whether he only kneeled down, or prostrated himself, is not much material, for either of them might be done according to the fashion of those countries, in token either of a civil respect, paid to him as a great and eminent prophet, or a piece of religious homage (if he had so early a revelation that he was the Son of God, which some doubt).

Saying, Lord, if thou wilt, thou canst make me clean. The term Lord will not conclude his recognizing Christ as the Son of God, being a term used by Sarah to Abraham, and afterwards to Elijah. The words import his desire, though they be not a form of prayer, but an acknowledgment of the power of Christ. The leper acknowledging Christ’s power, submits himself to his will, and so with the same breath declareth his faith and modesty. He indeed declareth no faith in the will of God, nor can any person exercise any such faith as to any temporal mercy, any further than as God shall judge it for our good.

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

The Leper Cleansed. The Centurion's Servant Healed. Healing of Peter's Wife's Mother and many others. Stilling of the Tempest. Healing of the Gadarene Demoniacs

1-4. Cleansing of the leper (Mar_1:40; Luk_5:12). No natural explanation of this miracle is possible. Leprosy has always been, and is still, one of the most intractable diseases. Under the Mosiac Law lepers were regarded as unclean and excluded entirely from human society: see Leviticus 13, 14, and notes. Considered as a parable this miracle represents the cleansing of the human race by the Redeemer from the leprosy of sin.

1. When he was come down] Only St. Matthew mentions the historical connexion of this miracle, though both St. Mark and St. Luke agree that it took place during one of the early preaching tours in Galilee. St. Luke says that it was done in a city. The miracle comes appropriately after the sermon. Having said, 'I came not to destroy (the Law),' He now says, 'Offer the gift that Moses commanded.' Having taught with authority, He now heals with authority, 'I will, be thou clean.'

2. Worshipped him] Lk says, 'fell on his face.' The act of reverence that was paid to kings. Perhaps the leper already regarded Jesus as the Messiah, the rightful king of Israel. He certainly had full faith in His miraculous powers. He only doubted His willingness ('if thou wilt') to heal so miserable an outcast. Often men find it easier to believe in God's power than in His mercy and love.

Lord] Here a title of human respect, as in Mat_8:25; Mat_16:22; Luk_9:54; Luk_10:17, Luk_10:40; Luk_11:1, etc. Make me clean] 'Cleanse as well as heal me,' because leprosy was a Levitical defilement.

3. Touched him] No one was allowed to touch or even to salute a leper. If he even put his head into a place it became unclean. No less a distance than 4 cubits (6 ft.) had to be kept from the leper, or if the wind came from that direction, 100 cubits were scarcely sufficient. By thus touching the leper, Christ also showed His superiority to the Law of Moses. So far from being Himself defiled, His touch imparted cleansing.

4. See thou tell no man] According to St. Mark He dismissed the man abruptly, almost violently, with an urgent command to be silent. Only one explanation of this is at all probable. He feared, as in Joh_6:15, that the people would proclaim Him Messiah, and force Him to be the leader of a revolution. Offer the gift] i.e. a sacrifice of two he-lambs without blemish, and one ewe-lamb of the first year without blemish. For the details see Leviticus 14. For a testimony unto them] i.e. a proof of the genuineness of his cure. The priests, after examining him, could not refuse his gift, and their acceptance of it would be valid testimony that he had really been cured of his leprosy. In face of the injunction to tell no man, we cannot imagine that Christ intended him to notify the priests of the manner of his healing, and so challenge them to examine His claims. The man seems, however, to have disobeyed the injunction (Mar_1:45), so that this miracle helped to arouse the opposition which Christ soon afterwards encountered (Mat_9:3, Mat_9:11, Mat_9:34).

5-13. Healing of the centurion's servant (Luk_7:1, not, however, Joh_4:47, q. v.). The accounts in St. Matthew and St. Luke are partly drawn from independent sources, which, though agreeing in essentials, differ considerably in details. In St. Matthew the centurion himself comes to Jesus. In St. Luke he first sends certain Jewish elders to plead for him, then some of his friends, and apparently does not see Jesus at all. St. Luke's narrative is the fuller and more original. The discrepancy with St. Matthew is not a serious one. It is quite common to represent a person as doing himself what he really does through others. St. Matthew alone records Christ's remarkable utterance as to the rejection of Israel and the call of the Gentiles, Mat_8:11, Mat_8:12. St. Luke, however, has nearly the same words in another connexion (Luk_13:28).

5. A centurion] A Roman legionary officer commanding a century (i.e. from 50 to 100 men, the hundredth part of a legion), and occupying the social position of a modern sergeant or non-commissioned officer. Whether this centurion was directly under Roman authority, or was in the employ of Herod Antipas, in whose kingdom he served, is not certain. He was a heathen, and though favourably impressed by Judaism, it is probable from the language of Mat_8:8 that he was not a proselyte. Several centurions appear in the NT., all in a very favourable light: Mat_27:54; Acts 10, 27, 28. 'Probably,' says Trench, 'in the general wreck of the moral institutions of the heathen world, the Roman army was one of the few in which some of the old virtues survived.' The troops of Palestine were recruited locally from the heathen of Samaria and Caesarea, and were auxiliaries. The legionary soldiers proper were required to be Roman citizens. The centurion, being an officer, was probably a Roman. According to St. Luke, he did not venture to come himself, but sent certain Jewish elders, who said, 'He is worthy that thou shouldest do this for him, for he loveth our nation, and himself built us our synagogue.'

6. My servant] The expression might mean 'my little son,' but it is plain from St. Luke that it was a favourite slave who was ill.

8. Lord, I am not worthy] Both the centurion and the elders judged Jesus by Jewish standards. That Jesus should heal a Gentile at all, except for some very special reason, was thought impossible. Still more unlikely was it that He would enter a Gentile house, which was regarded as defiled, and defiling those who entered it (Joh_18:28). Speak the word only] lit. 'speak with a word.' In believing that Jesus could heal at a distance, the centurion showed remarkable faith. Perhaps his faith was assisted by the similar miracle worked shortly before in the same city upon the son of a certain 'nobleman' (Joh_4:46).

9. For I am a man under authority] The sense is: I am myself only a servant of others, and yet I have soldiers under me whom I can send where I please to carry out my will. How much more canst Thou, who art Lord of the powers of nature, speak the word and be obeyed. The centurion expresses his faith that angels and spirits and diseases are as obedient to Jesus as his soldiers are to him.

11. Shall sit down (lit. 'recline at table') with Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob] The rabbis taught that the Messianic age would be ushered in by a great feast. All Israel, with its patriarchs, prophets, and heroes, would be there. The Gentiles would be excluded, and would have the mortification of seeing all the sumptuous preparations. Every (clean) animal that exists, and many that do not, would be eaten at that feast, e.g. the Leviathan, Behemoth, the gigantic bird Bar Jochani, and certain fabulous fatted geese. The wine of the feast would have been kept in the grapes from the creation of the world. King David would return thanks according to Psa_116:13. Very startling, therefore, was the declaration of Jesus that Gentiles from all nations would be admitted to this Messianic feast, and many circumcised Jews ('sons of the kingdom') excluded. In the NT., the figure of a banquet or marriage feast is several times used (as here) to represent participation in Christ's Kingdom, both in this world and the next: see Psa_22:2; Psa_25:10; Rev_19:7. The present passage is a double prophecy (inserted most suitably in a Gospel meant for Jewish readers), (1) of the admission of the Gentiles on equal terms with the Jews into the Christian Church, and of the exclusion of many of the latter; (2) of the final salvation of many Gentiles, and of the reprobation of merely nominal Jews.

12. The children (RV 'sons') of the kingdom] i.e. the Jews. Outer darkness, etc.] a rhetorical description of the sorrow and disappointment of those who are excluded. The gnashing of teeth represents anger and disappointment, not torture: see Psa_112:10; Act_7:54.

14-17. Healing of Peter's mother-in-law, and of many sick and possessed persons (Mar_1:29; Luk_4:38). According to St. Mark and St. Luke these miracles took place on the sabbath, after the synagogue service at which Jesus preached and healed a demoniac.

14. Peter's house] Peter was a married man (1Co_9:5). He had a house in Capernaum, which he shared with his brother Andrew, and apparently with his wife's mother.

15. Ministered] i.e. 'waited at table.' The fever had left no weakness.

16. Possessed] According to St. Luke the devils cried out, 'Thou art the Son of God,' and recognised Him as the Christ.

17. Isa_53:4, quoted from the Hebrew. This application of the passage to the miracles of healing does not conflict with its deeper fulfilment in Christ's atoning work on the Cross (Joh_1:29; 1Pe_2:24).

18-22. Sayings to a scribe and another disciple (Luk_9:57). St. Luke introduces these sayings much later in our Lord's ministry. Both evangelists apparently borrowed from a common source, which did not specify the occasion of the utterances.

19, 20. The offer of a recognised rabbi (scribe) to become a follower of Jesus was an attractive one, especially as no influential person had yet become a disciple. Jesus, however, did not hastily accept the offer. To test the sincerity of the new convert, he required him to count the cost. He must give up all to follow Christ—home-comforts, wealth, honour, and all prospects of advancement. Like his Master, he must have no place to lay his head. Probably the scribe, like the rich young ruler, found the conditions too hard.

19. Master] i.e. Rabbi, a title of respect properly belonging only to scribes. It was sometimes accorded by courtesy to our Lord, as here.

20. The Son of man] This title of Christ is found only in the Gospels and Act_7:56, and (except in Act_7:56) is found only in the mouth of our Lord Himself. It corresponds in Aramaic, which our Lord habitually spoke, either to barnasha, which may mean either 'the man,' or (but this is not so certain) 'the son of man,' or else to bʾreh dʾnasha, which means definitely and emphatically 'the son of man' (lit. 'his son, that of man'). That our Lord, who was probably bilingual, occasionally used the Gk. title as found in the Gospels, is also very possible. The title was used by our Lord throughout His ministry, and not, as is sometimes erroneously supposed, only from the time of St. Peter's confession (Mat_16:13). This fact must be taken account of in ascertaining its probable meaning. It follows from this that it cannot have been, as is sometimes maintained, a definite and well-understood designation of the Messiah. Our Lord concealed His Messiahship from the multitude until the close of His ministry, and did not expressly reveal it even to the Twelve until the confession of Peter. That it was not understood by the multitudes to be a Messianic title is evident from Joh_12:34.

The title probably designates our Lord as the ideal or representative man, 'the man in whom human nature was most fully and deeply realised, and who was the most complete exponent of its capacities, warm and broad in His sympathies, ready to minister and suffer for others, sharing to the full the needs and deprivations which are the common lot of humanity, but conscious at the same time of the dignity and greatness of human nature, and destined ultimately to exalt it to unexampled majesty and glory.' At the close of His life He invested it with a more definitely Messianic meaning by identifying Himself with the 'one like unto a son of man' of Dan_7:13, who was generally understood to be the Messiah: see Mat_26:63, Mat_26:64. The expression was used by our Lord of Himself on at least forty different occasions, and in very diverse contexts. Thus he uses it in connexion with His authority to forgive sins (Mat_9:6), His lordship over the sabbath (Mat_12:8), His Second Advent in glory (Mat_10:23; Mat_13:41; Mat_16:27-28; Mat_19:28; Mat_24:27, Mat_24:30, Mat_24:37, Mat_24:44; Mat_25:31; Mat_26:64), His familiar intercourse with men in daily life (Mat_11:19), His poverty (Mat_8:20), His preaching (Mat_13:37), His sufferings and resurrection (Mat_17:9, Mat_17:12, Mat_17:22; Mat_20:18; Mat_26:24; Mar_8:31), His giving His life as a ransom (Mat_20:28), and His seeking and saving that which was lost (Luk_19:10). St. Stephen uses it of our Lord as glorified in eaven. The title occurs twelve times in St. John's Gospel, for the most part in passages which clearly imply His divinity. The Son of man exists in heaven before His Incarnation, and descends to earth to become man (Joh_6:62); He gives His flesh and blood to believers to eat and drink, who are thus incorporated with Him and receive eternal life (Joh_6:27.); He holds unbroken communion with the Father during His earthly life (Joh_1:51); He is the object of divine and saving faith (Joh_3:15); His death on the cross is not a degradation but a glorification (Joh_12:23; Joh_13:31), and He ends His earthly course by a triumphant ascension (Joh_6:62).

The title 'Son of man' is used of the Messiah in a part of the book of Enoch (Matthew 37-70), which is probably, but not certainly, preChristian. It is just possible that our Lord may have derived it from this source. But in any case the title was very little known, and was not popularly understood to mean the Messiah. Some have thought that the source of the title is Psalms 8 (see especially Mat_8:4).

22. Follow me; and let the dead, etc.] This difficult saying is variously interpreted: (1) My claim comes before all other claims. It is better that the dead should remain unburied, than that thou shouldest delay to enter upon the solemn ministry to which I have called thee. (N.B. The funeral and subsequent mourning would cause a delay of several weeks.) (2) Let the dead (i.e. thy unbelieving relations who are spiritually dead through lack of faith in Me) bury thy father for thee, and come thou, follow Me at once.

The man's father was probably either dead or at the point of death, although some think that he was only aged, and that the disciple asked to remain at home till death occurred, thus indefinitely postponing his obedience to Christ's call.

23-27. The stilling of the tempest (Mar_4:35; Luk_8:22). St. Mark and St. Luke both place the incident after the series of parables which St. Matthew records in Matthew 13. This is at once one of the best-attested miracles, and one of the most incomprehensible to those who desire to limit our Lord's miracles to those of healing. It is perhaps possible to regard the cessation of the storm as a fortunate coincidence, but it is certain that Jesus Himself did not take this view of it. He rebuked the wind and sea, showing that He regarded Himself as the Lord of physical nature as well as of the spiritual world. By stilling the storm Christ showed that, behind the inexorable and awful manifestations of nature, storm, pestilence, volcanic eruptions, and sudden death, which seem to treat man's sufferings with indifference, there is the loving hand of divine providence. In the last resort nature is subject to God's holy and righteous will.

The miracle is also a parable, setting forth Christ as a giver of peace and safety, both to individuals and to His Church. St. Augustine (400 a.d.) says, 'We are sailing in this life as through a sea, and the wind rises, and storms of temptation are not wanting. Whence is this, save because Jesus is sleeping in thee, i.e. thy faith in Jesus is slumbering in thy heart? Rouse Him and say, Master, we perish. He will awaken, that is, thy faith Will return to thee, and the danger will be over.' Tertullian (200 a.d.) says, 'But that little ship presented a figure of the Church, in that she is disquieted in the sea, i.e. in the world, by the waves, i.e. by persecutions and temptations, the Lord patiently sleeping, as it were until roused at last by the prayers of the saints He checks the world, and restores tranquillity to His own.'

24. Tempest] lit. 'shaking.' The word generally means 'earthquake.' 'To understand the causes of these sudden and violent tempests, we must remember that the lake lies low, six hundred feet lower than the Mediterranean Sea, that the vast and naked plateaus of Jaulan (the district E. of the lake) rise to a great height, spreading backward to the wilds of Hauran, and upwards to the snowy Hermon; that the watercourses have cut out profound ravines and wild gorges, converging to the head of the lake, and that these act like gigantic funnels to draw down the winds from the mountains' (Thompson).

27. What manner of man] The disciples already begin to think that Jesus is more than a mere man.

28-34. The healing of the Gadarene demoniacs (Mar_5:1; Luk_8:26). There are real difficulties in connexion with this narrative, but that upon which Professor Huxley laid so much stress in his controversy with Mr. Gladstone, 1889-91, is assuredly the least. Speaking of the destruction of the swine he said, 'Everything that I know of law and justice convinces me that the wanton destruction of other people's property is a misdemeanour of evil example,' as if He, who gives life and health and all things to all men, cannot take back His own gifts when He will. More serious is the difficulty presented by the transference of the devils from the men into the swine (Mat_8:31-32). It may, perhaps, be sufficient to remark that it is not certain that this is the true interpretation of the incident. The transference itself could not from the nature of the case have been observed. It was an inference from the request of the devils and the subsequent behaviour of the swine. The word Go used by Jesus may mean 'Go into the swine,' but it may also mean simply, 'Begone,' without implying any such permission. In the latter case the destruction of the swine may have been a natural occurrence, the herd taking fright at the paroxysms and cries of the demoniacs, which became more violent at the moment of their recovery: cp. Mar_1:26; Mar_9:26; Luk_9:42. If the former interpretation is correct, Jesus probably destroyed the swine to convince the insane men that the devils had really left them. The healing itself was certainly a miracle of the most striking kind, whether the men be regarded as really possessed by devils, or as maniacs under that delusion. St. Matthew in recording this miracle made use of another source besides that represented by St. Mark and St. Luke. He speaks of two demoniacs, they only of one.

28. The country of the Gergesenes (RV 'Gadarenes')] Gadara was an important Gentile town, the capital of Peræa, situated at least 6 m. from the lake in a south-easterly direction, and separated from it by a broad plain and the gorge of the river Hieromax, a tributary of the Jordan. St. Matthew mentions Gadara as the nearest well-known town. St. Mark and St. Luke state more precisely that the incident took place at Gerasa, to be identified with the ruins of Kersa or Gersa on the E. side of the lake. There are ancient tombs in the vicinity of this place, and about 1 m. S. of it is a steep, even slope, which may be the 'steep place' by which the swine rushed down into the sea. There was another Gerasa in Peræa, but it was fully 35 m. from the lake, and cannot possibly be the one meant.

Out of the tombs] Maniacs are still to be found among the tombs in the East. Warburton writes, 'On descending from these heights (of Lebanon), I found myself in a cemetery. The silence of the night was now broken by fierce yells and howlings, which I discovered proceeded from a naked maniac, who was fighting with some wild dogs for a bone. The moment he perceived me, he left his canine comrades, and bounding along with rapid strides, seized my horse's bridle, and almost forced him backward over the cliff.'

29. Thou Son of God] The demons similarly acknowledge Jesus in Mar_3:11; Luk_4:41. To torment us before the time] viz. of the Last Judgment, when the demons will be consigned to hell. The demoniacs identify themselves with the demons and speak in their names.

31. In St. Luke the demons beg not to be sent into the 'abyss,' i.e. into hell.

34. They besought him that he would depart] The drowning of 2,000 swine represented a considerable monetary loss, and they feared further losses if Jesus remained in their neighbourhood.

It is not clear whether the owners of the swine were Jews or Gentiles. The population of Decapolis was mainly, but by no means exclusively, Gentile. If the owners were Jews, their loss might be regarded as a punishment for keeping swine contrary to the Law. The rabbis said, 'Cursed be he who keeps hogs, and cursed be he who teacheth his son the wisdom of the Greeks'; and again, 'It is forbidden to trade in anything that is unclean.' 'Keeper of hogs' was a Jewish term of abuse. Coasts] RV 'borders.' St. Mark and St. Luke add that our Lord, departing from His usual custom, bade the demoniac proclaim his cure publicly. As the population was Gentile, there was no danger of a Messianic outbreak.

We have adopted the now widely-accepted view (see note 'Possession' at Mat_4:24), that the demoniacs of the NT. were insane persons under the delusion that they were possessed with devils, but their recognition of Jesus as the Son of God, and in a less degree the phenomenon of double consciousness exhibited in this and other instances, are plausible arguments for the older view that the possession was real: see on Mar_5:1-20.

J. R. Dummelow, A Commentary on the Holy Bible (Macmillan, 1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

1. Come down… mountain — He descended the slope toward the shores of Gennesaret, where stood Capernaum, his present residence. Great multitudes followed — His vast congregation moved with the preacher toward the city. See the closing comment on last chapter.

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

Ver. 1-Mat_9:34MESSIAH"S WORK AS COMPLEMENTARY TO HIS TEACHING. We return in this section to matter which resembles that of Mark and Luke, and undoubtedly belongs to the Framework (vide Introduction).

St. Matthew has given a lengthy summary of the teaching of the Christ, and he now supplements it by a summary of his daily work. He is not concerned with the chronological connexion of the incidents here narrated, for this is evidently to him a matter of but secondary importance. He only desires to bring out different aspects of the Lord"s life. Thus he notices

1. Christ"s miracles of healing, and the secret of his ability to perform them (vers. 1-17).

2. The personal trials that Christ incurred in his work. (Mat_8:18-34; Mat_9:1-8)

3. The liberty of the gospel as shown by Christ"s treatment of the outcast, and his answer to those who insisted on fasting. (Mat_9:9-17)

4. The completeness of his healing power. (Mat_9:18-34)

Vers. 1-17. 1. Christ"s miracles of healing, and the secret of his ability to perform them. Observe:

(1) The variety in the patients.

(a) One of the chosen people, who had lost all social and religious privileges;

(b) a Gentile, an outsider by birth;

(c) the near relation of a personal follower;

(d) multitudes.

(2) The variety in the requests for his aid.

(a) The request by the sufferer;

(b) the request by another;

(c) apparently no request, yet the personal follower has Christ with him;

(d) the sufferers are brought to him.

Vers. 1-4. Healing the leper. Parallel passages: Mar_1:40-45 Luk_5:12-16. Observe in this miracle

(1) the Lord"s sympathy, running counter to popular prejudice (vide Edersheim, " Life," 1:495);

(2) his full acceptance of the Law; (Mat_5:17) cf. ver. 4, note.

Matthew only. When he was come down from the mountain, (Mat_4:25, coming, as the plural suggests (cf. also Mat_12:23) from the various places there enumerated. If we must combine this verse with Luk_5:12, we must suppose our Lord to have descended the mountain, and to be passing through "one of the cities," coming (our ver. 5) afterwards to Capernaum, the "great multitudes" (cf. Luk_5:15) being drawn from the various cities through which he passed. The verse reminds us that the two sides of the Lord"s life, preaching and work, were intimately connected. Men not only wondered at what they heard, (Mat_7:28, Mat_7:29) they also followed him, and this led to occasions for the exercise of his practical activity. The result was that they wondered at his work, (Mat_9:33) as they wondered at his preaching.

Vers. 1-4. Departure from the mount of the Beatitudes.

I THE MULTITUDES.

1. They followed him. The Lord came down from the mount; the great sermon was ended. The attraction of his presence continued; great multitudes followed him. He had taught them as One having authority; there was a strange, startling originality about his teaching; it was totally unlike anything that they had ever heard before. It appealed to their hearts; it seemed to fill a want of which they had been more or less conscious; it satisfied the cravings of their souls. And so they followed him, anxious to hear more from his lips, to see more of his life, to know more of himself. There was a difference of character, a variety of motives; some were more deeply impressed than others, some were more persevering in their attachment to Christ than others were. But they all followed him.

2. It is an example to us. We have all heard his words, we have read them in the Scriptures; we have! heard his voice, if we are his indeed, speaking to us in the depths of our heart. We must not forget what we have read and heard; we must not allow our interest in his holy teaching to die away; we must follow him. He confirmed his Word with signs following, He manifested forth his glory by his miracles. He does so still. If we follow him with persevering steadfastness, we shall see that he still worketh miracles of grace. His blood cleanseth from all sin; he heals the dying soul; he casts out the evil spirit; he calms the tempest of distracting doubts and anxious fears; he is mightier than all the hosts of the wicked one.

II THE LEPER.

1. His prayer. He was in great misery, full of leprosy. He felt the fatal power of that terrible disease; it was disfiguring his person with a loathsome deformity, eating out the very life; it was separating him from the society of men; he was unclean, avoided by his nearest relatives; he was cut off from all that could give him consolation; nothing remained for him but death a slow, lingering death. Its hand was upon him now; there was no help in man. But he heard of the Lord Jesus; perhaps he had hovered on the outskirts of the crowd, listening to the Saviour"s words in the distance; perhaps he had been told of the wonders which he had already wrought. He had not yet healed a leper. Leprosy was regarded as a visitation, a stroke, from the hand of God. "Am I God," said the King of Israel, (2Ki_5:7) "to kill and to make alive, that this man doth scud unto me to recover a man of his leprosy?" It was God who sent it; it was God alone who could remove it. But, in spite of this fixed belief of the Jews, the leper had faith in the Lord Jesus; there was something about him, something in his look, manner, words, which told of the heaven whence he came. The leper doubted not; he came, he kneeled down, he fell on his face, he worshipped him, and said in words so striking that they have been recorded by the three evangelists, notwithstanding various differences of detail in the narration of the miracle, "Lord, if thou wilt, thou canst make me clean." He was conscious of unworthiness; perhaps he knew that sin had brought this misery upon him. He dared not presume upon, the mercy of the Lord. He felt his own degradation; he knew not whether Christ would be willing to help one so unworthy, so guilty; but he had no doubt of his power. As he came to Christ, so we must come. He came with reverence; he kneeled down. Humble reverence, reverence in gesture and in heart, becomes us sinful men when we draw near to the Most Holy One. He came with intense earnestness of supplication; his felt his misery, his danger. So must we come if we would be saved from the leprosy of sin; we must feel our guilt, our awful danger, the greatness of our need; we must come with strong desire, hungering and thirsting for forgiveness, longing to be made clean from the defilement of our sin. And we must come in full assurance of faith, confessing our unworthiness of the Saviour"s mercy, but doubting not his love and power.

2. The Lord"s answer. He "put forth his hand, and touched him." He feared not the danger of Levitical defilement; his perfect holiness cleansed all who came to him in faith, whom he deigned to touch with that gracious purifying hand. He spoke the word of power, "I will; be thou clean." As he taught with authority, so he heals with authority. It is his act; he heals in his own Name, by his own authority. "His touch hath still its ancient power;" his blood cleanseth from all sin; still he speaks that gracious word, "I will." He was moved with compassion then; he is the same compassionate Redeemer now; he is ready, willing, to cleanse us. There is no lack of power or of love in him; the fault is in ourselves. Only let us come with the faith, the earnest longing, the reverent prayer of the leper, and we shall hear that gracious "I will," and the leprosy of sin will depart before the saving touch of the Lord.

3. The Lord"s direction. The leper was cleansed, but he must show himself to the priest; he must go to the temple and offer the appointed gift. He was to tell no man till he had gone to Jerusalem. Silence was best, perhaps, for himself; the Lord knew his spiritual condition; it was best, perhaps, for the success of the Lord"s ministry. He was to go to the temple to give thanks to God in the sanctuary for his wonderful recovery; he was to observe the ordinances of the Mosaic ritual, and to show his gratitude by his offerings. So should we do when God has been merciful to us; we should give thanks in the church; we should bring our thank-offerings to Almighty God.

LESSONS.

1. It is not enough to have heard Christ once; follow him; we need him, always, all our life.

2. Sin is a loathsome, fatal sickness; only One can heal, the Lord Jesus Christ.

3. Come to him; doubt him not; he is "the same yesterday, and to-day, and for ever.

HOMILIES BY W.F. ADENEY Vers. 1-4. The leper.

This incident follows immediately after the sermon on the mount. It is questionable whether any of the great words of that discourse reached the leper, who could only have stood beyond the outermost ring of the crowd. But though at first he was quite shut away from Christ, his opportunity came while our Lord was coming down the hill; then he could claim the beggar"s privilege and stand by the wayside. Jesus speaks to multitudes, but he cares for individuals. He is not so taken up with the crowd as to have no time for special needs. Thus the gospel story repeatedly records the transition from public utterance to private kindness. These more private scenes best reveal to us the heart of Jesus. Let us look at the story of the leper, first as it regards the sufferer, and then as it concerns the action of the great Healer.

I THE BEHAVIOUR OF THE POOR SUFFERER.

1. His condition. A leper. His disease was loathsome, and his state of life pitiable in the extreme. An outcast from society, shunned as an unclean person, regarded as hopelessly afflicted, he was an object of perfect misery. The leper has always been regarded as typical of the sinner in his uncleanness, shame, and misery.

2. His action. He came to Christ. Why? Doubtless be had heard of previous cures. (Mat_4:24) But the very look of Jesus would be enough to draw him to the feet of the Friend of the miserable. Never had he seen suck sympathy and kindness. We need to know something of Christ to be drawn to him. When we do perceive his grace, we must come to him if we would have his salvation.

3. His reverence. He worshipped. We cannot suppose that he perceived the full Divinity shining through the garb of simple humanity. Yet it may be that he saw more of it than any one else, for it is most revealed in compassion. But if he only bowed as an act of homage to a great one, this showed reverence a fitting accompaniment of faith in Christ.

4. His words. He begged for cleansing, not for money. He knew his need, and he sought for the one thing most essential. He showed faith in the power of Christ; he only prayed for Christ"s willinghood. Both are needed for salvation.

II THE RESPONSE OF THE GREAT HEARER.

1. His brotherly touch. This is one of those single actions that send a flash of light into the nature of Christ. No one else would defile himself by touching a leper. The sufferer did not expect such an act of condescension, and Jesus had to "stretch forth" his hand to reach him. Here is Christ"s unlimited brotherhood. If there is danger of contagion he will not think of it. Christ heals through personal contact, through gracious brotherhood.

2. His consenting words.

(1) The word of grace: "I will." Then the two conditions are fulfilled. The father of the lunatic boy doubted the other condition the power. (Mar_9:22) But both are present with Christ.

(2) The word of power: "Be thou made clean." His language to the leper is typical of his message to the sinner. He saves by cleansing.

1. His perfect healing. There is no delay, there is no slow process. Immediately the cure is complete. Thus Christ is perfectly successful. His works prove his claims. He is able to save unto the uttermost lepers in body, lepers in soul.

2. His final directions.

(1) Silence. Perhaps from natural modesty. He was not like the Pharisees who trumpeted their alms. He would not let his left hand know what his right hand did.

(2) Obedience to the Law. This was not yet superseded. The leper lived under the Law. The priest would give the man a certificate. The offering would be a sign of gratitude. W.F.A.

HOMILIES BY P.C. BARKER Vers. 1-4. (see also Mar_1:40-45 Luk_5:12-16) The leper"s example.

Some concise account of the nature of the disease of leprosy, of the place it held in the Jewish economy as the "sacrament of death," of the leading allusions to it in the Old Testament, and of the Levitical provisions in the event of a recovery or supposed recovery, may form introduction to discourse. Then dwell on some suggestions arising from the fact of

I THE FAME OF JESUS TRAVELLING TO A LEPER.

II A LEPER TRAVELLING TO JESUS HIMSELF AT ALL RISKS.

III THE WELL-LEARNT HUMILITY OF THIS LEPER.

IV THE CLEAR DECISIVE FAITH OF THIS LEPER.

V THE PROMPT AND PRACTICAL COMPASSION OF JESUS: HE TOUCHED THE LEPER. It was legal defilement to touch a leper, because he was a leper; but it was not defilement to touch a leper, if he thereby ceased to be such.

VI THE PROBABLE REASON OR REASONS OF THE CHARGE OF JESUS TO HIM.

1. The reason may perhaps solely have had reference to what the Saviour knew of the real tendencies of the leper he had cleansed.

2. The reason may have had rather some outer aspect, and may have had it in view to obtain before men, and as a much-needed "testimony against" themselves, a true and unprejudiced and confessed verdict from the priests as to the genuineness of the great work of cleansing which he had accomplished.

3. The reason may have been strictly that, for Jesus, his "time was not yet ready," while the defence of the cleansed and happy, late leper, will ever be that he could not contain his joy, his praise, and his gratitude. B.

HOMILIES BY MARCUS DODS Vers. 1-13. The leper and the centurion.

The miracles of our Lord are an integral and necessary part of God"s revelation of himself to men. Christ came not so much to reveal God"s power as to reveal God"s disposition to use that power for us; not so much to show God"s holiness as to show his desire and purpose to make us also holy. Miracles, therefore, lay as naturally and inevitably in the way of Christ"s work as his teaching with authority did.

I THE HEALING OF THE LEPER is the first miracle recorded by Matthew, and it probably struck him more than it would at first sight strike us, by appealing to his Jewish ideas and sentiments.

1. For, in the first place, leprosy was not an ordinary, though a common, disease. It had a religious aspect, and was as symbolic as sacrifice or any other of the Jewish ordinances. It was, in the eye of the Jew, a frightful symbol of the condition of the outcast from God; he saw in it the true representation of the consuming and polluting nature of sin. For the sinner, too, is forced to cry, "Who shall deliver me from the body of this death?" To cut off one member brings no relief; the diseased blood strikes out in some other part. You may make one sin impossible, but another takes possession of you. The disease, you find, is yourself; you are full of it. What can you do but what the leper did come worshipping and beseeching to him who has power to heal?

2. It was partly because leprosy was symbolical of inward disease that Matthew saw in this healing of the leper the fulfilment of the prophetic words, "Himself took our infirmities, and bare our sicknesses." But partly, no doubt, because the prompt reply of the Lord, "I will; be thou clean," and his touching the man, disclosed the deep sympathy he had with men. Somehow the man had been brought to know that what nothing else could do for him Christ could. It is true of us all that we are dependent on Christ"s will. Obviously one who pro-losses to have all power in heaven and on earth can do many things which you need and which no one else professes to be able to do for you. Will Christ listen to the cry of bodily disease and be unmoved by the poor wretch that cries for deliverance from moral defilement? With what may we not fill up the leper"s form of petition, "If thou wilt, thou canst"? Very appropriately does Matthew put this "I will" of Christ"s in the forefront of all the miracles he records. It is this word that opens the gate and lets in upon us supernatural forces. Will is, indeed, the only supernatural force we know. Our own wills are in a certain sense supernatural. And when our Lord utters the words, "I will; be thou clean," he is merely exerting in a higher degree this same inscrutable spiritual force. We know not how his will is exerted upon the sufferer, but the effect is immediate and undeniable. From the number of miracles our Lord wrought at this time Matthew selects these two, of the leper and the centurion"s servant, that we may see the readiness and the potency of the will of Christ to heal.

II IN THE CENTURION we meet with a high type of man; a kindly, generous, devout nature; a humility not to be expected in one accustomed to command and to represent a ruling race. But, as our Lord reminds us, there are humble, unselfish, right-minded men in all ages and in all countries. In the centurion he saw promise of a far richer harvest than Israel could afford myriads of earnest men pressing from every quarter of the globe to hear the words of his kingdom. The exhilarating prospect has, however, its dark background. The earnest and humble devoutness cf spirit which spring up, one cannot tell how, in those outside the kingdom may be lacking to those within. These men glorified Christ, showed him in a right light and reflected honour upon him by their conduct. We have known more about him, have clearer views of his Person and methods; but, were our dealings with him recorded, would there be the same fair record of simple, unmurmuring faith, of humble dependence on Christ"s will, and undoubting worship? But the distinctive feature of the centurion"s application to our Lord is his persuasion that Christ"s will can work at a distance as easily as at hand. He reasons from his own experience. He had but to give the word of command, and his whole troop obeyed him; and he could not suppose the word of Christ was in his peculiar sphere less potent and authoritative. Perhaps this idea had been suggested to him by his feeling the contrast between his own power on the battle-field and helplessness at the bedside of his servant. Was there not some one who had power even here some one whose will could quicken even that inert body? The soldier, the law-abiding Roman, felt there must be.

Two injunctions were laid upon the healed leper.

1. To tell no man. This is an instance of what our Lord very commonly did, enjoining the healed person to keep silence about his cure, partly from regard to the person"s own best interests, partly from a regard to the proper work of Christ. If this man went and published his cure, many would come merely by way of experiment, as they would try a new doctor. But what was our Lord to do with such people, who merely wished for the physical benefit, and had no regard for his Person and no serious faith in him? And it would seem not improbable that this is the reason why we ourselves, even when we pray, get so little from Christ. Our faith is not serious enough; it is not the deeply rooted conviction that grows up in a man"s self by the working of his own mind and the course of his own experience; it is second-hand faith. We ask from him not because we are sure we shall receive, but because other people think it right to do so.

2. The man is sent to the priest that his cure might be verified. The cure was real and substantial, and our Lord shrank from no official examination, but rather courted it. Another reason was simply because this was commanded. This man was not to suppose that, because his cure was extraordinary, he was to be exempt from the customary regulations. Now, the significance of this for all who derive benefits from Christ is obvious. They must approve themselves healed and sound-hearted persons before that court that tries us all, and in which the judges are the ordinary duties of life, and the persons with whom or for whom we work. The character formed by Christ is fit for all the practical work and service of life; and he who fancies that because his cure has been wrought in a miraculous, supramundane, heavenly fashion, it is to be followed only by an ethereal, supramundane goodness that can do none of the rough work of the world, may well suspect he has not been cured at all. But the main impression of these incidents is meant, no doubt, to be a deep conviction of the quick response our Lord ever shows to true dependence on him. D.

HOMILIES BY J.A. MACDONALD Vers. 1-4. The leper.

Jesus, in his sermon on the mount, spake with an authority that asserted his Divinity. He claimed to be the King and Judge of men. Coming down from the mount, followed by the multitudes who were astonished at his doctrine, he wrought, a miracle which proved his authority to be no assumption. The miracles of Christ were not only miracles of power; they were, moreover, miracles of wisdom parables of omnipotence.

I LEPROSY IS AN EMBLEM OF SIN.

1. It is a most loathsome disease.

(1) Mungo Park thus describes it as he witnessed it amongst the negroes in Africa: "It appears at the beginning in scurfy spots upon different parts of the body; which finally settle upon the hands and feet, when the skin becomes withered and cracks in many places. At length the ends of the fingers swell and ulcerate; the discharge is acrid and fetid; the nails drop off, and the bones of the fingers become carious, and separate at the joints. In this manner the disease continues to spread frequently until the patient loses all his fingers and toes, and sometimes his hands and feet." Maundrel says, "Leprosy is the extreme state of corruption of which a living body is capable". (cf. Job_7:5)

(2) A corresponding moral condition comes to the day in our police-courts. In the eye of God the unregenerate heart of the Pharisee is no less revolting. (see Mat_23:27, Mat_23:28)

2. It is an insidious disease.

(1) Leprosy at first spreads secretly. Sometimes it is for years concealed. So the venom of sin is hidden, being restrained by environments of Christian influence.

(2) It is a hereditary evil. The leprosy of Naaman was not only transferred to Gehazi; it was also entailed upon his seed. (2Ki_5:27) The entailment of sin is universal.

(3) It is, moreover, contagious. Hence the Law required that the leper should live apart, and warn passengers to keep aloof by crying, "Unclean! Unclean!". (Lev_13:45, Lev_13:46) So Miriam. (Num_12:14, Num_12:15) Things infected with leprosy, were destroyed. So is sin contagious, and the company of sinners is to be shunned. (2Co_6:14-18 Jam_4:4)

II ITS CURE SETS FORTH CHRIST AS THE SAVIOUR OF SINNERS.

1. The Law prescribed no cure for it.

(1) The cleansing was not the healing of the leper. (see Lev_14:3) This man was healed and then sent to the priest to be ceremonially cleansed (ver. 4). So neither has the Law any cure for sin.

(2) The gospel supplies this lack. Hence David, in his moral leprosy, instead of going to the priest, went to the Lord. (Psa_51:7)

(3) There was a sense in which the faith of the Samaritan had made him whole, in which his nine ungrateful companions, though healed physically, were not made whole. (see Luk_17:11-19)

2. Jesus is able to save all men.

(1) This miracle proving his Divinity establishes his ability.

(2) But he saves us not by arbitrary power. He cannot sacrifice justice to mercy.

(3) He satisfies the claims of justice by taking our sin upon him. This is parabolically taught in his touching the leper. By that healing touch he became himself ceremonially unclean.

(4) In this Jesus broke no law. There is no law that says, "Thou shalt not touch a leper.

3. He is not willing to save all characters. "If thou wilt.

(1) He spurns the impenitent wicked. (see Isa_1:10-20 Psa_66:18)

(2) The contrite believer he will save. "I will." The leper came humbly. "Worshipped him," or, as in Mark, "kneeling down to him." Trustfully. "If thou wilt, thou canst. " None such are too vile. "A leper.

4. Impurity instantly yields to the rebuke of Christ.

(1) Why should a present salvation be disputed? Jesus is the Omnipotence of purity. Straightway his leprosy was cleansed.

(2) But why did Jesus send him to the priests? "For a testimony unto them," viz. as to the power of the gospel. Also.as to its truth. For this is beautifully set forth in the ceremony. (see outline on Lev_14:1-7) The miracle is a splendid commentary upon the Law. J.A.M.

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

The Healing of the Leper.

v. 1. When He was come down from the mountain, great multitudes followed Him.

While He was coming down from the mountain, where He had delivered His great sermon, and especially when He had fully descended into the plain, when He had, in fact, reached one of the cities of the neighborhood, Luk 5:12, the multitudes that had been swarming after Him from near and far, and who were more than ever impressed on account of His teaching, again followed after Him.

Paul E. Kretzmann, Popular Commentary of the Bible (1921–1924) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Note here, in general, that the Jews paid civil adoration to their kings and to their prophets: thus Saul stooped with his face to the ground to Samuel; Nebuchadnezzer fell on his face before Daniel, and Obadiah before Elijah; from whence may be gathered, that the adorations given to Christ by them that knew nothing of his divinity, were paid him as a prophet sent from God.

Only next, several particulars are here observable; as, 1. The petitioner, and that is a leper; he came and worshipped Christ, and petitions him to heal him, saying, Lord, if thou wilt, thou canst make me clean. Where he discovers a firm belief of Christ’s power, but a diffidence and distrust in Christ’s will, to heal him.

Learn, Christ’s divine power must be fully assented to, and firmly believed by all those that expect benefit by him, and healing from him.

Observe, 2. How readily our Saviour grants his petition; Jesus touched him, saying, I will: be thou clean. Our Saviour, by touching the leper, shewed himself to be above the law, as God; though subject to the law, as man; for by the ceremonial law, the leper was forbidden to be touched. Yet it was a received rule among the Jews, that a prophet might vary from the punctilios of the ceremonial law, or change a ritual law; so did Elijah stretch himself on the dead child, and Elisha on the Shunamite’s son, notwithstanding the prohibition of coming near the dead. But Christ’s curing the leper by the word of his mouth, and the touch of his hand, shewed his divine power, and proved himself to be truly and really sent of God; leprosy being called by the Jews the finger of God, a disease of his sending, and of his removing, our Saviour, therefore, as a proof and of his being the Messias, tells the disciples of John, That the lepers were cleansed, Mat 11:5 and the dead raised. Which being put together, intimates that the cleansing of the leper is as peculiar and act of divine power, as the raising of the dead; and accordingly, 2Ki 5:7 said the king, Am I a God, that this man sends to me to cure a man of his leprosy?

Observe, 3. The certainty and suddenness of the cure; immediately his leprosy was cleansed. Christ not only cured him without means, but without the ordinary time required for such a cure. Thus Christ shewed both power and will to cure him miraculously, who believed his power, but questioned his willingness.

Observe, 4. The charge and command given by Christ after the cure: first, To tell it to no man: wherein the modesty, humility, and piety, of Christ, is discovered, together with the care of his own safety. His modesty, in not desiring his good deeds should be proclaimed; his humility, in shunning vain-glorious applause and commendation; his piety, in desiring all the praise, honour, and glory, should redound entirely to God; his care of his own safety, lest the publishing of this miracle should create him untimely danger from the Pharisees.

Christians, behold your pattern to do much good, and make but little noise. Christ affected no popular air, he did not spoil a good work by vain ostentation. When we work hard for God, take we great care that pride doth not blow either it or us. O how difficult it is for us to do much service, and not value ourselves too much for the services which we do!

The second part of the charge which Christ gave the recovered leper, was, To shew himself to the priest, and offer the gift which Moses commanded for a testimony unto them; that is, a testimony to the Jews, that he was the Messiah, and that he did not oppose the ceremonial law given by Moses.

Where Note, That our Saviour would have the ceremonial law punctually observed, so long as the time for its continuance did endure; though he came to destroy that law, yet whilst it stood, he would have it observed.

Here Dr. Lightfoot observes, that though the priesthood was much degenerated from its primitive institution, by human inventions, yet Christ sends the leper to submit to it; because though they did corrupt, yet they did not extinguish the divine institution.

William Burkitt's Expository Notes on the New Testament (1700–1703) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

J. W. McGarvey's The Fourfold Gospel [XLIII. Healing the Centurion's Servant].

XLIII. HEALING THE CENTURION'S SERVANT. (At Capernaum.) aMATT. VIII. 1, 5-13; cLUKE VII. 1-10.

c1 After he had ended all his sayings in the ears of the people, a1 And when he was come down from the mountain, great multitudes followed him. che entered into Capernaum. [Jesus proceeded from the mountain to Capernaum, which was now his home, or headquarters. The multitudes which are now mentioned for the third time were not wearied by his sermon, and so continued to follow him. Their presence showed the popularity of Jesus, and also emphasized the fact that the miracles which followed the sermon were wrought in the presence of the vast throngs of people.] a5 And when he was entered into Capernaum, there came unto him a centurion [The context shows that this centurion or captain of a hundred men was a Gentile, but whether he was in the employ of Herod Antipas, tetrarch of Galilee, or an officer in the Roman army, is [270] not clear, neither is very important. The army of Antipas, like that of other petty kings, was modeled after that of Rome], c2 And a certain centurion's servant [slave boy], who was dear unto him, was sick, and at the point of death. 3 And when he heard concerning Jesus [The sequel shows that the centurion had probably heard how Jesus had healed the son of his fellow-townsman-- Joh_4:46-54], he sent unto him elders of the Jews [To reconcile Matthew and Luke, we have only to conceive of the centurion as coming to the edge of the crowd about Jesus, but modestly refraining from coming into the Lord's immediate presence.] asking him that he would come and save his servant. abeseeching him, 6 and saying, Lord, my servant lieth in the house sick of the palsy, grievously tormented. [Because palsy is not usually accompanied with suffering, some think that in this case it was combined with tetanus or lockjaw, a combination not infrequent in hot climates. But Sir R. Bennet, M.D., speaks thus: "In this instance we have probably a case of progressive paralysis, attended by muscular spasms, and involving the respiratory movements, where death is manifestly imminent and inevitable. In such a case there would be symptoms indicative of great distress, as well as immediate danger to life." As to palsy generally, see Luk_18:8). The elders, little knowing the wideness of our Lord's vision and sympathy, supposed that Jesus would look upon the splendid synagogue erected for the Jewish people as a sufficient motive for granting their request. Even the apostles were slow to learn that at heart Jesus knew neither Jew nor Gentile.] c8 For I also am a man set under authority, having under myself soldiers, and I say unto one, Go, and he goeth; and to another, Come, and he cometh; and to my servant [not a soldier, but a household slave], Do this, and he doeth it. [Having those over him, he knew how to obey, and [272] having those under him, he knew how to be obeyed. He was familiar, therefore, with all the principles of obedience. Knowing from the healing of the nobleman's son, or from other reports concerning Jesus, that the realm of nature obeyed Jesus, he judged from his knowledge of earthly obedience that Jesus had those who could come and go for him, and who could carry his messages and enforce obedience to them. He felt that the presence of Jesus was not at all necessary to the healing.] a10 And when Jesus heard it, cthese things, he marvelled at him, and turned and said unto athem cthe multitude that followed him, aVerily I say unto you, I have not found so great faith, no, not in Israel. [To some it seems strange that Jesus could marvel, but he had all the actual feelings of a man. However, we should note that Jesus is never said to have marveled but twice. In this case it was because of belief, and in the other ( Mar_6:6), it was because of unbelief. Those who think that Jesus gave or gives faith should note this fact. If Jesus had given the centurion faith, he could not have been surprised to find that he had it; and, if he failed to bestow it upon the people of Nazareth, it would have been inconsistent in him to express surprise at their lack of it. It would seem, however, irreconcilable with the character and affectionate nature of Christ, to bestow faith in such profusion upon this Gentile stranger, and withhold every spark of it from his near kinsmen and fellow-townsmen. Faith is no miraculous gift. Faith means no more nor less than belief; and a man believes the Scripture facts in the same manner and by the same processes that he believes any other facts.] 11 And I say unto you, that many shall come from the east and the west, and shall sit down with Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, in the kingdom of heaven [Jesus here predicts the conversion of the Gentiles, since that fact is suggested to him by the faith of this centurion. The east and the west represent the extreme points of the compass in the directions in which the world was most thickly inhabited. But Jesus refers rather to spiritual separation than to [273] geographical distances-- Mal_1:11, Isa_49:19, Jer_16:19, Zec_8:22.] 12 but the sons of the kingdom [The child of anything in Hebrew phraseology expressed the idea of special property which one has in the thing specified, as, for instance, children of disobedience ( Eph_2:2). Jesus here means, then, the Jews, to whom the kingdom belonged by hereditary descent-- Rom_9:4] shall be cast forth into the outer darkness: there shall be the weeping and the gnashing of teeth. [In this paragraph Christ's kingdom is set forth under the simile of a great feast, a familiar simile with Jesus ( Mat_26:29, Luk_22:30). The Jews were accustomed to speak of the delights of the Messianic kingdom as a feast with the patriarchs ( Luk_14:15), but lost sight of the fact that Gentiles should share in its cheer and fellowship ( Isa_25:6). Marriage feasts and other great feasts of the Jews were usually held in the evening. Inside, therefore, there would be joy and light and gladness, but outside there would be darkness and disappointment, tears and bitter self-reproach ( Mat_25:10-13). The despised outcasts should be brought in and placed at the festal board, while the long-invited guests--the natural and fleshly heirs of Abraham's invitation--would be excluded ( Mat_21:43). Hell is absence from spiritual light, separation from the company of the saved, lamentation and impotent rage.] 13 And Jesus said unto the centurion, Go thy way; as thou hast believed, i so be it done unto thee. And the servant was healed in that hour. [In the moment when Jesus spoke, the servant was healed--not relieved, but healed.] c10 And they that were sent, returning to the house, found the servant whole. [The centurion, long before this when he was building the synagogue, had doubtless heard with delight concerning the wonderful works wrought by the mighty prophets in the olden time; he little dreamed that his own eyes should see them all surpassed.] [274]

[FFG 270-274]

J. W. McGarvey (with Philip Y. Pendleton), Commentaries on the New Testament (The Fourfold Gospel, 1914; Acts; and the epistles) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

Matthew Chapter 8

Then, in chapter 8, the Lord begins in the midst of Israel His patient life of testimony, which closed with His rejection by the people whom God had so long preserved for Him, and for their own blessing.

He had proclaimed the kingdom, displayed His power throughout the land, and declared His character, as well as the spirit of those who should enter the kingdom.

But His miracles, [24] as well as the whole Gospel, are always characterised by His position among the Jews and God’s dealings with them, till He was rejected. Jehovah, yetthe man obedient to the law, foreshewing the entrance of the Gentiles into the kingdom (its establishment in mystery in the world), predicting the building of the church or assembly on the recognition of His being Son of the living God, and the kingdom in glory; and, while detecting as the effect of His presence the perversity of the people, yet bearing on His heart with perfect patience the burden of Israel. [25] It is Jehovah present in goodness, outwardly one of themselves: wondrous truth!

First of all, we find the healing of a leper. Jehovah alone, in His sovereign goodness, could heal the leper; here Jesus does so. “If thou wilt,” says the leper, “thou canst.” “I will,” replies the Lord. But at the same time, while He shews forth in His own Person that which repels all possibility of defilement-that which is above sin-He shews the most perfect condescension towards the defiled one. He touches the leper, saying, “I will, be thou clean.” We see the grace, the power, the undefilable holiness of Jehovah, come down in the Person of Jesus to the closest proximity to the sinner, touching him so to speak. It was indeed “the Lord that healeth thee.” [26] At the same time He conceals Himself, and commands the man, who had been healed, to go to the priest according to the ordinances of the law and offer his gift. He does not go out of the place of the Jew in subjection to the law; but Jehovah was there in goodness.

But in the next case we see a Gentile, who by faith enjoys the full effect of that power which his faith ascribed to Jesus giving the Lord occasion to bring out the solemn truth, that many of these poor Gentiles should come and sit down in the kingdom of heaven with the fathers who were honoured by the Jewish nation as the first parents of the heirs of promise, while the children of the kingdom should be in outer darkness. In fact the faith of this centurion acknowledged a divine power in Jesus, which, by the glory of Him that possessed it, would (not forsake Israel, but) open the door to the Gentiles, and graft into the olive-tree of promise branches of the wild olive-tree in the place of those which should be cut off. The manner in which this should take place in the assembly was not now the question.

He does not however yet forsake Israel. He goes into Peter’s house, and heals his wife’s mother. He does the same to all the sick who crowd around the house at even, when the sabbath was over. They are healed, the devils are cast out, so that the prophecy of Isaiah was being fulfilled: “Himself took our infirmities and bare our sicknesses.” Jesus put Himself in heart under the weight of all the sorrows that oppressed Israel, in order to relieve and heal them. It is still Emmanuel, who feels for their misery and is afflicted in all their affliction, but who has come in with the power that shews Him capable of delivering them.

These three cases shew this character of His ministry in a clear and striking manner. He hides Himself; for, until the moment when He would shew judgment to the Gentiles, He does not lift up His voice in the streets. It is the dove that rests upon Him. These manifestations of power attract men to Him; but this does not deceive Him: He never departs in spirit from the place He has taken. He is the despised and the rejected of men; He has nowhere to lay His head. The earth had more room for the foxes and the birds than for Him, whom we have seen appear a moment before as the Lord, acknowledged at least by the necessities which He never refused to relieve. Therefore, if any man would follow Him, he must forsake all to be the companion of the Lord, who would not have come down to the earth if everything had not been in question; nor without an absolute right, although it was at the same time in a love which could only be occupied by its mission, and by the necessity that brought Him there.

The Lord on earth was everything or nothing. This, it is true, was to be felt morally in its effects, in the grace which, acting by faith, attached the believer to Him by an ineffable bond. Without this, the heart would not have been morally put to the test. But this did not make it the less true. accordingly the proofs of this were present: the winds and waves, to which in the eye of man He seemed to be exposed, obeyed His voice at once-a striking reproof to the unbelief that woke Him from His sleep, and had supposed it possible for the waves to engulf Him, and with Him the counsels and the power of Him who had created the winds and waves. It is evident that this storm was permitted in order to try their faith and manifest the dignity of His Person. If the enemy was the instrument who produced it, he only succeeded in making the Lord display His glory. Such indeed is always the case as to Christ, and for us, where faith is.

Now the reality of this power, and the manner of its operation, are forcibly proved by that which follows.

The Lord disembarks in the country of the Gergesenes. There the power of the enemy shews itself in all its horrors. If man, to whom the Lord was come in grace, did not know Him, the devils knew their Judge in the Person of the Son of God. The man was possessed by them. The fear they had of torme nt at the judgment of the last day is applied in the man’s mind to the immediate presence of the Lord: “Art thou come to torment us before the time?” Wicked spirits act on men by the dread of their power; they have none unless they are feared. But faith only can take this fear from man. I am not speaking of the lusts on which they act, nor of the wiles of the enemy; I speak of the power of the enemy. Resist the devil and he will flee from thee. Here the devils wished to manifest the reality of this power. The Lord permits it in order to make it plain, that in this world it is not merely man that is in question whether good or bad, but that also which is stronger than man. The devils enter into the swine, which perish in the waters. Sorrowful reality plainly demonstrated that it was no question of mere disease or of sinful lusts, but of wicked spirits! However, thanks be to God, it was a question also of One who, although a man on earth, was more powerful than they. They are compelled to acknowledge this power, and they appeal to it. There is no idea of resistance. In the temptation in the wilderness Satan had been overcome. Jesus completely delivers the man whom they had oppressed with their evil power. The power of the devils was nothing before Him. He could have delivered the world from all the power of the enemy, if that only had been in question, and from all the ills of humanity. The strong man was bound, and the Lord spoiled his goods. But the presence of God, of Jehovah, troubles the world even more than the power of the enemy degrades and domineers over mind and body. The control of the enemy over the heart-too peaceful, and alas! too little perceived-is more mighty than his strength. This succumbs before the word of Jesus; but the will of man accepts the world as it is, governed by the influence of Satan. The whole city, who had witnessed the deliverance of the demoniac and the power of Jesus present among them, entreat Him to depart. Sad history of the world! The Lord came down with power to deliver the world-man-from all the power of the enemy; but they would not. Their distance from God was moral, and not merely bondage to the enemy’s power. They submitted to his yoke, they had become used to it, and they would not have the presence of God.

I doubt not that that which happened to the swine is a figure of that which happened to the impious and profane Jews who rejected the Lord Jesus. Nothing can be more striking than the way in which a divine Person, Emmanuel, though a man in grace, is manifested in this chapter.

Footnotes for Matthew Chapter 8

[24] The miracles of Christ had a peculiar character. They were not merely acts of power, but all of them of the power of God visiting this world in goodness. The power of God had been often shewn specially, from Moses, but often in judgment. But Christ’s were all the deliverance of men from the evil consequences sin had brought in. There was one exception, the cursing the fig tree, but this was a judicial sentence on Israel, that is, man under the old covenant when there was great appearance but no fruit.

[25] I subjoin here some notes, made since this was written, as throwing, I think, light on the structure of this Gospel. Mat 5:1 gives the character required for entrance into the kingdom, the character which was to mark the accepted remnant, Jehovah being now in the way with the nation to judgment. Chapters 8, 9 give the other side-grace and goodness come in, God manifest, His character and actings, that new thing which could not be put into the old bottles-still goodness in power, but rejected, the Son of man (not Messiah) who had not where to lay His head. Chapter 8 gives present intervention in temporal goodness with power. Hence, as goodness, it goes beyond Israel, as it deals in grace with what was excluded from God’s camp in Israel. It includes power over all Satan’s power and sickness and the elements, and that in taking the burden on Himself, but in conscious rejection. Mat 8:17-20 leads us to Isa 53:3-4, and the state of things calling for the wholly following Him, giving up all. This leads to the sad testimony that, if divine power expels Satan’s, the divine presence manifest in it is insupportable to the world. The swine figure Israel thereupon. Chapter 9 furnishes the religious side of His presence in grace, forgiveness, and the testimony that Jehovah was there according to Psa 103:1-22, but there to call sinners, not the righteous; and this was especially what could not suit the old bottles. Finally, this chapter practically, save the patience of goodness, closes the history. He came to save Israel’s life. It was really death when He came: only, wherever there was faith in the midst of the surrounding crowd, there was healing. The Pharisees shew the blasphemy of the leaders: only the patience of grace still subsists, carried out towards Israel in chapter 10, but all found to be of no avail in chapter 11. The Son was revealing the Father, and this abides and gives rest. Chapter 12 develops fully the judgment and rejection of Israel. Chapter 13 brings Christ as a sower, not seeking fruit in His vineyard, and the actual form of the kingdom of heaven.

[26] One who touched a leper became himself unclean, but the blessed One did come thus close to man, but removed the defilement without contracting it. The leper knew His power, but was not sure of His goodness. “I will” declared it, but with a title which God only has to.

John Nelson Darby — Synopsis of the Books of the Bible: the New Testament (c. 1857–1862) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

1, 2. A leper came. Compare Mark 1:40–45; Luke 5:12–15. Leprosy was a dreadful and hopeless disease. It begins as a skin disease, defies medical skill, and is a kind of living death. Dr. Schaff says: “Near the Jaffa gate of Jerusalem I saw, in 1877, these miserable creatures with withered limbs imploring aid, and visited a hospital of incurable lepers.” There are various forms of the disease, but white leprosy seemed most common among the Hebrews. With it the sufferer became white from head to foot. The leper, by the law of Moses, was regarded unclean, was separated from the people, was regarded as death, and the disease was a type of sin. See Lev. 13:1–12; 2 Kings 5:27; Num. 5:2. Lord. An expression of faith, as well as the words that follow.

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.

General Information:

This is the beginning of a new part of the story that contains several accounts of Jesus healing people. This theme continues through Matthew 9:35. (See: Introduction of a New Event)

When Jesus had come down from the hill, large crowds followed him

"After Jesus came down from the hill, a large crowd followed him." The crowd may have included both people who had been with him on the mountain and people who had not been with him.

Behold

The word "behold" alerts us to a new person in the story. Your language may have a way of doing this.

a leper

"a man who had leprosy" or "a man who had a skin disease"

bowed before him

This is a sign of humble respect before Jesus. (See: Symbolic Action)

if you are willing

"if you want to" or "if you desire." The leper knew that Jesus had the power to heal him, but he did not know if Jesus would want to touch him.

you can make me clean

Here "clean" means to be healed and to be able to live in the community again. AT: "you can heal me" or "please heal me" (See: Idiom)

Be clean

By saying this, Jesus healed the man. (See: Imperatives - Other Uses)

Immediately he was cleansed

"At that moment he was cleansed"

he was cleansed of his leprosy

The result of Jesus saying "Be clean" was that the man was healed. This can be stated in active form. AT: "he was well" or "the leprosy left him" or "the leprosy ended" (See: Active or Passive)

translationWords

Jesus

leper

bow

lord

clean

unfoldingWord translationNotes — © Distant Shores Media and the Door43 World Missions Community, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Source: git.door43.org/Door43/en_tn.

1–4. A LEPER IS CLEANSED

St Mar 1:40-44; where this incident is placed in the course of a Galilæan circuit, and before the return to Capernaum. St Luk 5:12, where the cure is placed ἐν μιᾷ τῶν πόλεων, and precedes the Sermon on the Mount. With these discrepancies which meet us at every turn in the Gospels, it appears to be a hopeless task to construct a chronological arrangement of our Lord’s ministry. On the other hand such divergences of plan form the strongest evidence of the independence of the narratives.

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.