John Gill's Exposition of the Entire Bible.

John Gill's Exposition of the Entire Bible.

Luke 5:1



Ver. 1. And it came to pass, that as the people pressed upon him,.... As Christ went through Galilee, and preached in the synagogues there, great crowds of people attended on him, and they followed him wherever he went; and so large were their numbers, and so very eager were they to see him, and hear him, that they were even troublesome to him, and bore hard upon him, and were ready to press him down, though they had no ill design upon him, but only



to hear the word of God; the scriptures of the Old Testament explained, and the doctrines of the Gospel preached; and which were preached by him, as never were before or since, and in such a manner as were not by the Scribes and Pharisees; and both the matter and manner of his ministry drew a vast concourse of people after him:



he stood by the lake of Gennesaret; the same with the sea of Chinnereth, Nu 34:11 where the Targums of Onkelos, Jonathan, and the Jerusalem, call it, rowngd amy, "the sea of Geausar" or "Gennesaret": and so it is elsewhere called {a}, and is the same which is called the sea of Galilee, and of Tiberias, Joh 6:1 and is, by other writers {b}, as here, called the lake of Gennesaret, and said to be sixteen miles long, and six broad. Josephus says {c}, it is forty furlongs broad, and an hundred long. The Jews say {d}, that



"the holy, blessed God created seven seas, but chose none of them all, but the sea of Gennesaret.''



And indeed, it was a place chosen by Christ, and honoured, and made famous by him, by his preaching at it, his miracles upon it, and showing himself there after his resurrection.



{a} Targum in Ezek. xxxix. 11. Zohar in Gen. fol. 3. 2. & 17. 2. & in Exod. fol. 52. 4. & 61. 4. {b} Plin. l. 5. c. 15. Solin, c. 48. Ptolom. l. 5. c. 15. {c} De Bello Jud. l. 3. c. 18. {d} Pirke Eliezer, c. 18.





Luke 5:2



Ver. 2. And saw two ships standing by the lake,.... Or two fishing boats; which were, as the Arabic version renders it, "detained by anchors at the shore of the lake"; the one belonging to Peter and Andrew, and the other to Zebedee, and his two sons, James and John:



but the fishermen were gone out of them; that is, either the above persons, or their servants:



and were washing their nets; on shore; they having gathered a great deal of soil and filthiness, but had caught no fish; and therefore were cleansing their nets, in order to lay them up, finding it to be in vain to make any further attempts with them at present; and which considered, makes the following miracle the more illustrious.





Luke 5:3



Ver. 3. And he entered into one of the ships, which was Simon's,.... Simon Peter's, and Andrew his brother's, who were both together at this time, though the last is not here mentioned:



and prayed him that he would thrust out a little from the land: as Simon was the owner of the vessel, Christ desired him; he asked the favour of him to put off a little way from shore; though the Arabic and Ethiopic versions render it, "he commanded him", being his Lord and master: To which the Syriac and Persic versions agree; only they make the orders to be given not to Simon singly, but to others, to all in the boat; the former rendering it, and he said, or ordered, that they should carry him a little way from the dry land to the waters; and the latter thus, and said, carry ye the ship from dry land a little into the sea. And which adds, agreeable to the sense enough, though it is not in the text, "when they had executed his command": had done as he entreated, or ordered, and put off the vessel a little way from the shore:



he sat down and taught the people out of the ship; for the boat was not carried neither out of sight, nor beyond the hearing of the people: this method Christ took at another time, and that for conveniency, as now; see Mt 13:1 and whereas he sat while he taught, this was according to the then custom of the times with the Jews;

See Gill on "Mt 5:1".





Luke 5:4



Ver. 4. Now when he had left speaking,.... Teaching the people, and preaching the word of God unto them out of the ship, as they stood on the shore before him.



He said unto Simon, launch out into the deep; he spoke to Simon Peter, being the master of the vessel, to thrust it out, or put it off further into deep water, more convenient for fishing;



and let down your nets for a draught; of fishes: his meaning is, that he would give orders to his servants, to put out the vessel to sea, to take their nets and cast them into the sea, in order to take and draw up a quantity of fish, which was their business.





Luke 5:5



Ver. 5. And Simon answering said unto him, master,.... Or Rabbi, as the Syriac version renders it: he knew him to be the Messiah, the king of Israel, and a teacher sent from God:



we have toiled all the night, and have taken nothing; which carries in it an objection to what Christ advised and directed to: they had been fishing that "night", which was the best time for catching fish; and they had been at it all the night, and had "laboured" hard; and were even "fatigued", and quite wearied out; and what was most discouraging of all, their labour was in vain; they had caught "nothing":



nevertheless at thy word I will let down the net; which showed faith in Christ, and obedience to him: thus the faithful preachers of the Gospel, sometimes labour and toil in the ministry of the word a great while, with little or no success; and are discouraged from going on, and would be tempted to leave off, were it not for the commission and word of command they have received from Christ, which they dare not be disobedient to; and for the word of promise he has given them, to be with them, on which they depend.





Luke 5:6



Ver. 6. And when they had done this,.... Had put the ship out further to sea, and had let down their net:



they enclosed a great multitude of fish; in their net, which by the secret divine power of Christ, were gathered together just in that place, where by his order they cast the net:



and their net brake; with the weight and number, of the fishes, yet not so as to let the fish out; the Arabic version reads, "it was within a little that their nets were broke": they were just upon breaking, the draught was so numerous, the struggling so great, and the weight so heavy.





Luke 5:7



Ver. 7. And they beckoned unto their partners,.... Zebedee, and his two sons, James and John; Lu 5:10 who were at some distance from them, probably lay at anchor near the shore, not having put out to sea when the other vessel did, and so were not within call; but they were obliged to make signs to them, and beckon with their hands to come to them:



which were in the other ship; mentioned in Lu 5:2 which lay by the shore:



that they should come and help them; take up the net, and take the fish out of it:



and they came and filled both the ships; with the fishes they took out of the net, as full as they could hold, and which they were not well able to carry:



so that they began to sink; or "were almost immersed", as Beza's ancient copy, and another manuscript, with the Syriac, Arabic, and Persic versions read; the vessels were so heavy laden, with the vast quantity of fish that was taken, that they were just ready to sink with their burden.





Luke 5:8



Ver. 8. When Simon Peter saw it,.... The multitude of fish that was taken, and both vessels filled with them, and the danger they were in of sinking,



he fell down at Jesus' knees. The Arabic and Persic versions read, "at" his "feet": he fell on his knees before him, and threw himself prostrate at his feet, as a worshipper of him, and a supplicant unto him:



saying, depart from me, for I am a sinful man, O Lord; this he said, not as though the presence of Christ was burdensome, or disagreeable to him; but as one amazed at the greatness of the miracle wrought, and struck with the sense of the power of Christ, put forth therein; and with the greatness of his majesty so near him; and as conscious to himself of his own vileness and unworthiness to be in his presence; and so the Persic version adds, and which may serve as a comment, "and am not worthy that thou shouldst be with me": he had much the same sense of things as the centurion had, Mt 8:8 and when it is considered how gracious persons have been struck with awe and fear, and a consciousness of sin, weakness, and unworthiness, at the appearance of an angel, as Zacharias, Lu 1:12 and the shepherds, Lu 2:9 yea, at the presence of an holy man of God, as the widow of Sarepta at Elijah, saying much the same as Peter does here, 1Ki 17:18 it need not be wondered at, that Peter should so express himself, in these circumstances.





Luke 5:9



Ver. 9. Far he was astonished, and all that were with him,.... His brother Andrew, and the servants they had with them to manage the vessel, and cast the nets:



at the draught of the fishes they had taken; being so large and numerous, as the like was never seen, nor known by them before.





Luke 5:10



Ver. 10. And so was also James and John, the sons of Zebedee,.... Who were in the other ship, and had been beckoned to them to come and help them, and did come, and were witnesses of the miracle:



which were partners with Simon; were sharers with him in loss and gain in the fishing trade; these were equally astonished at the miracle, as Simon and his brother, and the men that were in the boat with them, where Jesus was:



and Jesus said unto Simon; who was at his knees, and expressed his dread of his majesty, and the consternation of mind he was in particularly:



fear not; do not be afraid of me, I shall do thee no harm, nor shall the boats sink, or any damage come to any person, or to the vessels, nor be so much amazed and affrighted, at the multitude of the fish taken:



from henceforth thou shalt catch men; alive, as the word signifies, or "unto life", as the Syriac and Persic versions render it; thou shalt cast the net of the Gospel, and be the happy instrument of drawing many persons out of the depths of sin and misery, in which they are plunged, into the way of life and salvation; and which was greatly verified, in the conversion of three thousand at one cast, under one sermon of his, Ac 2:41





Luke 5:11



Ver. 11. And when they had brought their ships to land,.... Both Simon Peter's, and the other in which his partners were, and which were laden with fish:



they forsook all; even all their fish, which they doubtless might have made much money of, and their nets, and their ships, and their servants, and their relations, and friends:



and followed him; Christ; and became his disciples, even all four of them, Peter, Andrew, James, and John.





Luke 5:12



Ver. 12. And it came to pass, when he was in a certain city,.... Or near it, hard by it, very probably Capernaum; Mt 8:1 Behold a man full of leprosy; a disease to which the Jews were very incident, and concerning which, many laws and rules are given, in

Le 13:1. The symptoms of the ancient "lepra", as laid down by Galen, Aretaeus, Pontanus, Aegineta, Cardan, Varanda, Gordon, Pharaeus, and others, are as follow. The patient's voice is hoarse, and comes rather through the nose than the mouth; the blood full of little white shining bodies, like groins of millet, which upon filtration, separate themselves from it; the serum is scabious, and destitute of its natural humidity, insomuch that salt applied to it, does not dissolve; it is so dry, that vinegar poured on it boils; and is so strongly bound together by little imperceptible threads, that calcined lead thrown into it swims. The face resembles a coal half extinct, unctuous, shining, and bloated, with frequent hard knobs, green at bottom, and white at top. The hair is short, stiff, and brinded; and not to be torn off, without bringing away, some of the rotten flesh, to which it adheres; if it grows again, either on the head or chin, it is always white: athwart the forehead, run large wrinkles or furrows, from one temple to the other; the eyes red and inflamed, and shine like those of a cat; the ears swollen and red, eaten with ulcers towards the bottom, and encompassed with little glands; the nose sunk, because of the rotting of the cartilage; the tongue dry and black, swollen, ulcerated, divided with furrows, and spotted with grains of white; the skin covered with ulcers, that die and revive on each other, or with white spots, or scales like a fish; it is rough and insensible, and when cut, instead of blood, yields a sanious liquor: it arrives in time to such a degree of insensibility, that the wrist, feet, or even the large tendon, may be pierced with a needle, without the patient's feeling any pain; at last the nose, fingers, toes, and even privy members, fall off entire; and by a death peculiar to each of them, anticipate that of the patient: it is added, that the body is so hot, that a fresh apple held in the hand an hour, will be dried and wrinkled, as if exposed to the sun for a week {e}. Think now what a miserable deplorable object this man was, said to be full of it. Between this disease and sin, there is a very great likeness. This disease is a very filthy one, and of a defiling nature, by the ceremonial law; under which it was considered rather as an uncleanness, than as a disease; the person attended with it was pronounced unclean by the priest, and was put out of the camp, and out of the cities and walled towns, that he might not defile others; and was obliged to put a covering on his upper lip, and cry Unclean, Unclean, to acknowledge his pollution, and that others might shun him: all mankind, by reason of sin, are by the Lord pronounced filthy; and by their evil actions, not only defile themselves, but others; evil communications corrupt good manners; and when they are made sensible, freely own that their righteousnesses are as filthy rags, and they themselves as an unclean thing: it is a very nauseous and loathsome disease, as is sin; it is abominable to God, and renders men abominable in his sight; it causes the sinner himself, when convinced of it, to loath and abhor himself: David calls his sin a loathsome disease, Ps 38:7 it is of a spreading nature: this was a sign of it, if it did not spread, it was only a, scab; if it spread, it was a leprosy, Le 13:5. Sin has spread itself over all mankind, and over all the powers and faculties of the soul, and members of the body; there is no place free of it: and as the leprosy is of consuming nature, it eats and wastes the flesh, see Nu 12:10 2Ki 5:10 so sin eats like a canker, and brings ruin and destruction upon men, both soul and body. This disease was incurable by medicine; persons that had it were never sent to a physician, but to a priest; and what he did was only this, he looked upon it, and if it was a clear case, he declared the person unclean; and if it was doubtful, shut him up for seven days, and then inspected him again; and after all he could not cure him; this was the work of God, 2Ki 5:7. All which shows the nature and use of the law, which shuts men up, concludes them under sin, and by which they have knowledge of it, but no healing: the law heals none, it is the killing letter, the ministration of condemnation and death; Christ only, by his blood and stripes, heals the disease of sin, and cleanses from it. There is one thing in the law of the leprosy very surprising, and that is, that if there was any quick raw flesh, or any sound flesh in the place where the leprosy was, the man was pronounced unclean; but if the leprosy covered his skin, and all his flesh, then he was pronounced clean: this intimates, that he that thinks he has some good thing in him, and fancies himself sound and well, and trusts to his own works of righteousness, he is not justified in the sight of God; but if a man acknowledges that there is no soundness in his flesh, that in him, that is, in his flesh, dwells no good thing, but that his salvation is alone, by the grace and mercy of God, such a man is justified by faith in Christ Jesus: the parable of the Pharisee and publican will illustrate this, Lu 18:10. "Who, seeing Jesus, fell on his face, and besought him, saying, Lord, if thou wilt, thou canst make me clean"; See Gill on "Mt 8:2". Christ could cure lepers, and did; and which was a proof of his Messiahship, and is given among the signs of it, to John's disciples, Mt 11:5 and as there is a likeness between the leprosy and sin, so between the cleansing of a leper under the law, and the healing of a sinner by Christ: for the cleansing of a leper, two birds were to be taken clean and alive, which were both typical of Christ, and pointed at the meekness of his human nature, his innocence, harmlessness, and purity, and that he had a life to lay down; one of these was to be killed, in an earthen vessel over running water, showing that Christ must be killed, his blood must be shed for the cleansing of leprous sinners; the earthen vessel denoted his human nature, his flesh, in which he was put to death; and the running water signified the purifying nature of his blood, and the continued virtue of it, to cleanse from all sin; and the blood and the water being mixed together, may put us in mind of the blood and water which flowed from the side of Christ, when pierced with the spear; which was an emblem of our justification and sanctification being both from him, on account of which, he is said to come both by water and by blood, 1Jo 5:6. The other bird, after it was dipped with the cedar wood, scarlet and hyssop in the blood of the slain bird, was let go alive; which typified the resurrection of Christ, who was put to death in the flesh, and quickened in the Spirit; and who rose again, for the justification of his people from all sin: the cedar wood, scarlet, and hyssop, which were used in the cleansing of the leper, may either relate to the sufferings, and death, and blood of Christ; the scarlet wool may denote the bloody sufferings of Christ, through which he was red in his apparel; the cedar wood may signify the incorruptibleness and preciousness of the blood of Christ, and the hyssop the purging virtue of it; or else these three may have regard to the three principal graces of the Spirit of God, which have to do with, and are in influenced by the sin cleansing blood of Christ: the cedar wood may signify the incorruptible and precious grace of faith; the green hyssop, the lively grace of hope; and the scarlet, the flaming grace of love, when it is in its full exercise: or else the grace of faith, by which dealing with the blood of Christ, the heart is purified, is only meant; signified by cedar wood, for its permanency; by scarlet, for its concern with the crimson blood of Christ; by which sins, though as scarlet, are made white as wool; and by hyssop, for its being an humble and lowly grace: now the cedar stick, with the scarlet wool, and bunch of hyssop bound unto it, was used to sprinkle the blood of the bird upon the leper seven times, when he was pronounced clean; and expresses the instrumentality of faith, in the application of the blood of Christ for cleansing: though after this, the leper was to shave off all his hair, and wash himself and clothes in water; suggesting to us, that holiness of life and conversation which should follow, upon cleansing through faith in the blood of Christ.



{e} Chambers's Cyclopaedia in the word "Leprosy".





Luke 5:13



Ver. 13. And he put forth his hand and touched him,.... Having compassion on him, and commiserating his sad case:



saying, I will, be thou clean; and immediately the leprosy departed from him;

See Gill on "Mt 8:3".





Luke 5:14



Ver. 14. And he charged him to tell no man,.... Of his cure, and by whom he received it;



but go show thyself to the priest. The Syriac and Persic versions read, "to the priests: and offer for thy cleansing, according as Moses has commanded, for a testimony unto them"; See Gill on "Mt 8:4".





Luke 5:15



Ver. 15. But so much the more went there a fame abroad of him,.... For the more he charged the man to keep silence, the more he blazed it abroad, being elated with the cure he received, and filled with gratitude to his benefactor; Mr 1:45.



And great multitudes came together to hear: him, or from him, as the Syriac, Arabic, Persic, and Ethiopic versions add; to hear the doctrines of the Gospel preached by him: "and to be healed by him of their infirmities"; their bodily weaknesses and disorders.





Luke 5:16



Ver. 16. And he withdrew himself into the wilderness,.... Into a desert place, that he might have rest from the fatigues of preaching and healing diseases; and being alone, and free from company, might have an opportunity for private prayer to God, for so it lows:



and prayed; this is to be understood of Christ, as man: as God, he is the object of prayer, and petitions are often addressed unto him; and as mediator, he offers up the prayers of all saints, and presents them to his Father; which are acceptable to him, through the incense of his mediation; and as man, he prayed himself: what he now prayed for, is not known; sometimes he prayed for his disciples, and for all that should believe; for their conversion, sanctification, union, perseverance, and glorification; and sometimes for himself, that the cup might pass from him, and he be saved from death; but always with submission to the will of his Father.





Luke 5:17



Ver. 17. And it came to pass on a certain day,.... When he was at Capernaum, as appears from Mr 2:1



As he was teaching: in the house where such numbers were gathered together, to hear the word of God preached by him, that there was not room for them, neither within the house, nor about the door, Mr 2:2



That there were Pharisees and doctors of the law sitting by; who were sometimes called Scribes, and sometimes lawyers, and were generally of the sect of the Pharisees:



which were come out of every town of Galilee, and Judea, and Jerusalem: having heard much of his doctrine and miracles, they came from all parts to watch and observe him, and to take all opportunities and advantages against him, that they might expose him to the people:



and the power of the Lord was present to heal them; not the Pharisees and doctors of the law, who did not come to be healed by him, either in body or mind; but the multitude, some of whom came to hear his doctrine, and others to be healed of their infirmities, Lu 5:15. The Persic version reads the words thus, "and from all the villages of Galilee, and from Judea, and from Jerusalem, multitudes came, and the power of God was present to heal them."





Luke 5:18



Ver. 18. And behold, men brought in a bed a man which was taken with a palsy,.... Four men brought him, as Mark says, Mr 2:3 and which the Ethiopic version expresses here: "and they sought means to bring him in": into the house where Jesus was:



and to lay him before him; at his feet, in hope of moving his compassion, and to obtain a cure of him: of the nature of this disease, and of the sort which this man's seems to be, See Gill on "Mr 2:3".





Luke 5:19



Ver. 19. And when they could not find by what way,.... As by the door, or in at a window of the house:



they might bring him in; to Jesus, in the house:



because of the multitude; which was about the door, and all the fore part of the house:



they went upon the housetop; by a ladder, or pair of stairs, which usually were on the outside of houses; See Gill on "Mt 24:17" the houses of the Jews being flat roofed:



and let him down through the tiling with his couch, into the midst before Jesus; that is, they untiled the roof, or took away the tiles which were about the trap door, or passage, into the inside of the house; and so making it wider, let down the man upon his couch, or bed, into the middle of the room and of the people, just before Jesus, where he was sitting; See Gill on "Mr 2:4".





Luke 5:20



Ver. 20. And when he saw their faith,.... That is, Jesus, as the Syriac and Persic versions express it; when he saw the faith both of the paralytic man, and of the men that brought him, which was shown in the pains they took, and trouble they were at, in getting him to him;



he said unto him. The Vulgate Latin only reads, "he said"; but the Syriac, Arabic, and Persic versions, still more fully express the sense, rendering it, "he said to the paralytic man"; and the Ethiopic version, "he said to the infirm man"; as follows:



man, thy sins are forgiven thee. The other evangelists say, he said "son"; perhaps he used both words: however, all agree that he pronounced the forgiveness of sins, which were the cause of his disease; and which being removed, the effect must cease; so that he had healing both for soul and body; See Gill on "Mt 9:2".





Luke 5:21



Ver. 21. And the Scribes and the Pharisees began to reason,.... To think and say within themselves, and it may be to one another, in a private manner:



saying, who is this which speaketh blasphemies? what vain boaster, and blaspheming creature is this, who assumes that to himself, which is the prerogative of God?



Who can forgive sins but God alone? against whom they are committed, whose law is transgressed, and his will disobeyed, and his justice injured and affronted. Certain it is, that none can forgive sins but God; not any of the angels in heaven, or men on earth; not holy good men, nor ministers of the Gospel; and if Christ had been a mere man, though ever so good a man, even a sinless one, or ever so great a prophet, he could not have forgiven sin; but he is truly and properly God, as his being a discerner of the thoughts of these men, and his healing the paralytic man in the manner he did, are sufficient proofs. The Scribes and Pharisees therefore, though they rightly ascribe forgiveness of sin to God alone, yet grievously sinned, in imputing blasphemy to Christ: they had wrong notions of Christ, concluding him to be but a mere man, against the light and evidence of his works and miracles; and also of his office as a Redeemer, who came to save his people from their sins; and seem to restrain the power of forgiving sin to God the Father, whereas the Son of God, being equal with him, had the same power, and that even on earth, to forgive sin; See Gill on "Mr 2:7".





Luke 5:22



Ver. 22. But when Jesus perceived their thoughts,.... Being God omniscient;



he answering said unto them, what reason ye in your hearts? This he said, not as being ignorant what their reasonings were, for it is before said he perceived their thoughts, but to expose the wickedness of them; in one exemplar of Beza's it is added, "evil things", as in Mt 9:4.

See Gill on "Mt 9:4".





Luke 5:23



Ver. 23. Whether is it easier to say,.... Mark adds, "to the sick of the palsy"; to whom Christ had said that his sins were forgiven him, which had given offence to the Scribes and Pharisees, imagining that he had assumed too much to himself: wherefore he proposes the following case to them, which they thought was most easy for man, or more proper and peculiar to God to say,



thy sins be forgiven thee, or to say, rise up and walk? Neither of them could be said by a mere man, with effect, so as that sins would be really remitted on so saying; or that a man sick of a palsy, by such a word speaking, would be able to stand upon his feet and walk; but both of them were equally easy to him, that is truly God; and he that could say the one effectually, could also say the other: or in other words, he that could cure a man of a palsy with a word speaking, ought not to be charged with blasphemy, for taking upon him to forgive sin: our Lord meant, by putting this question, and acting upon it, to prove himself to be God, and to remove the imputation of blasphemy from him;

See Gill on "Mt 9:5".

See Gill on "Mr 2:9".





Luke 5:24



Ver. 24. But that ye may know, that the son of man,.... Whom the Scribes and Pharisees took for a mere man, in which they were mistaken; for though he was really a man, and the son of man, yet he was God as well as man; he was God manifest in the flesh:



hath power upon earth to forgive sins; even in the days of his flesh, whilst he was in his humble form on earth; for he did not cease to be God by becoming man, nor lose any branch of his power, not this of forgiving sin, by appearing in the form of a servant; and, that it might be manifest,



he said unto the sick of the palsy: these are the words of the evangelist, signifying, that Christ turned himself from the Scribes and Pharisees to the paralytic man, and thus addressed him:



I say unto thee, arise, and take up thy couch, and go into thine house.





Luke 5:25



Ver. 25. And immediately he rose up before them,.... As soon as ever these words were spoken by Christ, the man, before sick of the palsy, finding himself perfectly well, got off of his couch, and stood up on his feet before the Scribes and Pharisees, and all the people:



and took up that whereon he lay; his couch, or bed: and departed to his own house; with it upon his back: "and went to his business", as the Persic version renders it:



glorifying God; both for the healing of his body, and for the pardon of his sins; each of which he knew none but God could do. This circumstance is only mentioned by Luke, and shows the sense the man had of the great favours bestowed upon him: he glorified God, by ascribing them to his goodness and power; by offering the sacrifice of praise, or giving thanks unto him for them; by publishing them among his neighbours, to the honour of his name; and by living a holy life and conversation, to his glory, under a grateful sense of his kindness: yea, he glorified Jesus Christ as God, who he knew must be God, by forgiving his sins, and curing his disease; he proclaimed his divine power, and ascribed greatness to him; he confessed him as the Messiah, and owned him as his Saviour, and became subject to him as his Lord.





Luke 5:26



Ver. 26. And they were all amazed, and they glorified God,.... Not the Pharisees, and doctors of the law, but the common people:



and were filled with fear; of the Divine Being, whose presence and power they were sensible must be in this case:



saying, we have seen strange things today; paradoxes, things wonderful, unthought of, unexpected, and incredible by carnal reason, and what were never seen, nor known before; as that a man, who was so enfeebled by the palsy, that he was obliged to be carried on a bed by four men, yet, on a sudden, by a word speaking, rose up, and carried his bed, on his back, home.





Luke 5:27



Ver. 27. And after these things he went forth,.... After his discourse with the Scribes and Pharisees, and his healing of the man, sick with the palsy, he went forth from the city of Capernaum, to the sea side; not only for retirement and recreation, after the work of the day hitherto, but in order to meet with, and call one that was to be a disciple of his:



and saw a publican named Levi who is said to be the son of Alphaeus, Mr 2:14 and so it is said to be in Beza's ancient copy here; and who was also called Matthew, see Mt 9:9



sitting at the receipt of custom; at the place where custom was received, and toll taken, near the sea side, of such that went over. The Syriac and Persic versions read, "sitting among publicans", of which business he himself was; and these might be his servants under him, or partners with him; See Gill on "Mr 2:14"



and he said unto him, follow me: of all the publicans that were there, he singled out Levi, or Matthew, and directed his discourse to him, and called him to be a follower of him: an instance of powerful, special, and distinguishing grace this; See Gill on "Mt 9:9".





Luke 5:28



Ver. 28. And he left all,.... His company, his business, and all the profits of it:



rose up; directly; such power went along with the words of Christ, that he could not withstand it:



and followed him; not only in a literal, but in a spiritual sense, and became a disciple of his.





Luke 5:29



Ver. 29. And Levi made him a great feast in his own house,.... At Capernaum, which, very likely, was made some time after his call, though recorded here; for it is not reasonable to think there could be time enough that day to get ready so great a feast, as this is said to be Levi, it should seem, was a rich man, and in gratitude to Christ for his special grace and honour bestowed on him, made this entertainment for him; and he seems to have had also another view in it, to bring him into the company of his fellow publicans, hoping he might be useful to them, as he had been to him; for of this nature is true grace, to wish for, and desire the salvation of the souls of others, as well as a man's own:



and there was a great company of publicans, and of others: Myrxa, which word is sometimes used in Talmudic writings for Gentiles; so

Myrxa tva, "the wife of others", is interpreted the wife of the Cuthites, or Samantans {f}: and thus the Jews explain the text in

De 24:14 "thou shalt not oppress an hired servant, that is poor and needy", whether he be "of thy brethren", on which they make this remark,

Myrxal jrp, "this excepts others"; that, is, as the gloss interprets it, it excepts the nations of the world, or the Gentiles: they go on to expound the text, "or of thy strangers that are in thy land"; these are the proselytes of righteousness: "within thy gates"; these are they that eat things that are torn {g}: so that the "others" are distinguished from the Jews, and from both the proselytes of righteousness, and of the gate; and it is easy to observe, that publicans and Heathens are sometimes mentioned together: here it means sinners, as appears from Mt 9:10 such the Gentiles were reckoned:



that sat down with them; being invited by Matthew.



{f} T. Bab. Sanhedrin, fol. 52. 2. & Gloss. in ib. {g} T. Bab. Bava Metzia, fol. 111. 2. & Gloss. in lb.





Luke 5:30



Ver. 30. But their Scribes and Pharisees,.... Not the Scribes of the publicans and sinners that sat down, but the Scribes of the people in general; the Scribes of the Jewish nation: all the eastern versions leave out the word "their":



murmured against his disciples, saying; or, "murmured, and said unto his disciples", as the Syriac and Persic versions render it: that is, they either murmured at the publicans and sinners sitting down at meat; or "against him", as the Ethiopic version reads: either against Matthew for inviting them; or rather against Christ for sitting down with them: and not caring to speak to him, address themselves to his disciples in these words,



why do ye eat and drink with publicans and sinners? The other evangelists represent these as saying, why does he, or your master, eat with such? doubtless, they included both Christ, and his disciples; though they chiefly designed him, and to bring an accusation against him, and fix a charge upon him, in order to render him odious to the people.





Luke 5:31



Ver. 31. And Jesus answering, said unto them,.... Knowing that they aimed at him; though, according to this evangelist, they only mentioned his disciples, however, he takes up the cause, and vindicates both himself and them, by observing to them the following proverb;



they that are whole need not a physician, but they that are sick: suggesting hereby, that as such who are in good health, who are free from all diseases, wounds, bruises, and putrefying sores, stand in no need of the advice and assistance of a physician, or surgeon, but such who have either distempers or sores on their bodies; so they, the Scribes and Pharisees, who, in their own opinion, were free from the disease of sin, original and actual, and touching the righteousness of the law, were blameless, stood not in any need of him, the physician, who came to cure the maladies of the souls, as well as of the bodies of men; but such persons, who not only are sick with sin, but sick of it, who are sensible of it, and desire healing: and therefore this was the reason of his conduct, why he conversed with sinners, and not with the Scribes and Pharisees; his business, as a physician, lying among the one, and not the other; See Gill on "Mt 9:12".

See Gill on "Mr 2:17".





Luke 5:32



Ver. 32. I came not to call the righteous,.... Such as the Scribes and Pharisees were in their own apprehension, and in the esteem of others, who trusted in themselves, that they were righteous, and submitted not to the righteousness of Christ: these Christ came not to call by his grace, and therefore did not associate himself with them: but sinners to repentance; such as the publicans, and others, with them, were; and therefore he was chiefly with such, and chose to be among them: these he not only called to repentance by the outward ministry of the word, but brought them to it; he having power to bestow the grace of repentance, as well as to call to the duty of it; See Gill on "Mt 9:13".

See Gill on "Mr 2:17".





Luke 5:33



Ver. 33. And they say unto him,.... The Scribes and Pharisees, or the disciples of John; see Mt 9:14



why do the disciples of John fast often, and make prayers? set times apart frequently for fasting and prayer. The Ethiopic version reads, "why do the disciples of John baptize frequently, fast, and make prayers?" in which the former clause is added; and as without any authority, so without judgment, since it must suppose that the Pharisees did so likewise, whereas they rejected the baptism of John; for it follows, and "likewise" the disciples of "the Pharisees"; who fasted often, at least twice in the week, and made frequent prayers in the synagogues, and corners of the streets, and in widows' houses.



But thine eat and drink? instead of fasting and praying;

See Gill on "Mt 9:14".





Luke 5:34



Ver. 34. And he said unto them,.... The disciples of John, or the Scribes and Pharisees:



can ye make the children of the bride chamber fast, while the bridegroom is with them? signifying, that he was the bridegroom, and his disciples the children of the bride chamber; and that as it is unreasonable to expect, and morally impossible, that persons, attending the festivals of a nuptial solemnity, should be engaged in severe fastings; so it was not to be thought, that whilst Christ was corporeally present with his disciples, that they should be prevailed upon to live such an austere and mortified life.





Luke 5:35



Ver. 35. But the days will come,.... And that in a very little time, as they did:



when the bridegroom shall be taken away from them: as their master, John, was taken away from them, and now in prison, and therefore it was no wonder they mourned and fasted; signifying, that in a short time he, the bridegroom of his church and people, should be taken away by death:



and then they shall fast in those days; mourn, and be humbled, of which fasting was, a sign, for the death of their Lord, and on account of the many afflictions and persecutions they should endure for his sake; See Gill on "Mt 9:15".





Luke 5:36



Ver. 36. And he spake also a parable unto them,.... The Scribes and Pharisees; illustrating what he had just now said:



no man putteth a piece of a new garment upon an old; by "a piece of a new garment" meaning the new and upstart notions and traditions of the elders, which were so in comparison of the law of Moses; and by the "old", the robe of their own righteousness, wrought out in obedience to the moral and ceremonial law: and Christ suggests, that to join these together, in order to patch up a garment of righteousness, to appear in before God, was equally as weak and ridiculous, as to put a piece of new and undressed cloth into a garment that was old, and wore threadbare.



If otherwise, then both the new, maketh the rent; that is, much worse than it was, as it is expressed both in Matthew and Mark; the old and new cloth being unsuitable, and not of equal strength to hold together: by this Christ intimates, that the Jews, by being directed to the observance of the traditions of the elders, were drawn off from a regard to the commandments of God; so that instead of having a better righteousness, they had one much the worse, a ragged, and a rent one.



And the piece that was taken out of the new, agreeth not with the old; and so the statutes of men, and the ordinances of God, or the traditions of the elders, and the commands of God, are no more like one another, than the piece of a new and an old garment, and as unlike is obedience to the one, and to the other;



See Gill on "Mt 9:16".

See Gill on "Mt 9:17".

See Gill on "Mr 2:21".



See Gill on "Mr 2:22" where this, and the following parable, are more largely explained.





Luke 5:37



Ver. 37. And no man putteth new wine into old bottles,.... To which the Scribes and Pharisees are here compared, into whose hearts the new wine of Gospel grace was not put; or to whom was not made known the love of God Comparable to new wine; nor the blessings of the new covenant of grace, now exhibited; nor the truths of the Gospel now more clearly and newly revealed.



Else the new wine will burst the bottles, and be spilled; they not being able to receive and bear these things, no, not the relation of them: these were hard sayings to them, of which they said, who can hear them? they could not hear them with patience, much less receive them in the love of them; but were at once filled with wrath and indignation, and rejected them.



And the bottles shall perish; their condemnation shall be the greater.





Luke 5:38



Ver. 38. But new wine must be put into new bottles,.... Such as the disciples of Christ were, and sinners called to repentance are, who are renewed by the Spirit and grace of God: and these are filled with spiritual joy and comfort, as with new wine, arising from discoveries of the love of God, a view of interest in the blessings of the covenant, and an application of Gospel truths and promises.



And both are preserved; both these renewed ones, who are preserved unto the kingdom and glory of Christ; and the grace that is put into them, which is a well of living water, springing up to everlasting life; as well as the Gospel, and its blessings.





Luke 5:39



Ver. 39. No man also having drunk old wine,.... "Wine", though not in the text, is rightly supplied by our translators, as it is by the Syriac and Persic versions:



straightway desireth new; new wine: for he saith, the old is better; old wine is more grateful, more generous, and more reviving to the spirits, than new wine is. This is a proverbial expression, and which Luke only records; which may be applied to natural men, who having drunk the old wine of their carnal lusts and pleasures, do not desire the new wine of the Gospel, and of the grace of God, and of spiritual things, but prefer their old sins and lusts unto them: carnal lusts may be signified by old wine, both for the antiquity of them, being as old as men themselves, and therefore called the old man, and for the gratefulness of them to them; and who may be said to drink of them, as they do drink iniquity like water; which is expressive of their great desire and thirst after it, and delight in it: now whilst they are such, they cannot desire the new wine of the Gospel, which is insipid and ungrateful to them; nor the grace of God, to which their carnal minds are enmity; nor any thing that is evangelical and spiritual, at least, not straightway, or immediately; not until they are regenerated by the Spirit of God, and their taste is changed, but will prefer their old lusts and former course of life unto them: or it may be accommodated to legalists, and men of a "pharisaical spirit", to whom spiritual and evangelical things are very disagreeable: Scribes and Pharisees, who have drank of the old wine of the law, and the traditions of the elders, do not desire the new wine of the Gospel, but prefer the former to it: the ceremonial law may be expressed by old wine, being originally instituted of God, and acceptable to him; and one part of which lay in libations of wine, and was of long standing, but now waxen old, and ready to vanish away; and likewise the traditions of the elders, which were highly pleasing to the Pharisees, and which pretended to great antiquity: and of these they might be said to drink, being inured to them from their youth, and therefore could not like the new dispensation of the Gospel, neither its doctrines, nor its ordinances; but preferred their old laws and traditions to them: or rather this proverb, as used by Christ here, may be considered as intimating the reason why the disciples did not give into the practices of the Pharisees, because they had drank of the old wine of the Gospel; which, as upon some account it may be called new, because of the new dispensation, fresh discovery and clearer revelation of it; in other respects it may be said to be old, being what was prepared and ordained before the world began; and what Adam drank of, in the first hint and promise of the Messiah; and after him Noah, the preacher of righteousness; and Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, to whom the Gospel was preached before; and even Moses, who wrote and testified of Christ; and David, and Solomon, and Isaiah, and all the prophets of the former dispensation: and now the disciples having more largely drank of it, under the ministry of Christ, could not easily desire the new wine of the fastings and prayers of the Pharisees, and John's disciples; for the old wine of the Gospel was much better in their esteem, more grateful to the taste, more refreshing to their spirits, and more salutary and healthful, being the wholesome words of our Lord Jesus Christ. Old wine, with the Jews {h} was wine of three years old, and was always by them preferred to new: so they descant on those words in

De 15:16 "because he is well with thee {i}, (i.e. the servant,)"



"with thee in food, with thee in drink; for thou shalt not eat bread of fine flour, and he eat bread of bran; or thou drink, Nvy Nyy, "old wine", and he drink, vdh Nyy, "new wine".''



And sometimes they use this distinction of old and new wine proverbially and parabolically, as here {k}.



"Rabbi Jose bar Juda, a man of a village in Babylon, used to say, he that learns of young men, to what is he like? to him that eateth unripe grapes, and drinks wine out of the fat: but he; that learns of old men, to what is he like? to him that eats ripe grapes, and drinks, Nvy Nyy, "old wine"''



signifying, that the knowledge of old men is more solid, and mature, and unmixed, and free from dregs of ignorance, than that of young men: though it follows, that



"Ribbi had used to say, do not look upon the tankard, but on what is in it; for sometimes there is a new tankard full of old wine, and an old one in which there is not so much as new in it:''



signifying, that sometimes young men are full of wisdom and knowledge, when old men are entirely devoid of them.



{h} T. Bab. Beracot, fol. 51. 1. & Gloss. in ib. & Bava Bathra, fol. 98. 1. & Maimon. Hilch. Mecira, c. 17. sect. 6. {i} T. Bab. Kiddushin, fol. 22. 1. {k} Pirke Abot, c. 4. sect. 20.

 

John Gill's Exposition of the Entire Bible.

Luke 6:1



Ver. 1. And it came to pass on the second sabbath day after the first,.... Or "second first sabbath", concerning which interpreters are greatly divided. Some think, that it was either the seventh day of the feast of unleavened bread, or the eighth day of the feast of tabernacles. Others, that it was the sabbath which fell that year on the day of Pentecost; and that as there were three grand festivals among the Jews, the feasts of passover, Pentecost, and tabernacles; so when the sabbath day fell on the feast of the passover, it was called the first prime sabbath, when on the feast of Pentecost, it was called the second prime sabbath, and when on the feast of tabernacles, the third prime sabbath. Others have been of opinion, that as the Jews had two beginnings of their year, the one on civil accounts in Tisri, the other on ecclesiastical accounts in Nisan; so the first sabbath in Tisri was called the first first sabbath, and that in Nisan, which was this, the second first sabbath: but what seems most likely is, that this sabbath was, as it may be rendered, "the first sabbath after the second"; that is, the first sabbath after the second day of the passover, when the sheaf of the firstfruits was offered, and harvest might be begun; which suits well with ears of corn being ripe at this time, which the disciples rubbed. So the Jews reckoned the seven weeks from thence to Pentecost by sabbaths; the first after the second day they called the second first, or the first after the second day; the second they called the second second; and the third was named the second third; and so on, the second fourth, the second fifth, the second sixth, and second seventh, which brought on Pentecost, when the harvest was ended. So in the Jewish liturgies, there are collects for the first sabbath after the passover, and for the second sabbath after the passover, and so on to the sabbath before Pentecost. The eastern versions, Syriac, Arabic, Persic, and Ethiopic, not knowing what should be meant by it, have only rendered it, "on the sabbath day", as in Mt. 12:1. See Gill on "Mt 12:1".



That he went through the corn fields; that is, Jesus, as the Syriac, Persic, and Ethiopic versions:



and his disciples plucked the ears of corn, and did eat, rubbing them in their hands: after they had plucked them they rubbed them in their hands to get clean off the husk or beard, that were on them, and then ate the grains. And as plucking of the ears of corn was forbidden on a sabbath day, See Gill on "Mt 12:2", so was rubbing them; though if they were rubbed before, the chaff might be blown off from them in the hand, and eat on the sabbath day: the rule is this {l};



"he that rubs ears of corn on the evening of the sabbath, (i.e. on the sixth day,) may blow them from hand to hand on the morrow, and eat''



But the disciples both plucked them, and rubbed them, and blew away the chaff from them on the sabbath day, and therefore were complained of by the Pharisees.



{l} T. Bab. Betza, fol. 12. 2. & 13. 2. Vid. Maimon. Hilch. Sabbat, c. 21. sect. 14. 17.





Luke 6:2



Ver. 2. And certain of the Pharisees said unto them,.... Unto the disciples. The Evangelists Matthew and Mark say, that they said this to Jesus: no doubt but they said it to both, first to one, and then to the other; probably last of all to Christ, who returned an answer to it:



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





Luke 6:3



Ver. 3. And Jesus answering them, said,.... For they brought the charge against the disciples to him, being desirous to know what he would say, and that they might have something to accuse him of; and who, at once, took up the cause of his disciples, and vindicated them, by observing what David did, when he, and his men were an hungry; how that he went into the tabernacle, and took the showbread, and ate of it, and gave it to his men, who also ate of it; which, according to the law, was only allowed to priests; and by taking notice of another instance, which this evangelist does not relate; namely, how on the sabbath days the priests, by doing various servile works, profaned the sabbath day, and yet were not charged with any blame;

See Gill on "Mt 12:3".

See Gill on "Mt 12:4".

See Gill on "Mt 12:5".





Luke 6:4



Ver. 4. See Gill on "Lu 6:3"





Luke 6:5



Ver. 5. And he said unto them,.... He adds this at the close of the instances he gave, at the end of his vindication of his disciples, and discourse with the Pharisees, as a full answer to their cavils;



that the son of man is Lord also of the sabbath; and may do what he will, and suffer his disciples to do whatever he pleases on that day;

See Gill on "Mt 12:8".





Luke 6:6



Ver. 6. And it came to pass also on another sabbath,.... Whether the following sabbath, or some time after, is not certain,



that he entered into the synagogue. The Arabic version reads, "into their synagogue", as in Mt 12:9 the synagogue of the Jews; in what place, whether at Capernaum, or some other city of Galilee, is not so clear:



and taught; explained the Scriptures to the people, and instructed them in the doctrines of the Gospel:



and there was a man whose right hand was withered; who was in the synagogue, and one of his hearers; See Gill on "Mt 12:10"





Luke 6:7



Ver. 7. And the Scribes and Pharisees watched him,....

See Gill on "Mr 3:2"



whether he would heal on the sabbath day: there being such an object before him:



that they might find an accusation against him; as they had before against his disciples.





Luke 6:8



Ver. 8. But he knew their thoughts,.... Being the omniscient God; though they had said nothing of their intentions, he knew what they designed, should he heal the man with his withered hand, as they expected he would:



and said to the man which had the withered hand, rise up, and stand forth in the midst. The Syriac and Persic versions add, "of the synagogue", and which is the true sense; See Gill on "Mr 3:3"



and he arose and stood forth; he rose up from his seat, and stood up in the midst of the synagogue, and of the people, that he might be seen of all.





Luke 6:9



Ver. 9. Then said Jesus unto them,.... The Scribes and Pharisees, who were watching him, and whose thoughts, and the reasonings of their minds, purposes, and intentions, he full well knew:



I will ask you one thing; or question, as they had asked him one before; Mt 12:10



is it lawful on the sabbath days to do good, or to do evil? to save life, or to destroy it?

See Gill on "Mr 3:4" to which may be added, that to save life on the sabbath day was agreeable to their own canons: there were many things which they allowed might be done on the sabbath day, when life was in danger, which otherwise were not lawful; See Gill on "Mt 12:8".





Luke 6:10



Ver. 10. And looking round about upon them all,.... The Scribes and Pharisees, and the rest of the people in the synagogue;

See Gill on "Mr 3:5".



he said to the man; who had the withered hand,



stretch forth thy hand, and he did so; he stretched it out, as the Syriac and Persic versions render it, which he was not able to do before:



and his hand was restored well as the other; the phrase, "well as the other", is left out in one copy, and in the Vulgate Latin version; and so is the word "well" in the Syriac and Arabic versions; and the word "immediately" is added in the Ethiopic version. And certain it is, that his withered hand was restored sound and well as the other, directly.





Luke 6:11



Ver. 11. And they were filed with madness,.... Both at the cure, and because they could not answer him; nor properly fix a charge upon him, or accuse him before the people, without bringing their resentments on them:



and communed one with another what they might do with Jesus: this they did after they came out of the synagogue, and when with the Herodians, as in See Gill on "Mr 3:6".





Luke 6:12



Ver. 12. And it came to pass in those days,.... When Christ was teaching by the lake of Gennesaret, or in one or other of the cities of Galilee near that place:



that he went out; of the synagogue and city where he had been:



into a mountain to pray; for the sake of solitude, and which lay near the sea of Tiberias; See Gill on "Mt 14:23".



and continued all night in prayer to God; or "with" God, as the Ethiopic version renders it; or "in the prayer of God" as the phrase may be literally rendered; not in a prayer of God's making; though the Jews {m} sometimes speak of the prayer of God, and give us a form of it: but either this respects the object of his prayer; it was made to God, as our translation suggests; or the nature, matter, and manner of it: it was a divine prayer, it regarded divine things, and was put up in a very fervent manner, and with great vehemence; so the coals of love or jealousy are said to be "coals of fire, which hath hy tbhlv, the flame of Jehovah"; that is as we render it, "a most vehement flame", So 8:6 In like manner, "prayer of God" is a most vehement prayer; strong cries sent up to God with great eagerness and importunity, fervency, and devotion; and such was Christ's prayer, and in which he continued all night: unless by the prayer of God should be meant, as is thought by many, an house of prayer to God, in which Christ lodged all night, and spent it in prayer to God in it. Certain it is, the Jews had their "proseuchre", or prayer houses. Philo the Jew {n} often speaks of them, and so does Josephus {o}; and there seems to be mention made of them in the Talmudic writings: when R. Jochanan ben Zaccai came to Vespasian, in his camp before Jerusalem, Vespasian asked him, what he should give him? he replied {p},



"I desire nothing of thee but this "Jabneh", (a famous university,) that I may teach in it the disciples, and fix in it hlpt, "an oratory", or "prayer house", and do in it, all the commandments said in the law.''



And in another place {q},



"R. Judah says, that Samuel said it is free for a man to make water within four cubits, hlypt lv, which I should choose to render, "of the proseucha", or "prayer house":''



though the Gemarists afterwards, and so the gloss seem to explain it of the time after prayer, in which a man should wait before he evacuates, even as long as he might go the length of four cubits. Juvenal {r} has reference to one of these oratories, when he says, "in qua te qucero proseucha?" and in one of these, it is very likely, Christ was in prayer all night long; for by the sea side, and by the side of rivers, these oratories were used to be; Ac 16:13.



{m} T. Bab. Beracot, fol. 7. 1. Bereshit Rabba, sect. 56, fol. 50. 2. {n} De Vita Mosis, l. 3. p. 685. in Flaccum, p. 971, 972, 982. leg. ad Caium. p. 1011, 1012, 1013, 1014, 1016, 1040, 1043. {o} In Vita. {p} Abot R. Nathan, c. 4. fol. 2. 4. {q} T. Bab. Megilia, fol. 27. 2. {r} Satyr. 3. l. 295.





Luke 6:13



Ver. 13. And when it was day,.... Or morning; having spent the whole night in prayer to God, no doubt for his disciples, whom he was about to send forth as his apostles, to preach his Gospel, and work miracles, and for their success therein:



he called unto him his disciples; the whole company of them, as in Lu 6:17 all that were his followers, and professed to believe in him, or as many as he pleased; see Mr 3:13.



And of them he chose twelve; and ordained them, and sent them out to preach, heal sicknesses, and cast out devils:



whom he also named apostles; or "messengers", from their being sent by him on such important business; and their names are as follow.





Luke 6:14



Ver. 14. Simon, whom he also named Peter,.... Which signifies a rock, or stone, as Cephas also does, see Joh 1:42 from his constancy, steadfastness, and solidity:



and Andrew his brother; who was called at the same time with him, and were brethren, both in nature and grace:



James and John: the two sons of Zebedee, who were called next:



Philip and Bartholomew; the latter of these is by some thought to be Nathanael.





Luke 6:15



Ver. 15. Matthew and Thomas,.... The first of these was a publican, and who also was called Levi; and the latter had besides the name of Didymus, and was he that was so unbelieving of Christ's resurrection:



James the son of Alphaeus; sometimes called James the less, and the brother of our Lord: and



Simon called Zelotes; or the Canaanite;

See Gill on "Mt 10:4".





Luke 6:16



Ver. 16. And Judas the brother of James,.... Of that James, that was the son of Alphaeus; though the Syriac and Arabic versions call him "the son of James", very wrongly: this Judas was also called Thaddaeus and Lebbaeus, and is the writer of the epistle that bears his name:



and Judas Iscariot, which also was the traitor; both his surname and his character are mentioned, to distinguish him from the other Judas: it is easy to observe, that these twelve are mentioned by pairs, or couples, and so they were sent out, two by two; see Mr 6:7 as were also the seventy disciples afterwards; see Lu 10:1 There seems to be an allusion to the pairs and couples of the Jewish fathers and doctors, who in their succession are thus paired: Jose ben Joezer, and Joseph ben Jochauan; Joshua ben Perachia, and Nathan the Arbelite; Simeon ben Shetach, and Judah ben Tabai; Shemain and Abtalion; the two sons of Bethira, whose names were Judah and Joshua; Hillell and Shammai {s}: all before Christ's time.



{s} Pirke Abot, c. 1.





Luke 6:17



Ver. 17. And he came down with them,.... With the twelve apostles, from the top of the mountain, where he had been praying all night, and where he had been that morning, ordaining, and giving instructions to the twelve he had chosen:



and stood in the plain; in a lower part of the mountain, in a plain place on it; which was large, and capable of holding a great number of people; for it was still upon the mount, that Christ taught his disciples, and said many of the things hereafter mentioned in this chapter; see Mt 5:1.



And the company of his disciples: not only the twelve, but the large number out of which he had chosen twelve;



and a great multitude of people; who were hearers of him, and attendants on him, and who had a great esteem for him, though they were not as yet of the number of his disciples; who came



out of all Judea, and Jerusalem, and from the sea coast of Tyre and Sidon: drawn from these several parts by the fame of him, some for one thing, and some another; some of



which came to hear him: to hear him preach, and that they might know what manner of doctrine he taught: and others of them,



to be healed of their diseases; their bodily diseases, and some came perhaps for both.





Luke 6:18



Ver. 18. And they that were vexed with unclean spirits,.... Were possessed with devils, and sadly tormented and afflicted by them:



and they were healed: both such that had bodily diseases, and were under diabolical possessions.





Luke 6:19



Ver. 19. And the whole multitude sought to touch him,.... That is, the multitude of those that were sick and possessed; for they were persuaded, and they found it true by experience, that if they could but touch any part of his body, or his garments, they should be cured of their diseases:



for there went virtue out of him; in great abundance, as water from a fountain; without his speaking a word, or using any gesture, such as laying his hands on them:



and they were healed; in this secret and private way, of whatsoever disease they were afflicted with.





Luke 6:20



Ver. 20. And he lifted up his eyes on his disciples,.... Either the whole company of them, or rather the twelve apostles, whom he saw coming to him, and fixing his eyes on them, he sat,



and said; what follows, with many other things recorded by Matthew:



blessed be ye poor; not only in the things of this world, having left all for Christ, but poor in Spirit, as in Mt 5:3,

See Gill on "Mt 5:3":



for yours is the kingdom of God; or heaven, so in Mt 5:3.





Luke 6:21



Ver. 21. Blessed are ye that hunger now,.... Not only suffer hunger and thirst in a literal sense, in this present life, but who have hunger and thirst in a spiritual sense, after righteousness and eternal life, as in Mt 5:6 where it is also said as here:



for ye shall be filled: with righteousness and life;

See Gill on "Mt 5:6".



blessed are ye that weep now; under afflictions and pressures of life, and mourn for sin, their own, and others:



for ye shall laugh; be filled with spiritual joy and pleasure, and be comforted with the consolations of the Spirit;

See Gill on "Mt 5:4".





Luke 6:22



Ver. 22. Blessed are ye when men shall hate you,.... For the sake of Christ, and his Gospel:



and when they shall separate you from their company; either from civil conversation with them, as if they were Gentiles and uncircumcised persons; or from their religious assemblies, and so may have respect to that sort of excommunication in use, among the Jews, called ywdn or "separation": by which persons were not only excluded from the congregation, but from all civil society and commerce: such a person might not sit nearer to another than four cubits, and this continued for thirty days; and if not discharged then, he continued thirty more {t}:



and shall reproach you: as heretics, apostates, and enemies to the law of Moses, as the Jews did reproach the Christians;



and cast out your name as evil; or "as of evil men": as the Syriac and Arabic versions render it: this may have respect to the greater sorts of excommunication, used among them, called "Shammatha" and "Cherem", by which a person was accursed, and devoted to destruction; so that our Lord's meaning is, that the should be esteemed and treated as the worst of men, and stigmatized in the vilest manner they were capable of:



for the son of man's sake; not for any immorality committed by them, but only for professing and, preaching that the Messiah was come in the flesh, and that Jesus of Nazareth was he; and that he who was the son of man, according to his human nature, was, the Son of God according to his divine nature.



{t} Vid. Maimon. Talmud Tora, c. 7. sect. 4, 5, 6.





Luke 6:23



Ver. 23. Rejoice ye in that day,.... When they should be hated, discarded, reproached, and anathematized: and leap for joy; as if the greatest honour and happiness imaginable had been conferred on them; and as persons do, when in the greatest rapture:



for behold, your reward is great in heaven, for in the like manner did their fathers unto the prophets;

See Gill on "Mt 5:12".





Luke 6:24



Ver. 24. But woe unto you that are rich,.... Not in worldly riches and substance, for some of these have been, and are happy persons in a spiritual sense; and at most, it can only mean such, who trust in their riches, and place their, happiness in them; but it chiefly regards such, as are rich in their own opinion, and stand in need of nothing; who place their confidence in their own righteousness, and do not apply to Christ, in whom alone are durable riches and righteousness:



for ye have received your consolation; which they take from their own works, and a very unstable and short lived one it is; for while they are crying Peace, Peace, to themselves, from their own services, sudden destruction comes upon them, and all their comforts vanish away: for there is no true solid comfort but in Christ, and in his righteousness; that administers consolation now, and lays a foundation for everlasting comfort hereafter.





Luke 6:25



Ver. 25. Woe unto you that are full,.... Not so much with the plenty and affluence of the things of this life, as of themselves, and their own righteousness, and so with conceit, vanity, and pride, and have no appetite for spiritual things, nor do they hunger and thirst after Christ, and the grace that is in him:



for ye shall hunger; not that they shall truly and spiritually desire an interest in Christ, and his righteousness, or heaven and eternal life hereafter; but they shall be in starving and famishing circumstances; and whilst the saints are feeding upon the joys and glories of the other world, compared to a banquet, they shall be without, and have no share in these things; Isa 65:13.





Woe unto you that laugh now; at sin, rejoice in iniquity, make a mock at it, instead of mourning for it; or that glory in themselves, and in their righteousness, and rejoice in their boastings:



for ye shall mourn and weep; shall be cast into outer darkness, where are weeping, waiting, and gnashing of teeth; and for all the fire they have kindled, and sparks they have encompassed themselves with, and danced in and about, this they shall have at the hand of God, they shall lie down in sorrow, and ever continue in it.





Luke 6:26



Ver. 26. Woe unto you when all men shall speak well of you!.... The word "all", is left out in the Vulgate Latin, Syriac, Arabic; Persic: and Ethiopic versions, and is wanting in many copies, though it is in the Alexandrian copy; and the meaning is, it looks ill in persons, when the men of the world, wicked men, all of them, or the greater part of them, applaud and commend them; for this can never be, if they are truly religious persons, and are faithful to their principles, and upright in their practices; and do not connive at, or comply with the errors and evil ways of wicked men; for it is no bad sign, to have the good word of good men, and therefore these must be excepted, and the passage must be limited to bad men;



for so did their fathers to the false prophets; they spoke well of them, and heaped favours, riches, and honours upon them, that they might prophesy unto them things; 1Ki 22:6, smooth things and deceit.





Luke 6:27



Ver. 27. But I say unto you which hear,.... The Ethiopic version adds "me", and the generality of interpreters understand the passage of the hearers of Christ, as distinct from the disciples, or together with them, and of the better sort of them; and of such as had ears to hear, and who heard with a desire of understanding, and of putting into practice what they heard; but I rather think it regards the hearers of the Scribes and Pharisees, then present, who had heard and received the traditions of the elders, to which the following rules of Christ are opposed; and to each of which, with others in Matthew, these words are prefixed;



ye have heard that it was said by them of old time--but I say unto you,.... Mt 5:21 with which compare this phrase, and the sense will appear to be this; to you that hear day by day, the traditions of the elders urged upon you, and the false glosses the Scribes and Pharisees put upon the word of God; in opposition to them, I say to you what follows:



love your enemies; whereas you have heard them say, hate your enemies, keep enmity in your hearts to them, and revenge yourselves on them:



do good to them that hate you; whereas you have heard it said, that you should only do good to your friends, and should keep anger in your bosoms to such who hate you, and do you an injury;

See Gill on "Mt 5:43" See Gill on "Mt 5:44"





Luke 6:28



Ver. 28. Bless them that curse you;.... In common discourse, or anathematize you in their synagogues:



and pray for them which despitefully use you: so Christ himself did;

See Gill on "Mt 5:44".





Luke 6:29



Ver. 29. And unto him that smiteth thee on the one cheek,.... The right cheek,



offer also the other; the left cheek, by turning it to him, that he may smite that likewise, if he thinks fit: by which proverbial expression, Christ teaches patience in bearing injuries and affronts, and not to seek private revenge; but rather, suffer more, than indulge such a temper; and for the same purpose is what follows urged:



and him that taketh away thy cloak, forbid not to take thy coat also: the phrase is inverted in Matthew;

See Gill on "Mt 5:39.

See Gill on "Mt 5:40.





Luke 6:30



Ver. 30. And give to every man that asketh,....

See Gill on "Mt 5:42"



And of him that taketh away thy goods; not by force, but by consent, having either lent them, or sold them to him: for if they were taken away by force, the person so taking them was to be deemed a thief and a robber, and to be treated as such; but one that takes them by agreement, and is not able to make a return of them, or to give a valuable consideration for them, of such an one ask them not again: do not exact or demand them, but give him a release, as the law requires, in De 15:2 which seems to be respected here; and where the same word is used by the Septuagint, as here.





Luke 6:31



Ver. 31. And as ye would that men should do to you,.... In matters of justice and beneficence were they in your case, and you in theirs;



do ye also to them likewise: a golden rule this, agreeably to the light of nature, and divine revelation, and is the sum and substance of the law and prophets; See Gill on "Mt 7:12".





Luke 6:32



Ver. 32. For if ye love them which love you, what thank have ye?.... Or, "what grace have ye?" this is no fruit, nor evidence of grace, nor any exercise of the true grace of love; nor is it any favour conferred upon the object loved, which deserves the respect shown, nor can any reward be expected for such treatment: and thus it is expressed in Matthew, "what reward have ye?" and the Arabic version renders it so here:



for sinners also love those who love them: men that are destitute of the grace of God, profligate sinners, even the worst of them, such as publicans, do this; See Gill on "Mt 5:46".





Luke 6:33



Ver. 33. And if ye do good to them which do good to you,.... As one good turn deserves another:



what thank have ye? what grace or goodness is there in such an action? what glory or merit is there in it?



for sinners also do even the same: wherefore no man should conclude himself a righteous man, or better than sinners, on such an account: this is to be found among the worst of men, and is natural to them, unless they are brutes indeed, to be kind to such as are kind to them. And yet, this was the whole of the doctrine of the Jews about doing good to men: for so they say {u},



"an Israelite is obliged to do good to an Israelite his companion, and to lend without usury: this is kindness and goodness, and a greater good it is than a gift; for many men are ashamed to take a gift, and are not ashamed to take a loan: but not so an Israelite to a Gentile; for he is not bound to do good, or show kindness to him, or to lend him his money freely; for many of them hate the Israelites; but it must be owned, that if a Gentile does a kindness, or good, to an Israelite; the Israelite is also bound to show kindness to him, and do him good.''



In direct opposition to such narrow sentiments does our Lord deliver himself in this, and the following verses.



{u} Kimchi in Psal. xv. apud Huls. Theolog. Jud. par. 1. p. 420.





Luke 6:34



Ver. 34. And if ye lend to them of whom ye hope to receive,.... The same again, as from their brethren the Jews; or usury, as from the Gentiles:



what thank have ye? and yet they looked upon this, in the first instance of it, as a very great kindness, and act of goodness, as appears from the above citation:



for sinners also lend to sinners, to receive as much again; or "what is equal", and answerable to what they have lent them; that is, the same, or what is equivalent to it.





Luke 6:35



Ver. 35. But love ye your enemies,.... As before urged in Lu 6:27



and do good and lend; not to your friends only, but to your enemies;



hoping for nothing again; either principal or interest, despairing of seeing either; lending to such persons, from whom, in all appearance, it is never to be expected again. The Persic version renders it, "that ye may not cause any to despair": and the Syriac version, "that ye may not cut off", or "cause to cease the hope of men"; and the Arabic version, "that ye do not deceive the hope of any" that is, by sending such away, without lending to them, who come big with expectations of succeeding:



and your reward shall be great: God will bless you in your worldly substance here, and will not forget your beneficence hereafter:



and ye shall be the children of the Highest: that is of God; one of whose names is Nwyle "the Most High"; Ps 82:6 the meaning is, that such who from principles of grace, and with right views do such acts of kindness and beneficence to their fellow creatures and Christians, shall be, made manifest, and declared to be the children of God; since they will appear to be born of him, and made partakers of the divine nature, and bear a resemblance to him, by their imitating him:



for he is kind to the unthankful and to the evil; by causing his sun to rise, and his rain to fall on them, as on the righteous and the good; for as Jews {w} observe,



"there is no difference with him, whether on the right hand or the left; for he is gracious, and does good, even to the ungodly.''



And elsewhere they say {x}, that



"he does good, and feeds the righteous and the ungodly.''



{w} R. Abraham ben Dior in Sepher Jetzira, p. 19. {x} Zohar in Exod. fol. 69. 2, 3.





Luke 6:36



Ver. 36. Be ye therefore merciful,.... Tenderhearted, kind, beneficent to all men, friends and foes:



as your Father also is merciful; that is your Father which is in heaven; who is good to all, and his tender mercies are over all his works: nothing is more common in Zohar {y}, and the Talmud {z} than to express the Divine Being by no other name, than "the Merciful"; rma

anmxr, "the Merciful said" so, and so; that is, God: and so the Arabians generally begin their books and chapters with these words, "in the name of God, exceeding merciful", or "the merciful commiserator": a saying much like to this in the text, is the Targum of Jonathan, on

Le 22:28.



"O my people, the children of "Israel, as your father",

Nmxr, "is merciful" in heaven, so be ye merciful on earth.''



{y} Zohar in Lev. fol. 2. 2. & 9. 4. & 20. 1. & 22. 1. {z} T. Bab. Moed Katon, fol. 15. 2.





Luke 6:37



Ver. 37. Judge not, and ye shall not be judged,....

See Gill on "Mt 7:1".



Condemn not, and ye shall not be condemned; censure not men's persons, and judge not their state, or adjudge them to condemnation, for every offence in practice, or because they differ in principle, lest you should be treated in like manner by others; and especially, lest you should fall under the righteous censure, judgment, and condemnation of God:



forgive; offences and trespasses committed against you, bear with, and pass by injuries and affronts:



and ye shall be forgiven; of God;

See Gill on "Mt 6:14".





Luke 6:38



Ver. 38. Give, and it shall be given unto you,.... Give liberally of your worldly substance to indigent persons, as you have an opportunity, according to your ability, and as cases require: and it shall be returned again to great advantage; with great recompense, either in temporals or spirituals, or both:



good measure, pressed down, and shaken together, and running over, shall men give into your bosom. The allusion is to dry measure among the Jews, for to liquids, the terms used will not agree; and which, though right and full, which is here called good measure, they thrust and pressed to make it hold more; and shook it also for the same purpose, and then heaped it up as much as they could, till it fell over: of all these methods used in measuring, we have instances in their writings; which may serve to illustrate this passage: it is said of {a} one, that



"he measured, hvwtk hdmb, "with measure pressed down"; and therefore they measured to him, with measure pressed down.''



Some of their measures they heaped, and some they did not: they say {b};



"all the measures which were in the sanctuary, twvwdgn "were heaped", except the high priest's, and his heap was contained in it.''



And elsewhere they observe {c} that



"there were two decimaries (or tithing vessels) in the sanctuary, one was vwdg, "heaped", and the other was qwxm, "stricken": with that which was heaped they measured all the fine flour for the meat offerings, and with the stricken, that which was for the cakes of the high priest.''



With respect to this distinction of measures, they say it is a tradition of the Rabbins {d}, that they do not "strike" in the place where



"they "heap", nor heap in the place where, they strike.''



Between these two measures there was another, which was full measure and just, and right, without heaping or striking {e}, R. Papa inquired, whether the handful



"(of sweet incense the high priest took on the day of atonement) which is spoken of Le 16:12 was of "stricken" or "heaped" measure; R. Abba said to R. Ase, come, hear, the handful spoken of, is neither of stricken nor heaped measure, twpwpj ala, "but of equal measure";''



sufficiently full, and no more. Dr. Lightfoot reads it, twpwum, "flowing over"; by what authority I cannot say; though the gloss says, the word signifies,



"flowing over, by reason of its height,''



But flowing or running over measure, was the same with that which was heaped, as appears from the following instance {f}:



"all those that hog hdmb Nyeypvmh "cause to abound", or run over with the great "measure", it is lawful for them to sell that, of which it is doubted whether it has been tithed or not; and these are they, that "cause to run over", or "heap" with the great measure, as corn factors and fruiterers.''



Who buy corn and fruits to sell again, and which they buy by the large measure, and fill it up, add unto it, and heap it up; and so get more than what is properly due unto them, as the commentators observe {g}: would you know the quantity of the heap, or that which ran over, or the difference between even measure, and that which was heaped, learn, it from hence: in 1Ki 7:26 it is said, the molten sea held two thousand baths, and in 2Ch 4:5 three thousand baths; which difficulty the Jewish writers solve this way, by observing, that the former text is to be understood of liquid measure, and the latter of dry measure, which was heaped: hence says R. Abai, we learn that, ywh atlt avdwg, "the heap is the third part" of the measure {h}: now to this superabundant measure, Christ here refers; and signifies, that a large compensation should be made to such, who give liberally and generously to needy persons; that as they abounded in their acts of beneficence, so an overflowing plenty of good things should be returned to them: and when he says, that this should be "given into their bosom", he alludes to the long and large garments the Jews wore, into which they were capable of receiving large lapfuls of good things: the words may be read impersonally, "shall be given into your bosom"; or if personally, they may be understood of God, angels, and men, in different senses: the phrase "shaken together", is not in the Syriac and Persic versions: "for with the same measure that ye mete withal, it shall be measured to you again"; a common proverb with the Jews:

See Gill on "Mt 7:2".



{a} T. Bab. Yebamot, fol. 107. 2. T. Hieros. Yebamot, fol. 13. 3. {b} Misn. Menachot, c. 9. sect. 5. {c} T. Bab. Menachot, fol. 37. 1, 2. {d} T. Bab. Bava Bathra, fol. 89. 1. {e} T. Bab. Yoma, fol. 48. 1. {f} Misn. Demai, c. 2. sect. 4. {g} Maimon. & Bartenora in ib. {h} T. Bab. Erubin, fol. 14. 2. Vid Targum, Jarchi, Kimchi, & R. Levi ben Getshorn, in 1 Kings vii. 26. Bemidbar Rabba, sect. 11. fol. 204. 3.





Luke 6:39



Ver. 39. And he spake a parable unto them,.... The Vulgate Latin reads, "he spake also a parable unto them"; besides what he said; and the Arabic version renders it, "another similitude", parable, or proverb, distinct from the comparisons, allusions, and proverbial expressions in the preceding verses. Though it should be observed, that these words were not spoken at the same time, nor on the mount, as the foregoing were; but this, and what follow, are a collection of various expressions of Christ at different times, some delivered on the mount, and others elsewhere; unless it should be rather thought, that these proverbs and sentences were repeated at different places and times, which is not improbable:



can the blind lead the blind? they may do so, as the blind Scribes and Pharisees led the blind people of the Jews, which is what our Lord intends; but if they do, as they did,



shall they not both fall into the ditch? yes, verily, what else can be expected? See Gill on "Mt 15:14".





Luke 6:40



Ver. 40. The disciple is not above his master,.... Or "more excellent", as the Syriac, Arabic, and Persic versions render it; that is, in learning and knowledge; if the master is ignorant, the scholar will be so too; and thus it is with teachers, and their people under their care; if the leaders are blind and ignorant, those under their instructions will remain so likewise. These words are an illustration of the preceding parable, and are used to another purpose here than in Mt 10:24.

See Gill on "Mt 10:24"



but every one that is perfect shall be as his master. The Vulgate Latin reads it, "every one shall be perfect if he is as his master"; that is, if his master is a man of general learning, and a complete scholar, if he is like him, he will be so too: the Persic version renders it, "every disciple that desires perfection shall be as his master": whoever is ambitious of being a thorough scholar, and is diligent and industrious, by all ways and means, to obtain such a character, shall be even as good an one as his master, under whom he learns, and better he cannot well expect to be; and this is sufficient; and so the Ethiopic version renders it, "is it not enough that every one be as his master?" agreeably to Mt 10:25



Maimonides {i} has an expression much like this:



"he that learns, shall not be greater than he of whom he learns, but shall be, wtwmk, "as he".''



Christ, in this last clause, seems to design his own disciples, who, when perfect in knowledge, which is not to be expected in this state, unless in a comparative sense, will be like himself.



{i} Misn. Bava Kama, c. 2. sect. 5.





Luke 6:41



Ver. 41. And why beholdest thou the mote that is in thy brother's eye,.... A lesser sin in comparison of others; for all sins are not alike, as the Stoics asserted: and though none are to be countenanced and indulged, yet some are not so severely to be animadverted upon as others, the nature, occasions, circumstances, and aggravations considered; for no man is perfect, or wholly free from sin; nor are the words preceding to be understood of such a perfection; for which reason perhaps these words, with what follow, are mentioned:



but perceivest not the beam that is in thine own eye? meaning a greater sin, such are guilty of, who are inquisitive searchers into the faults of others, and severe animadverters on them; and yet are blind to their own iniquities, and take no notice of them. These proverbial expressions were delivered by Christ on the mount, and are the same with those in Mt 7:3.

See Gill on "Mt 7:3".

See Gill on "Mt 7:4".

See Gill on "Mt 7:5".





Luke 6:42



Ver. 42. Either how canst thou say to thy brother,.... Guilty of the lesser sin;



brother, let me pull out the mote that is in thine eye; that is, suffer me to reprove thee for thy sin: the word "brother" is omitted in the Cambridge copy of Beza's, and in the Persic version; nor is it in Matthew; but in the Syriac and Ethiopic versions it is read, "my brother"; pretending great affection and sincerity:



when thou thyself beholdest not the beam that is in thine own eye? that is, takest no notice of, and dost not refrain from a greater iniquity continued in:



thou hypocrite; as such an one must be, that bears hard upon his brother, and severely censures him for a small crime, when he indulges in himself a far more abominable sin:



cast out first the beam out of thine own eye, and then shalt thou see clearly to pull out the mote that is in thy brother's eye: the sense is, that a man should first reform himself, and then others.





Luke 6:43



Ver. 43. For a good tree bringeth not forth corrupt fruit,.... The particle, "for" is left out in the Syriac, Arabic, Persic, and Ethiopic versions; and so it is in Beza's ancient copy: nor do these words stand in close connection with the preceding in Matthew's Gospel, though they may be very well considered as an illustration of them; for as that cannot be called a good tree, which brings forth bad fruit; so such men cannot be accounted good men, let them make ever so large pretensions to such a character, who are very busy in espying, discovering, and censuring the faults of their brethren; when they take no notice of, nor refrain from, nor relinquish their own. These words, with what follow in this, and the next verse, and the similes in them, are used by our Lord in Matthew, on account of false prophets or teachers; where he suggests, that as good and faithful ministers of the Gospel cannot, and do, not bring forth, and publish corrupt notions, and false doctrines, usually and knowingly; even usual, nor can it be, that a good tree should bring forth corrupt fruit; so,



neither doth a corrupt tree bring forth good fruit; or men of corrupt minds deliver good and sound doctrine, or the wholesome words of our Lord Jesus Christ: but here they seem to be applicable to other persons, even true believers and hypocrites: the former are comparable to good trees, and are called trees of righteousness, which being planted by the river of the love of God, and rooted in Christ, and filled with the fruits of righteousness by him, do not bring forth the evil fruit of sin, as the common and constant course of their lives and conversations; for that they never commit sin, or are entirely without it, cannot be said; but sin is not their usual and common practice, or they do not live in sin: and the latter, hypocrites, who pretend to a great deal of religion, and have none that is true and real, these are comparable to corrupt trees; which, though they may make a fair show, yet do not bring forth good fruit, or perform works of righteousness which are truly such; what they do have only the appearance of good works, and are not properly so;



See Gill on "Mt 7:16".

See Gill on "Mt 7:17".

See Gill on "Mt 7:18".





Luke 6:44



Ver. 44. For every tree is known by its own fruit,.... Good and bad preachers are known by their doctrines, the one being agreeable, the other disagreeable to the word of God; and good and bad men are known by their lives and conversations: the grace of God revealed to good men, and wrought in them, teaches them to live soberly, righteously, and godly; a holy life is the fruit of grace, and an evidence of it; and the wickedness that is in the heart of unregenerate men, and even the hypocrisy of formal professors, will show themselves in the common and ordinary course of their conversations:



for of thorns men do not gather figs, nor of a bramble bush gather they grapes; nor can they be expected from them: and no more can an unregenerate man perform good works, or bring forth: fruits of righteousness acceptable unto God; for these require a knowledge of his will, obedience to it, a principle of grace, love to God, faith in Christ, and a view to the glory of God; all which are wanting in such a person.





Luke 6:45



Ver. 45. A good man out of the good treasure of his heart,.... This, because of its suitableness and agreement with what goes before, is placed by Luke here; though, according to Matthew, it was spoken at another time and place, unless it should be a repetition there;

See Gill on "Mt 12:35"



for of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaketh. The Vulgate Latin, Arabic, Ethiopic, Syriac, and Persic versions, leave out the word "his"; and the two latter read "lips", instead of "mouth";

See Gill on "Mt 12:34".





Luke 6:46



Ver. 46. And why call ye me Lord, Lord,.... Or, "my Lord, my Lord", as the Syriac version renders it; acknowledging, in words, his government over them; claiming an interest in him, and making use of his name and authority:



and do not the things which I say; or "command"; and therefore such words in their mouths would be of no use to them, since they neither did his Father's will, which he taught them, nor observed his commands and ordinances which he enjoined them; and therefore should not enter into the kingdom of heaven, nor be owned by him another day, but should be bid to depart from him; See Gill on "Mt 7:21".

See Gill on "Mt 7:22".

See Gill on "Mt 7:23".





Luke 6:47



Ver. 47. Whosoever cometh to me,.... To be a disciple and follower:



and heareth my sayings, and doth them;

See Gill on "Mt 7:24".



I will show you to whom he is like; or "to what thing he is like"; so the Syriac and Arabic versions; though what follows seems better to agree with person than thing.





Luke 6:48



Ver. 48. He is like a man which built an house,.... That is, intended to build one, having drawn the scheme of it in his mind, and provided materials, and fixed upon the spot of ground:



and digged deep, and laid the foundation on a rock; that is, he dug deep in the earth, till he came at a rock, and there, and then, he laid the foundation of his house; in which he acted the part of a wise man, as he is called in Matthew: so a sensible sinner, desirous of building his soul, and the salvation of it, on a sure bottom, digs deep into the Scriptures, diligently searches them, till he finds out the scheme of salvation by Christ; which lies deep in God's counsel and covenant, was ordained before the world began, and was hid in God till revealed in the Gospel: and finding Christ to be the rock of ages, in whom is everlasting strength, and the foundation which God has laid, nor is there another; he makes use of him as such, and builds the hope of his eternal salvation on him:



and when the flood arose; an inundation, a multitude of waters, the swelling of the sea; or rather "when it was tide", as the word here used signifies {k}:



the stream beat vehemently upon the house; or the river, up which the tide came, dashed and broke against it; by which may be signified the temptations of Satan, the persecutions of the world, the corruptions of men's hearts, and the errors and heresies of false teachers:



and could not shake it; as none of these can so shake as to move a soul, thus built on Christ, off of him the foundation:



for it was founded upon a rock;

See Gill on "Mt 7:24".

See Gill on "Mt 7:25".



{k} Vid. Rivinum de Venilia Salacia, &c. p. 681, 632.





Luke 6:49



Ver. 49. But he that heareth, and doth not,.... Hears Christ's sayings externally, but does not obey his commands:



is like a man that without a foundation built upon the earth: that is, without digging for a foundation, built his house upon the surface of the earth; "upon the dust of it", as the Syriac version renders it; or, "upon the sand", as Matthew says: "against which the stream did beat vehemently, and immediately it fell, and the ruin of that house was great";

See Gill on "Mt 7:26".

See Gill on "Mt 7:27".

 

John Gill's Exposition of the Entire Bible.

Luke 7:1



Ver. 1. Now when he had ended all his sayings,.... That is, when Jesus, as the Persic version expresses it, had finished all the above sayings, doctrines, and instructions; not all that he had to say, for he said many things after this:



in the audience of the people; of the common people, the multitude besides the disciples; and that openly, and publicly, and with a loud and clear voice, that all might hear:



he entered into Capernaum; Jesus entered, as the Syriac version reads, into his own city, and where he had been before, and wrought miracles.





Luke 7:2



Ver. 2. And a certain centurion's servant,.... The same that Matthew makes mention of, Mt 8:5,

See Gill on "Mt 8:5".

See Gill on "Mt 8:6".



who was dear unto him; to the centurion, being an honest, upright, faithful, and obliging servant; as Tabi was to Rabban Gamaliel, of whom his master said {l},



"Tabi my servant, is not as other servants, hyh rvk, "he is upright".''



was sick: of a palsy; see Mt 8:6,



and ready to die; in all appearance his case was desperate, and there was no help for him by any human means, which makes the following cure, the more remarkable.



{l} T. Bab. Beracot, fol. 16. 2.





Luke 7:3



Ver. 3. And when he heard of Jesus,.... That he was come, as the Ethiopic version adds, into the city of Capernaum; or of his miracles, which he had done there, and elsewhere:



he sent unto him the elders of the Jews: in whom he had an interest, judging himself, being a Gentile, very unworthy and unfit to go himself, and ask a favour of so great a person as Christ was, such was his modesty and humility. These elders he sent, were not the more ancient inhabitants of the city, called Urah Me ynqz, "the elders of, or among the common people", as distinguished from hrwt ynqz, "the elders of the law", or those that were old in knowledge; of both which it is said by R. Simeon ben Achasia {m}, that



"the elders of the common people, when they grow old, their knowledge fails in them, as it is said, Joh 12:20 but so it is not with the "elders of the law"; but when they grow old, their knowledge rests in them, as it is said,

Job 12:12.''



But these were either some principal officers of the city, called the elders of the people elsewhere; particularly, who were members of the sanhedrim; for as elders, when they design the elders in Jerusalem, mean the great sanhedrim {n} there; so elders, in other places, intend the sanhedrim, consisting of twenty one persons, or the bench of three; and such were these, the centurion sent to Christ:



beseeching him that he would come and heal his servant: he besought him most earnestly by these messengers, that he would come to his house, and cure his servant of the palsy, by laying his hands on him, or commanding the distemper off, by a word speaking; or in what way he should think fit, for he made no doubt that he was able to heal him.



{m} Misn. Kenim, c. 3. sect. 6. {n} T. Hieros. Sota, fol. 23. 3.





Luke 7:4



Ver. 4. And when they came to Jesus,.... To that part of the city where he was; either at Peter's house, where he used to be when in this place; or rather it might be as he was passing along the streets, that they came up to him



they besought him instantly; or with great vehemence and importunity; very studiously and carefully they urged the case, and pressed him much to it:



saying, he was worthy for whom he should do this; or, "for whom thou shouldst do this", as the Vulgate Latin, Syriac, Persic, and Ethiopic versions read, and some copies; and which reading connects the words best. This speech of theirs savours of their "pharisaic" tenet and notion of merit, and is very different from the sense the poor centurion had of himself.





Luke 7:5



Ver. 5. For he loveth our nation,.... The Jewish nation, which was Christ's nation, as well as theirs, he being a Jew; see Joh 18:35. This they mention as an argument to induce him to have a regard to the centurion, though he was a Gentile; since he was a friend of the Jews, and well affected and disposed to them, which was very rare: it was not common for the Gentiles to love the Jews, any more than the Jews the Gentiles; there was an hatred, yea, an enmity between them; but this man, very likely, was a proselyte to their religion, as the following instance seems to show:



and he hath built us a synagogue; at his own private charge, and by the assistance of his soldiers under him, whom he might employ in this work: sometimes a single person built a synagogue at his own expense, and gave it to the citizens; of which the Jews say, {o}



"if a man builds an house, and afterwards devotes it to a synagogue, it is as a synagogue.''



{o} Piske Harosh Megilia, c. 4. art. 1.





Luke 7:6



Ver. 6. Then Jesus went with them,.... The elders of the Jews, towards the centurion's house, after hearing their request, and their reasons for it; and that without any reluctancy, he at once complied, made no hesitation, or difficulty about it, but went with them very freely:



and when he was now not far from the house; of the centurion, where his servant lay sick; he having some notice of his coming, and of his being near his house, in his great humility, and being conscious to himself of his unworthiness to have such a person under his roof, sent messengers to prevent him:



the centurion sent friends to him, saying unto him, Lord, trouble not thyself; or do not fatigue thyself by coming to the house, stop, go no further;



for I am not worthy that thou shouldst enter under my roof: he might know full well the law of the Jews, that it was not lawful for a Jew to go into the house of an uncircumcised Gentile; and though he might be a proselyte of righteousness, and so his house was free of entrance; yet considering his own meanness, and the greatness of Christ, who was become so famous for his doctrines and miracles, he thought it too great a stoop for Christ to come into his house, and too high a favour for him to enjoy.





Luke 7:7



Ver. 7. Wherefore neither thought I myself worthy to come unto thee,.... In person; therefore he sent the elders of the Jews to him first, and now some of his friends, who delivered these words in his name:



but say in a word, and my servant shall be healed; speak but the word only, rebuke the distemper, command it off, and it will be gone; so great was his faith in the power of Christ.





Luke 7:8



Ver. 8. For I also am a man set under authority,.... Of the Roman senate; "or belonging to the emperor", as the Arabic version renders it; and under the command of a tribune, as a centurion was: so that this is not an amplification, but a diminution of his office; and his sense is, that even he who was but an inferior officer, yet had such power as after related:



having under me soldiers; an hundred, or more:



and I say unto one, go, and he goeth, and to another, come, and he cometh, and to my servant, do this, and he doth it; as this his servant used to do, and whom he may intend, who now lay sick, and therefore was dear unto him. His meaning is, that Christ could as easily command, and call off a distemper, add it would obey him, as he could command obedience from his soldiers and servant, and have it, and more so.





Luke 7:9



Ver. 9. When Jesus heard these things,.... Which the friends of the centurion related from him, and in his name; or which he himself delivered, coming up to Christ after them:



he marvelled at him; at his great humility and modesty, and the strength of his faith, and his manner of reasoning:



and turned him about; from him, and his friends:



and said unto the people that followed him; from the mount to Capernaum, and as he was passing along the streets:



I say unto you, I have not found so great faith, no, not in Israel; or "among the Israelites", as the Syriac; or "among the children of Israel", as the Persic; or "in all Israel", as the Arabic version reads, as he did in this single Gentile; See Gill on "Mt 8:10".





Luke 7:10



Ver. 10. And they that were sent,.... Both the elders of the Jews, and the friends of the centurion:



returning to the house; of the centurion, where his servant lay, and from whence they came:



found the servant whole that had been sick; for he was healed directly, as soon as the centurion had expressed his faith, and Christ had declared that it should be according to it, Mt 8:13.





Luke 7:11



Ver. 11. And it came to pass the day after,.... The Vulgate Latin reads "afterward", not expressing any day, as in Lu 8:1, but the Syriac, Arabic, Persic, and Ethiopic versions, read to the same sense as we, the day after, the next day, on the morrow, after he had cured the centurion's servant in Capernaum, where he staid all night:



that he went into a city called Naim; which Jerom {p} places near Mount Tabor, and the river Kison. The {q} Jews speak of a Naim in, the tribe of Issachar, so called from its pleasantness, and which seems to be the same place with this. The Persic version reads it, "Nabetis", or "Neapolis", the same With Sychem in Samaria, but without reason:



and many of his disciples went with him; not only the twelve, but many others:



and much people; from Capernaum, and other parts, that followed him to see his miracles, or for one end or another, though, they did not believe in him; at least these were only hearers, and had, not entered themselves among the disciples,



{p} Tom. 1. ad Marcellum, fol. 44. B. & Epitaph. Paulae. fol. 60. A. {q} Bereshit Rabba, sect. 98. fol. 86. 1.





Luke 7:12



Ver. 12. Now when he came nigh to the gate of the city,.... Of Naim:



behold: there was a dead man carried out; of the city; for they, used not to bury in cities, but in places without, and at some distance: the burying places of the Jews were not near, their cities {r}; and they had different ways of carrying them out to be buried, according to their different ages: a child under a month old was carried out in the bosom of a person; if a full month old, in a little coffin, which they carried in their arms; one of a twelve month old was carried in a little coffin on the shoulder; and one of three years old on a bier or bed, {s} and so upwards; and in this manner was this corpse carried out: who was



the only son of his mother; hence the sorrow and mourning were the greater; see Zec 12:10



and she was a widow; and if she had been supported by her son, her loss was very considerable; and having neither husband, nor son, to do for her, her case was very affecting:



and much people of the city was with her; according to the age of persons was the company that attended them to the grave: if it was an infant, not a month old, it was buried by one woman, and two men, but not by one man, and two women; if a month old, by men and women; and whoever was carried out on a bier or bed, many mourned for him; and whoever was known to many, many accompanied him {t}; and which was the case this dead man: he seems to have been well known and respected by the company that attended him to his grave; of these some were bearers, and these had their deputies, and these again theirs; for as they carried their dead a great way, they were obliged often to change their bearers; and of the company, some went before the bier, and others went after it {u}: besides, what served to increase company at a funeral was, that it was looked upon as an act of kindness and mercy to follow a corpse to the grave {w}; to which may be added, and what must always tend to increase the number at such a time, that, according to the Jewish canons {x}



"it was forbidden to do any work at the time a dead man was buried, even one of the common people.''



{r} T. Bab. Kiddushin, fol. 80. 2. Gloss. {s} T. Moed Katon, fol. 24. 1, 2. & Kiddashin, fol. 80. 2. Massech. Semachot, c. 3. sect. 2, 3. Maimon. Hilch. Ebel, c. 12. sect. 10, 11. {t} Ut in locis supra citatis. {u} Vid Misn. Beracot, c. 3. sect. 1. {w} Maimon. in Misn. Peah, c. 1. sect. 1. {x} Piske Tosaphot Megilla, art. 106. T. Bab. Moed Katon, fol. 27. 2.





Luke 7:13



Ver. 13. And when the Lord saw her, he had compassion on her,.... Knowing her case, that she was a widow, and had lost her only son:



and said unto her, weep not; signifying, that he would help her, which he did without being asked to do it, as usual in other cases.





Luke 7:14



Ver. 14. And he came and touched the bier,.... Or "bed", as the Syriac version renders it; and such was hjm, "the bier", or bed, on which one of three years old, and upward, was carried as above mentioned: so that on which Herod was carried to his grave is called

klinh "a bed", by Josephus {y}. As for the bed, or bier, of what sort it was that they carried out their dead upon, take the following account: {z}



"formerly the rich carried out (their dead) upon a bed called Dargash, (which is said {a} to be a bed that was not platted with ropes, and is called a bed of fortune {b},) and the poor carried out (their dead) upon one that was called Celicah, (or Celibah, as sometimes read; and this was made in the form of an iron horn, on which they bound the corpse, that it might not fall; and it was called so, because it was made like a coup of birds {c} as the word is used in Jer 5:27) and the poor, were made ashamed; and therefore they ordered that all should carry out (their dead) on a Celicah, for the honour of the poor.''



To this Christ came near and touched: not that by his touching of that, the dead should be raised; but this he did as a signal, that the bearers should stop. The Jews {d} say, one of the charges that Jacob gave to his sons before his death, was, to:



"take care (says he) that no uncircumcised person, ytjmb

egy, touch my bed, or "bier", lest the Shekinah remove from me; but, according to this order, do unto me, carry me, three on the north, three on the south, three on the east, and three on the west, &c.''



From whence it should seem, that a circumcised person, as Christ was, might touch a bier without offence, or hurt, and without contracting any ceremonial pollution: to touch a dead body, or the bone of man, or a grave, was forbidden by the law, Nu 19:16 and so, according to the traditions of the elders {e}, the stone that was rolled at the mouth of the sepulchre, and the, side of the sepulchre, defiled by touching; but I do not find that touching a bier was ever forbidden.



And they that bare him stood still: these are they that are called

hjmh yavwg "the bearers of the bed", or "bier": and Maimonides {f} says,



"they carry the dead upon their shoulders to the grave; and the bearers of the bier are forbidden to put on their sandals, lest the latchet of any one of them should fail, and should be found to hinder him doing his duty.''



And elsewhere it is said {g},



"the bearers of the bed, or bier, and their deputies, and their deputies' deputies, both before the bier and after it, find whoever the bier stood in need of, were free;''



i.e. from reading the Shema, or, "hear, O Israel", &c. and from prayer: the reason of their having so many bearers was, because they carried the dead a great way to be buried. King Herod was carried after this manner two hundred furlongs from Jerusalem, to the castle of Herodion {h}:



and he said, young man, I say unto thee, arise. The Ethiopic version adds, "and he arose": Christ spoke as one that had the keys of death and the grave; and divine power went along with his words, which raised the dead man to life; and full proof this is of the true and proper deity of Christ.



{y} De Bello Jud. l. 1. c. 33. sect. 11. {z} T. Bab. Moed Katon, fol. 27. 1, 2. {a} T. Hieros. Beracot, fol. 5. 4. {b} T. Bab. Nedarim, fol. 56. 2. {c} R. Sampson & Bartenora in Misn. Para, c. 12. sect. 9. {d} Bereshit Rabba, sect. 100. fol. 87. 4. {e} Misn. Oholot, c. 2. sect. 4. {f} Hilchot. Ebel, c. 4. sect. 2. 3. {g} Misn. Beracot, c. 3. sect. 1. {h} Josephus, ut supra. (De Bello Jud. l. 1. c. 33. sect. 11.)





Luke 7:15



Ver. 15. And he that was dead,.... That had been dead, (for he was now alive,) as it was a clear case to all his relations and friends, or they would never have brought him out to bury him:



sat up; upon the bed, or bier: and began to speak; both which, his sitting up and speaking, were plain proofs of his being brought to life:



and he delivered him to his mother; for whose sake he raised him from the dead, commiserating her case: wherefore, as Christ showed his power in raising the dead man, he discovered great humanity, kindness, and tenderness, in delivering him alive to his mother; which might be done after he came off of the bier, by taking him by the hand, and leading him to his mother, and giving him up into her arms: think what affecting scene this must be!





Luke 7:16



Ver. 16. And there came a fear on all,.... That were there present, and heard, and saw what was done. Not a fear of dread, and terror, and of punishment, as in devils and wicked men; but a fear and reverence of the divine majesty, whose power and presence they were sensible must be there at that time:



and they glorified God; they praised him, and gave thanks to him, ascribing this amazing action to divine power, and gave God the glory of it; and blessed him for the Messiah, who was sent unto them, as they concluded Jesus to be, from this wonderful instance:



saying, that a great prophet is risen up among us; even that great prophet Moses wrote of, and said should be raised up from among the children of Israel, De 18:15 and that God hath visited his people. The Arabic version adds, "for good". For God sometimes visits for evil, in a wave of wrath and sore displeasure; but this was a visitation for good: they concluded that God had looked upon them with a look of love, and had a gracious regard to them, and had sent them the Messiah, who, they hoped, would deliver them from the Roman yoke; as he had formerly looked upon, and visited their fathers, and sent a redeemer to them, to deliver them from Egyptian bondage. The Ethiopic version renders it, "and God hath mercy on his people"; and the Persic version, "God hath looked upon his people, and hath taken care of them."





Luke 7:17



Ver. 17. And this rumour of him,.... Or the report of this surprising miracle in raising a dead man to life, that was carrying to his grave,



went forth throughout all Judea, and throughout all the region round about; not only Judea, and the several cities, towns, and villages in it, but all the country round about it, especially Galilee. The Persic version reads, "all countries which are round about Jordan"; see Mt 3:5.





Luke 7:18



Ver. 18. And the disciples of John showed him of all these things. The miracles that were wrought by Christ; particularly the healing of the centurion's servant, and the raising from the dead the widow of Naim's son, and what fame and reputation Christ got every where by his doctrine, and mighty works. John was now in prison, when these his disciples came and related these things to him; see

Mt 11:2 and they spoke of them, not as commending Christ for them; but as envying, grieving, and complaining, that he carried away all the honour and glory from John their master, for whom they had the greatest regard.





Luke 7:19



Ver. 19. And John calling unto him two of his disciples,.... Which were a sufficient number to be sent on an errand, to ask a question, and report the answer, or bear witness to any fact they should see, or hear done.



Sent them unto Jesus, saying, art thou he that should come, or look we for another? not that he doubted that Jesus was the Messiah; nor was it for his own satisfaction so much that he sent these disciples of his with this question, but for theirs; and to remove all doubt and hesitation from them about Christ.





Luke 7:20



Ver. 20. When the men were come to him,.... To Jesus; "those two men", as the Arabic version reads; "the disciples", as the Persic version; the same that John sent from the castle of Machaerus, where he was now a prisoner, to Christ, who was teaching in some city or town of Galilee:



they said, John the Baptist; so well known by his being the administrator of the ordinance of baptism:



hath sent us unto thee, saying, art thou he that should come, or look we for another? See Gill on "Mt 11:3".





Luke 7:21



Ver. 21. And in that same hour,.... Or at that same time, for a precise hour is not intended: one exemplar reads, "in that day", in which these men came to Christ,



he, Jesus, as the Persic version expresses it,



cured many of their infirmities; bodily weaknesses and disorders: and plagues; which were inflicted on them as scourges and corrections for sin, very severe diseases, as epilepsies, leprosies, palsies, &c. and of evil spirits; or devils, which he dispossessed and commanded out of the bodies of men; though sometimes evil spirits, with the Jews, signify some kinds of bodily diseases: as when it is said {i}



"whoever puts out a lamp because he is afraid of Gentiles, or of thieves, or of her xwr, "an evil spirit", or because of a sick man that is asleep, he is free.''



Upon which Maimonides observes,



"an evil spirit they call all kinds of diseases, which, in the Arabic language, go by the name of "melancholy"; for it is one kind of the diseases mentioned, which makes a sick man to fly, and separate himself from mankind, as if he was afraid of the light, or of coming into the company of men:''



and unto many that were blind he gave sight; freely, as an act of grace and kindness, as the word signifies, without any merit, or motive, in them.



{i} Misn. Sabbat, c. 2. sect. 5. Vid Maimon. Hilchot Gerushin, c. 2. sect. 14.





Luke 7:22



Ver. 22. Then Jesus answering said unto them,.... "To the disciples", as the Persic; to both, as the Arabic: when he had wrought these cures, he turned himself to the disciples of John, and made answer to their question. The Vulgate Latin leaves out the word "Jesus", rendering it, "and he answering"; in the following words:



go your way, and tell John what things ye have seen and heard. They had just seen many cured of infirmities, plagues, and evil spirits, and they had heard the doctrines of the Gospel preached by him; and the former were in confirmation of the latter, and both were proofs of his being the Messiah: the particulars of which follow,



how that the blind see; that is, they that had been blind, and some that were born blind received their sight, which was what was never heard of before, from the beginning of the world; and which, as it is an instance of Christ's almighty power, showing him to be God; so it was a fulfilment of a prophecy concerning him as the Messiah, who, when he came, was to open the eyes of the blind, Isa 35:5 and this was true, not only in a corporeal, but in a spiritual sense: and generally so it was, that when the blind received their bodily sight, they also received their spiritual sight; and both were evidences of the true Messiahship of our Lord Jesus.



The lame walk; these were among those who were cured of their infirmities; and this also was prophesied of the Messiah, and was now accomplished by Jesus, that "the lame man" should "leap as an hart",

Isa 35:6 and so was to be considered by John, and his disciples, as another proof of his being the true Messiah:



the lepers are cleansed; of this sort were they who were cured of their plagues: the leprosy was called a plague; hence the treatise of leprosy, in the Misna, is, by the Jews, called Negaim, or "plagues".



The deaf hear; so in the above prophecy in Isaiah, it is predicted, that "the ears of the deaf should be unstopped" in the days of the Messiah; and which therefore must be considered as a further confirmation of Jesus being he that was to come, and that another was not to be looked for.



The dead are raised: whether there were any raised at this time, or no, is not certain; but certain it is, that there had been one raised from the dead, if not in the presence of these disciples, yet just before they came to Christ, of which John had been informed by some of his disciples, if not these; and of which an account is given before in this chapter, and which is what none but the mighty God can do.



To the poor the Gospel is preached: it was preached both by the poor, the disciples of Christ, and to the poor, mean, base, and illiterate among the Jews; and also to the poor, meek, and lowly in heart, as was prophesied should be, by the Messiah, Isa 61:1 so that put all together, here were undoubted proofs, and a full demonstration, that Jesus was the Messiah; See Gill on "Mt 11:4".

See Gill on "Mt 11:5".





Luke 7:23



Ver. 23. And blessed is he, whosoever shall not be offended in me. The Arabic version renders it, "blessed is he that doubts not of me". The Persic and Ethiopic versions both add to the text, the former rendering the words thus, "blessed is he that is not brought into offence and doubt concerning me"; and the latter thus, "blessed are they who do not deny me, and are not offended in me": particular regard is had to the disciples of John, who both doubted of Christ as the Messiah, and were offended at his popularity and success;

See Gill on "Mt 11:6".





Luke 7:24



Ver. 24. And when the messengers of John were departed,.... The Syriac and Persic versions read, "the disciples of John"; and the Arabic version, "the two disciples of John"; the two that he sent, when they were gone back with the answer of Christ;



he, "Jesus", as the Persic version expresses it,



began to speak unto the people concerning John; not caring to say any thing about him to the messengers, or whilst they were present, lest he should be charged with flattery; See Gill on "Mt 11:7"



What went ye into the wilderness for to see? a reed shaken with the wind? an inconsistent, wavering, and unstable man? if so, they were greatly mistaken; or the motions and gesture of the man?

See Gill on "Mt 11:7".





Luke 7:25



Ver. 25. But what went you out for to see?.... If not his air and action, what was it? was it his apparel and dress? was it to see



a man clothed in soft raiment? If this was the case, their labour was in vain, and they had their walk for nothing; for John was clothed with camels' hair, rough and undressed, and was girt with a leathern girdle; there was nothing in his person, mien, and garb, that was attractive:



they which are gorgeously, apparelled; or richly clothed, as John was not:



and live delicately; in the most elegant manner, and on the richest dainties, as John did not, his food being locusts and wild honey:



are in kings' courts; and not in a wilderness, where John; came preaching.





Luke 7:26



Ver. 26. But what went ye out for to see?.... What led your curiosity to go into the wilderness after him, since it could not be any of the above things? was it to see



a prophet? which was the case; for John was a prophet, and was known to be one; and the fame of him, as such, drew vast numbers to see and hear him, there not having been a prophet among the Jews, for some hundreds of years:



yea, I say unto you, and much more than a prophet; not that he was the prophet Moses did say should come; nor was he the priest that should arise with the "Urim" and "Thummim", that the "Tirshatha", Nehemiah spoke of; nor was he the king Messiah; but he was his forerunner, he saw him and baptized him, and so was greater than any of the prophets that went before him.





Luke 7:27



Ver. 27. This is he of whom it is written,.... In Mal 3:1.

See Gill on "Mt 11:10".

See Gill on "Mr 1:2".





Luke 7:28



Ver. 28. For I say unto you----here is not a greater prophet,.... The word "prophet" is left out in the Arabic and Ethiopic versions, as in Mt 11:11.

See Gill on "Mt 11:11".





Luke 7:29



Ver. 29. And all the people that heard him,.... Either Christ saying these things in commendation of John, and gave their assent to them, and showed their approbation of them, having been baptized by him; or rather, the people that had heard John preach the doctrines of repentance and faith, and of baptism; for these words seem rather to be the words of Christ, relating the success of John's ministry among different persons:



and the publicans justified God; even those wicked men, who were before profligate and abandoned sinners, when they came under John's ministry, were so wrought upon by the power and grace of God through it, that they approved of, and applauded the wisdom, goodness, and grace of God, in sending such a prophet as John; in qualifying him in the manner he did, and giving in him a commission to preach such doctrines, and administer such an ordinance as he did: and this their approbation of the divine conduct, and their thankfulness for the same, they testified by their



being baptized with the baptism of John; they expressed their sentiments by their obedience; they declared it was right in God to institute such an ordinance, and for John to administer it; and that it became them to submit to it, as a part of righteousness to be fulfilled; they hereby signified, that they thought that it was agreeable to the nature of God, who is holy, just, and good, suitable to the Gospel dispensation, and very fit and proper for them.





Luke 7:30



Ver. 30. But the Pharisees and lawyers,.... Or Scribes, as the Syriac and Persic versions read; for the Scribes and lawyers were the same sort of persons. The Ethiopic version calls them, "the Scribes of the city": these "rejected the counsel of God against themselves"; against their own advantage, to their hurt and detriment; since by their impenitence and unbelief, and through their rejection of Christ and his forerunner, and the Gospel and the ordinances of it, they brought ruin and destruction, both temporal and eternal, upon themselves: or "towards themselves", or "unto them"; that is, they "rejected the command of God unto them", as the Arabic version renders it: for by "the counsel of God" here, is not meant his purpose, intention, and design, with respect to these persons, which was not, nor never is frustrated; but the precept of God, and so the Ethiopic version renders it,



they despised the command of God: that is, the ordinance of baptism, which was of God, and the produce of his counsel and wisdom, as the whole scheme, and all the ordinances of the Gospel are, and not the invention of men: or they rejected this "in themselves", as it may be rendered, and is by the Syriac and Persic versions; not openly and publicly, for they were afraid of the people, but inwardly and privately, and which their actions and conduct declared:



being not baptized of him; of John: by their neglect of this ordinance, they testified their aversion to it, and rejection of it.





Luke 7:31



Ver. 31. And the Lord said,.... This clause is not in the Syriac, Arabic, Persic, and Ethiopic versions, nor in some copies, nor in Beza's most ancient copy; and being omitted, more clearly shows, that the two former verses are the words of Christ, and not an observation the evangelist makes, on the different behaviour of Christ's hearers, upon the commendation he had given of John:



whereunto then shall I liken the men of this generation; or "to what men shall I liken them", as the Persic version: the phrase "men of this generation", is Rabbinical; so yvwa awhh ard, the men of that "generation", are more beautiful in work than these, says the Targumist on Ec 7:11. "And to what are they like?" To that which follows.





Luke 7:32



Ver. 32. They are like to children,.... The Pharisees and lawyers, who rejected the counsel of God, and the baptism of John, were like to "children"; not for innocence, simplicity, meekness, and humility; their characters were the reverse; but rather, for their ignorance, and want of understanding, their folly and weakness; nor are they here compared to the children that piped and mourned, but to those surly and ill natured ones, who made no answer to those that did. They, together with Christ, and John the Baptist, are in general likened to children,



sitting in the market place; where children were wont to be, there being a variety of persons and things to be seen; and which may design the temple, or the synagogues, or any place of concourse, where the Pharisees met, with John, Christ, and their disciples:



and calling one to another, and saying; they that were good natured, and more disposed to mirth and innocent diversions:



we have piped unto you, and ye have not danced; we have mourned to you, and ye have not wept: they imitated the pipers at weddings, expecting their companions would have danced, as was usually done by the others, when the pipe was played upon; and they mimicked the mourning women at funerals, expecting their fellows would have made as though they had wept; whereas they would do neither, showing a dislike both to the one and to the other. The children that imitated the pipers, represent Christ and his disciples, who delivered the joyful sound of the Gospel; and the children that acted the part of the mourners, signify John the Baptist, and his disciples, who preached the doctrine of repentance; and the children that would not join with, nor make any answer to the one, or the other, intend the Scribes and Pharisees, who were not pleased with either of them, as the following words show; See Gill on "Mt 11:16".

See Gill on "Mt 11:17".





Luke 7:33



Ver. 33. For John the Baptist,.... Who is designed by the children that mourned in the above simile, with whom his character and conduct agree; he preached very mournful doctrine, delivered it in a very solemn and awful manner, and lived a very austere life, and fasted much, as did also his disciples. The word "Baptist" is here added by Luke, which Matthew has not, to distinguish him from others; and it may be, because he had just spoke of his baptism. The Persic version only reads, "the Baptist"; of him our Lord says, that he



came neither eating bread, nor drinking wine; which were the common food and drink of men, but his diet were locusts and wild honey, and from this he often abstained; nor would he attend festivals and entertainments, or be free and sociable with men: "bread" and "wine" are here mentioned, which are not in Matthew:



and ye say, he hath a devil; is mad, or melancholy; for madness and melancholy, or the hypochondriac disorder, was by them sometimes imputed to a diabolical possession, and influence, as the cause of it; and though these men pretended to great austerity of life, and frequent fastings, yet John was too abstemious for them, and they could not agree with his doctrine nor method of living;

See Gill on "Mt 12:18".





Luke 7:34



Ver. 34. The son of man is come eating and drinking,.... That is, eating bread and drinking wine, as other people do; and shuns no man's company, goes to a wedding, dines with a Pharisee, and eats with publicans and sinners, and carries it freely and courteously to all men:



and ye say, behold a gluttonous man and a wine bibber; an epicurian, a drunkard, a mere sot, one that gives up himself to sensual pleasures:



a friend of publicans and sinners; a good fellow, a boon companion, that sits with them, and encourages them in their revellings and drunkenness: such an ill use did the Jews make of our Lord's free, harmless, and innocent conversation with men; and in such a horrid manner did they traduce and vilify him, who was holy in his nature, harmless in his life, separate from sinners, knew no sin, nor ever committed any.





Luke 7:35



Ver. 35. But wisdom is justified of all her children. That is, Christ, who is the wisdom of God, and who acted the wise part, in behaving in such a free manner with all sorts of men, and even with publicans and sinners, whereby he became useful to their souls, called them to repentance, converted and saved them: and these are his children, which were given him by the Father; for whose sake he partook of flesh and blood, and whom he redeemed, that they might receive the adoption of children; and to whom, believing in him, he gives power to become the children of God: and these justify him from all such scandalous imputations, and by their lives and conversations show, that the doctrine of Christ is not a licentious one, or leads to libertinism, and indulges men in their carnal sensual lusts and pleasures; but, on the contrary, teaches them to deny ungodliness and worldly lusts, and to live soberly, righteously, and godly: the word "all", is inserted by Luke, which is not in Matthew; signifying, that this is the universal sense and practice of all the real offspring of Christ, the sons of wisdom, who are wise to do good.





Luke 7:36



Ver. 36. And one of the Pharisees,.... Whose name was Simon, Lu 7:40



Desired that he would eat with him; take a meal with him, either a dinner or a supper: this he did under a disguise of respect, and show of affection to him; though very likely with a design upon him to ensnare him, or take some advantage against him if he could; for it is certain, that he did not treat him with those civilities and ceremonies commonly used to guests; see Lu 7:44.



And he went into the Pharisee's house, and sat down to meat: he made no hesitation about it, but at once accepted of his invitation, though he knew both the man and his intentions; having nothing to fear from him, and being willing to carry it courteously to all men, and give proof of what he had just now said of himself, Lu 7:34.





Luke 7:37



Ver. 37. And behold, a woman in the city,.... Not Mary Magdalene, spoken of in Lu 8:2 under another character; and is a different person, who had not been taken notice of by the evangelist before; nor Mary the sister of Lazarus, who is said to anoint the feet of Christ, and wipe them with her hair, Joh 12:3. The character given of this woman, does not seem so well to agree with her; at least, the fact here recorded, cannot be the same with that; for this was in Galilee, and that in Bethany; this in the house of Simon the Pharisee, that in the house of Lazarus; this was some time before Christ's death, and after this he went a circuit through every city and village, that was but six days before his death, and after which he never went from those parts; nor is this account the same with the history, recorded in Mt 26:6 for that fact was done in Bethany also, this in Galilee; that in the house of Simon: the leper, this in the house of Simon the Pharisee; that was but two days before the death of Christ, this a considerable time before; the ointment that woman poured, was poured upon his head, this upon his feet: who this woman was, is not certain, nor in what city she dwelt; it seems to be the same in which the Pharisee's house was; and was no doubt one of the cities of Galilee, as Naim, Capernaum, or some other at no great distance from these:



which was a sinner; a notorious sinner, one that was known by all to have been a person of a wicked, life and conversation; a lewd woman, a vile prostitute, an harlot, commonly reputed so: the Arabic word here used, signifies both a sinner and a whore {k}; and so the word, sinners, seems to be used elsewhere by Luke; see Lu 15:1 compared with Mt 21:31. Some think she was a Gentile, Gentiles being reckoned by the Jews sinners, and the worst of sinners; but this does not appear:



when she knew that Jesus sat at meat in the Pharisee's house; having observed it herself, that he was invited by him, and went with him, or being informed of it by others,



brought an alabaster box of ointment: ointment was used to be put in vessels made of "alabaster", which kept it pure and incorrupt; and this stone was found about Damascus, {l} so that there might be plenty of it in Judea; at least it might be easily had, and such boxes might be common; and as this woman appears to have been a lewd person, she might have this box of ointment by her to anoint herself with, that she might recommend herself to her gallants. The historian {m} reports, that



"Venus gave to Phaon an alabaster box with ointment, with which Phaon, being anointed, became the most beautiful of men, and the women of Mitylene were taken with the love of him.''



If this box had been provided with such a view; it was now used to another and different purpose.



{k} Vid. Castell. Lex. Heptaglott. col. 1195. {l} Plin. Nat. Hist. l. 36. c. 8. {m} Aelian. var. Hist. l. 12. c. 8.





Luke 7:38



Ver. 38. And stood at his feet behind him,.... Christ lay upon a bed, or couch, as was the custom of the ancients, both Jews and others, at meals, with his feet put out behind; and between the couches and the walls of the room, there was a space for servants to wait and serve, and such are therefore said to "stand at the feet"; and the phrase is used, as descriptive of servants in waiting {n}; and in such a situation this woman put herself, as being also ashamed and afraid to come before Christ, and look him in the face; and here she stood weeping for her sins, and melted down with the love of Christ to her soul, and at his discourse:



and began to wash his feet with tears: which fell from her eyes in such abundance upon his feet, as she stood by him that they were like a shower of rain, as the word signifies, with which his feet were as it were bathed and washed; his shoes or sandals being off, as was the custom at eating so to do, lest they should daub the couch or bed, on which they lay {o}. Her tears she used instead of water; for it was the custom first to wash the feet before they were anointed with oil, which she intended to do; and for which purpose she had brought with her an alabaster box of ointment: it is said {p} of one,



"when he came home, that his maid brought him a pot of hot water, and he washed his hands and his feet in it; then she brought him a golden basin full of oil, and he dipped his hands and his feet in it, to fulfil what is said,

De 33:24 and after they had eaten and drank, he measured out oil, &c.''



And it is: a general rule with the Jews {q},



"that whoever anoints his feet, is obliged to washing or dipping.''



And did wipe them with the hairs of her head; which were long, and hung loose about her shoulders, it being usual and comely for women to wear long hair, 1Co 11:15. That which was her ornament and pride, and which she took great care of to nourish and put in proper form, to, render her desirable, she uses instead of a towel to wipe her Lord's feet, and her tears off of them. A like phrase is used of one by Apuleius,



"his verbis & amplexibus mollibus decantatus maritus, lachrymasque ejus suis crinibus detergens, &c. {r}:''



"and kissed his feet". This was no unusual practice with the Jews; we often read of it {s}:



"R. Jonathan and R. Jannai were sitting together, there came a certain man, ywlgr qvnw, "and kissed the feet" of R. Jonathan.''



Again {t}



"R. Meir stood up, and Bar Chama, hyerka hyqvn, "kissed his knees", or "feet".''



This custom was also used by the Greeks and Romans among their civilities, and in their salutations {u}:



and anointed them with the ointment; which she brought with her.



{n} Vid Alstorphium de lectis veterum, p. 106, 107. {o} Ib. p. 123, 124. {p} T. Bab. Meuachot, fol. 85. 2. {q} T. Bab. Zebachim, fol. 26. 2. Maimon. Hilchot Biath Harnikdash, c. 5. sect. 5. {r} Metamorph. l. 5. {s} T. Hieros. Peah, fol. 15. 4. & Kiddushin, fol. 61. 3. T. Bab. Cetubot, fol. 49. 2. Vid. ib. fol. 63. 1. {t} T. Bab. Sanhedrin, fol 27. 2. {u} Vid. Aristophanem in vespis, p. 473. Arvian Epictet. l. 3. c. 26. & Alex. ab. Alex. Gen. Dier. l. 2. c. 19.





Luke 7:39



Ver. 39. Now when the Pharisee, which had bidden him, saw it,.... Simon, who had invited Christ to eat with him, when he saw what was done by the woman, how she stood at his feet, and washed them with her tears, and wiped them with her hairs, and then kissed and anointed them:



he spoke within himself; not openly and publicly, being in good manners, though not in real respect to Christ, unwilling to affront his guest; but turned these things over in his mind, and reasoned upon them within himself:



saying, this man, if he were a prophet; as he was said, and believed to be by many, but questioned by this Pharisee:



would have known who and what manner of woman this is, that toucheth him; he took it for granted that Christ did not know this woman personally, that she was one of the city; nor her character, or "what" was "her fame", as the Syriac version renders it, which was very ill; or "her condition", as the Arabic version, she being not a religious person, but a notorious lewd one: this he concluded, from his admitting her to such nearness to him, and familiarity with him; and from hence argues within himself, that he could not be a prophet; since, according to his notion of a prophet, he must know persons and their characters; though this was not always requisite in a prophet, nor did the prophetic gift at all times show itself in this way: however, this man reasoned upon the commonly received notions of the Pharisees, both of the Messiah, the prophet that Moses said should come, and of their own conduct, and of all religious men: their notion with respect to the Messiah was, that he should be of so quick an understanding, or smell, as in Isa 11:3 that he should know at once who was a wicked person, and who not.



"Bar Coziba (they say {w}) reigned two years and a half; he said to, the Rabbans, I am the Messiah; they replied to him, it is written of the Messiah, Isa 11:3 that he smells, or is of quick understanding and judges (the gloss on it is, he smells on a man, and judges and knows,

byyhh ym, "who is a wicked man"): let us see whether he smells and judges; and when they saw that he did not smell and judge, they killed him.''



But Jesus, the true Messiah, could do so; he knew who were sinners, he knew this woman to be one, as the following account shows: and their notion with respect to the conduct of religious persons towards the common people, and those of a bad character, and which the Pharisee here suggests, was, that the touch of such persons was defiling, and therefore to be avoided: for they say {x}, that



"the Pharisees, if they touched the garments of the common people, they were defiled.''



And therefore when they walked in the streets,



"they walked in the sides (of the ways), that they might not be defiled, egmb, "by the touch" of the common people {y}''



For she is a sinner; a notorious one; or "that she is a sinner"; and the sense is, Christ, had he been a prophet, the Pharisee intimates, would have known that this woman was a vile creature; and he would have shown it; by his abhorrence and rejection of her; or as the Persic version adds, "would have declared her sins".



{w} T. Bab. Sanhedrin, fol. 93. 9. {x} Maimon. in Misn. Chagiga, c. 2. sect. 7. {y} Ib. Hilchot Abot Hatumaot, c. 13. sect. 8.





Luke 7:40



Ver. 40. And Jesus answering said unto him,.... Christ being God omniscient, knew not only the character and conversation of this woman, which were publicly known by all, that knew any thing of her, but also the secret thoughts and reasonings of the Pharisee, and makes answer to them; which shows, that he was a prophet, in the sense of this man; yea, more than a prophet:



Simon, I have somewhat to say to thee; this could not be Simon Peter, Christ spoke to, as some have suggested; for the answer is made unto the Pharisee, and he is the person addressed by the name of Simon; even he, into whose house Christ entered, and now was, as appears from Lu 7:44.



And he saith, Master; or teacher, or doctor; or as the Syriac version, "Rabbi"; which was the common salutation of doctors:



say on. This was a way of speaking in use with the Jews, giving leave to proceed in a discourse; and as Christ was now a guest in this man's house, he asks leave of him, and he grants him it: so we read of R. Simeon ben Gamaliel {z} that he said to R. Ishmael ben Elishah,



"is it thy pleasure that I should say before thee one thing? he said unto him, rwma, "say on".''



Again, R. Jochanan ben Zaccai said {a} to a certain governor,



"suffer me to say one thing to thee: he replied to him,

rwma, "say on".''



{z} Abot R. Nathan, c. 38. fol. 9. 2. {a} Bemidbar Rabba, sect. 4. fol. 183. 1.





Luke 7:41



Ver. 41. There was a certain creditor,.... All the Oriental versions premise something to this. The Syriac version reads, "Jesus said unto him". The Arabic version, "then he said". The Persic version, "Jesus said"; and the Ethiopic version, "and he said to him"; and something of this kind is understood, and to be supplied in the text:



which had two debtors, the one owed five hundred pence, and the other fifty; these were, as the word shows, Roman "denarii" or "pence"; the former of these sums, reckoning a Roman penny at seven pence halfpenny of our money, amounted to fifteen pounds and twelve shillings and six pence; and the latter, to one pound eleven shillings and three pence; the one of these sums was ten times larger, than the other. This is a parable: by "the creditor", God is meant, to whom men owe their beings, and the preservation of them, and all the mercies of life; and are under obligation to obedience and thankfulness: hence: no man can merit any thing of God, or pay off any old debt, by a new act of obedience, since all is due to him: by the "two debtors" are meant, greater and lesser sinners: all sins are debts, and all sinners are debtors; not debtors to sin, for then it would not be criminal, but lawful to commit sin, and God must be pleased with it, which he is not, and men might promise themselves impunity, which they cannot; but they are debtors to fulfil the law, and in case of failure, are bound to the debt of punishment: and of these debtors and debts, some are greater, and others less; not but that they, are all equally sinners in Adam, and equally guilty and corrupted by his transgression; and the same seeds of sin are in the hearts of all men, and all sin is committed against God, and is a breach of his law, and is mortal, or deserving of death, even death eternal; but then as some commands are greater, and others less, so must their transgressions be: sin more immediately committed against God, is greater than that which is committed against our neighbour; and besides, the circumstances of persons and things differ, which more or less aggravate the offence.





Luke 7:42



Ver. 42. And when they had nothing to pay,.... Neither the lesser nor greater debtor; for though not alike in debt, yet both insolvent: man has run out his whole stock, which the God of nature gave him, in his original creation and primitive state; and is become a bankrupt and a beggar, is poor, wretched, and miserable; he has no money, he has nothing to offer for a composition, much less for payment; he has no righteousness, and if he had, it would be nothing to pay with; since that itself, even in perfection, is due to God, and cannot discharge a former debt: sin being committed against an infinite being, is in some sense an infinite debt, and requires an infinite satisfaction, which a finite creature can never give; and he is therefore liable to a prison, and that for ever: but behold the wonderful grace of God, the creditor!



he frankly forgave them both: their whole debts, without regard to any merits of theirs, which they could not have, or any motives in them, or any conditions to be performed by them, but purely of his sovereign will, free grace, and rich mercy, though not without regard to the satisfaction of his Son; which by no means hinders the frankness of the pardon, or obscures the grace of it, but increases and illustrates it; seeing this satisfaction is of God's own finding out, providing, and accepting; and is at his own expense, and without money and price, to the debtors:



tell me therefore, which of them will love him most; or "ought to love him most", as the Ethiopic version. The Vulgate Latin, and all the Oriental versions, leave out the first part of this clause, "tell me".





Luke 7:43



Ver. 43. Simon answered and said,.... Very readily, without any hesitation, not being aware of the application of it, to the instance he had been pondering in his mind:



I suppose, that he to whom he forgave most; it was his opinion, and to him a plain case, that he that owed the largest debt, and that being forgiven him fully, and freely, as he was under the greatest obligation, so as he ought, he would show the greatest love and affection to his kind and gracious creditor:



and he said unto him; that is, Jesus said, as the Syriac and Persic versions express it:



thou hast rightly judged; this is a right and true judgment of the case; it is according to the nature and truth of things, and what is obvious and clear at first sight, and which every one must agree to.





Luke 7:44



Ver. 44. And he turned to the woman,.... That stood behind him at his feet,



and said to Simon, seest thou this woman? and what she has done? pointing to her, and comparing him, and her, and their actions together, whereby he might judge of the preceding parable, and how fitly it might be applied to the present case:



I entered into thine house; not of his own accord, but by the invitation of Simon, and therefore might have expected the usual civilities:



thou gavest me no water for my feet: to wash them with, no, not so much as water; a civility very common in those hot countries, where walking without stockings, and only with sandals, they needed often washing; and which was very refreshing, and was not only used to travellers and strangers, but to guests, and was usually done by the servants of the house; See Gill on "Lu 7:38".



but she hath washed my feet with tears. The Persic version reads, "with the tears of her eyes"; which made a bath for his feet;



and wiped them with the hairs of her head. The Vulgate Latin, Syriac, Persic, and Ethiopic versions read only, "with her hair", which she used instead of a towel, when Simon neither gave him water to wash with, nor a towel to wipe with.





Luke 7:45



Ver. 45. Thou gavest me no kiss,.... A token of civility among friends, when they met together on any occasion. The Jews have a saying {b}, that



"all kisses are foolish, excepting three; the kiss of grandeur or dignity, as in 1Sa 10:1 and the kiss at parting, as in Ru 1:14 and the kiss at meeting, as in Ex 4:27 (of which sort this kiss may be thought to be), to which some add the kiss of consanguinity (or that used by relations to one another), as in Ge 29:11'



but this woman, since the time I came in. The Vulgate Latin and Syriac versions read, "since she came in"; and so two of Stephens's copies; which seems to be the more agreeable reading, seeing Christ was in Simon's house before this woman came; for she knowing that he was there, came thither after him:



hath not ceased to kiss my feet; which shows, that this action was repeated by her times without number, even ever since she came into the house.



{b} Shemot Rabba, sect. 6. fol. 91. 3, 4.





Luke 7:46



Ver. 46. Mine head with oil thou didst not anoint,.... No not with common oil, so usually done at feasts, see Ps 23:5



but this woman hath anointed my feet with ointment; even "with ointment" amobd, "of spices", as the Syriac version renders it. There is, throughout the whole account, an opposition between the conduct of Simon, and this woman: he gave him no common water to wash his feet with, she shed floods of tears, and with them bathed his feet, and then wiped them clean with the hairs of her head; he gave him not the usual salutation by kissing his head or lips, but she kissed his feet, and that over and over again; he did not so much as anoint his head with common oil, when she anointed his feet with costly ointment brought in an alabaster box. These several ceremonies to guests were used by their hosts, in other nations, such as washing, anointing, and kissing {c}.



{c} Vid. Apuleii Metamorph. i. 1. prope finem.





Luke 7:47



Ver. 47. Wherefore I say unto thee,.... Not "for this that she hath done", as the Persic version very wrongly renders it; not because she had washed Christ's feet with tears, and wiped them with her hairs, and kissed and anointed them, therefore her sins were forgiven; nor upon this account, and for those reasons did Christ say, or declare, that they were forgiven; but ou carin, "for this cause", or reason, he said this to Simon the Pharisee, to remove his objections, to rectify his mistakes, and stop his murmuring and complaining, by observing, that though she had been a great sinner, yet she was now not such an one as he took her to be; she was a pardoned sinner, and not that guilty and filthy creature he imagined; the guilt of all her sins was removed, and she was cleansed from all her filthiness:



her sins, which are many, are forgiven; though she was like the largest debtor in the parable, which owed five hundred pence, yet the whole score was cleared; though her sins were numerous, and attended with very aggravating circumstances, which denominated her a sinner in a very emphatic sense, a notorious one, yet they were all fully, and freely forgiven:



for she loved much; or "therefore she loved much": her great love was not the cause of the remission of her sins, but the full and free remission of her many sins, which had been, manifested to her, was the cause of her great love, and of her showing it in the manner she had done: that this is the sense of the words, is clear from the parable, and the accommodation of it to the present case, otherwise there would be no agreement. Upon relating the parable of the two debtors, Christ puts the question to Simon, which of the two it was most reasonable to think would love most? his answer is and which Christ approved of, he to whom most was forgiven; where, it is plain, that according to our Lord's sense, and even Simon's opinion of the case, that forgiveness is the cause, and love the effect; and that according as the forgiveness is of more or less, love is proportionate; and which is applied to the case in hand: this poor woman had been a great sinner; her many sins were pardoned; and therefore she expressed much love to him, from whom she had received her pardon by the above actions, and much more than Simon had done:



but to whom little is forgiven, the same loveth little; this is an accommodation of the other part of the parable, and has a very special respect to Simon, the Pharisee, whose debts, in his own opinion, were few or none, at least ten times less than this woman's; and he had little or no sense of the forgiveness of them, or of any obligation to Christ on that account; and therefore was very sparing of his love and respect, and even of common civilities to him.





Luke 7:48



Ver. 48. And he saith unto her,.... Directing his discourse to the woman that now stood before him:



thy sins are forgiven; which was said, partly on account of the Pharisee, to let him see, that he knew this woman, what she was, and had been; that she had been a sinner, a great sinner, one that owed five hundred pence, but was now forgiven, washed, cleansed, sanctified, and justified, and therefore not to be shunned and avoided; and partly on the woman's account, that she might have a fresh discovery of the forgiveness of her sins, for her comfort under the severe censure of the Pharisee, and that her faith in it might be strengthened; as also on his own account, to show that he was not only a prophet that had extraordinary knowledge of persons, and their characters, but that he was the most high God, to whom belonged the prerogative of pardoning sin.





Luke 7:49



Ver. 49. And they that sat at meat with him,.... Other Pharisees that sat at Simon's table with Christ, whom he had invited as guests, on this occasion of seeing and conversing with Jesus; or some of Simon's family, that sat down to eat with him;



began to say within themselves; that is, either thought and reasoned in their own minds, or whispered among themselves:



who is this that forgiveth sins also? who not content to transgress the traditions of the elders, by admitting a sinful woman to touch him, but assumes that to himself which is peculiar to God, to forgive sin: this they said, not as wondering at him, what manner of person he must be, that with such authority pronounced the forgiveness of sin, as Grotius thinks; but rather as offended with him, and filled with indignation against him, and so censuring and reproaching him for wickedness and blasphemy.





Luke 7:50



Ver. 50. And he said to the woman,.... Notwithstanding the Pharisee's censure, both of him and her:



thy faith hath saved thee; meaning either the object of her faith, himself, who was the author of eternal salvation to her; or that she, through faith in him, had received the blessings of salvation, pardon, righteousness, and life from him, and the joys and comfort of it; and had both a right unto, and a meetness for eternal glory and happiness:



go in peace; of conscience, and serenity of mind; let nothing disturb thee; not the remembrance of past sins, which are all forgiven, nor the suggestions of Satan, who may, at one time or another, present them to view; nor the troubles and afflictions of this present life; which are all in love; nor the reproaches and censures of men of a "pharisaic" spirit: go home to thy house, and about thy business, and cheerfully perform thy duty both to God and men; and when thou hast done thy generation work, thou shalt enter into eternal peace and joy.

 

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