Luke 20:1
_In one of the days. This happened on the last week (on the Tuesday) two or three days before Christ suffered. See the contents of this chapter, Matthew xxi. and xxii. and Mark xi. and xii. (Witham)_... [ Continue Reading ]
_In one of the days. This happened on the last week (on the Tuesday) two or three days before Christ suffered. See the contents of this chapter, Matthew xxi. and xxii. and Mark xi. and xii. (Witham)_... [ Continue Reading ]
_Authority? By what authority do you make yourself a teacher of the people, a censor of the priests, a reformer of the laws and customs? If Jesus Christ had not publicly given undeniable proofs of his mission, by his miracles, the Pharisees would have had a right to demand an answer to this question... [ Continue Reading ]
Jesus does not gratify them by a direct answer; they did not deserve it, because they only interrogated him through captious and improper motives. He only replies by casting on them the very difficulties with which they sought to entangle him. (Calmet) --- Our divine Redeemer proposes to the chief p... [ Continue Reading ]
_A long time. Not that God (who is here represented by the man that planted a vineyard) confines himself to any particular place, either distant or near; but he only seems to absent himself in order that when he comes to receive the fruit of the vineyard, he may punish the negligent more severely, a... [ Continue Reading ]
As this whole parable may be applied exactly to the Jews, to the prophets and Christ; so may this last part, with no less accuracy, be applied to our Saviour. The husbandmen, before they killed the lord's beloved son, first cast him out of the vineyard. So the Jews did not kill the Son of God immedi... [ Continue Reading ]
_Fall upon. That is, whosoever sins against God, yet believes, will be spared by God for a short time to repent, though he kills his own soul by mortal sin: but, upon whomsoever it shall fall, that is, he who denies Christ, and continues on hardened in his sin, upon him the fury of God shall fall, a... [ Continue Reading ]
_Lay hands on him. Thus they themselves proved him to be the Lord's beloved Son, as he had just described himself in the preceding parable. (Ven. Bede)_... [ Continue Reading ]
_Of the governor, &c. Of the governor, Pilate, who in the name of the Romans, exercised absolute authority in the country: for the Jews had lost the power of life and death, which was put into the hands of their presidents. (Calmet)_... [ Continue Reading ]
If our divine Saviour had returned them for answer, that they ought to give tribute to Cæsar, they would have accused him of being an enemy to the law; but if, on the contrary, he said it was not lawful, they would have accused him to Pilate as an enemy of the state. (Theophylactus) --- For there wa... [ Continue Reading ]
We may here be astonished at the incredulity of the chiefs of the Jews, who, though they ought to have admired his wisdom, as something divine, and believed in him, are only surprised that he should have escaped their duplicity and snares. (Ven. Bede) --- Their pride must have been a good deal hurt,... [ Continue Reading ]
_The children of resurrection; i.e. of the just, who shall rise to a happy resurrection: not but that the wicked shall also rise, but to their condemnation and greater misery. (Witham) --- Jesus Christ begins with stating the wide difference between the state of things in this mortal life and in tha... [ Continue Reading ]
The Scribes, seeing the Sadducees thus silenced, seemed to side entirely with our Saviour saying: Master, thou hast said well. And, apprehensive of being exposed to a similar disgrace and discomfiture themselves, they were afraid to ask him any more questions. But this was only an apparent and false... [ Continue Reading ]
Christ indeed is both the Lord and Servant of David. He is Servant, according to the flesh, being a descendant of David; and he is Lord, according to the spirit, being Lord of all. (St. John Chrysostom) --- We hear in our times of a new sect of Pharisees, who neither believed that Christ is the true... [ Continue Reading ]
How forcible are our divine Redeemer's reasonings, when he uses any text out of the prophets. When he performs the most stupendous miracles, his enemies generally have something to reply; when he cites a text of Scripture, they have nothing to say. All are silent. (St. John Chrysostom)... [ Continue Reading ]
The reproach he makes the Scribes in this place, is similar to that he had objected against the Pharisees. (St. Matthew xxiii. 5.) Both these sects were filled with the same spirit of pride and vanity, which shewed itself in their dress, in their exterior, and in every part of their conduct. If our... [ Continue Reading ]
These shall receive a greater condemnation, because they not only commit ordinary evil actions, but also make their prayers, and virtue itself, a cloak to their hypocrisy and vanity, and the cause of their greater depravity, famishing the widows whom themselves ought to compassionate and relieve. (T... [ Continue Reading ]