Luke 10:38-42

Martha and Mary (Lk. only). Perhaps the connexion is that after charity comes faith. The next duty after love of one's neighbour is that of listening to the Gospel. The contemplative life is the complement of the active. The village is not named; the Fourth Gospel says sisters of these names lived at Bethany. Martha is anxious to give her guest a fitting meal. He replies that she need not worry about a variety of dishes; few, or indeed one (cf. mg.), will suffice Him, and He whimsically adds that Mary has chosen the best dish in selecting the nourishment of His teaching (Moffatt; see his note on the text, and cf. RVm.). The whole incident is suggestively handled in Peake, Election and Service, p. 77ff. He thinks the one thing Jesus needed just then was a receptive hearer, one to whom He could open His heart in an hour when He sorely needed human sympathy. From this higher ministry Mary is not to be dragged away or disturbed.