THEN CAME TOGETHER UNTO HIM THE PHARISEES,.... Having heard of his miracles, and that he was come into the land of Gennesaret; they consulted with one another, and came together to Jesus, to watch and observe what was said and done by him, and take what advantage they could against him. These were n... [ Continue Reading ]
AND WHEN THEY SAW SOME OF HIS DISCIPLES,.... An opportunity soon offered of giving them an handle against him: for observing some of his disciples to sit down to meat, they took notice that they EAT BREAD WITH DEFILED (THAT IS TO SAY, WITH UNWASHEN) HANDS, and THEY FOUND FAULT; with them, and char... [ Continue Reading ]
FOR THE PHARISEES, AND ALL THE JEWS,.... The far greater part of them; all, excepting the Sadducees; and especially the Pharisees, were very tenacious of this tradition of washing hands before eating: hence Pharisees are described as such, בטהרה אוכלי חוליהן, "that eat their common food with cleann... [ Continue Reading ]
AND WHEN THEY COME FROM THE MARKET,.... In Beza's most ancient copy, and in one of Stephens's, it is read as we supply, "when they come": wherefore this respects not things bought in the market, a sense favoured by all the Oriental versions, for many of them could not be washed; but the persons of t... [ Continue Reading ]
THEN THE PHARISEES AND SCRIBES ASKED HIM,.... Not the disciples, but Christ himself; for their chief view was to find fault, and quarrel with him: WHY WALK NOT THY DISCIPLES ACCORDING TO THE TRADITION OF THE ELDERS, BUT EAT WITH UNWASHEN HANDS? or "with common", that is, defiled "hands", as in Mark... [ Continue Reading ]
HE ANSWERED AND SAID UNTO THEM,.... Matthew postpones the following citation and application of the prophecy of Isaiah, to the account of the command of God being broken by the tradition of Corban; which Mark makes the answer of Christ to begin with: WELL HATH ESAIAS PROPHESIED OF YOU HYPOCRITES; w... [ Continue Reading ]
HOWBEIT, IN VAIN DO THEY WORSHIP ME,.... This is the continuation of the citation out of Isaiah, as is also what follows: TEACHING FOR DOCTRINES THE COMMANDMENTS OF MEN. As all these traditions mentioned were such; as washing their hands before they ate bread, and their whole bodies, when they came... [ Continue Reading ]
FOR LAYING ASIDE THE COMMANDMENT OF GOD,.... Meaning not any particular commandment, but all the commandments of God, the whole written law; to which they preferred the oral law, or the traditions of the elders, and the decisions of their doctors. So the Syriac, Arabic, Persic, and Ethiopic versions... [ Continue Reading ]
AND HE SAID UNTO THEM,.... He continued his discourse, saying, FULL WELL, or "fairly", YE REJECT THE COMMANDMENT OF GOD, THAT YE MAY KEEP YOUR OWN TRADITION: these words may be considered, as spoken ironically, thus; as pious and excellently good men, you in a very fair and handsome manner, reject... [ Continue Reading ]
FOR MOSES SAID,.... That is, God by Moses; for the following precept was spoken by God, and written by him on one of the tables of stone, and delivered into the hands of Moses, to be given to the children of Israel: HONOUR THY FATHER AND THY MOTHER, Exodus 20:12, the sanction of which law is, AND... [ Continue Reading ]
BUT YE SAY,.... Your elders, doctors, and wise men, in opposition to God and Moses: IF A MAN SHALL SAY TO HIS FATHER OR HIS MOTHER, IT IS CORBAN, THAT IS TO SAY, A GIFT; in the same manner is this word interpreted by Josephus, who speaking of some that call themselves Corban unto God, says u in the... [ Continue Reading ]
AND YE SUFFER HIM NO MORE TO DO OUGHT FOR HIS FATHER, OR HIS MOTHER. According to the Jewish canons w, if a man vowed a thing which is contrary to a command, he was obliged to keep his vow, and break the command: thus, if a man vowed that his father or his mother should never receive any benefit fro... [ Continue Reading ]
MAKING THE WORD OF GOD OF NONE EFFECT, THROUGH YOUR TRADITION,.... Beza says, in his most ancient copy it is read, "your foolish tradition"; and such it was indeed, that a vow made rashly, and in a passion, or if ever so deliberately entered into, should be more binding upon a man than the law of Go... [ Continue Reading ]
AND WHEN HE, HAD CALLED ALL THE PEOPLE UNTO HIM,.... The Vulgate Latin, and Ethiopic versions, instead of "all", read again, and so do some copies: having said what was sufficient to stop the mouths of the Scribes and Pharisees, about their unwarrantable traditions; he turns himself to the common pe... [ Continue Reading ]
THERE IS NOTHING FROM WITHOUT A MAN,.... As any sort of food and drink, whether it be received, with, or without washing of the hands: THAT ENTERING INTO HIM CAN DEFILE HIM; in a moral sense, or render him loathsome and unacceptable in the sight of God: BUT THE THINGS WHICH COME OUT OF HIM; the Ar... [ Continue Reading ]
IF ANY MAN HAVE EARS TO HEAR, LET HIM HEAR. Matthew 11:15.... [ Continue Reading ]
AND WHEN HE WAS ENTERED INTO THE HOUSE,.... Very probably at Capernaum, and it may be the house of Simon and Andrew, where he used to be when there: FROM THE PEOPLE; being separated from them, having dismissed and left them, when he and his disciples were by themselves alone: HIS DISCIPLES ASKED H... [ Continue Reading ]
AND HE SAITH UNTO THEM,.... With some warmth of spirit and resentment, at their stupidity: ARE YE SO WITHOUT UNDERSTANDING ALSO? As well as others, and to such a degree; and "yet", as Matthew expresses it, Matthew 15:16, so wretchedly stupid, and so long, and as much, as others: DO YE NOT PERCEIVE... [ Continue Reading ]
BECAUSE IT ENTERETH NOT INTO HIS HEART,.... Which is the seat and fountain of all moral pollution; and if that is not defiled, no other part can be; and that that is not defiled by eating and drinking, unless in case of intemperance, is clear; because food and drink do not go into it: BUT INTO THE... [ Continue Reading ]
AND HE SAID,.... Continued to say in his discourse; though this is left but in the Syriac version; THAT WHICH COMETH OUT OF THE MAN, THAT DEFILETH THE MAN; meaning, not his excrements, which were unclean by the law, Deuteronomy 23:13 but what comes out of his heart, by his mouth; or is expressed in... [ Continue Reading ]
FOR FROM WITHIN, OUT OF THE HEART OF MAN,.... The inside of man is very bad, his inward part is not only wicked, but wickedness itself, yea, very wickedness, Psalms 5:9, in him dwells no good thing naturally, his heart is wicked, and desperately so; it is full of evil; and out of the abundance of it... [ Continue Reading ]
THEFTS,.... These also are mentioned in Matthew, but Mark omits "false witnesses", and adds the following; which, excepting "blasphemy", are not taken notice of by the other evangelists; COVETOUSNESS, WICKEDNESS, DECEIT, LASCIVIOUSNESS, AN EVIL EYE, BLASPHEMY, PRIDE, FOOLISHNESS; Matthew 15:19.... [ Continue Reading ]
ALL THESE EVIL THINGS COME FROM WITHIN,.... All evil thoughts, words, and actions, take their rise from the inward parts of man; from his heart; which is sadly corrupted, and is the fountain from whence all these impure streams flow. And if these come from within, then not from without; they are not... [ Continue Reading ]
AND FROM THENCE HE AROSE,.... From the land of Gennesaret, or from Capernaum, which was in it: AND WENT INTO THE BORDERS OF TYRE AND SIDON; two cities of Phoenicia: not into them, but into the borders of them; into those parts of Galilee, which bordered on Phoenicia; Matthew 15:21. AND ENTERED INT... [ Continue Reading ]
FOR A CERTAIN WOMAN,.... One way and means by which he came to be more openly discovered who he was, was this; a woman in those parts, WHOSE YOUNG DAUGHTER HAD AN UNCLEAN SPIRIT; a devil, with which she was possessed; hearing of some miracles he had wrought in healing the sick, and casting out devi... [ Continue Reading ]
THE WOMAN WAS A GREEK,.... Or Gentile, an Heathen woman, which made her faith the more remarkable. So the Syriac, Persic, and Ethiopic versions call her; which she might be, and was, though she was a woman of Canaan, as she is said to be in Matthew 15:22, for though the land of Israel in general, wa... [ Continue Reading ]
BUT JESUS SAID UNTO HER,.... Not directly and immediately, upon her first request; for he answered not a word to that; but after his, disciples had desired she might be sent away, her cries being so troublesome to them; and after she had renewed her request to him; see Matthew 15:23. LET THE CHILDR... [ Continue Reading ]
AND SHE ANSWERED AND SAID UNTO HIM, YES, LORD,.... Agreeing to, and acquiescing in, what he said; which she seemed to have understood, though delivered in a proverbial way; and very appropriately replies, YET THE DOGS UNDER THE TABLE EAT OF THE CHILDREN'S CRUMBS; which they leave, or let fall: sign... [ Continue Reading ]
AND HE SAID UNTO HER, FOR THIS SAYING,.... Or word of faith; in which she expressed such great faith in him: the Persic version reads it, "go thy way; for with the blessing of this word, the devil is gone out of thy daughter": as if this saying referred to the word Christ, and the divine power that... [ Continue Reading ]
AND WHEN SHE WAS COME TO HER HOUSE,.... For with those words of Christ; she was abundantly satisfied, and went away with as great a faith, and as strong a persuasion of the dispossession, as that she came with, that Christ was able to effect it: and accordingly SHE FOUND THE DEVIL GONE OUT; of her... [ Continue Reading ]
AND AGAIN, DEPARTING FROM THE COASTS OF TYRE AND SIDON,.... The Vulgate Latin version reads, "and coming out again from the borders of Tyre, he came through Sidon"; and so two of Beza's copies; the Arabic version, which De Dieu made use of reads "to Sidon"; as he must needs come to it, if he came th... [ Continue Reading ]
AND THEY BRING UNTO HIM ONE THAT WAS DEAF,.... There were two sorts of persons that were called deaf among the Jews; one that could neither hear nor speak; such were they who were born deaf; and so having never heard any thing, it was impossible they should ever speak: the other sort were they that... [ Continue Reading ]
AND HE TOOK HIM ASIDE FROM THE MULTITUDE,.... To shun all appearance of ostentation and vain glory: AND PUT HIS FINGERS INTO HIS EARS; the finger of his right hand into his left ear, and the finger of his left hand into his right ear: AND HE SPIT AND TOUCHED HIS TONGUE; that is, either he spit upo... [ Continue Reading ]
AND LOOKING UP TO HEAVEN,.... To his Father there, by whom he was sent, and from whom, as man, he received his authority and power; though this was not for assistance in the working of this miracle, which he had power to do of himself; nor do we find that he put up any request to his Father: but he... [ Continue Reading ]
AND STRAIGHTWAY HIS EARS WERE OPENED,.... It is in the Greek text, "his hearings"; the instruments of his hearing, and so rightly rendered, "his ears": the Persic version reads, "both his ears"; but the word "both" is unnecessary, since the word, "ears", takes in both. Such a power went along with t... [ Continue Reading ]
AND HE CHARGED THEM,.... The man that had his hearing and speech restored to him, and those that brought him, and as many as were witnesses of the miracle: THAT THEY SHOULD TELL NO MAN; of the cure that was wrought, being not desirous of the applause of men; and knowing it would bring upon him the... [ Continue Reading ]
AND WERE BEYOND MEASURE ASTONISHED,.... The man that was cured, the men that brought him, and the whole multitude were exceedingly, beyond all expression, amazed at what was done, in this case, and many others; for there were other miracles also wrought at this time; see Matthew 15:30. The grace of... [ Continue Reading ]