my servant shall be healed. For I am a man under authority, 9 having soldiers under me; and I say to this man: Go, and he goeth; and to another: Come, and he cometh; and to my servant: Do this, and he doeth it. When Jesus heard it, he 10 marvelled, and said to them that followed: Verily I say unto you, I have not found so great faith, no, not in Israel. And I 11 say unto you, that many shall come from the east and west, and shall sit down with Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, in ly. His opinion of Jesus was as exalted as that of himself was lowly. His faith is equal to his modesty. To speak the word only is to give merely a verbal command. His penetrating trust saw at a glance, that a miraculous cure could be as easily wrought when the worker was absent as when he was pres ent. 9. This verse may be thus paraphrased, and the sense will be more prominent: "Although I am myself under the command of superior officers, yet, having soldiers under me, I say to one, Go, and he goeth, and to another, Come, and he cometh, and to my servant, Do this, and he doeth it." The Roman soldiers were under the most rigid discipline. The illustration is a striking and apposite one. It is an argument from the less to the greater. As much as to say, If I, who hold a subordinate office, and am subject to the control of others, receive instant obedience from my soldiers and servants, how much more can you, who have supernatural power, cure disorders by a word. You have but to speak, and it is done. The fitness of the comparison evinces the calm, full confidence of the centurion. work them too when away. The centurion had manifested great confidence in Christ's supernatural gifts, believed that he could not only heal his servant, but could do it without entering the house where he was. This was more implicit and larger confidence than any Jew had reposed in him. Among the chosen people, who were most highly favored with religious privileges, he found none so ripe in his confidence as this foreigner and soldier. He might well marvel and wonder that the last should be first, and the first last. 11. This and the following verse are not in Luke's history of the cure of the centurion's servant, but they occur in another connexion, Luke xiii. 28, 29.- East and west, i. e. many from all quarters of the globe, from pagan nations, would enter the kingdom of heaven. Is. xlv. 6, lix. 19. Jesus says that the case of the Roman officer would not be a solitary one, but that multitudes of the Gentiles would become members of the assembly of the just made perfect. This remark would serve to soften the prejudices of the Jews against the Gentiles. It was a kindred declaration to that of Peter, in Acts x. 34, 35.- Sit down. Or, literally, recline with. The oriental posture at table is not like ours, a sitting, but a recumbent one. Those who eat recline on couches. The figure expresses the joys of heaven by a banquet, as 12 the kingdom of heaven. But the children of the kingdom shall be cast out into outer darkness; there shall be weeping and 13 gnashing of teeth. And Jesus said unto the centurion : Go thy way, and as thou hast believed, so be it done unto thee. And his servant was healed in the self-same hour. 14 And when Jesus was come into Peter's house, he saw his 15 wife's mother laid, and sick of a fever. And he touched her spiritual things are frequently imaged forth by earthly things. Reference may be made to the Jewish aversion to the Gentiles, which went so far as to exclude them from their tables. The Gentiles have been held unworthy of the common courtesies of life, but they will be admitted to the heavenly feast with the patriarchs themselves. Or, to drop the figure, the Gentiles will be admitted to the privileges and blessings of the Messiah's kingdom in this world and the world to come; a kingdom which was thought to be the exclusive possession of the patriarchs and their descendants. 12. The children of the kingdom. It is a Hebrew idiom to use the words sons and children in the sense of title, possession, desire. Thus, the sons of death are those doomed to death. The child of Satan, a very bad person. The Jews ar rogated to themselves the kingdom of the Messiah to the exclusion of the Gentiles, and are called the children of the kingdom. But Jesus reverses the picture; Jews are lost and Gentiles are saved. - Outer darkness, weeping and gnashing of teeth. Ps. cxii. 10. The metaphor is continued. The kingdom of heaven has been compared to a feast. Allusion is now made to the - ber all was dark and cold, and those expelled would weep and gnash their teeth from shame and suffering. Some would read, instead of gnashing, chattering of teeth, as produced by the cold into which they were driven. These expressions describe the awful calamities which would descend on the Jews, if they rejected the Messiah. Matt. xxi. 43. 13. As thou hast believed, so be it done unto thee. As you believe that I can cure one at a distance, so be it done. The temporal blessing, which a confidence in the power of Jesus' working miracles produced, may remind us of the incalculable value of faith in securing to us things of far higher excellence, the growth and peace and salvation of the soul.- Was healed in the selfsame hour. Or, at that instant. The cure was immediate and perfect, which proved that it was miraculous. For when persons recover from the palsy by natural means, the cure is gradual. Jesus wrought the miracle at a distance, and upon a stranger; there could then have been no room for any thing but reality and truth. 14-17. Parallel to Mark i. 29Luke iv. 38-41. 34; 14. Peter's house. Jesus was now in Capernaum. Mark calls it the house of Simon Peter and Andrew, and speaks of James and John going with them to the house. Bethsaida was the city of Andrew and Peter, according to John i. 44, a place lying on the Sea of Galilee. hand, and the fever left her; and she arose, and ministered unto them. When the even was come, they brought unto 16 him many that were possessed with devils; and he cast out the spirits with his word, and healed all that were sick; that it 17 might be fulfilled which was spoken by Esaias the prophet, saying: "Himself took our infirmities, and bare our sicknesses." Now when Jesus saw great multitudes about him, he gave 18 commandment to depart unto the other side. And a certain 19 south from Capernaum. It is conjectured that this was the house they occasionally resorted to, belonging to Peter's mother-in-law. Or perhaps they had removed thither for the convenience of fishing, after the marriage of Peter. 15. Arose, and ministered. Her being able to rise and entertain them was conclusive proof that the cure was complete, and also miraculous, for no natural restoration would have enabled her at once to resume her ordinary employments. 16. When the even was come. The heat of the day would have been oppressive to the sick. We learn too from Mark i. 21, that it was the Sabbath day, and the regard of the people for its observance led them to postpone bringing their sick friends until after sundown, Mark i. 32, at which time the Sabbath ended, Lev. xxiii. 32, and the next day began. Luke xiii. 14. Devils, i. e. demons. See note on Matt. iv. 24. With his word. At a word, by the mere force of his command. Healed all that were sick. Which showed that he cured them miraculously, for if he had possessed any thing short of divine power, he would have cured some, and been unable to cure others. "The Redeemer, surrounded by crowds of such unhappy people who were bowed down by their physical sufferings, exhibited, in the healing power by which he relieved And carried our pains." See 1 Pet. ii. 24, where the passage is understood as relating to Christ's freeing men from their sins, whilst here it is quoted as describing his curing them of their bodily disorders. This shows the latitude with which the Old Testament is cited in the New. By his miraculous power, Jesus Christ bore away the diseases, and carried off the pains of men. By his precepts, promises, example, life, and death and resurrection, he also removes the spiritual infirmities and pains of all who obey him. In the one sense, Peter, and in the other, Matthew, quotes the same passage. 1827. Parallel to Mark iv. 35-41; Luke viii. 22, 25, ix. 57-62. 18. The other side. Jesus was at Capernaum at this time. To go to the other side of the water to the country of the Gergesenes, they scribe came, and said unto him: Master, I will follow thee 20 whithersoever thou goest. And Jesus saith unto him: The foxes have holes, and the birds of the air have nests; but the 21 Son of Man hath not where to lay his head. And another of would cross almost the whole length of the Sea of Galilee, as may be seen by a reference to the map. The occasion of Jesus' going away appears to have been the collecting of great multitudes about him, which might lead to popular disturbances, or at least stir up the jealousy of the Romans. He prudently avoided favoring the worldly hopes, or giving opportunity for the hot passions of the Jews to break out. His vicinity to the sea enabled him to escape those vast crowds which his miracles drew about him, whenever he foresaw a commotion, for few could follow him by water. 19. Scribe. The Scribes were expounders of the Jewish law, and were chiefly of the sect of the Pharisees. They were usually arrayed in bitter opposition to Jesus. - Master. Rather, Teacher. — I will follow thee. Equivalent to saying, I will be your disciple. His offer, if we may judge by the reply of Jesus, was dictated by worldly and ambitious views. It was not a love of Jesus, or a devotion to duty and truth, that prompted him, but far lower considerations. He sees Jesus doing deeds of wonder, teaching with power, and surrounded by admiring crowds. He conjectures or believes him to be the Expected One. He wishes to secure an early title to a high post and preferment in his kingdom, and, spurred on by these selfish motives, he proffers himself as a follower. 20. The reply of Jesus, as in other cases, is directed rather to his ambitious state of mind, than to any peculiarity in what he said. - Holes. Lairs, dens, such as wild beasts frequent. - Nests. Rather, perches, a or roosts, or places of rest and refuge. Jesus assures him that he need expect no honor, or emolument, or worldly advantage from following him. That he was homeless wanderer, and his disciples must share the same lot, and lead a life of poverty, toil, and persecution. The disciples would be as their Master. We see the severe recti-. tude and absolute truthfulness of Christ, who would not increase his followers by admitting those who were looking to his service for selfaggrandizement, although he desired disciples. He dealt frankly with all, and flattered the hopes of none. This is not the conduct of an impostor or enthusiast. Son of Man. This term is applied to Jesus about seventy times in the New Testament. In the Evangelists it is used exclusively by himself, with the single exception where a person quotes what Jesus says of himself. He took this title probably from Dan. vii. 13. At the outset, he did not openly call himself the Messiah, even to his disciples. But from the first he used a term which (they would afterwards recollect, though they observed it not at the time,) was employed by him to indicate his claim to that great office. Some suppose it, with considerable probability, to be an emphatic expression, meaning THE MAN. Some call it a title of honor, and others a term of humility. Perhaps not one reason, but various motives combined, led him to adopt it. Doing, as he did, astonishing works, calming the sea, raising the dead, uttering truth, living a perfect life, there was some danger that he would be mistaken, as by many of his followers to this his disciples said unto him: Lord, suffer me first to go and bury my father. But Jesus said unto him: Follow me, and 22 let the dead bury their dead. And when he was entered into a ship, his disciples followed 23 day he has been mistaken, for God. Jesus applies to himself an humble title, "the Son of Man," that would for ever forbid his being deified. "He called himself the Son of Man, to impress upon his hearers that he was an offspring of the human race, and the example of its capability, that he was a brother, a fellow-subject, and the universal model." 21. Another case similar to the last. - Disciples. Not the twelve, but those who had listened to his teaching. Suffer me first. Luke states that Jesus had previously said to him, "Follow me. Luke ix. 59.- Go and bury my father. This may mean, to go and bury his father who is already dead. Or, taken in a more free sense, it may have this purport, to go and live with his father until his decease. And the answer of Jesus would, according to the latter interpretation, seem less rough and violent, and more appropriate to the case. This man might hesitate respecting the character and claims of Jesus, and make an evasive answer, so as to leave the opportunity open to join Jesus afterwards, and secure the rank and dignity of a follower in his kingdom, if he proved to be the Messiah. 22. Jesus looks into the heart, and frames his reply to meet his inward wants. He takes up the word bury, and from that says, Let the dead bury their dead. This proverbial, and somewhat enigmatical and paradoxical way of speaking, was often used by our Great Teacher. Though obscure at the time, it aroused attention, it impressed the memory. — Dead. Is used in a double sense. Those who are heedless of the concerns of the spiritual life are often called in the Bible dead. Luke xv. 24; Rom. vi. 13; 1 Tim. v. 6. Classic poets and prose writers use a similar figure. The Jews had a saying, that "the wicked are dead whilst they live." Such is the sense in the case of the first word dead. Let the spiritually dead bury the physically dead. The man makes his filial duty a plea for temporizing, and cloaks his hesitation under that sacred garb. Jesus strips off the disguise, and forcibly rebukes his state of indecision and procrastination. There are enough to bury the dead, and perform the ordinary offices of life, who are indifferent to the soul and eternity. Let them do their work. But thou, who hast a taste and aspiration for something better," go and preach the kingdom of God." Luke ix. 60. He probably obeyed the admonition. Tradition says, that this disciple was better known afterwards as Philip, one of the twelve. It hardly need be said, that our Saviour was not unmindful of the claims of filial duty. His own life is a beautiful proof of it. Luke ii. 51; John xix. 26, 27. But he would teach that in certain situations it is our duty to forsake the nearest relatives for the cause of the Gospel; that the love of God should be stronger than the ties of kindred or affection, and the call of duty before all other calls. Luke mentions yet a third case, ix. 61, 62. 23. A ship. This was a smaller craft than is now called a ship; a fishing boat, or vessel. - His disciples followed him. Mark, iv. 36, adds, that "there were also with |