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of Stephens's MSS. has, Thou art the Holy One of God. A MS. in the library of Leicester has σu oog, vios, Thou art God, the Son. This is an uncommon reading, which is not confirmed by any MS. yet discovered.

Verse 14. He ordained twelve] Exons, he made twelve. Here is nothing of what we call ordaining. Christ simply appointed them to be with him; and that he might send them occasionally to preach, &c.

To preach] The Coder Beze, Saxon, and all the Itala, except one, add to sayythio, the Gospel.

among the Jews to give surnames, which signified some particular quality or excellence, to their Rabbins. See several instances in Schoetgen.

Verse 19. Into a house.] As Christ was now returned to Capernaum, this was probably the house of Peter, mentioned chap. ii. 1.

Verse 20. Eat bread.] Had no time to take any necessary refreshment.

Verse 21. His friends] Or, relations. On this verse seve-ral MSS. differ considerably. I have followed the reading of the Syriac, because I think it the best: a mag'autou signify merely his relatives, his brethren, &c. see ver. 31. and the phrase is used by the best writers to signify relatives, companions, and domestics. See Kypke in loc.

Verse 15. To have power to heal-and to cast out devils] The business of a minister of Christ is, 1st. To preach the Gospel; 2dly. To be the physician of souls; and Sdly. To wage war with the Devil, and destroy his kingdom. Verse 16. Simon, &c.] See on Matt. x. 2, &c. Verse 17. Sons of thunder] A Hebraism for thunderers; probably so named, because of their zeal and power in preach-bably thinking that it was true, went to confine him. Let a ing the Gospel.

They said, He is beside himself.] It was the enemies of Christ that raised this report; and his relatives, pro

Christian but neglect the care of his body for a time, in striving to enter in at the strait gate; let a minister of Christ but impair his health by his pastoral labours, presently "he is distracted;" he has "not the least conduct nor discretion." But let a man forget his soul, let him destroy his health by debaucheries, let him expose his life through ambition, and he may, notwithstanding, pass for a very prudent · and sensible man!

The term Boanerges is neither Hebrew nor Syriac. - Calmet and others think that there is reason to believe, that the Greek transcribers have not copied it exactly. y bency râam, which the ancient Greeks would pronounce Beneregem, and which means, sons of thunder, was probably the appellative used by our Lord: or wyn Beni reges, sons of tempest, which comes nearest to the Boanerges of the Evangelist. St. Jerom, on Dan. i. gives (which he writes Benerecm, softening the sound of the pain) as the more likely reading; and Luther, supposing our Lord spoke in Hebrew, gives the proper Hebrew term above mentioned, which he writes Brehargem. Some think, that the reason why our Lord gave this appellative to the sons of Zebedee was, their desire to bring fire down from heaven, i. e. a storm of thunder and lightning, to overturn and consume a certain Samaritan vil-lightly regarded. lage, the inhabitants of which would not receive their Master Verse 22. He hath Beelzebub] See on Matt. xii. 24See the account in Luke ix. 53, 54. It was a very usual thing 26.

Schoetgen contends, that the multitude, and not Christ, is here intended. Christ was in the house: the multitude, ox^5, ver. 20. pressed upon him so, that he could not eat bread.. His disciples, or friends, went out, xgarnsai avtoy, (scil. oxñor)} to restrain it, viz. the.multitude, to prevent them from rushing into the house and disturbing their Master, who was now taking some refreshment. This conjecture should not be.

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It was a maxim with the Jews, as it should be with all men, that he who neglected to preserve life when it was in his power; was to be reputed a murderer. Every principle of sound justice requires that he should be considered in this light. But if this be the case, how many murderers are there against whom there is no law but the law of God?

To kill--but instead of amoxTaval, several MSS. and Versions have amoroa to destroy. Wetstein and Griesbach quote Theophylact for this reading; but it is not in my copy. Paris Edit. 1635.

Unclean spirits cast out.

and Sidon, a great multitude, when
they had heard what great things he
did, came unto him.

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9 And he spake to his disciples, that a small ship should wait on him, because of the multitude, lest they should throng him.

10 For he had healed many; insomuch that they pressed upon him for to touch him, as many as had plagues.

11 And unclean spirits, when they saw him, fell down before him, and cried, saying, Thou art the Son of God.

12 And he straitly charged them, that they should not make him known.

13 ¶And he goeth up into a mountain, and calleth unto him whom he would: and they came unto him.

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fore it was no uneasy passion, but an excess of generous grief.

Whole as the other.] This is omitted by the best MSS. and Versions. Grotius, Mill, and Bengel approve of the omission, and Griesbach leaves it out of the text.

Verse 6. Herodians] For an account of these, see the note on Matt. xvi. 1. xxii. 16.

Verse 7. Galilee] See Matt. iv. 13, 15.
Verse 8. Tyre-Sidon, &c.] See Matt. xi. 21.

When they had heard what great things he did, came unto him.] So, if Christ be persecuted and abandoned by the wicked, there are a multitude of pious souls who earnestly seek and follow him. He who labours for God, will always find more than he loses, in the midst of all his contradictions and persecutions.

Verse 5. With anger, being grieved for the hardness of their hearts] These words are not found in any of the other Evangelists. For agwon hardness, or rather callousness, the Codex Beza, and four of the Itala read vexgwou, deadness; the Vulgate and some of the Itala, cæcitate, blindness. Join all these together, and they will scarcely express the fulness of this people's wretchedness. By a long resistance to the grace and spirit of God, their hearts had become callous, they were past feeling. By a long opposition to the light of God, they became dark in their understanding, were blinded by the deceitfulness of sin; and thus were past seeing. By a long continuance in the practice of every evil work, they were cut off from all union with God, the fountain of spiritual life; and becoming dead in trespasses and sins, they were inca-maladies immediately removed. pable of any resurrection but through a miraculous power of

God.

With anger what was the anger which our Lord felt? That which proceeded from excessive grief, which was occasioned by their obstinate stupidity and blindness: there

Verse 9. A small ship] Thoagiov. The lytil boot, Old English MS. It was doubtless something of the boat kind, which probably belonged to some of the disciples. Our Lord was at this time, teaching by the sea of Galilee. The word ship is utterly improper in many places of our Translation; and tends to mislead the people.

Verse 10. They pressed upon him3 Rushed upon him,
T-through eagerness to have their spiritual and bodily

Plagues.] Rather disorders, μaçıyaç; properly such disorders as were inflicted by the Lord. The word plague also tends to mislead.

Verse 11. Thou art the Son of God.] Two MSS. and the latter Syriac, have Thou art the Christ, the Son of God. One

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of Stephens's MSS. has, Thou art the Holy One of God. A MS. in the library of Leicester has cu & o eos, vios, Thou art Goo, the Son. This is an uncommon reading, which is not confirmed by any MS. yet discovered.

Verse 14. He ordained twelve] Emond, he made twelve. Here is nothing of what we call ordaining. Christ simply appointed them to be with him; and that he might send them occasionally to preach, &c.

To preach] The Codex Beza, Saxon, and all the Itala, except one, add to sayyλo», the Gospel.

among the Jews to give surnames, which signified some par-· ticular quality or excellence, to their Rabbins. See several instances in Schoetgen.

Verse 19. Into a house.] As Christ was now returned to Capernaum, this was probably the house of Peter, mentioned chap. ii. 1.

Verse 20. Eat bread.] Had no time to take any necessary refreshment.

Verse 21. His friends] Or, relations. On this verse seve-ral MSS. differ considerably. I have followed the reading of the Syriac, because I think it the best: a mag'autou signify merely his relatives, his brethren, &c. see ver. 31. and the phrase is used by the best writers to signify relatives, companions, and domestics. See Kypke in loc.

Verse 15. To have power to heal—and to cast out devils] The business of a minister of Christ is, 1st. To preach the Gospel; 2dly. To be the physician of souls; and 3dly. To wage war with the Devil, and destroy his kingdom. Verse 16. Simon, &c.] See on Matt. x. 2, &c. They said, He is beside himself.] It was the enemies Verse 17. Sons of thunder] A Hebraism for thunderers; of Christ that raised this report; and his relatives, pro-probably so named, because of their zeal and power in preach-bably thinking that it was true, went to confine him. Let a ing the Gospel..

Christian but neglect the care of his body for a time, in striving to enter in at the strait gate; let a minister of Christ but impair his health by his pastoral labours, presently "he is distracted;" he has "not the least conduct nor discretion." But let a man forget his soul, let him destroy his health by debaucheries, let him expose his life through ambition, and he may, notwithstanding, pass for a very prudent · and sensible man!

The term Boanerges is neither Hebrew nor Syriac. - Calmet and others think that there is reason to believe, that the Greek transcribers have not copied it exactly. yɔ beney râam, which the ancient Greeks would pronounce Beneregem, and which means, sons of thunder, was probably the appellative used by our Lord: or wy Beni reges, sons of tempest, which comes nearest to the Boanerges of the Evangelist. St. Jerom, on Dan. i. gives (which he writes Benerecm, softening the sound of the pain) as the more likely reading; and Luther, supposing our Lord spoke in Hebrew, gives the proper Hebrew term above mentioned, which he writes Brehargem. Some think, that the reason why our Lord gave this appellative to the sons of Zebedee was, their desire to bring fire down from heaven, i. e. a storm of thunder and lightning, to overturn and consume a certain Samaritan vil-lightly regarded. lage, the inhabitants of which would not receive their Master Verse 22. He hath Beelzebub] See on Matt. xii. 24See the account in Luke ix. 53, 54. It was a very usual thing 26.

Schoetgen contends, that the multitude, and not Christ, is here intended. Christ was in the house: the multitude, oxaos, ver. 20. pressed upon him so, that he could not eat bread. . His disciples, or friends, went out, xgarneai avrov, (scil. oxñor)} to restrain it, viz. the multitude, to prevent them from rushing into the house and disturbing their Master, who was now taking some refreshment. This conjecture should not be

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Verse 27-30. No man, &c.] For an explanation of these verses, and a definition of the sin against the Holy Ghost, see Matt. xii. 29-33.

Verse 28. Wherewith socver they shall blaspheme] This clause is wanting in six copies of the Itala, and in Cyprian and Ambrosiastes.

Verse 29. Never] as Toy alwya. This is wanting in the Codex Beza, two others, five of the Itala, and in Athanasius and Cyprian.

Margin. Sin or trespass is the reading of the Coptic, Armenian, Gothic, Vulgate, and all the Itala but two. Everlastynge trespas. is the translation in my Old MS. Eng. Bib.

Verse 31. His brethren and his mother] Or rather, his mother and his brethren. This is the arrangement of the best and most ancient MSS. and this clause, xas οι αδελφοι σου, and thy sisters, ver. 32. should be added, on the authority of ADEFGMSUV, fifty-five others, some editions, the margin of the later Syriac, Slavonic, Gothic, and all the Itala except four. Griesbach has received this reading into the

text.

Eternal damnation] Or, everlasting judgment, asanov xgions, But instead of κρίσεως, BL and two others read αμαρτήματος, sin. The Coder Beza, two others, and some of the Fathers, Calling him.] This clause is wanting in one copy of the read aμagas, a word of the same import. Grotius, Mill, || Itala. The Codex Alexandrinus has rouvres autor, seeking and Bengel, prefer this latter reading; and Griesbach hashim. queried the common reading, and put aμagruaros in the

Verse 33. Who is my mother?] See on Matt. xii. 46–50.

CHAPTER IV.

The parable of the sower, 1-9. Its interpretation, 10-20. The use we should make of the instructions we receive 21-25. The parable of the progressively growing seed, 26-29. and his disciples are overtaken by a storm, 35-38. He rebukes the weather, 39-41.

Of the mustard seed, 30-34. Christ wind and the sea, and produces fair

He teaches by parables.

A. M. 4031. A. D. 27. Ant. Olymp. CCI. S.

A

2

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A. D. 27. Cci. 3.

ND he began again to teach || fruit that sprang up and increased; by the sea side: and there was and brought forth, some thirty, and An. Olymp. gathered unto him a great multitude, some sixty, and some an hundred.

so that he entered into a ship, and sat in the sea; and the whole multitude was by the sea on the land.

9 And he said unto them, He that hath ears to hear, let him hear.

10 ¶

rable.

And when he was alone, they that were

2 And he taught them many things by pa-about him with the twelve, asked of him the parables, and said unto them in his doctrine, 3 Hearken; Behold, there went out a sower

to sow:

4 And it came to pass, as he sowed, some fell by the way side, and the fowls of the air came and devoured it up.

5 And some fell on stony ground, where it had not much earth; and immediately it sprang up, because it had no depth of earth:

6 But when the sun was up, it was scorched; and because it had no root, it withered away. 7 And some fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up, and choked it, and it yielded no fruit. 8 And other fell on good ground, and did yield

11 And he said unto them, Unto you it is given to know the mystery of the kingdom of God: but unto them that are without, all these things are done in parables :

e

12 That seeing they may see, and not perceive; and hearing they may hear, and not understand; lest at any time they should be converted, and their sins should be forgiven them.

13 And he said unto them, Know ye not this parable? and how then will ye know all parables?

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*Matt. 13. 1. Luke 8. 4.—— ch. 12. S8.— John 15. 5. Col. 1. 6.d Matt. 13. 10. Luke 8.9, &c.

e1 Cor. 5. 12. Col. 4. 5. 1 Thess. 4. 12. 1 Tim. 3.7.- fIsai. 6. 9. Matt. 13. 14. Luke 8. 10. John 12. 40. Acts 28. 26. Rom. 11. 8. Matt. 13, 19.

NOTES ON CHAP. IV.

Verse 2. He taught them many things by parables] See every part of this parable of the sower explained on Matt. xiii. 1, &c.

It

Verse 4. The fowls] Tou ougarov, of the air, is the common reading but it should be omitted, on the authority of nine uncial MSS. upwards of one hundred others, and almost all the Versions. Bengel and Griesbach have left it out of the text. seems to have been in-erted in Mark, from Luke viii 5. Verse 9. And he said He that hath ears to hear, let him hear.] The Codex Beza, later Syriac in the margin, and seven copies of the Itula, add, xx cuviwy culistw, and whoso understandeth, let him understand.

Verse 10. They that were about him] None of the other Evangelists intimate that there were any besides the twelve with him but it appears there were several others present; and, though they were not stiled Disciples, yet they appear || to have seriously attended to his public and private instructions.

in the sense; for without it, the passage may be read thusTo you the mystery of the kingdom of God is given; but all. these things are transacted in parables to those without. Gries bach leaves it doubtful. And Professor White says, probabiliter delendum. I should be inclined to omit it, were it not found in the parallel passages in Matthew and Luke, in neither of whom it is omitted by any MS. or Version. See the Dissertation on parabolical writing at the end of Matt chap. xiii.

Verse 13. Know ye not this parable?] The scope and design of which is so very obvious.

How then will ye know all parables ] Of which mode of teaching ye should be perfect masters, in order that ye may be able successfully to teach others. This verse is not found in any of the other Evangelists.

Verse 15. THESE are they] Probably our Lord here refers to the people to whom he had just now preached, and who, it is likely, did not profit by the word spoken.

Where the word is sown] Instead of this clause, four copies of the Itala read the place thus-They who are sown by the way side, are they WHO RECEIVE THE WORD NEGLIGENTLY. There are thousands of this stamp in the Christian world..

Verse 11. Unto you it is given to know] Iywvas, to know, is omitted by ABKL. ten others, the Coptic, and one of the kala. The omission of this word makes a material alteration | Reader, art thou one of them?

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