swept and garnished. 26 Then goeth he, and taketh to him seven other spirits more wicked than himself; and they enter in, and dwell there: and the last state of that man is worse than the first.

See Matt. xii. 43-45.

27 And it came to pass, as he spake these things, a certain woman of the company lifted up her voice, and said unto him, Blessed is the womb that bare thee, and the paps which thou hast sucked. 28 But he said, Yea rather, blessed are they that hear the word of God, and keep it.

'A certain woman.' One of the crowd. 'Blessed is the womb,' &c. She thought that the mother of such a person must be peculiarly happy in having such a son. 'Yea.' Jesus admits that she was happy; that it was an honour to be his mother. 'Rather blessed, &c. But he says that the chief happiness, the highest honour, was to obey the word of God, or to be his child. Compared with this, all earthly distinctions and honours are as nothing. Man's greatest dignity is in keeping the holy commandments of God, and being prepared for heaven.

29 And when the people were gathered thick together, he began to say, This is an evil generation : they seek a sign; and there shall no sign be given it, but the sign of Jonas the prophet. 30 For as Jonas was a sign unto the Ninevites, so shall also the Son of man be to this generation. 31 The queen of the south shall rise up in the judgment with the men of this generation, and condemn them: for she came from the utmost parts of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon; and, behold, a greater than Solomon is here. 32 The men of Nineveh shall rise up in the judgment with this generation, and shall condemn it: for they repented at the preaching of Jonas; and, behold, a greater than Jonas is here.

See Matt. xii. 38-42.

33 No man, when he hath lighted a candle, putteth it in a secret place, neither under a bushel, but on a candlestick, that they which come in may see the light. 34 The light of the body is the eye: therefore when thine eye is single, thy whole body also is full of light; but when thine eye is evil, thy body also is full of

darkness. 35 Take heed, therefore, that the light which is in thee be not darkness. 36 If thy whole body, therefore, be full of light, having no part dark, the whole shall be full of light, as when the bright shining of a candle doth give thee light.

These verses are found in Matthew, but in a different connexion. See Matt. v. 15; vi. 22, 23.

37 And as he spake, a certain pharisee besought him to dine with him: and he went in and sat down to meat.

And as he spake.' While he was addressing the people, and particularly while he was reproving that generation, and declaring its crimes. Besought him.' Asked him. 'To dine with him? The Jews, as well as the Greeks and Romans, had but two principal meals. The first was a slight repast, and was taken about ten or eleven o'clock of our time, and consisted chiefly of fruit, milk, cheese, &c. The second, or principal meal, was taken about three o'clock, P.M., and was their principal meal. The first is the one here intended. He went in. He knew that it might afford him opportunity to do good. He never shrank from declaring the truth, and making such occasions the means of spreading the gospel. If christians and christian ministers would follow the example of the Saviour always, they would avoid all scandal, and might do much good. 'Sat down.' Reclined at the table. See note, Matt. xxiii. 6.

38 And when the pharisee saw it, he marvelled that he had not first washed before dinner.

Wondered.

Saw it. Saw that he sat immediately down without washing, 'Marvelled.' Was amazed. It was so unusual, and in his view so improper. 'Had not first washed.' He wondered particularly, as he had been among a mixed multitude, and they esteemed the touch of such persons polluting. They never ate, therefore, without washing. The origin of the custom of washing before they partook of their meals, with so much formality, was that they did not use, as we do, knives and forks, but used their hands only. Nor was there impropriety in the thing itself, but the pharisees made it a matter of ceremony and pride; they placed no small part of their religion in such ceremonies; and it was right, therefore, that our Lord should take occasion to reprove them for it. Compare Mark vii. 4.

39 And the Lord said unto him, Now do ye pharisees make clean the outside of the cup and the platter; but your inward part is full of ravening and wicked

ness.

See Matt, xxiii. 25. 'Ravening.' Robbery, plunder. Here it means that the cup and platter were filled with what had been unjustly taken from others. That is, they lived by their wickedness; their food was procured by dishonesty and extortion. A most terrible charge; and as it was applied, among others, to the man who had invited the Saviour to dine with him, shows that nothing would prevent his dealing faithfully with the souls of

men.

40 Ye fools, did not he that made that which is without make that which is within also?

'Ye fools.' How unwise and wicked is your conduct. The word denotes not only want of wisdom, but also wickedness. Compare Ps. xiv. 1. Prov. xiii. 19; xiv. 9. 'Did not he,' &c. You pharisees take great pains to cleanse the body, under a pretence of pleasing God. Did he not also make the mind, and is it not of as much importance that that should be pure, as that the body should?

41 But rather give alms of such things as ye have; and, behold, all things are clean unto you.

'Alms.' Charity. Benefactions to the poor. 'Such things as ye have.' Your property. By giving to the poor, you may show your repentance for your crimes in amassing money in this manner. You may show that you disapprove of your former course of life, and are disposed henceforward to live honestly. It declares the duty of those who have by unjust means become wealthy, and who then are converted to God. It may not be possible for them in every case to make exact restitution to those whom they have injured. But they may devote their property to God, distribute it to the poor, or give it to send the gospel to the heathen world. Thus may they show that they disapprove of their former conduct. And behold,' &c. The object of the Saviour here seems to have been to bring the pharisee to repentance. Repentance consists in sorrow for sin, and in forsaking it. This he endeavoured to produce by showing him the evil and hypocrisy of his conduct, and by exhorting him to forsake his sins, and to show this by doing good. Thus doing, he would evince that the mind was clean as well as the body: the inside as well as the outside.

42 But woe unto you, pharisees! for ye tithe mint and rue and all manner of herbs, and pass over judgment and the love of God: these ought ye to have done, and not to leave the other undone.

See Matt. xxiii. 23. 'Rue.' This is a small garden plant, and is used as a medicine. It has a bitter, penetrating taste, and a strong smell,

43 Woe unto you, pharisees! for ye love the uppermost seats in the synagogues, and greetings in the markets. 44 Woe unto you, scribes and pharisees, hypocrites! for ye are as graves which appear not, and the men that walk over them are not aware of them. See Matt. xxiii. 6, 27.

45 Then answered one of the lawyers, and said unto him, Master, thus saying thou reproachest us also.

'Lawyers.' Men learned in the law of Moses. 'Reproachest.' Accusest. Dost calumniate, or dost blame us, for we do the same things. Sinners often consider faithfulness as reproach: they know not how to separate the two. Jesus did not reproach or abuse them. He dealt faithfully with them, reproved them, told them the unvarnished truth. Such faithfulness is rare; but when it is used, we must expect that men will flinch, perhaps be enraged; and, though their consciences tell them they are guilty, still they will consider it as abuse.

46 And he said, Woe unto you also, ye lawyers! for ye lade men with burdens grievous to be borne, and ye yourselves touch not the burdens with one of your fingers.

See Matt. xxiii. 4.

47 Woe unto you! for ye build the sepulchres of the prophets, and your fathers killed them. 48 Truly ye bear witness, that ye allow the deeds of your fathers: for they indeed killed them, and ye build their sepulchres. 49 Therefore also said the wisdom of God, I will send them prophets and apostles, and some of them they shall slay and persecute: 50 That the blood of all the prophets, which was shed from the foundation of the world, may be required of this generation; 51 From the blood of Abel unto the blood of Zacharias, which perished between the altar and the temple: verily I say unto you, It shall be required of this generation.

See Matt. xxiii. 29-36. The wisdom of God.' By the wisdom of God, here, is undoubtedly meant the Saviour himself. Jesus is called the word of God (John i. 1), because he is the medium by which God speaks, or makes his will known. He is called the wisdom of God, because by him God makes his wisdom known in creation (Col. i, 13—18), and in redemption. 'I

will send,' &c. See Luke x. 3. Matt. x. 16. 'Shall slay,' &c. Compare John xvi. 2. Acts vii. 52, 59. James v. 10. Acts xii. 2; xxii. 19. 2 Cor. xi. 24, 25. 2 Chron. xxxvi. 15, 16.

52 Woe unto you, lawyers! for ye have taken away the key of knowledge: ye entered not in yourselves, and them that were entering in ye hindered.

See Matt. xxiii. 13. The key of knowledge. By their false interpretations of the Old Testament, they had taken away the true key of understanding it. They had hindered the people from understanding it aright. If there be any sin of peculiar magnitude, it is that of keeping the people in ignorance. And few men are so guilty as those who by false instructions prevent them from coming to a knowledge of the truth, and embracing it as it is in Jesus.

53 And as he said these things unto them, the scribes and the pharisees began to urge him vehemently, and to provoke him to speak of many things:

To urge him vehemently.' They were enraged against him. They wished to condemn him. They therefore pressed upon him; asked him many questions; sought to entrap him, that they might accuse him. 'Provoke him,' &c. They proposed questions as fast as possible, and about as many things as possible, that they might get him, in the hurry, to say something wrong, that they might accuse himn.

54 Laying wait for him, and seeking to catch something out of his mouth, that they might accuse him.

'Laying wait for him.' Or, rather, laying snares for him. It means that they endeavoured to entangle him in his talk. "That they might accuse him.' Before the sanhedrim, or great council of the nation, and thus secure his being put to death. We see the exceeding malignity which men may have against the Lord Jesus. Men, now, are not by nature less opposed to Jesus than they were then. We see the wisdom, purity, and firmness, of the Saviour. Not a word fell from his lips of which they could accuse him.' Every thing that he said was calm, mild, peaceful, wise, and lovely. None but God manifest in the flesh could have known all their designs, have seen all their wickedness and their wiles, and have escaped the stratagems that were laid to confound and entangle him in his conversation.

CHAPTER XII.

1 IN the mean time, when there were gathered together an innumerable multitude of people, insomuch that they trode one upon another, he began to say unto