^i^nUl 20 1922 THE KINGDOM OF GO OR, CffEISrS TEACHING ACGOBDINa TO THE SYNOPTICAL GOSPELS. BY y ALEXANDER BALMAIN BEUCE, D.D PROFESSOR OF NKW TESTAMENT EXEGESIS IN THE FREE CHURCH COLLEGE, GLASGOW ; AUTHOR OF "the TRAINING OF THE TWELVE," "THE HUMILIATION OF CHRIST," ETC. ETC. SCRIBNER & WELFORD, *743 AND 745 BROADWAY, NEW YORK. 1889. OLD STUDENTS OF GLASGOW FREE CHURCH COLLEGE AS A MEMORIAL OF HOURS SPENT IN THE STUDY OF THE WORDS OF CHRIST THIS BOOK IS RESPECTFULLY DEDICATED BY THE AUTHOR. PREFACE. The first ten of the fifteen chapters contained in this volume appeared a few years ago in the pages of the Monthly Inteiyrder. They have been carefully revised and brought down to date. The remaining five chapters, with the Introduction, appear here for the first time. This book is a first instalment of a projected work on the leading types of doctrine in the New Testament concerning the Good that came to the world through Jesus Christ, whereof the plan is briefly outlined in the last section of the Tntrod^cction.. A. B. BRUCE. Glasgow, September 1889. CONTENTS. CRITICAL INTRODUCTION. SECTION I. The sources, II. Luke's variations, ...... HI. The motives of Luke's variations, . IV. The synoptical type of doctrine. PAOK 1 14 28 38 CHAPTER I. chkist's idea or the kingdom. Two opposed tendencies, Senses of the expression : The Kingdom of God, . Idea suggested by prophecy, The mysteries of the kingdom, .... Words of grace, . . Effect of Christ's preaching, To whom Christ preached, ..... Significance of Christ's attitude towards social abjects, Sayings involving universalism, .... Sayings of apparently contrary import, . Spirituality of the kingdom : the kingdom of Heaven, The kingdom in outline, ..... 43 46 47 49 50 51 53 54 55 56 58 59 CHAPTER II. Christ's attitude towards the mosaic law. Reticence of Christ, Think not I came to destroy, Destroying by fulfilling, Scale of moral worth, . Straws showing the stream of tendency. 63 64 65 66 68 X CONTENTS. PA(iK Silence concerning circumcision, ....... 68 The things that defile, 69 The statute of divorce, ......... 71 The Sabbath, 72 Made for man, .......... 74 Summary, 79 The least in the kingdom greater than John, 80 John's doubt of Christ, 82 Christ's method of working, 83 CHAPTER III. THE CONDITIONS OF ENTRANCE. Repent and believe, Repentance as conceived by Christ and the Baptist, Repentance no arbitrary requirement, . Disciples called on to repent, The cities of the plain, .... Faith the chief condition of admission, . Signifies a new dejDarture, Christian universalism, .... Typical narratives showing Christ's estimate of faith, The woman who was a sinner. The psychology of faith, The Roman centurion, . . - . The Syro-Phcenician Woman, " Faith Alone," 8.0 86 89 90 93 94 95 96 97 97 100 101 103 107 CHAPTER IV. CHRIST S DOCTRINE OF GOD. The divine Father, ..... The new element in Christ's idea, . God's Fatherhood in relation to men in general, The providential aspect, .... The gracious aspect : parables in Luke xv. , . Universalism involved, ..... God's Fatherhood in relation to disciples. The providential aspect, .... Value of Christ's doctrine on. Parables of The Selfish Neighbour and The Unjust Judge, The gracious aspect, ...... Parable of The Blade, the Ear, and the Full Corn, The Fatherhood of God still imperfectly comprehended. 109 110 111 111 112 114 114 115 119 120 122 124 127 CONTENTS. XI CHAPTER V. CHEIST S DOCTRINE OF MAN. PAGE The doctrines of God and of man ever kindred, .... 128 Significance of Christ's attitude towards the poor and the depraved, 129 Immortality, 131 Social salvation, .......... 132 Ideal and reality, 133 Human depravity in Christ's teaching and in scholastic theology, 134 The "Lost," 136 Zacchseus, 137 The lost sheep of the house of Israel, 138 True and false holiness, . . . . . . . . 140 Why Christ addressed Himself to the humbler classes, . . 142 The Two Dehtors, 143 7%e i/os^ ;S'/«ee/> and the " Lapsed Masses," 143 The people of the land, 145 CHAPTER VI. THE RELATION OF JESUS TO MESSIANIC HOPES AND FUNCTIONS. Had Jesus a Messianic idea ? His idea a transformed one, Its nature, .... He claimed to be this Messiah, The proof, . Genesis of Christ's Messianic consciousness, . Did Jesus ever doubt His Messiahship ? Aids to faith in His Messianic vocation, His Messianic consciousness free from ambition, 148 149 150 153 153 158 161 162 164 CHAPTER VII. THE SON OF MAN AND THE SON OF GOD. Was the Son of Man a current Messianic title ? Its use in the Book of Enoch, Old Testament source of the title, Its use in the Gospels, The texts classified. The unprivileged man, 166 167 169 171 172 172 Xll CONTENTS. The sympathetic man, ...... The apocaly[)tic aspect, ...... Future glory and present humiliation, An incognito, The title Son of God, . . ,. n^ «■... r.Tr.rr-mirtf - — >- , ;■ „„ The official sense, ....... The ethical sense, ....... The filial consciousness of Jesus analysed, .. The metaphysical sense, ...... The two titles in relation to the doctrine of the kingdom, PAGE 173 174 175 177 178 179 180 184 186 CHAPTER VIII. THE EIGHTEOUSNESS OF THE KINGDOM— NEGATIVE ASPECT. Criticism an inevitable task for the Christ, The task faithfully performed, Yet temperately. And with discrimination, Origin of Eabbinism, . The process of degeneracy, Examples of fencing the law. Multiplication of rules, Arts of evasion. The Sabbath laws : Erubin, Neglect of the great commandments, Externalism, .... Spiritual vices of Rabbinism, Pharisaic righteousness outside the kingdom, The strait gate and the narrow way, . 187 188 189 190 191 192 193 194 196 197 198 199 200 203 205 CHAPTER IX, THE RIGHTEOUSNESS OF THE KINGDOM— POSITIVE ASPECT The righteousness of God : its contents, Right thoughts of God, The rabbinical God, Perfect as the Father in heaven, , Filial righteousness : characteristics. Righteousness of discipleship, Imitation of Christ, Righteousness of citizenshi]), Parables of The Treasure and The Pearl, The three aspirants, .... 207 208 209 211 213 217 219 221 222 222 CONTENTS. xm PAGE Perfection, 223 Parable of Extra Service, 225 Parable of The Labourers in the Vineyard, 226 General reflections, 226 CHAPTER X. THE DEATH OF JESUS AND ITS SIGNIFICANCE. The doctrine of the cross, . First lesson : for righteousness' sake. Second lesson : for the unrighteous, A ransom for the many, The temple-tax, Third lesson : dies in love to men Mary of Bethany, The wastefulness of love, Fourth lesson : for the remission of sins The new covenant. The new era, Characteristics, . The Holy Supper, 231 231 235 236 239 243 244 245 246 247 249 250 251 CHAPTER XL THE KINGDOM AND THE CHURCH. The kingdom of God an ideal craving embodiment, The choice of the twelve, .... ''My Church," Election, how to be understood, . The sacraments : Baptism, The Trinitarian formula, .... The Holy Spirit in Christ's teaching, . The nature of the Church, .... On this rock : Peter, ..... The Church Christian, .... The Church and the kingdom, The righteousness of the kingdom realized therein. Training of the apostles, .... Christ's promise and prophecy conditional, Is the Church a failure ? . . . . 252 253 254 256 257 258 259 260 261 262 264 266 268 271 271 XIV CONTENTS. CHAPTER XII. THE PA.ROUSIA AND THE CHRISTIAN ERA. Conflicting texts, .... A lengthened history anticipated by Christ, Parables of Growth, A delayed Parousia, . Exhortations to Watch, Parable of The Upper Servant, A Gentile day of grace, The times of the Gentiles, . The other class of texts, The coming of the Son of Man, Three kinds of coming, The eschatological discourse, Of that day knoweth no one. Variations in synoptical reports, CHAPTER XIII. THE HISTORY OF THE KINGDOM IN OUTLINE. Chequered character of the history, Optimistic parables : Mustard Seed and Leaven, The reverse side : parable of The Soioer, Parable of The Tares and The Drag Net, Parable of The Children in the Market-place, Parable of The Great Supper, Rejection of the Jews : relative parables, Christ's predictions of His resurrection, Their meaning, ..... " Destroy this temple," Import of the saying, CHAPTER XIV. The ideal will be realized, . Purity by separation, . Three judgment programmes, .Judgment of Christendom, . Judgment of antichristcndom, lilasj)liemy against the Holy Ghost, CONTENTS. XV Judgment of heathendom, . This judgment purely ethical. " Eternal " punishment, Eternal sin, ..... The everlasting fire not prepared for man, Christ's doctrine of election, Rewards and punishments, . Judgment according to natural law, Pictorial representations of eternal statss, The true object of dread. PAGE 315 317 318 319 321 322 323 325 326 327 CHAPTER XV. THE CHRISTIANITY OF CHRIST. "Back to Christ," . . . . The Christian revival, Gospellers, ...... The Shorter Catechism, A Christian primer, .... Church creeds : what to do with them, Reunion, ...... Xew apologetic, ..... Can we know Christ ? . 328 331 331 333 334 335 337 339 340 Index, 342 CRITICAL INTRODUCTIOK SECTION I. THE SOURCES. The first three Gospels, from their homogeneous character called synoptical, differ widely from the fourth ; as in other respects, so also and very specially, in the account which they give of our Lord's teaching. And there can be little doubt that, as compared with the fourth Gospel, the synoptical Gospels present that teaching in its original form. To the question, What did Christ really teach ? What were the very words He spoke ? the answer must be sought in the first place from them. Their reports are more indisputably apostolic in their ultimate source, and to all appearance much less influenced by reflection on the part of the writers. But the question may be raised, even in reference to the Synoptists, whether they can be regarded as giving a perfectly trustworthy report of the sayings of Jesus. Even if they did not, their report of these sayings would still form an interesting subject of study. But it is obviously important to know how far the best sources A 2 THE KINGDOM OF GOD. extant are reliable ; for the supreme desire of all Christians is to know exactly the mind of the Master. It would inspire great confidence in the synoptical records to be assured that they were compiled by certain of the men who " had been with Jesus." These men were eye and ear witnesses of Christ's ministry ; they knew much if not all that He said and did, and they could be trusted to tell honestly and with substantial accuracy what they knew. But there is no sufficient evidence that any one of the first three Gospels, in the form in which we have them, proceeded from the hand of an apostle. The most that can be said is, that their reports are based on apostolic traditions, preserved either orally or in written form. That these traditions, originating ultimately, without doubt, in apostolic preaching, had, before our Gospels were written, assumed a comparatively stereotyped form, is apparent from the extensive resemblance in the synop- tical accounts both in substance and in style. The literary relations subsisting between these Gospels are such as to make it probable, if not certain, that written accounts of Christ's words and deeds were pre- viously in existence, and were accessible to the evan- gelists. From the preface to the third Gospel, it may be inferred that there had been considerable activity in the production of such accounts, and that at the time Luke wrote, evangelic collections had been multiplied to such an extent, as to create embarrassment to one who aimed at giving in moderate compass a full narrative of the more important facts in the life of Jesus. How many documents Luke used in the compilation CRITICAL INTRODUCTION. 3 of his Gospel cannot be known ; but two sources, at least, of outstanding importance, seem to have been at his command, and to have supplied the main body of his narrative — one a collection of sayings, the other a collec- tion of narrations similar in contents to the second Gospel. By a comparison of his Gospel with the other two, the inference is sucjejested that these two sources form the basis of all three synoptical Gospels. Whether we should identify the collection of narrations with the Gospel of Mark, or distinguish it therefrom as an original Mark, is a question on which critics are divided ; but there is general agreement of opinion as to a book similar in contents to Mark forming the basis of the common matter of the first three Gospels relating to the deeds of Jesus. Whether, again, the collection of sayings used by Luke was identical in contents and form with that used by the first evangelist, is a matter of dispute ; but the extensive similarity between the first and third Gospels in their respective reports of Christ's sayings, leaves little room for doubt that they either drew from one source, or from sources so kindred in character as to suggest the conjecture that they were different editions of the same original writing, formed under different influences. Eecent criticism recognises in these two sources of the synoptical tradition the "Mark" and "Matthew" of Papias, — the former either to be identified with the canonical Mark, or to be regarded as its original, and resting on the preaching of Peter as its ultimate autho- rity; the latter written by the Apostle Matthew, and forming the basis of the canonical Matthew. Critics differ in their interpretations of the statement of Papias 4 THE KINGDOM OF GOD. as to the character and contents of the two sources, some contending, e.g., that the book of Logia, said to have been compiled by Matthew, contained notliing but sayings, while others arsjue that it must at least have contained such brief narratives as were necessary to make the sayings intelligible. In like manner it is disputed whether Mark consisted only of narrations, or did not in its oriejinal form contain more of Christ's words than are found in canonical Mark, e.g. the Sermon on the Mount.^ But we shall not err greatly if we say that the two sources differed in their characteristics at least : the one being predominantly a collection of sayings, the other chiefly a collection of narrations. What mainly interests us is the collection of Logia. "What would one not give to have that book which the Apostle Matthew wrote, just as he wrote it ! But the wish is idle ; the only course open to us is to make ourselves acquainted with its contents at second-hand through the writings of the two evangelists, who have drawn so freely from it, comparing their reports one with another so as to arrive at a probable conclusion as to the original form of the sayings recorded. Attempts have been made to reconstruct the Logia from the synoptical Gospels ;^ but such attempts can be little more than ingenious conjectures. We cannot at this date resurrec- ^ For information as to the present state of opinion on these questions, readers may consult the Introductions to the New Testament by Weiss and Holtzmann. Weiss thinks the main source of apostolic tradition was the Logia, which he thinks contained many narrations as well as sayings ; Holtzmann contends for an Urmarkus as the main source. 2 Vide Wendt's Die Lehre Jesu, Erster Theil. CKITICAL INTRODUCTION. 5 tionize a lost apostolic document ; all that is possible for us is to make ourselves acquainted with extant reports of our Lord's words, and when these vary, to do our best to determine which version is primary and which secondary. It does not take long study of the first and third Gospels to be satisfied that if their authors did really use a common source in reporting the words of Jesus, they have made respectively a very different use of it. It is, indeed, not easy to understand how such diversity could exist in reports based on the same document. Compare, e.g., the two reports of the Sermon on the Mount. How strangely divergent on the whole, and yet too similar in detail to admit of any doubt that they are different versions of the same discourse. One of two inferences is inevitable. Either one of the reporters (or possibly both) has taken considerable liberties with the source, or the source existed in different recensions, arising in different circles, and under different influences. Either supposition is possible ; in either case the causes producing the diversity might be to a large extent the same, only operating in different ways. In case the variations were due to the evangelists, we should have to acknowledge the action to a considerable extent of editorial intention, guided by possibly ascertainable motives. If, on the other hand, the variations arose gradually in copies of the Logia in the possession of different persons, before they came under the eye of the evangelists, then we may conceive them cree]3ing in insensibly under the action of motives of which the agents in producing variation were hardly conscious. b THE KINGDOM OF GOD. The latter view is adopted by Weizsacker in his recently published work on The Apostolic Age. His idea of the matter is to this effect. Collections of Christ's sayings began to be formed, not in a historical spirit, but simply to meet the practical needs of disciples desirous of guidance in life. It was recorded that on this point and on that the Master spoke thus and thus. Thus groups of sayings arose, ever increasing as time went on. But the purpose aimed at not being the preparation of an exact historical record, but the instruc- tion of the faithful, comments, glosses, explanations grew up simultaneously, and gradually became mixed with the words of the Lord. " The tradition was from the first not mere repetition, but was bound up with creative activity. And, as was natural, this activity increased in course of time. Explanations became text. The single word became multiplied with the multitude of its appli- cations, or the words were connected with a definite occasion and shaped to suit it." ^ In this way, according to this writer, many, if not all, the variations in the reports of Christ's words are to be accounted for. The conscious editorial activity of the evangelists he seems inclined to reduce to a minimum. For the wide divergence of Luke's report of the Sermon on the Mount from that of Matthew, he is not disposed to make the evangelist responsible. He is of opinion that Luke found the Sermon in that form in his source. Even the Pauline, universalistic, element in Luke's Gospel he seems willing to impute not to Luke personally, but to the spirit of a school within Palestine 1 Das Apostolische Zeitalter^ S. 406. CRITICAL INTRODUCTION. 7 and the Jewish Church, originating in the influence of such men as Stephen and Barnabas. It is the product and witness of a universalism independent of Paul within the bosom of Hebrew Christianity. This new view is certainly a great improvement on the tendency-criticism of the Tubingen school, headed by Baur, and it probably contains a large amount of truth. In the way indicated arose, in all likelihood, variations in the reports of Christ's sayings which were a datum for the evangelists. But it is not at all unlikely that a certain number of the existing variations are due to the evangelists themselves. It is a nowise inad- missible supposition, that they so far exercised their discretion in the use of their sources as to make the material serviceable to the edification of those for whose special benefit they wrote — acting not in a spirit of licence, but with the freedom of men who believed that it was more important that their readers should get a true impression of Christ than that they should know the ipsissi^na vei^ha of His sayings. Thus may be accounted for alterations of words and phrases occur- ring in the documents, and omissions of material found there not deemed suitable for his purpose by the com- piler. To take one or two examples. In Luke's version of the Sermon on the Mount there are two verbal varia- tions from Matthew's text : the substitution of %a/3t9 (thanks, grace) for ^l(j66^ in the saying : " If ye love them which love you, what reward have ye ? " ^ and of olKTLpfjLove<; (merciful) for jeXetoi in the saying : " Be ye therefore perfect even as your Father which is in heaven 1 Matt. V. 46 ; Luke vi. 32. « THE KINGDOM OF GOD. is perfect." ^ Assuming that the sayings stood in Luke's source the same as in Matthew's, we can easily conceive him making these changes to remove an element of apparent legalism from our Lord's utterances, and to bring them into more complete harmony with evangelic, or Pauline, habits of thought and expression. It is noticeable that Luke introduces the word %api9 no less than three times in the passage referred to, as if he took pleasure in repeating this watchword of Pauline theology. Of course these changes might have been made before Luke wrote, and his function at this point may have been merely to transcribe ; but the other alternative, that he made the alterations for the reason assigned, is at least equally probable. The very significant and characteristic word of Jesus, '' I came not to call the righteous but sinners," ap>pears in Luke's Gospel with the addition " unto repentance." ^ This may have been an explanatory gloss that had crept into the text used by the evangelist, but it may quite as well have been a change made by him to render the meaning clear, and possibly to guard against the mis- construction that Christ invited sinners to the Kingdom of heaven without repentance. Not only alterations but omissions might be made out of regard to edification. The story of the Syro-Phenician woman does not occur in Luke's Gospel. It by no means follows from this that he was ignorant of it, or that it was missing in his sources. He may have left it out to avoid the risk of scandalizing Gentile readers by the appearance therein of a grudging attitude on the 1 Matt. V. 48 ; Luke vi. 36. 2 Matt. ix. 13 ; Luke v. 32. CEITICAL INTKODUCTION. 9 part of Jesus towards the Pagan world. Other omissions might be due not to any fear of wrong impressions being made, but simply to the consideration that the matters omitted were not of special interest or concern to the first readers. Thus may be accounted for the absence from Luke's narrative of many sections relating to Christ's conflict with Pharisaism. In a roundabout way, a regard to edification might explain yet another class of omissions from the third Gospel : viz. duplicate incidents, such as the second feeding of the multitude, and the second storm on the lake. By such omissions we may conceive Luke making room for important matter peculiar to his Gospel, his desire being to intro- duce this new matter without unduly extending his narrative ; for all inspired wTiters seem to have sensitively shrunk from being tedious, knowing that the feeling of weariness is fatal to edification. These instances may suffice to show how an evangelist might w^ith perfect loyalty and a good conscience exercise an editorial discretion in the use of sources. But the point of importance for us is not in what way variations arose, but the fact that they exist, and the question which of the varying reports comes nearer to the original. This resolves itself largely into a question as to the relative merits of Matthew's and Luke's reports of our Lord's sayings in point of exactness. The question is not altogether a simple one. In some cases the evidence seems to be in favour of one evangelist, in other cases the balance inclines towards the other. Thus one can have little hesitation in pronouncing in favour of Matthew's form of the saying, "I came not to call 10 THE KINGDOM OF GOD. the righteous ; " whereas on the other hand in the case of the saying, " Seek ye first the kingdom of God " (Matt. vi. 33 ; Luke xii. 31), the critical decision gives the preference to the simple brief form of Luke, " But rather seek ye the kingdom of God," regarding the clause " and His righteousness " in Matthew as an added gloss, designed to bring the counsel into correspondence with the drift of the whole discourse, which is to contrast the righteous- ness of God with the righteousness of the scribes.^ There are cases even in which in the same narrative the pro- babilities are on opposite sides. Thus comparing Luke's report of the introduction to the Sermon on the Mount with Matthew's, one is inclined to give his form of the " macarisms : " " Blessed be ye poor. Blessed are ye that hunger. Blessed are ye that weep," — the preference on account of their brevity ; but, on the other hand, the " woes " which he appends to them seem out of keeping with the spirit of the discourse, and rather inferences from the words spoken by Jesus, than sayings actually uttered by Him. On the whole, the evidence, by the general confession of critics, is in favour of the comparative originality of Matthew's reports.^ Thus reverting to the Sermon on the 1 So Weiss {Das Matthdus-Evangelium) and Wendt, Die Lehre Jesu, S. 117. The ultimate decision of the question depends on the view we take as to the original form of the Sermon. If Christ discoursed on righteousness as Matthew reports, it would be quite natural that He should give the above counsel as it appears in the lirst Gospel. I hesitate to give my assent to the opinion of Weiss and Wendt. 2 From this view Pfleiderer, in his recent work Das Urchristenthum (1887), decidedly dissents. In his whole views of the Gospels, and their relation to each other, as set forth in this work, he departs widely from the general current of critical opinion. " Mark " he CKITICAL INTKODUCTION. 11 Mount, the two substitutions above referred to (%a/3i9 for /jLia66^, and olktlp/jlcdv for reXeto?) wear the aspect of an attempt to replace difficult expressions by words of simpler meaning, just because their sense is less obvious. Matthew's phrases are to be regarded as the more original. Another point may be noted here: the less frequent use of the title " Father " for God in Luke's Gospel, as compared with Matthew's. Thus for the expression " the children of your Father which is in heaven" (Matt. v. 45), Luke gives "the children of the Highest" (vi. 35); and for Matthew's "your heavenly Father feedeth them" (the birds, vi. 26), Luke has the colder " God feedeth them " (xii. 24). The change seems due to a desire to restrict the Fatherhood of God within the spiritual sphere, ignoring the general aspect of Divine Paternity revealed in ordinary Providence. There can be little doubt that the broader presentation of the first evangelist is truer to the style of the Master, and that Jesus saw in the sunshine and in the rain a revelation of regards as the earliest Gospel — the first attempt to present the gospel of Jesus, as the Christ which Paul had preached as a theological doctrine, in the form of a history, written under the influence of the great apostle whose scholar the author probably was (S. 360). " Luke " comes second ; it is based on " Mark," and contains additions due not so much to other historical sources as to the literary genius of the writer, who also was much under Paul's influence (S. 417). " Matthew " was the latest, originating some time after the beginning of the second century. It is throughout dependent on " Mark " and " Luke," and is a harmonizing combina- tion of the two in a Churchly interest, written by a man who was imbued with the spirit of the old Catholic Church : universalistic yet not Pauline, rather neonomian (S. 479, 493). In comparison with " Luke," the words ascribed to our Lord in " Matthew" are held to be for the most part secondary. 12 THE KINGDOM OF GOD. God's paternal love to all, not less than in the com- munication of His Holy Spirit a revelation of the same love to the citizens of His kingdom. The restriction is made in the interest of edification, that the faithful might value more God's special love to them ; neverthe- less it is • a narrowing of the great doctrine of God's Fatherhood, as taught by Christ. The epilogue of the Sermon on the Mount as given by Luke is manifestly secondary. One can trace throughout the hand of an editor modifying, expounding, abbreviating, all with a view to general edification. For Matthew's " Whosoever heareth these sayings of mine," suited to the original hearers, Luke has " Whosoever Cometh to me, and heareth my sayings',' adapted to the case of all disciples, and to the whole of Christ's teaching. In Luke's version the diverse action of the two builders to whom hearers of different characters are compared, in reference to the foundation of the house, is very carefully described. The one builder is represented as digging deep till he came to the rock, while the other is repre- sented as beginning to build on the surface, without a foundation. This is a useful commentary on the Speaker's words as reported in the first Gospel, but it is a com- mentary, not an exact report. The description of the oncome of the storm that w\as to try the two houses is very graphic in Matthew. " Descended the rain, came the floods, blew the winds : " this is in the impassioned style natural to one winding up an impressive, solemn discourse. The eloquence disappears in Luke's narrative, and for it we have simply the prosaic statement : " When a flood arose, the stream dashed against the house." CEITICAL INTKODUCTIOK 13 The discourses of Jesus, as reported by Matthew, both in substance and in style, correspond to the actual cir- cumstances in which the Speaker was placed : they recall the world of Judea as it existed in the days of our Lord. On the other hand, as reported by Luke, these discourses seem to be adapted to the circumstances and needs of a somewhat later time, that of the Apostolic Church. Critics may have carried this distinction too far, and discovered traces of it where they are not to be found ; but, as a general observation, the statement just made is beyond doubt. The badge of the apostolic age, and the proof that its needs and modes of thought influenced the compiler of the third Gospel, may be found in the frequent use of the two phrases " the Lord " and " the apostles" in narratives where "Jesus" and "the disciples" are the expressions used by the other Synoptists/ The Great Teacher is the Lord of the Church, and the writer reports His sayings in forms deemed best fitted for the instruction of its members. The " disciples " of a bygone time are now the apostles, and the lessons they received from the Master are conceived of as the training which fitted them for their high position, and are reported from that point of view. Thus, for example, in narrating the institution of the Holy Supper, Luke states that " when the hour was come He sat down, and the twelve apostles with Him." He thinks of them as getting their lesson how to celebrate the sacred rite commemorative of the Lord's redeeming death. 1 The remark applies specially to the latter of the two phrases. For examples of its use vide Luke vi. 13 ; ix. 10 ; xvii. 5 ; xxii. 14. The title " Lord " occurs chiefly in sections peculiar to Luke ; vide x. 1 ; xi. 39 ; xii. 42 ; xiii. 15 ; xvii. 5 ; xviii. 6. 14 THE KINGDOM OF GOD. Assuming the comparative originality of Matthew's report as established, it may be worth while to form an approximate idea of the character and extent of Luke's variations, as also to consider more fully the influences or motives to which they probably owe their origin. These will be the subjects of inquiry in the two following sections. SECTION II. LUKE'S VARIATIONS. The phenomena of variation in Luke's report of our Lord's words, as compared with Matthew's, may be classed under three heads : modifications, omissions, and additions. Besides these, there are well-known and broadly marked differences between the two evangelists in the grouping and setting of sayings ; the general fact here being that Matthew's habit is to collect into large masses sayings of kindred import, while Luke's is to disperse the material of these collections over his pages, assigning to the dissociated utterances distinct occasions. This diversity of treatment in some instances has a by no means unimportant influence on the sense ; nevertheless, it is not proposed to take any further notice of it here, beyond making the remark that it is obviously incumbent on the interpreter to be on his guard against laying too much stress on supposed historical connection. In certain cases the occasions on which sayings were uttered can be definitely ascertained, and in all such cases the most should be made of the setting to illustrate the meaning of the word. But there are instances not a few, especially in the long section of Luke's Gospel, ix. 51— CRITICAL INTEODUCTION. 15 xviii. 14, in which to lay emphasis on the occasion would be to follow a misleading guidance. The evan- gelist found valuable materials in his sources, whose exact place in the history was not known, and he introduced them into his narrative w^here it seemed expedient, and with such preface as the contents suggested. I. We have to notice, then, in the first place, Luke's modifications. These occur wherever a saying of Christ found in both Gospels (we leave Mark out of account), in terms so similar on the whole as to put the identity beyond doubt, is given in the third Gospel with more or less variation in the expression. Such modifications are too numerous to be exhaustively indicated here ; all that can be done is to give a selection of samples with tenta- tive notes suggesting possible motives for variation. The instances which have been already alluded to in the previous section are omitted. 1. Luke viii. 12 compared with Matthew xiii. 19. Of the wayside hearer Jesus, according to Matthew, said : When any one lieareth the word of the kingdom, and understa7ideth it not, then cometh the wicked one (6 7rovr]p6<;), and snatcheth away that which hath been sown in the heart. Luke reports the saying with minor variations, and appends this significant addition : lest they should helieve and he saved. This looks like a gloss, stating in current Pauline or Apostolic Church phraseology the end contemplated in the preaching of the word. 2. Luke viii. 21 compared with Matthew xiii. 50 (Mark iii. 35). To those who informed Him of the desires of His relatives to see Him, Jesus, according to Matthew, replied : Whosoever shall do the will of my Father which 16 THE KINGDOM OF GOD. is in heaven, he is my brother and sister and mother. Mark has the will of God, a minor variation. But in Luke occurs the major modification : " my mother and my brethren are those which hear the word of God and do it" "Word" takes the place of "will/' and the spiritual brotherhood of Christ are described by a phrase which sounds secondary and stereotyped : " Those who hear the word." It recurs again and again in Luke's Gospel. Mary sat at the feet of Jesus and heard His word (x. 39). To the woman in the crowd who ex- claimed : " Blessed is the womb that bare Thee, and the breasts which Thou didst suck ! " Jesus replies : " Yea, rather blessed are they that hear the word of God and keep it" (xi. 28). The substitution of "word" for "will" makes Christ's saying concerning His brethren more evan- gelical, and brings it more into line with the phrase- ology current among believers in the apostolic age. 3. Luke ix. 18-27 compared with Matthew xvi. 13-28 (Mark viii. 27— ix. 1). There are several points at which Luke's narrative appears secondary as compared with Matthew's. For Matthew's form of Peter's confession: Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God, Luke has the tame expression : the Christ of God ; what was for the disciple a great originality, uttered with passionate vehe- mence, having become in the circle for which Luke writes, or from which his version emanated, a commonplace. In the saying concerning cross-bearing : If any man will come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and folloio me, Luke inserts " daily " {Kad" rifxepav) after the cross, which seems a gloss intended to adapt the counsel to the facts of spiritual experience. In the final CRITICAL INTRODUCTION. 17 prediction that some of those present with the speaker would live to see the Son of Man coming in His kingdom, this vivid concrete form of expression is replaced in Luke's text by the vague general phrase : till they see the hingdom of God. There can be little doubt as to which is the more original version ; there may be some doubt as to the motive of the change. 4. Luke xi. 13 compared with Matt. vii. 11. The saying is : If ye then, being evil, knoiu how to give good gifts unto your children; how much more shall your Father yjhich is in heaven give good things (aya6a) to them that ask Him^ Luke retains the "good gifts" (BofzaTa ayada) of the first clause, but in place of the " good things " of the second he puts the " Holy Spirit " (Trvev/xa dytov), God's best gift, the gift the children of the kingdom most desire, the gift of which so frequent mention is made in the Pauline Epistles, though it is referred to but seldom in the synoptical record of Christ's teaching. There is nothing to be said against the substitution, except that it is in all probability a comment on what Christ said, rather than an exact report of His precise words. 5. Luke xi. 20 compared with Matt. xii. 28. In the discourse in which He defended Himself against the blasphemous suggestion of the Pharisees that He cast out devils by the aid of Beelzebub, Jesus, as reported by Matthew, says : If I hy the Spirit of God (iv Trvev/iaTc 6eov) cast out the devils, then the kingdom of God is come unto you. For " by the Spirit of God " Luke reads " by the finger of God " (eV Ba/cTv\(p Oeov). Matthew's version is obviously more in keeping with the connection of thought, as it offers a defence of Christ's moral character, 18 THE KINGDOM OF GOD. assailed by the charge of being in league with Satan. Luke's form of the saying gives prominence to Christ's claim to be in possession of miraculous power, which, however well founded, was not the point requiring to be insisted on. It seems, however, to have been one of the points which the evangelist desired to make conspicuous in his narrative. It is observable in his reports of miraculous incidents that he is ever careful to bring out two features — the power and the benevolence of Jesus. The power he magnifies by specifying particulars tending to show the aggravated character of the disease healed. Peter's mother-in-law is taken with a great fever (iv. 38), the leper is full of leprosy (v. 12), the blind man at Jericho needs to be conducted to Jesus (xviii. 40, "Jesus stood and commanded him to be brought unto Him"). These heightening phrases are not necessarily exaggera- tions of the fact, but they reveal a desire to make the most of the fact as a foil to the power of Christ. The benevolence of the Saviour, Luke signalizes by specifying particulars tending to show the greatness of the calamity from which He delivers, as when he mentions that the subject of a miracle is an only child (widow's son, vii. 1 2 ; Jairus' daughter, viii. 30 ; epileptic boy, ix. 47), or that the withered hand cured on the Sabbath day was the right one, the hand by which the man earned his bread (vi. 6). 6. Certain modifications seem to have sprung out of a desire to tone down the severity of Christ's sayings. The following are instances : Luke ix. 60: " Let the dead bury their dead, hut go thou and preach the Icingdom of God!' compared with Matthew's : " Follow Me, and let the CRITICAL INTKODUCTION. 19 dead bury their dead." A special vocation and the urgent claims of the kingdom justify neglect of ordinary duties. Luke xvii. 2 : "It were better for him (through whom offences come) that a millstone were hanged about his neck, and he cast into the sea, than that he should offend one of these little ones." How tame compared w^ith Matthew's : " It were better for him that a millstone turned hy an ass (//