THE UNIVERSITY 
 OF ILLINOIS 
 
 library 
 
 From the collection of 
 Julius Loerner, Chicago 
 Purchased, 1918. 
 
 'Z‘3'2.9 
 
 Ef 5h 
 
 \&(bO 
 

HISTORICAL LECTURES 
 
 ON 
 
 THE LIFE OF OUR LORD 
 JESUS CHRIST, 
 
 BEING THE HULSEAN LECTURES FOR THE YEAR 1859. 
 
 BY 
 
 C. J. ELLICOTT, B.D. 
 
 PROFESSOR OF DIVINITY, KING’S COLLEGE, LONDON, 
 AND LATE FELLOV' OF ST JOHN’S COLLEGE, CAMBRILGE. 
 
 LONDON: 
 
 JOHN W. PARKER AND SON, WEST STRAND. 
 
 MDCCCLX, 
 
CTambrilige : 
 
 PRINTED BY C. J. CLAY, M.A. 
 AT THE UNIVERSITY PRESS. 
 
2 3?. 3 
 'ctSh 
 
 1 S (dO 
 
 EESPEOTFULLY INSCRIBED 
 TO 
 
 THE REV. WILLIAM HENRY BATESON, D.D. 
 
 MASTER OF ST JOHN’S COLLEGE ; VICE-CHANCELLOR ; 
 
 THE REV. WILLIAM WHEWELL, D.D. 
 
 MASTER OF TRINITY COLLEGE; 
 
 THE REV. WILLIAM HEP WORTH THOMPSON, M.A. 
 
 REGIUS PROFESSOR OF GREEK; 
 
 TRUSTEES OF MR HULSE’S BENEFACTIONS 
 AT CHRISTMAS, 1858. 
 
 b 2 
 
 702479 
 
Digitized by the Internet Archive 
 in 2016 
 
 
 https://archive.org/details/historicallectur00elli_1 
 
PREFACE. 
 
 The following work consists of eight Lectures, 
 of which the first six were preached before the 
 University of Cambridge in the year 1859. 
 two remaining Lectures, owing to recent changes, 
 were not preached, but are added as giving a 
 necessary completeness to the subject, and as in 
 substantial accordance with the will of the muni- 
 ficent Founder. 
 
 It is scarcely necessary to make any preli- 
 minary remarks upon the text of the Lectures, 
 as nearly all that seems required in the way of 
 introduction to the subject will be found in the 
 opening Lecture. It may, however, be desirable 
 to remind the reader that he has before him no 
 attempt at a complete Life of our Lord, but 
 only Lectures upon it. These it has been my 
 object to make as complete as I have been able 
 in everything that relates to the connexion of the 
 events, or that in any way illustrates their pro- 
 bable order and succession. The separate inci- 
 dents, however, have not in every case been dwelt 
 upon at equal length; some being related by a 
 single Evangelist and requiring no explanatory 
 comments, while others, from being related by two 
 or more, and sometimes appearing to involve 
 discordant statements have called for somewhat 
 lengthened considerations. Those portions in 
 which, for every reason, it has seemed desirable 
 that some regular continuity of narrative should 
 
VI 
 
 Preface. 
 
 be carefully preserved, viz. the Last Passover, and 
 the Forty Days, were not required to be delivered 
 from the pulpit and have thus approached more 
 nearly to regular history. I have, however, in 
 both been most careful to preserve the same tone 
 and character which marked the rest, and I have 
 been thankful that the circumstances under which 
 the others were written and delivered have pre- 
 scribed for me in these last two Lectures, almost 
 as a matter of course, that gravity and solemnity 
 of tone which is so especially called for in the 
 recital of events so blessed and so holy, yet withal 
 so .awful and so stupendous. To adopt the usual 
 tone of mere historical writing when such subjects 
 are before us seems to me little short of profanity, 
 and I have been taught by the repulsiveness of 
 some narratives of the closing scenes of our Lord’s 
 ministry, written in the conventional style of ordi- 
 nary history, to be more than usually thankful that 
 the nature of my present undertaking has at any 
 rate prevented me from sharing in an error so 
 great and so grievous. 
 
 A few remarks must be made on the notes. 
 In these it has been my effort to combine two 
 things which are not always found in union, — 
 a popular mode of treating the question under 
 consideration, and accuracy both in outline and 
 detail. How far I may have succeeded it is for 
 others to judge ; all I will venture to ask the 
 reader kindly to bear in mind is this, — that much 
 time and very great care and thought have been 
 expended on these notes (more perhaps than might 
 have been needful if they had been longer or their 
 language more technical), and that thus they are 
 not always to be judged of by their brevity or the 
 
Preface. 
 
 vii 
 
 familiar list of authorities to which they refer. 
 In iny references I have aimed solely at being 
 useful, not to the special, but to the general stu- 
 dent, and thus have but rarely permitted myself 
 to direct attention to any works or treatises that 
 are not perfectly well-known and accessible. I 
 have not, by any means, attempted to exclude 
 Greek from my notes, as this seems to me, in 
 such works as the present, to savour somewhat of 
 an affectation of simplicity, but I have still, in 
 very many cases, either translated or quoted from 
 the translations of others the longer passages from 
 the great Greek commentators which form so con- 
 siderable and so valuable a portion of these notes. 
 A similar course has been pursued in reference to 
 German expositors, though longer quotations from 
 them are only occasional. These latter writers are, 
 as it will be observed, often referred to; but care 
 has been taken only to give prominence to the 
 better class of them, and further to refer, where 
 translations exist, to the work in its English 
 rather than its German form. In a word, my 
 humble aim throughout these notes has been to 
 engage the interest of the general reader, and I 
 pray God that herein I may have succeeded, for 
 much that is here discussed, has of late years 
 often been put forward in popular forms that 
 neither are nor perhaps were intended to be con- 
 formable to the teaching of the Church. Of my 
 own views it is perhaps not necessary for me to 
 speak. This only will I say, that though I neither 
 feel nor affect to feel the slightest sympathy with 
 the so-called popular theology of the present day, 
 I still trust that, in the many places in which it 
 has been almost necessarily called forth in the 
 
viii Preface. 
 
 present pages, I have used no expression towards 
 sceptical writings stronger than may have been 
 positively required by allegiance to Catholic truth. 
 Towards the honest and serious thinker who may 
 feel doubts or difficulties in some of the questions 
 connected with our Lord’s life all tenderness may 
 justly be shown, but to those who enter upon this 
 holy ground with the sinister intentions of the 
 destructive critic or of the so-called unprejudiced 
 historian, it is not necessary or desirable to sup- 
 press all indication of our repulsion. 
 
 Marginal references have been added as 
 indicating the authority for the expressions and 
 statements of the text. When these are not 
 present, and guarded conjecture has been re- 
 sorted to, particular care has been taken to make 
 this most distinctly apparent. 
 
 It is not necessary to detain the reader with 
 further comments, and it only remains for me with 
 all lowliness and reverence to lay before Almighty 
 God this attempt, this poor and feeble attempt to 
 set forth the outward connexion of those incidents 
 that inspired pens have been moved to record of 
 the life of His Eternal Son. May He pardon its 
 many failings and defects, may He look with pity 
 on efforts, many of which have been made while 
 the shadow of His hand has rested darkly over 
 him who strove to make them, and may He bless 
 this partial first-fruits of a mercifully spared life, 
 by permitting it to minister in its humble mea- 
 sure and degree to His honour and glory, and to 
 the truth as it is in His blessed Son. 
 
 TPIAS, MONAS, ’EAEHSON. 
 
 Camruidoe, 
 
 Orfohrr, 
 
Clauses from the Will of the Eev. John Hulse*, late 
 OF Elworth in the county of Chester. 
 
 By the will of this liberal supporter of Christian learning 
 and truth, bearing date July 21, 1777, it is directed that four 
 clauses of it are to be prefixed to every series of Lectures. Of 
 these Clause 1 specifies the proportions in which the proceeds 
 of certain estates are to be divided between a Dissertator and a 
 Lecturer ; Clause 2 directs that a salary of £60 be paid to the 
 latter; Clause 3 names a further augmentation. The most 
 important is Clause 4, which relates to the office and duties of 
 the Lecturer. The discourses are to be twenty in number 
 (reduced by an order of the Court of Chancery, Dec. 21, 1830, 
 to eight); ten to be preached in the Spring and ten in the 
 Autumn of each year. The subject of the discourses is to be in 
 conformity with the following sensible provisions : 
 
 The subject of five sermons in the Spring and likewise of five sermons 
 in the Autumn shall be to show the evidence for Kevealed Religion, 
 and to demonstrate in the most convincing and persuasive manner 
 the truth and excellence of Christianity, so as to include not only 
 the prophecies and miracles general and particular, but also any 
 other proper and useful arguments, whether the same be direct or 
 collateral proofs of the Christian Religion, which he may think fittest 
 to discourse upon, either in general or particular, especially the 
 collateral arguments, or else any particular article or branch thereof, 
 and chiefly against notorious infidels, whether Atheists or Deists, 
 not descending to any particular sects or controversies (so much to 
 be lamented) amongst Christians themselves, except some new or 
 dangerous error, either of superstition or enthusiasm, as of Popery 
 or Methodism or the like, either in opinion or practice shall prevail, 
 in which case only it may be necessary for that time to write and 
 
 preach against the same And as to the ten sermons that remain 
 
 the lecturer or preacher shall take for his subject some of the more 
 difficult texts or obscure parts of the Holy Scriptures, such as may 
 
 1 See Trusts, Statutes, and Directions affecting the Endowments of the 
 University of Cambridge, p. 262 sq., Cambridge, 1857. 
 
X 
 
 appear to be more generally useful or necessary to be explained, and 
 which may best admit of such a comment or explanation, without 
 presuming to pry too far into the profound secrets and awful mys- 
 teries of the Almighty. And in all the said twenty sermons such 
 practical observations shall be made and such useful conclusions 
 added, as may best instruct and edify mankind ; and the said twenty 
 sermons to be every year printed. 
 
 After the recital of the last clause Mr Hulse directs that 
 the following invocation which occurs at the conclusion of the 
 will is “to be printed by way of preface in each particular 
 work.” 
 
 And may the Divine blessing for ever go along with all my benefactions, 
 and may the Greatest and the Best of Beings by his all-wise provi- 
 dence and gracious influence make the same effectual to His own 
 glory and the good of my fellow-creatures ! 
 
 After this pious invocation follow words which, in memory 
 of this good and bountiful man, it does not seem unmeet to 
 quote : 
 
 Thus earnestly praying that due honour and reverence may be ever 
 paid to the Supreme Fountain of bliss and goodness, and sincerely 
 wishing all increase of true religion and virtue and satisfaction to 
 mankind, I desire, when the Divine Providence shall think fit, to 
 exchange this frail and transitory state for one that is infinitely and 
 eternally happy in Jesus Christ. Amen. 
 
CONTENTS. 
 
 Lecture I. 
 
 PAGE 
 
 Introductory considerations on the character- 
 istics of the four Gospels 1 
 
 Statement of the subject, 1. Reasons for choosing it. Method 
 adopted in the Lectures, 1 sq. Caution in applying the 
 principles laid down, 9. Sources of the History, 10. De- 
 tails mainly in reference to internal characteristics, 12 sq. 
 Necessity of recognizing the individualities of the four 
 Gospels, 15. Errors of earlier Harmonists, 17 sq. Indi- 
 viduality of St Matthew’s Gospel, 20. St Matthew’s por- 
 traiture of our Lord, 22. Individuality of St Mark’s Gospel, 
 
 23. St Mark’s portraiture of our Lord, 25. Individuality of 
 St Luke’s Gospel, 27. St Luke’s portraiture of our Lord, 
 
 28. Individuality of St John’s Gospel, 30 sq. St John’s 
 portraiture of our Lord, 33. Conclusion. 
 
 Lecture II. 
 
 The Birth and Infancy of our Lord 37 
 
 General aspects of the present undertaking, 37. Arrangement 
 of the subject, 39. The miraculous Conception of our Lord ; 
 its mystery and sublimity, 40 sq. The narrative of the 
 Conception considered generally, 43. The narrative of the 
 Conception considered in its details, 45 sq. Self-evident 
 truth of the narrative, 48. Journey of the Virgin to Elisa- 
 beth, 50 sq. Internal truthfulness of the two inspired Can- 
 
Xll 
 
 Contents. 
 
 PAGK 
 
 tides 53. Return of the Virgin and the revelation to 
 Joseph, 55. Journey to Bethlehem, and taxing under Qui- 
 rinus, 57 sq. The Nativity and its attendant circumstances, 
 
 61 sq. The Presentation in the Temple, 65 sq. The visit 
 and adoration of the Magi, 70. The guiding star, 72 sq. 
 
 The extreme naturalness of the sacred narrative, 75. Flight 
 into Egypt and Murder of the Innocents, 77. The silenee 
 of Josephus, 78. The return to Judaea, 79 sq. Conclusion. 
 
 Lecture III. 
 
 The Early Judwan Ministry 84 
 
 The early years of our Lord’s life, 84. Reserve of the Evange- 
 lists, 84. The brief notice of our Lord’s childhood, 85. 
 Equally brief notice of our Lord’s youth, 86. Visit to the 
 ' Temple when twelve years old, 88. Search for, and dis- 
 covery of the Holy Child, 90 sq. Frivolous nature of the 
 objections urged against the narrative, 94. Silence of the 
 Evangelists on the next eighteen years of our Lord’s life, 
 
 96 sq. The mental and spiritual development of our Lord, 
 
 99. The ministry of the Baptist and its probable effects, 
 
 101 sq. Journey of our Lord to the Baptism of John, 104 
 sq. The nature of St John’s recognition of our Lord, 107. 
 
 The Temptation of our Lord : its true nature and eircum- 
 stances, 109. The Temptation no vision or trance, 110. The 
 Temptation an assault from without. 111. The Temptation 
 addressed to the three parts of our nature, 112. The minis- 
 tering angels, and the return to Galilee, 114. The testimony 
 of the Baptist, 115. The journey to, and miracle at, Cana 
 in Galilee, 116. Remarks on the miracle, 117 sq. Brief 
 stay at Capernaum, and journey to Jerusalem, 121. The 
 expulsion of the traders from the Temple, 122. Impression 
 made by this and other acts, 124. The discourse of our 
 Lord with Nicodemus, 125. Our Lord leaves Jerusalem 
 and retires to the N. E. parts of Judsea, 126. The final tes- 
 timony of the Baptist, 127 sq. Our Lord’s journey through 
 Samaria, 130 sq. The further journey of our Lord to 
 Galilee, 133. Our Lord’s return to Jerusalem at the feast 
 of Purim, 134 sq. Main objection to this opinion, 138 sq. 
 
 The miracle at the pool of Bethesda, 138. Distinctive cha- 
 racter of this epoch, 141. The termination of the early Ju- 
 dsean ministry, 143. Concluding remarks and Exhortation. 
 
Contents. 
 
 Xlll 
 
 Lecture IV. 
 
 I'AGE 
 
 TJte Ministry in Eastern Galilee 147 
 
 Resumption of the subject, 147. Brief recapitulation of the 
 events of the Judsean ministry, 147 sq. Two preliminary 
 observations, 150. The exact period of time embraced in 
 the present Lecture, 161. The variations of order in the 
 three synoptical Gospels, 152. The order of St Mark and 
 St Luke followed in this lecture, 153 sq. Appearance of 
 our Lord in the synagogue at Nazareth, 158. Departure to, 
 and abode at, Capernaum, 160. Special call of the four 
 - disciples, 161. Healing of a demoniac in the synagogue at 
 Capernaum, 162. Continued performance of miracles on the 
 same day, 164. The nature of our Lord’s ministerial labours 
 as indicated by this one day, 166. Probable duration of this 
 circuit, 168. The return to Capernaum, and healing of the 
 faithful paralytic, 169. The call of St Matthew, and the 
 feast at his house, 171. Further charges: the plucking of 
 the ears of com, 173. The healing of a man with a withered 
 hand on a Sabbath, 175. Choice of the twelve Apostles, and 
 Sermon on the Mount, 177. Probable form of the Sermon 
 on the Mount, 178. The healing of the centurion’s servant, 
 and raising of the widow’s son, 180 sq. Short circuit : fresh 
 charges of the Pharisees, 184. The teaching by parables, 
 
 186. The passage across, and storm on the lake, 187. The 
 Gergesene demoniacs, 188. The raising of Jairus’ daughter, 
 
 190. The second visit to the synagogue at Nazareth, 191. 
 
 The sending forth the Twelve Apostles, 192 sq. The feed- 
 ing of the Five thousand, 195. Concluding remarks. 
 
 Lecture V. 
 
 The Ministry in Northern Galilee 199 
 
 General features of this part of our Lord’s history, 199. Special 
 contrasts and characteristics, 200. Chronological limits of 
 the present portion, 201. Progressive nature of our Lord’s 
 ministry, 202. Contrasts between this and preceding por- 
 tions of the narrative, 203. Teaching and preaching rather 
 than miracles characteristic of this period, 204. Such a 
 difference probable from the nature of the case, 206. The 
 return across the lake ; our Lord walks on the water, 207 sq. 
 Return to Capernaum; our Lord’s discourse in the syna- 
 gogue, 210 sq. Healings in Gennesareth, and return of the 
 
XIV 
 
 Contents. 
 
 Jewish emissaries, 213 sq. Journey to Tyre and Sidon, and 
 the miracle performed there, 216. Return towards Deca- 
 polis and the eastern shore of the lake, 218. Jouniey to De- 
 capolis; healing of a deaf and dumb man, 219. The feeding 
 of the Four thousand, 220. Not identical with the feeding 
 of the Five thousand, 221. Return to the western side of 
 the lake, 222. Journey northw^ard to Caesarea Philippi, 224. 
 The locality and significance of the Transfiguration, 226. 
 The healing of a demoniac boy, 227. Return to, and proba- 
 ble temporary seclusion at, Capernaum, 229 sq. Conclusion 
 and recapitulation, 232 sq. 
 
 Lectuke YI. 
 
 The Journeying s toward Jerusalem 286 
 
 General character of the present portion of the inspired narra- 
 tive, 236. Limits of the present section, 237. Harmonistic 
 and chronological difficulties 237 sq. Precise nature of 
 these difficulties, 240. Comparison of this portion of St 
 Luke’s Gospel with that of St John, 242 sq. Results of the 
 above considerations, 245. Brief stay at Capernaum ; 
 worldly request of our Lord’s brethren, 245 sq. Journey to 
 Jerusalem through Samaria, 248. Our Lord’s arrival and 
 preaching at Jerusalem, 250. The woman taken in adul- 
 tery : probable place of the incident in the Gospel history, 
 
 252. Further teaching and preaching at Jerusalem, 253 sq. 
 Departure from Jerusalem, and mission of the Seventy, 256. 
 Further incidents in Judsea recorded by St Luke, 257. Our 
 Lord’s visit to Jerusalem at the Feast of Dedication, 259 sq. 
 
 The Lord’s message to Herod, and preparation to leave 
 Persea, 262. Probable events during the last two days in 
 Percea, 264 sq. Apparently confirmatory notice in St John, 
 
 267. Effect produced by the raising of Lazarus, 268. Inci- 
 dents in the last journey to Judaea, 270 sq. Onward pro- 
 gress toward Jerusalem, 273. Arrival at Jericho, 274. 
 Conclusion. 
 
 Lectuke Vll. 
 
 The last Passover 278 
 
 Introductory comments, 278. Characteristics of the preceding 
 portion of the narrative, 279. Characteristics of the present 
 portion, 280. The journey to, and supper at, Bcth.any, 282. 
 
Co ) dents. 
 
 XV 
 
 The Triumphal entry into Jerusalem, 284 sq. Reflections on 
 the credibility of the narrative, 289. Our Lord’s entry into 
 Jerusalem, 291. The cursing of the barren fig-tree, (Mon- 
 day) 292 sq. The cleansing of the Temple, and works of 
 mercy performed there, 295. Answers to the deputation 
 from the Sanhedrin (Tuesday), 297 sq. Continued efforts on 
 the part of the deputation, 301. The question about the 
 duty of paying tribute to Caesar, 301 sq. Exposure and 
 frustration of the stratagem, 304. The question of the Sad- 
 ducees touching the Resurrection, 306. The question of the 
 lawyer about the greatest commandment, 308. The ques- 
 tion relative to the woman taken in adultery, 310. Our 
 Lord’s question respecting the Son of David, 312. The 
 offering of the poor widow, 314. The request of the Greek 
 proselytes, 315 sq. The departure from the temple, and 
 the last prophecies, 318. Consultation of the Sanhedrin, 
 and treachery of Judas (Wednesday), 320. The celebration 
 of the Last Supper (Thursday), 321 sq. The agony in Geth- 
 semane (Thursday night), 327 sq. The betrayal of our Lord. 
 330. The preliminary examination before Annas, 332. The 
 examination before the Sanhedrin, 334 sq. The brutal 
 mockery of the attendants, 338. The fate of Judas Iscariot, 
 339. Our Lord’s first appearance before Pilate, 340 sq. 
 The dismissal of our Lord to Herod, 343. Second appear- 
 ance before Pilate ; his efforts to set our Lord free, 344 sq. 
 Scourging of our Lord ; renewed efforts of Pilate, 347 sq. 
 The Crucifixion, 351. Occurrences from the third to the 
 sixth hour, 353. The darkness from the sixth to the ninth 
 hour, 355 sq. The portents that followed our Lord’s death, 
 358. The removal from the cross and burial of the Lord’s 
 body, 360 sq. Conclusion, 364. 
 
 Lecture VIII. 
 
 The Forty Days 367 
 
 Introductory comments, 367. Doctrinal questions involved in 
 this portion of the history, 368 sq. Characteristics of the 
 present portion of the narrative : number of the accounts, 
 
 371. Their peculiarities and differences, 372 sq. Resump- 
 tion of the narrative ; visit of the women to the sepulchre, 
 
 376 sq. The appearance of the angels to the women at the 
 sepulchre, 381. The two Apostles at the tomb, 383. The 
 Lord’s appearance to Mary Magdalene, 384 sq. Probable 
 
XVI 
 
 Contents. 
 
 effect produced on the Apostles by Mary’s tidings, 388. The 
 Lord’s appearance to the other ministering women, 389 sq. 
 The appearance of our Lord to the two disciples journeying 
 to Enimaus, 392 sq. Inability of the disciples to recognize 
 our Lord, 395. Appearance to the ten Apostles, 397 sq. 
 Disbelief of Thomas ; our Lord’s appearance to the eleven 
 Apostles, 402. Appearance by the lake of Tiberias, 403 sq. 
 Reverential awe of the Apostles, 407. Appearance to the 
 brethren in Galilee, 409. The Lord’s Ascension, 411 sq. 
 Conclusion, 414 sq. 
 
 CORRIGENDA. 
 
 page 59, Text, line 12, for ‘ practicably ’ read ‘practically.’ 
 page 81, Notes, col. 2, line 22, after ‘Isaiah xi. i’ insert ‘compare 
 page 100, Notes, col. r, line 3, for Heidenihums read J iidenthums. 
 page 1 1 4, Notes, col. 2, line 18, for ‘ probably’ read ‘possibly.’ 
 
LECTURE I. 
 
 INTRODUCTORY CONSIDERATIONS ON THE CHARACTER- 
 ISTICS OF THE FOUR GOSPELS. 
 
 St John xx. 31. 
 
 These are written, that ye might believe that Jesus is the Christ, 
 the Son of God; and that believing ye might have life 
 through His name. 
 
 These words, brethren, which, in the context lect. 
 
 from which they are taken, allude more particu- ^ — 
 
 larly to the miracles of Christ, but which I of^sS^ect. 
 venture here to extend in application to the 
 whole evangelical history, will in some degree pre- 
 pare you for the subject that I purpose laying 
 before you in this series of Lectures. After seri- 
 ous meditation on the various subjects which the 
 will of the munificent founder of these Lectures 
 leaves open to the preacher, it has appeared to 
 me that none would be likely to prove more 
 useful and more edifying than the history and 
 connexion of the events in the earthly life of 
 our Lord and Master, Jesus Christ. 
 
 exclusively relating to the younger portion of 
 my audience, the other relating to us all. 
 
 The first reason has been suggested by the First rea- 
 feeling, which I believe is not wholly mistaken, 
 that these Lectures are too often liable, from the 
 p^ture of the subjects to which they are restricted, 
 
 E. H. L. 1 ' 
 
LECT. 
 
 I. 
 
 2 Introductory Considerations on the 
 
 to prove unattractive to the younger portion of 
 - those among us. It is but seldom that the young 
 feel much interested in the debated questions of 
 Christian evidence. Nay it is natural that they 
 should not. With the freshness and warmth of 
 springing life, with the generous impulses of yet 
 unchilled hearts, they are ready for the most 
 part to believe rather than to doubt, to accept 
 rather than to question. The calm and impar- 
 tial investigation, the poised judgment, the sus- 
 pended assent, which must all characterize the 
 sober disputant on Christian evidences, and which 
 we of a maturer age may admire and appreciate, 
 are, I truly believe, often so repulsive to our 
 younger brethren, that after having sat out a 
 sermon or two, they company with us no more. 
 This applies with still greater force, as has been 
 thoughtfully suggested to me, to the new comers 
 in the October term, whose first entrance into the 
 Church of this our mother University is com- 
 monly during the second part of the course of 
 the Hulsean Lecturer. They have thus all the 
 disadvantage of coming among us in the middle 
 of a course; and when to that is added a con- 
 sciousness of defective sympathy with the theme 
 of the preacher, they are tempted, I fear, thus 
 early to withdraw from what they deem unedi- 
 fying, and so to lay the foundation of the evil 
 habit of neglecting attendance at this Church, 
 and of treating lightly the great Christian duty 
 of assemblinsr ourselves too^ether in the house 
 of God. 
 
 It has thus seemed desirable to choose a sub- 
 ject which, if properly treated, ought to interest 
 
Characteristics of the four Gospels. 
 
 3 
 
 and to edify the very youngest hearer among us, i-ect. 
 
 and which may admit of such natural divisions 
 
 as may cause the later hearers to feel less sen- 
 sibly the disadvantage of not having attended 
 the earlier portion of the course. 
 
 My second reason, however, for the selection Second 
 of this peculiar subject is one that applies to us 
 all, and is still more grave and momentous. It 
 is based on the deep conviction, that to the great 
 questions connected with the life of our Hedeemer, 
 
 Jesus Christ, the Son of Adam, the Son of God^, " L^keiu 
 
 . 38 - 
 
 all the controversies of these latter days are tend- 
 ing noticeably to converge. Here it is that even 
 the more abstract questions, that try the faith of 
 our own times, — questions as abstract as the 
 degree of inspiration of the Written Word’, or 
 
 ^ In every complete discussion on 
 the Inspiration of the Scriptures, 
 the nature of the more special re- 
 ferences of our Lord to the Old Tes- 
 tament must be fully and fairly con- 
 sidered. To take an extreme case; 
 when our Lord refers, distinctly and 
 explicitly (Matth, xii. 39, 40), to ‘the 
 sign of the prophet Jonas,’ have we 
 any escape from one of two alter- 
 natives, either, (a) that in spite of 
 all that has been urged to the con- 
 trary, and all the scarcely disguised 
 contempt with which the history of 
 Jonah has been treated by modern 
 criticism (comp. Hitzig, Kleinen Pro- 
 pheten, p. 361 sq.), the narrative is 
 notwithstanding true and typical, 
 and referred to by our Lord as such ; 
 or, (6) that it is fabulous, and that 
 our Lord wittingly made use of a 
 fabulous narrative to illustrate His 
 Resurrection ? Modern speculation 
 does not hesitate to accept (6), and 
 to urge that it was not a part of our 
 
 Lord’s mission to correct all the 
 wrong opinions, more or less con- 
 nected with religion, which might 
 be prevalent in the minds of those 
 with whom He was conversing (comp. 
 Norton, Genuineness of Gospel, Vol. 
 II. p. 477). If we rest contented 
 with such unhappy statements, we 
 must be prepared to remodel not 
 only our views of our Lord’s teach- 
 ing, but of some of the highest 
 attributes of His most holy life: 
 consider and contrast Ullmann, Un- 
 sundlicTikeit Jesu, § 19 (Transl. p. 
 8, 75, Clark). The assertion that 
 ‘ the sign of J onah’ was not referred 
 by our Lord to His resurrection, 
 but to His whole earthly life, seems 
 distinctly untenable (see esp. Meyer 
 on Matth. xii. 40) ; but were it 
 otherwise, it could scarcely affect 
 the above considerations. 
 
 To contemplate a rejection of these 
 words from the inspired narrative in 
 the face of the most unquestioned 
 ] — 2 
 
LECT. 
 
 I. 
 
 4 Introductory Considerations on the 
 
 the nature of the efficacies of the Atonement^ 
 which that Word declares to us, — must seek for 
 their ultimate adjustment. Here is the battle- 
 ground of the present, here perchance the mystic 
 Armageddon of coming strife. Already forms of 
 heresy more subtle than ever Ebionite pro- 
 pounded or Marcionite devised, — forms of heresy 
 that have clad themselves in the trappings of 
 modern historical philosophy^, and have learned 
 to accommodate themselves to the more distinctly 
 earthly aspects of modern speculation, have ap- 
 peared in other Christian lands, and are now 
 silently producing their influence on thousands 
 and tens of thousands who bear on their fore- 
 heads the baptismal cross of Christ. Already even 
 in our own more favoured country, humanitarian 
 views with regard to the Person of our Redeemer 
 are thrusting themselves forward with a startling 
 and repulsive activity, — intruding themselves into 
 our popular literature as well as into our popu- 
 
 external evidence (Maurice, Kings 
 and Prophets, p. 357) cannot be 
 characterized as otherwise than 
 as in tlie highest degree arbitraiy 
 and uncritical. 
 
 1 Everything which tends to de- 
 rogate from the Divinity of our 
 Lord, tends, as Pnestley long ago 
 clearly perceived {History of Cor- 
 ruptions, Vol. I. p. 153), to do away 
 with the idea of an atonement, in 
 the proper sense of the word, for the 
 sins of other men ; comp. Magee, 
 Atonement, Dissert. 3. So converse- 
 ly, all limitations of the atonement, 
 all tendencies to represent our Lord’s 
 sacrifice as merely an act of moral 
 greatness (comp. Jowett, Romans, 
 
 Vol. II. p. 481), will be found in- 
 evitably to lead to indirect denials of 
 the Catholic doctrine of the union of 
 the two natures in our Lord, and to 
 implied limitations of His divinity : 
 compare, but with some reserve, 
 Macdonell, Lectures on the Atone- 
 mmt (Donellan Lectures), p. 61 Sq. 
 
 2 For a clear statement of the 
 two problems connected with the 
 Gospel history (the criticism of the 
 evangelical writings, and the criti- 
 cism of the evangelical history), and 
 the regular development of modern 
 speculation, see the introduction to 
 the useful work of Ebrard, TFmcn- 
 schaftliche Kritik der evangelischcn 
 Gcschkhtc, § 2—7, p. 3 sq. (ed. 2). 
 
Characteristics of the four Gospels. 5 
 
 lar theology^, yea, and winning assent by their 
 seductive appeal to those purely human motions 
 and feelings within us, which, while we are in 
 the flesh, we can hardly deem separable from 
 the nature of even sinless man. Already too a 
 so-called love of truth, a bleak, barren, loveless 
 love of truth which the wise PascaP long since 
 denounced, — a love of truth that like Agag claims 
 to walk delicately, and to be respected and to 
 be spared, — is gathering around itself its Epicu- 
 rean audiences : already is it making its boast 
 of fabled civilizations that rest on other bases than 
 on Christ and His Church^, daily and hourly 
 labouring with that restless energy that belongs 
 to Hhe walkers in dry places,’ to make us re- 
 gard as imaginary or illusory those holy prepos- 
 sessions in reference to the Evangelical history. 
 
 ^ See Preface to Commentary on 
 the Philippians, Coloss, and Phile- 
 mon, p. X. 
 
 2 The following remark of this 
 thoughtful writer deserves considera- 
 tion : ‘ On se fait une idole de la 
 veritd meme: car la veritd hors de 
 la charitd n’est pas Dieu ; elle est 
 son image, et une idole qu’il ne faut 
 point aimer, ni adorer; et encore 
 moins faut-il aimer et adorer son 
 contraire, quiestle mensonge.* Pen- 
 sees, II. 17. 74, p. 297 (Didot, 1846). 
 
 ® It does not seem unjust to say 
 that the views advocated in the most 
 recent history of civilization that has 
 appeared in this coimtry (Buckle, 
 Histoi'y of Civilization, Bond. 1858) 
 cannot be regarded as otherwise than 
 plainly hostile to Christianity. There 
 is a special presupposition in view- 
 ing the history of Christ in its rela- 
 tion to the world, which such writ- 
 
 ers as Mr Buckle unhappily either 
 scorn or reject, — a presupposition 
 which an historian of a far higher 
 strain has well defined as the root of 
 all our modern civilization, and as 
 that from which civilization can 
 never separate itself, without assum- 
 ing an entirely changed form ; ‘ it 
 is the presupposition that Jesus is 
 the Son of God, in a sense which 
 cannot be pi’edicated of any human 
 being, — the perfect image of the su- 
 preme personal God in the form of 
 that humanity that was estranged 
 from Him; the presupposition that 
 in Him appeared the source of the 
 divine life itself in humanity, and 
 that by Him the idea of humanity 
 was realized.’ Neander, Lehen Jesu 
 Chr. p. 5 (Transl. § 2, p. 5, Bohn). 
 Contrast with this the unhappy and 
 self-contradictory comments of Hase, 
 Lehen Jesu, § 14, p. 16. 
 
 LECT. 
 
 I. 
 
6 
 
 Introductory Considerations on the 
 
 LECT. 
 
 I. 
 
 that ought, and were designed by God Himself 
 to exercise their unquestioned influence and sove- 
 reignty over our whole inner life\ 
 
 It is this feeling that has more especially led 
 me to fix upon the Life of our Lord and Master 
 as the subject of these Lectures. It is the deep 
 feeling, that every effort, however humble and 
 homely, to set forth the groupings, the harmonies, 
 and the significancies of that Holy History, is a 
 contribution to the spiritual necessities of our own 
 times, — that has now moved me to enter upon 
 this lofty theme. Here it is, and here only is 
 it, that our highest ideal conceptions of perfec- 
 tion find only still higher practical realizations. 
 Here it is that while we humbly strive to trace 
 the lineaments of the outward, we cannot fail, 
 if we be true to God and to our own souls, to 
 feel the workings of the inward^, and while the 
 
 ^ It has been well said by Ebrard, 
 ‘ We do not enter on the Evangelical 
 History, with spy-glass in hand, to 
 seek our own credit by essaying to 
 disclose ever fresh instances of what 
 is contradictory, foolish, or ridicu- 
 lous, but with the faithfid, clear, 
 and open eye of him, who joyfully 
 recognizes the Good, the Beautiful, 
 and the Noble wheresoever he finds 
 it, and on that account finds it with 
 joy, and never lays aside his favour- 
 able prepossession, till he is per- 
 suaded of the contrary. We give our- 
 selves up to the plastic influence of 
 the Gospels, live in them, and at 
 the same time secure to ourselves, 
 while we thus act in the spirit of 
 making all our own, a deeper insight 
 into the unity, beauty, and depth of 
 the Evangelical History.’ Kritih der 
 Evang. Geschichtc, § 8, p. 38. 
 
 2 It is satisfactory to find in most 
 of the higher class of German writers 
 on the Life of our Lord a distinct 
 recognition of this vital principle of 
 the Gospel narrative: ^As man’s 
 limited intellect could.never, without 
 the aid of God’s revelation of Him- 
 self to the spirit of man, have ori- 
 ginated the idea of God, so the 
 image of Christ could never have 
 sprung from the consciousness of 
 sinful humanity, but must be re- 
 garded as the reflection of the actual 
 life of such a Christ. It is Christ’s 
 self-revelation, made through all 
 generations in the fragments of His 
 history that remain, and in the work- 
 ings of His Spirit which inspires 
 these fragments, and enables us to 
 recognize in them one complete 
 whole.’ Neander, Leben Jesu Chr. 
 p. 6 (Transl. § 3, p. 4, Bohn): see 
 
7 
 
 Characteristics of the four Gospels. 
 
 eyes dwell lovingly on the inspired outlines of lect. 
 
 the history of Jesus and of Him crucified, to feel 
 
 His image waxing clearer in the soul, His eter- 
 nal sympathies mingling with our infirmities, and 
 enlarging into more than mortal measures the 
 whole spiritual stature of the inner man\ 
 
 After this lengthened, but I believe not un- 
 necessary introduction, let me, with fervent prayer 
 for grace and assistance from the illuminating 
 Spirit of God, at once address myself to my 
 arduous and responsible task. 
 
 (I.) And firstj as to the method which with Method 
 the help of God I intend to pursue. these Lec- 
 
 My first object in these Lectures is to arrange, 
 to comment upon, and, as far as possible, to illus- 
 trate the principal events in our Redeemer s earthly 
 history; to show their coherence, their connexion^, 
 and their varied and suggestive meanings ; to place, 
 as far as may be safely attempted, the different di- 
 vine discourses in their apparently true positions, 
 estimated chronologically^, and to indicate how 
 
 further the eloquent remarks of Dr 
 Lange in the introduction to his 
 valuable work, Das Lehen Jesu nach 
 den Evangelien, i. i. 6, Vol. i. p. 71 
 gq. (Heidelb. 1844), and compare 
 the introductory comments of Ewald, 
 GeschicTite Christus\ p. xi. xii. 
 
 1 The admirable introductory ex- 
 hortation of Bp Taylor, prefixed to 
 his Life of Christ, deserves parti- 
 cular attention. The prayer with 
 which it concludes is one of the 
 most exalted of those rapt devo- 
 tional outpourings which illustrate 
 and adorn that great monument of 
 learning and piety. 
 
 2 On the two methods of relating 
 the events of our Lord’s life, whether 
 
 by adhering strictly to chronological 
 sequence, or by grouping together 
 what seems historically similar, see 
 Hase, Lehen Jesu, § 16, p. 17. The 
 latter method is always precarious, 
 and in some cases, as for example in 
 the Lehen Jesu Christi of Neander, 
 tends to leave the reader with a very 
 vague idea of the real connexions of 
 the history. 
 
 3 It may perhaps be safely affirmed, 
 ^nd many parts of the succeeding lec- 
 tures wiU serve to illustrate the truth 
 of the remark, that the exact chro- 
 nological position of all our Lord’s 
 discourses can never be satisfactorily 
 ascertained. One of the most sharp- 
 sighted and trustworthy of modem 
 
8 
 
 Introductory Considerations on the 
 
 LECT. 
 
 I. 
 
 they both give to and receive illustration from the 
 outward events, with which they stand in more 
 immediate connexion. 
 
 But all this must be, and the very nature of 
 the subject prescribes that it should be, subordi- 
 nated to the desire to set forth in as much fulness 
 and completeness as my limits may permit, not 
 only the order and significance of the component 
 features, but the transcendent picture of our Be- 
 deemer’s life, viewed as one divine whole h With- 
 out this ulterior object all such labour is worse 
 than in vain. Without this higher aim, the divine 
 harmonies of our Master’s life become lost in mere 
 annalistic detail ; the spiritual epochs of His* minis- 
 try forgotten in the dull, earthly study of the va- 
 ried problematical arrangements of contested his- 
 tory. These last points the nature of my present 
 office may compel me not to leave wholly untouch- 
 ed; nay, I trust that those who are acquainted 
 with the nature of such investigations will here- 
 
 chronologers of our Lord’s life pru- 
 dently observes: ‘I will not deny 
 that the chronology of the discourses 
 of our Lord, and especially of all 
 the separate discourses, is very hard 
 to be ascertained, — nay the problem 
 viewed under its most rigorous 
 aspects, owing to the nature of the 
 evangelieal accounts that have come 
 down to us, — I refer particularly to 
 the Gospel of St Matthew, in which 
 especially so many of these por- 
 tions of discourses occur, — is perhaps 
 never to be solved.’ Wieseler, Chro- 
 nologische Synopse, p. 287; compare 
 too Stier, Reden Jesu, Vol. i. p, xi. 
 (Transl. Vol. i. p. 7, Clark). 
 
 ^ ‘It is the problem of faith,’ says 
 Dr Lange, ‘to introduce into the 
 church’s contemplation of the life of 
 
 Jesus, viewed as a whole, more and 
 more of the various features of the 
 gospel narrative, regarded in their 
 consistent relations with one an- 
 other. On the contrary, it is the 
 problem of theological science to en- 
 deavour to exhibit more and more, 
 by successive approximations, the 
 completed unity of the life of Jesus 
 from the materials ready to its hand.’ 
 Lehen Jean, i. 7. 2, Vol. i. p. 233. 
 Some thoughtful remarks on the 
 contrast between the ideal and the 
 outward manifestation of the same 
 {Gegensatz zwischen der Idee und dcr 
 Erscheinimg) in the lives of men, 
 but the perfect harmony of this 
 ideal and phenomenal in Christ, will 
 be found in Neander, Lehen Jean 
 Chr. p. 9. 
 
9 
 
 Characteristics of the four Gosjpels. 
 
 after perceive that I have not shrunk from enter- 
 ing into this very 'difficult and debateable province 
 of our subject, and that opinions are not put forth 
 without some knowledge of what has been urged 
 against them. Still the details will not appear in 
 the text of the Lectures, or appear only in affirma- 
 tive statements that are subordinated to the gene- 
 ral current and spirit of the narrative. 
 
 Oh let us never forget, in all our investigations, 
 that the history of the life of Christ is a history of 
 redemption , — that all the records which the Eter- 
 nal Spirit of truth has vouchsafed to us bear this 
 indelible impress, and are only properly to be seen 
 and understood from this point of contemplation b 
 It is the history of the Redeemer of our race that 
 the Gospels present to us, the history, not of J esus 
 of Nazareth but of the Saviour of the world, the 
 record, not of merely idealized perfections^ but 
 of redemptive workings, — ^My Father worketh 
 hitherto, and I work^;’ and he who would presume 
 to trace out that blessed history, without being in- 
 fluenced by this remembrance in all his thoughts 
 
 ^ Some very valuable remarks on 
 the true points of view from which 
 the Evangelical History ought to be 
 regarded by the Christian student, 
 will be found in the eloquent intro- 
 duction of Lange to his Lehen Jem: 
 seeesp. Bookr. 4. 6, Vol. i. p. 141 sq. 
 
 ^ Compare Lange, Lehen Jem, i. 
 
 5 ) I* P- 41 sq. It has 
 
 been well remarked by Neander, in 
 answer to Strauss, that the picture 
 of the Life of Christ does not exhibit 
 the spirit of the age in which it 
 appeared, nay that ^the image of 
 human perfection thus concretely 
 presented, stands in manifold con- 
 
 tradiction to the tendencies of hu- 
 manity in that period; no one of 
 them, no combination of them, dead 
 as they were, could account for it.’ 
 Lehen Jem, p. 6, note (Transl. p. 4, 
 Bohn). The true conception of the 
 mingled divine and human aspects 
 of our Lord’s life has been nowhere 
 better hinted at than by Augustine, 
 — ‘Ita inter Deum et homines me- 
 diator apparuit, ut in unitate per- 
 sonae copulans utramque naturam, 
 et solita sublimaret insolitis et in- 
 solita solitis temperaret.’ Epist, 
 cxxxvii. 3. 9, Vol. II. p. 519 (ed. 
 Migne). 
 
 LECT. 
 
 I. 
 
 Caution in 
 applying 
 the above. 
 
 ® John V, 
 
 17- 
 
LECT. 
 
 I. 
 
 * Col. ii. 9. 
 
 Sources 
 of our 
 history. 
 
 10 Introductory Considerations on the 
 
 and words, must be prepared to find himself add- 
 ing one more unlionoured name to the melan- 
 choly list of those who have presumed to treat of 
 these mysteries, with the eclectic and critical spirit 
 of the so-called biographer — the biographer^ (O 
 strangely inappropriate and unbecoming word) of 
 Him in whom dwelt bodily the whole fulness of 
 the Godhead®. 
 
 (II.) In the next place a few words must 
 on this occasion necessarily be said both on the 
 sources of our history, and our estimate of their 
 divinely-ordered differences and characteristics. 
 
 Our sources are the four Gospels, four inspired 
 narratives, so mysteriously overruled in their inter- 
 dependence, that regarded from the point of view 
 in which the history of our Lord alone ought to be 
 regarded, — viz. as a history of redemption , — they 
 are all, and more than all, that our most elevated 
 conceptions of our own spiritual needs could have 
 sought for or devised. Such words perchance may 
 sound strange in an age that has busied itself in 
 noting down the seeming deficiencies of the Gospels 
 rather than recognizing their divine fulness, that 
 looks out for diversities rather than accordances^. 
 
 ^ The essential character of bio- 
 graphy is stated clearly and fairly 
 enough by Hase {Leben Jem, § r 1, 
 p. 15), but the proposed application 
 of it to the life of Our Lord can 
 scarcely be defined as otherwise than 
 as in a high degree startling and 
 repulsive. This cold, clear, but un- 
 sound writer seems to imagine that 
 some height can be reached from 
 ■which the modern historical critic 
 can recognize the individualizing 
 characteristics of the life of Christ 
 
 as the Evangelists desired to por- 
 tray them, and may sketch them 
 out in their true (?) relations to the 
 time and age in which they were 
 manifested: compare the somewhat 
 similar and equally objectionable re- 
 marks of Von Ammon, Geschichte 
 des Leben Jesu, Vol. i, p. vii. (Pre- 
 face). 
 
 2 A popular but sound article (by 
 Prof. C. E. Stowe) on the nature of 
 the modern assaults upon the four 
 Gospels will bo found in the Biblio- 
 
Characteristics of the four Gospels. 
 
 11 
 
 and that never seems to regard its historical criti- lect. 
 
 cism with more complacency than when it presents 
 
 to us the four inspired witnesses as involved in the 
 discrepancies of a separate story \ Such words, I 
 say, may sound strange, but they are the words of 
 soberness and truth ; and I will be bold to say that 
 no patient and loving spirit will ever rise from a 
 lengthened investigation of the four evangelical 
 records without having arrived at this honest con- 
 viction, — that though here there may seem diffi- 
 culty because faith is to be tried there a seem- 
 ing discrepancy because we know not all, yet that 
 the histories themselves, no less in their arrange- 
 ments and mutual relations than in the nature of 
 their contents, exhibit vividly the pervading influ- 
 ence of that Spirit which it was declared® should* Jot »xvi. 
 guide, aye and infallibly has guided, their writers 
 into all truths But let us carry out these obser- 
 vations somewhat in detail. 
 
 theca Sacra for 1851, Part ill. The 
 details are well sketched out by 
 Ebrard, KritiJc der Ev. Geschichte, 
 § 3—7, P- 5 sq. 
 
 1 The early Church was fully 
 aware of the discrepancies, not 
 merely in detail, but even in general 
 plan and outline, that were deemed 
 to exist between the Gospels, but 
 she well knew how they were to be 
 estimated and regarded : ov^k yap 
 Toi>s evayyeXiaras cj>aLr}piev dv utt - 
 tvavria Troietv dWrjXoti, 6tl ol ph 
 T(p CapKlKIp ToO XpiCTTOV TrXeOV €V- 
 
 77(rxoAT707j(7ai', ol di ttj 6eoXoyi(f. 
 Tpoai^rjaav' Kal oi ph ck tQv Kad' 
 i]pds, ol €K Tov virkp i]pds etroi-p- 
 aavTO rV ^PXW' ovtcj rb Kifipvypa 
 bieXbpevoi Trpbs rb olpac 
 
 roTi dexop^ois, Kal ovtoj irapd roO ip 
 
 aiiTOis TVTTOupepoL Upe^paros. Greg. 
 Naz. Oi-at. xx. Vol. I. p. 365 (Paris, 
 1609). 
 
 2 ‘ Ipsa enim simplici et certa 
 fide in illo permanere debemus, ut 
 ipse aperiat fidelibus quod in se 
 absconditum est: quia sicut idem 
 dicit apostolus. In illo sunt omnes 
 thesauri sapientice et scientice ahscon- 
 diti. Quos non propterea abscon- 
 dit, ut neget, sed ut absconditis ex- 
 citet desiderium.’ Augustine, Serm. 
 LI. 4, Vol. V. p. 336 (ed. Migne). 
 
 ® The language of Augustine on 
 the subject of the plenary inspiration 
 of the Gospels is clear and decided : 
 ‘ Quidquid ille [Christus] de suis 
 factis et dictis nos legere voluit, 
 hoc scribendum illis tanquam suis 
 manibus imperavit. Hoc unitatis 
 
LECT, 
 
 I. 
 
 Details, — 
 mainly in 
 reference 
 to internal 
 character- 
 istics. 
 
 12 Introductory Considerations on the 
 
 Omitting, on the present occasion, all investi- 
 gations into the more distinctly external character- 
 istics of the Gospels, whether in regard of the 
 general aspect of these inspired documents, or the 
 particular styles in which they are composed, let 
 us turn our attention to the more interesting sub- 
 ject of their internal peculiarities and distinctions. 
 And yet we may pause for a moment even on the 
 outward; for verily the outward is such as can 
 never be overlooked ; the outward differences and 
 distinctions are indeed such as may well claim the 
 critical reader’s most meditative consideration. We 
 may note, for example, the pervading tinge of 
 Hebrew thought and diction^ that marks, what we 
 may perhaps correctly term, the narrative^ of St 
 
 consortium et in diversis ofl&ciis con- 
 cordium membrorum sub uno capite 
 ministerium quisquis intellexerit, 
 non aliter accipiet, quod narranti- 
 bus discipulis Christi, in Evangelio 
 legerit, quam si ipsam manum Do- 
 mini, quam in proprio corpore gesta- 
 bat, scrihentem conspexerit.' De Con- 
 sensu Evang. i. 35, Vol. in. p. 1070 
 (ed. Migne) ; comp, in Joann. Tract. 
 XXX. I, Vol. III. p. 1632. 
 
 ^ Nearly all modern critics agree 
 in recognizing not merely in isolated 
 words and phrases, but in the gene- 
 ral tone and diction of the first Gos- 
 pel, the Hebraistic element. The 
 * physiognomy of this first of our 
 Gospels,’ to use the language of Da 
 Costa, ^is eminently Oriental:’ the 
 language, though mainly simple and 
 artless, not unfrequently rises to the 
 rhythmical and even poetical, and 
 is marked by a more frequently 
 recurring parallelism of words or 
 clauses (comp. Lowth, Prelim. Dis- 
 sert. to Isaiah, p. viii. Lond. 1837) 
 
 than is to be found in the other 
 Gospels : compare, for example, 
 
 Matth. vii. 24 — 27, with Luke vi. 
 4 7 — 49, and see Da Costa, The Four 
 Witnesses, p. 28 sq. (Transl. Lond. 
 1851). 
 
 2 Perhaps the term narrative may 
 be more correctly applied than any 
 other to the Gospel of St Matthew : 
 it neither presents to us so full a 
 recital of details as we find in St 
 Mark, nor the same sort of historical 
 sequence which we observe in St 
 Luke, nor yet again the same con- 
 nexion in our Lord’s discourses 
 which we observe in St John, but 
 to a certain extent combines some 
 distinctive features of all. Anti- 
 quity well expressed this feeling in 
 the comprehensive title ra Xbyia, 
 (Papias, ap. Euseb. Hist. Eccl. iii. 
 39), which we may perhaps suitably 
 paraphrase, as Papias himself seems 
 to suggest (by his subsequent use of 
 the terms tCov KvpiaKwv Xoylup, — but 
 the reading is not certain), as rh 
 
Characteristics of the four Gospels. 
 
 13 
 
 Matthew ; — we may observe the more isolated le^ct. 
 
 though more unqualified Hebraistic expressions^, 
 
 and even the occasional Latinisms® that diversify 
 the graphic but more detached memoirs'^ of the ex- 
 ponent of the preaching of St Peter — we may 
 trace the Hellenic colouring that gives such grace 
 
 v-Ko X/JterroO ^ irpaxO^vra ; 
 
 see Liicke, in Studien u. KritiJeen 
 for 1833, p. 501 sq., Meyer, Kom- 
 mentar iiber Matth. p. 4, note, and 
 Lange, Lehen Jesu, i. 5. 2, Vol. i. 
 p. 16 r. The general structure of 
 this Gospel has been well investi- 
 gated in a programme by Harless, 
 entitled Lucuhrationum Evangelia 
 Canonica spectantvmn Pars ii. Er- 
 lang. 1842. As essays of this cha- 
 racter are not always accessible, it 
 may be worth noticing that the 
 learned author finds in the Gospel 
 five divisions, — the first, ch. i.— iv., 
 ver. 23 — 25 forming the epilogue; 
 the second, ch. iv. — ix., ver. 35 — 38 
 similarly forming the epilogue ; the 
 third, ch. X. — xiv. ; the fourth, ch. 
 XV. — xix. I, 2; and the fifth, ch. 
 xix. 3 to the end : see pp. 6, 7. 
 
 ^ We may especially notice the 
 occasional introduction of Aramaic 
 words, most probably the very words 
 that fell from our Lord’s lips ; comp, 
 ch. iii. 17, ^oavepyis; ch. v. 41, 
 raXidcL Kovpi; ch. vii. 34, ifi^add; 
 ch. xiv. 36, djSjSa: see Da Costa, 
 Four Witnesses, p. 89. 
 
 2 These have been often specified ; 
 it may be enough to notice, (jireKov- 
 Xdrwp, ch. vi. 27; ^ecrri^s, ch. vii. 
 4, 8; KevTvplwu, ch. xv. 39, 44, 45, 
 and the use of for money, 
 
 ch. vi. 8. Some good remarks on 
 other peculiarities of the style of St 
 Mark, especially in reference to his 
 adoption of less usual words and 
 
 forms of expression, will be found 
 in Credner, Einleitung in das N. T. 
 
 § 49, p. 102 sq., and in the Introd. 
 of Fritz. Evang. Marci, p. xiv. sq. 
 The assertion that this Gospel was 
 originally written in Latin, and the 
 appeal to a so-called Latin original, 
 have been long since disposed of: 
 see Tregelles and Horne, Introduc- 
 tion to the N. T. Vol. iv. p. 438. 
 
 ^ This term may perhaps serve to 
 characterize the general aspects of 
 the Gospel of St Mark, and to dis- 
 tinguish it from the more distinctly 
 historic Gospel of St Luke : it also 
 seems well to accord with the spirit 
 of the statements preserved by Eu- 
 sebius, Hist. Eccl. III. 39. A few 
 remarks by De Wette on the cha- 
 racteristics of this Gospel will be 
 found in the Studien u. Kritiken for 
 1828, p. 789; see also Lange, Lehen 
 Jesu, I. 7. 2, Vol. I. p. 247 ; and 
 for details. Da Costa, Four Witnesses, 
 p. 87 sq., Guerike, Einleitung in das 
 N. T. § 39. 3, p. 258 (ed. 2). 
 
 ^ It is perhaps unnecessary to 
 substantiate this assertion by special 
 quotations, as the connexion between 
 the second Evangelist and St Peter 
 seems now distinctly admitted by 
 all the best modern critics. The 
 most important testimonies of anti- 
 quity to this effect are Papias, ap. 
 Euseb. Hist. Eccl. ill. 39, Irenaeus, 
 Hcer. III. I, Clem. Alex. ap. Euseb. 
 Hist. Eccl. VI. 14, and Origen, ap. Ih. 
 VI. 25. 
 
14 Introductory Considerations on the 
 
 LECT. 
 
 I. 
 
 and interest to the compiled history of St Luke^ ; 
 we may recognize the marvellous and divine sim- 
 plicity of the longer and more collective discourses^ 
 that form the bulk of the spiritual and in some 
 respects supplementaV Gospel of St John... All 
 
 ^ If in the first Gospel we recog- 
 nize the Oriental tinge of thought 
 and diction, and if in the second we 
 detect some traces of the influence 
 of Latin modes of thought, and of a 
 primary destination for E-oman con- 
 verts, we can scarcely fail to acknow- 
 ledge in the third Gospel the impress 
 of Greek thought and culture (comp. 
 Jerome, Comment, in Esaiam, vi. 9), 
 and in its well-ordered and often 
 flowing periods to discern the hand 
 of the Greek proselyte: comp. Col. 
 iv. 14, and notes in loc. ; and see 
 further. Da Costa, The Four Wit- 
 nesses, p. 148, Lange, Lchen Jesu, i. 
 7. 4, Vol. I. p. 253 sq., and for some 
 details in reference to language, 
 Credner, Einleitung, § 59, p. 132 
 sq., Guerike, Einleitung, § 40. 4, 
 p. 278, Patritius, de Evangeliis, 
 I- 3- 5> ’^ol. I. p. 83 sq. In 
 those parts (e.g. ch. i.) where we 
 find a clearly marked Hebraistic 
 colouring, it seems natural to con- 
 clude that we have before us, in 
 perhaps not greatly changed forms, 
 trustworthy documents suppHed 
 either by the Blessed Virgin (in the 
 chapter in question) or other privi- 
 leged eye-witnesses (comp. ch. i. 2) 
 and ministers of the word : compare 
 Gersdorf, Beitrdge z. Sprachckarac- 
 teristik des N. T. p. 160 sq., Patri- 
 tius, de Evangeliis, i. 3. 4, Vol. I. 
 p. 80; and for some general com- 
 ments on St Luke, the good lecture 
 of Dr Wordsworth, New Test. Vol. i. 
 p. 130. 
 
 ® The discourses of our Lord, as 
 
 recorded by St John, have been 
 defined by Schmidt {Biblische Theo- 
 logie, § 3, p. 23) as * central,’ in 
 contrast with those of the Synop- 
 tical Gospels, which he calls more 
 ‘peripherisch.’ The observation is 
 fanciful, but perhaps has some truth 
 in it: in St John the Lord’s dis- 
 courses certainly seem to turn more 
 on His own divine person and His 
 true relation to the Father, and the 
 ideas and truths which flow there- 
 from, while those in the Synoptical 
 Gospels relate more frequently to 
 the general facts, features, and as- 
 pects of the kingdom of God; comp. 
 Ebrard, Kritilc dev Evang. Gesch. 
 § 35; P- 143- 
 
 ^ Compare Clem. Alex. ap. Euseb. 
 Hist. Eccl. VI. 14, Tov givTOL 'Iwdv- 
 vrjv ’iax^TOv crvvLbbvTa on ra aiofia- 
 TLKCL iu Tois evayycXiots dedrjXuTai, 
 irpoTpafrivTa virb tQv yvwpLpiUjv^ 
 HveTup.an 6eo(j)Op7]dhTa, Trvev pi-ar l- 
 Kov TTOirjo'ai evayy^Xiou. The same 
 distinction is preserved by Augus- 
 tine: — ‘Tres isti Evangelistse in his 
 rebus maxime diversati sunt quas 
 Christus per humanam camera tem- 
 poraliter gessit : porro autera Joannes 
 ipsam maxime divinitatem Domini 
 qua Patre est jequalis intendit.’ De 
 Consensu Evang. i. 4, Vol. ill. p. 
 1045 (ed. Migne). 
 
 ^ This character of St John’s 
 Gospel has of late been denied, but 
 as it would seem wholly unsuccess- 
 fully. That this was not the special 
 object of that sublime Gospel may 
 be fully conceded (see Luthardt, das 
 
15 
 
 Characteristics of the four Gospels. 
 
 these things may well suggest to us meditations of le^ct. 
 
 the freshest interest ; but as they belong to the 
 
 critical essay rather than to the popular lecture, we 
 shall be wise perhaps to confine ourselves now only 
 to the more strictly intermal peculiarities, more 
 especially those which characterize the different 
 pictures presented to us of our Blessed Lord and 
 Bedeemer. 
 
 Let us, however, never forget that in every The indivi- 
 efibrt to set forth the life of our Master, our whole Sou? 
 superstructure not only rests upon the four Gos-^yg^®iJ^ 
 pels, but has to be formed out of the elements , 
 
 which they supply, and that unsymmetrical will it 
 be and incongruous,* unless, like wise master-build- 
 ers, we learn to appreciate the inner and essential 
 distinctions between the precious materials which 
 we are presuming to employ. Here has been the 
 grave error of only too many of those who have 
 taken in hand to draw up an account of those 
 things that are fully believed among us^ Here “ Lukei. i. 
 harmonies have failed to edify, here critical his- 
 tories have often proved so lamentably deficient. 
 
 Nay, I believe that there is no one thing which 
 the long roll of harmonies and histories, extending 
 from the days of Tatian down to our own*, teach 
 
 Johan. Evang, iv. i, Vol. I. p. 109 
 sq.), but that St J ohn wrote with a 
 full cognizance of what his three 
 predecessors had related, that he 
 presupposed it in his readers, and en- 
 larged upon events not recorded else- 
 where, seems almost indisputable. 
 That this was distinctly the belief 
 of antiquity is fully conceded by 
 Liicke, Comment, uber Johan, iii. 13, 
 Vol. I. p. 187 (ed. 3): see especially 
 Euseb. Hut. Eccl. Iil, 24; Jerome, 
 
 de Viris Illusir. cap. 9 ; and compare 
 the expressions in the Muratorian 
 fragment on the Canon, reprinted in 
 Routh, Relig. Sacrce, Vol. iv. p. 3 
 sq. (ed. i). 
 
 ^ A full list of these will be found 
 in the useful but unsound work of 
 Hase, Leben Jesu, § 21, p. -zi sqq., 
 and a shorter and selected list in 
 the Uarmonia Evangelica of Tischen- 
 dorf, p. ix. sqq. Those which most 
 deserve consideration seem to be, 
 
LECT. 
 
 I. 
 
 16 Introductory Considerations on the 
 
 us more distinctly than this — that no true picture 
 of the earthly life of our Redeemer can ever be 
 realized, unless by God’s grace we learn both to 
 feel and to appreciate the striking individuality of 
 the four Gospels in their portraiture of the life 
 of Christ, and are prepared to estimate duly their 
 peculiar and fore-ordered characteristics’. 
 
 That antiquity failed not to recognize these in- 
 dividualities, we are reminded by the admirable 
 treatise of Augustine on the Consent of the Evan- 
 gelists^ — a treatise from which, though we may 
 venture to differ in details, we can never safely 
 depart in our general principles of combination 
 and adjustment^. No writer has more ably main- 
 
 Gerson, Concordia Evangelistarmi 
 (about 1471); Chemnitz, Harmonia 
 Quatuor Evangelistarum (Vol. i. pub- 
 lished in 1593) ; Harmony, 
 
 &c. of the N. T. (Lond. 1655) ; Lamy, 
 Harmonia sive Concordia Quatuor 
 Evangelistarum,Vdir\B, 1689; Bengel, 
 Richtige Harmonic der vier Evan- 
 gelien, Tubing. 1736; Newcome, 
 Harmony of Gospels, Dubl. 1778; 
 Clausen, Tabuloe Synopticce, Havniee, 
 1829; Greswell, Harmonia Evan- 
 gelica, Oxon. 1840; Robinson, Har- 
 mony of the Four Gospels, Boston, 
 1845, (with useful notes) Lond. 
 (Relig. Tract Society) ; Anger, Syn- 
 opsis Evangelioi'um, Lips. 1851; 
 Tischendorf, Synopsis Evangelica, 
 Lips. 1851; and, lastly, the volu- 
 minous work of Patritius, de Evan- 
 geliis, Friburg. 1853. 
 
 1 See some good remarks in the 
 Introduction to Lange, Lehen Jesu, 
 especially i. 3. i, Vol. i. p. 98 sq. 
 
 2 We might also specify, as illus- 
 trative of this view of the individual 
 character of the four Gospels, the 
 ancient and well-known comparison 
 
 of the four Gospels to the four 
 living creatures mentioned in the 
 Apocalypse (Irenaeus, Hcer. iii. i). 
 Though later writers (Athanasius, 
 Augustine, Jerome, al.) varied some- 
 what in their adaptations of the 
 symbols (see Wordsworth, Greek Test. 
 Vol. I. p. li.), this fourfold com- 
 parison may be considered as the 
 practical manifestation of the belief 
 of the ancient Church in the dis- 
 tinct individuality of the four Gos- 
 pels. The more usual order and 
 application of the symbols is stated 
 by Sedulius in the following lines, 
 which may bear quotation : — 
 
 Hoc Matthseiis agens hominem generaliter 
 implet, 
 
 Marcus ut alta fremit vox per deserta 
 Leonis, 
 
 Jura sacerdotii Lucas tenet ore juvenci, 
 More volans aquilse verbo petit astra Jo- 
 annes. 
 
 3 Augustine appears from his own 
 statements to have taken especial 
 pains with this treatise. He alludes 
 to it twice in his commentary on 
 St John (Tract. CXir. i, Vol. Hi. 
 p. 1929, and again Tract, cxvii. 2, 
 
Characteristics of the four Gospels. 17 
 
 tained the fundamental position, that the four 
 
 evangelical records in their delineation of the life 
 
 of Christ have noticeably different characteristics — 
 that they present our Redeemer to us under dif- 
 ferent aspects \ — and that these four histories (to 
 use the simile of another ancient writer^), though 
 flowing from one paradise, go forth to water the 
 earth with four currents of different volume and 
 direction. 
 
 It was the neglect of these principles that made Errors of 
 SO many of the laborious Harmonies of the six- Harmo- 
 teenth and seventeenth centuries both valueless 
 and unedifying, ^nd not improbably served to call 
 out that antagonistic criticism, which in these later 
 days has acquired such an undue, and it must be 
 said undesirable, prominence ^ These earlier efforts 
 
 Vol. III. p. 1945), and in both cases 
 speaks of it as composed with much 
 labour: compare also his Retracia- 
 Hones, Book ir. ch. i6. 
 
 1 See especially Book i. 2, 3, 4 
 (V ol. III. p. 1044, ed. Migne), where 
 the different aspects under which 
 our Redeemer was viewed by the 
 Evangelist are specially noticed. 
 What we have to regret in this 
 valuable treatise is the somewhat 
 low position assigned to St Mark’s 
 Gospel, the author of which, accord- 
 ing to Augustine, is but the ‘ pedis- 
 sequus et breviator’ of St Matthew 
 (ch. 2). Modern criticism has strik- 
 ingly reversed this judgment. 
 
 2 Jerome, Prcef. in Matth. cap. 4, 
 Vol. VII. p. 18 (ed. Migne). 
 
 3 I regret to have to express my 
 dissent from the views of my friend. 
 Dean Alford, in the Introduction to 
 his New Testament, Vol. i. § 7. Care- 
 ful investigation seems to^justify the 
 
 opinion that between the forced har- 
 monies, which found favour in older 
 times, and the blank rejection of 
 evangelical harmony, except in its 
 broadest outlines, which has been so 
 much advocated in our own times, 
 there is a safe via media, which, if 
 followed thoughtfully and patiently, 
 will often be found to lead us to 
 aspects of the sacred narrative, which 
 are in the highest degree interest- 
 ing and instructive. Variations are 
 not always necessarily inaccuracies ; 
 could we only transport ourselves to 
 the right point of view we should 
 see things in their true perspective ; 
 and that we can more often do so 
 than is generally supposed, has, I 
 venture to think, been far too sum- 
 marily denied. For some good re- 
 marks on Gospel harmony, see 
 Wieseler, Chron. Synops. p. 5 sqq.. 
 Da Costa, Four Witnesses, p. i sqq. 
 (Tran si.). 
 
 E. H. L. 
 
 2 
 
18 Introductory Considerations on the 
 
 LECT. 
 
 I. 
 
 we may have never seen, perhaps never heard of. 
 We may smile perhaps at the luckless sedulity 
 that deemed it necessary to assign to St Peter nine 
 denials of our Lord\ and we may perhaps scarcely 
 believe that such abuses of Evangelistic harmony 
 could have been originated by one who co-operated 
 with Luther, and whose works were not without 
 influence on his contemporaries, and on them that 
 followed him. We may perhaps now smile at such 
 efforts, but still if one only looks at some of the 
 harmonies of the present century, it seems abun- 
 dantly clear that these influences are even now not 
 wholly inoperative^, and that efforts to interweave 
 portions of the sacred narrative, without a proper 
 estimate of the different objects and characteristics 
 of the Evangelists, still find among us some fa- 
 vour and reception. In our desire, however, to 
 reject such palpably uncritical endeavours, let us 
 at any rate respect the principle by which they ap- 
 pear to have been actuated — a reverence, mistaken 
 it is true, but still a reverence for every jot and 
 tittle of the written word ; and let us beware too 
 that we are not tempted into the other extreme, — 
 
 ^ Osiander, Uarmon. Evang. p. 
 128 (Bas. 1561). This rigid and 
 somewhat arrogant divine was born 
 A.D. 1498: he was educated at Wit- 
 temberg and afterwards at Nurem- 
 berg, in which latter city he became 
 a preacher at one of the churches. 
 He warmly supported Luther in his 
 attack on Papal indulgences, but 
 afterwards fell into errors respecting 
 the application of Christ’s righteous- 
 ness and the divine image, which he 
 appears to have defended with un- 
 due confidence and pertinacity; see 
 
 Mosheim, Eccl. Hist. iv. 3. 2. i, 
 Vol. III. p. 357 (ed. Soames); Tho- 
 luck. Lit. Anzeiger for 1833, No. 54 ; 
 and for a short notice of his life, 
 Schrockh, Kirchengeschichte (Refor- 
 mation), Vol. IV. p. 572. 
 
 2 I fear I must here specify the 
 learned and laborious work of Dr 
 Stroud (Vew Grech Harmony of the 
 Four Gospels), in which in this same 
 case of St Peter’s denials, the event 
 is recounted under different forms 
 seven times ; see the Introduction, 
 p. clxxxix. 
 
Characteristics of the four Gospels. 
 
 10 
 
 tliat equally exaggerated view of modern times, i-ect. 
 
 that the discordances of the sacred writers are such — 
 
 as defy reconciliations and that all, save the great 
 events in the history of our Iledeemer, must ever 
 remain to us a collection of confused and inconse- 
 quent details. 
 
 In one word, let us remember that though it is Judicious 
 
 , combina- 
 
 uncritical, unwise, and even presumptuous to fabri- tion the 
 cate a patchwork narrative, yet that it is not only 
 possible, but our very duty to endeavour judici- 
 ously to combine'\ Let us remember that we have 
 four holy pictures, limned by four loving hands, of 
 Him who was ^fairer than the children of men^’ — 
 and that these have been vouchsafed to us, that by 
 varying our postures we may catch fresh beauties 
 and fresh glories^ Let us then fear not to use 
 
 ^ For some useful observations 
 on, and answers to the extreme views 
 that have been maintained on the 
 supposed discrepancies or diver- 
 gences that have been found in the 
 Gospel history, see Ebrard, Kritik 
 der Evang, Geschichte, § 19, p. 71 
 sqq. 
 
 2 Modern writers on harmonistic 
 study commonly draw distinctions 
 between Synopsis and Harmony, 
 and again between Chronology and 
 Order of Events {ATcolidhie). Such 
 distinctions are useful, and serve to 
 assist us in keeping clearly in view 
 the principles on which our combi- 
 nation is constructed. The problem, 
 however, we have to solve can really 
 be regarded under very simple as- 
 pects : it is merely this, (i) to deter- 
 mine, where possible, hy reference to 
 chronological data, the order and 
 connexion of events ; (2) to reconcile 
 any striking divergences we may 
 meet with in accounts of the same 
 
 event ; compare Chemnitz, Harmon. 
 Qiiatuor Evang. Proem, cap. 5. In 
 regard of (2) we must be guided by 
 the results of a sound exegesis of 
 each one of the supposed discordant 
 passages combined with a just ap- 
 preciation of the apparently leading 
 aims, objects and characteristics of 
 the inspired records to which they 
 respectively belong. In regard of 
 (i), where chronology fails us, we can 
 only fall back on the principle of 
 Chemnitz: — ‘Nos quaerimus ordi- 
 nem, cujus rationes, si non semper 
 certse et ubique manifestae, proba- 
 biles tamen nec absurdae nec vero 
 absimiles reddi possunt.’ Harmonia 
 Evang. Vol. i. p. 18 (Hamb. 1704). 
 
 3 Compare with this the judicious 
 observations of Da Costa: — ‘To 
 picture Christ to the eye in equal 
 fulness, that is, as an actual whole, 
 and that in all His aspects, one 
 witness was very far from being 
 sufficient ; but Divine wisdom could 
 2—2 
 
20 
 
 Introductory Considerations on the 
 
 LECT. 
 
 I. 
 
 Illustra- 
 tions of the 
 internal 
 character- 
 istics above 
 alluded to. 
 
 Individu- 
 ality of 
 St Mat- 
 thew’s 
 Gospel. 
 
 one to see more in light what another has left 
 more in shade ; let us scruple not to trace the line- 
 ament that one has left unexpressed, but another 
 has portrayed. Let us do all this, nothing doubt- 
 ing ; but let us beware, oh ! let us beware, lest in 
 seeking to work them up mechanically into what 
 might seem to us a well-adjusted whole, instead of 
 order we bring in confusion, distortion instead of 
 symmetry, burning instead of beauty. 
 
 Let me conclude with a few illustrations of 
 those internal characteristics and individualities of 
 the four Gospels, especially in reference to the pic- 
 ture of our Lord’s life, to which I have alluded, 
 and so prepare ourselves for thoughtful recogni- 
 tions, in future lectures, of divinely ordered dif- 
 ferences, and for wise and sober principles of 
 combination. 
 
 How striking is the coincidence between the 
 peculiar nature of the contents of the Gospel of 
 St Matthew, and what Scripture relates to us of 
 the position of him that wrote it. How natu- 
 rally we might expect from him who sat at the 
 receipt of custom on the busy shores of the lake 
 of Gennesareth, and who had learnt to arrange 
 and to methodize in the callings of daily life, — 
 how naturally we might expect careful grouping 
 and well-ordered • combination b And how truly 
 
 liere accomplish its object by means 
 of a fourfold testimony and a four- 
 sided delineation. In order to this, 
 it was meet that each of four Evan- 
 gelists should represent to us not 
 only the doings and sayings, but 
 the very person of the Saviour from 
 his own individual point of view 
 and in harmony with Ids own per- 
 
 sonal character and disposition.’ The 
 Four Witnesses, p. ii8 (Transl.). 
 
 ^ See the thoughtful comments of 
 Lange, Lehen Jesu, i. 7. 2, Vol. i. 
 p. 237 sq. It may perhaps be urged 
 that we are here tacitly assuming 
 that the details of the office of a 
 reXwvrjs were more in harmony with 
 modern practice than can actually 
 
21 
 
 Characteristics of the four Gospels, 
 
 we find it ! To leave unnoticed the vexed ques- 
 tion of the exact nature of the Sermon on the 
 Mounts — to whom save to St Matthew do we 
 owe that effective grouping of parables which we 
 find in the thirteenth chapter‘d, wherein each one 
 by its juxtaposition imparts additional force and 
 clearness to those with which it stands in im- 
 mediate contact ? Whose hand was it save the 
 wise publican’s that wove into narrative that glo- 
 rious garland of miracles of which the eighth and 
 ninth (Chapters are nearly entirely composed ® ? 
 
 be demonstrated. That an apx^re- 
 \<iv 7 ]s (sub raagistro) was especially 
 concerned with administrative de- 
 tails can he distinctly shown, but 
 that the simple collector {portitor), 
 such as St Matthew probably w'as, 
 had any duties of an analogous na- 
 ture, may be regarded as doubtful. 
 The very necessities of the case, 
 however, imply that the ^portitor’ 
 would have to render constant ac- 
 counts to his superior officer, — and 
 this seems quite enough to warrant 
 the comments in the text ; see Smith, 
 Diet, of Antiq. s. v. ‘ Publicani ; ’ 
 A2Am,Archceolog. Bill. § 241 ; Winer, 
 Realworterh. s. v. ‘Zoll,’ Vol. ii. p. 
 739 sq. 
 
 ^ See the comments on its pro- 
 bable structure in Lecture iv. 
 
 2 In this chapter we have the 
 longer parables of the Sower (ver. 
 3 — 9) and of the Tares and the 
 Wheat (ver. 24 — 30), and the shorter 
 comparisons of the kingdom of hea- 
 ven with the Grain of Mustard Seed 
 (ver. 31, 32), Leaven (ver. 33), the 
 Treasure in a field (ver. 44), the 
 Merchantman and the Pearl (ver. 
 45, 46), and the Net cast into the 
 sea (ver. 47, 48). The illustrative 
 connexion that exists between these 
 
 parables can hai'dly escape the notice 
 of the observant reader. We have, 
 as it were, seven varied aspects of 
 the kingdom of God on earth. In 
 the first parable w^e have placed be- 
 fore us the various classes in the 
 visible Church ; in the second we 
 contemplate the origin and presence 
 of evil therein, and its final removal 
 and overthrow ; in the third we see 
 the kingdom of God in its aspects 
 of growth and extension ; in the 
 fourth in its pervasive and regene- 
 rative character; in the fifth and 
 sixth in reference to its preciousness, 
 whether as discovered accidentally 
 or after deliberate search; in the 
 seventh in its present state of inclu- 
 siveness combined with its future 
 state of selection and unsparing se- 
 paration ; see Wordsworth, New Test. 
 Vol. I. p. 39; and compare Knox, 
 Remains, Vol. i. pp. 407 — 425. 
 
 ® In these two chapters we have 
 the narrative of the cleansing of a 
 leper (viii. 2 — 4) ; the healings of the 
 centurion’s servant (viii. 5—13), of 
 St Peter’s wife’s mother (viii. 14, 15), 
 and of numerous demoniacs (viii. 
 16); the stilling of the winds and 
 sea (viii. 24 — 26) ; the healing of the 
 demoniacs of Gadara (viii. 28 — 34) ; 
 
 LECT. 
 
 I. 
 
22 Introductory Considerations on the 
 
 LECT. brought together in such 
 
 ■ illustrative combinations the Lord’s last prophe- 
 
 cieS; and the partially prophetic parables that usher 
 in that most solemn revelation of our Kedeemer 
 to His Church, which concludes with the twenty- 
 fifth chapter^? 
 
 Especially But to uarrow our observations to that with 
 traiture of which we are more especially concerned, — with 
 our Lord. fop^e and effect are the contrasts, which 
 
 such habits of combination naturally suggest^ 
 employed in presenting to us vivid and impres- 
 sive aspects of our Redeemer s history. In what 
 striking antithesis do the opening chapters set 
 before us the new-born king of Peace and the 
 » ch.ii.1,3. savage Herod^, the mysterious adoration of the 
 Magi, and the hasty flight for life into a strange 
 ch. ii. II, land^, the baptism with the opened heavens and 
 descending Spirit, and the temptation with all 
 <= ch. iii. 13 its circumstances of satanic triaP. Observe too 
 iv.* liow thus heightened by contrast as well as herald- 
 ed by prophecy, the Lord appears to us as the 
 d ch. i. I. Son of David and the Son of Abraham‘S, the 
 spiritual King of spiritual Judaism, the Messiah 
 of the Israel of God^ Yet wdthal observe how 
 
 of the paralytic on his bed (ix. 2 — 8), 
 and of the woman with an issue of 
 blood (ix. 20 — 22); the raising of 
 Jairus’ daughter (ix. 23 — 25), the 
 healing of two blind men (ix. 28 — 
 30), and the dispossession of a dumb 
 demoniac (ix. 32 — 34). 
 
 ^ Especially the similitude of the 
 Unready Servant (xxiv. 43 — 51), and 
 the parables of the Ten Virgins 
 (xxv. I — 12), and of the Talents 
 (xxv. 14 — 30). 
 
 2 Compare Lange, Leben Jem, i. 
 
 7. 2, Vol. I. j). 240. The outlines 
 and general construction of St 
 Matthew’s Gospel are described by 
 Ebrard, KritiTc dcr Evang. Ges- 
 chichte, § 22, p, 86 sq. but not 
 under any very novel or suggestive 
 aspects. For some remarks on the 
 characteristic j)eculiarities of this 
 Gospel, see Davidson, Introduction 
 to N. T. Vol. I. p. 52 sq. 
 
 ^ Compare the fragments of Iro- 
 njBus, taken from Possini, Catena 
 Patruvn,, and cited in the various 
 
Characteristics of the four Gospels. 23 
 
 the Theocratic King and the suffering Messiah pass lect. 
 
 and repass before our eyes in ever new and ever 
 
 striking interchange, and how a strange and deep 
 tone of prophetic sadness blends with all we read, 
 and prepares us as it were for Gethsemane and 
 Calvary ; and yet again when the Lord has broken 
 the bands of death, whose save St Matthew’s is 
 that inspired pen that records that outpouring of 
 exalted majesty, ‘ All power is given me in heaven 
 and in earth ? To whom save to the first Evange- “ Matt, 
 list owe we the record of that promise which forms 
 the most consolatory heritage of the Church, ^ Lo ! 
 
 I am with you alway, even unto the end of the 
 
 world**’? ‘’Matt. 
 
 XXVlll. ^o. 
 
 No less strongly marked is the individuality individu- 
 of St Mark’s Gospel. No less clearly in this in-£k°J^^ 
 spired record can we trace the impressible and 
 fervid character which we almost instinctively 
 ascribe to John Mark the son of Mary'" (for I'^Actsxii. 
 hold the identity of the Evangelist with the 
 nephew of Barnabas) *, — to him that seems to 
 
 12 . 
 
 editions of that ancient writer (Grabe, 
 p. 471 ; Massuet, Vol. i. p. 347) ; it 
 is as follows : To /card, Mar^aioi' evay- 
 yiXiov Trpbs ’lovdaiovs iypdcpT]’ ovtol 
 yap iiredOp-ovv Trdvv acpodpa €k (XTrep- 
 yaaros AafSld Xpiarov. '0 5 ^ Mar- 
 daios, Kal in p.dX\ov <X(podpoTepav 
 iX(^v T^v TOiadrrju eTndvp.iav, irau- 
 Toiws icnrevde ifK'ppotpopiav irapex^i-v 
 avTots, (jjs eir] ck cnripp.aTOS Aa^id 6 
 XpLdTos. Alb Kai dwb yepiaeojs avrov 
 'qp^aro. Comp. Ebrard, Kritik der 
 Evang. Geschichte, § 21, p. 85. 
 
 ^ This opinion has of late been 
 considered doubtful (see Kienlen, 
 Siud. u. Krit. for 1843, P« 4'2 3 )> t)ut 
 apparently on insufficient grounds. 
 The silence of Papias as to the con- 
 
 nexion with Barnabas, on which an 
 argument has been based, cannot 
 fairly be pressed, as in the passage 
 in question (Euseb. Hist. Eccl. ill. 
 39) Papias appears occupied not 
 with the question who St Mark 
 was, but simply with the nature of 
 the testimony which he delivered 
 .and his dependence on St Peter. Ec- 
 clesiastical tradition seems to have 
 recognized three bearing this name, 
 the Evangelist, John Mark, and the 
 nephew of Barnabas, — but for such 
 a distinction still less can be said ; 
 comp. Coteler, Constit. Ajpost. ii. 57, 
 Vol. I. p. 265. The opinion of Da 
 Costa {Four Witnesses, p. 114 sq.), 
 that St Mark was the devout soldier 
 
24 Introductory Considerations on the 
 
 LECT. liave been so forward in action, and yet on one 
 
 — occasion at least too ready to fall away. I say 
 
 on one occasion at leasts for there are many whose 
 judgment demands our respect who also find in 
 the young man with the hastily-caught up linen 
 •Markxiv. garment who followed but to flee^, him who alone 
 has handed down to us that isolated noticed 
 
 Time would fail me if I were to name all 
 the many touches that stamp this impress of in- 
 dividuality on the work of the 'second Evangelist. 
 Do we not recognize his graphic pen and his 
 noticeable love of the objective and the circum- 
 stantial, in almost every event, and especially in 
 every miracle which he has been moved to record? 
 Is not this plainly apparent in the narrative of 
 •» Mark ii. the healing of the paralytic^, in that of the Gada- 
 « Mark V. rene demoniac^, in the account of the gradual re- 
 dSkviii. covery of the blind man of Bethsaida^^, and in 
 ® Ma?k ix striking description of the demoniac boy® ? 
 20 sqq. Js not this to be felt in the various touches that , 
 diversify almost every incident that finds a place 
 in his inspired record^ ? Is it not St Mark that 
 
 who attended on Cornelius (Acts x. 
 7), is a mere fancy, wholl}’’ destitute 
 of even traditional testimony. 
 
 ^ Such was the opinion of Chry- 
 sostom {in loc.), Gregory the Great 
 {Moral. XIV. 23), and one or two 
 other ancient writers. It may, how- 
 ever, justly be considered very pre- 
 carious, as the common and not un- 
 natural supposition that the young 
 man was a disciple does not seem to 
 accord with the comment of Papias, 
 oOtc yhp yKOvae rod Kvplov, oifre 
 TrapyKoXoidyaw air(p, ap. Euseb. 
 ffist Eccl. III. 39. 
 
 ^ These touches are very nume- 
 
 rous, but are perhaps more easily 
 felt than specified. We may notice, 
 however, the effective insertion on 
 three occasions of the very Aramaic 
 words that our Lord was pleased to 
 use (ch. V. 41, vii. 34, xiv. 36), 
 of the emphatic d/coi5ere prefixed to 
 the parable of the Sower (ch. iv. 3), 
 and of the words of power addressed 
 to the winds and sea (ch. v. 39). 
 Sometimes details are brought out 
 by the introduction of a single word 
 (ch. XV. 43, ToKpL-^aas), sometimes 
 by the simple use of a stronger ex- 
 pression than is found in the cor- 
 responding passage in the other 
 
25 
 
 Characteristics of the four Gospels, 
 
 presents to us our Master amid all the loneli- lect. 
 
 ness and horrors of the wilderness, ' with the wild 
 
 beasts^’ ? Is it not he who brings up, as it were ” Mark i. 
 before our very eyes, our Iledeemer on the storm- 
 tost lake ^in the hinder part of the ship asleep 
 on a pillow^’? Is it not he who so frequently Mark iv. 
 and precisely notes almost every distinctive ges- 
 ture and look\ and is it not to him that we 
 owe the last touch, as it were, to that affecting 
 picture of our Lord’s tenderness and love'", when x- 
 He ^ took up the young children in His arms, and 
 put His hands upon them, and blessed them’? 
 
 But still more does this individuality appear, Especially 
 and with this we are now most concerned, intraitur^of 
 the broad and general picture which this Evan- 
 gelist presents to us of his heavenly Master. If 
 in the first Gospel we recognize transitions from 
 theocratic glories to meek submissions, in the 
 
 Gospels (compare for instances Mark 
 i. lo, oipavois, with 
 
 Matth. iii. i6, Luke hi. 21; ch. i. 
 1 2, ^KjSdXXei, with Matth. iv. i, Luke 
 iv. i; ch. ii. 12, e^Lffraadai, with 
 Matth. ix. 8 ; ch. iv. 37, ye/xl^eadai, 
 with Matth. viii. 24, Luke viii. 23; 
 ch. vi. 46, aTTOTa^dfiepos, with Matth. 
 xiv. 43; ch. xiv. 33, eKdafi^eiadai 
 Kal dd 7 ]fxov€cv, with Matth. xxvi. 37), 
 while at other times we seem made 
 conscious, perhaps merely by a repe- 
 tition of a word or phrase (ch. i. 1 4, 
 15, ii. 16, iv. I, xi. 28, al.), perhaps 
 merely by a strengthened form {e.g. 
 cognate accus,, ch. iii. 29, iv. 41, v. 
 42, vii. 13, xiii. 19), of that graphic 
 vigour which so peculiarly charac- 
 terizes the record of the second Evan- 
 gelist. The single parable which is 
 peculiar to this Gospel (ch. iv. 26 sq.) 
 
 may be alluded to as bearing every 
 impress of the style of St Mark. 
 
 1 Many instances of this could be 
 cited : we may pause to specify the 
 all-embracing look {Trepi^Xiireffdai) 
 of our Lord which, with the excep- 
 tion of Luke vi. 10, is noticed only 
 by this Evangelist (ch. iii. 5, 34, v. 
 32, X. 23, xi. ii); the expression of 
 inward emotions on different occa- 
 sions (ch. vii. 34, viii. 12, x. 14, 21); 
 and the very interesting fact of our 
 Lord’s heading His band of disciples 
 on the last journey to Jerusalem, 
 mentioned in ch. x. 32; compare 
 Da Costa, Four Witnesses, p. 1 2 1 ; 
 Lange, Lehen Jesu, i. 7, 2, Vol. 
 I. p. 1 79 sq. ; Guerike, Einleitung, 
 § 39 - 3 > P* 258 note; and David- 
 son, Introduction to N. T, Vol. i. 
 p. 150. 
 
LECT. 
 
 I. 
 
 “ Mark x. 
 3 ^- 
 
 ^ Mark ix. 
 14 ; xi. 18. 
 
 ® Mark iv. 
 
 1. 
 
 Mark iii. 
 10 ; vi. 31. 
 ® Mark v. 
 
 20. 
 
 f Mark vi. 
 
 2. 
 
 B Mark vii. 
 
 36. 
 
 ^ Mark vi. 
 56. 
 
 * Mark xvi. 
 
 19. 
 
 26 Introductory Considerations on the 
 
 second we see our E/odeemer in one light only, 
 of majesty and power. If in St Matthew’s re- 
 cord we behold now the glorified and now the 
 suffering Messiah, in St Mark’s vivid pages we 
 see only the all-powerful incarnate Son of God; 
 the voice we hear is that of the Lion of the 
 Tribe of Judah.... "With what peculiar variety of 
 expression does this inspired writer notice the awe 
 and amazement, no less of the familiar circle of 
 the disciples^ than of the more impressible multi- 
 tude^. With what circumstantial touches does he 
 put before us — Him on whose lips the multitude 
 so hung that they had scarce room to stand or 
 time to eat*^, — Him that wrought such wondrous 
 works that all men did marvel®, — yea, and un- 
 believing Nazareth was astonished^, — Him whose 
 fame was spread all the more that He sought 
 to conceal it^, — Him before whose feet ^ whither- 
 soever he entered, villages or cities^,’ the sick were 
 laid out, and laid out only to be made whole. 
 
 These things can escape the observation of 
 no attentive reader, nor will they perhaps fail 
 almost to convince him, as they have almost con- 
 vinced me, that he whose narrative like Stephen’s 
 glance penetrates beyond the clouds, and tells us 
 how the Lord ^ was received up into heaven and 
 sat down at the right hand of GodV was John 
 Mark the Evangelist h 
 
 ^ It is right to speak with diffi- 
 dence on a point on which modern 
 critics and commentators (even Dr 
 Wordsworth) have j udged differently. 
 It is not desirable here to enter upon 
 a criticism of external evidence, which 
 will be found clearly and ably stated 
 elsewhere (see especially the critical 
 
 notes to the new edition of Tischen- 
 dorf’s Greek Testament ; Meyer, Com- 
 ment on St Mark, p. 1 70 sqq. ; and 
 Tregelles, Printed Text of the N. T. 
 pp. 246 — 261), exce])t to remark that 
 the only char and unqualified exter- 
 nal evidence against the passage is 
 now reduced to B, the Latin Codex 
 
Characteristics of the four Gospels. 
 
 27 
 
 Still more clearly, if it be possible, can we 
 recognize the individuality of the Gospel of St 
 Luke. Here the coincidences between the nature 
 of the history and what we know of him who 
 wrote it, — the wise physician of Antioch \ — the 
 proselyte as it has been thought of the gate, — 
 the only one of the four Evangelists who bore 
 in his body the mark of belonging to the wide 
 world that was not of the stock of Abraham^, — 
 meet us again and again, and press themselves 
 
 Bobbiensis, some old MSS, of the 
 Armenian Version, an Arabic Ver- 
 sion in the Vatican, and perhaps we 
 may add Severus of Antioch, and 
 Hesychius of Jerusalem (see Tischen- 
 dorf, 1 . c.), — the testimonies of Eu- 
 sebius and Jerome being not so cer- 
 tain (see Wordsworth, Four Gospels, 
 p. 127). As a set off against the 
 arguments founded on differences in 
 the use of a few words and expres- 
 sions (see Norton, Genuineness of the 
 Gospels, Vol. I. p. 219, ed. 2), we 
 may certainly plead the circumstan- 
 tial tone of ver, 10 [irevdovcnv Kal 
 KXalovcnp), of ver. 1 2 {er eripa p.op4>^, 
 TTopevopbevoLS ds aypbv), the specifica- 
 tions of ver. 17 sq., — against which 
 the objections commonly urged seem 
 most noticeably weak, — and the con- 
 clusion of ver. 19. Why may not 
 this portion have been written by 
 St Mark at a later period when 
 mere verbal peculiarities might have 
 altered, but when general sentiment 
 and style might, as we seem to ob- 
 serve is the case, remain wholly 
 unchanged ? To speculate on the 
 causes which led to the interruption 
 at the end of the 8th verse is per- 
 haps idle. The terrible persecution 
 under Nero, a.d. 64, is, however, 
 somewhat plausibly urged as a pos- 
 
 sible period when the Evangelist 
 might have suddenly sought safety 
 by flight, leaving the record, which 
 he had been so pressed to write 
 (Euseb. Hist. Eccl. ii. 15, vi. 14), 
 unfinished, and to be concluded per- 
 haps in another land, and under 
 more peaceful circumstances : comp. 
 Norton, Genuineness of the Gospels, 
 Vol. I. p. 221. 
 
 1 Compai’e Euseb. Hist. Eccl. in. 
 4, — AovKcis rd pikv yeros cop tCop air' 
 * ApTioxdas ; see also Jerome, Catal. 
 Script, cap. 16. This statement has 
 been recently considered doubtful 
 (Winer, RWB. Art ‘Lucas,’ Vol. ii, 
 p. 35; Meyer, Einleitung, p. 182), 
 and due merely to a mistaken iden- 
 tification of the Evangelist with 
 Lucius (Actsxiii. i), but apparently 
 without sufficient reason. The re- 
 cent attempt to identify St Luke 
 with Silas has been noticed, but re- 
 futed by Dr Davidson, Introduction, 
 Vol. II. p. 20. 
 
 2 This has been usually and, as it 
 would seem, correctly inferred from 
 Col. iv. 14, where St Luke and 
 Demas are named by themselves, 
 and, with Epaphras, not included 
 in the list which preceded (ver. 10, 
 ii) of those who were of the circum- 
 cision ; see notes in loc: 
 
 LECT. 
 
 I. 
 
 Individua- 
 lity of 
 St Luke’s 
 Gospel. 
 
28 Introductory Considerations on the 
 
 upon our attention, in ever new and ever sug- 
 
 gestive combinations. I may allude in passing to 
 
 the frequent and characteristic statement of the 
 circumstances or reasons that gave rise to the 
 events or discourses recorded^ which we find so 
 strikingly in this Gospel. I may notice the pecu- 
 liarly reflective and, if I may use the term, psy- 
 chological comments which the thoughtful physi- 
 cian so often passes on the actors or the circum- 
 stances which he brings forward in his inspired 
 narrative. 
 
 Portmiture These things we can here only allude to in 
 
 Lord. 1 This may be observed especially 
 
 in the way in which the parables, 
 peculiar to this Evangelist, are com- 
 monly introduced into the sacred 
 narrative : compare ch. vii, 39 sq., 
 
 X. 30 sq., xii. 13 sq., xviii. i, and 
 very distinctly xix. ii. We may 
 also here specify St Luke’s account 
 of the outward circumstances that 
 led to our Lord’s being born at 
 , Bethlehem, the valuable clue he 
 gives us to one of the significances 
 of the Transfiguration (ch. ix. 31), 
 the notice how St Peter came to be 
 armed with a sword (ch. xxii. 38), 
 the mention of our Lord’s being first 
 blindfolded, and then bidden to pro- 
 phecy who struck Him (ch. xii. 63 ; 
 compare Blunt, Coincidences of the 
 Gospels, No. XII. p. 47) ; and £0 con- 
 clude a list, which might be made 
 much longer, the allusion to the cir- 
 cumstance which led to our Lord’s 
 being taken before Herod (ch. xxiii. 
 
 6 sq.); compare also Lange, Lehen 
 Jesu, I. 7. 2, Vol. I. p. 256. 
 
 2 We may specify a few instances; 
 e.ff. the passing comment on the 
 as yet imperfect perceptions of Jo- 
 seph and Mary, ch. ii. 50, 51; the 
 notice of the expectancy of the peo- 
 
 ple, ch. iii. 15; the glimpse given 
 us of the inward thoughts of the 
 Pharisee, ch. vii. 39 ; the passing 
 remark on their spiritual state gene- 
 rally, ver. 30 ; the brief specification 
 of their prevailing characteristic, 
 ch. xvi. 14; the sketch of the prin- 
 ciples of action adopted by the spies 
 sent forth by the chief priests and 
 scribes, ch. xx. 20; the notice of 
 the entry of Satan into Judas, ch. 
 xxii. 3, and the significant comment 
 on the altered relations between 
 Pilate and Herod, ch. xxiii. 12. 
 We may remark in passing that the 
 difference between these comments 
 and those which we meet with in St 
 John’s Gospel is clear and charac- 
 teristic. In St John’s Gospel such 
 comments are nearly always specially 
 introduced to explain or to elucidate 
 (comp. ch. iii. 23, 24, iv. 8, 9, vi. 
 4, 10, 23, 71, vii. 39, xi. 2, 13, ah); 
 in St Luke’s Gospel they are rather 
 obiter dicta, the passing remarks of 
 a thoughtful and reflective writer, 
 called up from time to time by the 
 varied aspects of the events which 
 he is engaged in recording ; comp. 
 Lange, Lehen Jesu, i. 7. 2, Vol. i. 
 p. 256 sq. 
 
Characteristics of the four Gospels. 29 
 
 passing ; we may, however, with profit to our- lect. 
 
 selves pause somewhat on the portraiture of our 
 
 Ixedeenier as presented to us by this Evangelist. 
 
 If, as I said, St Matthew presents to us our 
 Redeemer more especially as the Messiah, the Son 
 of Abraham and the Son of David; if St Mark 
 more especially presents Him to us as the incar- 
 nate and wonder-working Son of God, assuredly 
 St Luke presents Him to us in the most wide 
 and universal aspects^ as the God-man, the Friend 
 and Redeemer of fallen humanity, yea even as 
 his own genealogy declares it, not merely the 
 Son of David and the Son of Abraham, but the 
 Son of Adam, and the Son of God\...With what 
 affecting delineation does He who tenderly loved 
 the race He came to save appear to us in the 
 raising of the son of the widow of Nain^, — in“ch. vii. 
 
 1 The universality of St Luke’s 
 Gospel has been often commented 
 on. Not only in this Gospel do we 
 feel ourselves often, as it were, 
 transported into the domain of gene- 
 ral history (comp. Da Costa, Four 
 Witnesses, p. 154), — not only can 
 we recognize the constantly recur- 
 ring relations or contrasts of J udaism 
 and Gentilism (Ebrard, KritiJc der 
 Evang. Gesch. § 3 1, p. 1 20), — not only 
 may we, with most modern critics, 
 see this universality very distinctly 
 brought out in the notice of the 
 mission of the Seventy Disciples 
 (Credner, Einleitung, § 60, p. 144), 
 but we may trace the same charac- 
 teristic in some of the recitals of 
 leading events, in some of the mira- 
 cles and parables, and in several of 
 our Lord’s isolated comments and 
 observations: consider, for example, 
 ch. ii. 31, 32; iv. 27; ix. i — 6 
 
 (especially when contrasted with 
 Matth. X. 5 — 6), ix. 52 sq., x. 30 sq., 
 xvi. 16, xvii. II sq., xix. 38 (as 
 contrasted with Matth. xxi. 9, Mark 
 xi. 9, 10, John xii. 13, — in all of 
 which the reference is to the theo- 
 cratic rather than to the universal 
 King), xxiv. 47, and compare Pa- 
 tritius, de Evangeliis, i. 3. 5. 80; 
 Vol. I. p. 92. 
 
 2 This difference did not escape 
 the notice of Chrysostom; '0 gh 
 Mar^atos, are *E/3/)ai'ots ypdcpiov, oi- 
 dir TrXiov e^rjTt](xe dei^ac, 7 } 6'rt dirb 
 ‘A^pactfi Kal Aavtd 6 db Aovk5.s 
 are Koivy 'irdat diaXeydgevos Kal 
 dvcjTepoj Tov \6yov dvdyei, p.ixP’’ 
 ’Addp, TTpdiwv, in Matth. Horn. I. p. 7 
 (ed. Bened) ; see also Origen, ap. 
 Euseb. Hist. Eccl. vi. 25, and the 
 comments on this Gospel of Ebrard, 
 Kritih der Ev. Geschichte, § 31, p. 
 120 sq. 
 
LECT. 
 
 I. 
 
 ® ch. vii. 
 
 37 sq. 
 
 ^ ch. XV. 3 
 sq.; also in 
 Matt.xviii. 
 
 lO. 
 
 ® ch. XV. 8 
 sq. 
 
 “ ch. xi. 1 1 
 
 ® ch. xxiii. 
 27 sq. 
 f ch. xxiii. 
 
 34 - 
 
 B ch. xxiii 
 40. 
 
 ** ch. xxiv. 
 
 50. 
 
 Individu- 
 ality of 
 St John’s 
 Gospel. 
 
 30 Introductory Considerations on the 
 
 the narrative of her who was forgiven ‘because 
 she loved much^/ — in the parables of the lost 
 sheep the lost coin‘d, and the prodigal son’^, — 
 in the address to the daughters^ of Jerusalem®, — 
 in the prayer for those who had crucified Him^, 
 — in the gracious promise to the penitent male- 
 factor®, vouchsafed even while the lips that spake 
 it were quivering with agonies of accumulated 
 suffering. 
 
 In all these things, and in how many more 
 than these that could easily be adduced, see we 
 not the living picture of Him who was at once 
 the Son of Man in mercy and the Son of God 
 in power, whose grace and redemptive blessings 
 extended to both Jew and Gentile, and who, even 
 as He is borne up into the clouds of heaven, 
 passes from our view in the narrative of St Luke 
 blessing those from, whom He is parting — ^and 
 it came to pass while He blessed them. He was 
 parted from them and carried up into heaven, 
 and they worshipped Him, and returned to J eru- 
 salem with great joy’ ? 
 
 On the internal characteristics of the Gospel of 
 St John, and the picture that is there vouchsafed 
 to us of our Lord, I need perhaps say but little, as 
 that blessed Gospel is to so large an extent com- 
 posed of the Redeemer’s own words, and as modern 
 thought no less than the meditations of antiquity 
 
 ^ It may be observed that con- xxiii. 27, 55, and see also vii. 37 sq. 
 sistently with the characteristic of The same feature is especially no- 
 universality above alluded to, St ticeable in the Acts; comp. ch. i. 
 Luke brings before us, more fre- 14, viii. 12, ix. 2, ix. 36, xii. 12, 
 quently than the other Evangelists, xvi. i, 14, al. ; comp. Da Costa, 
 notices of pious and ministering Four Witnesses, p. 189 sq., Lange, 
 women; comp. ch. ii. 36, viii. 2, Leben Jesu, Vol. i. p. 259. 
 
Characteristics of the four Gospels. 
 
 81 
 
 seem rarely to have missed seizing the true aspects 
 
 of the divine image of the Son of God that is there 
 
 presented to us\ The very words which I have 
 chosen as my text declare the general object of the 
 Gospel, — even Hhat we may believe that Jesus 
 is the Christ the Son of God^;’ the very opening xx. 31. 
 words suggest the lofty sense in which that son- 
 ship is to be understood, — Hhe Word was with 
 God, and the Word was God^’ As in the synop- ch. i. i. 
 tical Gospels the Incarnate Son is mainly displayed 
 to us in the operative majesty of outwardly-exer- 
 cised omnipotence, so in the fourth Gospel is He 
 mainly revealed to us in the tranquil majesty of 
 conscious unity with the eternal Father‘d Here 
 we are permitted to catch mysterious glimpses of 
 the very inner life of our redeeming Lord; we 
 behold the reader of the thoughts and intents of 
 
 1 The excellent work of Luthardt 
 (das Johanneische Evangeliwm, Niirn- 
 berg, 1852) may here be especially 
 noticed. In this the reader will find 
 full and careful notices of all that 
 is peculiar and distinctive in this 
 Gospel, an exposition of the plan 
 of development, and comments on 
 the component parts of the narra- 
 tive. The writer is perhaps too 
 much carried away by his theory of 
 the regular and dramatic structure 
 of the Gospel, and sometimes too 
 artificial in his analysis of details, 
 still his work remains, and will pro- 
 bably long remain, as one of the 
 best essays on St John’s Gospel that 
 has ever appeared. For a review, see 
 Reuter, Repertor. Vol. lxxxv. p. 97. 
 
 A good essay on the life and cha- 
 racter of the Apostle will be found 
 in Liicke, Comment, uber Joh. § 2, 
 
 Vol. I. p. 6 sqq., and some useful 
 
 remarks on the general plan and ar- 
 rangement of the Gospel, in Ebrard, 
 Kritih der Ev. Geschichte, § 35, p. 
 14 1 sq. ; see also Davidson, Intro- 
 duction, Vol. I. p. 334. 
 
 2 Compare Augustine, de Consensu 
 Evdng. i. 5 : ‘Intelligi datur, si dili- 
 genter advertas, tres Evangelistas 
 temporalia facta Domini et dicta 
 quse ad informandos mores* vitse pre- 
 sents maxime valerent, copiosius 
 persecutes, circa illam activam vir- 
 tutem fuisse versatos : J oannem vero 
 facta Domini multa pauciora nar- 
 rantem, dicta vero ejus, ea prseser- 
 tim quse Trinitatis unitatem et vitse 
 seternse felicitatem insinuarent, dili- 
 gentius et uberius conscribentem, in 
 virtute contemplativa commendan- 
 d^, suam intentionem prsedicatio- 
 nemque tenuisse.’ Vol. iii. p. 1046 
 (ed. Migne) ; compare Lange, Leben 
 Jesu, I. 7. 2, Vol. I. p. 265 sq. 
 
LECT. 
 
 I. 
 
 “ Exodus 
 xxiii. 1 1 . 
 
 Isai. 
 
 xxiii. 17, 
 
 32 Introductory Considerations on the 
 
 the human heart we note the ever-present con- 
 sciousness of truest and innermost union with the 
 Father of Spirits ^ Yet we feel rather than see; 
 we are made conscious rather than observe. Here, 
 in the stillness of our hearts, as we read those 
 heavenly discourses, we seem to feel the Son of 
 God speaking® to us ^as a man speaketh with his 
 friend His image seems slowly to rise up before 
 us; the ideal picture gathers shape; we seem to 
 see, yea in exalted moments we do see, limned as 
 it were in the void before our eyes, ^ the King in 
 His beauty^;’ heaven and earth melt away from 
 our rapt gaze, we spiritually behold the very Ke- 
 
 1 This seems a decided and some- 
 what noticeable characteristic of this 
 Gospel; see, for example, ch. i. 47, 
 ii. 24, iv. 17, 18, V. 42, vi. 15, 61, 
 64, xiii. II ; compare xi. 4, 15. It 
 may be observed that in some in- 
 stances, e.g. our Lord’s conversa- 
 tion with Nicodemus, a remembrance 
 of this characteristic will greatly 
 assist us in understanding the true 
 force of our Lord’s words. It would 
 certainly seem, in a few cases, as 
 if our Lord was not so much reply- 
 ing to the words of the speaker, as 
 to the thoughts which He knew 
 were rising up within ; compare 
 Meyer, on Joh. iii. 3 ; Stier, Reden 
 Jesu, Vol. IV. p. 376 sq. (Clark). 
 
 2 Compare ch. iii. 16, 35 sq. v. 
 17 sq. vi. 57, viii. 42, x. 15, 30, 
 xi. 42. al. It may be further ob- 
 served that it is in St John’s Gospel 
 alone that we find the title govoyipr)^ 
 applied to the Eternal Son ; see 
 ch. i. 14, 18, iii. 16, 18, and comp. 
 I John iv. 9. 
 
 ^ In this Gospel our Lord is truly 
 to us what the significant appella- 
 tion of the inspired writer declares 
 
 Him to be, — the Word. In the 
 other Gospels our attention is mainly 
 centered on our Lord’s acts, but in 
 this last one He speaks ; see Da 
 Costa, Four Witnesses, p. 240. It 
 may indeed be noticed as one of the 
 striking features of this Gospel that 
 it makes all its characters exhibit 
 their individuality to us by what 
 they say rather than by what they 
 do. We may recognize this kind of 
 self- portraiture partially in the case 
 of Nathanael (ch. i. 47 sq.) and Ni- 
 codemus (ch. iii. I sq.), and very 
 distinctly in that of the woman of 
 Samaria (ch. iii. 7 sq.) and of the 
 man born blind (ch. ix. i, 39). The 
 very enemies of our Lord appear 
 similarly before us ; all their doubts 
 (ch. viii. 22), divisions (ch. x. 19), 
 and machinations (ch. xi. 47) are 
 disclosed to us as it were by them- 
 selves and in the words that fell 
 from their own lips. For some good 
 remarks on the individualizing traits 
 and characteristics of those who ap- 
 pear on the pages of St John’s 
 Gospel, see Luthardt, Das Johann. 
 Evang. iii. 2, Part i. p. 98, sq. 
 
Characteristics of the four Gospels. 83 
 
 cleeiner of the world, we hear tlie reassuring voice, 
 and we say, with a conviction deep as that of him 
 whom this Gospel tells us of, My Lord and my 
 God^" 
 
 On the picture of our Lord which this Gospel 
 presents to us‘, I am sure then I need say no 
 more. I will only in conclusion call your atten- 
 tion to the mystical completeness which this 
 Gospel gives to the evangelical history. I will 
 only ask you to spend a moment’s thought on that 
 everlasting wisdom by which it was foreordained 
 that a Gospel should be vouchsafed to us in which 
 the loftiest ideal purities and glories with which 
 we might be able to invest the Son of David, 
 the Son of God, and the Son of Man, might re- 
 ceive a yet loftier manifestation, and by which the 
 more distinctly historical pictures disclosed to us 
 by the synoptical Evangelists might be made in- 
 stinct with a quickening life, which assuredly they 
 lack not, but which we might never have com- 
 pletely realized if we had not been endowed with 
 the blessed heritage of the Gospel of St J ohn^ 
 
 For some further notices and 
 illustrations, see especially Luthardt, 
 Das Johann. Evang. in. 2, p. 92 sq., 
 and for compai'isons between the 
 pictures of our Redeemer as dis- 
 played to us in this and the three 
 other Gospels, Lange, Lehen Jesu, i. 
 7. 2, Vol. I. p. 271 sq. ; compare also 
 Da Costa, Four Witnesses, p. 286 sq. 
 
 2 We may perhaps profitably close 
 this comparison of the characteris- 
 tics of the four Gospels with a brief 
 statement of some of the distinc- 
 tions which have either been above 
 alluded to, or may be further ad- 
 duced as evincing the clear indivi- 
 E. H. L. 
 
 duality of each one of the inspired 
 records. In regard of (i) the Exter- 
 nal features and characteristics, we 
 are perhaps warranted in saying 
 that (a) the point of view of the first 
 Gospel is mainly Israelitic ; of the 
 second, Gentile ; of the third, uni- 
 versal ; of the fourth, Christian ; — 
 that (6) the general aspect and, so to 
 speak, physiognomy of the first is 
 mainly Oriental ; of the second, 
 Roman j of the third, Greek ; of the 
 fourth, spiritual ; — that (c) the style 
 of the first is stately and rhythmical ; 
 of the second, terse and precise ; of 
 the third, calm and copious ; of the 
 
 3 
 
 LECT. 
 
 I. 
 
 ® John XX. 
 28. 
 
34 Introductory Considerations on the 
 
 LECT. 
 
 I. 
 
 Conclu- 
 
 sion. 
 
 And now I must close these meditations. Fain 
 would I dwell on some practical applications, but 
 the remembrance that these are Lectures rather 
 than Sermons, and that the time is far spent, warns 
 me to say no more. Yet I cannot part from you, 
 my younger brethren, without simply yet lovingly 
 urging you ere we again meet in this church to 
 spend a brief hour in reviving your remembrance 
 of the events in our Redeemer’s history which con- 
 clude with the return of the Holy family to Naza- 
 reth, and precede the isolated notice of our Lord’s 
 visit to the Temple when twelve years old; for thus 
 far my next lecture will extend. I venture to 
 suggest this, for I feel that you will thus be ena- 
 bled to enter with a fresher interest into the medi- 
 tations, into which with the help of Almighty God 
 
 fourth, artless and colloquial ; — that 
 {d) the most striking characteristic 
 of the first is symmetry ; of the 
 second, compression ; of the third, 
 order ; of the fourth, system ; — that 
 (c) the thought and language of the 
 first are both Hebraistic ; of the 
 third, both Hellenistic ; while in 
 the second the thought is often Oc- 
 cidental though the language is He- 
 braistic ; and in the fourth the lan- 
 guage Hellenistic, but the thought 
 Hebraistic. Again, (2), in respect of 
 Subject-matter and contents we may 
 say perhaps, (a), that in the first 
 Gospel we have narrative; in the 
 second, memoirs ; in the third, his- 
 tory ; in the fourth, dramatic por- 
 traiture ; — (6) that in the first we 
 have often the record of events in 
 their accomplishment ; in the second, 
 events in their detail ; in the third, 
 events in their connexion ; in the 
 fourth, events in relation to the 
 teaching springing from them ; — that 
 
 thus, (c), in the first we more often 
 meet with the notice of impressions ; 
 in the second, of facts ; in the third, 
 of motives ; in the fourth, of words 
 spoken ; — and that lastly, {d), the 
 record of the first is mainly collec- 
 tive and often antithetical ; of the 
 second, graphic and circumstantial ; 
 of the third, didactic and reflective ; 
 of the fourth, selective and supple- 
 mental. We may, (3), conclude by 
 saying that in respect of the Por- 
 traiture of our Lord, the first Gospel 
 presents Him to us mainly as the 
 Messiah ; the second, mainly as the 
 God-man ; the third, as the Ee- 
 deemer ; the fourth, as the only- 
 begotten Son of God. For illustra- 
 tions of this summary the reader 
 may be referred to the Four Wit- 
 nesses of Da Costa, to Davidson, 
 Introduction to the N, T. Vol. i. ; 
 Lange, Leben Jesu, i. 7 * Vol. i. 
 p. 234 — 281 ; Ebrard, Kritih der 
 Evang. Geschiclite, § 10 — 39. 
 
Characteristics of the four Gospels, 35 
 
 I hope to lead you next Sunday afternoon. Yet 
 withal remember, I beseech you, tliat this is no 
 mere investigation of chronological difficulties, no 
 dry matter of contested annals, but involves an 
 effort to see and feel with more freshness and 
 reality the significance of the recorded events in 
 the earthly life of the Eternal Sonh Remember 
 that it imj)lies a humble endeavour by the grace of 
 the inworking Spirit to gain a more vital and per- 
 sonal interest in the inspired history of Him who 
 stooped to wear the garments of our mortality, 
 who submitted for our sakes to all the condition- 
 ing circumstances of earthly life, was touched with 
 a sense of our infirmities, yea as an inspired writer 
 has told us, was pleased to learn obedience ^ by the 
 things that He suffered though himself the King 
 of Kings and Lord of Lords, God blessed for ever ; 
 Amen. 
 
 Such a work, if regarded under such aspects, 
 and with such remembrances, both is and must be 
 blessed. Such contemplations, if engaged in with 
 a humble and loving spirit, will add a strength to 
 your faith, which, it may be, the storm and stress 
 of coming life will never be able successfully to 
 weaken, and against which those doubts and diffi- 
 culties which at times try the hearts of the young 
 and inexperienced, will be found both powerless 
 and unprevailing. 
 
 1 For some excellent remarks on 
 the unity of the Gospel-history on 
 the one hand, and its fourfold^ 
 yet organically connected revelation 
 of our Redeemer’s life and works on 
 the other, see especially the elo- 
 
 quent and thoughtful work of Dr 
 Lange, already several times referred 
 to. Das Lehen Jesu, vii. i, 2, Book 
 I. p. 230 sq. — a work, which, we sin- 
 cerely hope, may ere long meet with 
 a competent translator. 
 
 3—2 
 
 LECT. 
 
 I. 
 
 Heb.v.8. 
 
86 
 
 Introductory Considerations do. 
 
 LECT. 
 
 I. 
 
 Eph, i. 
 
 i8. 
 
 Oh ! may the grace of our Kedeemer be with 
 you; may He quicken your young hearts, may 
 He show unto you His glorious beauty, may 
 His image grow in your souls, and both in you 
 and in us all may His life-giving Spirit en- 
 lighten the eyes of our understanding^, and fill 
 us heart and soul and spirit with all the fulness 
 of God. 
 
LECTURE II. 
 
 THE BIRTH AND INFANCY OF OUR LORD. 
 
 St Luke ii. 40 . 
 
 And the child grew, and waxed strong in spirit, filled with 
 wisdom : and the grace of God was upon Him. 
 
 The text which I have just read, brethren, forms lect. 
 
 the concluding verse of that portion of the Evan ^ — 
 
 gelical history to which, with God’s assisting grace, peJirofth^e 
 I purpose directing your attention this afternoon. ^ertlkLg”' 
 We may now be said to have fairly entered upon 
 the solemn subject which I propose treating in 
 these lectures; and we shall do well at once to 
 address ourselves to its discussion. And that too 
 without any further preliminary matter, as I trust 
 that my remarks last Sunday will have so far 
 prepared us for the sound and reverential use of 
 the four sources of our Redeemer’s history, that 
 we need no longer delay in applying the principles 
 which were there alluded to. 
 
 I will pause only so far to gather up the results 
 of our foregoing meditations, as to remind you 
 that, if our observations on the general character 
 and relations of the four inspired records were in 
 any degree just and reasonable, it would certainly 
 seem clear that our present endeavour to set forth 
 a continuous and connected life of our Master, 
 must involve a constant recognition of two seem- 
 ingly opposite modes of proceeding. On the one 
 hand, we must regard the four holy histories as to 
 
88 
 
 The Birth and Infancy 
 
 LECT. 
 
 II. 
 
 a great degree independent in their aims, objects, 
 and general construction, — as marked by certain 
 fore-ordered and providentially-marked character- 
 istics; and yet, on the other hand, we must not 
 fail to observe that they stand in such relations 
 to each other as may both sanction and justify 
 our combining them in a general delineation of 
 the chief features of our Bedeemer’s earthly life. 
 While we may shrink from mere cold and some- 
 times forced harmonizing on this side, we must 
 not, on that, so exaggerate seeming differences^ 
 as to plead exemption from the edifying task of 
 comparing Scripture with Scripture^, and of sup- 
 plying from one inspired writer what another might 
 have thought it meet to leave unnoticed or un- 
 explained. Nay more, we must not shrink from 
 noting even seeming discrepancies^, lest we fail 
 to learn, by a more attentive consideration of them, 
 
 1 This, which Augustine {de Con- 
 sensu Evang., i. 7. 10) well calls 
 ‘palmare vanitatis,’ has been far 
 too much the tendency of modern 
 commentators and essayists, espe- 
 cially in Germany. We may ob- 
 serve this not merely in the repul- 
 sive productions of men like Strauss 
 and his followers, but even in the 
 commentaries of more sober and 
 thoughtful writers. I may specify, 
 for instance, the otherwise valuable 
 commentary of Dr Meyer. Here 
 we have not only the fewest possible 
 efforts to adjust or account for dif- 
 ferences in the order of events in 
 the Gospel history, but only too 
 often a tendency to represent them 
 greater than they really are found 
 to be; compare, for example, this 
 writer’s objectionable remarks on 
 Luke V. I — ir, Kommentar, p. 263. 
 
 The results of the modern destruc- 
 tive school are stated fairly and 
 clearly by Ebrard, Kritik der Evang. 
 Gesch. § 114 — 1 18, p. 608; see 
 especially p. 641. 
 
 ^ Some judicious remarks on the 
 true Christian method of estimating, 
 comparing, and criticizing the in- 
 spired records of the four Evan- 
 gelists, will be found in the intro- 
 duction to Lange’s Leben Jesuj see 
 especially Book i. 4. 7, Vol. i. p. 
 14 1 sq. 
 
 ^ The duty of the critic in this 
 respect is well stated by Dr Lange 
 in the work above referred to : ‘ The 
 Evangelist,’ he says, ‘ may certainly, 
 nay must appear to contradict him- 
 self ; for the appearance of such 
 contradiction is the mark of life, 
 depth, and freshness. Nature ap- 
 p>ears a thousand times over to con- 
 
80 
 
 of our Lord. 
 
 how they commonly arise from our ignorance of lect. 
 
 some unrecorded relations, — and how the seeming 
 
 discord is due only to the Selahs and silences in 
 the mingled strains of Evangelical harmony \ 
 
 But let us delay no longer, for the subject Anange- 
 before us is so extended, that it will fully occupy subject, 
 all our time, and so varied that it will require 
 some adjustment to adapt it to the prescribed 
 limits of these lectures. 
 
 As the present course of the Hulsean Lectures 
 is limited in its duration to one year, and con- 
 sequently will, at the very utmost, only afford me 
 eight opportunities of addressing you^, it will per- 
 haps be best to adopt the following divisions. In 
 the present lecture we will consider the events of 
 the Lord’s infancy. Next Sunday we will meditate 
 on the single recorded event of our Lord’s boyhood, 
 and that portion of the history of His manhood, 
 which commences with His baptism, and concludes 
 with the miracle at the pool of Bethesda, — in a 
 word, what may be roughly though conveniently 
 termed our Lord’s early Judcean ministry. A 
 
 tradict herself. If a critic finds a 
 difficulty in such an appearance of 
 contradiction, and demands from the 
 Gospels the precision of notaries, 
 he clearly enough evinces his own 
 incapability of forming a just esti- 
 mate of them.*^ Leben Jesu, i. 4. 7, 
 Vol. I. p. 144. See also some brief 
 but good remarks on seeming dis- 
 crepancies in the inti'oduction to 
 Chrysostom’s Homilies on St Matth. 
 I. p. 5 (ed. Bened.). 
 
 1 ‘ But if in recounting the won- 
 ders (of the Gospel history) all did 
 not mention the same things, but 
 one mentioned this set of incidents 
 and another that, do not be dis- 
 turbed thereby. For if one had 
 
 related everything the rest would 
 have been superfluous ; or if all had 
 written new and peculiar matter in 
 reference to one another there would 
 not have appeared the present evi- 
 dence of agreement.’ Chrysostom, 
 ib. p. 6. See further some judicious 
 remarks in the introduction to The 
 Four Witnesses of Da Costa, p. i sq, 
 2 Owing to recent regulations, 
 this number of Ijectures has been 
 finally reduced to six. The last two 
 Lectures were thus not preached, 
 but are added both for the sake of 
 still maintaining some conformity 
 to the v/ill of the founder, and also 
 for the sake of giving a necessary 
 completeness to the subject. 
 
40 
 
 The Birth and Infancy 
 
 i.ECT. fourth and a fifth lecture may be devoted to the 
 
 ministry in Galilee and the neighbouring districts ; 
 
 a sixth may contain a brief account of the Lord’s 
 last three journeys to or towards Jerusalem; a 
 seventh may well be given exclusively to the 
 events of the last passover, — that period of such 
 momentous interest, and so replete with difficul- 
 ties of combination and arrangement; — and a con- 
 cluding lecture may embrace the history of the 
 last forty days. 
 
 cuioilisCon- present portion, if we leave out the 
 
 cepticn of commencement of St J ohn’s Gospel and the early 
 
 our Lord ; ^ 
 
 its mystery history of the Baptist \ the first recorded event 
 mity. is of an importance that cannot be over-estimated, 
 — that single event in the history of our race that 
 bridges over the stupendous chasm between God 
 and man. That first event is the miraculous con- 
 ception of our Bedeemer^ It is related to us 
 both by the first and third Evangelists^, and by 
 
 ^ These portions of the inspired 
 narrative are not commented on. 
 The former belongs more to the pro- 
 vince of dogmatical theology; the 
 latter to the general history of our 
 Lord’s times, into neither of which 
 our present limits and the restricted 
 nature of our subject will now per- 
 mit us to enter. The student wiU 
 find an elaborate and, in most re- 
 spects, satisfactory article on the 
 Baptist, in Winer, RealwdrUrh. Vol. 
 I* P- 585 — 590; and some good com- 
 ments on his ministry in Greswell, 
 Dissert, xix. Vol. ii. p. 148 sq. 
 
 2 Some good remarks on this pro- 
 found subject will be found in Nean- 
 der, Life of Christ, p. 13 sq. (Bohn). 
 The student will there find an able 
 exposure of the mythical view, as it 
 is called, of this sublime mystery, 
 and brief but satisfactory answers 
 
 to current objections. The main 
 position of Neander is, that the 
 miraculous conception was demand- 
 ed a priori, and confirmed a poste- 
 riori. As regards any explanation 
 of the special circumstances of this 
 holy miracle, all that can be said 
 has been said by Bp Pearson, Creed, 
 Art. III. Vol. I. p. 203 (ed. Burton); 
 see also Andrewes, Serm. IX. Vol. i. 
 p. 135 sq. (A.-C. Libr.). The dig- 
 nity of the conception is well touch- 
 ed upon by Hilary, de Trinitate, 
 Book II. p. 17 (Paris, 163 r). 
 
 ^ The objection founded on the 
 assumed silence of St John is wholly 
 futile. If our view of St John’s 
 Gospel be correct (see above, p. 14), 
 it may be fairly urged that a formal 
 notice of an event which had been 
 so fully related by one Evangelist 
 and so distinctly confirmed by ano- 
 
of our Lord. 
 
 41 
 
 the latter with such an accuracy of detail, that we 
 may bless God for having vouchsafed to us a 
 record, which if reverently and attentively con- 
 sidered will be found to suggest an answer to every 
 question that might present itself to an honest 
 though amazed spirit. Yea, and it is a subject 
 for amazements Dull hearts there may be that 
 have never cared to meditate deeply on these 
 mysteries of our salvation, and to which the 
 wonder and even perplexity of nobler spirits may 
 have seemed unreasonable or inexplicable. Such 
 there may be : but who of higher strain, as he 
 sees and feels the infirmities with which he is 
 encompassed, the weakness and frailty of that 
 flesh with which he is clothed'^, the sinfulness that 
 
 ther would have seemed out of place 
 in a Gospel so constructed as that of 
 St John. What we might have ex- 
 pected we meet with, — the fullest 
 and most unquestioned statement of 
 this divine truth (ch. i. 14, comp, 
 ver. 13), nay more, reasoning which 
 depends upon it (ch. iii. 6), but no 
 historical details; see Neander, Life 
 of Christ, p. 1 7, note (Bohn) ; and 
 compare Da Costa, Four Witnesses, 
 p. 286. The similarly assumed si- 
 lence of St Paul (V on Ammon, Gesch. 
 des Lebens Jesu, i. 4, Vol. i. p. r86) 
 is abundantly confuted by Lange, 
 Leben Jesu, ii. 2, 4, Vol. ii. pp. 72, 
 73 - 
 
 1 Well may Augustine say ; *Quid 
 mirabilius virginis partu ! concipit et 
 virgo est ; parit et virgo est. Creatus 
 est de eS. quam creavit : attulit ei fe- 
 cunditatem, non corrupit ejus integri- 
 tatem.’ Serm. CLXXXIX. 2, Vol. v. p. 
 1 605 (ed. Migne). So, too, Gregory of 
 Nazianzus, in a fine sermon on the 
 nativity : II/)oeX0u;r 5 ^ Qebs fxtTCL rijs 
 
 Trpo(T\rj\peo}S h e/c d6o tcDv ivavricov, 
 aapKos Kal Hve6p,aTos' tor to fibv 
 idetoae, rb db ideud-rj. rrjs Kat- 
 
 vrjs pti^etjs, w rijs irapabb^ov Kpdcretos, 
 b tor yireTat, Kal 6 olktuttos KTi^erai, 
 Kal 6 dxdbprjTos p-iarjs 
 
 ‘ipvxvs roepds p.eatTevoijarjS deoTTjri 
 Kal aapKbs Trax^T-pTL. Orat. xxxviii. 
 p. 620 (ed. Morell). 
 
 2 AVhat say you to flesh? is 
 it meet God be manifested there- 
 in? “Without controversy” it is 
 not. Why what is flesh? it is no 
 mystery to tell what it is ; it is dust, 
 saith the patriai*ch Abraham. It is 
 grass, saith the prophet Esay; foe- 
 num, “grass cut down, and wither- 
 ing.” It is “ corruption,” not cor- 
 ruptible, but even corruption itself, 
 saith the Apostle Paul... .We cannot 
 choose but hold this mystery for 
 great, and say with Augustine, 
 Deus; quid gloriosius? Caro; quid 
 vilius? Feus in came; quid mira- 
 bilius r Andrewes, Semn. III. Vol. i. 
 p. 37 (A.-C. Libr.). 
 
 LECT. 
 
 II. 
 
42 
 
 LECT. 
 
 II. 
 
 The Birth and Infancy 
 
 seems wound round every fibre, and knit up with 
 -every joint of his perishing body, — who has truly 
 felt all this, and not found himself at times over- 
 whelmed with the contemplation of the mystery 
 of EmrnanueP, — the everlasting God manifested 
 in, yea tabernacling in this very mortal flesh ? Wild 
 heathenism we say may have dreamed such dreams. 
 The pagan of the West may have vaunted of his 
 deified mortality and his brother-men ascending to 
 the gods; the pagan of the East may have fabled 
 of his encarnalized divinities, and of his gods 
 descending to men®, — but this mystery of mysteries, 
 that the Eternal Son of the Eternal Father, He 
 whose outgoings had been from everlasting, whose 
 hands had laid the bases of the hills, and spread 
 out the floods, that He should become incarnate,* 
 should take upon Him our nature and our in- 
 firmities, — can it be? Can such a thought have 
 found an expression in prophecy^? Can it have 
 become realized in history ? Say, — can it be ? 
 
 Can the world produce a narrative that can make 
 such a conception imaginable ? Is there a record 
 that can make such an event seem credible, seem 
 
 ^ ‘Oh! the height and depth of 
 this super-celestial mystery,’ says 
 the eloquent Bishop Hall, ‘ that the 
 infinite Deity and finite flesh should 
 meet in one subject, yet so as the 
 humanity should not be absorbed of 
 the Godhead, nor the Godhead con- 
 tracted by the humanity, but both 
 inseparably united; that the Godhead 
 is not humanized, the humanity not 
 deified, both are indivisibly conjoined; 
 conjoined so as without confusion dis- 
 tinguished.’ Great Mystery of God- 
 liness, § 2, Vol. VIII. p. 332 (Oxf. 
 1837). Chrysostom has expressed 
 
 very similar sentiments and with 
 equal eloquence : see Horn, in Matth. 
 II. p. 21 (ed. Bened.). 
 
 2 This thought is well expressed 
 and expanded by Dr Dorner in his 
 valuable work on the Person of 
 Christ, Vol. I. p. 4 sq. (ed. 2, 1845). 
 
 3 The prophecies of the Old Tes- 
 tament relating to the miraculous 
 conception, so often and so reck- 
 lessly explained away or denied, will 
 be found calmly and critically, though 
 not in all respects, satisfactorily dis- 
 cussed by Hofmann, Schriftheioeis, 
 II. I. 5. 3, Vol. II. p. 54—69. 
 
of our Lord. 
 
 43 
 
 possible, we will not say to a doubting but even to 
 
 a receptive and to a trustful spirit ? Yea verily, 
 
 blessed be God, we have that narrative, and on 
 that narrative not only in its general outlines, but 
 its most special details, we may rely with a confi- 
 dence which every meditative reading will be 
 found to enhance and to corroborate. 
 
 Let us pause a moment to consider a few of The narra- 
 the more striking portions of the narrative, espe- Conception 
 cially from the point of view in which we are for genSy^ 
 the moment regarding it, — that of supplying the 
 fullest conviction to every honest but anxious, 
 every longing but inquiring heart. Does the 
 idealizing spirit that views the transcendent event 
 in all the circumstances of its widest universality, 
 
 — that seems to recognize the mysterious adapta- 
 tions of earthly dorninion^, to read the tokens of 
 
 1 The state of the world at the 
 epoch when our Lord appeared was 
 exactly that which, according to our 
 mere human conceptions, might seem 
 most fitted for the reception of Chris- 
 tianity. Judaism, on the one hand, 
 had lost all those external glories 
 and prerogatives which, at an earlier 
 period, would have prevented any 
 recognition of the Messiah save as 
 a national ruler and king. There 
 would have been no Israel of God 
 with chastened hearts and more spi- 
 ritualized expectancies waiting, as 
 we know they now were, for a truer 
 redemption of Israel. Heathenism, 
 on the other hand, had now gained 
 by its contact with Judaism truer 
 conceptions of the unity of God; 
 and many a proselyte of the gate 
 was there, who like the centurion of 
 Capernaum (Luke vii. 5) loved well 
 the nation that had taught him to 
 
 kneel to the one God, and could 
 bear to receive from that despised 
 people a knowledge of his own and 
 the world’s salvation : compare Jost, 
 Geschichte des Judenthums, iii. i, 4, 
 Vol. I. p. 330, and Milman, Hist, of 
 Christianity, ch. I. Vol. I. p. 21 sq. 
 When we add to this the remem- 
 brance of the recent consolidation of 
 the power of Rome (see esp. Meri- 
 vale. Hist, of Romans, ch. xxxix. 
 Vol. IV. p. 383 sq.), and recognise a 
 political centralization which could 
 not but aid, however unwittingly 
 and unwillingly, the pervasive in- 
 fluences of the new faith, we may 
 well feel that the very appearance 
 of Christianity, at the time when it 
 did appear, is in itself an indirect 
 evidence of its divine nature and 
 truth. See some good remarks on 
 this subject in Lange, Leben Jesu, 
 II. I. I, p. 15 sq.; and for a fairly 
 
LECT. 
 
 II. 
 
 “ Luke i. 
 26. 
 
 Luke i. 
 28. 
 
 Luke i. 
 35 - 
 
 44 The Birth and Infancy 
 
 the fulness of the times, and- to discern the long- 
 ings pervading not only the chosen people^ but 
 the whole wide realms of the Eastern world ^ — 
 does such a spirit, meditating thus loftily and per- 
 chance blamelessly upon the mighty coincidences 
 of time and place and history, seek in vain for 
 some features in the record of the incarnation of 
 the Son of God that shall respond to such feel- 
 ings ? Does not the direct message from J ehovah^, 
 the angelic ministration^, the operative influence 
 of the Eternal Spirit'', all tend to work a convic- 
 tion that to the receptive heart becomes of inex- 
 pressible strengths Or again, to the more humble 
 and meek spirit that seeks only by the holy lead- 
 ings of simple narrative to gain for itself a saving 
 knowledge of the history of its own salvation, is 
 
 candid statement of the relations of 
 Judaism.to Christianity, the learned 
 work of Jost, Geschichte des Juden- 
 tlmms, III. 3. II, Vol. I. p. 394 sq. 
 
 ^ The gradual development of 
 this feeling, and the circumstances 
 which helped to promote it are well 
 noticed by Ewald, Geschichte Chris- 
 tus\ pp. 55—96* 
 
 2 It has been recently considered 
 doubtful whether the well-known 
 passages from Tacitus {Hist. v. 13) 
 and Suetonius ( Vespas. 4) relating to 
 the feeling that pervaded the whole 
 Eastern world, and the attention 
 that was directed to Judaea, may 
 not have been imitated from Jose- 
 phus {Bell. Jud. VII. 5, 4): see Ne- 
 ander. Life of Christ, p. 28, note 
 (Bohn) ; and compare Whiston, Dis- 
 sert. III., appended to his translation 
 of Josephus, esp. Vol. ill. p. 612 
 (Oxford, 1839). Such an imitation 
 does not seem clearly made out: 
 
 still even if in part we concede it, 
 we have onl3J- thus far weakened the 
 testimony from without as to con- 
 sider it an acceptance of a statement 
 made from within, because that 
 statement was felt to be correct. 
 
 ® ‘ Our own idea of Christ com- 
 pels us to admit that two factors, 
 the one natural, the other super- 
 natural, were coefficient in His en- 
 trance into human life; and this 
 too, although we may be unable, d 
 priori, to state how that entrance 
 was accomplished. But at this point 
 the historical accounts come to our 
 aid, by testifying that what our 
 theory of the case requires, did, in 
 fact, occur.’ Neander, Life of Christ, 
 p. 13 (Bohn), — a loose, but substan- 
 tially correct representation of the 
 original {Lehen Jesu Christi, p. 15): 
 compare Bp Taylor, Life of Christ, 
 I. ad sect. i. 4, Vol. i. p. 28 (Lond. 
 1836). 
 
of our Lord. 
 
 45 
 
 there not here disclosed, in the many notices of the 
 purely human and outward relations of those whom 
 the opening of the Gospel brings before us, those 
 artless traits of liistoric truth that on some minds 
 work such a fulness of conviction? Yes, let us 
 take the very objections of adversaries or sceptics, 
 and see in this portion of St Luke’s Gospel the 
 more direct agencies of the spiritual world, and in 
 the short notice of St Matthew’s Gospel their more 
 mediate workings^ — let us accept the statement, 
 and see in it only one more proof, if proof be 
 needed, of the diverse forms in which Evangelical 
 Truth is presented to the receptive mind, let us 
 recognize in it only one more example of the varied 
 aspects of the manifold wisdom of God. 
 
 Let us now substantiate the foregoing remarks 
 by a brief notice of the details of the inspired 
 history. 
 
 What a vivid truth, speaking humanly, there 
 is in the narrative of St Luke ! With what a 
 marvellous aptitude to human infirmity do things, 
 divine and human, mingle with each other in ever 
 illustrative and ever confirmatory combinations. 
 
 ^ See, for example, Von Ammon, 
 Oesc/i. cles Lebens Jesu, i. 5, Vol. i. 
 p. 194. We do not in these lectures 
 notice, nor do we consider it either 
 useful or edifying to notice, the 
 repulsive opinions of writers like 
 Strauss {Leben Jesu), Weisse {die 
 Evang. Geschichte), or G-frorer {Ges- 
 chichte des Urckristenthum) : their 
 general tendencies are so simply 
 destructive, their unhappy criticisms 
 so almost judicially infatuated, and 
 their progressions in doubt and de- 
 nials (see Ebrard, Kritih der Ev. 
 Oesch. § 6, 7), such melancholy in- 
 
 stances of a very /xedodeia TrXdvrjs 
 (Eph. iv. 14), that we may well 
 leave them to themselves, and to their 
 own mutual confutations. Writers 
 of the character of the one above al- 
 luded to may however sometimes be 
 profitably referred to, as evincing, 
 as Von Ammon especially does in 
 respect of this narrative (see pp. 190, 
 19 1), what an amount of unhappy 
 effort it takes to resist the impres- 
 sion of its vital truth which the 
 evangelical history makes upon 
 doubting minds that will consent to 
 be reasonable and candid. 
 
 LECT. 
 
 II. 
 
 The narra- 
 tive of the 
 Conception 
 considered 
 in its de- 
 tails. 
 
46 
 
 The Birth and Infancy 
 
 ^ With what striking persuasiveness do mysteries 
 
 seemingly beyond the grasp of thought blend 
 
 lovingly with the simplest elements, and become 
 realizable by the teachings of the homely relations 
 of humble and sequestered life. With what a 
 noble yet circumstantial simplicity, — a simplicity 
 that in the language no less than in the facts 
 related bewrays the record of her who saw and 
 believed^, — is the opening story told of mans 
 redemption ! The angel Gabriel, he who stood 
 among the highest of the angelic hierarchy, and 
 whose ministrations, if it be not too bold a thing to 
 affirm, appear to have been specially Messianic ^ 
 just as those of Raphael might have pertained to 
 individual need, and those of Michael to judicial 
 power — that blessed Spirit, who a few months 
 before had been sent to announce the future birth 
 ^^Lukei. of the forerunner^, is now sent from God to a rude 
 
 1 See Lange, Leben Jesu, ii. 2. 6, 
 Vol. II. p. 93. We can perhaps 
 hardly go so far with this able 
 writer as positively to find in the 
 recital of the events a diction that 
 belongs rather to a woman than to 
 a man ; but when we mark the spe- 
 cialities of the narrative, the preser- 
 vation of the exact expressions of 
 the sacred canticles, and above all 
 the tone of artless reality which 
 pervades the whole, we seem per- 
 fectly justified in believing that we 
 have here, partly perhaps in sub- 
 stance, partly in precise terms, a 
 record that came to St Luke medi- 
 ately or immediately, from the lips 
 of the Virgin herself, — her Son’s 
 first evangelist. And with such a 
 belief the peculiarities of the dic- 
 tion seem fully to coincide. While 
 throughout we can trace the hand 
 
 of St Luke (see esp. Gersdorf, Bei- 
 trdge, p. 160 sq,), we can also see in 
 the transition from the studied dedi- 
 cation to the simple structure of the 
 ancient Scriptures just that change 
 which a faithful incorporation of the 
 recital of another would be certain 
 to introduce : compare Mill, on Pan- 
 theistic Princi'ples, Part ii. p. 23 sq. 
 
 2 This remark (valeat quantum) 
 is due to Lange {Leben Jesu, ii. 2. 
 2, Vol. II. p, 46), whose whole chap- 
 ter on the subject of angelic minis- 
 trations deserves perusal. For fur- 
 ther references on the nature of 
 angels, see notes on Eph. i. 21; and 
 for a most able confutation of the 
 arguments against this portion of 
 the sacred narrative founded on 
 angelic appearances, Mill, Obss. on 
 Pantheistic Principles, Part il. 4, 
 p. 52 sq. 
 
of our Lord. 
 
 47 
 
 and lone village in the hills of Galilee, Nazareth 
 
 the disesteeined‘, and to a betrothed virgin ^ whose 
 
 name was Mary. Of the early history of that 
 highly favoured one we know nothing. Yet with- 
 out borrowing one thought from the legendary 
 notices of apocryphal narrative^, it does not seem a 
 baseless fancy to recognize in her one of those 
 pure spirits that in seclusion and loneliness were 
 looking and longing for the theocratic King, and 
 that deeply imbued, as we see the Virgin must 
 have been, both with the letter and with the spirit 
 of the Old Testament^ were awaiting the evolu- =» Luke i. 
 tion of the highest of all its transcendent pro- 
 phecies. Kapt as such a one might well have 
 been in devotion or in Messianic meditation^, she 
 sees before her, at no legendary spring-side^, but 
 
 ^ See Stanley, Palestine, chap. x. 
 I, p. 361 (ed. 2), and compare John 
 i. 46, and the notes of Meyer in loc. 
 The savage act recorded by St Luke 
 (ch. iv. 29) is a good commentary on 
 the meaning of Nathanael’s question. 
 For an interesting description of 
 Nazareth, especially considered with 
 reference to the Gospel history, see 
 E-obinson, Palestine, Vol. Ii. p. 333 
 sq. (ed. 2). 
 
 2 ‘ So it was that the Virgin was 
 betrothed, lest honourable marriage 
 might be disreputed, and seem in- 
 glorious, by a positive rejection from 
 any participation in the honour.’ 
 Taylor, Life of Christ, i, ad sect. i. 
 6, Vol. I. p. 29 (Loud. 1836). Other, 
 and some of them singular reasons, 
 are assigned by the older writers: 
 see Spanheim, Duh. Evang. Part i. 
 p. 1 16. The use of the word gegrr]- 
 (TTev/j.ivr]p is investigated with much 
 learning by Bynseus, de Natali Jes. 
 Chr. X. p. 28 sq. 
 
 3 The history of the Virgin is told 
 at great length in the Protevangelium 
 of James, and in the so-called Gos- 
 pels de Ortu (Pseudo-Matth.) and de 
 Nativitate Marice: see Tischendorf, 
 Evang . Apocrypha (Lips. 1853); and 
 for a connected history formed out 
 of these apocryphal writings, the 
 laborious work of Hofmann (E), das 
 Leien Jesu nach den Apocryphen 
 (Leipz. 1851). 
 
 ^ Bp Taylor censures any specu- 
 lation of this kind; but it seems, to 
 say the least, harmless, and not in- 
 consistent with the meditative spirit 
 which reveals itself in the Virgin’s 
 inspired canticle. Bengel hints at 
 the time as evening, comparing Dan. 
 ix. 21. 
 
 ® Compare Protevang. cap. ii, 
 Hist, de Nat. Marice, cap. 9, and 
 compare Hofmann, Lehen Jesu, p. 74 . 
 The expressions of inspired narra- 
 tive (ver. 28) seem in this particular 
 to justify the statement made in 
 
48 
 
 The Birth and Infancy 
 
 LECT. 
 
 II. 
 
 Luke i. 
 28. 
 
 Luke i. 
 28. 
 
 Self-evi- 
 dent truth 
 of the nar- 
 rative. 
 
 ® Luke i. 
 34 - 
 
 Luke i. 
 18. 
 
 ® Gen. xvii. 
 
 17. 
 
 ^ Gen. 
 xviii. 12. 
 
 as the words of the Evangelist seem rather to 
 imply, in her own humble abode the divinely-sent 
 messenger, and hears a salutation which expressed 
 in the terms in which it was expressed, — ^^Hail 
 highly-favoured one ! the Lord is with thee’',” — 
 and coming as it did from an angel’s lips, must 
 well have troubled that meek spirit and cast it 
 into awe and perplexity b 
 
 What persuasive truth there is in the nature of 
 the terms in which the announcement is conveyed. 
 To that highly favoured one that perchance had 
 long communed in stillness on the prophecies of 
 the Messianic kingdom, to her is J esus the Son of 
 the Highest portrayed in that form, which par- 
 tially Israelitic in general outline, yet Christian in 
 essence must have begun to work in her the 
 most lively conviction. Yet how characteristic is 
 the question, How shall this be*" ?” the question 
 not of outwardly expressed doubt like that of 
 Zacharias*^, or of an inwardly felt sense of impossi- 
 bility like that of Abraham® and Sarah ^ in the old 
 
 Suidas s. V. Itjcrovs, wliere the Virgin 
 is related as specifying, — etVeX^cbi' 
 ev y -^ixrfv oiKrjfj^aTL. The spring in 
 question is alluded to and briefly 
 described by Stanley, Palestine, p. 
 362 (ed. 2). 
 
 1 The addition of the participle 
 Idovaa in the received text, though 
 not without great external support 
 (see Tischendorf in loc.), must still 
 be considered as somewhat doubtful. 
 Even if retained we may perhaps 
 more naturally refer the troubled 
 feelings of the Virgin simply to the 
 terms in which the salutation was 
 couched : observe the specific M 
 "Kbyty, and the concluding clause, 
 
 Kal dieXoyl^eTO TroraTros ei'r] 6 aairaa- 
 
 pOS OVTOS. 
 
 2 We seem to recognize this dis- 
 tinction in the expressions of ver. 
 33. — If, on the one hand, the hea- 
 venly messenger declares, in con- 
 tinuation of the image at the con- 
 cluding part of the former verse, 
 that the Eternal Son ‘shall reign 
 over the house of Jacob for ever;’ 
 he, on the other hand, seems to 
 imply by the very seeming repeti- 
 tion, ‘And of His kingdom there 
 shall be no end,’ a reference to a 
 still more universal dominion : comp. 
 Dan. vii. 14, and see Bynseus, de 
 Natali Jes. Chr. XXXVI. p. 117 sq. 
 
49 
 
 of our Lord. 
 
 and typical past, but of a childlike innocence, that 
 sought to realize to itself in the very face of seem- - 
 ing impossibilities the full assurance of its own 
 blessedness. No, there was no lack of real faith 
 in that question h It was a question to which the 
 heavenly messenger was permitted to return a 
 most explicit answer, and to confirm by a most 
 notable example, even that of her kinswoman 
 Elisabeth ‘""j that with God no word was impossible", “ 
 — no promise that was not to receive its completest ‘ 
 and most literal fulfilment. 
 
 With these words of the angel all seems to 
 have become clear to her in regard of the wonder- 
 working power of God; much too must have 
 already seemed clear to her on the side of man. 
 With the rapid foreglance of thought she must 
 have seen in the clouded future, scorn, dereliction, 
 the pointed finger of a mocking and uncharitable 
 
 ^ The utmost that can be said is 
 that the Virgin felt the seeming im- 
 possibility, and that in avowing the 
 feeling she sought for that further 
 assurance which she also felt would 
 not be withheld, and would at once 
 allay her doubts. Even the follow- 
 ing excellent remarks of Jackson 
 attribute to the Virgin somewhat 
 more mistrust than the words and 
 the case seem to imply; ‘It is far 
 from my disposition at any time, or 
 my purpose at this, to urge further 
 to aggravate the infirmity of a vessel 
 so sanctified, elect, and precious: 
 and I am persuaded the Evangelist 
 did not so much intend to disparage 
 her’ s, "as to confirm our belief, by 
 relating her doubtful question, and 
 the angel’s reply ; the one being but 
 Sarah’s mistrust refined with maid- 
 enly modesty, the other Sarah’s 
 
 check mitigated and qualified by 
 the angel.’ Creed, Book vii. i. 12, 
 Vol. VI. p. 209 (Oxf. 1844). The 
 earlier commentators, though per- 
 haps they slightly overpress the ttws 
 in the Virgin’s question {i-jTL^rjTovffa 
 TOP Tpbirov ToO TTpdyfJiaTos, Theoph.), 
 have in most cases rightly appre- 
 ciated the true state of feeling which 
 prompted the question: comp. Lange, 
 Leben Jesii, ii. 2, 3, Vol. ii. p. 66. 
 
 2 It is usual to consider p7]pi.a in 
 this text as coextensive in meaning 
 with the Hebrew and as im- 
 
 plying ‘thing,’ ‘matter’ (Words- 
 worth, in loc.). This is now rightly 
 called in question by the most accu- 
 rate interpreters ; the meaning is 
 simply as stated by Euthymius, — 
 Trdv 6 Xeyei, irdv 6 eirayyiWeTai'. 
 see Meyer, Komment. iiher LvJc., p. 
 203. 
 
 LECT. 
 
 II. 
 
 Luke i. 
 
 E. H. 
 
 4 
 
50 
 
 The Birth and Infancy 
 
 LECT. 
 
 II. 
 
 ® Luke ii. 
 35 - 
 
 Journey of 
 the Virgin 
 to Elisa- 
 beth. 
 
 Luke i. 
 39 - 
 
 world, calumny, shame, death. But what was a 
 world’s scorn or a world’s persecution to those 
 words of promise ? Faith sustains that possible 
 shrinking from more than mortal trial, and turns 
 it into meekest resignation, Behold the hand- 
 maid of the Lord ; be it unto me according to thy 
 word.” From that hour the blessed Virgin seems 
 ever to appear before us in that character, which 
 the notices of the Gospels so consistently adum- 
 brate b meek and pensive, meditative and resigned, 
 blessed with joys no tongue can tell, and yet even 
 in the first hours of her blessedness beginning 
 to feel one edge of the sword "" that was to pierce 
 through her loving and submissive heart. 
 
 The last words of the miraculous messasre seem 
 
 o 
 
 to prepare us for the next event recorded by the 
 Evangelist, — the hasty journey of the Virgin to 
 her aged relative Elisabeth^ in the hill-country of 
 Judaea: ^^and Mary arose and went into the hill- 
 country, with haste, unto a city of Juda^.” But 
 why this haste ? Why this lengthened, and, as 
 
 ^ The character of the blessed 
 Virgin, as far as it can be inferred 
 from the Scriptures, has been touched 
 upon by Niemeyer, Character. Vol. 
 I. p. 54 sq. Some thoughtful no- 
 tices, as derived from St John’s 
 Gospel, will be found in Luthardt, 
 das Johann. Evany. Vol. i. p. 114 
 sq. 
 
 ^ It seems impossible to state con- 
 fidently the nature of this relation- 
 ship. It has been thought possible 
 that the Virgin may have been of 
 the tribe of Levi, and thus connect- 
 ed with Elisabeth, who we know 
 was of that tribe ; so the apocryphal 
 document called the Testamentum 
 xii. Patrum, § 2, 7, and Faustus 
 
 Manichseus, as referred to by Au- 
 gustine, contra Faust. Munich, xxiii. 
 9, Vol. VIII. p. 471 (ed. Migne). 
 The more probable opinion is, that 
 the Virgin was of the tribe of Judah, 
 and that the relationship with Elisa- 
 beth arose from some intermarriage. 
 Such intermarriages between mem- 
 bers of the tribe of Levi and mem- 
 bers of other tribes can be shown to 
 have occurred in earlier periods of 
 sacred history (comp. 2 Chron. xxii. 
 1 1 ) ; and in these later periods might 
 have been far from uncommon : see 
 Bynaeus, de Natali Chr. i. i. 47, 
 p. 14 1 ; and comp. Mishna, Tract, 
 ‘Kiddushin,’ iv. i sq. Vol. III. p. 
 378 sq. (ed. Surenhus.). 
 
51 
 
 of our Lord. 
 
 far as we can infer from national custom^, unusual 
 journey in the case of a young and secluded maiden. 
 Are we to believe, with a recent and eloquent 
 writer of a life of our Lord, that it was in conse- 
 quence of a communication on the part of the 
 Virgin and a subsequent rejection on the part of 
 Josephs Are we to do such wrong to both our 
 Lord’s earthly parents ? Are we to make that 
 righteous son of Jacob the first Ebionite ? Are 
 we to believe that the blessed Virgin thus strangely 
 threw off that holy and pensive reserve, which, as 
 I have remarked, seems her characteristic through- 
 out the Gospel history ? It cannot be. That 
 visit was not to receive consolation for wrong and 
 unkindness from man, but to confer with a wise 
 heart on transcendent blessings from God, which 
 the unaided spirit even of Mary of Nazareth 
 might not at first be able completely to grasp and 
 to realize. And to whom could she go so natu- 
 rally as to one toward whom the wonder-working 
 power of God had been so signally displayed. 
 Nay, does not the allusion to her kinswoman 
 Elisabeth^,” in the angel’s concluding words. 
 
 ^ Passages have been cited from 
 Philo, de Legg. Spec. iii. 31, Vol. i. 
 p. 327 (ed. Mangey), and Talni. 
 Hieros. Tract, ‘ Chetuboth,’ vii. 6, 
 which would seem to imply that 
 such journeys in the case of virgins 
 were contrary to general custom. 
 ‘The journey,’ says Lange, ‘was not 
 quite in accordance with Old-Testa- 
 ment decorum : the deep realities of 
 the cross, however, give a freedom 
 in the spirit of the New.’ Lchen 
 Jesu, Vol. II. p. 85. 
 
 2 See Lange, Lehen Jesu, i. 2. 5, 
 Vol. II. p, 84 sq., — fully and satis- 
 
 factorily answered by Ebrard, Kritik 
 der Ev. Gesch. §45, p. 214 sq. There 
 seems no sufficient reason for plac- 
 ing, w'ith Alford and others, what 
 is recorded in Matth. i. 18 — 25 be- 
 fore this journey. The discovery 
 noticed in Matth. i. 18 (evp^drj Se 
 elTre dia to aTpoadoKrjTov. Euth3rm.) 
 and the events which followed would 
 seem much more naturally to have 
 taken place after the Virgin’s re- 
 turn : so rightly August, de Con- 
 sensu Evang. ii. 17, Vol. ill. p. 1081 
 (ed. Migne); compare Tischendorf, 
 Synops. Evang. p. xxi. 
 
 4 — 2 
 
 LECT. 
 
 II. 
 
 ® Luke i. 
 
 36. 
 
52 
 
 LECT. 
 
 II. 
 
 “ Luke i. 
 39- 
 
 The Birth and Infancy 
 
 suggest the very quarter to which she was to turn 
 for further spiritual support, and for yet more 
 accumulated verification. To her then the Virgin 
 at once hastens. A few days* would bring the 
 unlooked-for visitant to the ‘city of Juda%’ — 
 whether the nearer village which tradition still 
 points to as the home of Zacharias and Elisa- 
 beth or the more remote town of Juta, or 
 perhaps, more probably, ancient and priestly 
 Hebron^ which Jewish tradition has fixed upon 
 
 as the birth-place of the 
 of the old dispensation*. 
 
 ’ If Hebron (see below) be con- 
 sidered the Virgin’s destination, the 
 distance could not have been much 
 short of lOO English miles, and 
 would probably have taken at least 
 four days. We learn from Dr Ro- 
 binson’s Itinerai'y that the time from 
 Hebron to Jerusalem, with camels, 
 was in his case 8h. 15m., and from 
 Jerusalem to Nazareth, with mules, 
 29b. 45m. The rate of travelling 
 with the former is estimated at 
 about two geographical miles an 
 hour, and with the latter somewhat 
 less than three ; see Robinson’s Pa- 
 lestine, Vol. II. pp, 568, 574 (ed. 2). 
 
 A learned dissertation on the rate 
 of a day’s journey will be found in 
 Greswell, Dissertations, Vol. iv. p. 
 525 sq. (ed. 2). 
 
 ^ Now called Ain Karim, and a 
 short distance of Jerusalem. Its 
 claims are strongly supported by 
 Dr Thomson in his excellent work, 
 The Land and the Booh (Vol. ii. 
 
 P* 537)> seem to rest mainly on 
 the concurrent traditions of the 
 Greek and Latin Churches : see, 
 however, below note 4. 
 
 ^ This last supposition, which is 
 
 last and greatest scion 
 There she finds, and 
 
 thatof Grotius, Lightfoot, and others, 
 is perhaps slightly the most pro- 
 bable, as Hebron appears to have 
 been preeminently one of the cities 
 of the Priests : see J osh. xxi. 1 1 ; 
 and comp. Lightfoot, Hor. Hehr. on 
 Luke i. 39, Vol. ii. p. 386 (Lond. 
 1684). The second supposition is 
 due to Reland {Palcest. p. 870), and 
 is adopted by Robinson {Palestine, 
 Vol. II. p. 206, ed. 2), who identifies 
 it with the modern Ytltta. The sup- 
 position that ’lonSa is only a cor- 
 rupted form, by a softer pronuncia- 
 tion, of ’lonra (Reland), is highly 
 questionable ; no trace of such a 
 reading occurs in any of the ancient 
 manuscripts. 
 
 ^ See Otho, Lex. Rabbin, p. 324, 
 and compare Joshua xxi. ir, where 
 Hebron is specially defined as being 
 ‘ in the hill- country of Judah.’ This 
 general definition of locality is per- 
 haps slightly less suitable to the first- 
 mentioned place, Ain Karim, which 
 though in the uplands of Judaea is 
 scarcely in that part which seems 
 commonly to have been known as 
 ‘ the hill-country.’ Sepp {Leben Chr. 
 Vol. II. p. 8) cites Talm. Jlieros. 
 
53 
 
 of our Lord. 
 
 there, as St Luke especially notices, she salutes^ lect. 
 the future mother of the Baptist. That saluta- 
 
 • 1 p “ Luke i. 
 
 tion perchance was of a nature that served, under 40 . 
 the inspiration of the Spirit, in a moment to 
 convey all. Elisabeth, yea and the son of Elisa- 
 beth, felt the deep significance of that greeting^ 
 
 The asfed matron at once breaks forth into a 
 mysterious welcome of holy joy, and with a loud 
 voice the voice of loftiest spiritual exaltation, ver. 42. 
 she blesses*" the chosen one who had come under *= ver. 42 . 
 the shadow of her roof, adding that reassurance 
 which seems to supply us with the clue to the 
 right understanding of the whole, ^ and blessed 
 is she that believed : for there shall be a per- 
 formance of those things which were told her from 
 the Lord‘d.' ver. 45 - 
 
 "We need not pause on this inspired greeting internal 
 and on the exalted hymn of praise uttered in ne'ss of the 
 response by the Virgin, save to protest against 
 the discreditable, and, to use the mildest term, canticles, 
 the unreasonable attempts that have been made 
 to throw doubt on the credibility of the sacred 
 narrative, by appealing to the improbability of 
 these so-called lyrical effusions^ on the part of 
 Mary and Elisabeth. Lyrical effusions ! What ! 
 are we to say that this strange and unlooked- 
 for meeting on the part of the mother of the 
 
 ^Schevith,’ fol. 38, 4, — ‘Quodnam 
 est montanum Judsese ? mons regalis.’ 
 ^ It has been well, though perhaps 
 somewhat fancifidly said by Euthy- 
 mius: '0 ixkv Xpiarbs ecpd^y^aro dta 
 
 ToO CrTO/iUTOS TTJS idiaS IXT]Tp6s’ 6 db 
 
 ’ludvPTjs yjKovae did tQv wtojv rijs 
 olKcias pt.r}Tp6s, Kal eTrtyyobs virep- 
 (pvQs rbv eavTov beaTTbr-qv dveKrjpv^ev 
 
 avTbv Tip <TKtpT-qp,aTt. Comment, in 
 
 Luc. I. 41. 
 
 ^ Compare Schleiermacher, Essay 
 on Si Luke, p. 24, — well and com- 
 pletely answered by Dr Mill in his 
 admirable comments on these in- 
 spired hymns: see Observations on 
 Pantheistic Principles, Part ii. 3, 
 p. 39 sq. 
 
The Birth and Infancy 
 
 LECT. 
 
 II. 
 
 r>4 
 
 Forerunner and the mother of the Kedeemer was 
 as common-place and prosaic as that of any two 
 matrons of Israel that might have met unex- 
 pectedly under the terebinths^ of Hebron. Are 
 we so utterly to believe in those wretched Epi- 
 curean views of the history of our race as to 
 conceive it possible that the greatest events con- 
 nected with it were unmarked by all circum- 
 stances of higher spiritual exaltation. If there 
 be only that grain of truth in the Evangelical 
 history that our adversaries may be disposed to 
 concede; if there be any truth in those ordinary 
 psychological, laws, to which, when it serves their 
 purpose, they are not slow to appeal, then be- 
 yond all doubt both Elisabeth and the Virgin 
 could not be imagined to have met in any way 
 less striking than that which is recorded; their 
 words of greeting could have been none other 
 than those we find assigned to them by the 
 Evangelist"; Every accent in the salutation of 
 the elder matron is true to the principles of our 
 common nature when subjected to the highest 
 influences; every cadence of the Virgin’s hymn is 
 in most life-like accordance with all we know of 
 the speaker, and with all we can imagine of the 
 circumstances of this momentous meeting. Oh 
 
 ^ Kitto, Cycl. s. V. ^Alah.’ 
 
 ^ ‘ Such a vision of coming power 
 and light and majesty as these hymns 
 indicate, — a picture so vivid as to 
 the blessedness of the approaching 
 reign, so indistinct and void as to 
 the means by which that blessedness 
 was to be realized, — in which, while 
 the view of faith is so concentred 
 On the Source of salvation then ini- 
 
 tially manifested, the whole detail 
 of His acts and the particulars of 
 His redemption continue closely 
 wrapped up in the figure and sjon- 
 bol which represented them in the 
 ancient dispensation, — such a vision 
 could belong only to the particular 
 position assigned to it, in the boun- 
 dary of the old and new covenants.’ 
 Mill, Observations, Part ii. 3, p. 51. 
 
of our Lord. 
 
 55 
 
 no! let us not hesitate to express our deepest 
 
 and heartiest conviction that the words we have 
 
 here are no collection of Scriptural phrases, no 
 artful composition of an imaginative or credulous 
 writer, but the very words that fell from the lips 
 of Mary of Nazareth, words which the rapture 
 of the moment and the inspiration of the Holy 
 Ghost alike called forth and alike imprinted in- 
 delibly on the memory both of her that spake 
 and her that listened \ All speaks truth, life 
 and reality. On the one hand the diction of the 
 Old Testament that pervades this sublime can- 
 ticle, the reminiscences perchance of the hymn of 
 Hannah, type of her who spake; on the other 
 hand, the conscious allusions to mysterious bless- 
 ings that Hannah never knew, — all place before 
 us as in a portraiture of most living truth the 
 rapt maiden of Nazareth pouring forth her stored- 
 up memories of history and prophecy in one full 
 stream of Messianic joyfulness and praise. 
 
 After a few months sojourn with Elisabeth Return of 
 the Virgin returns^, and then, or soon after it, andTh?^°' 
 came the trial of faith to the righteous Joseph. [o'^Joseph. 
 
 ^ Even without specially ascribing 
 to the Virgin, as indeed we fairly 
 might do, that spiritually-strength- 
 ened power of recollection which was 
 promised to the Apostles of her Son 
 (John xiv. 26), we may justly re- 
 mind our opponents that the rhyth- 
 mical character of these canticles 
 would infallibly impress them on the 
 minds of both the speakers with all 
 that peculiar force and vividness 
 which, we must often observe, metre 
 does in our own cases : comp. Mill, 
 Observations, p. 42 . 
 
 ^ It has been doubted whether 
 
 the notices of time may not lead us 
 to suppose that the Virgin staid 
 with Elizabeth till the birth of the 
 Baptist, and that St Luke has speci- 
 fied the return of the Virgin in the 
 place he has done merely to connect 
 closely the notices of her journey 
 and her return : see Wieseler, Chron. 
 Synops. I. 3, p. 15 1, There is some 
 plausibility in the supposition ; but 
 on the whole it seems more natural 
 to conceive that the events took 
 place in the order in which they are 
 described: comp. Greswell, Prolego- 
 mena, Cap. iv. p. 178. 
 
LECT. 
 
 II. 
 
 Different 
 form of the 
 divine 
 messages. 
 
 ^ Matt. i. 
 20 . 
 
 ^ ve *. 71 . 
 
 5C TJce Birth and Infancy 
 
 This St Matthew relates to us briefly, but with 
 some suggestive and characteristic marks of living 
 truth to which we may for a moment advert. 
 
 How very striking is the fact that while to 
 the Virgin the heavenly communication is made 
 directly by an angel, the communication to the 
 handicraftsman of Galilee’ is made by means of 
 a dream of the night’’. How suggestive is it 
 that while to the loftier spirit of Mary the name 
 of Jesus is revealed with all the prophetic asso- 
 ciations of more than David’s glories, — to Joseph, 
 perchance the aged Joseph*, who might have 
 long seen and realized his own spiritual needs, 
 and the needs of those around him, it is speci- 
 ally said, Ghou shalt call his name Jesus: for 
 He shall save His people from their sins^J 
 Surely, brethren, such things cannot be cunningly 
 devised; such things must work and ought to 
 work conviction; such things must needs make 
 us feel, and feel with truth, that this and the 
 
 ^ Chrysostom notices the different 
 nature of the heavenly communica- 
 tions, assigning however what scarce- 
 ly seems the true reason,— the faith 
 of Joseph {iriaTos rjv b dvrip, Kai o6k 
 ideiTo TTjs TavTTjs). If we may 
 
 venture to assign a reason it would 
 rather seem referable, first, to the 
 difference of the subjects of the two 
 revelations — that to the Virgin need- 
 ing the most distinct external attes- 
 tation (Euthym.) ; secondly, to some 
 difference in the respective natures 
 of Joseph and Mary, and in their 
 powers of receiving and appreciat- 
 ing divine communications: comp. 
 Lange, Lehen Jesu, ii. 2, 5, Vol. ii. 
 p. 89. 
 
 ^ Without referring to the apo- 
 
 cryphal writers, or seeking to specify 
 with the exactness of Epiphanius 
 {Trpea^vTrjs b'ybo'pKOvra iruv TrXet'w 17 
 Adcrcrw, Hcer. LI. 10), it may per- 
 haps be said that such seems to have 
 been the prevailing opinion of the 
 early Church. That he died in the 
 lifetime of our Lord has been justly 
 inferred from the absence of his 
 name in those passages in the Gos- 
 pels where allusion is made to the 
 Virgin and the Lord’s brethren : see 
 Blunt, Veracity of Evangelists, § 8, 
 p. 38 ; and for notices and reff. as 
 to the supposed age of Joseph at 
 our Lord’s birth, see the curious 
 but often very instructive work of 
 Hofmann, Lehen Jesn nach den 
 Apocrij;phen, § 10, p. 62. 
 
of our Lord. 
 
 57 
 
 following holy chapters, so carped at by the 
 doubting spirits both of earlier and of later days, 
 are verily what the Church has ever held them 
 to be, the special, direct, and undoubted reve- 
 lations of the Eternal Spirit of God'. 
 
 And now the fulness of time was come. By 
 one of those mysterious workings whereby God 
 makes the very worldliness of man bring about 
 the completion of His own heavenly counsels, 
 the provincial taxing or enrolment of the per- 
 sons or estates ’ of all that were under the Homan 
 sway — a taxing almost proved by independent 
 historical induction to have been made even as 
 
 ^ It is painful to notice the hardi- 
 hood with which the genuineness of 
 these chapters has been called in ques- 
 tion even by some of the better class 
 of critics ; see, for example, Norton, 
 Genuineness of Gospels, Note a, § 5, 
 Vol. I. p. 204 sq. When we remem- 
 ber (i) that they are contained in 
 every manuscript, uncial or cursive, 
 and in every version, eastern or 
 western, that most of the early Fa- 
 thers cite them, and that early ene- 
 mies of Christianity appealed to 
 them (Orig. Cels. i. 38, ii. 32) — 
 when we observe (2) the obvious 
 connexion between the beginning of 
 ch. iii. and the end of ch. ii., and 
 between ch. iv. 13 and ii. 23, — and 
 when we remark (3) the exact ac- 
 cordance of diction with that of the 
 remaining chapters of the Gospel, — 
 it becomes almost astonishing that 
 even a priori prejudice should not 
 have abstained at any rate from so 
 hopeless a course as that of impugn- 
 ing the genuineness of these chap- 
 ters. To urge that these chapters 
 were wanting in the mutilated and 
 falsified gospel of the Ebionites 
 
 (Epiph. Hcer. xxx. 1 3), or that they 
 were cut away by the heretical Ta- 
 tian (Theodoret, Heer. Fab. i. 20), 
 is really to concede their genuine- 
 ness, and to bewray the reason why 
 it was impugned. For additional 
 notices and arguments, see Gries- 
 bach, Epinietron ad Comment. Crit. 
 p. 47 sq. ; Gersdorf, Beitrdge, p. 38 ; 
 and Patritius, de Evangeliis, Quaest. 
 VIII. Vol. I. p. 29 sq. 
 
 2 This point is so doubtful and 
 debateable that I prefer adopting 
 this more general form of expression : 
 compare Wieseler, Chron. Synops. i. 
 
 P* 75 ^nd Gres well. Dissert. 
 No. XIV. Vol. I. p. 541 sq. On the 
 general lexical distinction between 
 OLTroypaejiT} and diroTLixyats no great 
 reliance can be placed: in Joseph. 
 Ant. XVII. 13. 5, xviii. 1. 1, the words 
 appear used interchangeably ; see 
 Wieseler, 1 . c., and Meyer in loc. 
 This much may perhaps be said, that 
 if it was at first only an enrolment 
 per capita, it was one that had and 
 perhaps was perfectly well known 
 to have a prospective reference to 
 property. 
 
 LKCT. 
 
 II. 
 
 Journey to 
 Bethlehem, 
 and taxing 
 under Qui- 
 rinus. 
 
LECT. 
 
 11 . 
 
 Luke ii, 
 2 . 
 
 ver. 4. 
 
 58 The Jiirth and Infancy 
 
 St Luke relates it'^, during the presidency of 
 Cyrenius^ — brings tlie descendants of David to 
 David’s own city Idle and mischievous doubts 
 have sought to question the accuracy of this 
 portion of the Evangelical history, to which we 
 can here pause only to return the briefest an- 
 
 ^ Without entering at length into 
 this vexed question, we may remark 
 for the benefit of the general reader, 
 that the simple and grammatical 
 meaning of the words, as they ap- 
 pear in all the best MSS. [B. alone 
 omits before aiToypa^T}], must be 
 this, — Hhis taxing took place as a 
 first one while Cyrenius was governor 
 of Syria;’ and that the difficulty is 
 to reconcile this with the assertion of 
 Tertullian {contr. Marc. IV. 19), that 
 the taxing took place under Sentius 
 Saturninus, and with the apparent 
 historical fact that Quirinus did not 
 become President of Syria till nine 
 or ten years afterwards; see the 
 Cenotaphia Pisana of Cardinal Nori- 
 sius, Dissert, ii., and the authorities 
 in Greswell, Dissertations, No. xiv. 
 Vol. I. p. 466 sq. (ed. 2). There are 
 apparently only two sound modes of 
 explaining the apparent contradic- 
 tion (1 dismiss the mode of regarding 
 TrpdoTT] as equivalent to irporipa as 
 forced and artificial), either by sup- 
 posing, (a) that TjyepiovevovTos is to 
 be taken in a general and not a 
 special sense, and to imply the du- 
 ties of a commissioner extraordinary, 
 — a view perhaps best and most 
 ably advocated by the Abbd San- 
 clemente, de Vulg. jErce. Dionys. 
 Emend. Book iv. ch. 2, but open to 
 the objection arising from the spe- 
 cial and localizing term Trps ^vpias 
 (see Meyer, Komment. uher Lnk. p. 
 221); or by supposing, (6) that under 
 historical circumstances imperfectly 
 
 known to us, Quirinus was either 
 de facto or de jure President of Sy- 
 ria, exactly as St Luke seems to 
 specify. In favour of this latter 
 supposition we have the thrice -re- 
 peated assertion of Justin Martyr 
 {Apol. I. ch. 34, 46, Trypho, ch. 78), 
 that Quirinus xoas President at the 
 time in question, and the interesting 
 fact recently brought to light by 
 Zumpt, Commentationes Epigraphicce, 
 Part II. Berl. 1844), that owing to 
 Cilicia, when separated from Cyprus, 
 being united to Syria, Quirinus, as 
 governor of the first-mentioned pro- 
 vince was really also governor of 
 the last-mentioned, — whether in any 
 kind of association with Saturninus 
 (see Words w. in loc.) or otherwise, can 
 hardly be ascertained, — and that his 
 subsequent more special connexion 
 with Syria led his earlier and ap- 
 parently brief connexion to be thus 
 accurately noticed. This last view, 
 to say the least, deserves great con- 
 sideration, and has been adopted by 
 Merivale, Hist, of Romans, Vol. iv. 
 p. 457. The treatises and discus- 
 sions on this subject are extremely 
 numerous. Those best deserving 
 consideration are perhaps, Greswell, 
 Dissert. No. xiv. ; Huschke, uher 
 den Z‘ur Zeit der Qehurt Jes. Chr. 
 gelialtenen Census, Bresl. 1840 ; 
 Wieseler, Chron. Synops. p. 73 sq. 
 (in these irpury is explained away) ; 
 and Patritius, de Evangeliis, Dissert, 
 xviii. Book III. p. 16 1, where (a) is 
 advocated. 
 
of our Loi'd. 
 
 50 
 
 swers\ But this I will presume to say, that I 
 feel certain no fair and honest investigator can 
 study the various political considerations connect- 
 ed with this difficult question, without ultimately 
 coming to the conclusion, not only that the ac- 
 count of St Luke- is reconcileable with contem- 
 porary history, but that it is confirmed by it in 
 a manner most striking and most persuasive. 
 When we remember that the kingdom of Herod 
 was not yet formally converted into a Homan 
 province, and yet was so dependent upon the 
 imperial city^ as to be practicably amenable to 
 all its provincial edicts, how very striking it is 
 to find, — in the first place, that a taxing took 
 place at a time when such a general edict can 
 be proved to have been in force and, in the 
 next place, to find that that taxing in Judsea 
 is incidentally described as having taken place 
 according to the yet recognized customs of the 
 country, — that it was, in fact, essentially imperial 
 and Homan in origin, and yet Herodian and 
 Jewish in form. How strictly, how minutely 
 consistent is it with actual historical relations to 
 
 ^ The main objections that have 
 been urged against this portion of 
 St Luke’s narrative are well exa- 
 mined and convincingly refuted by 
 Wieseler, Chron. Synops. i. 2, pp. 
 75 — 122. The most important work 
 for general reference on the his- 
 torical and political circumstances 
 connected with this event, beside 
 tbe above work of Wieseler, is that 
 of Huschke, uher den zur Zeit u. s.w. 
 referred to in the foregoing note. 
 
 2 See Wieseler, Chron. Synops. i. 
 2, p. 93 sq. Passages which prove 
 
 the dependence of Judaea, especially 
 as tributary to the Koman govern- 
 ment, are cited by Greswell, Dissert. 
 No. XXIII. Vol. II. p. 375. For 
 further facts and references, see 
 Winer, RWB. Art. ‘Judaa,’ Vol. i. 
 p. 630. 
 
 3 See the Monumentum Ancyra- 
 num, as cited and commented on 
 by Wieseler, Chron. Synops. p. 90 
 sq., and compare Bynaeus, de Natali 
 Jes. Chr. I. 3, p. 300; Spanheim, 
 Dub. Evang. No. viii. Vol. ii. p. 
 162. 
 
 LECT. 
 
 II. 
 
60 
 
 lliG Birth and Ivfancy 
 
 LECT. tliat Joseph, who under purely Roman law 
 
 might, perha2)s, have been enrolled at Nazareth*, 
 
 is here described by the Evangelist as journey- 
 ing to be enrolled at the town of his forefathers, 
 because he was of the house and lineage* of 
 “Lukeii. David^” Tliis accordaucc of the sacred narrative 
 with the perplexed political relations of the in- 
 tensely national, yet all but subject Judsea is so 
 exact and so convincing, that we may even pro- 
 fess ourselves indebted to scepticism for having 
 raised a question to which an answer may be 
 given at once so fair, so explicit, and so conclu- 
 sive. It seems almost idle to pause further on 
 this portion of the narrative and to seek for rea- 
 sons why the Virgin accompanied Joseph in this 
 enforced journey to the city of his fathers ^ Is 
 
 ^ This is the objection stated in 
 its usual form ; but it seems very 
 doubtful if even on merely general 
 historical data it can be substan- 
 tiated. In fact Huschke {iiber den 
 Cens. p. Ii6 sq.) has apparently de- 
 monstrated the contrary, and proved 
 that in every Roman census each 
 individual was enrolled where he had 
 his ^ forum originis.’ This, how- 
 ever, need not be pressed, as the 
 journey of Joseph is so much more 
 plausibly attributed to the Jewish 
 form in accordance with which the 
 census was conducted; comp. By- 
 naeus, de Natali Jes. Chr. i. 3, p. 
 337, and a good article by Winer, 
 RWB. ‘Schatzung.’ Vol. ii. p. 398 
 — 401. 
 
 ^ The terms here used, ol/cos and 
 TrarpLa, seem to be specially and 
 exactly chosen. The latter is used 
 with reference to the DinS^D or 
 gentes, which traced their origin to 
 the twelve patriarchs, the former 
 
 to the IT'S or familice, of 
 
 which these latter were composed: 
 see Winer, RWB. Art. ‘Stamme,’ 
 Vol. II. p. 513 sq. 
 
 ^ If the census had been purely 
 Roman in its form it would seem 
 that the presence of the Virgin would 
 certainly not have been needed, the 
 giving in of the names of women 
 and children being considered suflh- 
 cient: comp. Dionys. Halic. iv. 15; 
 Huschke, uher den Cens. p. 121. As, 
 however, in accordance with the view 
 taken in the text, it is to be consi- 
 dered rather as Jewish in form, the 
 presence of Mary is still less to be 
 accounted for on any purely legal 
 reasons. The favourite hypothesis 
 that she was an heiress, and pos- 
 sessor of a real estate at Bethlehem, 
 and so legally bound to appear (Olsh. 
 in loc.), is now generally and, as it 
 would seem, rightly given up: see 
 Winer, RWB. Art. * Schatzung,’ 
 Vol. II, p, 401. 
 
G1 
 
 of our Lord. 
 
 it positively necessar}^ to ascribe to her some 
 
 inheritance which required her presence at the 
 
 enrolment at Bethlehem ? Is it really not enough 
 for us that St Luke relates that she did take 
 this journey; and is it so strange that at that 
 time of popular gatherings, and perhaps popular 
 excitement she should brave the exhaustion of 
 a long journey, rather than lose the protection 
 of one to whom she must have been bound by 
 ties of the holiest nature, and who shared with 
 her the knowledge of a mystery that had been 
 sealed in silence since the foundations of the world. 
 
 On such subordinate and bootless inquiries we 
 need, I am sure, delay no longer. 
 
 And now the mysterious hour, which an oldTheNati- 
 apocryphal writer has described with such striking its attend- 
 yet such curious imagery^, was nigh at hand. Very 
 soon after the arrival at Bethlehem, perchance on 
 the self-same night, in one of the limestone caverns, 
 
 — for I see no reason for rejecting the statement 
 of one who was born little more than a century 
 
 ^ Compare the sensible remarks 
 of Wieseler, Chron. Synops. p. 128. 
 
 2 The sort of pause, as it were, in 
 all things that marked this most 
 momentous period in the world’s 
 history is thus curiously described 
 in the Protevangdium Jacobi, cap. 
 18; ^And I Joseph was walking, 
 and yet was not walking; and 1 
 looked up into the sky, and I saw 
 the sky in amazement; and I looked 
 up to the pole of heaven and I saw 
 it standing still, and the birds of the 
 air in tranquil calm ; and I directed 
 my gaze on the earth, and I saw a 
 bowl-like table, and labouring men 
 around it, and their hands were in 
 the bowl, and they who had meat in 
 
 their mouths were not eating, and 
 they that were taking up food raised 
 it not up, and they that were bring- 
 ing it up to their mouths, were not 
 bringing it up ; but the countenances 
 of all were directed upwards. And 
 I saw sheep in the act of being 
 driven, and they were standing still ; 
 and the shepherd was raising his 
 hand to smite them, and his arm 
 remained aloft. And I gazed on the 
 torrent-course of a river, and I be- 
 held the kids lowering their heads 
 towards it, and not drinking, and 
 all things in their courses for the 
 moment suspended” (ed. Tisch. pp. 
 33> 34)* Compare Hofmann, Lehen 
 Jesu, p. 110. 
 
.ECT. 
 
 II. 
 
 G2 The Birth and Infancy 
 
 afterwards and not forty miles from the same 
 spot^, — in one of the caverns in that narrow ridge 
 of long grey hill on which stands the city of 
 David was the Redeemer born into a world that 
 rejected Him even in His mothers womb. 
 
 How brief and how simple are the words that 
 relate these homely circumstances of the Lord’s 
 Nativity. How surely does the mother’s recital 
 and the mother’s stored-up memories come forth 
 in the artless touches of detaiP. And yet with 
 how much of holy and solemn reserve is that 
 first hour of a world’s salvation passed over by 
 the Evangelist. We would indeed fain inquire 
 more into the wonders of that mysterious night; 
 and they are not wholly withheld from us. The 
 same Evangelist that tells us that the mid-day 
 
 1 The statement of J ustin Martyr, 
 who was born at Sichem, about A.D. 
 103, is very distinct: Tewridevros di 
 t6t€ toO iraidiov iu BTjdXeifi, eweid^ 
 ovk elx^v ev ry KWfxri eKeLurj 
 TToO KaraXvaaL, ev aTrrjXaiu} rivl cr6v- 
 eyyvs TTjs KdofXTjs Kar^Xvae. Try^ph. 
 cap. 78, Vol. II. p. 264 (ed. Otto). 
 This ancient tradition has been re- 
 peated by Origen {Cels. i. 51), Euse- 
 bius (Z>mons^r. Evang.vii.'z), Jerome 
 {Epist. ad Marcell, xxiv.), and other 
 ancient writers, and has been gene- 
 rally admitted by modern writers 
 and travellers, as far from impro- 
 bable: comp. Stanley, Palest, p. 438. 
 Dr Thomson {The Land and the 
 Boole, Vol. II. p. 507), though ad- 
 mitting the ambiguity of the tradi- 
 tion, opposes it on reasons derived 
 from the context of the sacred nar- 
 rative, which are however far from 
 convincing. The Virgin might easily 
 have been removed to the oida spe- 
 
 cified in Matt. ii. ii, before the arri- 
 val of the Magi. For further details 
 and reff. see Thilo, Codex Apocr. 
 p. 381 sq. ; Hofmann, Lehen Jes. p. 
 108 ; and a very good article by 
 Rev. G. Williams, in the Ecclesiolo- 
 gist for 1848. 
 
 2 The reader who may have an 
 interest in the outward aspects of 
 these sacred localities will find a 
 coloured sketch of Bethlehem and 
 its neighbourhood in Roberts’ Holy 
 Land, Vol. ii. Plate 84. The illus- 
 trations, however, most strongly re- 
 commended by an Oriental traveller 
 of some experience to the writer of 
 this note, as giving the truest idea 
 of the sacred localities, are those of 
 Frith, and the excellent views of 
 Jerusalem and its environs executed 
 by Robertson and Beato (Gambart 
 and Co.). 
 
 3 See above, p. 46, note i, where 
 this subject is briefly noticed. 
 
of our Lord. 
 
 G3 
 
 sun was darkened durinof the last hours of the lect. 
 Kedeemer’s earthly life^ tells us also that in His 
 
 . . “ Luke 
 
 first hours the night was turned into more than xxiii. 44. 
 day, and that heavenly glories shone forth not 
 unwitnessed^, while angels announce to shepherd- ^ Luke ii. 
 watchers ^ on the grassy slopes of Bethlehem the 
 
 ^ Luke ii. 8, dypavXovvres kuI 
 (pv\daaovT€S (pvXaicds Trjs pvkt6$; the 
 last words defining the time and 
 qualifying the two preceding parti- 
 ciples. The fact here specified has 
 been often used in the debated sub- 
 ject of the exact time of year at 
 which our Lord’s birth took place. 
 But little, however, can really be 
 derived from it, as the frequently 
 quoted notice of the Talmudical wri- 
 ters (see Lightfoot on Luhe ii. 8), 
 that the herds were brought in from 
 the fields about the beginning of 
 November and driven out again 
 about March, is merely general, and 
 might include so many modifications 
 arising from season or locality (see 
 Sepp, Lehen Christi, Vol. i. p. •213; 
 Wieseler, Cliron. Synops. p. 146) that 
 it cannot fairly be urged as conclu- 
 sive against the traditional date in 
 December. Nay, temporary circum- 
 stances, — the large afflux of strangers 
 to Bethlehem, — might have easily 
 led to a temporary removal of the 
 cattle into some of the milder valleys 
 to provide an accommodation of 
 which at least the Holy Family 
 were obliged to avail themselves. 
 Still it must be said, the fact viewed 
 simply does seem to incline us to- 
 wards a period less rigorous than 
 mid-winter ; and when we join with 
 this chronological data which appear 
 positively to fix the epoch as sub- 
 sequent to the beginning of January 
 (see Wieseler, Chron. Synops. p. 145), 
 and further, considerations derived 
 
 fi-om the probable sequence of events, 
 and the times probably occupied by 
 them, we perhaps may slightly lean 
 to the opinion that ^arly in Febr. 
 (most probably a.U.c. 750; Sulpic, 
 Sever. Hist. Sacr. Book ii. ch, 39) 
 was the time of the Nativity. The 
 question has been discussed from a 
 very early period. In the time of 
 Clement of Alexandria {Strom, i. 21, 
 Vol. I. p. 407, ed. Pott), by whom 
 it appears to have been considered 
 rather a matter of Trepiepyia, the 
 traditions were anything but unani- 
 mous (some selecting Jan. 6, some 
 Jan, 10, others April 20, and even 
 May 20), and it was not till the 
 fourth century that December 25 
 became generally accepted as the 
 exact date; see the useful table at- 
 tached to the valuable dissertation 
 of Patritius, de Evang. Book iii. 19, 
 p. 276. Out of the many treatises 
 and discussions that have been writ- 
 ten on this subject the following 
 may be specified: Ittig, de Fest. 
 Nativ. Dissert, ill. ; Jablonsky, de 
 Origine Fest. Nativ. Vol. iii. p. 317 
 sq. (ed. te Water); Spanheim, Dub. 
 Evangel. Xii. Vol, II, p, 208 sq. ; 
 Greswell, Dissert, xii. Vol, i. p. 381 
 sq. ; Wieseler, Chron. Synops. p, 132 ; 
 compare also Clinton, Fasti Hell. 
 Vol. III. p. 256 sq. ; and Browne, 
 Or do Soedorum, § 23 sq., p. 26 sq. 
 A distinct Homily on this subject 
 will be found in Chrysost. Homil. in 
 Diem Natal. Vol. ii. p. 417 sq. (ed. 
 Bened. 1834). 
 
64 
 
 LECT. 
 
 II. 
 
 “ Luke ii. 
 
 II. 
 
 Matt, xi 
 
 Tke Birth and Infancy 
 
 tidings of great joy, and proclaim the new-born 
 Saviour*^... How mysterious are the ways of God’s 
 dealings with men. The Desire of all nations 
 at length come, the Saviour born into an expect- 
 ant world, and — announced to village shepherds. 
 What a bathos, what a hopeless bathos to the 
 unbelieving or unmeditative spirit ! How notice- 
 able that the Apocryphal writers, who spin out 
 with the most dreary prolixity every other hint 
 supplied by the sacred writers, pass over this in 
 the fewest possible words^, and as something which 
 they could neither appreciate nor understand. 
 And yet what a divine significance is there in 
 the fact, that to the spiritual descendants of the 
 first type of the Messiah, Abel the keeper of 
 sheep, the announcement is made that the great 
 Shepherd of the lost sheep of humanity is born 
 into the world^. What a mysterious fitness that 
 that Gospel, of which the characteristic was that 
 it was preached unto the poor^, was first pro- 
 claimed neither to the ceremonial Pharisee, who 
 would have questioned it, nor to the worldly 
 Sadducee, who would have despised it, nor to the 
 separatist Essene^, who would have given it a 
 
 ^ See Pseudo- Matth. Evang. cap. 
 13; Evang. Infant. Arab. cap. 4; 
 and compare Hofmann, Lehen Jesu, 
 p. 1 1 7. Tradition affects to preserve 
 their names — Misael, Acheel, Cyna- 
 cus and Stephanus. 
 
 ^ “ It fell not out amiss that shep- 
 herds they were ; the news fitted 
 them well. It well agreed to tell 
 shepherds of the yeaning of a 
 strange Lamb, such a Lamb as 
 should ‘ take away the sins of the 
 world such a Lamb as they might 
 
 ‘ send to the Ruler of the world for 
 a present, ’ mitte Agnum Dominatori 
 terrce , — Esay’s Lamb. Or if ye will, 
 to tell shepherds of the birth of a 
 Shepherd, Ezekiel’s shepherd: Ecce 
 suscitabo vohis pastorem, ‘Behold, I 
 will raise you a Shepherd,’ ‘ the 
 Chief Shepherd,’ ‘the Great Shep- 
 herd,’ and ‘the Good Shepherd that 
 gave His life for His flock.’ ” An- 
 drewes, Serm. v. Vol. i. p. 65 (A.-C. 
 Libr.). 
 
 2 The spiritual characteristics and 
 
of our Lord. 
 
 65 
 
 mere sectarian significance, but to men whose 
 simple and susceptible hearts made them come 
 with haste, and see, and believe, and spread abroad 
 the wonders they had been permitted to behold’. 
 Shepherds were the first of men who glorified 
 and praised God for their Saviour; shepherds 
 were the first earthly preachers^ of the Gospel 
 of Christ. 
 
 How far their praises and the wonders they 
 had to tell of wrought on the hearts of those 
 who heard them^ we. are not enabled to say. 
 The holy reserve of the Virgin mother, who kept 
 all these sayings^ and pondered them in her hearty 
 
 relations of these three sects are 
 briefly but ably noticed by Lange, 
 LehenJes. ii. i. i, Part i. p. 17. The 
 Pharisee corrupted the current and 
 tenor of revelation by ceremonial 
 additions, the Sadducee by reducing 
 it to a mere deistic morality, the 
 Essene by idealizing its historical 
 aspects, or by narrowing its widest 
 principles and precepts into the rigid- 
 ities of a false and morbid asceticism. 
 Superstition, scepticism, and schism 
 alike found in the cross of Christ a 
 stone of stumbling and a rock of 
 offence. For further notices of these 
 sects and their dissensions, see Jost, 
 Geschichte des Judenthums, ii. 2, 8, 
 Vol. I. p, 197 sq. 
 
 1 'Why was it that the Angel 
 went not to Jerusalem, sought not 
 out the Scribes and Pharisees, en- 
 tered not into the synagogues of the 
 
 Jews, but found shepherds and 
 
 preached the gospel to them ? Be- 
 cause the former were corrupt and 
 ready to be cut to the heart with 
 envy ; while these latter were uncor- 
 rupt, affecting the old way of living 
 of the patriarchs, and also of Mo- 
 E. H. L. 
 
 ses, for these men were shepherds.’ 
 Origen ap. Cramer, Caten. Vol. i. 
 p. 20 ; compare too Theophylact. in 
 loc. For some further practical con- 
 siderations, see Bp Taylor, Life of 
 Christ, Part i. ad Sect. 4, Vol. I. 
 p. 45 sq. (Bond. 1836). 
 
 2 The first preachers, as Cyril 
 rightly observes, {Comment, on Luke, 
 Serm. II. Vol. I. p. 13, Tran si., Oxf. 
 1859), were angels, — a distinction 
 faintly hinted at by the very terms 
 of the original ; ws aTrrfKdov aid aiirCjv 
 eis TOP ovpapop oi dyyeXoL, Kal ol 
 dpdpcoTTOt oi TTOipLives cIttop /c.r.X. 
 Here it need scarcely be said we 
 have no mere idle periphrasis (' homo 
 pastor,’ Dr us.), but an opposition 
 to the preceding term dyyeXoc ; see 
 Meyer in loc. 
 
 ^ The expression rd piip-ara ravra 
 (Luke ii. 19) is rightly referred by 
 most modern commentators, not to 
 the circumstances generally (tcl irpdy- 
 p.ara ravra, Theoph.), but to the 
 things mentioned by the shepherds : 
 so rightly Euthym. in loc. — rd Trapd 
 ru)P TTOip-ipcop XaXrjOipra. On the 
 reasonableness of this reserve, see 
 
 5 
 
 LECT. 
 
 II. 
 
 The cir- 
 cumcision 
 and pre- 
 sentation in 
 the Temple. 
 ^ Luke ii. 
 
 n- 
 
 ver. 19. 
 
66 
 
 LECT. 
 
 IJ. 
 
 * Luke ii. 
 
 •* Luke i. 
 ^ 5 - 
 
 « Luke ii. 
 
 33 - 
 
 7 Vie Birth and Infancy 
 
 would lead us to believe that at any rate the 
 history of the miraculous conception was not gene- 
 rally divulged ; and that the Lord’s earthly parents 
 spake not beyond the small circle of those imme- 
 diately around them. The circumcision, from the 
 brief notice of the Evangelist^, would certainly 
 seem to have taken place with all circumstances 
 of privacy and solitude, — in apparent contrast to 
 that of the Forerunner, which appears to have been 
 with gatherings and rejoicings \ and was marked 
 by marvels that were soon noised abroad through- 
 out all the hill-country of Judsea^. Nay, even at 
 the presentation in the Temple, more than a month 
 afterwards^, the Evangelist’s remark, that Joseph 
 and Mary marvelled at Simeon’s prophecy‘s, would 
 seem distinctly to show that no circumstances from 
 without had as yet proved sufficient to prepare 
 them for the mysterious welcome which awaited 
 the infant Saviour in His Father’s temple. 
 
 But what a welcome that was, and how seem- 
 ingly at variance with all outward circumstances. 
 
 Mill, on Pantheistic Princ. il. i. 2, 
 
 p. 212. 
 
 ^ Even if we limit, as perhaps is 
 most grammatically exact, the sub- 
 ject of 7 ]\dov (Luke i. 59) to those 
 who were to perform the rite of cir- 
 cumcision, the context would cer- 
 tainly seem to show that many were 
 present. 
 
 ^ The exact time in the case of a 
 male child (in the case of a female 
 it was double) was 40 days, during 
 7 of which the mother was to be 
 accounted unclean ; during the re- 
 maining 33 days she was ‘to con- 
 tinue in the blood of her purifying;’ 
 she was ‘ to touch no hallowed thing, 
 
 nor come into the sanctuary, until 
 the days of her purifying be fulfilled. ’ 
 Levit. xii. 4. For further informa- 
 tion see Michaelis, Law of Moses, 
 § 192, Bahr, Symholik, Vol. II. p. 
 487, Winer, RWB. Art. ‘ Reinig- 
 keit,’ Vol. II. p. 315 sq. ; and for a 
 sound sermon on the subject, Frank, 
 Serm. xxii. Vol. i. p. 340 (A.-C. 
 Libr.), and esp. Mill, Univ. Serm. 
 XXI. p. 400. The indication of the 
 comparative poverty of the holy 
 Family supplied by the notice of 
 their offering (Luke ii. 24, Lev. xii. 
 8) has often been observed by mo- 
 dern, but seldom by ancient, expo- 
 sitoi’s. 
 
of our Lord. 
 
 07 
 
 The devout, and let us add, inspired^ Simeon \ lect. 
 
 whose steps had been led that day to the Temple ^ 7 
 
 by the Holy Spirit^, saw perchance before him ^5. 
 no more than two unnoted worshippers’. But it 
 was enough. When the eyes of the aged waiter 
 for the consolation of IsraeP saw the Holy Child, ver. 25. 
 he saw all. There in helpless infancy and clad 
 in mortal flesh was the Lord’s Christ, — there was • 
 the fulfilment of all his mystic revelations^, the ' 
 granted issue of all his longings and all his 
 prayers^. Can we marvel that his whole soul was 
 stirred to its depths, that he took the Holy Child 
 
 ^ The history of this highly fa- 
 voured man is completely unknown. 
 Some recent attempts (Michaelis, ah) 
 have been made to identify him wdth 
 Rabban Simeon, the son of Hillel, 
 and father of Gamaliel^ who was 
 afterwards president of the Sanhe- 
 drin (Lightfoot, Hor. Hebr. in loc. ; 
 Otho, Zex. Rdbhin. s. v. ‘Simeon,’ 
 p. 605) : such an identification, how- 
 ever, has nothing in its favour, ex- 
 cept the name, — a sufficiently com- 
 mon one, and this against it, that 
 Rabban Simeon could not have been 
 as old as the Simeon of St Luke is 
 apparently represented to be. For 
 some notices of Rabban Simeon, see 
 Sepp, Lehen CJiristi, ch. xvii. Vol. 
 II, p. 52 sq. 
 
 ^ This seems implied in the words 
 ■^\ 6 ev iv T(p Upe^/xari ets to iep 6 v, 
 Luke ii. 27, — the preposition with 
 its case marking the influence in 
 which, and under which he was act- 
 ing, ‘impulsu Spiritus’ (Meyer, on 
 Matth. xxii. 43), and though not 
 perfectly identical with, yet approxi- 
 mating in force to the instrumental 
 dative ; ry Tiveip.aTt, rip ayicp Kiprj- 
 dels, Euthym. in loc. So too Ori- 
 gen, even more explicitly, — ‘Spiritus 
 
 sanctus eum duxit in templum.’ In 
 Luc. Horn. XV. Vol. iii. p. 949 (ed^ 
 Bened.). 
 
 ^ One of the apocrjq^hal writers 
 has represented the scene very dif- 
 ferently, and in suggestive contrast 
 to the chaste dignity of the inspired 
 narrative : ‘ Turn videt ilium Simeon 
 senex instar columnae lucis fulgen- 
 tem, cum domina Maria Virgo ma- 
 ter ejus de eo laetabunda ulnis suis 
 eum gestaret: circumdabant autem 
 eum angeli instar circuli celebrantes, 
 tanquam satellites regi adstantes.’ 
 Evang. Infant. Arab, cap.vi, p. 173 
 (ed. Tisch.). The Pseudo - Matth. 
 Evang. keeps more closely to the in- 
 spired narrative: see cap. xv. p. 78. 
 
 ^ For an essay on the character 
 of this faithful watcher, see Evans, 
 Script. Biogr. Vol. i. p. 326; and 
 for some good comments on his in- 
 spired canticle, Patritius, de Evang. 
 Dissert, xxvi. Part iii. p. 304. In 
 the early Church Simeon appears to 
 have been designated by the title, 
 6 deobbxos, in memory of the bless- 
 ing accorded to him : comp. Menolog. 
 Grcec. Feb. 3, and the oration of 
 Timoth. Hieros. in the Bibl. Max. 
 Patrum, Vol. v. p. 1214. 
 
 5—2 
 
LECT. 
 
 II. 
 
 " Luke ii. 
 28. 
 
 G8 The Birth and Infancy 
 
 in his arms^, and poured forth, in the full spirit 
 of prophecy h that swan-song of the seer of the 
 Old Covenant, to which our Church so justly and 
 so lovingly assigns a place in its daily service ? 
 Can we marvel that with the Holy Child still in 
 his arms^ he blessed the wondering parents, though 
 the spirit of prophecy that was upon him mingled 
 with that blessing words that must have sunk 
 deep into the heart of the Virgin^, words often 
 
 ^ JlpO(p'r}TLK^ XdpLTt TeTLp.7}p,ivOS, 
 Cyril Alex. ap. Cramer, Oaten. Vol. 
 II. p. 23, and Serm. iv. Vol. i. p. 25 
 (Transl.). On the character of this 
 and the other inspired canticles in 
 this part of the Scripture, see the 
 good remarks of Mill, on Pantheistic 
 Princix>les, Part ii. i. 3, p. 43 sq. 
 
 ^ Though we cannot, with Meyer 
 and others, safely press the meaning 
 of the verb /cefrai as implying ‘qui 
 in ulnis meis jacet’ (Beng.), it would 
 yet seem highly probable from the 
 context that this blessing was pro- 
 nounced by the aged Simeon, while 
 still bearing his Saviour in his arms. 
 For a good practical sermon on 
 Simeon’s thus receiving our Lord, 
 see Frank, Serm. xxiii. Vol. i. p. 
 360 sq. (A.-C. Libr.), and compare 
 Hacket, Serm. x. p. 88 sq. (Lond. 
 
 1675)- 
 
 ^ The prophetic address of Simeon, 
 which it may be observed is directed 
 specially to the Virgin (xai eXire Trpbs 
 M.apLapL T7]v p.rjTipa avrov, Luke ii. 
 34), has two separate references, 
 the one general, to the Jewish na- 
 tion, and the opposed spiritual atti- 
 tudes into which the Gospel of 
 Christ would respectively bring those 
 who believed and those who rejected 
 {■n-TuxTcu p.iv, tCjv pLT] TTcaTevovTOJv, avd- 
 crraaLv bi, tQiv irL(TTev6vT03u, Theo- 
 phylact) ; tlie other special, to the 
 
 Virgin personally (xai aov db avriji 
 K.T.X., ver. 35), and to the bitter- 
 ness of agony with which she should 
 hereafter behold the sufferings of her 
 divine Son. So rightly Euthymius : 
 pog<paiav bk (hvbgaae ry]v Tp-rjTLKUTd- 
 T7]v Kal o^dav ddtjvTjv, '^tls dLrjXde tt]v 
 K apbiav rijs Qeop.'qropos, 6're 6 vib% 
 aliTTjs 7rpoar]Xd)6r] r(p (rravpQ. Com- 
 pare also a good comment in Cramer, 
 Oaten. Yo\. ii. p. 24, and Mill, Univ. 
 Serm. xxi. p. 415. The only re- 
 maining exegetical difficulty is the 
 connexion of the final clause, 6'7 tws 
 hv K.r.X. (ver. 35). According to 
 the ordinary punctuation, this would 
 be dependent on ver. 34, the fii'st 
 clause of ver. 35 being enclosed in a 
 parenthesis; according, however, to 
 the best modern interpreters it is 
 regarded as simply dependent on 
 what precedes: the mystery, that 
 the heart of the earthly mother was 
 to be riven with agony at the suffer- 
 ings of her divine Son, involved as 
 its end and object the bringing out 
 of the true characters and thoughts 
 of men, and making it clear and 
 manifest — ris p.h 6 ayairwv avrbv, 
 Kal p-bxpt davdrov tt]v els abrbv arja- 
 Trr\v evbeLKvigevos' Ti's 5^ 6 ^wlirXaa- 
 rov avTov Trlcrriv, CKav- 
 
 SdXou TrXrjpcodels dia rbv aravpbv. 
 Cramer, Oaten. Vol. ii. p. 25. So 
 Augustine, in his answer to the 
 
of our Lord. 
 
 G9 
 
 pondered over, yet perchance then only fully un- 
 derstood in all the mystic bitterness of their truth, 
 when, not a thousand paces from where she then 
 was standing, the nails tore the hands that she had 
 but then been holding, and the spear pierced the 
 side she had but then been pressing to her bosom. 
 
 Yet man was not alone to welcome the Lord ; 
 one sex was not alone to greet Him — in whom 
 there was neither male nor female^, but all were 
 one: Not one sex only, for at that very instant*', 
 
 we are told by St Luke, the aged and tenderly- 
 faithful Anna^ enters the place she loved so well. 
 Custom^ rather than revelation appears to have 
 brought the widowed prophetess into the temple, 
 but she too saw and believed, and returned grate- 
 ful praise^ unto the God of her fathers, and of 
 her this special notice has been made by the 
 Evangelist, that ^^she spake of the Lord to all 
 them that were looking for redemption in Jeru- 
 
 qneries of Paulinus of Nola {Epist. 
 OXLix. 33, Vol. II. p. 644, ed. Migne), 
 except that he unduly limits the 
 ttoWQu KapdiQv dLaXoyLafiol to the 
 ‘insidise Judseorum et discipulorum 
 infirmitas.’ 
 
 ^ The tenderness and constancy 
 of the aged prophetess to the me- 
 mory of the husband of her youth 
 is slightly enhanced by the reading 
 of Lachmann and Tischendorf, — 
 XVP<^ dydoTjKovra Tecradpwv, 
 
 Luke ii: 37 ; but this reading, though 
 supported by A, B, L, the Vulgate, 
 and other versions, is by no means 
 certain. The honour in which the 
 ‘univira’ was held by the Jews, is 
 shown very distinctly by the com- 
 ments of Josephus on the persistent 
 widowhood of Antonia ; Antiq. xviii. 
 
 6. 6. Compare Winer, EWB. Art. 
 ^Ehe,’ Vol. I. p. 299. 
 
 2 This perhaps is a fairly correct 
 paraphrase of the peculiar term used 
 by St Luke, dvdu}p.oXoyeLTo. The 
 remarks of the accurate Winer on 
 this word are as follows : ‘ Possis 
 existiniare de celehrandi laudandi- 
 que significatione; ... sed, ut dicam 
 quod sentio, addendum erat, cele- 
 brantis istius pietatem mulieris max- 
 ime in gratiarum actione positam 
 esse...Itaque haec videtur verbi dv 
 OogoXoy. vis propria esse, avrl enim 
 manifesto referendi rependendique 
 sensum habet, atque ita facile per- 
 spicias, quod inter 6/40X07. 0 ey et 
 dvdopLoXoy. Qecp intersit.’ De Verb, c. 
 Prcep. Fasc. iii. p. 20, — a treatise 
 unfortunately never completed. 
 
 LMCT. 
 
 11 . 
 
 “ Gal. iii. 
 28. 
 
 Luke ii. 
 
 38. 
 
 ver. 37. 
 
LECT. 
 
 II. 
 
 “ Luke ii. 
 3 «. 
 
 The visit 
 and adora- 
 tion of the 
 Magi. 
 
 70 The Birth and Infancy 
 
 salem^.’’ The daughter of PhanueT was the first 
 preacher of Christ in the city of the Great King. 
 
 And her preaching was not long left uncon- 
 firmed. What she was now telling in secret 
 chambers'^ was soon to be proclaimed on the house- 
 tops. The ends of the earth were already send- 
 ing forth the heralds of the new-born King. The 
 feet of strange pilgrims and worshippers were even 
 now on the mountains of the promised Land. 
 
 It would seem from the narrative that Joseph 
 and Mary had returned but a few days^ to their 
 temporary abode at Bethlehem'*, when sages, bear- 
 
 ^ The special mention of the fa- 
 ther and tribe of Anna was perhaps 
 designed to give to the narrative a 
 still further stamp of historical truth. 
 Anna, the daughter of Phanuel, 
 might have been a name still remem- 
 bered by many: 6 evayye- 
 
 Xiarrjs Trepl rijs ”Avvrj% a(pr]y'^crei, 
 Kai TOP irarepa Kal t^p (pvXrjp Kara- 
 Xiyup, ha piddcop.ep on dXr)07) Xiyei, 
 pt,dpTvpas dxrapei ttoXXoijs TrpoaKaXoO- 
 jaepos. Theoph. in loc. 
 
 2 Anna’s preaching was not gene- 
 ral, but TO?s Trpoadexop^hois X^rpujCLP 
 ip 'lepovaaXrip., ver. 38. The local 
 addition ip 'lepova. appears to be- 
 long specially to the participle tols 
 7 rpoadexop.ipoLS : see Meyer in loc. 
 
 2 According to one MS. of the 
 Pseudo- Matth. Evangelium (cap. xvi. 
 p. 79, ed. Tisch,), two days after- 
 wards ; according to the text adopted 
 by Tischendorf, the completely im- 
 probable period of two years: see 
 Wieseler, Ckron.Synops. i. 2, p. 59, 
 note, who, however, himself (see 
 below, p. 73, note 1) seems to press 
 too strongly the dirb dcerovs Kal Karoi- 
 ripco, Matth. ii. 16. The Protev. 
 Jacobi (cap. xxi.) makes the visit of 
 the Magi to have been made to the 
 
 Holy Family while yet in the cave, 
 a statement distinctly at variance 
 with Matth. ii. 1 1, iXdSpres eis ryp 
 oUiap. For chronological considera- 
 tions substantiating the view taken 
 in the text, see Wieseler, Chron. 
 Sijnops. p. 154 sq. 
 
 ^ The narratives of St Matthew 
 and St Luke have been here often 
 regarded as almost wholly irrecon- 
 cileable ; see Meyer and Alford in 
 Joe. Is this however so certain ? 
 Why may not St Luke have stu- 
 diously omitted what he might pos- 
 sibly have known had been recorded 
 by another Evangelist, and thus 
 have left unnoticed the occurrences 
 which intervened between this visit 
 to the Temple and the return to 
 Nazai-eth, specified by St Matthew, 
 ch. ii. 23? The reconciliation adopt- 
 ed by Eusebius {Queest. ad Marin. 
 ap. Mai, Bihl. Patr.Yoi. iv. p. 253), 
 that Joseph and Mary went direct 
 to Nazareth, and afterwards return- 
 ed to Bethlehem, is not very proba- 
 ble, as no reason can be assigned 
 why the Holy Family should have 
 returned again to a place with which 
 they appear to have had little or no 
 connexion : see Augustine, de Con- 
 
of our Lord. 71 
 
 ing the already almost generic name of Magi, 
 arrive from some Eastern lands not specified by 
 the Evangelist, but probably remote as the Arabia 
 which one ancient tradition^, or the Persia which 
 another ancient tradition^ has fixed upon as their 
 home. Witnesses were they, from whatever clime 
 they came, of the wisdom of God displaying it- 
 
 self in the foolishness or 
 
 senm Evang. ii. 5. 16, Vol. iii. p. 
 1079 (ed. Migne), Wieseler, Chron. 
 Synops. p. 156. 
 
 ^ Such is the older tradition, no- 
 ticed and supported by Justin Mar- 
 tyr, Tryph. cap. 78, Vol. ii. p, 263 
 (ed. Otto), Tertullian adv. Jud. cap. 
 9, and adv. Marc. iii. 13. The 
 objection to this view seems to be 
 the term auaroXur, which, in the 
 New Testament at least, can hardly 
 be regarded as a natural designation 
 of a country which elsewhere is 
 always specified by its regular geo- 
 graphical name : see Winer, R WE. 
 Art. ‘Stern der Weisen,’ Vol. ii. 
 P- 523, but also contrast the reff. of 
 Patritius, de Evang. Dissert, xxvii. 
 Part III. p. 317. 
 
 2 This somewhat later tradition 
 is maintained by Chrysostom {in loc.), 
 Pseudo-Basil (Vol. ii. p. 855, ed. 
 Bened.), Ephrem {Cantic.de Maria et 
 M agis, V ol. iii. p. 60 1 , ed Assem.), the 
 Christian poet Juvencus, and many 
 other ancient writers, — and with con- 
 siderable probability, as Persia and 
 the adjoining countries appear always 
 to have been regarded as the chief 
 seat of the Magian philosophy (see the 
 numerous confirmatory reflF. in Gres- 
 well, Dissert, xviii.), and as the term 
 at avaroKal might naturally and suit- 
 ably have been applied by the Evan- 
 gelist to the trans-Euphratean coun- 
 tries of which Persia formed a portion. 
 
 misconceptions of man^ 
 
 Such too is the opinion of apparently 
 the majority of the more learned mo- 
 dern writers who have touched upon 
 this subject ; we may pause to specify 
 the celebrated Orientalist, Hyde {de 
 Relig. Vet. Pers. cap. xxxi. 383), who 
 particularly notices their country as 
 Parthia; the learned Dr Thomas 
 Jackson {Creed, Book vii. Vol. vi. 
 p. 261, Oxf. 1844), the no less 
 learned Dr Mill {Ohs. on Pantheistic 
 Principles, Part ii. pp. 365, 375). 
 For further information the student 
 may be referred to Spanheim, Dub. 
 Evang. xviii — xxiv. Part ii. p. 255 
 sq., the excellent Dissertation of 
 Patritius above referred to {de Evan- 
 geliis. Part in. pp. 309 — 354, where 
 every question relating to these sages 
 is fully discussed), Greswell, Dissert. 
 XVIII. Vol. II. p. 135 sq., Hoffmann, 
 Lehen Jes. p. 125, and especially the 
 sound and valuable comments of 
 Mill, on Panth. Princ. Part ii. 3. i, 
 p. 364. 
 
 * See the excellent remarks of 
 Mill on the true physical influence 
 and true significancy of the heavenly 
 bodies, and the counterfeit science 
 of astrology with which it was adul- 
 terated. Observations on Pantheistic 
 Principles, Part ii. 3. 2, pp. 364, 
 365 : compare also a learned and 
 not uninteresting dissertation on 
 judicial astrology in Spanheim, Dub. 
 Evang. xxxiii. Part ii. p. 334 sq. 
 
 LECT. 
 
 n. 
 
72 
 
 The Birth and Infancy 
 
 LECT. 
 
 II. 
 
 The guid- 
 ing star. 
 
 Witnesses were they of the cherished longings of 
 ancient nations^ ; bright examples of a faith that 
 could dignify even superstitions, and of hopes that 
 grew not cold when all must have seemed utter 
 hopelessness. 
 
 But what could have brought these first-fruits 
 of the wisdom of the Eastern world from their 
 own distant lands ? Even that which was most 
 calculated to work in them the liveliest belief and 
 
 conviction. A new star'^ 
 
 ^ It has long been a matter of 
 discussion what precisely led these 
 Magi to expect a birth so prefigured ; 
 see Spanheim, Dub. Evang. xxxiv. 
 Part II. p. 366 sq. Was it due to 
 a carefully preserved knowledge of 
 the prophecy of Balaam (Numb, 
 xxiv. 17 — 19), an opinion maintained 
 by Origen (contr. Cels. Book i. p. 
 46, ed. Spencer), and the majority 
 of the ancient expositors ; or was it 
 due to prophecies uttered in their 
 own country, dimly foreshadowing 
 this divine mystery (see the citations 
 from the Zend-Avesta, below, p. 77, 
 note I, and compare Hyde, deRelig. 
 Pers. XXXI. p, 389 sq.)? Perhaps 
 the latter view is the most probable, 
 especially if we associate with it a 
 belief, which the sacred narrative 
 gives us every reason for entertain- 
 ing (Matth. ii. 12), that these faith- 
 ful men received a special illumina- 
 tion both to apply rightly what they 
 had remembered, and to recognize 
 its verification in the phenomenon 
 of which they were now the privi- 
 leged observers : compare Mill, Ob- 
 servations, Part II. 3. 2, p. 368. 
 
 2 Thus far, at least, correctly, 
 Origen {contr. Cels. Book i. p. 45, 
 ed. Spencer) : o^dipra aaripa 
 
 ip Trj apaTo\rj Kaipbp dpai pogl^op.ep 
 K<xl /xrjdepl tup cvprjdup irapa- 
 
 , which the tenor of the 
 
 Tr\rj(T LOP, oijT€ TUP ip Ty airXapei 
 oijTe TUP ip Tais KUTUTipu (X^aipaLS. 
 This great writer seems only to err 
 when in his subsequent remarks he 
 supposes it to be of the nature of a 
 comet. On this star much, and that 
 not always of a satisfactory nature, 
 has been written by both ancient 
 and modern commentators. That 
 it was not a star in the usual astro- 
 nomical sense (Wieseler, Chron. Sy- 
 nojps. I. 2, p. 59) seems clear from 
 the special motions apparently at- 
 tributed to it in the sacred narrative 
 (see Mill, on Panth. Princ. Part ii. 
 3. 2, p. 369, note), that it also could 
 not be a mere conjunction of the 
 greater planets (Munter, Stern der 
 Wiesen, Kepplei*, and similarly Ide- 
 ler, Handbuch der CTironol. Vol. ii. 
 p. 399 sq.,— both following or ex- 
 panding' the older view of Keppler) 
 seems also still more certain from 
 the use of the definite term aarrjp. 
 We therefore justly fall back upon 
 the ancient opinion, that it was a 
 luminous body, possibly of a me- 
 teoric nature, but subject to special 
 laws regulating its appearance and 
 perhaps also its motion. The litera- 
 ture of the subject, which is very 
 extensive, will be found in Winer, 
 RWB. Art. ^ Stern der Weisen,’ 
 Vol. II. p. 523 sq. 
 
73 
 
 of our Lord. 
 
 narrative wholly precludes our deeming aught else 
 than a veritable heavenly body moving apparently 
 in the limits of our own atmosphere, and subject 
 not to astronomical but to special and fore-ordered 
 laws, had suddenly beamed, not many months 
 before h upon the eyes of these watchers in their 
 own Eastern lands'^, and, either by cooperating 
 with dormant prophecy or deepseated expectation, 
 leads them to that land, with which either their 
 own science'^, or more probably the whole feeling 
 
 ^ The date of the appearance of 
 the star is a question that has been 
 often entertained and cannot easily 
 be decided. Wieseler {Chron. Synops, 
 I. 2, p. 59) urges a period of two 
 years previous to the arrival of the 
 Magi, pressing the sort of date af- 
 forded by Matth. ii. 16; see above, 
 p. 70. As, however, Greswell {Dis- 
 sert. XVIII. Vol. II. p. 136, ed. 2) 
 has fairly shown that the term airb 
 8 i€To 0 s Kttl KaTooripcj need not be 
 understood as necessarily implying 
 the extreme limit, and as it is also 
 probable that Herod would be cer- 
 tain to secure to himself a wide 
 margin, we may, with almost equal 
 plausibility select any period between 
 thirteen and twenty-four months. 
 Patritius {de Evang. Dissert, xxvii. 
 Part III. p. 334) urges with a little 
 show of probability a period of eigh- 
 teen months, which according to the 
 rough date of the Nativity adopted 
 in these lectures would have to be 
 reduced to sixteen. The time of the 
 miraculous conception seems to com- 
 mend itself as the exact epoch, but 
 causes us either to reduce somewhat 
 unduly the airb dierovs, or (with 
 Greswell) to assume an interval of 
 nearly three months between the 
 Presentation and the arrival of the 
 Magi, which is not only improbable 
 
 in itself, but absolutely incompatible 
 with the date (a. u. c. 750, the death- 
 year of Herod), which we have above 
 fixed upon as the probable year of 
 the Nativity; see p. 63, note i. 
 
 ^ A few interpreters of this pas- 
 sage, and among them our own 
 expositor Hammond {on Matth. ii. 2) 
 and the German chronologer Wiese- 
 ler {Synops. p. 59), regard ir ry dra- 
 To\y as used with an astronomical 
 reference, ‘at its rising.’ This seems 
 at needless variance with the use of 
 the same words in ver. 9, — where eV 
 ry dvaroXrj and ov yv rb iraLbiov seem 
 to stand in a kind of local antithesis, 
 and is in opposition to the apparently 
 unanimous opinion of the Vulgate, 
 Syriac, Coptic, and other ancient 
 versions. For yet another view see 
 Jackson, Creed, Book vii. Vol. vi. 
 p. 262 (Oxf. 1844). 
 
 3 Much has been said about the 
 astrological association of the con- 
 stellation of the Fish with the land 
 of Judsea; see Miinter, Stern der 
 Wiesen, p. 55 sq., Ideler, Handh. 
 der Chronol. Vol. ii. p. 409, and 
 Wieseler, Chron. Synops. i. 2, p. 56. 
 As, however, this is more or less 
 associated with the doubtful views 
 as to the nature of the star above 
 alluded to, we make no use of such 
 precarious elucidations. 
 
 LECT. 
 
 n. 
 
74 
 
 The Birth and Infancy 
 
 LECT. 
 
 II. 
 
 * Matt. ii. 
 
 2 . 
 
 ver. 3. 
 
 of the Eastern world’, tended to associate the 
 mystery of the future. Can we not picture to 
 ourselves the excitement and amazement in J eru- 
 salem as those travel-stained men^ entered into 
 the city of David with the one question ^ on their 
 lips, ‘Where is He that is born King of the 
 Jews^?’ Can we wonder that the aged man still 
 on the throne of Judaea was filled with strange 
 trouble and perplexity^? Can we be surprised at 
 the course that was immediately followed ? 
 
 1 This general feeling has been 
 above alluded to ; see p. 44, note 2, 
 and compare Mill, on Panth. Prin. 
 Part II. 3. I, p. 366. 
 
 2 Some interesting notices of the 
 probable time which it would have 
 taken the Wise Men to travel from 
 Persia to Jerusalem, will be found 
 in Greswell, Dissert, xviii. Vol. ii. 
 p. 138 sq. From the calculations 
 there made it would appear that they 
 could not have been much less than 
 four months on the road. It has 
 been computed by Chrysostom, in 
 reference to the journey of Abraham, 
 that the time occupied in a journey 
 from Palestine no further than to 
 Chaldsea would be about 70 days. 
 Ad Stagir. II. 6, Vol. i. p. 188 (cited 
 by Greswell). 
 
 3 The terms of this question de- 
 serve some notice, as they serve 
 incidentally to show the firm belief 
 of the Magi that the expected King 
 was now really born into the world, 
 and yet their complete ignorance, not 
 only of the place of His birth, but, 
 as it would seem, also of its myste- 
 rious nature and character; comp. 
 Greswell, Harmony, Dissert, xviii. 
 Vol. II. p. 144, but see contra Theoph. 
 in loc. They go naturally to J eru- 
 salem, for where, as Jackson says 
 {Creed, Book vii. p. 258), ‘should 
 
 they seek the King of the Jews but 
 in His standing court?’ and they 
 put forward a question which shows 
 their conviction that a great King 
 had been born in the land they were 
 visiting, though, at present, who or 
 where they knew not (opposed to 
 Theoph. in loc.). In the sequel, 
 they were probably permitted to be- 
 hold some glimpses of the true na- 
 ture of Him whom they came to 
 reverence; so that, as Bp Taylor 
 well saj’s, ‘ their custom was changed 
 to grace, and their learning height- 
 ened with inspiration ; and God 
 crowned all with a spiritual and 
 glorious event.’ Life of Christ, Part 
 I. 4. 4. Though then in the first 
 TpocrKVftrjaai (ver. 2) no more per- 
 haps might have been designed than 
 the outward worshipful reverence of 
 Persian usage (Herod. I. 134), we 
 may well believe that in the subse- 
 quent performance of the act (ver. 1 1 ) 
 there was something more, and may 
 not incorrectly believe with Tertul- 
 lian {adv.Jud. cap. 9), Origen {contr. 
 Celsum, Lib. I. p. 46, ed. Spencer), 
 and indeed, the whole early Church, 
 that with a deepening though still 
 imperfect consciousness, these faith- 
 ful men adored the Infant at Beth- 
 lehem as God, no less than they 
 prostrated themselves before Him as 
 
of oar Lord. 
 
 75 
 
 Let us only consider the case in its simplest 
 aspects. Here was a question based on celestial 
 
 . ^ . . The ex- 
 
 appearances coming from the lips of those in whom treme na- 
 
 it would have seemed most portentous, — the Magi of 
 of the East, the ancient watchers of the stars. 
 
 When with this we remember how rife expectation 
 was, and how one perhaps of that very council, 
 which the dying king^ called together, could tell of 
 his own father’s mysterious prophecy of the com- 
 ing Messiah 2 — when we add to this the strange 
 rumours of the Child of Bethlehem, fast flying 
 from mouth to mouth beyond that narrow circle 
 to which Anna had first proclaimed Him, — can 
 we wonder at all that followed ? How natural 
 the description of the probably hastily-summoned 
 council, and of the question publicly propounded 
 
 man : see the copious reff. in Patri- 
 tius, de Evang. Dissert, xxvii. 2, 
 Part III, p. 348. 
 
 ^ The death of Herod appears 
 almost certainly to have taken place 
 a few days before the Passover of 
 the year a. u. c, 750; apparently, if 
 retrospective calculations can be de- 
 pended on, towards the end of the 
 first week of April; see Wieseler, 
 Chron. Syn. p. 57, and comp. Clin- 
 ton, Fasti Hell. Vol. iii. p. 254, > 
 Browne, Ordo Scec. § 31, p. 31. If 
 then we suppose the Saviour’s birth 
 to have been in late winter, say, at 
 the beginning of February, the ar- 
 rival of the Magi would have taken 
 place about three weeks before He- 
 rod’s death, and a very few days be- 
 fore his removal to the baths at 
 Callirrhoe (Joseph, xvii. 6. 5) ; 
 
 comp. Browne, Ordo Scec. § 28. If 
 we adopt Dec. 25, a. u. c. 749, a 
 date which, as has been above im- 
 plied (p. 63, note i), is perhaps not 
 
 quite so probable (compare Wieseler, 
 Chron. Syn. p, 1 34 sq,), the interval 
 between the present event and the 
 death of the wretched king will be 
 proportionately longer, and in some 
 respects, it must be admitted, more 
 chronologically convenient. 
 
 2 If, as seems reasonable to sup- 
 pose, the son of R. Nehumiah ben 
 Hakkana was present at the council, 
 he could scarcely have forgotten the 
 prophecy said to have been uttered 
 by his father, — that the coming of 
 the Messiah could not be delayed 
 more than fifteen years : see Sepp, 
 Lehen Christi, Vol. ii. p. 24, and the 
 curious work of Petrus Galatinus, 
 de Arcanis Cathol. Verit. cap. 3, p. 8 
 (Francof. 1602). The opinijn that 
 this was a special meeting of the 
 Sanhedrin (Lightfoot) is perhaps 
 slightly the most probable ; the 
 omission of the third element, the 
 irpea^OrepoL too XaoO, is similarly 
 found in Matth. xvi. 21, xx. 18 ; see 
 
7G 
 
 LECT. 
 
 n. 
 
 “ Matt. ii. 
 
 4 - 
 
 ver. 7. 
 
 ® ver. 8. 
 
 ver. 9. 
 
 The, Birth and Infancy 
 
 to it touching the birth-place of the Messiah'^. 
 How natural too the private inquiry about the 
 star’s appearance made specially to the Magi^, and 
 how accordant with all that we know of Herod, 
 the frightful hypocrisy with which they were sent 
 to test and verify the now ascertained declaration 
 of prophecy^, — and the murderous sequel. How 
 natural also the description of the further journey 
 of the Wise Men, their simple joy when on their 
 evening mission to Bethlehem, they again see^ 
 the well-remembered star"^, and find that the very 
 powers of the heavens are leading them where 
 Babbinical wisdom ^ had already sent them. How 
 full must now have been their conviction ; with 
 what opening hearts must they have worshipped ; 
 with what holy joy must they have spread out 
 
 Meyer in loc. On the ypaii/xareis 
 roD XaoO here mentioned, see Span- 
 heim, Dub. Evang. xxxviii. Part ii. 
 p. 392 sq., Patritius, de Evang. Dis- 
 sert. XXIX. Part III. p. 366, and on 
 the Sanhedrin generally, Selden, de 
 Synedriis, ii. 6, Vol. ii. p. 1316 sq. 
 Jost, Gesch. des Judenth. ii. 3. 14, 
 Vol. I. p. 273. 
 
 ^ This seems the only natural 
 meaning that we can assign to the 
 words Kai Idoij [surely an expression 
 marking the unexpectedness of the 
 reappearance], 6 daryp elbov h Trj 
 dvaroXrj irporjyep ai/Tods, Matth. ii. 9. 
 Whether the star preceded them the 
 whole way to Jerusalem and then 
 disappeared for a short time, or 
 whether it only appeared to them 
 in their own country, disappeared, 
 and now reappeared, must remain a 
 matter of opinion. The definitive 
 6v el8ov iv ry duaroXy, and still more 
 the unusual strength of the expres- 
 sion which describes their joy at 
 
 again beholding the star, — ixdpya-au 
 X'^pd.v geydXyv acpbbpa (ver. 10), — 
 seem strongly in favour of the latter 
 view: so Spanheim, Dub. Evang. 
 XXIX. Part II. p. 320, Jackson, 
 Creed, Book vii. Vol. vi. p. i6i, 
 and Mill, Observations, ii. 2. 3, p. 
 
 369- 
 
 2 The recent revival of the older 
 anti- Christian view, that the pro- 
 phecy of Micah (ch. v. 2), cited by 
 the Evangelist, either refers to Zoro- 
 babel (a view unhappily maintained 
 by Theodorus of Mopsuestia), or, if 
 referring to the Messiah, only alludes 
 to His descent from David, whose 
 seat Bethlehem was, has been ably 
 and completely disposed of by Mill, 
 Observations, ii. 2. 3, pp. 391 — 402. 
 On this and other supposed difficul- 
 ties connected with this prophecy, 
 see Spanheim, Dub. Evang. XLI. — 
 XLvr. Part ii. p. 406 ; Patritius, de 
 Evang. Dissert, xxx. Part ill. p. 
 368 sq. 
 
of our Lord. 
 
 77 
 
 their costly gifts‘‘; how they must now have felt, lect. 
 though perhaps still dimly and imperfectly, that 
 
 3 ii 
 
 they were kneeling before the hope of a world, n. ‘ 
 
 One greater than Zoroaster had ever foretold, a 
 truer Redeemer than the Sosiosh of their own 
 ancient creed b No marvel was it, that with 
 
 prompt obedience they followed the guidance of 
 the visions of the night'' and returned to their ver. 12. 
 distant home by a way by which they came not. 
 
 No sooner had they departed, than the heaven- night into 
 ly warning is sent to J oseph^ to flee on that very mSdL^of 
 night® into Egypt from the coming wrath ofcents’^^^' 
 Herod®. And that wrath did not long linger. ver. 13. 
 When the savage king found that his strange 
 messengers had deceived him, with the broad 
 
 ^ According to the statements of 
 Anquetil du Perron, is his Life of 
 Zoroaster, prefixed to his edition of 
 the Zend-Avesta (Vol. i. 2, p, 46), 
 Sosiosh was the last of the three 
 posthumous sons of Zoroaster, and 
 was to raise and judge the dead 
 and renovate the earth ; see leschts 
 Sades, xxviii., ‘ Lorsque Sosiosch 
 paroitra, il fera du bien au monde 
 entier existant’ (Vol. ii. p. 278); 
 Boundekesch, xxxt., ‘ Sosiosch fera 
 revivre les morts’ (Vol. ii. p, 41 1); 
 and similarly, ib. XI. (V ol. ii. p. 364); 
 ib. XXXIII. (Vol. II. p. 420). What- 
 ever may be the faults or inaccu- 
 racies of Du Perron’s translation 
 (many of which have been noticed 
 in Burnouf’s Commentaire sur le 
 Ya^na, Paris, 1833), it can at any 
 rate now no longer be doubted, that 
 Zend has its proper place among 
 the primitive languages of the Indo- 
 Germanic family (see Eask’s Essay, 
 translated by Von der Hagen, Berl. 
 1826), and that the Avesta must 
 
 have existed in writing previously 
 to the time of Alexander: see Do- 
 naldson, Neio Cratylus, § 86, p. 144 
 sq. (ed. 3). 
 
 2 Again, it will be observed, con- 
 sistently with the notice of the pre- 
 ceding divine communication vouch- 
 safed to Joseph (Matth. i. 20),— by 
 an angelic visitation in a dream; 
 see again ver. 20, and compare the 
 remarks made above, p. 56, note i. 
 Some curious remarks on the nature 
 of angelic visitations in dreams will 
 be found in the learned work of 
 Bynaeus, de Natali Jes. Chr. i. 2. 
 14, p. 210. 
 
 ^ Probably on the same night that 
 the Magi arrived ; for there seems 
 every reason against the view of a 
 commentator in Cramer {Caten. Vol. 
 l. p. 14), that the star led them kv 
 ygipa ixiarj. At any rate the Holy 
 family appear to have departed by 
 night : the words, iyepOels irapaXa^e, 
 seem to enjoin all promptitude, — 
 ‘ surge accipe,’ Syr. 
 
78 
 
 The Birth and Infancy 
 
 LECT. 
 
 ij. 
 
 The silence 
 of Jose- 
 phus. 
 
 margin that a reckless ferocity left a matter of no 
 moment, he slays every male-child in Bethlehem 
 whose age conld in any way have accorded with 
 the rough date which the first appearance of the 
 star had been judged to supply 
 
 On this fiendish act we need dwell no further, 
 save to protest against the inferences that have 
 been drawn from the silence of a contemporary 
 historian I What, we may fairly ask, was such 
 an act in the history of a monster whose hand 
 reeked with the blood of whole families and of his 
 nearest and dearest relations ? What was the 
 murder of a few children at Bethlehem in the dark 
 history of one who had, perchance but a few days 
 before, burnt alive at J erusalem above forty hap- 
 less zealots who had torn down his golden eagle 
 
 ^ See above, p. 73, note i. As 
 Herod made his savage edict inclu- 
 sive as regards locality {iv ByOXee/j, 
 Kal iv rrdaiu toTs opiois airijs, ver. 
 16), so did he also in reference to 
 time: he killed all the children of 
 two years and under {dirb dcerovs, 
 scil. Traibos, not x/)6roi», as appa- 
 rently Vulg., 'a bimatu’), to make 
 sure that he included therein the 
 Divine Infant of Bethlehem; roi>s 
 fibv Siereis dvatpeT, iva ^XV TrXaros 6 
 Xpl>vos. Euthym. on Matth. ii. i6> 
 p. 81 (ed, Matthaei). 
 
 ^ It seems doubtful whether we 
 need go so far as to say, with Dr 
 Mill {Observations, ii. 3. i, p. 345), 
 that this silence is remarkable. The 
 concluding days of Herod’s life were 
 marked by such an accumulation of 
 barbarities that such an event might 
 easily have been overlooked or for- 
 gotten. At any rate the reference 
 of the well-known passage of Macro- 
 bins {Saturnal. ii. 4) to this murder 
 
 of the Innocents, though often de- 
 nied or explained away ('aus der 
 Christlichen Tradition geflossen ist,’ 
 Meyer, Kommentar. p. 80), seems 
 now clearly established and vindi- 
 cated : see Mill, ib. p. 349 sq. ; and 
 compare Spanheim, Dub. Evang. 
 LXXVI. Part II. p. 534 sq. It is 
 worthy of notice that if, as seems 
 nearly certain, the son of Herod 
 alluded to in that passage was Anti- 
 pater, the date of the murder of the 
 Innocents liiay be roughly fixed, as 
 not very far distant from that of the 
 execution of the unhappy man re- 
 ferred to, and this latter event, we 
 know, was five days before the death 
 of Herod; see Joseph. Bell. Jud. i. 
 33. 8; and compare above, p. 75, 
 note I. 
 
 ^ See Josephus, Antiq. xvii. 6. 2, 
 Bell. Jud. I. 33. 2. This was an 
 outbreak caused by the harangues 
 of two expounders of the law, Judas 
 and Matthias, and resulted in the 
 
of our Lord. 
 
 70 
 
 What was the lamentation at Rama^ compared 
 
 with that which had been heard in that monster s 
 
 own palace, and which, if his inhuman orders had 
 been executed, would have been soon heard in 
 every street in Jerusalem*'^? Even ‘doubters have 
 here at least admitted that there is no real diffi- 
 culty^ ; and why should not we ? Is the' silence of 
 a prejudiced Jew to be set against the declarations 
 of an inspired Apostle ? 
 
 The events of this portion of the sacred narra- The return 
 tive come to their close with the notice of the 
 divinely-ordered journey back from Egypt on the 
 death of Herod, and the final return to Nazareth. 
 Warned by God in a dream of the death of Herod u. 
 Joseph at once^ brings back the Holy Child and ^ 
 
 destruction of a large golden eagle 
 of considerable value which Herod 
 had erected over the gate of the 
 temple. From the tenor of the nar- 
 rative {^acrikeiis 8 i KaradTjaas avroijs 
 i^^irejuireu els ’lepixoOi/ra, § 3), 
 and the subsequent oration in the 
 theatre (comp. Antiq. XV. 8. 1), it 
 would seem that Herod was at this 
 time in Jerusalem. The date of the 
 execution of these unhappy zealots, 
 which probably almost immediately 
 followed their apprehension, can be 
 fixed with certainty to the night of 
 March 12 — 13 (a.u.O. 750), as Jose- 
 phus mentions that on the same 
 night there was an eclipse of the 
 moon {loc. cit. § 4) ; see Ideler, 
 Handb. der Chronol. Vol. ii. p. 28, 
 and comp. Wieseler, Ckron. Synops. 
 
 I. 2, p. 56. 
 
 ^ For some excellent critical re- 
 marks on the citation from Jeremiah 
 in reference to Rachel weeping for 
 her children, see Mill, Observations, 
 
 II. 3. I, p. 402 sq. ; and for a good 
 
 sermon on the text, Jackson, Creed, 
 Vol. VI. p. 277 (Oxf. 1844), 
 
 2 It is distinctly mentioned by 
 Josephus, that this frantic tyrant 
 had all the principal men of the 
 nation summoned to him at Jericho, 
 and shut up in the hippodrome, and 
 that he gave orders to his sister 
 Salome and her husband Alexas to 
 have them executed immediately he 
 died, that as there would be no 
 mourners for, there might be some 
 at his death. Antiq. xvii. 6. 5. 
 
 ^ See Schlosser, Universalhistor. 
 TJebers. der alien Welt, Part iii. i, 
 p. 261, referred to by Neander, Leben 
 Jesu Chr. p. 45. For several ques- 
 tions connected with the murder of 
 the Innocents, including some cha- 
 racteristically guarded remarks on 
 their number, see 'P2Ar\i\\jLB,deEvang, 
 Dissert, xxxiil. Part ill. p. 375. 
 
 ^ If the remark made above (p. 
 77, note 3) be correct, the same 
 inference must be made in the pre- 
 sent case, that the heavenly com- 
 
80 
 
 The JHrth and Infancy 
 
 His mother; and thus after a stay in Egypt of 
 perhaps far fewer days^ than Israel had there 
 sojourned years, the word of ancient and hitherto 
 unnoted prophecy receives its complete fulfilment®, 
 the mystic Israel comes up to the land of now 
 more than promise, — out of Egypt God has called 
 His son^ 
 
 To what exact place of abode the blessed Virgin 
 and Joseph were now directing their steps is not 
 specially noticed by the Evangelist. We may, 
 however, perhaps reasonably infer from St Mat- 
 
 mand required a similar promptitude 
 on the part of Joseph, and that the 
 faithful guardian delayed not. We 
 may observe, however, that it is 
 now eyepOeh irapaXa^e Kal Tropetjov, 
 not eyepdeh TrapdXajSe Kal (peuye, as 
 in ver. 13. This did not escape the 
 observation of Chrysostom. 
 
 ^ If the dates we have adopted 
 are approximately correct, it would 
 seem that little more than a fort- 
 night elapsed between the flight into 
 Egypt and the death of Herod, and 
 that consequently we must conceive 
 the stay in Egypt to have been com- 
 paratively short. Greswell, by adopt- 
 ing April, A.u.c. 750, as the date of 
 the Nativity, and 751 A.U.C. as the 
 death-year of Herod, is compelled 
 to assume a stay there of about 
 seven months; see Dissert, xii. Vol. 
 II. p. 392. The apocryphal writers 
 still more enlarge this period (‘ex- 
 acto vero triennio rediit ex Egypto,’ 
 Evartg. Inf. Arab. cap. XXVi. ; com- 
 pare Pseudo - Matth. Erong. cap. 
 XXVI.), almost evidently for the pur- 
 pose of interpolating a series of 
 miracles. 
 
 ^ This citation from ancient pro- 
 phecy has been much discussed. 
 Without entering into the detail of 
 objections which have in many cases 
 
 proved as frivolous as they are irre- 
 verent, we may observe, (i) that it 
 seems certain that Hosea xi. i is 
 the passage referred to: see Jerome 
 in loc., Eusebius, Eclog. Proph. p. 46 
 sq. (ed. Gaisford) ; and (2) that little 
 doubt can be entertained that the 
 catholic interpretation which makes 
 Israel and the promised Seed stand 
 in typical relations {iXix^Tj iirl T<p 
 XaQ tvttlkCos, e^i( 37 j ei’s rbu ’Kpiarbu 
 dXrjdLvQs. Theoph. in loc., in sub- 
 stance from Chrysostom) is no less 
 true and correct than it is simple 
 and natural. St Matthew, as writ- 
 ing principally to Hebrew readers 
 and to men who felt and knew that 
 the nation to which they belonged 
 was the truest and most veritable 
 type of their Lord, specifies a pas- 
 sage which they had perhaps consi- 
 dered but simple history, but which, 
 with the light of inspiration shed on 
 it, assumes every attribute of mys- 
 terious, and, let us add, to them at 
 any rate, of most persuasive pro- 
 phecy. For further references and 
 information, the reader may profita- 
 bly consult Spanheim, Dub. Evang. 
 LXii. — LXX. Part II. p. 474 sq. , 
 Deyling, Obs. Sacr. Vol. iv. p. 769, 
 and Mill, on Panth. Principles, ii. 
 3. r, p. 409. 
 
of OUT Lord. 
 
 81 . 
 
 tliew’s Gospel that this homeward journey would lect. 
 
 have terminated at Bethlehem, — that new home 
 
 now so dear to them from its many marvellous asso- 
 ciations, — that home which now might have seem- 
 ed marked out to them by the very finger of God, 
 had not the tidings which reached Joseph, that 
 the evil son of an evil father ’, the Ethnarch Arche- 
 laus, was now ruling over Judsea^ made that faith- “• 
 ful guardian afraid to return to a land so full of 
 hatred and dangers. While thus, perhaps, in doubt 
 and perplexity, the divine answer is vouchsafed 
 to his anxieties^, and Joseph and the Virgin are 
 directed to return to the safer obscurity of their old 
 home in the hills of Galilee, and the spirit of ancient 
 prophecy again finds its fulfilment in the desig- 
 nation the Messiah receives from His earthly 
 abode, ^^He shall be called a Nazarenel” 
 
 1 The language of the Jemsh de- 
 puties to Augustus fully justifies 
 this remark : ‘ he seemed to be so 
 afraid/ they said, Uest he should not 
 be deemed Herod’s own son, that 
 he took especial care to make his 
 acts prove it:’ see Joseph. Antiq^. 
 XVII, II. -2. 
 
 ^ This seems to lie in the word 
 Xpy)fJio.r Ladds (ver. -22). Though we 
 may not perhaps safely, either here 
 or ver. 12, or indeed in the New 
 Testament generally, press the idea 
 of a definite foregoing question, we 
 may yet so far retain this usual 
 meaning (xp7?jaartfef airoKplveTaL, 
 Suid.) as to regard the doubts and 
 fears of Joseph as the practical ques- 
 tion to which the divine answer was 
 returned : see Suicer, Thesaur. s. v. 
 Vol. II. p. 1521. 
 
 3 The very use of the inclusive 
 Stci, tCov TrpoLprjTLav ought to prepare 
 
 E. H. L. 
 
 us to expect, what we find to be the 
 case, 'that this is no citation from 
 any particular prophet, but expresses 
 the declarations of several; ‘plu- 
 raliter prophetas vocando, Matthaeus 
 ostendit non verba de Scripturis a 
 se sumpta sed sensum.’ Jerome m 
 loc. We seem justified then in as- 
 signing to the word Na^wpaZos all 
 the meanings legitimately belonging 
 to it, by derivation or otherwise, 
 which are concurrent with the de- 
 clarations of the prophets in refer- 
 ence to our Lord. We may there- 
 fore,. both with the early Hebrew 
 Christians (see Jerome) and appa- 
 rently the whole Western Church, 
 trace this prophetic declaration, (a) 
 principally and primarily, in all the 
 passages which refer to the Messiah 
 under the title of the Branch 
 of the root of Jesse (Isaiah xi. i ; 
 Jerem. xxiii. 5, xxxiii. 15 ; Zech. vi. 
 
 6 
 
82 
 
 Tlie Birth and Infancy 
 
 LECT. 
 
 II. 
 
 Conclu- 
 
 sion. 
 
 I must now at once bring this lecture to a 
 close, yet not without two or three sentences of 
 earnest exhortation to you, brethren, who form the 
 younger portion of this audience. 
 
 If there be ought in these hasty outlines of 
 contested portions of Evangelical history that has 
 arrested your attention, and deepened your con- 
 victions, I will pray to God that it may yet work 
 more and more in your hearts, and lead you to 
 feel that there is indeed a quick and living truth 
 in every sentence of the blessed Gospel, and that 
 they who read with a loving and reverential spirit 
 shall find it in its fullest measures. Oh ! pray 
 fervently against the first motions of a spirit of 
 doubting and questioning. By those prayers which 
 you learned at a mother’s knees, by that holy 
 history which perchance you first heard from a 
 mother’s lips, give not up the first child-like faith 
 of earlier and it may be purer days, — that simple, 
 heroic faith, which such men as Niebuhr’ and 
 
 ii); (&) in the references to the cir- 
 cumstances of lowliness and obscu- 
 rity under which that growth was to 
 take place (comp. Isaiah liii. 2 ) ; and 
 perhaps further (c) in the prophetic 
 notices of a contempt and rejection 
 (Isaiah liii. 3), such as seems to have 
 been the common and, as it would 
 seem in many respects, deserved por- 
 tion of the inhabitant of rude and 
 ill-reputed Nazareth. See above, 
 p. 47, note I, and for further inform- 
 ation and illustrations, Spanheim, 
 Dul. Evang. xc. — xcii. Part ii. p. 
 598 sq., Deyling, Ohs. Sacr. xl. 
 Vol, I. p. 176, Patritius, de Evang. 
 Dissert, xxxvii. Part iii. p. 406, 
 Mill, Observations, ii. 3. i, p. 422 sq. 
 
 ^ It must be regarded as very 
 
 striking, that the great historian 
 who could express himself with such 
 strength and even bitterness of lan- 
 guage against much that, however 
 exaggerated it may have been in the 
 case in question, was really funda- 
 mentally sound in pietism (see Letter 
 CCLXXX.), could yet feel it right to 
 educate his son in a way that must 
 have led to the deepest reverence 
 for the very letter of the inspired 
 records. These are Niebuhr’s own 
 words; ‘He [his son] shall believe 
 in the letter of the Old and New 
 Testaments, and I shall nurture in 
 him, from his infancy, a firm faith 
 in all that I have lost, or feel un- 
 certain about.’ Life and Letters, 
 Vol. II. p. loi (Transl. 1852). 
 
83 
 
 of our Lord. 
 
 Neander^ knew how to appreciate and to glorify, 
 
 even while they felt its fullest measures could never 
 
 be their own. Kemember that when faith grows 
 cold love soon passes away and hope soon follows 
 it, and oh ! believe me that the world cannot ex- 
 hibit a spectacle more utterly mournful, more full 
 of deepest melancholy than a young. yet doubt- 
 ing, a fresh yet unloving, an eager yet hopeless 
 and forsaken heart. 
 
 May these humble words have wrought in you 
 the conviction, that if with a noble and loving 
 spirit, like the Beroeans of old^, we search the 
 Scriptures, we shall full surely find, — yea verily 
 that we who may go forth weeping to gather up 
 the few scattered ears of truth that might seem all 
 that historical scepticism had now left to us^ shall 
 yet return with joy^ and bring with us the sheaves ^Ps.cxxvi. 
 of accumulated convictions, and the plenitudes of 
 assurance in the everlasting truth of every part 
 and every portion of the Gospel of J esus Christ. 
 
 1 After some comments on ex- 
 treme views as to what is termed, 
 not perhaps very correctly, ^the 
 old mechanical view of inspiration, ’ 
 this thoughtful wi’iter thus proceeds : 
 ‘But this [existence of chasms in 
 the Gospel history] only affords 
 room for the exercise of our faith, — 
 a faith whose root is to be found, 
 not in demonstration, but in the 
 humble and self-denying submission 
 
 of our spirits. Our scientific views 
 may be defective in many points; 
 our knowledge itself may be but 
 fragmentary ; but our religious in- 
 terests will find all that is necessaiy 
 to attach them to Christ as the 
 ground of salvation and the arche- 
 type of holiness.’ Life of Jesus 
 Christ, p. 9 (Bohn), — a paraphrastic, 
 but substantially correct representa- 
 tion of the original. 
 
 6 2 
 
LECTURE 111. 
 
 THE EARLY JUDH^AN MINLSTRY. 
 
 St Luke ii. 52 . 
 
 And Jesus increased in wisdom and stature, and in favour 
 with God and man. 
 
 LECT. In my last lecture, brethfen, we concluded with 
 
 i- - that portion of the sacred narrative which briefly 
 
 year^ofou^ retum of the Holy Family to Naza- 
 
 Lord’siife. ^nd the fulfilment of the spirit of ancient 
 
 prophecy in the Redeemer of the world being 
 called a Nazarene. Between that event and the 
 group of events which will form the subject of this 
 afternoon’s lecture, and which make up what may 
 be termed our Lord’s early Judsean ministry, one 
 solitary occurrence is recorded in the Gospel nar- 
 rative, — our Lord’s second appearance in the 
 Temple at Jerusalem, his second presentation in 
 His Father’s house. 
 
 Reserve of With the single exception of the notice of this 
 geiists'. " deeply interesting event, the whole history of the 
 Saviour’s childhood, youth and even early man- 
 hood, is passed over by all the Evangelists with a 
 most solemn reserve. Even he of them who ap- 
 pears to have received so much, directly or indi- 
 rectly, from the blessed Virgin herself, and from 
 whom we might have expected some passing no- 
 
 ^ See the remarks above, p. 14, note 1. 
 
21 ic Early Judcean Ministry. 85 
 
 tices of that mysterious childhood, — even he would 
 seem to have been specially moved to seal all in 
 silence, and to relate no more than this one event 
 which marks the period when the Holy One was 
 just passing the dividing line between childhood 
 and youth. Both periods, that preceding and that 
 succeeding this epoch, are described in two short 
 verses^, closely similar in expression, and tending 
 alike to show that the outward and earthly deve- 
 lopment of our Bedeemer was in strict accordance 
 with those laws, by Avhich those He came to save 
 pass from childhood into youth, and from youth 
 into mature agef 
 
 In regard of the first period, that of' the child- 
 hood, one short clause is graciously added to warn 
 us from unlicensed musings upon the influences of 
 outward things upon the Holy Child', — one clause 
 
 ’ It is well said by Cyril of 
 Alexandria : ‘ Examine, I pray yon, 
 closely the profoundness of the dis- 
 pensation ; the Word endures to be 
 born in human fashion, although in 
 His divine nature He has no begin- 
 ning, nor is subject to time. He 
 who as God is all-perfect submits to 
 bodily growth : the Incorporeal has 
 limbs that advance to the ripeness 
 of manhood,... The wise Evangelist 
 did not introduce the Word in His 
 abstract and incorporate nature, and 
 so say of Him that He increased in 
 stature and wisdom and grace, but 
 after having shown that He was 
 born in the flesh of a woman, and 
 took our likeness, he then assigns 
 to Him these human attributes, and 
 calls Him a child, and says that He 
 waxed in stature, as His body grew 
 little by little, in obedience to cor- 
 poreal laws,’ Comment, on Luke, 
 
 Part I. p. -29, 30 (Transl.). So too 
 Origen: ‘Et crescebat, inquit, hu- 
 miliaverat enim se, forrnam servi 
 accipiens, et eadem virtute qua se 
 humiliaverat, crescit.’ In Luc. Horn. 
 XIX. Vol. III. p. 953 (ed. Bened.). 
 
 ^ On this subject see more below, 
 p. 99 sq. Meanwhile we may justly 
 record our protest against the way 
 in which a most serious and pro- 
 found question is now usually dis- 
 cussed, and the repulsive freedom 
 which many modern writers, not 
 only in Germany, but even in this 
 country, pei-mit themselves to as- 
 sume when alluding to the mental 
 development of the Holy Child : see 
 for example, the highly objection- 
 able remarks of Hase {Lehen Jem, 
 § 31? P* which this writer 
 
 plainly tells us at the outset that 
 ‘the spiritual development of Jesus 
 depended on fortunate gifts of na- 
 
 LECT. 
 
 III. 
 
 Luke ii. 
 40 and 52. 
 
 The brief 
 notice of 
 our Lord’s 
 childhood. 
 
86 
 
 The Early Judcean Ministry, 
 
 ^ni^' enougli, — ^and the grace of God was 
 
 upon Him 
 
 40. In regard of the second period, that of the 
 
 Equally Lord’s voutli and early manhood, one event at its 
 of our commencement, which shows us how that grace 
 
 youth. unfolded itself in heavenly wisdom^, is made fully 
 known to us, — one event, but one only, to which 
 
 ture’ {gliicJclichen Naturgdben) ; and 
 that these though enhanced by the 
 purposes and circumstances of His 
 after-life, still never went beyond 
 the culture of the time and country, 
 and never * transcended the limits of 
 humanity,’ Compare too Von Am- 
 mon, LehenJesu, i. lo, Vol, i. p. 236, 
 where the highly questionable views 
 of Theodorus of Mopsuestia find a 
 ready defender ; and for an example 
 from writers of our country of elo- 
 quent and attractive, but still pain- 
 fully humanitarian comments on this 
 mysterious subject, see Kobertson, 
 Sermons, Vol. ii. p. 196. 
 
 ^ On this subject the following 
 are the sentiments of Gregory of 
 Nazianzus : ‘ He was making ad- 
 vance, as in stature so also in wis- 
 dom and grace. Not by these quali- 
 ties receiving increase, — for what 
 can be more perfect than that which 
 is so from the very beginning ? — but 
 by their being disclosed and revealed 
 by little and little.’ Oral. XX, p. 343 
 (Paris, 1609). It may, however, be 
 justly doubted whether these state- 
 ments, — especially the negative as- 
 sertion, — though confessedly in close 
 accordance with some expressions of 
 Athanasius {irpoKoirTovTos too 
 ros TTpoiKoirrev iv avT(p Kal i) <pavi- 
 puais TTjs 6 e 6 rr]Tos tols opQatr, Adv, 
 Arian. ill. 29. 14), and other ortho- 
 dox writers, are not unduly re- 
 stricted, and whether the words of 
 the inspired Evangelist do not clearly 
 
 imply (to use the language of Water- 
 land) that our Lord’s increase in 
 wisdom is to be understood in a 
 sense as ‘literal, as His increasing 
 in stature is literal ’ {Script, and 
 Arians Compared, Vol. iii. p. 298). 
 While then with these catholic wri- 
 ters we may certainly acknowledge 
 a gradual and progressive disclosure 
 of the Lord’s divine wisdom, we 
 must certainly, with other equally 
 catholic writers, recognize a regular 
 development and increase in the 
 wisdom and grace of the reasonable 
 soul, i. e., — to speak with psycholo- 
 gical accuracy, of the 
 vovs; the true and complete state- 
 ment being, — ‘Christum secundum 
 sapientiam divinam, hoc est earn, 
 quse ei competit tanquam Deo, non 
 profecisse ; secundum sapientiam au- 
 tem humanam, hoc est earn, quse ei 
 ut homini competit, vere profecisse, 
 hominis quidem more, sed tamen 
 supra modum humanum.’ Suicer, 
 Thes.Yol. II. p. 269(appy. from Bernh. 
 de Consid. Book II,). In a word then, 
 as Cyril of Alexandria {in loc.) briefly 
 says, ‘ the body advances in stature 
 and the [reasonable] soul in wisdom 
 see Ambrose, de Incarn. cap. 72 sq. 
 Vol. II. I, p. 837 (ed. Migne), Epi- 
 phanius, Hcer. Lxxvii. 26, Vol. i. 
 p. 1019 (Paris, 1622), and the good 
 note of the Oxford Translator (J. H. 
 Newman) of Athanasius, Select Trea- 
 Uses, Disc. ill. Part ii. p. 474 (Libr. 
 of Fathers). 
 
87 
 
 The Early JudcBan Ministry. 
 
 one short verse, that of our text, is added, to teach 
 us liow that wisdom waxed momently more full, 
 more deep, more broad, until, like some mighty 
 river seeking the sea, it merged insensibly into 
 the omniscience of His .limitless Godheads One 
 further touch completes the divine picture, — 'in 
 favour with God and man^,’ perchance designed 
 to hint to us that the outward form corresponded 
 to the inner development, that the fulness of hea- 
 venly wisdom dwelt in a shrine of outward per- 
 
 fection and beauty^, an 
 
 1 This simile, though merely in- 
 tended to illustrate generally a pro- 
 found mystery, and not to be pressed 
 with dogmatic exactness, is still, as 
 it would seem, substantially correct. 
 The fact of the present verse (Luke 
 ii. 52) being one of those urged by 
 the heretical sect of the Agnoetae, as 
 tending to show limitations even in 
 our Lord’s divine nature, was not 
 improbably the cause of its having 
 received some interpretations (see 
 above) so rigid, as to favour by in- 
 ference the Apollinarian statement 
 that the Word itself was in the 
 place of the vov$ (Pearson, Creed, 
 Vol. II. p, 122, ed. Burton). The 
 whole subject, and a scholastic dis- 
 cussion, ‘de Christi scientia et ne- 
 scientia et profectu secundum huma- 
 nitatem,’ will be found in Forbes, 
 Instruct. Hist.-Theol. Book ill. ch. 
 19, 20: see Petav. Dogni. Theol. {de 
 Incarn. xi. 2) V ol. Vi. p. 39, Suicer, 
 Thesaur. s. v. A670S, Vol. ii. p. 268, 
 and the sensible remarks of Boyse 
 on our Lord’s omniscience, Vindic. 
 of our Saviour's Deity, Vol. ii. p. 
 23 sq. (Lond. 1728). 
 
 2 Upon this point, it need scarcely 
 be said, nothing certain can be ad- 
 duced. From the Gospels we seem 
 
 that the ancient tradi- 
 
 to be able to infer that our Lord’s 
 outward form, on one occasion at 
 least, sensibly struck the beholders 
 with a feeling of the majesty and 
 dignity of Him who condescended 
 to wear the garments of our mor- 
 tality: comp. John xviii. 6. Perhaps, 
 however, we may go so far as to 
 say, that there was still nothing 
 that merely outwardly marked the 
 Bedeemer of the world as strikingly 
 diflFerent from the general aspect of 
 the men of his own time and coun- 
 try, otherwise it would seem strange 
 that the Apostles who beheld him 
 by the lake of Gennesareth, and to 
 whom He was near enough to be 
 easily heard (John xxi. 4 sq.), did 
 not instantly recognize who it was. 
 The similar failure of recognition in 
 the case of the two disciples going 
 to Emmaus (Luke xxiv. 13 sq.) can 
 perhaps hardly be urged, owing to 
 the Evangelist’s own remark (ver. 
 16), and the further illustrative com- 
 ment of St Mark {ev eripa gopcpy, 
 ch. xvi. 12). This perhaps is all 
 that can safely be urged. The more 
 distinct descriptions of our Lord’s 
 appearance, especially those in the 
 Epistle of Lentulus (see Fabricius, 
 Codex Apocr. N. T. Vol. I. p. 301 
 
 LECT. 
 
 III. 
 
 * Luke ii. 
 52. 
 
88 
 
 The Early Judwan Ministry. 
 
 tion^ which assigned no form or comeliness to Hhe 
 
 fairest of the children of menV was but a narrow 
 
 and unworthy application of the merely general 
 “ ch. liii. 3. terms of Isaiah’s prophecy^. 
 
 Visit to the Thus waxiug strong in spirit and in the grace 
 of His heavenly Father, the Holy Child, when 
 ylalroid. twelve years old, goes up with both His parents 
 
 sq.), and the very similar one of 
 Epiphanius Monachus (p. 29, ed, 
 Dressel, — and cited by Winer, II WB. 
 Art. ‘Jesus,’ Vol. i. p. 576, after 
 a better text supplied to him by 
 Tischendorf), appear clearly to be 
 due to the imagination and concep- 
 tions of the writers. The statue of 
 our Lord, said by Eusebius {Hist. 
 Bed. VII. 18) to have been erected 
 at Caesarea Philippi by the woman 
 with the issue of blood (Matth. ix. 
 20), might perhaps be urged as show- 
 ing that our Lord’s appearance was 
 not unknown to the early Church, 
 if it did not appear probable from 
 historical considerations that the 
 statue in question really never re- 
 presented our Lord, and was never 
 erected under the alleged circum- 
 stances : see the ‘ Excursus ’ of Hei- 
 nichen, in his edition of Eusebius, 
 H. E. Vol. III. p. 396 sq. The student 
 who is anxious to pursue further 
 this interesting, but not very pro- 
 fitable subject, will find abundant 
 notices in Winer, RWB. Vol. i. p. 
 576, and especially in Hase, Lehen 
 Jesu, § 34, p. 62 sq. (ed. 3), Hof- 
 mann, Lehen Jesu, § 67, p. 292 sq. ; 
 and may consult the special work of 
 Reiske, de Imaginihus Christi (Jen. 
 1685). Some curious remarks of 
 Origen in reference to a supposed 
 diversity in our Lord’s appearance 
 to different persons, will be found 
 in the Latin translation of that great 
 writer’s commentaries on Matth. 
 
 § TOO, Vol. III. p. 906 (ed. Bened ); 
 comp. Norton, Genuineness of Gos- 
 pels, Vol. II. p. 274 (ed. 2). 
 
 ^ See Justin Martyr, Trypho, cap. 
 14, Vol. II. p. 52 (ed. Otto): TQv re 
 \6yoju ToiJTWV Kal roto&nov, eipy/aG 
 vwv VITO tQ)v irpocpyrCov, ’i\eyov c5 
 Tpij(po}y, oi gkv e’lprjVTaL els ttju Trpd}- 
 Tyv Trapovaiav roD XpiaroO, ev y Kal 
 &TLfjt,os Kal aeidrjs Kal dvyrbs <}>avr]- 
 ceadai KeKypvyfiivos eariv, ol 5^ els 
 Tyy deuripav avTov irapovalav. So 
 still more distinctly Clem. Alex. 
 Poidag. III. I. 3: Tbv db Kijpiou ab- 
 rbv T7]u 6\j/iv ataxpbv yeyovkvai dia 
 'Haatov TO UveOga pt-aprupei. Comp. 
 Strom. III. 17. 103, Orig. Cels. vi. 
 p. 327 (ed. Spencer), — where the 
 concession is made to Celsus, and 
 Tertull. de Came Chr. cap. 9, adv. 
 Jud. cap. 14. This opinion, how- 
 ever, soon began to be modified ; see 
 Augustine, ASerw. cxxxviii. Vol. v. p. 
 766 (ed. Migne), and Jerome, Epist. 
 LXV. Vol. I. p. 380 (Ed. Vail.), who 
 well remarks, — ‘Nisi habuisset et in 
 vultu quiddam oculisque sidereum, 
 nunquam eum statim secuti fuissent 
 Apostoli, nec qui ad comprehend- 
 endum eum venerant, corruissent.’ 
 
 2 Chrysostom rightly urges this 
 indirect prophecy : yap Oav- 
 
 p.arovpyQ)v yv Oavp-acTTbs p.6vov, dWa 
 Kal (paLvbp.evos troWys byep,e x^piros, 
 Kal TOVTO 6 irpocpyrys dyXui/ bXeyev’ 
 'Clpaios KaXXei Trapd robs vlobs tCov 
 dvdpdjTTwv. Horn, in Matth. xviii. 2, 
 Vol. VII. p. 371 (ed. Bened.). 
 
The Early Judcaan Ministry. 80 
 
 to the Passover at Jerusalem, not however as a 
 worshipper, nor as yet even what Hebrew phrase- 
 ology has termed, a ^ Son of the Law,’ though pos- 
 sibly as a partaker in some preparatory rite which 
 ancient custom might have associated with that age 
 of commencing puberty \ We observe that it is in- 
 cidentally noticed that the blessed Virgin not only 
 on this occasion, but every year^, went up with 
 Joseph to the great festival of her nation. Like 
 Hannah of old^, year after year, though compelled 
 neither by law nor by custom^, she might have 
 longed to enter into the more immediate presence 
 of the God of Israel, and though but dimly con- 
 scious of the eventful future, might have felt with 
 
 1 This perhaps is the critically 
 exact statement, as it would cer- 
 tainly seem that the age of puberty 
 was not considered as actually at- 
 tained tiU the completion of the 
 thirteenth year: see Jost, GeschicJite 
 des Judenth. iii. 3. ii, Vol. i. p. 398 
 (where the statement of Ewald is 
 rectified) ; and compare Greswell, 
 Dissert. Xii. Vol. i. p. 396, and ih. 
 XVIII. Vol. II. p. 136. It has been 
 doubted, then, whether on this occa- 
 sion our Lord was taken up to 
 celebrate the festival, or whether it 
 was merely to appear b^ore the Lord 
 in company with His parents, and 
 perhajps take part in some introduc- 
 tory ceremony. The patristic com- 
 mentators {e.g. Cyril Alex. ‘ upon the 
 summons of the feast,’ Part i. p. 30, 
 and probably Origen, Horn, in Luc. 
 XIX.) appear rather to advocate the 
 former opinion, and would lead us to 
 think that our Lord, either in com- 
 pliance with the wishes of His pa- 
 rents, or more probably in accord- 
 ance with His own desire (comp, 
 ver. 49), attended the festival as an 
 
 actual worshipper : the latter opinion, 
 however, seems most correct, and 
 most in accordance with what we 
 know of Jewish customs: see Gres- 
 well, 1 . c. Vol. I. p. 397. The rule 
 appears to have been that all males 
 were to attend the three great festi- 
 vals, ‘Exceptis surdo, stulto, pue- 
 rulo...puerulus autem ille dicitur, 
 qui, nisi a patre maim trahatur in- 
 cedere non valet.’ Bartolocci, Bihli- 
 oth. Rabhin. Vol. iii. p. 132: com- 
 pare Lightfoot, Hor. Heir, {in loc.) 
 p. 499 (Roterod. 1686). 
 
 ^ See the very distinct quotation 
 adduced by Schoettgen {Hor. Heir. 
 Vol. I. p. 266), from which it would 
 appear that the injunction of Hillel, 
 that women should once attend the 
 passover, was not binding, and in- 
 deed self-contradictory. Such a habit 
 on the part of the blessed Virgin 
 must be referred to her piety. 
 Schoettgen quotes from the tract, 
 ‘Mechilta,’ a similar instance in the 
 case of the wife of Jonah, — ‘ Uxor 
 Jonse ascendit ad celebranda festa 
 solemnia’ (? 9 c. cit.). 
 
 LECT. 
 
 III. 
 
 * Luke ii. 
 41. 
 
 I Sara. ii. 
 19; comp. 
 
 i. 7. 
 
00 
 
 The Early Judcean Ministry. 
 
 and disco- 
 very of 
 Holy 
 Child. 
 
 each revolving year a mysterious call to that 
 
 Festival, of which the Holy Child beside her was 
 
 hereafter to be the Lamb and the sacrifice. 
 
 Search for After the paschal solemnities were celebrated, 
 the most probably on the afternoon of the eighth day^, 
 the Virgin and Joseph turn their steps backwards 
 to Galilee, — but alone. They deem the Holy 
 Child was in another portion of the large pilgrim- 
 company, — perhaps with contemporaries to whom, 
 after the solemnities they had shared in, ancient 
 custom might have assigned a separate place in 
 the festal caravan^, and they doubt not that at 
 their evening resting-place among the hills of 
 Benjamin, (not improbably that Beeroth which tra- 
 dition has fixed upon®), they shall be sure to find 
 
 ^ It has been correctly observed 
 by Ligbtfoot {Hor. Heir, in loc. p. 
 740), that the expression reXetw- 
 crduTcoy ras rj/x^pas (Luke ii. 43) 
 seems certainly to imply that the 
 Holy Family staid the full time of 
 seven days at Jerusalem. During 
 this time it is not improbable that 
 the youthful Saviour had been ob- 
 served by some of the members of 
 the venerable assemblage among 
 whom He was subsequently found. 
 Perhaps even, with Euthymius, we 
 might further attribute the Lord’s 
 prolonged stay to a desire to con- 
 sort longer with those on whom the 
 words of grace and wisdom which 
 fell from His lips could not but have 
 produced a startling and perhaps 
 long-remembered effect : vir^pieive 5e, 
 etrovp vire\eL(pd'q iu 'lepovaaX^fi, j3ov- 
 \6pi€vos <xvpi,pi,i^ai rots dcdacrKaXots 
 (Vol. II. p. 279, ed. Matth.). 
 
 2 Gi*eswell urges, on the autho- 
 rity of Maimonides {deSacrif. Pasch. 
 II. 4), that a paschal company could 
 
 not be composed of ‘ pueri impu- 
 beres.’ This would seem certainly 
 correct (comp. Mishna, ^Pesachim,’ 
 VII. 4, p. 1 18 of De Sola’s transL); 
 but it does not seem to militate 
 against the assumption in the text, 
 that in returning a separate com- 
 pany might be formed of those who 
 had gone through the preliminary 
 ceremony which Maimonides him- 
 self seems to allude to: comp, de 
 Sacr. Solemn, ii. 3 (cited by Gres- 
 well, Vol. I. p. 397). 
 
 2 The usual resting-place for the 
 night appears to have been Sichem, 
 which, though in Samaria, was not 
 forbidden as a temporary station: 
 
 ^ Terra Samaritanorum munda est, 
 et fontes mundi, et mansiones mun- 
 dae,’ Talm. Hieros. ‘Abodah Zarah,’ 
 fol. 44. 4, cited by Sepp, Lehen 
 Christi, Vol. ii. p. 45. But tradi- 
 tion and probability appear to pre- 
 vail in favour of Beer or Beeroth, 
 a place distant, according to Robin- 
 son {Palest. Vol. i. p. 452), about 
 
The Early Judcean Ministry, 
 
 91 
 
 Him. But they find Him not. Full of trouble 
 they turn backwards to Jerusalem ; a day is spent 
 in anxious search, perhaps among the travelling 
 companies which would now in fast succession be 
 returning homeward from the Holy City ; yet ano- 
 ther day they search in vain\ On the third they 
 find the Holy Child, but in what an unexpected 
 place, and under circumstances how mysterious and 
 unlooked for. In the precincts of the temple, most 
 probably in one of the rooms ^ where, on Sabbath- 
 days and at the great festivals, the Masters of Is- 
 rael sat and taught, they find Him they had so long 
 sought for. They find Him sitting in the midst of 
 that venerable circle^; sitting^, yet at no Gamaliel’s 
 
 three hours from Jerusalem : comp. 
 Winer, RWB. s. v. ‘Beer/ Vol. i. 
 p. 146. 
 
 ^ The exact manner in which the 
 time specified was spent has been 
 differently estimated. It seems most 
 reasonable to suppose that one day 
 was spent in the return and search 
 on the road, a second in fruitless 
 search in Jerusalem, and that on 
 the third the Holy Child was found. 
 The remark of Bengel is curious: 
 ‘ Tres. Numerus mysticus. Totidem 
 dies mortuus a discipulis pro amisso 
 habitus est.’ If there be anything 
 in this, we might feel disposed to 
 adopt rather the view of Euthymius : 
 ‘One day they spent, when they 
 went a day’s journey and sought 
 for Him among their kinsfolk and 
 acquaintance ; a second when, in con- 
 sequence of not having found Him, 
 they returned to Jerusalem seeking 
 Him ; in the course of the third day 
 they at length found Him.’ Com- 
 ment. on Luke ii. 44. The expres- 
 sion yu.e^’ 7 ]fiepas rpets, seems, how- 
 ever, rather in favour of the fiist 
 
 view ; comp. Meyer in loc. 
 
 2 We learn fi-om the Talmudic 
 gloss cited by Lightfoot {in loc.), 
 that there was a Synagogue ‘ near 
 the court, in the mountain of the 
 Temple:’ comp. Deyling. Obs. Sacr. 
 XXX. Vol. III. p. 283, Beland, Antiq. 
 I. 8. 6. Here, or in one of the many 
 buildings attached to the Temple, 
 apparently on its eastern side, we 
 may conceive the Holy Child to 
 have been found: see Sepp, Leben 
 Chr. I. 16, Vol. II. p. 47, and Jost, 
 Gesch. des Judenth. ii. i. 2, Vol. i. 
 p. 140. 
 
 3 The Talmudic statement, cited 
 by Lightfoot, that scholars did not 
 sit, but stand (‘a diebus Mosis ad 
 Kabban Gamalielem non didicerunt 
 legem nisi stantes,' ‘Megillah,’ fol. 
 21. i), is apparently untenable (see 
 Vitringa, de Synag. Vol. I. p. 167), 
 and not to be pressed in the present 
 passage. The words Kade^bpievov iv 
 p.iatp tQv SidacTKaXiop seem, however, 
 to bear out the view adopted in the 
 text, and are so interpreted by De 
 Wette in loc. 
 
 LECT. 
 
 III. 
 
 “ Luke ii. 
 46. 
 
02 
 
 The Early Judcean Ministry. 
 
 le(;t. 
 
 HI. 
 
 ® Luke ii. 
 48. 
 
 feet, but, as the words would seem to imply, spon- 
 taneously raised to a position of equal dignity, not 
 the hearer only, but the indirect teacher by the 
 divine depth of His mysterious questionsh..No 
 wonder that the Evangelist should tell us that 
 His parents when they saw Him ^were amazed^;’ 
 no wonder that even the holy mother when she 
 gazed on that august assemblage, when she saw, 
 as she perchance might have seen^, the now aged 
 Hillel the looser, and Shammai the binder^, and 
 the wise sons of Betirah, and Babban Simeon, 
 Hillel’s son, and Jonathan the paraphrast, the 
 greatest of his pupils, — when she saw these and 
 such as these all hanging on the questions of 
 the Divine Child, no wonder that she forgot all 
 
 ^ This is the patristic and, as it 
 would seem, correct statement of 
 the exact relation in which the Holy 
 Child now stood to those around 
 Him : ‘ Quia parvulus erat, inveni- 
 tur in medio non eos docens, sed in- 
 terrogans, et hoc pro setatis officio, 
 ut nos doceret, quid pueris, quamvis 
 sapientes et eruditi sint, conveniret, 
 ut audiant potius magistros, quam 
 docere desiderent, et se varia osten- 
 tatione non jactent. Interrogabat 
 inquam magistros, non ut aliquid 
 disceret, sed ut interrogans erudiret' 
 Origen, in Luc. Horn. xix. Vol. III. 
 p. 955 (ed. Bened.). ‘Those very 
 questions,’ says Bp Hall, were ‘in- 
 structions, and meant to teach.’ 
 Contempl. ii. i . The -view taken 
 by Bp Taylor {Life of Christ, i. 7), 
 that the present exhibition of learn- 
 ing was little short of miraculous, 
 seems far less natural, and less con- 
 sonant with the tenor of the sacred 
 text. 
 
 2 The names mentioned in the 
 
 text belong to men who are known 
 to have been alive at the time, and 
 who occupied conspicuous places 
 among the circle of Jewish Doctors. 
 For further information respecting 
 those here specified, see Sepp, Lehen 
 Christi, I. 17, Vol. ii. p. 47 sq., 
 and the notices of Petrus Galatinus, 
 de Arcan. Cath. Ver. cap. 2, 3, p. 5 
 sq. (Francof. 1602). There may be 
 some doubt about Hillel being still 
 alive ; but if our assumed date of 
 this event (a. u.C. 762) is correct 
 and the dates supplied by Sepp {loc. 
 cit.) are to be relied on, we seem 
 justified in believing that that vener- 
 able teacher was one of those thus 
 preeminently blessed. 
 
 ^ ‘Shammai ligat, Hillel solvit:’ 
 comp. Lightfoot, in Matth. xvi. 19, 
 p. 378. For an account of the general 
 principles of teaching respectively 
 adopted by these celebrated men 
 and their followers, see J ost, Gesch. 
 des Judenih. ii. 3. 13, Vol. i. p. 
 257 sq. 
 
The Earli/ Judwan Ministry. 
 
 93 
 
 ill the strange and unlooked-for circumstances in 
 
 which she found Him she had so sorrowingly^^^ ^ 
 
 sought for. All the mother speaks out in her 49. 
 half-reproachful address’, all the consciously incar- 
 nate Son in the mysterious simplicity of the an- 
 swer, that reminds the earthly mother that it was 
 in the courts of His heavenly Father s house ^ that 
 the Son must needs be found, that His true home 
 was in the temple of Him whose glories still lin- 
 gered round the heights of Moriah... And yet with 
 what simple pathos is it noticed by the Evan- 
 gelist, that ‘He went down and came to Nazareth, 
 and was subject to them^.’ As that Holy One leff’ver. 51. 
 the glories of heaven to tabernacle with men, so 
 now in retrospective shadow and similitude he 
 leaves the blessedness of His Father’s temple for 
 the humble home of earthly parents, and remains 
 
 ^ The prominence which the Vir- 
 gin-mother gives to the relation she 
 bore to the Holy One that vouch- 
 safed to be born of her can hardly 
 be accidental, — t ^ kvov , tl e7roi'??cras 
 7]/uv ovTu^, ver. 48. The emphatic 
 position of the Trpos avrbu might 
 also almost lead us so far to agree 
 with Bp Hall (Mt is like that she 
 reserved this question till she had 
 Him alone,’ Contempl. ii. i) as to 
 think that it was addressed to the 
 Divine Child in tones that might 
 not have been heard, or intended to 
 have been heard, by those around. 
 All the patristic expositors com- 
 ment on the use of the term oi ycveXs 
 avTov, and 6 Trarrip crov in reference 
 to Joseph, and none perhaps with 
 more point than Origen : ‘Nec mi- 
 remur parentes vocatos, quorum al- 
 tera ob partum, alter ob obsequium, 
 patris et matris meruerunt voca- 
 
 bula,’ In Luc. Horn, xix, Vol. iii. 
 p. 955 (ed. Bened,). So Augustine, 
 though with a further and deeper 
 reference : ‘ Propter quoddam cum 
 ejus matre sanctum et virginale con- 
 jugium, etiam ipse [Joseph] parens 
 Christi meruit appellari.’ Contr. 
 Faust. Munich, iii. 2, Vol. iii. p. 
 214 (ed. Migne). 
 
 ^ The exact meaning of the words 
 ej' Tois rod irarpos p.ov has been dif- 
 ferently estimated. Common usage 
 (see exx. in Lobeck, Phrynicus, p. 
 100), and still more the idea of 
 locality, which would seem naturally 
 involved in an answer to the pre- 
 ceding notice of the search that had 
 been made, may incline us to the 
 gloss of Euthymius, — ev r(p OLKCp rod 
 irarpbs pov. So also the Peshito-Sy- 
 riac and Armenian versions : the Vul- 
 gate, Coptic, and Gothic are equally 
 indeterminate with the original. 
 
04 The Early Judcean Ministry. 
 
 with them as the loving and submissive son, the 
 
 sharer perhaps in His reputed father s earthly la- 
 
 bours\ the consoler and perchance supporter of 
 the widowed Virgin after the righteous son of 
 Jacob, who henceforth appears no more in the 
 history, had been called away to his rest^ 
 
 Frivolous And this is the narrative, this narrative so 
 
 nature of., , . ^ 
 
 theobjec- Simple and so true, in which modern scepticism 
 against ?he ^las fancied it can detect inconsistencies and incon- 
 narrative. gj-^^ies^ And yet what is there so strange, what 
 so inconceivable ? Does the age of the Holy Child 
 seem to preclude the possibility of such contact 
 with the Masters of Israel, when the historian 
 Josephus, as he himself tells us^, was actually con- 
 sulted by the high priests and principal men of 
 the city at an age but little more advanced than 
 that of the youthful Saviour? Are we to admit 
 
 ^ This statement is perhaps par- 
 tially supported by Mark vi. 3, ovx 
 ovt6s iariu 6 reKTWP, — a reading 
 ■which, even in spite of the assertion 
 of Origen in reply to Celsus, that 
 our Lord is never described in the 
 four Gospels as a carpenter {Contr. 
 Cels. VI. 36), must certainly be retain- 
 ed: see Tischendorf in loc. When 
 ■we add to this the old tradition pre- 
 served by Justin Martyr {Trypho, 
 cap. 88), that out Lord made 
 ‘ploughs, yokes, and other imple- 
 ments pertaining to husbandry,’ ■we 
 seem fully warranted in belie'ving 
 that our Redeemer vouchsafed to 
 set to us this further example of 
 humility and dutiful love. The silly 
 legends of the apocryphal gospels 
 hardly deserve to be noticed: see, 
 however, Evang. Thom. cap. i r , 
 Evang. Inf. Arab. cap. 38, 39. 
 
 2 See above, p. 56, note 2. Ac- 
 
 cording to a simple comparison of 
 two passages in the apocryphal His- 
 toria Josephi (cap. 14, 15), this took 
 place in the eighteenth year of our 
 Lord. Upon such authority, how- 
 ever, no further reliance can be 
 placed than perhaps as the ex- 
 pression of a belief in the early 
 Church that Joseph did not, as Am- 
 brose seems distinctly to imply {de 
 Instit. Virg. cap. 7, Vol. ii. i, p. 318, 
 ed. Migne), survive our Lord, or 
 even the times of His public mi- 
 nistry. 
 
 ^ For some notices of these objec- 
 tions, see Ebrard, Kritilc der Evang. 
 Gesch. § 50, p. 247. 
 
 ^ ‘Moreover, when I was a child,’ 
 says the' historian, ‘ and about four- 
 teen years of age, I was commended 
 by all for the love I had to learn- 
 ing; on which account the high- 
 priests and principal men of the city 
 
The Early Judtvan Ministry. 
 
 95 
 
 such precocity in the case of the son of Matthias 
 
 and deny it in that of the Son of God ? Or again, 
 
 is the assumed neglect of the parents to be urged 
 against the credibility of the narrative \ when we 
 know so utterly nothing of the arrangement of 
 these travelling companies, or of the bands and 
 groupings into which on such solemn occasions 
 as the present, custom might have divided the re- 
 turning worshippers ? But I will not pause on 
 such shallow and hapless scepticism ; I will not do 
 such dishonour to the audience before which I stand 
 as to assume that it is necessary for me to make 
 formal replies to such unmerited cavillings. I will 
 only presume to make this one mournful comment, 
 
 — that if a narrative like the present, so full as it 
 is of life-like touches, so exquisitely natural in its 
 details, and so strangely contrasted with the silly 
 fictions of the Apocryphal Infancies ^ — if such a 
 narrative as this is to be regarded as legendary or 
 
 came then frequently to me toge- 
 ther, in order to know my opinion 
 about the accurate understanding of 
 points of the law.’ Life, ch. 2. Vol. 
 I, p. 2 (Whiston’s transh). Such 
 a statement would seem inconceiv- 
 able, if it were not remembered that 
 so much, especially of interpretation 
 of the law, turned on opinion and 
 modes of reasoning rather than on 
 accumulations of actual learning: 
 see especially Wotton, Discourses, 
 ch. IV. Vol, I. p, 24 sq. 
 
 1 Much has been said by a cer- 
 tain class of writers about the want 
 of proper care for the Holy Child 
 previously evinced by Joseph and 
 Mary. Such remarks are as untena- 
 ble as they are clearly designed to 
 be mischievous. Even Hase remarks 
 
 that the Lord’s staying behind in 
 Jerusalem is perfectly conceivable 
 without attributing any carelessness 
 to His parents. Lehen Jesu, § 30, 
 p. 55 ; comp. Th.o\\xc^,Glauhwurd, p. 
 214 sq. Bede {in loc. Vol. ill, p. 349, 
 ed. Migne) suggests that the women 
 and men returned in different bands, 
 and that Joseph and Mary each 
 thought that the Holy Child was 
 with the other. This, however, seems 
 ‘argutius quam verius dictum.’ 
 
 2 The simple evangelical narrative 
 of our Lord’s interview with the 
 Doctors has, as we might have ima- 
 gined, called forth not a few apo- 
 cryphal additions. These will be 
 found in the Evang. Infant. Arab. 
 cap. 50 — 52, pp. 199, 200 (ed. 
 Tisch.). 
 
LECT. 
 
 III. 
 
 ® Heb. iii. 
 
 12 . 
 
 Silence of 
 the Evan- 
 gelists on 
 the next 
 eighteen 
 years of 
 our Lord’s 
 life. 
 
 9G The Ea7'ly Judcmn Ministry. 
 
 mythical, then we may indeed shudderingly recog- 
 nize what is meant by the ^evil heart of unbe- 
 lief,’ what it is to have that mind that will exco- 
 gitate doubts where the very instinctive feelings 
 repudiate them, and will disbelieve where disbelief 
 becomes plainly monstrous and revolting. 
 
 And now eighteen years of the Redeemer’s 
 earthly life pass silently away^, a deep veil falls 
 over that mysterious period which even loving and 
 inquiring antiquity has not presumed to raise. 
 
 save in regard to the brie 
 earthly calling to which 
 luded", and to which, both 
 examples of the greatest 
 cepted^, lend considerable 
 
 1 This would seem the place, in 
 accordance with the arrangement in 
 the Gospel of St Luke, for making 
 a few comments on the genealogies 
 of our Lord as recorded in this 
 Gospel and that of St Matthew. 
 Into this difficult subject, however, 
 it does not seem desirable to enter 
 further, than to remark for the 
 benefit of the general reader, (a) 
 that the most exact recent research 
 tends distinctly to prove the cor- 
 rectness of the almost universally 
 received ancient opinion, that hoth 
 are the genealogies of our Lord’s 
 reputed /a? Aer; (6) that the genea- 
 logy of St Matthew is not according 
 to lineal descent, but according to 
 the line of regal succession from 
 Solomon, — and that in accordance 
 with national and scriptural usage, 
 and possibly for the sake of facili- 
 tating memory (Mill, p. 105) it is 
 recorded in an abridged and also 
 symmetrical form; (c) that the ge- 
 nealogy of St Luke exhibits the 
 
 f notice of the Saviour’s 
 an early writer has al- 
 national custom and the 
 teachers, Hillel not ex- 
 plausibility. 
 
 natural descent from David through 
 Nathan; {d) that the two genealo- 
 gies can be reconciled with one ano- 
 ther, and with the genealogy of the 
 house of David preserved in the Old 
 Testament. For a complete sub- 
 stantia'don of these assertions, see 
 Mill, Ohs. on Pantheistic Principles, 
 II. 2. I, 2, p. loi sq., Hervey (Lord 
 A.) Genealogies of our Lord (Cambr. 
 1853); and compare August, de Pi- 
 versis Qucest. lxi. Vol. vi. p. 50, 
 and contra Faust. Manich. iii. i sq. 
 Vol. VIII, p. 214 sq. 
 
 2 See above, p. 94, note i. 
 
 3 For numerous citations from 
 the Rabbinical writers confirming 
 the above statement, see Sepp, Lehen 
 Christi, I, 19, Vol. ii. p. 59 sq. 
 The quotation in reference to Hillel 
 is as follows : ‘ Num forte pauperior 
 eras Hillele? Dixerunt de Hillele 
 seniore quod singulis diebus labo- 
 rabat, conductus mercede numrai.’ 
 Tract ‘Joma,’ fob 36. 1 : compare 
 Lightfoot, Uor. Hcbr. p. 444. 
 
The Early Judccan Ministry. 
 
 07 
 
 On this silence much has been said into which it 
 is here not necessary to enter. Instead of pensive Providen ~ 
 and mistaken longings, it should be to us a subject 
 of rejoicing and thankfulness that in this parti- silence 
 
 . pT II* c^* vindicated 
 
 cular portion or the sacred history bcripture has and exem- 
 assumed to itself its prerogative of solemn reserved 
 Think only, brethren, how the narrative of the 
 simple events of that secluded childhood would 
 have been dealt with by the scoffer and the 
 sceptic. Nay pause to think only what an effect 
 it might have had even on the better portion of 
 Christianity, how our weak and carnal hearts 
 might have dwelt merely on the human side of 
 the events related, and how hard it mig.ht have 
 seemed to have realized the incarnate God in the 
 simple incidents of that early life of duty and 
 love. I ground this observation on the very sug- 
 gestive fact recorded by St John, that our Lord’s 
 brethren Mid not believe on Him®.’ However John vii. 
 these words may be interpreted ; whether the word 
 ^ believe’ is to be taken in a more general or 
 more restricted sense, — whether the brethren be 
 regarded as sons of the Virgin, or, as I humbly be- 
 lieve them to be, sons of Mary her sister^, affects 
 
 1 A brief discussion of the ques- 
 tion why so great a portion of our 
 Kedeemer’s life is thus passed over, 
 will be found in Spanheim, Dud. 
 Evang. 's.CNi. Part ii. p. 651, The 
 contrast between this holy silence on 
 the part of the Evangelists, and the 
 circumstantial and often irreverent 
 narratives of some of the apocryphal 
 gospels (especially the Pseudo-Matth. 
 Evangelium, and the Evang. Infant. 
 Arabicum), is singularly striking and 
 suggestive: see further comments, 
 in Cambr. Essays, 1856, p. 156 sq. 
 
 2 Upon this vexed question we 
 will here only pause to remark, that 
 the whole subject seems to narrow 
 itself to a consideration of the appa- 
 rently opposite deductions that have 
 been made from two important texts. 
 On the one hand, if we rest solely 
 on the rigid meaning of the word 
 iirlaTevov in John vii. 5, and regard 
 ol dde\(pol avTov as including all so 
 designated, it would certainly seem 
 to follow that none of them could 
 be apostles, and that consequently 
 James the brother of the Lord was 
 
 1 
 
 E H. L 
 
98 
 
 The Early Judaean Ministry, 
 
 LECT. 
 
 III. 
 
 our present argument but little. This momentous 
 fact these words do place before us, that some of 
 those who stood in the relation of kinsmanship and 
 affinity to the Saviour, who saw Him as the familiar 
 eye saw Him, were among the latest to acquire 
 the fullest measures of faith. Though so many 
 blessed opportunities were vouchsafed to them of 
 seeing the glory of God shining through the veil 
 of mortal flesh, yet they saw it not. Their eyes 
 so rested on the outward tabernacle that they be- 
 held not the Schechinah within. The material 
 and familiar was an hindrance to their recogni- 
 tion of the spiritual, — an hindrance, be it not for- 
 gotten, which in their case was ultimately re- 
 moved^, but an hindrance, in the case of those 
 
 not identical with James the son of 
 Alphseus. On the other hand, if we 
 adopt the only sound grammatical 
 interpretation which the words of 
 Gal. i. 19 can fairly bear, we seem 
 forced to the conclusion that James 
 the Lord’s brother was an Apostle, 
 and consequently is to be identified 
 with James the son of Alphseus. 
 If this be so, J ames the Apostle and 
 his brethren, owing to the almost 
 certainly established identity of the 
 names Alphasus and Clopas (Mill, 
 Observations, ii. 2.3, p. 236) must be 
 further identified with the children 
 of Mary (Matth. xxvii. 56; Mark 
 XV. 40) the wife of Clopas and sister 
 of our Lord (John xix. 25), and so 
 His cousins. We have thus two texts 
 for consideration, upon the correct 
 interpretation of which the question 
 mainly turns. That Gal. i. 19 can- 
 not be strained to mean ‘ I saw 
 none of the Apostles, but I saw the 
 Lord’s brother,’ seems almost cer- 
 tain from the regularly exceptive 
 
 use which d /xri appears always 
 to preserve in the New Testament. 
 That €7ri<7T€vov, however, in John 
 vii. 5, is to be taken in the barest 
 sense of the word, or that ol d5eX0oZ 
 avTOv includes all so named, is by no 
 means equally clear. Even if ovk 
 iTriarevov be understood in a sense 
 in which it could not be applied to 
 an Apostle, we have still two of the 
 d5eX0ot, and perhaps more (see Mill), 
 who were not Apostles, and who, 
 with the sisters, might form a party 
 that might reasonably be grouped 
 under the roughly inclusive expres- 
 sion OL ade\(poi avToO. For further 
 information and references, see notes 
 on Gal. i. 20, and especially Mill, 
 Observations, ii. 2. 3, p. 221 sq. 
 
 ^ It has been pertinently observed 
 by Neander, that for this very rea- 
 son such men are to be accounted 
 still more trustworthy witnesses. 
 The very fact that they who so long 
 resisted the impression wrought up- 
 on them by our Lord, did at last 
 
99 
 
 The Early Judcean Ministry. 
 
 who could not have their advantages, which might 
 
 never have been removed, an obstacle to a true 
 
 acknowledgment of their Lord’s divinity, against 
 which faith might never have been able to prevail. 
 
 Much again has been said upon the men- The mental 
 tal and spiritual development of the Holy Child tuai de- 
 during these silent years, upon which it is equally 
 unprofitable to enlarged Whatever speculations 
 we may in passive and meditative moments in- 
 dulge in with regard to these silent years, let us 
 hold this as most fixed and irrefragably true, that 
 our heavenly Master received nothing affecting His 
 divine purpose and mission from the influences 
 of even the purer and more spiritual teaching of 
 those around Him. With what startling temerity 
 has the converse statement been urged and ac- 
 cepted^ ; and yet is there not tacit blasphemy 
 in the very thought ? What was there for ex- 
 ample in Pharisaism which could have had its 
 influence on Him who so spake against every 
 principle that marked it ? What was there in the 
 
 yield, and acknowledge Him whom 
 they accounted but as an unnoted re- 
 lative to be the Messiah and the Son 
 of God, makes their testimony all 
 the more valuable: see Leiden Jes. 
 Chr. p. 49 (Transl. p. 33), 
 
 ^ This subject and the probable 
 ‘ plan ’ of our Saviour’s ministry are 
 topics which most of the modern 
 lives of our Lord discuss with a 
 very unbecoming freedom : see Hase, 
 Lehen Jem, § 31, 40 sq,, pp, 56, 69 
 sq. In reference to the former, and 
 to the true nature of our Lord’s 
 advance in wisdom enough has been 
 said above (p. 86, note i) : in refer- 
 ence to the latter it may be suffi- 
 cient to say, simply and briefly, that 
 
 the only principle of action by which 
 man may presume to believe the 
 Eternal Son to have been influenced 
 was love toward man co-operating 
 with obedience to the will of the 
 Father (Heb. x. 9), — of Him with 
 whom He Himself was one (John x. 
 30) : comp. Ullmann, Unsundlichlceit 
 Jesu, sect. iv. p. 25 (Transl, by 
 Park). Further remarks will be 
 found in Neander, Life of Christ, 
 Book IV. p. 80 sq. (Bohn). 
 
 ^ The various sources to which 
 ancient and modern sceptical writers 
 have presumed to refer the peculiar 
 characteristics of our Lord’s teach- 
 ing are specified by Hase, Lehen 
 Jesu, § 31, p. 57. 
 
 7—2 
 
100 
 
 LECT. 
 
 III. 
 
 The Early Judcean Ministry. 
 
 anti-eud0emonism\ as it has been termed, — the 
 desire placidly to do good for its own sake, which 
 has been attributed to the original creed of the 
 Sadducee, — that could for one instant be thought 
 to have been assimilated by Him who came to 
 save His own creatures with His sufferings and 
 His blood, and whose ever- operative and redemp- 
 tive love was the living protest against the cold- 
 ness and deadness of a merely formal or self- 
 complacent morality. What, lastly, was there in 
 the much-vaunted spirit of Essene teaching that 
 we can trace in the Gospel of Jesus Christ^? 
 What was there in the spiritual pride of that se- 
 cluded sect that sceptical criticism shall think it 
 can discern in the active, practical, all-embracing 
 covenant of Love? No, it cannot be. No finite 
 human influences gave tinge to those eternal pur- 
 poses. No doctrines and traditions of men added 
 
 ^ See Neander, Life of Christ, 
 p. 38 (Bohn); and compare Jost, 
 Gesch. des Heidenthums, ii. 2. 8, 
 Vol. I. p. 215. The sentiment as- 
 cribed to the so-called founder of 
 this sect is found in the Mishna 
 (Tract, ‘Pirke Aboth,’ I. 3), and is 
 to this effect : ‘ Be not as servants 
 who serve their master on the con- 
 dition of receiving a reward ; hut be 
 as servants who serve on no such a 
 condition, and let the fear of heaven 
 be in you.’ It must be observed, 
 however, that though the above ap- 
 pears to have been one of the prin- 
 ciples of early and even later Sad- 
 ducaeism, the connexion of the sect 
 with Sadok, and of its doctrines with 
 perversions of the original teaching 
 of Antigonus Socho, is clearly to 
 be regarded as a very questionable 
 hypothesis: see Winer, RWB. art. 
 
 ^Sadducaer,’ Vol. ii. p. 352 sq. 
 
 2 The connexion of Christianity 
 W’ith Essene teaching has always 
 been the most popular of these theo- 
 ries : comp. Heubner on Eeinhard’s 
 Plan Jesu, Append, v. How little 
 similarity, however, there really is 
 between the two systems, and how 
 fundamental the differences, is clearly 
 enough shown by Neander, Life of 
 Christ, p. 38 (Bohn). For contem- 
 porary notices of the habits and 
 tenets of this sect, see Philo, Quod 
 Omn. Prdh. § 12, Vol. ii. p. 457, 
 ib. de Vit. Contemjpl. § i. Vol. ii. 
 p. 471 (ed. Mang.), and Joseph. 
 Antiq. Xiii. 5. 9, xvi. i. 5, Bell. 
 Jud. II. 8. 2 sq., and for a general 
 estimate of the characteristics of 
 Essene teaching and its relations to 
 Pharisaism, Jost, Gesch. des Judenth. 
 II. 2. 8, Vol. I. p. 207 sq. 
 
The Early Judman Ministry. 
 
 101 
 
 aught to the spiritual development of the Holy 
 Child of Nazareth. From that Father in whose 
 
 bosom'^ He had been from all eternity, — from the** John i. 
 fulness of that Godhead of which He Himself was 
 a copartner, — unmingled and uncontaminated came 
 all forms of that wisdom in which, as man, and 
 as subject to the laws and developments of man’s 
 nature, the omniscient Son of God vouchsafed to 
 advance and to make progress. 
 
 Thus, O mystery of mysteries, in that green The se- 
 basin in- the hills of Galilee^, amid simple circum- youth of 
 stances, and perchance in the exercise oi a humble God. 
 calling, dwelt the everlasting Son of God, — the 
 varied features of that nature which He Himself 
 had made so fair, the permitted media of the im- 
 pressions of outward things^ His oratory the 
 solitary mountains. His purpose the salvation of 
 our race, His will the will of God.... Thus silently 
 and thus mysteriously pass away those eighteen 
 years, until at length the hour is come, and the 
 voice of the mystic Elias is now heard sounding 
 in the deserts, and preparing the way for Him 
 that was to come. 
 
 On the ministry of the Baptist my limits will The minis- 
 permit me to say but little. It would seem to slptist, ^ 
 
 and its 
 
 out narrow and winding, apparently 
 to the great plain.’ liobinson, Pa- 
 
 1 ‘The town of Nazareth lies 
 upon the western side of a narrow 
 oblong basin, extending about from 
 S.S.W. to N.N.E., perhaps twenty 
 minutes in length by eight or ten in 
 breadth. The houses stand on the 
 lower part of the slope of the western 
 hill, which rises high and steep above 
 them.... To wards the north the hills 
 are less high ; on the east and south 
 they are low. In the south-east the 
 basin contracts, and a valley runs 
 
 lestine, Vol. ii. p. 333 (ed. 2); see 
 also Thomson, The Land and the 
 Book, Vol. II. p. 13 1. 
 
 2 For a notice of the fair view 
 that must have met the Saviour’s 
 eye whenever He ascended the west- 
 ern hill specified in the preceding 
 note, see Kobinson, Palestine,\o\. il. 
 p. 336 sq., and comp, the photogra- 
 phic view of Frith, Egy'pt, &c., Pt. ii. 
 
102 
 
 The Early Judcean Ministry. 
 
 have preceded that of our Lord by some months, 
 
 and not improbably occupied the greater portion 
 
 of the Sabbatical year, which came to its conclu- 
 sion three or four months before our Lord had 
 completed his thirtieth year\ The effects of the 
 Forerunner’s ministry seem to have been of a 
 mingled character. That St John found some 
 partial adherents among the Pharisees and Sad- 
 ducees^ seems certain from the express words of 
 “Matt. iii. St Mattliow^, and that two years after his death 
 he, whom his Master had pronounced as among 
 Luke vii. the greatest of the prophets^, was to a great degree 
 ^ ■ regarded as such by the fickle multitude at large, 
 Mark xi. seems equally certain from the Gospel narrative^. 
 Yet that the Pharisees as a body rejected his 
 teaching, and that the effect on the great mass of 
 the people was but partial and transitory, seems 
 
 ^ We have no data for fixing the 
 time when the ministry of the Bap- 
 tist commenced, unless we urge 
 Luke iii. i, which, as we shall see be- 
 low (p. 104, note i), is more plausi- 
 bly referred to another period of his 
 history. We are thus thrown on 
 conjectures; the most probable of 
 which seems that as St John was 
 born six months before our Lord, so 
 he might have preceded Him in his 
 public ministrations by a not much 
 greater space of time. The further 
 chronological fact (see Wieseler, 
 Citron, Synops. p. 204), that from 
 the autumn of 779 A. u. C. to the 
 autumn of 780 was a sabbatical year, 
 is certainly significant, and may 
 additionally incline us to the opinion 
 that perhaps in the spring or summer 
 of 780 A. u. c. St John’s voice was 
 first heard in the wilderness of J udsea. 
 For notices of the outward circum- 
 
 stances under which the Forerunner 
 appeared, the student may be re- 
 ferred to Spanheim, Dul>. Evang. 
 XCVII — C. Part ii. p. 654 sq., Hux- 
 table. Ministry of St John, p. 8 sq. 
 (Lond, 1848), and the exhaustive 
 dissertation of Patritius, de Evang. 
 XLiii. Book III. p. 439 sq. 
 
 ^ The supposition that the mem- 
 bers of these sects came to oppose 
 the baptism of St John is just gram- 
 matically possible (see Meyer in loc.), 
 but wholly contrary to the spirit of 
 the context. They might have come 
 with unworthy motives, from excited 
 feelings, or from curiosity, but cer- 
 tainly not as direct opponents; see 
 Neander, Life of Christ, p. 51 sq. 
 (Bohn). Chrysostom perhaps goes 
 too far the other way when he says, 
 ov^k yap ayapTavbvTas elder dXXa pte- 
 ra^aXhoptivovs. Horn, in Matth. XI. 
 Vol. VII. p. 173 (ed. Bened. 2). 
 
The Early Judcean Ministry, 
 
 103 
 
 certain from our Lord’s own comments on the 
 
 generation that would not dance to those that piped 
 
 unto them', and would not lament with those that 
 mourned We may with reason, then, believe « Matt. xi. 
 that the harbinger’s message might have arrested, Luke vii. 
 aroused, and awakened, — but that the general in- 3^- 
 fluence of that baptism of water was comparatively 
 limited, and that its memory would have soon 
 died away if He that baptized with the Holy 
 Ghost and with fire had not invested it with a 
 new and more vital significance. John struck the 
 first chords, but the sounds would have soon died 
 out into silence if a mightier hand had not swept 
 the yet vibrating strings I 
 
 1 This is also shown clearly by 
 the remark of our Lord to the Jews 
 on tlieir general reception of the 
 Baptist’s message, rjOeXriaaTe aya\- 
 \LadrjvaL irpos d'pav ev r<p (pcorl 
 avTov, John v. 35, where though the 
 chief emphasis probably rests on the 
 dyaWiadrivaL (as opp. to pieravo^aai, 
 see Meyer in loc.) the tt/jos Cipav is 
 not without its special force : ‘ it 
 marks,’ as Chrysostom says, Hheir 
 lightmindedness and the quick way 
 in which they fell back from him.’ 
 Compare too Matth. xxi. 32, though 
 this perhaps more especially applies 
 to those (ot dpxie/9e?s nal ol irpea^ij- 
 repoi ToO XaoO, ver. 2 3) to whom our 
 Lord was immediately speaking. On 
 the effect of the Baptist’s preaching 
 compare, though with some reserve, 
 the well-expressed estimate of Mil- 
 man, History of Christianity, i. 3, 
 Vol. I. p. 143 sq. 
 
 2 This is the ancient and, as it 
 would seem, correct view of the re- 
 lations of the ministry of Christ to 
 that of His Forerunner. Though 
 on the one hand we must not rashly 
 
 dissociate what undoubtedly stood 
 in close relation to one another, we 
 still can scarcely go so far on the 
 other as to say that St John was 
 ‘ absolutely the counterpart, and 
 merely the forerunner of Christ’ 
 (Greswell, Dissert, xix. Vol. ii. p. 
 156). The difference between St 
 John’s baptism and Christian, though 
 treated as a needless question by 
 Jackson {Creed, vii. 41, Vol. vi. 
 p. 380), often occupied the attention 
 of the early Church, and has never 
 been better stated than by Gregory 
 of Nazianzus : ‘John also baptized, 
 not however any longer after a Jew- 
 ish manner, for he baptized, not 
 with water only, but unto repent- 
 ance. Still it was not yet after a 
 spiritual manner, for he adds not, 
 “with the Spirit.” Jesus baptizes 
 also, but it is with the Spirit.’ Orat. 
 XXXIX. p. 634 (Paris, 1609): see 
 August, contr. Litt. Petil. ii. 32. 75, 
 Vol. IX. p. 284 (ed. Migne), where 
 the erroneous opinions of that schis- 
 matical bishop on this head are very 
 clearly exposed; comp, also Thom- 
 
104 
 
 LECT. 
 
 III. 
 
 Journey i 
 our Lord 
 to the 
 Baptism 
 of John. 
 
 Numb. 
 
 iv. 
 
 The Early Judwan Ministry, 
 
 It was now probably towards tlie close of the 
 year of the City 7801, after more than the time 
 allotted to the Levite’s preparation for Hhe ser- 
 vice of tlie ministry^’ had already passed away -, that 
 
 dike, Laxos of the Church, iii. 7. 4, 
 Vol. IV. I, p. 149 sq. (A.-C. Libr.). 
 
 ^ This date, it need scarcely be 
 said, like all the dates in our Re- 
 deemer’s history, is open to much 
 discussion. It has been selected 
 after a prolonged consideration of 
 the various opinions that have been 
 recently adduced, — and certainly 
 seems plausible. If, as we have 
 supposed, our Lord was born to- 
 wards the close of J anuary or begin- 
 ning of February, A.U.c. 750, He 
 would now be 30 years old and 
 some months over, — an age well co- 
 inciding with the were! erwr rpid- 
 Kovra dpx^f^-ros of Luke iii. 23. 
 The only difficulty, and it is con- 
 fessedly a great one, is the date pre- 
 viously specified by Luke, ch. iii. i, 
 the 15th year of the reign of Tibe- 
 rius. If we take the first and appa- 
 rently plain sense of the words, this 
 15th year can only be conceived to 
 date back from the regular acces- 
 sion of Tiberius at the death of Au- 
 gustus, and will consequently coin- 
 cide with A.U.C. 781, — a date which 
 not only involves the awkwardness 
 of positively forcing us to extend 
 the age of our Lord to 31 or more 
 to make His birth precede the death 
 of Herod (certainly April, A.U.C. 
 750), but also forces us to shorten 
 the duration of His ministry very 
 unduly to bring His death either to 
 the year a.d. 29, or A.D. 30, which 
 seem the only ones that fairly satisfy 
 the astronomical elements which have 
 been introduced into the question by 
 Wurm {Astron. Beitrdge) and others. 
 We must choose then between two 
 
 modes of obviating the difficulty; 
 either, (a) with Greswell {Dissert. 
 VII. Vol. I. p. 334 sq.) and others, 
 we must su2)pose the 15 yeai-s to 
 include two years during which Ti- 
 berius appears to have been asso- 
 ciated with Augustus,— a mode of 
 dating, however, both unlikely and 
 unprecedented (see Wieseler, Chron. 
 Syn. p. 1 72, Browne, Ordo Scec. § 71, 
 p. 76 sq.); or (6) we must conceive 
 the 15th of Tiberius to coincide, not 
 with the first appearance, but the 
 captivity of John the Baptist, — the 
 epoch, be it observed, from which, 
 in accordance with ancient tradi- 
 tion (Euseb. Hist. Eccl. Iii. 24), 
 the narrative of the Synoptical Gos- 
 pels appears to date (Matth. iv. 12, 
 17; Mark i. 14). This latter view 
 has been well supported by Wieseler 
 {Chron. Syn. p. 172 sq.), and adopted 
 by Tischendorf {Synops. Evang. p. 
 XIV. sq.), and is perhaps slightly the 
 most probable. The opinion of San- 
 clemente and Browne (§ 85), that 
 the 15 th of Tiberius was the year of 
 the Passion, has much less in its 
 favour. 
 
 2 The meaning of the words oiad 
 erwv TpiaKOvra dpxoyevos (Luke iii. 
 23) has been much discussed; the 
 doubt being whether the participle 
 is to be referred {a) to the age speci- 
 fied (‘incipiebat esse quasi annorum 
 triginta,’ Beza, Greswell), or {b) to 
 the commencement of the ministry. 
 Whichever position of dpx 6 p.evo 9 we 
 adopt (see Tischendorf, in loc.) it 
 can scarcely be doubted that (6) is 
 the correct interpretation (so Origen 
 and Euthym.), and that our Lord’s 
 
105 
 
 The Early J adman Ministry, 
 
 the Holy Jesus, moved we may liumbly presume 
 by that Spirit which afterwards directed His feet 
 to the wilderness, leaves the home of His child- 
 hood, to return to it no more as His earthly abode, 
 save for the few days^ that preceded the removal 
 to Capernaum in the spring of the following year. 
 ...It was now winter^, and the valley of Esdraelon 
 
 ministry is to be understood to have 
 commenced when he was more than 
 30, but less than 31 years of age. 
 For arguments (not very strong) in 
 favour of cbcrel implying, not some- 
 what above, but somew'hat under 
 the time specified, see Greswell, 
 Jjissert. XI. Vol. i. p, 368. 
 
 ' When our Lord returned to 
 Galilee after the Temptation, it would 
 seem that for the short time that 
 preceded the passover He did not 
 stay at Nazareth, but at Capernaum ; 
 see John ii. 12. On His next return 
 to Galilee (December, A. u. c. 781), 
 He appears to have gone to and per- 
 haps stayed at Cana (John iv. 46), 
 a place to which some writers have 
 supposed that the Virgin and her 
 kindred had previously retired : see 
 Ewald, Gesch. Christus, Yol. v. p. 
 147. Under any circumstances we 
 have only a short period remaining 
 before the final removal to Caper- 
 naum, specified Matth. iv. 13, Luke 
 iv. 31. 
 
 2 The conclusion at which Wiese- 
 ler arrives after a careful considera- 
 tion of all the historical data that 
 tend to fix the time of our Lord’s 
 baptism, is as follows : Jesus must 
 have been baptized by John not 
 earlier than February 780 A. u. c. 
 (the extreme Herminus a quo ’ sup- 
 plied by St Luke), nor later than 
 the winter of the same year (the ex- 
 treme ‘ terminus ad quern ’ supplied 
 by St J ohn) : see Chron. Synops. ii. 
 
 B. 2, p. 201. Wieseler himself fixes 
 upon the spring or summer of 780 
 A. u. c. as the exact date (p. 202) ; 
 but to this period there are two ob- 
 jections ; First, that if, as seems rea- 
 sonable, we agree (with Wieseler) 
 to fix the deputation to the Baptist 
 (John i. 19 sq.) about the close of 
 February 781 A. U. C., we shall have 
 a period of eight months, viz. from 
 the middle of 780 to the end of the 
 second month of 781 wholly unac- 
 counted for (Wieseler, Chron. Sy- 
 nops. p. 258); secondly, that it is 
 almost the unanimous tradition of 
 the early church that the baptism of 
 our Lord took place in winter, or in 
 the early part of the year : see the 
 numerous ancient authorities in the 
 useful table of Patritius, Dissert, xix. 
 Book III. p. 276, and comp. Diss. 
 XLVII. p. 485. The tradition of the 
 Basilideans mentioned by Clement 
 of Alexandria {Strom, i. 21, Vol. i. 
 p. 408, ed. Pott), that the baptism 
 of our Lord took place on the iith 
 or 15th of Tybi (Jan. 6 or 10) de- 
 serves consideration, both from the 
 antiquity of the sect, and from the 
 fact that the baptism of our Lord 
 was in their system an epoch of the 
 highest importance; see Neander, 
 Church Hist. Vol. ii. p. 102 (Clark). 
 The ordinary objections founded on 
 the season of the year are well and, 
 as it would seem, convincingly an- 
 swered by Greswell, Dissert. Xi. Vol. 
 I. p. 371 (ed. 2). 
 
106 
 
 LVjCT. 
 
 III. 
 
 ® Mark i, 5. 
 
 ^ Luke iii. 
 
 7 * 
 
 <= Matt. iii. 
 
 7 - 
 
 I'he Early Judcean Mmistry. 
 
 was just green with springing corn\ as the Ke- 
 deemers path lay across it toward the desert 
 valley of the Jordan, either to that ancient ford 
 near Succoth, which recent geographical specu- 
 lation‘s has connected with the Bethabara or rather 
 Bethany of St John, or more probably to the 
 neighbourhood of that more southern ford not far 
 from Jericho, round which traditions yet linger^, 
 and to which the multitudes that flocked to the 
 Baptist from Judsea and Jerusalem^ would have 
 found a speedier and more convenient access. 
 There the great Forerunner was baptizing; there 
 he had been but just uttering those words of stern 
 warning to the mingled multitude ^ to Pharisee 
 and to Sadducee^, which are recorded by the first® 
 
 ^ The harvest in Palestine ripens 
 at different times in different locali- 
 ties ; but as a general rule the barley- 
 harvest may be considered as taking 
 place from the middle to the close of 
 Api'il, and the wheat-harvest about 
 a fortnight later; see Robinson, 
 Palestine, Vol. i. p. 431 (ed. ■2), and 
 compare Stanley, Palestine, p. 240, 
 note (ed. 2). 
 
 2 See Stanley, Palestine, p. 308, 
 who both pleads for the reading 
 Bethabara, and for the more northern 
 position of the scene of the Baptism, 
 With regard to the reading, at any 
 rate, there can be no reasonable 
 doubt. All the ancient authorities 
 and nearly all the MSS. in the time 
 of Origen (crxeSoi' wavra ra dvrlypa- 
 <pa), adopt the reading Bethany ; nor 
 would Bethabara have ever found a 
 a place in the sacred text, if Origen, 
 moved by geographical considera- 
 tions, had not given sanction to the 
 change ; see Lucke, Comment, iiher 
 Joh. i. 28, and the critical notes of 
 
 Tischendorf, in loc. 
 
 3 The traditional sites adopted by 
 the Latin and Greek churches are 
 not the same, but both not far from 
 Jericho. The bathing- place of the 
 Latin pilgrims is not far from the 
 ruined convent of St John the Bap- 
 tist, that of the Greek pilgrims two 
 or three miles below it ; see Robinson, 
 Palestine, Vol. i. p. 536. The ob- 
 jection to the latter, and possibly to 
 the former place, is the steepness of 
 the banks (see Thomson, The Land 
 and the Book, Vol. ii. p. 445), but 
 this cannot be strongly pressed, 
 as at the assumed time of year 
 (when as we learn from Robinson 
 [Vol. I. p, 541], the river has not 
 yet been seen by travellers), partial 
 or local overflows might have given 
 greater facilities for the performance 
 of the ceremony ; see Greswell, Dis- 
 sert. XIX. Vol. II. p. 184. See, how- 
 ever, Thomson, The Land and the 
 Book, Vol. II. p. 452 sq. 
 
 ^ See above, p. 102, note 2. 
 
llie Early Judcean Ministry. 
 
 107 
 
 and third Evangelists ; there stood around him 
 
 men with musing hearts, doubting whether that 
 
 bold speaker were the Christ or no*^, when sud- “ Luke m. 
 denly, unknown and unrecognized, the very Mes- 
 siah mingles with those strangely-assorted and ex- 
 pectant multitudes, and with them seeks baptism 
 at the hands of the great Preacher of the desert. 
 
 It has been doubted whether that lonely child 
 of the wilderness at once recognized the Holy One John’s re- 
 
 ^ ^ ^ ^ cognition 
 
 that was now meekly standing before him. It is our 
 at any rate certain from his own words that his 
 knowledg^e of our Lord as the Messiah was not 
 due to a previous acquaintance h and it is also 
 quite possible that he might not have known his 
 Pedeemer even by outward appearance. But if he 
 knew Him not by the seeing of the eye, he must 
 have known of Him by the hearing of the ear, 
 and he must have felt within his soul, as the Lord 
 drew nigh, a sudden and mystic intimation that 
 he was gazing on Him of whose wondrous birth 
 his own mother s lips must oft have told him, and 
 
 ^ This view, which is substantially 
 that taken by the older commenta- 
 tors, has been well defended by Dr 
 Mill against the popular sceptical 
 objections ; see Obss. on Pantheistic 
 Principles, ii. i. 5, p, 79 sq. We 
 certainly seem to gather from the 
 language of St Matthew that the 
 Baptist recognized our Lord, if not 
 distinctly as the Messiah, yet in a 
 degree closely approaching to it, be- 
 fore the baptism, — for otherwise how 
 are we to understand the language 
 of Matth. iii. 14? See especially, 
 Chrysost. in Joann. Horn. xvi. Whe- 
 ther this was due to a short unre- 
 corded conversation (Mill), or, as 
 suggested in the text, to special re- 
 
 velation {ovK arr' dvdpcoTrbrjs 0iX^as 
 7]i> avTT] [t] /xaprvpla'], dXX’ diroKa- 
 \d\peus, Ammonius. ap, Cramer, 
 Oaten, in loc.) cannot be decided. 
 The facts at any rate, as specified 
 by the two Evangelists, are perfectly 
 compatible with each other ; on the 
 one hand, St John did recognize our 
 Lord just before the baptism (Matth. 
 1 . c.) ; on the other hand, fie fiimself 
 declares (Jofin 1 . c.) tfiat fiis personal 
 acquaintance, if sucfi existed, was 
 not in any degree concerned in fiis 
 subsequent complete recognition of 
 Him as the Christ, the Son of God. 
 So rightly, De Wette, on John, 1 . c., 
 and similarly, Huxtable, Ministry of 
 St John, p. 60. 
 
108 
 
 LECT. 
 
 III. 
 
 “ Matt. iii. 
 14. 
 
 ** ver. 15. 
 
 ® Luke iii. 
 ‘ 12 . 
 
 The Early Judoean Ministry. 
 
 on wliose future destinies he might often have 
 mused with a profound and all but consciously- 
 prophetic interest' ...With strange memories in 
 his thoughts, and perhaps now still stranger pre- 
 sentiments in his heart, the Baptist pleads"" against 
 such an inverted relation as the Son of Mary 
 seeking baptism from the son of Elisabeth. He 
 pleads, but he pleads in vain. Overpersuaded 
 and awed by solemn words ^ which he might not 
 have fully understood, the Forerunner descends 
 with his Bedeemer into the rapid waters of the now 
 sacred river; when lo ! when the inaugural rite is 
 done, the promised sign at length appears, the 
 Baptist beholds the opened heavens, and the em- 
 bodied form^ of the descending Spirit‘d; he sees 
 perhaps the kindled fire, apt symbol of the Be- 
 deemer s baptism, of which an old writer has made 
 mention B he hears the Father’s voice of blessing 
 
 1 It has been well observed by 
 Mill, that ‘ the designation to which 
 he bore testimony unconsciously in 
 the womb, and which his mother 
 with entire consciousness of its 
 meaning, expressed reverently to the 
 Virgin Mother of her Lord, cannot 
 have been kept secret from his ear- 
 liest years : and however the memory 
 of the wonderful facts in question 
 might fade, as would naturally be 
 the case, from the minds of many 
 that heard them, ...the tradition of 
 them could not possibly thus pass 
 away from him. Nor would his 
 solitary life in the desert, apart from 
 his kindred, as from mankind in 
 general, tend to impair the recollec- 
 tion but to strengthen it.’ Observa- 
 tions on Panth. Principles, ii. i. 5, 
 p. 80. 
 
 ^ The following is the ancient tra- 
 
 dition referred to : ‘ And then when 
 Jesus came to the river Jordan, 
 where John was baptizing, and de- 
 scended to the water, a fire was 
 kindled over the Jordan.’ Justin 
 Martyr, Trypho, cap. 88, Vol. ir. 
 p. 302 (ed. Otto). So also, some- 
 what similarly, Epiphanius, Hcer. 
 XXX. 1 3, and the writer of a treatise, 
 de Baptismo Hoereticorum, prefixed 
 to the works of Cyprian (p. 30, ed. 
 Oxon.), who alludes to the tradition 
 as mentioned in the apocryphal and 
 heretical Pauli Prcedicatio. Some- 
 thing like it has been noticed in the 
 Oracula Sihyllce (vii. 83) in Galland. 
 Bihl. Vet. Pair. Vol. i. p. 387 C. 
 
 ^ The distinct language of St 
 Luke, au}[JLaTLK(p el'Se: Coael Trepiare- 
 pdv (ch. iii. 22), must certainly pre- 
 clude our accepting any explanatory 
 gloss, referring the holy phenomenon 
 
109 
 
 The Early Judcean Ministry. 
 
 and love^ — lie sees and hears, and, as lie himself 
 tells us, bears witness that this is verily the Son ... 
 
 ^ ./a Matt. 111. 
 
 of God^ ^ 
 
 And now all righteousness has been fulfilled. 34. 
 Borne away, as it would seem at once, by the The temp- 
 motions of the Spirit, either to that lonely and our Lord: 
 unexplored chain of desert mountains, of which nature and 
 Nebo has been thought to form a part, or to that stln^c^s. 
 steep rock on this side of the Jordan which tradi- 
 tion still points out^, — there amid the wild beasts*^ of ' Mark i. 
 the thickets and the caverns, in hunger and loneli- 
 ness, the now inaugurated Messiah confronts in 
 spiritual conflict the fearful adversary of His king- 
 dom and of that race which He came to save.... 
 
 On the deep secrets of those mysterious forty days 
 it is not meet that speculation should dwell. If. 
 we had only the narrative of St Matthew"^, we‘*ch. iv. 2. 
 might think that Satanic temptation only pre- 
 sumed to assail the Holy One when hunger had 
 weakened the energies of the now exhausted body. 
 
 If again we had only the gospels of St Mark® and ^3- 
 St Luke^, we might be led to conclude that tlie^ch. iv. 2. 
 struggle with the powers of darkness extended 
 over the whole period of that lengthened fast. 
 
 to light shining ‘ with the rapid and 
 undulating motion of a dove ’ (Mil- 
 man, Hist, of Christianity, i, 3, Vol. 
 I. p. 1 51). The form was real. For 
 the opinions of antiquity on the 
 manifestation of the Holy Ghost in 
 this peculiar form, see the learned 
 work of the eloquent Jesuit, Barra- 
 dius, Comment, in Harmon, i. 15, 
 Vol. II. p. 48 (Antw. 1617). 
 
 1 The place which the most cur- 
 rent tradition has fixed on as the 
 site of the Temptation, is the moun- 
 tain Quarantana, which Kobinson 
 
 describes as ^ an almost perpendicu- 
 lar wall of rock, twelve or fifteen 
 hundred feet above the plain.’ Pales- 
 tine, Vol. I, p. 567 (ed. 2); compare 
 Thomson, The Land and the Boole, 
 Vol. II. p. 450. It has been asserted 
 by Kobinson that this tradition does 
 not appear to be older than the time 
 of the Crusades, but see Mill, Ser- 
 mons on the Temptation, p. 166. The 
 supposition in the text seems better 
 to accord with the probable locality 
 assigned to the baptism, but must 
 be regarded as purely conjectural. 
 
110 
 
 LECT. 
 
 III. 
 
 The terap' 
 tation no 
 vision or 
 trance. 
 
 llie Early Judcean Ministry. 
 
 From both, however, combined we may perhaps ven- 
 ture to conclude that those three concentrated forms 
 of Satanic daring, which two Evangelists have 
 been moved to record, presented themselves only 
 at the close of that season of mysterious triah. 
 ...Upon the three forms of temptation and their 
 attendant circumstances my limits will not permit 
 me to enlarge. These three remarks only will I pre- 
 sume to make. Firsts I will venture to avow my 
 most solemn conviction that the events here re- 
 lated belong to no trance or dream-land to which, 
 alas ! even some better forms of both ancient and 
 modern speculation have presumed to refer them^^ 
 
 ^ So perhaps Origen, who re- 
 marks : 'Quadraginta diebus tentatur 
 Jesus, et quae fuerint tentamenta 
 nescimus.’ Comment, in Luc. Horn. 
 XXIX. Vol. III. p. 966 (ed. Bened,). 
 Most of the patristic commentators 
 seem to consider that the hours of 
 hunger and bodily weakness were 
 especially chosen by the Evil One 
 for his most daring and malignant 
 forms of temptation ; see Chrysostom 
 on Matth. IV. 2, Cyril Alex, on Luke 
 IV. 3, and compare the excellent re- 
 marks of Irenseus, Hoer. v, 2 1 . 
 
 2 The opinion that, if not the 
 whole, yet that the concluding scenes 
 of the temptation was of the cha- 
 racter of a vision, was apparently 
 entertained by Origen {de Princip. 
 IV. 16, Vol. I. p. 175, ed. Bened.), 
 Theodore of Mopsuestia (Munter, 
 Fragm. Patrum, Ease. i. p. 107), 
 and the author of a treatise, de Je- 
 junio et Tentat. Christi, annexed to 
 the works of Cyprian (p. 36, Oxon, 
 1682). This view in a more extended 
 application has been adopted by 
 many modern writers, both English 
 (Farmer, on Christ's Temptation, ed. 
 
 3, Bond. 1776) and foreign, but it 
 need scarcely be said that all such 
 opinions, — whether the Temptation 
 be supposed a vision especially call- 
 ed up, or a mere significant dream 
 (see Meyer in Stud. u. Krit. for 
 1831, p. 319 sq.),— clearly come into 
 serious collision with the simple yet 
 circumstantial narrative of the first 
 and third Evangelists ; in which, 
 not only is there not the faintest 
 hint that could render such an opinion 
 in any degree plausible, but, on the 
 contrary, expressions almost studi- 
 ously chosen {aprjxS'n, Matth. iv, i ; 
 rjyeTo, Luke iv. i ; comp. Mark i. 
 
 1 2, eK^dWei ; irpooeXOdv, Matth. iv. 
 3 ; Trapa\a[Ji^dveL, ver. 5 ; dvayaydov, 
 Luke iv. 5 ; diriaTT), ver. 13) to 
 mark the complete objective character 
 of the whole; see, thus far, Fxiiz&che, 
 FrUzschior. Opusc. p. 122 sq., and 
 Meyer, Komment. iiher Matth. p. 
 1 14 sq., though in their general esti- 
 mate of the whole the conclusions 
 of both these writers are distinctly to 
 be rejected. For further notices and 
 references on a subject, the literature 
 of which is perplexingly copious. 
 
Ill 
 
 The Earhj Judcean Ministry. 
 
 but are to be accepted as real and literal occur- 
 
 rences, — yea, as real and as literal as that final 
 
 overthrow of Satan’s power on Calvary, when the 
 Lord reft away from Him all the thronging hosts 
 of darkness’, and triumphed over them on His 
 very cross of suffering. Secondly^ I could as soon The temp- 
 doubt my own existence, as doubt the completely assault 
 outward nature of these forms of temptation^, andour^^^^^' 
 their immediate connexion with the personal 
 agency of the personal Prince of Darkness h I 
 could as soon accept the worst statements of the 
 most degraded form of Arian creed as believe that 
 this temptation arose from any internal stragglings 
 or solicitations^, — I could as soon admit the most 
 
 the student may be referred perhaps 
 especially to Andrewes, Sermons {vii.) 
 on the Temjptation, Vol. v. p. 479 sq. 
 (A.-C. Libr.), Hacket, Sermons {xxi.) 
 on the Temptation, p. 205 sq. (Lond. 
 1671), Spanheim, Duh. Evang. Li — 
 Lxv. Part II. p. 195 sq., Deyling, 
 Ohs. Sacr. xvii. Part ii. p. 354, and 
 Huxtable, The Temptation of our 
 Lord (Lond. 1848), and for practical 
 comments on the circumstances and 
 moral intention of the whole, Leo 
 M. Serm. xxxix — l. Vol. i. p. 143 
 (ed. Ballerin.), Jones (of Nayland), 
 Worhs, Vol. III. p. 157 sq. 
 
 ^ For a discussion on the meaning 
 of aireKhvadgevos in the difficult text 
 here referred to (Col. ii. 15), and for 
 a further elucidation of the view 
 here taken, 'see Commentary on Coloss. 
 p. 161 sq. 
 
 2 One of the popular modes of 
 evading the supposed difficulties in 
 this holy narrative is to assume that 
 the whole series of temptations were 
 really internal, but represented in 
 the description as external ; see for 
 example, Ulmann, die Unsundlichkeit 
 
 Jesu, Sect. 7, p. 55 (Transl.). Most 
 of such views arise either from er- 
 roneous conceptions in respect of the 
 mysterious question of our Lord’s 
 capability of temptation, or from 
 tacit denials of the existence or per- 
 sonal agencies of malignant spirits. 
 On the first of these points, see 
 especially Mill, Serm. ii. pp. 26 — 39, 
 and on the second, Serm. iii. p. 54 
 sq. Some valuable remarks on these 
 and other questions connected with 
 our Lord’s Temptation will be found 
 in the curious and learned work of 
 Meyer, Hisioria Diaholi, iii. 6 , p. 
 271 sq. (Tubing. 1780). 
 
 ^ The monstrous opinion that the 
 Tempter was human, and either the 
 high-priest or one of the Sanhedrin 
 (comp. Feilmoser, Tubing. Quartal- 
 schrift for 1828) is noticed, but not 
 condemned in the terms which so 
 plain a perversion deserves, by Mil- 
 man, Hist, of Christianity, 1. 3, Vol. 
 I. P- 153- 
 
 ^ Such conceptions and supposi- 
 tions alas ! only too often in this 
 humanitarian age, secretly enter- 
 
112 
 
 The Early Judaean Ministry. 
 
 LECT. 
 
 III. 
 
 ® James i. 
 
 13. 
 
 The temp- 
 tation ad- 
 dressed to 
 the three 
 parts of 
 our nature. 
 
 ^ I John ii. 
 16. 
 
 repulsive tenet of a dreary Socinianism as deem 
 that it was enhanced by any self- engendered en- 
 ticements ^ or hold that it was aught else than the 
 assault of a desperate and demoniacal malice from 
 without^, that recognized in the nature of man a 
 possibility of falling, and that thus far consistently, 
 though impiously, dared even in the person of the 
 Son of Man to make proof of its hitherto resistless 
 energies. Thirdly, I cannot think it an idle specu- 
 lation that connects the three forms of temptation 
 with those that brought sin into the world — the 
 lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eye and the 
 pride of life^ ; nor can I deem it unnatural to see 
 in them three spiritual assaults directed against 
 the three portions of our composite nature^... To 
 
 tained, if not always outwardly ex- 
 pressed, are justly censured by Dr 
 Mill {Serm.ii. p. 38) as degrading and 
 blasphemous. In all speculations on 
 this mysterious subject the student 
 will do well to bear in mind this 
 admirable statement of Augustine : . 
 ‘ Non dicimus nos Christum, felici- 
 tate carnis a nostris sensibus seques- 
 tratae, cupiditatem vitiorum sentire 
 non potuisse, sed dicimus, eum per- 
 fectione virtu tis, et non per canniscon- 
 cupiscentiam 'grocreata came, cupi- 
 ditatem non habuisse vitiorum.’ Op. 
 Imperf. contr. Jul. iv. 48, Vol. x. p. 
 
 1 366 (ed. Migne), — this great writer’s 
 last and unfinished work. In esti- 
 mating the nature of our Lord’s 
 tentability let us never forget the 
 holiness of His humanity, and the 
 eternal truth of His miraculous 
 conception. 
 
 1 On the question as to the form 
 in which the Adversary appeared, 
 whether human or angelical (comp. 
 Taylor, Life of Christ, I. 9. 7, Lange, 
 
 Lelen Jesu, ii. 3. 6, Vol. ii. p. 217), 
 all speculation is as unnecessary as 
 it is more or less presumptuous. All 
 that we must firmly adhere to is the 
 belief that the presence of the Evil 
 One ‘ was real, and that it was 
 extei-nal to our Lord.’ Huxtable, 
 Temptation of the Lord, p. 78; com- 
 pare Mill, Serm. iii. p. 64. 
 
 2 This is touched upon by Augus- 
 tine {Enarr. in Psalm, viii. 13. Vol. 
 IV. p. 116, ed. Migne) and others 
 of the earlier writers, but nowhere 
 more clearly and convincingly stated 
 than by Jackson, Creed, viii. 10, 
 Vol. VII. p. 450 sq. ; see also An- 
 drewes, Serm. ii. Vol. v. p. 496 
 (A.-C. Libr.), Mill, Serm. iii. p. 60. 
 
 3 For a discussion on the threefold 
 nature of man, and a distinction be- 
 tween the terms soul and spirit; see 
 The Destiny of the Creature, Serm. v. 
 p. 99, and the works there referred 
 to (p. 167). The opinion of Mill 
 that the seat of the second tempta- 
 tion was ‘our higher mental nature’ 
 
The Early Judcean Ministry, 113 
 
 tlie hody is presented the temptation of satisfying 
 its wants by a display of power which would have 
 tacitly abjured its dependence on the Father, and 
 its perfect submission to His heavenly will. To 
 the soulj the longing, appetitive souP (for I follow 
 the order of St Luke) was addressed the tempta- 
 tion of Messianic dominion^ (mere material domi- 
 nion would seem by no means so probable) over 
 all the kingdoms of tlie world, and of accomplish- 
 ing in a moment of time all for which the incense 
 of the one sacrifice on Calvary is still rising up on 
 the altar of God. To the spirit^ of our Redeemer, 
 with even more frightful presumption, was ad- 
 dressed the temptation of using that power which 
 belonged to Him as God to vindicate His own 
 eternal nature, and to display by one dazzling 
 miracle the true relation in which J esus of Naza- 
 reth stood to men and to angels and to God^ 
 
 (p. 66 ), and of the third, the ‘ high- 
 est self-consciousness, by which man 
 becomes to himself the centre of 
 regard ’ (ib.), is scarcely so simple 
 or so exact as the reference to soul 
 and spirit adopted in the text. 
 
 1 This we may roughly define with 
 Olshausen as ‘ vis inferior [in homi- 
 ne] quse agitur, movetur, in imperio 
 tenetur’ {Opusc. p. 154), and may 
 in many respects regard as practical- 
 ly identical with Kapdia , — the soul’s 
 imaginary seat and abiding place : 
 see Comment, on Phil. iv. 6, Destiny 
 of Creature, v. p. 1 1 7, and Beck, 
 Seelenlehre, iii. 20, p. 63. On the 
 order of the temptations, compare 
 Greswell, Dissert, xx. Vol. ii. p. 192, 
 Mill, Serm. iv. p. 82 sq. 
 
 ^ See Lange, Lehen Jesu, ii. 3. 6, 
 Part II. p. 225, and compare Hux- 
 table. Temptation of the Lord, p. 87 
 E. H. L. 
 
 sq. If with Dr Mill we refer it to 
 worldly dominion generally {Serm. 
 IV. p. 105), we must, with the same 
 learned author, suppose that Satan 
 really did not fully know the exact 
 nature of Him whom he impiously 
 dared to tempt (p. 63 ; comp. Cyril 
 Alex, on Luhe iv. 3) ,* a view how- 
 ever which does not seem fully con- 
 sistent with the opening address of 
 the Tempter. 
 
 2 This third and highest part in 
 man we may again roughly define 
 with Olshausen (compare note i) 
 as ‘ vis superior, agens, imperans 
 in homine’ {Opusc. p. 154), and may 
 rightly regard as in many respects 
 identical with vov % ; see Comment, on 
 Phil. iv. 6, Destiny of Creature, v. 
 p. 1 15, and Delitzsch, Bibl. Psychol. 
 IV. p. 145. 
 
 . The third form of temptation, 
 
 8 
 
 LECT. 
 
 III. 
 
114 
 
 The Early Judcean Ministry. 
 
 LECT. 
 
 III. 
 
 The minis- 
 tering an- 
 gels, and 
 the return 
 to Galilee. 
 
 * ch. iv. 13. 
 
 ver. II. 
 
 ® ch. i. 29. 
 
 When every form of temptation was ended, the 
 baffled Tempter departs, — but, as *St Luke reminds 
 us, only for a season^ ; and straightway those 
 blessed spirits, whose ministry but a few moments 
 before the Devil had tempted Him to command, 
 now tender to their Lord’s weakened humanity 
 their loving and unbidden services^... Sustained 
 by these angelical ministries^, our Lord would seem 
 at once to have returned backward to the valley 
 of the Jordan in his homeward way to Galilee, 
 and after a few days , — for here to assume with a re- 
 cent chronologer a lapse of several months’^ is in 
 the highest degree unnatural, — to have had that 
 second and noticeable interview with the Baptist 
 at Bethany or Bethabara, which is recorded to us 
 by St John‘S. 
 
 that of spiritual presumption, has 
 been thus well paraphrased by Dr 
 Mill : ‘ Give to the assembled multi- 
 tudes the surest proof that thou art 
 indeed their expected King, — the 
 Desire of them and of all nations, 
 — at whose coming the Lord shall 
 shake the heavens and the earth, 
 and make this house more glorious 
 than the mysterious Shekinah made 
 the first.* Serm. p. 118. The exact 
 spot {t6 TTTepijyiov roO iepov, Matth. 
 iv. 5) which was the scene of this 
 temptation is not perfectly certain. 
 The most probable opinion is that it 
 was the topmost ridge of the aroa 
 jSao’iXtfcrj on the south side of the 
 temple (observe that in both evange- 
 lists it is TO TTTepiyLov rod iepov, 
 not Tov vaov), the height of which is 
 thus alluded to by J osephus : * if 
 any one looked down from the top 
 of the battlements, or down both 
 those altitudes, he would be giddy, 
 while his sight could not reach to 
 such an immense depth.’ Antiq. xv. 
 
 II. 5 (Whiston). This, however, 
 could scarcely be so clearly in the 
 sight of ‘ the assembled multitudes ’ 
 (Mill), — if indeed this be a neces- 
 sary adjunct, — as at other sites that 
 have been proposed ; see Middleton, 
 Greek Art. p. 135 (ed. Eose), and 
 Meyer, Komment. iib. Matth. iv. 5, 
 p. no. 
 
 1 The nature of the services of 
 these blessed spirits, owing to the 
 use of the general term dtrjKdvovv 
 (Matth. iv. ii), cannot be more ex- 
 actly specified. If we admit con- 
 jectures we may venture to believe 
 that they came to supply sustenance 
 (‘allato cibo,’ Beng. ; comp, i Kings 
 xix.), and probably also to adminis- 
 ter support and comfort (^ad solatium 
 refero,’ Calv. ; comp. Luke xxii. 43); 
 see Hacket, Se?’ni. xxi. p. 406 (Lond. 
 
 1675)- 
 
 2 See Wieseler, Chron. Synops. 
 p. 258, and compare the remarks 
 on the chronology of this period 
 made above, p. 105, note 2. 
 
115 
 
 The Early Judaean Ministry. 
 
 It was but the day before that the Forerunner 
 had borne his testimony to the deputation of Priests 
 and Levites® that had come to him from Jeru- 
 salem^ ; and now absorbed, as he well might have 
 have been, in thoughts of Him to whom he had 
 so recently borne witness, he raises his eyes and 
 lo ! he sees coming to him^ the very subject of his 
 meditations; he sees his Pedeemer^; and humbly 
 greets Him ‘as the Lamb of God that taketh 
 
 ^ This deputation we are infonned 
 by the Evangelist was sent by the 
 ’lovSttiOi, — a genei-al name by which 
 St John nearly always designates the 
 Jews in their peculiar aspect as a 
 hostile community to our Lord, and 
 as standing in marked contrast to the 
 impressible 6 xKos. The more special 
 and direct senders of this deputa- 
 tion of Priests and their attendant 
 Levites (John i. 19) were perhaps the 
 members of the Sanhedrin, by whom 
 these emissaries might have been 
 directed to inquire into and test the 
 Baptist’s pretensions as a public 
 teacher (comp. Matth. xxi. -23), and 
 to gain some accurate information 
 about one who was drawing all Jeru- 
 salem and Judaea to his baptism 
 (Matth. iii. 5), and in whom some 
 even deemed that they recognized 
 the expected Messiah (Luke iii. 15). 
 On the message generally, see Lange, 
 Lehen Jesu, ii. 4. i. Part ii. p. 451, 
 Liicke, Comment, iiher Joh. Vol. i. 
 p. 381; and on the particular ques- 
 tions propounded to the Baptist, Ori- 
 gen, in loc. Vol. iv. p. 108 (ed. 
 Bened,), Greg. Magn. in Evang. 
 I. 7, Vol. I. p. 1456 (ed. Bened.). 
 
 ^ The circumstances that led to 
 this meeting are wholly unknown to 
 us. That it took place after our 
 Lord’s baptism seems certain ; and 
 
 that the preceding interview with 
 the Priests and Levites also took 
 place after the same event seems to 
 follow from the words ‘whom ye 
 (ifieLs) know not’ (ver. 26), — an ex- 
 pression which may be fairly urged 
 as implying by contrast some know- 
 ledge on the part of the speaker. 
 Now as we learn from St Mark 
 (ch. i. 12) that the Temptation fol- 
 lowed immediately after the Baptism, 
 we may perhaps reasonably believe 
 that our Lord was now on His 
 homeward way to Galilee after the 
 Temptation (comp. August, de Con- 
 sens. Evang. ii. 17), and that He 
 either specially went a little out of 
 His way again to see and greet the 
 Baptist, or that the direction of His 
 journey homeward led Him past the 
 scene of the previous baptism, where 
 J ohn was still preaching and bap- 
 tizing. If we fix the site of the 
 Temptation at Quarantana, the for- 
 mer supposition will seem most pro- 
 bable, if the mountains of Moab (see 
 above, p. 109, note i), the latter. The 
 deputation from the Sanhedrin and 
 the close of the Temptation would 
 thus appear to have been closely 
 contemporaneous ; see Liicke on John 
 i. 19, Vol. I. p. 398, and compare 
 Lampe in loc., and Luthardt, Joh. 
 Evang. Vol. i. p. 329. 
 
 LECT. 
 
 III. 
 
 The testi- 
 mony of 
 the Bap- 
 tist. 
 
 ^ John i. 
 19. 
 
 ^ ch. i. 29. 
 
 8—2 
 
116 
 
 The Early Judcean Ministry. 
 
 J^way the sins of the world With the same 
 
 ; — significant words ^ the Baptist parts from Him on 
 
 29. * the morrow^, — words that sank so deep into the 
 
 hearts of two of his disciples, Andrew, and not 
 improbably the Evangelist, who gives the account, 
 « ver. 40. tPey follow the Lord, and abide with Him®, 
 
 to return back again no more. On the morrow, 
 with Simon Peter and Philip of Bethsaida, and 
 ver. 44, J^fathanael of Cana^ added to the small company^, 
 the Lord directs his steps onward towards the hills 
 of Galilee, perchance by the very path which he 
 had traversed in solitude a few eventful weeks 
 before. 
 
 The jour- The immediate destination of that small com- 
 
 mlracieTt pany was doubtless the Lord’s earthly home at 
 
 Cana in 
 Galilee. 
 
 ^ Into the exact meaning of these 
 words we will not here enter further 
 than to remark, (a) that the reference 
 seems clearly not to the Paschal 
 Lamb (Lampe, Luthardt, al.), a re- 
 ference sufficiently appropriate after- 
 W'ards (i Cor. v. 7), though not now, 
 but to Isaiah liii. 7 (Origen, VI. 35), 
 a passage, which to one so earnestly 
 expecting the Messiah, as the holy 
 Baptist, must have long been well- 
 known and familiar; (6) that the 
 meaning of atpeiv has nowhere been 
 better expressed than by Chrysostom, 
 who in referring to a former part of 
 the same prophecy (Isaiah xxiii. 4) 
 says: “He did not use the expres- 
 sion, ‘ He ransomed ’ {^\v(xev) but, 
 ‘ He received and bare ’ (^Xa/3er Kal 
 i^daracFev ) ; which seems to me to 
 have been spoken by the prophet 
 rather in reference to sins, in accord- 
 ance with the declaration of John, 
 
 * Behold the Lamb of God that 
 taketh away the sins of the world.’ ” 
 
 Horn, in Matth. xxvii. t, Vol. vii. 
 p. 370 (ed. Bened. 2). For further 
 information on both these points 
 consult the elaborate note of Lticke 
 in loc. Vol. I. p. 404 sq. 
 
 2 We can scarcely agree with 
 Gres well {Dissert, xxiir. Vol. ii. p. 
 284 sq.) in the inference that the 
 two disciples did not now perma- 
 nently attach themselves to our 
 Lord. The express terms of the call 
 given the next day to Philip, ‘ follow 
 me’ (ver. 44), and the certain fact 
 that some disciples were with our 
 Lord the day following (John ii. 2) 
 seem strongly in favour of the opi- 
 nion that all the five disciples here 
 mentioned did formally attach them- 
 selves to our Lord, and went with 
 Him into Galilee ; see Maldonatus 
 on John i. 43 and ii. 2. The mira- 
 cle that followed had special reference 
 to these newly-attracted followers ; 
 see John ii. ir, and compare Lut- 
 hardt, JoUann. Evang. Vol. i. p. 351. 
 
117 
 
 The Early Judcvan Ministry, 
 
 Nazareth’; but there, as we learn from the Evan- 
 
 gelist, the Lord could not have found the blessed 
 
 Virgin, as she was now a few miles off at Cana^, 
 the guest at a marriage festival. How natural 
 then was it that the Lord with his five disciples, 
 one of whom belonged to Cana should at once » John xxi. 
 pass onward to that village to greet her from 
 whom He had been separated several weeks ! 
 
 And how consistent is the narrative that tells us 
 that on the third day'* after leaving Bethany, the ^ch. ii. r. 
 Lord and His followers had become the invited'" ver. 2. 
 and welcome guests of those with whom the Virgin 
 was now abiding. 
 
 With the details of the great miracle which Remarks 
 on this occasion our Lord was pleased to perform, miracle, 
 we are all, I trust, too familiarly acquainted to need 
 any lengthened narrative^. We may, however, some- 
 what profitably pause on one portion of it, the 
 address of the Virgin to our Lord, and the answer 
 He returned, — which has been thought to involve 
 some passing difficulties, but which a consideration 
 of the previous circumstances combined with a due 
 recognition of Jewish customs tends greatly to 
 elucidate.... In the first place let us not forget, — 
 
 ^ Unless we accept the not very- 
 probable supposition alluded to p. 
 105, note I. 
 
 2 On the position of Cana, which 
 now appears rightly fixed, not at 
 Kefr Kenna (De Saulcy, Voyage, 
 Vol. II. p. 448), but at K 4 na el-Jelil, 
 about 3 hours distant from Naza- 
 reth; see Robinson, Palestine, Vol. 
 II. p. 346 sq., Vol. III. p. 108 (ed. 2), 
 and Thomson, Land and the Book, 
 Vol. II. p. 121 sq. 
 
 3 For details and explanatory re- 
 marks the student may be especially 
 
 referred to the commentaries of Mal- 
 donatus, Liicke, and Meyer, to the 
 exquisite contemplation of Bp Hall, 
 Book II. 5, to Trench, Notes on the 
 Miracles, p. 96 sq., and to the com- 
 ments of Lange, Lehen Jesu, ii. 4. 4, 
 Part II. p. 475. The supposed ty- 
 pical relations are alluded to in a 
 somewhat striking sermon of Bp 
 Copleston, Remains, p. 256 : com- 
 pare with it Augustine, in Joann. 
 Tractat. ix. 5, Vol. ill. p. 146 (ed. 
 Migne), where very similar views 
 will also be found. 
 
118 
 
 LECT. 
 
 III. 
 
 ® John i. 
 
 37 - 
 
 ver. 36. 
 
 ^ ver. 46. 
 
 The Early Judcean Ministry, 
 
 if we may place any reliance upon modern cus- 
 toms as illustrative of ancient^, — that the fact of 
 guests adding contributions to an entertainment 
 which extended over several days is by no means 
 singular or unprecedented. With this let us com- 
 bine the remembrance that the Lord and His 
 five disciples had, as it would appear, come un- 
 expectedly^, a few hours only before the com- 
 mencement of the marriage-feast. In the next 
 place let us reflect how more than natural it 
 would be for these disciples, — two of whom, as 
 we are specially told by the Evangelist, had heard ^ 
 the significant announcement of the Baptist, ^Be- 
 hold the Lamb of God^,’ and another of whom 
 had recognized in our Lord the very One whom 
 prophets had foretold — to have already made such 
 
 ^ The writer of this note was 
 lately informed by a converted Jew 
 on whom reliance could be placed, 
 that it was not at all uncommon for 
 the guests at a wedding- feast to 
 make contributions of wine when 
 there seemed likely to be a deficiency, 
 and that such cases had fallen under 
 his own observation. Be this as it 
 may, it seems at any rate clear that 
 the marriage-feasts usually lasted as 
 long as 7 days (Judges xiv. 12, 15; 
 Tobit xi. 10), and it is surely not 
 unreasonable to suppose that in the 
 present case the givers of the feast 
 were of humble fortunes (Lightfoot 
 conjectures it to have been at the 
 house of Mary, the wife of Cleophas ; 
 comp. Greswell, Dissert, xvii. Vol. 
 II. p. 120), and, as Bp Taylor quaintly 
 says, ‘had more company than wine.’ 
 Life of Christ, li. 10. 5. For fur- 
 ther notices and references see Winer, 
 RWB. Art. ‘Hochzeit,’ Vol. i. 
 p. 499 sq. 
 
 2 The only statement that might 
 seem indirectly to militate against 
 this is the comment of St John, 
 iKXrjd'r] de Kal b ’Ijjaovs Kal oi fiadriTai 
 avTov eis yd/j,ov, ch. ii. 2. If how- 
 ever w’e date the ‘third day’ (ver. i), 
 as seems most natural, from the day 
 last-mentioned (ch. i. 44), and esti- 
 mate the distance from Bethany on 
 the Jordan to Cana, our Lord could 
 scarcely have arrived at the last- 
 mentioned place till the very day 
 specified : compare Wieseler, Chron. 
 Synops. II. 3, p. 253. The 
 then must be referred to the time 
 when our Lord and His followers 
 arrived, and its introduction account- 
 ed for, as slightly distinguishing the 
 newly-arrived and just-invited guests 
 from the Virgin, who had been there 
 perhaps for some little time ; comp. 
 Meyer in loc., and Lange, Lehcn Jesu, 
 II. 4. 4, Part II. p. 476, whose date, 
 however, for the Trj ryxipq. ry Tplry 
 does not seem tenable. 
 
119 
 
 The Early Judeean Ministry, 
 
 communications to the Virgin^ as might well lead 
 
 her to expect some display of our Lord’s changed 
 
 position and relations. He who a few weeks 
 before had left Galilee the unnoted son of J oseph 
 the carpenter, now returns with five followers the 
 more than accredited teacher, yea, as one of those 
 followers had not hesitated to avow, as the Son of 
 God^ and the King of IsraeL. Wrought upon ^ John i. 
 by these strange tidings, and with all the long- 
 treasured remembrances of her meditative heart ^ Luke ii. 
 brought up freshly before her^, how natural then 
 
 ^ Though we are not positively 
 constrained by the tenor of the nar- 
 rative to fix the miracle on the very 
 day that our Lord arrived (comp. 
 Wordsw. and Liicke in loc.), it must 
 be admitted that on the whole such 
 an adjustment seems slightly the 
 most probable: comp. ver. lo, in 
 which the remarks of the dpxi-TpUXc- 
 VOS seem to have reference to a single 
 festal meal, the beginning and end 
 of which it contrasts. Even in this 
 case, however, the disciples could 
 easily have had time to communicate 
 to the Virgin enough of what the}^ 
 had heard, felt, and observed in 
 reference to their venerated Master 
 to arouse hopes and expectations 
 in the mother’s heart ; comp. Theo- 
 phyl. and Euthym. in loc., both of 
 whom, however, slightly over-esti- 
 mate the Virgin’s knowledge of what 
 had recently happened. 
 
 2 Most modern, and some ancient 
 expositors, explain away the title 
 here given by Nathanael to our 
 Lord as implying no more than 
 ‘the Messiah,’ or, to use the lan- 
 guage of Theophylact, one who ‘ on 
 account of His virtue was adopted 
 as a Son of God’ {vioderrjdivTa T(p 
 6ecp), Perhaps the further title as- 
 
 signed by Nathanael, and still more 
 our Lord’s reply (ver. 51) may seem 
 partly to favour this view. It will 
 be well, however, not to forget that 
 this assertion was made by Natha- 
 nael after our Lord had evinced a 
 knowledge above that of man (ver. 
 48), which might well have awak- 
 ened in the breast of that guileless 
 Israelite some feeling of the true 
 nature of Him who was now speak- 
 ing with him : so rightly, Cyril Alex, 
 m loc., and Augustine, in Joann. 
 Tract. VII. 20, 21. 
 
 ® Though we certainly must not 
 adopt the rash and indeed anti- 
 scriptural view (comp. John ii. ii) 
 spoken approvingly of by Maldona- 
 tus, and even partially adopted by 
 Liicke (p. 470), that the Virgin had 
 previously witnessed miracles per- 
 formed by our Lord in private, we 
 may yet with reason believe that she 
 ever retained a partial consciousness 
 of the real nature of her Divine Son, 
 and that the mysterious past was 
 every freshly remembered, when the 
 present served in any way to call it 
 up again ; Trdvra crwerripec iv ry 
 Kapdig. avrys, /cat e/c totjtojv iXoyL- 
 ^eTo Tov vlbv irrep dvdpuTrov ddvaadai. 
 Theophylact in loc. (p. 584, Paris, 
 
LECT. 
 
 III. 
 
 120 The Early Judman Ministry. 
 
 becomes that significant comment of the Virgin, 
 Hhey have no wine,’ — a comment that may have 
 alike implied that the free hand of unexpected 
 guests might supply a want in part occasioned by 
 thern^ (for this the order to the servants may fully 
 justify us attributing to the Virgin), and also may 
 have dimly expressed the hope that the Holy 
 Jesus would use these circumstances of partial 
 publicity for the sake of revealing His true cha- 
 racter to the assembled guests ^ Under these 
 assumptions how full of meaning does the Lord’s 
 answer now appear. How solemnly yet how ten- 
 derly He reminds the mother that earthly relations 
 
 1631), — but with too definite a refer- 
 ence to an expected special Oavfia- 
 rovpyla; see below, note 2. 
 
 ^ The comments of Luthardt on 
 this exquisitely natural and strik- 
 ingly characteristic remark of the 
 Virgin-mother deserve here to be 
 quoted. ‘It is a delicate trait, ’ says 
 this thoughtful writer, ‘ that she 
 does no more than caU her Son’s 
 attention to the deficiency. She 
 feels such confidence in Him, yea, 
 and such reverence towards Him, 
 that she believes that she neither 
 need nor ought to say anything 
 further. Of His benevolent nature 
 she has already had many an expe- 
 rience; and that He is full of wis- 
 dom, and can find ways and means, 
 where others mark them not, she 
 knows full well. More, however, 
 was not necessary, — especially when 
 there was this in addition, that the 
 presence of Jesus and His followers 
 had helped to cause the deficiency, 
 — than with humility to direct His 
 attention to it.’ Das Johann. Evang. 
 Vol. I. p. 115. We may here pause 
 for a moment to advert to the 
 
 number of the waterpots. Lightfoot 
 {Hor. Hehr. in loc.) simply considers 
 the wants of the ‘ multitudo jam 
 prsesens,’ and probably rightly; it 
 
 is, however, worth a passing con- 
 sideration whether it depended in 
 any way on the six newly arrived 
 guests. 
 
 2 This would seem to be a correct 
 estimate of the exact state of feeling 
 in the mother’s heart. As Bp Hall 
 well says, ‘ she had good reason to 
 know the Divine nature and power 
 of her son’ {Contempt, ii. 5): she 
 felt that He could display a more 
 than mortal power, and she now 
 longed that He would give proof of 
 
 it. We thus avoid on the one hand 
 the over-statement of the earlier com- 
 mentators, that this was a definite 
 exhortation to perform a miracle (ets 
 rb davfjLa irpoTpetrei, Cyril) ; and on 
 the other we avoid the serious under- 
 statement of many modern writers 
 (Luthardt even partly included), that 
 it was a request referring merely to 
 assistance to be given in some natu- 
 ral way, — how, the speaker knew 
 not : see for example, Meyer in loc., 
 
121 
 
 The Early Judcean Ministry. 
 
 must now give place to heavenly \ and that the 
 
 times and seasons in which the Eternal Son is to 
 
 display Ilis true nature are not to be hastened 
 even by the longings of maternal love. The 
 Lord’s manifestation, however, takes place, the 
 miracle is performed, and its immediate effect is 
 to confirm the faith'' of the five disciples who ^ *Toim ii. 
 now appear before us as the first-fruits of the in- 
 gathering of the Church. 
 
 Immediately after the performance of this stay 
 
 , at Uaper- 
 
 first miracle the Lord with His mother. His bre- naum, and 
 thren, and His disciples go down to Capernaum ^ jeTusaLm. 
 a place, which as the residence of one of His fol- 
 lowers, but still more as a convenient point for 
 joining the pilgrim-companies now forming for the 
 paschal journey to Jerusalem, would at this time 
 be more suitable for a temporary sojourn than 
 
 who states this latter view in a very 
 objectionable form. 
 
 1 It has been remarked by Lu- 
 thardt {ioc. cit.), and before him by 
 Bp Hall {Contempl. 1 . c.), that in 
 His answer our Lord here addresses 
 the Virgin as y{/vaL'{ver. 4), and not 
 fxijrep, — a term which, though mark- 
 ing all respect, and subsequently 
 used by our Lord in a last display 
 of tenderness and love (John xix. 
 26), still seems to indicate the now 
 changed relation between the Mes- 
 siah and Mary of Nazareth. That 
 our Lord’s words contained a tender 
 reproof is certain, and that it was 
 felt so is probable ; but, as the Vir- 
 gin’s direction to the servants clearly 
 shows, it could not repress the long- 
 ings of the mother, or alter the con- 
 victions of the all but conscious 
 Deipara. 
 
 2 The exact site of Capernaum 
 
 has been much contested: see Eo- 
 binson, Palestine, Vol. in. p. 348 
 sq. (ed. 2), where the question is 
 discussed at considerable length, and 
 the site fixed at Khan Minyeh, a 
 place not far from the shore of the 
 lake and at the northern extremity 
 of the plain of Gennesaretli ; comp. 
 Vol. II. p. 403. On the whole, how- 
 ever, the name, ruins, position, and 
 prevailing tradition seem justly to 
 incline us to fix the site at Tell 
 Hflm, a ruin-bestrewed and slightly 
 elevated spot on a small projecting 
 curve of the shore, about one hour 
 in distance nearer the head of the 
 lake than Kh^n Minyeh : see esp. 
 Thomson, Land and the Book, Vol. 
 I. p. 542 sq., Eitter, Erdkunde, 
 Vol. XV. p. 339, Van de Velde, 
 Memoir (accompanying map) p. 302, 
 and Williams in Smith’s Diet, of 
 Oeogr. s.v. Vol. i. p. 504. 
 
122 
 
 The Early Judwan Ministry, 
 
 ^ni^* secluded Nazareth \ After a stay of but a few 
 .. days^, our Lord and Plis disciples now bend their 
 12. steps to Jerusalem, to celebrate the passover^ — 
 the first passover of our Lord’s public ministry. 
 
 The expul- The first act is one of great significance, the 
 traders expulsion of the buyers and sellers from the 
 Temple.^ temple, — an act repeated two years afterwards 
 with similar circumstances of holy zeal for the 
 sanctity of His Father’s housed How strange 
 
 1 This observation seems justified 
 by the fact that the western shores 
 of the lake of Gennesareth were at 
 that time extremely populous and 
 scenes of a bustle and activity of 
 life that could be found nowhere 
 else in Palestine, except at Jeru- 
 salem (see Stanley, Palestine, chap. 
 X. p. 370); and further by the fact 
 that there were at least three routes 
 of considerable importance that led 
 from the neighbourhood of the lake 
 to the south. The traveller of that 
 day might join the great Egypt and 
 Damascus road, where it passes near- 
 est to the lake (near Khan Minyeh : 
 see Eobinson, Palestine, Vol. ii. p. 
 405, Van de Velde, Memoir, p, 226), 
 and leaving it 2 or 3 miles W.S.W. 
 of Nain proceed south through Sa- 
 maria; or secondly, he might jour- 
 ney along the lake to Scythopolis 
 (Beisan), and thence by the ancient 
 Egypt and Midian road to Ginaea 
 (see Winer, RWB. Art. ‘Strassen,’ 
 Vol. II. p. 539, Van de Velde, Me- 
 moir, p. 238), and so onward by the 
 Jerusalem and Galilee road to She- 
 chem and the south ; or thirdly, he 
 might take the then more frequented, 
 but now little known route from 
 the south end of the lake through 
 Peraea (comp. Van de Velde, Memoir, 
 p. 233, Kitter, ErdJcunde {Paldstina), 
 §13, Part XV. p. 1001 sq.), and 
 
 across the Jordan to Jericho, and 
 so to Jerusalem. For further infor- 
 mation on this somewhat important 
 subject, the student may be referred 
 to Eeland, Palcestina, ii. 3, Vol. i. 
 p. 404 (Traject. 1714); Winer, R WB. 
 (loc. cit.) ; the various itineraries in 
 Eitter, Erhunde {Paldstina), Part 
 XV. ; and the useful list of routes in 
 Van de Velde, Memoir, pp. 183 — 
 258. 
 
 ^ It is not mentioned positively 
 that the disciples accompanied our 
 Lord, but it is certain that they 
 were present at Jerusalem and wit- 
 nessed the purgation of the temple : 
 see John ii. 17, where the ifxv'rjadrj- 
 aav is not to be referred to any 
 future time (Olsh.), but to the period 
 in question ; see Meyer in loc., and 
 comp. Origen, in Joann. Tom. x. 
 16, Vol. IV. p. 186 (ed. Bened.). 
 
 3 That this is not to be identified 
 with the purgation of the temple 
 mentioned by the Synoptical Evan- 
 gelists (Matth. xxi. 12 sq., Mark 
 xi. 1 5 sq., Luke xix. 45 sq.), is the 
 opinion of the patristic writers (see 
 Origen, in Joann. Tom. x. 15, 
 Chrysost. in Matth. Horn. Lxvii. 
 init., and August, de Consensu 
 Evang. li. 67), and is rightly main- 
 tained by the majority of the best re- 
 cent expositors : see Meyer in loc., and 
 Ebrard, Ev. Gesch. p. 488. 
 
The Early Judcean Ministry. 
 
 123 
 
 it is that the thoughtful Origen should have 
 found any difficulties in this authoritative act 
 of the Messiah, or should have deemed incon- 
 gruous and unsuited to the dignity of his Master 
 what in the narrative of the Evangelist appears 
 to be so natural and intelligible \ If we closely 
 consider the words of the original, we have pre- 
 sented to us only the very natural picture of the 
 Eedeemer driving out from the court of the Gen- 
 tiles the sheep and oxen, that base huckstering 
 and traffic had brought within the sacred in- 
 closure. What is there here unseemly, what is 
 there startling in finding that the Lord of the 
 Temple not only drives forth the animals^, but 
 overthrows the tables of so-called sacred coin, 
 tables of unholy and usurious gains, and with a 
 
 ^ These difficulties are stated very 
 clearly in his Commentary on St John, 
 Book X. 1 6 , Vol. IV. p. 185 sq. (ed. 
 Bened.), and yet disposed of by no 
 one better than himself, when he in- 
 dicates how actions which in a mere 
 child of man, however authorized, 
 would have been met with resent- 
 ment and resistance, were in the 
 case of our Lord viewed with a 
 startled and perhaps reverential awe, 
 — an awe due to that Oetoripa roO 
 ’Irj<roO 5vyajbus oiov re optos, ore 
 i^oij\€TO, Kal 6v[xbv ix'^pCiiv avairro- 
 yepov ajSea-ai, Kal pivpiddup dela xd- 
 ptri Trepiy^vecrdai, Kal \oyicryods 6opv- 
 §o6vtwv diaaKeddaat. loc. cit. p. 186: 
 comp. Jerome, in Matth. xxi. 15. 
 Vol. VII. p. 166 (ed. Vallars.). See 
 some good comments on this im- 
 pressive act in Milman, Hist, of 
 Christianity, i. 3, Vol. I. p. 164 sq., 
 and a quaint but sound practical 
 sermon by Bp Lake, Serm. Part iv. 
 p. 122 sq. 
 
 2 It seems not improbable that 
 Meyer (m Zoc.) is right in referring 
 ’Kdvra'i (ver. 15) to rd re -irpo^ara 
 Kal Toi/s jSoaj, and that the transla- 
 tion should not be ‘and the sheep 
 and the oxen’ (Auth. Ver.), but, 
 ‘ both the sheep and the oxen,’ as in 
 the Revised Transl. of St John, p. 5. 
 The true force of the re — /cat is thus 
 pi’eserved (comp. Winer, Gr. § 53. 
 4, p. 389), and the sacred narrative 
 freed from one at least of the objec- 
 tions which others beside Origen 
 have felt in the Saviour’s use of the 
 (ppayiWLOv against the sellers as 
 well as against the animals they 
 sold. It may be observed that our 
 Lord speahs to the ‘ sellers of doves,* 
 not perhaps that he regarded them 
 with greater consideration (DeW ette) , 
 — for compare Matth. xxi. 12, Mark 
 xi. 1 5, — but simply because the ani- 
 mals could be driven forth, while 
 these latter offerings could only bq 
 removed. 
 
 LECT. 
 
 III. 
 
124 
 
 The Early Judcean Ministry. 
 
 LECT. 
 
 111 . 
 
 ® John ii. 
 19 - 
 
 Impression 
 made b}’- 
 this and 
 other acts. 
 
 b ch. ii. 23. 
 
 voice and attitude of command sternly addresses 
 even the sellers of the offerings of the poor, — 
 offerings such as His own mother had once pre- 
 sented, — and bids them take them hence, and 
 make not the house of His Father a house 
 of Mammon and merchandize ? The half-asto- 
 nished, half-assenting bystanders ask for a sign 
 that might justify or accredit such an assump- 
 tion of authority, and a sign is not withheld 
 a sign which, though not understood at the 
 time, appears from subsequent notices to have 
 made no slight impression on those that heard 
 it^, and to have been lovingly remembered and 
 verified when the dissolved Temple of their 
 Master’s body was reared up again on the pre- 
 dicted day. 
 
 But not only by this authoritative act and 
 these words of mystery, but, as St J ohn has spe- 
 cially recorded, by the display of signs and won- 
 ders during the celebration of the festival^, the 
 deep heart of the people was stirred. Many be- 
 
 1 That these words of our Lord 
 referred to His body, which stood to 
 the Temple in the relation of type 
 to antitype, is the distinct declara- 
 tion of the inspired Evangelist (John 
 ii. 21), and has justly been regarded 
 by all the older expositors as the 
 only true and possible interpretation 
 of the words. To assert, then, that 
 the reference was simply to the 
 breaking up of the older form of 
 religious worship and the substitu- 
 tion of a purer form in its place 
 (Herder, Liicke, De Wette), is plainly 
 to contradict that Evangelist who 
 was blessed with the deepest insight 
 into the mind of His divine Master, 
 
 and further to substitute what is 
 illogical and inexact for what is 
 clear, simple, and consistent : see 
 esp. Meyer in loc. (p. 95, ed. 2), 
 who has ably vindicated the au- 
 thentic interpretation of the words. 
 See also Stier, Disc, of our Lord, 
 Vol. I. p. 72 sq. ; and on the eternal 
 truth that our Lord did raise Him- 
 self, Pearson, Creed, Art. v. Vol. i. 
 p. 302 sq. (ed. Burt.). The futile 
 objection founded on the supposed 
 enigmatical character of the decla- 
 ration is well disposed of by Chry- 
 sostom, in loc. Vol. VIII. p. 155 E 
 (ed. Bened. 2). 
 
The Early Judeean Ministry. 125 
 
 LECT. 
 
 III. 
 
 lieved, and among that many was one of the 
 members of the Sanhedrin^ whose name is not un- 
 honoured in the Gospel history. He who at this 
 passover sought the Lord under cover of night, 
 and to whom the Lord was pleased to unfold the 
 m^^'stery of the new birth', was so blessed by the 
 regenerating power of the Spirit as to be embold- 
 ened at a later period to plead for the Lord in 
 the open day^ and to do honour to His crucified 
 body On that mysterious interview, which pro-^ch. xix 
 bably took place towards the end of the paschal 
 week, I cannot here enlarge*^; but I may ven 
 
 John vii. 
 50. 
 
 ^ Of this timid yet faithful man 
 nothing certain is known beyond the 
 notices in St John’s Gospel, here 
 and ch. vii. 50, xix. 39. The title 
 he here bears, dpx^^t' tQv 'lovdaLcav 
 (hi. i), seems to show that he was a 
 member of the Sanhedrin (comp. ch. 
 vii. 26, 50, Luke xxiv. 20; Joseph. 
 Antiq. xx. 1. 2); and the further 
 comment of our Lord (6 dt5d(XKa\os 
 Tov ’IcrparjX, ver. 10) may favour the 
 supposition that he belonged to that 
 portion of the venerable body which 
 was not of Levitical or priestly 
 descent, but is spoken of in the 
 Gospels under the title of ypap,p.a- 
 T€Ls TOV XaoO: see Knapp, Scripta 
 Var. Argum. Vol. I. p. 200, note; 
 and comp. Lightfoot, Hor. Hehr. in 
 Matth. ii. 4, Vol. ii. p. 260 (Roterod. 
 1686). Tradition says that Nicode- 
 mus was afterwards baptized by St 
 Peter and St John, and expelled 
 from his office and from the city: 
 see Photius, Biblioth. §171. 
 
 2 Whether the word duevOev (ver. 
 3) is to be taken (<x) in a temporal 
 reference, and translated ‘anew ’ with 
 the Vulgate, Pesh.- Syriac, Coptic, 
 and Ethiopic Versions, and with 
 Chrysostom (who, however, gives 
 
 demus. 
 
 The dis- 
 _ course of 
 our Lord 
 
 the other view) and Euthymius, or Nico- 
 (b) to be taken in a local reference, 
 and translated ‘from above,’ with 
 the Gothic and Armenian Versions, 
 and with Origen and Cyril, it is very 
 hard to decide. The latter is per- 
 haps most in accordance with the 
 usage (ver. 31) and general teaching 
 of St J ohn (see Meyer in loc.), the 
 former with the apparent tenor of 
 the dialogue. 
 
 ^ For a good general exposition 
 of this mysterious discourse of our 
 Lord with the timid ruler, see gene- 
 rally, of the older writers, Chrysos- 
 tom, in Joann. Horn. xxiv. — xxviii., 
 
 Cyril Alex, in Joann. Vol. iv. p. 145 
 — 156, Augustine, tw/oawn. Tractat. 
 
 XII. cap. 3, Euthymius and Theo- 
 phylact in loc . ; and of the modern 
 expositors, Knapp, Script. Var. Ar- 
 gim. Vol. I. p. 199 — 254, Meyer, 
 
 Kommenta/r. p. 10 1 sq., Stier, Disc, 
 of our Lord, Vol. iv. p. 359 sq. 
 
 (Clark), and the excellent work of 
 Luthardt, Johan. Evang. Vol. i. p. 
 
 364 sq. Some good remarks on the 
 character of Nicodemus will be found 
 in Evans, Scripture Biography, Vol. 
 
 II. p. 233 sq. ; and an ingenious but 
 not satisfactory defence of his timid- 
 
126 
 
 The Early Judcean Ministry. 
 
 LECT. 
 
 111 . 
 
 Our Lord 
 leaves 
 Jerusalem 
 and retires 
 to the N. E. 
 parts of 
 Judaea, 
 a John ii. 
 24. 
 
 ** ch. iii. 22. 
 
 ture to make one remark to those who desire to 
 enter more deeply into the meaning of our Lord’s 
 words, — and it is this, that if we remember, as 
 I said in my first lecture^ that in St John’s 
 Gospel our Lord especially appears before us as 
 the reader of the human heart, we shall be pre- 
 pared to find, as apparently we do find, that He 
 often answers rather the thoughts than the words 
 of the speaker, and alludes to the hidden feeling 
 rather than the expressed sentiments If we bear 
 this in mind, I verily believe that, by the help of 
 God, we shall be enabled to gain some clue to 
 understanding the more difficult parts of this most 
 solemn and profound revelation. 
 
 With this interview the occurrences of this 
 eventful passover appear to have closed. Our 
 Lord perceiving by that same knowledge of the 
 human heart, to which I have just alluded, that 
 He could no longer trust Himself^ even with 
 those who had heard His teaching and beheld His 
 miracles, now leaves Jerusalem^, most probably 
 
 ity in Niemeyer, Charaht. Vol. i. 
 p. 1 13 sq. 
 
 1 See p. 32, note i. 
 
 2 Thus, for example, at the very 
 outset, our Lord’s first words can 
 scarcely be considered an answer to 
 the words with which Nicodemus 
 first addresses Him, but may very 
 suitably be conceived an answer to 
 the question of his heart, which seems 
 rather to have related to the mode 
 of gaining an entrance into the king- 
 dom of God. Was the lowly but 
 wonder-working Teacher whom he 
 addressed the veritable Way, the 
 Truth, and the Light, — or was there 
 some other way still compatible with 
 
 the old and familiar tenets of Juda- 
 ism? Chrysostom seems rather to 
 imply that our Lord regai*ds Nico- 
 demus as not yet to have passed 
 even into the outer porch of true 
 knowledge (on roov Tvpodipuv 
 
 rijs TTp 0 ( 77 }K 0 }j(rr)s yptbaews and 
 
 that He does not so much address 
 Nicodemus as state generally a mys- 
 tic truth, which he knew not of, but 
 which might well arrest and engage 
 his thoughts. Comment, in Joann. 
 XXIV. Vol. VIII. p. 161 (ed. Bened. 
 2). The very different views that 
 have been taken of these opening 
 words will be seen in the commen- 
 taries above referred to. 
 
The Ea7'ly Judccan Ministry, 
 
 127 
 
 for the North Eastern portion of Judjeah in the 
 
 vicinity of the Jordan, where we seem to have 
 
 good grounds for supposing that He was pleased 
 to abide till nearly the end of the year. There 
 the sacred narrative^ tells us He baptized by the John iv. 
 hands of His disciples^, and so wrought upon the 
 hearts of the people that He eventually gathered 
 round Him believers and disciples^ which outnum- 
 bered those of John^, many as there seems rea-'^ver. i. 
 son for supposing them now to have become. The final 
 The Baptist was still free. He was now at SthT°^ 
 -^non^ near Salim, a place of waters in the f 
 
 23. 
 
 ^ The Evangelist only says, ^\ 6 ev 
 o’l 7 ;<ro 0 s Kal oi fxadrjral airov els t^v 
 *I ov8alay yrji/ (ch. iii. 22) ; but from 
 the closely-connected mention of the 
 administration of baptism, it does 
 not seem unreasonable to suppose, 
 with Chrysostom, that our Lord 
 retired to the Jordan (eTri tou ’Iop~ 
 ddvrjv TToWaKis '^pxero), and perhaps 
 sought again the place where He 
 Himself had been baptized by John 
 (see p. 106, note 3), and to which 
 numbers might still be thronging. 
 Lightfoot suggests a place more ex- 
 actly to the north of Jerusalem, and 
 closer to the direct route to Galilee : 
 see Harmon. Quat. Evang. Vol. i. 
 p. 446 (Roterod. 1686). 
 
 2 The reason why our Lord did 
 not Himself baptize has formed a 
 subject of comment since the days 
 of Tertullian. We can, however, 
 scarcely adopt that early writer’s 
 view that it was owing to the diffi- 
 culty of our Lord baptizing in His 
 own name {de Baptism, cap. 1 1), but 
 may plausibly adopt the opinion 
 hinted at by the poetical paraphrast 
 Nonnus (0^ yap dva^ ^dirri^ev h 
 vdari, p. 30, ed. Passow), and well 
 
 expressed by Augustine (‘prsebebant 
 discipuli ministerium corporis, prse- 
 bebat ille adjutorium majestatis,’ in 
 Joann. Tract, xv. 4. 3), — that bap- 
 tism was a ministerial act, and thus 
 more suitably performed by disciples 
 than by their Lord: compare Acts 
 X. 48, I Cor. i. 17. 
 
 ^ We can of course form no exact 
 estimate of the actual numbers of 
 disciples which John might have 
 now gathered round him. As, how- 
 ever, the inspired narrative distinctly 
 specifies the multitudes that came 
 to his baptism (Matth, iii. 5 ; Mark 
 i. 5 ; Luke iii. 7), and alludes to 
 the different classes and callings of 
 which they were composed (Luke iii. 
 12), we may reasonably infer that 
 the number of his actual disciples 
 and followers could by no means 
 have been inconsiderable. 
 
 ^ Some plausible but purely con- 
 textual arguments for fixing the site 
 of ^non in the wilderness of Ju- 
 dsea will be found in Wieseler, Chron. 
 Synops. p. 249 sq. Such arguments, 
 however, cannot safely be urged 
 against the direct statements of 
 early writers : see next note. 
 
128 
 
 LECT. 
 
 III. 
 
 ® John iii. 
 27—36. 
 
 ver. 25. 
 
 c ver. 30. 
 
 The Early Judoean Ministry, 
 
 Northern portion of the Valley of the Jordan', 
 and from which he might afterwards have passed 
 by the fords of Succoth into the territory of 
 the licentious Antipas. At this spot was deli- 
 vered his final testimony to the Redeemer^, — a 
 testimony perhaps directed against a jealousy on 
 the part of his disciples ^ which might have been 
 recently called out by the Jew"^ with whom they 
 had been contending on the subject of purifying^. 
 That testimony was in one respect mournfully 
 prophetic. He had now begun, even as he himself 
 said®, to decrease; his ministry was over; the 
 Bridegroom had come, and the friend of the bride- 
 
 ^ There seems good reason for 
 identifying the Salim, near to which 
 the Evangelist tells us John was 
 baptizing, with some ruins at the 
 northern base of Tell Eidghah, near 
 to which is a beautiful spring, and a 
 Wely (Saint’s tomb), called Sheikh 
 Salim: see Van de Velde, Memoir, 
 p. 345. Robinson appears to doubt 
 this {Palestine, Vol. ill. p. 333, ed. 
 2), but without sufficient reason. 
 The mere coincidence of name might 
 perhaps be an unsafe argument, if 
 the position of the place did not 
 accord with the position of Salim as 
 fixed by Jerome in his Onomasticon 
 (Art. ‘^diinon’), where ^non and 
 Salim are both noticed as being 
 eight Roman miles from Scythopo- 
 lis: see Van de Velde, Syria and 
 Palestine, Vol. ii. p. 345 sq. 
 
 ^ The words of the sacred text 
 (J ohn iii. 26) give us some grounds 
 for supposing it possible that feel- 
 ings of doubt or jealousy might have 
 been shown by some of St John’s 
 disciples, — feelings which perhaps 
 might have remained even to a later 
 period, and might have beer, one of 
 
 the causes which led to the mission 
 of the two disciples recorded in 
 Matth. xi. 2 sq., Luke vii. 18 sq. 
 There is an expression of something 
 unlooked for, and perhaps not wholly 
 approved of, in the fSe ouros ^aTri^ei 
 Kai Travres ^pxovrai irpbs avTov. So 
 Augustine (‘moti sunt discipuli Jo- 
 hannis ; concurrebatur ad Christum, 
 veniebatur ad Johannem’), and still 
 more distinctly Chrysost. in loc. 
 
 3 There seems no reasonable doubt 
 that the true reading is ’louSa^ou, 
 and not 'lovhaiujv (Rec.). The evi- 
 dence for the former, which includes 
 eleven uncial MSS. in addition to 
 the Alexandrian and Vatican, will be 
 found in the new edition of Tischen- 
 dorf’s New Test. Vol. i. p. 564. 
 What the exact subject of the con- 
 tention was we are not told, further 
 than that it was Trepl Kadapiayov 
 (ver. 25): it might well have arisen, 
 as Augustine suggests, from the 
 statement on the part of the Jew 
 [August, adopts the plural], — ‘ma- 
 jorem esse Christum, et ad ejus bap- 
 tisrnum debere concurri.’ In Joann. 
 Tract. XIII. 3. 8. 
 
The Early Judwan Ministry. 
 
 129 
 
 groom liad heard his voice, and the joy of that 
 faithful friend was now completed and fulP. Thus 
 it was that apparently at the close of this year, 
 or according to a recent chronologer, two or three 
 months later\ the fearless rebuker of sin, though it 
 be in kings’ palaces, is seized on by the irritated 
 yet superstitious Antipas^, and after a short impri- 
 sonment in the dungeons of Machserus*'^, falls a 
 victim to the arts of the vengeful Herodias. 
 
 This capture of the Baptist, if we adopt the 
 earlier date, might perhaps have soon become 
 known to our Lord, and might have suggested some 
 thoughts of danger to Himself and to His infant 
 
 ^ The exact date of the captivity 
 of the Baptist is a question of great 
 diflBculty, and perhaps can never be 
 settled: see Winer, ^ Art. ‘Jo- 
 hannes der Taufer,’ Vol. i. p. 590. 
 Wieseler, in a very elaborate discus- 
 sion (Chron. Syno]ps. p. 223 — 251), 
 has endeavoured to show that it 
 took place about the feast of Purim 
 in the following year (March 19, 
 A.u.C. 782), and that he was be- 
 headed a few days before the Pass- 
 over (April 17) of the same year. 
 The latter date seems made out (see 
 Chron. Synops. p. 292 sq,), but the 
 former is open to many objections, 
 two of which may be specified, (a) 
 the way in which our Lord speaks 
 of the Baptist (John v. 33); and 
 (b) the brief space of time that is 
 thus necessarily assigned to his cap- 
 tivity, — a time apparently as un- 
 duly short, as that assigned by Gires- 
 well is unnecessarily long : see Dis- 
 sert. X. (Append.) Vol. iir. p. 425. It 
 seems then, on the whole, safer to 
 adopt the first view in the text, and to 
 suppose that St John was put into 
 prison shortly before our Lord’s pre- 
 
 sent departure into Galilee, and that 
 the dvaxii^pycrts into that country 
 specified by the Synoptical Evan- 
 gelists (Matth. iv. 12; Mark i. 14; 
 Luke iv. 14) coincides with that here 
 specified by St John. For a brief 
 consideration of the difficulties this 
 view has been supposed to involve, 
 see Lect. iv. p. 148, note 3, and com- 
 pare the remarks of Tischendorf, 
 Synops. Evang. p. xxv. 
 
 2 See Josephus, Antiq. xviii. 5.2; 
 and for a description of the place, 
 ib. Bell. Jud. vii. 6. 2. From this 
 latter passage, and especially from 
 the notice of the fine palace built 
 there, we may perhaps suppose it to 
 have been the scene of the festival 
 (Matth. xiv. 6; Mark vi. 21) which 
 preceded the Baptist’s murder: see, 
 however, Wieseler, Chron. Synops. 
 p. 250 sq., who places the scene at 
 Livias. The site of Machserus is 
 supposed by Seetzen to be now occu- 
 pied by a ruined fortress on the 
 north end of Jebel AttS.rtls, which 
 is said still to bear the name of 
 Mkauer : see Ritter, Erdhunde, Part 
 XV. I, p. 577. 
 
 LECT. 
 
 III. 
 
 “ John iii. 
 29. 
 
 Luke iii. 
 
 19, com- 
 pared with 
 Mark vi. 
 
 20. 
 
 E. H. L. 
 
 9 
 
130 
 
 LECT. 
 
 III. 
 
 “ John iv. 
 
 Our Lord’s 
 journey 
 through 
 Samaria. 
 
 The Early Judcean Ministry. 
 
 Church from which now He might have deemed it 
 meet to withdraw. Perhaps with this feeling, but 
 certainly, as St John specially tells us, with the 
 knowledge that the blessed results and success of 
 His ministry had reached the ears of the male- 
 volent Pharisees^, our Lord suspends His first 
 ministry in Judaea, a ministry that had now lasted 
 eight months, and prepares to return by the short- 
 est route, through Samaria to the safe retirement 
 of the hills of Galilee. 
 
 It was now late in December^, four months 
 as the narrative indirectly reminds us from the 
 harvest^, when the Lord crossed the rich plain 
 that skirts the southern and eastern bases of Ebal 
 and Gerizim, and weary with travel rested on His 
 way by a well which even now the modern pil- 
 
 1 Our Lord was now probably in 
 
 the north-eastern, or as the ^ 5 ei 6^ 
 avTov K.T.X. (John iv. 4) may be 
 thought to suggest, more northerly 
 portions of Judsea. Thither He 
 might have gradually moved from 
 the more immediate neighbourhood 
 of the Jordan, towards which He 
 seems first to have gone: see 
 
 above, p. 127. Our Lord on one 
 occasion at least (Luke ix. 51 sq.) 
 adopted the route through Samaria 
 in preference to the route through 
 Persea. At a later time the journey 
 through Samaria was occasionally 
 rendered unsafe by the open hostility 
 of the Samaritans ;see Joseph. .4 
 XX. 6. 2), some traces of which we 
 find even in our Lord’s time ; corap. 
 Luke ix. 53; and see Lightfoot, 
 Harm. Part ill. Vol. i. p. 460 (Ro- 
 terod. 1686). 
 
 2 Stanley {Palestine, ch. V. p. 240, 
 note, ed. 2) fixes it in January or 
 
 February, but in opposition to Ro- 
 binson, Harmony, p, 19 (Tract So- 
 ciety), who adopts an earlier date: 
 see above, p. 106, note i. 
 
 ^ See John iv. 35, ovx vy-ets \i- 
 yere on ^tl reTpdfirjvos eariv Kai 6 
 depiafibs ^px^TULf—a passage which, 
 from the distinctness and precision 
 of the language (observe the ’ 4 tl and 
 compare it with ybr} which follows), 
 has been rightly pressed by some of 
 the best expositors as affording a 
 note of time : see Meyer in loc., and 
 especially Wieseler, Chron. Synops. 
 p. 214 sq. The arguments in favour 
 of its being merely a proverbial ex- 
 pression (comp. Alford in loc.) are 
 extremely weak, and are well dis- 
 posed of by Wieseler loc. cit. A 
 different, and very improbable note 
 of time is deduced from the passage 
 by Greswell, Dissert, ix. (Append.), 
 Vol. III. p. 408. 
 
131 
 
 The Early Judcean Ministry. 
 
 grim can confidently identify ^ His disciples had 
 gone forward up the beautiful but narrow valley^ 
 to the ancient neighbouring city to which, as it 
 would seem, Jewish prejudice had long since 
 given the name of Sychar", when the grace of 
 God brings one poor sinful woman either from 
 the city or the fields to draw water at Jacob’s 
 well. We well remember the memorable converse 
 that followed : how the conviction of sin. began to 
 work within, and how the amazed woman became 
 the Lord’s first herald in Sychem, — the first-fruits 
 of the great harvest that but a few years afterwards 
 was to be gathered in by Philip the Deacon**. 
 
 ^ For a good description of Jacob’s 
 Well, see Robinson, Palestine, Vol. 
 II. p. 286 sq. ; compare also Van de 
 Velde, Syria and Palestine, Vol. i. 
 p. 399, and Thomson, The Land 
 and the Booh, Vol. ii. p. 206, where 
 a sketch i^ given of this profoundly 
 interesting spot. For a possible 
 identification of this well with the 
 “ 121 D I'y of the Talmudical waiters, 
 see Lightfoot, Chorogr. Vol. ii. p. 
 586 sq. (Roterod. 1686), and com- 
 pare Wieseler, Chron. Synojys. p. 256, 
 note. 
 
 2 For a description of this valley, 
 see Van de Velde, Syria and Pales- 
 tine, Vol. I. p. 386 sq., and compare 
 Stanley, Palestine, ch. V. p. 232. 
 
 3 The name of Sychar (not Sichar ; 
 
 see Tischendorf in loc.), does not 
 appear to have arisen from a mere 
 corruption of the ancient name of 
 Shechem (Olsh., al.), but from a 
 studiedly contemptuous change with 
 reference either to ‘ falsehood,’ 
 
 i.e. idol-worship (comp. Hab. ii. 18, 
 and Reland, Dissert. Misc. Vol. i. 
 p. 241), or to ‘drunkard’ 
 
 (comp. Isaiah xxviii. i, and Light- 
 
 foot, Chorogr. Vol. ii. p. 586, ed. 
 Roterod.), and in the time of St 
 John had become the regular name 
 of the place; compare, however. 
 Acts vii. 16, where Stephen perhaps 
 designedly recurs to the ancient 
 name, and Wieseler, Chron. Synops. 
 p. 256 sq. (note), where the name 
 is connected, apparently less pro- 
 bably, with — 15'^^ ‘to hire,’ 
 in reference to Gen. xxxiii. 19. It 
 is now called Nabulus, by a con- 
 traction from the name of Neapolis 
 afterwards given it by the Romans ; 
 but it seems probable that the an- 
 cient city was larger and extended 
 nearer to Jacob’s Well: see Robin- 
 son, Palestine, Vol. it. p. 292 (ed. 2), 
 where there wiU be found a full and 
 excellent description of the place and 
 its vicinity. Compare also Thomson, 
 The Land and the Booh, Vol. ii. p. 
 200 sq., — where a sketch will be 
 found of the entrance into the city. 
 Van de Velde, Syria and Palestine, 
 Vol. I. p. 386 sq., and a photo- 
 graphic view by Frith, Egypt and 
 Palestine, Part iv. 3. 
 
 ^ See Acts viii. 5 sq., where the 
 
 9_2 
 
 LECT. 
 
 III. 
 
132 
 
 LEGT. 
 
 111 . 
 
 The faith 
 of the Sa- 
 maritans. 
 
 “ John ii. 
 ^ 3 - 
 
 •' cli, iv. 39. 
 
 The Early Judwaii Ministry. 
 
 The faith of these Samaritans and the effect 
 produced on them, even when contrasted with 
 that produced by our Lord during His ministry in 
 Judasa, deserves more than a passing notice. In 
 Juda)a our Lord had abode eight months; in 
 Sychem He spends but two days. In Judsea He 
 works many miracles^; in Samaria He works noneh 
 And yet we read that in Sychem many believed 
 even the vague tidings of the heart-stricken 
 woman and hastened forth to welcome Him, 
 whom in the fulness of a faith that overstepped 
 all narrow national prejudices they believed in 
 and acknowledged as the true Messiah, the He- 
 storer, or perhaps rather Converter, as He was 
 termed in their own dialect^, the Saviour, as they 
 
 thankful reception of the Gospel on 
 the part of the Samaritans is espe- 
 cially noticed; and compare Baum- 
 garten in loc. § 14, Vol. i. p. 184 
 sq. (Clark). That the ‘city of Sa- 
 maria,’ to which the Deacon went 
 down from Jerusalem, was the city 
 of Sychem, does not appear certain 
 (Meyer, on Acts viii. 5), though it 
 may reasonably be considered highly 
 probable. 
 
 ^ See some good remarks of Chry- 
 sostom on the faith of these Sama- 
 ritans, when contrasted with that 
 of the Jews. It seems, however, a 
 little rhetorical to say that the latter 
 ‘ were doing everything to expel 
 Him from their country,’ while the 
 former were entreating Him to stay : 
 see Horn, in Joann, xxxv. Vol. viii. 
 p. 232. Throughout the Gospel-his- 
 tory the multitudes in Judaea or 
 elsewhere appear almost always to 
 have gladly received our Lord, ex- 
 cept when instigated to a contrary 
 course by His true and bitter ene- 
 
 mies, the ruling and hierarchical 
 party (the ’Ioi;5a?oi of St John: see 
 Meyer, on John xi. 19) and their 
 various satellites : comp. Matth. xvii. 
 20, Mark xv. ir. 
 
 ^ Much has been written about 
 the expectation of a Messiah on the 
 part of the Samaritans. It is not 
 improbable that, as their own letters 
 in modern times assert (see Heng- 
 stenberg, Christol. Vol. i. p. 66, 
 Clark), they derived it from such 
 passages in the Pentateuch as Gen. 
 xlix. 10, Numb. xxiv. 17, Deut. 
 xviii. 1 5 ; and that, though really 
 foreigners by descent (comp. Eobin- 
 son, Palestine, Vol. ii. p. 289), they 
 still maintained this belief in com- 
 mon with their hated neighbours, 
 the Jews. At any rate it seems 
 certain that an expectation of a 
 Restorer or Converter under the 
 title of or 3nnn, was enter- 
 
 tained among them at an earlier 
 period of their history (see Gesenius, 
 Samar. Theol. p. 41 sq., and the 
 
The Early Judwan Ministry. 133 
 
 indirectly avow not of Samaria only, but of all 
 the scattered families of the children of men^ 
 
 But faitli astonishinsf even as that of Samaria 
 might not detain Him who came to the lost sheep 
 of the house of Israel. After a stay of two me- 
 morable days, which the people of Sychem would 
 gladly have had prolonged^, the Lord returns to 
 a country that now vouchsafed to receive its pro- 
 phet^ only because His miracles at Jerusalem had 
 been such as could not be denied^ Signs and 
 wonders were all that dull-hearted Galilee could 
 appreciate. Signs and wonders they must see, or, 
 as our Lord mournfully says, Hhey would not 
 believe We may observe then how consistent 
 is the narrative which represents our Lord as 
 having chosen the scene of His first miracle as 
 
 curious doctrinal hymns published 
 by the same leaimed editor under 
 the title Carmina Samaritana, p. 75 
 sq.) ; and we learn from Robinson 
 that even to this day, under the 
 name of d-Mulidy (the Guide), the 
 Messiah is still looked for by this 
 singular people: see Palestine, Vol. 
 II. p. 278, and p. 297 sq., where an 
 account is given of the celebrated 
 correspondence maintained at inter- 
 vals between the Samaiitans and 
 Joseph Scaliger, Marshall, and other 
 scholars of the West: compare also 
 Winer, RWB., Art. ^ Samaritan er,’ 
 Vol. II. p. 273. The exact meaning 
 of Dnnn is discussed by Gesenius 
 in the Berlin Jahrb. fiir Wissensch. 
 Krit. for 1830, p. 651 sq. 
 
 1 The exact meaning of our Lord’s 
 comment record, John iv. 44, auros 
 •yap ’IijcroOs k.t.X,, is not perfectly 
 clear, owing to the apparent diffi- 
 culty caused by the argumentative 
 
 yap, and the doubtful application of 
 Trarpidi, That this latter word does 
 not refer to Judsea (Origen, and 
 recently Wieseler, Chron. Synops, 
 p. 45) but to Galilee, seems almost 
 certain from the mention of TaXikaLa 
 both in the preceding and succeed- 
 ing verses. The force of the yap is, 
 however, less easy to decide upon, 
 but is perhaps to be sought for in 
 the fact that our Lord stayed so 
 short a time with the Samaritans, 
 and avoided rather than courted po- 
 pularity. It is true that He found 
 it in Galilee (ver. 45), but that was 
 because He brought it as it were 
 from another country. The Gali- 
 laeans did not honour the Lord as 
 their own prophet, but as One whom 
 they had seen work wonders at Jeru-. 
 Salem. The explanatory force adopted 
 by Lticke and others does not har- 
 monize with the simplicity of the 
 context. 
 
 LECT. 
 
 HI. 
 
 “ J ohn iv. 
 42. 
 
 The fur- 
 ther jour- 
 ney of our 
 Lord to 
 Galilee. 
 
 ver. 40. 
 
 *= ver. 45. 
 
 ver. 48. 
 
134 
 
 The Early Judcean Ministry. 
 
 LECT. 
 
 III. 
 
 * John iv. 
 
 46. 
 
 ^ ver. 54. 
 
 “ ver. 53. 
 
 ^ Luke iv. 
 29. 
 
 Our Lord’s 
 return to 
 Jerusalem 
 at the feast 
 of Purim. 
 
 His temporary resting-place ^ He returns to Cana 
 in Galilee, where as St John significantly adds, 
 
 ' He made the water wine\’ There He yet again 
 performs a second miracle^ in bringing back to 
 life the dying son of the Capernaite nobleman‘s, — 
 a miracle which wrought its blessed effects on the 
 father and his whole household^, and may thus 
 perchance have had some influence in leading our 
 Lord three months afterwards, when rejected by 
 the wretched madmen of Nazareth to make Caper- 
 naum His earthly home^. 
 
 Our present portion of the Evangelical history 
 contains but one more event, — the journey of our 
 Lord to Jerusalem, and His miraculous cure of 
 
 1 See John iv. 46, -^Xdev odv [6 
 ’It/ctoOs] TrdXiv ds tt]p Kavd, — where 
 the odu seems to imply that the visit 
 of our Lord was in consequence of 
 this disposition on the part of the 
 Galilaeans, He sees the effect which 
 miracles produced upon the people, 
 and is pleased so far to conde- 
 scend to their infirmities as to so- 
 journ for a time at the scene of a 
 miracle that must have made a great 
 impression on those who witnessed 
 it, and the memory of which His 
 presence among them might savingly 
 revive and reanimate : see Chry- 
 sostom in loc. Horn. xxv. Vol. viii. 
 P- 
 
 2 From the instances from Jose- 
 phus of the use of the term ^aatXiKos, 
 that have been collected by Krebs 
 {Ohs. in Nov. Test. p. 144), we may 
 perhaps reasonably conclude that 
 the person here specified was not a 
 relative (Chrys. i.), but in the ser- 
 vice of Herod Antipas ('in famulitio 
 et ministerio regis,’ Krebs, 1 . c .), — 
 in what capacity, however, cannot 
 be determined. The opinion that 
 
 this miracle was identical with that 
 of the healing of the Centurion’s 
 servant (Matth. viii. 5 sq., Luke vii. 
 I sq.) is mentioned both by Origen 
 {in Joann. Tom. xiii. 60) and Chry- 
 sostom {in Joann. Horn. xxxv. 2), 
 but very properly rejected by them. 
 Nothing really is identical in the 
 two miracles except the locality of 
 the sufferer, and the fact that our 
 Saviour did not see him: see espe- 
 cially Theophylact and Euthymius 
 in loc. 
 
 2 For some good comments on 
 the details of this miracle, — one of 
 the characteristics of which is the 
 performance of the cure by our Lord, 
 not only without His seeing (as in 
 the case of the Centurion’s servant), 
 but when at a distance of some miles 
 from the sufferer, — see the commen- 
 taries of Origen, Chrysostom, Cyril 
 Alex., Theophylact, and Euthymius ; 
 and for a general view of the whole. 
 Hall, Contempl. iii. 2, and Trench, 
 Miracles, p. 1 1 7 sq. : compare also 
 Lange, Leben Jesu, li. 4. 10, Part 
 
 II. p. 552 sq- 
 
135 
 
 The Early Judcean Ministry, 
 
 the infirm man at the pool of Bethesda^ Here, 
 
 I need scarcely remind you, we at once find our- 
 
 selves encountered by a question, on the answer i sq. 
 to which our whole system of Gospel-harmony 
 mainly depends, and on which we find, both in 
 ancient^ and modern times, the most marked diver- 
 sity of opinions. The question is, what festival 
 does St J ohn refer to at the beginning of the fifth 
 chapter of his Gospel, when he tells us that ^ there 
 was a feast of the Jews, and Jesus went up to 
 Jerusalem^’ The various answers I will not now“ver. i. 
 pause to discuss, but will say briefly, that after a 
 prolonged consideration of this difficult subject, I 
 venture to think that as the language of St John, 
 according to the correct text^ and when duly con- 
 sidered, does seem distinctly unfavourable to this 
 festival being considered as either the Passover or 
 one of the three greater festivals®, we may, not 
 
 1 The differences of opinion as to 
 the festival mentioned in John v. i, 
 are not confined to modern writers. 
 Irenaeus says that it was at the 
 Passover {Hcer. ii. 39), but as we 
 cannot ascertain what reading {eopr^ 
 or i] kopTT}, see next note) was adopt- 
 ed by this ancient writer, his opinion 
 must be received with some reserve, 
 Chrysostom, Cyril of Alexandria, 
 and after them Theophylact and 
 Euthymius, with more plausibility, 
 suppose it to have been the feast of 
 Pentecost: see, however, note 3. 
 
 2 The true reading appears cer- 
 tainly to be eopTT] {Eec.), without 
 the article. It has, in addition to 
 secondary authorities, the support 
 of three out of the four leading un- 
 cial MSS. (the Alex., Vatic., and 
 that of Beza), is specially comment- 
 ed on in the Chronicon Paschale (p. 
 
 405 sq., ed. Dindorf.), and is adopted 
 by Lachmann, Tischendorf, and the 
 best recent editors. 
 
 ^ The principal arguments are as 
 follow, and seem of some weight : (a) 
 the omission of the article, — which 
 though sometimes observed when a 
 verb substant. precedes (Middleton, 
 Greek Art.; comp. Neander, Life of 
 Christ, p. 234, note, Bohn), or when 
 a strictly defining or possessive ge- 
 nitive follows (see exx. in Winer, 
 Gramm. § 19. 2. h), cannot possibly 
 be urged in the case of a merely 
 inverted sentence like the present, 
 and where the gen. has no such 
 special and defining force : see Winer, 
 Gramm, 1 . c. p. 232, note. [The 
 answer to this in Robinson, Har- 
 mony, p. 199 (Tract. Soc.), has no 
 force, as the cases adduced are not 
 out of St John, wholly different, and 
 
13 G 
 
 LECT. 
 
 III. 
 
 TJce Early Judcean Ministry. 
 
 without many plausible arguments, adopt the view 
 of the best recent harmonists and commentators 
 and regard it as the Feast of Purirn^ — the com- 
 memorative feast of Esther’s pleading and Ha- 
 man’s overthrow. This festival, it would appear 
 by backward computation, must have taken place 
 in this present year of our Lord’s life (a.u.c. 782), 
 on the 19th of March and, as we may reasonably 
 
 easily to be accounted for]. To this 
 we may add {&) the absence of the 
 name of the festival, whereas St John 
 seems always to specify it : compare 
 ch. ii. 1 3, vii. 2, and even (in the case 
 of the eyKaivLo) x. 22. Again (c) 
 it seems now generally agreed up- 
 on that it was not the Pentecost ; 
 that if it be a Passover, our Lord 
 would then have been as long a time 
 as eighteen months absent from Je- 
 rusalem (see Wieseler, Chron. Synops. 
 p. 217); and that if it be the Feast 
 of Tabernacles, we then, according 
 to Ebrard {Kritih der Ev. Gesch. 
 § 37 > P- 157)? adopt the highly 
 improbable view that it was not the 
 CKyvoirrjyLa that followed the Pass- 
 over mentioned ch. ii. 13, but that 
 followed a second Passover, which 
 St J ohn, usually so accurate on this 
 point (see ch. vi. 4I, has not speci- 
 fied. Lastly {d) if the note of time 
 alluded to, p. 130, note 3, be ac- 
 cepted, the difficulties alluded to in 
 (c) will be greatly complicated and 
 enhanced. 
 
 ^ The arguments in favour of 
 this particular festival, though suffi- 
 ciently strong to have gained the 
 assent of a decided majority of the 
 best recent expositors, are still of a 
 dependent and negative character. 
 They are as follows : (a) if the note 
 of time derived from John iv. 35 be 
 correct, then the festival here men- 
 
 tioned clearly falls between the end 
 of one year and the Passover of the 
 one following (ch. vi. 4), and con- 
 sequently can be no other than the 
 Feast of Purim, which was cele- 
 brated on the 14th and 15 th of the 
 month Adar (Esth. ix. 21); (5) if, 
 as seems shown in the above note, 
 strong critical as well as exegetical 
 objections can be urged against any 
 and all of the other festivals that 
 have been proposed, then a remain- 
 ing festival which is only open to 
 objections of a weaker and more 
 general character (see below, p. 137, 
 note i) deserves serious considera- 
 tion ; (c) if this date be fixed upon, 
 the chronology of the period between 
 it and the following Passover not 
 only admits of an easy adjustment, 
 but also, as will be seen in the 
 course of the narrative, involves 
 some striking coincidences and har- 
 monies which reflect great additional 
 plausibility upon the supposition. 
 For additional notices and argu- 
 ments, see Anger, de Temp, in Act. 
 Apost. I. p. 24 sq., Wieseler, Chron. 
 Synops. pp. 205 — 222, Lange, Lehen 
 Jesu, Book ir. Part i. p. 9 ; and for 
 perhaps the strongest statement of 
 the counter-arguments, Hengsten- 
 berg, Christology,Yo\. III. p. 244 sq. 
 (Clark). 
 
 2 For the principles on which 
 this computation rests, see Wieseler, 
 
The Early Judcean Ministry. 
 
 137 
 
 infer from the narrative, a Sabbath-day, — a day 
 on which, according to the ancient, though not 
 according to the modern calendar of the J ews, this 
 festival could apparently have been celebrated^, 
 and, singularly enough, the only instance in which 
 a Sabbath could fall upon any one of the festivals 
 of the year in question ^ 
 
 It has I know been urged that our Lord would 
 
 Chron. Synops. p. 206 sq., compared 
 with p. 219: compare also the useful 
 table in Tischendorf, Synops. Evang. 
 p. LI. ; and for general tables for 
 facilitating such calculations, see 
 Browne, Ordo Seed. § 452 — 455, p. 
 499 sq. 
 
 ^ This see 7 iis to be made out by 
 "NVieseler, Chron. Synops. p. 219 sq., 
 but is so strongly questioned by 
 Hengstenberg {Christology, Vol. iii. 
 p. 248), — who refers for proofs to 
 Reland, Antiq. Sacr. iv. 9, and the 
 special treatise of Shickard, on this 
 festival, reprinted in the Critici Sacri, 
 Vol. II, p. 1183 (ed. Amstelod. 
 1698 — 1732), — that a few comments 
 must be made on the subject. Much 
 seems to turn on the question whe- 
 ther the 14th of Adar, or, as Heng- 
 stenberg urges, the day on which 
 the roll of Esther was read, — a day, 
 as will be seen from the Mishna, 
 made variable for convenience, — was 
 the true day of the festival ? With 
 the opening sections of the Tract 
 ‘Megillah’ before us, we shall pro- 
 bably (with Wieseler) decide for the 
 former, especially when we compare 
 with the preceding sections the close 
 of sect. 3, where it is said in answer 
 to the general question, ^when the 
 Megillah may be read before its 
 proper time,’ that an exception is 
 to be made for places where it is 
 customary for [the country people] 
 
 to assemble on Mondays and Thurs- 
 days, but that ‘ where that does not 
 take place it may only be read on 
 its proper day' niTlJ^ 
 rUOTD). Mishna, p. 182 (De Sola 
 and Raphall’s Transl.). The ques- 
 tion is here noticed as of some in- 
 terest, but it may be observed that 
 though it is probable from the sacred 
 narrative that the Sabbath on which 
 the miracle was performed coincided 
 with the festival, it is not expressly 
 said so; and that even if the Feast 
 of Purim could not fall on a Sab- 
 bath, the main question would re- 
 main wholly unaffected by it: see 
 Meyer, on John v. i, p. 143. 
 
 2 See Wieseler, Chron. Synops. 
 p. 219, and compare the table in 
 Tischendorf, Synops. Evang. p. Li. 
 It may be observed that the year 
 now in question was a leap-year, 
 and had a second month of Adar, — 
 hence the difference between this 
 calendar and that in Browne, Ordo 
 Seed. § 594, p. 647, where this fact 
 is not observed. For exact informa- 
 tion on the difficult subject of the 
 Jewish calendar, see Ideler, Hand- 
 buch der Chronol. Vol, i, p. 477 sq,, 
 the special work of Ben-David, Gesch. 
 des Jud. Kalend. (Berk 1817); com- 
 pare also the Excursus of Wieseler, 
 Chron. Synops. p. 437 sq., and 
 Browne, Ordo Seed. § 403 sq. 
 
 LECT. 
 
 III. 
 
138 
 
 The Early Judcean Ministry, 
 
 LECT. 
 
 III. 
 
 Main ob- 
 jection to 
 this opi- 
 nion. 
 
 The mira- 
 cle at the 
 pool of 
 Bethesda. 
 
 never have gone up to a festival of mere earthly 
 rejoicing and revelry ^ In answer to this, without 
 pausing to compare this merely negative statement 
 with the positive arguments which have been ad- 
 vanced on the contrary side, let us simply reply, 
 that at this festival, in which the hard lot of the 
 poor and needy received a passing alleviation, the 
 divine presence of Him who came to preach the 
 Gospel to the poor might not seem either strange 
 or inappropriate I In addition to this, let us not 
 forget that, in the year now under consideration, 
 the Passover would take place only a month after- 
 wards, and that our Lord might well have thought 
 it meet to fix His abode at Jerusalem and to com- 
 mence His preaching before the hurried influx of 
 the multitudes that came up to the solemnities 
 of the great yearly festivaP. 
 
 But let us now return to our narrative, and 
 
 1 This objection is urged, though 
 not with much cogency, by Trench, 
 Miracles, p. ■245. For a full account 
 of the ceremonies at this festival, 
 see the work of Shickard, de Festo 
 Purim (Tubing. 1634) above alluded 
 to, p. 137, note i), and compare 
 Winer, RWB. Art, ‘Purim,’ Vol. 
 II. p, 589. The objection that has 
 been founded on St John’s omission 
 of the special name of this festival, 
 contrasted with his usual habit in 
 similar cases (ch. vii. 2, x. 22), is 
 fairly met by Anger, who remarks 
 that while the names of other festi- 
 vals {e.g. (XKr]voTrrjyLa and iyKaivia) 
 partially explained themselves, that 
 of the Feast of Purim, under its 
 Grecized title (tQv <f>povpal or <pov- 
 pal, or T 7 j$ Ma/) 5 oxat/f^s i]pi.^pas), was 
 probably felt by the Evangelist as 
 
 likely to prove unintelligible to the 
 general readers for whom the Gos- 
 pel was designed. l)e Temp, in Act, 
 Apost. p. 27 sq. 
 
 2 See Wieseler, Citron. Synops. p. 
 222, — vigorously, though not very 
 convincingly, opposed by Hengsten- 
 berg, who seems to take a somewhat 
 extreme view of the revelry and 
 license which prevailed at the festi- 
 val ; see Christology, Vol. III. p. 247. 
 
 2 A partial illustration of this is 
 supplied by John xi. 55, where it is 
 expressly said that ‘ many went out 
 of the country up to Jerusalem be- 
 fore the Passover, to purify them- 
 selves.’ The 'iva ayvlatoatv of course 
 does not apply in the present case, 
 but the general fact that there was 
 such a habit of going up before the 
 festival is not without significance. 
 
139 
 
 The Early Judcean Ministry, 
 
 with sadness observe how the malice and wicked- 
 ness of man was permitted to counteract those 
 counsels of mercy, and to shorten that mission 
 of love. 
 
 On this Sabbath-day, by the waters of that 
 healing pooh, which ancient 'tradition as well as 
 recent investigation seems to have correctly iden- 
 tified with the large, but now ruined reservoir 
 in the vicinity of St Stephen’s gate‘^, the Lord 
 
 ^ It may be considered somewhat 
 doubtful whether ver^4 is really an 
 integral portion of the Sacred Text, 
 or a later addition. It is omitted by 
 Tischendorf with the Vatican MS., 
 tbe first hand of the Codex Ephremi, 
 the Codex Bezse, and a few ancient 
 versions, — the valuable Curetonian 
 Syriac (but see Roberts, On Lang, 
 of St Matlh. Gospel, p. 122) being 
 of the number. This is undoubtedly 
 authority of some weight, but as 
 prejudice or reluctance to accept the 
 fact specified might have something 
 to do with the removal of the verse, 
 we shall perhaps be justified in fol- 
 lowing the judgment of Lachmann, 
 and, with one first class and nearly 
 all the second-class uncial MSS., in 
 retaining the verse. It must not be 
 disguised, however, that these au- 
 thorities differ greatly with one ano- 
 ther in the separate words, — a fur- 
 ther argument of some importance ; 
 compare Meyer, Komment. p. 141 sq. 
 (ed. 2). The attempts, in which 
 strangely enough a note of Ham- 
 mond is to be included, to explain 
 away the miraculous portion of the 
 statement are very unsatisfactory. 
 If the verse is a part of the Sacred 
 Text, then undoubtedly the ultimate 
 agency, however outwardly exhi- 
 bited, whether by gaseous exhala- 
 
 tions or intermittent currents, was 
 angelical: see Wordsworth in loc., 
 and comp. Lange, Lehen Jesu, ii. 2. 
 2, Part I. p. 50, and some curious 
 comments and quotations in Sepp, 
 Lehen Christi, iv. 5, Vol. ii. p. 315 sq. 
 
 ^ This, it must be conceded, is a 
 debated point, as there are argu- 
 ments of some weight in favour of 
 this reservoir being regarded as a 
 portion of the ancient fosse which 
 protected the temple and the fort of 
 Antonia: see Robinson, Palestine, 
 Vol. I. p. 293 sq. (ed. 2). The tra- 
 ditional site, however, and its iden- 
 tification with the pool of Bethesda 
 mentioned in the ancient Jerusalem 
 Itinerary (p. 589), seems fairly 
 maintained by Williams, Holy City, 
 II. 5, Vol. II. p. 483, though doubted 
 by Winer, RWB. Vol. i. p. 170. 
 Under any circumstances the sug- 
 gestion of Robinson (apparently fa- 
 voured by Trench, Miracles, p. 247), 
 that Bethesda is perhaps to be iden- 
 tified with the Fountain of the Vir- 
 gin, is pronounced by an unbiassed 
 traveller who has seen that deeply 
 excavated fountain (see vignette in 
 Williams, Vol. II. p. xi), as plainly 
 incompatible with what we must 
 infer from the details of the sacred 
 narrative as to the nature of the 
 locality where the miracle was per- 
 
 LECT. 
 
 III. 
 
140 
 
 The Early Judcean Ministry. 
 
 lp:ct. 
 
 III. 
 
 « John V. 
 
 8 . 
 
 ch, ii. 19 
 
 performs a miracle on one poor sufferer, who had 
 long lingered in that House of Mercy \ unpitied 
 and friendless. That miracle was accompanied 
 with a sign of great significance. Not only does 
 our Lord restore the helpless paralytic*'^, but com- 
 mands him to rise up and bear his bed"", and thus 
 practically evince not only his own completed re- 
 covery, but the true lordship of the Son of Man 
 over Sabbatical restrictions and ceremonial rest®. 
 He that a year before had shown that He was 
 lord of the temple^, now shows that He is Lord 
 also of the Sabbath. But this was what Phari- 
 saical hypocrisy could not brook. This act, merci- 
 ful and miraculous as it was, involved a violation 
 
 formed. For a good view of the 
 traditional site, see Robertson and 
 Beato, Views of Jerusalem, No. 12. 
 
 ^ This appears to be the correct 
 meaning: the true etymology not 
 being ‘1-he house of 
 
 effusion or washing’ (Bochart, Re- 
 land, ah, followed by Williams, Holy 
 City, Vol. II. p. 487), but n'l 
 — an etymology strongly con- 
 firmed by the Peshito-Syriac, which 
 here resolves the Grecized form back 
 again into its original elements {feth 
 chesdo): see Wolf, Curce Philolog. 
 {in loc.) Vol. II. p. 835. 
 
 ^ For an explanation of the vari- 
 ous details of the miracle, the student 
 must be referred to the standard 
 commentaries, especially those of 
 Chrysostom, Cyril of Alexandria, 
 Theophylact, and Euthymius ; and 
 among more modern writers, those 
 of Maldonatus, Liicke, Meyer, and 
 Alford. See also the fragmentary 
 homily of Cyril of Jerusalem ( Works, 
 P* 336, ed. Bened.), Hall, Contem- 
 'plations, iv. 11, and Trench, Notes 
 on the Miracles, p. 243. 
 
 ^ It would certainly seem, as 
 Lightfoot suggests {Ilor. Hehr. in 
 loc. Vol. II. p. 622), that our Lord 
 desired by this command to show 
 His power over the Sabbath, and to 
 exhibit openly His condemnation 
 of the ceremonial restrictions with 
 which it was tlien encumbered. For 
 some striking instances of these, see 
 especially the Mishna, Tract, 'Sab- 
 bath,’ p. 37 sq. (De Sola and Ra- 
 phall), — where the case of an act of 
 charity (relieving a mendicant) forms 
 the subject of discussion. We may 
 infer what must have been the 
 amount of glosses with which the 
 law respecting the Sabbath was now 
 encumbered, when in the above for- 
 mal collection of the precepts of the 
 oral law, committed to writing little 
 more than 1 50 years afterwards, we 
 find that ‘ a tailor must not go out 
 with his needle near dusk [on the 
 Sabbath eve], lest he forget and 
 carry it out with him, [during the 
 Sabbath]. Mishna, Tract, ‘ Sab- 
 bath,’ I. 3, p. 38 (De Sola and Ra- 
 phall). 
 
141 
 
 The Early Judcean Ministry. 
 
 of what Scribe and Pharisee affected to hold most 
 
 dear ; and it could not and must not be tolerated. 
 
 The Jews or, — as that term nearly always implies 
 in St John, — the adherents of the Sanhedrin^, who 
 had been informed by the man who it was that 
 had healed him^, and some of whom had perhaps 
 witnessed the miracle, at once begin to exhibit a 
 vengefuP hatred ^ which only deepens in its im-“Joimv. 
 placability when in that sublime discourse at the 
 close of the chapter on which we are meditating, 
 the fifth chapter of St John, the Lord declares not 
 only His unity in working^, but His unity in'^ver. 17. 
 dignity and honour® with the Eternal Father h ver. 23. 
 
 This is the turning point in the Gospel history. Distinct- 
 
 1V0 clicir^/C' 
 
 Up to this time the preaching of our Lord at ter of this 
 Jerusalem and in Judaea has met with a certain 
 degree of toleration, and in many cases even of 
 
 ^ See above, p. 115, note i. The 
 only and indeed obvious exception 
 to this is when the term Tou 5 a?oi is 
 used with a national reference (J ohn 
 ii. 6, 13, iii. i, iv. 9, al.) ; in all 
 other cases the term in St John’s 
 Gospel seems to mark the hostile 
 and hierarchical party that especially 
 opposed our blessed Lord’s teaching 
 and ministry. 
 
 2 There does not seem sufficient 
 reason for supposing that the man 
 made the communication from gra- 
 titude, or from a desire to commend 
 our Lord to the rulers (comp. Chrys., 
 Cyril Alex.) ; still less was it from 
 any evil motive (comp. Lange, p. 
 769). It probably arose simply from 
 a desire to justify his perfonnance 
 of the command (ver. 9) by specify- 
 ing the authority under which he 
 had acted ; comp. Meyer in loc., and 
 Luthardt,/o^.£'t’a?iy. Part ii. pp.6,7. 
 
 2 This perhaps is the strongest 
 term that we are fairly justified in 
 using, as the words koI e^rirovv aii- 
 Tov airoKTeivaL (ver. 16) are omitted 
 by three out of the four leading 
 uncial MSS. : see Tischendorf in loc. 
 Vol. I. p. 577. 
 
 ^ A very careful investigation 
 into the connexion and evolution of 
 thought in this divine discourse, — 
 the main subject of which is the 
 Person, Mission, and Offices of the 
 eternal Son of the eternal Father, 
 and the testimony by which they 
 are confirmed, — wiU be found in 
 Luthardt, Johann. Evang. Part 11. 
 p, 10 sq. ; see also Stier, Words of 
 our Lord, Vol. V. p. 83 sq. (Clark), 
 and Lange, /esu, ii. 5. i. Part 
 
 II. pp. 770 — 775. The whole is ably 
 expanded and enlarged upon by Au- 
 gustine, in Joann. Tract, xviii. — 
 XXIII. Vol. III. p. 1355 sq. 
 
142 
 
 The Early Judaean Ministry. 
 
 LECT. 
 
 III. 
 
 * Johnviii. 
 59; X. 3r, 
 39 - 
 
 Luke iv. 
 16 sq. 
 
 acceptance’ : but after this all becomes changed. 
 Henceforth the city of David is no meet or safe 
 abode for the Son of David ; the earthly house of 
 Ilis heavenly Father is no longer a secure hall of 
 audience for the preaching of the Eternal Son. 
 Henceforth the J udsean or, more strictly speaking, 
 the Jerusalem ministry narrows itself into two 
 efforts, the one made seven the other nine months 
 afterwards^, and both marked by a similar vindic- 
 tive animosity % on the part of the hostile Jewish 
 section, to that which now first comes into such 
 melancholy prominence.... Abruptly as it would 
 seem, perhaps only a day or two after this eventful 
 Sabbath^, the Lord leaves Jerusalem, to return to 
 His old home in Galilee, — there alas ! to meet 
 with a yet sadder rejection ^ and to withdraw from 
 
 1 See John ii. 23, iv. i. In esti- 
 mating the degree of reception that 
 our Lord’s torching met with, we 
 must carefully distinguish between 
 the general mass of the people, whe- 
 ther in Judaea or Galilee, which 
 commonly ‘heard him gladly’ (Mark 
 xii. 37), and the Pharisaical and 
 hierarchical party, which both dis- 
 believed themselves, and, commonly 
 acting from Jerusalem as a centre 
 (see esp. Matth. xv, i, Mark iii. 22, 
 vii. i), readily organized co-opera- 
 tion in other quarters ; comp. Luke 
 V. 1 7. Their present state of feeling 
 deserves particular notice, as pre- 
 paring us for their future machina- 
 tions, and as leading us to expect 
 no such prolonged duration of our 
 Lord’s ministry as the supposition 
 that this feast was a Passover would 
 force us to assume. The fearful re- 
 solve to hill our Lord, though per- 
 haps not officially expressed, had 
 nevertheless now been distinctly 
 
 formed, and was being acted upon : 
 see John v. 18, and comp. Lange, 
 Lehen Jesu, ii. 5. i. Part ii. p. 769 
 sq. 
 
 2 The first of thes§ was at our 
 Lord’s visit to Jerusalem, during 
 the Feast of Tabernacles, towards 
 the middle of October in the present 
 year, A. u, c. 782 (John vii. i sq., 
 comp. Luke ix. 51 sq.); the second 
 at His appearance in Jerusalem at 
 the Feast of the Dedication, in the 
 December of the same year (John 
 X. 22 sq.). 
 
 3 When our Lord left Jerusalem 
 is not mentioned or even implied, 
 but after the impious efforts directed 
 against His life, we may reasonably 
 conclude that it was immediately, — 
 the very day perhaps after the pre- 
 sent Sabbath, and thus with fully 
 sufficient time to reach Galilee and 
 Nazareth before the Sabbath which 
 succeeded : comp. Wieseler, Chron. 
 Synops. p. 222, 260 sq. 
 
143 
 
 The Early Judcean Ministry. 
 
 hands more savage and murderous*^ than those 
 even of the Pharisees of Jerusalem. — - — — 
 
 ft XjviIcg IV 
 
 With this return to Galilee, which is implied 28. 
 in the interval between the 5th and 6th chapters nation of 
 of St J ohn, and which has been supposed, though judLa^" 
 
 I cannot think correctly \ by a recent sacred chro- 
 nologer'^, as identical with the departure or return 
 to Galilee specified by all the three Synoptical 
 Evangelists^, — this portion of our history comes 
 to its conclusion. Mark i. 14; 
 
 Thus then what has been roughly termed the 14^ 
 Judaean ministry, — a ministry extending continu- 
 ously from the March to the December of the 
 preceding year (a. u.c. 781), — and resumed only to 
 be abruptly broken off in the March of the pre- 
 sent year (a. u.c. 782), — may be considered as now 
 practically ended ^ This is immediately succeeded 
 
 ^ See above, p. 129, note i, and 
 the beginning of the next Lecture, 
 where this question is noticed more 
 at length. 
 
 ^ See Wieseler, Chron. Synops. p. 
 161 sq., compared with p. 223. This 
 opportunity may properly be taken 
 of especially recommending to the 
 attention of every thoughtful stu- 
 dent, who may be acquainted with 
 the language in which it is written, 
 this able treatise on the succession 
 of the events in the Gospel-history. 
 The more recent Synopsis Evangelica 
 of Tischendorf is based nearly en- 
 tirely upon the researches and deduc- 
 tions of this keen-sighted writer, and 
 the present work owes a very large 
 part of what may be thought plau- 
 sible or probable in its chronological 
 arrangement to the same intelligent 
 guide. It is just to state that no- 
 thing has been accepted without 
 
 independent and very deliberate in- 
 vestigation, and that many modifi- 
 cations, and, as it would seem, recti- 
 fications have been introduced. The 
 clue, however, even where it has 
 been judged to lead off in a different 
 direction, has in most cases, I again 
 most gratefully acknowledge, either 
 been indicated or supplied by this 
 excellent work. A translation of it 
 would be a very welcome aid to the 
 general reader. 
 
 3 The short period of two months 
 which intervenes between the Feast 
 of Tabernacles and the Feast of the 
 Dedication was probably spent in 
 Judaea (see Lecture vi.), and thus 
 might properly be considered a por- 
 tion of the Judaean ministry. The 
 general reader, however, will find it 
 more convenient to regard the main 
 Judaean ministry as now past, the 
 Galilaean ministry as about to follow. 
 
144 
 
 The Early Judcean Ministry. 
 
 ministry in Galilee and in the neighbour- 
 
 . ^ ing districts to the North and East, — a ministry, 
 
 be it again observed, to which the principal portion 
 of the Synoptical Gospels, especially of the first 
 and second', is nearly exclusively confined. If we 
 only steadily bear in mind that the Synoptical 
 Gospels mainly relate to us the events of the 
 ministry in Galilee, the rough starting-point of 
 which is the Baptist’s captivity^, we shall, I ven- 
 ture to feel confident, find but little difficulty in 
 appreciating the true relations to one another of 
 the four Gospels, and in mastering the general 
 outline of the succeeding portions of the Evange- 
 lical narrative. 
 
 Conciud- And now let me close this lecture with the 
 mfrS and oamest prayer that these hasty and fleeting 
 sketches® may have in some degree served to 
 
 and to be succeeded by a period of 
 broken and interrupted ministra- 
 tions, of removals and journeys, 
 which terminate with the last Pass- 
 over: see above, Lect. ii. p. 39. 
 
 1 It seems necessary to make this 
 limitation, as the Gospel of St Luke 
 from the close of the 9th to the 
 middle of the 19th chapter, — a very 
 considerable portion of that Gospel, 
 — is occupied with notices of that 
 portion of our Lord’s ministry which 
 intervened between the Feast of Ta- 
 bernacles (October, A.u.c. 782) and 
 the triumphal entry into Jerusalem 
 just preceding the last Passover 
 (April, A.U.C. 783). 
 
 ^ See above, p. 129, note i. The 
 ancient tradition on which this very 
 reasonable opinion mainly rests is 
 cited below, p, 150, note i. The 
 reason why the Synoptical Evan- 
 gelists leave unnoticed the early mi- 
 
 nistry in Judaea cannot perhaps be 
 readily assigned. As, however, it 
 seems certain that nearly every sys- 
 tem of chronology must, in a greater 
 or less degree, concede the fact, we 
 may, with all humility and rever- 
 ence, perhaps hazard the opinion 
 that these Evangelists were specially 
 directed and guided mainly to con- 
 fine their narrative to the period of 
 the ministry in Galilee, — a period 
 so marked, not only by the founding 
 of the Church, but by the exhibition 
 of many and might}’- miracles, and 
 the communication of varied and 
 manifold forms of heavenly teach- 
 ing. Compare Wieseler, Chron. Syn- 
 ops. p. 261. 
 
 ^ This is the term which is most 
 appropriate to these Lectures, and 
 which would have appeared on the 
 very title-page if it had not been 
 deemed unsuitable to place a term, 
 
The Early Judwan Ministry. 145 
 
 bring this portion of the history of our Redeemer 
 before our minds with increased measures of fresh- 
 ness and coherence. Hard it has been, very hard, 
 to adjust the many questions of contested history; 
 harder still to know where to enlarge or where 
 to be brief only in unfolding the connexion of 
 events which are still regarded by the wise and 
 meditative as in uncertain dependence, or in more 
 than precarious sequence. Yet I trust all has not 
 been in vain; I trust that in you, my younger 
 brethren, more especially^, I have awakened some 
 desire to search the Scriptures, and to muse on 
 the events of your Redeemer’s life with a fresher 
 and more vital interest. Remember, I beseech 
 you, that though chronologies may seem perplex- 
 ing and events intermingled, yet still that every 
 earnest effort to bring before your hearts the 
 living picture of your Redeemer’s life will be 
 blessed by His Spirits Be not discouraged by 
 
 so purely belonging to mere human 
 things, in connexion with the most 
 holy name of Our Lord and Saviour 
 Jesus Christ. 
 
 ^ Some experience as a public 
 examiner in the New Testament, 
 both in this University and else- 
 where, has served to teach me that 
 few points connected with the expo- 
 sition of the four Gospels are less 
 known or less attended to, by the 
 young, than the study of the pro- 
 bable order of events, and the rela- 
 tions and degrees of interdependence 
 existing between the records of the 
 four inspired writers. 
 
 ^ It is well and truly observed by 
 Bishop Taylor, in his noble intro- 
 duction to his greatest work. The 
 9 Life of Christ, that every true and 
 
 E. H. L. 
 
 sincere effort to set before our souls 
 the life of our Master both ought 
 to, and, with God’s blessing, must 
 needs end in imitation. ‘He that 
 considers,’ says the Chrysostom of 
 our Church, in reference to one par- 
 ticular aspect of our Lord’s life, 
 ‘with what effusions of love Jesus 
 prayed ; what fervours and assiduity, 
 what innocency of wish, what mo- 
 desty of posture, what subordination 
 to His Father, and conformity to 
 the Divine pleasure, were in all His 
 devotions, is taught and excited to 
 holy and religious prayer. The rare 
 sweetness of His deportment in all 
 temptations and violences of His 
 passion. His charity to His enemies, 
 His sharp reprehension of the Scribes 
 and Pharisees, His ingenuity toward 
 
 10 
 
 LECT. 
 
 III. 
 
LECT. 
 
 111 . 
 
 ^ Luke 
 xvii. 5. 
 
 146 The Early Judcean Ministry. 
 
 the difficulty of the task : though here perchance 
 - we may wander, — there miss the right clue, yet 
 if with a true and living faith we seek to bring 
 home to our hearts the great features of the 
 Evangelical history, — to journey with our Master 
 over the lonely mountains of Galilee, to sit with 
 Him beside the busy waters of the lake of Genne- 
 sareth, — to follow His footsteps into remote and 
 half-pagan lands \ or to hang on His lips in the 
 courts of His Fathers house,— we shall not seek 
 in vain. 
 
 The history of the Gospels will be more and 
 more to us a living history; one Divine Image 
 ever waxing clearer and brighter, shedding its 
 light on lonely hours, coming up before us in soli- 
 tary walks,- — ever fresher, ever dearer, until at 
 length all things will seem so close, so near, so 
 true, that our faith in Jesus and Him crucified 
 will be such as no sophistry can weaken, no 
 doubtfulness beclouds 
 
 For that vivid interest in the history of Jesus 
 let us all pray to our heavenly Father, and in the 
 name of Him on whom we have been meditating, 
 let us conclude with the prayer of His chosen ones, 
 ^Lord, increase our faith 
 
 all men, are living and effectual 
 sermons to teach us patience, and 
 humility, and zeal, and candid sim- 
 plicity and justice in all our actions.’ 
 Life of Christ, Prelim. Exhort. § 15, 
 Vol. I. p. -25 (Lond. 1836). 
 
 ^ This striking and commonly 
 too much overlooked portion of our 
 Lord’s ministry will be found no- 
 ticed especially in Lect. V. 
 
 ^ For an expansion of these pass- 
 ing comments on the unspeakable 
 blessedness of this form of medi- 
 tative union with our adorable Sa- 
 viour, the student may profitably be 
 referred to one of the most eloquent 
 devotional treatises ever written in 
 our language,— the Christ Mystical 
 of Bp Hall {Works, Vol. vii. p. 225. 
 Talboys, 1837). 
 
LECTURE IV. 
 
 THE MINISTRY IN EASTERN GALILEE. 
 
 St Mark i. 14 . 
 
 Now after that John was put in prison, Jesus came into 
 Galilee, preaching the Gospel of the Kingdom of God. 
 
 In resuming my course of Lectures upon those 
 
 events in the Life of our Lord and Master which 
 
 are recorded to us in the Gospels it will be per- tion of tlie 
 haps well for me, both in consideration of the time 
 that has elapsed since my last Lecture \ and with 
 the remembrance that some may now be present 
 who did not hear the former portion of this course^, 
 so far to recapitulate as to remind you briefly 
 of our present position in the Gospel-history, and 
 of the events which appear to have just preceded 
 our present starting-point. 
 
 It may perhaps be remembered that our last 
 
 pitulation 
 
 meditations were devoted to what we agreed to term of the 
 
 our Lord’s early Judaean ministry^, — a ministry the Ju- 
 daean 
 ministry. 
 
 has seemed probable that, in a sub- 
 
 ^ The first three Lectures of this 
 course were delivered in the month 
 of April, the present and the two 
 following not till the succeeding Oc- 
 tober. The brief recapitulation in 
 the text could thus hardly be dis- 
 pensed with when so long an inter- 
 val had elapsed between the two 
 portions of the Course. In the form 
 in which the Lectures now appear it 
 is not so necessary ; as, however, it 
 
 ject like the present, a brief recapi- 
 tulation might be of benefit even to 
 the general reader, the Lecture has 
 been left in the same state in which 
 it was delivered. 
 
 2 This refers to the new comers in 
 the October Term. See the remarks 
 in Lecture i. p. ■2. 
 
 3 See Lecture ii. p. 39, and com- 
 pare p. 143, note 3. 
 
 10—2 
 
LEOT. 
 
 IV. 
 
 cli. iv. 15 
 
 148 The Ministry in Eastern Galilee. 
 
 which commenced with the cleansing of the 
 Temple at our Lord’s first Passover (March a.u.c. 
 781 )*, and extended continuously to the December 
 of that year when our Lord returned to Galilee 
 through Samaria, and performed the second and, 
 as it would seem, isolated miracle of healing the 
 son of the nobleman of Capernaum I It may be 
 further remembered that after a brief stay in 
 Galilee of which we have no further record than 
 the passing comment of St Luke, that GPe taught 
 in their synagogues, being glorified of alP,’^ and 
 
 ^ If the tables constructed by 
 Wieseler {Chron. Synops., p. 482 sq . ; 
 reprinted in Tischendorf, Synops. 
 Evany., p. li) on the basis of the 
 astronomical data supplied by Wurm 
 {Astron. Beitrage) are to be relied on 
 as exact, the first day of this Pass- 
 over, i. e. according to popular usage, 
 the 14th of Nisan, took place on the 
 29th of March. One day earlier 
 (March 28) is the date specified by 
 Browne {Onlo Seed. § 64), but the 
 Tables from which it appears to have 
 been derived (§ 448), are admitted 
 to involve sufficient error to account 
 for the difference : see the examples 
 on p. 497. 
 
 2 See above, Lect. Ill, p. 1 34. 
 
 ^ This text appears to illustrate, 
 if not confirm, the opinion previously 
 advanced (see above, p. 129, note i), 
 that the return of our Lord specified 
 by the three Synoptical Evangelists 
 (Matth. iv. 12, Marki. 14, Luke iv, 
 14) does not coincide with the inter- 
 val between the 5th and 6th chapters 
 of St John, but with the return 
 specified by that Evangelist in the 
 4th chapter. The words o? St Luke 
 just seem to give that passing no- 
 tice of the two-month residence in 
 Galilee, which preceded the Feast of 
 
 Purim, that we might naturally ex- 
 pect. The chief featui e which pro- 
 bably marked that period, — preach- 
 ing and teaching in the synagogues, 
 is briefly specified, while in the words 
 do^a^opeyos vwb irdvTOjv it is just pos- 
 sible that there may be an oblique 
 allusion to the miracle which we 
 know from St John (ch. iv. 4.4) was 
 performed during that interval. The 
 force of the main objection, — that 
 the synoptical niarrative does not 
 thus, as it would seem to profess to 
 do, commence immediately after that 
 return of our Lord to Galilee, but 
 really two months later, is thus so 
 far weakened, that when we further 
 observe — (a) that of two returns to 
 Galilee, St John pauses carefully to 
 specify one, and leaves the other 
 almost xmnoticed (comp, ch, vi. i), 
 and again {b) that in ch. v. 35 our 
 Lord seems to speak of John’s minis- 
 try as something now quite belong- 
 ing to the past, — it appears difficult 
 to resist the conviction that the 
 distinctly-mentioned dvaxeopri(Ti.s into 
 Galilee of the Synoptical writers, 
 immediately after John’s captivity, 
 is identical with the carefully speci- 
 fied journey recorded in the 4th 
 chapter of St J ohn : see Tischendorf, 
 
The Ministry in Eastern Galilee. 140 
 
 tlie similarly brief notices of St Matthew^ and 
 St Mark^ that the burden of that teaching was — ; 
 
 ^ a clu IV. I 
 
 repentance, our Lord went up to Jerusalem at the »>ch. i. 15. 
 time of a festival, which it was judged highly 
 probable was that of Purim, with the apparent 
 intention of staying over the Passover^, but that, 
 owing to the malignity of the more hostile sec- 
 tion of the Jews, He appears to have left the 
 city almost immediately, and again to have re- 
 turned to Galilee. 
 
 Here our present section begins, and with it 
 what may be termed the Lord s Galilaean or extra- 
 Judaean ministry, a ministry which in itself lasted 
 about six months, but which combined with the 
 journeys and interrupted ministries which suc- 
 ceeded, occupied as nearly ' as possible a single 
 year-, — the ^acceptable year' of that ancient pro- 
 
 Synopsis Evangelica, p. xxv., and 
 for the arguments (not very strong) 
 in favour of the identity of the 
 above return with that implied in 
 John vi. I, Wieseler, Chron. Synops. 
 p, 161 sq. The attempt of Lange 
 {Leben Jesu, Part ii.) and others to 
 interpolate a considerable portion of 
 the events of the present earlier 
 Galiisean ministry between the return 
 through Samaria, and the Feast of 
 Purim has been well considered, and 
 been found to involve chronological 
 diflaculties wholly insurmountable. 
 
 1 See above, p. 138, note 3. 
 
 2 The ministry of our Lord would 
 thus seem to have lasted about two 
 years and three months, i.e. from 
 His baptism at the close of 27 A.D. 
 (780A.U.C.) or beginning of 28 A.D. 
 to the last Passover in 30 A. d. The 
 opinions on this subject have been 
 apparently as much divided in an- 
 
 cient as in modern times. Several 
 early writers, among whom may 
 be specified Clement of Alexandria 
 (Strom. I. 21, § 145), Origen (de 
 Princip. iv. 5, in Levit. Horn, ix., 
 in Luc. Horn, xxxii. — but see below), 
 Archelaus of Mesopotamia (Routh, 
 Relig. Sacr., Vol. iv. p. 218), and, 
 according to apparently fair infer- 
 ences, Julius Africanus (Greswell, 
 DisseH. XIII. Vol. i. p. 46), suppose 
 our Lord’s ministry to have lasted 
 little more than one year. Others 
 again of equal or even greater anti- 
 quity, such as Melito of Sardis 
 (Routh, Reliq. Sacr. Vol. i. p. 115), 
 Irenseus (Hcer. ii. 39, — but see be- 
 low), and, according to correct in- 
 ferences, Tertullian (see Kaye, Eccl. 
 Hist. ch. II. p. 159, and comp. 
 Browne, Ordo Seed. § 86. 3), and, 
 later in life, Origen (Cels. ii. 12, 
 ou 5 e rpia ^Trj) have fixed the duration 
 
150 
 
 The Ministry in Eastern Galilee. 
 
 I.ECT. 
 
 IV. 
 
 " Isai. Ixi. 
 2 . 
 
 ^ Luke iv. 
 31 . 
 
 Two pre- 
 liminary 
 observa- 
 tions. 
 
 phecy^ which our Lord Himself proclaimed in the 
 synagogue at Nazareth as now receiving its ful- 
 filment ^ — the year to which a most trustworthy 
 tradition preserved by Eusebius confines the nar- 
 rative of the three Synoptical Gospels \ 
 
 Before we enter upon the details of the in- 
 spired history, let me pause to make two preli- 
 minary observations, the first in reference to the 
 space of time which it is convenient to consider 
 in the present Lecture, — the second in reference 
 to the variations of order in the events as related 
 in this portion of the Synoptical Gospels. 
 
 as three years, or, as Irenseus ( 1 . c.) 
 implies, even more. A calm consi- 
 deration of these and other passages 
 from early writers will show that 
 they cannot be strongly pressed on 
 either side. Several of them involve 
 references to prophecy, which in 
 some cases evidently swayed the 
 opinion of the writer (comp. Euseb. 
 Dem. Evang. viii. 400 b) ; some (as 
 the passage of Irenaeus) are called 
 out by the counter-opinion of here- 
 tics, while others again are mere 
 obiter dicta, that cannot fairly be 
 urged as giving a really deliberate 
 opinion. After a review of the 
 whole evidence the most reasonable 
 opinion, and one which tends in a 
 great degree to harmonize these ci- 
 tations, is this, — that the general 
 feeling of antiquity was that our 
 Lord’s entire ministry lasted for a 
 period, speaking roughly, of about 
 three years, but that the more active 
 part, i.e. that with which the sy- 
 noptical narrative practically com- 
 mences, lasted one. If this be cor- 
 rect, the statement at the beginning 
 of the note has to a certain extent 
 the united support of all antiquity, 
 and sufficiently nearly accords with 
 
 the three years of the significant 
 parable (Luke xiii. 6 sq.), which has, 
 perhaps rightly, been pressed into this 
 controversy; see Wieseler, Chron. 
 Synops. p. 202 ; and for further ge- 
 neral information, Greswell, Dissert. 
 XIII. Vol. I. p. 438 sq., Browne, 
 Ordo ScBcl. § 85 sq., and the acute 
 comments of Anger, de Temp, in 
 Act. A post. p. 23 sq. 
 
 ^ The valuable tradition above 
 alluded to is as follows : ‘ When the 
 three first written Gospels had been 
 now delivered into the hands of all, 
 and of John too as well, they say 
 that he approved of them and bore 
 witness to their truth, and that thus 
 all that the history lacked was an 
 account of the things done by Christ 
 at first and at the beginning of His 
 preaching. And the account is cer- 
 tainly true. For it is easily seen that 
 the other three Evangelists have 
 only written an account of what was 
 done by our Saviour in the space of 
 one year after the imprisonment of 
 John the Baptist, and that they have 
 .intimated the same at the beginning 
 of their history.’ Eusebius, Hist. 
 Eccl. III. 24 ; comp. Wieseler, Chron. 
 Synops. p. 163. 
 
151 
 
 The Ministry in Eastern Galilee. 
 
 With regard to the first point, we may observe 
 that we have now before us the events of a year 
 
 1 1 T • 1 1 1 exact 
 
 and a few days^, distributed, however, very un- period of 
 equally in the Gospel-narrative. Of the events bra^lun 
 of the first portion, which, as will be seen, areLecfurr^ 
 included in a period of little more than three 
 weeks, we have an ample and almost continuous 
 history ; of the events of the whole remaining 
 period (excluding the final week of our Lord's 
 ministry), more isolated and detached notices, and 
 a somewhat altered mode of narration . . . This 
 being the case, I venture to think that we shall 
 both distribute our incidents more equably, and, 
 what is more important, keep distinct from one 
 another portions of the Gospels which appear to 
 be dissimilar in their general characteristics ^ if on 
 the present occasion we confine ourselves solely to 
 the events of the three weeks above alluded to, 
 and reserve for the remaining Lectures the events 
 
 1 The first event is the rejection 
 of our Lord on his appearance in 
 the synagogue at Nazareth (Luke iv. 
 1 6). This we know was on a sab- 
 bath-day, the exact date of which, 
 — if Wieseler’s Tables (see above, p. 
 148, note 1) are fully to be relied on, 
 and if the Feast of Purim fell, as it 
 appears to have done, on the sabbath 
 when our Lord healed the man at 
 the pool of Bethesda (see Lect. iii. 
 p. 137), — would be March 26. The 
 Passover of the succeeding year we 
 learn from the same authority com- 
 menced on April 6. We have then 
 exactly a year and eleven days. 
 The calculation, by which the week- 
 day answering to any given date is 
 arrived at, will be greatly facilitated 
 by Tables IV. and v. in Browne’s 
 Ordo Seed. p. 502 sq. In the pre- 
 
 sent case it will be found by inde- 
 pendent computation that, as above 
 asserted, March 26 coincided with 
 a Saturday. 
 
 2 This statement will be substan- 
 tiated by the succeeding comments 
 upon the variations of order in the 
 first three Evangelists (p. 153), and 
 by the introductory remarks at the 
 commencement of Lecture IV. The 
 main points to be observed are that 
 up to the Feeding of the 5000 the 
 order of events in St Matthew ap- 
 pears intentionally modified, after 
 that period, mainly regular and sys- 
 tematic; and that up to the same 
 point St Luke is full and explicit, 
 while to the six months between 
 that period and the journey to Jeru- 
 salem at the Feast of Tabernacles 
 he only devotes about 30 verses. 
 
152 lice Ministry in Eastern Galilee. 
 
 I.KCT. 
 
 iV. 
 
 ® Jolui vi, 
 
 4- 
 
 The varia- 
 tions of 
 order in 
 the three 
 Synoptical 
 Gospels. 
 
 of the longer portion. The dividing epoch, let 
 it be observed, is that of the Feeding of the five 
 thousand, — an epoch by no means arbitrarily 
 chosen, but, as a brief chronological notice in St 
 John’s GospeF warrants our asserting, an epoch 
 closely coincident with that Passover of the present 
 year* which the savage and impious designs of 
 the Jewish party at Jerusalem appear to have pre- 
 vented our Lord from celebrating in the Holy 
 City 2. Estimating then roughly by festivals, our 
 present period extends from the Feast of Purim 
 (March 19, a.u. c. 782) to the Passover-eve (April 
 14), — at which point our present meditations will 
 conveniently come to their close. 
 
 With regard to the second point, — the order 
 of the events in these three weeks, let me briefly 
 observe that the period we are now engaged in 
 presents the utmost difficulty to the harmonist"*, 
 
 ^ This useful conciliatory date is 
 commented upon by Wieseler, Chron. 
 Synops. p. 273. To set aside the 
 words TO Trdaxa as a gloss (Mann, 
 True Year of our Lord's BiHh, p. 
 16 r ; comp. Browne, Ordo Seed. 
 § 89) is arbitrary, and not justified 
 by any external evidence, 
 
 ^ See above, p. 142, note i. 
 
 3 These discrepancies perhaps can 
 never be wholly cleared up, espe- 
 cially in those cases where there are 
 partial notes of place which augment 
 the already existing difficulties in 
 regard of time. To take an exam- 
 ple: in the case of the Healing of 
 the Leper recorded in the three 
 Synoptical Gospels, independent of 
 all the difficulties arising from the 
 difference in time, the scene of the 
 miracle as defined by St Matthew, 
 Kara^avTi aury dteb rod 6 povs, 
 
 (ch. viii. i) does not seem to accord 
 with the iv pud tQv iroXewu of St 
 Luke (ch. v. 12). We can of course 
 imagine several ways in which the 
 two accounts could be harmonized, 
 but we must be satisfied with merely 
 putting them forward as tentative 
 and conjectural. At first sight it 
 might be thought judicious in a case 
 like the present to consider the 
 special notice of St Matthew as 
 contrasted with the more general 
 notices of St Mark and St Luke as 
 definitely fixing both the time and 
 }-l me (comp. Alford on Mattli. viii. 2), 
 out a remembrance of the principle 
 of grouping, which appears almost 
 evidently to have been followed in 
 this portion of the record of the first 
 Evangelist (comp. Lecture i, p. 21), 
 warns us at once that all such eclec- 
 tic modes of harmonizing can never be 
 
The Ministry in Eastern Galilee. 153 
 
 arising from this simple fact, that though all the 
 first three Evangelists record more or less the 
 same facts, St Matthew relates them in an order 
 so signally and palpably different from that adopt- 
 ed by St Mark and St Luke, — that all efforts 
 to combine the two must be pronounced simply 
 hopeless^. Either for those three weeks we must 
 accept the order of St Matthew and adapt that of 
 St Mark and St Luke to it, or we must adopt 
 the converse course. The third alternative, that 
 of constructing a harmony of our own out of all 
 three, — an alternative that has only too often been 
 adopted by the ingenious and the speculative, — is 
 in a high degree precarious, and as far as I am 
 able to judge, has not led to any other than 
 debateable and unsatisfactory results. 
 
 Without here entering into details which deli- 
 vered orally would prove both wearisome and per- 
 plexing', I will simply say, that after long and 
 
 relied on, and that even with St Mat- 
 thew’s accessory definitions the order 
 of the events he relates must to the 
 last remain a matter of uncertainty. 
 
 ^ Let the student either make for 
 himself, with the proper notes of time 
 and place, three lists of the events 
 in their order as related by the first 
 three Evangelists, or refer to those 
 drawn up by otliers, as, for instance, 
 by Wieseler {Chron. Synops. pp. 280, 
 297), Browne {Ordv Seed. § 586), or 
 any of the better harmonizers of this 
 portion of the inspired narrative, 
 and he will feel the truth of this re- 
 mark. For example, if i 26 re-' 
 
 present in order the events of this 
 period as collected from St Mark 
 and St Luke, the order in St Mat- 
 thew will be found as follows: i, 2, 
 
 3, 5. 6, 13, 4, 19, 20, 7, 8, 21, 
 
 ^3, 15, 9» ‘8, 17, 22, 25, 26. 
 
 Such a result speaks for itself. 
 
 2 To conduct such an inquiry 
 properly, we must endeavour (a) to 
 form a correct idea of the general 
 object of the Gospel in question, and 
 to observe how far this admits of 
 its being made the basis of a regular 
 and continuous Gospel-history; (6) 
 to collect all the passages which in 
 any degree indicate the principles, 
 anecdotal or historical, on which the 
 Evangelist appears to have drawn 
 up his narrative; (c) to note care- 
 fully the nature and amount of the 
 irregularities which can be detected, 
 — either from a comparison of dif- 
 ferent portions of the same Gospel 
 with one another, or with parallel 
 
 LECT. 
 
 IV. 
 
 The order 
 of St Mark 
 and 
 
 St Luke 
 followed in 
 these 
 Lectures. 
 
154 
 
 The Ministry in Eastern Galilee. 
 
 careful consideration, and with a full sense of the 
 
 great responsibility of making distinct assertions 
 
 on such difficult questions before an audience 
 like the present, I have come to the determina- 
 tion of following the order of events as given by 
 St Mark and St Luke rather than that given 
 by St Matthew — and that for these general but 
 First rea- Weighty reasous. First, that in cases of clear 
 discrepancy in the order of narration between two 
 of the sacred writers, we seem bound to follow the 
 one who himself tells us^ if words mean anything, 
 that it has been his care to draw up his history 
 with general reference to the order of events... 
 Second Secondly, that the order of St Luke in the first 
 
 reason. 
 
 accounts in the other Gospels ; to 
 classify the notes of time and place, 
 and to observe where they are pre- 
 cise and definitive, and where merely 
 vague and indefinite ; lastly, (e) to in- 
 vestigate the nature of the formulae 
 which link together the successive 
 paragraphs, and to distinguish be- 
 tween those which mark immediate 
 connexion, and those which indi- 
 cate mere general sequence. The 
 first of these heads is partially illus- 
 trated in Lect. i. p. 20 : the rest 
 are best left to independent observa- 
 tion. If assistance be needed ; in 
 reference to (&), see Davidson, Inirod. 
 to N. T. Vol. I. p. 56, or Credner, 
 Einleitung, § 37, p. 63 sq.; in ref. to 
 (c), Greswell, Dissert, iii. Vol. i. p. 
 ^95 sq. ; in ref. to {d), the table in 
 Wieseler, Cliron. Synops. p. 297 sq. ; 
 and in ref. to (e), Ebrard, Kritik 
 der Ev. GeseJi. § 23, pp. 88 — 94. 
 
 1 The exact meaning of some of 
 the expressions in this introduction, 
 especially dir dpxvs> irapyKoXovOrj- 
 k6ti, dvuiOev, and most of all Kad- 
 
 e^rjs, has been abundantly discussed. 
 The most correct view seems to be 
 as follows ; that dpx^ refers to the 
 beginning of the irpayp-aTuu previ- 
 ously alluded to, scil. rdv davyLarcov 
 Kai r<2v Trpayp.dT03v, Euthymius in 
 loc.; that irapyKoXovdyKori, in ac- 
 cordance both with its use and de- 
 rivation, marks research as evinced 
 in tracing along, and as it were 
 mentally accompanying the events 
 in question ; that dvwdev refers to a 
 commencement from the very be- 
 ginning, — from the birth of the 
 Baptist; and lastly that Kade^ys,\\ke 
 €<p€^y$, can only imply an adhe- 
 rence to the natural order of the 
 events related, — e|^s, ws ^/cacrra iyD 
 v€To, Thucyd. ii. i, v. 26: see Meyer, 
 in loc., and compare Greswell, Dis- 
 sert. I. Vol. I. p. 9. In a word, in 
 this preface we are assured by the 
 inspired writer that we are to ex- 
 pect in what follows, fidelity, accu- 
 racy, research, and order, — and we 
 find them: compare Lange, Lehen 
 Jesu, I. 6. 3. Introd. p. 220. 
 
lliG Ministry in Eastern Galilee, 155 
 
 part of our present portion is strikingly confirmed 
 
 by the order of events in St Mark, from which 
 
 it only differs in two or three instances^, which 
 have been satisfactorily accounted for and ad> 
 justed... that the chronology of St Luke Third rea- 
 
 in this portion of the Gospel history can be shown 
 to harmonize with that supplied indirectly by St 
 John in a very striking Fourthly ^ that Fourth 
 
 the seeming want of order in St Matthew can be 
 very readily accounted for by observing that, in 
 this portion of his Gospel, the Evangelist appears 
 to have wittingly adopted a peculiar arrangement, 
 viz. a separation into different groups of the dis- 
 courses of our Lord and the historical events with 
 which they stood in connexion, and that such 
 an arrangement almost necessarily precludes strict 
 chronological adjustments. However perplexing 
 we may deem such a phenomenon in a Gospel that 
 in other parts appears mainly to follow a regu- 
 lar and chronological order, — however we may 
 be tempted to speculate on the causes which led 
 to it^, this much appears certain, that such an 
 
 1 These. are, the calling of the 
 four Apostles (Luke v. i — ir, com- 
 pared with Mark i. i6 — 20), the 
 arrival of the mother and brethren 
 of our Lord (Luke viii. 19 — 21, 
 compared with Mark iii. 31 — 35), 
 and apparently the calumnies of the 
 Pharisees (Mark iii, 20 sq., com- 
 pared with Luke xi. 1 7 sq.), and the 
 parable of the Grain of Mustard 
 (liuke xiii. 18 sq., compared with 
 Markiv. 30 sq.) — though both these 
 might well have been repeated on 
 two different occasions. For a good 
 adjustment of the two main differ- 
 ences, see Wieseler, Chron, Synops. 
 
 p. 284 sq., and in respect of the first 
 of them, compare also Augustine, de 
 Consens. Ev. ii, 17, and Spanheim, 
 Bui). Evang. lxii. 2, p. 341 sq. 
 
 2 For a careful investigation into 
 the confirmatory elucidations of the 
 order of this portion of St Luke’s 
 Gospel as supplied by that of St 
 John, see Wieseler, Chron. Synops. 
 III. 2 A, p. 271 sq. 
 
 3 Though it is ever both unwise 
 and unbecoming to speculate too 
 freely about the origin and compo- 
 sition of an inspired document, the 
 opinion may perhaps be hazarded 
 that this peculiarity in St Matthew’s 
 
15G 
 
 The Ministry in Eastern Galilee. 
 
 LECT. 
 
 IV. 
 
 arrangement does exist and can be easily verified, 
 if we examine the peculiar structure of the portion 
 of the Gospel which begins with the fifth and 
 closes with the thirteenth chapter. We see for 
 example, that on the one hand we have three large 
 portions containing discourses, viz. the Sermon on 
 the Mount, the apparently grouped and collected 
 instructions which our Lord addressed to the 
 Twelve previous to their mission, and the collec- 
 tion of the parables in the thirteenth chapter^; 
 and, on the other hand, that we have a large col- 
 lection of miracles related in the eighth and ninth 
 
 Gospel may be due to the incorpo- 
 ration by the Evangelist of an 
 earlier (Hebrew) narrative in this 
 later and more complete (Greek) 
 Gospel. If such a conjecture be 
 received, we can not only explain 
 the present peculiarity, but can also 
 account for, on the one hand, the 
 positive statements of antiquity that 
 the first Evangelist composed his 
 Gospel originally in Hebrew (Papias 
 ap. Euseb. Hist. Eccl. ill. 39, Ire- 
 nseus, Hcer. iii. i, ah), and on the 
 other, the universal reception of the 
 Greek Gospel as the veritable and 
 undoubted work of the Evange- 
 list: see Wieseler, Synops. p. 304. 
 The portion to which we are allud- 
 ing may thus have been a part of 
 the \byLa which Papias says were 
 drawn up by St Matthew, and the 
 meaning of the doubtful word 
 Xoyta may be so far correctly modi- 
 fied, as to point to a predominance 
 in that treatise of the rd i^7r6 Xpi- 
 CTOv Xex^eVra over the y irpaxdhra 
 which appears also included in the 
 term; see above, Lect. i. p. 12, 
 note 2. That St Matthew origi- 
 nally wrote in Hebrew can scarcely 
 be doubted if we are to place any 
 
 reliance on external testimony, and 
 that the present Greek Gospel came 
 from his hand, and not from that of 
 an editor or compiler, seems almost 
 equally clear from internal and ex- 
 ternal testimony combined; — how 
 then can we adjust the two appa- 
 rent facts without assuming an ear- 
 lier and a later treatise ? And if so, 
 is it strange that the first should 
 have been incorporated in the se- 
 cond, and thus so effectually super- 
 seded as to have soon passed out 
 of notice. The pretensions of the 
 Curetonian Syriac (as put forward 
 by its laborious editor) to represent 
 more nearly the words of St Mat- 
 thew than any other extant docu- 
 ment would in some degree affect 
 the present question, if it had not 
 apparently been demonstrated that 
 such pretensions are untenable; see, 
 thus far, the recent investigation of 
 Roberts, Original Lang, of St Mat- 
 tlieid’s Gospel, ch, iv. 3, p. 122 sq., 
 and compare Donaldson, New Crat. 
 § 15, p. 23, note (ed. 3). 
 
 ' For a brief notice of these, see 
 Lect, I. p. 2r, note 2, and for a 
 specification of the miracles in the 
 8th and 9th chapters, ih., note 3. 
 
The Ministry in Eastern Galilee. 157 
 
 chapters, which comprise, with scarcely any excep- 
 tion, the scattered events of the period preceding 
 the sending out of the Twelve, — after which the 
 narrative proceeds in strict chronological order... 
 When we add to this the concluding observation, 
 that singularly enough, we find in several in- 
 stances careful notices of place exactly where the 
 order of time seems most disarranged^, it seems 
 almost impossible to resist the conviction that the 
 first Evangelist was by no means unacquainted 
 with the correct order of events, but that he de- 
 signedly departed from it, and directed his first 
 attention to his Master’s preaching during this 
 momentous period, and then grouped together the 
 nearly contemporary events and miracles^ with 
 such notices of place as should guard against any 
 possibility of misconception. 
 
 Eelying on these sound and apparently con- 
 vincing reasons for following the order of St Mark 
 and St Luke rather than that of St Matthew, let 
 us now again take up the thread of the inspired 
 narrative. 
 
 ^ Compare for example ch. viii. 5, 
 dcre\9ovTi di auT<p els KcLTepvaoi/j.; 
 ver. 14, eXdiav ets r^v oiKcau Her pod; 
 ver. 18, ets to iripav; ver. 28, eKdovri 
 Cl’s TO irepau ets tt]v -xxhpav tCjV rep7e- 
 crjvCiv; ch. ix. i , -^XOeu ets tt]v ioiav 
 TTokiv; ch. xii. 9, ^Xdev ets t^v avva- 
 ytoy^v avTujv; xiii. i, e^eXdibu awb 
 T^s ot/ci'as eKadrjTO irapa rrjv 6dXa(T- 
 aav. See also Wieseler, Chron. Sy- 
 nops. p, 307. 
 
 2 The want of regularity in St 
 Matthew’s Gospel, arising from this 
 mode of construction, is acknow- 
 ledged by nearly all impartial in- 
 quirers of recent times ; see Gres- 
 
 well, Dissert, m. p. 194 — 238; 
 Browne, Ordo Seed. § 590, — whose 
 theory of a Redactor, however, is 
 neither satisfactory nor plausible. 
 Att-eation was formerly called to it 
 by Lightfoot {Harmony, Vol. i. p. 
 503, Roterod. 1686), and also by 
 Whiston {Harmony of Gospels, p. 
 100 sq., Bond. 1702), but accounted 
 for by the latter in a way (mis- 
 arrangement by a translator of fi-ag- 
 mentary scraps) which Browne (p. 
 644, note) properly designates as 
 palpably absurd. He was answered 
 by Jones, Vindic. of St Matih. 
 Loud. 1719. 
 
 LECT. 
 
 IV. 
 
158 
 
 The Ministry in Eastern Galilee. 
 
 LECT. 
 
 IV. 
 
 Appear- 
 ance of our 
 Lord in the 
 synagogue 
 at Naza- 
 retli. 
 
 “ Luke iv. 
 
 i6. 
 
 ver. i6. 
 
 ® ver. 1 6. 
 
 After a hasty departure from Jerusalem our 
 Lord returns to his old home at Nazareth, where 
 some, if not all, of the kindred of the Lord appear 
 to have been still residing h and on the Sabbath- 
 day which immediately succeeded His return en- 
 tered into the Synagogue^, as had now become His 
 custom’^, to read and to teach... What a vivid 
 picture has the inspired Evangelist St Luke been 
 moved to present to us of that memorable morn- 
 ing. Prayer and the reading of the law was now 
 over"" and the reading of the prophets was to begin, 
 and the reading of the season was from the old 
 Evangelist Isaiah. The Pedeemer stands up to 
 read^, and with the sanction of the now not im- 
 probably expectant ruler of that house of prayer^. 
 
 1 It has been supposed that the 
 Virgin and her family had retired 
 to Cana (see above, p. 105, note i), 
 but apparently not on sufficient 
 grounds. That the abekcpal of 
 the Lord were now living at Naza- 
 reth seems certain from Matth. xiii. 
 56, Mark vi. 3, and that the Virgin 
 and the brethren were there also is 
 not improbable. The way, however, 
 in which the residence of the dSeX- 
 (})al is specified seems rather to imply 
 the contrary, and may lead us to 
 conjecture that the Virgin and her 
 other kindred were now at Caper- 
 naum, — a place which they might 
 have selected for their abode a 
 year before (John ii. 12) : consider 
 Matth xii. 46 sq., Mark hi. 31 sq., 
 Luke yiii. 19 sq., and John vii. 3. 
 The commonly assumed identity of 
 this visit to Nazareth with that men- 
 tioned Matth. xiii. 54 sq., Mark vi. 
 1 sq., is convincingly disproved by 
 Wieseler, Citron. Syvops. p. 284. 
 
 ^ The service of the Synagogue 
 
 commenced with praise and prayer; 
 then a portion of the law was read 
 aloud, and after this a portion from 
 the prophets; see Jost, Gesch. cles 
 Judenth. ii. i. 6, Vol. i. p. 173 sq,, 
 the special treatise of Vitringa {de 
 Synag.), the more modern work 
 of Zunz {Gottesdienst. Vortrdge der 
 Juden. p. 329, sq.), and for useful re- 
 ferences illustrative of the whole 
 passage, compare Lightfoot, Hor. 
 Hebr. Vol. ii. p. 508 sq. (Koterod. 
 1686). 
 
 ^ It would appear that our Lord 
 by^ rising indicated that, as a mem- 
 ber of the Synagogue of Nazareth, 
 He desired on the present occasion 
 to undertake the office of Maplttir^ 
 or reader of the lesson from the pro- 
 phets ; comp. Vitringa, de Synag. 
 III. I. 7, Part II. p. 696 sq. Though 
 not called upon by the ruler of the 
 Synagogue (comp. Mishna, Tract 
 ‘ Megillah,’ IV, 4), assent is at once 
 given, as both the ruler and the 
 congregation appear to have lieard 
 
The 'Ministry in Eastern Galilee. 150 
 
 the roll is delivered to Him by the attendant. He 
 
 unfolds it and reads that striking passage which 
 
 His own divine wisdom and foreknowledge had 
 moved Him to select h — that passage which both 
 in its specifications of time*^ and circumstances ver. 19; 
 was now being so exactly fulfilled. 
 
 Such words might Avell have aroused the at- The im- 
 tention of those that heard it, nor can we wonder quei 
 that our Lord’s explanations^ were loooked for 
 with interest^, and at first received with a kind of’^ver. 20 . 
 amazed approvals But what a fearful sequel ! *= ver. 22. 
 When grave yet gracious words of warning^ were 
 directed against those feelings of distrust and 
 
 of the comparatively recent miracle 
 at Capernaum (Luke iv. 23 ; comp. 
 Wieseler, Chron. Synops. p. '271), 
 and as the context shews (ver. 20), 
 were full of expectation ; see Light- 
 foot, in loc. Vol. II. p. 508. 
 
 1 It seems probable that the read- 
 ing of the season was from Isaiah 
 (Lightfoot), and that our Lord re- 
 ceived accordingly that portion of 
 Scripture from the attendant keeper 
 of the sacred books (comp. Vitringa, 
 Synagog. iii. 2.2, p. 899), but that, 
 with the privilege which the oral 
 law conceded in the case of the lesson 
 from the prophets {MisJina, * Megil- 
 lah,’iv. 4), He either passed over from 
 the section of the day to the begin- 
 ning of the 61st chap., or else as 
 ‘Lord of the Sabbath,’ specially se- 
 lected that portion ; see Lightfoot, 
 Hor. Hebr. Vol. ii. p. 509, and 
 comp. Meyer, in loc. The supposi- 
 tion, that on our Lord’s opening the 
 roll this passage providentially met 
 His eye (comp. De Wette), is not im- 
 probable, but apparently less in ac- 
 cordance with the dvaiTTv^as, which, 
 as Lightfoot remarks, seems some- 
 
 thing more than the mere ‘explicuit 
 or aperuit librum’ (I. c. p. 510). 
 
 2 After having read such a por- 
 tion of the passage as by custom 
 was deemed sufficient (‘si fuerit 
 Sabbato interpres, legunt in Pro- 
 pheta versiculos tres aut quinque 
 aut septem, et non sunt solliciti de 
 versiculis viginti uno,’ Massecheth 
 Soph. cap. 12), our Lord took upon 
 Himself the office of interpreter, and 
 according to custom sat down to 
 perform it; comp. Zunz, Gottesd. 
 Vortrdge der Juden. p. 337, and 
 Sepp, Lehen Christi, ii. 10, Part ii. 
 p. 122. 
 
 ^ The objections that have been 
 urged against the general character 
 of this address are most idle and 
 irreverent. Our Lord, who knew 
 the human heart, saw here unbelief, 
 and the ordinary Galilsean estimate 
 of His divine mission (John iv. 45) 
 in their worst forms, and accord- 
 ingly adopts the language of mer- 
 ciful warning and reproof. On the 
 whole incident, see some useful com- 
 ments in Lange, Leben Jesu, ii. 4. 9, 
 Part II. p. 541 sq. 
 
160 
 
 The Ministry in Eastern Galilee. 
 
 LECT. 
 
 IV. 
 
 “ ver. ■29. 
 
 ^ ver. 30. 
 
 Departure 
 to, and 
 abode at 
 Caper- 
 naum. 
 
 * Isaiah ix. 
 
 I sq. 
 
 unbelief into which even now these dull-hearted 
 men of Nazareth were fast falling back again, we 
 remember with horror what followed, — how these 
 wretched men dared to do what even the gain- 
 sayers at J erusalem a week before had only begun 
 to think of doing, how they thrust Him forth not 
 only from their synagogue and their town^, but 
 led Him to a neighbouring declivity, which modern 
 travellers have not doubtfully identified^, to cast 
 Him down headlong, and how by an exercise of 
 His divine power He escaped^ their impious and 
 vengeful hands. 
 
 Henceforth that quiet home in the bosom of 
 the green hills of Galilee was no longer to be the 
 Lord’s earthly resting place. His divine steps were 
 now turned to more busy scenes, and in accord- 
 ance with the voice of ancient prophecy‘s, to the 
 
 1 The exact place to which these 
 wi’etched and infatuated people en- 
 deavoured to lead our Lord was 
 certainly not the traditional Mount 
 of Precipitation overlooking the vale 
 of Esdraelon and two miles distant, 
 but apparently one of the precipices 
 of the western hill which flanks the 
 town, — perhaps that by the present 
 Maronite Church : see Pobinson, 
 Palestine, Vol. ii. p. 335 (ed. 'i)-, 
 and compare Stanley, Sinai and 
 Palestine, p. 363 (ed. 2), Thomson, 
 The Land and the Booh, Vol. ii. p. 
 135. In the photograph of Frith 
 {Syria and Palestine, Part ii.) this 
 portion of the western hill is not 
 included : see Roberts, Holy Lemd, 
 Vol. II. Plate 29. 
 
 ^ There does not seem sufficient 
 reason for assuming with Robinson 
 and others that in this there was no 
 exercise of that miraculous power 
 
 which most of the ancient writers 
 (Ambrose, Euthymius, al.) recog- 
 nize in our Lord’s thus passing 
 through the infuriated throngs so 
 also and rightly, Alford in he. In 
 all these things He manifested alike 
 the exercise of His divine w'isdom 
 and His divine power ; of the former 
 in defining the time in which He 
 vouchsafed to suffer, and of the 
 latter in preventing that time being 
 hurried by the impiety and violence 
 of men. As Cyril of Alexandria 
 well says, ‘ it depended on Him to 
 suffer, or not to suffer; for He is 
 the Lord of times as w'ell as of 
 things.’ Comment on St Liike, Part 
 I. p. 64, — where, however, it is just 
 to observe that there is no distinct 
 reference to an exercise of mira- 
 culous power, but rather of over- 
 awing m.ajesty : so also Lange, Lehcn 
 Jesn, II. 4. 9, Part II. p. 54R. 
 
The, Ministry in Eastern Galilee. 
 
 161 
 
 people that sat in the darkness the Light came; 
 
 and in Capernaum, at but little distance^ from 
 
 tlmt fair and populous plain of ^ Gennesar’ which 
 a nearly contemporary visitor has so eloquently 
 described^, the rejected One of Nazareth found 
 
 a more thankful and believing home More 
 
 thankful, and more believing ; for not perhaps four disci- 
 without a fresh recollection of the miracle per-^^®^‘ 
 formed on one who had lain sick among them a 
 few weeks before^, the people we are told by St^Johniv. 
 Luke ^pressed upon Him to hear the word of^^* 
 God^;’ and we may well conceive that it was not^'ch. v. i. 
 without the deep consciousness and foreknowledge 
 of the active ministry that was now to be vouch- 
 safed amid the populous towns of Gennesareth^, 
 that He called the four disciples, who had already 
 been with Him for above a year, to leave, on this 
 occasion, for ever their earthly occupations, and to 
 become the 'fishers of men^’ And we know hoW= 
 
 lO. 
 
 readily that call was obeyed; we know how St 
 Peter and his brother, and the two sons of Thun- 
 
 ^ As to the supposed position of 
 Capemaum, see Lect. iii. p. 12 1, 
 note 2. 
 
 2 See Josephus, Bell. Jud. Iii. 10. 
 8, — according to Robinson {Pales- 
 tine, Vol. II. p, 402), an overdrawn 
 picture. Thomson, with more judg- 
 ment, draws a distinction between 
 what the land then was, and what 
 it has become now : comp. The Land 
 and the Booh, Vol. i. p. 536. 
 
 3 A very good description of what 
 was probably the state of this popu- 
 lous district in the time of our Lord 
 is given by Stanley, Sinai and Pa- 
 lestine, p. 371 sq.'(ed. 2). The re- 
 mark that ^it was to the Roman 
 Palestine almost what the manufac- 
 
 turing districts are to England,’ is 
 apparently borne out by the indi- 
 rect allusions in the inspired narra- 
 tive to the populous nature of the 
 district, and by what we can infer 
 from the ruins which are still found 
 scattert :1 about on the western shores 
 of the lake : compare Robinson, Pa- 
 lestine, Voi. II. p. 403. The traces 
 of buildings which appear to have 
 been used in the operations of trade, 
 and may be the remains of ancient 
 potteries, tanneries^ &c. have been 
 observed by Dr Thomson at Tabiga, 
 — which he terms ‘ the and manu- 
 facturing suburb of Capernaum.’ 
 The Land and the Booh, Vol. i. 
 V- 547 - 
 
 E. H. L. 
 
 11 
 
162 The Ministry in Eastern Galilee. 
 
 der, wrought upon by that miracle that showed 
 — how the creatures that the hand of the Lord had 
 «Lukev. made could gather together at His wilL, — that 
 miracle that brought the impressible Peter on his 
 ‘'ver. 9. knees’, and filled all with amazement ^ — obeyed 
 the heavenly voice, and left father and earthly 
 callings, nets and vessels, forsook all, and followed 
 Him^ 
 
 Healing of Tliis prompt adhosion of men so well known in 
 nia^irthe Capemaum as two at least of the four must have 
 been^, this ready giving up of everything to follow 
 naum. Jesus of Nazareth, could not have been without 
 its effect on the people of Capernaum and its 
 neighbourhood. The report too of the miracle, 
 though perhaps as yet not fully understood or 
 
 ' The effect which the miracle 
 produced on St Peter is well com- 
 mented upon by Olshausen (in loc. 
 Vol. I. p. 299, Clark), and by Ewald, 
 Gesch. Ch'utus', p. 252. The con- 
 trast between his own conscious un- 
 holiness and the holy majesty and 
 power of Him who had just wrought 
 the mighty miracle made the fervid 
 disciple both on the one hand offer 
 his spontaneous adoration, and on 
 the other to beseech his pure sinless 
 Lord to depart from one who felt 
 and knew in his own bosom what 
 sin was. On the whole miracle, see 
 Olshausen, Commentary, Vol. i. p. 
 292 sq. (Clark) ; Trench, Miracles, 
 p. 126; and compare Lange, Leben 
 Jesu, II. 4. II, Part ii. p. 562 sq. 
 
 2 There seems no reason for doubt- 
 ing that the call of the four disciples 
 mentioned by St Matthew (ch. iv. 
 18 sq.) and St Mark (ch. i. 16 sq.) 
 was contemporaneous with the above 
 call mentioned by St Luke. The 
 only difficulty is, that St Luke makSs 
 
 it subsequent to the healing of the 
 demoniac, and of St Peter’s mother- 
 in-law, while St Mark places it be- 
 fore. The order of the latter is 
 confirmed by St Matthew, and dis- 
 tinctly to be preferred, especially as 
 the change of order in St Luke can 
 be partly accounted for by the desire 
 of the Evangelist to place in imme- 
 diate contrast the reception in the 
 synagogue at Cana, with the rejec- 
 tion a week • before at Nazareth : 
 see Wieseler, Chron. Synops. p. 285 
 sq. 
 
 ^ From the notice of the hired 
 servants (Mark i. 20), the two ves- 
 sels employed (Luke v. 7), and the 
 subsequent mention of St John’s 
 acquaintance with one in so high a 
 position as the high-priest (John 
 xviii. 15), it has been reasonably 
 inferred that Zebedee, if not a 
 wealthy man (Jerome, in Matih. iv. 
 12, opp. to Chrysi in Joann. Horn. 
 II. i), was at any rate of some posi- 
 tion in Capernaum. 
 
The Ministry in Eastern Galilee, 
 
 1G3 
 
 appreciated, had probably soon passed from mouth 
 
 to mouth, among the fishers and boatmen on the 
 
 lake, and might well have added to the pre- 
 vailing expectation and excitement. We may 
 readily imagine then the eagerness and gladness 
 with which on the following Sabbath^ the Re- “ Mark i. 
 deemer’s preaching was listened to in the syna- 
 gogue, and we know the mighty effect that was 
 produced by it, enhanced as it was by the sub- 
 sequent healing of the demoniac within its wallsb 
 ...How startling must have been that scene when 
 the spirits of darkness, driven by the wild anta- 
 gonisms of their fears ^ and malignities, broke out 
 amid that mingled concourse into cries alike of 
 reprobation and of confession^, ^Let us alone — I 
 know thee who thou art; the Holy One of God^’^Marki. 
 What amazement was there then when those Luke iv. 
 frightful voices were silenced, and the wretched 
 sufferer, whose frail body had been the tenement 
 of those hellish occupants, though rent and con- 
 vulsed by the final paroxysm"^, yet a moment ^ Mark i. 
 
 1 See especially Mark i. 27 {Tisch.), 
 in which this amazement both at 
 the teaching and the miracle is ex- 
 pressed in the strongest terms : — Ti 
 
 icTiv TOVTO ; didax^ Kar' e^ou- 
 
 clav' Kal rots Trueufj-aaiu rots aKaddp- 
 Tois eTTiTdcrcxei, Kal WaKodovaiv avT<p. 
 
 2 In the circumstances connected 
 with this and other miracles per- 
 formed on demoniacs, three things 
 are worthy of notice: (i) the lost 
 consciousness of personality on the 
 part of the sufferer, the man becom- 
 ing, as it were, identified with, and 
 at times the mouthpiece of the devil 
 within him (Mark v, 7, Luke viii. 
 28); (2) the terror-stricken recog- 
 nition on the part of the devils of 
 
 Jesus as the Son of God and their 
 future Judge (Matth. viii. 29, Mark 
 iii. IT, V. 7, Luke viii. 28), — en- 
 hanced in the present narrative by 
 the awful ^a! (Luke iv. 34) of the 
 recoiling demon ; (3) the prohibition 
 from speaking on the part of our 
 Lord (Mark i. 34, iii. 12, Luke iv. 
 41), — possibly that the multitude 
 might not believe in their Redeemer 
 on the testimony of devils: comp. 
 Cyril Alex, on Luke iv. 41, Part i. 
 p. 71 (Transl.). Hence, perhaps, 
 the omission of the prohibition in 
 the case of the demoniacs of Gadara 
 or Gergesa, when only those were 
 present whose faith was already firm, 
 and convictions true and settled. 
 
 11—2 
 
164 The Ministry in Eastern Galilee, 
 
 LECT. 
 
 IV. 
 
 “ Luke iv. 
 
 36. 
 
 ^ Luke vi. 
 
 7 - 
 
 ® Matt. xii. 
 ^ 4 - 
 
 Mark iii. 
 22. 
 
 Luke iv. 
 
 37. 
 
 ® Mark i. 
 28: see 
 Meyer. 
 
 Continued 
 perform- 
 ance of 
 miracles on 
 the same 
 day. 
 
 ^ Mark i. 
 29. 
 
 s ver. 29. 
 
 afterwards stood both freed and unharmed^ before 
 themb There were as yet none among those 
 simple-hearted men to object to healings on the 
 Sabbath’^. There were as yet none to make the 
 blasphemous assertion that such power after all 
 was only due to some league with the prince of 
 those spirits*^ that had been commanded with such 
 authority, and had obeyed with such terror. These 
 men of Capernaum had no such doubts ; they saw 
 and believed, yea and as two Evangelists record, 
 soon spread the fame of the great Healer not only 
 through all the neighbouring villages and towns 
 but in all the regions round about Galilee®. 
 
 But the wonders of this first Sabbath at Caper- 
 naum, this day of which the events are so specially 
 and so minutely told us by two Evangelists, had 
 not yet come to their close. Immediately after 
 that amazing scene in the synagogue, probably 
 about mid- day our Lord with His four freshly- 
 called disciples round Him^, enters into the com- 
 mon dwelling of two of the number^, and gra- 
 ciously vouchsafes to that small home-circle, on 
 the person of the mother-in-law of St Peter, ano- 
 ther merciful display of those healing powers, of 
 
 ^ For further comments on this the two brothers was mid-day: ^/cr?; 
 miracle, see Trench, p. 230, <lipa Kad' tols (rd^^aaiv dpiaro' 
 
 and for some thoughtful observa- iroLeXadai vopupiov iarlv ijpuv. Be Vita 
 tions on the case of demoniacal pos- Sua, cap. 54. The service in the 
 sessions generally, Olshausen, Corn- synagogue, the forms and hours of 
 mentary, p. 305 ; compare also, Dey- which appear to have been studi- 
 ling, Obs. Sacr. xxviii. Part ii. p. ously conformed to those in the 
 373 sq. temple- worship (Vitringa, de Synag. 
 
 2 It would seem from a passage p. 42, dost, Gesch. des Judentli, 
 in Josephus, that on the Sabbath- Vol. i. p. 170), would in all pro- 
 day the usual hour for the meal of bability have commenced about 9 
 which our Lord appears afterwards o’clock, and ended some time before 
 to have partaken in the house of mid-day. 
 
The Mhxistry in Eastern Galilee. 165 
 
 which a whole synagogue had but lately been 
 
 witness. There, perhaps in the low and crow^ded 
 
 suburb^, the mother-in-law of the Apostle Peter 
 was laid and sick, as the physician -Evangelist 
 characteristically notices, of a great fever ^ But 
 the Healer was now nigh at hand. Anxiously they 
 tell Him of her state, anxiously they beseech His 
 help : and with power and majesty that help is 
 bestowed. With His voice the Lord rebukes^ the 
 evil influence of the disease ^ with His hand He 
 touches the sufferer^, — and she who a moment Matt. viii. 
 before lay subdued and powerless, now rises sup- 
 ported by the Divine hand^, and, as all the three® Mark i. 
 Synoptical Evangelists especially notice, ministers 
 unto them^, and with wonted strength and health 
 prepares for our Lord and His followers the Sab- 
 
 1 The conjecture of Dr Thomson 
 above alluded to (p. i6i, note 3), 
 that Tabiga is the site of what was 
 the manufacturing suburb of Caper- 
 naum, derives some support from 
 the above incident, there being 
 marshy land in the vicinity which 
 might account for the * great fever ’ 
 under which St Peter’s mother-in- 
 law was suffering: see The Land 
 and the Booh, Vol. i. p. 547. There 
 may be also a slight hint at the 
 season of the year ; as we learn from 
 modern travellers that in the East 
 fevers prevail in spring and autumn, 
 dysentery in the summer: compare 
 Winer, RWB. Art. ‘ Krankheiten,’ 
 Vol. I. p. 673. 
 
 2 This passage has been often 
 referred to as illustrating not only 
 the accuracy, but the profesison of 
 St Luke. We learn from the Greek 
 medical writers that there was a re- 
 cognized distinction between ' great’ 
 and ^ small’ fevers: see Galen, de 
 
 Different. Fehr. i. cited by Wetstein 
 in loc. 
 
 ^ The exact expression in the ori- 
 ginal should not be overlooked, e 7 re- 
 Tl//. 7 ](xep Tip TTvpeTip (Luke iv. 39), 
 according to which the disease, like 
 the boisterous wind and stirred-up 
 sea in the miracle on the lake (Matth. 
 viii. 27, Mark iv. sq., Luke viii. 
 24), is treated as a hostile potency. 
 Deductions as to the presence of 
 spiritual agencies, in similar cases 
 must be made with caution, but 
 the expression is remarkable, and 
 has not been left unnoticed by the 
 early expositors : see especially Cyril 
 Alex, in loc. Part i. p. 69 (Transl.). 
 
 ^ ^Not only doth He cure her 
 from her disease, ’ says Theophylact, 
 
 ‘ but also infuses in her full strength 
 and power, enabling her to minister.’ 
 In Luc. iv. 39, p. 334 (Paris, 1631); 
 compare also Chrysost. in loc. For 
 some very good remarks on the 
 manner in Which this miracle was 
 
IGG The Ministry in Eastern Galilee. 
 
 bath mid-day meal.... And yet the record of that 
 eventful day is not concluded. A few hours later, 
 '‘Marki. at sun-set^, -the whole city^, with all its sick, 
 gathers at the door of the house, and ancient pro- 
 *>isai. liii. phecy*^ again finds its fulfilment in that exercise 
 of Divine power that raised the sick and healed 
 demoniacs, and yet chained in silence the driven- 
 forth spirits 2, who with the recognition of terror 
 ‘^Marki. both knew Him^ and would have proclaimed Him 
 as man’s Redeemer and their own Judge. 
 
 The nature What an insiglit does the account of this day, 
 Lord’s mi- SO marked by deeds of love and mercy, give us 
 Labouifas i^to the nature of our Lord’s ministry in Galilee ! 
 by^this^o^ne Wliat lioly activities, what ceaseless acts of mer- 
 cies ! Such a picture does it give us of their 
 actual nature and amount, that we may well con- 
 ceive that the single day, with all its quickly- 
 succeeding events, has been thus minutely por- 
 trayed, to show us what our Redeemer’s ministerial 
 life really was^, and to justify, if need be, the 
 
 i:>erformed, see Cyril Alex, in loc. 
 Part I. p. 70 sq. (Transl.) : compare 
 also Trench, Miracles, p. 234. 
 
 ^ This note of time, supplied both 
 by St Mark (i. 32) and St Luke (iv. 
 40), serves to mark that the Sabbath 
 was over, after which the sick and 
 suffering could legally be brought 
 to our Lord: see Lightfoot, Hor. 
 Hehr. Vol. i. p. 306 (Roterod. 1686). 
 So rightly Theophylact {in Marc. i. 
 32), and the Scholiast in Cramer, 
 Oaten. Mol. i. p. 278. 
 
 2 The comment of Cyril Alex, 
 (referred to above, p. 163, note 2) 
 seems correct and pertinent : ‘ He 
 would not permit the unclean demons 
 to confess Him, for it was not fit- 
 
 ting for them to usurp the glory of 
 the Apostolic office, nor with im- 
 pure tongue to talk of the mystery 
 of Chidst.’ Parti, p. 71 (Transl.): 
 see also Theophyl. in Luc. iv. 41 
 (1st interpr.), who subjoins the good 
 practical remark, — oux <^paios ahos 
 ev (XTOfiaTL afxapTwkCjv. 
 
 ^ The incidents of this first Sab- 
 bath at Capernaum are well noticed 
 by Ewald {Gesch. Christus’, p. 254 
 sq.), as showing what the nature of 
 our Lord’s holy labours really was : 
 comp. Lange, Leben Jesu, ii. 4. 1 1, 
 p. 559 sq. The occurrence of so 
 many events on a single day makes 
 the short duration of the present 
 ministry in Galilee less improbable. 
 
The Ministry in Eastern Galilee. 1G7 
 
 noble liyj^erbole of the beloved Apostle, that if 
 
 the things which J esus did should be written every 
 
 one, Hhe world itself could not contain the books 
 
 that should be written^’ What a day too had“Jo^«xxi. 
 
 this been for Capernaum ! What manifestations 
 of Divine power had been vouchsafed to them in 
 their- synagogue ! what mercies had been showered 
 down upon them in their streets^ ! Could they, Mark i. 
 and did they, remain insensible to such displays of 
 omnipotence ? — It would have been indeed impos- 
 sible; and it is not with surprise that we find 
 that in the dawn^ of the following morning the 
 multitudes, conducted as it would seem by Peter 
 and the newly-called disciples, tracked out the 
 great Healer to the lonely place ^ whither He had'^^^^^ki. 
 withdrawn to commune with His Father, broke Luke iv. 
 in upon His very prayers, and strove to prevent 
 Him leaving those whom He had now so pre-emi- 
 nently blessed^. But it might not be. That 
 quest could not be granted in the exclusive, manner 
 in which it had been urged. Though the faith of 
 these mefL of Capernaum was subsequently re- 
 warded by our Lord’s vouchsafing soon to return 
 again, and by His gracious choice of Capernaum 
 as His principal place of abode, yet now, as He 
 alike tells both them and His disciples®. Pie must i- 
 fulfil His heavenly mission by preaching to others 
 
 1 We learn from St Mark that 
 our Lord retired before day broke 
 to some lonely spot, apparently at 
 no great distance fiom Capernaum 
 (comp. Stanley, Siifiai and Palestine, 
 ch. X. p. 374), and was there pray- 
 ing; see ch. i. 32. From the tenses 
 used and the special note of time, 
 hvvx<^ \lav{Lachm., Tisch.), it would 
 
 seem that He had been there some 
 little time before He was discovered 
 by St Peter and those with him, 
 who appear to have thus eagerly 
 followed our Lord (Kareblu^av avrbv) 
 at the instigation of the multitude; 
 see Luke iv. 42, and compare 
 Lange, Lehen Jesu, ii. 4. ii. Part 
 II. p. 561. 
 
LF.CT. 
 
 IV. 
 
 “ Luke iv. 
 23 - 
 
 Probable 
 duration 
 ol tliis cir- 
 cuit. 
 
 Mark ii. 
 
 I. 
 
 168 llie Ministry m Eastern Galilee, 
 
 as well as unto them. The blessings of the Gospel 
 were to be extended to the other towns and 
 villages by those peopled shores \ and thither, with 
 His small company of followers, the Lord de- 
 parted, ^healing,’ as St Matthew tells us^, ^all 
 manner of sickness, and all manner of disease 
 among the people.’ 
 
 How long this circuit lasted we are not spe- 
 cially informed, but as one incident only, the heal- 
 ing of the earnest and adoring leper*, appears 
 to belong to this journey, we may perhaps, not 
 without some probability, believe that the present 
 circuit lasted but a few days, and that the return 
 to Capernaum^ took place on the day before the 
 Sabbath of that week, — a Sabbath of which we 
 have some special notices^. 
 
 ^ The expression used by St Mark 
 (ch. i. 38) is Tcts ixofJi^^vas KUifioirdXeii 
 (St Luke adopts the more general 
 term, rats ir^pacs irbXeaiv), which 
 seems to mark the sort of ‘village- 
 towns’ (compare Strabo, Geogr. xii. 
 PP- 537 > 557) with which the whole 
 adjacent plain of Gennesareth was 
 closely studded; compare Stanley, 
 Sinai and Palest, ch. x. p. 370. 
 
 ^ It seems right to speak guard- 
 edly, as St Matthew (ch. viii. i) here 
 appears to add a note of time, Kara- 
 ^dvTt 6^ ai>T(p dirb roD Spovs {Rec., 
 Tisch.). As, however, there is really 
 nothing very definitely connective in 
 the Kal idoii Xeirphs TrpoaeXOi^v k.t.X., 
 — as St Mark and St Luke both 
 agree in their position of the mira- 
 cle, — and as the place it occupies in 
 St Matthew’s Gospel can be reason- 
 ably accounted for (see Lightfoot, 
 Harmony, Vol. I. p. 512), we seem 
 justified in adhering to the order of 
 St Mark and St Luke; comp. Wie- 
 
 seler, Chron. Synops. p. 306 sq. On 
 the miracle itself, one of the most 
 remarkable characteristics of which 
 was, that, as the three Evangelists 
 all specify (Matth. viii. 13, Mark i. 
 41, Luke V. 13), our Lord touched 
 the sufferer (deiKvvs ori y ayla avrou 
 cap^ aytaapcoO yeredidov, Theoph. in 
 Matth. 1 . c .), — see Trench, Miracles, 
 p. 210; and for some good notices 
 on the nature of the disease. Von 
 Ammon, Lehen Jesu, Vol. i. p. in, 
 and the frightful account in Thom- 
 son, Land and the Booh, Vol. ii. 
 p. 516. The subject is treated very 
 fully and completely in Winer, R WB. 
 Art. ‘ Aussatz,’ Vol. i. p. 114 sq. 
 
 ^ As the circuit was probably 
 confined to the ‘ village-towns ’ on 
 the western shores of the lake and 
 in the vicinity of Capernaum (see 
 above, note i), we have an addi- 
 tional reason for thinking that it 
 did not last more than four or five 
 days, and that thus our Lord might 
 
160 
 
 The Ministry in Eastern Galilee. 
 
 Meanwhile Capernaum had not forgotten its 
 Healer and Redeemer, though evil men from other 
 parts of Galilee, and, as it is significantly added, 
 of Judaea and Jerusalem^ , had now come in among 
 theni^, — men, as it would seem specially sent to 
 collect charges against our Lord, and to mature 
 the savage counsels which, we have already seen^, 
 had been taken by the party of the Sanhedrin. 
 No sooner was it noised abroad that He had re- 
 turned, than we find the whole city flocking to 
 
 easily and naturally be found at 
 Capernaum on the following Sab- 
 bath, — which, as we shall see below, 
 has a definite and distinctive date. 
 No objection against this chronolo- 
 gical arrangement can be founded 
 on the fact that our Lord ‘ preached 
 in their synagogues’ (Mark i. 39, 
 Luke iv. 44), as it appears certain, 
 setting aside extraordinary days (of 
 which there would seem to have been 
 one in this very week, — the New Moon 
 of Nisan), there were services on 
 the Mondays and Thursdays (comp. 
 Mishna, Tract ‘Megillah,’ i. 2), in 
 which the law was read and jpro~ 
 bdbly expounded, and to which the 
 Talmudists (on ‘ Baba Bathra,’ 4) 
 assigned as great an antiquity as the 
 days of Ezra: see Lightfoot, Har- 
 mony, Yo\.i. p. 476 (Roterod. 1686), 
 Vitringa, de Synag. i. 2. 2, p. 287, 
 and compare Jost, Gesch. des Judenth, 
 Vol. I. p. 168 sq. Some valuable 
 observations on the subject of our 
 Lord and His Apostles preaching in 
 synagogues will be found in Vitringa, 
 de Synag. iii. i. 7, p. 696 sq. 
 
 1 We owe the important notice 
 of the precise quarter from which 
 these evil men came solely to St 
 Luke. From the other two Synop- 
 tical Evangelists we only learn that 
 
 the objectors were Scribes (Matth. 
 ix. 3, Mark ii. 6), and that they 
 appear to have come there with a 
 sinister intent. The allusion, how- 
 ever, to Judaea and Jerusalem (espe- 
 cially when compared with Mark iii. 
 22, ypafigareis ol airb 'lepooroXii^iwv 
 KarajSdvTes), throws a light upon 
 the whole, and gives some plausi- 
 bility to the supposition that the 
 ‘Scribes and Pharisees’ we here 
 meet with for the first time in Gali- 
 lee were emissaries from the hostile 
 party at Jerusalem. These men, 
 promptly uniting themselves with 
 others that they found to be like- 
 minded in Galilee, form a settled 
 plan of collecting charges against 
 our Lord, and the sequel shows with 
 what feelings and in what spirit they 
 were acting. For a while they wear 
 the mask ; they reason (Luke v. 2 1), 
 they murmur (ver. 30), they insidi- 
 ously watch (ch. vi. 7). Soon, how- 
 ever, all disguise is thrown aside ; a 
 deed of mercy on the Sabbath, in 
 spite of their tacit protest, hurries 
 them on to their ruthless decision. 
 That decision is at Capernaum what 
 it had already been at Jerusalem 
 (John V. 18), — death: see Matth. xii. 
 14, Mark iii. 6. 
 
 ^ See above, Lect. ill. p. 14 1. 
 
 LECT. 
 
 IV. 
 
 The return 
 to Caper- 
 naum, and 
 healing of 
 the faith- 
 ful paraly- 
 tic. 
 
 “ Luke V. 
 
 17- 
 
170 The Ministry in Eastern Galilee. 
 
 LECT. 
 
 IV. 
 
 “ cb. ii. 2. 
 
 ^ Lube V. 
 20 , 
 
 ver. 24. 
 
 the house, so that as St Mark, with one of his 
 graphic notices tells us, ^ there was no room to 
 receive them, no not so much as about the door 
 But there were some without who would not be 
 sent away. One sinfuP but heart-touched para- 
 lytic there was, whose body and soul alike needed 
 healing, and whose faith was such that when entry 
 in the usual way was found to be impracticable, 
 he prevailed on friends to bear him up the outside 
 staircase, and let him down through the roof into 
 the upper chamber, where, as it would seem from 
 the narrative, our Lord was preaching to the 
 mingled multitude both around Him and in the 
 
 courtyard below ^ And we remember well how 
 
 that faith prevailed, and how the soul was healed 
 first^ and then the palsied body‘s, and how the last 
 act was made use of, as it were, to justify the first 
 
 ^ We may infer this from the 
 declaration of our Lord recorded by 
 all the three Synoptical Evangelists, 
 — acf>^wvTaL crov ai a/xaprlai, Matth. 
 ix. 2, Mark ii. 5 ; comp. Lukev. 20. 
 The disease of the man, as Neander 
 observes, may have been due to 
 sinful excesses ; and the conscious- 
 ness, if not of this connexion, yet of 
 the guilt within him was such that 
 spirit and body reacted on each 
 other, and an assurance of forgive- 
 ness was first needed, before the 
 sensible pledge of it extended to him 
 by his cure could be fully and pro- 
 perly appreciated : see Life of Christ, 
 p, 272 (Bohn), and compare Olshau- 
 sen. Commentary, Vol. i, p. 300 sq. 
 (Clark). 
 
 2 The course adopted was as fol- 
 lows : As the bearers could not enter 
 the house on account of the press 
 (Mark ii. 4), they ascend by the 
 
 outside staircase that led from the 
 street to the roof (Winer, RWB. 
 Art. ^Dach,’ Vol. i. p. 242), pro- 
 ceeding thereon till they come to 
 the spot over which they judged our 
 Lord to be. They then remove the 
 tiles or thin stone slabs, which are 
 sometimes used even at this day (see 
 Thomson, cited below), and make 
 an opening (Mark ii. 4, Luke v. 19 ; 
 comp. Joseph. Antiq. xiv, 15. 12), 
 through which, perhaps assisted by 
 those below, they let the man down 
 into the inrep(pov, or large and com- 
 monly low chamber beneath, in 
 which, or perhaps rather under the 
 verandah of which, the Lord then 
 was: see Thomson, The Land and 
 the Booh, Vol. ii. p. 7 sq., Meyer, 
 Komment. uher Mark. p. 24 sq. , and 
 compare the good article in Kitto, 
 Bihl. Cyclop. Vol. I. p. 874 sq., 
 especially p. 877. 
 
The Ministry in Eastern Galilee. 
 
 171 
 
 in the eyes of those scribes and Pliarisees who had» 
 stolen in among the simple-hearted men of Caper- 
 naum, and were .finding blasphemy in the exer- 
 cise of the Divine power and prerogatives of the 
 Son of God. But this time at least those in- 
 truders were silenced, for when the sufferer obeyed 
 His Lord’s command, and showed the complete- 
 ness of his restored powers^ by bearing his bed, 
 and walking through that now yielding throng, 
 not only amazement, but as St Matthew^ and 
 St Luke^ both notice, found its way into their 
 hearts, and made the lips confess Hhat they had 
 seen strange things that day.’ 
 
 But another opportunity soon offered itself to 
 these captious and malignant emissaries. Every 
 prejudice was to be rudely shocked, when, as it 
 would seem, on the very same day, our Lord called 
 from his very toll-booth by the side of the lake‘s, 
 a publican, Matthew‘S, — a publican, to be one of 
 
 LECT. 
 
 IV. 
 
 “ ch. ix. 2 
 (seeTisch.). 
 *» ch. V. 26. 
 
 The call of 
 St Mat- 
 thew and 
 the feast 
 at his 
 house. 
 
 ® Matt. ix. 
 
 9 - 
 
 Mark ii. 
 
 T4. 
 
 ^ ' He saith to the paralytic, Rise, 
 and take up thy bed, to add a 
 greater confirmation to the miracle, 
 as not being in appearance only ; 
 and at the same time to show that 
 He not only healed him, but infused 
 power into him.’ Theophylact on 
 Mark ii. 1 1 . The command on the 
 former occasion that it was given 
 (John V. 8) probably also involved a 
 reference to Chiist’s lordship over 
 the Sabbath : comp. Lect. iii. p. 140. 
 For further comments on this mira- 
 cle, see Olshausen, Commentary, Vol. 
 I. p. 326 sq., Lange, Lehen Jesu, ii. 
 4. 14, Part II. p. 666 sq.. Trench, 
 Notes on the Miracles, p. 199 sq. ; 
 and for some curious allegorical ap- 
 plications, Theophylact, loc. cit. p. 
 199 (Paris, 1631). 
 
 2 There seems no reason for call- 
 ing in question the opinion of most 
 of the more ancient writers (see 
 Const. Ajyost. viii. 22, and Coteler, 
 in loc.; contrast, however, Hera- 
 cleon ap, Clem. Alex. Strom, iv. 11), 
 that Levi (Mark ii. 14, Luke v. 27) 
 and Matthew (Matth. ix. 9) are 
 names of one and the same person. 
 In favour of this identity, we have 
 (i) the perfect agreement, both as 
 to place and all attendant circum- 
 stances, of the narrative of the call- 
 ing of Matthew (Matth. ix. 10) with 
 that of the calling of Levi (Mark ii. 
 15, Luke V. 29 ) ; (2) the absence on 
 the lists of the Apostles of any trace 
 of the name Levi (the attempted 
 identification with Lebbaeus is in the 
 highest degree improbable), while 
 
172 The Ministry in Eastern Galilee. 
 
 LECT. .jjjg followers and disciples. Here was an infrac- 
 
 tion of all that Pharisaical prejudice held to be 
 
 most clear and recognized, an infraction too against 
 which they were soon able to inveigh openly, 
 when at the feast which the grateful publican 
 made in honour of His Lord, and to which, per- 
 haps by way of farewell, many of his old associates 
 were summoned^, the great Teacher openly sat 
 down to meat ^ with publicans and sinners.’ This 
 was an opportunity that could not be neglected. 
 The disciples are taxed with their own and their 
 Master s laxity, to which the Lord vouchsafes an 
 answer turning against these gainsay ers the very 
 term in which their prejudice had expressed itself 
 The Redeemer, He tells them, had ^not come to 
 ^ Matt. i.K. call the righteous, but sinners to repentance^.’ If 
 the publicans were sinners, then to them must He 
 
 the name of Matthew occurs in all, 
 and is specified by the first Evan- 
 gelist (ch. X. 3) as of that earthly 
 calling which is here definitely as- 
 cribed by the second Evangelist to 
 Levi. It is far from improbable 
 that after and in memory of his call, 
 the grateful publican changed his 
 name to one more appropriate and 
 significant. He was now no longer 
 lib but not Levi but Theo- 
 
 dore, — one who might well deem 
 both himself and all his future life 
 a veritable ‘gift of God:’ see Winer, 
 s. V. ‘Name,’Vol.ii. p. 135. 
 
 1 This supposition, which is due 
 to Neander {Life of Christ, p. 230, 
 Bohn), is not without some pro- 
 bability ; at the same time the spe- 
 cially inserted dative ayr<p (Luke v. 
 29) seems clearly to imply that St 
 Matthew’s first object in giving the 
 entertainment was to do honour to 
 
 our Lord, and thereby to commemo- 
 rate his own now highly-favoured 
 lot : compare Hall, Contempt . iv. 
 4. The attempt to show that the 
 feast mentioned by St Matthew is 
 not that mentioned by St Mark 
 and St Luke (Greswell, DisseH. xxv. 
 Vol. II. p. 397) is by no means suc- 
 cessful; still less the attempt of 
 Meyer {Komment. ilb. Matth. p. 195) 
 to establish a discrepancy between 
 the first and the other two Synoptical 
 Evangelists as to the locality of the 
 feast. That h ry oULq. (Matth. ix. 
 10) refers to the house of St Matthew 
 {ev rfj oUlq ry iKebov, Chrys.) is 
 not only grammatically possible, but 
 in a high degree natural and pro- 
 bable : the general expression is stu- 
 diedly used by the Apostle as keep, 
 ing in the background the fact of his 
 own grateful hospitality : see Blunt, 
 Veracity of Evangelists, § 5, p. 30 sq. 
 
The Ministry in Eastern Galilee. 
 
 173 
 
 vouchsafe His presence, then with them was it meet 
 
 that He should be found. It was in vain that they 
 
 shifted their ground and brought forward the stern 
 practices of John’s disciples, some of whom it is 
 noticed were present and some of whom seem to ^Marku. 
 have been speakers^. They were not worldly, they ^ Matt. ix. 
 fasted; the prophet of Nazareth feasted. Yea but 
 the very garments worn by those around and the 
 very wine they were drinking suggested a simile 
 that conveyed the true answer, — the New and the 
 Old could not be brought together ^ ; the spirit of 
 the new dispensation was incompatible with the 
 dead formalities of a dispensation that now, with all 
 that marked it, was gone and passed away for ever. 
 
 The day that followed was apparently a Sab- Further 
 bath^, the second-first Sabbath as it is especially the^pMck- 
 defined by St Luke, — the first Sabbath, as it is 
 now most plausibly explained, of a year that stood 
 second in a sabbatical cycle ^ — when again the same 
 
 ^ Some good comments on this 
 text, of which the above is a sum- 
 mary, will be found in Cyril Alex. 
 Comment, on St Luke, Part ii. p. 89 
 (Oxf. 1859). 
 
 2 This assertion rests, not on the 
 
 €v ry xatptp (ch. xii. i) of St 
 
 Matthew, which is only a general 
 note of time, but on the apparent 
 close connexion in point of time be- 
 tween the different charges of the 
 Pharisees and their adherents. The 
 Passover was nigh at hand, and 
 time was pressing. 
 
 3 There are four explanations of 
 this difficult word that deserve con- 
 sideration: (a) that of Theophylact 
 {in loc.), that it was a Sabbath that 
 immediately succeeded a festival, 
 which from falling on the Tapaa'Kev'^, 
 was observed as a regular Sabbath ; 
 
 (6) that of Scaliger (de Emend. Temp. 
 P* 557 )> that it was the Sabbath 
 that succeeded the second day of 
 the Passover; (c) that of Hitzig 
 {Ost. u. Pfingst. p. 19), that it was 
 the 15th of Nisan, the 14th being, 
 it is asserted, always coincident with 
 a Sabbath ; {d) that of Wieseler 
 {Chron. Synops. p. 231 sq.), as stated 
 in the text. Of these (a) is open to 
 the decisive objection that such con- 
 currences must have been frequent, 
 and that if such was the custom, 
 and such the designation, we must 
 have found some trace of it else- 
 where: (c) involves an assumption 
 not historically demonstrable (see 
 Wieseler, Chron. Synops. p. 353 sq.), 
 and, equally with (6), labours under 
 the formidable objection that as the 
 event here specified is thus at, and 
 
174 The Ministry in Eastern Galilee. 
 
 LECT. 
 
 IV. 
 
 ® Luke V. 
 17 - 
 
 ** Dent, 
 xxiii. -25 ; 
 see Muh 
 na(‘Peah, 
 ch. 2). 
 
 bitter spirit of Pharisaical malice finds opportunity 
 for displaying itself Yesterday the social privacy 
 of the publican’s feast, to-day the peace and rest 
 of the year’s first Sabbath f is broken in upon by 
 the malignity of that same gathered company of 
 Pharisees whom Judsea and Jerusalem and alas 
 too Galilee^ had sent forth to forejudge and to 
 condemn. With the full sanction of the Mosaic 
 law^ the disciples were plucking the ears of 
 ^ ripening corn, and rubbing them in their hands. 
 The act was permissible, but the day was holy^, 
 and the charge, partly in the way of rebuke to 
 the disciples, partly in the way of complaint to 
 
 not, as every reasonable system of 
 chronology appears to suggest, before 
 a Passover, the Passover at the 
 feeding of the 5000 (John vi. 4) 
 must be referred to a succeeding 
 year, and an interval of more than 
 a year assumed to exist between the 
 5th and 6th chapters of St John. 
 We adopt then {d), as open to no 
 serious objections, as involving no 
 chronological difficulties, and as ap- 
 parently having some slight historical 
 basis to rest upon, viz. that at this 
 period years appear to have been 
 reckoned by their place in a Sab- 
 batical cycle: comp. Joseph. Antiq. 
 XIV. 10. 6. The word is omitted in 
 the important MSS. B and L, and 
 a few ancient versions (see Tischend. 
 in loc.), but seems certainly genuine, 
 there being an obvious reason for its 
 omission, and none for its insertion. 
 
 ^ The exact date of this Sabbath, 
 according to our present calendar, 
 if we can rely on the tables of 
 Wurm and Wieseler, would seem to 
 be April 9, — a date when the corn 
 would be forward enough in many 
 localities to be rubbed in the hands : 
 
 see Wieseler, Chron. Syn. p. 225 sq., 
 and compare Lect. III. p. 106, 
 note I. 
 
 ^ The act was regarded as a kind 
 of petty harvesting, and as such 
 was regarded by the ceremonial 
 Pharisee as forbidden, if not by the 
 written yet by the oral law: 'Me- 
 tens sabbato vel tantillum reus est. 
 Et vellere spicas est species mes- 
 sionis.’ Maimonides, Tit. ‘Shab- 
 bath,’ ch. IX. cited by Lightfoot 
 {Hor. Hebr. in Matth. xii. 2, Vol. 
 II. p. 320), who further reminds us 
 that, according to the traditional 
 law, the punishment for the offence 
 v/as capital, the action being one of 
 those ‘per quae reus fit homo lapi- 
 dationis atque excisionis.’ Maimon. 
 ib. ch. vii. It is not probable that 
 at this period such a penalty would 
 ever have been pressed; still it is 
 not unreasonable to suppose that 
 the legally grave nature of the sup- 
 posed offence may have tended to 
 call forth from our Lord that full 
 and explicit vindication of His disci- 
 ples which the Evangelists have re- 
 corded. 
 
The, Ministry in Eastern Galilee. 175 
 
 our Lord who was tacitly sanctioning their act, 
 
 is promptly made with every assumption of of- — ^ 
 
 fended piety, — ^Why do ye do that which it is 
 not lawful to do on the Sabbath^ ? ’ why indeed ! ^Lukevi. 
 The reason was obvious : the justification im- 
 mediate. Did not the history of the man after 
 God’s own heart justify such an act^? Did not'^i.^am. 
 the unblamed acts of the great type of Him 
 who stood before them supply the substance, as 
 did ancient prophecy® the exact terms of the^Hos. vi. 
 answer that was vouchsafed, H will have mercy, 
 and not sacrifice’? Mercy, and not sacrifice, — 
 words uttered already the day before^, but nowf^^tth. 
 accompanied with a striking declaration, which 
 some of those standing by might have remembered 
 had been practically illustrated three weeks before 
 in Jerusalem, by a deed of mercy and power ^ 
 even Hhat the Son of man is Lord also of the 
 Sabbath®,’ and of all its alleged restrictions. ^^Lukevi. 
 
 And now hostility deepens. On the next. The heai- 
 or apparently next day but one^, which in the case 
 of the year we are considering (a. u. c. 782 ) com- 
 putation would seem to fix as the seventh day of Sabbath, 
 the first month, and which we may infer from 
 a passage in Ezekiel was specially regarded as 
 a holy day^, we almost detect traces of a regular 
 
 ' See Lect. III. p. 140. 
 
 2 See below, p. 19-2, note i, from 
 which it would seem that there is 
 an error of a day in tbe tables of 
 Wurm and Wieseler. 
 
 3 After speaking of the first 
 month and the sacrifices to be ob- 
 served therein, the prophet adds 
 (ch. xlv. 20), — ^And so thou shalt 
 do the seventh day of the month for 
 
 every one that erreth, and for him 
 that is simple : so shall ye reconcile 
 the house,’ From these words, 
 when coupled with the similar no- 
 tice of the solemn ist day of Nisan. 
 in the verses that precede, and the 
 notice of the still more solemn 14th 
 day in the verses that follow, it has 
 been apparently rightly inferred that 
 the 7th of Nisan was regarded as 
 
176 The Ministry in Eastern Galilee, 
 
 LECT. 
 
 IV. 
 
 ® Luke vi. 
 
 6 . 
 
 ^ Luke vi. 
 
 7 , 8 . 
 
 Matth. 
 xii. lo. 
 
 ^ Luke vi. 
 
 8 . 
 
 ® Markiii. 
 
 5 - 
 
 ^ ch. vi. II. 
 
 e Matth. 
 xii. 14. 
 
 ** ch. iii. 6. 
 
 stratagem. A man in the synagogue afflicted 
 with a withered right hand^, placed perchance in 
 a prominent position, forms -the subject of a 
 question which these wretched spies not only 
 entertain in their hearts ^ but even presume 
 openly to propound to our Lord, — ^ was it lawful 
 to heal on the Sabbath-day*^ V The answer was 
 prompt and practical, first the command to the 
 sufferer to rise from his place and stand forth 
 in the midst then the all-embracing gaze^ of 
 grief and anger®, and lastly after a few reproving 
 words, the immediate performance of the miracle ^ 
 But such an answer malice and . infidelity could 
 neither receive nor endure. The flame of savage 
 vengeance at once breaks out. ' They were filled 
 with madness' are the remarkable words of St 
 Luke^; they go forth from the synagogue, they 
 hold a hasty council^, yea they join with their 
 very political opponents, the followers of Herod 
 Antipas^ as St Mark has been moved to record^, 
 
 holy, and might appropriately be 
 designated by St Luke (ch. vi. 6) as 
 erepov ad^^arov : compare Wieseler, 
 Chron. Syn. p. 237. 
 
 ^ Not only St Mark, but St Luke 
 notices this act of our Lord’s, both 
 using the same expressive word, 
 7 repL^\e\f/dyeuos. On the use of this 
 term by St Mark, comp. p. 25, 
 note I. 
 
 2 The present miracle forms one 
 of the seven which are particularly 
 noticed as having been performed 
 on the Sabbath (see John v. 9, 
 Mark i. 21, Mark i. 29, John ix. 
 14, Luke xiii. 14, Luke xiv. i, 
 and comp. Crit. Sacr. Thesaur. Nov. 
 Vol. II. p. 196), and is specially the 
 one before the performance of which 
 
 the Lord vouchsafes to vindicate the 
 lawfulness (Matth. xii. 12) of such 
 acts of mercy, by an appeal to re- 
 cognized principles of justice and 
 mercy which even the Pharisees 
 could not reject or deny. For some 
 comments on the miracle, the nature 
 of which was the immediate restora- 
 tion of the nutritive powers of nature 
 to a part where they had perhaps 
 by degrees, but now permanently 
 ceased to act (Winer, RWB. Art. 
 ‘ Krankheiten,’ Vol. I. p. 674), com- 
 pare Hook, Serm. on the Miracles, 
 Voi. I. p. 135 sq., and especially 
 see Trench, Notes on the Miracles, 
 p. 312 sq. 
 
 3 There seems no reason to dis- 
 sent from the con jecturally expressed 
 
The Ministry in Eastern Galilee. 177 
 
 and now deliberately lay plans to slay the great 
 
 Healer. The cup in their eyes is full. Two days 
 
 since blasphemy, as they deemed it, had been 
 spoken*; this however they might have borne Luke v. 
 with; but publicans have been received, the rest^^’ 
 of a weekly Sabbath infringed upon, and now 
 worst of all, a legal Sabbath has been profaned 
 by — beneficence ; that profanity must be washed 
 out by blood. As but a short time before in 
 Jerusalem, so now in Galilee the fearful deter- 
 mination is distinctly formed of compassing the 
 death of One whose life-giving words their own 
 ears had heard, and whose deeds of mercy their 
 own eyes had been permitted to behold. 
 
 This is a very important turning-point in Choice of 
 the Gospel-history, and it prepares us for the Aposlies^ 
 event which followed perhaps only a day or two 
 after wardsb — and which now the deepening ani- Mount, 
 mosities against the sacred person of our He- 
 
 opinion of Origen {Comm, in Maiik. 
 Tom. XVII. 26) that the Herodians 
 were a political sect who, as their 
 name implies, were partisans of 
 Herod Antipas (ot ra ’Upcbdov (ppo- 
 VOUPT 6 S, Joseph. Antiq. Xiv. 15. 10), 
 and, by consequence, of the Roman 
 government, so far as it tended to 
 maintain his influence : comp. Ewald, 
 Gcsch. Christus’ (Vol. v.), p. 43 sq. 
 Thus they were really, as Meyer 
 {Komment. iib. Matth. xxii. 16) de- 
 fines them, royalists as opposed to 
 raaintainers of theocratic principles ; 
 still, being members of a political 
 and not a religious sect, they might 
 easily be found in coalitions with 
 one of the latter sects for temporary 
 objects which might affect, or be 
 thought to affect, the interests of 
 E. II. L. 
 
 both: comp. Matth. xxii. 16, Mark 
 xii. 1 3, where they again appear in 
 temporary union with the Pharisees. 
 For further comments, see Winer, 
 MWB. s. V. Vol. I. p. 486, Herzog, 
 Real-Encycl. s. v. Vol.vii. p. 14, and 
 compare Lightfoot, Harm. Evang. 
 § 16, Vol. I. p. 470. 
 
 1 The only note of time is h rats 
 7 ]p.ipaLS rairais (Luke vi. 12), which, 
 though far too general to be quoted 
 in support of the above supposition, 
 does not in any way seem opposed 
 to it. There appears much in favour 
 of a close connexion in point of time 
 between the formal choice of the 
 Apostles, and these murderous de- 
 terminations of the hierarchical party 
 and their adherents: comp. Ewald, 
 Gesch. Christus' (Vol. v.) p. 270 sq. 
 
 12 
 
178 The Ministry in Eastern Galilee. 
 
 LECT. 
 
 IV. 
 
 Probable 
 form of the 
 Sermon on 
 the Mount. 
 
 decmer rendered in a high degree natural and ap- 
 propriate, — a retirement into the lonely hills on 
 the western side of the lake, and the choice of 
 twelve pillars for the not yet consolidated, yet 
 already endangered Church. There, on that 
 horned hill of Hattin, which a late tradition does 
 not in this case appear to have erroneously 
 selected^, was the scene of the formal compacting 
 and framing together of the spiritual temple of 
 God ; there too was heard that heavenly summary 
 of the life and practice of Christianity which age 
 after age has regarded as the most sacred heritage 
 that God has vouchsafed unto His Church ^ 
 
 I must here be tempted into no digressions, — 
 for there are several events yet before us for 
 consideration, — still at such an important point 
 
 1 See Robinson, Palestine, Vol. ii. 
 p. 370 sq. (ed. 2), who admits that, 
 though this appears to be only a 
 late tradition of the Latin Church, 
 ‘there is nothing in the form or cir- 
 cumstances of the hill itself to con- 
 tradict the supposition.’ So far, 
 indeed, it may be added, is this 
 from being the case, that Dr Stan- 
 ley finds the conformation of the hill 
 so strikingly in accordance with 
 what we read in the Gospel nar- 
 rative, ‘as almost to force the in- 
 ference that in this instance the eye 
 of those who selected the spot was 
 for once rightly guided.’ Sinai and 
 Palestine, p. 364 (ed. 2). Thomson 
 {The Land and the Booh, Vol. ii. 
 p. 1 18) speaks far more slightingly 
 than is usual with that agreeable 
 and observant writer. 
 
 2 Of the many expository works 
 on this divine discourse the follow- 
 ing may be selected as appearing, 
 perhaps more particularly, to deserve 
 
 the attention of the student: — 
 the exposition of Chrysostom in his 
 Commentary on St Matthew; Augus- 
 tine, de Sermone Domini, Vol. in. 
 p. 1229 sq. (Migne), and with it 
 Trench, Serm. on the Mount (ed. 2) ; 
 Pott, de Indole Oral. Mont. (Helmst. 
 1788), — whose general conclusion, 
 however, as to the nature of the 
 Sermon does not appear plausible; 
 the exegetical comments of Stier, 
 {Disc, of our Lord, Vol. I. p. 90, 
 Clark), and Maldonatus {Comment. 
 p. 95) ; the special work of Tholuck, 
 Bergpredigt (translated in Edinh. 
 Cabinet Libr.) ; and lastly, the more 
 directly practical comments and dis- 
 courses of BpBlackall (Bond. 1717), 
 and James Blair (Bond. 1 740, — with 
 a commendatory preface by Water- 
 land) ; to which may be added the 
 comments in Taylor, Life of Christ, 
 II. 12, Vol. I. p. 190 (Bond. 1836), 
 and in Bange, Leben Jesu, ii. 4. 12, 
 Part II. p. 566 sq. 
 
The Ministry in Eastern Galilee, 170 
 
 in our history, it does seem almost wrong to 
 
 suppress the humble statement of an opinion 
 
 on a most serious and yet most contested question 
 in reference to this divine discourse. Let me say 
 then with that brevity that our limits demand, — 
 
 Firstj that there seem greatly preponderant reasons 
 for believing the sermon 'recorded by St Luke to 
 be substantially the same with that recited by 
 St Matthew^ ; — Secondly ^ that the divine unity 
 which pervades the whole totally precludes our 
 believing that St Matthew is here presenting us 
 only with a general collection of discourses ut- 
 tered at different times, and leads us distinctly 
 to maintain the more natural and reasonable 
 opinion, that this holy and blessed Sermon was 
 uttered as it is here delivered to us %* — Thirdly y 
 that of the modes of reconciliation proposed be- 
 tween the two forms of this Sermon vouchsafed 
 to us by the Holy Ghost, two deserve considera- 
 
 ^ The main arguments are, — that 
 the beginning and end of the Ser- 
 mon are nearly identical in both 
 Gospels; that the precepts, as re- 
 cited by St Luke, are in the same 
 general order as those in St Mat- 
 thew, and that they are often ex- 
 pressed in nearly the same words; 
 and lastly, that each Evangelist 
 specifies the same miracle, viz. the 
 healing of the centurion’s servant, as 
 having taken place shortly after the 
 Sermon, on our Lord’s entry into 
 Capernaum: comp. Matth. viii. 5, 
 Luke vii. 2 sq., and see Tholuck, 
 Sermon on the Mount, Vol. i. p. 5 
 sq. (Clark). 
 
 2 This opinion, improbable as it 
 is now commonly felt to be, was 
 adopted by as good an interpreter 
 
 as Calvin {Harm. Evang. Vol. i. 
 p. 135, ed. Tholuck), and has been 
 lately advanced in a slightly changed 
 form by Neander, who attributes to 
 the Greek editor (?) of St Matthew 
 the insertion of those expressions of 
 our Lord which are found in other 
 collocations in St Luke’s Gospel : 
 see Life of Christ, p. 241 (Bohn). 
 There is nothing, however, unna- 
 tural in the supposition that our 
 blessed Lord vouchsafed to use the 
 same words and give the same pre- 
 cepts on more occasions than one: 
 compare Matth. v. 18 and Luke 
 xii. 58, Matth. vi. 19 — 21 and 
 Luke xii. 33, Matth. vi. 24 and 
 
 Luke xvi. 13, Matth. vii. 13 and 
 
 Luke xiii. 24, Matth. vii. 22 and 
 
 Luke xiii. 25 — 27. 
 
 12^2 
 
180 llie Ministry in Eastern Galilee. 
 
 tion, (a) that which represents St Luke’s as a 
 
 condensed recital of what St Matthew has related 
 
 more at length, and {b) that which attributes 
 the condensation to our Lord Himself, who on 
 the summit of the hill delivered the longer but, 
 as it has been doubtfully termed, esoteric sermon 
 to His Apostles, and perhaps disciples, and on 
 the level piece of ground, a little distance below, 
 delivered the shortened and more popular form 
 to the mixed multi tude^ 
 
 Tiieheai- But let US uow pass ouward. On the Lord’s 
 centmion\ I'eturn to Capemaum, which it does not seem 
 TnTrafsing ^treasonable to suppose took place on the evening 
 of the of the same day, the elders of the synagogue of 
 
 widow s ^ ® 
 
 son. Capernaum meet our Lord with a petition from 
 one who shared in the faith, though he was not 
 of the lineage of Abraham. — This petition, and 
 the way in which it was made, deserve a passing 
 notice. We see, on the one hand, the different 
 feelings with which as yet the leading party at 
 Capernaum were animated when contrasted with 
 
 1 Of these two opinions, the 
 second, though noticed with some 
 approval by Augustine {de Consensu 
 Evang. ii. 19), and convenient for 
 reconciling the slight differences as 
 to locality and audience which ap- 
 pear in the records of the two Evan- 
 gelists (see Lange, Lehen Jes. ii. 4. 
 12, Part II. p. 568 sq.), has so much 
 the appearance of having been formed 
 simply to reconcile these differences, 
 and involves so much that is un- 
 likely and indeed unnatural, that we 
 can hardly hesitate to adopt the 
 first ; so too, as it would seem, 
 Augustine, loc. cit. ad fin. : comp. 
 Trench, Expos, of Serm. on Mount, 
 p, 160 (ed, 2). A fair comparison 
 
 of the two inspired records seems to 
 confirm this judgment, and satis- 
 factorily to show that St Luke’s 
 record is here a compendium, or 
 rather selection, of the leading pre- 
 cepts which appear in that of St 
 Matthew. No extract, it may be 
 observed, is made from chap. vi. 
 (Matth.), as the duties there speci- 
 fied (almsgiving, prayer, fasting, &c.) 
 are mainly considered in reference 
 to their due performance in the 
 sight of God, while St Luke appears 
 to have been moved to specify those 
 which relate more directly to our 
 neighbour. For further notices and 
 comments, see Tholuck, Serm. on 
 Mount, Vol. I. p. I sq. (Clark). 
 
The Ministry in Eastern Galilee. 181 
 
 tlie emissaries from Jerusalem ; and on the other 
 
 we recognize the profound humility of the God- 
 
 fearing soldier who, it would seem from St Luke’s 
 account*^, twice preferred his petition by the “ ch. vii. 3, 
 mouths of others, before he presumed himself to 
 speak in behalf of his suffering servant. Then 
 followed, probably from his own lips, words of 
 faith that moved the wonder of our Lord Himself, 
 and forthwith came the reward of that faith, — the 
 healing of apparently the first Gentile sufferer b... 
 
 But the morrow was to see yet greater things ; 
 for, as St Luke’' tells us, on the following day, ch. vii. 1 1 
 during the course of a short excursion into the 
 vale of Esdraelon, the Lord of Life comes into 
 first conflict with the powers of death. At the 
 brow of that steep ascent, up which the modern ^ 
 traveller to the hamlet of Nain has still to pass’, 
 the Saviour, begirt with a numerous company of 
 His disciples and a large attendant multitude‘s, ® vii. 
 beholds a sad and pity-moving sight. The only 
 son of a widow was being borne out to his last 
 resting-place, followed by the poor weeping 
 mother and a large and, as it would seem, sym- 
 pathizing crowd But there was one now nigh ver. 12. 
 at hand who no sooner beheld than He pitied®, ^ ^ 3- 
 
 ^ For comments on this miracle, marks that the rock on the west 
 one of the characteristics of which side of Nain is full of sepulchral 
 is, that, as in the case of the noble- caves, and infers from this that our 
 man’s son, our Lord vouchsafed the Lord approached Nain on its west- 
 cure without seeing or visiting the -ern side: Syria, and Palestine, Vol. 
 sufferer, see Bp Hall, Contemjyl. ii. ii. p. 382. A sketch of the wretched- 
 6, Trench, Miracles, p. 222, and looking but finely situated hamlet 
 compare Lange, Lelen Jesu, ii. 4. that still bears the name of Nain 
 13, Part II. p. 645 sq. or Nein (Robinson, Palest. Vol. n. 
 
 2 See Stanley, Sinai and Pales- p. 361) will be found in Thomson, 
 tine, ch. ix. p. 352 (ed. 2). The The Land and the Booh, Vol. ii. 
 
 Dutch traveller Van de Velde re- p. 159. 
 
182 The Ministry in Eastern Galilee, 
 
 LECT. 
 
 IV. 
 
 “ Luke vii, 
 14 - 
 
 ^ ver. 15. 
 ver. 16. 
 
 ver. 36. 
 
 ® ver. 38. 
 
 f ver. 50. 
 
 and with whom to pity was to bless. The words 
 of power were uttered"^, the dead at once rose 
 up to life and speech^, and was given to the 
 widow’s arms, while the amazed multitude glori- 
 fied God, and welcomed as a mighty prophet‘s 
 Him who had done before their eyes what their 
 memories might have connected with the greatest 
 
 of the prophets of the past^ It is here jperliaps, 
 
 or at one of the towns in the neighbourhood, that 
 we are to fix the memorable and affecting scene 
 at the house of Simon the Pharisee*^, when the 
 poor sinful woman pressed unbidden among the 
 guests to anoint not the head®, like the pure Mary 
 of Bethany, but the feet of the Virgin’s Son, and 
 whose passionate repentance and special and 
 preeminent faith^ was blessed with acceptance and 
 pardon ^ 
 
 1 For some further comments on 
 this miracle, see Cyril Alex, on St 
 Luke, Serm. xxxvi. Part i. p. 132 
 sq. (TransL), Bp Hall, Contempl. 
 II. I, and Trench, Notes on the 
 Miracles, p. 239. Compare also 
 Augustine, Serin, xcviii. Vol. -v. 
 p. 591 sq. (ed. Migne), and Lange, 
 Lehen Jesu, ii. 4. 16, Part ii. p. 
 740 sq. 
 
 2 With regard to this anointing 
 of our Lord, we may briefly remark, 
 (a) that it certainly is not identical 
 with that which is specified by the 
 other three Evangelists (Matth. xxvi. 
 6 sq., Mark xiv. 3 sq., John xii. 
 I sq.). Everything is different, — 
 the time, the place, the chief actor, 
 and the circumstances; see Meyer, 
 on Matth. xxvi. 6, p. 483, and 
 Lange, Lehen Jesu, ii. 4. 16, Part 
 II. p. 736. We may further remark, 
 (&) that there seems no just ground 
 
 for identifying the repentant sinner 
 here mentioned with Mary Magda- 
 lene, who, though a victim to Sa- 
 tanic influence, and that too in a 
 fearful and aggravated form (Luke 
 viii. 2), is not necessarily to be con- 
 sidered guilt}^ of sins of impui-ity. 
 Nay more, the very description of 
 the affliction of Mary Magdalene 
 seems in itself sufficient to distin- 
 guish her from one whom no hint of 
 the Evangelist leads us to suppose 
 was then or formerly had been a 
 demoniac. The contrary opinion 
 has been firmly maintained by Sepp 
 {Lehen Christi, ill. 23, Vol. ii. p. 
 285), but on the authority of Kab- 
 binical traditions, which are curious 
 rather than convincing. On the in- 
 cident generally, see Greg. M. Horn, 
 in Lvancj. xxxiii., Augustine, Serin. 
 xcix., and especially Bp Hall, Con- 
 teinjpl. IV. 16. 
 
The Ministry in Eastern Galilee. 
 
 183 
 
 It is about the same time too, and, as appears 
 by no means improbable, but a very few days 
 before the tragical end of their Master’s life \ that tist’s mes- 
 the two disciples of John the Baptist come tOqXy? 
 our Lord with the formal question which the, so 
 to say, dying man commissioned them to ask, — 
 whether the great Healer, the fame of whose 
 deeds had penetrated into the dungeons of 
 Macha3rus, were truly He that was to come, or 
 whether another were yet to be expected^ The\Matth. 
 exact purpose of this mission will perhaps remain Luke vii. 
 to the end of time a subject of controversy‘s, but 
 it has ever been fairly, and, as it would seem, 
 convincingly urged, that He whose eyes, scarce 
 sixteen months before, had beheld the descend- 
 ing Spirit, whose ears had heard the voice of 
 Paternal love and benediction, and who now 
 again had but recently been told of acts of om- 
 nipotent power, could himself have never really 
 doubted the truth of his own declaration®, that 
 
 ^ The most probable period to 
 which the murder of the Baptist is 
 to be assigned would ,seem to be 
 the week preceding the Passover of 
 the second year of our Lord’s minis- 
 try, April 10 — 17, A.u.c. 782. For 
 the arguments on which this rests, 
 consult Wieseler, Chron. Synops. p. 
 292 sq., and see below, p. 195, note i. 
 
 2 The three different states of 
 feeling (doubt, impatience, desire to 
 convince his disciples) which have 
 been attributed to the Baptist, as 
 having given rise to this mission, 
 are noticed and commented on by 
 Ebrard, Kritik der Evang. Gesch. 
 § 73 ^ P- 367 sq. For a full discus- 
 sion of the subject, however, see the 
 calm and learned comments of Jack- 
 
 son, on the Creed, Vol. vi. p. 3rosq. 
 Compare also, but with caution, 
 Lange, Leben Jesu, ii. 4. 1 7, Part 
 II. p. 745 sq. 
 
 2 The utmost that can be said is, 
 that the Baptist required the com- 
 fort of accumulated conviction (see 
 Jackson, Creed, Vol. vi. p. 314): 
 that he entertained distrust, or 
 wavered in faith in these last days 
 of his life, seems wholly incredible. 
 To convince his disciples (Cyril 
 Alex, in loc.) fully and completely 
 before his death, was the primary 
 object of the mission ; to derive 
 some incidental comforts from the 
 answer he foresaw they would re- 
 turn with, may possibly have been 
 the secondary object. 
 
LECT. 
 
 IV. 
 
 a John i. 
 
 Short cir- 
 cuit ; fresh 
 charges of 
 the Phari- 
 sees. 
 
 ' Lukeviii. 
 
 2 . 
 
 «ch. iii. 20. 
 
 ^ see ch. 
 hi. 31 sq. 
 
 184 The Ministry in Eastern Galilee. 
 
 this was indeed Hhe Lamb of God that taketh 
 away the sins of the world^’ 
 
 Almost immediately after the marvellous scene 
 at Nain, our Lord accompanied not only by His 
 twelve Apostles, but, as it is specially recorded, 
 by pious and grateful women ^ chief among whom 
 stands the miraculously healed Mary of Magdala, 
 passed onward from city to city and village to 
 village preaching the kingdom of God. That 
 circuit could not have lasted much above a day 
 or two after the miracle at Nain\ and as the 
 words of the second Evangelist seem to imply 
 terminated at Capernaum, .which as we already 
 know had now become our Lord’s temporary 
 home. On their return two parties anxiously 
 awaited them ; on the one hand the multitude, 
 which, St Mark^ tells us, gathered so hastily round 
 the yet unrested company, that either the disciples, 
 or, as seems more probable from the sequel"^, 
 the mother and brethren of our Lord, deemed 
 themselves called upon to interpose^, and to plead 
 
 1 It has been already observed 
 (p. 168, note i), that the villages 
 and even towns were so numerous 
 in some parts of Galilee, that the 
 words of the Evangelist {^bubbevev 
 Kara ttoXiv Kal Kd}/X7]v Krjp^xraojv, 
 Luke viii. i), need not be pressed 
 as necessarily implying a lengthened 
 circuit. It may be indeed doubted 
 whether these notices of circuits, 
 which it is confessedly very difl&cult 
 to reconcile with other notes of time, 
 may not be general descriptions of 
 our Lord’s ministry at the time 
 rather than special notices of special 
 journeys. That the circuit had a 
 homeward direction and terminated 
 at Capernaum, we gather from 
 
 Matth. xiii. i, which, in specifying 
 the place {Trapa ryv daXaaaav), marks 
 the day as the same with that on 
 which the visit of our Lord’s mother 
 and brethren took place, and so 
 connects us with Mark iii. 19 sq., 
 which seems to refer to the re- 
 turn from the circuit (Luke viii. i 
 sq.) which we are now consider- 
 ing. 
 
 2 A little difficulty has been felt 
 (a) in the exact reference of the 
 words oi Trap' airou (Mark iii. 21), 
 and (6) in the fact that St Luke 
 places the visit of our Lord’s mother 
 and brethren after the delivery of 
 the parables rather than before them. 
 With regard to the first point, — ot 
 
-185 
 
 The Ministrij in Eastern Galilee. 
 
 against what they could not but deem an almost 
 inconsiderate enthusiasm ^ On the other hand, 
 
 • • ^ ill 
 
 we still find there the hostile party of Scribes 21. 
 and Pharisees from Jerusalem, whom we have 
 already noticed, and who yet lingered, though 
 the passover was so nigh, in hopes that they 
 might find further and more definite grounds of 
 accusation. An opportunity, if not for preferring 
 a charge, yet for attempting to check the growing 
 belief of the amazed multitude^, and for enlisting ” xii. 
 the worst feelings against the very acts of mercy 
 which our Lord vouchsafed to perform, soon pre- 
 sented itself at the miraculous cure of a blind and 
 dumb- demoniac, which appears to belong to this 
 portion of the sacred narrative\ Then was it 
 that the embittered hatred of these prejudiced 
 and hardened men showed itself in the frightful 
 blasphemy, — repeated, it would seem, more than 
 once that attributed the wonder-working power 
 
 Trap’ avTou seems clearly to imply not 
 the Apostles, but our Lord’s rela- 
 tives (‘propinqui ejus,’ Syr.), who 
 are noticed here as going forth (pro- 
 bably from some temporary abode 
 at Capernaum; see p. 158, note i), 
 and a few verses later (Mark hi. 31) 
 as having now arrived at the house 
 where our Lord then was. With 
 regard to (6), it seems enough to 
 say that St Luke clearly agrees with 
 St Matthew in placing the event in 
 question on the same day, but from 
 having here omitted the discourse 
 which preceded the arrival (Mark 
 in. 22 sq.), he mentions it a little 
 out of its true chronological order, 
 to prevent its being referred to some 
 one of the towns on the circuit, and 
 to connect it with the right place 
 
 and time, — Capernaum, and the day 
 of the return. 
 
 1 There seems reason for placing 
 the narrative of the healing of the 
 demoniac, recorded in Matth. xii. 
 22 sq., between Mark iii. 21 and 
 Mark iii. 22, as the substance of the 
 words which follow in both Gospels 
 are so closely alike, and as the nar- 
 rative of the miracle in St Matthew 
 follows that of other miracles which 
 certainly appear to belong* to a 
 period shortly preceding the one 
 now under consideration. 
 
 ^ Compare Luke xi. 17 sq., where 
 we meet with, in what seems clearly 
 a later portion of the history, the 
 same impious declaration on the part 
 of the Pharisees, which St Mark (ch. 
 iii. 22 sq.) and apparently St Mat- 
 
18G- The Ministry in Eastern Galilee. 
 
 LECT. 
 
 IV. 
 
 “ IVIjitt. xii. 
 24. 
 
 Mark iii. 
 23 ' 
 
 Matt. xii. 
 
 32. 
 
 The teach- 
 ing by 
 parables. 
 
 ^ Luke viii. 
 
 4 - 
 
 of the eternal Son of God to the energy of 
 Satan and then too was it that our Lord called 
 them to Him^, and mercifully revealed to them 
 the appalling nature of their sin, which was now 
 fast approaching the fearful climax of sin against 
 the Holy Ghost, — that sin for which there was 
 no forgiveness*, ‘neither in this world, neither 
 in that which is to come^^/ The afternoon or 
 early evening of that day was spent by the shores 
 of the lake. The eager multitude, augmented by 
 others who had come in from the neighbouring 
 towns had now become so large that, as it would 
 seem, for the sake of more conveniently address- 
 ing them, our Lord was pleased to go on -board 
 one of the fishing vessels, and thence with the 
 multitude before Him, and with His divine eyes 
 perchance resting on some one of those patches 
 of varied and undulating corn-field which modern 
 travellers have noticed as in some cases on the 
 very margin of the lake^, — with the earthly and 
 
 thew (cb, xii. 24) refer to the present 
 place. That such statements should 
 have been made more than once, 
 when suggested by similar miracles, 
 is every way natural and probable : 
 compare Matth. ix. 34 and xii. 22 
 sq., and see Wieseler, Chron. Syno'ps. 
 p. 287 sq. 
 
 ^ On this highest and most fright- 
 ful enhancement of sin in the indi- 
 vidual, — of which the essential cha- 
 racteristic appears to be, an outward 
 expression (see Waterland) of an 
 inward hatred of that which is re- 
 cognized and felt to be divine, and 
 the irremissible nature of which de- 
 pends, not on the refusal of grace, 
 but on the now lost ability of fulfil- 
 ling the conditions required for for- 
 
 giveness, — see the able remarks of 
 Miiller, Doctrine of Sin, Book v. 
 Vol. II. p. 475 (Clark), and the 
 good sermon of Waterland, Sc 7 '?n. 
 XXVIII. Vol. V. p. 707. For further 
 comments on this profound subject, 
 see Augustine, Scrm. LXXI. Vol. v. 
 p. 445 sq. (ed. Migne), the special 
 work on the subject by Schaff (Halle, 
 1841), and the article by Tholuck, 
 in the Studien u. Kritihen for 1836, 
 compared with the earlier articles 
 in the same periodical by Grashoff 
 (1833), and Gurlitt (1834). 
 
 ^ See the interesting and illus- 
 trative remarks of Stanley, Sinai 
 and Palestine, ch. Xiii. p. 42 1 sq. ; 
 and, in reference to the parable, 
 compare the elucidations, from local 
 
TKq Ministry in Eastern Galilee. 187 
 
 the liGcavenly harvest-field thus alike before Him, 
 
 — He delivered to that listening concourse the 
 
 wondrous series of parables beginning with that 
 appropriately chosen subject, specified alike by all 
 the three Synoptical Evangelists, — the Sower and 
 the seed\ 
 
 And now, as St Mark specifies, the evening The pas- 
 had come, and after that long and exhausting day cross, and 
 the Holy One needed retirement and repose, andthTlake? 
 nowhere could it be more readily obtained than in 
 the solitudes of the eastern shore^...The multitudes ® Mark iv.. 
 still linger ; but the Apostles bear away their 
 wearied Master, ^as He was,’ says the graphic 
 St Mark^, in the vessel from which He had been ver, 36 , 
 preaching. As they sail the Lord slumbers, when 
 from one of the deep clefts of the surrounding 
 hills ^ a storm of wind bursts upon the lake^, and Luke vm. 
 the stirred-up waters beat in upon the boat ^ d Mark iv. 
 Terror stricken the disciples awaken their sleeping 37 - 
 Master, and He, who only a few hours before had 
 driven forth devils®, now quells by His word^ the ^ Matt. xii. 
 lesser potencies of wind and storm \ r Mark w. 
 
 observation, of Thomson, The Land 
 and the Booh, Vol, i. p. 115 sq, 
 
 ^ On the connexion of the para- 
 bles, of which this forms the first, 
 see Lect. i. p. 21, note 2. 
 
 2 ‘ To understand,’ says Dr Thom- 
 son, who himself witnessed on the 
 very spot a storm of similar violence, 
 and that lasted as long as three 
 days, Hhe causes of these sudden 
 and violent tempests, we must re- 
 member that the lake lies low [hence 
 Kari^rj XaXXaxp, Luke viii. 23], — six 
 hundred feet lower than the ocean ; 
 that the vast and naked plateaus of 
 Jaulan rise to a great height, spread- 
 
 ing backward to the wilds of the , 
 Hauran, and upward to snowy Her- 
 mon ; that the water-courses have 
 cut out profound ravines and wild 
 gorges, converging to the head of 
 this lake, and that these act like 
 gigantic funnels to draw down the 
 winds from the mountains.’ The 
 Land and the Booh, Vol. ii. pp. 32, 
 
 33. See also Bitter, Erdhunde, Part 
 XV. I, p. 308 sq., where the peculiar 
 nature of these storm-winds is briefly 
 noticed. 
 
 2 For further comments on this 
 miracle, one of the more striking 
 features of which is the Saviour’s 
 
LECT. 
 
 IV. 
 
 The Gerge- 
 sene demo- 
 niacs. 
 
 “ Mark v. 
 
 3 - 
 
 188 The Ministry in Eastern Galilee. 
 
 When they reached the opposite side, which 
 might have been late that evening, or more 
 probably studiously delayed till the dawn of the 
 following day, our Lord had no sooner gone out 
 of the vessel than He was met by the hapless 
 Gergesene ‘ demoniac or demoniacs^, whose home 
 was in the tombs that can still be traced in more 
 than one of the ravines that open out upon the 
 Lake on its eastern side^ There, and in the 
 
 rebuke to the warring elements, the 
 very words of which, as addressed 
 to the storm-tost waters (/cal ehre 
 Ty OdXdacry, ’Zciinra, Tre^t/Awero, Mark 
 iv. 39), have been specially recorded 
 by the second Evangelist, — see the 
 expository remarks of Chrysostom, 
 in Maith. Horn, xxviii., the typical 
 and practical application of Augus- 
 tine, Serm. lxiii. (ed. Migne), 
 Trench, Notes on the Miracles, p. 
 143 sq., and compare Hook, Serm. 
 on the Miracles, Vol. i. p. 207 sq. 
 
 1 Whether the true reading in 
 Matth. viii. 28, be VepyearjvGsv, Ta- 
 SaprjvQv, or TepacTjvQr, is a question 
 which cannot easily be answered. 
 On the whole, however, if we assign 
 due weight not only to the evidence 
 of manuscripts but also to recent 
 geographical discovery, we shall per- 
 haps be led to adopt the first 
 reading in St Matthew and the 
 second in St Mark and St Luke. 
 The grounds on which this decision 
 rests are as follows : (i) The amount 
 of external evidence in favour of 
 Tepyeaypuiv in Matth. viii. 28 (see 
 Tischendorf in loc.) is much too 
 great to be due solely to the correc- 
 tion of Origen; (2) Origen plainly 
 tells us that there loas a place in 
 his time so named, and that the 
 exact site of the miracle was pointed 
 out to that day; (3) ruins have 
 
 been recently discovered by Dr 
 Thomson in Wady Semak, still 
 bearing the name of Kerza or Gerza, 
 wEich are pronounced to fulfil every 
 requirement of the narrative. See 
 especially. The Land and the Booh, 
 Vol. II, p. 33 sq., and compare Van 
 de Velde, Memoir to Map, p. 31 1. 
 The probable reading in St Mark 
 and St Luke {Ta^aprivCov) may be 
 accounted for by supposing that 
 they were content with indicating 
 generally the scene of the miracle, 
 while St Matthew, whose know- 
 ledge of the shores of the lake 
 whereon he was a collector of dues 
 would naturally be precise, specifies 
 the exact spot. 
 
 2 Of the current explanations of 
 the seeming difficulty that St Mat- 
 thew names two and St Mark and 
 St Luke one demoniac, that of 
 Chrysostom {in loc.) and Augustine 
 (de Consensu Evang. ii. 24) seems 
 most satisfactory, viz. that one of 
 the demoniacs took so entirely the 
 prominent part as to cause two of 
 the narrators to omit all mention of 
 his companion. We have no reason 
 for inferring from St Matthew that 
 the second of the sufferers did more 
 than join in the opening cry of 
 deprecation ; see Matth. viii. 29. 
 
 3 See Thomson, The Land and 
 the Booh, Vol, ii. p. 35. Tombs 
 
189 
 
 The Ministry in Eastern Galilee. 
 
 solitudes of tlie desert mountains behind, dwelt 
 
 the wretched, and, as it would seem, sinful man, 
 
 who by his Lord’s own divine command'' was ^Lukeviii. 
 hereafter to be Christ’s first preacher in his own 
 household, and who told abroad the blessings 
 he had received through the surrounding land 
 of Decapolis^. How he was healed, the astonish- •’ MaHc v. 
 ing and most convincing way in which every line 
 of the narrative sets before us the awful kind 
 of double or rather manifold personality^, the " ver. 9. 
 kneeling man of the one moment'^ and the ‘‘ ver. 6. 
 shouting demoniac of the' next, the startling yet 
 all- wise permission given to the devils', and the 
 overpowered instinct of self-preservation in the 
 possessed swine, — all this our present limits pre- 
 clude me from pausing fully to delineate, but “ 
 
 have also been observed in Wady 
 Fik on the side of the road leading 
 up from the lake (Stanley, Palestine, 
 ch. X. p. 376), the position of which 
 has perhaps led to that ravine being 
 usually selected as the scene of the 
 miracle ; if, however, the above 
 identification of rep7€<ra and Gerza 
 be accepted, the scene of the miracle 
 must .be transferred to the more 
 northern Wady Semak. 
 
 1 On this much debated subject 
 we may briefly observe, (a) that the 
 ^permission to enter into the herd of 
 swine may have been deemed neces- 
 sary by our Lord (-TroXXd irrevdev 
 oiKOPO/xQvfChrys.) to convince the suf- 
 ferer of his cure (Chrys. i.); (6) that 
 it may also stand in connexion with 
 some' unknown laws of demoniacal 
 possession generally, and more par- 
 ticularly with that which the demons 
 dreaded, deprecated, and perhaps 
 foresaw, — a return to the abyss 
 
 (Luke viii. 31). It may be that to 
 defer that return they ask to be 
 suffered to enter into fresh objects 
 in that district to which they so 
 mysteriously clung (Mark v. 10), 
 and it may be too that the very 
 permitted entry by destroying the 
 instinct of self-preservation in the 
 swine brought about, even in a more 
 ruinous w'ay, the issue they so much 
 dreaded. That this was (c) further 
 designed to punish the people for 
 keeping swine is not perfectly clear, 
 as the inhabitants of those parts 
 were mainly Gentile : comp. Joseph. 
 Antiq. XVII. ii. 4. The supposition 
 that the swine were driven down 
 the precipice by the demoniacs 
 (Kuinoel, followed by Milman, Hist, 
 of Christianity, Vol. i. p. 238) is 
 not only in the highest degree im- 
 probable, but wholly at variance 
 with the express statements of the 
 inspired writers. 
 
IDO The Ministry in Eastern Galilee. 
 
 LECT. 
 
 IV. 
 
 The raising 
 of Jairus’ 
 daughter. 
 
 ^ Matt, 
 viii. 34. 
 
 ^ Luke viii. 
 40. 
 
 ver. 42. 
 
 ver. 43 
 sq. 
 
 this one comment I will venture to make, that 
 with this miracle before us, with expressions so 
 unqualified, and terms so 'distinct, a denial of 
 the reality of demoniacal possession on the part 
 of any one who believes the Gospel narrative to 
 be true and inspired, may justly be regarded as 
 simply and ’plainly inconceivable b 
 
 On the Lord's return to the western side, 
 which took place immediately in consequence of 
 the request of the terror-stricken inhabitants of 
 the neighbouring city^, He found the multitude 
 eagerly waiting to receive Him^, and among them 
 one anxious and heart-stricken man Jairus, whose 
 daughter lay dying, and who besought our Lord 
 with all the passion of a father’s love to save his 
 child. But the crowd hung round the Lord"", and 
 the case of the suffering woman who touched her 
 Saviour’s garments with the touch of faith b added 
 to the delay, and the daughter of the ruler of the 
 synagogue had breathed her last before the Lord 
 could reach the father’s house so they tell Him 
 
 1 For some good remarks on this 
 subject see Olshausen, Commentary, 
 Vol. I. p. 305 sq. (Clark), Trench, 
 Notes on the Mh'ocles, p. 15 1 sq., 
 Alford on Matth. viii. 32, and com- 
 pare Kitto, Journal of Sacr. Lit. 
 No. VII. p. I sq.. No. XIV. p. 394 sq. 
 In addition to these, on the miracle 
 generally, see Chrysostom on Matth. 
 Horn. XXVII., the good comments 
 of Maldonatus on Matth. 1 . c., Bp 
 Hall, Contempt . iii. 5, and compare 
 Jones of Nayland, Works, Vol. v. 
 p. 72 sq., and Bp Wilberforce, Sei'm. 
 p. 107. 
 
 On this miracle, the charac- 
 teristics of which are the great faith 
 of the sufferer, and the indirect 
 
 though not unconscious performance 
 of the cure. See Hall, Contempt, iv. 
 7, Trench, Notes on the Miracles, p. 
 189 sq.. Hook, Serm. on the Mira- 
 cles, Vol. I. p. 242 sq. ; and compare 
 Lange, Leben Jesu, iv. 4. 14, Part 
 II. p. 68r. 
 
 ^ The slight difference between 
 the narrative of St Matthew in 
 which the father speaks of his 
 daughter as now dead (ch. ix. 18), 
 and that of St Mark, where he speaks 
 of her as being at the last gasp (ch. 
 V. 23), has been accounted for most 
 reasonably by Augustine {de Con- 
 sens. Evang. Ii. 2), Theophylact (ist 
 alternative), and others, by the sup- 
 position that Jairus spoke from what 
 
The Ministry in Eastern Galilee. 101 
 
 that all was over“. But now was the glory of 
 God to be revealed. Yet again a second time, 
 as once on the bier, so now on the bed, did the 
 Lord loose the bands of death — with however this 
 very striking and peculiar difference, that what 
 a few days before was done in the sight of all 
 Nain'^, was here done in strict privacy with three 
 chosen Apostles and the father and mother alone 
 present, and with the special and urgent com- 
 mand to those present not to raise the veil of 
 the solemn scene they had been permitted to 
 witness h 
 
 Soon after this, perhaps on the same day, our 
 Lord accompanied by His disciples leaves Caper- 
 naum, and on the Sabbath which immediately 
 followed again appeared in the synagogue at His 
 own town of Nazareth The feeling there is 
 now in some degree better than it was three 
 
 LECT. 
 
 IV. 
 
 a Mark v. 
 
 Luke viii. 
 49 - 
 
 •’ ch. vii. 
 II. 
 
 “ Mark v. 
 43 - 
 
 The se- 
 cond visit 
 to the 
 synagogue 
 at Naza- 
 r*eth. 
 
 his fears suggested, and that he re- 
 garded the death of his daughter 
 as by that time having actually 
 taken place; comp. Greswell, Dis- 
 seH. III. Vol. I. p. 217. 
 
 ^ This command, • which Meyer 
 {on Marie v. 43) most rashly consi- 
 ders a mere unauthorized addition 
 of later tradition, is perfectly in 
 harmony with the private manner in 
 wliich the miracle was performed. 
 The reason why it was given can, 
 however, only be conjectui’^d. It 
 can scarcely have been on account 
 of the Jews (5ta rov (pdbvov rdxa 
 tQp 'lovdatuv, Theophyl. on LuJee viii. 
 56), but may very probably have 
 been suggested by a desire to avoid 
 undue publicity, and perhaps also 
 by merciful considerations of what 
 the Lord knew to be best for the 
 maiden and her relatives ; compare 
 
 Olshausen, Commenta't'y on Gospels, 
 Vol. I. p, 276 (Clark). On the mira- 
 cle itself see the good comments of 
 Chrysost. in Matth. Horn. XXXI., 
 Bp Hall, Contempl. iv. 8, Lardner’s 
 vindication. Works, Vol. xi. p. i sq., 
 Trench, Notes on the Miracles, p. 179, 
 and Lange, Lelen Jesu, ii. 4. 14, 
 Part II. p. 683 sq. 
 
 ^ That this visit to Nazareth is 
 not identical with that recorded by 
 St Luke (ch. iv. 16) is rightly main- 
 tained by Meyer, on Matth. xiii. 54. 
 The only argument for the identity 
 is our Lord’s use of the same proverb 
 on both occasions ; but is there any- 
 thing strange in such a repetition, 
 especially when the conduct of the 
 people of Nazareth on each occasion 
 rendered such a proverb most mourn- 
 fully pertinent ? See Wieseler, Chron. 
 Syn. p. 284 sq. 
 
192 The Ministry in Eastern Galilee. 
 
 weeks before*'^. The fame that spread all through 
 Galilee had produced some effect even at Naza- 
 i6sq" reth, and had disposed them to give ear a second 
 time to Him whose wisdom and even miraculous 
 bMaikvi. powers^ they were forced to recognize and to 
 confess. But the inward heart of the men of 
 Nazareth was unchanged as ever. Though there 
 was now no longer that open indignation and 
 vcr. 2 S. murderous rage^ that was so frightfully manifested 
 at the former visit, there was a similar vexed 
 spirit of amazement and incredulity, and a similar 
 and even more scornfully worded appeal to family 
 connexions of low estate, and to kindred that 
 had long lived humbly among them ; ^ Is not this 
 the carpenter, the son of Mary and the brother 
 ‘iMarkvi. Qf James and Joses and Judas and Simon‘S?’ It 
 
 3 - . 
 
 is now however offence rather than positive 
 rejection — yet offence that sprang from a deep 
 heart of unbelief, which stayed the Saviour’s 
 ^Matt. healing hands% and made Him who knew full 
 well what it was to meet with rejection and want 
 of faith, to marvel at the exceeding measures of 
 f Mark vi. Nazarono unbelief h On the eve of that day, or more 
 ^ probably early on the morrow, our Lord appears 
 ing forth of to have commenced a short circuit of Galilee, but. 
 Apostles, as we must conclude irom our general notes ot 
 time', in the direction of Capernaum, and at this 
 
 1 The Sabbath on which our Lord 484), we find that our present Sab- 
 preached at Nazareth would certain- bath answers to Nisan 13, and 
 ly seem to be the Sabbath which therefore must conclude that both 
 succeeded the ad^^arou devrepoirpcj- our Lord and His Apostles returned 
 Tov (Luke vi. i), and consequently to Capernaum from their respective 
 according to our explanation of the missionary journeys on the following 
 latter term, the second Sabbath of day, there being good reason for 
 Nisan. Now if we turn to our fixing the Feeding of the 5000 on 
 tables (Wieseler, Chron. Synops. p. the Passover-eve, Nisan 14; see be- 
 
The Ministry in Eastern Galilee, 193 
 
 same time also it would certainly appear that 
 
 He sent forth the twelve Apostles (who we 
 
 know accompanied Him to Nazareth)'', by two“^^arkvi. 
 and two, probably in different directions, and 
 perhaps with an order, after having made a 
 brief trial of the powers^ with which they had vi. 
 been intrusted, to join their Master at Caper- 
 naum. Thither they must have returned, it would 
 seem, not more than two days afterwards’ — 
 
 Such a statement may at first seem startling. It 
 may be urged that so short an absence on the 
 part of the Apostles is hardly compatible with 
 the instructions given to them by our Lord, as 
 
 recorded by the first Evangelist'’, wherein distant‘s Matt. x. 
 and continued journeyings would seem rather to 
 be contemplated than the limited circuit which our 
 present chronology suggests^ The objection is 
 
 low and compare J ohn vi. 4. Such 
 a result can hardly be conceived na- 
 tural. The difficulty, however, may 
 be in some degree removed by taking 
 into consideration the fact that 
 the first day of the Jewish month 
 was fixed by ohservationij and that 
 the day of the Julian calendar with 
 which it agrees can hardly be deter- 
 mined with perfect certainty. In 
 the case of Nisan i in the present 
 year the correct time of new moon 
 was about 7 o’clock in the evening 
 of April 2 ; the new moon would 
 then probably be observed on the 
 evening of April 4 (see Wieseler, 
 Chron. Synops. p. 446). But the 
 Jewish day begins after 6 o’clock; 
 Nisan i would then begin on April 
 4 but really coincide with April 5, 
 and not with April 4 as Wieseler 
 and Wurm suppose. The date of 
 our j)resent Sabbath would then be 
 E. H. L. 
 
 Nisan 12 and not Nisan ii, and we 
 should have two whole days for the 
 absence of the Apostles, a time not 
 improbably short : see below. Such 
 niceties and difficulties may well 
 teach us caution, and may justly 
 make us very diffident as to our 
 ability to assign each event in this 
 portion of the sacred narrative to 
 the true day on which it occurred. 
 
 ^ See the preceding note. 
 
 ^ Another objection may perhaps 
 be founded on the declaration of St 
 Mark that our Lord ‘ went round 
 about the villages, teaching’ (ch. vi. 
 6; comp. Matth. ix. 35). This is 
 also of some weight, but as we find 
 no special note of time serving to 
 define it as subsequent to the visit 
 to Nazareth, and prior to the send- 
 ing forth of the Twelve, we may 
 perhaps justly and correctly regard 
 it either (a) as serving only to mark 
 
 13 
 
194 The Ministry in Eastern Galilee. 
 
 LECT. 
 
 IV. 
 
 ® Comp. 
 Matt. X. 
 23 - 
 
 certainly not without force, and is useful in warn- 
 ing us not to be too confident either on the con- 
 struction of our chronological tables, or in the 
 correctness of our collocation of individual events. 
 Still when we consider, — First, that it is far from 
 improbable that St Matthew has incorporated in 
 this address to the Apostles instructions given to 
 them by our Lord at other periods of His minis- 
 try^; Secondly, that the address whether in its 
 longer or its shorter form may reasonably be 
 supposed to' extend far beyond the present time% 
 and to refer to periods of missionary labour as 
 yet still distant ; Thirdly, that it does not seem 
 probable that our Lord would have long dispensed 
 with the attendance of those to whom His blessed 
 presence was so vital and so essential", — when 
 we consider all these points, it will perhaps seem 
 less improbable, that this first missionary journey 
 was but short, and that the Apostles returned 
 
 that our Lord’s ministry was con- 
 tinuous ; that He did not remain at 
 Nazareth, but was extending His 
 blessings to other places, or, still 
 more simply (h) as merely specifying 
 the work in which our Lord was 
 then engaged, and as preparing the 
 reader for a transition to other sub- 
 jects (ver. 7 — 29) ; see above, p. 
 184, note T. 
 
 1 When we remember that St 
 Matthew does not notice the sending 
 forth of the Seventy, and further, 
 when we compare the instructions 
 delivered to them, as recorded by St 
 Luke (ch. x. 2), with those which 
 are here recorded by St Matthew, 
 as delivered to the Twelve (ch. x. 
 2 sq.), it seems hard to resist the 
 conviction that as the first Evange- 
 list was moved in the preceding 
 
 chapters to group miracles together, 
 so in the present case he is present- 
 ing in a collected form all our Lord’s 
 instructions on the subject of mis- 
 sionary duties and labours generally. 
 See a comparison of the parallel 
 passages in Wieseler, Chron. Synops. 
 P- 303- 
 
 ^ It is right to remember that the 
 formal appointment of the Twelve 
 can scarcely be placed further back 
 than a week or ten days from the 
 present time. Some of the number, 
 we know, had been already long 
 enough with our Lord as disciples 
 for us to conceive that they might 
 have been enabled to teach and 
 preach for some time without being 
 sustained by His presence, but this 
 can hardly be felt in reference to all 
 the Apostles. 
 
The Ministry in Eastern Galilee. 195 
 
 to Capernaum as early as the evening of the 
 
 second day. The return was nearly, it would 
 
 seem, contemporaneous with the arrival of the 
 tidings of the Baptist’s murder^, and it was 
 perhaps partly on this account ^ and partly for“Comp. 
 the sake of communing in stillness with His 13 . ’ 
 chosen ones after their first missionary efforts^, Mark vi. 
 that our Lord thought it meet to avoid the many 
 comers and goers^ which a time so » close to the‘^ver. 31 . 
 Passover would be sure to set in motion, and 
 to seek rest and privacy by retiring with His 
 Apostles to the solitudes of the further side of 
 the lake. 
 
 But rest and privacy were not to be obtained. The Feed- 
 A very short time, especially when we remember fiv^ thou- 
 the probable vicinity of the city of Bethsaida- 
 Julias^, and the numbers that might now have 
 been moving about the country, would have 
 served to have brought the five thousand round 
 our Lord ; and there on the green table-lands on 
 
 1 It seems probable that the death 
 of the Baptist took place somewhere 
 about a week before the time now 
 under consideration; see Wieseler, 
 Cicron. Synoi^s. p. 292 sq. Much 
 however turns on the meaning as- 
 signed to the term (Matth. 
 
 xiv. 6 , Mark vi. 21). If it refers 
 to the festival in honour of the 
 birthday of Herod Antipas (Meyer) 
 no precise date for the murder of 
 the Baptist can be obtained from 
 this portion of the narrative ; if, 
 however, as seems not unlikely, it 
 refers to the festival in honour of 
 the commencement of Herod's reign, 
 then an approximately close date 
 can easily be arrived at, as Herod 
 the Great, whom Herod Antipas 
 
 succeeded in the government of 
 Galilee (Joseph. Antiq. xvii. 8. i)^ 
 is known to have died a few days 
 before the Passover, A.U.c, 750; see 
 Lect. II. p. 75, note r. 
 
 2 This appears to have been a 
 place of some size and importance. 
 It was transformed by Philip from 
 a mere village into a populous and 
 handsome town (see Joseph. Antiq, 
 XVIII. 2, i), of which some traces 
 are thought to have been found on 
 some rising ground on the east side 
 of the Jordan and not far from the 
 head of the lake ; see Robinson, 
 Palestine, Vol. il. p. 413, Thomson, 
 The Land and the Book, Vol. ir. 
 p. 9, and compare Winer, RWB, 
 Vol. II. p. 174. 
 
 13—2 
 
LECT. 
 
 IV. 
 
 “ Mark vi. 
 39 - 
 
 Matt, 
 xiv. 21. 
 
 Conclud- 
 ing re- 
 marks. >- 
 
 196 The Ministry in Eastern Galilee. 
 
 the north-eastern corner of the lake, or amid the 
 ^ green grass'^ of the rich plain near the mouth 
 of the Jordan^, must we place the memorable 
 scene of the miraculous feeding of that vast 
 multitude. Memorable indeed : memorable for 
 the display of the creative power of the eternal 
 Son that was then made before more^ than five 
 thousand witnesses ; memorable too for the strange 
 coincidence that on the very eve that the Paschal 
 lambs were being offered up in the temple-courts 
 of Jerusalem, the eternal Lamb of God was feed- 
 ing His people in the wilderness with the bread 
 which His own divine hands had multiplied ^ 
 
 And now I must draw these words and this 
 portion of our Master s life at once to a close, yet 
 not without the prayer that this effort to set forth 
 the narrative of a most solemn and eventful 
 period, — the period of the Lord’s founding His 
 Church, — may be blessed by His Spirit. To be 
 confident of the accuracy of details either of time 
 or place, where not only the connexion of individual 
 events but the arrangement of the whole period 
 is a matter of the utmost doubt and difficulty. 
 
 ^ See Stanley, Palestine, ch. x. 
 p. 377, and especially Thomson, 
 The Land and the Booh, Vol. ii. 
 p. 29, where it is stated that the 
 exact site of the miracle may almost 
 confidently be identified. For a con- 
 futation of the rashly advanced 
 opinion that St Luke places the 
 scene of the miracle on the western 
 shore (De Wette, comp. Winer, R WB. 
 Vol. I. p. 175), see Meyer on Luhe 
 ix. 10. 
 
 2 On this miracle, which, as has 
 been often observed, is the only one 
 
 found in all the four Gospels, and 
 which, when compared with the 
 miracle of turning the water into 
 wine (John ii. i sq.), shows our 
 Lord's creative powers in reference 
 to quantity, as the latter does his 
 transforming powers as to quality, 
 see Origen, in Matth. xi. i, Vol. iii. 
 p.476sq. (ed. Bened.), Augustine, in 
 Joann. Tract, xxiv. Vol. iii. p. 1592 
 sq. (ed. Migne), Bp Hall, Contem]pl. 
 IV. 5, Trench, Notes on the Miracles, 
 p. 261, and a good sermon by Mill, 
 Univ. Serm. xvi. p. 301. 
 
The Ministry in Eastern Galilee, 197 
 
 would indeed argue a rash and self-satisfied spirit ; 
 yet this I will presume to say, that if certain- 
 chronological data and reasonings be approxi- 
 mately correct, — and after manifold testings cor- 
 rect in the main I do verily believe them to be, — 
 then the general picture can hardly b^ much 
 otherwise than as it has been here sketched out. 
 Be this however as it may, I count all as nought 
 if only I have succeeded in the great object which 
 these Lectures are intended to promote, if only, by 
 presenting some sketches of the continued life of 
 the Saviour, I may have been enabled to bring 
 that Saviour nearer to one heart in this church. 
 On that holy life, on all its divine harmonies, on 
 all its holy mysteries, may we be moved more 
 and more to dwell. By meditating on the inspired 
 records may we daily acquire increasing measures 
 of that fulness of conviction, to have which in its 
 most complete proportions is to enjoy the greatest 
 earthly blessing which the Lord has reserved for 
 those that love Him.... This is indeed to dwell 
 with the Lord on earthy this is indeed to feel His 
 spiritual presence around us and about us, and 
 yet to feel, with no ascetic severity but in sober 
 truth, that we have here no abiding city, but 
 
 ' ‘ Do not then,’ says the wise and 
 eloquent Bp Hall, ‘ conceive of this 
 union as some imaginary thing that 
 hath no existence but in the brain, or 
 as if it were merely an accidental or 
 metaphorical union by way of figu- 
 rative resemblance ; but know that 
 this is a real and substantial union, 
 whereby the believer is indissolubly 
 united to the glorious person of the 
 Son of God. Know that this union 
 
 is not more mystical than certain, 
 that in natural unions there may be 
 more evidence but cannot be more 
 truth. Neither is there so firm and 
 close a union betwixt the soul and 
 body as there is betwixt Christ and 
 the believing soul; for as much as 
 that may be severed by death but 
 this cannot.’ Christ Mystical, ch. 
 II. ; see above, Lect. ill. p. 146, 
 note 2. 
 
 LECT. 
 
 IV. 
 
108 The Ministry in Eastern Galilee, 
 
 LE^T. there, where He is, is our true and ever- 
 
 lasting home : there, by the shores of that crystal 
 
 ^Eev. iv. sea® our heavenly Gennesareth, there that new 
 Rev. xxi. Jerusalem, whose light is the light of the Lamb^, 
 — the ^ city which has foundations, whose builder 
 “ Heb. xi. and maker is God*^.’ 
 
 lO. 
 
LECTURE V. 
 
 THE MINISTRY IN NORTHERN GALILEE. 
 
 St Luke iv. 43 . 
 
 And He said unto them^ I must 'preach the kingdom of God 
 to other cities also: for therefore am I sent. 
 
 I HAVE chosen these words, brethren, which really l:^ct. 
 
 belong to a slightly earlier period^ than that which — ; 
 
 we are now about to consider, as nevertheless a 
 very suitable text for that part of our Master’s 
 history which will occupy our attention this after- 
 noon. 
 
 In the portion of the inspired narrative now General 
 before us, we have the brief yet deeply interesting tM^part^of 
 notices of more widely extended journeys and ® 
 
 more prolonged circuits. We find the clear traces 
 of missionary travel to the West and to the East 
 and to the North, and we read the holy record 
 of deeds of mercy performed in remote regions 
 both of Galilee and the lands across the Jordan^, 
 
 1 The exact time when these words ministerial labours of our Lord which 
 
 were uttered by our Lord was the come before us in this Lecture. The 
 morning following the first Sabbath known geographical divisions of XJp- 
 at Capernaum, when the amazed but per and Lower Galilee (Joseph. Bell. 
 grateful multitudes were pressing Jud. in. 3. i) would naturally have 
 Him not to leave the place He had suggested the adoption of the former 
 so greatly blessed ; see Lect. IV. ^ term in reference to the present, 
 p. 167. and the latter in reference to the 
 
 2 It has not been easy to select a preceding portion of the sacred nar- 
 single term which should correctly rative, if it were not apparently an 
 describe the principal scene of the established fact that Capernaum be- 
 
200 The Ministry in Northern Galilee, 
 
 LECT. 
 
 V. 
 
 “ Matt, iv 
 
 15. 
 
 *> vcr. 15. 
 
 Special 
 contrasts 
 and cha- 
 racteris- 
 tics. 
 
 which the Lord had not, as it would appear, yet 
 blessed with his divine presence. Hitherto the 
 plain of Gennesareth and the nearer portions of 
 Galilee, Hhe land of Zabulon and the land of 
 Nephthalim^,’ had been almost exclusively blest 
 with the glory of the great Light; now Phoenice 
 and Decapolis were to behold its rays. Hitherto 
 the lake of the East, ^ the way of the sea beyond 
 J ordan^,’ had been the chief theatre of the Re- 
 deemer’s teaching and miracles ; now even the 
 coasts of Tyre and Sidon, and the great sea of the 
 West were to hear the tidings of salvation, yea 
 and to bear their witness to victories over the 
 powers of that kingdom of darkness which had so 
 long been seated on those heathen and idolatrous 
 shores. 
 
 Such is the general character of the very re- 
 markable portion of the sacred narrative on which 
 we are now about to dwell. Remarkable is it 
 for the glimpses it vouchsafes to us of the un- 
 wearied activities of our Lord’s ministerial life; 
 remarkable for the notices it supplies to us of the 
 extended spheres to which those holy energies 
 were directed^; remarkable too for the contrasted 
 
 longed, not as it might be thought 
 to Lower (Kitto, Bibl. Cycl. Art. 
 ‘Galilee,’ Vol. i. p. 727), but to 
 Upper Galilee ; comp. Euseb. Ono- 
 mast. Art. ‘ Capharnaum,’ and Smith, 
 Diet, of Bible, Arfc. ‘ Galilee,’ Vol. 
 
 I. p. 646. The title above has thus 
 been chosen, though it is confess- 
 edly not exact, as failing to include , 
 the districts across the Jordan, 
 which, as will be seen from the nar- 
 rative, were the scenes of some part 
 of the ministry that we are now 
 
 considering. 
 
 1 The peculiar character of these 
 distant missionary joxirneys of our 
 Lord, and the considerable portion 
 of time which they appear to have 
 occupied, have been too much over- 
 looked by modern writers of the 
 Life of our Lord ; compare, for ex- 
 ample, Hase, Leben Jem, § 85, and 
 even to some extent Lange, Leben 
 Jesu, II. 5. 10, Part ii. p. 864, nei- 
 ther of whom seems properly to 
 recognize the important place which 
 
The Ministrij in Northern Galilee, 201 
 
 relations in which it stands to that portion of the 
 
 Gospel history which claimed so much of our atten- 
 
 tion last Sunday. To these contrasts and charac- 
 teristics let us devote a few preliminary thoughts. 
 
 First, however, let us specify the limits of the 
 section to which we are about to confine our at- of the pre- 
 tention... These seem, almost at once, to suggest 
 themselves to the meditative reader, and serve 
 to separate the evangelical narrative into simple 
 and natural divisions. Our section, it will be 
 remembered, commences with the events which 
 immediately succeeded the Feeding of the five 
 thousand on the Passover eve and naturally and 
 appropriately concludes with the return of our 
 Lord to Capernaum a very short time previous to 
 His journey to Jerusalem at the feast of Taber- 
 nacles, towards the middle of October. We have 
 thus as nearly as possible a period of six months^, 
 a period bounded by two great festivals, and, as I 
 have already said, marked off from the preceding 
 portion of our Lord’s history by some striking 
 contrasts and characteristics. On these let us 
 briefly pause to make a few observations which the 
 nature of the subject appears to demand. 
 
 these journeys really occupy in our 
 Lord’s ministry; see below, p. 202. 
 Ewald on the contrary has correctly 
 devoted a separate section to this 
 portion of the Gospel history; see 
 Gesch. Christus’, p. 331 sq. 
 
 1 See above, Lect. iv. p. 196. The 
 opinion there advanced, of the exact 
 coincidence of the day on which the 
 multitudes were fed with that on 
 which the paschaldamb was slain, 
 derives some slight support from the 
 subject of our Lord’s discourse (the 
 
 bread of life, John vi. 22 sq.) at 
 Capernaum on the following day, 
 which, it does not appear at all un- 
 likely, was suggested by the festal 
 season; see below, p. 210. 
 
 ^ If we are correct in our general 
 chronology, the present year would 
 be 782 A.U.C., and in this year the 
 Passover would begin April 17 or 
 18 (see above, p. 192, note i), and 
 the feast of Tabernacles October 19 ; 
 see the tables in Wieseler, Chron. 
 Synops. p. 483. 
 
202 21ie Ministry in Northern Galilee. 
 
 One of the most striking features of the pre- 
 
 LECT. 
 
 V. 
 
 sent section is the glimpse it affords us of the 
 
 I’lMgres- . 
 
 n^iuvG progressive nature, ii i may venture to use such 
 
 of our 
 
 Lord’s mi- ^n 
 iiistry. 
 
 John 
 
 ver. 3. 
 
 expression, of our Lord’s ministerial labours, 
 and the prophetic indications, as it were, which it 
 supplies of the future universal diffusion of the 
 Gospel. At first we have seen that our blessed 
 Master was mercifully pleased to confine His * 
 teaching and His deeds of love and mercy mainly 
 to that province which could now alone be 
 reckoned as the land of the old theocracy. In 
 Judaea He was pleased to dwell continuously more 
 than eight months^ ; in J udsea He gathered round 
 Him disciples more numerous than those of J ohn^, 
 and from Judaea He departed only when the 
 malignity of Scribe and Pharisee rendered that 
 favoured land no longer a safe resting-place for its 
 Kedeemer and its God^ Then, and not till then, 
 followed the ministry in the eastern and as it 
 would seem more Judaized^ portion of Galilee. 
 
 ^ This ministry began with the 
 Passover of the year 781 A.u.C. 
 (March “29), and concluded with our 
 Lord’s departure to Galilee through 
 Samaria, which, as we have seen 
 above, may be fixed approximately 
 as late in December: see Lect. iii. 
 p. 130, note 2. 
 
 ^ This last epithet may perhaps 
 be questioned, but is apparently 
 J)orne out by the essentially Jewish 
 character of the district which the 
 sacred narrative seems to reveal. 
 The population of the great city of 
 the district, Tiberias, though mixed 
 (Joseph. .4 XVIII. 2. 3), appears 
 to have included a considerable and 
 probably preponderant number of 
 J ews, as we find it mentioned as in 
 
 revolt against the Romans (Joseph. 
 Vit. 9), while the other large city of 
 Galilee, Sepphoris, did not swerve 
 from its allegiance. Capernaum too, 
 if we agree to identify it with Tell 
 Hhm (p. 1 2 1, note 2), must have had 
 a large population of Jews at a time 
 not very distant from the Christian 
 era, otherwise we can hardly account 
 for the extensive ruins, apparently 
 of a synagogue of unusual magnifi- 
 cence, which have been observed at 
 that place by modern travellers ; see 
 Robinson, Palestine, Vol. iii. p. 346 
 (ed. 2), Thomson, Land and the 
 Boole, Vol. I. p. 540. As to the 
 supposed early date of the building, 
 compare the remarks of Robinson, 
 Palest. Vol. III. p. 74. 
 
The Ministry in Northern Galilee. 203 
 
 In due and mysterious order succeeded those 
 
 missionary labours in frontier lands where the 
 
 Gentile element was mainly, if not in some cases 
 exclusively prevalent. This gradual enlargement 
 of the field of holy labour does indeed seem both 
 striking and suggestive; this we may perhaps 
 venture to regard as a result from our present 
 system of harmonizing the Gospel narrative, which 
 reflects on that system no small degree of plausi- 
 bility. 
 
 But there are contrasts too between the Contrasts 
 narrative of this present portion of our Lord’s this"and 
 history and that which has preceded, which 
 seem to illustrate the foregoing remarks, and 
 in themselves both interesting and instructive. 
 
 Though the portion of time vouchsafed to the 
 ministry in Capernaum and its vicinity was so 
 short, yet with what minute accuracy is it detailed 
 to us by the three Synoptical Evangelists ! How 
 numerous the miracles, how varied and impressive 
 the teaching! Three continuous weeks onlyb yet 
 
 1 Assuming our general dates 
 to be right, our Lord’s first appear- 
 ance in the synagogue at Nazareth 
 would be on a Sabbath correspond- 
 ing with the 2ist day of the interca- 
 lated month Beadar, or, according 
 to the Julian Calendar, March 26 or 
 27. The Passover, as we have 
 already seen, commenced on April 
 17 or 18. We have thus for the 
 portion of our Lord’s ministry on 
 which we have commented in the 
 preceding Lecture only a period of 
 about twenty-two days. It may be 
 urged that this is far shorter than 
 we could have inferred from the 
 narrative ; but it may be answered, 
 — that if the feast mentioned by 
 
 St John (ch. V. i) be Purim, and if 
 we consider, as we seem fairly justi- 
 fied in doing, the Feeding of the 
 five thousand coincident with the 
 Passover-eve of the same year (see 
 p. 152, note i), then our Lord’s minis- 
 try in Eastern Galilee cannot readily 
 be shown to have lasted longer than 
 has here been supposed. It is by 
 no means disguised that there are in 
 this, as in every other system of 
 chronology that has yet been pro- 
 posed, many difiiculties, and much 
 that may make us very doubtful of 
 our power of fixing the exact epochs 
 of many events (see above, p. 192, 
 note I ) ; still, if the extreme chrono- 
 logical limits appear rightly fixed. 
 
204 The Ministry in Northern Galilee. 
 
 LECT. 
 
 V. 
 
 Teacliing 
 and preach- 
 ing rather 
 than mira- 
 cles cha- 
 racteristic 
 of this 
 period. 
 
 in that short time -one signal instance of the Lord’s 
 controlling power over the elements^, two records 
 of triumphs over the power of death, three notable 
 accounts of a stern sovereignty exercised over the 
 spirits of perdition"*, the formal founding of the 
 Church, and the promulgation of all its deepest 
 teaching... But in our present section when we 
 follow our Lord’s steps into half-heathen lands, 
 though the time spent was so much greater, how 
 few the recorded miracles, how isolated and de- 
 tached the notices of them ! 
 
 Nay more, our very inspired authorities seem 
 to change their relations, and yet suggest by the 
 very change that local teaching and preaching® 
 rather than display of miraculous power was the 
 chief characteristic of these six months of the 
 Lord’s ministerial life. I ground this opinion on 
 
 we seem bound to accept the fair 
 results of such an arrangement, if 
 not as certainly true, yet at least 
 as consistent with what has been 
 judged to be so, and thus far as 
 claiming our assent. For some re- 
 marks tending in some measure to 
 dilute the force of a priori argu- 
 ments founded on the apparent 
 shortness of the time, see Wieseler, 
 Citron. Synops. p. 288. 
 
 1 We might have almost said hvo, 
 as the miracle of walking on the 
 water (Matth. xiv. 22, Mark vi. 48, 
 John vi. 19), though placed in the 
 portion on which we are now com- 
 menting, obviously belongs to the 
 ministry in Eastern Galilee. 
 
 2 These are, (i) the striking in- 
 stance in the synagogue at Caper- 
 naum (Mark i. 23 sq., Luke iv. 
 33 sq,), which so greatly amazed 
 those who witnessed it ; (2) the in- 
 stance of healing the blind and deaf 
 
 demoniac (Matth. xii. 22), which 
 provoked the impious declarations 
 of the Jerusalem scribes and Phari- 
 sees ; and ( 3) the Gergesene demo- 
 niacs (Matth. viii. 28 sq., Mark v. 
 I sq., Luke viii. 26 sq.). 
 
 ^ The statement of Chrysostom 
 {in Matth. Horn. Lii. Vol. vii. 
 p. 596, ed. Bened. 2), that our Lord 
 did not journey to the borders of 
 Tyre and Sidon for the purpose of 
 preaching there {ovhk ws Krjpv^uv 
 diryhOev), seems doubtful. From 
 St Mark, as Chrysostom urges, we 
 learn that our Lord sought privacy 
 ^and would have no man know’ 
 (ch. vii. 2-4), but this, from the im- 
 mediate context and, as it were, 
 contrasted miracle, would seem to 
 indicate a desire for partial rather 
 than absolute concealment, a tempo- 
 rary laying aside of His merciful dis- 
 plays of divine power rather than a 
 suspension of His ministry. 
 
The Ministry in Northern Galilee. 205 
 
 the easily verified fact that the professed historian 
 of his Master’s life, he who^ade it his duty to 
 set in order the narrative which eye-witnesses had 
 delivered ^ and who records to us events rather 
 than discourses has assigned to this six months’ 
 period only some thirty or more verses^, while to 
 the brief but eventful period that preceded he has 
 devoted at least seven times as much of his in- 
 spired record. Our principal authority, as we 
 might almost expect, is St Matthew ; yet not ex- 
 clusively, as about 150 verses of St Mark’s Gospel 
 relate to the same periods The events however 
 recorded by both Evangelists taken together are 
 so very few, that again the inference would seem 
 reasonable, that if two of those who were eye- 
 witnesses, — for in St Mark we have the testimony 
 of St Peter, — have related so little, our Lord’s 
 miracles during this time could scarcely have been 
 numerous. Miracles, as we know, were performed, 
 but it was probably less by their influence than 
 by the calm but persuasive influence of teaching 
 and preaching that the Lord was pleased to touch 
 and test the rude, yet apparently receptive hearts 
 of the dwellers in the remote uplands of Galilee, 
 or in the borders of Hellenic Decapolis^ 
 
 ^ On the nature and character- 
 istics of this Gospel, see Lect. i. 
 p. -27 sq. 
 
 2 The only portion of St Luke’s 
 Gospel which appears to relate to 
 this period of our Lord’s ministry, 
 if we except a very few verses which 
 may perhaps belong to discourses 
 during this period (ch. xv. 3 — 7; 
 xvii. I, 3), begins ch. ix. 18, and 
 concludes with the 50th verse of 
 the same chapter: comp. Wieseler, 
 
 Chron. Synops. p. 314. 
 
 ^ The portion of St Mark’s Go- 
 spel that refers to this period of our 
 Lord’s ministry begins ch. vi. 45, 
 and seems to conclude with the last 
 verse of ch. ix. The next chapter 
 describes our Lord as journeying 
 into Judaea by way of Peraea, and 
 consequently is describing the last 
 journey to Jerusalem ; see Lec- 
 ture VI. 
 
 The district, or, more strictly 
 
 LECT. 
 
 V. 
 
 Luke i. '2. 
 
206 The Ministrij in Northern Galilee. 
 
 LECT. 
 
 V. 
 
 Such a dif- 
 ference 
 probable 
 from the 
 nature of 
 tlie case. 
 
 * Matt, 
 xiii. 58, 
 Mark vi. 
 
 5. 
 
 This is exactly what we might liave presumed 
 to expect from the circumstances of the case, and 
 from what has been incidentally revealed to us 
 of the conditions on which the performance of the 
 Lord’s miracles in a great measure depended. 
 From the comment which both St Matthew and 
 St Mark have made upon the repressing influence 
 of the unbelief of the people of Nazareth^, we 
 seem justified in asserting that our Fedeemer’s 
 miracles were in a great degree contingent upon 
 the faith of those, to whom the message of the 
 Gospel was ofleredh How persuasively true then 
 does that narrative appear which on the one hand 
 represents the appeal to miracles most frequent 
 and continuous in Eastern Galilee, where the 
 receptivity was great and the contravening in- 
 fluences mainly due to alien emissaries", — and, on 
 the other, leaves us to infer, by its few and isolated 
 notices, that amid the darkness and necessarily 
 
 speaking, confederation bearing this 
 name, seems to have been made up 
 of cities and the villages round them 
 (Joseph. Vit. § 65), of which the 
 population was nearly entirely Gen- 
 tile: two of the cities. Hippos and 
 Gadai*a are distinctly termed by Jo- 
 sephus {Antiq. XII. li. 4) 'EWrjvides 
 TToXets. The geographical limits of 
 Decapolis can scarcely be defined; 
 we seem, however, justified in con- 
 sidering that nearly all the cities in- 
 cluded in the confederation were 
 across the Jordan, and on the eastern 
 side of the Lake of Gennesareth ; 
 comp. Euseb. Onomast. s. v. ‘De- 
 capolis,’ and see Winer, RWB. Art. 
 ‘Decapolis,’ Vol. i. p. -263. 
 
 ^ The following comment of Ori- 
 gen is clear and pertinent : ‘ From 
 these words (Matth. xiii. 58) we are 
 
 taught that miracles were performed 
 among the believing, since “to every 
 one that hath it shall be given and 
 shall be made to abound,” but a- 
 mong unbelievers miracles not only 
 were not, but, as St Mark has re- 
 corded, even could not be performed. 
 For attend to that “He could not 
 perform any miracle there he did 
 not say “He noonld not,” but “He 
 could not,” implying that there is 
 an accessory co-operation with the 
 miraculous power supplied by the 
 faith of him towards whom the mira- 
 cle is being performed, but that there 
 is a positive hindrance caused by 
 unbelief.’ In Matth. x. 18, Vol. ill. 
 p. 466 (ed. Bened.) : see also Eu- 
 thym, Matth. xiii. 58. 
 
 2 See above. Lecture IV. p. 169, 
 note I. 
 
The Ministry in Northern Galilee. 207 
 
 imperfect belief of the frontier lands that appeal l:^t. 
 
 was comparatively limited and exceptional. 
 
 But it is now time for us to resume the thread The return 
 of the inspired history. On that Passover-eve lake. Our 
 with which our narrative commences, our Lord on 
 after having fed the Five thousand remains Him- 
 self behind on the eastern shore to dismiss the 
 yet lingering multitudes^, but directs the disciples \Matt. 
 to cross over the lake to Bethsaida. From some Mark vi. 
 supposed discordant notices in the accounts given 
 of the circumstances which followed, it has been 
 urged that this Bethsaida was the town of that 
 name, known also by the name of Julias, not far 
 from the head of the lake^, and with this suppo- 
 sition it may be conceded that there are some 
 statements in the sacred narrative that at first 
 
 ^ This view, which is perhaps 
 originally due to Lightfoot {Chron. 
 Temp. § 47, Vol. ii. p. 30, Eote- 
 rod. 1686), is very elaborately main- 
 tained by Wieseler {Chron. Synops. 
 p. 274, note), and has also found 
 a recent advocate in Dr Thomson 
 {The Land and the Booh, Vol. ii. 
 p. 30 sq.), who conceives that there 
 was really only one Bethsaida, viz. 
 the town at the north-eastern corner 
 of the lake. In opposition to Light- 
 foot and Wieseler we may justly 
 urge, first, the distinct words of St 
 Matthew, describing the position of 
 the vessel on its return, to 5^ ttXo'iqv 
 yjdy fJL^aov rijs BaXdcrays yv (ch. xiy, 
 24 ; comp. Mark vi. 47) ; and se- 
 condly, the words of St Mark irpod- 
 yeiv ets TO Trepav irpos ^ydcal'dav 
 (ch. vi. 45), which, when coupled 
 with the above notice of the posi- 
 tion of the vessel, it does seem im- 
 possible to explain otherwise than 
 as specifying a direct course across 
 
 the lake: compare also John vi. 17. 
 With regard to Dr Thomson’s opi- 
 nion it may be observed that all 
 modern writers seem rightly to acqui- 
 esce in the opinion of Eeland that 
 there ^vas a place of that name on the 
 western coast, very near Capernaum. 
 Eobinson fixes its site as at the 
 modern et-Tabighah {Palestine, Vol. 
 III. p. 359, ed. 2), but there seems 
 good reason for agreeing with Eitter 
 in placing it at Khan Minyeh, and 
 in fully admitting the statement of 
 Seetzen, that this last-mentioned 
 place was also known by the local 
 name of Bat-Szaida : see Erdhunde, 
 Part XV. p. 333 sq. That there 
 should be two places called Beth- 
 saida (‘House of Fish’) on or near a 
 lake so well known not only for the 
 peculiar varieties (Joseph. Bell. Jud. 
 HI. 10. 8) but the great abundance 
 of its fish as that of Gennesareth, 
 cannot justly be considered at all 
 improbable. 
 
208 The Ministry in Northern Galilee. 
 
 LECT. 
 
 V. 
 
 ^ John vi. 
 
 23. 
 
 sight seem to be fairly accordant: as however 
 the supposed discordances and difficulties are really 
 only imaginary, there seems no sufficient reason for 
 departing from the ordinarily received opinion 
 that this was the village on the western side. 
 Nay more, the scarcely doubtful direction of the 
 gale from the South-west^, which would bring, 
 as we are afterwards told, vessels from Tiberias to 
 the north-eastern coasts but would greatly delay a 
 passage in the contrary direction, seems to make 
 against such a supposition, and to lead us deci- 
 dedly to believe that Bethsaida on the western 
 coast was the point which the Apostles were try- 
 ing to reach,' — and trying to reach in vain. 
 Though they had started in the evening^, they 
 
 ^ See Blunt, Veracity of Evange- 
 lists, No. XX. p. 82, who appears 
 rightly to connect with the mention 
 of the gale the incidental notice of 
 the passage of boats from Tiberias 
 to the N. E. corner of the lake. 
 For a description of these audden , 
 and often lasting gales, see Thomson, 
 Land and the Booh, Vol. ii. p. 32, 
 and comp. p. 187, note 2. 
 
 ^ Some little difficulty has been 
 found in the specifications of time 
 in the narrative owing to the inclu- 
 sive nature of the term 6 \pia. The 
 following remarks will perhaps adjust 
 the seeming discrepancies. From 
 St Matthew (ch.xiv.15) we learn that 
 it was o^ta before the men sat down. 
 This we may reasonably suppose 
 roughly specifies some time in W\q first 
 evening (3P.M. — 6 P.M.), which again 
 the dipa TToWy of St Mark (ch. vi. 35) 
 would seem more nearly to define as 
 rather towards the close than the 
 commencement of that o^pLa, At, 
 
 the beginning of the second evening, 
 probably soon after 6 o’clock, the 
 disciples embark (John vi. 16), and 
 ere this opia, which extended from 
 sunset to darkness, had quite con- 
 cluded, the disciples had reached the 
 middle of the lake (Mark vi. 47 ; 
 comp. Matth. xiv. 24), and were now 
 experiencing the full force of a gale, 
 which probably commencing soon 
 after sunset (corap. Thomson, Land 
 and the Booh, Vol. ii. p. 32) was 
 now becoming hourly more wild. 
 For some hours they contend against 
 it, but without making more than a 
 few stadia (comp. John vi. 19: the 
 lake was about forty stadia broad ; 
 Joseph. Bell. Jud. in. 10. 7), when 
 in the fourth watch (Matth. xiv. 25) 
 they beheld our Lord walking on 
 the waters, and approaching the 
 vessel. On the first and second 
 evenings see Gesenius, Lex. s. v. 
 
 P- dclii (Bagster), Jahn, Ar- 
 chceol. Bibl. §101. 
 
The Ministry in Northern Galilee, 200 
 
 had not crossed the lake by the time of the 
 fourth watch still were they toiling against the ^ - — 
 
 stirred-up waters and tempestuous wind, when xiv. 25. 
 to their bewilderment they see the Lord walking 48?"^ 
 on those storm-tost waves, and as it were leading 
 the way^ to the haven they had so long been 
 striving to reach. We well remember the incident 
 of the striking but, alas! soon failing faith of St 
 Peter the ceasing of the wind, and the speedy \Matt. 
 arrival of the vessel at the land whither they were ^ 
 going‘s ; and we have perhaps not forgotten that John vi. 
 this miracle produced a greater impression on the 
 Apostles than any they had yet witnessed I The 
 miracle of the multiplied loaves they could not 
 fully appreciate. Though, as we well know, it 
 had produced a profound effect upon those for 
 whose sake it had been performed^, and had^Jo^^vi. 
 caused them to confess that this was ^of a truth 
 that prophet that should come into the world®,’ and ^ ^4. 
 
 though we cannot doubt that in such a confession 
 the Apostles had also silently shared, yet we are 
 plainly told by the second Evangelist^, that their ‘‘cii.vi. 52. 
 hearts were too hard and too dull to understand 
 fully the mighty miracle at which they themselves 
 had been permitted to minister. Here, however. 
 
 1 See Mark vi. 48, /cat i^'OeXeu Trap' 
 eXOeiv avTois; and compare Lange, 
 Lchen Jem, ii. 5. 3, Part ii. p, 788. 
 
 2 On this miracle, which is one of 
 the seven selected by St John (comp. 
 Ewald, Gesch. Christus’, p. 359, note), 
 and which, as the Greek commenta- 
 tors rightly observe (see Chrysost. 
 and Euthymius in Matth. xiv. 33), 
 evinces even more distinctly than the 
 Stilling of the tempest our Lord’s 
 power over the laws that govern the 
 
 E. n. L. 
 
 material world, — see some novel, 
 though too allegorically applied com- 
 ments in Oi'igen, in Matth. xi. 5, 
 Vol. III. p. 484 sq. (ed. Bened.), and 
 in Augustine, Serm. Lxxv. Lxxvi. 
 Vol. v. p. 474 sq. More general 
 comments will be found in Hall, 
 Contempl. iv. 6, Trench, Miracles, 
 p. 274 sq. ; and notices of difiScul- 
 ties in this and the accompanying 
 narrative, in Ebrard, Kritik der 
 Evang. Geschichte, § 76, p. 391. 
 
 14 
 
LECT. 
 
 V. 
 
 “ Matt, 
 xiv. 33. 
 
 ** John i. 
 49 - 
 
 Return to 
 Caper- 
 naum; oui 
 Lord’s dis- 
 course in 
 the syna- 
 gogue. 
 
 210 The Ministry in Northern Galilee. 
 
 was something that produced on them a far 
 deeper impression ; here was something that ap- 
 pealed to those hardy boatmen as nought else 
 could have appealed, and made them both with 
 their lips and by their outward and unforbidden 
 posture of worship^ avow for the first time col- 
 lectively, that their Master was what one of them 
 had long since separately declared Him to be^, 
 not only ^ the king of Israel/ but ^ the Son of 
 God\* 
 
 The morning brings back to the western side 
 many^ of those who had been miraculously fed the 
 evening before, and to them in the synagogue 
 at Capernaum (for it was the fifteenth of Nisan 
 and a day of solemn service®), the Lord utters 
 that sublime discourse recorded by St John, so 
 strikingly in accordance not only with the past mi- 
 racle but with the present Passover-season, where- 
 in He declares Himself to be the Bread of Life. 
 The whole discourse is worthy of our attention^, 
 
 1 On the full signification of the 
 title ‘ Son of God/ as applied to our 
 Lord in the New Testament, see the 
 valuable remarks of Wilson, 
 
 of the New Test. ch. ii. p. 10 sq. 
 In the present case it is impossible 
 to doubt that it was aught else than 
 a full and complete recognition, not 
 merely of our Saviour’s Messiahship 
 (Meyer), which would here be Wholly 
 out of place, but of His divine nature 
 and prerogatives. 
 
 2 Unnecessary difficulties have 
 been made about the transit of the 
 multitude. Without unduly press- 
 ing 6 ea-T 7 )Kw$ (Stier), as specially 
 implying those who remained, in 
 contrast with those that went away, 
 it still seems obvious from the tenor 
 
 of the narrative that those who fol- 
 lowed our Lord were only the more 
 earnest and deeply impressed por- 
 tion of the multitude. Boats they 
 would find in abundance, as the 
 traffic on the lake was great, and 
 the gale would have driven boats 
 in a direction from Tiberias, and 
 obliged them to seek shelter on the 
 north-eastern shores ; see above, p. 
 208, note I, and comp. Sepp, Leben 
 Christi, v. 7, Vol. iii. 16. 
 
 3 See Lev. xxiii. 7, Deut. xxviii. 
 18, from both of which passages we 
 learn that there was to be a holy 
 convocation on the day, and no 
 servile work done thereon. 
 
 ^ For good and copious comments 
 on this discourse, the subject of 
 
The Ministry in Northern Galilee, 211 
 
 as serving to confirm, perhaps in a somewhat ^ect. 
 
 striking way, some of the views which we were 
 
 led to adopt last Sunday in regard to the spiritual 
 state of the people of Capernaum and its neigh- 
 bourhood. It seemed almost clear, you may re- 
 member, that the hostility and unbelief which the 
 Lord met with at Capernaum was in a great 
 degree to be traced to malignant emissaries from 
 Jerusalem^, subsequently joined by some Galilasan “ Luke v. 
 Pharisees \ We may reasonably conceive that MarrS.^* 
 these evil men had now left Galilee to celebrate 
 the Passover, and we may in consequence be led 
 to expect far fewer exhibitions of hatred and 
 hostility when our Lord vouchsafes to preach in 
 the synagogue from which they were temporarily 
 absent. And this is exactly what we do find re- 
 corded by the fourth Evangelist. We detect traces 
 of doubt and suspended belief in some of the as- 
 sembled hearers^, nay, we are told of murmurings '* John vi. 
 from the more hostile section then present^, when 
 our Lord declares that He Himself was ^ the bread 
 which came down from heaven‘s we observe too<^ver. 41. 
 strivings^ among themselves as to the true meaning ver. 52. 
 of His weighty words but we are shocked by 
 
 which is the mysterious relation of ^ It deserves notice that the speak- 
 
 our Lord to His people as the Bread ers are now not, as above, some of 
 of Life, and as the spiritual suste- the multitude who had followed our 
 nance of believers, — see Chrysostom, . Lord, and whose questions had re- 
 in Joann. Horn. XLiv — XLVii., Cy- ceived the solemn answers recorded 
 ril Alex, in Joann. Vol. iv. pp. 295 in the earlier portion of the dis- 
 — 372 (edi Aubert), Augustine, in course, but are specially noticed as 
 Joann. Tractat. xxv. xxvi., and ’louSatoi; i.e. according to what 
 among modem writers in Luthardt, seems St John’s regular use of the 
 das Johann. Evang. Part ii. pp. 49 — term, adherents of the party that 
 64, and Stier, J}isc, of our Lord, was specially hostile to our Lord : 
 
 Vol. V. pp. 149 — 205 (Clark). see above, p. 141, note i. 
 
 ^ See above, p. 169, note i. ^ These strivings, though in a dif- 
 
 14—2 
 
212 The Ministry in Northern Galilee. 
 
 ^ none of those outbursts of maddened hatred which 
 
 — r on an earlier occasion^ marked the presence of 
 
 ii; comp, the intruders from Jerusalem. It is clear, how- 
 ever, that evil seed had been sown and was 
 springing up ; it is plain that our Lord’s words 
 caused offence, and that not merely to the general 
 multitude, but, alas! to some unspiritual disciples, 
 who, St John tells us shortly but sadly, ^went 
 bch. vi.66. back, and walked with Him no more^’...But the 
 holy Twelve were true and firm : they who a few 
 hours before on the dark waters of the solitary 
 Matt. XV. lake had confessed their Master’s divinity‘s, now 
 again in the face of all men declare by the mouth 
 of* St Peterb that they believed and were sure 
 ^Johnvi. that ^He was Christ the Son of the living God^^.’ 
 
 ferent and better spirit, have conti- 
 nued to this very day. Without 
 entering deeply into the contested 
 question of the reference of the 
 words Kal 6 dpros, /c.r.X. (ver. 51), 
 we may remark generally (t) that the 
 allusion in ver. 50 is clearly to the 
 Incarnation, which at the commence- 
 ment of ver. 51 is more fully un- 
 folded, and in the conclusion of that 
 verse seems also further (/cal 6 dpros 
 di, /c.r.X.) followed out to its last inost 
 gracious purpose,— the giving up of 
 the human flesh thus assumed, to 
 atone for the sins of mankind : 
 dTTodvr]crK(i3 <prjaiv, iw^p irdvriav, 'iva 
 Trdvras ^woTTOirjcro} di ip,auTov, Cyril, 
 Alex, in loc. Vol. iv. p. 353. This 
 supposition, thus derived from the 
 context, is strongly confirmed by 
 the word adp^, which, especially in 
 its present connexion, seems intend- 
 ed still more definitely to point to 
 our Lord’s atoning death; comp. 
 Eph. ii. 15, Col. 1.-2 2, I Pet. iii. i8. 
 To which we may add (2) that the 
 
 idea pervading the whole verse, — 
 Christ the bread of the world, and 
 the further explanations which our 
 Lord Himself vouchsafes (ver. 53) — 
 fully warrant a reference, not direct- 
 ly and exclusively but indirectly and 
 inclusively, to the Holy Communion 
 of our Lord’s body and blood. For 
 an account of the various conflicting 
 views, see Liicke, Comment, ilher 
 3 oh. Vol. II. p. 152 sq. (ed. 3), 
 Meyer, ih. p. 209 (ed. 3), — but to as- 
 certain the exact opinion of the pa- 
 tristic writers there referred to, the 
 student will be wise to consult the 
 original writers. 
 
 1 This confession of St Peter, 
 which, as Chrysostom rightly re- 
 marks, was said in behalf of all (ou 
 7ctp direv ‘ ^'yrw/ca,’ dXX’ ‘ iyvdKa- 
 p.ev"), is certainly not to be regarded 
 as identical with that recorded in 
 Matth. xvi. 16 : contrast Wieseler, 
 Chron. Synops. p. 277. Time, place 
 and circumstances seem so clearly 
 different that we can hardly fail to 
 
The Ministry in Northern Galilee, 213 
 
 Of the miraculous events that immediately 
 followed we can only speak in general terms, 
 
 ® Healings 
 
 Both St Matthew and St Mark here expressly in Genne- 
 
 ^ ScXl*0l^ll 
 
 mention numerous healings which were performed return of 
 
 in the plain of Gennesareth. Both speak of the en^issariel 
 great confluence of the sick and the suffering^; 
 both specify the mightiness of the power with Mark vi. 
 which they were healed^. To the performance of 
 these deeds of mercy a short time, — a few 
 perhaps, — may reasonably be assigned^, but it was 56 . 
 a short time only. Those healing hands were, 
 alas ! soon to be stayed. Old enemies were by 
 this time on their way back again to bring charges 
 and to condemn; the human agents of the king- 
 dom of darkness were again arraying themselves 
 against the Lord of the kingdom of Light. St 
 Matthew‘S and St Mark‘d’ both relate the arrival of^'ch. xv. i. 
 
 - “ ch. vii. I. 
 
 admit, what is in itself highly natural, 
 that the fervid apostle twice made a 
 similar confession. Such seems dis- 
 tinctly the opinion of Chrysostom 
 {in loc.), who alludes to the other 
 confession as dXXaxoO. The exact 
 words of the confession are not per- 
 fectly certain. We have followed 
 above the Received Text, but as 
 there seems some probability of alter- 
 ation • from Matth. xvi. i6 (see 
 Meyer and Alford in loc.) it may be 
 fairly questioned whether the read- 
 ing of BC^DL, — 6 ayios rod 0eoO, is 
 not to be pi'eferred. . 
 
 1 In the nan'ative of St Matthew 
 there is nothing to guide us. The 
 remark, however, of St Mark, oirov 
 av eiaeTTopeveTO ei’s Kib/xas ^ ei’s iroXets 
 7 ] ets dypovs (ch. vi. 56), seems to in- 
 dicate a continued ministry in the 
 neighbourhood of Capernaum, of at 
 least a few days duration. Wieseler 
 
 {Chron. Synops. p. 311, note) seems 
 to refer not only all these events 
 but also the reply of our Lord to 
 the Pharisees on the subject of eat- 
 ing with unwashen hands (Matth. 
 XV. I sq., Mark vii. i sq.) to the 
 same day as that on which the dis- 
 course on the Bread of Life was 
 delivered, i, e. on Nisan 1 5. This, 
 however, is by no means probable. 
 The Pharisees and Scribes, who are 
 specified both by the first and se- 
 cond Evangelists as having come 
 from Jerusalem, would hardly have 
 left the city till the festival of the 
 Passover was fully concluded. Ori- 
 gen {in Matth. Tom. XI. 8) comments 
 on the Tore (Matth. xv. i) as mark- 
 ing a general coincidence in point of 
 time with the healings in Gennesa- 
 reth, but gives no precise opinion as 
 to the exact time when the emissaries 
 reappeared. 
 
214 The Ministry in Northern Galilee. 
 
 L^T. geribes and Pharisees from J erusalem’ — beyond all 
 
 doubt those whose machinations we noticed in our 
 
 last lecture, and who now, with the true spirit 
 of the sect to which they belonged, had formally 
 observed their Passover at Jerusalem, and had 
 hastened back, as it were from the presence of the 
 God of justice and truth, to take counsel against 
 innocent blood. Ground of accusation is soon 
 found out. These base men had perhaps insidi- 
 ously crept into the social meetings of the dis- 
 ciples, and marked with malignant eyes the free- 
 dom of early evangelical life, and the charge is 
 soon made : ‘ Why walk not thy disciples accord- 
 ing to the tradition of the elders, but eat bread 
 » Matt. XV. with unwashen hands^?’ Stern and crushing in- 
 Mark vii. deed is the answer which is returned, startling the 
 ^Mark application of prophecy^, plain the principle, de- 
 dared openly and plainly to the throng of by- 
 standers^, that defilement is not from without but 
 •= Matt. XV. from within^ Complete indeed was the vindica- 
 tion, but dangerous in its very completeness. The 
 Pharisees, as we learn incidentally, were now still 
 ver. 12. more deeply offended**; their malevolence was 
 
 1 Chrysostom {in Matth. xv. i) 
 has noticed the special mention of 
 the place whence they had come, 
 remarking that the Scribes and Pha- 
 risees from the capital were both 
 actuated by a worse spirit and held 
 more in repute than those from other 
 parts of Judaea. Horn. Li. Vol. vii. 
 p. 585 (ed. Bened. 2) ; see Euthy- 
 mius, in loc. Vol. I. p. 605. 
 
 2 Both St Matthew and St Mark 
 notice the fact that our Lord called 
 the mixed multitude round Him 
 (Matth xvi. 10, Kal TTpocKaXeadfievos 
 Tov o-xKqv\ comp. Mark vii. 14) 
 
 and declared more especially to 
 them {rpeirei tov X6yov irphs rhv 
 6xXov ws d^ioXoyd}T€pov, Euthym.) 
 the principle, which the Pharisees 
 would have been slow to admit, that 
 defilement was from within and not 
 from without. . It would seem, how- 
 ever, that this was uttered in the 
 hearing of the Pharisees, and that, 
 as Euthymius rightly suggests, this 
 was the X670S (Matth. xv. 12) at 
 which, both from its sentiment and 
 the publicity given to it, the Phari- 
 sees were so much offended ; comp. 
 Meyer, in loc. p. 306 (ed. 4). 
 
The Ministry in Northern Galilee. 215 
 
 assuming hourly a more implacable form, and, not 
 
 improbably, hourly becoming more and more con- 
 
 tagious. Doubts, suspicion, and perhaps aver- 
 sion^, were now not improbably fast springing up 
 in the minds even of those who once^ would fain* Luke iv. 
 
 42. 
 
 have prevented the Lord from ever leaving their 
 highly-favoured land. Nor was this all. Other 
 evil influences were at work not only among the 
 people but among their rulers; for we may re- 
 member that it was but a short time before that 
 the evil and superstitious Herod Antipas^ had 
 evinced a strong desire'’ to see One of whom he Luke ix. 
 had heard tidings that filled him with uneasiness 
 and perplexity ^ And such a desire on the part'^ver. 7. 
 of the murderer of the Baptist, we may well infer, 
 could bode nothing but ill against One whom his 
 fears' had made him believe was his victim come 
 back again from the grave \ All the Lord’s secret 
 
 1 This seems in some measure to 
 transpire in St John’s account of 
 our Lord’s recent preaching at Ca- 
 pernaum, especially in those expres- 
 sions of thorough Nazarene unbe- 
 lief (Luke iv. -22, Markvi. 3) which 
 followed our Lord’s declaration that 
 He was the ‘ Bread which came down 
 from heaven’ (John vi. 41 sq.). 
 Though it is right to remember that 
 these expressions came from a hostile 
 section(seeabove, p. 211, note 2), yet 
 the very presence of such a section 
 in a synagogue where a very short 
 time before the only feeling was 
 amazement (Mark i. 22, Luke iv. 
 32) seems to show that some change 
 of feeling was beginning decidedly 
 to show itself. 
 
 ^ What little we know of the 
 character of this Tetrarch is chiefly 
 derived from what is recorded of 
 
 him in the Gospels, especially in 
 that of St Luke. Josephus notices 
 chiefly his love of ease and expense 
 {Antiq. XVIII. 7. i sq.), but in the 
 sacred writers, beside the mention 
 of his adultery, and murder of the 
 Baptist, we also find allusions that 
 prove him to have been a thoroughly 
 bad man; comp. Luke iii. 19, and 
 Nolde, Historia Idum. p. 251 sq. 
 
 ^ In the account given by the three 
 Synoptical Evangelists (Matth. xiv. 
 I sq., Mark vi. 14 sq., Luke ix. 
 7 sq.) we have the workings of a 
 bad conscience plainly set before us. 
 Observe the emphatic e’7c6 (Luke ix. 
 9), and the desire expressed to see 
 our Lord so as to satisfy himself 
 that the general opinion (Luke ix. 7) 
 in which he himself seems to have 
 shared (Matth. xiv. 2, Mark vi. 16 ; 
 comp. Chrysost. in Matth 1 . c.) was 
 
21 G The Ministry in Northern Galilee. 
 
 LT^CT. Qj. avowed enemies thus seemed unconsciously 
 
 working together : danger was on every side, and 
 
 eastern Galilee was probably fast becoming as un- 
 safe an abode for the Redeemer and His Apostles 
 as Judsea had been a few months before. 
 
 Journey to However tliis may be, the blessing of the 
 Sidon, and Lord’s presence was now to be vouchsafed to other 
 In the remote "West and in the confines^ 
 there. of Tyre the Lord was now pleased to seek, if not 
 for a security that was denied at Capernaum, 
 “ Mark vii. yet for a seclusiou* that might have been needed 
 ^ for a yet further instruction of the Apostles in the 
 things pertaining to the kingdom of God. But, 
 ib. ver. as St Mark records, ^ He could not be hid^,’ 
 There was faith even in those darkened and heathen 
 lands, and a faith that in one instance at least 
 was proved and was blessed. No sooner was it 
 known that the Lord was there than one poor 
 Matt. XV. woman at once crossed the frontier‘s which as yet 
 the Redeemer had not passed, and with those 
 strange words on heathen lips, ^ Have mercy on 
 d ver. 22. me. Lord, thou Son of David‘S,’ called upon the 
 Lord with importunate energy to heal her demo- 
 niac daughter. The whole tenor of the narrative 
 
 not true after all. There seems no 
 reason for aseribing to the Tetrarch 
 a belief in any form of transmigra- 
 tion of souls ; (comp. Grotius, in loc.) ; 
 liis words were merely the natural 
 accents of guilty fear. 
 
 ^ This seems the correct inference 
 from the words of St Mark (to, jue- 
 dopia ch. vii. 24) coupled with 
 
 the incidental comment of St Mat- 
 thew {airb tCov bplwv eKelvwv e^eXOoO- 
 aa, ch. XV. 22). At present, it would 
 seem, our Lord had not actually 
 
 crossed into the territory of Tyre, 
 but was in the district closely con- 
 tiguous to it. Origen {in Matth, 
 Tom. XI. 16) rightly connects this 
 journey with the offence given to 
 the Pharisees by our Lord’s declara- 
 tion to the multitudes on the sub- 
 ject of inward and outward pollution 
 (Matth. XV. II, Mark vii. 15) ; comp, 
 also Gres well. Dissert, xxiii. Vol. ii. 
 p. 354, That it was also for quiet 
 and repose (Euthym.) is to be in- 
 ferred from Mark vii. 24. 
 
The Ministry in Northern Galilee. 217 
 
 of both the Evangelists who relate the incidents 
 seems clearly to show that this passionate call and 
 these wildly-uttered words at first met with no 
 response \ Our Lord was silent. When, however, 
 that suppliant drew nigh, when she fell at her 
 Kedeemer’s feet, and uttered those pity-moving 
 words of truest faith, ^ Lord, help me^,’ then was it 
 that the all-merciful One beheld and vouchsafed 
 to accept a faith that was permitted to extend the 
 very sphere of His own mission. The Canaanite 
 was heard, the descendant of ancient idolaters^ 
 was practically accounted as one of the lost sheep 
 of the house of Israel ; the devil was cast out, and 
 the child was healed ^ 
 
 1 See Matthew xv. 23. That this 
 silence on the part of our Lord was 
 designed to prove the faith of the 
 woman is the opinion of the ancient 
 commentators (see Chrys. in Matth. 
 Horn. Lii. 2), and seems certainly 
 borne out by the trying answer of 
 our Lord (Matth. xv. 26, Mark vii. 
 27) which was vouchsafed to her 
 second entreaty. To suppose that 
 our Lord was here condescending to 
 the prejudices of the apostles (Mil- 
 man, Hist, of Christianity, Vol. i. 
 p. 253) is not probable or satisfac- 
 tory ; still less so is the supposition 
 that He was simply overcome by 
 her faithful importunity (De Wette, 
 Meyer) : as Chrysostom properly 
 says, Ei fxy dovuai ^ixeWev, oi)5’ 
 fierh ravra ^dojKev. Vol. VII. p. 598 
 (ed. Bened. 2). 
 
 ^ The term XavavaLa, used by St 
 Matthew (ch. xv. 22), seems fully to 
 justify this statement. She is term- 
 ed "EXXyvb {i. e. a heathen, not 
 of Jewish descent), XvpocpoivLKLaaa 
 {Lachm.) or Supa ^otviKtaffa (Tisch.) 
 Tcp by St Mark (ch. vii. 26), a 
 
 definition perfectly accordant with 
 that of St Matthew, as these Syro- 
 Phcenicians probably derived their 
 origin from the remains of old 
 Canaanite nations which had with- 
 drawn on the conquest of Palestine 
 to the extreme northern coasts ; 
 comp. Winer, JiW£. Art. ^Canani- 
 ter,’ Vol. I. p. 210. 
 
 ® On this miracle, the character- 
 istics of which are that it was per- 
 formed on one of heathen descent, 
 at a distance from the sufferer (comp, 
 p. 134, note 3), and in consequence 
 of the great faith of the petitioner 
 (‘vox humilis, sed celsa fides,’ Sedu- 
 lius), see Chrysost. in Matth. Horn. 
 LII., Augustine, Serm. Lxxvii. Vol. 
 V. p. 483 (ed. Migne), Bp Hall, Con- 
 tempi. IV. I, Trench, Miracles, p. 
 339 sq-) and Lange, Lehen Jesu, ii. 5. 
 10, Part II. p. 865 sq. The allegorical 
 reference according to which the wo- 
 man represents the Gentile Church, 
 and her daughter ryv irpa^iv Kvptevo- 
 piivrjv VTTo dai/j, 6 ro}v, is briefly but 
 perspicuously noticed by Euthymius 
 in Matth. xv. 28. 
 
 LECT 
 
 V. 
 
 ® Matt. 
 25. 
 
218 The Ministry in Northern Galilee, 
 
 LECT. 
 
 V. 
 
 Return to- 
 wards De- 
 capolis, 
 and the 
 eastern 
 shore of 
 the lake. 
 
 * Comp. 
 Mark vii. 
 3 ^- 
 
 How long our Lord abode in these regions we 
 know not ; but as this touching miracle is the only 
 incident recorded by the Evangelists, and as the 
 privacy which our Lord sought for, was now still 
 less likely to be maintained, we may, perhaps, not 
 unreasonably conclude that after a short stay, yet 
 probably long enough for His enemies to have 
 returned back to Jerusalem, our Lord again 
 turned His steps backward, passing through the 
 midst of the semi-pagan Decapolis^, and ulti- 
 mately approaching the sea of Galilee, as it would 
 seem, from the further side of the Jordan ^ Equal- 
 ly, or nearly equally ignorant are we of the extent 
 of this northern journey: if, however, we adopt 
 a reading which now finds a place in most critical 
 editions^, we are certainly led to extend this 
 journey beyond the Tyrian frontier, and further 
 to draw the interesting inference, that our Lord, 
 moved probably by the great faith of the Syro- 
 Phoenician woman, actually passed into the hea- 
 then territory, visited ancient and idolatrous 
 Sidon^, and from the neighbourhood of that city 
 commenced His south-easterly circuit toward De- 
 
 1 See above, p. 206, note 4, where 
 the character of this confederation 
 is briefly noticed. 
 
 2 The reading in question is r^dev 
 SicL XiSwi'os (Mark vii. 3r), which is 
 found in the Codex Vaticanus and 
 Codex Bezae, in the valuable MS. 
 marked L, in A (Codex Sangallensis), 
 and in several ancient versions of 
 considerable critical value, e. g. the 
 Old Latin, Vulgate, Coptic, and 
 Ethiopic. It has been adopted by 
 Lachmann, Tischendorf, Eritzsche, 
 Meyer, Alford, and Tregelles, and 
 appears certainly to deserve the pre- 
 
 ference which these critics and com- 
 mentators have thus unanimously 
 given to it: see Meyer Kommentuh. 
 Mark. p. 80 (ed. 3). 
 
 ^ It is not safe to enlarge upon a 
 point which rests only on a probable 
 reading ; but, if we accept this read- 
 ing, it must be acknowledged as a 
 fact of the greatest significance in 
 reference to the subsequent diffusion 
 of the Gospel, that the city of Baal 
 and of Astarte was visited by the 
 Redeemer of mankind; see above, 
 p. 202. This question is worthy of 
 further consideration. 
 
The Ministry in Northern Galilee, 210 
 
 capolis and the further shore of the sea of Gen- 
 
 nesareth. 
 
 On that shore He was not now to be a strange Return to 
 and unwelcome^ visitor. There, in that region heSg oV 
 of Decapolis, lips by which devils once had spoken dumifman. 
 had already proclaimed^ the power and majesty ^Contrast 
 of Him that had now vouchsafed to journey 34. 
 through that darkened land : — ^and there too those ’’ 
 lips had not spoken in vain. No sooner had the Luke viii. 
 Lord appeared among them, than, as St Mark 
 relates to us^^, His healing powers are besought for “ ^h.vii. 
 a deaf and all but dumb man who is brought to 
 Him, and brought only to be healedh..It is wor- 
 thy of a moment’s notice that both this, and a 
 miracle performed shortly afterwards on a blind 
 
 man at Bethsaida-Julias*^, were accompanied with 
 a withdrawal of the sufferer from the throng 
 of bystanders, special outward signs, and, in the 
 case of the latter miracle, a more gradual process 
 of restoration. All these differences it is undoubt- 
 edly right to connect with something peculiar in 
 the individual cases of those on whom the miracle 
 was performed^; yet still it does not seem im- 
 proper to take into consideration the general fact 
 that these were miracles performed in lands which 
 
 1 On this miracle, the character- 
 istics of which are alluded to in the 
 text, see the comments of Maldona- 
 tus and Olshausen, Hook, Serm. on 
 the Miracles, Vol. ii. p. 49 sq., 
 Trench, Notes on the Miracles, p. 
 348 sq., and Hare (Jul.), Serm. xiv. 
 Vol. I. p. 245. 
 
 2 See Olshausen on the Gospels, 
 Vol. II. p. 206 (Clark), who com- 
 ments at some length on the pecu- 
 liarities in the performance of this 
 
 miracle, and in that of the Healing 
 of the blind man at Bethsaida. Some 
 good comments will also be found 
 in Maldonatus, Comment in Marc- 
 vii. 33. The withdrawal from the 
 crowd is ascribed by the scholiast in 
 Cramer’s Catence (V ol. i. p. 338) to 
 a desire on the part of our Lord to 
 avoid display (^Iva dd^rj iwideiKTi- 
 Kws iiTLTeXeiv rds deoarjixlas) ; but 
 this, in the present case, seems very 
 doubtful. 
 
LECT. 
 
 V. 
 
 “ Mark 
 vii. 36. 
 
 ’’ cll. XV. 
 
 30. 
 
 ver. 24. 
 
 ^ ch. XV. 
 
 31. 
 
 The Feed- 
 ing of the 
 four thou- 
 sand. 
 
 220 2'he Ministry in Northern Galilee, 
 
 tlie Lord had not before traversed, — lands where 
 the nature of His healing powers might have 
 been wholly misunderstood, and to which, for the 
 spiritual benefit of the sufferers, it was judged 
 meet that their earnest and deliberate attention^ 
 should be especially directed. Both these miracles, 
 we may also observe, were accompanied with a 
 command to preserve silence ^ — but in the case 
 of the present miracle it was signally disobeyed ^ 
 So widely indeed was the fame of it spread abroad 
 that great multitudes, as we are told by St Mat- 
 thew^, brought their sick unto the Lord; and He, 
 who as He Himself had but recently declared‘s, 
 was not come ^ save to the lost sheep of the 
 house of Israel,’ nevertheless sought His Father’s 
 glory even amidst half*Gentile Decapolis ; so that 
 it is not perhaps without deep meaning that the 
 first Evangelist‘S tells us that Hhey glorified, the 
 God of IsraeP.’ And they were yet to glorify 
 Him more, and to be the witnesses of the creative 
 as well as of the healing powers of His beloved 
 Son. ...Those eager-hearted men had now so 
 swelled in numbers that four thousand, without 
 
 1 So in effect Maldonatus : ‘ Quia 
 ergo qui surdi sunt, videntur re 
 aliqua obturatas habere aures, mit- 
 tit digitum in aures surdi, quasi 
 clausas et obturatas terebraturus, 
 aut impedimentum, quod in illis 
 erat, ablaturus digito. Et quia qui 
 muti sunt, videntur ligatam nimia 
 siccitate habere linguam (?), palatoque 
 adhserentem, ideoque loqui non 
 posse... niittit salivam in os muti, 
 quasi ejus linguam humectaturus.’ 
 Vol. I. p. 762 (Mogunt. 1611). 
 
 2 See above, p. 19 1, note i. 
 
 ^ This did not escape the notice 
 
 of Origen {in MattTi. Tom. xi. 18), 
 who remarks as follows : ‘Yea, they 
 glorify Him, being persuaded that 
 the Father of Him who healed the 
 man abovemention ed is one and the 
 same God with the God of Israel ; 
 for God is not the God of the Jews 
 only but also of the Gentiles.’ Vol. 
 III. p. 508 (ed. Bened.). Theophylact 
 {in Mattli. xv. 29) places the scene 
 in Galilee, but, as the parallel pas- 
 sage in St Mark (ch. vii. 31 sq.) 
 seems clearly to prove, not correctly; 
 compare Eobinson, Palestine, Vol. 
 n. p. 397, note 2. 
 
The Ministry in Northern Galilee. 221 
 
 counting women and cliildren^, were gathered 
 round the Lord and His Apostles, and He who 
 
 ® Matt. XV. 
 
 had so pitied and relieved their amictions, now 38. 
 pitied and relieved their wants. They had come 
 from far they were faint and weary, and were to .Mark 
 be miraculously refreshed. Seven loaves feed the 
 four thousand, just as, a few weeks before, and 
 perhaps not far from the same spot\ five loaves had 
 fed a greater number; Hhey did all eat,’ says the 
 first Evangelist, ^and were filled, and they took 
 up of the broken meat that was left seven baskets Matt. xv. 
 fulL.’ 
 
 We may here pause, yet for a moment only, to Notidenti- 
 make our decided protest against that shallow S^FeSing 
 criticism which would persuade us that this dis- 
 tinctive miracle is merely an ill-remembered repro- 
 duction of the Feeding of the five thousand a few 
 weeks before I Few opinions can be met more 
 easily; few of the many misstatements that have 
 been made in reference to the miracles of our 
 Fedeemer can be disposed of more readily and 
 more satisfactorily. Let it be observed only that 
 everything that might seem most clearly to specify 
 and to characterize is different in the two miracles. 
 
 1 The locality is not very clearly 
 defined. That it was an uninhabited 
 place appears from Matth. xv. 33, 
 and that it was on the high ground 
 east of the lake may be inferred from 
 ver. 31. As the spot to which our 
 Lord crosses over is situated about 
 the middle of the western coast, we 
 may perhaps consider the high 
 ground in the neighbourhood of 
 the ravine nearly opposite to Mag- 
 dala, which is now called Wady 
 Semak, as not very improbably the 
 
 site of the present miracle. 
 
 ^ See for example, De Wette, on 
 Matth. XV. -29, and Neander, Life of 
 Christ, p. 287, note (Bohn). The 
 remarks in the text seem sufficiently 
 to demonstrate that such a view is 
 wholly untenable; see more in 01s- 
 hausen, Comment. Vol. ir. p. 209 sq. 
 (Clark), ~Ei\)Yzxdi,KritiTc der Ev. Gesch. 
 § 86, p. 433 ; and compare Origen, 
 in Matth. xi. 19, Vol. m. p. 509 
 (ed. Bened.), Alford, Commentary, 
 Vol. I. p. 157 (ed. 4). 
 
222 The Ministry in Northern Galilee. 
 
 LECT. 
 
 V. 
 
 * John vi. 
 15 - 
 
 Return to 
 the west- 
 ern side of 
 the lake. 
 
 The number of loaves in the latter miracle is 
 greater; the number of fish greater; the remnants 
 collected less; the people fewer; the time they had 
 tarried longer; their behaviour in the sequel 
 noticeably different. The more excitable inha- 
 bitants of the coast-villages of the North and the 
 West^, we are distinctly told, would have borne 
 away our Lord and made Him a king^, if He had 
 not withdrawn into the mountains; the men of 
 Decapolis and the eastern shores permit the Lord 
 to leave them without any recorded excitement or 
 demonstration. Let all these things be fairly and 
 temperately considered, and there will, I firmly 
 believe, be found but few indeed who will feel 
 doubt or difficulty as to the separate and distinct 
 nature of this second manifestation of the Lord’s 
 creative beneficence ^ Immediately after this 
 
 miracle our Lord leaves a land which seems to 
 
 ^ The recipients in the case of 
 the former miracle appear to have 
 come mainly from the western side ; 
 comp. Mark vi. 33. They followed 
 our Lord, we are told, on foot 
 (Matth. xiv. 13), and would conse- 
 quently have passed round the north- 
 ern extremity of the lake, receiv- 
 ing probably, as they went, additions 
 from Bethsaida- Julias and the places 
 in its vicinity. Chrysostom (m 
 Matth. Horn. Liii. 2) seems to imply 
 that the effect produced by this 
 miracle was as great as that pro- 
 duced by the former miracle; this 
 may have been so, but it certainly 
 cannot be inferred from the words 
 of the sacred narrative. 
 
 2 On the miracle itself, tvhich 
 Origen (m Matth. Tom. Xi. 19), 
 though on somewhat insufficient 
 reasons, considers as even greater 
 
 than that of the Feeding of the five 
 thousand, see Origen, 1 . c., Hilary, 
 in Matth. Can. Xv. p. 542 (Paris. 
 1631), Augustine, Serm. lxxxi. 
 Append, (but apparently rightly re- 
 garded by Trench as genuine), Vol. 
 V. p. 1902 (ed. Migne), Hook, Serm. 
 on the Miracles, Vol. ii. p. 66, 
 Trench, Notes on the Miracles, p. 
 355. The idea of Hilary {loc. cit.) 
 that the former miracle has reference 
 mainly to the Jews, the present 
 miracle to the Gentiles, is perhaps 
 not wholly fanciful; the multitude 
 in the present case we may reason- 
 ably conceive to have been collected 
 nearly entirely from Decapolis, and 
 so mainly Gentile ; the multitude in 
 the former case, as we have observed, 
 was apparently from Capernaum 
 and its vicinity, and probably mainly 
 Jewish; compare p. 202, note 2. 
 
The Ministry in Northern Galilee, 223 
 
 have displayed somewhat striking faith, and on 
 which His divine visit could hardly have failed 
 to have exercised a permanent spiritual influence, 
 for the familiar shores on the opposite side of the 
 lake. He crosses over to Magdala^, or perhaps 
 to some village close to the high ground in its 
 vicinity, which seems alluded to in the designa- 
 tion Dalmanutha*, as specified by the second 
 Evangelist ^ But there His abode was short. 
 
 The evil wrought by the emissaries from Jeru- 
 salem was now only too mournfully apparent. 
 No sooner was. the Lord arrived than Pharisees, 
 now for the first time leagued with Sadducees, as 
 once before they had combined with Herodians^ 
 come to Him with the sceptical demand of a sign 
 from heaven®. Amid such faithless and probably 
 malevolent hearts the Lord vouchsafes not to 
 tarry, but, as it would seem immediately, enters 
 
 ^ This place is now unanimously 
 regarded by recent travellers as situ- 
 ated, not on the eastern side of the 
 lake (Lightfoot, Deem ChorographU 
 ca Marco p^'cemissa, cap.V. i), but on 
 the western side, and at the miser- 
 able collection of huts now known by 
 the name of ‘el-Medjel;’ see Robin- 
 son, Palestine, Vol. li. p. 397 (ed. 
 2), Thomson, Land and the Booh, 
 Vol. II. p. 108, where there is a 
 sketch of this forlorn village, and 
 Van de Velde, Memoir, p. 334. 
 It is proper to observe that some 
 MSS. and versions of importance 
 (BD; Vulg., Old Lat., al.) read 
 MayaZdv, and that this reading has 
 been adopted by some recent editors. 
 Of this latter place nothing seems 
 to be known ; the identification with 
 Megiddo (Ewald, Drei Erst. Evv. 
 p. -268, Gesch. Christus', p. 333 ) does 
 
 not seem very probable. 
 
 2 The exact locality of Dalma- 
 nutha is difficult to trace. It must 
 clearly have been near to Magdala, 
 as St Mark (ch. viii. 10) specifies it 
 as the place into the neighbourhood 
 of which our Lord arrived in the 
 transit across the lake which we are 
 now considering. If we accept the 
 not improbable derivation of 
 ‘was pointed’ (Wieseler, Chron. 
 Synops. p. 312), we may fix the 
 locality as close to or among the 
 cliffs (see Thomson’s sketch) which 
 rise at a short distance from Mag- 
 dala. Porter identifies Dalmanutha 
 with ‘ Ain el-Barideh ’ (Smith, Diet, 
 of Bible, Vol. i. p. 381), situated 
 at the mouth of a narrow glen a mile 
 south of Magdala, but this appears 
 only to rest on the fact that ruins 
 are found there. 
 
 LECT. 
 
 V. 
 
 * ch. viii. 
 
 TO. 
 
 ^ Mark iii. 
 
 6 . 
 
 ® Matt, 
 xvi. I. 
 
LECT. 
 
 V. 
 
 ® Matt, XV. 
 2 S([. 
 
 ch. xvi. 
 6 ; 
 
 Mark viii. 
 15- 
 
 Journey 
 northward 
 to Caesa- 
 rea Philip- 
 pi. 
 
 ® Mark 
 viii. 34. 
 
 224 The Ministry in Northern Galilee. 
 
 j}lie vessel in which He had come^, and with warn- 
 ing words to them^, and a special caution to His 
 disciples against the leaven of their teaching^, 
 crosses over to Bethsaida- Julias, and there per- 
 forms the progressively developed miracle of heal- 
 ing the blind man to which we have recently 
 alluded I 
 
 From thence we trace the Lord’s steps north- 
 ward to the towns and villages in the neighbour- 
 hood of the remote city of Caesarea Philippi^, near 
 which it is just possible that He might have 
 passed in His circuit from Sidon a very few weeks 
 before... Of the exact purpose of this journey or 
 of the special events connected with it we have no 
 certain knowledge, though we may reasonably 
 infer, from the incidental mention of a formal ad- 
 dress to the multitude‘s as well as to the disciples, 
 
 1 The words of St Mark are here 
 so very distinct {ttoXiv e/x/3as airrik- 
 Oev, ch. viii. 13) that the supposition 
 of Fritzsche, that our Lord crossed 
 over alone to the place where he 
 was questioned by the, Pharisees, 
 and that he was afterwards joined 
 by His disciples (Matth. xvi. 6), 
 must be pronounced wholly untena- 
 ble. The disciples are mentioned 
 specially and by themselves (Matth. 
 xvi. 5), simply because they alone 
 form the subject of the iTeXdOovTO, 
 and because this act indirectly gave 
 rise to the warning instructions 
 which follow. 
 
 ^ On this miracle, the chief cha- 
 racteristic of which is the very gra- 
 dual and progressive nature of the 
 cure, see the comments of Olshausen 
 above alluded to {Comment. Vol. ii. 
 p. 206, Clark), Trench, Notes on the 
 Miracles, p. 359, Hook, Serm. on the 
 
 Miracles, Vol. ii. p. 20. The Beth- 
 saida here mentioned is clearly not 
 the village on the western side (comp. 
 Theophylact in loc.) but Bethsaida- 
 Julias, by which the Lord would 
 naturally have passed in his north- 
 ward journey to Caesarea Philippi. 
 
 ® This picturesquely placed city, 
 formerly called Panium (Joseph. 
 Antiq. xv. 10. 3) or Paneas, from a 
 cavern sacred to Pan in its vicinity 
 (see Winer, RWB. Vol. i. p. 207, 
 Stanley, Palest, p. 394), received its 
 subsequent name from the Tetrarch 
 Philip, by whom it was enlarged 
 and beautified (Joseph. Antiq. xviii. 
 2. I, Bell. Jad. ii, 9. i). For a de- 
 scription of its site see Bobinson, 
 Palestine, Vol, iii. p. 408 sq. (ed, 2), 
 and compare Thomson, Land and 
 the Booh, Vol. i. p. 344 sq., where 
 there is a sketch of the singular 
 cavern above alluded to. 
 
The Ministry in Nortliern Galilee, 225 
 
 that public teaching and, preaching rather than l^ct. 
 
 seclusion was the object of this extended circuit. 
 
 However this may be, with those regions we con- 
 nect three circumstances of considerable moment ; 
 
 First j the remarkable profession of faith in Christ 
 as the Son of the living God uttered by St Peter 
 as the ready spokesman of the rest of the Apostles, 
 accompanied by the remarkable charge on the part 
 of the Lord that they should tell it to no man^; 
 Secondly, and as it would seem almost imme- 
 diately afterwards, the Lord’s first formal predic- 
 tion of His own sufferings and death — a prediction 
 which jarred strangely on the ears of men who 
 now seem to have begun to realize more fully the 
 divine nature and Messiahship of their beloved 
 Master %• Thirdly, the Transfiguration, which a 
 precise note of time supplied by two Evangelists^ 
 fixes as six days from some epoch not defined, but Mark ix. 
 which the more general comment of St Luke^ i>ch. ix. 28 . 
 seems to imply was that of the above-mentioned 
 confession, and of the discourses associated 
 with it®. 
 
 ^ The true reason for this strict 
 command (dLeo-TelXaro, Matth. xvi. 
 20), at which Origen {in Matth. Tom. 
 xii. 15) appears to have felt some 
 difficulty, would seem to be one 
 which almost naturally suggests 
 itself ; viz. that our Lord’s time was 
 not yet come, and that expectations 
 were not to be roused among those 
 who would have sought to realize 
 them in tumults and popular excite- 
 ment. As Cyril of Alexandria well 
 says, ‘ He commanded them to 
 guard the mystery by a seasonable 
 silence, until the whole plan of the 
 dispensation should arrive at a suit- 
 E. H. L. 
 
 able conclusion.’ Comment, on St 
 Luke, Part i. p. 220. 
 
 2 On this prediction see a good 
 sermon by Horsley, Serm. xix. Vol. 
 II. p. 121 (Dundee, 1810). 
 
 ^ The six days are regarded by 
 Lightfoot {Chron. Temp, liii.) as 
 ' dating from the words last spoken 
 by our Lord. This view differs but 
 little from that adopted in the text, 
 as the confession of St Peter seems 
 to stand in close connexion with the 
 Lord’s announcement of His own 
 sufferings (see Luke ix. 2t, 22), and 
 this last announcement to have sug- 
 gested what follows. A more in- 
 
 15 
 
22G TliG Ministry in Northern Galilee. 
 
 LECT. 
 
 V. 
 
 Tlie lociil- 
 ity and 
 signifi- 
 cance of 
 the Transfi- 
 guration. 
 
 “ Mark ix. 
 
 3. 
 
 b Matt, 
 xvii. 5 ; 
 contrast 
 ch. iii. 17. 
 
 Mark 
 ix. 9. 
 
 On the mysteries connected with this third 
 event, — the glorified aspect of Him whose very 
 garments shone briglit as the snows of the moun- 
 tain on which He was standing^, — the personal 
 presence of Moses and Elias, — the divine voice, 
 not only of paternal love, but of exhortation and 
 command, ^ Hear ye Him^,’ — and the injunction of 
 the Saviour to seal all in silence till the Son of 
 Man be risen from the dead^, — on all this our 
 present limits will not permit me to enlarge. Let 
 me only remark, first, as to locality , — that there 
 seems every reason for fixing the scene of the 
 Transfiguration, not on the more southern Tabor, 
 but on one of the lofty spurs of the snow-capt 
 Hermon^; Secondly, as to its meaning and signifi- 
 cance , — that we may, not without reason, regard 
 the whole as in mysterious connexion both with 
 St Peter’s profession of faith and with that sad- 
 dening prediction which followed it, and which, it 
 has been specially revealed, formed the subject of 
 the mystic converse between the Lord and his two 
 
 elusive reference, however, as well 
 to the important confession as to 
 what followed, appears, on the whole, 
 more simple and more probable. The 
 weret of St Luke (ch. ix. 28) shows 
 that there is no necessity to attempt 
 a formal reconciliation (see Chrysost. 
 in loc.) of his note of time with that 
 supplied by St Matthew and St 
 Mark. 
 
 ^ So rightly Lightfoot {Hor. Hebr. 
 in Marc. ix. 2), Reland {Palcest. 
 p. 334 sq.), and apparently the ma- 
 jority of the best recent commen- 
 tators. The objections of Lightfoot 
 to the traditional site, founded on 
 the high improbability of so sudden 
 
 a change of place, are nearly con- 
 clusive; and when we add to this 
 that the summit of Tabor was then 
 occupied by a fortified town (see 
 Robinson, Palestine, Vol. II. p. 359) 
 we seem certainly w^arranted in re- 
 jecting a tradition though as old as 
 the 6th century. The incidental 
 simile, m xtcer, of the graphic St 
 Mark (ch. ix. 3) might well have 
 been supplied to him by one to whom 
 the snow-capt mountain suggested 
 it ; the reading, however, though 
 fairly probable (see Meyer, Komm. 
 ah. Mark. p. 97) is not certain, 
 c< 5 s not being found in two of 
 the four leading manuscripts. 
 
The Ministry in Northern Galilee. 227 
 
 attendant saints*'^. That the Transfiguration ap- 
 
 jiears generally to have had, what may be termed, ^ 
 
 a theological aspect, and was designed to show 
 that the Law and the Prophets had now become 
 a part of the Gospel, cannot reasonably be doubted; 
 but that it was also designed to confirm the 
 Apostles who witnessed it in their faith, and to 
 supply them with spiritual strength against those 
 hours of suffering and trial which our Lord had 
 recently predicted, seems pressed upon us by the 
 position it occupies in the Sacred narrative ^ 
 
 And the practical faith of the Apostles was The heai- 
 verily still weak, for, on the very day that fol- moniac 
 lowed, their want of spiritual strength to heal a 
 deaf and dumb^ demoniac afforded an opportunity, ^ Mark ix. 
 only too readily seized, to some Scribes who were 
 present, of making it fully known to the gathering 
 multitudes. They were in the very act, St Mark 
 
 1 This view seems certainly to 
 have been considered probable by 
 Chrysostom, who states as a fifth 
 reason why Moses and Elias ap- 
 peared in attendance on the Lord, 
 that it was ‘to comfort Peter and 
 those who regarded with fear the 
 (Lord’s) suffering, and to raise up 
 their thoughts,’ in Matth. Horn. Li. 
 2, Vol. VII. p. 638 (ed. Bened. 2) ; 
 comp. Cyril Alex, on St Luke, Serm. 
 LI. Part II. p. 227 (Trails!,). The 
 last-mentioned writer, it is proper 
 to be observed, also clearly states 
 the reason alluded to in the text for 
 the appearance of Moses and Elias 
 {ih. p. 228), and so, as we might 
 imagine, does Origen, who briefly 
 but pertinently says, ‘ Moses the 
 Law and Elias the Prophets are 
 become one, and united with Jesus 
 
 the Gospel,’ in Matth. Tom, xii. 43, 
 Vol. III. p. 565 (ed. Bened.). On 
 the subject generally, besides the 
 writers above referred to, see August. 
 Serm. Lxxviii. Vol. v. p. 490 (ed. 
 Migne), Hall, Contempt, iv. 12, 
 Hacket, vii. Serm. p, 44 1 sq. (Lond. 
 1675), Frank, Serm. XLVii. Vol. it. 
 p. 318 (A.-C.L.), Lange, Leben Jesu, 
 II. 512, Part II. p. 902, and Olshau- 
 sen. Commentary, Vol. ii. p. 228 sq. 
 (Clark). The opinion that this holy 
 mystery was a sleeping or waking 
 vision (comp. Milman, Hist, of 
 Christianity, Vol. i. p. 258), though 
 as old as the days of Tertullian 
 {contr. Marc. iv. 22), is at once to 
 be rejected, as plainly at variance 
 with the clear, distinct, objective 
 statements of the three inspired 
 narrators. 
 
 15—2 
 
228 The Ministry in Northern Galilee, 
 
 tells us, of questioning with the disciples % when 
 - the Lord, with His face perchance still reflecting 
 
 14. the glories of the past night comes among the 
 disputing and amazed throng. After a general 
 rebuke for the want of faith shown by all around", 
 the Lord commands the hapless lad to be brought 
 to Him... The recital of what followed from the 
 pen of St Mark is here in the highest degree 
 graphic and sublime. The whole scene seems at 
 once to come up before us : the paroxysm of demo- 
 niacal violence brought on by proximity to the 
 ‘'ch. ix.7o. Kedeemer"*, — the foaming and wallowing sufferer*^, 
 
 • — the retarded cure till the faith of the father is 
 ® ver. 23 made fully apparent — the crowding multitude'*; 
 
 ^ ver. 25. 1 Tins, as Euthymius (2d altern.) 
 
 suggests, may perhaps be inferred 
 from, and be the natural explana- 
 tion of, the strong word e^eddii^yjo-av 
 {Kal yap ei’x6s icpiXKecrdai riva xetpev 
 Tys pL€Tap.op(p(Jo(X€U}s), with which 
 St Mark (ch. ix. 15), whose account 
 of this miracle is peculiarly full and 
 graphic (see Da Costa, The Four 
 Witnesses, p. 78 sq.), describes the 
 feelings of the multitude when they 
 beheld our Lord ; compare also Ben- 
 gel, in loc. 
 
 ^ The aiiroh (Markix. 19, Lachm., 
 
 Tisch.) may refer only to the disciples 
 (Meyer), but our Lord’s use of the 
 strong term, ‘ perverted ’ as well as 
 ‘ faithless ’ (c 5 yevea dmaTos Kal die- 
 <TTpap.p.hri), specified both by St 
 Matthew and St Luke, would seem 
 to show that the address is to both 
 parties, if indeed not principally to 
 the disputing Scribes. Perverted 
 feelings were far more at work in 
 the (xv^rjTrjim of the Scribes than in 
 the exhibition of the imperfect faith 
 of the disciples that probably tended 
 to provoke it: see Lightfoot, Ilor. 
 
 Hehr. in Matth. xvii, 1 7. 
 
 ^ This seems implied in the words 
 Kal idd}v [sc. 6 daip-ovL^bp-evos ; see 
 Meyer, in locJ] avrov, rb irvevya 
 evdvs icirdpa^ev auroV (Mark ix. 20). 
 Something similar may be observed 
 in the case of the demoniac in the 
 synagogue at Capernaum (Luke iv. 
 34 ; comp. Lect. iv. p. 163) and that 
 of the Gergesene demoniacs (Mark 
 V. 6 sq., Luke viii. 28). Lange 
 {Lelen Jesu, li. 5. 13, Part ii. p. 
 921) considers the paroxysm as an 
 evidence that the power of our Lord 
 was already working upon the lad, 
 but the view adopted in the text 
 seems more simple and natural. For 
 further comments on this mii’acle, 
 see Origen, in Matth. xiii. 3 sq., 
 Vol. III. p. 574 (ed. Bened.), Cyril 
 Alex. Comment, on St Luhe, Serm. 
 Lii. Part I. p. 231 sq. (Transl.), 
 Bp. Hall, Contempt, iv. 19, Trench, 
 Notes on the Miracles, p. 362 sq., 
 and the careful exposition of the 
 whole narrative in Olshausen, Com- 
 mentary on the Gospels, Vol. ii. p. 238 
 sq. (Clark). 
 
The Ministry in Northern Galilee. 220 
 
 and then the word of power, the last struggle of the 
 
 departing demons the prostration of the lad after 
 
 the fierceness of the reaction, and the upraising hand 26. 
 of the great Healer — all tend to make up one of ^ ver. 27. 
 those striking pictures which so noticeably diver- 
 sify the inspired narrative of the second Evan- 
 gelist, and which could have only come originally 
 from one who heard, and saw, and believed b 
 
 Our Lord’s steps appear now to have been Return to 
 again turned southward, through Galilee towards biy tempo- 
 Capernaum, at which place the next recorded Sat Ca- 
 event is the miraculous payment of the tribute- 
 money. If, as seems most natural both from the 
 peculiar use of the term (rd and still 
 
 more from the context, we retain the old opi- 
 nion that it was the half-shekel for the Temple- 
 service^, we must attribute the present tardy 
 
 1 It is scarcely necessary to re- 
 mark that reference is here made to 
 the early and universally received 
 tradition that St Mark’s Gospel was 
 written under the guidance of St 
 Peter, and embodies the substance, 
 if not in some cases the very words, 
 of that Apostle’s teaching. The 
 principal testimonies of antiquity 
 on which this assertion rests have 
 been already referred to (Lect. i. 
 p. 1 3, note 4), to which we may add 
 Tertullian contr. Marc. iv. 5. See 
 further, if necessary, Guerike, Ein- 
 leitung in das N. T. § 39, 2, p. 254, 
 (ed. 2), and the introductory com- 
 ments of Meyer {Komment. p. 3), who 
 seems fairly to admit the truth of 
 the ancient tradition. 
 
 2 This sum was to be paid every 
 year for the service of the sanctuary 
 (Exod. XXX. 13 ; comp. 2 Kings xii. 
 4, 2 Chron. xxiv. 6, 9) by every male 
 
 who had attained the age of twenty 
 years (see Winer, RWB, Art. *Ab- 
 gaben,’ Vol. i. p. 4), and as we 
 learn from the Mishna (‘Shekalim,’ 
 
 I, 3), was levied in the month Adar. 
 We seem therefore obliged to have 
 recourse to some supposition like 
 that advanced in the text ; compare 
 Lightfoot, Jlor. Hehr. in loc. Vol. 
 
 II. p. 341 sq. (Roterod. 1686), and 
 see Gres well. Dissert, xxiii. Vol. ii. 
 p. 377, who gives some reason for 
 thinking that the tax might have 
 been regularly paid about the feast 
 of Tabernacles. The opinion of 
 most of the ancient expositors that 
 the reference is here to a tribute 
 which each male had to pay to the 
 Roman government (‘ tributum Cae- 
 sareum,’ Sedulius) is noticed, not 
 disapprovingly, by Lightfoot, and 
 has been zealously defended by 
 Wieseler {Chron. Synops. p. 264 sq.), 
 
230 The Ministry in Northern Galilee, 
 
 LECT. 
 
 V. 
 
 a Mark ix. 
 30 - 
 
 Luke ix. 
 
 43. 
 
 ® Mark ix, 
 33 - 
 
 demand of a tax levied some montlis before either 
 to the Lord’s frequent absences from Capernaum, 
 or to some habit of delayed collection which may 
 very likely have prevailed in places remote from 
 Jerusalem, but which, from deficient knowledge of 
 local customs, we are unable formally to substan- 
 tiated... The present stay at Capernaum was pro- 
 bably short, and, as far as we can infer from 
 the Lord’s desire expressed on His homeward 
 journey to remain unobserved % one of comparative 
 seclusion. He had now to prepare the minds of 
 His chosen ones for the heavy trials through 
 which they must soon pass when their Master was 
 delivered up into the hands of men, and when 
 their longings for a triumphant Messiah were to be 
 changed into the avowal of a crucified Saviour. 
 On their late return through Galilee, when their 
 hearts were dwelling most on their Lord’s powers’^, 
 their elation was checked by a renewal of the sad 
 prediction which they first heard near Caesarea 
 , Philippi; and now again, in the quiet of homed the 
 same holy anxiety may be traced to check that 
 
 but to suck a view tbe words of our 
 Lord (Mattb. xvii. 25, 26) seem 
 distinctly opposed. What our Lord 
 implies by His question to St Peter, 
 and His comment on the Apostle’s 
 answer, seems clearly this : — as Son 
 of Him to whom the temple was 
 dedicated, and indeed as Himself 
 the Lord thereof, He had fullest 
 claim to be exempted from the tri- 
 bute, but still He would not avail 
 Himself of His undoubted preroga- 
 tives : see Hammond, in loc., whose 
 discussion of this passage is both 
 clear and convincing. 
 
 1 On the remarkable miracle by 
 
 which the half- shekel was paid, the 
 design of which, we may humbly 
 conceive, was still further to illus- 
 trate and substantiate what was 
 implied in the address to the Apostle 
 (‘ in medio actu submissionis emicat 
 majestas.’ Bengel), — see the ex- 
 tremely good comments of Trench, 
 Notes on the Miracles, p. 372. The 
 older expositors cannot here be re- 
 ferred to with advantage, as they 
 nearly all adopt the apparently erro- 
 neous opinion above alluded to, that 
 it was a tribute which was paid to 
 the Roman government, and adapt 
 their comments accordingly. 
 
The Ministry in Northern Galilee. 231 
 
 pride of spirit wliicli seems to have been sen- 
 
 sibly manifesting itself in the apostolic company. 
 
 Such manifestations were apparently of a mixed 
 character, and were probably due to very different 
 influences. On the one hand, we may connect 
 them with a more real conviction of their Lord’s 
 divine nature and Messiahship ; on the other hand, 
 we cannot fail to observe that they involved much 
 that was merely carnal and worldly. This pride 
 of spirit shewed itself, as we are especially in- 
 formed, in unbecoming contentions among them- 
 selves about future preeminence^, and led them ^ Luke ix. 
 overhastily to forbid some yet undeclared disciple ^ 
 who was casting out devils in their Master’s name 
 from continuing to do, what they might have 
 remembered they themselves could not do, a week 
 or two before, when an agonized father called to 
 them for help, and when Scribes stood by and 
 scoffed. Humility'^, forbearance^, avoidance of all Mark ix. 
 grounds of offence^, love towards their Master’s ever. 38. 
 little ones®, gentleness, and forgiveness, the lostx^n.^6. 
 sheep and the debtor of the ten thousand talents^, ^ 
 
 1 It would seem clear from our 
 Lord’s words that the man was no 
 deceiver or exorcist, but one, who, 
 as Cyril of Alexandria observes, 
 though ‘not numbered among the 
 holy Apostles, was yet crowned 
 with apostolic powers.’ Comment, on 
 St Lxike, Serm. lv. Part i. p. 249 
 (Transk), where there are some other 
 good comments on this very sugges- 
 tive incident. The connexion of 
 thought between the notice of this 
 occurrence on the part of St J ohn 
 and the words of our Lord which 
 preceded is perhaps more clearly to 
 be traced in St Mark (ch. ix. 37, 38) 
 
 ver. 10. 
 Matt, 
 xviii. losq. 
 
 than in St Luke (ch. ix. 49). Our ^xiif sq • 
 Lord’s declaration, 6s hv tv tQv xviii. 15. 
 ToioijTcov vaidliov dt^Tjrai i-irl ry 
 ovofiaTl fjLov i/xk dtx^.TO-i; seems 
 to bring to the remembrance of St 
 John a recent case which appeared 
 at variance with His Master’s words, 
 viz. that of one who used the Lord’s 
 name and yet did not evince his 
 reception of Him by becoming an 
 avowed disciple. The remembrance, 
 coupled perhaps, as Theophylact 
 suggests, with the feeling that their 
 treatment of that case had not been 
 right, gives rise to the mention 
 of it to our Lord. 
 
232 The Ministry in Northern Galilee. 
 
 LECT. 
 
 V. 
 
 Condusiion 
 and recapi- 
 tulation. 
 
 were the wise and loving lessons which the Lord 
 now specially vouchsafed to them in this brief 
 period of tranquillity and seclusion. 
 
 And here this portion of our meditations comes 
 to a natural and suitable close h Yet ere we part 
 let us spend a few moments in recapitulation and 
 retrospect. 
 
 We have considered this afternoon what I 
 think we cannot but deem a most interesting part 
 of our Redeemer’s ministry, and yet one which 
 does not perhaps always so distinctly present itself 
 to the general reader as other and more sharply 
 defined portions of the Gospel-history. We have 
 perhaps been led to admit the appearance of a 
 gradual enlargement of the sphere of our Master’s 
 personal ministries ; we have journeyed with Him 
 in half-heathen lands ; we have seen saving mer- 
 cies extended to those who were not of the stock 
 of Abraham ; we have seen that divine presence 
 not withheld from the dwellers in Decapolis ; nay 
 more, we have seemed to see^ that priceless bless- 
 
 ^ After this period, as will be seen 
 in the following Lecture, the nature 
 of our Lord’s ministerial labours 
 and the character of His missionary 
 journeys appear to assume a com- 
 pletely different aspect. The whole 
 wears the character of being what 
 St Luke very fitly terms it, — at 
 T]jj.€paL T 7 ]S ava\ 7 }\pew% (ch. ix. 51). 
 Though Jerusalem is the point to- 
 wards which the journeys tend, and 
 J udaea the land to which a portion 
 of the ministry is confined, yet the 
 whole period is so marked by inter- 
 ruptions and removals, that we can 
 hardly consider it as standing in 
 ministerial connexion with any for- 
 
 mer period : see above Lect. ill. p. 
 143, note 3. 
 
 2 Here, as it has already been 
 observed, it is our duty to speak 
 with caution. That our Lord ap- 
 proached that portion of Palestine 
 which was termed the ‘ confines of 
 Tyre ’ (to, [xedbpia Hbpov, Mark vii. 
 24, — if with Tischendorf we adopt 
 the shorter reading), or, with more 
 latitude, the ‘ parts of Tyre and 
 Sidon ’ (ra piepyj ^vpov Kal StScDros, 
 Matth. XV. 21) is indisputable, but 
 that He was pleased actually to 
 cross the frontier rests really upon 
 a probable though contested reading : 
 see above, p. 218, note 2. Modern 
 
The Ministry in Northern Galilee. 233 
 
 ing vouchsafed to strictly pagan regions ; the land 
 
 of Baal and of Ashtoreth ; 'yea, we have beheld as 
 
 it were the Lord’s prophetic performance of IJis 
 own subsequent commands that the message 
 
 ^ ^ XXVlll. 19, 
 
 mercy should be published not only in J udaea and 
 J erusalem but even to the uttermost bounds of the 
 wide heathen world. All this we have seen and 
 dwelt upon, — and I trust not dwelt upon wholly 
 
 in vain To some perchance the grouping of 
 
 events which I have ventured to advocate may 
 seem to wear the aspect of partial novelty ; to 
 others again I may have seemed to press unduly 
 characteristics to which they may feel disposed to 
 assign a different or a modified application. Be 
 this, however, as it may ; whether such a survey 
 of this portion of our Lord’s life be regarded as 
 plausible or improbable ; whether such an endea- 
 vour to trace the connexion of events during a 
 period where connexion is doubtful be deemed 
 hopeful or precarious, matters but little provided 
 only it may have so far arrested the student’s at- 
 tention as to lead him to examine for himself, 
 patiently and thoughtfully, the harmonies in the 
 narrative of His Master’s lifeh Yea, I will joy- 
 
 writers appear often to have felt a 
 diflficulty in the supposition that our 
 Lord went beyond the Jewish bor- 
 der (comp. Meyer, iih. Matih. xv. 
 i\), but this feeling does not seem 
 to have prevailed equally among the 
 earlier writers, some of whom, as 
 Chrysostom, in Matth. Horn. LII. i, 
 not only speak of our Lord’s having 
 departed ets bbov edvCov, but endea- 
 vour to account for His having 
 acted contrary to a command which 
 He Himself gave to His Apostles ; 
 
 compare Matth. x. 5. 
 
 1 It is much to be feared that the 
 tendency of our more modern study 
 of the Gospels is to regard every 
 attempt to harmonize the sacred 
 narrative with indifference, if not 
 sometimes even with suspicion. We 
 may concede that recent harmonistic 
 efforts, viewed generally, though 
 made with the most loyal feelings 
 towards the inspired Word, have in 
 many cases been such as cannot 
 stand the test of criticism. Nay we 
 
234 The Ministry in Northern Galilee. 
 
 LECT. 
 
 V. 
 
 fully count all as nought, if only I have been 
 enabled by the help of God to stir up in others a 
 desire to look more closely into the connexion of 
 the inspired record, and have helped to strengthen 
 the belief that the earnest student may unceasingly 
 derive from it fresh subjects for meditation, and 
 that the seeker may verily hope to find. 
 
 May God move us all to dwell upon such 
 things with an ever fresh and ever renewing in- 
 terest. May His eternal Spirit guide us into all 
 truth ; and may He on whose blessed words and 
 deeds we have mused this afternoon, lovingly draw 
 us heart and soul and spirit to Himself. Oh may 
 we really feel that to commune with Him here on 
 earth is the most blessed privilege that the Lord 
 has reserved for those that love Him ; — yea, that 
 it is a very antepast of the joys of those realms 
 where He now is, — a very foretaste of that blessed 
 and final union, when, whether summoned forth 
 from the holy calm of Paradise, or borne aloft 
 from earth by upbearing clouds^ the servants of 
 
 may go farther and say, that the 
 modern tendency to study each 
 Gospel by itself, rather than in con- 
 nexion with the rest, is undoubtedly 
 just and right, so long as the object 
 proposed is a more complete realiza- 
 tion of the view of our Lord’s life 
 as presented by each of the sacred 
 writers, and so long as it is consi- 
 dered preparatory to further combi- 
 nations. All this we may willingly 
 concede, and yet we may with 
 justice most strongly urge the ex- 
 treme importance, not only in a 
 mere critical, but even in a devo- 
 tional point of view, of obtaining 
 as complete and connected a view 
 
 of our Lord’s life and ministry as 
 can possibly be obtained from our 
 existing inspired records. And this, 
 let it be remembered, can only be 
 done by that patient and thoughtful 
 comparison of Scripture with Scrip- 
 ture which now finds such little 
 favour with so many theologians of 
 our present day. The general prin- 
 ciple on which such comparisons 
 ought to be made we have already 
 endeavoured to indicate ; see Lect. 
 I. p. 17 sq. 
 
 ^ See I Thess. iv. 17, dpTrayrjo-S- 
 fieda ev ve^iXais , — on which we here 
 pause only to make the passing 
 comment, that the sublime picture 
 
The Ministry in Northern Galilee, 235 
 
 Jesus sliall enter into tlieir Redeemer’s presence, 
 and dwell with Him, for ever and for ever. 
 
 the inspired words present is com- 
 monly missed by the general reader, 
 and perhaps obscured by the colloca- 
 tion of words and insertion of the 
 article in our Authorized Version. 
 The Greek text appears to imply 
 
 that the clouds are, as it were, the 
 triumphal chariots in which the holy 
 living, and as it would seem also, 
 the holy dead, will be borne aloft to 
 meet their coming Lord : see Com- 
 mentary on i Thess. p. 66. 
 
 LECT. 
 
 V. 
 
LECTURE VI. 
 
 LECT. 
 
 VI. 
 
 General 
 character 
 of the pre- 
 sent por- 
 tion of the 
 inspired 
 narrative. 
 
 THE JOUKNEYINGS TOWAKDS JERUSALEM. 
 
 St Luke ix. 58 . 
 
 Ant^ Jesus said unto him, Foxes ham holes, and birds of the air 
 leave nests ; hut the Fon of Man hath 7iot where to lay His 
 head. 
 
 These mournful and affecting words, which were 
 uttered nearly at the commencement of the period 
 which we are now about to consider, form I think 
 a very suitable text for our present meditations. 
 
 The scene now strikingly changes. Last Sun- 
 day we had before us the deeply interesting record 
 of missionary journeys into heathen and half-hea- 
 then lands. We seemed to follow our Lord’s steps 
 to the very gates of idolatrous Sidon^, we beheld 
 His miracles in half-Gentile Decapolis, we traced 
 His deeds of mercy in the remote uplands of 
 Galilee, and we again heard His loving words and 
 touching parables in the short seclusion^ in His 
 
 1 See, however, the observations 
 on this point, p. 232, note 2. 
 
 2 How long our Lord remained 
 at Capernaum after His return from 
 the district of Caesarea Philippi and 
 the northern parts of Galilee is in 
 no way specified. As, however, St 
 Luke passes at once from his notice 
 of the contention among the Apos- 
 tles (which we know took place 
 before they had actually come to 
 
 Capernaum; see Mark ix. 33) to 
 the journey of our Lord to Jerusa- 
 lem, we are perhaps correct in sup- 
 posing that the stay was short. It 
 is not improbable that the approach- 
 ing celebration of the feast of 
 Tabernacles led to the return from 
 the North, and induced our Lord 
 to come back to Capernaum, not 
 only as being His temporary home, 
 but as being a convenient starting- 
 
The Journeyings toward Jerusalem, 237 
 
 earthly home at Capernaum. But now that earthly 
 
 home is to receive Him no more. Six months of 
 
 anxious wanderings in Jud?ea and the lands on the 
 further side of Jordan, interrupted only by brief 
 sojourns in remote frontier-towns, now claim our 
 attention; — six months of ceaseless activities and 
 unresting labour, of mighty deeds and momentous 
 teaching, yet six months if not of actual flight, 
 yet of ever-recurring avoidance of implacable and 
 murderous designs^ that were now fasf approach- 
 ing their appalling and impious climax. 
 
 What I have just said serves indirectly to de- Limits of 
 fine the limits of our present section. These, how- 
 ever, for the sake of clearness, I will specify more 
 exactly, as commencing with the Lord’s journey 
 in October to the feast of Tabernacles and conclud- 
 ing with His arrival at Bethany six days before 
 the Passover. 
 
 This period I need scarcely remind you presents Harmonis- 
 
 to the harmonist and chronologer difficulties so chronologi- 
 cal difficul- 
 
 by these emissaries, and were now 
 issuing in designs so far matured as 
 to have become the subject of fre- 
 quent comment, and of almost gene- 
 ral notoriety; see especially John 
 vii. 25. It is at the beginning of 
 the present period that we meet 
 with the first open and formal at- 
 tempt on the part of the authorities 
 to lay their sacrilegious hands on 
 the person of our Lord ; see John vii. 
 
 32, — where it will be observed that 
 the imperfectly organized attempt 
 noticed two or three verses before 
 {e^riTow, ver. 30) is recommenced 
 under ofiicial sanction ; compare 
 Meyer, Komment. uh. Joh. p. 236 
 (ed. 3), and Greswell, Dissert, xxx. 
 
 Vol. II. p. 489. 
 
 point for the journey to Jerusalem : 
 see above, Lect. ill. p. 121, and 
 p. 122, note I. 
 
 ^ It would seem probable that a 
 resolution to kill our Eedeemer had 
 been secretly formed among the 
 leading members of the hierarchical 
 party at Jerusalem, perhaps some 
 months before the present time. If 
 we are correct in the view we have 
 taken in "Lect. rv., that the machi- 
 nations against our Lord in Gali- 
 lee were due to emissaries from 
 Jerusalem, it does not seem wholly 
 improbable that the vengeful feelings 
 of the Pharisaical party, which first 
 definitely showed themselves at the 
 feast of Purim (see above, p. 121), 
 had been from time to time fostered 
 
238 The Journeyings toward Jerusalem. 
 
 unusually great \ that it has been frequently con- 
 
 sidered a matter of simple impossibility to adjust 
 
 in their probable order the events which belong to 
 this portion of the narrative. It has been urged 
 that the Evangelist, to whom we owe the recital 
 of so many of the circumstances and discourses 
 which belong to this period, has here failed in his 
 Lukei. 3. deliberately announced design^ of relating in order ^ 
 the events of his Master s life, and has here blend- 
 ed in one incoherent narrative the distinctive fea- 
 tures and elements of the last three journeys of 
 our Eedeemer to Judsea and Jerusalem ^ We may 
 
 1 The precise nature of these 
 difficulties are explained below, p. 
 -240. Some considerations on the 
 nature of that portion of St Luke’s 
 Gospel with which these difficulties 
 are chiefly connected, will be found 
 in Gres well. Dissert, xxxi. Vol. ii. 
 p. 517 sq., but the results at which 
 the learned writer arrives, viz. that 
 Luke ix. 51 — xviii. 14 refers to our 
 Lord’s last journey to Jerusalem, 
 and that to doubt it is ‘ the perfec- 
 tion of scepticism and incredulity ’ 
 (p. 540), are such as may be most 
 justly called Into question. Some 
 useful observations on this portion 
 of the Gospel narrative will be found 
 in Robinson, Harmony of Gospels, 
 p. 92 (Tract Society) ; compare also 
 the remarks of Dr Thomson in 
 Smith’s Dictionary of the Bible, 
 Vol. I. p. 1061. 
 
 2 Some comments on the apparent 
 meaning of this and other expres- 
 sions used by St Luke in the intro- 
 duction to his Gospel will be found 
 above, Lect. iv. p. 154, note i. 
 
 ^ See for instance the very sweep- 
 ing and objectionable remarks of 
 De Wette, who speaks of the neces- 
 sity of recognizing in this portion 
 
 of the Evangelist’s record ‘ eine un- 
 chronologische und unhistorische 
 Zusammenstellung ’ {Erhl. des Luk. 
 p. 76), and conceives that it resulted 
 from St Luke’s having had a certain 
 amount of matter before him relating 
 to our Lord’s ministry which he did 
 not know how otherwise to dispose 
 of. The opinion of Schleiermacher, 
 and after him of Olshausen, Neander 
 and others, that we have in this 
 portion of St Luke’s Gospel the 
 accounts of two journeys, the one 
 terminating at the Feast of Dedica- 
 tion, the second at the Passover, is 
 at first sight more reasonable. It 
 will be found, however, to involve 
 assuihptions, — viz. (a) that the two 
 narratives of the two journeys were 
 blended by some one ignorant of 
 the exact circumstances, and in this 
 state inserted by St Luke in his 
 Gospel (Schleierm.), — or (6) that St 
 Luke re-wrote the accounts and 
 himself helped to blend them (comp. 
 Olshausen, Commentary, Vol. ii. p. 
 282 sq.), — which must be pronounced 
 by every sober interpreter to be as 
 untenable in princiiJe, as they will 
 be found on examination to be un- 
 supported by facts. 
 
llie Journeyings toiuard Jerusalem, 239 
 
 indeed be thankful to feel and know that such 
 opinions, which in fact carry with them their own 
 condemnation, are now beginning to belong to the 
 past. We may with good reason rejoice that of 
 late years a far more reverent as well as critical 
 spirit has been at work among the chronologers 
 and expositors of the sacred histories. We may 
 gladly observe that order and connexion have been 
 found where there was once deemed to be only 
 confusion and incoherence, — that the inspired nar- 
 ratives are regarded no longer as discrepant but 
 as self-explanatory, — and that honest investiga- 
 tion is showing more and more clearly that what 
 one inspired writer has left unrecorded another 
 has often supplied with an incidental preciseness 
 of adjustment, which is all the more convincing 
 from being seen and felt to be undesigned. All 
 this it is cheering to feel and know^; yet still I 
 must not and ought not to disguise from you that 
 the difficulties in our present portion of the Gospel- 
 
 ^ We may observe, by way of 
 example, the working of these 
 sounder principles in the manner in 
 which the peculiar portion of St 
 Luke’s Gospel to which we have 
 been alluding is discussed in the 
 best recent commentaries; see for 
 instance Meyer, Komment. iib. Luk. 
 p. 326 sq. (ed. 3), and in our own 
 country, Alford, on Luke ix. 5 1, both 
 of whom, though too scrupulously 
 declining every attempt to reconcile 
 the narrative with that of St John, 
 clearly recognize (Meyer in a less 
 degree) its unity and historical im- 
 portance. The assertion, however, 
 of the latter writer, that St Luke 
 ‘ has completely by his connecting 
 words in many places disclaimed ’ 
 
 any chronological arrangement in 
 this portion of his Gospel, seems 
 certainly much too strong. The ut- 
 most that can be said is that the ab- 
 sence of notes of time precludes our 
 determining the precise epoch at 
 which the events specified took place, 
 and the intervals of time between 
 them, but that we have no reason 
 whatever to doubt that in nearly all 
 cases the right sequence is preserved. 
 In other words, though we have 
 no chronology in this portion of the 
 third Evangelist’s Gospel, we have 
 no reason to doubt that we have 
 order. On this distinction see Eb- 
 rard, Kritik der Evang. Gcsch. § ri, 
 p. 46, and compare Wieseler, Cki'on. 
 Synops. p. 327 sq. 
 
 LECT. 
 
 VI. 
 
240 The Journeyings toward Jerusalem. 
 
 LECT. 
 
 VI. 
 
 Precise na^ 
 ture of 
 these diffi- 
 culties. 
 
 history, — difficulties, however, which I firmly be- 
 lieve have been of late correctly cleared up, — are still 
 such as must sensibly strike the general reader, 
 and must claim from me a few, yet only a few, ex- 
 planatory and introductory comments. 
 
 The facts are these. Above three hundred 
 verses of St Luke's Gospel, or from the end of the 
 ninth to nearly the middle of the eighteenth chap- 
 ter clearly belong to the period that we are now 
 about to consider^, but stand, so to speak, isolated 
 and alone. The two other Synoptical Gospels 
 scarcely supply more than two or three parallel 
 notices, but after the middle of the eighteenth 
 chapter again become distinct and explicit, and 
 again present the most exact coincidences with 
 the narrative of the third Evangelist^, — coinci- 
 dences as striking as the former absence of them, 
 and the former comparative silence. But this is 
 not all : these three hundred verses of St Luke's 
 Gospel have somewhat remarkable characteristics. 
 They are very rich in their recital of our Lord's 
 
 1 A few sections may perhaps 
 belong to an earlier portion of the 
 narrative, e.g. Luke xi. 17 sq. com- 
 pared with Mark iii. 20 sq., Luke 
 xiii, 18 sq. with Mark iv. 30 sq., — 
 if indeed it be not more probable 
 that the substance of both the above 
 sections was repeated on two dif- 
 ferent occasions ; corap. Wieseler, 
 Chron. Syno}-)S. p. 288. 
 
 ^ The first point of resumed con- 
 nexion between St Luke and the 
 first and second Evangelists is ap- 
 parently to be found in Luke xvii. 
 II compared with Matth. xix. i, 2, 
 and Mark x. i, — St Luke alluding 
 to the journey (from Ephraim ; see 
 
 John xi. 54) through Samaria and 
 Galilee, and St Matthew and St 
 Mark the continuation of it through 
 Peraea to J udaea and J erusalem. The 
 more distinct point of union, how- 
 ever, is the narrative of the young 
 children being brought to our Lord, 
 which begins ch. xviii. 15, and stands 
 in strict parallelism with Matthew 
 xix. 13 sq. and Mark x. 13 sq. 
 After this, for the few remaining 
 sections, the narrative of the Synop- 
 tical Evangelists proceeds harmo- 
 niously onward to the close of the 
 portion now before us : compare the 
 table in Wieseler, Chron. Synops. 
 P- 
 
TliG Joiirneyings toward Jerusalem. 241 
 
 discourses, especially of those which were suggested 
 by passing occurrences, but they contain but few 
 of those notices of time and place^, which we so 
 naturally associate with the narrative of the his- 
 torian Evangelist. 
 
 Now what would be the opinion of any calm, 
 reasonable, and reverent man upon the pheno- 
 menon thus presented to him. Why clearly this. 
 In the first place, he would at once conclude that 
 here was but another of the almost countless in- 
 stances which the holy Gospels present to us of 
 the mercy and wisdom of Almighty God, whose 
 Eternal Spirit moved one Evangelist to relate 
 what the others had left unrecorded ^ In the 
 second place, he would here recognize, on the one 
 hand, an indirect verification of that careful re- 
 search which was openly professed by the third 
 
 ^ This remark will be best veri- 
 fied by an inspection of the chapters 
 in question. We may, however, 
 pause to specify the following very 
 undefined notices of chronological 
 connexion, /xera ravra, ch. x. i ; 
 Kal l5oij, ch. X. 25; e'ylvero Se, ch. 
 X. 38 ; Kal eyivero, ch. xi. i ; simply 
 Kal, ch. xi. 14, xiii. 22 ; ev dh t<^ 
 XaXrja-aL, ch. xi. 37; iu oh, ch. xii. 
 I ; ehrev 5 e, ch. xii. 22, and comp, 
 xiii. 6, xvi. i, xvii. i, xviii. t ; koI 
 iyheTO, ch. xiv. t ; Kal elaepxo/x&ov 
 avToO el's riua KcofX7]v, ch. xvii. 12. 
 The only really definite expressions 
 in reference to time are apparently 
 confined to ch, xiii. i, 31, and even 
 these are of little use to us, owing to 
 the events with which they stand 
 in connexion themselves being unde- 
 fined as to time. With regard to 
 place, for examples of a similarly 
 undefined character, compare ch. x. 
 
 38, xi. I, xiii. 10, 22, xiv. i, xvii. 
 12. It may be admitted that we 
 can find instances of a similar ab- 
 sence of definite notices of time and 
 place in other portions of St Luke’s 
 Gospel, but in none so regularly 
 and continuously as in the portion 
 now before us : see the table in Eb- 
 rard, Kritik der Ev. Gesch. § 32, 
 p. 131 sq. 
 
 2 The supplementary relations in 
 which the earlier-written Gospels 
 appear to stand to the later- written 
 are noticed at some length by Gres- 
 well, Dissert, i. Vol, i. p. 15. The 
 popular objection, that we have no 
 intimations in the sacred records 
 themselves by which we can infer 
 where one is to be regarded defective 
 and others supplementary to it, is 
 considered and reasonably answered 
 in the Appendix, Dissert, i. Vol. iii. 
 p. 321 sq. 
 
 LECT. 
 
 VI. 
 
 E. H. L. 
 
 16 
 
LECT. 
 
 VI. 
 
 Compari- 
 son of 
 this por- 
 tion of St 
 Luke’s 
 Gospel 
 with that 
 of St J ohn, 
 
 242 Hie Journeying s toward Jerusalem, 
 
 Evangelist^ ; and on the other, a direct proof of 
 that faithfulness that made him adopt less special 
 notices of the strict connexion of events when the 
 sources of information, oral or written, to which 
 he had been moved to refer, had not fully or dis- 
 tinctly supplied them. 
 
 Now suppose such a reasonable thinker had 
 observed, as he could scarcely fail to have ob- 
 served, that the fourth Evangelist, true to the 
 supplementary character, which we seem to have 
 very sufficient grounds for ascribing to several 
 portions of his Gospel^, had supplied three dis- 
 tinct chronological notices of three journeys taken 
 toward if not all actually to Jerusalem during 
 this period we are about to consider — would he 
 not at once turn back to St Luke to discover 
 some trace, however slight, of journeys so clearly 
 
 ^ This seems a fair representation 
 of what the Evangelist designed to 
 imply by TraprjKoXovdrjKOTi avuOev 
 TracLv aKpi^Cos (eh. i. 3) : see the 
 comments on this passage in Lect. 
 IV. p. 154, note I, The view of 
 the ancient Syriac translator, ac- 
 cording to which TToiai is masculine, 
 and TraprjKokovd. implies proximity, 
 and personal attendance (see also 
 von Gumpach in Kitto, Journal of 
 Sacred Lit. for 1849, viii. 
 
 p, 301), deserves attention from its 
 antiquity, but is apparently rightly 
 rejected by all the best modern 
 expositors, 
 
 2 See above, Lect, i, p, 14, note 
 4, and compare the illusti'ations 
 supplied by Greswell, Dissert, xxr, 
 — XXIII. Vol. II. p. 196 sq.. Dissert. 
 XXX. Vol. II. p. 482 sq. : compare 
 also Ebrard, Kritik der Ev. Gesch. 
 § 37 , P- 150 sq. 
 
 ^ The objection that if we include 
 
 our Lord’s visit to Jerusalem at the 
 Feast of Dedication, we might seem 
 to have /o?tr journeys to Jerusalem 
 (see the synopsis of Lanipe) is 
 readily removed by observing that 
 the way in which St John mentions 
 the festival and our Lord’s appear- 
 ance at it (John x, 22), combined 
 with the fact that there is no pre- 
 vious mention of any departure 
 from Judsea (contrast John x. 40), 
 leads us certainly to suppose that 
 during the interval between the 
 feast of Tabernacles and that of 
 the Dedication our Lord confined 
 His ministry to Judsea; see p. 256. 
 If this be so, the visit to the latter 
 festival is not to be regarded as due 
 to a separate or second journey, but 
 only as a sequel of the first : com- 
 pare Bengel’s more correct synopsis. 
 Gnomon, Vol. i. p. 351, and see 
 Wieseler, Chronol. Synops. p. 318, 
 note I , 
 
The Journeyings toward Jerusalem. 243 
 
 defined by another Evangelist. And would he 
 turn back there in vain ? Would he find no 
 break in the narrative, no indications of journeys 
 to Jerusalem beside that with which this portion 
 of his Gospel commences ? Most assuredly not. 
 Instead of all seeming, as it might once have 
 seemed, the confused recital of the circumstances 
 of but one journey, he would now be led to iden- 
 tify the journey of the ninth chapter of St Luke 
 with the journey to the feast of Tabernacles 
 specified by St J ohn ^ ; he would again have his 
 attention arrested by the break a little past the 
 middle of the thirteenth chapter^, and would see 
 how strikingly it agreed with St J ohn's notice of 
 
 1 The 'main argument for the 
 identity of the journey specified 
 John vii. lo with that mentioned 
 Luke ix. 5 1 rests on the two facts, 
 {a) that the journey specified by the 
 third Evangelist was through Sama- 
 ria (Luke ix. 52), and (&) that the 
 inhabitants of that country at once 
 inferred that our Lord’s destination 
 was Jerusalem (ver. 53). The first 
 of these facts is in complete harmony 
 with the avoidance of observation 
 specified in John vii. 10; the second 
 is in equally complete harmony with 
 St John’s statement of the object of 
 that journey {are^Tj els r^v eoprrjv, 
 ib. ver. 10). It was the knowledge on 
 the part of the Samaritans that the 
 feast of Tabernacles was now going 
 on that made them so readily notice 
 and recognize the direction to which 
 the Lord’s face was now turned; 
 see below, p. 249. The main objec- 
 tion against the identity lies in St 
 Luke’s rough note of time, ev rdp 
 crv/XTrXrjpovadaL ras 7]p.epas tt)S dvaXri- 
 xpeojs (ch. ix. 51), which, it is urged, 
 
 the use of the peculiar tenn drd\ 7 j- 
 \pis clearly shows can only belong 
 to a last journey (see Meyer, in loc., 
 and compare Greswell, Dissert. 
 XXXI. Vol. II. p. 522). Why, how- 
 ever, may not the very general 
 term, at ‘pgipai rrjs dvaX-r^ypem (6 
 KOLipos 6 d(popc(70els dvaX'q- 
 
 i/'ew?, Euthym.) suitably apply to 
 the period between the conclusion of 
 the regular ministry of our Lord 
 and the last Passover, — a period 
 which was ushered in by special 
 prophecies of such an dvdXrjxf/is 
 (Mark ix. 30), and which through- 
 out wears the character of being a 
 season of preparation for that final 
 issue : compare p. 232, note i. The 
 interpretation of the words proposed 
 by Wieseler, {Ckron. Synojps. p. 324 ; 
 comp. Lange, Lcben Jesu, ii. 5. 12, 
 Part II, p. 1054), — ‘the days of His 
 having found acceptance with men,’ 
 is contrary to the New Testament 
 use of the verb (Mark xvi. 19, Acts 
 i. 2, xi. 22, I Tim. iii. 16), and 
 completely untenable. 
 
 16—2 
 
 LECT. 
 
 VI. 
 
 ver. 22. 
 
LECT. 
 
 VI. 
 
 a ver. IT. 
 
 ** ch. xix. ] 
 ^ ch. X. I. 
 
 244 The Journey mgs toward Jerusalem. 
 
 the second journey toward Jerusalem, that reach- 
 - ed no further than Bethany’; and lastly, he could 
 not fail to pause at the special notice of a third 
 journey towards the beginning of the seventeenth 
 chapter^, and would naturally connect it not only 
 • with the express statements of St Matthew^ and 
 St Mark^, but with the previous retirement to 
 Ephraim so distinctly specified by St John^... 
 Such would be the result of a fair and reasonable 
 investigation into the narrative of St Luke, — and 
 such too is the result arrived at, in part by the 
 learned Lightfoot"^, and more distinctly by a recent 
 investigator, whose elaborate treatise on the chro- 
 nology of the Gospel history may justly be classed 
 among the most successful efforts in that depart- 
 ment of theology that have appeared in our own 
 times'*. 
 
 ^ For further considerations in 
 favour of this connexion of Luke 
 xiii. 22 with St John’s notice of our 
 Lord’s withdrawal irlpav rov ’Iop8d- 
 vov (ch. x. 40), and the same Apo- 
 stle’s notice of the journey to Bethany 
 (ch. xi. 1), see below, p. 262 sq., and 
 compare Wieseler, Chron. Synops. 
 p. 321. 
 
 2 With John xi. 54 we seem 
 rightly to connect Luke xvii. ii, 
 dcrjpx^TO 5 td pL^aov Hiayapelas Kal 
 TaXiXaias, where the confirmatoi’y 
 hint supplied by the notice of the 
 direction of the journey should not 
 be overlooked ; see below, p. 269, 
 note 5. 
 
 ^ The following appears to be the 
 arrangement of this able harmonist 
 as indicated in his Chronica Tempo- 
 rum (V ol. II. p. 36 sq. Roterod. 1686): 
 (i) he connects (sect. 57) Luke ix. 
 51 and John vii. 10; (2) he places 
 (sect. 60) Luke x. 17 — xiii. 23 be- 
 
 fore John ix. I — X. 42 ; (3) he refers 
 Luke xvii. ii to our Lord’s last 
 journey to Jerusalem, connecting it, 
 however, with John x. 42 rather 
 than with John xi. 55 ; see sect. 62. 
 The main differences between this 
 and the view adopted in the text 
 are the identification of Luke xiii. 
 22 with the visit to Jerusalem at 
 the feast of Dedication (see above, 
 p.. 242, note 3), and the reference of 
 John ix. I — x. 21 to the visit at the 
 feast of Dedication rather than, as 
 seems much more natural, to that 
 at the feast of Tabernacles : con- 
 trast Wieseler, Chron. Synops. p. 
 
 329- 
 
 ^ It is scarcely necessary to ob- 
 serve that reference is here made to 
 the Chronoloyische Synopse der Vier 
 Evangelien of Karl Wieseler, — a 
 treatise of which the importance 
 has been already commented on ; 
 see p. 143, note 2. It is to be re- 
 
The Journeyings toward Jerusalem. 245 
 
 If we rest satisfied with this result, and I 
 verily believe it will commend itself to us each r — ; — r 
 step we advance forward in the history, we have the above 
 before us, to speak broadly and generally, thetionl^^^' 
 record of the circumstances connected with three 
 journeys to or toward Jerusalem, the first being 
 at the feast of Tabernacles, the second, three 
 months or more afterwards, the last a short time 
 before the ensuing Passover'. 
 
 Let us now proceed to a brief but orderly 
 recital of the recorded events. 
 
 The last circumstance on which we dwelt was Brief stay 
 the return of our Lord to Capernaum after His naum : 
 
 worldly 
 request of 
 
 minates at Bethany, but which, our Lord’s 
 owing to the machinations of the brethren. 
 Jews (John xi. 47), is very shortly 
 afterwards directed to Ephraim 
 (John xi. 54). Erom this place the 
 third journey is commenced, which 
 appears to have extended through 
 Samaria, Galilee, and Peraea, and to 
 have been temporarily arrested at 
 Bethany near J erusalem 6 days be- 
 fore the Passover, or, in the year in 
 question (a.U.C. 783), somewhere 
 about April i. If we now reckon 
 backward, and assign at least a 
 fortnight to this journey, a month 
 or 5 weeks to the stay at Ephraim, 
 and a week or more to the second 
 journey, — which though much 
 shorter than the third seems at first 
 to have been leisurely performed 
 (comp. Luke xiii. 22, and see below, 
 p. 262, note 2), — we shall then leave 
 about a month or 5 weeks for the 
 stay in the neighbourhood of the 
 Persean Bethany. The second jour- 
 ney according to this view would 
 have commenced about the begin- 
 ning of February, and the third 
 about the middle of March. 
 
 gretted that in a few important pas- 
 sages Wieseler has been tempted to 
 propound novel interpretations (see 
 above, p. 243, note i) which have 
 been almost universally pronounced 
 to be untenable. This has led hasty 
 readers to rate this able work much 
 below its real merits : compare Kitto, 
 Journal of Sacr. Lit. for 1850, No. 
 XI. p. 75. 
 
 ^ The date of the commencement 
 of the second and third journeys 
 and their duration can only be fixed 
 roughly and approximately. The 
 data for forming a calculation are as 
 follow. The feast of the Dedication 
 took place on the 25th of Kislev 
 (Dec. 20), and lasted 8 days (Joseph. 
 Antiq. Xii. 7. 7; comp. Jahn, Ar- 
 choeol. § 359) : at this, as we know 
 from St John, our Lord was present. 
 Very soon afterwards our Lord re- 
 tires to the Peraean Bethany (John 
 X. 40), and there abides long enough 
 for many to believe on Him (John 
 X. 42). At the end of this stay the 
 second journey towards Jerusalem 
 (Luke xiii. 22 ; comp. John xi. 7) is 
 commenced, which for the time ter- 
 
24G The Journeyings toward Jerusalem. 
 
 LECT. 
 
 VI. 
 
 J ohn vii. 
 
 3- 
 
 long missionary journeys, and His impressive teach- 
 ing to His Apostles during that brief period of 
 apparent tranquillity and seclusion h That time of 
 holy rest seems soon to have come to an end. The 
 feast of Tabernacles was nigh at hand, and the 
 Lord’s brethren^, who now come prominently be- 
 fore us, and who in spite of their practical 
 unbeliefs appear to have distinctly shared in 
 similar feelings of pride and expectancy to those 
 which we seem to have already traced in the 
 Apostles, now urge Him to display His wonder- 
 working powers amid circumstances of greater 
 publicity^ — to challenge and to command adhe- 
 sion, and that not in remote Galilee but in the 
 busy thoroughfares of Jerusalem^, and among the 
 
 1 See Lecture V, p. 230, and com- 
 pare p. 236, note 2. 
 
 2 For a brief consideration of the 
 probable meaning of this much 
 contested appellation see above, p. 
 97, note 2, and for examples of the 
 vai’ious senses of the word d5eX06s 
 according to Hebrew usage, see 
 Greswell, Dissert, xvii. Vol. ii. 
 p. 1 1 7. 
 
 ^ That the words ovbh hriffrevov 
 (John xiii. 5), though probably im- 
 plying a disbelief in our Lord’s 
 Godhead (cl>s eU Qeov, Euthym.), 
 did not imply a disbelief in His 
 mighty works, and perhaps not 
 even in His claims to be regarded 
 a divinely accredited teacher, seems 
 clear from the context ; see ver. 3, 
 and compare Lect. ill. p. 98, note. 
 Chrysostom (m loc.) rightly remarks 
 that the address, though marked by 
 bitterness, still clearly came from 
 friends (5o/cet i] drjOev (piXtou 
 
 ehai; contrast Euthymius in loc.) : 
 we may pause, however, before we 
 
 agree with that able expositor in 
 his further remark that James the 
 brother of the Lord was one of the 
 speakers : compare Greswell, Dissert. 
 XVII. Vol. II. p. 1 16. 
 
 ^ The exact meaning of the ad- 
 dress of our Lord’s brethren, espe- 
 cially of the confirmatory clause 
 (ovdels yap iu KpvTrrcp tl ttokX Kal 
 ^r]Tei avrbs iu Trapprjaia elvac, John 
 vii. 4) is not at first sight perfectly 
 clear. What the brethren appear 
 to say is this : ^ Go to J udsea that 
 Thy disciples, whether dwelling 
 there or come there to the festival, 
 may behold the works which Thou 
 art doing here in comparative se- 
 crecy : it is needful that Thou seek 
 this publicity if true to Thy charac- 
 ter, for no man doeth his works in 
 secret, and seeks personally (a^r6s) 
 to be before the world, — as Thou 
 who claimest to be the Messiah 
 must necessarily desire to be. Hid- 
 den though wondrous works and 
 personal acceptance by the world 
 
LECT. 
 
 VI. 
 
 The Journeyings toivard Jerusalem. 247 
 
 thronging worshippers in its Temple courts. ... 
 
 The apparent contradiction that has here been - 
 found between our Lord’s words and His subse- 
 quent acts vanishes at once when we pause to 
 observe that here, as so often in the narrative of 
 the fourth Evangelist, He is revealed to us as the 
 reader of the heart, and as answering its thoughts 
 and imaginations, rather than the words by which 
 those feelings were disguised h It is to the spirit 
 and meaning of this worldly and self-seeking re- 
 quest rather than to the mere outward terms in 
 which it was couched that the Lord answers His 
 brethren, even as He had once before answered 
 a mother’s tacit importunity, that ‘ His time is not 
 yet come^,’ and that He goeth not up to the feast. ^ Joim vii. 
 He does indeed not go up to the feast in the sense 
 in which those carnal-minded men presumed to 
 counsel Him. He joins now no festal companies; 
 
 He takes now no prominent part in festal solem- 
 nities^; if He be found in Jerusalem and in the 
 
 at large are things not compatible.’ 
 The whole is the speech of shrewd 
 and worldly-minded, bub not trea- 
 cherous or designing men ; compare 
 Liicke in loc. Vol. ii. p. 189 (ed. 3). 
 
 1 See above, Lect. i. p. 32, note 
 I, and compare p. 126, note 2. The 
 supposition of Meyer that our Lord 
 here states His intention and after- 
 wards alters it, is neither borne out 
 by the context nor rendered admissi- 
 ble by any parallel case (Matth. xv. 
 26 sq. is certainly not in point) in 
 the whole sacred narrative. The 
 miserable effort of Porphyry to fix 
 on our Lord the charge of fraudulent 
 representations and deliberate incon- 
 stancy is noticed and refuted by 
 Jerome, contr. Pelag. ii. 6. 
 
 2 That this is the true meaning 
 of the words was apparently felt by 
 the earlier expositors {ov yap dva^al- 
 vei crvveopTdcruu vovdeT'^a’cjy 5^ yudX- 
 \ov, Cyril Alex, in loc. p. 404 b), 
 and has been distinctly asserted by 
 many of the sounder modern writers. 
 So rightly Luthardt ('nicht an die- 
 sem Feste wird er so wie sie meinen 
 hinauf- und einziehn in Jerusalem.’ 
 Das Johann Evang. Part ir. p. 77), 
 Stier {Disc, of Our Lord, Vol. v. 
 p. 242, Clark), and somewhat simi- 
 larly, Liicke in loc. The explanation 
 of De Wette and Alford that the 
 true reading oxjk dva^aivo) is practi- 
 cally equivalent to the oUtto) dva^aivo) 
 of the Peceived Text, is perhaps 
 defensible on the ground that the 
 
248 The Journeyings toward Jerusalem. 
 
 LECT. courts of His Father’s House, it is not as the 
 wonder-worker or Messianic king, but as the per- 
 secuted Redeemer who will yet again brave the 
 malice of Scribe and Pharisee that He may still 
 fulfil His mission to those lost sheep of the house 
 of Israel, whom the festival may gather together. 
 Journey to Thus it was, that perhaps scarcely before the 
 thTo^ugir’^ very day on which the festival actually com- 
 Samaria. quj. Lord, and as the sequel seems to 
 
 «Comp. show"", His Apostles^ directed their steps to Jeru- 
 54. ’ Salem; but, as it were, in secret. Their way, as 
 
 we might have expected, and as the apparently 
 coincident notice of St Luke distinctly substan- 
 bch. ix.52. tiates^, lay through Samaria^ But Samaria now 
 
 succeeding oC/ttw may be thought to 
 reflect a kind of temporal limitation 
 on the foregoing negative, but 
 seems neither so simple nor so natu- 
 ral as that which has been adopted 
 in the text. 
 
 ^ That our Lord did not arrive at 
 Jerusalem till the middle of the 
 Feast is certainly not positively to 
 be deduced from John vii. 14, which 
 may only imply that up -to that day, 
 though in Jerusalem, He remained 
 in concealment (Meyer). Still the 
 use of the term dve^rj, especially 
 viewed in connexion with its use a 
 few verses before, seems to involve 
 the idea of a preceding journey, and 
 may possibly have been chosen as 
 serving to imply that on His arrival 
 our Lord proceeded at once to the 
 Temple, — that it was in fact the 
 true goal of the present journey. 
 Cyril of Alexandria calls attention 
 to the word dvi^r} {ovx aTrXws d<TTj\~ 
 dev, dWd dv 4 ( 37 ], (prjaLv, els to iep 6 v, 
 in loc. p. 409 e) but apparently 
 refers it to the solemn and formal 
 nature of the entry. 
 
 ^ Even if we hesitate to regard 
 the journey mentioned by St Luke 
 (ch. ix. 51) as identical with that 
 here specified by St John, — which 
 indeed, as we have shown above, 
 w'e seem to have no sufiBcient reason 
 for doing, — we can scarcely doubt 
 that the journey was through Sama- 
 ria. By this route our Lord would 
 be able to make His journey more 
 completely ws ev KpvTTT(p (John vii. 
 10), and would also apparently be 
 able to reach Jerusalem more quickly 
 than if He had taken the usual and 
 longer route through Persea : see 
 above, Lect. iii. p. 122, note i. 
 The assertion of Meyer {in loc.) that 
 ws ev KpvTTTip simply implies that our 
 Lord joined no festal caravan, but 
 affords no indication of the way He 
 was pleased to take, may justly be 
 questioned. If our Lord was ac- 
 companied by His Apostles, — which, 
 from St John’s Gospel alone, seems 
 certainly more probable than the 
 contrary, — could a company of thir- 
 teen have travelled ws h KpvrrTip by 
 any but a little-frequented route? 
 
The Journeyings toward Jerusalem. 249 
 
 receives not its Saviour as it had received Him 
 nine months before ^ Then the Lord’s face was^y^— - 
 turned towards Galilee, now it is turned towards 40 . 
 Jerusalem; then His journey was made more 
 leisurely, now it is in haste; then there was no 
 apparent reason why the route through Samaria 
 had been chosen rather than any other, now it 
 is self-evident. The peculiar season of the year 
 at once reminds the jealous Samaritan whither 
 those hurried steps were being directed, and tells 
 him plainly enough what must be the true reason 
 which now has brought that hastening company 
 through their commonly avoided land. So when 
 messengers^ are sent forward to expedite the Luke ix. 
 journey, and make preparation for the coming 
 Master, He whom the city of Sychar had once 
 welcomed is now rejected‘s by the churlish village ver. 53. 
 that lay in His way. The Sons of Thunder^ would 
 
 ^ The incident mentioned in this 
 passage deserves particular attention 
 as tending to correct a very popular 
 and prevailing error in reference to 
 the character of one of the actors. 
 Does the present passage, especially 
 when combined with Luke ix. 49, 
 and Mark x. 38, and further illus- 
 trated by the most natural and ob- 
 vious interpretation of the term 
 * Son of Thunder ’ (Mark iii. 1 7 ; 
 see Meyer in loc. p. 39) at all justify 
 our regarding St John as the Apo- 
 stolic type of that almost feminine 
 softness and meditative tranquil- 
 lity (see Olshausen, Cointnent. on the 
 Gospels, Vol. III. p. 304) which is so 
 popularly ascribed to him ? Is it 
 not much more correct to say that 
 the notices of the Beloved Apostle 
 recorded in the Gospels, when esti- 
 mated in connexion with the name 
 
 given to him by his Master, present 
 to us the scarcely doubtful traces of 
 an ardent love, zeal, and confidence 
 (Mark x. 38), which, like the thun- 
 der to which the character was com- 
 pared, was sometimes shown forth 
 in outspokenness and outburst. This 
 characteristic ardour, this glowing 
 while loving zeal, is not obscurely 
 evinced in the outspokenness, and 
 honest denunciation of falsehood and 
 heresy that marks the first, and, 
 even more clearly, the short remain- 
 ing epistles of this inspired writer; 
 compare 2 John 10, 3 John 10. The 
 misconception of the character of 
 the Apostle is apparently of early 
 date, and perhaps stands in some 
 degree of connexion with his own 
 simple yet affecting notice of the 
 love and confidence vouchsafed to- 
 wards him by our Kedeemer during 
 
250 The Journey ings toward Jerusalem. 
 
 LECT. 
 
 VI. 
 
 ^ Luke ix. 
 57 * 
 
 Our Lord’s 
 arrival and 
 preaching 
 at Jerusa- 
 lem. 
 
 John vii. 
 II. 
 
 have had fire called down from heaven, but their 
 intemperate zeal is rebuked by their Lord, yea 
 and practically rebuked by a striking proof that 
 even now Samaria was not utterly faithless. One 
 at least, there seems to have been who was ready 
 to cast in his lot with that travel-worn company % 
 and to him it was answered in the words of our 
 text, and with a striking and pathetic appropriate- 
 ness, that though the creatures that His own 
 divine hands had made had their allotted places of 
 shelter and rest, Hhe Son of Man had not where 
 to lay His head.’ 
 
 The Lord soon reaches Jerusalem, where it 
 would seem He was partially expected^, and about 
 the middle of the feast enters the Temple, and 
 teaches in its now crowded courts. And that 
 teaching was not in vain. Though some of the 
 mere dwellers in J erusalem^ paused only to specu- 
 
 the Last Supper (John xiv. 2$). 
 Let us not forget, however, that he, 
 who in memory of this, was lovingly 
 called 6 iTTKTTrjOtos by the early 
 Church, was called by his own Mas- 
 ter the ‘ Son of Thunder.’ The 
 patristic explanation of this latter 
 title will be found in Suicer, Thesaur. 
 s. V. ^povTT], Vol. I. p. 7 1 2 sq., but 
 is not sufficiently distinctive. 
 
 It seems proper here to speak 
 with caution, as the present case and 
 that of the man who, when called by 
 our Lord, requested leave first to go 
 and bury his father are placed by St 
 Matthew in a totally different con- 
 nexion : see ch. xviii. 19 — 21. To 
 account for this is difficult, though 
 we can have no difficulty in believing 
 that it could be readily accounted 
 for if we knew cdl the circumstances. 
 It is not, for example, unreasonable 
 
 to suppose that the incident of the 
 self-offering follower might have 
 happened twice, and that St Mat- 
 thew, in accordance with his habit 
 of connecting together what was 
 similar (see Lect. i. p. 20 sq.), might 
 have associated with the first occui’- 
 rence of that incident, an incident 
 which in point of time really be- 
 longed to the second. 
 
 2 It is worthy of notice that St 
 John here places before us the views 
 and comments of a party that clearly 
 must be regarded as different from 
 the general dx^os (ver. 20) on the 
 one hand, and the more hostile 
 ’lovdaioc (ver. 15) on the other. We 
 have here the remarks of some of 
 the residents in the city. They 
 evidently are perfectly acquainted 
 with the general designs of the party 
 of the Sanhedrin, and are full of 
 
The Journeyings toward Jerusalem. 251 
 
 late on tlie policy of tlieir spiritual rulers in per- 
 
 mitting One whom they were seeking to kill now 
 
 to speak with such openness and freedom % the ** 
 effect on the collected multitude was clearly dif- 
 ferent. Many we are told believed on our Lord*": ^ ver. 31. 
 many saw in His miracles an evidence of a Messiah- 
 ship which it seemed now no longer possible either 
 to doubt or to deny^ The sequel, however, we'^ver. 31. 
 might easily have foreseen. An effort is at once 
 made by the party of the Sanhedrin to lay hands 
 on our Lord‘d, but is frustrated, perhaps partly, by ver. 32. 
 the multitude, and certainly also in great measure 
 by the convictions of the very men that were sent 
 to take Him\ The savage spirit of the Sanhedrin 
 is now, however, distinctly shown, and now is it 
 that for the first time publicly, though darkly, the 
 Lord speaks of that departure,- — of that ‘being 
 sought for and not found®/ on which He had^^er. 34. 
 already spoken twice before to His disciples with 
 such saddening explicitness. Yet He will not 
 leave those heart-touched multitudes that were 
 now hanging on His words. Yet again on the 
 last day of the festival^, the Lord preaches pub- ^ver. 37. 
 licly with a most solemn and appropriate reference 
 
 natural wonder that they should 
 have permitted this free speaking on 
 the part of One whom they had 
 resolved, and whom it was obviously 
 their interest to silence. The inci- 
 dental notice of the sort of half- 
 knowledge these 'lepocroXu/itrat had 
 acquired is in the highest degree 
 natural and characteristic : see Stier, 
 Disc, of Our Lord, Vol. v. p. 267. 
 
 ^ This transpires afterwards ; see 
 John vii. 45. It would seem that 
 when these vwripiTaL were sent forth 
 
 with orders to seize our Lord, it was 
 left to their discretion to watch for 
 a good opportunity and a reasonable 
 pretext. At the next session of the 
 Sanhedrin they make a report of 
 what they had done, or rather left 
 undone, and are exposed accordingly 
 to the scornful inquiries and prac- 
 tical censure of the council (ver. 47). 
 Further proceedings, it would seem, 
 are at present, if not arrested, yet 
 impeded by the question of Nico- 
 demus (ver. 51). 
 
LECT. 
 
 VI. 
 
 a Jolm vii. 
 4I- 
 
 ver. 51. 
 
 The wo- 
 man taken 
 in adul- 
 tery : pro- 
 bable place 
 of the inci- 
 dent in the 
 Gospel his- 
 tory. 
 
 252 The Journeyings toward Jerusalem. 
 
 to the living waters of the Spirit which should 
 flow forth when He was glorified’. Again a de- 
 sire is manifested by the party of the Sanhedrin 
 to lay hands on Him®; again, as it would seem, 
 a meeting of the Sanhedrin is held, and again 
 their proposals are encountered by a just opposi- 
 tion ; not however on this occasion by the tacit and 
 merely passive opposition of their reluctant satel- 
 lites, but by the open pleading of one of its most 
 important members, the timid yet faithful Nico- 
 demus^, — the only one among the rulers of the 
 Jews, who was found to urge the observance of 
 that law of Moses^, which its hypocritical guardians 
 were now seeking to pervert or to violate. 
 
 To this same period, if we conceive the narra- 
 tive in question to be written by St John, must be 
 assigned the memorable, and most certainly in- 
 
 1 There seems no suflBcient reason 
 for rejecting the generally received 
 opinion, that allusion is here made 
 to the custom of bringing water 
 from the well of Siloara and pouring 
 it on the altar, which appears to 
 have been observed on every day of 
 this Festival, — the eighth (according 
 to R. Judah in ‘Succah,’ iv. 9) also 
 included; see especially Lightfoot, 
 Hor. Hehr. in loc. Vol. ii. p. 632 
 (Roterod. 1686), and the good arti- 
 cle in Winer, RWB. 'Laubhiitten- 
 fest,’ Vol. II. p. 8. Whether this 
 ‘great day’ of the Festival is to be 
 regarded as the 7th or as the 8th is 
 a matter of some doubt. If it be 
 true, as urged by Winer, that the 
 opinion of Rabbi Judah above cited 
 is only that of an individual, and 
 that the prevailing practice was to 
 offer libations only on 7 days (‘ Suc- 
 cah,’ IV. 1), and if it be further 
 
 supposed that our Lord’s words 
 were called forth by the actual per- 
 formance of the rite, — then ‘the 
 great day ’ must be the 7th day. 
 As, however, it appears from the 
 written Law that the 8 th day was 
 regarded as a Sabbath (Lev. xxiii. 
 36; comp. Joseph. iii. 10. 4), 
 
 and as peculiar solemnities are spe- 
 cified in the oral law as celebrated 
 on that day (see Lightfoot, loc. cit.), 
 it seems more correct to regard the 
 8th as ‘ the great day ;’ and if it be 
 conceded that there was no libation 
 on that day, to suppose our Lord’s 
 words were called forth, not by the 
 act itself, but by a remembrance of 
 the custom observed on the preced- 
 ing days: see Meyer, in loc. p. 239 
 (ed. 3) and the elaborate comments 
 of Liicke, Vol. ii. p. 223 sq. (ed. 3). 
 
 ^ Compare Lect. ill, p. 125, note 
 3, ad fin. 
 
The Journeying s toward Jerusalem, 253 
 
 spired history of the woman taken in adultery; 
 
 but as I venture to entertain, somewhat decidedly, 
 
 the opinion that it was not written by that Evan- 
 gelist^, and that it does not in any way blend 
 naturally with the present portion of the Re- 
 deemer’s history, I will not here pause on it, but 
 will only notice in passing the great plausibility 
 and historical fitness with which three or four of 
 the cursive manuscripts insert it at the end of the 
 twenty-first chapter of St Luke'^ 
 
 But the Lord still lingers at J erusalem in Further 
 spite of the vengeful storm that was fast gathering a^dpJ-efch- 
 round Him. ..To the first Sabbath after the festi- 
 val we must apparently^ assign the discourse on 
 
 1 The limits and general character 
 of these notes wholly preclude our 
 attempting to enter upon a formal 
 discussion of this difficult question. 
 It may be briefly observed, however, 
 that the opinion expressed in the 
 text rests on the following consi- 
 deration ; (i) The absence of the 
 passage from — (a) three out of the 
 four first class MSS. and the valu- 
 able MS. marked L,^ — ( 5 ) several 
 ancient versions, among which are 
 some early Latin versions of great 
 importance, and apparently the 
 Peshito - S30-iac, — (c) several early 
 and important patristic writers ; Ori- 
 gen, Tertullian, Cyprian, and Chry- 
 sostom being of the number : (2) 
 The striking number of variations of 
 reading among the documents that 
 retain the passage, there being not 
 less than 80 variations of reading 
 in 183 words: (3) The almost equally 
 striking difierence of style, both in 
 the connecting particles and other- 
 words, from that of St J ohn, and the 
 apparent similarity in style to that 
 of St Luke. From these reasons. 
 
 external and internal, we seem jus- 
 tified in removing the passage 
 the place it now occupies in the 
 Received Text, though there appears 
 every reason for believing it a por- 
 tion of the Gospel history. It can- 
 not be too strongly impressed on 
 the general reader that no reasonable 
 critic throws doubt on the incident, 
 but only on its present place in 
 the sacred narrative. For critical 
 details see the new (7th) edition of 
 Tischendorf’s Greek Test. Vol. i. p. 
 602, and Meyer, Komment. uh. Joh. 
 p. 247 (ed. 3). 
 
 2 These manuscripts are numbered 
 13, 69, 124, 346; one of these {69) 
 being the well-known Codex Leices- 
 trensis, and the other three MSS. of 
 the Alexandrian family. It cannot 
 apparently be asserted that the pas- 
 sage exactly fits on after Luke xxi. 
 38, but it cei-tainly does seem rightly 
 attached to that chapter generally, 
 and properly to find a place among 
 the incidents there related : see more 
 in Lect. vii. 
 
 3 It may be doubted whether we 
 
LECT. 
 
 VI. 
 
 '* John viii. 
 12 — 20 . 
 
 ^ ver. 25 
 sq. 
 
 ^ ver. 30. 
 
 <1 ver. 33. 
 e ver. 39. 
 
 254 The Journeyings toward Jerusalem. 
 
 His own and His Father’s testimony^, and the 
 striking declarations of His mission from Him 
 that was true^, and of His union with the eternal 
 Father^ — declarations, which we know so wrought 
 upon our Lord’s very opponents that many of 
 them^, as St John tells us, believed on Him as 
 He thus spake unto them^, though alas ! as the se- 
 quel seems to show, that belief was soon exchanged 
 for Captious‘S questioning, and at last even for the 
 frightful violences of blinded religious zeaP. To 
 this same Sabbath we must certainly assign the 
 performance of the deeply interesting miracle of 
 giving sight to the beggar^ who had grown up 
 
 are to assign the discourses recorded 
 by St John in ch. viii. to the last 
 day of the feast of Tabernacles 
 (John vii. 37), or to the Sabbath on 
 which the blind man was healed 
 (John X. 14). The latter appears to 
 be the more probable connexion. 
 The beginning of chap. ix. seems 
 closely linked with the concluding 
 verse of chap. viii. — a chapter which 
 really commences with ver. 12, and 
 contains the record of a series of 
 apparently continuous discourses ; 
 comp. Origen, in Joann, xix. 2, 
 Vol. IV. p. 292 (ed. Bened.). Be- 
 tween this chapter and the close of 
 chap. vii. there seems a break, which 
 in the Received Text is filled up 
 with the narrative of the woman 
 taken in adultery. On the con- 
 nexion of this portion, see Wieseler, 
 CliTon. Synops. p. 329, and compare 
 the remarks of Meyer, Komment. iib. 
 Joh. p. 289 sq. (ed. 3), — who, how- 
 ever, does not seem correct in sepa- 
 rating John viii. 21 sq. from what 
 precedes, and in assigning the dis- 
 course to a following day. 
 
 ^ It is worthy of notice that the 
 
 Evangelist seems desh’ous that it 
 should be clearly observed that the 
 iroWol who believed (John viii. 30) 
 belonged to the hostile party, the 
 TouSatot (see p. 115, note i), as he 
 specially adds that the address be- 
 ginning ch. viii. 31 was directed 
 Trpos Tovs wewicrTevKOTas ai)T(p Tou- 
 baiovs. On the whole discourse and 
 the melancholy fluctuations in the 
 minds of these sadly imperfect be- 
 lievers, see the exceedingly good 
 comments of Stier, Disc, of Our Lord, 
 Vol. IV. p. 349 sq. (Clark). 
 
 2 See John ix. 8, where the true 
 reading seems undoubtedly, not 6'rt 
 TV<p\bs yv {Rec.), but 6tl Trpoaal- 
 rrjs yv, which has the support of 
 the four principal MSS., the Syriac, 
 Latin, Coptic, and other ancient 
 versions, and is rightly adopted by 
 most recent editors. On the miracle 
 itself, — the characteristics of which 
 are, our Lord’s being pleased to im- 
 part His healing powers by an out- 
 ward medium (ver 5), a deferred 
 (comp. Mark viii. 23) or rather sus- 
 pended cure, and its divinely ordered 
 dependence on the sufferer’s perform- 
 
The Journcyings toward Jerusalem. 255 
 
 to manliood in blindness^, and who believed in, 
 yea and worshipped as the Son of God^ Him 
 by whose merciful hands he received his sight*. 
 With the sublime discourse on the Good Shepherd*^, 
 — the Good Shepherd that even now, with stones 
 every moment ready to be cast upon Him^^, was 
 giving His very life for His sheep, the memorable 
 occurrences on this eventful Sabbath and during 
 our Lord’s present stay in Jerusalem appear to 
 have come to their close. At no preceding festi- 
 val had our Lord made a deeper impression on the 
 minds of those whom He had vouchsafed to ad- 
 dress. At no former visit was such an effect 
 produced on the feelings, not only of the more 
 friendly multitudes® but even of open or concealed 
 foes^, — and that too, as far as we can infer from 
 the inspired narrative, not so much by mighty 
 
 LECT. 
 
 VI. 
 
 ** John ix. 
 
 I sq. 
 
 *• ver. 38. 
 c ch. X. r 
 sq. 
 
 comp. ch. 
 viii. 59. 
 
 ® ch. vii. 
 
 31, 40. 
 
 ^ comp. ch. 
 vii. 15. 
 
 ance of a prescribed act (2 Kings v. 
 10), — see the comments of Gyril 
 Alex, and Chrysostom, in loc., Au- 
 gust. in Joann. Tractat. xliv,, Bp 
 Hall, Contemjpl. iv. 8, and Trench, 
 Notes on the Miracles, p. 288. 
 
 ^ Some modern expositors endea- 
 vour to dilute the nature of the 
 blind man’s belief in our Lord as 
 *the Sou of God.’ Why, however, 
 are we to say that this title must 
 have had a theocratic (Meyer) rather 
 than a Christian meaning to the 
 mind of the recent sufferer, when it 
 is so possible, and even so probable 
 from his conduct before the Phari- 
 sees, that He who had given light 
 to his bodily eye had vouchsafed a 
 special illuminating influence (see 
 Euthym. in loc.) to the inner eye of 
 the mind? What else are we to 
 understand from his prompt act of 
 accepted adoration than a recogni- 
 
 tion of the divine nature of Him 
 before whom he was standing ? As 
 Augustine well says, ‘ Agnoscit eum 
 non filium hominis tantum, quod 
 ante crediderat, sed jam filium Dei 
 qui carnem susceperat.’ In Joann. 
 Tractat. xliv. 15, Vol. iii. p. 1718 
 (ed. Migne). On the meaning as- 
 cribed to the title ‘Son of God,’ 
 compare Lect. iii. p. 119, note 2, 
 Lect. V. p. 210, note i. 
 
 2 Some expositors place an inter- 
 val of one or more days after John 
 ix. 34, and before John x. i (see 
 Stier, Disc, of Oar Lord, Vol. v. 
 pp. 445, 448), and so extend the 
 events over a greater space of time. 
 This may be so ; but the above 
 assumption, that all took place on 
 the Sabbath mentioned ch. ix. 14, 
 seems on the whole rather more in 
 accordance with the general tenor of 
 the text. 
 
LECT. 
 
 VI. 
 
 ^ Contrast 
 John ii. 23. 
 
 •• ch. vii. 
 25 - 
 
 ver. 46. 
 *' ch. viii. 
 
 30. 
 
 Depar- 
 ture from 
 Jerusalem 
 and mis- 
 sion of the 
 Seventy. 
 
 ® Luke X. 
 
 I. 
 
 256 The Journey ings toward Jerusalem. 
 
 works as by powerful and persuasive teaching. 
 All seem alike to have felt, and in some degree 
 alike to have yielded to the influence of the 
 gracious words that proceeded from the E-edeemer’s 
 mouth. The impression was general; the testi- 
 mony all but unanimous. The mixed multitude, 
 the dwellers at Jerusalem^, the officials of the 
 Temple‘S, and to some extent even the hostile 
 Jewish party** bore witness to the more than 
 mortal power of the teaching of Jesus of Na- 
 zareth. 
 
 Whither our Lord now went is not specified, 
 and must remain only a matter of conjecture. It 
 may be remarked, however, that the silence of 
 St John, who commonly indicates whenever our 
 Lord’s ministry was transferred from J udsea, seems 
 to give us very good grounds for supposing that 
 our Lord, as once before after His first passover, 
 so now again, remained still within the frontier 
 of J udsea, and again partially resumed a ministry 
 there which had been suspended in the December 
 of the preceding year. If this be so, it is to this 
 country, and apparently also to this period^ that 
 we must refer the sending forth of the seventy 
 disciples®, — those seventy whose very number 
 hinted at the future destination of the Gospel for 
 the wide world and the seventy nations into which 
 the Jews divided it^, even as the mission of the 
 
 ^ The exact period of the mission however, the journey through Sa- 
 of the Seventy has been much de- maria was apparently in haste, and 
 bated by harmonists of this portion as the whole of Luke x, seems to 
 of Scripture. Wieseler fixes it as refer to events which succeeded that 
 during the journey throi:gh Samaria, journey (comp. De Wette, in loc.) 
 and finds a special appropriateness the place here assigned to the mis- 
 in the choice of that country : see sion is perhaps more probable. 
 
 Chron. Synops. p. 326, note. As, ^ See Eisenmenger, Entd. Jn- 
 
The Joimieyings toward Jerusalem, 257 
 
 twelve Apostles not obscurely hinted at the first 
 
 offer of the Gospel to the now merged twelve 
 
 tribes of God’s own peculiar people. 
 
 During this same period, — this interval be- Furtherin- 
 tween the feast of Tabernacles and the feast of jSar^- 
 the Dedication, — we may also with considerable 
 probability place the visit of our Lord to Martha 
 • and Mary at Bethany when Martha was so cum- a Luke x. 
 bered with much serving; and to this same in- 
 terval may we assign that instructive series 
 of discourses' which extend from the middle of 
 the tenth to the middle of the thirteenth chapter 
 of St Luke, the few incidents connecting which 
 seem admirably to agree with the arrangement 
 that would refer them to J udaea and to this parti- 
 cular period of our Lord’s ministry 2 . Though 
 
 denthum, Vol. ii. p. 736 sq., and 
 especially the interesting Rabbinical 
 citations in Lightfoot {Hor. Ilehr. 
 in Joann, vii. 37), which we may 
 further use as indirectly confirming 
 our present chronological arrange- 
 ment. If the custom, alluded to in 
 those passages, of offering sacrifices 
 at the feast of Tabernacles for the 
 70 nations of the heathen world was 
 as old as the time of our Saviour, — 
 and this there seems no reason to 
 doubt, — it does not seem wholly 
 fanciful to connect this mission of 
 70 men, whose destination, though 
 not defined, does not at any rate 
 appear to have had any specified 
 limits assigned to it (contrast Matth. 
 X. 5), with a period shortly succeed- 
 ing a festival where the needs of the 
 heathen world were not forgotten 
 even by the J ews. 
 
 1 This interesting portion of St 
 Luke’s Gospel opens with the para- 
 ble of the Good Samaritan (ch. x. 
 
 25 sq.) and closes with the miracle 
 performed on the woman bowed by 
 a spirit of infirmity (ch. xiii. 10 — 17). 
 The two striking parables of the 
 Rich Fool (ch. x. 16 sq.) and the 
 Barren Fig-tree (ch. xiii. 6 sq.) be- 
 long to this period, and present the 
 characteristics of so many of the 
 parables recorded by St Luke, viz. 
 that of springing from or being sug- 
 gested by some preceding event ; see 
 Da Costa, The Four Witnesses, p. 
 211 sq. 
 
 2 The healing of the two blind 
 men (Matth. ix. 27 sq.) is inserted 
 by Tischendorf {Synojps. Evang. p. 
 xxxix.) in the present portion of the 
 narrative on the ground that accord- 
 ing to St Matthew it stands in close 
 connexion with the cure of a deaf 
 and dumb demoniac (ver. 32 sq.), 
 which again, according to Luke xi. 
 14 sq., must belong to the present 
 period of the history. On the whole, 
 however, it seems better to conceive 
 
 17 
 
 E. H. L. 
 
. 258 The Journeyings toward Jerusalem. 
 
 devoid of all notices of place ^ whicli might enable 
 
 us to give some circumstantial touches to the few 
 
 interspersed incidents, or sketch them out in a 
 connected narrative, they still serve to show us 
 very clearly, — on the one hand, that the effect 
 produced by our Lord’s j^resent ministry in J udsea 
 was very great, that His hearers were now un- 
 »Lukexii. usually numerous^, and showed as earnest a de- 
 ck. xi. 29 . sire to hear the words of Life as was ever shown 
 even in Galilee ; and on the other hand, that the 
 enmity of the Pharisees and hierarchical party 
 bch. xi. 53was deepening in its implacability^, — and that 
 more especially, as our Lord did not now repress 
 ‘=seever. His solemn and open denunciations of the hypo- 
 crisy and bloodthirsty spirit of these miserable 
 and blinded men.... The last incident of the period 
 in question, the cure on a Sabbath-day of a woman 
 weakened and bowed down by demoniacal influ- 
 ence^, brings both parties very clearly before us. 
 
 that the incident of curing a deaf 
 and dumb demoniac and the blas- 
 phemy it evoked (Matth. ix. 34, 
 Luke xi. 15) happened twice, than 
 to detach Matth. ix. 27 sq. so far 
 from the period to which it certainly 
 seems to belong. The blasphemous 
 comment might well have been first 
 made by the Pharisees (Matth. ix. 
 34), and then afterwards have been 
 imitated and reiterated by others; 
 compare Luke xi. 15, where observe 
 that the speakers are not defined. 
 
 ^ Compare ch. x. 38,' where even 
 the well-known Bethany [Greswell’s 
 arguments {Dissert, xxxii.) against 
 this identification seem wholly in- 
 valid] is no more nearly defined than 
 as a Kdl:[xri ns. Compare also ch. xi. 
 i, iv T(p elvai ev roTry nvij xiii. 10, 
 
 iv fic^ tQu awayuyQv, and see above, 
 p. 241, note I. 
 
 ^ This miracle, it may be observed, 
 also took place in a synagogue (Luke 
 xiii. 10), and in this respect was the 
 counterpart in J udsea of the similar 
 healings on the Sabbath in the syna- 
 gogue at Capernaum (Mark i. 21 sq., 
 Luke iv. 31 sq. ; and again, Matth. 
 xii. 9 sq., Mark iii. i sq., Luke vi. 
 6 sq.). On the first occasion we 
 find no expression of complaint or 
 indignation ; on the second occasion, 
 evil thoughts are at work but no 
 demonstration is made; here how- 
 ever the ruler of the synagogue 
 himself interposes and addresses the 
 multitude in terms specially intended 
 to reflect censure on our Lord (ver. 
 14). On the miracle itself, the pecu- 
 
The Journeyings toward Jerusalem. 259 
 
 the adversaries and their shamed silence ^ and the 
 people, that, as the Evangelist tells us, ' rejoiced 
 for all the glorious things^’ that were done by their 17. 
 great Healer. ver. 17. 
 
 At the end of this two-month ministry in our Lord’s 
 J udsea, and, as computation seems to warrant our risaiemlit' 
 saying, about the 20th of December h St John 
 distinctly specifies that our Lord was present intion. 
 Jerusalem at the annual festival which comme- 
 morated the purification and re-dedication of the 
 Temple under Judas Maccabeus ^ Though threat- 
 ened by every form of danger, the Good Shepherd 
 yet went once again, as His own divine words 
 seem partially to suggest, to tend His sheep, — the 
 sheep which heard His voice and had been given 
 to Him by that eternal Father with whom He 
 
 liar nature of which was the removal 
 of a contraction of the body, pro- 
 duced by demoniacal influence (ver. 
 16), that had continued as long as 
 18 years, — see Augustine, Serm. cx. 
 Vol. V. p. 638 sq. (ed. Migne), 
 Hook, Serin, on the Miracles, Vol. 
 II. p. 102, and Trench, Notes on the 
 Mirojcles, p. 324. 
 
 ^ The feast of Dedication regu- 
 larly commenced on the 25*^of Chis- 
 lev. This date in the year we are 
 now considering (a.u. C. 782) will 
 coincide, according to the tables of 
 Wurm and Wieseler, with Tuesday, 
 December 20; see Chron. Synods. 
 p. 484, or Tischendorf, Synops. 
 Evang. p. lii. 
 
 2 This festival, more fully speci- 
 fied in the Books of Maccabees as 
 6 eyKaivLCfibs roO dvaiaarypiov (1 
 Macc. iv. 56, 59), 6 Kadapuxiib^ roO 
 mov (2 Macc. x. 5), and further dis- 
 tinguished by the name <f)Qra, in 
 consequence, according to Josephus 
 
 {Antiq. Xll. 7. 7), of unlooked-for 
 deliverance, was instituted by Judas 
 Maccabeus after his victories over 
 the generals of Antiochus Epiphanes, 
 and designed to commemorate the 
 purification of the temple after its 
 pollution by that frantic and cruel 
 man (i Macc. i. 20, Joseph. Antiq. 
 XII. 5. 4). It lasted 8 days, and 
 appears to have been a time of great 
 festivity and rejoicing; see Otho, 
 Lex. Rahhin. p. 238 sq., and Light- 
 foot, Hor. Ilehr. in Joann, x. 22, 
 where quotations are given from the 
 Mishna which seem to show that 
 the practice of illuminating the city 
 during the festival, and perhaps also 
 the title (pdra, was derived from 
 a legendary account of a miracu- 
 lous multiplication of pure oil for 
 lighting the sacred lamps, which oc- 
 curred at the first celebration of 
 the festival; see however Winer, 
 RWB. Art. ' Kirch weihfest,’ Vol. i. 
 p. 659. 
 
 17 — 2 
 
LECT. 
 
 VI. 
 
 “ John X, 
 30 - 
 
 •> Matt, 
 xvi. 20. 
 
 ® John X, 
 24, 25. 
 
 2G0 The Journeyings toward Jerusalem. 
 
 now solemnly and explicitly declared Himself 
 to be one"". He who but a few months before 
 in the remote uplands of Galilee had commanded 
 His disciples not to divulge His Messiahship^ 
 now in Solomon’s porch ^ and in the face of bitter 
 foes proclaims His divinity : He who even now 
 vouchsafed not fully to answer the question of 
 the excited people whether He were the Christ 
 or no^, nevertheless avows before all men that 
 He is the Son of God^ That title which to the 
 misbelieving Jew would have been but the symbol 
 of earthly and carnal hope or the watchword of 
 sedition, He merges in the higher designation that 
 
 and Godhead^...We can 
 
 ^ On this title, which here, as in 
 other places, has been explained away 
 by many recent writers, see the fol- 
 lowing note, and compare above, 
 p. 1 19, note 2, and p. 210, note i. 
 Some good comments on this parti- 
 cular passage will be found in Wil- 
 son, Illustr. of the N. T. ch. il. p. 
 37 sq., and a defence of the true 
 meaning of the title in opposition to 
 Domer, in Stier, Disc, of Our Lord, 
 Vol. V. p. 496 sq. 
 
 ^ The popular assumption that 
 the term ‘ Son of God ’ was regarded 
 by the J ews in the time of our Lord 
 as one of the appropriate titles of 
 the Messiah, is carefully investigated 
 by Wilson in the work referred to 
 above (chap. iv. p. 56 sq.), and the 
 conclusion arrived at is stated as 
 follows : ‘With no direct testimony 
 whatever on one side, and with the 
 testimony of Origen (contr. Cels. i. 
 p. 38, ed. Spencer), supported by a 
 strong body of probable evidence 
 deduced from the New Testament, 
 on the other, it seems necessary to 
 conclude that custom had not appro- 
 
 betokened His eternity 
 
 ^ The comment, 
 
 22), which St John prefixes to his 
 notice of the exact locality in which 
 our Lord then was, seems designed 
 to remind the reader why He was 
 pleased to select this covered place 
 (‘ut captaret calorem,’ Lightfoot) 
 rather than the open courts in which, 
 it would seem. He more usually 
 taught the multitudes ; comp. Winer, 
 RWB., Art. ‘Tempel,’ Vol. ii. p. 
 586. The porch or cloister in ques- 
 tion, we learn from Josephus {Antiq. 
 XX. 9. 7), was on the east side of 
 the Temple, — hence also known by 
 the name of the <rroa avaToXiKr }, — 
 and appears to have been a veritable 
 portion of the ancient temple of 
 Solomon, which either wholly or in 
 part escaped when the rest of the 
 building was burnt by Nebuchad- 
 nezzar 2 Kings XXV. 9 (Joseph. 
 Antiq. x. 8. 5). It formed one, and 
 that apparently the most splendid of 
 the noble cloisters which surrounded 
 the temple- enclosure: see Lightfoot, 
 Descr. Templi, cap. 8, Vol. i. p. 565 
 (Roterod. 1686). 
 
The Journey ings toward Jerusalem. 2G1 
 
 perhaps scarcely wonder at what followed. If nine 
 
 months before, at the feast of Purim, the same 
 
 bitter and prejudiced men had sought to kill our 
 Lord for claiming to be the Son of God^ ; if again John v. 
 at the recent feast of Tabernacles the declaration 
 of an existence before Abraham had made them 
 snatch up stones to cast at Him^, it could scarcely ch. vm. 
 be otherwise now, when the eternal Son was 
 claiming a oneness of essence with the eternal' 
 
 Father ^ Savage hands soon take up the stones ch. x. 30. 
 that lay around those ancient cloisters^: wild 
 voices charge the Holy One with blasphemy. 
 
 With blasphemy ! when the very language of 
 Scripture‘S proved that Shiloh was only laying J Psalm 
 claim to prerogatives and titles that were verily 
 His own®. Blasphemy! when the very works to^Joimx. 
 which our Lord appealed were living proofs that 
 He was in the Father, and the Father in Him^ver. 38. 
 But the hearts of those wretched men were hard- 
 ened, and their ears could not hear. Fain would 
 they have used the stones they were now holding 
 in their hands^, fain would they have seized on 
 
 priated this title, to the Messiah of 
 the Jews, near the time of Jesus 
 Christ.’ lllustr. of N. T. p. 74. 
 
 ^ The idle question, how stones 
 would be found in such a locality, 
 may be most easily disposed of by 
 observing, not only that general 
 repairs and restoration in and about 
 the temple were going on to a con- 
 siderable extent until after the time 
 of our Lord (Joseph. Antiq. xx. 9. 
 7 ; comp. Lightfoot, Eor. Hehr.Yol. 
 II. p. 638), but that these very clois- 
 ters had not improbably suffered 
 greatly in the fire during the revolt 
 against Sabinus {Antiq. XVII. 10. 2), 
 
 and might not even yet have been 
 completely restored. At any rate a 
 proposal was made to rebuild them 
 in the time of Agrippa {Antiq, x. 9. 
 7). For an account of stones being 
 freely used in an uproar in the 
 temple-courts, see Antiq. xvil. 9. 3. 
 
 2 We seem justified in pressing 
 the present tense (Sta iroiov avrCov 
 ’ipyov fi€ Xidd^ere ; John x. 32): 
 the Jews had taken up stones, and 
 were standing ready to carry out 
 their blinded impiety ; compare 
 Winer, Gram. § 40. 2, p. 237 
 (ed. 6). Stier {Disc, of Our Lord, 
 Vol. V. p. 494, Clark), contrasts the 
 
LECT. 
 
 VI. 
 
 ^ John X. 
 40. 
 
 ^ ver. 41. 
 
 ® Luke 
 xiii. 22. 
 
 The Lord’s 
 message to 
 Herod, and 
 prepara- 
 tion to 
 leave 
 Persea. 
 
 2G2 The 'Journeyings toward Jerusalem, 
 
 tlieir Kedeemer, and carried out, even where they 
 were, their lawless and impious designs, when 
 that Holy One at once left both the temple and 
 the city, and withdrew to those secluded districts 
 across the Jordan'^, where the Baptist had com- 
 menced his ministry \ There the Lord found 
 both faith and reception^, and there, as it would 
 seem. He vouchsafed to abide until the com- 
 mencement of His second and subsequent journey‘d 
 to Bethany and to the neighbourhood of Jeru- 
 salem. 
 
 But even in those secluded districts hypocrisy 
 and malice soon found an opportunity for co-ope- 
 ration. After our Lord had now, as it would seem, 
 commenced His journey towards Jerusalem, and 
 as His steps were leading Him perhaps through 
 one of the Persean villages or towns in the neigh- 
 bourhood of His former abode Pharisees come 
 
 i^dcTTaaau \l6ovs in the present case 
 with the Tjpav \l6ovs in ch. viii. 59, 
 urging that the former word marks 
 a more deliberate rolling up of larger 
 stones, the latter a more hasty and 
 impetuous snatching up of any stones 
 that chanced to lie in their way. 
 The explanation of '^pau may pos- 
 sibly be correct, but the e^dffTaaav 
 seems rather to imply, what the con- 
 text seems to confirm, both the act 
 of taking up the stones and also 
 that of holding them in their hands, 
 so as to be ready for use. 
 
 ^ For a rough estimate both of 
 the time (4 or 5 weeks) which our 
 Lord may be supposed to have now 
 spent in Peraea, and of the date of 
 the commencement of the second 
 journey, see above, p. 245, note r. 
 The place we may observe is parti- 
 cularly specified as ‘where John at 
 
 first baptized’ (John x. 40), i.e. 
 Bethabara or (according to the cor- 
 rect reading) Bethany, which would 
 seem to have been situated not very 
 far from the ford over the Jordan in 
 the neighbourhood of Jericho; see 
 above, Lect. ill. p. 106, note 3. 
 Here and in the adjoining districts 
 of Persea our Lord remained till the 
 second journey toward Jerusalem, 
 which at first might have assumed 
 the character of a partial missionary 
 circuit, with the Holy City as its 
 ultimate goal (see the following note), 
 and which at first might have been 
 leisurely, but which afterwards, as 
 the sequel shows, was speedy. 
 
 ^ It would seem, as has been sug- 
 gested in the preceding note, that 
 our Lord’s present journey was not 
 at first direct. St Luke’s very words 
 diddcKtor Kcd ropdav Toco^pceyos els 
 
The Journey ings toward Jerusalem. 2G3 
 
 with plausible words to expedite His departure, 
 and to rid themselves of One, whose successful - 
 preaching and teaching they had probably already 
 observed with anxiety and hatred. They affect to 
 give Him friendly warning; they urge Him to 
 depart, — because Herod was seeking to kill Him^. ^ 
 Because Herod was seeking to kill Him ! O ‘ 
 double-sided stratagem! O cunning co-operation 
 of evil men ! ’Twas Herod who was wishing Him 
 to depart; Twas Pharisees who were wishing to 
 kill Him. That weak, wicked and selfish Tetrarch‘ 
 was probably anxious to get out of his territory 
 One whose fame was daily spreading, and whom 
 he knew not whether to honour or to persecute. 
 He was embarrassed, but soon both sought and 
 found useful tools in the Pharisees^, who were 
 only too ready to urge our Lord to leave a land 
 where His life was comparatively safe, for one 
 where as they well knew it was now in extremest 
 jeopardy. But the divine Header of the heart, as 
 His message to Herod seems to prove, and His 
 
 ^lepovaaXiQln (ch. xiii. 22) appear al- 
 most studiously both to mark a more 
 deliberate progress and to point to 
 Jerusalem, not as the immediate 
 destination, but as the place toward 
 which the journey was tending; see 
 Wieseler, Chron. Synops. p. 321. 
 
 1 See Lect. V. p. 215, note 2. 
 
 2 The above explanation is the 
 only one which appears to satisfy 
 the context and the plain meaning 
 of the terms used. Our Lord sees 
 through the stratagem, and sends a 
 message to Herod, which' in the pe- 
 culiar term used {rp dXcuTre/ct Taijrri, 
 Luke xiii. 32) implies that the Te- 
 trarch’s craftiness had not escaped 
 notice, and in the distinct specifica- 
 
 tions of time {(xryxepov Kal a^piov 
 Kal ry TpiTrj) seems to imply not 
 mere general and imdefined periods, 
 but literal and actual days (see 
 Meyer and Alford, in Joe.), two of 
 which would be spent in the terri- 
 tory of the evil man to whom the 
 message was sent, and devoted to 
 miraculous works of mercy. That 
 our Lord really designed the message 
 not for Herod but for the Pharisees 
 (Stier, Disc, of Our Lord, Vol. IV. 
 p. 61, Clark; comp, also Cyril Alex. 
 in loc,, and the Scholiast in Cramer, 
 Oaten. Vol. ii. p. no), seems highly 
 improbable, and contrary to the plain 
 tenor of very simple and very ex- 
 plicit words. 
 
 LECT. 
 
 VI. 
 
 Luke xiii. 
 
2G4 The Journeyings toward Jerusalem. 
 
 mournful address to Jerusalem^, which immedi- 
 
 ately follows, serves indirectly to confirm, saw in 
 
 an instant through that combination of cunning 
 and malevolence. Works of mercy were yet to be 
 done, miraculous cures were to be vouchsafed to- 
 day and to-morrow even in the borders of that 
 wily rulers province; on the third was to begin 
 the journey, that though recommenced from 
 ‘‘Johnxi. Ephraim^, was the last made actually to Jeru- 
 salem, — that journey that closed with Golgotha 
 and its perfected sacrificed 
 
 Probable Whether the difficult words which have just 
 
 events dur- 
 ing the last 
 
 Uvo days j position which this address 
 
 in Persea. ^ 
 
 to J erusalem occupies in St Luke s 
 
 Gospel (ch. xiii. 34) as compared 
 with that in St Matthew’s Gospel 
 (see ch. xxiii. 37 sq.), and the inter- 
 pretation which is to be given to 
 the words, are points which have 
 been much discussed. With regard 
 to the first, the natural coherence 
 with what precedes wholly precludes 
 our believing that St Luke has mis- 
 placed the words. Nearly as much 
 may be urged for the position of the 
 words in St Matthew. It appears 
 then not unreasonable to suppose 
 that the words were uttered on two 
 different occasions, — a supposition 
 further supported by some slight 
 diversities of language in the two 
 places : see Alford on LuTce xiii. 34. 
 
 With regard to the second point, 
 while it seems diflEicult to believe 
 that the words have no reference to 
 the time when the very terms here 
 specified were actually used (see 
 Mark xi. 9), it seems equally diffi- 
 cult to believe that their meaning 
 was then exhausted. We may thus, 
 perhaps with some reason, believe 
 with modern chronologers (comp. 
 
 Wieseler, Chron. Synops. p. 322) 
 that the words had a first and per- 
 haps immediate reference to the 
 Triumphal Entry, and with the an- 
 cient writers (Theophylact, al.) that 
 they had a further reference to the 
 Lord’s second Advent. 
 
 ^ The meaning and reference of 
 TeXcLov/xat (Luke xiii. 32) is perhaps 
 slightly doubtful. That it is a pre- 
 sent passive (Syr., Vulg.), not a 
 pres, middle (Meyer), and that the 
 meaning is‘consummor’(Syr., Vulg.), 
 seems clearly to follow from the 
 regular usage of the verb in the N. 
 Test. (comp. esp. Phil. iii. 12) ; and 
 that the reference is to an action 
 soon and certainly (Winer, Gr. § 40. 
 2) to be commenced, and also to be 
 continued, seems a just inference 
 from the tense. Combining these 
 observations we may perhaps rightly 
 refer it as above to our Lord’s per- 
 fected sacrifice (Hhe passion upon 
 the cross for the salvation of the 
 world,’ Cyr. Alex.), which was con- 
 summated in Golgotha, but the on- 
 ward course to which was commenced 
 when our Lord left the borders of 
 Persea. 
 
The Journeyings toward Jerusalem. 265 
 
 been j)araplirased apply definitely to the period of 
 the history now before us, whether they are 
 merely proverbial, or whether they involve a 
 special note of time, cannot confidently be de- 
 cided. The latter, as we have already implied, 
 seems the more natural view, and is most in 
 accordance with the precise nature of the inspired 
 language, — but more than this cannot be posi- 
 tively asserted. One thing seems perfectly clear, 
 that in the succeeding portion of St Luke’s 
 Gospel there is nothing which is opposed to such 
 a view, and that in St John’s Gospel, as we shall 
 hereafter see^ there is something in its favour. 
 That our Lord preached and performed miracles^ 
 during the brief remainder of His stay in Persea, 
 can scarcely be doubted. That He healed a man 
 afflicted with dropsy"* at the house of a leader of 
 the Pharisees^, where He was invited, as it would 
 seem, only to be watched, and uttered there the 
 appropriate parable of the Great Supper^, — that 
 publicans^ and sinners crowded round Him^*, — 
 
 1 See below, p. 267, 268. 
 
 ^ The prominent declaration in 
 our Lord’s message to Herod is that 
 there will still be a continuance of 
 miraculous works of mercy ‘to-day 
 and to-morrow.’ Of these St Luke 
 only mentions the healing of a man 
 afflicted with dropsy ; but as we may 
 observe that in this portion of his 
 Gospel he was clearly moved rather 
 to record the teaching of our Lord 
 than to specify His mighty works, 
 we cannot fairly press the omission 
 of other miracles that might have 
 taken place on these concluding 
 days. 
 
 ^ On this miracle, which forms 
 one of the seven performed on the 
 
 Sabbath (see above, p. 176, note 2) 
 compare some comments by Anselm, 
 Horn. X. p. 180 (Paris, 1675), a few 
 remarks by Stier, Disc, of Owr Lord, 
 Vol. IV. p. 67 (Clark), and Trench, 
 Notes on the Miracles, p. 329. The 
 miracle was performed at the house 
 of an apxejv tQv (Luke 
 
 xiv. i), — a general title, as it would 
 seem, implying some leadership or 
 pre-eminence in the sect ; see Meyer, 
 in loc. 
 
 ^ The peculiar reference which St 
 Luke here makes to ‘all the pub- 
 licans ’ (warTes ol reXwvat, Luke xv. 
 i) appears to deserve attention as 
 something more than a merely ge- 
 neral or ‘popularly hyperbolical’ 
 
 LECT. 
 
 VI. 
 
 Luke 
 :iv. I. 
 
 ver. 16. 
 Luke XV. 
 
LECT. 
 
 VI. 
 
 “ Luke XV. 
 
 4 - 
 
 ver. 8. 
 ver. I r . 
 ch. xvi. 
 14. 
 
 ^ ver, I. 
 
 ^ ver. 19. 
 
 K cli. xiii. 
 3 ^; 33 - 
 
 2GG The Journeijings toward Jerusalem, 
 
 and that when Scribes and Pharisees murmured 
 thereat, He uttered the parables of the Lost Sheep®, 
 the Lost Coin^, the Prodigal Son^, and subsequent- 
 ly, to His disciples though in the hearing of the 
 Pharisees’^, the parables of the Unjust Steward®, 
 and of Lazarus^ and the Pich Man^, seems almost 
 certain from the place which these discourses 
 occupy in the present portion of St Luke’s narra- 
 tive. That all this might have been done in the 
 two days, the Ho-day and to-morrow’ which our 
 Lord twice ^ so distinctly specifies, and that on 
 the third He might have crossed the Jordan and 
 commenced a journey, which though, as we have 
 already observed, not the last to Judaea was not- 
 
 ( Meyer) form of expression. If our 
 Lord was now near one of the fords 
 of the Jordan and not far from 
 Jericho he would be on the borders 
 of a district in which, owing to its 
 great productiveness (Robinson, Pa- 
 lestine, Vol. I. p. 559), these tax- 
 collectors would probably have been 
 very numerous : comp. Luke xix. 2, 
 and see Lange, Leben Jesu, ii. 6. i, 
 Part II. p. 1 159. 
 
 1 From the general connexion of 
 Luke xvi. l {^Xeyeu de Kal irpbs robs 
 liadrjTas) with ch. xv,, and the appa- 
 rent connexion of subject between 
 ch. xvi. 19 — 31 with ver. 9 — 13 (see 
 Meyer in loc. p. 421, ed. 3) we may 
 perhaps infer that this parable was 
 uttered on the same day that so 
 many of the publicans came to hear 
 cur Lord’s teaching (ch. xv. i), and 
 probably at the close of the last 
 day in Perjna, or at the beginning 
 of the next, when our Lord might 
 have been in the district of Jericho ; 
 see above, p. 262, note i. If this 
 be so and we agree to combine with 
 this portion of St Luke’s Gospel the 
 
 narrative in John xi. i sq. (see be- 
 low), this parable w’ould have been 
 uttered only a day or two after our 
 Lord had received the message about 
 Lazarus. May not then the name 
 of the sufferer in the parable have 
 been suggested by the name of 
 Lazarus of Bethany, on whom our 
 Lord’s thoughts might now have 
 been dwelling, and in whose history 
 there may have been possibly some 
 circumstances of resemblance to that 
 of the Lazarus of the parable? The 
 opinions of early writers were divided 
 in reference to this parable, some 
 (Irenaeus, Tertullian, Chrysostom, 
 al.) conceiving it to be an actual 
 history, some of equal antiquity 
 (Clem. Alex., Theophilus, Asterius, 
 al.) more plausibly regarding it a 
 parable; see especially the citations 
 inSuicer, Thesaur.s.v. Act^apos, Vol. 
 II. p. 206 sq. 
 
 2 The journey from Ephraim, 
 which apparently lay through Sama- 
 ria, Galilee, and Peraea, was the last 
 to Judcea, but in reference to J eru- 
 salem may be considered a part of 
 
The Journeyings toivard Jerusalem, 267 
 
 withstanding the last estimated with reference to 
 
 the final goal, Jerusalem, — is a supposition which 
 
 seems to coincide fully with the language and 
 notices of St Luke^ 
 
 And with this too the narrative of St John Appa- 
 does indeed appear very strikingly to harmonize. SSory"' 
 The next event recorded by that Evangelist, after gf joViJ! 
 the notice of the withdrawal to and preaching in 
 Peraea^, is the message sent by the afflicted sisters '^ch. x.40. 
 of Lazarus, — accompanied by the special note of 
 time that the Lord abode two days where he then 
 was. Now as two days more would easily bring 
 our Lord from Persea to Bethany^, and as we also 
 know that Lazarus was summoned from the tomb 
 after he had lain there four days^, how very ch. xi. 39. 
 plausible is the supposition that the Lord was 
 in Persea when He received the message from the 
 sisters of Lazarus ^ and that the two -days during 
 
 the second. On these journeys see 
 above, p. 242 sq., and compare p. 
 245, note I. 
 
 1 Compare the notice of this se- 
 cond journey, iropeLav Troio^i/xevos els 
 ^lepovaaX'p/Jt, (Lukexiii. 22), with the 
 notice of what seems the third jour- 
 ney, ev Tip TTopeieaOaL avrov els 
 'lepovaaXpp,, Kal avrbs dtripx^ro Stct, 
 p.€(Xov hapLapelas Kal TaXiXalas (Luke 
 xvii. ii), — between which passages 
 there is just the connexion we might 
 expect, on the hypothesis that the 
 first refers to a journey which did 
 not reach Jerusalem, and that the 
 second refers to its continuation or 
 recommencement. 
 
 2 According to the Jerusalem 
 Itinerary the distance from Jerusa- 
 lem to Jericho was 18 miles, and 
 from Jericho to the Jordan 5 more, 
 in all 23 miles. The same distances 
 
 are specified by Josephus {Bell. Jud. 
 IV. 8. 3) as 150 and 60 stades re- 
 spectively, or in all 210 stades; see 
 Greswell, Dissert, xxxviii. Vol. iii. 
 p. 60. Whichever calculation be 
 adopted, our Lord clearly could 
 have reached Bethany from the 
 Jordan in as little as one day, and 
 with ease in two, even if He had 
 been some little distance on the 
 other side of the river. On the 
 rate of a day’s journey, see Gres- 
 well, Dissert, xxvi. (Append.) Vol. 
 IV. p. 525 sq. 
 
 ^ The message only announced 
 that Lazarus was sick, but the sup- 
 position is not improbable that by 
 the time the messenger reached our 
 Lord, Lazarus had died. It may 
 be observed that two days after- 
 wards when our Lord speaks of the 
 death of Lazarus he uses the aorist 
 
2 G 8 The Journeyings toward Jerusalem. 
 
 which ^He abode in the place where He was^’ 
 were the two last days in Peraea, the ‘ to-day and 
 to-morrow’ of which He spake when the Pharisees 
 came with the hypocritical warning about the 
 designs of Herod This seeming coincidence of 
 the notes of time supplied by the fourth Evan- 
 gelist with those hinted at by St Luke, combined 
 with the further very curious fact already alluded 
 «=scep.266, to^, that the not very common name of Lazarus^ 
 
 note ^ . 
 
 appears in a parable delivered by our Lord just at 
 a time, when it may be thought to have been sug- 
 gested by the message which St John tells us 
 was sent to our Lord about the actual Lazarus of 
 Bethany, — all this does indeed seem to support 
 our view of the chronology of the present period, 
 and to reflect some probability on our explanation 
 of the ambiguous Ho-day and to-morrow’ of the 
 third Evangelists 
 
 But let us pass onward. 
 
 Effect pro- On the mighty but familiar miracle of the 
 twlisfng raising of Lazarus, I will not pause save to re- 
 of Lazarus, tlio ofFoct it produced was immense. 
 
 It gathered in believers even from the ranks of 
 John xi. opponents it afterwards brought multitudes from 
 e til. xii, 9. Jerusalem to see the risen man®, and swelled the 
 
 “ ver. 6. 
 
 b Luke 
 xiii. 31. 
 
 diridaveu (John xi. 14), which seems 
 to refer the death to some period, 
 undefined indeed, but now past ; see 
 Fritz. deAoristi Vi, p. 17, and com- 
 pare notes on i Thess. ii. 16. On 
 the adjustments of time mentioned 
 in the narrative of St John, see 
 Meyer 07 i John xi. 17, p. 331 (ed. 3). 
 
 ^ Lazarus appears to be a short- 
 ened form of the more familiar 
 Eleazar; see especially the learned 
 investigation of Bynseus, de Morte 
 
 Ch'isti, III. 8, Vol. I. p. 180 sq., 
 and comp. Lightfoot, Ilor. IIeh\ in 
 Joann, xi. i. 
 
 2 We may perhaps recognize a 
 further point of contact between the 
 rfj Tplrri reXetov/xaL of St Luke (ch. 
 xiii. 32) and the remarks of the 
 Apostles (John xi. 8, 16) on our 
 Lord’s proposal to go into Judsea : 
 they regard that journey, as it truly 
 proved to be, a journey of which to 
 TeTeXedbadai was the issue. 
 
The Journcyings toward Jerusalem, 2 G 0 
 
 triumph of the Lord’s entry'; and alas! it also 
 
 now stirred up enemies to delay no longer and 7- 
 
 made a High Priest pervert the mysterious gift of 4*7. 
 prophecy^ by using it to hurry on the members 
 of his council to plot against innocent blood'". So 49 
 avowed were now the savage counsels, that our 
 Lord at once withdrew to the town of Ephraim^ ‘"ch. xi. 54. 
 on the borders of Samaria®, and there after an 
 abode of perhaps a very few weeks ^ commenced 
 the last, and as we may perhaps venture to term 
 it, the farewell-journey described by all the three 
 Synoptical Evangelists*', and specially noticed by ‘'.Matt. 
 
 St Luke as being directed through the midst Mark *x. 
 of Samaria and Galilee The striking harmony Luke xvu. 
 
 1 See John xii. 17, 18. On this 
 mighty miracle, in which our Lord 
 not only appears, as previously, the 
 conqueror of death, but even of 
 corruption (John xi. 39), see the 
 commentaries of Origen [the part 
 preceding ver. 39 is lost], Chryso- 
 stom, Cyril Alex., and Augustine {in 
 Joann. Tractat. XLix.), Bp Hall, 
 Contempl. iv. 23, -24, the very good 
 comments in Stier, Disc, of Our 
 Lord, Vol. VI. p. I sq. (Clark), the 
 vindication of Lardner, WorTcs, Vol. 
 XI. p. I, and Trench, Notes on the 
 Miracles, p. 389. 
 
 2 It has often been discussed 
 whether this was conscious or un- 
 conscious prophecy. The tenor of 
 the context seems clearly to show 
 that it can only be regarded in the 
 latter view. Caiaphas was only 
 consciously stating what he deemed 
 politically advisable, but he was 
 nevertheless, as the inspired Evan- 
 gelist distinctly tells us, at the time 
 actually prophesying ; Kara rod 
 ^Ir]<Tov ayuvi^o/Jievos ov8kv rjTTOV 
 'rrpo€<priT€v<Tev. Origen, in Joann. 
 
 Tom. XI. 12, — where the nature of 
 this prophecy is considered at great 
 length: compare Thesaur. Nov. {Or it. 
 Sacr.) Vol. ii. p. 525. 
 
 3 There seems reason for believing 
 that this place was identical with 
 Ophrah, and corresponds with the 
 modern village of Taiyibeh, which 
 according to Eobinson occupies a 
 commanding site on the top of a 
 conical hill, whence a fine view is to 
 be obtained of the eastern moun- 
 tains, the valley of the J ordan, and 
 the Dead Sea : Palestine, Vol. i. p. 
 444, 447. It is about 6h. 20 m. 
 (i hour =3 Roman miles) distant 
 from Jerusalem (see ib. Vol. ii. p. 
 568), — a distance very closely agree- 
 ing with that specified by Jerome 
 (Onomast. s. v.), who makes it 20 
 miles. 
 
 ^ See above, p. 245, note i. 
 
 ® The interpretation of Meyer 
 (comp. Alford in loc., Lange, Leben 
 Jesu, Part ii. p. 1065), according to 
 which Sta {xiaov Sa/xape/as Kal ra\6- 
 Xa^as (Luke xvii. ii) is to be under- 
 stood as implying the frontier district 
 
270 The Journey ings toward Jerusalem. 
 
 LECT. 
 
 VI. 
 
 Incidents 
 in the last 
 journey to 
 Judaea. 
 
 » Luke 
 xvii. 1 6. 
 
 ver. 20. 
 
 ® ch. xviii. 
 
 I sq. 
 
 between this notice of direction and the abode 
 in the frontier town of Ephraim specified by St 
 John may well give us confidence in our foregoing 
 arrangement, and add strength to our belief in 
 the general chronological accuracy of the latter 
 as well as of the former portions of the narrative 
 of the third Evangelist. 
 
 The incidents in this last journey are not 
 many. Possibly on the frontiers of Samaria we 
 may fix the scene of the Healing of the ten lepers^, 
 and of the gratitude of the single sufferer that 
 belonged to the despised land^. To the period 
 of the transit through Galilee we may perhaps 
 assign the notice of the solemn answer to the 
 probably treacherous inquiry of the Pharisees 
 when the kingdom of God should come^, and to 
 the same period^ the parable of the Unjust 
 Judge — a parable that gains much of its force 
 and solemnity from the previous mention of a 
 time of terrible trial and perplexity^. From 
 
 lying between these two provinces 
 along which our Lord journeyed 
 from west to east, is apparently 
 grammatically defensible (see Xen. 
 Anah. i. 4. 4), but certainly not 
 very natural or probable. The plain 
 and obvious meaning surely is that 
 our Lord went, not merely ‘ per Sa- 
 maritanos in Galilseam,’ Syr.-Pesh., 
 but through the middle of both 
 countries ; see Lightfoot, Chron. 
 Temp. § 62, and comp. Wieseler, 
 Chron. Synops. p. 322. 
 
 1 On this miracle, the characteris- 
 tic of which is its deferred working 
 till the faith of the sufferers was 
 shown by their obedience to the 
 Lord’s command, see Bp Hall, Con- 
 tempi. IV, 10, Trench, Notes on 
 
 the Miracles, p. 332, — who, how- 
 ever, has adopted the not very pro- 
 bable interpretation referred to in 
 the preceding note ; and compare 
 Hook, Serm. on the Miracles, Vol. 
 II. p. 140, and a good practical ser- 
 mon by Hare (A. W,), Sermons, Vol. 
 II. p. 457. 
 
 ^ It is very doubtful whether these 
 incidents are to be assigned to the 
 portion of the journey through Gali- 
 lee, or to that through Peraea. The 
 latter view is adopted by Greswell, 
 Dissert, xxxi. Vol. ii. p. 542 ; the 
 former, however, seems slightly the 
 most probable : see Lightfoot, Chron. 
 Temp. § 62, 63, Vol. ii. p. 40 (Ro- 
 terod. 1686). 
 
 3 There seems no reason for sup- 
 
The Journeyings toward Jerusalem. 271 
 
 Galilee we seem fully justified, by the distinct 
 notices both of St Matthew^ and St Mark^ in 
 tracing our Lord’s steps to the lands across the 
 Jordan. Whether this journey extended to the 
 more northern parts of Persea, where it will be 
 remembered a few months before the Four thou- 
 sand were fed, and where the name of the God 
 of Israel was so magnified we cannot determine. 
 The expressions of St Matthew‘S would rather lead 
 us to the contrary opinion, and to the supposition 
 that our Lord passed directly onward to the por- 
 tions nearer Judaea^ in which He had preached a 
 few weeks before, and to which we shall appa- 
 rently be right in confining the few remaining 
 incidents which we meet with in this part of the 
 inspired narrative®. We observe there just what 
 
 posing with Olshausen and others 
 that some intermediate remarks 
 connecting this parable more closely 
 with what precedes are here omitted. 
 On the contrary, as ver. 7 seems to 
 prove, the connexion is close and 
 immediate. When the Lord comes. 
 He comes to avenge His own and 
 free them from their foes, — and that 
 full surely : if an unjust earthly 
 judge avenged her who called upon 
 him, shall not a righteous heavenly 
 Judge avenge the elect of God ? 
 See Meyer in loc. p. 441 (ed. 3), 
 and on the parable generally, com- 
 pare Greswell, Exposition of the 
 Pardhles, Vol. IV. p. 213 sq.. Trench, 
 Note^ on the Parables, p. 439. 
 
 1 There is some little difficulty in 
 the words rjXdev eh to, Spia rijs ’lou- 
 dalas Tripav rov ’lopddvov (Matth. xix. 
 i). Viewed simply, and with the re- 
 membrance that an insertion of the 
 article before ir^pav is not positively 
 necessary (see Winer, Gr. § 20. 2), 
 
 they would seem in accordance with 
 the statement of Ptolemy {Geogr. v. 
 16. 9) that a certain portion of the 
 province of Judsea actually lay on 
 the eastern side of the Jordan : 
 viewed however in connexion with 
 Mark x. i, they seem rather to 
 mark the general direction of our 
 Lord’s journey, and might be para- 
 phrased, — ‘ He came to the frontiers 
 of Judaea (oi5/c eiri ra fiiaa, dXX’ 
 oiorel ra &Kpa, Origen), His route 
 lying on the other side of the Jor- 
 dan;’ comp. Greswell, Dissert, xxxi. 
 Vol. II. p. 542. 
 
 2 In' this arrangement nearly all 
 harmonists are agreed ; the only 
 doubt, as has been before observed 
 (p. 270, note 2), is whether these 
 are the only incidents which belong 
 to the journey through Peraea. Gres- 
 well urges the apparent consecutive 
 character of the discourses Luke 
 xvii. 20 — xviii. 14, but it may be 
 said that there is really no greater 
 
 LECT. 
 
 VI. 
 
 “ ch. xix. 
 h ch. X. I. 
 
 ^ Matt. XV. 
 31 - 
 
 ch. xix. 
 
272 The Journeyings toward Jerusalem, 
 
 LECT. 
 
 VI. 
 
 » Matt, 
 xix. 2. 
 
 ^ cli. xix. 
 
 3 sq- 
 
 Mark x. 3 
 sq. 
 
 Matt, 
 xix. 13. 
 
 we should have expected from our remembrance 
 of our Lord’s former sojourn in that country. We 
 trace the same characteristics displayed by the two 
 classes of our Lord’s hearers with which we are 
 so familiar in earlier parts of the Gospel history, — 
 thankful and even enthusiastic reception on the 
 part of the multitude^, ^ craft and malignity on the 
 part of the Pharisees and their various adherents. 
 The latter feelings are soon displayed in the insi- 
 dious inquiry about the lawfulness of divorce^, — 
 a question studiously chosen to place our Lord 
 in antagonism either with the school of Hillel or 
 with the school of Shammai, and thus to bring 
 upon Him the hostility of one or other of two in- 
 fluential parties, if not also in some degree to 
 involve Him with the adulterous Tetrarch in 
 whose territory He then was^ In these same dis- 
 tricts and in touching contrast to all this craft were 
 the young children brought to our Lord‘d, and 
 blessed with the outward signs and tokens of His 
 divine love 2 . Here too was the home of that rich 
 
 break between Luke xvii. 19 and 
 Luke xvii. 20, which Greswell dis- 
 connects, than between Luke xviii. 
 14 and Luke xviii. 15, which he 
 unites. It must remain then a mat- 
 ter of opinion, the few arguments 
 in favour of one arrangement being 
 nearly of equal weight with those 
 in favour of the other. 
 
 1 Compare De Wette on Matih. 
 xix. 3, to whom the hint is due. 
 The main design, however, as St 
 Matthew’s addition kcltcl Traaau 
 airiav (practically the language of 
 the school of Hillel) seems clearly 
 to show, was to induce our Lord to 
 decide upon a question that was 
 much in debate between two large 
 
 parties, the' school of Hillel adopt- 
 ing the lax view, the school of 
 Shammai the more strict : * schola 
 Shammaeana, non permisit repudia 
 nisi in causi, adulterii, Hilleliana 
 aliter.’ Lightfoot in loc. Vol. ii. 
 p. 345; compare Jost, Gesch. des 
 Judenth. ii. 3, 13, Vol. i. p. 257. 
 
 2 We are distinctly told by St 
 Matthew the two blessings which 
 the bringers of the children hope 
 to receive for them at the hands of 
 our Lord, — iVa ras erndy ai 5 - 
 
 Tois Kat 'irpoaeij^’qTou (ch. xix. ''13). 
 The former act, the imposition of 
 hands, was probably regarded to 
 some extent what it truly was, the 
 outward sign of the conveyance of 
 
The Joimieyings toward Jerusalem, 278 
 
 young man whom Jesus looked on and loved% 
 
 and of whom the melancholy notice^ is left that 
 
 ^ a Mark x. 
 
 worldly possessions kept him back from the king- 21 . 
 
 dom of God^ *^ver. 22. 
 
 And now every step was leading our Lord and Onward 
 His Apostles nearer to J erusalem, and every step towl 7 d Je- 
 calls forth in the very outward demeanour of the 
 Lord a manifestation of a dauntless resolution 
 which awes and amazes^ that shrinking and now 
 foreboding company. The Lord now heads His 
 band of followers, as St Mark graphically men- 
 tions'^, and leads the onward way. To the generaL^h. x. 33. 
 company of disciples, augmented as it now well 
 might have been by many a worshipper that the 
 festival was bringing up to Jerusalem, the Lord is 
 silent; but to the chosen Twelve^ He now again 
 
 inward gifts and blessings {t^v 
 (ppovprjTiK^v eavTov dvvapuv, Eutbym. ; 
 comp. Origen in MattJi. Tom. xv. 
 6) ; the latter was regarded and 
 apparently not uncommonly sought 
 for (see Buxtorf, Synag. cap. vii. p. 
 138, Basil, 1661) as adding to the 
 former the efficacies of holy and 
 prevailing prayer. Bightly did the 
 early Church see in this an argu- 
 ment for infant baptism : compare 
 Augustine, Serm. cxv. 4, Vol. v, 
 p. 657 (ed. Migne). 
 
 1 That this young man was not 
 a hypocrite, but one whom wealth 
 and worldliness held in a thraldom 
 that kept him from Christ, is justly 
 maintained by Chrysostom {in Matth. 
 Horn. LXIII.), who bases his opinion 
 on Mark x. 21. The apocryphal 
 version of the incident, said to come 
 from the Evang. secundum Heh'ceos, 
 is given by Origen in Matth. {Vet. 
 Interpr.) Tom. xv. 14; see Hof- 
 mann, Lebeii Jesu, § 71. p. 306. 
 
 ® The second reason assigned by 
 Euthymius {on Marh x. 32) seems 
 certainly the true one : ‘ They were 
 amazed, — either at what He was 
 saying, or because of His own accord 
 He was going onward to His passion’ 
 (Siort yvTopLoXei wpos t6 irddos). 
 
 ^ It is distinctly told us by St 
 Matthew (ch. xx. 17) that this 
 mournful communication was made 
 privately (/car’ idiau) to the Apostles ; 
 comp. Markx. 32, Luke xviii. 31. 
 The two other occasions on which 
 the same sad future had been an- 
 nounced to them was in the neigh- 
 bourhood of Csesarea Philippi, 
 immediately after St Peter’s confes- 
 sion (Matth. xvi. 21 sq., Mark viii. 
 30 sq., Luke ix. 21 sq.), and not 
 very long afterwards during the 
 subsequent return to Capernaum 
 (Matth. xvii. 22 sq., Mark ix. 30 
 sq., Luke ix. 43 sq.). The reason 
 for the private manner in which the 
 communication was made is perhaps 
 18 
 
 E. H. L. 
 
274 The Journeyings toward Jerusalem. 
 
 LECT. 
 
 VI. 
 
 Matt. XX. 
 
 i8. 
 
 Luke ix. 
 46. 
 
 ® Matt. XX. 
 20 sq. 
 Mark x. 
 
 35 sq- 
 
 Arrival at 
 J ericho. 
 
 for the third time speaks of the future that awaited 
 Him\ Yet they could not or they would not 
 understand. Nay, they seem, as on a former 
 occasion'", almost to have put a counter-interpreta- 
 tion on the words; for strange as indeed it ap- 
 pears, this we learn was the hour that the sons of 
 Zebedee and their mother preferred their ambitious 
 request‘d, and in fancy were enthroning themselves 
 on the right hand and the left hand of their tri- 
 umphant Master ^ 
 
 Jericho is soon reached; and there as it would 
 seem at the entrance into the city, one or, as St 
 Matthew specifies, two blind men^ hail the Lord 
 
 rightly given by Euthymius, — to 
 avoid giving grounds of offence to 
 the attendant multitudes. 
 
 ^ It is worthy of notice that the 
 request is made by one from whom 
 according to our common estimate 
 of his character we should not have 
 expected it, — St John, the disciple 
 whom Jesus loved. The attempt 
 of Olshausen to explain away the 
 request as a petition hereafter to 
 enjoy the same privilege of nearness 
 to our Lord {Comment, on Gospels, 
 Vol. III. p. 1 21, Clark) must cer- 
 tainly be rejected : such a desire 
 was doubtless present, but the re- 
 quest itself was plainly one for 
 Tpoedpta (Chrys.), a genuine charac- 
 teristic of the glowing hearts of the 
 Sons of Thunder : see above, p. 249, 
 note I. According to St Matthew 
 (ch. XX. 20) the request was pre- 
 ferred by their mother, Salome. The 
 explanation is obvious : the mother 
 was the actual speaker, the two 
 apostles were the instigators ; alcxv- 
 v 6 p.epoi TTpo^dWoPTai ttjp reKovcrav, 
 Chrysost. in MattJi. Horn. LXV. Vol. 
 VII. p, 645 (ed. Bened. 2). 
 
 2 It is difficult to account for 
 this seeming discrepancy, as there is 
 not only a difference between St 
 Matthew and the second and third 
 Evangelists as to numher, but be- 
 tween St Luke and the first and 
 second as to time. Perhaps, as seemed 
 likely in the similar case of the Ga- 
 darene demoniacs (see above, p. 188, 
 note 2), one of the blind men, Bar- 
 timseus, was better known (Augus- 
 tine), and thus his cure more parti- 
 cularly specified ; see Mark x. 46 sq. 
 If we add to this the further suppo- 
 sition, that the one who is men- 
 tioned at our Lord’s entry into 
 Jericho as having learnt from the 
 crowd who it was that was coming 
 into the city (Luke xviii. 37), was 
 not healed then, but in company with 
 another sufferer, when our Lord was 
 leaving the city (Maldonatus, Ben- 
 gel), — we have perhaps the most pro- 
 bable solution of the difficulty that 
 has yet been proposed. On this 
 point and the miracle generally see 
 Trench, Notes on the Miracles, p. 428 
 sq., and compare Origen, in Matth. 
 Tom. XVI. 9, — who adopts an alle- 
 
The Journeyings toward Jerusalem, 275 
 
 with the same title that a few days afterwards*^ 
 was heard from a thousand voices on the slopes of ' 
 
 Olivet. They call unto the Son of David ^ whom xxi. 9.' 
 as yet they saw not : they call and they are healed. 
 
 Begirt by the now-increasing and glorifying mul- 
 titude the Lord enters the city. But praises soon 
 change to general murmurings^ when the just and Luke xix. 
 faithful Zacchaeus is called down from the syca- 
 more-tree to entertain Him, on whose divine form 
 he would have rejoiced only to have gazed afar 
 olf but whom now he was to be so blest as to 
 welcome under the shadow of his roof‘d. Still the ver. 5. 
 heart of the people was moved. Wild hopes and 
 expectations still pervade all hearts; and it is to 
 allay them, that the Lord now utters both to the 
 disciples and the multitude the solemn parable of 
 the Pounds, — that parable which, as St Luke tells 
 us®, was specially designed to check the hope that ® 
 
 God’s kingdom was speedily to be revealed ^ 
 
 gorical mode of reconciliation, Au- 
 gustine, de Consens. Evang. ii. 65, 
 Vol. III. p. 1167, Serm, Lxxxvm. 
 Vol. V. p. 539 (ed. Migne), and 
 Lange, Leben Jesu, ii. 6. i, Part ii. 
 p. 1158. 
 
 1 The language of St Luke 
 Ideiv TOP IijaoOp tcs iariv, ch. xix. 3) 
 would seem to imply that Zacchseus 
 was anxious to behold the person 
 and outward form of our Lord, and 
 distinguish it from that of the by- 
 standers. That this was not from 
 curiosity but from a far deeper feel- 
 ing, — perhaps presentiment, seems 
 clear from what followed : elbev av- 
 rhp Tois 6<pdd\/JL0cs ttjs dpdpcoroTtjTOS, 
 Trpoeide yap avTov roh 6<p6d\gois rrjs 
 OeoTTjTOS, Euthymius, in loc. On 
 the title dpxtreXdjprjs, compare p. 20, 
 note I. 
 
 ^ Apparently two reasons are 
 given by St Luke why our Lord 
 uttered this parable, — * because He 
 was nigh to Jerusalem,’ and ‘because 
 the kingdom of God should imme- 
 diately appear’ (ch. xix. ii). The 
 two reasons however really only 
 amount to one, our Lord’s journey 
 to Jerusalem being connected in the 
 mind of the populace (as was fully 
 shown two or three days later) with 
 the establishment there of His future 
 kingdom: ‘they deemed,’ says Eu- 
 thymius, ‘ that for this cause He 
 was now going up that He might 
 reign therein.’ On the parable itself 
 which is obviously very similar to, 
 but not on that account to be re- 
 garded as identical with, the parable 
 of the Talents (Matth. xxv. 14), see 
 Greswell, Exposition of the Parables, 
 18—2 . 
 
27G The Jourmyings toward Jerusalem. 
 
 LECT. 
 
 VI. 
 
 “ Luke 
 xix. II. 
 
 b John xli 
 
 I. 
 
 Conclu- 
 
 sion. 
 
 In the same noticeable attitude, — as is again 
 specially mentioned^, — at the head of His followers, 
 the Lord soon journeys onward towards Jerusalem, 
 and reaches Bethany six days^ before His last 
 Passover ^ 
 
 And here our present section, and our extended 
 though, alas ! hasty survey of the concluding year 
 of our Lord’s ministry comes to its close. 
 
 I will delay you with no practical comments, — 
 for the time is far spent, — but I will conclude with 
 the deep and earnest prayer that I may have 
 awakened in some hearts a fresh desire to ponder 
 over for themselves the connexions of the blessed 
 history of their own and the world’s redemption. 
 
 Vol. IV. p. 418 sq., Trench, Notes on 
 the Parables, p. 234 sq. 
 
 1 There is some little difficulty as 
 to the date of our Lord’s arrival at 
 Bethany. It is definitely fixed by 
 St John as tt/jc) too irdaxo- 
 
 (ch. xii. i), and thus, according to 
 the ordinary meaning of the words 
 and the usual mode of reckoning, 
 would seem to be Nisan 8, the pass- 
 over being Nisan 14. Now as it 
 seems certain that our Lord suf- 
 fered on a Friday, and as it is 
 scarcely less certain that according to 
 St John (ch. xiii. i, xviii. 28, xix. 4) 
 the Passover was eaten on that same 
 day, it will follow that Nisan 8 or 
 the day of our Lord’s arrival at 
 Bethany, will coincide with the pre- 
 ceding Saturday or with the Jewish 
 sabbath. Of this difficulty various 
 solutions have been proposed, the 
 most elaborate of which is that of 
 Greswell {Dissert, xxxviii. Vol. m. 
 p. 51 sq.), according to which our 
 Lord came from Jericho to a place 
 a few miles from Bethany, assumed 
 
 to be the house of Zacchseus, on Fri- 
 day eve, and on Saturday eve after 
 sunset went onward to Bethany. 
 This appears so complicated that it 
 is better either {a) to admit that our 
 Lord arrived on Nisan 8, but to 
 leave the circumstances and time 
 of the arrival unexplained (Liicke, 
 Meyer, Alford), or (6) to conceive 
 that St J ohn, writing genex’ally, does 
 not here include the days from 
 which and to which the six days are 
 reckoned, and that thus our Lord 
 arrived at Bethany on Friday, Ni- 
 san 7; compare Tischendorf, Syn. 
 Evartg. p. XLiii. It is worthy of 
 consideration, however, w'hether (c) 
 our Lord might not have arrived on 
 Friday eve just after the Sabbath 
 commenced, so that the day of His 
 arrival was really according to Jewish 
 reckoning Nisan 8. Discussions of 
 this question will be found in the 
 various commentaries ; compare also 
 Bynaeus, de Morte Christi, i. 3. 12, 
 Vol. I. p. 188 sq., Schneckenburger, 
 Beitrdge, p. 14. 
 
The Journey ings toward Jerusalem. 277 
 
 The close study of it may require all our highest 
 powers, and tax all our freshest energies, but ■ 
 believe me, brethren, the consolations of that 
 study no tongue of men or angels can fully tell. 
 While we are so engaged we do indeed feel the 
 deep meaning of what an apostle has called the 
 ‘comfort’ of the word of God\ Though at times' 
 we may seem as yet in doubtfulness or perplexity, ^ 
 yet soon, very soon, all becomes clear and comfort- 
 ing. Lights break around our path; assurance be- 
 comes more sure; hopes burn brighter; love waxes 
 warmer; sorrows become joys; and joys the reflec- 
 tions of the unending felicities of the kingdom of 
 Christ. Around us and about us we feel the 
 deepening influence of the Eternal Son. All in- 
 ward things, yea too, all outward things appear to 
 us verily transfigured and changed. We cast our 
 eyes abroad on earth : ’tis the earth that He trod, 
 and earth seems bright and blessed. We raise 
 our eyes to the Heavens, and we know that He 
 is there, — we gaze, and faith rolls back those ever- 
 lasting doors; yea, we seem to see the vision of 
 beauty^, and in our spirit we behold our God. 
 
 LECT. 
 
 VI. 
 
 Eora. XV. 
 
 b Isai. 
 xxxiii. 17. 
 
LECTURE VII 
 
 LECT. 
 
 VII. 
 
 Introduc- 
 tory com- 
 ments. 
 
 THE LAST PASSOVER 
 
 St Luke xviii. 31 . 
 
 Behold^ we go wp to Jerusalem^ and all things that are written 
 by the prophets concerning the Son of Man shall he ac- 
 complished. 
 
 We have now entered upon a portion of the in- 
 spired narrative, which, no less in its general and 
 outward features than in the subjects on which it 
 treats, is strikingly different from any other por- 
 tion that we have yet attempted to consider. 
 Hitherto in only a very few, and those scattered 
 parts of the sacred history, has the united testi- 
 mony of the four Evangelists been vouchsafed to 
 us in reference to the same facts \ Sometimes one 
 
 1 In the large portion of the 
 Gospel -history which we have now 
 considered, apparently not more than 
 three or four cases can be found in 
 which the same speech, subject, or 
 event is specified by all the four 
 sacred writers. The first instance 
 perhaps is the declaration of the 
 Baptist as to the relation in which 
 he stood to our Lord : with Matth. 
 iii. 1 1 sq., Mark i. 7 sq., Luke iii. 
 16 sq., compare John i. 26, but 
 observe that the words which are 
 approximately the same in the fqur 
 narratives were uttered on more 
 than one occasion and to difierent 
 hearers. The second instance is the 
 
 narrative of our Lord’s baptism, 
 which, as related by the Baptist 
 (John i. 32), may be compared with 
 the notices of the Synoptical writers 
 (Matth. iii. 16 sq., Mark i. 10 sq., 
 Luke iii. 21 sq.). The third is the 
 account of the Feeding of the five 
 thousand, where John vi. i sq. is 
 clearly parallel with Matth. xiv. 13 
 sq., Mark vi. 32 sq., Luke ix. 10 sq. 
 St Peter’s profession of faith in our 
 Lord may perhaps be considered a 
 fourth case, but it must be remem- 
 bered that the occasions were dif- 
 ferent: the first profession (John vi. 
 68) being made at Capernaum, the 
 second (Matth. xvi. 16, Mark viii. 
 
The, Last Passover, 
 
 279 
 
 of the inspired writers has been our principal 
 
 guide, sometimes another ; what one has left un- 
 
 noticed another has often been moved to record, 
 but seldom have all related to us the same events, 
 or even dwelt in equal proportions upon the same 
 general divisions of the Gospel history. Not un- 
 frequently indeed have we enjoyed the privilege of 
 the combined testimony of two of the sacred writers, 
 and not much less frequently even of the first 
 three^; but at present anything like a continu- 
 ously concurrent testimony even in the case of the 
 Synoptical Gospels, has rarely presented itself 
 except for very limited periods of the time over 
 which their records extend. 
 
 We may verify this by a brief retrospect. We Character- 
 may remember, for instance, how in the earliest the preced- 
 portions of the Gospel-history the appointed witness onhrnar^ 
 
 rative. 
 
 29, Luke ix. 20) in the neighbour- 
 hood of Caesarea Philippi ; see above, 
 Lect. V. p. 212, note i. 
 
 ^ The exact numerical proportions 
 in which the discourses, subjects, or 
 events specified by three of the 
 Evangelists stand with respect to 
 those related only by two can hardly 
 be satisfactorily stated, owing to the 
 differences of opinion about some of 
 these coincidences, and still more to 
 the obvious fact that the relations 
 between the three Synoptical Gos- 
 pels are continually changing. Asa 
 general statement however it may 
 be said that the combined testimony 
 of the first three Evangelists prepon- 
 derates in the narrative of the minis- 
 try in Eastern Galilee, but that in 
 the narrative of the north-Galilaean 
 ministry the instances are not many 
 where we have the testimony of 
 more than two, — principally St Mat- 
 thew; see above, Lect. V. p. 205. 
 
 The whole question of these corre- 
 spondences is one of great import- 
 ance, as affecting our opinion of the 
 origin and relations of the first three 
 Gospels, but far too long to be com- 
 prised in the limits of a single note. 
 The attention of the student may, 
 however, be called to the fact that 
 exact verbal coincidences are much 
 more freque nt in the recital of word s 
 spolcm than in merely narrative 'por - 
 tions, and, again, that the ratio o f 
 coincidence in narrative to that in 
 recital is strikingly different in th e 
 first three Evangelists, the ratio in 
 St Matthew being as i to a little 
 more than 2, in St Mark as i to 4, 
 and in St Luke as i to 10. See 
 especially the good discussion in 
 Norton, Evidences of the Genuineness 
 of the Gospels, Vol. i. p. 239 (ed. 2), 
 where the consideration of these nu- 
 merical relations appears to lead to 
 satisfactory results. 
 
280 
 
 The Last Passover. 
 
 seemed to be, pre-eminently though not exclu- 
 sively, St Luke, and how again in the brief narra- 
 tive of the early ministry in Judaea, almost our 
 only guide was found to be St John^ It may be 
 remembered further, that of portions of our Lord’s' 
 ministry in Eastern Galilee we often had the bless- 
 ing of three records, but that in reference to the 
 order of the events, we appeared to have reasons 
 for relying more on the narrative of the second 
 and third Evangelists, than on that of the more 
 grouped records of St Matthew ^ Of the ministry 
 in northern Galilee, we have seen that but little 
 has been recorded by the historian-Evangelist St 
 Luke, but again that of our Lord’s concluding 
 ministry in Judsea and Persea we should have 
 known almost nothing, if he had not been spe- 
 cially moved to record that striking series of con- 
 nected events and discourses^ which occupied our 
 attention in the concluding part of the foregoing 
 Lecture. 
 
 Character- Tlius Varied would seem to be the general 
 preSnt aspect of those parts of the inspired narrative to 
 portion, ^hich WO liave hitherto confined our meditations. 
 
 1 See above the important quota- 
 tion from Eusebius, Lect. IV. p. 150, 
 note I. 
 
 2 See above, Lect. IV. p. 154 sq., 
 where a statement will be found of 
 the four principal reasons for adopt- 
 ing the order of St Mark and St 
 Luke rather than that of St Mat- 
 thew: compare also Lect. i. p. 20 
 sq. 
 
 3 It has been already implied, but 
 may be more distinctly stated that 
 the great peculiarity of the large 
 portion of St Luke’s Gospel extend- 
 ing from the end of the 9th to the 
 
 middle of the 19th chapter is the 
 close connexion that appears to exist 
 between the incidents mentioned or 
 alluded to and the discourses which 
 followed. It would seem almost as 
 if the former were only noticed as 
 serving to introduce and give force to 
 the weighty words which followed : 
 compare Luke xi. 37 sq., xii. i sq., 
 xiii. I sq., 23 sq., xiv. i sq., xv. i sq., 
 al. Some careful comments on this 
 portion of St Luke's Gospel, though 
 not always such as can be fully 
 accepted, will be found in Greswell, 
 Dissert, xxxi. Vol. ii. p. 517 sq. 
 
The Last Passovei\ 
 
 281 
 
 Now, however, we meet with a striking and yet not 
 unlooked-for change. If all the three solemn pre- 
 dictions of Our Lord’s sufferings were thought to 
 be of such moment that they have been specially 
 recorded by all the three Synoptical Evangelists h 
 surely it would not be too much to expect that 
 the mournful record of the verification of those 
 prophecies should be given, not by two only or 
 by three, but by all. The history of the sufferings 
 whereby mankind was redeemed must be told by 
 no fewer in number than the holy Four^ The ful- 
 filment of type and shadow, of the hopes of patri- 
 archs, of the expectations of prophets, yea and of 
 the dim longings of a whole lost and sinful world, 
 must be declared by the whole Evangelistic com- 
 pany ; the four streams that go forth to water the 
 earth ^ must here meet in a common channel; the 
 four winds of the Spirit of Life^ must here be 
 united and one. 
 
 1 The prediction uttered near Cae- 
 sarea Philippi is specified in Matth. 
 xvi. 21 sq., Mark viii. 30 sq., and 
 Luke ix. 21 sq. ; the prediction near 
 or on the way to Capernaum, in 
 Matth. xvii. 22 sq., Mark ix. 31 sq., 
 Lukeix. 44; the prediction in Peraea 
 on the way to Jericho, in Matth. 
 XX. 17 sq., Mark x. 32 sq., Luke 
 xviii. 31 sq. 
 
 2 It may be noticed as a matter 
 of curiosity, that the Apocryphal 
 Gospels, which we have long lost 
 sight of, now again come before us. 
 With the exception of an account of 
 Our Lord’s appearance in the Temple 
 when twelve years old {Evang. Inf. 
 Arab. cap. 50 sq., Evang. Thom. 
 cap. 19), a few scattered notices of 
 our Lord’s baptism (see Hofmann, 
 
 Leben Jesu, § 69, p. 299), and the 
 narrative of the Rich young man 
 (see above, p. 273, note i), we meet 
 with no attempts to add anything to 
 the Gospel- history since the period 
 of the infancy. Now, however, in 
 the Evangelium Nicodemi we find 
 the apocryphal narrative resumed, 
 and are furnished with accounts (not 
 wholly undeserving of notice) of our 
 Lord’s trial, and of the events which 
 followed; see Tischendorf, Evang. 
 Ajpocr. p. 203 sq., and compare 
 Hofmann, Leben Jem, § 78 sq. 
 
 3 Jerome, Prcef. in Matth, cap. 4, 
 Vol. VII. p. 18 (ed. Migne). 
 
 ^ This second simile is a modifi- 
 cation of one which occurs in a 
 curious passage in Irenseus, which 
 though not very convincing, may 
 
 LECT. 
 
 VII. 
 
282 
 
 The Last Passover. 
 
 LECT. Pqj. dispensation of wisdom and grace, 
 
 ere we presume to dwell upon it, let us offer up 
 
 our adoring thanks. Let us bless God for this 
 fourfold heritage, let us praise the Eternal Spirit 
 that thus moved the hearts and guided the pens of 
 these appointed witnesses, and then with all lowli- 
 ness and reverence address ourselves to the mo- 
 mentous task of attempting so far to combine 
 their holy narratives, as to bring before our minds, 
 in all its fulness and completeness, the record of 
 the six concluding days of the Lord’s earthly 
 ministry, the six days in which a world was re- 
 created, and the last fearful efforts of the rulers of 
 a Eph. vi. its darkness^ met, quelled, and triumphed over 
 for evermore. 
 
 The jour- The last incident, it will be remembered, to 
 suppe^r at ^ which WO alludod in the preceding Lecture, was 
 Bethany. sliort stay of our Lord at Jericho, and the 
 
 subsequent journey to Bethany. He had now 
 ^Comp. ^ again^ passed along the wild and unsafe road^ that 
 
 bear citation as also incidentally 
 showing how completely at that 
 early age the four, and only the/oitj’ 
 Gospels were accepted throughout 
 the Church. * Since there are four 
 regions of the world/ says this an- 
 cient writer, ^ in which we live, and 
 four cardinal winds, and the Church 
 has become spread over the whole 
 earth, and the Gospel is the pillar 
 and support of the Church, and the 
 breath of life; it is meet that it 
 should have four pillars breathing 
 on all sides incorruption and refresh- 
 ing mankind.’ Adv. Hcer. ill. ii, 
 p. 221 (ed. Grabe). 
 
 1 This road, though connecting 
 two places of great importance, seems 
 almost always to have been infested 
 
 by robbers (Jerome on Jerem. iii. 2), 
 and to have been deemed notoriously 
 dangerous to the traveller : see Light- 
 foot, Ilor. Hehr. in Luc. x. 30. It 
 was the scene of the striking parable 
 of the Good Samaritan, and was now 
 being traversed, apparently for the 
 second time (the first being on the 
 occasion of the sickness and death 
 of Lazarus), by Him whom several 
 writers of the early Church (Origen, 
 Ambrose, Augustine, al.) regarded 
 as shadowed forth by the merciful 
 stranger of His own parable. For 
 an account of the road see Thomson, 
 The Land and the Booh, Vol. ii. 
 p. 440 sq., and for a very powerful 
 sketch of a wild portion of it, with 
 the plain of Jericho below, see Ro- 
 
The Last Passover, 
 
 283 
 
 leads from tlie plain of J ericho to the uplands of 
 
 Judaea, and was now, possibly late on the Friday 
 
 evening \ in the abode of that highly-favoured 
 household, which, as the fourth Evangelist tells us, 
 our Lord vouchsafed to regard with feelings of 
 affection and love\ There in the retirement of^Joimxi. 
 that mountain-hamlet of Bethany^, — a retirement 
 soon to be broken in upon^, — the Redeemer of the John xii. 
 world may with reason be supposed to have spent 
 His last earthly sabbath. There too, either in 
 their own house or, as seems more probable, in 
 the house of one who probably owed to our Lord 
 his return to the society of his fellow-men®, did 
 that loving household ^make a supper‘s’ for their xii. 
 divine Guest. Joyfully and thankfully did each 
 one of that loving family instinctively do that 
 which might seem most to tend to the honour 
 and glorification of Him whom one of them had 
 
 berts, Holy Land, Vol. ii. Plate 
 IS- 
 
 1 See above, p. ■276, note i. 
 
 2 The village of Bethany (accord- 
 ing to Lightfoot, n'l ‘house 
 of dates’) lies on the eastera slope 
 of Olivet in a shallow and partially 
 wooded valley, and in a direction 
 about E.S.E, from Jerusalem, and 
 at a distance of about fifteen fur- 
 longs (John xi. 18), or between half 
 and three quarters of an hour in 
 time. It is now called ‘el-’Aziriyeh’ 
 from the tomb of Lazarus which is 
 still pretended to be shown there, 
 and is described by travellers as a 
 poor and somewhat forlorn hamlet 
 of about twenty houses : see E-obin- 
 sou, Palestine, Vol. i. p. 432 (ed. 2), 
 Thomson, The Land and the Book, 
 Vol. II. p. 599, Stanley, Palestine, 
 p. 188, and for views of it, Koberts, 
 
 Holy J^and, Vol. Ii. Plate 13, Ro- 
 bertson and Beato, Views of Jeru- 
 salem, No. 30, and Frith, Egyjpt and 
 Palestine, Part xxiv. 3. 
 
 ^ It has been conjectured, and 
 perhaps rightly, that Simon ‘the 
 Leper,’ at whose house the supper 
 would seem to have been prepared 
 (Matth. xxvi. 6, Mark xiv. 3), had 
 formerly suffered under this frightful 
 disease, and had been healed by our 
 Lord; compare Meyer on Matth. 
 xxvi. 6. The connexion in which 
 he stood to Lazarus and his sisters 
 is wholly unknown to us ; according 
 to Theophylact he was the father 
 (comp. Ewald, Gesch. Christus’, p. 
 357) ; according to some modem wri- 
 ters the husband of Martha (Gres- 
 well, Dissert. Vol. ii. p. 554), or, 
 as seems perhaps slightly more pro- 
 bable, a friend of the family. 
 
284 
 
 The Last Passover, 
 
 LECT. 
 
 VII. 
 
 “ John xi. 
 27. 
 
 ch. xii. 2. 
 
 c ver. 3. 
 
 d Matt, 
 xxvi. 8. 
 Mark xiv, 
 
 4 - 
 
 e Matt, 
 xxvi. 13. 
 
 Tlie Trium- 
 phal entry 
 into Jeru- 
 salem 
 (Sunday). 
 
 declared to be, and whom they all knew to be, tbe 
 Son of God^ that was to come into the world ^ 
 So Martha serves; Lazarus it is specially noticed 
 takes his place at the table the visible living 
 proof of the omnipotence of his Lord ; Mary per- 
 forms the tender office of a mournfully foreseeing 
 love, that thought nought too pure or too costly‘s 
 for its God, — that tender office, which though 
 grudgingly rebuked by Judas and, alas! others 
 than Judas'^, who could not appreciate the depths 
 of such a devotion, nevertheless received a praise 
 which it has been declared® shall evermore hold 
 its place on the pages of the Book of Life^ 
 
 But that sabbath soon passed away. Ere night 
 came on, numbers even of those who were seldom 
 favorably disposed to our Lord, now^ came to see 
 
 1 On the title 'Son of God’ see 
 above, Lect, v. p. 2 to, note i, and 
 also Lect. vi, p. 260, note 3. It can 
 scarcely be doubted that *on the 
 occasion referred to (.lohn xi. 27) 
 Martha had a general if not a theo- 
 logically precise belief in our Lord’s 
 divinity. Now that belief would 
 naturally have become still clearer 
 and fuller, and probably evinced 
 itself in all these acts of duteous 
 and loving service. 
 
 2 For the arguments by which it 
 would appear almost certain that 
 the present anointing is not iden- 
 tical with that in the house of Simon 
 the Pharisee (Luke vii. 36), see 
 above, p. 182, note 2, and com*pare 
 Ebrard, Kritik der Evang. Gesch. 
 § 96, p. 473. The incident is related 
 by St Matthew and St Mark after 
 the triumphal entry, — not as having 
 happened then, but as standing in 
 suitable connexion with the mention 
 
 of the betrayal of Judas, the work- 
 ings of whose evil heart, as we know 
 from St John, were fully displayed 
 on the occasion of this supper; see 
 Wieseler, Synops. p, 391 sq. 
 
 ^ It seems reasonable to suppose 
 that at a time of such large popu- 
 lar gatherings, the strict observance 
 of the Sabbath day’s journey might 
 in some measure have been relaxed. 
 Even however without this assump- 
 tion, we may suppose these eager 
 visitants to have arrived at Bethany, 
 soon after the Sabbath was over, 
 having performed the permitted part 
 of the distance (5 or 6 stades) before 
 the Sabbath legally ended, and the 
 rest afterwards. The news that our 
 Lord was there could easily have 
 been spread by those who journeyed 
 with Him from Jericho on the Fri- 
 day, and who themselves went on 
 direct to Jerusalem. On the length 
 of a Sabbath day’s journey, see 
 
The Last Passover, 
 
 285 
 
 both Him and the living monument of His mer- 
 
 ciful omnipotence The morrow probably brought 
 
 more of these half-curious, half-awed, yet, as it 5. ° 
 would now seem, in a great measure believing^ ver, n. 
 visitants. The deep heart of the people was stirred, 
 and the time was fully come when ancient pro- 
 phecy‘s was to receive its fulfilment, and the ^ Zech. ix. 
 daughter of Zion was to welcome her King\ 
 
 Yea and in kingly state shall He come. Begirt 
 not only by the smaller band of His own disciples 
 but by the great and now hourly increasing multi- 
 tude, our Lord leaves the little wooded vale that 
 had ministered to Him its sabbath-day of seclu- 
 sion and repose, and directs his way onward to 
 Jerusalem. As yet, however, in but humble 
 guise and as a pilgrim among pilgrims, He tra- 
 verses the rough mountain- track which the mo- 
 dern traveller can even now somewhat hopefully 
 identify^; every step bringing Him nearer to the 
 
 Winer, RWB. Art. ‘ Sabbaths weg,’ 
 Vol. II. p. 351, Greswell, Dissert. 
 XXXVIII. Vol. III. p. 70. 
 
 1 This prophecy, we are told dis- 
 tinctly by St John (ch. xii. i6), was 
 not understood by the disciples as 
 now being fulfilled till after our 
 Lord had been glorified. The illu- 
 mination of the Holy Ghost then 
 enabled them both to call to mind 
 the words of this particular prophecy 
 (observe the thrice-repeated raOra) 
 and to recognize the occasion on 
 which ^t was thus signally fulfilled ; 
 see Meyer on John xii. i6. 
 
 2 See Stanley, Sinai and Pales- 
 tine, p. i89sq., where this triumphal 
 entry is extremely well described 
 and illustrated. In deference to the 
 opinion and arguments of this ob- 
 
 servant traveller who has himself 
 seen and considered the locality in 
 reference to the very event we are 
 now considering, it has been assumed 
 in the text that our Lord proceeded, 
 not by the traditional route over the 
 summit of Olivet, but by the most 
 southern of the three routes from 
 Bethany to Jerusalem. We must 
 not, however, forget that the present 
 appearance of the city from Olivet 
 and the appearance of the city in 
 the time of our Lord when the 
 eastern wall certainly ran much 
 within the present line of wall (see 
 the plans by Ferguson in Smith, 
 Diet, of Bible, Vol. I. pp. 1028, 
 1032) must certainly have been dif- 
 ferent, and that the statements of 
 the modern traveller must always 
 
286 
 
 The Last Passover. 
 
 LECT. 
 
 VII. 
 
 Matt, 
 xxi. 3. 
 
 »* Luke 
 xix. 30. 
 
 ' ver. 35, 
 ^ ver. 39. 
 
 ridge of Olivet, and to that hamlet or district of 
 Bethphage, the exact site of which it is so hard to 
 fix, but which was separated perhaps only by some 
 narrow valley from the road along which the pro- 
 cession was now wending its way\ But the Son 
 of David must not solemnly enter the city of 
 David as a scarcely distinguishable wayfarer amid 
 a mixed and wayfaring throng. Prophecy must 
 have its full and exact fulfilment; the King must 
 approach the city of the King with some meek 
 symbols of kingly majesty. With haste, it would 
 seem, two disciples are despatched to the village 
 over against them, to bring to Him ^who had need 
 of it^’ the colt ^whereon yet never man sat’';’ 
 with haste the zealous followers cast upon it their 
 garments and all unconscious of the significant 
 nature of their act, place thereon their Master‘d, — 
 the coming King. Strange it would have been if 
 feelings such as now were eagerly stirring in every 
 heart had not found vent in words. Strange in- 
 
 be subjected to this correction. 
 Views of the city from Olivet are 
 very numerous; see however espe- 
 cially, Williams, Holy City, Vol. I. 
 Frontispiece, Eoberts, Holy Land, 
 Vol. I. Plate 4, 16, Frith, Egyjpt 
 and Palestine, Part xviii. i, 2, and 
 for a view of the roads down the 
 side of Olivet, Williams, Vol. i. p. 
 318, and compare Stanley, Palestine, 
 p. 156. 
 
 1 The site of this village or dis- 
 trict has not yet been satisfactorily 
 determined ; see Robinson, Palestine, 
 Vol. I. p. 433, but compare also 
 Van de Velde, Memoir to Map, p. 
 297. The most reasonable view 
 seems to be that Bethphage 
 house of figs’), was 
 
 a village or hamlet not far from 
 Bethany, but nearer to Jerusalem 
 (hence the order in Mark xi. i ; 
 compare Luke xix. 29), and situated 
 at no great distance from one of the 
 roads connecting these two places ; 
 compare Matth. xxi. 2, ryv Kiiyxrjv 
 T 7 ]v aTevavTL vyCov; Mark xi. 2, tt]v 
 K wgrjv Tyv KarivavTi i)[xC)v ; Luke 
 xix. 30, T^u KarevavTi Kibgyv, — in 
 all which places Bethphage appears 
 to be referred to. The apparently 
 less probable supposition that it was 
 a district rather than a village has 
 been advocated by Lightfoot, Cent. 
 Chorogr. in Matth. cap. 37, Vol. ii. 
 p. 198 (Roterod. 1686) ; comp, also 
 Williams, Holy City, Vol. ii. p. 
 442 sq. 
 
The Last Passover. 
 
 287 
 
 deed if with the Hill of Zion now breaking upon 
 
 their view^ the long prophetic past had not seemed 
 
 to mingle with the present, and evoke those shouts 
 of mysterious welcome and praise, which, first be- 
 ginning with the disciples^ and those immediately “ ver. 37. 
 round our Lord^, soon were heard from every 
 mouth of that glorifying multitude. And not 
 from them alone. Numberless others there were 
 fast streaming up Olivet, a palm-branch in every 
 hand^, to greet the raiser of Lazarus, and the 
 Conqueror of Death ; and now all join. One com- 
 mon feeling of holy enthusiasm now pervades that 
 mighty multitude, and displays itself in befitting 
 acts. Garments are torn off and cast down® before 
 the Holy One^^ ; green boughs bestrew the way^^ ; 
 
 Zion’s King rides onward in meek majesty, a ver. 8. 
 
 ^ See Stanley, Sinai and Pales- 
 tine, p. 190, where it is stated that 
 on reaching the ridge of the southern 
 slope of Olivet, by the road above 
 alluded to, the traveller obtains a 
 view of Mount Zion and that por- 
 tion of Jerusalem which was more 
 especially connected with the memory 
 of David, as the site of his palace. 
 The Temple and the more northern 
 parts would not be seen at present, 
 being hid from view by an inter- 
 vening slope on the right. 
 
 2 This would seem to be the cor- 
 rect reconciliation of Luke xix. 37, 
 with Matth. xxi. 9 and Mark xi. 9. 
 The disciples that were round our 
 Lord first raise the jubilant shouts, 
 the multitudes both before and be- 
 hind (Matth. I, c.) take them up 
 immediately- afterwards. St John 
 specifies some of the acclamations, 
 but more particularly gives us the 
 subject of the testimony which the 
 multitude publicly bare to our Lord, 
 
 viz. that He had raised Lazarus from 
 the dead (ch. xii. 17), and thus in- 
 cidentally supplies the reason why 
 they so readily joined in these shouts 
 of triumph : compare Ewald, Oesch. 
 Christus’, p. 384. 
 
 ^ Most of the recent expositors of 
 this passage have appropriately re- 
 ferred to the curious incident men- 
 tioned by Dr Robinson {Palestine, 
 Vol. I. p. 473, ed. “2) of the people 
 of Bethlehem casting their garments 
 on the way before the horses of the 
 English Consul of Damascus when 
 supplicating his assistance and in- 
 tercession. The same writer briefly 
 illustrates by modern usage the 
 act of the disciples casting their 
 cloaks (why does Dr Thomson in 
 Smith’s Diet, of Bible, Vol. i. p. 
 1064 go out of his way to specify 
 them as ‘ ragged ’ ?) upon the foal to 
 serve as a saddle; Palestine, Vol. ii. 
 p. 219. Such is the enduring nature 
 of Eastern habits. 
 
288 
 
 The Last Passover. 
 
 LECT. 
 
 YII. 
 
 ® Psalm 
 cxviii. 26. 
 
 Luke ii. 
 
 14 - 
 
 ^ Luke 
 xix. 41. 
 
 d ver. 43. 
 
 thousand voices before, and a thousand voices 
 behind rising up to heaven with Hosannas and 
 with mingled words of magnifying acclamation, 
 some of which once had been sung to the Psalm- 
 ist’s harp^, and some heard even from angelic 
 
 tongues^ But the hour of triumph was the 
 
 hour of deepest and most touching compassion. 
 If; as we have ventured to believe, the suddenly 
 opening view of Zion may have caused the excited 
 feelings of that thronging multitude to pour them- 
 selves forth in words of exalted and triumphant 
 praise, full surely we know from the inspired nar- 
 rative, that on our Bedeemer’s nearer approach‘d 
 to the city, as it rose up, perhaps suddenly \ in all 
 its extent and magnificence before Him who even 
 now beheld the trenches cast about it^^, and Poman 
 legions mustering round its fated walls, tears fell 
 from those divine eyes, — yea, the Saviour of the 
 world wept over the city wherein He had come 
 to suffer and to die The lengthening proces- 
 
 sion again moves onward, slowly descending into 
 the deep valley of the Cedron, and slowly winding 
 up the opposite slope, until at length by one of 
 
 ^ We learn from Dr Stanley, 
 {Sinai and Palestine, p. 191) that at 
 a particular point of the southern 
 road the traveller reaches a ledge of 
 smooth rock from which the whole 
 city rising up, as it were, ^ out of a 
 deep ahyss’ is suddenly beheld in 
 all its extent : compare the view in 
 Williams, Holy City, Vol. i. Fron- 
 tispiece, which seems to illustrate 
 this description. It seems too much 
 to venture with Dr Stanley posi- 
 tively to identify this spot with that 
 where the Saviour paused and wept, 
 especially as it is by no means cer- 
 
 tain (see above, p. 285, note 2) that 
 this was the route actually taken, 
 still we may perhaps permit our- 
 selves to believe that our Saviour’s 
 affecting address was synchronous 
 with and perhiaps suggested by the 
 sudden opening out of some widely 
 extended view of the magnificent 
 city. The view from the summit 
 of Olivet is noticed by Dr Eobinson, 
 and described as ‘ not particularly 
 interesting,’ and as embracing little 
 more than a ‘ dull mixed mass of 
 roofs and domes.’ Palestine, Vol. i. 
 p, 236. (ed. 2). 
 
The Last Passover. 
 
 289 
 
 tlie Eastern gates it passes into one of the now 
 
 crowded* thoroughfares of the Holy City. 
 
 Such was the Triumphal Entry into J erusa- Eefiections 
 lem ; such the most striking event, considered with striking 
 reference to the nation, on which we have as yet o?the^nlr- 
 meditated. It was no less than a public recogni- 
 tion of Jesus of Nazareth as the long-looked for 
 Messiah, the long and passionately expected theo- 
 cratic King. Though, as the sequel shows, only 
 transitory and evanescent, it was still a recogni- 
 tion, plain, distinct, and historical, and exactly of 
 such a nature as tends to increase in the highest 
 degree our convictions of the living truth of the 
 inspired narrative. Let us pause a moment only 
 to observe how marvellously it sets forth no less 
 the sacred dignity than the holy decorum of the 
 
 ^ It is now hardly possible to form 
 a just conception of the appearance 
 which Jerusalem and its vicinity 
 must have presented at the season 
 of the Passover. All the open 
 ground near the city and perhaps 
 the sides of the very hill down which 
 our Lord had recently passed were 
 now, probably, being covered with 
 the tents and temporarily erected 
 structures of the gathering multi- 
 tudes, who even thus early would 
 have most likely found every avail- 
 able abode in the city completely 
 full. We are not left without some 
 data of the actual amount of the 
 gathered numbers, as we have a 
 calculation of Josephus based upon 
 the number of lambs sacrificed 
 (256,500), according to which it 
 would appear that even at the very 
 low estimate of 10 persons to each 
 lamb the number of people assem- 
 bled must have been little short of 
 2,700,000, without taking into con- 
 E. H. L. 
 
 sideration those that were present 
 but incapacitated by legal impurities 
 from being partakers in the sacrifice ; 
 see Bell. Jud, vi. 9. 3, and compare 
 Bell. Jud. II, 14, 3, where the num- 
 ber is with more probability set 
 down at about three millions. There 
 would thus Lave been present not 
 much short of half of the probable 
 population of J udsea and Galilee : 
 see Greswell, Dissert, xxiii. Ap- 
 pend. Vol. IV. p. 494. These ob- 
 servations are not without import- 
 ance considered theologically. They 
 show that our Lord’s rejection and 
 death is not merely to be laid to the 
 malevolence of the party of the 
 Sanhedrin and to. the wild clamours 
 of a city mob, but may justly be 
 considered, though done in partial 
 ignorance (Acts iii. 17), the act of 
 the nation. When Pilate made his 
 proposal it was to the multitude (Mark 
 XV. 9), and that multitude we know 
 was unanimous (John xviii. 40). 
 
 19 
 
290 
 
 The Last Passover. 
 
 homage. Let us only observe with 
 wonder and reverence how not a single preroga- 
 tive of the Messiah was waved or foregone, and 
 how not even the most bitter opponent of the 
 truth ^ can dare with any show of reason or justice 
 to assert that the faintest appeal was here made 
 to the prejudices or passions of the multitude. 
 Let us mark, on the one hand, how ere the multi- 
 tude begin to greet their Lord with the words of a 
 Messianic psalm He Himself vouchsafes them a 
 Messianic sign, and how when the Pharisees urge 
 n.ukexix. our Lord to silence the commencing acclamations ^ 
 He refuses with an answer at once decided and 
 sublime. Let us mark again, on the other hand, 
 how the object of all that jubilant reverence shows 
 in the plainest way the spiritual nature of His 
 triumph and of His kingdom, when on His nearer 
 approach He pauses and weeps over the city to 
 which He was advancing with such kingly majesty. 
 Was this the way to appeal to the political pas- 
 sions of the multitude? Was this what w^orldly 
 
 1 The various objections in detail 
 which modern scepticism has endea- 
 voured to bring against the inspired 
 narrative do not appear in any way 
 to deserve our attention or require 
 any further confutation than they 
 have already received; for notices 
 of them, and short but sufficient 
 answers, see Ebrard, Kritik der 
 Evang. Gesch. § 97, p. 476. The 
 general objection, however, or rather 
 false representation, alluded to, and 
 briefly discussed in the text, deserves 
 a passing notice and exposure. It 
 was advanced towards the close of 
 the last century by the compiler of 
 the notorious Wolfenbiittel Frag- 
 ments, and has often been repeated 
 
 in later sceptical writings. When 
 we read the inspired accounts and 
 observe how they incidentally dis- 
 close everything that was most op- 
 posed to political demonstration, it 
 may seem doubtful whether the 
 impiety of such a theory is not even 
 exceeded by its improbability and 
 its total want of all historical credi- 
 bility. 
 
 ^ The comment of Hilary is not 
 without point : ‘ Laudationis verba 
 redemptionis in eo exprimunt potes- 
 tatem, nam Osanna Hebraico sermone 
 significatur redemptio [domus Da- 
 vid].’ Comment, in Maiih. Canon 
 XXI. p. 567 (Paris, 1631). 
 
The Last Passover. 291 
 
 prudence would have suggested as the most hope- 
 
 ful mode of assuming the attributes of such a 
 
 Messiah as was then looked for by popular enthu- 
 siasm^? No, it cannot be. Here at least let scepti- 
 cism fairly own that it is at fault, plainly, palpa- 
 bly at fault. If it affects to value truth let it own 
 that here at least there is a sober reality wholly 
 irreconcileable with assumptions of mistaken enthu- 
 siasm or political adventure, here a life and a truth 
 with which the subtlest combinations of thought 
 could never have animated a mythical narrative. 
 
 But let us pass onward. No sooner had our Our Lord’s 
 Lord entered the city than all was amazed inquiry jer^saTem. 
 and commotion. The recognition, as far as we can 
 infer from the sacred narrative, would seem to 
 have been speedy and general^; not indeed in 
 those exalted strains which had just been heard 
 on Olivet, yet still in a manner which probably 
 served to show how true was the bitter admission 
 
 ^ It perhaps cannot be doubted 
 that at the present time numbers 
 trusted that they beheld in our Lord 
 the mighty Deliverer and Restorer, 
 whose advent was so earnestly and 
 so eagerly looked for ; see Luke 
 xxiv. 21, and compare Acts i. 6. 
 Still it seems by no means improba- 
 ble that with all this there was also 
 such a growing feeling that the 
 expected kingdom was to be at least 
 as much of a spiritual as of a tem- 
 poral nature (compare Luke xix. i t), 
 that even the most enthusiastic did 
 not perhaps generally associate with 
 the Lord’s present triumphal entry 
 many well-defined expectations of 
 ’purely political results and successes ; 
 compare Ewald, Gescli. Christus\ 
 p. 381. The nature of their accla- 
 
 mations seems confirmatory of this 
 view. 
 
 ^ We may observe the character- 
 istic way in which the inquiry is 
 made and the answer returned. The 
 people in the city at present share 
 but little in the enthusiasm of the 
 entering multitudes ; their only ques- 
 tion is, Tis e<XTiv ovTos (Matth. xxi. 
 10). The answer is given by the 
 6xXoi, — mainly as it would seem, 
 though probably not exclusively 
 those who were now accompanying 
 our Lord, — and not perhaps without 
 a tinge of provincial and local 
 pride : OJros ecrrtv 6 Trpotp'^Tys ’ly- 
 crovs \_Ree. ’lyaovs b 6 airb 
 
 '^a'^aped rys Ta\i\alas ; see Meyer, 
 in loc. p. 389 (ed. 4). 
 
 19—2 
 
292 
 
 The Last Passover. 
 
 LECT. 
 
 VII. 
 
 “ John xii. 
 19. 
 
 •• Mark xi. 
 
 ^ ver. II. 
 
 The curs- 
 ing of the 
 barren fig- 
 tree (Mon- 
 day.) 
 
 of the Pharisees one to another, that the whole 
 'world had gone after and that all their 
 
 efforts were at present of no avail. Yet by no 
 outward acts, if we adopt what seems on the whole 
 the most probable connexion of the sacred narra- 
 tive \ did our Lord as yet respond to those excited 
 feelings. All we read is that He entered the 
 Temple ^ and in one comprehending gaze^ beheld 
 all things, — all the mercenary desecration to which 
 the needs of the festal season had given fresh 
 impulse^ and which on the morrow must solemnly 
 be purged away. When all was surveyed evening 
 was now come®, and with the small company of 
 the Twelve our Lord returned to the quiet of the 
 upland village which He had left with such a 
 mighty multitude but a few hours before. 
 
 Early on the following morning, as we learn 
 from a comparison of the narratives of St Mat- 
 
 1 It seems slightly doubtful whe- 
 ther with Robinson we are to place 
 the cleansing of the Temple on the 
 same day as our Lord’s triumphal 
 entry, or whether with Lightfoot, 
 Wieseler, ah, we are to refer it to 
 the following day. The former view 
 is most in accordance with the con- 
 nexion of St Matthew’s narrative, 
 and is partially supported by the 
 notice of the children crying in the 
 Temple, which might seem but a 
 continuation of what had happened 
 on the way. Still the very distinct 
 note of time (ry eiraipiov, ch. xi. 12) 
 supplied by St Mark, coupled with 
 his precise notice of the lateness of 
 the hour when our Lord finished 
 His survey the preceding evening 
 (ch. xi. 1 1 ), leads us here to adopt 
 the generally safe rule, in cases of 
 disputed order, of giving the prefer- 
 
 ence to the narrative of that Evan- 
 gelist who has been moved to supply 
 a special rather than a merely gene- 
 ral note of the time when any event 
 occurred. The hypothesis that the 
 cleansing of the Temple commenced 
 on the afternoon of the Sunday and 
 was continued on the following day, 
 is noticed, but rightly rejected by 
 Gres well, Dissert, xxxix. Vol. iir. 
 p. 99 sq. 
 
 2 On the use of this peculiar 
 term by St Mark, see Da Costa, 
 Four Witnesses, p. 122, and com- 
 pare Lect. I. p. 25, note i. 
 
 ^ See Lightfoot, Hor. Ilehr. in 
 Matth. xxi. 12, who mentions that 
 the place where this traffic was car- 
 ried on was called nVJn (‘Tabemse ’), 
 and was in the spacious court of the 
 Gentiles. Compare Descr. Tem'pl. 
 cap. IX. Vol. I. p. 565. 
 
The Last Passover. 
 
 293 
 
 tliew^ and St Mark^, our Lord set forth from 
 Bethany, with the intention, we may humbly pre- 
 sume, of reaching the temple before any great 
 influx of worshippers could have been found in 
 its courts. The inspection of the preceding day® 
 had shown only too clearly that the sanctity of 
 His Father’s House must again be vindicated, and 
 that the unholy and usurious^ traffic which was 
 now being carried on within its walls must again^ 
 be purged out of the hallowed precincts. On the 
 way. He who was truly flesh of our flesh and bone 
 of our bone, felt the weakness of the nature He 
 vouchsafed to assume. He hungered, we are told 
 by the first two Evangelists and turned to a 
 way-side fig-tree® to see if haply there was the 
 fruit thereon of which the early show of leaves 
 though not the season of the year^ gave such 
 
 LECT. 
 
 VII. 
 
 ^ ch. xxi. 
 i8. 
 
 *'ch. xi. 12. 
 ®ver. II. 
 
 Matt, 
 xxi. 1 8. 
 Mark xi. 
 12 . 
 
 ® Matt, 
 xxi. 19. 
 
 1 See Lightfoot, llor. Hebr. in 
 Matth. xxi. 12, where there are some 
 valuable Rabbinical citations illus- 
 trative of the KoWv^uxral and their 
 practices. The following seems to 
 show that the agio exacted in chang- 
 ing common money into sacred, or 
 the shekel into two half- shekels was 
 great : * Quanti valoris est istud 
 lucrum? Tunc temporis cum dena- 
 rios persolverent pro Hemisiclo, 
 Kolbon [vel, lucrosus reditus num- 
 mulario pensus] fuit dimidium Mese, 
 hoc est pars duodecima denarii : et 
 nun quam minus.’ Talm. ‘Shekalim,’ 
 cap. 3. For a description of the 
 sacred shekel, compare Friedlieb, 
 Archdol. § 15, p. 37. 
 
 2 The purging of the temple 
 mentioned by St John (ch. ii. 13 sq.) 
 is rightly regarded by Chrysostom, 
 most of the older, and nearly all 
 the best recent expositors as different 
 
 from the present. It took place at 
 the Passover A.U.C. 781, or two 
 years before the present time : see 
 above, Lect. ill. p. 122. The vin- 
 dication of the sanctity and honour 
 of His Father’s house was thus 
 one of our Lord’s earliest as well 
 as one of His latest public acts. On 
 the difficulties which some inter- 
 preters have felt in the performance 
 of this authoritative act by our 
 Lord, especially on the first occa- 
 sion, see above, p. 123,' note i. 
 
 3 Much difficulty has been felt at 
 the partially parenthetical clause, 
 Mark xi. 13, 6 yap Kuipbs o^k riv 
 ciKwv {Tisch.), or ov ydp ijv Kaipbs 
 avKcov (Eec.). From this, it has been 
 urged, we are to conclude that our 
 Lord could not have expected to 
 find figs on the tree, and conse- 
 quently that the curse pronounced 
 on it is less easy to be accounted 
 
294 
 
 The Last Passover, 
 
 ^vn"‘ ostentatious promise. Hapless tree, emblem of a 
 
 still more hapless nation ! The dews of heaven 
 
 had fallen upon it, the sun-light had fostered it, 
 the sheltering hill-side had protected it ; all sea- 
 sonable influences had ministered to it, and, even 
 as it had been with the mercies of Jehovah to His 
 chosen people, all had been utterly in vain. Nay 
 worse than in vain ; the issue was a barrenness 
 that told not merely of frustrated but of per- 
 verted influences ; gifts from the God of nature 
 received only to issue forth in unprofitable and 
 deceptive produce ; not in the fruit of His appoint- 
 ment, but in pretentious and unseasonable leaves. 
 
 for. A close attention to the exact 
 words of the original combined with 
 the notices of modern travellers 
 seems completely to remove all dif- 
 ficulty. St Mark tells us distinctly 
 that our Lord saw a fig-tree ’ixovaav 
 (j}{iKka (ver. 13), i.e. affording the 
 usual, though in the present case, 
 extremely early evidence that fruit 
 was certainly to be looked for, the 
 latter regularly preceding the leaves : 
 see Thomson, The Land and the 
 Booh, Vol. I. p. 538, from whom 
 we learn that in a sheltered spot 
 figs of an early kind may occasion- 
 ally be found ripe as soon as the 
 beginning of April; compare also 
 Winer, RWB. Art, ^ Feigenbaum,’ 
 Vol. I. p. 367, Greswell, Dissert. 
 XXXIX. Vol. III. p. 91. Our Lord 
 approaches the tree to see d dpa, 
 — if, as was reasonable to expect 
 under such circumstances (Klotz, 
 Devar. p. 178 sq’), fruit was to be 
 found. He finds nothing except 
 leaves, — leaves not fruit, whereas if 
 it had been later and the regular 
 season He would have found fruit 
 and not leaves, and would not have 
 been attracted by the unseasonable 
 
 appearance of the tree; see Meyer, 
 Komment. iib. Marh. p, 134, whose 
 general explanation of the passage is 
 reasonable and satisfactory. The 
 ordinary supposition that these were 
 leaves of the preceding year and 
 that what our Lord expected was 
 fruit of the same year (see Light- 
 foot, Hor. Heir, in Matth. xxi. 19), 
 is' by no means probable, as the 
 connexion between the presence of 
 leaves and absence of fruit is thus 
 wholly lost, the curse not accounted 
 for (the tree might have once had 
 figs which others had now plucked 
 off), and lastly the force of the clause 
 ov yap K.T.\. either explained away 
 (‘Non stricte et solum rationem 
 reddit, cur ficus non invenerit; sed 
 rationem reddit totius actionis, cur 
 scilicet in monte isto, ficubus abun- 
 danti, unam tantum viderit, cui folia 
 talia,’ Lightfoot) or completely lost. 
 Explanations such as those of Lange 
 (Leben Jesu, Part ii. p. 321), Sepp 
 {Leben Christi, Vol. iii. p. 219) and 
 others, according to which Kaipos is 
 amplified to mean ‘favourable sea- 
 son ’ or ‘ favourable locality ’ appear 
 wholly untenable. 
 
The Last Passover, 
 
 295 
 
 Why then are we to pause for reasons, or to seek 
 about for any further explanation of what is at 
 once so suggestive and so intelligible ? Why 
 marvel we that, like the watered earth ‘that 
 bringeth not forth herbs meet for the use of man^,’ * 
 but beareth only thorns and briars, that emble- 
 matic tree was now ‘nigh unto cursing’ and that 
 its end was to be burned h 
 
 It was probably still early when our Lord The deans- 
 reached the Temple. Its present desecration might Temple 
 possibly not have been so great in every respect mercy 
 as it had been two years before. Still it is clear 
 that nearly every evil practice had been resumed. 
 
 Buyers and sellers were there, usurious money- 
 changers were there ; all was well nigh as of old. 
 
 Meet then was it that by authoritative acts no less 
 than in inspired words^ it should be proclaimed isai. ivi. 
 in the face of all men that God’s House was not Jer. vi. n. 
 for thievish gains ^ but for worship, not for Jewish 
 buying and selling but for the prayers of all the 
 scattered children of God^ Meet was it that as 
 
 1 The above comments seem fully 
 sufficient to meet the open or tacit 
 objections against this ‘destructive 
 act, — and that on a tree by the way- 
 side, the common property’ (Mil- 
 man, Mist, of Christianity, ch. Vii. 
 Vol. I. p. 309). Those who advance 
 such objections would do well to 
 remember the sensible remarks of 
 Chrysostom: ‘Whenever any such 
 act takes place either in respect of 
 places, plants, or things without 
 reason, be not over-precise in thy 
 comments, and do not say, “ How 
 then with justice was the fig-tree 
 made to wither away for it is the 
 extreme of folly to make such re- 
 marks. Look rather at the miracle, 
 
 and admire and glorify Him who 
 wroijght it.’ InMatth. Horn. Lxvii. 
 Vol. VII. p. 746. On the miracle 
 generally, see the good comments of 
 Hall, Contem^l. iv. 26, and Trench, 
 Notes on the Miracles, p. 435. 
 
 2 See above, p. 293, note r. 
 
 ^ It is worthy of notice that the 
 words Tra<n rots ’idvecLv, which duly 
 express the spirit of the prophecy 
 referred to, are only found in St 
 Mark (ch. xi. 17). The addition 
 would not seem due to any greater 
 care in St Mark’s mode of citation 
 (De Wette), but as suggested by the 
 general character of his Gospel and 
 its more general destination for Gen- 
 tile readers. 
 
206 
 
 The Last Passover. 
 
 LECT. 
 
 VII. 
 
 ® Matt, 
 xxi. 14. 
 
 ch. XI. 18. 
 
 ^ Matt, 
 xxi. 15. 
 
 ^ Mark 
 xiv. 18. 
 
 ^ Luke 
 xxii. 53. 
 
 *^Matt. xxi. 
 16. 
 
 at the first Passover of our Lord’s ministry so at 
 His last the majesty of the eternal Father should 
 be thus openly glorified by the acts of His eternal 
 Son. And not by these only. Deeds of mercy 
 followed deeds of necessity. The blind came to 
 Him and received their sight ; the lame walked^, — 
 yea even before the unbelieving eyes of the very 
 chief priests and scribes who, as we learn from 
 St Mark^, had heard of the Lord’s presence in the 
 Temple, and were now seeking to find an opportu- 
 nity of destroying Him^ whom nov/, more than 
 ever, they were regarding with mingled hatred 
 and apprehension. At present it was in vain. 
 The children round them glorifying the Son of 
 David‘S, the attentive and awe-stricken multitude‘s 
 hanging on the words and deeds of Him whom 
 they had welcomed yesterday with cries that their 
 children were now reiterating, all clearly told the 
 party of the Sanhedrin, that their hour, — the hour 
 of the powers of darkness®, — had not yet come. 
 One effort they make ; reproachfully they ask 
 Him if He hears, if He accepts these cries of 
 homage s, plainly implying what the Pharisees had 
 
 1 It is perhaps scarcely safe to 
 make definite historical deductions 
 from finer shades of grammatical 
 distinction which may not have been 
 fully recognized by the writers ; still 
 the student’s attention may be called 
 to Mark xi. 18 i^yrovu [ot dpxi^p^ts 
 Kal oi ypayyaTeis] ttQs avrbu diro- 
 \^<ru}<Tiu, where the tense adopted, 
 diroXiffuaiv (Tisch., Lachm., with 
 the four leading MSS.) or dTro\4- 
 aovfftv {Rec. with later MSS.), will 
 modify the view taken of the con- 
 duct of the members of the Sanhe- 
 drin, If we adopt the subjunctive 
 
 the meaning will simply be ‘how 
 they should kill Him,’ how they 
 should carry out the design they 
 were now entertaining : if the future, 
 — which, however, critically consi- 
 dered seems less probable, — the 
 meaning will be, ‘how they shall 
 kill Him,’ how they shall accomplish 
 a design, already definitely formed 
 and agreed upon, and now consi- 
 dered only in reference to the ‘mo- 
 dus operandi.’ On this distinction 
 see Winer, Gr. § 41. a, p. 266 (ed. 6), 
 and compare Stalbaum on Plato, 
 Sympos. p. 2 ■25. 
 
The Last Passover, 
 
 297 
 
 openly demanded on the Mount of Olives the 
 day before^, that such demonstrations should be 
 
 silenced b But neither then nor now is it meet Luke xix. 
 
 39 * 
 
 that the jubilant accents, whether of loving or of 
 innocent lips, should be hushed and checked. Nay 
 prophecy must have its fulfilment. With the 
 pertinent words of a Psalm ^ of which the deeper Ps. viii. 
 meaning and application was now fully disclosed, 
 our Lord leaves the Temple and city and returns 
 again to Bethany. 
 
 On the morrow, and, as St Mark tells us^, ^nswersto 
 early in the day, our Lord and His disciples take tion from 
 their way to J erusalem. Much there awaited 
 them. The day preceding had been marked by 
 manifestations of divine power as shown forth in 
 deeds and wondrous works ; the present day was 
 to be the witness of divine wisdom as shown forth 
 in words and discourses. It was a day that our 
 
 1 The present feelings of these 
 evil men are very distinctly put 
 before us by the comment of St 
 Mark, — icpo^ovvTO yap airov, ch, xi. 
 1 8. Formerly it was the hostility 
 of an hypocrisy, which saw its real 
 principles of action exposed, and of 
 a party spirit which deemed its pre- 
 rogatives interfered with or disre- 
 garded. Now there is a positive 
 apprehension, founded, probably, on 
 the recent reception of Our Lord by 
 the populace, that their own power 
 will be soon wholly set aside, and 
 that the prophet of Nazareth will 
 become the theocratic leader of the 
 nation. Even the heathen Pilate 
 recognized the true motive of their 
 actions; iiheL yap 6 rt dia (f>d 6 vov 
 TrapiduKav avrbv, Matth. xxvii. i8. 
 The present behaviour of the people, 
 as CyriPof Alexandria has well ob- 
 
 served, ought to have led to a very 
 different result : ‘ And does not this 
 then make the punishment of the 
 scribes and Pharisees and all the 
 rulers of the Jewish ranks more 
 heavy? that the whole people, con- 
 sisting of unlearned persons, hung 
 upon the sacred doctrines, and drank 
 in the saving word as the rain, and 
 were ready to bring forth also the 
 fruits of faith, and place their neck 
 under His commandments : but they 
 whose office it was to urge on their 
 people to this very thing, savagely 
 rebelled, and wickedly sought the 
 opportunity for murder, and with 
 unbridled violence ran upon the 
 rocks, not accepting the faith and 
 wickedly hindering others also.’ 
 Commentary on St Luke, Serm, 
 cxxxii. Part ii. p. 615 (Transl.). 
 
298 
 
 The Last Passover. 
 
 Lord foreknew would be marked by rapidly chang- 
 
 ing incidents \ by every varied form of stratagem, 
 
 by hypocritical questionings and insidious inquiry; 
 it was to be a day of last and Inost solemn warnings, 
 of deepest and most momentous prophecies; early 
 must it needs be that He go, late that He return. 
 Ere they reach Jerusalem the hapless emblem of 
 that city and its people meets the eyes of the 
 disciples : the fig-tree, as the graphic St Mark 
 ^ ch. xi. 20. tells us, was withered from its very roots The 
 wondering question that was called forth by such 
 an exhibition of the power of their Master over 
 the material world, receives its practical answer in 
 the solemn reiteration of words first uttered by 
 Matt, way of gentle reproof some months before^, and 
 now again, by way of instruction, declaring the 
 omnipotence of perfect and unwavering faith 
 
 ^ To the present clay (Tuesday) 
 are assigned by most of the leading 
 liarmonists all the events and dis- 
 courses comprised in Matth. xxi. 20 
 — XXV. 46, Mark xi. 20 — xiii. 37, 
 Luke XX. I — xxi. 38, and apparently 
 (see below, p. 315), Johnxii. 20 — 36, 
 with the recapitulatory remai’ks and 
 citations of the Evangelist ver. 37 
 — 50. We have thus on this im- 
 portant day, the answer to the de- 
 putation from the Sanhedrin, and 
 the three parables which followed 
 it ; the ansWer to the Pharisees and 
 Herodians about the tribute-money, 
 to the Sadducees about the woman 
 with seven husbands, and to the scribe 
 about the greatest commandment; 
 the question put to the Pharisees 
 I about the Messiah, and the severely 
 i reproving discourse in reference to 
 I them and the scribes ; the praise of 
 I the poor widow ; the words uttered 
 
 in the presence of the Greeks who 
 sought to see our Lord, and the last 
 prophecies in reference to the de- 
 struction of J erusalem and the end 
 of the world, with the accompanying 
 parable of the Ten Virgins. See 
 Wieseler, Chron. Synops. p. 393 sq., 
 and Greswell, Dissert, XL. Vol. iii. 
 p. 109 sq., who, however, conceives 
 the day to be Wednesday, and also 
 differs in fixing the incident of the 
 Greeks on the day of the Triumphal 
 Entry. The view of Milman {Hist, 
 of Christianity, Vol. i. p. 311 note) 
 that some of the discourses, e.g. the 
 answer to the Pharisees and Hero- 
 dians and what followed, belong to 
 a day subsequent to that on which 
 the answer was made to the deputa- 
 tion from the Sanhedrin, has very 
 little in its favour. 
 
 2 The addition of the verse in St 
 Mark (ch. xi. 25) on the duty and 
 
The Last Passover. 
 
 209 
 
 They pass onward to the Temple, where already, 
 early as it was**^, many were gathered together 
 to hear the teaching of Life and those glad-tidings 
 of the Gospel, which now, as St Luke'^ incidentally 
 informs us, formed the subject of our Lord’s ad- 
 dresses to His eager‘s and wondering hearers. 
 Blit, as since, so then was the Gospel to some 
 a savour of death unto death®. The Lord’s 
 preaching is broken in upon by a formal deputa- 
 tion from the Sanhedrin^ with two questions fair 
 and specious in their general form, and yet most 
 mischievously calculated to call forth an answer 
 that might be twisted into a charge, — ^By what 
 authority was He doing these things^ V and 
 
 necessity of showing a forgiving 
 spirit especially when offering up 
 prayer to God (compare Matth. vi. 
 14) has been judged by Meyer and 
 others as due to the Evangelist, and 
 as not forming a part of Our Lord’s 
 present words. This seems a very 
 uncalled-for assumption. The pre- 
 ceding declaration of the prevailing 
 nature of the prayer of faith leads 
 our Lord to add a warning, which 
 a possible misunderstanding of the 
 miracle just performed might sug- 
 gest as necessary, — viz. that this 
 efficacy of prayer was not to be used 
 against others even though they 
 might be thought justly to deserve 
 our animadversion : compare Stier, 
 Disc, of our Lord, Vol. iii. p. 105, 
 Lange, Lelen Jesu, ii. 6. 6, p. 1212. 
 That our Lord should have uttered 
 the same words on another and ear- 
 lier occasion, and should now be 
 pleased to repeat them involves no- 
 thing that is either unlikely or 
 even unusual; see Lect. iv. p. 179, 
 note 2. 
 
 1 This seems clearly implied by 
 
 St Mark’s mention of the three com- 
 ponent parts of the supreme court, 
 — ^pxovrai irpos avrbv oi dpxtcpeis 
 Kat oi ypap.p.aTeh Kal oi Trpea^drepoL, 
 ch. xi. 27; compare Matth. xxi. 23, 
 Luke XX. I. For a good account of 
 these three sections of the Sanhe- 
 drin, the first of which was com- 
 posed of priests { perhaps heads o f 
 the 24 classes, — not deposed High- 
 priests), the second of expounders 
 and transcribers of the law (see 
 Lightfoot, Hor. Hebr. in Matth. ii. 
 4), the third of the heads of the 
 principal fami l ies of Israel, see Fried- 
 lieb, Archdol. § 8, p. 15 sq. 
 
 2 In the question proposed by the 
 deputation, ’Ei' iroia i^ovatg, raura 
 TTOicis (Mark xi. 28), the ravra 
 appears to refer, not to the present 
 or previous teaching of our Lord 
 (Bengel, comp. Chrys.), but to the 
 authoritative purging of the Temple 
 the day before (Cyril. Alex., Eu- 
 thym.) and apparently also to the 
 miracles on the blind and the lame, 
 of which some of the speakers had 
 been witnesses; see Matth. xxi. 15. 
 
 LECT. 
 
 VII. 
 
 “ See Mark 
 xi. 20, and 
 compare 
 Luke xxi. 
 
 38. 
 
 ch. XX. 
 
 20. 
 
 ^ Luke xix. 
 48. 
 
 Mark xi. 
 
 18. 
 
 ® 2 Cor. ii. 
 16. 
 
300 
 
 The Last Passover. 
 
 LECT. 
 
 VII. 
 
 a Matt, 
 xxi. 23. 
 
 ** ver. 25. 
 f ver. 27. 
 
 ver. 28- 
 
 33—46. 
 
 ^From whom did He receive it^?’ But question 
 must be met by question. Ere the Messiah de- 
 clares the nature of His mission, He must be told 
 in what aspects the mission of His Forerunner 
 was regarded. Was that without higher sanction, 
 unaccredited, unauthorized, — from men or from 
 heaven ? Let the spiritual rulers of the nation 
 answer that question, and then in turn shall an- 
 swer be made to them. The sequel we well 
 remember ; the shrewdly-v/eighed alternatives 
 the necessary admission — Hhey could not telF,’ 
 the consequent refusal of our Lord to give them 
 an answer and yet the mercy, with which, by 
 means of two parables'^, their conduct both in its 
 individual and in its official aspects is placed 
 clearly before them^, with all its issues of shame 
 and condemnation. 
 
 The probable design was to induce 
 our Lord to lay such claim to divine 
 powers as might be turned into a 
 charge against Him. 
 
 1 The question proposed by our 
 Lord had close reference to Himself 
 as Him of whom John had spoken, 
 and that too to a similar deputation 
 (John i. 19 sq.) to the present. The 
 Sanhedrin had heard two years ago 
 from the mouth of the Baptist an 
 indirect answer to the very ques- 
 tion they were now proposing : meet 
 then was it that they should first 
 declare the estimation in which they 
 held him who had so spoken to 
 them. 
 
 2 In the first of the two parables, 
 the Two Sons sent into the Vine- 
 yard, the general course of conduct 
 of the Pharisaical party is put in 
 contrast with that of the publicans 
 iind harlots (ver. 31), and thus more 
 
 clearly shown in its true character. 
 By their general habits this latter 
 class practically said ov OiXto to the 
 divine command, but afterwards re- 
 pented at the preaching of John. 
 The Pharisaical party, on the con- 
 trary, at once said iyCo Kiupie with 
 all affected readiness, but, as their 
 conduct to this very hour showed 
 clearly enough, never even attempt- 
 ed to fulfil the promise : they were 
 the Second son of the parable, the 
 harlots and publicans (not the Gen- 
 tiles, as Chrysost. and the principal 
 patristic expositors) the First; com- 
 pare Lange, Lehen Jesu, ii. 6. 6, 
 Part II. p. 1215, Gres well. Dissert, 
 ' XL. Vol. III. p. 1 1 3, and see He 
 Wette and Meyer in loc. In the 
 second parable, — the Husbandmen 
 who slew the Heir, the conduct of 
 the Pharisaical party, as Stier {Disc, 
 of Our Lord, Vol. iii. p. 107) rightly 
 
The Last Passover. 
 
 801 
 
 The drift of the two parables, especially of the 
 second, they failed not clearly to perceive. They 
 
 knew that our Lord was speaking with refer- Sor\Ton^ 
 ence to them^, but they heed not, nay they renew Ihe deputf- 
 their efforts aofainst Him with greater implaca- 
 
 ^ ^ IVTaitTc xii« 
 
 bility, and are only restrained from open acts by 12. 
 their fear of the populace^. With words of last '’Matt, 
 and merciful warning’, as expressed in the parable 
 of the Marriage of the Kings Soil‘d, they depart 
 for a season to organize some plan how they may 
 ensnare the Holy One in His Speech‘S ; how they Matt, 
 may force Him or beguile Him into admissions Mark xii. 
 which may afford a colourable pretext for giving 
 Him up to the stern man^ that then bore the 
 sword in Jerusalem. 
 
 They choose fit instruments for such an at- The ques- 
 tion about 
 
 of mercy on the part of our Lord in 
 
 observes, is set forth more in refer- 
 ence to its official characteristics, 
 and to the position of the rejecting 
 party as representatives of the na- 
 tion. At the same time also the 
 punishment that awaited them (eTrij- 
 yaye Kal ras KoXdaets, Chrys.), which 
 was only hinted at in the first para- 
 ble (Matth. xxi. 2 1), is now expressly 
 declared; see Matth. xxi. 41. On 
 these parables generally, see Stier, 
 Z. c.. Trench, Notes on the Parables, 
 p. 1 60 sq., 173 sq., and comp. Gres- 
 well, Parables, Vol. v. p. i sq. 
 
 1 There seems no just reason for 
 thinking with Olshausen and others 
 that Matth xxi. 45, 46 conclude the 
 previous scene. The words only de- 
 pict the general state of feeling of 
 the adverse party, — viz. that they 
 both perceived the application of the 
 parable and were only restrained 
 from open violence by fear of the 
 multitude, — and thus in fact pre- 
 pare the reader for the further act 
 
 addressing yet another parable to 
 these malignant enemies: compare 
 Chrysost. in Matth. Horn. lxix. 
 init., Lange, Leben Jesu, ii. 6. 6, 
 Part II. p. 1217. 
 
 ^ Such certainly seems to have 
 been the general character of Pilate 
 as Procurator of Judaea : see Luke 
 xiii. I, and compare Joseph. Antiq. 
 XVIII. 3. I sq.. Bell. Jud. ii. 9. 2 sq. 
 There are some proofs that this 
 sternness was not always pushed to 
 an extreme (see Friedlieb, Archdol. 
 § 34, p. 122, note), but it is still 
 equally clear that his general con- 
 duct towards the refractory province 
 of which he was Procurator was by 
 no means marked by leniency or 
 forbearance. The consideration of 
 his conduct as a public officer forms 
 the subject of a separate treatise by 
 J. C. S. Germar, Thorun. 1785 ; see 
 Winer, RWB. Art. ‘Pilatus,’ Vol. 
 li. p. 262. 
 
302 
 
 TliG Last Passover. 
 
 LECT. 
 
 VII. 
 
 paying 
 tribute to 
 Cffisar. 
 
 “ Matt, 
 xxii. i6. 
 
 •’ Mark iii. 
 
 6 . 
 
 ^ ch. XX. 
 “ 20 . 
 
 tempt, — their own disciples associated with Hero- 
 dians'', men at variance in many points^ but united 
 in one, and ready enough now, as they had been 
 once before ^ to combine in any attempt to com- 
 pass the destruction of one who was alike hateful to 
 both. ’Twas a well-arranged combination ; religious 
 hypocrisy and political craft; hierarchical prejudice 
 and royalist sympathies ; each party scarcely tole- 
 rating the other except for temporary and special 
 purposes, and yet both of them for the time and 
 the occasion working harmoniously together^, and 
 concurring in the proposal of the most perplexing 
 and dangerous question that could then have been 
 devised, — the tributary relations of a conquered 
 to a conquering people. Let us pause for a moment 
 to consider the exact nature of the attempt, and 
 
 the true difficulties of the question proposed A 
 
 party of men with every appearance, as the third 
 Evangelist implies of being right-minded and 
 thoroughly in earnest come, as it would seem, with 
 a case of conscience^, ‘Was it meet and right to 
 
 1 On the general characteristics of 
 the political sect of the Herodians, 
 see Lect. iv. p. 176, note 3. 
 
 2 The temporary bond of union 
 between the two parties was now 
 probably a common fear caused by 
 the attitude which they conceived 
 our Lord to have recently assumed. 
 The triumphal entry into Jerusalem 
 and the authoritative acts in the 
 Temple would have been easily re- 
 presented by the Pharisees, though 
 happening in Judaea, as boding 
 danger to the authority of Herod 
 when the Prophet should return 
 back to his home in Galilee. To 
 regard the Herodians as * soldiers of 
 Herod’ (Chrysost.), and sent only 
 
 as witnesses (el' rt Kara roO Kalo-apos 
 airoKpideLr}, Euthym.), does not seem 
 either natural or accordant with the 
 expressions of the sacred narrative, 
 which seem rather to imply that 
 both parties joined in the question; 
 see Mark xii. 14. 
 
 ^ The question, it will be observed, 
 was so worded as to show that it 
 affected to be considered as some- 
 thing more than one of mere politi- 
 cal duty or expediency. The inquiry 
 was not whether it was advisable to 
 give tribute to Caesar, but whether 
 it was lawful to do so {^^ecrriv 
 dowai, Matth. xxii. 17, Mark xii. 
 14, Luke XX. 22), whether it was 
 consistent with an acknowledgment 
 
The Last Passover. 
 
 803 
 
 give tribute to Caesar or no.’ To such a question 
 even if projDosed by honest men, hard would it 
 have been to have returned a blameless answer at 
 such a time and in such a place, — during the 
 tumultuous passover-season, and in the very pre- 
 sence of the symbols of these conflicting claims ; 
 when round the speakers spread the Temple-courts 
 and the thronging worshippers of the God of 
 Israel, when yonder stood the palace of the first 
 Herod, and in front rose the frowning tower of 
 Antonia ^ Hard indeed would it have been in 
 such a case to have answered honest men without 
 causing offence ; but plainly, as it would have seem- 
 ed, impossible, when those who put the question 
 were avowed hypocrites, of differing religious sym- 
 pathies and of discordant political creeds. If the 
 Lord answered as they might have hoped and 
 expected^, standing as now He did in the very 
 
 of God as their king. The seditious 
 enterprise of Judas of Gamala 
 (Acts V. 37) put this forward as one 
 of the principles which it pretended 
 to vindicate, — ixovov riye/uLSua Kai 
 decnroTTjv rbv Qeov eXvai, Joseph. 
 Antiq. xviii. i. 6; compare Light- 
 foot, Hor. Hebr. in Mattk. xxii. 20, 
 Sepp, Lehen Christi, vi. 1 7, V ol. ill. 
 p. 256. 
 
 1 This fortress was re-built by 
 the first Herod towards the begin- 
 ning of his reign (Joseph. Aniiq. 
 XVIII. 4. 3) and was situated at the 
 N. W. corner of the Temple enclo- 
 sure, with which it w^as connected 
 by an underground gallery (Joseph. 
 Antiq. xv. ii. 7). Its situation and 
 the full view it commanded of the 
 outer courts made it a convenient 
 place for the Roman garrison by 
 which, when J udaea came under the 
 jurisdiction of a Procurator, it was 
 
 regularly occupied : see Winer, R WB. 
 Art. ‘Tempel,’ Vol. ii. p. 586, com- 
 pare Friedlieb, Arclidol. § 28, p. 98 
 sq. 
 
 ^ ‘They expected,’ says Chrysos- 
 tom, ‘that they should catch Him 
 whichever way he might answer; 
 they hoped, however, that He would 
 answer against the Herodians.’ In 
 Mattli. Horn. lxx. : compare Eu- 
 thym. in loc. This also, as Cyril of 
 Alexandria observe.s, seems clearly 
 to transpire from the words of St 
 Luke (IVa eViXd/Swvrai avrov \ 6 yov, 
 io<jT€ Trapadovpai avrov rfj dpxv xat 
 ry e^ovcriq rod i]yepi, 6 vo$, ch. xx. 20), 
 and probably suggested the insidious 
 comment (01) /SXeTrets eis irpoaojirov 
 dvdpd'TTOjv, Matth. xxii. 16, Mark 
 xii. 14 ; compare Luke xx. 21) 
 with which they accosted our Lord. 
 ‘This too they say, inciting Him 
 not to entertain any reverence for 
 
 LECT. 
 
 VII. 
 
804 
 
 The Last Passover. 
 
 LECT. 
 
 VII. 
 
 a Luke 
 
 xiii. I. 
 
 Exposure 
 and frus- 
 tration of 
 the strata- 
 gem. 
 
 centre of Judaism, and laying claim to represent 
 all that was most distinctive in its expectations, — 
 if He answered. Nay, their most eager wish was 
 realized ; they could at once, with a fair show of 
 reason and justice, deliver Him up to the Homan 
 government as an advocate of sedition, a Galilsean 
 of avowed Galilsean sympathies, one whose blood 
 they knew Pilate would now as readily shed at the 
 very altar, as he had shed that of His countrymen^ 
 but a short time before h Did He, however, con- 
 trary to expectation answer. Yea, — then He stood 
 forth to the multitude as the practical opponent of 
 the theocratic aspirations they so dearly cherished ; 
 and to the Herodians, as the Jewish subject. of a 
 Jewish prince, who scrupled not to sanction the 
 payment of tribute to heathens and to strangers. 
 
 Such was the most artful and complex stra- 
 tagem ever laid against the Saviour^; and yet with 
 what divine simplicity was it frustrated. A word 
 
 Caesar, and not from any fear to 
 withhold an answer to the inquiry.’ 
 Euthymius on Matth. xxii. i6. 
 
 1 The exact time and circum- 
 stances under which the act here 
 alluded to took place is not known. 
 The way in which it was told to our 
 Lord {Traprjcrav 5^ rivet iv a’urip rip 
 Katpip airayyiKKovret, Luke xiii. i) 
 would seem to imply that it had 
 happened recently, and the mention 
 of the country to which the victims 
 belonged would also seem to render 
 it likely that it was one of those 
 movements in which the Galilaeans 
 were so often implicated; compare 
 Joseph. Vit. § 17, and Antiq. xvil. 
 9. 3. That they were actual adhe- 
 rents of the party which Judas of 
 Gamala had formerly headed (Theo- 
 phyl.) is possible, but not very pro- 
 
 bable : see Lightfoot, Hor. Heir, in 
 Luc. xiii. I. 
 
 2 It is not without point that 
 Cyril of Alexandria alludes to the 
 way in which they who strove to 
 involve the innocent Saviour with 
 the Roman government themselves 
 became involved with that nation 
 in the most tragic way. After 
 quoting Psalm xxxv. 7 and showing 
 its application in the present case 
 he adds: 'For so verily they did 
 fall ; for because they delivered Jesus 
 unto Pilate, they were themselves 
 given over to destruction, and the 
 Roman host consumed them with 
 fire and sword, and burnt up all 
 their land, and even the glorious 
 temple that was among them.’ Com- 
 mentary on Luke, Serm. cxxxv. Part 
 II. p. 633 (TransL). 
 
The Last Passover. 
 
 305 
 
 lays bare the true character of the affected case 
 of conscience and of those who proposed it^ ; —7“; r 
 a single command that the tribute-money be 15- 
 brought'', and a single inquiry whose image it 
 bore^, — and the whole web of cunning and hypo- Lukexx. 
 crisy is rent in a moment: — ^All that by God’s 
 appointment belongs unto Caesar must be rendered 
 unto Caesar, and all that be God’s unto God, and 
 to Him alone V... On receiving such an answer no 
 marvel is it that we read‘s that the very inquirers 
 
 ^ It is very distinctly specified by 
 all the three Synoptical Evangelists 
 that our Lord saw into the hearts 
 and characters of those who came 
 with the question ; compare Matth. 
 xxii. 18 , yvov% de 6 ’Iwou? tt]i/ ttovt]- 
 play ; Mark xii. 15 , et5a?5 avruu r^v 
 xnrbKpunv ; Luke xx. -23, KaTavoT^aas 
 airQu t^v Travovpylau . We are 
 told by St Luke that they were 
 iyKaOirovs V7roKpiyo/J.€vovs iavrois 
 Stxatous eTvai (ch. xx. 20) ; this our 
 Lord confirms and exposes by His 
 address as recorded by St Matthew 
 [the reading in St Mark and St Luke 
 is doubtful], — Tt fX€ Treipd^ere vtto- 
 Kpiral, ch. xxii. 18 . 
 
 2 The exact force of this declara- 
 tion has been somewhat differently 
 estimated, in consequence of the dif- 
 ferent meanings that have been as- 
 signed to rd Tov GeoO. Most of 
 them, however, e. g. ‘ the Temple- 
 tribute ’ (Milman, Hist, of Chris- 
 tianity, Vol. I. p. 313), ‘the inner 
 life’ (Lange, Leben Jesu, Part ii. 
 1220; comp. Tertull. contr. Marc. 
 IV. 38), &c., seem wholly inconsis- 
 tent with the general form of the 
 expression, and give a mere special 
 and partial aspect to what was de- 
 signedly inclusive and comprehen- 
 sive. If with Chrysostom {in Matth. 
 Horn. LXX. Vol. VII. p. 776) we ex- 
 
 plain the expression as simply and 
 generally, rd ry Gey Trap’ rjfiQu 
 6(pei\6gem, the meaning of the whole 
 appears perfectly clear : ‘ Give to 
 Caesar what rightly belongs to him 
 (ou yap icrri tovto Bovvai, dW’ diro- 
 doOrai, Chrys.), as to one ordained 
 of God (Rom. xiii. i), and to God, 
 all that be His, — all that is due to 
 Him, as your King and your God.’ 
 Thus then, far from separating what 
 is political from what is religious, 
 or accepting the question in the 
 alternative form {Bovvai r} oii, i. e. in 
 point of fact ‘Caesar or God’?) in 
 which it was proposed, our Lord 
 graciously returns an answer which 
 shows that it was not a question for 
 either Yea or Nay ; that obedience 
 to Caesar and duty to God were not 
 things to be put in competition with 
 each other but to be united, — the 
 latter supplying, where necessary, 
 the true regulating and limiting 
 principle of the former (see Chrys. 
 in loc.), and the former thus regu- 
 lated and defined becoming a very 
 part of the latter, — duty to Him by 
 whom Caesar was Caesar, and from 
 whom are ‘ the powers that be.’ For 
 sound practical applications of this 
 text see Andrewes, Serm. vi. Vol. v. 
 p. 127 (A.-C Libr.), and a sermon by 
 Mill, TJniv. Serm. i. p. i sq. 
 
 20 
 
 E. H. L. 
 
80G 
 
 The Last Passover. 
 
 LECT. 
 
 VII. 
 
 “ Luke XX. 
 'iG. 
 
 The ques- 
 tion of the 
 Sadducees 
 touching 
 the Resur- 
 rection. 
 
 ch. xxii. 
 2 3 - 
 
 tendered to Him the reluctant homage of their 
 wonder^, that they were silent* and went their 
 way. 
 
 But if a question as to civil duties and rela- 
 tions has been thus answered and thus foiled, 
 might not a question as to religious differences 
 prove more successful ? Was there not some hope 
 in stirring a controversy that had long separated 
 two important sects ? Might not the Sadducee 
 succeed where the Pharisee and Herodian had 
 failed ? The trial we know was made. On that 
 same day, as St Matthew'^ particularly specifies, 
 a party of the Sadducees^ probably acting under 
 the instructions of the same supreme court ap- 
 proach our Lord with a hypothetical case of reli- 
 gious difficulty, — the woman that had seven 
 husbands in this world ; to whom was she to 
 belong in that world to come in which those 
 worldly and self-sufficient speakers so utterly dis- 
 believed^ ? The question was coarsely devised and 
 
 ^ This, not improbably, would have 
 been increased by the recognition of 
 the determination of their own schools 
 (‘Ubicunque numisma regis alicujus 
 obtinet, illic incolge regem istum 
 pro domino agnoscunt.’ Maimon. in 
 ‘Gezelah,’ cap. 5), which the Lord 
 was in part here actually propound- 
 ing to them : see Lightfoot, Hor. 
 Hehr. in Matth. xxii. 10. 
 
 2 These Sadducees might have 
 been and perhaps actually were a 
 portion of the Sanhedrin, the reli- 
 gious opinions of the sect being no 
 bar to their election as members 
 of the supreme court ; see Acts 
 xxiii. 6, and compare Friedlieb, 
 ArcTidol. § 8, p. 19. There seems 
 no reason for supposing with Light- 
 
 foot {in Matth. xxii. 23) that there 
 was any connexion in point of reli- 
 gious creed between the present 
 party and the Herodians who had 
 just gone away. Some of the Hero- 
 dians might possibly have been 
 Sadducees, but to draw definitely 
 such a conclusion from Matth. xvi. 
 6 compared with Mark viii. 1 5 seems 
 certainly precarious, especially when 
 we remember that Herod can hardly 
 be conceived himself to have had 
 much in common with the peculiar 
 tenets of the Sadducees ; see Matth. 
 xiv. 2. 
 
 ^ See Lightfoot, Hor. Hehr. in 
 Matth. xii. 32. The statement of 
 the Sadducee was, ‘Deficit nubes, 
 atque abit; sic descendens in sepul- 
 
The Last Passover. 
 
 807 
 
 coarsely propounded ; but the attempt to drive our 
 
 Lord into some admissions that might compro- 
 
 mise Him either with the Pharisees or with the 
 multitude was rendered thereby all the more hope- 
 ful. To such a question our Lord vouchsafes to 
 return no answer; but to the evil heart of unbelief 
 from which it came He speaks out clearly and 
 plainly. With all their affected wisdom and phi- 
 losophic calm He tells them they do err^ and that ^^atth. 
 
 xxu. 
 
 they know not, either the Scriptures, which clearly Mark xii. 
 teach the doctrine of the future state that they 
 so confidently denied, or the power of God, which 
 shall make man the equal of angels and the in- 
 heritor of incorruption b So clear was the vindi- 
 cation of God’s truth, so weighty the censure, so 
 final the answer, that we can scarcely wonder 
 that the impressible multitudes were stricken with 
 amazement^ and that some even of the number of 
 
 chrum non redit.’ Tan chum, fol. 3. 
 I, cited by Lightfoot on Matth. xxii. 
 23. They appeared to have believed 
 that the soul perished with the body 
 (EaddvKaiois ras \pvxas 6 X070S (rvv~ 
 a^avi^ei rots crdiiiaai, Joseph. Antiq. 
 XVIII. I. 4), and thus as a matter of 
 course denied the doctrine of the 
 Resurrection, and of Future rewards 
 and punishments ; compare Joseph. 
 Bell, Jud. II. 8. 14. On the origin 
 and peculiarities of this sect, see 
 Lightfoot, in Matth. iii. 7, Jost, 
 Gesch. des Judenth. ii. 1. 8, Vol. i. 
 p. 215, and a good article by Winer, 
 RWB. Vol. II. p. 352. 
 
 ^ Our Lord does not notice the 
 mere question of the Sadducees but 
 the erroneous belief that suggested 
 it (ou Trpos rd p-rj/xara dWa Trpbs tt]v 
 yvdjpLTjv lardfievos, Chrysost.) ; this 
 He shows was due to their ignorance 
 
 of two things (i) the Scriptures, (2) 
 the power of God. Their ignorance 
 of the lattei' is shown first, (Matth. 
 xxii. 30, Mark xii. 25, Luke xx. 35, 
 36,) by a declaration of the charac- 
 teristics of the life after death, and 
 the change of the natural body into 
 a spiritual body (i Cor. xv. 44 ; 
 comp. Phil. iii. 21); the ignorance 
 of the former by a declaration of the 
 doctrine really contained in the 
 Scriptures, and more especially in 
 one of the books (Exod. iii. 6) of 
 that very portion (the Pentateuch) 
 that contained the passage on which 
 they had based their question : 
 eTreid'rjTrep CKecuoi top M-Uivaia Trpoe- 
 pdXopTO \onrbv Kal avrbs dirb rrjs 
 MojcralVcTjs ypa(pT]s rodrovs iircaTopii- 
 ^ei. Euthyraius, in Matth. xxii. 31, 
 closely following Chrysost. in loc., 
 Vol. VII. p. 778 (ed. Bened.). 
 
 20—2 
 
808 
 
 The Last Passover. 
 
 LECT. 
 
 VII. 
 
 * Luke XX. 
 
 39- 
 
 The ques- 
 tion of the 
 lawyer 
 about the 
 greatest 
 command- 
 ment. 
 
 ch. xxii. 
 35- 
 
 our Lord’s opponents could not forbear declaring 
 that He had ^well spoken^/ that the discomfiture 
 of the impugners of the future state was complete 
 and overwhelmingh 
 
 One at least of that number was so struck by 
 the divine wisdom of our Lord’s last answer, that 
 though, as it would seem from the narrative of 
 St Matthew he came forward with the hope of 
 retrieving the honour of the sect to which we 
 
 know that he belonged' 
 have been merged in 
 
 1 It has been commonly alleged 
 both by ancient (Origen, contr. 
 Cels. I. 49, expressly, — compare 
 also Tertull. Prcescr. Har. cap, 45) 
 and modern writers that the Saddu- 
 cees only acknowledged the authority 
 of the Pentateuch, and that in con- 
 sequence our Lord specially appealed 
 to that portion of Scripture. This, 
 however, is now as it would seem 
 rightly called in question, there being 
 no confirmation of such an opinion 
 in the notices of the sect supplied 
 by Josephus (compare Antiq. xiii. 
 10. 6, XVIII. I. 4, Bell. Jud. ii. 8), 
 and a reasonable probability that 
 the Sadducees could not have had 
 the share in the civil and religious 
 government of the nation, which it 
 can be proved they had, if they had 
 openly differed from the rest of their 
 countrymen on a point of such fun- 
 damental importance as the canon 
 of Scripture. The correct statement 
 appears to be, that they rejected all 
 tradition and received only the writ- 
 ten law, and that this special adhe- 
 rence to the latter, though merely 
 in contradistinction to the former, 
 gave rise to the opinion that this 
 was the only part of Scripture that 
 they accepted as canonical : see esp. 
 
 ‘, the partisan seems to 
 the interested inquirer ; 
 
 Joseph. Antiq.TLiu. 10. 6, and Winer, 
 RWB. Art. ‘Sadducaer,’ Vol. ii. 
 P- 353- 
 
 ^ According to St Matthew (ch. 
 xxii. 35 sq.) the lawyer forms one of 
 a party of Pharisees who were col- 
 lected together after the defeat of 
 the Sadducees, and comes forward 
 with a trying and probably insidious 
 question {ireipd^iav airbv ) : according 
 to St Mark (ch. xii. -28 sq.) he puts 
 the question after observing how 
 well our Lord had answered. The 
 slight apparent difference between 
 these accounts admits of this natural 
 explanation, that the man was put 
 forward by his party for the purpose 
 of ensnaring Our Lord, and that he 
 acquiesced, but that he was also really 
 inspired by a sincere desire to hear 
 the opinion of one whose wisdom he 
 respected, St Matthew exhibits him 
 in the former light, and in reference 
 to his party ; St Mark in the latter, 
 and as an individual : compare 
 
 Lange, Lehen Jesu, ii. 6. 6, Part ii. 
 p. 1 232. The reconciliation adopted 
 by Euthymius (see Chrysostom), — 
 that the designs of the man at first 
 were bad, but were changed by our 
 Lord’s answer, seems scarcely so 
 natural. 
 
The Last Passover. 
 
 SOD 
 
 party-spirit seems to have given way to a genuine 
 
 desire to learn from the wise Teacher His opinion 
 
 on one perhaps of the questions of the time^, — the 
 relative greatness and precedence of the leading 
 commandments of the law. At the same time 
 the question was one that would not be disap- 
 proved of by the adherents of the party to which 
 the inquirer belonged, as involving probably more 
 than one answer which might seriously compro- 
 mise our Lord with some of the Rabbinical schools 
 of the day^ In the inquirer’s concluding com- 
 ment his better feelings still more clearly pre- 
 vail : a sort of consciousness of the idle nature 
 of all that casuistry and formality of which his 
 own question was the exponent breaks out in 
 words, and obtains for him from the Redeemer’s 
 lips the gracious declaration^, that ^he was not ^ Mark xii. 
 far from the kingdom of God^’ 
 
 ^ Somewhat similar questions are 
 noticed by Schoettgen, in Matth. 
 xxii. 36, and by Wetstein in his notes 
 on ch. V. 19 and xxiii. 23. Accord- 
 ing to Lightfoot {in Marc. xii. 28) 
 the inquiry turned upon the import- 
 ance of the ceremonial as compared 
 with the moral law : this however 
 seems less probable. 
 
 2 It is not easy to specify in what 
 particular way the question was 
 calculated to ensnare our Lord, 
 though, from the nature of the con- 
 troversies and casuistry of the day, 
 it is not difficult to imagine that 
 there were known differences of 
 opinion on the subject in which it 
 might have been thought our Lord 
 could not escape becoming involved. 
 It is worthy of notice that on an 
 earlier occasion when our Lord puts 
 an inquiry to a lawyer who had a 
 similar but stronger design against 
 
 Him {aviaTit} eKireipdl^cov avrov, 
 Luke X. 25), ^What is written in 
 the. law?’ (compare Matth. xxii. 36, 
 TTola ivToW) fieydXrj iv rep pofiCj}) 
 the answer was promptly given in 
 terms but little different to the pre- 
 sent, and was approved of by our 
 Lord (Luke x. 28). The present 
 question then might have been in- 
 tended to lead Him to give the 
 prominence to some single command ; 
 the answer given, however, was one 
 which our Lord had commended as 
 an answer to a more general ques- 
 tion, and which involved the sub- 
 stance of no single command but of 
 all. The opinion of Chrysostom 
 and others, that it was to tempt 
 our Lord to say something about 
 His own Godhead, is apparently not 
 very probable. 
 
 3 We cannot say with Milman 
 that the lawyer ‘did not hesitate 
 
810 
 
 The Last Passover, 
 
 LECT. 
 
 VII. 
 
 The ques- 
 tion rela- 
 tive to the 
 •woman 
 taken in 
 adultery. 
 
 And was this the last attempt to ensnare our 
 Lord which was made on this eventful day? So 
 indeed it would seem from the tenor of the present 
 portion of the inspired narrative. But are we not 
 in some degree justified in again ^ advancing the 
 conjecture that the incident of the woman taken in 
 adultery belongs to the history of the present day? 
 Such a view, it may be remembered, has the sup- 
 port of some slight amount of external evidence in 
 addition to the very strong internal arguments on 
 which it principally rests What, save the deeply- 
 laid stratagem of the tribute-money, could have 
 seemed more hopeful than the proposal of a case 
 for decision which must apparently have involved 
 our Lord either with the Homan governor or the 
 Sanhedrin. Did He decide, as they seem to have 
 hoped, in favour of carrying out the Mosaic law^. 
 
 openly to espouse our Lord’s doc- 
 trines,’ and that the Pharisees ^ were 
 paralysed by this desertion’ {Ilist. of 
 Christianity f Vol. i. p. 315), as there 
 is nothing in the sacred text to sub- 
 stantiate such an inference. The 
 declaration that ^he was not far 
 from the kingdom of God,’ gives 
 hope that he was afterwards ad- 
 mitted into it; but as Chrysostom 
 correctly observes, heiKwcnv ’in airi- 
 Xovra tva toWCtvov. InMatth. 
 
 Horn. Lxxi. 
 
 1 See above, Lect. vi. p. 253. 
 
 ^ The external evidence is speci- 
 fied above, p. 253, note i. The in- 
 ternal arguments are, on the negative 
 side, (a) the striking dissimilarity of 
 the language from that of St John 
 especially in the particles, (6) the 
 forced nature of the connexion with 
 the close of John vii. (see Luthardt, 
 Johann. Evang. Part li. p. 93), and 
 
 (c) the total want of union with 
 what follows : and on the positive 
 side, (d) the similarity in language 
 to that of the Synoptical Gospels 
 (compare Meyer on John viii. i — 3), 
 especially of St Luke, and lastly 
 (e) the striking similarity between 
 the attempt and those recorded as 
 having been made on the day we 
 are now considering : compare 
 
 Lange, Lehen Jesu, ii. 6. 6, Part ii. 
 p. 1222, and the introductory criti- 
 cal comments of Meyer, Kommentar, 
 p. 247 sq. (ed. 3). 
 
 3 Some little difficulty has been 
 felt in the mention of ^stoning’ 
 (ver. 4), as the general punishment 
 of death was decreed against those 
 convicted of adultery (Lev. xx. 20, 
 Deut. xxii, 22), the special punish- 
 ment of stoning being apparently 
 reserved for the case of unfaithful- 
 ness in one betrothed (Deut. xxii. 
 
The Last Passover. 
 
 811 
 
 tlien He was at once committed to antagonism not 
 only with Boman customs, but with the exclusive 
 power which Borne seems to have reserved to her- 
 self in all capital cases \ Did He decide in favour 
 of mercy to the sinner, then He stood forth, both 
 before the Sanhedrin and the populace, as a daring 
 innovator that publicly sanctioned the abrogation 
 of a decree of the Mosaic law. But, as in all the 
 preceding cases, the same heavenly wisdom displays 
 itself in. the answer that was vouchsafed. The law 
 of Moses was tacitly maintained, but its execution 
 limited to those who were free from all such sins 
 of uncleanness ^ as those of the guilty woman who 
 
 -23, 24). It is not improbable that 
 the woman in the present case might 
 have been one of the latter class 
 (Lightfoot, Hor. Hehr. in Joann, v. 
 5), especially as the Rabbinical law 
 seems to have specified that the 
 adulteress was to be strangled (see 
 Lightfoot, in loc .) ; still as this last 
 point does not appear certain (see 
 Ewald, Alterth. pp. 218, 232, and 
 comp. Michael. Mos. Recht, § 262), 
 and as ‘ stoning ’ is mentioned in 
 the Law, and in close connexion 
 with adultery, it is perhaps more 
 probable that such was generally 
 regarded as the prescribed mode of 
 death, and that this was a case of 
 liotx^la in the ordinary acceptation 
 of the word. 
 
 1 This question has been much 
 debated. The most reasonable view 
 appears to be, that though, in hurried 
 cases like that of St Stephen’s mar - 
 tyrdom, the punishment of death 
 might have been tumultuously in - 
 flic ted, still that the declaration of 
 the party of the Sanhedrin that ‘ it 
 was not lawful for them to put any 
 one to death’ (John xviii. 31) was 
 
 strictly true, and that the supreme 
 court lost the power of formally 
 carrying out their sentence, even in 
 religious cases, probably about the 
 time that J udaea became attached to 
 Syria, and placed under a Roman 
 Procurator : see Friedlieb, Archdol. 
 §28, p. 96 sq. and Winer, RWB. 
 Art. ‘Synedr.’ Vol. II. p. 553. The 
 statements of the Talmudical writers 
 that the loss of this power was really 
 owing to the Sanhedrin ceasing to 
 sit in the room or hall called ‘ Gazith ’ 
 (see Lightfoot, Hor. Hehr. in Joann. 
 xviii. 31 and compare Selden, de 
 Synedr. ii. 15), is now justly consi- 
 dered an evasion to cover the true 
 state of the case, viz. that they had 
 been deprived of it by the Romans : 
 see Friedlieb, § 10, p. 22 sq. 
 
 2 The context and circumstances 
 of the case seem to suggest that the 
 term avafidpryTos (an dira^ \ey 6 fx,. 
 in the N. T.) is not here to be un- 
 derstood in reference to sin generally 
 (Luthai-dt, Johann. Evang. Part ii. 
 p. 96), but in reference to the class 
 of sins of which the case in question 
 was an instance, i. e. Sins of the 
 
 LECT. 
 
 VII. 
 
312 
 
 The Last Passover. 
 
 LECT. 
 
 VII. 
 
 John viii. 
 
 Our Lord’s 
 question 
 respecting 
 the Son of 
 David. 
 
 ^ Matt, 
 xxii. 46. 
 Mark xii. 
 
 34. 
 
 Luke XX. 
 
 40. 
 
 stood before them. No wonder is it that we read 
 that they went out one by one convicted by their 
 consciences % and left the sinner standing in the 
 midst, in the solitary presence of her sinless yet 
 merciful Judge. If this be the true position of the 
 narrative, our blessed Lord would now have been 
 subjected to the most trying questions that the 
 subtlety of man could excogitate, — the first rela- 
 tive to the authority of His public acts, the second 
 of a political nature, the third relating to doctrine, 
 the fourth to speculative teaching, the last-men- 
 tioned to discipline’. 
 
 And now all those malicious attempts had been 
 openly and triumphantly frustrated : so triumph- 
 antly, that all the three Synoptical Evangelists 
 tell us that no man henceforth had the hardihood 
 to propose any further question’’. One final dis- 
 play of meek victory alone was wanting, and that 
 must be seen in the interrogated now assuming 
 the character of the interrogator, and receiving 
 only the answer of shamed silence. The last ques- 
 tion mentioned in the narratives of St Matthew 
 and St Mark had been proposed by a Scribe, and 
 to them and to the Pharisees with whom he was 
 united^, and to whose sect he probably belonged. 
 
 flesh : compare afidprave, 
 
 ver. II, and the limited meaning of 
 d/xapTcoXos, Luke vii. 37 . It may- 
 be remarked that, according to the 
 text of the Codex Beza, the woman 
 is actually described as iirl dpLapTlq, 
 yvvaiKa eiXrjp.pi.iv'qv (ver. 3). 
 
 ^ The position in which this at- 
 tempt stands with reference to the 
 others cannot of course be deter- 
 mined. The cursive manuscripts 
 (see above, p. 253, note 2) which 
 
 place it after Luke xxi, 38 probably 
 only intended to imply that the 
 incident was judged to belong to the 
 portion of the Gospel which imme- 
 diately preceded, not that it formed 
 the last of the attempts in historical 
 order. Of mere conjectures the most 
 probable seems that which places it 
 after the question about the tribute- 
 money : compare Lange, Leben J esu, 
 II. 6. 6, Part II. p. 1222. 
 
 ^ According to St Matthew the 
 
The Last Passover. 
 
 818 
 
 does our Lord now turn with the inquiry, how, 
 
 when according to the teaching of the Scribes 
 
 Christ is the Son of David, David while speaking 
 under the influence of the Spirit nevertheless calls 
 Him Lord^ How can He be both His Lord and * Psalm 
 His Son*? To that profound question, so clearly 
 pointing to the mystery of the divine and human 
 natures of Him who stood before them®, no answer 
 is even attempted. By silence^ they acknowledge ^ Matt, 
 their defeat ; and in silence they now receive that 
 warning though merciful chastisement of their 
 meek victor recorded to us by the first Evangelist, 
 which forms the subject of the whole of the 23rd 
 chapter of his Gospel. There our Lord with a just 
 severity lays bare the practices of Scribe and Pha- 
 risee‘s, concluding with an apostrophe to Jerusa- ^ ver. 13 
 lem^^, which it would seem had been uttered on an 
 
 sq. 
 
 question was proposed to the Phari- 
 sees (ch. xxii. 41); according to St 
 Luke, who omits the question about 
 the chief commandment, to [not 
 concerning, Grot., Alford on Matth. 
 xxii. 41,] the Scribes (ch. xx. 39); 
 according to St Mark it was uttered 
 in the hearing of the people (ch. xii. 
 35, 37), and as a sort of answer (ver. 
 35) to the silence of the opponents. 
 All these accounts admit of the ob- 
 vious explanation, that the question 
 of our Lord was proposed openly, 
 and to those who had last ques- 
 tioned Him, viz. Pharisees in regard 
 to their sect, but several of whom 
 were scribes and lawyers by profes- 
 sion ; compare Luke xx. 39 with 
 Mark xii. 28. 
 
 1 It has been popularly urged by 
 modern expositors that the Psalm 
 was not written hy David but to 
 David (Ewald, Meyer, ah), and that 
 
 our Lord conformed His language to 
 the generally received views of the 
 time (De Wette), This latter as- 
 sumption, though a very favourite 
 one in our popular theology, is 
 always very precarious, if no worse : 
 in the present case it is even out of 
 place, as there are strong reasons 
 for believing, from a fair critical 
 consideration of the Psalm in ques- 
 tion, that it loas written hy David, 
 as is here expressly declared : comp. 
 Hengstenberg, Comment, on Psalms, 
 Vol. III. p. 316 sq. (Clark), Phillips, 
 ih., Vol. II. p. 416, and on the Mes- 
 sianic character of the Psalm and its 
 reference to 2 Sam. vii. i sq., i Chron. 
 xvii. I sq., see Ebrard, Kritik der 
 Evang. Gesch. § 100, p. 490. 
 
 2 As Euthymius briefly but clearly 
 expresses it, — ‘He is said to be his 
 Son, as having sprung from his root, 
 according to His human generation ; 
 
814 
 
 The Last Passover. 
 
 occasion^, but was now appropriately re- 
 
 peated, as declaring in language of the deepest 
 
 “ ver. 38. pathos that desolation was nigh at hand^, that the 
 hour of mercy had at length passed away, and that 
 justice, temporal and eternal, must now be the por- 
 tion of the city that had poured out the blood of 
 J ehovah’s prophets, and was thirsting for the blood 
 of His Son~. 
 
 The scene changes with a marvellous truthful- 
 poor^wi-^ ness and appropriateness. After our Lord had 
 uttered His last words of solemn denunciation 
 against the Scribes and Pharisees, — the consumers 
 Mark xii. of widows housos^^, the rapacious, the hypocritical 
 Luke XX. and the bloodthirsty, He turns His steps toward 
 the place where free gifts and contributions for the 
 various ministrations of the Temple were offered 
 by the worshippers, and sits there marking the 
 varied and variously-minded multitude that was 
 
 but his Lord, as being his God.’ In 
 Matth. xxii. 45, Vol. i. p. 869. 
 
 1 An address scarcely differing 
 from the present except in the par- 
 ticle that connects the last verse 
 with what precedes {yap, Matth. 
 xxiii. 39 ; hi, Luke xiii. 35) is spe- 
 cified by St Luke as having been 
 uttered by Our Lord after receiving 
 the message about Herod’s designs 
 as communicated by the Pharisees ; 
 see above, Lect. vi. p. 264. There 
 does not seem any reason, either for 
 agreeing with Meyer {on Lake xiii. 
 34), who asserts that the original 
 and proper position of the words is 
 that assigned by St Matthew, or 
 with Wieseler (( 7 Aro». Synops. p. 322 ; 
 comp. Credner, Einleit. p. 67, 136), 
 who regards the words in their pre- 
 sent position as interpolated from St 
 Luke. As we have elsewhere, and as 
 
 it would seem, justly urged the pro- 
 bability of a repetition of the same 
 words on different occasions, when 
 called forth by something similar, 
 so in the present instance does it 
 seem reasonable to suppose that the 
 similarity of the subject which in 
 both cases precedes the words {the 
 slaughter of the righteous in Jeru- 
 salem) called forth in both the 
 pathetic address to the bloodthirsty 
 and now forlorn city ; compare Lect. 
 IV. p. 179, note 2, p. 191, note 2. 
 
 2 The concluding words oi pufj pe 
 Uyre (Matth. xxiii. 39) had 
 
 reference, on the former occasion 
 that they were uttered, primarily to 
 the Triumphal Entry, and seconda- 
 rily to the second Advent (see above, 
 p. 264, note i): in the present the 
 reference is exclusively to the latter. 
 ‘Then,’ as Euthymius well remarks, 
 
The Last Passover, 
 
 315 
 
 now clustering round the numerous chests ^ There 
 
 He beholds one of those hapless ones of whom He 
 
 had but so lately spoken as the victim of the extor- 
 tionate Scribe, — in her penury casting in her two 
 mites^, her all'. And she departed not unblest. ^ Mark xU. 
 That act caused the Redeemer of the world to call Luke xxi. 
 up to Him His disciples^, and to declare to them I' 
 
 Xll* 
 
 that the poor desolate one had cast in more than 43- 
 alk; yea, and one at least of the hearers did so‘=ver. 44. 
 bear witness that by the record of two Evange- st Peter ; 
 lists, the widow’s gift, like the piety of Mary of note 4. 
 Bethany, shall be known and remembered where- 
 soever the Gospel shall be preached unto men^ 
 
 While, as it would seem, our Lord was stillThere- 
 
 .. •11 quest of 
 
 teaching within^, a strange message is brought the Greek 
 
 proselytes. 
 
 ^ will they say this, — willingly, never; 
 but unwillingly, at the time of His 
 second Advent, when He shall come 
 with power and great glory, and 
 when their recognition shall be of 
 no avail.’ In Matih. xxiii. 39. 
 
 1 These we learn from Lightfoot 
 {Decas Chorogr. in Marc. cap. 3, 
 § 4) were thirteen in number, called 
 by the Talmudical writers 
 
 (from the trumpet-like shape of the 
 openings into which the money was 
 dropped, — ^angustae supra latae in- 
 fra, propter deceptores.’ Gemara on 
 Mishna, ‘Shekalim,’ ii. i), and 
 stood in the Court of the Women : 
 see Reland, Antiq. i. 8. 14, and 
 compare Winer, RWB. Art. ‘Tern- 
 pel,’ Vol. II. p. 583. 
 
 2 As Lightfoot pertinently says, 
 — ‘ Haec paupercula duobus' minutis 
 aeternam sibi famam coemit,’ In 
 Marc. xii. 42. The grounds of the 
 divine commendation are distinctly 
 specified, — she gave all; she might 
 have given one of the tico Xeirra 
 
 [the Rabbinical citation in Schoett- 
 gen, in loc. and Sepp, Leben Chr, 
 Vol. III. p. 31 1, does not seem to 
 refer to contributions like the pre- 
 sent], but she gives both: ‘The 
 woman offered two farthings ; but she 
 possessed nothing more than what she 
 offered ; she had nothing left : with 
 empty hand, but a hand bountiful 
 of the little she possessed, she went 
 away from the treasury.’ Cyril 
 Alex. Comment on St Luke, Serm. 
 cxxxviii. Part ii. p. 647. 
 
 ^ The suggestion of Gres well {Dis- 
 sert. XL. Vol. III. p. 123 note) that 
 our Lord sat and taught in the 
 Court of the Women, in order ‘that 
 the female Israelites might have 
 access to Him, as well as the male,’ 
 is not without probability. It must 
 be remembered, however, that the 
 Court of the Women {ywaiKtovirts, 
 Joseph. Bell. Jud. vi. 9. 2) was so 
 called not because it was especially 
 designed for their use, but because 
 it was the furthest court into which 
 
31G 
 
 The Last Passover. 
 
 LECT. 
 
 VII. 
 
 ® J olm xii. 
 20 . 
 
 b ver. 21. 
 
 from the court without. Some Greek proselytes 
 of the gate, who had come up to Jerusalem to wor- 
 ship the God of the Jew and the Gentile^ at the 
 feast of the Passover, prefer by the mouths of the 
 Apostles, Andrew and Philipp, a request to see 
 Him of whom every tongue in Jerusalem now was 
 speaking, and towards whom perchance deep-seated 
 presentiment had mysteriously attracted these God- 
 fearing Gentiles ^ Deeply moved by a request 
 which He felt to be yet another token of His own 
 approaching glorification, and of the declaration of 
 His name to the wide heathen world of which these 
 were the earliest fruits, Our Lord, as it would 
 seem, accedes to the wish^ In their hearing and 
 
 they were permitted to enter; see 
 Lightfoot, Decas Choroyr. in Marc. 
 cap. 3, § 5. The incident that fol- 
 lows is also assigned by Greswell to 
 the day of our Lord’s Triumphal 
 Entry ; the words /cat airekdCov €Kp{i- 
 ^ 7 ] air avrCiv (ch. xii. 36) seem, how- 
 ever, much more in favour of its 
 present position ; compare Wieseler, 
 Chron. Synops. p. 396. 
 
 1 The "EWrives here mentioned by 
 St John are rightly considered by 
 the majority of modern expositors 
 not to have been, on the one hand, 
 purely heathens (Chrys., Euthym.), 
 nor again on the other, Hellenists 
 (Ewald, Gesch. Chr. p. 392), but, in 
 accordance with the usual meaning 
 of the word in the N. T., Greeks , 
 whom, however, the clause dva^ai- 
 vovtIov k. t. X. (observe the pres, 
 part.) seems further to specify as 
 habitual worshippers, and so pro- 
 bably, as is stated in the text, * pro- 
 selytes of the gate ,* many of whom 
 attended the great feasts ; see Acts 
 viii. 27, Joseph. Bell. Jud. VI. 9. 3, 
 and compare Lightfoot, Hor. Hebr. 
 
 in Joann, xii. 20. The reason why 
 they peculiarly addressed themselves 
 to the Apostle Philip can only be a 
 matter of conjecture. It has been 
 supposed that they may have come 
 from Galilee (De Wette, Meyer) and 
 from the neighbourhood of Beth- 
 saida, to which place it is here again 
 (see John i. 45) specially noticed 
 that the Apostle originally belonged. 
 It is, however, perhaps, equally pro- 
 bable that they were complete stran- 
 gers, but attracted to Philip by his 
 Grecized name. The conduct of the 
 Apostle on the present occasion and 
 his application to Andrew (‘cum so- 
 dali audet,’ Beng.) has been rightly 
 judged to indicate a cautious, wise, 
 and circumspect nature ; comp. Luth- 
 ardt, Johan. Evany. Part i. p. 102. 
 
 ^ This has been considered doubt- 
 ful. It is, however, reasonable to 
 suppose that such a request, thus 
 sanctioned by two Apostles, would 
 not be refused by our Lord, espe- 
 cially as the character of the appli- 
 cants {dva^aLv 6 vT(i 3 v 'iva irpoaKVV'r)- 
 aovaiv iu rrj eopTrj, ver. 20) seems to 
 
The Last Passover. 
 
 817 
 
 in that of the people around He reveals, by means 
 of a similitude^ appropriately taken from the teach- - 
 ing of nature, that truth which it was so hard for 
 the Greek mind with its deifying love of the living 
 and the beautiful to conceive or to realize, — that 
 unto man the pathway to true Life lay through 
 the dreaded gates of death and decay. And if to 
 man, so also, by the mystery of redeeming love, in 
 a certain measure to the Son of Man Himself, — a 
 thought which so moved the depths of the Sa- 
 viours soul*, and called forth from His divine lips 
 such words of self-devotion and prayer^, that now 
 
 show that it did not result from 
 mere curiosity. The first portion of 
 our Lord’s reply (ver. -23) may have 
 been addressed only to the two 
 Apostles on the way to the outer 
 court, the rest uttered in the hear- 
 ing of the Greeks and the multitude 
 (ver. -29). On the whole incident, 
 see Lange, Leben Jem, ii. 6. 5, 
 Part II. p. 1200 sq. 
 
 1 It is worthy of notice that as in 
 the more awful scene in Gethsemane 
 (Matth. xxvi. 38, Mark xiv. 34) the 
 Evangelist has been specially moved 
 to record that the soul of the Saviour, 
 — that human -^vx^ of which the 
 earlier Apollinarians seem at first 
 even to have denied the existence 
 (Pearson, Creed, Vol. ii. p. 205, ed. 
 Burton), — was moved and troubled 
 Y* (ver. 27). On the scriptml meaning 
 ^ of the term, and its prevailing re- 
 ference to feelings and affections, 
 rather than to the thoughts or ima- 
 ginations, see Olshausen, Ojguscula, 
 p. 153, sq., and compare notes on 
 I Tim. iii. 16, and Destiny of the 
 Creature, Serm. v. p. 99. It is per- 
 haps scarcely necessary to add that 
 the present troubled state of the 
 
 Saviour’s soul is not for a moment 
 to be referred to the mere apprehen- 
 sion of physical death (comp. Liicke 
 in loc.), still less, of the wrath of the 
 devil (Lightfoot, in Joann, xii. 28), 
 but to the profound consciousness of 
 the close connexion of death with 
 sin. In dying for us the sinless 
 Saviour vouchsafed to bow to a 
 dispensation which was the wages 
 of sin (Rom. vi. 23); and it was the 
 contemplation of such a contact on 
 the part of the all- Pure and all- 
 Holy with every thing that was 
 most alien to the divine nature, — 
 sin, darkness, and death, that called 
 forth the Saviour’s present words 
 (ver. 27), that heightened the ago- 
 nies of Gethsemane, and found its 
 deepest utterance in that cry of un- 
 imaginable suffering (Matth. xxvii. 
 46, Mark xv. 34), which was heard 
 from Golgotha, when all that was 
 contemplated was approaching its 
 appalling realization. See Luthardt, 
 das Johann. Evang. Part ii. p. 252, 
 and compare Pearson, On the Creed, 
 Vol. I. p. 234 (Burton), Jackson, 
 Comment, on the Creed, viii. 14, Vol. 
 VII. p. 502 sq. 
 
 LECT. 
 
 VII. 
 
 ver. 24. 
 
 ver. 27. 
 
318 
 
 The Last Passover. 
 
 LECT. 
 
 VJI. 
 
 Matt. iii. 
 
 n- 
 
 •’ Luke ix. 
 
 35. 
 
 ® John xii. 
 30 * 
 
 The depar- 
 ture from 
 the Temph 
 and the 
 last pro- 
 phecies. 
 
 ver. 36. 
 
 ® ver. 37. 
 
 ^ Mark 
 
 xiii. I. 
 
 g ver. 2. 
 Matt. xxiv. 
 
 2. 
 
 Luke xxi. 
 
 6 . 
 
 again in the Court of the Gentiles as once by the 
 banks of the Jordan^ and on the Mount of the 
 Transfiguration^, the answer of Paternal love was 
 vouchsafed for the sake of those who stood around^, 
 in audible accents of acceptance and promised 
 And now the day was far spent, and our Lord 
 prepares to leave His Father’s house, and for a 
 short space to conceal Himself"^ both from His 
 enemies, and from the thronging multitudes that 
 hung on His words and beheld His miracles, and 
 yet did not and could not fully believe®. While 
 leaving the Temple a few words from one of the 
 disciples^, suggested perhaps by a remembrance of 
 an expression^ in our Lord’s recent apostrophe to 
 Jerusalem, call forth from Him a declaration of 
 the terrible future^ that awaited all the grandeur 
 and magnificence of the sumptuous structure from 
 which He was now taking His final departure. 
 
 1 All the best co m mentators now 
 admit what indeed there never ought 
 to have been any doubt of, — the 
 real and objective nature of the 
 voice from heaven . It may be ob- 
 served that those who heard appear 
 to be divisible into three classes: 
 
 (1) the more dull-hearted who heard 
 the sound, recognized from whence 
 it came, but mistook it for thunder ; 
 
 (2) the more susceptible hearers who 
 perceived it to be a voice, and ima- 
 gined it to be angelical, but were 
 unable to distinguish what was ut- 
 tered ; (3) the smaller circle, of which 
 the Apostle who relates the occur- 
 rence was one, who both heard the 
 voice, knew whence it came, and 
 were enabled to understand the 
 words that were spoken. See the 
 note of Meyer, in loc. p. 361 (ed. 3), 
 and the brief but good comment of 
 
 Chrysostom, in Joann. Horn. Lxvii. 
 Vol. VIII. p. 461 (ed. Bened. 2), 
 who has noticed the first and second 
 classes of hearers. 
 
 ^ The opinion of Chr^’sostom, 
 Theophylact, and others, that the 
 disciples were led to call our Lord's 
 attention to the solidity of structure 
 (Mark xiii. 1) and general magnifi- 
 cence (Luke xxi. 5) of the temple 
 from a remembrance of His recent 
 declaration Idov a<pl€Tai vfjuu 6 oIkos 
 ilxQv ^pTjiJLos (Matth. xxiii. 38) seems 
 highly probable. A declaration of 
 speedy and all but present desola- 
 tion (d0terat) when all around was 
 so grand and so stable appeared to 
 them wholly inexplicable. On the 
 nature of the buildings, see Joseph. 
 Antiq. xv. 11. 5, Bell. Jud. v. 5. 6, 
 and comp. Lightfoot, Hor. Hebr. in 
 Matth. xxiv. i. 
 
Jlie Last Passover. 
 
 319 
 
 Such boding words called for yet fuller explana- 
 
 tion. On their homeward journey as the Lord 
 
 was sitting on the Mount of Olives'^, to contem- » Matt, 
 plate perchance yet again the doomed city and Mark ini. 
 temple of which the desolation had even now 
 begun, four of His Apostles ^ Peter and James 
 and John and Andrew^’, come to Him with the ‘’ Mark 
 solemn inquiry when this mournful prophecy was 
 to be fulfilled, and when the end of this earthly 
 state of things, which they could not but connect 
 with the end of the theocracy was to be looked 
 for by the children of men*^. In a manner strik- Matt, 
 ingly and appropriately similar to that in which Mark iiii. 
 the question was proposed does our Lord return Luke xxi. 
 His answer. In a prophecy in which at first the 
 fate of the Holy City and the end of the world 
 are mysteriously blended % but which gradually by 
 
 ^ According to St Matthew the 
 question was proposed by the ^a- 
 drjTal generally, — a statement which, 
 when coupled with the further re- 
 mark of both Evangelists that it 
 was proposed privately (Matth, xxiv. 
 3, Mark xiii. 3), admits of the easy 
 and obvious explanation, that none 
 except the chosen Twelve were pre- 
 sent when the question was proposed, 
 and that the four Apostles men- 
 tioned by St Mark acted as spokes- 
 men for the rest. A good description 
 of the scene and its accessories will 
 be found in Milman, Hist, of Chris- 
 tianity, Vol. I. p. 317 sq. 
 
 2 It has been correctly observed 
 (comp. Lange, Lehen Jesu, Part ii. 
 p. 1257, note) that the two questions 
 proposed to our Lord ought not 
 to be separated too sharply, or re- 
 garded as definitely referring to 
 separate and distinct periods, but 
 
 only as referring generally to the 
 period when the destruction recently 
 foretold by our Lord was actually 
 to take place : with this event they 
 instinctively connect the Advent of 
 the Messiah (compare Matth. xxiv. 
 3 with Mark xiii. 4 and Luke xxi. 
 7), and of this they not unnaturally 
 ask for the prevenient sign. The 
 connexion of these two events in the 
 mind of the Apostles was not im- 
 probably due to a share in the 
 ‘ sententia apud gentem receptissima 
 de 'hin, Holoribus Messice 
 
 [comp. Hos. xiii. 13], id est, de 
 calamitatibus, quas expectarunt fu- 
 turas ad adventum Messise.’ Light- 
 foot, Hor. Hehr. in Marc. xiii. 9. 
 Compare also Schoettgen, loc. cit. 
 Vol. II. p. 550. 
 
 3 The limits and general character 
 of these notes preclude any regular 
 discussion of this solemn and diffi- 
 
320 
 
 The Last Passover, 
 
 LECT. 
 
 VII. 
 
 “ Matt. 
 
 XXV. I sq. 
 
 ch. XXV. 
 14 ; see p. 
 275, note 2, 
 ad tin. 
 
 Consulta- 
 tion of the 
 Sanhe- 
 drin and 
 treachery 
 of Judas 
 (Wednes- 
 day). 
 
 ‘^ch.xii. 36. 
 
 means of the solemn parables of the Ten Virgins^ 
 and the Talents^, and the revelation that follows, 
 unfolds itself into a distinct declaration of the 
 circumstances of the Last Judgment, the Saviour 
 of the world vouchsafes an explicit answer to the 
 questions of His amazed hearers, — yea, too, and 
 on the slopes of that very mountain where myste- 
 rious prophecy^ seems to indicate that He who 
 then spake as our Redeemer will hereafter appear 
 as our King and our Judge. 
 
 The day that followed was spent in that holy 
 retirement, into which as it would seem from St 
 John‘S our Lord now solemnly withdrew, and 
 appears only to have been marked by two events, 
 first the formal and deliberate consultation of the 
 Sanhedrin how they might best carry out their 
 
 cult prophecy. It may be remarked, 
 however, (a) that it appears exegeti- 
 cally correct, with the majority of 
 modern expositors, to recognize a 
 change of subject at Matth. xxiv. 29 
 (not, with Chrys., at ver. 23), so 
 that what has preceded is to be 
 referred mainly, but not exclusively 
 to the destruction of Jerusalem, — 
 what follows, mainly but not exclu- 
 sively (see below) to our Lord’s 
 second Advent and the final judg- 
 ment ; (6) that the diflticult word 
 €vdi(vs {ofiou yap ax^^ov diravra yi- 
 perai, Chrys.) is to be explained by 
 the apparent fact that towards the 
 close of the former part of the pro- 
 phecy the description of the events 
 connected with the fall of Jerusalem 
 becomes identical with, and gradu- 
 ally (ver. 27, 28) passes into that of 
 the end of the world; (c) that the 
 appended parable (ver. 32 sq.) refers 
 to both events, the rravTa ravra (ver. 
 34) belonging exclusively to the 
 
 events preceding the fall of Jeru- 
 salem, and standing in clear con- 
 trast to the yjpL^pa iKeivrj (ver. 36) 
 which obviously refers exclusively to 
 the end of the world. For more 
 special explanations the student may 
 be referred to the excellent com- 
 ments of Chrysostom, in Matth. 
 Horn. LXXV— Lxxvii, Stier, Disc, of 
 Our Lord, Vol. iii. p. 244 sq., (Clark), 
 Lange, Leben Jesu, ii. 6. 7, Part ii. 
 p. 1253, with 'reservations, to 
 
 the special treatises of Dorner {de 
 Orat. Chr. Eschatolog. Stuttg. 1844), 
 E. J. Meyer {Komment zu Mdtth. 
 xxiv. XXV., Frankf. 1857), and the 
 commentary of Meyer (H. W,), p. 
 433 sq. (ed. 4). 
 
 1 On the prophetic declaration of 
 the appearance of the Lord on Olivet 
 (Zech. xiv. 4), and its supposed re- 
 ference to the circumstances of His 
 second Advent, and to the locality 
 of His seat of judgment, see Jack- 
 son, On the Creed, Vol. x. p. 196. 
 
The Last Passover. 
 
 321 
 
 designs^, and secondly their compact with the 
 traitor Judas, who perhaps might have availed 
 himself of this very retirement of our Lord for 
 seeking out the chief priests, and for bringing the 
 designs of his now satanically possessed heart'" 
 to their awful and impious completion. 
 
 On the next day, and, as we may perhaps with 
 some reason be led to think, so near its closed 
 as to be really on the commencement (according 
 to Jewish reckoning) of the fourteenth of Nisan, 
 the day on which the paschal lamb was to be 
 killed^ and preparation made for the celebration 
 of the Passover, we are told by the three Synop- 
 tical Evangelists that our Lord answers the in- 
 quiry of His disciples, where He would have 
 preparation made for eating the passover, by send- 
 ing Peter and John^ to the house of a believing 
 follower^ with a special message and with orders 
 there to make ready. Thither it would seem our 
 
 LECT. 
 
 VII. 
 
 “ Mutt, 
 xxvi. 3. 
 
 Luke 
 xxii. 3. 
 
 The cele- 
 bration of 
 the Last 
 Supper 
 (Thurs- 
 day). 
 
 ® Mark 
 xiv. 12. 
 Luke xxii. 
 
 7 - 
 
 d Luke 
 xxii. 8. 
 
 ^ See Greswell, Dissert, xli. Vol. 
 III. p. 170 sq., where it is shown 
 on the authority of Maimonides and 
 Apollinarius of Laodicea that the 
 proper beginning of any feast-day 
 was reckoned from the night [eve] 
 which preceded it. The fourteenth 
 of Nisan though not, strictly con- 
 sidered, a portion of the festival 
 (comp. Joseph. Antiq. III. 10. 5), 
 was popularly regarded as such, and, 
 from the putting away of leaven 
 which took place immediately it 
 commenced and the cessation from 
 servile labour (comp. Mishna, ‘Pe- 
 sach,’ IV. 5), was usually spoken of 
 as the ‘first day of unleavened 
 bread’ (Matth. xxvi. 17, Mark xiv. 
 12: see Joseph. Antiq. Ii. 15. i, 
 who speaks of the festival as lasting 
 eight days, and compare Lightfoot, 
 
 in Marc. xiv. 12, Friedlieb, Archdol. 
 
 § 17, P. 42). 
 
 2 This supposition seems justified 
 by the peculiar use of the words 
 specified by all the three Synoptical 
 Evangelists 6 diddaKa\os \^yei 
 (Matth. xxvi. 18, Mark xiv. 14, 
 Luke xxii. ii), and still more by 
 the peculiar and confidential terms 
 of the message: compare Kahnis, 
 Lehre vom Ahendm. p. 5. When we 
 further remember that the bearers 
 of the message were our Lord’s 
 most chosen Apostles, we shall feel 
 less difficulty in admitting the ap- 
 parently inevitable conclusion (see 
 below) that the supper was prepared 
 ^vithin what we have seen, were 
 popularly considered the limits of 
 the festival, but actually one day 
 before the usual time. 
 
 E. H. L. 
 
 21 
 
322 
 
 The Last Passover, 
 
 LKCT. 
 
 VII. 
 
 Matt, 
 xxvi. 1 8. 
 
 •’ John 
 xviii. 28. 
 
 Lord shortly afterwards followed them with the rest 
 of the disciples, and partook of a supper which the 
 distinct expressions of the first three Evangelists^ 
 leave us no ground for doubting was a paschal 
 supper, but which the equally distinct expressions 
 of the fourth Evangelist^ combined with the pecu- 
 liar nature of our Lord’s message to the house- 
 holder^, give us every reason for believing was 
 celebrated twenty-four hours earlier than the time 
 when it was celebrated by the chief priests and 
 Pharisees^' and apparently the whole body of the 
 
 nation ^ While they are 
 
 ^ These are especially (payeiv rh 
 7rd(rxa (Matth. xxvi. 1 7, Mark xiv. 
 
 1 2, Luke xxii. 7) and eroLixd^eiv rb 
 Trdaxo. (Matth. xxvi. 19, Mark xiv. 
 16, Luke xxii. 13), both of which all 
 sound principles of interpretation 
 wholly preclude our referring, either 
 here or John xviii. 28 (opp. to Wie- 
 seler, Chron. Synops. p. 381 sq.), to 
 the paschal supper: compare Gese- 
 nius, Thesaur. Vol. ii. p. 1115. 
 
 2 These are {a) iva <pdyw(nv rb 
 ird^xo- (ch. xviii. 28) alluded to in 
 the above note, and referred to the 
 day following that which we are 
 now considering ; (6) the special note 
 of time (ch. xiii. i) in reference to a 
 supper which it seems nearly impos- 
 sible (opp. to Lightfoot, in Matth. 
 xxvi. 6) to regard as different from 
 that referred to by the Synoptical 
 Evangelists ; (c) the definition of 
 time TrapaaKevy rod Trdcrxct (ch. xix. 
 14), which it seems equally impossible 
 (opp. to Wieseler, Chron. Synops. 
 p. 336) in the language of the N. 
 T. to understand otherwise than as 
 ‘ the preparation ’ or day preceding 
 the Passover; see Meyer in loc. 
 p. 4^8 (ed. 3), and Kitto, Journal 
 of Suer . Lit. for 1850, Xi. p. 75 sq. ; 
 
 taking tbeir places at the 
 
 (cZ) the statement that the Sabbath in 
 the Passover- week was * a high day ’ 
 (ch. xix. 31), which admits of no easy 
 or natural explanation except that 
 of a coincidence of the important 
 Nisan 15 with the weekly Sabbath, 
 The statements are so clear, that 
 to attempt vdth Wieseler {Chron, 
 Synops), Robinson {Biblioth. Sacr, 
 for Aug. 1845), and others to ex- 
 plain them away must be regarded 
 as arbitrary and hopeless. 
 
 3 From what is here said and the 
 above notes it will be seen that we 
 adopt the view of the Greek Fathers, 
 and indeed of the primitive Church 
 generally (see the quotations in Gres- 
 well, Dissert, xlt. Vol. iii. p. 168 
 sq,, and add Clem. Alex, on St LuTce, 
 Serm. CXLI. Part ii. p. 660, Transl.), 
 that, even as Talmudical tradition 
 ( Babyl. ‘ Sanhedr.’ vi. 2) also asserts, 
 our Lord suffered on Nisan 14, and 
 that He ate the paschal supper on 
 the eve with which that day com- 
 menced. In favour of this opinion 
 we may briefly urge on the positive 
 side, (a) the statements of St John 
 above alluded to ; if) the peculiar 
 nature of the message sent to the 
 olKodecnrbrrjs, which seems to refer to 
 
The Last Passover. 
 
 323 
 
 table the same unbecoming contention for priority, 
 wliicli we have already noticed on previous occa- 
 
 sometlung special and unusual: see 
 above, p. 321, note 2 ; (c) the words 
 TovTO t6 7 rd(Txa (Luke xxii. 15), 
 and the desire expressed by our 
 Lord (ib.), both of which well coin- 
 cide with the assumption of a pecu- 
 liar celebration; (cZ) several apparent 
 hints in the Synoptical Gospels that 
 the day on which our Lord suffered 
 was not marked by the Sabbatical 
 rest which belonged to Nisan 1 5 ; 
 comp, xxvii. 59 sq., Mark xv. 21 (?), 
 42, 46, Luke xxiii. 26 (?), 54, 56; 
 (e) the anti-typical relation of our 
 Lord to the paschal lamb (i Cor. 
 V. 7), — in accordance with which, 
 the death of our Eedeemer on the 
 very day and hour when the paschal 
 lamb was sacrificed must be reve- 
 rently regarded as a coincidence of 
 high probability: see Euthym. in 
 Mattk. xxvi. 20. On the negative 
 side, we may observe (/) that the 
 main objection founded on the neces- 
 sity of the lamb being killed in the 
 temple (Lightfoot, in Matih. xxvi. 
 19, Friedlieb, ArchdoL § 18, p. 47) 
 is somewhat shaken, by the lan- 
 guage of Philo adduced by Greswell 
 Z. c., p. 146, and still more so by 
 the probability that the time speci- 
 fied for killing the lamb, viz. ‘be- 
 tween the two evenings’ (Exod. xii. 
 6, Lev. xxiii. 3, Numb. ix. 3) might 
 have been understood to mean be- 
 tween the eves of Nisan 14 and Nisan 
 15 (see Lee, Serm. on Sabb. p. 22), — 
 and that more especially at a time 
 when the worshippers had become so 
 numerous that above 256,000 lambs 
 (see above, p. 289, note i) would 
 liave had to be sacrificed in about 
 2 hours, if the ordinary interpreta- 
 tion of the had been 
 
 rigorously observed, i^gain (g) the 
 
 silence of St John as to the paschal 
 nature of the supper is in no way 
 more singular than his silence as to 
 its Eucharistic character. Both were 
 well-known features, which it did 
 not fall in with his divinely ordered 
 plan here to specify. All that it 
 was necessary to add so as to ob- 
 viate all misapprehension he does 
 add, viz. that the supper was be- 
 fore the Passover; ch. xiii. i. Lastly, 
 (h) if we accept the highly probable 
 statement that our Lord suffered 
 A.D. 30, and the neai'ly certain state- 
 ment that the day of the week was 
 FHday (see Wieseler, Chron. Synops. 
 p. 334 sq.), then beyond all reason- 
 able doubt He suffered on Nisan 14 
 and ate the Passover on the first 
 hours of that day the eve before, — 
 calculation clearly showing that in 
 that year the new moon of Nisan 
 was on Wednesday, March 22, at 
 8h. 8m. in the evening, and that 
 consequently if we allow the usual 
 two days for the phase (see Gres- 
 well, Dissert. Vol. i. p. 320) Nisan i 
 commenced (according to Jewish 
 reckoning) on Friday evening March 
 24, but really coincided as to day- 
 light with Saturday March 25, or 
 Nisan 14 with Friday April 7. 
 Compare Wieseler, Chron. Synops. 
 p. 446, whose own tables (independ- 
 ently proved to be accurate) may 
 thus be used against him; see also 
 above, p. 192, note i. More might 
 be urged, but the above considera- 
 tions may perhaps lead us to pause 
 before we reject a mode of recon- 
 ciliation so ancient, so free from all 
 forcings of language, and apparently 
 so reasonable and trustworthy. For 
 notices of the many different treatises 
 on this difficult subject, see Winer, 
 21—2 
 
 LECT. 
 
 VII. 
 
324 
 
 The Last Passover. 
 
 LECT. 
 
 VIE. 
 
 " See p. 
 274. 
 
 ■’ John 
 xiii. 4 , 5, 
 
 f ver. 13. 
 
 ver. I. 
 
 sions'^, again shows itself, called forth perhaps in 
 the present case by a desire to occupy the places 
 nearest One towards whom every hour was now 
 deepening their love and devotion. But such de- 
 monstrations were unmeet for the disciples of J esus 
 Christ ; such contentions, though not without some 
 excuse, must still be lovingly repressed. And in no 
 way could this be more tenderly done than by the 
 performance of every part^ of an office, — that of 
 washing the feet of those about to sit down to 
 meat, — which usually fell to the lot of a servant^, 
 but was now solemnly completed in the case of 
 each one of them, yea, the traitor not excepted, 
 by Him whom they called and rightly called their 
 Master and their Lord ‘'....And now the supper 
 had commenced and round the Saviour were 
 gathered, for the last time, those whom He loved 
 so well, and loved even unto the end‘^. And yet 
 the hand of the betrayer was on the table, — a 
 thought we are told that so moved the very in- 
 
 RWB. Art. ^Pascha/ Vol. ii. p. 202, 
 and Meyer, Kommeni, itb. Joh. xviii. 
 28, p. 463 sq. (ed. 3). 
 
 ^ See Friedlieb, Archdol. § 20, 
 p. 64, and Meyer in loc. p. 375 (ed. 
 3). It may be observed that there 
 is some little difficulty in arranging 
 the circumstances of the Last Supper 
 in their exact order, as the narrative 
 of St Luke is not in strict harmony 
 with that of St Matthew and St 
 Mark. Of the various possible ar- 
 rangements, the connexion adopted 
 in the text, which is closely in 
 accordance with that of the best 
 recent harmonists, seems, on the 
 whole, the most satisfactory ; see 
 Wieseler, Citron. Synops. p. 398 sq., 
 Kobinson, Harmony, p. 153 (Tract. 
 
 Soc.), and compare Greswell, Dis- 
 sert. xm. Vol. III. p. 179 sq. 
 
 2 There seems some reason for 
 accepting with Tischendorf the read- 
 ing of BLX; Cant.; Orig. ( 4 ), hel- 
 TTvov ytvop^pov (John xiii. 2), accord- 
 ing to which the time would seem 
 to be indicated when our Lord and 
 His Apostles were just in the act of 
 sitting down ; comp. Meyer, in loc. 
 Even, however, if we retain the 
 Eeceived Text yevoyirov, the mean- 
 ing cannot be ‘supper being ended’ 
 (Auth. Ver.; comp. Friedlieb, Ar- 
 chqol. p. 64) ; for compare ver. 4, 12, 
 26, but, ‘when supper had begun, 
 had now taken place;’ compare 
 Lucke, Commentar uber Joh. Vol. ii. 
 p. 548 (ed. 3). 
 
The Last Passover. 
 
 825 
 
 ward spirit of the Lord^ that He solemnly an- 
 
 nounced it, and brought it home by a general ^ 
 
 indication^ to that small and saddened'^ company b Matt, 
 that sat around Him, and that now asked Him, 
 each one of them in the deep trouble of his heart, 
 Avhether it were possible that it could be he. After 
 a more special and private indication had been 
 vouchsafed and the self-convicted son of perdi- 
 tion had gone forth into the night‘s, followed in a yen 30. 
 due and solemn order the institution of the Eucha- 
 rist®, and with it those mysterious words® that® Matt. 
 
 • 111 '' TT 1 xxvi. 29. 
 
 seem to imply that that most Holy Sacrament Mark xiv. 
 was to have relation not only to the past but 
 to the future, that it was not only to be comme- 
 
 ^ It seems incorrect and uncriti- 
 cal to confuse the general indication 
 specified in the Synoptical Gospels, 
 6 iii^d'ipas /ier’ ifiou r^v (Matth. 
 xxvi. 23) or 6 ifi^aTTTdfievos x.r.X. 
 (Mark xiv. 20), with the more par- 
 ticular one John xiii. 26. The first 
 merely indicates what is in fact 
 stated by St John in ver. 18, that 
 the betrayer was one of those who 
 were now eating with our Lord : the 
 second is a special indication more 
 particularly vouchsafed to St John, 
 though perhaps in some degree felt 
 to be significant by the rest of the 
 Apostles; see Stier, Disc, of Our 
 Lord, Vol. VII. p. 49 (Clark). The 
 change of tense in St Mark 6 efi~ 
 ^aTTToixevoi (‘the dipper with me 
 &c.’) has been alluded to by Meyer 
 {in loc.) as indicating that Judas 
 sat in close proximity to our Lord. 
 This does not seem improbable (comp. 
 John xiii. 26), and may be thought 
 to favour the idea that St John was 
 on one side of our Lord, and the 
 traitor on the other. If, however, 
 we accept the reading of Lachmann 
 
 and Tischendorf in ver. 24, veiet odv 
 U^rpos Kal X^yei air(p 
 EtTT^ t/s icTTiv, the usually re- 
 ceived opinion that St Peter was on 
 the other side of our Lord will then 
 seem most natural. 
 
 ^ This would seem not to have 
 taken place till the traitor went out. 
 The strongly affirmative ci) et-rras of 
 St Matthew (ch. xxvi. 25 ; compare 
 Schoettg. in loc.) appears to agree 
 so well with the second and distinct 
 indication of the traitor in John 
 xiii. 26, after which we know that 
 he went out, that we can hardly 
 imagine that Judas was present at 
 what followed. Again John 1 . c. 
 seems to imply that the supper was 
 going on, whereas it is certain that 
 the Cup was blessed fierd rb SetTT- 
 VT](Tac, Luke xxii. 20, i Cor. xi. 25. 
 If this view be correct we must 
 suppose that the departure of the 
 traitor took place after Matth, xxvi. 
 25, and that ver. 26 eadibvriav di 
 abrCov refers to a resumption of the 
 supper after the interruption caused 
 by his leaving the apartment. 
 
82G 
 
 lliG Last Passover. 
 
 LECT. 
 
 VII. 
 
 a John 
 xiii. 37. 
 
 *’ Luke 
 xxii. 33. 
 
 ® ch. XV. I 
 
 morative of the sad but blessed hour that then 
 was passing, but .prophetic of that hour of holy joy 
 when all should again be gathered together, and 
 the Lord should drink with His chosen ones 
 the new paschal wine in the kingdom of God\ 
 After a few melancholy words on the dispersion 
 and failing faith of all of those who were then 
 around, yea, and even more particularly of him 
 who said in the warmth of his own glowing heart 
 that he would lay down his life for his Master^ 
 and follow Him to prison and to death ^ our Lord 
 appears to have uttered the longer and reassuring 
 address which forms the fourteenth chapter of the 
 Gospel of St John, and which ceased only to be 
 resumed again*^, perchance while all were standing 
 in attitude to depart^, in the sublime chapters 
 
 ^ The meaning of this mysteiious 
 declaration can only be humbly sur- 
 mised. It would appear, however, 
 from the peculiar distinctness of the 
 expressions {to^utov roD yeyyijju.aTos 
 T 7 JS ainriKov, Matth. xxvi. 2g) that 
 there is a reference to some future 
 participation in elements which a 
 glorified creation may supply (comp. 
 Rev. xxii. 2), perchance at that 
 mystic marriage-supper of the Lamb 
 (Rev. xix. 9), when the Lord and 
 those that love Him shall be visibly 
 united in the Kingdom of God 
 nevermore to part. The reference 
 to our Lord’s companionship with 
 His disciples after the resurrection 
 (Theophyl., Euthym.) can never be 
 accepted as an adequate explanation 
 of this most mysterious yet most 
 exalting promise. See especially, 
 Stier, Disc, of Our Lord, Vol. vii. 
 p. 166 sq., and compare Krum- 
 macher, The Sufferinr/ Saviour, ch. 
 V. p. 44 (Clark). 
 
 2 It scarcely seems probable that 
 John XV. I sq. was uttered in a dif- , 
 ferent and safer place (comp. Chry- 
 sost. in loc.) than that in which the 
 preceding discourse had been deli- 
 vered, still less that it was uttered 
 on the way to Gethsemane. The 
 view adopted by Luthardt {das Jo- 
 hann. Evang. Part ii. p. 321), Stier 
 {Disc, of our Lord, Vol. vi. p. 266), 
 and other recent expositors, viz. that 
 our Lord uttered the discourses in 
 the 15th and two following chapters 
 in the paschal apartment, on the 
 point of departure, and with the 
 disciples standing round Him, seems 
 much more natural. The reference 
 to the vine (ver. i) has led to seve- 
 ral arbitrary assumptions, e. g. that 
 it was suggested by the vineyai’ds 
 through which they are to be sup- 
 posed to liave been passing (Lange, 
 Lelen Jesu, Part ii. p. 1347), or by 
 the vine on the door of the Holy 
 place (Joseph. Antiq. XV. it. 3), to 
 
The Last Passover 
 
 327 
 
 wliicli follow. With the high-priestly prayer in 
 
 the seventeenth chapter, in which, as it were in 
 
 rapt and holy retrospect the Lord contemplates 
 and dedicates to His heavenly Father His com- 
 pleted work^, the solemn scene comes to its ex- 
 alted close. 
 
 Still followed by the yet undispersed Eleven, The agony 
 our Lord now leaves that upper room which had manf 
 been the witness of such adorable mysteries, and, 
 passing out of the city and down the deep gorge 
 on its eastern side, crosses over the Kedron^ to a 
 garden at the foot of the Mount of Olives, where, 
 as we learn from St John, He was often wont to 
 resort ^ and to which the produce of the adjacent ** ch. xviu. 
 hill gave the name of Gethsemanel Arrived atLuke'^u. 
 the spot the Lord leaves the greater part of His 
 saddened® Apostles in the outskirts of the garden‘d, Comp. 
 
 which it has been thought allusion 
 may have been made (Lampe, in loc.). 
 If we are to presume that this hea- 
 venly discourse was suggested by 
 any thing outward, ^ the fruit of the 
 vine ’ of which all had so solemnly 
 partaken would seem to be the more 
 natural object that gave rise to the 
 comparison : see Grotius in loc., and 
 Stier, Disc, of Our Lord, Vol. vi. 
 p. 269 (Clark). 
 
 1 Though it is right to be cautious 
 in pressing grammatical distinctions, 
 it still seems probable that the sig- 
 nificant aorists in John xvii. 4 sq., 
 idd^aaa, ire\e'uo<Ta, eepavipwaa 
 point to a contemplation, on the 
 part of the Saviour, of His work on 
 earth as now completed and con- 
 cluded. He now stands as it were 
 at the goal, and in holy retrospect 
 commends both His work and those 
 loved ones who had been permitted 
 to witness it to the Eternal Father 
 
 in a prayer which has been rightly 45* 
 regarded by all deeper expositors, as ^ ver. 36. 
 the most affecting and most sublime 
 outpouring of love and devotion 
 that stands recorded on the pages of 
 the Book of Life. See Luthardt, 
 das Johann. Evang. Part ii. p. 354, 
 and the admirable exposition of 
 Stier, Disc, of Our Lord, Vol. vi. 
 p. 421 sq. 
 
 2 The most probable derivation 
 appears to be (‘oil-press’); 
 
 see Winer, RWB. Vol. i. p. 424, 
 and compare Bynaeus, de Morte 
 Christi, ii. 2. 6, Part ii. p. 73. For 
 an account of the place with which 
 Gethsemane has been identified by 
 modern travellers see Robinson, 
 
 Palestine, Vol. i. p. 234 sq. (ed. 2), 
 
 Smith, Diet, of Bible, Vol. i. p. 684, 
 but comp. Thomson, Land and the 
 Boole, Vol. II. p. 483. For a repre- 
 sentation, see Robertson and Beato, 
 
 Vieivs of Jerusalem, No. 20. 
 
328 
 
 21te Last Passover. 
 
 Ll^:CT. 
 
 vir. 
 
 ^ Matt, 
 xxvi. 39, 
 
 •* ver. 37, 
 
 38. 
 
 Luke 
 xxii. 41. 
 ^ Mark 
 xiv. 35. 
 
 while with His three more especially chosen at- 
 tendants, Peter and the two sons of Zebedee, He 
 Himself advances farther into the solitude and 
 gloom ^ And now was solemnly disclosed a mys- 
 tery of unimaginable sufferings and woe. Pe- 
 moved from the three Apostles^, but only at such 
 a distance that their eyes might still behold, and 
 their poor human hearts strive to sympathize^ 
 with the now consciously deepening^ ^.gony of 
 their beloved Master, the Eternal Son kneels 
 bows, and falls forward on the earth^. Twice did 
 the prayer pass those suffering lips, that if it were 
 possible, — if it were compatible with His Father s 
 glory and the world’s salvation, — this cup, this 
 cup of a present anguish, in which in an awful 
 and indivisible unity all the future was included, 
 might pass from Him® ; and twice with words of 
 
 ^ The conjecture of Dean Alford 
 that our Lord retired with the three 
 Apostles into a portion of the garden 
 from which the moonlight might 
 have been intercepted by the rocks 
 and buildings on the opposite side 
 of the gorge does not seem impro- 
 bable, or at variance with the sup- 
 posed site : comp. Robinson, Pales- 
 tine, Vol. I. p. 235. 
 
 ^ While with the older expositors 
 we may reasonably believe that our 
 Lord was pleased to take the three 
 Apostles with Him that they might 
 be eye-witnesses to His church of 
 His mysterious Agony (were 
 a 6 ai avTocs ra rijs Euthym. in 
 
 MaMh. xxvi. 37), we may perhaps also, 
 with the best modern expositors, pre- 
 sume to infer from the special exhor- 
 tation 7p?77o/)eiTe fieP ifJiov (Matth. 
 xxvi. 39) that the Redeemer of the 
 world vouchsafed to desire the human 
 
 sympathy of these His chosen fol- 
 lowers : see Stier, Disc, of Our Lord, 
 Vol. VII. p. -225, where the practical 
 aspects of this opinion are fittingly 
 alluded to-, and compare Krum- 
 macher. The Suffering Christ, § 12, 
 p. 96 (Clark), Ewald, Qesch. Chris- 
 tus% p. 414. 
 
 ^ To regard this most holy prayer 
 as merely expressive of that shrink- 
 ing from death and suffering (Meyer, 
 ah), which belongs to the nature 
 our Lord was pleased to assume, is 
 as unfitting on the one hand, as it 
 is precarious on the other, to refer 
 the anguish and amazement that 
 preceded it either to the visible 
 appearance in form^ scilicet aliqua 
 dira et horrenda,’ Lightfoot, Jlor. 
 Ilehr. in loc.) of the Prince of dark- 
 ness, or to a sense of the punitive 
 withdrawal of the Paternal presence 
 (Krummacher, p. 97, — in language 
 
The Last Passover. 
 
 S29 
 
 meekest resignation did He yield Himself to the 
 
 heavenly will of Him with whom He Himself 
 
 was One. Twice did He return to the three xxvi. 39, 
 chosen ones whom He had bidden to watch with 
 Him^ in this awful hour of uttermost conflict, and *’ ^er. 38. 
 twice did He find Himself bereft even of human 
 sympathy, un watched with, unheeded, alone. Yet 
 a third time, if we here^ incorporate the narrative 
 of the third Evangelist‘S, even while the ministry of® ch. xxu. 
 the sustaining angel, and the thick falling drops 
 of bloody sweat^ alike bore witness to an agony 
 
 unwarrantably strong) from Him 
 who, though now feeling the full 
 pressure of the burden of a world’s 
 sin, not only could say but did say, 
 ‘Abba, Father;’ see Stier, Disc, of 
 Our Lord,- Vol. vii. p. 237. Heavy 
 indeed was the burden of sin, for it 
 bowed the Saviour to the earth 
 (Mark xiv. 35) ; fearful the assaults 
 of the powers of evil, for their hour 
 was at hand (Luke xxii. 53); but it 
 was to the vivid clearness of the 
 Saviour’s knowledge of the awful 
 affinity between death, sin, and the 
 powers of darkness (see p. 317, note 
 i) that we may humbly presume to 
 refer the truest bitterness of the cup 
 of Gethsemane ; see Beck, LeJirwis- 
 senschaft, p. 514 (cited by Stier), and 
 compare Pearson, Creed, Vol. i. p. 
 234 (ed, Burt.), Jackson, Creed, viir, 
 12.4. Vol. VII. p. 472 sq. 
 
 ^ It is perhaps doubtful whether 
 we are to consider the appearance of 
 the sustaining angel recorded by St 
 Luke as after the first or after the 
 second prayer. However this may 
 be, it seems right closely to connect 
 the angelical ministration and the 
 agony recorded in the next verse. 
 The infused physical strength (ertcr- 
 Xiiwy airbv, ver. 43 ; comp. Matth. 
 
 iv. ii) was exhibited in the more 
 agonized fervency of the prayer 
 {eKTeviarepov TpoarjbxeTO, ver. 44) 
 but in a manner that showed that 
 the exhaustion of the human and 
 bodily powers of the Redeemer had 
 now reached its uttermost limit. The 
 omission of this verse (ver. 43) and 
 of that which follows in some manu- 
 scripts [AB; 13. 69, 124], and the 
 marks of suspicion attached to them 
 in others (see Tisch. in loc.), are 
 apparently only due to the mistaken 
 opinion that the nature of the con- 
 tents of the verses was not consis- 
 tent with the doctrine of our Lord’s 
 divinity. 
 
 ^ It has been considered doubtful 
 whether the comparison of the sweat 
 to falling drops of blood was only 
 designed to specify the thickness 
 and greatness of the drops (Theo- 
 phyl., Euthym., Bynaeus), or whether 
 it also implies, that the sweat was 
 tinged with actual blood, forced 
 forth from the pores of that sacred 
 body (comp. Pearson, Creed, Vol. i. 
 p. 233, ed. Burt.) in the agony of 
 the struggle. The latter opinion 
 seems most probable, and most co- 
 incident with the language of the 
 inspired writer. If the use of w(rel 
 
330 
 
 The Last Passover. 
 
 LECT. 
 
 VII. 
 
 Mark 
 xiv. 41. 
 
 Matt, 
 xxvi. 45. 
 
 The be- 
 trayal of 
 our Lord. 
 
 ^ Mark 
 xiv. 43. 
 
 fast transcending the powers of our common hu- 
 manity, — yet a third time was that prayer offered 
 to the Eternal Father, and again was it answered 
 by the meek resignation of the Eternal Son. For 
 the last time the Lord returns to his slumbering 
 Apostles^, and now with words that sadly remind 
 them that the holy privilege of watching with 
 their suffering Master is finally lost and forfeited^. 
 He forewarns them that the hour is come^, and 
 the traitor nigh at hand. 
 
 Nigh indeed he was, for even now as the Lord 
 was speaking‘s an armed heathen^ and Jewish 
 
 shows that what fell were not drops 
 of blood, but of sweat, the special 
 addition of al'yuaros seems certainly 
 to indicate the peculiar nature of the 
 sweat, viz. as an tSpws al^aroeiSr/s 
 (Diod. Sic. Hist. xvii. 90), and to 
 direct attention to that with which 
 it was tinged and commingled : see 
 Meyer, on Luke xxii. 44, and for no- 
 tices of partial analogies, Jackson, 
 Creed, Vol. vii. p. 483, Bjmseus de 
 Morte Christi, Part ii. p. 133. 
 
 1 The exact meaning of the words 
 Kadevhere rb \oLvbu Kal avairaveade 
 (Matth. xxvi. 45) has been some- 
 what differently estimated. To find 
 in them a sort of mournful irony 
 (Meyer, in loc.) is, to use the mildest 
 term, psychologically unnatural, and 
 to take them in an interrogative 
 sense (Gres well. Dissert. XLii. Vol. 
 III. p. 194) in a high degree impro- 
 bable. We must then either supply 
 an ei bivaade with Euthymius, or, 
 as seems much more natural, regard 
 the words as spoken with a kind of 
 permissive force ( Winer, 6^raw. § 43, 
 p. 278), and in tones in which mer- 
 ciful reproach was blended with 
 calm resignation : deiKvvs, otl oi/dbp 
 T7]s avrCov betrai. ^orjddas, Kal on 
 
 bei irdpTm avrbv TrapaboOrjvai. Chrys. 
 in loc. Horn, lxxxiii. With this 
 the iyelpeade, dyu/aep (ver. 46) that 
 follows seems in no way inconsis- 
 tent. The former words were rather 
 in the accents of a pensive contem- 
 plation; the latter in the tones of 
 exhortation and command. Compare 
 Mark xiv. 41, where the inserted 
 dir^X^i seems exactly to mark the 
 change in tone and expression. 
 
 2 From the term airetpa used by 
 St John (ch. xviii. 3) and the sepa- 
 rate mention of virypirai iK tup 
 dpxiep^wi' Kal ^apiaaiup we must 
 certainly conclude that a portion of 
 the Eoman cohort (comp. Valcken. 
 Schol. Vol. I. p. 458), with which 
 the fortress of Antonia was usually 
 gari’isoned, was now placed at the 
 service of the chief-priestly party, — 
 probably for the sake of at once 
 quelling any opposition that might 
 be offered, and thus of avoiding all 
 chance of uproar at a time when 
 public tranquillity was always liable 
 to be disturbed; see Friedlieb, Ar- 
 cJidol. § 21, p. 67. The notice of 
 the 'torches and lanterns’ (John 
 xviii. 3) that were bi’ought, though 
 it was now the time of full moon. 
 
The Last Passover. 
 
 331 
 
 band with torches and lanterns led by the lost 
 
 Apostle ^ arrives before the entrance of the garden. 
 
 While they pause perchance, and stand consulting xvUi. 3. 
 how they may best provide against every possi- ** 
 bility of escape, He whom they were seeking, 
 with all the holy calm of prescience‘s, comes forth 
 from the enclosure and stands face to face with 
 the apostate and his company.... And now follows 
 a scene of rapidly succeeding incidents, the traitor’s 
 kiss^, — the Lord’s question to the soldiers, and 
 avowal of Himself as Him whom they were seek- 
 ing^, — the involuntary homage of the terror-stricken John 
 band^, — the tender solicitude of the Lord for His 
 Apostles®, and their reciprocated readiness to de- « ver. 8. 
 fend Him, scantily armed as they were^, even to f Luke 
 the death^, — the rash sword-stroke of Peter, and 
 the healing touch of the divine hand^, — the Lord’s 1 . Luke 
 words of meek protest to the chief-priests^ and^^“'^*‘ 
 
 shows the deliberate nature of the 
 plan, and the determination to 
 preclude every possibility of escape : 
 comp. Luthardt, das Johann. Evang. 
 Part II. p. 378. 
 
 1 It may be observed that both 
 
 St Matthew (ch. xxvi. 49) and St 
 Mark (ch. xiv. 45) specially use the 
 compound form KarecpLXrja-ev. To 
 assert that this ^is only another 
 word for (Alford) seems 
 
 veiy precarious, especially when the 
 nature of the case would render a 
 studied manner of salutation highly 
 probable. Meyer appropriately cites 
 Xenoph. Mem. ii. 6. 33, cbs toi>s 
 KaXoifS (piX-rjcravTSs jxov, Toiis 5 ’ &ya- 
 60VS KaracpiX^cravTos. 
 
 2 The statement of Stier, that 
 there was here ‘ no specific miracle 
 apart from the standing miracle of 
 our Lord’s personality itself’ {Disc. 
 
 of Our Lord, Vol. vii. p. 271), may 
 very justly be called in question. It 
 seems much more correct to suppose 
 with the older expositors that the 
 mighty words iyd} djuu (compare 
 Mark vi. 50) were permitted to 
 exercise their full miraculous force, 
 in order that alike to friends and 
 foes the voluntary nature of the 
 Lord’s surrender of Himself might 
 be fully declared; see Chrysostom, 
 in loc., and compare the curious 
 remarks of Origen, in Matih. § 100, 
 Vol. III. p. 906 (ed. Bened.). 
 
 ^ It seems clear from the inclu- 
 sive terms of Luke xxii. 52, that 
 not only some of the Temple-officers, 
 but that some even of the members 
 of the Sanhedrin had either come 
 with or recently joined (Euthym.) 
 the crowd, and were now taking 
 a prominent part in the proceedings. 
 
332 
 
 The Last Passover. 
 
 LECT. 
 
 VII. 
 
 !* John 
 xviii. 12. 
 
 The pre- 
 liminary 
 examina- 
 tion before 
 Annas. 
 
 See p. 
 331, note 
 
 3 - 
 
 ® John 
 xviii. 12. 
 
 ^ ver. 13. 
 
 multitude, — the flight of the terrified Apostles, — 
 the binding and leading away of the now forsaken 
 Kedeemer^, — all of which we must here not fail 
 thus briefly to enumerate, but on the details of 
 which our present limits will not permit us to 
 enlarge, especially as there is still so much before 
 us that requires our more close and concentrated 
 attention. 
 
 It was now deep in the night, when that mixed 
 Jewish and Gentile multitude returned to the city 
 with Him whom the party of the Sanhedrin had 
 so long and so eagerly desired to seize. Directed 
 probably by those who sent them forth or by some 
 of the chief priests and elders, who we know were 
 among the multitude^, the soldiers and Jewish 
 officers^ that were with them® lead our Lord away 
 to the well-known and influential Annas who, if 
 not as president of the Sanhedrin, yet certainly as 
 the father-in-law of the acting High-priest‘s, was 
 
 To call this a ‘Verirrung der Tra- 
 dition’ (Meyer, iih. Luk. p. 486) is 
 as arbitrary as it is presumptuous. 
 Such a fact is neither unlikely in 
 itself nor incompatible with the 
 statements of the other Evange- 
 lists. 
 
 ^ The very distinct enumeration 
 of those that took part in the pre- 
 sent acts (John xviii. 12) may jper- 
 Aajpshint at the impression produced 
 by the preceding events, which now 
 led all to help (Luthardt), but is 
 more probably only intended to 
 mark that Gentiles and Jews alike 
 took part in the heinous act, i] o-Trei- 
 pa Kal 6 xtXtapxos forming a natui’al 
 designation of the one part, oi virr}- 
 chaL Twv’IovSatW, of the other. 
 
 ” This successful man was ap- 
 
 pointed high-priest by Quirinus A.D. 
 12, and after holding the oflBce for 
 several years was deposed by Vale- 
 rius Gratus, the Procurator of Judaea 
 who preceded Pilate ; comp. Joseph. 
 Antiq. xviii. 2. i sq. He appears, 
 however, to have possessed vast in- 
 fluence, as he not only obtained the 
 high-priesthood for his son Eleazar, 
 and his son-in-law Caiaphas, but 
 subsequently for four other sons, 
 under the last of whom James the 
 Brother of our Lord was put to 
 death : comp. Joseph. Antiq. xx. 9. 
 I. It is thus highly probable that 
 besides having the title of dpxt^pei/s 
 merely as one who had filled the 
 office, he to a great degree retained 
 the powers he had formerly exer- 
 cised, and came to be regarded 
 
The Last Passover, 
 
 333 
 
 the fittest person' with whom to leave our Lord 
 
 till the Sanhedrin could be formally assembled,... 
 
 The locality of the examination that followed is 
 confessedly most difficult to decide upon, as the 
 first and fourth Evangelists seem here to specify 
 two different places^, though indeed it requires “ Matt, 
 but the simple and reasonable supposition that John 
 Annas and Caiaphas occupied a common official 
 residence, to unite their testimony, and to remove 
 many of the difficulties with which this portion of 
 the sacred narrative is specially marked ^ Be this as 
 it may, we can scarcely doubt from the clear state- 
 ments in St John’s GospeP that a preliminary xviii. 
 examination of an inquisitorial nature, in which 
 the Lord was questioned, perhaps conversationally, 
 about His followers and His teaching®, and which ch. xviii. 
 the brutal conduct of one of the attendants present ^2 
 seems to show was private and informal, took 
 place in the palace of Annas. Here too, it would 
 seem, we must also place the three denials of St 
 Peter^, the last of which, by the sort of note of 
 
 practically as a kind of de jure 
 High-priest. The opinion of Light- 
 foot that he was Sagan is not con- 
 sistent with the position of his name 
 before Caiaphas, Luke iii. 2 (see 
 Vitringa, Ols. Sacr. Vi. p. 529), and 
 much less probable than the supposi- 
 tion of Selden (revived and ably 
 put forward by "Wieseler, Chron. 
 Synojps. p. 186 sq.) that he was the 
 Nasi or President of the Sanhedrin, 
 an office not always held by the 
 high-priest; compare Friedlieb, Ar- 
 clidol. § 7, p. 12. The latter view 
 would well account for the prelimi- 
 nary examination, but is not fully 
 made out, and hardly in accordance 
 with John xviii. 13; see below. 
 
 ^ The words yap xirOepos k.t.X. 
 (John xviii. 13) seem certainly to 
 point to the degree of relationship as 
 the cause of the sending. They 
 are thus, to say the least, not incon- 
 sistent with the supposition that 
 Caiaphas was wholly in the hands of 
 his powerful father-in-law : compare 
 (thus far) Sepp, Leben Christi, VI. 
 48, Vol. m. p. 463 sq. 
 
 2 So Euthymius, in Matth. xxvi. 
 58, — a very reasonable conjecture 
 which has been accepted by several 
 of the best modern expositors ; see 
 Stier, Disc, of Our Lord, Vol. vii. 
 p. 306 (Clark). 
 
 3 The difficult question of the 
 harmony of the various accounts 
 
334 
 
 The Last Passover. 
 
 LECT. 
 
 VII. 
 
 " Mark 
 xiv. 72. 
 
 •* John 
 xviii. 24. 
 
 The exami- 
 nation be- 
 fore the 
 Sanhedrin. 
 
 ® Comp. 
 Matt.xxvi. 
 
 3. 
 
 time afforded by the mention of the second cock- 
 crovving^ must have occurred not very long be- 
 fore the first dawning of day^, and not improbably 
 at the very time that the Saviour was being led 
 away bound to Caiaphas'^ across the court where 
 the Apostle was then standing. 
 
 And now day was beginning to draw nigh; 
 yet, as it would seem, before its earliest rays the 
 whole body of the Sanhedrin had assembled, as 
 it was a case that required secrecy and despatch, 
 at the house of the High-priest Caiaphas*^, whither 
 the Lord had recently been brought'^ The Holy 
 
 cannot bare be fully entered into. If 
 we allow ourselves to conceive that 
 in the narrative of St John the first 
 and second denials are transposed, 
 and that the first took place at going 
 out, rather than coming in, there 
 would seem to result this very natu- 
 ral account, — that the first denial 
 took place at the fire (Matth. xxvi. 
 69, Mark xiv. 66 sq., Luke xxii. 56, 
 John xviii. 25), and was caused by 
 the fixed recognition (Luke xxii. 56) 
 of the maid who admitted St Peter ; 
 that the second took place at or near 
 the door leading out of the court, to 
 which fear might have driven the 
 Apostle (Matth. xxvi. 71, Mark xiv. 
 68 sq., Luke xxii. 58, John xviii. 
 1 7) ; and that the third took place 
 in the court about an hour after- 
 wards (Luke xxii. 59) before several 
 witnesses who urged the peculiar 
 nature of the Apostle’s harsh Gali- 
 lyean pronunciation (see Priedlieb, 
 ArchdoL § 25, Sepp, Lelen Chr. 
 Vol. III. p. 478 sq.), and near enough 
 to our Lord for Him to turn and 
 gaze upon His now heart-touched 
 and repentant follower. Minor dis- 
 cordances, as to the number and 
 
 identity of the recognizers still re- 
 main, but these when properly con- 
 sidered will only be found such as 
 serve the more clearly to show not 
 only the independence of the in- 
 spired witnesses, but the living truth 
 of the occurrence. For further de- 
 tails see a good note of Alford, on 
 Matth. xxvi. 69, Robinson, Harmony, 
 p. 166 note (Tract Society), and 
 compare Lichtenstein, Lebensgesch. 
 Jes. p. 427 sq. 
 
 1 From a consideration of pas- 
 sages in ancient writers (esp. Am- 
 mian. Marcellinus, Hist. xxii. 14) 
 Friedlieb shows that the second 
 cock-crowing must be assigned to 
 the beginning of the fourth watch, 
 and consequently to a time some- 
 where between the hours of 3 and 
 4 in the morning ; see Archdol. § 24, 
 p. 79, Wieseler, Chron. Synops. p. 
 406, and compare Greswell, Dissert. 
 XLii. Vol. III. p. 211 sq. 
 
 2 From the above narration it 
 will be seen that the contested dir^ 
 areCKev (John xviii. 24) is taken in 
 its simple aoristic sense, and as de- 
 fining the end of the preliminary 
 examination befoi’e Annas, of which 
 
The Last Passover. 
 
 885 
 
 One is now placed before his prejudiced and 
 
 embittered judges, and proceedings at once com- 
 
 in diced. These were probably not gravely irre- 
 gular. Though neither the time nor perhaps the 
 place of meeting were strictly legal in the case of 
 a capital trial like the present, there still does 
 not seem any reason for supposing that the 
 council departed widely from the outward rules 
 of their courts With vengeance in their hearts 
 yet, as it would seem, with all show of legal 
 formality they forthwith proceed to receive and 
 investigate the many suborned witnesses^ that ^ Matt, 
 were now in readiness to bear their testimony. 
 
 But conviction is not easy. The wretched men, 
 
 the fourth Evangelist, true to the 
 supplemental nature of his Gospel 
 (see p. 14, note 4), alone gives an 
 account. The usual pluperfect trans- 
 lation (‘miserat’) is open, in a case 
 like the present, to serious objection 
 in a mere grammatical point of view 
 (consider the examples in Winer, Gr. 
 § 40, p. 246), especially as the verb 
 has a pluperfect in regular use; 
 even, however, if these be waived 
 the exegetical arguments against it 
 seem plainly irresistible: see Stier, 
 Disc, of Our Lord, Vol. vii. p. 307 
 (Clark). 
 
 1 As the council had now it 
 would seem (Lightfoot, Ilor. Heir, 
 in Matth. xxvi. 3) ceased to occupy 
 its formal hall of meeting on the 
 south side of the temple, called 
 Gazith (n'TJn conclave C 3 Bsi 
 
 lapidis),and had moved elsewhere (see 
 Eriedlieb, Archdol, § 5, p. 10 ; and 
 correct accordingly Milman, Hist, of 
 Christianity, chap. vii. Vol. i. p. 336, 
 note and p. 344), meetings in the 
 city and in the house of the high- 
 priest may have become less out of 
 
 order. The time, however, was not 
 in accordance with the principle, 
 'judicia capitalia transigunt inter- 
 diu, et finiunt interdiu ’ {Gem. Balyl. 
 ‘ Sanhedr.’ IV. i), as the comment of 
 S': Luke ws iyhero rjfiepa (ch. xxii. 
 66), would appear to refer to the 
 concluding part of the trial, of the 
 whole of which he only gives a sum- 
 mary ; compare Meyer, in loc. p. 488. 
 The preceding part of the trial would 
 thus seem to have been in the night. 
 In other respects it is probable that 
 the prescribed forms were complied 
 with. The Sanhedrists were doubt- 
 less resolved to condemn our Lord 
 to death at all hazards ; it still how- 
 ever seems clear from the sacred 
 narrative (Matth. xxvi. 60, 61) that 
 they observed the general principles 
 of the laws relating to e\ddence : see 
 Wilson, Illustr. of the New Test. 
 ch. V. p. 77, and for a description 
 of the regular mode of conducting a 
 trial, compare Eriedlieb, Archdol. 
 § 'i 6 , and the rabbinical quotations 
 in Sepp, Lelen Christi, VI. 48 sq., 
 Vol. III. p, 464 sq. 
 
33G 
 
 The Last Passover. 
 
 LECT. 
 
 VII. 
 
 a Mark 
 xiv. 56. 
 
 *' ver. 55. 
 
 ^ Matt, 
 xxvi. 63. 
 
 d ver. 61. 
 
 « Mark 
 xiv. 59. 
 
 f Isaiah 
 liii. 7. 
 
 e Mark 
 xiv. 60. 
 
 ^ Matt, 
 xxvi. 63, 
 * Comp, 
 Lev. V. 1 
 
 as we may remember, so gainsaid each other ^ 
 that something further seemed required before the 
 bloody sentence^, which so many present had now 
 ready on their lips, could with any decency be 
 pronounced. Meanwhile the Lord was silent^. 
 The witnesses were left to confute or contradict 
 each other even the two^ that affected to repeat 
 words actually spoken, and even in this could 
 not agree®, were dismissed without one question 
 being put to them by the meek Sufferer who, 
 even as ancient prophecy had foretold^, still pre- 
 served His solemn and impressive silence. Foiled 
 and perplexed the High-priest himself becomes 
 interrogator^. With a formal adjuration^, which 
 had the effect of putting the accused under the obli- 
 gation of an oath\ he puts a question^, which 
 if answered in the affirmative would proba^bly at 
 once ensure the Lord’s condemnation as a false 
 Messiah®, and as one against whom the law 
 
 ^ The difiference of our blessed 
 Lord’s deportment before His dif- 
 ferent judges is worthy of notice. 
 Before Annas, where the examina- 
 tion was mainly conversational, He 
 vouchsafes to answer though, as 
 Stier remarks, with dignified repul- 
 sion. Before the injustice of the 
 Sanhedrin and the mockery of He- 
 rod He is profoundly silent. Before 
 Pilate, when apart from the chief 
 priests and elders (contrast Matth. 
 xxvii. 12 — 14), He vouchsafes to 
 answer with gracious forbearance, 
 and to bear testimony unto the 
 truth : see Stier, Disc, of Otir Lord, 
 Vol. VII. p. 311 (Clark). 
 
 2 The question, it has been not 
 improbably supposed, was partially 
 suggested by the previous testimony 
 
 about our Lord’s destroying the 
 Temple, there being an ancient rab- 
 binical tradition that when the Mes^ 
 siah came. He was to construct a 
 much more glorious temple than the 
 one then existing : see especially 
 Sepp, Leben Christi, VI. 48, Vol. iii. 
 p. 468 sq. 
 
 3 Wlien the high-priest asked our 
 Lord whether He were ‘ the Christ 
 the Son of God’ (Matth. xxvi. 63) or 
 ‘ the Christ the Son of the Blessed ’ 
 (Mark xiv. 61) he was probably 
 using with design a title of the 
 Messiah which, though not appro- 
 priated by custom to the Messiah 
 (see p. 260, note 3), was not wholly 
 unprecedented, and in the present 
 case was particularly well calculated 
 to lead to some answer which might 
 
The Last Passover. 
 
 837 
 
 relating to the false prophet^ might be plausibly 
 
 brought to bear. And the answer was given. 
 
 He that spake avowed Himself to be both the xiii. 5 
 Christ and the Son of Cod'"; — ^yea the Son 
 God in no modified or theocratic sensed butxiv. 62. 
 whom their own eyes should behold sitting on 
 the right hand of Him with whom equality was 
 now both implied and understood, and riding on 
 the clouds of heaven®. With those words all was Matt, 
 uproar and confusion. The High-priest, possibly Mark 
 with no pretended horror-, rent his clothes^; the 
 excited council put the question in the new form xxvi. 65. 
 
 justify condemnation. If our Lord 
 had answered that He was truly the 
 Messiah, it is possible the intention 
 might have been to put further 
 questions as to His relation with 
 the Father, and so lead Him to 
 declare before the Sanhedrin what 
 they perhaps knew He had declared 
 before the people (John x. 30). It 
 is, however, not improbable that the 
 formal avowal of Messiahship would 
 have been deemed enough to jur^tify 
 condemnation according to the law 
 alluded to in the text; see the fol- 
 lowing note. A slightly different ex- 
 planation is given by Wilson, Illustr. 
 of New Test. ch. iv. p. 64. 
 
 1 Whatever may have been the 
 design of the High-priest in putting 
 the question to our Lord in the 
 peculiar terms in which we find it 
 specified both by St Matthew and 
 St Mark, — whether it was merely a 
 formal though unusual title, or one 
 chosen for sinister purposes, — the 
 fact remains the same, that our 
 Lord gave marked prominence to 
 the second portion of the title, using 
 a known synonym and well-remem- 
 bered passage (Dan. vii. 13) to make 
 the meaning in which He used it 
 
 still more explicit, and that it was 
 for claiming this that He was con- 
 demned: see John xix. 7, and the 
 very clear statements of Wilson, 
 Illustr. of the N. T. p. 5 sq. 
 
 2 There seems no good reason for 
 suppc sing this was either a ‘ stage- 
 trick ’ (Krummacher), or the result 
 of a concerted plan. The declara- 
 tion of our Lord following the for- 
 mally assenting et-iras (Matth. 
 xxvi. 64), introduced as it is by the 
 forcible Tr\r]v (‘besides my asser- 
 tion, you shall have the testimony 
 of your own eyes;’ comp. Klotz, 
 Devar. Vol. ii. p. 725), seems to 
 have filled the wretched Caiaphas 
 with mingled rage and horror. He 
 gives full prominence to the last, 
 that he may better satiate the first. 
 On the ceremony of rending gar- 
 ments, which we learn was to be 
 performed standing (comp. Matth. 
 xxvi. 65), and so that the rent was 
 to be from the neck straight down- 
 wards (‘fit stando; a collo anterius 
 •non posterius.’ Maimon. ap. Bux- 
 torf. Lex. Talm. p. 2146), see Fried- 
 lieb, Archdol. § 26, p. 92, Sepp, 
 Lehen Christi, vi, 48, Vol. iii. p. 
 473, nf^te. 
 
 E. n. L. 
 
 22 
 
338 
 
 The Last Passover. 
 
 LECT. 
 
 VII. 
 
 “ Luke 
 xxii. 70. 
 
 b Matt, 
 xxvi. 66. 
 Mark xiv. 
 
 64. 
 
 The brutal 
 mockery 
 of the at- 
 tendants. 
 
 ^ Luke 
 xxii. 63. 
 
 ver. 53. 
 
 e Matt, 
 xxvii. I. 
 Mark xv. 
 
 I. 
 
 ^ Matt, 
 xxvii. 2. 
 
 which it had now assumed. Was it even so ? Did 
 the seeming mortal that stood before them declare 
 that He was the Son of GoP. Yea verily He 
 did^ Then His blood be on His head. Worse, 
 a thousand times worse than false prophet or false 
 Messiah, — a blasphemer, and that before the 
 High-priest and great council of the nation, let 
 Him die the death ^ 
 
 After our Lord was removed from the cham- 
 ber, or perhaps even in the presence of the San- 
 hedrin, began a fearful scene of brutal ferocity 
 in which, possibly not for the first time in that 
 dreadful night the menial wretches that held 
 the Lord^ now all took their satanic part, and 
 in which the terms used showed that the recent 
 declaration of our Lord was used as a pretext 
 for indignities and shameless violence that verily 
 belonged to the hour of the powers of darkness‘s. 
 Meanwhile the confused court was asrain reas- 
 sembled®, and after some consultation how their 
 sentence could most hopefully be carried into 
 effect^, they again bind our Lord^, and lead Him 
 
 ^ In the words v[xets Xeyere, on 
 iyd) elfu (Luke xxii. 70) the 6'rt is 
 rightly taken by the best expositors 
 as argumentative {‘because I am’) 
 the sentence here being, to use the 
 language of grammarians, not ob- 
 jective but causal: comp. Donalds. 
 Qr. Gram. § 584, 615. 
 
 ^ It is extremely doubtful whether 
 Luke xxii. 63 — 65 is to be conceived 
 as placed a little out of its exact 
 order, or as referring to insults and 
 mockery in the court of Annas. 
 The exact similarity of the incidents 
 with those specified, Matth. xxvi. 
 67 sq., Mark xiv. 65, make the first 
 
 supposition perhaps slightly the most 
 probable. 
 
 ^ The meeting of the council al- 
 luded to Matth xxvii. i, Mark xv. i 
 (compare Luke xxiii. r, John xviii. 
 28), and defined by the second 
 Evangelist as eirl rb irpui (‘about 
 morning;’ Winer, Gr. § 49, p. 363), 
 was clearly not a new meeting, but 
 as the language both of St Matthew 
 and St Mark seems clearly to imply, 
 a continued session of the former 
 meeting, and that too in its full 
 numbers (/cal 6 \ou rb avvibpiov, Mark 
 XV. i). The question now before the 
 meeting was, how best to consum- 
 
The Last Passover. 
 
 839 
 
 to Pontius Pilate who was now in his official 
 residence in Herod’s palace^, and had as usual 
 come to Jerusalem to preserve order during the 
 great yearly festival. 
 
 We may here pause for a moment to observe 
 that, from the connexion in this portion of St 
 Matthew’s narrative, it would certainly seem rea- 
 sonable to suppose that it was this last act on 
 the part of the Sanhedrin that served suddenly to 
 open the eyes of the traitor Judas to the real 
 issues of his appalling sin. Covetousness had 
 lured him on ; Satan had blinded him ; and he 
 could not and would not look forward to all that 
 must inevitably follow. But now the lost man 
 sees all. The priests^, at whose feet he casts 
 
 mate the judicial murder to which 
 they had recently agreed. 
 
 1 Here appears to have been the 
 regular residence of the Procurators 
 when in Jerusalem; see Joseph. 
 Bell. Jud. II. 14. 8, <i>Xwpos 5 e rore 
 €v roTs /SacrtXetots ai/XL^erai (com- 
 pared with Bell. Jud. ii. 15. 5), 
 and see Winer, RWB., Art. ‘Picht- 
 haus,’ Vol. II. .p. 3 ' 29 . This has been 
 recently denied by Ewald {Gescli, 
 Christus’, p. 12), who states that the 
 temporary residence of the Procu- 
 rators was in an older palace nearer 
 to the fort of Antonia, but appa- 
 rently on insufficient grounds. For 
 a description of Herod’s palace and 
 notices of the size and splendour of 
 its apartments, see Joseph. Bell. 
 Jud. V. 4. 4, Antiq. XV. 9. 3, and 
 compare Sepp, Lehen Chr. vi. 53, 
 Vol. III. p. 496 sq., Ewald, Gesch. 
 des Voile. Isr. Vol. iv. p. 493. 
 
 2 The use of the definite terms 
 iu T<p yaip (Matth. xxvii. 5) would 
 certainly seem to imply that the 
 
 wretched traitor forced his way into 
 the inner portion of the temple, 
 where the priests would now have 
 been preparing for the approaching 
 festival (comp. Sepp, Lehen Chr. Vi. 
 78, Vol. III. p. 609), and there flung 
 down the price of blood. With re- 
 gard to his end, it is plainly impos- 
 sible to interpret the explicit term 
 aTTriy^aro (Matth. xxvii. 5) in any 
 other way than as specifying a self- 
 inflicted death by hanging ; compare 
 the exx. in Greswell, Dissert. XLii. 
 Vol. III. p. 220, note. The notice 
 in Acts i. i8 in no way opposes 
 this, but only states a frightful 
 sequel which was observed to have 
 taken place by those probably who 
 found the body. The explanation 
 of Lightfoot {Hor. Hebr. in Matth. 
 1 . c.), according to which dirrjy^aTO is 
 to be translated ‘ strangulatus est, a 
 Diabolo scilicet,’ is obviously unten- 
 able. We may say truly with Chry- 
 sostom that it was the mediate work 
 of Satan {dvaipei ireiaas eavrou diro- 
 22—2 
 
 LECT. 
 
 VII. 
 
 The fate of 
 J udas Is- 
 cariot. 
 
S40 
 
 The Last Passover. 
 
 ^Yj?* blood-money, jibe him^ in language almost 
 ■ fiendish ; his soul is filled with bitterness, dark- 
 
 a Matt. ^ . 
 
 xxvii. 4. ness, despair, and death. The son of perdition ‘ 
 Acts!. 25. goes to his own place^. 
 
 Our Lord’s 
 first ap- 
 ])c-arance 
 before Pi- 
 late. 
 
 *' John 
 xviii. 28. 
 
 ver. 29. 
 
 ® ver. 30. 
 
 But let us return to the further circumstances 
 of our Lord’s trial. The Bedeemer now stood 
 before the gates of him who bore the sword in 
 Jerusalem, awaiting the message which the Sanhe- 
 drists, men who shrank from leaven® though they 
 shrank not from blood, had sent into the palace of 
 the Procurator, demanding, as it would seem, that 
 our Lord should at once be put to death as a dan- 
 gerous malefactor. With ready political tact the 
 Roman comes forth at their summons, but, with 
 a Roman’s instinctive respect for the recognized 
 forms of justice, demands the nature of the charge‘s 
 brought against the man on whom his eyes now 
 fell, and whose aspect proclaimed His innocence. 
 The accusers at first answer evasively®; but soon. 
 
 \iaai), but must refer the immediate 
 perpetration of the deed to Judas 
 himself. For further accounts, all 
 exaggerated or legendary, see the 
 notices in Hofmann, Leben Jesu, p. 
 
 333. 
 
 ^ This title given to the wretched 
 man by our Lord Himself in His 
 solemn high-priestly prayer (John 
 xvii. 12 ; comp. vi. 70), coupled with 
 His previous declaration, KaXoi/ 
 avT(^ el ovK eyevv'qOy} 6 avdpuiros 
 eKe'ivos (Matth. xxvi. 24 ; compare 
 hereon Krummacher, The Saffermg 
 Saviour, p. 69), will always be re- 
 garded by sound thinkers as a prac- 
 tical protest against all the anti- 
 Christian attempts of later historical 
 criticism (see the reff. in Meyer, 
 Komment. iih. Matth. p. 487) to pal- 
 liate the traitor’s inexjiiable crime, 
 
 and to make it appear that he only 
 wished to force our Lord to declare 
 His true nature, and betrayed Him 
 as the best means of ensuring it. 
 Whether such motives did or did 
 not mingle with the traitor’s beset- 
 ing sin of covetousness (comp. Ewald, 
 Gesch. Chr. p. 398 sq.) we pause not 
 to inquire; we only see in his fearful 
 end the most dread instance of the 
 regular development and enhance- 
 ment of sin in the individual (see 
 Muller, Doctr. of Sin, Book v. Vol. 
 II. p. 461, Clark) that is contained 
 in the history of man, and with awe 
 we behold in him the only one who 
 received his sentence in person be- 
 fore the last day : see Stier, Disc, of 
 Our Lord, Vol. Vii. p. 56 sq., and a 
 practical sermon by Pusey, Paroch. 
 Serm. xn. Vol. it. p. 197. 
 
The Last Passover. 
 
 841 
 
 as it would seem from the narrative of St Luke^ 
 
 find an answer that they calculated could not fail 
 
 in appealing to a Procurator of Judsea. With 2. 
 satanically prompted cunning they carefully sup- 
 press the real grounds on which they had con- 
 demned the Saviour, and heap up charges of a 
 purely political nature^ ; chief among which were 
 specified, in all their familiar sequence to the 
 Procurators ear, seditious agitation, attempted 
 prohibition of the payment of the tribute-money, 
 and assumption of the mixed civil and religious 
 title of King of the Jews^ It seems, however, 
 clear that from the very first the sharp-sighted 
 Roman plainly perceived that it was no case for 
 his tribunal, — that it was wholly a matter of 
 religious differences and religious hate, and that 
 the meek prisoner who stood before him, was 
 at least innocent of the political crimes that had 
 been laid to His charge with such an unwonted 
 and suspicious zeaP. The prescribed forms must 
 however be gone through: the accused must be 
 
 ^ This fact has been alluded to 
 by Wilson, Illustr. of the New Test. 
 p. 5, and has been urged by Blunt, 
 Veracity of Gospels, §13, p. 50 sq. 
 (Bond. 1831). It did not escape 
 the notice of Cyril Alex., who has 
 some good comments upon the 
 changed character of the charges. 
 Comment, on St Luke, Part il. p. 709. 
 
 2 There are no sufficient grounds 
 for rejecting with Meyer (w&, Joh. 
 p. 470, ed. 3) the usual and very 
 reasonable supposition that St Luke’s 
 mention of the charges preferred 
 by the Sanhedrin (ch. xxiii. 2) is to 
 be connected with Pilate’s question 
 as recorded by St John (ch. xviii. 
 29). It would seem that at first the 
 
 Sanhedrists hoped to urge the Pro- 
 curator to accept the decision of 
 their own court without further in- 
 quiry, but finding this promptly and 
 even tauntingly (J ohn xviii. 38) 
 rejected, they then are driven to 
 prefer specific charges ; compare 
 Lange, Leben Jesu, ii. 7. 7, Part ii. 
 p. 1 504 sq. On the nature of these 
 charges see Stier, Disc, of Our Lord, 
 Vol. VII. p. 346 (Clark). 
 
 ^ The remark of Pfenninger (cited 
 by Stier) is just and pertinent, that 
 ‘ Pilate knew too much about Jewish 
 expectations to suppose that the 
 Sanhedrin would hate and persecute 
 one who would free them from 
 Roman authority.’ 
 
342 
 
 The Last Passover. 
 
 LECT. 
 
 VII. 
 
 ’* Jolm 
 xviii. 33. 
 
 •’ John 
 xviii, 38. 
 
 Luke 
 xxiii. 5. 
 
 ver. 7. 
 
 examined, and be dealt with according to the facts 
 which the examination may elicit. That exami- 
 nation which (we may observe in passing) was 
 conducted by the Procurator in person b served 
 to deepen Pilate^s impressions, and to convince 
 him that the exalted sufferer, whose mien and 
 words seem alike to have awed and attracted him, 
 was guiltless of everything save an enthusiasm 
 which the practical Poman might deem hopeless 
 and visionary^, but which it was in no way meet 
 to punish with the sword of civil justice. And 
 the yet righteous judge acts on his convictions. 
 He goes forth to the Jews and declares the Lords 
 innocence^, and only so far listens to the clamours 
 of the accusers, as to use their mention of the 
 name of Galilee‘S as a pretext for sending our 
 Lord to the Tetrarch of that country who was now 
 in Jerusalem‘S as a so-called worshipper at the 
 
 1 Pilate being only a Procurator, 
 though a Procurator cum potestate, 
 had no Qufestor to conduct the 
 examinations ; and thus, as the Gos- 
 pels most accurately record, performs 
 that office himself : compare Fried- 
 lieb, ArcJidol. § 31, p. 105. 
 
 2 On the character of Pilate see 
 below, p. 350, note i. His me- 
 morable question, * what is truth ? ’ 
 (John xviii. 38) which occurred in 
 the present part of the examination, 
 must apparently neither be regarded 
 with the older writers as the expres- 
 sion of a desire to know what truth 
 really was (Chrys., ah), nor again 
 with some recent expositors as the 
 cheerless query of the wearied and 
 baffled seai’cher (Olshaus., ah), but 
 simply as the half-pitying question 
 of the practical man of the world, 
 who felt that truth was a phantom. 
 
 a word that had no political import, 
 and regarded the attempt to connect 
 it with a kingdom and matters of 
 real life as a delusion of harmless 
 though pitiable enthusiasm ; see 
 Meyer, in loc. p. 47-2, Stier, Disc, 
 of Our Lord, Voh vii. p, 376 sq. 
 (Clai’k), and compare Luthardt, Jo- 
 hann. Evang. Part ii. p, 400. 
 
 ^ Pilate here availed himself of a 
 practice occasionally adopted in cri- 
 minal cases, viz. that of sending 
 away (Luke xxiii. 7, dviireg^pev re- 
 misit) the accused from the forum 
 apprehensionis to his foi'um originis ; 
 compare the partly similar case in 
 reference to St Paul (Acts xxv. 9 sq.), 
 and the conduct of Vespasian to- 
 wards the prisoners who were sub- 
 jects of Agrippa; Josephus, Bell. 
 Jud. III. 10. 10. See Friedlieb, 
 Archdol. § 32, p, 107. ^ 
 
The Last Passover, 
 
 843 
 
 pasclial festival.... This course the dexterous Pro- 
 
 curator failed not to perceive had two great advan- 
 
 tages; it enabled him, in the first place, to rid 
 himself of all further responsibility, and in the 
 next it gave him an opportunity of exercising the 
 true Poman state-craft of propitiating by a trifling 
 act of political courtesy a native ruler with whom 
 he had been previously at enmity^, and with 
 whose authority he had probably often come in 
 collision. 
 
 The sinful man^ before whom our Lord now Thedismis- 
 was brought, had, we are told by St Luke^ long ^oi^d 
 desired to see Him, and is now rejoiced to have Herod, 
 the wonder-worker before him^ He puts many 
 questions^, all probably superstitious or profane, ** ver. 9. 
 but is met only by a calm and holy silence. 
 Superstitious curiosity soon changes to scorn. 
 
 With a frightful and shameless profanity, the 
 wretched man after mocking and setting at 
 
 1 The cause of the enmity is not 
 known, but is probably to be re- 
 ferred to some acts on the part of 
 the Procurator, which were consi- 
 dered by Herod undue assumptions 
 of authority. It is possible that the 
 recent slaughter of the Galileeans 
 mentioned Luke xiii. i, if it did not 
 give rise to, may still have added to 
 the ill-feeling. The discreditable 
 attempts to throw doubt upon the 
 whole incident, as being mentioned 
 only by one Evangelist, require no 
 other answer than the narrative 
 itself, which exhibits every clearest 
 mark of truth and originality ; comp. 
 Meyer, Komment. uh. Luk. p. 493 
 (ed. 3), Krummacher, The Suffering 
 Christ, ch. xxxi. p. abS. 
 
 2 On the character of this Tetrarch, 
 
 which seems to have been a com- 
 pound of cunning, levity, and licen- 
 tiousness, see above, p. 215, note 2. 
 
 ^ The key to the present conduct 
 of this profane man is apparently 
 supplied us by the observant com- 
 ment (comp. p. 28, note 2) of the 
 thoughtful Evangelist, Kal rjXTn^iv 
 TC ar}iL€iOP ideiv vir’ avrov yevofievou, 
 Luke xxiii. 8. As long as there 
 seemed any chance of this desire 
 being gratified, Herod treated our 
 Lord with forbearance ; when it be- 
 came evident that he was neither to 
 see nor hear anything wonderful, he 
 gave rein to his wretched levity, 
 and avenged his disappointment by 
 mockery. On the incident generally 
 see Lange, Leben Jesu, il. 7. 7, Part 
 III. p. 1512 sq. 
 
344 
 
 The Last Passover. 
 
 LECT. 
 
 YJI. 
 
 “ Luke 
 xxiii. 1 1. 
 
 ** ver. 1 1 . 
 
 Second up- 
 ])ear;ince 
 before Pi- 
 late : his 
 etfbrts to 
 set our 
 Lord I'ree. 
 
 Luke 
 xxiii. 15. 
 
 ** ver. 16. 
 
 nought^ Him whom a moment before, if any 
 response had been vouchsafed to his curiosity, 
 he would, with equal levity, have honoured as a 
 prophet, now sends the Lord back to Pilate, clad 
 in a shining^ kingly robe'", as if to intimate that 
 for such pretenders to the throne of David neither 
 the Tetrarch of Galilee nor the Procurator of 
 J udsea need reserve any heavier punishment than 
 their ridicule and contempt. 
 
 We may well conceive that Pilate was much 
 perplexed at seeing our Lord again before his own 
 tribunal. In the present appearance, however, of 
 the Saviour the Procurator plainly saw a practical 
 exhibition of Herod’s sentiments, and at once re- 
 solved to set free One, who he was now more than 
 ever convinced was a harmless enthusiast, wholly 
 and entirely innocent of tho crimes that had been 
 laid to His charge. So too he tells the assembled 
 chief-priests and people But alas ! for Roman 
 justice, he seeks to secure their assent by a promise 
 of inflicting punishment‘s, lighter indeed by very 
 
 1 It has been thought that by 
 the use of the terms i<x6r]Ta Xa/x- 
 Trpav (Luke xxiii. ii) the Evangelist 
 intended to denote a white robe, and 
 that the point of the profane mockery 
 was, that our Lord was to be deemed 
 a ‘ candidatus see Friedlieb, Ar- 
 chdol. § 32, p. 109, Lange, Lehen 
 Jesu, Part iii. p. 1515. This seems 
 very doubtful; the word XafXTrpbs 
 does not necessarily involve the idea 
 of whiteness (the primary idea is 
 * visibility’ [Xdw] ; see Donaldson, 
 Crat. § 452), nor would the dress of 
 a * candidate ’ imply the contempt 
 which Herod designed to express 
 for the pretensions of this King so 
 well as the ‘ gorgeous robe ’ (Auth. 
 
 Ver.) of caricatured royalty. The 
 remark too of Lightfoot seems fully 
 in point, ‘de veste alba cum aliis 
 intellexerim, nisi quod videam hunc 
 Evangelistam, cum de veste alba 
 habet sermonem, albam earn vocare 
 in terminis;’ cap. ix. 29, Acts i. 10. 
 Hor. Hehr. in Luc. xxiii. 7. 
 
 2 We may observe that St Luke 
 specially notices that on the return 
 of our Lord from Herod, Pilate 
 assembled not only the chief priests 
 and rulers but the people also (ch. 
 xxiii. 13); he probably had already 
 resolved to make an appeal to them, 
 if his present proposal (ver. 16) 
 were not accepted. See above, p. 
 289, note I. 
 
The Last Passover, 
 
 845 
 
 far tlian had been demanded^, yet still by his own 
 
 previous declarations undeserved and unjust. But 
 
 this, though a most unrighteous concession, was far 
 from satisfying the bitter and bloodthirsty men to 
 whom it was made. Something perchance in their 
 countenances or gestures^ drove the now anxious 
 judge to an appeal to the people, who, he might 
 have heard and even observed, were for the most 
 part on the side of the Prophet of Nazareth, and 
 whose clamorous requests^ now reminded him of ^ Mark 
 a custom, not improbably instituted by himself or 
 his predecessors'^, which offered a ready mode of 
 subterfuge : — He will offer to release to them one 
 of two, the seditious and bloodstained robber^ Ba- ^ 
 rabbas^, or Jesus who was called, and whom but 
 
 ^ The punishment implied in the 
 term 7rat5ei5(ras (Luke xxiii. i6) is 
 left undefined. It was, however, 
 probably no "severer than scourging ; 
 compare Hammond, in loc. Here 
 was Pilate’s first concession, and 
 first betrayal of a desire, if possible, 
 to meet the wishes of the accusers. 
 This was not lost on men so subtle 
 and so malignant as the Sanhedrists. 
 
 2 There is a slight difficulty in 
 the fact that according to St Luke 
 (xxiii. i8; ver. 17 is of doubtful 
 authority) the request in reference 
 to Barabbas comes first from the 
 people, and in St Matthew (ch. xxvii. 
 17) that the proposal is made by 
 Pilate. All, however, seems made 
 clear by the narrative of St Mark 
 (ch. XV. 8), who represents the peo- 
 ple as making the request in general 
 terms, and Pilate as availing him- 
 self of it in the present emergency 
 of this particular case. 
 
 3 The origin of the custom here 
 alluded to is wholly unknown. If 
 
 Luke xxiii. 1 7 were an unquestioned 
 reading, it might seem as if it were 
 some ancient (Jewish) custom (comp. 
 John xviii. 39) to which the Procu- 
 rator was practically obliged {audy- 
 KTju eixej/) to adhere. As, however, 
 the verse has some appearance of 
 being a gloss, and as the other Evan- 
 gelists seem to refer the custom to 
 the rjyefidv (Matth. xxvii. 1 5), or to 
 Pilate personally (Mark xv. 6. 8; 
 comp. John xviii. 39), we may per- 
 haps best consider it as due to the 
 shrewd Roman policy of one of the 
 early Procurators, by which a not 
 unusual pagan custom (see Winer, 
 EWB. Vol. II. p. 202, ed. 3) was 
 adopted as a contribution to the 
 general festivities and solemnities of 
 the Passover ; compare Friedlieb, 
 Archdol. § 33, and for general in- 
 formation on the subject Bynseus, 
 de Morte Chr. iii. 3, Vol. iii. p. 57 
 sq. and the copious reff. in Hof- 
 mann, Leben Jem, § 83, p. 360. 
 
 ^ Nothing more is known of this 
 
34G 
 
 The Last Passover. 
 
 LECT. 
 
 VII. 
 
 » Matt, 
 xxvii. 19. 
 
 ver. 20. 
 
 lately so many of those present had triumphantly 
 hailed as the Christ. The choice cannot be doubt- 
 ful. Meanwhile he will ascend his tribunal form- 
 ally to accept and formally to ratify the judgment 
 of the popular voice. Unhappy man ! No sooner 
 has he taken his seat^ than a fresh appeal comes 
 to him^ in the form of a message from his mys- 
 teriously warned wife^ bidding him not to con- 
 demn the Just One who stands before him. But 
 the agents of the priestly party are doing their 
 work^. Many a fiendish whisper is running through 
 the crowd that the Nazarene was a blasphemer, 
 yea, a blasphemer in the face of the elderhood of 
 
 insurgent than is specified in the 
 Gospels. From them we learn that 
 his seditious movements took place 
 in Jerusalem (Luke xxiii. 19), that 
 he had comrades in his undertaking 
 (Mark xv. 7), and had also acquired 
 some notoriety (Matth. xxvii. 16). 
 The reading which makes the name 
 to have been Jesus Barahbas is 
 adopted by Ewald, Meyer and others, 
 but has very far from sufficient ex- 
 ternal support, and is now rightly 
 rejected by Tischendorf in his last 
 edition; see Vol. i. p. 154. 
 
 1 Compare Matth. xxvii. 19, Kadr]- 
 fxhov 5^ aiiTOv iirl rod ^rjfxaTos. This 
 ^rjixa was a portable tribunal which 
 was placed where the magistrate 
 might direct, and from which judg- 
 ment was formally and finally deli- 
 vered. In the present case, as we 
 learn from St John (ch. xix. 13), it 
 was erected on a (tesselated) pave- 
 ment, the position of which is un- 
 known, but which was called in 
 Greek ALOoarpojTov and in Hebrew 
 (probably from the slight ridge [!2|] 
 on which it may have been laid) 
 Gabbatha, and perhaps formed the 
 
 front of the Procurator’s residence ; 
 see Friedlieb, Archdol. § 31, p. 105, 
 Winer, EWB. Art. ‘ Lithostroton,’ 
 Vol. II. p. 29. 
 
 2 According to tradition, her 
 name was Procla, or Claudia Pro- 
 cula, and her sympathies Jewish; 
 see Evang. Nicod. cap. 2, and the 
 good comments of Hofmann, Lehen 
 Jesu, § 79, p. 340 sq. The dream, 
 which is specified by the Evangelist 
 as of a disturbing and harrowing 
 nature (ttoXXo, 'iiradov, Matth. xxvii. 
 19), may well be supposed with some 
 of the early expositors to have been 
 divinely sent, though this need not 
 preclude the further supposition that 
 the woman had previously heard of 
 our Lord, and was now more than 
 ever impressed with a feeling of His 
 holiness and innocence. Most ex- 
 positors here rightly call attention 
 to the fact that former laws by which 
 Eoman magistrates might have been 
 prohibited from taking their wives 
 wijth them were not now observed ; 
 see esp. Tacit. Annal. iii. 33, 34, 
 and comp. Sepp, Lcben Chr. vi. 56, 
 Vol. III. p, 507. 
 
The Last Passover, 
 
 347 
 
 Israel, one who had claimed the incommunicable 
 
 attributes of Jehovah, and who Jehovah's word 
 
 had said must expiate His profanity by His blood “ Lev. 
 
 It was enough : the worst passions of the rabble 
 multitude were now stirred up^ : the question is 
 no sooner formally proposed than the answer is 
 returned with a fearful unanimity — ^Not this man, 
 but Barabbas^.' The astounded Procurator for 
 moment tries to reason with them but now it is ^ Luk^' 
 all in vain. The rabble and their satanic insti- 
 
 gators press their advantage ; wild voices are heard 
 on every side^^; tumult is imminent; the unhappy 
 and unrighteous judge gives way, and by an act, 
 which was probably as fully understood^ as it was 
 contemptuously disregarded, strives to transfer the 
 guilt of innocent blood to the infuriate throng 
 around him. Fearfully and frantically they accept 
 it®, but their end is now gained : Barabbas is set 
 free"^; the holy Jesus is given up to their will. 
 
 Now followed the scourging preliminary to cru- 
 
 ver. ■23. 
 
 ^ The strong word aviaeurav (Mark 
 XV. 1 1 ) seems to show the determined 
 way in which the priestly party 
 were now endeavouring to turn the 
 current of popular feeling against 
 our Lord. It was in consequence 
 of this that we have that tutored 
 unanimity of clamour which is spe- 
 cially noticed by three of the Evan- 
 gelists ; comp. Matth. xxvii. 22, 
 Luke xxiii. 18, John xviii. 40. 
 
 2 It has been doubted whether 
 Pilate in washing his hands (accord- 
 ing to the apocryphal Evang. Nico- 
 demi, cap. 9, ^before the sun’) was 
 following a heathen or a Jewish 
 custom. The latter view, which is 
 that adopted by the sensible com- 
 mentator Euthymius, seems on the 
 
 whole most probable ; see Deut. xxi. 
 6, and compare Thilo, Cod. Apocr. 
 p. 573 sq., Hofmann, Leben Jesu, 
 § 83, p. 361. 
 
 ^ It has been thought by some 
 modern writers (Sepp, Leben Chr. 
 Vol. III. p. 502, WVatislaw, Serm. 
 and Dissert, p. 8) that this has 
 an antitypical reference to the cere- 
 mony of the Scape-Goat. This seems 
 in itself in a high degree doubtful ; 
 and that more especially as the 
 ancient interpreters all rightly con- 
 sider the two goats as both typifying 
 Christ, the one in His death, the 
 other in His resurrection ; see Bar- 
 nab. Epist. cap. 7, Ephrem. Syr. in 
 Lev. xvi. 20, Vol. i. p. 244 sq. 
 (Roma3, 1737). 
 
 e Matt, 
 xxvii. 25. 
 
 Scourging 
 of our 
 Lord: re- 
 newed 
 efforts of 
 Pilate. 
 
848 
 
 The Last Passover. 
 
 L i:cT. 
 YII. 
 
 « Mark 
 XV. 15. 
 
 Matt, 
 xxvii. 28 
 sq. 
 
 M.'irk 
 xiv. 65. 
 
 Jolm 
 xix. 5. 
 
 e ver. 6. 
 
 cifixion’^, the crown of thorns’, the scarlet robe^, and 
 all the horrible mockery of the brutal soldiery’^, 
 the Gentile counterpart of the appalling scenes of 
 fiendish derision in which Jews had taken part 
 scarcely two hours before‘s. The heart of the hap- 
 less Pilate was perhaps in some degree touched; 
 and judging from what even a Poman could feel 
 for one of the stubborn nation over which he ruled, 
 he strove to make one last appeal to the wild Jew- 
 ish multitude without^, by showing to them, with 
 the garb of mockery flung around that lacerated 
 and bleeding form, the man*^, — the man of their 
 own race and nation, whom they had given up to 
 such sufferings and such shame. But even this 
 last appeal was utterly in vain. Nay, worse than 
 in vain. That pity-moving sight only calls from 
 the priestly party fresh outbursts of ferocity®; the 
 charge is only the more vehemently repeated, — 
 
 1 The question of the exact spe- 
 cies of the thorn it is here not neces- 
 sary to discuss : the rhamnus ndbeca 
 (Hasselquist) and the lycium spino- 
 sum (Sieber) have both been specified 
 by competent observers as not un- 
 fitted for the purpose, but of these 
 the latter seems the more probable ; 
 see Friedlieb, Archdol. § 34, p. 119, 
 Hofmann, Leben Jesu, § 84, p. 373. 
 As mocicery seems to have been the 
 primary object (rcy arecpavop tCov 
 dKavOQv Kadij^pi^ou, Chrys.), the 
 choice of the plant was not suggested 
 by the sharpness of its thorns : the 
 soldiers took what first came to hand 
 utterly careless whether it was likely 
 to inflict pain or no. 
 
 ^ The robe appears to have been 
 the usual cloak of scarlet cloth 
 worn both by the common soldiers 
 and those in command. In the 
 
 latter case it was longer and of 
 better wool : see Friedlieb^ A rchdol. 
 § 34, p. 1 1 8, and compare Winer, 
 RWB. Art. ‘Kleider,’ Vol. i. p. 
 664. 
 
 3 Though Pilate appears to have 
 sanctioned or, to say the very least, 
 failed to interfere with the mockery 
 and indeed brutalities (John xix. 3) 
 of the soldiers, he is still rightly 
 considered by the older expositors 
 to have here made an effort to arouse 
 some feelings of pity in the priests 
 and people ; see Lange, Lehen Jesu, 
 II. 7. 7, Part II. p. 1525. The fSe 
 6 dvOpuTTos (ver. 5) was thus said in 
 a tone of commiseration, and cer- 
 tainly without any of the bitterness 
 which seems plainly to marji the 
 i' 5 e 6 ^acrtXei)? vpLwv of ver. 14 ; comp. 
 Luthardt, das Johann. Evang. Part 
 II. p. 413. 
 
The Last Passover, 
 
 849 
 
 ' By our law oiiglit He to die*^/ because ^ He made 
 
 Himself the Son of God^’ The Son of God ! That 
 
 title spake with strange significance to one pagan Lev"xxiv. 
 heart in that vast concourse. The awed^ and now , . 
 
 1 -T-» • • 1 • 1 ^ John XIX. 
 
 unnerved Procurator again returns into his palace 7- 
 to question the Holy Sufferer and comes forth ver. 9. 
 again, yet once more to make a last effort to save 
 One whose mysterious^ words had now strangely 
 moved his very inmost soul. What a moment for 
 that hapless pagan ! One expression of an honest 
 and bold determination to take a responsibility on 
 himself from which no Poman magistrate ought 
 ever to have shrunk ; one righteous resolve to fol- 
 low the dictates of his conscience, and the name of 
 Pilate would never have held its melancholy place 
 
 1 The fear which Pilate now felt, 
 even more than before (fioXXov i^o- 
 ^rjdr], John xix. 8), when he heard 
 that our Lord had represented Him- 
 self as vlos Geou, would naturally 
 arise from his conceiving such a 
 title to imply a divine descent or 
 parentage, which the analogy of the 
 heroes and demigods of ancient story 
 might predispose him to believe pos- 
 sible in the present case; comp. 
 Luthardt, Johann. Evang. Part ii. 
 p, 405. The message from his wife 
 might have already aroused seme 
 apprehensions : these the present 
 
 declaration greatly augments. The 
 unjust judge begins to fear he may 
 be braving the wrath of some un- 
 known deity, and now anxiously 
 puts the question irbdtv et ab (ver. 
 9), — ‘Was His descent indeed such 
 as the mysterious title might be un- 
 derstood to imply?’ To this the 
 dvojdev (ver. ii) forms, and probably 
 was felt by Pilate to form a kind 
 of indirect answer : see Stier, Disc, 
 of Our Lord, Vol. vii. p. 391 sq. 
 
 (Clark), where the last question is 
 well explained ; comp. Lange, Leben 
 Jesu, II. 7. 7, Part ill. p. 1527. 
 
 ^ The difhcult words 5 ia rouro 6 
 irapadidovs fj.4 aoi k.t.X. (John xix. 
 ii), which the Evangelist notices as 
 having still more caused (c/c to6tov 
 i^rjrei) Pilate to renew his efforts, 
 appear to refer to Caiaphas as the 
 official representative of those who 
 formally gave over our Lord to the 
 Roman governor (Matth. xxvii. 2, 
 Mark xv. i), and to imjdy — that his 
 guilt was greater, because, when he 
 had no power granted him from 
 above against our Lord, he gave the 
 Lord up to one who had, and whose 
 power was plenary. In a word, 
 Pilate the instrument in God’s hands, 
 the bearer of the sword, is guilty 
 because he acts against his convic- 
 tions, but he who gave up the Lord 
 to this bearer of the sword is more 
 guilty, because he knew what he 
 was doing, and was acting againsi; 
 clearer knowledge and fuller light. 
 
350 
 
 The Last Passover. 
 
 LECT. 
 
 VJI. 
 
 J olin 
 xix. 12. 
 
 in the Christian’s creed as that of the irresolute and 
 unjust judge who, against his own most solemn 
 convictions, gave up to a death of agony and shame 
 One whom he knew to be innocent, and even 
 dimly felt to be divined But that word was never 
 spoken. Cries now smote upon Pilate’s ears at 
 which every previous impression was forgotten. 
 Instinctive sense of justice, convictions, preposses- 
 sions, apprehensions were all swallowed up in an 
 instant, when he heard himself denounced before 
 the multitude, before the Sanhedrin, and before 
 his own soldiers as ‘no friend to Caesar V if he let 
 go one who by His assumptions had practically 
 spoken against that dreaded name^ ^No friend 
 to Caesar.’ Already in imagination the wretched 
 man saw himself in the presence of his gloomy and 
 suspicious master, informed against, condemned. 
 
 ^ The character of Pilate though 
 often discussed, has not always been 
 correctly estimated. The fair state- 
 ment seems to be that he was a 
 thorough and complete type of the 
 later-Roman man of the world. 
 Stern, but not relentless (see Fried- 
 lieb, Arcliaol. § 34, p. 122), shrewd 
 and world-worn, prompt and prac- 
 tical, haughtily just, and yet, as the 
 early writers correctly perceived, 
 self-seeking and cowardly (dvavdpos 
 <r<f> 6 dpa, Chrys. ; comp. Const. Apost. 
 V. 14), able to perceive what was 
 right, but without moral strength to 
 follow it out, — the sixth Procurator 
 of Judaea stands forth a sad and 
 terrible instance of a man whom the 
 fear of endangered self-interest drove 
 not only to act against the delibe- 
 rate convictions of his heart and his 
 conscience, but further to commit 
 an act of the utmost cruelty and in- 
 justice even after those convictions 
 
 had been deepened by warnings and 
 strengthened by presentiment. Com- 
 pare Niemeyer, Charaht. Vol. i. p. 
 I2T sq., Luthardt, Johann. Evang. 
 Part I. p. 1 28 sq., Winer, R WB. Art. 
 ‘ Pilatus’, Vol. II. p. 262, and for re- 
 ferences to various treatises on this 
 subject, Hase, Leben Jesu, §117, 
 p.198. 
 
 ^ See John xix. 12, ovk el (piXos 
 Tov Kaiaapos. This appellation was 
 probably not here used in its formal 
 and semi-official sense ‘amicus Cae- 
 saris’ (Sepp, Leben Chr. Vi. 60, Vol. 
 III. p. 519), but in its more simple 
 meaning of ‘friendly and true to 
 the interests of Caesar.’ The con- 
 cluding words ttSs 6 ^acnXia k.t.X. 
 must also have had their full effect 
 on the Procurator, who probably 
 knew full well how truly in those 
 times ‘ majestatis crimen omnium 
 accusationum complementum erat.’ 
 Tacit. Annal. iii. 38. 
 
The Last Passover. 
 
 851 
 
 degraded, banished*. It was enougli : Pilate must 
 
 not come to this dishonour ; the Galilsean must 
 
 die ; it remains only to pronounce the sentence. 
 
 The Poman again ascends the tribunal, now de- 
 termined, yet with words of jibing bitterness to- 
 wards his tempters^, which show the still enduring ^Joiinxix. 
 struggle in his unhappy soul ; but again the ominous 
 rejoinder ^we have no king but Csesar*",’ and the^ib. 
 struggle is ended. The sentence is pronounced, , 
 and the Saviour is led forth to Golgotha^ 
 
 On that concluding scene our words must be The cru- 
 guarded and few. The last sufferings of the Eter- 
 nal Son are no meet subject for lengthened de- 
 scription, however solemn and reverential be the 
 language in which it is attempted to be conveyed. 
 
 Let us then presume only with all brevity to illus- 
 
 1 All that the unhappy man was 
 now probably dreading in imagina- 
 tion finally came upon him. On the 
 complaint of some Samaritans, Vitel- 
 lius, the President of Syria, sent his 
 friend Marcellus to administer the 
 affairs of Judaea, and ordered Pilate 
 to go to Rome to answer the charges 
 preferred against him; see Joseph. 
 Antiq. xviii. 4. 2. This deposition 
 appears to have taken place in the 
 lifetime of Tiberius (see Winer, 
 RWB. Avt. ‘Pilatus,’ Vol. ii. p. 261), 
 and about Easter, a.d. 36. The 
 sequel is said to have been disgrace 
 and misfortunes (Euseb.), and not 
 long afterwards, death by his own 
 hand ; see Euseb. Hist. Eccl. ii. 7. 
 For a good account of his political 
 life, see Ewald, GescJi. Christus’, p. 
 30 sq. 
 
 2 Into the difficult questions re- 
 lating to the site of this place we 
 cannot here enter further than to 
 remark (a) that the name (Chald. 
 
 is jperhaps more plausibly 
 understood as referring to the gene- 
 ral form of the place (Cyril of Jerus., 
 ah), — possibly a low, rounded, bare 
 hill (Ewald, Gesch. Chr. p. 434) — 
 than to the skulls of the criminals 
 executed there (J erome, al.) ; (&) that 
 it appears to have been in the vici- 
 nity of some thoroughfare (Matth. 
 xxvii. 39), and lastly (c), — if it be 
 not presumptuous to express an 
 opinion on a question of such ex- 
 treme difficulty, — that the arguments 
 in favour of its proximity (at any 
 rate) to the present traditional site, 
 appear to preponderate : see, on the 
 one hand, the able arguments of 
 Williams, Holy City, Vol. ii. p. 13 
 sq., and on the other Robinson, Pa- 
 lestine, Vol. I. p. 407 sq., to which 
 add an article by Ferguson in Smith, 
 Diet, of Bible, Vol. i. p. 1017 sq. 
 The nearness of the assumed site to 
 that of Herod’s palace is a fact of 
 some importance. 
 
352 
 
 21ie Last Passover. 
 
 LECT. 
 
 VII. 
 
 ® Jolm 
 xix. i6. 
 
 ^ Matt, 
 xxvii. 31 
 
 trate the outward connexion of events which the 
 
 inspired writers have been moved to record The 
 
 Chief Priests and Scribes now at length have Him 
 for whose blood they were thirsting formally de- 
 livered over^ into their murderous hands. With 
 the aid of the Poman soldiery^ who had now 
 removed from Him the garb of mockery^, they 
 lead the Saviour without the gate to a spot of 
 slightly rising ground, known by a name which the 
 shape of the rounded summit may perhaps have 
 suggested, — Golgotha or the place of a skull. Ere, 
 however, they arrive there, two touching incidents 
 are specified by the Evangelists, — the unrestrained 
 lamentation and weeping of the women ^ that 
 formed part of the vast attendant multitude, and 
 the substitution of Simon of Cyrene^ as bearer of 
 the cross in the place of the now exhausted Pe- 
 deemer. The low hill is soon reached ; the cross 
 is fixed; the stupefying drink is offered and re- 
 
 ^ In John xix. 17 sq. the gram- 
 matical subject would seem to be 
 the same as the ai 5 ro?s of the pre- 
 ceding verse, i.e. the dpxi-^pVis ver. 
 15. The soldiers seem first specially 
 mentioned ver. ”23, but, from the 
 distinctly specified 6 re earaipoocav 
 {ib.) and the statements of the other 
 Evangelists, were obviously through- 
 out the instruments by which the 
 sentence was carried out. The party 
 of the Sanhedrin, are however, still 
 clearly put forward as the leading 
 uctors: they crucified our Lord (John 
 xix. 18, Acts V. 30); Eoman hands 
 drove in the nails. 
 
 2 This incident is only specified 
 by St Luke (ch. xxiii. 27 sq.), who 
 as we have already had occasion to 
 remark, mentions the ministrations 
 of v:omen more frequently than any 
 
 of the other Ev.angelists ; see Lect. I. 
 p. 30, note I. 
 
 ^ He is said both by St Mark 
 (ch. XV. 2 1) and St Luke (ch. xxiii. 
 26) to have now been ipx 6 pi.€vos 
 UTTo dypoD , — a comment which may 
 perhaps imply that he had been 
 labouring there, and was now re- 
 turning (‘onustus ligno,’ Light- 
 foot, If or. Hebr. in Marc. 1 . c.) 
 some time before the hour when (if 
 the day was the irapaaKev^ toO 
 Tracr^a) servile work would com- 
 monly cease; comp. Friedlieb, Ar- 
 clidol. § 17, p. 41. If this be the 
 meaning of the words, they may be 
 urged as supplying a subsidiary proof 
 that the day was Nisan 14 and not 
 Nisan 15 : see p. 322, note i, where 
 this and a few similar passages are 
 briefly specified. 
 
The Last Passover. 
 
 353 
 
 fused“; ruthless hands strip away the garments’; 
 the holy and lacerated body is raised aloft; the 
 
 Matt. 
 
 hands are nailed to the transverse beam ; the feet xxvii. 34. 
 are separately nailed^ to the lower part of the 
 upright beam; the bitterly worded accusation is 
 fixed up above the sacred head‘d; the soldiers di-'^ver. 37. 
 vide up and cast lots for the garments, and then, 
 as St Matthew has paused to specify sit watching, xxvii. 
 the stolid impassive spectators of their fearful and 
 now completed work. 
 
 It was now, as we learn from St Mark‘d, about Occur- 
 
 • I*0UC6S 
 
 the third hour®, and to the interval between this from the 
 
 third to the 
 
 1 See Matth. xxvii. 35, Mark xv. 
 24, Luke xxiii. 34, John xix. 23. 
 None of these passages are opposed 
 to the ancient belief that a linen 
 cloth was bound round the sacred 
 loins, as the apocryphal Evang. Ni- 
 codemi (cap. 10) cursorily, and so 
 perhaps with a greater probability 
 of truth, mentions in its narrative 
 of the crucifixion. What we know 
 of the prevailing custom has been 
 thought to imply the contrary (see 
 Lipsius, de Cruce, ii. 7); still as 
 this is by no means certain, the un- 
 doubted antiquity of the apocryphal 
 writing to which we have referred 
 may justly be allowed to have some 
 weight: see Hofmann, Lelen Jesu, 
 § 84, p. 373, and compare Hug, 
 Freib. Zeitschr. Vll. p. 16 1 sq. (cited 
 by Winer). 
 
 2 This is a very debated point. 
 The arguments, however, in favour 
 of the opinion advanced in the text, 
 viz. that not three (Nonnus, p. 176, 
 ed. Passow') but four nails were used, 
 seem perhaps distinctly to prepon- 
 derate: see Friedlieb, Archdol. § 41, 
 p, 144 sq., Hofmann, Lehen Jesu, 
 p, 375. The attempt to show that 
 it is doubtful even whether the feet 
 
 E. H. L. 
 
 were nailed at all (comp. Winer, de 
 Pedum Affixione, Lips. 1845, and ^ 
 RWB. Vol. I. p. 678) must be pro- 2^. 
 nounced plainly futile, and is well 
 disposed of by Meyer, Komment. uh. 
 Matth. xxvii. 35, p. 533 sq. For a 
 full account of the form of the cross, 
 which, in the present case, owing to 
 the tItXos fixed thereon (John xix. 
 
 19), was probably that of the crux im- 
 missa (-{-), not of the crux commissa 
 (T)> see esp. Friedlieb, Archdol. 
 
 § 36, p. 130, — and for the assertion 
 that the holy body was raised, and 
 then nailed, ib. § 41, pp. 142, 144. 
 
 ® This again is a doubtful point 
 owing to the distinct statement of 
 St John, who specifies it as wpa us 
 'iKTTi (ch. xix. 14). As the supposi- 
 tion that the fourth Evangelist here 
 was reckoning from midnight (comp. 
 Wieseler, Chron. Synops. p. 410 sq., 
 Greswell, Dissert. XLii. Vol. iii. p. 
 229) does not seem satisfactorily 
 made out, and the old assumption 
 of an erratum (r' for f' ; comp. 
 Alford, in loc.) extremely precarious, 
 we must either leave the difference 
 as we find it, or, what is not unrea- 
 sonable, suppose that the hour of 
 crucifixion was somewhere between 
 
 23 
 
854 
 
 The Last Passover. 
 
 LECT. 
 
 VII. 
 
 “ Matt, 
 xxvii. 39, 
 
 ^ Luke 
 xxiii. 36. 
 
 Matt, 
 xxvii. 41, 
 
 ** Comp. 
 Luke 
 xxiii. 35. 
 
 ® Luke 
 xxiii. 39. 
 
 ^ ch. xix. 
 
 26. 
 
 and mid-day must we assign the mockeries of the 
 passers by^, the brutalities of the soldiery^, and 
 the display of inhuman malignity on the part of 
 the members of the Sanhedrin^, who now were 
 striving, Chief-priests and Elders of Israel as they 
 were, by every fiendish taunt and jibe to add to 
 the agonies of the crucified Lord, when even, as it 
 would seem‘d, the rude multitude stood around in 
 wistful and perhaps commiserating silence. To the 
 same period also must we refer the narrative of the 
 mercy extended to the penitent malefactor®, and 
 St J ohn’s affecting notice of our Lord’s tender care 
 for the forlorn Virgin-mother^, who with her sister^ 
 and the faithful Mary of Magdala, was remaining 
 up to this fearful hour nigh to the Redeemer’s 
 cross, but who now, it would seem, yielded to what 
 she might have either inferred or perceived was 
 
 the two broad divisions, the 3d and 
 6th hours, and that the one Evan- 
 gelist specified the hither, the other 
 the farther terminus. 
 
 ^ It has recently been considered 
 doubtful whether three or four wo- 
 men are here specified, i. e. whether 
 the sister of the blessed Virgin is to 
 be regarded as identical with the 
 wife of Clopas, or whether we have 
 in fact two pairs, Mary and her 
 sister, Mary the wife of Clopas and 
 Mary Magdalene. The latter opi- 
 nion has been maintained by Wiese- 
 ler u.Krit. for 1840, p. 648 sq.) 
 and adopted by Lange {Lehen Jesu, 
 Part II. p. 1558), Ewald {Gesch. 
 Chr. p. 438), Meyer {in loc.) and 
 others, but on grounds that seem 
 wholly insufficient, to overcome {a) 
 the improbability that the sister of 
 the Virgin should have been thus 
 vaguely mentioned in a passage 
 which appears studiedly explicit and 
 
 distinct, and (6) the improbability 
 arising from the general style of 
 St John that Kal should have been 
 omitted (the Syr.-Pesh. inserts it), 
 and the women thus enumerated in 
 pairs; contrast John ii. 12, where 
 we might have almost expected such 
 a separation, and ch. xxi. 2. Wiese- 
 ler conceives the unnamed ahe\<pi) 
 to have been Salome, and Meyer 
 finds in the passage a trace of the 
 Apostle’s peculiarity not directly to 
 name himself or his kindred; but as 
 ch. i. 42 (where Meyer asserts that 
 James was then called though not 
 mentioned) proves utterly nothing, 
 and ch. xxi. 2 proves the contrary, 
 we seem to have full reason for ad- 
 hering to the usual acceptation of 
 the passage, and for believing that 
 the sister of the Virgin was the wife 
 of Clopas : see Luthardt, das Johann. 
 Evang. Part ii. p. 419, Ebrard, Kritih 
 der Evang. Gesch. § 108, p. 555. 
 
The Last Passover. 
 
 855 
 
 the desire of her Lord, and was led away by the 
 
 beloved Apostle ^ 
 
 But could all these scenes of agony and woeThedark- 
 thus fearfully succeed each other, and nature re- the 6th to 
 main impassive and unmoved? The sixth hourhiur.^^ 
 now had come^. AVas there to be no outward sign, ^Matt. 
 no visible token that earth and heaven were sym- Iv. 
 pathizing in the agonies of Him by whose hands 
 they had been made and fashioned. No verily, it 
 could not be. If one Evangelist, as we have al- 
 ready observed^, tells us that on the night of the n. 
 Lord’s birth a heavenly brightness and glory shone 
 forth amid the gloom, three inspired witnesses now 
 tell us that a pall of darkness was spread over the 
 whole land^ from the sixth to the ninth hour‘s. Matt. 
 
 But while they thus specially notice the interval, it Mark xv! 
 
 33 * 
 
 cedes an earthquake (comp. Milman, xxiii. 
 Hist, of Chr. Yo\. i. 363), but was 
 strictly supernatural, — the appointed 
 testimony of sympathizing nature: 
 
 * Yea, creation itself,’ as it has been 
 well said, ^bewailed its Lord, for 
 the sun was darkened, and the rocks 
 were rent.’ Cyril Alex. Comment, 
 on St LuTce, Serm. cliii. Part ii. 
 p. 722, — where reference is made to 
 Amos (ch. viii. 9, not V. 8) as hav- 
 ing foretold it: compare Bauer, de 
 Mirac. obscurati solis, Wittenb. 1741. 
 
 External heathen testimony appears 
 not to have been wanting (seeTertull. 
 
 Apologet. cap. 21), though, as recent 
 chronologers have properly shown, 
 the constantly-cited notice of the 
 freedman Phlegon (apud Syncell. 
 
 Chronogr. Vol. i. p. 614, ed. Bonn) 
 has no reference to the present mi- 
 racle, but to an ordinary eclipse the 
 year before; see Ideler, Ilandb. der 
 Chronol. Vol. ii. p. 417, Wieseler, 
 
 Chron. Synops, p. 388. 
 
 23—2 
 
 ^ This seems a reasonable in- 
 ference from John xix. 27, the ott’ 
 iKcbys (Spas appearing to mark that 
 the Apostle at once and on the spot 
 manifested his loving obedience by 
 leading away the Virgin-mother to 
 his own home. After this (pLera 
 TOVTO, ver. 28), and during the three- 
 hour interval of darkness the Apo- 
 stle would have returned, and thus 
 have been the witness of what he 
 has recorded, ver. 28 sq. In con- 
 firmation of this view it may be 
 noticed, that among the women spe- 
 cified as beholding afar off (Matth. 
 xxvii. 56, MarL xv. 40) the Virgin 
 is not mentioned; comp. Greswell, 
 Dissert, xlii. Vol. iii. p. 249, Stier, 
 Disc, of Our Loi'd, Vol. vii. p. 479 
 (Clark). 
 
 2 This darkness, as now seems 
 properly admitted by all the best 
 expositors, was neither due to any 
 species of eclipse, nor to the deepen- 
 ed gloom which in some cases pre* 
 
35G 
 
 The Last Passover, 
 
 LECT. 
 VI [. 
 
 may be observed that they maintain the most so- 
 lemn reserve as to the incidents by which it was 
 marked. Though full and explicit as to the cir- 
 cumstances of the agony in the Garden, they are 
 here profoundly silent. The mysteries of those 
 hours of darkness, when with the sufferings of the 
 agonized body mingled the sufferings of the sacred 
 soul, the struggles with sinking nature, the accu- 
 mulating pressure of the burden of a world’s sin, 
 the momently more and more embittered foretast- 
 ings of that which was its wages and its penalty, 
 the clinging desperation of the last assaults of 
 Satan and his mustered hosts the withdrawal and 
 darkening of the Paternal presence, — mysteries 
 such as these, so deep and so dread, it was not 
 meet that even the tongues of Apostles should be 
 moved to speak of, or the pens of Evangelists to 
 record. Nay, the very outward eye of man might 
 now gaze no further. All man might know was 
 by the hearing of the ear. One loud cry revealed 
 all and more than all that it is possible for our na- 
 ture to conceive, — one loud cry of unfathomable 
 woe, and uttermost desolation^, and yet even as its 
 
 ^ It is worthy of consideration 
 whether the important and diflBcult 
 passage. Col. ii. 15, may not have 
 some reference to this awful period. 
 If, as now seems grammatically 
 certain, dTreKdvadfxevos is to be taken 
 in its usual and proper middle sense, 
 may not the ^stripping off from 
 Himself of Powers and Principali- 
 ties’ have stood in some connexion 
 as to time with the hours when the 
 dying but victorious Lord, even out 
 of the darkness, called unto His 
 God, and by His holy surrender of 
 Himself into the hands of His Eter- 
 
 nal Father quelled Satanic assaults, 
 which though not recorded, and 
 scarcely hinted at (compare however 
 Luke xxii. 53, and observe Lukeiv. 
 1 3), we may still presume to think 
 would then have been made with 
 fearfully renewed energies : see Com- 
 mentary on Col. Z. c. p. 161. 
 
 ^ On the words of our Lord here 
 referred to, — which are indeed far far 
 from being ‘perhaps a phrase in 
 common use in extreme distress,’ as 
 Milman coldly terms them {Hist, of 
 Chr. Vol. I. p. 364), and which the 
 two inspired witnesses who record 
 
The Last Passover. 
 
 357 
 
 very accents imply of achieved and consummated 
 victory. Even from the lowest depths of a tor- 
 tured, tempted, sin-burdened, and now forsaken 
 humanity, — even from the remotest bound, as it 
 were, of a nature thus traversed to its extremest 
 limits^, and thus feelingly realized in all the mea- 
 sures of its infirmity for man’s salvation, the Sa- 
 viour cried unto God as His God^; the Son called 
 unto Him with whom — even in this hour of dere- 
 liction and abandonment — He felt and knew that 
 He was eternally one, — yea, and as the language 
 of inspiration has declared. He ^ was heard in that 
 He feared'*.’ With the utterance of that loud cry, 
 as we perhaps presume to infer from the incidents 
 that followed the clouds of darkness rolled away 
 and the light broke forth.... If this be so, the first 
 
 them have retained even in the very 
 form and accents in which they were 
 uttered, — see esp. the thoughtful 
 comments of Stier, Disc, of our 
 Lord, Vol. VII. p. 483 sq., Lange, 
 LebenJesu, ii. 7. 9, Partiii. p. 1573, 
 and compare Thesaur. Tlieol. {Cnt. 
 Sacr.) Vol. ii. 247 sq. 
 
 ^ Compare Cyril. Alex. : * He 
 
 who excels all created things, and 
 shares the Father’s throne, humbled 
 Himself unto emptying, and took 
 the form of a slave, and endured the 
 limits of human nature, that He 
 might fulfil the promise made of 
 God to the forefathers of the Jews.’ 
 Commentary on St Luke, Serm. cliii. 
 Part II. p. 722. 
 
 ^ It seems most consistent with 
 the deep mysteries of these hours to 
 conceive that the darkness had not 
 passed away when the Lord uttered 
 the opening words of Psalm xxii. i, 
 but that immediately afterwards 
 light returned; see Stier, Disc, of 
 
 Our Lord, Vol. vii. p. 483 (Clark). 
 With the returning light mockery 
 would not unnaturally break forth 
 anew. However this may be, we 
 must certainly maintain that these 
 words of Psalm xxii. were not, as 
 asserted by Milman {Hist, of Chris- 
 tianity, Vol. i. p. 364), our Lord’s 
 ‘ last words,’ it being perfectly clear 
 from St Matthew that after the 
 ‘EXwi, 'EXw/, K.T.\. our Lord uttered 
 least another cry {ttolXlv Kpd^as, 
 ch. xxvii. 50). The received opinion 
 seems undoubtedly the right one; 
 according to which the sixth word 
 from the cross was TereXearai (John 
 xix. 30), the last words Udrep, cts 
 Tois aov TraparldepLai to Trvevp,d 
 
 p.ov [compare TrapeduiKev to irveOpLa, 
 John xix. 30], as recorded by St 
 Luke (ch. xxiii. 46) : compare, if 
 necessary, Stier, Disc, of Our Lord, 
 Vol. VIII. p. 28 (Clark), Meyer, iib. 
 Luk. p. 498 (ed. 3). 
 
 LECT. 
 
 VII. 
 
 * Matt, 
 xxvii. 47. 
 Mark xv. 
 34 - 
 
 Heb, V. 
 
 7. 
 
358 
 
 The Last Passover, 
 
 LECT. 
 
 VII. 
 
 ® Psalm 
 xxii. I. 
 
 Matt, 
 xxvii. 47. 
 Mark xv. 
 
 35. 
 
 The por- 
 tents that 
 followed 
 our Lord’s 
 death. 
 
 moments of that returning light were profaned by 
 a mockery and a malignity on which it is fearful 
 to dwell. We shudder as we read that the words 
 of that harrowing exclamation, words first spoken 
 by the prophetic Psalmist^, and the outward mean- 
 ing of which no Jew could possibly have misun- 
 derstood, were studiously perverted by a satanic 
 malice b and that the most holy name of the eter- 
 nal Father was used by the J ewish reprobates that 
 stood around as that wherewith they now dared to 
 make a mock at the eternal Son^. But the end 
 had now come. One solitary act of instinctive 
 compassion^ was yet to be performed ; the sponge 
 of vinegar was pressed to the parching lips; the 
 dying Lord received it, and with a loud cry of con- 
 sciously completed victory for man, and of most 
 loving resignation unto God^, bowed meekly His 
 divine head and gave up the ghost. 
 
 Jesus was dead. Can we marvel, then, when 
 
 ^ There is no reason for thinking 
 with Euthymius {in Maith. xxvii. 
 47) that those who said 'HXiau 
 (pwvei (Matth. 1 . c.) were Roman 
 soldiers {t^v 'E^patda (pwv^v dyuoaOv- 
 res), who only caught the sound of 
 the words uttered. There was here 
 neither misunderstanding nor imper- 
 fecthearing, butonly amockery which 
 had now become verily demoniacal. 
 
 ^ This would seem to be the 
 correct statement, as we learn from 
 Mark xv. 36 that the poor wretch 
 joined in the mockery of the rest, 
 and yet must apparently infer from 
 Matth. xxvii. 49, that his present 
 act was regarded as one of mercy 
 which his companions sought to re- 
 strain. It may be true, as has been 
 suggested by some expositors, that 
 
 the man was really touched by the 
 Saviour’s suflFering, now perhaps 
 made more apparent by the of 
 John xix. 28, and that under the 
 cover of mockery he still persisted in 
 performing this last act of com- 
 passion. At any rate the dpa/xuv 
 (Matth. xxvii. 48, Mark xv. 36) and 
 &^€T€ (Mark xv. 36, — not impro- 
 bably ‘ let me alone’) seem very fairly 
 to accord with such a supposition. 
 
 ^ The remark of Draseke (cited 
 by Stier) is perhaps not wholly fan- 
 ciful, — that the It is finished was 
 more especially directed to men, as 
 the farewell greeting to earth, and 
 that the Father, into thine hands'NSiS, 
 as it were ‘ His entrance-greeting to 
 heaven.’ Disc, of Our Lord, Vol. viii. 
 p. 28 (Clark). 
 
The Last Passover. 
 
 359 
 
 we read that the most awful moment in the history 
 
 of the world was marked by mighty and significant 
 
 portents, — that the veil‘\ that symbolically sepa-“Matt. 
 rated sinful man from his offended God, was now Mark xv. 
 rent in twain^ that the earth quaked'^, that the 
 rocks were rent and the graves opened*^, and that xxvii. 57. 
 by the vivifying power of the Lord’s death they ° 
 that slumbered therein arose, and after their Sa- 
 viour’s resurrection were seen by many witnesses ^ 
 
 Such things were known, patent, and recognized ; 
 they were seen by Jews and by Gentiles ; by the 
 centurion on Golgotha‘S, and by the priest in the 54. 
 temple; by the multitudes that now beat their xxiii. 47. 
 
 ^ That the veil of the Temple 
 here specified was that which sepa- 
 rated, not the Holy place from the 
 rest of the Temple (Hug), but the 
 Holy place from the Holy of Holies, 
 seems most clearly shown not so 
 much by the mere term used {Kara- 
 Triracr/xa not Kokvfxfxa ; Friedlieb, 
 Archdol. § 47, p. 172), as by the 
 authentic elucidations supplied by 
 the inspired author of the Epistle 
 to the Hebrews ; see ch. ix. 7 sq., 
 X. 20. The remark of Lightfoot 
 (Hor. Ifeir. in MattJi. xxvii. 51) that 
 according to custom the High-priest 
 entered on one side of the inner 
 veil, may jperha^ps illustrate the full 
 meaning of the sign : the veil now, 
 as we are distinctly told by St Luke, 
 was rent in the midst {iax^adr} p.icrou, 
 ch. xxiii. 45), a statement made still 
 more explicit by the dirb 
 
 &v(i) 6 ev ews /cdrw ets dOo of St Mat- 
 thew (ch. xxvii. 51) and St Mark 
 (ch. XV. 38). 
 
 2 Nothing can be more unwar- 
 rantable than to speak of this state- 
 ment of the inspired Evangelist as 
 the mythical conversion into actual 
 
 history of the sign of the rent 
 graves (Meyer, uh. Matth. xxvii. 52), 
 nor less in harmony with sound 
 principles of interpretation than to 
 term these resurrections {ij'y^pdricaVj 
 ver. 52) visionary appearances of the 
 spirits (contrast TroXXa (r^p.aTa, ver. 
 52) of deceased brethren confined to 
 the minds of our Lord’s followers 
 (Milman, Hist, of Chr. Vol. i. p. 
 365), when the words of St Matthew 
 are so particularly definite and ex- 
 plicit ; compare ver. 52, 53. We 
 are plainly told that at the Lord’s 
 death the bodies of slumbering 
 saints arose avrobs 'qyeipe, 
 
 Chrys. ; but?) ; and we are as plainly 
 told, with the addition of a special 
 and appropriate note of time, that 
 after our Lord’s resurrection they 
 entered into the Holy City and were 
 seen there by many. Into particu- 
 lars it is unwise and precarious to 
 enter ; if, however, further comments 
 be needed, the student may be re- 
 ferred to the special dissertation of 
 Calmefc ; see Journal of Sacr. Lit. 
 for 1848, p. 1 1 2, and comp. Lard- 
 ner, Worlcs, Vol. x. p. 340. 
 
360 
 
 The Last Passover, 
 
 LECT. 
 
 VII. 
 
 “ Luke 
 xxiii. 48. 
 
 ver. 49. 
 
 The re- 
 moval from 
 the cross 
 and burial 
 of the 
 Lord’s 
 body. 
 
 John xix. 
 31 . 
 
 breasts in amazed and unavailing sorrow % and by 
 the women and kinsmen that stood gazing afar 
 off*"; they were believed in and they stand re- 
 corded ; yea, and in spite of all the negative criti- 
 cism that the unbelief of later days has dared to 
 bring against them’, they remain and will remain 
 even unto the end of time, as the solemn testimony 
 of nature to the truth of the mighty mystery of 
 redeeming Love. 
 
 And now the day was beginning to wane, 
 and within Jerusalem all was preparation for pas- 
 chal solemnities which henceforth were to lose 
 their deepest and truest significance. Eager bands 
 of householders 2 were now streaming into the 
 Temple, each one to slay his victim, and to make 
 ready for the feast. It was a Passover of great 
 solemnity ^ The morrow was a high day, a double 
 Sabbath, a day which was alike the solemn fifteenth 
 of Nisan and the weekly festivals Not unna- 
 
 1 Some critical writers have ven- 
 tured to consider Matthew xxvii. 52 
 an interpolation ; see Norton, In- 
 trod. to the Gospels, Vol. i. p. 216, 
 and compare Gersdorf, Beitrdge, 
 p. 149. Sueh a statement is wholly 
 unsupported by external evidence, 
 and is rejeeted even by those who 
 regard this portion of the narrative 
 as mythical : see Meyer, Komment. 
 iih. Matth. p. 542 (ed. 4). Reference 
 has been freely made by this last- 
 mentioned writer and others to the 
 Evang. Nicodem. cap. 1 7 sq. as con- 
 taining the further development of 
 the incident. This statement, pi’O- 
 bably designed to be mischievous, is 
 not wholly correct. The notices of 
 the event in question are really very 
 slight, and in language closely re- 
 sembling that of St Matthew (see 
 
 Evang. Nicod. cap. 11) ; in fact the 
 only use made of the incident by 
 the apocryphal writer is to introduce 
 the narrative of Carinus and Leu- 
 cius, which refers nearly exclusively 
 to the Lord’s deseent into Hades 
 and appearance in the under-world. 
 If the Evang. Nicod. tends to prove 
 anything, it is this, that the ancient 
 writer of that document regarded 
 Matth. xxvii. 52 as an authentic 
 statement, and as one which no 
 current traditions enabled him to 
 embellish, but which was adopted 
 as a convenient starting-point for 
 his legendary narrative. 
 
 2 See especially Friedlieb, Archdol. 
 § 18, p. 47 sq., where this and other 
 ceremonies connected with the Pass- 
 over are very fully illustrated. 
 
 * The efforts of those writers who 
 
The Last Passover, 
 
 361 
 
 tural then was it that petition should be made to 
 
 Pilate for the prompt removal from the cross of 
 
 the bodies of those who had been crucified in the 
 forenoon, that the approaching day might not be 
 legally profaned. The petition is granted; the 
 legs of the two malefactors are broken® to hasten “John xix. 
 their death*, but no bone is broken of that sacred 
 body which now hung lifeless between them. A 
 spear is thrust into the holy side^, perchance in ver. 34. 
 the neighbourhood of the heart, to make sure that 
 life is extinct, and forthwith a two-fold sign was 
 vouchsafed, whether natural or supernatural we 
 know not^, but which the fourth Evangelist was 
 
 regard this Saturday as Nisan i6 
 cannot be considered successful in 
 proving it to have been a ‘high 
 day’ (John xix. 31). The principal 
 fact adduced in favour of such an 
 opinion is that on this day the first- 
 fruits were presented in the Temple ; 
 see Wieseler, Chron. Synops, p. 385, 
 Robinson, Harmony, p. 150 (Tract 
 Society). If on the contrary the 
 day be regarded as Nisan 15, then 
 all becomes intelligible and self-ex- 
 planatory, the solemn character of 
 Nisan 15 being so well-known and 
 so distinctly defined ; see Exod. xii. 
 16, Lev. xxiii. 7. 
 
 ^ The breaking of the legs has 
 been thought to include a coup de 
 grace (see Friedlieb, Archdol. § 48, 
 and compare Hug, Fried. ZeilscJir. 
 III. p. 67 sq.), as the crurifragium 
 would not seem sufficient in itself to 
 extinguish life. As, however, such 
 an expansion of the term has not 
 been made out (Amra. Marcell. 
 Hist. XIV. 9 is certainly not suffi- 
 cient to prove it), and as the present 
 passage seems to show that it had 
 reference to the death of the sufierer 
 
 (comp. John xix. 33), we must con- 
 clude that it was found by experience 
 to bring death, possibly slowly, but 
 thus not unconformably with the 
 fearful nature of the punishment. 
 
 2 The emphatic language of St 
 John (ch. xix. 34) seems to favour 
 the opinion that it was a supernatu- 
 ral sign. The use made of this 
 incident by Dr Stroud {Physical 
 Heath of Christ, Lond. 1849) and 
 others to prove that our Lord died 
 of a ruptured vessel of the heart is 
 ingenious, but seems precarious. 
 Without in any way availing our- 
 selves of the ancient statement that 
 our Lord’s death was hastened 
 supernaturally (see Greswell, Dissert. 
 XLii. Vol. III. p. -251), we may per- 
 haps reasonably ascribe it to the 
 exhausting pains of body (see Rich- 
 ter quoted by Friedlieb, Archdol. 
 § 44), which though in ordinary 
 cases not sufficient to bring such 
 speedy death, did so in the present, 
 when there had been not only great 
 physical suffering previously, but 
 agonies of mind which human 
 thought cannot conceive, and which 
 
3G2 
 
 The Last Passover, 
 
 LECT. 
 
 VII. 
 
 * Mark xv. 
 42. 
 
 ^ John xix. 
 41. 
 
 « Matt, 
 xxvii. 60. 
 
 *1 Luke 
 xxiii. 53. 
 
 specially moved to record and in which we may, 
 with all the best interpreters of the ancient Church, 
 not perhaps unfitly recognize the sacramental 
 symbol both of the communion of our Master’s 
 body and blood, and of the baptismal laver of 
 regenerating grace.... The sacred body was taken 
 from the cross and was still in the custody of 
 the soldiers, when a secret disciple, the wealthy 
 Joseph of Arimathea, who as a member of the 
 supreme court would know that the bodies were to 
 be removed, now came to Golgotha ^ and after 
 finding that the Procurator’s permission was car- 
 ried out, emboldened himselP so far as to beg 
 personally for the Lord’s body from that un- 
 righteous judge. The request is freely granted^, 
 and the holy body is borne by the pious Joseph to 
 a garden nigh at hand^, which was probably his 
 own property, and in which was a tomb that 
 he had hewn out of the rock‘d, wherein man had 
 never yet been laid^. Aided by one who at first 
 came secretly to the Lord under cover of night, but 
 
 clearly appear (comp. Matth. xxvii. 
 46) to have endured unto the very 
 end. 
 
 1 See Matth. xxvii. 57, where the 
 ■qXdev would seem naturally to have 
 reference to the scene of the inci- 
 dents last mentioned, i. e. to the 
 place of crucifixion. While the 
 soldiers were waiting for the sequel 
 of the criirifrar/ium (John xix. 32) 
 Joseph would easily have had time 
 to go to the Prsetorium and prefer his 
 request to Pilate. The touch sup- 
 plied by the ToX/j.'qcras of the graphic 
 St Mark (ch. xv. 43) should not be 
 left unnoticed. 
 
 ^ It is not improbable that the 
 
 term ihoip-qaaro was designedly used 
 by St Mark (ch. xv. 45), as imply- 
 ing that Pilate gave up the holy 
 body without demanding money for 
 it; see Wetstein, in loc. Had not 
 Joseph been moved to perform this 
 pious office, it would seem that the 
 Lord’s body wmuld have been re- 
 moved to one of two common se- 
 pulchres reserved for those who 
 had suffered capital punishments, — 
 ‘ unum occisis gladio et strangulatis, 
 alterum lapidatis [qui etiam suspen- 
 debantur] et combustis.’ ‘Sanhedr.’ 
 VI. 5, cited by Lightfoot, in Matth. 
 xxvii. 58; comp. LehenChristi, 
 VI. 76, Vol. III. p. 602. 
 
Hie Last Passover, 
 
 8G3 
 
 now feared not to bring his princely offering^ of ^v]Pl‘ 
 myrrh and aloes openly, and in the light of day, the 
 faithful disciple^ solemnly performs every rite of 
 honouring sepulture. Yea the hands of two mem- 
 bers of that very council that had condemned the 
 Lord to death, but one at least of whom had no 
 part in their crimed are those that now tenderly Luke 
 
 ^ xxiiic 51* 
 
 place the Redeemer’s body in the new rock-hewn 
 tomb. And now all is done, and the Sabbath well 
 nigh begun. The King’s Son is laid in His sleep- 
 ing chamber ; the faithful Mary Magdalene and the 
 mother of Joses^ who in their deep grief had 
 remained sitting beside the tomb‘d, now return to 
 the city to buy spices and ointments^^, and make ^ Luke 
 preparations for doing more completely what had 
 now necessarily been done in haste; the great 
 stone is rolled against the opening of the tomb%* 
 
 1 This we learn from St John 
 was of the weight of 100 pounds 
 (ch. xix. 39), and did indeed display 
 what Chrysostom rightly calls the 
 lxeya\o\pvx<'0.v t^v h rots 
 
 {in Matth. Horn. Lxxxviii.) of the 
 faithful and true-hearted ruler. The 
 myrrh and aloes were probably 
 mixed, and in the form of a coarse 
 powder freely sprinkled between the 
 odovta with which the body was 
 swathed; see John xix. 40. For 
 further details see Friedlieb, Archdol. 
 § 50, p. 1 71 sq. and Winer, RWB. 
 Art. ‘Leichen,’ Vol, ii. p. 15. 
 
 2 The reading is somewhat doubt- 
 ful {Lachmann, Tregelles, Tischend., 
 T] Two-tjtos, — apparently rightly), 
 though the person designated is not, 
 ’Iwcr^ros being only the Greek form 
 of the more familiar Twcri). Wieseler 
 {Chron. Synops. p. 426, note) adopts 
 the reading of the Alexandrian MS., 
 
 7 ] Tojo-? 70, and considers the Mary 
 here mentioned to have been the 
 daughter of the honourable man 
 who bore that name ; this, however, 
 has been rightly judged by recent 
 critics to be open to objections 
 which, combined with the small 
 amount of external evidence on 
 which the reading rests, are decisive 
 against it; see Meyer, ilh. Marie. 
 p. 180 (ed. 3). With regard to the 
 two women, it would seem from 
 Matth. xxvii. 61 {Kadyfievai dwi- 
 vavTL rod rdtpov), compared with 
 Mark xv. 47, Luke xxiii, 55, that at 
 present they took but little part, 
 but sat by, stupefied with grief, 
 while the two rulers (John xix. 40, 
 ’eXa^ov, ’idycrav) performed the prin- 
 cipal rites of sepulture. 
 
 ^ The tombs were then probably, 
 as now, either {a) with steps and 
 a descent in a perpendicular direc- 
 
8G4 
 
 The Last Passover. 
 
 LECT. 
 
 VII. 
 
 a Luke 
 xxiii. 56. 
 
 *• Matt, 
 xxvii. 64. 
 
 ^ ver. 66. 
 
 Conclu- 
 
 sion. 
 
 the two pious rulers turn their steps to J erusalem, 
 and all rest on the Sabbath-day ^ according to the 
 commandment 
 
 With the first Evangelist’s notice of the request 
 preferred by the members of the Sanhedrin that 
 the sepulchre should be guarded^, and with a 
 brief mention of the Procurator’s curtly expressed 
 permission‘s, the sealing of the stone, and the 
 setting of the watch', this lengthened portion of 
 the inspired narrative now comes to its close. 
 
 And here our Lecture shall at once conclude. 
 Practical reflections on events so numerous, and 
 of such momentous interest would far exceed the 
 limits that must be prescribed to this work^, and 
 would necessarily involve recapitulations which, 
 in a narrative so simple and continuous as that 
 here given by the Evangelists, might reasonably 
 
 tion, or (6) in the face of the rock 
 and with an entry in a sloping or 
 horizontal direction. The tomb of 
 our Lord would seem to have been 
 of the latter description; tombs of 
 the former kind are perhaps alluded 
 to Luke xi. 44. The stone which 
 was rolled against the opening and 
 in this case appears to have com- 
 pletely filled it up (comp. John xx. 
 i, iK Tov fxvrjueLov, and see Meyer, 
 in loc.) was technically termed Golal 
 see Sepp, Lehen Chr. vi. 77, 
 Vol. III. p. 608), and was usually of 
 considerable size (Mark xvi. 4) : see 
 Pearson, Creed, Art. iv. Vol. ii. 
 p. 187 sq. (ed. Burton), and on the 
 subject generally, the special work 
 of Nicolai in Ugolini, Thesaur. Vol. 
 XXXIII., and Winer, RWB. Art. 
 
 ‘ Graber,’ Vol. i. p. 443 sq. 
 
 ^ See Matth. xxvii. 65, where the 
 verb would seem more natu- 
 
 rally imperative than indicative, as 
 in the latter case the reference could 
 only be to such a KovarubLa as the 
 Chief- priests had at their disposal, 
 i. e. temple-guards, whereas the 
 actual watchers were Koman soldiers ; 
 see Matth. xxviii. 14. In the former 
 case permission is given in the form 
 of a brusquely expressed command, 
 means being supplied for it to be 
 carried out. 
 
 2 It may again be noticed (see 
 above, p. 39, note 2) that both this 
 and the following Lecture were not 
 preached, the number required, 
 owing to recent changes, being only 
 six. The omission of practical com- 
 ments or hortatory application will 
 thus seem perhaps not only natural 
 but desirable, as such addresses if 
 merely of a general character, and 
 not made to a special audience, can 
 rarely be satisfactory. 
 
The Last Passover, 
 
 365 
 
 be judged to a certain degree unnecessary and 
 
 undesirable. Into such varied reflections then it 
 
 may not now be wholly suitable to enter. Yet 
 let us at least bear one truth which this portion 
 of our subject has presented to us, practically, 
 vitally, and savingly, in mind, — even the everlast- 
 ing truth, that our sins have been atoned for, 
 that they have been borne by our Lord on His 
 cross, and that by His stripes we have been healed^. ^ ii. 
 God grant that this belief of our fathers and our 
 forefathers, and of the holiest and the wisest of 
 every age in the Church of Christ may not at 
 length become modifled and diluted. Let words 
 of controversy here appear not. Let no terms of 
 party-strife appear at the close of a narrative 
 of a love boundless as the universe, and of a 
 sacrifice of which the sweet-smelling savour^ has Eph. v. 
 pervaded every realm of being, — let none such 
 meet the eye of the reader of these concluding 
 lines. Yet let the prayer be offered with all low- 
 liness and humility that these weak words may 
 have been permitted to strengthen belief in the 
 Atonement, to convince the fair and candid reader 
 of the written Word, that here there is something 
 more than the perfection of a self-denial, some- 
 thing more than a great moral spectacle at which 
 we may gaze in a perplexed wonder, but of which 
 the benefits to us are but indirect, the realities 
 but exemplary. 
 
 Oh no, no ! That blood, which as it were, 
 we have beheld falling drop by drop on Golgotha 
 fell not thus fruitlessly to the earth. Those cur- 
 tains of darkness shrouded something more than 
 the manifestation of a moral sublimity. That cry 
 
3GG 
 
 The Last Passover. 
 
 LECT. 
 
 VII. 
 
 a Heb. ix, 
 78 . 
 
 I John ii. 
 
 of agony and desolation told of something more 
 than a sense of merely personal suffering, or the 
 closing exhaustions of a distressed humanity. The 
 very outward circumstances of the harrowing his- 
 tory raise their voices against such a bleak and 
 cheerless theosophy. The very details of the varied 
 scenes of agony and woe plead meekly yet per- 
 suasively against such an estimate of the sufferings 
 of an Incarnate God. Oh ! may deeper medita- 
 tion on these things bring conviction. May those 
 who yet believe in the perfections of their human- 
 ity, and doubt the efficacies of their Redeemer’s 
 blood unlearn that joyless creed. May the specu- 
 lators here cease to speculate; may the casuist 
 learn to adore. Yea to us all may fuller measures 
 of faith and of saving assurance yet be ministered, 
 that with heart and mind, and soul and spirit 
 we may verily and indeed believe that ^ Christ was 
 once offered to bear the sins of many^,’ and that 
 even as the beloved Apostle has said, ‘ He is the 
 propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only, but 
 for the sins of the whole world 
 
LECTURE VIII. 
 
 THE FORTY DAYS. 
 
 St John xx. 17 . 
 
 Go to my hretliren^ and say unto them, I ascend unto my 
 Father, and your Father ; and to my God, and your 
 God. 
 
 The portion of the inspired narrative at which lect. 
 
 we have now arrived is the shortest, but by no ^ — 
 
 means the least important of the divisions into toJ°cont 
 which it has appeared convenient to separate the 
 Gospel history. In some respects indeed, it may 
 be rightly termed the most important, as containing 
 the account of that which was in fact the founda- 
 tion of all apostolical preaching, and which, when 
 alluding to the subject generally, St Paul has not 
 scrupled to speak of^ as that which alone gives ^ ^ xv. 
 a reality to our faith here and to our hope of 
 'what shall be hereafter \ The resurrection of 
 
 Jesus Christ, of Him whom Joseph and Nicode- 
 mus laid in the new rock-hewn tomb, is no less 
 the solemn guarantee to us of the truth of that 
 in which we have believed, than it is also the holy 
 
 1 The nature of the Apostle’s so that ^ the denial or doubt of our 
 argument, and the reciprocal infer- resurrection infers a doubt or denial 
 ences, viz. * that Christ’s resurrection of His resurrection,’ are well dis- 
 from the dead is the necessary cause cussed by the learned Jackson, in 
 of our resurrection,’ and ‘ that our his valuable Commentates on the 
 future resuiTection necessarily infers Creed, Xi. i6. i, Vol. X. p. 307 sq. 
 
 Christ’s resurrection from the dead,’ (Oxford, 1844), 
 
368 The Forty Days. 
 
 * pledge to us of our own future victory over death 
 and corruption. 
 
 Doctrinal On the liistorj of such an adorable manifesta- 
 iTvoiverin tion of the divine power and majesty of Him who 
 tionofthe saved us, and who has thus given an infallible 
 history. pj.QQf He had as much the power ^ to 
 
 »Johnx. take His life again^ as He had the mercy to 
 lay it down, — on such a history, meet indeed will 
 it be for us to dwell with thoughtfulness, preci- 
 sion, and care. Meet indeed will it be to strive 
 to bring into one every ray of divine truth, as 
 vouchsafed to us in this portion of the Evangelical 
 history, to miss no hint, to overlook no inference 
 whereby our faith in our risen and ascended Lord 
 may become more real and more vital, and our 
 conviction of our own resurrection more assured 
 and more complete^. 
 
 And not of our own resurrection only, but 
 
 ^ The catholic doctrine on the 
 agency by which Christ was raised 
 from the dead is nowhere better or 
 more clearly stated than by Bp 
 Pearson, who, while stating the 
 general truth * that the Father, Son, 
 and Holy Ghost raised Christ from 
 the dead,’ shows also that the spe- 
 cial truth ‘ that the Lord raised Him- 
 self ’ is distinct and irrefragable, as 
 resting on our Lord’s own words 
 (John ii. 22) and the way in which 
 those words were understood by the 
 Apostles : ‘ If upon the resurrection 
 of Christ the Apostles believed 
 those words of Christ, “Destroy 
 this temple, and I will raise it up 
 again,” then did they believe that 
 Christ raised Himself; for in those 
 words there is a person mentioned 
 which raised Christ, and no other 
 person mentioned but Himself.’ 
 
 Exposition of the Creed, Art. v. 
 Vol. I. p. 303 (ed. Burton). 
 
 2 It has been well said by Dr 
 Thomas Jackson, that ‘ Every man 
 is bound to believe that all true 
 believers of Christ’s resuiTection 
 from the dead shall be undoubted 
 partakers of that endless and im- 
 mortal glory into which Christ hath 
 been raised. But no man is bound 
 to believe his own resurrection in 
 particular into such glory any fur- 
 ther, or upon more certain terms, 
 than he can (upon just and deliberate 
 examination) find that himself doth 
 steadfastly believe this fundamental 
 article of Christ’s resurrection from 
 the dead.’ CommentaHes on the 
 Creed, xi. 16. ii, Vol. x. p. 326 sq., 
 where there is also a short but ex- 
 cellent practical application of the 
 doctrine. 
 
The Forty Days. 
 
 3G9 
 
 even of what lies beyond. Yea, hints there are 
 of partial answers not only to the question ' How 
 are the dead raised?’ but even to that further and 
 more special question, ^ With what body do they 
 come?’ which so perplexed the doubters of Corinth, 
 and remains even to this day such a subject of 
 controversy and debate. Into such questions the 
 general character of my present undertaking will 
 wholly preclude me from entering either formally 
 or at length; nay, in a professed recital of events 
 it will scarcely be convenient to call away the 
 attention of the reader from a simple consideration 
 of facts to their probable use as bases for specu- 
 lative meditation; still it will not be unsuitable 
 or inappropriate to bestow such a careful consi- 
 deration on those parts' of the subject which need 
 it on their own account, as will also incidentally 
 prove suggestive of fruitful thoughts in reference 
 to our future state, our hopes and our expectations. 
 The remembrance that our risen Lord was the 
 veritable first fruits of them that slept, that as He 
 rose we shall rise, will always press upon us the 
 thought that the nature of His resurrection-body^ 
 must involve something, at any rate, remotely 
 
 ^ This difficult subject will not be 
 formally discussed in the text, but 
 in every case comments will be 
 made upon the nature of those ap- 
 pearances which seem to require 
 more special consideration. From 
 these, and above all from a sound 
 exegetical discussion of the passages 
 in question the student will perhaps 
 be enabled to arrive at some opinion 
 upon a very important subject. 
 Meanwhile, without anticipating 
 what will be best considered sepa- 
 rately and in detail, it may be well 
 E. H. L. 
 
 to notice that there have been, 
 roughly speaking, three opinions on 
 the subject, — {a) that our Lord’s 
 body was the same natural body of 
 flesh and blood that had been cruci- 
 fied and laid in the tomb ; (6) that 
 it was wholly changed at the resur- 
 rection, and became simply an ethe- 
 real body, — something between mat- 
 ter and spirit {(hawepel iv /xedopi(p 
 TLvl T7]S TraXVT7)T0S TT]S TTph ToO TTCL- 
 0OVS (Tit)ju,aT05 Kal rod 'yvp.v^v tolotjtov 
 <T 6 p.aTo% (f>aLve(rdaL xpvxnv (Origen, 
 conir. Cels. ii. 62); (c) that it was 
 
 24 
 
 LECT. 
 
 VIII. 
 
370 
 
 The Forty Days. 
 
 LECT. 
 
 VJII. 
 
 analogous to the nature of the future bodies of 
 His glorified servants, and must insensibly lead 
 us to dwell with thoughtful care upon all the 
 circumstances and details relating to those appear- 
 ances which we are now about to recount. Let 
 us then address ourselves to this important portion 
 of the inspired history with all earnestness and 
 sobriety. Never was there a time when medita- 
 tions on the history of the risen yet not ascended 
 Lord, were more likely to be useful than now; 
 never was there an age when it was more neces- 
 sary to set forth events that not only imply but 
 practically prove the resurrection of the body^, 
 and that not only suggest but confirm that teach- 
 ing of the Church in reference to the future state, 
 which it is the obvious tendency of the specula- 
 tions of our own times to explain away, to modify, 
 or to deny^ 
 
 the same as before, but endued with 
 new powers, properties, and attri- 
 butes. Of these views {a) is open 
 to very seiious objections arising 
 from the many passages which seem 
 clearly to imply either (i) that there 
 was a change in the outward ap- 
 pearance of our Lord’s body, or (-2) 
 that its appearances and disappear- 
 ances involved something super- 
 natural. Again (6) seems plainly 
 irreconcileable with our Lord’s own 
 declaration (Luke xxiv. 39), and 
 with the fact that His holy body 
 was touched, handled, and proved 
 experimentally to be real. Between 
 these two extremes (c) seems soberly 
 to mediate, and is the opinion main- 
 tained by Irenaeus, Tertullian, Hi- 
 lary, Augustine (but not exclusively), 
 and other sound writers of the early 
 church. As will be seen from what 
 
 follows, it appears best to reconcile 
 all apparent differences in the ac- 
 counts of the Lord’s appearances, 
 and to say the very least, deserves 
 the student’s most thoughtful con- 
 sideration. For a very complete 
 article on this subject, see the Biblio- 
 theca Sacra, for 1845, ^ol. ii. p. 292. 
 The writer (Dr Robinson) advocates 
 {a), but supplies much interesting 
 matter and many useful quotations 
 in reference to the other opinions. 
 
 1 Some of the more popular quasi- 
 scientific objections to the received 
 doctrine of the Resurrection of the 
 body are noticed, discussed, and 
 fairly answered in an article by 
 Prof. Goodwin in the Bibliotheca 
 Sacra, for 1852, Vol. ix. p. isq. For 
 earlier objections, see Jackson, Creed, 
 XI. 15, Vol. X. p. 283 sq. 
 
 2 Information is so often sought for 
 
371 
 
 llie Forty Days. 
 
 Ere, however, we proceed to the regular and 
 orderly recital of the events of this portion of the 
 evangelical history, let us pause for a moment to 
 make a few brief comments on the general cha- 
 racter of the different records of the inspired nar- 
 rators. 
 
 With regard to the number of those holy 
 records, the same remarks that were made at the 
 beginning of the last Lecture^ may here be re- 
 peated, as equally applicable to the portion of the 
 sacred history now before us. Events of such 
 a momentous nature as those which followed our 
 Lord’s death and burial were not to be told by one 
 but by all. If all relate how the holy body of the 
 Lord was laid in the tomb, surely all shall relate 
 how on the third morning the tomb was found 
 empty, and how angelical witnesses^ declared that 
 the Lord had risen. If all relate how holy 
 women were spectators of their Redeemer’s suffer- 
 ing, shall not all relate how some at least of this 
 ministering company ^ were first to hear the glad- 
 
 in vain on the subject of the general 
 teaching of the best writers of the 
 early Church on the Doctrine of the 
 Last Things (Eschatology, as it is 
 now called), that we may pause to 
 refer the student to a learned volume 
 now nearly forgotten, Burnet, de 
 Statu MoHuorum et Resurgeniiwm, 
 London, 1728. 
 
 1 The first point, the fact that 
 the tomb was empty and the body 
 not there, is very distinctly put for- 
 ward by all the four Evangelists ; 
 compare Matth. xxviii. 6, Mark xvi. 
 6, Luke xxiv. 3, John xx. 2, 6, 7. 
 The second point, the angelical tes- 
 timony is, strictly considered, only 
 
 specified by the first three Evan- 
 gelists: St John relates the appear- 
 ance of two angels, and their address 
 to Mary Magdalene (ch. xx. 13), but 
 the testimony which they deliver to 
 the women (Matth. xxviii. 6, Mark 
 xvi. 6, Luke xxiv. 6), is, in the case 
 of Mary Magdalene, practically de- 
 livered by the Lord Himself. 
 
 ^ The women mentioned as having 
 visited the sepulchre are not the 
 same even in the case of the first 
 three Evangelists. This, however, 
 can cause no real difficulty, as the 
 fact that St Matthew only mentions 
 MaryMagdalene and *the otherMary’ 
 (the wife of Clopas or Alphasus, and 
 
 24—2 
 
 LECT. 
 
 VIII. 
 
 Character- 
 istics of the 
 present 
 portion of 
 the narra- 
 tive. 
 
 Number of 
 the ac- 
 counts. 
 
 ^ See p. 
 281. 
 
372 
 
 llie Forty Days. 
 
 v^iJ* tidings of His victory over the grave, and to pro- 
 
 claim it to His doubting Apostles ? If all, as we 
 
 have seen in the last Lecture, have so minutely 
 described the various scenes of the Passion, can 
 we wonder that all were moved to record some 
 of the more striking scenes of the great Forty 
 days that followed, and that afforded to the dis- 
 ciples the visible proofs of the Lord s resurrection b 
 It could not indeed be otherwise. These things 
 must be told by all, though, as in other portions of 
 the Gospel history, all have not been moved to 
 specify exactly the same incidents. 
 
 Their pecu- Nav, when we come to consider the precise 
 differences, nature and character of the four holy records we 
 meet with some striking and instructive differ- 
 ences b The first two Evangelists devote no more 
 
 sister of the Virgin; see above, p. 
 354, note i) in no way implies that 
 others were not with them. From 
 St Mark (ch. xvi. i) we learn that 
 Salome was also present; and from 
 St Luke (ch. xxiv. t compared with 
 ch. xxiii. 49 and 55) we should na- 
 turally draw the same inference ; 
 when, however, the Evangelist pauses 
 a little later to specify by name, 
 Salome is not mentioned but Joanna 
 (ch. xxiv. 10), the at Xoival <ji)v 
 avTois including Salome and as it 
 would appear others not named by 
 any of the Evangelists. The attempt 
 of Greswell {Dissert. XLiii. Vol. iii. 
 p. 264 sq.) to prove that there were 
 two parties of women, the one the 
 party of Salome, and the other the 
 party of Joanna, is very artificial, 
 and really does but little to remove 
 the difficulties which seem to have 
 given rise to the hypothesis. 
 
 ^ So rightly Augustine; ‘Ergo 
 ad eorum [discipulorum] confirma- 
 
 tionem dignatus est post resurrec- 
 tionem vivere cum illis quadraginta 
 diebus integTis, ab ipso die passionis 
 suse usque in hodiernum diem [fest. 
 Ascensionis], intrans et exiens, man- 
 ducans et bibens, sicut dicit Scrip- 
 tura [Act. i. 3, 4], confirmans hoc 
 redditum esse oculis eorum post 
 resurrectionem, quod ablatum erat 
 per crucem.’ Serm. cclxiv. Vol. v. 
 p. T2I2 (ed. Migne). The reasons 
 suggested by the same author (p. 
 12 1 1, 1216) why the interval was 
 exactly days are ingenious, but 
 scarcely satisfactory. 
 
 ^ These differences when studi- 
 ously collected and paraded out (see 
 De Wette, Erhl. des Evang. Matth. 
 p. 306, ed. 3) at first seem very 
 startling and irreconcileable. They 
 cease, however, at once to appear 
 so, when we only pause to observe 
 the brevity of the sacred writers, 
 and remember that an additional 
 knowledge of perhaps no more than 
 
The Forty Days. 
 
 373 
 
 than twenty verses each to the history of this 
 
 period, and are but brief in their notices of the 
 
 appearances of the risen Lord, though explicit as to 
 the circumstances under which the first witnesses 
 of the Resurrection were enabled to give their testi- 
 mony. The third and fourth Evangelists, on the 
 other hand, have each given a record nearly three 
 times as long, and have each related with great 
 exactness the circumstances of selected instances 
 of the Redeemer s manifestation of Himself, where- 
 in He more especially vouchsafed to show that 
 He had raised again the same body that had been 
 laid in J oseph’s sepulchre, that it was indeed He 
 Himself % their very own adorable Master and ® 
 
 • • • xxiv* 39* 
 
 Lord. And yet both in this and other differ- 
 ences we can hardly fail to be struck by the divine 
 harmony that pervades the whole, and must 
 again be led to recognize in this portion of the 
 history, with all its seeming discrepancies, what 
 we have so often already observed in earlier por- 
 tions, how strikingly the Evangelical accounts 
 illustrate by their differences, and how the very 
 omissions in one or two of the sacred records will 
 sometimes be found to place even in a clearer 
 light, and to reflect a fuller and truer significance 
 on what others have been moved to record. If, 
 for example, two Evangelists would thus appear 
 to dwell simply upon the fact of the Resurrection, 
 the other two, we observe, were specially guided 
 to set forth the proofs of its true nature, its reality 
 
 two or three particulars would ena- end (p. 189) will be found a useful 
 ble us at once to reconcile all that selected list of treatises both on 
 seems discordant : see a good article the subject of the Resurrection and 
 by Robinson in the Bibliotheca Sacra on the principal events connected 
 for 1845, Vol. II. p. 162. At the therewith. 
 
374 
 
 LECT. 
 
 Vlll. 
 
 “ Mark 
 xvi. 19. 
 Luke xxiv 
 
 51. 
 
 Acts i. 9. 
 
 Tlie Forty Days. 
 
 and its certainty \ If again we might be induced 
 to think from the words of the first and second 
 Evangelists that Galilee was to be more especially 
 the land blessed by the appearances of the risen 
 Saviour, the two others direct our thoughts more 
 to Judsea, and yet one of these joins the testimony 
 of an eyewitness to that of the first two by his 
 explicit and most undoubtedly genuine^ account of 
 the Lord’s appearance at the most favoured scene 
 of His Galilsean ministry ^ If lastly, two only of 
 
 . the four witnesses ^ have 
 
 1 It can hardly escape the notice 
 of the observant reader that while 
 the first and second Evangelists 
 dwell mainly on the fact that the 
 Lord was risen from the dead, the 
 third and fourth Evangelists dwell 
 most upon the reality of the body 
 that was raised (Luke xxiv. 30, 39, 
 41 sq. ; comp. Acts i. 3) and its 
 identity with that which was cru- 
 cified; compare John xx. 20, 27. 
 The, so to speak, crucial test of 
 eating is alone referred to by these 
 Evangelists, — being definitely speci- 
 fied, Luke xxiv. 43, and perhaps 
 implied, John xxi. 12 sq. 
 
 2 On this point it is not necessary 
 to dwell at length. There is not a 
 vestige of external evidence to lead 
 us to think that the early Church 
 entertained the slightest doubt of 
 John xxi. being written by the 
 Apostle St John. Internal evidence 
 has nothing else whatever to rest 
 upon than the two seeming conclu- 
 sions, ch. XX. 30 sq., and ch. xxi. 
 24 sq. ; it being now admitted by 
 the best recent critics of the Apostle’s 
 language (see esp. Meyer, Komment. 
 p. 510) that ch. xxi. came from his 
 hand. On such evidence or rather 
 absence of evidence w'e shall, pro- 
 
 been moved to record the 
 
 bably, be slow to believe with Wie- 
 seler (comp. Chron. Synops. p. 418, 
 and his special dissertation on the 
 subject) that John xxi. was written 
 by John the Presbyter. 
 
 ® Few points have been dwelt 
 upon more studiously by sceptical 
 and semi- sceptical writers than the 
 assumed fact that St Matthew and 
 St Mark (ch. xvi. 9 — 20 being pre- 
 supposed to be not genuine) regard 
 Galilee as the scene of the Lord’s 
 appearances (Matth. xxviii. 7, 10, 
 16 sq. ; Mark xvi. ^7), while St Luke 
 and St J ohn (ch. xxi. is commonly 
 assumed by such writers to be not 
 genuine) place them in Judcea; com- 
 pare Wieseler, Chron. Synops. p. 421 
 sq. Now in the first place such a 
 statement rests on two assumptions, 
 the first of which is open to some 
 doubt (see above, p. 26, note i), 
 and the second of which is incon- 
 sistent with evidence (see the preced- 
 ing note) ; and in the second place, 
 even if we concede these two as- 
 sumptions, what more can be fairly 
 said than this, — that St Matthew 
 relates two appearances only, one 
 confessedly in Galilee (ch. xxviii. 16), 
 but one most certainly in Judaea 
 (ch. xxviii. 9, 10) ; that St Mark’s 
 
375 
 
 The Forty Days. 
 
 Ascension, the other two have taught us by their 
 
 very silence, in the first place, to view that last 
 
 event of the Gospel history in its true light, — as 
 so entirely the necessary and natural sequel of 
 what preceded that Apostles could leave it unre- 
 corded; and in the second place thus to realize 
 more deeply the true mystery of the Resurrection, 
 to see and to feel how it included and involved 
 all that followed, and how it truly was that one 
 great victory over sin and death that made every 
 minor conquest over earthly relations a matter of 
 certain and inevitable sequence \ If, on the one 
 hand, St Luke has told us how the Lord ^ was 
 carried up into heaven and St Mark* has fol-'^Luke 
 
 ' XXIV. 5 f • 
 
 lowed Him with the eye of faith even up to the 
 
 Gospel is according to assumption 
 imperfect, and cannot be pleaded for 
 either side; that St Luke and St 
 John (ch. XX.) have recorded special 
 appearances of a highly important 
 nature in reference to the object 
 which they seem mainly to have had 
 in view (see p. 374, note i), and 
 that these from the nature of the 
 case would be very soon after the 
 Eesurrection, and by consequence 
 inJudsea? Even then with the two 
 concessions above alluded to our 
 opponents cannot be regarded as 
 having done much to impair the 
 harmony of the Evangelical records, 
 or to establish the favourite theory 
 of different ' traditions ’ of the Resur- 
 rection: compare Meyer, Komment. 
 iib. Malth. p. 553, — where this un- 
 tenable hypothesis is put forward 
 and defended. 
 
 1 It may be remarked how com- 
 paratively little the Ascension of 
 our Lord is dwelt upon by the early 
 writers compared with their refer- 
 ences to the Resurrection, and it 
 
 may also be observed that the spe- 
 cial festival, though undoubtedly of 
 great antiquity (see Augustine, Epist, 
 ad Januar. Liv. Vol. ii. p. 200, ed. 
 Migne), and certainly regarded in 
 the fourth century as one of the 
 great festivals {Const. Apost. Viii. 
 33), is still not alluded to by any of 
 the earliest writers, Justin Martyr, 
 Irenseus, Clement of Alexandria, and 
 Cyprian, and is not included in the 
 list of festivals enumerated by Ori- 
 gen {contr. Cels. Viii. 21, 22); see 
 Riddle, Christian Antiq. p. 678. The 
 preaching of the Apostles was pre- 
 eminently the resurrection of Christ 
 (Acts ii. 31, iv. 33 al.), as that which 
 included in it everything besides : it 
 was from this that the early Church 
 derived all its fullest grounds of as- 
 surance ; compare Clem. Rom. Epist. 
 ad Cor. cap. 42. 
 
 2 For a brief discussion of the 
 arguments in favour of the genuine- 
 ness of the concluding verses of St 
 Mark’s Gospel, see above, Lect. i. 
 p. 26, note. 
 
37G 
 
 The Forty Days. 
 
 LECT. 
 
 VIII. 
 
 “ Mark 
 xvi. 19. 
 
 *’ ch. XX. 1 7. 
 
 Resump- 
 tion of tho 
 narrative. 
 
 Visit of 
 the women 
 to the se- 
 pulchre. 
 
 Luke 
 xxiii. 56. 
 
 moment of His session at the right hand of God^ 
 no less, on the other, is our text a most signifi- 
 cant testimony from the beloved Apostle, that 
 when the Lord arose, that ascension had virtually 
 commenced, that He rose to ascend, and that 
 in the early dawning of that Easter morn the 
 Lord’s return to the throne of Omnipotence was 
 already begun ^ H ascend to my Father and 
 your Father, and to my God and your GodV 
 
 We might extend these observations, but enough 
 perhaps has been said to indicate the general cha- 
 racter of this portion of the inspired narrative, and 
 the general nature of the difficulties we may expect 
 to meet with. We must now turn to its subject- 
 matter, and to a consideration of the few but nota- 
 ble events which marked this concluding part of 
 our Redeemer’s history. 
 
 One of the last events in the preceding portion 
 of our narrative is that which connects us with the 
 present, and unites the Friday eve with the Easter 
 morn. This we observe especially in the Gospel of 
 the historian Evangelist, who without any break or 
 marked transition, relates to us how the minister- 
 ing women of Galilee now come to perform the 
 pious work for which they had made preparations 
 on the Friday evening. They had bought spices 
 and ointments ere the Sabbath had commenced^. 
 
 1 Though the use of the present 
 dm^ali/u) (John xx. 17) may be re- 
 garded as ethical, i.e. as indicating 
 what was soon and certainly to take 
 place (see Winer, Grain. § 40. 2, 
 p. 237, ed. 6), it seems here more 
 simple to regard it as temporal , — as 
 indicating a process which had in 
 fact already begun. The extreme 
 
 view of this text as indicating that 
 an ascension of our Lord took place 
 on the same day that He rose (Kin- 
 kel, in Stud. u. Krit. for 1841, — 
 translated in Biblioih. Sacra, Vol. i. 
 p. 152 sq.) is, it is needless to say, 
 plainly to be rejected, as inconsistent 
 with Acts i. 3, and numerous other 
 passages in all the four Gospels, 
 
877 
 
 The Forty Days. 
 
 and again, as it would seem, after its legal conclu- 
 sion on the Saturday evening Every preparation - — 
 
 was thus fully made, and it remained only that xvi. i. 
 with the earliest light of the coming day, they 
 should bear their offering to the sepulchre, and 
 tenderly anoint that sacred body^ which they had 
 seen laid in haste, though with all reverence and 
 honour, in the new rock-hewn tomb. It was still 
 dark when they set out, and their hearts were as 
 sad and as gloomy as the shadows of the night 
 that were still lingering around them^ But the 
 mere needs of the present were what now mainly 
 occupied their thoughts; — who was to roll away 
 for them the great stone ^ they had seen but two ver. 3. 
 nights before so closely fitted in its appointed 
 place ? Where were the strong and zealous hands 
 
 ^ The object is more definitely 
 stated by St Mark than by St Mat- 
 thew. The first Evangelist says 
 generally that it was deup^crai rbv 
 rdcpov (ch. xxviii. i) ; the second 
 specifies more exactly that it was 
 iVa aXeiipwaiv avrbv (ch. xvi. l). It 
 will be remembered that when our 
 Lord was interred, spices were only 
 strewn between the folds of the 
 swathing bands (John xix. 40 ; com- 
 pare p. 363, note 1); the object of 
 the women was now to spread over 
 the sacred body the customary liquid 
 perfumes ; see Greswell, Dissert. 
 XLiii. Vol. III. p. 260. 
 
 2 Some little difl&culty has arisen 
 from the apparently different defini- 
 tions of the time of the visit to the 
 sepulchre, as specified in the four 
 Evangelists, the two extreme being, 
 that of St John, a-Korias in oiicrfs 
 (ch. XX. i), and the second of St 
 Mark, dvareiKavTos rod i]\lov (ch. 
 xvi. 2). Were these the only notes 
 
 of time we might have been led to 
 suppose that the first referred to the 
 time of starting, the second of ar- 
 riving at the sepulchre. As, how- 
 ever, St Mark has another note of 
 time Xlav Trpcat (ver. 2), and as this 
 is supported by the ry emcfxjXTKoicr’Q 
 [sc. yp.ipq.'] els piLav aa^^dnav of St 
 Matthew (ch. xxviii. i) and the 
 6p6pov ^adiojs of St Luke (ch. xxiv. 
 i), the most natural conclusion is, 
 that the dvarelX. toD ijXiov is not to 
 be referred to the actual phenomenon 
 (Meyer, al.) but to be regarded only 
 as a general definition of time : see 
 Eobinson, Bihlioth. Sacra, Vol. Ii. 
 p. 168, where examples are given 
 from the Septuagint which dilute 
 the objection arising from the use of 
 the aorist. 
 
 ® This, as has already been sug- 
 gested (p. 364, note 3), is perhaps to 
 be inferred from the yppivov e/c rod 
 p.vypLelov of John xx. i, the preposi- 
 tion seeming to imply that the stone 
 
378 
 
 The Forty Days. 
 
 LECT. 
 
 VIII. 
 
 a Matt, 
 xxviii. 2 
 b ver. 2. 
 
 ^ ver. 4. 
 
 that were to open that door that would lead them 
 to their Lord? While thus musing, and as yet, as 
 it would seem, at some distance from the sepulchre, 
 lo! the ground around them quakes^ under their 
 feet^ ; the angel of the Lord descends from heaven 
 the heathen watchers at the tomb fall prostrate 
 with fear‘d as the glory of that celestial appearance 
 smites upon their eyes; the great stone is rolled 
 away from the already empty sepulchre^; men now 
 may perceive what angels know, that the Lord is 
 RISEN. Meanwhile the women, who probably were 
 still too distant to see distinctly, perhaps pause 
 bewildered and irresolute, doubtful whether to go 
 onward or to return. But all is now again the 
 wonted calm of early dawn ; the earth has ceased 
 to tremble; the strange flashing light has faded 
 
 was not only rolled against the door, 
 but fitted into the cavity. 
 
 ^ It is very difficult to decide 
 whether the women actually beheld 
 the miraculous circumstances men- 
 tioned Matth. xxviii. 1 sq., or not. 
 The definite expression, Kal Ibov 
 (ver. 2), the address of the angel 
 (ver. 5), and the contrasting u^uets 
 (ver. 5 ; comp. Chrys. in loc.) seem 
 most distinctly in favour of the affir- 
 mative, while the silence of the other 
 Evangelists, and even St Matthew’s 
 very indirect notice of the impres- 
 sion produced on the women by the 
 wondrous sight strongly suggest the 
 negative. In this difficulty the me- 
 diating view of the text, — that they 
 beheld it partially and at a distance, 
 has been adopted as in some degree 
 reconciling the two impressions pro- 
 duced by a consideration of this 
 portion of the narrative. The terri- 
 fied guards would also probably have 
 been unable to have wholly sup- 
 pressed some account of an event 
 
 (Matth. xxviii. 13) which so greatly 
 terrified them, and thus partly from 
 them and partly from the women 
 the occurrence would have become 
 gradually but completely known. 
 
 2 The exact moment when the 
 Lord issued from the tomb is left 
 wholly undefined. The prevailing 
 view of the early writers is that it 
 preceded the events specified by the 
 Evangelist {gera tt]v avdaraaiv y\dev 
 dyyeXos, Chrysost. in Matth. xxviii. 
 i), and that the appearance of the 
 angel and removal of the stone were 
 to announce what had already taken 
 place and to demonstrate its reality ; 
 comp. Hacket, Serm. v. on Eesurr. 
 p. 592 sq. (Lond. 1675.) All we 
 can know of the circumstances of 
 the holy mystery is to be gathered 
 from John xx. 6 sq. ; from which 
 we may perhaps presume to say that 
 it took place with all the adjuncts of 
 holy order, deliberation and peace: 
 comp. Robinson, Bibl. Sacra, Vol. 
 II. p. 166. 
 
The Forty Days, 
 
 370 
 
 away; they will yet pursue their way; they will 
 enter the quiet garden ; they will strive to find en- 
 trance into the tomb ; they will do that for which 
 they are come. As they draw nearer, they see to 
 their joy that the stone is rolled away, resting per- 
 haps on one side of the rocky portaP; they take 
 heart and press onward, yea they enter, as St Luke 
 tells us^, into the tomb itself, and by the seeing of 
 the eye are assured that the holy body they them- 
 selves had beheld securely laid there, is now there 
 no longer. The tomb is empty ; they have searched 
 and have not found, and now stand sadly gazing 
 on each other in utter bewilderment and per- 
 plexity^. But one there was among them more 
 mpid in the inferences of her fears, and more 
 prompt in action. Ere, as it would seem, the rest 
 had entered the sepulchre and commenced their 
 search, Mary Magdalene was already on her way 
 to Jerusalem ^ She who owed to Him that died 
 
 ^ Some little difficulty lias been 
 felt in the clause yap /x&yas <x(p 6 - 
 dpa (Mark xvi. 4), as it might seem 
 rather to give a reason why the 
 women meditated how the stone 
 should be removed, than why they 
 perceive that what they mused on 
 had happened. If, however, we 
 make the assumption in the text or 
 some similar one as to the position 
 of the stone, all seems clear ; while 
 the women are yet at a little dis- 
 tance they perceive that the stone is 
 not in its place, it being of large 
 size and its changed position readily 
 seen. This harmonizes with the sup- 
 position that Mary Magdalene went 
 away first, and at once; compare 
 John XX. I, 2, /SXeTret 
 ovu where the odv must not 
 
 be left unnoticed. 
 
 2 The common supposition is that 
 Mary ran first to the sepulchre 
 without waiting for the rest; to 
 this, however, there are objections 
 arising from the fact that St Mat- 
 thew specifies that there was at least 
 another with her when she went 
 (ch. xxviii. i), and that St Luke 
 implies that she acted in some de- 
 gree of concert with the other 
 women; compare Wieseler, Chron, 
 Synops. p. 430, and see below, p. 
 380, note 2. The primary difficulty 
 that St J ohn names no other w'oman 
 than Mary, must be cut, if not 
 solved, by the reasonable assertion 
 that St John was moved to notice 
 her case particularly, and by the 
 fair principle of Le Clerc, which so 
 often claims our recognition in this 
 part of the inspired narrative, — ‘qui 
 
 LECT. 
 
 VIII. 
 
 ch. xxiv. 
 
 ver. 4. 
 
380 
 
 The Forty Days, 
 
 LECT. 
 
 VIII. 
 
 ® Luke viii. 
 2 . 
 
 b John 
 
 XX. 2 . 
 
 on Golgotha a freedom from a state worse than 
 death and who loved even as she had been 
 blessed, no sooner beholds the stone removed from 
 the doorway of her Lord’s resting-place than she 
 sees or seems to see all. She whose whole present 
 thought was only how she might do honour to her 
 Master’s body, how best strew the spices around 
 the holy body, how most tenderly spread the oint- 
 ment on the sacred temples of the sleeping head, 
 now at a glance perceives that others have been 
 before her; she sees it and at once fears the worst, — 
 her Lord’s sepulchre violated, His holy body borne 
 away to some dishonoured grave or exposed to 
 shame and indignities which it was fearful even 
 to think of. Help and counsel must at once be 
 sought, and that of a more effectual kind than 
 weak women could provide. Perhaps with a few 
 hasty words to those around'^, she runs with all 
 speed to the Lord’s most chosen followers, Peter 
 and J ohn^, and in artless language, which inciden- 
 tally shows that she had not been the sole visitant 
 
 plura narrat, pauciora complectitur ; 
 qui pauciora memorat, plura non 
 negat.’ Harmon, p. 525, Can. Xii. 
 fin. (cited by Robinson). 
 
 ^ See above, p. 362, note 2. 
 
 2 This supposition, though not 
 positively required by any of the 
 succeeding incidents, is still hazard- 
 ed, as serving to indicate how it 
 might have happened that the wo- 
 men did not meet St Peter as he 
 was coming up to the sepulchre. 
 Knowing that one of their party 
 had gone to him, the women pos- 
 sibly went off in different directions 
 to the abodes of the other Apostles. 
 Though they were all assembled to- 
 gether in the evening (Luke xxiv. 
 
 36, John XX. 19), it does not follow 
 that they were now all occupying a 
 common abode ; comp. Griesbach, 
 Opusc. Acad. Vol. il. p. 243. If 
 further conjectures are worth mak- 
 ing, it does not seem wholly impro- 
 bable that St Peter might have been 
 now in the abode that contained St 
 John and the Virgin (John xix. 27). 
 The psychological truth in Mary’s 
 running for help to men is noticed 
 by Luthardt, Johann. Evang. Part 
 II. p. 435. It is, however, quite as 
 useful in illustrating the reason why 
 Mary did not remain with those 
 unable to help, as why (on Luth- 
 ardt’s hypothesis) she did not run 
 hack to them. 
 
The Forty Days. 
 
 381 
 
 of tlie tomb’, at once tells them the mournful 
 
 tidings, — Hhey have taken away the Lord out of 
 
 the sepulchre, and we know not where they have 
 laid Him^’ The two Apostles promptly attend to “ ver. 2. 
 the message and hasten to the sepulchre^, followed, ver. 3. 
 as it would seem, by her who brought the tidings, 
 and who, it appears from the context‘s, must have‘s ver. n. 
 arrived there not long afterwards. 
 
 Ere, however, the two Apostles had reached The ap- 
 the tomb, other messengers, filled indeed with an of thT°^ 
 awe and amazement that sealed their lips to every thfwomen 
 one they met^ but filled also with a deep feeling 
 
 •J ^ ^10 sepulchre. 
 
 of holy‘s joy that quickened their steps® to the city, d 
 were now seeking out the rest of the Eleven. 
 
 Shortly after Mary Magdalene had left the other 
 ministering women, and while as it would seem, 
 they were standing bewildered in the tomb^, tivo^, fLuke 
 or, as some of these perturbed beholders might 
 have specified^, one^ of the heavenly host, announce h Mark 
 
 1 This deduction from the plural 
 oidafiev (John xx. 3) is objected to 
 by Meyer {in loc.), who urges the 
 olSa (ver. 13) as fully counterbalanc- 
 ing the plural in the present case. 
 This does not seem satisfactory. 
 The first statement was made under 
 different feelings to the second ; now 
 she had but lately left others and 
 speaks under the natural conscious- 
 ness of the fact ; afterwards she 
 feels left alone in her sorrow, and 
 speaks accordingly; see below, p. 
 385, note 2. 
 
 2 It seems unreasonable in Meyer 
 {on Marie xvi. 8) and others to press 
 the ovdevl ovdb' etwov of the second 
 Evangelist, as implying that the 
 women did not obey the angel’s 
 command, and that it was only af- 
 terwards that they mentioned it. 
 
 ^vi. 5 
 
 Siirely it is reasonable on psycholo- comp, 
 gical grounds (to borrow a favourite Matt. 
 
 mode of argument in modern writers) 
 to think that the women would not, 
 individually, much less collectively, 
 disobey a command of such a kind, 
 and uttered by such a speaker. 
 Fear sealed their lips to chance-met 
 passers to and fro, but joy (Matth. 
 xxviii. 8) opened them freely enough 
 to the Apostles. 
 
 3 The question of the number of 
 the angels present at the sepulchre 
 possibly admits of some sort of ex- 
 planation similar to those already 
 adopted in not unlike cases (p. 188, 
 note 2 ; p. 274, note 2), and founded 
 on the assumption that one was the 
 chief speaker, and that to him atten- 
 tion was particularly directed. It 
 is, however, perhaps more probable 
 
 xxvm. 5. 
 
382 
 
 LECT. 
 
 VIII. 
 
 a Matt, 
 xxviii. 7. 
 
 *’ ver. 7. 
 Mark 
 xvi. 7. 
 
 Matt, 
 xxvi. 32. 
 
 ** cli. 
 xxviii. 8. 
 
 Mark 
 xvi. 10. 
 
 Luke 
 xxiv. 1 1 . 
 
 The Forty Days. 
 
 to them that the Lord is risen, and bid them with 
 all speed ^ convey the tidings to the Apostles, and 
 tell them that the risen Shepherd goeth before His 
 flock ^ to Galilee'", even as He had solemnly pro- 
 mised three days before on the eve of His passion‘d. 
 The message we know was speedily delivered ; 
 the weeping® and desolate Apostles^ were sought 
 out and told the cheering tidings, but their sorrow 
 clouded their faith ; the words of the excited mes- 
 sengers seemed foolishness unto them, and they 
 believed them not^ Saddened perhaps and grieved 
 that they could not persuade those to whom they 
 were sent, yet -strong in a faith that was soon to 
 receive its exceeding great reward, the women ap- 
 pear to have turned backward again® toward the 
 one spot in the world on which their thoughts now 
 were fixed, — their Master’s tomb. 
 
 that in the present case the differ- 
 ence is to be referred to the special 
 excitement of the time, and the per- 
 turbed state of the observers (Luke 
 xxiv. 5) ; comp. Stier, Disc, of Our 
 Lord, Vol. VIII. p. 53 (Clark). 
 
 ^ The term irpodyei (Matth. xxviii. 
 7, Mark xvi. 7) is rightly explained 
 by Stier and others as indicating, 
 not a mere precedence in reference 
 to the time of going, but as marking 
 the attitude of the risen Lord to 
 His now partly scattered flock : ob- 
 serve the connexion in Matth. xxvi. 
 31 sq. and Mark xiv. 27 sq. 
 
 2 The graphic comment on the 
 state of the Apostles when Mary 
 Magdalene brought her message 
 aTT'fiyyciKev rois fier’ avrov yevofJii- 
 vois, irevdovaLV Kal K\aiov<riv 
 (Mark xvi. 10), seems justly to out- 
 weigh all the petty exceptions that 
 have been taken by Meyer and 
 others to some expressions in this 
 
 verse {eKelvrj, used without emphasis ; 
 Tropevdeiaa, rois pLer' avrov yevop.i- 
 vois, instead of rois p.a6ifjTah auroO) 
 which are urged as foreign to St 
 Mark’s style. If the hypothesis 
 already advanced (p. 26, note i) be 
 accepted, viz. that St Mark added 
 this portion at a later period, we 
 only here meet exactly with what 
 we might have expected, — identity 
 in leading characteristics, change in 
 details of language. 
 
 3 It seems reasonable to suppose 
 that the women would return to the 
 sepulchre. They left it in great 
 precipitation {^cpvyov, Mark xvi. 8), 
 and would naturally go back again, 
 if not for the lower purpose of fetch- 
 ing what they might have left there, 
 yet for the higher one of gaining 
 some further knowledge of a mys- 
 tery which even Apostles refused to 
 believe. Compare, thus far, Wie- 
 seler, Chron. Synops. p. 425 sq. 
 
The Forty Days. 
 
 883 
 
 Let us, however, turn back for a inoment to 
 Mary Mao'dalene and the two Apostles. They 
 
 n 1 1 1 n, T 1 1 1 The two 
 
 were now all three at the tomb, bt John had Apostles 
 reached it first, but with the feelings of a holy awe tomb! 
 had not presumed to enter his Master’s tomb John xx. 
 though he had seen enough^ to feel half convinced ^ 
 that Mary’s tidings were true. St Peter follows, 
 and with characteristic promptness enters the tomb‘d, ® 
 and steadily surveys' its state, and the position of 
 the grave-clothes. What his exact feelings then 
 were we know not, though we know those of his 
 brother Apostle who now entered into the tomb. 
 
 He too saw the position of the grave-clothes, the 
 swathing bands by themselves in one part of the 
 tomb, the folded napkin in the other every sign ver. 7. 
 of order and none of confusion^, and he who had 
 perhaps before believed that the tomb was empty, 
 now believes what a true knowledge of the Scrip- 
 tures might have taught him at first, — that the 
 
 ^ The verb dewpeiv, though fre- 
 quently used by St John (above 20 
 times), seems in the present case 
 {deuipet Ta 666ma Keifieua, ch. 
 
 XX. 6), as indeed commonly else- 
 where, to mark the steady contem- 
 plation (‘ipsius animi intentionem 
 denotat qu^ quis intuetur quid- 
 quam.’ Tittm.) with which any- 
 thing is regarded by an interested 
 observer; diravra KaTibirrevaep aKpi- 
 jSws, Chrys. : see the good comments 
 on this word in Tittmann, Synon. 
 Nov. Test. p. 1 20 sq. The remark 
 of Stier is perhaps not wholly fanci- 
 ful, that the visibility of angels is 
 dependent upon the existing wake- 
 fulness, or susceptibility of the be- 
 holding eye, and that thus the in- 
 vestigating Apostles did not see 
 them, while to the rapt and longing 
 
 Mary they become apparent: see 
 Disc, of Our Lord, Vol. viii. p. 58, 
 and compare the ’somewhat similar, 
 but over-confidently expressed 'ca- 
 non’ of Liicke, Comment, iib. Joh. 
 Vol. II. p. 781 (ed. 3). 
 
 ^ The position of the grave- 
 clothes is specially noticed as show- 
 ing clearly that there had been no 
 violation of the tomb : ' inde patebat, 
 ilium qui statum sepulchri mutave- 
 rat, quicunque tandem fuerit, nihil 
 festinanteregisse...sed studio et cum 
 certo consilio lintea corpori detrax- 
 isse, et concinno ordiae in diversis 
 locis reposuisse.’ Lampe, in loc., 
 cited by Luthardt, p. 436. On the 
 further deductions from this passage 
 (oTi ovK yu cnrevbbvTLop ovbk dopv^ov- 
 fiiv(j}v rb Trpdypt. 0 ., Chrys.), see above, 
 p. 378, note 2. 
 
884 
 
 LECT. 
 
 VIII. 
 
 The Lord’s 
 appearance 
 to Mary 
 Magda- 
 lene. 
 
 * John XX. 
 
 II. 
 
 a ch, XX. 
 
 12 . 
 
 The Forty Days. 
 
 Lord is risen*. Consoled, and elevated in thought 
 and hope the two Apostles turn backward to their 
 own home‘s 
 
 Meanwhile Mary Magdalene had now returned 
 to the tomb, though, as we must conclude from 
 the context, without having again met the two Apo- 
 stles, who would otherwise have cheered her with 
 the hopes they themselves were feeling, and im- 
 parted to her some share of their own convictions. 
 But she was now standing weeping by the tomb% 
 unconsoled and inconsolable; her Lord was borne 
 away and she knew not where He was laid ; was 
 not that cause sufficient for those bitter tears ? 
 Yet she will gaze at least into that quiet resting- 
 place that once had contained her Lord and Sa- 
 viour ; she will gaze in, though she fears to enter. 
 The fourth Evangelist has told us what she saw, — 
 two angels^ as in attitude of still watching over 
 
 ^ The exact meaning of iirla-rev- 
 crev (John xx. 8) is somewhat doubt- 
 ful. Are we to understand by it 
 merely that the Apostle believed in 
 Mary’s report (‘ quod dixerat mulier, 
 eum de monumento esse sublatum,’ 
 August, in Joann. Tractat. cxix.), 
 or, in accordance with the usual and 
 deeper meaning of the word, that he 
 believed in the religious truth, viz. 
 of the resurrection (rr} avaardaei 
 eirlarevaav, Chrys.)1 Certainly, as 
 it would seem the latter. The 
 ground of the belief was the position 
 of the grave-clothes which was in- 
 consistent with the supposition of a 
 removal of the body by enemies ; 
 aTTO TTjS TU}V 6dovL(j)V (TvWoyTJS ivvovat 
 TT]u dvdaracnv, Cyril. Alex, in Joann. 
 Vol. IV. p. 1078 (ed. Aubert.). The 
 supposed difficulty in the yap of the 
 succeeding member seems removed 
 
 by the gloss adopted above in the 
 text. St John saw and believed 
 {eWeu Kal eirLcTTevaev) : but had he 
 known the Scripture he would not 
 have required the evidence by which 
 he had now become convinced ; com- 
 pare Eobinson, Sa^r. Vol. ii. 
 
 p. 174. 
 
 2 The expression dirri\6ov Trpos 
 avToifS (John xx. 10) seems rightly 
 paraphrased by Euthymius, dirrikdov, 
 — 7T/)os T^v eavTcvy Karaycoyyy ; so, 
 similarly, Luke xxiv. 12. The two 
 disciples returned to the places or 
 perhaps rather place (see above, p. 
 380, note 2) where they were abiding, 
 to meditate upon the amazing mira- 
 cle (compare Luke xxiv. 12): very 
 soon afterwards, as we must infer 
 from Luke xxiv. 24, they commu- 
 nicated it to the rest of the Apo- 
 stles and the other brethren. 
 
885 
 
 The Forty Days. 
 
 Him who had but so lately lain there ^ They ask 
 her why she weeps ^ She has but one answer, the 
 
 11 11 John x> 
 
 same artless words she uttered to the two Apostles, 13. 
 varied only by a slight change of person that’^veris. 
 seems to tell of an utter grief and perplexity with 
 which she feels herself now left to struggle unsus- 
 tained and alone ^ Yea, she turns away^, as it^'ver. 14. 
 would seem, even from angelic sympathy. But 
 she turns to see, perhaps now standing in some 
 position in which immediate recognition was less 
 easy^. One whom she knew not*^, nay, whose very‘^ver. 14. 
 voice either she did not or could not recognize, 
 until her slumbering consciousness is awakened by 
 
 ^ There seems something more 
 than arbitrary fancy (Meyer) in the 
 idea alluded to in the text. The at- 
 titude of the angels, thus specially 
 mentioned by the Apostle, was so 
 explained by some of the best early 
 commentators (arj/maipovres cos ovk dp 
 i]hLKr](ri rts to dytop a-ufia, Cyril Alex. 
 in loc.), and has been rightly so un- 
 derstood by some of the better mo- 
 dern interpreters: see Luthardt, das 
 Johann. Evang. Part ii. p. 438, 
 Stier, Disc, of Our Lord, Vol. viii. 
 p. 58 (Clark). 
 
 ^ As has been already observed 
 (p. 381, note i) the present oI 5 a 
 (John XX. 13) of the solitary mourner 
 is not to be regarded as simply sy- 
 nonymous with otda/uep (ver. ■2). 
 Here, as the context shows, the wo- 
 man is standing alone by the tomb ; 
 the Apostles have gone away; she 
 feels herself unsupported in her 
 grief, and she thus naturally ex- 
 presses it: comp. ver. 15 where the 
 first person is similarly continued. 
 
 3 It is not at first sight easy to 
 understand why Mary did not at 
 once recognize our Lord, as we have 
 E. H. L. 
 
 no reason for thinking from the con- 
 text that her eyes were specially 
 holden (contrast Luke xxiv. 16), 
 and every reason for rejecting the 
 idea of some interpreters that the 
 Lord’s recent sufferings had left 
 His features unrecognisable. The 
 natural explanation would seem to 
 be this, — that she was so absorbed 
 in her sorrow, and so utterly with- 
 out hope or expectancy of such a 
 blessing, that she speaks to, and 
 perhaps even generally looks at the 
 supposed stranger without recogniz- 
 ing Him; compare the illustrative 
 anecdote in Sherlock’s able tract. 
 The Trial of Witnesses, Vol. v. p. 195 
 (ed. Hughes). It may be also fur- 
 ther remarked that if any know- 
 ledge of the exact locality had been 
 vouchsafed to us, further explana- 
 tion would probably be found in the 
 i(XTpd(f)T] ets rcc oirlao}, ver 14. Into 
 the question of clothing (comp. Stier, 
 Disc. Vol. VIII. p. 63, note) it is idle 
 and indeed presumptuous to enter. 
 Whatsoever garb our Lord’s wisdom 
 thought fit, that did His power 
 assume. 
 
 25 
 
LECT. 
 
 VIII. 
 
 » John XX. 
 i6. 
 
 ** Luke viii. 
 I, 2. 
 
 88 G The Forty Days. 
 
 hearing her own name uttered, and that as we may 
 presume to think, in accents that in a moment re- 
 vealed all‘. Amazement, hope, belief, conviction, 
 all in their fullest measures burst, as it were, upon 
 her soul. With the one word Rabboni^, and, as 
 the context leads us to think, with some gesture of 
 overwhelming and bewildered joy, she turns round 
 as if to satisfy herself not only by the eye and ear, 
 but by the touch of the clasping hand, that it was 
 indeed He Himself"^, no mere heaven-sent form, 
 but her Teacher and Deliverer, whose feet she had 
 been permitted to follow over the hills of Galilee^, 
 whose power had rescued her, and whose redeem- 
 ing blood she had seen falling on the very ground 
 nigh to which she then was standing. Yea, her 
 outstretched hand shall assure her that it is her 
 Lord. But it must not be : relations now are 
 solemnly changed. That holy body is the resur- 
 rection-body of the ascending Lord ; the eager 
 touch of a mere earthly love is now more than 
 
 1 It seems natural to think that 
 beside the mere utterance of her 
 name there was something also in 
 the intonation that so vividly re- 
 called the holy privileges of past 
 intercourse and past teaching, that 
 Mary not only at once recognizes 
 lier Lord, but by the very title with 
 which she addresses Him shows how 
 fully she reverts to previous rela- 
 tions and as yet to nothing higher ; 
 contrast John xx. 28, and compare 
 Luthardt, das Johann. Evang. Part 
 II. p. 439. The single word ‘ Rab- 
 boni,’ if properly weighed, will be 
 found to throw considerable light 
 on the next verse : compare Hacket, 
 Serm. viii. on Resurr. p. 619. 
 
 ^ The supposition of Lamy and, 
 
 more recently, of Meyer that Mary 
 Magdalene sought to convince her- 
 self of the reality of the divine Form 
 that stood before her is apparently 
 reasonable and natural, but when 
 pushed further as the sole explana- 
 tion of the yap of the following 
 clause (‘ you need not convince your- 
 self by touch, I am not yet a glori- 
 fied spirit comp. Kinkel in Bihlioth. 
 Sacra, Vol. i. p. 168) seems utterly 
 lacking and unsatisfactory. A desire 
 to satisfy herself was probably in the 
 mind of the speaker, but there were 
 other feelings, half- disclosed in the 
 Rabboni, to which the Lord’s words 
 were more especially intended to 
 refer ; compare Andrewes, Serm. xv. 
 Vol. m. p. 30 (A.-C. L). 
 
The Forty Days. 
 
 887 
 
 ever unbecoming and unmeet. With mysterious 
 
 words full of holy dignity and majesty, yet at the 
 
 same time of most tenderly implied consolation \ 
 the Lord bids her refrain. The time indeed will 
 come when, under higher relations, love eager and 
 demonstrative as that now shown to the risen, may 
 hereafter unforbiddenly direct itself to the ascended 
 Lord. But that time is not now.... Still love de- 
 voted and true as that displayed by Mary of Mag- 
 dala shall not be left unblessed ^ To her is vouch- 
 safed the privilege of being the first mortal preacher 
 of the risen Lord. From her lips is it that even 
 Apostles are to learn, not only that the resurrection 
 is past but that the ascension is begun and that'‘Jo^in xx. 
 
 ^ In the very difficult words, Mt; 
 jxov aiTTov' K.T.X. (John xx. 17) two 
 things seem cles^rly implied: (i) a so- 
 lemn declaration of changed relations 
 of intercourse with the risen Lord, 
 expressed in the prohibitory ixrj /xov 
 aiTTOv; (2) a eonsolatory assurance 
 that what is prohibited now shall 
 (in another form) be vouchsafed 
 hereafter. The Greek expositors are 
 thus perfectly right when they re- 
 cognize in the words the holy dig- 
 nity of the risen Lord (dvdyei avrijs 
 T 7 ]v diduoiau, dlcTTe aideaifidrepov av- 
 T(p Tpoaix^LV, Chrys.), which, to use 
 the words of Stier, ‘ withdraws sub- 
 limely from a too human touch,’ but 
 they fail, for the most part, in the 
 second member, and either miss or 
 neglect the full force of the ydp. 
 This must certainly be preserved, as 
 involving a. consolatory Tea,son for the 
 present prohibition (Photius), and 
 as giving the necessary divine ful- 
 ness to these first words of the risen 
 Saviour. The whole meaning then 
 may be briefly expressed in the fol- 
 lowing paraphrase, — ‘Touch me not 
 
 (with this touch of the past), for I 
 have not yet entered into those rela- 
 tions in which I may truly be touch- 
 ed, though it will be with the equally 
 loving but necessarily more reverent 
 and spiritual touch of the future.’ 
 For further details, see especially the 
 excellent and exhaustive sermon of 
 Andrewes, Serm. xv. Vol. in. p. 23 sq. 
 (A.-C. L). Meyer, Komment. uh. Joh. 
 p. 499 sq., Liicke, ih. Vol. ii. p. 783 
 sq., Stier,Z>isc. of Our Lord, Yo\. viii. 
 p. 67 sq.; and compare Robinson in 
 Biblioih. Sacr. Vol. viii. p. 175. 
 
 ^ It seems right to recognize in 
 the dva^alvo) (ver. 17) a reference 
 to the dva^i^rjKa of the preceding 
 member, and in the 5^ that sort of 
 latent opposition (Klotz, Devar. Vol. 
 II. p. 362) which seems to imply that 
 the member it introduces involves 
 contrasts to what precedes ; — ‘ I have 
 not yet ascended, hut delay not, go 
 thy way and deliver the message, 
 that My resurrection has really 
 practically commenced;’ see above, 
 p. 376, note I, and comp. Andrewes, 
 Serm. Vol. in. 46. 
 
 25—2 
 
388 
 
 The Forty Days. 
 
 LECT. 
 
 YlII. 
 
 “ Heb. ii. 
 
 II. 
 
 Pi’obable 
 effect pro- 
 duced on 
 tlie 
 
 Apostles 
 by Mary’s 
 tidings. 
 
 ^ Mark 
 xvi. II. 
 
 He wlio ^is not ashamed to call them^ brethren^/ 
 is now ascending, to His Father and to their Fa- 
 ther, and to His God and their God. 
 
 What exact effect was produced on the minds 
 of the Apostles by a message thus clear and cir- 
 cumstantial we cannot fully tell. From the second 
 Evangelist it would certainly seem clear that no 
 credence was given to Mary’s declaration that the 
 Lord was alive again and that her own eyes had 
 seen Him^. This at any rate they did not and 
 could not believe. They had but lately, as it would 
 seem, heard strange tidings from the women, and 
 they might possibly have come to the belief that 
 a part at least of these tidings was true^. But 
 the Lord Himself no eye had seen^ ; nay the very 
 
 ^ Most commentators have rightly 
 called attention to our Lord’s pre- 
 sent use of the term * brethren’ 
 (John XX. 17) in reference to the 
 Apostles, though they differ in their 
 estimate of the exact sentiment it 
 seems intended to convey. The most 
 natural view seems that of Euthy- 
 mius, that it was indirectly to assure 
 the disciples that the Lord was still 
 truly, man, and still stood, in this 
 respect, on the same relations with 
 them as before; ‘He named them 
 brethren, as being himself a man, 
 and their kinsman according to man’s 
 nature.’ In Joann. XX. 17, Vol. iii. 
 P. 635. 
 
 2 The exact amount of informa- 
 tion of what had taken place which 
 the Apostles had up to this time 
 received, and their present state of 
 feeling, can only be generally sur- 
 mised. All we know certainly is 
 that they had received the first tid- 
 ings of the women and regarded 
 them as ‘idle tales’ (Luke xxiv. 1 1). 
 
 It is indeed possible that previous 
 to the arrival of Mary Magdalene 
 some of them might have learnt 
 from St Peter and St John or from 
 those to whom those Apostles might 
 have mentioned it, ‘that the body 
 was not in the sepulchre’ (comp. 
 Luke xxiv. 23) ; the probable short- 
 ness of time, however, between the 
 departure of the two Apostles and 
 the second departure of Mary, and 
 the improbability of the supposition 
 that the disciples were already all 
 assembled together (see above, p. 380, 
 note 2), render it natural to think 
 that not much more could be gene- 
 rally known that had been commu- 
 nicated by the first women. 
 
 ^ Even if we adopt the supposi- 
 tion alluded to in the preceding 
 note, and conceive the results of the 
 visit of St Peter and St John to 
 have been now known to the rest of 
 the Apostles, it still seems clear that 
 any account of an actual visible ap- 
 pearance of our Lord would have 
 
389 
 
 The Forty Days, 
 
 removal of the body, which might have been ad- 
 
 mitted and believed in, served perhaps only to con ^ 
 
 firm the vas^ue feeliim that now all trace was for 
 ever lost, that the angels of which the women had 
 spoken, liad borne away the holy body to some 
 sepulchre unknown as that of Moses and that the “ 
 
 xxxiv, 6* 
 
 dream of any earthly union was more than ever 
 impossible and unimaginable. The vision of angels^ Luke 
 they perhaps had now begun partially to believe in^, ^3- 
 
 but that their Lord had been seen by the excited 
 woman that now stood before them, that He had 
 spoken with her, and made her the bearer of a 
 message, was a dream and an hallucination too 
 wild to deserv-e even a moment’s attention. 
 
 But they were soon to receive yet further and The Lord’s 
 fuller testimony. Hitherto those that had come to 
 them could speak only from the seeing of the eye ; nistTrSg 
 others were now to come who could plead the evi- 
 dence of another sense, and could tell not only of 
 what their eyes had seen but their Tiands. handled.’ 
 
 Very shortly perhaps after Mary Magdalene had 
 left the Apostles^, the other ministering women, 
 
 been regarded little less incredible 
 than before. The two travellers to 
 Emmaus, though probably starting 
 at a time (see below) when more 
 would have been known, speak of 
 the confirmation which the report of 
 the women had received, but add 
 the melancholy conviction of the 
 disciples generally, — avrov hk ovk 
 eldov, Luke xxiv. -24. 
 
 ^ After the intelligence brought 
 by Mary Magdalene the Apostles 
 might have been led to believe that 
 the tomb really was empty, and fur- 
 ther that marvellous things had been 
 seen (compare Luke xxiv. 23), but 
 
 more than this it seems certain was 
 not believed by any except by St 
 John. On the slowness of the Apos- 
 tles to believe, see Stier, Disc, of 
 Our Lord, Vol. viii. p. 96. The 
 reasons why women were the first 
 bearers of the tidings of the Resur- 
 rection are alluded to by Augustine, 
 Serm. XLV. Vol. v. p. 266, Scrnt. 
 ccxxxii. ib. p. iro8 (ed. Migne). 
 
 2 It would seem probable that 
 the women returned with the ac- 
 count of having seen the Lord, not 
 long after Mary Magdalene had left 
 the Apostles. We have, however, 
 no data for fixing even roughly the 
 
390 
 
 .LECT. 
 
 vm. 
 
 ® Matt, 
 xxviii. 9. 
 
 The Forty Days. 
 
 who had brought the first tidings to the Apostles, 
 are permitted to meet their Lord face to face, yea 
 and to clasp the holy feeL' before which they had 
 at once fallen in trembling and believing adora- 
 tion. They saw, they believed, they touched, and 
 they worshipped \ More we know not; where 
 
 they were or under what circumstances they thus 
 beheld the Lord must remain only a matter of the 
 merest conjectured If we adopt the Keceived Text 
 we may seem to have some grounds for think- 
 ing that this appearance was vouchsafed to the 
 women soon after leaving the sepulchre, but as 
 
 probable time, the very fact of such 
 a return being in itself in some 
 degree debateable; see below, p. 391, 
 note 1. It may indeed be urged, 
 that if the disciples had received 
 thus early this double testimony the 
 travellers to Emmaus would have 
 alluded to such an appearance (comp. 
 Luke xxiv. 22) ; but to this it may 
 be replied that throughout the tid- 
 ings brought by the women seem to 
 have been viewed with distrust ; the 
 speakers rather appeal to what the 
 Apostles had seen and verified, and 
 to them the Lord had certainly not 
 yet appeared. 
 
 ^ The conduct of the women when 
 our Lord thus vouchsafed to appear 
 to them is noticeable and instruc- 
 tive. It is specially recorded by St 
 Matthew (ch. xxviii. 9) that they 
 ‘ held Him by the feet, ’ and ‘ wor- 
 shipped Him’ {irpoaeKivqaav avrbv). 
 They at once recognize Him with 
 holy awe (ver. 9) not merely as their 
 Teacher (contrast John xx. 16) but 
 as their Kisen Lord, and instinctively 
 pay Him an adoration, which as 
 Bengel has rightly observed, was 
 but rarely evinced towards our Lord 
 by His imneediate followers previous 
 
 to His Passion: 'Jesum ante pas- 
 sionem alii potius alieniores adora- 
 runt quam discipuli.’ In Matth. 
 xxviii. 9. The exact feeling which 
 led to their embracing the Lord’s 
 feet has been differently estimated; 
 the act may have been from a desire 
 to convince themselves that it was 
 He (Chrysost. in loc.), or from joy 
 at again beholding Him they had 
 thought lost to them (De Wette), 
 but from the context (comp. ver. 10) 
 seems more naturally to have been 
 from a reverential love (^/c irbOov kuI 
 Tiyrjs, Euthym.) that evinced itself 
 in supplicating adoration ; compare 
 Bp Hacket, Serm. viii. on Resurr, 
 p. 618 (Lend. 1675). 
 
 2 We have nothing from which to 
 infer where or when our Lord ap- 
 peared to the women. If we adopt 
 what seems the true reading in ver. 
 9 (see the following note), there seems 
 nothing unreasonable in the conjec- 
 ture that, after the delivery of the 
 first tidings to the Apostles, they 
 directed their steps back again to 
 the sepulchre (see above, p. 382, 
 note 3) and that it was on their way 
 there that the Lord vouchsafed to 
 appear to them. 
 
llie Forty Days. 
 
 391 
 
 the text which favours such an opinion has been 
 justly regarded extremely doubtfuP, and as such a 
 supposition scarcely admits of any reasonable re- 
 conciliation with the distinct statement of the 
 second Evangelist that Mary Magdalene was the 
 first mortal to whom the risen Lord vouchsafed 
 to show Himself^, we shall perhaps be right in® 
 conceiving that the appearance was subsequent 
 to the first communication which the women made 
 to the Apostles, and most undoubtedly subsequent 
 to the aj)pearance to Mary Magdalene ^ It might 
 thus seem designed not only to add confirmation 
 to the statements which had been made by Mary, 
 but again to convey a special and singular com- 
 mand relative to the Lord’s appearance in Galilee^ 
 
 1 If we adopt the Eeceived Text 
 in Matth. xxviii. 9, ws bk eiropeOovTO 
 &Trayy€i\ai tol$ fjLadrjTais avTov, we 
 have no alternative but to suppose 
 that the appearance of our Lord 
 took place when the women were 
 Jirst on their way to the Apostles. 
 As, however, the above words are 
 rejected by Lachmann, Tischendorf, 
 and Tregelles on what seems sufld- 
 cient evidence (see Tisch. in loc. 
 Vol. I. p. 164), and have strongly 
 the appearance of an explanatory 
 gloss, we are in no w’ay necessitated 
 by the context to refer the incident 
 to the first journey. No valid ob- 
 jection to this can be urged from 
 the TTopevojxhwv dk airQp of ver. 1 1 ; 
 the Apostle having related all con- 
 nected with the women, reverts to 
 the terrified guard (ver. 4) and to 
 the further circumstances connected 
 with them; to this fresh paragraph 
 he suitably prefixes a note of time. 
 
 2 Independently of the very dis- 
 tinct statement of Mark xvi. 9, 
 
 €<pdvrj TpQrop Maplg. Trj Ma^Sa- 
 \r]vrj (opp. to Eobinson, Bibl. Sacra, 
 Vol. II. p. 178), it seems impossible, 
 on sound principles of interpretation, 
 to maintain with Wieseler {Chron. 
 Syn. p. 426) and others, that the 
 appearance recorded in John xx. 14 
 sq. is identical with that to the other 
 women: every circumstance is not 
 only different but contrasted; see 
 Slier, Disc, of Our Lord, Vol. viii. 
 p. 91 (Clark), and comp. Andrewes, 
 Serm. iv. Vol. ii. p. 238 (A.-C. L.), 
 Hacket, Serm. viii. on Jlesurr. p. 616 
 (Lond. 1675), both of whom rightly 
 consider the appearance to Mary 
 distinct from that to the women. 
 
 3 The repetition from our Lord’s 
 own lips of the direction which had 
 so recently been given by the angels 
 (Matth. xxviii. 7, Mark xvi. 7), that 
 the disciples were to depart into Gali- 
 lee, accompanied with the reiterated 
 promise that there they should see 
 Him (Matth. xxviii. 10), seems clearly 
 to invest the appearance specified by 
 
 LECT. 
 
 vm. 
 
 Mark xvi. 
 
892 
 
 The Forty Days. 
 
 been alluded to by the angels, and 
 
 • appears to have been directed, and indeed under- 
 
 Luke stood ^ to have been directed to all the company of 
 believers then abiding in Jerusalem. 
 
 Tiieap- But the apostles were to receive yet a third 
 ourLord^^and more convincing testimony that their Lord 
 discipier^ had risen, and had been seen, yea and spoken with 
 by those who had known Him in the flesh. Meet 
 maus. indeed was it that the holy Eleven should now learn 
 to believe. Were they to be the last to welcome 
 back their risen Saviour ? Were their hearts to 
 be duller even than that of the Lord’s worst and 
 most cruel enemies? Already we know that these 
 •'Matt. thing:s had reached the ears of the Sanhedrin^, 
 
 XXVIU. II. ® ' 
 
 and that the tidings brought by the terrified 
 soldiers had caused them deliberately to fabricate 
 a lie for these bribed watchers to repeat \ lest the 
 fact of the supernatural disappearance of the body 
 should be publicly known, and the multitude 
 should believe what their very lie showed they 
 
 St Matthew (ver. i6 sq.) as having 
 taken place in that country with 
 great importance and significance. 
 The very distinct and consoling /cd- 
 Kd fxe ' 6 ^ovTaL (ver. lo) when coupled 
 with the remembrance that it is 
 simply certain that on the present 
 day (John xx. 19) our Lord appeared 
 to the Eleven and those with them 
 in Jerusalem, seems certainly to pre- 
 dispose us to believe that the appear- 
 ance in Galilee was to the Church 
 at large, and thus was identical with 
 the appearance specified, i Cor. xv. 
 6. See, however, the further re- 
 marks, p. 410, note I. 
 
 1 The studious way in which this 
 lie was propagated is alluded to by 
 Justin Martyr {Trypho, cap. 108, 
 
 comp. capp. 17, 1 1 7), who taxes the 
 Jewish rulers with having sent out 
 ‘ chosen men over the whole world ’ 
 for this special purpose; compare 
 also Tertullian, adv. Marc. iii. 23. 
 The missionary efforts of the Jews 
 against the Christians are mentioned 
 by Eusebius {in Jes. xviii. i) in a 
 valuable passage cited both by Thirl - 
 by and Otto in their notes on Just. 
 M. Trypho, cap. 1 7 ; compare Ter- 
 tull. ad Nat. i. 14, adv. Judceos, 
 cap. 13. Some good comments on 
 the incident of the bribery of the 
 guards, and on the fact that it is 
 especially related by St Matthew, 
 will be found in Sherlock, Trial of 
 Witnesses, Vol. v. p. 182, and in 
 Sequel of Trial, ib. p. 2 74. 
 
393 
 
 The Forty Days. 
 
 themselves were in a great measure forced to 
 
 admit. Were Romans to testify, and Jews to 
 
 accept, and Christians still to doubt ? Friends, it 
 seemed, required fuller confirmation than enemies, 
 and fuller confirmation was it mercifully appointed 
 that they were yet to receive. Ere the day closed 
 two of the Lord’s followers, but neither, as it 
 would seem, of the number of the Eleven^, were to 
 be the bearers of the third testimony to the still 
 
 perplexed and doubting Apostles^ On the par- ® Comp. 
 
 ticulars of that interesting journey to Emmaus^ 13. 
 it will not be necessary to dwell, as all is so clear 
 and simple, and so completely free from those 
 difficulties of adjustment with which we have 
 
 ^ Who the two disciples were has 
 been much debated. The popular 
 view that Cleopas was identical with 
 Clopas or Alphseus (corap. p. 98, 
 note), and the further not unnatural 
 supposition that his companion was 
 James his son are open to this ety- 
 mological objection that K\e67ras 
 appears not to be identical with 
 KXwTras, but to be a shortened form 
 of KXeoTrarpos, like ’Avrliras (Rev. 
 ii. 13) and similar forms ; see Winer, 
 Gr. § 16. 4. I, p. 93. If this be so, 
 the slight probability that the second 
 of the two was James is proportion- 
 ately weakened, and the appeal to 
 I Cor. XV. 7 less plausible. We are 
 thus thrown wholly upon conjecture. 
 This, in its most ancient form, ap- 
 pears to regard the unnamed dis- 
 ciple as Simon (Origen, Comment in 
 Joann, i. 7, Vol. iv, p. 8, ed. Bened.), 
 and both as of the number of the 
 seventy disciples; ‘And you must 
 know that these two belonged to 
 the number of the seventy, and that 
 Cleopas’s companion was Simon, — 
 not Peter, nor he of Cana, — but 
 
 another of the seventy.’ Cyril. Alex. 
 Comment on St Luke, Part ii. p. 726 
 (Transl.). 
 
 2 The site of Emmaus is some- 
 what doubtful. In ancient times it 
 appears to have been identified with 
 Nicopolis on the border of the plain 
 of Philistia, but erroneously, as the 
 distance of this latter place from Je- 
 rusalem (about 22 Roman miles) 
 cannot possibly be reconciled with 
 the distance specified by the Evan- 
 gelist ; see next note. In later times 
 it has been identified with the vil- 
 lage of el-Kubeibeh about 2^ hours 
 N.W. of Jerusalem (Van de Velde, 
 Memoir to Map, p. 309), but for this 
 there appears no reasonable grounds 
 of any kind. Either then with Por- 
 ter (Smith, Diet. s. v., Vol. l. p. 548) 
 we must consider the site yet to be 
 identified, or we must accept the tra- 
 dition of the Greek church which 
 places it at Kuriet el-’Enab (Abu 
 Ghsh). In defence of this latter 
 opinion, see some good remarks of 
 Williams, Journal of Philology, 
 Vol. IV. p. 262 sq. 
 
094 
 
 The Forty Days. 
 
 LECT. 
 
 VIII. 
 
 ■ ch. xxiv. 
 13 - 
 
 ** ver. 29 ; 
 comp. ver. 
 
 33. 
 
 ver. 13. 
 
 ver. 24. 
 
 liitlierto had to contend. We may, however, pause 
 to remark that the time when the incident took 
 place is generally defined by St Luke as having 
 formed part of the same day^ on which our Lord 
 rose from the grave. As we know that it was not 
 yet evening^ when the two disciples turned back- 
 ward to Jerusalem, and as we are also specially 
 informed by the Evangelist of the distance^ of 
 Em mans from the city‘s, we may perhaps reason- 
 ably suppose that they started some little time 
 before mid-day, and so very probably might have 
 heard of the later announcements made to the Apo- 
 stles by Mary Magdalene and the other minister- 
 ing women. ' Him they saw not*^’ seems however 
 to be the pathetic burden of their discourse and 
 their communings®, and forms as it were the sad 
 summary of that want of faith which the Lord 
 was pleased so mercifully and so effectually to 
 rebuke by the deliberate statement and exposi- 
 tion^ of all the passages of the prophetic Scrip- 
 
 ^ A few manuscripts ( 1 ^ N ; 
 5 cursive MSS.) and a few versions 
 read eKarov i^-^KOura for i^r/Kovra in 
 Luke xxiv. 13, making the distance 
 of Emmaus 160 instead of 60 stadia 
 from Jerusalem. This reading has 
 been supported by Kobinson {Pales- 
 tine, Vol. III. p. 150, ed. 2) as tend- 
 ing to favour his identification of 
 Emmaus with ’Amwas (the ancient 
 Nicopolis), but is rightly rejected by 
 all modern editors. The statement 
 of Josephus {Bell. Jud. vii. 6. 6) 
 that there was a place of this name 
 60 stadia (so all the best MSS.) from 
 Jerusalem, and the other arguments 
 urged by Keland against the identi- 
 fication with Nicopolis have justly 
 been considered satisfactory and fi- 
 
 nal. See Paloestlna, p. 426 sq. 
 
 ® It is doubtful how much infor- 
 mation the two travellers to Emmaus 
 had received in reference to our 
 Lord’s resurrection. It might pos- 
 sibly be concluded from Luke xxiv. 
 23, 24, that they had not heard of 
 the tidings brought by Mary Mag- 
 dalene and the women relative to 
 the Lord’s appearances, but this, 
 owing to the time at which they ap- 
 pear to have started, is not likely. 
 They probably speak in reference to 
 the confirmatory reports of the 
 ti2p <xi)v '^fup (ver. 24), and to what 
 they themselves believed ; see above, 
 p. 389, note 2. 
 
 ® There is some little difficulty in 
 the explanation of the words Kal 
 
895 
 
 The Forty Days. 
 
 tures that related to Himself®, and had foretold 
 His approaching glorification. — 
 
 One other remark we may make on the appa- xxiv. 27. 
 rently singular fact that the two disciples were inability 
 
 *^ 11 ° • T 1 -11 1 
 
 not able to recognize our Lord till the very cipies to 
 moment of His departure, — that they not only o^r^Lord! 
 beheld Him, and heard His words, but felt their 
 hearts kindle as they listened to His teaching^, *’ver. 32. 
 and yet never surmised even who it was that 
 spake with them. Singular indeed such a fact 
 does seem if we are to reason merely from what 
 we know or think we may know of that which 
 constitutes personal identity^, — but in no wise 
 singular if we will dismiss our philosophy and our 
 speculations, and accept only what is told us by 
 one and confirmed by another Evangelist. Plainly 
 are we told by St Luke that the eyes of the two 
 disciples were holden^, that by divine interposi- * 
 tion^ they were prevented from recognizing their 
 
 ap^d/xepos diro k.t.X. Luke 
 
 xxiv. 27. The simplest interpreta- 
 tion is either to regard the Kal dp^d- 
 /jL€Pos as belonging to both parts 
 (‘beginning with Moses, and with 
 each of the prophets as he came to 
 them,’ Meyer, Alford), or, still more 
 simply, to consider the second dird 
 as a continuation and echo of the 
 first, which necessarily turns the sub- 
 stantive it precedes into the genitive, 
 and involves a slight laxity in the 
 mode of expression, the meaning 
 really being, — ‘ He began with Mo- 
 ses, and went through aU the pro- 
 phets;’ see Winer, Gram. § 67. 2. 
 p. 557 (ed. 6). 
 
 . ^ Into such considerations it seems 
 here wholly undesirable to enter, as 
 in ordinary cases they involve much 
 
 that is debateable, and in the present 
 much that is presumptuous. All 
 that we are concerned to know and 
 believe may be very simply stated. 
 On the one hand we have before us 
 in this portion of the Gospel history 
 the certain fact that our Lord’s body 
 was the same body as that which 
 was laid in the tomb (Luke xxiv. 39, 
 John XX. 20), and on the other the 
 certain fact that His form sometimes 
 appeared to be so far different from 
 it (Mark xvi. 12) as not to be recog- 
 nized. The reconciliation of these 
 two statements may be difficult, 
 owing to our ignorance of the exact 
 nature of the Lord’s resurrection- 
 body, but the facts no less remain. 
 
 2 The meaning of the words ot 
 6(pda\p.ol avTwv iKparovpro (Luke 
 
396 
 
 The Forty Days, 
 
 Vii?’ pleased to reveal Himself. 
 
 Plainly too is this confirmed by St Mark who, in 
 
 declaring that our Lord appeared to these disciples 
 '‘ch. xvi. in a different form%’ intimates with all clearness 
 that our Lord was pleased to exercise one of the 
 powers which had in part belonged to His former 
 body ^ and jyerhaps wholly and naturally belonged 
 to His resurrection-body, whereby the characteriz- 
 ing expression of His most holy form could be 
 weakened or withdrawn until the power of recog- 
 nition on the part of the natural beholder was 
 completely lost^ What the third Evangelist ex- 
 presses in one form of words, the second Evangelist 
 expresses in another, both however asserting the 
 same simple truth, that the Lord was pleased to 
 
 xxiv. 1 6) is simply, as expressed by 
 the Authorized Version, Hheir eyes 
 were holden’ (‘ tenebantur,’ Vulg. ; 
 Metenti erant,’ Syr.), — their eyes 
 were prevented from exerting their 
 full power of recognition ; compare 
 Kypke, Ohs. Sacr. Vol. i. p. 338. 
 The agency by which this was ef- 
 fected is not specified, but obviously 
 was divine. The seeming discrepancy 
 between this passage and Mark xvi. 
 1 2, is thus excellently discussed by 
 Augustine; ^‘Cum legitur 'tene- 
 bantur oculi eorum ne agnoscerent 
 eum’ (Luc. xxiv. 16), impedimentum 
 quoddam agnoscendi videtur in lu- 
 minibus factum esse cernentium : 
 cum vero aperte dicitur, ^Apparuit 
 eis in alia efl&gie’ (Marc. xvi. 12), 
 utique in ipso corpore cujus alia erat 
 eflSgies, aliquid factum fuisse, quo 
 impedimento tenerentur, id est mo- 
 ram agnoscendi paterentur oculi eo- 
 rum.” Epist. CXLIX. 31, Vol. II. p. 
 643 (ed. Migne). 
 
 ^ Independently of any special ex- 
 ercise of our Lord's divine power, it 
 
 would seem from the fact of the 
 Transfiguration that His pure and 
 perfect humanity admitted of revela- 
 tions of concealed glory which in- 
 volved positive changes of appear- 
 ance (Luke ix. 29), and yet in no 
 way interfered with the reality of 
 His earthly body; see Augustine, 
 Epist. CXLIX. 31, Vol. II. p. 643 (ed. 
 Migne), and Muller, Christian Doctr, 
 of Sin, Vol. II. p. 329 (Clark). 
 
 2 A few comments on this subject 
 will be found in Stier, Disc, of Our 
 Lord, Vol. VIII. p. 10 1 sq. (Clark), 
 comp, also Ebrard, Kritikder Evang, 
 Gesch. § III. p. 588. The explana- 
 tion indirectly suggested by Sher- 
 lock, Trial of the Witnesses, Vol. V. 
 p. 195 (ed. Hughes), that the want of 
 recognition on the part of the two 
 disciples was owing partly to the 
 persuasion they were under that their 
 Lord was dead, and partly to their 
 position, — walking side by side, is 
 neither in itself plausible, nor recon- 
 cileable with the clear statement of 
 Mark xvi. 12. 
 
The Forty Days. 
 
 897 
 
 exercise a power, whether belonging to Him in 
 respect of His divine nature, or of His most sin- 
 less, pure, and now glorified^ humanity, we know 
 not, nor need we pause to inquire, but by which, 
 whensoever it seemed good to our Lord’s divine 
 wisdom, the holy body suddenly ceased to be 
 seen, or appeared without those lineaments that 
 were necessary for recognition. 
 
 But let us return to the narrative. It was 
 late evening^ before the two disciples returned to 
 J erusalem and appeared before the Apostles, who 
 now with other members^ of the infant Church^ 
 were assembled together, and on whom some re- 
 cent appearance of our Lord to St Peter‘d had 
 
 LECT. 
 
 vm. 
 
 ^ The term ‘now glorified’ is here 
 only used in a general and popular 
 sense, and not to be understood as 
 denying that there was any further 
 glorification of the body after the 
 Resurrection. Upon such subjects 
 it is not either very safe or very 
 desirable to speculate too freely ; 
 it may, however, be added that the 
 opinion of some of the sounder ex- 
 positors of recent times, — that du- 
 ring the mysterious period of the 
 forty days the glorification of the 
 Lord’s holy body was progressive, — 
 is, if not distinctly confirmed by the 
 sacred nan*ative (consider however 
 dua^aivo), John xx. 17), still by no 
 means inconsistent with it, and de- 
 serves perhaps some slight consider- 
 ation ; see Stier, Disc, of Our Lord, 
 Vol. VIII. p. 89, Muller, Doctr. of 
 Sin, Vol. II. p. 328 (Clark), and 
 comp, below, p. 407, note 3. 
 
 2 The language of St Luke, ^vpov 
 i}dpoicr/Jt.ivovs rovs kuI roi/s <ri>v 
 
 ain-ois, ch. xxiv. 33, leads us to con- 
 clude that others beside the Apostles 
 
 were present at the appearance of 
 our Lord which we are now con- 
 sidering. Whether, however, all, or 
 whether only the ten Apostles re- 
 ceived the first-fruits of the Holy 
 Spirit (John xx. 22) cannot posi- 
 tively be decided, as St John only 
 uses the general term p.adr]Tai. Ana- 
 logy might seem to suggest that as 
 others beside the Apostles (consider 
 Acts ii. I, 4) appear to have received 
 the miraculous gift of the Spirit on 
 the day of Pentecost, so it might 
 have been now ; the power of bind- 
 ing and loosing, however, which 
 seems to have been specially con- 
 veyed in this gift of the Spirit (see 
 Chrysost. in loc.), more naturally 
 directs our thoughts solely to the 
 Apostles, and leads us to think that 
 they were on this occasion the only 
 recipients; the dirapxh of the Spirit 
 is received by the d-irapx^ of the 
 Church. So Andrewes, who, in his 
 sermon on this text, defines ‘the 
 parties to whom’ as the Apostles ; 
 Serm. ix. Vol. iii. p. 263 (A.-C. L.). 
 
 Appear- 
 ance to 
 the ten 
 Apostles, 
 a Comp. 
 John XX. 
 19. 
 
 b Luke 
 xxiv. 33. 
 
 ® Luke 
 xxiv. 34. 
 
398 
 
 The Forty Days. 
 
 LECT. 
 
 VIII. 
 
 a Luke 
 xxiv. 34. 
 
 made apparently so great an impression^, that 
 they at once greet the new comers with the joyful 
 tidings, — that Hhe Lord had risen indeed, and 
 appeared unto Simon^/ And now they too in 
 their turn have a testimony to render to the as- 
 sembled disciples more full and explicit than any 
 that had yet been delivered that eventful day. 
 They have seen the Lord, they have journeyed 
 with Him, they have conversed with Him, they 
 have been instructed by Him, they have sat down 
 
 with Him to an evening 
 
 ^ Of the appearance of our Lord 
 to St Peter incidentally mentioned 
 by St Luke, and further confirmed 
 by I Cor. xv. 5, we know nothing. 
 It certainly occurred after the re- 
 turn from the sepulchre (Luke xxiv. 
 12, John XX. 10), but whether before 
 the appearance to the two disciples 
 on their way to Emmaus (Lange, 
 LebenJesu, ii. 8. 3, Part ill. p. 1691) 
 or after it, as conjectured by Cyril 
 Alex. {Comment on St Luhe, Part ir. 
 p. 728, note), cannot be determined. 
 The effect, however, produced by it 
 was clearly very great. The words 
 of the disciples now show plainly 
 their conviction of the truth of the 
 Lord’s resurrection {rjyipdr) 6 KiJptos 
 6vt<x)s, ver. 34), and the veiy con- 
 struction adopted by the Evangelist 
 implies how eager they were in ex- 
 pressing it, — €vpop i]dpoi<Tpi,iuov^ Toi)i 
 'ii/beKa Kal robs crbv avrois Xiyovrai 
 K.T.X. ver. 34. They gave but little 
 credence to the accounts of the 
 women, but in the report of one of 
 their own number and that one St 
 Peter they very naturally put the 
 fullest confidence : see above, p. 389, 
 note 2. 
 
 It does not appear from the 
 
 meal ’, they have received 
 
 inspired narrative that our Lord 
 actually shared with them their 
 evening meal. The words, Kal 
 v€TO iv T(p KaraKXiOijuac k. t. X. (ver. 
 30), seem rather to imply that the 
 Lord vouchsafed to sit down with 
 the two disciples, and took the posi- 
 tion, gladly offered, of master of the 
 house, but that after He had pro- 
 nounced the customary blessing 
 {Mishna, ‘ Berachoth,’ vi. 6 ; — the 
 citation in Lightfoot, reproduced by 
 most expositors, *Tres viri qui simul 
 comedunt tenentur ad gratias indi- 
 cendum ’ [cap. vii. i] appears to refer 
 to grace after meat), and had broken 
 the bread and given it to the two 
 disciples. He permitted Himself to 
 be recognized, and then vanished 
 from their eyes. The act by which 
 the Lord was pleased to awaken 
 their powers of recognition was ‘ the 
 breaking of the bread’ (iv ry KXdaei 
 ToO dprov, ver. 35 ; on this force of 
 iv, see notes on i Thess. iv. 18); but 
 how, whether by allowing them to 
 see the wounds on His sacred hands, 
 or (more probably) by some solemn 
 and well-remembered gesture, we 
 can only conjecture. The opinion 
 of many of the early writers that 
 
399 
 
 The Forty Days, 
 
 bread from His sacred hands, — and at the very 
 
 moment when recognition was permitted, they 
 
 have seen Him vanish from their longing eyes. To 
 such a testimony we marvel not to find it recorded 
 that full belief even now was not extended. 
 
 Events so circumstantial and so minutely speci- 
 fied seemed perhaps less to confirm than to be- 
 wilder. They might at length have been led to 
 admit the already thrice-repeated statement that 
 the Lord had been seen, that His sacred form 
 had passed before the eyes of Peter, that it had 
 even been seen by Mary Magdalene, and even 
 further that it had been touched or thought to 
 have been touched by the other women; — this 
 they might at length have been disposed either 
 wholly or in part to believe, but the present nar- 
 rative seemed to involve ideas of a bodily form 
 and substance which their subsequent fears^ and ‘‘Luke 
 our Lord’s gentle reproof^ showed they regarded 
 as inconceivable and incredible’. We have no 
 need then to explain away the accurate statement 
 of the second Evangelist that they believed not*^ xvi. 
 the strange recital of the wayfarers to Emmaus\ 
 
 this was a celebration of the Eucha- 
 rist, seems inconsistent with the 
 specification of time {ip ry KaraKX.) 
 and the general circumstances of the 
 present supper. 
 
 ^ In spite of the joyful avowal of 
 their belief that the Lord had risen, 
 the disciples, as the inspired narra- 
 tive plainly specifies, are greatly 
 terrified (Luke xxiv. 37) when the 
 Lord actually appears. This was 
 not in itself wholly unnatural, but 
 seems to have been increased by the 
 belief that they were beholding a 
 spint (idoKOVP 'irvevp.a deoipeiv ), — a 
 
 persuasion against which our Lord’s 
 subsequent words are specially di- 
 rected. This in some measure pre- 
 pares us for the statement in Mark 
 xvi. 1 3 : see the following note. 
 
 ^ There is confessedly at first 
 sight some difficulty in reconciling 
 the joyful greeting of the Apostles 
 and their spontaneous announcement 
 of the appearance to Simon (Luke 
 xxiv. 34) with the incredulity with 
 which St Mark (ch. xvi. 13) tells us 
 they received the account of the two 
 disciples from Emmaus. It is pos-. 
 sible that the ovZk iKcluois iirl<TTCum 
 
400 
 
 The Forty Days, 
 
 ^Yui’ ^ fuller testimony was now to be 
 
 vouchsafed. Even while they were considering 
 
 and discussing these things, and now perhaps 
 
 putting questions in every form to the two latest 
 
 witnesses, the Lord Himself appears among them, 
 
 and with words of holy and benedictory greeting 
 
 » John XX. unto them both His hands and His side\ 
 
 20 . 
 
 At first, as we learn from St Luke’s narrative, 
 they were above measure perturbed and terrified ; 
 they well knew that the doors were closed, and 
 yet they plainly beheld their Lord standing before 
 them^ ; they knew not what to think ; they con- 
 ceive it must be His bodiless spirit that they are 
 now beholding, and the flesh quailed. Though 
 xJiv^39 partially reassured by the sight of the wounds^, 
 John XX. and by the condescending love which permit- 
 ted them to touch the holy body that stood 
 before them‘d, they even then could not fully be- 
 
 (rau (ver. 13) may refer, not to the 
 Apostles hut to some of the others 
 (rois XoiTTOis) to whom they related 
 it (see August, de Consens. Evany. 
 III. 25), but it seems more reason- 
 able to suppose, as in the text, that 
 the want of behef is to be accounted 
 for by the strangely circumstantial 
 nature of the narrative of the two 
 disciples, the contrasts it presented 
 to two of the other appearances and 
 perhaps also to the third, and also 
 further, its seeming incompatibility 
 with what they might have conceived 
 to be their Master’s present state. 
 He whose feet suppliant and adoring 
 women deemed they clasped, seemed 
 widely different from the humble 
 wayfarer to Emmaus. 
 
 ^ The special notice tQu dvpQv 
 KeKXuayivuv (John xx. 19), repeated 
 ver. 26, and in the latter case with- 
 
 out any repetition of the reason, 
 seems to point to the mode of the 
 Lord’s entry (ddpoov iary yicros, 
 Chrysost.) as involving something 
 marvellous and supernatural. How 
 this took place we are wholly unable 
 to explain, but the conjecture may 
 be hazarded that it was not so much 
 specially miraculous, as due to the 
 very nature and properties of the body 
 of the risen Lord : compare p. 396 sq. 
 The attempts to show that this might 
 have been merely a natural entry 
 (Eobinson, Bibl. Sacr. Vol. ii. p. 
 182, comp. Sherlock, Trial of Wiln. 
 Vol. V. p. 196) do not seem success- 
 ful: the i(TT 7 j ds rb yiaov of St John 
 appears correlative to the &(f>avT0% 
 iyivero of St Luke (ch. xxiv. 31); 
 if the latter be supernatural, so cer- 
 tainly would seem the former. 
 
The Forty Days. 
 
 401 
 
 lieve^. But that lacking belief now no longer 
 
 arose from a dull or faithless heart, but from a 
 
 bewildering joy ^ ; it was to be excused, yea, it was xxiv. 41. 
 so far to be borne with, that a special sign which 
 on another occasion^ liad probably been used in ^ Mark v. 
 a similar way to bring final conviction was yet to 
 be vouchsafed to the overjoyed but amazed be- 
 holders. The fish and the honey-comb‘s were Luke 
 
 xxiv« 
 
 taken by Him who, as Augustine has well said, had 
 Hhe power though not the need of eating^;’ they 
 were taken in the presence of all*^; the Lord was’^ver. 43. 
 pleased to eat thereof, and then, as we may infer 
 from the context, the Apostles and assembled 
 followers believed with all the fulness of a fer- 
 vent, lasting, and enduring faith. Then at length 
 the first-fruits of the effusion of the Holy Spirit 
 were conveyed by an outward sign and medium®, ® John xx. 
 and the mysterious power of binding and loosing 
 was conferred upon the inspired and anew accre- 
 dited Apostles ^ 
 
 ' See Luke xxiv. 41, air laroivToiv 
 avTuiv dirb rrjs With this 
 
 the exdp 7 ]crav idovres rbv Kdpiov of 
 St John (ch. XX. -20) seems exactly 
 to harmonize. J oy is the pervading 
 feeling, so great and so overwhelm- 
 ing, that they can hardly believe 
 the evidence of their very eyes and 
 ears. Both Chrysostom and Cyril 
 of Alexandria here refer to John 
 xvi. 22 as now notably fulfilled. 
 
 2 This appears to have been a 
 favourite comment of Augustine, 
 and is as reasonable as it is perti- 
 nently expressed: ^ Fecit cum dis- 
 cipulis quadraginta dies, intrans et 
 exiens, manducans et bibens, non 
 egestate sed potestate; manducans et 
 bibens, non esuriendo nec sitiendo, 
 
 sed docendo et monstrando.’ Serm, 
 ccxcLViii. 2, Vol. V. p. 1360. See 
 also Serm. cxvi. 3, Vol. v. p. 659, 
 in Joann. Tractat. lxiv. i, Vol. iii. 
 p. 1806, an interesting passage in 
 the Civit. Dei, xiii. 22, Vol. vii. 
 p. 395, and some sound remarks in 
 Cyril Alex. Commentary on St Luke, 
 Part IT. p. 730 (Transl.). 
 
 3 The mysterious power now given 
 to the Apostles was an essential ad- 
 junct to their office as the ambas- 
 sadors of Christ and, more especially, 
 as the rulers of His Church; ^po- 
 testas ista . . . primitus Apostolis ut 
 ecclesiae magistris et rectoribus de- 
 mandata est.’ Barrow, de Potest. 
 Clav. Vol. VIII. p. 1 13. It had re- 
 ference, as Meyer rightly observes, 
 26 
 
 E. H. L. 
 
402 
 
 I' he Forty Days. 
 
 But one there yet was of the number of the 
 D' r r 7” Eleven who had not beheld with his own eyes 
 of Thomas; and wlio could not and would not believe even 
 oui Loids overwhelming testimony of the assembled 
 
 a])pearance 
 to the 
 Eleven 
 Apostles, 
 
 “ John XX. 
 
 25 - 
 
 ^ ver. 26. 
 
 believers. Seven days was he to remain in his 
 unbelief. While his brother Apostles were now 
 the probably conscious recipients of the eternal 
 Spirit the unconvinced Thomas was yet seeking 
 for outward and material evidences^, without which 
 he had avowed that he could not believe. And 
 even these were vouchsafed to the now isolated 
 Apostle. We read in the inspired narrative of the 
 fourth Evangelist^, how on the day which the 
 Lord’s renewed appearance thereon had now begun 
 to stamp with a special sanctity^, our Lord appears 
 
 not merely to the general power of 
 receiving into the Church or the 
 contrary, but to their disciplinary 
 power over individual members of 
 it, both in respect of the retaining 
 and the absolving of sins. On the 
 subject generally, see Andrewes, 
 Serni. Vol, v. p. 82 (A.-C. Libr.), 
 Barrow, de Potest. Clavium, Vol. 
 VIII. p. 84 sq. (Oxf. 1830), Bing- 
 ham, Wo 7 ^ 1 cs, Vol. VIII. p. 357 sq. 
 (Bond. 1844), and comp. Marshall, 
 Penit. Disc. i. 2, p. 10 sq. (A.-C. L.), 
 Thorndike, Princ. of Chr. Truth, i. 9, 
 Vol. II. p. 157 (A.-C. L.). 
 
 ^ It seems right and reasonable to 
 suppose that the Apostles now felt 
 themselves endued with that gift of 
 the Holy Ghost which they had re- 
 ceived from their Lord, though as 
 yet they could have had no power 
 of exercising it. That this was a 
 real dvapxi] of the Holy Ghost is 
 rightly maintained by all the best 
 expositors ; the gift was not general 
 like that at the Pentecost, but spe- 
 
 cial and peculiar {iirriyayer ‘*Q,v dv 
 d^7]T€ K. T. X. deiKviis ttoIov etdos evep~ 
 yelas blbwciv, Chrysost.), yet no less 
 veritably a gift of the Spirit. Luth- 
 ardt {Johann. Evang. Part ii. p. 449) 
 presses the absence of the article, 
 and urges that it was only a spirit 
 of the new life as coming from the 
 risen, but not ascended Lord: for 
 such a distinction, however, there is 
 no sound grammatical foundation 
 (see notes on Gal. v. 5), and appa- 
 rently no evidence deducible from 
 the language of the N. T. 
 
 ^ It does not seem wholly impro- 
 bable that we have here the very 
 commencement, as it were, of the 
 celebration of the Lord’s day, and 
 the earliest indication of that ob- 
 servance of the first day of the week 
 which the Lord’s resurrection had 
 naturally evoked, and to which His 
 present appearance gave additional 
 sanction and validity ; see Cyril Alex. 
 hi Joann, xx. 26, Vol. iv. p. 1104, 
 and compare Ihds. Essay for 1843, 
 
The Forty Days. 
 
 403 
 
 in tlie same supernatural manner’ ; we mark with 
 
 adoring wonder how the personal test which the 
 
 doubting Apostle had required, was now vouch- 
 safed to him^, and it is with thankful joy that we ^^ohn xx. 
 hear that outburst of inspired conviction that now 
 recognized in the risen Jesus, yea in Him whose 
 very wounds the privileged Apostle was permitted 
 to touch, not so much the humanity as the divi- 
 nity^ ; — ^ and Thomas answered and said unto 
 Him, My Lord, and my God^.’ '' 
 
 Some time afterwards, how long we know not, Our Lord’s 
 followed the Lord’s manifestation of Himself by by^SaL 
 the lake of Tiberias, of which we have so full and 
 explicit account from the hand of the beloved 
 Apostle®. The promise of the great Shepherd that ® ch. xxi. i 
 He would go before His flock into Galilee‘S, and d Matt. 
 
 p. 74. The fair statement of the 
 whole contested subject would seem 
 to be as follows, — that the dedication 
 of one day of the week to the special 
 service of God is binding on us by 
 His primeval law, but that the spe- 
 cial selection of the first day rests on 
 Apostolical, and, as the present case 
 seems to suggest, indirectly Divine 
 appointment ; compare also Abp. 
 Bramhall, Lord’s Day, Vol. v. p. 32 
 sq. (A.-C. L.). 
 
 1 That our Lord’s appearance was 
 supernatural, again rests on the 
 special notice of the fact of the 
 closed doors ; see above, p, 400, note 
 I . The peculiar terms (here ^px^rai 
 Kal ^(TTTj, ver. 26, comp. ver. 19), 
 which seem designedly used by the 
 Evangelists in describing our Lord’s 
 appearances, are noticed by Stier, 
 Disc, of our Lord, Vol. viii. p, 99 
 (Clark). 
 
 2 The declaration of St Thomas 
 has often and with justice been 
 
 xxvi. 32. 
 
 urged by writers upon our Lord’s Mark xiv. 
 divinity, but the exact circumstances 
 under which it was made, and which 
 add so much to its force, have not 
 always been sufficiently considered. 
 
 Let it then be observed that it is at 
 the very time when our Lord is 
 being graciously pleased to convince 
 His doubting follower of the reality 
 of His sacred body, in fact of His 
 perfect humanity, that the Apostle 
 so preeminently recognizes his Lord’s 
 divinity. With his hands on the 
 sacred wounds, with evidence the 
 most distinct that He whom he was 
 thus permitted to touch was man, 
 the convinced disciple in terms the 
 most explicit declares Him to be 
 God. Some sound comments on this 
 text will be found in Cyril Alex, in 
 Joann, xx. 28, Vol. iv. p. 1108 (ed. 
 
 Aubert.), “and for a collection of 
 analogous passages, Waterland, Serm. 
 vi. on our Lord’s Divinity {Moyer's 
 Lect.) Vol. II. p. 129. 
 
 26—2 
 
404 
 
 The Forty Days, 
 
 LECT. 
 
 VIII. 
 
 ® John 
 xxi, 24. 
 
 ^ ver. 4. 
 
 would there appear unto them, was now first most 
 solemnly fulfilled. Seven Apostles^ are the first 
 witnesses, and under circumstances, which the dis- 
 tinct and emphatic language of the inspired nar- 
 rator^ leads us to believe produced an impression 
 almost more deep and enduring than any they had 
 yet receivedh Upon the details, where all is told 
 with such divine simplicity, and where there are 
 no difficulties either in the language, or in the 
 sequence of the narrative, it will not perhaps be 
 necessary to dwell. We may pause, however, to 
 notice that again the disciples did not recognize the 
 Lord^ though they were near enough to the beach 
 to hear his voiced On this occasion, however, there 
 
 1 It is not 'perfectly certain that 
 the two not mentioned by name 
 (dXXot c/c tO)V ixadrjTuv airrov 50 o, 
 ver, 2) were Apostles, as the word 
 fMadyral has sometimes in St J ohn a 
 more inclusive sense. As, however, 
 in verse i it seems used to specify 
 the Apostles (with verse i compare 
 John XX. 26, to which the ttoXlv 
 naturally refers the reader), the as- 
 sumption that it is used in a similar 
 sense in ver. 2 appears perfectly rea- 
 sona,ble; see Liicke, in loc. Vol. ii. 
 p. 806 (ed, 3), 
 
 2 It is not wholly improbable 
 that the emphatic declaration of the 
 Apostle at the close of the narra- 
 tive, in reference to the truth of his 
 testimony (John xxi. 24), may have 
 been occasioned by the feeling that 
 this manifestation of our Lord was 
 perhaps the most important that had 
 yet been vouchsafed. It was indeed 
 a manifestation {ecpavipwcrev’ iK to()' 
 Tov hrjKou, 6ti ovx eo^paro el p.^ 
 o-vyKaT^^T], Chrys.) alike convincing 
 and consolatory On the one hand, 
 in the various acts He was pleased 
 
 to perform (ver. 13), it most clearly 
 set forth the reality of the Lord’s 
 risen body ; and on the other it 
 assured the Apostles of the conti- 
 nuance of those same miraculous 
 powers which would have ever occu- 
 pied so prominent a place in their 
 retrospect of their Master’s earthly 
 ministry. On the importance of this 
 revelation, see Augustine in Joann. 
 Tractat. cxxii., where it is suggested 
 that the concluding verses of the 
 preceding chapter might have been 
 added , — ‘ secuturse narrationis quasi 
 prooemium, quod ei quodammodo 
 faceret eminentiorem locum.’ Vol. 
 Ill, p, 1959 (ed. Migne). 
 
 3 The distance at which the boat 
 was from the shore (about 100 yards, 
 ver. 8) would certainly be sufficient 
 to prevent them immediately recog- 
 nizing One whom, at that particular 
 place and time, they were in no way 
 expecting to see, unless indeed we 
 are to suppose that there was some- 
 thing in the Lord’s form and general 
 appearance strihinyly different from 
 that of other men. This, however, 
 
405 
 
 The Forty Days. 
 
 seems no reason to suppose that the Lord’s form 
 was specially changed, or that it was not His “ 
 divine pleasure that He should at first be recog- 
 nized. It was now, it must be remembered, early 
 dawn^ ; the wearied men probably saw the figure 
 somewhat indistinctly, and with the unobserving ^ 
 eye of those who expect nothing and indeed per- 
 ceive nothing different to the usual homely inci- 
 dents of their daily life^, they answer the friendly 
 call of the stranger, and supposing Him to be one 
 who would fain buy of them, they tell Him in the 
 simplest way they have nothing^. Even when ^ 
 told to cast in their net in a particular place‘s, they *= 
 still appear to have been in no way surprized by 
 the order. It might be the suggestion of one ex- 
 perienced, or who had some reasons for his sug- 
 gestion that they did not know, and did not pause 
 to consider. They obey perhaps with the feeling 
 of men who in their ill success ^ were ready to 
 take any suggestion by whomsoever offered. The 
 wonderful and miraculous draught'^, however, at 
 
 we have already seen, does not ap- 
 pear to have been the case : compai’e 
 Lect. III. p. 87, note 2. 
 
 ^ It seems natural to think that 
 the friendly voice, ‘ calling, after the 
 manner of the East, children ’ (Stan- 
 ley, Palest, p. 374), and inquiring 
 if they had any Trpoa^dyiop, was 
 conceived by the disciples to be that 
 of one who wished to buy of them, 
 — (hs fxeWo)v Ti wvetadaL Trap' avTwv, 
 Chrysost. in loc.; compare Cyril 
 Alex, in Joann. Vol. iv. p, 1113. 
 To this Dean Trench objects, sup- 
 posing it to be merely the inquiry 
 of that natural interest ‘ not un- 
 mixed with curiosity’ which all feel 
 in the uncertainty of the fisherman’s 
 
 toil (Notes on Miracles, p. 456). It 
 should be remembered, however, that 
 v/e are only considering how the 
 Apostles understood the speech, and 
 this probably is all that Chrysostom 
 meant to imply. 
 
 2 On this miracle, — the peculiari- 
 ties of which are the similarity it 
 preserves to the former miracle on 
 the lake, and the apparently sym- 
 bolical character of some of its inci- 
 dents, — see the interesting, but per- 
 haps too minutely allegorizing com- 
 ments of Augustine, in Joann. 
 Tractat. cxxii. Vol. iii. p. 1962 sq., 
 Stier, Disc, of Our Lord, V ol. viii. 
 p. 212 sq.. Trench, Notes on the 
 Miracles, p. 453 sq. . 
 
 LECT. 
 
 VIII. 
 
 John 
 xi. 4. 
 
 ver. 5. 
 ver. 6. 
 
 ver. 3. 
 
400 
 
 The Forty Days, 
 
 LECT. 
 
 Vlll. 
 
 * John 
 xxi. 1 1, 
 
 Matt, 
 iv. 22. 
 Luke V. 
 
 <= Luke V. 
 
 8 . 
 
 John 
 xxi. 7. 
 
 once arouses tlieir attention. The sudden contrast 
 with their weary and profitless night’s fishing, the 
 great number of large fish^ and the care requisite 
 to bring them to the land, all bring back to their 
 minds the never-forgotten miracle of the early part 
 of the past year, when three at least of those now 
 on the lake had received the divine call to become 
 fishers of men, and had forsook, as they then per- 
 haps thought, for ever that calling^ to which they 
 had now returned. Everything brings back the 
 past ; and he on whom the past had perhaps 
 made the most permanent, impression^, is the first 
 to recognize the blessedness of the present. The 
 Apostle whom the Lord loved is the first to recog- 
 nize; and yet, as we might have expected, another 
 is the first to greets He who on that very lake, 
 and under circumstances strikingly similar had 
 besought his holy Master to depart from one so 
 sin-stained now casts himself into the water‘d, 
 and is the first to kneel at the divine feet. 
 
 ^ We may justify this casual re- 
 mark not only by what followed, 
 but by a reference to the fact that 
 though St John had probably re- 
 ceived his call a year previously to 
 the former miracle (John i. 37 sq.), 
 and had accompanied our Lord as 
 one of His special followers, the 
 miraculous draught of fishes consti- 
 tuted the epoch when he deliberately 
 and formally left his father, his 
 home, and all the employments of 
 his former life (comp. Matth. iv. 20, 
 Mark i. 20, Luke v. ir) to become 
 a fisher of men. St Peter, we know, 
 was much moved at the time by the 
 miracle and its results (Luke v. 9), 
 but the impression produced on the 
 mind of the younger Apostle, from 
 the circumstances with which the 
 
 miracle stood in connexion would 
 probably have been more lasting. 
 
 2 The differences of nature and 
 character, in the case of the two 
 Apostles, which the incident dis- 
 closes are thus clearly stated by 
 Chrysostom, in loc. : ‘ When they 
 recognized the Lord,’ says this able 
 commentator, ‘again do the disciples 
 display the peculiarities of their in- 
 dividual characters. The one, for 
 instance, was more ardent, but the 
 other more elevated ; the one more 
 eager, but the other endued with 
 finer perception. On which account 
 John was the first to recognize the 
 Lord, but Peter to come to Him.’ 
 In Joann. Horn, lxxxvii. Vol. viii. 
 p. 594 (ed. Bened. 2). 
 
The Forty Days. 
 
 407 
 
 One other point only requires a passing com- 
 ment, — the reverential awe felt by the disciples, 
 
 , RcvcrGii" 
 
 and its connexion with the circumstances of the tiai awe of 
 morning-meal. These circumstances, we know, 
 were strange and perplexing. The fire of coals^ “ John 
 provided by the ministry of unseen agencies^, the 
 fish lying thereon, the bread — whence came^ver. 9. 
 they ? Enough there was in this mysterious pro- 
 vision which the Lord had just been pleased to 
 make for the wants of His wearied disciples, to 
 account for the awed silence‘s which we are told'ver. 12. 
 they preserved with regard to the exact state of 
 His holy personality ^ Enough was there in this 
 alone, without our being obliged to suppose that 
 there was any special alteration in the Lord’s 
 appearance. A change doubtless there was, as 
 the early interpreters have rightly surmised^, but 
 it was a change probably rather felt than seen, 
 
 ^ It is idle to speculate on the 
 agencies which caused the fire of 
 coals and the fish thereon to be 
 found on the beach. The most rea- 
 sonable and reverent supposition is 
 that it was miraculous (Chrysost., 
 Theoph., al.) ; but as nothing is 
 added from which any inference can 
 be drawn we must be content to 
 leave the statement as we find it. 
 The attempt of Lange {Leben Jesu, 
 II. 8. 6, Partin, p, 1713) to account 
 for it in a natural way is certainly 
 not satisfactory. 
 
 2 Observe especially the comment 
 of the Apostle, ovbeh erdX/ia tQiv 
 fxadrjTCov i^erdcrat airov, 2i) tIs el, 
 John xxi. 12. Here again the ex- 
 planation of Chrysostom seems per- 
 fectly satisfactory : ‘ Seeing His form 
 somewhat different to what it was 
 before, and with much about it that 
 
 caused astonishment, they were above 
 measure amazed, and felt a desire to 
 make some inquiry about it; but 
 their apprehension, and their know- 
 ledge that it was not another, but 
 Himself, restrained the inquiry.’ In 
 Joann. Vol. Viii. p. 594 sq. 
 
 3 See the above note. The exact 
 words of Chrysostom are r^v fxopcp^v 
 dWoiOTepav bpdvTes, by which we 
 may conclude he intended to imply 
 — a partial change, something easy 
 to recognize but not easy to specify : 
 compare Luthardt, Johann. Evang. 
 Part II. p. 468. If we admit the 
 suggestion that has already been 
 thrown out (p. 397, note i), we may 
 perhaps allow ourselves to imagine 
 that the developing glorification of 
 the Lord was now beginning to make 
 a more distinct impression on the 
 beholders. 
 
408 
 
 The Forty Days, 
 
 LECT. 
 
 VIII. 
 
 * Comp, 
 ver. 19, 20. 
 
 b ver. 19. 
 
 a change that might have deepened their reverential 
 awe, but in no way interfered with the warm feel- 
 ings of holy love which two at least appear to have 
 specially evinced both in their words and their 
 actions^ The very last glimpse we are permitted 
 to behold of this third blessed interview with the 
 disciples, so rich in symbol and so deep in mean- 
 ing, — this continuance as it were, after the weary 
 night had passed away, of the Last Supper^, is an 
 incident that brings back the past and mingles 
 it as it were with the blessed and glorious present. 
 Again St Peter and St John appear before us 
 in their wonted relations of warmest and most 
 clinging’ love to their holy- Master. W e see the 
 Lord gradually and perhaps mysteriously with- 
 drawing^ ; we see the elder Apostle perhaps obey- 
 ing literally the figurative command of his Lord^ 
 
 1 Compare Stier, Disc, of Our 
 Lord, Vol. VIII. p. 226^ — where, as 
 in all sounder and deeper expositions 
 of this portion of Scripture, the 
 mystical and typical character of 
 the early morning meal, as well as 
 of the preceding miracle, is properly 
 recognized. The details of many of 
 these interpretations and the desir- 
 ableness of the attempts to allegorize 
 every particular e.g. the number of 
 fish (Jerome, Cyril Alex., Theoph., 
 al.) may most fairly be called in 
 question, but the general reference 
 of the miracle to the future labours 
 of the Apostles, its analogy to the 
 previous miracle and, perhaps, the 
 retrospective reference of this morn- 
 ing meal to the Lord’s Supper can 
 hardly be denied by any thoughtful 
 expositor : see Luthardt, Johann. 
 Evang. Part II. p. 466 sq., Trench, 
 Notes on the Miracles, p. 459 sq., 
 
 and a good note of Alford, in loc. 
 Vol. I. p. 861 (ed. 4). 
 
 2 It seems probable that as our 
 Lord uttered the words ‘ Follow Me’ 
 (ver. 19) He commenced withdraw- 
 ing from the Apostles. Peter not 
 fully understanding the meaning of 
 the command obeys in a literal 
 sense. While advancing he turns 
 and looks round and sees the Be- 
 loved Apostle following also, upon 
 which he puts the inquiry, ovros 5 i 
 ri {i.e. probably, ^arai), ‘what shall 
 his lot be?’ (ver. 21). It may be 
 observed that the true meaning of 
 aKoXoijdei g.01, when viewed in con- 
 nexion with what precedes, would 
 seem to be ‘follow Me — even unto 
 that martyr’s death for my name 
 which I have but just now fore- 
 told;’ comp. Augustine, in Joann. 
 Tractat. cxxiv. i, Vol. III. p. 1970 
 (ed. Migne). 
 
The Forty Days. 
 
 400 
 
 and behind him the true-hearted son of Zebedee, 
 both following the steps of their receding Saviour; 
 
 we hear the solemn and mysterious words^ in “John 
 answer to the unbefitting question^ and the holy, 
 exalted, and most impressive scene fades away 
 from our wondering eyes. 
 
 But this interview, full as it was of blessedness Appear- 
 and consolation, was not to be the last. The Lord L^d to the 
 had promised, even on the morning of His resur- 
 rection, that He would meet His Church in that 
 land^ in which it had formerly been established ** Ma,tt. 
 and consolidated. And there, as it would seem, 
 all now were assembled’^ : hourly expecting the 
 complete fulfilment of a promise, of which the last- 
 mentioned interview had been a commencement 
 and first-fruits. Nor did they tarry long. Probably 
 within a few days after the appearance by the 
 lake, and on a mountain which He had appointed ver. i6. 
 perchance that of the Beatitudes^, the Lord mani- 
 
 ^ The exact meaning of the words 
 used in reference to St John has 
 been much discussed. The most 
 simple and satisfactory explanation 
 would seem to be that alluded to by 
 Theophylact, according to which the 
 coming of the Lord is to be under- 
 stood of that form of His Advent 
 which in His last prophecy He was 
 pleased to connect with His final 
 advent, — viz. the fall of Jerusalem; 
 comp. Matth. xvi. ^S. The hypo- 
 thetical mode of explanation (Cyril 
 Alex., ah), and that which refers 
 fx&eiv to a natural death, seem much 
 less satisfactory. 
 
 2 It seems reasonable to suppose 
 that the great promise uttered by the 
 angels after the resurrection (Matth. 
 xxviii. 7, Mark xvi. 7), and specially 
 confirmed by our Lord (John xx. 
 
 10), was understood to apply to the 
 whole Church, and had induced the 
 greater part of the brethren who 
 w’ere then in Jerusalem to take their 
 way to Galilee and there await its 
 fulfilment. Some of the Apostles, 
 we have seen, had not only returned 
 to Galilee but even resumed their 
 former calling (John xxi. 2). 
 
 3 The exact scene of the solemn 
 meeting is not further specified than 
 as being 'the mountain which Jesus 
 appointed,’ and in Galilee (Matth. 
 xxviii. 16). The only two conjec- 
 tures worthy of consideration are 
 (a) that it was Tabor, which from 
 its situation might seem not unsuit- 
 able for a place of general meeting 
 (see Lange, Lehen Jem, ii. 8. 7, 
 Part III. p. 1730), and ( 5 ) that it 
 was the mountain on which the 
 
LKCT. 
 
 VIII. 
 
 Matt, 
 xxviii. i6. 
 
 I Cor. 
 
 XV. 6. 
 
 <■ Matt, 
 xxviii. I 7. 
 
 410 The Forty Days. 
 
 fests Himself not only to the Eleven but as the 
 terms of His promise seem fairly to imply to the 
 five hundred brethren^ alluded to by St PauP. 
 The interview was of the deepest solemnity, and 
 tends to set forth the majesty of the risen Lord in 
 a manner far more distinct than had even yet been 
 witnessed. While a few doubt‘d the evidence of 
 their senses ^ and cannot apparently believe that 
 
 they are beholding their 
 
 Sermon had been delivered, which, 
 from its proximity to the lake of 
 Tiberias (see p. 178, note i) and 
 to the populous plain of Gennesa- 
 reth, might seem, topographically 
 considered, even more suitable than 
 Tabor, and from its connexion with 
 the founding of the Church much 
 more probable, considered theologi- 
 cally. The supposition of Hofmann 
 {Leben Jesu, § 89, p. 397) that the 
 term ‘ Galilee ’ here used by St Mat- 
 thew really refers, not to the country 
 but to the northern summit of Oli- 
 vet, which appears to have been so 
 named (though not by any early 
 writers), is by no means natural or 
 probable. 
 
 ^ Nearly all the best recent expo- 
 sitors concur in supposing, that the 
 appearance of our Lord mentioned 
 by St Matthew (ch. xxviii. 16) is 
 identical with that alluded to by St 
 Paul (i Cor. XV. 6) as having been 
 vouchsafed to above 500 brethren at 
 once: comp. Wieseler, Chron.Synofps. 
 p. 434, Eobinson, Bihl. Sacra ^ (A. ii. 
 p. 185. It is true that St Matthew 
 only specifies the Eleven as having 
 gone to the appointed mountain, but 
 the solemn character of the twice-re- 
 peated promise (seep. 391, note 3) 
 on the morning of the Eesurrection 
 combined with the fact that our 
 Lord had appeared twice previously 
 
 Lord, the chosen Eleven 
 
 to the collected Apostles, renders it 
 highly probable that the term was 
 here not intended to be understood 
 as exclusive. 
 
 ^ The statement that ‘ some doubt- 
 ed, ’ though strongly urged by Meyer 
 and others (comp. Winer, Gr, § 17. 
 -2, p. 96) as referring to the Apostles, 
 is far more reasonably referred to 
 others who were with them. Though 
 it cannot perhaps positively be as- 
 serted that St Matthew must have 
 used ol [xh — oi 5^ if he had meant 
 to indicate that some few of the 
 Apostles doubted, yet it seems na- 
 tural to suppose that some very ex- 
 plicit form of expression (e.y. nr is 
 auTcSr) would certainly have been 
 selected to mark a fact in itself so 
 unlikely (even if we confine ourselves 
 to St Matthew’s Gospel) as the 
 doubting of some of the Eleven 
 while the rest were sufficiently per- 
 suaded to worship. If we admit 
 that the events specified by St John, 
 ch. XX. 19 — 29, preceded, then the 
 supposition that the doubters were 
 Apostles seems plainly preposterous : 
 see Stier, Else, of Our Lord, Vol. 
 VIII. p. 280 (Clark). The assump- 
 tion of Muller and others that the 
 doubting only lasted till the Lord 
 came nearer {Trpoae\do:v, ver. 18) is 
 precarious, as no hint of this is con- 
 tained in the words. 
 
The Forty Days, 
 
 411 
 
 no sooner see than they adore That adoration 
 the Lord now not only accepts but confirms by 
 the mighty declaration that ^all power now was 
 given to Him in heaven and in earth/ Yea, He 
 gives it a yet deeper meaning and fuller signifi- 
 cance, by now issuing His great evangelical com- 
 mission, and by enhancing it with that promise 
 of boundless consolation, — that with those that 
 execute that commission He will be present unto 
 the end, even unto the hour when His mediatorial 
 kingdom shall be merged in the eternity of His 
 everlasting reign h 
 
 One further and last interview is yet to be 
 vouchsafed, and of that a holier mountain even 
 than that of the Beatitudes is to be the scene and 
 the witness. Warned, it may be, by the Lord 
 Himself, or attracted thither by the near approach 
 of the Pentecost “, the Apostles and those with 
 
 ^ Our own hopes of the future, 
 as Bp Pearson has well observed, 
 confirm our belief in our Redeemer’s 
 eternal reign : ‘ He hath promised 
 to make us kings and priests, which 
 honour we expect in heaven, be« 
 lieving we shall reign with Him for 
 ever, and therefore for ever must 
 believe Him King. The king- 
 doms of this world are become the 
 kingdoms of the [our] Lord, and of 
 His Christ, and He shall reign for 
 ever and ever” (Rev. xi. 15), not 
 only to the modificated eternity of 
 His mediatorship, so long as there 
 shall be need of regal power to sub- 
 due the enemies of God’s elect ; but 
 also to the complete eternity of the 
 duration of His humanity, which 
 for the future is coeternal to His 
 divinity.’ Expos, of Creed, Art, vi. 
 Vol. II. p. 334 sq. (ed. Burton). 
 
 2 Some difficulties that have been 
 felt in the change of place in refer- 
 ence to the earlier and later appear- 
 ances of our Lord will be modified 
 if we remember that the period we 
 are considering was bounded by two 
 festivals, which would of themselves 
 involve journeyings to and from 
 Judaea. At first the disciples are 
 found at Jerusalem, whither they 
 had gone with their Lord to the 
 feast of the Passover. A few days 
 after the conclusion of the feast 
 they leave the city and, in obedience 
 to their Lord’s command, go to 
 Galilee. After the solemn appear- 
 ance vouchsafed to them in that 
 country on the appointed mountain, 
 probably towards the close of the 
 Forty days, they naturally go up to 
 Jerusalem to celebrate the Pentecost. 
 In the neighbourhood of that city 
 
 LECT. 
 
 VIII. 
 
 Matt, 
 xxviii. 17. 
 
 The Lord’s 
 Ascension. 
 
412 
 
 The Forty Days. 
 
 them return to Jerusalem, their hearts full of 
 
 mighty presentiments and exalted hopes. Yet 
 
 again they see their Master in the neighbourhood 
 ^Comp. of the Holy City yet again they hear from those 
 50. divine lips fuller and more precise instructions * : 
 they are taught to gaze backward down the great 
 ••ver. 44. vistas of the prophetic Scriptures^, to understand 
 ver. 45. and to believe^. Again too they hear trans- 
 cendent promises, promises of gifts and blessings 
 Acts i. 5. now exceeding nigh"^ ; but even yet they partially 
 misunderstand, and vaguely question ^ Such in- 
 ® ver. 7. quiries, however, are solemnly silenced® : they are 
 to be the Lord’s witnesses; they are not to expect 
 an earthly kingdom, but to prepare others for a 
 ^ver. 7. heavenly kingdom^. They marvel and they fol- 
 low^ They now stand on the mountain down 
 
 they see our Lord for the last time 
 (Luke xxiv. 44 sq.), but whether un- 
 expectedly or otherwise we cannot 
 at all determine. 
 
 1 It seems not only perfectly rea- 
 sonable to suppose that Liike xxiv. 
 44 sq. is to be regarded as on the 
 same day with Luke xxiv. 50 — 53, 
 but right to deem it actually proved 
 by the opening verses of Acts, 
 ch. i. The command to remain in 
 Jerusalem must according to Acts i. 
 4, 5, be placed a feio days before 
 the Pentecost : when we meet then 
 with the same command in Luke 
 xxiv. 49 are we to believe that the 
 same writer is so inconsistent with 
 himself as to imply that it was 
 spoken six weeks before that festi- 
 val? see Wieseler, Chron. Synops. 
 p. 423sq. The insinuation of Meyer 
 {ilh. Luk. p. 511; see also p. 514), 
 that St Luke followed one tradi- 
 tionary account of the Ascension in 
 his Gospel and another in the Acts, 
 
 is a truly hopeless way of avoiding 
 the force of a very just and very 
 reasonable inference. 
 
 ^ For some comments on the 
 nature of the expectations of the 
 Jews in reference to the Messiah’s 
 reign, see Lightfoot, Hor. Hebr. in 
 Act. i. 6. The supposition, however, 
 of this able expositor that the ques- 
 tion of the Apostles involved a kind 
 of deprecation of the present esta- 
 blishment of such a kingdom (‘an 
 jam, Domine regnum iis restitues, 
 qui te sic tractarunt ? ’) is neither 
 probable nor in accordance with the 
 context. 
 
 ^ The term e^yyayev (Luke xxiv. 
 50) refers to the scene of the com- 
 mencement of this interview, from 
 which our Lord conducted His dis- 
 ciples towards Bethany. This may 
 have been either in the neighbour- 
 hood of the city or more probably 
 in the city , — perhaps in the same 
 room with its closed doors where 
 
The Forty Days. 
 
 413 
 
 which the Triumphal entry had swept into tlie 
 earthly Jerusalem, and from which the Triumphal 
 entry into the heavenly Jerusalem, and the celes- 
 tial realms beyond^ shall be beheld by the same 
 chosen witnesses. They follow their Lord even to 
 the borders of the district of Bethany‘S, and then, 
 even while His uplifted hands are confirming with 
 a blessing^ the words of the last promise, they 
 behold Him parting from them, rising from Olivet 
 higher and yet higher, still rising and still bless- 
 ing, until the cloud ^ receives Him from their 
 
 LECT 
 
 VIII 
 
 ^ Luke 
 xxiv. 5 
 
 the Lord had already appeared 
 twice before (John xx. 19, 26). 
 
 ^ Compare Heh. iv. 14, dieXrjXv- 
 66ra Tovs ovpavo6s, where there 
 seems no reason to consider the 
 plural as without its proper force, 
 especially when compared with Eph. 
 iv. 10, 6 ava^as virepdvia TrdvTOJV 
 rQv ovpdvojv : ‘ Whatsoever heaven 
 there is higher than all the rest 
 which are called heavens; whatso- 
 ever sanctuary is holier than all 
 which are called holies ; whatsoever 
 place is of greatest dignity in all 
 those courts above, into that place 
 did He ascend, where in the splen- 
 dour of His deity He was before 
 He took upon Him our humanity.’ 
 Pearson, Expos, of Creed, Art. vi. 
 Vol. II. p. 320 (ed. Burton). 
 
 2 There seems no sufficient reason 
 for calling in question the ancient 
 tradition that our Lord ascended 
 from the Mount of Olives. The 
 usual arguments founded on the 
 els ~R7}davlav of Luke xxiv. 50 
 (Robinson, Palest. Vol. i. pp. 254, 
 416) are not by any means conclu- 
 sive, as it seems fairly probable that 
 the words are not to be limited to 
 the actual village, but generally re- 
 ferred to the brow or side of the 
 
 hill where the road strikes down- 
 ward to Bethany ; compare Acts i. 
 12, and see Lightfoot, Hor. Hehr. 
 in Luc. xxiv. 50, Meyer, ub. Apo- 
 stelgesch. i. 12, Williams, Holy City, 
 Vol. II. p. 440 sq. 
 
 3 The cloud in which our Re- 
 deemer ascended was not only, as 
 Stier suggests, typical of that cloud 
 in which He will visibly return (eV 
 ve<pi\rj, Luke xxi. 27), but also 
 directs the thought to -the mystery 
 of the assumption of the faithful 
 servants of Christ who at His second 
 coming will be caught up ‘in clouds’ 
 {ev vecpiXaLs, i Thess. iv. 1 7) to meet 
 their Lord in the air : compare Lect. 
 IV. p. 234, note I. It may be re- 
 marked further that if the words 
 dvecp^pero els top ovpavbv (Luke xxiv. 
 5 1) be received as genuine, of which, 
 supported as they are by external 
 authority, there can be no reasonable 
 doubt {TiscTi. rejects them on most 
 insufficient grounds), we have the 
 gradual ascent upwards {dvecp^pero, 
 imperf.) vividly put before us : the 
 Lord is parted from His disciples, 
 and is beheld being borne upwards, 
 till the cloud at length intereepts 
 Him from the view of the watchers 
 beneath. 
 
414 
 
 LECT. 
 
 VIII. 
 
 a Acts i. 9. 
 
 b ver. 1 1. 
 
 ® Rev. xxii. 
 20. 
 
 Conclu- 
 
 sion. 
 
 The^ Forty Days. 
 
 sight^, and angelic voices address to them those 
 words of mingled warning, consolation, and pro- 
 phecy — ^Why stand ye gazing up into heaven? 
 This same Jesus which is taken up from you into 
 heaven, shall so come in like manner as ye have 
 seen Him go into heaven^^..Even so come. Lord, 
 Jesus, come quickly^^. Amen. 
 
 And now let us bring these meditations to 
 their close, yet not without the expression of an 
 earnest’ hope that they may have in some degree 
 tended to remove a few of the doubts and difficul- 
 ties, which even the sober and the thoughtful have 
 sometimes felt with regard to the connexion of 
 this portion of the Evangelical hi story \ Above 
 all things, may it have been granted to these 
 humble words that they may have brought home 
 to those who have dwelt on them the living reality 
 of the mysteries of these Forty Days, the plain 
 and objective truth of the Lord’s appearances on 
 earth after His resurrection, and the actual, visible, 
 and bodily nature of His Ascension ^ On such 
 
 1 If the views advanced in the 
 preceding pages be accepted, it 
 would seem that in the Gospels we 
 have in all notices of nine appear- 
 ances of our Lord after His resur- 
 rection ; (i) to Mary Magdalen ; (2) 
 to the other ministering women ; (3) 
 to the two disciples journeying to 
 Emmaus ; (4) to St Peter ; (5) to 
 the ten Apostles; (6) to the eleven 
 Apostles; (7) to seven Apostles by 
 the sea of Tiberias ; (8) to the eleven 
 Apostles, and probably many others, 
 on the appointed mountain; (9) to 
 the Apostles in or near Jerusalem, 
 immediately previous to the Ascen- 
 sion. Beside these we learn from 
 St Paul that (10) an appearance of 
 
 our Lord was vouchsafed to James 
 (i Cor. XV. 7), This, if we conceive 
 the passage to be written with re- 
 ference to chronological order, would 
 seem to have been shortly after the 
 appearance to the 500 brethren. 
 The agreement of this enumeration 
 of St Paul with the record of the 
 appearances to men as recorded in 
 the Gospels is very striking, and 
 has been rightly put forward by 
 Wieseler, Chron. Synops. p. 419 sq. ; 
 compare Ebrard, Kritik der Ev. 
 Gesch. § IT3, p, 599. 
 
 2 On this subject it is painful to 
 feel how much half-belief prevails at 
 the present day even among those 
 expositors of scripture who have in 
 
Ihe Lorty Days. 415 
 
 truths rest the surest consolations of the present; 
 on such the holiest hopes of the future \ Oh 
 may God’s Spirit, in these latter days of scepticism 
 and incredulity, move the hearts of His ministers 
 and His people to hold more truly and tenaciously 
 that living truth, which alone rests for its basis 
 on the literal truth of the Hesurrection and Ascen- 
 sion of our Lord, — that truth which an Apostle^ 
 has declared to us, even that our Master has raised 
 
 other respects some claim on our 
 attention ; see for instance the re- 
 marks of Meyer, iih. Luk. p. 514 sq. 
 (ed. 3). The fact itself is not ques- 
 tioned, nay even the exaltation of 
 the Lord’s glorified body is admitted, 
 but the distinct statements of one 
 Evangelist and the implied state- 
 ments of a second (Mark xvi. 19) 
 that this exaltation took place visi- 
 bly, and before the eyes of appointed, 
 witnesses, is flatly denied. Why so, 
 we ask, when so much is, as it ought 
 to be, accepted as true. For an 
 answer we are referred to the silence 
 of the two Apostolical Evangelists ; 
 see Meyer, loc. cit. p. 515 sq. But 
 even if we concede such a silence, 
 which indeed we need not concede 
 (what meaning, for instance, could 
 St John have assigned to our Lord’s 
 words, ch. vi. 62, if he had not seen 
 how they were fulfilled?) — conced- 
 ing it however, for the sake of our 
 argument, what are we to say of a 
 mode of criticism which, in a his- 
 tory, where three out of the four 
 writers of it are almost avowedly 
 selective, is prepared to reject a 
 miracle whenever two out of four 
 alone relate it ? If it be replied that 
 this is no common miracle, but, like 
 the Hesurrection, forms an epoch in 
 our Lord’s life of the highest im- 
 portance, the rejoinder seems as final 
 
 as it is true, — that the sacred writers 
 viewed the Ascension as a necessary 
 part and sequel of the Resurrection, 
 and that it is only the unsound 
 theology of later times that has 
 sought to separate them ; see above, 
 p. 375, and for further comments, 
 see Olshausen, Commentary, Vol. 
 IV- P- 353 sq., Lange, Lehen Jesu, 
 II. 8. 10, Part III. p. 1760 sq., Eb- 
 rard, KritiTc dev Ev. Gesch. § 113. 4, 
 p. 599 sq. 
 
 I Well and wisely has Bp Pearson 
 dwelt upon that truth to which the 
 ancient writers have invariably given 
 such prominence when treating upon 
 the Ascension, viz. that the bodily 
 Ascension of our Lord into heaven 
 is the strongest corroboration of our 
 own hope of ascending thither; see 
 Expos, of Creed, Art. VI. Vol. i. p. 
 321 (ed. Burton). That ‘where the 
 Head is gone there the members 
 may hope to follow,’ is the inference 
 which all sound expositors have 
 drawn, alike from the nature of our 
 union with our Lord, and from the 
 eternal truth that He has vouch- 
 safed in His own person to take our 
 glorified humanity to His Father’s 
 throne : compare Augustine, Serm. 
 CCLXIII. 3, Vol. V. p. 1210 (ed. 
 Migne), and a sound sermon by 
 Beveridge, Serm. LXXVI. Vol. III. 
 p. 432 sq. (A.-C. L.) 
 
 LECT. 
 
 VIII. 
 
 Eph. ii. 6. 
 
416 
 
 The Forty Days. 
 
 LECT. 
 
 VIII. 
 
 US with Himself and made us in spirit ascend with 
 Himself to His Fathers kingdom, and sit there 
 the partakers of His glory and His blessednessh 
 Where the Head is, even there has He solemnly 
 assured us the true members now are in spirit. 
 We are already seated there in Him; — that is 
 the support and consolation of the present : we 
 shall hereafter be made to sit there hy Him, not 
 in spirit only, but in our glorified human nature ; — 
 that is the hope and joy of the future ^ 
 
 Present and future are alike bound up in our 
 belief of our Master’s resurrection and ascension; 
 and dreary indeed must this present be, and 
 gloomy and clouded that future, if our belief in our 
 risen and our ascended Lord be uncertain, partial, 
 or precarious. We may think perchance that we 
 are free to speculate, to poise historical credibili- 
 ties, to boast the liberty of a suspended assent to 
 what seems all too objective and material for the 
 falsely spiritualizing tendencies of the age in which 
 we live^. We may think so now; but when the 
 
 ^ No words can be more distinct 
 than those which the Apostle uses 
 in the passage above referred to, — 
 Kal avP7)y€Lp€v Kai cruveKadiaev iv tols 
 i-Kovpavlois (Eph. ii. 6). Though 
 the passage considered in one sense 
 may refer to what is yet future, yet 
 in another and a spiritual sense it is 
 eternally true that the faithful be- 
 liever in Jesus Christ has even now 
 been raised with His Lord, and in 
 spirit made to sit with Him and in 
 Him in the realms of His blessed- 
 ness and glory ; ri^s KecpaXrjs Kade^o- 
 fxivTjs Kal TO crwpLa (rvyKdOrjTai’ 8ib 
 iirriyayev iu Xpiartp ’Irjcrov. Chry- 
 sost, in loc. : see also Commentary 
 on Ejph. p. 38 (ed. ■2). 
 
 2 ‘ Even now, we sit there in 
 Him, and shall sit there with Him 
 in the end. So he promiseth in ex- 
 press terms that “ we shall sit with 
 Him in His throne” (Rev. iii. 21), 
 as He doth in His Father’s, And 
 so, not in the throne will He be 
 above us, but only that He in the 
 midst, and we on His right hand.’ 
 Andrewes, Serm. Vii. Vol. i. p. 115 
 (A.-C. L.) 
 
 ^ It is alas ! not only the heretics 
 of the past (see Augustine, de Hcer. 
 cap. 59, Vol. vm. p. 41, Theodoret, 
 Ilceret. Fob. 1 . 19) who have felt and 
 expressed difificulties on the subject 
 of our Lord’s body being taken up 
 into heaven. Modern writers, who 
 
The Forty Days. 417 
 
 end draws near, when sorrows break us, when age 
 weakens, when darkness begins to close around 
 us, where will all such license of thought be and 
 what will it avail us ? How shall dust and ashes 
 hope to ascend into the heaven of heavens, if it 
 cannot feel with all the fulness of conviction that 
 One who was bone of our bone, and flesh of our 
 flesh, has entered those realms before us, and has 
 taken up our very nature, glorified and beatified, 
 to the right hand of the everlasting Father^ 
 
 May then the belief in the Kesurrection and 
 in all its attendant mysteries become in the heart 
 of every one whose eye may fall on these con- 
 cluding words of an earnest, though God knoweth. 
 
 on other points have shown them- 
 selves sound and thoughtful exposi- 
 tors of Scripture, ha^e here not 
 scrupled to use language sadly ana- 
 logous to the language of the past, 
 and have sought for imaginary 
 places where they might assume 
 that the ‘ final residuum of the cor- 
 poreity ’ of the Lord was deposited 
 on His ascent to the Father; see 
 the references in Stier, Disc, of Our 
 Lord, Vol. VIII. p. 442 (Clark), and 
 on the subject generally, Augustine, 
 Epist. ccv. Vol. II. p. 942 sq., to 
 which add the wise caution, de Fide 
 et Symh. cap. 6, Vol. vi. p. i88 (ed. 
 Migne). 
 
 1 To none of the great truths 
 relating to the two natures of our 
 Lord is it more necessary to adhere 
 firmly in the present age than to 
 this. A hearty belief in the literal 
 and local ascent of our Lord’s 
 humanity into the heavens is in it- 
 self a belief in the whole rnystery of 
 the union of the Godhead and Man- 
 hood. If, as has been truly said, in 
 His death our Lord has assured us 
 E. H. L. 
 
 of His humanity, and in His resur- 
 rection has demonstrated His divi- 
 nity (Pearson, Creed, Vol. i. p. 313, 
 ed. Burton), most surely in His 
 ascension has He displayed both. 
 There we see, as it were, in one what 
 in other places our imperfect nature 
 rarely enables us to contemplate 
 otherwise than under separate rela- 
 tions. In that last scene we realize 
 all, — the human, the divine, and the 
 most complete manifestation of their 
 union. It is more as man that we 
 see Him leading His disciples out of 
 Jerusalem, and walking for the last 
 time up the slopes of Olivet; it is 
 more as God that, with the eye of 
 faith, we behold Him taking His 
 seat on His Father’s throne: it is, 
 however, as the God-man in its 
 truest aspects that we gaze on Him 
 ascending, flesh of our flesh, and yet 
 God blessed for ever, — man in the 
 form that rises, God in the power that 
 bears Him to His Father’s throne : 
 ‘ corpus levatum est in caelum illo 
 levante qui ascendit.’ August, de 
 Agon. Chr. 25, Vol. vi. p. 304. 
 
 27 
 
 LECT. 
 
 VIII. 
 
418 
 
 LECT. 
 • VIII. 
 
 • Col. iii. 2 
 
 Kev. xi: 
 
 9 - 
 
 c Matt. 
 
 XXV. 34. 
 
 The Forty Days. 
 
 poor and weak effort to set forth His truth, — ever 
 truer and ever fresher. May it call up our 
 thoughts and affections to His throne^, ever teach- 
 ing us to ascend heavenward in soul and spirit 
 now, to learn the path and to know the way, that 
 so we may ascend in body, soul, and spirit here- 
 after, — yea and not ascend only, but abide there 
 with Him for evermore, redeemed, justified, sanc- 
 tified, glorified, the bidden and welcome guests at 
 the marriage-supper of the Lamb’", the admitted 
 inheritors of the kingdom prepared for us from 
 the foundation of the world‘s. 
 
 0 holy Jesus'^, who for our saJces didst suffer incom- 
 parable anguish and^ pains, commensurate to thy love and 
 our miseries, which were infinite, that thou mightest pur- 
 chase for us blessings upon earth and an inheritance in 
 heaven, dispose us by love, thankfulness, humility, and 
 obedience, to receive all the benefit of thy passion, granting 
 unto us and thy whole Church remission of all our sins, 
 integrity of mind, health of body, competent maintenance, 
 peace in our days, a temperate air, fruitfulness of the earth, 
 unity and integrity of faith, extirpation of heresies, recon- 
 cilement of schisms, and destruction of all wicked counsels 
 intended against us. Multiply thy blessings upon us, holy 
 Jesus: increase in us true religion, sincere and actual devo- 
 tion in our prayers, patience in troubles, and whatsoever 
 is necessary to our soul's health, or conducing to thy glory. 
 Amen. 
 
 1 This beautiful and catholic T&ylov's Life of Christ, III. Yo\. 
 prayer is taken from Bp Jeremy I. p. 340 (Lond. 1836). 
 
INDEX. 
 
 Adultery, woman taken in, 253; 
 narrative not written by St John, 
 253 n . ; probable place in the Gos- 
 pel history 310; nature of the 
 stratagem, 311 ; punishment of, 
 310 n. 
 
 Agony in the Garden, 328 ; nature 
 of the deprecatory prayer, 328 n . ; 
 ministry of the angel, 329 n, 
 
 Alphseus, identical with Clopas, 98^. 
 
 Angels, 46 ; number of, at the sepul- 
 chre, 381 n.\ significant attitude, 
 385 n. 
 
 Anna, the prophetess, 69. 
 
 Annas, short history of, 332 n.\ 
 our Lord’s examination before, 
 332. 
 
 Antonia, tower of, 303 n. 
 
 Apocryphal Infancies, 95. 
 
 Apostles, sending forth of, 193 ; 
 duration of their circuit, 193 n. 
 slowness of to believe in Resurrec- 
 tion, 388. 
 
 Appearances, our Lord’s to Mary 
 Magdalene, 385 ; to the other 
 ministering women, 389; to the 
 two disciples, 392; to the' ten 
 Apostles, 397 ; to St Peter, 398 n . ; 
 to the eleven Apostles, 402 ; to dis- 
 ciples on the lake of Gennesareth, 
 403 ; to the 500 brethren, 409 ; 
 last, previous to Ascension, 412. 
 
 Ascension, festival of, 375 n.\ de- 
 scription of, 413; probable place 
 of, 413 n . ; literal and local, 414 n . ; 
 half-belief in the doctrine of, 
 415 n.\ great importance of a 
 right belief in, ib. 
 
 Atonement, its connexion with our 
 Lord’s divinity, 4 n,\ hortatory 
 comments on, 365. 
 
 Baptism, our Lord’s, 108 ; probable 
 date of, 104 n.\ probable locality 
 of, 106 n. 
 
 Barabbas, 345 n . ; origin of custom 
 which led to his escape, ib. 
 
 Beeroth, 90. 
 
 Bethany, date of our Lord’s last 
 arrival at, 276 n. ; supper at, 282 ; 
 position of, 283 n . ; roads from to 
 Jerusalem, 285 n. 
 
 Bethesda, pool of, 139 w.; etymology 
 of, 140 n. 
 
 Bethabara, 106 n.^ 262 n. 
 
 Bethlehem, 62 n. 
 
 Bethphage, probable site of, 286 n. 
 
 Bethsaida- Julias, 195 n.; two places 
 of that name, 207 n. 
 
 Betrayal of our Lord, 330 ; circum- 
 stances which immediately fol- 
 lowed, 331. 
 
 Binding and loosing, power of, 397 n.^ 
 401 n. 
 
 Brethren of our Lord, 97 ; impor- 
 
 tunity of and imperfect faith, 247. 
 
 Caesarea Philippi, 224 n.\ events 
 which took place in its vicinity, 
 225. 
 
 Caiaphas, prophecy of, 269 n,; exa- 
 mination of our Lord, 336. 
 
 Cana, 117 w.; miracle at, 117. 
 
 Canticles in Luke i., 54 ; inspiration 
 and characteristics of, 55. 
 
 Capernaum, site of, 121 w.; noble- 
 man of, 134. 
 
 Circuits, our Lord’s, round Galilee, 
 168 w. ; length of, 184 n. 
 
 Civilization, theories of, 5 n. 
 
 Christ, early development of, 85 ; 
 advance of in wisdom, 86 n . ; sup- 
 
420 
 
 Index. 
 
 posed outward appearance of, 87 ; 
 visit of to Temple when twelve 
 years old, 88; youth of, 94; re- 
 serve hereon of the Evangelists, 
 97 ; spiritual and mental develop- 
 ment of, 99 ; a reader of the heart, 
 12Gn. ; reception of His teaching, 
 147 71 . ; date of His return to Ga- 
 lilee, 148 /i.; duration of ministry, 
 149 71 . ; visit to Jerusalem at Feast 
 of Tabernacles, 246 ; deportment 
 of before His judges, 336 n . ; 
 nature of last agonies, 356 ; last 
 words on the cross, 357 7i. ; nature 
 of death, 361 ; burial of, 363; 
 
 recognition of not always per- 
 mitted after the Resurrection, 385 
 n. ; how this is to be explained, 
 395 ; appearance of after Resur- 
 rection somewhat changed, 395 n., 
 bodily nature of His Ascension, 
 413; His eternal reign, 411 
 Cleopas, 393 
 Clopas, wife of, 354, 
 
 Clothes, casting down of, 287 n . ; 
 
 rending of, 337 n. 
 
 Cock-crowing, 334 n. 
 
 Coincidences, verbal, in the four 
 Gospels, 279 w. 
 
 Corn, rubbing ears of, 174 n. 
 
 Cross, form of, 353 7i. 
 
 Dalmanutha, site of, 223 w. 
 
 Darkness, supernatural, at the cru- 
 cifixion, 355 
 
 Decapolis, confederation of, 205 n. 
 
 Dedication, feast of, 259 ifi. 
 
 Demoniacs, healing of, how charac- 
 terized, 163 Id . ; boy, healing of, 
 227 ; Gergesene, 188. 
 
 Disciples, first that joined our Lord, 
 116 7^. ; the two journeying to Em- 
 maus, 393 n. 
 
 Discourses of our Lord, their order 
 doubtful, 7 71 . ; delivered in the 
 synagogue at Capernaum, 210 w.; 
 our Lord’s last, 326 ti. 
 
 Doctors, Jewish, names of those 
 alive when our Lord was 12 years 
 old, 92. 
 
 Eastern world, expectations of, 44 n. 
 
 Emmaus, position of, 393 w. ; dis- 
 tance of from Jerusalem, 394 n. 
 
 Ephraim, site of, 269 id. 
 
 Essene teaching, 100. 
 
 Eucharist, institution of, 325; pro- 
 bably not partaken of by Judas, 
 325 n. 
 
 Eusebius, on the relations of the four 
 Gospels, 150. 
 
 Fig-tree, eursing of, 293; objections 
 urged against, 295 
 
 Fish, constellation of, 73 
 
 Five thousand, feeding of, 195. 
 
 Flight into Egypt, date of, and dura- 
 tion of stay, 80 n. 
 
 Four thousand, feeding of, 220 ; site 
 of the miracle, 221 n, 
 
 Gabbatha, 346 ti. 
 
 Galilee, divisions of, 199w. ; Christ’s 
 appearances in, 374n. ; the mount- 
 ain in, where probably situated, 
 409 w. 
 
 Genealogies, comments on, 96 w. 
 
 Gennesareth, Lake of, storms on, 
 187 n. 
 
 Gennesareth, plain of, 161 w. 
 
 Gergesa, probable site of, 188w. 
 
 Gethsemane, 327 
 
 Golgotha, site of, 351 ; meaning of 
 
 the term, ib. 
 
 Gospel history, mode of studying, 
 
 6 71 . 
 
 Gospels, inspiration of, 11 n.; har- 
 monies of, 15 ?z.; correct princi- 
 ples of a harmony of, 19 ; apocry- 
 phal, 281 n. ; characteristics of 
 contrasted and compared, 33 /z. ; 
 discrepancies of unduly exagge- 
 rated, 38/1. 
 
 Grave-clothes, position of, in the se- 
 pulchre, 383//. 
 
Index. 
 
 421 
 
 Greeks, petition of, to see our Lord, 
 316/?. 
 
 Guards, bribery of, 392. 
 
 Harmonists, errors of, 17. 
 
 Harvest, usual time of, 106 /?. 
 
 Herod the Great, death of, 75/?.; 
 barbarities of, 78/?. 
 
 Herod Antipas, character of, 215/?. ; 
 dismissal of our Lord to, 343 ; 
 >vicked levity of, 343/?.; mockery 
 of our Lord, 344 /?. 
 
 Herodians, 177/?., 302/?. 
 
 Hillel, school of, 272/?. 
 
 Holy Ghost, blasphemy against, 
 186/?.; gift of to the Apostles, 
 397/?., 402/?. 
 
 Innocents, murder of, 77 ; silence 
 hereon of Josephus, 78. 
 
 ’looSatot, meaning of the term in St 
 John, 115/?., 141/?. 
 
 Jacob’s well, 131 n. 
 
 Jairus’ daughter, healing of, 190. 
 
 Jerusalem, our Lord’s address to, 
 264/?. ; view of from Olivet, 288/?. ; 
 appearance of at Passover, 289 /?. ; 
 probable numbers assembled at, 
 ib.\ our Lord’s apostrophe to, 
 264/?., 314. 
 
 Jericho, our Lord’s visit to, 274; 
 road from to Jerusalem, 282/?. 
 
 John the Baptist, 102 ; date of com- 
 mencement of his ministry, 102/?.; 
 its effects, 103 ; deputation of San- 
 hedrin to, 115; number of his 
 disciples, 127/?. ; date of captivity 
 of, 129/?.; message of inquiry to 
 our Lord, 183; death of, when, 
 195/?. 
 
 John, St, Gospel of, 14; character 
 of, 249 /?., 274/?. ; difference of from 
 that of St Peter, 469 /?. ; visit of to 
 the sepulchre, 383 ; external cha- 
 racteristics of, 14/?. ; individuality 
 
 of, 40 ; genuineness of chap, xxi., 
 375/?. 
 
 Joseph of Arimathaea, 362. 
 
 Journeys, last three, of our Lord to 
 Jerusalem, 243; their probable 
 dates and durations, 245/?. 
 
 Juda, city of, 52. 
 
 Judas, death of, 339 /?. ; sin of, 340 /?. 
 
 Lazarus, sickness of, and death, 267 ; 
 raising of, 269 /?. ; effect produced 
 by the miracle, 268. 
 
 Legs, breaking of, 361/?. 
 
 Levi, same as Matthew, 171 /?. ; feast 
 in his house, 172/?. 
 
 Life of Christ, history of, a history 
 of redemption, 9. 
 
 Loins, cloth bound round, at the 
 crucifixion, 353/?. 
 
 Luke St, Gospel of, its external cha- 
 racteristics, 14 /?. ; individuality 
 of, 27 ; universality of, 29 /?. ; pe- 
 culiarity of the portion ch xi. 51 — 
 xviii. 14, 238/?., 241/?. 
 
 Luthardt, Essay on St John’s Gos- 
 pel, 31 /?. 
 
 Machserus, site of, 129/?. 
 
 Magdala, site of, 223 /?. 
 
 Magi, adoration of, 70 ; country of, 
 71 ; ground of their expectations, 
 72/?. ; nature of their expectations, 
 74/?. 
 
 Mark, St, identical vsith John Mark, 
 23 /?. ; Gospel of ; its external 
 characteristics, 13 ; written under 
 the guidance of St Peter, 13/?., 
 229/?.; individuality of, 23 ; gra- 
 phic character of, 24 ; genuineness 
 of concluding verses, 26/?., 382/?. 
 
 Marriage-feasts, customs at, 118/?. 
 
 Mary Magdalene, visit of, to the se- 
 pulchre, 379 /?. ; appearance of our 
 Lord to, 385. 
 
 Matthew, St, Gospel of ; its exter- 
 nal characteristics, 12 ; individu- 
 ality of, 20 ; originally written in 
 
422 
 
 Index. 
 
 Hebrew, 15Gyi. ; genuineness of 
 first two chapters of, 57 n. ; order 
 of incidents not exact, 153 7^., 
 157 ; how this is to be account- 
 
 ed for, 155. 
 
 Messages, divine, to Joseph and 
 Mary, 56. 
 
 Miraculous conception, dignity of, 
 40 ; mystery of, 41 ; narrative of, 
 45 ; not noticed by St John, 40. 
 
 Ministry, our Lord’s, duration of, 
 149 n. 
 
 Mount, sermon on the, 178 ; scene 
 of, 118 n. 
 
 Nain, site of, 181 n. 
 
 Nativity, circumstances of, 61 ; exact 
 locality of, 62 n. ; date of, 63 n. 
 
 Nazareth, description of, 101 y^. ; ill 
 repute of, 47 n. ; our Lord’s first 
 preaching at, 158 ; second visit to, 
 192. 
 
 Nicodemus, history of, 125 n. ; dis- 
 course of our Lord with, 125 ; 
 boldness and piety of at our 
 Lord’s burial, 363. 
 
 Parables, of Sons sent into vineyard, 
 300 w.; of Wicked husbandmen, 
 tb. ; collection of, by St Matthew, 
 21 n. 
 
 Paralytic, healing of, 170. 
 
 Pilate, official character of, 301 n. ; 
 general character of, 350 n. ; our 
 Lord’s first appearance before, 
 340 ; second ditto, 344 ; enmity 
 with Herod, 343 n. ; awe felt by, 
 towards our Lord, 349 n. ; fate of, 
 351 n. 
 
 Pinnacle of the Temple, 114, 
 
 Presentation in Temple, 65. 
 
 Precepts, reception of, 179. 
 
 Precipitation, Mount of, 179 n. 
 
 Portents, at our Lord’s death, 358. 
 
 Procurators, residence of, at Jeru- 
 salem, 339 n. 
 
 Prophecies, our Lord’s last, 319 w. 
 
 Proto vangelium Jacobi, narrative of 
 Nativity, 61 n. 
 
 Puberty, age of, 89 n. 
 
 Publicans, 20 n. 
 
 Purim, feast of, our Lord’s visit to 
 Jerusalem at, 136 ; observances 
 at, 137 n. 
 
 Purification, time of, 66 n. 
 
 Peter, St, confession of, 212 n. ; three 
 denials of our Lord, 333 n. ; visit 
 of to sepulchre, 383 ; character of 
 as compared with that of St John, 
 406 n. 
 
 Resurrection, Christ’s a pledge of 
 ours, 368 n.; objections to doc- 
 trine of, 370 n. ; number of the 
 accounts of, 371 n.; differences in 
 the incidents related, 372; exact 
 time of, 378 w. 
 
 Resurrection - body, nature of our 
 Lord’s, 369 n. ; glorification of, 
 perhaps progressive, 397 n., 407 n. 
 
 Roads, from Judaea to Galilee, 122 n. 
 
 Roofs, nature of, 170 n. 
 
 Sabbath, observance of, 140 w.; se- 
 cond-first, 173 n.; miracles per- 
 formed on, 176 n., 258 n. 
 
 Sabbath-day’s journey, 284 w. 
 
 Sadducees, errors of, 306 n. ; accept- 
 ed other parts of Scripture beside 
 Pentateuch, 308 n. 
 
 Saints, resurrection of, at our Lord’s 
 death, 359 n, 
 
 Salem, site of, 128 n. 
 
 Samaria, our Lord’s first journey 
 through, 130 ; second journey 
 through, 248. 
 
 Samaritan woman, our Lord’s dis- 
 course with, 131. 
 
 Samaritans, faith of, 132; expecta- 
 tion of a Messiah, 132 n. 
 
 Sanhedrin, meeting of, called by 
 Herod, 75 n. ; first public mani- 
 festation of their designs, 251 ; 
 component parts of, 299 n. ; lost 
 
Index. 
 
 the power of life and death, 3H w. ; 
 place of meeting, 335 ; our Lord’s 
 
 examination before, 334. 
 
 Scape-goat, supposed reference to, 
 347 n. 
 
 Scribes, from Jerusalem, 169 n. 
 
 Scripture, inspiration of, 3 n. 
 
 Sects, Je\vish, some characteristics 
 of, 65 n. 
 
 Seventy disciples, mission of, 256 n. 
 
 Shammai, school of, 272 n. 
 
 Shekel, half, annual payment of, 
 229 n. 
 
 Shepherds, announcement to, 64. 
 
 Sidon, probably visited by our Lord, 
 218, 232 
 
 Siloam, well of, 252 n. 
 
 Simeon, 67 n. ; prophetic address of, 
 68 / 1 . 
 
 Simon, the Leper, 283 n. 
 
 Simon of Cyrene, 352 n. 
 
 Solomon’s porch, 260 n. 
 
 Son of God, 119 w.; meaning of the 
 title, 213 w., 255 //., 260 w., 284 n., 
 336 71. 
 
 Sosiosh, 77 w. 
 
 Soul, meaning of the term, 113 n. 
 
 Spirit, meaning of the term, 113 
 
 Star of the East, 72 ; date of appear- 
 ance, 73 n. 
 
 Stone, great, rolled against the door 
 of the sepulchre, 364 n., 377 n. 
 
 Storm, stilling of, 209 ti. 
 
 Sufferings, our Lord’s predictions 
 of His own, 281 
 
 Supper, last, celebration of, 321; a 
 paschal supper, but not on Nisan 
 14, 322 71. \ order of incidents, 
 324 /^. 
 
 Sweat, bloody, nature of, 329 ti. 
 
 Swine, destruction of, 189 7i. 
 
 Sychar, 131 /^. 
 
 Synagogue, service of, 159 w., 164 w. 
 
 Syrophoenician woman, 217/2. 
 
 423 
 
 Tabiga, a suburb of Capernaum, 
 161 71., 165 71. 
 
 Taxing under Quirinus, 57 ; Roman 
 in origin, Jewish in form, 59. 
 
 Temple, first cleansing of, 122; se- 
 cond cleansing of, 292; veil of, 
 359/2. 
 
 Temptation, scene of, 109/2.; no 
 vision, 110; an assault from with- 
 out, 111; addressed to the three 
 parts of our nature, 112. 
 
 Thomas, St, disbelief of, 402; testi- 
 mony of to our Lord’s divinity, 
 403 /2. 
 
 Thorns, crown of, 348 ti. 
 
 Tombs, nature of, 363 ti. 
 
 Transfiguration, 226 ; probable scene 
 of, 226 71. 
 
 Treasury, 315. 
 
 Triumphal entry, 284. 
 
 Tyre, our Lord’s journey towards, 
 216. 
 
 Virgin Mary, probable authority for 
 early portions of St Luke’s Gospel, 
 46 ; legendary history of, 47 ti. ; 
 relationship to Elizabeth, 50/2.; 
 character of, 50; journey of, to 
 Elizabeth, 51 ; later residence of, 
 185 71. 
 
 Washing of hands, Pilate’s, 347 ti. 
 
 Wieseler, (K), value of his chrono- 
 logical labours, 143 n., 244 ti. 
 
 Women, court of, 315/2.; the minis- 
 tering, 371 / 2 . ; visit of to the 
 sepulchre, 376. 
 
 World, state of at our Lord’s birth, 
 43 /2. 
 
 Zacchseus, 275 ; desire of to see our 
 Lord, 275 n. 
 
 Zebedee, position of at Capernaum, 
 162 71. 
 
424 
 
 Index. 
 
 PASSAGES OF SCRIPTUEE 
 
 EXPLAINED OR ILLUSTRATED. 
 
 Micali V. 2 76 n. 
 
 Mattli. ii. 2 73 w. 
 
 ii. 9 76 n. 
 
 ii. 13 80 
 
 ii. 23 81 n. 
 
 xiii. 58 206 n. 
 
 xix. 1 271 n. 
 
 xxii. 21 305 n. 
 
 xxvi. 29 326 n. 
 
 '■ xxvi. 45 330 n. 
 
 xxviii. 7 382 n, 
 
 xxviii. 9 390 n. 
 
 xxviii. 17 390 w. 
 
 Mark i. 34 166 w. 
 
 vi. 3 94 n. 
 
 vii. 24 204 n. 
 
 xi. 13 293 n. 
 
 xi. 18 296 n, 
 
 ib 297 
 
 xi. 25 298 n. 
 
 xvi. 4 379 ri. 
 
 xvi. 7 382 n. 
 
 Luke i. 37 49. 
 
 i. 2 154 w. 
 
 i. 3 242 n. 
 
 ii. 8 63 w. 
 
 ii. 35 68 71. 
 
 ii. 43 90 77. 
 
 ii. 44 91 77. 
 
 ii. 48 93/7. 
 
 ii. 49 93 77. 
 
 iii. 1 104 77. 
 
 iii. 23 104 77. 
 
 iv. 39 165/7. 
 
 ix. 51 243 77. 
 
 xiii. 32 263. 
 
 Luke XV. 1 265 77. 
 
 xxii. 70 338 n. 
 
 xxiv. 44 338 77. 
 
 John i. 29 116 77. 
 
 i. 33 107 77. 
 
 ii. 2 118/7. 
 
 ii. 3, 4 120. 
 
 ii. 15 123. 
 
 ii. 21 124 77. 
 
 iii. 3 125 77. 
 
 iv. 2 127 77. 
 
 iv. 4 133 77. 
 
 V. 1 135. 
 
 V. 4 139 77. 
 
 vi. 50 212 77. 
 
 vii. 4 246 77. 
 
 X. 32 261 77. 
 
 xii. 27 317 77. 
 
 xii. 29 318 77. 
 
 xiii. 5 246/7. 
 
 xvii. 4 sq 327/7. 
 
 xviii. 3 330 77. 
 
 xviii. 24 334 77. 
 
 xviii. 38 342/7. 
 
 xix. 11 849 /t. 
 
 xix. 2 350/7. 
 
 xix. 14 353/7. 
 
 XX. 8 384 77. 
 
 XX. 17 376/7. 
 
 XX. 17 387/7. 
 
 xxi. 19 408/7. 
 
 xxi. 22 409 77. 
 
 Eph. ii. 6 416 n. 
 
 Col. ii. 15 356 n. 
 
 1 Thess. iv. 17 234/7. 
 
 Heb. iv. 14 413 n. 
 
 THE END. 
 
 CAMBRIDGE: PRINTED BY C. J. CLAY, M.A. AT THE UNIVERSITY PRESS.