Mark 9 commentary

Here is a prediction of the near approach Christ's kingdom. A glimpse of that kingdom was given in the transfiguration of Christ. It is good to be away from the world, and alone with Christ: and how good to be with Christ glorified in heaven with all the saints! But when it is well with us, we are apt not to care for others, and in the fulness of our enjoyments, we forget the many wants of our brethren. God owns Jesus, and accepts him as his beloved Son, and is ready to accept us in him. Therefore we must own and accept him as our beloved Saviour, and must give up ourselves to be ruled by him. Christ does not leave the soul, when joys and comforts leave it. Jesus explained to the disciples the prophecy about Elias. This was very suitable to the ill usage of John Baptist.

The father of the suffering youth reflected on the want of power in the disciples; but Christ will have him reckon the disappointment to the want of faith. Very much is promised to our believing. If thou canst believe, it is possible that thy hard heart may be softened, thy spiritual diseases may be cured; and, weak as thou art, thou mayest be able to hold out to the end. Those that complain of unbelief, must look up to Christ for grace to help them against it, and his grace will be sufficient for them. Whom Christ cures, he cures effectually. But Satan is unwilling to be driven from those that have been long his slaves, and, when he cannot deceive or destroy the sinner, he will cause him all the terror that he can. The disciples must not think to do their work always with the same ease; some services call for more than ordinary pains.

The time of Christ's suffering drew nigh. Had he been delivered into the hands of devils, and they had done this, it had not been so strange; but that men should thus shamefully treat the Son of man, who came to redeem and save them, is wonderful. Still observe that when Christ spake of his death, he always spake of his resurrection, which took the reproach of it from himself, and should have taken the grief of it from his disciples. Many remain ignorant because they are ashamed to inquire. Alas! that while the Saviour teaches so plainly the things which belong to his love and grace, men are so blinded that they understand not his sayings. We shall be called to account about our discourses, and to account for our disputes, especially about being greater than others. Those who are most humble and self-denying, most resemble Christ, and shall be most tenderly owned by him. This Jesus taught them by a sign; whoever shall receive one like this child, receives me. Many have been like the disciples, ready to silence men who have success in preaching to sinners repentance in Christ's name, because they follow not with them. Our Lord blamed the apostles, reminding them that he who wrought miracles in his name would not be likely to hurt his cause. If sinners are brought to repent, to believe in the Saviour, and to live sober, righteous, and godly lives, we then see that the Lord works by the preacher.

It is repeatedly said of the wicked, Their worm dieth not, as well as, The fire is never quenched. Doubtless, remorse of conscience and keen self-reflection are this never-dying worm. Surely it is beyond compare better to undergo all possible pain, hardship, and self-denial here, and to be happy for ever hereafter, than to enjoy all kinds of worldly pleasure for a season, and to be miserable for ever. Like the sacrifices, we must be salted with salt; our corrupt affections must be subdued and mortified by the Holy Spirit. Those that have the salt of grace, must show they have a living principle of grace in their hearts, which works out corrupt dispositions in the soul that would offend God, or our own consciences.

As Mark is more full, and explains the circumstances very minutely, we shall follow the order of his narrative. And first he points out clearly the reason why Christ uses a harshness so unusual with him, when he exclaims that the Jews, on account of their perverse malice, do not deserve to be any longer endured. We know how gently he was wont to receive them, even when their requests were excessively importunate. “Encores mesme qu’ils se monstrassent import uns et facheux en leurs requestes;” — “even though they showed themselves to be importunate and troublesome in their requests.” A father here entreats in behalf of an only son, the necessity is extremely urgent, and a modest and humble appeal is made to the compassion of Christ. Why then does he, contrary to his custom, break out suddenly into passion, and declare that they can be endured no longer? As the narrative of Matthew and Luke does not enable us to discover the reason of this great severity, some commentators have fallen into the mistake of supposing that this rebuke was directed either against the disciples, or against the father of the afflicted child. But if we duly consider all the circumstances of the case, as they are related by Mark, there will be no difficulty in arriving at the conclusion, that the indignation of Christ was directed against the malice of the scribes, and that he did not intend to treat the ignorant and weak with such harshness.

During Christ’s absence, a lunatic child had been brought forward. The scribes, regarding this as a plausible occasion for giving annoyance, seized upon it eagerly, and entreated the disciples that, if they had any power, they would exercise it in curing the child. It is probable that the disciples made an attempt, and that their efforts were unavailing; upon which the scribes raise the shout of victory, and not only ridicule the disciples, but break out against Christ, as if in their person his power had been baffled. It was an extraordinary display of outrageous impiety united with equally base ingratitude, maliciously to keep out of view so many miracles, from which they had learned the amazing power of Christ; for they manifestly endeavored to extinguish the light which was placed before their eyes. With good reason, therefore, does Christ exclaim that they could no longer be endured, and pronounce them to be an unbelieving and perverse nation; for the numerous proofs which they had formerly beheld ought at least to have had the effect of preventing them from seeking occasion of disparagement. “Qu’ils n’allassent plus chercher des cavillations et moyens obliques pour luy resister;” — “not to resort any more to cavils and indirect methods of opposing him.”

Mark 9:14. He saw a great multitude around them. The disciples were, no doubt, held up to public gaze, as the enemies of the truth are wont, on occasions of triumph, to assemble a crowd about a trifle. The scribes had made such a noise about it, as to draw down on the disciples the ridicule of many persons. And yet it appears that there were some who were not ill disposed; for, as soon as they see Jesus, they salute him; and even the insolence of the scribes is restrained by his presence, for, when they are asked what is the matter in dispute, they have not a word to say.

17. Master, I have brought to thee my son. Matthew describes a different sort of disease from what is described by Mark, for he says that the man was lunatic But both agree as to these two points, that he was dumb, and that at certain intervals he became furious. The term lunatic is applied to those who, about the waning of the moon, are seized with epilepsy, or afflicted with giddiness. I do not admit the fanciful notion of Chrysostom, that the word lunatic was invented by a trick of Satan, in order to throw disgrace on the good creatures of God; for we learn from undoubted experience, that the course of the moon affects the increase or decline of these diseases. On the opinion expressed by calvin, as to the influence of the moon on these diseases, the reader may consult Harmony, vol. 1 p. 245, n.l. — Ed. And yet this does not prevent Satan from mixing up his attacks with natural means. I am of opinion, therefore, that the man was not naturally deaf and dumb, but that Satan had taken possession of his tongue and ears; and that, as the weakness of his brain and nerves made him liable to epilepsy, Satan availed himself of this for aggravating the disease. The consequence was, that he was exposed to danger on every hand, and was thrown into violent convulsions, which left him lying on the ground, in a fainting state, and like a dead man.

Let us learn from this how many ways Satan has of injuring us, were it not that he is restrained by the hand of God. Our infirmities both of soul and body, which we feel to be innumerable, are so many darts with which Satan is supplied for wounding us. We are worse than stupid, if a condition so wretched does not, arouse us to prayer. But in this we see also an amazing display of the goodness of God, that, though we are liable to such a variety of dangers, “Combien que nous soyons subiets a mille dangers et inconveniens;” — “though we are liable to a thousand dangers and inconveniences.” he surrounds us with his protection; particularly if we consider with what eagerness our enemy is bent on our destruction. We ought also to call to remembrance the consoling truth, that Christ has come to bridle his rage, and that we are safe in the midst of so many dangers, because our diseases are effectually counteracted by heavenly medicine.

We must attend also to the circumstance of the time. The father replies, that his son had been subject to this grievous disease from his infancy. If Satan was permitted to exert his power, to such an extent, on a person of that tender age, what reason have not we to fear, who are continually exposing ourselves by our crimes to deadly strokes, who even supply our enemy with darts, and on whom he might justly be permitted to spend his rage, if it were not kept under restraint by the astonishing goodness of God?

Mark 9:20. And as soon as he saw him. That the devil should rage with more than ordinary cruelty against the man, when he is brought to Christ, ought not to excite surprise; for in proportion as the grace of Christ is seen to be nearer at hand, and acts more powerfully, the fury of Satan is the more highly excited. The presence of Christ awakens him like the sound of a trumpet. He raises as violent a storm as he can, and contends with all his might. We ought to be prepared beforehand with such meditations, that our faith may not be disturbed, when the approach of the grace of Christ is met by more than ordinary violence on the part of our enemy. Nor ought we to lose sight of another point, that the true commencement of our cure is, when our affliction is so heavy that we are almost at the point of death. It must also be taken into account that, by means of the furious attack of Satan, our Lord lights a torch to cause his grace to be seen; for, when the spectators were appalled at the dreadful spectacle, the display of the power of Christ, which immediately followed, was more distinctly perceived.

21. From a child. Hence we infer that this punishment was not inflicted on account of the sins of the individual, but was a secret judgment of God. True indeed, even infants, as soon as they have come out of the womb, are not innocent in the sight of God, or free from guilt; but God’s chastisements have sometimes hidden causes, and are intended to try our obedience. We do not render to God the honor which is due to Him, unless with reverence and modesty we adore His justice, when it is concealed from us. Whoever wishes to obtain more full information on this point, may consult my Commentary on these words, Neither hath this man sinned, nor his parents, (John 9:3.)

22. If thou canst do any thing, have compassion on us, and help us. We see how little honor he renders to Christ; for, supposing him to be some prophet, whose power was limited, he approaches to him with hesitation. On the other hand, the first foundation of faith is, to embrace the boundless power of God; and the first step to prayer is, to raise it above all opposition by the firm belief that our prayers are not in vain. As this man did not suppose Christ to be at all different from other men, his false opinion is corrected; for our faith must be so formed as to be capable and prepared for receiving the desired favor. In his reply Christ does not administer a direct reproof, but indirectly reminding the man of what he had said amiss, points out to him his fault, and informs him how a remedy may be obtained.

23. If thou canst believe. “You ask me,” says he, “to aid you as far as I can; but you will find in me an inexhaustible fountain of power, provided that the faith which you bring be sufficiently large.” Hence may be learned a useful doctrine, which will apply equally to all of us, that it is not the Lord that prevents his benefits from flowing to us in large abundance, but that it must be attributed to the narrowness of our faith, that it comes to us only in drops, and that frequently we do not feel even a drop, because unbelief shuts up our heart. It is an idle exercise of ingenuity to prove Christ’s meaning to be, that a man can believe of himself: for nothing more was intended than to throw back on men the blame of their poverty, whenever they disparage the power of God by their unbelief.

All things are possible to him that believeth. Christ undoubtedly intended to teach that the fullness of all blessings has been given to us by the Father, and that every kind of assistance must be expected from him alone in the same manner as we expect it from the hand of God. “Only exercise,” says he, “a firm belief, and you will obtain.” In what manner faith obtains any thing for us we shall immediately see.

24. Lord, I believe. He declares that he believes, and yet acknowledges himself to have unbelief These two statements may appear to contradict each other, but there is none of us that does not experience both of them in himself. As our faith is never perfect, it follows that we are partly unbelievers; but God forgives us, and exercises such forbearance towards us, as to reckon us believers on account of a small portion of faith. It is our duty, in the meantime, carefully to shake off the remains of infidelity which adhere to us, to strive against them, and to pray to God to correct them, and, as often as we are engaged in this conflict, to fly to him for aid. If we duly inquire what portion has been bestowed on each, it will evidently appear that there are very few who are eminent in faith, few who have a moderate portion, and very many who have but a small measure.

Matthew 17:19-21; Mark 9:28-29; Luke 17:5-6

Matthew 17:19-21

Mark 9:28-29

Luke 17:5-6

19. Then the disciples, coming to Jesus apart, said, Why could not we cast it out? 20. And Jesus said to them, On account of your unbelief; for verily I say to you, If you have faith as a grain of mustard-seed, you shall say to this mountain. Remove thou hence, and it shall remove; and nothing shall be impossible to you. 21. But this kind “Mais ceste sorte [de diables] ne sort point;” — “but this kind [of devils] goeth not out.” goeth not out but by prayer and fasting.

28. And when he had entered into the house, his disciples asked him apart, Why could not we cast out? 29. And he said to them, This kind “Ceste espece [de diables] ne sort point;” — “this kind [of devils] goeth not out.” cannot go out in any other way than by prayer and fasting.

5. And the apostles said to the Lord, Increase our faith. 6. And the Lord said, If you had faith as a grain of mustard-seed, you might say to this sycamore tree. Be thou rooted up and planted in the sea; and it would obey you.

Mark 9:38. Master, we saw one. Hence it is evident that the name of Christ was at that time so celebrated, that persons who were not of the number of his intimate disciples used that name, or perhaps even abused it, for I will not venture to avouch any thing on this point as certain. It is possible that he who is here mentioned had embraced the doctrine of Christ, and betaken himself to the performance of miracles with no bad intention; but as Christ bestowed this power on none but those whom he had chosen to be heralds of his Gospel, I think that he had rashly taken, or rather seized upon, this office. Now though he was wrong in making this attempt, and in venturing to imitate the disciples without receiving a command to do so, yet his boldness was not without success: for the Lord was pleased, in this way also, to throw luster around his name, “Pour avancer la gloire de son nom;” — “to advance the glory of his name.” as he sometimes does by means of those of whose ministry he does not approve as lawful. It is not inconsistent with this to say, that one who was endued with special faith followed a blind impulse, and thus proceeded inconsiderately to work miracles.

I now come to John and his companions. They say that they forbade a man to work miracles Why did they not first ask whether or not he was authorized? For now being in a state of doubt and suspense, they ask the opinion of their Master. Hence it follows, that they had rashly taken on themselves the right to forbid; and therefore every man who undertakes more than he knows that he is permitted to do by the word of God is chargeable with rashness. Besides, there is reason to suspect the disciples of Christ of ambition, because they are anxious to maintain their privilege and honor. For how comes it that they all at once forbid a man who is unknown to them to work miracles, but because they wish to be the sole possessors of this right? For they assign the reason, that he followeth not Christ; as much as to say, “He is not one of thy associates, as we are: why then shall he possess equal honor?”

39. Forbid him not. Christ did not wish that he should be forbidden; not that he had given him authority, or approved of what he did, or even wished his disciples to approve of it, but because, when by any occurrence God is glorified, we ought to bear with it and rejoice. Thus Paul, (Philippians 1:18,) though he disapproves of the dispositions of those who used the Gospel as a pretense for aggrandizing themselves, yet rejoices that by this occurrence the glory of Christ is advanced. We must attend also to the reason which is added, that it is impossible for any man who works miracles in the name of Christ to speak evil of Christ, and therefore this ought to be reckoned as gain; for hence it follows, that if the disciples had not been more devoted to their own glory than anxious and desirous to promote the glory of their Master, they would not have been offended when they saw that glory heightened and enlarged in another direction. And yet Christ declares that we ought to reckon as friends those who are not open enemies.

40. For he who is not against us is for us. He does not enjoin us to give a loose rein to rash men, and to be silent while they intermeddle with this and the other matter, according to their own fancy, and disturb the whole order of the Church: for such licentiousness, so far as our calling allows, must be restrained. He only affirms that they act improperly, who unseasonably prevent the kingdom of God from being advanced by any means whatever. And yet he does not acknowledge as his disciples, or reckon as belonging to his flock, those who hold an intermediate place between enemies and friends, but means that,. so far as they do no harm, they are useful and profitable: for it is a proverbial saying, which reminds us that we ought not to raise a quarrel till we are constrained.

Mark 9:49. Every man shall be salted with fire. I have connected these words of Mark with the passage in Matthew which we have just considered: not that I look upon them to have altogether the same meaning, or to have been spoken at the same place and time, but rather to enable the reader to understand better, by means of comparison, the different applications of the same sentence. According to Mark’s narrative, our Lord, having spoken of eternal fire, (Mark 9:48,) exhorts his own people, on the contrary, to offer themselves now to God to be seasoned with fire and salt, that they may be devoted sacrifices, “Sacrifices ou offrandes sacrees;” — “sacrifices or sacred offerings.” and that they may not draw upon themselves, by their sins, that fire which is never extinguished. To be salted with fire is an incorrect phrase; but as salt and fire possess the same quality of purifying and refining, Christ applied the same term to both. Such was the occasion on which this sentiment was uttered. It was, that believers may not refuse to be purified by fire and salt; since, without this seasoning, they cannot be holy to God. He alludes to an enactment of the Law:

“Every oblation of thy meat-offering shalt thou season with salt, neither shalt thou suffer the salt of the covenant of thy God to be lacking from thy meat-offering: with all thine offerings thou shalt offer salt,” (Leviticus 2:13.)

But now he shows, that believers are salted by the word of the Gospel, that they may be sanctified.

He next adds, salt is good This extends generally to all, whom God has once been pleased to season with his own word. He exhorts them to retain always their savor. To give the name of salt to what is salted is rather a harsh metaphor, but it creates no doubt as to the meaning. When men have lost, by their carelessness, that savor which they obtained by the grace of God, there is no farther remedy. Those who lose their faith, by which they were consecrated to God, and become without savor, are in a desperate condition: for the good savor cannot be acquired by any other seasoning. Besides, those who have become corrupted, by making void the grace of God, are worse than unbelievers, as salt spoils the land and the dunghill

Mark 9:50. Have salt in yourselves This word may be taken in a different sense from what it had in the former verse, as meaning that seasoning of good odor, which is obtained by faith, or rather the wisdom of the Spirit. When Paul enjoins, “Let your speech be always with grace, seasoned with salt,” (Colossians 4:6,) he means, that we ought to be holy, and purified from all profane follies and corruptions, and filled with spiritual grace, which edifies all who hear it, and diffuses over them its sweet odor. If this exposition is adopted, it may be necessary to understand the latter clause as referring to the mutual peace, which is promoted by that salt. Yet, as it is more probable, that this last sentence depends on the former discourse, I think that Christ is exhorting his own people to maintain the rigor of faith, which may serve also to purify others. “You must do your endeavor, not only to be salted within, but likewise to salt others.” But as salt bites by its sharpness, he immediately admonishes them to regulate the seasoning in such a manner, that peace may be preserved entire with one another

CHAPTER 9

Mr 9:1-13. Jesus Is Transfigured--Conversation about Elias. ( = Mt 16:28-17:13; Lu 9:27-36).

See on Lu 9:27-36.

Mr 9:14-32. Healing of a Demoniac Boy--Second Explicit Announcement of His Approaching Death and Resurrection. ( = Mt 17:14-23; Lu 9:37-45).

Healing of the Demoniac Boy (Mr 9:14-29).

14. And when he came to his disciples, he saw a great multitude about them, and the scribes questioning with them--This was "on the next day, when they were come down from the hill" (Lu 9:37). The Transfiguration appears to have taken place at night. In the morning, as He came down from the hill on which it took place--with Peter, and James, and John--on approaching the other nine, He found them surrounded by a great multitude, and the scribes disputing or discussing with them. No doubt these cavillers were twitting the apostles of Jesus with their inability to cure the demoniac boy of whom we are presently to hear, and insinuating doubts even of their Master's ability to do it; while they, zealous for their Master's honor, would no doubt refer to His past miracles in proof of the contrary.

15. And straightway all the people--the multitude.

when they beheld him, were greatly amazed--were astounded.

and running to him saluted him--The singularly strong expression of surprise, the sudden arrest of the discussion, and the rush of the multitude towards Him, can be accounted for by nothing less than something amazing in His appearance. There can hardly be any doubt that His countenance still retained traces of His transfiguration-glory. (See Ex 34:29, 30). So Bengel, De Wette, Meyer, Trench, Alford. No wonder, if this was the case, that they not only ran to Him, but saluted Him. Our Lord, however, takes no notice of what had attracted them, and probably it gradually faded away as He drew near; but addressing Himself to the scribes, He demands the subject of their discussion, ready to meet them where they had pressed hard upon His half-instructed and as yet timid apostles.

16. And he asked the scribes, What question ye with them?--Ere they had time to reply, the father of the boy, whose case had occasioned the dispute, himself steps forward and answers the question; telling a piteous tale of deafness, and dumbness, and fits of epilepsy--ending with this, that the disciples, though entreated, could not perform the cure.

17. And one of the multitude answered, and said, Master, I have brought unto thee my son--"mine only child" (Lu 9:38).

which hath a dumb spirit--a spirit whose operation had the effect of rendering his victim speechless, and deaf also (Mr 9:25). In Matthew's report of the speech (Mt 17:15), the father says "he is lunatic"; this being another and most distressing effect of the possession.

18. And wheresoever he taketh him, he teareth him; and he foameth, and gnasheth with his teeth, and pineth away--rather, "becomes withered," "dried up," or "paralyzed"; as the same word is everywhere else rendered in the New Testament. Some additional particulars are given by Luke, and by our Evangelist below. "Lo," says he in Lu 9:39, "a spirit taketh him, and he suddenly crieth out; and it teareth him that he foameth again, and bruising him hardly [or with difficulty] departeth from him."

and I spake to thy disciples that they should cast him out; and they could not--Our Lord replies to the father by a severe rebuke to the disciples. As if wounded at the exposure before such a multitude, of the weakness of His disciples' faith, which doubtless He felt as a reflection on Himself, He puts them to the blush before all, but in language fitted only to raise expectation of what He Himself would do.

19. He answereth him, and saith, O faithless generation--"and perverse," or "perverted" (Mt 17:17; Lu 9:41).

how long shall I be with you? how long shall I suffer you?--language implying that it was a shame to them to want the faith necessary to perform this cure, and that it needed some patience to put up with them. It is to us surprising that some interpreters, as Chrysostom and Calvin, should represent this rebuke as addressed, not to the disciples at all, but to the scribes who disputed with them. Nor does it much, if at all, mend the matter to view it as addressed to both, as most expositors seem to do. With Bengel, De Wette, and Meyer, we regard it as addressed directly to the nine apostles who were unable to expel this evil spirit. And though, in ascribing this inability to their "want of faith" and the "perverted turn of mind" which they had drunk in with their early training, the rebuke would undoubtedly apply, with vastly greater force, to those who twitted the poor disciples with their inability, it would be to change the whole nature of the rebuke to suppose it addressed to those who had no faith at all, and were wholly perverted. It was because faith sufficient for curing this youth was to be expected of the disciples, and because they should by that time have got rid of the perversity in which they had been reared, that Jesus exposes them thus before the rest. And who does not see that this was fitted, more than anything else, to impress upon the by-standers the severe loftiness of the training He was giving to the Twelve, and the unsophisticated footing He was on with them?

Bring him unto me--The order to bring the patient to Him was instantly obeyed; when, lo! as if conscious of the presence of his Divine Tormentor, and expecting to be made to quit, the foul spirit rages and is furious, determined to die hard, doing all the mischief he can to this poor child while yet within his grasp.

20. And they brought him unto him: and when he saw him, straightway the spirit tare him--Just as the man with the legion of demons, "when he saw Jesus, ran and worshipped Him" (Mr 5:6), so this demon, when he saw Him, immediately "tare him." The feeling of terror and rage was the same in both cases.

and he fell on the ground, and wallowed foaming--Still Jesus does nothing, but keeps conversing with the father about the case--partly to have its desperate features told out by him who knew them best, in the hearing of the spectators; partly to let its virulence have time to show itself; and partly to deepen the exercise of the father's soul, to draw out his faith, and thus to prepare both him and the by-standers for what He was to do.

21. And he asked his father, How long is it ago since this came unto him? And he said, Of a child, &c.--Having told briefly the affecting features of the case, the poor father, half dispirited by the failure of the disciples and the aggravated virulence of the malady itself in presence of their Master, yet encouraged too by what he had heard of Christ, by the severe rebuke He had given to His disciples for not having faith enough to cure the boy, and by the dignity with which He had ordered him to be brought to Him--in this mixed state of mind, he closes his description of the case with these touching words:

22. but if thou canst do anything, have compassion on us, and help us--"us," says the father; for it was a sore family affliction. Compare the language of the Syrophoenician woman regarding her daughter, "Lord, help me." Still nothing is done: the man is but struggling into faith: it must come a step farther. But he had to do with Him who breaks not the bruised reed, and who knew how to inspire what He demanded. The man had said to Him, "If Thou canst do."

23. Jesus said unto him, If thou canst believe--The man had said, "If Thou canst do anything." Jesus replies.

all things are possible to him that believeth--"My doing all depends on thy believing." To impress this still more, He redoubles upon the believing: "If thou canst believe, all things are possible to him that believeth." Thus the Lord helps the birth of faith in that struggling soul; and now, though with pain and sore travail, it comes to the birth, as Trench, borrowing from Olshausen, expresses it. Seeing the case stood still, waiting not upon the Lord's power but his own faith, the man becomes immediately conscious of conflicting principles, and rises into one of the noblest utterances on record.

24. And straightway the father of the child cried out, and said with tears, Lord, I believe: help thou mine unbelief--that is, "It is useless concealing from Thee, O Thou mysterious, mighty Healer, the unbelief that still struggles in this heart of mine; but that heart bears me witness that I do believe in Thee; and if distrust still remains, I disown it, I wrestle with it, I seek help from Thee against it." Two things are very remarkable here: First, The felt and owned presence of unbelief, which only the strength of the man's faith could have so revealed to his own consciousness. Second, His appeal to Christ for help against his felt unbelief--a feature in the case quite unparalleled, and showing, more than all protestations could have done, the insight he had attained into the existence of a power in Christ more glorious them any he had besought for his poor child. The work was done; and as the commotion and confusion in the crowd was now increasing, Jesus at once, as Lord of spirits, gives the word of command to the dumb and deaf spirit to be gone, never again to return to his victim.

26. And the spirit cried, and rent him sore, and came out of him; and he was as one dead; insomuch that many said, He is dead--The malignant, cruel spirit, now conscious that his time was come, gathers up his whole strength, with intent by a last stroke to kill his victim, and had nearly succeeded. But the Lord of life was there; the Healer of all maladies, the Friend of sinners, the Seed of the woman, "the Stronger than the strong man armed," was there. The very faith which Christ declared to be enough for everything being now found, it was not possible that the serpent should prevail. Fearfully is he permitted to bruise the heel, as in this case; but his own head shall go for it--his works shall be destroyed (1Jo 3:8).

27. But Jesus took him by the hand, and lifted him up; and he arose.

28. Why could not we cast him out?

29. And he said unto them, This kind can come forth by nothing but by prayer and fasting--that is, as nearly all good interpreters are agreed, "this kind of evil spirits cannot be expelled," or "so desperate a case of demoniacal possession cannot be cured, but by prayer and fasting." But since the Lord Himself says that His disciples could not fast while He was with them, perhaps this was designed, as Alford hints, for their after-guidance--unless we take it as but a definite way of expressing the general truth, that great and difficult duties require special preparation and self-denial. But the answer to their question, as given in Mt 17:20, 21 is fuller: "And Jesus said unto them, Because of your unbelief. For verily I say unto you, If ye have faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye shall say unto this mountain, Remove hence to yonder place, and it shall remove; and nothing shall be impossible unto you" (Mt 17:20). See on Mr 11:23. "Howbeit this kind goeth not out but by prayer and fasting" (Mt 17:21), that is, though nothing is impossible to faith, yet such a height of faith as is requisite for such triumphs is not to be reached either in a moment or without effort--either with God in prayer or with ourselves in self-denying exercises. Luke (Lu 9:43) adds, "And they were all amazed at the mighty power of God"--"at the majesty" or "mightiness of God," in this last miracle, in the Transfiguration, &c.; or, at the divine grandeur of Christ rising upon them daily.

Second Explicit Announcement of His Approaching Death and Resurrection (Mr 9:30-32).

30. And they departed thence, and passed--were passing along.

through Galilee; and he would not that any man should know it--By comparing Mt 17:22, 23 and Lu 9:43, 44 with this, we gather, that as our Lord's reason for going through Galilee more privately than usual on this occasion was to reiterate to them the announcement which had so shocked them at the first mention of it, and thus familiarize them with it by little and little, so this was His reason for enjoining silence upon them as to their present movements.

31. For he taught his disciples, and said unto them--"Let these sayings sink down into your ears" (Lu 9:44); not what had been passing between them as to His grandeur, but what He was now to utter.

The Son of man is delivered--The use of the present tense expresses how near at hand He would have them to consider it. As Bengel says, steps were already in course of being taken to bring it about.

into the hands of men--This remarkable antithesis, "the Son of man shall be delivered into the hands of men," it is worthy of notice, is in all the three Evangelists.

and they shall kill him--that is, "Be not carried off your feet by all that grandeur of Mine which ye have lately witnessed, but bear in mind what I have already told you and now distinctly repeat, that that Sun in whose beams ye now rejoice is soon to set in midnight gloom."

and after he is killed, he shall rise the third day.

32. But they understood not that saying--"and it was hid from them, [so] that they preceived it not" (Lu 9:45).

and were afraid to ask him--Their most cherished ideas were so completely dashed by such announcements, that they were afraid of laying themselves open to rebuke by asking Him any questions. But "they were exceeding sorry" (Mt 17:23). While the other Evangelists, as Webster and Wilkinson remark, notice their ignorance and their fear, Matthew, who was one of them, retains a vivid recollection of their sorrow.

Mr 9:33-50. Strife among the Twelve Who Should Be Greatest in the Kingdom of Heaven, with Relative Teaching--Incidental Rebuke of John for Exclusiveness. ( = Mt 18:1-9; Lu 9:46-50).

Strife among the Twelve, with Relative Teaching (Mr 9:33-37).

33. What was it that ye disputed among yourselves by the way?--From this we gather that after the painful communication He had made to them, the Redeemer had allowed them to travel so much of the way by themselves; partly, no doubt, that He might have privacy for Himself to dwell on what lay before Him, and partly that they might be induced to weigh together and prepare themselves for the terrible events which He had announced to them. But if so, how different was their occupation!

34. But they held their peace: for by the way they had disputed among themselves, who should be the greatest--From Mt 18:1 we should infer that the subject was introduced, not by our Lord, but by the disciples themselves, who came and asked Jesus who should be greatest. Perhaps one or two of them first referred the matter to Jesus, who put them off till they should all be assembled together at Capernaum. He had all the while "perceived the thought of their heart" (Lu 9:47); but now that they were all together "in the house," He questions them about it, and they are put to the blush, conscious of the temper towards each other which it had kindled. This raised the whole question afresh, and at this point our Evangelist takes it up. The subject was suggested by the recent announcement of the Kingdom (Mt 16:19-28), the transfiguration of their Master, and especially the preference given to three of them at that scene.

35. If any man desire to be first, the same shall be last of all, and servant of all--that is, "let him be" such: he must be prepared to take the last and lowest place. See on Mr 10:42-45.

36. And he took a child--"a little child" (Mt 18:2); but the word is the same in both places, as also in Lu 9:47.

and set him in the midst of them: and when he had taken him in his arms--This beautiful trait is mentioned by out Evangelist alone.

he said unto them--Here we must go to Matthew (Mt 18:3, 4) for the first of this answer: "Verily I say unto you, except ye be converted, and become as little children, ye shall not enter into the kingdom of Heaven:" that is, "Conversion must be thorough; not only must the heart be turned to God in general, and from earthly to heavenly things, but in particular, except ye be converted from that carnal ambition which still rankles within you, into that freedom from all such feelings which ye see in this child, ye have neither part nor lot in the kingdom at all; and he who in this feature has most of the child, is highest there." Whosoever, therefore, shall "humble himself as this little child, the same is greatest in the kingdom of heaven": "for he that is [willing to be] least among you all, the same shall be great" (Lu 9:48).

37. Whosoever shall receive one of such children--so manifesting the spirit unconsciously displayed by this child.

in my name--from love to Me.

receiveth me; and whosoever shall receive me, receiveth not me, but Him that sent me--(See on Mt 10:40).

Incidental Rebuke of John for Exclusiveness (Mr 9:38-41).

38. And John answered him, saying, Master, we saw one casting out devils in thy name, and he followeth not us: and we forbade him, because he followeth not us--The link of connection here with the foregoing context lies, we apprehend, in the emphatic words which our Lord had just uttered, "in My name." "Oh," interposes John--young, warm, but not sufficiently apprehending Christ's teaching in these matters--"that reminds me of something that we have just done, and we should like to know if we did right. We saw one casting out devils "in Thy name," and we forbade him, because he followeth not us. Were we right, or were we wrong?" Answer--"Ye were wrong." "But we did it because he followeth not us." "No matter."

39. But Jesus said, Forbid him not: for there is no man which shall do a miracle in my name, that can lightly speak evil of me--soon, that is, readily "speak evil of me."

40. For he that is not against us is on our part--Two principles of immense importance are here laid down: "First, No one will readily speak evil of Me who has the faith to do a miracle in My name; and second, If such a person cannot be supposed to be against us, ye are to consider him for us." Let it be carefully observed that our Lord does not say this man should not have "followed them," nor yet that it was indifferent whether he did or not; but simply teaches how such a person was to be regarded, although he did not--namely, as a reverer of His name and a promoter of His cause.

41. For whosoever shall give you a cup of water to drink in my name, because ye belong to Christ, verily I say unto you, he shall not lose his reward--(See on Mt 10:42).

Continuation of Teaching Suggested by the Disciples' Strife (Mr 9:42-50).

What follows appears to have no connection with the incidental reproof of John immediately preceding. As that had interrupted some important teaching, our Lord hastens back from it, as if no such interruption had occurred.

42. For whosoever shall offend one of these little ones that believe in me--or, shall cause them to stumble; referring probably to the effect which such unsavory disputes as they had held would have upon the inquiring and hopeful who came in contact with them, leading to the belief that after all they were no better than others.

it is better for him that a millstone were hanged about his neck--The word here is simply "millstone," without expressing of which kind. But in Mt 18:6 it is the "ass-turned" kind, far heavier than the small hand-mill turned by female slaves, as in Lu 17:35. It is of course the same which is meant here.

and he were cast into the sea--meaning, that if by such a death that stumbling were prevented, and so its eternal consequences averted, it would be a happy thing for them. Here follows a striking verse in Mt 18:7, "Woe unto the world because of offences!" (There will be stumblings and falls and loss of souls enough from the world's treatment of disciples, without any addition from you: dreadful will be its doom in consequence; see that ye share not in it). "For it must needs be that offences come; but woe to that man by whom the offence cometh!" (The struggle between light and darkness will inevitably cause stumblings, but not less guilty is he who wilfully makes any to stumble).

43. And if thy hand offend thee, cut it off: it is better for thee to enter into life maimed, than having two hands to go into hell--See Mt 5:29, 30. The only difference between the words there and here is that there they refer to impure inclinations; here, to an ambitious disposition, an irascible or quarrelsome temper, and the like: and the injunction is to strike at the root of such dispositions and cut off the occasions of them.

47. And if thine eye offend thee, pluck it out: it is better for thee to enter into the kingdom of God with one eye, than having two eyes to be cast into hell-fire--On the words "hell" and "hell-fire," or "the hell of fire," see on Mt 5:22.

48. Where their worm dieth not, and the fire is not quenched--See on Mt 5:30; The "unquenchablesness" of this fire has already been brought before us (see on Mt 3:12); and the awfully vivid idea of an undying worm, everlastingly consuming an unconsumable body, is taken from the closing words of the evangelical prophet (Is 66:24), which seem to have furnished the later Jewish Church with its current phraseology on the subject of future punishment (see Lightfoot).

49. For every one shall be salted with fire, and every sacrifice shall be salted with salt--A difficult verse, on which much has been written--some of it to little purpose. "Every one" probably means "Every follower of mine"; and the "fire" with which he "must be salted" probably means "a fiery trial" to season him. (Compare Mal 3:2, &c.). The reference to salting the sacrifice is of course to that maxim of the Levitical law, that every acceptable sacrifice must be sprinkled with salt, to express symbolically its soundness, sweetness, wholesomeness, acceptability. But as it had to be roasted first, we have here the further idea of a salting with fire. In this case, "every sacrifice," in the next clause, will mean, "Every one who would be found an acceptable offering to God"; and thus the whole verse may perhaps be paraphrased as follows: "Every disciple of Mine shall have a fiery trial to undergo, and everyone who would be found an odor of a sweet smell, a sacrifice acceptable and well-pleasing to God, must have such a salting, like the Levitical sacrifices." Another, but, as it seems to us, farfetched as well as harsh, interpretation--suggested first, we believe, by Michaelis, and adopted by Alexander--takes the "every sacrifice which must be salted with fire" to mean those who are "cast into hell," and the preservative effect of this salting to refer to the preservation of the lost not only in but by means of the fire of hell. Their reason for this is that the other interpretation changes the meaning of the "fire," and the characters too, from the lost to the saved, in these verses. But as our Lord confessedly ends His discourse with the case of His own true disciples, the transition to them in Mr 9:48 is perfectly natural; whereas to apply the preservative salt of the sacrifice to the preserving quality of hell-fire, is equally contrary to the symbolical sense of salt and the Scripture representations of future torment. Our Lord has still in His eye the unseemly jarrings which had arisen among the Twelve, the peril to themselves of allowing any indulgence to such passions, and the severe self-sacrifice which salvation would cost them.

50. Salt is good; but if the salt have lost his saltness--its power to season what it is brought into contact with.

wherewith will ye season it?--How is this property to be restored? See on Mt 5:13.

Have salt in yourselves--See to it that ye retain in yourselves those precious qualities that will make you a blessing to one another, and to all around you.

and--with respect to the miserable strife out of which all this discourse has sprung, in one concluding word.

have peace one with another--This is repeated in 1Th 5:13.

There be some - This verse properly belongs to the preceding chapter, and to the preceding discourse. It is in this connection in Mat 16:27-28 (note). See the notes there.

And after six days Jesus taketh with him Peter, etc. - For a full account of the nature and design of the transfiguration, see on Mat 17:1 (note), etc.

A high mountain - I have conjectured, Mat 17:1, that this was one of the mountains of Galilee: some say Hermon, some Tabor; but Dr. Lightfoot thinks a mountain near Caesarea Philippi to be more likely.

Was transfigured - Four good MSS. and Origen add here, And While They Were Praying he was transfigured; but this appears to be added from Luk 9:29.

And they kept that saying - This verse is wanting in two MSS. and one of the Itala.

What the rising from the dead should mean - Ὁταν εκ νεκρων αναϚῃ, When he should arise from the dead, is the reading of D, six others, Syriac, all the Persic, Vulgate, all the Itala, and Jerome. Griesbach approves of it. There is nothing that answers to this verse either in Matthew or Luke.

And how it is written - Rather, as also it is written. Instead of και πως, And How it is written, I read καθως, As Also it is written of the Son of man, etc. This reading is supported by AKM, seventeen others, the later Syriac in the margin, Slavonic and Armenian. Some think the propriety of adopting this reading is self-evident.

Were greatly amazed - Probably, because he came so unexpectedly; but the cause of this amazement is not self-evident.

A dumb spirit - That is, a demon who afflicted those in whom it dwelt with an incapacity of speaking. The spirit itself could not be either deaf or dumb. These are accidents that belong only to organized animate bodies. See this case explained, Mat 17:14 (note), etc.

Pineth away - By these continual torments; so he was not only deaf and dumb, but sorely tortured besides.

When he saw him the spirit tare him; and he fell on the ground, etc. - When this demon saw Jesus, he had great rage, knowing that his time was short; and hence the extraordinary convulsions mentioned above.

If Thou canst Do any thing - I have already tried thy disciples, and find they can do nothing in this case; but if thou hast any power, in mercy use it in our behalf.

If Thou canst Believe - This was an answer to the inquiry above. I can furnish a sufficiency of power, if thou canst but bring faith to receive it. Why are not our souls completely healed? Why is not every demon cast out? Why are not pride, self-will, love of the world, lust, anger, peevishness, with all the other bad tempers and dispositions which constitute the mind of Satan, entirely destroyed? Alas! it is because we do not believe; Jesus is able; more, Jesus is willing; but we are not willing to give up our idols; we give not credence to his word; therefore hath sin a being in us, and dominion over us.

Lord, I believe - The word Lord is omitted by ABCDL, both the Syriac, both the Arabic later Persic, Ethiopic, Gothic, and three copies of the Itala. Griesbach leaves it out. The omission, I think, is proper, because it is evident the man did not know our Lord, and therefore could not be expected to accost him with a title expressive of that authority which he doubted whether he possessed, unless we grant that he used the word κυριε after the Roman custom, for Sir.

Help thou mine unbelief - That is, assist me against it. Give me a power to believe.

I charge thee - Considerable emphasis should be laid on the pronoun: - Thou didst resist the command of my disciples, now I command thee to come out. If this had been only a natural disease, for instance the epilepsy, as some have argued, could our Lord have addressed it, with any propriety, as he has done here: Thou deaf and dumb spirit, come out of him, and enter no more into him? Is the doctrine of demoniacal influence false? If so, Jesus took the most direct method to perpetuate the belief of that falsity, by accommodating himself so completely to the deceived vulgar. But this was impossible; therefore the doctrine of demoniacal influence is a true doctrine, otherwise Christ would never have given it the least countenance or support.

Prayer and fasting - See on Mat 17:21 (note).

This demon may be considered as an emblem of deeply rooted vices, and inveterate habits, over which the conquest is not generally obtained, but through extraordinary humiliations.

This case is related by both Matthew and Luke, but it is greatly amplified in Mark's account, and many new circumstances related. Another proof that Mark did not abridge Matthew.

They - passed through Galilee - See on Mat 17:22-27 (note).

But they understood not - This whole verse is wanting in two MSS., in the first edition of Erasmus, and in that of Aldus. Mill approves of the omission. It does not appear likely, from Matthew's account, that three of the disciples, Peter, James, and John, could be ignorant of the reasons of Christ's death and resurrection, after the transfiguration; on the contrary, from the circumstances there related, it is very probable that from that time they must have had at least a general understanding of this important subject; but the other nine might have been ignorant of this matter, who were not present at the transfiguration; probably it is of these that the evangelist speaks here. See the observations on the transfiguration, Mat 17:9 (note), etc., and Mat 18:1 (note).

And being in the house - That is, Peter's house, where he ordinarily lodged. This has been often observed before.

Who should be the greatest - See on Mat 18:1-5 (note).

We saw one casting out devils in thy name - It can scarcely be supposed that a man who knew nothing of Christ, or who was only a common exorcist, could be able to work a miracle in Christ's name; we may therefore safely imagine that this was either one of John the Baptist's disciples, who, at his master's command, had believed in Jesus, or one of the seventy, whom Christ had sent out, Luk 10:1-7, who, after he had fulfilled his commission, had retired from accompanying the other disciples; but as he still held fast his faith in Christ, and walked in good conscience, the influence of his Master still continued with him, so that he could cast out demons as well as the other disciples.

He followeth not us - This first clause is omitted by BCL, three others, Syriac, Armenian, Persic, Coptic, and one of the Itala. Some of the MSS. and versions leave out the first; some the second clause: only one of them is necessary. Griesbach leaves out the first.

We forbade him - I do not see that we have any right to attribute any other motive to John than that which he himself owns - because he followed not us - because he did not attach himself constantly to thee, as we do, we thought he could not be in a proper spirit.

Forbid him not - If you meet him again, let him go on quietly in the work in which God owns him. If he were not of God, the demons would not be subject to him, and his work could not prosper. A spirit of bigotry has little countenance from these passages. There are some who are so outrageously wedded to their own creed, and religious system, that they would rather let sinners perish than suffer those who differ from them to become the instruments of their salvation. Even the good that is done they either deny or suspect, because the person does not follow them. This also is vanity and an evil disease.

He that is not against us, is on our part - Or rather, Whosoever is not against You, is for You. Instead of ἡμων, us, I would read ὑμων, you, on the authority of ADSHV, upwards of forty others, Syriac, Armenian, Persic, Coptic, Ethiopic, Gothic, Slavonic, Vulgate, Itala, Victor, and Opt. This reading is more consistent with the context - He followed not us - well, he is not against You; and he who is not against you, in such a work, may be fairly presumed to be on your side.

There is a parallel case to this mentioned in Num 11:26-29, which, for the elucidation of this passage, I will transcribe. "The Spirit rested upon Eldad and Medad, and they prophesied in the camp. And there ran a young man, and told Moses, and said, Eldad and Medad do prophesy in the camp. And Joshua, the servant of Moses, said, My lord Moses, forbid them! And Moses said unto him, Enviest Thou for My sake? Would God, that all the Lord's people were prophets, and that the Lord would put his Spirit upon them." The reader will easily observe that Joshua and John were of the same bigoted spirit; and that Jesus and Moses acted from the spirit of candour and benevolence. See the notes on Num 11:25-29 (note).

A cup of water to drink - See the notes on Mat 10:42; Mat 18:6-8.

Thy hand - foot - eye - cause thee to offend; - See the notes on Mat 5:29-30 (note).

The fire that never shall be quenched - That is, the inextinguishable fire. This clause is wanting in L, three others, the Syriac, and later Persic. Some eminent critics suppose it to be a spurious reading; but the authorities which are for it, are by no means counterbalanced by those which are against it. The same clause in Mar 9:45, is omitted in BCL, seven others, Syriac, later Persic, Coptic, and one Itala. Eternal fire is the expression of Matthew.

For every one shall be salted with fire - Every one of those who shall live and die in sin: but there is great difficulty in this verse. The Codex Bezae, and some other MSS., have omitted the first clause; and several MSS. keep the first, and omit the last clause - and every sacrifice shall be salted with salt. There appears to be an allusion to Isa 66:24. It is generally supposed that our Lord means, that as salt preserves the flesh with which it is connected from corruption, so this everlasting fire, το πυρ το ασβεστον, this inconsumable fire, will have the property, not only of assimilating all things cast into it to its own nature, but of making them inconsumable like itself.

Scaliger supposes, that instead of πας πυρι, πασα πυρια, every sacrifice (of flour) should be read, "Every sacrifice (of flour) shall be salted, and every burnt offering shall be salted." This, I fear, is taking the text by storm. Some take the whole in a good sense, as referring to the influence of the Spirit of God in the hearts of believers, which shall answer the same end to the soul, in preserving it from the contagion that is in the world, as salt did in the sacrifices offered to God to preserve them from putrefaction. Old Trapp's note on the place pleases me as much as any I have seen: - "The Spirit, as salt, must dry up those bad humours in us which breed the never-dying worm; and, as fire, must waste our corruptions, which else will carry us on to the unquenchable fire." Perhaps the whole is an allusion to the purification of vessels, and especially such metallic vessels as were employed in the service of the sanctuary. Probably the following may be considered as a parallel text: - Every thing that may abide the fire, ye shalt make go through the fire, and it shall be clean; and all that abideth not the fire, ye shall make go through the water, Num 31:23. Ye, disciples, are the Lord's sacrifice; ye shall go through much tribulation, in order to enter into my kingdom: but ye are salted, ye are influenced by the Spirit of God, and are immortal till your work is done; and should ye be offered up, martyred, this shall be a means of establishing more fully the glad tidings of the kingdom: and this Spirit shall preserve all who believe on me from the corruption of sin, and from eternal perdition. That converts to God are represented as his offering, see Isa 66:20, the very place which our Lord appears to have here in view.

If this passage be taken according to the common meaning, it is awful indeed! Here may be seen the greatness, multiplicity, and eternity, of the pains of the damned. They suffer without being able to die; they are burned without being consumed; they are sacrificed without being sanctified - are salted with the fire of hell, as eternal victims of the Divine Justice. We must of necessity be sacrificed to God, after one way or other, in eternity; and we have now the choice either of the unquenchable fire of his justice, or of the everlasting flame of his love. Quesnel.

If the salt have lost his saltness - See on Mat 5:13 (note).

Have salt in yourselves - See that ye have at all times the preserving principle of Divine grace in your hearts, and give that proof of it which will satisfy your own minds, and convince or silence the world: live in brotherly kindness and peace with each other: thus shall all men see that you are free from ambition, (see Mar 9:34), and that you are my disciples indeed. That it is possible for the salt to lose its savor, and yet retain its appearance in the most perfect manner, see proved on the note on Mat 5:13 (note).

Till they see the kingdom of God coming with power - So it began to do at the day of pentecost, when three thousand were converted to God at once.

By themselves - That is, separate from the multitude: Apart - From the other apostles: and was transfigured - The Greek word seems to refer to the form of God, and the form of a servant, {mentioned by St. Paul, Php 2:6,7,} and may intimate, that the Divine rays, which the indwelling God let out on this occasion, made the glorious change from one of these forms into the other. Mt 17:1; Lu 9:28.

White as snow, such as no fuller can whiten - Such as could not be equalled either by nature or art.

Elijah - Whom they expected: Moses, whom they did not.

There came a (bright, luminous) cloud, overshadowing them - This seems to have been such a cloud of glory as accompanied Israel in the wilderness, which, as the Jewish writers observe, departed at the death of Moses. But it now appeared again, in honour of our Lord, as the great Prophet of the Church, who was prefigured by Moses. Hear ye him - Even preferably to Moses and Elijah.

Elijah verily coming first restoreth all things: and how it is written - That is, And he told them how it is written - As if he had said, Elijah's coming is not inconsistent with my suffering. He is come: yet I shall suffer. The first part of the verse answers their question concerning Elijah; the second refutes their error concerning the Messiah's continuing for ever.

Mt 17:14; Lu 9:37.

All the multitude seeing him were greatly amazed - At his coming so suddenly, so seasonably, so unexpectedly: perhaps also at some unusual rays of majesty and glory, which yet remained on his countenance.

And one of the multitude answering - The scribes gave no answer to our Lord's question. They did not care to repeat what they had said to his disciples. A dumb spirit - A spirit that takes his speech from him.

When he saw him - When the child saw Christ; when his deliverance was at hand. Immediately the spirit tore him - Made his last grand effort to destroy him. Is it not generally so, before Satan is cast out of a soul, of which he has long had possession?

If thou canst do any thing - In so desperate a case: Have compassion on us - Me as well as him.

If thou canst believe - As if he had said, The thing does not turn on my power, but on thy faith. I can do all things: canst thou believe?

Help thou mine unbelief - Although my faith be so small, that it might rather be termed unbelief, yet help me.

Thou deaf and dumb spirit - So termed, because he made the child so. When Jesus spake, the devil heard, though the child could not. I command thee - I myself now; not my disciples.

Having rent him sore - So does even the body sometimes suffer, when God comes to deliver the soul from Satan.

They passed through Galilee - Though not through the cities, but by them, in the most private ways. He was not willing that any should know it: for he taught his disciples - He wanted to be alone with them some time, in order to instruct them fully concerning his sufferings. The Son of man is delivered - It is as sure as if it were done already. Mt 17:22; Lu 9:44.

They understood not the word - They did not understand how to reconcile the death of our Saviour (nor consequently his resurrection, which supposed his death) with their notions of his temporal kingdom.

Lu 9:46.

Who should be greatest - Prime minister in his kingdom.

Let him be the least of all - Let him abase himself the most.

Mt 18:2; Lu 9:47.

One such little child - Either in years or in heart.

And John answered him - As if he had said, But ought we to receive those who follow not us? Master, we saw one casting out devils in thy name - Probably this was one of John the Baptist's disciples, who believed in Jesus, though he did not yet associate with our Lord's disciples. And we forbad him, because he followeth not us - How often is the same temper found in us? How readily do we also lust to envy? But how does that spirit become a disciple, much more a minister of the benevolent Jesus! St. Paul had learnt a better temper, when he rejoiced that Christ was preached, even by those who were his personal enemies. But to confine religion to them that follow us, is a narrowness of spirit which we should avoid and abhor. Lu 9:49.

Jesus said - Christ here gives us a lovely example of candour and moderation. He was willing to put the best construction on doubtful cases, and to treat as friends those who were not avowed enemies. Perhaps in this instance it was a means of conquering the remainder of prejudice, and perfecting what was wanting in the faith and obedience of these persons. Forbid him not - Neither directly nor indirectly discourage or hinder any man who brings sinners from the power of Satan to God, because he followeth not us, in opinions, modes of worship, or any thing else which does not affect the essence of religion.

For he that is not against you, is for you - Our Lord had formerly said, he that is not with me, is against me: thereby admonishing his hearers, that the war between him and Satan admitted of no neutrality, and that those who were indifferent to him now, would finally be treated as enemies. But here in another view, he uses a very different proverb; directing his followers to judge of men's characters in the most candid manner; and charitably to hope that those who did not oppose his cause wished well to it. Upon the whole, we are to be rigorous in judging ourselves, and candid in judging each other.

For whosoever shall give you a cup - Having answered St. John, our Lord here resumes the discourse which was broken off at the 37th verse. Mr 9:37. Mt 10:42.

On the contrary, whosoever shall offend the very least Christian. Mt 18:6; Lu 17:1.

And if a person cause thee to offend - (The discourse passes from the case of offending, to that of being offended) if one who is as useful or dear to thee as a hand or eye, hinder or slacken thee in the ways of Cod, renounce all intercourse with him. This primarily relates to persons, secondarily to things. Mt 5:29; Mt 18:8.

Where their worm - That gnaweth the soul, (pride, self will, desire, malice, envy, shame, sorrow, despair,) dieth not - No more than the soul itself: and the fire (either material, or infinitely worse!) that tormenteth the body, is not quenched for ever. Isa 66:24.

Every one - Who does not cut off the offending member, and consequently is cast into hell, shall be, as it were, salted with fire, preserved, not consumed thereby whereas every acceptable sacrifice shall be salted with another kind of salt, even that of Divine grace, which purifies the soul, (though frequently with pain) and preserves it from corruption.

Such salt is good indeed; highly beneficial to the world, in respect of which I have termed you the salt of the earth. But if the salt which should season others, have lost its own saltness, wherewith will ye season it? - Beware of this; see that ye retain your savour; and as a proof of it, have peace one with another. More largely this obscure text might be paraphrased thus: - As every burnt offering was salted with salt, in order to its being cast into the fire of the altar, so every one who will not part with his hand or eye, shall fall a sacrifice to Divine justice, and be cast into hell fire, which will not consume, but preserve him from a cessation of being. And on the other hand, every one, who, denying himself and taking up his cross, offers up himself as a living sacrifice to God, shall be seasoned with grace, which like salt will make him savoury, and preserve him from destruction for ever. As salt is good for preserving meats, and making them savoury, so it is good that ye be seasoned with grace, for the purifying your hearts and lives, and for spreading the savour of my knowledge, both in your own souls, and wherever ye go. But as salt if it loses its saltness is fit for nothing, so ye, if ye lose your faith and love, are fit for nothing but to be utterly destroyed. See therefore that grace abide in you, and that ye no more contend, Who shall be greatest. Mt 5:13; Lu 14:34.

1 AND he said unto them, Verily I say unto you, that there be some of them that stand here, which shall not tast of death, till they have seen the kingdom of God come with power.

To tast of Death, is the same with to Dye, or to begin to Dye, or to exprience Death: compare with this Text, Psal. 34 8. Luke 14.24. Ioh. 8.52. Heb. 2.9. Heb. 6.4.5. 1 Pet. 2.3. till they have seen the Kingdom of God come. Our Evangelist addeth with Power. It cannot be meant of the day of Iudgment, unless in the type of it, which was in the destruction of Hierusalem, (of which many understand it) for some of the Ap[illegible: 1 letter]stles, more doubtless of Christs Disciples, outlived the fatal ruin of that once Famous City. Others understand here by the Kingdom of God, Christs Resurrection from the Dead, when Christs Kingdom began to be fully made known, Acts 10.42.

Marginal references: Math. 1[illegible: 1 letter].28. Luke 9.27.

10 And they kept that saying with themselves, questioning one with another, what the rising from the dead should mean.

Both Matthew and Luke, as well as Mark bear record to the Truth of this History. See the Notes on Matth. Ch. 17.1. Our Saviour was pleased thus to fortify these three of his Disciples against his Passion, which they were soon to see. And also to confirm their Faith as to his Divine Nature; why Moses and Elias, rather then any others appeared, is but a curious question of no great use to us, if resolved, and not possible to be resolved. These three Disciples, by this Apparition saw our Saviour owned by Moses, who gave the Law, and by Elias in great repute both of them with the Jews. The three Disciples could know neither of them (dead many hundreds of years before they were in being) but by Revelation: probably Christ told them who they were, what their Discourse with Christ was in the general, Matthew telleth us. There is no considerable thing in this Evangelists Relation, which we did not meet with in Matthew, which may supersede any further Labo[illegible: 1 letter]r about it here,

13 But I say unto you, that Elias is indeed come, and they have done unto him whatsoever they listed, as it is written of him.

Christ had been telling his Disciples that he should suffer. The Jews had a Prophecy, not only that the Messias should come, but that he should be cut off, Dan. 9.26. but not for himself. Only this hindred, the certainty of their persuasion, that Christ was he, because Elias was not yet come, whom they did expect, Mal. 4.5. for they expected the coming of Elias in Person, when as the Prophecy was to be understood of one in the Spirit, and Power of Elias, as the Angel expounded it, Lu. 1.17. They also expected that Elias when he came, should make a great change in their World, and bring all things again into order, but still their Eye was upon a secular Change, and a restoring of them to that Liberty of their Country, which they formerly enjoyed, where as the Prophecy, Mal. 4.6. is expounded by the Angel, Lu. 1.16, 17. And many of the Children of Israel shall he turn to the Lord their God—to turn the Hearts of the Fathers unto the Children, and the disobedient to the Wisdom of the just, to make ready a People prepared for the Lord. The Disciples being Iews, were under the prejudices of these Notions about Elias so commonly received by the Doctors of their Church, and the Generality of their People. To this our Saviour Answers, The thing was true, Elias (that is one in the Spirit and Power of Elias) was according to the Prophecy of Malachy to come, before the Messias, but they had over-lookt him, for indeed this E[illegible: 1 letter]ias was come, Matth. 11.14. and by his Preaching the Doctrine of Repentance, for the Remission of Sins, had indeavoured to restore all things, that is, to make a great change in the Hearts, and lives of the Jews, but they had put him to death, he further telleth them, That Iohn had told them of the Son of Man, that he must suffer many things, and be set at nought. He did indeed tell them so, when Iohn 1.29. he pointed to him passing by, and said, Behold the Lamb of God who taketh away [or taketh up, or beareth] the Sins of the World. So that this was no just prejudice to their believing, that he was the true Messiah.

16 And he asked the scribes, What question ye with them.

When Christ came down from the Mountain of Transfiguration, to his Disciples, which he had left at the Foot of the Mountain, he saw a great Multitude got together about them, and discerned some Scribes (Companions of the Pharisees and Teachers of the Law) mixing themselves with his Disciples, and Arguing with them. They had often attempted our Saviour to no purpose, but their own shame and Confusion, in his absence they fall in with his Disciples, who were yet raw in the Faith, over them they hope to get a great Conquest. The Evangelist doth not plainly tell us what the subject matter of their Discourse was. Tho there be no question but the Scribes in this Discourse pursued their Design to expose, and vilify Christ, and his Disciples, and to that purpose taking advantage of our Saviours absence discoursed with them about many Things, yet Mr. Calvin doth (not improbably) judge that a great part of their Discourse, was about our Saviours Casting out of Devils, and their Power in that thing derived from him, they being at the present non-plust, and not able to exert that Power in the casting out of a Devil, with which one was possessed, who in our Saviours Absence was brought to them. That which maketh this probable, is not only that this Act of our Saviour more troubled and Gall'd them than any other, and put them to that miserable Refuge, (out of which our Saviour had lately beaten them) to say, That he cast out Devils, by Beelzebub the Prince of Devils, but also that when our Saviour coming in to the timely Rescue of his Disciples, aske's the Scribes. What Question you among your selves, it is said.

Marginal references: Or, among your selves.

29 And he said unto them, This kind can come forth by nothing, but by prayer and fasting.

This famous History is also recorded by two other Evangelists, Matthew and Luke, we have opened it in our Notes on Matth. 17.14, &c. and consider'd what Mark and Luke have to Compleat it. For our Instruction we may learn several things from the Consideration of it. 1. The great goodness of God in preserving us from the power of Evil Spirits, as also the daily working of his Providence for our preservation, what but this kept this Man from being destroyed by the Fires and the Waters into which he had been often thrown by the Evil Spirit. 2. That the shorter the Devils time is, the more he rageth, v. 20. This is true, both as to the Devil himself, and his Instruments, Rev. 12.12. The Devil is come down unto you, having great Wrath, because he knoweth that he hath but a short time. Thus in the moment of Conversion, Christians often meet with the strongest Conflicts of Temptation. 3. The fault is not in Christ, but in our selves, if we receive not that Mercy from him, which he hath, and which we stand in need of, and beg from him.—If (saith Christ) thou canst believe.—4. God rewardeth weak Faith, where it is attended with a sincere desire of increase. This poor Man shewed a very imperfect Faith, in saying, If thou canst do any thing, but it being in some degree and sincere, the Lord rewardeth it, tho Weak, he desiring an increase of it, and that God would from his goodness supply what was defective in his Faith. 5. The great Cures both of our Bodies and Souls in some Cases, require more Extraordinary, and Importunate Addresses, and applications unto God, more especially where Evils are more inverate. For other things relating to this History, see the Notes on Matth. 17. v. 14, &c.

32 But they understood not that saying, and were afraid to ask him.

Our Saviour, as the time of his suffering approached more nearly, did more frequently inculcate it to his Disciples, that being forewarned, they might also be fore-armed against the Temptation of it, and we learn from Luke 24.21. That all was too little, for when they saw these things come to pass, they began to Flag as to their Faith. They said, v. 21. But we trusted it had been he, who should have Redeemed Israel. Our Saviour, the Son of Man is delivered, which is expounded by Matthew 17.22, 23. The Son of Man shall be betrayed. He was already delivered in the sure Counsel of God, and what God hath revealed, shall be done, because of the certainty of the effect, is often in Scripture spoken of as a thing already done, that Phrase, v. 31. the third Day [non-Latin text not transcribed] expounds that other Phrase which we meet with, Ch. 8.31. [non-Latin text not transcribed] which we Translate after three Days, and makes the meaning of the Evangelist plain to have been, as we determined it.

34 But they held their peace, For by the way they had disputed among themselves who should be the greatest.

This Ambition of the Disciples we have had occasion before to Discourse of, in the Notes on Matth. 18.1. It was founded upon their mistake of the true Nature of the Kingdom of the Messiah, which they at this time, and a long time after (even to the time of Christs Ascension, as appeareth by Acts 1.6.) understood of a temporal, secular Kingdom, in the Administration of which, he should deliver the Jews from all Slavery, and Bondage, this made their Minds so often run of Dignities, and Places which he should in that Administration, have a Power to dispose of. This made the Mother of Zebedees Children, petition for places for her two Sons.

37 Whosoever shall receive one of such children in my name, receiveth me, and whosoever shall receive me, receiveth not me, but him that sent me.

Matthews Recital of this passage, expoundeth Mark; he saith, Christ said, except you be converted, and become as little Children, you shall not enter into the Kingdom of Heaven, whosoever therefore shall humble himself as this little Child, the same is greatest in the Kingdom of God. And whoso shall receive one such little Child in my Name, receiveth me. Luke also relateth this passage something more shortly, but without any Contradiction to what is said by the other Evangelist. The Sence is plain our Saviours design was to Check the Ambition, and Ignorance of his Disciples. Never more unseasonably shewed then now, when a suffring time was so hard at Hand. He at first did it by Word of Mouth, telling them. That if any Man desire to be first, he should be last of all. The least valuable in the Eyes of God, and he would have them value such a Person least, Humility is that which most Exalts a Soul in the Eyes of Christ, and setteth it highest in his esteem. But it is observable. Our Lord doth not say. He that is the first, but he who desireth to be first. God is a God of order, not of Confusion, there can be no order without a first, as well as a last. But Christians (Ministers especially▪ for he is here speaking to the Twelve) ought to be sought out for, not to seek places of Preheminence, and Dignity, he that is first in seeking them, is usually last as to any true worth deserving them, and ought last to obtain them. Then he teacheth them Humility by the Type of a little Child, which he setteth in the midst of them, telling them they must be like that little Child (saith Matthew) not in all things, but in the want of Ambition: in a carelessness as to the great things of this Life. And whosoever entertain'd or shewed kindness to such a one, Christ would take it as done to himself, and what kindness was shewed him, reached not to him only, but to his Father who sent him. There are also other things in little Children commended to us in Holy Writ, but this is manifestly what our Saviour here intendeth. See the Notes on Matth. Ch. 18. v. 1, 2, 3.

Marginal references: Mat. 10.40.

40 For he that is not against us, is on our part:

Here is a question ariseth worthy of our Discussion a little, seeing these Miraculous Operations were performed by a Divine Power, and for such an end as the Confirmation of Christs Divine Power, how could any one cast out Devils in the Name of Christ, and yet not follow him, and his Disciples? 1. It is apparent, that this Person was no Enemy to Christ, or his Gospel, by what our Saviour saith, both v. 39. and 40. 2. It is evident. That the casting out of Devils, was no saving effect of the holy Spirit, Christ saith, Matth. 7.22. That some should say, In thy Name have we cast out Devils, to whom in the Day of Judgment he would say. Depart from me, I know you not, you Workers of Iniquity. 3. It is plain that this Man was no such Person, as Sceva's Sons of whom we Read, Acts 19. v. 14, 15, 16. for the Devils resisted▪ them, tho they also used the Name of Christ.▪ It was a time exceeding famous for some of the more Extraordinary Gifts of the Holy Ghost, and it is not to be wondered, if some in this time for the Glory of God, received some Crums of that plentiful Benevolence, tho they were but imperfect Disciples, yet being no Enemies. Caiphas Prophesied, Ioh 11.51.52. and tho I do think that the Children of the Pharisees mentioned, Matth. 12.27. as Persons that cast out Devils, is best interpreted of those sent out by Christ (the Twelve and the Seventy) yet some are of another mind. Some think this Man, tho he did not follow Christ, and his Disciples as a constant Companion, yet was one who favoured, and had received the Gospel: Or else one of Iohns Disciples, and so one, who, tho he was not formally joyned with the followers of Christ, yet was a Friend of that great Bridegroom. So as Iohn and the rest forbidding him, seemed to be guilty of two no small Errors. 1. Envying for Christs sake, as Ioshua did for Moses his sake, Num. 11.28. as Iohns Disciples did for their Masters sake, Iohn 3.26. willing that Christ, and those whom he sent out should have all the Honour, of those Miraculous Operations. 2. Limiting the Grace of Christ to that Congregatton, which followed Christ, and the Twelve. A thing that good Men are to prone unto. How much better was the Spirit of Paul, who tells us Philip. 1.15. that altho some Preached Christ of envy, and strife, yet he rejoyced, and would rejoyce that Christ was Preached, whether in pretence, or in Truth, v. 18. Christ would have all his People of such a Spirit, as not to hinder▪ but commend, not to Envy, but to rejoyce in the doing of good by any, whether they did follow him or no. Some do think that at that time it pleased God, that for the Honour of his Son Jesus Christ, he did Concur with those, that Named his Name in such Miraculous Operations. Sure we are that Christ reproveth Iohn, and Commandeth them not to forbid this Man, giving this for a reason, That his owning the Name of Christ, so far as to use it in such an Operation, had at least so much kindness for him, as he was no Enemy, he would not Curse him, nor speak Evil of him, which cometh up to that of the Apostle, 1 Cor. 12.3. No Man speaking by the Spirit of God, calleth Iesus Accursed, and no Man can say Jesus is the Lord but by the Spirit. For he that is not against us, is on our part. If a Man be not an open Enemy to Christ, he ought to be presumed to be his Friend, at leas[illegible: 1 letter] so far as not to be discouraged in doing a good Work.

Marginal references: Mat. 12.30.

41 For whosoever shall give you a cup of water to drink, in my name, because ye belong to Christ, I say unto you, he shall not lose his reward.

We meet with the same in substance, Matth. 10.42. there the Phrase is in the name of a Disciple, here it is Expounded because you belong to me. In my Name, upon my account believing you have a Relation to me

42 And whosoever shall offend one of these little ones, that believe in me, it is better for him that a milstone were hanged about his neck, and he were cast into the sea.

See the Notes on Matth. 18.6.

Marginal references: Luk. 17.1.[illegible: 1 letter].

48 Where their worm dyeth not, and the fire is not quenched.

See the Notes on Matth. 5.29, 30. where the same things Occur (Matthew only mentions the Hand, and the Eye) all have the same Significancy, viz. That it is better to deny our selves in some particular satisfaction, then to hazard Eternal Salvation for the gratifying the Appetite in it.

49 For every one shall be salted with sire, and every sacrifice shall be salted with salt.

The Phrase of this Text is so difficult, and the Sense of it so [illegible: 1 word] to be understood, that it hath deservedly exercised the parts of many I[illegible: 2 letters]erpreters, and given them a Latitude to abound in [illegible: 1 word]. Those who would rightly understand it, must have a Retrospection to the sixverses immediately preceding, where our Lord had persuaded the M[illegible: 1 letter]rtification of our most [illegible: 1 word] and profitable, or Pleasant Lu[illegible: 1 letter]ts under the Notion of [illegible: 1 word] off the Right Hand or Foot offending, and plucking [illegible: 1 span] the Right [illegible: 1 word], under the Penalty of going into a Fire that shall [illegible: 1 letter]ever be quenched: as also to the Law, Levit. 2.13. which r[illegible: 1 letter]ns thus. And every Oblation of this B[illegible: 1 letter]rnt Offering, shalt thou season with Salt, neither shalt thou suffer the Salt [illegible: 1 letter]f [illegible: 1 span] of thy God to be lacking from thy Meat-Offering: with ac[illegible: 1 letter] thine Offerings thou shalt offer Salt. 2. They must next consider the Nature of Salt, and Fire. It is of the Nature of Salt ▪ by drying up the overmuch moisture in Meats, to preserve them from Putrefaction. 2. To cause smart to living Flesh. And of Fire to separate things not of the same kind in Compounded Bodies, and also to cause pain, and smart. 3. They must know, that every one in the former part of the Verse▪ is the same with every Sacrifice in the latter part. For every Man, and Woman living, will, or shall be a Sacrifice to God. Godly Man are not only Priests, 1 Pet. 2.5.9. Rev. 1.6. & 5.10. but Sacrifices, Rom. 12.1. wicked Men, tho indeed they be no Priests (Voluntarily giving up themselves unto God) yet they shall be Sacrifices like the Sacrifice in Bozrah, Isa. 34.6. or in the North Country by the River Euphrates, Ier. 46.10. see also Ezech. 39.17. Zeph. 1.7. The Saints are both Priests, and Sacrifices. These things premised the difficulty of the Text is not great. Our Lord had been in the former Verses persuading the Mortification of Mens dearest Lusts, under the Notions of cutting off the Right Hand, or Foot, and pl[illegible: 1 letter]cking out the Right Eye, and pressing this Exhortation, from the eligibleness of it, rather then (keeping them) to be thrust into Hell, where the Worm never Dyes, and where the Fire never goeth out. Now (saith he in this Verse.) For every one shall be Salted with Fire, and every Sacrifice shall be Salted with Salt. God hath a Fire, and a Salt, which every Man must indure. He hath a Purging Fire to take away mens Dross and Tinn. Some he Baptizeth with the Holy Ghost, and with Fire, Matth. 3.11. Luke 3.16. and he hath a Consuming Tormenting Fire, a Fiery Indignation, which shall devour the Adversaries, Heb. 10.27. It is true, the Lords sacred Fire of his Holy Spirit, will like Fire and Salt cause smart, while it purgeth out our Lusts, like the cutting off of a Right Hand or Foot, but judge you whether it be not better to indure that smart, then to endure Hell Fire, for every one must indure one of these. Yea, and every one must be Salted with Fire. The Saints shall be seasoned with influences of Grace, Eph. 4.29. Col. 4.6. and they shall by the holy Spirit of God be preserved by Faith through the Power of God to Salvation, till their Purity of Heart and holiness of Life, shall issue in an incorruptibility of Being, and Blessed State, 1 Cor. 15.52, 53, 54. they shall be Salted in, or, with Fire, that is▪ preserved, in, or by the holy Fire of Gods holy Spirit (nor is Salting with Fire so hard a Metaphor, as being Baptized with Fire▪ seems to be (nothing being so contrary to Fire as Water is) others, viz. wicked and ungodly Men, who will not indure this Fire, nor be Salted with this Salt, shall yet be Salted with another Fire, and with another Salt, which is the Fire that never goes out, mentioned 44.46.48. v. which will cause them a much greater pain, and smart, and in which being separated from all their Comforts and Satisfactions, they shall be Salted, that is (as to their beings)▪ preserved, that they may be the objects of the Eternal wrath and Justice of God; for every one must go through one or the other Fire▪ every Soul must be seasoned, with the one or other Salt. Now Judge you then whether it be not more adviseable for you, to be Seasoned with this Salt, tho you indeed shall indure some smart in your Acts of Mortification, and selfdenial, then to indure Hell Fire, where you will be Salted too as well as Burned, that is, not Tormented only, but preserved in Torments, so as you shall never Consume, but be ever dying, for with one or other of these Fires, every Person, every Man or Woman Breathing must be Salted, and seasoned, as of old, every Sacrifice was to be Seasoned with Salt.

Marginal references: Lev[illegible: 1 letter]t. 2.1[illegible: 1 letter]

50 Salt is good, but if the salt hath lost its saltness, wherewith will ye season it? Have salt in your selves, and have peace one with another.

We met with the former part of this Verse Matth. 5. see the Notes on v. 13. in that Text he compared his Disciples, whether Preachers or others to Salt, because by their Doctrine, and holy Life and Example, they as it were kept the▪ World sweet. I do not see why we should not so understand him speaking here, understanding by Salt Persons Salted, seasoned with the knowledge of the Doctrine of Christ, and with the fear and love of God. These are good. But if any appearing such, Apo[illegible: 1 letter]tatize, or be Lazy, and inactive, what are they good for? Or what shall season them? Have Salt in your selves, and peace one with another. Here Salt is taken in a little different Sense. In the former Sense, themselves were the Salt, here they are commanded to keep Salt in themselves. They could not have been Salt to Season others, if themselves had not first been Salted with gracious Habits of Knowledge, Faith, Love, fear of God: now saith our Saviour, Keep this Salt in your selves, let not this holy Fire dye from the Altar, take heed of losing your Savour, and have Peace one with another. It is one thing in the Nature of Salt, to Vnite and Knit the parts of the Body Salted together, so as the upholding of an Union, and Peace one with another will declare, that you have Salt in your selves. By this, (saith the Apostle) we know we are Translated from Death to Life, if we love the Brethren. In order to which Men must avoid Envy, and Emulation, and Contests for Superiority, &c. A contest of which Nature gave the first occasion of these Discourses.

Marginal references: Luke 14.34.; Rom. 12.18. Heb. 12.14.

The Transfiguration.

1 And he said unto them, Verily I say unto you, That there be some of them that stand here, which shall not taste of death, till they have seen the kingdom of God come with power. 2 And after six days Jesus taketh with him Peter, and James, and John, and leadeth them up into a high mountain apart by themselves: and he was transfigured before them. 3 And his raiment became shining, exceeding white as snow; so as no fuller on earth can white them. 4 And there appeared unto them Elias with Moses: and they were talking with Jesus. 5 And Peter answered and said to Jesus, Master, it is good for us to be here: and let us make three tabernacles; one for thee, and one for Moses, and one for Elias. 6 For he wist not what to say; for they were sore afraid. 7 And there was a cloud that overshadowed them: and a voice came out of the cloud, saying, This is my beloved Son: hear him. 8 And suddenly, when they had looked round about, they saw no man any more, save Jesus only with themselves. 9 And as they came down from the mountain, he charged them that they should tell no man what things they had seen, till the Son of man were risen from the dead. 10 And they kept that saying with themselves, questioning one with another what the rising from the dead should mean. 11 And they asked him, saying, Why say the scribes that Elias must first come? 12 And he answered and told them, Elias verily cometh first, and restoreth all things; and how it is written of the Son of man, that he must suffer many things, and be set at nought. 13 But I say unto you, That Elias is indeed come, and they have done unto him whatsoever they listed, as it is written of him.

Here is, I. A prediction of Christ's kingdom now near approaching, v. 1. That which is foretold, is, 1. That the kingdom of God would come, and would come so as to be seen: the kingdom of the Messiah shall be set up in the world by the utter destruction of the Jewish polity, which stood in the way of it; this was the restoring of the kingdom of God among men, which had been in a manner lost by the woeful degeneracy both of Jews and Gentiles. 2. That it would come with power, so as to make its own way, and bear down the opposition that was given to it. It came with power, when vengeance was taken on the Jews for crucifying Christ, and when it conquered the idolatry of the Gentile world. 3. That it would come while some now present were alive; There are some standing here, that shall not taste of death, till they see it; this speaks the same with Matt. xxiv. 34, This generation shall not pass, till all these things be fulfilled. Those that were standing here with Christ, should see it, when the others could not discern it to be the kingdom of God, for it came not with observation.

II. A specimen of that kingdom in the transfiguration of Christ, six days after Christ spoke that prediction. He had begun to give notice to his disciples of his death and sufferings; and, to prevent their offence at that, he gives them this glimpse of his glory, to show that his sufferings were voluntary, and what a virtue the dignity and glory of his person would put into them, and to prevent the offence of the cross.

1. It was on the top of a high mountain, like the converse Moses had with God, which was on the top of mount Sinai, and his prospect of Canaan from the top of mount Pisgah. Tradition saith, It was on the top of the mount Tabor that Christ was transfigured; and if so, the scripture was fulfilled, Tabor and Hermon shall rejoice in thy name, Ps. lxxxix. 12. Dr. Lightfoot, observing that the last place where we find Christ was in the coasts of Cæsarea-Philippi, which was far from mount Tabor, rather thinks it was a high mountain which Josephus speaks of, near Cæsarea.

2. The witnesses of it were Peter, James, and John; these were the three that were to bear record on earth, answering to Moses, Elias, and the voice from heaven, the three that were to bear record from above. Christ did not take all the disciples with him, because the thing was to be kept very private. As there are distinguishing favours which are given to disciples and not to the world, so there are to some disciples and not to others. All the saints are a people near to Christ, but some lie in his bosom. James was the first of all the twelve that died for Christ, and John survived them all, to be the last eyewitness of this glory; he bore record (John i. 14); We saw his glory: and so did Peter, 2 Pet. i. 16-18.

3. The manner of it; He was transfigured before them; he appeared in another manner than he used to do. This was a change of the accidents, the substance remaining the same, and it was a miracle. But transubstantiation, the change of the substance, all the accidents remaining the same, is not a miracle, but a fraud and imposture, such a work as Christ never wrought. See what a great change human bodies are capable of, when God is pleased to put an honour upon them, as he will upon the bodies of the saints, at the resurrection. He was transfigured before them; the change, it is probable, was gradual, from glory to glory, so that the disciples, who had their eye upon him all the while, had the clearest and most certain evidence they could have, that this glorious appearance was no other than the blessed Jesus himself, and there was no illusion in it. John seems to refer to this (1 John i. 1), when he speaks of the word of life, as that which they had seen with their eyes, and looked upon. His raiment became shining; so that, though probably, it was sad-coloured, if not black, yet it was now exceeding white as snow, beyond what the fuller's art could do toward whitening it.

4. His companions in this glory were Moses and Elias (v. 4); They appeared talking with him, not to teach him, but to testify to him, and to be taught by him; by which it appears that there are converse and intercourse between glorified saints, they have ways of talking one with another, which we understand not. Moses and Elias lived at a great distance of time one from another, but that breaks no squares in heaven, where the first shall be last, and the last first, that is, all one in Christ.

5. The great delight that the disciples took in seeing this sight, and hearing this discourse, is expressed by Peter, the mouth of the rest; He said, Master, it is good for us to be here, v. 5. Though Christ was transfigured, and was in discourse with Moses and Elias, yet he gave Peter leave to speak to him, and to be as free with him as he used to be. Note, Our Lord Jesus, in his exaltation and glory, doth not at all abate of his condescending kindness to his people. Many, when they are in their greatness, oblige their friends to keep their distance; but even to the glorified Jesus true believers have access with boldness, and freedom of speech with him. Even in this heavenly discourse there was room for Peter to put in a word; and this is it, "Lord, it is good to be here, it is good for us to be here; here let us make tabernacles; let this be our rest for ever." Note, Gracious souls reckon it good to be in communion with Christ, good to be near him, good to be in the mount with him, though it be a cold and solitary place; it is good to be here retired from the world, and alone with Christ: and if it is good to be with Christ transfigured only upon a mountain with Moses and Elias, how good it will be to be with Christ glorified in heaven with all the saints! But observe, While Peter was for staying here, he forgot what need there was of the presence of Christ, and the preaching of his apostles, among the people. At this very time, the other disciples wanted them greatly, v. 14. Note, When it is well with us, we are apt to be mindless of others, and in the fulness of our enjoyments to forget the necessities of our brethren; it was a weakness in Peter to prefer private communion with God before public usefulness. Paul is willing to abide in the flesh, rather than depart to the mountain of glory (though that be far better), when he sees it needful for the church, Phil. i. 24, 25. Peter talked of making three distinct tabernacles for Moses, Elias, and Christ, which was not well-contrived; for such a perfect harmony there is between the law, the prophets, and the gospel, that one tabernacle will hold them all; they dwell together in unity. But whatever was incongruous in what he said, he may be excused, for they were all sore afraid; and he, for his part, wist not what to say (v. 6), not knowing what would be the end thereof.

6. The voice that came from heaven, was an attestation of Christ's mediatorship, v. 7. There was a cloud that overshadowed them, and was a shelter to them. Peter had talked of making tabernacles for Christ and his friends; but while he yet spoke, see how his project was superseded; this cloud was unto them instead of tabernacles for their shelter (Isa. iv. 5); while he spoke of his tabernacles, God created his tabernacle not made with hands. Now out of this cloud (which was but a shade to the excellent glory Peter speaks of, whence this voice came) it was said, This is my beloved Son, hear him. God owns him, and accepts him, as his beloved Son, and is ready to accept of us in him; we must then own and accept him as our beloved Saviour, and must give up ourselves to be ruled by him.

7. The vision, being designed only to introduce the voice, when that was delivered, disappeared (v. 8); Suddenly when they had looked round about, as men amazed to see where they were, all was gone, they saw no man any more. Elias and Moses were vanished out of sight, and Jesus only remained with them, and he not transfigured, but as he used to be. Note, Christ doth not leave the soul, when extraordinary joys and comforts leave it. Though more sensible and ravishing communications may be withdrawn, Christ's disciples have, and shall have, his ordinary presence with them always, even to the end of the world, and that is it we must depend upon. Let us thank God for daily bread and not expect a continual feast on this side of heaven.

8. We have here the discourse between Christ and his disciples, as they came down from the mount.

(1.) He charged them to keep this matter very private, till he was risen from the dead, which would complete the proof of his divine mission, and then this must be produced with the rest of the evidence, v. 9. And besides, he, being now in a state of humiliation, would have nothing publicly taken notice of, that might be seen disagreeable to such a state; for to that he would in every thing accommodate himself. This enjoining of silence to the disciples, would likewise be of use to them, to prevent their boasting of the intimacy they were admitted to, that they might not be puffed up with the abundance of the revelations. It is a mortification to a man, to be tied up from telling of his advancements, and may help to hide pride from him.

(2.) The disciples were at a loss what the rising from the dead should mean; they could not form any notion of the Messiah's dying (Luke xviii. 34), and therefore were willing to think that the rising he speaks of, was figurative, his rising from his present mean and low estate to the dignity and dominion they were in expectation of. But if so, here is another thing that embarrasses them (v. 11); Why say the Scribes, that before the appearing of the Messiah in his glory, according to the order settled in the prophecies of the Old Testament, Elias must first come? But Elias was gone, and Moses too. Now that which raised this difficulty, was, the scribes taught them to expect the person of Elias, whereas the prophecy intended one in the spirit and power of Elias. Note, The misunderstanding of scripture is a great prejudice to the entertainment of truth.

(3.) Christ gave them a key to the prophecy concerning Elias (v. 12, 13); "It is indeed prophesied that Elias will come, and will restore all things, and set them to rights; and (though you will not understand it) it is also prophesied of the Son of man, that he must suffer many things, and be set at nought, must be a reproach of men, and despised of the people: and though the scribes do not tell you so, the scriptures do, and you have as much reason to expect that as the other, and should not make so strange of it; but as to Elias, I tell you he is come; and if you consider a little, you will understand whom I mean, it is one to whom they have done whatsoever they listed;" which was very applicable to the ill usage they had given John Baptist. Many of the ancients, and the Popish writers generally, think, that besides the coming of John Baptist in the spirit of Elias, himself in his own person is to be expected, with Enoch, before the second appearance of Christ, wherein the prophecy of Malachi will have a more full accomplishment than it had in John Baptist. But it is groundless fancy; the true Elias, as well as the true Messiah promised, is come, and we are to look for no other. These words as it is written of him, refer not to their doing to him whatever they listed (that comes in a parenthesis), but only to his coming. He is come, and hath been, and done, according as was written of him.

The Expulsion of an Evil Spirit.

14 And when he came to his disciples, he saw a great multitude about them, and the scribes questioning with them. 15 And straightway all the people, when they beheld him, were greatly amazed, and running to him saluted him. 16 And he asked the scribes, What question ye with them? 17 And one of the multitude answered and said, Master, I have brought unto thee my son, which hath a dumb spirit; 18 And wheresoever he taketh him, he teareth him: and he foameth, and gnasheth with his teeth, and pineth away: and I spake to thy disciples that they should cast him out; and they could not. 19 He answereth him, and saith, O faithless generation, how long shall I be with you? how long shall I suffer you? bring him unto me. 20 And they brought him unto him: and when he saw him, straightway the spirit tare him; and he fell on the ground, and wallowed foaming. 21 And he asked his father, How long is it ago since this came unto him? And he said, Of a child. 22 And ofttimes it hath cast him into the fire, and into the waters, to destroy him: but if thou canst do any thing, have compassion on us, and help us. 23 Jesus said unto him, If thou canst believe, all things are possible to him that believeth. 24 And straightway the father of the child cried out, and said with tears, Lord, I believe; help thou mine unbelief. 25 When Jesus saw that the people came running together, he rebuked the foul spirit, saying unto him, Thou dumb and deaf spirit, I charge thee, come out of him, and enter no more into him. 26 And the spirit cried, and rent him sore, and came out of him: and he was as one dead; insomuch that many said, He is dead. 27 But Jesus took him by the hand, and lifted him up; and he arose. 28 And when he was come into the house, his disciples asked him privately, Why could not we cast him out? 29 And he said unto them, This kind can come forth by nothing, but by prayer and fasting.

We have here the story of Christ casting the devil out of a child, somewhat more fully related than it was in Matt. xvii. 14, &c. Observe here,

I. Christ's return to his disciples, and the perplexity he found them in. He laid aside his robes of glory, and came to look after his family, and to enquire what was become of them. Christ's glory above does not make him forget the concerns of his church below, which he visits in great humility, v. 14. And he came very seasonably, when the disciples were embarrassed and run a-ground; the scribes, who were sworn enemies both to him and them, had gained an advantage against them. A child possessed with a devil was brought to them, and they could not cast out the devil, whereupon the scribes insulted over them, and reflected upon their Master, and triumphed as if the day were their own. He found the scribes questioning with them, in the hearing of the multitude, some of whom perhaps began to be shocked by it. Thus Moses, when he came down from the mount, found the camp of Israel in great disorder; so soon were Christ and Moses missed. Christ's return was very welcome, no doubt, to the disciples, and unwelcome to the scribes. But particular notice is taken of its being very surprising to the people, who perhaps were ready to say, As for this Jesus, we wot not what is become of him; but when they beheld him coming to them again, they were greatly amazed (some copies add, kai exephobethesan—and they were afraid); and running to him (some copies for prostrechontes, read proschairontes—congratulating him, or bidding him welcome), they saluted him. It is easy to give a reason why they should be glad to see him; but why where they amazed, greatly amazed, when they beheld him? Probably, there might remain something unusual in his countenance; as Moses's face shone when he came down from the mount, which made the people afraid to come nigh him, Exod. xxxiv. 30. So perhaps did Christ's face, in some measure; at least, instead of seeming fatigued, there appeared a wonderful briskness and sprightliness in his looks, which amazed them.

II. The case which perplexed the disciples, brought before him. He asked the scribes, who, he knew, were always vexatious to his disciples, and teazing them upon every occasion, "What question ye with them? What is the quarrel now?" The scribes made no answer, for they were confounded at his presence; the disciples made none, for they were comforted, and now left all to him. But the father of the child opened the case, v. 17, 18. 1. His child is possessed with a dumb spirit; he has the falling-sickness, and in his fits is speechless; his case is very sad, for, wheresoever the fit takes him, the spirit tears him, throws him into such violent convulsions as almost pull him to pieces; and, which is very grievous to himself, and frightful to those about him, he foams at his mouth, and gnashes with his teeth, as one in pain and great misery; and though the fits go off presently, yet they leave him so weak, that he pines away, is worn to a skeleton; his flesh is dried away; so the word signifies, Ps. cii. 3-5. This was a constant affliction to a tender father. 2. The disciples cannot give him any relief; "I desired they would cast him out, as they had done many, and they would willingly have done it, but they could not; and therefore thou couldest never have come in better time; Master, I have brought him to thee."

III. The rebuke he gave to them all (v. 19); O faithless generation, how long shall I be with you? How long shall I suffer you? Dr. Hammond understands this as spoken to the disciples, reproving them for not exerting the power he had given them, and because they did not fast and pray, as in some cases he had directed them to do. But Dr. Whitby takes it as a rebuke to the scribes, who gloried in this disappointment that the disciples met with, and hoped to run them down with it. Them he calls a faithless generation, and speaks as one weary of being with them, and of bearing with them. We never heard him complaining, "How long shall I be in this low condition, and suffer that?" But, "How long shall I be among these faithless people, and suffer them?"

IV. The deplorable condition that the child was actually in, when he was brought to Christ, and the doleful representation which the father made of it. When the child saw Christ, he fell into a fit; The spirit straightway tore him, boiled within him, troubled him (so Dr. Hammond); as if the devil would set Christ at defiance, and hoped to be too hard for him too, and to keep possession in spite of him. The child fell on the ground, and wallowed foaming. We may put another construction upon it—that the devil raged, and had so much the greater wrath, because he knew that his time was short, Rev. vii. 12. Christ asked, How long since this came to him? And, it seems, the disease was of long standing; it came to him of a child (v. 21), which made the case the more sad, and the cure more difficult. We are all by nature children of disobedience, and in such the evil spirit works, and has done so from our childhood; for foolishness is bound in the heart of a child, and nothing but the mighty grace of Christ can cast it out.

V. The pressing instances which the father of the child makes with Christ for a cure (v. 22); Ofttimes it hath cast him into the fire, and into the waters, to destroy him. Note, The devil aims at the ruin of those in whom he rules and works, and seeks whom he may devour. But, if thou canst do any thing, have compassion on us, and help us. The leper was confident of Christ's power, but put an if upon his will (Matt. viii. 2); If thou wilt, thou canst. This poor man referred himself to his good-will, but put an if upon his power, because his disciples, who cast out devils in his name, had been non-plussed in this case. Thus Christ suffers in his honour by the difficulties and follies of his disciples.

VI. The answer Christ gave to his address (v. 23); If thou canst believe, all things are possible to him that believeth. Here, 1. He tacitly checks the weakness of his faith. The sufferer put it upon Christ's power, If thou canst do any thing, and reflected on the want of power in the disciples; but Christ turns it upon him, and puts him upon questioning his own faith, and will have him impute the disappointment to the want of that; If thou canst believe. 2. He graciously encourages the strength of his desire; "All things are possible, will appear possible, to him that believes the almighty power of God, to which all things are possible;" or "That shall be done by the grace of God, for them that believe in the promise of God, which seemed utterly impossible." Note, In dealing with Christ, very much is put upon our believing, and very much promised it. Canst thou believe? Darest thou believe? Art thou willing to venture thy all in the hands of Christ? To venture all thy spiritual concerns with him, and all thy temporal concerns for him? Canst thou find in thy heart to do this? If so, it is not impossible but that, though thou has been a great sinner, thou mayest be reconciled; though thou art very mean and unworthy, thou mayest get to heaven. If thou canst believe, it is possible that thy hard heart may be softened, thy spiritual diseases may be cured; and that, weak as thou art, thou mayest be able to hold out to the end.

VII. The profession of faith which the poor man made hereupon (v. 24); He cried out, "Lord, I believe; I am fully persuaded both of thy power and of thy pity; my cure shall not be prevented by the want of faith; Lord, I believe." He adds a prayer for grace to enable him more firmly to rely upon the assurances he had of the ability and willingness of Christ to save; Help thou my unbelief. Note, 1. Even those who through grace can say, Lord, I believe, have reason to complain of their unbelief; that they cannot so readily apply to themselves, and their own case, the word of Christ as they should, no so cheerfully depend upon it. 2. Those that complain of unbelief, must look up to Christ for grace to help them against it, and his grace shall be sufficient for them. "Help mine unbelief, help me to a pardon for it, help me with power against it; help out what is wanting in my faith with thy grace, the strength of which is perfected in our weakness."

VIII. The cure of the child, and the conquest of this raging devil in the child. Christ saw the people come running together, expecting to see the issue of this trial of skill, and therefore kept them in suspense no longer, but rebuked the foul spirit; the unclean spirit, so it should be rendered, as in other places. Observe, 1. What the charge was which Christ gave to this unclean spirit; "Thou dumb and deaf spirit, that makest the poor child dumb and deaf, but shalt thyself be made to hear thy doom, and not be able to say any thing against it, come out of him immediately, and enter no more into him. Let him not only be brought out of this fit, but let his fits never return." Note, Whom Christ cures, he cures effectually. Satan may go out himself, and yet recover possession; but if Christ cast him out, he will keep him out. 2. How the unclean spirit took it; he grew yet more outrageous, he cried, and rent him sore, gave him such a twitch at parting, that he was as one dead; so loth was he to quit his hold, so exasperated at the superior power of Christ, so malicious to the child, and so desirous was he to kill him. Many said, He is dead. Thus the toss that a soul is in at the breaking of Satan's power in it may perhaps be frightful for the present, but opens the door to lasting comfort. 3. How the child was perfectly restored (v. 27); Jesus took him by the hand, kratesas—took fast hold of him, and strongly bore him up, and he arose and recovered, and all was well.

IX. The reason he gave to the disciples why they could not cast out this devil. They enquired of him privately why they could not, that wherein they were defective might be made up another time, and they might not again be thus publicly shamed; and he told them (v. 29), This kind can come forth by nothing but prayer and fasting. Whatever other difference there really might be, none appears between this and other kinds, but that the unclean spirit had had possession of this poor patient from a child, and that strengthened his interest, and confirmed his hold. When vicious habits are rooted by long usage, and begin to plead prescription, like chronical diseases that are hardly cured. Can the Æthiopian change his skin? The disciples must not think to do their work always with a like ease; some services call them to take more than ordinary pains; but Christ can do that with a word's speaking, which they must prevail for the doing of by prayer and fasting.

The Apostles Reproved.

30 And they departed thence, and passed through Galilee; and he would not that any man should know it. 31 For he taught his disciples, and said unto them, The Son of man is delivered into the hands of men, and they shall kill him; and after that he is killed, he shall rise the third day. 32 But they understood not that saying, and were afraid to ask him. 33 And he came to Capernaum: and being in the house he asked them, What was it that ye disputed among yourselves by the way? 34 But they held their peace: for by the way they had disputed among themselves, who should be the greatest. 35 And he sat down, and called the twelve, and saith unto them, If any man desire to be first, the same shall be last of all, and servant of all. 36 And he took a child, and set him in the midst of them: and when he had taken him in his arms, he said unto them, 37 Whosoever shall receive one of such children in my name, receiveth me: and whosoever shall receive me, receiveth not me, but him that sent me. 38 And John answered him, saying, Master, we saw one casting out devils in thy name, and he followeth not us: and we forbad him, because he followeth not us. 39 But Jesus said, Forbid him not: for there is no man which shall do a miracle in my name, that can lightly speak evil of me. 40 For he that is not against us is on our part.

Here, I. Christ foretels his own approaching sufferings. He passed through Galilee with more expedition than usual, and would not that any man should know of it (v. 30); because he had done many mighty and good works among them in vain, they shall not be invited to see them and have the benefit of them, as they have been. The time of his sufferings drew nigh, and therefore he was willing to be private awhile, and to converse only with his disciples, to prepare them for the approaching trial, v. 31. He said to them, The Son of man is delivered by the determinate council and fore-knowledge of God into the hands of men (v. 31), and they shall kill him. He had been delivered into the hands of devils, and they had worried him, it had not been so strange; but that men, who have reason, and should have love, that they should be thus spiteful to the Son of man, who came to redeem and save them, is unaccountable. But still it is observable that when Christ spoke of his death, he alway spoke of his resurrection, which took away the reproach of it from himself, and should have taken away the grief of it from his disciples. But they understood not that saying, v. 32. The words were plain enough, but they could not be reconciled to the thing, and therefore would suppose them to have some mystical meaning which they did not understand, and they were afraid to ask him; not because he was difficult of access, or stern to those who consulted him, but either because they were loth to know the truth, or because they expected to be chidden for their backwardness to receive it. Many remain ignorant because they are ashamed to enquire.

II. He rebukes his disciples for magnifying themselves. When he came to Capernaum, he privately asked his disciples what it was they disputed among themselves by the way, v. 33. He knew very well what the dispute was, but he would know it from them, and would have them to confess their fault and folly in it. Note, 1. We must all expect to be called to an account by our Lord Jesus, concerning what passes while we are in the way in this state of passage and probation. 2. We must in a particular manner be called to an account about our discourses among ourselves; for by our words we must be justified or condemned. 3. As our other discourses among ourselves by the way, so especially our disputes, will be all called over again, and we shall be called to an account about them. 4. Of all disputes, Christ will be sure to reckon with his disciples for their disputes about precedency and superiority: that was the subject of the debate here, who should be the greater, v. 34. Nothing could be more contrary to the two great laws of Christ's kingdom, lessons of his school, and instructions of his example, which are humility and love, than desiring preferment in the world, and disputing about it. This ill temper he took all occasions to check, both because it arose from a mistaken notion of his kingdom, as if it were of this world, and because it tended so directly to be debasing of the honour, and the corrupting of the purity, of his gospel, and, he foresaw, would be so much the bane of the church.

Now, (1.) They were willing to cover this fault (v. 34); they held their peace. As they would not ask (v. 32), because they were ashamed to own their ignorance, so here they would not answer because they were ashamed to own their pride. (2.) He was willing to amend this fault in them, and to bring them to a better temper; and therefore sat down, that he might have a solemn and full discourse with them about this matter; he called the twelve to him, and told them, [1.] That ambition and affectation of dignity and dominion, instead of gaining them preferment in his kingdom, would but postpone their preferment; If any man desire and aim to be first, he shall be last; he that exalteth himself, shall be abased, and men's pride shall bring them low. [2.] That there is no preferment to be had under him, but an opportunity for, and an obligation to, so much the more labour and condescension; If any man desire to be first, when he is so, he must be much the more busy and serviceable to every body. He that desires the office of a bishop, desires a good work, for he must, as St. Paul did, labour the more abundantly, and make himself the servant of all. [3.] That those who are most humble and self-denying, do most resemble Christ, and shall be most tenderly owned by him. This he taught them by a sign; He took a child in his arms, that had nothing of pride and ambition in it. "Look you," saith he; "whosoever shall receive one like this child, receives me. Those of a humble, meek, mild disposition are such as I will own and countenance, and encourage every body else to do so too, and will take what is done to them as done to myself; and so will my Father too, for he who thus receiveth me, receiveth him that sent me, and it shall be placed to his account, and repaid with interest."

III. He rebukes them for vilifying all but themselves; while they are striving which of them should be greatest, they will not allow those who are not in communion with them to be any thing. Observe,

1. The account which John gave him, of the restraint they had laid upon one from making use of the name of Christ, because he was not of their society. Though they were ashamed to own their contests for preferment, they seem to boast of this exercise of their authority, and expected their Master would not only justify them in it, but commend them for it; and hoped he would not blame them for desiring to be great, when they would thus use their power for maintaining the honour of the sacred college. Master, saith John, we saw one casting out devils in thy name, but he followeth not us, v. 38. (1.) It was strange that the one who was not a professed disciple and follower of Christ, should yet have power to cast out devils, in his name, for that seemed to be peculiar to those whom he called, ch. vi. 7. But some think that he was a disciple of John, who made use of the name of the Messiah, not as come, but as near at hand, not knowing that Jesus was he. It should rather seem that he made use of the name of Jesus, believing him to be the Christ, as the other disciples did. And why not he receive that power from Christ, whose Spirit, like the wind, blows where it listeth, without such an outward call as the apostles had? And perhaps there were many more such. Christ's grace is not tied to the visible church. (2.) It was strange that one who cast out devils in the name of Christ, did not join himself to the apostles, and follow Christ with them, but should continue to act in separation from them. I know of nothing that could hinder him from following them, unless because he was loth to leave all to follow them; and if so, that was an ill principle. The thing did not look well, and therefore the disciples forbade him to make use of Christ's name as they did, unless he would follow him as they did. This was like the motion Joshua made concerning Eldad and Medad, that prophesied in the camp, and went not up with the rest to the door of the tabernacle; "My lord Moses, forbid them (Num. xi. 28); restrain them, silence them, for it is a schism." Thus apt are we to imagine that those do not follow Christ at all, who do not follow him with us, and that those do nothing well, who do not just as we do. But the Lord knows them that are his, however they are dispersed; and this instance gives us a needful caution, to take heed lest we be carried, by an excess of zeal for the unity of the church, and for that which we are sure is right and good, to oppose that which yet may tend to the enlargement of the church, and the advancement of its true interests another way.

2. The rebuke he gave to them for this (v. 39); Jesus said, "Forbid him not, nor any other that does likewise." This was like the check Moses gave to Joshua; Enviest thou for my sake? Note, That which is good, and doeth good, must not be prohibited, though there be some defect or irregularity in the manner of doing it. Casting out devils, and so destroying Satan's kingdom, doing this in Christ's name, and so owning him to be sent of God, and giving honour to him as the Fountain of grace, preaching down sin, and preaching up Christ, are good things, very good things, which ought not to be forbidden to any, merely because they follow not with us. If Christ be preached, Paul therein doth, and will rejoice, though he be eclipsed by it, Phil. i. 18. Two reasons Christ gives why such should not be forbidden. (1.) Because we cannot suppose that any man who makes use of Christ's name in working miracles, should blaspheme his name, as the scribes and Pharisees did. There were those indeed that did in Christ's name cast out devils, and yet in other respects were workers of iniquity; but they did not speak evil of Christ. (2.) Because those that differed in communion, while they agreed to fight against Satan under the banner of Christ, ought to look upon one another as on the same side, notwithstanding that difference. He that is not against us is on our part. As to the great controversy between Christ an Beelzebub, he had said, He that is not with me is against me, Matt. xii. 30. He that will not own Christ, owns Satan. But as to those that own Christ, though not in the same circumstances, that follow him, though not with us, we must reckon that though these differ from us, they are not against us, and therefore are on our part, and we must not be any hindrance to their usefulness.

Pain to Be Preferred to Sin.

41 For whosoever shall give you a cup of water to drink in my name, because ye belong to Christ, verily I say unto you, he shall not lose his reward. 42 And whosoever shall offend one of these little ones that believe in me, it is better for him that a millstone were hanged about his neck, and he were cast into the sea. 43 And if thy hand offend thee, cut it off: it is better for thee to enter into life maimed, than having two hands to go into hell, into the fire that never shall be quenched: 44 Where their worm dieth not, and the fire is not quenched. 45 And if thy foot offend thee, cut it off: it is better for thee to enter halt into life, than having two feet to be cast into hell, into the fire that never shall be quenched: 46 Where their worm dieth not, and the fire is not quenched. 47 And if thine eye offend thee, pluck it out: it is better for thee to enter into the kingdom of God with one eye, than having two eyes to be cast into hell fire: 48 Where their worm dieth not, and the fire is not quenched. 49 For every one shall be salted with fire, and every sacrifice shall be salted with salt. 50 Salt is good: but if the salt have lost his saltness, wherewith will ye season it? Have salt in yourselves, and have peace one with another.

Here, I. Christ promiseth a reward to all those that are any way kind to his disciples (v. 41); "Whosoever shall give you a cup of water, when you need it, and will be a refreshment to you, because ye belong to Christ, and are of his family, he shall not lose his reward." Note, 1. It is the honour and happiness of Christians, that they belong to Christ, they have joined themselves to him, and are owned by him; they wear his livery and retainers to his family; nay, they are more nearly related, they are members of his body. 2. They who belong to Christ, may sometimes be reduced to such straits as to be glad of a cup of cold water. 3. The relieving of Christ's poor in their distresses, is a good deed, and will turn a good account; he accepts it, and will reward it. 4. What kindness is done to Christ's poor, must be done them for his sake, and because they belong to him; for that is it that sanctifies the kindness, and puts a value upon it in the sight of God. 5. This is a reason why we must not discountenance and discourage those who are serving the interests of Christ's kingdom, though they are not in every thing of our mind and way. It comes in here as a reason why those must not be hindered, that cast out devils in Christ's name, though they did not follow him; for (as Dr. Hammond paraphrases it) "It is not only the great eminent performances which are done by you my constant attendants and disciples, that are accepted by me, but every the least degree of sincere faith and Christian performance, proportionable but to the expressing the least kindness, as giving a cup of water to a disciple of mine for being such, shall be accepted and rewarded." If Christ reckons kindness to us services to him, we ought to reckon services to him kindnesses to us, and to encourage them, though done by those that follow not with us.

II. He threatens those that offend his little ones, that wilfully are the occasion of sin or trouble to them, v. 42. Whosoever shall grieve any true Christians, though they be of the weakest, shall oppose their entrance into the ways of God, or discourage and obstruct their progress in those ways, shall either restrain them from doing good, or draw them in to commit sin, it were better for him that a millstone were hanged about his neck, and he were cast into the sea: his punishment will be very great, and the death and ruin of his soul more terrible than such a death and ruin of his body would be. See Matt. xviii. 6.

III. He warns all his followers to take heed of ruining their own souls. This charity must begin at home; if we must take heed of doing any thing to hinder others from good, and to occasion their sin, much more careful must we be to avoid every thing that will take us off from our duty, or lead us to sin; and that which doth so we must part with, though it be ever so dear to us. This we had twice in Matthew, ch. v. 29, 30, and ch. xviii. 8, 9. It is here urged somewhat more largely and pressingly; certainly this requires our serious regard, which is so much insisted upon. Observe,

1. The case supposed, that our own hand, or eye, or foot, offend us; that the impure corruption we indulge is as dear to us as an eye or a hand, or that that which is to us as an eye or a hand, is become an invisible temptation to sin, or occasion of it. Suppose the beloved is become a sin, or the sin a beloved. Suppose we cannot keep that which is dear to us, but it will be a snare and a stumbling-block; suppose we must part with it, or part with Christ and a good conscience.

2. The duty prescribed in that case; Pluck out the eye, cut off the hand and foot, mortify the darling lust, kill it, crucify it, starve it, make no provision for it. Let the idols that have been delectable things, be cast away as detestable things; keep at a distance from that which is a temptation, though ever so pleasing. It is necessary that the part which is gangrened, should be taken off for the preservation of the whole. Immedicabile vulnus ense recidendum est, ne pars sincera trahatur—The part that is incurably wounded must be cut off, lest the parts that are sound be corrupted. We must put ourselves to pain, that we may not bring ourselves to ruin; self must be denied, that it may not be destroyed.

3. The necessity of doing this. The flesh must be mortified, that we may enter into life (v. 43, 45), into the kingdom of God, v. 47. Though, by abandoning sin, we may, for the present, feel ourselves as if we were halt and maimed (it may seem to be a force put upon ourselves, and may create us some uneasiness), yet it is for life; and all that men have, they will give for their lives: it is for a kingdom, the kingdom of God, which we cannot otherwise obtain; these halts and maims will be the marks of the Lord Jesus, will be in that kingdom scars of honour.

4. The danger of not doing this. The matter is brought to this issue, that either sin must die, or we must die. If we will lay this Delilah in our bosom, it will betray us; if we be ruled by sin, we shall inevitably be ruined by it; if we must keep our two hands, and two eyes, and two feet, we must with them be cast into hell. Our Saviour often pressed our duty upon us, from the consideration of the torments of hell, which we run ourselves into if we continue in sin. With what an emphasis of terror are those words repeated three times here, Where their worm dieth not, and the fire is not quenched! The words are quoted from Isa. lxvi. 24. (1.) The reflections and reproaches of the sinner's own conscience are the worm that dieth not; which will cleave to the damned soul as the worms do to the dead body, and prey upon it, and never leave it till it is quite devoured. Son, remember, will set this worm gnawing; and how terrible will it bite that word (Prov. v. 12, 23), How have I hated instruction! The soul that is food to this worm, dies not; and the worm is bred in it, and one with it, and therefore neither doth that die. Damned sinners will be to eternity accusing, condemning, and upbraiding, themselves with their own follies, which, how much soever they are now in love with them, will at the last bite like a serpent, and sting like an adder. (2.) The wrath of God fastening upon a guilty and polluted conscience, is the fire that is not quenched; for it is the wrath of the living God, the eternal God, into whose hands it is a fearful thing to fall. There are no operations of the Spirit of grace upon the souls of the damned sinners, and therefore there is nothing to alter the nature of the fuel, which must remain for ever combustible; nor is there any application of the merit of Christ to them, and therefore there is nothing to appease or quench the violence of the fire. Dr. Whitby shows that the eternity of the torments of hell was not only the constant faith of the Christian church, but had been so of the Jewish church. Josephus saith, The Pharisees held that the souls of the wicked were to be punished with perpetual punishment; and that there was appointed for them a perpetual prison. And Philo saith, The punishment of the wicked is to live for ever dying, and to be for ever in pains and griefs that never cease.

The two last verses are somewhat difficult, and interpreters agree not in the sense of them; for every one in general, or rather every one of them that are cast into hell, shall be salted with fire, and every sacrifice shall be salted with salt. Therefore have salt in yourselves. [1.] It was appointed by the law of Moses, that every sacrifice should be salted with salt, not to preserve it (for it was to be immediately consumed), but because it was the food of God's table, and no flesh is eaten without salt; it was therefore particularly required in the meat-offerings, Lev. ii. 13. [2.] The nature of man, being corrupt, and as such being called flesh (Gen. vi. 3; Ps. lxxviii. 39), some way or other must be salted, in order to its being a sacrifice to God. The salting of fish (and I think of other things) they call the curing of it. [3.] Our chief concern is, to present ourselves living sacrifices to the grace of God (Rom. xii. 1), and, in order to our acceptableness, we must be salted with salt, our corrupt affections must be subdued and mortified, and we must have in our souls a savour of grace. Thus the offering up or sacrificing of the Gentiles is said to be acceptable, being sanctified by the Holy Ghost, as the sacrifices were salted, Rom. xv. 16. [4.] Those that have the salt of grace, must make it appear that they have it; that they have salt in themselves, a living principle of grace in their hearts, which works out all corrupt dispositions, and every thing in the soul that tends to putrefaction, and would offend our God, or our own consciences, as unsavoury meat doth. Our speech must be always with grace seasoned with this salt, that no corrupt communication may proceed out of our mouth, but we may loathe it as much as we would to put putrid meat into our mouths. [5.] As this gracious salt will keep our own consciences void of offence, so it will keep our conversation with others so, that we may not offend any of Christ's little ones, but may be at peace one with another. [6.] We must not only have this salt of grace, but we must always retain the relish and savour of it; for if this salt lose its saltiness, if a Christian revolt from his Christianity, if he loses the savour of it, and be no longer under the power and influence of it, what can recover him, or wherewith will ye season him? This was said Matt. v. 13. [7.] Those that present not themselves living sacrifices to God's grace, shall be made for ever dying sacrifices to his justice, and since they would not give honour to him, he will get him honour upon them; they would not be salted with the salt of divine grace, would not admit that to subdue their corrupt affections, no, they would not submit to the operation, could not bear the corrosives that were necessary to eat out the proud flesh, it was to them like cutting off a hand, or plucking out an eye; and therefore in hell they shall be salted with fire; coals of fire shall be scattered upon them (Ezek. x. 2), as salt upon the meat, and brimstone (Job xviii. 15), as fire and brimstone were rained on Sodom; the pleasures they have lived in, shall eat their flesh, as it were with fire, Jam. v. 3. The pain of mortifying the flesh now is no more to be compared with the punishment for not mortifying it, than salting with burning. And since he had said, that the fire of hell shall not be quenched, but it might be objected, that the fuel will not last always, he here intimates, that by the power of God it shall be made to last always; for those that are cast into hell, will find the fire to have not only the corroding quality of salt, but its preserving quality; whence it is used to signify that which is lasting: a covenant of salt is a perpetual covenant, and Lot's wife being turned into a pillar of salt, made her a remaining monument of divine vengeance. Now since this will certainly be the doom of those that do not crucify the flesh with its affections and lusts, let us, knowing this terror of the Lord, be persuaded to do it.

CHAP. IX.

Verse 1. Shall not taste of death] SAints only taste of death, sinners are swallowed up of it, they are killed with death, Revelation 2. 23. Whereas the righteous do mori vitaliter; death is to them neither totall, nor perpetuall, Rom. 8. 10, 11. [non-Latin text not transcribed].

Verse 3. Became shining] Gr. Glistring and sparkling as stars which twinckle and beckon to us as it were to remember their and our Creatour.

Verse 10. And they kept that saying] With much adoe they [non-Latin text not transcribed]. kept it (as the word imports) for the rest of the Disciples were very inquisitive, likely, what was said and done in the Mount. A friend that can both keep counsell, and give counsell, is worth his weight in gold.

Verse 12. Set at nought] Vilified and nullified as an [illegible: 1 word], [non-Latin text not transcribed]. or one that had nothing in him. Vermis sum et non [illegible: 1 word]. I am a worm and no man, saith the Psalmist in the person of Christ.

Verse 15. Were greatly amazed] To see him come in so opportunly, in the very nick, which is his usuall time. See the Note on Matt. 17. 14.

Verse 20. The spirit tare him] Thus things oft goe backward ere they come forward; as the corn grows downward before it comes upward. Duplicantur lateres, venit Moses. This child had never such a sore fit, as now that he was to be cured. See verse 26.

Verse 22. It hath cast him into the fire, &c.] So doth blind zeal deal by them in whom it is. But if thou canst doe any thing] This wofull father had no further patience to parley; but through weaknesse of faith, and strength of affection to his distressed child breaks off his tale, and begs present help. Hee that beleeveth, maketh no haste, Esay 28. 16.

Verse 24. I beleeve] This act of his in putting forth his faith to beleeve as hee could, was the way to beleeve as hee would. Help thou mine unbeleefe] That is, my weak faith, which hee counteth no better then unbeleef: howbeit, God counts the preparation of the heart to beleeve, faith: as in those Samaritanes Joh. 4. Doctor Cruuger cryed out on his death-bed, Credo languidà Selnever. [illegible: 1 word]. fide, sed tamen fide. Much faith will yeeld unto us here our heaven: and any faith, if true, will yeeld us heaven hereafter.

Verse 29. But by prayer and fasting] The cause why they could not cure the child, was unbeleef: the cure of unbeleef is sought and wrought by fasting and prayer.

Verse 34. Who should be the greatest] viz. In Christs earthly Kingdom, in the which they vainly dreamt of a distribution of honours and offices, as once in the dayes of David and Solomon.

Verse 37. Receiveth not me] Non removet, sed corrigit, saith Erasmus. He receiveth not me only, but him that sent me.

Verse 38. And John answered him] John was soon sated with that sad discourse of our Saviour, and begins a relation of another businesse, little to the purpose.

Verse 39. Forbid him not] It is probable that this man would not forbear, unlesse Christ himself should forbid him: which here he refuseth to do, and shewes reason for it.

Verse 41. [illegible: 1 word] whosoever shall give, &c.] Much more he that shall cast out devils in my name, and out of love to me. He shall not lose his reward] For his cup of cold water he shall have a torrent of pleasure. If therefore ye will be wise Merchants, happy Usurers, part with that which ye cannot keep, that ye may gain that which ye cannot lose.

Verse 43. It is better for thee to enter] The Trojanes, after long debate, concluded it better to part with Helen, though a Lady of incomparable beauty, then, by retaining her longer, to venture their utter wreck and ruine. 'A[non-Latin text not transcribed], say they. Did we but forethinkHom. Iliad. what sinne will cost us, we durst not but be innocent.

Verse 44. Where their worme] As out of the corruption of our bodies wormes breed, which consume the flesh, so out of the corruption of our soules this never-dying worme. This worme (say Divines) is only a continuall remorse and furious reflection of the soule upon its own wilfull folly, and now wofull misery. Oh consider this before thy friends be scrambling for thy goods, worms for thy body, devils for thy soule. Goe not dancing to hell in thy bolts, rejoyce not in thy bondage, as many doe; to whom the preaching of hell is but as the painting of a toad, which men can look on and handle, without affrightment. Never dyeth, and the fire is not quenched] O quam diuturna & Manlii loc. com pag. 33. immensa est [illegible: 1 word] as! said the devill once. A child with a spoon may sooner empty the sea, then the damned accomplish their misery. A [illegible: 1 word] of brimstone is not consumed by burning.

Verse 49. For every one shall be salted with fire] The Spirit, as salt, must dry up those bad humours in us that breed the neverdying worm; and, as fire, must waste our corruptions, which else will carry us on to the unquenchable fire.

Verse 50. Salt is good] Nature [illegible: 1 word] prudently mingled salt with all things, that they may not easily putrifie. Greges enim Joh. Bodin. pecorum urinam salsissimam effundere videmus, & in omnes stirpes [illegible: 1 word]. [illegible: 1 word]. salem infusum. Have salt in your selves] Habete in vobis sal. A [illegible: 1 word] admonemur tribus literis (ut curiosè observat quidam) Sapere, Agere, Loqui. The conjuring of salt among the Papists is intolerably blasphemous: It is thus: I conjure thee, O salt, by the living God, &c. that thou maist be made a conjured salt to the salvation of them that beleeve. And that unto all such as receive thee,Act. & Mon. thou mayest be health of soul and body: and [illegible: 1 word] from out of the place, wherein thou shalt be sprinkled, may fly away and depart all phantasie, wickednesse or craftinesse of the devils subtilty, and every foule Spirit, &c. And [illegible: 1 word] peace one with another] By mortification season, tame, and purge your own hearts of those lusts that warre in your members, Jam. 4. 1. and prove offensive to others, Mar. 9. 43. so shall you be at peace one with another. Stomack-worms are killed with salt.

Verily I say, etc. Mt 16:28. This verse properly belongs to the preceding chapter, and the preceding discourse.

(o) "Verily" Mt 16:28, Lk 9:27 (p) "not taste" Jn 8:52, Heb 2:9

And after six days, etc. See this passage explained; Mt 17:1-9.

(q) "And after six days" Mt 17:1, Lk 9:28

No fuller. Rather, no scourer. The office of the person here mentioned was to scour or whiten cloth; not to full it, or to render it thicker.

(r) "exceeding white" Dan 7:9, Mt 28:3

He wist not. He knew not. He was desirous of saying something, and he knew not what would be proper.

(t) "wist not" Dan 10:15, Rev 1:17

Why say the Scribes, etc. Mt 17:10 and Mt 17:11-13.

(x) "Elias" Mal 4:5

Questioning with them. Debating with the disciples, and attempting to confound them. This he saw as he came down from the mount. In his absence they had taken occasion to attempt to perplex and confound his followers.

Were greatly amazed. Were astonished and surprised at his sudden appearance among them.

Saluted him. Received him with the customary marks of affection and respect. It is probable that this was not by any formal manner of salutation, but by the rush of the multitude, and by hailing him as the Messiah.

What question ye? What is the subject of your inquiry or debate with the disciples?

(1) "question ye" or, "among yourselves"

A dumb spirit. A spirit which deprived his son of the power of speaking.

(b) "a dumb spirit" Mt 12:22, Lk 11:14

And wheresoever. In whatever place, at home or abroad, alone or in public.

He teareth him. He rends, distracts, or throws into convulsions.

He foameth. At the mouth, like a mad animal. Among us, these would all be considered as marks of violent derangement or madness.

And pineth away. Becomes thin, haggard, and emaciated. This was the effect of the violence of his struggles, and perhaps of the want of food.

(1) "teareth" or, "dasheth" (c) "foameth" Jude 1:13

If thou canst do any thing. I have brought him to the disciples, and they could not help him. If THOU canst do anything, have compassion, etc.

If thou canst believe. This was an answer to the request; and there was a reference in the answer to the doubt in the man's mind about the power of Jesus. I can help him. If THOU canst believe, it shall be done. Jesus here demanded faith or confidence in his power of healing. So he demands faith of every sinner that comes to him; and none that come without confidence in him can obtain the blessing.

All things are possible to him that believeth. All things can be effected or accomplished--to wit, by God--in favour of him that believes; and if thou canst believe, this will be done. God will do nothing in our favour without faith. It is right that we should have confidence in him; and if we have confidence, it is easy for him to help us, and he willingly does it. In our weakness, then, we should go to God our Saviour; and though we have no strength, yet he can aid us, and he will make all things easy for us.

Said with tears. The man felt the implied rebuke in the Saviour's language. And feeling grieved that he should be thought to be destitute of faith, and feeling deeply for the welfare of his afflicted son, he wept. Nothing can be more touching or natural than this. An anxious father distressed at the condition of his son; having applied to the disciples in vain, now coming to the Saviour, and not having full confidence that he had the proper qualification to be aided, he wept. Any man would have wept in his condition, nor would the Saviour turn the weeping suppliant away.

I believe. I have faith. I do put confidence in thee; though I know that my faith is not as strong as it should be.

Lord. This word, here, signifies merely master, or sir, as it does often in the New Testament. We have no evidence that he had any knowledge of the Divine nature of our Saviour and he applied the word, probably, as he would have done to any other teacher or worker of miracles.

Help thou mine unbelief. Supply thou the defects of my faith. Give me strength and grace to put entire confidence in thee. Every one who comes to the Saviour for help has need of offering this prayer. In our unbelief and our doubts we need his aid, nor can we ever put sufficient reliance on him without his gracious help.

(g) "tears" Ps 126:5 (h) "help thou" Heb 12:2

Is delivered. Is given to me to make atonement by his sufferings and death, and will in due time be taken and killed.

Mt 18:1, and Mt 18:2-6

(o) "And he came" Mt 18:1, Lk 9:46, 22:24

We saw one, etc. There is no improbability in supposing that this might have been one of the disciples of John, or one of the seventy whom Jesus had sent out, and who, though he did not personally attend on Jesus, yet had the power of working miracles. There is no evidence that he was merely an exorcist, or that he used the name of Jesus merely as a pretence.

(r) "we saw one" Nu 11:26-28

Forbid him not. Do not prevent his doing good. If he can work a miracle in my name, it is sufficient proof of attachment to me, and he should not be prevented.

Can lightly speak evil of me. The word here rendered lightly, means quickly, or immediately. The meaning of the passage is, that he to whom God gave the power of working a miracle, by that gave evidence that he could not soon be found among the enemies of Jesus. He ought not, therefore, to be prevented from doing it. There is no reason to think, here, that John had any improper designs in opposing the man. He thought that it was evidence that he could not be right, because he did not Join them and follow the Saviour. Our Lord thought differently. He opposed no one who gave evidence that he loved him. Wherever he might be, or whatever his work, yet, if he did it in the name of Jesus, and with the approbation of God, it was evidence sufficient that he was right. Christians should rejoice in good done by their brethren of any denomination. There are men calling themselves Christians who seem to look with doubt and suspicion on all that is done by those who do not walk with them. They undervalue their labours, attempt to lessen the evidences of their success, and to diminish their influence. True likeness to the Saviour would lead us to rejoice in all the good accomplished, by whomsoever it may be done; and to rejoice that the kingdom of Christ is advanced, whether by a Presbyterian, an Episcopalian, a Baptist, or a Methodist. Compare Php 1:18.

(s) "there is no man" 1Cor 12:3

Whosoever shall give you a cup, etc. How easy it is to be a Christian! What is easier than to give a cup of cold water to a thirsty disciple of Jesus! But it must be in his name--that is, because he is a Christian, and therefore from love to the Saviour. This is very different from giving it from a mere motive of common kindness. If done from love to Christ, it will be rewarded; and hence we learn that the humblest acts of Christians, the lowest service that is rendered, will be graciously noticed by Jesus, and rewarded. None are so humble in his kingdom as not to be able to do good; and none so poor that, in his circumstances, may not show attach merit to him. Their feeblest service will be accepted; and acts of love, that may be forgotten by man, will be remembered by him, and rewarded in heaven.

(u) "for whosoever" Mt 10:42, 25:40

See Mt 18:7-9. Millstone. See Mt 18:6.

Their worm. This figure is clearly taken from Isa 66:24. In describing the great prosperity of the kingdom of the Messiah, Isaiah says, that the people of God shall go forth, and look upon the carcasses of men who have transgressed against God. Their enemies Shall be overcome. They shall be slain. The people of God shall triumph. The figure is taken from heaps of the dead slain in battle; and the prophet says, that the number shall be so great, that their worm--the worm feeding on the dead--shall not die, shall live long--as long as there are carcasses to be devoured; and that the fire which was used to burn the bodies of the dead shall continue long to burn, and shall not be extinguished till they are consumed. The figure, therefore, denotes great misery, and certain and terrible destruction. In these verses it is applied to the state beyond the grave, and is intended to denote that the destruction of the wicked will be awful, wide-spread, and eternal. It is not to be supposed that there will be any real worm in hell--perhaps no material fire. Nor can it be told what was particularly intended by the undying worm. There is no authority for applying it, as is often done, to remorse of conscience, any more than to any other of the pains and reflections of hell. It is a mere image of loathsome, dreadful, and eternal sufferings. In what that suffering will consist, it is probably beyond the power of any living mortal to imagine. The word "their," in the phrase "their worm," is used merely to keep up the image or figure. Dead bodies, putrefying in that valley, would be overrun with worms, while the fire was not confined to them, but spread to other objects, kindled by combustibles through all the valley. It is not meant, therefore, that every particular sufferer has a peculiar worm, or has particular sins that cause remorse of conscience. That is a truth; but it does not appear that it is intended to be taught here.

(x) "Where their worm" Isa 66:24, Rev 14:11

Mk 9:43.

(3) "offend" Mk 9:43

Every one shall be salted with fire. PERHAPS NO PASSAGE IN THE New Testament has given more perplexity to commentators than this; and it may be impossible now to fix its precise meaning. The common meaning affixed to it has been, that as salt preserves from putrefaction, so fire, applied to the wicked in hell, shall have the property of preserving them in existence, or they shall be preserved amidst the sprinkling of fire, to be continually, in their sufferings, a sacrifice to the justice of God. But this meaning is not quite satisfactory. Another opinion has been, that as salt is sprinkled on the victim preparatory to its being devoted to God, (Lev 2:13) so should the apostles, by trials, calamities, etc., represented here by fire be prepared as a sacrifice and offering to God. Probably the passage has not reference at all to future punishment; and the difficulty of interpreting it has arisen from supposing it connected with the 48th verse, or given as a reason for what is said in that verse, rather than considering it as designed to illustrate the general design of the passage. The main scope of the passage was not to discourse of future punishment. That is brought in incidentally. The chief object of the passage was,

(1st) to teach them that other men, not with them, might be true Christians, Mk 9:38,39.

(2nd.) That they should be disposed to look favourably upon the slightest evidence that they might be, Mk 9:41

(3rd.) That they ought to avoid giving offence to such feeble and obscure Christians, Mk 9:42.

(4th.) That everything calculated to give offence, or to dishonour religion, should be removed, Mk 9:43. And,

(5th.) that everything which would endanger their salvation should be sacrificed; that they should deny themselves and practise all self-denials, in order to obtain eternal life. In this way they would be preserved to eternal life. The word "fire" here, therefore, denotes self-denials, sacrifices, trials, in keeping ourselves from the gratification of the flesh. As if he had said: "Look at the sacrifice on the altar. It is an offering to God, about to be presented to him. It is sprinkled with salt, emblematic of PURITY, of PRESERVATION, and of fitting it, therefore, for a sacrifice. So you are devoted to God. YOU are sacrifices, victims, offerings, to him in his service. To make you acceptable offerings, everything must be done to preserve you from sin, to purify you, and to make you fit offerings. Self-denials, subduing the lusts, enduring trials, removing offences, are the proper preservatives in the service of God. Doing this, you will be acceptable offerings, and be saved; without this, you will be unfit for his eternal service, and will be lost."

(z) "sacrifice" Lev 2:13, Eze 43:24

Lost his saltness, etc. Mt 5:13.

Have salt in yourselves. Have the preserving, purifying principle always; the principles of denying yourselves of suppressing pride, ambition, contention, etc., and thus you will be an acceptable offering to God.

Have peace. Avoid contention and quarrelling, struggling for places, honours, and office, and seek each other's welfare, and religion will be honoured and preserved in the world.

(a) "salt have lost" Mt 5:13, Lk 14:34 (b) "salt in yourselves" Col 4:6 (c) "have peace one" Ps 34:14, 2Cor 13:11, Heb 12:14

[The kingdom of God coming in power.] In Matthew, it is the Son of man coming in his kingdom. The coming of Christ in his vengeance and power to destroy the unbelieving and most wicked nation of the Jews is expressed under these forms of speech. Hence the day of judgment and vengeance:

I. It is called "the great and terrible day of the Lord," Acts 2:20; 2 Thess 2:2,3.

II. It is described as "the end of the world," Jeremiah 4:27; Matthew 24:29, &c.

III. In that phrase, "in the last times," Isaiah 2:2; Acts 2:17; 1 Tim 4:1; 2 Peter 3:3; that is, in the last times of that city and dispensation.

IV. Thence, the beginning of the "new world," Isaiah 65:17; 2 Peter 3:13.

V. The vengeance of Christ upon that nation is described as his "coming," John 21:22; Hebrews 10:37: his "coming in the clouds," Revelation 1:7: "in glory with the angels," Matthew 24:30, &c.

VI. It is described as the 'enthroning of Christ, and his twelve apostles judging the twelve tribes of Israel,' Matthew 19:28; Luke 22:30.

Hence this is the sense of the present place: Our Saviour had said in the last verse of the former chapter, "Whosoever shall be ashamed of me and of my words in this adulterous and sinful generation; of him also shall the Son of man be ashamed, when he cometh in the glory of his Father with the holy angels," to take punishment of that adulterous and sinful generation. And he suggests, with good reason, that that his coming in glory should be in the lifetime of some that stood there.

[Into a high mountain.] Now your pardon, reader; I know it will be laughed at if I should doubt whether Christ were transfigured upon mount Tabor; for who ever doubted of this thing? But let me, before I give faith to the thing, reveal my doubts concerning it: and the reader, laying before his eyes some geographical map of Galilee, perhaps, when he shall have heard me, will judge more favorably of my doubting.

I. Let him consider that Christ, in the story next going before, was in the coast of Caesarea Philippi, Matthew 16:13; Mark 8:27; Luke 9:18; and, for any thing that can be gathered out of the evangelists, changed not his place before this story. Who will deny that those words, "There are some that stand here who shall not taste of death," &c., were uttered in those coasts of Caesarea Philippi? And presently the story of the transfiguration followed.

II. Six days indeed came between: in which, you will say, Christ might travel from Caesarea Philippi to Tabor. He might, indeed: but, 1. The evangelists intimate no change from place to place, saying only this, That he led up into the mountain three of his disciples. 2. It seems, indeed, a wonder that our Saviour would tire himself with so long a journey, to choose Tabor whereon to be transfigured, when, as far as we read, he had never before been in that mountain; and there were mountains elsewhere where he conversed frequently. 3. Follow the footsteps of the history, and of Christ in his travel, from his transfiguration onwards. When he came down from the mountain, he healed a child possessed with a devil: and when he betook himself into the house they said, "Why could not we cast out the devil? &c. And they departed thence, and passed through Galilee, and came to Capernaum," Mark 9:28,30,33.

III. And now, reader, look upon the chorographical map, and how incongruous will this travelling seem! 1. From Caesarea Philippi to mount Tabor through the whole length almost of Galilee. 2. Then from mount Tabor by a course back again to Capernaum, a great part of Galilee (especially as the maps place Capernaum) being again passed over. Whereas Capernaum was in the way from Caesarea Philippi to Tabor, and there was a mountain there well known to Christ, and very much frequented by him.

IV. So that it seems far more consonant to the history of the gospel, that Christ was transfigured in some mountain near Caesarea Philippi; perhaps that which, Josephus being witness, was the highest, and hung over the very fountains of Jordan, and at the foot whereof Caesarea was placed.

In that place, formerly called Dan, was the first idolatry set up, and now in the same place the eternal Son of God is shewn, both in the confession of Peter, and in the unspeakably clear and illustrious demonstration of the Messias.

[We saw one casting out devils in thy name.] I. Without doubt he truly did this work, whosoever he were. He cast out devils truly and really, and that by the divine power; otherwise Christ had not said those things which he did, "Forbid him not: for there is no man which shall do a miracle in my name, that can lightly speak evil of me," &c.

II. Whence then could any one that followed not Christ cast out devils? Or whence could any one that cast out devils not follow Christ?

I answer: We suppose,

I. That this man cast not out devils in the name of Jesus, but in the name of Christ, or Messias: and that it was not out of contempt that he followed not Jesus, but out of ignorance; namely, because he knew not yet that Jesus was the Messias.

II. We therefore conjecture that he had been heretofore some disciple of John, who had received his baptism in the name of the Messias now speedily to come, (which all the disciples of John had) but he knew not as yet that Jesus of Nazareth was the Messias: which John himself knew not until it was revealed to him from heaven.

III. It is probable, therefore, that God granted the gifts of miracles to some lately baptized by John, to do them in the name of the Messias; and that, to lay a plainer way for the receiving of the Messias, when he should manifest himself under the name of 'Jesus of Nazareth.'

See verse 41: In my name, because ye belong to Christ; and chapter 13:6, "Many shall come in my name"; not in the name of Jesus, but in the name of the Messias: for those false prophets assumed to themselves the name of the Messias, to bring to nought the name of Jesus. That, John 16:24, "Hitherto ye have asked nothing in my name," differs not much from this sense: 'The apostles poured out their prayers, and all the holy men theirs, in the name of the Messias; but ye have as yet asked nothing in my name Jesus,' &c.

[Cut it off.] "Rabh Mona, in the name of R. Judah, saith, A drop of cold water in the morning [applied to the eye], and the washing of the hands and feet in the evening, is good beyond all the collyrium [eyesalve] in the whole world. For he said, The hand applied to the eye [in the morning, before washing], let it be cut off. The hand applied to the nostril, let it be cut off: the hand put to the ear, let it be cut off," &c.

[For every one shall be salted with fire.] The great Scaliger is well chastised, and not without cause, by John Cloppenberg, because he changed the reading here into every sacrifice shall be salted. See what he saith.

All, is not to be understood of every man, but of every one of them "whose worm dieth not," &c.

The sense of the place is to be fetched from those words, and the sense of those words from Isaiah 66:24: "And they shall go forth, and look upon the carcases of the men that have transgressed against me: for their worm shall not die, neither shall their fire be quenched; and they shall be an abhorring unto all flesh." Upon which place thus the Jews write; "'They shall go forth and look,' &c. Is not the finger of a man, if it be put into the fire, immediately burnt? But God gives power (or being) to wicked men to receive torments." Kimchi upon the place thus: "They shall see the carcases of them full of worms, and fire burning in them": and yet the worms die not.

The words therefore of our Saviour respect this: "Their worm dieth not, and the fire is not quenched; for every one of them shall be seasoned with fire itself, so as to become unconsumable, and shall endure for ever to be tormented, as salt preserves from corruption."

That very learned man mentioned before called the common reading very improper. For what is it, saith he, to season with fire? Let me retort, And what is it to fire with salt? And yet that sense occurs very frequently in the Talmudists. For in them is to burn, (which it signifies properly indeed) and very frequently it is, to corrupt any thing with too much salting, so that it cannot be eaten: to be fired with salt. So in this place, to be salted with fire, that it cannot be corrupted or consumed.

[And every sacrifice shall be salted with salt.] Here the discourse is of salting, which was done at the altar, see Leviticus 2:13: "In the ascent of the altar, they salted the parts of the sacrifice: and on the top of the altar they salt the handful of meal, of frankincense, of incense, and the mincha of the priests, and the mincha of the anointed priest, and the mincha of the drink-offerings, and the sacrifice of birds." Yea, the very wood is a corban of the mincha, and is to be salted.

But in the former clause, the allusion was not to the fire of the altar, but to the fire in the valley of Hinnom, where dead carcases, bones, and other filthy things were consumed. Carcases crawl with worms; and instead of salt which secures against worms, they shall be cast into the fire, and shall be seasoned with flames, and yet the worms shall not die. But he that is a true sacrifice to God shall be seasoned with the salt of grace to the incorruption of glory.

Our Saviour speaks in this place with Isaiah 66:20: They shall bring your brethren out of all the nations for a gift to the Lord,--as the children of Israel offer their sacrifices to me with psalms in the house of the Lord. And verse 24: And they shall go forth, and look upon the limbs of men that transgressed against me: for their worm shall not die, and their fire shall not be quenched, &c.

Every sacrifice, saith our Saviour, concerning holy men seasoned with grace: so the prophet, "They shall bring your brethren for a gift to the Lord, as the children of Israel do the sacrifices."

Shall be seasoned with fire, saith our Saviour of wicked men: in the same sense Isaiah, "They shall be in unquenchable fire, and yet their worm shall not die."

Their fire and their worm: whose? Concerning the former, it is somewhat obscure in our Saviour's words, and so, indeed, that it is without all obscurity that he refers his words only to the words of Isaiah: but who they are in Isaiah is plain enough.

There is a three-fold sense and interpretation given of these words by expositors; 1. Some refer the words to the times of the gospel after Christ's resurrection and ascension, when the gospel was spread and propagated far and near, and the kingdom of God came with power.

Learn hence, That where the gospel is powerfully preached, and cheerfully obeyed, there Christ cometh most gloriously in his kingdom.

2. Others understand these words of Christ's coming, and exercising his kingly power in the destruction of Jerusalem; which some of the apostles then standing by lived to see.

3. Others (as most agreeable to the context) understand the words as relating to our Saviour's transfiguration, As if he had said, Some of you, meaning Peter, James, and John, shall shortly see me on mount Tabor, in such splendour and glory, as shall be a praeludium, a shadow, and representation of that glory, which I shall appear in, when I come to judge the world at the great day.

And whereas our Saviour says not, there be some standing here which shall not die, but, which shall not taste of death; this implies two things;

1. That after they had seen his transfiguration; they must taste of death as well as others.

2. That they should but taste of it, and no more.

From whence learn, 1. That the faithful servants and disciples of Christ must as length, in God's appointed time, taste and have experience of death as well as others.

2. That although they must taste yet that they shall but taste of death; they shall not drink of the dregs of that bitter cup; though they fall by the hand of death, yet shall they not be overcome by it; but in the very fall get victory over it.

Here we have the history of our Saviour's transfiguration, when he laid, as it were, the garments of our frail humanity aside for a little time, assuming to himself the robes of majesty and glory, to demonstrate and testify the truth of his divinity; for this divine glory was an evidence of his divine nature; and also an emblem of that glory which he and his disciples, al his faithful servants and followers, shall enjoy together in heaven.

Observe here, 1. That to confirm the disciples faith in the truth of Christ's divine nature, he was pleased to suffer the rays of his divinity to dart forth before their eyes, so far as they were able to bear it. His face shined with a pleasing brightness, and his raiment with such a glorious lustre, as did at once both delight and dazzle the eyes of the disciples.

Observe, 2. The choice which our Saviour makes of the witnesses of his glorious transfiguration; his three disciples, Peter, James and John. But why disciples? Why three disciples? Why these three?

1. Why disciples? Because this transfiguration was a type and shadow of his glory in heaven: Christ vouchsafes therefore the earnest and first-fruits of that glory only to saints, upon whom he intended to bestow the full harvest in due time.

2. Why three discples? Because three were sufficient to witness the truth and reality of this miracle. Judas was unworthy of this favour; yet lest he should murmur, or be discontented, others are left out as well as he.

But, 3. Why these three, rather than others?

Probably, 1. Because these three were more eminent for grace, zeal, and love towards Christ. Now the most eminent manifestations of glory are made to those that are most excelling in grace.

2. These three disciples were witnesses of Christ's agony and passion; to prepare them for which, they are here made witnesses of his transfiguration. This glorious vision upon mount Tabor, fitted them to abide the terror of mount Calvary.

Observe, 3. The glorious attendants upon our Saviour at his transfiguration. They were two, two men; and those two men, Moses and Elias. This being but a glimpse of Christ's glory, not a full manifestation of it, only two of the glorified saints attend at it. These two attendants are not two angels, but two men; because men were more nearly concerned than angels in what was done.

But why Moses and Elias, rather than other men?

1. Because Moses was the giver of the law, and Elias the chief of the prophets. Now both these attending upon Christ, did shew the consent of the law and the prophets with Christ, and their accomplishment and fulfilling in him.

2. Because these two were the most laborious servants of Christ, both adventured their lives n God's cause, and therefore are highly honoured by him. For, Those that honour him, he will honour.

Observe, 4. The carriage and demeanor of the disciples upon this great occasion:

1. They supplicate Jesus, not Moses and Elias; they make no suit to them, but to Christ only: Master, it is good being here. O! what a ravishing comfort and satisfaction is the communion and fellowship of the saints! But the presence of Christ amongst them, renders their joys transporting.

2. They proffer their service to farther their continuance of what they did enjoy; Let us make three tabernacles. Saints will stick at no pains or cost for the enjoyment of Christ's presence and his people's company.

Learn hence, That a glimpse of heaven's glory is sufficient to wrap a soul int extacy and to make it out of love with worldly company.

2. That we are too apt to desire more of heaven upon earth than God will allow. We would have the heavenly glory come down to us, but are unwilling by death to go up to that.

Observe, 5. How a cloud was put before the disciples eyes, when the divine glory was manifested to them; partly to allay the lustre and resplendency of that glory which they were swallowd up with: the glory of heaven is insupportable in this sinful state; we cannot bear it unveiled: and partly to hinder their farther prying and looking into that glory. We must be content to behold God through a cloud darkly here, ere long we shall see him face to face.

Observe, 6. The testimony given out of the cloud, by God the Father, concerning Jesus Christ his Son: This is my beloved Son, hear him.

Where note, 1. The dignity of his person; he is my Son. For nature co-essential, and for duration co-eternal, with his Father.

2. The endearedness of his relation; he is my beloved Son; because of his conformity to me, and compliance with me. Likeness is the cause of love; and an union and harmony of wills, causes a mutual endearing of affections.

3. The authority of his doctrine; Hear ye him; not Moses and Elias, who were servants, but Christ, my Son, whom I have commissioned to be the great Prophet and Teacher of my church. Therefore, adore him as my Son, believe in him as your Saviour, and hear him as your Law-giver. The obedient ear honours Christ more than either the gazing eye, the adoring knee, or the applauding tongue.

Observe here, 1. The strict injunction given by Christ to his disciples, not to publish or proclaim this glorious vision at his transfiguration, till after his resurrection; because being now in a state of humiliation, he would have his divine majesty and glory veiled and concealed.

Learn hence, That the divine glory of Christ's person, as God, was not to be manifested suddenly, and all at once, but gradually, and by steps.

First more obscurely, by his miracles, by the forced acknowledgments of devils, by the free confession of his disciples, and by the glorious vision of his transfiguration; but the more clear and full, the more public and open, manifestation of is divine glory, was at the time of is resurrection and ascension.

Observe, 2. The disciples obedience to Christ's injunction, touching the concealing of his transfiguration till after his resurrection; They kept that saying with themselves, questioning one with another what the rising from the dead should mean.

Not that they questioned the resurrection in general, but Christ's resurrection in particular, because his resurrection did suppose his death; and they could not conceive how the Messiah, whom they erroneously supposed must be a temporal prince, should suffer death at the hands of men.

Observe, 3. The question which the disciples put to Christ, how the observation of the Jewish doctors holds good; namely, that Elias must come before the Messias came; we see the Messias, but no Elias.

Our Saviour answers, That Elias was come already; not Elias in person, but one in the spirit and power of Elias, to wit, John the Baptist, who was prophesied of under the name of Elias; there being a great resemblance between the Elias of the Old Testament, and of the New, viz. John the Baptist, they were both men of great zeal for God and Religion, they were both undaunted reprovers of the faults of princes, and they were both implacably hated and persecuted for the same.

Thence learn, That hatred and persecution, even unto death, has often been the lot and portion of such persons who have had the courage and zeal to reprove the faults of princes. Elias is indeed come, and they have done unto him whatsoever they listed.

Observe here, 1. The person brought to Christ for help and healing; one bodily possessed by Satan, who had made him deaf and dumb from his childhood, and oft-times cast him into the fire and water, but rather to torment than to dispatch him. O how does Satan, the malicious tyrant, rejoice in doing hurt to the bodies, as well as the souls, of mankind! Lord, abate his power, since his malice of evil spirits! and how watchful is thy providence over us to preserve us, when Satan is seeking, by all imaginable means and methods, to destroy us!

Observe, 2. The person that represents his sad condition to our Saviour; his compassionate father, who kneeled down, and cried out: need will make a person both humble and eloquent. Everyone has a tongue to speak for himself, happy is he that keeps a tongue for others.

Observe, 3. The circumstance of time; Satan had got possession! of his person very young, in his youth; nay, in his childhood: and O how hard was it to cast him out after such long possession! The disciples could not do it, with all their power and prayers; and when our Saviour himself, by the power of his Godhead, did dispossess him, it was with foaming and rending that he left him.

Thus, when Satan gets possession of persons hearts in their youth, O how hard will it be to cast him out! It will put the soul to great grief, great pain, great sorrow of heart. Satan will endeavour to hold his own, and keep the sinner his slave and vassal, if all the power of hell can keep him.

Lord! convince young persons, that it is easier to keep Satan out, than it is to cast him out of the possession of their hearts.

Observe, 4. The physicians which this distressed person is brought unto first to the disciples, and then to Jesus. We never apply ourselves importunately to the God of power, till we despair of the creatures help. But why could not the disciples cast him out? Christ tells them, because of their unbelief; that is, because of the weakness of their faith, not thte total want of faith.

Whence learn, That secret unbelief may be hid and undiscerned in the heart, which neither others not ourselves may take notice of until some trial doth discover it.

Observe, 5. The poor man's humble request, and Christ's gracious reply. If thou canst do anything, help me, says the father; If thou canst believe, all things are possible, says our Saviour.

Note thence, That the fault is not in Christ, but in ourselves, if we receive not that mercy from him, which we desire and need. There is no deficiency in Christ's power, the defect lies in our faith. Hereupon the man cries out with tears, Lord, I believe; help thou mine unbelief. If these were tears of joy for the truth of his faith, then we may gather, that the lowest degree and least measure of faith is matter of joy unspeakable to the owner and possessor of it: if these were tears of sorrow for the weakness of his faith, then we may collect, that the remains of unbelief in the children of God do cost them many tears; they are the burden and sorrow of gracious souls. The father of the child cried out with tears, Lord, I believe; help thou mine unbelief.

Observe, 6. With what facility and ease our Saviour cast out this stubborn devil, that had so long possessed this poor child, even with a word speaking. How long soever Satan has kept possession of a soul, Christ can eject and cast him out both easily and speedily; one word of Christ's mouth is sufficient to help us out of all distress, both bodily and spiritual. Yet did our Lord suffer the wicked spirit to rage and rend the child before he went out of him; not from any delight in the poor child's misery, but that the multitude, seeing the desperateness of the case, might the more admire the power fo Christ in his deliverance.

Observe, 7. The sovereign power and absolute authority, which Christ had even here upon earth, when in his state of humiliation, over the devil and his angels; he commands him to go out, and enter no more into the child, and is obeyed. This was a proof and demonstration of the Godhead of our Saviour, that he had power and authority over devils, to command and over-rule them, to curb and restrain them at his pleasure.

And whereas Christ commands the devil not only to come ut, but to enter no more into the person; it implies, that Satan being cast out of his hold, earnestly desires to enter in again to recover his hold, and to regain his possession; but if Christ says, Enter no more, Satan shall obey his voice.

Observe, 8. The disciples enquire into the reasons why they could not cast this stubborn devil out, according to the power which he had given them to work miracles.

Christ tells them it was, 1. Because of their unbelief; by which understand the weakness of their faith, not their total want of faith.

2. Because they did not in this extraordinary case apply themselves to the use of extraordinary means; namely, Prayer and fasting.

Learn hence, First, That in extraordinary cases, where the necessities either of soul or body do require it, recourse must be had to the use of extraordinary means; one of which is an importunate application unto God by solemn prayer.

Secondly, That fasting and prayer are two special means of Christ's own appointment for the enabling of his people victoriously to overcome Satan, and cast him out of ourselves or others. We must set an edge upon our faith by prayer, and upon our prayer by fasting.

Observable it is, how frequently our Saviour forewarned his disciples of his approaching sufferings; and as the time of his sufferings drew near, he did more frequently warn them of it. But all was little enough to warn them against the scandal of the cross, and to reconcile their thoughts to a suffering condition. The disciples had taken up the common opinion, that the Messiah was to be a temporal prince, and as such to reign here upon earth, and they knew not how to reconcile this with his being delivered up into the hands of men that should kill him; and yet they were afraid to ask him concerning this matter.

Now from Christ's frequent forewarning his disciples of approaching sufferings, we may gather, That we can never hear either too often, or too much, of the doctrine of the cross, nor be too frequently instructed in our duty to prepare for a suffering state. As Christ went by his cross to is crown, from a state of abasement to a state of exaltation, so must all his disciples and followers likewise.

It may justly seem a wonder, that when our blessed Saviour discoursed so frequently with his disciples about his sufferings, they should at the same time be disputing among themselves about precedency and pre-eminency, which of them should be the greatest, the first in place, and the highest in dignity and honour.

But from this instance we may learn, That the holiest and best of men are subject to pride and ambition, prone to covet worldly dignity and greatness, ready to catch at the bait of honour, to affect a precedency before, and a superiority over, others. The apostles themselves were touched, if not tainted, with the itch of ambition. To cure which, our Saviour preaches to them the doctrine of humility.

Where observe, 1. Our Lord doth not say, he that is fist, but he that desireth to be first, shall be last of all, and servant of all.

Teaching us, That all persons in general, and ministers in particular, ought not to seek out places of dignity and pre-eminency for themselves, but be sought out for them: he that is first in seeking them usually least deserves them, and last obtains them; If any man desire to be first, the same shall be last of all.

Observe 2. Our Saviour teaches his disciples humility by the type and example of a little child, which he set before them as the proper emblem of humility; shewing them, that they ought to be as free from ambition as a young child, which affects nothing of precedency or superiority. Such as are of highest eminency in the church of Christ, ought to be adorned with humility, and look upon themsleves as lying under the greatest obligations to be most eminently useful and serviceable for the church's good.

Observe 3. How exceeding dear and precious such persons are to Christ, who resemble little children in true humility and lowliness of mind; assuring the world, that whatsoever kindness or respect they shew to them, be accounts shewn to himself; He that receiveth them, says Christ, receiveth me. So near is the union, so dear the relation, betwixt Christ and his members, that whatever good or evil is done to them, he reckons it as done unto himself.

The Evangelist here sets down a conference betwixt our Saviour Christ and St. John his disciple.

Where observe, 1. St. John's relation of a matter of fact to Christ, namely, his for bidding one to cast out devils in Christ's name, that did not follow Christ as they did, being his professed disciples. Though only the disciples that followd Christ had a commission to work miracles, yet there were others, no enemies to Christ, who, in imitation of the disciples, did attempt to do the like; and God was pleased, for the honour of his son, in whose name they cast out devil's to give them sometimes success. Almighty God may, and sometimes doth, give success to such actions and enterprizes as are good in themselves, though undertaken by persons that have no lawful call or warrant from God to do them. However, it ws no small confirmation of the truth of Christianity, that Christ's name was thus powerful, even among those compact with him.

Observe, 2. The action of the disciples towards this person; We forbade him. This showed, 1. Their ignorance, in supposing that none oculd be true disciples, nor work miracles, but such as followed them: We forbade him, because he followed not us. Their rashness, in forbidding him of their own heads, before they had consulted Christ about it. 2. Their envy and emulation; in that they were grieved and discontented at this person's casting out devils, because he was not a follower of them. O the imperfect compostition of the best of saints! how much weakness, infirmity, and corruption doth John the beloved disciple discover upon this occasion! The sin of envy and emulation against the gifts of God in others, is very natural to man, and to good men; yea, to the best of men. It is as difficult to look upon other men's gifts without envy, as to look upon our own without pride.

Observe, 3. Our Saviour's answer and reply: Forbid him not. Because our Saviour would in some manner and measure redound to the glory of his name, although he undertook the matter without sufficient warrant from Christ. We ought not to censure and condemn those who do that which is good in itself, though they fail in the manner of it, and in the means they use for effecting it.

Observe, 4. What encouragement our Saviour gives the world to be kind to his friends and followers: he assures them that even a cup of cold water given for his sake, to such as profess his name, shall not miss of a reward.

Learn thence, That the least office of love and respect, of kindness and charity, shewn to any of the ministers or members of Jesus Christ, for his sake, is represented as done unto himself, and shall be rewarded by himself.

Observe, 5. He shall gain that which he cannot lose, by parting with that which he could not keep.

Observe, 6. What a heinous and grievous sin it is to scandalize or offend any of the disciples of Jesus Christ; he will most severely judge and punish such as give offence to them, by any wrong or injury done unto them, both in this life and the next. It were better a millstone were hanged about his neck, and he were cast into the sea.

In the former verse our Saviour dissuaded from the sin of scandal, or giving offence to the serious and sincere Christians, threatening a very grievous judgment against such as should any ways offend them; now in these six verses he prescribes a remedy against that and all other sins, namely, by avoiding all occasions that lead to sin.

Here observe, 1. The admonition or warning given by Christ unto us, to remove far from us all occasion of sin, though ever so dear unto us. We are not to understand the command literally as if it was our duty to maim our bodily members; but metaphorically to cut off all occasions that may betray us into sin.

Hence note, That as sin may be avoided, it is our duty to avoid whatever leads unto it, or may be the instrument and occasion of it.

Observe, 2. A reason enforcing the admonition: this is drawn from the benefit and advantage that will come by cutting off such occasions of sin. It will further us in our attainment of eternal life, and prevent our being cast into hell-fire. Now our Saviour affirms, that it is better for a man to enter into life with the loss of all those things that are dear and precious to him in this world, rather than to go into hell with the fruition and enjoyment of them.

Learn hence, That a diligent and daily care to avoid sin, and all occasions that lead unto it, will be a special means to escape the torments of hell, and further us in our attainments of heaven and eternal life.

Observe, 3. The description which our Saviour gives of the torments of hell;

First, by its extremity; it is like a gnawing worm, and a consuming fire.

Secondly, and by its eternity, a worm that never dieth, and a fire that is never quenched.

Where note, That the remembrance of things past, the experience of things present, and expectation of things to come, are the bitings of the worm of conscience, at every bite whereof damned souls give a dreadful shriek; such as will not hear the voice of conscience, shall feel, and that to purpose, the sting of conscience.

Learn hence, That there is most certainly a place and state of punishment and torment of the wicked men to suffer in, upon the score of sin committed in this world.

Secondly, That the punishment and torments of the wicked in hell are intolerable and interminable, of exquisite pain, and endless duration: Their worm never dieth, and their fire is not quenched.

Everyone shall be salted with fire; that is, everyone of them mentioned in the foregoing verses, who refuses to cut off a right hand, and pluck out a right eye; that is, to mortify their bosom lusts, and beloved corruptions, which are as dear as a right hand or a right eye; every such wicked and unmortified person shall be salted with fire; that is, thrown into hell-fire, where the worm dieth not, and the fire is not quenched; as our Saviour speaks, Mr 9:44.

And their being salted with fire, imports and implies, that as to their beings they shall be preserved, even as salt preserves things from corruption, that they may be the objects of the eternal wrath of God. So that for sinners to be salted with fire, is to be given up to everlasting destruction.

Learn hence, That all such unsavoury sinners as indulge their corrupt lust and affections, shall be salted with fire; that is given up to everlasting destruction in hell-fire! but every sacrifice shall be salted with salt; that is, every Christian who has given up himself a real sacrifice unto God, shall be salted, not with fire, but with salt, to be preserved and kept savoury. The grace of mortification is that to the soul, which salt is to the body; it preserves it from putrefaction, and renders it savoury.

Learn hence, 1. That every Christian in this life ought to be a spiritual sacrifice or oblation unto God.

2. That there is a putrid and corrupt part in every sacrifice, in every Christian, which must be purged out, and the sacrifice purified and cleansed from.

3. That the grace of mortification is the true salt which must clarify the soul, and with which every sacrifice must be salted, that will be a savoury offering unto God; Everyone shall be salted with fire, and every sacrifice shall be salted with salt.

Our blessed Saviour here compares Christians in general, and his ministers in particular, unto salt, for a double reason.

First, Because it is the nature of salt to preserve things from corruption and putrefaction, and to render them savoury and pleasant. Thus are the ministers of Christ to labour and endeavour by the purity of their doctrine, to sweeten putrifying sinners, that they may become savoury unto god and man, and be kept from being flyblown with errors and false doctrines.

Secondly, Because salt has an acrimony, a piercing power in it, which subdues the whole lump, and turns it into its own nature. Such a piercing power is there in the ministry of the word, that it subdues the whole man to the obedience of itself; Have salt in yourselves, and have peace one with another; that is, let all persons, especially ministers, retain a seasoning virtue in themselves, that they may sweeten and season others, even all that they converse with; and as salt has an uniting power, and knits the parts of the body salted together, so the upholding of union and peace one with another, will declare that ye have salt in yourselves.

Learn hence, That it is the duty of all Christians, but especially of the ministers of the gospel, to maintan brotherly concord and agreement among themselves, both as an argument of their sincerity, and an ornament to their profession.