Matthew · Chapter 6
Take heed that ye do not your alms before men, to be seen of them: otherwise ye have no reward of your Father which is in heaven.
Therefore when thou doest thine alms, do not sound a trumpet before thee, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may have glory of men. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward.
John Wesley
V. 2. As the hypocrites do-Many of the scribes and Pharisees did this, under a pretence of calling the poor together.
They have their reward-All they will have; for they shall have none from God.
Adam Clarke
Verse 2. Therefore when thou doest thine alms] In the first verse the exhortation is general: Take YE heed. In this verse the address is pointed-and THOU-man-woman-who readest-hearest.
Do not sound a trumpet] It is very likely that this was literally practised among the Pharisees, who seemed to live on the public esteem, and were excessively self-righteous and vain. Having something to distribute by way of alms, it is very probable they caused this to be published by blowing a trumpet or horn, under pretence of collecting the poor; though with no other design than to gratify their own ambition. There is a custom in the east not much unlike this. “The derveeshes carry horns with them, which they frequently blow, when any thing is given to them, in honor of the donor. It is not impossible that some of the poor Jews who begged alms might be furnished like the Persian derveeshes, who are a sort of religious beggars, and that these hypocrites might be disposed to confine their alms-giving to those that they knew would pay them this honour.” HARMER’S Observat. vol. i. p. 474.
It must be granted, that in the Jewish writings there is no such practice referred to as that which I have supposed above, viz. blowing a trumpet to gather the poor, or the poor blowing a horn when relieved. Hence some learned men have thought that the word rpwv shopher, a trumpet, refers to the hole in the public alms chest, into which the money was dropped which was allotted for the service of the poor. Such holes, because they were wide at one end and grew gradually narrow towards the other, were actually termed twrpwv shopheroth, trumpets, by the rabbins; of this Schoettgen furnishes several examples. An ostentatious man, who wished to attract the notice of those around him, would throw in his money with some force into these trumpet-resembling holes, and thus he might be said rpwv salpizein, to sound the trumpet. The Jerusalem Gemara, tract Shekalim, describes these twrpwv shopheroth thus-These trumpet holes were crooked, narrow above and wide below, in order to prevent fraud. As our Lord only uses the words, mh salpishv, it may be tantamount to our term jingle. Do not make a public ostentatious jingle of that money which you give to public charities. Pride and hypocrisy are the things here reprehended. The Pharisees, no doubt, felt the weight of the reproof. Still the words may be taken in their literal meaning, as we know that the Moslimans, who nearly resemble the ancient Pharisees in the ostentation, bigotry, and cruelty of their character, are accustomed, in their festival of Muhurram, to erect stages in the public streets, and, by the sound of a trumpet, call the poor together to receive alms of rice, and other kinds of food. See WARD.
Works of charity and mercy should be done as much in private as is consistent with the advancement of the glory of God, and the effectual relief of the poor.
In the synagogues and in the streets] That such chests or boxes, for receiving the alms of well-disposed people, were placed in the synagogues, we may readily believe; but what were the streets? Schoettgen supposes that courts or avenues in the temple and in the synagogues may be intended-places where the people were accustomed to walk, for air, amusement, &c., for it is not to be supposed that such chests were fixed in the public streets.
They have their reward.] That is, the honour and esteem of men which they sought. God is under no obligation to them-they did nothing with an eye to his glory, and from HIM they can expect no recompense. They had their recompense in this life; and could expect none in the world to come.
Joseph Benson
Verses 2-4. Therefore, &c. — The caution is so important, that our Lord illustrates it in various particulars. When thou doest thine alms — Exercisest thy charity by performing works of mercy; do not sound a trumpet before thee, as the hypocrites do — From this it would appear that, in our Lord’s time, persons who affected the reputation of being extremely charitable, sometimes sounded a trumpet when they distributed their alms, on pretence, no doubt, of calling together the poor to receive them, while their real intention was to proclaim their own good works, and receive glory of men. Wherefore, as his disciples were to do no work of charity from the motive of vanity, he absolutely forbade this custom of the hypocrites. Verily, I say unto you, they have their reward — All they will have; for they shall have none from God. Let not thy left hand know what thy right hand doeth — A proverbial expression for doing a thing secretly. Do it as secretly as is consistent, 1st, with the doing it at all; 2d, with the doing it in the most effectual manner. And never speak of it afterward, unless there be good reasons for making it known. That thine alms may be in secret — May be known to none but God, whose glory thou must have in view in all thy works, whether of piety, justice, or charity, and whose will it must be thy intention to obey in all things. And thy Father, which seeth in secret — Who knows every circumstance of mews most retired and private actions; himself shall reward thee openly — Viz., before men and angels, at the day of final judgment. For, though it be true, as Grotius here observes, that God often visibly rewards the charitable actions of pious persons, performed from true love to him, with temporal blessings in this life; yet will he chiefly do it in the sight of men and angels in the world to come. See Matthew 25:34; Luke 14:14.
Daniel Whedon
2. When thou doest thine alms — With a delicate reference to the secresy and individuality enjoined, our Lord changes the plural pronoun ye of the last verse to the more pointed thou. Do thou thus, personally and alone. Be it here marked that our Lord presupposes that alms would be given. Even fallen Judaism was liberal to God and the poor. The extravagance of the present day, lavish of showy expense, has but a small surplus to spare for charities and liberalities. The Jew gave one tenth of his income; the Christian generally cannot give the hundredth part, since he needs it to supply rich furniture, personal pleasures, and investments for future profit! Sound a trumpet — Symbol for making a great display to attract attention. There is no proof of the existence among the Jews of the practice of blowing a trumpet in almsgiving. Their reward — The applause of men which they seek, and the disapprobation of God whom they mock.
Richard Watson
Verse 2. Do not sound a trumpet before thee. — Trumpets were used by the Jews to proclaim their new moons, and to collect the people together on various public occasions. A trumpet also belonged to every synagogue. But that this instrument was used to collect people together to receive alms from ostentatious persons, does not appear. Harmer, indeed, quotes from Chardin, that it was the practice of the Persian dervises to sound horns or trumpets in honour of those who bestowed alms upon them; but, in illustrating Scripture by the manners and customs of “the east,” we are to recollect that “the east” is a wide term; and, though oriental manners have great similarity in all ages, and have been less subject to fluctuate than those of the west, yet great diversities have obtained there at different times, and in regions far remote from each other. Lightfoot, who is a great authority on all subjects connected with Jewish antiquities, says that he finds no trace of the custom in the writings of the rabbins. The expression used by our Lord may therefore be considered proverbial, as a similar one is with us; and it strikingly marks the ostentatious publicity with which the “hypocrites” whom Christ reproves performed their eleemosynary acts. Hypocrites. — The Greek word signifies an actor, a stage-player, one who in a mask personated a character which he was not: hence, in religion, it is a man of pretended sanctity.
Verily, I say unto you, They have their reward. — Those who would take apecousi in the classical sense, to fall short of their reward, lose the double antithesis intended by our Lord:
1. Between present and future reward; and,
2. Between the kind of reward which they receive from the applause of men, and that which consists in the approbation of God. The obvious meaning is, they have now all the reward they shall ever receive: and this, at the best, is but the empty expression of human praise.
But when thou doest alms, let not thy left hand know what thy right hand doeth:
John Wesley
V. 3. Let not thy left hand know what thy right hand doth-A proverbial expression for doing a thing secretly. Do it as secretly as is consistent, 1. With the doing it at all. 2. With the doing it in the most effectual manner.
Adam Clarke
Verse 3. Let not thy left hand know] In many cases, works of charity must be hidden from even our nearest relatives, who, if they knew, would hinder us from doing what God has given us power and inclination to perform. We must go even farther; and conceal them as far as is possible from ourselves, by not thinking of them, or eyeing them with complacency. They are given to GOD, and should be hidden in HIM.
Joseph Benson
Verses 2-4. Therefore, &c. — The caution is so important, that our Lord illustrates it in various particulars. When thou doest thine alms — Exercisest thy charity by performing works of mercy; do not sound a trumpet before thee, as the hypocrites do — From this it would appear that, in our Lord’s time, persons who affected the reputation of being extremely charitable, sometimes sounded a trumpet when they distributed their alms, on pretence, no doubt, of calling together the poor to receive them, while their real intention was to proclaim their own good works, and receive glory of men. Wherefore, as his disciples were to do no work of charity from the motive of vanity, he absolutely forbade this custom of the hypocrites. Verily, I say unto you, they have their reward — All they will have; for they shall have none from God. Let not thy left hand know what thy right hand doeth — A proverbial expression for doing a thing secretly. Do it as secretly as is consistent, 1st, with the doing it at all; 2d, with the doing it in the most effectual manner. And never speak of it afterward, unless there be good reasons for making it known. That thine alms may be in secret — May be known to none but God, whose glory thou must have in view in all thy works, whether of piety, justice, or charity, and whose will it must be thy intention to obey in all things. And thy Father, which seeth in secret — Who knows every circumstance of mews most retired and private actions; himself shall reward thee openly — Viz., before men and angels, at the day of final judgment. For, though it be true, as Grotius here observes, that God often visibly rewards the charitable actions of pious persons, performed from true love to him, with temporal blessings in this life; yet will he chiefly do it in the sight of men and angels in the world to come. See Matthew 25:34; Luke 14:14.
Daniel Whedon
3. Left hand — If it had perception. A striking symbol of secrecy. “The right hand,” says Mr. Roberts in his Oriental Illustrations, “always dispenses gifts because ‘it is more honourable than the other;’ the left hand, therefore, was to be unacquainted with the charities of the other; that is, there was to be no ostentation; to be perfect secrecy. The Hindoos say of things which are not to be revealed: ‘The left ear is not to hear that which went into the right, nor the right to be acquainted with that which was heard by the left.’“
Richard Watson
Verse 3. Thy left hand know. — A proverbial expression for the closest secrecy. Yet not an affected secrecy, which but tells the tale in another manner.
That thine alms may be in secret: and thy Father which seeth in secret himself shall reward thee openly.
Adam Clarke
Verse 4. Which seeth in secret] We should ever remember that the eye of the Lord is upon us, and that he sees not only the act, but also every motive that led to it.
Shall reward thee openly.] Will give thee the fullest proofs of his acceptance of thy work of faith, and labour of love, by increasing that substance which, for his sake, thou sharest with the poor; and will manifest his approbation in thy own heart, by the witness of his Spirit.
Joseph Benson
Verses 2-4. Therefore, &c. — The caution is so important, that our Lord illustrates it in various particulars. When thou doest thine alms — Exercisest thy charity by performing works of mercy; do not sound a trumpet before thee, as the hypocrites do — From this it would appear that, in our Lord’s time, persons who affected the reputation of being extremely charitable, sometimes sounded a trumpet when they distributed their alms, on pretence, no doubt, of calling together the poor to receive them, while their real intention was to proclaim their own good works, and receive glory of men. Wherefore, as his disciples were to do no work of charity from the motive of vanity, he absolutely forbade this custom of the hypocrites. Verily, I say unto you, they have their reward — All they will have; for they shall have none from God. Let not thy left hand know what thy right hand doeth — A proverbial expression for doing a thing secretly. Do it as secretly as is consistent, 1st, with the doing it at all; 2d, with the doing it in the most effectual manner. And never speak of it afterward, unless there be good reasons for making it known. That thine alms may be in secret — May be known to none but God, whose glory thou must have in view in all thy works, whether of piety, justice, or charity, and whose will it must be thy intention to obey in all things. And thy Father, which seeth in secret — Who knows every circumstance of mews most retired and private actions; himself shall reward thee openly — Viz., before men and angels, at the day of final judgment. For, though it be true, as Grotius here observes, that God often visibly rewards the charitable actions of pious persons, performed from true love to him, with temporal blessings in this life; yet will he chiefly do it in the sight of men and angels in the world to come. See Matthew 25:34; Luke 14:14.
Daniel Whedon
4. In secret — Literally in the secret place. God seeth that secret place, and shall reward thee in the open place. Thy good deeds were covered; thy reward shall be before assembled worlds. Shall reward thee — The great principle of reward for good works done with the pure eye to God alone, seems almost forgotten. The fear of claiming merit for our good works and deeds of righteousness for God, has become extreme. Yet evangelically, and by the great condescension of God, a merit, at least a rewardableness, is attributed to deeds of goodness, performed from a right heart, for God. The dollar, nay, the cent, given for Christ from a love for Christ, is an investment which he will repay with an eternal interest.
b. Sincerity in prayer.
Richard Watson
Verse 4. Thy Father which seeth in secret, &c. — En tw kruptw, place, is here to be understood, and so en tw fanerw. Otherwise they may be taken adverbially, secretly and openly. All things are to be done as under the eye of God, which is in every place, and penetrates every heart. Nor shall the modest, retiring manner in which any good is done deprive the disciple of his reward. It is noticed by HIM that seeth in secret; by Him who, thus discerning both the act and the motive, himself shall reward thee openly. Here also the antitheses are to be remarked; HIMSELF shall reward thee: not a mortal who has nothing to bestow but vain applause; and OPENLY, in opposition to the SECRECY of the giving. This often takes place in the present life, where a favouring providence does, as it were, openly mark out the conscientious and humble giver, as a special object of blessing; so that he enjoys through life a sanctified prosperity, according to his rank, and is sometimes raised above it. But the final rewards, to be openly administered at the last day, are ultimately, and in the highest sense, intended, according to our Lord’s own declaration in his description of the general judgment, Matthew 25:31, &c. If it be asked whether our Lord proposes a mercenary motive, it may be denied. The alms are not to be given FOR THE SAKE of the promised reward, a motive which would vitiate the act, as being only selfishness directed to another object, The true motives are a sense of duty, and the impulse of those kind feelings toward others which it is an essential branch of our religion to cultivate. In entire consistency with this, however, may the promise of our Lord be brought to bear upon our cheerful readiness to such duties; inasmuch as they assure us that in every act of duty, when accompanied by sacrifice, we are authorized to trust in the care of our heavenly Father; and also as they put us to the test, whether we will prefer the spiritual rewards of another life, which God, as an act of pure grace, attaches to the performance of acts of charity, to that dross of earth which we might withhold from the poor, and those carnal gratifications to which we might apply these unhallowed savings.
And when thou prayest, thou shalt not be as the hypocrites are: for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and in the corners of the streets, that they may be seen of men. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward.
John Wesley
V. 5. The synagogues-These were properly the places where the people assembled for public prayer, and hearing the Scriptures read and expounded. They were in every city from the time of the Babylonish captivity, and had service in them thrice a day on three days in the week. In every synagogue was a council of grave and wise persons, over whom was a president, called the ruler of the synagogue. But the word here, as well as in many other texts, signifies any place of public concourse.
Adam Clarke
Verse 5. And when thou prayest] otan proseuch. proseuch,, prayer, is compounded of prov with, and euch a vow, because to pray right, a man binds himself to God, as by a vow, to live to his glory, if he will grant him his grace, &c. eucomai signifies to pour out prayers or vows, from eu well, and cew, I pour out; probably alluding to the offerings or libations which were poured out before, or on the altar. A proper idea of prayer is, a pouring out of the soul unto God, as a free-will offering, solemnly and eternally dedicated to him, accompanied with the most earnest desire that it may know, love, and serve him alone. He that comes thus to God will ever be heard and blessed. Prayer is the language of dependence; he who prays not, is endeavouring to live independently of God: this was the first curse, and continues to be the great curse of mankind. In the beginning, Satan said, Eat this fruit; ye shall then be as God; i.e. ye shall be independent: the man hearkened to his voice, sin entered into the world, and notwithstanding the full manifestation of the deception, the ruinous system is still pursued; man will, if possible, live independently of God; hence he either prays not at all, or uses the language without the spirit of prayer. The following verses contain so fine a view, and so just a definition, of prayer, that I think the pious reader will be glad to find them here. WHAT IS PRAYER?
Prayer is the soul’s sincere desire,
Unuttered or expressed,
The motion of a hidden fire
That trembles in the breast:
Prayer is the burden of a sigh,
The falling of a tear,
The upward gleaming of an eye,
When none but God is near.
Prayer is the simplest form of speech
That infant lips can try;
Prayer, the sublimest strains that reach
The Majesty on high:
Prayer is the Christian’s vital breath,
The Christian’s native air,
His watch-word at the gates of death,
He enters heaven by prayer.
Prayer is the contrite sinner’s voice,
Returning from his ways,
While angels in their songs rejoice,
And say, Behold he prays!
The saints in prayer appear as one,
In word, in deed, in mind,
When with the Father and the Son
Their fellowship they find.
Nor prayer is made on earth alone:
The Holy Spirit pleads;
And Jesus, on th’ eternal throne,
For sinners intercedes.
“O Thou, by whom we come to God!
The Life, the Truth, the Way,
The path of prayer thyself hast trod,
Lord, teach us how to pray!”
MONTGOMERY.
Thou shalt not be as the hypocrites] upokritai. From upo under, and krinomai to be judged, thought: properly a stage-player, who acts under a mask, personating a character different from his own; a counterfeit, a dissembler; one who would be thought to be different from what he really is. A person who wishes to be taken for a follower of God, but who has nothing of religion except the outside.
Love to pray standing in the synagogues and in the corners of the streets] The Jewish phylacterical prayers were long, and the canonical hours obliged them to repeat these prayers wherever they happened to be; and the Pharisees, who were full of vain glory, contrived to be overtaken in the streets by the canonical hour, that they might be seen by the people, and applauded for their great and conscientious piety. See Lightfoot. As they had no piety but that which was outward, they endeavoured to let it fully appear, that they might make the most of it among the people. It would not have answered their end to kneel before God, for then they might have been unnoticed by men; and consequently have lost that reward which they had in view: viz. the esteem and applause of the multitude. This hypocritical pretension to devotion is common among the Asiatics. Both Hindoos and Mohammedans love to pray in the most public places, at the landing places of rivers, in the public streets, on the roofs of the covered boats, without the least endeavour to conceal their outside devotion, that they may be seen of men.
Joseph Benson
Verses 5, 6. When thou prayest — Which, if thou art my disciple indeed, thou wilt often do: thou shalt not be as the hypocrites — Praying out of vain ostentation. For they love to pray standing in the synagogues — In the sight of numbers of people. Of the synagogues see note on Matthew 4:23. And in the corners of the streets — Where several ways meet, that they may be seen of men — May be beheld by many, and admired as persons of singular piety. Verily, they have their reward — This admiration of those that observe them, is all the reward they ever shall have. But thou, when thou prayest — And dost not intend to use a social, but a private means of grace, enter into thy closet — Or any other retired apartment; and when thou hast shut thy door — To prevent interruption, and to exclude spectators, pray to thy Father which is in secret — Perform the duty without noise or show, by which it will appear that thou art influenced by a principle of true piety, by the fear or love of God, and a regard to his will and glory. It must be observed, that Christ does not here condemn all prayer made in places of public worship, seeing both he and his disciples often prayed with the Jews in the synagogues, Luke 4:16; nor any public devotions in the house of God; but, speaking only here of private prayer, he would have that performed agreeably to the nature of it, and so in secret; and condemns them only who affected to do that duty in public places, that others might take notice of them, and regard them as devout religious persons for so doing.
Daniel Whedon
5. Prayest — From sincerity in alms our Lord proceeds to sincerity in prayer. Hypocrites — The Greek word is, literally, play actors. These anciently not only acted a part, but wore a mask. Hence they became a symbol of persons who assumed a false character, especially in religion. Standing — A usual posture of the Jews in prayer. The early Christians followed a more uniform practice of kneeling. See Acts 9:40; 20:36. The posture is not essential, but so far as the act is significant, kneeling is assuredly the more reverential. Dr. Thomson says of the Moslem prayers: “I would be glad to believe there was ordinarily any corresponding moral and religious feeling connected with this exterior manifestation of devotion. The Moslems themselves, however, have no such idea. They are rather afraid of any one who is especially given to prayer — their prayers, I mean. They have a proverb: ‘If your neighbour has made the pilgrimage to Mecca once, watch him; if twice, avoid his society; if three times, move into another street.’“
Corners of the streets — Where streets intersected and so brought large crowds. The Jerusalem Talmud is quoted as saying: “Rabbi Janai stood and prayed in the corner of the street Trippor, repeating an additional prayer at each of the four corners.”
Richard Watson
Verse 5. And when thou prayest, &c. — What is usually called private prayer is here intended; a duty recognized as of serious obligation from the most ancient times, and practised with exactness by all good men. It is founded upon the necessity of a personal communion with God, and upon that great privilege which is conferred by religion upon man, that he shall be entitled “to make his requests known unto God” in every thing, however small it may appear to others, which can affect his present interests, and the religious state of his soul. For these exercises, as being of a personal nature, and relating chiefly to personal or family concerns, the privacy of the closet is only fitting; and therefore to offer this species of prayer in the synagogues, which were for public worship, by frequenting them at unusual times for this purpose, and in the corners of streets, could only result from the hypocritical design of being esteemed eminent for sanctity, which in that age of formal religion appears to have been the high road to vulgar popularity. The practice of the Pharisees, in praying in corners of the streets, squares, &c., may be seen among Hindoos and Mohammedans to this day. They offer their devotions in the most public places, the landing places of rivers, and in the public streets, without any concealment.
They love to pray standing in the synagogues, &c. — Standing was the usual posture of the Jews in prayer, except on particular occasions of calamity and deep humiliation, when they prostrated themselves before the Divine Majesty. In Acts 9:40, we find Peter kneeling down in prayer; in Acts 20:36, St. Paul prays in the same attitude; and both he himself, and all present with him, in Acts 21:5. This, therefore, appears to have been the constant attitude of the first Christians in their acts of devotion; but very quickly after the death of the apostles, the notion came in of giving dramatic effect to religious exercises, innocent in intention perhaps at first, but always culpable in fact, and the fruitful source of future corruptions of the simplicity of primitive worship. Hence at a very early period the Christians uniformly stood at prayer on Sundays; for, according to Tertullian, it was as unlawful to kneel as to fast on that day. The reason is given by Justin: “That on the Lord’s day we do not bow the knee, symbolically represents our resurrection in Christ.” The practice of standing at prayer was also extended from Easter to pentecost, in testimony of their joy at the resurrection of Christ; and these circumstances came at length to be ranked among the essentials of piety! Many critics, however, take the word estwtev in the text, simply in the sense of being; as the Latin sto, and existo, are frequently used.
In the synagogues. — Because sunagwgh means a collecting together, whether of things or persons, some here understand en taiv sunagwgaiv, in circulis, “in any public concourse,” and not in the synagogues, properly so called, the places in which the Jews used to assemble for instruction and prayer; but this would induce a tautology, as “the corners of streets” were selected as being places of public resort. The popular sense of the term is therefore to be preferred.
But thou, when thou prayest, enter into thy closet, and when thou hast shut thy door, pray to thy Father which is in secret; and thy Father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly.
John Wesley
V. 6. Enter into thy closet-That is, do it with as much secrecy as thou canst.
Adam Clarke
Verse 6. But thou, when thou prayest] This is a very impressive and emphatic address. But THOU! whosoever thou art, Jew, Pharisee, Christian-enter into thy closet. Prayer is the most secret intercourse of the soul with God, and as it were the conversation of one heart with another. The world is too profane and treacherous to be of the secret. We must shut the door against it: endeavour to forget it, with all the affairs which busy and amuse it. Prayer requires retirement, at least of the heart; for this may be fitly termed the closet in the house of God, which house the body of every real Christian is, 1 Corinthians 3:16. To this closet we ought to retire even in public prayer, and in the midst of company. Reward thee openly.] What goodness is there equal to this of God to give, not only what we ask, and more than we ask, but to reward even prayer itself! How great advantage is it to serve a prince who places prayers in the number of services, and reckons to his subjects’ account, even their trust and confidence in begging all things of him!
Joseph Benson
Verses 5, 6. When thou prayest — Which, if thou art my disciple indeed, thou wilt often do: thou shalt not be as the hypocrites — Praying out of vain ostentation. For they love to pray standing in the synagogues — In the sight of numbers of people. Of the synagogues see note on Matthew 4:23. And in the corners of the streets — Where several ways meet, that they may be seen of men — May be beheld by many, and admired as persons of singular piety. Verily, they have their reward — This admiration of those that observe them, is all the reward they ever shall have. But thou, when thou prayest — And dost not intend to use a social, but a private means of grace, enter into thy closet — Or any other retired apartment; and when thou hast shut thy door — To prevent interruption, and to exclude spectators, pray to thy Father which is in secret — Perform the duty without noise or show, by which it will appear that thou art influenced by a principle of true piety, by the fear or love of God, and a regard to his will and glory. It must be observed, that Christ does not here condemn all prayer made in places of public worship, seeing both he and his disciples often prayed with the Jews in the synagogues, Luke 4:16; nor any public devotions in the house of God; but, speaking only here of private prayer, he would have that performed agreeably to the nature of it, and so in secret; and condemns them only who affected to do that duty in public places, that others might take notice of them, and regard them as devout religious persons for so doing.
Joseph Sutcliffe
Ver. 6. When thou prayest, enter into thy closet. Prayer, as well as alms, must be performed in secret. In our Saviour’s time, the jews used about eighteen prayers, and he is here understood to reduce those prayers to this short form, that the great body of his disciples might readily retain and repeat it. So Dr. Lightfoot, who quotes the substance of it from the Hebrew prayers. Jesus here teaches us to call God our Father, for grace allows of that great liberty to penitent man. But when he is addressed as a Father, the Godhead or whole Divinity is understood, of Father, Son, and Spirit. He teaches us to hallow the name of God, for all his names designate his perfections. This also implies worship, reverence, and the abstaining from unholy imprecations. We pray next for the kingdom of God to come to all the earth, as in chap. 3:2; and then his will shall be done on earth, as it is in heaven. Isaiah 11:9. 60:21. We pray for daily bread, both for body and soul. The farmer lives by the fruits of the year, but saints by daily supplies of grace. We have a Father to provide. But we must forgive one another, and be indulgent to man, as God is indulgent to us. We pray farther, that we may not be led into temptation, for God is often said to do that which he only suffers to be done; rather, may God deliver us from all the evils of Satan, and of wicked men.
Daniel Whedon
6. Closet — The word primarily signifies a locker, or fastened store-room. Hence any private close apartment or chamber. Symbol for any secret retreat. But not only may we be in our closet; our closet may be in us. The innermost prayer of the heart, though in a dense crowd, may be truly the closet prayer. Shut thy door — As our Lord is here prescribing a mode of action in opposition to the conduct of the ostentatious hypocrite of his day, he lays a special emphasis upon the particular points of difference. For this reason it is that he specifies the closet and the shutting of the door. These are the symbols of unostentatious devotion. They are not, therefore, to be interpreted materially and mechanically. The pure thought is — Perform thy religious duties for God’s eye and not for man’s.
Richard Watson
Verse 6. But thou when thou prayest, &c. — The utmost secrecy is here enjoined; the place for private prayer is to be tamieion, the closet, and the door of the closet is to be shut. The closet signifies a chamber, or indeed any place of privacy or retirement. It may be the same as the uperwon, the upper room, which, in many of the Jewish houses, was set apart for retirement, or some still more retired place. The encouragements to this important duty are here most impressively stated. God is in our retirement; he is there to meet us, and receive our prayers; there to bless us, and cause his face to shine upon us: he seeth in secret; he enters into our case, and penetrates the meaning of silent desires and sighs, as well as words, which have no need to be vociferously pronounced to enter into his ears; and he rewards those openly who practise this secret duty in a right spirit. Their strength to do the will of God in the public walks of life, and their power to suffer it amidst all its afflictions; the temper of mind they are enabled to maintain, and the exemplifications of a holy religion, which they are empowered to exhibit, together with a manifest resting of the Divine blessing upon them; are the OPEN rewards which the mercy of God confers upon those who most regard this injunction: an injunction which ought to be regarded more in the light of a privilege, than as a mere duty.
But when ye pray, use not vain repetitions, as the heathen do: for they think that they shall be heard for their much speaking.
John Wesley
V. 7. Use not vain repetitions-To repeat any words without meaning them, is certainly a vain repetition. Therefore we should be extremely careful in all our prayers to mean what we say; and to say only what we mean from the bottom of our hearts. The vain and heathenish repetitions which we are here warned against, are most dangerous, and yet very common; which is a principal cause why so many, who still profess religion, are a disgrace to it. Indeed all the words in the world are not equivalent to one holy desire. And the very best prayers are but vain repetitions, if they are not the language of the heart.
Adam Clarke
Verse 7. Use not vain repetitions] mh battologhshte, Suidas explains this word well: “polulogia, much speaking, from one Battus, who made very prolix hymns, in which the same idea frequently recurred.” “A frequent repetition of awful and striking words may often be the result of earnestness and fervour. See Daniel 9:3-20; but great length of prayer, which will of course involve much sameness and idle repetition, naturally creates fatigue and carelessness in the worshipper, and seems to suppose ignorance or inattention in the Deity; a fault against which our Lord more particularly wishes to secure them.” See Clarke on “Matthew 6:8”. This judicious note is from the late Mr. Gilbert Wakefield, who illustrates it with the following quotation from the Heautontimorumenos of Terence:- Ohe! jam decine Deos, uxor, gratulando OBTUNDERE,
Tuam esse inventam gnatam: nisi illos ex TUO INGENIO judicas, Ut nil credas INTELLIGERE, nisi idem DICTUM SIT CENTIES. “Pray thee, wife, cease from STUNNING the gods with
thanksgivings, because thy child is in safety; unless thou judgest of them from thyself, that they cannot UNDERSTAND a thing, unless they are told of it a HUNDRED TIMES.” Heaut. ver. 880.
Prayer requires more of the heart than of the tongue. The eloquence of prayer consists in the fervency of desire, and the simplicity of faith. The abundance of fine thoughts, studied and vehement motions, and the order and politeness of the expressions, are things which compose a mere human harangue, not an humble and Christian prayer. Our trust and confidence ought to proceed from that which God is able to do in us, and not from that which we can say to him. It is abominable, says the HEDAYAH, that a person offering up prayers to God, should say, “I beseech thee, by the glory of thy heavens!” or, “by the splendour of thy throne!” for a style of this nature would lead to suspect that the Almighty derived glory from the heavens; whereas the heavens are created, but God with all his attributes is eternal and inimitable. HEDAYAH, vol. iv. p. 121.
This is the sentiment of a Mohammedan; and yet for this vain repetition the Mohammedans are peculiarly remarkable; they often use such words as the following:-
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O God, O God, O God, O God!-O Lord, O Lord, O Lord, O
Lord!-O living, O immortal, O living, O immortal, O living, O immortal, O living, O immortal!-O Creator of the heavens and the earth!-O thou who art endowed with majesty and authority! O wonderful, &c. I have extracted the above from a form of prayer used by Tippo Sahib, which I met with in a book of devotion in which there were several prayers written with his own hand, and signed with his own name.
Of this vain repetition in civil matters, among the Jews, many instances might be given, and not a few examples might be found among Christians. The heathens abounded with them: see several quoted by Lightfoot.-Let the parricide be dragged! We beseech thee, Augustus, let the parricide be dragged! This is the thing we ask, let the parricide be dragged! Hear us, Cæsar; let the false accusers be cast to the lion! Hear us, Cæsar, let the false accusers be condemned to the lion! Hear us, Cæsar, &c. It was a maxim among the Jews, that “he who multiplies prayer, must be heard.” This is correct, if it only imply perseverance in supplication; but if it be used to signify the multiplying of words, or even forms of prayer, it will necessarily produce the evil which our Lord reprehends: Be not as the heathen-use not vain repetition, &c. Even the Christian Churches in India have copied this vain repetition work; and in it the Roman Catholic, the Armenian, and the Greek Churches strive to excel.
As the heathen] The Vatican MS. reads upokritai, like the hypocrites. Unmeaning words, useless repetitions, and complimentary phrases in prayer, are in general the result of heathenism, hypocrisy, or ignorance.
Joseph Benson
Verses 7, 8. When ye pray, use not vain repetitions — A multiplicity of words without meaning, or uttered without seriousness, reverence for God, sincerity, or faith. The original word, battologhshte, is derived from battov, a stutterer, or foolish talker, and logov, speech. The former word was the name of a certain prince of the Cyrenæans, who was a stammerer, and also of a babbling foolish poet, who frequently repeated the same things, and whose rhapsodies were full of tautologies. Our interpretation of the words, Use not vain repetitions, Dr. Campbell thinks is too confined, and does not include all that is meant to be signified by our Lord’s expression, which, he says, comprehends “every thing, in words, that may justly be called vain, idle, or foolish.” The word polulogia, much speaking, applied to the same fault in the latter part of the verse, is a further elucidation of its meaning. As the heathen do — When invoking their false gods: for they think they shall be heard — In the prayers which they address to them; for their much speaking — Thus we find the priests of Baal crying from morning till noon, O Baal, hear us. Hence it appears, partly at least, what the repetitions were which Christ forbade his disciples to use in their prayers, namely, such as proceeded from an opinion that they should be heard for their much speaking, after the manner of the heathen. This opinion, implying a denial of the power, or the knowledge, or the goodness of God, is highly injurious to him; and therefore repetitions in prayer, flowing from it, are highly culpable, as also is the repeating of any words without meaning them, or the expressing in words any petitions or thanksgivings which do not proceed from the heart. Therefore, we should be extremely careful, in all our prayers, to mean what we say, and to desire what we ask, from the very bottom of our hearts. The vain and heathenish repetitions which we are here warned against, are very common, and a principal cause why so many who profess religion are a disgrace to it. Indeed, all the words in the world, however well chosen and uttered in prayer, are not equivalent to one holy desire; and the very best prayers are but vain repetitions, if they are not the language of the heart. But let it be observed, on the other hand, that repetitions proceeding from a deep sense of our wants, and a vehement desire of divine grace, and the spiritual blessings flowing therefrom, or connected therewith, are by no means prohibited here by the Lord Jesus, otherwise indeed he would condemn his own practice, Matthew 26:39-44. For your Father knoweth what things ye have need of before you ask him — We do not pray to inform God of our wants. Omniscient as he is, he cannot be informed of any thing which he knew not before: and he is always willing to relieve them. The chief thing wanting is, a fit disposition on our part to receive his grace and blessing. Consequently, one great office of prayer is to produce such a disposition in us; to exercise our dependance on God; to increase our desire of the things we ask for; to make us so sensible of our wants, that we may never cease wrestling till we have prevailed for the blessing.
Daniel Whedon
7. Vain repetitions — The second caution in regard to prayer. Vain repetition, in the Greek, battologia. The word is derived by an ancient lexicographer from Battus, a poet, who composed hymns full of repetitions. More probably, however, the word is made from the sound, like such words as tattle and clatter. The repetitions of a fervent heart are not condemned; but the parrot-like recitation of heartless phrases, as if the mere saying of them over would be a merit. So the Papists prescribe Pater Nosters to be repeated, and beads to be counted. Of the repetitions of modern Orientals, Dr. Thomson says: “They are obliged to repeat some expressions thirty times; others many hundred times. Would that these remarks did not apply to nominal Christians in this land as well as to Moslems!” Much speaking — Instead of sincere speaking. Our Saviour is not condemning perseverance in prayer. On the contrary, he often prayed himself all night. As the heathen do — Our Lord will deal with heathenism in a later part of the discourse. But, alas! there is much of heathenism in Judaism.
Richard Watson
Verse 7. Use not vain repetitions, as the heathen do. — The verb Battologew is said to be formed from one Battus, who made long hymns to the gods, full of tautologies, which thus became proverbial to express whatever in spirit or writing was prolix, verbose, and had the same thought repeated in the same or in equivalent words. It is more probably from the Hebrew acb, to prate, to babble, It has been much disputed whether our Lord here reproves repetitions in prayer, or long prayers. The fact is, that, simply considered, he forbids neither. All repetitions of the same prayer cannot be reproved, for he himself prayed “thrice in the same words;” and many instances of repetition are found in the Psalms and other parts of the Old Testament, It would also be an evident restraint upon the strong emotions of the soul in prayer, were the repetition of the same words or sentiments absolutely prohibited. St. Paul, through his earnestness, for instance, was led to pray thrice, that his thorn in the flesh might “depart from him;” and if he used not exactly the same words, the import of his prayer must have been each time the same. Nor are long prayers forbidden, as some have supposed, who think their notion fortified by our Lord teaching his disciples, immediately after this, a short form of prayer: but that this was not designed to regulate the length of our prayers, is evident from longer prayers being used by the apostles themselves, who surely knew the mind of their Master; to say nothing of the extended prayers used by Solomon, at the dedication of the temple; by Daniel in confessing the sins of his people, and praying for their restoration; and by Nehemiah, chap. 9. Simply then, in themselves, neither repetitions in prayer, nor length of prayer is forbidden. Our Lord is his own interpreter; and we have only to take the latter part of the verse to explain the former: “for they think, that they shall be heard for their MUCH SPEAKING.” The fatal error which crept into all corrupted religions was, and continues to be, that God is pleased with mere service, of which he requires a certain quantum, usually onerous and wearisome to him that offers it, which renders him more meritorious, and God more propitious. Hence the length of the prayers of heathens may be accounted for: and long prayers are forbidden when they are made so under this intention. As for their repetitions, these partly arose from the necessity they thought themselves under of filling up the appointed time, and making up the required amount of service; and still more directly did they proceed from those low views of their deities which prevailed among them. These were local gods, and might be at a distance; their worshippers must therefore continue calling until they returned: hence Elijah mocks the worshippers of Baal, “Cry aloud; for, peradventure, he may be asleep, or on a journey.” They also ascribed human affections to their gods, and entertained notions of overcoming their reluctance by dint of clamorous importunity; or of wearying them into compliance, by reiterations of the same requests; or of making them understand their case by urging it repeatedly under different forms, For this they were often satirized by their own writers. Hence the husband is introduced in Terence, “Cease, wife, to tease and stun the gods with thanks for the welfare of your child. Cannot they understand except you mention it a hundred times?” “Ohe! jam desine Deos, uxor,” &c. Heaut. v, 50. 6. — The priests of Baal called, “O Baal, hear us,” from morning until noon; and in one place in Æschylus near one hundred verses are filled with tautologies, iw, iw, feu, feu, e, e, as invocations of the gods. Now, both the length and the repetitions of such services proceeded upon unworthy notions both of religious service, and the beings to whom it was addressed: they thought they should be heard for their “much speaking,” and had reference to that, not to any wisdom or goodness in the deities addressed. All such repetitions of prayer, when addressed to the true God, as implied that he could be pleased with mere service and forms, or that he needed to be informed of the case by putting it in various modes before him, or that he could be urged by a clamorous importunity to do what he was reluctant to do, or that he was absent, and needed to be called upon by vociferation, implied an affront to him, a bringing him down to the level of heathen deities, and thus proved great ignorance and want of true devotion in his worship. He, therefore says, Be ye not like unto them; for your Father knoweth what things ye have need of before ye ask him. As your Father, he is always inclined to hear your prayers; and from his infinite knowledge needs no information. Such views of God ought to regulate the MANNER of our praying: it is to be full and comprehensive, earnest and devotional; it may be lengthened or shortened according to circumstances; it may have such repetition as a sincere and enlightened ardour will often dictate; but there must be nothing in it which springs from the notion that we shall be heard for our much speaking, or which looks at the service itself as having any value: the eye of faith and hope must alone be fixed upon the mercy and wisdom and power of God; and having RATIONALLY made our requests known unto God, we must, with cheerful confidence, wait and look for the answer.
The reason why our Lord referred to these vain and clamorous services of “the heathen,” appears to have been, that he might thereby the more severely reprove the Jews, who had fallen into the same delusion as to the efficacy of mere service with God; and they also made long prayers, and used repetitions, under much the same views as the heathens. Hence the rabbinical maxims given by Buxtorf: “Every one that multiplies prayer shall be heard:” and, “The prayer which is long shall not return empty.” As our Lord’s words, For your Father knoweth what things ye have need of before you ask him, are not given as a reason against much speaking in prayer, but against thinking we shall be heard for our much speaking, they afford no countenance to the argument which is sometimes urged against prayer, from the previous knowledge which God has of our wants. This, indeed, when rightly considered, affords the highest reason, and the best encouragement, to this great duty; and the beautiful light in which the sentiment is here put presents to us another of those instances in which our Lord, in few words, suggests, as the ground of our confidence, the loftiest views of the Divine nature, in opposition to those low and defective conceptions which a religion of mere ceremonies, whether Jewish or pagan, tends always to induce. Every thing is known to God; all the minutest circumstances which can affect an individual; all that that individual, in the infinite variety of relations in which he may and must be placed, can want; all that he really needs, although he may greatly mistake on this matter himself; all that can be truly good to him in its beneficial results, as well as its present influence. He accurately knows all these things before we ask; and it is also as certainly implied that he is disposed to give what, upon this infallible knowledge of our characters and the influence which things have upon us, we really need. This, then, is one of the reasons and grounds of prayer. God knows what we want before we ask; he is disposed, by the benevolence of his nature, by his parental feeling as our Father, to give; and waits only for the simple expression of our desires in prayer, accompanied by that trust which we ought to exercise in his mercy, in order to bestow upon us the best blessings at the best time. The infidel argument against prayer is, therefore, our Lord’s argument to enforce the duty; and it is enough for those who receive the revelation of the Bible, that to ask them of God is the instituted means of obtaining our blessings, although the reasons of the appointment should not be fully manifest. He who gives to them that deserve not has the right to appoint his own conditions; and since in this case they are made so easily practicable, nothing can more impressively illustrate his goodness. Those as greatly err, on the other hand, who explain prayer as not influencing God, but ourselves, and thus affect to give a philosophic reason for the duty. Prayer, however, is not in itself the means of producing moral changes in us, but the appointed means of obtaining from God that grace by which such changes are wrought; it does not put us into a moral state of fitness to receive his favour, but, as it necessarily implies penitence and faith, it places us in that relation of humble and dependent creatures, that he can meet with us and graciously bless us.
Be not ye therefore like unto them: for your Father knoweth what things ye have need of, before ye ask him.
John Wesley
V. 8. Your Father knoweth what things ye have need of-We do not pray to inform God of our wants. Omniscient as he is, he cannot be informed of any thing which he knew not before: and he is always willing to relieve them. The chief thing wanting is, a fit disposition on our part to receive his grace and blessing. Consequently, one great office of prayer is, to produce such a disposition in us: to exercise our dependence on God; to increase our desire of the things we ask for; to make us so sensible of our wants, that we may never cease wrestling till we have prevailed for the blessing.
Adam Clarke
Verse 8. Your Father knoweth what things ye have need of] Prayer is not designed to inform God, but to give man a sight of his misery; to humble his heart, to excite his desire, to inflame his faith, to animate his hope, to raise his soul from earth to heaven, and to put him in mind that THERE is his Father, his country, and inheritance.
In the preceding verses we may see three faults, which our Lord commands us to avoid in prayer:-
1st. HYPOCRISY. Be not as the hypocrites. Matthew 6:5. 2ndly. DISSIPATION. Enter into thy closet. Matthew 6:6. 3rdly. MUCH SPEAKING, or UNMEANING REPETITION, Be not like the heathens. Matthew 6:7.
Joseph Benson
Verses 7, 8. When ye pray, use not vain repetitions — A multiplicity of words without meaning, or uttered without seriousness, reverence for God, sincerity, or faith. The original word, battologhshte, is derived from battov, a stutterer, or foolish talker, and logov, speech. The former word was the name of a certain prince of the Cyrenæans, who was a stammerer, and also of a babbling foolish poet, who frequently repeated the same things, and whose rhapsodies were full of tautologies. Our interpretation of the words, Use not vain repetitions, Dr. Campbell thinks is too confined, and does not include all that is meant to be signified by our Lord’s expression, which, he says, comprehends “every thing, in words, that may justly be called vain, idle, or foolish.” The word polulogia, much speaking, applied to the same fault in the latter part of the verse, is a further elucidation of its meaning. As the heathen do — When invoking their false gods: for they think they shall be heard — In the prayers which they address to them; for their much speaking — Thus we find the priests of Baal crying from morning till noon, O Baal, hear us. Hence it appears, partly at least, what the repetitions were which Christ forbade his disciples to use in their prayers, namely, such as proceeded from an opinion that they should be heard for their much speaking, after the manner of the heathen. This opinion, implying a denial of the power, or the knowledge, or the goodness of God, is highly injurious to him; and therefore repetitions in prayer, flowing from it, are highly culpable, as also is the repeating of any words without meaning them, or the expressing in words any petitions or thanksgivings which do not proceed from the heart. Therefore, we should be extremely careful, in all our prayers, to mean what we say, and to desire what we ask, from the very bottom of our hearts. The vain and heathenish repetitions which we are here warned against, are very common, and a principal cause why so many who profess religion are a disgrace to it. Indeed, all the words in the world, however well chosen and uttered in prayer, are not equivalent to one holy desire; and the very best prayers are but vain repetitions, if they are not the language of the heart. But let it be observed, on the other hand, that repetitions proceeding from a deep sense of our wants, and a vehement desire of divine grace, and the spiritual blessings flowing therefrom, or connected therewith, are by no means prohibited here by the Lord Jesus, otherwise indeed he would condemn his own practice, Matthew 26:39-44. For your Father knoweth what things ye have need of before you ask him — We do not pray to inform God of our wants. Omniscient as he is, he cannot be informed of any thing which he knew not before: and he is always willing to relieve them. The chief thing wanting is, a fit disposition on our part to receive his grace and blessing. Consequently, one great office of prayer is to produce such a disposition in us; to exercise our dependance on God; to increase our desire of the things we ask for; to make us so sensible of our wants, that we may never cease wrestling till we have prevailed for the blessing.
After this manner therefore pray ye: Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name.
John Wesley
V. 9. Thus therefore pray ye-He who best knew what we ought to pray for, and how we ought to pray, what matter of desire, what manner of address would most please himself, would best become us, has here dictated to us a most perfect and universal form of prayer, comprehending all our real wants, expressing all our lawful desires; a complete directory and full exercise of all our devotions.
Thus-For these things; sometimes in these words, at least in this manner, short, close, full.
This prayer consists of three parts, the preface, the petitions, and the conclusion. The preface, Our Father, who art in heaven, lays a general foundation for prayer, comprising what we must first know of God, before we can pray in confidence of being heard. It likewise points out to us our that faith, humility, love, of God and man, with which we are to approach God in prayer.
I. Our Father-Who art good and gracious to all, our Creator, our Preserver; the Father of our Lord, and of us in him, thy children by adoption and grace: not my Father only, who now cry unto thee, but the Father of the universe, of angels and men:
who art in heaven-Beholding all things, both in heaven and earth; knowing every creature, and all the works of every creature, and every possible event from everlasting to everlasting: the almighty Lord and Ruler of all, superintending and disposing all things; in heaven-Eminently there, but not there alone, seeing thou fillest heaven and earth. II. 1. Hallowed be thy name-Mayest thou, O Father, be truly known by all intelligent beings, and with affections suitable to that knowledge: mayest thou be duly honoured, loved, feared, by all in heaven and in earth, by all angels and all men.
2. Thy kingdom come-May thy kingdom of grace come quickly, and swallow up all the kingdoms of the earth: may all mankind, receiving thee, O Christ, for their king, truly believing in thy name, be filled with righteousness, and peace, and joy; with holiness and happiness, till they are removed hence into thy kingdom of glory, to reign with thee for ever and ever.
3. Thy will be done on earth, as it is in heaven-May all the inhabitants of the earth do thy will as willingly as the holy angels: may these do it continually even as they, without any interruption of their willing service; yea, and perfectly as they: mayest thou, O Spirit of grace, through the blood of the everlasting covenant, make them perfect in every good work to do thy will, and work in them all that is well pleasing in thy sight.
4. Give us-O Father (for we claim nothing of right, but only of thy free mercy) this day-(for we take no thought for the morrow) our daily bread-All things needful for our souls and bodies: not only the meat that perisheth, but the sacramental bread, and thy grace, the food which endureth to everlasting life.
5. And forgive us our debts, as we also forgive our debtors-Give us, O Lord, redemption in thy blood, even the forgiveness of sins: as thou enablest us freely and fully to forgive every man, so do thou forgive all our trespasses.
6. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil-Whenever we are tempted, O thou that helpest our infirmities, suffer us not to enter into temptation; to be overcome or suffer loss thereby; but make a way for us to escape, so that we may be more than conquerors, through thy love, over sin and all the consequences of it. Now the principal desire of a Christian's heart being the glory of God, (Matthew 6:9, 10) and all he wants for himself or his brethren being the daily bread of soul and body, (or the support of life, animal and spiritual,) pardon of sin, and deliverance from the power of it and of the devil, (Matthew 6:11, 12, 13) there is nothing beside that a Christian can wish for; therefore this prayer comprehends all his desires. Eternal life is the certain consequence, or rather completion of holiness.
III. For thine is the kingdom-The sovereign right of all things that are or ever were created:
The power-the executive power, whereby thou governest all things in thy everlasting kingdom:
And the glory-The praise due from every creature, for thy power, and all thy wondrous works, and the mightiness of thy kingdom, which endureth through all ages, even for ever and ever. It is observable, that though the doxology, as well as the petitions of this prayer, is threefold, and is directed to the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost distinctly, yet is the whole fully applicable both to every person, and to the ever-blessed and undivided trinity. Luke 11:2.
Adam Clarke
Verse 9. After this manner therefore pray ye] Forms of prayer were frequent among the Jews; and every public teacher gave one to his disciples. Some forms were drawn out to a considerable length, and from these abridgments were made: to the latter sort the following prayer properly belongs, and consequently, besides its own very important use, it is a plan for a more extended devotion. What satisfaction must it be to learn from God himself, with what words, and in what manner, he would have us pray to him, so as not to pray in vain! A king, who draws up the petition which he allows to be presented to himself, has doubtless the fullest determination to grant the request. We do not sufficiently consider the value of this prayer; the respect and attention which it requires; the preference to be given to it; its fulness and perfection: the frequent use we should make of it; and the spirit which we should bring with it. “Lord, teach us how to pray!” is a prayer necessary to prayer; for unless we are divinely instructed in the manner, and influenced by the spirit of true devotion, even the prayer taught us by Jesus Christ may be repeated without profit to our souls.
Our Father] It was a maxim of the Jews, that a man should not pray alone, but join with the Church; by which they particularly meant that he should, whether alone or with the synagogue, use the plural number as comprehending all the followers of God. Hence, they say, Let none pray the short prayer, i.e. as the gloss expounds it, the prayer in the singular, but in the plural number. See Lightfoot on this place. This prayer was evidently made in a peculiar manner for the children of God. And hence we are taught to say, not MY Father, but OUR Father. The heart, says one, of a child of God, is a brotherly heart, in respect of all other Christians: it asks nothing but in the spirit of unity, fellowship, and Christian charity; desiring that for its brethren which it desires for itself. The word Father, placed here at the beginning of this prayer, includes two grand ideas, which should serve as a foundation to all our petitions: 1st. That tender and respectful love which we should feel for God, such as that which children feel for their fathers. 2dly. That strong confidence in God’s love to us, such as fathers have for their children. Thus all the petitions in this prayer stand in strictest reference to the word Father; the first three referring to the love we have for God; and the three last, to that confidence which we have in the love he bears to us.
The relation we stand in to this first and best of beings dictates to us reverence for his person, zeal for his honour, obedience to his will, submission to his dispensations and chastisements, and resemblance to his nature.
Which art in heaven] The phrase שבשמים wnyba, abinu
sheboshemayim, our Father who art in heaven, was very common among the ancient Jews; and was used by them precisely in the same sense as it is used here by our Lord.
This phrase in the Scriptures seems used to express:
1st. His OMNIPRESENCE. The heaven of heavens cannot contain thee. 1 Kings 8:27: that is, Thou fillest immensity. 2dly. His MAJESTY and DOMINION over his creatures. Art thou not God in heaven, and rulest thou not over all the kingdoms of the heathen? 2 Chronicles 20:6.
3dly. His POWER and MIGHT. Art thou not God in heaven, and in thy hand is there not power and might, so that no creature is able to withstand thee! 2 Chronicles 20:6. Our God is in heaven, and hath done whatsoever he pleased. Psalm 115:3. 4thly. His OMNISCIENCE. The Lord’s throne is in heaven, his eyes behold, his eye-lids try the children of men. Psalm 11:4. The Lord looketh down from heaven, he beholdeth all the sons of men. Psalm 33:13-15.
5thly. His infinite PURITY and HOLINESS. Look down from thy holy habitation, &c. Deuteronomy 26:15. Thou art the high and lofty One, who inhabiteth eternity, whose name is holy. Isaiah 57:15.
Hallowed] agiasqhtw. agiazw\ from a negative, and gh, the earth, a thing separated from the earth, or from earthly purposes and employments. As the word sanctified, or hallowed, in Scripture, is frequently used for the consecration of a thing or person to a holy use or office, as the Levites, first-born, tabernacle, temple, and their utensils, which were all set apart from every earthly, common, or profane use, and employed wholly in the service of God, so the Divine Majesty may be said to be sanctified by us, in analogy to those things, viz. when, we separate him from, and in our conceptions and desires exalt him above, earth and all things.
Thy name.] That is, GOD himself, with all the attributes of his Divine nature-his power, wisdom, justice, mercy, &c.
We hallow God’s name,
1st. With our lips, when all our conversation is holy, and we speak of those things which are meet to minister grace to the hearers. 2dly. In our thoughts, when we suppress every rising evil, and have our tempers regulated by his grace and Spirit.
3dly. In our lives, when we begin, continue, and end our works to his glory. If we have an eye to God in all we perform, then every act of our common employment will be an act of religious worship. 4thly. In our families, when we endeavour to bring up our children in the discipline and admonition or the Lord; instructing also our servants in the way of righteousness.
5thly. In a particular calling or business, when we separate the falsity, deception, and lying, commonly practised, from it; buying and selling as in the sight of the holy and just God.
Joseph Benson
Verse 9. After this manner pray ye — He who best knew what we ought to pray for, and how we ought to pray; what matter of desire, what manner of address would most please himself, would best become us, has here dictated to us a most perfect and universal form of prayer, comprehending all our real wants, expressing all our lawful desires; a complete directory, and full exercise of our devotions. By the expression outwv, thus, or after this manner, our Lord could not mean that his disciples were to use the words of this prayer in all their addresses to God, for in the Acts and Epistles we find the apostles praying in terms different from this form; but his meaning is, that we must frame our prayers according to this model, and that in respect both of matter and manner; that we must pray for the things here mentioned, and often in these very words.
This prayer, it must be observed, consists of three parts; the preface, the petitions, and the conclusion. The preface, Our Father, who art in heaven, lays a general foundation for prayer, comprising what we must first know of God, before we can pray in confidence of being heard. It likewise points out to us that faith, humility, and love of God and man, with which we are to approach God in prayer.
Our Father which art in heaven — Almighty God has a peculiar right to the title of Father, as from every creature, so particularly from mankind, being the father of their spirits, Hebrews 12:9, the maker of their bodies, and the continual preserver of both: and he is in a yet higher sense the father of his believing and obedient people, whom he adopts into his family, regenerates by his grace, and restores to his image: so that, partaking of his nature, they become his genuine children, and can with holy boldness call him their father. Being, in this sense, made his children, we are here directed to call him our father, in the plural number, and that even in secret prayer, to put us in mind that we are all brethren, and that we ought to love one another with pure hearts fervently, praying not for ourselves only, but for others, and especially for our brethren in Christ, that God may give them likewise the blessings requested in this divine prayer. The words, which art in heaven, do not confine God’s presence to heaven, for he exists everywhere; but they contain a comprehensive, though short description of his divine glory, of his majesty, dominion, and power; and distinguish him from those whom we call fathers on earth, and from false gods, who are not in heaven, the region of bliss and happiness; where God, who is essentially present through all the universe, gives more especial manifestations of his presence to such of his creatures as he has exalted to share with him in his eternal felicity. Hallowed be thy name — The name of God is a Hebraism for God himself, his attributes, and his works. To sanctify a thing is to entertain the highest veneration for it, as true, and great, and good, and to manifest that veneration by our dispositions, words, and actions. Thus it is used 1 Peter 3:15; Isaiah 8:13. The meaning of this first petition, therefore, is, May thy existence be universally believed; thy perfections revered, loved, and imitated; thy works admired; thy supremacy over all things acknowledged; thy providence reverenced and confided in. May we, and all men, so think of thy divine majesty, of thy attributes, words, and works, and may we and they so express our veneration of thee, and subjection to thee, that thy glory may be manifested everywhere, to the utter destruction of all idolatry, sin, and misery. “The phraseology of this and other prayers recorded by the inspired writers, wherein the worshippers addressed God in the singular number, saying, thou, and thy, is retained by all Christians among us, with the highest propriety, as it intimates their firm belief that there is but one God, and that there is nothing in the universe equal or second to him, and that no being whatever can share in the worship which they pay him.” — Macknight.
Joseph Sutcliffe
Ver. 9. After this manner therefore pray ye. John had taught his disciples to pray, whom he found lost in ignorance, and destitute of books. Under these circumstances, forms of prayer must be beneficial; yet no forms can utter the enlargements of the heart, and all the expanse of thought in addressing the Eternal Father, and Lord of all.
Our Father, ever kind and good, whose paternal care and bounty extend over all creatures. Oh Father, Son, and Spirit, Jehovah Elohim, display thy glory to our view, as reflected by the whole creation, and as brought to our minds by the dispensations of thy providence. Who is like unto thee in heaven or earth, forgiving iniquity, transgression, and sin, abundant in goodness and in truth.
Hallowed be thy name. Adored and exalted be thy perfections, by the unceasing songs of all nature, and by all the worship of the church. Let us behold thy glory till we resemble thee. Let us adore and worship at thy feet till thy name be written on our hearts, and our souls are transformed into the glory of thy likeness.
Daniel Whedon
9. After this manner — Our Lord now proceeds to give an outline model of prayer, in which is not one word of irrational babble or cant repetition; but in which human wants are condensed and expressed, and human devotions shaped in terms so direct, so simple, so pure, that sinner or saint, philosopher or child, may understand and use them.
There is no ground for saying that this formula, called our Lord’s Prayer, was selected by him from Jewish forms. No doubt it embodies petitions used in essence by the Old Testament saints of all ages. But it was cast fully and truly in the mould of his own divine mind. It has a heaven-born originality.
In Luke 11:2, Jesus says: “When ye pray, say, Our Father,” etc. Hence there can be no doubt that this was intended as a fixed form of prayer. As such it formed a model for our prayer in general. It is a recorded summary for the Church in all ages of the permanent objects of prayer. It is the condensation and nucleus of all Christian supplication. It has ever served to limit the range of Christian devotion. It is proper, therefore, to be usually repeated in our public service, though not to the exclusion of all other prayer. And it is delightful to feel that it has served to establish a harmony of prayer among true saints through all the world.
Hence, with propriety our Church does use a ritual of forms of prayers, inasmuch as the essential identity of prayers should be traditionally preserved from generation to generation; but not to the suppression of extemporaneous prayers, lest the free action of the soul in prayer should be hampered and gradually suppressed.
The structure of our Lord’s Prayer may be best presented by the following form:
Our Father which art in heaven,
I. a. Hallowed be thy name.
b. Thy kingdom come.
c. Thy will be done on earth as it is done in heaven.
II. a. Give us this day our daily bread.
b. And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors.
c. Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory.
On which we may remark,
1. It begins with an address, and ends with an ascription.
2. Between these are included two sets of threes. The first set is three celestial, and the second three terrestrial petitions. The three celestial petitions pray for the sanctification of God’s name, the coming of his kingdom, and a universal submission to it.
The terrestrial petitions pray for livelihood, pardon of past sin, and deliverance from committing future sin.
3. The ascription attributes to God three excellencies in kingdom, power, and glory. But we are bound to add that the genuineness of this ascription, as a part of the sacred text, is, in the judgment of critics, more than doubtful.
4. It may also be said that the address implies three subjects: God, his abode, and us, his children.
The first three petitions embrace, or imply, all we need pray for apart from ourselves; the last three all that we need pray for ourselves individually and collectively.
The following comparison will show that all its doctrines are contained in the Old Testament.
Our Father which art in heaven: Isaiah 64:8: “O Lord, thou art our Father.” Ecclesiastes 5:2: “God is in heaven.”
Hallowed be thy name: Psalm 48:10: “According to thy name, O God, so is thy praise unto the ends of the earth.”
Thy kingdom come: Psalm 22:28: “For the kingdom is the Lord’s, and he is the governor among the nations.” Daniel 2:44: “And in the days of these kings shall the God of heaven set up a kingdom which shall never be destroyed.”
Thy will be done in earth as it is in heaven: Psalm 40:8: “I delight to do thy will, O my God.” Psalm 103:20: “Bless the Lord, ye his angels, that excel in strength, that do his commandments, hearkening unto the voice of his word.”
Give us this day our daily bread: Proverbs 30:8: “Feed me with food convenient for me.”
And forgive us our debts: Exodus 34:9: “Pardon our iniquity and our sin.”
As we forgive our debtors: Leviticus 19:18: “Thou shalt not avenge, nor bear any grudge against the children of thy people, but thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself: I am the Lord.”
And lead us not into temptation: Genesis 22:1: “And it came to pass. after these things, that God did tempt Abraham.”
But deliver us from evil: Psalm 50:15. “And call upon me in the day of trouble: I will deliver thee, and thou shalt glorify me.” For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever. Amen: 1 Chronicles 29:11: “Thine, O Lord, is the greatness, and the power, and the glory, and the victory, and the majesty; for all that is in the heaven and in the earth is thine; thine is the kingdom, O Lord, and thou art exalted as head above all.”
Our Father — Against Atheism, which teaches that there is no God; against Pantheism, that teaches that God is not a person, but identical with nature; against Epicurism, which teaches that God cares nothing for his creation; against Polytheism, which teaches that there are many gods, our Saviour teaches that our one God is a tender and gracious parent, who knows our wants and listens to our prayers.
Which art in heaven — And so infinitely superior to any father we have on earth. God, though omnipresent, is said to be in heaven. Whether there be a locality in the universe where God is specially and peculiarly resident, is more than we can say. Astronomers do conceive there to be a centre of the system of astronomic worlds: and that centre may be the capitol of the universe, “the third heaven, where God resides.” But at any rate, all human language, and human conception, contemplate God as above and man below. That is, we look from the earth for the Divine; to the earth for the human. Hallowed — Held sacred. Thy very name, and so thy self be most profoundly revered.
Richard Watson
Verse 9. After this manner, therefore, pray ye. — On the obligation of Christians to use this form of prayer there has been much diversity of judgment; some regarding it as intended merely to be a guide to our own prayers; others, as enjoined upon us to use as a standing form; and a third, as designed only for the use of the disciples until the full revelation of the Christian dispensation, by the resurrection and ascension of Christ, and the gift of his Spirit, to lead them into all truth. Those who hold the first opinion take the words outwv oun, thus, therefore, pray ye; or, as they were understood by our translators, “After this manner pray ye;” to signify, Pray ye in similar words, or like mode. But outw, in various places, signifies a direct form, as in the frequent phrase, introductory to the delivery of a message or prediction: “Thus saith the Lord” is, in the LXX., outw legei o Kuriov; which can only mean, THESE VERY WORDS saith the Lord. But the matter is more decisively settled by the parallel place, Luke 11:2, “When ye pray say, Our Father;” and especially when we also consider that this prayer in Luke was prescribed in consequence of a request from the disciples of Christ, that he would teach them to pray, as John taught his disciples. For as it is certain that it was the practice of the Jewish teachers to give to their disciples a short form of prayer, it is probable that this had been done by John the Baptist, in order to give the desires and hopes of his followers a direction suited to that intermediate dispensation which was designed to usher in the perfect religion of Messiah. The second opinion appears, therefore, to be the best founded; but still, though the use of this form is prescribed to Christians, the practice of the apostles, and the reason of the case, show that other prayers, both of a more extended kind, and comprehending a greater number of particulars arising out of the various wants which we may feel, and the aids we may require, are at once lawful and necessary. Still its important use as a general guide to the structure and spirit of our prayers is to be maintained. “It is the fountain of prayer,” says an ancient, “from which we may draw praying thoughts.” in this view, the benefit which the Church of Christ has derived from it is incalculable. It teaches us to approach God with filial confidence as our FATHER, but with reverential awe of his sacred NAME; to extend our desires beyond ourselves, and the prosperity of the particular society to which we may belong, to the coming of Christ’s universal KINGDOM; it connects absolute submission to the practical will of God respecting us, with our earnestness to obtain the benefits he has to bestow; it teaches our dependence upon his providence for the supply of our DAILY BREAD, and therefore excludes an infidel confidence in mere second causes, and brings devotion into the daily business and enjoyments of life; it calls for confession of sin, and authorizes us to ask FORGIVENESS; and it reminds us that when we pray we are also to FORGIVE; it teaches us that without the aid of God we shall fall into TEMPTATION, and leads us to him as our refuge against the danger of EVIL and the evil one; and, finally, it turns prayer into praise, and calls up the grateful homage and ardent affections of the whole soul toward God, in ascribing to him the glory due unto his name for ever. Into this Divinely prepared mould must all acceptable prayer” be cast, and he who regards these as general rules can never, as to the manner of “ordering his cause before God,” pray amiss. With respect to the third opinion, it seems chiefly to rest upon the silence of the New Testament as to the use of the Lord’s prayer by the apostles or others, and upon the assumption that it is not a prayer offered in the name of Jesus Christ, in which the disciples were instructed to present all their petitions after his resurrection: “Whatsoever ye shall ask the Father in my name.” On which we may observe, that the argument from the silence of the New Testament as to the practice of the apostles proves nothing, since we have no particular account of their modes of worship, and no occasion occurs in the history which could lead to any inference as to the use of this form or otherwise, in their private or social devotions. With respect to the absence of all direct reference to the “name” of Christ, which, in fact, signifies his mediation and merit, rather than the express form of concluding our prayers in his name, however important that maybe, and by no means to be disused, it may be observed, that we have an instance of a prayer offered even after the ascension, by all the assembled apostles and the Church at Jerusalem, which has no express reference to the mediation and merit of Christ; and we have instances of prayers in the epistles of both kinds, that is to say, of many consecutive petitions sometimes offered without express reference to the offices of Christ, as Mediator and Intercessor, and sometimes with such a reference emphatically declared. — Now it clearly follows, from the latter class of prayers, that “the name” of Christ, in the sense of his merit, was regarded by the apostles as the ground of all acceptable worship, or, as St. Paul says with respect to thanksgiving, “Giving thanks always for all things unto God and the Father, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ;” yet from the others it is evident that, though this was always IMPLIED as a first and fundamental principle, it was not always expressed. The absence of direct reference to the mediation of Christ therefore could be no objection to the use of the Lord’s prayer by the disciples, after the full developement of the Christian doctrine of Christ’s sacrifice and intercession; and by them, as by us, it would be used with constant reference in their minds to the sole ground of their hope. This doctrine, therefore, being understood, it is farther to be remarked, that there is nothing temporary in the character of the petitions which this Divine prayer contains; it is as adapted to convey our general wishes, supplications, and thanksgivings, “to the throne of the heavenly grace,” now, as when first enjoined, and will be so to the end of time; nor is it a slight recommendation to its constant use, both in families and public worship, that in it we address God in the very words which were taught us by his beloved Son.
The notion that the several parts of the Lord’s prayer were collected out of the Jewish forms of prayer used in the synagogue does not stand on good proof, although great pains have been taken to collect from them similar sentences. The fact is, that there is no satisfactory evidence that the Jewish prayers now extant are as ancient as the time of Christ. If any have this claim, they are what they call “the eighteen prayers,” which are undoubtedly very ancient, and are considered as their most solemn form of worship; but in vain will these prayers be searched for petitions at all similar to those of the Lord’s prayer. Not a phrase occurs in them which could suggest a single petition of the Lord’s prayer. Others adduced in proof are from liturgies and talmudists of still later times; and it is to be remarked, that with all their enmity to Christ, the Jewish writers have often very freely borrowed moral sentiments, devotional expressions, and even the leading idea of several of the parables found in their writings, from the New Testament. They have thus often confessed its wisdom while they have denied its authority. The strong probability therefore is, that where such coincidences occur as have been pointed out by Lightfoot and others, the rabbins borrowed from our Lord, and not he from them. That our Saviour used in this prayer the devotional language familiar to the Jews, which was drawn from the Holy Scriptures, is certain; as that God is our Father, that he is in heaven, that his name may be sanctified, and his will done; and that the kingdom, power, and glory are his; for all these may be paralleled by passages from the Old Testament, which he always took occasion to honour; and with such parallels before the critics referred to, it was little better than solemn trifling to ransack the rabbins, who wrote long after Christ, to find the scattered models of the different parts of this Divine composition. We may therefore conclude, that this form is, as it has been generally acknowledged in the Church to be, an original composition by Christ, into which the sentiments and devotional expressions of the Old Testament are in some parts interwoven, but wholly adapted to his dispensation. The chief use to be made of the later Jewish writers is to explain by them such modes of speaking and such customs, as have been all along peculiar to their nation. That they afford models of sentiment to inspired men is a dream.
Our Father. — The plural form here prescribed indicates that this was a prayer to be used in social rather than in solitary worship. It is a rule with the later Jews, that a man ought always to join himself in prayer with the assembly, not in the singular but in the plural number. As all men are authorized to address God as their Father, not only does this Divine prayer tacitly enjoin upon us a universal philanthropy, but assures us that “God is loving to every man, and that his tender mercies are over all his works.” No one, therefore, of the whole human race can “seek his face in vain.” This confidence is farther heightened when, through a true faith in Christ, we receive “the adoption of sons;” and, in that special sense spoken of by St. Paul, are entitled to say to God, “Abba, Father.” Yet this Father is in heaven, en toiv ouranoiv, to remind us of his glorious majesty, and to impress us with the deepest reverence. He is in heaven; and yet, such is his infinite perfection, “the heaven of heavens cannot contain him.” Hallowed be thy name. — The name of God is here, as in the Old Testament, put for God himself, as declared by his revealed attributes; and to hallow his name, is with reverence and joy to acknowledge all his perfections, and to celebrate his praises; for to hallow is equivalent to “glorify.” There is an evident allusion to Leviticus 10:3, “I will be sanctified in them that come nigh me, and before all the people I will be glorified;” and to 2 Samuel 7:26, “And let thy name be magnified for ever.”
Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven.
Adam Clarke
Verse 10. Thy kingdom come.] The ancient Jews scrupled not to say: He prays not at all, in whose prayers there is no mention of the kingdom of God. Hence, they were accustomed to say, “Let him cause his kingdom to reign, and his redemption to flourish: and let the Messiah speedily come and deliver his people.”
The universal sway of the sceptre of Christ:-God has promised that the kingdom of Christ shall be exalted above all kingdoms. Daniel 7:14-27. That it shall overcome all others, and be at last the universal empire. Isaiah 9:7. Connect this with the explanation given of this phrase, Matthew 3:2.
Thy will be done] This petition is properly added to the preceding; for when the kingdom of righteousness, peace, and joy, in the Holy Spirit, is established in the heart, there is then an ample provision made for the fulfilment of the Divine will.
The will of God is infinitely good, wise, and holy; to have it fulfilled in and among men, is to have infinite goodness, wisdom, and holiness diffused throughout the universe; and earth made the counterpart of heaven. As it is in heaven.] The Jews maintained, that they were the angels of God upon earth, as these pure spirits were angels of God in heaven; hence they said, “As the angels sanctify the Divine name in heaven, so the Israelites sanctify the Divine name, upon earth.” See Schoettgen.
Observe, 1st. The salvation of the soul is the result of two wills conjoined: the will of God, and the will of man. If God will not the salvation of man, he cannot be saved: If, man will not the salvation God has prepared for him, he cannot be delivered from his sins. 2dly. This petition certainly points out a deliverance from all sin; for nothing that is unholy can consist with the Divine will, and if this be fulfilled in man, surely sin shall be banished from his soul. 3dly. This is farther evident from these words, as it is in heaven; i.e. as the angels do it: viz. with all zeal, diligence, love, delight, and perseverance. 4thly. Does not the petition plainly imply, we may live without sinning against God? Surely the holy angels never mingle iniquity with their loving obedience; and as our Lord teaches us to pray, that we do his will here as they do it in heaven, can it be thought he would put a petition in our mouths, the fulfilment of which was impossible? 5thly. This certainly destroys the assertion: “There is no such state of purification, to be attained here, in which it may be said, the soul is redeemed from sinful passions and desires;” for it is on EARTH that we are commanded to pray that this will, which is our sanctification, may be done. 6thly. Our souls can never be truly happy, till our WILLS be entirely subjected to, and become one with, the will of God. 7thly. How can any person offer this petition to his Maker, who thinks of nothing less than the performance of the will of God, and of nothing more than doing his own? Some see the mystery of the Trinity in the three preceding petitions. The first being, addressed to the Father, as the source of all holiness. The second, to the Son, who establishes the kingdom of God upon earth. The third, to the Holy Spirit, who by his energy works in men to will and to perform.
To offer these three petitions with success at the throne of God, three graces, essential to our salvation, must be brought into exercise; and, indeed, the petitions themselves necessarily suppose them. FAITH, Our Father-for he that cometh to God, must believe that he is. HOPE, Thy kingdom come-For this grace has for its object good things to come.
LOVE, Thy will be done-For love is the incentive to and principle of all obedience to God, and beneficence to man.
Joseph Benson
Verse 10. Thy kingdom come — This cannot with propriety be understood of that general kingdom, by which God ruleth over all the world, that being always come, and not capable of any amplification. But the kingdom of God under the Messiah, to be set up, enlarged, and perfected by the preaching of the gospel, and the exercise of Christ’s kingly power, is evidently here intended; even that kingdom which the Jews thought would immediately appear, Luke 19:11; which the pious among them expected and waited for, Luke 2:38; Mark 15:43; which both the Baptist and our Lord announced as at hand, chap. 3:2; Mark 1:15; and which Christ, in this chapter, verse 33, directs his followers to seek, in preference to all other things; and here to pray for. This kingdom of God is twofold, namely, his kingdom of grace and his kingdom of glory; the coming of both which we may be well understood to mean, when we put up this petition; desiring, 1st, that we and all men may receive the kingdom of divine grace into our hearts, and that God may reign in and over us in such a manner, that we may be his willing and loyal subjects; 2d, that, in order thereto, it would please him to give success to his gospel in all parts of the earth; that he would enlarge the borders of his Church, and bring all nations within the pale of it; and, where it is already established, that he would proceed by his grace more and more to destroy the power of sin, and the dominion of Satan; and to implant his fear and love in the hearts of all his professing people; that thus, 3d, his eternal and glorious kingdom may also be enlarged, the number of his saints be accomplished, and the blessed time come when we shall all be translated into his heavenly kingdom, when, all other powers and dominions being done away, God alone shall be exalted, and rule for ever and ever.
Thy will be done in earth, as it is heaven — It is justly observed by Dr. Whitby, that we do not pray in this petition that God may do his own will, nor that the will of his providence may be done upon and respecting us, but that, in consequence of the coming of his kingdom of grace, in the sense above explained, we, and all men, with as much readiness, alacrity, and perfection, as the imperfection of human nature will admit of, may yield obedience to his wise, holy, and good will, however made known to us, whether by revelation, natural conscience, or the dispensations of providence; and may imitate the blessed angels in a sincere, ready, constant, persevering compliance with it: and that, in order to this end, he would vouchsafe us those aids of his Spirit whereby our understanding may be enlightened, rightly to discern what is his good and acceptable will, and our wills and affections powerfully inclined, and all our executive faculties so strengthened, that we may sincerely, readily, and cheerfully perform such obedience.
Joseph Sutcliffe
Ver. 10. Thy kingdom come. Oh glorious Messiah, Father, Redeemer, and Lord. Oh hasten the days when salvation shall come out of Zion in the fullest sense; when the tyranny of Satan and the cruelty of wars shall cease, and when righteousness shall cover the earth, as the waters do the sea. Open, oh Lord thy reign of righteousness, of peace and joy in the heart; and let it spread with beams of righteousness to the ends of the earth, till the name of idols shall exist no more.
Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven. Hitherto the will of the prince of darkness has been done on earth, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience. The murderer from the beginning has reigned in endless wars, to the excision of nations; the liar has reigned, imposing on men the worship of idols, as the gods that made the heavens and the earth. But, oh great Healer of the nations, let thy will be done; let the new and regenerate nature, which delighteth greatly in thy commandments, be as the little leaven which leaveneth the whole lump:
“Till all mankind shall learn thy name,
Shall all stretch out their hands to thee.”
Daniel Whedon
10. Thy kingdom — Thy dominion over all hearts and souls. Come — By our willing submission to it, and by its universal spread. In this petition, truly offered, we do truly submit to God; we do truly give him our hearts, and are consequently truly Christians. Thy will be done — Thy laws be obeyed; thy commandments be executed. A class of commentators make a distinction, for which there is little ground, between the revealed will and the secret will of God. Thus Professor Owen, in his Commentary, says: “His secret will or purpose is being accomplished at all times and in all places of his dominion.” If this be true, then all the vices, crimes, and abominations of fiends and the most wicked wretches, though forbidden by the law of God, are in accordance with “his secret will!” What is this, but to make a hypocrite of the most holy God? What is it, but to make him will the wickedness of the sinner, that he may damn him? What is it, but to make God the original determiner of all sin; and therefore the responsible author of all sin; and therefore, again, the only real sinner in the universe? In earth as it is in heaven — And thereby men would be as obedient as angels, and the earth would be a counterpart of heaven.
The phrase, in earth, clearly indicates the expectation that obedience to God’s will, bringing on the coming of his kingdom, should overspread the earth. This universal hope is placed in the very body of this universal prayer. It is instinct with the very life of missionary enterprise. That kingdom is to be introduced, not by the convulsion of the world’s dissolution, but by the submission of all hearts to its extending sway. The Church, therefore, cannot pray this clause of the divine prayer in the full spirit of its power, without becoming a missionary Church. In this petition is the concentrated germ of all holy enterprise, of all aggressive energy, of all Christian sacrifice; for the conversion of men, for the blessing of the race, and for the recalling of an apostate world to God.
Richard Watson
Verse 10. Thy kingdom come. — The kingdom of Messiah, the reign of grace among all nations. That kingdom of which the prophets speak in such lofty strains; the near approach of which John the Baptist announced, and the foundations of which our Lord was then placing in the hearts of his disciples, by teaching that doctrine, and going through those humiliations and sufferings, which were necessary to bring men under its influence; that is, to reconcile them to God, and renew them in righteousness. For the complete establishment of this dominion of God in our own hearts, this prayer may be properly used, although it principally respects the extension of Christ’s spiritual reign over the whole earth, when “the kingdoms of this world shall become the kingdom of our Lord and of his Christ;” that is, when all the people which compose them, and all their institutions, civil and ecclesiastical, shall be subject to the laws and spirit of his religion. See note on Matthew 3:2.
Thy will, &c. — We do not here pray that God may do his will, nor merely express our acquiescence in what he wills; but that what God wills ourselves and all men to do may be done by us on earth as it is done in heaven by the angels; that is, vigorously and with delight, perfectly and with constancy. The model of our obedience is thus the elevated one of the unfallen and unsinning angels, all whose principles of obedience ought to exist in us, and be continually carrying up our services to a nearer practical resemblance to theirs. There is here probably an allusion to Psalm 103:20, 21: “Bless the Lord, ye his angels, that excel in strength, that do his commandments, hearkening unto the voice of his word. Bless ye the Lord, all ye his hosts, ye ministers of his, that do his pleasure.”
Give us this day our daily bread.
Adam Clarke
Verse 11. Give us this day our daily bread] The word epiousian has greatly perplexed critics and commentators. I find upwards of thirty different explanations of it. It is found in no Greek writer before the evangelists, and Origen says expressly, that it was formed by them, all~ eoike peplasqai upo twn euaggelistwn. The interpretation of Theophylact, one of the best of the Greek fathers, has ever appeared to me to be the most correct, artov epi th ousia kai austasei hmwn autarkhv, Bread, sufficient for our substance and support, i.e. That quantity of food which is necessary to support our health and strength, by being changed into the substance of our bodies. Its composition is of epi and ousia, proper or sufficient for support. Mr. Wakefield thinks it probable, that the word was originally written epi ousian, which coalesced by degrees, till they became the epiousion of the MSS. There is probably an allusion here to the custom of travellers in the east, who were wont to reserve a part of the food given them the preceding evening to serve for their breakfast or dinner the next day. But as this was not sufficient for the whole day, they were therefore obliged to depend on the providence of God for the additional supply. In Luke 15:12, 13, ousia signifies, what a person has to live on; and nothing can be more natural than to understand the compound epiousiov, of that additional supply which the traveller needs, to complete the provision necessary for a day’s eating, over and above what he had then in his possession. See Harmer.
The word is so very peculiar and expressive, and seems to have been made on purpose by the evangelists, that more than mere bodily nourishment seems to be intended by it. Indeed, many of the primitive fathers understood it as comprehending that daily supply of grace which the soul requires to keep it in health and vigour: He who uses the petition would do well to keep both in view. Observe 1. God is the author and dispenser of all temporal as well as spiritual good. 2. We have merited no kind of good from his hand, and therefore must receive it as a free gift: Give us, &c. 3. We must depend on him daily for support; we are not permitted to ask any thing for to-morrow: give us to-day. 4. That petition of the ancient Jews is excellent: “Lord, the necessities of thy people Israel are many, and their knowledge small, so that they know not how to disclose their necessities: Let it be thy good pleasure to give to every man, what sufficeth for food!” Thus they expressed their dependence, and left it to God to determine what was best and most suitable. We must ask only that which is essential to our support, God having promised neither luxuries nor superfluities.
Joseph Benson
Verse 11. Give us this day our daily bread — As the original word, epiousion, here rendered daily, is not found anywhere else; neither in the LXX. nor in any Greek author, nor in any other part of the New Testament, save in the parallel passage in Luke, commentators differ in their interpretation of it. That given by Theophylact, one of the most approved of the Greek fathers, seems the best: “Bread sufficient for our sustenance or support:” which is the sense in which the word is understood by Chrysostom, and in Etymol. Magna, where it is explained thus: o epi th ousia hmwn armozwn, “that which is sufficient to our life;” or what will strengthen us from day to day for serving God with cheerfulness and vigour. Thus, also, Mr. Mede interprets the expression. The Latin version, in Jerome’s time, had panem quotidianum, daily bread, which our translators have copied, because in the parallel passage, Luke 11:3, to kaq’ hmeran, day by day, is joined with epiousion. Daily bread, it must be observed, according to the Hebrew idiom, signifies the whole provision of the table, see Genesis 18:5; and here it includes raiment also, and every thing necessary to life. “Since, therefore, we are not allowed to ask provision to gratify a luxurious appetite, but only the necessaries of life, and that not for many years, but from day to day, the petition forbids anxious cares about futurity, and teaches us how moderate our desires of worldly things ought to be. And whereas, not the poor only, whose industry all acknowledge must be favoured by the concurrence of Providence to render it successful, but the rich are enjoined to pray for their bread, day by day, it is on account of the great instability of human affairs, which renders the possession of wealth absolutely precarious; and because, without the divine blessing, even the abundance of the rich is not of itself sufficient so much as to keep them alive, far less to make them happy.” Indeed, the petition teaches all men to exercise an humble dependance on Divine Providence for the most necessary supplies, be their possessions or abilities ever so great. It may be observed further here, that Erasmus, Heylin, and many others, following the fathers, understand it in a spiritual sense also. Bread, says Heylin, here signifies, “all things needful for our maintenance; the maintenance of the whole man, both body and soul; for each of these have their proper sustenance; to one belongs the natural bread, to the other the spiritual, and both are included in this petition.”
Joseph Sutcliffe
Ver. 11. Give us this day our daily bread. Earthly bread may not be needed for to-morrow. Thus the birds and beasts are fed, and thus the young lions seek their meat from God. While the farmer prepares for the coming year, while the merchant provides for his voyage, and while domestic prudence has regard to winter, let each in his way and calling do his best, and leave the issues with a superintending providence. The life of faith, which lives for the present hour, is the happiest life on earth. We then live free from care, trusting in the Lord, and joyful in hope.
Daniel Whedon
11. Daily bread — Including all the needs of life.
Richard Watson
Verse 11. Give us this day our daily bread. — Ton arton hmon ton epiousion. As the word epiousiov is found in no Greek writer, nor in the New Testament, except here and the parallel place in St. Luke, there has been great diversity of opinion as to its meaning. It has been derived either from epi and ousia, substance or being; or from epeimi, whence comes epiousa, following, subsequent, next, spoken of a day or night; or from epeimi in the sense of to be at hand. But, as Mede says, “the import of the prayer in general is indifferently well agreed upon; but much ado there is what this epiousiov should signify.” Thus we have “bread for to-morrow,” that is, a supply day after day; “bread till to-morrow,” which also implies daily dependence; and “the bread we have need of to-day,” “sufficient bread.” The Vulgate has “super-substantial or spiritual bread,” which is an unwarranted refinement. “Bread for to-morrow” has an apparent inconsistency with St. Luke’s kaq’ hmeran, “day by day,” and St. Matthew’s shmeron: for to ask that the bread of to-morrow may be given us to-day, or day by day, is not only harsh, but somewhat inconsistent with our Lord’s own exhortation: “Take no thought for the morrow, what ye shall eat.” The derivation from epi and ousia appears therefore the most satisfactory; for as ousia signifies substance, being, epiousiov may well have the sense of that which will support existence, that which is sufficient and necessary. The petition will then be, “Give us this day the bread necessary for our subsistence;” as Suidas: to epi th ousia hmwn armozon, “fit for our support.” Bread, with the Hebrews, included all the necessaries of life, and with respect to these we are instructed to ask, not what is superfluous, but what is sufficient; a prayer admirably adapted to a religion which inculcates spiritual-mindedness, and teaches us to disregard all earthly things, in comparison of heaven. More than sufficient bread is indeed often given; but then, let it be remembered, it is given as a TRUST. Our Lord appears to have referred to the supply of the Israelites day by day with “bread from heaven,” that is, with manna. It is here well remarked by Archbishop Wake, that “we present this petition to God; not to exclude our own reasonable care for our support, much less to exclude our labouring for it; but to show that we depend altogether upon the providence of God, and owe our lives, and all our support of them, not to our own cunning and industry, but to his blessing, thereby to engage us both to rely on him with the greater confidence, and to make suitable returns of love, praise, and gratitude.”
And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors.
Adam Clarke
Verse 12. And forgive us our debts] Sin is represented here under the notion of a debt, and as our sins are many, they are called here debts. God made man that he might live to his glory, and gave him a law to walk by; and if, when he does any thing that tends not to glorify God, he contracts a debt with Divine Justice, how much more is he debtor when he breaks the law by actual transgression! It has been justly observed, “All the attributes of God are reasons of obedience to man; those attributes are infinite; every sin is an act of ingratitude or rebellion against all these attributes; therefore sin is infinitely sinful.”
Forgive us.-Man has nothing to pay: if his debts are not forgiven, they must stand charged against him for ever, as he is absolutely insolvent. Forgiveness, therefore, must come from the free mercy of God in Christ: and how strange is it we cannot have the old debt cancelled, without (by that very means) contracting a new one, as great as the old! but the credit is transferred from Justice to Mercy. While sinners we are in debt to infinite Justice; when pardoned, in debt to endless Mercy: and as a continuance in a state of grace necessarily implies a continual communication of mercy, so the debt goes on increasing ad infinitum. Strange economy in the Divine procedure, which by rendering a man an infinite debtor, keeps him eternally dependent on his Creator! How good is God! And what does this state of dependence imply? A union with, and participation of, the fountain of eternal goodness and felicity! As we forgive our debtors.] It was a maxim among the ancient Jews, that no man should lie down in his bed, without forgiving those who had offended him. That man condemns himself to suffer eternal punishment, who makes use of this prayer with revenge and hatred in his heart. He who will not attend to a condition so advantageous to himself (remitting a hundred pence to his debtor, that his own creditor may remit him 10,000 talents) is a madman, who, to oblige his neighbour to suffer an hour, is himself determined to suffer everlastingly! This condition of forgiving our neighbour, though it cannot possibly merit any thing, yet it is that condition without which God will pardon no man. See Matthew 6:14, 15.
Joseph Benson
Verse 12. And forgive us our debts, &c. — The suffering of punishment for transgressing God’s laws is a debt which sinners owe to the divine justice; and “when we ask God, in prayer, to forgive our debts, we beg that he would be mercifully pleased to remit the punishment of our sins, particularly the pains of hell; and that, laying aside his displeasure, he would graciously receive us into favour, and bless us with eternal life. In this petition, therefore, we confess our sins, and express the sense we have of their demerit, namely, that they deserve condemnation and wrath from God, than which nothing can be more proper in our addresses to him. The condition on which we are to ask forgiveness is remarkable. Forgive us, as we forgive. We must forgive others in order to our being forgiven ourselves, and are allowed to crave from God only such forgiveness as we grant to others; so that if we do not pardon our enemies, we, in this fifth petition, seriously and solemnly beg God to damn us eternally!” — Macknight.
Joseph Sutcliffe
Ver. 12. Forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors. This is the purer law of nature and of nations. We are bound to ask grace for our neighbour, as well as for ourselves. — But my neighbour has made me no satisfaction for the wrongs, the grievous wrongs, he has done to my character, and to my property. These are difficulties, not arguments. He may yet repent, he may be in glory a brighter saint than you. We must therefore pray for pardon on the principle of remission, else our prayers will be sent back as disregarded vows.
Daniel Whedon
12. Debts — As by our offences we owe satisfaction, so they are all debts. In business we incur debts of money; in morals we incur debts of reparation. In the former debts we pay coin; in the latter we pay in suffered penalty or atonement. So due penalty is often treated in Scripture as a debt. Forgive us our debts — Remit the penalty of our offences, and hold us as if we had not sinned.
And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil: For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever. Amen.
Adam Clarke
Verse 13. And lead us not into temptation] That is, bring us not in to sore trial. peirasmon, which may be here rendered sore trial, comes from peirw, to pierce through, as with a spear, or spit, used so by some of the best Greek writers. Several of the primitive fathers understood it something in this way; and have therefore added quam ferre non possimus, “which we cannot bear.” The word not only implies violent assaults from Satan, but also sorely afflictive circumstances, none of which we have, as yet, grace or fortitude sufficient to bear. Bring us not in, or lead us not in. This is a mere Hebraism: God is said to do a thing which he only permits or suffers to be done.
The process of temptation is often as follows: 1st. A simple evil thought. 2ndly. A strong imagination, or impression made on the imagination, by the thing to which we are tempted. 3dly. Delight in viewing it. 4thly. Consent of the will to perform it. Thus lust is conceived, sin is finished, and death brought forth. James 1:15. See also on Matthew 4:1. A man may be tempted without entering into the temptation: entering into it implies giving way, closing in with, and embracing it.
But deliver us from evil] apo tou ponhrou, from the wicked one. Satan is expressly called o ponhrov, the wicked one. Matthew 13:19, 38, compare with Mark 4:15; Luke 8:12. This epithet of Satan comes from ponov, labour, sorrow, misery, because of the drudgery which is found in the way of sin, the sorrow that accompanies the commission of it, and the misery which is entailed upon it, and in which it ends. It is said in the MISHNA, Tit. Beracoth, that Rabbi Judah was wont to pray thus: “Let it be thy good pleasure to deliver us from impudent men, and from impudence: from an evil man and an evil chance; from an evil affection, an evil companion, and an evil neighbour: from Satan the destroyer, from a hard judgment, and a hard adversary.” See Lightfoot. Deliver us] rusai hmav-a very expressive word-break our chains, and loose our bands-snatch, pluck us from the evil, and its calamitous issue. For thine is the kingdom, &c.] The whole of this doxology is rejected by Wetstein, Griesbach, and the most eminent critics. The authorities on which it is rejected may be seen in Griesbach and, Wetstein, particularly in the second edition of Griesbach’s Testament, who is fully of opinion that it never made a part of the sacred text. It is variously written in several MSS., and omitted by most of the fathers, both Greek and Latin. As the doxology is at least very ancient, and was in use among the Jews, as well as all the other petitions of this excellent prayer, it should not, in my opinion, be left out of the text, merely because some MSS. have omitted it, and it has been variously written in others. See various forms of this doxology, taken from the ancient Jewish writers, in Lightfoot and Schoettgen.
By the kingdom, we may understand that mentioned Matthew 6:10, and explained Matthew 3:2.
By power, that energy by which the kingdom is governed and maintained. By glory, the honour that shall redound to God in consequence of the maintenance of the kingdom of grace, in the salvation of men. For ever and ever.] eiv touv aiwnav, to the for evers. Well expressed by our common translation-ever in our ancient use of the word taking in the whole duration of time; the second ever, the whole of eternity. May thy name have the glory both in this world, and in that which is to come! The original word aiwn comes from aei always, and wn being, or existence. This is Aristotle’s definition of it. See Clarke’s note on “Genesis 21:33”. There is no word in any language which more forcibly points out the grand characteristic of eternity-that which always exists. It is often used to signify a limited time, the end of which is not known; but this use of it is only an accommodated one; and it is the grammatical and proper sense of it which must be resorted to in any controversy concerning the word. We sometimes use the phrase for evermore: i.e. for ever and more, which signifies the whole of time, and the more or interminable duration beyond it. See Clarke’s note on “Matthew 25:46”.
Amen.] This word is Hebrew, אמנ, and signifies faithful or true. Some suppose the word is formed from the initial letters of נאמן Ëlm ynwda adoni melech neetnan, My Lord, the faithful King. The word itself implies a confident resting of the soul in God, with the fullest assurance that all these petitions shall be fulfilled to every one who prays according to the directions given before by our blessed Lord.
The very learned Mr. Gregory has shown that our Lord collected this prayer out of the Jewish Euchologies, and gives us the whole form as follows:-
“Our Father who art in heaven, be gracious unto us! O Lord our God, hallowed be thy name, and let the remembrance of Thee be glorified in heaven above, and in the earth here below! Let thy kingdom reign over us now, and for ever! The holy men of old said, remit and forgive unto all men whatsoever they have done against me! And lead us not into the hands of temptation, but deliver us from the evil thing! For thine is the kingdom, and thou shalt reign in glory for ever and for evermore.” Gregory’s Works, 4to. 1671, p.
162. See this proved at large in the collections of Lightfoot and Schoettgenius.
Joseph Benson
Verse 13. And lead us not into temptation — Or, into trial, as the word peirasmov, here used, signifies: see note on Matthew 4:1: that is, into such trial or temptation, as will be too hard for our weakness to endure. But deliver us from evil — Apo tou ponerou, from the evil one, viz., the devil; enabling us to resist and overcome him in all his assaults, of whatever kind they may be. Or, perhaps, the clause may be translated, Lead us not into temptation, but so as to deliver us from the evil, viz., either by removing the temptation, when it is too strong for us to withstand; or by mitigating its force, or by increasing our strength to resist it, as God shall see most for his glory. This correction of the translation, suggested by Macknight, is proposed on this ground; that to pray for an absolute freedom from temptation is to seek deliverance from the common lot of humanity, which is absurd; because temptations are wisely appointed by God for the exercise and improvement of piety and virtue in good men, and that others may be encouraged by the constancy and patience which they show in trials. Hence, instead of praying to be absolutely delivered from them, we are taught to rejoice when, by the divine appointment, we fall into them. See James 1:2, 3. This petition teaches us to preserve a sense of our own inability to repel and overcome temptation, and of the necessity of assistance from above, to enable us to stand in the evil day. For thine is the kingdom, &c., for ever — The government of the universe is thine for ever, and thou alone possessest the power of creating and upholding all things; also the glory of infinite perfections remains eternally with thee, therefore all men ought to hallow thy name, submit themselves to thy government, and perform thy will; also, in an humble sense of their dependance, should seek from thee the supply of their wants, the pardon of their sins, and the kind protection of thy providence.
After the preceding exposition of the different clauses of this divine prayer, the reader will not be displeased to see a summary of the whole, in the following concise, clear, and instructive paraphrase, taken from the short notes of Mr. Wesley.
I. Our Father — Who art good and gracious to all, our Creator, our Preserver: the Father of our Lord, and of us in him, thy children by adoption and grace: not my Father only, who now cry unto thee, but the Father of the universe, of angels and men: who art in heaven — Beholding all things, both in heaven and earth; knowing every creature, and all the works of every creature, and every possible event from everlasting to everlasting: the Almighty Lord and Ruler of all, superintending and disposing all things: In heaven — Eminently there, but not there alone, seeing thou fillest heaven and earth.
II. 1st, Hallowed be thy name — Mayest thou, O Father, be truly known by all intelligent beings, and with affections suitable to that knowledge: mayest thou be duly honoured, loved, feared, by all in heaven and in earth, by all angels and all men. 2d, Thy kingdom come — May thy kingdom of grace come quickly, and swallow up all the kingdoms of the earth: may all mankind, receiving thee, O Christ, for their king, truly believing in thy name, be filled with righteousness, and peace, and joy; with holiness and happiness; till they are removed hence into thy kingdom of glory, to reign with thee for ever and ever. 3d, Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven — May all the inhabitants of the earth do thy will as willingly as the holy angels: may these do it continually even as they, without any interruption of their willing service; yea, and perfectly as they; mayest thou, O Spirit of grace, through the blood of the everlasting covenant, make them perfect in every good work to do thy will, and work in them all that is well pleasing in thy sight. 4th, Give us — O Father, (for we claim nothing of right, but only of thy free mercy,) this day — (for we take no thought for the morrow,) our daily bread — All things needful for our souls and bodies; not only the meat that perisheth, but the sacramental bread, and thy grace, the food which endureth to everlasting life. 5th, And forgive us our debts as we also forgive our debtors — Give us, O Lord, redemption in thy blood, even the forgiveness of sins: as thou enablest us freely and fully to forgive every man, so do thou forgive all our trespasses. 6th, And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil — Whenever we are tempted, O thou that helpest our infirmities, suffer us not to enter into temptation; to be overcome or suffer loss thereby; but make a way for us to escape, so that we may be more than conquerors through thy love, over sin and all the consequences of it. Now the principal desire of a Christian’s heart being the glory of God, (verses 9, 10,) and all he wants for himself or his brethren, being the daily bread of soul and body, (or the support of life, animal and spiritual,) pardon of sin, and deliverance from the power of it and of the devil; (verses 11, 12, 13;) there is nothing besides that a Christian can wish for; therefore this prayer comprehends all his desires. Eternal life is the certain consequence, or rather completion, of holiness. III. For thine is the kingdom — The sovereign right of all things that are or ever were created: the power — The executive power, whereby thou governest all things in thy everlasting kingdom: and the glory — The praise due from every creature for thy power, and all thy wondrous works, and the mightiness of thy kingdom, which endureth through all ages, even for ever and ever. It is observable, that, though the doxology, as well as the petitions of this prayer, is threefold, and is directed to the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost distinctly, yet is the whole fully applicable both to every person, and to the ever-blessed and undivided Trinity.
Joseph Sutcliffe
Ver. 13. Lead us not into temptation. These words indicate trials, exercises, and difficulties, from which we cannot extricate ourselves. Cover us, oh Lord, with thy shield, against all the fiery darts of the wicked one. But if the pleasure of our heavenly Father should be otherwise, he will say, my grace is sufficient for thee. He will be with us in the water, and in the fire; he will never leave us, but will accompany us through the valley of the shadow of death. He knows how to deliver the godly out of temptation, and how to reserve the unjust to the day of evil. Some have been tempted and tried as Abraham was; some have been stripped of all, like Job; but God in the issue is pitiful and tender hearted, and his righteousness opens as the morning light.
For thine is the kingdom, and the power to deliver, and to complete the work which grace has begun in the heart. Thine also is the glory, in which cloud all our sufferings, sighs and tears, shall be swallowed up. Thine, oh Lord, and thine for ever is the worship and the glory of the church throughout all ages, world without end. Thus our frail and humble addresses to the throne of grace, begun with so much weakness on earth, shall rise to songs of exultation in the everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.
Daniel Whedon
13. Lead us not into temptation — Bring us not into trials that may endanger our souls. This prayer is, however, to be uttered with submission to whatever trials of our virtue God pleases. And hence our Lord immediately adds, deliver us from evil — as much as to say, If thou dost lead us into dangers to our virtue, give us strength to overcome. The evil here named does not mean simply the Evil One; but all evil, including all sin and hell as well as the devil.
All this prayer and submission we offer to thee, O God, for thine is every supreme excellence; namely, the wide kingdom of the world, the absolute power over it, and the glory of all thine own attributes, of all thy vast monarchy, and of all its grand events and results. Amen — So let it be. It has the entire consent of our own hearts.
Richard Watson
Verse 13. And lead us not into temptation. — To lead is a Hebraism for to permit, or suffer; suffer us not to be led into temptation; that is, to be OVERCOME by it. Hence Tertullian renders the clause, Ne nos patiaris induci. So Augustine explains it: ‘Quid dicimus nisi, Ne inferri sinas? And Gregory: Induci minime permittas. By temptation is here meant any great and overwhelming trial, whether of our virtue by solicitations and promptings to sin, or of our patience by extreme sufferings. It is such temptation as would produce “evil,” the evil of sin, according to the next clause, “but deliver us from EVIL.” To deliver here signifies, not to rescue out of evil, but wholly to preserve us from it. Temptations are necessary to a state of discipline, or, as we often express it, a state of probation. We are daily tried, and put to the proof, whether we will obey God, or the suggestions of Satan, the world, and our own evil hearts; but we have here the right granted to us to pray that we may not be permitted to fall into, or by such temptations as shall be “hurtful to the soul.” Yet without the special care of God, who could prevent this? Who can so control his circumstances, that they shall never press too hard upon his resolution by presenting motives to some relaxation of duty, or to some positive offence! And what is there in man to withstand the power and subtlety of “the archangel fallen,” that malignant spirit, so long practised in every moral wile and subtlety to entangle, pervert, and destroy? How important, then, is this petition, and how great is the encouragement arising from the assurance implied in it, that our heavenly Father will not suffer us to be tempted “above what we are able to bear!” The very prayer implies a promise, since we are authorized by Christ himself to use it. For thine is the kingdom, &c. — This sublime conclusion is not in St. Luke, which makes it probable that the Lord’s prayer as recorded by him, was delivered on another occasion, and in a shorter and somewhat varied form. Here it is a part of a set and solemn discourse, and is therefore given at full length. By some critics the doxology is rejected from the text; but it appears in most of the Greek MSS., the Syriac, and other ancient versions, and was certainly read in the copies used by the Greek fathers; and on such evidence must be retained. It is obviously taken, not as Lightfoot suggests, from the Jews, who at the end of their prayers repeated, “Blessed be the name of the glory of his kingdom for ever and ever;” but manifestly from the inspired words of Solomon: “Thine, O Lord, is the greatness, and the power, and the glory, and the victory, and the majesty; for all that is in the heaven and in the earth is thine; thine is the kingdom, O Lord, and thou art exalted as head above all,” &c, 1 Chronicles 29:11.
For if ye forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you:
Adam Clarke
Verse 14. If ye forgive men] He who shows mercy to men receives mercy from God. For a king to forgive his subjects a hundred millions of treasons against his person and authority, on this one condition, that they wilt henceforth live peaceably with him and with each other, is what we shall never see; and yet this is but the shadow of that which Christ promises on his Father’s part to all true penitents. A man can have little regard for his salvation, who refuses to have it on such advantageous terms. See Quesnel.
Joseph Benson
Verse 14. If ye forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you — We are not to infer from this, that the forgiving of injuries alone will entitle us to pardon. Surely not. Repentance toward God, and fruits worthy of repentance, as also faith in our Lord Jesus Christ, working by love, overcoming the world, and purifying the heart, are absolutely necessary, as is frequently stated elsewhere in the discourses of our Lord, and in the writings of the apostles and evangelists.
But if ye forgive not men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.
Adam Clarke
Verse 15. But if ye forgive not] He who does not awake at the sound of so loud a voice, is not asleep but dead. A vindictive man excludes himself from all hope of eternal life, and himself seals his own damnation. Trespasses] paraptwmata, from para and piptw, to fall off. What a remarkable difference there is between this word and ofeilhmata, debts, in Matthew 6:12! Men’s sins against us are only their stumblings, or fallings off from the duties they owe us; but our’s are debts to God’s justice, which we can never discharge. It can be no great difficulty to forgive those, especially when we consider that in many respects we have failed as much, in certain duties which we owed to others, as they have done in those which they owed us. “But I have given him no provocation.” Perhaps thou art angry, and art not a proper judge in the matter; but, however it may be, it is thy interest to forgive, if thou expectest forgiveness from God. On this important subject I will subjoin an extract from Mason’s Self-knowledge, page 248, 1755.
“Athenodorus, the philosopher by reason of his old age, begged leave to retire from the court of Augustus, which the emperor granted. In his compliments of leave, he said, ‘Remember, Cæsar, whenever thou art angry, that thou say or do nothing before thou hast distinctly repeated to thyself the twenty-four letters of the alphabet.’ On which Cæsar caught him by the hand, and said, ‘I have need of thy presence still:’ and kept him a year longer. This was excellent advice from a heathen; but a Christian may prescribe to himself a wiser rule. When thou art angry, answer not till thou hast repeated the fifth petition of our Lord’s prayer-Forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors: and our Lord’s comment upon it-For if ye forgive not men their trespasses, neither will your heavenly father forgive your trespasses.”
PRAYER to God is considered among the Mohammedans in a very important point of view. It is declared by the Mosliman doctors to be the corner stone of RELIGION, and the pillar of FAITH. It is not, say they, a thing of mere form, but requires that the heart and understanding should accompany it, without which they pronounce it to be of no avail. They direct prayer to be performed five times in the twenty-four hours. 1. Between day-break and sun-rise; 2. Immediately after noon; 3. Immediately before sun-set; 4. In the evening before dark; and 5. Before the first watch of the night.
They hold the following points to be essentially requisite to the efficacy of prayer:-1. That the person be free from every species of defilement. 2. That all sumptuous and gaudy apparel be laid aside. 3. That the attention accompany the act, and be not suffered to wander to any other object. 4. That the prayer be performed with the face toward the temple of MECCA. HEDAYAH. Prel. Dis. pp. 53, 54.
There are few points here but the follower of Christ may seriously consider and profitably practise.
Daniel Whedon
15. Forgive not… neither — See on Matthew 18:35. Our Saviour adds this to impress the sincerity of the petition upon our hearts. c. Sincerity in fasting.
Moreover when ye fast, be not, as the hypocrites, of a sad countenance: for they disfigure their faces, that they may appear unto men to fast. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward.
John Wesley
V. 16. When ye fast?-Our Lord does not enjoin either fasting, alms-deeds, or prayer: all these being duties which were before fully established in the Church of God.
Disfigure-By the dust and ashes which they put upon their heads, as was usual at the times of solemn humiliation.
Adam Clarke
Verse 16. When ye fast] A fast is termed by the Greeks nhstiv, from nh not, and esqein to eat; hence fast means, a total abstinence from food for a certain time. Abstaining from flesh, and living on fish, vegetables, &c., is no fast, or may be rather considered a burlesque on fasting. Many pretend to take the true definition of a fast from Isaiah 58:3, and say that it means a fast from sin. This is a mistake; there is no such term in the Bible as fasting from sin; the very idea is ridiculous and absurd, as if sin were a part of our daily food. In the fast mentioned by the prophet, the people were to divide their bread with the hungry, Isaiah 58:7; but could they eat their bread, and give it too? No man should save by a fast: he should give all the food he might have eaten to the poor. He who saves a day’s expense by a fast, commits an abomination before the Lord. See Clarke’s note on “Matthew 9:15”.
As the hypocrites-of a sad countenance] skuqrwpoi, either from skuqrov sour, crabbed, and wy the countenance; or from skuqhv a Scythian, a morose, gloomy, austere phiz, like that of a Scythian or Tartar. A hypocrite has always a difficult part to act: when he wishes to appear as a penitent, not having any godly sorrow at heart, he is obliged to counterfeit it the best way he can, by a gloomy and austere look.
Joseph Benson
Verses 16-18. When ye fast — Our Lord does not enjoin either fasting, alms-deeds, or prayer, all these being duties which were before fully established in the Church of God. Be not as the hypocrites, &c. — Do not follow the example of the hypocrites, who, in order to show that they fast, assume a sad countenance; a dejected, austere, and mortified look, such as false devotees affect, who make piety to consist in outward show, rather than in true goodness. For they disfigure their faces — Viz., by dust and ashes put upon their heads, as was usual in times of mourning and solemn humiliation. Verily, I say unto you, they have their reward — I assure you, persons of this character shall have no other reward but the esteem of those whom they deceive by such appearances. But thou, when thou fastest, anoint thy head, &c. — Come abroad in thine ordinary dress. The Jews often anointed their heads. That thou appear not, &c. — That, desiring the approbation of God, and not the applause of men, thou mayest chiefly be solicitous to appear before God as one that fasts; and God, who is ever with thee, and knows thy most secret thoughts, shall openly bestow on thee the blessings which belong to a true penitent, “whose mortification, contrition, and humility he can discern without the help of looks, or dress, or outward expressions of any kind. But it must be remembered, that our Lord is speaking here of private fasting, to which alone his directions are to be applied; for, when public sins or calamities are to be mourned over, the duty of fasting ought to be performed in the most public manner.”
Joseph Sutcliffe
Ver. 16. When ye fast, be not as the hypocrites. Religious fasting, associated with alms and prayers, has been the universal practice of the church, though perhaps in no age less regarded than the present. David fasted when his child was sick. The elders of the christian church were ordained with fasting and prayer. Acts 14:23. St. Paul tells us he fasted often. — See also on Zechariah 7:3. But the point here is, as in alms and prayer, to fast and pray for private good in a secret and devout manner. The good man wishes none but God to hear his prayer, and none but God to behold his fast. On this head, the prophets constantly remark, that if we fast for particular blessings, we must be the foremost to show mercy to the indigent, and in remission of debts to the insolvent.
Daniel Whedon
16. Moreover — Be not only thus sincere in alms and prayer, but also in fasting. Put on no grim airs to attract attention, but fast unto God. Of a sad countenance — Solemn thought naturally indeed produces a solemn expression of countenance. Penitence may produce tears. And all this is right, provided the external expression is produced by the internal feeling before God. Nay, one may put on sackcloth and ashes, or use other means to bring his feelings to the right state. But to assume expressions, or put on forms, for the purpose of a show where the reality is not within, is simply hypocrisy. Forms, indeed, are often in a degree deserted by the feeling they express; and yet they are well retained to keep us in that way by which the feeling may be made to return, so that the form may become reanimated by the power. But when the form has banished the power, and become a substitute for it and a mere show of it, the hypocrisy has fairly commenced.
Richard Watson
Verse 16. Be not as the hypocrites, of a sad countenance. — The word skuqrwpov signifies one of a gloomy and dejected countenance. Lucien, in one of his dialogues, censures those who affected to be philosophers, and without any qualification assumed their garb, and imitated their gravity, calling them apes and stage players, upokritev, hypocrites, and ridicules their grave faces, skuqrwpoi, the word here translated, of a sad countenance.
Disfigure their faces. — Afanizw signifies to cause to disappear, and figuratively, to deform or disfigure, as hiding or defacing whatever is beautiful or graceful. These hypocrites “disfigured their faces” by letting their hair and beard remain untrimmed, by not practising the usual ablutions and anointings, and perhaps also by sprinkling ashes upon their heads. Hence, on the contrary, our Lord exhorts his disciples, when they fast, to anoint their head and wash their face, that they might not appear to men to fast, that there should be among them no unnecessary exhibition, no vain show of religion. Anointing the body with fragrant oil after washing was a common practice with the ancients, and especially on great and joyous occasions. Examples appear in Homer and other ancient writers. The Jewish canons forbid washing and anointing on fast days. The anointing of the head is mentioned, either because on ordinary occasions they anointed the head only, or because when they anointed the whole body, the rule was to anoint the head first, as being “THE KING over all its members.” Which mode of speaking probably gave rise to St. Paul’s comparison of believers to the members of the body, and Christ to its HEAD, as being THE LORD of his Church.
But thou, when thou fastest, anoint thine head, and wash thy face;
John Wesley
V. 17. Anoint thy head-So the Jews frequently did. Dress thyself as usual.
Adam Clarke
Verse 17. Anoint thine head and wash thy face] These were forbidden in the Jewish canon on days of fasting and humiliation; and hypocrites availed themselves of this ordinance, that they might appear to fast. Our Lord, therefore, cautions us against this: as if he had said, Affect nothing-dress in thy ordinary manner, and let the whole of thy deportment prove that thou desirest to recommend my soul to God, and not thy face to men. That factitious mourning, which consists in putting on black clothes, crapes, &c., is utterly inconsistent with the simplicity of the Gospel of Christ; and if practised in reference to spiritual matters, is certainly forbidden here: but sin is so common, and so boldly persisted in, that not even a crape is put on, as an evidence of deploring its influence, or of sorrow for having committed it.
Joseph Benson
Verses 16-18. When ye fast — Our Lord does not enjoin either fasting, alms-deeds, or prayer, all these being duties which were before fully established in the Church of God. Be not as the hypocrites, &c. — Do not follow the example of the hypocrites, who, in order to show that they fast, assume a sad countenance; a dejected, austere, and mortified look, such as false devotees affect, who make piety to consist in outward show, rather than in true goodness. For they disfigure their faces — Viz., by dust and ashes put upon their heads, as was usual in times of mourning and solemn humiliation. Verily, I say unto you, they have their reward — I assure you, persons of this character shall have no other reward but the esteem of those whom they deceive by such appearances. But thou, when thou fastest, anoint thy head, &c. — Come abroad in thine ordinary dress. The Jews often anointed their heads. That thou appear not, &c. — That, desiring the approbation of God, and not the applause of men, thou mayest chiefly be solicitous to appear before God as one that fasts; and God, who is ever with thee, and knows thy most secret thoughts, shall openly bestow on thee the blessings which belong to a true penitent, “whose mortification, contrition, and humility he can discern without the help of looks, or dress, or outward expressions of any kind. But it must be remembered, that our Lord is speaking here of private fasting, to which alone his directions are to be applied; for, when public sins or calamities are to be mourned over, the duty of fasting ought to be performed in the most public manner.”
Daniel Whedon
17. Anoint thine head, and wash thy face — As these were the customary daily dressings of the Jews, our Lord, in the words, directs them to use their ordinary modes when fasting. Of course here is no reducing the practice of anointing the head to a universal Christian command. The practice of anointing with oil as an inauguration of kings and priests, has already been mentioned. Matthew 1. But there were also anointings of guests, of the sick, and of the dead. The practice is extremely ancient; as there appear, even upon the monuments of ancient Egypt, figures in the act of pouring oil upon the head of a person sitting or standing before them. This use of oil in the dry climate of the East is supposed to impart softness and brilliancy to the skin, to prevent the weakening effects of too much perspiration, and to impart to the person health and beauty. Hence, it becomes the emblem of joy and gladness, of excellence and blessing, of divine favour and distinction, of royalty and priesthood. Hence, in periods of symbolical sorrow, of mourning, penitence, and fasting, the Jews abjured the use of oil.
III. CHRISTIAN PIETY DISTINGUISHED FROM GENTILISM, Matthew 6:19-7:27. Fallen Judaism is the impure service of the true God; Gentilism is the true service of a false god. That god is the world-god Mammon. Gentilism has lost its divine parent; it has become orphaned of our Father who is in heaven. In his place it has substituted the Mammon service and the earthly goods. After all these things do the Gentiles seek. Verse 32. It is perfectly plain that with verse 18 our Lord closes his treatment of fallen Judaism. Thereafter he takes a wider scope over the world, and treats, throughout the remainder of the chapter, upon the world-wide substitution of the earthly good for the heavenly good, (19-23,) of the rivalry of Mammon before the heavenly Father, (24,) and the dominion of Care in the place of the kingdom or dominion of God over us. (25-30.) He calls us back beneath the paternity of God, promising that if we will make him our sole Supreme, all earthly goods shall be subordinately added.
1. Our treasure not on earth, but in heaven.
That thou appear not unto men to fast, but unto thy Father which is in secret: and thy Father, which seeth in secret, shall reward thee openly.
Adam Clarke
Verse 18. Thy father which seeth in secret] Let us not be afraid that our hearts can be concealed from God; but let us fear lest he perceive them to be more desirous of the praise of men than they are of that glory which comes from Him.
Openly.] en tw fanerw. These words are omitted by nine MSS. in uncial letters; and by more than one hundred others, by most of the versions, and by several of the primitive fathers. As it is supported by no adequate authority, Bengel, Wetstein, Griesbach, and others, have left it out of the text.
Joseph Benson
Verses 16-18. When ye fast — Our Lord does not enjoin either fasting, alms-deeds, or prayer, all these being duties which were before fully established in the Church of God. Be not as the hypocrites, &c. — Do not follow the example of the hypocrites, who, in order to show that they fast, assume a sad countenance; a dejected, austere, and mortified look, such as false devotees affect, who make piety to consist in outward show, rather than in true goodness. For they disfigure their faces — Viz., by dust and ashes put upon their heads, as was usual in times of mourning and solemn humiliation. Verily, I say unto you, they have their reward — I assure you, persons of this character shall have no other reward but the esteem of those whom they deceive by such appearances. But thou, when thou fastest, anoint thy head, &c. — Come abroad in thine ordinary dress. The Jews often anointed their heads. That thou appear not, &c. — That, desiring the approbation of God, and not the applause of men, thou mayest chiefly be solicitous to appear before God as one that fasts; and God, who is ever with thee, and knows thy most secret thoughts, shall openly bestow on thee the blessings which belong to a true penitent, “whose mortification, contrition, and humility he can discern without the help of looks, or dress, or outward expressions of any kind. But it must be remembered, that our Lord is speaking here of private fasting, to which alone his directions are to be applied; for, when public sins or calamities are to be mourned over, the duty of fasting ought to be performed in the most public manner.”
Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal:
John Wesley
V. 19. Lay not up for yourselves-Our Lord here makes a transition from religious to common actions, and warns us of another snare, the love of money, as inconsistent with purity of intention as the love of praise. Where rust and moth consume-Where all things are perishable and transient.
He may likewise have a farther view in these words, even to guard us against making any thing on earth our treasure. For then a thing properly becomes our treasure, when we set our affections upon it. Luke 12:33.
Adam Clarke
Verse 19. Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth] What blindness is it for a man to lay up that as a treasure which must necessarily perish! A heart designed for God and eternity is terribly degraded by being fixed on those things which are subject to corruption. “But may we not lay up treasure innocently?” Yes. 1st. If you can do it without setting your heart on it, which is almost impossible: and 2dly. If there be neither widows nor orphans, destitute nor distressed persons in the place where you live. “But there is a portion which belongs to my children; shall I distribute that among the poor?” If it belongs to your children, it is not yours, and therefore you have no right to dispose of it. “But I have a certain sum in stock, &c.; shall I take that and divide it among the poor?” By no means; for, by doing so, you would put it out of your power to do good after the present division: keep your principal, and devote, if you possibly can spare it, the product to the poor; and thus you shall have the continual ability to do good. In the mean time take care not to shut up your bowels of compassion against a brother in distress; if you do, the love of God cannot dwell in you.
Rust] Or canker, brwsiv, from brwskw, I eat, consume. This word cannot be properly applied to rust, but to any thing that consumes or cankers clothes or metals. There is a saying exactly similar to this in the Institutes of MENU: speaking of the presents made to Brahmins, he says, “It is a gem which neither thieves nor foes take away, and which never perishes.” Chapter of Government, Institute 83.
Where thieves do not break through] diorussousi, literally dig through, i.e. the wall, in order to get into the house. This was not a difficult matter, as the house was generally made of mud and straw, kneaded together like the cobb houses in Cornwall, and other places. See Clarke on “Matthew 7:27”.
Joseph Benson
Verses 19-21. Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth — Our Lord here makes a transition from religious to common actions, and warns us of another snare, the love of money and earthly things, as inconsistent with purity of intention as the love of praise: where moth and rust doth corrupt, &c. — Where all things are perishable and transient. “In the eastern countries, where the fashion of clothes did not alter as with us, the treasures of the rich consisted not only of gold and silver, but of costly habits, and finely-wrought vessels of brass, and tin, and copper, liable to be destroyed in the manner here mentioned.” But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven — Build your happiness on a more noble and certain foundation, where none of these accidents can happen; but the arms of everlasting power and love shall secure you from every calamity and invasion. “Nothing can be conceived more powerful to damp that keenness with which men pursue the things of this life, than the consideration of their emptiness and uncertainty; or to kindle in them an ambition of obtaining the treasures in heaven, than the consideration of their being substantial, satisfying, durable, and subject to no accident whatever. These considerations, therefore, were fitly proposed by our Lord on this occasion.” — Macknight. For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also — A most undoubted truth, and a most weighty reason why we should not make any thing on earth our treasure: for whatever we make our treasure gains possession of our hearts; we set our affections upon it, and of consequence, according to St. John, (1 John 2:15,) the love of the Father is not in us, and we are not his children.
Joseph Sutcliffe
Ver. 19. Lay not up for yourselves treasures on earth. The moths will eat your drapery, and the rust will tarnish your gold: the style and furniture of your mansion will all decay. The vain boasting of your riches also will tempt the thieves to rob your house. King Hezekiah, after the angel had destroyed the Assyrians, leaving all their armour and plunder on the field, became the richest king, after Solomon, of all David’s line; but those treasures were all carried to Babylon. Crœsus, after him, was the richest of all gentile kings, and Cyrus plundered all his wealth. Above all, riches will steal away your heart from God. You will often count your gold in secret, and live in fear of fraud; and your eye will delight in seeing the shining ore. The heathen writers speak against this sordid passion in the strongest terms. “As money encreases, so does the love of it.” An apostle also adds, “the love of money is the root of all evil.” Money, like manure, is of no use till it is spread abroad. Do good in your life, and do not meanly keep the gripe of gold till death shall chill your hand, lest your heir should ruin his soul by defrauding the poor of your bequests.
Daniel Whedon
19. Treasures — The first thought of a superficial reader of these words is likely to be, that our Saviour actually forbids all acquirement of wealth or property, real or personal. And objectors to the Scriptures endeavour to maintain this as the true construction, and so to prove that Jesus teaches a monkish kind of piety. But, first, it to be marked that the very basis on which our Lord gives this precept presupposes that earthly goods are good in their place. His doctrine is that, if we seek first the higher good, all these things, constituting the lower good, shall be subordinately added unto us. ver. 33. And, second, the word treasures does not mean simply riches. The term is not to be literally limited to material wealth alone, but is a symbol for whatever we hold to be our main good, whatever has our predominant affection, whatever is our aim of life. The sentiment, then, is, Make heavenly, not earthly good supreme in your heart. So also moth, rust, and thieves are symbols of whatever can destroy our treasures. If our treasures are wealth, riches take wings and fly away; if beauty, disease may impair it; if learning, idiocy; if strength, paralysis; if talent, insanity, and of all our treasures, m whatever form, the grand thief is death.
For yourselves — Making gratification of self your end.
Moth — The moth is a worm which breeds in neglected clothes, eats their substance, and destroys their texture. So Isaiah 50:9; 51:8; Ecclesiastes 19:3. Rust — Corrosion, or wear and tear of any kind. Corrupt — Destroy.
Richard Watson
Verse 19. Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, &c. — The treasures laid up by the easterns were not only gold, silver, and precious stones, but corn, wine, and oil; and garments also, frequent changes of which they thought a point of dignity. Many of these garments were costly, from their curious texture, workmanship, and the embroidery with which they were adorned. In Homer, such vestments make a conspicuous figure in the treasury of Ulysses.
Where moth and rust doth corrupt, &c. — The moth eats into the garments; the rust, brwsiv, is a name which comprehends the different kinds of insects which devour grain and fruits. The word is from browskw, to eat, and signifies whatever consumes by corrosion, or devouring, whether the mildew, which destroys corn, or the rust, which corrodes metals, or locusts, ants, weevils, and other insects, by which various substances are devoured. Finally, thieves break through and steal the gold and silver, as being easily carried away. Thus the perishableness and uncertainty of all earthly property is metaphorically but strikingly set forth; and, as Bishop Hopkins well observes, “the moth and rust may denote the insensible wasting of the good things of this life, as the moth does not make a sudden rent; and the thieves may intimate some sudden blast of providence upon worldly possessions.” The accumulation of property is not here absolutely forbidden. In most cases the business of life cannot be carried on without it, in some degree; and large commercial and manufacturing concerns can only be conducted by a large capital, and if successfully managed must rapidly increase wealth. But the precept forbids,
1. The hoarding up of useless wealth which is not made beneficial to society.
2. All anxiety to acquire wealth, so that we may be cheerfully content with the portion which Providence assigns us.
3. All greediness of gain, whether to keep or to spend, whether to gratify the mean passion of avarice, or to be used for vain ostentation or personal indulgence.
But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal:
Adam Clarke
Verse 20. Lay up-treasures in heaven] “The only way to render perishing goods eternal, to secure stately furniture from moths, and the richest metals from canker, and precious stones from thieves, is to transmit them to heaven by acts of charity. This is a kind of bill of exchange which cannot fail of acceptance, but through our own fault.” Quesnel. It is certain we have not the smallest portion of temporal good, but what we have received from the unmerited bounty of God: and if we give back to him all we have received, yet still there is no merit that can fairly attach to the act, as the goods were the Lord’s; for I am not to suppose that I can purchase any thing from a man by his own property. On this ground the doctrine of human merit is one of the most absurd that ever was published among men, or credited by sinners. Yet he who supposes he can purchase heaven by giving that meat which was left at his own table, and that of his servants; or by giving a garment which he could no longer in decency wear, must have a base ignorant soul, and a very mean opinion of the heaven he hopes for. But shall not such works as these be rewarded? Yes, yes, God will take care to give you all that your refuse victuals and old clothes are worth. Yet he, who through love to God and man, divides his bread with the hungry, and covers the naked with a garment, shall not lose his reward; a reward which the mercy of God appoints, but to which, in strict justice, he can lay no claim.
Joseph Benson
Verses 19-21. Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth — Our Lord here makes a transition from religious to common actions, and warns us of another snare, the love of money and earthly things, as inconsistent with purity of intention as the love of praise: where moth and rust doth corrupt, &c. — Where all things are perishable and transient. “In the eastern countries, where the fashion of clothes did not alter as with us, the treasures of the rich consisted not only of gold and silver, but of costly habits, and finely-wrought vessels of brass, and tin, and copper, liable to be destroyed in the manner here mentioned.” But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven — Build your happiness on a more noble and certain foundation, where none of these accidents can happen; but the arms of everlasting power and love shall secure you from every calamity and invasion. “Nothing can be conceived more powerful to damp that keenness with which men pursue the things of this life, than the consideration of their emptiness and uncertainty; or to kindle in them an ambition of obtaining the treasures in heaven, than the consideration of their being substantial, satisfying, durable, and subject to no accident whatever. These considerations, therefore, were fitly proposed by our Lord on this occasion.” — Macknight. For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also — A most undoubted truth, and a most weighty reason why we should not make any thing on earth our treasure: for whatever we make our treasure gains possession of our hearts; we set our affections upon it, and of consequence, according to St. John, (1 John 2:15,) the love of the Father is not in us, and we are not his children.
Joseph Sutcliffe
Ver. 20. Lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven. Seek to adorn your mind with heavenly wisdom, and your heart with every moral excellence: then the remunerations of the Lord shall recompense you at the resurrection of the just.
Daniel Whedon
20. Treasures in heaven — The use of the word treasures here shows that its sense is symbolical for that which is our highest interest. For yourselves — This treasure may, indeed, be for yourselves. Earthly good is transient; you are a mere momentary holder, and not an owner. But heavenly treasures become your own forever.
Richard Watson
Verse 20. But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, &c. — Secure imperishable treasures there, “an inheritance incorruptible, undefiled, and which fadeth not away.” It is only by a true faith in Christ that we become “heirs” of this heavenly inheritance; but every act of pious charity lays up treasure in it, and will render it the more rich and felicitous. (See 1 Timothy 6:17, 18; Luke 18:22.) The antitheses contained in these verses will not pass unnoticed by the attentive reader. Treasures on earth, and treasures in heaven; the latter, therefore, are all spiritual, suited to the enjoyment and capacity of a perfectly purified and glorified nature; they are also inalienable and imperishable, in contrast with the corruptible and uncertain enjoyments of time, and so it is a joyful consideration that in proportion to the VALUE of the treasures of heaven is their SECURITY; we can never outlive them, never forfeit them, they shall never be taken away from us.
For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.
Adam Clarke
Verse 21. Where your treasure is] If God be the treasure of our souls, our hearts, i.e. our affections and desires will be placed on things above. An earthly minded man proves that his treasure is below; a heavenly minded man shows that his treasure is above.
Joseph Benson
Verses 19-21. Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth — Our Lord here makes a transition from religious to common actions, and warns us of another snare, the love of money and earthly things, as inconsistent with purity of intention as the love of praise: where moth and rust doth corrupt, &c. — Where all things are perishable and transient. “In the eastern countries, where the fashion of clothes did not alter as with us, the treasures of the rich consisted not only of gold and silver, but of costly habits, and finely-wrought vessels of brass, and tin, and copper, liable to be destroyed in the manner here mentioned.” But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven — Build your happiness on a more noble and certain foundation, where none of these accidents can happen; but the arms of everlasting power and love shall secure you from every calamity and invasion. “Nothing can be conceived more powerful to damp that keenness with which men pursue the things of this life, than the consideration of their emptiness and uncertainty; or to kindle in them an ambition of obtaining the treasures in heaven, than the consideration of their being substantial, satisfying, durable, and subject to no accident whatever. These considerations, therefore, were fitly proposed by our Lord on this occasion.” — Macknight. For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also — A most undoubted truth, and a most weighty reason why we should not make any thing on earth our treasure: for whatever we make our treasure gains possession of our hearts; we set our affections upon it, and of consequence, according to St. John, (1 John 2:15,) the love of the Father is not in us, and we are not his children.
Daniel Whedon
21. Where your treasure is, there… heart — If your treasure is earthly, your heart is earthly.
Now, our Lord condemns no true earthly good, no true earthly enjoyment; he simply claims that in these shall not consist our treasures; and that all their value shall consist in their enabling us to be better servants of God and winners of the true treasures. For this purpose a single eye is necessary, as shown in the next two verses.
Richard Watson
Verse 21. For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also. — If we esteem earthly things to be our treasure, then will our AFFECTIONS be set upon them, and become alienated from God, the result of which must be the utter loss of the heavenly inheritance; “for to be carnally minded is death.” But if, on the contrary, we have our treasure in heaven, if we gain a true title to it, and esteem the attaining of it the great end of life; if we are intent upon exalting our felicity there, by “works of faith and labours of love,” by a vigorous zeal and a liberal charity, our hearts will be kept there, and our “AFFECTIONS set on things above.” Thus shall we acquire that heavenly mindedness, without which all pretensions to piety are vain and fatally delusive.
The light of the body is the eye: if therefore thine eye be single, thy whole body shall be full of light.
John Wesley
V. 22. The eye is the lamp of the body-And what the eye is to the body, the intention is to the soul. We may observe with what exact propriety our Lord places purity of intention between worldly desires and worldly cares, either of which directly tend to destroy.
If thine eye be single-Singly fixed on God and heaven, thy whole soul will be full of holiness and happiness.
If thine eye be evil-Not single, aiming at any thing else.
Adam Clarke
Verse 22. The light of the body is the eye] That is, the eye is to the body what the sun is to the universe in the day time, or a lamp or candle to a house at night.
If-thine eye be single] aplouv, simple, uncompounded; i.e. so perfect in its structure as to see objects distinctly and clearly, and not confusedly, or in different places to what they are, as is often the case in certain disorders of the eye; one object appearing two or more-or else in a different situation, and of a different colour to what it really is. This state of the eye is termed, Matthew 6:23, ponhrov evil, i.e. diseased or defective. An evil eye was a phrase in use, among the ancient Jews, to denote an envious, covetous man or disposition; a man who repined at his neighbour’s prosperity, loved his own money, and would do nothing in the way of charity for God’s sake. Our blessed Lord, however, extends and sublimes this meaning, and uses the sound eye as a metaphor to point out that simplicity of intention, and purity of affection with which men should pursue the supreme good. We cannot draw more than one straight line between two indivisible points. We aim at happiness: it is found only in one thing, the indivisible and eternal GOD. It the line of simple intention be drawn straight to him, and the soul walk by it, with purity of affection, the whole man shall be light in the Lord; the rays of that excellent glory shall irradiate the mind, and through the whole spirit shall the Divine nature be transfused. But if a person who enjoyed this heavenly treasure permit his simplicity of intention to deviate from heavenly to earthly good; and his purity of affection to be contaminated by worldly ambition, secular profits, and animal gratifications; then, the light which was in him becomes darkness, i.e. his spiritual discernment departs, and his union with God is destroyed: all is only a palpable obscure; and, like a man who has totally lost his sight, he walks without direction, certainty, or comfort. This state is most forcibly intimated in our Lord’s exclamation, How great a darkness! Who can adequately describe the misery and wretchedness of that soul which has lost its union with the fountain of all good, and, in losing this, has lost the possibility of happiness till the simple eye be once more given, and the straight line once more drawn.
Joseph Benson
Verse 22. The light — Or lamp rather, as o lucnov should be translated, of the body, is the eye — That is, it is by the eye that a person has light to direct him in his bodily motions, and in the use of his bodily members. If therefore thine eye be single — Aplouv, simple, not mixed with noxious humours, but clear and sound; so both Chrysostom and Theophylact understand the expression, considering it as synonymous with ugihv, whole; thy whole body shall be full of light — Every member of thy body shall be enlightened by the light of thine eye, and directed to perform its proper office. But if thine eye be evil — Gr. ponhrov, rendered noswdhv, morbid, by Theophylact, and distempered, by Dr. Campbell, who observes, “that there is no reference to the primitive meaning of aplouv, single, is evident from its being contrasted to ponhrov, evil, bad, or disordered, and not to diplouv, double. Our Lord’s argument,” adds he, “stands thus: The eye is the lamp of the body: from it all the other members derive their light. Now if that which is the light of the body be darkened, how miserable will be the state of the body! how great will be the darkness of those members which have no light of their own, but depend entirely on the eye!” Thus “if the conscience, that mental light which God has given to man for regulating his moral conduct, be itself vitiated, what will be the state of his appetites and passions, which are naturally blind and precipitate?” To the same purpose speaks Macknight, only using the term reason, instead of conscience. “As the body must be well enlightened if its eye is sound and good, or greatly darkened if it is spoiled with noxious humours; so the mind must be full of life, if reason, its eye, is in a proper state; or full of darkness, if it is perverted by covetousness, and other worldly passions; but with this difference, that the darkness of the mind is infinitely worse than the darkness of the body, and attended with worse consequences, inasmuch as the actions of the mind are of far greater importance to happiness than those of the body.” Baxter and Dr. Doddridge understand the words in nearly the same sense, interpreting the word eye of the practical judgment. “If thy judgment be sound,” says the former, “and thou knowest the difference between laying up treasure in heaven and on earth, it will rightly guide all the actions of thy heart and life: but if thy judgment be blinded in this great affair, it will misguide thy love, thy choice, and all the tenor of thy life: if thy judgment then be blind, which must guide thee, what a miserable erroneous wretch wilt thou be! and how dismal will that error prove!” Or, as the doctor expresses it, “If the maxims you lay down to yourselves are wrong, how very erroneous must your conduct be!”
Joseph Sutcliffe
Ver. 22. The light of the body is the eye. The Greeks had a similar saying. Kaqaron an ton noun echv apan to swma kaqarov ei. If your mind be pure, your whole body is pure. Our whole mind should follow after love to God, and truth and righteousness towards men; for all criminal passions becloud the understanding with darkness.
Daniel Whedon
22. Light of the body is the eye — The body is as a large room, naturally dark, of which the inhabitant is the soul. But it has a light or lamp, the eye; for the eye gathers light from the external world of knowledge, and pours it, like a lamp, into the spacious residence of the soul. Eye be single — Or pure from any foreign substance, duplicating and impeding its clear blaze. Body… light — If the lamp give a pure light, the room is completely filled with illumination. When the moral perception is uninterfered with by any alloy of base self-interest, the soul possesses the pure light of truth.
Richard Watson
Verses 22, 23. The light of the body is the eye, &c. — “The light,” o lucnov, the lamp of the body is the eye, its steps and motions being directed by it, as in the night we use a lamp for the same purposes. If therefore thine eye be single, that is, SOUND, in a healthy state, if vision be perfect; (for, as Campbell well remarks, that “there can be no reference to the primitive meaning of aplouv, simple or single, is evident from its being contrasted with ponhrov, evil or distempered, and not to diplouv;”) thy whole body shall be full of light; the images of things without being transmitted by a sound eye to the sensorium, all things appear enlightened, and we are able correctly to perceive and judge of them, and to conduct ourselves accordingly. But if thine eye be evil, ponhrov, diseased, so that the function of vision cannot be performed, thy whole body shall be full of darkness; all notices of external things designed to be transmitted by the eye being shut out, and all the beautiful scenes of nature excluded. If therefore the light that is in thee become darkness; if the power of seeing be lost to any one, how great is that darkness, how pitiable and wretched is that man’s condition!
But how are these words connected with our Lord’s argument against worldly mindedness? By the single eye, the liberal person, say some, is intended; by the evil eye, the covetous, urging, as Lightfoot, Whitby, and others, the Jewish phrases, “giving with a good eye,” that is, freely; and having “an evil eye,” that is, being churlish and covetous. But no good sense can be made of the whole passage in this view. How is it that if the eye be sound or good, in the sense of being liberal, the whole man is full of light? or if it be evil, greedy, and covetous, that he should be full of darkness? The attempts to explain this, by the commentators who take the terms in this sense, are too forced and awkward to be admitted; whereas, if we interpret the eye, as an easy and indeed common metaphor to indicate the understanding or practical judgment, a natural and most important sense unfolds itself, which by none has been better expressed than by Baxter: “If therefore thy judgment be sound, and thou knowest the difference between laying up a treasure in heaven and on earth, it will rightly guide the actions of thy heart and life; but if thy judgment be blinded in this great affair, it will misguide thy affections, thy choice, and the whole tenor of thy life. If that judgment then be blind, which in this affair of everlasting moment ought to guide thee aright, what a miserable wretch wilt thou be, and how fatal will that error prove!”
But if thine eye be evil, thy whole body shall be full of darkness. If therefore the light that is in thee be darkness, how great is that darkness!
Daniel Whedon
23. If thine eye be evil — If the eye is evil by corrupting disease or foreign substance. Darkness — Of course a blind eye makes a dark body and soul. And morally, where the spiritual eye is disturbed and blinded by unholy motives and worldly self-interest, the soul is filled with darkness. But the Jews were often inclined to struggle against this heathen world-worship; and so a rivalry and a compromise arose in their hearts between the world-god and the true God. Our Lord now meets this case.
2. The world must not stand in competition with God, 24-34.
Richard Watson
Verses 22, 23. The light of the body is the eye, &c. — “The light,” o lucnov, the lamp of the body is the eye, its steps and motions being directed by it, as in the night we use a lamp for the same purposes. If therefore thine eye be single, that is, SOUND, in a healthy state, if vision be perfect; (for, as Campbell well remarks, that “there can be no reference to the primitive meaning of aplouv, simple or single, is evident from its being contrasted with ponhrov, evil or distempered, and not to diplouv;”) thy whole body shall be full of light; the images of things without being transmitted by a sound eye to the sensorium, all things appear enlightened, and we are able correctly to perceive and judge of them, and to conduct ourselves accordingly. But if thine eye be evil, ponhrov, diseased, so that the function of vision cannot be performed, thy whole body shall be full of darkness; all notices of external things designed to be transmitted by the eye being shut out, and all the beautiful scenes of nature excluded. If therefore the light that is in thee become darkness; if the power of seeing be lost to any one, how great is that darkness, how pitiable and wretched is that man’s condition!
But how are these words connected with our Lord’s argument against worldly mindedness? By the single eye, the liberal person, say some, is intended; by the evil eye, the covetous, urging, as Lightfoot, Whitby, and others, the Jewish phrases, “giving with a good eye,” that is, freely; and having “an evil eye,” that is, being churlish and covetous. But no good sense can be made of the whole passage in this view. How is it that if the eye be sound or good, in the sense of being liberal, the whole man is full of light? or if it be evil, greedy, and covetous, that he should be full of darkness? The attempts to explain this, by the commentators who take the terms in this sense, are too forced and awkward to be admitted; whereas, if we interpret the eye, as an easy and indeed common metaphor to indicate the understanding or practical judgment, a natural and most important sense unfolds itself, which by none has been better expressed than by Baxter: “If therefore thy judgment be sound, and thou knowest the difference between laying up a treasure in heaven and on earth, it will rightly guide the actions of thy heart and life; but if thy judgment be blinded in this great affair, it will misguide thy affections, thy choice, and the whole tenor of thy life. If that judgment then be blind, which in this affair of everlasting moment ought to guide thee aright, what a miserable wretch wilt thou be, and how fatal will that error prove!”
No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon.
John Wesley
V. 24. Mammon-Riches, money; any thing loved or sought, without reference to God. Luke 16:13.
Adam Clarke
Verse 24. No man can serve two masters] The master of our heart may be fitly termed the love that reigns in it. We serve that only which we love supremely. A man cannot be in perfect indifference betwixt two objects which are incompatible: he is inclined to despise and hate whatever he does not love supremely, when the necessity of a choice presents itself. He will hate the one and love the other.] The word hate has the same sense here as it has in many places of Scripture; it merely signifies to love less-so Jacob loved Rachel, but hated Leah; i.e. he loved Leah much less than he loved Rachel. God himself uses it precisely in the same sense: Jacob have I loved, but Esau have I hated; i.e. I have loved the posterity of Esau less than I have loved the posterity of Jacob: which means no more than that God, in the course of his providence, gave to the Jews greater earthly privileges than he gave to the Edomites, and chose to make them the progenitors of the Messiah, though they ultimately, through their own obstinacy, derived no more benefit from this privilege than the Edomites did. How strange is it, that with such evidence before their eyes, men will apply this loving and hating to degrees of inclusion and exclusion, in which neither the justice nor mercy of God are honoured!
Ye cannot serve God and mammon.] ממונ mamon is used for money in the Targum of Onkelos, Exodus 18:21; and in that of Jonathan, Judges 5:19; 1 Samuel 8:3. The Syriac word anwmm mamona is used in the same sense, Exodus 21:30. Dr. Castel deduces these words from the Hebrew אמנ aman, to trust, confide; because men are apt to trust in riches. Mammon may therefore be considered any thing a man confides in. Augustine observes, “that mammon, in the Punic or Carthaginian language, signified gain.” Lucrum Punicè mammon dicitur. The word plainly denotes riches, Luke 16:9, 11, in which latter verse mention is made not only of the deceitful mammon, (tw adikw,) but also of the true (to alhqinon.) St. Luke’s phrase, mamwno adikiav, very exactly answers to the Chaldee rqvd ממונ mamon dishekar, which is often used in the Targums. See more in Wetstein and Parkhurst.
Some suppose there was an idol of this name, and Kircher mentions such a one in his OEdip. Egyptiacus. See Castel.
Our blessed Lord shows here the utter impossibility of loving the world and loving God at the same time; or, in other words, that a man of the world cannot be a truly religious character. He who gives his heart to the world robs God of it, and, in snatching at the shadow of earthly good, loses substantial and eternal blessedness. How dangerous is it to set our hearts upon riches, seeing it is so easy to make them our God!
Joseph Benson
Verse 24. No man can serve two masters — Whose interests and commands are directly contrary to each other; for either he will hate the one and love the other — And therefore, while he employs himself in the service of the one, will, of course, neglect the interest of the other: or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other — That is, will adhere entirely to the love and service of the one, and quite abandon the other. Do not therefore impose upon yourselves so far as to imagine that your hearts can be equally divided between heaven and earth. Ye cannot serve God and mammon, that unworthy idol, to which many devote their hearts and their lives. “Mammon is a Syriac word for riches, which our Lord here beautifully represents as a person whom the folly of men had deified. It is well known that the Greeks had a fictitious god of wealth; but I cannot find,” says Dr. Doddridge, “that he was ever directly worshipped in Syria under the name of Mammon.” According to some, the term is derived from ˆma, amen, and signifies whatever one is apt to confide in. And, because men put their trust generally in external advantages, such as riches, authority, honour, power, &c., the word mammon is used to denote every thing of that kind, and particularly riches, by way of eminence. The word hate, in this verse, signifies, to have a less value for, and to love, is to have a greater regard for, as appears from the remaining part of the verse, and from Matthew 10:37, compared with Luke 12:16. See Bishop Newton’s Notes on Paradise Lost, 1:620.
Joseph Sutcliffe
Ver. 24. Ye cannot serve God and Mammon. Mammon is a Chaldaic word designating money. Behold the fowls, consider the lilies, they lack neither food nor raiment. Oh base heart that fears to trust a God.
Daniel Whedon
24. Two masters — If the masters indeed agree perfectly, it is essentially one master. But here two signifies opposing. They are two, (as two masters ever will be,) not only in number, but in interest; and the poor slave or worshipper is under a conflicting jurisdiction, where one authority commands and another prohibits.
Mammon — There is no proof that Mammon was the name of a Syrian false god, or really an idol deity at all. Augustine says it is a Punic word signifying gain. The word was used in later and corrupt Hebrew for wealth. It is here personified by our Lord as the rival to the true God — an antigod of this world, He is the supreme Dollar of the day. Hate… love — In the heart. Hold to… despise — In the external conduct. Either in heart, or in action, or both, one of the masters will be sole master. Serve — As a slave or a worshipper. You cannot serve both; but you may make God your Lord, and Mammon your servant.
But if God alone must be worshipped, and Mammon despised, what will become of our support for life?
Our Lord now meets the question. Be not anxious about the matter; the duty is your part, the care is God’s. He who has adjusted his providential care to the bird, (which, indeed, hunts his food, yet lives by faith,) and to the lily, (that, indeed, struggles to gather moisture, and yet depends on God to paint her texture,) will also adjust his care for you, his chosen servants. Perform, indeed, every duty in the world; then leave all the care to God, and rise to the true dignity of the true man of faith, who brings the world beneath his feet and sets God above all. This is the true place of human excellence and of divine repose.
Richard Watson
Verse 24. No man can serve two masters, &c. — Decision, strong and constant, is here enforced by Christ upon his disciples, by an illustration, the energy of which all must feel. It is taken from the state of absolute servitude; but the masters or lords who claim our subjection are of entirely opposite characters, and require an entirely opposite service, and that at the same time, and through the whole course of our life. To obey two lords under such circumstances is manifestly impossible. Ye cannot serve God and mammon; yet you must serve one or the other, so that there is no middle path; therefore, take your choice. Mammon is not here used, as some have supposed, for a Syrian idol, like the Plutus of the Greeks, the god of riches; but simply means riches, which our Lord personifies. The word for riches in the Syriac, according to Jerome, was mammon; and so had been introduced into the language of Palestine, which was a mixed dialect. — Thus our Lord again uses it for riches, Luke 16:9-13. The meaning is obvious. He who serves riches, that is to say, gives himself up to the sordid love of them, and surrenders himself to be mastered by this passion, cannot serve God. For to serve God acceptably is to serve him absolutely, to confide in him alone, to love him supremely, and to submit to all those laws of generous liberality in the use of money which necessarily imply that we make riches our SERVANTS, not our MASTERS; and are to be ready to sacrifice wealth and all the distinctions and pleasures which it can purchase, when called to it for Christ’s sake, and the preservation of a good conscience. Even heathen writers had often just views on this subject. Thus, Plato, in his Republic, says, that in proportion to the degree in which riches are honoured and admired, virtue will be slighted and disregarded; and compares them to the light and heavy weight in a balance always going in an opposite direction.
Therefore I say unto you, Take no thought for your life, what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink; nor yet for your body, what ye shall put on. Is not the life more than meat, and the body than raiment?
John Wesley
V. 25. And if you serve God, you need be careful for nothing. Therefore take not thought-That is, be not anxiously careful. Beware of worldly cares; for these are as inconsistent with the true service of God as worldly desires.
Is not the life more than meat?-And if God give the greater gift, will he deny the smaller? Luke 12:22.
Adam Clarke
Verse 25. Therefore] dia touto, on this account; viz., that ye may not serve mammon, but have unshaken confidence in God, I say unto you,- Take no thought] Be not anxiously careful, mh merimnate; this is the proper meaning of the word. merimna anxious solicitude, from merizein ton noun dividing or distracting the mind. My old MS. Bible renders it, be not bysy to your life. Prudent care is never forbidden by our Lord, but only that anxious distracting solicitude, which, by dividing the mind, and drawing it different ways, renders it utterly incapable of attending to any solemn or important concern. To be anxiously careful concerning the means of subsistence is to lose all satisfaction and comfort in the things which God gives, and to act as a mere infidel. On the other hand, to rely so much upon providence as not to use the very powers and faculties with which the Divine Being has endowed us, is to tempt God. If we labour without placing our confidence in our labour, but expect all from the blessing of God, we obey his will, co-operate with his providence, set the springs of it a-going on our behalf, and thus imitate Christ and his followers by a sedate care and an industrious confidence. In this and the following verses, our Lord lays down several reasons why men should not disquiet themselves about the wants of life, or concerning the future.
The first is, the experience of greater benefits already received. Is not the life more than meat, and the body than raiment? Can he who gave us our body, and breathed into it the breath of life, before we could ask them from him, refuse us that which is necessary to preserve both, and when we ask it in humble confidence?
The clause what ye must eat, is omitted by two MSS., most of the ancient versions, and by many of the primitive fathers. Griesbach has left it in the text with a note of doubtfulness. It occurs again in Matthew 6:31, and there is no variation in any of the MSS. in that place. Instead of, Is not the life more than, &c., we should read, Of more value; so the word pleion is used in Numbers 22:15, and by the best Greek writers; and in the same sense it is used in Matthew 21:36. See the note there.
Joseph Benson
Verses 25-27. Therefore I say, Take no thought, &c. — Our Lord here proceeds to caution his disciples against worldly cares, these being as inconsistent with the true service of God as worldly desires. But the expression used by our translators, Take no thought, is too strong, and not warranted by the original, mh merimnate, which properly signifies, Be not anxious, or, anxiously careful, as is evident from Luke 10:41; 12:11; 21:34; Philippians 4:6; and almost every other place, where merimnaw occurs. For we are not to suppose that our Lord here commands us absolutely to take no thought for our life, food, and raiment; because, in other parts of Scripture, diligence in business is inculcated, and men are commanded to labour with their hands, that they may provide for the supply of their own wants, and also those of others, Romans 12:11; Ephesians 4:28; and that, instead of being useless loads on the earth, they may, at all times, have it in their power to discharge the several duties of life with decency, Titus 3:14. What Christ therefore here forbids is, not that thought, foresight, and care which prudent men use in providing sustenance and needful support for themselves, and those dependant upon them; but it is such an anxious care, as arises from want of faith in the being, perfections, and providence of God, and in the declarations and promises of his word, and therefore such an anxious solicitude as engrosses the thoughts and desires of the soul, so as either utterly to exclude or greatly damp and hinder spiritual affections, pursuits, and labours; or which prevents our receiving or our retaining and increasing in the love of God, and the true religion connected therewith. Is not the life more than the meat, needful to support it? And the body than the raiment, necessary to clothe it? and will not he, who has given the greater blessings, give the less also? Behold the fowls of the air — Learn a lesson from the birds that now fly round you. For they sow not, neither do they reap, &c. — Without foreseeing their own wants, or making provision for them, they are preserved and nourished by the unwearied benignity of the divine providence. Are ye not much better than they? — Are ye not beings of a nobler order, and destined for a higher end than they, and therefore more the objects of the divine care? Moreover, which of you, by taking thought — Gr. merimnwn, by being anxiously careful, can add one cubit unto his stature? Can add one moment to the length of your lives; that is, which of you could profit yourselves at all by anxious thoughts and cares, if you should indulge them? It is evident, as several learned writers have observed, that the word hlikia, here rendered stature, ought to have been translated age, because the caution is against anxious care about the preservation of life, and about food, the means of prolonging it; not to mention that Jesus is speaking here to full-grown men, who probably had no solicitude about their stature. Besides, the measure of a cubit agrees much better to a man’s age than to his stature, the smallest addition to which would have been better expressed by a hair’s breadth, or the like, than by a cubit, which is more than the fourth part of the whole height of most men. This interpretation of the word is confirmed by Luke in the parallel passage, Luke 12:25, 26, where he calls the adding of a cubit, that which is least — That is the thing in which the interposition of the divine providence least appears, as it really is, if understood of the addition of a single moment to the length of one’s life.
Daniel Whedon
25. Therefore — Since it is God’s part, like a true master, to care for us. Take no thought — This rendering of the Greek, (merimna, merimna, distraction, distrust,) is in itself too strong. The Greek word is derived from the verb merizw, merizo, to divide, and implies the distraction of mind between different feelings; or rather, between the true God and the world-god of Gentilism. Let there be no half-and-half distraction of your mind between the two masters, by which anxiety for worldly good shall prevent your complete trust in God. Your anxiety is just so much belief that wealth is safer than God, and Mammon a better master than Christ. What ye shall eat — The questions here condemned should be carefully understood. They are not the questions asked by a housewife who has a dinner to provide to-day; nor the questions of an industrious householder who has a family to feed. These provident queries are a rightful duty, and to furnish the solid answer is its proper performance. The prohibited questions ask not properly how shall I be supplied, but shall I be supplied at all. The questions thus prohibited are questions of infidel distrust asked by a Mammon worshipper, who is called upon to become a man of faith, but is afraid he will thereby lose his earthly living. For all these distrusts our Lord is about to furnish the true, magnanimous, consoling answer. Venture the holy investment; trust in God, and do duty. Life… meat… body… raiment — Will not he who gave the better, furnish also the inferior? If God gave life and body, will he not give food and raiment?
Richard Watson
Verse 25. Therefore I say unto you, Take no thought, &c. — The beautiful discourse on God’s providential care which is thus introduced was evidently designed to anticipate an objection to the doctrine just taught. The hearers of our Lord would naturally ask, If we are to become so dead to the pursuit of wealth, how are our wants in life to be provided for? To which his reply, in sum, is, Not by surrendering yourselves to an excessive anxiety about the affairs of this present life, but by trusting in the care of your heavenly Father. The word merimnate is somewhat unhappily rendered, take no thought; for simple thoughtfulness, and a moderated care, are both necessary to that prudent and industrious conduct by which, under God’s blessing, our daily wants are appointed to be supplied. “Be not anxiously solicitous,” better expresses the idea; hence the Vulgate, Ne soliciti sitis. Care becomes a dangerous and sinful anxiety when it goes beyond the necessity of the case; when it is disproportionate to the temporary interests of the present life; when it leads to distrust in God; when it arises from want of submission to the lot he may be pleased to assign us; when it stretches too far into the future; when it disturbs and chafes our own minds, unfitting us for devotional exercises, and reducing the neglect of our spiritual concerns.
Is not the life more than meat, and the body than raiment? — Is not the life more, (pleion is here taken in the sense of worth and dignity,) of more value than meat; and it follows, therefore, that God, who has given life, the nobler gift, will take care to sustain it with food; and he who has so curiously formed the body, so that it is a wonderful monument of his power and skill, will not deny to it the raiment which it needs to cherish and defend it. This fine argument proceeds upon the principle that “all the works of God are perfect;” that in them every thing answers to each other, so that nothing is left unprovided for. The wisdom of God which had an end in giving life to every one, which yet is a dependent life, not to be sustained but by external supplies, will so order it that such supplies shall not be wanting; and he who gave to the body no natural clothing, and yet places it in circumstances which render clothing necessary for decency and comfort, will take care that we are supplied with raiment. When our first parents, from the sad changes which had been induced by sin in their persons and the climate of the world, needed raiment, the Lord God himself made coats of skins and clothed them; an affecting proof of his compassion. In illustration of this sentiment, that he who made the creatures cannot be inattentive to the supply of their wants, Christ refers to the fowls of the air, and the flowers of the field.
Behold the fowls of the air: for they sow not, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feedeth them. Are ye not much better than they?
Adam Clarke
Verse 26. Behold the fowls of the air] The second reason why we should not be anxiously concerned about the future, is the example of the smaller animals, which the providence of God feeds without their own labour; though he be not their father. We never knew an earthly father take care of his fowls, and neglect his children; and shall we fear this from our heavenly Father? God forbid! That man is utterly unworthy to have God for his father, who depends less upon his goodness, wisdom, and power, than upon a crop of corn, which may be spoiled either in the field or in the barn. If our great Creator have made us capable of knowing, loving, and enjoying himself eternally, what may we not expect from him, after so great a gift?
They sow not, neither do they reap] There is a saying among the rabbins almost similar to this-“Hast thou ever seen a beast or a fowl that had a workshop? yet they are fed without labour and without anxiety. They were created for the service of man, and man was created that he might serve his Creator. Man also would have been supported without labour and anxiety, had he not corrupted his ways. Hast thou ever seen a lion carrying burthens, a stag gathering summer fruits, a fox selling merchandise, or a wolf selling oil, that they might thus gain their support? And yet they are fed without care or labour. Arguing therefore from the less to the greater, if they which were created that they might serve me, are nourished without labour and anxiety, how much more I, who have been created that I might serve my Maker! What therefore is the cause, why I should be obliged to labour in order to get my daily bread? Answer, SIN.” This is a curious and important extract, and is highly worthy of the reader’s attention. See Schoettgen.
Joseph Benson
Verses 25-27. Therefore I say, Take no thought, &c. — Our Lord here proceeds to caution his disciples against worldly cares, these being as inconsistent with the true service of God as worldly desires. But the expression used by our translators, Take no thought, is too strong, and not warranted by the original, mh merimnate, which properly signifies, Be not anxious, or, anxiously careful, as is evident from Luke 10:41; 12:11; 21:34; Philippians 4:6; and almost every other place, where merimnaw occurs. For we are not to suppose that our Lord here commands us absolutely to take no thought for our life, food, and raiment; because, in other parts of Scripture, diligence in business is inculcated, and men are commanded to labour with their hands, that they may provide for the supply of their own wants, and also those of others, Romans 12:11; Ephesians 4:28; and that, instead of being useless loads on the earth, they may, at all times, have it in their power to discharge the several duties of life with decency, Titus 3:14. What Christ therefore here forbids is, not that thought, foresight, and care which prudent men use in providing sustenance and needful support for themselves, and those dependant upon them; but it is such an anxious care, as arises from want of faith in the being, perfections, and providence of God, and in the declarations and promises of his word, and therefore such an anxious solicitude as engrosses the thoughts and desires of the soul, so as either utterly to exclude or greatly damp and hinder spiritual affections, pursuits, and labours; or which prevents our receiving or our retaining and increasing in the love of God, and the true religion connected therewith. Is not the life more than the meat, needful to support it? And the body than the raiment, necessary to clothe it? and will not he, who has given the greater blessings, give the less also? Behold the fowls of the air — Learn a lesson from the birds that now fly round you. For they sow not, neither do they reap, &c. — Without foreseeing their own wants, or making provision for them, they are preserved and nourished by the unwearied benignity of the divine providence. Are ye not much better than they? — Are ye not beings of a nobler order, and destined for a higher end than they, and therefore more the objects of the divine care? Moreover, which of you, by taking thought — Gr. merimnwn, by being anxiously careful, can add one cubit unto his stature? Can add one moment to the length of your lives; that is, which of you could profit yourselves at all by anxious thoughts and cares, if you should indulge them? It is evident, as several learned writers have observed, that the word hlikia, here rendered stature, ought to have been translated age, because the caution is against anxious care about the preservation of life, and about food, the means of prolonging it; not to mention that Jesus is speaking here to full-grown men, who probably had no solicitude about their stature. Besides, the measure of a cubit agrees much better to a man’s age than to his stature, the smallest addition to which would have been better expressed by a hair’s breadth, or the like, than by a cubit, which is more than the fourth part of the whole height of most men. This interpretation of the word is confirmed by Luke in the parallel passage, Luke 12:25, 26, where he calls the adding of a cubit, that which is least — That is the thing in which the interposition of the divine providence least appears, as it really is, if understood of the addition of a single moment to the length of one’s life.
Daniel Whedon
26. Fowls of the air — They do their part, and God takes care of the rest. Hence we have not an unintelligent fate, or a blind chance to deal with; but a heavenly Father, who knows his children, and how to provide for them. The birds of heaven shall teach you to live by faith.
Richard Watson
Verse 26. Behold the fowls of the air, &c. — Embleyate, Attentively consider the fowls of the air; not those, says one, of the barn door, of which man takes care for his own profit, but those of the air. Yet even these, for whom none cares but God, find their food provided by a hand they cannot recognize; so that he who hath given them life, and assigned them their place in the rank of created beings, and appointed their uses, fails not to supply them with subsistence. The fowls here are only considered as the representatives of all the inferior creatures, of the different orders of which the psalmist says, “All these wait upon thee, and thou givest them their meat in due season;” and so accurately is this furnished, that none of their species perish for want of sustenance, but continue, from age to age, a standing monument of the care of God: Are ye not much better than they? as being spiritual, rational, immortal, and redeemed creatures.
Which of you by taking thought can add one cubit unto his stature?
John Wesley
V. 27. And which of you-If you are ever so careful, can even add a moment to your own life thereby? This seems to be far the most easy and natural sense of the words.
Adam Clarke
Verse 27. Which of you by taking thought can add one cubit unto his stature?] The third reason against these carking cares is the unprofitableness of human solicitude, unless God vouchsafe to bless it. What can our uneasiness do but render us still more unworthy of the Divine care? The passage from distrust to apostasy is very short and easy; and a man is not far from murmuring against Providence, who is dissatisfied with its conduct. We should depend as fully upon God for the preservation of his gifts as for the gifts themselves.
Cubit unto his stature?] I think hlikian should be rendered age here, and so our translators have rendered the word in John 9:21, autov hlikian ecei he is of age. A very learned writer observes, that no difficulty can arise from applying phcun a cubit, a measure of extension, to time, and the age of man: as place and time are both quantities, and capable of increase and diminution, and, as no fixed material standard can be employed in the mensuration of the fleeting particles of time, it was natural and necessary, in the construction of language, to apply parallel terms to the discrimination of time and place. Accordingly, we find the same words indifferently used to denote time and place in every known tongue. Lord, let me know the MEASURE of my days! Thou hast made my days HAND-BREADTHS, Psalm 39:5. Many examples might be adduced from the Greek and Roman writers. Besides, it is evident that the phrase of adding one cubit is proverbial, denoting something minute; and is therefore applicable to the smallest possible portion of time; but, in a literal acceptation, the addition of a cubit to the stature, would be a great and extraordinary accession of height. See Wakefield.
Joseph Benson
Verses 25-27. Therefore I say, Take no thought, &c. — Our Lord here proceeds to caution his disciples against worldly cares, these being as inconsistent with the true service of God as worldly desires. But the expression used by our translators, Take no thought, is too strong, and not warranted by the original, mh merimnate, which properly signifies, Be not anxious, or, anxiously careful, as is evident from Luke 10:41; 12:11; 21:34; Philippians 4:6; and almost every other place, where merimnaw occurs. For we are not to suppose that our Lord here commands us absolutely to take no thought for our life, food, and raiment; because, in other parts of Scripture, diligence in business is inculcated, and men are commanded to labour with their hands, that they may provide for the supply of their own wants, and also those of others, Romans 12:11; Ephesians 4:28; and that, instead of being useless loads on the earth, they may, at all times, have it in their power to discharge the several duties of life with decency, Titus 3:14. What Christ therefore here forbids is, not that thought, foresight, and care which prudent men use in providing sustenance and needful support for themselves, and those dependant upon them; but it is such an anxious care, as arises from want of faith in the being, perfections, and providence of God, and in the declarations and promises of his word, and therefore such an anxious solicitude as engrosses the thoughts and desires of the soul, so as either utterly to exclude or greatly damp and hinder spiritual affections, pursuits, and labours; or which prevents our receiving or our retaining and increasing in the love of God, and the true religion connected therewith. Is not the life more than the meat, needful to support it? And the body than the raiment, necessary to clothe it? and will not he, who has given the greater blessings, give the less also? Behold the fowls of the air — Learn a lesson from the birds that now fly round you. For they sow not, neither do they reap, &c. — Without foreseeing their own wants, or making provision for them, they are preserved and nourished by the unwearied benignity of the divine providence. Are ye not much better than they? — Are ye not beings of a nobler order, and destined for a higher end than they, and therefore more the objects of the divine care? Moreover, which of you, by taking thought — Gr. merimnwn, by being anxiously careful, can add one cubit unto his stature? Can add one moment to the length of your lives; that is, which of you could profit yourselves at all by anxious thoughts and cares, if you should indulge them? It is evident, as several learned writers have observed, that the word hlikia, here rendered stature, ought to have been translated age, because the caution is against anxious care about the preservation of life, and about food, the means of prolonging it; not to mention that Jesus is speaking here to full-grown men, who probably had no solicitude about their stature. Besides, the measure of a cubit agrees much better to a man’s age than to his stature, the smallest addition to which would have been better expressed by a hair’s breadth, or the like, than by a cubit, which is more than the fourth part of the whole height of most men. This interpretation of the word is confirmed by Luke in the parallel passage, Luke 12:25, 26, where he calls the adding of a cubit, that which is least — That is the thing in which the interposition of the divine providence least appears, as it really is, if understood of the addition of a single moment to the length of one’s life.
Daniel Whedon
27. Add one cubit to his stature — To provide food and to eat food is man’s duty; to regulate the digestive process, the growth, the size, comes within the prerogative of God. We can do our part, and God takes care of the rest.
The word cubit (Latin, cubitus) signifies primarily the human arm, from the elbow to the end of the longest finger. This part of the human frame (like the foot) became, very anciently, a measure of external objects. The ancient Egyptian cubit was six handbreadths, or two spans, a span being the measure from the end of the thumb to the end of the little finger of the extended hand. These are somewhat variable measures, but the cubit was about eighteen inches.
Some have rendered the word stature here by the word life, and would improve the meaning by making our Lord ask whether we can add a cubit to life — a very odd phrase indeed. Dr. Stier, in his learned work, The Words of Jesus, supposes himself to have settled the question in favour of this meaning by showing that in verses 26, 27 our Lord illustrates the life alone, and in verses 28-30 the body alone. This is true; but it proves just the reverse of Dr. Stier’s conclusions. The body, as the subject of clothing only, is spoken of in 28-30. In 27 the life is, indeed, the subject, but the life as developing the growth and stature attained. The Greek word for stature does not properly signify life, except as measured by the growth. It is derived from a word signifying how great, and the reference to size and growth is never lost from the word. Cubit is a very uncommon measurement of time, though the ordinary one of stature. The obvious meaning is, man may provide food, but God regulates the growth. Upon the phraseology of this verse Mr. Roberts remarks: “This form of speech is sometimes used to humble those of high pretensions. Thus a man of low caste who has become rich, and who assumes authority over his better born though poor
neighbours, will be asked: ‘What, has your money made you a cubit higher?’ that is, in the scale of being. Is a man ambitious of rising in society? a person who wishes to annoy him will put his finger to his elbow, and showing him that part to the tip of the middle finger, ask: ‘Friend, will you ever rise thus much [a cubit] after all your cares?’ ‘Yes, yes; the low caste thinks himself a cubit taller, because he has got the favour of the king.’”
Richard Watson
Verse 27. Which of you by taking thought, &c. — As though he had said, Let the regular feeding of the inferior creatures, who are without care themselves, reprove your over-carefulness, the total inefficacy of which, independent of the gracious interposition of God, may be confirmed to you by this, — that no man by taking thought, by becoming ever so anxious, can add one cubit to his stature, so limited is the power of man. Hlikia may either be taken in the sense of STATURE or AGE. The latter, to many, seems preferable, as best agreeing with the argument. In the sense of life, the connection, they think, is much more apparent. Out Lord warns his hearers, against being solicitous concerning their LIFE, how it was to be sustained; and urges that by taking thought they could not prolong it. To add a cubit to life, it is true, is a singular phrase; but they think it only parallel to those passages in the Old Testament where the life of man is frequently compared to measures of length, as “a hand-breadth, or span.” Farther, they argue that this interpretation of hlikia is confirmed by St. Luke; for in the parallel passage he adds, “If ye then be not able to do that thing WHICH IS LEAST, why take ye thought for the rest?” And they argue that making a small addition, to the length of human life may well be said to be one of the least things; whereas, applied to a man’s stature, the addition of a cubit is a VERY GREAT matter. This view, though supported by very great names, is far from being satisfactory; for the argument from these words of St. Luke appears strongly to bear the contrary way. The adding of “a cubit,” not merely “a hand-breadth” or “a span,” and therefore not an inconsiderable space, to human life, is not one of “THE LEAST” things; great, and even eternal consequences might depend upon adding even the shortest space to the duration of man’s state of trial; but though a whole cubit were added to his stature, it would be a thing of inconsiderable value, or of no value at all, and may therefore be justly called “that which is least.” I take the expression to be proverbial, and that the argument against anxiety is thus founded upon man’s imbecility: if, by the most careful solicitude, he cannot add a cubit, or any other measure to his stature, God himself giving to every man his bodily form as it pleases him; if he cannot accomplish that which in its import is of as little consequence as whether a man be a cubit higher or lower, much less can he by taking thought so control the arrangements of Providence, vast and intricate as they are, as to command the supply of his wants, and the gratification of his wishes. To which may be added that hlikia occurs several times in the New Testament, in the sense of stature; and is so used by Aristotle, Plutarch, Lucian, and other Greek writers.
And why take ye thought for raiment? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they toil not, neither do they spin:
Adam Clarke
Verse 28. And why take ye thought for raiment?] Or, why are ye anxiously careful about raiment? The fourth reason against such inquietudes is the example of inanimate creatures: The herbs and flowers of the field have their being, nourishment, exquisite flavours, and beautiful hues from God himself. They are not only without anxious care, but also without care or thought of every kind. Your being, its excellence and usefulness, do not depend on your anxious concern: they spring as truly from the beneficence and continual superintendence of God, as the flowers of the field do; and were you brought into such a situation, as to be as utterly incapable of contributing to your own preservation and support as the lilies of the field are to theirs, your heavenly Father could augment your substance, and preserve your being, when for his glory and your own advantage.
Consider] Diligently consider this, katamaqete, lay it earnestly to heart, and let your confidence be unshaken in the God of infinite bounty and love.
Joseph Benson
Verses 28-30. And why take ye thought — Why are you anxious about raiment? Consider the lilies of the field — Observe not only the animal, but, what is yet much lower, the vegetable part of the creation, and mark how the flowers of the meadows grow; they toil not — To prepare the materials of their covering; nor do they spin — Or weave them into garments. “The expression ou kopia, here rendered, they toil not, denotes rural labour, 2 Timothy 2:6; and therefore is beautifully used in a discourse of clothing, the materials of which are produced by agriculture.” — Macknight. Even Solomon in all his glory — In his royal magnificence, and when sitting on his throne of ivory and gold, 1 Kings 10:18; was not arrayed like one of these — Namely, in garments of so pure a white, and of such curious workmanship, as one of these lilies presents to your view. The eastern princes were often clothed in white robes, (and they were generally accounted a magnificent apparel; see Esther 8:15, Daniel 7:9;) and therefore Calmet and Doddridge properly refer this dress of Solomon to the whiteness of the lilies, rather than to tulips of various colours. or a purple kind of lily, supposed by Ray (On the Creation, page 107,) to be here intended by krina, the word we render lilies. Wherefore if God so clothe the grass of the field, &c. — If an inanimate thing, so trifling in its nature, and uncertain in its duration, is thus beautifully adorned, will not God take care to clothe you, who are more valuable, as ye are men endowed with reason, but especially as ye are my servants and friends? The grass of the field, is a general expression, including both herbs and flowers. Dr. Campbell renders the original expression, ton corton, the herbage, and observes, that it is evident from the lily being included under the term, that more is meant by it than is signified with us by the word grass; and he quotes Grotius as remarking that the Hebrews ranked the whole vegetable system under two classes, x[, gnets, and bV[, gnesheb, the former including all sorts of shrubs, as well as trees, and the latter every kind of plant, which has not, like trees and shrubs, a perennial stalk. Which to-day is — Namely, in the field; and to-morrow is cast into the oven — The word klibanon, here rendered the oven, is interpreted by some a still, for distilling herbs; but “there is no reason,” says Macknight, “to alter the translation, since it appears from Matthew 13:10, that they used some kind of vegetable substances for fuel, particularly tares, which, if they were annuals, might be sufficiently dry for immediate use by the time they were cut down, as the herb of the field is here said to be; or to-morrow, in the text may mean, not the day immediately after the herbs are cut down, but any time soon after, the expression being proverbial, and easily admitting of this signification.” Dr. Campbell is of the same mind, observing that he had not seen a vestige of evidence in any ancient author, that the art of distillation was then known, or any authority, sacred or profane, for translating the word klibanov, a still. He thinks the scarcity of fuel in those parts, both formerly and at present, fully accounts for their having recourse to withered herbs for heating their ovens. It accounts also, he supposes, for the frequent recourse of the sacred penmen to those similitudes, whereby things found unfit for any nobler purpose, are represented as reserved for the fire. Add to this, Shaw (Trav. page 25,) and Harmer (chap. 4. obs. 6,) inform us, that myrtle, rosemary, and other plants, are made use of in Barbary to heat their ovens. Our Lord, to check every kind of distrust of the divine providence, and to encourage confidence therein, adds, O ye of little faith — Or, O ye distrustful, as Campbell renders the word oligopistoi, observing, that “it is quite in the genius of the Greek language to express, by such compound words, what in other languages is expressed by a more simple term.” It is hardly necessary to observe here, that “it does not follow from our Lord’s application of the expression, O ye of little faith, that it is an exercise of faith to sit with our arms folded, expecting support from the divine providence, without any action of our own; but after having done what prudence directs for providing the necessaries of life, we ought to trust in God, believing that he will make our labours effectual by his blessing.” It is remarked here by Dr. Doddridge, that the word amfiennusin, rendered clothe the grass of the field, properly implies the putting on a complete dress, that surrounds the body on all sides; and beautifully expresses that external membrane, which (like the skin in a human body) at once adorns the tender fabric of the vegetable, and guards it from the injuries of the weather. Every microscope in which a flower is viewed, gives a lively comment on this text.
Daniel Whedon
28. Lilies — The Amaryllis lutea has been supposed to be the flower here specified. which is described as affording “one of the most brilliant and gorgeous objects in nature.” But Dr. Royle (Kitto’s Cyc.) decides it to be the Lilium Chalcedonicum, a flower marked for its showy splendour. Observe, the birds illustrate the precept in regard to food, the lilies in regard to raiment.
Richard Watson
Verse 28. And why take ye thought for raiment? Consider the lilies of the field, &c. — This noble flower, which with us is found only in gardens, grows in the fields of Palestine, and especially in the valleys. The white lily, however, is not meant. This is not known in Palestine; but the country, in autumn, is covered with the amaryllis lutea, or autumnal narcissus. On this passage that distinguished botanist, Sir J. E. Smith, observes, “It is natural to presume that the Divine Teacher, according to his usual custom, called the attention of his hearers to some object at hand; and as the fields of the Levant are overrun with the amaryllis lutea, whose golden lilaceous flowers afford one of the most brilliant and gorgeous objects in nature, the expression of ‘Solomon in all his glory not being arrayed like one of these,’ is peculiarly appropriate.”
How they grow. — Palairet places a full stop after agrou, and reads what follows interrogatively. Regard the lilies of the field. How do they grow? That is, how do they grow up into grace and beauty? They toil not, to cultivate the earth which nourishes them; neither do they spin, to array themselves with their splendid vestments; but they are arrayed in their beauty by the hand of God.
Solomon in all his glory, &c. — In his royal robes, richly embroidered and adorned. So inferior is every work of art to the beauty, delicacy, and splendour, which are exhibited by the various flowers of the field!
And yet I say unto you, That even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these.
John Wesley
V. 29. Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these-Not in garments of so pure a white. The eastern monarchs were often clothed in white robes.
Adam Clarke
Verse 29. Solomon in all his glory] Some suppose that as the robes of state worn by the eastern kings were usually white, as were those of the nobles among the Jews, that therefore the lily was chosen for the comparison.
Joseph Benson
Verses 28-30. And why take ye thought — Why are you anxious about raiment? Consider the lilies of the field — Observe not only the animal, but, what is yet much lower, the vegetable part of the creation, and mark how the flowers of the meadows grow; they toil not — To prepare the materials of their covering; nor do they spin — Or weave them into garments. “The expression ou kopia, here rendered, they toil not, denotes rural labour, 2 Timothy 2:6; and therefore is beautifully used in a discourse of clothing, the materials of which are produced by agriculture.” — Macknight. Even Solomon in all his glory — In his royal magnificence, and when sitting on his throne of ivory and gold, 1 Kings 10:18; was not arrayed like one of these — Namely, in garments of so pure a white, and of such curious workmanship, as one of these lilies presents to your view. The eastern princes were often clothed in white robes, (and they were generally accounted a magnificent apparel; see Esther 8:15, Daniel 7:9;) and therefore Calmet and Doddridge properly refer this dress of Solomon to the whiteness of the lilies, rather than to tulips of various colours. or a purple kind of lily, supposed by Ray (On the Creation, page 107,) to be here intended by krina, the word we render lilies. Wherefore if God so clothe the grass of the field, &c. — If an inanimate thing, so trifling in its nature, and uncertain in its duration, is thus beautifully adorned, will not God take care to clothe you, who are more valuable, as ye are men endowed with reason, but especially as ye are my servants and friends? The grass of the field, is a general expression, including both herbs and flowers. Dr. Campbell renders the original expression, ton corton, the herbage, and observes, that it is evident from the lily being included under the term, that more is meant by it than is signified with us by the word grass; and he quotes Grotius as remarking that the Hebrews ranked the whole vegetable system under two classes, x[, gnets, and bV[, gnesheb, the former including all sorts of shrubs, as well as trees, and the latter every kind of plant, which has not, like trees and shrubs, a perennial stalk. Which to-day is — Namely, in the field; and to-morrow is cast into the oven — The word klibanon, here rendered the oven, is interpreted by some a still, for distilling herbs; but “there is no reason,” says Macknight, “to alter the translation, since it appears from Matthew 13:10, that they used some kind of vegetable substances for fuel, particularly tares, which, if they were annuals, might be sufficiently dry for immediate use by the time they were cut down, as the herb of the field is here said to be; or to-morrow, in the text may mean, not the day immediately after the herbs are cut down, but any time soon after, the expression being proverbial, and easily admitting of this signification.” Dr. Campbell is of the same mind, observing that he had not seen a vestige of evidence in any ancient author, that the art of distillation was then known, or any authority, sacred or profane, for translating the word klibanov, a still. He thinks the scarcity of fuel in those parts, both formerly and at present, fully accounts for their having recourse to withered herbs for heating their ovens. It accounts also, he supposes, for the frequent recourse of the sacred penmen to those similitudes, whereby things found unfit for any nobler purpose, are represented as reserved for the fire. Add to this, Shaw (Trav. page 25,) and Harmer (chap. 4. obs. 6,) inform us, that myrtle, rosemary, and other plants, are made use of in Barbary to heat their ovens. Our Lord, to check every kind of distrust of the divine providence, and to encourage confidence therein, adds, O ye of little faith — Or, O ye distrustful, as Campbell renders the word oligopistoi, observing, that “it is quite in the genius of the Greek language to express, by such compound words, what in other languages is expressed by a more simple term.” It is hardly necessary to observe here, that “it does not follow from our Lord’s application of the expression, O ye of little faith, that it is an exercise of faith to sit with our arms folded, expecting support from the divine providence, without any action of our own; but after having done what prudence directs for providing the necessaries of life, we ought to trust in God, believing that he will make our labours effectual by his blessing.” It is remarked here by Dr. Doddridge, that the word amfiennusin, rendered clothe the grass of the field, properly implies the putting on a complete dress, that surrounds the body on all sides; and beautifully expresses that external membrane, which (like the skin in a human body) at once adorns the tender fabric of the vegetable, and guards it from the injuries of the weather. Every microscope in which a flower is viewed, gives a lively comment on this text.
Wherefore, if God so clothe the grass of the field, which to day is, and to morrow is cast into the oven, shall he not much more clothe you, O ye of little faith?
John Wesley
V. 30. The grass of the field-is a general expression, including both herbs and flowers.
Into the still-This is the natural sense of the passage. For it can hardly be supposed that grass or flowers should be thrown into the oven the day after they were cut down. Neither is it the custom in the hottest countries, where they dry fastest, to heat ovens with them.
If God so clothe-The word properly implies, the putting on a complete dress, that surrounds the body on all sides; and beautifully expresses that external membrane, which (like the skin in a human body) at once adorns the tender fabric of the vegetable, and guards it from the injuries of the weather. Every microscope in which a flower is viewed gives a lively comment on this text.
Adam Clarke
Verse 30. If God so clothe the grass of the field] Christ confounds both the luxury of the rich in their superfluities, and the distrust of the poor as to the necessaries of life. Let man, who is made for God and eternity, learn from a flower of the field how low the care of Providence stoops. All our inquietudes and distrusts proceed from lack of faith: that supplies all wants. The poor are not really such, but because they are destitute of faith. To-morrow is cast into the oven] The inhabitants of the east, to this day, make use of dry straw, withered herbs, and stubble, to heat their ovens. Some have translated the original word klibanon, a still, and intimate that our Lord alludes to the distillation of herbs for medicinal purposes; but this is certainly contrary to the scope of our Lord’s argument, which runs thus: If God covers with so much glory things of no farther value than to serve the meanest uses, will he not take care of his servants, who are so precious in his sight, and designed for such important services in the world? See Harmer’s Observations.
Joseph Benson
Verses 28-30. And why take ye thought — Why are you anxious about raiment? Consider the lilies of the field — Observe not only the animal, but, what is yet much lower, the vegetable part of the creation, and mark how the flowers of the meadows grow; they toil not — To prepare the materials of their covering; nor do they spin — Or weave them into garments. “The expression ou kopia, here rendered, they toil not, denotes rural labour, 2 Timothy 2:6; and therefore is beautifully used in a discourse of clothing, the materials of which are produced by agriculture.” — Macknight. Even Solomon in all his glory — In his royal magnificence, and when sitting on his throne of ivory and gold, 1 Kings 10:18; was not arrayed like one of these — Namely, in garments of so pure a white, and of such curious workmanship, as one of these lilies presents to your view. The eastern princes were often clothed in white robes, (and they were generally accounted a magnificent apparel; see Esther 8:15, Daniel 7:9;) and therefore Calmet and Doddridge properly refer this dress of Solomon to the whiteness of the lilies, rather than to tulips of various colours. or a purple kind of lily, supposed by Ray (On the Creation, page 107,) to be here intended by krina, the word we render lilies. Wherefore if God so clothe the grass of the field, &c. — If an inanimate thing, so trifling in its nature, and uncertain in its duration, is thus beautifully adorned, will not God take care to clothe you, who are more valuable, as ye are men endowed with reason, but especially as ye are my servants and friends? The grass of the field, is a general expression, including both herbs and flowers. Dr. Campbell renders the original expression, ton corton, the herbage, and observes, that it is evident from the lily being included under the term, that more is meant by it than is signified with us by the word grass; and he quotes Grotius as remarking that the Hebrews ranked the whole vegetable system under two classes, x[, gnets, and bV[, gnesheb, the former including all sorts of shrubs, as well as trees, and the latter every kind of plant, which has not, like trees and shrubs, a perennial stalk. Which to-day is — Namely, in the field; and to-morrow is cast into the oven — The word klibanon, here rendered the oven, is interpreted by some a still, for distilling herbs; but “there is no reason,” says Macknight, “to alter the translation, since it appears from Matthew 13:10, that they used some kind of vegetable substances for fuel, particularly tares, which, if they were annuals, might be sufficiently dry for immediate use by the time they were cut down, as the herb of the field is here said to be; or to-morrow, in the text may mean, not the day immediately after the herbs are cut down, but any time soon after, the expression being proverbial, and easily admitting of this signification.” Dr. Campbell is of the same mind, observing that he had not seen a vestige of evidence in any ancient author, that the art of distillation was then known, or any authority, sacred or profane, for translating the word klibanov, a still. He thinks the scarcity of fuel in those parts, both formerly and at present, fully accounts for their having recourse to withered herbs for heating their ovens. It accounts also, he supposes, for the frequent recourse of the sacred penmen to those similitudes, whereby things found unfit for any nobler purpose, are represented as reserved for the fire. Add to this, Shaw (Trav. page 25,) and Harmer (chap. 4. obs. 6,) inform us, that myrtle, rosemary, and other plants, are made use of in Barbary to heat their ovens. Our Lord, to check every kind of distrust of the divine providence, and to encourage confidence therein, adds, O ye of little faith — Or, O ye distrustful, as Campbell renders the word oligopistoi, observing, that “it is quite in the genius of the Greek language to express, by such compound words, what in other languages is expressed by a more simple term.” It is hardly necessary to observe here, that “it does not follow from our Lord’s application of the expression, O ye of little faith, that it is an exercise of faith to sit with our arms folded, expecting support from the divine providence, without any action of our own; but after having done what prudence directs for providing the necessaries of life, we ought to trust in God, believing that he will make our labours effectual by his blessing.” It is remarked here by Dr. Doddridge, that the word amfiennusin, rendered clothe the grass of the field, properly implies the putting on a complete dress, that surrounds the body on all sides; and beautifully expresses that external membrane, which (like the skin in a human body) at once adorns the tender fabric of the vegetable, and guards it from the injuries of the weather. Every microscope in which a flower is viewed, gives a lively comment on this text.
Daniel Whedon
30. Cast into the oven — As a fuel, after it has become withered and dry. In the word grass, here, the lilies mentioned in a previous verse are included. These, and all other grown vegetables, such as the withered stalks of herbs and flowers, the tendrils of vines, the small branches of myrtle and rosemary, and other plants, are, in the East, where fire-wood is scarce, the fuel for the ovens or fire. See following illustration.
Richard Watson
Verse 30. The grass of the field. — Cortov, by us rendered “grass,” includes every species of plant which has not a perennial stalk like trees and shrubs.
Into the oven. — The scarcity of fuel in most parts of Palestine obliged the inhabitants to use every kind of combustible matter to heat the ovens which were attached to every family, and used daily for the baking of their bread. The withered stalks of every species of herbage, and the tendrils of vines, were collected for this purpose, and in a climate so hot might be cut down one day and be sufficiently dried by the sun to be used for fuel the next. The argument here is the same as before; but the illustration is beautifully varied. If God so clothe the plants of the field, invest them with a dress, of so much richness and beauty, although they may only exist to-day, and to-morrow be used as fuel, shall he not much more clothe you, O ye of little faith?
Therefore take no thought, saying, What shall we eat? or, What shall we drink? or, Wherewithal shall we be clothed?
John Wesley
V. 31. Therefore take not thought-How kind are these precepts! The substance of which is only this, Do thyself no harm! Let us not be so ungrateful to him, nor so injurious to ourselves, as to harass and oppress our minds with that burden of anxiety, which he has so graciously taken off. Every verse speaks at once to the understanding, and to the heart. We will not therefore indulge these unnecessary, these useless, these mischievous cares. We will not borrow the anxieties and distresses of the morrow, to aggravate those of the present day. Rather we will cheerfully repose ourselves on that heavenly Father, who knows we have need of these things; who has given us the life, which is more than meat, and the body, which is more than raiment. And thus instructed in the philosophy of our heavenly Master, we will learn a lesson of faith and cheer. fulness from every bird of the air, and every flower of the field.
Adam Clarke
Verse 31. What shall we eat? or, What shall we drink? &c.] These three inquiries engross the whole attention of those who are living without God in the world. The belly and back of a worldling are his compound god; and these he worships in the lust of the flesh, in the lust of the eye, and in the pride of life.
Joseph Benson
Verses 31, 32. Therefore take no thought — Be no more distracted and torn in pieces, as it were, with anxious and unbelieving thoughts, Saying, What shall we eat, &c. — How shall we be provided for during the remainder of our lives? For after all these things do the Gentiles seek — Who are strangers to the promises of God’s covenant, and to the hopes of his glory. “It was the general character of the heathen, that they prayed to their gods, and laboured themselves, for no blessings but the temporal ones here mentioned, as is plain from the tenth Sat. of Juvenal; and that because they were in a great measure ignorant of God’s goodness, had erred fundamentally in their notions of religion, and had no certain hope of a future state.” See Ephesians 2:12. For your heavenly Father knoweth that ye have need of these things — Your heavenly Father is far better acquainted with all your wants than you yourselves are, and does not disregard them. There is a noble antithesis in this passage. Christ sets God’s knowledge of our wants in opposition to the anxiety of the heathen about having theirs supplied, to intimate that the one is much more effectual for that purpose than the other.
(For after all these things do the Gentiles seek:) for your heavenly Father knoweth that ye have need of all these things.
Adam Clarke
Verse 32. For after all these things do the Gentiles seek] The fifth reason against solicitude about the future is-that to concern ourselves about these wants with anxiety, as if there was no such thing as a providence in the world; with great affection towards earthly enjoyments, as if we expected no other; and without praying to God or consulting his will, as if we could do any thing without him: this is to imitate the worst kind of heathens, who live without hope, and without God in the world. Seek] epizhtei from epi, intensive, and zhtew, I seek, to seek intensely, earnestly, again and again: the true characteristic of the worldly man; his soul is never satisfied-give! give! is the ceaseless language of his earth-born heart.
Your heavenly Father knoweth, &c.] The sixth reason against this anxiety about the future is-because God, our heavenly Father, is infinite in wisdom, and knows all our wants. It is the property of a wise and tender father to provide necessaries, and not superfluities, for his children. Not to expect the former is an offence to his goodness; to expect the latter is injurious to his wisdom.
Joseph Benson
Verses 31, 32. Therefore take no thought — Be no more distracted and torn in pieces, as it were, with anxious and unbelieving thoughts, Saying, What shall we eat, &c. — How shall we be provided for during the remainder of our lives? For after all these things do the Gentiles seek — Who are strangers to the promises of God’s covenant, and to the hopes of his glory. “It was the general character of the heathen, that they prayed to their gods, and laboured themselves, for no blessings but the temporal ones here mentioned, as is plain from the tenth Sat. of Juvenal; and that because they were in a great measure ignorant of God’s goodness, had erred fundamentally in their notions of religion, and had no certain hope of a future state.” See Ephesians 2:12. For your heavenly Father knoweth that ye have need of these things — Your heavenly Father is far better acquainted with all your wants than you yourselves are, and does not disregard them. There is a noble antithesis in this passage. Christ sets God’s knowledge of our wants in opposition to the anxiety of the heathen about having theirs supplied, to intimate that the one is much more effectual for that purpose than the other.
Daniel Whedon
32. After all these things — All worldly goods and earthly treasures, (18-21,) which are included under the dominion of the world-god, Mammon. And so, be not ye, therefore, like unto them. Their god is Mammon, yours is your heavenly Father. The Gentiles seek — Hence this whole third part of our Lord’s discourse is properly a rebuke of Gentilism, or godless Secularism, either as existing among the heathen, or infecting the Jews.
Richard Watson
Verse 32. After these things do the Gentiles seek. — Heathens who have no knowledge of the true God and providence, seek, epizhtei, these things SOLELY and ANXIOUSLY, for epi is here intensive. Beware, therefore, as though our Lord had said, of the Gentile spirit: such earthly mindedness as theirs becomes not the followers of a religion which discloses all spiritual blessings, and the lofty hopes of eternity itself, to the view of faith; and those cares which distract heathens are most unworthy of men to whom God is revealed as a “Father,” and who have his own warrant to trust with entire confidence in his unbounded goodness. It was a severe reproof to the worldliness of the Jews thus to parallel them with the very Gentiles they despised as having no knowledge of God; and the reproach is more poignant in the case of those Christians who, with their still superior light, and in possession of the perfected dispensation of mercy, suffer themselves to doubt the love of God, so gloriously attested by the gift of his Son, and sink into a vortex of earthly anxieties. When we are absorbed in the inquiries, What shall we eat, and what shall we drink, and wherewithal shall we be clothed? we divest ourselves of the Christian, and put on the Gentile character.
Your heavenly Father knoweth, &c. — See note on Matthew 6:8.
But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.
John Wesley
V. 33. Seek the kingdom of God and his righteousness-Singly aim at this, that God, reigning in your heart, may fill it with the righteousness above described. And indeed whosoever seeks this first, will soon come to seek this only.
Adam Clarke
Verse 33. But seek ye first the kingdom of God] See Clarke on “Matthew 3:7”.
His righteousness] That holiness of heart and purity of life which God requires of those who profess to be subjects of that spiritual kingdom mentioned above. See Clarke on “Matthew 5:20”.
The seventh reason against these worldly cares and fears is-because the business of our salvation ought to engross us entirely: hither all our desires, cares, and inquiries ought to tend. Grace is the way to glory-holiness the way to happiness. If men be not righteous, there is no heaven to be had: if they be, they shall have heaven and earth too; for godliness has the promise of both lives. 1 Timothy 6:3.
All these things shall be added unto you.] The very blunt note of old Mr. Trapp, on this passage, is worthy of serious attention. All things shall be added. “They shall be cast in as an overplus, or as small advantages to the main bargain; as paper and pack-thread are given where we buy spice and fruit, or an inch of measure to an ell of cloth.” This was a very common saying among the Jews: “Seek that, to which other things are necessarily connected.” “A king said to his particular friend, ‘Ask what thou wilt, and I will give it unto thee.’ He thought within himself, ‘If I ask to be made a general I shall readily obtain it. I will ask something to which all these things shall be added:’ he therefore said, ‘Give me thy daughter to wife.’ This he did knowing that all the dignities of the kingdom should be added unto this gift.” See in Schoettgen.
To this verse, probably, belong the following words, quoted often by Clement, Origen, and Eusebius, as the words of Christ: aiteite ta megala, kai ta mikra umin prosteqhsetai\ kai aiteite ta
epourania, kai ta epigeia prosteqhsetai umin. “Ask great things, and little things shall be added unto you; ask heavenly things, and earthly things shall be added unto you.”
Joseph Benson
Verse 33. But — You my disciples have more important business to employ your minds about, and have higher hopes to encourage you. Therefore seek ye first — That is, in the first place, and with the greatest earnestness and concern, as being the principal things, the kingdom of God — As described Romans 14:17, namely, that God, reigning in your heart, may fill it with the holiness above described, and the happiness consequent thereon; and, in order thereto, his righteousness — Not your own righteousness, which is of the law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness of God by faith. Compare Romans 10:3; Philippians 3:9. For it seems most natural to interpret the expression of that way of becoming righteous which the gospel proposes, and by which alone we can be put in possession of the kingdom of God on earth, or in heaven. And all these things shall be added unto you — For if you seek, as now directed, the kingdom of God, first and principally, all things pertaining to this life shall, in the course of the divine providence, be bestowed on you as far as they can contribute to your real welfare, and more you would not desire.
Joseph Sutcliffe
Ver. 33. Seek ye first the kingdom of God, as in Matthew 3:2. God must be supreme in the heart; religion must not be a secondary passion. Here is the remedy for avarice, and the love of the world. To fallen man, the regaining of his paradise in this promised kingdom, must be the first and grand concern of his whole heart and life.
Daniel Whedon
33. Seek — The word is here emphatic, opposed to the seek of verse 32. After these things the Gentiles seek, first and supremely; just as you should seek, first and supremely, the kingdom of God. No one can read the history of heathen nations, especially the great nations of antiquity, in the right spirit, without perceiving their sad condition arising from their loss of the proper knowledge of the Fatherhood of God. Losing all thought of his care, they cared supremely for themselves. They had nobody else to take care of them. Sordid, unscrupulous, and cruel selfishness was the result. No substitute for God was found in idolatry; for their idols, being the personification of their own passions, produced truly nothing but a self-worship, and so aggravated the evil. Against this whole system of Gentilism our Lord here raises the standard. Sons of men, you have a Father in heaven; relax this intense self-care; trust yourselves to him; know him as holy, and seek his righteousness; and so accepting his dominion, doubt not that all earthly goods shall be subordinately added unto you.
First the kingdom… added — We have here a summary of the whole requirement — God supreme and earth subordinate; his kingdom first, and all proper earthly good as an appendix. He who does this will be religious first, industrious and prudent next, and will place faith in his heart, instead of care, finally.
Kingdom of God — That is, the dominion or supremacy of God. With your trust in God, obey the laws of God. He is holy; be ye, therefore, holy. And, as I am his messenger, speaking in his name, come ye out under my guidance from the kingdom of Gentilism into the kingdom of God. All these things — All the things of Mammon that you need. Even in all true worldly good, God will be better than Mammon.
Shall be added unto you — So that, under all these prohibitions of anxious distrust, the blessed Jesus presupposes that there shall exist in our hearts a rightful, trusting care, and a provident thought for the true and temperate enjoyment of earthly good which shall be added, through our proper performance of duty, by our heavenly Father unto us. The interpretation which we have here given arises from the text, and completely repudiates and refutes the skeptical charge that our Lord teaches either a high impracticable morality, a monastic unworldliness, or a filthy, mendicant, idle life, like that of the friars of popery.
Richard Watson
Verse 33. But seek ye first the kingdom of God and his righteousness. — The kingdom of God is the same as the kingdom of heaven, that kingdom which Christ establishes in the hearts of men by his Spirit; and his righteousness is the forgiveness of sin, and the sanctification of the heart and life, in which true righteousness, relative and personal, consists. This is here called the righteousness of God, that which he bestows upon and works in them that truly believe the Gospel, in opposition to “the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees,” which stood only in forms. To seek this first, that is, first IN ORDER, to give it the foremost place in our desires and pursuits, and first IN DEGREE, to prefer it to all other things, is the condition on which these promises of the SPECIAL care of our heavenly Father is suspended; for though there is a general care in God for man, as his offspring, and the subjects of his redeeming mercy, yet that particular and more tender and watchful care here spoken of is restrained to those who receive his kingdom, and seek his righteousness. To them all these things shall be added, meat, drink, clothing, and whatever is necessary, according to their rank in life; and often so as to raise them above that meaner state in which the grace of God finds them. The promises of God never fail when the conditions on which they are made to depend are perseveringly performed. Seasons of suffering, arising out of persecution “for righteousness sake, are from their nature exempt cases.
Take therefore no thought for the morrow: for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself. Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof.
John Wesley
V. 34. The morrow shall take thought for itself-That is, be careful for the morrow when it comes.
The evil thereof-Speaking after the manner of men. But all trouble is, upon the whole, a real good. It is good physic which God dispenses daily to his children, according to the need and the strength of each. Our Lord now proceeds to warn us against the chief hinderances of holiness. And how wisely does he begin with judging? wherein all young converts are so apt to spend that zeal which is given them for better purposes.
Adam Clarke
Verse 34. Take therefore no thought] That is, Be not therefore anxiously careful.
The eighth and last reason, against this preposterous conduct, is-that carking care is not only useless in itself, but renders us miserable beforehand. The future falls under the cognizance of God alone: we encroach, therefore, upon his rights, when we would fain foresee all that may happen to us, and secure ourselves from it by our cares. How much good is omitted, how many evils caused, how many duties neglected, how many innocent persons deserted, how many good works destroyed, how many truths suppressed, and how many acts of injustice authorized by those timorous forecasts of what may happen; and those faithless apprehensions concerning the future! Let us do now what God requires of us, and trust the consequences to him. The future time which God would have us foresee and provide for is that of judgment and eternity: and it is about this alone that we are careless!
Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof] arketon th hmera h kakia authv, Sufficient for each day is its own calamity. Each day has its peculiar trials: we should meet them with confidence in God. As we should live but a day at a time, so we should take care to suffer no more evils in one day than are necessarily attached to it. He who neglects the present for the future is acting opposite to the order of God, his own interest, and to every dictate of sound wisdom. Let us live for eternity, and we shall secure all that is valuable in time.
There are many valuable reflections in the Abbé Quesnel’s work, on this chapter; and from it several of the preceding have been derived. ST. MATTHEW
Joseph Benson
Verse 34. Take therefore no thought for the morrow — That is, for futurity, according to the Hebrew idiom, as the word is used, Genesis 30:33. Since the extent and efficacy of the divine providence is so great, and since you are the objects of its peculiar care, you need not vex yourselves about futurity. For the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself — That is, be careful for the morrow when it comes. Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof — Speaking after the manner of men. Every time has abundant necessary troubles of its own; so that it is foolish to increase present distresses by anticipating those that are to come, especially as by that anticipation it is not in your power to prevent any future evil. All trouble, however, is upon the whole a real good. It is good physic which God dispenses daily to his children, according to the need and strength of each. Here we may reasonably reflect, with the pious Dr. Doddridge, How kind are these precepts! The substance of which is only this, Do thyself no harm! Let us not be so ungrateful to him, nor so injurious to ourselves, as to harass and oppress our minds with that burden of anxiety, which he has so graciously taken off. Every verse speaks at once to the understanding, and to the heart. We will not therefore indulge these unnecessary, these useless, these mischievous cares. We will not borrow the anxieties and distresses of the morrow, to aggravate those of the present day. Rather we will cheerfully repose ourselves on that heavenly Father, who knows we have need of these things; who has given us the life, which is more than meat, and the body, which is more than raiment. And thus instructed in the philosophy of our heavenly Master, we will learn a lesson of faith and cheerfulness from every bird of the air, and every flower of the field.
Daniel Whedon
34. Morrow… take thought — The morrow is here finely personified. Do you take care for the morrow? Do duty for to-day and the morrow will be God’s messenger, when it comes, to take care of you. Day… evil thereof — Do not bring to-morrow’s trials into to-day; for to-day has its own sufficient concern, as to-morrow has its.
No man is so safe as the child of God. No man is bound to be so cheerful. If he rise into the true position of the man of faith, no one can be so fearless, so brave, so generous, so patient, so manly. Buoyancy is with him a duty, and despondency is a sin. Let him toil, for that is duty; but let no care, that is, double-minded distrust, cloud his brow, for that is usurping the prerogative of God. Let him earnestly labour, lavishly do good, serenely suffer, and great are his treasures above.
Richard Watson
Verse 34. For the morrow. — A Hebraism for THE FUTURE.
For the morrow shall, take thought, &c. — “The morrow” is here, by a fine prosopopœia, considered as a PERSON sufficiently thoughtful and careful for his own affairs, and needing no obtrusive offer, of aid from another. Let every day bear its own cares, and discharge its own duties. Sufficient for the day, each day, is the evil, the trouble and vexation, thereof. Who after reading this part of our Lord’s sermon can doubt whether the Scripture teaches the doctrine of a PARTICULAR providence? That which the philosophy of the world so often stumbles at, God’s attention to minute and individual things and persons, is here most fully declared. He provides for the fowls of the heaven, that is, for every one of them; he paints every flower of the field; he regards each individual of his human family in particular; marks who among them “seeks first the kingdom of God and his righteousness,” and deals with HIM accordingly. The government of God over individuals, as such, cannot be more strongly marked.
John Wesley
V. 1. In the foregoing chapter our Lord particularly described the nature of inward holiness. In this he describes that purity of intention without which none of our outward actions are holy. This chapter contains four parts, 1. The right intention and manner of giving alms, Matthew 6:1-4. 2. The right intention, manner, form, and prerequisites of prayer, Matthew 6:5-15. 3. The right intention, and manner of fasting, Matthew 6:16-18. 4. The necessity of a pure intention in all things, unmixed either with the desire of riches, or worldly care, and fear of want, Matthew 6:19-34.
This verse is a general caution against vain glory, in any of our good works: All these are here summed up together, in the comprehensive word righteousness. This general caution our Lord applies in the sequel to the three principal branches of it, relating to our neighbour, Matthew 6:2-4: to God, Matthew 6:5, 6: and to ourselves, Matthew 6:16-18.
To be seen-Barely the being seen, while we are doing any of these things, is a circumstance purely indifferent. But the doing them with this view, to be seen and admired, this is what our Lord condemns.
Adam Clarke
Verse 1. That ye do not your alms] dikaiosunhn umwn mh poiein, perform not your acts of righteousness-such as alms-giving, fasting, and prayer, mentioned immediately after. Instead of dikaiosunhn, righteousness, or acts of righteousness, the reading in the text, that which has been commonly received is elehmosunhn, alms. But the first reading has been inserted in several editions, and is supported by the Codd. Vatican. and Bezæ, some others, and several versions, all the Itala except one, and the Vulgate. The Latin fathers have justitiam, a word of the same meaning. Mr. Gregory has amply proved, hqdx tsidekeh, righteousness, was a common word for alms among the Jews. Works, 4to. p. 58, 1671. R. D. Kimchi says that hqdx tsidekeh, Isaiah 59:14, means alms-giving; and the phrase hqdx נתן natan tsidekah, is used by the Jews to signify the giving of alms. The following passages from Dr. Lightfoot show that it was thus commonly used among the Jewish writers:-
“It is questioned,” says he, “whether Matthew writ elehmosunhn, alms, or dikaiosunhn, righteousness. I answer:-
“I. That, our Saviour certainly said hqdx tsidekah, righteousness, (or, in Syriac atqdz zidkatha,) I make no doubt at all; but, that that word could not be otherwise understood by the common people than of alms, there is as little doubt to be made. For although the word hqdx tsidekah, according to the idiom of the Old Testament, signifies nothing else than righteousness; yet now, when our Saviour spoke these words, it signified nothing so much as alms.
“II. Christ used also the same word atqdz zidkatha, righteousness, in time three verses next following, and Matthew used the word elehmosunhn, alms; but by what right, I beseech you, should he call it dikaiosunhn, righteousness, in the first verse, and elehmosunhn, alms, in the following; when Christ every where used one and the same word? Matthew might not change in Greek, where our Saviour had not changed in Syriac: therefore we must say that the Lord Jesus used the word hqdx tsidekeh or atqdz zidkatha, in these four first verses; but that, speaking in the dialect of common people, he was understood by the common people to speak of alms. Now they called alms by the name of righteousness, for the fathers of the traditions taught, and the common people believed, that alms contributed very much to justification. Hear the Jewish chair in this matter-For one farthing given to a poor man in alms, a man is made partaker of the beatific vision: where it renders these words, Psalm 17:15, I shall behold thy face in righteousness, after this manner, I shall behold thy face, BECAUSE of ALMS. Bava. Bathra.
“This money goeth for alms, that my sons may live, and that I may obtain the world to come. Bab. Rosh. Hashshanah.
“A man’s table now expiates by alms, as heretofore the altar did by sacrifice. Beracoth.
“If you afford alms out of your purse, God will keep you from all damage and harm. Hieros. Peah.
“MONOBAZES the king bestowed his goods liberally upon the poor, and had these words spoken to him by his kinsmen and friends-‘Your ancestors increased both their own riches, and those that were left them by their fathers; but you waste both your own and those of your ancestors.’ To whom he answered-‘My fathers laid up their wealth on earth: I lay up mine in heaven. As it is written, Truth shall flourish out of the earth, but Righteousness shall look down from heaven. My fathers laid up treasures that bear no fruit; but I lay up such as bear fruit. As it is said, It shall be well with the just, for they shall eat the fruit of their own works. My fathers treasured up, when power was in their hands; but I where it is not. As it is said, Justice and judgment is the habitation of his throne. My fathers heaped up for others; I for myself. As it is said, And this shall be to thee for righteousness. They scraped together for this world. I for the world to come. As it is said, Righteousness shall deliver from death.’ Ibid. These things are also recited in the Babylonian Talmud.
“You see plainly in what sense he understands righteousness, namely, in the sense of alms: and that sense not so much framed in his own imagination, as in that of the whole nation, and which the royal catachumen had imbibed from the Pharisees his teachers. “Behold the justifying and saving virtue of alms, from the very work done according to the doctrine of the Pharisaical chair! And hence, the opinion of this efficacy of alms so far prevailed with the deceived people, that they pointed out alms by no other name (confined within one single word) than hqdx tsidekah, righteousness. Perhaps those words of our Saviour are spoken in derision of this doctrine. Yea, give those things which ye have in alms, and behold all things shall be clean to you, Luke 11:41. With good reason indeed exhorting them to give alms; but yet withal striking at the covetousness of the Pharisees, and confuting their vain opinion of being clean by the washing of their hands, from their own opinion of the efficacy of alms. As if he had said, “Ye assert that alms justifies and saves, and therefore ye call it by the name of righteousness; why therefore do ye affect cleanliness by the washing of hands; and not rather by the performance of charity?” LIGHTFOOT’S Works, vol. ii. p. 153.
Before men] Our Lord does not forbid public alms-giving, fasting, and prayer, but simply censures those vain and hypocritical persons who do these things publicly that they may be seen of men, and receive from them the reputation of saints, &c.
Joseph Benson
Verse 1. Take heed that ye do not your alms, &c. — As some copies and very ancient versions read dikaiosunhn, righteousness, instead of elehmosunhn, alms-deeds, and several of the fathers quote the passage so, “I choose, with Beza,” says Dr. Doddridge, “to follow that reading; because it prevents the appearance of a tautology in the following words, and makes this verse a general and very proper introduction to the remaining part of the section, in which the caution is branched out into the particular heads of alms, prayer, and fasting.” The doctor therefore reads, Take heed that ye practise not your righteousness, in which interpretation of the clause, and for similar reasons, he is followed by Dr. Campbell. The verse is a general caution against vain glory in any of our good works, all which are here summed up together in the comprehensive word, righteousness. This general caution our Lord applies, in the sequel, to the three principal branches of it, relating to our neighbour, verses 2-4; to God, verses 5, 6; and to ourselves, verses 16-18. Before men to be seen of them — Barely the being seen, while we are doing any of the things hereafter mentioned, is a circumstance purely indifferent; but the doing them with a view to be seen and admired, this is what our Lord condemns.
Joseph Sutcliffe
Verse 1. Take heed that ye do not your alms before men. It is a dispute whether alms or righteousness be the true reading. The old copies had righteousness. Chrysostom in one place has righteousness, in another alms. Daniel said to Nebuchadnezzar, Break off thy sins by righteousness, and thine iniquities by showing mercy to the poor. Daniel 2:27. Righteousness is the sense, alms the gloss. The jews often described alms by the former term; and alms is allowed to be one branch of the righteousness we owe to our neighbour. The pharisees largely taught that charities expiated sin; and there are many texts, which by being misunderstood, seem to say the same. Give alms of such things as ye possess, and behold all things are clean unto you. And again, charity covereth a multitude of sins. But pure theology knows of no propitiation for sin, except the blood of Christ; and it classes the preseding texts only with the promise, that the merciful shall obtain mercy. And fasting, alms, and prayer do most assuredly bring us into a temper to receive mercy solely through the blood of the covenant. Let us avoid all ostentation, and study secresy in our kindness to the poor, aiming solely at pleasing God, who is the orphan’s father and the widow’s friend. Ostentation will feed the latent pride of our heart, and it wounds the receiver to be needlessly exposed. All men should hallow their riches by oblations to the poor, and by encouragements to ministers who labour in the Lord.
Daniel Whedon
1. Take heed — Mark well this point of danger. Do alms — The Greek word for alms, according to the best manuscripts, is a different word from alms in verse 2. The word literally signifies righteousness. According to the Jewish usage, the word included the three righteous external acts — alms, prayer, and fasting; alms to thy neighbour, prayer to God, fasting to thyself. The precept in this verse, including all these three, requires that they should be done with an eye to God alone, and not to man. To be seen of men — But are we not commanded to let our light shine? We are so; but the object and end, even then, are not to be seen of men; but the being seen of men is a mere means of inducing others to do likewise, and securing glory for God. The one terminates motive in man and his applause; the other terminates in God and his cause. And this answers the common cavils against the operations of public societies who publish their benefactions. No reward of your Father — You serve the eyes of men, and from men must be all your reward. Act for God’s eye, and God will reward you. Human approbation is a good; a desire for it has its proper place. But it is not its right to fill the place of God’s approbation.
Richard Watson
1 Christ continueth his sermon in the mount, speaking of alms, 5 prayer, 14 forgiving our brethren, 16 fasting, 19 where our treasure is to be laid up, 24 of serving God, and mammon: 25 exhorteth not to be careful for worldly things: 33 but to seek God’s kingdom.
CHAPTER 6. Verse 1. Take heed that ye do not your alms before men. — Many MSS. instead of elehmosunh, alms, read dikaiosunh, righteousness; and those who admit this to be the true reading, take the sense to be, a general caution against ostentation in the performance of all acts which constitute the “righteousness” of men; almsgiving, being immediately after specified. But eminent critics have successfully defended the received text. And were the reading more doubtful, and dikaiosunh established, it would not necessarily alter the sense, as the Hellenists frequently employ dikaiosunh, righteousness, for almsgiving. The Hebrew hqdx, has also occasionally the same signification. — Almsgiving is here recognized as a duty, and so is made by Christ one of the laws of his religion. It is to be distinguished from the “giving” enjoined in verse 42 of the preceding chapter, as that might, or might not, be performed for the benefit of the dependent poor; and it comprehends every kind of munificence. Alms, properly, are gratuities to the afflicted and destitute of the lowest degree; and as such persons will always be found in every place and state of society, so the duty is universal. It follows, also, from the words of our Lord, that almsgiving, when done without ostentation, from a principle of obligation, as matter of duty and kindness to the object, shall not fail to be rewarded. — Often is this realized in the present life, and though such acts of mercy are not meritorious, as some have fatally dreamed, they will not be forgotten in the apportionment of the final rewards of eternity. Our Lord here again calls off the attention of his hearers from those merely external acts which with the Jews were considered to constitute acceptable piety, to the study of their hearts, and the cultivation of those inward principles from which alone a true obedience can flow. Alms-giving is wholly vitiated, as a religious act, when done to be seen of men, qeaqhnai to be gazed at and applauded as on a theatre.