Worthy.Bible » STRONG » Matthew » Chapter 23 » Verse 34

Matthew 23:34 King James Version with Strong's Concordance (STRONG)

34 Wherefore, G1223 G5124 behold, G2400 I G1473 send G649 unto G4314 you G5209 prophets, G4396 and G2532 wise men, G4680 and G2532 scribes: G1122 and G2532 some of G1537 them G846 ye shall kill G615 and G2532 crucify; G4717 and G2532 some of G1537 them G846 shall ye scourge G3146 in G1722 your G5216 synagogues, G4864 and G2532 persecute G1377 them from G575 city G4172 to G1519 city: G4172

Cross Reference

Matthew 10:16-17 STRONG

Behold, G2400 I G1473 send G649 you G5209 forth G649 as G5613 sheep G4263 in G1722 the midst G3319 of wolves: G3074 be ye G1096 therefore G3767 wise G5429 as G5613 serpents, G3789 and G2532 harmless G185 as G5613 doves. G4058 But G1161 beware G4337 of G575 men: G444 for G1063 they will deliver G3860 you G5209 up G3860 to G1519 the councils, G4892 and G2532 they will scourge G3146 you G5209 in G1722 their G846 synagogues; G4864

Ephesians 4:8-12 STRONG

Wherefore G1352 he saith, G3004 When he ascended G305 up G1519 on high, G5311 he led captivity G162 captive, G161 and G2532 gave G1325 gifts G1390 unto men. G444 (Now G1161 that he ascended, G305 what G5101 is it G2076 but G1508 that G3754 he G2597 also G2532 descended G2597 first G4412 into G1519 the lower G2737 parts G3313 of the earth? G1093 He G846 that descended G2597 is G2076 the same also G2532 that ascended up G305 far above G5231 all G3956 heavens, G3772 that G2443 he might fill G4137 all things.) G3956 And G2532 he G846 gave G1325 some, G3303 apostles; G652 and G1161 some, prophets; G4396 and G1161 some, evangelists; G2099 and G1161 some, pastors G4166 and G2532 teachers; G1320 For G4314 the perfecting G2677 of the saints, G40 for G1519 the work G2041 of the ministry, G1248 for G1519 the edifying G3619 of the body G4983 of Christ: G5547

2 Corinthians 11:24-25 STRONG

Of G5259 the Jews G2453 five times G3999 received I G2983 forty G5062 stripes save G3844 one. G3391 Thrice G5151 was I beaten with rods, G4463 once G530 was I stoned, G3034 thrice G5151 I suffered shipwreck, G3489 a night and a day G3574 I have been G4160 in G1722 the deep; G1037

1 Corinthians 12:3-11 STRONG

Wherefore G1352 I give G1107 you G5213 to understand, G1107 that G3754 no man G3762 speaking G2980 by G1722 the Spirit G4151 of God G2316 calleth G3004 Jesus G2424 accursed: G331 and G2532 that no man G3762 can G1410 say G2036 that Jesus G2424 is the Lord, G2962 but G1508 by G1722 the Holy G40 Ghost. G4151 Now G1161 there are G1526 diversities G1243 of gifts, G5486 but G1161 the same G846 Spirit. G4151 And G2532 there are G1526 differences G1243 of administrations, G1248 but G2532 the same G846 Lord. G2962 And G2532 there are G1526 diversities G1243 of operations, G1755 but G1161 it is G2076 the same G846 God G2316 which G3588 worketh G1754 all G3956 in G1722 all. G3956 But G1161 the manifestation G5321 of the Spirit G4151 is given G1325 to every man G1538 to G4314 profit withal. G4851 For G1063 to one G3739 G3303 is given G1325 by G1223 the Spirit G4151 the word G3056 of wisdom; G4678 G1161 to another G243 the word G3056 of knowledge G1108 by G2596 the same G846 Spirit; G4151 G1161 To another G2087 faith G4102 by G1722 the same G846 Spirit; G4151 G1161 to another G243 the gifts G5486 of healing G2386 by G1722 the same G846 Spirit; G4151 G1161 To another G243 the working G1755 of miracles; G1411 G1161 to another G243 prophecy; G4394 G1161 to another G243 discerning G1253 of spirits; G4151 G1161 to another G2087 divers kinds G1085 of tongues; G1100 G1161 to another G243 the interpretation G2058 of tongues: G1100 But G1161 all G3956 these G5023 worketh G1754 that one G1520 and G2532 the selfsame G846 Spirit, G4151 dividing G1244 to every man G1538 severally G2398 as G2531 he will. G1014

Acts 22:19-20 STRONG

And I G2504 said, G2036 Lord, G2962 they G846 know G1987 that G3754 I G1473 imprisoned G2252 G5439 and G2532 beat G1194 in every G2596 synagogue G4864 them that believed G4100 on G1909 thee: G4571 And G2532 when G3753 the blood G129 of thy G4675 martyr G3144 Stephen G4736 was shed, G1632 I G846 also G2532 was G2252 standing by, G2186 and G2532 consenting G4909 unto his G846 death, G336 and G2532 kept G5442 the raiment G2440 of them that slew G337 him. G846

2 Chronicles 36:15-16 STRONG

And the LORD H3068 God H430 of their fathers H1 sent H7971 to them by H3027 his messengers, H4397 rising up betimes, H7925 and sending; H7971 because he had compassion H2550 on his people, H5971 and on his dwelling place: H4583 But they mocked H3931 the messengers H4397 of God, H430 and despised H959 his words, H1697 and misused H8591 his prophets, H5030 until the wrath H2534 of the LORD H3068 arose H5927 against his people, H5971 till there was no remedy. H4832

Acts 9:1-2 STRONG

And G1161 Saul, G4569 yet G2089 breathing out G1709 threatenings G547 and G2532 slaughter G5408 against G1519 the disciples G3101 of the Lord, G2962 went G4334 unto the high priest, G749 And desired G154 of G3844 him G846 letters G1992 to G1519 Damascus G1154 to G4314 the synagogues, G4864 that G3704 if G1437 he found G2147 any G5100 of this way, G3598 whether G5037 they were G5607 men G435 or G2532 women, G1135 he might bring them G71 bound G1210 unto G1519 Jerusalem. G2419

Acts 7:58-59 STRONG

And G2532 cast G1544 him out of G1854 the city, G4172 and stoned G3036 him: and G2532 the witnesses G3144 laid down G659 their G846 clothes G2440 at G3844 a young man's G3494 feet, G4228 whose name was G2564 Saul. G4569 And G2532 they stoned G3036 Stephen, G4736 calling upon G1941 God, and G2532 saying, G3004 Lord G2962 Jesus, G2424 receive G1209 my G3450 spirit. G4151

Acts 7:51-52 STRONG

Ye stiffnecked G4644 and G2532 uncircumcised G564 in heart G2588 and G2532 ears, G3775 ye G5210 do G496 always G104 resist G496 the Holy G40 Ghost: G4151 as G5613 your G5216 fathers G3962 did, so G2532 do ye. G5210 Which G5101 of the prophets G4396 have G1377 not G3756 your G5216 fathers G3962 persecuted? G1377 and G2532 they have slain G615 them which G3588 shewed before G4293 of G4012 the coming G1660 of the Just One; G1342 of whom G3739 ye G5210 have been G1096 now G3568 the betrayers G4273 and G2532 murderers: G5406

Luke 11:49-51 STRONG

Therefore G1223 G5124 also G2532 said G2036 the wisdom G4678 of God, G2316 I will send G649 G1519 them G846 prophets G4396 and G2532 apostles, G652 and G2532 some of G1537 them G846 they shall slay G615 and G2532 persecute: G1559 That G2443 the blood G129 of all G3956 the prophets, G4396 which G3588 was shed G1632 from G575 the foundation G2602 of the world, G2889 may be required G1567 of G575 this G5026 generation; G1074 From G575 the blood G129 of Abel G6 unto G2193 the blood G129 of Zacharias, G2197 which G3588 perished G622 between G3342 the altar G2379 and G2532 the temple: G3624 verily G3483 I say G3004 unto you, G5213 It shall be required G1567 of G575 this G5026 generation. G1074

Matthew 28:19-20 STRONG

Go ye G4198 therefore, G3767 and teach G3100 all G3956 nations, G1484 baptizing G907 them G846 in G1519 the name G3686 of the Father, G3962 and G2532 of the Son, G5207 and G2532 of the Holy G40 Ghost: G4151 Teaching G1321 them G846 to observe G5083 all things G3956 whatsoever G3745 I have commanded G1781 you: G5213 and, G2532 lo, G2400 I G1473 am G1510 with G3326 you G5216 alway, G3956 G2250 even unto G2193 the end G4930 of the world. G165 Amen. G281

Matthew 23:34-36 STRONG

Wherefore, G1223 G5124 behold, G2400 I G1473 send G649 unto G4314 you G5209 prophets, G4396 and G2532 wise men, G4680 and G2532 scribes: G1122 and G2532 some of G1537 them G846 ye shall kill G615 and G2532 crucify; G4717 and G2532 some of G1537 them G846 shall ye scourge G3146 in G1722 your G5216 synagogues, G4864 and G2532 persecute G1377 them from G575 city G4172 to G1519 city: G4172 That G3704 upon G1909 you G5209 may come G2064 all G3956 the righteous G1342 blood G129 shed G1632 upon G1909 the earth, G1093 from G575 the blood G129 of righteous G1342 Abel G6 unto G2193 the blood G129 of Zacharias G2197 son G5207 of Barachias, G914 whom G3739 ye slew G5407 between G3342 the temple G3485 and G2532 the altar. G2379 Verily G281 I say G3004 unto you, G5213 All G3956 these things G5023 shall come G2240 upon G1909 this G5026 generation. G1074

Commentary on Matthew 23 Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible


CHAPTER 23

Mt 23:1-39. Denunciation of the Scribes and PhariseesLamentation over Jerusalem, and Farewell to the Temple. ( = Mr 12:38-40; Lu 20:45-47).

For this long and terrible discourse we are indebted, with the exception of a few verses in Mark and Luke, to Matthew alone. But as it is only an extended repetition of denunciations uttered not long before at the table of a Pharisee, and recorded by Luke (Lu 11:37-54), we may take both together in the exposition.

Denunciation of the Scribes and Pharisees (Mt 23:1-36).

The first twelve verses were addressed more immediately to the disciples, the rest to the scribes and Pharisees.

1. Then spake Jesus to the multitude—to the multitudes, "and to his disciples."

2. Saying, The scribes and the Pharisees sit—The Jewish teachers stood to read, but sat to expound the Scriptures, as will be seen by comparing Lu 4:16 with Lu 4:20.

in Moses' seat—that is, as interpreters of the law given by Moses.

3. All therefore—that is, all which, as sitting in that seat and teaching out of that law.

they bid you observe, that observe and do—The word "therefore" is thus, it will be seen, of great importance, as limiting those injunctions which He would have them obey to what they fetched from the law itself. In requiring implicit obedience to such injunctions, He would have them to recognize the authority with which they taught over and above the obligations of the law itself—an important principle truly; but He who denounced the traditions of such teachers (Mt 15:3) cannot have meant here to throw His shield over these. It is remarked by Webster and Wilkinson that the warning to beware of the scribes is given by Mark and Luke (Mr 12:38; Lu 20:46) without any qualification: the charge to respect and obey them being reported by Matthew alone, indicating for whom this Gospel was especially written, and the writer's desire to conciliate the Jews.

4. For they bind heavy burdens and grievous to be borne, and lay them on men's shoulders; but they themselves will not move them—"touch them not" (Lu 11:46).

with one of their fingers—referring not so much to the irksomeness of the legal rites, though they were irksome enough (Ac 15:10), as to the heartless rigor with which they were enforced, and by men of shameless inconsistency.

5. But all their works they do for to be seen of men—Whatever good they do, or zeal they show, has but one motive—human applause.

they make broad their phylacteries—strips of parchment with Scripture-texts on them, worn on the forehead, arm, and side, in time of prayer.

and enlarge the borders of their garments—fringes of their upper garments (Nu 15:37-40).

6. And love the uppermost rooms at feasts—The word "room" is now obsolete in the sense here intended. It should be "the uppermost place," that is, the place of highest honor.

and the chief seats in the synagogues. See on Lu 14:7, 8.

7. And greetings in the markets, and to be called of men, Rabbi, Rabbi—It is the spirit rather than the letter of this that must be pressed; though the violation of the letter, springing from spiritual pride, has done incalculable evil in the Church of Christ. The reiteration of the word "Rabbi" shows how it tickled the ear and fed the spiritual pride of those ecclesiastics.

8. But be not ye called Rabbi; for one is your Master—your Guide, your Teacher.

9. And call no man your father upon the earth: for one is your Father, which is in heaven, &c.—To construe these injunctions into a condemnation of every title by which Church rulers may be distinguished from the flock which they rule, is virtually to condemn that rule itself; and accordingly the same persons do both—but against the whole strain of the New Testament and sound Christian judgment. But when we have guarded ourselves against these extremes, let us see to it that we retain the full spirit of this warning against that itch for ecclesiastical superiority which has been the bane and the scandal of Christ's ministers in every age. (On the use of the word "Christ" here, see on Mt 1:1).

11. But he that is greatest among you shall be your servant—This plainly means, "shall show that he is so by becoming your servant"; as in Mt 20:27, compared with Mr 10:44.

12. And whosoever shall exalt himself shall be abased—See on Lu 18:14. What follows was addressed more immediately to the scribes and Pharisees.

13. But woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye shut up the kingdom of heaven against men—Here they are charged with shutting heaven against men: in Lu 11:52 they are charged with what was worse, taking away the key—"the key of knowledge"—which means, not the key to open knowledge, but knowledge as the only key to open heaven. A right knowledge of God's revealed word is eternal life, as our Lord says (Joh 17:3; 5:39); but this they took away from the people, substituting for it their wretched traditions.

14. Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye devour widows' houses, &c.—Taking advantage of the helpless condition and confiding character of "widows," they contrived to obtain possession of their property, while by their "long prayers" they made them believe they were raised far above "filthy lucre." So much "the greater damnation" awaits them. What a lifelike description of the Romish clergy, the true successors of those scribes!

15. Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye compass sea and land to make one proselyte—from heathenism. We have evidence of this in Josephus.

and when he is made, ye make him twofold more the child of hell than yourselves—condemned, for the hypocrisy he would learn to practice, both by the religion he left and that he embraced.

16. Woe unto you, ye blind guides—Striking expression this of the ruinous effects of erroneous teaching. Our Lord, here and in some following verses, condemns the subtle distinctions they made as to the sanctity of oaths—distinctions invented only to promote their own avaricious purposes.

which say, Whosoever shall swear by the temple, it is nothing—He has incurred no debt.

but whosoever shall swear by the gold of the temple—meaning not the gold that adorned the temple itself, but the Corban, set apart for sacred uses (see on Mt 15:5).

he is a debtor!—that is, it is no longer his own, even though the necessities of the parent might require it. We know who the successors of these men are.

but whosoever sweareth by the gift that is upon it, he is guilty—It should have been rendered, "he is a debtor," as in Mt 23:16.

19. Ye fools, and blind! for whether is greater, the gift, or the altar that sanctifieth the gift?—(See Ex 29:37).

20-22. Whoso therefore shall swear by the altar, &c.—See on Mt 5:33-37.

23. Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye pay tithe of mint and anise—rather, "dill," as in Margin.

and cummin—In Luke (Lu 11:42) it is "and rue, and all manner of herbs." They grounded this practice on Le 27:30, which they interpreted rigidly. Our Lord purposely names the most trifling products of the earth as examples of what they punctiliously exacted the tenth of.

and have omitted the weightier matters of the law, judgment, mercy, and faith—In Luke (Lu 11:42) it is "judgment, mercy, and the love of God"—the expression being probably varied by our Lord Himself on the two different occasions. In both His reference is to Mic 6:6-8, where the prophet makes all acceptable religion to consist of three elements—"doing justly, loving mercy, and walking humbly with our God"; which third element presupposes and comprehends both the "faith" of Matthew and the "love" of Luke. See on Mr 12:29; Mr 12:32, 33. The same tendency to merge greater duties in less besets even the children of God; but it is the characteristic of hypocrites.

these ought ye to have done, and not to leave the other undone—There is no need for one set of duties to jostle out another; but it is to be carefully noted that of the greater duties our Lord says, "Ye ought to have done" them, while of the lesser He merely says, "Ye ought not to leave them undone."

24. Ye blind guides, which strain at a gnat—The proper rendering—as in the older English translations, and perhaps our own as it came from the translators' hands—evidently is, "strain out." It was the custom, says Trench, of the stricter Jews to strain their wine, vinegar, and other potables through linen or gauze, lest unawares they should drink down some little unclean insect therein and thus transgress (Le 11:20, 23, 41, 42)—just as the Buddhists do now in Ceylon and Hindustan—and to this custom of theirs our Lord here refers.

and swallow a camel—the largest animal the Jews knew, as the "gnat" was the smallest; both were by the law unclean.

25. within they are full of extortion—In Luke (Lu 11:39) the same word is rendered "ravening," that is, "rapacity."

26. Thou blind Pharisee, cleanse first that which is within the cup and platter, that the outside of them may be clean also—In Luke (Lu 11:40) it is, "Ye fools, did not He that made that which is without make that which is within also?"—"He to whom belongs the outer life, and of right demands its subjection to Himself, is the inner man less His?" A remarkable example this of our Lord's power of drawing the most striking illustrations of great truths from the most familiar objects and incidents in life. To these words, recorded by Luke, He adds the following, involving a principle of immense value: "But rather give alms of such things as ye have, and behold, all things are clean unto you" (Lu 11:41). As the greed of these hypocrites was one of the most prominent features of their character (Lu 16:14), our Lord bids them exemplify the opposite character, and then their outside, ruled by this, would be beautiful in the eye of God, and their meals would be eaten with clean hands, though much fouled with the business of this everyday world. (See Ec 9:7).

27. Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye are like whited sepulchres—or, whitewashed sepulchres. (Compare Ac 23:3). The process of whitewashing the sepulchres, as Lightfoot says, was performed on a certain day every year, not for ceremonial cleansing, but, as the following words seem rather to imply, to beautify them.

which indeed appear beautiful outward, but are within full of dead men's bones, and of all uncleanness—What a powerful way of conveying the charge, that with all their fair show their hearts were full of corruption! (Compare Ps 5:9; Ro 3:13). But our Lord, stripping off the figure, next holds up their iniquity in naked colors.

Wherefore ye be witnesses unto yourselves, that ye are the children of them which killed the prophets—that is, "ye be witnesses that ye have inherited, and voluntarily served yourselves heirs to, the truth-hating, prophet-killing, spirit of your fathers." Out of pretended respect and honor, they repaired and beautified the sepulchres of the prophets, and with whining hypocrisy said, "If we had been in their days, how differently should we have treated these prophets?" While all the time they were witnesses to themselves that they were the children of them that killed the prophets, convicting themselves daily of as exact a resemblance in spirit and character to the very classes over whose deeds they pretended to mourn, as child to parent. In Lu 11:44 our Lord gives another turn to this figure of a grave: "Ye are as graves which appear not, and the men that walk over them are not aware of them." As one might unconsciously walk over a grave concealed from view, and thus contract ceremonial defilement, so the plausible exterior of the Pharisees kept people from perceiving the pollution they contracted from coming in contact with such corrupt characters.

33. Ye serpents, ye generation of vipers, how can ye escape the damnation of hell?—In thus, at the end of His ministry, recalling the words of the Baptist at the outset of his, our Lord would seem to intimate that the only difference between their condemnation now and then was, that now they were ripe for their doom, which they were not then.

34. Wherefore, behold, I send unto you prophets, and wise men, and scribes—The I here is emphatic: "I am sending," that is, "am about to send." In Lu 11:49 the variation is remarkable: "Therefore also, said the wisdom of God, I will send them," &c. What precisely is meant by "the wisdom of God" here, is somewhat difficult to determine. To us it appears to be simply an announcement of a purpose of the Divine Wisdom, in the high style of ancient prophecy, to send a last set of messengers whom the people would reject, and rejecting, would fill up the cup of their iniquity. But, whereas in Luke it is "I, the Wisdom of God, will send them," in Matthew it is "I, Jesus, am sending them"; language only befitting the one sender of all the prophets, the Lord God of Israel now in the flesh. They are evidently evangelical messengers, but called by the familiar Jewish names of "prophets, wise men, and scribes," whose counterparts were the inspired and gifted servants of the Lord Jesus; for in Luke (Lu 11:49) it is "prophets and apostles."

unto the blood of Zacharias son of Barachias, whom ye slew between the temple and the altar—As there is no record of any fresh murder answering to this description, probably the allusion is not to any recent murder, but to 2Ch 24:20-22, as the last recorded and most suitable case for illustration. And as Zacharias' last words were, "The Lord require it," so they are here warned that of that generation it should be required.

36. Verily I say unto you, All these things shall come upon this generation—As it was only in the last generation of them that "the iniquity of the Amorites was full" (Ge 15:16), and then the abominations of ages were at once completely and awfully avenged, so the iniquity of Israel was allowed to accumulate from age to age till in that generation it came to the full, and the whole collected vengeance of heaven broke at once over its devoted head. In the first French Revolution the same awful principle was exemplified, and Christendom has not done with it yet.

Lamentation over Jerusalem, and Farewell to the Temple (Mt 23:37-39).

37. O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, thou that killest the prophets, and stonest them which are sent unto thee, &c.—How ineffably grand and melting is this apostrophe! It is the very heart of God pouring itself forth through human flesh and speech. It is this incarnation of the innermost life and love of Deity, pleading with men, bleeding for them, and ascending only to open His arms to them and win them back by the power of this story of matchless love, that has conquered the world, that will yet "draw all men unto Him," and beautify and ennoble Humanity itself! "Jerusalem" here does not mean the mere city or its inhabitants; nor is it to be viewed merely as the metropolis of the nation, but as the center of their religious life—"the city of their solemnities, whither the tribes went up, to give thanks unto the name of the Lord"; and at this moment it was full of them. It is the whole family of God, then, which is here apostrophized by a name dear to every Jew, recalling to him all that was distinctive and precious in his religion. The intense feeling that sought vent in this utterance comes out first in the redoubling of the opening word—"Jerusalem, Jerusalem!" but, next, in the picture of it which He draws—"that killest the prophets, and stonest them which are sent unto thee!"—not content with spurning God's messages of mercy, that canst not suffer even the messengers to live! When He adds, "How often would I have gathered thee!" He refers surely to something beyond the six or seven times that He visited and taught in Jerusalem while on earth. No doubt it points to "the prophets," whom they "killed," to "them that were sent unto her," whom they "stoned." But whom would He have gathered so often? "Thee," truth-hating, mercy-spurning, prophet-killing Jerusalem—how often would I have gathered thee! Compare with this that affecting clause in the great ministerial commission, "that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in His name among all nations, beginning at Jerusalem!" (Lu 24:47). What encouragement to the heartbroken at their own long-continued and obstinate rebellion! But we have not yet got at the whole heart of this outburst. I would have gathered thee, He says, "even as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings." Was ever imagery so homely invested with such grace and such sublimity as this, at our Lord's touch? And yet how exquisite the figure itself—of protection, rest, warmth, and all manner of conscious well-being in those poor, defenseless, dependent little creatures, as they creep under and feel themselves overshadowed by the capacious and kindly wing of the mother bird! If, wandering beyond hearing of her peculiar call, they are overtaken by a storm or attacked by an enemy, what can they do but in the one case droop and die, and in the other submit to be torn in pieces? But if they can reach in time their place of safety, under the mother's wing, in vain will any enemy try to drag them thence. For rising into strength, kindling into fury, and forgetting herself entirely in her young, she will let the last drop of her blood be shed out and perish in defense of her precious charge, rather than yield them to an enemy's talons. How significant all this of what Jesus is and does for men! Under His great Mediatorial wing would He have "gathered" Israel. For the figure, see De 32:10-12; Ru 2:12; Ps 17:8; 36:7; 61:4; 63:7; 91:4; Isa 31:5; Mal 4:2. The ancient rabbins had a beautiful expression for proselytes from the heathen—that they had "come under the wings of the Shekinah." For this last word, see on Mt 23:38. But what was the result of all this tender and mighty love? The answer is, "And ye would not." O mysterious word! mysterious the resistance of such patient Love—mysterious the liberty of self-undoing! The awful dignity of the will, as here expressed, might make the ears to tingle.

38. Behold, your house—the temple, beyond all doubt; but their house now, not the Lord's. See on Mt 22:7.

is left unto you desolate—deserted, that is, of its Divine Inhabitant. But who is that? Hear the next words:

39. For I say unto you—and these were His last words to the impenitent nation, see on Mr 13:1, opening remarks.

Ye shall not see me henceforth—What? Does Jesus mean that He was Himself the Lord of the temple, and that it became "deserted" when He finally left it? It is even so. Now is thy fate sealed, O Jerusalem, for the glory is departed from thee! That glory, once visible in the holy of holies, over the mercy seat, when on the day of atonement the blood of typical expiation was sprinkled on it and in front of it—called by the Jews the Shekinah, or the Dwelling, as being the visible pavilion of Jehovah—that glory, which Isaiah (Isa 6:1-13) saw in vision, the beloved disciple says was the glory of Christ (Joh 12:41). Though it was never visible in the second temple, Haggai foretold that "the glory of that latter house should be greater than of the former" (Hag 2:9) because "the Lord whom they sought was suddenly to come to His temple" (Mal 3:1), not in a mere bright cloud, but enshrined in living humanity! Yet brief as well as "sudden" was the manifestation to be: for the words He was now uttering were to be His very last within its precincts.

till ye shall say, Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord—that is, till those "Hosannas to the Son of David" with which the multitude had welcomed Him into the city—instead of "sore displeasing the chief priests and scribes" (Mt 21:15)—should break forth from the whole nation, as their glad acclaim to their once pierced, but now acknowledged, Messiah. That such a time will come is clear from Zec 12:10; Ro 11:26; 2Co 3:15, 16, &c. In what sense they shall then "see Him" may be gathered from Zec 2:10-13; Eze 37:23-28; 39:28, 29, &c.