A. D. 28. will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will x Gal. 1. 10. hold to the one, and despise the other. *Ye cannot James 4.4. Serve God and mammon.

1 Tim. 6. 17.

1 John 2. 15.

y Ps. 55. 22.

Phil. 4. 6.

25 Therefore I say unto you, 'Take no thought for 1 Pet. 5.7. 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? 26 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?

2 Job 38. 41.

Ps. 147. 9.

27 Which of you by taking thought can add one cubit unto his stature?

28 And why take ye thought for raiment? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they toil not, neither do they spin:

25. "Therefore.” That is, because “ye cannot serve God and mam"mon."

"Take no thought." Literally, Be not over anxious.' It seems that to take thought,' at the time of the translation of our Bible, had a stronger meaning than it has now, and implied (as the word used by St. Matthew does) anxious care. We thus see clearly that over anxiety and carefulness about even necessary worldly things is a serving of mammon (See on St. Luke x. 41.). [This applies to the expression as repeated in verses 31 and 34.]

"Is not the life more than meat ?" This is one reason against over anxiety as to food or clothing. God has given us that most mysterious gift-life, and bestowed on us these frames so "fearfully and wonderfully 'made," and shall we not trust Him for the lesser gifts? May there not also be a reproof in these words to such (alas! no small number) as, by their devotion to good fare and fine dressing, would seem to believe that they lived only to eat and drink, and had bodies only to deck them with grand clothing?

26. "Your heavenly Father." Notice the force of the word "your." It is not their heavenly Father, but "your." This adds another thought to the comparison. If your Father takes such care of the birds and flowers, His lower creatures, will He not do much more for you, His own children?

28. "The lilies." We cannot tell what particular flower our Lord here speaks of. Several very beautiful flowers of the lily tribe grow wild in Palestine.

27. "Stature." Most probably this should be length of life,' and not stature." The original word may mean either; but to add a cubit (that is, eighteen inches) to one's height would be so great an addition that our Lord could hardly have used it as an example of a little thing (Observe in St. Luke xv. 26. it is described as "that thing

"which is least."). If, however, our life be regarded as a race or journey, the length of which is known to and appointed by God, it is a very natural thing for our Lord to say that we cannot prolong this our course by even one cubit; or, as we should say, lengthen our life by a span.

29 and yet I say unto you, That even Solomon in A. D. 28. all his glory was not arrayed like one of these.

30 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?

31 Therefore take no thought, saying, What shall we eat? or, What shall we drink? or, Wherewithal shall we be clothed?

32 (For after all these things do the Gentiles seek:) for your heavenly Father knoweth that ye have need of all these things.

33 But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and His b righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.

34 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.

See 1 Kings P. 37. 25.

3. 13.

Mark 10. 30. 1 Tim. 4. 8.

29. "Solomon in all his glory." We have another lesson here, Net only does God's care for the clothing of the flowers teach us that He will much more clothe us His own children; but also the exceeding beauty of that clothing reads us a lesson of the vanity of love of dress; for, care and strive as we may, we can never vie with God's handywork.

30. "The grass." That is, the whole herbage of the field, in which the wild flowers are included. Wood being scarce in Palestine, hay was, and is still, used for firing.

32. "The Gentiles." The word Gentile means foreigner, and was used by the Jews for all other nations. We must remember that the Gentiles in our Lord's time were also heathen. Thus His meaning is, that anxiety about worldly things is only befitting those foreign nations who know not God nor His love and providence.

33. "Seek ye first." This does not mean Seek first these heavenly 'things, and then you may seek afterwards those earthly things'; but, Make these heavenly things at all times your first and chief care, and then God will give you the other.'

"His righteousness." We must not interpret this "righteousness” in the narrower sense given to the word by St. Paul (as in Rom. iii.), who uses it in the sense of justification (See on v. 6.). Here it is to be taken in its simpler and more usual sense, as meaning holiness,-that holiness which is a special attribute of God, and which God imparts through His Spirit to His children.

34. "The morrow shall take thought" &c. After all there will be cares and troubles. We may cast them upon God; but we cannot wholly escape from them. Only let us take care they do not fill and vex and discompose our souls. And let us take care that we do not needlessly add to them by bringing to-morrow's upon those of to-day, Each day's burden is sufficient. And God gives strength to bear it. But there is no promise of strength to bear to-day's and to-morrow's

D

A. D. 28.

a Rom. 2. 1. & 14. 3, 4, 10, 13.

1 Cor. 4. 3,5.

CHAPTER VII.

1 Christ ending His sermon in the mount, reproveth rash judgment, 6 forbiddeth to cast holy things to dogs, 7 exhorteth to prayer, 13 to enter in at the strait gate, 15 to beware of false prophets, 21 not to be hearers, but doers of the word: 24 like houses builded on a rock, 26 and not on the sand.

UDGE not, that ye be not judged.

JUDGE

2 For with what judgment ye judge, ye shall be Jam.4.11.12. judged: band with what measure ye mete, it shall b Mark 4. 24. be measured to you again.

3 And why beholdest thou the mote that is in thy

burdens at once. The only way to make all these earthly burdens light is to throw into the other scale the weight of the heavenly treasures. He that ever seeks and cares for these first finds earthly troubles strangely lessened.

CHAPTER VII.

1-6. Charity and wisdom in dealing with others.

St. Luke vi. 37-42.

1. There seems a marked break in our Lord's discourse at the end of the 6th chapter. Still we doubt not that the Sermon on the Mount, as recorded by St. Matthew, was a single and continuous discourse, spoken at one time and place. Thus we naturally seek to trace a connection between its several parts and subjects. Nor need we seek far to find such connection. For, first of all, there is that general link which binds the whole together, and which has been pointed out above, namely, the exalting and spiritualizing of human life and actions (See on vi. 18.): and, secondly, there is that more special link which we find in the object laid down by our Lord at an early stage of His sermon, and which more or less runs through it to the end, namely, the showing how the Christian's righteousness must exceed the formal and hypocritical righteousness of the Scribes and Pharisees (See on v. 20.).

The Christian's righteousness must be true, humble, spiritual. To enforce this our Lord now turns to the way in which men should regard one another, and treat one another.

*

"Judge not." This means, Judge not harshly and uncharitably,' or simply, Condemn not.'

"That ye be not judged." That is, by God. It has been thought by some that the meaning is, 'that ye be not judged or condemned by God 'for that your harsh judgment of others.' As if it were only 'Do not bring sin and condemnation on yourselves by your uncharitable thoughts 'or words towards others.' Surely this limits and narrows the meaning far too much. It seems far more natural to understand the words as teaching us that those who deal hard measure to others must expect to be dealt hardly with themselves, while the merciful may hope to find mercy. [Compare the parable of the Unmerciful Servant, xviii. 28-35.]

3. "The mote" and "the beam." This short parable is closely linked with the foregoing verses, and is spoken to show one great reason for judging others charitably. The "mote" is a little speck or grain of

brother's eye, but considerest not the beam that is in A. D. 28. thine own eye?

4 Or how wilt thou say to thy brother, Let me pull out the mote out of thine eye; and, behold, a beam is in thine own eye?

5 Thou hypocrite, first cast out the beam out of thine own eye; and then shalt thou see clearly to cast out the mote out of thy brother's eye.

they

6 Give not that which is holy unto the dogs, neither cast ye your pearls before swine, lest trample them under their feet, and turn again rend you.

and

с

Prov. 9.7,8. Acts 13. 45,

& 23, 9.

46.

dust, the "beam" a large piece of wood; and the words seem to have been used by the Jews in a common saying or proverb, upon which our Lord founds His instruction, thus "bringing forth out of His treasure "things new and old" (xiii. 52.). The lesson is very clear. It teaches us the vanity of trying to reprove and correct little faults in others while we have great faults uncorrected in ourselves. This is the folly they fall into who "judge" others hardly. They forget to look at home first,' and to think how great and crying their own sins are. This alone would make them meek and charitable in judging others.

5. "Theu hypocrite." Hypocrisy is acting a part,-making ourselves different in the eyes of men to that which we really are (See on vi. 2.). But it is not always wilful and knowing deception. Most hypocrites deceive themselves as well as others. And no doubt this was greatly the case with the Pharisees. So too here. When a man with great faults begins to find fault with others, he very often has no knowledge of his own faults, and thinks himself well-fitted to set others right. But he is no less a hypocrite. For by taking upon himself to correct others he is setting up for a faultless person himself. And thus he is untrue, putting on a character for goodness to which he has no right, a deceiver of himself and others, and a hypocrite. When we would judge another, even the most wicked and depraved, there are two questions we should not fail to ask ourselves: 1. Can I tell that my sins, judged by my light and knowledge and education and circumstances and amount of temptation, are not greater in God's sight than his? 2. Can I tell that, had I been brought up as he has been, placed in his position, possessed of his natural character and 'disposition, taught no better than he, exposed to his temptations and 'bad influences, I should have been any better than he? These are very wholesome and very humbling thoughts, and may well save us from the hypocrisy our Lord condemns.

6. "Give not that which is holy unto the dogs." In the last verse our Lord showed that it might be a duty and privilege to pull the mote out of a brother's eye. Brotherly counsel and reproof are good if coming from one who may rightly offer them. The present verse goes still farther. It is as if our Lord had said, 'When you have purged your own heart from 'sin, then you may offer kindly counsel to others. But there must be a 'care, not only from whom, but also to whom, such counsel is given.' A good man may be unwise in his bestowal of godly advice and holy warning. There are some no better than dogs and swine, on whom the most

d

A. D. 28. 7¶ Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye d ch. 21. 22, shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you: 8 for every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be

Mark 11. 24.
Luke 18. 1.

John 14. 13.
& 15. 7.

& 16. 23, 24.
Jam. 1. 5, 6. opened.

1 John 3, 22.
& 5. 14, 15.

e Prov. 8. 17.

Jer. 29. 12, 13.

f Gen. 6. 5. & 8. 21.

e

9 Or what man is there of you, whom if his son ask bread, will he give him a stone?

10 Or if he ask a fish, will he give him a serpent? 11 If ye then, fbeing evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children, how much more shall your Father which is in heaven give good things to them that ask Him?

12 Therefore all things whatsoever ye would that precious words would be thrown away. It is only to bring contempt on holy things to speak sacred truths to such.

7-12. God's Fatherly love in answering prayer.

St. Luke xi. 9—13.

7. Here again there seems a break in the discourse. But perhaps the course of thought may be as follows. A humble hearer might feel, 'If 'holy things are not to be given to those unfit to receive them, what hope have I of receiving any good thing from God? I am no better than a 'dog in His sight, not worthy to gather up the crumbs under His table.' So our Lord at once pours comfort and hope on such an one.

"Ask, and it shall be given you." This is indeed a glorious and most blessed promise. Would that we all had more faith to believe it. It seems that the three words, "Ask," "seek," "knock," imply three degrees of prayer, increasing in eagerness and earnestness. There are two things which must not be forgotten in considering this promise. It is guarded by two conditions, one on God's side and one on ours. 1. On God's side, the promise is guarded by the following verses, which teach us that it is only that which is for our good that God will give in answer to our prayers. 2. On our side, the promise is guarded by the saying of St. James (iv. 3.), which shows that it is only made to true and right prayers, "Ye ask and receive not, because ye ask amiss."

11. “Being evil." That is, sharing in the sinfulness and ignorance of human nature. If men, full of human infirmity as they are, will give their children what is for their good, how much more the all-holy, allwise, all-loving, God? This comparison is made much more strongly in the short parables of the Friend at Midnight and the Unjust Judge (St. Luke xi. 5-8, and xviii. 1-8.), where the argument is,-If ungracious and unjust men will grant petitions because of much asking, how much more will the merciful and just God grant His people's prayers.

"Good things." Chiefly His Holy Spirit, and spiritual gifts. (See St. Luke xi. 13, and St. James i. 5.)

12. "Therefore." Because God is so good to you. Here is the great law of acting towards another, as in verse 1 we had the law of thinking and speaking of another. The rule (alas how rarely followed!) is, to place ourselves in the other's position, and to ask ourselves 'What should I, in that position like done to me?', and then to do that to the other.