Jamieson, Fausset & Brown

When Simon Peter saw this, he fell at Jesus’ knees. “Go away from me, Lord,” he said, “for I am a sinful man.”

“It was rather, "Woe is me, Lord! How shall I abide this blaze of glory? A sinner such as I am is not fit company for Thee." (Compare Isa 6:5.)”

and so were his partners James and John, the sons of Zebedee. “Do not be afraid,” Jesus said to Simon. “From now on you will catch men.”

“Never did they pain Him by manifesting too lofty conceptions of Him. from henceforth--marking a new stage of their connection with Christ. The last was simply, "I will make you fishers."”

One day Jesus was teaching, and the Pharisees and teachers of the law were sitting there.

“Pharisees and doctors . . . sitting by--the highest testimony yet borne to our Lord's growing influence, and the necessity increasingly felt by the ecclesiastics throughout the country of coming to some definite judgment regarding Him. power of the Lord . . . present--with Jesus.”

He also told them a parable: “No one tears a piece of cloth from a new garment and sews it on an old one.

“As in the one case supposed, "the rent is made worse," and in the other, "the new wine is spilled," so by a mongrel mixture of the ascetic ritualism of the old with the spiritual freedom of the new economy, both are disfigured and destroyed.”

Then Jesus declared, “The Son of Man is Lord of the Sabbath.”

“Lord also--rather "even" (as in Mt 12:8). of the sabbath--as naked a claim to all the authority of Him who gave the law at Mount Sinai as could possibly be made; that is, "I have said enough to vindicate the men ye carp at on…”

Looking up at His disciples, Jesus said: “Blessed are you who are poor, for yours is the kingdom of God.

“Here it is simply on the "poor" and the "hungry now." In this form of the discourse, then, our Lord seems to have had in view "the poor of this world, rich in faith, and heirs of the kingdom which God hath promised to them…”

A disciple is not above his teacher, but everyone who is fully trained will be like his teacher.

“The disciple, &c.--that is, "The disciple aims to come up to his master, and he thinks himself complete when he does so: if you then be blind leaders of the blind, the perfection of one's training under you will only land him the more certainly…”

But Jesus answered him, “Simon, I have something to tell you.” “Tell me, Teacher,” he said. “Two men were debtors to a certain moneylender.

“The two debtors are the woman and Simon; the criminality of the one was ten times that of the other (in the proportion of "five hundred" to "fifty"); but both being equally insolvent, both are with equal frankness forgiven; and Simon is made to own…”

You did not anoint My head with oil, but she has anointed My feet with perfume.

“The inference is plain--only one of the debtors was really forgiven, though in the first instance, to give room for the play of withheld feelings, the forgiveness of both is supposed in the parable.”

Then Jesus said to her, “Your sins are forgiven.”

“This wonderful scene teaches two very weighty truths: (1) Though there be degrees of guilt, insolvency, or inability to wipe out the dishonor done to God, is common to all sinners.”

as well as some women who had been healed of evil spirits and infirmities: Mary called Magdalene, from whom seven demons had gone out,

“"Oh, the depth of the riches" (Ro 11:33) --of this poverty of His! Mary Magdalene--that is, probably, of Magdala (on which see Mt 15:39; see on Mr 8:10). went--rather, "had gone." seven devils-- (Mr 16:9).”

When Jesus returned, the crowd welcomed Him, for they had all been waiting for Him.

“Perhaps they witnessed at a distance the sudden calming of the tempest. Here at least they are, watching for His return, and welcoming Him to the shore. The tide of His popularity was now fast rising.”

For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will save it.

“An entire sacrifice of the lower, or a willingness to make it, is indispensable to the preservation of the higher life; and he who cannot bring himself to surrender the one for the sake of the other shall eventually lose both.”

But I tell you truthfully, some who are standing here will not taste death before they see the kingdom of God.”

“The reference, beyond doubt, is to the firm establishment and victorious progress, in the lifetime of some then present, of that new Kingdom of Christ, which was destined to work the greatest of all changes on this earth, and be the grand pledge of His…”

About eight days after Jesus had said these things, He took with Him Peter, John, and James, and went up on a mountain to pray.

“Matthew and Mark say (Mt 17:1; Mr 9:2) "after six days," excluding these two days. As the "sayings" so definitely connected with the transfiguration scene are those announcing His death--at which Peter and all the Twelve were so startled and scandalized--so this scene was designed…”

They appeared in glory and spoke about His departure, which He was about to accomplish at Jerusalem.

“(1) That a dying Messiah is the great article of the true Jewish theology. For a long time the Church had fallen clean away from the faith of this article, and even from a preparedness to receive it.”

Meanwhile Peter and his companions were overcome by sleep, but when they awoke, they saw Jesus’ glory and the two men standing with Him.

“It was night, and the Lord seems to have spent the whole night on the mountain (Lu 9:37). saw his glory, &c.--The emphasis lies on "saw," qualifying them to become "eye-witnesses of His majesty" (2Pe 1:16).”

As Moses and Elijah were leaving, Peter said to Jesus, “Master, it is good for us to be here.

“34, 35. a cloud--not one of our watery clouds, but the Shekinah-cloud (see on Mt 23:39), the pavilion of the manifested presence of God with His people, what Peter calls "the excellent" of "magnificent glory" (2Pe 1:17).”

But the people there refused to welcome Him, because He was heading for Jerusalem.

“But if they were asked to prepare quarters for the Messiah, in the person of one whose "face was as though He would go to Jerusalem," their national prejudices would be raised at so marked a slight upon their claims.”

When the disciples James and John saw this, they asked, “Lord, do You want us to call down fire from heaven to consume them?”

“The sparks of unholy indignation would seize readily enough on this example of Elias, though our Lord's rebuke (as is plain from Lu 9:56) is directed to the principle involved rather than the animal heat which doubtless prompted the reference.”

And He and His disciples went on to another village.

“For the Son of man, &c.--a saying truly divine, of which all His miracles--for salvation, never destruction--were one continued illustration. went to another--illustrating His own precept (Mt 10:23).”

Still another said, “I will follow You, Lord; but first let me bid farewell to my family.”

“The case of Elisha (1Ki 19:19-21), though apparently similar to this, will be found quite different from the "looking back" of this case, the best illustration of which is that of those Hindu converts of our day who, when once persuaded to leave their spiritual…”

Then Jesus declared, “No one who puts his hand to the plow and then looks back is fit for the kingdom of God.”

“No man, &c.--As ploughing requires an eye intent on the furrow to be made, and is marred the instant one turns about, so will they come short of salvation who prosecute the work of God with a distracted attention, a divided heart.”

The seventy-two returned with joy and said, “Lord, even the demons submit to us in Your name.”

“The possession of such power, not being expressly in their commission, as in that to the Twelve (Lu 9:1), filled them with more astonishment and joy than all else.”

So He told them, “I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven.

“When therefore the Seventy say, "the devils [demons] are subject to us," and Jesus replies, "Mine eye was beholding Satan falling," it is plain that He meant to raise their minds not only from the particular to the general, but from a very temporary form…”