Jamieson, Fausset & Brown

“Of course, it is not the eye simply of which our Lord speaks--as if execution were to be done upon the bodily organ--though there have been fanatical ascetics who have both advocated and practiced this, showing a very low apprehension of spiritual things--but …”

“And if thy right hand--the organ of action, to which the eye excites. offend thee, cut it off, and cast it from thee; for it is profitable, &c.--See on Mt 5:29.”

“Whosoever shall put away his wife, let him give her a writing of divorcement--a legal check upon reckless and tyrannical separation. The one legitimate ground of divorce allowed by the enactment just quoted was "some uncleanness"--in other words, conjugal infi…”

“But I say unto you, That whosoever shall put away his wife, saving for the cause of fornication, causeth her to commit adultery--that is, drives her into it in case she marries again. and whosoever shall marry her that is divorced--for anything short of conju…”

“Again, ye have heard that it hath been said by them of old time, Thou shalt not forswear thyself--These are not the precise words of Ex 20:7; but they express all that it was currently understood to condemn, namely, false swearing (Le 19:12, &c.).”

“It is the preparedness, after one indignity, not to invite but to submit meekly to another, without retaliation, which this strong language is meant to convey.”

“And if any man will sue thee at the law, and take away thy coat--the inner garment; in pledge for a debt (Ex 22:26, 27). let him have thy cloak also--the outer and more costly garment. This overcoat was not allowed to be retained over night as a pledge from …”

“But the thing here demanded is a readiness to submit to unreasonable demands of whatever kind, rather than raise quarrels, with all the evils resulting from them. What follows is a beautiful extension of this precept.”

“The meaning, then, is, "In loving those who love you, there is no evidence of superior principle; the worst of men will do this: even a publican will go that length."”

“Manifestly, our Lord here speaks, not of degrees of excellence, but of the kind of excellence which was to distinguish His disciples and characterize His kingdom. When therefore He adds, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect--He refers to that ful…”

“To "do" this righteousness, was an old and well-understood expression. Thus, "Blessed is he that doeth righteousness at all times" (Ps 106:3).”

“Hence our expression to "trumpet." as the hypocrites do--This word--of such frequent occurrence in Scripture, signifying primarily "one who acts a part"--denotes one who either pretends to be what he is not (as here), or dissembles what he really is (as in L…”

“Verily I say unto you, They have, &c.--The standing posture in prayer was the ancient practice, alike in the Jewish and in the early Christian Church.”

“It may be offered in any circumstances, however open, if not prompted by the spirit of ostentation, but dictated by the great ends of prayer itself. It is the retiring character of true prayer which is here taught. Supplementary Directions and Model Prayer (M…”

“With the Jews, says LIGHTFOOT, it was a maxim, that "Every one who multiplies prayer is heard." In the Church of Rome, not only is it carried to a shameless extent, but, as THOLUCK justly observes, the very prayer which our Lord gave as an antidote to vain rep…”

“Yet He will have His children pray to Him, and links all His promised supplies to their petitions for them; thus encouraging us to draw near and keep near to Him, to talk and walk with Him, to open our every case to Him, and assure ourselves that thus asking w…”

“Did it consist only of hints or directions for prayer, it could only be used as a directory; but seeing it is an actual prayer--designed, indeed, to show how much real prayer could be compressed into the fewest words, but still, as a prayer, only the more inco…”

“Thy kingdom come--The kingdom of God is that moral and spiritual kingdom which the God of grace is setting up in this fallen world, whose subjects consist of as many as have been brought into hearty subjection to His gracious scepter, and of which His Son Jesu…”

“But as this is quite unnatural, so it deprives the Christian of one of the sweetest of his privileges--to cast his bodily wants in this short prayer, by one simple petition, upon his heavenly Father.”

“But by embodying it in this brief model of acceptable prayer, and as the first of three petitions more or less bearing upon sin, our Lord teaches us, in the most emphatic manner conceivable, to regard this view of sin as the primary and fundamental one.”

“For what can we desire which this does not carry with it? For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever. Amen--If any reliance is to be placed on external evidence, this doxology, we think, can hardly be considered part of the original text.”

“But if ye forgive not, &c.--See on Mt 6:12. Having concluded His supplementary directions on the subject of prayer with this Divine Pattern, our Lord now returns to the subject of Unostentatiousness in our deeds of righteousness, in order to give one more ill…”

“And are the exhausting fasts of the Church of Rome, and of Romanizing Protestants, free from this taint? Verily I say unto you, They have their reward.”

“But thou, when thou fastest, anoint thine head, and wash thy face--as the Jews did, except when mourning (Da 10:3); so that the meaning is, "Appear as usual"--appear so as to attract no notice.”

“In Jas 5:2 there is an evident reference to our Lord's words here. and rust--any "eating into" or "consuming"; here, probably, "wear and tear." doth corrupt--cause to disappear. By this reference to moth and rust our Lord would teach how perishable are suc…”