Matthew Henry

While Jesus was in one of the towns, a man came along who was covered with leprosy.

“(3.) We must earnestly desire to be cleansed from the defilement, and cured of the disease, of sin, which renders us unfit for communion with God. (4.)”

Jesus reached out His hand and touched the man. “I am willing,” He said. “Be clean!” And immediately the leprosy left him.

“One word, one touch, from Christ, did the business: Immediately the leprosy departed from him. If Christ saith, "I will, be thou justified, be thou sanctified, " it is done; for he has power on earth to forgive sin, and power to give the Holy…”

“Do not tell anyone,” Jesus instructed him. “But go, show yourself to the priest and present the offering Moses prescribed for your cleansing, as a testimony to them.”

“(2.) We must be very thankful, and make a grateful acknowledgment of the divine grace: Go, and offer for thy cleansing.”

But the news about Jesus spread all the more, and great crowds came to hear Him and to be healed of their sicknesses.

“Note, Those who receive the word of Christ in faith will find a divine power going along with that word, to heal them; for Christ came with his comforts to heal the broken-hearted, ch. iv.”

But the news about Jesus spread all the more, and great crowds came to hear Him and to be healed of their sicknesses.

“The more he sought to conceal himself under a veil of humility, the more notice did people take of him; for honour is like a shadow, which flees from those that pursue it ( for a man to seek his own glory is not glory)…”

After this, Jesus went out and saw a tax collector named Levi sitting at the tax booth. “Follow Me,” He told him,

“In this Christ humbled himself, and appeared in the likeness of sinful flesh. By this he exposed himself, and got the invidious character of a friend of publicans and sinners.”

Then they said to Him, “John’s disciples and those of the Pharisees frequently fast and pray, but Yours keep on eating and drinking.”

“He insisted most upon that which is the soul of fasting, the mortification of sin, the crucifying of the flesh, and the living of a life of self-denial, which is as much better than fasting and corporal penances as mercy is better than sacrifice.”

But the time will come when the bridegroom will be taken from them; then they will fast.”

“When Christ shall leave them with their hearts full of sorrow, their hands full of work, and the world full of enmity and rage against them, then shall they fast, shall not be so well fed as they are now.”

And no one pours new wine into old wineskins. If he does, the new wine will burst the skins, the wine will spill, and the wineskins will be ruined.

“So Christ would train up his followers gradually to the discipline of his family; for no man, having drank old wine, will of a sudden, straightway, desire new, or relish it, but will say, The old is better, because he has been used to it,”

But the scribes and Pharisees were filled with rage and began to discuss with one another what they might do to Jesus.

“They were mad at Christ, mad at the people, mad at themselves. Anger is a short madness, malice is a long one; impotent malice, especially disappointed malice; such was theirs.”

In those days Jesus went out to the mountain to pray, and He spent the night in prayer to God.

“He was long alone with God: He continued all night in prayer. We think one half hour a great deal to spend in the duties of the closet; but Christ continued a whole night in meditation and secret prayer.”

When daylight came, He called His disciples to Him and chose twelve of them, whom He also designated as apostles:

“The number of the apostles was twelve. Their names are here recorded; it is the third time that we have met with them, and in each of the three places the order of them differs, to teach both ministers and Christians not to be nice…”

Then Jesus came down with them and stood on a level place. A large crowd of His disciples was there, along with a great number of people from all over…

“Though it was some scores of miles from Jerusalem to that part of Galilee where Christ now was,--though at Jerusalem they had abundance of famous rabbin, that had great names, and bore a mighty sway,--yet they came to hear Christ.”

The entire crowd was trying to touch Him, because power was coming from Him and healing them all.

“There is a fulness of grace in Christ, and healing virtue in him, and ready to go out from him, that is enough for all, enough for each.”

But woe to you who are rich, for you have already received your comfort.

“"You that are rich are in temptation to set your hearts upon a smiling world, and to say, Soul, take thine ease in the embraces of it, This is my rest for ever, here will I dwell; and then woe unto you. " (1.)”

But love your enemies, do good to them, and lend to them, expecting nothing in return.

“What is given, or laid out, or lent and lost on earth, from a true principle of charity, will be made up to us in the other world, unspeakably to our advantage.”

But love your enemies, do good to them, and lend to them, expecting nothing in return.

“In such a case, we must lend, with a resolution not to demand interest for what we lend, as we may most justly from those that borrow money to make purchases withal, or to trade with.”

Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together, and running over will be poured into your lap.

“Those that deal hardly with others must acknowledge, as Adoni-bezek did ( Judg. i. 7 ), that God is righteous, if others deal hardly with them, and they may expect to be paid in their own coin; but they that deal kindly with others have…”

No good tree bears bad fruit, nor does a bad tree bear good fruit. For each tree is known by its own fruit.

“If the fruit be good, you may conclude that the tree is so; if the conversation be holy, heavenly, and regular, though you cannot infallibly know the heart, yet you may charitably hope that it is upright with God; for every tree is known by…”

I will show you what he is like who comes to Me and hears My words and acts on them: He is like a man building a house, who dug…

“The storms and streams of affliction shall not shock them, for their feet are set upon a rock, a rock higher than they. [3.] Their everlasting welfare is secured. In death and judgment they are safe.”

When Jesus had concluded His discourse in the hearing of the people, He went to Capernaum.

“He that had such a commanding empire in the kingdom of nature as that he could command away diseases, no doubt has such a sovereignty in the kingdom of grace as to enjoin duties displeasing to flesh and blood, and bind, under the highest penalties…”

For I myself am a man under authority, with soldiers under me. I tell one to go, and he goes; and another to come, and he comes.

“He illustrates this faith of his by a comparison taken from his own profession, and is confident that Christ can as easily command away the distemper as he can command any of his soldiers, can as easily send an angel with commission to cure this…”

And when the messengers returned to the house, they found the servant in good health.

“Christ will take cognizance of the distressed case of poor servants, and be ready to relieve them; for there is no respect of persons with him.”

When the Lord saw her, He had compassion on her and said, “Do not weep.”

“His eye affected his heart; and he said unto her, Weep not. Note, Christ has a concern for the mourners, for the miserable, and often prevents them with the blessing of his goodness.”

A sense of awe swept over all of them, and they glorified God. “A great prophet has appeared among us!” they said. “God has visited His people!”

“The Lord and his goodness, as well as the Lord and his greatness, are to be feared. The inference they drew from it was, " A great prophet is risen up among us, the great prophet that we have been long looking for; doubtless, he…”