16 "When the even was come, they brouglit unto him many that were possessed with devils : and he cast out the spirits with Ms word, and healed all that were sick :
17 That it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Esaias the prophet, saying, Himself took our infirmities, and bare our sicknesses.
18 Now when Jesus saw great
MATTHEWj CHAP. VIII.
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multitudes about liim, lie gave com- mandmeut to depart unto the other side.
19 And a certain Scribe came, and said unto him, Master, I will follow thee whithersoever thou goest.
20 And Jesus saith unto him, The foxes have holes, and the birds of the air Tiave nests ; but the Son of man hath not where to lay Ms head.
21 And another ofhis disciples said unto him. Lord, suffer me first to go and bury my father.
22 But Jesus said unto him. Follow me ; and let the dead bury their dead.
23 And when he was entered into a ship, his disciples followed liim.
24 And, behold, there arose a great tempest in the sea, insomuch that the ship was covered with the waves ; but he was asleep.
25 And his disciples came to Mm, and awoke him, saying, Lord, save us: we perish.
26 And he saith unto them, Why are ye fearful, O ye of little faith ? Then he arose, and rebuked the winds and the sea ; and there was a great calm.
27 But the men marvelled, saying, What manner of. man is this, that even the winds and the sea obey him!
In the first peart of these verses we see a striking example oiour Lord's wisdom in dealing with those ivhoprofessed a iviUingness to he His disciples. The passage throws so much Hght on a subject frequently misunderstood in these daySj that it deserves more than ordinary attention.
A certain scribe offers to follow our Lord whithersoever He goes. It was a remarkable offer, when we consider the class to which the man belonged, and the time at which it was made. But the offer receives a remarkable answer. It is not directly accepted, nor yet flatly re- jected. Our Lord only makes the solemn reply, " the foxes have holes, and the birds of the air have nests ; but the Son of man hath not where to lay his head."
Another follower of our Lord next comes forward, and asks to be allowed to " bury his father,'' before going any further in the path of a disciple. The request seems, at first sierht, a natural and lawful one. But it draws from our Lord's lips a reply no less solemn than that already referred to : " Follow me, and let the dead bury their dead."
There is something deeply impressive in both these