Let it be noted, among other reasons for onr Lord's choice of a traitor to he an apo^e, that the choice finally suppUed a powerful indirect evidence of the purity, hlamelessness, and laultlessness of our Lord's conduct and ministiy. When our Lord was accused before the Hi^ Priest and Pontius Pilate, if anything could have been proved against Him, the traitor Judas Iscariot was exactly the witness who would have proved it. The mere fact that Judas never came forward to give evidence against our Lord, is a convincing evidence that nothing could be proved against Him. No man is so well qualified to expose another's faults and inconsistencies, if they really exist, as one who has been on intimate terms with him. Judas never ap- peared against our Lord, because he could not allege anything to his disadvantage. Ford quotes a passage from Anselm, on this point : " Judas is chosen that the Lord might have an enemy among his domestic attendants, for that man is perfect, who has no cause to shrink from the observation of a wicked man, con- versant with all his ways."
17. — [Stood in the plain.] This expression should be noted. It shows that the discourse which follows is different from that called ** the sermon on the mount."
19. — [Virtue.'] The word so translated is generally rendered '* power," or "strength," and must not be taken as a moral quality here.