w31 be daily blessing and praising God. Thankfulness is a flower which will never bldom well excepting upon a loot of deep humility.
Notes. Lukb. XVII. 11—19.
11. — [Passed, . .midst., , Samaria. . . Oalilee.] There is some difficulty about this expression. The usual road in travelling from the north of Palestine to Jerusalem, would be through Galilee first and then through Samaria. The most probable solution is that our Lord travelled along the boundary between Samaria and Galilee, to the river Jordan, and then followed the course of that river down to Jericho, at which city we find Him in the next chapter.
12. — [Lepers, which stood afar off.] It should be remembered that, by the law of Moses, lepers were cast ofi" from all society, and regarded as outcasts, who might not dwell with others. We read in Leviticus, "He shall dwell alone: without the camp shall his habitation be." (Lev. xiii. 46.)
13. — [Jesus, Master, have mercy on us^] We know not what degree of knowledge or faith these lepets possessed. It is probable that they only knew our Lord as a worker of mighty miracles of healing, whose fame was spread over the land.
14. — [Shew yourselves to priests.] The meaning of this direction will be obvious to all who are familiar with the thirteenth and fourteenth chapters of Leviticus. The priests were specially appointed by God to be the judges of all leprous cases, and to decide whether the leper was clean or unclean, cured or imoured. Moreover there was a special injunction to attend to the rules laid down in Leviticus about leprosy in the book of Deute- tonomy : " Take heed in the plague of leprosy, that thou observe diligently, and do according to all that the priests the Levites shaU teach you." (Deut. xxiv. 8.)
A Jewish leper would doubtless catch at our Lord's direction to "go to the priests," and accept it as a hint that he would hear good tidings on showing himself to them.
It has been doubted whether our Lord meant only the Jewish priests, iu giving this direction. Some have thought that He meant the Samaritan leper to go to the Samaritan priests on Mount Gerizim. This however appears exceedingly improbable. There is no clear proof that the Samaritan priests undertook the decision of leprous cases. Above all, there is nothing in the Ctospels to show that our Lord ever recognized the Samaritan priests. — His words addressed to the Samaritan woman, *' Sal- vation is of the Jews, — we know what we worship, — ye worship ye know not what," (John iv. 22.) appear to contradict the idea.