sake. A few boats and fishing nets were probably the wh<^e amount of their worldly goods. Yet it must never be forgotten that a poor man's *' all ' is as dear to him, in a certain senne, as the rich man's palace. He knows nothing higher or better excepting by report. In giving up everything for Christ's sake, he makes, at any rate, the greatest sacrifice in his power.
29. — [There is no man that hath Uft, do.\ The cases which our Lord here describes are undoubtedly cases which can seldom occur in England. We can hardly conceive a case among our- selves in which religion could oblige a man to separate horn his *' wife and children."
But there can be no doubt that sacrifices like this were often necessanr when the Gospel was first preached, and was bitterly opposed by prej udiced Jews and ignorant heathen . Moreover, it is a striking fact that at the present day a converted Jew is often obliged to separate from his nearest and dearest relatives, and a converted Hindoo is cast ofi* by all his family.
There can be no doubt that our Lord spoke with foresight of cases like these. In this point of view, His words are singu- larly full of comfort.
30. — [Manifold more.,, this present time.] It is the safest course to give a spiritual sense to this glorious promise. A converted man will no doubt often find new friends among converted people, who shall amply make up to him for the loss of his former worldly acquaintances. — But it is not always so. The wisdom of God is sometimes pleased to allow a converted man to be a loser in temporal things by his conversion. Christ Himself, and all the inward comforts of heart, conscience, and soul which Christ alone can bestow, and the world can neither give nor take away, must be regarded as the real substance of the promise.
81 — [AU things,,, written, dc^ If we confine this expression to the sufierings and passion of our Lord, the reference must of course be to Psalm xxii.; Isaiah liii. ; and Daniel ix. 26. B<it it admits of question whether our Lord did not refer to all that was to happen at Jerusalem from the time when He rode into the city upon an ass until His resurrection. The passages referred to would then be more numerous. In any case, let it be noted, the book of Psalms is classed among **the prophets." There is far more of prophetical matter in the Pssilms than most readei's suppose.
32, 83. — [He shall he delivered, dc] The following passage from Doddridge is worth reading : " This prediction is a strong in- stance of the spirit of prophecy exerted by our Lord. It was more probable that He would be privately slain, or stoned to death in a tumult. And when He was delivered back to the