it was day." (Lake xxii. 66.) Considering that the day begins at the equinox about six, we may assume that ' early " cannot mean sooner than seven or eight o'clock.
[And they went not...judgment hall... defiled.'] The meaning of this sentence is, that the Jews would not go within the walls of Pilate's palace, lest by so doing they should contract ceremonial Tincleanness. Pilate was a Gentile. Peter says in the Acts, " It is unlawful for a man that is a Jew to keep company or come unto one of another nation." (Acts x 28.) If the Jews had gone inside Pilate's house, they would have been made ceremonially unclean, and would have considered themselves defiled.
The sentence is an extraordinary example of the false scru- pulosity of conscience which a wicked man may keep up, about forms and ceremonies and trifling externals in religion, at the very time when he is deliberately committing some gross and enormous sin. The notorious fact that Italian bandits and mur- derers will make much of fasting, keeping Lent, confession, absolution, Virgin Mary worship, saint worship, and image worship, at the very time when they are arranging robberies and assassinations, is an accurate illustration of the same prin- ciple. The extent to which formality and wickedness can go side by side is frightful, and little known. The Jews were afraid of being defiled by going into a Gentile's house, at the very moment when they were doing the devil's work, and mur- dering the Prince of life ! — Just so, many people in England will attach immense importance to fasting and keeping Lent and attending saints'-day services, while they see no harm in going to races, operas, and balls, at other times ! Persons who have very low notions about the Seventh Commandment, will actually tell you that it is wrong to be married in Lent ! The very same persons who totally disregard Sunday abroad, will make much ado about saints'-day at home ! Absurd strict- ness about Lent, and excess of riot and licentiousness in carni- val, will often go together.
Chrysostom remarks, " Though they had taken up a deed which was unlawful, and were shedding blood, they are scru- pulous about the place, and bring forth Pilate unto them."
Augustine remarks, " O impious blindness 1 They would be defiled, forsooth, by a dwelling which was another's, and not be defiled by a crime which was their own. They feared to be defiled by the praetorium of an alien judge, and feared not to be defiled by the blood of an innocent brother."
Bishop Hall remarks, " Woe unto you priests, scribes, elders, hypocrites ! can there be any roof so unclean as that of your own breasts ? Not Pilate's walls, but your own hearts, are im- pure. Is murder your errand, and do you stick at a local infec- tion ? God shall smite you, ye whited walls ! Do you long to be stained with blood — with the blood of God ? And do ye