needle’s eye.
96. This (rod70). Not the salvation of rich men, but salva- tion in general. It is in answer to the question, who can be
110 WORD STUDIES IN THE NEW TESTAMENT. [Cu. XX.
saved ? Man cannot save himself nor his fellow. God only can save him.
27. We. Emphatic, in contrast with the young ruler,
28. Have followed. “Peter had said together the words we have left, we have followed. Jesus replies to them sepa- rately ; for the latter was peculiar to the apostles, the former common to them with others” (Bengel).
In the regeneration. ‘The final restitution of all things. To be construed with ye shail sit.
Shall sit (caSicn). Or shall have taken his seat, which brings out more vividly the solemn inauguration of Christ’s judgment.
29. Every one (zs). Compare 2 Tim. iv. 8, “to ald them that love his appearing.” “Not only apostles, nor ought Peter to have inquired only concerning them ” (Bengel). The promise hitherto restricted to the apostles now becomes general.
A hundred-fold (€xatovtarAaciova). But many very high authorities read ToANaTAaciova, manifold. So Rev. in mar- gin. Compare Mark x. 30, where there is added « houses and brethren,” etc. Also the Arabic proverb: “ Purchase the next world with this; so shalt thou win both.”
CHAPTER XX. 1. For (ydp). Explaining and confirming xix. 30,
Early in the morning (gua mpwi). Along with the dawn. “ Here (at Hamadan, in Persia), we observed every morning, before the sun rose, that a numerous band of peasants were collected, with spades in their hands, waiting to be hired for the day to work in the surrounding fields. This custom struck me as a most happy illustration of our Saviour’s parable, particularly
Cu. XX.] MATTHEW. tal
when, passing by the same place late in the day, we found others standing idle, and remembered his words, ‘ Why stand ye here all the day idle?’ as most applicable to their situation ; for on putting the very same question to them, they answered us, ‘ Because no man hath hired us.’ ” (Morier, ‘Second Jour- ney through Persia,” cited by Trench, “ Parables.”’)
9. For a penny (é« Snvapiov). A denarius, the chief silver coin of the Romans at this time, and of the value of about seventeen cents. We must remember to reckon according to the rate of wages in that day. A denarius was regarded as good pay fora day’s work. It was the pay of a Roman sol- dier in Christ’s time. In almost every case where the word occurs in the New Testament it is connected with the idea of a liberal or large amount. Compare Matt. xviii. 28; Mark vi. 37; Luke vii. 41; John xii. 5.
For a penny is, literally, out of or on the strength of a penny ; the payment being that on the strength of which the agreement was made. The agreement arose out of the demand on the one hand and the promise on the other.
10. Every man a penny (70 ava Snvapwov). Lit., the swm amounting in each case to a penny ; or a& penny apiece. ’Ava is distributive. Wyc., each one by himself a penny.
12. Heat (kavicwva). Rev., the scorching heat. The word is from kalo, to burn. It refers to the dry, scorching heat borne by the east wind. Compare Job xxvii. 21; Hos. xiii. 15. The wind blows from the Arabian desert, parching, dry, exciting the blood, and causing restlessness and sleeplessness. It seldom brings storms, but when it -does, they are doubly destructive. During harvest the corn cannot be winnowed if the east wind blows, for it would carry away both chaff and corn. In Pharaoh’s dream (Gen. xli. 6) the ears are blasted by it: Jonah’s gourd is withered by it (Jon. iv. 8), and the vine in Ezekiel’s parable of the Babylonian captivity is blighted by it (Ezek. xvii. 10).
13. One. Representing the whole body.