He turned his shoulders, He moved his feet, He raised his eye,^ He opened His mouth. See Acts x. 34. Here the fountain began to pour forth water. Cf. Matt. xiii. 35. — sdldaaxsv, He taught) He instructed by doctrine, by consolation, by exhorta tion, by precept. — a,vrou$, them) the disciples. For He addresses these, in the hearing of the multitudes ;* see vii. 28. The Evan gelists have transcribed at full length two discourses of our Lord, as models of all the rest ; the one delivered publicly at the com mencement of His ministry, that namely which we are now considering ; the other privately at its conclusion, recorded in John xiii.— xvi. Our Lord's object in the present discourse is to teach true righteousness (see Isa. Ixiii. 1) : and He also declares at the same time, that He came to establish the Law and the Prophets, and exposes the spurious character of the righteous ness of the Scribes and Pharisees. In the exordium, there is firstly, ver. 3, 4, a sweet invitation to the fellowship of true righteousness, and therein of blessedness ; secondly, ver. 13, 14, to the communication of it to others. From ver. 17 to vii. 12, there is a treatise, the end of which corresponds with the begin ning, even to a word. The conclusion of this discourse, firstly, ch. vii. 13, 14, points out the gate of righteousness ; secondly, ch. vii. 15, 16, warns against false prophets, who go themselves, and lead others, into all kinds of error;2 and thirdly, vii. 24, 25, exhorts us to fulfil these precepts of righteousnesss. The im pression produced by the Heavenly Teacher's discourse on those who heard Him, is described in the two last verses of the same chapter.
3. 'Maxdpioi, blessed) This initial word, so often repeated, indi cates the object of Christ's teaching.3 By means, however, of striking paradoxes, blessedness is proposed not only by itself, but inasmuch as, in Christ now present, it is within the reach of all who are capable of receiving Him. There were some such amongst our Lord's auditors, though undistinguished by the eye of man (see ch. ix. 36, 37, xi. 28 ; Isa. xxix. 19), although
1 [He, however, addressed the latter also at the same time; v. 17. — V. g.]
2 In alia omnia ducentihus et eunlibus — literally, " leading and going into all other things" — sc. other than the strait gate. — (I. B.)
3 The first word of this discourse announces its whole scope : a great blessedness is here placed before us by the Lord. — See Heb. ii. 3. — • B. G. V.