xii. 42. — iv xaipu, in due season) This refers to the epithet prudent.
46. Evpqffsi, shall find} Therefore we are not under compul sion.
48. 'o xaxbc doSXo? Iscs/i/oj, THAT evil servant) whom the Lord knoweth. — xpovifyi, delayetli) See xxv. 5 [cf. Eccles. viii. 11].
49. SovSouXous, fellow-servants) They are called fellow-servants, to bring out in strong relief the injurious character of that evil servanfs conduct towards them : they were, however, subject to him, though he with them was subject to their common Lord. — Be, but) His injurious conduct towards his fellow-servants, and his own self-indulgence, are put in strong contrast with each other. — f^ra ruv psSvovruv, with the drunken) There will, therefore, at that time be many whose whole condition and character will consist in vicious self-indulgence. See 1 Thess. v. 7. A similar mode of speaking occurs in Genesis xlii. 5., where the LXX. have ^X^ov ds oi v'loi 'iffpa^X IASTO. ruv ip^o/iivuv, i.e. But the sons of Israel came with them that came.
50. 'Ef r,[Mpu y ou -xpoffdoxif, on a day on which he doth not expect) sc. Him to come. Cf. ver. 44.
51. A^cro/x^E/, shall cut him in fepatft1) A punishment frequent in ancient times, and an appropriate one for those who were d/^ir^o/, i.e. double-minded. The Hebrew nnj [to divide or cut in pieces'] is thus rendered by the LXX. The hypocrite divides his soul and body in the worship of God ; wrherefore his soul and body shall be divided in eternal perdition. Eternal perdition is called death : all death, however, has this charac teristic, that it deprives the body of its soul. Then neither the soul shall rejoice in the companionship of the body, nor the body in that of the soul, but it shall rather increase its death. Then will each of the damned be able to say with truth, " / am torn asunder" (disrumpor) : cf. Heb. iv. 12, as to the force of the word with reference to the wicked. The twofold punishment corresponds to the twofold offence ; viz., the cutting in twain to his smiting the men-servants and maid-servants, the portion with the hypocrites to his gluttony and drunkenness. — vvoxpiruv, hypocrites) Hypocrisy is a moral evil : the punishment of hypo-
1 E. V. "Shall cut him asunder."— (I. B.)