The Pulpit Commentary — Mark — Volume 1 — Section 296

tradition. H is 11s though onr Lord s111d', Divine commandments. Thus the eon, by "Your tr11ditions are not instituted by God, crying "Corban" to his needy parents, shut or by his serv11nts the prophets, but they their mouths, by opposing to tliem a scruple are modem inventions, which you desire to of conseience, and suggesting to them a defend, not out of love or reverence for superstitious fear. It was as much as to say, tnem, but because yon 11re the sncceseors "That wliich you ask of me is a sacred of those who invented them, and arrogate thing which I have devoted to God. Be- to /ourselves the power of adding to them ware, therefure, lest you, by e.sking this of an making similar new traditions. me, commit sacrilege by converting it to Ver. 10.-Our Lord now gives an example your own tises." 'fhus the parents would be of one of these human traditions. Moses sllid, silenced e.nd alarmed, choosing rather to Honour thy father and thy mother ;-the.t is, perish of hunger than to rob God. To such obey and love them, 11nd succour them, if they extremities did these covetous scribes and need it; for here "honour" means not only Pharisees drive their victims, compelling a ,reverence and love, but support, as is clear son to abstain from any kind offices for his from ver. 12-e.nd, He the.t speaketh evil of father or his mother. St. Ambrose saye, father or mother, let him die the death; that " God does not seek a gift wrung out of the is, let him " surely die," without e.ny hope neceseities of parents." Making fJoid (a.,cu- of pardon. Our Lord means this : "The.t if povVT<s); literally, depriinru; it of its au- ·he who by words only spooks evil of his thority, annulling. In Gal. iii 17 the same .father or his mother is, by law, guilty of word ie rendered "disannul." By your tra• death, how much more is he guilty of death ditions ; the traditions, that is, by wh kh ,who wrongs them by deed, and deprives they taught children to say "Corban" to them of the.t support which he owes them their parents. Observe the words, "your ·by the law of nature; and not only so, but tradition" (-rff1rapaoo0'<1 vµ.oiv); your tradi- teaches others so from Moses' seat, as you tion, as opposed to those Divine traditions scribes and Pharisees do when you say, 'It which God has sanctified, and his Church is Corban.'" has handed down from the beginning. And Vera. 11-13.-But ye say, If a me.n shall many suoh like things ye do. 'fhis is added say to his father or his mother, That where- by St. Mark to fill up the outline, and to with thou mightest have been profited by show that thill was only a sample of the me is Corban, that is to say, Given to God many ways in which the commandment of -these words, "that is to say, Given to God was twisted, distorted, e.nd annulled by God,"areSt. Mark's explanation of "corban" these rabbinical traditions. -ye no longer su1fer him to do aught for Vera. H, 15.-In the Authorized Version his father or his mother; making void the the beginning of this verse runs thus: "And word of God by your tradition, whioh ye when he bud called all the people unto b im, 'have delivered. Now, this the scribes and he said." But according to the best autho- Pharisees did for theiT own covetous ends. rities, the adverb ,,.dA,., should be inserted, For most of them were priests, who received and the words will run as follows :-And he offerings made to God as his ministers, and oalled to him the multitude again. It is pro- then converted them to their own uses. In bable that he he.d waved them from him this they grootly erred; because the obliga- while he held this discourse with the scribes tion of piety by which children lll'e bound from Jerusalem. But now he calls the to support their parents when they need it, people near to him age.in, that all might is a part of the lo.w of nature, to which every hear that which concerned all alike. It is vow, every oblation, ought to yield. Thus, if probable, indeed, that this discussion with any one he.d devoted hie goods to God, e.nd the scribes may have taken place in the his father or his mother became needy, those house, into which he age.in returned after goods ought to be given to his po.rents and having made this authoritative declaration not to the temple. The word "oorban" is to the multitude. The words a.re given with a Hebrew word, meaning "that which is more emphasis here than as recorded by St. brought near," "a gift or offering to God." Matthew. Every one was solemnly invited to Hence, figuratively, the place where these hearken and understand, while he announced offerings were deposited we.a called the "cor• 11 principle or the highest importance. Our banas," or, "sacred treasury" (see Matt. Lord did not intend to disparage the differ- xxyii 6, 1<~pfJava.v). Hence to say of any• ence between clean and unclean moots as it thmfl', " It 18 Corban," we.a to say that it had had been laid down in theLevitical Law. His a prior and more se.cred destination. And object rather was to clear that teaching from when it was something that a parent might the obscurities in which it had been involved need, to say," It is Corban," i.e. it is already by the scribes o.nd Phlll'isees, who lo.id stress appropriated to another purpose, was simply only on external aots. His object was to to refuse his request and to deny him ossist- show that all impurity springs from the 1ilnce, and so to b1 eak one of the Jirst of the heart; Bnll that, uuless the heu.rt ia clea.nsed.  294 TIIE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO ST. MARK. [ea. VIL 1-37.