muoh better, whether we take him as con- doubtless because our Lord no longer refers siclering it as meaningles1, or o.s in some way t.o the tribunal at which the punishment i.B confusing its ending with the Shemitic suffix ordered, but to the punishment itself into for "thee" (ka), (3) Ewald explains it by which the condemned man comes(cf. Winer, 1111pi, "rascal" (vide Meyer); but (4) it is § xxxi. 5). Rell lire; Revised Version, the more probably the Ara.maio 11p•i, relfa hell of fire ; Revised Version margin, "Greek, Gehenna of fire" (T,jv ,l,vvav Tau ,rvp6,). "empty;" cf. Hebrew pllll'a.l relfim, " vain Gehenna is properly ''the Valley ofHinnom" fellows," in Judg. ix. 4; xi 3. St. Ja.mes (Josh. xviii 16b; Neh. xi, 30), or" of the son nses its equivalent (l, ll.v8p,,nre 1cevl, ii. 20) of Hinnom" (Josh.xv. 8; xvi. 18a; 2 Chron. in solemn warning ; bot it wo.s not in- xxviii. 3). It is probably the valley on the frequently nsed a.a a. mere term of angry south-west of Jerusalem(see, however, W. F. abuse (cf. Lightfoot, 'Hor. Hehr.,' in we., Birch, in Palestine Exploration Fund Re- and Levy, s.v.), Buxtorf, B.v., compares port, January, 1889, pp. 39, 42, who places it a. favourite expression of Aben Ezra.'s, between the two parts of Jemaalem, iden- mo •p•;, "empty-heads," for those who raise tifying it with the TyropCBOn Valley of senseless objections, etc.; but the simple Josephus, neglecting, however, to explain expression in our text refers rather to moral how so central a position is consistent with deficiency than to deficiency of brain. The the "fire." In it we.s the spot where human council (vide supra). But; Revisecl Version, sacrifices were offered to Moloch (cf. 2 Chron. and. The Authorized Version interpolates an x:xviii. 3; and Rawlinson, on 2 Kings xxiii, emphasis on the climax. Thou fool (Mr,,p,'). 10), ce.lled the Topheth," the pla'Je of horror" (1) This is probably the Greek word for (vide especially Payne Sroith, on Jer. vii "fool," equivalent to the Hebrew nahal 31); and in it, presumably on the same (',:m, which was often used in the Old plo.ce, were burnt, according to Jewish tra- Testament of the folly of wickedness (Pe. dition (vide especially Kimchi, on Ps. xxvii. xiv. l; cf. l Sam. xxv. 25). In this sense 13), the carcnses of animals and other off,.I. µo,pos is usecl by our Lord himself ( eh. xxiii, There is no direct evidence that the bodies 17 l19)), (2) It may be the transliteration(cf. of criminals (as is often stated) were burnt pl!I, O'IC'1/Voiiv) of the Hebrew moreh (n,10), there. But it seems probable that it wns in this place that death by "burning," whether "rebel" (of. Numb. xx. 10). (So Revised it was the later method of "burning" by a. Version margin, Weiss, Nosgen.) In favour red-hot wire, or the earlier (Mishna, 'Snn- of this is the pe.ro.llelism of langna.ge with hedr.,' vii. 2) of lighting faggots of wood Raca. The sense, too, is excellent, "Thou round the condemned person, would ho rebel against God I'' It is almost equivalent carried into effect. Thus both from the old to "Apostate I" But the absence of any associations of the valley, and from the then evidence that the Jews used moreh as a term uee made of it, the epithet "of fire" would of abuse prevents our accepting this inter- be very naturally added. It seems prubo.ble pretation. Field(' Otium Norv.,' ill.) points that OW' Lord here referred primo.rily to out tho.t if this interpretation were true, "Gehenna" in this local sense (vide sup-ra), moreh would be "the cmly pure HeLrew but it is fair t.o notice tho.t there is no other word in the Greek Testament (aM.11.>..outa, instance in the N cw Test.. ment of this litornl aµ~v, and ua.fJa,l,8, as being taken from the usage of the word. Elsewhere it is always LXX., belong to a different cl1tss), nil in the metaphorico.l seuse common in other foreign words being indisputably rabbinic writings of the pluce of final .Axamaic, as raca, talitha kumi, maran atha, punishment which we usuo.Uy roll "hell." etc., which, as might ho.ve been expected, Ver. 23.-Therefore, Seeing that the con- are retained by the o.uthors of the Syriao ver- eequencee of an o.ngry spirit o.re eo terrible. sions without alterntion. Not eo µr,,pl, for For thore is no thought here of 110 unfor- which both the Peschito and Philoxenian ver-
. giving spirit spoiling the acceptnnce of the sions ho.ve lew ( ~ ) ... a plain proof tho.t gift (vide infra). Our Lord is insisting ~ that it is so important to lose no time in these learned Syrians took it for an exotic, seeking reconciliation with n person whom and not like ~a.Kd., a native word." In either one has injured, that even the vory holiest oase, the term expresses the absolute godless- action must be put off for it. If thou bring; ness of him who is eo addressed. 0 f the Revised Version, if, .. thou art offering; la.v two terms, Baca is more negative, implying . , . 1rpoutplpps (similnrly, ,rpdrr,P•p•, ver. 24), the absence of all good, Mr,,pe more positive, the technical word coming some sixty times implying decidecl wickedness, Shall be in in Leviticus alone. Christ implies that the danger of; (voxos fr-rc11 ,ls. The change action has already begun. Thy gift ; a from the usual dative to the unique con- general word for any sacrifice. To the altar. Btruction with ,Is, indicated by the Revised Since those to whom he spoke were still Vonion margin, "Greek, unto or into," is Jews, Christ illustrates his meaning by ::IIATTBEW. !rl 162 THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO ST. MATTHEW. [oH. v. 1-48.