The Pulpit Commentary — Matthew — Volume 2 — Section 10

sRmc e.s the LXX., and fairly roprcseut.11 the meaning clearer, he ho.s modified its m<'aning of the original (•.:i ',r.,c::i mn!lN). l,mg11e.ge. As he quotes it, not merely The second clause is different from the "enignll\Lical sayings," but" things hiddon" LXX., the first vorb being a literal tronslo.- (and the.t from tl1e foundation of the world) tion from the Hebrew, e.nd the rest a para- are uttered_,by Christ; but these &re now pl,rase. I 1Dill utter (ipeif{op.a,: ;'l))'::llt); ea no longer •• hidden " to those to whom he the LXX. in Ps. xix. 2; and cf. Ps. oxix. speaks them. This complete meaning of 171; cxlv. 7. Things which have beeu kef?t th~ claUBe-revele.tion to hie disoiples of Mcret (,w,pup.p.lva;); but the Hebrew 1s truths before bidden-corresponds to the m'l'n, i.e. "enigmatico.l sayings." From idea of p.ucrn!p,ov in ver. 11 (where see note)' the foundation of the world. 'A,,-b llaTa{JoXijs, and i!1 St. Paul (of. especially Rom. xvi. 25), for 1t&op.ou of the Received Text must be and 1s merely another side of St. ~fork's omitted. But the Hebrew cip •30 (i.e. phra!'e, '' Privately to his own disciples he •• from of old") h&rdly, in the context of expound~ all things:• ( of. supra, vers. 16, the psalm, refers further back than the be- 17); It 1B also po11nble that 1<e1<pup.1.dva ginning of the national history of Israel, which is not merely negative so as to mea; vhen the Israelite!! came out of Egypt. "unrevealed," but implies ~ positive con- "' Asaph ... here recounts to the people oeo.lment, includes a reference to the thougU their history from th&t Egyptreo-Sinaitic age of tKpv,/,as in oh. xi 25, that God purposely of yore to which Israel's national indepen- hid these truths from those who were dence and specific position in relo.tion to the morally unfit to receive them. These rest of the world goes back. ... He will indeed, belonged in general to the time; set forth the history of the fathers after the before Christ came, but also "the multi- manner of a parable and riddle, so that it tudes" came under this category. H it be may become as a parable, i.e. a didactic !lsk?d-What is the relation of the quotation history, and its events as marks of interro- m its oontext here to the verse in its gation and nota-benes to the present age" original context? the easiest answer is that (Delitzsch). What, however, is the exact it is only superfi.ci&I, that the "accidental" connexion of thought in the gospel between employment by the psalmist of the word the passage as it stands, and its con text ? "parable" W&B the only reason why the The first clause evidently corresponds in evangelist made the quotation. Yet it may meaning to ver. 34 ; Christ fulfils in a fresh not be quite so; for there was a real sense the expression of the psalmist by similarity between the psalmist teaching speaking in parables (ride infra). But the bis oontemporaries by history and Christ second clause brings in a different thought, teaching his contemporaries by truths not found, save very indirectly, in ver. 34, couched in narrative form. May we not namely, that Christ utters things that be- go even further, and say that in both cases fore were always bidJen. What does the the message was, generally speakinO', re- evangelist mean by this second clause? fused, though in both a remnant of those (1) Truths never before revealed have now who heard it were saved (cf also Isa. vi. been revealed by Christ's parables, especially 9-13; 'llide supra)? by those two which have just been related. Vers. 36-52.-Christ alone with his For in these it has been affirmed that out- disciples. He explains to them at their siders, i.e. those belonging to other nations than the Jewish nation, shall seek the pro- request the parable of the t.ares (vers. 36- tection of the kingdom of heaven, and also 43), and adds three parables-the tree.sure, the.t the whole world, including, therefore, the pearl, the drag-net-the first two calcu-- these Gentile nations, shall become per- lated to urge them to fnll renunciation of meated with its principlea. It may well everything for Christ, the third to save them be thought that the clause refers to the announcement of thrse great truths. (2) from presumption (vers. 44-50). Upon their ThiB interpretation, however, if taken alone, acknowledging progress in spiritual under- is not enough. For the evangelist is not atanding, be shows them further possibilities speaking of Christ revealing trnths to men (vers. 51, 52). generally. On the contrary, he says that Vers. 36-43.-Tlu, ezplanativn of the Christ does not reveal them to the multi- parable of the tares of the field, tndee, but t.o bis disciplr:ll! (cf. ver.10, an.)- a contrast which the emphatio langu~ge of Ver. 36.-Then lesus sent the multitude ver. 34 ( To,, /',XMJ", a/no,s) would probably away; then he left the muUitude, (Revised suggest, even though it is not expressly Version, litp,ls); of. eh. xxvi. 44. And went mentioned. It is, therefore, likely that it into the,house ( ver. 1, note) : and his disciples was this latter fact to which the evangelist ea.me unto him, saying, Deolare; ezplain ..pecially wished to refer by his quotation (Revised Version, 81acr&tp11crov); i.e. ma1re H of t.he aecond clause. Hence, to make his thoroughly olear. The verb is found else- ou. un. 1-58.] THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO ST. MATTHEW. 11