The Pulpit Commentary — Matthew — Volume 2 — Section 635

LRznrus the stone had to be removed t.o give angels were thronging around, n.nd one or e>xit to the resuscitRted body-a natural 0 more bece.me visible to certllin pcraons 61 body (John xi. 39, 41); in the 00.se of Jesus they were ce.pable of receiving spiritunl im- such remove.I we.s not necess1ny, as his we.s pressions, or e.e theee spirits were <lirected a spiritue.l body, possessed of superne.ture.l t.o show themselves. The women spake not, powere and qualities (John xx. 19). Aud were too affrighted to ask questions; but their sat upon it. In triumph, and to show the.t amazed. look, their blank surprise, were it was not to be reple.oed; death had done themselves interrogative, o.nd the angel its work, and now we.s vanquished. Angels' replied to their inwe.rd emotion. Fear not e.ppenmnccs had always o.ooompe.nic-d the ye (~µ,is, emphatic). The soldiers have gree.t events in the history of the chosen CR use to fear ; they a.re the enemies of the people ; angels had shown themselves at Lord; but ye a.re his friends, and need feel Chrisl's birth, at his temptation, nt his no alarm. Ye seek .Jesus, whioh was cruoi- agony; now they !!Unrd his tomb, proving fted. Ye e.re seeking him, to <lo honour to tllat he was well-plensing unto the Lord, his body; I know your pious intention, but and wR.S raised from the grave by him. The it is useless. The e.ngel shrinks not from narration of this awful incident was pro- the mention of Christ's shameful death, bably given by the eoldieni, who alone which is now bis glory, •• the power of God witnessed it. and the wisdom of God" (l Cor. i. 23, 24). Ver. 8.-His oounten&Dce (is,,., appear- " It was the good pleasure of the Father ance) was like lightning. The angers . . . through him to reconcile all things aspect was as bright and startling as the unto himself, having ma.de peace through flash of lightning (comp. Ezek. i 14; Dan. the blood of his croes . . . whether things x. 6). His raiment white as snow. Pure and upon the earth, or things in the hee.rnns" glistening, like the effect of the Transfigura- (Col. i. 19, 20). The crucifixion "was not tion on the Lord ( eh. xvili. 2 ; comp. Acts simply a temporary incident in the life of i. JO; Rev. x. 1). Christ. It is an eternal principle in his Ver. 4.-A.nd for fear of him; but from the kingdom" (Milligan). fear of him. From the fear inspired by this Ver. 6.-He is not here. He is not in this awful angel It wonld seem, from this ex- tomb ; his bodily presence is removed from pression, that the soldiers were sensible, not this his whilom resting-place. St. Mat- only of the earthquake and the movement thew'e account is greatly condensed, and of the stone, but also of the presence of the omits many details which harmonists try to heavenly messenger, in this respect differ- fit into our text. The attempt is not to be ing from the companions of Daniel and St. commended, for it really involves greater Paul, who were only partially oonscions of confusion, and, after a.II, is forced and only the visions beheld by the two saints (see conjectural. For he is risen, as he said, If Dan. L 7 ; Acts mi 9). Did shake. The they had believed Christ's often-repeated verb is cognate with the nonn "earth- an.nonncement, they would not have come quake; " they were she.ken, convulsed with seeking the living among the dead. (For terror. If these were some of the company Chri~t•s predictions concerning his resurreo- that bad watched the Crucifixion, they were tion, see eh. xii. 40 ; xvi 21 ; xvii. 23 ; xx. &!ready poasessed of some feeling respecting 19.) On this simple, but pregnant sentence, the unearthly nature of the Occupant of the " He is risen," depends the phenomenon of tomb whicb they were guarding, and had a Christianity, in its origin, existence, con- vague expectation of something that might tinua.nee, extension, and moral power. happen. At any rate, they must have heard "Death began with woman; and to women the late events discnssed by their comrades, the first announcement is me.de of resurrec- and were not without apprehension of a tion" (Hilary, quoted by Wordsworth, in catastrophe. :Became as dead men. They loc. ). Come, see the ple.oe where the Lord fell to the gronnd in deathlike fa.intneas, lay. The angel invites them to satisfy and, when they recovered from the trance, themselves that Christ's body was no longer fled in terror from the tomb into the city in its resting-place. That Jesus was desig- (ver. 11). nated e.s " the Lord," d K6p1os, by the dis- Ver. 5.-The angel &D.BWII ed and said. ci ples is obvions (see John xx. 18; lli. 7, The women arrived probe.My while the etc.), but it is doubtful whether the words guards were Iying unconBCions on the ground. are genuine here, though they a.re found in They B8.W them, and they saw the angel many good ma.nu scripts and in the Vulge.te. sitting on the stone, or, e.ccording to St. They are omitted by~. B, 33, etc., and by Mark, "a young man sitting on the right Tischendorf and Westcott and Hort in their eitle, a.na.yed in a white robe;" St. Luke says editions. Regarding them as genuine, that •• two men stood by them in dazzling Bengel calls them "gloriose. e.ppella.tio," apparel," i.e. first one had 1hown himself, which indeed it is, for it is equivalent to ir.nd then r,not}l.er. DoubtleBI innumeiable "Jehon,4." Be.ru1oniet. suppoee that Ui• cu. xxvm.1-20.) TIIE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO ST. MATTIIEW. Ml