The Pulpit Commentary — Luke — Volume 1 — Section 303

contrasted by the l\fo,ter; at 1111 evente, no Christi,in Individual, hna~cJi.,[,J, or con- ~he ht,c] rightly comprehended hie worde. gregation but could at 0nco fill up the rletails "How mnny women have blessed the holy originally spoken by the L0rd here. In tho Virgin,11nd desired to be such & mother a.a she catacombs the Jonah-story is, owing to its was I Whnt hinders them? Christ hne mnde use by our Lord, an oft-repeated and very for us II wide wny to this hnppineee, 11.nd not favourite representation on th0ee long ga). only women, but men may treocl ilr--the wFLy leries of tombs of Christian men and women of obedience I this it is which makes such " of the first three cen turiee. mother, and not the throes of parturition" Ver. 31.-The queen of the south shall (St. Chryeostom). It has been ingeniously rise up in the jndgmeut with the men of noticed that this ie the first direct fulfilment this generation, and oondemn them : for she of tho" Mngnificat"-"all generations shall came from the utmost pa.rte of the earth to call me blessed." hear the wisdom of Solomon ; and, behold, a Ver. 28.-But he said, Yea rather, bleeaed greater than Solomon is here. The Queen are they that hear the Word of God, and keep of Sheba, her visit to King Solomon, and its it. As was invariably hie practice, he de- subsequent results made a lasting impres- clines to enter into any discus.ion respecting sion throughout the East; probo.bly th 6 the peculiar blessedness which earthly rela- immediate consequence was that a great tionship to him might bring. It was not for commerce was opened up between Yemen publio dieoueeion. The Lord, in hie reply, of which ehe was queen, and other parts of tells her, however, that there was something Arabia and the far East. The Talmud and even more blessed than that earthly relation- Koran, for instance, have various legends ship to which she was alluding, and to that respecting this Eastern queen who was 80 something all, if they pleased, might attain. dazzled and impressed by the magnificent Vere. 29, 30.-Alld when the people were Israelitic sovereign. Such a simile would gathered, thiok together, he began to say, be singularly attractive to the common folk Thie is an evil generation : they seek a eigu ; who were then, we know (from ver. 29), and there shall no sign be given it, but the crowding round Jesus. King Solomon's sign of Jonas the prophet. P'or as Jonas was wisdom charmed and attracted from far a sign unto the Ninevites, so shall also the countries the famous queen. Lo I One Son of man be to this generation. J eeus wiser than Solomon was in their midst : can now proceeds-the crowd was, we read, we not bear from the honest, plain fulk become denser-to reply to the unbelieving around him a mnrmnr of assent here? suggestion that he should show by a sign Hadn't they been just listening to bis wise from heaven that it was not by the help of words when the Pharisees tried to prejudice Satan and the powers of hell that he was them against him? Hadn't they burst out, enabled to exercise so mighty a power over in the person of the woman of vers. 27, 28, the spirits of evil. No sign of the startling with an irrepressible sign of admiration? nature demanded would be given to the Lo I the great Arabian queen, when at the Jews of hie day. Evidence in support of hie day of judgment she arose, would condemn high claims and lofty neeertions was then in Israel for their blind folly. process of being supplied. What were their Ver. 32.-The men of Nineve shall rise up eyes beholding day, by day, and their ears in the judgment with this generation, a,,.~ hearing? Evidenoe still more complete shall oondemn it : for they repented at the would yet be given them, but it would avail preaohing of lonas; and, behold, a greater nothing I Lo, the solemn sign of the Prophet than Jonas ie here. A.nd these poor sinners Jonas, who preached to wicked Ninernh of the wicked city of Nineveh, they, too, after hie strange resurrection-that would will join in approval of the sad condemna- be given them. It is clear that St. Luke's tion of the chosen people. In Nineveh, account of our Lord's words is abbreviated. when Jonah appeared among them and b::u.le 'fo make the symbolism of the resurrection- them repent, they obeyed the solemn warn- sign complete, we must compare St. Matthew's ing voice. Lo I a greater Preacher far than report (xii. 39, 40), where in plain terms the Jonah was in their midst; but, alas I Israel Lord's death, and the resting in the tomb, was deaf. and subsequent resurrection is foretold, and Ver. 33.-No man, when he bath lighted compared to the well-known story of the a oandle, putteth it in a seoret plaoe, neither entombment ef Jonah at sea for three days. under a bushel, but on a oandlestiok, that This simile of the Master's was no c.'l.oubt they whioh oome in may see the light. The one repeated on several occasions. It is Lord continues bis reply to those who asked lilrnly ouough that it was 80 well-known a him to support hie claims by a visible sign compurieou when St. Luke wroto his memoir from heaven, "Do not think for a moment of the life tbnt the evangelist felt it WIIS not thnt the sign I speak about, and which WIUI needful to go into all the details of the oom- prefigured in the story of the Proph"t purison ; to mention the eimilo w11.s enough; Jounh, will be au obscure or secret thing LUKE. X  TTTF. GORrRL ACCORnING TO ST. LUKE. [011. x1. 1-114,