In the mean time While Christ was discoursing with the Pharisees, and they were using him in the vilest manner, throwing out their invectives against him in order to draw off the people from him: when there were gathered together an innumerable multitude of people.

For there is nothing covered that shall not be revealed, &c.] No sin, be it ever so secret or privately done, as nothing is more covered than hypocrisy, but what shall be detected sooner or later; if not in this world, which is often the case, yet the last judgment, and in the world to come:…

Therefore whatsoever ye have spoken in darkness In the most private manner, to one another: shall be heard in the light; which makes all things manifest, the day shall declare it: and that which ye have spoken in the ear in closets; whispered to persons in their bedchambers, and places of the most…

And I say unto you, my friends Whom he dearly loved, and had taken into the greatest intimacy and familiarity; making known to them whatever he had heard from his Father; giving them the best instructions, the most faithful and friendly advice, and proper precautions; all which, and more, showed…

But I will forewarn you whom ye shall fear, I will be your monitor, and direct you to the proper object of fear and reverence, and whom you should be careful to displease and offend: fear him, which after he hath killed; your body, as the Persic version adds; hath taken away the life of it, by…

Are not five sparrows sold for two farthings As two were sold for one farthing, (See Gill on Matt. 10:29); so in buying and selling, where more money is laid out, things are bought cheaper; the Persic version reads, “for two barley corns”: and not one of them is forgotten before God; a single…

But even the very hairs of your head are all numbered, &c.] Not only their persons had passed under the hands of him that telleth them, who is the “Palmoni”, or “wonderful numberer”, as in the margin of and not only the several members of their bodies, or the more substantial parts of them, were…

Also I say unto you The same as in whosoever shall confess me before men, him shall the son of man also confess before the angels of God; only instead of I, he here calls himself “the son of man”; and instead of “before my Father which is in heaven”, here it is, “before the angels of God”; who will…

But he that denieth me before men That is, that continues to deny Christ, and lives and dies a denier of him; for otherwise it is possible for a person to deny Jesus to be the Son of God, or the Messiah, and afterwards confess him, as a Pagan or Jew; and through temptation, a real Christian may be…

And whosoever shall speak a word against the son of man, it shall be forgiven him These words, though introduced by Luke among the sayings of Christ, recorded in Matt.

And when they bring you unto the synagogues Of the Jews, to be examined and scourged by the rulers of them: and unto magistrates and powers; Heathen ones; the Persic version reads, “princes and kings”; and the Ethiopic version, “princes, kings, and judges”; see Take ye no thought how, or what thing…

For the Holy Ghost shall teach you Shall give both words and matter: in the same hour; instantly, immediately: what ye ought to say; what will be proper to be said, for the honour of Christ, the defence of the Gospel, and the confusion of enemies; (See Gill on Matt. 10:20).

And one of the company said unto him Not one of the disciples of Christ, but one of the multitude, or crowd, about him, Master, speak to my brother, that he divide the inheritance with me: the firstborn, according to the law, in had a double portion: but the eider brother here, it seems, was for…

And he said unto him, man Or “friend”, as the Ethiopic version renders it; that is, Jesus said to him, as the Syriac, Persic, and Ethiopic versions express it: who made me a judge, or a divider over you? referring to the words of one of the Hebrews to Moses, when he interposed in a difference,…

And he said unto them Either to the two brethren, or to his disciples, as the Syriac and Persic versions read, or to the whole company: take heed, and beware of covetousness; of all covetousness, as read the Vulgate Latin, Syriac, Arabic, and Ethiopic versions, and some copies; that is, of all…

And he spake a parable unto them, saying He supposed the following case, and made use of it by way of illustration of what he had said: the ground of a certain rich man brought forth plentifully; who notwithstanding his riches, was but a fool, as the sequel shows; rich men are not always wise in…

And, he thought within himself And foolish thoughts they were; he did not think of God, or that there was one, and much less that he was the author, of all his outward prosperity and plenty; and was still further off of thinking of returning thanks to God for it: or of asking counsel of him, what…

And he said, this will I do This was the resolution he came to, and which he took up, without consulting God, or asking leave of him: I will pull down my barns, and build greater; which was not a very wise one; for he might have let his present barns have stood, and have added new ones to them: and…

And I will say to my soul Himself, see or to his sensual appetite, which he sought to indulge and gratify, for he was wholly a sensual and carnal man: soul, thou hast much goods laid up for many years: he foolishly promises himself a long life, when no man can boast of tomorrow, or knows what a day…

But God said unto him He determined within himself he should die that night; for the time of a man’s death, as well as of his birth, is fixed by God; or he sent the messenger of death, some disease or another, the language of which was, immediate death, or death in a very short time; or spoke to…

So is he that layeth up treasure for himself This is the accommodation of the parable. Just such a fool is he, and this will be the end or him, who employs all his thoughts, and spends all his time, in amassing to himself worldly riches and wealth, in laying up treasures on earth for himself, for…

And he said unto his disciples Having finished the parable which he spake to the whole audience in common, he directed himself to his disciples, who were poor, and apt to be over anxious about their living in the world: therefore I say unto you, take no thought for your life, what ye shall eat.

The life is more than meat What in Matthew is put by way of question, is here strongly affirmed; and these words contain a reason or argument to dissuade from an anxious, distressing thought and care about the necessaries, conveniencies, and comforts of life: and all the Oriental versions read,…

Consider the ravens According to the Jews [[9]] there are three sorts of ravens, the black raven, the raven of the valley, which is said to be white, and the raven whose head is like a dove.

And which of you with taking thought In an anxious and distressing manner, for food and raiment, in order to preserve and continue life, add to his stature one cubit? The Persic version reads, “to his stature and height”, as if this referred to the height of stature; whereas it seems rather to…

If ye then be not able to do that which is least As to make the smallest addition to a man’s stature, or rather to add one moment to his days: why take ye thought for the rest? which are much greater, as to preserve the body in its whole bulk, and all its parts, or for the feeding and clothing of…

Consider the lilies how they grow Some copies read, “the lilies of the field”, as in The Persic version renders the word, “the roses and lilies of the field”: and the Arabic version, the “flowers”; any flowers of the field; for what is afterwards said, is true of any of them, but particularly of…

If then God so clothe the grass lilies and tulips; for they are no other than grass, weak, frail, fading, short lived flowers, which have all their gaiety and beauty from the great Creator of them: which is today in the field, and tomorrow is cast into the oven: the grass is one day in the field,…

And seek not what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink, &c.] That is, in an anxious and distressing manner, with a tormenting and vexatious care; otherwise food is to be both asked of God every day, and to be sought for and after in the use of proper means: neither be ye of doubtful minds;…

For all these things do the nations of the world seek after That is, the Gentiles, as in who are frequently, in the Jewish writings, called, in distinction from the Jews, (אומות העולם) , “the nations of the world” [[17]].

But rather seek ye the kingdom of God The Vulgate Latin version adds, “first”, as also, “and his righteousness”, as in and the Ethiopic version reads, “seek his kingdom and righteousness” meaning either the grace of God, which is not meat and drink, but righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy…

Fear not little flock these words are particularly directed to the immediate apostles and disciples of Christ; but are true of all the saints in all ages of time, who are compared to a “flock of sheep”, being separated from the rest of the world in election, redemption, and the effectual calling,…

Sell that ye have, and give alms Since they had a kingdom bequeathed them by their heavenly Father, they should be so far from indulging an anxious care about food and raiment, that when there was a call in providence for it, and rather than the poor should go without a supply, it became them to…

For where your treasure is Whether in heaven, or in earth, there will your heart be also: the heart is always set upon the treasure, and as is a man’s treasure, such is his heart, that is, set upon it; if his treasure is only here, and he has not the true riches, his heart is only earthly and…

Let your loins be girded about With the girdle of truth, keeping close to the doctrines of the Gospel, abiding faithfully by them, even unto death: the allusion is either to the eating of the first passover, or rather to servants, who, in these eastern countries, wore long garments; and therefore,…

And ye yourselves like unto men that wait for their Lord Who either was at a wedding, or was the bridegroom himself; so be ye in a readiness, waiting for the coming of Christ, the bridegroom of the church: when he will return from the wedding, The Syriac version renders it, “from the house of…

Blessed are those servants whom the Lord The Syriac, Arabic, and Ethiopic versions read, “their Lord”, the master of them, or the Lord Jesus Christ: when he cometh shall find watching: for him, and not asleep.

And if he shall come in the second watch Of the night, that is, after nine o’clock, or any time between nine or twelve; for the second watch was from nine o’clock till twelve; and this was coming early from an entertainment, or a wedding, which were commonly kept in the night, and late; or come in…

And this know The Ethiopic version reads, “this only know”; only take notice of this one thing, and it may be of some use to direct you in your conduct how to behave during the absence of your Lord, until the time he shall come again: that if the good man of the house had known what hour the thief…

Be ye therefore ready also Not habitually, but actually, in the exercise of grace, and the discharge of duty, with loins girt, and lights burning. This may be understood either of a readiness to meet the Lord in the way of his judgments, and particularly the destruction of Jerusalem, which was to…

Then Peter said unto him, Lord The Syriac, Persic, and Ethiopic versions read, “our Lord”: speakest thou this parable: of the master at the wedding, and his servants waiting for him, or of the housekeeper watching that his house be not broken up, or both: unto us, or unto all? Peter was in doubt…

And the Lord said, who then is that faithful and wise steward Christ does not directly, and in express words, answer to Peter’s question, but suggests, that though he intended it as a caution to all his people, and in it spoke to them all to be upon their watch and guard, yet that he had a special…

Blessed is that servant Who is faithful and wise, rules well, and discharges his trust with integrity, and disposes of the provisions of the house, in his hands, with great discretion and prudence: whom his Lord, when he cometh; to take vengeance on the wicked Jews, or by death, or at judgment:…

Of a truth I say unto you This, with Christ, was a strong way of asserting the truth of any thing; and the sense is, you may assure yourselves of it, this will certainly be the happy case of such servant: that he will make him ruler over all that he hath; as Joseph was made by Pharaoh.

But and if that servant say in his heart Not the same servant before spoken of as a wise and faithful steward, that gives to all in the family the portion of meat in due season, and shall be found doing, and be made ruler over his master’s goods but another, who also, as he, is made by his Lord…

The Lord of that servant will come in a day when he looketh not for him For, not coming as was expected, he gives over looking, and concludes he will not come at all; in which he will find himself mistaken, for he will come in the very day which is appointed, though men know not of it, and do not…

And that servant which knew his Lord’s will Not his secret, but his revealed will; the will of God, which lies in the declarations of his grace and mercy in the Gospel, and in the commands and ordinances expressed in his word; and which are the good, perfect, and acceptable will of God; the…

But he that knew not His Lord’s will; either not having the means of knowing it, as the Heathens; or through neglect of them, not attending to them, and making use of them, which is the case of many, where the Gospel revelation is: and did commit things worthy of stripes; or punishment; as the…

I am come to send fire on the earth Meaning either the Gospel, which is as fire, that gives both light and heat, warms the hearts of God’s people, and causes them to burn within them; though very distressing and torturing to wicked men; so the word of God is compared to fire, in .

But I have a baptism to be baptized with Not water baptism, for he had been baptized with that already; nor the baptism of the Spirit, which he had also received without measure; though the Ethiopic version reads it actively, “with which I shall baptize”, referring doubtless to that; but the…

Suppose ye that I am come to give peace on earth? &c.] To set up a temporal kingdom, in great pomp, and outward peace and tranquility? Christ came to make peace with God for men, and to give the Gospel of peace, and spiritual and eternal peace to men; but not external peace, especially that, which…

For from henceforth there shall be five in one house, &c.] Which are the five following, mentioned in the next verse; the father and the son, the mother and the daughter, and her daughter-in-law, or son’s wife; for the mother and mother-in-law are one and the same person, only standing in different…

The father shall be divided against the &c.] Shall oppose him, differ with him, and be alienated from him, and so the other relations as follow; (See Gill on Matt. 10:35), (See Gill on Matt. 10:36).

And he said also to the people For what Christ had before said, were chiefly, if not solely, directed to his disciples; but now he turned himself to the innumerable multitude that were about him, and particularly addressed himself to the Scribes and Pharisees that were among them: when ye see a…

And when ye see the south wind blow From the hot countries of Egypt, Ethiopia, and Arabia, which lay south of Judea: ye say there will be heat; or hot sultry weather, scorching heat, which such a wind brings with it: and it cometh to pass; generally speaking, as is asserted.

Ye hypocrites A word often used of the Scribes and Pharisees, and which suggests, that there were such in company, to whom Christ more especially directs his discourse; and this may be the rather thought, since much the like things are said by him to the Pharisees, with the Sadducees, in and the…

Yea, and why even of yourselves From their own observation, as in discerning the signs of the weather; in a rational way, by the light of reason, and according to the dictates of their own consciences; by what they themselves saw and heard; by the signs and wonders which were done, they might have…

When thou goest with thine adversary The creditor, as the Persic version, and who is the prosecutor, that has commenced a suit of law against another, in order to obtain his right: for Christ is here speaking of a bad man, that will not pay his just debts, so that his creditor is obliged to…

I tell thee The Syriac version before these words, prefixes an “Amen”, or “verily”, for the sake of the stronger affirmation, which seems to be taken from thou shalt not depart thence; get out of prison: till thou hast paid the very last mite: of the sum in debate, which was what the Jews call a…