6 Mat. He discourses with them of the coming of Elijah. at SECT. ance and reformation: and yet, how little is [and how it is writ xc. the influence that his coming will have upon a ten of the Son of wicked and ungrateful generation? And how man, that he must suffer many things, xvii. ii is it also written of the Son of man himself," and be set that illustrious Person whom Elijah is to nought.] [MARK introduce? It is plainly foretold, that he must IX. 12.] suffer many things, and be contemptuously rejected; which evidently implies, that his forerunner also shall be disregarded, and his preach12 ing slighted. And the event, you know, has 12 But I say unto been answerable to it: do not therefore expect (indeed] come alyou, that Elias is another to appear, but observe what I now say ready, and they knew to you, while I assure you that Elijah is indeed him not, but have come already, as it is written of him" in various soever they listed, passages of scripture (see Isa. xl. 3, and Mal. [as it is written of iii. 1;) and they who pretended so eagerly to him:] likewise shall expect him, did not know and acknowledge him, also the Son of man suffer of them. but have treated him in the most arbitrary and [MARK IX. 13.] cruel manner, even just as they pleased, without any regard to piety, justice, or humanity and thus likewise shall the Son of man quickly suffer by them, and with the utmost enmity and malice shall be persecuted by a hardened people, who will shew no more regard to him than to Elijah his herald. 13 done unto him what Then the disciples understood that he spake to 13 Then the discithem concerning John the Baptist, who was ples understood that foretold under the name of Elijah, as the he spake unto them Messiah was under that of David. (Compare Mal. iv. 5, and Ezek. xxxiv. 23, 24.) generally does, signify restoring things to their former state, but only, in the general, reducing them to order. It is strange Tertullian (de Resur. cap. 35) should infer from hence that Elijah the prophet is to come before Christ's second appearance. Grotius has well confuted that wild notion in his annotations, in loc. of John the Baptist. well as of the Son of man, that he should have much to suffer, and be rejected with contempt." But this is not strictly agreeable to the original, nor can I find the mar tyrdom of John the Baptist any where foretold in the Old Testament: I choose there. fore to render this clause as a question. That xa sometimes signifies [and yet] eviAnd how is it also written of the Son of dently appears from John v. 40; Luke ix.. man himself!] The construction of this 45; Mat. xxiii. 37; and other places. verse in the original is as perplexed as Elijah is indeed come already, as it is almost any in the New Testament. The written of him.] For the reason assigned Prussian Testament, which is followed by in the preceding note I choose to connect the late English version, renders it roundly these two clauses, and conclude that the and elegantly enough: "It is true," said words which lie between, both in the he, "that Elias must first come to restore original and in our translation, are to be all things, and that it is foretold of him, as included in a parenthesis. n Reflections on the transfiguration of Christ. IMPROVEMENT. Mat. How glorious and delightful was this view of our blessed SECT. Redeemer, which the apostles had, when he was transfigured xc. before them, clothed, as it were, with the Divine Shekinah, and shining with a lustre like that of the sun! How pleasing and xvii. 2 how edifying must it be to them to see with him Moses and Eli- 3 jah, those two eminent saints who had so many ages ago quitted our world, but whose names they had often read in the sacred records with wonder and reverence! Well might Peter say, It is good for us to be here. Well 4 might he be contented to resign his entertainments and his hopes elsewhere, that they might prolong these delightful moments, feasting their eyes with these Divine visions, and their minds with these more than human discourses. Nor can we wonder that the scene, transitory as it was, left so abiding a savour on his spirits, that in an epistle which he wrote many years after, and but a little before his death, he should single this story from a thousand others to attest it as he does, and to argue from it. (Compare 2 Pet. i. 16-18.) But, oh! how much more desirable is it to stand upon mount Zion, and to behold those brighter glories which our Jesus wears in the heavenly regions! To behold, not merely Moses and Elijah, but all the prophets, the apostles, and martyrs; and, in a word, all the saints of God in every age, whether to us personally known or unknown, surrounding him in a radiant circle; and not only to behold them, but to converse with them. Lord, it is good for us to be there, in our desires at least, and in our meditations, till thou pleasest to call us to that happy world, and to take us thither, where no drowsiness will cloud our eyes, where no hurry will discompose our thoughts; but where the perfection of holiness, and of love, shall cast out every degree of ix. 6 terror, as well as of sorrow. Luke ix. 32 Mark In the mean time let us reverently attend to that Saviour who appeared in this majestic form, and who comes recommended to us with so many testimonials of his Divine authority. He was Mat. again declared by a voice from heaven to be the beloved Son of xvii. 5 God; as such let us hear him, receiving all his revelations with the assurance of faith, and all his commands with the obedience of love. If these sentiments govern our hearts and our lives, the thoughts of that departure from this world, which we are shortly to accomplish, will be no grief or terror to our souls. Luke Like our blessed Master, we may connect the views of it, and ix.31 intermix discourse upon it, with the most delightful enjoyments and converse; nay, it will serve to render them yet more pleasing. For who would not long to be made conformable to Christ, even in his sufferings and death, if it may be a means of transforming us into the resemblance of his glories! On the next day, the people seeing him, are amazeä. SECT. Luke SECT. XCI. Christ, descending from the mountain on which he was transfigured, drives out an evil spirit which had obstinately withstood the attempts of his apostles. Mat. XVII. 14-21. Mark IX. 14-29. Luke IX. 37-43—. LUKE IX. 87. HUS did our Lord discourse with his Tthree disciples after he had been trans to pass, that on the next day, when him. were come figured in so glorious a manner in their pres- they ix. 37 ence: and it came to pass, that on the next day, down from the hill, when they came down from the mountain on much people met which the night had been so delightfully spent, Mark a great crowd of people met him. And, being MARK IX. 14. ix. 14 come to the disciples, and particularly to the And when he came rest of the apostles, who, knowing their Mas- to his disciples, he ter was on the hill, waited for him in the tude about them, saw a great multiadjacent valley, he saw a great multitude around and them, and, among the rest, some of the scribes questioning and Pharisees, who were disputing with them, and endeavoured to take the opportunity of their Master's absence to expose and distress them. 15 them. the scribes with And immediately, as soon as he came near 15 And straightthem, all the multitude seeing him, was struck way all the people, into astonishment at those unusual rays of majes-in, were greatly when they beheld ty and glory which yet remained on his counte- amazed; and, runnance; and, running to him, they saluted him ning to him, saluted with the greatest marks of respect and af- him. fection: yet the scribes and Pharisees, without ■ Was struck into astonishment, &c.] It is strange that so few critics should have said any thing concerning the reason of the multitude's being thus astonished. It could not be, as Dr. Clarke supposes, his coming down from the mountain the day after he went up; for they were gathered round it in expectation of his descent; and I do not remember that he ever continued more than one night in such a retirement. Nor is it easy to imagine the multitude were under any apprehension, after he had been no longer absent, that they never should be able to find him again. I therefore follow Dr. Whitby's natural conjecture in his paraphrase, which is agreeable to what we read of Moses, that the skin of his face shone when he came down from the mount. (Compare Exod. xxxiv. 29, 30, and 2 Cor. iii. 7.) One would indeed have expected that Luke, who has mentioned the lustre on Stephen's countenance, when pleading his cause before the sanhedrim (Acts vi. 15,) should have taken some notice of the fact here supposed: but it is observable Mark tells the story before us far more circumstantially than either of the other evangelists; which, by the way, is another most convincing proof that his gospel was not (as Mr. Whiston supposes) an abridg. ment of Matthew. A lunatic possessed with a dumb spirit is brought to him. regarding his return, continued their illnatured SECT. attack on his disciples. 16 And he asked the scribes, What question ye with them ? XCI. 9 And, taking notice of the warm dispute they Mark were engaged in, he asked the scribes, What is ix. 16 the point you are debating, and what do you contend with them about? 17 And [LUKE, be-, And presently, upon his making this inquiry, 17 hold,][a certain man] behold, a [certain] man of the multitude came, of the multitude, and kneeling down to him, answered the quest [kneeling down to ion in effect; and, crying out with a loud and him,] answered and [LUKE, cried out, eager voice, said, O thou great Teacher and saying, Master, í Master in our Israel, I have brought thee my have brought unto poor afflicted son, who has for a long time been hath a dumb spirit. Possessed with a dumb spirit ; and the mali[MAT. XVII. 14. cious demon has deprived him of the use of his LUKE IX. 38- hearing and speech: And in this moving case, thee my son, which Lord, I beseech the water. [LUKE IX.-38.] MAT. XVII. 15. O Lord, I beseech thee look upon my son, for he Mat. thee, look upon my is mine only child, [and] yet, instead of being xvii.15 son, for he is mine any comfort to me, is a most melancholy speconly child; and have tacle of horror; let me entreat thee therefore mercy on him, for he is lunatic, and sore to have compassion on [him,] for he is lunatic, vexed: for oft times and grievously tormented with terrible fits,which he falleth into the frequently seize him, and sometimes endanger fire, and oft into his life; for he often falleth into the fire, and often into the water. And behold, wherever LUKE IX. 39. And [this] spirit seizes him, he has no strength or Luke lo, [wheresoever] this spirit take h thought to take care of himself, but suddenly ix. 9 him, he suddenly cries out in a violent manner; and it convulses crieth out, and it him so, that he foams again at the mouth; and again, (and gnashes with his teeth in extremity of anguish ; gnasheth with his and thus he miserably pines, and withers away teeth, and pineth in the bloom of his age and [it] is with great away;] and bruising difficulty that the malignant demon departs from him, it hardly departeth from him. him for a little while, having bruised him to such [MARK IX. 18.-] a degree by violent distortions, that he is hardly able to use his limbs in the interval of these MAT. XVII. 16. dreadful agitations. And I am persuaded Mat. And I brought him there is some more than ordinary difficulty in xvii.16 to thy disciples, [and the case; for I brought him to thy disciples, and spake to them,] [LUKE, and be- spake to [them] concerning him, and entreated sought them to cast [them] in the most affectionate manner, to use teareth him, that he foameth again, [and He is lunatic.] Grotius well observes the evil spirit would undoubtedly take adthat this word (which exactly answers the vantage of those disorders into which the etymology of the original) might with brain and nerves of this unhappy child were great propriety be used, though there was thrown by the changes of the moon. something preternatural in the case; as 10 The disciples being unable to cure him, Jesus is applied to; SECT. their utmost efforts to cast him out; and they him out,] and they could not accomplish it, nor heal him. XCI. Mat. could not cure him. [MARK IX.-18. Then Jesus said in reply to him, O ye incred- LUKE IX. 40.] xvii.17 ulous and perverse generation of men, how long 17 Then Jesus shall I be with you before you will learn a be- answered [him] and coming regard to me? How long shall I endure said, O faithless and perverse generation, that infidelity which you are shewing on so how long shall I be many occasions? And thus did he mean at with you? how long once to reprove the weakness of faith in the shall I suffer you? father, and in his disciples, as well as the obsti- son] hither to me. bring [LUKE, thy nacy and perverseness of the Jewish teachers, [MARK IX. who were triumphing in their present disap. LUKE IX. 41.] pointment and then, turning to the father of the child and his attendants, he said, Bring thy son hither to me, and you shall see what my Mark power can effect. 19. spirit And upon this they brought him that was posMARK IX. 20. ix. 20 sessed to Jesus, and presented the poor creature him unto him: and And they brought to him. And immediately, as soon as he saw him, when he saw him, while he was yet coming, the evil spirit in a [as he was yet a rage wrought in him with such violence that he coming,] straightway the threw him down, and convulsed him; and he fell [threw him down, on the ground with great force, and there lay, and] tare him, and and rolled from one side to the other, a spec- he fell on the tacle of horror, foaming at the mouth, and ground, and wallowed foaming. [LUKE sweating profusely, till nature was almost IX. 42.---] exhausted, and he seemed ready to die. 21 And, that the greatness of the cure might,.21 And he asked more plainly appear, while the unhappy youth his father, How long is it ago since this lay thus before him, he asked his father, How came unto him? long time is it that he hath been thus afflicted? And he said, Of a : 22 And he said, Even from his childhood And the child. 22 And oft times evil spirit is so outrageous, and so malicious, it hath cast him into that it frequently, as I said, has thrown him into the fire, and into the the fire, and into the waters, when he has hap. waters to destroy pened to be near them, as if he watched for him but if thou canst do any thing, opportunities to destroy him; so that I am sen- have compassion on sible it is a most difficult, as well as dreadful us, and help us. case: but if thou canst do any thing in it,a have compassion on us, and help us; for surely none ever needed thy pity more. • From his childhood.] So the word on his approaching Christ, his faith might ad properly signifies; and, I think begin to fail. This was a very natural with Grotius, it is much more convenient manner of speaking, and yet strongly pato render it thus; than from his infancy. thetic, and obliquely interesting the honour If thou canst do any thing in it.] Per- of Christ in the issue of the affair. See haps, observing the fit grow more violent Raphels ex. Xen. p. 73. |