mh_parser/vol_split/42 - Luke/Chapter 17.xml

<div2 id="Luke.xviii" n="xviii" next="Luke.xix" prev="Luke.xvii" progress="61.79%" title="Chapter XVII">
<h2 id="Luke.xviii-p0.1">L U K E.</h2>
<h3 id="Luke.xviii-p0.2">CHAP. XVII.</h3>
<p class="intro" id="Luke.xviii-p1">In this chapter we have, I. Some particular
discourses which Christ had with his disciples, in which he teaches
them to take heed of giving offence, and to forgive the injuries
done them (<scripRef id="Luke.xviii-p1.1" osisRef="Bible:Luke.17.1-Luke.17.4" parsed="|Luke|17|1|17|4" passage="Lu 17:1-4">ver. 1-4</scripRef>),
encourages them to pray for the increase of their faith (<scripRef id="Luke.xviii-p1.2" osisRef="Bible:Luke.17.5-Luke.17.6" parsed="|Luke|17|5|17|6" passage="Lu 17:5,6">ver. 5, 6</scripRef>), and then teaches them
humility, whatever service they had done for God, <scripRef id="Luke.xviii-p1.3" osisRef="Bible:Luke.17.7-Luke.17.10" parsed="|Luke|17|7|17|10" passage="Lu 17:7-10">ver. 7-10</scripRef>. II. His cleansing ten
lepers, and the thanks he had from one of them only, and he a
Samaritan, <scripRef id="Luke.xviii-p1.4" osisRef="Bible:Luke.17.11-Luke.17.19" parsed="|Luke|17|11|17|19" passage="Lu 17:11-19">ver. 11-19</scripRef>.
III. His discourse with his disciples, upon occasion of an enquiry
of the Pharisees, when the kingdom of God should appear, <scripRef id="Luke.xviii-p1.5" osisRef="Bible:Luke.17.20-Luke.17.37" parsed="|Luke|17|20|17|37" passage="Lu 17:20-37">ver. 20-37</scripRef>.</p>
<scripCom id="Luke.xviii-p1.6" osisRef="Bible:Luke.17" parsed="|Luke|17|0|0|0" passage="Lu 17" type="Commentary"/>
<scripCom id="Luke.xviii-p1.7" osisRef="Bible:Luke.17.1-Luke.17.10" parsed="|Luke|17|1|17|10" passage="Lu 17:1-10" type="Commentary"/><div class="Commentary" id="Bible:Luke.17.1-Luke.17.10">
<h4 id="Luke.xviii-p1.8">The Treatment of Offences.</h4>
<p class="passage" id="Luke.xviii-p2">1 Then said he unto the disciples, It is
impossible but that offences will come: but woe <i>unto him,</i>
through whom they come!   2 It were better for him that a
millstone were hanged about his neck, and he cast into the sea,
than that he should offend one of these little ones.   3 Take
heed to yourselves: If thy brother trespass against thee, rebuke
him; and if he repent, forgive him.   4 And if he trespass
against thee seven times in a day, and seven times in a day turn
again to thee, saying, I repent; thou shalt forgive him.   5
And the apostles said unto the Lord, Increase our faith.   6
And the Lord said, If ye had faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye
might say unto this sycamine tree, Be thou plucked up by the root,
and be thou planted in the sea; and it should obey you.   7
But which of you, having a servant plowing or feeding cattle, will
say unto him by and by, when he is come from the field, Go and sit
down to meat?   8 And will not rather say unto him, Make ready
wherewith I may sup, and gird thyself, and serve me, till I have
eaten and drunken; and afterward thou shalt eat and drink?   9
Doth he thank that servant because he did the things that were
commanded him? I trow not.   10 So likewise ye, when ye shall
have done all those things which are commanded you, say, We are
unprofitable servants: we have done that which was our duty to
do.</p>
<p class="indent" id="Luke.xviii-p3">We are here taught,</p>
<p class="indent" id="Luke.xviii-p4">I. That the <i>giving of offences</i> is a
<i>great sin,</i> and that which we should every one of us avoid
and carefully watch against, <scripRef id="Luke.xviii-p4.1" osisRef="Bible:Luke.17.1-Luke.17.2" parsed="|Luke|17|1|17|2" passage="Lu 17:1,2"><i>v.</i> 1, 2</scripRef>. We can expect no other than
that offences will come, considering the perverseness and
frowardness that are in the nature of man, and the wise purpose and
counsel of God, who will carry on his work even by those offences,
and bring good out of evil. <i>It is</i> almost <i>impossible but
that offences will come,</i> and therefore we are concerned to
provide accordingly; but <i>woe to him through whom they come,</i>
his doom will be heavy (<scripRef id="Luke.xviii-p4.2" osisRef="Bible:Luke.17.2" parsed="|Luke|17|2|0|0" passage="Lu 17:2"><i>v.</i>
2</scripRef>), more terrible than that of the worst of the
malefactors who are condemned to be thrown into the sea, for they
perish under a load of guilt more <i>ponderous</i> than that of
<i>millstones.</i> This includes a woe, 1. To persecutors, who
offer any injury to the least of Christ's <i>little ones,</i> in
word or deed, by which they are discouraged in serving Christ, and
doing their duty, or in danger of being driven off from it. 2. To
seducers, who corrupt the truths of Christ and his ordinances, and
so <i>trouble the minds of the disciples;</i> for they are those by
whom <i>offences come.</i> 3. To those who, under the profession of
the Christian name, live scandalously, and thereby weaken the bands
and sadden the hearts of God's people; for by them the offence
comes, and it is no abatement of their guilt, nor will be any of
their punishment, that it is impossible but offences will come.</p>
<p class="indent" id="Luke.xviii-p5">II. That the <i>forgiving of offences</i>
is a <i>great duty,</i> and that which we should every one of us
make conscience of (<scripRef id="Luke.xviii-p5.1" osisRef="Bible:Luke.17.3" parsed="|Luke|17|3|0|0" passage="Lu 17:3"><i>v.</i>
3</scripRef>): <i>Take heed to yourselves.</i> This may refer
either to what goes before, or to what follows: <i>Take heed that
you offend not one of these little ones.</i> Ministers must be very
careful not to say or do any thing that may be a discouragement to
weak Christians; there is need of great caution, and they ought to
speak and act very considerately, for fear of this: or, "When
<i>your brother trespasses against you,</i> does you any injury,
puts any slight or affront upon you, if he be accessary to any
damage done you in your property or reputation, <i>take heed to
yourselves at such a time,</i> lest you be put into a passion;
lest, when your spirits are provoked, you <i>speak unadvisedly,</i>
and rashly vow to revenge (<scripRef id="Luke.xviii-p5.2" osisRef="Bible:Prov.24.29" parsed="|Prov|24|29|0|0" passage="Pr 24:29">Prov. xxiv.
29</scripRef>): <i>I will do so to him as he hath done to me.</i>
Take heed what you say at such a time, lest you say amiss."</p>
<p class="indent" id="Luke.xviii-p6">1. If you are permitted to <i>rebuke
him,</i> you are advised to do so. Smother not the resentment, but
give it vent. <i>Tell him his faults;</i> show him wherein he has
not done well nor fairly by you, and, it may be, you will perceive
(and you must be very willing to perceive it) that you mistook him,
that it was not a <i>trespass against you,</i> or not designed, but
an <i>oversight,</i> and then you will beg his pardon for
misunderstanding him; as <scripRef id="Luke.xviii-p6.1" osisRef="Bible:Josh.22.30-Josh.22.31" parsed="|Josh|22|30|22|31" passage="Jos 22:30,31">Josh.
xxii. 30, 31</scripRef>.</p>
<p class="indent" id="Luke.xviii-p7">2. You are commanded, upon his repentance,
to forgive him, and to be perfectly reconciled to him: <i>If he
repent, forgive him;</i> forget the injury, never think of it
again, much less upbraid him with it. Though he do not repent, you
must not therefore bear malice to him, nor meditate revenge; but,
it he do not at least <i>say that he repents,</i> you are not bound
to be so free and familiar with him as you have been. If he be
guilty of gross sin, to the offence of the Christian community he
is a member of, let him be gravely and mildly reproved for his sin,
and, upon his repentance, received into friendship and communion
again. This the apostle calls <i>forgiveness,</i> <scripRef id="Luke.xviii-p7.1" osisRef="Bible:2Cor.2.7" parsed="|2Cor|2|7|0|0" passage="2Co 2:7">2 Cor. ii. 7</scripRef>.</p>
<p class="indent" id="Luke.xviii-p8">3. You are to repeat this every time he
repeats his trespass, <scripRef id="Luke.xviii-p8.1" osisRef="Bible:Luke.17.4" parsed="|Luke|17|4|0|0" passage="Lu 17:4"><i>v.</i>
4</scripRef>. "If he could be supposed to be either so negligent,
or so impudent, as to <i>trespass against thee seven times in a
day,</i> and as often profess himself sorry for his fault, and
promise not again to offend in like manner, continue to <i>forgive
him." Humanum est errare—To ere is human.</i> Note, Christians
should be of a forgiving spirit, willing to make the best of every
body, and to make all about them easy; forward to extenuate faults,
and not to aggravate them; and they should contrive as much to show
that they have forgiven an injury as others to show that they
resent it.</p>
<p class="indent" id="Luke.xviii-p9">III. That we have all need to get our
<i>faith</i> strengthened, because, as that grace grows, all other
graces grow. The more firmly we believe the doctrine of Christ, and
the more confidently we rely upon the grace of Christ, the better
it will be with us every way. Now observe here, 1. The address
which the disciples made to Christ, for the strengthening of their
faith, <scripRef id="Luke.xviii-p9.1" osisRef="Bible:Luke.17.5" parsed="|Luke|17|5|0|0" passage="Lu 17:5"><i>v.</i> 5</scripRef>. <i>The
apostles</i> themselves, so they are here called, though they were
prime ministers of state in Christ's kingdom, yet acknowledged the
weakness and deficiency of their faith, and saw their need of
Christ's grace for the improvement of it; they <i>said unto the
Lord, "Increase our faith,</i> and perfect what is lacking in it."
Let the discoveries of faith be more clear, the desires of faith
more strong, the dependences of faith more firm and fixed, the
dedications of faith more entire and resolute, and the delights of
faith more pleasing. Note, the increase of our faith is what we
should earnestly desire, and we should offer up that desire to God
in prayer. Some think that they put up this prayer to Christ upon
occasion of his pressing upon them the duty of forgiving injuries:
"<i>Lord, increase our faith,</i> or we shall never be able to
practise such a difficult duty as this." Faith in God's pardoning
mercy will enable us to get over the greatest difficulties that lie
in the way of our forgiving our brother. Others think that it was
upon some other occasion, when the apostles were run aground in
working some miracle, and were reproved by Christ for the weakness
of their faith, as <scripRef id="Luke.xviii-p9.2" osisRef="Bible:Matt.17.16" parsed="|Matt|17|16|0|0" passage="Mt 17:16">Matt. xvii.
16</scripRef>, &amp;c. To him that <i>blamed</i> them they must
apply themselves for grace to <i>mend</i> them; to him they cry,
<i>Lord, increase our faith.</i> 2. The assurance Christ gave them
of the wonderful efficacy of true faith (<scripRef id="Luke.xviii-p9.3" osisRef="Bible:Luke.17.6" parsed="|Luke|17|6|0|0" passage="Lu 17:6"><i>v.</i> 6</scripRef>): "<i>If ye had faith as a grain
of mustard-seed,</i> so <i>small</i> as mustard-seed, but yours is
yet less than the least; or so <i>sharp</i> as <i>mustard-seed,</i>
so pungent, so exciting to all other graces, as mustard to the
animal spirits," and therefore used in palsies, "you might do
wonders much beyond what you now do; nothing would be too hard for
you, that was fit to be done for the glory of God, and the
confirmation of the doctrine you preach, yea, though it were the
<i>transplanting of a tree</i> from the earth <i>to the sea.</i>"
See <scripRef id="Luke.xviii-p9.4" osisRef="Bible:Matt.17.20" parsed="|Matt|17|20|0|0" passage="Mt 17:20">Matt. xvii. 20</scripRef>. As with
God <i>nothing is impossible,</i> so are all <i>things possible to
him that can believe.</i></p>
<p class="indent" id="Luke.xviii-p10">IV. That, whatever we do in the service of
Christ, we must be very humble, and not imagine that we can merit
any favour at his hand, or claim it as a debt; even the apostles
themselves, who did so much more for Christ than others, must not
think that they had thereby made him their debtor. 1. We are all
<i>God's servants</i> (his <i>apostles</i> and <i>ministers</i> are
in a special manner <i>so</i>), and, as servants, are bound to do
all we can for his honour. Our whole strength and our whole time
are to be employed for him; for <i>we are not our own,</i> nor at
our own disposal, but at our Master's. 2. As God's servants, it
becomes us to fill up our time with duty, and we have a variety of
work appointed us to do; we ought to make the end of one service
the beginning of another. The servant that has been
<i>ploughing,</i> or <i>feeding cattle, in the field,</i> when he
<i>comes home</i> at night has work to do still; he must <i>wait at
table,</i> <scripRef id="Luke.xviii-p10.1" osisRef="Bible:Luke.17.7-Luke.17.8" parsed="|Luke|17|7|17|8" passage="Lu 17:7,8"><i>v.</i> 7, 8</scripRef>.
When we have been employed in the duties of a religious
conversation, that will not excuse us from the exercises of
devotion; when we have been <i>working for God,</i> still we must
be <i>waiting on God,</i> waiting on him continually. 3. Our
principal care here must be to do the duty of our relation, and
leave it to our Master to give us the comfort of it, when and how
he thinks fit. No servant expects that his master should say to
him, <i>Go and sit down to meat;</i> it is time enough to do that
when we have <i>done our day's work.</i> Let us be in care to
finish our work, and to do that well, and then the reward will come
in due time. 4. It is fit that Christ should be served before us:
<i>Make ready wherewith I may sup, and afterwards thou shalt eat
and drink.</i> Doubting Christians say that they cannot give to
Christ the glory of his love as they should, because they have not
yet obtained the comfort of it; but this is wrong. First let Christ
have the glory of it, let us attend him with our praises, and then
we shall <i>eat and drink</i> in the comfort of that love, and in
this there is a feast. 5. Christ's servants, when they are to wait
upon him, must <i>gird themselves,</i> must free themselves from
every thing that is entangling and encumbering, and fit themselves
with a close application of mind to go on, and go through, with
their work; they must <i>gird up the loins of their mind.</i> When
we have prepared for Christ's entertainment, have <i>made ready
wherewith he may sup,</i> we must then <i>gird ourselves,</i> to
attend him. This is expected from servants, and Christ might
require it from us, but he does not insist upon it. He was <i>among
his disciples as one that served,</i> and came not, as other
masters, to take state, and <i>to be ministered unto, but to
minister;</i> witness his washing his disciples' feet. 6. Christ's
servants do not so much as merit his thanks for any service they do
him: "<i>Does he thank that servant?</i> Does he reckon himself
indebted to him for it? No, by no means." No good works of ours can
merit any thing at the hand of God. We expect God's favour, not
because we have by our services made him a debtor to us, but
because he has by his promises made himself a debtor to his own
honour, and this we may plead with him, but cannot sue for a
<i>quantum meruit—according to merit.</i> 7. Whatever we do for
Christ, though it should be more perhaps than some others do, yet
it is no more than is our duty to do. Though we should <i>do all
things that are commanded us,</i> and alas! in many things we come
short of this, yet there is no work of <i>supererogation;</i> it is
but what we are bound to by that first and great commandment of
<i>loving God</i> with <i>all our heart and soul,</i> which
includes the utmost. 8. The best servants of Christ, even when they
do the best services, must humbly acknowledge that they are
<i>unprofitable servants;</i> though they are not those
unprofitable servants that bury their talents, and shall be cast
into <i>utter darkness,</i> yet as to Christ, and any advantage
that can accrue to him by their services, they are
<i>unprofitable;</i> our <i>goodness extendeth not unto God,</i>
nor <i>if we are righteous is he the better,</i> <scripRef id="Luke.xviii-p10.2" osisRef="Bible:Ps.16.2 Bible:Job.22.2 Bible:Job.35.7" parsed="|Ps|16|2|0|0;|Job|22|2|0|0;|Job|35|7|0|0" passage="Ps 16:2,Job 22:2,35:7">Ps. xvi. 2; Job xxii. 2; xxxv.
7</scripRef>. God cannot be a <i>gainer</i> by our services, and
therefore cannot be made a <i>debtor</i> by them. He has no need of
us, nor can our services make any addition to his perfections. It
becomes us therefore to call ourselves <i>unprofitable
servants,</i> but to call his service a profitable service, for God
is happy without us, but we are undone without him.</p>
</div><scripCom id="Luke.xviii-p10.3" osisRef="Bible:Luke.17.11-Luke.17.19" parsed="|Luke|17|11|17|19" passage="Lu 17:11-19" type="Commentary"/><div class="Commentary" id="Bible:Luke.17.11-Luke.17.19">
<h4 id="Luke.xviii-p10.4">The Ten Lepers.</h4>
<p class="passage" id="Luke.xviii-p11">11 And it came to pass, as he went to Jerusalem,
that he passed through the midst of Samaria and Galilee.   12
And as he entered into a certain village, there met him ten men
that were lepers, which stood afar off:   13 And they lifted
up <i>their</i> voices, and said, Jesus, Master, have mercy on us.
  14 And when he saw <i>them,</i> he said unto them, Go show
yourselves unto the priests. And it came to pass, that, as they
went, they were cleansed.   15 And one of them, when he saw
that he was healed, turned back, and with a loud voice glorified
God,   16 And fell down on <i>his</i> face at his feet, giving
him thanks: and he was a Samaritan.   17 And Jesus answering
said, Were there not ten cleansed? but where <i>are</i> the nine?
  18 There are not found that returned to give glory to God,
save this stranger.   19 And he said unto him, Arise, go thy
way: thy faith hath made thee whole.</p>
<p class="indent" id="Luke.xviii-p12">We have here an account of the cure of ten
lepers, which we had not in any other of the evangelists. The
leprosy was a disease which the Jews supposed to be inflicted for
the punishment of some particular sin, and to be, more than other
diseases, a mark of God's displeasure; and therefore Christ, who
came to take away sin, and turn away wrath, took particular care to
cleanse the lepers that fell in his way. Christ was now in his way
to Jerusalem, about the mid-way, where he had little acquaintance
in comparison with what he had either at Jerusalem or in Galilee.
He was now in the frontier-country, the marches that lay between
Samaria and Galilee. He went that road to find out these lepers,
and to cure them; for he is <i>found of them that sought him
not.</i> Observe,</p>
<p class="indent" id="Luke.xviii-p13">I. The address of these lepers to Christ.
They were ten in a company; for, though they were shut out from
society with others, yet those that were infected were at liberty
to converse with one another, which would be some comfort to them,
as giving them an opportunity to compare notes, and to condole with
one another. Now observe, 1. They <i>met</i> Christ <i>as he
entered into a certain village.</i> They did not stay till he had
refreshed himself for some time after the fatigue of his journey,
but met him as he <i>entered</i> the town, weary as he was; and yet
he did not put them off, nor adjourn their cause. 2. They <i>stood
afar off,</i> knowing that by the law their disease obliged them to
<i>keep their distance.</i> A sense of our spiritual leprosy should
make us very humble in all our approaches to Christ. Who are we,
that we should draw near to him that is infinitely pure? We are
impure. 3. Their request was unanimous, and very importunate
(<scripRef id="Luke.xviii-p13.1" osisRef="Bible:Luke.17.13" parsed="|Luke|17|13|0|0" passage="Lu 17:13"><i>v.</i> 13</scripRef>): <i>They
lifted up their voices,</i> being at a distance, and cried,
<i>Jesus, Master, have mercy on us.</i> those that expect help from
Christ must take him for their Master, and be at his command. If he
be <i>Master,</i> he will be <i>Jesus, a Saviour,</i> and not
otherwise. They ask not in particular to be cured of their leprosy,
but, <i>Have mercy on us;</i> and it is enough to refer ourselves
to the compassions of Christ, for they <i>fail not.</i> They heard
the fame of this Jesus (though he had not been much conversant in
that country), and that was such as encouraged them to make
application to him; and, if but one of them began in so cheap and
easy an address, they would all join.</p>
<p class="indent" id="Luke.xviii-p14">II. Christ sent them to <i>the priest,</i>
to be <i>inspected</i> by him, who was the judge of the leprosy. He
did not tell them positively that they should be <i>cured,</i> but
bade them <i>go show themselves to the priests,</i> <scripRef id="Luke.xviii-p14.1" osisRef="Bible:Luke.17.14" parsed="|Luke|17|14|0|0" passage="Lu 17:14"><i>v.</i> 14</scripRef>. This was a trial of
their obedience, and it was fit that it should be so tried, as
Naaman's in a like case: <i>Go wash in Jordan.</i> Note, Those that
expect Christ's favours must take them in his way and method. Some
of these lepers perhaps would be ready to quarrel with the
prescription: "Let him either cure or say that he will not, and not
send us to the priests on a fool's errand;" but, over-ruled by the
rest, they all <i>went to the priest.</i> As the ceremonial law was
yet in force, Christ took care that it should be observed, and the
reputation of it kept up, and due honour paid to the priests in
things pertaining to their function; but, probably, he had here a
further design, which was to have the priest's <i>judgment of,</i>
and <i>testimony to,</i> the perfectness of the cure; and that the
priest might be awakened, and others by him, to enquire after one
that had such a commanding power over bodily diseases.</p>
<p class="indent" id="Luke.xviii-p15">III. <i>As they went, they were
cleansed,</i> and so became fit to be looked upon by the priest,
and to have a certificate from him that they were clean. Observe,
<i>Then</i> we may expect God to meet us with mercy when we are
found in the way of duty. If we do what we can, God will not be
wanting to do that for us which we cannot. Go, attend upon
instituted ordinances; go and pray, and read the scriptures: <i>Go
show thyself to the priests;</i> go and open thy case to a faithful
minister, and, though the means will not heal thee of themselves,
God will heal thee in the diligent use of those means.</p>
<p class="indent" id="Luke.xviii-p16">IV. One of them, and but one, <i>returned,
to give thanks,</i> <scripRef id="Luke.xviii-p16.1" osisRef="Bible:Luke.17.15" parsed="|Luke|17|15|0|0" passage="Lu 17:15"><i>v.</i>
15</scripRef>. When he <i>saw that he was healed,</i> instead of
going forward to the priest, to be by him declared clean, and so
discharged from his confinement, which was all that the rest aimed
at, he <i>turned back</i> towards him who was the Author of his
cure, whom he wished to have the glory of it, before he received
the benefit of it. He appears to have been very hearty and
affectionate in his thanksgivings: <i>With a loud voice he
glorified God,</i> acknowledging it to come originally from
<i>him;</i> and he <i>lifted up his voice</i> in his praises, as he
had done in his prayers, <scripRef id="Luke.xviii-p16.2" osisRef="Bible:Luke.17.13" parsed="|Luke|17|13|0|0" passage="Lu 17:13"><i>v.</i>
13</scripRef>. Those that have received mercy from God should
publish it to others, that they may praise God too, and may be
encouraged by their experiences to trust in him. But he also made a
particular address of thanks to Christ (<scripRef id="Luke.xviii-p16.3" osisRef="Bible:Luke.17.16" parsed="|Luke|17|16|0|0" passage="Lu 17:16"><i>v.</i> 16</scripRef>): <i>He fell down at his
feet,</i> put himself into the most humble reverent posture he
could, and <i>gave him thanks.</i> Note, We ought to give thanks
for the favours Christ bestows upon us, and particularly for
recoveries from sickness; and we ought to be <i>speedy</i> in our
returns of praise, and not defer them, lest time wear out the sense
of the mercy. It becomes us also to be very humble in our
thanksgivings, as well as in our prayers. It becomes the seed of
Jacob, like him, to own themselves <i>less than the least of God's
mercies,</i> when they have received them, as well as when they are
in pursuit of them.</p>
<p class="indent" id="Luke.xviii-p17">V. Christ took notice of this one that had
thus distinguished himself; for, it seems, he was a Samaritan,
whereas the rest were Jews, <scripRef id="Luke.xviii-p17.1" osisRef="Bible:Luke.17.16" parsed="|Luke|17|16|0|0" passage="Lu 17:16"><i>v.</i>
16</scripRef>. The Samaritans were separatists from the Jewish
church, and had not the pure knowledge and worship of God among
them that the Jews had, and yet it was one of them that
<i>glorified God,</i> when the Jews forgot, or, when it was moved
to them, <i>refused,</i> to do it. Now observe here,</p>
<p class="indent" id="Luke.xviii-p18">1. The particular notice Christ took of
him, of the grateful return he made, and the ingratitude of those
that were sharers with him in the mercy—that he who was a
<i>stranger</i> to the commonwealth of Israel was the only one that
<i>returned to give glory to God,</i> <scripRef id="Luke.xviii-p18.1" osisRef="Bible:Luke.17.17-Luke.17.18" parsed="|Luke|17|17|17|18" passage="Lu 17:17,18"><i>v.</i> 17, 18</scripRef>. See here, (1.) How
<i>rich</i> Christ is in <i>doing good: Were there not ten
cleansed?</i> Here was a cure by <i>wholesale,</i> a whole
<i>hospital</i> healed with <i>one</i> word's speaking. Note, There
is an abundance of healing cleansing virtue in the blood of Christ,
sufficient for all his patients, though ever so many. Here are
<i>ten at a time</i> cleansed; we shall have never the less grace
for others sharing it. (2.) How <i>poor</i> we are in our returns:
"<i>Where are the nine?</i> Why did not they return to give
thanks?" This intimates that ingratitude is a very common sin. Of
the many that receive mercy from God, there are but few, very few,
that <i>return to give thanks</i> in a right manner (scarcely
<i>one in ten</i>), that render according to the benefit done to
them. (3.) How those often prove most grateful from whom it was
least expected. A Samaritan gives thanks, and a Jew does not. Thus
many who profess revealed religion are out-done, and quite shamed,
by some that are governed only by natural religion, not only in
moral value, but in piety and devotion. This serves here to
aggravate the ingratitude of those Jews of whom Christ speaks, as
<i>taking it very ill</i> that his kindness was so slighted. And it
intimates how justly he resents the ingratitude of the world of
mankind, for whom he had <i>done so much,</i> and from whom he has
<i>received so little.</i></p>
<p class="indent" id="Luke.xviii-p19">2. The great encouragement Christ gave him,
<scripRef id="Luke.xviii-p19.1" osisRef="Bible:Luke.17.19" parsed="|Luke|17|19|0|0" passage="Lu 17:19"><i>v.</i> 19</scripRef>. The rest had
their <i>cure,</i> and had it not <i>revoked,</i> as justly it
might have been, for their ingratitude, though they had such a good
example of gratitude set before them; but he had his cure confirmed
particularly with an encomium: <i>Thy faith hath made thee
whole.</i> The rest were <i>made whole</i> by the power of Christ,
in compassion to their distress, and in answer to their prayer; but
he was made whole <i>by his faith,</i> by which Christ saw him
distinguished from the rest. Note, Temporal mercies are <i>then</i>
doubled and sweetened to us when they are <i>fetched</i> in by the
prayers of faith, and <i>returned</i> by the praises of faith.</p>
</div><scripCom id="Luke.xviii-p19.2" osisRef="Bible:Luke.17.20-Luke.17.37" parsed="|Luke|17|20|17|37" passage="Lu 17:20-37" type="Commentary"/><div class="Commentary" id="Bible:Luke.17.20-Luke.17.37">
<h4 id="Luke.xviii-p19.3">The Progress of Christ's Kingdom;
Destruction of Jerusalem.</h4>
<p class="passage" id="Luke.xviii-p20">20 And when he was demanded of the Pharisees,
when the kingdom of God should come, he answered them and said, The
kingdom of God cometh not with observation:   21 Neither shall
they say, Lo here! or, lo there! for, behold, the kingdom of God is
within you.   22 And he said unto the disciples, The days will
come, when ye shall desire to see one of the days of the Son of
man, and ye shall not see <i>it.</i>   23 And they shall say
to you, See here; or, see there: go not after <i>them,</i> nor
follow <i>them.</i>   24 For as the lightning, that lighteneth
out of the one <i>part</i> under heaven, shineth unto the other
<i>part</i> under heaven; so shall also the Son of man be in his
day.   25 But first must he suffer many things, and be
rejected of this generation.   26 And as it was in the days of
Noe, so shall it be also in the days of the Son of man.   27
They did eat, they drank, they married wives, they were given in
marriage, until the day that Noe entered into the ark, and the
flood came, and destroyed them all.   28 Likewise also as it
was in the days of Lot; they did eat, they drank, they bought, they
sold, they planted, they builded;   29 But the same day that
Lot went out of Sodom it rained fire and brimstone from heaven, and
destroyed <i>them</i> all.   30 Even thus shall it be in the
day when the Son of man is revealed.   31 In that day, he
which shall be upon the housetop, and his stuff in the house, let
him not come down to take it away: and he that is in the field, let
him likewise not return back.   32 Remember Lot's wife.  
33 Whosoever shall seek to save his life shall lose it; and
whosoever shall lose his life shall preserve it.   34 I tell
you, in that night there shall be two <i>men</i> in one bed; the
one shall be taken, and the other shall be left.   35 Two
<i>women</i> shall be grinding together; the one shall be taken,
and the other left.   36 Two <i>men</i> shall be in the field;
the one shall be taken, and the other left.   37 And they
answered and said unto him, Where, Lord? And he said unto them,
Wheresoever the body <i>is,</i> thither will the eagles be gathered
together.</p>
<p class="indent" id="Luke.xviii-p21">We have here a discourse of Christ's
concerning the <i>kingdom of God,</i> that is, the kingdom of the
Messiah, which was now shortly to be <i>set up,</i> and of which
there was great expectation.</p>
<p class="indent" id="Luke.xviii-p22">I. Here is the demand of the Pharisees
concerning it, which occasioned this discourse. They asked <i>when
the kingdom of God should come,</i> forming a notion of it as a
<i>temporal kingdom,</i> which should advance the Jewish nation
above the nations of the earth. They were impatient to hear some
tidings of its approach; they understood, perhaps, that Christ had
taught his disciples to pray for the coming of it, and they had
long preached that it was <i>at hand.</i> "Now," say the Pharisees,
"when will that glorious view open? When shall we see this
<i>long-looked-for</i> kingdom?"</p>
<p class="indent" id="Luke.xviii-p23">II. Christ's reply to this demand, directed
to the Pharisees first, and afterwards to his own disciples, who
knew better how to understand it (<scripRef id="Luke.xviii-p23.1" osisRef="Bible:Luke.17.22" parsed="|Luke|17|22|0|0" passage="Lu 17:22"><i>v.</i> 22</scripRef>); what he said to both, he saith
to us.</p>
<p class="indent" id="Luke.xviii-p24">1. That the kingdom of the Messiah was to
be a <i>spiritual kingdom,</i> and not temporal and external. They
asked <i>when</i> it would come. "You know not what you ask," saith
Christ; "it may come, and you not be aware of it." For it has not
an <i>external show,</i> as other kingdoms have, the advancements
and revolutions of which are taken notice of by the nations of the
earth, and fill the newspapers; so they expected this kingdom of
God would do. "No," saith Christ, (1.) "It will have a silent
entrance, without pomp, without noise; it <i>cometh not with
observation,</i>" <b><i>meta paratereseos</i></b>—<i>with outward
show.</i> They desired to have their curiosity satisfied concerning
the <i>time</i> of it, to which Christ does not give them any
answer, but will have their mistakes rectified concerning the
nature of it: "<i>It is not for you to know the times</i> of this
kingdom, these are <i>secret things,</i> which belong not to you;
but the great intentions of this kingdom, these are <i>things
revealed.</i>" When Messiah the Prince comes to set up his kingdom,
they shall not say, <i>Lo here,</i> or <i>Lo there,</i> as when a
prince goes in progress to visit his territories it is in every
body's mouth, he is here, or he is there; for <i>where the king is
there is the court.</i> Christ will not come with all this talk; it
will not be set up in this or that particular place; nor will the
court of that kingdom be <i>here</i> or <i>there;</i> nor will it
be <i>here</i> or <i>there</i> as it respects the country men are
of, or the place they dwell in, as if that would place them nearer
to, or further from, that kingdom. Those who confine Christianity
and the church to this place or that party, cry, <i>Lo here,</i> or
<i>Lo there,</i> than which nothing is more contrary to the designs
of catholic Christianity; so do they who make prosperity and
external pomp a mark of the true church. (2.) "It has a
<i>spiritual</i> influence: <i>The kingdom of God is within
you.</i>" It is not of this world, <scripRef id="Luke.xviii-p24.1" osisRef="Bible:John.18.36" parsed="|John|18|36|0|0" passage="Joh 18:36">John xviii. 36</scripRef>. Its glory does not strike
men's fancies, but affects their spirits, and its power is over
their souls and consciences; from them it receives homage, and not
from their bodies only. The <i>kingdom of God</i> will not change
men's outward condition, but their hearts and lives. Then it
<i>comes</i> when it makes those humble, and serious, and heavenly,
that were proud, and vain, and carnal,—when it <i>weans</i> those
from the world that were <i>wedded</i> to the world; and therefore
look for the kingdom of God in the revolutions of the heart, not of
the civil government. The kingdom of God is <i>among you;</i> so
some read it. "You enquire when it will come, and are not aware
that it is already begun to be set up <i>in the midst of you.</i>
The gospel is preached, it is <i>confirmed</i> by miracles, it is
<i>embraced</i> by multitudes, so that it is <i>in your</i> nation,
though not in your hearts." Note, It is the folly of many curious
enquirers concerning the times to come that they look for that
<i>before them</i> which is already <i>among them.</i></p>
<p class="indent" id="Luke.xviii-p25">2. That the setting up of this kingdom was
a work that would meet with a great deal of <i>opposition</i> and
<i>interruption,</i> <scripRef id="Luke.xviii-p25.1" osisRef="Bible:Luke.17.22" parsed="|Luke|17|22|0|0" passage="Lu 17:22"><i>v.</i>
22</scripRef>. The <i>disciples</i> thought they should carry all
before them, and expected a constant series of success in their
work; but Christ tells them it would be otherwise: "<i>The days
will come,</i> before you have finished your testimony and done
your work, <i>when you shall desire to see one of the days of the
Son of man</i>" (one such a day as we <i>now</i> have), "of the
prosperity and progress of the gospel, and <i>shall not see it.</i>
At first, indeed, you will have wonderful success" (so they had,
when <i>thousands</i> were added to the church <i>in a day</i>);
"but do not think it will be always so; no, you will be persecuted
and scattered, silenced and imprisoned, so that you will not have
opportunities of preaching the gospel without fear, as you now
have; people will grow cool to it, when they have enjoyed it
awhile, so that you will not see such harvests of souls gathered in
to Christ afterwards as at first, nor such multitudes flocking to
him <i>as doves to their windows.</i>" This looks forward to his
disciples in after-ages; they must expect much disappointment; the
gospel will not be always preached with equal liberty and success.
Ministers and churches will sometimes be under <i>outward
restraints.</i> Teachers will be removed into corners, and solemn
assemblies scattered. Then they will wish to see such days of
opportunity as they have formerly enjoyed, sabbath days, sacrament
days, preaching days, praying days; these are <i>days of the Son of
man,</i> in which we hear from him, and converse with him. The time
may come when we may in vain wish for such days. God teaches us to
know the worth of such mercies by the want of them. It concerns us,
while they are continued, to <i>improve</i> them, and in the years
of plenty to lay up in store for the years of famine. Sometimes
they will be under <i>inward restraints,</i> will not have such
tokens of the <i>presence of the Son of man</i> with them as they
have had. The Spirit is withdrawn from them; they <i>see not their
signs;</i> the angel comes not down to stir the waters; there is a
great stupidity among the children of men, and a great lukewarmness
among the children of God; then they shall wish to see such
<i>victorious triumphant</i> days of the <i>Son of man</i> as they
have sometimes seen, when he has ridden forth with his bow and his
crown, conquering and to conquer, but they will not see them. Note,
We must not think that Christ's church and cause are lost because
not always alike visible and prevailing.</p>
<p class="indent" id="Luke.xviii-p26">3. That Christ and his kingdom are not to
be looked for in this or that particular place, but his appearance
will be general in all places at once (<scripRef id="Luke.xviii-p26.1" osisRef="Bible:Luke.17.23-Luke.17.24" parsed="|Luke|17|23|17|24" passage="Lu 17:23,24"><i>v.</i> 23, 24</scripRef>): "<i>They will say to
you, See here, or, See there;</i> here is one that will deliver the
Jews out of the hands of the oppressing Romans, or there is one
that will deliver the Christians out of the hands of the oppressing
Jews; here is the Messiah, and there is his prophet; <i>here</i> in
<i>this</i> mountain, or <i>there</i> at Jerusalem, you will find
the true church. <i>Go not after them, nor follow them;</i> do not
heed such suggestions. The kingdom of God was not designed to be
the glory of one people only, but to <i>give light to the
Gentiles;</i> for <i>as the lightning that lightens out of one part
under heaven, and shines</i> all on a sudden irresistibly <i>to the
other part under heaven, so shall also the Son of man be in his
day.</i>" (1.) "The <i>judgments</i> that are to destroy the Jewish
nation, to lay them waste, and to deliver the Christians from them,
shall <i>fly like lightning</i> through the land, shall lay all
waste from one end of it to another; and those that are marked for
this destruction can no more avoid it, nor oppose it, than they can
a <i>flash of lightning.</i>" (2.) "The gospel that is to set up
Christ's kingdom in the world shall <i>fly like lightning</i>
through the nations. The kingdom of the Messiah is not to be a
<i>local</i> thing, but is to be dispersed far and wide over the
face of the whole earth; it shall <i>shine</i> from Jerusalem to
all parts about, and that <i>in a moment.</i> The kingdoms of the
earth shall be leavened by the gospel ere they are aware of it."
The trophies of Christ's victories shall be erected on the ruins of
the devil's kingdom, even in those countries that could never be
subdued to the Roman yoke. The design of the setting up of Christ's
kingdom was not to make one <i>nation great,</i> but to make <i>all
nations good</i>—some, at least, of all nations; and this point
shall be gained, though the <i>nations rage,</i> and the <i>kings
of the earth set themselves</i> with all their might against
it.</p>
<p class="indent" id="Luke.xviii-p27">4. That the Messiah must <i>suffer</i>
before he must reign (<scripRef id="Luke.xviii-p27.1" osisRef="Bible:Luke.17.25" parsed="|Luke|17|25|0|0" passage="Lu 17:25"><i>v.</i>
25</scripRef>): "<i>First must he suffer many things,</i> many hard
things, and <i>be rejected of this generation;</i> and, if he be
thus treated, his disciples must expect no other than to
<i>suffer</i> and be <i>rejected</i> too for his sake." They
thought of having the kingdom of the Messiah set up in external
splendour: "No," saith Christ, "we must go by the cross to the
crown. The <i>Son of man must suffer many things.</i> Pain, and
shame, and death, are those <i>many things.</i> He must be
<i>rejected by this generation</i> of unbelieving Jews, before he
be embraced by another generation of believing Gentiles, that his
gospel may have the honour of triumphing over the greatest
opposition from those who ought to have given it the greatest
assistance; and thus the excellency of the power will appear to be
<i>of God, and not of man;</i> for, though Israel be not
<i>gathered,</i> yet he will be <i>glorious</i> to the ends of the
earth."</p>
<p class="indent" id="Luke.xviii-p28">5. That the setting up of the kingdom of
the Messiah would introduce the destruction of the Jewish nation,
whom it would find in a deep sleep of <i>security,</i> and drowned
in <i>sensuality,</i> as the old world was in the days of Noah, and
Sodom in the days of Lot, <scripRef id="Luke.xviii-p28.1" osisRef="Bible:Luke.17.26" parsed="|Luke|17|26|0|0" passage="Lu 17:26"><i>v.</i>
26</scripRef>, &amp;c. Observe,</p>
<p class="indent" id="Luke.xviii-p29">(1.) How it had been with sinners formerly,
and in what posture the judgments of God, of which they had been
fairly warned, did at length find them. Look as far back as the
<i>old world,</i> when all flesh had <i>corrupted their way,</i>
and the <i>earth was filled with violence.</i> Come a little lower,
and think how it was with the men of Sodom, who were <i>wicked, and
sinners before the Lord exceedingly.</i> Now observe concerning
both these, [1.] That they had <i>fair warning given them</i> of
the ruin that was coming upon them for their sins. Noah was a
<i>preacher of righteousness</i> to the old world; so was Lot to
the Sodomites. They gave them timely notice of what would be in the
end of their wicked ways, and that it was not far off. [2.] That
they did not regard the warning given them, and gave no credit, no
heed to it. They were very secure, went on in their business as
unconcerned as you could imagine; <i>they did eat, they drank,</i>
indulged themselves in their pleasures, and took no care of any
thing else, but to <i>make provision for the flesh,</i> counted
upon the perpetuity of their present flourishing state, and
therefore married wives, and <i>were given in marriage,</i> that
their families might be built up. They were all very merry; so were
the men of Sodom, and yet very busy too: <i>they bought, they sold,
they planted, they builded.</i> These were lawful things, but the
fault was that they minded these inordinately, and their hearts
were entirely set upon them, as that they had no heart at all to
prepare against the threatened judgments. When they should have
been, as the men of Nineveh, <i>fasting and praying, repenting</i>
and <i>reforming,</i> upon warning given them of an approaching
judgment, they were going on securely, <i>eating flesh,</i> and
<i>drinking wine,</i> when God called <i>to weeping and to
mourning,</i> <scripRef id="Luke.xviii-p29.1" osisRef="Bible:Isa.22.12-Isa.22.13" parsed="|Isa|22|12|22|13" passage="Isa 22:12,13">Isa. xxii. 12,
13</scripRef>. [3.] That they continued in their security and
sensuality, till the threatened judgment came. Until the day
<i>that Noah entered into the ark,</i> and <i>Lot went out of
Sodom,</i> nothing said or done to them served to alarm or awaken
them. Note, Though the stupidity of sinners in a sinful way is as
strange as it is <i>without excuse,</i> yet we are not to think it
strange, for it is not without example. It is the <i>old way that
wicked men have trodden,</i> that have gone slumbering to hell, as
if their damnation slumbered while they did. [4.] That God took
care for the preservation of those that were his, who believed and
feared, and took the warning themselves which they gave to others.
Noah entered <i>into the ark,</i> and there he was safe; Lot went
out of Sodom, and so went out of harm's way. If some run on
<i>heedless</i> and <i>headlong</i> into destruction, that shall be
no prejudice to the salvation of those that believe. [5.] That they
were surprised with the ruin which they would not fear, and were
swallowed up in it, to their unspeakable horror and amazement. The
<i>flood came,</i> and destroyed all the sinners of the old world;
<i>fire and brimstone</i> came, and <i>destroyed</i> all the
sinners of Sodom. God has many arrows in his quiver, and uses which
he will in making war upon his rebellious subjects, for he can make
which he will effectual. But that which is especially intended here
is to show what a dreadful surprise destruction will be to those
who are secure and sensual.</p>
<p class="indent" id="Luke.xviii-p30">(2.) How it will be with sinners still
(<scripRef id="Luke.xviii-p30.1" osisRef="Bible:Luke.17.30" parsed="|Luke|17|30|0|0" passage="Lu 17:30"><i>v.</i> 30</scripRef>): <i>Thus
shall it be in the day when the Son of man is revealed.</i> When
Christ comes to destroy the Jewish nation, by the Roman armies, the
generality of that nation will be found under such a reigning
security and stupidity as this. They have warning given by Christ
now, and will have it repeated to them by the apostles after him,
as they had by Noah and Lot; but it will be all <i>in vain.</i>
They will continue secure, will go on in their neglect and
opposition of Christ and his gospel, till all the Christians are
withdrawn from among them and gone to the place of refuge. God will
provide for them on the other side Jordan, and then a deluge of
judgments shall flow in upon them, which will destroy all the
unbelieving Jews. One would have thought that this discourse of our
Saviour's, which was public, and not long after <i>published</i> to
the world, should have awakened them; but it did not, for the
hearts of that people were hardened, to their destruction. In like
manner, when Jesus Christ shall come to judge the world, at the end
of time, sinners will be found in the same secure and careless
posture, altogether regardless of the judgment approaching, which
will therefore come upon them as a snare; and in like manner the
sinners of every age go on securely in their evil ways, and
<i>remember not their latter end,</i> nor the account that they
must give. <i>Woe to them that are thus at ease in Zion.</i></p>
<p class="indent" id="Luke.xviii-p31">6. That it ought to be the care of his
disciples and followers to distinguish themselves from the
unbelieving Jews in that day, and, leaving them, their city and
country, to themselves, to flee at the signal given, according to
the direction that should be given. Let them retire, as Noah to his
ark, and Lot to his Zoar. You <i>would have healed Jerusalem,</i>
as of old Babylon, <i>but she is not healed,</i> and therefore
<i>forsake her, flee out of the midst of her,</i> and <i>deliver
every man his soul,</i> <scripRef id="Luke.xviii-p31.1" osisRef="Bible:Jer.51.6 Bible:Jer.51.9" parsed="|Jer|51|6|0|0;|Jer|51|9|0|0" passage="Jer 51:6,9">Jer. li. 6,
9</scripRef>. This flight of theirs from Jerusalem must be
<i>expeditious,</i> and must not be retarded by any concern about
their worldly affairs (<scripRef id="Luke.xviii-p31.2" osisRef="Bible:Luke.17.31" parsed="|Luke|17|31|0|0" passage="Lu 17:31"><i>v.</i>
31</scripRef>): "<i>He that shall be on the house-top,</i> when the
alarm is given, <i>let him not come down, to take his stuff
away,</i> both because he cannot spare so much time, and because
the carrying away of his effects will but encumber him and retard
his flight." Let him not <i>regard</i> his <i>stuff</i> at such a
time, when it will be next to a miracle of mercy if he have his
<i>life given him for a prey.</i> It will be better to leave his
stuff behind him than to stay to look after it, and <i>perish with
them that believe</i> not. It will be their concern to do as Lot
and his family were charged to do: <i>Escape for thy life. Save
yourselves from this untoward generation.</i> (2.) When they have
made their escape, they must not think of returning (<scripRef id="Luke.xviii-p31.3" osisRef="Bible:Luke.17.32" parsed="|Luke|17|32|0|0" passage="Lu 17:32"><i>v.</i> 32</scripRef>): "<i>Remember Lot's
wife;</i> and take warning by her not only to flee from this Sodom
(for so Jerusalem is become, <scripRef id="Luke.xviii-p31.4" osisRef="Bible:Isa.1.10" parsed="|Isa|1|10|0|0" passage="Isa 1:10">Isa. i.
10</scripRef>), but to persevere in your flight, and do not <i>look
back,</i> as she did; be not loth to leave a place marked for
destruction, whomsoever or whatsoever you leave behind you, that is
ever so dear to you." Those who have left the Sodom of a natural
state, let them go forward, and not so much as look a kind look
towards it again. Let them not <i>look back,</i> lest they should
be tempted to <i>go back;</i> nay, lest that be construed a
<i>going back in heart,</i> or an evidence that the heart was left
behind. Lot's wife was <i>turned into a pillar of salt,</i> that
she might remain a lasting monument of God's displeasure against
apostates, who <i>begin in the spirit and end in the flesh.</i>
(3.) There would be no other way of saving their lives than by
quitting the Jews, and, if they thought to save themselves by a
coalition with them, they would find themselves mistaken (<scripRef id="Luke.xviii-p31.5" osisRef="Bible:Luke.17.33" parsed="|Luke|17|33|0|0" passage="Lu 17:33"><i>v.</i> 33</scripRef>): "<i>Whosoever shall
seek to save his life,</i> by declining from his Christianity and
complying with the Jews, he shall <i>lose it</i> with them and
perish in the common calamity; but whosoever is willing to venture
his life with the Christians, upon the same bottom on which they
venture, to take his lot with them in life and in death, he shall
<i>preserve</i> his life, for he shall make sure of <i>eternal
life,</i> and is in a likelier way at that time to save his life
than those who embark in a Jewish bottom, or <i>ensure</i> upon
their securities." Note, Those do best themselves that trust God in
the way of duty.</p>
<p class="indent" id="Luke.xviii-p32">7. That all good Christians should
certainly escape, but many of them very <i>narrowly,</i> from that
destruction, <scripRef id="Luke.xviii-p32.1" osisRef="Bible:Luke.17.34-Luke.17.36" parsed="|Luke|17|34|17|36" passage="Lu 17:34-36"><i>v.</i>
34-36</scripRef>. When God's judgments are laying all waste, he
will take an effectual course to preserve those that are his, by
remarkable providences distinguishing between them and others that
were nearest to them: <i>two in a bed, one taken and the other
left;</i> one snatched out of the burning and taken into a place of
safety, while the other is left to perish in the common ruin. Note,
Though the sword devours one as well as another, and <i>all
things</i> seem to <i>come alike to all,</i> yet sooner or later it
shall be made to appear that the Lord knows them that are his and
them that are not, and how to <i>take out the precious from the
vile.</i> We are sure that <i>the Judge of all the earth will do
right;</i> and therefore, when he sends a judgment on purpose to
avenge the death of his Son upon those that crucified him, he will
take care that none of those who glorified him, and gloried in his
cross, shall be <i>taken away</i> by that judgment.</p>
<p class="indent" id="Luke.xviii-p33">8. That this distinguishing, dividing,
discriminating work shall be done in all places, as far as the
kingdom of God shall extend, <scripRef id="Luke.xviii-p33.1" osisRef="Bible:Luke.17.37" parsed="|Luke|17|37|0|0" passage="Lu 17:37"><i>v.</i>
37</scripRef>. <i>Where, Lord?</i> They had enquired concerning the
time, and he would not gratify their curiosity with any information
concerning that; they therefore tried him with another question:
"<i>Where, Lord?</i> Where shall those be <i>safe</i> that are
<i>taken?</i> Where shall those <i>perish</i> that are left?" The
answer is proverbial, and may be explained so as to answer each
side of the question: <i>Wheresoever the body is, thither will the
eagles be gathered together.</i> (1.) Wherever the wicked are, who
are marked for perdition, they shall <i>be found out</i> by the
judgments of God; as wherever a dead carcase is, the birds of prey
will smell it out, and make a prey of it. The Jews having made
themselves a dead and putrefied carcase, <i>odious</i> to God's
holiness and <i>obnoxious</i> to his justice, wherever any of that
unbelieving generation is, the judgments of God shall fasten upon
them, as the eagles do upon the prey: <i>Thine hand shall find out
all thine enemies</i> (<scripRef id="Luke.xviii-p33.2" osisRef="Bible:Ps.21.8" parsed="|Ps|21|8|0|0" passage="Ps 21:8">Ps. xxi.
8</scripRef>), though they <i>set their nests among the stars,</i>
<scripRef id="Luke.xviii-p33.3" osisRef="Bible:Obad.1.4" parsed="|Obad|1|4|0|0" passage="Ob 1:4">Obad. 4</scripRef>. The Roman soldiers
will hunt the Jews out of all their recesses and fastnesses, and
none shall escape. (2.) Wherever the godly are, who are marked for
preservation, they <i>shall be found</i> happy in the enjoyment of
Christ. As the dissolution of the Jewish church shall be extended
to all parts, so shall the constitution of the Christian church.
Wherever Christ is, believers will flock to him, and meet in him,
as eagles about the prey, without being directed or shown the way,
by the instinct of the new nature. Now Christ is where his gospel,
and his ordinances, and his church are: <i>For where two or three
are gathered in his name there is he in the midst of them,</i> and
thither therefore others will be gathered to him. The kingdom of
the Messiah is not to have one particular place for its
<i>metropolis,</i> such as Jerusalem was to the Jewish church, to
which all Jews were to resort; but, <i>wherever the body is,</i>
wherever the gospel is preached and ordinances are ministered,
thither will pious souls resort, there they will find Christ, and
by faith feast upon him. Wherever Christ records his name he will
meet his people, and bless them, <scripRef id="Luke.xviii-p33.4" osisRef="Bible:John.4.21 Bible:1Tim.2.8" parsed="|John|4|21|0|0;|1Tim|2|8|0|0" passage="Joh 4:21,1Ti 2:8">John iv. 21, &amp;c.; 1 Tim. ii. 8</scripRef>.
Many good interpreters understand it of the gathering of the saints
together to Christ in the kingdom of glory: "Ask not where the
carcase will be, and how they shall find the way to it, for they
shall be under infallible direction; to him who is their living,
quickening Head, and the centre of their unity, to him shall the
gathering of the people be."</p>
</div></div2>