Α

PLAIN COMMENTARY

ON THE TWENTY-FIRST CHAPTER OF

St. Matthew's Gospel.

1 CHRIST rideth into Jerusalem upon an ass, 12 driveth the buyers and sellers out of the Temple, 17 curseth the Fig-tree, 23 putteth to silence the Priests and Elders, 28 and rebuketh them by the similitude of the two Sons, 35 and the Husbandmen, who slew such as were sent unto them.

Our LORD, having journeyed along the wild mountain roada which conducts from Jericho to Jerusalem,-followed by a large multitude of persons, among whom was 'blind Bartimæus,' whom He had so lately restored to sight,-at last reaches the district, east of Jerusalem, to which the name of Bethphage and Bethany was assigned. The Mount of Olives begins at that place. Accordingly, it is said,

XXI. AND when they drew nigh unto Je- 1 rusalem, and were come to Bethphage, unto the Mount of Olives, then sent JESUS two Disciples, saying unto them, Go into the 2 village over against you, and straightway ye shall find an ass tied, and a colt with her: loose them, and bring them unto Me.

a See the note prefixed to St. Mark xi.

Everything begins to teem with mysterious import. Not without a reason, be sure, does St. Matthew, (addressing his Gospel especially to the Jews,) lay stress upon the Ass, as well as her Colt, which our SAVIOUR now required. He was about to enter His Capital; and He saw fit to do so, "meek, and sitting upon an ass, and a colt the foal of an ass";" the former, representing the Jewish Nation, which had long borne a yoke: the latter, the Gentiles,-wild as yet and unbroken, 'whereon never man sat". For the Jewish nation is spiritually the Mother of the Gentiles".'

The sending of the Apostles is, in itself, a significant circumstance. CHRIST called the Gentiles by the ministration of His Servants,-who brought them to Him. He proceeds, in this place, to give the two Disciples their commission.

3 And if any man say aught unto you, ye shall say, The LORD hath need of them; and straightway he will send them.

Not Our Lord,' or Your Lord,' but The LORD-He who is supreme over all Creation, to whom all things belong, and whom all things serve; He hath need of them.'

4 All this was done, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the Prophet, saying, 5 Tell ye the daughter of Sion, Behold, thy

b See below, ver. 5. St. Mark xi. 2, and St. Luke xix. 30.

d Jerome.

King cometh unto thee, meek, and sitting upon an ass, and a colt the foal of an ass.

'The Prophet' here quoted is Zechariah-ix. 9; but the first six words are from Isaiah lxii. 11. In Zechariah, the passage begins, 'Rejoice greatly, O Daughter of Sion; shout, O Daughter of Jerusalem: which jubilant words cannot have been changed for others by the SPIRIT, without a profound reason,-whether imparted to the Evangelist or not.

It has been beautifully remarked, that "as our LORD is now coming as King, and to claim His Kingdom, that one of His attributes is selected from Prophecy, to which alone of the Beatitudes the promise of an earthly inheritance is attached : "Thy King cometh unto thee, meek.' His subjects are they to whom He has said, 'Learn of Me, for I am meek:' and these shall reign with Him; for it is written, 'Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the Earth .""

Here then was an act which, while it fulfilled prophecy, was in itself prophetical. Chrysostom observes, "It is not merely on account of the mystery," however, "that our LORD rode on the ass; but in order to afford us a lesson of Humility."

And the Disciples went, and did as JESUS 6 commanded them, and brought the ass, and 7 the colt,

e

By Williams. f St. Matth. xi. 29.

g St. Matth. v. 5.

It was

The ass and her colt came together. on the colt, (not on the ass,) that CHRIST rode, (for it was the Gentiles who were now about to submit to the easy yoke and light burden of CHRIST;) but the disciples brought both the ass and her colt; as both ships were needed at the second miraculous draught of fishesh.

and put on them their clothes, and they 8 set Him thereon. And a very great multitude spread their garments in the way; others cut down branches from the trees, and strawed them in the way.

9

Some remarks on these verses will be found in the notes on St. Mark xi. 7 and 8. The people are found to receive CHRIST coming to the Feast of the Passover, with a solemnity which belonged to the Feast of Tabernacles.

And the multitudes that went before, and that followed, cried, saying, Hosanna to the Son of David: blessed is he that cometh in the name of the LORD; Hosanna in the highest.

It is St. Matthew who alone mentions that the people shouted' Hosanna' (that is, 'Save now') 'to the Son of David;' as he is the Evangelist who specially records our LORD's descent from that Monarch. In the fulness of their rapture, they

h St. Luke v. 7.

poured forth a sentence from the cxviiith Psalm, verses 25 and 26. All the latter part of that Psalm, in fact, seems descriptive of our LORD's coming. See what is written on this subject in the notes on St. Mark.

'Hosanna in the highest,' is explained by the language of the cxlviiith Psalm :-"Praise Him in the heights: praise ye Him, all His Angels: praise ye Him, all His hosts." With which may be compared the language of the Angelic Hymn, -"Glory to GOD in the highesti." Indeed, St. Luke says that the multitude, on this very occasion, cried (as the Angels did on the Night of the Nativity), "Glory in the highest.”

And when He was come into Jerusalem, all 10 the City was moved, saying, Who is this?

"Who is this King of Glory?' is also the cry of wonder when He enters the Heavenly Jerusalem. So remarks an ancient Fatherk, alluding to the language of one of the Psalms used on AscensionDay'.

And the multitude said, This is JESUS the 11 Prophet of Nazareth of Galilee.

So effectually did the prophecy that He should 'be called a Nazarene' find fulfilment. It has been already pointed out that the name of His Mother's City followed Him from the cradle to the gravem.

i St. Luke ii. 14. Ps. xxiv. 8, 10.

iSt. Luke xix. 38.

k Origen.

m See the note on St. John i. 45.