MARK viii. ver. 5. part of ver. 6. and ver. 7, 8, 9. On a mount 5 And he asked them, How many loaves have ye? And they by the sea of Galilee. said, Seven. 6 And he commanded the people to sit down on the ground: and he took the seven loaves, and gave thanks, and brake, and gave to his disciples 7 And they had a few small fishes : and he blessed, and com. manded to set them also before them. 8 So they did eat, and were filled : and they took up of the broken meat that was left seven baskets. 9 And they that had eaten were about four thousand: and he sent them away. 3. SECTION XIII. with hypocrisy. The Pharisees also with the Sadducees, came tempting, Magdala. Markviii.11. began to question with him, Matt. xvi.1, and desired that he would shew them a sign from heaven, Markviï.11. tempting him. Mat. xvi. 2. He answered, and said unto them, When it is evening, ye say, It will be fair weather: for the sky is red. And in the morning, It will be foul weather to-day: for the sky is red and lowring. Oye hypocrites, ye can discern the face of the sky; but can ye not discern the signs of the times ? Markyjii.12. And he sighed deeply in his spirit, and saith, Why doth this generation, Matt. xvi. 4. a wicked and adulterous generation Markviii.12. seek after a sign? Verily I say unto you, There shall no sign be given to this generation. Matt.xvi. 4. but the sign of the prophet Jonas. And he left them, and departed. Markviii.13. and entering into the ship again, departed to the other side. they had forgotten to take bread. of the Pharisees, and of the Sadducees, because we have taken no bread. Which when Jesus perceived, he said unto them, Oye of little faith, why reason ye among yourselves, because ye have brought no bread ? Markviii.17. perceive, ye not yet, neither understand ? have ye your heart yet hardened ? 8. Markviii.18. Having eyes, see ye not ? and having ears, ye hear not ? Magdala. and do ye not remember? many baskets full of fragments took ye up? They say unto him, Twelve. baskets full of fragments took ye up? And they said, Seven. derstand ? that ye should beware of the leaven of the Pharisees, and beware of the leaven of bread, but of the doctrine of the Pharisees, and of the Sadducees. MATT. xvi. part of ver. 4. and ver. 9 Do ye not yet understand, neither remember the five loaves JO Neither the seven loaves of the four thousand, and how MARK viii. part of ver. 11. 13, 14, 15. and ver. 16, 17. 13 And he left them 16 And they reasoned among themselves, saying, It is because 17 And when Jesiis knew it, he saith unto them, Why rcason ye, because ye bave no bread? .9, 10. SECTION XIV. MARK viji. 22-26. him to touch him. 23. And he took the blind man by the hand, and led him put his hands upon him, he asked him if he saw ought. made him look up: and he was restored, and saw every man clearly. 26. And he sent him away to his house, saying, Neither go into the town, nor tell it to any in the town. SECTION XV. Peter confesses Christ to be the Messiah". MATT. xvi, 13–20. MARK viii. 27-30. LUKE ix. 18-21, Markviii.27. And Jesus went out, and his disciples, into the towns of Cæsarea Cesarea Philippi : Pbilippi. 17 The various works which were done by our Lord, as related in the preceding sections of this chapter, convinced St. Peter that Jesus was tho Messiah. It certainly appears to us very extra. ordinary that this open confession of the Messiahship of Jesus had not been repeatedly made before. The reasons seem to have been, that the various inconsistent traditions concerning the Messiah which were then prevalent, and the opposito expectations of the people, had so biassed the minds of bis disciples, that it prevented them from forming a correct judgment as to the dignity of their Lord and Master. They saw, indeed, and acknowledged, that Jesus was more than human, and they daily anticipated the establishment of the kingdom of the Messiah; but before that event they expected the coming of Elias, various resurrections of the ancient prophets, the reappearance of Moses and Elias, with other different signs and wonders, which have already been enumerated. Dr. Pye Smith observes, “ that their notions of the Messiah were sublime, imperfectly understood, and inconsistent ; tbey attributed to him a superior nature, a pre-existent state, and, to say the least, many of the characteristic properties of Deity (a)." When Christ was upon earth, the opinions of the Jows concerning the nature and person of their ardently expected Messiab, were by no means uniform: some affirmed that he would be a mere man, endowed with peculiar powers and assistance from God-others that he would be a man, with whom a special power emanating from God, would be intimately conjoined others maintained, that he would be superior to their fathers, to all mankind, and to the angels; that he existed before the creation of the world, and was employed by God as an instrument in the formation of the world, and peculiarly in the protection and religious institutions of the Israelitish nation. Schoetgen, in his second volume, has most amply and most learnedly discussed the subject of the Messiah. His Horæ He. braicæ are an invaluable treasure to the theological student wbo desires to understand the New Testament. It is to be regretted that the work is so scarce, and that there is neither an abridgment, nor a translation of it, in our own language. The Jews seem to have entertained the same indefinite notions with regard to the Messiah, as the Christians of the present age entertain when they converse on the Millenium, or the second advent of our Lord; on the restoration of the Jews, whether it will be temporal or spiritual ; or on the other sublime and elevating subjects of the prophecies of our own Scriptures, on which the primitive Church has come to no conclusion. The language of Scripture is so general, that it may be interpreted both literally and metaphorically; and every Christian, who at all reflects on these subjects, anticipates some magnificent events, which he believes will certainly take place; while no two will be found exactly to agree in their ps and speculations. Lightfoot remarks on this subject : From Messialı the Jews expected pomp and stateliness, a royal and victorious kingdom--they see Christ appear in a low condition, and contemptible poverty. Luke ix. 18. And it came to pass, Cæsarea Mat. xvi.13. when Jesus came into the coasts of Cesarea Philippi, Philippi. From the Messiah they expected an advancing and heightening the rites of Moses—they saw that he began to remove them. By the Messias they expected to be redeemed and delivered from their subjection to the Roman yoke. He taught toem to give Cæsar his due, and to submit to the government God had set over them. By the Messias they expected that the Gentiles should be subdued, trod under their feet, and destroyed. He taught that they should be called, converted, and become the Church (6). Archdeacon Blomfield, in his admirable dissertation (c), has given us, at still greater length, an abstract of the notions entertained by the Jews of the Messiah's kingdom. 1. They expected him to be of a nature far surpassing tbat of men and angels. One of the Rabbis says, “ The Messiab is bigher than the ministering angels.” To this notion the author of the Epistle to the Hebrews evidently alludes. i. 4. 2. They considered him to be “the Word of God," an emanation from the Supreme Being; the author of all created things. 3. They believed that all the transactions, in which the Deity was related to have had a communication with mankind, were carried on through the medium of his Word, the Messiah ; that He delivered tbe Israclites from Egypt, led them through the wilderness, supported and protected them. 4. They believed that the Spirit of the Lord was to be upon him, and intimately united with him; and that it would manifest itself in exertion of miraculous power. To this our Saviour alludes, Matt. xii. 28. “ But if I, in the Spirit of God cast out devils, then is the kingdom of God come upon you." 5. They supposed that the Messiah would appear, pot in a real human body, but in the semblance of one; év dochgel. This notion found its way into the Christian Church, and was the distinguishing dogma of the Docetæ. It is combated by St. John in several parts of his writings; viz. “ The word was made flesh, and dwelt amongst us," (John i. 14.), not only seemed to wear a human form, but actually did so. Again, “Every Spirit that confesseth not that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh, is not of God,” (1 John iv. 3.) And it is not an improbable supposition of Professor Bertholdt, that the Evangelist had the same heresy in view, when he made particular mention of the blood and water which flowed from the side of Jesus, (John xix. 34.) 6. They expected that the Messiah would not be subject to death, (John xii. 34.) The multitude answered him, “ We have heard out of the law, that Christ abideth for ever." 7. Yet they thought that he was to offer in his own person an expiatory sacrifice for their sins, John i. 29. 8. He was to restore the Jews to freedom. Compare Luke i. 68. xxiv. 21. 4 Esdr. xii. 34. 9. And to establish a pure and perfect form of worship, Luke 10. And to give remission of sins, Luke i, 76. Matt. i. 21. 12. He was to descend into the receptacle of departed spirits, 13. The devil and his angels were to be cast into hell for a thousand years. Markvli.27. by the way, Cæsarea Luke ix. 18. as he was alone praying, his disciples were with him : and Philippi. Mat. xvi.13. he asked his disciples, saying, Whom do men say that I the Son of man, am ? And they 16. And Simon Peter answered and said, Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God 18. thou, Simon Bar-jona : for flesh and blood hath not re- ever. 14. Then was to begin the kingdom of heaven, or of God, or of the Christ, which was to last a thousand years. 15. At the end of that period of time, the devil was to be released from confinement, and to excite great troubles and commotions ; but ho was to be conquered, and again imprisoned for 16. After that was to be the second and general resurrection of the dead, followed by the judgment. 17. The world was to be renewed ; new heavens, a new earth, and a new Jerusalem were to appear. 18. At last the Messiab, having fulfilled his oflice, was to de. liver up the kingdom to God, at whose right hand he was to sit for evermore. (a) Scripture Testimony to the Messiah, vol. i. p. 464, and 466. Dr. Pye Smith has compressed into a very short compass the conclusions of Kuinoel (Comment in libros N. T. Hist. p. 84-91.) on the same subject. (6) Lightfoot's sermons, Works, fol. vol. ii. p. 1112. (c) On the traditional knowledge of a proinised Redeemer, Camb. 1810, p. 106. fin. &c. 18 Our Lord had now, by his miracles and teaching, and conduct so impressed on the minds of his Apostles, the certainty that ho was the Messiah, whom they had expected, that St. Peter makes the fullest confession of his faith, in the most energetic language. Our Lord immediately addresses bim in thal remarkable language, which has been said, by the Church of Rome, to be the immoveable foundation of her undoubted supremacy and her exclusive privileges, as the depositary of truth, and of her consequent infallibility, as the director and instructor of the world. The question therefore is, whether the confession made by St. Peter was the rock on wbich the Church of Christ was to be founded, or whether the Apostle himself was that rock. The most eminent of the ancient Fathers have espoused the former opinion. Chrysostom (a) interprets the passage tõ méTPF -Torboti Tŷ niotal rñs opodoyias, upon the rock, that is, upon the faith of his profession. The most probable meaning of the passage appears to be that wbich shall comprise both of the controverted senses. St. Peter was always the most zealous of the Apostles, and to him was reserved the honour of first preaching the Gospel to the Gentiles. The probable reason why our Lord addressed himself particularly to Peter was, that he happened to be the first who had acknowledged Him as the Cbrist the Son of the living God. Şt. |