38 in exchange for his soul? Whosoever therefore shall be ashamed of me, and of my words, in this adulterous and sinful generation, of him also shall the Son of man be ashamed, when he cometh in the glory of his Father with the holy angels. 2 CHAPTER IX. The Transfiguration. Jesus instructs his Disciples. AND he said unto them, Verily, I say unto you, that there be some of them that stand here which shall not taste of death, till they have seen the kingdom of God come with power. And after six days, Jesus taketh with him Peter, and James, and John, and leadeth them up into a high mountain apart by 3 themselves; and he was transfigured before them. And his raiment became shining, exceeding white as snow, so as no fuller 4 on earth can white them. And there appeared unto them Elias, 5 with Moses: and they were talking with Jesus. And Peter answered and said to Jesus, Master, it is good for us to be here: and let us make three tabernacles; one for thee, and one for 6 Moses, and one for Elias. For he wist not what to say for they 7 were sore afraid. And there was a cloud that overshadowed them and a voice came out of the cloud, saying, This is my 8 beloved Son: hear him. And suddenly, when they had looked round about, they saw no man any more, save Jesus only with : of the value of animal life, but of the immortal nature. No one has more powerfully eulogized the dignity of man, than he who knew what was in man. He thus teaches us both to respect ourselves and other men, and to be thankful to God for the great and glorious gift of our being. 38. "Oftentimes, doubtless, in after days, when they were preaching the doctrines of their despised Master, in the midst of obloquy and scorn, of peril, privation, and death, they recalled to mind the powerful words in which he had first taught them, that they must endure suffering for his sake, and follow in the bloody path of the cross to their reward; and when they did so, and then remembered how he had suffered, and was now glorified, they felt themselves armed to endure all things for his sake; they braved persecution and torture; they confessed him before men, in prison and amid flames, and died rejoicing in the confidence that he would confess them before his Father in heaven." CHAPTER IX. 1. This verse is parallel to Mat. xvi. 28, Luke ix. 27, and properly belongs to the preceding chapter. 2-13. Mat. xvii. 1-13, and notes; Luke ix. 28-36. 6. Wist. Knew. A fact probably communicated to Mark by Peter himself. . themselves. And as they came down from the mountain, he 9 charged them that they should tell no man what things they had seen, till the Son of man were risen from the dead.. And 10 they kept that saying with themselves, questioning one with another what the rising from the dead should mean. And they 11 asked him, saying, Why say the scribes that Elias must first come? And he answered and told them, Elias verily cometh 12 first, and restoreth all things; and how it is written of the Son of man, that he must suffer many things, and be set at nought. But I say unto you, That Elias is indeed come, and they have 13 done unto him whatsoever they listed, as it is written of him. And when he came to his disciples, he saw a great multitude 14 about them, and the scribes questioning with them. And straight- 15 way all the people, when they beheld him, were greatly amazed, and running to him, saluted him. And he asked the scribes, 16 What question ye with them? And one of the multitude an- 17 swered and said, Master, I have brought unto thee my son, which hath a dumb spirit; and wheresoever he taketh him, he 18 teareth him; and he foameth, and gnasheth with his teeth, and pineth away; and I spake to thy disciples that they should cast him out, and they could not. He answereth him, and saith, O 19 faithless generation, how long shall I be with you? how long shall I suffer you? Bring him unto me. And they brought him 20 unto him: and when he saw him, straightway the spirit tare him ; and he fell on the ground, and wallowed, foaming. And he 21 asked his father, How long is it ago since this came unto him? And he said, Of a child. And ofttimes it hath cast him into 22 the fire, and into the waters, to destroy him: but if thou canst do any thing, have compassion on us, and help us. Jesus said unto 23 him, If thou canst believe, all things are possible to him that 24 believeth. And straightway the father of the child cried out, and 25 said with tears, Lord, I believe; help thou mine unbelief. When Jesus saw that the people came running together, he rebuked the foul spirit, saying unto him, Thou dumb and deaf spirit, I 26 charge thee, come out of him, and enter no more into him. And the spirit cried, and rent him sore, and came out of him: and 27 he was as one dead; insomuch that many said, He is dead. But Jesus took him by the hand, and lifted him up; and he arose. 28 And when he was come into the house, his disciples asked 29 him privately, Why could not we cast him out? And he said unto them, This kind can come forth by nothing, but by prayer and fasting. 30 And they departed thence, and passed through Galilee; and 31 he would not that any man should know it. For he taught his disciples, and said unto them, The Son of man is delivered into the hands of men, and they shall kill him; and after that he is 32 killed, he shall rise the third day. But they understood not that saying, and were afraid to ask him. 33 And he came to Capernaum: and being in the house, he asked them, What was it that ye disputed among yourselves by the way? 34 But they held their peace: for by the way they had disputed 35 among themselves, who should be the greatest. And he sat down, and called the twelve, and saith unto them, If any man desire to 36 be first, the same shall be last of all, and servant of all. And he took a child, and set him in the midst of them: and when he had 37 taken him in his arms, he said unto them, Whosoever shall if I am able? Do you believe. All things are possible," &c. 24. Lord, I believe, &c. There is an individuality in these words, which is a warranty that they were actually spoken. They come from the depths of human nature. 25. Enter no more into him. As Rosenmüller observes, Jesus says this, to remove all apprehension that the cure was only a natural intermission of the disorder, and that it would again have its periodical re turn. 29. Is there any reference in this verse to the spiritual exercises in which Jesus, with three of his disciples, had been engaging in the mount? Luke, ix. 28, 29, speaks of prayer upon that occasion. - This kind can come forth, &c. Or, as Furness paraphrases it, "You cannot subdue and command a disease so frightful and intimidating in its appearance, except by a force of faith attainable only by the strictest selfdiscipline. 33-48. See Mat. xviii. 1-9, and notes; also Luke ix. 46-50, xvii. 1-3. 36, 37. The symbolical action of Jesus in this instance, as has been receive one of such children in my name, receiveth me: and whosoever shall receive me, receiveth not me, but him that sent me. And John answered him, saying, Master, we saw one cast- 38 ing out devils in thy name, and he followeth not us; and we forbade him, because he followeth not us. But Jesus said, Forbid 39 him not for there is no man which shall do a miracle in my name, that can lightly speak evil of me. For he that is not 40 against us, is on our part. For whosoever shall give you a cup 41 of water to drink in my name, because ye belong to Christ, verily say unto you, he shall not lose his reward. And whosoever 42 I shall offend one of these little ones that believe in me, it is better for him that a millstone were hanged about his neck, and he were cast into the sea. And if thy hand offend thee, cut it off: it is 43 better for thee to enter into life maimed, than having two hands to go into hell, into the fire that never shall be quenched: where 44 their worm dieth not, and the fire is not quenched. And if thy 45 foot offend thee, cut it off: it is better for thee to enter halt into life, than having two feet to be cast into hell, into the fire that never shall be quenched: where their worm dieth not, and the 46 fire is not quenched. And if thine eye offend thee, pluck it out: 47 it is better for thee to enter into the kingdom of God with one eye, than having two eyes to be cast into hell-fire: where their 48 worm dieth not, and the fire is not quenched. For every one 49 remarked, struck and impressed the mind more deeply, than all the verbal precepts and abstract reasonings that could be employed upon the subject. In my name. Explained in verse 41, "because ye belong to Christ." 38. It has been suggested that John might intentionally interrupt Jesus, because his remarks were distasteful, wishing to change the conversation. But, by the association of ideas, John might have had the case of one, using the name of Jesus, occur to him, as his Master was speaking the words "in_my name." One casting out, &c. Various inquiries have been who this was, whether a disciple of John, a Jewish exorcist, &c.; but little satisfaction can be given on that point. Furthermore, it is not stated whether he was successful or not in curing demoniacs. Compare, as illustrative of this passage, Num. xi. 27 −29. 40. The converse of the proverb in Mat. xii. 30, is equally true in the circumstances to which it is applied. 41. The thread broken at verse 38 is here resumed by Jesus. 49, 50. Difficult verses, for which a variety of interpretations has been given. The mention of fire, in verse 49, appears to be connected with the use of the same word in verse 48. A transition is made from fire to the sacrifice which is burnt by it, and to the salt which is sprinkled upon the sacrifice, and then to the emblematic ideas of wisdom and of peace sug shall be salted with fire, and every sacrifice shall be salted with 50 salt. - Salt is good: but if the salt have lost his saltness, wherewith will ye season it? Have salt in yourselves, and have peace one with another. CHAPTER X. Jesus continues his Teachings, and restores the Blind to Sight. AND he arose from thence, and cometh into the coasts of Ju dea, by the farther side of Jordan: and the people resort unto 2 him again; and, as he was wont, he taught them again. And the Pharisees came to him, and asked him, Is it lawful for a man 3 to put away his wife? tempting him. And he answered and said 4 unto them, What did Moses command you? And they said, Moses suffered to write a bill of divorcement, and to put her away. 5 And Jesus answered and said unto them, For the hardness of 6 your heart, he wrote you this precept: but from the beginning 7 of the creation, God made them male and female. For this cause shall a man leave his father and mother, and cleave to his wife; 8 and they twain shall be one flesh: so then they are no more twain, 9 but one flesh. What, therefore, God hath joined together, let not 10 man put asunder. And in the house his disciples asked him 11 again of the same matter. And he saith unto them, Whosoever shall put away his wife, and marry another, committeth adultery 12 against her. And if a woman shall put away her husband, and be married to another, she committeth adultery. 13 And they brought young children to him, that he should touch 14 them; and his disciples rebuked those that brought them. But when Jesus saw it, he was much displeased, and said unto them, Suffer the little children to come unto me, and forbid them not: 15 for of such is the kingdom of God. Verily I say unto you, Whosoever shall not receive the kingdom of God as a little child, he |