And when he looked on him, he was afraid, and said, (c) What is it, Lord? And he said unto him, Thy prayers and thine alms are (d) come up for (e) a memorial before God.
(c) What do you want with me Lord? For he prepares himself to hear.
(d) This is a borrowed kind of speech which the Hebrews used very much, taken from sacrifices and applied to prayers: for it is said of whole burnt sacrifices that the smoke and smell of them goes up into God's nostrils, and so do our prayers, as a sweet smelling sacrifice which the Lord takes great pleasure in.
(e) That is, in as much that they will not allow God as it were to forget you: for so the Scripture often talks childish with us as nurses do with little children, when they prepare their tongues to speak.