I suppose that even the world, &c.— According to most commentators, this is an hyperbole; a figure in which the Asiatics are known to have dealt greatly, and which they carried far higher than is allowable in the European languages; and the word I suppose naturally leads to this exposition: thus understood, the clause means that Jesus performed a prodigious number of miracles. Dr. Doddridge understands the passage differently, as if the evangelist had said, "I am persuaded, Οιμαι,— that if all the to things which Jesus did, were written, the work would amount to so vast a bulk that the world itself would not be able to receive the books that should be written; but the very size of the volumes would necessarily prevent the generality of mankind fromprocuring or reading them." Perhaps it may be a most delightful part of the entertainment of the heavenly world, to learn from our blessed Lord himself, or from those who conversed with him upon earth, a multitude of such particulars of his life, as will be well worthy our everlasting admiration. In the mean time, the pious and attentive study of what is recorded by the evangelists, may most happily prepare us for such discoveries, and add an unutterable relish to them: for they were written that we might believe that Jesus was the Christ; and that, believing, we may have life through his name. Amen! blessed Lord.
Inferences on our Lord's resurrection, drawn from ch. John 19:38 to ch. John 20:29. Grace does not always make much show, where it is; though it always burns for doing good. There is much secret riches, both in the earth and sea, which no eye ever saw. We never heard any news till now of Joseph of Arimathea; yet was he eminently rich, and wise, and good. True faith may be sometimes reserved, but will not be cowardly. Now he puts forth himself, and dares to beg the body of Jesus.
Death is wont to quell all quarrels. Pilate's heart tells him that he has done too much already, in sentencing an innocent person to death: the request is granted; the body is yielded, and taken down; and now, that which hung naked, is wrapped in fine linen; that which was soiled with sweat and blood, is curiously washed and embalmed. Now even Nicodemus comes in for his share: he fears not the envy of a good profession, but boldly flies forth, and will now be as liberal in his orders, as he was before niggardly in his nightly confession.
All this while the devout Marys retire, and silently spend their sabbath in a mixture of grief and hope; but now they gladly agree, in the dawn of the Sunday morning, to visit the sacred sepulchre; nor will they go empty-handed. She that had bestowed that costly alabaster-box of ointment upon her Saviour alive, has prepared no less precious odours for him dead.
Of all the women, Mary Magdalene is first named: she is noted above her fellows. None of them were so much obliged,—none so zealously thankful. Seven devils were cast out of her by the command of Christ. The heart thus powerfully dispossessed, was now filled with gratitude to her great Deliverer. Where there is a true sense of favour, there cannot but be a fervent desire of retribution. O blessed Lord! could we feel the danger of sin, like her, and the malignity of those spiritual possessions from which thou hast freed us, how should we pour out our souls in thankfulness for thy bounty!
Every thing here had horror; the place both solitary, and a sepulchre; nature abhors, as the visage, so the region of death and corruption:—the time, night; only the moon perhaps gave them some faint glimmering:—their business, the visitation of a dead corpse: and yet their zealous love has easily overcome all these. They had followed him in his sufferings, when the timid disciples had left him. They attended him to his cross, weeping; they followed him to his grave; nay, and even there they leave him not; but, ere it be day-light, they return to pay him the sad tribute of their duty.—How much stronger is love than death or fear.
How well it succeeds when we go faithfully and conscientiously about our work, and leave the issue to God! Lo, God has removed the cares of these holy women, together with the grave-stone. The obstacle is removed; the seal broken; the watch fled. What a scorn does the Almighty God make of the impotent designs of men! He sends an angel from above;—the earth quakes beneath;—the stone rolls away;—the soldiers stand like carcases, and when they have got heart enough to run away, think themselves valiant. The tomb is opened, Christ rises, and they are confounded. O the vain project of silly mortals! as if, with such a shovelful of mire; they could dam up the sea; or keep the sun from shining, by holding up their hands. Indeed, what creature is so base, that the Omnipotent cannot arm against us to our confusion? Lice and frogs shall be too strong for Pharaoh, and worms for Herod! There is no wisdom nor counsel against the Lord.
But O the marvellous pomp and magnificence of our Lord's resurrection! (See Matthew 28:1-4.) The earth quakes, the angel appears, that it may be plainly seen that this divine Person, now rising, has the command both of heaven and earth. Good cause had the earth to quake, when the God who made her, powerfully calls for his own flesh from the usurpation of her bowels. Good cause had she to open her graves, and eject her dead, in attendance to the Lord of life, whom she had thus detained in that cell of darkness. What seeming impotence was here! but now what a demonstration of omnipotence bursts forth in this glorious resurrection! The rocks rend; the graves open; the dead rise and appear; the soldiers flee and tremble: saints and angels attend thy rising, O Saviour! Thou liedst down in weakness, thou risest in power and glory: thou liedst down as a man, thou risest like a God.
What a lively image hast thou herein given me of the dreadful majesty of that general resurrection on thy second appearance! Then not the earth only, but the powers of heaven also shall be shaken; not some few graves shall be open, and some saints appear, but all the bars of death shall be broken, and all that sleep in the dust shall awake, and stand up from the dead before thee. Not some one angel shall descend; but Thou, the great angel of the covenant, attended with thousand thousands of those mighty spirits: and if these stout soldiers were so filled with terror at the feeling of an earthquake, and the sight of an angel, where shall thine enemies appear, O Lord, in the day of thy terrible vengeance, when the earth shall reel and vanish, when the elements shall be on a flame around them, and the heavens shall be parched up as a scroll, in that awful, that inexorable day!
Where, where, for shelter shall the guilty fly, When consternation turns the good man pale?
Thou didst raise thyself, O blessed Jesus! thy angels removed the stone. They, who could have no hand in thy resurrection, shall yet have their part in removing outward impediments; not because thou neededst, but because thou wouldest: just so thyself alone didst raise Lazarus; thou badest others to loose him, and let him go. Works of omnipotency thou reservest to thine own immediate performance; ordinary actions thou consignest to means subordinate.
How great must have been the joy of angels on this stupendous event! But how transcendent their joy whom thou raisedst with thee from the dead! O death, where is now thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory?
But how am I conformable to thee, O Saviour, if, when thou art risen, I am still lying in the grave of my corruptions? How am I a member of thy body, if, while thou hast that perfect dominion over death, death has dominion over me?—How am I thine, if I be not risen?—and if I be risen with thee, why do I not seek the things above, where thou, O Christ, sittest at the right hand of God?—For where the treasure is, there must the heart be also.
I marvel not at your speed, blessed disciples, if, upon the report of these good women, ye ran, yea, flew upon the wings of zeal, to see what was become of your Master. Your desire was noble, was equal; but John is the younger, his limbs are more nimble, and breath more free. He looks first into the sepulchre; but Peter more boldly goes down the first. Happy competition, where the only strife is, who shall be most zealous in the inquiry after Christ!
They saw enough to amaze their senses; not enough, however, to settle their faith. O blessed Jesus, how dost thou pardon our errors! and how should we pardon and pity the errors of each other on lesser occasions, when as yet thy chief and dearest disciples, after so much divine instruction from thine own lips, knew not the scriptures, that thou must rise again from the dead. They went away more astonished than confident; more full of wonder than of belief.
There is more tenderness, where it takes in the weaker sex; those holy women, as they came first, so they stayed last. Especially devout Mary Magdalene stands still by the cave weeping. Well might those tears have been spared, if her knowledge had been answerable to her affection, or her faith to her fervour.
As our eye will ever be where our love is, she stoops, and looks down into that dear sepulchre. The angels appear in glorious apparel; their splendor shewed them to be no mortal creatures; not to mention that Peter and John had but just come out of the sepulchre, and both found and left it empty in her sight. Yet do we not find the good woman aught appalled with the unexpected glory. So deeply was her heart absorbed with the thoughts of her Saviour, that she seems insensible of every other object. The tears which she let drop into the sepulchre, sent up back to her the voice of the angels; Woman, why weepest thou?
The sudden wonder has not dried her eye, nor charmed her tongue. She freely confesses the cause of her grief to be the missing of her Saviour, and simply complains, They have taken away my Lord, and I know not where they have laid him. Alas, good Mary, of whom dost thou complain? Who can have removed thy Lord but himself? Neither is he now laid any more; he stands by thee, whose removal thou now lamentest.—Thus many a tender soul afflicts itself with the want of that Saviour, who is near, yea, present to bless.
Turn back thine eye, O mourning soul, and see Jesus standing by thee, though thou knowest not that it is he. His habit was one that he had then assumed.—And thus sometimes it pleases our Saviour to appear to his disciples in some sense unlike himself. Sometimes he offers himself to us in the shape of a poor man, and sometimes of a distressed captive. (See Matthew 25:34; Matthew 25:46.) Happy he or she who can discern the Saviour in all his forms! Mary now took him for the gardener. O blessed Lord! be thou to me such as thou appearedst to this holy woman: break up the fallows of my nature; implant in me thy grace; prune me with meet corrections; bedew me with the former and latter rain of thy counsels;—do what thou wilt with me, so thou but make me fruitful!
Joseph could no longer contain himself in the house of Pharaoh from the notice of his brethren; and thus thy compassion, O Saviour, causes thee to break forth into clear discovery: the very sound of his name bringeth Mary to herself. Thou spakest to her before, but in the tone of a stranger: now it is the compellation of a friend. O speak to every reader's heart in the same affectionate and powerful manner!
No sooner had Mary heard this familiar sound, than she turned herself, and saith unto him, Rabboni! which is to say, Master. Before, her face was toward the angels; the call of her Saviour instantly averts all inferior regards; nor do we rightly apprehend the Son of God, if any creature in heaven or earth can withhold our eyes or estrange our hearts from him. Let Mary be our example: the moment she hears his voice, her whole attention is riveted on her Lord. She salutes him with a Rabboni, in acknowledgment of his authority over her; she falls down before him, in a desire humbly to embrace those sacred feet, which she now rejoices to behold, past the use of odours and unguents.
Jesus however is pleased to wave the acceptance of her zealous intentions, (touch me not, &c.) possibly by way of gentle reproof, for a joy which perhaps betrayed worldly exultation. Even our well-meant zeal in seeking and enjoying the Saviour, may be faulty. May we, blessed Lord, be taught with Mary, from thy remonstrance, if we have known thee heretofore after the flesh, yet henceforth to know thee so no more. Should we so fasten our thoughts on the corporeal or terrestrial circumstances attending thee, as not to look higher, even to the spiritual part of thine atchievements,—the power and the issues of the resurrection;—what could it profit our immortal souls?
But to whom then dost thou send her?—Go, and tell my brethren. Blessed Jesus, who are those? Were not they thy followers,—rather, were not they thy forsakers?—Yet still thou stylest them thy brethren. O admirable humility! infinite mercy! abundant grace! How dost thou raise their titles with thyself? At first they were thy servants; then disciples: a little before thy death thou vouchsafedst to call them thy friends; now, after thy resurrection, thou dignifiest them with the endearing appellation of brethren. O why do we stand so proudly upon the terms of our poor distinctions and inequality, when the incarnate Son of the most high God stoops so low as to call us his brethren;—his Father our Father; and his God our God!
With what joy must Mary have received this errand! With what joy must the disciples have welcomed both it and the bearer! Here were good tidings indeed from a far country, even as far as the utmost regions of the shadow of death.
While their thoughts and conversation are employed on so grateful a subject; the Saviour makes his miraculous and sudden appearance among them, bids their senses be witnesses of his revival, and of their happiness, stands in the midst of them, and saith, Peace be unto you. Instantly all the mists of doubting are dispelled; the sun breaks forth clear. They were glad when they saw the Lord. His approved Deity gave them confidence; his gracious presence inspired their hearts with joy.
But where wert thou, O Thomas, when the rest of this sacred family were met together? Alas! we cannot but be losers by our absence from holy assemblies; for God standeth in the congregation of his saints. Now, for this time, thou missest that divine breath, which so powerfully inspired the rest; and fallest into that weak and rash distrust, which thy presence there would probably have prevented. Suspicious man, who is the worse for thy scepticism? Whose the loss, if thou wilt not believe? Is there no certainty but in thine own senses? Is any thing beyond the sphere of divine Omnipotence? Go then, O simple and unwise, and please thyself in thy bold incredulity, while thy fellows are happy in believing.
For a whole week Thomas rests in his infidelity. Notwithstanding the conduct and the testimony of others; notwithstanding the report of the two travellers to Emmaus, whose hearts burning within them, had set their tongues on fire to relate the happy occurrence of their walk;—still he struggles with his own distrust; still he combats that truth, whereof he can hardly deny himself to be unanswerably convinced.
O condescending Lord, how shall we enough admire thy tenderness and forbearance! Justly mightest thou have left this man to his own pertinacious heart; and of whom could he have complained, had he perished in his unbelief? But thou art infinite in compassion, and willest not the death of a sinner. This straggler shall be indulged with the desired evidences of thy resurrection; he shall once more see thee to his shame, and to his joy; and he will hear thy voice, and taste thy love.
Behold, the mercy no less than the power of the Son of God hath melted the stony heart of this unbelieving disciple: Then Thomas answered and said unto him, My Lord, and my God. I do not read that, when it came to the issue, Thomas fulfilled his resolution, and employed his hands in trial of the fact. His eyes are perhaps now a sufficient assurance; the sense of his Master's Omniscience supersedes all further hesitation.
It was well for us, Thomas, that thou didst thus disbelieve; else the world had not received this striking evidence of that resurrection whereon all our salvation depends. Blessed be thou, O God, whose great prerogative it is to bring good out of evil, and to make a glorious advantage of every incident, for the promotion of the salvation of thy faithful people, the confirmation of thy church, and the glory of thy name! Amen.
REFLECTIONS.—1st, The disciples being appointed to meet their Lord in Galilee, returned thither, and, till the time came, employed themselves in their former occupations. Christ's servants must not be idlers.
1. Christ appears to them at the sea of Tiberias, where Simon Peter, Thomas, Nathanael, the sons of Zebedee, and two other disciples, were fishing. They were unsuccessful all night, and toiled in vain: in the morning Jesus stood on the shore, and at the distance they were off, the disciples knew him not. Note; (1.) God's ministers sometimes labour long, and see little fruit; but they must not be weary, nor faint in their minds: patient perseverance shall at last be crowned with success. (2.) They who are diligent in their honest calling, are in Christ's way, and may expect his blessing.
2. Christ addresses them in his familiar manner, Children, have ye any meat? They answered him, No. He said unto them, Cast the net on the right side of the ship, and ye shall find. Rather than return empty, they resolved to make the trial, and, to their astonishment, found the net so full, that they were not able to draw it up into the boat for the multitude of fishes. Note; (1.) Christ takes cognizance of his disciples' wants; he will see that they have meat to eat. (2.) They who go to minister under a divine call, shall find at last that their labour is not in vain in the Lord.
3. John hereupon suggests, that this must needs be the Lord. Peter instantly caught the hint, and, fired with zeal and love, girt up his coat, and plunged into the sea, impatient to be at his dear Master's feet; while the other disciples, who were but a little way from shore, about a hundred yards, hasted to land, dragging the net with them. Simon joined them, and assisted them in their labour; and, to their astonishment, they counted one hundred and fifty-three large fishes, and yet the net remained unbroken, which still increased the miracle. Note; Different disciples excel in different gifts and graces: some are more quick to discern, others more intrepid to execute; some move slowly, but steadily; others blaze with zeal, though not equally uniform; and each especially serviceable in his place.
4. Their Master, who had given them this miraculous draught of fishes, had provided also for their refreshment on shore. They found a fire, and fish laid thereon, and bread, to which he bids them add some of those they had caught, and then kindly and familiarly, as formerly, invites them to come and refresh themselves; while they, in sacred awe at his presence and miracle, kept at a respectful distance, nor durst ask him, Who art thou? which would have implied unbelief, when indeed they were fully satisfied that it was the Lord. Note; (1.) They who act under the command of Jesus, and go forth in his name, shall not want a provision: Verily they shall be fed. (2.) In the ordinances a rich repast is provided for believers, and the Master in them will break the bread of life to our souls. (3.) The gospel word is, COME; Christ's arms are open to believers; they will be welcome to all the rich provision of his grace.
5. Christ, as the master of the feast, distributes the bread and fish to them, and did eat and drink with them, to shew himself truly alive, and to confirm them in the certainty of his resurrection. (Acts 10:41.) And still he is the same gracious Lord: they who hunger and thirst after righteousness, shall be filled, and all the wants of their souls relieved by the abundance of his grace.
6. The evangelist remarks, that this was the third public appearance of Jesus to any considerable number of his disciples together, whose faith would hereby be more confirmed: or this was the third time he appeared to them: the first day of his resurrection he appeared five several times, one the week after, and now again for the third time; and every repeated visit brought new tokens of his love.
2nd, When dinner was ended, Christ addressed himself to Peter. He knew that Peter's conscious heart upbraided him bitterly for his past conduct; and now, to silence his fears, while he tacitly reproves his unfaithfulness, he confirms him in his office, as fully restored to his favour and love.
We have,
1. The question thrice put to Peter, Lovest thou me? and the first time Christ adds, more than these? more than he loved his dearest relatives or friends who were present; or more than the ship, and nets, and fish, and all comforts and gain; or more than these love me; because he had once so boldly and forwardly intimated his superior attachment to him, that though all men should be offended, yet will not I; and then it implied a tacit rebuke for this vain-glorious boast? But now that he was restored to favour again, this new obligation conferred upon him required an especial return of love. Note; (1.) When we do amiss, we must not be displeased to have our sincerity questioned. (2.) True love to Christ will make us count every thing trivial in comparison with him.
2. Three times Peter makes the same reply: Thou knowest that I love thee: he will not pretend any more to a superiority over his brethren, though conscious of the sincerity of his love. The third time, grieved at the repeated question, which seemed to intimate a suspicion of his sincerity, and reminded him of his threefold denial, he adds, Lord, thou knowest all things; thou knowest that I love thee; and for this he can appeal to him as the Searcher of hearts. Note; They who are sincere in their attachment to Christ, can appeal for their simplicity to the Searcher of their hearts.
3. Thrice Jesus bids him prove the sincerity of his love by his diligence and labour in the ministry. Feed my lambs; feed my sheep. Since his iniquity is pardoned, his commission is renewed, and with more abundant diligence he is called upon to discharge his awful trust. He must feed the lambs, the young disciples, and those who are most weak and feeble; considering their weakness, and having compassion on their infirmities, as remembering his own. He must feed the sheep, the strong of the flock, willing to expose himself to any danger for their sake, and faithfully ministering to them the rich food of the gospel word for their nourishment and growth in grace.
4. Christ foretels the sufferings which awaited St. Peter in the discharge of his ministry. He must seal the truth that he preached, by enduring martyrdom. Verily, verily I say unto thee, When thou wast young, thou girdedst thyself, full of vigour, and walkedst whither thou wouldest: but when thou shalt be old, after a long life of labour, thou shalt stretch forth thy hands, and another shall gird thee, and carry thee whither thou wouldest not, even to prison and the cross; and this he spake, signifying by what death he should glorify God; and the concurring testimony of antiquity reports, that he suffered crucifixion. Note; (1.) Nature starts from death, as reluctant to go; but grace can enable us to meet it calmly in its most tremendous forms. (2.) Every saint of God desires to die, as he lives, to God's glory; patiently resigned to his will; commending with his dying breath the good ways of the Lord; and rejoicing in hope of the glory ready to be revealed in him.
5. He gives Peter a significant sign of what he required of him. Rising from table, he saith unto him, Follow me; copy my example; follow my instructions; and if he was called to the cross, he must remember, it would be no more than his Master for his sake had endured before. Whatever we suffer, we should never forget how much more our Master endured; and that this is the way to come to be with him in his glory. We must bear the cross before we wear the crown.
3rdly, Peter rising up to follow his Master, on looking back, beheld John the beloved disciple just behind him. Hereupon,
1. He begs Jesus to say, what should be John's lot and labour. Either he was curious to know, or tenderly concerned lest the same sufferings awaited his dear fellow-labourer. True Christian love will make us feel for our brethren as for ourselves.
2. Christ checks his curiosity, while he answers his question. If I will that he tarry till I come, in some peculiar glorious display of his power, such as the destruction of the Jewish nation would be, what is that to thee? Follow thou me. Note; It is the will of Jesus, that we should follow steadily the path of duty, without curiously desiring to pry into futurity, content to leave all our concerns in his hands.
3. From a mistake of Christ's meaning, a report spread among the brethren, as if that disciple should not die; whereas Christ said no such thing, but, If I will that he tarry till I come, what is that to thee? meaning that he should live to see the destruction of the Jewish state and polity. Whence we may observe the uncertainty of all human traditions, and the great danger of submitting implicitly to human expositions of scripture, however supported by numbers, authority, or antiquity. We have the book of God before us; we have the Spirit of God promised to each of us; let us therefore, after all that others say, read, hear, and judge for ourselves.
4. The evangelist, now drawing to a conclusion, solemnly attests the truth of all that he had recorded, being an eye and ear witness of what he writes; and as he was himself absolutely certain of what he said, so were all his brethren; and the truths of the gospel are attended with such evidence as must convince every impartial inquirer. They who reject the scripture testimony, wilfully shut their eyes against the light, and, whatever they may pretend, have no cloak for their obstinate infidelity.
5. He closes with a declaration, that innumerable other miracles were performed by Jesus, besides those he had recorded; which, if they were all related with the circumstances severally attending them, not all the scribes in the world could have written them, nor the most retentive memory have contained them. Nor would the unbelieving world, who reject the present evidence, have received the truth, though innumerable volumes of Christ's had been written for their conviction. Hereto the evangelist sets his Amen! What he wrote was infallibly certain: let us add our Amen to his; perfectly satisfied in his testimony; by faith embracing the glorious truths which he records; and fervently praying for the accomplishment of all the inestimable blessings that are promised. Amen! Amen!
See AElian, Bishop Burnet, Bengelius, Blackwall, Beausobre, Bell, Brown, Bos, Beza, Calmet, Conybeare, Bishop Chandler, Dr. Chandler, Chapman, Chrysologus, Clarke, Chemnitz, Doddridge, Dodd, Elsner, Eusebius, Sir Rich. Ellis, Erasmus, Fleming, Foster, Bishop Fleetwood, Faber, Grotius, Guyse, Gerard, Hammond, Hensius, Heylin, Henry, Hottinger, Jortin, Josephus, Jackson, Jerome, Kennicott, Knatchbull, Le Clerc, Locke, Lightfoot, L'Enfant, Lardner, Leland, Lowman, Ludovicus, Lamy, Merrick, Mede, Maldonat, Macknight, Maundrell, Mills, Maimonides, Mintert, Bishop Newton, Philo, Bishop Pocock, Phavorinus, Pearson, Plotinus, Bishop Pearce, Piscator, Quesnelle, Reland, Rutherford, Ridley, Rotherham, Scott, Selden, Saurin, Simon, Stockius, Sandy, Bishop Smallbrooke, Bishop Sherlock, Sykes, Stillingfleet, Dr. A. Taylor, Archbishop Tillotson, Tremellius, Theophylact, Vitringa, Waterland, Watts, Wetstein, Whitby, Ward, Wells, Wolfius, Bishop Warburton, Worthington, and Wall, Zeger.