Matthew 8:5 - Coke's Commentary on the Holy Bible

And when Jesus was entered into Capernaum— St. Luke has related this part of the evangelical history more at large than St. Matthew.The whole may be thus connected: Jesus, having finished his sermon on the mount, as soon as he came down thence, to shew that his words and doctrines pertained both to the Jews and Gentiles, performed two miracles; the one for a Jew, a leper who came to him, the other for a Gentile, a centurion or Roman commander of a hundred soldiers, who was stationed at Capernaum. A servant of this centurion, whose virtue and honesty, obedience and industry, made him very valuable [εντιμος] in the eyes of his master, lay at home sick of the palsy, in the most grievous stage of the disease, δεινως βασανιζομενος. The centurion, hearing of Jesus (whose fame began now to be spread abroad, and to which his miraculous cure performed at a distance on the son of a nobleman in this same city must have greatly contributed, see John 4:43-53.), but not thinking himself worthy to come unto him, engaged, as St. Luke informs us, the elders of the Jews in his cause, and sent them to intercede with this blessed Person, of whom he had conceived such high notions, on behalf of his afflicted servant. They performed their office punctually; for they came and besoughtour Lord instantly and earnestly, and strengthened their importunity by informing him, that the centurion was worthy for whom he should do this; for he loveth our nation, say they, and, as a proof of it, hath built us a synagogue. Jesus, ever ready to do good, made them no reply, but immediately went with them. The centurion, hearing that he was coming, moved by the most remarkable humility, and judging his house unworthy the presence of so divine a guest, immediately dismissed his friends, to desire the Master not to give himself so great trouble, as to come to the house of one, who judged himself so far from being worthy of this great condescention, that he thought himself not even worthy to come to Jesus: his humble request was, that he would deign to speak the word only, since he was assured that would be sufficient for the recovery of his servant. But humility never yet prevented Christ's approach; and therefore he proceeded on towards the centurion's house; coming near to which, the centurion himself, as St. Matthew here informs us, hastened out to meet him; and thus the sacred historians are easily reconciled, and the history recorded here and in St. Luke appears to be one and the same. However, as Macknight and some others suppose the histories to be different, that I may do justice to the subject, I will subjoin their arguments at the end of the 13th verse.