I. The folly and uncharitableness of mankind are in nothing more clearly seen than in their disposition to blame everyone who is unfortunate, and to think themselves surely in the right as long as they are prosperous. "While he lived," said the Psalmist of the worldly-minded, "he counted himself a happy man; and so long as thou doest well unto thyself men will speak good of thee." On the other hand, let one be smitten with disease or poverty, he shall never want some to ascribe his sufferings to the intemperance of his youth, to his extravagance, carelessness, or vicious indulgences while he had money, or to the judgments of God on his covetousness and want of generosity. And yet every day's experience proves, both in public and private life, that the wisest of us is deceived, and the best man disappointed in three out of four of his worldly hopes and expectations. The reason of this is, that the present life is a state of trial, and not of reward and punishment; and the use to be made of it is, that the afflicted learn patience, the prosperous godly fear, and all men charity and candour in judging of others.
II. Our Lord's words in the text are a warning addressed to the Jews as a nation, and awful beyond any human lesson, from the consideration that it was so soon and so terribly accomplished. Jerusalem would not know the things that belonged to her peace; she would not be gathered under the wings of her mighty and gracious Redeemer; therefore, not one only of her towers fell, but all her walls and towers, yea, even the Temple of the Lord was laid even with the ground, so that not one stone was left upon another; not a few Galileans only defiled her altars with their blood, but the whole multitude of her children were slain with the edge of the sword, or led captive into all nations an everlasting monument of God's anger against obstinacy and hardness of heart, and a sad lesson to such as judge their neighbours guilty because they suffer, that they also repent if they hope not to perish in like manner.
J. Keble, Sermons Occasional and Parochial,p. 75.
References: Luke 13:2-4. S. A. Brooke, Sermons,p. 42.Luke 13:3. R. D. B. Rawnsley, Village Sermons,1st series, p. 79. Luke 13:5-10. Homilist,new series, vol. ii., p. 146.