CHAPTER 10

(A.D. 33)

CONCERNING MARRIAGE AND DIVORCE

¹And He arose from thence (from Capernaum), and cometh into the coasts (borders) of Judaea by the farther side of Jordan (the east side of the Jordan River; He will not come back to this region, but will be crucified in Jerusalem): and the people resort unto Him again (it was the time of Passover and many people were on their way to Jerusalem); and, as He was wont (accustomed to doing), He taught them again (they so much needed His Teaching, but it was His Death that would set them free).

²And the Pharisees came to Him (there were Pharisees in the crowd, going to Jerusalem), and asked Him, Is it lawful for a man to put away his wife? (The question of divorce and remarriage was the great controversy at that time in Israel.) tempting Him.

³And He answered and said unto them, What did Moses command you? (Took them to the Word, but not as they thought not to the Law of Moses.)

⁴And they said, Moses suffered to write a bill of divorcement, and to put her away ([Deut. 24:1], but they misinterpreted Moses, even as many do).

⁵And Jesus answered and said unto them, For the hardness of your heart he wrote you this precept (the Lord does not deny that Moses permitted divorce; commanded he did not; consequently, for the Pharisees to shelter themselves under the temporary recognition of a necessary evil, was to confess that they had not outgrown the moral stature of their fathers).

⁶But from the beginning of the creation God made them male and female (not from the beginning of Creation per se, but rather, from the beginning of the creation of humankind).

⁷For this cause (has to do with the way man and woman were created and, therefore, meant to live) shall a man leave his father and mother, and cleave to his wife (completely debunks the homosexual lifestyle);

⁸And they twain (two) shall be one flesh (one of the reasons that adultery and fornication are so wicked): so then they are no more twain, but one flesh (the Will of God carried out to its logical and beautiful conclusion).

⁹What therefore God has joined together (places the seal of Gods approval on the marriage union; and we speak of the nuclear family of husband, wife, and children), let not man put asunder (there are only two Scriptural grounds for divorce and remarriage: A. Fornication [Mat. 5:32]; and, B. Desertion on spiritual grounds [I Cor. 7:14-15]).

¹⁰And in the house (where evidently they had stopped for the night on the way to Jerusalem) His Disciples asked Him again of the same matter (the matter of divorce and remarriage).

¹¹And He said unto them (concerns marriage after divorce), Whosoever shall put away his wife (refers to divorce), and marry another, commits adultery against her (refers to having no Scriptural grounds; in doing such, he commits sin not only against God, but also against his wife).

¹²And if a woman shall put away her husband (divorce), and be married to another, she commits adultery (again, has no Scriptural grounds; such constitutes the sin of adultery).

JESUS BLESSES LITTLE CHILDREN

¹³And they brought young children to Him, that He should touch them (this custom finds its symbolism in Gen. 48:14-15): and His Disciples rebuked those who brought them (presents a paradox; the Disciples were strongly rebuking the people for bringing their children to Jesus, while Jesus was strongly blessing those brought to Him).

¹⁴But when Jesus saw it (saw what the Disciples were doing), He was much displeased (was moved with strong indignation), and said unto them, Suffer the little children to come unto Me, and forbid them not: for of such is the Kingdom of God (to start a child out right, is to insure its Salvation [Prov. 22:6]).

¹⁵Verily I say unto you, Whosoever shall not receive the Kingdom of God as a little child (the simplicity of the little child is the model and the rule for everyone who desires, by the Grace of Christ, to obtain the Kingdom of Heaven), he shall not enter therein (presents a double negative in the Greek, and consequently, presents an emphatic denial).

¹⁶And He took them up in His Arms, put His Hands upon them, and blessed them (He blessed them fervently).

THE RICH YOUNG RULER

¹⁷And when He was gone forth into the way (refers to Him the next morning leaving the house, and going toward Jerusalem), there came one running, and kneeled to Him (he is not asking for physical help, but rather for spiritual help), and asked Him, Good Master, what shall I do that I may inherit eternal life? (In the first place, one cannot inherit eternal life. It is a free gift, which comes with the acceptance of Christ [Rom. 10:9-10, 13].)

¹⁸And Jesus said unto him, Why do you call Me good? there is none good but one, Who is, God (is not meant to state that Christ Himself wasnt good, but rather that the word good be placed in its proper perspective; Christ is God!).

¹⁹You know the Commandments (draws the young man to the Word of God, in both a positive and negative sense; positive, because the Word alone holds the answer; and negative, because it will show him as a mirror where he is wrong), Do not commit adultery, Do not kill, Do not steal, Do not bear false witness, Defraud not, Honour your father and mother.

²⁰And he answered and said unto Him, Master, all these have I observed from my youth (there is no eternal life in the keeping of the Commandments, as wonderful as that is; had there been, he would not be seeking the satisfaction of the conscience).

²¹Then Jesus beholding him loved him, and said unto him (loved him despite the fact that he really had not kept the Commandments, as he was claiming; and of course, Jesus knew that!), One thing you lack: go your way, sell whatsoever you have, and give to the poor, and you shall have treasure in Heaven (puts the finger directly on the mans problem): and come, take up the Cross, and follow Me (without explanation, Christ tells the young man here, and all others for that matter, that Salvation is in the Cross alone; and it is only by and through the Cross, that we can truly follow Christ).

²²And he was sad at that saying (concerns the attitude of multiple millions; they, as he, desire Salvation, but on their own terms!), and went away grieved: for he had great possessions (the only possession that really matters is Eternal Life).

WARNING TO THE RICH

²³And Jesus looked round about, and said unto His Disciples (He looks searchingly at His Disciples), How hardly shall they who have riches enter into the Kingdom of God! (Its not the riches which constitute the sin, but the attitude toward them.)

²⁴And the Disciples were astonished at His words (the Jews of that time considered riches to be the approval of God; at the same time, they considered poverty to be His disapproval). But Jesus answered again, and said unto them, Children (using this word, He now takes them back to His dissertation concerning receiving the Kingdom of God as a little child; a child does not grasp after things), how hard is it for them who trust in riches to enter into the Kingdom of God! (As stated, it is the trust in riches, which constitutes the sin.)

²⁵It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter into the Kingdom of God (the word that Jesus uses here for needle, doesnt refer to a small hole in the wall as some think, but rather the type of needle used with thread).

²⁶And they were astonished out of measure, saying among themselves, Who then can be saved? (Presents their theology being completely turned over.)

²⁷And Jesus looking upon them said (knew that His statement would produce this type of reaction), With men it is impossible (whether rich or poor, it is impossible to be saved without God), but not with God: for with God all things are possible (only through God, is the Salvation process possible).

THE REWARDS OF CONSECRATION

²⁸Then Peter began to say unto Him, Lo, we have left all, and have followed You (by this statement, Peter shows that they are still thinking in terms of material rather than spiritual riches).

²⁹And Jesus answered and said, Verily I say unto you (concerns all Believers, not just the Twelve), There is no man who has left house, or brethren, or sisters, or father, or mother, or wife, or children, or lands, for My sake, and the Gospels (to many, Jesus is just a means to an end, in other words, to get what they want in the realm of material things; He completely debunks that here; contrary to that, He says here that everything must be placed secondary to Christ),

³⁰But he shall receive an hundredfold now in this time (refers to this present life), houses, and brethren, and sisters, and mothers, and children, and lands (we have the use of these things, and of that alone, we are to be concerned), with persecutions (regrettably, most of the persecution will come from the Church); and in the world to come Eternal Life (the world to come is eternal, and one must have Eternal Life to enter into that world. That alone is what counts!).

³¹But many who are first shall be last; and the last first (Israel, although first, will be last, because of rejection of Christ; the Church, although last, will be first because of acceptance of Christ).

JESUS AGAIN SPEAKS OF HIS COMING DEATH AND RESURRECTION

³²And they were in the way going up to Jerusalem; and Jesus went before them (presents Christ walking ahead of His Disciples, and for a purpose and reason): and they were amazed (there was something about Him that was now different a great sadness); and as they followed, they were afraid (speaks not only of the Disciples, but as well, of all who were near Him). And He took again the twelve (apart from the others), and began to tell them what things should happen unto Him (He had already told them this several times, but still they didnt understand),

³³Saying, Behold, we go up to Jerusalem (they had gone to Jerusalem several times in the past, but this time would be different); and the Son of Man shall be delivered unto the Chief Priests, and unto the Scribes (betrayed by Judas); and they shall condemn Him to death (the Sanhedrin would pass sentence upon Him), and shall deliver Him to the Gentiles (to the Romans):

³⁴And they shall mock Him, and shall scourge Him, and shall spit upon Him (both Jews and Gentiles would do such), and shall kill Him (the Crucifixion): and the third day He shall rise again (predicts His Resurrection, even as He had already done several times before; but they actually didnt believe it).

THE REQUEST OF JAMES AND JOHN

³⁵And James and John, the sons of Zebedee, come unto Him (Matthew claims Salome, their mother, evidently traveling with them, as making the request [Mat. 20:20], the sons prompted her to do such), saying, Master, we would that You should do for us whatsoever we shall desire (constitutes a most selfish request; how often do we approach Him in the same manner?).

³⁶And He said unto them, What would you that I should do for you? (In effect, He is asking every Believer the same question!)

³⁷They said unto Him, Grant unto us that we may sit, one on Your right hand, and the other on Your left hand, in Your glory (concerned the most coveted positions; they were speaking of glory, while He was speaking of death).

³⁸But Jesus said unto them, You know not what you ask (characterizes so many petitions made by Believers): can you drink of the cup that I drink of? and be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with? (Both of these questions signify the Cross!)

³⁹And they said unto Him, We can (a mere profession of moral courage, not a claim to spiritual power; they really didnt know what they were saying). And Jesus said unto them, You shall indeed drink of the cup that I drink of; and with the baptism that I am baptized withal shall you be baptized (concerns not only the Twelve, but all who follow Christ, and for all time the Cross demands this):

⁴⁰But to sit on My right hand and on My left hand is not Mine to give (positions in the Kingdom are determined solely by the Will of God); but it shall be given to them for whom it is prepared (Jerome said, our Lord does not say, you shall not sit, lest He put to shame these two; neither does He say, you shall sit, lest the others should be envious; but by holding out the prize to all, He animates all to contend for it).

⁴¹And when the ten heard it, they began to be much displeased with James and John (the sons of Zebedee want to be first, and the ten were unwilling to be last!; such was the energy of the carnal nature in all Twelve).

⁴²But Jesus called them to Him, and said unto them, You know that they which are accounted to rule over the Gentiles exercise lordship over them (the way of the world); and their great ones exercise authority upon them (in the world, the greater the position, the greater the authority).

⁴³But so shall it not be among you (the way of the world, is not the way of the Lord): but whosoever will be great among you, shall be your minister (servant):

⁴⁴And whosoever of you will be the chiefest (hold the greater position), shall be servant of all (in the Kingdom of God the greatness of the individual comes from the lowly place he takes as a servant of all).

⁴⁵For even the Son of Man came not to be ministered unto (proclaims Christ as the example), but to minister (be a servant), and to give His life a ransom for many (He is Very God of Very God, but became incarnate in human flesh and a Servant to mankind; what a rebuke to His Disciples, and to us!).

THE HEALING OF BLIND BARTIMAEUS

⁴⁶And they came to Jericho (this is the only record of Him being in Jericho; it was to be a red-letter day for some): and as He went out of Jericho with His Disciples and a great number of people, blind Bartimaeus, the son of Timaeus (suggests the possibility of Bartimaeus coming from a family of some note), sat by the highway side begging (symbolic of all the sons of Adams fallen race).

⁴⁷And when he heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth (he had, no doubt, long since prayed for this moment), he began to cry out (means in the Greek that he kept crying over, and over to Jesus), and say, Jesus, Thou Son of David (a title that referred to the Messiah; this blind beggar knew He was the Messiah, but the religious leaders of Israel didnt), have mercy on me (he pled the right kind of petition).

⁴⁸And many charged him that he should hold his peace (the word charged is strong, meaning to censure severely; in other words, they were telling him, and in no uncertain terms, to shut up): but he cried the more a great deal (proclaims their demand as having the opposite effect on him), Thou Son of David, have mercy on me.

⁴⁹And Jesus stood still (faith caused Christ to stop; it will do the same presently!), and commanded him to be called (constitutes the greatest moment in the life of this blind beggar). And they call the blind man, saying unto him, Be of good comfort, rise; He calls you (should be the message of every single Believer to every single lost soul).

⁵⁰And he, casting away his garment (this was a garment just for beggars; during the day he would spread it out, for people to throw coins on it, and would use it as a blanket at night; he knew he would never need it again), rose, and came to Jesus (if the whole world came to Jesus, they would receive even more than Bartimaeus [spiritual sight]).

⁵¹And Jesus answered and said unto him, What will you that I should do unto you? (Thats the question asked of all Believers. Our answer reveals our spiritual condition.)The blind man said unto Him, Lord, that I might receive my sight.

⁵²And Jesus said unto him, Go your way; your faith has made you whole (whole in the Greek is sozo, it means, to save; it is used either as a physical healing or of spiritual Salvation; consequently, the implication is that Bartimaeus was not only healed, but saved as well!). And immediately he received his sight, and followed Jesus in the way (tradition says that he followed Jesus to Jerusalem, and became an ardent Disciple in the Early Church).