For whosoever shall do the will of my Father which is in heaven, the same is my brother, and sister, and mother.
50. whosoever shall do the will of my Father ] “These which hear the word of God and do it” (Luk 8:21).
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
Verse 50. Whosoever shall do the will of my Father, c.] Those are the best acknowledged relatives of Christ who are united to him by spiritual ties, and who are become one with him by the indwelling of his Spirit. We generally suppose that Christ’s relatives must have shared much of his affectionate attention and doubtless they did: but here we find that whosoever does the will of God is equally esteemed by Christ, as his brother, sister, or even his virgin mother. What an encouragement for fervent attachment to God!
1. From various facts related in this chapter, we see the nature and design of the revelation of God, and of all the ordinances and precepts contained in it-they are all calculated to do man good: to improve his understanding, to soften and change his nature, that he may love his neighbour as himself. That religion that does not inculcate and produce humanity never came from heaven.
2. We have already seen what the sin against the Holy Ghost is: no soul that fears God can commit it: perhaps it would be impossible for any but Jews to be guilty of it, and they only in the circumstances mentioned in the text; and in such circumstances, it is impossible that any person should now be found.
Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible
50. For whosoever shall do the willof my Father which is in heaven, the same is my brother, and sister,and motherthat is, “There stand here the members of afamily transcending and surviving this of earth: Filial subjection tothe will of My Father in heaven is the indissoluble bond of unionbetween Me and all its members; and whosoever enters this hallowedcircle becomes to Me brother, and sister, and mother!”
Fuente: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown’s Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
For whosoever shall do the will of my Father,…. This is not to be understood of a perfect obedience to the will of God, revealed in his righteous law; for since this cannot be performed by any mere man, no one could be in such a spiritual relation to Christ: but of the obedience of faith to the will of God, revealed in the Gospel; which is to believe in Christ, and have everlasting life; see Joh 6:40. This is the will of Christ’s Father,
which is in heaven, and which is good news from heaven, to sinners on earth; and which Christ came down from heaven to do, and to declare to the children of men: such as “hear the word of God and do it”, as Luke says, Lu 8:21 that is, hear the Gospel, understand and believe it, and become obedient to the faith of it; these are in this near manner related to Christ, evidentially and openly, as well as those who were now present:
the same is my brother, and sister, and mother; as dear to me, as such are to those, to whom they stood thus related in the flesh: and these natural relations serve to convey some ideas of that relation, union, nearness, and communion, there are between Christ and his people; all these relative characters may be observed in the book of Solomon’s Song, to which our Lord may be reasonably thought to have respect; see So 3:11.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
1) “For whosoever shall do the will,” (hostis gar an poiese to thelema) “Because whoever he be that does the Spiritual or highest Will,” Joh 6:28-29; Joh 7:17; Eph 5:17; Rom 12:1-2.
2) “Of my Father which is in heaven,” (tou patros mou tou en ouranois) “Of my Father in (the) heavens,” thus claiming Divinity for Himself, above earthly ties to Joseph the carpenter, Joh 6:42.
3) “The same is my brother,” (autos mou adelphos), “He is my brother,” that one is my brother, by spiritual generation, Joh 6:63; 1Jn 5:1.
4) “And sister, and, mother.” (kai adelphe kai meter estin) “And is my sister and my mother.” the one male or female, doing the high, holy, Spiritual nature will of the Heavenly Father, Eph 6:6. He is not ashamed to call them brethren and sister, of closest Divine ties, who do the will of His Father, See? Col 4:12; Heb 2:11-12, asserts that His highest will, and that of the Father, is done today through service and praise in His church, Eph 3:21.
Fuente: Garner-Howes Baptist Commentary
50. For whosoever shall do the will of my Father who is in heaven. When he says that they do the will of his Father, he does not mean that they fulfill, in a perfect manner, the whole righteousness of the law; for in that sense the name brother, which is here given by him to his disciples, would not apply to any man. (158) But his design is, to bestow the highest commendation on faith, which is the source and origin of holy obedience, and at the same time covers the defects and sins of the flesh, that they may not be imputed. This, says Christ in a well-known passage,
is the will of my Father, that whosoever seeth the Son, and believeth in him, may not perish, but have eternal life, (Joh 6:40.)
Although these words seem to imply that Christ has no regard to the ties of blood, yet we know that in reality he paid the strictest attention to human order, (159) and discharged his lawful duties towards relatives; but points out that, in comparison of spiritual relationship, no regard, or very little, is due to the relationship of the flesh. Let us therefore attend to this comparison, so as to perform all that nature can justly claim, and, at the same time, not to be too strongly attached to flesh and blood. Again, as Christ bestows on the disciples of his Gospel the inestimable honor of being reckoned as his brethren, we must be held guilty of the basest ingratitude, if we do not disregard all the desires of the flesh, and direct every effort towards this object.
(158) “ Ne conviendroit a homme vivant;” — “would not apply to any man living.”
(159) “ Qu’a la verite il a observe et entretenu en toute sainctete l’ordre qui est entre les hommes;” — “that in reality he observed and maintained.”
Fuente: Calvin’s Complete Commentary
(50) Whosoever shall do the will.This is, then, what Christ recognises as the ground of a spiritual relationship. Not outward, but inward fellowship; not the mere fact of baptism, but that which baptism signifies; that doing the will of God, which is the essence of holinessthis is that which makes the disciple as dear to the heart of Christ as was the mother whom He loved so truly.
Sister, and mother.The special mention of the sister suggests the thought that those who bore that name had joined the mother and the brethren in their attempt to interrupt the divine work.
Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)
“For whoever will do the will of my Father who is in heaven, he is my brother, and sister, and mother.”
The new household of God is made up of all who do the will of His Father, that is those who have heard His own words and are responding to His teaching because they have repented and entered under the Kingly Rule of Heaven (Mat 7:21-27). It is they who are now His new relations, under their Father in Heaven Who is Father of them all. They are the community spoken to in the Sermon on the Mount where God’s Fatherhood of them was stressed. This is the basis of the new congregation of Israel under the Kingly Rule of God (Mat 18:18; Mat 21:43) The Messianic family prepared for in Mat 11:1-6 is being established. The Kingly Rule of Heaven is forcefully advancing (Mat 11:12), and its advance will now be openly portrayed in chapter 13.
Fuente: Commentary Series on the Bible by Peter Pett
Mat 12:50. The same is my brother, and sister, and mother He is my brother, or sister, or mother. Doddridge. This short speech of our Lord, related by the evangelist with great simplicity, is, without his seeming to design it, one of the finest encomiums imaginable. Could the most elaborate panegyric have done our Lord and his religion half the honour which this divine sentiment has done them? Whosoever shall do the will of my Father, &c. “I regard obedience to God so highly, that I prefer the relation that it constitutes, and the union which it begets, to the strongest ties of blood. They who do the will of my Father, have a much greater share in my esteem than my kinsmen; as such, I love them with an affection tender and steady, like that which subsists between the nearest relations; nay, I reckon them, and them only, my brethren, my sisters, and my mother.” A high commendation this, and not a reflection upon our Lord’s mother, who no doubt was among the chief of those who did the will of God. What veneration should reign in the hearts of men for Jesus and his religion, which exhibits an idea of such perfection and goodness!
Inferences.We may observe with pleasure the zeal which the attendants of Christ expressed, who chose on a sacred festival to expose themselves to hunger as well as toil (Mat 12:1.), rather than they, would lose the benefit of his instructions, which, like the heavenly manna on the day preceding the sabbath, were then poured out in a double plenty. But what numerous auditory is so candid as to contain none who come like these Pharisees, with a desire to cavil rather than to learn? The malignity of their temper sufficiently appeared in taking exception at so small a circumstance, Mat 12:2. Indeed this is the character of hypocrites, and of those who have only a false zeal; they are offended at things in their nature innocent, and even sometimes at such as are good, necessary and acceptable to God; while they themselves neglect the most essential duties of religion, and especially the great duty of charity.
What our Lord says upon this occasion, and chiefly the expression I will have mercy, and not sacrifice, Mat 12:7 deserves our best attention. The Christian religion deals not in forms and ceremonies, nay, dispenses even with rituals of divine appointment, when humanity and benevolence interfere with the observation of them. How great then the perverseness and wickedness of those, who sacrifice mercy itself, not merely to ceremonies of divine original, but to their own arbitrary inventions, superstitious dreams, and precarious, though confident determinations. We should practise habitual caution and candour, lest before we are aware we condemn the innocent and the pious, and become guilty of what is much more displeasing in the sight of God, than the faults which a peevish and censorious temper may fancy it discovers in our brethren.
The change of the Jewish into the Christian and spiritual sabbath shews, that Christ is not only the Lord, Mat 12:8 but also the truth and completion of it. When, Lord, wilt thou change this sabbath into that of eternity! into that unchangeable rest, which remaineth to the people of God? Heb 4:9.
There are but too many Christians so called, it is to be feared, who regard their cattle even more than the souls committed by Providence to their care, and therefore, no doubt, more than their own too: Mat 12:11-12. If we owe a great deal to a man, let him be what he will, how much more to a Christian, together with whom we help to form the body of Christ? Strange corruption of the heart of man, to whom it must be proved, that he is permitted at all times to do good!
The malice of the Pharisees did not restrain the benevolence of our compassionate Saviour, nor deprive the poor patient of his cure, Mat 12:13. The fear of giving offence to Pharisaical persons should never hinder an evangelical labourer from going forward with God’s work, according to his rules and maxims. We should never be overcome of evil.
The bare will of our Lord has an Almighty power of restoring life and vigour to our souls. He makes the affliction evident, in order to make known his mercy: Stretch forth thine hand. When God designs to heal the withered hand of a penitent (and when does he not?), he need only give command, and the penitent begins presently to stretch it forth to him by prayer and faith. Lord, my soul is before thee, like this hand; vouchsafe to shew it the same saving mercy!
How striking is the prudence of our Lord, who avoided every thing that looked like vanity or ostentation! How striking his humility, meekness, and condescension!ver. 15, 16. Surely face does not more exactly answer to face in water, than the character of Christ drawn by the prophet to his temper and conduct as described by the Evangelists. How should Zion rejoice, and the daughter of Judah shout, that such a king cometh unto her, meek, and having salvation! He discourages nobody; he bears with the weakness of men with great patience; and while there is any good in us, he forsakes us not. This ought, on one hand, to encourage and make us confide in him; and, on the other, induce us to imitate him; to be humble, meek, and peaceable as he was; to avoid vain-glory, and a desire of praise; to shun quarrels and disputes; to exercise great forbearance towards men; to make allowances for, and condescend to, their weakness.
The Spirit of Christ is not a spirit of contention, murmuring, clamour, or litigiousness: He shall not strive nor cry! He who loves all these belongs not to him. The meekness of Jesus Christ, as his Father’s minister, was particularly foretold, to teach the ministers of the Gospel, that their ministry is not a ministry of pride, imperiousness, and violence; but of humility, moderation, and mildness.
We have here another triumph of Christ over the evil spirit, Mat 12:22 and another proof of the horrible corruption of human nature; how prone it is to be captious and cavilling: and at the same time how full of blindness, prejudice, and malignity, against Christ and the Gospel. Who could have thought the Holy One, and the Wisdom of God, who gave the clearest evidence of his excellent character as divine, and every way infinitely greater than that of Solomon, or any of the prophets, should ever have been traduced as a confederate with the devil; or that it should have ever entered into the heart of man to blaspheme the blessed Spirit in the highest manifestations of his glory, and stigmatize him as an evil spirit? If we shut our eyes and hearts against the rich means of grace which Christ has given us, in vain do we call for farther evidence, and better means to convince us: no signs from heaven would prevail upon us; and the very heathens must reproach us, and rise up in judgment against us; Mat 12:39, &c.
How great is the danger and the aggravation of sinning against light and grace! The more convictions are stifled, the greater is the hardness which ensues; till at length Satan obtains a secure dominion over the sinner, and the worst of all condemnation will pass upon him in the great day; Mat 12:45. How should the thoughts of such a day to come make us dread every word as well as action, which will then make against us! Mat 12:36-37. How should it incite us to set a watch on the door of our lips, and to labour daily to use our tongue so that it may be indeed, as it is called in Scripture, our glory. For this purpose we should endeavour to lay up a good treasure of Christian knowledge and experience in our hearts, Mat 12:35.; that while too many are poisoning those round about them with erroneous principles and vicious discourses, the opening of our lips may be of righteous things; and we may still be ready, upon all proper occasions, with freedom, variety, and spirit, to bring forth good and profitable things from the good treasure of our hearts, which may edify those who hear us, and may go from one heart to another.
But let us remember, that before the lips can be sanctified, and the life holy, the heart must be changed; and certainly it is the greatest comfort to hear that by gospel grace the heart may be changed. It is matter of the greatest thankfulness thus expressly to be told, that all manner of sin and blasphemy shall be forgiven, upon our true repentance; while it is aweful to hear, that the blasphemy against the Holy Ghost is excepted. Those who, while they cannot deny the facts of Christianity, yet despise and oppose its doctrines, should tremble to think how near they approach to the boundaries of this sin. But let not the humble soul, that trembles at God’s word, meditate terror to itself from such a passage; which, when viewed in its due connection, cannot with any shadow of reason be thought to belong to any but those who obstinately reject the Gospel, and maliciously oppose it, when made known to them with its fullest evidence.
In vain do men seek for ways of accommodation to soften the Gospel; there is no medium between loving God and being his enemy; between belonging to Christ or to the devil; between being governed by charity or by self-love; Mat 12:30. If we would belong to Christ as we ought, we must give ourselves entirely to him. He alone has paid down the price for us; he alone ought to be our Lord.
The devil ceases not to tempt those whom Christ has taken from him: he has no other joy but in doing hurt to man: he makes new efforts, and takes new precautions, that he may not fail to ruin us; while we perhaps use none at all to escape him. The reason is, because he counts our loss his gain and delight, and we count not our salvation our proper business. How much is a relapse to be dreaded! This renders the sinner more intolerable than before, through his ingratitude and perfidiousness, Mat 12:43-45. Habits are formed and strengthened by relapses, and relapses are multiplied and become more incurable through new habits. How is it that the sinner has not eyes to see what a soul is, when deserted by the Holy Ghost and his precious gifts, and made a slave to as many contrary habits, as it were to seven devils, to whom it has surrendered up itself by sin? What compassion would a poor galley-slave, loaded with seven chains, raise in our hearts! With what terror, then, ought we to be affected at the idea of a captive soul, reduced by frequent relapses under the power of seven devils!
What can be more gracious and indulgent than those declarations, by which our Redeemer draws us, as with the cords of a man, and as with the bands of love? Behold my mother and my brethren! All obedient believers are nearly related to Jesus Christ. They wear his name, they bear his image, they have his nature, they are of his family. He loves them, owns them, converses freely with them, as his relations. He bids them welcome to his table, provides for them, sees that they want nothing proper for them. When he died, he left them rich legacies: now he is in heaven, he keeps up a correspondence with them by his Spirit, continually intercedes for them, and will at length,glorious issue of his relationship!-receive all those who perseveringly cleave to him in faith into his eternal kingdom, and confess them before men, before angels, and before his Father himself. Who, then, would not exert their utmost endeavour, through his grace, to do the will of God; that they may be thus dear, thus nearly allied to that Redeemer, who ought by so many tender, so many interesting bonds, to be dear to them?
REFLECTIONS.1st, Those who are most corrupt in their morals, sometimes think to atone for the defect by their rigid zeal for the rituals of religion; as was the case of the Pharisees, who, while they lowered the other commands to the mere letter, stretched the strict observation of the sabbatical rest to an extreme that was never designed: which false explanation our Lord confutes, and shews that works of mercy and charity may be practised consistent with the most religious observance of the sabbath-day.
1. The occasion given for this discourse arose from the invidious reflections of the Pharisees on the disciples of Jesus for rubbing the ears of corn in their hands on the sabbath-day, as they passed through the fields, and eating them, being hungry. This the Pharisees observed, and mentioned to Jesus as a thing unlawful to be done on the sabbath-day. The law had allowed the gathering of such ears of corn, Deu 23:25.; but they regard the bodily labour of rubbing them in their hands as a transgression of the rest enjoined, according to the traditions of the elders. Note; (1.) Christ’s disciples were inured to want and coarse fare: we must not think it hard, if God in his providence at any time brings us into the like straits, and causes us to know what it is to be hungry. (2.) The most innocent actions are liable to the most perverse interpretations from those who wait for an opportunity to find fault.
2. Christ vindicates the practice of his disciples by allowed precedents or unanswerable arguments.
[1.] By allowed precedents.
(1.) In the case of David and his men; who, being pressed with hunger, were, with the high-priests consent, permitted to eat the shew-bread, which none ordinarily might do but the priests alone. And if it was adjudged lawful to dispense with a positive institution of God to satisfy David’s hunger, it surely could not be thought sinful, in like circumstances, to dispense merely with the traditions of the elders.
(2.) In the case of the priests; who were obliged to do much servile work on the sabbath-day, such as slaying, skinning, and cutting up the beasts for sacrifice, &c.; and yet none could conceive that to be a transgression of the commandment; and how much less the merely rubbing out a few ears of corn in their hands for necessary food. But it might be objected that they were not priests, and that the temple-service had a particular dispensation. Therefore,
[2.] Our Lord adds arguments to the examples which he produced.
(1.) I say unto you, that in this place is one greater than the temple. And if the priests were blameless in their service, much more were the disciples of Jesus allowed to satisfy their hunger when attending on their Master, who was the Lord of the temple, in dignity and holiness infinitely greater, having all the fulness of the Godhead dwelling in him bodily, and from him alone that fabric derived all the sanctity which it possessed.
(2.) If ye had known what this meaneth, I will have mercy and not sacrifice, Hos 6:6 ye would not have condemned the guiltless. They were ignorant of those Scriptures which they pretended to urge; for, if they had understood them, they would have observed, that the great commandment of charity was vastly superior to mere ritual observances, and therefore would never have condemned the disciples for thus satisfying the cravings of hunger on the sabbath-day. Note; Ignorance of God’s word is generally the cause of rash censures on our brethren; and this is especially culpable in those who pretend to teach others.
(3.) The Son of man is Lord even of the sabbath-day. He who enjoined the rest, and prescribed the rule on mount Sinai, must needs know what obedience himself required, could best interpret his own mind, and was fully authorised to make any alteration that he should think fit. Thus now, though the commandment of observing a seventh day still is in force, he has transferred it from the last to the first day of the week, called from him the Lord’s day.
3. By the cure of a paralytic man in the synagogue on a sabbath-day some time after, he took occasion farther to vindicate works of mercy and charity as most lawful and acceptable to God on that day.
[1.] The person on whom the cure was wrought had a withered arm, so that he was disabled from labour; yet, though unable to work, while he could walk he failed not to be at the place of worship: and in the way of duty we may hope for a blessing.
[2.] The Pharisees, ever on the watch, suspecting that Jesus would cure him, questioned him concerning his thoughts of the lawfulness of healing on the sabbath-day, which their doctors, except in cases of extremity, had forbidden; and their design herein was to accuse him, either to the Sanhedrim, if he acted contrary to their determinations, as a sabbath-breaker; or to the people, if he declared it unlawful, and contradicted his own vindication of his disciples.
[3.] Christ answers them by an appeal to their own conduct. If one of their sheep fell into a pit, none scrupled to draw it out on the sabbath-day: how much then was a man better than a sheep, and his distresses rather to be relieved! No doubt therefore could be made but that it was lawful to do good on the sabbath-day.
[4.] Without delay, and, for aught that appears, without waiting for a request from the poor patient, who might, seeing the temper of these men, be discouraged from making application, Jesus bids him stretch out his hand, and power accompanied the command. He stretched it forth, and, to the astonishment of the beholders, it was restored whole, like as the other. Note; Like this withered arm are our souls by nature, impotent of themselves to every thing that is good; and yet the calls to believe and obey are neither absurd nor unreasonable, since Christ has promised to accompany his word with the efficacy of his Spirit, if we will but use the grace which he has previously given, and stretch forth, as it were, the withered arm.
2nd, Exasperated, instead of convinced, by his preaching and miracles, we are told,
1. The malicious designs of the Pharisees. They met in consultation, determined some way or other to put an end to his obnoxious discourses and his life together; for which this last pretended breach of the sabbath might afford them a handle; cloaking with zeal for religion the blackest crimes of hell.
2. Christ hereupon chose to retire, and avoid the danger which he foresaw, his hour not being yet come; but still he was attended, even in his retirement, by multitudes, to whom he continued his accustomed mercies, healing all their infirmities; but charged them that they should not make him known, not desiring fame from his miracles, and now particularly willing to be concealed from the malice of his persecutors. Note; God’s approbation, not man’s applause, is what we should covet.
3. The fulfilment of the Scripture herein is observed, Isa 42:1-4. Behold, with wonder and astonishment, my servant, so low he humbled himself, who counted it no robbery to be equal with God,whom I have chosen;designed for the office of Mediator, and now qualified for the work of redemption; my beloved, in whom my soul is well pleased; from eternity the object of his complacence; and in his person, office, and character as the Messiah, God the Father delighted in him, and by repeated declarations from heaven expressed his approbation of him. I will put my Spirit upon him, anointing him with the oil of gladness above his fellows, bestowing such a plenitude of gifts and graces upon him as may enable him gloriously to discharge and accomplish his arduous undertaking; and he shall shew judgment to the Gentiles, preaching to them that Gospel wherein God’s righteousness is revealed, and his counsels concerning sinful men are made known: he shall not strive, with noise and ostentation setting up his kingdom; neither shall any man hear his voice in the streets, contentious or clamorous against his opposers: a bruised reed shall he not break, the broken-hearted, weak, and trembling sinner he will bind up and strengthen; and smoking flax shall he not quench; those who have but the beginnings of spiritual life, in whom the graces are feeble, and much darkness and infirmity remain, he will quicken if they cleave to him, and blow the smoking flax into a flame; till he send forth judgment unto victory, by the power of his Gospel dispelling the darkness of error, delivering the soul from the bondage of corruption, and causing his grace to reign in all his faithful people. And in his name shall the Gentiles trust; the heathen nations shall become obedient to the faith, be incorporated with his Israel, and place all their hopes of salvation on the infinite merit and intercession of this divine Redeemer alone.
3rdly, Christ had before shewn his power over Satan’s kingdom, dispossessing him from the bodies as well as souls of many. And we have also,
1. Another instance of his curing one possessed with a devil; a man blind and dumb through the power of this wicked spirit; the emblem of the sinner, whose eyes the god of this world has blinded, and whose lips are sealed up from prayer and praise, and all conversation to the use of edifying. One word of Jesus restored his lost senses; his sight and speech were perfectly recovered.
2. The people admired the astonishing efficacy of the word of Jesus, and reasonably concluded, Is not this the son of David? the promised Messiah? But the Pharisees, when they heard it, stung with envy, and obstinately hardened against conviction, with blasphemous cavil and abusive insult, replied, This fellow doth not cast out devils but by Beelzebub the prince of the devils. The fact they could not deny; but imputed the miracle to a compact with the devil. To such miserable shifts are they driven, who, determined in infidelity, refuse to submit to the evidence of truth.
3. Christ refutes so base an accusation. He knew their malicious designs, heard their words of blasphemy, and therefore he at large vindicates himself. Their assertion was absurd, and self-contradictory: it is an allowed maxim, that every kingdom, city, or family, divided against itself, must hasten its own dissolution: impossible, therefore, would it be for Satan to think of supporting his dominion by those means which naturally must subvert it; the miracles of Christ being wrought in confirmation of those doctrines of truth and holiness which directly tend to destroy the works of the devil. Add to this, that among themselves they admitted some exorcists did cast out devils by the power of God. Acts 19. Mar 9:38. Why then should they not, by parity of reason, admit that his miracles evinced a divine power? therefore these men should rise up in judgment, and condemn them for this partiality and blasphemy. It being then incontestably apparent that Christ’s miracles were effected by the Spirit of God, he urges this as a proof that the kingdom of God, of the Messiah promised to bruise the Serpent’s head, was actually now come unto them: for if this had not been the case, how could it be possible that he should thus dispossess the devil from the bodies and souls of men? This wicked spirit, as a strong man armed, will keep fast hold of his prey, and guard his house. Nothing but a superior power can bind his arms, and rescue his prisoners from him; which Jesus had done, and therefore proved that he received no assistance from him, but was his superior and conqueror. Besides, the very nature of their kingdoms being directly opposite, there can be no fellowship; on the contrary, there is implacable enmity between them; and all who league with the one are regarded as rebels against the other: so that they who gather not to Christ as their shepherd, and list under his banners as their king, are scattered, exposed to his wrath, and devoted to destruction. So far, therefore, from a confederacy between Christ and Satan, there is open war between them, and not even a neutrality permitted. Note; (1.) Divisions are the surest way to destruction both in religions and civil communities. (2.) The devil has a potent kingdom erected in the world, and he will do his utmost to support it: but Christ is come to destroy his dominion, and will finally prevail. (3.) They who are under the influence of prejudice will blame that very conduct in those whom they dislike, which they approve in those they love. (4.) The destruction of Satan’s power in the soul is the work of the Spirit of God; and whenever that is evidently seen, there the kingdom of God is assuredly come. (5.) Coldness and indifference in the cause of Christ will be regarded as enmity against him: we must be hearty in his service, or we shall be dealt with as traitors.
4. From what has been observed, our Lord takes occasion to caution his hearers against that unpardonable crime, blasphemy against the Holy Ghost. All other sins, however deep, multiplied, or aggravated, may be forgiven, Christ’s blood being a sufficient atonement for them; and whoever pleads it in faith will find pardon, even those who reviled or crucified him; but whosoever speaketh against the Holy Ghost, it shall not be forgiven him, neither in this world neither in the world to come. And this blasphemy is not any denial of his divine person, or opposition to his work through ignorance, nor any resistance against the ministry of his word, nor wilful sin-committed against his light and warnings; but “a wilful and despiteful rejection of the Spirit of grace, the imputing his miraculous operations and illuminations to diabolical agency; and this through obstinate malice, in opposition to a man’s own light and conscience.” This is a direct sin against our remedy, and must needs be attended with inevitable perdition. See the critical notes.
5. Christ addresses the Pharisees, convicting them of the wickedness of their hearts by the malice which appeared in their lips. It was as absurd for them, who committed such blasphemies, to pretend to sanctity, as to expect good fruit from an evil tree. For, as a man’s heart is to be discerned by his words and actions, it plainly appeared, by what they spoke out of the abundance of their hearts, that they were a generation of vipers, thrusting out their envenomed tongues against Christ and blaspheming him, the natural effect of the evil which dwelt within them. A good man out of the good treasure of his heart, replenished with divine grace, bringeth forth good things, such as are for the use of edifying, and for the glory of God. But an evil man, whose spirit is unrenewed, out of the evil treasure of corruption which is natural to him, bringeth forth evil, in the corrupt communication which proceeds out of his mouth, and the polluted streams in his life and conversation, which break forth from the inexhausted source within. And if not an idle word passes without the divine notice, but we must answer for it in the day of judgment, how much more terrible must be the blasphemer’s guilt? With what circumspection, then, should we keep the door of our lips, when our eternal state is to be determined thereby, and our words must all be produced at the bar of God as evidences of our justification or condemnation, and sentence proceed accordingly? We may learn hence, (1.) That unless the heart be renewed by the power of God’s spirit, nothing but evil, and that continually, can proceed out of it. (2.) Our words are the index of our minds, and by our general course of communication our state God-ward may be easily discovered. (3.) The solemn account which we must one day make for every word that is on our tongue should be ever on our mind, to restrain all idle, vain, impertinent discourse, as well as what is more immediately noxious. How much has every man to lament on this behalf!
4thly, Though what our Lord had said was sufficient to convince every impartial hearer, certain Scribes and Pharisees pretended that they were not yet satisfied of his divine mission; and though they address him with respect, calling him Master, it seems to be done hypocritically; for they demand a sign from heaven; perhaps such as of old appeared on Mount Sinai; intimating that, notwithstanding his other miracles, without this they should not acknowledge him as the Messiah: a demand unreasonable and insolent, and which our Lord justly denies. They who are dissatisfied with the evidences of truth which he has been pleased to give, notwithstanding what they may pretend, would never be convinced by any other.
1. He brands them as an evil and adulterous generation, degenerate from the piety of their forefathers, and chargeable with the most criminal apostacy from God, literally and spiritually committing adultery against him.
2. He rejects their demand. No sign shall be given them, such as they required, from heaven; but one should be given them from the earth in his resurrection, which had been prefigured by Jonah the prophet, who, after being three days and three nights in the fish’s belly, was cast alive on dry land: so shall the Son of man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth; that is, part of three natural days, as the Jews computed their time; for so long he lay in the grave, reckoning Friday, before sun-setting, as one; Saturday, as the second; and Sunday, after sun-set, when the third day commenced, as the third; our Lord then arising from the dead. Note; The resurrection of Jesus is the great hinge on which our everlasting salvation turns, and the grand sign confirming all the rest: and they who refuse the evidence with which this is attended, and ask for more, we may be fully sure, desire no sign to confirm their faith, but on the contrary a plea for their infidelity.
3. He warns them of the consequences which would attend the wilfulness and wickedness of the men of that generation. The men of Nineveh shall rise up as witnesses to condemn them; for they, though heathens, repented at the preaching of Jonas for one day only: but Christ had wrought manifold miracles, had long and earnestly preached the gospel of the kingdom, and shortly was to rise from the dead; in all which he was far superior to Jonas. If therefore they rejected him, far greater would be their condemnation than that which was threatened against the men of Nineveh; and their speedy repentance shall rise up to condemn the unbelief and impenitence of the men of that generation.
In like manner shall the queen of the south, who came from far on the report of Solomon’s wisdom, condemn these despisers of Christ and his gospel. She, though a Gentile, no sooner heard the wise king, than she owned the truth of the report concerning him: but, when a greater than Solomon was there, even Jesus, in whom dwelt all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge, the men of that generation refused to receive his word, or believe in him, and therefore how aggravated will be their condemnation! They who have enjoyed and abused the greatest means and mercies, shall sink under heavier guilt and receive greater damnation.
4. He describes their character, as willing slaves of Satan. They were like one possessed of a devil who goeth for a while out, to return with double violence. He is called an unclean spirit: having lost all purity himself, he ceases not to tempt men to all manner of uncleanness. He walketh through dry places, like a melancholy person, seeking rest, and findeth none, being miserable when he is no longer in mischief; and therefore, taking seven other spirits worse than himself, he returns to his former abode, and finds the sinner’s heart ready to entertain them, as a house swept and garnished to receive its guests; and there they fix their stay, so that the last state of that man is worse than the first, more wicked than before; even so shall it be also unto this wicked generation.
5thly, While Christ continued his discourses which bore so hard upon the Pharisees, we are told,
1. That his mother and brethren stood without: apprehensive perhaps of the danger to which he would be exposed, they desired to speak to him, and warn him against giving such offensive and plain rebukes. Hereupon one of his auditors immediately informed him of their request. Note; (1.) Near relations, by their fears for us, often lay hindrances in our way. (2.) Danger must not deter us from fidelity in the way of our duty.
2. Christ replies, in answer the message, Who is my mother, and who are my brethren? not as contemning parental authority, or disregarding the ties of blood; but intimating that the address was unseasonable; for when God’s glory was concerned, no natural or civil respects were to be regarded. We are bound to love them much, but to love God more: yea, and the union which divine grace makes between kindred souls, is in many respects stronger than the bonds of blood. He stretched forth his hand towards his disciples, and said, Behold my mother and my brethren; so affectionately did he regard them: for whosoever shall do the will of my Father which is in heaven, attentive to the gospel, and obedient to the faith, the same is my brother, and sister, and mother, so near and dear to him. Note; (1.) The mark of discipleship to Jesus is obedience to the revealed word and will of God. (2.) However despised we may be or rejected of men, it is sufficient honour to be esteemed the brethren of Jesus. (3.) They who resemble Christ in spirit, temper, and disposition, and have the blessed image of that one Father, even God, stamped upon them, and perseveringly cleave to him, will be acknowledged by the Lord of life and glory in the day of his appearing, and admitted, as heirs of God and joint-heirs with Christ, to share with him the eternal inheritance.
Fuente: Commentary on the Holy Bible by Thomas Coke
REFLECTIONS
Hail thou glorious Lord of the Sabbath! Do thou blessed Jesus, manifest to my soul, and in my soul, that thou art both Lord of the Sabbath and of my heart; by reigning there, and ruling there, and giving me to eat of the shew-bread of thy body, which is the bread of life, that I may have eternal life abiding in me. And do thou by me, O Lord, as thou didst to the poor man in the Synagogue, to all the withered affections of my poor nature; both bid me, and enable me, to stretch forth the hand of faith, and lay hold of eternal life in thee!
And oh! Almighty Father! in thy gracious office-work in covenant mercies, give me to hear thy sweet proclamation of thy servant whom thou hast chosen, and in whom, as the Church’s Head and Surety, thou art well pleased, and hast delighted. Oh! for the teachings of God the Holy Ghost, to know Jehovah’s chosen and Jehovah’s beloved, as my beloved, a meek Savior, a tender hearted Savior, a well qualified and powerful Savior; who though so gentle as not to break the bruised reed, nor quench the smoking flax, yet so mighty as to send forth judgment unto victory, and in whose name the Gentiles shall trust.
And no less Almighty Spirit, do thou so teach, and guide me into all truth, that out of the good treasure by regeneration, and the daily renewings of thy grace which thou hast put into my heart, I may bring forth good things, while the generation of vipers, by their evil things, manifest the seed from whence they spring, yea! Lord give me to see and know, by heartfelt experience, from thy sovereign work there wrought, that I am of the mystical relationship of Christ, and among the number whom Jesus will own as his brother, and sister, and mother.
Fuente: Hawker’s Poor Man’s Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
50 For whosoever shall do the will of my Father which is in heaven, the same is my brother, and sister, and mother.
Ver. 50. For whosoever shall do the will ] Lo, here is the right way of becoming akin to Christ; and can we better prefer ourselves? It was an honour to Mark, that he was Barnabas’s sister’s son. David dare not in modesty think of being son-in-law to a king. Elymas the sorcerer affected to be held allied to Christ, and therefore styled himself Barjesus: as Darius, in his proud embassy to Alexander, called himself king of kings, and cousin to the gods. But the right way to be ennobled indeed, and inrighted to Christ and his kingdom, is, to believe in his name, and obey his will. This, this is to become Christ’s brother, and sister, and mother. Sister is named, to show that no sex is excluded. And mother last mentioned, that the prerogative of the flesh may be set aside and disacknowledged.
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
Mat 12:50 . efinition of spiritual kinsmanship. The highest brotherhood based on spiritual affinity. : a general present supposition expressed by the subjunctive with followed by present indicative. . . . : this probably comes nearest to Christ’s actual words. In such a solemn utterance He was likely to mention His Father, whose supreme claims His filial heart ever owned. Mark has “the will of God”; Luke “those who hear and do the word of God” obviously secondary.
Fuente: The Expositors Greek Testament by Robertson
whosoever. Figure of speech Synecdoche (of Genus), App-6, denned by obedience, and made an hypothesis by the particle “an”.
do = have done.
heaven = [the] heavens. Plural, because there is no contrast with the “earth”. See note on Mat 6:9, Mat 6:10.
the same = he.
Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics
Mat 12:50. , shall do) He does not say does, but He speaks somewhat conditionally.- , the will) by which we are born again.[596]-, he) This man, and he only.-, brother) This word is said for the third time with great force.- , and sister) The plural appellation of brethren in Mat 12:46-49, includes sisters also.-, mother) The climax.
[596] Jam 1:18.-E. B.
Fuente: Gnomon of the New Testament
do: Mat 7:20, Mat 7:21, Mat 17:5, Mar 3:35, Luk 8:21, Luk 11:27, Luk 11:28, Joh 6:29, Joh 6:40, Joh 15:14, Act 3:22, Act 3:23, Act 16:30, Act 16:31, Act 17:30, Act 26:20, Gal 5:6, Gal 6:15, Col 3:11, Heb 5:9, Jam 1:21, Jam 1:22, 1Pe 4:2, 1Jo 2:17, 1Jo 3:23, 1Jo 3:24, Rev 22:14
the same: Mat 25:40, Mat 25:45, Mat 28:10, Psa 22:22, Joh 20:17, Rom 8:29, Heb 2:11-17
and sister: Son 4:9, Son 4:10, Son 4:12, Son 5:1, Son 5:2, 1Co 9:5, 2Co 11:2, Eph 5:25-27
and mother: Joh 19:26, Joh 19:27, 1Ti 5:2
Reciprocal: Lev 20:8 – And ye Psa 15:4 – but Pro 7:4 – Thou Mic 5:3 – his Mat 6:10 – Thy will Mat 7:24 – whosoever Mat 21:31 – did Mar 3:34 – Behold Luk 6:20 – he lifted Luk 6:47 – doeth Joh 13:17 – happy Rom 16:1 – our Rom 16:13 – his 1Co 7:15 – A brother 1Co 8:12 – ye sin against 2Co 8:4 – the ministering Gal 6:10 – especially Eph 6:6 – doing 1Th 4:3 – this Heb 10:36 – after Heb 13:21 – to do
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
CHRISTS RELATIONS
For whosoever shall do the will of My Father which is in heaven, the same is My brother, and sister, and mother.
Mat 12:50
God has a will. This thought, familiar as it is to us, was a thought to which man by searching could not attain. God is no mere personification or idealisation of accident or destiny. God is t no mechanical setter in motion or preserver in motion of the wheel of nature or the world of being.
I. Gods will concerning us.God has a will concerning each one of us.
(a) Concerning our condition. The will of God is that we should become a new creation by means of the work of the Holy Ghost.
(b) Concerning our conduct. It is the will of God that ye stand perfect and complete. Can any lot be abject, can any life be trivial, can any day or hour be without its glory if the eye of God is upon it, and if the mind of God is exercised upon its being this or that?
(c) Concerning our destiny. The words are His own. He will have all men to be saved. He would have you for one of those vessels of mercy which He hath before prepared unto glory.
II. Christs relations.The same is My brother and sister and mother. There is a higher than any natural relationship into which he enters who has drunk Christs Spirit. He that doeth the will of God is Christs brother. Not connected with Him by home or parentage, he shall have a dearer and a closer tie still; he shall have the same spirit; he shall be nearer to Him for ever than the dearest son of His mother could have been to Him for one moment below; he shall have Christ to dwell in his heart by faith, and he who so dwells shall be not more his God than his brother.
Dean Vaughan.
Fuente: Church Pulpit Commentary
2:50
The only proper relationship that can be produced by obedience to the will of God is that of brethren. Thus the conclusion is necessary that no earthly relative should be regarded as near to one as our fellowship with Christ.
Fuente: Combined Bible Commentary
Mat 12:50. For whosoever shall do the will of my Father who is in heaven. Mere profession of discipleship does not entitle to such a position. Our Lord does not say how we are enabled to do the will of His heavenly Father, but makes such a result the criterion.
He is my brother, and sister, and mother. The term father is excluded; His Father is in heaven. Our Lord loved His relatives, but all whom He teaches (His disciples) and saves (do the will of my Father), whosoever they are, stand equally near Him. Christ loves His people with a love human as well as Divine; there can be no closer relationship to Him than that of real discipleship which manifests itself in this obedience to His Heavenly Father. Christ was the Son of man as well as the Son of Mary, identified with humanity in one sense, even more than with her. Those who have not seen Jesus on earth, are here assured of His presence and affection in a way that should be a constant stimulant to holiness. Brethren of Christ are brethren to each other. The dearest and best of friends and relatives, so often needlessly anxious about us, have no claims upon us superior to our duties to the gospel of the Kingdom.