14 Ye are the light of the 16 Let your light so shine world. A city that is set on a before men, that they may see hill cannot be hid. your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven. 15 Neither do men light a candle, and put it under a bushel, but on a candlestick; and it giveth light unto all that are in the house. 14. The light of the world. The darkness of moral and religious ignorance had covered the earth; but by means of the apostles of Jesus, the light of truth was to shine on the world. Jesus was emphatically "the light of the world." John 9:5.8:12. In an inferior sense, his disciples also were the light of the world, for they were to communicate to men the truths of his religion. || A city that is set on a hill cannot be hid. So the disciples of Christ would attract notice. 15. A candle; more in accordance with Eastern customs, a lamp. || Bushel; any large measure. || Candlestick; lamp-stand. 16. Glorify your Father; ascribe praise to God. The holy and useful lives of the Saviour's followers reflect praise on the religion which they profess, and thus cause honor to be paid to God, from whom this religion pro 17 Think not that I am come to destroy the law or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, 18 For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled. ceeded. 17. The divine teacher next proceeded to correct some of the erroneous views of moral and religious duty which had been handed down from former times, and which were, in his day, maintained by the Scribes and Pharisees, the religious guides of the people. These views arose chiefly from a wrong interpretation of the Mosaic statutes, and from the authority of certain traditions. Jesus maintained the immutable nature of the fundamental principles enforced in the books of the Old Testament; corrected certain erroneous views of those principles; showed the very broad and extensive application of them; and gave such additional precepts, in regard to them, as the more elevated and complete nature of his religion rendered necessary. To destroy; to but to fulfil. abrogate, to render null and void. || The law or the prophets; the writings of the Old Testament, as divided into the law of Moses, or the Pentateuch, and the prophetical books, or the rest of the Old Testament. Compare Matt. 12: 5. Luke 2: 23. 16:29, 31. 24:27, 44. Though Jesus came as the predicted king, and acknowledged not the authority of the Scribes and Pharisees, at that time the religious teachers; though he stood by himself, and gave instructions and precepts on his own authority, - yet he did not annul the great principles contained in the law of Moses and in the writings of the prophets. || To fulfil; to fill up, to complete, to carry out to perfection, and leave nothing to be added or to be altered. All religious teachers who had preceded the Messiah had left much incomplete, both as to the statement of principles, and the manifestation of the principles in actual practice. It was reserved for the Messiah to present the full light, of which before only some glimpses had been discerned. The dispensation by Moses and the prophets was preparatory to that of the Messiah, looking forward to it, and having reference to it, as the grand completion of the whole scheme of divine revelation. The Messiah came, then, not to annul, but to complete; not to abrogate any fundamental religious principles, but to carry out those principles to perfection. Whatever was abrogated by the Messiah's coming was merely of an external, circumstantial nature, and was abrogated on the ground of having answered all its purposes, and of having become needless, now that He had come, for whose coming they were preparatory. 19 Whosoever therefore shall break one of these least That our Saviour had reference here to the moral, and not to the ceremonial, part of the Old Testament, appears from the illustrations contained in the following verses (21-48). en 18. Verily; truly, certainly. || Heavand earth; the visible universe. See Gen. 1:1.2:1. || Pass; pass away, perish. The expression till heaven and earth pass away, is similar to ours, till the world shall end, or, as long as the world stands. It was a received opinion among the Jews, that the earth would never be totally destroyed, but would at some time be renovated, and in this renewed form exist forever. To say, then, that a thing would not take place till heaven and earth pass away, was the same as saying, it will never take place. See Luke 16: 17. || Jot. The Greek word here employed corresponds to the name of the smallest Hebrew letter, and means the smallest thing. || Tittle; a very small point, by which certain Hebrew letters are distinguished from others; they being in other respects alike. The idea expressed by each of these words is, the very smallest part. || From the law; from the religion enforced in the Old Testament. Compare the word law in the preceding verse. The declaration of the Saviour is, that not the smallest thing recognized in the fundamental moral principles of the Old Testament can be annulled. || Till all be fulfilled; till the whole design of the law be effected, its promises be fulfilled, its threatenings performed, its precepts honored either by obedience or by punishment for disobedience. This phrase is regarded by some as a mere repetition, in another form, of the idea expressed by the words till heaven and earth pass away. Its meaning, then, commandments, and shall teach men so, he shall be called the least in the kingdom of heaven: but whosoever shall do and teach them, the same shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven. if this be the right view, might be expressed by the phrase till all things are done, or till every thing is done with. The same words, however, in the original, occur in Luke 21:32, and nearly the same in Matt. 24: 34, and Mark 13: 30, in such a manner as rather to favor the view first presented. 19. Least commandments. The Saviour did not, in his own judgment, apply the word least to any of the divine commands; but here adopted the method of speaking which was common among the Pharisees. They divided the commands into the small and the great, the weighty and the light. And in making these distinc tions, they were inclined to enforce the tithing of mint, and anise, and cumin, and other external things, and to pass over justice, mercy, and the love of God. See Matt. 23: 16, 18, 23, 25. Luke 11:42. Hence, to some of the divine commands they could attach, when it suited their conve nience, the disrespectful epithet least, that is, not worthy of much regard; and they would lead others thus to view and to treat the precepts of God. But the Saviour declared, that he who should thus treat, in his own practice and by his teaching, the commands of God, would be regarded and treated in a similar manner in the new dispensation which was now introduced; that is, he should be held as not worthy of regard, but as deserving rejection. As he treated God's law, so, in the new dispensation, he would himself be treated; he would be counted as least, as unsuitable to enjoy the blessings and honors of the Messiah's administration. || In the kingdom of heaven; the Messiah's reign, the new dispensation. The Saviour did not say, such a person may 20 For I say unto you, That except your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, ye shall in no case enter into the kingdom of heaven. be admitted into heaven, and there considered as the least in the world of glory. He meant, as appears by the preceding remarks, such a person shall be accounted unsuitable to be among the Messiah's subjects; he shall be rejected from them. Of course, such a person cannot be admitted into the state of glory which is the completion of the Messiah's administration. || Great in the kingdom of heaven. The word great is, here, the contrast of the word least in the former part of the verse. The idea is, he shall be held of great account; that is, suitable to be approved, acknowledged by the Messiah, and admitted to the blessings which he bestows here and hereafter. As such a person treats the divine commands, so he shall himself be treated. Accounting them all as great, as worthy of his reverence and obedience, he shall be accounted as a suitable subject for great honor and happiness in the new dispensation. 20. Your righteousness; integrity and piety. || The Scribes and Phari sees. The scribes were men devoted to the study and the teaching of the law of Moses, and of the traditionary religious precepts. See INTRODUCTORY EXPLANATIONS, III. 3. They and the Pharisees were held in such repute for possessing the favor of God, as to occasion the saying, that if only two men were to be admitted into heaven, one would be a scribe and the other a Pharisee. Their righteousness, however, was extremely defective. It was merely external, while their hearts were far from uprightness. See Matt. 15:1-9.23: 23, 25, 27, 28. Consisting in an outside show, it was intended to procure applause from men, rather than to please God. Matt. 23: 3, 5, 14. It was connected with harshness | 21 Ye have heard that it was said by them of old time, Thou shalt not kill; and whosoever shall kill shall be in danger of the judgment : 22 But I say unto you, That and oppression (Matt. 23: 4,14), and with insatiable ambition (Matt. 23 : 6, 7). Thus, in principle, in extent, and in actual fruits, their righteousness was, in truth, of no account, highly as they were esteemed among men. A better sort of piety is demanded in order to be a true subject of the Messiah, and to obtain the bliss pertaining to his administration. || The kingdom of heaven; the Messiah's reign, or dispensation, commenced on earth, perfected in the world of glory. Το enter into this kingdom is, to be admitted to a share in its bliss and rewards here and hereafter, as a subject of it. 21. The Saviour descended to particulars, and corrected some of the prevalent erroneous notions respecting the precepts of the Old Testament, and gave illustrations of his fulfilling, or carrying out to complete fulness, those precepts. He made needed explanations and additions. By them of old time; the ancients, teachers of a former age. The Saviour did not Moses and the prophets, but teachers who arose some time after them. These teachers had grossly misapprehended the spirit of many precepts in the Old Testament, and had attached to them modifying phrases, and had originated, or perpetuated, the traditional precepts and explanations. Such teaching had exerted its influence down to the time of Christ. || Thou shalt not kill. Ex. 20: 13. || Whosoever shall kill, &c. This was an addition, or explanation, made in subsequent times, and it proceeded on the principle, that the law recognized only actual murder. The precept and the explanation were placed together, as the rule of conduct. || In danger of; liable to, exposed to. || The judgment. Josephus, the Jewish historian, states, whosoever is angry with his brother without a cause, shall be in danger of the judgment: and whosoever shall say to his that in every city there was a tribunal of seven judges, with two Levites as attending officers. This tribunal decided causes of comparatively small moment, and is the one here spoken of. The judgment, then, was an inferior tribunal of the Jews. brother, Raca, shall be in danger of the council: but whosoever shall say, Thou fool, shall be in danger of hell fire. weighty matters came before this tribunal. In the time of Christ, its power had been limited by the Romans; but still it held the right of passing sentence of death, though the power of executing the sentence was lodged with the Roman governor. The idea of the Saviour is, whoever shall indulge hisanger so far as to use the opprobrious epithet Raca (blockhead) contracts guilt of such a dye as these teachers would ascribe to a crime which would be carried up to the Sanhedrim, the highest court; and he exposes himself to such an increase of punishment, as that it may be likened to the punishment decreed by the Sanhedrim, when compared with the punishment decreed by the Judgment. Thus the Saviour marks a gradation of guilt and of punishment, while yet he has not described any crime beyond anger, nor arrived to the point of saying what murder deserves. How different from the teachers to whose decisions the Jews were accustomed! 22. Widely different is the view which Jesus presented. So far from regarding only the outward act of murder as forbidden, and as exposing to punishment, he declared that a wrong state of mind, and offences considered at that time of little moment, but yet tending to the act of killing, would expose a person to punishment; that even causeless anger, disregarded as it was by those teachers, was a crime, in the judgment of God, of as great ill desert as that which they attached to the crime of murder. Compare 1 John 3:15. Brother. Among the Hebrews, this word was sometimes used with much latitude, as equivalent to our expression another person. Compare Heb. 8: 11, Lev. 19: 17; also Gen. 13: 11, "the one from the other; " or, if || Thou fool. The word fool among literally translated, from his brother; the Hebrews was one of the vilest ep26: 31, "one to another;" in the He- ithets they could employ. It did not so brew, to his brother. || In danger of the much imply a destitution of intellect, judgment; exposed to the tribunal just as a destitution of every good moral mentioned. The idea is, that causeless quality. See Ps. 14: 1. It was equivanger exposes to punishment as truly alent to the terms impious wretch, as, according to the decision of these denier of God and all religion. It teachers, does the act of killing; and implied, then, in the person who used the guilt of causeless anger is as great it, when speaking to another, a very as that which these teachers ascribe to high degree of anger, so high that the crime of killing. || Raca; a term he was willing to call upon him the of contempt, equivalent to blockhead, reprobation of God and of man. or, empty headed, fool. It is properly || Hell fire. The term in the original, a word derived from the Hebrew lan- translated hell, is derived from two guage, expressed in Greek letters, and Hebrew words, signifying Valley of transferred to the English language. Hinnom. This was a valley near the || The council; that is, the Sanhedrim. southern wall of Jerusalem. In a part This was the highest tribunal among of this valley was a place called Tothe Jews. It consisted of seventy-two pheth, where, in the later periods of persons, and the acting high priest was the Jewish kingdom, children were generally the president. It was com- made to pass through the fire in sacriposed of the most distinguished men fice to Moloch. 2 2 K Kings 16:3. Jer.7: in the nation. Appeals and other 31. In the reign of Josiah (2 Kings 23 Therefore, if thou bring thy gift to the altar, and there rememberest that thy brother hath aught against thee, 24 Leave there thy gift before 23:10), a reformation was effected; and in subsequent times, the Jews conceived such an abhorrence of the place, that they made it the receptacle of all the filth and pollution of the city; and to prevent mischief from such an accumulation of carcasses and other putrid matter, they kept a fire burning. Hence the word fire was connected with it. So odious did this place become, and so associated with every thing bad and disagreeable, that they applied the name of it to the place of torments in a future life. It is also said, that criminals of more than ordinary guilt, who had excited universal detestation, were, after being executed, cast unburied into this abominable place. This was the extreme of punishment and disgrace. To this, as the very utmost extent of suffering on earth, the Saviour probably here alluded; and thus would correct the erroneous sentiments of the people, by showing that the indulgence of causeless anger is regarded by God as a very heinous crime, and as leading to most dire punishment, though such indulgence was passed over by the Jewish teachers, and only the act of murder was regarded by them as forbidden by the law. The Saviour here specified three degrees of criminal anger, and three corresponding degrees of punishment. The crimes were takes cognizance of, not by the Jewish civil law, but by God's spiritual law; and the punishments would be inflicted by God. But in order to express these different degrees of punishment, reference was made to tribunals and practices among the Jews. The punishment expressed by the words hell fire would indeed be inflicted beyond the grave; so, too, would the punishment expressed by a reference to the Council, or the Sanhedrim, and to the Judgment. This is the only passage in the New Testa the altar, and go thy way; first be reconciled to thy brother, and then come and offer thy gift. 25 Agree with thine adversary quickly, while thou art ment, in which the words hell fire relate directly to the Valley of Hinnom, as a representative merely of extreme misery in the world of woe. In other passages, they refer directly to the place of torment beyond the grave. The connection of the word in different passages sufficiently shows this. 23. Since now the cherishing of anger is so great a sin, and exposes to such danger, it ought not for a moment to be indulged; and no duties, however binding and sacred, ought to be held superior to the duty of obtaining reconciliation, if we have given any person occasion to be unpleasantly affected towards us. The teaching of the Pharisees gave no such prominence to an upright state of heart. Gift to the altar. Much of the religious observances of the Jews consisted in making offerings to God, and in sacrifices, which were brought to the altar. || Thy brother; any person, as in 22d verse. || Hath aught against thee; has just cause to find fault with thee. If thou art conscious of having done him wrong, and hast thus alienated his affections. 24. Go thy way; that is, to the person wronged. Wait not to make the offering; for it will be unacceptable to God, if presented in a spirit of unkindness towards any man. || Be reconciled; prevail on him, by suitable acknowledgments, and whatever else is necessary, to be reconciled to thee; regain his favor. A very common meaning of the word reconcile in the Bible is, to procure favor. 25. This same spirit, leading to an amicable adjustment of all difficulties, ought to be cherished in the whole intercourse of life. A contrary spirit leads to ruin, even as to our temporal affairs. A maxim of prudence, then, was suggested by this view of the case. Thine adversary; thy creditor, who demands a settlement, and is |