MATTHEW XIII. 57, 58. MARK VI. 5.

243 Jews the children of brothers and sisters were called brethren, but it seems that those who, having been neighbours, should have been friends, were jealous that Jesus should have been lifted so far above themselves. They were offended at his fame, and spoke of him as the Carpenter, because no doubt He had helped Joseph, his supposed father, in his trade. That He did this, remains as a blessing to all who earn their bread by the labours of their hands, for must it not lighten their toil to think that Jesus their Redeemer, did the same?

MATTHEW xiii. 57. "And they were offended in him. But Jesus said unto them, A prophet is not without honour, save in his own country, and in his own house.”

This is so true that it has become a saying among ourselves, for it is every day seen that the lessons of religion given by the wise and the good, are the least cared for by the worldly friends who know them best, and for that very reason despise them, as being no better than themselves, indeed very often in worldly things much less esteemed than they are. What a comfort it must be to all those whose friends and neighbours are offended at them because of their religion; to feel that their Lord and Master Christ knows their grief and vexation; for though strangers from all parts followed in crowds to hear him, when He returned to his own home, his neighbours would not listen, and were offended at him. But this sinful temper of theirs brought a great evil upon them.

MATTHEW Xiii. 58. "He did not many mighty works there because of their unbelief.”"

St. Mark writes, that

MARK vi. 5. "He could there do no mighty work, save that He laid his hands upon a few sick folk, and healed them."

The Saviour never forced himself upon any; all who came to him, He received; and He sought out many sufferers, but, even as He left the Gadarenes at their own request, so in Nazareth, except in a few sick chambers where He was welcomed, He made no use of his Almighty power. Let all lay this to heart. Jesus did not remain long in Nazareth. While He was there, the want of faith of the people made even his love useless to them-and, even while men in careless pride refuse to believe that the Saviour is now calling upon them, their day of grace is passing away from them.

XLVII.

MATT. IX. X.

"He

The men of Nazareth had refused to listen, therefore our Saviour would not stay long among them. He set out upon one of those journies which He made from time to time. went round about the villages teaching." And wherever He went, a crowd followed him. These were so eager to hear, and to be near him, for every day He seemed more and more certainly to fulfil all that the prophets had foretold of the promised Messiah, that they left their homes and followed him wherever He went. They did not think of the fatigue, till weariness obliged them to lay down to rest wherever they could.

MATTHEW ix. 36.

"But (Jesus) when He saw the multitudes, He was moved with compassion on them, because they fainted, (they were tired and lay down,*) and were scattered abroad (that is from their homes) as sheep having no shepherd."

He looked upon them as they lay around in the open fields, * See margin of the Bible.

earnest and eager to be taught. They were like ripe corn that only needed to be reaped.

Verses 37, 38.

"Then saith He unto his disciples, The harvest truly is plenteous, but the labourers are few: pray ye therefore the Lord of the harvest, that He will send forth labourers into his harvest."

And now the Lord determined to send his Apostles through all the land of Israel to preach his gospel.

MARK vi. 7. and MATTHEW X. 1. (And He called unto him the twelve, and began to send them forth by two and two,) and "He gave them power against unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to heal all manner of sickness and all manner of disease."

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He did not send them forth without telling them where they were to go. It was to the Jews, God's own people, that the Messiah had been expressly promised to be their Spiritual King, of the line of David, "whose kingdom should know no end; and to the Jews therefore the good news, that the Messiah was indeed come, must first be told. Therefore when Jesus sent forth the twelve,

Verses 5-7. (He) "commanded them, saying, Go not into the way of the Gentiles, and into any city of the Samaritans enter ye not: (to no strangers) but go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. And as ye go, preach, saying, The kingdom of heaven is at hand. Heal the sick; cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out devils : freely ye have received, freely give."

He gave them powers as great as his own, their love must also be as great.

He also said unto them :

Verses 9, 10.

"Provide neither gold, nor silver, nor

brass in your purses, nor scrip for your journey, neither two coats, neither shoes, nor yet staves: for the workman is worthy of his hire."

All who gladly heard their teaching, and believed the good news they brought of the kingdom of heaven, would gladly give them all that was needful for their daily wants; and they were to trust to this. They were to take care not to bring disgrace upon the name of Christ by living with people of bad character, therefore He said unto them :

Verse 11. "And into whatsoever city or town ye shall enter, enquire who in it is worthy; and there abide till ye go thence."

By staying in the first house where they were received with kindness, they would prevent men from saying that they were visiting about for their own pleasure. He also said:

Verses 12. 13. And when ye come into an house, salute it (give the family your blessing) And if the house (or family) be worthy, let your peace come upon it: but if it be not worthy, let your peace return unto you."

In old times it was usual on first going into a house, to salute it, by saying, "Peace be upon this house." And the message brought by each of the twelve Apostles, was peace indeed, for it was the good news of the pardon of all sin, sent by Christ the Lord to all who were willing to be his people. If the family, or any in the house, believed this message, and made welcome the Apostles who brought it, then the peace of God would come into their hearts, and rest upon them, but if, on the contrary, they would have none of it, then peace of mind would never more be theirs, it would remain with the Apostles, and with all who would listen to them.

Verse 14. "And (said Christ the Lord) whosoever

shall not receive you, nor hear your words, when ye depart out of that house or city, shake off the dust of your feet.”

All the Jews knew very well what that sign meant, for when any one of them returned from a journey into a heathen land, as soon as they again set their feet upon the ground of their own country, they shook the dust of the other land, from off them, to show that they had nothing more to do with it. The Lord Jesus adds a terrible warning of what the end will be of those people who refuse the religion of Christ :

Verse 15. "Verily I say unto you, It shall be more tolerable for the land of Sodom and Gomorrha in the day of judgment, than for that city.”

Awful words were these to the Jews who saw, in their own land, the Dead Sea roll its black and bitter waters over the place where Sodom and Gomorrha once stood,* and awful words are these to us who know the terrible punishment that fell, even in this life, upon the people of Israel, who refused the religion of Christ. All who hear, but will not heed, the message of the Gospel of pardon through Christ, will do wisely to think of that terrible judgment-day, when "small and great shall stand before God" to be judged, "every man according to his works," and when "whosoever " is "not found written in the book of life," shall be "cast into the lake of fire."

Our Lord then warned the apostles what they were to expect from their fellow-men, and how needful it was that they should be careful to give no offence that they could possibly help.

MATTHEW X.

Behold, (said He) I send you forth

66 16.

* A sea, called the Dead Sea, because no fish can live in its waters, nor plant upon its shores, fills up the valley where stood the cities of Sodom and Gomorrha and the other cities of the plain, till they were destroyed for their wickedness by fire from heaven. Gen. XIX.