to destroy Jesus, is very intelligible, if we suppose that our Lord's miracle of healing on the sabbath day had confirmed suspicions, already awakened, that he was assuming the character of Lord of the sabbath. They now felt justified in proceeding against him; because he had not only avowed it, but was acting up to the avowal; he was practically shewing, that his words were to be construed in a sense which to their apprehension was blasphemous. CHRIST'S CHARGE TO THE UNCLEAN SPIRITS, NOT TO MAKE HIM KNOWN. Ver. 7-12. But Jesus withdrew himself with his disciples to the sea: and a great multitude from Galilee followed him, and from Judæa, and from Jerusalem, and from Idumæa, and from beyond Jordan; and they about Tyre and Sidon, a great multitude, when they had heard what great things he did, came unto him. And he spake to his disciples, that a small ship should wait on him because of the multitude, lest they should throng him. For he had healed many; insomuch that they pressed upon him for to touch him, as many as had plagues. And unclean spirits, when they saw him, fell down before him, and cried, saying, Thou art the Son of God. And he straitly charged them that they should not make him known. The unclean spirits called Jesus the Son of God. Now it was his object gradually to exercise the faith of his hearers-to prepare them for truth after truth-and he did not therefore wish to have himself avowed to those whose docility and candour had not been so exercised. Even to his disciples his revelation of himself was gradual. It might also have exposed him to the hazard of an attempt to force on him temporal royalty; and that there was some risk of this may be inferred from his removal into a mountain. APPOINTMENT AND MISSION OF THE TWELVE Ver. 13-19. And he goeth up into a mountain, and calleth unto him whom he would: and they came unto him. And he ordained twelve, that they should be with him, and that he might send them forth to preach, and to have power to heal sickness, and to cast out devils: and Simon he surnamed Peter; and James the son of Zebedee, and John the brother of James; and he surnamed them Boanerges, which is, The sons of thunder and Andrew, and Philip, and Bartholomew, and Matthew, and Thomas, and James the son of Alphæus, and Thaddeus, and Simon the Canaanite, and Judas Iscariot, which also betrayed him. Our Lord appointed the twelve," that they might be with him;" and so be witnesses of the Hence they are called course of his ministry. emphatically his Witnesses. This view of their office is very important, because it arises out of the most essential characteristic of our religion. It is an historical religion; that is, it is a religion whose doctrines arise out of facts; chiefly, miraculous facts. In this respect Christianity essentially differs from all the philosophical systems, or false religions of the world. Even Mahomet only laid down doctrines; but Christ performed actions out of which doctrines flow. Thus he died for us, and hence the doctrine of the atonement; he sent the Holy Spirit to us, and hence the doctrine of grace. And this will account for our not finding doctrines with which we are familiar, set forth, as such, in the sacred narratives. They are contained there, yet not as abstract propositions, but involved in the facts related. Our Lord after appointing the twelve, sent them away from him for a short time: partly, no doubt, to disseminate the Gospel; partly, perhaps, to give them proof and experience of his assistance in their ministry, when he should be withdrawn from them in the flesh, and present by the Spirit. Their mission now answered to them the purpose of Moses and Aaron's being sent to Pharaoh-it trained them as they were trained for their task of being leaders of the Israelites. Two names are recorded as on this occasion given by our Lord to individuals amongst them. Simon was called Peter; James and John, Boanerges, or Sons of thunder. Peter is a word signifying "a rock," and it was given to the apostle as a prophetic intimation, that he was to be the first stone laid in the spiritual edifice, the Church. This was fulfilled in his being the first who made converts to Christianity. Why James and John were named Boanerges, does not appear from Scripture. Their title perhaps Cephas was really the name given to Simon; but as this word in the corrupt Hebrew, in which our Lord and his disciples conversed, meant a stone, the Greek word for a stone, wirgos, which we render Peter, became in time his more common title. The original name Cephas is preserved in John i. 42. where it is explained by the Greek word wirgos, "Thou shalt be called Cephas, which is by interpretation a stone," (irgos.) It occurs also several times in St. Paul's Epistles. See 1 Cor. i. 12. iii. 22. ix. 5. xv. 5. Galat. ii. 9. E alluded to some display of energy or eloquence, which they were to make in the service of the good cause, to which they were now attached. OUR LORD ACCUSED OF BEING BESIDE HIMSELF, And they went into an house. And the multitude cometh together again, so that they could not so much as eat bread. And when his friends heard of it, they went out to lay hold on him: for they said, He is beside himself. And the scribes which came down from Jerusalem said, He hath Beelzebub, and by the prince of the devils casteth he out devils. And he called them unto him, and said unto them in parables, How can Satan cast out Satan? And if a kingdom be divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand. And if a house be divided against itself, that house cannot stand. And if Satan rise up against himself, and be divided, he cannot stand, but hath an end. No man can enter into a strong man's house, and spoil his goods, except he will first bind the strong man; and then he will spoil his house. Verily I say unto you, All sins shall be forgiven unto the sons of men, and blasphemies wherewith soever they shall blaspheme: but he that shall blaspheme against the Holy Ghost hath never forgiveness, but is in danger of eternal damnation: because they said, He hath an unclean spirit. Both the friends of Jesus and the scribes were unwilling to suppose that he was one |