Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary on the Whole Bible
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Luke
Book: Luke
Chapter: 3
Overview:
John the Baptist's ministry.
(1-14) John the Baptist testifies
concerning
Christ.
(15-20) The
Baptism of
Christ.
(21,22) The
genealogy of
Christ.
(23-38)
1-14 The scope and design of
John's ministry were, to bring the
people from their sins, and to their
Saviour. He came preaching,
not a
Sect, or party, but a profession; the sign or ceremony was
Washing with water.
By the words here used
John preached the
necessity of
Repentance, in order to the remission of sins, and
that the
Baptism of water was an outward sign of that inward
cleansing and renewal of
Heart, which attend, or are the effects
of true
Repentance, as
Well as a profession of it. Here is the
fulfilling of the Scriptures, Isa 40:3, in the ministry of
John. When way is made for the
Gospel into the
Heart,
By taking
down high thoughts, and bringing them into obedience to
Christ,
By levelling the soul, and removing all that hinders us in the
way of
Christ and his
Grace, then preparation is made to welcome
the
Salvation of
God. Here are general warnings and exhortations
which
John gave. The guilty, corrupted race of mankind is become
a
Generation of vipers; hateful to
God, and hating one another.
There is
No way of fleeing from the wrath to come, but
By
Repentance; and
By the change of our way the change of our mind
must be shown. If we are not really holy, both in
Heart and
Life, our profession of religion and relation to
God and his
Church, will stand us in
No stead at all; the sorer will our
Destruction be, if we do not bring forth fruits meet for
Repentance.
John the Baptist gave instructions to several sorts
of persons. Those that profess and promise
Repentance, must show
it
By reformation, according to their places and conditions. The
Gospel requires
Mercy, not
Sacrifice; and its design is, to
engage us to do all the good we can, and to be just to all men.
And the same principle which leads men to forego unjust gain,
leads to restore that which is gained
By wrong.
John tells the
soldiers their duty. Men should be cautioned against the
temptations of their employments. These answers declared the
present duty of the inquirers, and at once formed a test of
their sincerity. As none can or will accept
Christ's
Salvation
without true
Repentance,
So the evidence and effects of this
Repentance are here marked out.
15-20 John the Baptist disowned being himself the
Christ, but
confirmed the people in their expectations of the long-promised
Messiah. He could only exhort them to repent, and assure them of
forgiveness upon
Repentance; but he could not work
Repentance in
them, nor confer remission
On them. Thus highly does it become
us to speak of
Christ, and thus humbly of ourselves.
John can do
No more than baptize with water, in token that they ought to
purify and cleanse themselves; but
Christ can, and will baptize
with the
Holy Ghost; he can give the
Spirit, to cleanse and
purify the
Heart, not only as water washes off the dirt
On the
outside, but as
Fire clears out the
Dross that is within, and
melts down the metal, that it may be cast into a new mould.
John
was an affectionate preacher; he was beseeching; he pressed
things home upon his hearers. He was a practical preacher;
quickening them to their duty, and directing them in it. He was
a popular preacher; he addressed the people, according to their
capacity. He was an evangelical preacher. In all his
exhortations, he directed people to
Christ. When we press duty
upon people, we must direct them to
Christ, both for
Righteousness and strength. He was a copious preacher; he
shunned not to declare the whole counsel of
God. But a full stop
was
Put to
John's preaching when he was in the midst of his
usefulness. Herod being reproved
By him for many evils, shut up
John in
Prison. Those who injure the
Faithful servants of
God,
add still greater guilt to their other sins.
21,22 Christ did not confess
Sin, as others did, for he had
none to confess; but he prayed, as others did, and kept up
Communion with his
Father. Observe, all the three voices from
Heaven,
By which the
Father bare
Witness to the Son, were
pronounced while he was praying, or soon after, Lu 9:35; Joh
12:28. The
Holy Ghost descended in a bodily shape like a
Dove
upon him, and there came a voice from
Heaven, from
God the
Father, from the excellent
Glory. Thus was a proof of the Holy
Trinity, of the Three Persons in the
Godhead, given at the
Baptism of
Christ.
23-38 Matthew's list of the forefathers of
Jesus showed that
Christ was the son of
Abraham, in whom all the families of the
Earth are blessed, and
Heir to the
Throne of
David; but
Luke
shows that
Jesus was the Seed of the
Woman that should break the
Serpent's head, and traces the line up to
Adam, beginning with
Eli, or
Heli, the
Father, not of
Joseph, but of
Mary. The
seeming differences between the two evangelists in these lists
of names have been removed
By learned men. But our
Salvation
does not depend upon our being able to solve these difficulties,
nor is the Divine authority of the
Gospels at all weakened
By
them. The list of names ends thus, "Who was the son of
Adam, the
Son of God;" that is, the offspring of
God By Creation.
Christ
was both the son of
Adam and the
Son of God, that he might be a
proper
Mediator between
God and the sons of
Adam, and might
bring the sons of
Adam to be, through him, the sons of
God. All
Flesh, as descended from the first
Adam, is as
Grass, and
withers as the flower of the
Field; but he who partakes of the
Holy
Spirit of
Life from the Second
Adam, has that eternal
happiness, which
By the
Gospel is preached unto us.