Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary on the Whole Bible
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Matthew
Book: Matthew
Chapter: 27
Overview:
Christ delivered to
Pilate, The despair of
Judas.
(1-10)
Christ before
Pilate.
(11-25) Barabbas loosed,
Christ mocked.
(26-30) Christ led to be crucified.
(31-34) He is crucified.
(35-44) The
Death of
Christ.
(45-50) Events at the
Crucifixion.
(51-56) The
Burial of
Christ.
(57-61) The
Sepulchre secured.
(62-66)
1-10 Wicked men see little of the consequences of their crimes
when they commit them, but they must answer for them all. In the
fullest manner
Judas acknowledged to the chief priests that he
had sinned, and betrayed an innocent person. This was full
Testimony to the character of
Christ; but the rulers were
hardened. Casting down the
Money,
Judas departed, and went and
hanged himself, not being able to
Bear the terror of Divine
wrath, and the anguish of despair. There is little doubt but
that the
Death of
Judas was before that of our blessed
Lord. But
was it nothing to them that they had thirsted after this
Blood,
and hired
Judas to betray it, and had condemned it to be shed
unjustly? Thus do fools make a mock at
Sin. Thus many make
Light
of
Christ crucified. And it is a common instance of the
deceitfulness of our hearts, to make
Light of our own
Sin By
dwelling upon other people's sins. But the
Judgment of
God is
according to
Truth. Many apply this
Passage of the buying the
piece of ground, with the
Money Judas brought back, to signify
the favour intended
By the
Blood of
Christ to strangers, and
sinners of the
Gentiles. It fulfilled a
Prophecy, Zec 11:12.
Judas went far toward
Repentance, yet it was not to
Salvation.
He confessed, but not to
God; he did not go to him, and say, I
have sinned,
Father, against
Heaven. Let none be satisfied with
such partial convictions as a
Man may have, and yet remain full
of pride,
Enmity, and rebellion.
11-25 Having
No malice against
Jesus,
Pilate urged him to clear
himself, and laboured to get him discharged. The message from
his
Wife was a warning.
God has many ways of giving checks to
sinners, in their sinful pursuits, and it is a great
Mercy to
have such checks from
Providence, from
Faithful friends, and
from our own consciences. O do not this abominable thing which
the
Lord hates! is what we may hear said to us, when we are
entering into
Temptation, if we will but regard it. Being
overruled
By the priests, the people made choice of
Barabbas.
Multitudes who choose the world, rather than
God, for their
ruler and portion, thus choose their own delusions. The Jews
were
So bent upon the
Death of
Christ, that
Pilate thought it
would be dangerous to refuse. And this struggle shows the power
of
Conscience even
On the worst men. Yet all was
So ordered to
make it evident that
Christ suffered for
No fault of his own,
but for the sins of his people. How vain for
Pilate to expect to
free himself from the guilt of the innocent
Blood of a righteous
person, whom he was
By his office bound to protect! The Jews'
Curse upon themselves has been awfully answered in the
sufferings of their nation. None could
Bear the
Sin of others,
except Him that had
No Sin of his own to answer for. And are we
not all concerned? Is not
Barabbas preferred to
Jesus, when
sinners reject
Salvation that they may retain their
Darling
sins, which rob
God of his
Glory, and
Murder their souls? The
Blood of
Christ is now upon us for good, through
Mercy,
By the
Jews' rejection of it. O let us flee to it for
Refuge!
26-30 Crucifixion was a
Death used only among the
Romans; it
was very terrible and miserable. A
Cross was laid
On the ground,
to which the hands and feet were nailed, it was then lifted up
and fixed upright,
So that the weight of the body hung
On the
nails, till the sufferer died in
Agony.
Christ thus answered the
Type of the brazen
Serpent raised
On a pole.
Christ underwent
all the misery and shame here related, that he might purchase
for us
Everlasting Life, and joy, and
Glory.
31-34 Christ was led as a
Lamb to the slaughter, as a
Sacrifice
to the
Altar. Even the mercies of the wicked are really cruel.
Taking the
Cross from him, they compelled one
Simon to
Bear it.
Make us ready, O
Lord, to
Bear the
Cross thou hast appointed us,
and daily to take it up with cheerfulness, following thee. Was
ever sorrow like unto his sorrow? And when we behold what manner
of
Death he died, let us in that behold with what manner of
Love
he loved us. As if
Death,
So painful a
Death, were not enough,
they added to its bitterness and terror in several ways.
35-44 It was usual to
Put shame upon malefactors,
By a
Writing
to notify the crime for which they suffered.
So they set up one
over
Christ's head. This they designed for his reproach, but
God
So overruled it, that even his accusation was to his honour.
There were crucified with him at the same time, two robbers. He
was, at his
Death, numbered among the transgressors, that we, at
our
Death, might be numbered among the saints. The taunts and
jeers he received are here recorded. The enemies of
Christ
labour to make others believe that of religion and of the people
of
God, which they themselves know to be false. The chief
priests and
Scribes, and the elders, upbraid
Jesus with being
the
King of
Israel. Many people could like the
King of
Israel
Well enough, if he would but come down from the
Cross; if they
could but have his kingdom without the
Tribulation through which
they must enter into it. But if
No Cross, then
No Christ,
No
Crown. Those that would reign with him, must be willing to
suffer with him. Thus our
Lord Jesus, having undertaken to
satisfy the
Justice of God, did it,
By submitting to the
Punishment of the worst of men. And in every minute particular
recorded about the sufferings of
Christ, we find some prediction
in the Prophets or the
Psalms fulfilled.
45-50 During the three hours which the
Darkness continued,
Jesus was in
Agony, wrestling with the powers of
Darkness, and
suffering his
Father's displeasure against the
Sin of
Man, for
which he was now making his soul an
Offering. Never were there
three such hours since the
Day God created
Man upon the
Earth,
never such a dark and awful scene; it was the turning point of
that great affair,
Man's
Redemption and
Salvation.
Jesus uttered
a complaint from Ps 22:1. Hereby he teaches of what use the
Word of God is to direct us in
Prayer, and recommends the use of
Scripture expressions in
Prayer. The believer may have tasted
some drops of bitterness, but he can only form a very feeble
idea of the greatness of
Christ's sufferings. Yet, hence he
learns something of the
Saviour's
Love to sinners; hence he gets
deeper conviction of the vileness and evil of
Sin, and of what
he owes to
Christ, who delivers him from the wrath to come. His
enemies wickedly ridiculed his complaint. Many of the reproaches
cast upon the
Word of God and the people of
God, arise, as here,
from gross mistakes.
Christ, just before he expired, spake in
his full strength, to show that his
Life was not forced from
him, but was freely delivered into his
Father's hands. He had
strength to bid defiance to the powers of
Death: and to show
that
By the eternal
Spirit he offered himself, being the
Priest
as
Well as the
Sacrifice, he cried with a loud voice. Then he
yielded up the
Ghost. The
Son of God upon the
Cross, did die
By
the violence of the pain he was
Put to. His soul was separated
from his body, and
So his body was left really and truly dead.
It was certain that
Christ did die, for it was needful that he
should die. He had undertaken to make himself an
Offering for
Sin, and he did it when he willingly gave up his
Life.
51-56 The rending of the
Veil signified that
Christ,
By his
Death, opened a way to
God. We have an open way through
Christ
to the
Throne of
Grace, or
Mercy-seat now, and to the
Throne of
Glory hereafter. When we duly consider
Christ's
Death, our hard
and rocky hearts should be
Rent; the
Heart, and not the
garments. That
Heart is harder than a
Rock that will not yield,
that will not melt, where
Jesus Christ is plainly set forth
crucified. The graves were opened, and many bodies of saints
which slept, arose. To whom they appeared, in what manner, and
how they disappeared, we are not told; and we must not desire to
be
Wise above what is written. The dreadful appearances of
God
in his
Providence, sometimes work strangely for the conviction
and awakening of sinners. This was expressed in the terror that
fell upon the
Centurion and the Roman soldiers. We may reflect
with comfort
On the abundant testimonies given to the character
of
Jesus; and, seeking to give
No just cause of
Offence, we may
leave it to the
Lord to clear our characters, if we live to Him.
Let us, with an
Eye of
Faith, behold
Christ and him crucified,
and be affected with that great
Love wherewith he loved us. But
his friends could give
No more than a look; they beheld him, but
could not help him. Never were the horrid nature and effects of
Sin So tremendously displayed, as
On that
Day when the beloved
Son of the
Father hung upon the
Cross, suffering for
Sin, the
Just for the unjust, that he might bring us to
God. Let us yield
ourselves willingly to his service.
57-61 In the
Burial of
Christ was nothing of pomp or solemnity.
As
Christ had not a
House of his own, wherein to lay his head,
while he lived,
So he had not a
Grave of his own, wherein to lay
his body, when he was dead. Our
Lord Jesus, who had
No Sin of
his own, had
No Grave of his own. The Jews designed that he
should have made his
Grave with the wicked, should have been
buried with the
Thieves with whom he was crucified, but
God
overruled it,
So that he should make it with the rich in his
Death, Isa 53:9. And although to the
Eye of
Man the beholding
a
Funeral may cause terror, yet if we remember how
Christ By his
Burial has changed the nature of the
Grave to believers, it
should make us rejoice. And we are ever to imitate
Christ's
Burial in being continually occupied in the spiritual
Burial of
our sins.
62-66 On the Jewish
Sabbath, the chief priests and
Pharisees,
when they should have been at their devotions, were dealing with
Pilate about securing the
Sepulchre. This was permitted that
there might be certain proof of our
Lord's resurrection.
Pilate
told them that they might secure the
Sepulchre as carefully as
they could. They sealed the
Stone, and set a
Guard, and were
satisfied that all needful care was taken. But to
Guard the
Sepulchre against the
Poor weak disciples was folly, because
needless; while to think to
Guard it against the power of
God,
was folly, because fruitless, and to
No purpose; yet they
thought they dealt wisely. But the
Lord took the
Wise in their
own craftiness. Thus shall all the rage and the plans of
Christ's enemies be made to promote his
Glory.