The Harmony Chronicle and Order of the New Testament, Part 1 · Section 41 – Section 49

The Harmony Chronicle and Order of the New Testament · Part 1 · Section 41 – Section 49

p. 33SECTION XLI.

A bloody issue healed: Jairus daughter raised.

MATTHEW assures the order, for he saith, While Iesus was speaking: those things that are recorded in the preceding Section, concerning Fasting, and not putting new wine into old bottles, &c. Iairus came to him to beg the recovery of his now dying daughter.

Iairus was one of the Rulers of Capernaum Synagogue, and had seen so many miracles done by Christ there, that if he were not a Disciple already, yet he beleeves that Christ can easily recover her, though when he came away from her she was giving up the ghost. As Iesus goeth with him in Capernaum streets, a woman with a bloody issue of twelve years continuance cometh behind him and toucheth him: Her disease and Iairus daughter, were born in one and the same year, for they were both twelve years old, Luk. 8. ver. 42, 43.

The malady of this woman was not only of a sad languishing, but it was also of a great uncleannesse, according to the uncleannesse mentioned in the Law. The Talmudich treatise Zavim, and Maymony in Issurei biah, cap. 4.5, 6. would read a dolefull Lecture upon her disease, as to this point of uncleannesse. And this it may be was one main cause that made the woman to come trembling and fearing to Christ when she saw she could not be hid, Mat. 5.33. because she had been so bold as to touch Christ in her uncleannesse.

The story of the Pictures of Christ and this woman touching him, both made in brasse p. 34of which the Papists have made no small ado towards their worshipping of Images] hath spoken exceeding wide and far from hitting upon the right place where this woman and Christ met. The story as it is related by Eusebius, Baronius, and others, is this. That in Caesaria Philippi called otherwise Paneas, the house of this woman was to be seen: and before the door of the house, a brazen Image of a woman kneeling, and before her the brazen statue of a man, in a garment down to the feet, and stretching out his hand to the woman: And that there grew there a certain strange herbe, which when it grew up to touch the brazen hemme of his garment, it had the medicinall virtue of healing any disease.

But why all this at Caesaria Philippi? whereas this occurrence of the womans healing by the touch of the hemme of his garment was in Capernaum: for Matthew tells, that when Iesus came back out of the Country of the Gadarens, he came into his own City, Matth. 9.1. which was Capernaum: and there was Matthews house, in which he was when Iairus came to him. See Sect. 23.

Before he comes to Iairus his house, his daughter is dead, and there he findes minstrels and piping in a mournfull tone, for the bewailing of her. This was the custom of the Jews in such cases, as is to be seen in Talm. Ierus. in Beracoth. fol. 5. col. 4. Maymony in foreign cap. 14, &c. vid. etiam Ierus. Meed Katon. fol. 83. col. 4.

A good while ago he had denounced a sad doom against Capernaum, Matth. 11.23. at Sect. 32. O thou Capernaum which art exalted unto heaven, shalt be brought down to hell, &c. which was spoken as to the generality of the City, who for the things they had heard and seen, as that being Christs own City, or the place of his habitation, yet they beleeved not. And this may be some reason, why when he had raised this dead girle, he bids her parents keep the matter close: for that City had justly forfeited all such revelations of him: Yet for all the denouncing of that sad fate against her, he oft resorteth thither, and forsaketh not his habitation there; partly because he had some there, who for all the unbelief of the generality, belonged to him, and beleeved in him; and partly because he had no reason to remove his habitation for their unbelief, nor to passe off his dwelling for other mens wickednesse; for where could he go to reside, but he should reside among some of the same temper?

SECTION XLII. MATTH. Chap. IX. from Ver. 27, to Ver. 35. Two blind men, and a possessed dumbe man healed.

THe order is cleer from these two passages of connexion: When Iesus departed thence, ver. 27. And As they went out, ver. 32.

Iesus from Iairus his house returned to his own home, ver. 28. and there two blind men come to him, whose eyes he toucheth, and saith, According to your faith be it to you: urging this upon them the rather, because of the generall untowardnesse and unbelief of the place where he now was, Capernaum: and because of the Pharisees that were now present, ver. 34. that he might magnifie faith.

As these blind men went out, they brought in a man possessed with a dumb devil, and he also was healed, which the Pharisees still ascribe to magick, &c.

SECTION XLIII. MARK Chap. VI. Ver. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6. MATTH. Chap. XIII. Ver. 54, 55, 56, 57, 58. CHRIST at Nazaret, and offence taken at him.

IT is said by Matthew, that when Iesus returned back out of the Land of the Gadarens, he came into his own City, Matth. 9.1. that is, to Capernaum, where he himself dwelt, and Matthew, and Iairus; and the three last Sections relate stories done in their three houses: Now Mark saith, that from thence he went out and came into his own Country, that is to Nazareth: which title is used of that City again, Ioh. 4.44.

In that Synagogue he had been abused a good while ago, and his life endangered, Luk. 4.29. and thither he is come now to try them again, and findes not much better entertainment then before, but only not so full of danger: therefore he did not many great works there because of their unbelief, which Mark uttereth, He could do no mighty works p. 35there, ver. 5. which meaneth not any want of power, but it relateth to his will, and to the rule by which he went in doing his works: such another phrase see Gen. 19.22.

When it is said by the same Evangelist, He marvelled at their unbelief: it meaneth not, that he marvelled because they had not saving saith, but he marvelled because they beleeved no more then they did.

SECTION XLIV. MATTH. Chap. IX. Ver. 35, 36, 37, 38. Another perambulation of Galilee.

MATTHEW himself joyns this portion to the stories in Sect. 42. and the last words of Mark in the Section preceding, he went round about the villages teaching, are concurrent with the first words in this, and so do assert the connexion.

CHRIST at his former rejection at Nazaret, begins to go abroad preaching through their Synagogues as in Sect. 18. and so he doth now: and so great multitudes resort unto him, that he now resolveth upon sending forth his Disciples to Preach abroad also.

SECTION XLV.

The twelve Apostles sent out to preach.

THe order in Matthew and Mark shews and cleers it self.

The twelve had been ordained for Apostles a great while since, and all that while, had been with Christ as probationers, to see his works and to learn his Doctrine: and since their pointing out to be Apostles it is observable, how much Christ hath applied himself to Doctrine, that they might learn the Gospel of the Kingdom, and be stored with what to preach, when he should send them forth. Hitherto they had been learners, and as for the gifts of the Spirit they as yet differed nothing from the rest that followed him, but now he gives them power of healing and casting out devils, [and now is the power of miracles restored.] So that they cured diseases by the Spirit, but they preached not by the Spirit, but taught that only which they had learned from the mouth of Christ.

He sendeth them out by two and two, and so it is like the twelve spies divided themselves when they went to search the Land. It may be the Apostles went in these couples that Matthew had reckoned them in.

What Christ forbiddeth them to take with them for their journey, was 1. to inure them to depend upon his protection and not upon their own carefulnesse: And 2. He hereby intimates that they should finde such good entertainment in their Ministry, that they should finde safety and maintenance wheresoever they came. Therefore when in Luke 22.6. Now take purse and scrip, &c. he thereby would not signifie that his care of them was any whit abated of what it was now, but that they should meet with worse times and worse entertainment then they had had now.

Whereas in Matthew and Luke they are forbidden to take staves, in Mark it is said, they should take nothing for their journey save a staff only: not staves for weapons or for their defence, but a staff for their resting on for their ease in the journey: as Gen. 32.10.

They are confined to preach to Israel only, [though many Gentiles dwelt intermixedly with them in their Cities] because the Lord would own the peculiarity of the Nation in the first preaching of the Gospel, as he had done all along in the Oeconomy of the Law: when they had forfeited their priviledge of being a peculiar people, by crucifying him that sent the Gospel amongst them, then is the Apostles commission inlarged to go to the Gentiles, Matth. 28.

p. 36SECTION XLVI.

JOHN beheaded: His Disciples come in to Christ.

MARK and Luke do justifie the order, for both of them have laid this story next to the story of Christs sending forth his Disciples. Matthew when he saith At that time, he useth the word in its latitude, as it is often used in Scripture, not precisely or determinately for the very day or season when a thing was done, but in the current of time then in being. And yet in this expression he seemeth also to have respect to the story that he had related next before, though that were some reasonable space of time before this: For there he had told that Christ coming into his own Country, was sleighted and undervalued, and they were offended in him, yet Herod was amazed at the wonders that he heard of him.

Here are two times regardable in this Section, namely the time of Iohn Baptists death, and the time of Herods hearing of the fame of Iesus: And the juncture of the stories is very close. As the Disciples were preaching up and down according to Christs mission, Herod beheaded the Baptist: and by their preaching in the name of Iesus, the fame of Iesus cometh to Herods hearing; and the Disciples again hearing of the murder of Iohn, get in to their master. So that the story of Iohns death, is related here in the proper place and time when it did occurre. And from one passage of Iohn the Evangelist in the next following Section, there is the ground of a fair conjecture of the time of his beheading: For we shall see in the beginning of the next Section, that all the …our do speak of Christ departing privately into a desert place: Matthew particularly gives the reason, namely because he had newly heard, by Iohns Disciples, of the death of their Master. Now Iohn the Evangelist in giving that story of Christs retiring, hath inserted this passage, And the Iews Passeover was nigh, whereby we may conclude that the Baptists death was a little before the time of the Passeover. And from hence we may take up the whole space of his Ministry and imprisonment. He began to Preach and Baptize in the year of Christ 29, at the spring of that year or about Easter. Half a year after Iesus is baptized by him, about the Feast of Tabernacles. Till after the Feast of Tabernacles come twelve monethmonth, viz. in the Year of Christ 30, he is still abroad baptizing in Bethabara and Aenon: About October in that Year he is imprisoned, and so lieth in restraint till almost Easter twelve monethmonth, which was in the Year of Christ 32. And so his story is of three years space, the better half of which he preached at liberty, and the other half he lay in prison.

Herod upon the hearing of the fame of Iesus, is struck with horrour of conscience upon thought of the murder of Iohn: and if the leaven of Herod was Sadduceism, his horrour makes him deny his Sadducaicall principles, and to think that Iohn was Risen from the dead.

SECTION XLVII.

Five thousand fed miraculously: Christ walketh on the Sea.

ALl the four speak the same story of Christs miraculous feeding many thousands in a Desert: Mark and Matthew do plainly link this story to the preceding, as is conspicuous to the eye of whosoever shall view in them the last verse of the foregoing Section, and the first of this.

Iohns Disciples with the tidings of their Masters death, and Iesus Disciples from their Preaching abroad, came in to Iesus much about the same time: and it may be Iohns Disciples cleave to him and depart no more from him. Upon the tidings Iesus withdraws into a desart place, over the sea of Galilee, Joh. 6.1. not over to the other side beyond Iordan, but he coasted by Sea from one place to another on the same shore; namely from Capernaum to the Desert of Bethsaida: for it is said, the people followed him afoot and came up to him: and when his Disciples return by Sea again, they are said to go over to Bethsaida, p. 37Mark 6.45. and from thence over to Capernaum, John 6.17. coasting still upon the same side.

Iohn in this story hath made mention of the Passeover neer at hand, vers. 4. because he only of all the four hath undertaken to give account of all the Passeovers, betwixt Christs Baptism and his death,The third PASSEOVER since Christs Baptisme. for the better reckoning of the time of his publick Ministry. It may be the coming on of the Passeover had brought all the Apostles in, to attend their Master thither. They fail him at Capernaum his own City whither it is like he had appointed them to come in at such a time.

When Christ intends to feed the multitude, he propounds to Philip among all the Disciples, Where shall we buy bread? for this was in the Desert of Bethsaida, which was Philips City, Iohn 1.44.

SECTION XLVIII. JOHN Chap. VI. from Ver. 22. to the end of the Chapter. Iesus teacheth in Capernaum Synagogue, concerning eating his flesh, &c.

THe first words in the Section, The day following, asserts the order.

Divers of those that had been fed by Christ miraculously in the Desert of Bethsaida, remained upon that ground all night, expecting Iesus to come again among them, who was departed away from them, but, as they saw, not with his Disciples; therefore they the next morning follow him to Capernaum, and there finde him. It was Synagogue day there, namely either the second or fifth day of the week, and in the Synagogue Christ speaketh of eating his flesh and drinking his blood, which seemeth a Doctrine so monstrous to many, that divers that had followed him, do now depart from him.

What would these people have? They had been fed miraculously yesterday, and yet to day they say to him, What sign shewest thou that we may see and beleeve? ver. 30. Our fathers did eat manna in the desert, &c. ver. 31. They looked for a continued miraculous feeding as Moses fed Israel with Manna in the wildernesse: and to that the words of Christ referre, ver. 26. Ye seek me, not because ye saw the miracles, but because ye ate of the loaves.

It is said, When they had seen the miracle that Iesus did, they said, This is of a truth the Prophet that should come into the world, and they went about to make him King, ver. 14, 15. They thought they saw in this miracle the sign of the Messias they looked for, who should feed his people miraculously as Moses had done, and therefore when they now require a sign to be still shewed in that nature, Christ tels them they must expect no other food to be provided for them by him, then his own flesh and blood: which sounds so coldly in some of their ears, that they will follow him no more.

SECTION XLIX. JOHN Chap. VII. Ver. 1. After these things Iesus walked in Galilee, for he would not walk in Iury, because the Iews sought to kill him.

BEtween the time of this Section and that preceding, we are to imagine the Passeover to have passed, of which there is mention, Iohn 6.4. So that after this passage in Capernaum Synagogue, Christ goeth up to the Passeover at Ierusalem, and there the Iews, that is the Sanhedrin sought to kill him. At the Passeover the last year they convented him before them, to answer for his violation of the Sabbath in healing the man at Bethesda, Joh. 5. and he plainly affirms and proves himself to be the Messias, and he comes off with safety, but after what manner is not expressed.

But now the increase of his Disciples, the spreading of his fame and Doctrine by the preaching of the twelve, and it may be the example of the murdering of the Baptist, had so stirred them up to seek his life, that he perceiving it, gets away from Ierusalem into Galilee, and will not yet come into Iudea again.