Introductory remarks:
In the last chapter we studied the parables of Jesus that Matthew recorded. In this chapter we will study the arrest and imprisonment of John the Baptist; remember in John 30:30 John said 'I must decrease, in order for Him [Jesus] to increase.' Matthew records the hideous acts of Herod against the 'forerunner of Christ. Matthew will also record the miracle of Christ feeding the five thousand, the only miracle recorded by all four Gospel writers, and finally the miracle of Jesus walking on the water.
The Death of John the Baptist
(Mark 6:14-29; Luke 9:7-9)
Verse 1. "At that time Herod the tetrarch heard of the fame of Jesus,"
LGT "At that time Herod the tetrarch heard of the report of Jesus,"
Herod the tetrarch [Antipas 4 B.C. - A.D. 39] the son of Herod the Great [pervert]. The report of Jesus' great works had spread even into the household of Herod Antipas. "A tetrarch is a ruler over a fourth part, Archelaus had obtained two-fourths of his father's dominions, and Antipas (this Herod) and Philip each one-fourth" (Vincent).
Verse 2, "And said unto his servants, This is John the Baptist; he is risen from the dead; and therefore mighty works do shew forth themselves in him."
LGT "And He said to His boys [confidants], This is John the Baptist: he is risen from the dead and because of this the works of power work in Him."
After all his cruelties, it is natural that Herod 'has John the Baptist on the brain' (Bruce). Robertson says, 'Herod probably had visions of John's head on a charger.'
The Greek word for 'servants' is paisin, meaning in this context, his personal ministers and confidants.
McGee notes:
"The person and the ministry of Jesus could not escape the notice of the king on the throne. Herod was a member of the family that you ought to look up in a good Bible dictionary. The whole family was a bunch of rascals and of the darkest hue. They were the mafia of the first century, and Herod of this chapter was no exception."
Verse 3, "For Herod had laid hold on John, and bound him, and put him in prison for Herodias' sake, his brother Philip's wife."
LGT "For Herod having seized John, bound [him], and put him away in prison because of Herodias, the wife of Philip his brother."
John's imprisonment happened at an earlier date.
"For Herod had laid hold on John, and bound him, and put him prison"
Edersheim describes the prison:
"This prison was the fortress of Machaerus on the east side of the Dead Sea, almost on a line with Bethlehem, above the gorge which divided the Mountains of Abarim from the range of Pisgah. Perched on an isolated cliff at the end of a narrow ridge, encompasses with deep ravines, was the citadel. At the other end of this ridge Herod built a great wall, with towers two hundred feet high at the corners; and within this enclosure, a magnificent palace, with colonnades, baths, cisterns, arsenals - every provision, in short, for luxury and for defense against siege. The windows commanded a wide and grand prospect, including the Dead Sea, the course of the Jordan, and Jerusalem. In the detached citadel, probably in one of the underground dungeons, remains of which may still be seen, was the prison of John. 'We return through what we regard as the ruins of the magnificent castle-palace of Herod, to the highest and strongest part of the defenses - the eastern keep or the citadel, on the steep slope, one hundred and fifty yards up. The foundations of the walls all around, to the height of a yard or two above the ground, are still standing. As we clamber over them to examine the interior, we notice how small this keep is: exactly one hundred yards in diameter. There are scarcely any remains of it left. A well of great depth, and a deep, cemented cistern, with the vaulting of the roof still complete, and - of most terrible interest to us - two dungeons, one of them deep down, its sides scarcely broken in, with small holes still visible in the masonry where staples of wood and iron had once been fixed! As we look down into its hot darkness, we shudder in realizing that this terrible keep had, for nigh ten months, been the prison of that son of the free wilderness, the bold herald of the coming kingdom, the humble, earnest, self-denying John the Baptist."
Verse 4, "For John said unto him, It is not lawful for thee to have her."
LGT "For John said to him, It is not lawful for you to have her."
John was imprisoned because he denounced the marriage of Herod Antipas to Herodias his half brother Philip's wife.
Barnes notes:
"This Herodias was a granddaughter of Herod the Great. She was first married to Herod Philip, by whom she had a daughter, Salome, probably the one that danced and pleased Herod. Josephus says that this marriage of Herod Antipas with Herodias took place while he was on a journey to Rome. He stopped at his brother's; fell in love with his wife; agreed to put away his own wife, the daughter of Aretas, King of Petrea; and Herodias agreed to leave her own husband and lie with him. They were living, therefore, in adultery; and John, in faithfulness, though at the risk of his life, had reproved them for their crimes. Herod was guilty of two crimes in this act:st. of adultery, as she was the wife of another man. 2nd. Of incest, as she was a near relation, and such marriages were expressly forbidden (Lev. 18:16)."
Verse 5, "And when he would have put him to death, he feared the multitude, because they counted him as a prophet."
LGT "And wishing to kill him he feared the multitude, because they held him as a prophet."
Herod was afraid of a Jewish revolt, because they held John the Baptist in high esteem as a prophet, whom among the people commanded respect.
Verse 6, "But when Herod's birthday was kept, the daughter of Herodias danced before them, and pleased Herod."
LGT "But when Herod's birthday came, the daughter of Herodias danced in their midst and pleased Herod."
Herod held a huge feast, among his nobility, commemorating his birthday. Herod was a lustful old despot, living with his brother's wife; everything Herod did was sensual. Mark adds that this birthday was kept by making a supper to his "lords high captains [a commander thousands of men, or a division of a thousand men, and chief estates [men] in Galilee" (Barnes).
"The daughter of Herodias danced before them, and pleased Herod."
Salome was the daughter of Herodias, from her previous marriage to Herod Philip, this Herod Antipas' half brother; so Salome was an illegal stepdaughter to Herod Antipas.
Pentecost quotes Shepherd:
"But the opportune day for the plotting Jezebel [Herodias] finally came, on the anniversary of Herod's reign or more probably his birthday, when he made a great Belshazar-feast for his lords, captains of thousands or military authority, and chief men of Galilee of the high social and financial class, in the palace of Machaerus. The level of a scenic dancer and when guests had finished gormandizing and were flushed with wine, this seventeen-year old damsel came in with all her enticing beauty and 'executed a pas seul [sex-dance] in the midst of those dissolute and half-intoxicated revelers.' The dance was mimetic and licentious (Gould) and pleased Herod and the maudlin group of guests lounging on the divans. She leaped into the middle (Wycliff) and gave a shameful exhibition of lewd dancing as pre-arranged by Herodias."
Verse 7, "Whereupon he promised with an oath to give her whatsoever she would ask."
LGT "Wherefore then, he confessed with an oath to give her whatever she should ask."
The term 'promised with an oath' is literally, he confessed with and oath, acknowledging his obligation of the oath. McGee states: "He expected Salome to ask for some material thing, I suppose, and certainly something within reason."
Verse 8, "And she being instructed of her mother, said, Give me here John Baptist's head in a charger."
LGT "And she, being pushed forward [egged-on] by her mother, Give me here and now, she says, the head of John the Baptist upon a platter."
"And she being instructed of her mother,"
Heroditas literally 'pushes Salome' into making this grim request; Salome says, Give me here immediately the head of John on a dish. This command by her mother wasn't given until after she did her sexy dance, adding to the crime.
"Said, give me here"
"She demanded it on the spot, before Herod should have had time to reflect; the more so, as she knew his respect for John (compare was sorry, verse 9). The circumstances seem to point to Machaerus itself as the scene of the banquet; so that the deed could be quickly done, and the head of the Baptist delivered while the feast was still in progress" (Vincent).
John Baptist's head in a charger."
The word 'charger' is an archaic word that has no meaning for us today; the phrase is literally, John the Baptist's head on a platter. "It should require a good deal of educating to bring a young seventeen year old girl to make such a grim request" (Bruce). "The mother, Herodias, lived up to the Herod name. Hers was a cruel and sadistic request, prompted by a brutal desire for revenge because of John's condemnation of her" (McGee).
Verse 9, "And the king was sorry: nevertheless for the oath's sake, and them which sat with him at meat, he commanded it to be given her."
LGT "And the king was grieved on account of the oaths, and those who recline with him [at the table] he commanded [it] to be given."
The king was grieved, but not enough that he would refuse to let a young girl, and a bunch of inebriated lecherous men, influence this outrageous demand. There is no way anyone could twist this action into one of honor. "Herod, however, shrank from so dastardly a deed as this public display of brutality and bloodthirstiness. Men who do wrong always have some flimsy excuses for their sins. A man here orders a judicial murder of the most revolting type for the sake of his oaths (dia tous horkous). 'More like profane swearing than deliberate utterance once for all of a solemn oath' (Bruce). He was probably maudlin with wine and befuddles by the presence of the guests" (A.T. Robertson). The KJV has the apostrophe in the wrong place 'oath's'; It is not for the sake of the oath, for in the original Greek the word 'oath' is plural' oaths, so he must have confirmed his promise with repeated oaths.
Verse 10, "And he sent, and beheaded John in the prison."
LGT "And having sent, he beheaded the John in the prison."
Herod had John the Baptist beheaded.
Verse 11, "And his head was brought in a charger, and given to the damsel: and she brought it to her mother."
LGT "And was brought his head on a platter and given to the little girl, and she brought [it] to her mother."
"And his head was brought in a charger, and given to the damsel:"
For the sake of pride, for the men who were at the dinner, the slaughtered prophet's head was brought in, to the delight of Herodias, and given to the little girl; the Greek word for 'damsel' is korasio, a diminutive little girl.
"And she brought it to her mother."
"A gruesome picture as Herodias with fiendish delight witnesses the triumph of her implacable hatred of John for daring to reprove her for her marriage with Herod Antipas. A woman scorned is a veritable demon, a literal she-devil when she wills to be" (A.T. Robertson).
Verse 12, "And his disciples came, and took up the body, and buried it, and went and told Jesus."
LGT "And having come, His disciples took the body and buried it; and having come told [it] to Jesus."
What Herodias did with John's head is a mystery; but the disciples buried his body, and then went and told Jesus. The disciples told Jesus because of the great regard Jesus had for His forerunner, and because of the danger Christ might be in. Jesus now withdraws from there to a desert place of solitude to reflect over the ordeal with His Father.
The Feeding of the Five Thousand
(Mark 6:30-44; Luke 9:10-17; John 6"1-14)
Verse 13, "When Jesus heard of it, he departed thence by ship into a desert place apart: and when the people had heard thereof, they followed him on foot out of the cities."
LGT "And having heard, Jesus went away from there by boat into a desert place alone: and having heard [of it] the crowds followed Him on foot [by land] from the cities."
"When Jesus heard it, he departed thence by ship into a desert place apart:"
Jesus sails across the Sea of Galilee to a secluded desert region where He could be alone with His Father and reflect on what had happened to John the Baptist, and to rest from His previous ministry. "On the east of the Sea of Galilee there was a large tract of country of this description - rough, uncultivated, and chiefly used to pasture flocks" (Barnes).
Pentecost adds:
"This period of six months, from spring to autumn . . . just a year before the Crucifixion. The main purpose of Jesus during the next six months was to give His apostles special instruction and training. Four separate withdrawals away from Herod's domains and to the mountain retreats are recorded. . . . The causes for the withdrawals were: the hostility of the Jewish leaders, rest and recreation for the tired workers in the mountains away from the tropical heat of the lowlands, to have reports from their work, to give special instruction and training to the Twelve, to escape the fanatical popularity which would make Him a temporal king, and the possible jealousy of Herod Antipas. In the withdrawals Jesus and the apostle-band went across the Sea to proximities of Bethsaid-Julias, to the borders of Tyre and Sidon, to the neighborhood of Decapolis southeast of the Sea, and to the region of Cesarea-Philipi. The greater part of the circuit lay within the domains of the terarchy of Philip, the least harmful of the Herods" (Shepherd - quoted by Pentecost).
"And when the people heard thereof, they followed him on foot out of the cities."
Jesus went by boat, and the crowds followed Him by walking around the sea by
land. Jesus drew great crowds wherever He preached.
Verse 14, "And Jesus went forth, and saw a great multitude, and was moved with compassion toward them, and he healed their sick."
LGT "And having gone out, He saw a great crowd and He was moved with compassion towards them, and He healed their sick [ones]."
Jesus was moved with compassion means that He pitied them. Jesus saw the crowds as sheep without a shepherd.
The crowds brought out their sick for Jesus to heal; what is evident is that He did not pick and choose whom He might heal, but He healed the all. Jesus healed thousand during His earthly ministry. The charlatans of our day are a disgrace to Christ and His true healing ministry; the phonies we watch on TV are disgusting in their theatrics, trying to mimic Christ; what they are really doing is revealing their stupidity of the Scriptures to anyone who has studied; they are greedy punks, getting rich off of other stupid people.
Verse 15, "And when it was evening, his disciples came to him, saying, This is a desert place, and the time is now past; send the multitude away, that they may go into the villages and buy themselves victuals."
LGT "And evening having come, His disciples came to Him, saying, [This] is a desert place, and the time is already gone by: dismiss the crowds, that having gone into the villages they might buy for themselves meat."
"This is a desert place, and the time is past;"
It was getting late and the disciples said that the people were going to begin to get hungry, for the time for their meals is past, and this being a desert place, there is no place to get food. The disciples attempt to tell Jesus what He should do.
"Send the multitude away, that they may go into the villages and buy themselves victuals."
There were no big cities, but there were small villages that they could buy food, but they would need time to buy them.
Verse 16, "But Jesus said unto them, They need not depart; give ye them to eat."
LGT "But [Jesus] said to them, They have no need to go away, you give them to eat."
Jesus gives the disciples a command, that to them is impossible; first the disciples are setting them selves up as a board of directors (McGee) telling Jesus what He must do, and now that he tells them, they shrug to themselves that He is giving them an impossible mission. Bruce notes: "no situation appears to Christ desperate, no crisis unmanageable."
Verse 17, "And they say unto him, We have here but five loaves, and two fishes."
LGT "But they say to Him, We have not here except five loaves and two fishes."
It would do good to read all the accounts from the other three evangelists, for it is a very important miracle of our Lord if all of them record it. Under the heading for this section of the 'feeding of the five thousand' I have listed the references for the other three Gospels to fill in the needed details of this event. This being an exposition on Matthew, I will for time sake concentrate on what he writes. The disciples, who are concerned with the crowd's physical welfare, tell the Lord that they have only five loaves of bread, and two small fishes.
Verse 18, "He said, Bring them hither to me."
LGT "And He said, Bring them here to Me."
These loaves were small biscuit size loaves. And I believe the disciples were amazed when the Lord asked them to bring them to Him. How could He feed five thousand people with five small biscuits and two small sardines?
Verse 19, "And he commanded the multitude to sit down on the grass, and took the five loaves, and the two fishes, and looking up to heaven, he blessed, and brake, and gave the loaves to his disciples, and the disciples to the multitude."
LGT "And having commanded the crowds to recline upon the grass, He took the five loaves and the two fishes, having looked up into the heaven, He blessed; and having broken, He gave to the disciples the loaves, and the disciples to the crowds."
Jesus sets for us a wonderful example of His total dependence on His Father for everything; if the Creator of this universe blesses the food before He distributes it, how much more should we thank God for our daily provisions.
"A beautiful picture in the afternoon sun on the grass on the mountain side that sloped westward. The orderly arrangement (Mark) made it easy to count them and to feed them. Jesus stood where all could see him 'break' the thin Jewish cakes of bread and give to the disciples and they to the multitudes. This is a nature miracle that some men find hard to believe, but it is recorded by all four Gospels and the only one told by all four. It was impossible for the crowds to misunderstand and to be deceived. If Jesus is in reality Lord of the universe as John tells us (John 1:1-18) and Paul holds (Col. 1:15-20), why should we balk at this miracle? He who created the universe surely has power to go on creating what He wills to do" (A.T. Robertson).
Verse 20, "And they did all eat, and were filled: and they took up of the fragments that remained twelve baskets full."
LGT "And ate all and were satisfied, and they took up over and above of the fragments, twelve hand- baskets full."
There might be a connection by the number of baskets left over being the number twelve; that is, one for each of the apostles after they had served the crowds. These were not bits and pieces left over, but twelve baskets full of whole loaves.
Verse 21, "And they that had eaten were about five thousand men, beside women and children."
LGT "And the ones who ate were about five thousand men, besides women and children."
Counting the women and children, Jesus fed more like fifteen thousand that day, a very conservative counting. For those who doubt Christ could feed five thousand with two small fishes and five small Jewish cakes of bread, try fifteen thousand men, women, and children, this should give you something to whine about.
Walking on the Water
(Mark 6:45-52; John 6:15-21)
Verse 22, "And straightway Jesus constrained his disciples to get into a ship, and to go before him unto the other side, while he sent the multitudes away."
LGT "And immediately compelled [forced] the disciples to enter into the boat, and to go before Him to the other side, until He should have dismissed the crowds."
Matthew does not give the reason why the urgency of Jesus sending His disciples to the other side in a boat; the first reason is that He was leaving for reasons of self preservation given in John's account "When Jesus therefore perceived that they would come and take Him by force, to make Him a king, He departed again into a mountain Himself alone" (John 6:15). The second reason is that it would be easier for Him to dismiss the crowd without the twelve, and then escape into a mountain alone.
Verse 23, "And when he had sent the multitudes away, he went up into a mountain apart to pray: and when the evening was come, he was there alone."
LGT "And having dismissed the crowds He went up into the mountain apart to pray: and evening being come He was alone there."
What a beautiful picture of the complete dependency the Son had to the Father; Christ, the Creator of this universe, left His glory above, to come down and redeem a lost and dying world. Christ was in complete isolation on the mountain in fellowship with His Father; this is where He received His strength for the task ahead; Christ would accomplish our redemption with the full approval of the Holy Spirit and His heavenly Father.
Verse 24, "But the ship was now in the midst of the sea, tossed with the waves: for the wind was contrary."
LGT "But the boat was already many furlongs distant from the land, being distressed by the waves; for the wind was opposing."
"But the ship was now in the midst of the sea,"
"John says they had sailed about 25 or 30 furlongs. About 7-1/2 Jewish furlongs made a mile; so that the distance they had sailed was not more than about 4 miles. At no place is the Sea of Tiberias much more than 10 miles in breadth, so that they were literally in the midst of the sea" (Barnes).
"Tossed with the waves: for the wind was contrary."
Jesus looked out and could see the boat in distress, with the waves breaking over its bow, and the boat bobbing up and down in the midst of the storm.
Verse 25, "And in the fourth watch of the night Jesus went unto them, walking on the sea."
LGT "But in [the] fourth watch of the night He came to them walking on the sea."
"And in the fourth watch of the night Jesus went to them,"
The fourth watch is a Jewish method of dividing the night, meaning the morning watch, between three in the morning until daylight. The watches were divided into three hours each; the 1st from six till nine; the 2nd from nine till twelve; the 3rd from twelve to three, and the 4th from three till six. It was during this forth watch that Jesus walked out on the sea to His disciples.
"Walking on the sea."
"Another nature miracle. Some scholars actually explain it all away by urging that Jesus was only walking along the beach and not on the water, an impossible theory unless Matthew's account is legendary" (Robertson). Of course, we are not scholars, so we believe what Matthew has recorded.
Verse 26, "And when the disciples saw him walking on the sea, they were troubled, saying, It is a spirit; and they cried out for fear."
LGT "And the disciples seeing Him walking upon the sea, they were troubled saying, It is an apparition [ghost], and they cried out through fear."
I believe the scene of seeing Jesus walking on the sea would put fear into anyone, because it is not natural. The disciples were 'troubled', but I believe with Robertson that troubled doesn't quite describe the disciples emotions, but rather they were terrified. The fact of thinking He was a spirit, a ghost, or a phantom, is very normal, seeing how it is impossible to walk around on water. They probably didn't recognize Christ at first, for if they had they might not have been afraid.
Verse 27, "But straightway Jesus spake unto them, saying, Be of good cheer; it is I; be not afraid."
LGT "But immediately [Jesus] spoke to them, saying, Be of good courage, I am [He]: do not be afraid."
As soon as Jesus speaks to them you would think that they would relax and be excited to see Him, but not Peter, the outspoken one.
Verse 28, "And Peter answered him and said, Lord, if it be thou, bid me come unto thee on the water."
LGT "And Peter answering Him said, Lord, if it is You, command me to come to You upon the water."
Matthew, who is the only evangelist that records this event, shows the impulsiveness of Peter here. Peter has been criticized for his actions here, but if the Lord doesn't rebuke him, we shouldn't.
Verse 29, "And he said, Come, And when Peter was come down out of the ship, he walked on the water, to go to Jesus."
LGT "And He said, Come. And having descended from the boat, Peter walked upon the water and went toward Jesus."
At Jesus' command, Peter had faith that he could also walk on water, and he started toward the Lord. It doesn't say how far Peter walked on the water before fear gripped him.
Verse 30, "But when he saw the wind boisterous, he was afraid; and beginning to sink, he cried, saying, Lord save me."
LGT "But seeing the [strong] waves, he was frightened, and beginning to sing he cried out, saying, Lord save me."
As long as Peter fixed his eyes on the Lord Jesus Christ he could walk as Christ walked on the water; but as soon as he fixed his eyes on the boisterous waves he began to sink. How much this is like our own experience; as long as we are functioning in the Word of God we can face any situation; but when we start looking at the things of this world [the details of life] we sink. Peter prayed a very short prayer and to the point, "Lord save me."
McGee notes:
"If Simon Peter had prayed this prayer like some of us preachers pray, Lord, Thou who are omnipotent, omniscient, omnipresent . . . ,Peter would have been twenty-nine feet under water before he would have gotten to his request. Peter got right down to business, and you and I need to pray like that."
Verse 31, "And immediately Jesus stretched forth his hand, and caught him, and said unto him, O thou of little faith, wherefore didst thou doubt?"
LGT "And immediately Jesus, having stretched out the hand, took hold of him and says, O [you] of little faith, why did you doubt?"
Even though as Bengal says, "he was a fisherman and a good swimmer" he was afraid. Peter walked on the water, but he feared the wind [Expositor's Greek Testament]. Jesus questions Peter's faith; I was here all along, but you did not trust Me. The Lord gives us many opportunities to exercise our faith, but we fail; and the beauty of God's grace is, that we do fail, like with Peter, He stretches forth His hand and saves us.
Verse 32, "And when they were come into the ship, the wind ceased."
LGT "And having entered the boat, the wind ceased."
It was no mere coincidence that the wind ceased the moment they entered the boat. It was all part of God's divine plan to help Peter learn from this experience with his Lord, for Peter later writes "Casting all your cares upon Him, for He cares for you" (1 Peter 5:7).
Verse 33, "Then they that were in the ship came and worshipped him, saying, Of a truth thou art the Son of God."
LGT "And the ones in the boat worshipped Him, saying, Truly You are the Son of God."
All these things were done that the disciples might see and worship the Lord as the Son of God. Christ never performed a miracle that wasn't designed to strengthen the faith of those who believed. The word of God works the same on us today; we are strengthened by our study of Bible doctrine; in fact, there is no other way for us to grow in grace and the knowledge of truth.
The Healing of the Sick in Gennesaret
(Mark 6:53-56)
Verse 34, "And when they were gone over, they came into the land of Gennesaret."
LGT "And having passed over, they came to the land of Gennesaret."
"This region was in Galilee, on the west side of the Sea of Tiberius; and in this land was situated Capernaum, to which he had directed his disciples to go" (Barnes).
Verse 35, "And when the men of that place had knowledge of him, they sent out into all that country round about, and brought unto him all that were diseased;"
LGT "And having recognized Him, the men of that place sent to all that country around, and brought to Him all that were ill."
After the storm, Jesus continues His healing ministry. The news of this Man from Galilee had traveled around so quickly that all had heard of His supernatural powers; they didn't have to advertise, it spread by word of mouth, and when they heard that He was in town, they rounded up all that were infirmed and brought them to Him.
Verse 36, "And besought him that they might only touch the hem of his garment: and as many as touched were made whole."
LGT "And besought Him that they might only touch the border of His garment: and as many as touched [it] were cured."
It is obvious that they had heard of the woman with the issue of blood that was healed by touching the tassel of Christ's garment. "The reception that was afforded Christ when the boat came to shore seems to be a summary of the popular reception given to Christ as the result of His extended ministry throughout Galilee. The signs were widely known that Jesus had performed in many places and on many occasions to authenticate His presentation of Himself as Savior-Sovereign. Wherever Jesus went, multitudes in need came to Him for help. No one ever came to Jesus in need and went away with the need for help (Mark 6:56).
What Christ did in the physical realm was only a shadow of what He would do in the spiritual realm if men would turn to Him in faith to have their spiritual needs met" (Pentecost).
In the next chapter we will see that the popularity of Jesus among the sick and needy will also stir up the hatred of His enemies, the Scribes and Pharisees.
Share freely but cite the source: http://bbbiblehelps.epizy.com