I posted way too many yesterday so today is a light day.
Matthew 14
Reading this chapter again this morning I’ll just note some of the thoughts the words triggered.
Evil, the story of John the Baptist’s death reveals the depth of depravity and evil that these two women had. And how the pride of life and power overwhelm even the modest goodness Herod had and turned it to power based depravity.
Mat 14:10 And he sent, and beheaded John in the prison.
Mat 14:11 And his head was brought in a charger, and given to the damsel: and she brought it to her mother.
The story of the Feeding of the Five Thousand and Jesus Walking on the Water are also both told in John’s Gospel.
But John goes further in giving the full doctrinal teaching Jesus gave afterwards about eternal life, the Father’s Sovereignty and the turning away of those following him..
Jhn 6:64-65 But there are some of you that believe not. For Jesus knew from the beginning who they were that believed not, and who should betray him. 65 And he said, Therefore said I unto you, that no man can come unto me, except it were given unto him of my Father.
Matthew’s focus was on the miracles…including, even Peter’s coming to Jesus walking on the water, and the healing of many..
Mat 14:35 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;
Mat 14:36 And besought him that they might only touch the hem of his garment: and as many as touched were made perfectly whole.
Psalm 14
Listen to the Psalm being sung:
John Gill introduces this Psalm with these words.
Psalms 14:1
The fool hath said in his heart,…. This is to be understood not of a single individual person, as Nabal, which is the word here used; nor of some Gentile king, as Sennacherib, or Rabshakeh his general, as Theodoret; nor of Nebuchadnezzar, nor of Titus, as some Jewish writers (y) interpret it, making one to be here intended, and the other in the fifty third psalm: the same with this; but of a body, a set of men, who justly bear this character; and design not such who are idiots, persons void of common sense and understanding; but such who are fools in their morals, without understanding in spiritual things; wicked profligate wretches, apostates from God, alienated from the life of God; and whose hearts are full of blindness and ignorance, and whose conversations are vile and impure, and they enemies of righteousness, though full of all wicked subtlety and mischief: these say in their hearts, which are desperately wicked, and out of which evil thoughts proceed, pregnant with atheism and impiety; these endeavour to work themselves into such a belief, and inwardly to conclude, at least to wish,
there is no God; though they do not express it with their mouths, yet they would fain persuade their hearts to deny the being of God; that so having no superior to whom they are accountable, they may go on in sin with impunity; however, to consider him as altogether such an one as themselves, and to remove such perfections from him, as may render him unworthy to be regarded by them; such as omniscience, omnipresence, &c. and to conceive of him as entirely negligent of and unconcerned about affairs of this lower world, having nothing to do with the government of it: and thus to deny his perfections and providence, is all one as to deny his existence, or that there is a God: accordingly the Targum paraphrases it,
“there is no שולטנא, “government” of God in the earth;”
so Kimchi interprets it,
“there is no governor, nor judge in the world, to render to man according to his works;”
they are corrupt; that is, everyone of these fools; and it is owing to the corruption of their hearts they say such things: they are corrupt in themselves; they have corrupt natures, they are born in sin, and of the flesh, and must be carnal and corrupt: or “they do corrupt”, or “have corrupted” (z): they corrupt themselves by their atheistic thoughts and wicked practices, Jud 1:10; or their works, as the Chaldee paraphrase adds; or their ways, their manner and course of life, Gen 6:12; and they corrupt others with their evil communications, their bad principles and practices, their ill examples and wicked lives;
they have done abominable works: every sinful action is abominable in the sight of God; but there are some sins more abominable than others; there are abominable idolatries, and abominable lusts, such as were committed in Sodom; and it may be these are pointed at here, and which are usually committed by such who like not to retain God in their knowledge; see Rom 1:24;
there is none that doeth good; anyone good work in a spiritual manner; not in faith, from love, in the name and strength of Christ, and with a view to the glory of God: nor can any man do a good work without the grace of God, and strength from Christ, and the assistance of the Spirit of God: hence, whatsoever a wicked man does, whether in a civil or in a religious way, is sin; see Pro 21:4. Arama takes these to be the words of the fool, or atheist, saying, there is no God that does good, like those in Zep 1:12.
(y) Vid. Jarchi, Kimchi & Ben Melech in loc. (z) השחיתו “corruperunt”, Pagninus, Montanus, Vatablus, Gejerus; “corrumpunt”, Junius & Tremellius; “corrumpunt se”, Piscator.
THE WESTMINISTER CONFESSION SAYS THE SAME THING ABOUT THE MANNER OF GOOD WORKS.
CHAPTER 16: Of Good Works
Paul wrote: Rom 3:10 As it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one:
Quoting this Psalm
This points us to the Amazing Grace of God, that saved wretched like us, to make a people to himself.
Rom 9:21 Hath not the potter power over the clay, of the same lump to make one vessel unto honour, and another unto dishonour?
Mat 13:14-17 And in them is fulfilled the prophecy of Esaias, which saith, By hearing ye shall hear, and shall not understand; and seeing ye shall see, and shall not perceive: 15 For this people’s heart is waxed gross, and their ears are dull of hearing, and their eyes they have closed; lest at any time they should see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and should understand with their heart, and should be converted, and I should heal them. 16 But blessed are your eyes, for they see: and your ears, for they hear. 17 For verily I say unto you, That many prophets and righteous men have desired to see those things which ye see, and have not seen them; and to hear those things which ye hear, and have not heard them.
Psalms 14:7
O that the salvation of Israel were come out of Zion!…. By whom is meant the Messiah, the Saviour of Israel, of all the elect of God, whether Jews or Gentiles; and who is so called, because the salvation of them was put into his hands, and he undertook it; and because he is the Captain and Author of it, and it is in him, and in no other. He was to come out of Zion, out of Judea, from among the Jews; Zion being, as Kimchi observes, the head of the kingdom of Israel; see Rom 11:26. Accordingly Christ did come of the Jews, and salvation was of them, Rom 9:4; and for his coming from hence, or for his incarnation, the psalmist most earnestly wishes: he was one of those kings, prophets, and righteous men, that desired to see the days of the Messiah, Mat 13:17. And what might move him so vehemently to wish for it, at this time, might be the sad corruption and depravity of mankind he had been describing, and the afflicted and distressed state of the saints;
when the Lord bringeth back the captivity of his people.
The people of God are, in their unregeneracy, in a state of captivity to sin, Satan, and the law; the work of the Messiah, when he came, was to proclaim liberty to the captives, to set them free, to deliver them from their spiritual bondage: and this Christ has done; he has redeemed his people from all their sins, and from the curse of the law, and from the power of Satan, and has led captivity captive; and which has justly occasioned great joy in the redeemed ones, according to this prophecy:
Jacob shall rejoice, and Israel shall be glad; that is, the posterity of Jacob and Israel; not his natural, but spiritual seed, such who are the true sons of Jacob, Israelites indeed; these having faith and hope in the plenteous redemption of Christ, rejoice in the view of their interest in it; they the song of redeeming love now, and these ransomed ones will hereafter come to Zion with joy, and everlasting joy upon their heads. The Jews refer this to the times of the Messiah (c).
(c) Baal Hatturim in Numb. xxv. 12. & Midrash Tillim in loc.
This Psalm provides great clarity of depth to the meaning of our being set free from the Captivity of Satan.
Luk 4:17-19 And there was delivered unto him the book of the prophet Esaias. And when he had opened the book, he found the place where it was written, 18 The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised, 19 To preach the acceptable year of the Lord.
