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of Christ is an emphatic designation of the law in its most minute parts." Stier: "That this strong expression refers figuratively, in its special meaning, tc the least important of its contents, is plainly to be understood." This verse is characterized by the solemn word, Amen, in English Verily; and by that peculiar form of speech employed by Christ, I say › unto you—as if he had said, I, the Alpha and Omega, the infallible Teacher and final Judge of quick and dead.

The 19th verse is of somewhat difficult interpretation as to its precise meaning in two points. The first relates to the phrase, one of these least commandments. These words themselves have been taken in three senses. Some suppose they refer to the provisions of the Ceremonial Law. But this is not admissible, since Christ himself speaks of David as blameless, though he eat the shew-bread. And everywhere in the Old Testament, no less than in the New, acts of justice, mercy, and dutifulness to parents receive a decided commendation over any attention to religious ceremonies, though prescribed by God. And in the 15th chapter of Acts, the council of the apostles and elders did not hesitate to declare that the Mosaic ritual was not binding upon the Gentiles. Others think the reference is to the commands of our Saviour as given in the New Testament. This can hardly be its meaning, because it was not the topic of his discourse. The other opinion, which is most probably the correct one, is that by commandments here, we are to understand the precepts of the Decalogue. This is the usual sense of the word commandments in the New Testament. See Matt. xxii. 40;

Mark x. 19; Luke i. 6, xviii. 20; 1 Cor. xii. 19. When the peculiar precepts of our Saviour are spoken of by himself, he calls them my commandments; when they are spoken of by others, they are called the commandments of the Lord, or his commandments. 1 Cor. xiv. 37; 1 John ii. 4, iii. 24.

The New Testament admits that all the command ments are not of equal importance. Matt. xxii. 36, 38, 40; Mark xii. 30. The Saviour admits the same in this verse. The Scribes and Pharisees had greatly abused this principle. They had put ceremonies above moral duties. They had declared that "Whosoever after meat washeth not his hands is no better than he who hath committed a murder." By their traditions, they had in many ways made void the commandments of God. Our Saviour does not deny that one commandment may be more important than another. But he guards against the infraction of the very least, in the solemn manner now to be considered. He says, "Whosoever therefore shall break one of these least commandments, and shall teach men so, he shall be called the least in the kingdom of heaven." Here is the second point of difficulty mentioned above. This is very alarming language, and should be well weighed by every man. If the evil here threatened is suited to strike terror, the blessing promised to those who do and teach these commandments is very glorious; they shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven. Commentators are not agreed whether by the kingdom of heaven we are to understand the visible church on earth as constituted by Christ, or the invisible kingdom of glory in heaven. But we need not perplex ourselves on this matter,

inasmuch as he who is really unfit to be a member of the church on earth, is not fit to enter heaven. So we may give to the phrase the most solemn meaning. The views of commentators on the import of the phrase, the least in the kingdom of heaven, are such as these: Diodati: They "shall lose much of God's approbation and of the good esteem of true believers." Henry: "Those who extenuate and encourage sin, and discountenance and put contempt upon strictness in religion and serious devotion, are the dregs of the church." Doddridge: "He shall be accounted [one of] the least and unworthiest members in the kingdom of heaven, or in the church of the Messiah; and shall soon be entirely cut off from it as unfit for so holy a society." Whitby : "He shall be unworthy to be reckoned one of the members of my kingdom." Clarke: "Shall have no place in the kingdom of Christ here, nor in the kingdom of glory above." Scott: "Either no true disciple at all, or one of the most inconsistent and mean of the whole company." Pool: "Shall be accounted of the least value and esteem in the church of God, and shall never come into the kingdom of glory." Tholuck: “We are obliged to conclude that it is not exclusion, but inferiority of station, which is here spoken of." Stowell: "Christ assures his disciples that he who in the slightest degree departs from the most rigid demands of that rule, and either directly or indirectly teaches others so to do, shall scarcely be esteemed as belonging to the Christian church, or, if belonging to it, as the least worthy and consistent of its members; whilst, on the other hand, he who is obedient in all things, and by his instruction, persuasion, or exam

ple, influences others to the same obedience, shall be honoured as an enlightened, decided, and useful subject of "the kingdom of heaven." Hare: "He shall be considered a most unworthy member of Christ's kingdom even here, and therefore, I need not add, can have no chance of being admitted into Christ's glorious and everlasting kingdom hereafter." Whatever, therefore, may be the precise meaning of the phrase, least in the kingdom of heaven, we cannot doubt that it contains an awful warning against the error of lightly esteeming any one of the Ten Commandments.

In the 20th verse, the Lord says, "For I say unto you, that except your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the Scribes and Pharisees, ye shall in no case enter into the kingdom of heaven." "The righteousness of the Scribes and Pharisees," says Diodati, "was all set upon vain ceremonies, arbitrary disciplines, false shows, and dead works without God's Spirit." The Scribes and Pharisees were very highly esteemed by the people for their piety; but Jesus Christ says his disciples must exceed them, both in their principles and practice. "Their interpretation of the moral law," says Pool, "was so short and Jejune, that it is manifest that their righteousness was not only a righteousness not of faith, but of works, and those works that were very imperfect, and short of what the true sense of the law required." Scott: "The zeal and strictness of the Scribes and Pharisees, both in doctrine and practice, was chiefly shown about their own traditions, by which they 'made void the law of God;' and about minute observances, by which they covered over their neglect

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of judgment, mercy, faith, and the love of God and It was always true that the letter of the law killed. It is the Spirit that maketh alive. The most exact observance of a ritual, and the most decent, though heartless conformity to the precepts of the moral law, never did meet the demands of God's word. Those, therefore, whose piety goes not beyond externals, however faultless in the eyes of men, will never secure the smiles of God. Of such the Sáviour says, "they shall in no case enter into the kingdom of heaven;" that is, they shall not be accepted members of his visible church, nor reign with him in glory. Yes, verily, our obedience must vastly excel that of any formalist that ever lived. Stowell: "Your righteousness must exceed theirs in the principle from which it springs,-not like theirs, from pride and self-sufficiency, but from love;-in the motives by which it is influenced,-not the applause of mortals, but by the approbation of God, and the promotion of his glory;—in the standard by which it is regulated,—not the traditions and specious explanations of the Scribes and Pharisees themselves, but by the full and spiritual meaning of the law; in the extent to which it is carried,—not merely to the visible observance, but also to the secret thoughts and feelings;-in the effect it produces on others,-not securing their admiration of your ostentatious virtue, and forcing them to submit to your usurped authority, but leading them to admire the grace of God, to adore him in the purity and goodness of his law, and to emulate the example you have set them."

The conclusion is, nothing is said or done in the