Commentary on Matthew, Mark, Luke - Volume 2.pdf

<strong>Commentary</strong> on Matthew, Mark, Luke - Volume 2
from heaven to bear testimony concerning it; and, on the other hand, to strike despisers with terror,
that they might not expect their mockery of the ministers of the word to remain unpunished. Both
are exceedingly necessary; for the inestimable treasure of life is exhibited to us in earthen vessels,
(2 Corinthians 4:7,) and had not the authority of the doctrine been established in this manner, the
faith of it would have been, almost every moment, ready to give way. 444 The reason why the ungodly
become so daring and presumptuous is, that they imagine they have to deal with men. Christ
therefore declares that, by the preaching of the Gospel, is revealed on the earth what will be the
heavenly judgment of God, and that the certainty of life or death is not to be obtained from any
other source.
This is a great honor, that we are God’s messengers to assure the world of its salvation. It is
the highest honor conferred on the Gospel, that it is declared to be the embassy of mutual
reconciliation between God and men, (2 Corinthians 5:20.) In a word, it is a wonderful consolation
to devout minds to know that the message of salvation brought to them by a poor mortal man is
ratified before God. Meanwhile, let the ungodly ridicule, as they may think fit, the doctrine which
is preached to them by the command of God, they will one day learn with what truth and seriousness
God threatened them by the mouth of men. Finally, let pious teachers, resting on this assurance,
encourage themselves and others to defend with boldness the life-giving grace of God, and yet let
them not the less boldly thunder against the hardened despisers of their doctrine.
Hitherto I have given a plain exposition of the native meaning of the words, so that nothing
farther could have been desired, had it not been that the Roman Antichrist, wishing to cloak his
tyranny, has wickedly and dishonestly dared to pervert the whole of this passage. The light of the
true interpretation which I have stated would be of itself sufficient, one would think, for dispelling
his darkness; but that pious readers may feel no uneasiness, I shall briefly refute his disgusting
calumnies. First, he alleges that Peter is declared to be the foundation of the Church. But who does
not see that what he applies to the person of a man is said in reference to Peter’s faith in Christ?
There is no difference of meaning, I acknowledge, between the two Greek words Πέτρος (Peter)
and πέτρα, (petra, a stone or rock,) 445 except that the former belongs to the Attic, and the latter to
the ordinary dialect. But we are not to suppose that Matthew had not a good reason for employing
this diversity of expression. On the contrary, the gender of the noun was intentionally changed, to
show that he was now speaking of something different. 446 A distinction of the same sort, I have no
444 “D’heure en heure elle seroit revoquee en doute;” — “from hour to hour it would be called in question.”
445 “Ie confesse bien qu’en la langue Grecque il n’y a pas grande difference entre le mot qui signifie une pierre, et celuy qui
signifie un homme nomme Pierre;” — “I readily acknowledge that, in the Greek language, there is no great difference between
the word that signifies a stone, and that which signifies a man named Peter.”
446 “A fin de monstrer qu’au second lieu il parloit de quelque autre chose que de la personne de Pierre;” — “in order to show
that, in the latter clause, he was speaking of something totally different from the person of Peter.”
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John Calvin