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

<strong>Commentary</strong> on Matthew, Mark, Luke - Volume 2
whoever wishes to be great power over them. 43. But it shall him become as the younger; and
among you, let him be your not be so among you; but he that is ruler, as he that serves.
minister; 27. And he that wishes whoever wishes to become great 27. For which is greater, he that
to be chief among you, let him among you, shall be your sitteth at table, or her that
be your servant: 28. Even as the minister;. And whoever wishes serveth? Is it not he that sitteth
Son of man came not that he to be chief among you, shall be at table? But I am in the midst
might be served, but that he your servant. 45. For even the of you as he that serveth.
might serve, and that he might Son of man came not that he
give his life a ransom for many. might be served, but that he
might serve, and that he might
give his life a ransom for many.
Matthew 20:24. And when the ten heard it. 660 Luke appears to refer this dispute to a different
time. But any one who shall carefully examine that twenty-second chapter will plainly see that
discourses delivered at different times are there brought together, without any regard to order. The
dispute about the primacy, therefore which Luke mentions, flowed from this source, that the sons
of Zebedee aspired to the first places in the kingdom of Christ. And yet the displeasure of the rest
was far from being well-founded; for, while the foolish ambition of the two disciples was so severely
blamed, that they retired from Christ with disgrace, what injury was it to the other ten, that those
disciples foolishly wished what they did not obtain? 661 For though they had a good right to be
offended at the ambition of those disciples, yet when it was put down they ought to have been
satisfied. But our Lord intended to seize on this occasion for laying open a disease which was
lurking within them; for there was not one of them who would willingly yield to others, but every
one secretly cherished within himself the expectation of the primacy; in consequence of which,
they envy and dispute with one another, and yet in all there reigns wicked ambition. And if this
fault was found to be natural to uneducated men of ordinary rank, and if it broke out on a slight
occasion, and almost without any occasion at all, how much more ought we to be on our guard,
when there is abundance of fuel to feed a concealed flame? We see then how ambition springs up
in any man who has great power and honors, and sends out its flames far and wide, unless the spirit
of modesty, coming from heaven, extinguish the pride which has a firm hold of the nature of man.
25. You know that the princes of the Gentiles rule over them. It is first said that Christ called
them to him, that he might reprove them in private; and next we learn from it that, being ashamed
of their ambition, they did not openly complain, but that a sort of hollow murmur arose, and every
660 “Les dix autres ayans ouy cela;” — “the other ten having heard that.”
661 “Avoyent follement desire une chose qu’ils n’ont peu obtenir;” — “had foolishly desired a thing which they could not
obtain.”
298
John Calvin