READINGS IN MATTHEW'S GOSPEL (1)
READINGS IN MATTHEW’S GOSPEL (1)
Matthew 1:1; Matthew 1:18-25; Matthew 2: 1 - 23
JT Although the gospel of Matthew is in mind, the gospel which is engaged with the assembly, the idea is not to cover the whole of it here, but rather to confine ourselves to the first thirteen chapters now, and then, if the Lord permit, consider from the thirteenth chapter to the end in London.
Our minds should be kept peculiarly pure in dwelling on these two passages of scripture, because of the supreme importance of what is narrated in them, and that we should maintain the sense of holiness, “without which”, it says, “no one shall see the Lord”. As the time will be somewhat limited, it is thought that we should pass over the genealogies, although we may have to touch upon certain important elements in them. From verse 18 we shall consider the birth of our Lord Jesus, but at the same time we should not overlook verses 16 and 17, where it says, “Jacob begat Joseph, the husband of Mary, of whom was born Jesus, who is called Christ”. And then we are told further, “All the generations, therefore, from Abraham to David were [p. 102] fourteen generations; and from David until the carrying away of Babylon, fourteen generations; and from the carrying away of Babylon unto the Christ, fourteen generations”. It would not therefore be right to pass over these important verses, because they deal with the forty-two generations, evidently carefully measured. Luke, in the third chapter of his gospel, goes back to Adam, but here the genealogy goes back first to David and then to Abraham. Luke gives us the whole genealogy from [p. 100] the Lord Jesus back to Adam, and this too must be in our minds, for we are dealing now, especially in our times, with the great facts of the Scriptures, the whole of the Scriptures. The word is, “Every scripture is divinely inspired, and profitable”, and we have to consider the whole of them, because the enemy is attacking the Scriptures, and this has been so almost universally since their inauguration. But the Spirit of God is stressing the idea of Scripture itself, and thus, in fairness to the truth, we must include what Luke says as well as Matthew. In Matthew we go back to David and then to Abraham, but in Luke we get the Lord’s genealogy traced back to God Himself. It says, “of Adam, of God” (Luke 3: 38) and that is a matter everybody should take account of.
Ques Does it emphasise His deity?
JT Well, I would say that if you touch on that, it is in John. “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God”, John 1: 1. That is the most pronounced statement you have of deity in the gospels.
JSE Is there some importance that in these genealogies in Matthew we reach the thought of “David the king”, and then the magi’s question is, “Where is the king of the Jews that has been born?”
JT The word ‘king’ has a peculiar place in Matthew, and we, of course, have to pay attention to that as we proceed, but the peculiar thought as to deity is in John. It is not that it is omitted in any part of Scripture, in a certain sense, but the peculiar stress as to the deity of divine Persons, especially the deity of the Lord Jesus, is in the gospel of John.
Ques Would you say the very idea of generation must be connected with manhood?
JT I would think so. The word ‘generation’ has a great place here, whereas it has not a great place [p. 101] in John. The word is peculiar in its place, and I think we might just refer to Genesis for that word. It says in Genesis 2: 4, “These are the histories” (or ‘generations’ as the footnote says) “of the heavens and the earth, when they were created, in the day that Jehovah Elohim made earth and heavens”.
Ques Would not Emmanuel convey the thought of God too?
JT Well, that is the truth, the word “Emmanuel” means “God with us”, and, of course, it ought to come into our chapter.
Ques I wondered why the name Emmanuel is just mentioned, but not developed in Matthew?
JT Well, that is enough, you know. When it was a matter of Scripture to support our liberty to address the Holy Spirit, some said, Well, it is only mentioned in the scripture in Numbers 21, “Sing ye unto it”; but that is enough.
PL And would you say, by extension, the expression “I am with you all the days” conveys the thought of “God with us”?
JT Quite so — “all the days”. It is a remarkable thing that the Lord says that in Matthew, which is the assembly gospel. It does not say in Matthew that the Lord Jesus goes to heaven.
PL Is He thus pledged to stand by His assembly here?
JT That is the idea, exactly. He is here with us today, in Edinburgh. The Lord is here. “I am with you all the days”, He says, “until the completion of the age”. You might say, He has been with us every first day of the week; but the truth according to John is that He comes to us. In Matthew He says, “Behold, I am with you all the days, until the completion of the age”, but in John He says, “I am coming to you”.
It says, “All the generations, therefore, from Abraham to David were fourteen generations; and from David until the carrying away of Babylon, fourteen generations; and from the carrying away of Babylon unto the Christ, fourteen generations”. So that Matthew is very specific as to these generations, and our minds must travel back to them.
Ques Is there something distinctive in each?
JT I am sure there is. It is a question of bringing out the reality of the humanity of Christ. How real it is, and how accurate all is! Certain kings are omitted in this account, but then God is God, and He has a right to omit them if He wishes. If they are not worth mentioning, He has a right to disregard them, and so it is in Matthew.
PL So the great principle of sovereign selection operates from the beginning in this gospel?
JT Quite so. God is entitled to any selection He might be pleased to make, and we have to be subject to it. It is a great matter for sisters and brothers alike to learn to be subject. We might mention the matter about the sisters, because God is helping us as to the matter of subjection, and we are to be subject to the Scriptures in every detail, Infidelity, of course, would intrude itself, but we are to stand out, every one of us, as believers in the Lord Jesus, as faithful to Scripture. “Every scripture is divinely inspired, and profitable for teaching, for conviction, for correction, for instruction in righteousness; that the man of God may be complete, fully fitted to every good work”, 2 Timothy 3: 16, 17.
P L. Is the authority of Scripture peculiarly stressed from the beginning here, in verse 22, “Now, all this came to pass that that might be fulfilled which was spoken by the Lord”, and later on we have the same expression, “which was spoken by the Lord”, and then the prophets and what was spoken through them? Is there instruction for [p. 103] the assembly in the emphasising of Old Testament scripture?
JT Quite so, and accuracy too in the quotation and interpretation of Scripture. The idea of “Thus saith the Lord” is very prominent in this chapter. At the same time there is the thought of righteousness attaching to Joseph. He was “a righteous man”, which is a very important thing. We are told to “pursue righteousness ... with those that call upon the Lord out of a pure heart”, 2 Timothy 2: 22. I appeal to the brethren because I believe what we are saying now is of peculiar importance. Scripture should have its place, and we should be righteous, and we should call on the Lord out of a pure heart. It is not simply those who believe, but those who have pure hearts.
Ques May I inquire why the carrying away to Babylon is particularly mentioned? You have mentioned the scripture in Timothy, as to calling on the Lord out of a pure heart, and I wondered whether that was a suggestion of the way back from Babylon to Christ. We have the setting up of things in David, and then the breakdown publicly, but the maintenance of God’s thoughts in Christ. Does the passage you quoted from Timothy indicate morally the way back, and is that prophetically outlined in these generations?
JT That is very good, I would say. So many are not coming back, and we are trying to get them back. It ought to be the first thing with the brethren, to help persons back. It was said in the Lord’s own day, that many of His disciples went back and walked with Him no more (John 6: 66).
HFN Is this great matter of righteousness emphasised by the Lord’s first utterance in the gospel, “thus it becometh us to fulfil all righteousness”, Matthew 3: [p. 104] 15?
JT Just so. When John the baptist would have prohibited Him from being baptised, He said, “thus it becometh us to fulfil all righteousness”. That is to say, He associates, in grace, John the baptist with Himself, which is a very precious thought, and we ought to learn from Him, however advanced we may be, or helped of God, to consider each other and identify others with ourselves.
Ques Would not these verses show that a righteous man receives peculiar help from the Lord, for he was hindered from doing what was in his mind to do?
JT What about the question in Matthew of a righteous man, and the reward of a righteous man? (See Matthew 10: 41). What is in your mind about that?
Rem The peculiar interest of divine Persons seems to be seen in that he is followed up in his meditations and thoughts, and that they are put right in accordance with what God has done.
JT Quite so. I was thinking I would raise that question as to righteousness, as entering peculiarly into the gospel of Matthew, because we have to deal with history and facts. We have to bear witness, as it says, as they do in the courts in this world. We have the idea of two or three witnesses, and we have to do with that in assembly matters. All this is essential so that things may be followed through and the facts brought out and stated clearly. We need to see that things that are stated are so. It is said of the Lord Himself, that He did not say so-and-so, and we are apt to say things that are not so, and we ought to be very careful that we state the truth and the truth only.
Rem In verse 18, which we read, it says, “she was found to be with child of the Holy Spirit”, and I wondered if that would not indicate the great place that the Holy Spirit would have in all that we [p. 105] are to find out, and the conclusions that we are to arrive at.
JT Very good indeed. Joseph was established a righteous man, and of course, he is the kind of man that ought to attend the care meetings, so that the truth as to everything is brought out. Therefore I think righteousness has a peculiar place in Matthew, and this bears very much on what enters into our deliberations, and the things that come up for assembly judgment. Joseph was a man who could regulate his mind; he could follow up the truth and search things out, and so God honoured him. He had a wonderful distinction in becoming the reputed father of the Lord Jesus Christ.
GMS It says, “while he pondered on these things, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him”. Do we get the same in Acts 10? When Peter pondered on the vision, the Spirit said certain things to him.
JT Very good. According to Luke, Mary thought on the things that were said to her, and it says that she pondered them in her heart.
JSE Is it touching that an angel can speak so freely of the Holy Spirit to a man?
JT It is remarkable; but you may have something more in your mind?
JSE I was just meditating on this precious setting, that an angel could speak to a man of what the Holy Spirit had done. I was wondering whether we ought not to be more at home in relation to what the Holy Spirit is saying, for it is intended to help us forward toward the end that God has in mind.
JT Then, what a place angels have! It says, “Are they not all ministering spirits, sent out for service on account of those who shall inherit salvation?” Hebrews 1: 14. They are not above us; they [p. 106] are not as great as men, but they are ministering spirits, and we can reckon upon them. It has to be remembered, too, that they were created long before men. That is an important thing too, to have in our minds, as to the idea of man, that man was not created as early as angels, but very much later, according to the actual facts of Scripture. Perhaps we are not conversant very much with the thought of man being a relatively recent creation, although it is very clear in the Scriptures.
HFN Is righteousness the basis of manhood in relation to the assembly?
JT I think so. For instance, in chapter 18 we have “if two of you shall agree on the earth concerning any matter ... it shall come to them”. Man has a great place there. It is “two of you”. It is not two angels, but “two of you”, two men. I would like to hear what you think about that.
HFN I think that is excellent. I suppose each of the gospels gives some distinctive feature of manhood in that way? In Luke, in relation to Simeon, it is “a man in Jerusalem”, and you have often called our attention to the fact that John is the pattern in regard to spirituality, and so Matthew stresses the great thought of righteousness. Would that be right?
JT I think that is quite right. The subject of man is so important. The word is, “For God is one, and the mediator of God and men one, the man Christ Jesus”, 1 Timothy 2: 5. “The man Christ Jesus”; that is a great point made. We have had great encouragement in New York in considering the question of ‘Man’. It is a prime question for every one of us, because we are all men, and God is stressing what manhood is. It is wonderful to think that Christ became a Man — yea, that God Himself became a Man, because that is the truth. “He is the true God and eternal life”, 1 John [p. 107] 5: 20.
HFN We have all been following, with intense interest, how the subject of ‘Man’ has been developed in the readings in New York.
JT I am thankful to hear that, because I am sure it is important that we should all become familiar with the idea of man, especially in view of God Himself becoming Man in Christ. It is no less than that; the incarnation is the whole basis of all the Scriptures, and everything that is being said has man in view. God has been pleased to reserve the idea of this wonderful creature, and it is because the Son was in mind; the Lord Jesus became a Man. So in Mark He is immediately referred to as the Son of God, and then the Spirit of God goes back to John the baptist and so forth; but at first it is “Jesus Christ, Son of God”. He is a divine Person.
WSS What you are saying reminds us of the beginning of Isaiah 32, “A king shall reign in righteousness ... And a man shall be as a hiding-place”.
JT That was in my mind. I am thankful for what you say, because it bears on what we are talking about.
JH-s Is it significant that in this gospel, Pilate’s wife says, “Have thou nothing to do with that righteous man”?
JT That just brings up the whole question of sisters, a matter that we have had before us for over a year now, so that they are here today in these three-day meetings. Pilate’s wife has a great place, and it is remarkable that she should be mentioned at such a time and that she calls the Lord Jesus “that righteous man”. Let the sisters therefore be very careful as to what they say about divine Persons, and that they speak rightly and reverently and holily about Them, and let them be sure that everything that is said about divine Persons is properly spoken.
WC Would the view in Matthew’s gospel in regard of the bringing in of man be for the working out of moral questions, that is in Christ and the assembly, bringing in the woman?
JT That is good. I am glad you say that, because it comes into our care of the saints. Many cases of evil come up and have to be adjusted, and therefore the idea of righteousness is most important. It is an excellent thought; Pilate’s wife can speak of the Lord Jesus as a righteous man, and she advises her husband not to have anything to do with Him.
MAW Do the four women who are named in the genealogy bear on that? You have Thamar, Rahab, Ruth, and the wife of Urias.
JT I should think so. Although some were disreputable persons, you might say, yet God does not fail to bring them forward. Then see the place Rahab finds in the Scriptures, and she comes in here in Matthew. She tells the spies to return another way, and the magi are instructed to do the same thing here. It says, “they departed into their own country another way”. They did not go back Herod’s way. It is a great matter to have recourse to some other way, if it is a right way, and to defeat the devil in his movements.
WmH Would there be any suggestion of following righteousness when it says that Joseph was a righteous man, but at the same time “unwilling to expose her publicly”?
JT I was thinking of that, and what a peculiarly righteous man he was, and how he defeated the enemy, notwithstanding the enemy’s efforts.
AH Does Isaiah 9 help with the development of this matter, especially in verses 6 and 7, where government, peace and righteousness are referred to? “and his name is called Wonderful, Counsellor, Mighty God, Father of eternity, Prince of peace”.
JT That is well worthy of being brought into our consideration, I am sure. Isaiah brings forward the Lord Jesus as “Father of eternity”. We must not think that it is “the Father” that is in mind there. The name “Father of eternity”, is really Father of the age. We must be careful not to say that it is the Father, because it is not; it is “Father of the age”.
Ques Have you something further to say in regard to the place that the Holy Spirit is given and emphasised by the angel, in regard to the change that was necessary as Joseph purposed in his heart to put Mary away secretly? He is told now that he is not to do it. I should like to have some help in regard to the way in which the truth is now brought forward as to the place the Holy Spirit has in relation to the great thought of the incarnation.
JT It is one of the things that God has specially brought up in recent times, and, of course, it is quite right to bring it in here, because the Spirit is so stressed and the place He had in such a secret and holy relation; it is most holy. That a divine Person should be thus in such a circumstance is marvellous, and that God should, as it were, allow this to be recorded in the holy page of Scripture, but it is true, nevertheless, and we all have to learn to read Scripture accordingly and let it have its full place and be holy in reading it; because we are to be holy, even as God is holy.
JM Would the words there, “before they came together”, be intended to guard the miraculous conception of the Lord Jesus?
JT Just so. God does not hesitate to use these expressions, but they should be clothed, in our thoughts, with holiness, because we are so apt to let our minds run away with us in dealing with these holy things, whereas God has been pleased to condescend [p. 110] to speak of them by His Spirit, and yet they refer to the Lord Jesus Himself.
GMS Do these verses distinguish between who the Lord is in His Person and that which He is in manhood? It says, “that which is begotten”.
JT Quite so, but the holiness of the whole scene is what should affect us peculiarly at this time. We should not overlook the meaning of these holy things as coming particularly into these first two chapters. It says that without holiness no one shall see the Lord (Hebrews 12: 14). So let us not forget, if it be a question of persons coming into fellowship, we must have holiness.
ACSP Would you be free to say another word as to the three-fold reference to the angel appearing in a dream?
JT I suppose the time had not come for the great actions or activities of the Holy Spirit. The time had not come for that, but we have come to it, so that we do not count on dreams now. I do not. I never remember having any light from dreams; but we get light from the Holy Spirit. The blessed Spirit is here to give us light. You have something else in mind?
ACSP I was wondering whether it preceded what the Spirit may do today, particularly in connection with the reference earlier to the fact that Joseph pondered these things.
JT Well, just so. What I am saying, I am sure, is true, because we do not count on dreams now. I would not rely on them, but the Spirit of God is here to replace them. If therefore there is any question, let us speak to the Spirit. That raises the question as to speaking to the Spirit. It is mentioned, you might say, only in Numbers 21, but every one of us at any time or at any minute can speak to the Holy Spirit.
[p. 111] If there are any not clear, they ought to be clear at once. We want the whole truth and nothing but the truth. We are to go in for it, and go in for it wholly. The Holy Spirit is a divine Person; there are the three Persons, the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, and the one name covers Them all. We cannot say that any angels hold that place at all; they are creatures, and ourselves too, we are creatures, but there are three divine Persons, and we must make much of every One of Them and give Them the place that Scripture gives Them.
TT In the book of Job, reference is made to God speaking in dreams, but now we have God speaking in Son, and further, the Holy Spirit speaking expressly.
JT That is just what we are saying. The Spirit is here and no one shall take His place. He is a divine Person.
AHG Is man peculiarly fitted for receiving divine communications as having the Holy Spirit?
JT As having the Holy Spirit — quite so. It is wonderful that we who are believers should have the Holy Spirit, and so the question is put by Paul immediately to some in a certain place in the Acts, “Did ye receive the Holy Spirit when ye had believed?” Acts 19: 2.
AHG I thought it would amplify what you have said in regard to man, and the place that man has, he being now peculiarly capacitated to receive divine communications.
JT And that brings out what we have already said, that man is the most recent of all the creatures of God. It was said that God brought the creatures to Adam and he named them, and God let the names stand; but God brought the woman to Adam too, and Adam says, “This time it is bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh: this shall be called Woman”. Then it is also said that Jehovah built
[p. 112] her. She was built a woman; that is to say, already she was a type of the assembly.
Ques Mary kept this great matter a secret even from Joseph. Is that a commendable feature?
JT Well, I would say the Spirit of God had to do with that; it was not an accident. It was not left to Mary, and there is nothing here to be attached to her as wrong; she simply did not do it, but the Spirit of God took care of that. In the same sense the Spirit of God is taking care of wonderful things for ourselves.
Ques Is she not signally marked out by being called “the virgin” in verse 23? She was particularly suitable for the great transaction that was involved. It says in Isaiah 7: 14, “Therefore will the Lord himself give you a sign; Behold, the virgin shall conceive and shall bring forth a son, and call his name Immanuel”. The note to “the” says it is the ‘emphatic article’; so it is not an ordinary person, it is a person suitably selected.
JT Quite so, and that is confirmed here in Matthew 1: “The virgin”. It is the only one so designated.
Ques Is the virgin feature to be developed in the assembly?
JT Quite so. “I have espoused you unto one man, to present you a chaste virgin to Christ”, 2 Corinthians 11: 2. It is a word that has full cognizance in the Scriptures. You do not get Eve called a virgin; the word ‘woman’ is used. She is built.
JSE Rebecca is the only woman in Genesis so named, is she not?
JT I think so, so far as I remember. It is a fine word, just as the word ‘woman’ is a fine word. The Lord uses that word as to the woman of Samaria; He credits her with being a woman. The word ‘woman’ has the same place relatively as the word ‘man’, although in Genesis 1 the word ‘man’ [p. 113] covers both man and woman; both Adam and Eve are covered by the word ‘man’.
HFN Does not the Lord say to Mary of Magdala in John 20, “Woman, why dost thou weep”?
JT But He called her Mary afterwards, showing that He brought in the familiar thought, which is just what you might expect of the Lord in His grace with such a one as that.
Ques Is it necessary to stress that Mary, the Lord’s mother, remains a woman, that no deity attaches to her?
JT We do not want to mention names, but what do the Roman Catholics mean as to the word ‘woman’? They say, ‘Mary the mother of God’, which is terrible blasphemy.
Rem May I just remark how beautifully Scripture speaks of it: “Mary, the mother of Jesus”. Is there not, in Scripture, sufficient to meet every wrong thought that has ever been introduced?
JT Just so. Of course, Luke helps us more fully. Luke is a peculiar gospel with regard to the precious vessel of the birth of the Lord Jesus. He speaks of Mary, the Lord’s mother, and gives us her wonderful psalm that we should all remember. A typical Hannah is seen in Mary.
Rem You have something to suggest further in regard to the second chapter, just to go over it before we close.
JT What is to be noticed is the use of the term “little child”. It is not the same as in Luke, where the babe is mentioned. In Matthew it is the little child, and I think that the Spirit of God refers to what is somewhat more developed, and that has to come under consideration when young people are wishing to come into fellowship, because they are not babes. The case of Eutychus, in Acts 20, whose age is not mentioned, but who is called a youth, and then a boy, would show that children have to be [p. 114] taken care of in view of the fellowship. They should not be held up too long until they are brought into fellowship, because it is a question of the assembly.
PL So that it says, “Yea, have ye never read, Out of the mouth of babes and sucklings thou hast perfected praise?” Matthew 21: 16. That is connected with the children in the temple?
JT Quite so. Pardon me for alluding to New York, but there we sometimes allow them into fellowship as young as ten. I think the brethren might do well to consider that some children develop quicker than others, and if they are fit to have part, the Spirit of God can actually use them. It is therefore time for us to recognise what is there.
PL They are saying something of their own, spiritually, are they not?
JT ‘Something of their own’; I know that it is so; some of them do say something of their own.
Rem So that it would be a question of judging the work of God, and not exactly the age.
JT That is just it; judging the work of God. Of course, a child is slow, no doubt, but some of them move more quickly than others, and I think we should respect that, because God is God, and we should respect what He does. We are speaking especially of the Spirit of God now, because He has been sent down from heaven and He looks after things in that sense.
MAW The idea of reception seems stressed here. The expression “Take to thee the little child and his mother” is mentioned several times.
JT It would show the responsibility attaching to Joseph, as to how he should care for the child. It says, “the little child and his mother”; that is to say, the little child is more prominent than the mother. So with any little child among us we have to discern what the work of God may be and [p. 115] recognise it.
JTJr In chapter 18 the Lord takes the little child to Him, and in chapter 19 the disciples do not seem to be right about it because they rebuked those that brought the children.
JT Quite so; very good.
JMcK Does the way the divine system comes into operation in this chapter give some encouragement as to the young being committed on the line of righteousness? I was thinking of the way the angel comes in so frequently in relation to the little child and his mother, as though heaven is equal to the matter once we are committed on this line.
JT Well, quite so. We can easily discern whether there is definite committal and whether the child has really a mind capable of being committed in itself to anything of God. The mind is given to the child, and our spirits are given to us, from God, not from our parents. A child does not get his spirit from his parents, he gets it from God, and, of course, we have to make allowance for what God does at any time.
AR Would that be illustrated in the Lord Himself, at twelve years of age, when He said, “Did ye not know that I ought to be occupied in my Father’s business?” Luke 2: 49. He was fully committed.
JT Just so. I think He marks the way for us.
Ques Are not some of our children damaged when they are very young through lack of this fatherly care?
JT Will you illustrate how they get damaged in their youth? You are stressing very young?
Rem Yes. We ought to have the assembly outlook as regards the children in very early days, and seek to bring them into things, counting on God and His wonderful work.
Rem So that in the book of Numbers, whilst you have maturity in view, you also have the idea of “a month old and upward”.
JT Well, just so.
Ques Would you look for them to learn, after they come in, more about the position we occupy? Sometimes they are held back because, it is said, they do not realise the position.
JT Just so. So that the Lord sets the example of the plural in that sense. He says to John the baptist, “thus it becometh us to fulfil all righteousness”. The plural, we might say, includes young persons as well as older ones.
Ques Had Paul got that in mind when he says: “The bread which we break”?
JT Quite so. “Is it not the communion of the body of the Christ?” is it not that?
WC In regard of the young ones, it says in Psalm 128, “thy children like olive-plants round about thy table”. Does that suggest children as taken up by the Spirit?
JT Quite so. They are round about the table of the parents, showing that the children are to be taken care of.
EAL Would the fact that Herod slew all the boys who were in Bethlehem show how important this state of potential manhood is?
JT Quite so, and the terribleness of the suffering. Rachel’s sufferings are referred to there and we must not forget that too. She is a sister. It says, “Rachel weeping for her children, and would not be comforted, because they are not”.
AMW We read in John 6, “There is a little boy here who has five barley loaves and two small fishes”. He would be in fellowship, would he not?
JT Well, I would think so. He was entrusted with them. He had some responsibility, and that would be an indication that it was time for fellowship.