and looks? [Words and looks do not cost much, and give a person little trouble; but to help another actively is more difficult, and far more likely to prove that we really feel compassion.] What lesson may you draw from this Gospel, who have lost relatives and friends by death? [That Christ is the Resurrection and the Life; and that, sooner or later, He will raise up those relatives and friends.]

SEVENTEENTH SUNDAY AFTER TRINITY.

St. Luke xiv. 1-11.

1 And it came to pass, as he went into the house of one of the chief Pharisees to eat bread on the sabbath day, that they watched him.

2 And, behold, there was a certain man before him which had the dropsy. 3 And Jesus answering spake unto the lawyers and Pharisees, saying, Is it lawful to heal on the sabbath day?

4 And they held their peace. And he took him, and healed him, and let him go;

5 And answered them, saying, Which of you shall have an ass or an ox fallen into a pit, and will not straightway pull him out on the sabbath day?

6 And they could not answer him again to these things.

7 And he put forth a parable to those which were bidden, when he marked

how they chose out the chief rooms; saying unto them,

8 When thou art bidden of any man to a wedding, sit not down in the highest room; lest a more honourable man than thou be bidden of him;

9 And he that bade thee and him come and say to thee, Give this man place; and thou begin with shame to take the lowest room.

10 But when thou art bidden, go and sit down in the lowest room; that when he that bade thee cometh, he may say unto thee, Friend, go up higher then shalt thou have worship in the presence of them that sit at meat with thee,

11 For whosoever exalteth himself shall be abased; and he that humbleth himself shall be exalted.

Notes.-Ver. 1. The chief Pharisees. The original words have been rendered "rulers who were Pharisees," and this rendering seems to express correctly the text. These rulers were, no doubt, the judges of the synagogues. (For a description of the Pharisees refer to "Notes" on ver. 24, p. 23, Gospel for the Fourth Sunday in Advent.) On the Sabbath day. Although it was the Sabbath-the Jews' sacred day-Christ shared the hospitality of the Pharisee. The Jews were accustomed to supply their tables better on the Sabbath than on any other day; and Christ, by His presence on this occasion, gave His sanction to that custom, which He would hardly have done had it

been wrong. They watched Him. The Scribes and Pharisees were ever seeking opportunities of condemning Christ for any offence against the Jewish Law or traditions in which they might detect Him; for that purpose they watched Him on this Sabbath. But He was, of course, well aware of their object: there was not a man reclining at the table whose heart was not as visible, whose thoughts were not as manifest, to Him as was his countenance. A thousand might have been present, each wrapped up within himself: but into the heart of every one Christ could have entered at will.

an

Ver. 3. Jesus answering. The word translated swering" is used here, and in ver. 5, and elsewhere in the Gospels, in a remarkable way used when no question had been put to Christ. (For examples of this use of the word "answered," see St. Matt. xxii. 1; St. Luke v. 22, vii. 39, 40.) In such cases, Christ was answering the inward, not the expressed, thoughts of those about Him. This consideration helps us to understand one of the reasons why His enemies hated Him. How astonished we are sometimes to find, from the remarks of our friends, that they know our thoughts: that they have, as by accident, followed us silently along the web of fancies which we are weaving. But for enemies to find that their inmost devices were traced, must have been to them a great disappointment; a cause of the sharpest hatred against Christ. Is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath? All servile work was forbidden by the Law of Moses on the Sabbath, on pain of being stoned to death; the Jews moreover cooked no food on that day (Exod. xxxv. 3). As to the applying of remedies in cases of illness, they had many traditions. They entirely forbade some-others they permitted; but generally they thought that, except when life was in danger, all were unlawful. Christ, by words and acts, showed them that works of mercy and of necessity are allowable (St. Matt. xii. 1-14).

Ver. 4. Healed him. This healing of the man who had the dropsy was a work of mercy; of greater mercy than the pulling an ox or an ass out of a pit (which even a Jew would do), because a man was better than an ox or an

ass.

On another occasion, Christ defended the conduct

of His disciples-who, being hungry, plucked some ears of corn on the Sabbath-by quoting what David did to preserve life when fleeing from Saul. (Compare 1 Sam. xxi. 6, and St. Matt. xii. 3, 4.) Both David and Christ's disciples were blameless, by reason of their necessity. Moral good, such as the doing works of mercy and necessity, is of more consequence than ceremonial observances. Ceremonial observances must give place to works that are merciful or necessary. The Christian Sunday is a day of pure-minded rejoicing and light-heartedness, and not a Pharisaical Sabbath, to hang over our heads like a stern rod or a black cloud, as some persons would have it. As Christ dined with a Pharisee on the Jewish Sabbath, therefore we may show and accept hospitality on the Christian Sunday.

Ver. 7. A parable. It is a simile, not a parable, in the usual sense of the term. Chief rooms. This means the chief places at table; not rooms in our ordinary acceptation of the word. In the East, persons reclined on sofas or couches placed at the tables in the form of three sides of a hollow square (St. John xiii. 23); the chief seat being the one that was at the centre of the side of the middle or cross table. Among the Greeks, a person bearing the name of nomenclator was appointed to call every guest by name to a place corresponding to his rank. Among the Jews, the host, or provider of the feast, sometimes acted as nomenclator, and this custom seems to be alluded to in St. Luke xiv. 7, 8. The master of the entertainment had the privilege of placing any one, even one of low rank, in as high a place as he thought proper.

Ver. 10. Have worship. This cannot mean the worship which we give to God. The word "worship" signifies in this place honour; for, as Dean Trench remarks, there was a time when it "was employed in so general a sense that it was not profane to say that God worshipped (that is, honoured) man. So in the Marriage Service, "with my body I thee worship"-or honour. Foxe observes, "Yea this holy image (man) God worshippeth." Honour, or service, is all that is meant in these quotations.

Ver. 11. Exalteth. Raiseth himself. Abased. Made low.

Questions.-Ver. 1. Into whose house did Jesus go? What is meant by one of the chief Pharisees? Describe the Pharisees. ["Notes" on ver. 24, p. 23.] Did the Sadducees differ from the Pharisees in their belief? What did the Pharisees believe which the Sadducees did not believe? ["Notes" on ver. 24, p. 23.] On what day did Christ enter the house of this Pharisee? Were the Jews accustomed to furnish their tables better on the Sabbath than on other days of the week? ["Notes."] What did Christ prove by His partaking of the Pharisee's hospitality? ["Notes."] The Pharisees watched Christ: why did they do so? ["Notes."] Did Christ know their thoughts?

Ver. 2. Who is specially said to have been present on this occasion ?

Ver. 3. What question did Christ ask the Pharisees? We are told in this verse that Christ answered: had they asked Him any questions? You say they had not: what then was Christ answering? ["Notes."] Refer to other parts of Scripture which describe Christ as answering the inward questionings of men. ["Notes."] Was it pleasing to Christ's enemies to find He knew their secret thoughts respecting Him? How would they therefore feel towards Him? ["Notes."] Jesus asked whether it was lawful to heal on the Sabbath: what kind of work was forbidden to be done on that day according to the Law of Moses? ["Notes."] What was the punishment inflicted on those who did servile labour on the Sabbath? [Stoning.] Refer to a case of stoning on account of work done on the Sabbath. [Num. xv. 33, 36.] Prove from Scripture that the Jews were not to cook food on the Sabbath. [Exod. xxxv. 3.] What rule did they hold respecting the administering of remedies in cases of illness? ["Notes."]

Ver. 4. What did Christ do to the man who had the dropsy? What kind of a work do you call this? [Of mercy.] Was it a work of greater mercy than the pulling an ox or an ass out of a pit on the Sabbath? Show from Scripture that Christ on another occasion defended, a work of necessity done by Himself and His disciples. ["Notes."] What necessary thing did David once do on the Sabbath? [1 Sam. xxi. 6.] Where do you read that Christ defended that act as being lawful? [St. Matt. xii. 3, 4.] Then what kinds of work are lawful on the Sabbath? [Of mercy and necessity.*]

Ver. 7. What practice did Christ notice on the part of those

To these, persons often add "works of piety," such as priests perform on sacred days.

who were bidden? What is meant by the chief rooms? ["Notes."] Their choosing the chief places at table shows us something respecting their character: what is that? [That they were proud.] Which was the chief place at table in the East? ["Notes."] Among the Greeks, what title was given to the person who called the guests into places corresponding to their rank? ["Notes."] Who performed that duty among the Jews? ["Notes."]

Ver. 8. What advice did Jesus give to those who were bidden to feasts?

Ver. 10. What place did He advise them to take? Would they then have a chance of being exalted? Who would most likely invite them to a place of greater honour? And, in that case, from whom would they have worship? What is here meant by "worship"? ["Notes."] Quote passages either from the Prayer-Book or other books in which "worship" signifies honour. ["Notes."]

Ver. 11. We have now to notice the moral lesson to be derived from Christ's simile: what is that lesson with reference to those who exalt themselves? and what with reference to those who humble themselves? What does "exalt" mean? and what does "abased" mean? ["Notes."]

Application.-What lesson do you draw, respecting the use of the Sabbath to men, from the fact that Christ did a work of mercy on that day? [That it was not appointed to add to men's misery in this life, but to their happiness.] What sort of works add to men's happiness here and hereafter? [Works of piety, of necessity, and of mercy.] And these you may therefore do on what day? [The Sabbath.] Mention some works of piety; mention also some works of necessity; also of mercy.

Christ charged His hearers not to choose the highest seats; what sin are you thus taught to avoid? [Pride.] And what virtue are you taught to cultivate? [Humility.] Did Jesus Himself set you an example of humility? To what death did He submit Himself? How may you show your humility in your mode of acting towards others? [By stooping to the lowest offices for their good; by giving place to others, or preferring others to myself.] Is the natural heart of man disposed to be humble? What alone can keep it humble? [God's grace.] And how are you to obtain that?