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28. And she answered and said unto him, Yes, Lord: yet the dogs under the table eat of the children's crumbs.

She owned that she had no right to the children's bread; as all who are truly humbled think themselves unworthy of the least of God's mercies. But mark how she caught at the words of Christ, and turned them to her own advantage. When she was compared to a dog, she argued that as a dog she might eat of the crumbs which fell from her master's table, without loss to the master, or offence to the children. So a distressed sinner keeps his hold on Christ, and will not be beat off.

29. And he said unto her, For this saying go thy way, the devil is gone out of thy daughter.

Christ always gives the same answer to the same faith. But when did he hear any such saying from you? When did this one cry for help, "Lord have mercy upon me," lever come from you ? But till you do so cry, in true repentance, from a feeling of your disorder, see, in verses the 21st and 22nd, what you are, and will continue to be.

30. And when she was come to her house, she found the devil gone out, and her daughter laid upon the bed.

31. And again, departing from the coasts of Tyre and Sidon, he came unto the sea of Galilee, through the midst of the coasts of Decapolis.

32. And they bring unto him one that was deaf, and had an impediment in his speech; and they beseech him to put his hand upon him.

Did they beseech Christ to put his hand upon the man for bodily healing; and shall not we beseech him earnestly for the life of our souls to put his hands upon us? In other words, shall we not entreat him to bless us, and to put his Spirit within us?

The passage gives great encouragement to those Christians who intercede with God for others. Hence we learn that the effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.-Edit.

VOL. II.

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33. And he took him aside from the multitude, and put his fingers into his ears, and he spit, and touched his tongue;

The observations of the Evangelist, that Christ took the man aside, and touched his tongue, are not insignificant. And the expressions might have a happy effect upon us, if, upon hearing them, we would turn short upon ourselves, and begin from this day to say, when did he take me aside? when did I ever go aside with him in my heart, to have it searched, converted, and healed by him? If this is not done, all other things, all reading, hearing, praying, and doing, without this, is miserable self-deceit, and dead formality. If ever Christ does good to the soul, he must have it to himself, with a confession of its want of him, and earnest desire of his help. Not all persons, who pretend to be religious, choose to be in private with him, naked and open to his piercing eye, and in full sincerity of heart desirous of being subjects of his refining work.

34. And looking up to heaven, he sighed, and saith unto him, Ephphatha, that is, Be opened.

Think why Christ looked up to heaven, and why he sighed. He looked up there, to guide your eye thither for help: he sighed for the diseases and miseries of mankind, and for sin, the accursed cause of them. He sighed when he did a cure, for the unhappy necessity of it: he sighed, that so many would go without healing, because of their hardness and impenitence. Can you learn nothing from this? Can you see no danger in sin? Can you behold the sad effects of sin, in the tender concern and strong emotion of Jesus, and not feel concern for your own? O send a deep sigh after him! It will find a way to his compassionate heart. He wants to hear it from you, and to hear you asking for his Spirit to groan with you.

O Lord, thou art present in all thy power to speak the words "Be opened!" Say unto the blind eyes, to the deaf ears, and to the heart which is shut against thee, "Be opened;" that we may hear the sweet sound of gospel mercy, yea that we may hear and do all that thou com

mandest. And when the ear is thus opened, every tongue will be loosed to speak thy praise.

35. And straightway his ears were opened, and the string of his tongue was loosed, and he spake plain.

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Not only showing the completeness of the cure by his articulating perfectly: but he manifested the spirit of gratitude with which he was inspired.—(Edit.) It is wonderful to observe, how plainly, clearly, and affectingly many persons, who have a work of grace upon their hearts can speak of the things of God; though they are otherwise low in learning, or knowledge, and not at all superior to others in natural parts and capacity. On the other hand, if those who have the advantages of education, and the tongue of the learned, do not speak more plainly of Christ, it is because they do not know him.

36. And he charged them that they should tell no man: but the more he charged them, so much the more a great deal they published it:

The reasons of his charging them have been mentioned. It was, however, hard for them not to speak after what they had seen. We are sure Christ does not lay any such injunction upon us, nor expect that we should hold our tongues, when we know him.

37. And were beyond measure astonished, saying, He hath done all things well: he maketh both the deaf to hear, and the dumb to speak.

Christ hath indeed done all things well, to the great astonishment of men and angels. Though he was God, he became man, and took our nature upon him, that he might redeem it from the curse it was under. In the days of his flesh he went about doing good, and healing all that were oppressed of the devil. He hath given us holy instructions and left his perfect example to be a guide to us, in our walking with God. He bore the heavy load of our sins upon the cross, and died an accursed death, to ransom us from the pit of hell. He is interceding for us in heaven,

and he is always ready to begin, carry on, and complete the work of our salvation, by the grace and power of his Spirit. But what can it profit you, to hear and know all this, if the Saviour does nothing for you? And what is the reason that he does not, but because you do not come to him, you are not in earnest with him; you do not desire him; you do not desire him to do great things for you? It is truly our own fault, if we do not all say this of Jesus Christ, from our own experience.

SECTION XXVI.

Chap. viii. ver. 1-9.

CHRIST MIRACULOUSLY FEEDS FOUR THOUSAND

PERSONS.

1. In those days the multitude being very great, and having nothing to eat, Jesus called his disciples unto him, and saith unto them,

We may here observe that we have no spiritual food except what Christ gives us in his word, and by his Spirit. And there is no nourishment in anything but what he gives, and blesses to us; and we must receive and feed upon it for the nourishment of our souls. If our wills are not for it, it is as vain to expect to feed our souls with it, as to set bread upon a stone to feed it. We have God's Word, yea, Christ offered to us to feed upon. Where is our hunger for this food?

2. I have compassion on the multitude,

His compassionate heart is still the same, and it is towards you; see it opened for your benefit in these words, Have pity on yourselves.

2. Because they have now been with me three days, and have nothing to eat :

Three days are to be understood according to the Jewish mode of computation. Nothing to eat, may have reference to the circumstance that they had not any fixed meals, but were sustained by that which they casually took.-Edit.

In regard to spiritual food, no man ever was with Jesus three days, or three hours, in truth and sincerity, without a blessing. But alas! with regard to many of us, how many days and years have we been without eating? This has happened, not because we had no spiritual food to eat, but because we would not receive what was given us.

3. And if I send them away fasting to their own houses, they will faint by the way: for divers of them came from far.

Christ pitied them, for he saw they would faint. When we fast from Christ's meat, we starve our souls, and leave them to perish.

4. And his disciples answered him, From whence can a man satisfy these men with bread here in the wilderness?

How lately had they seen his power in the very same case? and still they return to their doubting and questioning. You may wonder at this; but see if there is not the same root of unbelief in yourselves. A poor soul, struck with its own sinfulness, is too apt to say, Can Christ do this? Has he comfort for me? A hardened soul feels no want, and slights Christ's power.

5. And he asked them, How many loaves have ye? And they said, Seven.

Christ does not say a word to upbraid them with their slowness and unbelief. How long does he bear with us! But remember that his patience will have an end.

6. And he commanded the people to sit down on the ground: and he took the seven loaves, and gave thanks, and brake, and gave to his disciples to set before them; and they did set them before the people.

Christ could have fed them without these loaves, but would not. So he is pleased to bless the reading of the

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