The Sermon on the Mount (conclusion) : Hearers and the Doers of the Word contrasted.

St Matthew Chapter VII : Verses 24-29

Contents

• Matt. vii. 24-29 (Douay-Rheims text) & Latin text (Vulgate). Hearers and the Doers of the Word contrasted.
• Notes on text
• Additional Notes

Matt. vii. 24-29

By author's daughter, KB, aged 5. (1984-5)

24 Every one therefore that heareth these my words, and doth them, shall be likened to a wise man that built his house upon a rock,

Omnis ergo qui audit verba mea hæc, et facit ea, assimilabitur viro sapienti, qui ædificavit domum suam supra petram,

25 And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and they beat upon that house, and it fell not, for it was founded on a rock.

et descendit pluvia, et venerunt flumina, et flaverunt venti, et irruerunt in domum illam, et non cecidit : fundata enim erat super petram.

26 And every one that heareth these my words, and doth them not, shall be like a foolish man that built his house upon the sand,

Et omnis qui audit verba mea hæc, et non facit ea, similis erit viro stulto, qui aedificavit domum suam super arenam :

27 And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and they beat upon that house, and it fell, and great was the fall thereof.

et descendit pluvia, et venerunt flumina, et flaverunt venti, et irruerunt in domum illam, et cecidit, et fuit ruina illius magna.

28 And it came to pass when Jesus had fully ended these words, the people were in admiration at his doctrine.

Et factum est : cum consummasset Jesus verba hæc, admirabantur turbae super doctrina ejus.

29 For he was teaching them as one having power, and not as the scribes and Pharisees.

Erat enim docens eos sicut potestatem habens, et non sicut scribæ eorum, et pharisæi.

Notes

    24. Every one therefore, etc. In this verse our Lord introduces the parable which closes the Sermon on the Mount, and it co-ordinates the different parts of Christ’s long discourse. The Christian must not only hear, but do what our Lord teaches.

    upon a rock. St Luke adds, he digged deep. In Palestine, it is sometimes necessary to dig even as deep as thirty feet, before reaching the rock.

    25. And the rain fell. Likewise the floods came. The mark by which, in Eastern countries, a good house is distinguished from a bad one, is not the number of years it will last, but the strength of the rains and floods it will withstand.

    “ The Talmud mentions a prayer offered up by the high-priest on the day of atonement for the inhabitants of the valley of Sharon, that their houses might not become their graves, in allusion to the danger to which they were exposed from mountain torrents. Modern travellers, too, tell us of torrents suddenly formed by the mountain rains, and sweeping away all before them, in their descent through what, a few minutes before, had been a dry channel or a bed of sand, on which men are naturally inclined to encamp. Probably the immediate surroundings of the place where Jesus had pronounced His sermon suggested this picture ” (Maas’ Life of Christ, p. 144).

    they beat upon that house. Note that both builders chose a site near a stream. Water is very scarce at certain seasons in some parts of Palestine. The vehemence of the stream presupposes the wind, which St Matthew alone mentions.

    it fell not. St Luke is more graphic here : — the stream could not shake it.

    26. upon the sand. “ On the shelving lands which surround the lake of Genesareth there are some hills on which the rock is covered with only a thin layer of earth (γῆ, Luke) or sand (ἄμμος, Matthew). A prudent man digs through this movable soil, digs deep down (ἔσκαψε καὶ ἐβάθυνε) even into the rock, upon and into which ἐπὶ, with the accusative) he lays the foundation. St Luke only mentions one cause of destruction, the waterspout that breaks on the summit of the mountain and creates the torrents which carry away the layer of earth and sand, and with it the building that is not founded on the rock” (Godet, St Luke, vol. i. p. 333). 

    27. it fell. This fall, that was great, typifies here the eternal condemnation of the sinner.

    Note. — The different elements mentioned have been interpreted as follows ; —

    1. The rains from above represent the allurements of the world, the love of wealth, and the pride of life.

    2. The floods from the bowels of the earth represent the temptations of the flesh.

    3. The winds, blowing invisibly from all sides, represent the temptations of the devil, “ the prince of the powers of the air.”

    In this last similitude our Lord reverts to His teaching at the opening of the sermon, and warns His hearers to be prepared to endure trials and persecution.

    28. the people were in admiration. Jesus won the admiration of the people by His doctrine, which was not based on human traditions, and by His eloquence. Cf. Never did man speak like this man (St John vii. 46).

    29. not as their scribes. Our Lord’s teaching differed in that —

    1. Jesus practised what He taught. Jesus began to do and to teach (Acts i. 1).

    2. He taught authoritatively, as the Supreme Lawgiver.

    3. He confirmed His teaching by miracle.

    4. He sought the glory of God, not His own.

    5. He opened the intelligence of those whom He taught. Cf. And they said one to the other : Was not our heart burning within us, whilst he spoke in the way, and opened to us the scriptures ? (St Luke xxiv. 32).

    6. His doctrine developed and perfected the law, whereas the scribes narrowed and corrupted it by their traditions.

Additional Notes.

HARMONIZED ACCOUNT OF THE PARABLE OF THE FOUNDATION OF A HOUSE

From the First and Third Gospels.(St Matt. vii. 24-27. St Luke vi. 47-49.)

    “Therefore, whosoever cometh to me, and heareth my words, and doeth them, I will shew you to whom he is like. He is like to a wise man building a house, who digged deep and laid the foundation upon a rock. And the rain fell and the floods came, and the winds blew, and the stream beat vehemently upon the house and it could not shake it, and it fell not ; for it was founded upon a rock. And every one that heareth these my words, and doeth them not, shall be like the foolish man, who built his house upon the sand, without a foundation. And the rains fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and they beat upon the house, and immediately it fell ; and the ruin of that house was great.”

N.B.— In the harmonized account the details peculiar to St Matthew are in thicker type.

Totus tuus ego sum

Et omnia mea tua sunt;

Tecum semper tutus sum:

Ad Jesum per Mariam.