St Matthew Chapter XII : Verses 9-13
Contents
- Matt. xii. 9-13 Douay-Rheims text & Latin text (Vulgate).
- Notes on the text
- Additional notes. The Sabbath.
Matt. xii. 9-13
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| Stretch forth thy hand. J-J Tissot. Brooklyn Museum. |
Et cum inde transisset, venit in synagogam eorum.
10 And behold there was a man who had a withered hand, and they asked him, saying: Is it lawful to heal on the sabbath days? that they might accuse him.
Et ecce homo manum habens aridam, et interrogabant eum, dicentes : Si licet sabbatis curare? ut accusarent eum.
11 But he said to them: What man shall there be among you, that hath one sheep: and if the same fall into a pit on the sabbath day, will he not take hold on it and lift it up?
Ipse autem dixit illis : Quis erit ex vobis homo, qui habeat ovem unam, et si ceciderit haec sabbatis in foveam, nonne tenebit et levabit eam?
12 How much better is a man than a sheep? Therefore it is lawful to do a good deed on the sabbath days.
Quanto magis melior est homo ove? itaque licet sabbatis benefacere.
13 Then he saith to the man: Stretch forth thy hand; and he stretched it forth, and it was restored to health even as the other.
Tunc ait homini : Extende manum tuam. Et extendit, et restituta est sanitati sicut altera.
Notes
N.B. — All the Synoptists place this miracle after the incident of the disciples plucking the corn.
9. when he had 'passed from thence. From the place where the last incident occurred. This miracle was worked on another Sabbath, not on the same day that the disciples plucked the ears of corn.
into their synagogues. There He taught the people (St Luke).
10. a withered hand. The right hand (St Luke) was dried up. Such a disease was beyond medical skill.
they asked him, — i.e. the Scribes and Pharisees. Cf. And the scribes and Pharisees watched if he would heal on the sabbath : that they might find an accusation against him (St Luke vi. 7).
Verses 10 and 12. St Matthew alone gives the three details following : —
(a) The Pharisees ask him, saying, Is it lawful to heal on the sahbath days ? that they might accuse him.
(b) Jesus justifies the miracle He is about to work by referring to a sheep that falls into a pit on the Sabbath and is lifted out,
(c) He asserts the general principle : — it is lawful to do a good deed on the Sabbath-day.
Is it lawful, etc.? His enemies wished to have a formal reply to their question, but here, as on other occasions, Jesus answers by a counter-question (e.g. the tribute to Caesar).
11. What man shall there be, etc. ? This illustration is peculiar to the first gospel in this context, but in St Luke xiv. 5 we find a similar one. Jesus appeals to their interests ; to their manner of acting when personal property was at stake,
fall into a pit. If the Pharisees, with labour and effort, would release a sheep from a pit (or well), how much more should they, if possible, deliver a suffering fellow-creature from a painful disease ; especially when, as in this case, the healing of the afflicted man involved no menial work.
Palestine abounds in unprotected cisterns, wells, and pits, for in a country where water was scarce, such means of collecting it were necessary.
will he not take hold, etc. ? “ The words appeal to the common action and natural impulse of men, but the casuistry of the Pharisees had, as a matter of fact, given a different answer. Food might be let down to the ox or ass, but no effort to pull him out was to be made till the Sabbath rest was over” (Ellicott, Comm, on St. Luke, p. 310).
12. How much better is a man than a sheep ? Human life is always above animal life. The same truth is taught in x. 31.
Therefore it is lawful. Jesus answers their question by giving a broad line of conduct, applicable to other questions than those of healing or saving life — good deeds honour the Sabbath, and are lawful.
Note. — Not to deliver a person from suffering, when we can, is equivalent to inflicting the suffering. Sins of omission may be as grievous as sins of commission. There is doubtless an allusion to their evil intentions. While they blame Jesus for curing a sick man on the Sabbath, they have no scruple about compassing the death of the innocent.
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| OCR not available. Text reproduced from source document. |
To have answered that it was right to heal on the Sabbath would have justified our Lord’s merciful deed. To have denied the right would have contradicted their own traditions, which allowed medical aid to be given on the Sabbath when life was at stake (periculum vitæ pellit sabbatum), but. they only admitted this in the case of a Jew.
Stretch forth thy hand. That all might see the withered hand and bear witness to the miracle.
it was restored to health. Jesus cured the man without any exterior signs or words, and thus gave His accusers no ground for bringing a legal accusation against Him, since the miracle was performed by a volition which could not desecrate the Sabbath
Additional Notes
The Sabbath.
12. Therefore it is lawful to do a good deed on the sabbath-days. The teaching of Jesus, “the Lord of the Sabbath,” is clearly laid down, and these laws are embodied in the commandments of the Church. The law of necessity justifies a breach of the letter of the Law, hence necessary servile works may be performed on the Sabbath. Again, since Jesus prefers mercy to sacrifice, it is allowed to do good on the Sabbath. He Himself, on seven different occasions performed miracles on the Sabbath-day. The observance of the Sabbath, or seventh day of rest, was commanded by God when “he rested on the seventh day from all the work which he had done” (Gen. ii. 2). After the captivity in Egypt, it was again commanded to be observed as a memorial of the deliverance of the Israelites : — “ Remember that thou also didst serve in Egypt, and the Lord thy God brought thee out from thence with a strong hand and a stretched-out arm. Therefore hath he commanded thee that thou shouldst observe the sabbath-day.”
It was also considered a perpetual sign of ‘ ‘ an everlasting covenant ” xxxi. 16,17). Stoning to death was the penalty of breaking the Sabbath, but this was no longer in the power of the Sanhedrin to inflict, since the Jews were tributary to the Romans. All Christians keep the first day of the week holy instead of the seventh, calling it ‘‘ the Lord’s day” (Apoc. i. 10). This change was effected by the apostles themselves, in memory —
(1) of our Lord’s Resurrection.
(2) of the descent of the Holy Ghost at Pentecost.
(3) to shew that since the Jews were no longer the chosen people of God, the Sabbath, as the sign of a covenant, was no longer necessary.
Notice that Catholics and non-Catholics alike keep the first day of the week holy in virtue of the apostolic tradition, hence the Scriptures are not the only rule of faith. Though the day is changed, the law of keeping holy one day in seven holds good.
Totus tuus ego sum
Et omnia mea tua sunt;
Tecum semper tutus sum:
Ad Jesum per Mariam.
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