RSV ~ Matthew 12 Notes
Mt 12:2 | ISB Notes
not lawful ⌠on the sabbath: The Pharisees charge the disciples with violating Ex 34:21, which forbids harvesting on the Sabbath. Although Deut 23:25 differentiates between plucking grain and harvesting it, the Pharisees forbade even plucking grain by a rigid extension of the Exodus prohibition.
⢠Allegorically (St. Hilary, In Matt. 12, 2): Christâs passing through the field signifies his passing into the world through the Incarnation. The standing grain is the harvest of souls ready to believe in the gospel and be gathered into the Church by the hungry disciples.
Mt 12:3 | ISB Notes
have you not read: An insult to the intellectual pride of the Pharisees. Jesus uses the question to humble learned leaders who lack childlike faith (12:5; 19:4; 21:16, 42; 22:31).
⢠Jesus draws on the parallels between 1 Sam 21:1-6 and his own situation. As Davidâs companions were hungry (12:1), so were the disciples; as David was heir to the united kingdom of Israel, so Jesus is the son of David. He thus implies that if his disciples are in sin, then David himself would stand guiltyâa conclusion nowhere suggested in the OT. This is the first premise of Jesusâ response to the Pharisees. See note on Mt 12:7.
Mt 12:5 | ISB Notes
profane the sabbath: Levitical priests worked every sabbath, replacing the bread of Presence in the Temple (Lev 24:5-9) and offering sacrifice (Num 28:9-10). Nevertheless, they remained guiltless (CCC 582, 2173).
Mt 12:6 | ISB Notes
greater than the temple: The Jerusalem Temple was spectacular because it housed the very presence of God among his people.
⢠Godâs presence in Jesus, as the divine Son, exceeds that in the Temple (1:23). The earthly sanctuary thus prefigured Godâs more intimate presence in the world through Christ. The NT elsewhere compares the humanity of Jesus Christ to the wilderness Tabernacle (Jn 1:14) and the Temple (Jn 2:1921) (CCC 590).
See chart: Jesus and the Old Testament.
Mt 12:7 | ISB Notes
I desire mercy: Quoted from Hos 6:6. Earlier Jesus challenged the Pharisees to study and learn the meaning of this oracle (9:13), and Hoseaâs words here complete Jesusâ apologetic against the Pharisees.
His logic proceeds: (1) Mercy is more important than Temple regulations (12:3-4); (2) the Temple laws themselves take precedence over the Sabbath (12:5); (3) therefore, mercy is more important than the Sabbath (CCC 2100).
Mt 12:9-14 | ISB Notes
Jesus asserts his Lordship over the Sabbath (12:8). Since the Sabbath was meant for manâs good, doing good works on the Sabbath cannot be construed as unlawful. If the Pharisees are willing to save one of their livestock, they should be more willing to see a crippled man relieved of his burden on the same day. In short, the Sabbath forbids servile works, not works of mercy.
Mt 12:14 | ISB Notes
took counsel: The Phariseesâ conspiracy marks their complete rejection of Jesus. See note on Mt 27:1.
Mt 12:18-21 | ISB Notes
A reference to Is 42:1-4. The Father evokes this same passage at Jesusâ Baptism (3:17). Note that servant (Gk. pais) can be translated âsonâ.
⢠Matthew cites Isaiah for three reasons. (1) It summarizes his portrait of Christ: Jesus is the Fatherâs beloved Son (3:17; 4:3; 11:25-27) and the Servant of the Lord (8:17; 11:5), anointed by the Spirit (3:16), who brings Godâs grace to the Gentiles (8:5-13). (2) The citation is fulfilled when Jesus withdraws from his enemies and ministers to the lowly (12:20)âhe has no regard for public acclaim (12:16, 19). (3) It points forward to link Jesusâ exorcisms with the power of the Spirit (12:28) (CCC 713).
Mt 12:23 | ISB Notes
the Son of David?: The question reflects the Jewish tradition that King Solomon, the son of David, was empowered by God to exorcize demons (cf. Wis 7:20). Similar abilities were expected of the coming Davidic Messiah.
Mt 12:24 | ISB Notes
only by Beelzebul: The Phariseesâ spiritual blindness led them to blasphemyâi.e., they thought Jesus was an agent of Satanâs kingdom (CCC 574). See note on Mt 10:25.
Mt 12:25-26 | ISB Notes
Jesus uses the images of a kingdom, city, and house as cryptic allusions to the city and Temple of Jerusalem. By Jesusâ day, Jerusalem had reached a point of spiritual crisis. Long known as the Holy City, it was now the center of diabolical resistance to Jesus, with its leadership squarely opposed to the kingdom of heaven. Even the Temple was by then âforsaken and desolateâ (23:38). The Phariseesâ conspiracy (12:14) thus exposes them as unwitting collaborators and representatives of Satanâs kingdom. With Jesusâ Crucifixion, the power of Satan is finally destroyedâa fact later evidenced by the plundering of his city (Jerusalem) and house (Temple) in A.D. 70 (12:29) (CCC 550). See notes on and 24:1-25:46.
Mt 12:31 | ISB Notes
blasphemy against the Spirit: i.e., the sin of attributing to Satan the work of God. It is a mature spiritual hardness that directs sinners away from Godâs mercy and ends in final impenitence. One who blasphemes the Spirit cannot receive forgiveness when he refuses to repent and seek forgiveness. It is this sin that the Pharisees commit in 12:24 (CCC 1864). See note on Mk 3:29.
Mt 12:36 | ISB Notes
every careless word: Spoken insults call down Godâs judgment (5:21-26). The NT frequently notes that gossip, slandering, and lies are serious sins, inconsistent with holiness and purity of speech (2 Cor 12:20; Eph 4:25-32; Jas 3:1-12).
Mt 12:41 | ISB Notes
greater than Jonah: Jesusâ teaching (16:4) and experiences (8:23-27) recall the ministry of the prophet Jonah.
⢠Jonah prefigures Jesus in two ways: (1) His three days in the whale foreshadow Jesusâ Resurrection on the third day (12:40; 16:21); (2) he prefigures Jesus as a prophet to the Gentiles. As Jonah preached
to Nineveh in Assyria (Jon 3:2), so Jesus ministers to Gentiles (8:5-13; 15:21-28) and commissions the international spread of the gospel (28:19; Lk 24:4547). See chart: Jesus and the Old Testament.
Mt 12:42 | ISB Notes
greater than Solomon: The connections between Jesus and King Solomon are elsewhere more implicit (2:11; 12:23; 16:18).
⢠Solomon was the quintessential wise man and Temple builder of the OT (1 Kings 4:29-34; 5-8). As the son of David and heir to his kingdom, Solomon reigned over all Israel and extended his dominion over other nations (1 Kings 4:20-21). He thus prefigured Christ as the son of David (1:1), the e
mbodiment of wisdom (11:19), the new Temple builder (16:18), and the divine ruler of both the 12 tribes of Israel (19:28) and the nations of the world (28:19). See chart: Jesus and the Old Testament.
Mt 12:44-46 | ISB Notes
A parable about Jesusâ generation. It may be understood in two ways. (1) It is a warning to those who benefit from Jesusâ ministry without embracing his message and its demands. Since one must be not only emptied of evil but filled with divine goodness, the messianic works of Jesus should lead people to accept his messianic kingdom; otherwise they land themselves in a worse state than before (2 Pet 2:20-22). (2) The controversy over exorcisms in the preceding context (12:22-29) sets the stage for Jesus to establish the superiority of his New Covenant ministry over the Old as administered by the Pharisees. Although the Pharisees expel evil spirits (âyour sonsâ [12:27]), they leave a vacuum that exposes individuals to more severe counterattacks from Satan. Jesus also drives out demons, but, unlike the Pharisees, he fills believers with the greater power of his kingdom through the Spirit (12:28). Jesusâ contemporaries must prefer these blessings of his kingdom ministry to the real but limited benefits of the Phariseesâ ministry; otherwise they are left vulnerable to spiritual catastrophes worse than before.
Mt 12:45 | ISB Notes
this evil generation: Many in Jesusâ day refused their inheritance, i.e., Godâs heavenly kingdom.
⢠The expression recalls Deut 1:35 and description of Israel in th
e wilderness. They saw many signs during the Exodus but refused to trust God. God thus swore their âevil generationâ would perish in the desert (Num 14:21-23). Jesus sees a parallel situation before him: granting the Pharisees a âsignâ (12:38) is useless; they have no intention of trusting him but want only to âdestroy himâ (12:14).
Mt 12:46 | ISB Notes
his brethren: The NT often mentions Jesusâ brethren (13:55; Mk 3:31; 6:3; Lk 8:19; Jn 2:12; 7:3; Acts 1:14; Gal 1:19). The Church maintains, however, that Jesusâ Mother, Mary, remained a virgin throughout her life. These so-called brethren of Jesus are thus his relatives but not children of Mary. Four observations support the Churchâs tradition: (1) These brethren are never called the children of Mary, although Jesus himself is (Jn 2:1; 19:25; Acts 1:14). (2) Two names mentioned, James and Joseph, are sons of a different âMaryâ in Mt 27:56 (Mk 15:40). (3) It is unlikely that Jesus would entrust his Mother to the Apostle John at his Crucifixion if she had other natural sons to care for her (Jn 19:26-27). (4) The word âbrethrenâ (Gk. adelphoi) has a broader meaning than blood brothers. Since ancient Hebrew had no word for âcousinâ, it was customary to use âbrethrenâ in the Bible for relationships other than blood brothers. In the Greek OT, a âbrotherâ can be a nearly related cousin (1 Chron 23:21-22), a more remote kinsman (Deut 23:7; 2 Kings 10:13-14), an uncle or a nephew (Gen 13:8), or the relation between men bound by covenant (2 Sam 1:26; cf. 1 Sam 18:3). Continuing this OT tradition, the NT often uses âbrotherâ or âbrethrenâ in this wider sense. Paul uses it as a synonym for his Israelite kinsmen in Rom 9:3. It also denotes biologically unrelated Christians in the New Covenant family of God (Rom 8:29; 12:1; Col 1:2; Heb 2:11; Jas 1:2; CCC 500).
Mt 12:50 | ISB Notes
will of my Father: Obedience to God the Father creates relationships greater than natural family bonds. Although Jesus had no biological siblings, his spiritual brothers and
sisters are the adopted children of God (Rom 8:29; 1 Jn 3:1). They are empowered to obey the Father as he did (cf. Jn 8:29; 1 Jn 3:710). See note on Mt 12:46. mother: Far from undermining the role of Mary, Jesus reveals the true greatness of her divine maternity. After all, she was not merely his natural mother through generation, but she became the Mother of God precisely by embracing the Fatherâs will (Lk 1:38, 43). Her relationship to Jesusâphysical and spiritualâis thus magnified by Jesusâ statement (CCC 495).