He added his commandments and precepts.16 If thou wilt keep the commandments and perform acceptable fidelity for ever, they shall preserve thee.17 He hath set water and fire before thee: stretch forth thy hand to which thou wilt.18 Before man is life and death, good and evil, that which he shall choose shall be given him:19 For the wisdom of God is great, and he is strong in power, seeing all men without ceasing.20 The eyes of the Lord are towards them that fear him, and he knoweth all the work of man.
And fire. Or, good and evil, as the Vulgate explains it, (ver. 18.) though the Greek be silent. (Haydock) — The law written on the heart, as well as on the tables of stone, shews man his duty;; and he has free-will to comply with it, Deuteronomy xxx. 15., and Jeremias xxi. 8. (Calmet) — He may enjoy every advantage of life, denoted by these two elements. (Lyr.[Lyranus?]) An quod in his vitæ causa est, hæc perdidit exul His nova fit conjux; hæc duo magna putant. (Ovid, Fast. 4.)
ALEPH. Blessed are the undefiled in the way, who walk in the law of the Lord.2 Blessed are they who search his testimonies: that seek him with their whole heart.4 Thou hast commanded thy commandments to be kept most diligently.5 O! that my ways may be directed to keep thy justifications.17 GIMEL. Give bountifully to thy servant, enliven me: and I shall keep thy words.18 Open thou my eyes: and I will consider the wondrous things of thy law.33 HE. Set before me for a law the way of thy justifications, O Lord: and I will always seek after it.34 Give me understanding, and I will search thy law; and I will keep it with my whole heart.
To sum up, David in the Psalms speaks about obedience: "How shall a young person keep his path straight?" The answer comes immediately: "By keeping your Word with his whole heart." Jeremiah says, "These are the Lord's words: do not follow the paths of the Gentiles."
Howbeit we speak wisdom among the perfect: yet not the wisdom of this world, neither of the princes of this world that come to nought;†7 But we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery, a wisdom which is hidden, which God ordained before the world, unto our glory:8 Which none of the princes of this world knew; for if they had known it, they would never have crucified the Lord of glory.9 But, as it is written: That eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither hath it entered into the heart of man, what things God hath prepared for them that love him.†10 But to us God hath revealed them, by this Spirit. For the Spirit searcheth all things, yea, the deep things of God.
These men are not the planting of the Father, but are an accursed brood. And says the Lord, "Let every plant which my heavenly Father has not planted be rooted up." For if they had been branches of the Father, they would not have been "enemies of the cross of Christ," but rather of those who "killed the Lord of glory." But now, by denying the cross, and being ashamed of the passion, they cover the transgression of the Jews, those fighters against God, those murderers of the Lord; for it were too little to style them merely murderers of the prophets. But Christ invites you to [share in] His immortality, by His passion and resurrection, inasmuch as ye are His members.
Seeing these things, thou wast in utter perplexity. And thou wast ignorant that it was a virgin that should bring forth; but the angels' song of praise struck thee with astonishment, as well as the adoration of the Magi, and the appearance of the star. Thou didst revert to thy state of [wilful] ignorance, because all the circumstances seemed to thee trifling; for thou didst deem the swaddling-bands, the circumcision, and the nourishment by means of milk contemptible: these things appeared to thee unworthy of God. Again, thou didst behold a man who remained forty days and nights without tasting human food, along with ministering angels at whose presence thou didst shudder, when first of all thou hadst seen Him baptized as a common man, and knewest not the reason thereof. But after His [lengthened] fast thou didst again assume thy wonted audacity, and didst tempt Him when hungry, as if He had been an ordinary man, not knowing who He was. For thou saidst, "If thou be the Son of God, command that these stones be made bread." Now, this expression, "If thou be the Son," is an indication of ignorance. For if thou hadst possessed real knowledge, thou wouldst have understood that the Creator can with equal ease both create what does not exist, and change that which already has a being. And thou temptedst by means of hunger Him who nourisheth all that require food. And thou temptedst the very "Lord of glory," forgetting in thy malevolence that "man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God." For if thou hadst known that He was the Son of God, thou wouldst also have understood that He who had kept his body from feeling any want for forty days and as many nights, could have also done the same for ever. Why, then, does He suffer hunger? In order to prove that He had assumed a body subject to the same feelings as those of ordinary men. By the first fact He showed that He was God, and by the second that He was also man.
For if the Lord were a mere man, possessed of a soul and body only, why dost thou mutilate and explain away His being born with the common nature of humanity? Why dost thou call the passion a mere appearance, as if it were any strange thing happening to a [mere] man? And why dost thou reckon the death of a mortal to be simply an imaginary death? But if, [on the other hand, ] He is both God and man, then why dost thou call it unlawful to style Him "the Lord of glory," who is by nature unchangeable? Why dost thou say that it is unlawful to declare of the Lawgiver who possesses a human soul, "The Word was made flesh," and was a perfect man, and not merely one dwelling in a man? But how came this magician into existence, who of old formed all nature that can be apprehended either by the senses or intellect, according to the will of the Father; and, when He became incarnate, healed every kind of disease and infirmity?
Do not think that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets. I am not come to destroy, but to fulfill.†18 For amen I say unto you, till heaven and earth pass, one jot, or one tittle shall not pass of the law, till all be fulfilled.†19 He therefore that shall break one of these least commandments, and shall so teach men, shall be called the least in the kingdom of heaven. But he that shall do and teach, he shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven.20 For I tell you, that unless your justice abound more than that of the scribes and Pharisees, you shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven.21 You have heard that it was said to them of old: Thou shalt not kill. And whosoever shall kill shall be in danger of the judgment.22 But I say to you, that whosoever is angry with his brother, shall be in danger of the judgment. And whosoever shall say to his brother, Raca, shall be in danger of the council. And whosoever shall say, Thou Fool, shall be in danger of hell fire.†23 If therefore thou offer thy gift at the altar, and there thou remember that thy brother hath any thing against thee;24 Leave there thy offering before the altar, and go first to be reconciled to thy brother: and then coming thou shalt offer thy gift.25 Be at agreement with thy adversary betimes, whilst thou art in the way with him: lest perhaps the adversary deliver thee to the judge, and the judge deliver thee to the officer, and thou be cast into prison.†26 Amen I say to thee, thou shalt not go out from thence till thou repay the last farthing.27 You have heard that it was said to them of old: Thou shalt not commit adultery.28 But I say to you, that whosoever shall look on a woman to lust after her, hath already committed adultery with her in his heart.29 And if thy right eye scandalize thee, pluck it out and cast it from thee. For it is expedient for thee that one of thy members should perish, rather than that thy whole body be cast into hell.†30 And if thy right hand scandalize thee, cut it off, and cast it from thee: for it is expedient for thee that one of thy members should perish, rather than that thy whole body be cast into hell.31 And it hath been said, whosoever shall put away his wife, let him give her a bill of divorce.32 But I say to you, that whosoever shall put away his wife, excepting for the cause of fornication, maketh her to commit adultery: and he that shall marry her that is put away, committeth adultery.†33 Again you have heard that it was said to them of old, Thou shalt not forswear thyself: but thou shalt perform thy oaths to the Lord.34 But I say to you not to swear at all, neither by heaven, for it is the throne of God:35 Nor by the earth, for it is his footstool: nor by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great king:36 Neither shalt thou swear by thy head, because thou canst not make one hair white or black.37 But let your speech be yea, yea: no, no: and that which is over and above these, is of evil.
Or, He calls the passion, and the cross, the least, which if one shall not confess openly, but be ashamed of them, he shall be least, that is, last, and as it were no man; but to him that confesses it He promises the great glory of a heavenly calling.
Beautiful entrance He here makes to a teaching beyond the works of the Law, declaring to the Apostles that they should have no admission to the kingdom of heaven without a righteousness beyond that of Pharisees.
Or, he who reproaches with emptiness one full of the Holy Spirit, will he arraigned in the assembly of the Saints, and by their sentence will be punished for an affront against that Holy Spirit Himself.
He bids us when peace with our fellow-men is restored, then to return to peace with God, passing from the love of men to the love of God; then go and offer thy gift.
The Lord suffers us at no time to be wanting in peaceableness of temper, and therefore bids us be reconciled to our adversary quickly, while on the road of life, lest we be cast into the season of death before peace be joined between us.
For because charity covereth a multitude of sins, we shall therefore pay the last farthing of punishment, unless by the expense of charity we redeem the fault of our sin.
Thus a more lofty step of innocence is appointed us, in that we are admonished to keep free, not only from sin ourselves, but from such as might touch as from without.
Otherwise; They who live in the simplicity of the faith have not need to swear, with them ever, what is is, what is not is not; by this their life and their conversation are ever preserved in truth.
About CSB. A personal translation of the New Testament, rendered directly from the public-domain Greek in a literary style — not a scholarly critical edition, and not for liturgical or doctrinal authority. It is one reader's work, offered for enjoyment; where it matters, weigh it against an established translation. (Placeholder text — final wording to come.)