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Text -- Matthew 21:43 (NET)

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Context
21:43 For this reason I tell you that the kingdom of God will be taken from you and given to a people who will produce its fruit.
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Names, People and Places, Dictionary Themes and Topics

Dictionary Themes and Topics: Unfaithfulness | TEMPLE, A2 | Stones | STEWARD | Reproof | Pharisees | OLIVES, MOUNT OF | MATTHEW, THE GOSPEL OF | Kingdom of God | Jesus, The Christ | JESUS CHRIST, 3 | Israel | GOD, 3 | Farmer | Ecclesiasticism | Church | more
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Word/Phrase Notes
Robertson , Wesley , JFB , Clarke , Calvin , TSK

Word/Phrase Notes
Barnes , Poole , Haydock , Gill

Verse Notes / Footnotes
NET Notes , Geneva Bible

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TSK Synopsis , Maclaren , MHCC , Matthew Henry , Barclay , Constable , College , McGarvey , Lapide

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Commentary -- Word/Phrase Notes (per phrase)

Robertson: Mat 21:43 - -- Shall be taken away from you ( arthēsetai aph' hūmōn ). Future passive indicative of airō . It was the death-knell of the Jewish nation with ...

Shall be taken away from you ( arthēsetai aph' hūmōn ).

Future passive indicative of airō . It was the death-knell of the Jewish nation with their hopes of political and religious world leadership.

Wesley: Mat 21:43 - -- Because ye reject this corner stone.

Because ye reject this corner stone.

Wesley: Mat 21:43 - -- That is, the Gospel.

That is, the Gospel.

JFB: Mat 21:43 - -- God's visible Kingdom, or Church, upon earth, which up to this time stood in the seed of Abraham.

God's visible Kingdom, or Church, upon earth, which up to this time stood in the seed of Abraham.

JFB: Mat 21:43 - -- That is, the great evangelical community of the faithful, which, after the extrusion of the Jewish nation, would consist chiefly of Gentiles, until "a...

That is, the great evangelical community of the faithful, which, after the extrusion of the Jewish nation, would consist chiefly of Gentiles, until "all Israel should be saved" (Rom 11:25-26). This vastly important statement is given by Matthew only.

Clarke: Mat 21:43 - -- Therefore say I - Thus showing them, that to them alone the parable belonged. The kingdom of God shall be taken from you - the Gospel shall be taken...

Therefore say I - Thus showing them, that to them alone the parable belonged. The kingdom of God shall be taken from you - the Gospel shall be taken from you, and given to the Gentiles, who will receive it, and bring forth fruit to the glory of God

Clarke: Mat 21:43 - -- Bringing forth the fruits - As in Mat 21:34 an allusion is made to paying the landlord in kind, so here the Gentiles are represented as paying God t...

Bringing forth the fruits - As in Mat 21:34 an allusion is made to paying the landlord in kind, so here the Gentiles are represented as paying God thus. The returns which He expects for his grace are the fruits of grace; nothing can ever be acceptable in the sight of God that does not spring from himself.

Calvin: Mat 21:43 - -- 43.Therefore I say to you Hitherto Christ directed his discourse to rulers and governors, but in presence of the people. Now, however, he addresses i...

43.Therefore I say to you Hitherto Christ directed his discourse to rulers and governors, but in presence of the people. Now, however, he addresses in the same manner the people themselves, and not without reason, for they had been the companions and assistants of the priests and scribes in hindering the grace of God. It was from the priests, no doubt, that the evil arose, but the people had already deserved, on account of their sins, to have such corrupt and degenerate pastors. Besides, the whole body was infected, as it were, by a similar malice to resist God. This is the reason why Christ denounces against all indiscriminately the dreadful vengeance of God; for as the priests were inflated with the desire of holding the highest power, so the rest of the people gloried on the ground of having been adopted. Christ now declares that God was not bound to them, and, therefore, that he will convey to another the honor of which they rendered themselves unworthy. And this, no doubt, was once spoken to them, but was written for the sake of all of us, that, if God choose us to be His people, we may not grow wanton through a vain and wicked confidence in the flesh, but may endeavor, on our part, to perform the duties which he enjoins on his children;

for if he spared not the natural branches, (Rom 11:21,)

what will he do with those which were engrafted? The Jews thought that the kingdom of God dwelt among them by hereditary right, and therefore they adhered obstinately to their vices. We have unexpectedly come into their room contrary to nature, and therefore much less is the kingdom of God bound to us, if it be not rooted in true godliness.

Now as our minds ought to be struck with terror by the threatening of Christ, that those who have profaned the kingdom of God will be deprived of it, so the perpetuity of that kingdom, which is here described, may afford comfort to all the godly. For by these words Christ assures us that, though the ungodly destroyed the worship of God among themselves, they would never cause the name of Christ to be abolished, or true religion to perish; for God, in whose hand are all the ends of the earth, will find elsewhere a dwelling and habitation for his kingdom. We ought also to learn from this passage, that the Gospel is not preached in order that it may lie barren and inoperative, but that it may yield fruit.

TSK: Mat 21:43 - -- The kingdom : Mat 21:41, Mat 8:11, Mat 8:12, Mat 12:28; Isa 28:2; Luk 17:20,Luk 17:21; Joh 3:3, Joh 3:5 a nation : Exo 19:6; Isa 26:2; 1Co 13:2; 1Pe 2...

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Commentary -- Word/Phrase Notes (per Verse)

Barnes: Mat 21:33-46 - -- The parable of the vineyard - This is also recorded in Mar 12:1-12; Luk 20:9-19. Mat 21:33 Hear another parable - See the notes at M...

The parable of the vineyard - This is also recorded in Mar 12:1-12; Luk 20:9-19.

Mat 21:33

Hear another parable - See the notes at Mat 13:3.

A certain householder - See the notes at Mat 20:1.

Planted a vineyard - A place for the cultivation of grapes. It is often used to represent the church of God. as a place cultivated and valuable. Judea was favorable to vines, and the figure is frequently used, therefore, in the sacred writers. See Mat 20:1. It is used here to represent the "Jewish people"- the people chosen of the Lord, cultivated with care, and signally favored; or perhaps more definitely, "the city of Jerusalem."

Hedged it round about - This means he enclosed it, either with a fence of wood or stone, or more probably with "thorns,"thick set and growing - a common way of enclosing fields in Judea, as it is in England,

And digged a wine-press in it - Mark says, "digged a place for the wine-fat."This should have been so rendered in Matthew. The original word does not mean the "press"in which the grapes were trodden, but the "vat or large cistern"into which the wine ran. This was commonly made by digging into the side of a hill. The "wine-press"was made of two receptacles. The upper one, in Persia at present, is about 8 feet square and 4 feet high. In this the grapes are thrown and "trodden"by men, and the juice runs into the large receptacle or cistern below. See the notes at Isa 63:2-3.

And built a tower - See also the notes at Isa 5:2. In Eastern countries at present, these towers are often 80 feet high and 30 feet square. They were for the keepers, who defended the vineyards from thieves and animals, especially from foxes, Son 1:6; Son 2:15. Professor Hackett (Illustrations of Scripture, pp. 171, 172) says of such towers:

They caught my attention first as I was approaching Bethlehem from the southeast. They appeared in almost every field within sight from that direction. They were circular in shape, 15 or 20 feet high, and, being built of stones, looked, at a distance, like a little forest of obelisks. I was perplexed for some time to decide what they were; my traveling companions were equally at fault. Suddenly, in a lucky moment, the words crossed my mind, ‘ A certain man planted a vineyard, and set a hedge about it, and built a tower, and let it out to husbandmen, and went into a far country,’ Mar 12:1. This recollection cleared up the mystery. There, before my eyes, stood the towers of which I had so often read and thought; such as stood there when David led forth his flocks to the neighboring pastures; such as furnished to the sacred writers and the Saviour himself so many illustrations for enforcing what they taught.

These towers are said to be sometimes square in form as well as round, and as high as 40 or 50 feet. Those which I examined had a small door near the ground, and a level space on the top, where a man could sit and command a view of the plantation. I afterward saw a great many of these structures near Hebron, where the vine still flourishes in its ancient home; for there, probably, was Eshcol, whence the Hebrew spies returned to Joshua with the clusters of grapes which they had gathered as evidence of the fertility of the land. Some of the towers here are so built as to serve as houses: and during the vintage, it is said that the inhabitants of Hebron take up their abode in them in such numbers as to leave the town almost deserted.

And let it out ... - This was not an uncommon thing. Vineyards were often planted to be let out for profit.

Into a far country - This means, in the original, only that he departed from them. It does not mean that he went out of the "land."Luke adds, "for a long time."That is, as appears, until the time of the fruit; perhaps for a year. This vineyard denotes, doubtless, the Jewish people, or Jerusalem. But these circumstances are not to be particularly explained. They serve to keep up the story. They denote in general that God had taken proper care of his vineyard - that is, of his people; but beyond that we cannot affirm that these circumstances of building the tower, etc., mean any particular thing, for he has not told us that they do, and where he has not explained them we have no right to attempt it.

Mat 21:34

And when the time of the fruit drew near ... - The time of gathering the fruit.

The vineyard was let out, probably, for a part of the fruit, and the owner sent to receive the part that was his.

Sent his servants - These, doubtless, represent the prophets sent to the Jewish people.

Mat 21:35

And beat one - The word translated here as "beat"properly means to flay or to take off the skin; hence to beat or to whip so that the skin in many places is taken off.

And killed another - Isaiah is said to have been put to death by sawing him asunder.

Many other of the prophets were also put to death. See Luk 13:34; Heb 11:37; 1Sa 22:18; 1Ki 19:10.

And stoned another - This was among the Jews a common mode of punishment, Deu 13:10; Deu 17:7; Jos 7:25. Especially was this the case in times of popular tumult, and of sudden indignation among the people, Act 7:58; Act 14:19; Joh 8:59; Joh 10:31. This does not I imply, of necessity, that those who were stoned "died,"but they might be only severely wounded. Mark says, "At him they cast stones and wounded him in the head, and sent him away,"etc.

There is a little variation in the circumstances as mentioned by Matthew, and by Mark and Luke, but the substance is the same. Mark and Luke are more particular, and state the order in which the servants were sent one after another. They all denote the dealing of the people of Israel toward the prophets. All these things had been done to them. See Heb 11:37; Jer 44:4-6; 2Ch 36:16; Neh 9:26; 2Ch 24:20-21.

Mat 21:37

Last of all ... - Mark adds that this was an only son, greatly beloved.

This beautifully and most tenderly exhibits the love of God in sending his only Son, Jesus Christ, into the world to die for people. Long had he sent the prophets, and they had been persecuted and slain. There was no use in sending any more prophets to the people. They had done all that they could do. God had one only-begotten and well-beloved Son, whom he might send, and whom the world "ought"to reverence even as they should the Father, Joh 5:23. God is often represented in the Bible as giving his Son, his only-begotten and wellbeloved Son, for a lost world, Joh 3:16-17; 1Jo 4:9, 1Jo 4:14; Rom 8:3, Rom 8:32; Gal 4:4.

Saying, They will reverence my son - To "reverence"means to honor, to esteem, to show deference to. It is that feeling which we have in the presence of one who is greatly our superior. It means to give to such a person, in our feelings and our deportment, the honor which is due to his rank and character.

Mat 21:38

But when the husbandmen ... - They determined to kill him, and as he was the only son, they supposed they could easily seize on the property It was rented to them; was in their possession; and they resolved to keep it.

This circumstance has probably no reference to any particular conduct of the Jews, but is thrown in to keep up the story and fill up the narrative. An heir is one who succeeds to an estate, commonly a son; an "inheritance"is what an heir receives.

Mat 21:39

And they caught him ... - This refers to the conduct of the Jews in putting the Saviour to death.

So they understood it, Mat 21:45. The Jews put him to death after they had persecuted and slain the prophets. This was done by giving him into the hands of the Romans and seeking his crucifixion, Mat 27:20-25; Act 2:23; Act 7:51-52.

And cast him out of the vineyard - The vineyard in this parable may represent Jerusalem. Jesus was crucified "out"of Jerusalem, on Mount Calvary, Luk 23:23. See the notes at Heb 13:12.

Mat 21:40

When the lord, therefore ... - Jesus then asked them a question about the proper way of dealing with those people.

The design of asking them this question was that they might condemn themselves, and admit the justice of the punishment that was soon to come upon them.

Mat 21:41

They say ... - They answered according as they knew people would act, and would act justly in doing it.

He would take away their privileges and confer them on others. This was the answer which Jesus wished. The case was so clear that they could not answer otherwise. He wished to show them the justice of taking away their national privileges, and punishing them in the destruction of their city and nation. Had he stated this at first they would not have heard him. He, however, by a parable, led them along to "state themselves"the very truth which he wished to communicate, and they had then nothing to answer. They did not, however, yet see the bearing of what they had admitted.

Mat 21:42, Mat 21:43

Jesus saith ... - Jesus, having led them to admit the justice of the great "principle"on which God was about to act toward them proceeds to apply it by a text of Scripture, declaring that this very thing which they admitted to be proper in the case of the "husbandmen"had been predicted respecting themselves.

This passage is found in Psa 118:22-23. It was first applicable to David, but no less to Jesus.

The stone - The figure is taken from building a house. The principal stone for size and beauty is that commonly laid as the cornerstone.

Which the builders rejected - On account of its want of beauty or size it was laid aside, or deemed unfit to be a cornerstone. This represents the Lord Jesus, proposed to the Jews as the foundation or cornerstone on which to build the church, but rejected by them - the builders - on account of his lack of comeliness or beauty; that is, of what they esteemed to be comely or desirable, Isa 53:2-3.

The same is become ... - Though rejected by them, yet God chose him, and made him the foundation of the church. Christ is often compared to a stone, a cornerstone, a tried, that is, a sure, firm foundation - all in allusion to the custom of building, Act 4:11; Rom 9:33; Eph 2:20; 1Pe 2:7.

Lord’ s doing - The appointment of Jesus of Nazareth to be the foundation of the church is proved by miracle and prophecy to be the work of God.

Marvellous in our eyes - Wonderful in the sight of his people. That he should select his only Son - that he should stoop so low, be despised, rejected, and put to death - that God should raise him up, and build a church on this foundation, embracing the Gentile as well as the Jew, and spreading through all the world, is a subject of wonder and praise to all the redeemed.

Mat 21:43

The kingdom of God ... - Jesus applies the parable to them - the Jews.

They had been the children of the kingdom, or under the reign of God; having his law and acknowledging him as King. They had been his chosen and special people, but he says that now this privilege would be taken away; that they would cease to be the special people of God, and that the blessing would be given to a nation who would bring forth the fruits thereof, or "be righteous"that is, to the Gentiles, Act 28:28.

Mat 21:44

Whosoever shall fall ... - There is a reference here, doubtless, to Isa 8:14-15. Having made an allusion to himself "as a stone,"or a rock Mat 21:42, he proceeds to state the consequences of coming in contact with it. He that falls upon it shall be broken; he that "runs against it"- a cornerstone, standing out from the other parts of the foundation shall be injured, or broken in his limbs or body. He that is offended with my being the foundation, or that opposes me, shall by the act injure himself, or make himself miserable "by so doing,"even were there nothing further. But there is something further.

On whomsoever it shall fall, it will grind him to powder - That is, in the original, will reduce him to dust, so that it may be scattered by the winds. There is an allusion here, doubtless, to the custom of stoning as a punishment among the Jews. A scaffold was erected twice the height of the man to be stoned. Standing on its edge, he was violently struck off by one of the witnesses: if he died by the blow and the fall, nothing further was done; if not, a heavy stone was thrown down on him, which at once killed him. So the Saviour speaks of the "falling"of the stone on his enemies. They who oppose him, who reject him, and who continue impenitent, shall be crushed by him in the day of judgment, and perish forever.

Mat 21:45, Mat 21:46

At last, they perceived that he spoke of them, and would have gratified their malice at once but they feared the people.

Remarks On Matthew 21

1. Jesus is omniscient, and sees and knows all things, Mat 21:2.

2. It is our duty to obey the Lord Jesus, and to do it at once, Mat 21:3. When He commands there should be no delay. What he orders is right, and we should not hesitate or deliberate about it.

3. Especially is this the case where He is to be honored, as he was on this occasion, Mat 21:3, Mat 21:8. If it was for "our"interest or honor only that we obeyed him, it would be of less consequence; but our obedience will honor Him, and we should seek that honor by any sacrifice or self-denial.

4. We should be willing to give up our property to honor the Lord Jesus, Mat 21:3. He has a right to it. If given to spread the gospel, it goes, as this did, to increase "the triumphs of our King."We should be willing to give our wealth that he might "gird on his sword,"and "ride prosperously among the heathen."Everyone who is saved among the pagan by sending the gospel to them will be for the honor of Jesus. They will go to swell his train when he shall enter triumphantly into his kingdom at the day of judgment.

5. It is our duty to honor him, Mat 21:7-9. He is King of Zion. He is Lord of all. He reigns, and shall always reign.

"Sinners! Whose love can ne’ er forget

The wormwood and the gall,

Go spread your trophies at his feet,

And crown him Lord of all.

"Ye chosen seed of Israel’ s race;

Ye ransomed from the fall;

Hail him who saves you by his grace,

And crown him Lord of all.

"Let every kindred, every tribe,

On this terrestrial ball,

To him all majesty ascribe,

And crown him Lord of all."

6. "Children"should also honor him and shout "hosanna"to him, Mat 21:15. The chief priests and scribes, in the time of our Saviour, were displeased that they did it; and many of the great, and many formal professors since, have been displeased that "children"should profess to love and honor Jesus. They have opposed Sunday schools, and opposed the praying of children, and opposed their singing to his praise, and opposed their giving their money to spread his gospel; but Jesus loves such praise and such service. The mouths of babes and sucklings should be taught to speak his name; and whatever the world may say, whatever the proud, the rich, or the formal may say, children should seek him early and give their first years to him. He loves their praises. Perhaps few of all the songs of thanksgiving are so pleasant to his ears as the "hosannas"of a Sunday school.

7. We have here a view of the glory of Jesus, Mat 21:9-11. Though humble yet he was King. Though most of his life unhonored, yet once he had the honors of his station rendered to him, and entered the city of his father David as a triumphant King of Zion. He will be yet "more"honored. He will come with all his saints, with the glory of his Father, and with the holy angels. There we shall be; and we should be prepared to join with the vast host in shouting hosanna to the returning King of Zion.

8. Yet, amid all these honors, he was meek and lowly, Mat 21:5. Others would have been proud and lifted up, but he was always meek; his heart was not proud. He is the only one of kings that could bear triumph and honors without being lifted up by it and made proud.

9. Yet amid all his triumphs he wept over Jerusalem (Luke). No king, no conqueror, ever before showed compassion like this. People weep when "they"are afflicted, or are poor and needy; but what prince has ever, in the moment of his triumph, wept over the miseries and dangers of his subjects? Not an instance can be found in all history where an earthly conqueror ever showed compassion like this. So Jesus has still compassion over blind, ruined, wretched man. Amid all the triumphs of the gospel, he does not forget those I who are yet in their sins, but stretches out his arms to welcome them to his embrace.

10. Prophecy will be certainly and exactly fulfilled (Luke). That respecting Jerusalem was literally accomplished; and in like manner will all that is predicted of "all"sinners assuredly come to pass. If Jerusalem had repented it would have been saved; so if sinners repent they will be saved. If not, like Jerusalem, in due time they will perish.

11. Jesus purified the temple, Mat 21:12. It was the house of God. So our hearts should be the dwelling-place of the Holy Spirit; so, also, they should be pure. All worldly cares, and traffic, and business, that would interfere with the dwelling of the Spirit there, and all wickedness, oppression, extortion, cheating, and pollution should be banished. God dwells not in such polluted temples; and unless we are "pure in heart,"he will not be with us, and we shall not see his face in peace. Compare the notes at 1Co 3:16-17.

12. Jesus only can purify our hearts. He does it by his blood and Spirit. Over all our sins he holds the same power as he did over the traffickers in the temple. At his command they will flee, and we shall be pure. If our hearts are ever purified, therefore, it will be by the power of Jesus. Nor should we wait in sin for him to do it. We should come to him, and beseech him to have mercy, and to save us from our pollutions.

13. Envy and hatred will take hold of very small matters, to show itself against the good and even the prudent, Mat 21:15. When the enemies of Jesus could find nothing else to blame, they chose to find fault with the shouting of children. So always in a revival of religion, or any great work of the Lord, it is some small matter that is seized upon something not exactly to the view of wicked objectors - that is made the occasion of reproach and opposition.

14. We must produce fruit in our lives as well as flowers, Mat 21:19. A profession of religion is like the flowers of spring. A revival is like fragrant blossoms. They are beautiful, and promise much fruit; but how many wither, and droop, and fall useless to the ground! How few of all the blossoms of the spring produce ripe and mellow fruit in autumn! So, alas! it is often with those who appear well in revivals of religion.

15. If we make a profession and do not produce fruit, Jesus will curse us, and we shall soon wither away, Mat 21:19-20. He will suffer none to enter into his kingdom on the ground of profession only. If we bear fruit and live lives of piety, we are Christians; if not, all our professions are like the blossoms of spring or the leaves of the tree. They will not save us from the withering frown of Jesus.

16. People will do almost anything right or wrong, and as often wrong as right - to court popularity, Mat 21:24. It is generally not asked by such people what is "right"or what is "true,"but what will secure popularity. If they have that, they are satisfied.

17. People often tell a direct falsehood rather than acknowledge the truth, Mat 21:27. Especially is this the case when the truth makes against them.

18. Double-dealing and an attempt to evade the truth commonly lead into difficulty. If these people had been honest, they would have had far less trouble, Mat 21:27.

19. A state of gross and open sin is often more hopeful than one of hypocrisy, pride, and self-conceit, together with external conformity to religion, Mat 21:28. Multitudes of profane and licentious people may be saved, while the proud and self-righteous will be cut off. The reasons are,

(1)    That the wicked, the gross, have no righteousness on which they can pretend to rely.

(2)\caps1     n\caps0 othing so effectually prevents religion as pride and self-confidence.

(3)    There is often really more ingenuousness and candor, and less of malignity against the gospel, among the openly wicked, than among those who are outwardly righteous, but who are inwardly like whited sepulchres, full of dead men’ s bones and all uncleanness.

20. Multitudes of people profess to go, and go not, Mat 21:30. They profess to love God, and love themselves better. They profess to obey him, and yet obey their lusts. They are hypocrites, and destruction must come upon them.

21. Sinners, when they see the effect of truth on others, should repent, Mat 21:32. It is proof of the truth of religion, and they, as much as others, need it.

22. We see the goodness of God in sending his messengers to a lost world, Mat 21:33-38. His prophets he sent one after another, and they were put to death. His well-beloved Son he sent, and He also was put to death. Nor is his mercy yet stayed. He still sends his message to sinners. Thousands have died, as his Son did, in attempting to spread the gospel, but still he sends it. We have often, often rejected it, yet still he sends it. What earthly monarch would be treated in this manner? What earthly parent would be so patient and so kind?

23. If we improve not our privileges they will be taken away from us, Mat 21:43. The gospel will be sent to many of the pagan, and they will be saved, but woe to those who have had it all their lives and are not saved.

24. All who reject the Saviour must perish, Mat 21:44.

Poole: Mat 21:42-44 - -- Ver. 42-44. Mark saith, Mar 12:10,11 , And have ye not read this scripture, The stone which the builders rejected is become the head of the corner: ...

Ver. 42-44. Mark saith, Mar 12:10,11 , And have ye not read this scripture, The stone which the builders rejected is become the head of the corner: this was the Lord’ s doing, and it is marvellous in our eyes. Luke saith, Luk 20:17,18 , And he beheld them, and said, What is this then that is written, The stone which the builders rejected, the same is become the head of the corner? Whosoever shall fall upon that stone shall be broken; but on whomsoever it shall fall, it will grind him to powder. It is more than probable that our Saviour had more words with them upon this argument than are left us upon sacred record; for John hath let us know, that we are not to expect that all he did or spake should be written, Joh 21:25 ; and as not every discourse or action, so not all words in the same discourse, nor all circumstances relating to the same action. Knowing themselves and their masters to be the husbandmen with whom the Lord had entrusted this vineyard the house of Israel, it is not reasonable to think they should be very patient to hear that God would miserably destroy them as wicked men, and commit his vineyard to the trust of others. We cannot therefore in reason imagine but that they should reply something to that, as thinking it a strange thing that he should assert, that for the rejection of him, God would reject his ancient people, and cast off the church of the Jews. To show this was nothing which ought to seem strange to them, he asks them, Did ye never read in the Scriptures, The stone, & c. Luke saith, he beheld them, and said, What is this then, &c.? As if the Pharisees had charged him with speaking without any warrant from the word of God, there was no such thing in the law or prophets. To convince them of their mistake, or at least that there was nothing in that he said which needed to appear strange to them, he saith, Did ye never read? or, Have ye not read the scripture? (so Mark relates it); or, What is this then? As Luke hath it. The text he quotes is Psa 118:22,23 . It is manifest that the Jews understood that Psalm to be a prophecy of Christ, by the people’ s acclamations of Hosanna; for the substance of those acclamations are in Psa 118:25,26 : Save now, I beseech thee, O Lord: O Lord, I beseech thee, send now prosperity. Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord. Hoshiah na, hn he eyvwh Save, I beseech thee. This they understood of the Messiah. This they had heard cried unto our Saviour. Saith our Saviour, In that very Psalm you may read, The stone which the builders rejected is become the head of the corner. Before he had compared the church to a vineyard, to show their obligation to bring forth fruit; here to a building, to denote God’ s dwelling in it. The builders here intended were the heads of the Jewish church, who not only by their own pretences, but by their calling, were builders, and ought to have been builders; though indeed they proved destroyers and pullers down, instead of builders. The church is elsewhere compared to a building, 1Co 3:9 Eph 2:21 ; and the teachers in it to builders, Rom 15:20 Gal 2:18 . Our Lord is here compared to a stone, because he is the only firm foundation, the chief cornerstone; in whom all the building fitly framed together groweth unto an holy temple in the Lord: in whom ye also are builded together for an habitation of God through the Spirit, Eph 2:20-22 : called by the prophet Isaiah, Isa 28:16 , a stone laid in Zion for a foundation, a tried stone, a precious cornerstone, a sure foundation ; which is applied to Christ, Act 4:11 Rom 9:33 1Pe 2:6-8 . He is become the head of the corner, that is, the chief, the principal stone in the building. Lest they should be startled at this, he addeth, this is the Lord’ s doing, and it is marvellous in our eyes. This may seem strange to you, that those who seemed to be builders and pillars should be rejected and thrown away; and no wonder, for it is the Lord’ s doing. In the reformations of churches from gross corruptions, God doth always some extraordinary things, which we are not at present able to reconcile to other reasons. Mat 21:43 , (which some think should have been put after the next verse), our Lord tells them plainly, that God was removing his church from them to the Gentiles, which he calleth a people that should bring forth the fruits thereof.

And whosoever shall fall on this stone shall be broken: there will be many that shall be offended at Christ, his person, his doctrine, his institutions, upon which account he is called a stumbling stone, Rom 9:33 . But they shall be broken: if they take offence at me, so as they will not believe on me, nor receive me, it will be their ruin.

But on whomsoever it shall fall, it will grind him to powder: if they shall go on to persecute me and my members, so that I fall on them, they shall be ruined, irreparably and irrecoverably, with a more dreadful destruction.

Haydock: Mat 21:43 - -- The kingdom of God shall be taken from you. By this dreadful conclusion he tells them in plain terms, that they shall be forsaken, and punished for ...

The kingdom of God shall be taken from you. By this dreadful conclusion he tells them in plain terms, that they shall be forsaken, and punished for their blindness and obstinacy. (Witham)

Gill: Mat 21:43 - -- Therefore I say unto you,.... This is the application of the parable; and the words are directed to the chief priests, elders, scribes, and people of ...

Therefore I say unto you,.... This is the application of the parable; and the words are directed to the chief priests, elders, scribes, and people of the Jews; and are delivered as what would be in consequence of the builders, rejecting the Messiah, the foundation and corner stone of the building,

The kingdom of God shall be taken from you: by which is meant, not their political estate, their civil government, which was of God, and in a short time was to depart from them, according to ancient prophecy, and which is come to pass, as the event shows; nor their legal national church state and ordinances only, or the priesthood, and the appendages of it; all which, in a little while, were shaken and removed; but the Gospel, which had been preached among them by John the Baptist, Christ, and his apostles; so called because it treats of the kingdom of God, and things pertaining to it, and shows men both their right and meetness for it; the one as in the righteousness of Christ, and the other in the regenerating and sanctifying grace of the Spirit, which Gospel may be taken away from a people, as from the Jews, because of their contempt of it, and opposition to it, or lukewarmness and indifference about it, or unfruitfulness under it; and when God has no more souls to gather in by it in such a place, and which is a very unhappy case, whenever it is the case of any people: for when the Gospel is taken away, the riches of a people are gone; the glory of a nation is departed; the light of it is put out; the spiritual bread of a people is no more; the means of conversion and spiritual knowledge cease: all which have a melancholy aspect on posterity. Moreover, the Gospel church state, which was set up in Judea, may be here meant; which, though it continued and flourished a while, in process of time was to be removed: and which may be done elsewhere, as it has been in Judea, by God's suffering persecution to arise, as he did against the church of Jerusalem, whereby the ministers of the Gospel are driven into corners, or scattered abroad; or by ordering his ministers to preach no more unto such a people, as the apostles were ordered to turn from the Jews to the Gentiles; or by taking away ministers and members of churches by death, and not raising up others in their room; or by withholding a blessing from the word; or by permitting the growth of errors and heresies, which, in course of time, must issue in the dissolution of the church state in such a place, and which necessarily follows upon the removing of the Gospel:

and given to a nation bringing forth the fruits thereof. Though God may take away the Gospel from a people, as he did from the Jews; yet he does not, nor will he, as yet, take it out of the world: he gives it to another "nation"; to the Gentiles, to all the nations of the world, whither he sent his apostles to preach and where it must be preached before the end of the world comes, in order to gather his elect out of them: for not one particular nation is meant, unless the nation of God's elect, among all nations, can be thought to be designed. It may be observed, that the Gospel, wherever it comes, it comes as a gift; it is "given": to have it only in the external ministration of it, is a favour; and more especially to understand it spiritually; this is an unmerited gift; as is also ability to preach it: and it is likewise a national mercy wherever it comes; for though it comes in power only to a few in a nation, yet it is more or less a blessing to the whole: nor is it easy to say what temporal advantages a nation enjoys through the ministration of the Gospel in it: and where it is given, and comes in power, it brings forth fruit, as it did in all the world of the Gentiles; even the fruits of grace, and righteousness, and every good work; all which come from Christ, under the influence of his Spirit, and by the word and ordinances, as means, and highly become the Gospel, and the professors of it; and for want of which it is removed sometimes from one nation to another: for this cause it was taken from the Jews, and given to the Gentiles. One of the Jewish commentators d on these words, in Jer 13:17 "my soul shall weep in secret places for your pride", has this note,

"because of your grandeur, which shall cease; because of the excellency of "the kingdom of heaven", שתנתן לפסילים, "which shall be given to the profane";

i.e. the nations of the world,

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Commentary -- Verse Notes / Footnotes

NET Notes: Mat 21:43 Or “to a nation” (so KJV, NASB, NLT).

Geneva Bible: Mat 21:43 Therefore say I unto you, The kingdom of God shall be taken from you, and given to a nation bringing forth the ( a ) fruits thereof. ( a ) They bring...

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Commentary -- Verse Range Notes

TSK Synopsis: Mat 21:1-46 - --1 Christ rides into Jerusalem upon an ass;12 drives the buyers and sellers out of the temple;17 curses the fig-tree;23 puts to silence the priests and...

Maclaren: Mat 21:33-46 - --The Vineyard And Its Keepers Hear another parable: There was a certain householder, which planted a vineyard, and hedged it round about, and digged a...

MHCC: Mat 21:33-46 - --This parable plainly sets forth the sin and ruin of the Jewish nation; and what is spoken to convict them, is spoken to caution all that enjoy the pri...

Matthew Henry: Mat 21:33-46 - -- This parable plainly sets forth the sin and ruin of the Jewish nation; they and their leaders are the husbandmen here; and what is spoken for convic...

Barclay: Mat 21:33-46 - --In interpreting a parable it is normally a first principle that every parable has only one point and that the details are not to be stressed. Normall...

Barclay: Mat 21:33-46 - --This parable has much to tell us in three directions. (i) It has much to tell us about God. (a) It tells of God's trust in men. The owner of the vine...

Barclay: Mat 21:33-46 - --The parable concludes with the picture of the stone. There are two pictures really. (i) The first is quite clear. It is the picture of a stone which...

Constable: Mat 19:3--26:1 - --VI. The official presentation and rejection of the King 19:3--25:46 This section of the Gospel continues Jesus' ...

Constable: Mat 21:18--23:1 - --C. Israel's rejection of her King 21:18-22:46 This section of Matthew's Gospel presents Israel's formal ...

Constable: Mat 21:23--22:15 - --2. Rejection by the chief priests and the elders 21:23-22:14 (cf. Mark 11:27-12:12; Luke 20:1-19) ...

Constable: Mat 21:33-46 - --The parable of the wicked tenant farmers 21:33-46 Jesus proceeded immediately to tell another parable. Luke wrote that Jesus addressed it to the crowd...

College: Mat 21:1-46 - --MATTHEW 21 VI. CONFLICT IN JERUSALEM (21:1-25:46) In the narrative block comprising 21:1-25:46 the earlier predictions about his fate in Jerusalem b...

McGarvey: Mat 21:33-46 - -- CVIII. IN REPLY TO THE QUESTIONS AS TO HIS AUTHORITY, JESUS GIVES THE THIRD GREAT GROUP OF PARABLES. (In the Court of the Temple. Tuesday, April 4, A...

Lapide: Mat 21:23-46 - --Verse 23. And when he was come into the temple, the chief priests and the elders of the people came unto Him as he was teaching, and said, By what aut...

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Introduction / Outline

Robertson: Matthew (Book Introduction) THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO MATTHEW By Way of Introduction The passing years do not make it any plainer who actually wrote our Greek Matthew. Papias r...

JFB: Matthew (Book Introduction) THE author of this Gospel was a publican or tax gatherer, residing at Capernaum, on the western shore of the Sea of Galilee. As to his identity with t...

JFB: Matthew (Outline) GENEALOGY OF CHRIST. ( = Luke 3:23-38). (Mat. 1:1-17) BIRTH OF CHRIST. (Mat 1:18-25) VISIT OF THE MAGI TO JERUSALEM AND BETHLEHEM. (Mat 2:1-12) THE F...

TSK: Matthew (Book Introduction) Matthew, being one of the twelve apostles, and early called to the apostleship, and from the time of his call a constant attendant on our Saviour, was...

TSK: Matthew 21 (Chapter Introduction) Overview Mat 21:1, Christ rides into Jerusalem upon an ass; Mat 21:12, drives the buyers and sellers out of the temple; Mat 21:17, curses the fig-...

Poole: Matthew 21 (Chapter Introduction) CHAPTER 21

MHCC: Matthew (Book Introduction) Matthew, surnamed Levi, before his conversion was a publican, or tax-gatherer under the Romans at Capernaum. He is generally allowed to have written h...

MHCC: Matthew 21 (Chapter Introduction) (Mat 21:1-11) Christ enters Jerusalem. (Mat 21:12-17) He drives out those who profaned the temple. (Mat 21:18-22) The barren fig-tree cursed. (Mat ...

Matthew Henry: Matthew (Book Introduction) An Exposition, with Practical Observations, of The Gospel According to St. Matthew We have now before us, I. The New Testament of our Lord and Savior...

Matthew Henry: Matthew 21 (Chapter Introduction) The death and resurrection of Jesus Christ are the two main hinges upon which the door of salvation turns. He came into the world on purpose to giv...

Barclay: Matthew (Book Introduction) INTRODUCTION TO THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO SAINT MATTHEW The Synoptic Gospels Matthew, Mark and Luke are usually known as the Synoptic Gospels. Synopt...

Barclay: Matthew 21 (Chapter Introduction) The Beginning Of The Last Act (Mat_21:1-11) The Intention Of Jesus (Mat_21:1-11 Continued) The Claim Of The King (Mat_21:1-11 Continued) The Sce...

Constable: Matthew (Book Introduction) Introduction The Synoptic Problem The synoptic problem is intrinsic to all study of th...

Constable: Matthew (Outline) Outline I. The introduction of the King 1:1-4:11 A. The King's genealogy 1:1-17 ...

Constable: Matthew Matthew Bibliography Abbott-Smith, G. A. A Manual Greek Lexicon of the New Testament. Edinburgh: T. & T. Cl...

Haydock: Matthew (Book Introduction) THE HOLY GOSPEL OF JESUS CHRIST, ACCORDING TO ST. MATTHEW INTRODUCTION. THIS and other titles, with the names of those that wrote the Gospels,...

Gill: Matthew (Book Introduction) INTRODUCTION TO MATTHEW The subject of this book, and indeed of all the writings of the New Testament, is the Gospel. The Greek word ευαγγελ...

College: Matthew (Book Introduction) INTRODUCTION HISTORY OF INTERPRETATION It may surprise the modern reader to realize that for the first two centuries of the Christian era, Matthew's...

College: Matthew (Outline) OUTLINE I. ESTABLISHING THE IDENTITY AND ROLE OF JESUS THE CHRIST - Matt 1:1-4:16 A. Genealogy of Jesus - 1:1-17 B. The Annunciation to Joseph...

Lapide: Matthew (Book Introduction) PREFACE. —————— IN presenting to the reader the Second Volume [Matt X to XXI] of this Translation of the great work of Cornelius à Lapi...

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