Matthew 12:1-8

§ 33. PLUCKING THE CORN UPON THE SABBATH, Matthew 12:1-8 .

Of this chapter the part 1-45 has a considerable completeness in itself. It is not inserted precisely in its chronological place; but the facts, though distant in time, stand in their chronological order, and are grouped together in order to show the deepening hostility which Jesus encountered from the Jewish religious leaders. The first two (§ 33 and § 34) occurred soon after the first assault upon Jesus at the passover, and were the proper prelude to the later instance of blasphemy in § 42, with its fearful denunciation, and the cavil of § 43, with its terrible parable. There is a marked increase in the intensity of the Pharisaic hostility.

Matthew places together these two miracles, not because occurring at the same time, but because they touched upon the same point, namely, our Lord’s teaching as to the Sabbath.

Mr. Trench remarks:

“The cures on the Sabbath actually recorded are seven in number, and are the following: That of the demoniac in the synagogue of Capernaum, (Mark 1:21;) that of Simon’s wife’s mother, (Mark 1:29;) of the impotent man of Bethesda, (John 5:9;) of the man with the withered hand; of the man born blind, (John 9:14;) of the woman with a spirit of infirmity, (Luke 13:14;) of the man who had the dropsy, (Luke 14:2.) We have a general intimation of many more, as at Mark 1:34, and have already observed that the ‘one work’ to which our Lord alludes at John 7:21-23, is perhaps not any of the miracles which he has recorded at length, but one to which we have no other allusion than that contained in these verses.”

Our Lord’s defence of himself for these miracles of mercy on the Sabbath brings from him the enunciation of the great principle, that positive and ceremonial institutions were really established for the highest good of man, and must give way whenever they come in collision with it.