A different verb for clothing occurs, both in the indirect middle (πσυχηι peribalōmetha fling round ourselves in Matthew 6:31, σωμα endusēsthe put on yourselves in Matthew 6:25). λ.] ), IV. πανταχοῦ γὰρ ὁ θεὸς τὸν σκοπὸν ζητεῖ τῶν γιγνομένων. ii., p. 33; Preacher's Monthly, vol. The notion of proper care and forethought appears in 1 Corinthians 7:32; 1 Corinthians 12:25; Philippians 2:20. And I could not enjoin this too strongly. (1) ‘An arrow, if it be drawn up but a little way, goes not far, but if it be pulled up to the head it flies swiftly and pierces deep. We do not know how it is that prayer receives an answer from God at all. If our eyes are healthy we see clearly and with a single focus (without astigmatism). 6 But thou, when thou prayest, enter into thy closet, and when thou hast shut thy door, pray to thy Father which is in secret; and thy Father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly. They are not, therefore, to be interpreted materially and mechanically. Here and in Luke 11:34 the eye is called “single” in a moral sense. When war and discord on the earth shall cease; Whate’er is good to wish, ask that of Heaven. I. Braid Scots has it: “And lat us no be siftit.” But God does test or sift us, though he does not tempt us to evil. The duty of secret prayer. Trespasses (παραπτωματα paraptōmata). 5. This breathed over all His prayers, of which there are several in the Gospels, that unspeakable mixture of majesty and humility, which no words can describe, but of which surely one effect ought to be to make every Christian man very fearful lest he be found drawing near the High and Holy One with any other than the most serious words and thoughts. on StudyLight.org And surely if there be an honest heart and a good intention, an ability of prayer usually is in us, though we know it not; as a man may have money about him, and not know so much, till necessity make him willing to search and glad to find it. Wycliff has it: “Do not treasure to you treasures.”, Rust (βρωσις brōsis). Of a sad countenance (σκυτρωποι skuthrōpoi). Far is the time, remote from human sight. 1925, Colossians. Always consider that the greatest act of the day is your private intercourse with God. Certainly anxiety will not help either kind of growth, but rather hinder by auto-intoxication if nothing more. Satan also will be jogging and interrupting us; and will needs be talking to us when we are most busily speaking to God, as the Pythoness troubled St Paul as he went to prayer, Acts 16:16. (a) Have a purpose. (2) The best place for prayer is characterized by secrecy, privacy, and quietness. A closet for the spirit is whatever helps to close the spirit in from all distraction, and thus makes it feel alone with God. But let him ask in faith - See the passages referred to in James 1:5.Compare the Matthew 7:7 note, and Hebrews 11:6 note. {f} Verbaque provisam rem non invita sequentur. Prayer should always be offered, remembering that God is acquainted with our real desires; and that it is those real desires, and not the words of prayer, that he will answer. It is, therefore, quite clear that, if we pray this petition with an unhealed breach, an unsettled quarrel in our lives, we are asking God not to forgive us. The principle, as before, is embodied in a rule which startles, and which cannot be binding literally. His father is a carpenter, and from what I have heard, must be a harsh, unkind man. Such is the preparation or disposition with which we should address ourselves to God in prayer. The word κρυπαιος kruphaios is here alone in the New Testament, but occurs four times in the Septuagint. It has been thought that you are to ‘shut your door’ in order that you may not be overheard, which implies that, even in your ‘closet,’ you pray out loud, in a soft, but in an audible voice. If you believe in the providence of God, if you believe that in every event of life you are under His control, why, you must go with every request and every duty and every care, and lay them before your Father which is in heaven. Its privacy promotes meditation and heart-scrutiny. but as having showed our obedience to his will, and in the fulfilling of those many promises which he hath made to those that seek his face for the hearing of their prayers. Even if he cannot pray in words, God knows the meaning of his heart, and has ways of setting it all down. (Studies.). 2. Matthew 6:6. But not only may we be in our closet; our closet may be in us. The reward promised-“Reward thee openly.” (J. 1. Matthew 6:6. Matthew 6:1. David also at morning, at evening, and at noon, called upon God, and had his set times for such devotions. This is no plea for idleness, for even the birds are diligent and the flowers grow. “Bring” or “lead” bothers many people. This is what He means by "thy closet.". πανταχοῦ γὰρ ὁ θεὸς τὸν σκοπὸν ζητεῖ τῶν γιγνομένων, ὅρα γοῦν καὶ ἐνταῦθα πῶς ἀκριβῆ τὸν διορισμὸν τέθεικεν εἰπὼν, ὥστε κἂν τὰς θύρας ἀποκλείσῃς τοῦτο πρὸ τῆς τῶν θυρῶν ἀποκλείσεως κατορθῶσαί σε βούλεται. Occurs only here, Matthew 24:26, and Luke 12:3, Luke 12:24. The king had forbidden it (so did Henry III, King of France, forbid householders to pray with their famihes), Daniel did it notwithstanding, as beforetime. He believes in His omniscience and His omnipotence and His benevolence, and therefore in every moment of need he calls upon His God. Because it is priceless and seasonable. Public worship.—But the two points which our Lord presses home so strongly about private prayer, refer also to public worship. ), The silent influences of secret prayer the most productive, As the tender dew that falls in the silent night makes the grass and herbs and flowers to flourish and grow more abundantly than great showers of rain that fall in the day, so secret prayer will more abundantly cause the sweet herbs of grace and holiness to grow and flourish in the soul, than all those more open, public and visible duties of religion, which too, too often are mingled and mixed with the sun and wind of pride and hypocrisy. Note, (1.) Read Matthew 6 commentary using John Gill's Exposition of the Bible. Luke (Luke 11:4) has “sins” (αμαρτιας hamartias). So he denied his mother her particular request for that time, John 2:4 : and when his disciples asked him a curious question, "Wilt thou at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?" III. "The Spirit also helpeth our infirmities" (he lifteth with us and before us, as the word signifies, συναντιλαμβανεται, Romans 8:26), and maketh intercession in us and for us with groans unutterable. It may be offered in any circumstances, however open, if not prompted by the spirit of ostentation, but dictated by the great ends of prayer itself. We have records of many prayers offered by the apostles in public assemblies. It occurs in Christ‘s rebuke to Martha for her excessive solicitude about something to eat (Luke 10:41). In the most difficult and embarrassed time of the American Revolution, Washington was seen to retire to a grove in the vicinity of the camp at Valley Forge. In the Garden of Gethsemane Jesus will say to Peter, James, and John: “Pray that ye enter not into temptation” (Luke 22:40). ), The secret life of the Christian the most important, The root that produces the beautiful and flourishing tree, with all its spreading branches, verdant leaves, and refreshing fruit, that which gains for it sap, life, vigour, and fruitfulness, is all unseen; and the farther and deeper the roots spread beneath, the more the tree expands above. 5; Matthew 24:26; Sirach 29:12; Tobit 7:17. ἀποδώσει σοι] for thy undemonstrative piety. He "hearkened and heard" those good souls in Malachi, {Malachi 3:16} as loth to lose any part of their precious language. The word “trespass” is literally “falling to one side,” a lapse or deviation from truth or uprightness. whosoever thou art, Jew, Pharisee, Christian - enter into thy closet. (2) To do righteousness is a phrase of frequent occurrence, as in Psalms 106:3, Isaiah 58:2, 1 John 2:29, 1 John 3:7, 1 John 3:10. We keep one eye on the hoarded treasures of earth and roll the other proudly up to heaven. Set times. We are away from home; we are traveling; we are among strangers; we are in stages and steamboats, and how can we find such places of retirement? I answer, the desire to pray, and the love of prayer, will create such places in abundance. The danger in which most persons in these busy, matter-of-fact, worldly, pleasure-loving days stand, is not so much of too great publicity in your private prayers; but it is really the danger of never genuinely, seriously, sincerely praying in private at all. II. In Matthew 6:31 Jesus repeats the prohibition with the ingressive aorist subjunctive: “Do not become anxious,” “Do not grow anxious.” Here the direct question with the deliberative subjunctive occurs with each verb (περιβαλωμετα phagōmen class="normal greek">ενδυσηστε piōmen class="normal greek">τηι πσυχηι peribalōmetha). But seek ye first. John 17). The remaining petitions turn to “our” needs, … Continue reading "Commentary on Matthew 6:9-13" 6. It means to send away, to dismiss, to wipe off. And when thou prayest, thou shalt--or, preferably, "when ye pray ye shall." ‘Your Father Who sees in secret.’ The idea is that the presence of God is with them in their secret room, despite it simply being a store room. (1) ‘I often say my prayers, but do I ever pray? What is the “open reward”? for any secret retreat. Are not the vows of God upon you for the performance of it? The principle thus clothed in paradox is, of course, that personal prayer should be strictly personal and private. 6:1 Take heed that ye do not your 1 alms before men, to be seen of them: otherwise ye have no a reward of your Father which is in heaven. But when thou prayest, enter into thy closet, &c.] The proper place for secret prayer (as the family is for private prayer, Acts 10:3; Acts 10:9, and the church for public, Luke 4:16), that being sequestered from company, we may more fully descend into our own hearts, and be the freer from ostentation and hypocrisy, and from discursation and wandering of mind ( Anima dispersa fit minor): as also for the demonstration of our faith, whereby we believe the omnipresence of God, who seeth in secret and rewardeth openly. The word occurs also in three late MSS. ), V. The profit of prayer. Now this he said proving him: for he himself knew what he was about to do. Is essential, because we have wants which can be presented before God in no other way. It is the test of what a man is when he is alone with God. For this reason it is that he specifies the closet and the shutting of the door. It is the test of what a man is when he is alone with God. Shut thy door. For the expression, comp. 3. The plural “our” is used throughout, so that those giving voice to the prayer acknowledge both the presence of God and their connection to a wider praying community. I. Be as different from these hypocrite's as possible, lest thy manner of praying savor of their hypocrisy. The mind of Christ is the mind of heaven, and none ever prayed like Christ. His heart has been trained to be centered in the Lord alone and to banish all distracting thoughts Note especially that the Lord emphasizes "thy Father," which tenderly invites and urges childlike trust and confidence. Then this world is more out of sight, and we more simply appropriate those blessings which we have but to claim humbly, and they are really ours. Barnes.). Our Lord's example teaches us the great necessity of prayer. “The figure and the ethical meaning seem to be mixed up, moral attributes ascribed to the physical eye which with them still gives light to the body. (American Homiletic Monthly. To hold any communication with Him is a work of very great faith. Oswald Dykes, The Laws of the Kingdom, p. 195. Matthew 6:7-15.—J. For here they will enter Heaven (Isaiah 57:15). With him a grove, a mountain, a garden, furnished such a place, and, though a traveler, and among strangers, and without a house, he lived in the habit of secret prayer. Pasor. So it looks as if the rabbis could do it also. The pure thought is — Perform thy religious duties for God’s eye and not for man’s. 5. Openly.âProbably, as before, in Matthew 6:4, an interpolation. The idea is then: “Do not allow us to be led into temptation.” There is a way out (1 Corinthians 10:13), but it is a terrible risk. Rebekah upon the struggling of the babes, "went to inquire of the Lord," Genesis 25:22, that is, she went to some secret place to pray, and receive some revelation from God, say Calvin, Musculus, Mercer, others. Matthew 6 - The Sermon on the Mount (Continued) A. Matthew 6:6. Though it be what thou canst not hope or see. After this manner therefore pray ye That is, in such a concise and short way, without much speaking and vain repetitions; making use of such like words and expressions as the following: not that Christ meant to pin down his disciples to these express words, and no other; for this prayer is not a strict form, but a pattern of prayer, and a directory to it, both as to … In Matthew 6:31 Jesus repeats the prohibition with the ingressive aorist subjunctive: “Do not become anxious,” “Do not grow anxious.” Here the direct question with the deliberative subjunctive occurs with each verb ( περιβαλωμετα — phagōmen class="normal greek">ενδυσηστε — piōmen class="normal greek">τηι πσυχηι — peribalōmetha ). Were ye not baptized in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost, to worship them, and that in all parts of worship, of which prayer is a principal one? I. {g} As for those that are ita congregabiles (saith another divine of good note), so very good fellows that they cannot spare so much time out of company as to seek God apart and to serve him in secret, they sufficiently show themselves thereby to have little fellowship or friendship with God, whom they so seldom come at. He who seriously and sincerely thinks of God when he prays must for the time at least lift up his soul far above all earthly things; and doing this, he must be deeply interested in the high thoughts which come over his soul. Hence a secret chamber where treasures were stored. It is not like the Roman Porta Santa, which is opened but once in twenty-five years, with grand ceremonies, conducted by the highest dignitaries of the Church. 6. Will reward you. Matthew 6:8. But the phrase "thy closet" conveys an additional meaning. “As the Gentiles do,” says Jesus. With this trust thou canst put away all thoughts and doubts, and kneel down cheerfully and pray, not regarding thy worthiness or un-worthiness, but thy trouble and His word, in which He commands you to put confidence. This extends the idea of privacy and solitude. The word refers to religious externalities. Yet we must pray for fit words also, Hosea 14:2, and strive to be enriched in all utterance, and in all knowledge, 1 Corinthians 1:5, get a habit of heavenly mindedness, let the heart meditate a good matter, {f} and then the tongue will be as the pen of a ready writer, Psalms 45:1; first prepare the heart, and then stretch out the hands, Job 11:13. Closet; a private room or retired place. and and , all emphasising isolation, thy closet, thy door, thy Father.— , carefully shutting thy door, the door of thine own retreat, to exclude all but thy Father, with as much secrecy as if you were about a guilty act. The word may include other wild flowers besides lilies, blossoms like anemones, poppies, gladioli, irises (McNeile). Some local “inner chamber not necessary.” Every man can build a chapel in his breast. Pollock. Jesus warned His disciples about the possibility of doing good deeds for the wrong reason as … (2)an attempt to specify the times when this should be done would tend to make religion formal and heartless. Matthew 6. Once Peter’s “room” was on the roof of a house; the Savior’s on a mountain alone. πεισομαι δε τω θεψ μαλλον η υμιν. It would be to very little purpose to turn the handle, if you did not, by the same act, seclude yourself from the world without, worldly pleasures, and worldly business, and worldly associations. Enter into thy closet â That is, do it with as much secrecy as thou canst. Psalms 4:4. No, but it is implied that social prayer will be a reality only in proportion as it proceeds from a gathering of men accustomed to private prayer. This confusion may be due to the fact that the eye, besides being the organ of vision, is the seat of expression, revealing inward dispositions.” The “evil” eye (πονηρος ponēros) may be diseased and is used of stinginess in the lxx and so απλους haplous may refer to liberality as Hatch argues (Essays in Biblical Greek, p. 80). So the Saviour prayed in the garden of Gethsemane (compare Hebrews 5:7-8), and so we should pray when we are tempted. 2. Are you obeying the command? Here, with no one to disturb you, with no one present but Him who is in the secret places, whose omnipresence invites you freely to confide in Him, you may open your heart freely, even in regard to matters which may fitly be hidden before the eyes of the whole world. The word is a late syncopated form of tamieion from tamiav (steward) and the root tam-from temnw, to cut.So it is a store-house, a separate apartment, one's private chamber, closet, or "den" where he can withdraw from the world and shut the world out and commune with God. He knows well enough that a Christian’s strength lies in his prayer (as Samson’s did in his hair), that it buckleth all our spiritual armour close to us, and makes it useful, that a Christian can never lack help while he can pray, Ephesians 6:18; as they were wont to say, the pope can never lack money so long as he can hold a pen in his hand to command and send for it: that secret prayer is a soul-fattening exercise, as secret meals, we say, feed the body. “But when a word is not recognizable at sight as a Jewish or Christian new formation, we must consider it as an ordinary Greek word until the contrary is proved. And when about to lie down again to sleep, not knowing but it may be our last sleep and that we may awake in eternity, what more proper than to commend ourselves to the care of Him “who never slumbers nor sleeps?”. It could not, therefore, primarily mean the prayer you say in the morning and evening, when you are already in your room, though it includes it; but such as you go to your room, or to some other place, expressly that you may say it. The little room on the housetop of an Eastern dwelling, used for such purposes. To be wholly freed from them is a privilege proper to the estate of perfection. vi., p. 15. God "dwelleth in the light which no man can approach unto." (6) Enter into thy closet.âLiterally, the store-closet of thy house. Only you and God. Into thy closet (εις το ταμειον eis to tameion). Christ does not restrict the praying to fixed hours. The first three petitions focus the worshipers’ attention on God. Hence any private close apartment or chamber. For help herein, St Augustine telleth us that the ancient Christians of Egypt were wont to use only short and pithy prayers and ejaculations, {c} such as was that of Elijah when he contended with the priests of Baal, charging God (in two words) with the care of his covenant, of his truth, and of his glory. If the eyes are diseased (bad, evil), they may even be cross-eyed or cock-eyed. As the deeper or hollower the belly of the lute or viol is, the pleasanter is the sound; the fleeter, the more grating and harsh in our ears. thy Saviour would have broken in upon these hours, and would have trod his solitary way to the mountain or the grove that he might pray. Thus the eyes of the Lord are upon the righteous (when they are praying especially), and his ears are open to their prayers. "Thou" enter into "thy" closet, and pray to "thy" Father. ‘When ye pray, say, Our Father.’ We shall never know God till we know Him as a Father. II. Yea, because the soul is sick, the service is twice welcome. The Mohammedans may also be cited who seem to think that they “will be heard for their much speaking” (εν τηι πολυλογιαι en tēi polulogiāi). {b} 1 Timothy 2:1, εντευξεις, parleyings with God. 4. There is another part of devotion, which does not occupy its proper place and degree, in most of our holy functions, and yet which is very important—adoration; adoring God for what God is in Himself; not for what He gives: simple, devout, admiring contemplation of God. The meaning of the Saviour is, that there should be some place where we may be in secret - where we may be alone with God. (Various. John 6:6. It is that act by which the human spirit seeks to come in contact with the Divine Spirit.’. This infirmity is not to be healed till we come to heaven. Fervent prayers are the pillars of smoke wherein the Church ascendeth to God out of the wilderness of this world, and by a humble familiarity converseth, yea, parleyeth with him, {b} as Abram and Moses did (especially when Satan, sin, and conscience accuse), and standeth, as it were, upon interrogatories; such as are those, Romans 8:33-35. De Luthero Justus Jonas. So it is a store-house, a separate apartment, one‘s private chamber, closet, or “den” where he can withdraw from the world and shut the world out and commune with God. Jesus went off by himself to pray many times, and at other times, he prayed in public. ii., p. 556; vol. If we can but groan out, Ah, Father, it is an effectual prayer. v. 4. The effort has been made to derive it from επι epi and ων ōn (ουσα ousa). Do you really give a few moments at the beginning and at the close of each day to talking on your knees with God? And a very grave divine writeth thus: I cannot but prefer faithful prayers for some temporal mercy far before that mercy for which I pray. It is strange indeed that weak man should have strength to move God; but it is our privilege to know that we can do so. In times of want, of danger, of loneliness, man instinctively calls upon his God. In the ancient Greek οπειλημα opheilēma is common for actual legal debts as in Romans 4:4, but here it is used of moral and spiritual debts to God. (d) Have fatherly views of God. Besides tending to produce in us lasting religious impressions, stated private prayer is also a more direct means of gaining from God an answer to our requests. Our Lord's example teaches us the best way of praying, so that one's prayers may be heard. And bring us not into temptation (και μη εισενεγκηις εις πειρασμον kai mē eisenegkēis eis peirasmon). This is agreeable to what the Jews sometimes say, "that a man ought not to cause his voice to be heard in prayer; but should pray בלחש, "silently", with a voice that is not heard; and this is the prayer which is daily acceptedF7Zohar in Gen. fol. Deissmann claims that only about fifty purely New Testament or “Christian” words can be admitted out of the more than 5,000 used. Matthew 7:6 "Do not give what is holy to dogs, and do not throw your pearls before swine, or they will trample them under their feet, and turn and tear you to pieces. Because indispensable to the religious life of the soul. But thou, when thou prayest, enter into thy closet, and when thou hast shut thy door, pray to thy Father which is in secret; and thy Father, which seeth in secret, shall reward thee openly. II. It is here the present imperative with the negative, a command not to have the habit of petulant worry about food and clothing, a source of anxiety to many housewives, a word for women especially as the command not to worship mammon may be called a word for men. Matthew 6:9. Here no one was likely to see him, or even know what he was doing there. If we knew it no other way, we might be sure from our blessed Lord's pattern that God is never so well pleased with us as when we approach Him with the deepest reverence of heart. Dom. We shall never approach Him as He ought to be approached till we approach Him as a Father. This deliberative subjunctive of the direct question is retained in the indirect question employed in Matthew 6:25. But say he do neither of these; yet the very ability to pray in the Holy Ghost is a sweet and sure sign of salvation, Romans 10:13. l. ii. For the place we pray in, no matter how mean it be, so it be secret. Prayer is the most secret intercourse of the soul with God, and as it were the conversation of one heart with another.
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