Annotations upon all the New Testament philologicall and theologicall wherein the emphasis and elegancie of the Greeke is observed, some imperfections in our translation are discovered, divers Jewish rites and customes tending to illustrate the text are mentioned, many antilogies and seeming contradictions reconciled, severall darke and obscure places opened, sundry passages vindicated from the false glosses of papists and hereticks / by Edward Leigh ...

CHAP. I.

ALthough Marke (as Ierome saith) made an Epitome of the Gospell written by Matthew, yet in the manner of handling he is unlike, and followes a∣nother order, partly by relating Histories more largely, and partly by in∣serting of new things. He was the Disciple * 1.1 of Peter. 1 Pet. 5.13.

Every Evangelist hath his proper exordium, Matthew and Iohn begin with Christ, Matthew with his humane generation, Iohn with the divine generation, Marke and Luke begin with Iohn, Luke with Iohns nativity, Marke with his preaching.

Vers. 2. As it is written] A testimonie is an inartificiall argument, and weake among men, because man is a lyer; yet when it is Gods testimony, it is farre above all demon∣strations.

In the Prophets] Grotius reades it, in Esay the Prophet, and wonders that the truth of that reading should be questioned, seeing besides the authority of Copies, and Irenaeus so citing it, there is a manifest agreement of the old Interpreters, the Syriacke, Latine, and Arabic, because the testimonies of two Prophets follow, Malachie and Esay. See Mr. Lightfootes Harmonie.* 1.2

Vers. 3. The voyce of one crying] Voyce is not so much to shew that God doth all, as to shew the vehemency of Iohn.

Vers. 4. Preach the baptisme of repentance] That is, adjoyned the word to the water, or which was used to testifie and professe repentance.

Vers. 5. There went out unto him] Iohn did not go over the Cityes and Townes, as he preached, as Christ and his Apostles did, but men went out of Cityes and Townes to him in the wildernesse.* 1.3

Vers. 6. Cloathed with camels haire] 3 Matth. This they call Chamlot in the Spanish, in Latine, vestis undulata, because it is painted in the liknesse of waves.

Vers. 9. Was baptised of Iohn in Jordan] Our Lord was baptized,* 1.4 not that He might be cleansed by the water, but intending thereby to cleanse and sanctifie the water. Ambrose. Our Saviour vouchsafed to be baptized to draw all men to Christian baptisme. Austen. Christ received baptisme from Iohn to ratifie and give authority to his baptisme. Ierome. That the faithfull might be more assured, that they are engraffed into Christ, and are buried together with him in baptisme. Calvin.

Vers. 10. He saw the heavens opened] That word is used of three things rent Matth. 9.16.* 1.5 Luke 5.36. Iohn 19.24. of a garment rent,* 1.6 and of the vaile of the Temple which was rent into two parts, Mark. 15.38. and here of the Heavens.

Vers. 14. The Gospell of the kingdom of God] That is, whereby men attaine both the parts of Gods kingdome: both that of grace here in this life, and that of glory in the world to come.

Vers. 24. Iesus of Nazareth] They cunningly call him so, to nourish the errour of the multitude, that thought he was borne there, and so not the Christ. Iohn 7.42.

The holy one of God] Greeke, that holy one, * 1.7 by an excellency, In which words hee seemes to allude to that name which was written on the mitre of the High Priest, Holinesse to the Lord, in which the chiefest mysterie of religion and faith is contained.

Vers. 25. And Iesus rebuked him] Matth. 8.26. Vseth this word,* 1.8 when Jesus com∣manded the winds and the Sea. Christ hath absolute authority over Devils, not onely as God, but as Mediator: which is for our comfort; for as Mediator he came to dissolve the workes of the Devill.

Hold thy peace] Or be musled, as 1 Tim. 5.18.

Come out of him] Christ needes nothing to overcome the Devill, but onely his bare word, Matth. 4.

Vers. 26. Had torne him] Luke useth a milder word,* 1.9 yet they very well agree in the sense, because both would teach, that the going out of the Devill was violent, for hee so cast down the miserable man, as if he would teare him in pieces, yet Luke saith the labour was in vaine: not that that violence was altogether without hurt, or at least with∣out any sense of griefe, but because the man being whole, was after freed from the Devill.

Vers. 27. With authority commandeth he even the uncleane spirits, and they do obey him] The Jewish exorcists were wont by invocation of the name of God to drive away the De∣vills. But no man before this time did that pro imperio as Christ here, see the 9. chap. vers. 25.

Vers. 32. When the sun did set] Greek,* 1.10 when the sun dipped, because it seemes to the people to dippe in the Sea when it sets.

Vers. 34. And suffered not the Devils to speake, because they knew him] There may be a twofold reason why he would not suffer them, one generall, because the time of his full discovery was not yet come. 2. Another speciall, because he refused those publishers and witnesses of his Divinity, who by their praising of him would cast an aspersion upon him, he was rather to manifest that there was a hostile enmity, which the authour of eternall salvation, and life, had with the Prince of death and his Ministers. Calvin.

Notes

• * 1.1

  Gerhard. Brugensis. Scripsit Evan∣gel••um Mar∣cus, sed brevis simè: scripsit Lucas, sed luculentius. Vterque sui magistri vestigia pressit, expressit morem. Lucas Paulum est imitatus, Marcus Petrum: brevis iste & succinctus, profusior ille uberiorque. Novarinus in Evangelia.

  Graecè scripsit Marcus, quanquam in gratiam praecipuè Romanorum, sicut & Paulus ad Romanos epistolam Graeca scrip∣sit lingua, quia Judaei qui Romae agebant plerique Latini sermonis ignari longa per Asiam & Graeciam habitatione Graecam linguam did cerant: & Romanorum vix quisquam erat non Graecè intelligens. Grotius.
• * 1.2

  In libris pro∣phetarum, Plurali numero utitur vel per Synecdochen integri, vel quia recitat dicta duo ex prophetis diversis Malachia scilicet & Iesaia. Piscat. Non hic significatur in uno aliquo Propheta, ut saepè alias; sed in ea parte veteris instru∣menti quae Nebjim vocatur, hoc est Prophetae. Nam sacra Scripta dividunt Ebraei in Legem, Prophetas, & Hagiographa. Prophetas rursus partiuntur in priores & posteriores. Hos deinde tribuunt in majores & minores. In Prophetis ergo, id est, in ea parte quam dixi. Adigit nos ad hanc interpretationem rei veritas. Nam Testimonium quod sequitur, ex duobus com∣positum est, & quidem ex diversis Prophetis. Siquidem prior illa pars, ecce ego mitto nuncium meum, &c. Ex Mala∣chia descripta est, posterior verò, viz. vox clamantis in deserto, &c. Sumpta est ex Esaia. Drusius in Paralel. Sac.

  Per Synecdochen pars tota Scripturae ponitur pro uno libro istius partis, ut Marc. 1.2. Ioh. 6.45. Id est in ea parte Scrip∣turae quae Prophetas continet, in volumine Prophetico. Non enim in omnibus prophetis id erat scriptum, quod citabatur, sed in uno tantum, prius quidem, Mal. 3.1. alterum, Iesa 54.13. Buxtorfij Tiberias. c. 11. Vide de Dieu, Iansen. Bezam, & Brugens. notat. in Biblia.
• * 1.3

  Schind. lex. Pent. Verbum 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉 seu 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉 ita universè de quolibet indumento dicitur, ut etiam de armis signatè apud bonos authores dicatur, quae quis in aci∣em descendens induere solet. Quae notio aptè hic cadit; nam vili hoc & duro vestitu Ioannes utebatur, tanquam bellicis armaturis, quibus in campum descenderat. Novarinus in loc.
• * 1.4

  Quod in Iorda¦nis fluvìo bap∣tizari Christus voluerit, ma∣jus humilita∣tis indicium est, nam Iorda∣nes eum quondam, rerum omnium conditorem agnoverat, dum ejus jussu aquae sisterentur. Novarinus.
• * 1.5

  Cloven, or rent,
• * 1.6

  Chemnit.
• * 1.7

  〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉 Ille sanctus, sclicet per eminentiam à Lap. Exod. 38.36. Rainold. de lib. Apoc. Be∣za in loc.
• * 1.8

  Daemones com∣pescit, licet vera dicentes, ne testes natura mendaces ap∣probaret. Nova∣rinus.
• * 1.9

  He threw him in the midst] This shewes his rage and fury. He tare him] That is, there were such grievous convulsions in his body, as if one limme had been pulled from another.
• * 1.10

  Vide Bezam. 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉 Graecis recte dicitur quicquid visi∣bus se subtra∣hit. Lxx. in Io∣el. 2.10. Grotius