Expository Notes of Dr. Thomas Constable - Matthew 7:6
The disciple’s relationship to antagonists 7:6Jesus’ disciples had a responsibility to pass their knowledge of the kingdom on to others so they, too, could prepare for it. Jesus gave them directions about this responsibility in this verse. This exhortation balances the one He just gave (Matthew 7:1-5). The disciples could be too naive and fail to be discerning (cf. Matthew 5:43-47).Pigs were typically unclean, wild, vicious animals. Likewise most dogs were not domestic pets but unclean, wild,... read more
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible - Matthew 7:6
6. Give not that which is holy unto the dogs—savage or snarling haters of truth and righteousness. neither cast ye your pearls before swine—the impure or coarse, who are incapable of appreciating the priceless jewels of Christianity. In the East, dogs are wilder and more gregarious, and, feeding on carrion and garbage, are coarser and fiercer than the same animals in the West. Dogs and swine, besides being ceremonially unclean, were peculiarly repulsive to the Jews, and indeed to the ancients... read more