Matthew 12:40

Hawker's Poor Man's Commentary - Matthew 12:38-45

"Then certain of the scribes and of the Pharisees answered, saying, Master, we would see a sign from thee. (39) But he answered and said unto them, An evil and adulterous generation seeketh after a sign; and there shall no sign be given to it, but the sign of the prophet Jonas: (40) For as Jonas was three days and three nights in the whale's belly; so shall the Son of man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth. (41) The men of Nineveh shall rise in judgment with this... read more

George Haydock

George Haydock's Catholic Bible Commentary - Matthew 12:40

In the whale's belly. [4] The word signifies a great fish, and was not perhaps that which we commonly call a whale. In the prophet Jonas, it is called, a great fish. --- Three days and three nights; not three whole days and three nights, but part of three natural days, from which, in common computation, the nights used not to be separated. We have an instance of this, Esther iv. 16, where the Jews were ordered to fast with her three days, and three nights: and yet (Chap. v, ver. 1) Esther,... read more

Matthew Henry

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary on the Bible - Matthew 12:38-45

38-45 Though Christ is always ready to hear and answer holy desires and prayers, yet those who ask amiss, ask and have not. Signs were granted to those who desired them to confirm their faith, as Abraham and Gideon; but denied to those who demanded them to excuse their unbelief. The resurrection of Christ from the dead by his own power, called here the sign of the prophet Jonah, was the great proof of Christ's being the Messiah. As Jonah was three days and three nights in the whale, and then... read more

Frank Binford Hole

F. B. Hole's Old and New Testament Commentary - Matthew 12:1-99

Matthew 12 FROM THE HEIGHTS reached in the last chapter, we descend into the depths of human folly and blindness as displayed by the Pharisees. In this chapter we see Him very definitely rejected by the leaders of the Jews, and not merely by the cities of Galilee. In the first two instances the contention raged round the sabbath. The Lord defended the action of His disciples on at least four grounds (ver. 3-8). When David, God’s anointed king, was in rejection, his needs took precedence over a... read more

Paul E. Kretzmann

The Popular Commentary by Paul E. Kretzmann - Matthew 12:39-40

The refusal: v. 39. But He answered and said unto them, An evil and adulterous generation seeketh after a sign, and there shall no sign be given to it but the sign of the prophet Jonas. v. 40. For as Jonas was three days and three nights in the whale's belly, so shall the Son of Man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth. An evil brood and adulterous He calls them. He saw into their hearts and judged them accordingly. He knew what their purpose in asking a miracle was,... read more

Johann Peter Lange

Lange's Commentary on the Holy Scriptures: Critical, Doctrinal and Homiletical - Matthew 12:22-45

3. Miraculous healing of a demoniac, blind and dumb. Blasphemous accusation of the Pharisees, that Jesus was in league with Beelzebub; and reply of Christ about the blasphemy against the Holy Ghost. The Pharisees seek a sign from heaven; but Jesus promises them a sign from the deep, and announces the impending spiritual doom of an apostate and unbelieving race. Matthew 12:22-45(Mark 3:20-30; Luke 11:14-26; Luke 11:29-32.)22Then was brought unto him one possessed with a devil, blind, and dumb:... read more

Frederick Brotherton Meyer

F.B. Meyer's 'Through the Bible' Commentary - Matthew 12:38-50

Opposing or Doing God’s Will Matthew 12:38-50 It was an evil and adulterous age. It had no spiritual appreciation, and was intent on getting an outward and sensible sign. Nineveh itself would have condemned it. The queen of Sheba, without the advantage attaching to the Hebrew race, appreciated Solomon; but the people of this generation had no appreciation of the Christ. They were nearing the last days of corruption and reprobation. They were a deserted palace given over to demons. Seven... read more

G. Campbell Morgan

G. Campbell Morgan's Exposition on the Whole Bible - Matthew 12:1-50

This chapter chronicles direct attacks on Christ. The first was petty and foolish. It is on the question of the Sabbath. The Master gives to His people the true conception of the sanctity of the Sabbath. It is established, and remains, for "the Son of Man is Lord of the Sabbath." "How much is a man better than a sheep? Why, then, rescue a sheep and neglect a man? The second attack was characterized by malicious hatred; it was an absolute denial of the sovereignty of God. Satan is cast out by... read more

Peter Pett

Peter Pett's Commentary on the Bible - Matthew 12:40

“For as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the large fish, so will the Son of man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth.” His first sign is typical of Scripture, it is something that will happen in the future (compare Exodus 3:12; Isaiah 7:14). The future will prove the present (Deuteronomy 18:21-22). It does, however, require faith. In it He describes two things that were incongruous. The first was that Jonah spent three days and three nights in the... read more

Arthur Peake

Arthur Peake's Commentary on the Bible - Matthew 12:22-45

Matthew 12:22-Romans : . Jesus’ Answer to the Verdict of the Jerusalem Scribes, and the Intervention of His Family ( Mark 3:20-Habakkuk : *, Luke 11:14-Isaiah :; Luke 11:29-Jonah :; Luke 12:10; Luke 8:19-Ecclesiastes :).— For the painful statement in Mark 3:20 f. Mt. (like Lk.) substitutes the healing of a blind and dumb man probably a second (compressed) use of Matthew 9:27-Obadiah : and Matthew 9:32-Nahum :. The word for “ were amazed” is an adaptation of the word for “ is beside himself”... read more

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