Matthew 16:4

Matthew Henry's Complete Commentary - Matthew 16:1-4

We have here Christ's discourse with the Pharisees and Sadducees, men at variance among themselves, as appears Acts 23:7, 8, and yet unanimous in their opposition to Christ; because his doctrine did equally overthrow the errors and heresies of the Sadducees, who denied the existence of spirits and a future state; and the pride, tyranny, and hypocrisy of the Pharisees, who were the great imposters of the traditions of the elders. Christ and Christianity meet with opposition on all hands.... read more

William Barclay

William Barclay's Daily Study Bible - Matthew 16:1-4

16:1-4 The Pharisees and Sadducees came to him, trying to put him to the test, and asked him to show them a sign from Heaven. He answered them: "When evening comes, you say, 'It will be fine weather, because the sky is red.' And early in the morning you say, 'It will be stormy today, because the sky is red and threatening.' You know how to discern the face of the sky, but you cannot discern the signs of the times. An evil and apostate generation seeks for a sign. No sign will be given to it... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Matthew 16:4

A wicked and adulterous generation ,.... He says the same things here, as he did to the Pharisees on a like occasion, in Matthew 12:39 . And he left them ; as persons hardened, perverse, and incurable, and as unworthy to be conversed with: and departed : to the ship which brought him thither, and went in it to the other side of the sea of Galilee; see Mark 8:13 . read more

Adam Clarke

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible - Matthew 16:4

Wicked and adulterous generation - The Jewish people are represented in the Sacred Writings as married to the Most High; but, like a disloyal wife, forsaking their true husband, and uniting themselves to Satan and sin. Seeketh after a sign, σημειον επιζητει , seeketh sign upon sign, or, still another sign. Our blessed Lord had already wrought miracles sufficient to demonstrate both his Divine mission and his divinity; only one was farther necessary to take away the scandal of his cross and... read more

John Calvin

John Calvin's Commentary on the Bible - Matthew 16:4

Verse 4 Matthew 16:4.A wicked and adulterous nation. This passage was explained (426) under Matthew 12:38. The general meaning is, that the Jews are never satisfied with any signs, but are continually tickled by a wicked desire to tempt God. He does not call them an adulterous nation merely because they demand some kind of sign, (for the Lord sometimes permitted his people to do this,) but because they deliberately provoke God; and therefore he threatens that, after he has risen from the dead,... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Matthew 16:1-4

The Pharisees and Sadducees desire a sign. ( Mark 8:11-13 .) read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Matthew 16:1-4

The signs of the Messiah. Coming into the borders of Magadan, after the miracles of the mountain in which he healed all manner of diseases, and miraculously feasted about eight thousand persons, Jesus encountered the Pharisees and Sadducees, who, sinking their sectarian differences for the time, agreed to tempt or test him by demanding a special sign of his Messiahship. Jesus declined to gratify them in this, appealing to the signs of the times which should be sufficient for them, and giving... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Matthew 16:1-12

The visit to Galilee. I. THE LORD CROSSES THE LAKE TO THE WESTERN SHORE . 1 . He dismisses the multitude. They went away quietly, it seems. There was no need now to constrain the disciples to depart first. The people did not attempt to take the Lord by force to make him a King. They were more docile than the five thousand had been. They were full of thankfulness. They glorified the God of Israel. But they were simple-hearted people; they did not regard themselves as... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Matthew 16:4

A wicked and adulterous generation … Jonas . These words our Lord had already uttered on a former occasion ( Matthew 12:39 ), but he does not here explain them, as he did before (see Introduction, § 7). Under similar circumstances he repeats himself, but he wastes not time in useless discussions with perverse opponents who will not see the truth. Of his death and resurrection, whereof Jonah was a type, they knew and understood nothing. Perhaps they thought of Jonah only as a prophet... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Matthew 16:4

The cry for a sign. It strikes us as somewhat remarkable that the contemporaries of our Lord should be inquiring a sign; for was not his work teeming with signs and wonders? Plainly the demand of the sceptical people, and the response with which Christ met it, give us another view of miracles and their relation to the evidences of Christianity from that commonly held by apologists. I. MEN DESIRE A CONVINCING SIGN OF THE TRUTH OF CHRISTIANITY . This desire is not in... read more

Group of Brands