An Exposition

of

The Gospels

consisting of

An Analysis of each Chapter

and of a

Commentary

critical, exegetical, doctrinal, and moral

BY HIS GRACE THE MOST REV. DR. MacEVILLY

archbishop of tuam

fourth edition, revised and corrected

“Go ye into the whole world and preach the Gospel to every creature. He that believeth and is baptized, shall be saved; but he that believeth not, shall be condemned.”—Mark 16:15, 16.

“And how shall they preach unless they be sent?”—Rom. 10:15.

Dublin:

m. h. gill & son, 50 upper o’connell street.

New York:

benziger brothers, 113 broadway.

1898.

General Introduction

A considerable period has now elapsed since I first ventured on laying before the public a Commentary on the Epistles of St. Paul, and those commonly called Catholic. I resolved at the time to continue these Scriptural subjects with a similar Commentary on the Four Gospels, and the Acts of the Apostles. Circumstances, however, soon changed; and from the retirement of college life, so well suited for such studies, I found myself unexpectedly charged with varied and multiplied duties of the gravest nature, which it would be criminal to overlook or neglect. I was, in consequence, reluctantly forced to give over, for a time, the almost constant and uninterrupted application which the publication of a Scriptural Commentary would almost exclusively demand. I was determined, however, not to lose sight of my original design of publishing a Commentary on the Gospels; any spare time I had on hands from episcopal or missionary duties, I devoted to this study particularly. The reading over voluminous Commentaries involved no small amount of labour, to me by no means distasteful, as well as the sacrifice of other important studies. The following Commentary on St. Matthew and St. Mark is partly the result. The notes which I made on St. Luke, St. John, and the Acts, are not yet arranged for publication. I trust to be able, in a short time, to publish them in a supplemental volume. It is right to inform, at least some of my readers, that the Commentary on St. Matthew almost fully embraces the two other synoptical Gospels, as they are called, of Mark and Luke. The reader of the Commentary on St. Matthew will be able to perceive that most of the Gospel of St. Luke is included in the Commentary on Matthew and Mark. From St. Matthew’s Gospel, St. Luke differs but very little, save as regards the two first chapters in the Gospel of the latter (having reference chiefly to the facts and circumstances connected with the birth and infancy of the Baptist, the birth and infancy of our Blessed Lord), and some few parables not contained in the Gospel of St. Matthew. A large portion of St. John, particularly in what regards our Lord’s Passion, has been commented on, by anticipation, in St. Matthew.

The great favour with which the Commentary on the Epistles has been received, as it has already reached a third edition, after having been a considerable time out of print, for want of time to ...