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In this message we come to the establishment of the King’s rejection (Matt. 12:1-50).
The reason for the rejection of the Lord was the breaking of the Sabbath (Matt. 12:1-14).
Matt. 12:1 says, “At that time Jesus went on the Sabbath through the grain fields; and His disciples were hungry and began to pick the ears and to eat.” “At that time” joins chapter twelve to chapter eleven. At the time the Lord called people to rest from striving to keep the law and religious regulations, He went on the Sabbath through the grain fields, and His disciples began to pick the ears and to eat, seemingly breaking the Sabbath. Remember, in his record Matthew puts certain facts together to present a doctrine. The record in the other gospels is not exactly the same as the record here. The phrase “at that time” is very important. It refers to the time of calling people into His rest. At that time, all His disciples were hungry. Whenever we are hungry, we do not have rest. Rest includes satisfaction. When you are satisfied, you are at rest. But if you do not have satisfaction, you do not have rest.
When the Lord called people into rest, His disciples were hungry. For this reason, He brought them to the grain fields, fields growing wheat. No doubt He knew that these fields were rather ripe, full of ears good for eating. The Lord Jesus purposely did this. Realizing that His disciples were hungry, He took them to the grain fields for rest. This is a sign. The call to come to Him for rest given in chapter eleven was sounded on the Sabbath day. This is proved by the words “at that time” which begin chapter twelve. The Sabbath was a day of rest. On the day of rest the Lord called people into rest. He seemed to be saying, “You people are keeping the Sabbath, yet you are still laboring and striving to keep the law. You are heavily burdened with all the laws, rituals, forms, and regulations. Although you are keeping the Sabbath outwardly, actually you do not have any rest. You need to come to Me. You labor and are burdened with the matter of law keeping. Come to Me, and you will find rest.” Peter and John might have said, “We are hungry and cannot rest. We need something to eat.” But that day was the Sabbath, and virtually all activity had ceased. Hence, it was difficult for the disciples to find anything to eat. Knowing this, the Lord Jesus took them into the grain fields.
Years ago I could not understand why the Lord Jesus did this. Now I understand that He did it because He had called people into His rest on the Sabbath. He knew that His disciples were hungry and that, because it was the Sabbath, it was difficult to find something to eat. They could not buy anything, do anything, or go anywhere. The disciples could have said, “Lord Jesus, what shall we do? You have called us to come to You for rest; but we are hungry, and there seems to be no way for us to get anything to eat. How can we rest when we have such hunger?” The disciples were under the burden of keeping the Sabbath regulations. These regulations had become a heavy burden to the hungry disciples. Thus, the Lord Jesus took the lead not to keep these regulations by bringing His disciples out of a regulation-keeping situation into the grain fields. The Lord’s intention in doing this was to free the disciples from the Sabbath-keeping regulations. When they came into the grain fields, everyone was freed from this burden and was satisfied. Everyone entered into rest. This is the background of the Lord’s rejection in chapter twelve. Should the disciples suffer hunger and keep the Sabbath, or should they forget the Sabbath and find something to eat to satisfy their hunger? The Lord took the lead to bring His hungry disciples into the grain fields where they all found something to eat.
Verse 2 says, “But the Pharisees seeing it said to Him, Behold, your disciples are doing what is not lawful to do on the Sabbath.” The Pharisees, the “Sabbath Patrol,” caught the Lord Jesus and His disciples. They must have been watching the Lord. Otherwise, why would they have been in the grain fields on the Sabbath day? The Pharisees must have been deliberately following Him and spying on Him.
The Pharisees condemned what the Lord’s disciples were doing, saying it was not lawful on the Sabbath. The Sabbath was for the Jews to remember the completion of God’s creation (Gen. 2:2), to keep the sign of God’s covenant with them (Ezek. 20:12), and to remember God’s redemption for them (Deut. 5:15). Hence, to profane the Sabbath was a serious matter in the eyes of the religious Pharisees. To them it was not lawful, not scriptural. But they did not have adequate knowledge of the Scripture. According to their meager knowledge, they cared for the ritual of keeping the Sabbath, not for the hunger of the people. What folly to observe a vain ritual!
This environment afforded the Lord Jesus the opportunity to reveal more of Himself. To the Pharisees, Jesus had been caught. But to the Lord Jesus this was an opportunity to reveal both to them and to His disciples who He was. Thus far, He had been revealed as the Physician, the Bridegroom, the Shepherd, and the Lord of the harvest. After being caught by the Pharisees, the Lord revealed Himself in at least five other major aspects.
According to verses 3 and 4, the Lord asked the Pharisees, “Have you not read what David did when he was hungry and those who were with him; how he entered into the house of God, and they ate the showbread, which was not lawful for him to eat, nor for those who were with him, but for the priests only?” The Pharisees said that it was not lawful for the Lord’s disciples to pick the ears in the grain fields and to eat, condemning them for acting contrary to the Scriptures. But the Lord answered, “Have you not read,” pointing out to them another aspect in the Scriptures that justified Him and His disciples. This condemned the Pharisees for lacking adequate knowledge of the Scriptures. The Lord Jesus seemed to be saying, “You come here to catch Me according to the Scriptures. Do not think that you know the Bible so well. You only know it in part, in a very superficial way. You have never touched the depths of the Scriptures. You might have read it, but you do not understand it. Read about what David did when he and those with him were hungry. They ate something, the showbread in the temple, which according to the Levitical regulations they should not have eaten. You Pharisees think that I have done something illegal. But have you not read that David and his followers did the same thing?” We must admire the Lord’s knowledge of the Bible.
The Lord’s word here implies that He was the real David. In ancient times, David and his followers, when rejected, entered into the house of God and ate the showbread, seemingly breaking the Levitical law. Now the real David and His followers were also rejected and took action to eat, seemingly against the sabbatical regulation. Just as David and his followers were not held guilty, neither should Christ and His disciples be condemned. Both cases were related to eating. King David was a prefigure of Christ, the real David. David had followers, and Christ, the real David, also had disciples as His followers. King David and his followers were rejected by the people, and the real David and His followers were rejected also. Just as David and his followers were hungry, so Christ and His disciples were also hungry. Furthermore, neither David and his followers nor Christ and His followers had anything to eat, but there was the place where there was something to eat. For David it was the house of God, and for Christ it was the grain fields. All this implies that David and his followers were a type, a shadow, of Christ and His disciples.
Furthermore, the Lord’s word here also implies the dispensational change from the priesthood to the kingship. In ancient times, the coming of David changed the dispensation from the age of the priests to the age of the kings, in which the kings were above the priests. In the age of the priests, the leader of the people should listen to the priest (Num. 27:21-22). But in the age of the kings, the priest should submit to the king (1 Sam. 2:35-36). Hence, what King David did with his followers was not illegal. Now by the coming of Christ, the dispensation was also changed, this time from the age of the law to the age of grace, in which Christ was above all. Whatever He did was right. The matter of keeping the Sabbath belonged to the old dispensation of the law. But in the age of grace Christ has the final word. It is not a matter of the law, but of Christ. Therefore, the Lord seemed to be saying to the Pharisees, “You shouldn’t condemn Me or My disciples. It is no longer the law that gives the final word, but I, the Christ, I give you the final word. I am the real King, the real David. I am also the Christ who has brought in the dispensation of grace. Thus, whatever I say or do is the final decision.” Supposedly the Pharisees knew the Bible, but here they clearly lost the case. How strong was the Lord’s defense!
In verse 5 the Lord asked the Pharisees, “Or have you not read in the law that on the Sabbaths the priests in the temple profane the Sabbath and are guiltless?” The Lord brought to the attention of the Pharisees another case in the Scriptures to prove to them how little they really knew the Bible. He pointed out that whatever the priests did in the temple on the Sabbath, they were guiltless.
Then in verse 6 the Lord declared, “Now I say to you that a greater than the temple is here.” What boldness the Lord had! He was a Nazarene, but as He stood before the Pharisees He seemed to be saying, “Look at Me. I am greater than the temple.” The Pharisees must have been shocked to such an extent that they could not say anything.
The Lord’s revealing to the Pharisees that He was greater than the temple was another change, a type-fulfilling change from the temple to a Person. In the case of David, it was a change from one age to another. In this case, a case concerning the priests, it was a change from the temple to a Person who is greater than the temple. Since the priests were guiltless in doing things on the Sabbath in the temple, how could the Lord’s disciples be guilty in doing things on the Sabbath in Him who is greater than the temple? In the first case, it was the king breaking the Levitical regulation; in the second case, it was the priests breaking the sabbatical regulation. In the Scripture, neither was guilty. Hence, what the Lord did here was scripturally right.
Apparently the priests were profaning the Sabbath, but actually they were not profaning the Sabbath, because they were in the temple. In that sphere every day and everything were holy. Outside the temple everything was common. But once something was brought into the temple, it was sanctified by the temple. Likewise, every day was sanctified by the temple. Outside the temple, there were common days and holy days, but within the temple there was no such distinction. Everything, every day, every matter, and everyone in the temple were holy. The temple, however, was a shadow, not the reality. The reality is Christ, the greater temple. The Lord seemed to be saying, “I am the greater temple, the real temple. In Me, Peter, John, and all the Galilean fishermen are sanctified, holy. In Me every day is a holy day. If the priests were free to move and engage in various activities on the Sabbath in the temple, then how much more can these dear ones freely do things within Me? The temple protected the priests, and I, the greater temple, protect all My disciples. Pharisees, don’t bother Me. Let My disciples be free, for they are all in the greater temple.” This was a change from the type to the reality. The Lord’s defense was too deep for the Pharisees to argue with. They had nothing with which to counter the Lord’s defense. Thus, they were silent.
Following this, the Lord said, “But if you had known what this is: I will have mercy and not sacrifice, you would not have condemned the guiltless” (v. 7). By this, the Lord pointed out that what the Pharisees did was not according to God’s heart. They were strict in the regulations, but neglected God’s mercy. But God desires to have mercy rather than sacrifice.
Finally, in verse 8 the Lord said, “For the Son of Man is Lord of the Sabbath.” How bold the Lord Jesus was! He won the case, and the Pharisees, who were shocked and frightened, were silenced. They had nothing to say. The Lord’s telling the Pharisees that He was Lord of the Sabbath was like someone today telling a highway patrolman that he is lord of the highway. Suppose you are stopped by a highway patrolman. Then you tell him, “Don’t bother me. I am the lord of the highway, and the highway belongs to me. You are simply a highway patrolman hired by me. As the lord of the highway, I can change all the regulations. Yes, I gave you some instructions concerning the highway, but now I am changing them. Because I am the lord of the highway, I don’t need to notify you about it.”
In verse 8 the Lord indicated a third change, a right-asserting change from the Sabbath to the Lord of the Sabbath. As the Lord of the Sabbath, He had the right to change the regulations concerning the Sabbath. Thus, the Lord gave the condemning Pharisees a threefold verdict. He was the real David, the greater temple, and the Lord of the Sabbath. Therefore, He could do whatever He liked on the Sabbath, and whatever He did was justified by Himself. He was above all rituals and regulations. Because He was there, no attention should be paid to any rituals and regulations.
Verse 9 says, “And departing from there, He came into their synagogue.” After winning the case with the Pharisees, the Lord Jesus came into their synagogue. This took place on another Sabbath day (Luke 6:6). The Lord Jesus certainly was a troublemaker. After causing trouble in the grain fields, defeating the “Sabbath Patrol,” according to Matthew’s record He went with His disciples to the synagogue to cause even more trouble.
In the synagogue was a man with a withered hand. When the Pharisees inquired of the Lord whether it was lawful to heal on the Sabbath, He said to them, “What man shall there be of you who shall have one sheep, and if it fall into a pit on the Sabbaths, will he not lay hold of it and lift it out? Of how much more value then is a man than a sheep! Wherefore it is lawful to do good on the Sabbaths” (vv. 11-12). Here we see the Lord’s wisdom. This time He did not quote a verse, but He referred to their practice. In other words, in the first case the Lord quoted from the Bible, and in the second He appealed to history. Once again their mouths were shut.
Verse 13 says, “Then He says to the man, Stretch out your hand. And he stretched it out, and it was restored sound as the other.” The Lord gave the man the word, “Stretch out your hand.” In the Lord’s word was the enlivening life. By stretching out his hand, the man took the Lord’s life-giving word, and his withered hand was restored by the life in this word.
Leading the disciples into the grain fields indicates that the Lord cares for Himself as the Head of the Body. As the Head, He is everything — the real David, the greater temple, and the Lord of the Sabbath. Restoring the withered hand signifies that He cares for His members. He healed a man’s withered hand, likening this man to a sheep. The hand is a member of the body, and the sheep is a member of the flock. The Lord would do anything for the healing of His members, for the rescue of His fallen sheep. Sabbath or no Sabbath, the Lord is interested in healing the dead members of His Body. Regulations do not matter, but the rescue of His fallen sheep means everything to Him.
Instead of reading Matthew as a book of stories or merely as a book of doctrine, we must get into the depths of this book. By putting these two cases together, we see that in the first case Christ took care of Himself as the Head and in the second He took care of the members of His Body. The hand is a member of the body, and the sheep is part of a flock, which also refers to the Body. In the first case the Lord Jesus took care of His lordship, of His headship. In the second case He took care of one of His weak, sickly members. He does not care for the Sabbath. He cares only for His headship and for the members of His Body, Therefore, we must conclude that the Lord cares only for Christ and the church. The Lord could say, “The Sabbath means nothing. I don’t care for that. I care for My headship and for the members of My Body. Because I am the Head, the Lord, whatever I say is right. I care for My headship. And I also care for My members. I want to make My members living. I want to rescue them, uplift them, and heal them. I don’t care for all these doctrinal, religious practices. I care only that My members are strong and living.” On the heart of this heavenly King was not the Sabbath, not any kind of doctrine, and not any regulation. Rather, on His heart was His lordship. We must see that He is Lord and that He is above the Sabbath. The Sabbath is merely an instrument used by Him, but He Himself is the Lord of the Sabbath. The Lord also cares for His members, including any member of His Body who is sick, weak, or in a difficult situation. He will do something for that member to rescue him, to heal him, and to make him living. I look to the Lord that we all would see this.
The principle is the same today. As long as we are for Christ and for the church with all the members, everything is all right. There is no burden or regulation. On the Sabbath the twelve apostles were satisfied and at rest, and on the Sabbath the man with the withered hand was also at rest. Thus, these were genuine Sabbaths to the disciples and to the man with the withered hand because they received either the nourishment from Christ or the healing from Christ. Whatever they needed they received from Him. It is the same today.
Verse 14 says, “And going out, the Pharisees took counsel against Him, how they might destroy Him.” In the eyes of the religious Pharisees, for the Lord to break the Sabbath was to destroy the covenant of God with the nation of Israel, that is, to destroy the relationship between God and Israel. Hence, they took counsel against Him, how they might destroy Him. The breaking of the Sabbath caused the Jewish religionists to reject the heavenly King. The Pharisees, the scriptural ones, plotted to kill Jesus for God! This is difficult to believe. But they were blinded by their religion. They could see neither Christ nor the church, neither the Head nor the members. They were absolutely blinded, veiled, covered, by their religion. According to their understanding, the Lord Jesus had to be destroyed, and they took counsel together for this very purpose. Eventually, they did put Christ on the cross; however, they did it according to the sovereignty of God.
At this point, 12:14, the rejection of Christ by religion reaches its peak. Religion has fully rejected the heavenly King and has plotted to destroy Him.
This rejection caused the King with His kingly salvation to turn from the Jews to the Gentiles (12:15-21). Verse 15 says, “But Jesus, knowing it, departed from there.”
Verse 15 also says that many followed Him and that He healed them all. According to verse 16, He “warned them that they should not make Him known.” He warned them regarding this because the Pharisees were plotting to destroy Him. Therefore, from that time onward, the Lord Jesus did His best to conceal Himself.
Verses 17 and 18 say, “That what was spoken through Isaiah the prophet might be fulfilled, saying, Behold, My Servant Whom I have chosen, My Beloved in Whom My soul delights; I will put My Spirit upon Him, and He shall announce judgment to the nations.” This indicates clearly that due to the Jews’ rejection, the heavenly King with His heavenly kingdom will turn to the nations, the Gentiles, and that the Gentiles will receive Him and trust in Him (v. 21).
Verse 19, also a quotation from Isaiah, says, “He shall not strive nor cry out, nor shall anyone hear His voice in the streets.” This indicates that He was no longer free to minister openly. Instead, He had to hide Himself. The reason for the rejection and the cause for the Lord’s needing to hide was the breaking of the religious regulations. This was due to caring for His headship and for the members of His Body. Because of this, the rejection reached the ultimate. It is the same in principle today. The less we care for religious regulations and the more we care for Christ and His Body, the more intense the opposition will be.
Verse 20, a further quotation from Isaiah, says, “A bruised reed He shall not break, and smoking flax He shall not quench, until He brings forth judgment unto victory.” As the One anointed with the Spirit, Christ not only will make no noise in the streets, but He will not break a bruised reed or quench smoking flax. This indicates that while He was being rejected and opposed, He was still full of mercy. The Jews who were opposing Him were like bruised reeds and smoking flax. The Jews used to make flutes or reeds. When a reed was bruised, they broke it. They also made torches with flax to burn oil. When the oil ran out, the flax smoked, and they quenched it. Some of the Lord’s people are like the bruised reed that cannot give a musical sound; others are like the smoking flax that cannot give a shining light. Yet the Lord will not break the bruised ones or quench the smoking ones. Although the Lord was rejected, He was still merciful. Even those who had become bruised reeds He would not break, and those who had become smoking flax He would not quench. Rather, He would still keep open the door of mercy and grace to them all. Among His followers and believers today, many have become bruised reeds that can no longer give a musical song. As a rule, these bruised reeds should be broken and thrown away. But Christ will not do this. Moreover, many of His believers no longer burn as a bright light. As a rule, He should quench them all and cast them away. But He will not do this either. Instead, He is merciful. No matter how much opposition, persecution, and attack, this heavenly King is always merciful. He is a merciful, kingly Savior. You may reject Him today, but He will still be merciful to you. Tomorrow if you say, “Lord Jesus, I repent,” He will deal with you lovingly. What a merciful Savior He is! He will never break a bruised reed or quench smoking flax. Rather, He would wait for you to receive His mercy and grace.
Verse 21 says, “And in His name the nations shall hope.” Due to the rejection by the Jewish religionists, the heavenly King with His salvation turned to the nations. Now the nations put their hope in His name, believing in Him and receiving Him as their kingly Savior.
This portion of the Word reveals that, on the one hand, the Lord is bold and that, on the other hand, He is merciful. On the one hand, He is strong; on the other hand, He is merciful and meek. This is the King who established the kingdom of the heavens, and this is the way for Him to establish His kingdom. Do not think that in chapter twelve the Lord was defeated. That is a mistaken concept. He was not defeated; He was establishing His kingdom. It is the same with us today. Do not say, “There is so much attack and opposition. Many rumors are being spread against us. How difficult it is for the Lord’s recovery. The recovery will be defeated.” This is wrong. Although we are so small in number, it seems that all of Christianity is rising up against us. But actually we are not wrong. Who loves the Bible and knows it more than we do? Do we not live in the presence of God and love the Lord Jesus? Do we not take Him as our life day by day? Then why do so many dear Christians oppose us and not others? It is the same today with us as it was with the Lord Jesus when He was on earth. Although He was a little man, the enemy of God knew that He was the One who would defeat him and establish the kingdom of the heavens. The principle is the same today. The enemy knows that this is the Lord’s recovery and that the recovery will defeat him and establish the kingdom of the heavens. Never consider the Lord’s recovery as an ordinary Christian work. The more opposition, persecution, criticism, and attacks there are, the more we are confirmed. Do not expect the opposition to decline. If no one opposed us, that would be a sign that we are wrong, that we have lost the testimony. But as long as we are being opposed and attacked, this is an indication that we are right. Instead of losing by being attacked, we are gaining. This is the way the kingdom of the heavens is built. It is built through being attacked, persecuted, and criticized. In Matthew chapter twelve the Lord Jesus was not losing the battle — He was gaining. It is the same today. Praise the Lord that we do not fight the battle in a human way, but in the way of the Lord Jesus. While He was being attacked, He was gaining the victory. Likewise, the more the recovery is attacked, the more the kingdom of the heavens will be established. Without doubt, it is being established among us in the Lord’s recovery. Praise Him!
