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Commentary Index | Return to PrayerRequest.com | DownloadPaul Kretzmann Commentary - Matthew 25:41 - 25:46
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The sentence upon the unrighteous:
v. 41. Then shall He say also unto them on the left hand, Depart from Me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels.
v. 42. For I was an hungered, and ye gave Me no meat; I was thirsty, and ye gave Me no drink;
v. 43. I was a stranger, and ye took Me not in; naked, and ye clothed Me not; sick and in prison, and ye visited Me not.
v. 44. Then shall they also answer Him, saying, Lord, when saw we Thee an hungered, or athirst, or a stranger, or naked, or sick, or in prison, and did not minister unto Thee?
v. 45. Then shall He answer them, saying, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye did it not to one of the least of these, ye did it not to Me.
v. 46. And these shall go away into everlasting punishment, but the righteous into life eternal.
A fearful arraignment and a just of those on the left hand of the King: Instead of the "Blessed" which they expected a "Cursed," instead of the "Come" a "Depart from Me. " Several very important points: He does not say, Cursed of My Father, for they have brought the curse upon themselves. The everlasting fire was not prepared for them, but really only for the devil and his angels. And this fire was not prepared from the beginning of the world, God had no counsel according to which He willed the damnation of any man. They have no one to blame but themselves, this just sentence strikes them by no one's fault but their own. By the same method of appraisal of values which Christ used in the case of the righteous, they have been weighed and found wanting. They have not spent their life in the activity of good works flowing from the love of Christ. They may have gloried in deeds which are accounted great in the sight of men, and which are wont to receive headline notices in the daily papers. But in the peculiar works of true charity, in the little deeds of service from day to day, in that life of kindness which is the natural outflow of a heart filled with faith and love toward Christ, they have been altogether deficient. Therefore all their works, even those upon which they have prided themselves, were evil, since they were not of faith. And who can picture the terror of the hypocrites among the Christians, "that had the form of godliness, but denied the power thereof, when on the Last Day their lack of mercy is reckoned against them! True, if Christ were to appear in person on earth, with a proper press-agent and manager, undoubtedly the world would be willing enough to dine Him and fete Him. But that is not the service He is looking for. What is done to one of the least of these, His brethren, in simple love, flowing like a pure stream, from a heart filled with faith in Him, that is recorded as being done to Him. As for the unrighteous, their doom is sealed: everlasting punishment is their lot, while the righteous, those justified through their faith in the Redeemer, will go into everlasting life. The former, by their own fault, have forfeited the happiness of Christ's love and eternal glory; the latter, through the love and mercy of Jesus, which have become theirs by faith, will inherit the joys of everlasting blessing.
Summary.In order to emphasize the need of watchfulness and faithfulness, Jesus tells the parables of the ten virgins and of the talents, and gives a detailed description of the Last Judgment.