1. People moved away from the leper (DA, Ch. 27)
Ellen White (1827-1915): “At the sight of him the people fall back in terror. They crowd upon one another in their eagerness to escape from contact with him. Some try to prevent him from approaching Jesus, but in vain…The restored man felt that the boon of health was very precious” (DA, p. 263, 265).
Ingraham J. H (1809-1860): “…but Jesus, who never wearies doing good, called the lepers to approach. As they did so, the whole company of people, as well as the Roman soldiers, drew back to a distance, in horror at the sight of these dead – living men…at the 6touch, were instantly changed to well men, with the buoyant form, clear eye, and rich bloom of health!” (The Prince of the House of David, p. 213, 1855).
2. Pharisees accused Jesus of teaching contrary to the law of Moses (DA, Ch. 27)
Ellen White (1827-1915): “The Pharisees had asserted that Christ’s teaching was opposed to the law which God had given through Moses” (DA, p. 265).
Ingraham J. H (1809-1860): “The priests alone are offended, and speak evil of Him through envy. They say that He draws off people from the sacrifices; that He is preaching another law than that of Moses” (The Prince of the House of David, p. 167, 1855).
3. Disease is the result of sin (DA, Ch. 27)
Ellen White (1827-1915): “His disease was the result of a life of sin, and his sufferings were embittered by remorse… He was told that others as sinful and helpless as he had been healed; even lepers had been cleansed. And the friends who reported these things encouraged him to believe that he too might be cured if he could be carried to Jesus. But his hope fell when he remembered how the disease had been brought upon him. He feared that the pure Physician would not tolerate him in His presence” (DA, p. 267).
Henry Kollock (1778-1819): ““Your sins are forgiven you.” These words show that the sickness of this man was derived from some sin which he had committed. Probably his knowledge of this, and his secret self-reproaches, inspired him with a mixture of hope and fear in approaching Jesus. He is persuaded that the saviour can heal him; but at the same time he is no less persuaded that he has merited chastisement he endured, and that Jesus is acquainted with his sin. ‘It is true’ he says to himself, ‘he is able to cure me, but I am unworthy of his favour.’” (Sermons on various Subjects in Four Volumes, p. 229, 1822).
Talmage, T. De Witt (1832-1902): “He had certainly heard how Jesus had healed the leper, and though taught to believe that palsy was also a type of sin, the victim now felt that divine mercy was above sin… And with this thought the sufferer’s hopes are inspired until he insists on being taken into the presence of the Divine Physician” (Manger to Throne, p. 310, 1889 [1880]).
4. The paralytic’s ingenious idea (DA, Ch. 27, Matthew 9: 1-7)
Ellen White (1827-1915): “At his suggestion his friends bore him to the top of the house and, breaking up the roof, let him at the feet of Jesus” (DA, p. 268).
Daniel Whedon (1808-1885): “From this [the lowering of the paralytic] two things are evident: First, the man himself was probably a personage of no ordinary consequence, to presume on such a procedure; and, second, his faith must have been strong to induce him to force his bearers through such a process (Whedon’s Commentary on the Bible, 1874).
5. A prayer that is always answered (DA, Ch. 27)
Ellen White (1827-1915): “When we pray for earthly blessings, the answer to our prayer may be delayed, or God may give us something other than we ask, but not so when we ask for deliverance from sin. It is His will to cleanse us from sin, to make us His children … And “this is the confidence that we have in Him, that, if we ask anything according to His will, He heareth us” (DA, p. 266, 1898).
Newman Hall (1816-1902): “We are not to expect that all that we ask for respecting this life will be given for us, for we often desire what would do us harm. We may be sure, however, that God will give us what is best. But when we pray for blessings for our souls – for pardon, and holiness, and salvation – we may be quite certain of being answered. For we are told, that if we ask anything according to God’s will, he heareth us” (Come To Jesus, p. 18, 1861).
6. Disease was the result of sin (DA, Ch. 27)
Ellen White (1827-1915): “His disease was the result of a life of sin…” DA, p. 267).
Ingraham J. H (1809-1860): “…for it was a sin that brought on my paralysis, as a punishment for it…It was God’s punishment” (The Prince of the House of David, p. 253, 1855).
7. The question of fasting (DA, Ch. 28, Mark 2: 18; Matt 9: 14)
Ellen White (1827-1915): “The disciples of John were at this time in great sorrow… and Jesus was making no effort to release John… If John had been sent by God, why did Jesus and His disciples pursue a course so different? …. They thought there might be some foundation for the charges of the Pharisees” (DA, p. 276).
Albert Barnes (1798-1870): “It is possible that they understood that John was the forerunner of the Messiah; and if such was the case, they could not account for the fact that there was such difference between them and the disciples of Jesus… Besides, it was probable that this question was put to Jesus when John was in prison, and his disciples involved in deep grief. On account of it, observed days of fasting” (Barnes’ Notes on the Whole Bible, Matthew 9, 1834).
8. Pharisees Instigate John’s disciples against Jesus (DA, Ch. 28)
Ellen White (1827-1915): “The entertainment was given if honour of Jesus” (DA, p. 274).
Ellen White: “They next sought out the disciples of John the Baptist, and tried to set them against the Saviour” (DA, p. 275).
Ellen White: “They [John’s disciples] had sided with the Pharisees in accusing Him, when he sat with the publicans at Matthew’s feast. They had doubted His divine mission because He did not set the Baptist at liberty” (DA, p. 361).
John Gill (1697-1771): “These [John’s disciples], either hearing of the great entertainment made at Matthew’s house for Christ, and His disciples, at which they were offended; or else being moved and set on by the Pharisees, with whom they agreed in the business of fasting, came to Christ where He was; and put this question to Him. It was doubtless put by both agreeing in this matter; and which shows, that John’s disciples were instigated to it by the Pharisees” (John Gill’s Exposition on the Whole Bible, Matthew 9, 1748).
9. The presence of Jesus brought joy (DA, Ch. 28)
Ellen White (1827-1915): “The Prince of heaven was among His people. The greatest gift of God had been given to the world. Joy to the poor; for Christ had come to make them heirs of His kingdom. Joy to the rich; for He would teach them how to secure eternal riches. Joy to the ignorant; He would make them wise unto salvation. Joy to the learned; He would open to them deeper mysteries than they had ever fathomed; truths that had been hidden from the foundation of the world would be opened to men by the Saviour’s mission… This was not a time for them to mourn and fast” (DA, p. 277).
Daniel March (1816-1909): “the story of Bethlehem is one of great joy to all people. It is joy to the poor; for Christ comes to make them heirs of the kingdom of god. It is joy to the rich; for Christ comes to teach them how to use all their earthly possessions, so as to lay up for themselves imperishable riches in heaven; it is joy to learned; for Christ comes to unfold mysteries that have been kept secret from the foundation of the world. It is joy to the mourning and comfortless; for Christ comes to heal all sorrow… It is joy to the guilty…for Christ comes to take away transgression…” (Walks and Homes of Jesus, pp. 38, 39, 1866).
10. Call of Levi Matthew (DA, Ch. 28, Luke 5: 27)
Ellen White (1827-1915): “The calling of Matthew to be one of Christ’s disciples excited great indignation. For a religious teacher to choose a publican as one of his immediate attendants was an offense against the religious, social, and national customs” (DA, p. 273) “A Jew who accepted this office at the hands of the Romans was looked upon as betraying the honour of his nation. He was despised as an apostate, and was classed with the vilest of society” (DA, p. 272, 1898).
Stalker James (1848-1927): “Nothing that Jesus did, perhaps gave greater offense than the choice of Matthew, the tax gatherer, to be an apostle. The tax gatherers, as servants of the alien power, were hated by all who were patriotic and respectable, at once for their trade, their extortions, and their character. How could Jesus hope that respectable and learned men should enter a circle such as that which He had formed about Himself?” (The Life of Jesus Christ, p. 98, 1891).
11. The Sabbath as a sign (DA, Ch. 29)
Ellen White (1827-1915): “… Sabbath is a memorial of the work of creation… Sabbath will continue as a sign of Creator’s power… No other institution which was committed to the Jews tended so fully to distinguish them from surrounding nations as did the Sabbath… It was a token of their separation from idolatry” (DA, pp. 281, 283).
J. W. Nevin (1803-1886): “It was given from the beginning, to be a memorial of God’s sovereignty, as the Creator and Governor of the world, and was designed to be religiously observed, in pious acknowledgement of this dominion, it was regarded as a sign of the covenant that was formed between him and their nation, which had been taken out of the idolatrous world, to be his peculiar people” (A Summary of Biblical Antiquities: Compiled for the use of Sunday school Teachers, Vol. 2, p. 161, 1830).
12. Jesus said to Philip, “Follow me” (DA, Ch. 30, John 1: 43)
Ellen White (1827-1915): “He was the first disciple to whom Jesus addressed the distinct command, “Follow me” (DA, 292).
J. Sadler: “Philip was the first apostle honoured by a public call” (Sacred Records of the History of Our lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, p. 54, 1835).
B.W. Johnson (1833-1894): “This is one of the first recorded instances of the Saviour calling a disciple to follow” (People’s New Testament, 1891)
Jamieson (1802-1880): Follow me – the first express call given, the former [disciples] having come to him spontaneously (Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible, 1871).
13. Was Judas chosen by the Lord? (DA, Ch. 30, 76, Mark 3:13-19; Matt 8: 19, 20)
Ellen White (1827-1915): “While Jesus was preparing the disciples for their ordination, one who had not been summoned urged his presence among them. It was Judas Iscariot…He came forward soliciting a place in this inner circle of disciples…. Jesus neither repulsed nor welcomed him, but uttered only the mournful words: “The foxes have holes, and the birds of the air have nests… The disciples were anxious that Judas should become one of their member. He was of commanding appearance, a man of keen discernment and executive ability, and they commended him to Jesus as one who would greatly assist Him in his work” (DA, pp. 293, 294)
Ellen White (1827-1915): “Judas had joined the disciples when multitudes were following Christ. …He witnessed the Saviour’s mighty works in healing the sick, casting out devils, and rising the dead. …and desired to be with Him…The Saviour did not repulse Judas. He gave him place among the twelve” (DA, pp. 716, 717).
William Hanna (1808-1882): “We read of one who, with great profession of attachment, volunteered to become a disciple, saying, “Master, I will follow thee withersoever thou goest.” Whom Jesus neither rejected nor welcomed, meeting his declaration of adherence with the omnious words, “The foxes have holes…” If, as some have thought, the man who came forward in this way and presented himself into the discipleship was Judas – if he was a man of acknowledged ability and considerable influence, whom no one at the time had the slightest reason to suspect, who was welcomed by all the other disciples, and commended by them to their Master as a most desirable associate – if the rejection of a man in such circumstances would have seemed to be an act of caprice without known or apparent reason, this might serve perhaps in some slight degree to explain to us how Judas came at first to be membered with the twelve. Many will feel as if there were something like profanity in any conjecture of this kind, and all will be satisfied simply to accept the fact that Jesus chose those twelve men, and yet that one of them was a devil” (Life of Christ, p. 214, 1863).
F. W. Krummacher (1796-1868): “The appearance of the fairest of the children of men in the glory of His marvellous deeds, attracted him, in His character of saviour and the Friend of sinners. He swore fealty to the banner of Jesus with youthful enthusiasm… [Jesus] Confidently admitted him into the circle of His nearest and most intimate disciples” (The Suffering Saviour, pp. 64, 65, 1859 [1855]).
14. God’s care over his children (DA, Ch. 31)
Ellen White (1827-1915): “All who have chosen God’s service are to rest in His care. Christ pointed to the birds flying in the heavens, to the flowers of the field, and bade His hearers consider these objects of God’s creation. “Are not ye of much more value than they?” He said. Matthew 6:26, R. V. The measure of divine attention bestowed on any object is proportionate to its rank in the scale of being. The little brown sparrow is watched over by Providence. The flowers of the field, the grass that carpets the earth, share the notice and care of our heavenly Father. The great Master Artist has taken thought for the lilies, making them so beautiful that they outshine the glory of Solomon. How much more does He care for man, who is the image and glory of God. He longs to see His children reveal a character after His similitude. As the sunbeam imparts to the flowers their varied and delicate tints, so does God impart to the soul the beauty of His own character.
All who choose Christ’s kingdom of love and righteousness and peace, making its interest paramount to all other, are linked to the world above, and every blessing needed for this life is theirs. In the book of God’s providence, the volume of life, we are each given a page. That page contains every particular of our history; even the hairs of the head are numbered. God’s children are never absent from His mind” (DA, p. 313).
John Harris (1802-1856): “He leads them abroad into the open fields of nature, and lo, on touching their eyes, he surprises them with the sight of the hand which upholds the world, employed in painting the lily of the field, feeding the fowls of the air, and adjusting and succoring the descent of the falling sparrow. He appeals to every drop of rain, and every ray of light shed on an unthankful world; and they confirm his testimony to the supreme goodness.
But he informs the disciples that the amount of divine attention bestowed on any given object, is proportioned to the rank which that object occupies in the scale of creation. If the grass of the field, then, share so much of the divine attention, can we form exaggerated ideas of the regard which he bestows on man?… He lays open their inspection the volume of providence, and turning to the name of each one in succession, shows him that in that volume each has a page; that he has never been absent from the mind of God; that the page assigned to him contains every particular of his history, even to the numbered hairs of his head” (The Great teacher, p. 100, 1835).
15. With authoritative voice Jesus commands the young man to rise (DA, Ch. 32)
Ellen White (1827-1915): “In clear, authoritative voice the words are spoken, “Young man, I say unto thee, Arise.” That voice pierces the ears of the dead. The young man opens his eyes. Jesus takes him by the hand, and lifts him up” (DA, p. 318).
Talmage, T. De Witt (1832-1902): “Jesus stood over the body, and with majestic and authoritative call said, Young man, I say unto thee, Arise!”” (Manger to Throne, p. 335, 1889 [1880]).
16. The funeral train returns to Nain (DA, Ch. 32, Matthew 8:5-13; Luke 7:1-17)
Ellen White(1827-1915): “That God hath visited His people. The funeral train returned to Nain as a triumphal procession” (DA, p. 319).
Ingraham J. H (1809-1860): “…the solemnity of the funeral train was so suddenly changed to a confused multitude, rendering the sky with loud acclamations. The whole body of people was pressing back towards the city” (The prince of the House of David, p. 260, 1855).
Ingraham J. H (1809-1860): “…the multitude surrounded the restored young man, and proceeded to escort him back to the city” (The Prince of the House of David, p. 233, 1855).
17. A home Jesus often retired to (DA, Ch. 33, Matt 12:22-50; Mark 3:20-35)
Ellen White (1827-1915): “There was one home that He loved to visit, – the home of Lazarus, and Marry, and Martha; …” (DA, p. 326).
Ellen White: “At the home of Lazarus, Jesus often found rest…He had been glad to escape to this peaceful household, away from the suspicion and jealousy of the angry Pharisees. Here he found a sincere welcome, and pure, holy friendship. Here he could speak with simplicity and perfect freedom” (DA, p. 524, 1898).
Ingraham J. H (1809-1860): “Their humble dwelling was the home of hospitality and kindness, and tither the prophet of God, Jesus, loveth to resort whenever his great labors will permit him” (The Prince of the House of David, pp. 265, 266, 1855).
Cunningham Geikie (1824-1906): “In this sequestered spot, on the edge of the great wilderness of Judea, Jesus found a delightful retreat in the vine – covered cottage of Martha and Mary and their brother Lazarus. Loving and beloved, it always offered a peaceful retirement from confusion and danger of the temple courts,… It was the one spot so far as we know, that he could call home in the last months, but it was apparently the sweetest and best loved, He had ever had (Life and Words of Christ, Vol. ii, p. 310, 1879).
Daniel March (1816-1909): “If a home on earth could be free from the anxiety, the suspense and the silent anguish of waiting on the sick and the dying, it would seem that it should be the home where Jesus so often sought refuge from the cold and contentious world and ever found sympathizing friends and a welcome hospitality, ….it must be the one towards which Jesus was drawn by ties of the deepest and most constant love” (Walks and Homes of Jesus, p. 229, 1866).
18. Christ our brother on the throne (DA, Ch. 34)
Ellen White (1827-1915): “The Elder Brother of our race is by the eternal throne” (DA, p. 329).
Ellen White (1827-1915): “He is our Sacrifice, our Advocate, our Brother, bearing our human form before the Father’s throne, and through eternal ages one with the race He has redeemed—the Son of man (SC, p. 14, 1892).
Isaac Ambrose (1604-1664): “As their Father is in heaven, and their Saviour is in heaven, their husband is in heaven, their elder brother is in heaven, and their king is in heaven” (Works of Isaac Ambrose, p. 411, 1828).
John Ross Mac Duff (1818-1895): “What ought to be the church’s and the believers joy at beholding the friend of all friends – the Brother of brothers – set as king on His holy hill of Zion… Christians, you can look to the everlasting home of the bliss and say, I have a Brother on that throne!” (Memories of Olivet, pp. 349, 352, 1868).
19. The disciples fled in terror at the approach of the demoniacs
(DA, Ch. 35, Matthew 8:23-34)
Ellen White (1827-1915): “The disciples and their companions fled in terror; but presently they noticed that Jesus was not with them, and they turned to look for Him. He was standing where they had left Him… Jesus raised that hand which had beckoned the waves to rest, and the men could come no nearer” DA, p. 337).
John Fleetwood: “The disciples were terrified at the approach of these furious mortals; but soon Jesus dissipated their fears, commanding, while the men were at a distance, the devils to come out of them” (The Life of Our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, p .55, 1821).
Thomas Brown (1778-1820): “Jesus, observing the terrified disciples at the approach of these furious madmen, dispelled their fears immediately; for while the men were yet a considerable distance, he commanded the devils to come out of them… Thus did Jesus command the devil to be gone while the madman was at a distance, in order to remove the fears which his approach had occasioned in his disciples” (The Self-explanatory History and Life of Our Blessed Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ, p. 153, 1814).
20. Two madmen (Demon possessed) rushed upon them (DA, Ch. 35)
Ellen White (1827-1915): “From some hiding place among the tombs, two madmen rushed upon them as if to tear them in pieces” (DA, p. 337).
William Hanna (1808-1882): “From his lair among the graves the devil – haunted madman rushed upon Jesus. His neighbors [disciples] had all fled terrified before him” (The Life of Christ, p. 263, 1863).
Thomas Brown (1778-1820): “Jesus, observing the terrified disciples at the approach of these furious madmen, dispelled their fears immediately; for while the men were yet a considerable distance, he commanded the devils to come out of them” (The Self-explanatory History and Life of Our Blessed Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ, p. 153, 1814).
Note: Gospel writers never called the demon possessed ‘madmen’ or a ‘madman’, as Ellen White does. I do not blame her because she had copied from someone else, as God commanded her. Here is another example of her employing ‘madman’ to spirit of unclean devil: “A madman rushed forward from among the people, crying out, “Let us alone”. – Luke 4: 33. DA, p. 255.
