Matthew 8:21

Matthew 8:21

19 ^aThen a certain scribe came and said to Him, “Teacher, I will follow You wherever You go.”

20 And Jesus said to him, “Foxes have holes and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay His head.”

21 ^aThen another of His disciples said to Him, “Lord, ^blet me first go and bury my father.”

22 But Jesus said to him, “Follow Me, and let the dead bury their own dead.”

Wind and Wave Obey Jesus

23 Now when He got into a boat, His disciples followed Him.

24 ^aAnd suddenly a great tempest arose on the sea, so that the boat was covered with the waves. But He was asleep.

Commentaries:

Robertson's Word Pictures (NT)

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Matthew 8:22 >>

And bury my father (kai qayai ton patera mou). The first man was an enthusiast. This one is overcautious. It is by no means certain that the father was dead. Tobit urged his son Tobias to be sure to bury him: "Son, when I am dead, bury me" (Tobit 4:3). The probability is that this disciple means that, after his father is dead and buried, he will then be free to follow Jesus. "At the present day, an Oriental, with his father sitting by his side, has been known to say respecting his future projects: 'But I must first bury my father!'" (Plummer). Jesus wanted first things first. But even if his father was not actually dead, service to Christ comes first.

**Other Robertson's Word Pictures (NT) entries containing Matthew 8:21:**

Matthew 8:19
Luke 9:57
Luke 9:59

<< Matthew 8:20

Matthew 8:22 >>

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