Jesus was a refuge like a mother hen

JESUS WAS A REFUGE LIKE A MOTHER HEN
EDITED BY GLENN PEASE
Matthew 23:37 37"Jerusalem, Jerusalem,you who kill
the prophets and stone those sent to you, how often I
have longed to gather your children together, as a hen
gathers her chicks under her wings, and you were not
willing.
New Living Translation
“O Jerusalem,Jerusalem, the city that kills the
prophets and stones God’s messengers! How often I
have wanted to gather your children together as a hen
protects her chicks beneath her wings, but you
wouldn’t let me.
BIBLEHUB RESOURCES
The Lament Over Jerusalem
Matthew 23:37
W.F. Adeney

These are among the most touching words ever uttered by our Lord. They
revealhis strong patriotism, his deep human affection, the greatness ofthe
salvationhe brought, and at the same time the frustration of the hopes which
these things naturally raise, owing to the stubborn self-will of the Jews. Here
is a lessonfor all time.
I. THE GUILTY CITY.
1. No city was more privileged. Jerusalemwas the favoured city of a favoured
land. David, the greatsinger, celebratedher praises;David, the greatking,
raisedher fortunes. But better than royal fame was her religious glory. Great
prophets, such as Isaiah and Jeremiah, taught in her streets. More than once
signalDivine providences helped her in direst necessity. Here was the temple
of the Divine Presence. Finallythe city was honoured by the coming of Christ.
2. No city was more sinful. When accountis takenof her privileges, Jerusalem
excels in guilt as she excels in favour. The most favoured people prove to be
the most ungrateful and rebellious. She murders her best friends. She crowns
her guilt by delivering her Christ up to death.
II. THE PITYING SAVIOUR. Jesus is grieved and loth to think of the doom
of the wickedcity.
1. It was his own city. Not his native city, but the capitalof his land, and the
royal city, to which he came as King (ch. 21:4, 5). Jesus was a patriot.
2. It was the city of God. Its ruin was like the ruin of God's owndaughter.
They who have once known God touch the heart of Christ with peculiar
compassionwhenthey lose their happy privilege.
3. It was a doomed city. Already with prophetic eye Jesus saw the Roman
legions compassing it about. It lay as the prey ready for the eagle. The heartof
Jesus grieves overthe sinner's doom.
III. THE WONDERFULSALVATION. By a homely and yet most touching
illustration Jesus tells what he has longed to do for the city in its peril.
1. He comes to save. This is his greatmission, and his salvationbegins with
"the house of Israel" (Matthew 15:24).

2. He is able to save. Jesus speakswith the utmost confidence. He can save a
whole city; nay, we know he cansave a whole world. No doubt, if Jerusalem
had acceptedChristand his teaching, the mad revolt which calleddown the
vengeance ofRome would have been prevented. But in his deeper work, as
our Lord has redeemed many of the worstprofligates, he has shownhimself
able to save all men.
3. He offers to save. The pathos of this wonderful utterance of Jesus lies in his
own heartfelt desire and its disappointment. With long suffering patience he
repeats his often-rejectedoffer. He stands at the door, and knocks.
IV. THE FINAL DOOM. The house is to be left desolate atlast.
1. There is an end to the opportunity for escape.This has lastedlong. Many
were the occasionswhenJesus would have welcomedthe people of Jerusalem,
and have extended to them his saving grace. But at last the end has come. The
day of grace must be followedby the day of judgment.
2. Even Christ's desire to save may be frustrated. It is not enoughto know
that he yearns to save. Men may be lostnow, as Jerusalemwas lost.
3. Obstinate rejectionof Christ will lead to ruin. Man's will may thus frustrate
Christ's desire. Note:It was not for stoning the prophets, but for rejecting
Christ's salvation, that Jerusalemwas ultimately doomed. Christ can save
from the worstsin; but none can be saved who wilfully reject him. - W.F.A.
Biblical Illustrator
O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, thou that killestthe prophets.
Matthew 23:37-39
The invitation refused
J. Vaughan, M. A.
Considersome of the different modes in which the rejectionof God's call has
been made. Far, all do not rejectHim alike.

I. Some will even rise up and say, "I Do NOT CONSIDERTHAT I HAVE
EVER YET BEEN CALLED."
1. Those who wish they could believe they had been called, but cannot think
such goodnews true.
2. Those who are waiting for a louder, more irresistible call, saying, "Why
does not God, if He would indeed save me, make some greatinterposition on
my behalf?" Alas for the guilty unbelief of the one, and the awful,
blasphemous presumption of the other!
II. Those who, although conscious ofhaving been called, yet treat the matter
with INDIFFERENCE. Theseare "men at ease in Zion"; familiarized with
stifled convictions; of secularhabit of mind; to whom invisible things carry no
reality in daily life. Three classesofthem depicted in Luke 14:18-20.
III. Those who recognize the importance of the Divine call, BUT WHO PUT
OFF THE ACCEPTANCE OF IT. Satandecoys them by enticing pictures of
their own future. They live in fancies of their own coming holiness, thinking
that to-morrow's goodness willmake up for to-day's worldliness. Oh the sin l
As if they could command the sovereignworking ofthe Holy Ghost! As if —
having refusedHim their attention now — they may recallHim when they
please.
IV. Those who, at the time, receive," welcome,reciprocatethe love of God;
and then, when the excitement of the moment is past, THEIR FEELINGS
EVAPORATE, and nothing remains. Their religion never becomes a
principle.
V. Those who listen to the heavenly call, draw nigh, taste the heavenly gift;
and then the old, carnalnature asserts its sway, and they draw back again.
(J. Vaughan, M. A.)
God's continual calls
J. Vaughan, M. A.

Oh that "how often"!Do not let it be a mere impassioned exclamation. Make
it what it is, a distinct, definite question put to you this day — "how often?"
And what arithmetic canwrite the answer? I never yet visited a man upon a
sick-bed— I never talkedwith a single person in any of those moments which
unlock the breast, and set it free to speak its secrets — that I did not receive
this confession:"I have been greatly consciousallmy life of the inward
striving, and the oft-repeatedcalls of God in my soul." Sometimes, doubtless,
those calls fall louder and deeper upon the spiritual ear than they fall at other
times. They lie thickest, I believe, in early life. There are states ofmind we can
scarcelysayhow, and there are providential scenes we canscarcelysaywhy,
which give an intensity to those many voices, when a verse of Scripture will
sometimes roll its meaning like thunder, or when a whisper of the soul will
carry an accenttenfold with it. But the callis not confined to those specialities.
There is a "fingerof a man's hand" which is always waking the strings of
thought. It is when we lie down; it is when we rise up; it is when we sit in the
house; it is when we are walking by the way. We can see it on the little face of
early childhood, before the date when our utmost memories reach; we can
trace it in ourselves back to the utmost dawn of rising reason. Perhaps not a
room in which we have ever laid down to sleep; perhaps not a church into
which we have ever entered, even with carelessfoot;perhaps not a sin which
we ever deliberately went and did; perhaps not an incident for wealor woe
that lies on the chequered path of life, but there was something there which
swelledthat "how often?"
(J. Vaughan, M. A.)
Why the Divine invitation is refused
J. Vaughan, M. A.
Of all the refusals of God's grace, the real secretis the same. They may cover
themselves with various pretexts — just as persons, having made up their
mind to decline an invitation, begin to look out for some convenient excuse —
but the cause is one. It is not in any outward circumstances;it is not in any
particular temperament; it is not in the want of power; it is not in the

straitenings of Divine grace:but the Saviour points to it at once with His
omniscient mind — "ye would not." It is the absence ofthe will; it is the want
of that setting of the mind to God's mind; that conformity of the affections to
God's promises; that appreciationof unseen things; that spiritual sense, which
is the essence andthe beginning of a new life. Therefore they cannot come.
(J. Vaughan, M. A.)
CompassionofJesus towards the guilty
B. Beddome, M. A.
Scripture is full of the sublime and pathetic. It opens to us the very heart of
the Redeemer. Observe here —
I. THE CRUELTY AND WICKEDNESSOF THE JEWS. Theypaid no
regard to the characterand Divine commissionof God s prophets.
1. An act of greatinjustice and ingratitude.
2. An act of rebellion againstGod.
II. CHRIST'S TENDERNESSAND CARE. The hen an affectionate creature
to her young. When justice pursues, Satanassaults, andhosts of enemies
compass us round about; if we can but get under the shadow of Christ's wings
we are safe, and, being safe, may be content. The wings of Christ are so large,
they are sufficient to coverthe whole Church. They are also strong and
impenetrable, and ever stretchedout to screenus from danger.
III. CHRIST'S EARNESTNESSAND IMPORTUNITY. "Jerusalem,
Jerusalem." "How often."
IV. STUBBORNNESS AND PERVERSENESS OF THOSE SO TENDERLY
REGARDED. "Ye wouldnot." Not a want of power, but of will.
1. None continue the slaves ofSatanand sin but with their own consent.
2. Every man may be saved if he wilt.

3. Divine influence necessaryto overcome the sinner's enmity.
(B. Beddome, M. A.)
Relationshipbetweenthe Lord and His people
H. W. Beecher.
I have been raising chickens this year, and have devoted a part of my pear-
orchard to the chicken-coops;and I have been accustomedto go out mornings
and evenings to see that the boy took care of the chickens. I think I have now
about ten or fiften broods. The old hen, when watching them, would cluck;
and it was to them a warning of danger, I suppose. Theyunderstand it to
mean that they are to come in. I could not understand that language;but these
little things that had never been to schoolunderstoodinstantly just what she
said. She gave her whole self to them; and their instinct was to run under her;
and when there to lift themselves close up to her body, and gettheir warmth
from her. I have watchedthem as they did this againand again. What an idea
of the intimate and endearing relationship betweenthe soul and the Lord
Jesus Christ is conveyedin that figure.
(H. W. Beecher.)
Christ the refuge for the destitute
G. Everard, M. A.
I remember some few years ago meeting a young womanat a mission, who
said that for two years she had been trying to make herself feel her sins, and
could not. This was to her a greatgrief. I had been preaching on the words of
Christ in this verse; so I said to her, "Suppose a little chick were half frozen in
a barn-yard, and could scarcelyfeelitself alive from numbness, what would
be the best thing for it to do? Would it not be to flee at once to the warmth of
the hen's wing?" I think she saw her mistake. I think she learnt that those
who would learn more of their sin, and who desire a more contrite spirit, can

find it nowhere so surely and fully as in nearness to Jesus, trusting only in His
grace, and finding their shelter beneath His merciful wings.
(G. Everard, M. A.)
Willingness to save
W. Cadman, M. A.
I. THE MANIFESTATION OF GOD TO ISRAEL WHICH THIS VERSE
BRINGS BEFOREUS.
1. God's sovereigntyof Israel. "O Jerusalem, Jerusalem." Why should
Jerusalembe singled out from all other nations. He had a right to selectthe
depositaries ofHis truth.
2. God's grace in the messages whichHe sent to this people. "Them which are
sent unto thee."
3. God's mercy manifested in His dealings towards them.
4. God's love.
5. God's unchangeableness — "How often."
6. God's justice" Behold your house is left unto you desolate."
7. God's faithulness in the final issue of His dealings with Israel.
II. THE SPECIAL INSTRUCTIONTO OURSELVES. Learn what we have
to do with the purposes, messages,salvationof God. Like Christ, Christians
should desire and seek the salvation of men.
(W. Cadman, M. A.)
Of God's free grace and man's free will
W. Perkins.

In this invective two things are to be considered, the rebellion of Jerusalem, in
ver. 37; the punishment of this sin, ver. 38. Touching the rebellion itself, three
things are setdown —(1) the place and persons;(2) the degree and practice of
rebellion;(3) the manner and form of their rebellion. In this example of
Jerusalem's rebellionwe learn many things.(a) The vileness of man's nature,
and our violent proneness to sin.(b) To exercise ourselves in the duties of
goodness,meekness,peace to all men.(c) Not to oppose ourselves againstthe
ministers of God.
(W. Perkins.)
God's gracious dealings with sinners
J. Burns, LL. D.
I. God has desired to gather you to Himself. Have you not had gathering
mercies, invitations, appeals, providences, seasons?
II. But you have often rejectedthe overtures of Divine mercy. Your
unwillingness is the result of your ignorance of your realstate, unbelief, love
of the world, dislike to Christ's terms.
III. The obstinate rejectionof the Divine mercy must involve the sinner in
irreparable ruin. Application: In order to salvationyour will must harmonize
with the will of God. The entire responsibility is with you.
(J. Burns, LL. D.)
Privilege and duty
J. J. Sargent., PresidentDavies.
I. Jerusalem's PRIVILEGES. The natural advantages ofJerusalemwere very
great. Typical of higher spiritual privileges — the goodlyfellowship of the
prophets; the extraordinary ministrations of specialmen, raisedup and
qualified by God, and sent to warn people from their sins, and to bid them

repent and live; the personalministry of the Son of God. The mind
involuntarily turns to the privileges of England, and of London.
II. Jerusalem's SINS. Ingratitude and cruelty. Illustrates the lengths which
those will go in sin who cherish affectionfor forbidden sins, and who harden
their hearts againstDivine things.
III. Jerusalem's DOOM. Warnagainsthardness of heart and contempt of the
word and doctrine.
(J. J. Sargent.)I. Men, while they are in a state of nature, are exposedto
imminent danger. As transgressorsof the law of God they are liable to its
penalty. They overlook this danger, but it is real, and it is terrific.
II. Our Lord Jesus Christ offers Himself as a shelter againstthis danger. If He
had been a mere man He could not have been the Saviour.
III. He fulfils this function with condescending tenderness.
IV. He delivers His people by the substitution of His own life for theirs.
V. The immediate result of application to Him is safety.
VI. Men are responsible in the matter of their own salvation.
(President Davies.)
Judgment in tears
Dr. J. Harris
Such is the affecting apostrophe in which our Lord's faithful denunciations of
"Woe, woe!" terminate. Like the thunder-cloud, which, having dischargedits
bolt at the earth, weeps itself away — exhausts itself in a healing shower,
which closes the rent it had made — so His pity commiserates, andpours itself
forth over those whom, in the same breath, He had felt Himself called to
rebuke.
(Dr. J. Harris)

Christ's protection rejected
PresidentDavies.
As much as to say, as the parent bird, when she sees some bird of prey
hovering over her helpless young, gives them the signal, which nature teaches
them to understand, and spreads her wings to protect them, resolvedto
become a prey herselfrather than her tender brood; or, as she shelters them
from the rain and cold, and cherishes them under her friendly feathers, — so,
says the compassionate Redeemer, so, O Jerusalem!I see thy children, like
heedless chickens,in the most imminent danger; I see the judgments of God
hovering over them; I see the Romaneagle ready to seize them as its prey; I
see storms of vengeance readyto fall upon them; and how often have I invited
them to fly to me for shelter, and gave them the signalof their danger I how
often have I spread the wings of My protection to cover them, and keepthem
warm and safe as in My bosom! but, O lamentable I O astonishing I ye would
not! I was willing, but ye would not! The silly chickens, taughtby nature,
understand the signalof approaching danger, and immediately fly for shelter;
but ye, more silly and presumptuous, would not regard My warnings; would
not believe your danger, nor fly to Me for protection, though often — oh, how
often — warned and invited!
(President Davies.)
O Jerusalem
J. Dixon, D. D.
I. WHAT IT IS CHRIST PROPOSEDTO CONFERUPON HIS PEOPLE.
Christ not only willing but tenderly anxious to conferthe various privileges of
light and grace.
1. When our Saviour declares He would have collectedthem, He means He
would bless them with all the privileges common to that Church, of which He
was the head, and which He came to construct.

2. The moral state of the people when our Saviour statedHis willingness to
receive them to Himself. The readiness of Christ to receive any class of
sinners. The haughty Pharisee. The infidel Sadducee. They had rejectedthe
ministry of Christ. Divine love goes outtowards these.
3. Their danger.
II. THE DECLARATION of Christ respecting the means employed for our
salvation— "I would have gathered you."
1. Tenderness.
2. Long-suffering.
3. A time will come when He will leave us to our sins if we continue to spurn
Him from us.
(J. Dixon, D. D.)
Christ's pity for the sinner
B. F. Palmer, D. D
The reasons ofthis specialsympathy.
I. Christ as our Redeemerknows the dreadfulness of sin, and therefore pities
those to whom it clings.
II. He pities the sinner, knowing all that is involved in his final doom.
III. Christ is the exponent of God's infinite love to man.
IV. There is a ground for this compassionofChrist, growing out of His
knowledge ofthe completenessofHis salvationand the security of those who
acceptit.
V. The Saviour's compassionis founded upon His knowledge ofwhat the
gospelcostHim to achieve. But if Christ's poweris boundless and His pity so
great, why does He not interfere to save us anyhow? God deals with man as a
free agent.

1. The loss of the soul is self-caused.
2. How greatthe sin of refusing the gospel.
(B. F. Palmer, D. D,)
COMMENTARIES
Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers
(37) Jerusalem, Jerusalem.—Thelamentationhad been uttered once before
(Luke 13:34-35), and must, we may believe, have been presentto our Lord’s
mind when He “beheld the city and wept over it” (Luke 19:41), as He halted
on the brow of Olivet.
It should be noted that the Hebrew form of Jerusalem (Ἱερουσαλὴμ insteadof
Ἱεροσόλυμα)occurs here only in St. Matthew, as though the very syllables had
impressed themselves on the minds of men.
Thou that killestthe prophets.—The words are in the presenttense, as
embracing the past and even the future. As with a sad prescience ourLord
speaks ofthe sufferings which were in store for His messengers, andof which
the deaths of Stephen (Acts 7:60) and of James (Acts 12:2) were
representative instances. Thatthe persecutionin eachcase took a wider range,
was in the nature of the case inevitable. It is distinctly stated, indeed, that it
did so in both instances (Acts 8:1; Acts 12:1), and is implied in 1Thessalonians
2:14-15, where the “prophets” who suffered are clearlyChristian prophets,
and probably in James 5:10.
Even as a hen gathereth her chickens.—The words reproduce (if we follow the
English version), under an image of singular tenderness, the similitude of
Deuteronomy 32:11, the care of the hen for her chickens taking the place of
that of the eagle forher nestlings. Possibly, however, the contrastbetweenthe
two images lies in the English rather than the Greek, where we have the

generic term, “as a bird gatherethher brood.” The words “how often” may be
noted as implying (though they occurin the Gospels thatconfine themselves to
our Lord’s Galileanministry) a yearning pity for Jerusalem, such as we
naturally associate withthe thought of His ministry in that city.
Ye would not.—No words could more emphatically state man’s fatal gift of
freedom, as shown in the power of his will to frustrate the love and pity, and
therefore the will, even of the Almighty.
BensonCommentary
Matthew 23:37. O Jerusalem, Jerusalem — The Lord Jesus having thus laid
before the Pharisees andthe Jewishnation their heinous guilt and impending
ruin, was exceedinglymoved at the thought of the calamities coming upon
them. A day or two before he had wept over Jerusalem;now he bewails it in
the most mournful accents ofpity and commisseration. Jerusalem, the vision
of peace, as the word signifies, must now be made the seatof war and
confusion: Jerusalem, that had been the joy of the whole earth, must now be a
hissing, and an astonishment, and a by-word among all nations: Jerusalem,
that had been a city compacttogether, was now to be shattered and ruined by
its own intestine broils: Jerusalem, the place that God had chosento put his
name there, must now be abandoned to spoilers and robbers. For, 1st, As its
inhabitants had their hands more deeply imbrued in the blood of the prophets
than those of other places, they were to drink more deeply than others in the
punishment of such crimes: Thou that killest the prophets, &c. And, 2d,
Jerusalemespeciallyhad rejected, and would persistin rejecting the Lord’s
Christ, and the offers of salvationmade through him, and would persecute his
servants divinely commissionedto make them these offers. The former was a
sin without remedy; this a sin againstthe remedy. How often would I have
gatheredthy children, &c. — See the wonderful grace, condescension, and
kindness of the Lord Jesus towardthose who he foresaw would in two or three
days maliciously and cruelly imbrue their hands in his blood! What a strong
idea do these tender exclamations of our Lord, which can hardly be read
without tears, give us of his unparalleled love to that ungrateful and

impenitent nation! He would have taken the whole body of them, if they would
have consentedto be so taken, into his church, and have gatheredthem all, (as
the Jews usedto speak ofproselytes,)under the wings of the divine majesty.
The words, how often would I have gathered, &c.,mark his unwearied
endeavours to protect and cherishthem from the time they were first calledto
be his people, and the following words, declarative of the opposition between
his will and theirs, but ye would not, very emphatically show their
unconquerable obstinacyin resisting the most winning and most substantial
expressions ofthe divine goodness.Thus does the Lord Jesus still call and
invite perishing sinners. But alas!the obstinacy of their own perverse and
rebellious wills too generallywithstands all the overtures of his grace:so that
eternal desolationbecomes theirportion, and they in vain wish for a repetition
of those calls when it is for ever too late.
Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary
23:34-39 Our Lord declares the miseries the inhabitants of Jerusalemwere
about to bring upon themselves, but he does not notice the sufferings he was to
undergo. A hen gathering her chickens under her wings, is an apt emblem of
the Saviour's tender love to those who trust in him, and his faithful care of
them. He calls sinners to take refuge under his tender protection, keeps them
safe, and nourishes them to eternal life. The present dispersionand unbelief of
the Jews, andtheir future conversionto Christ, were here foretold. Jerusalem
and her children had a large share of guilt, and their punishment has been
signal. But ere long, deservedvengeance willfall on every church which is
Christian in name only. In the mean time the Saviour stands ready to receive
all who come to him. There is nothing betweensinners and eternal happiness,
but their proud and unbelieving unwillingness.
Barnes'Notes on the Bible
O Jerusalem... - See the notes at Luke 19:41-42.
Would I have gathered- Would have protected and saved.
Thy children - Thy people.
Jamieson-Fausset-BrownBible Commentary

37. O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, thou that killestthe prophets, and stonestthem
which are sent unto thee, &c.—How ineffably grand and melting is this
apostrophe!It is the very heart of God pouring itself forth through human
flesh and speech. It is this incarnation of the innermost life and love of Deity,
pleading with men, bleeding for them, and ascending only to open His arms to
them and win them back by the powerof this story of matchless love, that has
conquered the world, that will yet "draw all men unto Him," and beautify and
ennoble Humanity itself! "Jerusalem"here does not mean the mere city or its
inhabitants; nor is it to be viewedmerely as the metropolis of the nation, but
as the centerof their religious life—"the city of their solemnities, whither the
tribes went up, to give thanks unto the name of the Lord"; and at this moment
it was full of them. It is the whole family of God, then, which is here
apostrophized by a name dear to every Jew, recalling to him all that was
distinctive and precious in his religion. The intense feeling that soughtvent in
this utterance comes out first in the redoubling of the opening word—
"Jerusalem, Jerusalem!" but, next, in the picture of it which He draws—"that
killestthe prophets, and stonestthem which are sent unto thee!"—not content
with spurning God's messagesofmercy, that canstnot suffer even the
messengersto live! When He adds, "How often would I have gatheredthee!"
He refers surely to something beyond the six or seventimes that He visited
and taught in Jerusalemwhile on earth. No doubt it points to "the prophets,"
whom they "killed," to "them that were sentunto her," whom they "stoned."
But whom would He have gatheredso often? "Thee," truth-hating, mercy-
spurning, prophet-killing Jerusalem—how oftenwould I have gatheredthee!
Compare with this that affecting clause in the greatministerial commission,
"that repentance and remissionof sins should be preached in His name
among all nations, beginning at Jerusalem!" (Lu 24:47). What encouragement
to the heartbrokenat their own long-continued and obstinate rebellion! But
we have not yet gotat the whole heart of this outburst. I would have gathered
thee, He says, "evenas a hen gatherethher chickens under her wings." Was
ever imagery so homely invested with such grace and such sublimity as this, at
our Lord's touch? And yet how exquisite the figure itself—of protection, rest,
warmth, and all manner of conscious well-being in those poor, defenseless,
dependent little creatures, as they creepunder and feel themselves
overshadowedby the capacious andkindly wing of the mother bird! If,

wandering beyond hearing of her peculiar call, they are overtakenby a storm
or attackedby an enemy, what canthey do but in the one case droopand die,
and in the other submit to be torn in pieces? But if they canreach in time
their place of safety, under the mother's wing, in vain will any enemy try to
drag them thence. For rising into strength, kindling into fury, and forgetting
herself entirely in her young, she will let the lastdrop of her blood be shed out
and perish in defense of her precious charge, rather than yield them to an
enemy's talons. How significant all this of what Jesus is and does for men!
Under His greatMediatorialwing would He have "gathered" Israel. Forthe
figure, see De 32:10-12;Ru 2:12; Ps 17:8; 36:7; 61:4; 63:7; 91:4; Isa 31:5; Mal
4:2. The ancient rabbins had a beautiful expressionfor proselytes from the
heathen—that they had "come under the wings of the Shekinah." Forthis last
word, see on [1352]Mt23:38. But what was the result of all this tender and
mighty love? The answeris, "And ye would not." O mysterious word!
mysterious the resistance ofsuch patient Love—mysterious the liberty of self-
undoing! The awful dignity of the will, as here expressed, might make the ears
to tingle.
Matthew Poole's Commentary
See Poole on"Matthew 23:39".
Gill's Exposition of the Entire Bible
O Jerusalem, Jerusalem,.... The metropolis of Judea, the seatof the kings of
Judah, yea, the city of the greatking; the place of divine worship, once the
holy and faithful city, the joy of the whole earth; wherefore it was strange that
the following things should be said of it. The word is repeatedto show our
Lord's affectionand concernfor that city, as well as to upbraid it with its
name, dignity, and privileges; and designs not the building of the city, but the
inhabitants of it; and these not all, but the rulers and governors of it, civil and
ecclesiastical;especiallythe greatsanhedrim, which were held in it, to whom
best belong the descriptive characters ofkilling the prophets, and stoning
them that were sent by God unto them; since it belongedto them to take
cognizance ofsuch who calledthemselves prophets, and to examine, and judge
them, and, if false, to condemn them (h); hence that saying of Christ, Luke

13:33 which goes before the same words, as here, "it cannot be that a prophet
perish out of Jerusalem":and who are manifestly distinguished from their
"children": it being usual to call suchas were the heads of the people, either
in a civil or ecclesiastic sense,"fathers",and their subjects and disciples,
"children": besides, our Lord's discourse throughout the whole context is
directed to the Scribes and Pharisees, the ecclesiastic guides ofthe people, and
to whom the civil governors paid a specialregard,
Thou that killestthe prophets; that is, with the sword, with which the
prophets in Elijah's time were slain by the children of Israel,
1 Kings 19:10 and which was one of the capital punishments inflicted by the
Jewishsanhedrim (i); and also that which follows was anotherof them,
And stonestthem which were sent unto thee; as particularly Zechariah, the
son of Jehoiada, before mentioned. The Jews themselves are obliged to own,
that this character belongs to them: say (k) they,
"when the word of Godshall come, who is his messenger,we will honour him.
Says R. Saul, did not the prophets come,
"and we killed them", and shed their blood, and how shall we receive his
word? or how shall we believe?
And a celebratedwriter of their's, on those words (l), "but now murderers",
has this note,
"they have killed Uriah, they have killed Zechariah.
How often would I have gatheredthy children together, as a hen gathereth
her chickens under her wings, and ye would not! Christ here speaks as a man,
and the minister of the circumcision, and expresses anhuman affection for the
inhabitants of Jerusalem, and an human wish, and will for their temporal
good;which he very aptly signifies by the hen, which is a very affectionate
creature to its young, and which it endeavours to screenfrom danger, by
covering with its wings. So the "Shekinah" with the Jews is called, , "the holy
bird" (m); and that phrase, , "to betake one's self, or to come to trust under
the wings of the Shekinah", is often used (n) for to become a proselyte to the

true religion, and worship of God, as Jethro, and Ruth the Moabitess did. An
expressionmuch like to this here is used by an apocryphalwriter of 2:Esdras:
"I gathered you together, as a hen gatherethher chickens under her wings:
but now, what shall I do unto you? I will castyou out from my face.''(2
Esdras 1:30).
It seems to be a simile much in use with that people. Our Lord is to be
understood not of his divine will, as God, to gather the people of the Jews
internally, by his Spirit and grace, to himself; for all those whom Christ would
gather, in this sense, were gathered, notwithstanding all the opposition made
by the rulers of the people; but of his human affectionand will, as a man, and
a minister, to gatherthem to him externally, by, and under the ministry of his
word, to hear him preach; so as that they might be brought to a conviction of,
and an assentunto him as the Messiah;which, though it might fall short of
faith in him, would have been sufficient to have preservedthem from
temporal ruin, threatened to their city and temple, in the following verse.
Instances of the human affection, and will of Christ, may be observedin Mark
10:21 which will of his, though not contrary to the divine will, but subordinate
to it, yet not always the same with it, nor always fulfilled: whereas his divine
will, or his will as God, is, always fulfilled: "who hath resistedhis will?" this
cannot be hindered, and made void; he does whatsoeverhe pleases:and
further, that this will of Christ to gatherthe Jews to himself, is to be
understood of his human, and not divine will, is manifest from hence, that this
will was in him, and expressedby him at certain severaltimes, by intervals;
and therefore he says, "how often would I have gathered", &c. whereas the
divine will is one continued, invariable, and unchangeable will, is always the
same, and never begins or ceasesto be, and to which such an expressionis
inapplicable; and therefore these words do not contradict the absolute and
sovereignwill of God, in the distinguishing acts of it, respecting the choice of
some persons, and the leaving of others. And it is to be observed, that the
persons whom Christ would have gathered, are not represented as being
unwilling to be gathered;but their rulers were not willing that they should,
and be made proselytes to him, and come under his wings. It is not said, "how
often would I have gatheredyou, and you would not!" nor, "I would have
gatheredJerusalem, and she would not"; nor, "I would have gatheredthy

children, and they would not"; but, "how often would I have gatheredthy
children, and ye would not!" Which observationalone is sufficient to destroy
the argument founded on this passagein favour of free will. Had Christ
expressedhis desire to have gatheredthe heads of the people to him, the
members of the Jewishsanhedrim, the civil and ecclesiasticalrulers of the
Jews:or had he signified how much he wished, and earnestly soughtafter, and
attempted to gatherJerusalem, the children, the inhabitants of it in common,
and neither of them would not; it would have carriedsome appearance ofthe
doctrine of free will, and have seemedto have countenancedit, and have
imputed the non-gathering of them to their own will: though had it been said,
"they would not", instead of, "ye would not", it would only have furnished
out a most sadinstance of the perverseness ofthe will of man, which often
opposes his temporal, as wellas his spiritual good; and would rather show it
to be a slave to that which is evil, than free to that which is good;and would
be a proof of this, not in a single person only, but in a body of men. The
opposition and resistance to the will of Christ were not made by the people,
but by their governors. The common people seemedinclined to attend his
ministry, as appears from the vastcrowds, which, at different times and
places, followedhim; but the chief priests, and rulers, did all they could to
hinder the collectionof them to him, and their belief in him as the Messiah;by
traducing his character, miracles, and doctrines, and by menacing the people
with curses, and excommunications, making a law, that whoeverconfessed
him should be turned out of the synagogue.So that the plain meaning of the
text is the same with that of Matthew 23:13 and consequentlyis no proof of
men's resisting the operations of the Spirit and grace ofGod; but only shows
what obstructions and discouragements were thrownin the way of attendance
on the external ministry of the word. In order to setaside, and overthrow the
doctrine of grace, in election, and particular redemption, and effectualcalling,
it should be proved that Christ, as God, would have gathered, not Jerusalem,
and the inhabitants of it only, but all mankind, even such as are not eventually
saved, and that in a spiritual, saving way and manner, to himself; of which
there is not the leastintimation in this text: and in order to establishthe
resistibility of the grace ofGod, by the perverse will of man, so as to become
of no effect;it should be shown that Christ would have savingly converted
persons, and they would not be converted;and that he bestowedthe same

grace upon them, he does bestow on others, who are converted: whereas the
sum of this passagelies in these few words, that Christ, as man, out of a
compassionateregardfor the people of the Jews, to whom, he was sent as the
minister of the circumcision, would have gathered them togetherunder his
ministry, and have instructed them in the knowledge ofhimself, as the
Messiah;which if they had only notionally received, would have securedthem,
as chickens under the hen, from impending judgments, which afterwards fell
upon them; but their governors, and not they, would not; that is, would not
suffer them to receive him, and embrace him as the Messiah. So that from the
whole it appears, that this passageofScripture, so much talked of by the
Arminians, and so often cited by them, has nothing to do with the controversy
about the doctrines of electionand reprobation, particular redemption,
efficacious gracein conversion, and the powerof man's free will. This
observationalone is sufficient to destroy the argument founded on this
passage, in favour of free will,
(h) Misn. Sanhedrin, c. 1. sect. 5. (i) lb. c. 7. sect. 1.((k)R. Isaac Arama in
Genesis 47.apudGalatin. Arcan. Cath. ver. l. 3. c. 5. (l) Jarchiin Isa. i. 21. (m)
Zohar in Numb. fol. 106. 3. & Imre binah in ib. (n) Tzeror Hammor, fol. 77. 4.
&. 115. 2. Vid. Targum in Ruth ii. 12. Zohar in Exod. fol. 28. 3. & 29. 2.
Geneva Study Bible
{12} O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, thou that killestthe prophets, and stonestthem
which are sent unto thee, how often would I have {z} gathered thy children
together, even as a hen gatherethher chickens under her wings, and ye would
not!
(12) Where the mercy of God was greatest, it was there that there was the
greatestwickednessand rebellion, and at length the sharpestjudgments of
God. {z} He speaks ofthe outward ministry, and as he was promised for the
saving of this people, he was making sure that it would happen, even from the
time that the promise was made to Abraham.
EXEGETICAL(ORIGINAL LANGUAGES)
Meyer's NT Commentary

Matthew 23:37 ff. After denouncing all those woes againstthe scribes and
Pharisees,the departing Redeemer, looking with sad eye into the future, sets
the holy city also—whichHe sees hastening to its destruction under the false
guidance of those leaders—ina living connectionwith the tragic contents of
Matthew 23:34 ff., but in such a way that his parting words are no longer
denunciations of woe, but the deep wail of a heart wounded, because its love
has been despised. Thus Matthew 23:37 ff. forms an appropriate conclusionto
the whole drama of the discourse. Luke 13:34 introduces the words in a
historicalconnectionentirely different.
The repetition of the name of Jerusalemis here ἐμφαντικὸς ἐλέος, Euthymius
Zigabenus.
ἀποκτείνουσα,κ.τ.λ.]The present participles denote the usual conduct: the
murderess, the killer with stones.
πρὸς αὐτήν] to her; because the attributive participial clause from being in the
nominative places the subject addressedunder the point of view of the third
person, and only then proceeds (ποσάκις … τέκνα σου) with the vocative of
address in Ἱερουσαλήμ. Comp. Luke 1:45; Job18:4; Isaiah 22:16. With Beza
and Fritzsche, αὑτήνmight be read and takenas equivalent to σεαυτήν; but
αὐτήνis to be preferred, for this reason, that there is here no such special
emphasis as to call for the use of the reflective pronoun (we should expect
simply πρός σε in that case).
ποσάκις, κ.τ.λ.]The literal meaning of which is: “How often I have wished to
take thy citizens under my loving protectionas Messiah!” Forthe metaphor,
comp. Eurip. Herc. Fur. 70 f., and the passages inWetstein, Schoettgen, p. 208
(Rabbinical writers speak ofthe Shechinah as gathering the proselytes under
its wings). Observe ἑαυτῆς:her own chickens. Suchwas the love that I felt

toward you. On the form νοσς. for νεοσς., see Lobeck, adPhryn. p. 206. οὐκ
ἐθελήσατε] sc. ἐπισυναχθῆναι;they refused (Nägelsbachon Il. iii. 289;
Baeumlein, Partik. p. 278), namely, to have faith in him as the Messiah, and
consequentlythe blame rested with themselves. This refusal was their actual
κρῖμα, John 9:39.
Expositor's Greek Testament
Matthew 23:37-39. Apostrophe to the Holy City (Luke 13:34).—Εἶτα πρὸς τὴν
πόλιν ἀποστρέφει τὸνλόγον. Chrys., H. lxxiv.
Cambridge Bible for Schools andColleges
33–39.The Fate of Jerusalem
37. Jerusalem, Jerusalem]FromLuke 13:34, it appears that our Lord spoke
these words in a different connectionat an earlier period of His ministry. For
the pathetic reiterationof the name, cp. ch. Matthew 27:46. The Aramaic
form for Jerusalemin the text appears here only in Matthew;it is the usual
form in Luke. Probably the very form—Aramaic, not Greek—employedby
our Lord is retained.
killest… stonest]Recalling the precise expressions ofch. Matthew 21:35.
as a hen gatherethher chickens under her wings] Schöttgenad loc. observes
that converts to Judaism were said to come “under the wings of the
Shechinah.” That thought may be containedin the words of Christ. Many
times by His prophets He calledthe children of Jerusalemto Himself—the
true Shechinah—through whom the glory of the latter house was greaterthan
that of the former.
ye would not] Note the change to the plural.

Bengel's Gnomen
Matthew 23:37. Ἱερουσαλὴμ, Ἱερουσαλὴμ, Jerusalem, Jerusalem!) A most
solemn repetition.[1018]—ἡἀποκτένουσα,thou that killest) The participle has
the force of a noun.[1019]—λιθοβαλοῦσα,that stonest)Such was the fate of
Christ’s protomartyr, Stephen, recordedin Acts 7:58-59.—τοὺς
ἀπεσταλμένους, them that are sent) Although ambassadors are considered
inviolable by the law of nations.—πρὸς αὐτὴν, to her) i.e. πρός σε, to thee. Cf.
Luke 1:45; Isaiah 47:10.—ποσάκις, κ.τ.λ., how often, etc.) As often especially
as Jesus enteredJudea, Jerusalem, or the Temple. See my Harmony of the
Four Evangelists, andGnomon on ch. Matthew 21:1.—καὶ οὐκ ἠθελήσατε,
and ye would not) although I was willing. Cf. Isaiah30:15.
[1018]“Epizeuxis.” See Appendix.—ED.
[1019]i.e. “Thou that art the Murderess of.”—(I. B.)
Full of compassionand horror alike.—V. g.
Pulpit Commentary
Verse 37. - O Jerusalem, Jerusalem!Pathetic iteration! As he approachedthe
city on another occasionChrist had used the same words (Luke 13:34, 35); he
repeats them now as he takes his final farewellHe speaks with Divine
tenderness, yet with poignant sorrow, knowing that this last appealwill be in
vain. It has been remarked that, whereas St. Matthew elsewherenames the
capital city, the theocratic centre, Hierosolyma, which is the Greek equivalent,
he here calls it Hierousalem, which is Hebrew, as though, while recording the
words used by Jesus, he desired to reproduce the actual sound of the Saviour's
affecting address. Killest...stonest. Suchis thy wont, thy evil practice. So
Christ says elsewhere, "Itcannot be that a prophet perish out of Jerusalem"
(Luke 13:33). "Stonest"was particularly appropriate after the reference to
Zechariah (2 Chronicles 24:20). Sent unto thee. The receivedGreek is, sent

unto it or her (πρὸς αὐτήν), though some manuscripts and the Vulgate give
"thee." But the change ofpersons is not uncommon. Alford quotes Luke 1:45;
Luke 13:34; Revelation18:24. How often! Some would confine Christ's
allusion to his own missionin Judaea, and the efforts made by him to win
disciples;but it surely applies to all the doings and visitations of God towards
Israelduring the whole course of their history, which showedhis gracious
desire that all should be saved, if they only had willed with him. He hereby
asserts himselfas one with the God of the Old Testament. Christ's ministry in
Jerusalemand Judaea is mentioned by St. John. Gathered... wings. A tender
similitude, which is found in the Old Testamentand in classic authors. It
implies love, care, and protection. Thus the psalmist prays, "Hide me under
the shadow of thy wings;" "In the shadow of thy wings will I take refuge, until
these calamities be overpast" (Psalm17:8; Psalm 57:1); comp. Deuteronomy
32:11;Isaiah 31:5, etc. So Euripides, 'Herc. Fur.,' 72 -
"The children whom I cherish'neath my wings,
As a bird cowering o'erher youthful brood." The metaphor is peculiarly
appropriate at the time, when, as Lange puts it, the Roman eagles were
hovering near, and there was no hope of safety but under the Lord's wings.
And ye would not. Unmoved by warning and chastisement, impenetrable to
long suffering love, ungrateful for mercies, the Jews repulsedall efforts for
their amendment, and blindly pursued the course of ruin. It was always in
their power to turn if they willed, but they wilfully resistedgrace, and must
suffer accordingly(comp. Isaiah30:15).
Vincent's Word Studies
Hen (ὄρνις)
Generic:bird or fowl; but hen is used genericallyof the mother-bird of all
species.

PRECEPTAUSTIN RESOURCES
Lowell Johnson
SAFE BENEATHHIS WINGS
Matthew 23:37-39
Our Lord is closing out His last public message before He hangs on the cross.
When we read the words of Jesus in Matthew 23, we almost don't recognize
Him.. We often picture Jesus as meek and mild and when we read these harsh
pronouncements, we see a different side of Jesus. He repeatedlybitterly
denounced the Jewishleaders for their religious hypocrisy. He calls them
hypocrites, blind guides, fools, a bunch of snakes, andwhitewashedtombs.
After spending most of His message pronouncing doom and gloom on the
religious mafia, we finally see the tenderness of Jesus. One commentator
writes, “The lightning and thunder of the sevenwoes ends in a softrain of pity
and tears.” There is no vindictiveness in the words of Jesus. His heart was
broken because the people of JerusalemrejectedHim. John 1:11 says, “He
came unto His own and His own receivedHim not.”
Jesus closesHis sermon with a parable; a word picture of a hen gathering her
chicks under her wings to protect them. In Luke 19 we are told that as Jesus
lookedat Jerusalem, He wept over the city.
We are told that on the slopes ofthe Mount of Olives there is a beautiful
church built by a famous Italian architect. He calledthe church Dominus
Flevit, which means, “The Lord wept.” The church is designed to look like a
teardrop. Inside the chapelis a single window that faces the Temple Mount
where the beautiful Temple would have been in Jesus'day. Today, the Muslim
Dome of the Rock sits in that place. When you look through the window of the
church, it looks as if the cross in the window frame is resting on the Dome of
the Rock – a reminder that Jesus will rule over the nations.

But on the church's floor is a beautiful mosaic. A picture of a chicken
sheltering her chicks beneath her wings. The somewhatstrange thing is that
the chickenis portrayed with a halo that represents the deity of Jesus.
As we look at this passage, Iwould point out severalthings:
I. The DeclarationMatthew 23:37
“O Jerusalem, Jerusalem.” Youcan hear the passionand the compassion in
our Lord's voice! These words are not limited just to the folks who were in the
city at that time. God had chosenthe Jewishpeople of Israelas His very own.
He had given the Jews that land. He was their God. He had given them many
advantages and many promises. Yet, they had rejectedHim and the Jews
must pay for that rejection.
Listen to Romans 2:6-9” “Godwill render to every man according to his deeds
… unto them that are contentious, and do not obey the truth, but obey
unrighteousness … indignation and wrath … tribulation and anguish … upon
every soul of man that doeth evil, of the Jew first, and also of the Gentiles.”
Jerusalemhad rejectedits King; now the King rejectedJerusalem.
The double use of the name Jerusalem – “Jerusalem, Jerusalem” – are words
of compassionand sorrow – and it is as if the Lord was saying, “How could
you rejectMe after all I have done for you?” It is almost a word of unbelief or
not being able to understand. It is a word of pathos and pity. Jesus usedthe
double name before.
• In Luke 10:41, rather than Martha sitting at the feet of Jesus loving Him and
learning
from Him as Mary was, Jesus said, “Martha, Martha, you are anxious
(worried) and
troubled about many things. But one thing is needful, and Mary has chosen
that good
part.”

• In Luke 22:31 our Lord says, “Simon, Simon! Satanhas askedforyou that
he may
sift you as wheat. But I have prayed for you that your faith should not fail.”
• Acts 9:4 the Lord spoke to Saul of Tarsus, “Saul, Saul, why are you
persecuting Me?”
And Saul answered, “Who are You, Lord?” Then the Lord said, “I am Jesus,
whom you
are persecuting. It's hard for you to kick againstthe prodding sticks.”
Now listen to our Lord's declaration, “How often I wantedto gatheryou
under My wings.” “How often:” “Again and again.” Every messageandevery
miracle were designedto draw you to Myself.”
The word “often” speaks of“graceupon grace,” “but you repeatedly rejected
my grace!”
II. The Disappointment Matthew 23:37
We all know God is most often calledour Father, but God's nature isn't
restrictedto masculine characteristics. The Bible clearlyteaches that God
loves us the same way a mother loves her children.
Isaiah66:13: “As a mother comforts her child, so I will comfort you.”
Isaiah49:15-16:“Cana mother forgetthe baby at her breastand have no
compassiononthe child she has borne? Though she may forget, I will not
forgetyou. See, I have engravedyou on the palms of My hands.”
The word “engraved” reallymeans “to cut.” God has literally cut us into His
hands.
When Jesus was looking for a particular mother to illustrate God's love, He
chose a hen.

Mostpreachers love fried chicken. I heard about one rare preacherwho
didn't like fried chicken.
He was the guest preacherfor a week ata country church and eachevening
they ate at the home of the church members. At every house he was served,
you guessedit, fried chicken. He didn't like chicken, but he ate it without
complaining. On the last evening as he sat down to another platter of fried
chicken, he was askedto give the blessing before the meal. He lookedat that
platter of fried chickenand he prayed, “Lord, chickenhot and chickencold.
Chickenyoung and chickenold. Chicken tender and chickentough. Thank
you, Lord, but I've had enough!”
The hen canteachus some things about God's care of us:
1. A hen constantlycommunicates with her chicks.
If you have been around barnyard chickens and saw a mother hen with her
little chicks, you know the mother hen clucks constantlyso her chicks canfind
her. She is calling her chicks and her chicks recognize her call. Jesus said,
“My sheeplisten to My voice; and I know them, and they follow Me” (John
10:27).
2. A hen calls her chicks to feed.
The mother hen will find something to eatand then calls her chicks and allows
them to eat before she does.
3. A hen shelters her chicks from harm.
Chickenhawks try to grab baby chicks, but the mother hen is too heavy for
the hawk to carry, so she calls her chicks under her wings and with great
courage protects them.
One day a chickencoopcaughtfire. They finally extinguished the fire. As they
went through the rubble they found a dead hen near her nest. She was
charred from the smoke and fire. Someone heard a cheeping sound and when
they pushed the hen over, four baby chicks scurriedout from under her.
Though she died in the process, she protectedthem.

Psalm91:4 says, “He will cover you with His feathers, and under His wings
you will find refuge.”
The saddestwords for Jesus to speak, and next to the lastwords He spoke,
were, “But you were not willing.” They were not willing to acceptGod's love
or protection.
Whether or not God can save you depends on your response to His call in
your life. He said to the Jews, “Iwould, but you would not.”
WILLIAM BARCLAY
SAFE BENEATHHIS WINGS
Matthew 23:37-39
Our Lord is closing out His last public message before He hangs on the cross.
When we read the words of Jesus in Matthew 23, we almost don't recognize
Him.. We often picture Jesus as meek and mild and when we read these harsh
pronouncements, we see a different side of Jesus. He repeatedlybitterly
denounced the Jewishleaders for their religious hypocrisy. He calls them
hypocrites, blind guides, fools, a bunch of snakes, andwhitewashedtombs.
After spending most of His message pronouncing doom and gloomon the
religious mafia, we finally see the tenderness of Jesus. One commentator
writes, “The lightning and thunder of the sevenwoes ends in a softrain of pity
and tears.” There is no vindictiveness in the words of Jesus. His heart was
broken because the people of JerusalemrejectedHim. John 1:11 says, “He
came unto His own and His own receivedHim not.”
Jesus closesHis sermon with a parable; a word picture of a hen gathering her
chicks under her wings to protect them. In Luke 19 we are told that as Jesus
lookedat Jerusalem, He wept over the city.

We are told that on the slopes ofthe Mount of Olives there is a beautiful
church built by a famous Italian architect. He calledthe church Dominus
Flevit, which means, “The Lord wept.” The church is designedto look like a
teardrop. Inside the chapelis a single window that faces the Temple Mount
where the beautiful Temple would have been in Jesus'day. Today, the Muslim
Dome of the Rock sits in that place. When you look through the window of the
church, it looks as if the cross in the window frame is resting on the Dome of
the Rock – a reminder that Jesus will rule over the nations.
But on the church's floor is a beautiful mosaic. A picture of a chicken
sheltering her chicks beneath her wings. The somewhatstrange thing is that
the chickenis portrayed with a halo that represents the deity of Jesus.
As we look at this passage, Iwould point out severalthings:
I. The DeclarationMatthew 23:37
“O Jerusalem, Jerusalem.” Youcan hear the passionand the compassionin
our Lord's voice! These words are not limited just to the folks who were in the
city at that time. God had chosenthe Jewishpeople of Israelas His very own.
He had given the Jews that land. He was their God. He had given them many
advantages and many promises. Yet, they had rejectedHim and the Jews
must pay for that rejection.
Listen to Romans 2:6-9” “Godwill render to every man according to his deeds
… unto them that are contentious, and do not obey the truth, but obey
unrighteousness … indignation and wrath … tribulation and anguish … upon
every soul of man that doeth evil, of the Jew first, and also of the Gentiles.”
Jerusalemhad rejectedits King; now the King rejectedJerusalem.
The double use of the name Jerusalem – “Jerusalem, Jerusalem” – are words
of compassionand sorrow – and it is as if the Lord was saying, “How could
you rejectMe after all I have done for you?” It is almost a word of unbelief or
not being able to understand. It is a word of pathos and pity. Jesus usedthe
double name before.

• In Luke 10:41, rather than Martha sitting at the feet of Jesus loving Him and
learning
from Him as Mary was, Jesus said, “Martha, Martha, you are anxious
(worried) and
troubled about many things. But one thing is needful, and Mary has chosen
that good
part.”
• In Luke 22:31 our Lord says, “Simon, Simon! Satanhas askedforyou that
he may
sift you as wheat. But I have prayed for you that your faith should not fail.”
• Acts 9:4 the Lord spoke to Saul of Tarsus, “Saul, Saul, why are you
persecuting Me?”
And Saul answered, “Who are You, Lord?” Then the Lord said, “I am Jesus,
whom you
are persecuting. It's hard for you to kick againstthe prodding sticks.”
Now listen to our Lord's declaration, “How often I wantedto gatheryou
under My wings.” “How often:” “Again and again.” Every messageandevery
miracle were designedto draw you to Myself.”
The word “often” speaks of“graceupon grace,” “but you repeatedly rejected
my grace!”
II. The Disappointment Matthew 23:37
We all know God is most often calledour Father, but God's nature isn't
restrictedto masculine characteristics. The Bible clearly teaches that God
loves us the same way a mother loves her children.
Isaiah66:13: “As a mother comforts her child, so I will comfort you.”

Isaiah49:15-16:“Cana mother forgetthe baby at her breastand have no
compassiononthe child she has borne? Though she may forget, I will not
forgetyou. See, I have engravedyou on the palms of My hands.”
The word “engraved” reallymeans “to cut.” God has literally cut us into His
hands.
When Jesus was looking for a particular mother to illustrate God's love, He
chose a hen.
Mostpreachers love fried chicken. I heard about one rare preacherwho
didn't like fried chicken.
He was the guestpreacherfor a week ata country church and eachevening
they ate at the home of the church members. At every house he was served,
you guessedit, fried chicken. He didn't like chicken, but he ate it without
complaining. On the last evening as he sat down to another platter of fried
chicken, he was askedto give the blessing before the meal. He lookedat that
platter of fried chickenand he prayed, “Lord, chickenhot and chickencold.
Chickenyoung and chickenold. Chicken tender and chickentough. Thank
you, Lord, but I've had enough!”
The hen canteachus some things about God's care of us:
1. A hen constantlycommunicates with her chicks.
If you have been around barnyard chickens and saw a mother hen with her
little chicks, you know the mother hen clucks constantlyso her chicks canfind
her. She is calling her chicks and her chicks recognize her call. Jesus said,
“My sheeplisten to My voice; and I know them, and they follow Me” (John
10:27).
2. A hen calls her chicks to feed.
The mother hen will find something to eatand then calls her chicks and allows
them to eat before she does.
3. A hen shelters her chicks from harm.

Chickenhawks try to grab baby chicks, but the mother hen is too heavy for
the hawk to carry, so she calls her chicks under her wings and with great
courage protects them.
One day a chickencoopcaughtfire. They finally extinguished the fire. As they
went through the rubble they found a dead hen near her nest. She was
charred from the smoke and fire. Someone heard a cheeping sound and when
they pushed the hen over, four baby chicks scurriedout from under her.
Though she died in the process, she protectedthem.
Psalm91:4 says, “He will cover you with His feathers, and under His wings
you will find refuge.”
The saddestwords for Jesus to speak, and next to the lastwords He spoke,
were, “But you were not willing.” They were not willing to acceptGod's love
or protection.
Whether or not God can save you depends on your response to His call in
your life. He said to the Jews, “Iwould, but you would not.”
JIM BOMKAMP
VS 23:37 - “37 “O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, who kills the prophets and stones
those who are sentto her! How often I wantedto gatheryour children
together, the way a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, and you were
unwilling.”” - Jesus reveals the tender love that He had for those who were
calledto be God’s people, the Israelites
8.1. In Luke 13:34, Jesus utteredtheses same words, including that which
is in verse 38, howeverLuke has Jesus uttering these words far before this
point in time in the gospelof Matthew, just before Jesus’arrestand
crucifixion.

8.1.1. It could be that Jesus uttered these words on more than one occasion.
8.2. There is greatsorrow and grief in these words uttered by Jesus, as
He does not enjoy the fact that the Israelites will now be judged by God for
turning awayfrom their God and rejecting their Messiah.
8.3. Jesus affectionatelyrefers to the Israelites as His little chicks, and
that like a mother hen He greatlydesired to gather His chicks and protect
them under the shelter of His able arms, howeverthey were ‘unwilling’ to
come to Him for that protection.
JOHN BROADUS
Matthew 23:37-39. A Mournful Apostrophe To Jerusalem
Our Lord's thoughts had been turning sadly towardJerusalemfor more than
a half year, compare on Matthew 16:21, Matthew 20:18 f. Now the conclusion
of the series ofwoes having pointed directly to dreadful and speedyjudgments
upon the persons addressed, whichwould be connectedespeciallywith the
destruction of Jerusalem, he breaks into a grieved and compassionate
apostrophe. That such feelings should have takenthis form when speaking of
Jerusalemat a distance, (Luke 19:41-44)againwhen coming in sight of the
city during the triumphal entry, (Luke 19:41-44)and now againin closing his
last address to the people, is in every respectnatural; and there is not the
slightestoccasionfor supposing that the saying has been displacedby one or
the other Gospel. The doubled address, and the frequent changes ofperson,
are also natural in the language of passionate emotion:"Jerusalem,
Jerusalemâ€”thouthat killest... sentunto thee... thy children... your house... ye
shall not see." Thouthat killest the prophets gives the point of connection
betweenthis and the preceding paragraph. And stonestthem. The Zechariah
just before mentioned (according to the view preferred) was Stonedto death.
How often implies frequent visits to Jerusalemduring his ministry, and

specialefforts to save her people, and this agreeswith the Gospelaccording to
John. Others would suppose that he speaks ofthe frequent divine wish in past
generations. As a hen gatherethher chickens. This beautiful comparisonis the
only passageofthe Bible, except Matthew 26:34, etc., in which barnyard fowls
are expresslymentioned, but see probable allusion in Psalms 17:8, Psalms
91:4, Jeremiah48:40;compare Deuteronomy32:11, Psalms 36:7, etc.
Wilkinson says they are not representedin the old Egyptian paintings. Yet
they are now extremely common in both countries, and must have been so
from early times. There was simply no occasionfor more frequent reference
to them. Proselytes are spokenofin the Talmud (Wun.) as taking shelter
under the wings of the Shechinah. How often would I... and ye would not. 'I'
and 'ye' are not separatelyexpressedin the Greek, andso cannotbe takenas
emphatic. The reference here is to the divine wish and not to the divine
purpose. God's will of purpose is always carried out; his will of desire often
fails, because the free will of men will not yield; compare on Matthew 6:10.
Your house is left, present tense, 'is now being left. 'The city', which is the
house or dwelling of the people, is now in process ofbeing left desolate, causes
are in operationthat must have this result.(1) Some think that 'house', means
the temple rather than the city. Forintroduces the proof that this process of
leaving them desolate is going on, viz., in the fact that the Messiahwho has so
often wished to gather and save, is now on the point of turning away. Ye shall
not see me henceforth. After the resurrectionhe was not seenby the people at
large, but only by chosenwitnesses, Acts 10:40 f. Till ye shall say, viz., at his
secondcoming, of which he will presently speak fully to his disciples (ch. 24
and 25.)At the triumphal entry (ch. 24 and 25) some said this, but the people
of Jerusalemin generaldid not. At the secondcoming all will sincerely,
though some most unwillingly and sadly, recognize him as the Messiah, that
cometh in the name of the Lord, Matthew 24:30 f., compare Revelation1:7,
Philippians 2:9-11. From Romans 11:25 ff. we may hope that among those
who then joyfully recognize him will be many Jews.

RICH CATHERS
Verse 37
Jerusalemwas the city of David and the city of peace. It was the city God had
chosento revealHimself to Israel through the temple and as the capital of His
kingdom on earth. Howeverit (personified) had killed the prophets God had
sent to His people with His messages. Stoning was the penalty for the worst
crimes in Israel, including false prophecy. The people had used this form of
executionon those who faithfully brought God"s Word to them. Jesus" words
recallHis ancestorDavid"s sorrow overthe death of his son Absalom ( 2
Samuel 18:33;2 Samuel 19:4). The repetition of "Jerusalem" reveals the
strong emotionthat Jesus felt (cf. Luke 10:41; Acts 9:4).
Many times during His ministry Jesus had sought to gatherand shelter
Jerusalem, usedhere by synecdoche to representthe whole nation.
Synecdoche is a figure of speechin which one part stands for the whole or the
whole stands for one of its parts. He wanted the people to take refuge in Him
as chicks do under their mother hen physically and as God"s people had done
under God"s care spiritually (cf. Deuteronomy32:11; Psalm17:8; Psalm
36:7; Psalm 91:4; Jeremiah48:40). In spite of God"s loving initiatives Israel
had willfully rejectedHim repeatedly. Jesus" identificationwith God is very
clearin this verse (cf. Ezekiel18:32). Jeremiahprefigured Jesus as he sadly
describedJerusalem"s destructionby the Babylonians in the Book of
Lamentations.
JESUS, JEW, AND JERUSALEM
Dr. W. A. Criswell

Matthew 23:37-39
3-29-81 8:15 a.m.
I welcome you on radio and on televisionto the services ofthe First Baptist
Church in Dallas. And this is the pastor bringing the messagein keeping with
our days of prophetic conference, the message entitledJesus, Jew, and
Jerusalem.
As a background, not in any wise as a text to exegete orto expound, but just
as a backgroundI read the lament of our Lord that closes the twenty-third
chapter of Matthew:
O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, thou that killestthe prophets, and stonestthem
which are sent unto thee, how often would I have gatheredthy children
together, even as a hen gatherethher brood under wings, but ye would not!
Behold, your house is left unto you desolate.
For I sayunto you, That ye shall see Me no more henceforth, until ye shall
say, Blessedis He that comethin the name of the Lord.
[Matthew 23:37-39]
“O Jerusalem, Jerusalem”;that is the name of the most famous city in the
earth. It is situated on the most famous site in the earth. In the first Roman
century, Pliny said that by far the most famous city in the Orient was
Jerusalem. It is the city of the greatking, David. It is the city of the greater
King, when He cometh. It is the city of the mighty prophets as Isaiah was a
mighty prophet. It is the city of the sanctuary, the temple, the house of the
Lord, Solomon’s temple. It is the city of the Savior.

He was born in a little town about five miles awaycalledBethlehem [Matthew
2:1]. In that city of JerusalemHe was presented to the Lord [Luke 2:22-38].
In that city He suffered and died [Matthew 27:32-50]. He was buried
[Matthew 27:57-60]. The third day He rose again[Matthew 28:1-7]. He
ascendedinto heaven from Jerusalem[Acts 1:9-10].
In that city the church was quickened with the breath from heaven. It is the
city of Pentecost [Acts 2:1-4]. In that city went out the greatambassadors,
and missionaries, andpreachers of the gospelofthe grace ofthe Son of God.
In that city in Acts 15 was the first convoking councilof the Christian church
[Acts 15:4-6]. And in that city Paul was arrested[Acts 21:30-34]and from
that city sentto Rome [Acts 25:11-12, 28:16], there by the Spirit of God to
bear witness to the eternaltidings of grace in Christ Jesus.
The name is most interesting. The first time in secularliterature that we find
the name mentioned is in the famous twelve Armarna tablets. Armarna was
the name of one of the ancientcapitals of Egypt. And in about 1400 BC the
governorof the city of Irusalem—whenyou take an “i” out of the Semitic
tongue and place it in English it becomes a “j.” Like the name of Jesus is
Iesous, I-e-s-o-u-s, Iesous, put it in Englishit will be Jesus. The first reference
to the ancient city in secularliterature is in 1400 BC when the governor of
Urusalim writes to the Pharaohsaying he’s pressedby enemies and needs
help; Urusalim, a Semitic word that means “the city of Salem,” or “the city of
peace” in our language, Jerusalem, the city of peace.
The first time it is mentioned in the Holy Scriptures is in about 2000 BC in the
days of the ancient patriarch Abraham, who coming back from the slaughter
of the kings, stopped at Salemand there did obeisance before the priest. And
that’s the first time the word “priest” is used in the Bible—did obeisance
before Melchizedek, the priest of Salem, the city of peace, Jerusalem[Genesis
14:18].
And there did Abraham offer himself with a tithe before God [Genesis 14:20].
It is an unusual and amazing thing, that story. Before the nation of Israelwas
founded—for Israelis the name of Jacob—beforethe nation of Israel was
founded, there do you find the worship of the true God. And at leasta

thousand years before David took the city, are men calling upon the name of
El Elyon, the greatHigh God in Jerusalem[Genesis 14:18-19].
It is locatedin a strategic place in God’s sight. Noton a greatcaravan, not on
an navigable river, not on any body of water, up there high by itself, thirty
miles eastof the Mediterranean, fourteenmiles westof the Dead Sea, nineteen
miles north of Hebron, thirty miles south of Samaria, on a high ridge two
thousand five hundred fifty feet in elevation. No matter what direction you
come from, you never see the city until suddenly it bursts upon your sight.
“As the mountains are round about Jerusalem, so the Lord is around about
them that fear Him” [Psalm 125:2]. O beautiful for situation, the joy of the
whole earth, is Mount Zion” [Psalm 48:2].
Situated there it is a city with a wall around it, always has been, is today. On
the south wall indented by the Dung Gate just beyond the Gate of the
Fountain; the eastwall, the Golden Gate that is closedup, through which the
Prince of glory shall somedaycome. Justbeyond that on the eastside, Saint
Stephen’s Gate, named for the first Christian martyr. Then turning to the
north wall, Herod’s Gate, the famous Damascus Gate, up towardthe end the
New Gate;and then on the WesternWall, one gate, the Joppa Gate, the road
that leads down to Tel Aviv and the Mediterranean.
The history of the city has been filled with turmoil, and blood, and darkness,
and light, and glory, and blessings. In the twenty-secondchapter of the Book
of Genesis, Godsays to Abraham, “Take yourson, your only begottenson
Isaac. . .and offer him up on Mount Moriah” [Genesis 22:2], which is the
temple mount in Jerusalem.
In the tenth chapter of Joshua, it is in the hands of the Jebusites [Joshua 10:1],
and the conquering tribes of Israelwere not able to take it. In about 1000 BC
David said, “The man who takes it shall be captainof the host,” and Joabhis
nephew, overwhelmedit [1 Chronicles 11:6].
And there did David, the king of God’s people, set his throne and made it his
capital [1 Chronicles 11:7]. In the days of the greattransgressionwhen the
Lord was visiting judgment upon Israel, David saw the angelof the Lord with
his sworddrawn overJerusalem[2 Samuel 24:16]. And bowing down before

God in contrition and confession, he prayed God to spare the city [2 Samuel
24:17].
And the Lord saidto David, “Go up to the threshing floor of Araunah, on
Mount Moriah, where Abraham had offeredup Isaac [Genesis 22:2, 9-11],
and there build an altar. And expiation shall be made for the sin of the
people, and propitiation before the God of judgment” [2 Samuel 24:18]. And
David bought, on that sight where Abraham offered up Isaac, from Araunah,
the threshing floor and built an altar; and there entreated the mercy and
grace ofAlmighty God [2 Samuel 24:24-25]. And upon that place holy and
sacreddid Solomonbuild the temple of the worship of the Lord [2 Chronicles
3:1].
After the death of Solomon, in the next 300 years eight different times was the
city pillaged. The most famous instance in the life of that ancient Jerusalem
was when Sennacheribshut it up like a vise. More is told about that siege
than even the destructionunder Nebuchadnezzar, the Babylonian king. And
Hezekiah, the king of the people of God, bowedbefore the Lord and laid
before Him the insults and the blasphemies of Sennacherib, the king and
generalof the bitter Assyrian host [Isaiah 37:15-20].
And the Lord spoke to Isaiah and said, “Go to Hezekiah, down on his knees in
the house of the Lord and tell him to be quiet, to rest; for the battle is Mine,
and the city will be saved” [Isaiah37:21, 33-35]. And that night the angelof
God passedoverthe host of the Assyrians and the next morning they counted
one hundred eighty-five thousand dead corpses [Isaiah37:36;2 Kings 19:35].
Thus did God deliver Jerusalemin answerto the prayer of a greatgoodking
Hezekiah[Isaiah 37:15-20].
But the days passedand the people and their rulers fell upon evil. And in 605
BC, Jeremiah lifted up his voice and cried to the people, “Repent. Getright
with God” [Jeremiah 3:12-14]. TheymockedGod’s voice and
Nebuchadnezzarcame and took away Danieland others of the royal seed
[Daniel 1:1-6]. Jeremiahlifted up his voice and cried, “Repent. Turn to God”
[Jeremiah 8:1-22]. The people mockedthe voice of the Lord [Jeremiah 8:12],

and Nebuchadnezzarcame in 598 BC and took awayEzekieland the priests
and the flower of the land [Jeremiah39:1-14].
Jeremiahlifted up his voice and cried, “Repent. Getright with God.”
[Jeremiah 25:1-7]. They not only mockedthe voice of the Lord, they took
God’s prophet and placed him in a miry pit that he might die of exposure and
starvation [Jeremiah38:6]. And Nebuchadnezzarcame in 597 BC and there’s
no need for him ever to return again, for the walls of the city were torn down
[2 Kings 25:1-10], and the site was plowed up, and the holy temple destroyed,
and the people carried away into Babylonian captivity.
There in Babylon did they weep.
They hung their harps upon the willow trees.
For they that carried them captive said, Sing us a song of Zion.
But how do I sing the Lord’s song in a strange land?
If I forgetthee, O Jerusalem, let my right hand forgether cunning.
Let my tongue cleave to the roof of my mouth; if I prefer not thee above my
chief joy.
[Psalm 137:1-6]
And in pity and in mercy, God heard the cries of His people. And Cyrus, in
536 BC having overwhelmedthe Babylonian Empire, gave a mandate that the
Jew was free to return [Ezra 1:1-3]. So Zerubbabel, a prince in the house of
David, and Joshua a descendentof Aaron the high priest, with about forty-
two thousand pilgrims returned back to the city [Ezra 2:1-2, 64; Haggai2:2].
The site grown up in weeds, buried in rubbish was disheartening [Nehemiah
4:2, 19]. They almost staggeredbefore the prospectof attempting to rebuild
the house of God. About sixty years later Ezra and Nehemiah, the prime
minister of the PersianEmpire under Artaxerxes Longimanus, Nehemiah
returned to the city [Nehemiah 2:1-9] and with Ezra brought greathope and
revival. And under the exhortation and preaching of Haggaiand Zechariah

the prophets, they built the temple [Ezra 5:13-15]. And the people began to
turn their faces in pilgrimage to the holy city of God.
In the interbiblical period is the story of Alexander the Great;a magnificent
story in Josephus. As you know, the greatMacedoniangeneralwas
overrunning and overwhelming the entire civilized world. And he came with
his army to Jerusalem, to destroy it. And Jaddua the high priest had a vision
from heaven telling him what to do. And Jaddua did it.
When Alexander the Greatwith his vast army came up to destroy Jerusalem,
Jaddua dressedin the beautiful garments of glory, with miter, and ephod, and
bell, and pomegranate, and with the breastplate of the twelve tribes of Israel,
he came forth opening the gates of the city. And behind him followedthe
priests dressedin white and behind them the people of the Lord praising God!
What a way to meet a generalbent upon the destruction and slaughterof the
city: to meet them in song, in glory, and in praise. And Jaddua the high priest
took the Holy Scriptures and read to Alexander the prophecies concerning
him in the Book ofDaniel. And so overwhelmed was Alexander that he bowed
down and worshipped in the temple and house of the Lord, and spared the
city, and beautified it, and glorified it.
After the death of Alexander in 320 BC, the Seleucids took Syria, the Ptolemys
took Egypt and Jerusalemwas a footballbetweenthem until finally the
Seleucids prevailed. And in 169 BC one of their kings, Antiochus Epiphanes,
sought to desecratethe holy city and the house of the Lord. He turned the
temple into a worship of Jupiter Olympus. He offereda sow on the holy altar
and took its juice and scatteredit over the holy house that it might be unclean.
Modein, a priestly town nearby, had in it a priest named Mattathias. He had
severalsons, one Judas the Hammerer, Judas Maccabeus. And in the
Maccabeanrevoltthey won their liberty. And the first thing Judas and his
victorious army did was to cleanse, to rededicate the house of the Lord on the
twenty-fifth day of our month of December. And they have reveled in that
victory ever since calling it the FeastofLights, or the Feastof Dedication
[John 10:22], or Hanukkah.

After the Maccabeanrevolt, there was such dissensionin the Maccabean
family that in 64 BC, Pompey the Roman generaltook it without a battle and
added the nation and the city to the Roman Empire, making it a province of
Rome. In 40 BC the Idumean, the Edomite who had become a Jew, Herod,
was appointed vassalking under Caesar. And in the days of that Herod the
Great, the Saviorwas born [Matthew 2:1-19].
In that holy city of Jerusalem, some of His greatestministries blessedthe
people. Our Lord spoke ofJerusalemfour times and in all four of them He
spake of it with sadness andinfinite pity. One time the Lord said, “It would
not be possible for a prophet to die outside Jerusalem[Luke 13:33]; and He
setHis face steadfastlyto go up to the Holy City [Luke 9:51], there to die for
the sins of the world” [1 John 2:2].
The secondtime He spoke ofit is in the passage thatI read to you: “O
Jerusalem, Jerusalem. . . behold, your house is left unto you desolate”
[Matthew 23:38]. The third time He spoke ofit was when coming over the
brow of Olivet, He saw the city spread out before Him and burst into tears,
“Seeing the city He wept, and cried, saying, If only thou hadst known the day
of thy peace;but now it is hid from thine eyes” [Luke 19:41-42].
The last, the fourth time the Lord mentioned it was in His prophecy of the
destruction of the city under Titus in 70 AD. And the Lord said, “And
Jerusalemshall be trodden down by the Gentiles, until the times of the
Gentiles be fulfilled” [Luke 21:24]. That awesomeprophecy of the treading
down of Jerusalemcame when Vespasianwas sent in 66 AD to quell the
rebellion in Galilee that spread throughout all of Palestine.
Vespasianwas calledback to be crown Caesarofthe Roman Empire, and he
left the destruction of the nation and of the city to his son Titus. And the
Roman legions, with their greatbattering rams destroyedthe wall, burned the
house of God, plowed it up, and renamed the city Capitolina. Foryears and
centuries the Jews were forbidden even to approachthe site.
In the days of Constantine, the RomanCaesarwho became a Christian, his
devout mother Helena, they callher Saint Helena, Helena went to Jerusalem
and there sanctifiedthe holy sites. And it became a Christian city.

Christian pilgrims by the thousands and all over the civilized world turned
their faces to the city of God. Then in 637 AD Omar the Caliph, the
Mohammedan Muslim Caliph of Egypt with his army stormed the city, put
the Christians to the edge of the sword, and on the Mount Moriah, on
Solomon’s holy temple sites, there they raiseda Muslim shrine calledthe
Dome of the Rock. Theypurported to say—whichis a sheerfiction—that
Mohammed was miraculously brought there. And from that place he was
miraculously wafted up into heaven on a white fiery steed.
Mohammed never saw Jerusalemin his life nor did he ever visit it. But they
had to have some kind of a fictional myth linking the prophet with the Holy
City. So in 637 Omar the Caliph took it by the sword and made it a Muslim
shrine that holy temple, that holy site, that place of the altar of David and of
Abraham.
As the days passed, in 1000 BC the Selduk Turks took it. In 1100 AD—in
1000 AD the Turks took it—in 1100 AD was the first Christian Crusade. And
they won back the city from the Muslim. But they kept it only about 87 years.
In about 1200 AD Saladin the Arab general, one of the greatestmilitary
geniuses ofall time, overwhelmed the crusaders, wonit back to the Muslims.
In 1500, the Ottoman Turks took it and made it a part of the Turkish Empire.
And in 1917 GeneralAllenby representing the Allied Forces ofthe Western
World, liberated it from the Ottoman Turks and openedit for the pilgrims
and the people who love God and who turned their faces to that holy place.
The British kept it for a mandate for a generation. But because ofthe
seething turmoil in it, in May 1948 the British turned the mandate back to the
United Nations. Immediately there was war in the Holy Land and the state of
Israelwas proclaimed and recognizedimmediately by 65 nations of the earth.
So the days have passedin turmoil and in terror and in bloodshed.
In June of 1967 was the Six DayWar. We were there not long after. I was
eating lunch with two of the Israeli leaders, Aaron Brun the minister of
tourism and his most capable and gifted guide, IsraelSulkovich. And, they
were saying to me, “We were standing on the brow on the other side, looking
down into the old city, and the Wall of Wailing, and the temple site; and we

were saying to one another, ‘My grandfather, and my grandfather said how it
was to go up to that wall, and put my hand on the stones that Solomonlaid.
The nearestto the sanctuary where God said His name shall be there [2
Chronicles 7:16]. But I’ll never getto do that, prohibited, kept out. It’ll never
be in my lifetime,’ said Aaron to Israel,” Aaron Brun to IsraelSulkovich;
“Maybe my children will have opportunity to do it. Maybe my grandchildren
will have opportunity to do it. But we will never do it.” The amazing turn of
that Six Day War and Aaron and Israel saidto me, “Within a few days after
that lamentation did we walk arm in arm, Aaron Brun and IsraelSulkovich,
and we put our hands on that wall, and we stoodthere in that sacredplace,
and we worshipped God.”
Then came the Yom Kippur War and now what does the future hold? I come
to the lastpart of my message;Jerusalemin prophecy. The Holy City has
always been a subjectof God’s fore view and God’s prophetic revelation.
In the twelfth chapterof the Book of Deuteronomyfor example six different
times does God say, “I shall choose a place, and My name shall be there; and I
shall be worshipped there [Deuteronomy12:5, 11, 14, 18, 21, 26].” And that
referred to Jerusalem.
In the days of SennacheribGod said, “I will spare the city,” and He did
[Isaiah 37:35-37]. The destructionof the city under Nebuchadnezzarwas
prophesied [2 Kings 20:12-21]. The desecrationofthe city under Antiochus
Epiphanes was prophesied[Daniel 11:29-35]. The destruction of the city
under Titus the Roman legionnaire was prophesied[Daniel 9:24-26]. And the
prophecies that concernJerusalemtodayare coming to pass.
In the twelfth chapterof the Book of Zechariahit says, “Behold, I will make
Jerusalema cup of trembling [Zechariah 12:2]. In that day will I make
Jerusalema burdensome stone for all people” [Zechariah 12:3]. The United
Nations and the nations of the earth don’t know where to turn. They don’t
know what to do.
Shall you make Jerusaleman international city? Shallyou give half of it to
Jordan, the Arab, or half of it to the Jew? What will be done? Nobody
knows. In keeping with the prophecy of God, “I will make Jerusalema

burdensome stone [Zechariah 12:3] around the necks ofthe peoples of the
world” [Jeremiah32:37-42].
God says the Jew will return there [Ezekiel36:24-28]. He’s returning. He’s
still returning. He’s setting his face towardthat Holy City. And the Lord says
that there the nations of the earth will be confronted [Revelation16:13-16].
Megiddo to the north, Bozrah of Edom to the south, 1,600 furlongs between
and blood up to the bridles of the horses in the day when the wrath of the
judgment of Almighty God is tread and the rich crimson of life pours out
[Revelation14:20]. In that place is the greatconfrontationof the nations and
Almighty God.
And whatevera man says, to say, “I don’t believe it”; and whateverthe
prophets say, and the answeris, “It’s idiocy”; and whateverpeople say who
refuse the Bible and the revelation of God, the Lord says, “The attentionof
the earth will be turned, and riveted, and concentratedthere,” and whether
you like it or not, whether you want to or not, when you read the headlines of
the papers, the great city of confrontation is not Peking, orMoscow,or
London, or Paris, or Washington. It is the Middle East. The economic life of
the nations of the world are being drained there. The greatnuclear
confrontation of the earth will be there.
God says it and you’re daily newspaper, every greatheadline you read is that.
And whether we like it or not, whether PresidentFord, or the Senate, orthe
Congress cansay, “Yea or nay,” they are forcedto face it. It is there in the
Middle East, at the very economic strangulationof our life. Our jugular vein
is held there. Godsays it. We’ll not escapeit, for the Word of Godendureth
forever [1 Peter1:25]. And it is in that place that the greatfinal confrontation
will be made. Tonight when Tom McCallpresents our prophetic speaker,
he’ll have a book in his hand, The Future Invasion of Israelby Russia.
After those awful days there will be a cleansing ofthe city. God Himself will
make it holy [Isaiah 4:4]. And in that awful holocaustof the warof
Armageddon [Revelation16:14-16], the Lord Jesus intervenes [Revelation
17:12-14]. That’s whenHe comes down with His saints and the legions of
glory [Revelation19:11-21]. And there does the Prince of Peace setup His

glorious capital [Zechariah8:3]. And thither do the nations of the world
repair thus to be taught, and instructed, and blessedin the law and in the
grace ofthe Lord [Isaiah 2:1-3]. O beautiful for situation, the glory of the
whole earth, is Mount Zion [Psalm 48:2]; for the King who reigns in that
millennial age is named Wonderful, Counselor, the Mighty God, the
Everlasting Father, the Prince of Peace[Isaiah9:6].
After a rebellion, after a thousand years, when Satanis loosedfrom his abyss,
and he goes forth to spread destruction and blood over the face of the earth
God shall for the last time intervene [Revelation20:7-9]. And in the awful
fury of that intervention there shall be a cleansing fire [Revelation20:10].
And all ugliness, and unrighteousness, and hurt, and violence, and evil will be
takenfrom the whole creationof God[Revelation20:11-15]. There will be a
new creation, new heaven, and a new earth [Revelation21:1].
And in that glorious and beautiful day, there shall descendfrom God out of
heaven a holy and beautiful city; the city where all of God’s saints are being
gatheredhome [Revelation21:2-3]. And in God’s time when the plerōma, the
full number is made up and all of the children of the Lord are gatheredin
glory [Romans 11:25] that holy city shall come down from God out of heaven
and shall be upon this earth [Revelation21:1-5].
Where is heaven? It shall be here. Where shall we live? We shall live here.
Where will our capital be, our greatcity of glory and God? It will be here.
And its name will be calledthe New Jerusalem[Revelation21:2]. And out of
its gates shall the streams of God’s people pour forth I think to the ends of the
universe.
I think we shall have the quickness of thought. I’m in Dallas. I’m in London.
I’m in Hong Kong. I’m in Stockholm. I cando that with my mind. Someday
my spiritual body canbe just like that. And the whole createduniverse will
be ours to organize, to use, to bless in which to praise God.
And as I sometimes facetiouslysay, may God give me one of those planets.
I’m going to get me a soapboxand my Bible, and stand on it, and it’s a long
time after twelve, but I’m not going to think about stopping, just preaching
forever, just preaching forever, just praising God forever. And our home,

and our capital, and the city of the greatKing will be the New Jerusalem
[Revelation21:2-5].
Ah, with what assurance and what victory do God’s people face any
darkening hour, any confrontation, any sorrow or tragedy. Forover and
beyond it we see the coming of our glorious King, the Prince of Peace [Isaiah
9:6], that is the King of Jerusalem.
We stand now and sing our invitation hymn. And while we sing it, if the Lord
has spokento your heart on the first note of the first stanza, come. “Here I
am, pastor, I’ve made the decision. I am bringing my wife and my children.
We’re all coming.” Or just a couple you, or just you, do it now [Romans 10:9-
13]. On the first note of this first stanza, while we stand and while we sing.
ISRAEL‘S AGONY AND GLORY
Dr. W. A. Criswell
Matthew 23:37-39
11-07-82 10:50 a.m.
In these morning hours the pastor has been delivering messageson"The
GreatDoctrines of the Bible." They have been divided into fifteen sections,
and the sectionin which we are now preaching is entitled berithology. The
Hebrew word for covenantis berith. And I coinedthat word berithology to
refer to a study, a presentationof God’s covenantpeople, Israel. There are
five of those sermons. The first one delivered, Has God CastAway His
People?;the seconddelivered, The Problems of Israel’s Unbelief; last Sunday,
the third one, Israelin the Remembrance of God; today, Israel’s Agony and
Glory; and the fifth and the last one – next Lord’s day, Peace BetweenArab
and Jew. It will be an expositionof the verses in the nineteenth chapter of the

Book ofIsaiah, one of the most amazing prophecies to be readin the Bible.
And today, Israel’s Agony and Glory; the awesometwenty-third chapter of
the Book ofMatthew closes withthese words:
O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, thou that killestthe prophets, and stonestthem
which are sent unto thee, how often would I have gatheredthy children
together, even as a hen gatherethher brood under her wings, and ye would
not! Behold, behold, your house is left unto you desolate. ForI say unto you,
Ye shall not see Me henceforth, till ye shall say, Blessedis He that cometh in
the name of the Lord.
[Matthew 23:37-39]
Israel’s Agony and Glory. The suffering of the nation of Israel through the
centuries and the millennia have been indescribable. Time without number,
their annihilation has been purposed and planned and attempted. And yet,
they live. Their beginning was in a miracle. Sarahwas ninety years and
Abraham was a hundred years old when the child of promise, Isaac was born
[Genesis 17:15-17,21:1-5]. And from that miraculous beginning, down
through the years that have followedafter, they have continued that mystic
and mysterious and miraculous march. There has never been a people or a
nation accompaniedby such divine tokens of supernatural presence. The
miracle of the nation of Israel; for them, God drove back the waters of the
Red Sea [Exodus 14:21-31]. Forthem, manna fell from heaven that they
might be miraculously fed in the wilderness [Exodus 16:12-18]. Forthem,
watergushed from the solid rock [Exodus 17:5-6;Deuteronomy 8:15]. For
them, a pillar of cloud guided the way by day and a pillar of fire watchedover
them by night [Exodus 13:21]. Forthem, the flood waters of the Jordan River
were parted asunder [Joshua 3:14-17]. Theirstory is one of indescribable and
glorious miracle. Renan, the greatFrench philosopher, said, "The philosophy
of history fails utterly to accountfor the Jew." And Hegal, the dialecticianof
Germany, said, "Ofthe history of Israel, it is an enigma to me. I do not
understand it." Mark Twain, our American novelist and philosopher, said,

"All things are mortal but the Jew. All forces pass, but he remains." And the
greatVictorian prime minister, Benjamin Disraeli, Lord Beaconsfield, said,
"The attempt to extirpate the Jew has been made under the most favorable
auspices, and on the largestscale, and for the longestperiods of time.
Egyptian pharaohs, Assyrian kings, Romanemperors, Scandinavian
crusaders, gothic princes and holy inquisitors alike have devoted their
energies to the fulfillment of this common purpose. Expatriations, exile,
confiscation, torture on the most ingenious kind, and massacre onthe most
extensive scale have been tried in vain. The Jew, the Jew remains."
His annihilation has been planned and executed almostfrom the beginning.
The Egyptian pharaoh planned the destruction of the Jewishnation [Exodus
14:5-12]. Haman, the prime minister of the PersianEmpire planned the
annihilation of the Jewishpeople [Esther 3:1-4:17]. In 722 BC, Sargon, the
greatgeneraland ruler of Assyria, destroyedthe Northern Kingdom, Israel,
and carried it awayinto captivity [2 Kings 17:18]. In 586 BC,
Nebuchadnezzarwith his Babylonian army, destroyedthe city and the state of
Judah, and burned and destroyedthe temple and carried the people into
captivity [Jeremiah 39:1-10, 52:4-30;2 Chronicles 36:17-21]. Forjust a while,
under the Maccabeesin 166 BC, they enjoyed a national independence, but in
[166]AD, Pompey came with his Roman legions, and slaughtering thousands
of the citizens of Jerusalem, made Judea and Palestine a part of the Roman
empire. A hundred years later, in 66 AD, under the galling yoke of Roman
authority, a conflagrationbeganto flame in Galilee, and the people rebelled
againstRome, creating an army under Flavius Josephus. The emperorof
Rome, Nero, sent Vespasianand his son Titus to quell and to subdue the
rebellion. While Vespasianand Titus were there fighting in Galilee, Nero was
forcedto commit suicide by the Roman patriarchs. And Vespasianwas called
back to be made Caesarofthe greatempire. He left the continuation and the
prosecutionof the subduing assignmentto his son, Titus, and Titus beganthe
ultimate extermination of the Jewishnation.
The Christians, according to what the Lord had said in Luke 21:21, fled to
Pella, to the mountains eastof the Sea of Galilee. But the Jews ofthe nation,
in country and in village, fled to the city of Jerusalem, thinking to be safe
behind those tremendous, high walls. In April of 70 AD and continuing for

five months until Septemberof 70 AD, Titus, with one hundred thousand
Roman legionnaires surrounded and besiegedthe city. When it fell, there
were one million one hundred thousand Jews who had died. In one day, more
than six hundred thousand corpses had been placedoutside; and other
thousands and thousands were thrown over the wall. One hundred thousand
were takeninto slavery, and the slave markets of the world were glutted with
Jews, who were soldat any price. In keeping with the victory, the Roman
government coined a silver piece;on one side, a picture of a womanweeping
under a palm tree; and on the other side, in Latin, Judea Capta.
One evening, a kind gatekeeperunlockedthe fence around the RomanForum
that I might go in. And I satthere underneath the arch of Titus and lookedat
the commemorationof the destruction of the Jewishnation and Jerusalem.
On one side is a marble relief of the emperor crownedwith victory, riding
through the streets ofthe Eternal City in his chariot with tokens of victory
surrounding him, and on the other side, in marble relief, the captives that he
had brought from Judea to grace his triumph, carrying the seven-branched
golden lampstand and the table of showbread. Nine hundred and sixty of
those Jews fled to Masada. Theywere an insult to the invincible powerof the
Roman army and a galling reminder that a few were un-subdued and
unconquered. And from 70 AD until 73 AD, for three solid years, the Roman
legions besiegedMasada. And when finally they took it, all of the Jews, nine
hundred and sixty of them, had slain one another rather then fall into the
hands of the Romans.
That story of blood and agonyhas continued through the years and the years.
In Acts 18:2, Paul found in Corinth a Jew named Aquila and his wife Priscilla.
Look at the parentheses:"because thatClaudius had commanded all Jews to
depart from Rome" [Acts 18:2]. That is a continuing story. In the year 1096
AD, the year of the first crusade, there began the holy war in WesternEurope,
to murder all Jews who would not submit to Christian baptism. In England,
in York, the rabbi, the chief rabbi and five hundred of the members of his
synagogue were besiegedin the castle ofYork. And when escape became
hopeless and impossible, they slew one another. And then last of all, the chief
rabbi set the castle on fire and slew himself. And for four hundred years,
there was not a Jew in England. That’s why William Shakespeareplacedthe

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