Matthew 7:29
Matthew 7:29 is the twenty-ninth verse in the seventh chapter of the Gospel of Matthew in the New Testament. It ends a two verse conclusion following the Sermon on the Mount.
Content
In the Westcott-Hort edition of the original Greek, this verse reads:In the King James Version of the Bible, the text reads:
The English Standard Version translates the passage as:
For a collection of other versions see .
Analysis
In the previous verse, the crowd of onlookers were described as astonished at Jesus' sayings which complete Matthew's narrative known as the "Sermon on the Mount", and this verse explains why. The final phrase is a verbatim copy of, set in a very different context. Mark's Gospel simply asserts Jesus' authority; Matthew uses it as a concluding argument after presenting the Sermon on the Mount as evidence.In some translations of the bible|translations] this verse refers to their scribes. Ulrich Luz suggests that this is a clear indicator that Jesus' followers saw themselves as separate from the mainstream Jewish community at the time this gospel was written. Scribes refers to the trained rabbis who would quote scribal authorities, and makes clear that Jesus is greater than the most important rabbi. A sermon by the rabbis would have been replete with references to scripture to validate each teaching. The contrast presented by Matthew is that Jesus speaks based on his own authority, not that of past figures.
A few authorities add "... and the Pharisees". The Pulpit Commentary suggests that this "may either be derived from or be an independent gloss due to the fact that the Pharisees were looked upon as the typical Jewish teachers".
Commentary from the Church Fathers
Gregory the Great: Or, Christ spoke with especial power, because He did no evil from weakness, but we who are weak, in our weakness consider by what method in teaching we may best consult for our weak brethren.Hilary of Poitiers: Or; They measure the efficacy of His power, by the might of His words.