naturally enough, have gone of their own accord, without any divine call, for a simple act of necessity? It was evidently with a view to initiate them, at once, into the knowledge of the labors to which he had called them, and to give them an insight into the nature of the trials and difficulties which they must encounter in his service. In short, it was to enter them on their apprenticeship to the mysteries of their new and holy vocation. On this pilgrimage through Galilee, then, he must have been accompanied by his four newly chosen helpers, who thus were daily and hourly witnesses of his words and actions, as recorded by all the first three evangelists. (Matt. chap. iv.-viii. Mark, chap. i.-iii. &c. Luke, chap. v.-vi.)
The accounts which Matthew and Mark give of this call, have seemed so strikingly
different from that of Luke, that Calmet, Thoynard, Macknight, Hug, Michaelis,
Eichhorn, Marsh, Paulus, (and perhaps some others,) have considered
Luke's story in v. 1-11, as referring to a totally distinct event. See Calmet's,
Thoynard's, Macknight's, Michaelis's, and Vater's harmonies, in loc. Also Eichhorn's
introduction, 1. §58, V. II.,—Marsh's dissertation on the origin of the three
gospels, in table of coincident passages,—Paulus's "Commentar weber das Neue
Test." 1 Theil xxiii. Abschnitt; comp. xix. Abschnitt,—Hug's "Einleitung in das
N. T.," Vol. II. §40. "Erste auswanderung, Lucas, iii.," comp. Mark.
These great authorities would do much to support any arrangement of gospel events, but the still larger number of equally high authorities on the other side, justifies my boldness in attempting to find a harmony, where these great men could see none. Lightfoot, Le Clerc, Arnauld, Newcome, with all his subsequent editors, and Thirlwall, in their harmonies, agree in making all three evangelists refer to the same event. Grotius, Hammond, Wetstein, Scott, Clarke, Kuinoel, and Rosenmueller, in their several commentaries in loco,—also Stackhouse in his history of the Bible, and Horne in his introduction, with many others, all take the view which I have presented in the text, and may be consulted by those who wish for reasons at greater length than my limits will allow.
"Peter and Andrew dwell together in one house."—This appears from Mark i. 29, where it is said that, after the call of the brothers by Jesus, "they entered the house of Simon and Andrew."
"Sat down and taught the people out of the ship," verse 3. This was a convenient position, adopted by Jesus on another occasion also. Matt. xiii. 2. Mark iv. 1.
"Launch out."—Luke v. 4. (
Greek characters)(Transliteration from Greek: Epanagage), (Epanagage,) the same word which occurs
in verse 3, there translated in the common English version, "thrust out." It was,
probably, a regular nautical term for this backward movement, though in the classic
Greek, (Greek characters)(Transliteration from Greek: Exanagein), (exanagein,) was the form always used to express this idea, insomuch
that it seems to have been the established technical term. Perhaps Luke may
have intended this term originally, which might have been corrupted by some early
copyist into this word, which is in no other place used with this meaning.—"Let down," ((Greek characters)(Transliteration from Greek: Chalasate), khalasate, in the plural; the former verb sing.) More literally,
"loosen," which is the primary signification of the verb, and would be the proper
one, since the operation of preparing the net to take the fish, consisted in loosening
the ropes and other tackle, which, of course, were drawn tight, when the net was
not in use, closing its mouth. "Master, we have toiled," &c. verse 5. The word
(Greek characters)(Transliteration from Greek: Epistata), (Epistata,) here translated Master, is remarkable, as never occurring in the
Testament, except in this gospel. Grotius remarks, (in loc.) that doubtless Luke,
(the most finished and correct Greek scholar of all the sacred writers,) considered
this term as a more faithful translation of the Hebrew (Hebrew characters), (Rabbi,) than the common
expressions of the other evangelists, (Greek characters)(Transliteration from Greek: Kurie), (Kurie, Lord,) and (Greek characters)(Transliteration from Greek: didaskale), (didaskale,
teacher.) It was a moderate, though dignified title, between these two in its character,
rather lower than "Lord," and rather higher than "Teacher." It is used in the
Alexandrian version, as the proper term for a "steward," a "military commander,"
