38 "Give, and it will be given to you: good measure, pressed down, shaken together, and running over, will be given to you. For with the same measure you measure it will be measured back to you."
*Minor differences ignored. Grouped by changes, with first version listed as example.
Good measure - They shall give you good measure, or "full" measure.
Pressed down - As figs or grapes might be, and thus many more might be put into the measure.
Shaken together - To make it more compact, and thus to give more.
Running over - So full that the measure would overflow.
Shall men give - This is said to be the reward of "giving" to the poor and needy; and the meaning is that the man who is liberal will find others liberal to him in dealing with them, and when he is also in circumstances of want. A man who is himself kind to the poor - who has that "character" established - will find many who are ready to help "him" abundantly when he is in want. He that is parsimonious, close, niggardly, will find few or none who will aid him.
Into your bosom - That is, to you. The word "bosom" here has reference to a custom among Oriental nations of making the bosom or front part of their garments large, so that articles could be carried in them, answering the purpose of our pockets. Compare Exodus 4:6-7; Proverbs 6:27; Ruth 3:15.
Give, and it shall be given - "Christian charity will make no difficulty in giving that which eternal truth promises to restore. Let us give, neither out of mere human generosity, nor out of vanity, nor from interest, but for the sake of God, if we would have him place it to account. There is no such thing as true unmixed generosity but in God only; because there is none but him who receives no advantage from his gifts, and because he engages himself to pay these debts of his creatures with an excessive interest. So great is the goodness of God, that, when he might have absolutely commanded us to give to our neighbor, he vouchsafes to invite us to this duty by the prospect of a reward, and to impute that to us as a desert which he has a right to exact of us by the title of his sovereignty over our persons and estates."
Men live in such a state of social union as renders mutual help necessary; and, as self-interest, pride, and other corrupt passions mingle themselves ordinarily in their commerce, they cannot fail of offending one another. In civil society men must, in order to taste a little tranquillity, resolve to bear something from their neighbors; they must suffer, pardon, and give up many things; without doing which they must live in such a state of continual agitation as will render life itself insupportable. Without this giving and forgiving spirit there will be nothing in civil society, and even in Christian congregations, but divisions, evil surmisings, injurious discourses, outrages, anger, vengeance, and, in a word, a total dissolution of the mystical body of Christ. Thus our interest in both worlds calls loudly upon us to Give and to Forgive.
Bosom - Κολπον, or lap. Almost all ancient nations wore long, wide, and loose garments; and when about to carry any thing which their hands could not contain, they used a fold of their robe in nearly the same way as women here use their aprons. The phrase is continually occurring in the best and purest Greek writers. The following example from Herodotus, b. vi., may suffice to show the propriety of the interpretation given above, and to expose the ridiculous nature of covetousness. "When Croesus had promised to Alcmaeon as much gold as he could carry about his body at once, in order to improve the king's liberality to the best advantage, he put on a very wide tunic, (κιθωνα μεγαν), leaving a great space in the Bosom, κολπον βαθυν, and drew on the largest buskins he could find. Being conducted to the treasury, he sat down on a great heap of gold, and first filled the buskins about his legs with as much gold as they could contain, and, having filled his whole Bosom, κολπον, loaded his hair with ingots, and put several pieces in his mouth, he walked out of the treasury, etc." What a ridiculous figure must this poor sinner have cut, thus heavy laden with gold, and the love of money! See many other examples in Kypke and Raphelius. See also Psalm 129:7; Proverbs 6:27; Proverbs 17:23.
The same measure that ye mete withal, it shall be measured to you again - The same words we find in the Jerusalem Targum on Genesis 38:26. Our Lord therefore lays down a maxim which themselves allowed.
Give, and it shall be given unto you; good measure, (k) pressed down, and shaken together, and running over, shall men give into your bosom. For with the same measure that ye mete withal it shall be measured to you again.
(k) These are borrowed types of sayings, taken from those who used to measure dry things, as corn and such things, who do it in a rather forceful manner, and thrust it down and shake it together, and press it and put it into a pile.
Give, and it shall be given unto you,.... Give liberally of your worldly substance to indigent persons, as you have an opportunity, according to your ability, and as cases require: and it shall be returned again to great advantage; with great recompense, either in temporals or spirituals, or both:
good measure, pressed down, and shaken together, and running over, shall men give into your bosom. The allusion is to dry measure among the Jews, for to liquids, the terms used will not agree; and which, though right and full, which is here called good measure, they thrust and pressed to make it hold more; and shook it also for the same purpose, and then heaped it up as much as they could, till it fell over: of all these methods used in measuring, we have instances in their writings; which may serve to illustrate this passage: it is said of (a) one, that
"he measured, , "with measure pressed down"; and therefore they measured to him, with measure pressed down.''
Some of their measures they heaped, and some they did not: they say (b);
"all the measures which were in the sanctuary, "were heaped", except the high priest's, and his heap was contained in it.''
And elsewhere they observe (c) that
"there were two decimaries (or tithing vessels) in the sanctuary, one was "heaped", and the other was "stricken": with that which was heaped they measured all the fine flour for the meat offerings, and with the stricken, that which was for the cakes of the high priest.''
With respect to this distinction of measures, they say it is a tradition of the Rabbins (d), that they do not "strike" in the place where
"they "heap", nor heap in the place where, they strike.''
Between these two measures there was another, which was full measure and just, and right, without heaping or striking (e), R. Papa inquired, whether the handful
"(of sweet incense the high priest took on the day of atonement) which is spoken of Leviticus 16:12 was of "stricken" or "heaped" measure; R. Abba said to R. Ase, come, hear, the handful spoken of, is neither of stricken nor heaped measure, , "but of equal measure";''
sufficiently full, and no more. Dr. Lightfoot reads it, "flowing over"; by what authority I cannot say; though the gloss says, the word signifies,
"flowing over, by reason of its height,''
But flowing or running over measure, was the same with that which was heaped, as appears from the following instance (f):
"all those that "cause to abound", or run over with the great "measure", it is lawful for them to sell that, of which it is doubted whether it has been tithed or not; and these are they, that "cause to run over", or "heap" with the great measure, as corn factors and fruiterers.''
Who buy corn and fruits to sell again, and which they buy by the large measure, and fill it up, add unto it, and heap it up; and so get more than what is properly due unto them, as the commentators observe (g): would you know the quantity of the heap, or that which ran over, or the difference between even measure, and that which was heaped, learn, it from hence: in 1-Kings 7:26 it is said, the molten sea held two thousand baths, and in 2-Chronicles 4:5 three thousand baths; which difficulty the Jewish writers solve this way, by observing, that the former text is to be understood of liquid measure, and the latter of dry measure, which was heaped: hence says R. Abai, we learn that, , "the heap is the third part" of the measure (h): now to this superabundant measure, Christ here refers; and signifies, that a large compensation should be made to such, who give liberally and generously to needy persons; that as they abounded in their acts of beneficence, so an overflowing plenty of good things should be returned to them: and when he says, that this should be "given into their bosom", he alludes to the long and large garments the Jews wore, into which they were capable of receiving large lapfuls of good things: the words may be read impersonally, "shall be given into your bosom"; or if personally, they may be understood of God, angels, and men, in different senses: the phrase "shaken together", is not in the Syriac and Persic versions: "for with the same measure that ye mete withal, it shall be measured to you again"; a common proverb with the Jews: See Gill on Matthew 7:2.
(a) T. Bab. Yebamot, fol. 107. 2. T. Hieros. Yebamot, fol. 13. 3. (b) Misn. Menachot, c. 9. sect. 5. (c) T. Bab. Menachot, fol. 37. 1, 2. (d) T. Bab. Bava Bathra, fol. 89. 1. (e) T. Bab. Yoma, fol. 48. 1. (f) Misn. Demai, c. 2. sect. 4. (g) Maimon. & Bartenora in ib. (h) T. Bab. Erubin, fol. 14. 2. Vid Targum, Jarchi, Kimchi, & R. Levi ben Getshorn, in 1 Kings vii. 26. Bemidbar Rabba, sect. 11. fol. 204. 3.
Into your bosom - Alluding to the mantles the Jews wore, into which a large quantity of corn might be received. With the same measure that ye mete with, it shall be measured to you again - Amazing goodness! So we are permitted even to carve for ourselves! We ourselves are, as it were, to tell God how much mercy he shall show us! And can we be content with less than the very largest measure? Give then to man, what thou designest to receive of God.
*More commentary available at chapter level.