Teks -- Matthew 5:18 (NET)

5:18 I tell you the truth, until heaven and earth pass away not the smallest letter or stroke of a letter will pass from the law until everything takes place.

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Robertson: Mat 5:18 - One jot or one tittle

One jot or one tittle ( iōta hen ē mia kerea ).

"Not an iota, not a comma"(Moffatt), "not the smallest letter, not a particle"(Weymouth). The iota is the smallest Greek vowel, which Matthew here uses to represent the Hebrew yod (jot), the smallest Hebrew letter. "Tittle"is from the Latin titulus which came to mean the stroke above an abbreviated word, then any small mark. It is not certain here whether kerea means a little horn, the mere point which distinguishes some Hebrew letters from others or the "hook"letter Vav. Sometimes yod and vav were hardly distinguishable. "In Vay. R. 19 the guilt of altering one of them is pronounced so great that if it were done the world would be destroyed"(McNeile).

Vincent: Mat 5:18 - Jot, tittle

Jot, tittle ( ἰῶτα κεραία )

Jot is for jod, the smallest letter in the Hebrew alphabet. Tittle is the little bend or point which serves to distinguish certain Hebrew letters of similar appearance. Jewish tradition mentions the letter jod as being irremovable; adding that, if all men in the world were gathered to abolish the least letter in the law, they would not succeed. The guilt of changing those little hooks which distinguish between certain Hebrew letters is declared to be so great that, if such a thing were done, the world would be destroyed.

Wesley: Mat 5:18 - Till all things shall be effected

Which it either requires or foretells. For the law has its effect, when the rewards are given, and the punishments annexed to it inflicted, as well as when its precepts are obeyed. Luk 16:17; Luk 21:33.

JFB: Mat 5:18 - For verily I say unto you

Here, for the first time, does that august expression occur in our Lord's recorded teaching, with which we have grown so familiar as hardly to reflect on its full import. It is the expression manifestly, of supreme legislative authority; and as the subject in connection with which it is uttered is the Moral Law, no higher claim to an authority strictly divine could be advanced. For when we observe how jealously Jehovah asserts it as His exclusive prerogative to give law to men (Lev 18:1-5; Lev 19:37; Lev 26:1-4, Lev 26:13-16, &c.), such language as this of our Lord will appear totally unsuitable, and indeed abhorrent, from any creature lips. When the Baptist's words--"I say unto you" (Mat 3:9) --are compared with those of his Master here, the difference of the two cases will be at once apparent.

JFB: Mat 5:18 - Till heaven and earth pass

Though even the Old Testament announces the ultimate "perdition of the heavens and the earth," in contrast with the immutability of Jehovah (Psa 102:24-27), the prevalent representation of the heavens and the earth in Scripture, when employed as a popular figure, is that of their stability (Psa 119:89-91; Ecc 1:4; Jer 33:25-26). It is the enduring stability, then, of the great truths and principles, moral and spiritual, of the Old Testament revelation which our Lord thus expresses.

JFB: Mat 5:18 - one jot

The smallest of the Hebrew letters.

JFB: Mat 5:18 - one tittle

One of those little strokes by which alone some of the Hebrew letters are distinguished from others like them.

JFB: Mat 5:18 - shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled

The meaning is that "not so much as the smallest loss of authority or vitality shall ever come over the law." The expression, "till all be fulfilled," is much the same in meaning as "it shall be had in undiminished and enduring honor, from its greatest to its least requirements." Again, this general way of viewing our Lord's words here seems far preferable to that doctrinal understanding of them which would require us to determine the different kinds of "fulfilment" which the moral and the ceremonial parts of it were to have.

Clarke: Mat 5:18 - For verily I say unto you, Till heaven

For verily I say unto you, Till heaven - In the very commencement of his ministry, Jesus Christ teaches the instability of all visible things. "The heaven which you see, and which is so glorious, and the earth which you inhabit and love, shall pass away; for the things which are seen are temporal, προσκαιρα, are for a time; but the things which are not seen are eternal αιωνια, ever-during,"2Co 4:18. And the Word of the Lord endureth for ever

Clarke: Mat 5:18 - One jot or one tittle

One jot or one tittle - One yod , ( י ), the smallest letter in the Hebrew alphabet. One tittle or point, κεραια, either meaning those points which serve for vowels in this language, if they then existed; or the seraphs, or points of certain letters, such as ר resh , or ד daleth , ה he , or ח cheth (as the change of any of these into the other would make a most essential alteration in the sense, or, as the rabbins say, destroy the world). Or our Lord may refer to the little ornaments which certain letters assume on their tops, which cause them to appear like small branches. The following letters only can assume coronal apices, ץ tsaddi - ג gimel - ז zain - נ nun - ט teth - ע ayin - ש shin . These, with the coronal apices, often appear in MSS

That this saying, one jot or one tittle, is a proverbial mode of expression among the Jews, and that it expressed the meaning given to it above, is amply proved by the extracts in Lightfoot and Schoettgen. The reader will not be displeased to find a few of them here, if he can bear with the allegorical and strongly figurative language of the rabbins

i720 "The book of Deuteronomy came and prostrated itself before the Lord, and said: ‘ O Lord of the world, thou hast written in me thy law; but now, a Testament defective in some parts is defective in all. Behold, Solomon endeavors to root the letter yod out of me.’ (In this text, Deu 17:5. לא ירבה נשים lo yirbeh, nashim , he shall not multiply wives). The holy blessed God answered, ‘ Solomon and a thousand such as he shall perish, but the least word shall not perish out of thee.’

In Shir Hashirim Rabba, are these words

i720 "Should all the inhabitants of the earth gather together, in order to whiten one feather of a crow, they could not succeed: so, if all the inhabitants of the earth should unite to abolish one י yod , which is the smallest letter in the whole law, they should not be able to effect it.

In Vayikra Rabba, s. 19, it is said

i720 "Should any person in the words of Deu 6:4, Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God is אחד achad , One Lord, change the ד daleth into a ר resh , he would ruin the world."[Because, in that case, the word אחר achar , would signify a strange or false God]

i720 "Should any one, in the words of Exo 34:14, Thou shalt worship no Other, אחר achar , God, change ר resh into ד daleth , he would ruin the world."[Because the command would then run, Thou shalt not worship the Only or true God]

"Should any one in the words of Lev 22:32, Neither shall ye Profane תחללו techelelu , my holy name, change ח cheth into ה he , he would ruin the world."[Because the sense of the commandment would then be, Neither shall ye Praise my holy name]

"Should any one, in the words of Psa 150:6, Let every thing that hath breath Praise, תהלל tehalel , the Lord, change ה, he into ח cheth , he would ruin the world."[Because the command would then run, Let every thing that hath breath Profane the Lord]

"Should any one, in the words of Jer 5:10, They lied Against the Lord, ביהוה beihovah , change ב beth into כ caph , he would ruin the world."[For then the words would run, They lied Like the Lord]

"Should any one, in the words of Hosea, Hos 5:7, They have dealt treacherously, ביהוה beihovah , Against the Lord, change ב beth into כ caph , he would ruin the world."[For then the words would run, They have dealt treacherously Like the Lord]

"Should any one, in the words of 1Sa 2:2, There is none holy As the Lord, change כ caph into ב beth , he would ruin the world."[For then the words would mean, There is no holiness In the Lord]

These examples fully prove that the μια κεραια of our Lord, refers to the apices, points, or corners, that distinguish ב beth from כ caph ; ח cheth from ה he ; and ר resh from ד daleth . For the reader will at once perceive, how easily a כ caph may be turned into a ב beth ; a ה he into a ח cheth ; and a ר resh into a ד daleth : and he will also see of what infinite consequence it is to write and print such letters correctly

Clarke: Mat 5:18 - Till all be fulfilled

Till all be fulfilled - Or, accomplished. Though all earth and hell should join together to hinder the accomplishment of the great designs of the Most High, yet it shall all be in vain - even the sense of a single letter shall not be lost. The words of God, which point out his designs, are as unchangeable as his nature itself. Every sinner, who perseveres in his iniquity, shall surely be punished with separation from God and the glory of his power; and every soul that turns to God, through Christ, shall as surely be saved, as that Jesus himself hath died.

Calvin: Mat 5:18 - Till heaven and earth pass

18.Till heaven and earth pass Luke expresses it a little differently, but to the same import, that it is easier for heaven and earth to pass, than for one point of the law to fail The design of Christ, in both passages, was to teach, that the truth of the law and of every part of it, is secure, and that nothing so durable is to be found in the whole frame of the world. Some persons indulge in ingenious refinements on the word till, ( ἓως ἂ ν ,) as if the passing away of the heaven and earth, which will take place on the last day, the day of judgment, were to put an end to the law and the prophets And certainly, as

“tongues shall then cease, and prophecies shall be abolished,”
(1Co 13:8,)

I think that the written law, as well as the exposition of it, will come to an end; but, as I am of opinion that Christ spoke more simply, I do not choose to feed the ears of readers with such amusements. Let it suffice for us to hold, that sooner shall heaven fall to pieces, and the whole frame of the world become a mass of confusion, than the stability of the law shall give way. But what does it mean, that every part of the law shall be fulfilled down to the smallest point? for we see, that even those, who have been regenerated by the Spirit of God, are very far from keeping the law of God in a perfect manner. I answer, the expression, shall not pass away, must be viewed as referring, not to the life of men, but to the perfect truth of the doctrine. “ There is nothing in the law that is unimportant, nothing that was put there at, random; and so it is impossible that a single letter shall perish.”

Defender: Mat 5:18 - one jot or one tittle

The "jot" and "tittle" refer to the smallest letter and a mark which distinguished two letters in the Hebrew words of the Old Testament. Not only the words, but even the letters of scripture are divinely inspired."

TSK: Mat 5:18 - verily // Till // pass

verily : Mat 5:26, Mat 6:2, Mat 6:16, Mat 8:10, Mat 10:15, Mat 10:23, Mat 10:42, Mat 11:11, Mat 13:17, Mat 16:28, Mat 17:20, Mat 18:3, Mat 18:18; Mat 19:23, Mat 19:28, Mat 21:21, Mat 21:31, Mat 23:36, Mat 24:2, Mat 24:34, Mat 24:47, Mat 25:12, Mat 25:40,Mat 25:45, Mat 26:13, Mat 26:14; Mar 3:28, Mar 6:11, Mar 8:12, Mar 9:1, Mar 9:41, Mar 10:15, Mar 10:29, Mar 11:23, Mar 12:43, Mar 13:30, Mar 14:9; Mar 14:18, Mar 14:25, Mar 14:30; Luk 4:24, Luk 11:51, Luk 12:37, Luk 13:35, Luk 18:17, Luk 18:29, Luk 21:32, Luk 23:43; Joh 1:51, Joh 3:3, Joh 3:5, Joh 3:11, Joh 5:19, Joh 5:24, Joh 5:25, Joh 6:26, Joh 6:32, Joh 6:47, Joh 6:53, Joh 8:34, Joh 8:51, Joh 8:58, Joh 10:1, Joh 10:7; Joh 12:24, Joh 13:16, Joh 13:20,Joh 13:21, Joh 13:38, Joh 14:12, Joh 16:20,Joh 16:23, Joh 21:18

Till : Mat 24:35; Psa 102:26; Isa 51:6; Luk 16:17, Luk 21:33; Heb 1:11, Heb 1:12; 2Pe 3:10-13; Rev 20:11

pass : Psa 119:89, Psa 119:90,Psa 119:152; Isa 40:8; 1Pe 1:25

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Poole: Mat 5:18 - Till heaven and earth pass

Amen I say unto you, so it is in the Greek, a phrase, as some observe never used but by God and Christ himself; who is the Amen, the faithful and true witness, Rev 3:14 , though the servants of God have sometimes used it, as an adverb of wishing. It is by most concluded a form of an oath, God by it swearing by his truth and faithfulness.

Till heaven and earth pass & c.; that is, the law is the certain and unchangeable will of God concerning reasonable creatures, and it shall never be altered in the least tittle, nor ever be abolished; you may therefore be secure that I come into the world upon no such errand.

Lightfoot: Mat 5:18 - Verily, I say unto you. // One jot. // One tittle

For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled.   

[Verily, I say unto you.] I. Such an asseveration was usual to the nation, though the syllables were something changed, "A certain matron said to R. Judah Bar Allai, Thy face is like to a swineherd or a usurer. To whom he answered, In truth, both are forbidden me." The Gloss there, " In truth is a manner of speech used in swearing."   

II. But our Saviour useth this phrase by the highest divine right. 1. Because he is "Amen, the faithful witness," Rev 3:14; 2Co 1:20; see also Isa 65:16; and Kimchi there. 2. Because he published the gospel, the highest truth, Joh 18:37; etc. 3. By this asseveration he doth well oppose his divine oracles against the insolent madness of the traditional doctors, who did often vent their blasphemous and frivolous tales under this seal, They speak in truth; and "wheresoever this is said (say they), it is a tradition of Moses from Sinai."   

[One jot.] The Jerusalem Gemarists speak almost to the same sense: "The Book of Deuteronomy came and prostrated itself before God, and said, 'O Lord of the universe, thou hast written in me thy law, but now a testament defective in some part is defective in all. Behold, Solomon endeavours to root the letter Jod out of me' [to wit, in this text, He shall not multiply wives; Deu_17:17]. The holy blessed God answered, 'Solomon and a thousand such as he shall perish, but the least word shall not perish out of thee.' R. Honna said in the name of R. Acha, The letter Jod which God took out of the name of Sarai our mother, was given half to Sara and half to Abraham. A tradition of R. Hoshaia: The letter Jod came and prostrated itself before God, and said, 'O eternal Lord, thou hast rooted me out of the name of that holy woman.' The blessed God answered, 'Hitherto thou hast been in the name of a woman, and that in the end [viz. in Sarai]; but henceforward thou shalt be in the name of a man, and that in the beginning.' Hence is that which is written, 'And Moses called the name of Hoshea, Jehoshua.' " The Babylonians also do relate this translation of the letter Jod out of the name of Sarai to the name of Joshua, after this manner: "The letter Jod, saith God, which I took out of the name of Sarai, stood and cried to me for very many years, How long will it be ere Joshua arise? To whose name I have added it"...   

There is a certain little city mentioned by name Derokreth; which, by reason of the smallness of it, was called Jod in the Gloss. And there was a rabbin named Rabh Jod. Of the letter Jod, see Midrash Tillin upon the hundred and fourteenth Psalm.   

[One tittle.] It seems to denote the little heads or dashes of letters, whereby the difference is made between letters of a form almost alike. The matter may be illustrated by these examples, If it were Daleth, and a man should have formed it into Resh [on the sabbath], or should have formed Resh into Daleth, he is guilty.   

"It is written [ul Lev_22:32] Ye shall not profane my holy name; whosoever shall change Cheth into He, destroys the world...It is written [ul Psa_150:6], Let every spirit praise the Lord; whosoever changeth He into Cheth, destroys the world. It is written [ul Jer_5:12]}, They lied against the Lord; whosoever changeth Beth into Caph, destroys the world. It is written [ul 1Sa_2:2] There is none holy as the Lord; whosoever changeth Caph into Beth, destroys the world. It is written [ul Deu_6:4], The Lord our God is one Lord; he that changeth Daleth into Resh, destroys the world."   

But that our Saviour, by jot and tittle; did not only understand the bare letters, or the little marks that distinguished them, appears sufficiently from Mat 5:19, where he renders it, one of "these least commands": in which sense is that also in the Jerusalem Gemara of Solomon's rooting out Jod, that is, evacuating that precept He shall not multiply wives. And yet it appears enough hence, that our Saviour also so far asserts the uncorrupt immortality and purity of the holy text, that no particle of the sacred sense should perish, from the beginning of the law to the end of it.   

To him that diligently considers these words of our Saviour, their opinion offers itself, who suppose that the whole alphabet of the law, or rather the original character of it is perished; namely, the Samaritan, in which they think the law was first given and written; and that that Hebrew wherein we now read the Bible was substituted in its stead. We shall not expatiate in the question; but let me, with the reader's good leave, produce and consider some passages of the Talmud, whence, if I be not mistaken, Christians seem first to have taken up this opinion.   

The Jerusalem Talmud treats of this matter in these words: "R. Jochanan de Beth Gubrin saith, There are four noble tongues which the world useth: the mother-tongue, for singing; the Roman, for war; the Syriac, for mourning; the Hebrew, for elocution: and there are some which add the Assyrian, for writing. The Assyrian hath writing [that is, letters or characters], but a language it hath not. The Hebrew hath a language, but writing it hath not. They chose to themselves the Hebrew language in the Assyrian character. But why is it called the Assyrian? Because it is blessed (or direct) in its writing. R. Levi saith, Because it came up into their hands out of Assyria."   

"A tradition. R. Josi saith, Ezra was fit, by whose hands the law might have been given, but that the age of Moses prevented. But although the law was not given by his hand, yet writing [that is, the forms of the letters] and the language were given by his hand. 'And the writing of the epistle was writ in Syriac, and rendered in Syriac,' Ezr 4:7. 'And they could not read the writing,' Dan 5:8. From whence is shown that the writing [that is, the form of the characters and letters] was given that very same day. R. Nathan saith: The law was given in breaking [that is, in letters more rude and more disjoined]: and the matter is as R. Josi saith. Rabbi [Judah Haccodesh] saith, The law was given in the Assyrian language; and when they sinned it was turned into breaking. And when they were worthy in the days of Ezra, it was turned for them again into the Assyrian. I show to-day, that I will render to you Mishneh, the doubled; or, as if he should say the seconded (Zec 9:12). And he shall write for himself the Mishneh ( the doubled) of this law in a book (Deu 17:18), namely, in a writing that was to be changed. R. Simeon Ben Eleazar saith, in the name of R. Eleazar Ben Parta, and he in the name of R. Lazar the Hammodean, The law was given in Assyrian writing..." So the Jerusalem Talmudists.   

Discourse is had of the same business in the Babylonian Talmud, and almost in the same words, these being added over: The law was given to Israel in Hebrew writing, and in the holy language. And it was given to them again in the days of Ezra, in Assyrian writing, and the Syriac language. The Israelites chose to themselves the Assyrian writing, and the holy language; and left the Hebrew writing and the Syriac language to ignorant persons. But who are those idiots (or ignorant persons )? R. Chasda saith, The Samaritans. And what is the Hebrew writing? R. Chasda saith...according to the Gloss, "Great letters, such as those are which are writ in charms and upon doorposts."   

That we may a little apprehend the meaning of the Rabbins, let it be observed,   

I. That by 'the mother-tongue' (the Hebrew, Syriac, Roman, being named particularly) no other certainly can be understood than the Greek, we have shown at the three-and-twentieth verse of the first chapter...   

Many nations were united into one language, that is, the old Syriac, -- namely, the Chaldeans, the Mesopotamians, the Assyrians, the Syrians. Of these some were the sons of Sem and some of Ham. Though all had the same language, it is no wonder if all had not the same letters. The Assyrians and Israelites refer their original to Sem; these had the Assyrian writing: the sons of Ham that inhabited beyond Euphrates had another; perhaps that which is now called by us the Samaritan, which it may be the sons of Ham the Canaanites used.   

III. That the law was given by Moses in Assyrian letters, is the opinion (as you see) of some Talmudists; and that, indeed, the sounder by much. For to think that the divine law was writ in characters proper to the cursed seed of Ham, is agreeable neither to the dignity of the law, nor indeed to reason itself. They that assert the mother-writing was Assyrian, do indeed confess that the characters of the law were changed; but this was done by reason of the sin of the people, and through negligence. For when under the first Temple the Israelites degenerated into Canaanitish manners, perhaps they used the letters of the Canaanites, which were the same with those of the inhabitants beyond Euphrates. These words of theirs put the matter out of doubt: "The law was given to Israel in the Assyrian writing in the days of Moses: but when they sinned under the first Temple and contemned the law, it was changed into breaking to them."   

Therefore, according to these men's opinion, the Assyrian writing was the original of the law, and endured and obtained unto the degenerate age under the first Temple. Then they think it was changed into the writing used beyond Euphrates or the Samaritan; or, if you will, the Canaanitish (if so be these were not one and the same); but by Ezra it was at last restored into the original Assyrian.   

Truly, I wonder that learned men should attribute so much to this tradition (for whence else they have received their opinion, I do not understand), that they should think that the primitive writing of the law was in Samaritan: seeing that which the Gemarists assert concerning the changing of the characters rests upon so brittle and tottering a foundation, that it is much more probable that there was no change at all (but that the law was first writ in Assyrian by Moses, and in the Assyrian also by Ezra), because the change cannot be built and established upon stronger arguments.   

A second question might follow concerning Keri and Kethib: and a suspicion might also arise, that the test of the law was not preserved perfect to one jot and one tittle; when so many various readings do so frequently occur. Concerning this business we will offer these few things only, that so we may return to our task: --   

I. These things are delivered by tradition; " They found three books in the court, the book Meoni, the book Zaatuti, and the book Hi. In one they found written, 'The eternal God is thy refuge': but in the two other they found it written, (Deu 33:27); They approved [or confirmed] those two, but rejected that one"...   

I do much suspect that these three books laid up in the court answered to the threefold congregation of the Jews, namely, in Judea, Babylon, and Egypt, whence these copies might be particularly taken. For, however that nation was scattered abroad almost throughout the whole world, yet, by number and companies scarcely to be numbered, it more plentifully increased in these three countries than any where else: in Judea, by those that returned from Babylon; in Babylon, by those that returned not; and in Egypt, by the temple of Onias. The two copies that agreed, I judge to be out of Judea and Babylon; that that differed to be out of Egypt: and this last I suspect by this, that the word Zaatuti smells of the Seventy interpreters, whom the Jews of Egypt might be judged, for the very sake of the place, to favour more than any elsewhere. For it is asserted by the Jewish writers that Zaatuti was one of those changes which the Septuagint brought into the sacred text.   

II. It is therefore very probable, that the Keri and Kethib were compacted from the comparing of the two copies of the greatest authority, that is, the Jewish and the Babylonian: which when they differed from one another in so many places in certain little dashes of writing, but little or nothing at all as to the sense, by very sound counsel they provided that both should be reserved, so that both copies might have their worth preserved, and the sacred text its purity and fulness, whilst not one jot nor one title of it perished.

Haydock: Mat 5:18 - Amen // Not one jot // Greek: Amen

Amen. That is, assuredly, of a truth. This Hebrew word Amen, is here retained by the example and authority of all the four evangelists, who have retained it. It is used by our Lord as a strong asseveration, and affirmation of the truth. (Challoner) ---

Not one jot (or not one jota), nor one tittle, i.e. not the least letter, nor stroke of a letter; that is, not the least moral precept. Besides every type and figure of the former law, now by my coming shall be fulfilled. (Witham) ---

Greek: Amen, is retained in the Hebrew, Greek, Syriac, and Armenian languages, aw well as in all vulgar idioms. It is a term of asseveration, and equivalent to an oath; and in many places, to make the asseveration still stronger, it is repeated. St. Luke very accurately translates it into Greek: nai. St. Paul and St. John unite them Greek: nai and Greek: amen. (Haydock)

Gill: Mat 5:18 - For verily I say unto you // till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled

For verily I say unto you,.... Or "I Amen say unto you", which is one of the names of Christ; see Rev 3:14 or the word "Amen" is only used by Christ as an asseveration of what he was about to say; and which, for greater confirmation, is usually doubled in the Evangelist John, "Amen, Amen", or "verily, verily". The word is used by the Jews ^w for an oath; they swore by it; and it is a rule with them, that whoever answers "Amen" after an oath, it is all one as if he had pronounced the oath itself. The thing so strongly affirmed in this solemn manner is,

till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled. The ιωτα "or jot", in the Greek language, answers to "jod" in the Hebrew, the least of all the letters in the alphabet; hence a little city is called by this name, and this reason is given for it, ^x שיוד קטנה באותיות, "because that jod is the least among letters". We read also of Rabbi Jod ^y, perhaps so called because היה קטן, he was little, as the author of Juchasin observes ^z. This shows in what language the law was written; not in the Samaritan language, for the jod in that is a large letter, but in the Hebrew, in which it is very small; and particularly is written in a very diminutive character, in Deu 32:18 "by one tittle" some think is meant one of those ducts, dashes, or corners of letters, which distinguish one letter from another, that are much alike; others have thought that one of the pricks or vowel points is intended; others, one of those little strokes in the tops of letters, which the Jews call ^a "crowns" and "spikes", is here meant, in which they imagined great mysteries were contained; and there were some persons among them, who made it their business to search into the meaning of every letter, and of everyone of these little horns, or pricks, that were upon the top of them. So says R. Meir ^b,

"in the time of the prophets there were such who very diligently searched every letter in the law, and explained every letter by itself; and do not wonder at this that they should expound every letter by itself, for they commented על כל קוץ וקוץ של כל אות ואות, upon everyone of the tops of each letter.''

Such an expounder was Akiba ben Joseph ^c. To which custom Christ is here supposed to have respect: however, certain it is that he speaks very much in the language, and agreeably to the mind of the Jewish doctors; and some things in their writings will serve to illustrate this passage,

"If, (say they ^d,) all the nations of the world were gathered together, "to root one word out of the law", they could not do it; which you may learn from Solomon, who sought to root "one letter out of the law", the letter "jod", in Deu 17:16 but the holy blessed God said, Solomon shall cease, and an hundred such as he (in the Talmud ^e it is a thousand such as he) ויוד ממך אינה בטילה לעולם, "but, jod shall not cease from thee (the law) for ever".''

And elsewhere the same expression is used ^f, and it is added,

"ljbm ynya Kmm huwqw, "but a tittle from thee shall not perish."''

The design of Christ, in conformity to the language of the Jews, is to declare, that no part of the law, not one of the least commandments in it, as he explains himself in the next verse, should be unaccomplished; but all should be fulfilled before "heaven and earth pass" away, as they will, with a great noise and fervent heat, as to their present form and condition; or sooner shall they pass away, than the least part of the law shall: which expresses the perpetuity of the law, and the impossibility of its passing away, and the superior excellency of it to the heavens and the earth. It is a saying of one of the Jewish doctors ^g, that

"the whole world is not equal even to one word out of the law,''

in which it is said, there is not one letter deficient or superfluous.