to bear towards · verb — imperfect active indicative, 3rd person plural
him
αὐτῷautō
G846
the reflexive pronoun self · personal pronoun — dative singular masculine
also
καὶkai
G2532
and · conjunction
infants
βρέφηbrephē
G1025
an infant (properly · noun — accusative plural neuter
that
ἵναina
G2443
compare G3588 (ὁ)) · conjunction
touch
ἅπτομαιháptomai
G680
properly
them
αὐτῶνautōn
G846
the reflexive pronoun self · personal pronoun — genitive plural neuter
when
δὲde
G1161
but · conjunction
disciples
μαθηταὶmathētai
G3101
a learner · noun — nominative plural masculine
saw
ἰδόντεςidontes
G1492
used only in certain past tenses · verb — second aorist active participle, nominative plural masculine
rebuked
ἐπετίμωνepetimōn
G2008
to tax upon · verb — imperfect active indicative, 3rd person plural
them
αὐτοῖς.autois
G846
the reflexive pronoun self · personal pronoun — dative plural masculine
Strong's Exhaustive Concordance (James Strong, 1890/1894), public domain; digitized by Open Scriptures (CC BY-SA). KJV word tagging: eBible.org (public domain). Original-language text, parsing and brief lexicon: STEPBible.org data from Tyndale House, Cambridge (CC BY 4.0).
Cross-references
Matthew 19:13-15 Then were there brought unto him little children, that he should put his hands on them, and pray: and the disciples rebuked them.
Mark 10:13-16 And they brought young children to him, that he should touch them: and his disciples rebuked those that brought them.
1 Samuel 1:24 And when she had weaned him, she took him up with her, with three bullocks, and one ephah of flour, and a bottle of wine, and brought him un…
Luke 9:49-50 And John answered and said, Master, we saw one casting out devils in thy name; and we forbad him, because he followeth not with us.
Luke 9:54 And when his disciples James and John saw this, they said, Lord, wilt thou that we command fire to come down from heaven, and consume them,…
Cross-references from OpenBible.info (CC BY), in the lineage of the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (public domain).
Commentary
Matthew Henry on Luke 18:15-17
This passage of story we had both in Matthew and Mark; it very fitly follows here after the story of the publican, as a confirmation of the truth which was to be illustrated by that parable, that those shall be accepted with God, and honoured, who humble themselves, and for them Christ has blessings in store, the choicest and best of blessings. Observe here, 1. Those who are themselves blessed in Christ should desire to have their children also blessed in him, and should hereby testify the true honour they have for Christ, by their making use of him, and the true love they have for their children, by their concern about their souls. They brought to him infants, very young, not able to go, su…
LITTLE CHILDREN BROUGHT TO CHRIST. (Luk 18:15-17)
infants--showing that some, at least, of those called in Matthew (Mat 19:13) and Mark (Mar 10:13) simply "little" or "young children," were literally "babes."
touch them--or, as more fully in Matthew (Mat 19:13), "put His hands on them and pray," or invoke a "blessing" on them (Mar 10:16), according to venerable custom (Gen 48:14-15).
rebuked them--Repeatedly the disciples thus interposed to save annoyance and interruption to their Master; but, as the result showed, always against the mind of Christ (Mat 15:23; Luk 18:39-40). Here, it is plain from our Lord's reply, that they thought the intrusion a useless one, as infants were not capab…
They brought unto him also infants - On these verses the reader is requested to consult the notes on Mat 19:13 (note), Mat 19:14 (note), and on Mar 10:16 (note).
When a spiritual guide (a gooroo) visits his disciple, the latter takes his child to him for his blessing, forcing the head of the child down to the gooroo's feet, who gives what is called his blessing in some such words as these, Live long! - Be learned! - Be rich!
John Gill on Luke 18:15
The Church Fathers
(Serm. 115.) To whom are they brought to be touched, but to the Saviour? And as being the Saviour they are presented to Him to be saved, who came to save that which was lost. But with regard to these innocents, when were they lost? The Apostle says, By one man sin entered into the world. (Rom. 5:12.) Let then the little children come as the sick to a physician, the lost to their Redeemer.
They were bringing children to him that he might touch them; and when the disciples saw it, they rebuked them. And this lesson, full of the teaching of humility, shows that the innocent and simple can reach the grace of the Lord. The disciples rebuked those who were bringing them, not because they did not want the children to be blessed by the Savior's hand and voice, but because, not yet having complete faith, they thought he would be exhausted by the importunity of those presenting the children, like a human.
Mothers brought their babes. They wanted his blessing and begged for their infants the touch of his holy hand. The blessed disciples rebuked them for doing this, not because they envied the babes; rather they were paying him due respect as their teacher and preventing him from getting unnecessarily tired. They placed much value on order.Even until now, infants are brought near and blessed by Christ by means of consecrated hands. The pattern of the act continues even until this day and descends to us from the custom of Christ as its fountain. Only now, the bringing of infants does not take place in an unbecoming or disorderly manner but with proper order, solemnity and reverence.
The Church Fathers: public-domain translations (Ante-Nicene and Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers), verse-indexed by SermonIndex (CC BY 4.0).
Dictionary and topics
Child — This word has considerable latitude of meaning in Scripture. Thus Joseph is called a child at the time when he was probably about sixteen years of age (Gen. 37:3); and Benjamin is so called when he…
Pharisees — Separatists (Heb. persahin, from parash, “to separate”). They were probably the successors of the Assideans (i.e., the “pious”), a party that originated in the time of Antiochus Epiphanes in revolt…
Bigotry · .Of the disciples in forbidding children to be brought to Jesus — .Of the disciples in forbidding children to be brought to Jesus
Dictionary: Easton's (1897) and Smith's (1863), public domain. Topics: Nave's Topical Bible (1896) and Torrey's Topical Textbook (1897), public domain. Both as parsed by NEUU (CC BY 4.0).
And they brought unto him also infants,.... As well as grown persons, that were sick, to be healed by him:
that he would touch them; in order, as some learned men think, to cure them of diseases that attended them; for one of the ways by which Christ healed persons, was by touching them; nor do we read of his touching in common for any other purpose, or of persons desiring him to touch them, or theirs, but for this end; in Matthew 19:13 it is read, "that he should put his hands on them"; and so the Arabic and Persic versions here read, in order to pray over them, and bless them: but neither in one place, nor the other, is any mention of their baptism, or of their being brought for such a pu…
Luke 18:15-17
Matthew 19:13-15
Mark 10:13-16
Luke 18:15-17
13. Then were presented to him children, that he might lay hands on them and pray; but the disciples rebuked them. 14. And Jesus said to them, Suffer children, and forbid them not, to come to me; for of such is the kingdom of heaven. 15. And when he had laid hands on them, he departed thence.
13. And they brought to him children, that he might touch them; but the disciples rebuked those who presented them. 14. And when Jesus saw it, he was displeased, and said to them, Suffer children to come to me, and do not forbid them; for of such is the kingdom of heaven. 15. Verily I say to you, Whosoever shall not receive the kingdom of G…
This incident illustrates 18:14. • they scolded the parents: In this cultural context, children had no social status (see study note on 9:48), so the disciples viewed them as an interruption to Jesus’ important ministry.
