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MATTHEW 12:6 — KING JAMES VERSION 0
Matt 12:5Matt 12:7
“But I say unto you, That in this place is one greater than the temple.”
I tell you, something greater than the temple is here. The greater-than-the-temple claim is the most radical christological claim Jesus has made so far in Matthew. The temple was the holiest space in the cosmos — the place where heaven and earth met, where God's presence dwelled among his people. If the temple service's priority over the Sabbath is established, and something greater than the temple is present in Jesus, then the disciples' activity under his direction has an even greater priority than the temple's service.

Church Fathers on Matthew 12:6

Having related the preaching together with the miracles of one year before John’s enquiry, He passes to those of another year, namely after the death of John, when Jesus is already in all things spoken against; and hence it is said, 'At that time Jesus passed through the corn fields on the sabbath day.'

Gloss (Glossa Ordinaria) · medieval compilation · ord.

This which here follows is related both by Mark and Luke, without any question of discrepancy; indeed they do not say, 'At that time,' so that Matthew has here perhaps preserved the order of time, they that of their recollection; unless we take the words in a wider sense, 'At that time,' that is, the time in which these many and divers things were done, whence we may conceive that all these things happened after the death of John. For he is believed to have been beheaded a…

Augustine · 4th century · De Cons. Ev., ii, 34

Why then did He lead them through the corn fields on the sabbath, seeing He knew all things, unless He desired to break the sabbath? This he desired indeed, but not absolutely; therefore He broke it not without cause, but furnished a sufficient reason; so that He both caused the Law to cease, and yet offended not against it.

Chrysostom · 4th century · Hom., xxxix
Read all 24 entries in the readerCatena Aurea · St. Thomas Aquinas, tr. J. H. Newman · public domain
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Matthew 12:6 — Community Reflections | HolyStudy