Matthew 12:44

44 Then he says, 'I will return to my house from which I came.' And when he comes, he finds it empty, swept, and put in order.

Matthew 12:44 Meaning and Commentary

Matthew 12:44

Then he said, I will return into my house
Into the land of Judea, particularly into the Scribes and Pharisees, outward professors of religion; who, notwithstanding their outward reformation, and great pretensions to holiness, are Satan's house still: he has a property in them, a claim upon them; and though he says,

from whence I came out,
yet he never really and properly quitted it, only seemingly, and in appearance; and therefore his returning is only throwing off the guise, and reassuming his former character, as a vicious and unclean spirit.

And when he is come, he findeth it empty:
not empty of sin: this puts me in mind of a passage in the Misna F25, where it is said, that on a fast day,

``when they stand in prayer, they cause to descend, or go before the ark, an old man, who is used (to prayer,) whose children, (Mqyr wtybw) , "and his house, are empty", so that his heart is perfect in prayer,''

or entirely at leisure for it. The commentators F26 on that phrase, "his house is empty", note, that he was empty of sin, and free from it, and one concerning whom an evil report had not gone forth from his youth: but such was not this house; it was empty of God, of the true knowledge of him, of the fear of him, and love to him; of Christ, of faith in him, affection for him, and hope on him; of the Spirit of God, and of his graces, and of spiritual, internal religion, and powerful godliness.

Swept;
not with the Spirit of grace convincing of sin, righteousness, and judgment; but with the besom of an outward reformation:

and garnished;
not with internal grace, which makes saints all glorious within; but with secret lusts and corruptions, which rendered it an agreeable habitation for this unclean spirit; and at most, with some show of morality, a little negative holiness, or abstinence from outward acts of sin, an observance of some external rites and ceremonies, and a few hypocritical performances of fasting and prayer; which Satan can very well bear with, so long as the heart is empty of spiritual grace, and till an opportunity offers of throwing off all appearance of good.


FOOTNOTES:

F25 Taanith, c. 2. sect. 2.
F26 Maimon. & Bartenora in ib.

Matthew 12:44 In-Context

42 The queen of the South will rise up in the judgment with this generation and condemn it, for she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon; and indeed a greater than Solomon is here.
43 "When an unclean spirit goes out of a man, he goes through dry places, seeking rest, and finds none.
44 Then he says, 'I will return to my house from which I came.' And when he comes, he finds it empty, swept, and put in order.
45 Then he goes and takes with him seven other spirits more wicked than himself, and they enter and dwell there; and the last state of that man is worse than the first. So shall it also be with this wicked generation."
46 While He was still talking to the multitudes, behold, His mother and brothers stood outside, seeking to speak with Him.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.