Pray ye therefore the Lord of the harvest
By "the Lord of the harvest" is either meant God the Father,
whose are all the elect, who has a hearty concern for them, and
will have them all gathered in, not one of them shall be left; or
the Lord Jesus Christ himself, who has the care and charge of the
whole election of grace; and who as he must, he will bring them
all in; and who has power of sending forth labourers, as the
following chapter shows; and so this is a proof of prayer being
made to Christ;
that he will send forth labourers into his
harvest.
This is the petition the disciples of Christ were put upon making
to the Lord of the harvest, on consideration of the present
condition multitudes of souls were in: they could not make,
qualify, and send out ministers themselves; this is not man's
work, but God's: he only is able to furnish with ministerial
gifts, to work upon, and powerfully incline the hearts of men to
this service, to call and send them forth into it, and to assist
and succeed them in it. The persons desired to be sent are
"labourers"; faithful, diligent, and industrious preachers of the
Gospel; such as lay out themselves, their time, talents, and
strength, in their master's service; and do not indulge
themselves in sloth and idleness: the place they are desired to
be sent into is, "into the harvest"; into the field of the world,
where God's elect lie, and there labour in preaching the Gospel;
hoping for a divine blessing, and an almighty power to attend
their ministrations, for the conversion of sinners, and
edification of saints. The request the disciples are directed to
make, concerning these persons for this work, is, that the Lord
of the harvest would "send", or "thrust" them "forth"; implying
power and efficacy, and authority, on the part of the sender; and
backwardness on the part of those that are sent, through modesty:
a sense of the greatness of the work, and of their own
unworthiness and unfitness for it. Very opportunely did our Lord
move his disciples to put up this petition, and was done, no
question, with a view to, and to prepare for, his mission of the
twelve to preach the Gospel, of which there is an account in the
next chapter.
