And Jesus said unto him
The copulative "and", is left out in the Vulgate Latin, Syriac,
Arabic, and Persic versions:
no man having put his hand to the plough;
or "ploughshare", as reads the Syriac version; or "plough
handle", as the Persic; referring, as Beza thinks, to the
business of Elisha, in ( 1 Kings
19:19 )
And looking back;
behind him; for the ploughman ought to look before him, on his
plough, and the ground he is ploughing, or he is not fit to be a
ploughman; nor will he make proper furrows, or do his work well;
and so he that enters upon the ministerial work, and looks back,
and engages himself in the affairs of the world, sets his heart
on them, and spends his time in them,
is not fit for the kingdom of God:
that is, to preach the kingdom of God, as in ( Luke 9:60 ) . He cannot
serve God and mammon, his own interest, and the interest of
Christ; he cannot rightly perform the work of the ministry,
whilst his thoughts and time are taken up in the affairs of the
world.