Matthew Henry's Concise
Commentary
18:9-14 This parable was to convince some who trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and despised others. God sees with what disposition and design we come to him in holy ordinances. What the Pharisee said,
shows that he trusted to himself that he was righteous. We may suppose he was free from gross and scandalous sins. All this was very well and commendable. Miserable is the condition of those who come short of the righteousness of this Pharisee, yet he was not accepted and why not He went up to the temple to pray, but was full of himself and his own goodness the favour and grace of God he did not think worth asking. Let us beware of presenting proud devotions to the Lord, and of despising others. The publican's address to
God was full of humility, and of repentance for sin, and desire toward God. His prayer was short, but to the purpose God be merciful tome a sinner. Blessed be God, that we have this short prayer upon record, as an answered prayer and that we are sure that he who prayed it, went to his house justified for so shall we be, if we pray it, as he did, through
Jesus Christ. He owned himself a sinner by nature, by practice, guilty before God. He had no dependence but upon the mercy of God;
upon that alone he relied. And God's glory is to resist the proud, and give grace to the humble.
Justification is of God in Christ therefore the self-condemned, and not the self-righteous,
are justified before God.
Barnes' Notes on the Bible
Stood and prayed thus with himself - Some have proposed to render this, "stood by himself" and prayed. In this way it would be characteristic of the sect of the Pharisees, who dreaded the contact of others as polluting, and who were disposed to say to all, Standby yourselves. The Syraic so renders it, but it is doubtful whether the Greek will allow this construction. If not, it means, he said over to himself what he had done, and what was the ground on which he expected the favour of
God.
God, I thank thee - There was still in the prayer of the Pharisee an "appearance" of real religion. He did not profess to claim that he had made himself better than others. He was willing to acknowledge that God had done it for him, and that he had aright to his gratitude for it. Hypocrites are often the most orthodox in opinion of any class of people. They know the truth, and admit it. They use it frequently in their prayers and conversation. They will even persecute those who happen to differ from them in opinion, and who maybe really wrong.
We are not to judge of the "piety" of people by the fact that they admit the truth, or even that they use it often in their prayers. It is, however,
not wrong to thank God that he has kept us from the gross sins which other people commit but it should not be done in an ostentatious manner, nor should it be done forgetting still that we are great sinners and need pardon. These were the faults of the
Pharisees.
Extortioners - Rapacious avaricious who takeaway the goods of others by force and violence. It means, also, those who take advantage of the necessities of others, the poor and the oppressed, and extort their property.
Unjust - They who are not fair and honest in their dealings who get the property of others by "fraud" They are distinguished from "extortioners" because they who are unjust may have the "appearance" of honesty in the other case there is not.
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