Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Matthew 24:12
And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold.
12. iniquity ] Literally, lawlessness.
shall abound ] Translate, hath abounded.
the love of many ] Rather, of the many, i. e. of “the majority.” Love or agap became the leading virtue and grace of the Christian life, yet this is the only instance of the word in the Synoptic Gospels, except Luk 11:42, “the love of God.” The noun itself is not classical, and therefore lent itself the more readily to Christian use. But the thought connected with the word, “family affection,” was beautiful before it was spiritualised by Christianity. The E. V. has two renderings, “love” and “charity,” (see especially 1 Corinthians 13). The first seems to be too wide, the second too restricted, denoting a principal tendency or function of agap rather than agap itself. The use of the word by our Lord to express Christian unity is itself prophetic. St Paul experienced this “coldness of love:” “at my first answer no man stood with me,” 2Ti 4:16.
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
And because iniquity … – The word iniquity here seems to include the cruelty of the Jews and Romans in their persecutions; the betraying of Christians by those who professed to be such; and the pernicious errors of false prophets arid others. The effect of all this would be, that the ardor of feeling of many Christians would be lessened. The word wax means to become. It is an old Saxon word, not used now in this sense except in the Bible. The fear of death, and the deluding influence of false teachers, would lessen the zeal of many timid and weak professors; perhaps, also, of many real but feeble Christians.
Fuente: Albert Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
Mat 24:12
The love of many shall wax cold.
The love of the saints destroyed by the abounding of iniquity
I. When iniquity be said to abound.
1. When those who are set for the defence of the gospel can see its doctrines corrupted without emotion.
2. When those who live in total disregard of practical religion increase.
3. When all classes give each other countenance in crime, and provoke each other to it by example, by solicitation, and by menaces (Gen 6:5-7; Gen 19:12-13).
II. The abounding of iniquity operates to cool the blood of Christians. (Sketches.)
Declension and backsliding in the Church
I. The external position of the church. Abounding iniquity in the forms of speculative error, obvious and shameful sin, direct opposition to the gospel, etc.
II. The internal state of the church The same circumstances which cause gross wickedness to abound in the world, produce coldness of love in the Church. Antediluvians, Jewish history, etc. The wickedness which abounds in the world is often the fruit of coldness in the love of the Church, and then the reaction, etc. That you may sustain no harm by the abounding of iniquity, guard your attention, affections, etc. Cherish ardent, enthusiastic love to Christ. (A. Tucker.)
Evil example contagious
Conversation with cold ones will cast a damp, and will make one cold, as Christ here intimates; there is no small danger of defection, if not of infection by such; they are notable quench-coals. This both David and Isaiah found, and therefore cried out each for himself, Woe is me (Psa 120:5; Isa 6:5). There is a compulsive power in company to do as they do (Gal 2:14). It behoveth us, therefore, upon whom the ends of the world are come, to beware lest we suffer a decay; lest, leaving our first love, and led away with the error of the wicked, we fall from our former steadfastness (Rev 2:5; 2Pe 3:17). The world, says Ludolfus, has been once destroyed with water for the heat of lust, and shall be again with fire for the coldness of love. Latimer saw so much lack of love to God and goodness in his time that he thought verily Doomsday was then just at hand. What would he have thought had he lived in our age, wherein it were far easier to write a book of apostates than a book of martyrs? (John Trapp.)
Temptations of the early Christians to apostasy
There was always, in the converts of Jerusalem, a strong temptation towards a relapse into Judaism; and in those disturbed times which preceded the fall, any man with Jewish blood in his veins, with the traditional Jewish temper, the ancestral beliefs, the intense love for his nation and people, must have been hard beset. Why should he, too, not choose the heroic part, and cast in his lot with the defenders of the sacred walls? Why not with his dying body make a rampart against the on-pressing Roman, rather than slip away in cowardly desertion like a traitor, leaving the glorious city to perish as it might? All patriotic instincts, all that the Jew most cherished, must have drawn the convert in that direction: it was a sore trial to have to make this choice between the Old Testament and the New. It was such a crisis as rarely happens to a man, to a society, to a nation. It broke up the old Church, the old national life. By destroying the centralized worship of the temple, and staying the immemorial sacrifices, it taught Christians to look far afield, it bade them bow down in no single shrine to worship the Father, and it sent them forth to evangelize a world lying in darkness. They learnt, by the fall of the Holy City, that the Christian faith was to be not national but cosmopolitan, and that out of the ruins of a narrower polity a larger and wider world would grow It was by endurance and self-denial of no ordinary kind that these early Jewish Christians succeeded in overcoming the danger besetting them at every turn. They endured to the end; they learned by patience to get a broader and wiser view of the true position and relation of the faith of their adoption. The sneers of the unconverted Jews, the sense that they had lost their patriotic standing-ground, the oppression and sword of their Roman masters-these were the bitter draughts which refreshed their souls, and nerved them for independence in a larger sphere of life. By these they not only saved their souls, but ennobled their views and aims, till they were able to enter fully into the new conditions of the faith of Christ, and thereby take an active part in the outward movements of a missionary church. (Dean Kitchen.)
Iniquity the cause of unbelief
We are not to expect that apostates will own that iniquity is the cause of their apostasy. They have always assigned other causes of it, which in their opinion clears them from all suspicion of unjust prejudice or prevention. And these are
(1) the immoral and unexemplary lives of the clergy; and
(2) the irrational system of Christianity. (Bishop Warburton.)
Rarity of steadfastness
It is but a he, a single man, that holdeth out, when many lose their love and therewith their reward. Eeebolus, AEneas, Sylvius, Baldwin, Pendleton, Shaxton, and many others, set forth gallantly, but tired ere they came to their journeys end. Like the Galli Insubres, they showed all their valour in the first encounter. Like Charles VIII. of France, of whom Guicciarden notes, that in his expedition to Naples he came into the field like thunder and lightning but went out like a snuff. Like Mandrobulus in Lucian, who, the first year offered gold to his gods, the second year silver, the third nothing. Or, lastly, like the lions of Syria which, as Aristotle reports, bring forth five whelps, next time four, next three, and so on, till at length they become barren. So apostates come at last to nothing, and therefore must look for nothing better than to be cast off for ever; when they that hold out and hold on their way, passing from strength to strength, from faith to faith, etc., shall be as the sun when he goeth forth in his strength; yea, they shall shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of their Father. Caleb was not discouraged by the giants, and therefore had Hebron, the place of the giants: so those that hold out in the way of heaven shall be sure to have heaven. Thomas San Paulius, at Paris, a young man of eighteen years, being in the fire, was plucked up again upon the gibbet, and asked whether he would turn. To whom he said, That he was in his way towards God, and therefore desired them to let him go. That merchant of Paris, his case was nothing so comfortable, who, for jesting at the friars, was by them condemned to be hanged; but he, to save his life, was content to recant, and so he did. The friars, hearing of his recantation, commended him, saying, If he continued so he should be saved; and so, calling upon the officers, caused them to make haste to the gallows to hang him up, while he was yet in a good way, said they, lest he fall again. (John Trapp.)
The honour of endurance
There lies a ship in the stream. It is beautiful in all its lines. It has swung out from the pier and is lying at anchor yonder; and men, as they cross the river on the ferry-boats, stand and look at it and admire it; and it deserves admiration. But it has never been out of port: there it stands, green, new, untried; and yet everybody thinks it is beautiful. It is like childhood, which everybody thinks is beautiful, or ought to be. There comes up the bay, and is making towards the navy-yard, another ship. It is an old man-of-war. It has been in both oceans, and has been round the world many times. It has given and taken thunder-blows under the flag of its country. It is the old Constitution we will suppose. She anchors at the navy-yard. See how men throng the cars and go to the navy-yard to get a sight of her! See how the sailors stand upon the deck and gaze upon her! Some of them, perchance, have been in her, and to them she is thrice handsomer than any new vessel. This old war-beaten ship, that carries the memory of many memorable campaigns, lies there; and they look at its breached bow, its shattered rigging, its coarse and rude lines, its dingy sides, which seem long since to have parted company with paint; and every one of them feels, if he is a true patriot, God bless you, old thing! God bless you! (H. W. Beecher.)
Not to fail at the end of the Christian life
When Diogenes had spent the greater part of his life in observing the most extreme and scrupulous self-denial, and was now verging on ninety years of age, one of his friends recommended him to indulge himself a little. What! said he, would you have me quit the race close by the goal?
Fuente: Biblical Illustrator Edited by Joseph S. Exell
Verse 12. The love of many shall wax cold.] By reason of these trials and persecutions from without, and those apostasies and false prophets from within, the love of many to Christ and his doctrine, and to one another, shall grow cold. Some openly deserting the faith, as Mt 24:10; others corrupting it, as Mt 24:11; and others growing indifferent about it, Mt 24:12. Even at this early period there seems to have been a very considerable defection in several Christian Churches; see Ga 3:1-4; 2Th 3:1, c. 2Ti 1:15.
Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible
And because iniquity shall abound,…. Meaning, either the malice and wickedness of outrageous persecutors, which should greatly increase; or the treachery and hatred of the apostates; or the errors and heresies of false teachers; or the wickedness that prevailed in the lives and conversations of some, that were called Christians: for each of these seem to be hinted at in the context, and may be all included, as making up the abounding iniquity here spoken of; the consequence of which would be,
the love of many shall wax cold. This would be the case of many, but not of all; for in the midst of this abounding iniquity, there were some, the ardour of whose love to Christ, to his Gospel, and to the saints, did not abate: but then there were many, whose zeal for Christ, through the violence of persecution, was greatly damped; and through the treachery of false brethren, were shy of the saints themselves, not knowing who to trust; and through the principles of the false teachers, the power of godliness, and the vital heat of religion, were almost lost; and through a love of the world, and of carnal ease and pleasure, love to the saints was grown very chill, and greatly left; as the instances of Demas, and those that forsook the Apostle Paul, at his first answer before Nero, show. This might be true of such, who were real believers in Christ; who might fall under great decays, through the prevalence of iniquity; since it does not say their love shall be lost, but wax cold.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
Shall wax cold (). Second future passive indicative from . To breathe cool by blowing, to grow cold, “spiritual energy blighted or chilled by a malign or poisonous wind” (Vincent).
The love of many ( ). Love of the brotherhood gives way to mutual hatred and suspicion.
Fuente: Robertson’s Word Pictures in the New Testament
Shall abound [] . Lit., shall be multiplied. See Act 6:1, 7; Act 7:17; Act 9:31; Heb 6:14.
Of many [ ] . The A. V. in omitting the definite article, misses the force of Christ ‘s saying. It is not the love of many people only that shall be chilled, but of the many, the majority, the great body. Wax cold [] . The verb means originally to breathe or blow; and the picture is that of spiritual energy blighted or chilled by a malign or poisonous wind.
Fuente: Vincent’s Word Studies in the New Testament
12 Because iniquity will abound. How far and wide this evil extends every person ought to know, but there are very few who observe it. For in consequence of the superior clearness with which the light of the gospel discovers the malice of men, even good and properly regulated minds grow cool, and almost lose the desire to exercise benevolence. Each of them reasons thus with himself, that the duties which they perform to one person, or to another, are thrown away, because experience and daily practice show that almost all are ungrateful, or treacherous, or wicked. This is unquestionably a weighty and dangerous temptation; for what could be more unreasonable than to approve of a doctrine, by which the desire of doing good, and the rigor of charity, appear to be diminished? And yet when the gospel makes its appearance, charity, which ought to kindle the hearts of all men with its warmth, rather grows cool. But we must observe the source of this evil, which Christ points out, namely, that many lose courage, because through their weakness they are unable to stem the flood of iniquity which flows on every hand. Christ requires from his followers, on the other hand, such courage as to persist in striving against it; as Paul also enjoins us not to be weary of performing deeds of kindness and beneficence, (2Th 3:13.) Although, then, the charity of many, overwhelmed by the mass of iniquities, should give way, Christ warns believers that they must surmount this obstacle, lest, overcome by bad examples, they apostatize. And therefore he repeats the statement, that no man can be saved, unless he strive lawfully, (2Ti 2:5,) so as to persevere to the end
Fuente: Calvin’s Complete Commentary
(12) Because iniquity shall abound . . .Better, lawlessness. No word could more fitly represent the condition of Juda in the time just referred to: brigandage, massacres, extortion, assassination, came to be common things.
The love of many . . .Better, of the many; the greater part of the true Israel who would be found in the Church of Christ; perhaps, also, the greater part of the nation as such. This was the natural result of the condition of things implied in the lawlessness. The tendency of all such times, as seen in the histories of famines, and pestilences, and revolutions, is to intensify selfishness, both in the more excusable form of self-preservation, and in the darker form of self-aggrandisement. In the tendency to forsake the assembling of themselves together among the Hebrew Christians, we have, perhaps, one instance of the love waxing cold (Heb. 10:25).
Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)
“And because lawlessness will be multiplied, the love of the many will grow cold.”
Such will be the attitude of lawlessness that permeates the world and multiplies that it will even affect some among Jesus’ followers, so that the love of many will grow cold. They will have the form of godliness without its power. But such godly love is the essence of being a disciple (Mat 5:42-48; Joh 13:34-35), and its fading will therefore be an indication of either backsliding or of lack of genuineness. This has been the constant experience of His ‘congregation’ through the centuries, and time and again He has had to stoop to restore those who are truly His, so that the flame is again fanned in their hearts. Only through prayer and the study of His word and constant witness, especially when we feel at our lowest, will our zeal be maintained. We must recognise that it is a dangerous thing to grow cold, for it can result in a frozen spiritual life and even spiritual hypothermia.
Fuente: Commentary Series on the Bible by Peter Pett
Mat 24:12. Because iniquity, &c. The genuine fruit and effect of all these evils was the lukewarmness and coolness among Christians. By reason of these trials and persecutions from without, and these apostasies and false prophets from within, the love of many to Christ and his doctrine, and also their love to each other, shall wax cold. Some shall openly desert the faith; some shall corrupt it, as Mat 24:11 and others again, as here, shall grow indifferent to it; and not to mention other instances, who can hear St. Paul complaining at Rome, 2Ti 4:16 that at his first answer all men forsook him; who can hear the divine author of the Epistle to the Hebrews exhorting them, Heb 10:25 not to forsake the assembling of themselves together, as the manner of some is, and not conclude the event to have sufficiently justified our Saviour’s prediction?
Fuente: Commentary on the Holy Bible by Thomas Coke
Mat 24:12 . And in consequence of the growing prevalence of wickedness (as the result of what is mentioned in Mat 24:10-11 ), the love of the greater number will become cold ; that predominance of evil within the Christian community will have the effect of cooling the brotherly love of the majority of its members. The moral degeneracy within the pale of that community will bring about as its special result a prevailing want of charity, that specific contrast to the true characteristic of the Christian life (Gal 5:6 ; 1Co 13:1 ff.; 1Jn 4:20 ). For , the opposite of moral compliance with the law of God (= , 1Jn 3:4 ), comp. Mat 7:23 , Mat 13:41 , Mat 23:28 ; 2Co 6:14 ; 2Th 2:7 . For with , comp. Lobeck, ad Phryn . p. 318.
] are not the mentioned in Mat 24:10 (Fritzsche), whose love, as that verse informs us, is already changed into hatred, but the multitude , the mass , the great body (Khner, II. l, p. 548; Ast, Lex. Plat . III. p. 148) of Christians. In the case of those who were distinguished above the ordinary run of Christians, no such cooling was to take place; but yet, as compared with the latter, they were only to be regarded as . According to Dorner, Mat 24:11-12 apply not to the apostolic age, but to a subsequent stage in the history of the church. But such a view is inconsistent with the numerous testimonies to be met with in the Epistles, with the apprehensions and expectations regarding impending events to which they give expression. Comp. on Gal 1:4 .
Fuente: Heinrich August Wilhelm Meyer’s New Testament Commentary
DISCOURSE: 1395
CAUTION AGAINST DECLENSION IN RELIGION
Mat 24:12-13. Because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold. But he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved.
THESE words are a part of the discourse which our Lord held with four of his disciples in private, after he had retired from the Temple to the Mount of Olives [Note: Compare Mar 13:1-4. with Mat 24:1-2.]. Being in full view of the Temple, his disciples were struck with the magnificence of its appearance, and expressed to him their admiration of it: from whence he took occasion to foretell the speedy destruction of it, and to give them signs whereby they should ascertain the approach of the judgments which awaited their whole nation. At the same time he gave them instructions for their own support and comfort under all the trials which they themselves should endure previous to that time. He told them what evil treatment they should meet with from the enemies of his Gospel; and what difficulties they should encounter from his pretended friends. Their trials from without must be waved at present. Those from within we propose for our present consideration.
In the words before us our Lord suggests to his disciples,
I.
The danger of spiritual declension
Independent of the proneness of man at all times to backslide from God, there is a danger arising to us from the conduct of those with whom we stand connected. The bitterness of persecution, or abounding of corruption, may operate to abate our zeal in the service of our God; but the falls and offences of those who profess religion have a peculiar tendency to discourage the people of God; and it is to this, we apprehend, our Lord more especially refers.
Such events must be expected in every age
[If we consult the Holy Scriptures, we shall find that, even in the apostolic age, multitudes who were once hopeful, declined from the ways of God, and made shipwreck both of faith and of a good conscience [Note: 2Ti 1:15; 2Ti 2:17; 2Ti 4:10.] And what is there to prevent a recurrence of the same evils? As long as the heart of man is so evil and so treacherous, it will ever be prone to start aside from God, even as a broken bow ]
Whenever they do happen, they tend to quench the love even of the most established
[Great disappointment is felt by all the members of the Christian Church: and every one feels a portion of that disgrace which the instability of any member brings upon the whole body. From the frailty of some, the fidelity of others begins to be questioned: evil surmisings arise: a coolness and distance are occasioned among the brethren: the communion of the saints is interrupted; and their associations for holy exercises are less frequented, or less enjoyed [Note: Heb 10:24-25.]. Divisions then ensue: each leader endeavours to increase the number of his partisans: and thus all that union and harmony which should characterize the family of Christ, is destroyed.
Hence arises also a coldness of heart towards God himself, and a loss of fellowship with him In a word, the almost inseparable effect of an irruption of iniquity into the Church of God is, that the love of many at least, if not of all, will wax cold. One single root of bitterness springing up, will trouble and defile many [Note: Heb 12:15.].]
Such danger always existing, we proceed to suggest,
II.
A preservative against it
Two things are certain, namely, That on our continuance in well-doing our salvation depends; and, That by our continuance in well-doing our salvation is secured: and the consideration of these two points will, under God, prove an excellent antidote against all the dangers to which we can be exposed.
Consider then, that
1.
On our continuance in well-doing our salvation depends
[To this truth the whole voice of Scripture bears witness. We know full well that there are many promises made to the people of God; and that of those who have been given to Christ he will lose none. But it were a dreadful perversion of those promises, to think that we can be saved in any other way than that of a patient continuance in well-doing [Note: Rom 2:7.]. We must not attempt to make void the most positive declarations of Holy Writ [Note: Eze 18:24; Eze 33:12-13. Heb 10:26-27; Heb 10:38-39.] but must learn, like the Apostle Paul himself, to make them an incentive to unwearied watchfulness and diligence [Note: 1Co 9:27.] ]
2.
By our continuance in well-doing our salvation is secured
[The promise in our text is absolute and universal: and throughout every part of Scripture God says to us, Be thou faithful unto death; and I will give thee a crown of life We need not disquiet ourselves about Gods fulfilment of his promises: let us only attend to our own duties, and leave him to accomplish his own word in his own time and way. We shall find at last, that not a jot or tittle of his word has ever failed The words of our text were fulfilled literally to every true disciple at the destruction of Jerusalem, when every apostate perished. A refuge was provided for the whole body of Christians, at Pella, and a way was opened for their escape thither: and so it shall be in the day of judgment, when Christs faithful servants universally, and they only, shall be saved.]
3.
The consideration of these truths would be an effectual preservative against spiritual declension
[Suppose iniquity to abound ever so much, what is that to us, except as a matter of grief and lamentation for the persons who commit it? Let the iniquity shew itself in any persons, or in any degree, it is no reason that our love to God and man should wax cold: it should rather operate as a reason for us to stir up our love to a flame, in order to impede the progress of the corruption, or at least to prevent its assaults upon our own souls; as travellers in a wilderness kindle fires around them, in order to protect themselves from the assaults of ravenous and ferocious beasts. At all events, however much any persons may injure their own souls, and endanger their own salvation, it becomes us to take care that they do not destroy or injure us ]
Address
1.
Let us above all things cultivate a spirit of love
[This is the characteristic feature of all Gods children: and the want of it, whatever else we may possess, proves us to be only as sounding brass or as tinkling cymbals [Note: 1Co 13:1-3.]. A growth in this is the surest evidence of our growth in grace [Note: 2Th 1:3-4.] and by this, more than by any thing else, is our establishment in the divine life secured [Note: 1Th 3:12-13.] Let us then take care lest any root of bitterness spring up in our hearts; and let us daily put on charity, which is the bond of perfectness [Note: Col 3:14.].]
2.
Let us beg of God the assistance of his Holy Spirit
[The consideration of our final happiness depending so entirely on our own continuance in well-doing, would be discouraging, if we did not know, that God has promised to us the aids of his Spirit; and that the grace of Christ shall be sufficient for us. See how graciously the Lord supported Paul, when all his Christian friends had forsaken him in his greatest extremity: At my first answer no man stood with me, but all men forsook me: I pray God that it may not be laid to their charge: notwithstanding, the Lord stood with me, and strengthened me [Note: 2Ti 4:16.]. Thus shall you find him present with you in every hour of trial, and be made more than conquerors through him that loved you.]
Fuente: Charles Simeon’s Horae Homileticae (Old and New Testaments)
12 And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold.
Ver. 12. And because iniquity shall abound ] In these last and worst times, as Bernard yoketh them, and as the Scripture often describeth them. There was never but one Noah, that with two faces saw both before and behind him. But, lo, that ancient of days, to whom all times are present, hath told us that the last shall be the loosest, the dregs of time, the sink of sins of all former ages.
The love of many shall wax cold ] Conversation with cold ones will cast a dampness, and will make one cold, as our Saviour here intimates; there is no small danger of defection, if not of infection by such; they are notable quench coals. This both David and Isaiah found, and therefore cried out each for himself, “Woe is me,” Psa 120:5 ; Isa 6:5 . There is a compulsive power in company to do as they do, Gal 2:14 ; “Why compellest thou,” &c. It behoveth us therefore to beware upon whom the ends of the world are come, lest we suffer a decay, lest leaving our first love, and led away with the error of the wicked, we fall from our former steadfastness,Rev 2:5Rev 2:5 ; 2Pe 3:17 . The world, saith Ludolfus ( De Vita Christi, ii. 87), hath been once destroyed with water for the heat of lust, and shall be again with fire for the coldness of love. Latimer saw so much lack of love to God and goodness in his time, that he thought verily doomsday was then just at hand. What would he have thought had he lived in our age, wherein it were far easier to write a book of apostates than a book of martyrs?
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
12. ] It is against this especially that James, in his Epistle, and Jude, in more than the outward sense the brother of James , were called on to protest, the mixture of heathen licentiousness with the profession of Christianity. But perhaps we ought to have regard to the past tense of , and interpret, ‘ because the iniquity is filled up,’ on account of the horrible state of morality (parallel to that described by Thucydides, iii. 82 84, as prevailing in Greece, which had destroyed all mutual confidence), the love and mutual trust of the generality of Christians shall grow cold.
, thus we have ch. Mat 25:5 , . Even the Church itself is leavened by the distrust of the evil days. See 2Th 2:3 .
Fuente: Henry Alford’s Greek Testament
Mat 24:12 . . Weiss and Holtzmann (H. C.) take this in the specific sense of antinomianism, a libertine type of Christianity preached by the false prophets or apostles, the word in that sense of course to be credited to the evangelist. The word as used by Christ would naturally bear the general sense of godlessness or iniquity. We may wonder at the use of such a word in connection with nascent Christianity. It would require a considerable time to make room for such degeneracy. But the very point Jesus wishes to impress is that there will be room for that before the final crisis of Israel comes. , etc., will cool the love of many. . is an hapax leg. 2nd future passive of , to breathe. One of the sad features of a degenerate time is that even the good loose their fervour. , love of the brotherhood, here only in this sense in Synoptical Gospels, the distinctive virtue of the Christian, with a new name for a new thing.
Fuente: The Expositors Greek Testament by Robertson
because = on account of. Greek. dia, as in Mat 24:9.
iniquity = lawlessness.
abound = be multiplied. Compare Act 6:1, Act 6:7; Act 7:17; Act 9:31.
many = the many.
wax = grow. Anglo-Saxon weaxen, to grow.
wax cold. Greek. psuchomai.
Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics
12.] It is against this especially that James, in his Epistle, and Jude, in more than the outward sense the brother of James, were called on to protest,-the mixture of heathen licentiousness with the profession of Christianity. But perhaps we ought to have regard to the past tense of , and interpret, because the iniquity is filled up, on account of the horrible state of morality (parallel to that described by Thucydides, iii. 82-84, as prevailing in Greece, which had destroyed all mutual confidence), the love and mutual trust of the generality of Christians shall grow cold.
,-thus we have ch. Mat 25:5, . Even the Church itself is leavened by the distrust of the evil days. See 2Th 2:3.
Fuente: The Greek Testament
Mat 24:12. , unrighteousness) Unrighteousness and love are opposites; for love is the fulfilling of the law. Unrighteousness involves compulsion, love, as it were, something natural.-, shall wax cold) It is the character of love to burn.- , love) sc. towards God, mankind, our neighbour, and ourself; of a spiritual and also natural kind; love, which is the sum of the law.- (natural affection) makes parents rejoice in the birth of their offspring: when iniquity has made times hard, they rejoice in losing their offspring or having none. Love is the ornament and very life of Christians, and of their whole condition and conduct, Php 1:9; 2Pe 1:7; Rev 2:4. It is also the foundation of that , patience or endurance, mentioned in the next verse.- , of the many) i.e. of the majority, sc. of those who do not excel in love. Unrighteousness is especially practised by those who are exceedingly powerful or excessively poor: whence also the love of the rest waxes cold.[1037] That justice which is called particular, being violated, that which is called universal, languishes.[1038]
[1037] Since their power and means of doing good are taken violently from them by unrighteousness or injustice.-V. g.
[1038] Universal justice comprehends the whole of our duty to our neighbour; particular justice is that strictly so called. See Aristotles Nicomachan Ethics, Book V. passim.-(I. B.)
Fuente: Gnomon of the New Testament
iniquity
i.e. lawlessness, sin. (See Scofield “Rom 3:23”).
Fuente: Scofield Reference Bible Notes
because: Jam 4:1-4, Jam 5:1-6
the love: Rev 2:4, Rev 2:5, Rev 2:10, Rev 3:15
Reciprocal: Psa 12:1 – godly Rom 2:7 – patient Rom 12:11 – fervent
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
4:12
Many people are affected by their surroundings whether good or bad. Iniquity means a state of lawlessness, and because that condition was coming upon the country a great number of disciples were going to become cold in their love for God.
Fuente: Combined Bible Commentary
And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold.
[The love of many shall wax cold.] These words relate to that horrid apostasy which prevailed everywhere in the Jewish churches that had received the gospel. See 2Th 2:3; etc.; Gal 3:1; 1Ti 1:15; etc.
Fuente: Lightfoot Commentary Gospels
Mat 24:12. Because iniquity (or lawlessness) shall be multiplied. A horrible state of immorality prevailed in the first century, and the false teachers endeavored to join it with Christian profession; the inevitable result was a coldness, a dying out of Christian love.
The love of the many (the mass) shall wax cold. So far as we know, this was not literally fulfilled in the first century. We infer that the entire fulfilment will come in with the great Apostasy (2Th 2:3-8). The principle is: wickedness destroys love; immorality eats out the heart of Christianity.