Quotes & Notes on:     Luke 7:47    John Wesley,  Notes On the New Testament (1755): The fruit of her having had much forgiven. It should carefully be observed here, that her love is mentioned as the effect and evidence, not the cause of her pardon. She knew that much had been forgiven her, and therefore she loved much. Reginald Fuller's Preaching the Lectionary (1984):  To be posted.   William Baird, Interpreter's Commentary, 1971:  To be posted.   J. McNicol, The New Bible Commentary, 1954:  To be posted.   I.H. Marshall, The New Bible Commentary, 1970:  To be posted.   David Guzik, Study Guide: To be posted.   Chuck Smith, Study Guide: To be posted.   Catechism of the Catholic Church: To be posted.   J. Norval Geldenhuys, Bible Expositor, 1960: To be posted.   Abingdon Bible Commentary (1929): To be posted.   D.D. Whedon, Commentary on Luke, 1866: To be posted.   Joseph Parker, People's Bible, 1901: To be posted.   Anchor Bible: To be posted.   The Fourfold Gospel:  Her love was the result, and not the cause, of her forgiveness. Our sins are not forgiven because we love God, but we love God because they are forgiven (1Jo 4:19). Such is the inference of the parable, and such the teaching of the entire New Testament. We search the story in vain for any token of love on the part of Simon. Treasury of Scripture Knowledge: * Her. Lu 7:42; 5:20,21; Ex 34:6,7 * which. Isa 1:18; 55:7; Eze 16:63; 36:29-32; Mic 7:19; Ac 5:31; Ro 5:20 1Co 6:9-11; 1Ti 1:14; 1Jo 1:7 * she. Lu 7:43; Mt 10:37; Joh 21:15-17; 2Co 5:14; Ga 5:6; Eph 6:24; Php 1:9 1Jo 3:18; 4:19; 5:3.   Robertson's Word Pictures: Are forgiven (apheôntai). Doric perfect passive form. See Lu 5:21,23. For she loved much (hoti êgapêsen polu). Illustration or proof, not reason for the forgiveness. Her sins had been already forgiven and remained forgiven. But to whom little is forgiven, the same loveth little (Hôi de oligon aphietai oligon agapâi). This explanation proves that the meaning of hoti preceding is proof, not cause   William Burkitt's Notes: No comment on this verse.   Family Bible Notes: According to the parable, much love is the fruit of having been forgiven much. This woman shows much love, which should be to Simon a manifest proof that she had been forgiven much. Our Lord's words, then, may be thus paraphrased: Her sins, which are many, are forgiven; for, as thou seest, she hath loved much.   1599 Geneva Bible Notes: That is, says Theophylact, she has shown her faith abundantly: and Basil in his "Sermon of Baptism" says, "He that owes much has much forgiven him, that he may love much more". And therefore Christ's saying is so plain in light of this that it is a wonder to see the enemies of the truth so badly distort and misinterpret this place in such a thorough manner in order to establish their meritorious works: for the greater sum a man has forgiven him, the more he loves him that has been so gracious to him. And this woman shows by deeds of love how great the benefit was she had received: and therefore the charity that is here spoken of is not to be taken as the cause of her forgiveness, but as a sign of it: for Christ does not say as the Pharisees did that she was a sinner, but bears her witness that the sins of her past life are forgiven her.   People's New Testament Commentary:  This woman, a great sinner, shows that she is forgiven by her great love. Her faith in Jesus led her to trust for forgiveness.   Albert Barnes' Commentary:   Wherefore I say unto thee. As the result of this, or because she has done this; meaning by this that she had given evidence that her sins had been forgiven. The inquiry with Simon was whether it was proper for Jesus to touch her or to allow her to touch him, because she was such a sinner, Lu 7:39. Jesus said, in substance, to Simon, "Grant that she has been as great a sinner as you affirm, and even grant that if she had continued so it might be improper to suffer her to touch me, yet her conduct shows that her sins have been forgiven. She has evinced so much love for me as to show that she is no longer such a sinner as you suppose, and it is not, therefore, improper that she should be suffered to come near me." For she loved much. In our translation this would seem to be given as a reason why her sins had been forgiven--that she had loved much before they were pardoned; but this is clearly not the meaning. This would be contrary to the whole New Testament, which supposes that love succeeds, not precedes forgiveness; and which nowhere supposes that sins are forgiven because we love God. It would be also contrary to the design of the Saviour here. It was not to show why her sins had been forgiven, but to show that she had given evidence that they actually had been, and that it was proper, therefore, that she should come near to him and manifest this love. The meaning may be thus expressed: "That her sins, so many and aggravated, have been forgiven--that she is no longer such a sinner as you suppose, is manifest from her conduct. She shows deep gratitude, penitence, love. Her conduct is the proper expression of that love. While you have shown comparatively little evidence that you felt that your sins were great, and comparatively little love at their being forgiven, she has shown that she felt hers to be great, and has loved much." To whom little is forgiven. He who feels that little has been forgiven--that his sins were not as great as those of others. A man's love to God will be in proportion to the obligation he feels to him for forgiveness. God is to be loved for his perfections, apart from what he has done for us. But still it is proper that our love should be increased by a consideration of his goodness; and they who feel--as Christians do--that they are the chief of sinners, will feel under infinite obligation to love God and their Redeemer, and that no expression of attachment to him can be beyond what is due.   Jamieson-Faussett Brown: Her sins which are many--"Those many sins of hers," our Lord, who admitted how much more she owed than the Pharisee, now proclaims in naked terms the forgiveness of her guilt. for--not because, as if love were the cause of forgiveness, but "inasmuch as," or "in proof of which." The latter clause of the verse, and the whole structure of the parable, plainly show this to be the meaning. little forgiven ... loveth little--delicately ironical intimation of no love and no forgiveness in the present case.   Spurgeon Devotional Commentary: No comment on this verse.   Adam Clarke's Commentary: For she loved much] Or, THEREFORE she loved much. It appears to have been a consciousness of God's forgiving love that brought her at this time to the Pharisee's house. In the common translation her forgiveness is represented to be the consequence of her loving much, which is causing the tree to produce the root, and not the root the tree. I have considered oti here as having the sense of , therefore; because, to make this sentence suit with the foregoing parable, Lu 7:42,43, and with what immediately follows here, but he to whom little is forgiven loveth little, we must suppose her love was the effect of her being pardoned, not the cause of it. seems to have the sense of therefore in Mt 13:13; Joh 8:44; 1Co 10:17; and in the Septuagint, in De 33:52; Isa 49:19; Ho 9:15; and Ec 5:6. Both these particles are often interchanged in the New Testament. Loved much-loveth little] That is, A man's love to God will be in proportion to the obligations he feels himself under to the bounty of his Maker.   Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary: No comment on this verse.

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See also:  220.7 - Bible Commentaries; 251 - Homiletics;  252 - Sermon Texts