And when the Pharisees saw it, they said unto his disciples, Why does your Teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners?
All Commentaries on Matthew 9:11 Go To Matthew 9
Hilary of Poitiers
AD 368
The Jews were seething with envy that the Lord was spending time with publicans and sinners. He declared to them that the words of the law were being concealed under a cloak of faithlessness. He gave aid to the sick and medicine to those in need. For those who believed they were healthy, however, no cure was necessary. But in order for them to understand that none of his followers were healthy, he advised them to learn the meaning of “I desire mercy, and not sacrifice.” In other words, the law linked to the ritual of sacrifices was unable to give help, but health was in store for all in the granting of mercy. “For I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.” He had come for all. So why does Jesus say that he did not come for the righteous? … No one is righteous by reason of the law. He therefore showed the emptiness of boasting about the law, because with sacrifices imposed on the sick for their health, mercy was needed for all things set down in the law. For if righteousness came from the law, forgiveness through grace would not be necessary.
