Digital Logos Edition
Spurgeon’s commentary on the entire book of Matthew, The Gospel of the Kingdom was written during the final years of his life. He died before seeing a final proof of the manuscript, and did not live to see the popularity of his commentary. This verse-by-verse commentary on the entire Gospel of Matthew is written with the same elegance characteristic of The Treasury of David, his commentary on Psalms. He shows that the concept of God’s Kingdom predominates throughout the narrative structure of the book, and reveals a unique revelation of Jesus’ ministry. The Logos Bible Software edition of The Gospel of the Kingdom: A Commentary on the Book of Matthew was originally published in London by Passmore and Alabaster in 1893.
Charles Haddon Spurgeon was born in Kelvedon, Essex, England on June 19, 1834. He converted to Christianity in 1850 at a small Methodist chapel, to which he detoured during a snowstorm. While there, he heard a sermon on Isaiah 45:22 and was saved—“Look unto me, and be ye saved, all the ends of the earth, for I am God, and there is none else.” He began his own ministry of preaching and teaching immediately, and preached more than 500 sermons by the age of twenty.
In 1854, at nineteen years of age, Spurgeon began preaching at the New Park Street Chapel in London. He was appointed to a six month trial position, which he requested be cut to three months should the congregation dislike his preaching. He gained instant fame, however, and the church grew from 232 members to more than five thousand at the end of his pastorate. Many of his sermons were published each week and regularly sold more than 25,000 copies in twenty languages. Throughout his ministry, Spurgeon estimated that he preached to more than 10,000,000 people. Dwight L. Moody was deeply influenced by Spurgeon’s preaching, and founded the Moody Bible Institute after seeing Spurgeon’s work at the Pastor’s College in London.
Spurgeon read six books per week during his adult life, and read Pilgrim’s Progress more than 100 times. In addition to his studying and preaching, Spurgeon also founded the Pastor’s College (now Spurgeon’s College), various orphanages and schools, mission chapels, and numerous other social institutions.
Charles Spurgeon suffered from poor health throughout his life. He died on January 31, 1892, and was buried in London.
“Jesus ennobles all that he touches. These scribes knew where to find the text about the Saviour’s birth, and they could put their finger upon the spot in the map where he should be born; and yet they knew not the King, neither cared to seek him out. May it never be my case, to be a master of Scriptural geography, prophecy, and theology, and yet to miss him of whom the Scripture speaks!” (Page 6)
“Those who look for Jesus will see him: those who truly see him will worship him: those who worship him will consecrate their substance to him.” (Page 7)
“The Lord of glory is born the Son of man, and is named by God’s command, and by man’s mouth, Jesus, the Saviour. He is what he is called. He saves us from the punishment and the guilt of sin, and then from the ill effect and evil power of sin. This he does for ‘his people’, even for all who believe in him. It is his nature to do this, as we see in the fact that his very name is Jesus—Saviour. We still call him by that name, for he still saves us in these latter days. Let us go and tell out his name among men; for he will save others.” (Page 4)
“Jesus was always practical. The most important thing for his disciples was not that they might know when ‘these things’ would be, but that they might be preserved from the peculiar evils of the time.” (Page 213)
“If truth does not enter the heart, evil influences soon remove it.” (Page 97)