John Calvin Commentary Matthew 22:16

"And they send to him their disciples, with the Herodians, saying, Teacher, we know that thou art true, and teachest the way of God in truth, and carest not for any one: for thou regardest not the person of men." — Matthew 22:16 (ASV)

Master, we know that you are true. This is the righteousness they counterfeit when they offer humble subjection to Christ, as if they were eager to learn, and as if they not only had some relish for piety but also were fully convinced of His doctrine. For if what they said had been from the heart, this would have been true uprightness.

Therefore, from their words we may obtain a definition of a good and faithful teacher, such as they pretended Christ to be. They say that He is true, and teaches the way of God; that is, He is a faithful interpreter of God, and He teaches it in truth—that is, without any corruption.

The way of God is contrasted with the inventions of men and with all foreign doctrines; and truth is contrasted with ambition, covetousness, and other wicked dispositions, which usually corrupt the purity of instruction.

So then, he ought to be considered a true teacher who does not introduce the inventions of men or depart from the pure word of God, but gives out, as it were, with his hands what he has learned from the mouth of God. Such a teacher, from a sincere desire for edification, adapts his doctrine to the benefit and salvation of the people and does not debase it by any disguise. This latter point is what Paul addresses when he states that he

does not make merchandise of the word of God (2 Corinthians 2:17).

By this, Paul means that there are some persons who use dexterity and do not openly overturn sound doctrine or incur the disgrace of holding wicked opinions, but who disguise and corrupt the purity of doctrine because they are ambitious, covetous, or easily turned in various directions according to their earnest desire. He therefore compares them to jockeys (κυπηλλεύοντες), because they deprave the pure use of the word of God.

For you do not regard the person of men. It is also noteworthy that these hypocrites also add that Christ teaches rightly because He has no regard for the person of men.

Nothing has a more powerful tendency to draw teachers away from a faithful and upright administration of the word than to pay respect to men. For it is impossible for anyone who desires to please men (Galatians 1:10) to truly devote himself to God.

Some attention, undoubtedly, is due to men, but not in order to obtain their favor by flattery. In short, to walk uprightly, we must put away respect of persons, which obscures the light and perverts right judgment, as God frequently teaches in the Law (Deuteronomy 1:16; Deuteronomy 16:19), and as experience also shows. Thus Christ (John 7:24) contrasts acceptance of persons (προσωποληψίαν) and sound judgment as entirely different things.