[Magdolus is the beginning of Egypt towards these parts; Syene is the furthest part of Egypt, near and next to the Ethiopians. The Egyptians are a symbol of those men who live in sins. Egypt is the world that "lieth in the evil one," or the state of wickedness. Syene and Magdolus are the boundaries of Egypt. Those, therefore, who are in Syene are men in the very beginning of wickedness, as it were at its entrance. Nevertheless, it is necessary that all Egyptians be punished from the first to the last. All who dwell in Egypt, or rather who are in it, shall be punished therein.]
FROM THE COMMENTARIES ON HOSEA
ASince those things which are spoken in Scripture in a solecistic manner, as far as the wording is concerned, confuse the reader, so that he suspects that the passages were not written correctly, nor consistently, nor as they stand—so that some even dare, under the pretext of correction, to alter them, shifting the underlying meaning to passages that seem to be written consistently—it is necessary, since a similar instance has occurred here regarding the proposed passages as far as the wording is concerned, that we examine the meaning lying within them. For having spoken in the plural, "They wept and made supplication unto me," and again having indicated the following in the plural, "Being in the house, they found me," he then brings in what follows in the singular, saying: "And there it was spoken unto him." For one who looks only at the bare wording, erroneously thinking that it was written poorly, would either write the final part in the plural, or would transfer the preceding parts into the singular. For having read, "They wept and made supplication unto me," and, "Being in the house, they found me," one might say that what follows ought to be, "And there it was spoken unto them"—that is, unto those who wept and made supplication, and who, being in the house, found God. But by observation of similar passages, we shall show that this too has been spoken consistently.
In Genesis, God gives a commandment to Adam, saying: "From every tree in the garden you may eat, but from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, you shall not eat of it; for in the day that you eat of it, you shall surely die." A Since he had begun in the singular by saying, "From every tree in the garden you may eat," he adds in the plural, saying, "but from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, you shall not eat of it; for in the day that you eat of it, you shall surely die." For when he wishes him to live, and as long as he has maintained this commandment, he gives B it in the singular, and says: "From every tree in the garden you may eat." For those who walk according to God and embrace his commandments, though they be many, because they are like-minded and of one mind, are one. Therefore, when the commandment regarding the good is given, it is given in the singular, "you may eat"; but when he discusses the transgression, not in the singular, but in the plural he says: "You shall not eat of it; for in the day that you eat of it, you shall surely die." So it is here, that while they are still weeping and making supplication C to God, it is said in the plural, "they wept and made supplication"; but when they find God, it is no longer said plurally, "it was spoken there to them," but, "to him." For the many have already become one in the finding of God and in hearing his word. For the one, when he sins, is many, being separated from God and divided, and falling away from unity; but the many who follow the commandments of God are one, just as the Apostle also testifies, saying: "For we being many are one bread and one body." And again: "One God, and one Christ, and one faith, and one baptism." And elsewhere: "For we are all one in Christ Jesus." And again: "For I have espoused you to one husband to present you as a chaste virgin to the Lord." And that those who are well-pleasing to the Lord are one, it is possible to see from the prayer which the Savior prays to the Father D concerning his disciples; for he says, "Holy Father, grant that, even as I and you are one, so also these may be one in us." And when the saints are said to be members of one another, what else is it but that they are one body? And in the Shepherd, the building of a tower from many stones, appearing to be one building, what else does it signify than the harmony and unity of many in the Scriptures?
ORIGEN'S COMMENTARY ON THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO MATTHEW
ORIGENIS COMMENTARIA IN EVANGELIUM SECUNDUM MATTHAEUM.
FROM THE FIRST VOLUME OF THE COMMENTARIES ON MATTHEW.
Interpreted by Henri de Valois.A As I have learned from the tradition concerning the four Gospels, which are the only ones received without dispute in the Church of God under heaven: that first of all was written the [Gospel] according to the former tax collector, and later apostle of Jesus Christ, Matthew, who published it for those coming to the faith from Judaism, written in Hebrew characters; second, that according to Mark, who composed it as Peter had instructed him, whom he also acknowledged as his son in his Catholic Epistle in these words: "The elect church in Babylon greets you, and Mark my son"; third, that according to Luke, the Gospel praised by Paul, composed for those from the Gentiles; and last of all, that according to John.
B From the first book of Origen’s *Commentary on the Gospel according to Matthew*.
If Christ Jesus, "who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God, but emptied himself, taking the form of a servant, being made in the likeness of men, and found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, becoming obedient unto death, even the death of the cross," there is no doubt that his birth is not like that of men, as if he who was not before began to exist; but rather He who was before, and was in the form of God, came so that He might also take on the form of a servant. Finally, that which is born of the flesh is flesh, he says; that is to say, that which is born from her who said: "Behold the handmaid of the Lord, be it done to me according to your word." This is the form of a servant, which is indeed flesh.
1601 COMMENTARIES. 1602
glorifying himself says: My rivers are mine, and I have made them, as it is written in Ezekiel. The Sadducees, therefore, who say there is no resurrection, questioned the Saviour about those things which are written, thinking to impose silence upon Him. But neither Jesus nor His beloved disciples are ever silenced by the impious. For it is proper that silence be imposed upon the Sadducees by Christ. For the just man is silent indeed, knowing the time of silence and the time of speech, but he does not grow speechless. And just as it is proper for the just to be silent, but not to grow speechless, so it is proper for the Sadducees, or for all who are teachers of lies, to grow speechless, but not to be silent. For even if they grow speechless as regards the matter, they are not silent. Therefore the Lord did not say to the man, but to the sea: Be silent, and grow speechless, rebuking it when it was troubled. However, the Pharisees, who agree on the resurrection, hearing that He had imposed silence upon the Sadducees, gathered together, namely, because the dogma of the resurrection was prevailing, and those were gathered who were not gathering as long as silence was not imposed upon the Sadducees. Nevertheless, even if they had gathered, because the proof of the resurrection held sway, one of them questioned Him, not as desiring to learn what he was questioning about, but tempting the Lord God. Therefore, we must esteem every man who does not question any of the teachers about any chapter for the sake of learning, but for the sake of temptation, and not out of a simple affection, as a brother of that Pharisee who was tempting the Saviour with his questioning. For the Lord takes upon Himself everything that is done to Christ's holy ones, whether by those who plot against them or by those who love them; for we must treat both what is written and what is not written according to those things which are written. For it is written that for those hungering and thirsting He said: I was hungry, and I was thirsty; and for the naked, the strangers, the sick, and those in prison: I was naked; and: I was a stranger; and: I was infirm; and I was in prison. In accordance with the sequence of the analogy, let us also add: I suffered injuries, I was beaten, and I was tempted, and everything else. And just as in those things which are written, the word of the Lord is true when He says: As long as you did it to one of these least, you did it to me; so when a just man has suffered an injury, or has been blasphemed, or has suffered anything of the kind, set Christ saying to those who did it: When you did an injury to one of these least, you tempted and blasphemed me.
76. No one can say well, Master, except a disciple. And see whether it is not because not all who call Him Master call Him well, but those only who have the will to learn from Him, that He said to His disciples: You call me Master and Lord, and you say well: for so I am. Well, therefore, do the disciples of Christ call Him Master, and those who serve His word well call Him Lord. Whence the Apostle said well: To us, however, there is one Lord Jesus Christ, through whom are all things, and we through Him. And consider that which he says: It is enough for the disciple that he be not simply as the master, but as his master. If, therefore, some person does not learn from the Word, nor gives himself over with all his heart, that he might become His beloved plant, but says to Him: Master, he is a brother of the Pharisee who was tempting Christ and saying to Him: Master. So also everyone who says: Our Father who art in heaven, must not have the spirit of slavery in fear, but the spirit of the adoption of sons. But whoever does not have the spirit of the adoption of sons and says: Our Father who art in heaven, lies, since he is not a son of God, yet calls God his Father.
But the questioning itself is this: Which is the great commandment in the law? In which it is worthy that we explain something about the difference of the commandments. For some commandments are great, while others are subsequent; and so it must be sought in order down to the least commandments. For if He had not answered the tempting Pharisee who said: Which is the greater commandment in the law, we would consequently think that there is no commandment greater than another. But now, when replying He says: You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind; this is the great and first commandment, we learn the necessary opinion concerning the commandments, since there are [both] great ones and inferior ones down to the least. Moreover, attend also to the fact that the Pharisee asked: Which is the great commandment in the law? But the Lord, answering him, teaches us that it is not only a great commandment to love the Lord, but also the first. The first, however, not by the order of Scripture, but by the dignity of virtue. And this is to be noted as fitting for this place, because, as though many commandments had been established, so now He called this the great and first commandment: You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind. The second is similar to the first, and because of its similarity it is great: You shall love your neighbor as yourself; so that, according to this, we might understand that there is another which is the third in magnitude and order, another [which is] the fourth; and thus, counting the commandments of the law in order, receiving wisdom from God, one may order them even to the least. Which work belongs to no one else, save to Christ alone, who is the power of God and the wisdom of God. From the times of Moses, therefore, until the coming of the Saviour, when the law was read, perhaps it was sought what was the great commandment in it. Neither could it be said properly, **Master, he says, what is the greater commandment in the law?** He was saying it, tempting Him: Master, since he was not bringing forth this voice as a disciple of Christ. But this will be more manifest from the example which we will state. Suppose a father is the father of his son, and no one can truly call him father, except his son; and a mother is the mother of her daughter, and no one can call her mother, except her daughter alone. So also a master is the master of his disciple, and it is the disciple's duty to call him Master, and the disciple of his master is a disciple.
A a restrainer; just as the music of David restrained the evil spirit that had invaded Saul and was choking him. You see, therefore, in a third way also, the peacemaker, who observes the peace of the whole of Scripture in accordance with it, and reconciles it for those who seek it rightly and inquire into it genuinely. B
FROM THE SEVENTH TOME ON THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO MATTHEW
Some, indeed, have thought, from what was said: "He is Elijah who is to come," that the soul of Elijah is the same as that of John. For in the words "He is Elijah," they supposed that this refers to nothing else but the soul, and from this almost single statement they introduced the doctrine of 442 μετενσωματώσεως, that is, the transmutation of souls, as if even Jesus himself were confirming this. But they ought to have observed that, if this were true, something similar should surely be found in many of the writings of the prophets or the Gospels. Then, moreover, that statement which is attached to this shows that a more secret and mysterious sense should be sought in what was said, rather than the things that they, according to the understanding of the letter alone, have taken up, when he says: "He who has ears to hear, let him hear." B But it must also be added that, if the transmutation of souls—according to what they themselves feel—happens on account of sins, for what sins was the soul of Elijah changed into John, who was announced by an angel himself as about to be born, and by whom even Jesus our Savior was baptized? How then is this not a most evident lie, that he who was so perfect as to not even taste this common death should come to a transmutation of soul which, according to their assertion, cannot happen except on account of sins? Then how will they explain what was said to John: "Are you Elijah? And he says: I am not"? But in order to show that this also agrees with that word which the Lord said: "If you are willing to receive it, he is Elijah who is to come," this which he said, "He is Elijah himself," is to be referred to the spirit and power of Elijah himself. For John went before in the spirit and power of Elijah to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children.
ORIGEN'S COMMENTARY ON THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO MATTHEW: TENTH TOME
A 1. "Then he sent the multitudes away, and went into the house. And his disciples came to him, saying: Expound to us the parable of the cockle of the field." When Jesus is with the multitudes, he is not in the house; for the multitudes are outside the house, and it is a work of his philanthropy to leave the house and go to those who cannot come to him. But when he has sufficiently discoursed in parables to the multitudes, he dismisses them and comes into his own house, where his disciples come to him, not having remained with those dismissed by him.
And those who hear Jesus more genuinely first follow him, then, inquiring about his dwelling, are permitted to see it; and having come, they look upon it and "remain with him," all of them "that day," and perhaps some of them even longer. And I think such things are indicated in the Gospel according to John by these words: "The next day again John stood, and two of his disciples." Further, to show that the one who is distinguished and becomes an apostle is of those who are permitted to walk with Jesus and see his house, it is added to these: "Andrew, the brother of Simon Peter, was one of the two who had heard of John, B and followed him."
We too, therefore, if we desire not to hear Jesus as the multitudes whom he dismisses when he goes into the house, but wish to take upon ourselves something exceptional compared to the multitudes, let us become intimate with Jesus, so that as his disciples we may come to him when he has entered the house, and, having approached, may ask him for an exposition of a parable, whether of the cockle of the field or of any other kind.
But in order that what thing the "house" of Jesus represents may be more accurately understood, let one gather from the Gospels all that is said concerning the house of Jesus, and what has been spoken or performed by him therein;
for all these things, when gathered together, will persuade the one who pays attention to this reading that the letters of the Gospel are not merely simple, as some think, but that for those who are simple, according to the economy [of salvation], they have been made to appear simple, while for those who wish and are able to hear them more sharply, wise matters worthy of the Word of God have been hidden therein.
A After this, he answered and said: *He that soweth the good seed is the Son of man.* Concerning these [matters], although we have already discoursed as far as we were able in the preceding pages, nevertheless, let it now be said what may be adapted to them, even if it holds a discourse according to another interpretation. And pay attention if you can to accepting the "good seed" as the "sons of the kingdom," in addition to what has been previously rendered, in another way—namely, that whatever good grows in the human soul, these are the offspring brought to light by the Word of God who was "in the beginning with God," so that the wholesome arguments concerning each [virtue] are the sons of the kingdom. B But when those who do not act according to the command of Jesus—who says, "Watch and pray that you enter not into temptation"—are sleeping, the devil, watching, sows over them what are called the tares, that is, the wicked doctrines, among what are called by some the natural concepts and the good seeds that come from the Word. According to this view, the field could be called the whole world, and not merely the Church of God; for in every world, the Son of man sowed the good seed, while the wicked one sowed the tares, which are the wicked arguments—that is, the sons of the wicked one created from malice. C And there will be a need, at the end of things—the thing which is called the "consummation of the age"—for a harvest, so that the angels of God appointed for this task may gather up the evil doctrines that have attached themselves to the soul and deliver them for destruction, overturning them by means of the so-called burning fire. And in this way, the angels and servants of the Word shall gather out of all the kingdom of Christ all the scandals that exist in [men's] souls and the reasonings that practice lawlessness, which, in consuming them, they shall cast into the furnace of fire that is burning; there, also, those who have become aware of themselves, because they have received within themselves the seeds of the wicked one while they were sleeping, shall weep and, as it were, be enraged against themselves.