Scholia on Luke

he wrote his Gospel from, he who was one of the believers, ^A so burning in the spirit and insatiable regarding the deeds and words of the Lord, were made more certain and the things now written likewise. Another person says: That if we were all as such, as to be loved and cherished by God, we are Theophili (lovers of God). Nor could any Theophilus be weak; for every Theophilus is most powerful, having strength and power from God and His Word, and thus he will recognize the certainty of the words in which he has been instructed. He promises, therefore, the certainty of knowledge, so that the things which he received by hearing, he may by encountering them in writing, more securely keep his faith.

(40) It is written in Exodus: *Because the people saw the voice of the Lord*, although a voice is not seen, but heard; that it might be declared paradoxically that the voice of God is seen by those to whom it is seen. But in the Gospel, it is not the voice that is seen, but what is more excellent than the voice, the Word. Therefore he says: *As they delivered them unto us, who from the beginning were eyewitnesses and ministers of the Word.* For if to have seen the Lord according to the flesh were to have been an eyewitness of Him, then Pilate also would have been an eyewitness ^B of the Word, he who condemned Him, and Judas the traitor, and all those saying: *Crucify, crucify him.* Therefore, knowing the Word was intended in that place where the Saviour said: *He that hath seen me, hath seen the Father, who sent me.* And silently, Luke teaches us a good lesson here, that of certain contemplations the end is contemplation itself, and of certain contemplations the end is action. For by *eyewitnesses* he indicates the theoretical element, and by *ministers* the practical. You may also interpret *ministers of the Word* differently: either of the doctrinal word which the Saviour delivered, or of the Word of God Himself, to whom the disciples who were present also ministered.

Luke indicates his own disposition. For he was fully persuaded, and doubted in nothing whether it were so or not. And this happens in those who believe firmly. For the Apostle says regarding the firm: *That ye may be rooted and grounded in faith.* For nothing makes one so certain as mind and reason. For sight does not make one certain; since things are not judged by visible signs and wonders; but they are judged by reason, which are true and which false. He says "of the facts," ^C because Jesus did not perform his advent in the flesh fantastically, according to the children of the heretics; but being himself Truth, he accomplished his deeds in truth.

3. To write unto thee in order, most excellent Theophilus.

4. That thou mightest know the certainty of those things, wherein thou hast been instructed.

5. There was in the days of Herod, the king of Judaea, a certain priest named Zacharias, of the course of Abia: and his wife was of the daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elisabeth.

^A V. 6. *There were both just before God.* It is reasonable to suppose that he wrote the Gospel to a certain Theophilus, who was one of those who had believed, who was so fervent in spirit, and could never be sated regarding the deeds and words of the Lord; to him these things which are now being described also rendered [his faith] more secure. If we were all such as to be loved and held dear by God, we would be Theophili (lovers of God). And no one who is a Theophilus could be weak. For as it is written concerning the people going out of Egypt: *There was not a weak one in their tribes*; so I would say that every Theophilus is "most excellent" (κράτιστος), having the strength and power which is from God and His Word. And thus will one recognize the truth of the matters in which he was instructed, understanding the message of the Gospel. He pledges, therefore, the firmness of knowledge, so that what he had received by hearing, these same things, by encountering them in writing, he might hold more securely and preserve his faith.

To be just before God is the most absolute praise. For He alone knows the hearts of men. For it is possible that, according to what appears outwardly, someone may be just before men, but according to the secret of the heart, he is not at all such, as if harboring baneful thoughts lurking in dens. Similar is that which occurs in the Apostle: *Whose praise is not of men, but of God*. For men do not praise as is fitting, seeing only what appears; but God judges worthily both the blameworthy and the praiseworthy. ^B

V. 6. *Walking in all the commandments and justifications of the Lord, blameless.* V. 7. *And there was no child to them: because Elisabeth was barren, and both were advanced in their days.* V. 8. *And it came to pass when he was exercising his priesthood in the order of his course before God,* V. 9. *According to the custom of the priesthood, it was his lot to offer incense, having entered into the temple of the Lord.* V. 10. *And all the multitude of the people were praying without at the hour of incense.*

Perhaps someone will say: Why is that word, "blameless," added to these? For it was sufficient for them to walk in all the ways of God and justifications; unless, perhaps, it is possible to walk in all the commandments, yet not blamelessly. I say, then, in response to this, that if this were not so, it would not have been said: *Thou shalt follow justice justly.* When, therefore, we perform virtues, yet in such a way that we have in our conscience certain stains of vainglory, or of man-pleasing, or of some other such thing, we do not perform them blamelessly. ^C

V. 11. *And there appeared to him an angel of the Lord, standing on the right side of the altar of incense.* V. 12. *And Zacharias was troubled seeing [him], and fear fell upon him.* V. 13. *And the angel said to him: Fear not, Zacharias, because thy suppliant prayer is heard, and thy wife Elisabeth shall bear thee a son, and thou shalt call his name John.* ^D

V. 14. *And there shall be joy to thee and exultation: and many shall rejoice at his birth.*

By condescension the angel appeared to Zacharias. For no one can behold an incorruptible body with the eyes of a corruptible body (48). The angel was seen standing at the right of the altar, because he was about to announce auspicious and fortunate things to him. But Zacharias was troubled at the sight. For when an unusual vision appears to a man, it is not easily endured. Nevertheless, the angel recalls Zacharias from his perturbation and restores his spirits, saying: *Fear not, Zacharias.* ^A

^B Know that God, or the angels, does not appear to every man, but to those who have a pure heart and are worthy to see: for He is found by those who do not tempt Him, and appears to those who are not faithless toward Him.

Of the same. Because all who saw angels were afraid, lest they had come as if to take their souls, as even Manoe says; therefore, resolving his fear, the angel said: *Fear not.* For you shall not only not die—at which time there is sorrow and tears—but you shall live and beget a son, and there shall be great joy for you. For Elisabeth shall bring forth a son to you, than whom there has been no greater among those born of women. Then he says: *And many shall rejoice at his birth.* For even if not all the Jews, yet many rejoiced at the presence of the Forerunner announcing the advent of the Saviour. ^C

According to speculation, the silence of the prophets is among the ancient people of God. For God no longer speaks to them, but the Word, who was in the beginning, has been transferred to us. And among us He is not silent, but among them He has fallen silent. Therefore, the prophet Zacharias is silent. And his gesturing indicates that he remained dumb.

V. 22. *And going out, he could not speak to them, and they understood that he had seen a vision in the temple. And he was gesturing to them, and remained dumb.*

V. 23. *And it came to pass, when the days of his ministry were fulfilled, he went to his house.*

V. 24. *And after these days, Elisabeth his wife conceived, and she hid herself five months, saying:*

V. 25. *Because thus hath the Lord dealt with me in the days wherein he had regard to take away my reproach among men.*

V. 26. *And in the sixth month, the angel Gabriel was sent from God into a city of Galilee, whose name was Nazareth,*

V. 27. *To a virgin espoused to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David: and the name of the virgin was Mary.*

What then was he gesturing to them? Having heard beforehand of a delightful thing that was to happen to him, he did not hasten before the time ^D

but waited until he fulfilled ^A his ministry, teaching that one must hold all things in the second place before the honor of God. With very prudent counsel, Elizabeth hid herself until her pregnancy became known and the matter was beyond doubt, so that those hearing these things, if they were unwilling to be persuaded by hearsay, might not suspect themselves to be under the same blame as Zacharias.

(49) The hyperbaton is as follows: “An angel was sent to a virgin of the house of David,” and the name of the virgin was Mary, “betrothed to a man whose name was Joseph.” The angel was not sent to Joseph, since Joseph had nothing in common with the birth of the Lord; for just as sin began from a woman, so also it was necessary that good things should begin from a woman (50).

V. 34. *But Mary said to the angel: How shall this be, seeing I know not a man?* V. 35. *And the angel answering, etc.* The phrase, “You have found grace,” was common; for others before her had also found grace. But the saying, “You shall conceive,” was no longer common, but an unusual thing, peculiar and unique to the promise made to a virgin. For you have found grace with God; therefore, do not fear. For the arrival of the Savior is the removal of all fear.

V. 36. *And behold, Elizabeth your kinswoman, etc.*

(51) The Forerunner heard, being moved by the operation of the Holy ^B Spirit, the greeting of Mary, which the Word of God, Christ, intercepted; and he leaped for joy in the womb of his mother to show grace and to declare the prophecy. For it is as if from that moment Jesus began to make him a prophet, providing him from within with the declaration of the mystery. But since it was not granted to infants existing in the womb to speak on account of their immaturity, the mother lent the organ of her body to the Baptist, who was hastening to proclaim the Redeemer. For it was not filled with the Holy Spirit before she who carried Christ in her womb arrived. First, the infant was filled with the Spirit and leaped, and then he communicated this to his mother, and Elizabeth cried out prophecies on account of the infant whom she carried in her womb.

By the same. The people indeed did not know the Savior who was working signs and wonders, but John, while yet ^C in the womb, leaps when the mother of Jesus arrives. “For behold,” she says, “as soon as the voice of your greeting sounded in my ears, the infant leaped in my womb for joy.”

It was fitting that this blessed Mary, after the arrival of Gabriel, should go up, ascending into the hill country. She was traveling with haste, led by the Spirit who was within her, who had come upon her, and by the power of the Most High that overshadowed her.

Just as sin had begun from a woman, and ^D so also good things began from women, in order that...

^A women might cast off their weakness, and laying aside what belongs to women, might emulate the lives of these blessed ones.

V. 43. *And whence is this to me, that the mother should come,* and the rest.

By the same. Elizabeth speaks in harmony with her son, declaring herself unworthy of the presence of the Theotokos, just as John also declared himself unworthy to stand before Christ. For what great good, she says, has been done for me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me? She calls her mother who was yet a virgin, anticipating the outcome with a prophetic word. Now, it was a divine dispensation that brought the testimony to Elizabeth, so that the testimony of John from the womb concerning the Lord might be confirmed through his own mother, Elizabeth, and so that she might come to believe in that which was even greater than the voice of the angel which Elizabeth had received, and her own stupendous ^B pregnancy; that is to say, the conception, without seed, of Him from the Virgin. And the word of Elizabeth also concurs in engendering this faith, saying: *And blessed is she who believed, for there shall be a fulfillment of those things which were spoken to her from the Lord.* For from these words, the Virgin became more steadfast in faith, being called blessed because she believed, the angel having foreshadowed it, and her kinswoman prophesying in like manner.

By the same. Let us now look at the virginal prophecy.

V. 46. *My soul does magnify the Lord.*

How my soul magnifies the Lord is to be considered. If we lead our lives worthily according to the image of Him who created us, and are assimilated to the archetype ^C as much as is possible through good works, then we magnify the Lord in words, actions, and thoughts. But one diminishes Him proportionately according to the wickedness that resides within him. Therefore, the soul of Mary magnified the Lord, and her spirit rejoiced in God her Saviour. First her soul magnified, then her spirit rejoiced.

It must be observed throughout the whole of the Old and New Scripture, if it is to be found anywhere regarding the births of sinners that it is said: *The time was fulfilled to bear.* For I do not think one would find it; rather, it is only mentioned where the one being born is righteous. And this, and the rest.

Elizabeth, being a prophetess, and not having heard the revelation made to her husband, by the Holy Spirit stated the designation given by the angel, and that the child should be called John. But when they also wanted to learn ^D from the father, and made signs to him, as one who could neither hear nor speak, he took a tablet and wrote the designation of the child in agreement with his wife, to the astonishment of all. Then it says: *And his mouth was opened.* After, that is, he wrote on the tablet that John

^A was to be his name, the voice that had been bound was released. And he recovered his tongue, no longer as before bound by incredulity, but blessing God and prophesying the things that had been written.

It is superfluous to say, etc.

As I suppose, also our fathers Abraham and Isaac and Jacob, and the whole chorus of his holy prophets and just men, enjoyed the advent of Christ. For if he made peace through the blood of his cross with the things on earth and the things in heaven, according to the divine Apostle, why are you hesitant to admit that a visitation was also made to the fathers, and that his advent to the underworld accomplished this, because of his unsearchable mercy? ^B This, moreover, although it has happened now, had already been proclaimed long ago in advance: and it was impossible that these words should not meet with their fulfillment. For he confirmed his promises by an oath, because of their immutability, that they would certainly come to pass. And now the faithful are delivered without fear from the hand of spiritual enemies.

They are often delivered, etc.

The angel did not come to the synagogue of the Jews in Jerusalem, to the priests and scribes and Pharisees; but he found shepherds living in the field, and keeping the night watches over their flock ^C: for to these he announces the birth of the Savior. For they were simple, seeking the ancient way of life of the patriarchs. For they too were shepherds, who also running announced it to others. For those others, wasting away with envy, would have hidden the mystery of the salvation of the world.

For he alone opened the womb, born of a Virgin. For nothing had touched that womb before Christ. But all firstborn things, even if they are firstborn, do not however first open the womb, but the husband.

Lest he might have left them. Grieving, therefore, they were seeking the Son of God: and seeking him, they did not find him among their kinsfolk: for he was above their kinship.

CAP. II.

V. 49. *Did you not know that I must be about my Father's business?* ^D

In order that we may be armed with the word against the impious heresies which say that the Father of Jesus Christ is not the creator of the world, nor is the God of the Law or the God of the temple the Father of Christ. Hearing this utterance of his, let the Valentinians be ashamed; for he says: *I must be about my Father's business*: if they only admit the saying. Were they then so foolish that they did not understand what he said: *In the things of the Father*, instead of: *In the temple*? Or is some mystery hinted at; if

^A any of you is the Father's, he possesses Christ within himself. For he considers an upright and good man to be the animated temple of the Father, rather than that [material] temple. For he went out from that temple, saying: *Your house is left unto you*, and he departed to the temple of the Father, namely, the Churches which are everywhere in the world. V. 51. *And he was subject unto them*, etc.

^B When the prophetic oracle is promulgated only among the Jews, only the kingdom of the Jews is described. Consider, for instance: *The vision*, he says, *which Isaiah saw concerning Judah and Jerusalem in the reign of Uzziah, Jotham, and Ahaz, and Hezekiah*. And I know of no other king recorded at the time of the prophecy except the king of Judah—though in some prophecies, the king of Israel is also mentioned. But when John was about to preach the mystery of the Gospel, it is recorded that Herod was not the only king of Judaea, nor was Tiberius the only one of the Romans.

CAP. III

If only the Gentiles were to be saved, and the sons of Israel had been utterly excluded from salvation, it would have sufficed to say: *In the fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius Caesar*. But because it is necessary that they also should believe who are of Ituraea, Trachonitis, and Abilene, for this reason these kingdoms are also listed. Mention is also made of the high priests, Annas and Caiaphas, to show that from the time when John came preaching, these men began to be high priests, remaining in the high priesthood until the Lord’s passion.

By the same. There had never been a word of God to any of the prophets in the desert. But because there were to be many children of the desert rather than of her who has a husband, for this reason *the word of God came to John in the desert*. For if this were not so, he would have acted in vain by preaching in the desert. *And he came into all the country about Jordan*. For where else should the Baptist have gone, if not into the country about Jordan, so that if anyone wished to repent, the river would be ^C immediately at hand? For the river of God truly descends, the true water, the saving water. And he preaches, he says, *the baptism of repentance for the remission of sins*. For the remission of sins, to whom? To him who sins no more. Then he presents Isaiah crying out this very thing. For what does he say? *The voice of one crying in the desert*. He says this just as if Isaiah himself had heard the words of John. For John was chosen for an apostolate, and was the most perfect of the prophets. And since John was the forerunner of the Word, he is deservedly called a voice, not a word. For the voice is reckoned to exist before the word. As for the words: *Prepare the way of the Lord*, what

does it mean if not: "Make yourselves ready for the reception of whatever He might wish to ordain"? *Make His paths straight* ^A stands for: "Cease from acting perversely."

(66) A valley is deep and hollow; every unbeliever, who believing in Christ, is filled with the fruits of the Spirit, that is, with virtues. A mountain and a hill that has been humbled is the Jewish people that is proudly wise. ... Or, the mountains and hills are the opposing powers, which have been humbled through the care of Christ; and the valleys are men who have been filled with good works.

(68) Our life was rough, and our reasoning unjust. But when our Lord came, He made all things smooth. And this indeed has happened among the Gentiles; but in the case of the rejected people, every mountain and hill shall be humbled. For it was once a mountain and a hill; but they have been broken down and humbled. ^B

(69) He deservedly calls all unbelievers a *brood of vipers*. For he who does not abandon his own habits does not receive baptism well, but is still a brood of vipers, having within himself the poison of wickedness.

By the same: He calls the Gentiles *stones*, who have a heart of stone and, through extreme insensibility, serve the creature rather than the Creator, and worship stones. He prophesies, therefore, the destruction of that people and the calling of the nations. For to those boasting of Abraham, He said: *Do not begin to say to yourselves: We have Abraham as our father*; for God can make the Gentiles children of Abraham. ^C

(70) He meant not inanimate stones, but insensible men who were stones, because they worshiped stones. And that which is written came to pass regarding them: *Let those who make them become like them, and all who trust in them*. Moreover, it is written regarding stones in the song in Exodus: *Let the nations be turned to stone, until this people passes by, which Thou hast acquired*; as if it clearly requested that, after the people had passed by, they might no longer turn to stone. ^D

V. 10. *And the crowds asked him, saying: What then shall we do?* V. 11. *But he answering says to them: He who has two tunics, let him give to him who has none.*

What they say is of this nature: "Shall we observe the customs handed down to us from Moses and the fathers regarding sacrifices or sprinklings, or are you introducing to us another way of life? For if the Jewish rites profit us nothing, tell us what we ought to do. For we have known no other way of life." What, then, does the Baptist do? Not daring, since he is a servant, to remove the shadow and introduce worship in Spirit and in truth, he leads them to the fullness of the Law, that is, to charity, whose fruit is for one to be sociable, liberal, and a lover of the poor. For the Jews used to boast about the love of the brethren and the especial pursuit of charity toward the poor, the

whole of the Gospel not having, but introducing the beginning of the New Testament. ^A It introduces three things, and so forth.

ON THE SAME, ON LUKE

CAP. I. V. 22. See the figure in Zacharias. For those who bring forth a word against themselves, and are not able to render an account of any word from the law or from the prophets, remain mute and speechless.

V. 63. And asking for a writing tablet, he wrote: John is his name.

Because Zacharias is interpreted as "memory of God," and John as "the one who shows"; and a person remembers the absent one, but shows the present ones: for this reason the parents of this child could not bear to call him Zacharias, but wished rather to name him John. Because he was as it were about to mention God as absent, but to point to Him Himself with his finger as present and to say: "Behold the Lamb of God." ^C The most holy Virgin indeed knew that He was not the son of Joseph, but she approved the betrothed to their face, because of the suspicion of the Jews who supposed Him to have been born of fornication. But it could be said more simply that the Holy Spirit honored Him with the name of father, etc., so that He might not perchance desert them. But the Lord, when it was permitted to render a human response, rendered a divine one instead, clearly showing that He was God incarnate.

Or, therefore, you will understand it thus: that the mountains and hills are the opposing powers, which have been humbled through the presence of Christ. The valleys are the men who have been filled with good works. Furthermore, whatever things were crooked have become straight. For each one of us was crooked. ^D Therefore, in the presence of Christ which occurs in the soul, the crooked things become straight. And again, our life was rough, and our reason uneven; but the Lord coming, has made all things smooth.

CAP. III. V. 1. In the fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius Caesar.

For in the prophetic word, which was published among the Jews alone, the kingdom of Judea alone is inscribed. "The vision," he says, "which Isaiah saw in the days of Uzziah, Jotham, and Ahaz, who reigned over Judah." But in the mystery of the Gospel, which is to be proclaimed through the whole world, the reign of Tiberius Caesar is inscribed...

who seemed to be the king of the entire world. And if only those from the Gentiles were to be saved, and salvation had been closed to all the children of Israel, it would have been enough to mention only Tiberius. But because it is necessary that those from Galilee, Ituraea, and Trachonitis should also believe, for this reason these kingdoms are inscribed, or rather, tetrarchies. The word of God had never before come to any of the prophets in the desert, except now, and only for a certain mystical understanding. For since there were going to be many more children of the desert, that is, of the Church of the Gentiles, than of her who had a husband, I mean the law of the Synagogue of the Jews. What he says: *The word of God came to John*, understand as a commandment. ^B

V. 3. *And he came into all the country about the Jordan.* Where should the Baptist have walked about, if not in the region surrounding the Jordan, so that if anyone wished to repent, the river would be immediately at hand? Moreover, Jordan is interpreted as "decurrens" (flowing down). For the river of God is indeed truly "flowing down," the true water, the saving water.

V. 7. They say that the viper, when it conceives, kills the male from whom it conceives; its seed, as it increases, kills the one who conceived it, and thus it comes forth into the light, having torn the mother’s womb, as if taking vengeance for the slain parent. Such are the Jews. They killed their spiritual ^C fathers and teachers with their hands. It is spoken of more fully regarding these in Matthew.

CAP. IV

V. 9. *And he led him to Jerusalem and set him upon the pinnacle of the temple.* Observe, furthermore, how maliciously and craftily he wishes, through the testimony of the Scriptures, to undermine the glory of the Lord, as if He were in need of angelic help, being about to stumble if the angels did not bring Him aid. For the testimony of the Psalm was not spoken concerning Christ. For He who is the Lord of the angels has no need of angels. But I, in turn, say to you, O devil, that unless Jesus helps the angels, they will stumble. And for this reason you have fallen from heaven, because you thought yourself to be sufficient, ^D and not in need of the help of Jesus. But so that you may know that those things which were written were by no means said about Jesus, but are referred to a righteous man, hear: For it is written: *He who dwells in the help of the Most High, shall abide under the protection of the God of heaven.* This is more fitting for a righteous man than for the Son of God. And again: *A thousand shall fall from your left side, and ten thousand, etc.*, which also are referred to a righteous man.

V. 40. *And when the sun had set, all those who had any that were sick with various diseases, brought them to...*

him.* ^A And he, laying his hands on each one of them, cured them. Near sunset they brought these, either after the day, being ashamed, or fearing the Pharisees, and being busy with other matters, or perhaps thinking that it was not permitted to heal on the Sabbath. For the evangelist had noted that he was teaching them on the Sabbath. For this reason, around the setting of the sun, those related to them brought those who were ill, and he cured them.

CHAP. VII.

Why, indeed, was it necessary for the leper's head to be uncovered? So that it might be known, and the others would not become partakers of the impurity who had approached him rashly. But the fact that his mouth was to be covered declares that one ought to condemn oneself to silence until, having turned, one is purified.

According to others, again, he cleanses the one he had called the *whole-leper*, showing that God hates what is varied. And he declares this more clearly a bit further down, saying: *You shall not sow your vineyard with diverse seeds; and a garment woven of two things; and you shall not make your beasts mate with a different ^D species.* Everywhere preferring simplicity, which is seen in the *whole-leper*.

CHAP. VIII.

has, it will be given to him; and whoever does not have, even what he seems to have will be taken from him. ^A Yet whoever wishes to apply the lamp to the most perfect of the disciples of Jesus, will move us by the words spoken concerning John: *For he was a burning and shining lamp.* But the lamp of the body is the eye, relating to the mind of each. Moreover, also, *Let your lamps be burning* was said to all the disciples of Jesus. Therefore, he who has lit a lamp ought not to hide it in a rational soul, but to place it upon a lampstand, a symbol of which Moses placed in the tabernacle of testimony. For let the fellow servants receive grain measured by a bushel from the faithful and prudent steward; but let them behold the rays of the lamp placed upon the lampstand, that is, upon the Church of all. ^B But they do not place the lamp under a bed, where one rests, nor under any vessel whatsoever. For he who does this does not take thought for those entering the house, for whom those who have lit their mind with the truthful light, with radiant reason, and with the rays of wisdom, ought to place the lamp—having a nature fashioned by the Maker of all things—I mean the mind, which in the soul is in need of possessing a most penetrating understanding of those things which are to be cared for, and a participant of Him who said: *I have come as a light into the world.* For those who light the lamp and place it upon the lampstand, so that it may shine for all who are in the house, will rouse also those who in the house see the splendor of the lamp, that they too may light their own lamp.

V. 38. *But Jesus dismissed him, saying:* V. 39. *Return to your home, and tell all that God has done for you.* And he went away, throughout the whole city proclaiming all that Jesus had done for him.

He sends him home. For that man did not have such a measure that, being clothed, he could betake himself to sit at the feet of Jesus. And while he was with Him, although those from the surrounding region could not contain the coming of Jesus, He nevertheless provided for the salvation of those who could be there, dismissing him who had sat sufficiently at His feet, that he might teach what God had done for him. There would indeed be some hearers and disciples of such a person, proclaiming from the few things he had received, though he did not comprehend more. ^D You might refer this discourse even to the nature of man, of the outward Israel, for whom Jesus sails into the region of the Gadarenes, and to whom Jesus goes forth upon the land. *But he was not clothed with a garment,* he says. For he had not put on what would cover his indecency. *And he did not remain in a house.* For he was not, like Jacob, a simple man dwelling in a house. Therefore, He dismissed this very one, saying: *Return to your home.* And he remained in the tombs: not with the living, but with the dead. *But there was,* he says, *a herd of many swine feeding on the mountain.* I do not know if swine are accustomed to feed on a mountain. How, then, does the

herd rush down with the precipice? Is it perhaps because voluptuous men, lovers of the belly and of those things below the belly, are to be said to feed where the monuments are, and near the legion of demons? But by His goodness, Jesus destroys the herd of demons along with the swine in the water, and perhaps by means of the demons He hinders the respiration of those evil things that love pleasure and the body, and such a person becomes sober? If anyone is sober, he is with Jesus; but he who is beginning to be sober is at His feet. ^A

V. 48. *And he said to the woman: Thy faith hath made thee safe. Go in peace.* Accordingly, the more perfect soul, having served well the Word of God, has the confidence to come to the very head; for the head of Christ is God; so that it pours out its ointment and is made a fragrance for the glory of God. God is glorified through the fragrance of the life of the righteous. But the less perfect woman and soul turns to the feet and the lower things, ^B near which we ourselves are. For we have not yet repented of our sins. Where are our tears? Where the wailing, that we might be able to come at least to the feet of Jesus? For we are not yet able to reach the head itself. But it is desirable, after sins, to bring the fragrance of repentance, so that one might be effectively like her who anoints the feet, yet not the head—that is, she who does not touch the more perfect and higher things, but the lowest and last.

V. 52. *And all wept and mourned her. But he said: Weep not; she is not dead, but sleepeth.* ^C

V. 53. *And they laughed him to scorn, knowing that she was dead.*

(87) Such, then, is the history of the miracle. But perhaps it is necessary also to contemplate it more subtly and more sublimely. Let the simpler and duller ones admire the great works of God through these things; for they are edifying even when understood corporally. But let those who are able to cross over to see that these things also happened to them as a figure, but were written for our sake, be increased by God and let us ask for the Word that clarifies these things as well.

How does Jesus go primarily to the daughter of the archisynagogus, and not to the woman with the issue of blood? ^D Yet she meets him on the way and is the first to be healed. For the Son of God came primarily to the synagogue of the Jews, and found her sick, or rather dead. For the transgressions of Israel have caused her to die. But the woman with the issue of blood, who was on the way, who was filled with impurity, who was flowing not in the time of purification or menstruation, but who was always flowing with blood and sick—she will believe in the Son of God before her. And there indeed He goes on foot, but she desires to touch the hem of His garment. But Luke, whom Matthew did not mention, added that the daughter of the archisynagogus was twelve years old, and the woman with the issue of blood—

^A twelve years, then, had this woman with the issue of blood; thus, she has been flowing with blood from the time of that other's birth. For as long as the synagogue lives, that woman remains in a state of passion; and the same limit of time is both the end of the one and the beginning of this salvation. That girl dies at twelve years of age, and this woman with the issue of blood is healed after twelve years of her infirmity, having believed, she who could not be healed by any of the physicians. For there are many physicians who promise that they will bring salvation to the Gentiles. If you see philosophers professing the truth, they are physicians attempting to heal. But having spent ^B all that she had on them, she could not be healed by any of the physicians. She touched the hem of Jesus by faith, and was healed. If we consider our faith in Jesus Christ, and reflect on how great the Son of God is, and what part of Him we touch: we shall see that, in comparison with the hems that are in Him, we have touched but one hem. This hem heals us and makes us hear from Jesus: "Daughter, your faith has saved you," and may we be healed. And the daughter of the archisynagogus shall rise. For when the multitude of the Gentiles has entered, then all Israel shall be saved.

CHAP. IX.

V. 27. "I tell you truly, there are some of those standing here who shall by no means taste death until they see the kingdom of God." Some refer these things to Peter and James and John, ^C who went up with Christ onto the high mountain, and who did not taste death before they saw the Son of Man coming in His kingdom, or rather in the glory of His transfiguration. But if one may say something more curious regarding standing with Christ and regarding tasting death: there were some who stood where Jesus was, leaning their soul upon Him; and their station was not much different from the station of Moses. For Moses says: "I stood on the mountain forty days and forty nights, having been made worthy to hear: 'But you, stand here with me.'" Few, moreover, are the friends of God, as many as have their station in what is good, as the Baptist himself says of himself: "But the friend of the bridegroom stands and rejoices with joy." And those who have stood by the Word have ^D differences in their station. Therefore, not all who have stood by the Savior, but some of them, as having stood better, do not taste of death until they see the Word who has sojourned with men, and for this reason is called the Son of Man, coming in His kingdom. For He does not always come in His kingdom, as far as those who are being introduced are concerned, who might easily say that He has no form or beauty. But to those who are already perfect, according to David, He appears fair in beauty beyond the sons of men. The Word, therefore, has a most kingly dignity, while He is seen by some of those standing by Jesus, who have been able to follow Him as He ascends the high mountain of His manifestation; of which one is worthy

^A if he were Peter, and possesses an unshakable faith; or the sons of thunder, who shall not taste of death, until they see the Son of man coming in His kingdom.

Life, moreover, is Christ. His enemy is death, whether it be understood as that which comes through $\sin$, or in some other way. From these two, the one or the other is chosen by the things which each of us does. Just as, therefore, Christ is the living bread, so His enemy, death, is dead bread. Every rational soul is nourished by one of these two: the one sort merely tastes of it, while the other consumes it more abundantly. And perhaps those who sin rarely and in small matters only taste of death; but those who have embraced virtue do not even taste of it, but are always fed by the living bread. For Peter, then, against whom the gates of Hades did not prevail, it was a consequence that he should not taste of it. For one tastes of death at the time when the gates of Hades prevail against him. But even for the sons of thunder, born of the thunder of the incarnate prophecy, it was impossible to taste of death, which stands very far away from their mother, the thunder.

The particle "until" in this place indicates the imminent time regarding the thing demonstrated, not that it is limited, so that after the "until" that which is demonstrated should cease to be; as in this: "And behold, I am with you until the consummation of the age." Thus, the apostles did not taste of the aforementioned intelligible death after having seen the vision of such great goods.

^B Since it is said in the Psalms: "Who is the man who shall live, and shall not see death?" and, "Let death surely come upon them"; and in one of the prophets: "Death has swallowed up, having prevailed"; and in the Apocalypse: "Death and Hades follow some"; perhaps it is not a lesser evil to see death, but a greater one to taste of it; and worse still than this, if death itself follows someone; and not only to follow, but also to have already come upon him, and to have caught him, whom it was previously following. But to be swallowed up by death seems to me to be the most grievous of all the things that have been said. And having considered these things said and the difference of sins, you will not hesitate, I think, to admit that the Spirit, who caused such things to be written in the divine oracles, had such matters as these in mind.

What, then, is signified in seeing the Son of man coming in His kingdom, and in His glory? And what is meant by "Having come in power," as spoken by Mark? We shall more clearly set forth whatever either shines into our hearts, or is found by us as we seek, or comes into our thoughts. Whoever contemplates and apprehends the excellence of the Word, loosening and refuting all the ^{C D}

of all things, which are indeed done by deceivers, who yet profess the truth; he has seen the Son of Man coming into his kingdom. And if he perceives him to be confirming his own things more clearly, let him see beyond the kingdom, the glory of him as well. Furthermore, let a man of this kind see in himself that the kingdom of God has come with power: and ^A let him see this as one in whom sin no longer reigns, which reigns in the mortal body of those who sin, but who is always subjected to God, the King of all; whose kingdom is indeed within us by power, but, as Mark has named it, within the perfect only by operation.

V. 28. *And it came to pass after these words, about eight days; and taking Peter and John and James, he went up into the mountain to pray.*

V. 29. *And it came about, while he was praying, that the appearance of his countenance was ^B different, and his clothing was white and flashing.*

V. 30. *And behold, two men were talking with him, who were Moses and Elias.*

V. 31. *Who, appearing in glory, spoke of his departure, which he was to accomplish in Jerusalem.*

And this, indeed, was the event and miracle of the transformation. But if it is permitted to set forth a more sublime discourse, it is not without reason that Mark and Matthew say that Jesus went up into the mountain with his disciples after six days. ^C For since in six days, in a perfect number, I say, the whole world was created; he who transcends all things of the world, and looks only upon stable and eternal things, he himself is shown to have been taken by Jesus after six days. For he who transcends these days sees that Jesus, having been transformed not by any of the lower things, has been transformed before him. For the Word appears to have different forms, according to the capacity of each; and to some he has no form, while to others he is beautiful in splendor. To those who do not ascend ^D through higher works, and by them to the high mountain of wisdom, he is understood in a more simple manner and is known according to the flesh. But among the perfect, he is held in the sense of his divinity, and is contemplated in the form of God according to their knowledge, and his face shines like the sun to the children of light and day, appearing clearly to be the Sun of righteousness. But also his garments, to those who have been led by him into the high mountain, appear white as light; which are the words and evangelical sayings with which he was clothed, and indeed also those things which are declared from the apostolic Scriptures. When, therefore, you see anyone diligently professing the discourse about God Jesus, and expounding the entire expression of the Gospels, do not hesitate to say to such a one that the garments of Jesus were white as light. But to him who has thus seen Jesus, there will surely appear Moses—namely, the law—and Elias—the prophetic discourse, I say—holding conversation in common with Jesus. And he who has seen the glory of Moses, reflecting on the spiritual law as one discourse with Jesus, and likewise the wisdom which is hidden in mystery in the prophets; he has seen Moses and Elias in glory, when he has seen them with Jesus.

^A Ver. 35. *And a voice came out of the cloud, saying: This is my beloved Son: hear him.* Ver. 36. *And when the voice was past, Jesus was found alone.*

The voice from the cloud speaks perhaps to Moses and Elias: "This is [my Son]"; but perhaps also to the disciples. Hearing this, and unable to bear this glory, they fell upon their faces, humbled under the mighty hand of God, very fearful, knowing what was said to Moses: *For no man shall see my face, and live.* But lifting up their eyes, they saw only Jesus. For, I think, Moses was the Law, and Elias was the prophecy, [becoming one] with the Gospel of Jesus. And they did not remain three, as they were before. But consider these things more mystically for me. For according to the sublime meaning of the letter, Moses and Elias, having been seen in glory and having spoken with Jesus, departed to whence they had come. For Jesus does not care that the things of his glory should be told; for the hearers would have been harmed, and especially the crowds, seeing the man who was to be crucified so greatly glorified. Therefore they had not hidden it out of envy, but as if fearing that they would not be believed. Then, therefore, they proclaimed it—after the ascension, to be sure, and after the coming of the Spirit. For when they were filled with boldness and were deemed worthy of the Spirit, and had the voice from the signs advocating for them, everything they said was readily accepted.

^C Ver. 42. *And Jesus rebuked the unclean spirit, and healed the child, and delivered him again to his father.*

(92) ^D It is to be noted in these things more sublimely, and it must be observed, that those who are suffering, or the relatives of the suffering, are with the crowds to whom Jesus descends from the high places, having dispensed the things that were superior to them—since they were not able to ascend the mountain to him because of the diseases occupying their souls—in order to heal them. It must be inquired upon what kind of sicknesses the suffering ones ask [for healing], believing in their own cure, if they might touch either him or the fringe of his garment. And for what kind do others ask on their behalf: as the centurion for his boy, and the nobleman for his son, and the ruler of the synagogue for his daughter; and the Canaanite woman, and now the man who falls on his knees before him for his lunatic son. And [it must be inquired] when the Savior heals of his own accord, without being asked: as [he healed] the paralytic at the sheep-pool. For these healings, when compared with one another, will provide many lessons to him who is able to hear the wisdom of God hidden in mystery, both concerning the diverse affections of souls and concerning the manner of their healing.

For as you may reasonably refer every disease and infirmity, which Christ previously healed among the crowds, to the passions within the souls, so, reasoning by analogy to these, consider the lame, the mute, and also the things concerning the lunatic. For this malady is of such a kind that it attacks at certain hours, but departs at others more—

^A in which you see that the one who is suffering differs in no way from one who is healthy. And thus, certain souls may perhaps be thought to be healthy in temperance and to live as the Word desires; yet there are times when they fall from their apparent standing due to the passions, ^B regarding the deception of this age and other desires. These, to speak spiritually, are lunatics, cast down by the spiritual forces of wickedness that lurk in the passions, and they fall into the fire of burning lusts, or sometimes into the water, when the king of all dragons of the waters casts them down from the freedom in which they seemed to breathe, so that they may yield to the deep waves of the sea—that is, human life.

In this exposition, one who speaks in Wisdom regarding the evenness of the righteous will support us: "The discourse of a godly man is always wisdom;" and regarding the opposites: "But the fool is changed as the moon." One may also see in such people certain impulses capable of drawing those who do not attend to their instability toward praising them, so that one might say there is, as it were, a full moon within them, or nearly a full moon. You might again see the light that seems to be in them imitated; I say, a light that is not a daily one, but a nocturnal light, and one that wanes to such a degree that it is no longer seen to be the light that could be discerned in them. If, then, every soul is subject to an angel, let that angel be the father of the lunatic, praying as if for a son to Jesus, seeing that he was not able to be healed of the infirmity by the inferior word of the disciples.

^C The dumb and deaf demon represents irrational movements and propensities toward what seems to be good—things drawn away from reason, which the soul produced by an irrational impulse, and which were thought by onlookers to be doing these things according to the reason of Jesus’ teaching. This malady is difficult to cure, and it seems a great thing that those things which are not well-ordered have been done well; and in such cases, such a power is so great that it may be compared to a mountain, which requires that it be removed from the sufferer through the complete faith of the one who heals. Moreover, all faith is compared to a grain of mustard seed; for faith is judged as nothing by men, and it is a very small and seemingly worthless thing. But when it has obtained good soil—that is, a soul—it becomes a great tree, so that none of the wingless creatures, but rather those spiritually winged, the birds of the heaven, may dwell in the branches of such faith. ^D

V. 43. And while everyone was marveling at all things which Jesus did, He said to His disciples: V. 44. Lay these words into your ears. For the Son of Man is about to be delivered into the hands of men. By whom, then, is He to be delivered? The Apostle indeed says that the Son was delivered by God, saying: "He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all," intending that He would suffer for the whole world.

^A You will also say that He was delivered by the devil, by whom are delivered to those who take them captive the yokes and the asses of Job, then the camels to the horsemen, the sheep to the fire, and his daughters and sons to the spirit from the desert. Let it be, then, first that the Son is delivered by the Father into the hands of men; then by Judas, into whom, after the morsel, Satan entered, having delivered Him far more essentially than Judas. But the Father did not spare His own Son because of His philanthropy and kindness toward us; but Judas did it out of the wickedness of his will. Yet, having been put to death, He rendered powerless the devil who had the authority of death—that is, of sin. For sin is, strictly speaking, death, according to the dictum: "The soul that sins, it shall die." ^B And the rulers stood against Christ; but we, having been helped by the fact that He was slain, say: "Let us break their bonds asunder." For having become conformed to the death of Christ, we are no longer under the bonds of the adversaries, but they rather are laughed to scorn by the Father who dwells in the heavens, and are mocked by the Lord. For by rising, He has made us conformed also to His resurrection, no longer sitting in darkness and the shadow of death, because the light of God has risen upon us.

Verse 57. And it came to pass, as they were walking in the way, a certain man said to Him: "I will follow You wherever You go, Lord."

Verse 58. And Jesus said to him: "Foxes have holes, and birds of the heaven have nests; but the Son of man has nowhere to lay His head."

If, therefore, you are prepared, even as I, not having anywhere to lay your head, you will choose through my teaching the instability here, in the hope of the kingdom of the heavens, not expecting rest here in anything, but in the world to come. For my disciples, exercising righteousness, will have tribulation in this world. But evil men and sorcerers, compared to foxes and birds of the heaven, will make progress in this life, deceiving and being deceived.

^C More sublimely: When the father was dead to the young man and was a corpse, then he was called by Jesus. It should be thought that, just as the world was crucified to Paul and was dead, since the things of the world were dead to him, inasmuch as he no longer looked upon them as objects seen and temporal; so to every righteous man the devil is dead, who used to live for him while he was sinning. For "everyone who commits sin is born of the devil"; and to everyone who is sinning and looking upon these present and worldly things, the evil father is alive. But to everyone for whom the evil father is dead, it might be said by Christ: "Follow me." And perhaps this is what is mystically understood by the need for the father to be hated by us, if we are to be worthy of Jesus. As for the saying, "Leave the dead to bury their own dead," it can only be interpreted allegorically. For in a way, the dead bury their own dead within themselves, being graves and monuments ^D

^A of those who have become their own. But he who obeys Jesus leaves the dead behind completely, and in no way touches him; for he knows that he who touches a dead body is rendered unclean.

Luke says these things about the more approved ones; but Mark says that he called the twelve, and sent them out two by two, having given them authority over unclean spirits. This command, that they should serve the Word in pairs by the will of God, seems to have an ancient origin from Moses and Aaron, when the people went out of Egypt. For God led Israel out by the hand of Moses and Aaron. And Jesus the son of Nun, and Caleb the son of Jephunneh, both agreeing together, settled the people when they were provoked by the ten. And Eldad and Medad ^B both prophesied in the tabernacle, being in agreement. But even later, he sent out Paul and Barnabas to the Gentiles, and such men were patterns of those who agree on earth. To these men that saying also applies: "A brother helped by a brother is like a fortified city." And that other saying: "Two are better than one." That the twelve were also ordained in pairs, Matthew shows in their listing, arranging them by couples. Just as a farmer holding a yoke of oxen tills the land, so the Lord, having yoked the apostles two by two, sent them out, tilling with them the land of those who hear in truth and believe.

CAP. X.

V. 10. *But into whatsoever city ye shall have entered, and they receive you not, going out into its streets, say:* V. 11. *Even the dust which hath clung to us from your city, we wipe off for you.* ^C For the dust of your sins shall justly return upon you. But a simpler interpretation is: He wishes them to shake off the dust, either to show that they received nothing from them, or that it might be a testimony to them of the long journey which he undertook for their sake. Note, however, that the cities which do not receive the apostles and sound doctrine have "streets," in proportion, clearly, to that saying: "Wide is the gate, and broad the way that leadeth to destruction, and many are they that enter through it."

V. 38. *And it came to pass as they were going, and he himself entered into a certain village. And a certain woman named Martha received him into her house.* V. 39. *And this one had a sister called Mary, ^D who, having also sat down beside the feet of Jesus, was listening to his word.* V. 40. *But Martha was distracted about much service. And standing by, she said, Lord, is it no care to thee that my sister has left me alone to serve? Tell her, therefore, that she may help me.* V. 41. *But Jesus answering said, Martha, Martha, thou art anxious and troubled about many things; but one thing is necessary.*

V. 42. *But Mary hath chosen the good part, which shall not be taken away from her.* ^A To explain that, *One thing is necessary*, it would be useful to cite: *Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself*; and for, *Few things are necessary*, you may adduce: *Thou shalt not steal, thou shalt not bear false witness*, and whatever else is spoken in like manner. And you may take Martha as standing for action, and Mary for contemplation; or the former as a symbol of Judea, and the latter as a figure of the Church of the Gentiles. Or, Martha shall signify those who have believed from the circumcision and observe the law according to the Jewish custom, while Mary will indicate those who have been freed from legal observances, and who sit only at the feet of Jesus. For by weighing the matter in various ways, you will find Martha indeed somewhat too enslaved to bodily things and busied about many matters, while Mary is occupied solely with contemplation and spiritual things. ^B

CHAP. XI.

V. 2. *Our Father, who art in heaven; hallowed be thy name; thy kingdom come.* I think that no one could say "Father" to God, unless he were filled with the spirit of adoption; and the Son, glorifying the Father, would surely say "Father," and by keeping the commandment which says, *Love your enemies, pray for those who persecute you, that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven.* *Thy kingdom come.* So that every rule and authority and power may be rendered void, and furthermore every kingdom of the world, and the sin that reigns in our mortal bodies; but over all these may God reign.

V. 3. *Give us our daily bread.* The word "daily" is necessarily added as well. For in a certain sense our true life is restorative, so that the inner man may live according to God. ^C

V. 5, 6, 7. The passage, *Which of you*, is said to the disciples; but the words, *shall have a friend*, are said in order to assert that God is a friend to the saints, as He was to Moses and to Abraham. And the "midnight" is perhaps this short time of life, when the exterminator enters every house of the worldly Egypt where the doorpost has not been anointed with the blood of Christ. The disciple asks the friend for three loaves, wishing to feed with the theology concerning the Trinity the one who has come to him from the journey, as He says: *Apart from me you can do nothing.* But how does the friend from within answer, saying: *Do not cause me trouble?* You will inquire, indeed, whether perhaps those who labor and are heavy laden cause trouble by their own labors to the Savior. Therefore, *He bears our infirmities and suffers for us.* ^D Or, just as it is said that God does not sleep for this one, but is said to be angry with another who sins: so also is it said that He has trouble from the one who brings it to Him. But do you consider whether the bread is the necessary...

^A nourishment of the soul in knowledge, without which it is impossible to be saved; for instance, the precise discourse on how one ought to live. And the fish is, as it were, a relish for the study of learning; for instance, to know the constitution of the world, the power of the elements, the beginning and the end and the middle of the ages, and whatever else wisdom recounts. In this way, therefore, God does not give a stone instead of bread, which the devil wanted to be eaten by Jesus; nor a serpent instead of a fish, which the Ethiopians eat, being unworthy to eat fish. For there, says the Psalmist, you crushed the head of the dragon in the water, you gave him as food to the peoples, the Ethiopians. Nor generally, instead of a food-consuming and useful thing, [does He give] things that are unfit and harmful for eating.

V. 34. *The lamp of the body is the eye. When therefore your eye is simple, your whole body also is bright. But if it is evil, your body also is dark.* V. 35. *Look therefore, whether the light that is in you is darkness.* V. 36. *If therefore your body is bright, having no dark part, it will be all bright, as when a lamp illuminates you with its brightness.*

I think the reason for what is said in this context is as follows: If, because your body has been made bright, having effectively been illuminated by the lamp of the body, there is no part in you that is any longer dark—since you are no longer sinning—your whole body will be so bright that it is possible to compare its brightness with the brilliance of a lamp that illuminates, and by its illumination, dissolves the darkness. For the illumination coming from the mind is indeed like a most splendid brightness; and the light that is in the body, which by nature is otherwise prepared to be darkness—being led wherever the mind wishes—is like the lamp in the brightness.

V. 51. *From the blood of Abel to the blood of Zachariah.* Therefore, the executioners, when Elisabeth and her son had escaped from their hands, also poured out their wrath against Zachariah, as the story goes. Not otherwise, therefore, also on account of the Virgin Mary, after she had given birth to our Savior. For when she had come to worship, she stood in the place of the virgins. And when those who knew that she had given birth were stopping her, Zachariah was saying to those who were stopping her that she was worthy of the place of the virgins, as she was still a virgin. As they were therefore clearly transgressing the laws, they killed him between the temple and the altar, while he was ministering and sacrificing to God, and they mingled blood with blood.

CAP. XII. V. 6. *Are not five sparrows sold for two assaria, and one of them is not forgotten before God?* V. 7. *But even the hairs of your head are all numbered. Do not therefore fear; you are worth more than many sparrows.*

Notice that he did not say the "falling of the bird to the ground," as Matthew did. Here, moreover, the five birds, the just senses imply: those [concerned] with things sublime and above.

^A And they perceive things beyond man, seeing divine things, and hearing the voice of God, becoming [partakers] of the living bread, smelling the fragrance of the unguents of Christ and the oil of gladness, and touching the living Word; these, though being held in contempt by those who judge the things of the Spirit to be foolish and vile, are not in oblivion before God. ^B However, weigh the expression that signifies that not even the smallest sparrow is in oblivion before God, with those expressions that signify that God forgets some [people] because of their sins. Literally, therefore, it is declared in these [words] that Providence extends to the very least things, and even to the knowledge of the most minute affairs. Spiritually, however, "prudence falls to the earth," like a little bird. For while it is carried on high, it seeks the things below, on account of the vices of the flesh that take hold of it; and, being delivered into the passion of ignominy, it also loses its freedom along with its value. Such, moreover, is he who has been lifted up by the word, but still thinks of earthly things. ^C Again, according to the literal sense, the saying, "It will not fall to the ground without your Father," does not show [God's] will, but [His] foreknowledge. For of things that happen, some come about by will, some by good pleasure, and some by permission.

CHAPTER XIII

^A And, becoming indeed new bread and spiritual, according to the Apostle who says: *We the many are one bread and one body*, we shall take unto ourselves the image and likeness of the Bread of all, which gives life and which has descended from heaven, when He has rendered us like unto Himself. Now I shall aptly liken the wisdom of God to a woman in these matters; for Christ is the power of God and the wisdom of God, [1 Cor. I, 24] which corresponds to the imagery of the leaven. For just as in the parable of the seed, He introduced the figure of the husbandman and sower, where the mention of a woman would truly not have been reasonable; so here, the leaven having been brought to the three measures of meal, the parable is adapted, in that it likens to a bread-making woman Him whom it had named the sower in that [former] parable.

v. 29. *And they shall come from the East and the West and from the North and the South, and shall recline in the kingdom of God.*

^B Now in Matthew there is also woven a parable, through which various workers of different ages are called, as it were, to a vineyard—that is, to the commandments—as at early morning, and about the third, and the sixth, and the ninth, and the eleventh hour. Perhaps, then, the whole life of men is the day according to the parable. And those who are called from childhood and early youth are those hired by the Master at daybreak; those who are called after the youth are those from the third hour; and those who, after the heat and labor of the prime of life, are brought to the worship of God while already aging, are those around the ninth; while the old men who are already near the end of life are signified by the eleventh hour. And since it is the resolve, not the time, that is examined—the resolve which one has invested in the faith—for this reason, to those who have performed what was incumbent upon them from the time they were called, is given the same wage of salvation: that is, the denarius, which was originally stolen away by the evil one through deceit when the transgression of the spiritual commandment occurred—meaning that divine ^C and most royal image, by which it seems to me He indicates the mark of the kingdom itself, since the device of the denarius signifies the stamped image of the King. Since, therefore, it was just that all who had entered into the vineyard and the polity of divine worship, and had undertaken one and the same labor, should become partakers of the same kingdom, for this reason the denarius, the symbol of the kingdom, is deservedly rendered to all. Of these, some were called in youth, others about the time of adolescence, others about the middle time of human life, and some even after they had already attained to the perfect and maturing man; and lastly, some who were already old, and near the sunset of life, being, moreover, long-lived and ^D near old age.

One might also speak in another way, interpreting that the things signified by the parable apply to those who, from the very first establishment of their life until the consummation of the age, are deemed worthy of the divine calling. So he might say that those called at early morning to the cultivation of the worship of God are those who from the beginning of their life

^A were saved. Then Enoch and Noah with their contemporaries. About the third hour, Abraham with his contemporaries. About the sixth, those who lived in the times of the prophets. And about the eleventh, those who were born after the saving advent of God. All of whom, it is declared, are to be deemed worthy of one and the same reward by the denarius, insofar as it refers to the kingdom of God.

These discrepancies of time here mentioned are matched by an equal number of senses. Thus, touch is the first calling; whence it is said regarding the plant, "You shall not touch it." Smell again corresponds to the second distance; wherefore under Noah the Lord smelled the odor of sweetness. Taste is referred to Abraham, and for this reason he sets cakes and a calf before the angels. Hearing belongs to Moses, when the voice of God was heard from heaven. Sight, which is the most precious of all the senses, belongs to the advent ^B of Christ, when they saw Christ with blessed eyes. The late time signifies the end of the age, when the last laborers are the first to receive their reward. For those who were previously martyred through faith did not receive the promise. For we, the disciples of Christ, trust that we shall receive the reward as the first.

CAP. XIV.

V. 12. "And he said to him who had invited him: When you give a dinner or a banquet, do not invite your friends, or your brothers, or your kinsmen, or your rich neighbors, lest they also invite you in return, and you have your repayment."

V. 13. "But when you give a feast, invite the poor, the maimed, the lame, the blind."

V. 14. "And you will be blessed, when they have nothing to repay you. For you will be repaid at the resurrection of the just."

We are by no means commanded in the literal sense not to invite friends and neighbors, but [only] the poor and maimed, the lame and the blind. Mystically, however, friends would perhaps be those who rejoice with us in the dogmas of truth; brothers are those who profess similar dogmas; ^C kinsmen are those who wish to be joined with us according to these; neighbors are those who do not dwell entirely far from our dogmas. But in every instance, "rich" must be understood. Those who mock the hearing of the word call [certain people] rich and poor; but he who serves the word for the sake of truth is free from vainglory. He calls them poor, that is, those without words, so that he may make them rich; maimed, that is, those damaged in their understanding, so that he may heal them; lame, those who limp in their words, so that they may make straight paths; blind, those who do not possess the power of contemplation, so that they may see the true light. And the phrase, "They have nothing to repay you," is equivalent to saying: they do not know how to conduct a discourse through question and answer, and according to the rules of dialectic.

V. 18. "And they began, one and all, to make excuses." This is ^D

^A all of them, as if by a prearranged signal. The first said to him: "I have bought a field, and I must needs go out and see it. I pray thee, have me excused." V. 19. "And another said: I have bought five yoke of oxen, and I am going to test them. I pray thee, have me excused." V. 20. "And another said: I have married a wife, and therefore I cannot come."

Generally, men fall away from the calling in three ways: through the imagining of better doctrines, through the pursuit of sensible things, and through love of pleasure. For those who bought a field, and also excuse themselves from the banquet, are those who take up other doctrines concerning the Godhead, which possess much plausibility and variety of reasoning; and who also despise the field—the one who possesses the field and virtues within himself. He, therefore, who has neither examined nor tested the reason he had acquired because he had been previously instructed in it, of necessity and not voluntarily departs from the banquet and from the One who called him, and perhaps even from himself. And the phrase "I pray thee" he says as if out of pure formal respect for the One who called him. ^B And he who bought five yoke of oxen is the one who despises the intelligible nature and willingly busies himself with sensible things. Nor did this man test from the beginning what he had bought. If the number two is assigned to material things, this man valued material things, and therefore he too excuses himself from the intelligible banquet. And another is he who said: "I have married a wife," he who thinks he has found wisdom and excuses himself from the true [wisdom] through communion with this [false wisdom]; or he who is united to the flesh, being a lover of pleasure rather than a lover of God. This, then, is the overall sense of the parable; but take also in another way those things which pertain to this passage, insofar as we are humans, and it is not profitable for us to know the riches of the goodness of God.

Necessarily, God identifies with man, so that He may speak as with humans, who cannot grasp all things being dispensed by God, while God remains as He is. But then He will no longer identify with man, when, having desisted from contention, zeal, and the remaining evils, and from walking according to man, we are deemed worthy to hear from God: "I have said: Ye are gods, and all of you are children of the Most High ^C." Then He is no longer called by the many other names of which sinful man has need, such as panther, lion, and bear, as it is written in the prophets. In this way, I also understand the saying: "Our God is a consuming fire ^D." For to the one who is not worthy of being consumed, He is light, according to John who says: "Our God is light." And again: "It does not yet appear, he says, what we shall be; but we know that, if He shall appear, we shall be like Him, because we shall see Him as He is." For although we might be deemed worthy to see God now with the mind and with the heart, we do not see Him as He is, but as He becomes for us on account of our dispensation. But in the restitution of all things, of which He has spoken by the mouth of His holy ones, we shall see Him, not as now, as He is not, but as it is fitting then, as He is. With us humans, then, He became like man; but with

those who regard themselves as gods, He became God. For He says: "God stood in the congregation of gods." ^A

CAP. XV.

CAP. XVI.

CHAPTER XVII.

CHAPTER XVIII.

^A one, Jesus loved him. Not, indeed, would He have loved him for the fulfillment of an alien matter, he who was speaking confidently concerning these things. But it raises a question: how was he loved, who was not about to follow Him into life? Yet, on the one hand, regarding the former things, he is worthy of love, as he who has kept the precepts of the law; yet, by his neglect of what is perfect, he did not allow the love he had for the former things to become perfect.

CAP. XIX.

V. 29. And it came to pass that when He drew near to Bethphage and Bethany, at the mount called Olivet, He sent two of His disciples, V. 30. Saying: Go into the village which is over against you; in which, at your entering, you shall find a colt tied, on which no man ever sat. Loosing him, bring him. V. 31. And if any man shall ask you: Why do you loose him? You shall say to him: Because the Lord has need of him. V. 32. And they that were sent went their way, and found as He said to them. V. 33. And as they were loosing the colt, the owners thereof said to them: Why loose you the colt? V. 34. But they said: The Lord has need of him. ^B V. 35. And they brought him to Jesus.

Where there is obedience and a sacred place, there the Lord sends the apostles to loose the colt that was bound, on which never the word of Moses, or Isaiah, or any other of the prophets had sat. But when Christ came, who by nature is the sole Lord, many lords become silent before they are made public by the Savior. For when someone serves wickedness, he is a slave to many passions; but once he has become the Lord’s, he cannot have many lords.

V. 35. And casting their garments upon the colt, they made Jesus to ride. V. 36. And as He went, they spread their garments in the way.

The disciples receive the Word, and they place it in the souls of their hearers. The good deeds of the apostles, being laid upon us, adorn us as well. ^C For they wish that we, too, should tread upon their garments, examining the apostolic discourses.

CAP. XX.

V. 19. And the chief priests and the scribes sought to lay hands upon Him in that same hour, and they feared. For they knew that to them He spoke this parable. V. 20. And watching their opportunity, they sent spies, who should feign themselves just men, that they might take hold of His speech, so that they might deliver Him to the authority and power of the governor. ^D V. 21. And they asked Him, saying: Master, we know that You say and teach rightly, and do not accept the person of any, but teach the way of God in truth. V. 22. Is it lawful for us to give tribute to Caesar, or no?

Verse 23. But when he perceived their craftiness, he said to them: Why do you test me? ^A Verse 24. Show me a denarius. Whose image and inscription does it have? And they answering, said: Caesar’s. Verse 25. And he answering said to them: Render to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s. Verse 26. And they were not able to seize his words before the people, and wondering at his answer, they were silent.

In a higher sense: Man, as is written in Genesis, was made according to the image of God. Later, because of his disobedience, he also took on an earthly image. But just as a coin has the image of the ruler of the nations, so he who does the works of the Almighty carries His image, which the Savior exhorts us to render and put off, and to wear the image that existed from the beginning. Consistent with these things, Paul also says: As we have borne the image of the earthly, let us also bear ^B the image of the heavenly. This, therefore, is what that means: Render to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s.

FROM ORIGEN ON THE FIRST EPISTLE OF APOSTLE JOHN

"I have written to you," etc. Origen from the first book of the Commentary on the Song of Songs. Certain names are common to those things which happen according to the outer man, and to the inner man, and have an analogy with one another; for instance, regarding ages, there is a child according to the outer man, which, accepting growth, reaches the youth, until, having become a man, he becomes a father. I use these names because of the Scripture in John in the Catholic Epistle; having arranged these three names; and likewise and analogously to those three things ^C regarding the outer man; and I might say that there is a child according to the inner man, similar, whatever he might be, to the outer man. So also a youth according to the man hidden in the heart. It is consistent with these things to say that there is also an inner man and a father. And John says thus: "I have written to you, children, because you have known the Father; I have written to you, fathers, because you have known him who is from the beginning; I have written to you, young men, because you are strong, and the word of God abides in you, and you have overcome the wicked one." It is clear, and it occurs to any chance person, that he is saying to write these things to those who are children, and youths, and fathers in their soul. And Paul also says somewhere, "I could not speak to you as spiritual, but as carnal; as infants in Christ I fed you with milk, and not with solid food." But the one who is an infant in Christ, being such in soul, is named in this way, just as the same Paul says elsewhere, "When I was an infant, I spoke as an infant, I understood as an infant, I thought as an infant." Then, since he did not remain in infancy, ^D he says, "But when I became a man, I put away the things of an infant." Thus I hear also the, "Till we all come to a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ." For he knows that all those who believe will attain to a perfect man, and to the measures of an intellectual stature. Just as, regarding the inner man and the outer man, these things have happened as homonyms, and having an analogy to each other, so you would find also the names of the members of the body being transferred to the soul.