Wednesday of the 11th week after Pentecost

The best example of the cultured, but common, tripper is the educated Englishman on the Continent. We can no longer explain the quarrel by calling Englishmen rude and foreigners polite. Hundreds of Englishmen are extremely polite, and thousands of foreigners are extremely rude. The truth of the matter is that foreigners do not resent the rude Englishman. What they do resent, what they do most justly resent, is the polite Englishman. He visits Italy for Botticellis or Flanders for Rembrandts, and he treats the great nations that made these things courteously--as he would treat the custodians of any museum. It does not seem to strike him that the Italian is not the custodian of the pictures, but the creator of them. He can afford to look down on such nations--when he can paint such pictures.

That is, in matters of art and travel, the psychology of the cad. If, living in Italy, you admire Italian art while distrusting Italian character, you are a tourist, or cad. If, living in Italy, you admire Italian art while despising Italian religion, you are a tourist, or cad. It does not matter how many years you have lived there. Tourists will often live a long time in hotels without discovering the nationality of the waiters. Englishmen will often live a long time in Italy without discovering the nationality of the Italians. But the test is simple. If you admire what Italians did without admiring Italians--you are a cheap tripper.

The same, of course, applies much nearer home. I have remarked elsewhere that country shopkeepers are justly offended by London people, who, coming among them, continue to order all their goods from London. It is caddish to wink and squint at the colour of a man's wine, like a wine taster; and then refuse to drink it. It is equally caddish to wink and squint at the colour of a man's orchard, like a landscape painter; and then refuse to buy the apples. It is always an insult to admire a thing and not use it. But the main point is that one has no right to see Stonehenge without Salisbury Plain and Salisbury. One has no right to respect the dead Italians without respecting the live ones. One has no right to visit a Christian society like a diver visiting the deep-sea fishes--fed along a lengthy tube by another atmosphere, and seeing the sights without breathing the air. It is very real bad manners.

(Verse 29 onwards) Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you build the tombs of the prophets and decorate the monuments of the righteous, and you say, 'If we had lived in the days of our fathers, we would not have been partners with them in shedding the blood of the prophets.' Thus you bear witness against yourselves that you are sons of those who murdered the prophets. In the most skillful syllogism, they are proven to be the offspring of murderers, while they themselves, by the opinion of goodness and glory among the people, build tombs for the prophets whom their forefathers killed, and they say, 'If we had lived in that time, we would not have done what our fathers did.' However, even if they do not say it in words, they speak through their actions by ambitiously and magnificently building monuments to the slain, whom they do not deny were killed by their forefathers.

By a most subtle syllogism He proves them to be the sons of murderers, while to gain good character and reputation with the people, they build the sepulchres of the Prophets whom their fathers put to death.

Though they speak not this in words, they proclaim it by their actions, in ambitious and magnificent structures to their memory.

Not because they build, nor because they blame the others, doth He say, woe, but because, while both thus, and by what they say, they are pretending to condemn their fathers, they do worse. For in proof that the condemnation was a pretense, Luke saith, ye do allow because ye build; for, "Woe unto you," saith He, "for ye build the sepulchers of the prophets, and your fathers killed them. Truly ye bear witness, and ye allow the deeds of your fathers, for they indeed killed them, and ye build their sepulchers." For here He reproves their purpose, wherewith they built, that it was not for the honoring of them that were slain, but as making a show of the murders, and afraid, lest, when the tombs had perished by time, the proof and memory of such daring should fade away, setting up these glorious buildings, as a kind of trophy, and priding themselves in the daring deeds of those men, and displaying them.

Without just cause He seems to utter denunciations against those who build the sepulchres of the Prophets; for so far what they did was praiseworthy; how then do they deserve this woe?

And in the prophetic writings, the historical sense is the body, the spiritual meaning is the soul; the sepulchres are the letter and books themselves of Scripture. They then who attend only to the historical meaning, honour the bodies of the Prophets, and set in the letter as in a sepulchre; and are called Pharisees, i. e. 'cut off,' as it were cutting off the soul of the Prophets from their body.

But say, hypocrite, if it be good to be wicked, why do you not desire to seem that which you desire to be? For what it is shameful to seem, that it is more shameful to be; and what to seem is fair, that it is fairer to be. Either therefore be what you seem, or seem what you are.

Or, they said within themselves, If we do good to the poor not many see it, and then but for a moment; were it not better to raise buildings which all may see, not only now, but in all time to come? O foolish man, what boots this posthumous memory, if, where you are, you are tortured, and where you are not there you are praised? While He corrects the Jews, He instructs the Christians; for had these things been spoken to the former only, they would have been spoken, but not written; but now they were spoken on their account, and written on ours. When one, besides other good deeds, raises sacred buildings, it is an addition to his good works; but if without any other good works, it is a passion for worldly renown. The martyrs joy not to be honoured with money which has caused the poor to weep. The Jews, moreover, have ever been adorers of saints of former times, and contemners, yea persecutors, of the living. Because they could not endure the reproaches of their own Prophets, they persecuted and killed them; but afterwards the succeeding generation perceived the error of their fathers, and thus in grief at the death of innocent Prophets, they built up monuments of them. But they themselves in like manner persecuted and put to death the Prophets of their own time, when they rebuked them for their sins. This is what is meant, And ye say, If we had been in the days of our fathers, we would not have been partakers with them in the blood of the Prophets.

He deplores them, not for building tombs for the prophets, for that is pleasing to God, but for doing these things in pretence, and for passing judgement on their fathers while doing worse things themselves, and exceeding them by far in malice. They lie brazenly when they say, "If we had been in the days of our fathers, we would not have killed the prophets," for they were rabid with desire to kill the Master of the prophets. Therefore Christ says:

Then when he says, woe to you, (...) who build the sepulchres of the prophets, he rebukes them for the pretense of piety, and he does two things. First, he sets forth their pretense; secondly, their cruelty, at wherefore you are witnesses against yourselves, etc. Likewise, they pretend in two ways, by deeds and by words. Hence he first rebukes them regarding their deeds; secondly, regarding their words. The second is at and you say: if we had been, etc. He says, then, woe to you who build the sepulchres of the prophets. But what is this? Were they doing wrong? Do we not do this well, who place the bodies of the saints in silver and gold caskets? Some say that they are not reproved for the deed but for the intention, because their intention was evil; for they did this so that the memory of the crime of their fathers might be brought back to men's remembrance: hence it was the custom that when something notable happened, something was made as a memorial of it. Hence they wanted the boldness of their parents, because they dared to kill the prophets, to be in the memory of all. But this exposition does not agree with the letter. Therefore it should be said otherwise, that they are not blamed for this, but because they did this only so as to show outward signs of piety, just as it is said above that they tithed mint and cummin. Likewise, they adorn the monuments of the just. They adorned the sepulchres, and yet had the intention of killing, on account of pretense. Similarly, Chrysostom says, it happens in our times that if someone does many good things, adorns sepulchres, has an open hand, and the like; if he builds in stone, and aims at vainglory, and does not walk in the ways of the Lord, it profits him nothing.

For the things that ye now dare to do, show that ye do these things also in this spirit. For, though ye speak the contrary, saith He, as condemning them, as, for instance, "We should not, if we had been in their days, have been partakers with them;" yet the disposition is evident wherewith ye say these things. Wherefore also unfolding it, though darkly, still He hath expressed it. For when He had said, ye say, "If we had been in the days of our fathers, we should not have been partakers with them in the blood of the prophets;" He added, "Wherefore ye be witnesses unto yourselves, that ye are the children of them that slew the prophets." And what blame is it to be a murderer's son, if one partake not in the mind of one's father? None. Whence it is evident, that for this same thing He brings it forward against them, hinting at their affinity in wickedness.

Once the prophets had departed this life, their bodies were in the tomb but their souls and spirits were in the "realm of the living." Accordingly, the historical narrative of the prophetic writings is to be regarded as the body but their spiritual meaning and the inner truth as the soul and spirit which inhabits history. It is not improper then for us to consider the "tombs of the prophets" to be the letters on the pages of their books, in which the narrative lays as though it were a body placed in a tomb. Those persons therefore who receive and understand the spiritual meaning of the prophetic writings and the truth hidden within them have the soul and spirit of the prophets and are themselves made into a sort of realm of the living prophets.… Those who neither seek nor accept the spiritual meaning but attend only to the simple, historical narrative study the bodies of the prophets in the letters and pages of the books, as though in so many tombs. Such persons were the Pharisees, who were rightly called Pharisees (that is, the "separated") because they separated the spiritual meaning of the prophets from their bodily history, as though expelling the prophets' souls from their bodies, killing them and rendering them devoid of soul and spirit. It was also right for the Pharisees to be called "hypocrites," because they built and adorned only the tombs of the prophets which contained their bodily history, which is to say that they studied only the letter of their writings and books. They did not understand that those who study dead bodies (the historical narrative) may seem to act with reverence toward the memory of the prophets but are in fact being most irreverent. Their attempts to defend themselves against the charge of being associated with "those who killed the prophets" and to prove themselves innocent only add to the crimes of "those who killed the prophets," thereby filling up the "measure" of the iniquity of their fathers by not believing in Christ, whom the prophets proclaimed not through the historical sense of their writings but through the spiritual sense.

Likewise, they showed piety by their words: and you say: if we had been in the days of our fathers, we would not have been their partners in the blood of the prophets. It is common that in the deeds of others all are severe judges: hence if we see someone sinning, we judge it a great sin, but we diminish our own sin; therefore these sons recognized the malice of their fathers, but not their own; above at 7:5: cast out first the beam from your own eye, and then you shall see to cast out the mote from your brother's eye.

We will carefully investigate what the Savior says. The forefathers of the Jews killed the holy prophets who were transmitting the divine word to them in those times. They surely have become witnesses for some of them, because the prophets are now revered and honored. They have placed crowns on their heads or assign … honor to their tombs as to holy things, for believing the prophets to be holy men, they have become the judges of those who have killed them. For by honoring them in this way, they have spoken against those who killed them, and through these things they accuse them of having acted wickedly. But though they agreed to condemn the murders committed by their own forefathers, they were about to become threshing floors for the same kind of evils, indeed, to things even worse. They "killed the author of life" and added to their impieties against him other murders, those of his holy apostles. For while one scrutinizes the sins of others, making a decision according to one's innate reason, one sees the wickedness and censures it.… He who is led into similar passions is like a blind man carried away.

What kind of accusation is this, to Call one the son of a murderer, who partakes not in his father's disposition? Clearly there is no guilt in being so; wherefore this must be said in proof of their resemblance in wickedness.

What they thought in their hearts, that they spoke by their deeds. Christ lays bare here the natural habit of all wicked men; each readily apprehends the other's fault, but none his own; for in another's case each man has an unprejudiced heart, but in his own case it is distorted. Therefore in the cause of others we can all easily be righteous judges. He only is the truly righteous and wise who is able to judge himself. It follows, Wherefore ye be witnesses unto yourselves, that you are the children of them which killed the Prophets.

The character of the parents is a witness to the sons; if the father be good and the mother bad, or the reverse, the children may follow sometimes one, sometimes the other. But when both are the same, it very rarely happens that bad sons spring of good parents, or the reverse, though it be so sometimes. This is as a man is sometimes born out of the rule of nature, having six fingers or no eyes.

Then he sets forth their cruelty. And first, in general; secondly, in particular. And he sets forth the temporal punishment, at behold, I send to you prophets, and wise men, and scribes. Regarding the first, he first describes the origin; secondly, the imitation of evil; thirdly, he threatens punishment. He says, wherefore you are witnesses against yourselves, that you are the sons of those who killed the prophets. But what evil was it for them, since it was not in their power? Therefore it seems that it ought not to be imputed to them. See: sometimes a son does not imitate the sins of his father, and sometimes he does imitate paternal malice. If he does not follow paternal malice, it is not imputed to him. Sometimes it happens that one has a good father and a bad mother, or conversely, and he follows the goodness of his father, or of his mother. But if both are wicked, it rarely happens that he does not imitate their malice. And the reason is that the children of the wicked become accustomed to evils from the beginning; and what they become accustomed to in youth they adhere to more strongly, and therefore they are more inclined to evil. Likewise, when evil parents see their children doing something evil, they do not correct them; for this reason their sin is aggravated, so that the sins of the parents redound to the children; Exodus 20:5: I am a jealous God, visiting the sins of the fathers upon the children. Therefore he says, you are the sons of those, who have their malice; Wisdom 3:12: their children are most wicked. Hence you are sons by imitation; and this is what follows:

The form of judgment is perfect; the understanding and idea of equity are instilled in each of us by nature so that the more fully the ideal of equity is known, the less need there is for the forgiveness of iniquity. The people of the law killed all the prophets. They had become inflamed with hatred toward them because of the harshness of their reproaches, since the prophets had publicly called them thieves, murderers, adulterers and sacrilegious. Moreover, because they had denounced the Jews as unworthy of the kingdom of heaven and because they taught that the Gentiles would be the heirs of the covenant of God, they afflicted the prophets with a variety of other punishments. The descendants, however, repudiated the deeds of their fathers, honoring the prophets' books, decorating their tombs, restoring their sepulchers and attesting by these forms of respect that they were not culpable of the crimes of their fathers.

Because then they will fill up the measure of their fathers' purposes, therefore are they serpents, and an offspring of vipers.

And you, fulfill the measure of your fathers. Having proven with the previous words that they were the children of murderers and those who killed the prophets, he now concludes what he wanted and puts forth the final part of the syllogism. And you, fulfill the measure of your fathers. What was lacking for them, you complete. They killed the servants, you crucify the Lord. They killed the prophets, you kill him who was preached by the prophets.

Then, because He was searching their temper of mind, which is to the more part obscure, He doth, from those things also which they were about to perpetrate, which would be manifest to all, establish His words. For, because He had said, "Wherefore ye be witnesses unto yourselves that ye are the children of them which killed the prophets," making it evident, that of their affinity in wickedness He is speaking, and that it was a pretense to say, "We should not have been partakers with them," He added, "Fill ye up therefore the measure of your fathers," not commanding, but declaring beforehand, what was to be, that is, His own murder.

Therefore, having brought in their refutation, and having shown that they were pretenses which they said in their own defense, as, for instance, "We would not have been partakers with them," (for they who refrain not from the Lord, how should they have refrained from the servants), He makes after this His language more condemnatory, calling them "serpents, and generation of vipers," and saying, "How shall ye escape the damnation of hell," at once perpetrating such things, and denying them, and dissembling your purpose?

Then rebuking them more exceedingly from another cause also, He Saith, "I will send unto you prophets, and wise men, and scribes, and some of them shall ye kill and crucify, and some of them shall ye scourge in your synagogues." For that they should not say, "Though we crucified the Lord, yet from the servants we should have refrained, if we had been then;" "Behold," He saith, "I send servants also to you, prophets likewise themselves, and neither will ye spare them." But these things He saith, showing that it was nothing strange, that He should be murdered by those sons, being both murderous and deceitful, and having much guile, and surpassing their fathers in their outrages.

And besides what hath been said, He shows them to be also exceedingly vainglorious. For when they say, "If we had been in the days of our fathers, we should not have been partakers with them," they spake out of vainglory, and were practising virtue in words only, but in their works doing the contrary.

Ye serpents, ye generation of vipers, that is, wicked sons of wicked men, and more wicked than those who begat them. For He showeth that they are committing greater crimes, both by their committing them after those others, and by their doing much more grievous things than they, and this, while positively affirming that they never would have fallen into the same. For they add that which is both the end and the crown of their evil deeds. For the others slew them that came to the vineyard, but these, both the son, and them that were bidding them to the wedding.

But these things He saith, to separate them off from the affinity to Abraham, and to show that they had no advantage from thence, unless they followed his works; wherefore also He adds, "How can ye flee from the damnation of hell," when following them that have committed such acts?

And here He recalls to their remembrance John's accusation, for he too called them by this name, and reminded them of the judgment to come. Then, because they are nothing alarmed by judgment and hell, by reason of their not believing them, and because the thing is future, He awes them by the things present, and saith, "Wherefore, behold, I send unto you prophets and scribes: and some of them shall ye kill and crucify, and scourge; that upon you may come all the righteous blood shed upon the earth, from the blood of righteous Abel, unto the blood of Zacharias the son of Barschias, whom ye slew between the temple and the altar. Verily I say unto you, that all these things shall come upon this generation."

See by how many things He has warned them. He said, Ye condemn your fathers, in that ye say, "We would not have been partakers with them;" and this is no little thing to shame them. He said, While ye condemn them, ye do worse things, even ye yourselves; and this is sufficient to cover them with disgrace. He said, These things shall not be without punishment; and hence he implants in them fear beyond words. He hath reminded them at least of hell. Then because that was to come, He brought home to them the terrors as even present. "For all these things shall come," He saith, "upon this generation."

He added also unspeakable severity to the vengeance, saying, that they shall suffer more grievous things than all; yet by none of these things did they become better. But if any one say, And why do they suffer more grievously than all? we would say, Because they have first committed more grievous things than all, and by none of the things that have been done to them have they been brought to a sound mind.

Heardest thou not Lamech saying, "Of Lamech vengeance shall be taken seventy times sevenfold;" that is, "I am deserving of more punishment than Cain." Why could this be? Yet he did not slay his brother; but because not even by his example was he brought to a better mind. And this is what God saith elsewhere, "Requiting the sins of fathers upon children for the third and fourth generation of them that hate me." Not as though one were to suffer punishment for the crimes committed by others, but inasmuch as they who, after many sin and have been punished, yet have not grown better, but have committed the same offenses, are justly worthy to suffer their punishments also.

But see how seasonably he also mentioned Abel, indicating that this murder likewise is of envy. What then have ye to say? Know ye not what Cain suffered? Did God hold His peace at his deeds? Did He not exact the severest penalty? Heard ye not what things your fathers suffered, when they slew the prophets; were they not delivered over to punishments, and inflictions of vengeance without number? How then did ye not become better? And why do I speak of the punishments of your fathers, and what they suffered? Thou who thyself condemnest thy fathers, how is it thou doest worse? For moreover even ye yourselves have declared that "He will miserably destroy those wicked men." What favor then will ye have after this, committing such things after such a sentence?

But who is this Zacharias? Some say, the father of John; some, the prophet; some, a priest with two different names, whom the Scripture also calls, the son of Jehoiada.

But do thou mark this, that the outrage was twofold. For not only did they slay holy men, but also in a holy place. And saying these things, He did not only alarm them, but also comfort His disciples, showing that the righteous men also who were before them suffered these things. But these He alarmed, foretelling that like as they paid their penalty, even so should these too suffer the utmost extremities. Therefore He calls them "prophets, and wise men, and scribes," even hereby again taking away every plea of theirs. "For ye cannot say," He saith, "Thou didst send from among the Gentiles, and therefore we were offended;" but they were led on unto this by being murderous, and thirsting for blood. Wherefore He also said beforehand, "For this cause do I send prophets and scribes." This did the prophets also lay to their charge, saying, "They mingle blood with blood," and that they are men of blood. Therefore also did He command the blood to be offered to Him, showing that if in a brute it be thus precious, much more in a man. Which He saith to Noah likewise, "I will require all blood that is shed." And ten thousand other such things might one find Him enjoining with regard to their not committing murder; wherefore He commanded them not even to eat that which was strangled.

Oh the love of God towards man! that though He foreknew they would profit nothing, He still doeth His part. For I will send, He saith, and this knowing they would be slain. So that even hereby they were convicted of saying vainly, "We should not have been partakers with our fathers." For these too slew prophets even in their synagogues, and reverenced neither the place, nor the dignity of the persons. For not merely ordinary persons did they slay, but prophets and wise men, such that they had nothing to lay to their charge. And by these He meaneth the apostles, and those after them, for, indeed, many prophesied. Then, willing to aggravate their fears, He saith, "Verily, verily I say unto you, All these things shall come upon this generation;" that is, I will bring all upon your heads, and will make the vengeance sore. For he that knew many to have sinned, and was not sobered, but himself hath committed the same sins again, and not the same only, but also far more grievous, would justly deserve to suffer a far more grievous punishment than they. For like as, if he had been minded, he would have gained greatly, had he grown better by their examples, even so, since he continued without amendment, he is liable to a heavier vengeance, as having had the benefit of more warning by them who had sinned before and been punished, and having reaped no advantage.

He had said against the Scribes and Pharisees, that they were the children of those who killed the Prophets; now therefore He shows that they were like them in wickedness, and that that was false that they said, If we had been in the days of our fathers, we would not have been partakers with them in the blood of the Prophets. Wherefore He now says, Fill ye up the measure of your fathers. This is not a command, but a prophecy of what is to be.

And in the prophetic writings, the historical sense is the body, the spiritual meaning is the soul; the sepulchres are the letter and books themselves of Scripture. They then who attend only to the historical meaning, honour the bodies of the Prophets, and set in the letter as in a sepulchre; and are called Pharisees, i. e. 'cut off,' as it were cutting off the soul of the Prophets from their body.

They fill up the measure of their fathers' sins by their not believing in Christ. And the cause of their unbelief was, that they looked only to the letter and the body, and would understand nothing spiritual in them.

He foretels, that as their fathers killed the Prophets, so they also should kill Christ, and the Apostles, and other holy men. As suppose you had a quarrel with some one, you might say to your adversary, Do to me what you are about to do; but you do not therein bid him do it, but show him that you are aware of his manæuvres. And in fact they went beyond the measure of their fathers; for they put to death only men, these crucified God. But because He stooped to death of His own free choice, He does not lay on them the sin of His death, but only the death of the Apostles and other holy men. Whence also He said, Fill up, and not Fill over; for a just and merciful Judge overlooks his own wrongs, and only punishes those done to others.

He neither bids them nor impels them towards their plan to kill Him when He says, "Fill ye up also the measure of your fathers." Rather, this is what He means: since you are serpents and the offspring of such fathers, and have been plunged into such malice that you are incurable, in a short time you will be eager to outdo your fathers when you kill Me. For you shall have attained to the ultimate degree of malice when you fulfill and complete the bloodletting which your fathers omitted. Being such, how shall you escape eternal torments?

Fill up then the measure of your fathers. This is not imperative, but declarative: fill up, i.e., you will fill up, as though a man were speaking, i.e., you will kill me; John 13:27: that which you do, do quickly. Or it can be permissive, i.e., you will not be prevented by me; i.e., at some time you wished to but I did not permit; hereafter I will not prevent you. Therefore fill up the measure of your fathers. But what does it mean when he says fill up? It should be seen that all things that come to pass come from the certain judgment of God. But in that judgment of God the punishment is not immediately exacted, until the guilt is totally accumulated and comes to a head: hence with respect to the judgment of God, their guilt was not yet filled up. Hence they killed the prophets, and the guilt is not yet filled up, but it will be completed in me. Therefore fill up the measure of your fathers. Isaiah 27:8: in measure against measure, when it shall be cast off, you shall judge it. Or fill up. The fathers sinned, but you fill up. Then one fills up when he arrives at as much as his fathers. Therefore your fathers killed the prophets, and you, fill up. Or it can be said that those sinned by killing servants, but these by killing the Son; hence they filled up the wickedness of their fathers. But the Lord willingly offered himself and did not oppose. Likewise, he does not reproach them for his own injury, but only for that of his own, because it belongs to a good shepherd to consider the injury of his own as his own.

The punishment of all the murders committed in the past will fall on the last generation of murderers according to a certain pattern, although God speaking through the prophet does say that "the fathers will not die for the sins of the children" … and indeed, "each will die for his own sin." What then should we think about this? How can a later generation be punished for the murders committed by others, concerning whom Christ says these things? Won't Cain be punished for the murder of Abel?… How is it that these poor souls will be subjected to the punishment due to all these people? For God is not unjust but is the righteous judge, powerful and patient, according to the testimony of the Scripture. Therefore we think there is a certain intention contained within the things that have been spoken that applies to the present case and helps us to fit one thing to another. Let it be taken for granted then that this may be so in the present case. Let us say that they have become robbers in that land. These men were plundering the surrounding villages and killing their inhabitants. But the prince of the realm did not immediately strip them of the ruler's sword. Rather, he was eager to teach them differently through the use of threats.… But I suppose someone of the last who have been cruelly punished will say that they have received the penalty due to all.… You will also understand something such as this concerning God. For God was extremely patient in the preceding times until he deemed it necessary to set a boundary on his longsuffering. For it was also necessary that the divine anger fall upon these. On the one hand, they continued to sin against people and their fellow servants. On the other hand, they killed the Lord of all. Not that it is for this reason that he harshly punished the last ones but that it is astonishing that he has borne patiently with them to the present time.

The tremendous figure which fills the Gospels towers in this respect, as in every other, above all the thinkers who ever thought themselves tall. His pathos was natural, almost casual. The Stoics, ancient and modern, were proud of concealing their tears. He never concealed His tears; He showed them plainly on His open face at any daily sight, such as the far sight of His native city. Yet He concealed something. Solemn supermen and imperial diplomatists are proud of restraining their anger. He never restrained His anger. He flung furniture down the front steps of the Temple, and asked men how they expected to escape the damnation of Hell. Yet He restrained something. I say it with reverence; there was in that shattering personality a thread that must be called shyness. There was something that He hid from all men when He went up a mountain to pray. There was something that He covered constantly by abrupt silence or impetuous isolation. There was some one thing that was too great for God to show us when He walked upon our earth; and I have sometimes fancied that it was His mirth.

(v. 33) Serpents, ((Al. additur et)) offspring of vipers, how can you escape the judgment of Gehenna? This very thing John the Baptist also said (Luke III). Therefore, just as vipers give birth to vipers, so you, he says, are born of murderers fathers, are murderers.

The same had been said by John the Baptist. Wherefore as of vipers are born vipers, so of your fathers who were murderers are you born murderers.

And this is manifest too by what comes after; He adds at least, "Ye serpents, ye generation of vipers." For as those beasts are like their parents, in the destructiveness of their venom, so also are ye like your fathers in murderousness.

Ye serpents, ye generation of vipers, that is, wicked sons of wicked men, and more wicked than those who begat them. For He showeth that they are committing greater crimes, both by their committing them after those others, and by their doing much more grievous things than they, and this, while positively affirming that they never would have fallen into the same. For they add that which is both the end and the crown of their evil deeds. For the others slew them that came to the vineyard, but these, both the son, and them that were bidding them to the wedding.

But these things He saith, to separate them off from the affinity to Abraham, and to show that they had no advantage from thence, unless they followed his works; wherefore also He adds, "How can ye flee from the damnation of hell," when following them that have committed such acts?

And here He recalls to their remembrance John's accusation, for he too called them by this name, and reminded them of the judgment to come.

He calls them offspring of vipers, because the nature of vipers is such that the young burst the womb of their dam, and so come forth; and in like manner the Jews condemned their fathers, finding fault with their deeds. He says, How shall ye escape the damnation of hell? By building the tombs of the saints? But the first step of piety is to love holiness, the next, to love the saints; for it is not reasonable in him to honour the righteous, who despises righteousness. The saints cannot be friends to those to whom God is an enemy. Shall ye be saved by a mere name, because ye seem to be among God's people! Forasmuch as an open enemy is better than a false friend, so is he more hateful to God, who calls himself the servant of God, and does the commands of the Devil. Indeed, before God he who has resolved to kill a worm is a murderer before the deed is done, for it is the will that is rewarded for good, or punished for evil. Deeds are evidence of the will. God then does not require deeds on His own account that He may know how to judge, but for the sake of other men, that they may perceive that God is righteous. And God affords the opportunity of sin to the wicked, not to make them sin, but to manifest the sinner; and also to the good He gives opportunity to show the purpose of their will. In this way then He gave the Scribes and Pharisees opportunity of showing their purposes, Behold, I send unto you Prophets, and wise men, and Scribes.

Then he adds concerning the punishment: you serpents, generation of vipers, etc. And it seems that he speaks fittingly about the guilt. A serpent is a venomous animal and kills by its venom: so they are called serpents because they killed the prophets. Of the viper it is also said that it dies in giving birth, for the offspring gnaws through the mother's innards: so since they themselves were wicked, they reviled their fathers. Hence, you who are such, how will you flee from the judgment of hell? According to the judgment of men you escape, but according to the judgment of God, how will you escape? Hence one must have a clean heart. Job 19:29: flee from the face of the sword.

Then there is a curious thing which seems to slip out almost by accident. On one occasion this Man is sitting looking down on Jerusalem from the hill above it and suddenly in comes an extraordinary remark—"I keep on sending you prophets and wise men." Nobody comments on it. And yet, quite suddenly, almost incidentally, He is claiming to be the power that all through the centuries is sending wise men and leaders into the world.

That is, the Apostles, who, as foretelling things to come, are Prophets; as having knowledge of Christ, are wise men; as understanding the Law, are Scribes.

(Verse 34.) Therefore, behold, I send to you prophets and wise men and scribes. Some of them you will kill and crucify, and some of them you will flog in your synagogues and persecute from town to town. And so upon you may come all the righteous blood shed on earth, from the blood of righteous Abel to the blood of Zechariah, the son of Berechiah, whom you murdered between the sanctuary and the altar. Truly, I say to you, all these things will come upon this generation. At the same time, observe the Apostle writing to the Corinthians (1 Cor. VII), that there are various gifts of the disciples of Christ; some are prophets, who preach the coming things; some are wise, who know when they should speak; some are scribes, most learned in the Law, from whom Stephen was stoned, Paul was killed, Peter was crucified, the disciples were whipped in the Acts of the Apostles: and they were persecuted from city to city; driven out of Judea, so that they might migrate to the Gentile people.

Or, as the Apostle writes to the Corinthians (1 Cor. 12.) that there are various gifts among Christ's disciples; some Prophets, who foretel things to come; some wise men, who know when they ought to speak; others Scribes taught in the Law; of whom Stephen was stoned, Paul killed, Peter crucified, and the disciples of the Apostles beaten, in the Acts; and they persecuted them from city to city, driving them out of Judæa, that they might go to the Gentiles.

And to take away all excuse from them that they might not say, Because you sent them to the Gentiles thereat were we offended, He foretels that His disciples should be sent to them, and it is of their punishment that He adds, Verily I say unto you, all these things shall come upon this generation.

The unfruitful scribes of the law are different from the scribes who were sent by Christ on account of the gospel, in whose work the spirit vivifies but the letter does not kill, as does the letter of the law. Those who follow the letter of the law incur faithlessness and vain superstitions. Those who follow the letter of the gospel (i.e., its simple narrative), however, are saved. For the literal story of the gospel itself is sufficient for the salvation of the more simple among us. And if you see scribes of the law and Pharisees acting not only against "wise men" of the gospel and "prophets" of Christ but also against the "scribes" of the new covenant, you will see how (insofar as they are able) they kill the prophets of Christ and crucify the scribes and scourge them with slanderous speech in their synagogues. It is common to hear how the sects, the so-called spiritual men of the Pharisees, use their tongues like whips to scourge Christians with curses and to pursue them "from town to town," sometimes bodily, sometimes spiritually, wanting to expel them from their own town, which is the law and prophets and the gospel and the apostles, and to drive them by deceitful means into another, foreign town, which is another gospel.

Or the Scribes who are sent by Christ, are Scribes according to the Gospel, whom the spirit quickens and the letter does not kill, as did the letter of the Law, which whoso followed ran into vain superstitions. The simple words of the Gospel are sufficient for salvation. But the Scribes of the Law do yet scourge the Scribes of the New Testament, by detracting from them in their synagogues; and the heretics also, who are spiritual Pharisees, with their tongues murder the Christians, and persecute them from city to city, sometimes in the body, sometimes also in the spirit, seeking to drive them from their own city of the Law, the Prophets, and the Gospel, into another Gospel.

He reproves them for saying falsely, "If we had been in the days of our fathers, we would not have killed the prophets." For "Behold," He says, "I send unto you prophets and wise men, and scribes," but you will kill them. He is speaking of the apostles, for the Holy Spirit adorned the apostles with teachings and made them scribes, that is, teachers of the people, and prophets filled with all wisdom. "I send," He says, thus showing His divine authority.

Behold I. In this part he sets forth their cruelty and adds the temporal punishment. And first he does the first; secondly, he adds the punishment. And first he sets forth the benefit; secondly, the guilt; thirdly, the magnitude of the punishment. Hence he says, behold, I send to you prophets, and wise men, and scribes, etc. And this can be referred to what immediately follows, or to all that follows. If to all, then it has a plainer sense. Thus I say that you are about to fill up the measure, and that you are serpents, etc. Hence I send to you prophets, and wise men, and scribes, and some of them you will put to death, because you are such as are accustomed to killing. Or in another way, so that it refers to the whole. The Lord wills that judgment be not only just, but that it appear just, so that others may take example. Hence if someone has a good resolution, the Lord rewards him for his good resolution, and then gives him the will to exercise a good work; so conversely, when someone has an evil resolution and is full of evil will, according to what is said in Hosea 2:6: I will hedge up your way with thorns, he excites the wrath of God, and from the wrath of God it comes about that his malice is made manifest. Therefore I send to you prophets, and wise men, and scribes; and you will kill them. And he says behold, because it is at hand, for he sent the apostles; hence Acts 1:8: and you shall be witnesses unto me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and even to the uttermost part of the earth. But note that in saying I send to you prophets, and wise men, and scribes, he signifies the diverse gifts of the Holy Spirit. To one is given the gift of wisdom, to another the gift of tongues, etc. 1 Corinthians 12:10. The apostles had all these gifts. They had the gift of prophecy in foretelling the future; Joel 2:28: I will pour out my spirit upon all flesh, and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy. Likewise, the gift of wisdom, because they knew all things; Luke 21:15: I will give you a mouth and wisdom, which all your adversaries shall not be able to resist and gainsay. Likewise, they were scribes, because they had understanding of Scripture; Luke 24:45: he opened their understanding, that they might understand the Scriptures. And why does he predict this? So that the disciples, thinking about what they had heard, might bear it more easily. Likewise, to convict them of malice, because just as their fathers killed the prophets, so they would kill the apostles; hence some of them you will put to death, as it says in Acts 12:2, because Herod killed James the brother of John with the sword, seeing that it pleased the Jews. Others were crucified; hence and you will crucify. For this was the most shameful death; therefore by this death they killed Christ, according to that passage in Wisdom 2:20: let us condemn him to a most shameful death. And you will scourge. Acts 5:40 says that having beaten them, they charged them that they should not speak at all in the name of Jesus. And you will persecute. This is manifest in how they persecuted Paul. And above at 10:23: when they shall persecute you in one city, flee into another.

Because we read about so many Zechariahs in Scripture, we need to inquire into the identity of this particular Zechariah, the son of Barachiah. Lest we mistake him for another, the Gospel specifies "whom you killed between the sanctuary and the altar." Yet there remains a variety of diverse opinions on this question, each of which ought to be considered. Some say that this Zechariah the son of Barachiah is the eleventh of the twelve minor prophets. Although their fathers share the same name, however, they cannot be the same persons because the prophet Zechariah was never said to have been killed between the sanctuary and the altar and especially because the temple had just recently been destroyed in the prophet's time. Others want us to believe that this Zechariah is the father of John the Baptist, killed because he proclaimed the advent of the Savior on the basis of something he had dreamed. Because this theory doesn't have the authority of Scripture, however, it can be disproven as easily as it can be proven. Still others maintain that this is the Zechariah who was killed between the sanctuary and the altar by Joash the king of Judah, as is chronicled in the book of Kings. But that Zechariah was the son of Jehoida the priest, not Barachiah, as the Scripture relates: "Joash did not remember the good which Jehoida, Zechariah's father, had done for him."

(Verses 35, 36.) So that upon you may come all the righteous blood shed on earth, from the blood of righteous Abel to the blood of Zechariah son of Barachiah, whom you murdered between the temple and the altar. Truly I tell you, all these things will come upon this generation. Regarding Abel, there is no doubt that he is the one whom his brother Cain killed. But the righteousness of Zechariah is not only confirmed now by the judgment of the Lord, but also by the testimony of Genesis (Gen. IV), where the offerings accepted by God are narrated. We inquire who this Zacharias son of Barachiah is, because we have read of many Zachariases. And so that no opportunity for error might be given, it has been added: whom you have killed between the temple and the altar. Different things are read in different places, and I ought to present the opinions of different authors. Some say that it is Zacharias son of Barachiah, who is the eleventh among the twelve prophets, and that the name of the father agrees with him; but where he was killed between the temple and the altar, Scripture does not speak: especially since during his time there were hardly any ruins of the temple. Some suggest that Zacharias is the father of John, approving this based on certain apocryphal dreams, stating that he was killed because he preached the coming of the Savior. However, since this does not have authority from the Scriptures, it is dismissed with the same ease with which it is proven. Others believe this Zacharias to be the one who was killed by King Joash of Judah between the temple and the altar, as the history of the Kings narrates. But it should be noted that this Zacharias is not the son of Barachiah, but the son of Jehoiada the priest. And Scripture also reports: He did not remember the kindness Joash, his father, had shown him (2 Chronicles 24:22). Therefore, if we consider Zachariah and the place where he was killed, we wonder why he is called the son of Barachiah and not Joiada. Barachiah in our language means blessed by the Lord, and the righteousness of the priest Joiada is demonstrated in the Hebrew language. In the Gospel used by the Nazarenes, we find written that he is the son of Joiada instead of Barachiah. The simpler brethren among the ruins of the temple and the altar, or at the exits of the gates that lead to Siloam, pointing to the red stones, consider them to be polluted with the blood of Zechariah. We do not condemn the error that stems from hatred of the Jews and devotion to the faith. Let us briefly explain why the blood of the righteous Abel to the son of Barachiah is sought from that generation, even though neither of them killed him. The rule of the Scriptures is to present two generations, of the good or the evil, that is, one for each individual. Let us take examples of good things: Who shall ascend into the mountain of the Lord? or who shall rest in his holy mountain? (Ps. 23:3) And when he has described those who are going to ascend into the mountain of the Lord, who were of different ages, afterward he adds: This is the generation of them that seek the Lord, that seek the face of the God of Jacob. And in another place concerning all the saints: The generation of the righteous shall be blessed. (Ps. 112:2) But concerning the wicked, as in the present place: The generation of vipers. And all things will be required from this generation. And in Ezekiel, when he described the sins of the land, the prophetic word added: If Noah, and Job, and Daniel were found there, I will not forgive the sins of that land (Ezek. 14:14): All the righteous who would be like them in virtues, by Noah and Job and Daniel, wanting to be understood. Therefore, those who have done similar things to Cain and Joash against the apostles are referred to as being from the same generation.

Concerning the Abel here spoken of, there is no doubt that it is he whom his brother Cain murdered. He is proved to have been righteous, not only by this judgment of the Lord, but by the passage in Genesis, which says that his offerings were accepted by God. But we must enquire who is this Zacharias, son of Barachias, because we read of many Zachariases; and that we might not mistake, here it is added, whom ye slew between the temple and the altar. Some say that it is that Zacharias who is the eleventh among the twelve Prophets, and his father's name agrees to this, but when he was slain between the temple and the altar, Scripture does not mention; but above all, in his time there were scarce 'even the ruins of the temple. Others will have it to be Zacharias the father of John.

But as this has no Scripture authority, it is as readily despised as offered. Others will have it to be that Zacharias who was killed by Joas, king of Judah, between the temple and the altar, that is, in the court of the temple. (2 Chron. 24:21.) But that Zacharias was not the son of Barachias, but of Jehoiada the Priest. But Barachias in our language is interpreted 'Blessed of the Lord,' so that the righteousness of Joiada the Priest is expressed by this Hebrew word. But in the Gospel which the Nazarenes use, we find written 'son of Joiada' instead of son of Barachias.

The rule of the Scriptures is only to know two generations, one of good the other of bad. Of the generation of the good it is said, The generation of the righteous shall be blessed. (Ps. 112:2.) And of the bad it is said in the present passage, Generation of vipers. These then, because they did against the Apostles like things as Cain and Joas, are described as of one generation.

Then to show them that they should not do this without punishment, He holds out an unspeakable terror over them, That upon you may come all the righteous blood.

Moreover, He names Abel, to show that it would be out of envy that they would kill Christ and His disciples. He names Zacharias, because there was a twofold resemblance in his case, the sacred place, as well as the sacred person.

A tradition has come down to us, that there was one place in the temple in which virgins were allowed to worship God, married women being forbidden to stand there. And Mary, after the Saviour's birth, going into the temple, stood to pray in this place of the virgins. And when they who knew that she had borne a Son were hindering her, Zacharias said, that forasmuch as she was still a virgin, she was worthy of the place of the virgins. Whereupon, as though he manifestly were contravening the Law, he was slain there between the temple and the altar by the men of that generation; and thus this word of Christ is true which He spake to those who were standing there, whom ye slew.

Zacharias is interpreted 'The memory of God.' Whosoever then hastes to obliterate the memory of God, seems to those to whom he gives offence to shed the blood of Zacharias the son of Barachias. For it is by the blessing of God that we retain the memory of God. Also the memory of God is slain by the wicked, when the Temple of God is polluted by the lustful, and His altar defiled by the carelessness of prayers. Abel is interpreted 'mourning.' He then who does not receive that, Blessed are they that mourn, sheds the blood of Abel, that is, puts away the truth of wholesome mourning. Some also shed, as it were, the blood of the Scriptures by putting aside their truth, for all Scripture, if it is not understood according to its truth, is dead.

As all the good things which had been merited by all the saints in each generation since the foundation of the world were bestowed upon that last generation which received Christ; so all the evil that all the wicked in every generation from the foundation of the world had deserved to suffer, came upon that last generation of the Jews which rejected Christ. Or thus; Assail the righteous of former saints, yea, of all the saints, could not merit that so great grace as was given to men in Christ; so the sins of all the wicked could not deserve so much evil as came upon the Jews, that they should suffer such things as these suffered from the Romans, and that in after time every generation of them to the end of the world should be cast off from God, and be made a mock by all the Gentiles. For what is there worse than to reject and in such sort to put to death the Son coming in mercy and lowliness! Or thus; Nations and states when they sin are not thereupon immediately punished by God, but He waits for many generations; but when He sees fit to destroy that state or nation, He then seems to visit upon them the sins of all former generations, and one generation suffers the accumulation of all that former generations have deserved. Thus this generation of the Jews seems to have been punished for their fathers; but in truth they suffered not for others, but on their own account.

That is, all the vengeance due for the shedding of the blood of the righteous.

It should be enquired too how He says, to the blood of Zacharias, since the blood of many more saints was afterwards shed. This is thus explained. Abel a keeper of sheep was killed in the field, Zacharias a priest was slain in the court of the temple. The Lord therefore names these two, because by these all holy martyrs are denoted, both of lay and priestly order.

He says that upon the Jews then alive shall come all the blood shed unrighteously. For they shall be punished more severely than their fathers because they did not amend their lives after receiving such examples. For Lamech too was punished more than Cain, although he had not killed a brother, because he did not learn from the example of Cain (Gen. 4:23-24). All blood, He says, from Abel to Zachariah shall come upon you. It was appropriate that He mentioned Abel, for as Abel was slain out of envy, so Christ too was envied. Which Zachariah is mentioned here? Some say that it is he who is numbered among the twelve prophets; others say that he is the father of the Forerunner. For there is an account handed down to us, according to which Zachariah, when he was high priest, had Mary the Mother of God stand in the temple in the place of the virgins even after she had given birth to Christ. The Jews were vexed at this and killed him for ranking among the virgins a woman who had given birth. But it is nothing to be wondered at if the father of the Forerunner also had a father named Baruch, as did one of the twelve prophets who was called the son of Baruch. For it is likely that just as they shared the same name, so did their fathers.

Then the punishment is set forth, which, because it seemed severe, he therefore confirms: amen I say to you, all these things shall come upon this generation. He says, that upon you may come all the just blood, from the blood of Abel the just, even unto the blood of Zacharias the son of Barachias. Who this Abel is, is well known, because he was killed by his brother Cain. But who this Zacharias was is not established. It is read that there were three men named Zacharias. One was the son of Barachias, who was the eleventh among the prophets. But it cannot be understood of this one, because there was not yet an altar. Another was the father of John, and whose son he was is not found; but Chrysostom says that he was killed on account of Christ, because in the temple there was a place for virgins, and when the Virgin Mary was sitting in the place of virgins, the Jews wished to expel her from the place; Zacharias prevented this by defending her, and on account of this he was killed. Another is called the son of Joiada, whom Joash killed in the court of the temple, and therefore between the temple and the altar; hence the place agrees, but the name differs. Yet Jerome says that Barachias is interpreted "blessed of the Lord," and designates the holiness of his father Joiada the priest. And he says that he himself saw the Gospel of the Nazarenes, and there it was contained, the son of Joiada. But why he begins with this Zacharias can be a question of the literal sense. The reason, however, seems to be that although the preceding things were more frequent, these nevertheless were found in Scripture. Or in another way, that Abel was a shepherd and Joiada a priest; therefore by these two are signified the laity and the clergy. Hence all punishment for the slaying of men will come upon you. Or in another way, because some are active and some contemplative; hence both are signified by these two.

(ord.) He means not only those there present, but the whole generation before and after, for all were one city and one body of the Devil.

Otherwise; Because He delayed the punishment of hell which He had threatened them with, He pronounces against them threats of present evil, saying, All these things shall come upon this generation.

For he who having seen many sinning yet remains uncorrected, but rather does the same or worse, is obnoxious to heavier punishment.

But amen I say to you, that all these things shall come upon this generation. But how can it be that all these things come upon this generation? Is one punished for another? Ezekiel 18:20: the son shall not bear the iniquity of the father. How then upon this generation? Jerome solves this by saying that it is customary in Scripture that the whole generation of the good is taken as one generation, of which Psalm 111:2 says: the generation of the righteous shall be blessed. Of the generation of the wicked, above at 12:39: an evil generation seeks a sign. Chrysostom says thus: some sin, but God does not immediately punish; hence in Psalm 7:12: does he become angry every day? But some, when they sin, are never corrected, but change for the worse; 2 Timothy 3:13: but evil men and seducers shall grow worse and worse; and then the Lord waits until their malice is fulfilled. Hence these, in whom malice will be fulfilled, bear the weight of the whole as regards temporal punishment, yet as regards eternal punishment each bears his own. Hence it will be so great that it will seem as though they suffer for all; hence in Exodus 32:34 it says that this sin is to be reserved until the day of vengeance. Just as there was a fullness of goods for those who believe in Christ, so there was a fullness of evils for those who killed Christ; therefore he says, all these things shall come upon this generation. But what is this punishment? The destruction of the city of Jerusalem.

He was soon to rain calamitous blows on Jerusalem because of its bloodthirsty nature. For that very reason Jesus accuses it of possessing a murderous disposition. For he says it kills the prophets and stones the ones sent to it. So often [the city] could have obtained mercy, but it does not desire it. How many times he demonstrated this, on many occasions and to many descendants, as when he brought back the people from captivity. But through their sins they continually scattered themselves. By speaking of wings and shelter Jesus teaches in a way appropriate for God and illustrates the meaning of Moses' words through a human comparison. "He spread his wings and welcomed them." And David: "But the children of men take refuge in the shadow of your wings." For when Satan scattered them on one side into idolatry and on the other into a love for pleasure, he sent prophets to them. Then through himself he came that he might gather them together "into one." But they could not bear to remain under his protection. "For I," he says, "like a loving hen always held you to draw you to myself, but you had no desire for this. You scattered yourself through your constant sinning and drew away from God." But this is a prolific hen who has many children. She ardently loves and cares for her children and willingly gives herself for them.

(Quaest. Ev. i. 36.) This species has the greatest affection for its brood, insomuch that when they are sick the mother sickens also; and what you will hardly find in any other animal, it will fight against the kite, protecting its young with its wings. In like manner our mother, the Wisdom of God, sickened as it were in the putting on the flesh, according to that of the Apostle, The weakness of God is stronger than men, (1 Cor. 1:25.) protects our weakness, and resists the Devil that he should not make us his prey.

(Ench. 97.) Where is that omnipotence, by the which He did whatsoever pleased Him both in heaven and in earth, if He would have gathered the children of Jerusalem and did not? Was it not that she would not that her children should be gathered by Him, and yet He did, notwithstanding, gather those of her children whom He would?

Some begin to suspect that [love of country] is never anything but a demon. But then they have to reject half the high poetry and half the heroic action our race has achieved. We cannot keep even Christ's lament over Jerusalem. He too exhibits love for His country.

The Impassible speaks as if it suffered passion, and that which contains in Itself the cause of its own and all other bliss talks as though it could be in want and yearning. ... "Oh Jerusalem, how often would I have gathered thy children together, even as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, and ye would not."

Admonition, then, is the censure of loving care and produces understanding. Such is Christ the Educator in his admonitions, as when he says in the Gospel, "How often would I have gathered your children, as a bird gathers her young ones under her wings, and you would not!" And again, the Scripture admonishes, saying, "And they committed adultery with wood and stone and burned incense to Baal." For it is a very great proof of his love, that, though knowing well the shamelessness of the people that had kicked and bounded away, he notwithstanding exhorts them to repentance and says by Ezekiel, "Son of man, you live among scorpions. Nevertheless, speak to them. Perhaps they will hear." Further, to Moses he says, "Go and tell Pharaoh to send my people forth; but I know that he will not send them forth." For he shows both things: both his divinity in his foreknowledge of what would take place and his love in affording an opportunity for repentance to the self-determination of the soul. He admonishes also by Isaiah, in his care for the people, when he says, "This people honor me with their lips, but their heart is far from me." What follows is reproving censure: "In vain do they worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of people." Here his loving care, having shown their sin, shows salvation side by side with repentance.

the Lord Christ, who in those days when he had come down from the Mount of Olives, and beheld Jerusalem and wept over it as it lay opposite, said: How often would I have gathered thy children even as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wing, and ye would not. Behold, your house is left unto you desolate.

The Poets are those who rise above the people by understanding them. Of course, most of the Poets wrote in prose--Rabelais, for instance, and Dickens. The Prigs rise above the people by refusing to understand them: by saying that all their dim, strange preferences are prejudices and superstitions. The Prigs make the people feel stupid; the Poets make the people feel wiser than they could have imagined that they were. There are many weird elements in this situation. The oddest of all perhaps is the fate of the two factors in practical politics. The Poets who embrace and admire the people are often pelted with stones and crucified. The Prigs who despise the people are often loaded with lands and crowned. In the House of Commons, for instance, there are quite a number of prigs, but comparatively few poets. There are no People there at all.

(Verse 37.) Jerusalem, Jerusalem, you who kill the prophets and stone those sent to you: how often I have longed to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you were unwilling! Jerusalem, He calls not the stones and buildings of the city, but the inhabitants, whom He mourns for with a fatherly affection, as we also read in another place that He wept upon seeing her (Luke 19). And in saying, how often I have longed to gather your children together, He testifies that all the prophets sent by Himself were rejected. We also read in the song of Deuteronomy the image of a chicken gathering its chicks under its wings: As an eagle protects its nest and desires its young, spreading its wings, it receives and carries them on its feathers (Deut. XXXII, 11).

By Jerusalem He means not the stones and buildings, but the dwellers there, over whom He laments with the feeling of a Father.

Then He directs His speech unto the city, in this way too being minded to correct His hearers, and saith, "O Jerusalem, Jerusalem!" What meaneth the repetition? this is the manner of one pitying her, and bemoaning her, and greatly loving her. For, like as unto a woman beloved, herself indeed ever loved, but who had despised Him that loved her, and therefore on the point of being punished, He pleads, being now about to inflict the punishment. Which He doth in the prophets also, using these words, "I said, Turn thou unto me, and she returned not."

Then having called her, He tells also her blood-stained deeds, "Thou that killest the prophets, and stonest them that are sent unto thee, how often would I have gathered thy children together, and ye would not," in this way also pleading for His own dealings; not even with these things hast thou turned me aside, nor withdrawn me from my great affection toward thee, but it was my desire even so, not once or twice, but often to draw thee unto me. "For how often would I have gathered your children together, even as a hen gathereth her chickens, and ye would not." And this He saith, to show that they were ever scattering themselves by their sins. And His affection He indicates by the similitude; for indeed the creature is warm in its love towards its brood. And everywhere in the prophets is this same image of the wings, and in the song of Moses and in the Psalms, indicating His great protection and care.

He calls them children of Jerusalem, just as we call each generation of citizens the sons of the preceding generation. And He says, How often, though it is well known that once only did He teach the Jews in the body, because Christ was ever present in Moses, and in the Prophets, and in the Angels, ministering to human salvation in every generation. Whosoever shall not have been gathered in by Him shall be judged, as though he had refused to be gathered in.

Foreseeing the destruction of the city, and the blow it would receive from the Romans, He called to mind the blood of the saints which had been, and should yet be, shed in it. Thou killedst Esaias who was sent unto thee, and stonedst my servant Jeremias; thou dashedst out the brains of Ezechiel by dragging him over stones; how shalt thou be saved, which wilt not suffer a physician to come nigh thee? And He said not, Didst kill and stone; but, Killest, and Stonest; that is, This is a common and natural practice with thee to kill and stone the saints. She did to the Apostles the same things which she had once done to the Prophets.

(non occ.) Let heretics then cease to assign to Christ a beginning from the Virgin; let them leave off to preach one God of the Law and another of the Prophets.

Twice He says the name Jerusalem, pitying and calling out to her with compassion. For as a lover vehemently justifies himself to his beloved, intending to punish her for having spurned him, so Christ accuses Jerusalem of being a murderess. And many times He desired to show mercy to her but she did not want it, but trusted in the devil who scattered her and led her away from the truth which unites, and she did not accept the Lord who gathers together. For there is nothing which disbands and scatters us from God so readily as does sin; just as there is nothing which gathers us back to God as readily as does a good conscience. He gave the example of the hen to show His affection.

And since he intends to speak of the destruction of the city, he turns to address the city, saying, Jerusalem, Jerusalem. And first he sets forth the offense; secondly, he recalls the benefits; thirdly, he announces the punishment. The second is at how often would I have gathered together your children (...) and you would not? The third is at behold, your house shall be left to you desolate. He says, then, Jerusalem, Jerusalem; and this doubling designates the feeling of one who pities; hence it says in Luke 19:41 that seeing the city, he wept over it. You that kill the prophets; Acts 7:52: which of the prophets have not your fathers persecuted? And he says, you that kill, not "you that killed," because they were still persevering in malice. This is that Jerusalem of which it says in Ezekiel 5:6: this is Jerusalem, I have set her in the midst of the nations, and the countries round about her, and she has despised my judgments. They could excuse themselves: we had no one to tell us; therefore he says, and you stone those who are sent to you; hence I sent prophets and many helps, and you did not recognize them. How often would I have gathered together your children, as the hen gathers her chickens under her wings, and you would not? In this is designated the perpetuity of his divinity, according to what he himself says, John 8:58: before Abraham was made, I am. Hence Christ himself sent prophets, patriarchs, and angels. Whenever he sent them, he wished to gather, etc. Those are gathered who are converted to the Lord, because in him sinners are united; those are scattered who are separated from unity. Hence, I would have gathered, as the hen gathers her chickens under her wings. It is said that there is no animal so compassionate toward its chicks as the hen. The hen defends them from the hawk and exposes her life for them and gathers them under her wings. So Christ has compassion on us: surely he has borne our infirmities, Isaiah 53:4. Likewise, he exposed himself to the hawk, i.e., the devil; Deuteronomy 31:27: while I am yet living, and going in with you, you have always been rebellious against the Lord. But there is an objection. The Lord willed, and they were unwilling; therefore their evil will prevailed over the will of God. Hence it should be said: as often as I willed, I acted, but against your will; I acted when I acted; hence your will prevented me from acting. Or the fact that he sent prophets was a sign that he willed to gather, and you would not.

Verse 38. Behold, your house shall be left desolate. This very thing Jeremiah had already said in the person of Jeremiah: I have forsaken my house, I have cast off my inheritance: my inheritance is become to me as a lion in the forest. We see with our eyes the house of the Jews left desolate, that is, that temple which shone more brightly, because it lost its inhabitant Christ, and, desiring to seize the inheritance, killed the heir.

"But ye would not," He saith. "Behold your house is left desolate," stripped of the succor which cometh from me. Surely it was the same, who also was before protecting them, and holding them together, and preserving them; surely it was He who was ever chastening them. And He appoints a punishment, which they had ever dreaded exceedingly; for it declared the entire overthrow of their polity.

In like manner to all such as would not be gathered under His wings Christ speaks this threat; Behold, your house is left unto you desolate; i. e. your soul and your body. But if any one of you will not be gathered under the wings of Christ, from the very time when he shall have refused to be so gathered, (by a mental rather than a bodily act,) he shall no more see the beauty of the word, till repenting of his evil purpose he shall say, Blessed is He that cometh in the name of the Lord. And the word of the Lord then comes with a blessing upon a man's heart, when one is turned to God.

As the body, when the spirit departs, first becomes cold, and then decays and decomposes; so also your temple, when God's Spirit shall have withdrawn, shall be first filled with strife and anarchy, and after shall come to ruin.

But as you do not want My affection, I leave the temple empty and abandoned. From this let us learn that God inhabits the temples for our sake, but when we have forsaken God, then the temples are abandoned [by God] as well.

Then the punishment follows: behold, your house shall be left to you desolate. The whole people was honored on account of Jerusalem, and Jerusalem on account of the temple; therefore it says, your house shall be left, i.e., the temple, or the dwelling; Psalm 68:26: let their habitation be made desolate. Or a house is said to be desolate when it lacks its proper inhabitant; Psalm 10:5: the Lord is in his holy temple. Hence he is said to leave through habitation; therefore you shall not see me henceforth, etc., because I was with you by the power of divinity, and afterward I was corporally, but I shall depart from you. But now your house shall be left to you desolate, and you shall not see me henceforth, neither corporally, namely after the passion, nor spiritually.

That which has been spoken possesses an interpretation that comes through the vision of faith. For when "the fullness of the nations come in" and they believe in Christ, then the Jews who believe after these things see the beauty of the divine nature of Christ. They behold the Father in the Son and declare him to be the Redeemer proclaimed through the prophets, whom the prophets previously mentioned as coming in the name of the Lord. For the other prophets did not come in the name of the Lord. For they were saying, "The Lord says these things" and "I am the servant of the Lord, and I worship the God of heaven."

(Verse 39) For I tell you, you will not see me again until you say, 'Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.' He is speaking to Jerusalem and to the people of Judaea. However, this verse, in which even infants and nursing babies used at the entrance of the Lord's Savior in Jerusalem, when they said, 'Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord, hosanna in the highest,' is taken from the 117th psalm, which clearly is written about the coming of the Lord. And what he says, he wants this to be understood: Unless you repent (Luke 13), and confess that I am the one about whom the Prophets sang, the Son of the almighty Father, you will not see my face. The Jews have been given a time of repentance: let them confess the blessed one who comes in the name of the Lord, and let them contemplate the face of Christ.

I say unto you, Ye shall not see Me, &c. That is to say, Unless ye shall do penitence, and shall confess that I am He of whom the Prophets have spoken, the Son of the Almighty Father, ye shall not see My face. Thus the Jews have a time allowed for their repentance. Let them confess Him blessed who cometh in the name of the Lord, and they shall then behold Christ's face.

"For I say unto you, Ye shall not see me henceforth, till ye shall say, Blessed is He that cometh in the name of the Lord." And this is the language of one that loves earnestly, earnestly drawing them unto Him by the things to come, not merely warning them by the past; for of the future day of His second coming doth He here speak.

What then? Did they not see Him from that time? But it is not that hour which He meaneth in saying, Henceforth, but the time up to His crucifixion.

For since they were forever accusing Him of this, that He was a kind of rival God, and a foe to God, He moves them to love Him by this, namely, by showing Himself to be of one accord with His Father; and He indicates Himself to be the same that was in the prophets. Wherefore also He uses the same words as did the prophets.

And by these He intimated both His resurrection, and His second coming, and made it plain even to the utterly unbelieving, that then most surely they should worship Him. And how did He make this plain? By speaking of many things that were first to be, that He should send prophets, that they should kill them; that it should be in the synagogues; that they should suffer the utmost extremities; that their house should be left desolate; that they should undergo things more grievous than any, and such as never were undergone before. For all these things are enough to furnish even to the most senseless and contentious a clear proof of that which should come to pass at His coming.

For I will ask them, Did He send the prophets and wise men? Did they slay them in their synagogue? Was their house left desolate? Did all the vengeance come upon that generation? It is quite plain that it was so, and no man gainsays it. As then all these things came to pass, so shall those also come to pass, and most surely they shall submit then.

But they shall derive thence no advantage in the way of defense, as neither will they who repent of their course of life then.

Therefore "Ye shall not see Me henceforth" until the second coming. But then, willing or not, you will fall prostrate before Him and say, "Blessed is He that cometh." Understand "henceforth" to mean "after the crucifixion" and not at that time at which He was speaking these things. For they saw Him many times after He said this, but after the crucifixion they did not see Him, nor would they see Him until the moment of His second coming.

But is this true, that none of the Jews saw him, since many were converted to him? Therefore he says, till you say: blessed is he that comes in the name of the Lord, because when you confess, then you will see through faith. Or in another way, he designates in a hidden way the second coming: they saw him in the body, but they did not have this vision until the second coming, in which you will be able to say, and will recognize that I am he who is blessed, who comes in the name of the Lord.

But the Lord is not moved against them, that He might show that perfect virtue has no feeling of revenge, nor is there any anger where there is fulness of love. For weakness must not be thrust out, but assisted. Let indignation be far from the religious, let the high-souled have no desire of vengeance. Hence it follows, But he turned and rebuked them, and said, Ye know not what manner of spirit ye are of.

But when his disciples James and John saw this, they said, "Lord, do you want us to command fire to come down from heaven and consume them?" And he turned and rebuked them, and said, "You do not know what kind of spirit you are of. Great and holy men, who already knew very well that this death, which separates the soul from the body, is not to be feared, according to their spirit who feared it, punished some sins with death, so that fear might be instilled in the living, and to those who were punished with death, death itself would not harm them, but the sin, which could increase if they lived, was not recklessly judged by those to whom God had given such judgment. From this it is that Elijah put many to death, both by his own hand and by fire called down from heaven. In his example, when the apostles wanted to call fire from heaven to consume those who would not give them lodging, the Lord rebuked in them not the example of the holy prophet, but the ignorance of vindicating, which was still in the novices, observing that they desired vengeance not out of love but out of hate. Therefore, after he had taught them to love their neighbor as themselves, and after the Holy Spirit was poured out upon them, such acts of vengeance were still found, although much more rarely than in the Old Testament. For there, serving more under fear, they were pressed; but here, being nurtured more in love, they were made free. For even at the words of the apostle Peter, Ananias and his wife fell down dead, nor were they raised up, but buried, and Paul says of a certain sinner: "Whom I have delivered to Satan for the destruction of the flesh, that the spirit may be saved" (1 Corinthians 5).

The Lord blames them, not for following the example of the holy Prophet, but for their ignorance in taking vengeance while they were yet inexperienced, perceiving that they did not desire correction from love, but vengeance from hatred.

Secondly, as regards the reasonable reprehension in the word of the Lord, it is added: And turning, he rebuked them, saying: You do not know of what spirit you are. He says this because they believed themselves to be moved by a spirit of righteousness, yet they were moved by a zeal of bitterness, which they ought not to have been, as James 3 says: "But if you have bitter zeal, and there are contentions in your hearts, do not glory and be liars against the truth." And therefore it is said in 1 John 4: "Do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits, whether they are from God." For the spirit of Christ is a spirit of meekness, according to that word of Isaiah 61: "The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me; he has sent me to proclaim to the meek"; and Isaiah 42: "Behold my servant, I will uphold him. I have placed my spirit upon him. A bruised reed he shall not break, and smoking flax he shall not extinguish." And these disciples ought to have had this spirit as good disciples and imitators of the Master.

Therefore God does not here take the semblance of man, but of a dove, because He wished to show the simplicity and gentleness of the new manifestation of the Spirit by the likeness of the dove. For the law was stern, and punished with the sword; but grace is joyous, and trains by the word of meekness. Hence the Lord also says to the apostles, who said that He should punish with fire those who would not receive Him, after the manner of Elias: "Ye know not what manner of spirit ye are of."

For their benefit, he rebuked the disciples and gently restrained the sharpness of their wrath, not permitting them to grumble violently against those who sinned. He rather persuaded them to be patient and to cherish a mind that is unmovable by anything like this.

Christ rebuked them for their own good when they were enraged beyond measure at the hatred of the Samaritans. He did this so they might learn that as ministers of the divine tidings, they must rather be full of longsuffering and gentleness, not revengeful. They must not be given to wrath or savagely attack those who offend them.

For we must not always punish the offender, since mercy sometimes does more good, leading thee to patience, the sinner to repentance. Lastly, those Samaritans believed the sooner, who were in this place saved from fire.

The Son of Man did not come to destroy souls, but to save them. And you, therefore, he says, by whose Spirit you are signed, follow His deeds, now advising piously, but justly judging in fury.

After that He had taught them what it was to love their neighbour as themselves, and the Holy Ghost also had been infused into them, there were not lacking these punishments, though far less frequent than in the Old Testament, because the Son of man came not to destroy men's lives, but to save them. As if He said, And do you therefore who are sealed with His Spirit, imitate also His actions, now determining charitably, hereafter judging justly.

And therefore he adds: For the Son of man came not to destroy the souls of men, but to save them: because this coming was not of justice, but of mercy, according to that passage in John 3: "God did not send His Son into the world to judge the world, but that the world might be saved through Him"; whence from this end He received His name, so that He would be called Jesus, according to that passage in Matthew 1: "You shall call His name Jesus: for He shall save His people from their sins"; and Matthew 20: "The Son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister and to give His life as a redemption for many." And therefore he who has the spirit of Christ ought not to seek vengeance, but to show patience, according to that saying of Ambrose in the Gloss: "Perfect virtue," he says, "has no zeal for revenge: nor is there any wrath where there is the fullness of charity." Therefore it is said in Romans 12: "Not defending yourselves, beloved, but give place to wrath."

Third, as regards the memorable instruction in the Lord's deed, it is added: And they went to another village: in which He gave a model to the disciples that they should flee from men rather than contend with them; according to the model He gave His disciples in Matthew 10: "When they persecute you in one city, flee to another." Moreover, we have the example of this from Abraham and Lot, Genesis 13, where "Abraham said: 'Let there be no quarrel, I pray, between me and you: for we are brothers. If you go to the left, I will take the right.'" In this He taught perfect meekness, which befits the servants of Christ, according to that passage in 2 Timothy 2: "The servant of the Lord must not quarrel, but be gentle"; whence according to that passage in James 1: "Let every man be slow to wrath. For the wrath of man does not work the justice of God." For if the Lord of majesty was unwilling to be angry at such great inhumanity, how much less ought we to be indignant at anyone? And this meekness ought especially to be found in the prelates of the Church: whence the Apostle in 2 Timothy 4: "Reprove, entreat, rebuke in all patience and doctrine"; since in the Psalm it is said: "Meekness has come upon us, and we shall be corrected." And Seneca says: "The spirit of man is noble, and is more easily led than dragged"; whence he himself says that the king of bees has no sting.

"The life," says He, "was manifested," not the soul. And again, "I am come to save the soul." He did not say, "to explain" it.

1. This text refers not to the eternal Word but to the Incarnate. And from not perceiving this they of the sect of Arius, Eusebius and his fellows, indulge impiety against the Lord. For they say, if all things were delivered (meaning by 'all' the Lordship of Creation), there was once a time when He had them not. But if He had them not, He is not of the Father, for if He were, He would on that account have had them always, and would not have required to receive them. But this point will furnish all the clearer an exposure of their folly. For the expression in question does not refer to the Lordship over Creation, nor to presiding over the works of God, but is meant to reveal in part the intention of the Incarnation (τῆς οἰκονομίας). For if when He was speaking they 'were delivered' to Him, clearly before He received them, creation was void of the Word. What then becomes of the text in Him all things consist Colossians 1:17? But if simultaneously with the origin of the Creation it was all 'delivered' to Him, such delivery were superfluous, for 'all things were made by Him' John 1:3, and it would be unnecessary for those things of which the Lord Himself was the artificer to be delivered over to Him. For in making them He was Lord of the things which were being originated. But even supposing they were 'delivered' to Him after they were originated, see the monstrosity. For if they 'were delivered,' and upon His receiving them the Father retired, then we are in peril of falling into the fabulous tales which some tell, that He gave over [His works] to the Son, and Himself departed. Or if, while the Son has them, the Father has them also, we ought to say, not 'were delivered,' but that He took Him as partner, as Paul did Silvanus. But this is even more monstrous; for God is not imperfect , nor did He summon the Son to help Him in His need; but, being Father of the Word, He makes all things by His means, and without delivering creation over to Him, by His means and in Him exercises Providence over it, so that not even a sparrow falls to the ground without the Father Matthew 10:29, nor is the grass clothed without God Matthew 6:30, but at once the Father works, and the Son works hitherto cf.John 5:17. Vain, therefore, is the opinion of the impious. For the expression is not what they think, but designates the Incarnation.

2. Sense in which, and end for which all things were delivered to the Incarnate Son. For whereas man sinned, and is fallen, and by his fall all things are in confusion: death prevailed from Adam to Moses cf.Romans 5:14, the earth was cursed, Hades was opened, Paradise shut, Heaven offended, man, lastly, corrupted and brutalised cf.Psalm 49:12, while the devil was exulting against us—then God, in His loving-kindness, not willing man made in His own image to perish, said, 'Whom shall I send, and who will go?' Isaiah 6:8. But while all held their peace, the Son said, 'Here am I, send Me.' And then it was that, saying 'Go,' He 'delivered' to Him man, that the Word Himself might be made Flesh, and by taking the Flesh, restore it wholly. For to Him, as to a physician, man 'was delivered' to heal the bite of the serpent; as to life, to raise what was dead; as to light, to illumine the darkness; and, because He was Word, to renew the rational nature (τὸ λογικόν). Since then all things 'were delivered' to Him, and He is made Man, straightway all things were set right and perfected. Earth receives blessing instead of a curse, Paradise was opened to the robber, Hades cowered, the tombs were opened and the dead raised, the gates of Heaven were lifted up to await Him that 'comes from Edom?' Psalm 24:7, Isaiah 63:1. Why, the Saviour Himself expressly signifies in what sense 'all things were delivered' to Him, when He continues, as Matthew tells us: 'Come unto Me all you that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest' Matthew 11:28. Yes, you 'were delivered' to Me to give rest to those who had laboured, and life to the dead. And what is written in John's Gospel harmonises with this: 'The Father loves the Son, and has given all things into His hand' John 3:35. Given, in order that, just as all things were made by Him, so in Him all things might be renewed. For they were not 'delivered' unto Him, that being poor, He might be made rich, nor did He receive all things that He might receive power which before He lacked: far be the thought: but in order that as Saviour He might rather set all things right. For it was fitting that while 'through Him' all things came into being at the beginning, 'in Him' (note the change of phrase) all things should be set right cf. John 1:3, Ephesians 1:10. For at the beginning they came into being 'through' Him; but afterwards, all having fallen, the Word has been made Flesh, and put it on, in order that 'in Him' all should be set right. Suffering Himself, He gave us rest, hungering Himself, He nourished us, and going down into Hades He brought us back thence. For example, at the time of the creation of all things, their creation consisted in a fiat, such as 'let [the earth] bring forth,' 'let there be' Genesis 1:3, 11, but at the restoration it was fitting that all things should be 'delivered' to Him, in order that He might be made man, and all things be renewed in Him. For man, being in Him, was quickened: for this was why the Word was united to man, namely, that against man the curse might no longer prevail. This is the reason why they record the request made on behalf of mankind in the seventy-first Psalm: 'Give the King Your judgment, O God?' Psalm 72:1: asking that both the judgment of death which hung over us may be delivered to the Son, and that He may then, by dying for us, abolish it for us in Himself. This was what He signified, saying Himself, in the eighty-seventh Psalm: 'Your indignation lies hard upon me' Psalm 88:7. For He bore the indignation which lay upon us, as also He says in the hundred and thirty-seventh: 'Lord, You shall do vengeance for me' Psalm 137:8.

3. By 'all things' is meant the redemptive attributes and power of Christ. Thus, then, we may understand all things to have been delivered to the Saviour, and, if it be necessary to follow up understanding by explanation, that has been delivered unto Him which He did not previously possess. For He was not man previously, but became man for the sake of saving man. And the Word was not in the beginning flesh, but has been made flesh subsequently cf.John 1:1 sqq, in which Flesh, as the Apostle says, He reconciled the enmity which was against us Colossians 1:20, 2:14, Ephesians 2:15-16 and destroyed the law of the commandments in ordinances, that He might make the two into one new man, making peace, and reconcile both in one body to the Father. That, however, which the Father has, belongs also to the Son, as also He says in John, 'All things whatsoever the Father has are Mine' John 16:15, expressions which could not be improved. For when He became that which He was not, 'all things were delivered' to Him. But when He desires to declare His unity with the Father, He teaches it without any reserve, saying: 'All things whatsoever the Father has are Mine.' And one cannot but admire the exactness of the language. For He has not said 'all things whatsoever the Father has, He has given to Me,' lest He should appear at one time not to have possessed these things; but 'are Mine.' For these things, being in the Father's power, are equally in that of the Son. But we must in turn examine what things 'the Father has.' For if Creation is meant, the Father had nothing before creation, and proves to have received something additional from Creation; but far be it to think this. For just as He exists before creation, so before creation also He has what He has, which we also believe to belong to the Son John 16:15. For if the Son is in the Father, then all things that the Father has belong to the Son. So this expression is subversive of the perversity of the heterodox in saying that 'if all things have been delivered to the Son, then the Father has ceased to have power over what is delivered, having appointed the Son in His place. For, in fact, the Father judges none, but has given all judgment to the Son?' John 5:22. But 'let the mouth of them that speak wickedness be stopped' Psalm 63:11, (for although He has given all judgment to the Son, He is not, therefore, stripped of lordship: nor, because it is said that all things are delivered by the Father to the Son, is He any the less over all), separating as they clearly do the Only-begotten from God, Who is by nature inseparable from Him, even though in their madness they separate Him by their words, not perceiving, the impious men, that the Light can never be separated from the sun, in which it resides by nature. For one must use a poor simile drawn from tangible and familiar objects to put our idea into words, since it is over bold to intrude upon the incomprehensible nature [of God].

4. The text John 16:15 , shows clearly the essential relation of the Son to the Father. As then the light from the Sun which illumines the world could never be supposed, by men of sound mind, to do so without the Sun, since the Sun's light is united to the Sun by nature; and as, if the Light were to say: I have received from the Sun the power of illumining all things, and of giving growth and strength to them by the heat that is in me, no one will be mad enough to think that the mention of the Sun is meant to separate him from what is his nature, namely the light; so piety would have us perceive that the Divine Essence of the Word is united by nature to His own Father. For the text before us will put our problem in the clearest possible light, seeing that the Saviour said, 'All things whatsoever the Father has are Mine;' which shows that He is ever with the Father. For 'whatsoever He has' shows that the Father wields the Lordship, while 'are Mine' shows the inseparable union. It is necessary, then, that we should perceive that in the Father reside Everlastingness, Eternity, Immortality. Now these reside in Him not as adventitious attributes, but, as it were, in a well-spring they reside in Him, and in the Son. When then you wish to perceive what relates to the Son, learn what is in the Father, for this is what you must believe to be in the Son. If then the Father is a thing created or made, these qualities belong also to the Son. And if it is permissible to say of the Father 'there was once a time when He was not,' or 'made of nothing,' let these words be applied also to the Son. But if it is impious to ascribe these attributes to the Father, grant that it is impious also to ascribe them to the Son. For what belongs to the Father, belongs to the Son. For he that honours the Son, honours the Father that sent Him, and he that receives the Son, receives the Father with Him, because he that has seen the Son has seen the Father Matthew 10:40; John 14:9. As then the Father is not a creature, so neither is the Son; and as it is not possible to say of Him 'there was a time when He was not,' nor 'made of nothing,' so it is not proper to say the like of the Son either. But rather, as the Father's attributes are Everlastingness, Immortality, Eternity, and the being no creature, it follows that thus also we must think of the Son. For as it is written John 5:26, 'As the Father has life in Himself, so gave He to the Son also to have life in Himself.' But He uses the word 'gave' in order to point to the Father who gives. As, again, life is in the Father, so also is it in the Son, so as to show Him to be inseparable and everlasting. For this is why He speaks with exactness, 'whatsoever the Father has,' in order namely that by thus mentioning the Father He may avoid being thought to be the Father Himself. For He does not say 'I am the Father,' but 'whatsoever the Father has.'

5. The same text further explained. For His Only-begotten Son might, you Arians, be called 'Father' by His Father, yet not in the sense in which you in your error might perhaps understand it, but (while Son of the Father that begot Him) 'Father of the coming age' Isaiah 9:6, Septuagint. For it is necessary not to leave any of your surmises open to you. Well then, He says by the prophet, 'A Son is born and given to us, whose government is upon his shoulder, and his name shall be called Angel of Great Counsel, mighty God, Ruler, Father of the coming age' Isaiah 9:6. The Only-begotten Son of God, then, is at once Father of the coming age, and mighty God, and Ruler. And it is shown clearly that all things whatsoever the Father has are His, and that as the Father gives life, the Son likewise is able to quicken whom He will. For 'the dead,' He says, 'shall hear the voice of the Son, and shall live' cf.John 5:25, and the will and desire of Father and Son is one, since their nature also is one and indivisible. And the Arians torture themselves to no purpose, from not understanding the saying of our Saviour, 'All things whatsoever the Father has are Mine.' For from this passage at once the delusion of Sabellius can be upset, and it will expose the folly of our modern Jews. For this is why the Only begotten, having life in Himself as the Father has, also knows alone Who the Father is, namely, because He is in the Father and the Father in Him. For He is His Image, and consequently, because He is His Image, all that belongs to the Father is in Him. He is an exact seal, showing in Himself the Father; living Word and true, Power, Wisdom, our Sanctification and Redemption 1 Corinthians 1:30. For 'in Him we both live and move and have our being' Acts 17:28, and 'no man knows Who is the Father, save the Son, and Who is the Son, save the Father?' Luke 10:22.

6. The Trisagion wrongly explained by Arians. Its true significance. And how do the impious men venture to speak folly, as they ought not, being men and unable to find out how to describe even what is on the earth? But why do I say 'what is on the earth?' Let them tell us their own nature, if they can discover how to investigate their own nature? Rash they are indeed, and self-willed, not trembling to form opinions of things which angels desire to look into 1 Peter 1:12, who are so far above them, both in nature and in rank. For what is nearer [God] than the Cherubim or the Seraphim? And yet they, not even seeing Him, nor standing on their feet, nor even with bare, but as it were with veiled faces, offer their praises, with untiring lips doing nought else but glorify the divine and ineffable nature with the Trisagion. And nowhere has any one of the divinely speaking prophets, men specially selected for such vision, reported to us that in the first utterance of the word Holy the voice is raised aloud, while in the second it is lower, but in the third, quite low—and that consequently the first utterance denotes lordship, the second subordination, and the third marks a yet lower degree. But away with the folly of these haters of God and senseless men. For the Triad, praised, reverenced, and adored, is one and indivisible and without degrees (ἀ σχηματιστός). It is united without confusion, just as the Monad also is distinguished without separation. For the fact of those venerable living creatures Isaiah 6; Revelation 4:8 offering their praises three times, saying 'Holy, Holy, Holy,' proves that the Three Subsistences are perfect, just as in saying 'Lord,' they declare the One Essence. They then that depreciate the Only-begotten Son of God blaspheme God, defaming His perfection and accusing Him of imperfection, and render themselves liable to the severest chastisement. For he that blasphemes any one of the Subsistences shall have remission neither in this world nor in that which is to come. But God is able to open the eyes of their heart to contemplate the Sun of Righteousness, in order that coming to know Him whom they formerly set at nought, they may with unswerving piety of mind together with us glorify Him, because to Him belongs the kingdom, even to the Father Son and Holy Spirit, now and for ever. Amen.

All things have been handed over to me by my Father. When you read all things, you recognize the almighty, not discolored, not degenerate from the Father. When you read handed over, you confess the Son, to whom by nature all things of one substance are rightfully proper, not granted as a gift by grace. However, all things which he says were handed over to him are not to be understood as the elements of the world, which he himself created, but as those to whom the Father revealed the sacraments of the Son, being humble in spirit, and concerning whose salvation the same Son, when he spoke these things, rejoiced in the Holy Spirit. Of all these, he says elsewhere: All that the Father gives me will come to me (John VI).

And no one knows who the Son is except the Father, and who the Father is except the Son, and anyone to whom the Son chooses to reveal him. This is not to be understood as though the Son could be known by no one except the Father alone, and the Father not only by the Son but also by those to whom the Son reveals him, but it refers to both when he says: And anyone to whom the Son chooses to reveal him, so that we may understand both the Father and the Son being revealed by the Son.

Third, he shows that one must rejoice in incomprehensible power, when he says: All things have been delivered to me by my Father. For in that he says: All things, without limit, delivered, he shows that his power is universal, according to that passage in John one: "All things were made through him," that is, through the Word; and again in chapter seventeen: "All things that are mine are yours, and yours are mine." In that he adds: By my Father, he indicates that this power is natural, according to that passage in John five: "Whatever the Father does, all these things the Son likewise does." In both together he shows equality and immensity: hence the Gloss: "When you hear all things, you recognize the Omnipotent; when you hear delivered, you confess the Son, to whom all things are properly his own by right through the nature of one substance, not conferred as a gift through grace." And from this it is apparent that the power of the Son is immense and incomprehensible. And then he adds: And no one knows who the Son is except the Father, that is, no intellect perfectly comprehends this except the paternal intellect; and therefore the Holy Spirit is not excluded by this, but only created intellect, which cannot comprehend him, since he is immense. Hence Job eleven: "Can you perhaps comprehend the traces of God and discover the Almighty unto perfection? He is higher than heaven, and what will you do?" etc.

And because the Son is incomprehensible, therefore He can comprehend the Father. On account of which He adds: And who the Father is, except the Son: supply: no one knows: because, John 1, "No one has ever seen God except the Only-begotten, who is in the bosom of the Father, He has declared Him." Since He alone comprehends, therefore He alone can reveal; and therefore He adds: And to whomever the Son wills to reveal. For the Son is the Wisdom and Word of the Father, and the Speaker manifests Himself through His Word; whence Wisdom 9: "Who will know Your mind, unless You give wisdom from on high?" Whence Chrysostom: "The philosophers, striving to inquire about God, confessed that they had found nothing else except that God is unknowable, just as one who undertakes to navigate an unnavigable ocean, when he cannot cross over, must necessarily return by the same way: so they began from ignorance and ended in ignorance. And the reason for this is that they were not disciples of Jesus Christ, who is the truth, nor did they have the Spirit, of whom John 16 says: 'When that Spirit of truth comes, He will teach you all truth.'"

For the new minds, which have newly become wise, which have sprung into being according to the new covenant, are infantile in the old folly. Of late, then, God was known by the coming of Christ: "For no man knoweth God but the Son, and he to whom the Son shall reveal Him."

But "no one is good," except His Father. It is this same Father of His, then who being one is manifested by many powers And this was the import of the utterance, "No man knew the Father," who was Himself everything before the coming of the Son. So that it is veritably clear that the God of all is only one good, just Creator, and the Son in the Father, to whom be glory for ever and ever, Amen.

So God is good on His own account, and just also on ours, and He is just because He is good. And His justice is shown to us by His own Word from there from above, whence the Father was. For before He became Creator He was God; He was good. And therefore He wished to be Creator and Father. And the nature of all that love was the source of righteousness-the cause, too, of His lighting up His sun, and sending down His own Son. And He first announced the good righteousness that is from heaven, when He said, "No man knoweth the Son, but the Father; nor the Father, but the Son." This mutual and reciprocal knowledge is the symbol of primeval justice.

Yet let him know that it was God Himself that promulgated the Scriptures by His Son. And he, who announces what is his own, is to be believed. "No one," says the Lord, "hath known the Father but the Son, and he to whom the Son shall reveal Him." This, then, is to be believed, according to Plato, though it is announced and spoken "without probable and necessary proofs," but in the Old and New Testament.

Now those that ruminate, but do not part the hoof, indicate the majority of the Jews, who have indeed the oracles of God, but have not faith, and the step which, resting on the truth, conveys to the Father by the Son. Whence also this kind of cattle are apt to slip, not having a division in the foot, and not resting on the twofold support of faith. For "no man," it is said, "knoweth the Father, but he to whom the Son shall reveal Him."

Now having said that all things were given Him by His Father, He rises to His own glory and excellence, showing that in nothing He is surpassed by His Father. Hence He adds, And no one knoweth who the Son is but the Father, &c. For the mind of the creatures is not able to comprehend the manner of the Divine substance, which passes all understanding, and His glory transcends our highest contemplations. By Itself only is known what the Divine nature is. Therefore the Father, by that which He is, knoweth the Son; the Son, by that which He is, knoweth the Father, no difference intervening as regards the Divine nature. And in another place. For that God is, we believe, but what He is by nature, is incomprehensible. But if the Son was created, how could He alone know the Father, or how could He be known only by the Father. For to know the Divine nature is impossible to any creature, but to know each created thing what it is, does not surpass every understanding, though it is far beyond our senses.

For the Lord, revealing Himself to His disciples, that He Himself is the Word, who imparts knowledge of the Father, and reproving the Jews, who imagined that they had [the knowledge of] God, while they nevertheless rejected His Word, through whom God is made known, declared, "No man knoweth the Son, but the Father; neither knoweth any man the Father, save the Son, and he to whom the Son has willed to reveal [Him]."

But the Son, administering all things for the Father, works from the beginning even to the end, and without Him no man can attain the knowledge of God. For the Son is the knowledge of the Father; but the knowledge of the Son is in the Father, and has been revealed through the Son; and this was the reason why the Lord declared: "No man knoweth the Son, but the Father; nor the Father, save the Son, and those to whomsoever the Son shall reveal [Him]." For "shall reveal" was said not with reference to the future alone, as if then [only] the Word had begun to manifest the Father when He was born of Mary, but it applies indifferently throughout all time. For the Son, being present with His own handiwork from the beginning, reveals the Father to all; to whom He wills, and when He wills, and as the Father wills. Wherefore, then, in all things, and through all things, there is one God, the Father, and one Word, and one Son, and one Spirit, and one salvation to all who believe in Him.

Therefore have the Jews departed from God, in not receiving His Word, but imagining that they could know the Father [apart] by Himself, without the Word, that is, without the Son; they being ignorant of that God who spake in human shape to Abraham, and again to Moses, saying, "I have surely seen the affliction of My people in Egypt, and I have come down to deliver them." For the Son, who is the Word of God, arranged these things beforehand from the beginning, the Father being in no want of angels, in order that He might call the creation into being, and form man, for whom also the creation was made; nor, again, standing in need of any instrumentality for the framing of created things, or for the ordering of those things which had reference to man; while, [at the same time,] He has a vast and unspeakable number of servants. For His offspring and His similitude do minister to Him in every respect; that is, the Son and the Holy Spirit, the Word and Wisdom; whom all the angels serve, and to whom they are subject. Vain, therefore, are those who, because of that declaration, "No man knoweth the Father, but the Son," do introduce another unknown Father.

(non occ.) He wishes to reveal as the Word, not without the exercise of reason; and as Justice, who knoweth rightly both the times for revealing, and the measures of revelation; but He reveals by removing the opposing veil from the heart, (2 Cor. 3:15) and the darkness which He has made His secret place. (Ps. 18:11.) But since upon this men who are of another opinion think to build up their impious doctrine, that in truth the Father of Jesus was sent down to the ancient saints, we must tell them that the words, To whomsoever the Son will reveal him, not only refer to the future time, after our Saviour uttered this, but also to the past time. But if they will not take this word reveal for what is past, they must be told, that it is not the same thing to know and to believe. To one is given by the Spirit the word of knowledge; to another faith by the same Spirit. (1 Cor. 12:8, 9.) There were then those who believed, but did not know.

To this Simon replied: "From the words of your master I shall refute you, because even he introduces to all men a certain God who was known. For although both Adam knew the God who was his creator, and the maker of the world; and Enoch knew him, inasmuch as he was translated by him; and Noah, since he was ordered by him to construct the ark; and although Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, and Moses, and all, even every people and all nations, know the maker of the world, and confess him to be a God, yet your Jesus, who appeared long after the patriarchs, says: 'No one knows the Son, but the Father; neither knoweth any one the Father, but the Son, and he to whom the Son has been pleased to reveal Him.' Thus, therefore, even your Jesus confesses that there is another God, incomprehensible and unknown to all."

"'And that he does not really believe even the doctrines proclaimed by his teacher is evident, for he proclaims doctrines opposite to his. For he said to some one, as I learn, Call me not good, for the good is one. Now in speaking of the good one, he no longer speaks of that just one, whom the Scriptures proclaim, who kills and makes alive,—kills those who sin, and makes alive those who live according to His will. But that he did not really call Him who is the framer of the world good, is plain to any one who can reflect. For the framer of the world was known to Adam whom He had made, and to Enoch who pleased Him, and to Noah who was seen to be just by Him; likewise to Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob; also to Moses, and the people, and the whole world. But Jesus, the teacher of Peter himself, came and said, No one knew the Father except the Son, as no one knoweth even the Son except the Father, and those to whom the Son may wish to reveal Him. If, then, it was the Son himself who was present, it was from the time of his appearance that he began to reveal to those to whom he wished, Him who was unknown to all. And thus the Father was unknown to all who lived before him, and could not thus be He who was known to all."

But after all, it is, I presume, the edification rather than the demolition of the law and the prophets which we have thus far found effected in Christ. "All things," He says, "are delivered unto me of my Father." You may believe Him, if He is the Christ of the Creator to whom all things belong; because the Creator has not delivered to a Son who is less than Himself all things, which He created by Him, that is to say, by His Word.

But "no man knoweth who the Father is, but the Son; and who the Son is, but the Father, and he to whom the Son will reveal Him." And so it was an unknown god that Christ preached! And other heretics, too, prop themselves up by this passage; alleging in opposition to it that the Creator was known to all, both to lsrµl by familiar intercourse, and to the Gentiles by nature.

He exults in spirit when He says to the Father, "I thank Thee, O Father, because Thou hast hid these things from the wise and prudent." He, moreover, affirms also that to no man is the Father known, but to His Son; and promises that, as the Son of the Father, He will confess those who confess Him, and deny those who deny Him, before His Father.

The Father delivers all things to the Son, because all things must be subject to the Son. God reigns over all in a twofold manner: first, over those who do not desire His Kingdom, and second, over those who do desire it. To give an example: God is my Master even if I do not wish it, because He is my Creator; and again, God is my Master when I, as a prudent servant, fulfill His will through the keeping of the commandments. Human nature was formerly in bondage and in the hands of God, even though it did not wish it, even though it served Satan. But when Christ endured the struggle on our behalf and, having freed us from the power of the devil, made us His servants and keepers of the commandments, from that time we became prudent servants both by nature and by choice; for the first servitude was only by nature, while the second was also by our choice. So the Lord now says: "All things have been delivered to Me by My Father," that is, all things must be subject to Me and fall under My dominion. This is similar to the other saying: "All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth" (Matt. 28:18). And He says this because He reconciled all things (Col. 1:20), both in heaven and on earth. And in another sense: the Father delivers all things to the Son—all the works of the economy of our salvation. Therefore, for our sake neither the Father nor the Spirit became incarnate, or suffered, or rose again, but the Son accomplished all of this, and He became the captain of our salvation; therefore He says that all things have been delivered to Him. He spoke as if to say: My Father has entrusted all things to Me—to become incarnate, to suffer, to rise again, to save the nature that had fallen away. Since He said that all things have been delivered to Me, He now resolves, as it were, a certain perplexity. Lest anyone should think: why then did He deliver all things to You, and not to another, even to an Angel or an Archangel. He says: He delivered all things to Me because I am of one Nature and Essence with Him. And as no one knows Him, so no one knows Me either, except the Father alone. Therefore He rightly delivered all things to Me, as One consubstantial with Him and surpassing all knowledge, just as He too is above all knowledge. For the Father, He says, is known by the Son alone and by the one to whom the Son wills to reveal Him. Notice: the Son knows the Father not through revelation, but creatures know Him through revelation, for they receive knowledge by grace; consequently, the Son is not created.

But that you may know that as the Son revealed the Father to whom He will, the Father also reveals the Son to whom He will, hear our Lord's words, Blessed art thou, Simon Barjona, for flesh and blood have not revealed it to thee, but my Father which is in heaven.

And turning to his disciples, he said: Blessed are the eyes that see the things you see, etc. Not the eyes of the scribes and Pharisees, who see only the body of the Lord, but those blessed eyes that can recognize his mysteries, about which it is said: And you have revealed them to little children. Blessed are the eyes of the little ones, to whom the Son is worthy to reveal both himself and the Father.

Matthew more clearly calls them prophets, and righteous men. For those are great kings, who have known how, not by yielding to escape from the assaults of temptations, but by mastering to gain the rule over them.

For those looking afar off saw Him in a glass and darkly, but the Apostles having our Lord present with them, whatever things they wished to learn had no need to he taught by angels or any other kind of vision.

The third firmness of faith is that which proceeds from the witness of truth as expressed through the inspired word: and this occurred with all the prophets. And we have heard this Word, for it is the Spirit that bears witness that Christ is the truth. Some have actually seen Him in the flesh. Hence in Luke: "Blessed are the eyes that see what you see! For I say to you, many prophets and kings have desired to see what you see, and they have not seen it."

Fourth, He shows that one should rejoice over the desirable presence, with regard to which He adds: And turning to His disciples, He said: Blessed are the eyes that see what you see: therefore you can rightly rejoice, because you see Me both in mind and in body, since Abraham rejoiced, who saw only by faith, according to that passage of John 8: "Abraham, your father, rejoiced to see My day: and he saw it and was glad." And therefore as a figure of this it is said in 3 Kings 10 to Solomon: "Blessed are your men and blessed are your servants, those who stand before you always and hear your wisdom." This is said of Solomon as a figure of Christ, because, as He says of Himself in Matthew 12, "behold, something greater than Solomon is here." Whence this was a special gift.

He also gave the holy apostles power and might even to raise the dead, cleanse lepers, heal the sick, and by the laying on of hands to call down from heaven the Holy Spirit on anyone they wanted. He gave them power to bind and to loose people's sins. His words are "I say to you, whatever you will bind on earth, will be bound in heaven. Whatever you will loose on earth, will be loosed in heaven." These are the things we see ourselves possessing. Blessed are our eyes and the eyes of those of all who love him. We have heard his wonderful teaching. He has given us the knowledge of God the Father, and he has shown him to us in his own nature. The things that were by Moses were only types and symbols. Christ has revealed the truth to us. He has taught us that not by blood and smoke, but rather by spiritual sacrifices, we must honor him who is spiritual, immaterial and above all understanding.

He turns to them indeed, since He rejected the Jews, who were deaf, with their understandings blinded, and not wishing to see, and gives Himself wholly to those who love Him; and He pronounces those eyes blessed which see the things no others had seen before. We must however know this, that seeing does not signify the action of the eyes, but the pleasure which the mind receives from benefits conferred. For instance, if any one should say, He hath seen good times, that is, he has rejoiced in good times, according to the Psalm, Thou shall see the good of Jerusalem. (Ps. 128:5.) For many Jews have seen Christ performing divine works, that is to say, with their bodily sight, yet all were not fitted to receive the blessing, for they believed not; but these saw not His glory with their mental sight. Blessed then are our eyes, since we see by faith the Word who is made man for us, shedding upon us the glory of His Godhead, that He may make us like unto Him by sanctification and righteousness.

(in Joan. Hom. 8.) Now from this saying many imagine that the prophets were without the knowledge of Christ. But if they desired to see what the Apostles saw, they knew that He would come to men, and dispense those things which He did. For no one desires what he has no conception of; they therefore knew the Son of God. Hence He does not merely say, They desired to see me, but those things which ye see, nor to hear me, but those things which ye hear. For they saw Him, but not yet Incarnate, nor thus conversing with men, nor speaking with such authority to them.

If you look also into the next words, "Blessed are the eyes which see the things which ye see, for I tell you that prophets have not seen the things which ye see," you will find that they follow from the sense above, that no man indeed had come to the knowledge of God as he ought to have done, since even the prophets had not seen the things which were being seen under Christ.

Turning to the disciples, the Lord blesses them and indeed all who look upon Him with faith as He walks in the flesh and works miracles.

Having said above, No one knoweth who the Father is but the Son, and to whomsoever the Son will reveal him; He pronounces a blessing upon His disciples, to whom the Father was revealed through Him. Hence it is said, And he turned him unto his disciples, and said, Blessed are the eyes, &c.

Now He blesses them, and all truly who look with faith, because the ancient prophets and kings desired to see and hear God in the flesh, as it follows; For I say unto you, that many prophets and kings have desired, &c. (Matt. 13:17.)

For I tell you that many prophets and kings desired to see what you see, and did not see it, and to hear what you hear, and did not hear it. Abraham rejoiced that he might see the day of Christ, and saw it, and was glad. Isaiah also, and Micah, many other prophets saw the glory of the Lord, who for that reason are called seers. But all these seeing from afar and greeting (Him) saw through a glass and in a riddle (1 Cor. 13), but the apostles having the Lord in the present time, eating with Him, and learning by asking whatever they wished, by no means needed to be taught through angels or various visions. While Luke calls many prophets and kings, Matthew more explicitly calls them prophets and the righteous. For they are truly great kings, because they know how to not succumb by giving in to the impulses of their temptations, but to command by ruling over them.

The third firmness of faith is that which proceeds from the witness of truth as expressed through the inspired word: and this occurred with all the prophets. And we have heard this Word, for it is the Spirit that bears witness that Christ is the truth. Some have actually seen Him in the flesh. Hence in Luke: "Blessed are the eyes that see what you see! For I say to you, many prophets and kings have desired to see what you see, and they have not seen it."

And on this account He adds: But I say to you, that many prophets and kings wished to see what you see, and did not see it. Those sublime in knowledge and power desired the presence of Christ, according to that passage of Haggai 2: "The desired of all nations will come." Whence on account of their vehement desire it is said in Isaiah 64: "O that You would rend the heavens and come down!" and Numbers 24: "A star shall rise out of Jacob, and a scepter shall spring up from Israel"; and after: "Alas! who shall live when the Lord does these things?" Nor is it a wonder, because in the penultimate chapter of Esther it is said to Ahasuerus in the person of Christ: "You are exceedingly wondrous, lord, and your face is full of graces." And therefore they desired to see the presence of Christ.

They also desired to hear the teaching, and therefore he adds: And to hear what you hear, and they did not hear, that is, my words: because, as it is said in Hosea 10, "it is time to seek the Lord, when he shall come who will teach you justice." For this was the very greatest benefit, to hear God speaking, not through a subject creature, but in his own person and in a united creature. Commemorating which benefit, the Apostle says in Hebrews 1: "In many ways and by many modes God, speaking of old to the Fathers through the Prophets, in these last days" etc. Blessed is he who hears this speech humbly and obediently, according to that passage below in chapter eleven: "Blessed are those who hear the word of God and keep it." Hence blessed are those who through faith saw and heard Christ on the way, according to that passage in Proverbs 8: "Blessed is the man who hears me and who watches at my gates daily and waits at the posts of my door." But most blessed are those who will see in the homeland, according to that passage in Revelation 19: "Blessed are those who are called to the marriage supper of the Lamb."

Tell us, then, O children, whence is this, your beautiful and graceful contest of song? Who taught it you? Who instructed you? Who brought you together? What were your tablets? Who were your teachers? Do but you, they say, join us as our companions in this song and festivity, and you will learn the things which were by Moses and the prophet earnestly longed for.

(in Cant. 1:2.) But why does he say that many prophets desired, and not all? Because it is said of Abraham, That he saw the day of Christ and was glad, (John 8:56.) which sight not many, but few attained to; but there were other prophets and just men not so great as to reach to Abraham's vision, and the experience of the Apostles, who, He says, saw not, but desired to see.

"But also a witnessing voice was heard from heaven, saying, 'This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased; hear Him.' And in addition to this, willing to convict more fully of error the prophets from whom they asserted that they had learned, He proclaimed that they died desiring the truth, but not having learned it, saying, 'Many prophets and kings desired to see what ye see, and to hear what you hear; and verily I say to you, they neither saw nor heard.' Still further He said, 'I am he concerning whom Moses prophesied, saying, A Prophet shall the Lord our God raise unto you of your brethren, like unto me: Him hear in all things; and whosoever will not hear that Prophet shall die.' "

For the ancient prophets and kings, though they greatly desired to see the Lord in the flesh and to hear Him, were nevertheless not deemed worthy of this. And in another sense: since He said above that he knows the Father to whom the Son reveals Him, He now blesses the disciples as those who have already received this revelation. For through Himself He revealed the Father to them, since he who saw Him saw the Father (John 14:9). And no one among those saints who lived before the appearing and working of the Son of God in the flesh attained this blessing. Since they did not see the Lord in the flesh, through Whom the Father was known, it follows that they did not see the Father in the way the apostles saw Him.