Chapter 4

Chapter IV.


The third manifestation, which was made to the Samaritans.

1. When therefore Jesus knew etc. The Lord manifested himself above to the disciples and to the Jews: in this part he manifests himself to the Samaritans, and this by preaching and announcing to them the word of salvation. And this part has two parts. In the first is noted the opportunity for preaching: in the second, the form of preaching, at: A woman of Samaria came, where the Lord begins to preach to the Samaritan woman.

Now the opportunity was on the part of the place, and this indeed was twofold, namely for passing through and for resting.

2. (Verse 1). Therefore first the opportunity of the place for passing through is touched upon. For when he wished to go from Judea into Galilee, he needed to pass through Samaria. Therefore he says: When therefore Jesus knew that the Pharisees had heard. They had heard, I say, from the disciples of John, who reported as envious persons and detractors: above in the third chapter: "They said: All are going to him": they had heard, I say, that Jesus makes more disciples and baptizes than John. And from this it was manifest to them that he was greater and more renowned than John, and already manifested to them. This they heard, because it had been so reported.

3. (Verse 2). Although Jesus did not baptize, but his disciples, lest they be provoked to envy.

4. (Verse 3). He left Judea and went again into Galilee: because he had gone once before, above in the first chapter. Chrysostom: "The Lord withdrew not for the sake of fear, but concealing their malice and envy": whence below in the seventh chapter: "Jesus walked in Galilee: for he did not wish to go into Judea, because the Jews sought to kill him." Thus, with preaching having been done to the Jews, the opportunity of preaching to the Samaritans presented itself: whence he says:

5. (Verse 4). Now he had to pass through the midst of Samaria. And thus the opportunity of the place for passing through was at hand: Luke 17: "As Jesus was going to Jerusalem, he passed through the midst of Samaria." As he passed through, so he had to return.

6. (Verse 5). He came therefore. Here the opportunity of the place for resting is touched upon, because he was weary, and a pleasant place presented itself; whence he describes the place by the city, when he says: He came therefore to a city of Samaria, which is called Sichar: Sichar in the Chaldaic language, Shechem in Hebrew. This is the city where Simeon and Levi slew the men in vengeance for the violation of their sister, Genesis 34. And this city was, supply: near the estate which Jacob gave to Joseph, his son: Genesis 48: "I give you one portion above your brothers, which I took from the hand of the Amorite with my sword and my bow." And this place was suitable for resting, because it was pleasant. Therefore he says:

7. (Verse 6.). Now Jacob's well was there, that is, which Jacob had found, according to what is said below in the same chapter. And Christ was in need of rest: therefore it says: Jesus, being wearied from the journey, sat thus upon the well: because the place was cool, and the heat was already upon them. Therefore it adds: Now the hour was about the sixth: and so he was wearied from the long journey, and from fasting and heat. Whence the Lord himself says in the Psalm: "I am poor and in labors from my youth: and having been exalted, I was humbled and troubled."

8. Allegorically. Jesus, having left Judea, passes through the midst of Samaria into Galilee: because, with the Jews blinded, Christ passed over to the Father: for Galilee is interpreted as "passing over"; Romans 11: Blindness has befallen Israel, that the fullness of the Gentiles might enter: and Acts 13: Paul and Barnabas said to the Jews: It was necessary that the word be spoken to you first: but since you have rejected it and judged yourselves unworthy of eternal life: behold, we turn to the Gentiles.

Jesus, wearied from the journey, sits at the sixth hour: because the Son of God assumed our flesh with its penalties in the sixth age, as Augustine says. Jeremiah 14: Why will you be as a sojourner in the land and as a traveler turning aside to tarry?

He sits upon the well of water; because he rests upon the streams of grace, so as to pour them out upon those who believe in him: below in chapter 7: He who believes in me, as the Scripture says, rivers of living water shall flow from his belly.

9. It should be noted that Christ is said to sit upon the well: because he himself is the one in whom the well of all grace rests: whence rightly by that well is understood: Genesis 2: A spring rose from the earth and watered the whole surface of the earth. This is Christ, from whom proceeds a fourfold river or water, namely the water of cleansing. Concerning this water, Ezekiel 36: I will pour clean water upon you, etc.: and thus Christ is called the well of cleansing: this is baptism: Zechariah 13: There shall be a fountain open to the house of David and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem for the washing of the sinner and of the unclean woman. For baptism cleanses the sinner and the unclean woman, because it destroys both original and actual sin.

The water of wisdom: Ecclesiasticus 15: She gave him the water of wholesome wisdom to drink: and this is sacred doctrine. And thus Christ is called the fountain of wisdom, Ecclesiasticus 1: The fountain of wisdom is the word of God on high. This irrigates the hearts of teachers: Proverbs 5: Let your fountains be dispersed abroad, etc.

The water of grace: concerning which, below in chapter 7: He who believes in me, rivers of living water shall flow from his belly. And thus Christ is called the fountain of grace: below in the same chapter: He who shall drink of the water that I will give him, it shall become in him a fountain of water springing up into eternal life: this is grace, Jeremiah 2.

The water of life, concerning which below in the same chapter: He who shall drink of the water that I shall give him shall not thirst forever. And thus Christ is called the fountain of life: Psalm: With you is the fountain of life, and in your light we shall see light: and Apocalypse 7: The Lamb shall lead them to the fountains of the waters of life.

All the waters of these fountains proceed from Christ: whence Isaiah 12: You shall draw waters with joy from the fountains of the Savior: but they flow only into the humble and the valleys: Psalm: You who send forth fountains in the valleys, that is, in the humble.

10. Note that the devil sits upon the fountain of uncleanness, concerning which Leviticus 20: He who shall lie with a woman in her menstrual flow and shall uncover her shame, and she shall open the fountain of her blood, both shall be put to death from the midst of their people. The menstruous and unclean woman is our flesh; he lies with her who satisfies her desires.

Of perverse imitation: Proverbs 25: A fountain troubled by the foot and a corrupted spring is the just man falling before the wicked. For the wicked man, when he considers the evil and the good in the just man, leaving aside the good, imitates the evil. — Of vain curiosity: Ecclesiasticus 26 says of the curious soul: As a thirsty traveler will open his mouth at every fountain and will drink of every water: because the curious wish to know everything and to try every kind of wisdom.

Of eternal damnation: Apocalypse 8: A great burning star fell upon the fountains of waters, and the name of the star is called Wormwood: because the devil fell from the empyrean heaven into the utmost calamity of punishments, to which he draws all who drink of him.

QUESTIONS.


11. Question I. For the understanding of the letter, it is first asked concerning what it says: When Jesus knew.

Either this is said according to his divinity, or according to his humanity: in whichever way this is said, it seems false, because Christ knew all things from his nativity; therefore he did not begin to know anything afterwards.

The response to this is that just as Christ is said to be ignorant because he does not make us know, as concerning the day of judgment, so he is said to know something for the first time because he first shows himself to know it. Whence he knew this beforehand, but nevertheless then first showed it.

Or it should be answered that Christ previously knew by foreknowledge, but afterwards knew by report: and this was not unfitting according to his human nature.

12. Question II. Likewise it is asked concerning what it says: the Lord left Judea on account of the Pharisees who now knew. — It seems that he feared and that he fled.

To this Chrysostom responds that it was not out of fear, but for the sake of avoiding their scandal and the zeal of envy.

But then it is objected: 1. Because "the truth of doctrine is not to be abandoned on account of scandal"; whence he did not cease to speak the truth to them on account of scandal in many places, as in Matthew 15; why then does he now desist on account of scandal?

2. Likewise, if on account of envy: I ask: why did they envy Christ more than John, since John likewise baptized?

I respond: It must be said that He left Judea for a threefold reason, namely to avoid scandal, to increase fruit, and to give an example. On account of scandal, lest the Jews be made worse through the kindling of zeal: but this was not the whole cause, indeed also on account of fruit, because there He would have accomplished little, and elsewhere He accomplished much: and preaching must be abandoned on account of scandal when greater fruit can be borne elsewhere. On account of example He also departed, as Augustine says, to show us that it is lawful to avoid the fury of persecutors.

2. As to what is asked: why did they persecute Christ more than John? The response is that John did not baptize in his own name, but in the name of the coming Christ, whereas Christ baptized in His own name: whence He taught and baptized as one having authority. Since therefore the envious Pharisees wished to have no superior, they envied Him all the more.

13. Question III. Likewise Augustine asks: How does the Evangelist say: Jacob's spring, when below it is called a well?

Augustine responds that "every well is a spring, but the converse does not hold. For where water flows forth from the earth at the surface, it is only a spring: where it flows in the depths, it is called both a spring and a well."

14. A woman of Samaria came. Having determined the opportunity for preaching, here is determined the manifestation made through preaching. And because this manifestation was first made particularly, and secondly commonly: therefore first it treats of the preaching made to the woman; secondly, of the preaching made to the Samaritans, at the passage: The woman therefore left her water jar, etc.

And because the preaching of faith is not efficacious except with the consent of free will, and free will does not consent unless it is aroused by God: therefore the Lord first arouses the woman; secondly, to her once aroused and consenting, He announces the truth of faith, at the passage: The woman says to Him: Lord, give me this water, etc. The Lord therefore arouses the woman in this order, namely first by requesting a service; secondly, by promising or offering a benefit; thirdly, by explaining the benefit offered.

15. (Verse 7). First He arouses her by requesting the service of a drink, which the woman was able to provide, because she had come to draw water. For this reason it says: A woman of Samaria came to draw water: and so she was able to give a drink, and Christ was in need and therefore asked. Therefore it follows: Jesus says to her: Give me to drink. He was indeed in need of drink, because there was no one to serve Him: whence it says:

16. (Verse 8.). But His disciples had gone into the city to buy food. He rightly says to buy, not to seek gratuitously, because there was no one there who would give: whence it is said in Luke 9: "The disciples entered into a city of the Samaritans, to prepare for Him: and they did not receive Him, because His face was of one going to Jerusalem."

17. (Verse 9.). The woman therefore says to Him. Here secondly He arouses her by promising or offering a benefit: because the woman, considering Him to be a Jew, did not wish to render service, but rather raises a question. Therefore he says: That Samaritan woman therefore says to Him, from whom namely He had asked a drink: How do You, being a Jew, ask a drink of me, who am a Samaritan woman? "She recognized Him to be a Jew from His garb," as the Gloss says. And the Evangelist subjoins the reason for this question: For the Jews do not associate with the Samaritans, regarding them as unclean, because they were gentiles: whence Genesis 43: "It is unlawful for the Egyptians to eat with the Hebrews, and they consider such a banquet profane." Because therefore the woman had not been moved to render service, the Lord entices her by promising a benefit: on account of which He says:

18. (Verse 10.). Jesus answered and said to her: If you knew the gift of God. The gift of God is the Holy Spirit, concerning which Acts 2: "Repent, and let each one of you be baptized, and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit." The Holy Spirit is called a gift, because it ought not to be sold: Acts 8: "May your money perish with you, because you thought the gift of God could be possessed with money." If this, I say,

you knew, and who it is that says to you: Give Me to drink, namely that He Himself is the giver of the Holy Spirit, you would not have raised a question, but a petition for the gift. Therefore He says: You perhaps would have asked of Him: perhaps is not a mark of doubt, but of free will; and He would have satisfied your petition. Therefore He says: And He would have given you living water: to you, asking, He would have given; Matthew 7: "Everyone who asks, receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it shall be opened." He calls living water the grace of faith, which makes one live: Habakkuk 2: "My just one lives by faith."

19. (Verse 11.). The woman says to Him. Here the third point is touched upon, namely the explanation of the gift or benefit offered. For the woman understood carnally concerning a temporal gift: and therefore she doubted and sought an explanation. On this account he says: The woman says to Him: Lord, You have nothing to draw with, and the well is deep: and therefore You cannot give of the water of this well; but even from elsewhere, how can You have it? Whence there follows: Where then do You have living water? namely, this nobler water.

20. (Vers. 12.). Are you greater than our father Jacob? Similar below in the eighth chapter: "Are you greater than our father Abraham"? Who gave us the well: therefore he gave it, because he found it. Concerning this well, Genesis twenty-nine: "Jacob set out and came to the eastern land and saw there a well, whose mouth was closed with a great stone." Nor did he only give to others, but he also had it for his own use, as though not having anything better. Therefore it says: And he himself drank from it, and his sons, and his cattle. It is found in Genesis twenty-nine that Jacob there watered the cattle. The woman, therefore, understanding carnally and not knowing the Lord's power, was not attracted. Therefore Christ explains the gift; therefore he says:

21. (Vers. 13.). Jesus answered and said to her: Everyone who drinks of this water, namely visible and material, shall thirst again: and therefore it is no great thing to give this, nor do I promise this. But whoever drinks of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst: below in the sixth chapter: "He who believes in me shall never thirst." And the reason is added why he shall not thirst:

22. (Vers. 14.). But the water that I shall give him shall become in him a fountain of water springing up into eternal life: springing up, because it causes one to spring up to where the fountain is unfailing: Psalm: "With you is the fountain of life," etc.; a fountain also perfectly refreshing: whence in the Psalm: "They shall be inebriated with the plenty of your house, and you shall give them to drink of the torrent of your pleasure." To this water the Lord invites in Isaiah fifty-five: "All you who thirst, come to the waters; and you who have no money," etc. — Thus therefore he aroused the woman by asking a service, by offering a benefit, by explaining the gift offered.

QUESTIONS.


23. Question I. It is asked here: since the Lord commands his disciples not to enter the cities of the Samaritans nor to go into the way of the Gentiles, Matthew ten, and also says in Matthew fifteen: I was not sent except to the lost sheep of the house of Israel: whence is it that the Lord now preaches to the Samaritans? For he seems to contradict his own precept, and thereby to give a bad example.

I respond: It must be said that the Lord prohibited this to his disciples not because it was evil, but lest he scandalize the Jews, to whom he had first come. Therefore he commanded that they should not go to them by principal intention, whence neither did the Lord thrust himself upon them. But because he wills all men to be saved, and the opportunity presented itself, and the woman came to him: therefore he opened the word of preaching.

24. Question II. Likewise it is asked: 1. Since the Jews regarded the Samaritans as unclean, and the Lord kept the Law: whence is it that he asked to drink from a Samaritan woman?

2. Furthermore, he knew her response before he asked, and he knew that she would not give the drink: therefore he was asking in vain and foolishly.

Chrysostom responds that the Lord regarded the keeping of such observances as indifferent, as is said in Matthew 15, that nothing external defiles a man: and therefore he did not refrain from asking from her, although she was a Samaritan.

2. To the objection that he knew she would not give: it must be said that he knew she would respond to him prudently, and so that from her response he might have an occasion for teaching, therefore he asked.

25. Question III. Likewise, there is a question about what it says, that the disciples had gone into the city to buy food.

On the contrary: 1. The disciples were Jews: therefore they ought not to have dealings with Samaritans.

2. Likewise, the Lord commanded them not to have silver, Matthew 10: how then did they go to buy, if they had no money?

I respond: It must be said that the disciples had learned from the Lord that nothing is unclean or common. — Or it must be said that certain foods were indifferent with respect to Jews and Samaritans, such as bread and fruits: and they had gone to buy such foods.

2. To the objection that they did not have the means to buy: it must be said that they had not yet been sent to work miracles and to preach. — Furthermore, they were in an unfamiliar land, where they would not find bread and other foods freely: therefore for the time of necessity they carried silver.

26. Question IV. Likewise, there is a question about what the woman says: Are you greater than our father Jacob?

On the contrary: From this it seems to imply that Jacob was the father of the Samaritans: and this is false, because they had been sent by the king of the Assyrians.

I respond: It must be said that father is sometimes said on account of antiquity of time, just as we call old men fathers: sometimes on account of authority, thus we call prelates and authoritative men fathers; sometimes on account of benefaction or upbringing, thus we call those fathers from whom we receive benefits: sometimes on account of generation, thus those who begot. The woman calls Jacob father for the three reasons mentioned above.

27. Question V. Likewise, there is a question about what he says: Whoever drinks of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst.

On the contrary: Either he means bodily thirst or spiritual thirst: if bodily, it is false, because those who have grace still thirst: if spiritual, it still seems false: Ecclesiasticus 24: "Those who drink will thirst still more."

I respond: It must be said that he speaks of spiritual thirst. For there is a certain thirst for what is not had, so that it may be had: a certain thirst for what is had, so that it may be had more fully: and a certain thirst for what is perfectly had, so that it may be continued. The first is in concupiscence: the second, in grace: the third, in glory. Here he speaks of the first thirst, therefore etc. For the thirst of grace is not for a thing not had: because, as Augustine says, whoever has the eternal gift, has it by loving, although not perfectly.

28. The woman says to him etc. The Lord stirred up the woman to consent; here now to the woman consenting and asking he sets forth the word of faith for believing. Because the woman, even though she had been stirred up, was nevertheless not yet illuminated, the Lord does not immediately set forth the word of faith, but proceeds in this order: first he reveals the secret; second he makes clear the doubt; third he opens the sacrament of faith.

29. (Vers.15.). Therefore to the woman now asking for the water thus promised and on this account consenting, he reveals the secret; on account of which he shows the woman's petition: The woman says to him etc. Thus the Lord had promised her unfailing water; the woman asks for this: Lord, give me this water, that I may not thirst nor come here to draw. And the thirst was painful to her, and the labor of drawing; and therefore she was seeking the gift of God, because, as Gregory says, "the evils that press upon us here compel us to go to God." For this reason the Lord calls the burdened in Matthew 11: "Come to me, all you who labor and are burdened, and I will refresh you." Therefore to the woman thus asking, the Lord opens the secret, but not immediately, lest she be indignant, because it is reproachful; but he seeks an occasion for speaking, whence there follows:

30. (Vers. 16.). Jesus says to her: Go, call your husband, not through marriage, but through misuse, and come here. He was not saying this because he believed she had a husband, but so that he might reveal the secret about her husband to her as she responded. Whence:

31. (Vers. 17.). The woman answered and said: I have no husband. From this truthful response, the Lord, having taken the occasion, adds the revelation of the secret. Whence there also follows: Jesus says to her: You have spoken well: I have no husband, because she confessed the truth.

32. (Vers. 18.). For you have had five husbands, behold, he reveals things past, and the one whom you now have is not your husband: this one, that is, this one: it is an antiptosis. He reveals things present, and so that she may not be indignant, he commends the truth: This you have spoken truly. In this a pattern is handed down to preachers, that when they wish to say harsh things to their hearers, they should mix in sweet things as well; whence Paul kept this pattern in First Corinthians 11: "I praise you, he says? In this I do not praise"; for he was not reproving them entirely.

33. Mystically. The woman is the lower part of reason; her natural and legitimate husband is the higher part, judging rightly; First Corinthians 11: The man is the image and glory of the Lord, but the woman is the glory of the man. — This woman is reproved because she had five husbands, when she served the five senses of the flesh in infancy, which ruled over her as husbands. Children are those who follow youthful desires, on account of which the Apostle says in Second Timothy 2: Flee youthful desires. These youthful desires, even though they seem sweet, are nevertheless harsh; whence they are signified by the five yoke of oxen; Luke 14: I have bought five yoke of oxen, namely the burdensome desires of the five senses.

The first husband is taste: the gluttonous serve this one, in whose person Ecclesiastes two says: It is better to eat and drink and to show good things to one's soul; Isaiah twenty-two: Let us eat and drink.

The second is touch: the lustful serve this one, in whose person Wisdom two says: Let there be no meadow that our wantonness does not pass through. Let none of us be without a share in our revelry.

The third is smell: the pleasure-seekers serve this one, in whose person it is said in Wisdom two: Let us fill ourselves with costly ointments, and let not the flower of time pass us by; let us crown ourselves with roses, etc.

The fourth is sight: the avaricious serve this one: Ecclesiasticus fourteen: The eye of the covetous is insatiable in its share of iniquity; he will not be satisfied until it consumes, withering his own soul.

The fifth is hearing: the curious serve this one: Acts seventeen: The Athenians spent their time in nothing else but either telling or hearing something new.

She is reproved concerning the sixth man who is not hers. This man is error, by which the soul is led astray and seduced. Therefore, this error having been cast aside, the Lord urges her to call her husband, that is, the natural judgment of reason, so that she might be able to perceive the sacraments of the faith, and not be like the horse and the mule, which have no understanding. To such a soul the Lord gives water springing up into eternal life. This is the water of grace, which descends from God; therefore it makes one leap up to God, for it is the property of water that it rises as high as it descends.

34. (Verse 19.). The woman says to him. The second point is touched upon here: for after he revealed the secret, he makes clear the doubt. For the woman, seeing that the Lord was a knower of secrets, puts forward her own uncertainty to be resolved; on account of which she says: The woman says to him: Lord, I see that you are a prophet, because, namely, you know secrets, and thus you can answer my doubt.

35. (Verse 20.). Our fathers worshipped on this mountain, namely Abraham and Jacob — and you say that Jerusalem is the place where one ought to worship. If, therefore, the fathers are to be imitated, how then do you say this, as though despising the custom of the fathers? The Jews said this on account of that passage in Deuteronomy twelve: "Take heed that you do not offer to the Lord in every place, but in the place which the Lord shall choose." The Lord resolves the doubt of this question, showing that neither there nor in Judea did they worship perfectly; therefore he says:

36. (Vers. 21.). Jesus says to her: Woman, believe me, the hour is coming when you will worship the Father neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem. This hour is the time of grace, in which the error of the gentiles and the shadow of the legal commandments must be abolished. Concerning this hour, Romans 13: "It is now the hour for us to rise from sleep: the night has passed, and the day has drawn near," etc. This hour does not determine a place of prayer in any one location, but everywhere: 1 Timothy 2: "I will that men pray in every place, lifting up pure hands," etc. And although neither here nor in Jerusalem is worship now offered perfectly, nevertheless it is better in Jerusalem. Therefore he says:

37. (Vers. 22.). You worship what you do not know: because you do not have the Law; likewise, you worship God and idols together and believe God to be local: in 4 Kings 17 it is said of the Samaritans that they served the God of the land and their own idols. We worship what we know: we, namely the Jews: because salvation is from the Jews, that is, Christ the Savior: Galatians 3: "To Abraham were the promises made, and to his seed." Because therefore worship is not offered perfectly even in Jerusalem, he teaches the woman when and how worship is offered perfectly, lest he leave her in suspense. Therefore he says:

38. (Vers. 23.). But the hour is coming. I said that you do not worship perfectly, because you believe God to be local: nor do the Jews perfectly, because under figures. But the hour is coming, namely of grace, and now is, because Christ had already come: when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth: in spirit, against locality and corporeality: in truth, the shadow having been cast aside: according to what the Apostle said in 2 Corinthians 3: "We, beholding the glory of the Lord with unveiled face, are transformed into the same image from glory," etc. That these are the true worshipers, he shows by saying: For the Father also seeks such to worship him: supply: as was said, in spirit and truth.

39. (Vers. 24.). God is Spirit, not a body, as you believe: Isaiah 40: "To whom have you likened God? Or what image will you set up for him?" And those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth: so that they may be conformed to him, that they may be in spirit, not in the flesh: Romans 8: "Those who are in the flesh cannot please God": that they may be in truth, not in pretense: Wisdom 1: "The Holy Spirit of discipline will flee from the deceitful."

40. (Vers. 25.). The woman says to him. Here now for the third time, after she has manifested her doubt, he opens the sacrament of faith. For the woman, instructed by the Lord, raises the eye of consideration to Christ and the time of grace; on account of which he says: The woman says to him: I know that the Messiah is coming, who is called Christ; when therefore he comes, he will announce all things to us. The woman knew this because the Samaritans accepted the Law and believed, especially because Christ was promised in the Law not only to the Jews but also to the Gentiles: Genesis 49: "The scepter shall not be taken away from Judah, nor a ruler from his thigh, until he comes who is to be sent, and he shall be the expectation of the nations." Since therefore the woman has been led all the way to Christ and is now prepared to believe in him, what remains except that the Lord reveal himself to her? On account of this there follows:

41. (Vers. 26.). Jesus says to her: I am he, who speaks with you. Similarly the Lord responded to the blind man below in chapter nine, when the blind man asked who the Son of God was in whom he ought to believe; the Lord responded: "You have seen him, and it is he who speaks with you." Now that faith has been declared, the preaching and conversation are concluded, because the disciples return. Therefore he adds:

42. (Vers. 27.). And immediately his disciples came and marveled that he was speaking with a woman. They admired his clemency and condescension. Augustine: "They admired the good; they did not suspect evil." And this admiration did not lead to questioning but to reverence and fear. Therefore he says: Yet no one said to him: What do you seek, or why do you speak with her? What do you seek? as if to say, what is the necessity of this conversation? Why do you speak? that is, what is the usefulness of this conversation? "For a word that lacks the reason of just necessity or pious usefulness, as Gregory says, is idle."

QUESTIONS.


43. Question I. Here a question arises first concerning what he says: The hour comes when neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem will you worship the Father.

If this is true, then temples ought not to be built for prayer.

2. Likewise, if those who worship must worship in spirit, then those who make corporeal images for worship sin.

I respond: It must be said that certain conditions of prayer are essential, such as right intention and just petition; certain others are accidental, such as time and place. I say therefore that the Lord did not say that a determinate place is to be cut away from true prayer as superfluous, but rather that it should be recognized as not belonging to the essence of prayer, because true worshipers worship God everywhere. And although place is not necessary, it is nevertheless not superfluous: for it avails for maintaining memory, for arousing devotion, for preserving unity, for obtaining the fellowship of the Angels, because the princes went before, joined with those singing psalms.

2. As to the objection concerning images, it must be said that now they do no harm, because it is not believed that anything divine is in them, nor that God is there corporally, but only significatively.

44. Question II. Likewise, it is asked concerning what the Lord says of Himself and of the Jews: We adore what we know.

To the contrary: Below in chapter eight: You know neither me nor my Father, the Lord Jesus says to the Jews.

I respond: Below He speaks of the unfaithful, who were Jews in name only; but here He speaks of true Jews, who are called Jews in reality and by merit.

45. Question III. Likewise, it is asked: since "the Lord made a shortened word upon the earth," whence is it that He drew out the Samaritan woman through so many words?

Chrysostom responds that if He had immediately said to the woman, "I am the Christ," He would have seemed to be raving; and therefore He advanced gradually as a good teacher and gave us an example, that we should not disdain to preach to few hearers, since He Himself made so long a discourse to one old woman.

46. Question IV. Likewise, it is asked: since the disciples were wondering, and Peter was accustomed to ask the Lord boldly, why did they not ask the Lord what He was speaking about?

To this the response is that if they had asked, they would have seemed already to hold Him suspect; therefore they feared being rebuked for a foolish question and for lack of discipline; and therefore they did not dare to ask.

47. She therefore left her water jar, etc. Now the part is concluded in which the Lord preached and showed Himself to the Samaritan woman individually and privately; here begins the second part, in which the Lord preaches to the Samaritans in common and manifests Himself to them. And because this manifestation was made partly through the proclamation of the woman, partly through the discourse of Christ, and this while the disciples were listening, who ought to have been attentive to this same thing, therefore this manifestation proceeds according to this order. For first is noted the diligence of the woman in announcing the name of Christ; second, the eagerness of Christ to receive them; third, the encouragement of the disciples to preach; fourth, the devotion of the Samaritans to believe, to which all things that are determined here are ordered.

48. (Verse 28). First, therefore, is described the vigor of the woman's diligence, which she had for the manifestation of the name of Christ and the conversion of her people, because she immediately went to announce the truth which she had received; on account of which he says: The woman therefore left her water jar. Having heard the word of faith, she left the water jar so that she might run more quickly and announce, lest perhaps the Lord should depart; or because in her fervor, forgetting that for which she had come, she wished to proclaim Christ. Whence Chrysostom: "This woman teaches us to despise all temporal things when hearing spiritual things." And she went away into the city, namely to spread abroad the name of Christ. Whence there also follows: And she says to those men:

49. (Vers. 29.). Come and see the man who told me all things that I have done. She was drawing them by this, that he had revealed her secrets: she did not say: Come and see a prophet: but she divulges her own life, so that she might uproot and draw all. Is not this the Christ? She did not assert it, lest she seem deceived: she did not assert, but proposed it by doubting, so that they themselves might likewise doubt, and through this come to be made certain. Chrysostom: "She did not wish to lead them by her own persuasion, but by hearing him"; on account of which, being stirred up, they come. Whence there follows:

50. (Vers. 30.). They went out of the city and were coming to him. Rightly they went out, because Christ was before the gate as one unknown, and suffered outside the gate: whence in the last chapter of Hebrews: "Christ suffered outside the gate: let us therefore go out to him outside the camp, bearing his reproach." In this it is intimated that those who wish to be taught by Christ must leave the tumult of the city: Jeremiah 48: "Leave the cities and dwell in the rock, O inhabitants of Moab"; because it is said in the Psalm: "In a desert and pathless and waterless land, so in the sanctuary have I appeared to you."

51. (Vers. 31.). In the meanwhile they were asking etc. Here the second point is touched upon, namely Christ's desire for receiving those who are called: because he desires their salvation as food, indeed more than bodily food in a time of need, when he was hungry. Therefore he says: In the meanwhile, that is, while the woman went and the Samaritans were coming: his disciples were asking him, as if anxious about the Master, saying: Rabbi, eat: because they had brought food, and the hour of eating had already passed. Chrysostom: "Seeing him wearied from the journey and the heat and fasting, they were asking him to eat": but the Lord, desiring spiritual food more than bodily, refuses to eat. On account of which he says:

52. (Vers. 32.). But he said to them: I have food to eat which you do not know: that food I prefer to this. The disciples did not know that food, because it was spiritual, since they themselves were carnal: First Corinthians 2: "The natural man does not perceive the things that are of the Spirit of God." Therefore it is clear that they did not know, because they understood carnally. Whence he says:

53. (Vers. 33.). The disciples therefore said to one another: Has anyone brought him something to eat? Augustine: "What wonder, if that woman did not understand the water? Behold, the disciples do not yet understand the food." And because it belongs to the master to teach disciples who do not understand, therefore the explanation follows.

54. (Vers. 34.). Jesus says to them: My food is, which indeed you do not know, to do the will of him who sent me. The will of God is our salvation; below in chapter six: "This is the will of my Father who sent me, that everyone who sees the Son and believes in him may have eternal life." The Lord wished to consummate this will through the work of redemption; therefore he says: That I may accomplish his work. The work of God is called par excellence the work of most merciful reconciliation; whence in the Psalm: "His mercies are above all his works." The work therefore of God is our conversion to God through faith; below in chapter six: "The work of God is that you believe in him whom he has sent."

55. Do you not say, etc. Here the third point is touched upon, namely the encouragement of the disciples to preach on account of the salvation of the Samaritans. And he encourages them to this both from consideration of their readiness to believe, and from consideration of the reward of preachers.

(Vers. 35.). He urges them to consider the readiness of believers under a parable, saying: Do you not say that there are yet four months, and the harvest comes? Literally, summer was near; and indeed people say this when they see the time of reaping approaching, which they await throughout the whole year. Behold, I say to you: Lift up your eyes, that is, your consideration, and see the regions, that is, the multitudes of the Gentiles; for they are white for the harvest, that is, near to faith, because they are ready to believe, if there is someone to announce it; Matthew nine: "The harvest indeed is great, but the laborers are few. Pray therefore the Lord of the harvest to send laborers into his harvest." Thus he encourages them from consideration of the readiness to believe; he also encourages them from consideration of the fruit of the reapers. Therefore he says:

56. (Vers. 36.). And he who reaps receives a reward, not temporal, but eternal. Whence he says: And gathers fruit unto eternal life, "where neither rust nor moth destroys, nor do thieves dig through nor steal," Matthew six. Of this reward it is said in Luke six: "Rejoice and exult, for behold, your reward is great in heaven." And this reward is common both to reapers and to sowers. Therefore he says: That both he who sows, etc. I say rightly that he who reaps gathers fruit not for the sower only, but also for himself; that both he who sows may rejoice together, and he who reaps; the Psalm: "Going, they went and wept, casting their seeds; but coming, they shall come with exultation," etc. And he gives the reason why both reapers and sowers ought to rejoice: because according to the proverb, the ones and the others are different. Therefore he says:

57. (Vers. 37.). In this the saying is true, namely what is customarily said: that one is he who sows, and another who reaps; for the Prophets sowed, but afterward the Apostles reaped, and this indeed by the Lord's beneficence and command, whose harvest it was. Therefore he says:

58. (Vers. 38.). I sent you to reap that upon which you have not labored. Concerning this harvest and mission, Matthew 9: "Pray therefore the Lord of the harvest, that he send laborers into his harvest." Others have labored, and you have entered into their labors: because you gather the fruits of their preaching: 1 Peter 1: "It was revealed" to the Prophets "that not to themselves" they were prophesying, "but to you they ministered those things which are now declared to you."

59. (Vers. 39.). Now from that city. Here is touched upon the devotion of the Samaritans to believing, which was begun through the word of the woman: on account of which he says: Now many of the Samaritans from that city believed in him. And the reason is added: Because of the word of the woman bearing testimony, concerning his Divinity: Because he told me all things that I have done. At the testimony of the woman the Samaritans believed, but the Jews refused to believe John: whence the Lord said to the Jews, Matthew 21: "Amen I say to you, that the publicans and harlots shall go before you into the kingdom of God." And although they did not believe firmly, they nevertheless believed devoutly. Therefore he adds:

60. (Vers. 40.). When therefore the Samaritans had come to him, they asked him to remain there: Luke 24: "Stay with us, for it is growing toward evening"; whereas the Jews cast him out. Chrysostom: "The Pharisees, seeing many signs, not only did not believe, but drove him away from the region." Whence it is said in Matthew 8, that "the whole city of the Gerasenes went out to meet Jesus, and seeing him, they asked him to depart from their borders." And the Lord condescended to the prayers of the Samaritans: whence it is said: And he remained there two days, to confirm and multiply their faith: which indeed he did. Whence he says:

61. (Vers. 41.). And many more believed because of his word. Nor is this surprising, because, as Peter says to him below in chapter 6, "Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life." Nor did he only multiply, but also confirmed. Whence there follows:

62. (Vers. 42.). And they said to the woman: We now believe, not because of your speech, as though begging for a human reason: for we ourselves have heard and know that this is truly the Savior of the world: that is, by hearing we have come to know, because, as it is said in Romans 10, "faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of God." Truly the Savior of the world, not of the Jews only; whence above in chapter 3: "God so loved the world, that he gave his only-begotten Son," etc. Therefore 1 John 2: "He is the propitiation for our sins, not only for ours, but also for those of the whole world." He was prefigured by Joseph, of whom it is said in Genesis 41, that "Pharaoh changed his name and called him in the Egyptian tongue Savior of the world ."

QUESTIONS.


63. Question I. A question arises here: since it is said in the Psalm: Your testimonies are made exceedingly credible, and the testimony of a woman is vain and fragile, as is the weaker sex, it seems that the Lord ought not to have manifested Himself to the Samaritans through a woman.

I respond: It must be said that Christ does not accept human testimony on account of His own need, but only on account of the need of the hearers. Therefore, because the testimony of the woman was not at all suspect to the Samaritans, the Lord willed to make Himself known to them through a woman — not because her testimony had strength, but because it was credible to the Samaritans.

Another reason was to condemn the hardness of the Jews at the judgment: because they did not believe John the Baptist, but the Samaritans believed one simple woman, just as the Lord Himself says to them that the queen of the south and the Ninevites will rise up in judgment against the Jews, Matthew twelve.

64. Question II. Likewise, a question is raised about the testimony of the woman, who said: Come and see the man who told me all things whatsoever I have done.

To the contrary: He told her only about the husbands she had had. Therefore either the woman had done nothing more, which is false; or she was lying and speaking falsely.

I respond: It must be said that when the woman said this, she was not looking only to the words of the one speaking, but to the wisdom by which He was speaking. And just as He had told her one secret, by the same power He could tell all things whatsoever she had done. Therefore the woman, wishing to express the power of Christ, spoke in a universal manner, etc.

65. Question III. Likewise, an objection is raised: since the evangelical law is not one of shadow or figure, but rather of open truth, why is it that the Lord speaks to His disciples in parables?

It seems that He ought not to speak in this way, but openly.

I respond: It must be said that to speak in figures is twofold: either such that the truth is enclosed therein and is not unfolded to the hearers — and this denotes shadow and obscurity, and this pertains to the old law, not to the new. In another way, to speak in similitudes is such that the similitude is unfolded and made manifest — and then it is not to speak in shadow, but rather in light; and in this way the Lord speaks, so that the matter obscurely proposed in figure may be clearly understood through exposition, and the human mind may be humbled, and the truth may be more ardently loved and more firmly held. For truth that is somewhat hidden becomes more pleasing when it is opened up.

66. Question IV. Likewise, an objection is raised concerning the fact that the Lord calls our salvation His food, and similarly above He called our faith His drink. — This does not seem properly said. For food sustains the one who is nourished, but Christ sustains us, not we Christ; therefore we are not the food of Christ.

I respond: It must be said that there is a threefold property in food. The first is that it is vehemently desired; the second is that through it the one who is nourished is refreshed; the third is that food is taken into the body.

By reason of the first property, Christ is our food, because we desire him, and we are his, because he himself desires our salvation. By reason of the second property, because it nourishes and restores, Christ is our food, not the reverse. By reason of the third, we are the food of Christ, because he himself draws us into his body: whence Augustine says that on the cross he consumed the thief.

67. Question V. There is also a question: since the Lord saw them disposed to believe, why is it that he wished to remain with them for only two days?

It seems that he ought to have been with them longer and for a greater time.

I respond: It must be said that he did this to avoid giving scandal to the Jews, lest they be indignant that, having left them, he crossed over to foreigners.

68. Question VI. Likewise, there is a question about what the Lord says to his disciples: One is he who sows, another who reaps; whence he calls the Apostles reapers, not sowers.

But to the contrary: 1. The Word of God is the seed: therefore he who preaches sows: but the Apostles were preachers: therefore etc.

2. Likewise, Second Corinthians 9: He who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly: therefore he who sows nothing will reap nothing.

3. Likewise, it seems that the Apostles are not reapers, but the Angels: whence Matthew 13: The harvest is the consummation of the age, the reapers are the Angels: therefore not the Apostles.

I respond: It must be said that these three times have an order: the time of the Mosaic law, of grace, and of glory. The time of grace is as fruit with respect to the time of the Mosaic law: the time of glory is as fruit with respect to the time of grace. - Accordingly, because harvest denotes the gathering of fruit, the harvest is twofold: the first in the time of grace: and of this the reapers are the Apostles, but the sowers are the Prophets, who foretold this grace and caused the people to await it. The other is in the time of glory: and of this the reapers are the Angels, and the sowers are the Apostles with respect to some, but all with respect to themselves. - And the arguments proceed along different lines, because the Lord speaks of the harvest of grace.

The fourth manifestation, which was made to the Galileans.

69. But after two days etc. The Lord manifested himself above to the disciples, the Jews, and the Samaritans; here begins the fourth part of this section, in which he manifests himself to the Galileans, his own countrymen, as being harder to believe. And this manifestation, which was made through a miracle, proceeds in this order. First, there is indicated in the Galileans a defect of reverence for honoring: second, a defect of faith for believing: third, the obtaining of the miracle: fourth, from this the building up of faith.

First, therefore, there is indicated a defect of reverence for honoring Christ. For because they were countrymen of Christ, therefore to remove their irreverence Christ came to them, so that he might show himself to them in miracles. For this reason he says:

(Vers. 43.). But after two days, during which, namely, he was in Samaria, he departed from there and went into Galilee, namely his own country, in order to convert those who were harder. Therefore he adds:

70. (Vers. 44.). For Jesus himself bore witness, that is, he asserted as true, that a prophet has no honor in his own country: Luke 4: "No prophet is accepted in his own country." The Gloss says that because on his first coming into Galilee he had not received honor, therefore he returns yet a second time, so that at least in this way they might believe in him through signs. For they had already been in some way disposed through the signs which they had seen in Jerusalem. Therefore he says:

71. (Vers. 45.). When therefore he came into Galilee, the Galileans received him, as if they began to honor him for a little while: Philippians 2: "Receive Epaphroditus with all joy in the Lord, and hold such men in honor." And the reason is added: Having seen all things that he had done in Jerusalem on the feast day: having seen, I say: for they also had gone up to the feast day. For all these things which they saw were signs and miracles: above, chapter 2: "When he was in Jerusalem on the feast day, many believed in him, seeing the signs which he was doing."

72. (Vers. 46.). He came therefore again to Cana of Galilee: namely, so that at least in this way they might believe: where he made water wine, which was the beginning of his signs, through which he became known to his disciples: whence the Gloss: "Through this miracle few had believed, that is, the disciples"; above, chapter 2: "This beginning of signs Jesus performed in Cana of Galilee, and his disciples believed in him."

73. And there was a certain royal official. Here the second point is touched upon, namely the deficiency of faith for believing. Just as in a certain way they honored, and in a certain way did not: so also in a certain way they believed, and in a certain way did not. And this is evident in this, that the royal official did not believe that he could heal his son unless present. On account of which he says: There was a certain royal official, so called from the smallness of his kingdom, whose son was sick at Capharnaum, and thus in the Lord's absence.

74. (Vers. 47.). When this man had heard that Jesus came from Judea into Galilee, because the fame of his coming had spread abroad: Mark 1: "His fame went forth immediately into all the region of Galilee"; he went to him, out of devotion: Matthew 8: "A centurion came to him, beseeching him," etc. And he besought him to come down, through bodily presence: above, chapter 2: "He went down to Capharnaum, he and his Mother," etc. And heal his son, through wondrous power: Luke 6: "Power went forth from him and healed all." For he was beginning to die, through natural powerlessness: 4 Kings 20, it was said to Hezekiah: "You shall die and not live," according, namely, to lower causes. And because this royal official, although he was asking, did not yet firmly believe, therefore the Lord rebuked him for unbelief. On account of which he says:

75. (Vers. 48.). Jesus therefore said to him: Unless you see signs and wonders, you do not believe: and thus you are hard toward believing. Signs are lesser, but wonders are greater miracles. Concerning this hardness of the Jews, below in the twelfth chapter: "Although he had done so many signs before them, they did not believe in him"; by contrast, the Samaritans believed by the word alone, as was proven above.

76. (Vers. 49.). The royal official said to him. The third point is touched upon here, namely the obtaining of the miracle, which, even though it did not come about on account of perfect faith, was nevertheless done on account of the father's insistence. Whence the royal official again asks: Lord, come down before my son dies. Because he asked insistently, he obtained; Matthew 7: "Everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it shall be opened"; and Luke 11: "And if he will not give to him because he is his friend, yet because of his importunity he will rise and give him as many as he needs"—namely, loaves. Therefore it is added:

77. (Vers. 50.). Jesus says to him: Go, your son lives, that is, he has been made well. He says lives because he had recovered from a mortal illness. And indeed the man merited this, because, although he did not yet believe in Christ, he nevertheless believed the word of Christ. Therefore it says: The man believed the word that Jesus spoke to him, and went his way. The Gloss: "Thus he merited health for his son." Whence the Lord said to the man asking for the health of his son in Mark 9: "If you can believe, all things are possible to him who believes"; that is, they can be obtained from him.

78. (Vers. 51.). And as he was now going down. The fourth point is touched upon here, namely the building up of faith, which came about from the knowledge of the power and the miracle, which he learned from the report of his servants. On account of which it says: And as he was now going down, his servants met him; namely, having good news, they did not wait until he reached home. They met him hastening with joy, as servants to their lord: Matthew 25: "Behold, the bridegroom comes, go out to meet him." And they reported to him that his son lived, that is, that he had been healed.

79. (Vers. 52.). He therefore inquired the hour in which he had gotten better, so that through the hour he might recognize in his son the power of Christ. And they said to him: Yesterday at the seventh hour the fever left him: and from this he recognized the power of Christ. Whence there follows:

80. (Vers. 53.). The father therefore knew that it was at that hour in which Jesus said to him: Your son lives, and thus that he had been healed by his powerful word: according to that passage in Wisdom 16: "Neither herb nor poultice healed them, but your word, O Lord." And from this knowledge follows the building up of faith. Therefore it says: And he himself believed, and his whole household. Now with perfect faith he himself believed on account of this second sign, who nevertheless had not believed on account of the first. Therefore the Evangelist adds:

81. (Vers. 54.). This again is the second sign that Jesus performed: the second, namely with respect to the one that took place at the wedding: when he had come from Judea into Galilee, so that, because they had not believed through the first, they might believe through the second: Exodus four, the Lord said to Moses: "If they will not believe nor hearken to the voice of the first sign, they will believe the voice of the latter sign."

82. Morally. Here it must be considered who the royal official is, who the royal official's son is, by what infirmity he is held, and at what hour he is healed. - The king is said to be the higher part of reason, to which the whole kingdom of the soul is entrusted for judging: whence in the Psalm: And now, O kings, understand. He is called a royal official on account of the smallness of his justice, when he rules the soul badly and childishly: Ecclesiastes ten: Woe to the land whose king is a child, and whose princes eat in the morning!

The son of this king is said to be the lower part of reason, which is of the same nature and is to be instructed by it: Ecclesiasticus thirty: He who teaches his son shall be praised.

This king's son is sick with fever, when reason follows concupiscence, which is like a hot and putrid fever: Ecclesiasticus twenty-three: A burning soul, like a blazing fire, will not be quenched until it devours something. This concupiscence, like a fever, disturbs a man, now with heat, now with cold: Isaiah fifty-seven: The wicked are like a raging sea that cannot rest, and its waves cast up filth and mire.

He is set free at the seventh hour of the day. The day here can be called Christ, because he himself is the sun shining upon the earth: below, chapter eight: I am the light of the world.

The hours of this day are the various states of Christ, from the consideration of which the soul is freed from its various sicknesses.

83. The first hour is the incarnation, and this liberates from pride by illuminating unto humility, because he humbled himself in the incarnation: Philippians two: He emptied himself, taking the form of a servant.

The second is the nativity, and this liberates from avarice by illuminating toward poverty, because Christ was born poor, as is said in Luke 2: She brought forth her firstborn Son and wrapped him in swaddling clothes and laid him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn. - The third is the circumcision, and this liberates from disobedience by illuminating toward obedience. For although Christ was not subject to the Law, nevertheless he subjected himself to the Law; whence that word of the Apostle in 1 Corinthians 9 is rightly said of him: Though I was free from all, I made myself a servant of all. - The fourth is the manifestation, and this liberates from envy by illuminating toward the sharing of doctrine, because he then revealed knowledge of himself to the nations; Wisdom 7: I rejoiced in all things, because this wisdom went before me, which I share without envy, and I do not hide her honor. - The fifth is the offering in the temple, and this liberates from ingratitude by illuminating toward prayer, since the Lord himself was then offered in the temple as a sign that through gratitude man ought to offer his whole self; Luke 2: they brought the child Jesus to Jerusalem, to present him before the Lord.

The sixth is his baptism, and this liberates from uncleanness by illuminating toward newness of life, because Christ was washed in the river Jordan; Matthew 3: Jesus came from Galilee to the Jordan, to be baptized by him; 1 Peter 3: Baptism saves, not the putting away of the filth of the flesh, etc.

The seventh is the temptation during the fast, and this liberates the ruler's son from fever by illuminating toward the mortification of the flesh, because Christ then mortified his flesh by his fasting; Matthew 4: Jesus was led into the desert by the Spirit, to be tempted by the devil; and when he had fasted forty days and forty nights, afterward he was hungry.

The eighth is the passion, and this liberates from wrath by illuminating toward patience, because Christ in suffering was most patient; 1 Peter 2: Christ suffered for us, leaving you an example, that you might follow in the footsteps of him who committed no sin, nor was deceit found in his mouth.

The ninth is the descent into hell, and this liberates from hardness of heart by illuminating toward mercy, because the Lord had mercy on those who were in darkness and the shadow of death; Zechariah 9: You also, by the blood of your covenant, have sent forth your prisoners from the pit. The greatest mercy is to give one's blood for captives.

The tenth is the repose in the sepulcher, and this liberates from the affliction of the world by illuminating toward peace, because Christ rested in the sepulcher; Psalm: In peace, in the selfsame, I will sleep and I will rest; and again: In peace his dwelling place was made.

Eleventh, the resurrection, and this liberates from the oldness of life by illuminating toward newness of life, because then Christ was made a new man: Romans 6: As Christ rose from the dead through the glory of the Father, so we also should walk in newness of life.

Twelfth, the ascension, and this liberates from the love of earthly things by illuminating toward the desire for eternal things, to which Christ has preceded us: Colossians 3: Seek the things that are above, where Christ is seated at the right hand of God: mind the things that are above, not the things that are upon the earth.

QUESTIONS.


84. Question I. There is a question about what he says, that a prophet has no honor in his own country.

Against this: 1. Because a man is not honored except where he is known: therefore if he is known among his countrymen, not among foreigners, it seems that he would be honored more in his own country than in a foreign one.

2. Likewise we see that the prophet David had the honor of kingship in his own country.

Likewise it seems that Christ did have honor. For it is said in the text that the Galileans received him: therefore they honored him.

I respond: It must be said that a prophet is not honored in his own country for a twofold reason: both by reason of carnal generation, and by reason of familiar association. By reason of generation: for when he has a father and mother who are ignoble, lowly, and poor, as Christ was believed to have, he is despised on account of them. By reason of familiar association, because familiarity breeds contempt: therefore, since they knew Christ's parents to be poor and knew his upbringing, they believed there was nothing divine in him.

1. As to the objection that acquaintance causes a man to be honored: it must be said that acquaintance with virtue assists, but acquaintance with origin and weakness hinders.

3. As to the objection about David and other prophets, it must be answered that "a rule should not be pronounced from rarely occurring cases." And because this rarely occurs, therefore etc. - As to the objection that they received him: Augustine responds that they received him outwardly in a bodily manner, but not inwardly through faith: and this is not the honor the Lord requires. For the Lord does not place importance on a festival of the arm, but on a faithful mind.

85. Question II. Likewise Gregory asks about this royal official, whether he believed or not.

That he did not, it seems:

Because the Lord rebukes him: Unless you see signs and wonders, you do not believe.

2. This same thing is argued from the text: because he was asking him to come down, as if he could not heal except in his presence.

But against this: if he did not believe, how did he seek the health of his son from the Lord?

I respond: It must be said that he did believe, but incompletely: he believed that in Christ there was the power to save his son; but he did not believe that in him there was Divinity, through which he could act everywhere. Hence there was faith when he sought healing, but a defect of faith when he required bodily presence.

86. Question III. Likewise the said Gregory asks: whence is it that the Lord offered to go to the servant of the centurion, but when asked, refused to go to the son of the royal official?

I respond: It must be said that this was for the edification of faith and morals: of faith, because, while He offered Himself to the centurion, He manifested to us the devotion of his faith; while He withdrew Himself from the son of the royal official, by healing him in absence, He invited him to faith in His Divinity. But for the edification of morals, so that He might restrain our pride, who venerate the great and despise the lowly, the Lord offered to go to the servant of the centurion, and refused to go to the son of the royal official.