Chapter 5
Chapter V.
Second, the calling of the disciples is determined through two things.
1. It came to pass, when the crowds
etc. Above, the Evangelist treated of the authentication of Christ's doctrine; in this part he treats of the calling of the disciples.
And this part has two sections, in the first of which is described the calling of disciples from a state of justice:
in the second, from a state of sin: After these things he went out and saw
etc.
First, how the disciples are called from a state of justice.
The first part has two sections. In the first is set forth the calling of the disciples:
in the second, the confirmation
of those called through the working of miracles: And it came to pass, when he was in one of the cities etc.
For the calling
of the disciples,
three things are introduced: the first is the instruction of the people:
the second, the working of a miracle,
at the passage: But when he had ceased speaking
etc.; the third is the calling of Peter,
at the passage: When Simon Peter saw this.
The first of these pertains to the profundity of wisdom,
through which he taught others: the second, to the sublimity of power,
through which he worked miracles: the third, to the immensity of mercy,
by which he drew poor little fishermen into his fellowship. These follow in order, because the circumstances of the instruction of the people were the introductory occasion for the working of the miracle, and the working of the miracle was the motivating reason for the conversion of Peter and the sons of Zebedee.
Therefore the instruction of the people
is described under four circumstances, which led to the catching of fish. The first is the insistence of the crowd:
the second, the availability of the boat:
the third, the obedience of Simon Peter:
the fourth, the abundance of the Lord's discourse.
2. (Verse 1). First, therefore, the importunity of the people rushing upon him on account of his teaching is touched upon, when it is said: Now it came to pass, that the crowds rushed upon him to hear the word of God. Therefore they rushed upon him, because each one wished to draw near; and not without reason, because, in Deuteronomy thirty-three, "those who draw near to his feet shall receive of his doctrine." Nor did the ignorant alone wish to draw near on account of doctrine or knowledge, but also the infirm on account of recovering health: below in chapter six: "The whole crowd sought to touch him, because power went forth from him and healed all." Nor only for this reason, but sinners on account of pardon: whence below in chapter fifteen: "The publicans and sinners were drawing near to Jesus." And they were moved by vehement desire; therefore they rushed upon him, considering the Lord's goodness more than his majesty. Whence a certain expositor says: "The desire for the word of God is of great merit before God, which excuses even the very irreverence of the crowd rushing upon him." Whence the Lord especially invited to this: Isaiah fifty-five: "All you who thirst, come to the waters," namely the waters of saving wisdom. As a sign of which thing he was near the waters; whence it is also added: And he stood by the lake of Genesareth, that he might invite to the waters of wisdom, as in John seven: "Jesus stood and cried out: If anyone thirsts, let him come to me and drink."
3. And note that this body of water was accustomed to be called by diverse names, namely the Sea of Cenereth: whence in Numbers thirty-four, in the division of lots, it is said that "from the eastern region they shall come toward the east to the Sea of Cenereth." — The Gloss there says: "The lake of Tiberias, according to the custom of the Hebrews, who call any gathering of waters a sea," according to that passage in Genesis one: "And the gatherings of the waters he called seas," etc. And because Herod afterward called this city Tiberias, because he rebuilt it in honor of Tiberius Caesar, therefore it is called the Sea of Tiberias: John six: "After these things Jesus went across the Sea of Galilee, which is that of Tiberias."
And because it draws its origin from the Jordan, therefore it is called the Lake of Jordan.
And because it is in the region of Galilee, therefore the Sea of Galilee.
And because floods occur there, and breezes are generated there, therefore it is called the Lake of Genesareth, that is, generating breezes.
It is also called the Lake of Salt Pits.
Beside that lake Jesus stood, so that he who had worked miracles on land might work them also upon the waters; whence, according to what is gathered from diverse passages, the Lord worked many miracles at that lake: in the catching of fish, in the calming of storms, and in the walking upon the waves.
4. (Vers. 2.). Second, there is added the opportunity of a boat lifting him up upon the water, when it is added: And he saw two boats, opportune, namely, for carrying, both because they were near: on account of which he says: Standing by the lake; and also because they were idle or empty; whence he also adds: But the fishermen had gone out and were washing their nets: and thus they were opportune for service. He saw these boats of poor fishermen near to himself, because, as is said in the Psalm, "The Lord is exalted, and he regards the lowly, and the lofty he knows from afar." And he saw these as opportune for himself for service, according to that passage of Ecclesiasticus 3: "Great is the power of God alone, and he is honored by the humble alone." Whence he also humbles himself, so that he who carries all things might be carried by a boat: Wisdom 14: "But you, Father, in your providence govern all things, because you have given a way in the sea and among the waves a most firm path, showing that you are able to come to the aid of all, even if someone should approach the sea without a vessel."
5. (Vers. 3.). Third, there is added the obedience of Simon separating from the crowd, when it is added: But going up into one of the boats, which was Simon's, choosing him as poor and humble, according to that passage of James 2: "Has not God chosen the poor of this world, rich in faith, heirs of the kingdom which God has promised to those who love him?" He went up, however, not by tyrannically oppressing, but by humbly entreating. Whence he adds: He asked him to put out a little from the land, so that, namely, he might separate a little from the crowd and be lifted up from the land. For he who wishes to teach others ought by interior affection to despise earthly things and by outward conduct to surpass the crowds: whence in Exodus 23 it is said: "You shall not follow the crowd to do evil, nor in judgment shall you yield to the opinion of the majority," etc. — Note here the humility of the Lord, by which he asked Peter, his servant: which he left to be imitated by all prelates, so that they too might ask their subjects: whence the Apostle in First Thessalonians 4, "We ask and beseech you in the Lord Jesus," etc.; both because, as Ambrose says, "forced services do not please God"; and because, as Seneca says, "the spirit of man is noble and is more easily led than dragged."
6. Lastly, there is added the abundance of the discourse of Christ
teaching from the boat, when it is added: And sitting, he taught the crowds from the boat. For to sit
pertains to the authority of the person teaching;
Matthew 5: "When he had sat down, his disciples came to him"; and also to the excellence of one judging
; the Psalm: "You sit upon the throne,
you who judge justice." For this sitting designates judicial authority, because God sits upon the Thrones
to judge. Moreover, he is again said in the Psalm to sit upon the Cherubim,
when it is said: "You who sit upon the Cherubim, appear before Ephraim," etc.: because Cherubim
is interpreted as fullness of knowledge, and he who sits in the place of teacher ought to be full of wisdom, so that from his fullness all disciples may receive.
And from this fullness the crowd was receiving; whence it is also said: He taught the crowds:
Joel 2: "Daughters of Zion, exult and rejoice in the Lord your God, because he has given you the teacher of justice and will cause the early and the latter rain to descend upon you, as in the beginning." And therefore he stood upon the sea,
because from the incomprehensible deep he transmits to us, as it were, a small dew of wisdom; Job 26: "If we have scarcely heard a drop of his words, who will be able to behold the thunder of his greatness"?
Moreover, he taught the crowds,
that is, the simple and the humble, because, Proverbs 3, "and his conversation is with the simple"; Matthew 11: "You have hidden these things from the wise and the prudent, and have revealed them to little ones." And the reason for this is that the crowds did not seek subtle things, but useful things; and of such the Lord is the teacher; Isaiah 48: "I am the Lord, teaching you useful things, governing you in the way by which you walk."
7. Morally,
however, it should be noted that in Christ teaching
a model is given to the preacher:
he is introduced as standing,
as seeing,
as ascending,
and as sitting.
For it belongs to a true and good preacher to stand
through uprightness of intention:
Ezekiel 2, it was said to him in the person of a preacher: "Stand upon your feet, and I will speak with you."
It belongs to him to see
through the diligence of discernment:
for thus it is said in Proverbs 27: "Diligently know the countenance of your cattle, and consider your flocks." — It belongs to him to ascend
through the exercise of perfect action:
Isaiah 40: "Ascend upon a high mountain, you who evangelize Zion."
It belongs to him to sit
through the leisure
of contemplation:
Lamentations 3: "He will sit solitary and will be silent, because he has lifted himself above himself." — Concerning these four together it is said in Jeremiah 6: "Stand upon your ways," behold, uprightness of intention; "ask about the ancient paths, which is the good way," behold, the solicitude of discernment; "and walk in it," through the exercise of action; "and you will find rest for your souls," through the leisure of contemplation.
8. In the crowd
however pressing in,
a model is given for the hearer.
On account of which note that the Evangelist introduces the crowds in relation to Jesus: first seeking,
second coming,
third detaining;
and concerning these three, above in the preceding [section]: fourth pressing in,
as here: fifth accompanying,
below in the fourteenth [chapter]: "A great crowd went with Jesus"; sixth following after,
below in the twenty-third [chapter]: "A great multitude of women followed Jesus," etc.
For good hearers ought to seek
wisdom by the zeal of meditation; Wisdom 8: "Her I loved and sought out from my youth."
They ought to come
to him by the desire of affection, according to that word of the Psalm: "My soul thirsted for the strong, living God"; etc.
They ought to detain
[him] by the persistence of prayer, according to that word of Song of Songs 3: "I held him and will not let him go." But alas, that word of Isaiah 64 has been verified: "There is none who calls upon your name, who rises up and holds you."
They ought to press in
by the impulse of devotion: in Ezekiel 1 it is said of the holy living creatures: "Where the impulse of the spirit was, there they went." - They ought to accompany
[him] by the conformity of good works, as Enoch: Genesis 5: "He walked with God and appeared no more, because God took him."
- They ought also to follow
by the imitation of [his] passion; 1 Peter 2: "He suffered for us, leaving you an example, that you might follow his footsteps." To such as these glory is promised: Matthew 19: "Amen I say to you, that you who have left all things and followed me shall receive a hundredfold and shall possess eternal life."
9. (Verse 4.). But when he ceased speaking,
etc. After the instruction of the people, the working of a miracle
is added. Concerning the description of which, four things are introduced: on the part of Christ, the loftiness of power;
on the part of Peter, the certainty of trust;
on the part of the miracle, the abundance of plenty; on the part of the company, the readiness of assistance.
In Christ,
therefore, the loftiness of power
for working the miracle is intimated, when it is said: When he ceased
however to speak,
namely through the teaching of truth—because it is the Lord's to confirm his word with signs following, Mark last [chapter]—he said to Simon,
through the command of authority, whom one must obey in all things, according to the counsel of the Virgin, John 2, at the first miracle: "Whatever he shall say to you, do it." - And the command follows: Put out into the deep,
that is, into the deep sea, where namely there is a multitude of fish, as he beheld with the eyes of Divinity: Sirach 23: "The eyes of the Lord are far brighter than the sun, surveying all the ways of men and the depths of the abyss." And therefore he adds: And let down your nets for a catch.
So too, in the last [chapter] of John, after the resurrection: "Cast the net to the right side of the boat, and you shall find." He says this by way of command, to show that "God subjected all things under his feet, the birds of the air and the fish of the sea," etc.
10. (Verse 5.). In Peter,
moreover, is intimated the certainty of confidence
for obtaining the miracle, when it is added: And Simon answering said to him: Master,
he calls him not only teacher,
but also master,
believing him to have not only knowledge for teaching, but also power for acting. Nor does Peter the fisherman unreasonably address Christ by such a name, because Isaiah fifty-five: "Behold, I have given him as a witness to the people, a leader and master to the nations"; and the thirtieth chapter: "Your eyes shall see your master, and your ears shall hear the word of one admonishing from behind."
And since true confidence does not rest upon one's own powers, but upon divine powers, therefore he adds: Having labored through the whole night, we have caught nothing,
and thus I would not cast out, trusting in my own powers and industry; whence he could say that word of Isaiah forty-nine: "Without cause and in vain have I consumed my strength"; and Job seven: "I have had empty months and have numbered laborious nights for myself," as if to say: I trust not in my own, but in your powers.
And therefore he concludes: But at your word I will let down the net.
And not without merit, because he himself says in Isaiah fifty-five: "My word, which shall go forth from my mouth, shall not return to me empty, but shall accomplish whatever I have willed, and shall prosper in all things for which I sent it." Whence concerning Peter can be said that word from Romans four: "In the promise of God he did not hesitate with distrust, but was strengthened in faith, knowing most fully," etc.
11. (Verse 6.). In the miracle,
moreover, is intimated the abundance of plenty
for magnifying the miracle itself, when it is added: And when they had done this, they enclosed a great multitude of fish.
And thus was verified that word of John fourteen: "Whatever you shall ask the Father in my name, this I will do." Behold, already the belief of Peter was obtaining miracles; whence he himself, on account of the foundation of his faith, merited to be called Peter
from the firmness of rock; whence shortly after the Evangelist adds: "When Simon Peter saw this," etc. And therefore below in the twenty-second chapter it is said to him: "I have prayed for you, Peter, that your faith may not fail." And since the abundance of the multitude was not only sufficient but also superabundant, therefore it is added: Now the net was breaking,
namely on account of the exceedingly great multitude.
12. And note that the Lord, by the same miracle by which he was able to gather fish into the nets, was able to preserve the nets, just as he also did in the last chapter of John, where it is said: "And although there were so many, the net was not torn"—the net of Peter himself. But this happened on account of the figure,
because the miracles of the Lord, as Gregory says, always suggest to us something to be more diligently considered. For that catch of fish signifies the congregation of the elect after the resurrection in glory; but this one signifies the congregation of those called to the Church before the resurrection. And because in that one no one enters who departs, while from this one many depart, therefore here the net is torn, but there not at all. Hence it is that that catch is said to have been on the right side of the boat,
but this one not; that one distinguishes in a determinate number, but this one does not; here the boats are nearly sunk on account of the multitude of temptations, but there they rest on land; here Christ rests in the boat, but there on the shore.
13. (Verse 7). In the partnership,
moreover, is suggested the readiness of assistance
for manifesting the miracle, when it is added: And they beckoned to their partners who were in the other boat,
that is, they showed or signaled by a nod, because, in Tobit 12, "it is honorable to reveal and confess the works of God." Whence a certain author says: "The possession of no good thing is pleasant without a companion," according to that passage of Ecclesiastes 4: "It is better for two to be together than one, for they have the advantage of their companionship." — As a sign of which it is added: That they should come and help them,
because, according to that passage of Proverbs 18, "a brother who is helped by a brother is like a strong city." And certainly, as it is said in the same place, "a man friendly to companionship will be more a friend than a brother." — And this is manifestly proven by their readiness in helping; and therefore it is added: And they came and filled both boats.
And thus that passage of Proverbs 10 was verified: "The blessing of the Lord makes rich"; whence they could say that passage of Tobit 12: "We have been filled with all good things through him." This filling,
moreover, as was touched upon, signifies the filling of the Church: Matthew 13: "The kingdom of heaven is like a net cast into the sea and gathering from every kind of fish," etc. — And therefore it is added: So that they were nearly sinking,
because the wicked are so multiplied that we are nearly all submerged, according to that passage of Matthew 24: "Because iniquity has abounded, the charity of many will grow cold," etc. But nevertheless the ship of Peter is not submerged; Paul, however, says in 2 Corinthians 11: "Three times I suffered shipwreck."
14. Morally,
it should be noted here who these fishermen
are, what their boats
are, what the nets
are, and what the manner of catching
is.
The fishermen
are preachers: whence below in the same chapter: "From now on you will be catching men"; and Matthew 4: "I will make you become fishers of men"; and this from Jeremiah 16: "Behold, I will send you many fishers, and they shall fish them." And the devil on the contrary has his own evil fishers and heretical seducers: Habakkuk 1: "You make men like the fish of the sea. They lift up the whole with a hook, he dragged it in his dragnet and gathered it in his net." And certainly now evil fishers so prevail that the good ones scarcely have a place: and that word of Isaiah 19 has been fulfilled: "The fishers shall mourn, and all who cast a hook into the river shall lament, and those who spread a net upon the face of the waters."
15. The boats,
moreover, by which the sea is crossed, are two, namely obedience
and patience,
of which the one exercises in labor, the other endures in sorrow. And concerning the first, that passage of Wisdom 14 can be understood: "Men entrust their souls to a small piece of wood, and crossing the sea by a raft they were delivered," etc. This is obedience,
which, though it be small, leads to the blessed land. Concerning the second,
that passage of Acts 27 can be understood: "Unless you remain in the ship, you cannot be saved"; this is said of those who were in the storm, because, Hebrews 10, "patience is necessary for you, so that doing the will of God, you may receive the promise"; where these two boats are touched upon, concerning which it is said together in the Psalm: "They who go down to the sea in ships, performing work," which pertains to obedience,
"in many waters," namely of tribulation, which pertains to patience:
"because through many tribulations we must enter into the kingdom of God."
16. The nets,
moreover, are discernment
and speech,
which ought to be joined together in turn for the instruction of the people through the craft of the Holy Spirit; Lamentations 1: "From on high he sent fire into my bones and instructed me: he spread a net for my feet"; Colossians 4: "Walk in wisdom toward those who are outside. Let your speech always be seasoned with the salt of grace, that you may know," etc. These nets
are woven together when sermons are composed from the words of Scripture gathered into a single series, in which usefulness rather than subtlety is to be attended to. Whence the Lord threatens the curious in Isaiah 19: "They shall be confounded who worked in linen, combing and weaving fine things." By these nets simple laypeople are more easily caught than learned clerics: whence Proverbs 1: "In vain is the net cast before the eyes of the winged"; but such people are caught in the net of worldly wisdom; Proverbs 7: "She ensnared him with many words and drew him forth with the flatteries of her lips."
17. The manner of catching
is to put out the boats into the deep,
that is, to ascend to the perfection of life, and to let down the nets for a catch,
through preaching; which two things ought to be joined together according to the example of the Savior: Acts chapter one: "Jesus began to do and to teach," for Gregory says: "He whose life is despised, it follows that his preaching be condemned." Whence it pertains especially to those to let down the nets in preaching who have been able to ascend to the summit of perfection; and therefore the Apostle said in Romans chapter fifteen: "I dare not speak of anything which Christ has not wrought through me."
18. (Vers. 8.). When Simon Peter saw this.
After the instruction of the people and the working of the miracle, there follows the calling of Peter and the sons of Zebedee.
For the perfection of which, four things are shown to have concurred, namely the humiliation of Peter,
disposing him to grace; wonder,
elevating him to understanding; the reassurance of Christ,
establishing him in confidence; the imitation of the Master,
leading him to perfect righteousness.
First, therefore, there is set forth the humiliation of Peter disposing him to grace,
when it says: When Simon Peter saw this, he fell down at the knees of Jesus.
From the miracle he had seen, he was humbled, by magnifying the divine majesty;
and rightly so, because in Philippians chapter two, "at the name of Jesus every knee should bow," etc.; and Isaiah chapter forty-five: "Every knee shall bow to me, and every tongue shall swear." And Peter did this as if inviting others to do likewise, so that he might say that word of the Psalm: "Come, let us adore and fall down," etc.
He was also humbled by recoiling into his own littleness;
whence he adds: Saying: Depart from me, Lord, for I am a sinful man,
as if to say: I am not such that I am worthy to be together with you. He said this from faith and reverence, just as that centurion in Matthew chapter eight: "Lord, I am not worthy that you should enter under my roof." But Peter said this because he saw the power and did not perceive the clemency, by which he said in Matthew chapter nine: "I came not to call the just, but sinners." Whence Augustine says: "Peter speaks as a fisherman: he had God and the Lord of salvation with him and was saying: Depart from me—as if a sick man were to say to a physician wishing to cure him: withdraw from me, for I am ill." And Gregory says: "Peter, on the contrary, if you consider yourself a sinner, it is needful that you not drive the Lord from you." But certainly by humbling himself thus he was not driving him away, but drawing him near: Isaiah the last chapter: "To whom shall I look, but to the poor and contrite in spirit and him who trembles at my words?"
19. (Vers. 9.). Secondly there is added the admiration elevating to understanding,
which was the reason for the humiliation in Peter. And he notes this when he says: For astonishment had surrounded him.
In the surrounding
is noted the vehemence of the astonishment: Isaiah 29, "Behold, I will proceed to do a marvelous thing among this people, a great and stupendous miracle." - And lest you believe that he alone marveled, but that others also were witnesses of the miracle, there is added: And all who were with him, at the catch of fish which they had taken,
that is, on account of the great and unusual catch all marveled, according to that of the Psalm: "They who go down to the sea in ships," "they saw the works of the Lord and his wonders in the deep."
20. (Vers. 10.). And because other disciples were called with Peter, therefore there is added: And likewise also
James and John, sons of Zebedee, astonishment namely had surrounded them, who were likewise fishermen: whence there is also added: Who were partners of Simon.
Whence just as they were partners in the exercise of fishing, so also in the dignity of calling, Revelation 1: "I John, your brother and partaker in tribulation and the kingdom"; 2 Corinthians 1: "Knowing that as you are partakers of the sufferings, so shall you be also of the consolations."
And note that just as these three were partners in fishing, so also they were in calling: and just as they were called together, so they were together chosen and taken up for the working of miracles: below, chapter 8: "He permitted no one to enter with him except Peter and James and John"; together taken up for the transfiguration: below, chapter 9: "He took with him Peter and James and John" etc.; together also taken up for prayer; Mark 14: "And he took with him Peter and James" etc.
21. Thirdly there is added the alleviation of Christ establishing confidence,
when it is said: And Jesus said to Simon: Do not be afraid.
He does not exclude the fear of reverence and humility, because that is "the beginning of wisdom," and of that it is said in Sirach 1: "He who is without fear cannot be justified," but he excludes the fear of pusillanimity, which is opposed to confidence: concerning which, Genesis 15: "Do not be afraid, Abraham; for I am your protector"; and Joshua 1: "Do not be afraid, for I am with you." - And lest he be terrified at lesser things, he promises greater things, when he adds: From henceforth you shall be catching men:
which is much greater than catching fish. The Gloss: "He is not yet chosen for the apostolate, but it is foretold that he is someday to be chosen"; Matthew 4: "Come after me, and I will make you fishers of men." And he addresses Peter specially, because to him specially this care is committed: whence Matthew 16: "I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven" etc. - And note that he says: catching men,
not gold, according to that of 2 Corinthians 12, "I seek not yours, but you"; and Philippians 4: "I seek not the gift, but the fruit."
22. (Vers. 11.). Fourth, there is added the perfect imitation of the Master leading to perfect justice,
when it is added: And having brought the boats to land,
so that they might leave them there: whence it also follows: Having left all things;
below in the fourteenth chapter: "Everyone among you who does not renounce all that he possesses cannot be my disciple." He says pointedly all things,
because, as Gregory says, "so much was left behind by those who followed as could have been desired by those who did not follow"; and because all things could have been desired, therefore all things were left behind. Whence Gregory: "He left behind much who retained nothing for himself; he left behind much who abandoned even, together with the thing he had, the will of having."
"And because it is not sufficient to leave one's own things, since some philosophers did this," it is added: They followed him.
Whence Peter, in Matthew nineteen: "Behold, we have left all things and followed you," namely through the counsels; Job twenty-three: "My foot has followed his steps"; because "it is a great glory to follow the Lord," Sirach twenty-three: thus Elisha followed Elijah, Third Kings nineteen.
23. And note that there appears to be a contradiction between Luke, Matthew, and John regarding place,
regarding time,
regarding manner: because John says by the Jordan
and before the coming
into Galilee and individually:
but these, Matthew and Luke, say they were called after the coming, in Galilee,
and together.
— And therefore it should be understood that these disciples were called once to simple acquaintance,
and of this John one speaks: secondly to familiarity,
and of this it is spoken here, because they still returned, as the Gloss says; thirdly to discipleship
or apostleship, and of this is spoken in Matthew four and Mark one: and therefore there is no contradiction or diversity in places and times and other circumstances.
24. And it happened, when he was in one of the cities, etc.
After the calling of the disciples, he here adds their confirmation through miracles.
And this part has two sections. In the first, the miracle of the healing of the leper is introduced:
in the second, the liberation of the paralytic,
at: And it happened on one of the days.
Concerning the miracle of the healing of the leper,
three things are introduced. The first is the working of the miracle.
The second is the instruction of the leper,
at: And he commanded him,
etc. The third is the edification of the people,
at: But the report about him spread all the more,
etc.
Concerning the working of the miracle,
three things are to be noted, namely the pitiable infection of the disease, the commendable devotion of the sick man,
and the admirable operation of the physician.
25. (Vers. 12.). First, therefore, the miserable infection of the disease is touched upon, when it says: And it happened, when he was in one of the cities: because the disease was public and perpetual: public, because in a city, where many gather, and thus the infirmity was known to many. And it should be noted that he is said to have been in the city, because he was near the city. For in Matthew chapter eight it is said of this leper that he healed him on the descent from the mountain; whence it can be taken here, as below in chapter thirteen: "It cannot be that a prophet perish outside Jerusalem"; because, as is said in Hebrews chapter thirteen, Christ "suffered outside the gate."
The disease was also perpetual: whence he also adds: Behold, a man full of leprosy, which is an incurable infirmity, especially when it is deep-rooted. Whence that saying of Isaiah chapter one could apply to him: "From the sole of the foot to the top of the head there is no soundness in him." He was also similar to Job, of whom in chapter two: "Satan struck Job with a most grievous sore, from the sole of the foot to the top of the head, who scraped the corruption with a potsherd."
26. Second, the commendable devotion of the leper is intimated, when it says: And seeing Jesus, because by seeing he adored and praised. - He adored by sign, when it says: And falling on his face, which is the manner of those who adore, as in the Psalm: "Come, let us adore and fall down" etc.; and this the devil demanded, in Matthew chapter four: "All these things I will give you, if falling down you adore me." Whence by this sign he professed that he was the Son of God, like that blind man, of whom in John chapter nine: "Do you believe in the Son of God? Who is he, Lord?" etc.: and afterwards it follows: "I believe, Lord. And falling down he adored him."
And note that he is said to have fallen on his face, which is a good sign: as is said of Moses and Aaron in Numbers chapter twenty, that they fell on their faces before the Lord: not like Eli, in First Kings chapter four: "Eli fell from his seat backwards " etc.
27. He also praised or professed by word, which is noted when it adds: He besought him saying: Lord, if you will, you can make me clean. In this, that he beseeches, he intimates generosity: Job chapter twenty-two: "You shall beseech him, and he will hear you." In this, that he says: Lord, he intimates dignity: Esther chapter thirteen: "Lord, all things are placed in your dominion." In this, that he adds: you can make me clean, he intimates the faculty of power; Wisdom chapter twelve: "Power is at your disposal whenever you will." And this is what Job said to the Lord, in chapter fourteen: "Who can make clean one conceived of unclean seed? Is it not you, who alone are?" And therefore he could say: "You shall sprinkle me with hyssop, and I shall be cleansed" etc.
28. (Vers. 13.). Third, the operation of the physician is added, when it says: Extending his hand, he touched him saying etc., which indeed was admirable both by reason of clemency, and by reason of power, and by reason of efficacy.
On account of clemency
he says: He touched him:
for although he could have healed by word alone, he preferred to touch, in order to show his benevolence: whence Proverbs, last chapter: "She opened her hand to the needy." Whence this man could no longer murmur against Christ, as Naaman did against Elisha: Fourth Kings, chapter five: "I thought that he would come out to me and touch the place of leprosy with his hand and heal me." But certainly there is no contradiction between the Prophet and the Lord, because the Prophet was subject to the Law, and therefore did not wish to touch, lest according to the Law he become unclean: but the Savior was above the Law, and therefore according to the Law he did not contract uncleanness and was able to abolish the Law, and therefore he touched. - To intimate his power,
there is added: Saying: I will, be cleansed.
In this he asserts that he wills, and commands that the man be cleansed, because he is of such great power that to will
is for him to be able to do:
Isaiah, chapter forty-six: "My counsel shall stand, and all my will shall be done." But he willed his cleansing not so much bodily as spiritual: whence First Thessalonians, chapter four: "This is the will of God: your sanctification." - To intimate the efficacy,
he adds: And immediately the leprosy departed from him,
so that there was nothing between the word and the deed; "for he spoke, and they were made." By word
therefore and by touch
he healed, in order to show himself the Word made flesh: by word
also and by touch
he healed, in order to heal interiorly and exteriorly: whence John, chapter seven: "I have made a whole man sound," etc. And in testimony of this, word and element concur equally in the Sacrament.
29. (Vers. 14.). And he commanded him to tell no one.
After the cure of the disease, the Evangelist here subjoins the instruction of the one cured.
But Christ teaches the cured leper, and in him anyone else, three things: the first is that the proclamation of praise is not to be sought:
the second, that the office of the priest is not to be despised:
the third is that the commandment of the Law is not to be passed over.
The first of these directs the intention:
the second, the affection:
and the third regulates the action.
He instructs therefore first that the proclamation of praise is not to be sought,
when he says: And he commanded him to tell no one.
He does not say this because he wished that the man would not speak, since the man preached this everywhere, as is said in Mark, chapter one; but he instructs by his own example to avoid praise. Whence Bede: "He gives an example so that his own, in the great things they do, may wish to be hidden; but that they may benefit others, they are revealed against their will." Ambrose also says this in the Gloss.
30. Whence note that there is a precept of execution,
as in Exodus, chapter twenty: "Honor your father"; and of testing,
as the precept to Abraham concerning the immolation of his son, Genesis, chapter twenty-two; and a precept of instruction,
as here. Whence this man did not sin when he spread abroad his name.
Chrysostom, however, says that it was a command, but for a time,
out of caution, lest, if perchance the priests heard that he had been healed by Christ, they would not receive him as clean when he presented himself to them, on account of the hatred they bore toward Christ.
The first interpretation, however, seems more correct, because He commanded this to other sick persons, who nevertheless did not observe it, according to what is said in Mark 7 concerning the deaf and mute man who was healed: "The more He commanded them, the more they proclaimed it." And rightly so, because, according to what is said in 2 Corinthians 12, "I ought to have been commended by you"; yet no one ought to praise himself unless compelled by the necessity of another. Hence the Apostle: "I have become foolish; you compelled me." Therefore he said that he had become foolish,
because he seemed to have acted against the counsel of the wise man: Proverbs 27: "Let another praise you, and not your own mouth; a stranger, and not your own lips."
31. He also teaches, secondly, that the office of the priest is not to be despised,
when He adds: But go, show yourself to the priests,
because their office was, according to the Law, to expel lepers and to receive those who had been cleansed, as is stated in Leviticus 13 and 14 throughout nearly the whole of those chapters. Now this office of discerning leprosy was committed to the priests,
although it might seem to pertain more to physicians,
because to them the wounds of mortal sins, which are signified by leprosy, are to be shown in the time of revealed truth, according to that passage in Ecclesiasticus 18: "In the time of sickness, show your manner of life," because, as is said in Proverbs 28, "he who conceals his crimes shall not prosper"; hence, although the Lord cleanses through interior contrition, He nonetheless binds one to sacramental confession. In this command, moreover, He teaches that the priestly office is to be venerated by all, and that it is necessary for the healing of sins. And this is the principal reason for this command. There are, however, also other reasons: namely, that they might be moved to good, having seen the miracle of the certain healing of the leper; and that they might be witnesses of the miracle; and lest He should seem to oppose them; and that the priestly dignity of Christ and the grace of the New Testament and priesthood might become known to them, which can not only show one who has been healed,
but also heal.
32. He instructs thirdly that the precept of the Law is not to be disregarded,
when he adds: And offer for your cleansing, as Moses commanded,
as in Leviticus 14, cleansed lepers are commanded to offer two living sparrows and a cake of bread and a measure of oil. These were ceremonial matters, and yet the Savior wished them to be offered, in order to show that the Law is good and divinely given, against the perfidy of the Manicheans: Romans 7: "The Law indeed is holy, and the commandment holy, just, and good"; and this, because they still remained in force, since the truth had not yet been revealed: whence the Interlinear Gloss
says that "the signs ought not to be taken away unless the things signified have first come." - But those signs of the Law did not give health, but showed it and confirmed it by testimony: and therefore he adds: For a testimony to them:
which can be read in two ways: offer to them for a testimony, namely of your healing; or: offer, so that this may be to them for a testimony that you have been healed, and so that they may no longer be able to harm you, since they will have received from you testimonial gifts. And note that this phrase for a testimony to them
does not refer to the precept of Moses, but of the Lord. Whence Chrysostom: "Do not understand it as though Moses commanded for a testimony to them, but rather: go and offer for a testimony to them," so that he might receive from them a testimony before the people. For, as is said in 1 Timothy 3, "it is necessary for the Saints to have a good testimony from those who are outside." Whence also the wondrous work of Christ ought to be approved by the testimony of those who lay in wait, for the perfect establishment of faith and its strengthening.
33. (Verse 15.) But the word went abroad all the more,
etc. After the Evangelist has described the healing of the disease and the instruction of the one healed, here thirdly he adds the magnification of the name of Christ,
so that from all these things the disciples may be confirmed in faith and love of Christ. The magnification of the name of Christ is therefore described as renowned,
as fruitful,
as powerful.
First, therefore, the magnification of the name of Christ is described here as renowned,
when it is said: But the word went abroad all the more concerning him,
namely Christ, the word
of his praise with respect to his knowledge and powers. Nor is it surprising if the fame of the Master was spreading, since of his disciples it is said in the Psalm: "Their sound has gone forth into all the earth." A figure of this preceded in Judas Maccabeus, of whom it is said in 1 Maccabees 3 that "he was made like a lion in his works"; and afterwards it is added that "he was renowned even to the ends of the earth."
34. Then the fruitful magnification of the name of Christ is shown,
when it is added: And great multitudes came together to hear:
namely for the instruction of the mind,
because it is written in Sirach 6: "If you love to hear, you will be wise"; and James 1: "You know, my brothers: Let every man be swift to hear."
They were also coming together on account of the cure on the part of the body;
and therefore he adds: And they were healed of their infirmities.
On account of which Isaiah was proclaiming in the fifty-third chapter: "Truly he himself bore our weaknesses, and he himself carried our infirmities." And therefore they were acting rightly according to the counsel of the Wise Man, Ecclesiasticus thirty-eight: "My son, in your infirmity do not despise yourself, but pray to the Lord, and he will heal you." - This therefore was the perfect benefit on the part of the soul and body,
which came from the fame of the name of Christ. For Christ himself is "the power of God and the wisdom of God"; and therefore those who come to him are illuminated through wisdom
and healed through power.
And therefore it is said in the Psalm: "Come to him and be enlightened, and your faces shall not be confounded"; and therefore Isaiah forty-nine: "I have given you as a light to the nations, that you may be my salvation unto the end of the earth."
35. (Verse 16.). Lastly it is shown to be virtuous,
when it is added: But he himself withdrew into the desert and prayed:
because he was not seeking human glory and fame, but was fleeing it, according to that passage in Matthew fourteen: "And having dismissed the crowd, he went up onto the mountain alone to pray." In this he was giving us a model of withdrawing from the world and drawing near to God: on account of which the Apostle said in Galatians one: "If I were still pleasing men, I would not be a servant of Christ." And therefore, for prayer to be pleasing to God, it ought not to be public in the marketplace, but hidden in the desert; whence Matthew six: "But you, when you pray, enter your chamber." And this is what Bernard says in the Canticles: "O holy soul, be alone, so that you may keep yourself for him alone out of all, whom you have chosen for yourself out of all. Flee the public, flee even your own household, withdraw from friends and intimates and from him who ministers to you. Do you not know that you have a modest bridegroom, one who will by no means grant you his presence while others are present? Withdraw therefore, but in mind, not in body: but in intention, but in devotion, but in spirit: although also in body you do not unprofitably separate yourself at times, especially in the time of prayer."
36. For the elucidation of the aforesaid miracle, two things are to be understood here. For first it is necessary to open up the hidden spiritual understanding,
then to resolve the apparent controversy.
Concerning this miracle, however, three things present themselves for consideration. The first is what is understood by the disease of leprosy;
second, what by the touch of the Lord's hand;
third, what by the precept of the Law
to be fulfilled.
- The disease of leprosy
rightly designates mortal sin, because, just as leprosy infects and deforms the flesh, so sin stains and deforms the soul; whence Lamentations, the last chapter: "Their face is made blacker than coals, their skin has clung to their bones." Leprosy also causes one to be cast out from the camp, and so mortal sin from the camp of glory; Ezekiel twenty-eight: "You sinned, and I cast you out from the mountain of God." - This disease, however, has a fourfold distinction, according to what is said in Leviticus thirteen. For there is leprosy in the flesh,
leprosy in the hair,
leprosy in garments,
leprosy in dwellings.
Leprosy in the flesh signifies carnal sin; leprosy in the hair of the beard or head, spiritual sin, because by hair
thoughts are understood; leprosy in a garment,
sin in one's manner of life; leprosy in a house,
sin in the congregation. He therefore is full of leprosy who is infected with all these sins. Concerning these distinctions of leprosy, it is spoken of in Leviticus thirteen. As a figure
of this, it is also said in Fourth Kings seven that four leprous men were at the gate of Samaria, to designate these four distinctions. The Lord therefore willed that mortal sin be designated by leprosy, so that, just as leprosy is fled both in itself and in association, so also sin.
37. By the touch of the Lord's hand
we understand the visitation of divine grace, which the Prophet sought: "Send forth your hand from on high and rescue me"; because, as it is said in Romans seven, "Wretched man that I am, who will deliver me from the body of this death? The grace of God through Jesus Christ our Lord." For through Christ the divine hand touches us, as it is said in the Song of Songs five: "My beloved put his hand through the opening," that is, grace through the opening of Christ's side, whence the Sacraments flow forth; "and my belly groaned," because this grace first gives birth to contrition; whence in the Psalm: "Who looks upon the earth and makes it tremble; who touches the mountains, and they smoke," because contrition gives birth to weeping. - But in order that the sinner may arrive at this state, it is necessary that, with the leper, he see
God through faith: First Corinthians thirteen: "We see now through a glass darkly"; it is necessary that he fall down
through fear: the Psalm: "Before him the Ethiopians shall fall down," that is, sinners; it is necessary that he trust
through hope: Proverbs twenty-nine: "He who hopes in the Lord shall be saved"; and Romans eight: "In hope we have been saved." And these three things give birth to contrition: Isaiah twenty-six: "Before your face, O Lord, we conceived and were as though in labor and brought forth the spirit of salvation."
38. By the precept of observing the Law
we understand the reception of the Sacrament of penance. Hence note that he commands four things, namely to go, to be silent, to show,
and to offer: to go,
when he says: Go: to be silent: Tell no one: to show: Show yourself: to offer: Offer the gift.
Go,
namely by abandoning sins, as to the adulteress, John 8: "Go and sin no more."
He commands to be silent
about good things, lest one be like that Pharisee, below in the eighteenth chapter, who said: "I am not like the rest of men." - He commands to show
evil things, as Job 31: "If I have hidden my sin as a man"? that is, no:
Psalm: "I made my transgression known to you." - He commands to offer
works of satisfaction; Psalm: "I will enter your house with holocausts: I will render to you my vows, which my lips have uttered"; Romans 12: "Present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy, pleasing to God, your reasonable service."
These four things necessarily concur for the perfect reception of the Sacrament of penance, namely the abandonment of sin, the humiliation of the sinner, the disclosure of sin, and the offering of satisfaction.
39. Finally, the apparent controversy
between Matthew and Luke must be resolved:
because Matthew says this miracle was performed after the Lord's sermon on the mount, here Luke narrates it long before the sermon. - To this there is a twofold way of resolving the controversy: either because the sermon Luke narrates was one, and the one Matthew narrates was another - The sign of which is that many things are said in the one sermon that are not said in the other - or because it was the same sermon differing according to greater and lesser explication. Then it must be noted that the Evangelists do not entirely preserve the order of events, but narrate in the manner that better serves the pursuit of their intention. Hence Augustine in the second book of On the Harmony of the Evangelists: "What does it matter in what order anyone places things, whether he inserts something in due order, or recalls something omitted, or anticipates beforehand what was done later, so long as he does not contradict the same or another narrator, or himself, or another? For it is sufficiently probable that each of the Evangelists believed he ought to narrate in that order in which God willed to suggest to his recollection those very things which he was narrating, at least in those matters whose order, whether this or that, diminishes nothing of evangelical authority and truth." - And by this the resolution of every contrariety that seems to arise from a different order is made clear.
40. And it came to pass on one of the days.
Having confirmed the disciples through the healing of the leper, here for greater firmness he confirms the same through the wondrous healing of the paralytic.
The Evangelist describes this admirable healing in the following order. For first is introduced the opportunity for performing the miracle:
second, the completeness of the miracle accomplished,
at: Whose faith
etc.: third, the renown of the miracle made public,
at: And astonishment seized
etc.
The opportunity now for performing the miracle is gathered from four things, namely from the multitude of the people present, from the readiness of the healing power, from the severity of the oppressing disease, from the solicitude of the faith of the one presenting.
41. (Verse 17). First, therefore, to designate the multitude of the people present, to whom the doctrine of truth was to be communicated, it is said: And it came to pass on one of the days, and Jesus sat teaching: He sat, I say, as the chief master and teacher on account of the multitude of His wisdom, as in Job chapter twenty-nine: " If I wished to go to them, I sat first; and when I sat as a king, with the army standing around, I was nevertheless the consoler of those who mourned ". In this manner indeed Christ sat in the midst of many; whence it is also added: And there were Pharisees sitting and doctors of the Law. For they among others are the more excellent, the Pharisees in observing and the doctors of the Law in instructing. And for this reason they too are called sitting, because in Matthew chapter twenty-three: " Upon the chair of Moses the scribes and Pharisees sat ".
And because "in the multitude of the people is the glory of the prince ", therefore he adds that they were many, when he says: Who had come from every town of Galilee and Judea and Jerusalem.
42. And note that in these three he expresses the nearby region, namely in Galilee; whence He also chose His disciples from there, according to what is said in Acts chapter two: " Are not all these who speak Galileans "?
He also expresses the principal region in Judea, in which the tribe of Judah dwelt, to whom Christ was promised, according to that word of the Psalm: " And He did not choose the tribe of Ephraim, but chose the tribe of Judah ". - He also touches upon the royal city in Jerusalem, where the doctors chiefly dwelt, according to that word of Isaiah chapter two: " Out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem ". - And he names these three significantly, because in Galilee Christ is conceived, as above in chapter one: in Judea He is born, as above in chapter two: but in Jerusalem He is crucified, as below in chapter twenty-three. And therefore to the inhabitants of these three places Christ was promised, and they themselves awaited Him, and therefore they came together to Him.
43. Second, to denote the readiness of the liberating power, he adds: And the power of the Lord was, namely ready, to heal them, namely the infirm, because they themselves were ready to listen. Concerning which power, Hebrews 1: "Upholding all things by the word of his power"; which power indeed is Christ, who is the Word of the Father, 1 Corinthians 1: "We preach Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God." And this power is suited to healing, not to destroying; and therefore his name is Jesus, that is, Savior. Whence the holy soul in the Psalm: "O Lord God, the strength of my salvation, you have covered my head in the day of battle," etc. And therefore Acts 10: "God anointed him with the Holy Spirit and with power," that is, with the power of the Holy Spirit, "who went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed." The faith of believers renders this power ready; whence below in chapter six: "They had come together to hear him"; "because power went out from him and healed all"; but on the contrary it is said of his own city, Matthew 13: "He did not do many mighty works there because of their unbelief."
44. (Verse 18). Third, to show the gravity of the oppressing illness, he adds: And behold, men carrying on a bed a man who was paralyzed, and thus entirely powerless, because paralysis entirely dissolves the strength of the limbs, as is read concerning Alcimus in 1 Maccabees 9: "His mouth was shut, and he was dissolved with paralysis, nor could he speak a word any longer." Truly a great and pitiable infirmity, which takes away both movement and speech. And he was carried on a bed — not, I say, on a bed of rest, but rather of labor and pain; whence one could pray concerning him: "The Lord help him upon the bed of his pain," etc. Therefore the men who carried him acted mercifully, according to the instruction of the Apostle, Galatians 6: "Bear one another's burdens"; whence that passage from Ecclesiasticus 44 could fittingly apply to them: "These are men of mercy, whose acts of piety have not failed"; and already that passage from Isaiah 49 is verified in this deed: "They shall bring your sons in their arms, and your daughters they shall carry upon their shoulders."
45. Fourth, to intimate the solicitude of the presenting faith, he adds: And they sought to bring him in and place him before him, so that, namely, he might be healed by his presence. Whence they wished to fulfill the exhortation of the Psalm: "Seek the Lord and be strengthened; seek his face always." Nor undeservedly, because Job 17: "Deliver me, O Lord, and set me beside you, and let the hand of whomever fight against me."
46. (Verse 19). And because obstacles frequently arise for one who seeks through faith, therefore it is added: And not finding by what way they might bring him in because of the crowd, which is wont to impede approach to Christ; as it is said in Matthew 20 and below in chapter 18, that "the crowds rebuked the blind man, that he should be silent"; so also Zacchaeus, below in chapter 19, "sought to see Jesus, and could not because of the crowd."
But certainly obstacles do not hold back true faith, but rather inflame it; in testimony of which it is added: They went up onto the roof and through the tiles let him down with his bed.
So also Zacchaeus did, as is said below in the nineteenth chapter, that "he climbed up into a sycamore tree, so that he might see Jesus passing by," whom he could not see because of the crowd.
Such helpers that sick man needed, who said in John 5: "Lord, I have no man who, when the water is stirred, may put me into the pool." Such helpers are simple men,
according to what is said in Acts 9: "The disciples, taking Paul by night, let him down through the wall, lowering him in a basket." Such are spiritual men,
who present the sick before the sight of the Lord through prayer: Lamentations 2: "Pour out your heart like water before the sight of the Lord your God. Lift up your hands for the souls of the little ones, who have fainted from hunger at the head of all the crossroads." And therefore they presented him to the sight
of the Lord, so that he might see him, and to his presence,
so that he might touch him. — And therefore it is added: Into the midst before Jesus,
because the Savior always seeks the midst; whence John 1: "He stood in the midst of you"; and below in the twenty-second chapter: "But I am in the midst of you"; and therefore in the Psalm: "We have received your mercy in the midst of your temple."
47. (Verse 20). When he saw their faith
etc. The occasion for performing the miracle has been set forth; but here is added the completeness of the miracle itself in its performance,
because Christ heals the body and soul of the sick man at the same time: the soul
from sin and the body
from disease. Now the perfect completeness of this miracle consists in four things which are above human power, namely in the remission of sins, the discernment of thoughts, the extirpation of errors,
and the strengthening of the paralyzed limbs.
For these four things render the miracle perfect.
Therefore the remission of sins
from the merit of the faith of those presenting him is set forth first, when he says: When he saw their faith,
because, as is said in 1 Kings 16, "man sees those things which appear, but the Lord looks upon the heart." He saw,
I say, with the eye of mercy, as in Exodus 3: "I have seen the affliction of my people, who are in Egypt." To which vision faith disposes: Jeremiah 5: "Lord, your eyes look upon faith."
And since, as is said in Proverbs 15, "by mercy and faith sins are purged"; therefore it is added: He said: Man, your sins are forgiven you.
In this, that he says man,
he invites to the consideration of one's own misery:
Job 14: "Man born of woman, living for a short time, is filled with many miseries"; and again 25: "Man is rottenness, and the son of man a worm." In this, that he adds are forgiven,
he invites to the hope of divine grace;
Ephesians 1: "He has graced us in his beloved Son, in whom we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins"; whence it is said in 1 John 2: "Your sins are forgiven you for his name's sake." Now this forgiveness of sins was begun by the faith of another,
but is consummated in one's own:
whence Bede: "One's own faith avails much for each person, since through another's faith a man has been saved both inwardly and outwardly," but this not without one's own faith following: whence in Matthew 9 it is said to the paralytic: "Take heart, son, your sins are forgiven you."
48. And note that sins are said to be forgiven
and are said to be pardoned,
are said to be cleansed,
are said to be healed,
are said to be covered,
are said to be redeemed.
They are said to be forgiven with respect to the guilt of punishment;
below in chapter 7: "Her many sins are forgiven her, because she loved much." — They are said to be pardoned
by reason of the offense:
Matthew 6: "If you forgive men their sins, your heavenly Father will also forgive you your trespasses."
They are said to be cleansed
by reason of the stain:
Psalm: "Wash me yet more from my iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin"; and Isaiah 6: "Your iniquity shall be taken away, and your sin shall be cleansed." — They are said to be healed
with respect to the wounding of nature:
whence John 5: "Behold, you are now made whole; sin no more henceforth," is said to the infirm man; and in the Psalm: "Heal my soul, for I have sinned against you."
They are said to be covered
on account of the despoliation of gratuitous virtue:
Psalm: "Blessed are they whose iniquities are forgiven, and whose sins are covered"; which is done through charity; 1 Peter 4: "Charity covers a multitude of sins."
They are said to be redeemed
with respect to the captivity of diabolical servitude:
Daniel 4: "Redeem your sins with almsgiving"; and the Psalm: "From usury and iniquity he shall redeem their souls."
49. (Verse 21). Now there is added secondly the discernment of thoughts
in the mind of the blasphemers, when it is said: And the scribes and Pharisees began to think,
vain and harmful thoughts: Romans 1: "They became vain in their thoughts, and their foolish heart was darkened." And the expression of the thought follows, when he adds: saying,
namely in their hearts, according to that of the Psalm: "The things you say in your hearts, upon your beds be moved to compunction."
Who is this, who speaks blasphemy?
In which thought they despise
the Savior as base,
in this, that they say: Who is this?
Sirach thirteen: "The poor man spoke, and they say: Who is this"? against that which is said in Sirach eleven: "Do not despise a man by his appearance".
They reprove
Him as a sinner
in this, that they charge Him with blasphemy. Now to blaspheme
is to inflict injury upon God, which happens in three ways: either when there is attributed to God
what does not befit Him, or when there is removed from Him
what does befit Him, or when there is attributed to a creature
what properly befits God. Whence, when Christ attributed Divinity to Himself, they believed Him to blaspheme, as in Mark fourteen: "What further need have we of witnesses? You have heard the blasphemy"; in John ten the Savior said to the Jews: "Him whom the Father has sanctified and sent into the world, you say blasphemes, because I said: I am the Son of God"? Likewise they believed Him to blaspheme when He attributed to Himself what is proper to God, namely to forgive sins. Whence it is added: Who can forgive sins but God alone?
And in this they speak truly; Isaiah forty-three: "I am He who blots out your iniquities for my own sake." But certainly, while they themselves charged Christ with blasphemy, in their own hearts they were blaspheming; Isaiah forty-six: "To whom have you likened me and made me equal and compared me and made me similar"?
50. (Verse 22). And since by thinking these things they were blaspheming, therefore they are detected
and reproved,
when it is added: But when Jesus perceived their thoughts,
as God, because, Sirach twenty-three, "the eyes of the Lord are far brighter than the sun, surveying all the ways of men and the depth of the abyss and beholding the hearts of men." Nor is this a wonder, because He is the Word of God, of whom in Hebrews four: "The word of God is living and effective and more penetrating than any two-edged sword, and a discerner of the thoughts and intentions of the heart."
Nor does He only detect and discern, but He also reproves: Answering, He said to them: Why do you think evil in your hearts?
as if to say that of Isaiah one: "Take away the evil of your thoughts from before my eyes." For He Himself saw and reproved; Jeremiah four: "How long shall harmful thoughts dwell within you"? For such are perverse thoughts, of which in Wisdom one: "For perverse thoughts separate from God." Therefore Isaiah twenty-nine: "Woe to you who are deep of heart, so as to hide your counsel from the Lord"; and it continues: "This thought of yours is perverse, as if the clay should think against the potter, and the work should say to its maker: You did not make me; and the thing formed should say to its fashioner: You do not understand." But certainly it can be said of them that of Wisdom two: "These things they thought and erred, for their malice blinded them."
51. (Vers. 23.). There is added thirdly the refutation of errors
of those thinking wrongly, in what follows: Which is easier to say
etc. For he constructs an argument in which he shows that he is true God and can forgive sins, and consequently that they err. And the argument is as follows: everyone who can free a paralytic by a word alone can by a word alone forgive sins. Of this reasoning, however, he first sets forth the proof of the major proposition, subjoins the assumption
and interposes the conclusion. Of the major
proposition he first sets forth the proof in what he says: Which is easier to say: Your sins are forgiven you, or to say: Rise and walk?
As if to say: They are of equal ease; therefore he who can do the one can also do the other; and this was the major
proposition. Whence the Gloss on that passage of Matthew 9: "Through the remission of punishment, understand the remission of guilt." Now this is understood through that as through something similar and better known. And this is what is said in Jeremiah 32: "No word shall be difficult for you, who show mercy to thousands"; whence Wisdom 11: "But you spare all, O Lord, because you can do all things."
52. (Vers. 24.). He interposes the conclusion
in what he adds: But that you may know that the Son of Man has power on earth to forgive sins.
For this is what he intends to conclude finally; and it is true according to the testimony of John 1: "Behold the Lamb of God; behold him who takes away the sins of the world"; and Revelation 1: "He loved us and washed us from our sins in his blood."
The assumption
he subjoins when he adds: He said to the paralytic: I say to you: Rise, take up your bed
etc.
And note that the preceding words are the Savior's and so are the following; but this phrase, which says: He said to the paralytic,
is the word of the Evangelist, which he interposes because the first words were of the Lord to the Pharisees, namely the proposition
and the conclusion:
but the assumption
he spoke by turning his speech to the paralytic, to whom he commands an act that can befit only a healthy person, namely to rise,
when he says: Rise:
just as Peter said to the lame man in Acts 3: "In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, rise and walk."
53. He commands him to take up his bed, when he says: Take up your bed. A grabatum,
however, is the bed of the poor who are sick, on which nothing is spread except at the head; whence it is called from graba,
which means head. So in John 5 he commands that man who had been sick for thirty-eight years: "Rise, take up your bed and walk."
He commands him to walk and go to his house, when he adds: And walk and go to your house,
so that, namely, you may rejoice with your own, as in Mark 5: "Go to your house, to your own, and tell them how great things the Lord has done for you." - In these three things is included perfect health against the three evils which the sickness of paralysis causes. For it renders one unfit for standing
and more unfit for working
and most unfit for walking:
and conversely he commands uprightness of posture, strength of action
and readiness of movement:
which once obtained, one is made perfectly healthy.
54. (Verse 25). There is lastly subjoined the strengthening of the weakened members
in what follows: And immediately rising up before them,
etc. For the members of the paralytic were strengthened by the word of Christ with respect to the sustaining, operative,
and motive
power. For he arose, now no longer needing the support of a bed or a staff, and this by the power of the hand of almighty God; Daniel 10: "Behold, a hand touched me and raised me upon my knees and upon the joints of my hands."
He took up the bed on which he had been lying,
now no longer needing to be carried by another, and thus that word of Amos 3 seems to be fulfilled: "The children of Israel who dwell in Samaria shall be rescued, in the corner of a bed and on a Damascus couch."
And he went to his house, glorifying God:
now being able to move easily, just as that lame man healed by Peter, Acts 3, "entered with them into the temple, walking and leaping and praising God." Whence he was glorifying God both by praising him and by recounting his miracles and by inviting others to praise him; whence he could say: "Magnify the Lord with me, and let us exalt his name together." He could also sing with the Virgin: "My soul magnifies the Lord. And my spirit has rejoiced," etc.
55. (Verse 26). And amazement seized all,
etc. Here thirdly, after the occasion for performing the miracle and the completeness of the deed performed, he subjoins the renown of its publication,
through which the divine power in Christ was made manifest, since from the consideration of the present miracle the power of Christ was shown to be admirable
and venerable, formidable
and worthy of proclamation.
56. Admirable,
I say, it was shown to be from the impossibility of comprehending
it: on account of which he says: And amazement seized all,
that is, the innocent,
unto believing:
Job 17: "The just shall be amazed at this, and the innocent shall be stirred up against the hypocrite"; for the Pharisees, who are hypocrites, were confounded, and Christ was made admirable. It seized the malicious
unto confounding
them: Job 12: "He leads counselors to a foolish end and judges to amazement."
57. Venerable
indeed is shown from the impossibility of imitating:
on account of which it is said: And they magnified God,
namely in his work, so that they could say that word of the Psalm: "How magnificent are your works, O Lord! You have made all things in wisdom"; and Isaiah thirty-three: "The Lord is magnified, because he has dwelt on high and filled Sion with justice and judgment." So those three youths at the sight of the miracle; Daniel three: "These three with one mouth praised and magnified and blessed God."
58. Formidable
indeed the power in Christ is shown from the impossibility of escaping;
whence is added: And they were filled with fear,
considering the immensity of the power which no one can escape: below in chapter twelve: "I will show you whom you should fear: fear him who, after he has killed, has the power to cast into hell." This power Job feared, in chapter thirty-one: "I always feared God as swelling waves over me, and I could not bear his weight."
59. Worthy of proclamation
moreover is shown from the impossibility of contradicting:
on account of which is added: Saying: For we have seen wondrous things today:
and now there is no room for contradicting: whence Acts four: "Seeing the constancy of Peter and John, they marveled and recognized them, that they had been with Jesus; and seeing also the man who had been healed, they could say nothing against it"; whence Peter and John said in Acts four: "We cannot but speak the things we have heard and seen."
He therefore who after seeing these signs contradicts the Lord is excluded from the people of God and the inheritance of the kingdom, according to that passage of Numbers fourteen: "The men who have seen my majesty and the signs that I worked in Egypt, and have tempted me, shall not see the land for which I swore to their fathers."
60. Spiritually
moreover three things are to be considered here: what this disease
is that is healed; what house
in which the healing takes place; and what the manner of healing
is. —This disease
of paralysis
designates original sin, just as leprosy
designates actual sin. For paralysis
takes away sensation and motion:
so original sin takes away the sense
of knowledge through ignorance: Tobit five: "What joy is there for me, who sit in darkness and do not see the light of heaven"! It also takes away right motion
through concupiscence, which renders one trembling as does paralysis: Romans seven: "To will is present with me, but to accomplish I do not find"; whence is also added: "I see another law in my members, warring against the law of my mind," etc. Whence Hugh says: "The vice of human corruption infected human nature in two ways, namely ignorance
the mind and concupiscence
the flesh." Concerning these two in the Psalm: "My strength has forsaken me, and the light of my eyes"; and Exodus ten: "There came darkness over Egypt, and for three days no man moved from his place."
61. The house in which the healing takes place is the Church, of which Proverbs 9: "Wisdom has built herself a house, she has hewn out seven pillars"; these pillars are the seven Sacraments. The door of this house is the priestly power, the authority of which power resides with Peter; whence Matthew 16: "To you I will give the keys of the kingdom of heaven." But when this door is filled with the throngs of earthly solicitudes, then it does not afford access to Jesus, because they do not care for souls, which belong to Christ, but for the advancement of their own advantage: Philippians 2: "All seek the things that are their own, not the things of Jesus Christ."
62. The manner of healing is through the assistance of another and through divine command. As regards the healing from original sin, there concurs the power of another's faith and the power of the divine Sacrament. Whence the bearers designate the godparents, who present the child: Isaiah 49: "They shall carry your sons in their arms and bear your daughters upon their shoulders." Christ indeed, healing by command, designates the office of the Sacrament, through which there occurs the remission of guilt, when it is said: Your sins are forgiven you: Acts 2: "Let each one of you be baptized for the remission of sins." There also occurs a healing of the consequences; on account of which he says: Arise and take up your pallet, etc.: Acts 12, the Angel said to Peter lying in chains: "Arise quickly. And immediately the chains fell from his hands." Arise, that is, raise yourself upward to see the light, against ignorance: Ephesians 5: "Arise, you who sleep, and rise from the dead, and Christ shall enlighten you"; Isaiah 60: "Arise, be enlightened, O Jerusalem, for your light has come." — Take up your pallet, against infirmity: Matthew 11: "Come to me, all you who labor"; and after: "Take my yoke upon you." — And walk, against malice: Genesis 17: "Walk before me, and be perfect"; Ephesians 5: "Walk in love, as Christ also loved us," etc.
Go into your house, against concupiscence: Sirach 32: "But hasten first into your house and there pursue your designs, and not in sins." He goes into his own house who loves interior goods: Wisdom 8: "Entering into my house I shall find rest," etc.; into another's house, he who desires worldly things: Sirach 29: "The wretched life of lodging from house to house."
Second, how the disciples are called from the state of guilt.
63. And after these things he went out, etc. Above the Evangelist treated of the calling of the disciples from a lawful state, that is, of justice; here he treats of their calling from a perilous state, that is, of injustice, where he shows how he called Matthew sitting at the tax-collector's booth. Now this part has two sections, in the first of which he treats of the perfection of the calling; in the second, of the defense of those called, there: And it came to pass on the Sabbath, etc., in the next chapter.
Concerning the perfection of the calling,
three things are introduced: the first is the calling of sinners;
the second is the confutation of the proud,
at the place: And the Pharisees murmured
etc.; the third is the consolation of the weak,
at the place: But they said to him
etc.
The calling
of the publican,
moreover, is shown to be perfect from three aspects, namely from the part of the prevenient divine gift,
from the part of the consenting free will,
and from the part of the devout obedience that follows.
64. (Verse 27). First, therefore, it is shown to be perfect from the part of the prevenient divine gift,
when it says: And after these things he went out and saw a publican
etc. And note that he is said to go out, to see,
and to call. He goes out,
indeed, in order to seek; he sees,
in order to draw to himself; he addresses
and calls,
in order to convert to himself. He went out,
indeed, through solicitude for seeking his own work, as it is said in the Psalm: "Man shall go forth to his work and to his labor until the evening." Hence he is signified by the householder, of whom it is said in Matthew twenty, that "he went out early in the morning to hire laborers for his vineyard." This is truly the Lord Jesus, who says of himself in John sixteen: "I came forth from the Father and have come into the world," because from the secret bosom he came into the open. — Nor did he only go out, but he also saw the publican,
so that through the gaze of mercy he might draw him to himself, just as that one was asking to be seen
in the Psalm: "See my humility and my labor" etc. And in this way he saw
him, because, although he was a sinner in deed, he was nevertheless chosen in the divine purpose: Wisdom four: "His regard is upon his elect." Hence it is said below in chapter twenty-two: "The Lord turned and looked upon Peter, and Peter, going out, wept bitterly."
65. With this gaze Jesus saw
a publican named Levi,
that is, Matthew, who, as Jerome says, had two names; but Luke and Mark, out of honor for the Evangelist, are silent about the well-known name, while Matthew, having become his own accuser at the beginning of his narrative, names himself Matthew and a publican.
And note that publicans
were so called either because they sinned publicly, as is understood below in chapter eighteen: "Two men went up into the temple: one a Pharisee, and the other a publican"; or because they made goods public to all by selling them, as merchants are accustomed to do, as is understood above in chapter three; or because they collected public taxes: and this is how the term seems to be properly understood here.
66. Whence there follows: Sitting at the tax office.
According to Bede, "telos in Greek is vectigal in Latin"; according to Isidore, it is a place "where the wares of ships or the earnings of sailors are rendered"; according to Ambrose, it can be taken equivocally for the tax
and for the house,
in which it is paid; whence he says: "He who previously extorted harsh profits from labors and greedy gains from the wages of many, called by a word, left behind his own possessions—he who had been seizing the possessions of others." "Let no one therefore, as the Gloss of Bede says, despair on account of the enormity of sins, since Matthew was changed from a tax collector into an Apostle, from a toll-gatherer into an Evangelist."
67. Nor did he only see him so as to attract him, but he also spoke to
him so as to convert him, when there follows: And he said to him: Follow me,
namely through the renunciation
of all temporal things, because, as is said in John chapter eight, "he who follows me does not walk in darkness"; and Ecclesiasticus chapter twenty-three: "It is a great glory to follow the Lord." Follow me
is said with discernment,
not temporal gains:
because, Ecclesiasticus chapter thirty-four, "as he who grasps at a shadow and pursues the winds, so is he who attends to lying visions."
Follow me,
not carnal desires;
Ecclesiasticus chapter five: "Do not follow the concupiscence of your heart in your strength"; and Proverbs chapter seven: "He follows her as an ox led to the slaughter," etc.
Follow me,
not worldly shameful deeds,
as those of whom it is said in Second Kings chapter fifteen: "With their whole heart all Israel follows Absalom"; Hosea chapter twelve: "Ephraim feeds on wind and follows the burning heat; all day long he multiplies lies and desolation." And such are the vainglorious, who feed on the wind of worldly vanity.
68. (Verse 28.) Secondly, perfection is shown on the part of the consenting free will
by obeying, when there follows: And leaving all things, rising up, he followed him:
in which is designated the perfect consent of free will both as regards withdrawal from evil
and advancement in good
and consummation in the perfect state.
Therefore it is said that he left all things,
that he rose up,
and that he followed Christ,
so that he could say that word of Peter in Matthew chapter nineteen: "Behold, we have left all things and followed you." And this is what the Apostle exhorts us to in Hebrews chapter twelve: "Laying aside every weight and the sin which surrounds us, let us run with patience," etc.
69. And note that under this distribution are included all things that hinder a person from following Christ perfectly, which are seven, namely criminal wickedness,
bodily comfort,
temporal business,
personal strife,
popular fellowship,
paternal dwelling,
and childish desire.
Criminal wickedness must be relinquished:
Proverbs twenty-eight: "He who conceals his crimes will not prosper." - Second, bodily comfort,
as in Tobit two: "He left his meal and came fasting to the body." - Third, temporal business:
thus Joseph left his cloak
in the hand of the Egyptian woman, Genesis thirty-nine: "Leaving his cloak, he fled"; thus Elisha left his oxen and plow,
Third Kings nineteen; thus the Apostles left their nets,
as is said in Matthew four: "Leaving their nets, they followed him." By nets
are rightly understood earthly affairs, because "those who wish to become rich fall into temptation" etc., First Timothy six. - Fourth, personal strife must be relinquished:
Ecclesiasticus twenty-eight: "Forgive your neighbor who harms you, and then when you pray, your sins will be forgiven." Fifth indeed, popular fellowship:
Jeremiah forty-eight: "Leave the cities and dwell in the rock." - Sixth, paternal dwelling:
Jeremiah twelve: "I have left my house and abandoned my inheritance" etc.
Seventh, childish desire
; Proverbs nine: "Leave behind childishness" etc.
He who relinquishes all these things is the one who rightly rises:
he is signified by the converted Paul, of whom Acts nine says: "And Saul arose from the ground, and opening his eyes, he saw nothing"; because to a person converted to Christ and illuminated by his light, nothing earthly seems to be of any worth; Ephesians five: "Arise, you who sleep, and rise from the dead, and Christ will illuminate you." And he who rises thus unencumbered can follow
along the way of perfection, so that he may say that word of Job twenty-three: "My foot has followed his steps."
70. And he did this swiftly,
for he knew that "delay has harmed those who were prepared"; whence he did not wish to act against that word of Proverbs three: "Do not say to your friend: Go and come back, and tomorrow I will give to you, when you can give at once"; but rather that word of Proverbs twenty-two: "Have you seen a man swift in his work? He shall stand before kings."
71. Nevertheless, Porphyry the heretic reproaches him for this, because he immediately followed him without deliberation, as if a fool.
To which the Gloss responds that "he followed him not led by fickleness, but drawn by the power of his works"; for he had seen the miracles of Christ. Whence Jerome says that "the splendor of the hidden Divinity, which shone forth in the human face of Christ, was able at once to draw those who saw it to himself by its very appearance. Just as a force is said to exist in the magnet stone, such that it joins rings and straw to itself, how much more could the Lord of creatures draw to himself those whom he willed." According to what the bride says in the Song of Songs: "Draw me after you; we shall run in the fragrance of your ointments."
72. (Verse 29.). Third, the perfect calling is shown on the part of the devoted service
that follows in ministering, when it says: And Levi made him a great feast in his house.
Matthew was acting according to the resolve of the Wise Man, who said in Wisdom 8: "I resolved to bring wisdom to live with me, knowing that she would share with me her goods." Already in him was fulfilled the desire of Christ, according to Revelation 3: "Behold, I stand at the door and knock; if anyone opens to me, I will enter to him and sup with him," etc. Already manifest is the joy of the eternal Father, of which it is said below in chapter fifteen: "It was fitting to feast and rejoice, because this son was dead and has risen again."
73. And since the greatness of the feast requires a multitude of those feasting, he therefore adds: And there was a great crowd of tax collectors and of others who were reclining at table with them.
For Matthew had invited them so that, just as they had been companions in guilt, so also they might be companions in repentance, according to the last chapter of Revelation: "Let him who hears say: Come"; whence Jerome says: "They saw that the tax collector, turned from sins to better things, had found a place of repentance, and on that account they themselves also did not despair of salvation." For they considered that "it is better to be invited to vegetables with love than to a fatted calf with hatred," Proverbs 15. But this crowd of tax collectors called to the feast of Christ signifies what is to be fulfilled, which is said in Matthew 8: "Many shall come from the east and west and shall recline with Abraham in the kingdom of heaven, but the children of the kingdom shall be cast into the outer darkness"; whence in chapter twenty-one: "Tax collectors and sinners shall precede you." And as a figure of this, it is said below in chapter ten that "a certain woman named Martha received him into her house, and she had a sister named Mary."
74. But against this seems to stand the passage of First Corinthians 5: "If any man who is called a brother among you is a fornicator or covetous, with such a one not even to take food."
But that is said to the weak, lest they be corrupted by evil association, because it is said in Sirach thirteen: "He who associates with the proud will put on pride." Or certainly it is said concerning those who are publicly obstinate and convicted, according to what the Gloss says. But these could be moved to contrition by the presence of Christ. Hence Jerome: "Jesus went to the banquets of sinners, so that he might have an occasion for teaching and might offer spiritual food to those who invited him. Finally, although he is described as frequently going to banquets, nothing else is reported that he did there except that he taught, so that both the humility of the Lord in going to sinners and the power of his teaching in the conversion of penitents might be demonstrated."
75. And they murmured,
etc. Above he treated the calling of sinners; in this part he treats the stirring up of the proud,
because, as the Apostle says in First Corinthians one, "God chose the weak things of the world to confound the strong, and the ignoble and contemptible things of the world God chose, and the things that are not, to destroy the things that are, so that no flesh should glory in his sight." Therefore the refutation of the Pharisees,
who were proud of their own merits and despised others, is described in this order. For first their pride is exposed;
second, once exposed, it is rebuked;
third, once rebuked, it is cast down.
76. (Vers. 30.). It is exposed,
therefore, first from the murmuring of their own talkativeness; and this is noted when he says: And the Pharisees and their scribes murmured,
against the counsel of the Wise One, Wisdom one: "Guard yourselves from murmuring, which profits nothing, and spare your tongue from detraction." Which these men did not do; hence it is added: Saying: Why do you eat and drink with tax collectors and sinners?
Since they could not bite at any sin of his own, they bit nevertheless on account of another's; for this is the way of a wicked person; Sirach eleven: "Converting good into evil, he lies in ambush and places a stain upon the elect." In this the pride of the Pharisees is made manifest, because they did not consider themselves sinners. Hence the Gloss: "They sin doubly: both because they think themselves just, when they are proud, and because they think those others guilty, when they are already repenting." Hence they were like that Pharisee of whom it is said below in chapter eighteen: "I am not like the rest of men: robbers, unjust, adulterers, or even like this tax collector." And therefore below in chapter sixteen the Lord said to them: "You are they who justify yourselves before men, but God knows your hearts." Concerning such people, Isaiah sixty-five: "Who say: Depart from me, do not approach me, for you are unclean." On account of the words and reproaches of such people, a person ought not to shun works of mercy; hence First Maccabees two: "Do not fear the words of a sinful man, for his glory is dung and worms." Hence Jerome: "It cannot happen that anyone should pass through the course of this life without the biting of men. It is the consolation of the wicked to criticize the life of the good, and from the multitude of sinners they think the guilt of their own sins is diminished."
77. (Vers. 31.). It is reproved
secondly from the light of evident truth, when it is added: Jesus answering said to them: They that are whole need not a physician, but they that are sick.
This is self-evident, because, as it is said in Ecclesiasticus thirty-eight, "Honor the physician for the need you have of him: for the Most High has created him." If medicine exists on account of illness, then neither should the sick person be reproached for fleeing to the physician, nor the physician for approaching the sick person: but rather those should be reproached who reproach these things. Now Christ calls sinners infirm,
because sin makes one infirm, according to that verse of the Psalm: "For my loins are filled with illusions, and there is no soundness in my flesh." Concerning such an infirm person it is said in Romans fourteen: "Now him that is weak in the faith, receive" etc.; and in the fifteenth chapter: "We that are stronger ought to bear the infirmities of the weak." But He calls Himself physician, because in Isaiah fifty-three, "by His bruises we are healed"; and in the sixty-first chapter: "The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because He has anointed me, to heal the contrite of heart"; and in Acts ten: "He went about doing good and healing all that were oppressed by the devil."
78. (Vers. 32.). It is rejected thirdly from the rectitude of supernal equity, by which He condescends more to the humble sinner than to the proud just person: and therefore He adds: I came not to call the just, but sinners to penance: the just,
that is, those who consider themselves so: the Gloss says, "Those who trust in their own justice." Whence Bede: "Just
He calls those who, being ignorant of the justice of God and seeking to establish their own, have not submitted themselves to the justice of God,
Romans ten, who, presuming upon the Law, do not seek the grace of the Gospel." For the Lord did not come to call such, but rather to blind them by just judgment: whence in John nine: "For judgment I am come into this world, that they who see not may see, and they who see may become blind." But the Lord came to call all to penance, because, as it is said in Romans three and is taken from the Psalm, "there is none just, all have turned aside, they are become unprofitable together"; whence also in the same place: "All have sinned and need the glory of God." And therefore He began to preach from penance, as it is said in Matthew four. Concerning this calling it is said in Isaiah twenty-two: "The Lord God of hosts shall call in that day to weeping and to mourning, to baldness and to the girding with sackcloth." But those who consider themselves just do not hear this voice: against whom in Job nine: "If I would justify myself, my own mouth shall condemn me: if I would show myself innocent, He shall prove me wicked." But humble sinners hear it: below in the seventh chapter: "And all the people hearing, and the publicans, justified God, being baptized with the baptism of John. But the Pharisees and the lawyers despised the counsel of God against themselves, not being baptized by him."
And thus it is clear how in this the confutation of the proud has been accomplished: whence by divine judgment they are considered worse than those whom they despise.
79. (Vers. 33.). But they said.
After the calling of sinners has been described and the confutation of the proud, here is subjoined thirdly the consolation of the weak,
in that heavy burdens and difficulties of fasting are not imposed upon the disciples themselves. Therefore the consolation
serving as guidance for the disciples is introduced as discordant with the severity of legal observance,
as consonant with the benignity of the divine presence,
as expedient for the rudeness of human imperfection.
First, therefore, it is introduced as discordant with the severity of legal observance
in the question of the Pharisees, when it is said: But they said to him: Why do the disciples of John fast frequently and make supplications? And likewise those of the Pharisees,
etc. It is also said in Matthew nine that the disciples of John asked this; but, as Augustine says in the book On the Harmony of the Evangelists, there is no contradiction, because both groups asked. And both were asking, but the disciples of John wished to learn the truth, while the Pharisees wished to probe their freedom, like those of whom it is said in Galatians two: "Because of false brethren secretly brought in, who crept in to spy out our freedom." They were not asking this, however, because they approved of the disciples of John, but so that by comparison with them they might reproach the disciples of Christ.
80. Whence they also add: But yours eat and drink:
and therefore the Lord complained about them in Matthew eleven: "John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say: He has a demon; the Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say: Behold, a gluttonous man and a wine-drinker, a friend of publicans and sinners." And therefore the Pharisees spurned them as discordant from legal and popular observance; but wrongly, because in Isaiah fifty-eight: "Do not fast as you have done until this day, so that your cry may be heard on high. Is such the fast that I have chosen? For this is the fast that I have chosen: Loose the bonds of wickedness," etc.; and in Romans fourteen: "Let not him who does not eat despise him who eats," because, as is added there, "the kingdom of God is not food and drink."
81. (Vers. 34.). Second, it is introduced as befitting the kindness of the divine presence in the dissolution of the objections, when it is said: To whom he himself said: Can the children of the bridegroom fast,
etc. According to Bede, however, this is the reading: Can you make the children of the bridegroom fast? This bridegroom
is Christ, of whom John 3 says: "He who has the bride is the bridegroom"; and in the Psalm: "And he as a bridegroom coming forth from his chamber." The children of the bridegroom
are the Apostles: whence Isaiah 8: "Behold, I and my children, whom the Lord has given me"; and in the Psalm: "Instead of your fathers, sons have been born to you; you shall make them princes," etc. These cannot nor ought to fast with the fast of sorrow and affliction, so long as the bridegroom is with them, because then is the time of joy; on account of which Song of Songs 3 says: "Daughters of Jerusalem, go forth and see King Solomon in his diadem"; and Isaiah 61: "Rejoicing I will rejoice in the Lord, and my soul will exult in my God, because the Lord has clothed me with the garment of salvation and surrounded me with the vestment of justice, as a bridegroom adorned with a crown and as a bride adorned with her jewels." Whence then was the time of joy,
not of sorrow, because, as is said in John 3, "the friend of the bridegroom stands and rejoices with joy on account of the voice of the bridegroom."
82. (Vers. 35.). And therefore the consolation
of the disciples is befitting the presence of the bridegroom Christ, just as also desolation
is befitting his absence. On account of which he adds: But the days will come when he will be taken away from them,
namely through death and passion: Hosea 5: "They will go to seek the Lord and will not find him: for he has been taken away from them," and then they will fast in those days,
namely at that time: because John 16: "You will weep and lament, but the world will rejoice; you indeed will be sorrowful, but your sorrow will be turned into joy"; and then will be the time of sorrow and fasting, whence Tobit 2: "She ate her bread in grief and trembling, recalling that prophetic word: Your feast days will be turned into mourning"; Lamentations 1: "Therefore I am weeping, and my eye flows with tears, because the comforter who would restore my soul has become far from me."
83. (Vers. 36.). Third, it is introduced as expedient for the rudeness of human imperfection,
when it is said: And he spoke a parable to them;
where he shows that the disciples are not to be pressed to fasting, both on account of the oldness of their manner of life,
and on account of the frailty of the flesh,
and also on account of the unaccustomedness of their disposition,
which three things he expresses under a threefold metaphor, namely of the old garment,
the old wineskin,
and the old wine.
Therefore it was fitting to nurture the unformed disciples, not to burden them with fasts, on account of the oldness of their manner of life, on account of which he says: Because no one puts a patch, that is, a piece which joins, taken from a new garment, onto an old garment, because a twofold unfittingness follows; and therefore he adds: Otherwise it tears even the new, which is harmful, and the patch from the new does not suit the old, which is unseemly. — Thus it is to be understood spiritually that new observances fitting for a new manner of life are not to be imposed so long as a man has not been stripped of the former, namely at the beginning of conversion. And therefore the Apostle said to the Ephesians, chapter four: "Putting off the old man according to your former manner of life, be renewed in the spirit of your mind and put on the new man, who was created according to God"; and to the Colossians, chapter three: "Stripping off the old man with his deeds, put on the new"; otherwise it will be monstrous.
And therefore in a figure of this, the mixing of diverse things was prohibited in the Law: Deuteronomy twenty-two: "You shall not wear a garment woven from wool and linen together," because thereby the Lord is despised: Jeremiah twelve: "Is my heritage unto me a speckled bird?"
84. (Verses 37–38.) This same thing was fitting on account of the weakness of the flesh, on account of which he says: And no one puts new wine into old wineskins, because from this a twofold unfittingness follows, namely the spilling of the wine, on account of which he says: Otherwise the new wine will burst the wineskins, and it will be spilled out; and the other, the destruction of the wineskin, whence he also adds: And the wineskins will perish. And therefore for new wine a new vessel also must be provided, on account of which he says: But new wine must be put into new wineskins, and both are preserved. — Thus spiritual observances are to be imposed on spiritual persons, not on carnal ones, who are designated by the old wineskins, according to that verse of the Psalm: "I have become like a wineskin in the frost"; whence they are designated by the wineskins of the Gibeonites, torn and loosened: Joshua nine: "We filled new wineskins with wine, which now are torn and loosened," and thus unfit for holding wine. And therefore First Corinthians, chapter three: "And I, brethren, could not speak to you as to spiritual persons, but as to carnal ones, as to little ones in Christ. I gave you milk to drink, not solid food." Therefore before spiritual things are enjoined upon them, it is necessary that their hearts be renewed, according to that verse of Ezekiel thirty-six: "Behold, I will give you a new heart and I will place a new spirit in the midst of you"; because the Apostle says to the Galatians, chapter six: "In Christ Jesus neither circumcision avails anything nor uncircumcision, but a new creature." And therefore in the Psalm it is sought: "Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within my inmost parts"; which is accomplished in spiritual men: Second Corinthians, chapter four: "Although our outward man is corrupted, yet the inward man is renewed from day to day."
85. (Verse 39.). This same thing was likewise expedient on account of the disaccustoming of affection:
to designate which He says: And no one drinking the old straightway desires the new.
And He gives the reason for this on account of the judgment of the senses, when He says: For he says: The old is better.
In this, through a similitude in the delight of drink, He wishes to show that our affection is not immediately delighted in observing new things, unless it is gradually led by the hand. And therefore certain persons said in Acts chapter fifteen: "Unless you are circumcised according to the custom of Moses, you cannot be saved." But charity renews this affection, according to that passage in John chapter thirteen: "A new commandment I give unto you, that you love one another." This makes new things taste as old: whence in First John chapter two: "I write no new commandment unto you, but an old commandment, which you heard from the beginning." "Again, a new commandment I write unto you, which is true both in Him and in you." Truly this is a new commandment,
which evacuates the old and which makes the new things savory; Second Corinthians chapter five: "If any man be in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things have passed away: behold, all things are made new: because, as is said in Leviticus chapter twenty-six, "when the new come upon you, you shall cast forth the old." — Thus therefore, on account of the rawness of the disciples, both on the part of their manner of life,
and on the part of the flesh, and on the part of the mind,
the disciples were to be treated kindly, not yet to be constrained to fasting, especially to the fasting of exultation, which is fitting only for those renewed through the grace of the Holy Spirit.
Whence from the foregoing it is gathered that the disciples of Christ were not to be constrained, neither to the fasting of sorrow
on account of the presence of the Bridegroom, nor to that of exultation
on account of the absence of the Holy Spirit; and thus they were to be kindly consoled as being still tender and infirm. From the foregoing, therefore, it sufficiently appears how by the Lord sinners
were mercifully called, and the proud
were reasonably confuted,
and the infirm
were gently consoled.