Homilies on Acts 27.1–27.2

[Lemma] “… there was no small stir among the soldiers … And Herod, having searched for him and not found him, having examined the guards … from Judea to Caesarea, and stayed there.” (Acts 12:18–19)

Many are perplexed how God at that time overlooked the children being killed because of him, and now again the soldiers because of Peter; and yet it was possible for him to rescue them too along with Peter. But if the angel had led the soldiers out with Peter, the thing would have been thought to be a flight. Why then, someone says, did he not arrange it otherwise? For what harm has been done now? If we see that those who suffered something unjustly and wickedly were harmed in nothing, we will not ask these questions. For why do you not also speak about James, and ask why he did not rescue him? … Perhaps some are perplexed how God overlooked his champions perishing. It was not yet the time of judgment, so as to assign to each according to his desert. Nor, besides, did Peter throw them into Herod’s hands. What grieved Herod more, then, was being made a fool of, as his grandfather was deceived by the magi; it made him the more furious and …

It is good also to hear the very words of the writer. “Now when it was day,” he says, “there was no small stir among the soldiers over what had become of Peter. And Herod, having searched for him and not found him, examined the guards and ordered them to be led away.” And yet he heard from them (for he examined them) both that the chains were let go, and that he took his sandals, and that until that night he was with them. But what did they conceal together? Why then did they not flee too? Surely he ought to have marveled, ought to have been astounded at this. From now on it becomes plain to all, through the death of these men, both the wonder of God and that man’s wickedness. See how this writer does not hide these things, but even mentions the history, so as to teach us. Then he says: “And he went down from Judea to Caesarea and stayed there. Now Herod was in a furious quarrel with the people of Tyre and Sidon; and they came to him with one accord, and having persuaded Blastus, the king’s chamberlain, they asked for peace, because their country was fed from the king’s. On an appointed day Herod put on royal apparel, sat on the tribunal, and made a speech to them; and the people shouted, ‘The voice of a god, and not of a man!’ And immediately an angel of the Lord struck him, because he did not give glory to God; and he was eaten by worms and breathed his last. But the word of God grew and multiplied.”

Nor is this a small thing. Justice overtook him at once, if not on account of Peter, then on account of his boasting. And yet, someone says, if those men shouted, what has that to do with him? That he accepted the cry, that he thought himself worthy of the flattery. By this especially those are taught who flatter rashly. See again: both were worthy of punishment, but this man is punished. For it is not now the time of judgment; but he punishes the one most guilty, letting the others go, so that they may profit from this. “And the word of God,” he says, “grew and multiplied,” that is, when this had happened. Did you see God’s providential ordering?

“And Barnabas and Saul returned from Jerusalem, when they had fulfilled their ministry, bringing with them John whose surname was Mark. Now there were in Antioch, in the church that was there, prophets and teachers: Barnabas, and Simeon who was called …, and Lucius of Cyrene, and Manaen … Herod.” He mentions Barnabas first; for Paul was not yet famous, had not yet worked any sign. “While they were ministering to the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, ‘Set apart for me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them.’ Then, having fasted and prayed and laid their hands on them, they sent them off.” What is “ministering”? Preaching. “Set apart for me,” he says, “Barnabas and Saul.” What is “Set apart for me”? For the work, for the apostleship. See again by whom he is ordained: by Lucius of Cyrene and Manaen, or rather by the Spirit. For the lesser the persons, the more plainly the grace of God appears. He is ordained, then, to the apostleship, so as to preach with authority. How then does he himself say, “Not from men, nor through men”? He said “Not from men” to show that no man called him or brought him in; and “nor through men” because he was not sent by this man or that, but by the Spirit. That is why he added: “So, being sent out by the Holy Spirit, they went down to Seleucia, and from there they sailed to Cyprus.”

But let us look at what was said from the beginning. “Now when it was day,” he says, “there was no small stir” over Peter; “and having examined the guards, he ordered them to be led away.” So he did not perceive that he was even setting about punishing unjustly. Look, I take up the plea on their behalf. The chains were there, the guards inside, the prison shut, nowhere was the wall dug through; all said the same thing: “The man has been snatched away; why do you condemn them? If they had wanted to release him, they would have released him before this, or gone out with him. Did they take money? Where would a man who had nothing to give even a poor man find money to give to these? For neither were the chains broken nor were they unfastened.” He ought to have seen that the thing was divine and not human. Then, since he was now about to mention history, for this reason he also gives the names, so that he may be shown to be truthful in everything. “And having persuaded Blastus,” he says, “the king’s chamberlain, they asked for peace.” They do this because there was a famine. “On an appointed day Herod sat on the tribunal and made a speech,” he says. “And immediately an angel struck him”

Josephus too says this, that he fell into a long illness. Most people did not know this, but the apostle sets it down. Yet even their ignorance was of benefit, since they reckoned what befell Herod to the death of James and the slaughter of the soldiers. See: when he slew the apostle, he did nothing of the kind; but when he slew these men, he was then at a loss for words. So, being at a loss and ashamed, he went down from Judea to Caesarea. It seems to me that he came wishing also to bring those people to make their apology; for he was angry with them, while courting these others in this way. See how vainglorious the man is. When he was about to give them the gift, he made a public speech. And Josephus says that he also wore a splendid robe made of silver. See also how those people were flatterers, and how great the spirit of the apostles. For the man whom a whole nation courted, these spat upon. And again there comes great relief for them, and countless good things from his punishment. But if this man, on hearing “The voice of a god and not of a man,” though he himself said nothing of the kind, suffered this, much more would Christ have suffered, if he himself were not God, who always said, “My words are not mine,” and, “My servants would have fought,” and all such things. But that man ended his life shamefully and pitiably, and from then on is not even seen. See him also being persuaded by Blastus, and, wretched as he was, easily angered and again reconciled, everywhere a slave of the crowds, with nothing free about him.

Consider also the authority of the Holy Spirit. “While they were ministering to the Lord,” he says, “and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, ‘Set apart for me Barnabas and Saul.’” Who would have dared to say this, not being of the same authority? This happens so that they may no longer be together with one another; he saw that they had greater power and were able to suffice for many. And how did he speak to them? Through prophets, perhaps. That is why he said beforehand that they were prophets and were fasting and ministering, so that you may learn that there was need of much sobriety. He is ordained in Antioch, where he preaches. Why did he not say, “Set apart for the Lord,” but “for me”? He shows that the authority and the power are one. Do you see how great fasting is? He shows that the Spirit did everything. Fasting is a great good; it is not hemmed in by a boundary. When they had to ordain, then they fast; and to them, while fasting, the Spirit spoke. But fasting is not this only; abstaining from luxury is also a kind of fasting. This only I enjoin: not that you fast, but … let us seek food, not occasions of diseases, both of soul and of body; let us seek food that has pleasure, not luxury full of disgust. This is delight, that is ruin; this is pleasure, that is pain; this is according to nature, that is against nature. For tell me, if someone gave you hemlock to drink, would it not be against nature? If someone gave you wood and stones to eat, would you not turn away? Rightly; for it is against nature. Such is luxury too. For as in a city under siege, when the enemy have broken in, there is great uproar and confusion, so it happens in the soul when wine and luxury have broken in. “Who has woe, who has trouble, who has disgust and quarrels, who has judgment? Is it not those who linger over wine?” But in fact, whatever we say, we will not draw away those who are absorbed in luxury, unless we set up another passion against this one.

And first let our word be to the women. Nothing is more shameful than a woman … the bloom of her face …; the calm and gentleness of her eyes is clouded, as when some cloud runs under the sun’s rays. The thing is ignoble and slavish and full of every baseness. How is it that she cannot rise, being redder than she ought, full of yawning and of much fog? But the woman who abstains from luxury is not like this, but dignified, modest and comely. For the state of the soul puts much beauty around the body too. Do not think that this comes from the bodily features alone. Give me a comely girl, but agitated, talkative, abusive, drunken, extravagant: has she not become uglier than any ugly woman? But if she is modest, if she is silent, if she learns to blush, if she learns to speak in measure, if she gives her time to fasting, her beauty is double, her bloom fuller, her face more lovely, full of modesty and good order.

Would you have us next speak about men too? What is more … than … to his enemies, pitiable to his friends, worthy of countless condemnations; he is a beast rather than a man. For to eat much belongs to the leopard, the lion and the bear. Rightly; for those have no rational soul. And yet even they, when fed beyond what is needful and beyond the measure set for them by nature, have ruined their whole body: how much more we? For this reason God has made our belly small; for this reason he set a small measure of food, so that he might teach us to care for the soul. Let us study the very construction within, and we will see that only one part in us has this function. For our mouth and tongue are set apart for hymns, the throat for the voice. This is why necessity too … so that we do not fall into much trouble. For if luxury brought no pain, nor diseases and infirmities, it would be bearable; but as it is he has set you the boundaries of nature, so that you cannot overstep them even if you wish. Is it not pleasure you seek, beloved? You will find it in contentment. Not health? This too. Not freedom from care? This too. Not freedom? Not strength of body? Not good condition? Not sobriety of soul? Not alertness? So all good things are here … but in luxury the opposite: unpleasantness, ill condition, disease, servility, expense.

Why then, someone says, do we all run after it? From disease. For tell me, why does the sick man seek what harms him? Is not this itself a sign of his sickness? Why does the lame man not walk straight? And does not this come from laziness and from not wishing to go to the doctor? For of things, some have a temporary pleasure but everlasting punishment; others the opposite, a temporary endurance but everlasting enjoyment. The man, then, who is so slack and lazy as not to disdain present pleasures for the sake of future ones is quickly caught. Tell me, how was Esau caught? How did he come to prefer the present pleasure to the future honor? From slackness and softness. And this itself, someone says, where does it come from? From ourselves; and this is clear from the following. For when we wish, we rouse ourselves and become steadfast. If necessity ever comes upon us, and often merely when we are spurred by rivalry, (we do) what is useful. So when you are about to indulge yourself, consider how short-lived the pleasure is, the loss (for it is truly a loss to spend so much money to your own ruin), the diseases, the infirmities, and despise luxury.

How many shall I count for you who suffered evils from luxury? Noah got drunk and was stripped naked, and see how many evils came from this. Esau out of gluttony gave away his birthright and rushed into fratricide. “The people of Israel sat down to eat and drink, and rose up to play.” That is why it says, “When you have eaten and drunk, remember the Lord your God.” For those who have fallen into luxury have fallen over a precipice. “The widow,” it says, “who lives in luxury is dead while she lives”; and again, “He grew fat, he grew thick, and the beloved kicked”; and again the apostle, “Make no provision for the flesh, to gratify its desires.” I do not legislate fasting (for no one would listen) … for like a torrent, luxury overturns everything; nothing stands in its way; it casts men out of a kingdom. What is gained by it? Do you want to live luxuriously? Give to the poor, invite Christ, so that even after the table is taken away you may have your luxury. For now you do not have it; rightly, for the things here do not stand still; but then you will have it. Do you want to live luxuriously? Feed your soul; give it a share of the food it is accustomed to; do not starve it to death. It is a time of war, a time of contest; and do you sit in luxury? Do you not see that even those entrusted with scepters live frugally on campaigns abroad? “Our wrestling is not against blood and flesh”; and do you fatten yourself when about to wrestle? The adversary stands gnashing his teeth, and you are lounging and intent on your table. I know that I say these things in vain, but not to all. “He who has ears to hear, let him hear.” Christ is wasting away with hunger, and you are bursting yourself with gluttony? Two excesses!

For what evil does luxury not do? It is opposed to itself; so I do not know how it even has this name. But just as glory that is dishonor, and wealth that is poverty, are called by those names, so too luxury is in fact unpleasantness. Are we going to be sacrificed, that we fatten ourselves? Why do you lay a splendid table for the worm? Why do you increase the discharges? Why do you store up springs of sweat and foul smells? Why do you make yourself useless for everything? Do you want your eye to become strong? Make your body lean and sinewy. For among strings too, the thick and unrefined one is useless for melodies, but the one scraped smooth all round is taut and perfectly in tune. Why do you bury your soul? Why do you make the wall thicker? Why so much smoke and cloud, when vapors rise on all sides like a fog? If no one else, let the athletes teach you that the leaner body is the stronger. So too the soul that practices the true philosophy is more vigorous; for it is like a charioteer and his horse. And one may see that, as with men given to luxury and fat, so also fat horses are sluggish and give the charioteer much trouble. One is content, with a horse obedient to the rein and nimble of leg, to be able to win the prize. But when the charioteer is forced to drag his horse along, and when it has fallen cannot raise it though he goads it countless times, then, even if he himself is very skilled, he will be robbed of the victory. Let us not, then, overlook our soul being abused on account of the body; but let us make it more clear-sighted, make its wing light, its bonds looser; let us feed it with words, with contentment, giving the body only so much as to be healthy, so much as to be strong, so much as to be glad and not in pain; so that, having thus set our own affairs in good order, we may be able to lay hold of the highest virtue and attain the eternal good things, by the grace and love for humankind of our Lord Jesus Christ, with whom to the Father together with the Holy Spirit be glory, might, honor, now and always and to the ages of ages. Amen.