Homilies on the Gospel of Matthew 26.2–26.5

And so that you may learn this from the opposite too: since Martha said none of these things, but the opposite, “Whatever you ask of God, he will give you,” she not only was not praised, though she was well known and beloved and among those very zealous for him, but was even rebuked and corrected by him as not having spoken well. For he said to her, “Did I not tell you that if you believe you will see the glory of God?”, charging her as one who had not yet believed. And again, since she said, “Whatever you ask of God, he will give you,” leading her away from such a supposition, and teaching that he does not need to receive from another but is himself the fountain of good things, he says, “I am the resurrection and the life”; that is, I do not wait to receive power, but I work all things of myself. That is why he both marvels at the centurion and prefers him to the whole people, honors him with the gift of the kingdom, and calls the others to the same zeal. And that you may learn that he said these things in order to train the others too to believe in this way, hear the exactness of the evangelist, how he hinted at it: “Turning,” he says, “Jesus said to those who followed him, ‘Not even in Israel have I found such faith.’” Do you see? To have a great conception of him, this most of all is faith, and procures the kingdom and the other good things. For the praise did not stop at words; he restored the sick man to health in return for his faith, weaves a splendid crown for him, and promises great gifts, saying, “Many will come from east and west and will recline in the bosom of Abraham and Isaac and Jacob, but the sons of the kingdom will be cast out.” For since he had displayed many miracles, he now speaks to them with greater boldness. Then, so that no one might think the words were flattery, but all might learn that the centurion was so disposed, he says, “Go; as you have believed, let it be done for you.” And at once the deed followed, bearing witness to his disposition. “And his servant was healed in that hour.” This happened also with the Syrophoenician woman; for to her too he says, “O woman, great is your faith; let it be done for you as you wish. And her daughter was healed.” But since Luke too, in reporting this miracle, inserts several other things that seem to show disagreement, it is necessary to resolve these too for you. What then does Luke say? “He sent elders of the Jews to him, entreating him to come.” But Matthew says that he himself came and said, “I am not worthy.” And some say that this is not the same man, even though he has very similar features. For of that one they say, “He built our synagogue, and he loves our nation”; but of this one Jesus himself says, “Not even in Israel have I found such faith.” And of that one he did not say that many will come from the east, from which it is likely that he was a Jew. What then shall we say? That this solution is easy; but the question is whether it is true. To me this one seems to be that one. “How then,” someone says, “does Matthew say that he himself said, ‘I am not worthy that you should come under my roof,’ but Luke that he sent for him to come?” To me Luke seems to be hinting at the flattery of the Jews, and that those in misfortune, being unsettled, often change their plans. For it is likely that the centurion, wishing to go, was prevented by the Jews, who flattered him and said, “We will go and bring him.” See, at any rate, that their entreaty too is full of flattery. “For he loves our nation,” they say, “and he himself built the synagogue”; and they do not even know on what ground to praise the man. For they ought to have said, “He himself wished to come and entreat you, but we prevented him, seeing the misfortune and the body lying in the house,” and so to have shown the greatness of his faith. This they do not say; for out of envy they did not wish to reveal the man’s faith, but chose rather to overshadow the virtue of the one for whom they had come to make supplication, lest the one entreated should seem to be someone great, rather than achieve, by proclaiming his faith, the very thing for which they had come. For envy is able to blind the mind. But he who knows secret things proclaimed him even against their will. And that this is true, hear Luke himself again explaining it. For he says this: that when he was not far away, he sent, saying, “Lord, do not trouble yourself, for I am not worthy that you should come under my roof.” For when he was freed from their importunity, then he sends, saying, “Do not think that I did not come out of hesitation; I thought myself unworthy to receive you in my house.”

And if Matthew says that he said this not through his friends but himself, this makes no difference; for the question is whether each of them presented the man’s eagerness, and showed that he had the fitting opinion about Christ. And it is likely that he too, after sending his friends, came himself and said these things. And if Luke did not say this, neither did Matthew say that; which was the act not of men in conflict with each other, but rather of men filling up what the other had left out. And see how Luke proclaimed his faith from another side too, by saying that the servant was about to die. Nevertheless not even this cast him into despair or made him give up hope; even so he hoped that he would survive. And if Matthew says that Christ said, “Not even in Israel have I found such faith,” showing by this that he was not an Israelite, while Luke says that he built the synagogue, not even this is contrary. For it is possible for one who is not a Jew both to build the synagogue and to love the nation. But do not, I pray you, simply examine what he said, but add also his office, and then you will see the man’s virtue. For great is the pride of those in office, and not even in misfortunes do they come down. The one, at any rate, recorded by John drags him to his house and says, “Come down, for my child is about to die.” But not so this man; he was much better both than that one and than those who let the bed down through the roof. For he does not seek his bodily presence, nor did he bring the sick man near the physician; which was the act of one who imagined nothing small about him but had a supposition befitting God; and he says, “Only say the word.” And not even at the beginning does he say, “Say the word,” but only relates the suffering; for out of great humility he did not expect that Christ would at once consent and seek out his house. That is why, when he heard him say, “I will come and heal him,” then he says, “Say the word.” And not even suffering confounded him; even in misfortune he philosophizes, looking not so much to the health of the servant as to not seeming to do anything irreverent. And yet it was not he who pressed him, but Christ who promised; but even so he fears lest he should seem to go beyond his own worth and draw a heavy burden on himself. Did you see his understanding? Consider the folly of the Jews, who say, “He is worthy to have you grant him this.” For they ought to have taken refuge in the love of Jesus for humankind, but they put forward the man’s worth, and do not even know on what ground they should put it forward. But he does not do so; he says emphatically that he is unworthy, not only of the benefit but even of receiving the Lord into his house. That is why, having said, “My servant is lying …,” he did not add, “Say the word,” fearing lest he be unworthy to obtain the gift, but only reported the misfortune. And when he saw Christ eager to be generous, not even so did he leap at it, but he still remains keeping the measure that befitted him. And if someone should say, “Why did Christ not honor him in return?”, we would say this: that he honored him in return very greatly; first, by revealing his mind, which became evident above all from his not coming into his house; and second, by bringing him into the kingdom and preferring him to the whole Jewish nation. For since he made himself unworthy even of receiving Christ into his house, he became worthy both of the kingdom and of attaining the good things that Abraham enjoyed. “And why,” someone says, “was the leper not praised, though he displayed greater things than these?” For he did not say, “Say the word,” but, what was much greater, “Only will”; which the prophet says of the Father, that “whatever he willed, he did.” But he too was praised. For when he says, “Offer the gift that Moses commanded, as a testimony to them,” he says nothing else than this: You will accuse them, by the fact that you believed. And besides, it was not the same for a Jew to believe as for one outside the nation. For that the centurion was not a Jew is clear both from his being a centurion and from its being said, “Not even in Israel have I found such faith.”

And it was a very great thing for a man outside the roll of the Jews to conceive so great a thought. For he imagined, as it seems to me, the armies in heaven; or that diseases and death and all other things are subject to him in the way his soldiers are to himself. That is why he said, “For I too am a man placed under authority”; that is, you are God, I am a man; I am under authority, but you are not under authority. If then I, being a man and under authority, can do so much, much more can you, being both God and not under authority. For he wishes to persuade him emphatically that he says this not as one giving an example of an equal, but of one far surpassing. For if I, he says, though of equal rank with those I command and under authority, nevertheless, because of the small superiority of my office, can do so much, and no one contradicts, but whatever I command is done, even if the commands differ (for I say to this one, “Go,” and he goes, and to another, “Come,” and he comes), much more will you be able. And some read this passage thus: “For if I, being a man,” and, putting a stop in between, they add, “having soldiers under authority under me.” But consider, I pray you, how he showed that he can both master death as a slave and command it as a master. For when he says, “‘Come,’ and he comes, and ‘Go,’ and he goes,” he is saying this: If you command death not to come upon him, it will not come. Do you see how faithful he was? For what was going to be manifest to all later, this man had already made plain: that he has authority both over death and over life, and brings down to the gates of Hades and brings up again. And he did not speak only of soldiers, but also of slaves, which implied greater obedience. But nevertheless, though he had so great a faith, he still thought himself unworthy. But Christ, showing that he was worthy to have him enter his house, did much greater things, marveling at him and proclaiming him and giving more than he asked. For he came seeking bodily health for his servant, and went away having received the kingdom. Do you see how already the saying was fulfilled, “Seek the kingdom of heaven, and all these things will be added to you”? For since he displayed great faith and humility, he both gave him heaven and added health; and not only by this did he honor him, but also by showing who are cast out while he is brought in. For from here on he makes known to all that salvation is from faith, not from the works of the law. That is why this gift will be set before not only the Jews but also the Gentiles, and before the latter rather than the former. For do not think, he says, that this has happened in this man’s case only; it will be so in the whole world. And he said this prophesying about the Gentiles and holding out good hopes to them. For there were some following him from Galilee of the Gentiles. And he said these things both not allowing the Gentiles to despair and pulling down the pride of the Jews. And so that what was said might not offend the hearers, nor give them any handle, he neither introduces the word about the Gentiles as his main point, but takes occasion from the centurion, nor does he set down the bare name of the Gentiles. For he did not say, “Many of the Gentiles,” but, “Many from east and west,” which was a way of indicating the Gentiles, but did not offend the hearers so much, for the saying was veiled. And not only in this way does he soften what seemed to be the novelty of the teaching, but also by speaking of the bosom of Abraham instead of the kingdom. For that name, the kingdom, was not familiar to them, and Abraham, set in their midst, stung them more. That is why John too said nothing at first about hell, but what grieved them most: “Do not presume to say, ‘We are children of Abraham.’” And along with this he accomplishes something else too: not to seem to be an opponent of the old way of life. For one who admires the patriarchs and calls their bosom the inheritance of good things removes this suspicion too with great abundance. Let no one think, then, that the threat is single; for the punishment of these is double, and the joy of those is double: of these, not only that they fell, but that they fell from what was their own; of those, not only that they obtained, but that they obtained what they did not expect; and a third besides, that these received what belonged to those. And he calls them sons of the kingdom, for whom the kingdom had been prepared; which stung them most of all. For having shown them to be in the bosom by announcement and promise, he then drives them out. Then, since what was said was a bare declaration, he confirms it by the sign; just as he shows the signs too from the prophecy that came to pass afterward. Whoever, then, disbelieves the healing that came to the servant then, let him believe that too from the prophecy that has come to pass today. For the prophecy too, even before its fulfillment, became plain to all from the sign of that time. That is why, having first foretold these things, he then raised up the paralytic, so as to confirm the future by the present and the lesser by the greater. For that the virtuous should enjoy good things and their opposites endure painful things is nothing unlikely, but happens according to reason and the sequence of laws; but to brace the paralyzed and raise the dead was beyond nature. But nevertheless the centurion too contributed no small part to this great and wonderful thing; which Christ too showed when he said, “Go; as you have believed, let it be done for you.” Do you see how the servant’s health proclaimed both the power of Christ and the faith of the centurion, and confirmed the future? Or rather, everything proclaimed the power of Christ. For he not only set right the servant’s body, but himself drew the centurion’s soul to faith by the miracles. And do not consider only this, that this man believed and that one was healed, but marvel also at the speed. For the evangelist, showing this, said, “And his servant was healed in that hour”; just as with the leper he said that he was cleansed immediately. For not only by healing, but by doing it wonderfully and in an instant, he displayed his power. And not only in this way did he benefit them, but also by continually, in the display of his miracles, opening up discourses about the kingdom and drawing all to it. For those he threatens to cast out, he threatens not in order to cast them out, but in order to draw them to it by fear through his words. And if they gained nothing even from this, the whole charge is theirs, and of all who are sick with such things. For one could see this happening not only with the Jews but also with those who believed. For Judas too was a son of the kingdom, and heard with the disciples, “You will sit on twelve thrones,” but became a son of hell; while the Ethiopian, a barbarian, and one of those from east and west, will enjoy the crowns with Abraham and Isaac and Jacob. This happens with us too now. “For many,” he says, “who are first will be last, and the last first.” And he says this so that neither may those be careless, as unable to return, nor these be confident, as standing firm. This John too foretold from the beginning, saying, “God is able from these stones to raise up children to Abraham.” For since this was going to happen, it is proclaimed in advance from afar, so that no one might be disturbed by the strangeness of the thing. But he says it as something possible, for he came first; while Christ speaks of it as certainly going to be, providing the proof from his works.

Let us not, then, be confident, we who stand, but let us say to ourselves, “Let him who thinks he stands take heed lest he fall”; nor let us despair who lie fallen, but let us say to ourselves, “Does not he who falls rise again?” For many who had gone up to the very summit of heaven, had displayed all endurance, had taken possession of the deserts, and had not seen a woman even in a dream, became a little careless, were tripped up, and came to the very pit of wickedness. And others again went up from there to heaven, and passed from the stage and the orchestra to the angelic way of life, and displayed such virtue as to drive out demons and work many other such signs. The Scriptures are full of these, and our life too is full of such examples. Even fornicators and the effeminate stop the mouths of the Manichaeans, who say that wickedness cannot be moved, being initiates of the devil, weakening the hands of those who wish to strive, and overturning all of life. For those who persuade people of this not only harm them with regard to the future, but even here turn everything upside down, as far as in them lies. For when will any of those living in wickedness take care for virtue, when he thinks that the return to it and the change for the better are impossible? For if now, when there are laws, and punishments threatened, and public opinion calling the many forth, and hell expected, and the kingdom promised, and evil things reproached, and good things praised, scarcely do some choose the sweat that virtue demands, if you take all these away, what is to prevent everything from being lost and corrupted? Knowing, then, the devil’s malice, and that these men, and those who attempt to lay down the doctrines of fate, are directly opposed to the lawgivers outside the church, to the oracles of God, to the reasonings of nature, to the common opinion of all men, barbarians and Scythians and Thracians and simply all, let us be sober, beloved, and, bidding farewell to all those, let us walk the narrow way, both confident and afraid: afraid because of the precipices on either side, confident because of Jesus who goes before us. Let us walk sober and watchful; for if one dozes even a little, he is quickly carried down. For we are not more careful than David, who, being a little negligent, was hurled down into the very pit of sin. But he rose quickly. Do not look, then, only at the fact that he sinned, but also that he washed away the sin. For this is why that history was written: not that you may see him fallen, but that you may marvel at him risen; that you may learn, when you fall, how one ought to rise. For as physicians choose the most grievous diseases, write them in their books, and teach the method of their treatment, so that, trained in the greater, they may easily overcome the lesser, so too God brought forward the greatest of sins, so that those who stumble in small things may find through those an easy correction of these. For if those obtained healing, much more will the lesser. Let us see, then, how that blessed man both fell sick and rose quickly. What, then, was the manner of his sickness? He committed adultery and murder. For I am not ashamed to proclaim these things with a loud voice. For if the Holy Spirit did not think it a shame to set down this whole history, much less ought we to overshadow it. That is why I not only proclaim these things, but add something else besides. For those who hide these things are the ones who most of all overshadow his virtue; and just as those who keep silent about the fight with Goliath deprive him of no small crowns, so too do those who pass over this history. Does what is said not seem paradoxical? Wait a little, then, and you will know that this has been said justly. For this is why I magnify the sin and make the discourse more paradoxical: so that I may prepare the remedies with greater abundance. What, then, is it that I add? The man’s virtue, which makes the charge greater too. For all things are not judged alike in all cases. “For the mighty,” it says, “will be mightily examined”; and, “The one who knows the will of his master and does not do it will be beaten with many stripes.” So greater knowledge is ground for greater punishment. That is why a priest who commits the same sins as those under his rule will not suffer the same things, but much harsher. Perhaps, seeing the accusation increase, you tremble and fear, and wonder at me as one walking along precipices. But I am so confident on behalf of the righteous man that I go further still; for the more I magnify the charge, the more I shall be able to show the praise of David. “And what more than this can be said?” someone says. Very much more. For just as with Cain what was done was not only murder but worse than many murders (for he killed not a stranger but a brother, and a brother who had not wronged him but had been wronged; and not after many murderers, but being the first to discover the crime), so here too the deed was not only murder; for the one who did it was no ordinary man but a prophet; and he kills not the one who had wronged him but the one who had been wronged; for he had been wronged in what mattered most, his wife having been seized; but nevertheless after that he added this too. Did you see how I did not spare the righteous man? How I spoke of his offenses without any reserve? But nevertheless I am so confident about the defense that, after so great a mass of sin, I would have wished the Manichaeans to be present, who most of all ridicule these things, and those sick with the doctrines of Marcion, so that I might stop their mouths abundantly. For they say that he murdered and committed adultery; but I not only say this, but have also shown the murder to be double, from the one who was wronged and from the quality of the person who offended.