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We must copy the Self-Denial of the Apostles. 637

XIII.

Mark

also Christ saying to them, Ye shall sit upon twelve thrones, MATT. and, every one that hath forsaken houses, or brethren, 3. or father, or mother, shall receive an hundred fold in this world, and shall inherit everlasting life'. From all worldly 1ib.v.29. things, therefore, let us withdraw ourselves, and dedicate compare ourselves to Christ, that we may both be made equal to 10, 30. Luke18, the Apostles, according to His declaration, and may enjoy 30. eternal life: unto which may we all attain, by the grace and love towards man of our Lord Jesus Christ, to Whom be glory and might, for ever and ever. Amen.

HOMILY XLVII.

I Comp. Ps. 78, 2.

MATT. xiii. 34, 35.

All these things spake Jesus unto the multitudes in parables, and without a parable spake He not unto them; that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the Prophet, saying, I will open My mouth in parables; I will utter things that have been kept secret from the foundation of the world1.

BUT Mark saith, As they were able to hear it, He spake 2 Mark the word unto them in parables2.

4, 33.

Then pointing out that He is not making a new thing, He brings in the Prophet also, proclaiming beforehand this His manner of teaching. And to teach us the purpose of Christ, how He discoursed in this manner, not that they might be ignorant, but that He might lead them to enquiry, he added, And without a parable spake He nothing unto them. Yet surely He did say many things without a parable; but then nothing. And for all this no man asked Him questions, whereas the Prophets, we know, they were often questioning: 3 Ezek. as Ezekiel 3, for instance; as many others: but these did no 12, 9. such thing. Yet surely His sayings were enough to cast 37, 18. them into perplexity, and to stir them up to the enquiry; for indeed a very sore punishment was threatened by those parables: however, not even so were they moved.

24, 19.

v. 36.

4 the

house,

(rec.

Wherefore also He left them and went away. For,

Then, saith he, Jesus sent the multitudes away, and went into His house.

And not one of the Scribes follows Him; whence it is clear text.) that for no other purpose did they follow, than to take hold

The Parable of the Tares expounded.

639

of Him '. But when they marked not His sayings, thence- MATT. forth He let them be.

XIII. 37-43.

βέσθαι.

And His disciples come unto Him, asking Him concern-ileing the parable of the tares; although at times wishing to learn, and afraid to ask. Whence then arose their con- Mark 9, 32. fidence in this instance? They had been told, To you it is given to know the mysteries of the Kingdom of Heaven; and they were emboldened. Wherefore also they ask in private; not as grudging the multitude, but observing their Master's law. For, To these, saith He, it is not given.

And why may it be that they let pass the parable of the leaven, and of the mustard seed, and enquire concerning this? They let those pass, as being plainer; but about this, as having an affinity to that before spoken, and as setting forth something more than it, they are desirous to learn; (since He would not have spoken the same to them a second time;) for indeed they saw how severe was the threatening therein uttered". Wherefore neither doth He blame them, but rather completes His previous state

ments.

And, as I am always saying, the parables must not be explained throughout word for word, since many absurdities will follow; this even He Himself is teaching us here in thus interpreting this parable. Thus He saith not at all who the servants are that came to Him, but, implying that He brought them in, for the sake of some order, and to make up the picture, He omits that part, and interprets those that are most urgent and essential, and for the sake of which the parable was spoken; signifying Himself to be Judge and Lord of all.

And He answered, so it is said, and said unto them, He that v.37-43. soweth the good seed is the Son of man; the field is the world, the good seed, these are the children of the Kingdom, but the tares are the children of the wicked one; the enemy that soweth them is the devil; and the harvest is the end of the world, and the reapers are angels. As therefore the tares are gathered and burned in the fire; so shall it be in the end of this world. The Son of man shall send His angels, and they shall gather out of His kingdom all things

This passage is translated according to a conjectural emendation of Mr. Field.

XLVII.

640

Holy Proverbs, from Harvest work.

HOMIL. that offend, and them which do iniquity; and shall cast 1,2. them into the furnace of fire, there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth. Then shall the righteous shine forth as the sun in the Kingdom of their Father.

For whereas He Himself is the Sower, and that of His own field, and out of His own Kingdom He gathers, it is quite clear that the present world also is His.

But mark His unspeakable love to man, and His leaning to bounty, and His disinclination to punishment; in that, when He sows, He sows in His own Person, but when He punishes, it is by others, that is, by the angels.

Then shall the righteous shine forth as the sun in the Kingdom of their Father. Not because it will be just so much only, but because this star is surpassed in brightness by none that we know. He uses the comparisons that are

known to us.

And yet surely elsewhere He saith, the harvest is already come; as when He saith of the Samaritans, Lift up your eyes, and look on the fields; for they are white already to harvest. And again, The harvest truly is plenteous, but the 4,35. labourers are few". How then saith He there, that the 9, 37. harvest is already come, while here He said, it is yet to be? According to another signification.

1 John

2 Matt.

Luke

10,

2.

And how having elsewhere said, One soweth, and another 3 John reapeth3, doth He here say, it is Himself that soweth? 4,37. Because there again, He was speaking, to distinguish the

Apostles, not from Himself, but from the Prophets, and that in the case of the Jews and Samaritans. Since certainly it was He who sowed through the Prophets also.

And at times He calls this self-same thing both harvest and sowing, naming it with relation, now to one thing, now to another. Thus when He is speaking of the conviction Saxou- and obedience of His converts1, He calls the thing a harvest, σάντων as though He had accomplished all; but when He is seeking after the fruit of their hearing, He calls it seed, and the end, harvest.

b Or, "produce lawlessness," roùs ποιουντὰς τὴν ἀνομίαν, in which sense it seems more directly applicable to heretics, who may not be vicious in

their own lives, but produce a contempt of God's law by their false doctrines. Transl.

The Parables of the Treasure and Pearl.

641

XIII.

And how saith He elsewhere, that the righteous are caught MATT. up first1? Because they are indeed caught up first, but 44-46. Christ being come, those others are given over to punish-Thess. ment, and then the former depart into the Kingdom of heaven. For because they must be in heaven, but He Himself is to come and judge all men here; having past sentence upon these, like some king He rises with His friends, leading them to that blessed portion. Seest thou that the punishment is twofold, first to be burnt up, and then to fall from that glory?

[2.] But wherefore doth He still go on, when the others have withdrawn, to speak to these also in parables? They had become wiser by His sayings, so as even to understand. At any rate, to them He saith afterwards,

Have ye understood all these things? They say unto Him, v. 51. Yea, Lord. So completely, together with its other objects, did the parable effect this too, that it made them more clear sighted.

What then saith He again?

The Kingdom of Heaven is like unto Treasure hid in a v.44-46. field, the which when a man hath found, he hideth, and for joy thereof selleth all that he hath, and buyeth that field. Again, the Kingdom of Heaven is like unto a merchant man seeking goodly pearls, who, when he had found one Pearl of great price, went and sold all that he had, and bought it.

Much as in the other place, the Mustard seed and the Leaven have but some little difference from each other, so here also these two parables, that of the Treasure and that of the Pearl. This being of course signified by both, that we ought to value the Gospel above all things. And the former indeed, of the leaven and of the mustard seed, was spoken with a view to the power of the Gospel, and to its surely prevailing over the world; but these declare its value, and great price. For as it extends itself like mustard seed, and prevails like leaven, so it is precious like a pearl, and affords full abundance like a treasure. We are then to learn not this only, that we ought to strip ourselves of every thing else, and cling to the Gospel, but also that we are to do so with joy; and when a man is dispossessing himself of his

2 T

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