1. Why does He withdraw again? In order to teach us not to meet temptations ourselves, but to retreat and evade them. He is not guilty who does not rush into danger, but he who does not have courage in danger. Thus, in order to teach this and to tame the hatred of the Jews, Christ withdrew to Capernaum, fulfilling the prophecy, and at the same time, hastening, like a fisherman, to catch the teachers of the universe, who, engaged in their art, lived in this city. Notice here how every time Christ intends to withdraw to the Gentiles, He takes the motives for this from the Jews. So in the present case, the Jews, having devised evil against the Forerunner and put him in prison, drive Jesus Himself into pagan Galilee. And that by the name of Galilee is meant not only any part of the people of Judah, nor all the tribes in general, you can see from the words by which the prophet defines this country: the land of Naphtali, the way of the sea is the half of the Jordan, the language of Galilee. The people who sit in darkness have seen the great light (Isa. IX, 1). Darkness here he does not call sensual darkness, but error and wickedness, wherefore he added: "To them that sit in the land and in the shadow of death, light shine unto them" (Isa. IX, 2). And in order to make it clear that he is not speaking of sensual light and darkness, for this reason, when speaking of light, the prophet calls it not merely light, but great light, which in another place he calls true light (John 1:10). I, 9); and speaking of darkness, he calls it mortal. Wishing to show, then, that the inhabitants of this country did not seek and found this light themselves, but God revealed it to them from above, the Evangelist says: "Light shines upon them" (Matt. IV, 16), i.e. the light itself shone and illuminated them, and not they themselves came to the light beforehand. In fact, the human race was in the most miserable state before the coming of Christ; people no longer walked, but sat in darkness; And this means that they did not even hope to free themselves from this darkness. They did not even know where to go, and enveloped in darkness, they sat, no longer able to stand.

From then on Jesus began to preach and say, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand" (v. 17). Ottole: when is that? From the time that John was put in prison. Why did Christ not preach to them first? Why did He need John, when His very deeds clearly testified about Him? On the one hand, in order that His dignity might be seen from this, when He, too, like the Father, has prophets, of which Zechariah also said: "And thou shalt be called a prophet of the Most High" (Luke 2:11). I, 76); on the other hand, in order not to leave any excuse for the shameless Jews. Christ Himself pointed to this latter when He said: "John came neither eating nor drinking," and they said, "To have a demon." The Son of man came and drank, saying, Behold, a man of poison and wine, a publican's friend and a sinner. And wisdom was justified from his children (Matt. XI, 18, 19). Moreover, it was necessary that someone else should speak about Christ beforehand, and not He Himself. If, even after so many and so strong proofs and testimonies, they said, "Thou shalt bear witness of thyself, thy testimony is not true" (Jn. VIII, 13), then what would not have been said if John had said nothing about Him, and He Himself had been the first to bear witness about Himself to the people? That is why He did not preach before John, and did not perform miracles until the latter was put in prison. He did not want to create divisions among the people by His preaching. For the same reason, John did not perform a single miracle in order to bring to Christ the people drawn to Him by the power of His miracles. And indeed, if already, and after so many and great miracles, John's disciples, both before and after his imprisonment, looked upon Jesus with zeal, and if many revered not Him, but John as Christ, then what would have happened if things had been otherwise? That is why the Evangelist Matthew shows that Christ began to preach from then on; and at the beginning of His preaching He taught the same thing that John also preached, and He did not yet say anything about Himself, but continued only the preaching of the Baptist, because while they did not yet have a proper understanding of Him, it would be good if this teaching were also accepted.

2. For the same reason, at the beginning of His preaching, Christ does not offer anything painful and sorrowful, as John did. He mentioned the axe, the tree to be cut, the shovel, the threshing floor, the unquenchable fire (Matt. III, 10, 12); on the contrary, Christ begins His preaching with the joyful gospel of heaven and the kingdom of heaven prepared for those who hear Him. And walking by the sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon the verbal Peter, and Andrew his brother, sweeping the dead into the sea, for he was a fisherman. And he said, "Come after me, and I will make you a fisherman man." And she forsook the dead, and walked after Him (Matt. IV, 18-20). The Evangelist John describes their calling differently. From his words it is evident that this vocation was already the second, as can be concluded from many signs. Namely, John says that they came to Jesus before John was in prison; and here - that they came after his imprisonment. There Andrew summons Peter (Jn. I, 41, 42), and here both are Christ Himself. Moreover, John says that when Jesus saw Simon coming to Him, he said, "Thou art Simon the son of Jonah; thou shalt be called Cephas, as it is said Peter (Jn. I, 42). And Matthew asserts that Simon was already called by this name; it is he who says, "Having seen Simon Peter." The same is shown by the very place from which they were called, and by many other circumstances, such as the fact that they easily obeyed Him, and that they forsook everything: it means that they were well prepared for this beforehand. And indeed, it is clear from John's account that Andrew came to Jesus' house and heard many things from Him (John 1:10). I, 39); but here we see that they, having heard only one word, immediately followed Him. It is probable that they first followed Jesus, then left Him, and when they saw that John was put in prison, they withdrew and returned to their occupation; therefore Jesus finds them fishing. Nor did He prevent them from departing from Him at first when they desired it, nor did He forsake them altogether when they departed; but, having given freedom to depart from Himself, He again goes to return them to Himself. This is the best way to catch.

See what their faith and obedience are. They were busy with their own business (and you know how alluring fishing is); but, as soon as they heard the call of the Saviour, they did not delay, did not postpone it until another time, did not say: "Let us go home and consult with our relatives"; but forsaking all things, they followed Him just as Elisha followed Elijah (1 Kings 1:11). XIX, 20). Christ desires such obedience from us that we do not delay for the slightest time, even if the most extreme necessity demands it. That is why, when someone else came to Him and asked permission to bury his father (Matt. VIII, 21, 22), He did not allow him to do this either, showing that following Him should be preferred to everything. You will say that much was promised to them. But that is why I am especially surprised at them, that they, having not yet seen a single sign, believed so great a promise, and preferred following Christ to everything. They believed that they too would be able to catch others with the same words with which they themselves had been caught. And even this was promised only to Peter and Andrew; but James and John were not told even this; only the example of obedience of the former paved the way for them; however, they had heard much about Jesus before. Further, see with what detail the Evangelist points out their poverty: Jesus found them mending their nets (Matt. XV, 21). They were poor to such an extent that they had no money to buy new nets, and therefore repaired dilapidated ones. Meanwhile, no small proof of their virtue is the fact that they easily endure their poverty, are nourished by righteous labors, are bound to each other by bonds of love, live together with their father and serve him. When Christ has thus caught them, He begins to work miracles in their presence, confirming by His deeds what John said about Him. He began to visit the synagogues frequently, thus teaching His disciples that He was not an adversary of God or a deceiver of any kind, but had come according to the will of the Father; and when He visited the synagogues, He not only preached, but also worked miracles.

3. Whenever something special and extraordinary happens, or when any new way of life is introduced, God usually gives signs, as if to pledge His power to those who are to accept His laws. Thus, intending to create man, He first created the whole world, and then gave him a certain law in Paradise. Thus, when He wanted to give the law to Noah, He again performed great miracles, changed all creation in its foundations, commanded a terrible flood to hold the earth for a whole year, and in the midst of such a great turmoil He preserved the righteous unharmed. In the same way He protected Abraham with many signs; He granted him victory in battle, struck Pharaoh with blows, and delivered the forefather from danger. In the same way, before the promulgation of the law to the Jews, He showed wondrous and great miracles, and then He gave the law. So here, intending to give the highest rules of life and to offer people what they have never heard, He confirms His words with miracles. Since the kingdom he proclaimed was not visible, He made the invisible visible visible by visible signs. And note what brevity the Evangelist observes; he does not speak in detail of each one who was healed, but in a few words he mentions a multitude of signs: "Bring unto Him," he says, "all those who are sick with divers diseases, and possessed by passions, and demons, and menstruating, and those who are paralyzed, and heal them" (v. 24). But the question arises: why did Christ not demand faith from any of these healed people? Why did he not tell them what he said afterwards, "Do ye believe, that I can do this" (Matt. IX, 28)? This is because He did not yet show evidence of His power. However, their considerable faith was also proved by the fact that they approached Him and brought the sick down. They would not have brought them from afar if they had not had great faith in Him. Let us also follow Christ. And we have many spiritual illnesses, and it is these illnesses that he primarily wishes to heal. For this reason He heals bodily illnesses, in order to destroy spiritual ones as well. Let us draw near to Him and ask not for any worldly blessings, but for the remission of sins; Even now he gives (everything that is necessary), if only we ask diligently. Then the rumor of Him spread throughout all Syria, and now throughout the whole world. At that time the inhabitants of various countries flocked to Him, hearing that He heals the possessed, but you, having before your eyes much more numerous and important experiences of His power, do not want to arise and rush to Him? They left their fatherland, friends, and relatives, and you do not want to leave home to approach Him and receive much better? But we do not demand this from you either. Abandon only evil habits, and you can, by staying at home with your own, be comfortably saved. Having some bodily illness, we try with all our might to free ourselves from it, but when we suffer greatly from spiritual illnesses, we hesitate and refuse to be cured. That is why we do not get rid of bodily illnesses, because we consider what is necessary for us to be of little importance, and what is unimportant is necessary, and, leaving the very source of evil, we want to purify the streams. And that the depravity of the soul is the cause of bodily illnesses is proved by the paralytic who was sick for thirty-eight years, and by the one who was lowered on his bed, having dismantled the roof, and first of all by Cain. And many other examples show the same thing. Thus, let us destroy the source of evil, and then all the streams of diseases will dry up of themselves. Not only bodily weakness is a disease, but also a sin; and the latter is even more than the first, since the soul is better than the body. And so, let us now approach Christ, let us ask Him to heal our paralyzed soul, and leaving behind all worldly things, let us be concerned only with spiritual things. Having acquired this, you can then take care of the rest. Do not consider yourself safe if you do not grieve for your sins; but especially groan about this, that you do not feel contrite for your iniquities. Your tranquility comes not from the fact that sin does not bite, but from the insensibility of the soul given over to sin. Imagine how those who feel the weight of their sins are tormented, how bitterly they cry out, more sorrowful than those who are cut or burned! What do they do, how do they suffer, how many tears do they shed, how many lamentations do they utter in order to be freed from the torments of conscience? They would not have done this if they had not suffered greatly in their souls.

4. It is best not to sin at all; And if someone has sinned, then he must feel his sin and be corrected.

Having insulted a person, you beg friends, neighbors, and gatekeepers themselves, spend money, lose many days going to him and begging for forgiveness. And even though the offended one drives you away once, and another time, and a thousand times, you do not lag behind, but the more zealously you intensify your prayers. And when we provoke God of all kinds, we neglect it, we remain cold, we luxuriate, we get drunk, and we do all that we are accustomed to: when shall we propitiate Him?... On the contrary, if we continue to live in this way, do we not irritate Him even more? And indeed, unrepentance of sins arouses His anger and indignation much more than sin itself. We ought to hide ourselves in the earth, not to see the sun, and not even to use the air, because having such a merciful Lord, we irritate Him, and in irritating Him, we do not even repent of it. Even in His anger, He not only has no hatred or abhorrence towards us, but is angry in order to draw us to Himself at least in this way; for if He, being offended, repaid you only with good deeds, then you would despise Him all the more. In order to prevent this from happening, He hides His face from you for a while, in order to unite you with Himself forever. And so, let us be inspired by the hope of his love for mankind, let us bring fervent repentance before the day comes when repentance itself will not benefit us in any way. Now everything depends on us; and then the judgment upon us will be in the power of the Judge alone. Let us, therefore, precede His face in confession (Psalm. XCIV, 2), let us weep and weep. If we propitiate the Judge before the day of the Lord, so that He will forgive us our sins, then we will not be subject to judgment. Otherwise, each of us, before the face of the entire universe, will be brought to judgment, and we will have no hope of receiving forgiveness. None of those living on earth, who has not received absolution of sins, after the transition to the future life, can escape torture for them. But just as here criminals are brought to trial in chains, so after departing from this life, all souls will be brought to the Last Judgment, burdened with various bonds of sins. Truly, real life is no better than prison. Just as when we enter a prison house we see all those burdened with fetters, so now, if we remove all external splendor and enter into the life of each one, we will see that the soul of each is bound with chains heavier than iron, and especially if we ascend into the souls of the rich. Truly, the more wealth they possess, the more they are bound to them. Just as when you see a prisoner whose neck and arms, and often his legs are covered with irons, you consider him extremely unhappy, so when you see a rich man who possesses innumerable treasures, do not call him happy, but for this very reason consider him the most unfortunate. In fact, in addition to the fact that he is in chains, there is also a cruel prison guard with him - an evil covetousness, which does not allow him to leave the prison, but prepares for him a thousand new fetters, prisons, doors and locks; and having thrown him into an inner prison, he still forces him to delight in his bonds, so that he cannot even find any hope of freeing himself from the evils that oppress him. And if you penetrate with thought into the interior of his soul, you will see it not only bound, but also extremely ugly, defiled and filled with worms. The pleasures of a voluptuous life are no better, but even more disgusting, because they corrupt both body and soul, and afflict them with an innumerable multitude of diseases. Considering all this, let us pray to the Redeemer of our souls, that He would break the fetters, and drive away from us that cruel guardian, and, freeing our spirit from the heavy iron bonds, would make it lighter than a pen; and with prayer to Him let us combine our own diligence and diligence and good readiness. In this way we will be able in a short time to be freed from the evils that beset us, and to know our former state, and to receive the freedom previously granted to us, which may we all be vouchsafed to be vouchsafed by the grace and love of our Lord Jesus Christ, to whom be glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen.

CONVERSATION 15

The Works of Our Holy Father John Chrysostom, Archbishop of Constantinople

Commentary on St. Matthew the Evangelist

DISCOURSE XV.