3. Do you notice how strong the accusation is? Not only did the Jews disobey (God) even when He called them, but they also contradicted them, and moreover, not once, not twice, not three, but all the time when they saw (God) calling them. And the pagans, who had never known God, had the power to draw Him to themselves. However, (the Apostle) does not say that they themselves were able to draw God to themselves, but, casting down the pride of the Gentiles and showing that the grace of God produced everything, he says: "He was revealed," and "they found." So, the Gentiles are free from everything, you ask? In no way, but their business was to take what they found and know what was revealed. After the Jews did not say, "Why did He not appear to us also?" (The Apostle) points out something more, saying that He not only appeared to them, but also did not cease to stretch out His hands and call, showing the solicitude of a loving father and a compassionate mother. See what a clear solution (the apostle) gave to all the misunderstandings that arose above, proving that the Jews perished of their own free will and in all respects do not deserve an excuse. Though they heard and understood what was said, yet they did not want to come. And what is much more important, God not only gave them to hear and understand this, but also added stronger measures to motivate and attract the stubborn and resistant. Which ones? Encouraging them and arousing competition. You yourselves know the power of this passion, you know what power emulation has in overcoming every obstacle and in restoring the fallen. And is it necessary to say this about people, when competition has a great influence on both the dumb and immature children? Often a child, when called by his father, does not obey and continues to be obstinate, but when he sees that another child is being cared for, he runs to the parent's breast without any invitation, and what the request could not do, easily produces competition. This is what God did with the Jews. He not only summoned them, stretched out his hands to them, but also aroused in them the passion of emulation, bestowing blessings on those who were much inferior to them (and this especially excites emulation), and moreover, not with the goods that were given to the Jews, but, what is much more important and makes the passion more painful, with goods much greater and more necessary, such as the Jews could not even imagine in their dreams. But even with all this, they did not listen. What excuse, then, are those who have shown their obstinacy to such a great degree? No. However, (the Apostle) himself does not say this, but leaves it to the conscience of his hearers to conclude it on the basis of what has been said, and in the following words, with his characteristic wisdom, he again proves the same thing. As he did above, introducing objections into the discourse on the law and the people, in which there was a stronger accusation than was necessary, and then in the decision where the accusation was refuted, he yielded as much as circumstances permitted, so as not to grieve with his words, so he does here, saying: "Therefore I ask, Has God rejected his people, which he knew beforehand? In no way" (11:1,2). (The Apostle), as if having taken the basis of what has been said, presents himself as doubting, and, having pronounced these terrible words, by means of their denials, makes acceptable what he has tried to prove everywhere above, and which he reveals here. What is it? That though the number of the saved be small, the promise is immutable. Therefore he did not simply say, "people," but added, "His people, which He knew beforehand." Further, to prove that the Jews are not rejected, he says, "For I also am an Israelite, of the seed of Abraham, of the tribe of Benjamin." I, he says, am a teacher, a preacher. And since this seemed to contradict what was said above, namely, "Who believed what we heard"? and, "All day long I have stretched out my hands to a disobedient and obstinate people," and again, "I will stir up jealousy in you, not by the people," he did not confine himself to negation, and the word, "By no means," but repeats the same thing affirmatively, and says, "God has not rejected his people," v. 2. But, you will say, this is not a confirmation, but a denial. So here is first one confirmation, and then another. First, when (the apostle) declares that he himself is a Jew; if God had determined to reject the Jews, He would not have chosen Paul from among them, to whom He entrusted all the preaching, the affairs of the whole world, all the mysteries, all the Economy of human salvation. This is the first argument, and the second one that follows consists in the words, "His people ... whom He knew beforehand," that is, of whom He clearly knew that they were able to receive the faith, and would receive it, since also of the Jews three thousand, and five thousand, and a great crowd, believed.

4. And lest anyone object, "Are you a people, and does it follow from the fact that you have been called, that a whole nation has been called?" - (the apostle) added: "God did not reject his people, whom he knew beforehand" (v. 2). It is as if he were saying: there are three thousand with me, there are five thousand, there is a great multitude.

But so that the Jews may not say this, see what answer (the Apostle) gives in the following words: Without raising an objection, but warning him, he offers a solution on the basis of Old Testament history. What is this solution? "Or do you not know," he says, "what the Scripture says in [the account of] Elijah? how he complains to God about Israel, saying, "Lord! Thy prophets have been slain, Thy altars have been destroyed; I am left alone, and my soul is being sought. What does God's answer say to him? I have kept for myself seven thousand men who did not kneel before Baal. So also in this present time, by the election of grace, there is a remnant" (vv. 2-5). The meaning of these words is this: God did not reject the people, because if He had rejected them, He would not have received anyone, and if He had accepted some, He would not have rejected them. But if he did not reject, you say, then he accepted everyone? Not at all. And under Elijah no more than seven thousand were saved, and now there are probably many who believe. It is not at all surprising if you do not know them, since the prophet Elijah, such a great man, did not know them; but God arranged His works, although the prophet did not know. Notice, then, the prudence (of the apostle), how, in proving what he intended to prove, he imperceptibly increases the guilt of the Jews. He remembered all this testimony in order to reveal their ingratitude more clearly and to prove that they had been so from ancient times. And if he had not had this intention, but wanted to prove one thing, that the people consist of a few, he would only have said that even in the time of Elijah there remained seven thousand. But now he gives all the testimony from the beginning, since he tried by all means to prove that the actions of the Jews with Christ and the apostles are not strange, but are common among them and have become a habit. And lest they should say, We have killed Christ as a deceiver, and persecute the Apostles as deceivers, (the Apostle) cites a testimony in which it says: "Lord! Thy prophets have been slain, Thy altars have been destroyed." Then, in order not to grieve too much with this word, he gives another reason for giving this testimony. He does not cite it with the main purpose of accusing them, but with a view to proving something else; and, meanwhile, deprives them of any excuse in their former deeds as well. See how the accusation acquires special force depending on the person who accuses. The accuser is not Paul, not Peter, not James, not John, but the one to whom the Jews were most astonished, the head of the prophets, the friend of God, such a zealot for the Jews that he decided to endure hunger, he who is not yet dead. What does he say? "Lord! Thy prophets have been slain, Thy altars have been destroyed; I am left alone, and my soul is being sought." What could be more terrible than such an atrocity? Whereas they should have prayed for the sins they had already committed, they intended to kill him as well. All this deprives them of any excuse. For it was not in the time of famine, but in the time of fertility, when the shame was already destroyed, the demons were put to shame, the power of God was revealed, and the king himself was humbled, they ventured to commit such an atrocity, passing from murder to murder and killing teachers and those who corrected their lives. And what could they say about it? Could it be that they were deceivers too? Did they not know where they came from? Did they upset you? But they also said useful things. And what about the altars? Could it be that they also upset? Did they also insult? These are the examples of stubbornness and arrogance that the Jews have always shown. That is why Paul also says in another place, in his Epistle to the Thessalonians: "For you also suffered the same things from your fellow countrymen, as did those from the Jews, who killed both the Lord Jesus and His prophets, and drove us out, and do not please God, and resist all men" (1 Thess. 2:14,15). Likewise, he says here that the Jews destroyed the altars and slew the prophets. But what does the Divine sentence say to him? "I have kept unto myself seven thousand men who have not bowed the knee to Baal." You ask, does this apply to the present time? It is fully so, and this proves that God usually always saves the worthy, although the promise is given to a whole people. The same is proved above, when he says, "Though the children of Israel be as numerous as the sand of the sea, the remnant shall be saved," and "If the Lord of hosts had not left us seed, we would have become like Sodom." He proves the same here, wherefore he adds: "So also in our time, by the election of grace, a remnant has been preserved."

5. See how each word (of the Apostle) retains its power, expressing both the grace of God and the prudence of those who are being saved. By the word "by election" (the Apostle) showed the worthiness of those who are being saved, and by the word "grace" he meant the gift of God. "But if by grace, it is not by works; otherwise grace would no longer be grace. And if by works, then this is no longer grace; otherwise the work is no longer the deed" (Romans 11:6). Again, according to what has been said, the Apostle attacks the obstinacy of the Jews, and here he rebels against them, and here he deprives them of excuse. You cannot say, he says, that although the prophets exhorted, God called, the very works cried out, and the emulation was sufficient to attract us, yet the commands were heavy, and therefore we could not come, because we were required to show works and difficult merits, which cannot even be said. But how could God demand of you that which was to darken His grace? He said this, wishing to show how much he wanted their salvation. Not only could their salvation be accomplished conveniently, but it would also be the greatest glory for God to manifest His love for mankind. Why, then, were you afraid to approach when you were not required to do anything? Why do you argue and persist when grace is offered to you, and you refer to the law without need or benefit? After all, you will not save yourself by the law, but you will humiliate this gift. If you stubbornly want to be saved by the law, then you destroy the grace of God. Then, lest this be recognized as a new teaching, (the Apostle) says beforehand that even those seven thousand have been saved by grace. With the words, "So also in this present time, according to the election of grace, a remnant has been preserved," he shows that they also were saved by grace. The same is evident from the words, "I have kept for myself," by which God shows that He Himself did most of the work. And if by grace, you say, why are we not all saved? Because you don't want to. Grace, although it is precisely grace, nevertheless saves those who desire, and not those who do not want and turn away from it, who constantly rise up against it and resist it? Do you see how (the Apostle) everywhere reveals the truth that it is impossible that the word of God should not come to pass, and proves that the promise has been fulfilled in the worthy, and that the worthy, though they are few, can constitute the people of God (Romans 9:6)? At the beginning of the epistle, he expressed the same idea with greater force, saying: "It is not that the word of God has not come to pass," and without stopping there, he added: "God is faithful, but every man is a liar" (Romans 3:3,4); And now he again reveals this idea with other arguments, proving the power of grace and that it is always always some who are saved, and others who perish. Thus, let us thank God that we were among those who were being saved and, not being able to be saved by works, were saved by the gift of God. We will testify to our gratitude not only in words, but also in deeds and deeds. Gratitude is perfect when we do what serves to the glory of God, and when we avoid what we have been freed from. For if we, having insulted the king, instead of being punished, are rewarded, and then insult him again, then justice demands that we, as guilty of extreme ingratitude, should suffer an extreme punishment, and much more than before, because the former insult did not so much prove our ingratitude as the one committed after the honor and many services rendered to us. Therefore, let us shun that from which we have been freed, and let us not give thanks with our lips alone, lest it be said of us: "This people... with his mouth and with his tongue he honours me, but his heart is far from me" (Isaiah 29:13). Is it not strange that the heavens declare the glory of God, and you, for whom the heavens also glorify God, do such things that through you the God who created you is blasphemed? Of course, it is not only the one who blasphemes for this, but you yourself are subject to punishment. The heavens glorify God, not by making a sound, but by contemplation they induce others to praise; nevertheless, they are also said to proclaim the glory of God. In the same way, those who lead a life worthy of wonder, although they are silent, nevertheless glorify God, when through them others glorify Him. And it is not so much the sky as pure life that arouses surprise. Therefore, when we converse with the Gentiles, we do not refer to heaven, but to men, who were formerly worse than beasts, and whom God made like angels, and by pointing out this change, we stop their mouths.

6. Man is much better than heaven and can acquire a soul, more excellent than the beauty of heaven. Heaven, being visible for such a long time, did not convince much, but Paul, who preached for a short time, attracted the whole universe, because he had a soul that was no less than heaven and could attract everyone. After all, our soul is not worthy of the earth; and his (the soul) is equal to the heavens. Heaven stands, preserving its limit and law, and the height of Paul's soul surpasses all heaven and converses with Christ Himself; its beauty is so great that God Himself bears witness to it. At the creation of the stars, the angels were amazed, and Christ was amazed at Paul, saying: "He is my chosen vessel" (Acts 9:15). The sky is often covered with clouds, and Paul's soul was not darkened by any temptation, but even in the midst of storms it appeared more brilliantly than a clear noon, and shone as it did before the darkness. The sun, which shone in him, did not pour out such rays as could have been darkened by the confluence of temptations, but during temptations it shone even more. That is why Christ said: "My grace is sufficient for you, for My power is made perfect in weakness" (2 Corinthians 12:9). Therefore, let us imitate him, and if we wish, neither the heavens, nor the sun, nor the whole world will mean anything in comparison with us, because all these things are for us, and not we for them. Let us show that we deserve all these things to be made for us. If we prove unworthy of this, then how will we be worthy of the Kingdom? And if those who live to blaspheme God are unworthy to look at the sun, then those who blaspheme are not worthy to enjoy creatures that glorify God, since even a son who insults his father is not worthy to use the services of honest servants. Therefore, God's creatures will be worthy of great glory, and we will be subjected to punishment and torment. And what a misfortune it will be if the creature, called into existence for you, is transformed into the freedom of the glory of the children of God, and we, who were children of God, through whose fault the creation will enjoy that great bliss, will be sent for great negligence to perdition and to hell. Therefore, in order to avoid this, we, having acquired a pure soul, will also preserve it as such, or rather, increase its brilliance; but if we have defiled the soul, let us not despair. "Though your sins be as scarlet, as white as snow; though they be red as crimson, they shall be as white as wool" (Isaiah 1:18). And if God promises, do not doubt, but do what you can attract these promises. Have you committed many evil deeds and crimes? What then? You have not yet descended into hell, where no one confesses, the lists have not yet been destroyed, but you stand in the midst of the field and can even make up for all your defeats with the last struggle. You are not yet where the rich man is, and you have not yet been told: "A great gulf has been established between us and you" (Luke 16:26). The bridegroom has not yet come, and no one will be afraid to give oil; You can still buy it and keep it for stocking. No one will yet say: "Lest there be no shortage both among us and among you" (Matthew 25:9), but there are many who sell, there are naked, hungry, sick, imprisoned. Feed some, clothe others, visit those who are lying down, and you will have more springs of oil. The day of the report had not yet come. Take advantage of the time as you should, reduce your debts, and say to him who owes a hundred measures of oil: "Take your receipt and sit down quickly, write: fifty" (Luke 16:6). Do the same with money, words, and everything else, imitating that steward; Convince yourself and your relatives to do the same. You still have the right to say this, you are not yet in the need to ask someone else about it, but you have the power to give advice to yourself and to others. And when you move there, it will be impossible for you to do either one or the other as you should. And rightly so. You have been given so much time, but you have benefited neither yourself nor others: how can you receive such mercy when you are already in the hands of the Judge? Having considered all this, let us begin to take care of our salvation and will not destroy the timeliness of the present life. Perhaps it is quite possible to please God with your last breath; It is possible to get approval by means of a will, although not as conveniently as in life, but it is still possible. How exactly? If you include Christ among your heirs and give Him a part of the entire inheritance. Did you not feed Him during your lifetime? At least after death, when you are no longer the master of your possessions, give it to Christ: He loves mankind and does not strictly demand of you. Of course, love is greater and the reward is greater, if you nourish Him during your lifetime, but if you have not done this, then at least do the second, leave Him as a joint heir with your possessions, together with your children. And if you do not dare to do this, then remember that His Father has made you His joint heir, and cast out your inhumanity. Indeed, what excuse will you have if you do not make Him who made you a partaker of heaven and was put to death for your sake, together with your children? Of course, He Himself, whatever He did, did not in payment of a debt, but for the manifestation of grace, and even after so many blessings you remained His debtor. Yet, in spite of all this, He crowns you, as if He receives mercy from you, and does not collect a debt, while in reality He receives from you only His own.

7. Therefore, give Him money, which is already useless for you, over which you are not the master, but Christ will give you the Kingdom, which is always useful for you, and with it He will give you the blessings of this world. If He be a joint heir with your children, He will ease their orphanhood, deliver them from offenses, repel evil intentions, and stop the mouths of slanderers; if your children are not able to defend the will, then He Himself will do it and will not allow it to be broken. And if He does, He will fulfill all that is written by Himself with greater generosity, because you have vouchsafed Him to write Him together with the children. Therefore, leave Him as your heir, for you must go to Him and He will judge you in all that is perfect here. But there are also such unfortunate and miserable people who, having no children of their own, do not agree to do this, but prefer to divide their property to fellow diners and flatterers, rather to give one or the other than to Christ, Who has done them so good. What can be more unreasonable than such people? If you compare them to donkeys or stones, you will not fully express their foolishness and insensibility, nor will you find an example by which their folly and imprudence can be sufficiently depicted.

What excuse will you have when, having received such great mercy from Him, you neglect His beneficence and behave completely contrary to what your forefathers behaved in the faith? Even in their lifetime they sold everything and brought it to the feet of the apostles, but even in death you do not give any share to the needy. Though it is better to free others from poverty during one's lifetime, and gives much boldness, yet thou, if thou wilt not, at least at death, do something valiant. True, it is not a great love for Christ, but it means love. For even if you do not have primacy with the lambs, it is important to be behind them, and not to stand with the goats and the goats. And if you do not do even this, then what will you say in your defense, how soon do not the fear of death, or the fact that money becomes useless to you, or that you will bring security to your children, or that you will acquire great condescension for yourself there? Therefore, I advise you to give most of your property to the needy during your lifetime. And if some are so faint-hearted that they cannot decide to do so, let them, at least out of necessity, become philanthropic. In your lifetime you were so addicted to money as if you were immortal, but now that you see for yourself that you are mortal, yet now give up such a thought and dispose of your goods as a mortal, or rather as one appointed to enjoy an immortal life all the time. No matter how difficult, however terrible what I am about to say, nevertheless it is necessary to say this: Number the Lord among your servants. Do you set slaves free? Deliver Christ also from hunger, want, bondage and nakedness. Were you horrified when you heard this? It will be much worse if you do not do this. Here one word makes you tremble, but what will you say there when you move there, hear words much more terrible, and when you see the instruments of unbearable torment? Who will you resort to? Whom wilt thou call upon as thy ally and helper? Is it Abraham? But he will not hear. Or wise virgins? But they will not give you oil. Father or grandfather? But none of them, however holy, has the power to overturn the terrible sentence.

Amen.

CONVERSATION 19

“Что же? Израиль, чего искал, того не получил; избранные же получили, а прочие ожесточились” (Рим.11:7).

1. (Апостол) сказал, что Бог не отверг Своего народа и, объяснив, в каком смысле Он не отверг, прибег снова к пророкам и доказал на основании их, что большая часть иудеев погибла; но, чтобы не подумали, что он обвиняет их самовольно, оскорбляет своей речью и нападает на них, как враг, он прибегает к Давиду и к Исаии, говоря: “Как написано: Бог дал им дух усыпления” (ст.8). Но нам лучше начать речь с сказанного выше. (Павел), упомянув о случившемся при Илии и показав, что такое благодать, присовокупил: “Что же? Израиль, чего искал, того не получил”. Это не только вопрос, но и обличение. (Апостол) говорит, что иудей борется сам с собою, ищет оправдания и не хочет принять его. Потом, снова лишая иудеев оправдания, он доказывает их неблагодарность тем, что некоторые получили, и говорит: “избранные же получили”. Избранные и осуждают иудеев, как и Христос сказал: “И если Я силою веельзевула изгоняю бесов, то сыновья ваши чьею силою изгоняют их? Посему они будут вам судьями” (Лк. 11:19). Чтобы никто не осуждал самое свойство дела, а всякий винил настроение иудеев, (апостол) и упоминает о получивших, а потому и употребил весьма выразительное слово, изображающее вместе и благодать свыше, и собственное их старание. Он сказал – “получили” - не с целью отвергнуть свободную волю, но чтобы обозначить величие благ и то, что большее, хотя и не все, было свойственно благодати. И у нас о человеке, которому выпала большая выгода, есть обычай говорить: такой-то получил или нашел, потому что большая часть приобретается не человеческими трудами, но по дару Божию. “А прочие ослепились”. Заметь, когда отвержение остальных (апостол) осмелился назвать собственным именем. Он и прежде говорил об этом, но обвинителями представлял пророков, а теперь сам уже является обвинителем. Однако же и здесь не довольствуется собственным своим мнением, но опять указывает на пророка Исаию; сказав – “ослепились”, присовокупил: “Как написано: Бог дал им дух умиления”. Откуда же произошло это ослепление? (Апостол) и прежде объяснил причины его и всю вину сложил на голову самих иудеев, доказывая, что они подверглись ослеплению за неуместное упорство; и теперь он повторяет то же самое. Когда говорит: “Глаза, которыми не видят, и уши, которыми не слышат”, обвиняет не иное что, как упорную их волю. Имея очи, чтобы видеть чудеса, получив уши, чтобы слышать чудесное учение, они ни теми, ни другими не воспользовались, как должно. Под словом же – “дал” разумей здесь не содействие, а попущение. Умилением же здесь (апостол) называет навык души к худшему, совершенно неисцелимый и неисправимый. И в другом месте Давид говорит: “Да славит Тебя душа моя и да не умолкает. Господи, Боже мой! буду славить Тебя вечно (и не умилюсь)” (Пс. 29:13), то есть не переменюсь. Как умилившийся в благочестии нелегко изменяется, так и умилившийся во зле тоже с трудом может уклоняться от него, потому что умилиться значит не иное что, как укрепиться и прилепиться к чему-нибудь. Потому (апостол), желая выразить, что воля иудеев неисцелима и трудно исправима, назвал это духом умиления. Потом в доказательство того, что иудеи за такое неверие подвергнутся крайнему наказанию, опять ссылается на пророка, который угрожает им тем именно, что с ними случилось и исполнилось. Пророк именно говорит: “Да будет трапеза их сетью, тенетами и петлею” (Рим. 11:9), то есть, роскошь и все блага пусть минуют и погибнут, и пусть они будут легко обладаемыми для всех. А чтобы видно было, что иудеи переносят это в наказание за грехи, (Давид) присовокупил: “…в возмездие им; да помрачатся глаза их, чтобы не видеть, и хребет их да будет согбен навсегда” (ст.10). Нужно ли здесь какое-либо толкование? Не ясно ли это и для совсем неразумных? Еще прежде наших слов случившийся исход событий засвидетельствовал сказанное пророком. Когда иудеи были столь легко захвачены, когда легко пленены? Когда был так согбен хребет их? Когда они подвергались столь великому рабству? И важнее всего то, что этим бедствиям не будет конца, как намекнул пророк. Он не просто сказал: “хребет их … согбен”, но и присовокупил: “да будет”. Если же ты, иудей, утверждаешь, что бедствия кончатся, то суди о настоящем по прошедшему. Ты отправился в Египет, но прошло двести лет, и, при всем твоем нечестии и при самом тяжком твоем блудодеянии, Бог скоро освободил тебя от этого рабства. По освобождении из Египта ты поклонился тельцу, принес сынов своих в жертву Веелфегору, осквернил храм, погрузился во все виды порока, забыл самую природу, наполнил мерзкими жертвами горы, дебри, холмы, источники, реки, сады, убил пророков, опрокинул жертвенники и в высшей степени преуспел в пороках и нечестии; однако же Бог, предав тебя вавилонянам на семьдесят лет, опять извел в прежнюю свободу, возвратил тебе и храм, и отечество, и древний образ пророчества; опять у тебя были и пророки, и благодать Духа, а лучше сказать, даже и во время самого плена ты не был оставлен, но и там были у тебя Даниил и Иезекииль, а в Египте Иеремия и в пустыне Моисей.

2. После этого ты снова обратился к прежним порокам, предался распутству и при нечестивом Антиохе установил эллинский образ жизни. Но и тогда, три года или немного больше пробыв в подданстве у Антиоха, чрез Маккавеев вы опять воздвигли себе знаменитые победные памятники. Но теперь у вас нет ничего подобного, а все пошло иначе. И особенно удивительно то, что прежние пороки прекратились, а наказание увеличено и нет никакой надежды на перемену вашего положения. Прошло не семьдесят, не сто и не двести лет, но триста и гораздо более, однако же, нельзя найти и тени подобной надежды, и при том тогда, когда вы не служите идолам, не делаете ничего такого, на что отваживались прежде.

Какая же причина этого? Та, что образ заменен истиной и закон исключен благодатью. Издревле предрекая это, пророк и сказал: “хребет их да будет согбен”.

Итак, апостол, сильно поразив их изображением их неверия, а равно прошедших и будущих бедствий, снова утешает следующими словами: “Итак спрашиваю: неужели они преткнулись, чтобы [совсем] пасть? Никак” (ст.11). Когда (апостол) доказал, что иудеи подвержены бесчисленным бедствиям, он потом придумывает и утешение. И обрати внимание на благоразумие Павла: обвинение он заимствовал у пророков, а утешение предлагает сам от себя. Никто не будет спорить, говорит (апостол), что грехи иудеев велики, но посмотрим, действительно ли падение их так велико, что нельзя помочь ему, и нет средств исправить дело. Нет, оно не таково. Замечаешь ли, как он снова касается их и, в ожидании утешения, представляет виновными в грехах, в которых они и сами сознаются? Но посмотрим, какое он придумывает для них утешение. Какое же это утешение? Когда войдет вся полнота язычников, тогда, говорит (апостол), весь Израиль спасется, то есть, во время второго пришествия и при конце мира. Но не тотчас говорит об этом (Павел), а после сильных упреков, после того, как приложил обвинения к обвинениям, после того, как раз, два и многократно привел свидетельства одного пророка за другим - Исаии, Илии, Давида, Моисея, Осии, которые все вопиют против них. Но чтобы этим не ввергнуть иудеев в отчаяние и не заградить пути к вере, а уверовавшим из язычников не дать повода к высокомерию, чтобы они, возгордившись, не потерпели ущерба в вере, (апостол) снова утешает иудеев, говоря: “Но от их падения спасение язычникам”. Мы должны не просто слушать то, что говорится, но вникать в мысль и намерение говорящего, в то, чего он старался достигнуть, о чем и всегда умоляю любовь вашу. Если мы с таким размышлением будем принимать каждое слово, то ни в одном не встретим затруднения. А в настоящем случае главная цель (апостола) состоит в том, чтобы в уверовавших из язычников истребить высокомерие, которое могло возникнуть под влиянием сказанного выше; ведь язычники, научившись скромности, таким образом безопаснее пребудут в вере, а иудеи, освободившись от отчаяния, охотнее приступят к благодати. Итак, обращая внимание на эту цель (апостола), выслушаем все сказанное им в настоящем месте. Что же он говорит? Чем доказывает, что иудеи пали не безнадежно и что они не в конец отвержены? Указанием на язычников, говоря так: “От их падения спасение язычникам, чтобы возбудить в них ревность”. Это не апостола только слова, но и притчи в Евангелиях имеют такой же смысл. Так, устроивший брачный пир для сына, тогда уже стал звать с распутий, когда не захотели придти званные (Mф. 22:9). И насадивши виноградник тогда только отдал его другим виноградарям, когда первые убили наследника (Mф. 21:38). И кроме притчи (Христос) говорил: “Я послан только к погибшим овцам дома Израилева” (Mф. 15:24). А когда стала приступать к нему хананейская женщина, Он сказал и еще больше: “Нехорошо взять хлеб у детей и бросить псам” (ст.26). И Павел к восставшим против него иудеям сказал: “Вам первым надлежало быть проповедану слову Божию, но как вы … сами себя делаете недостойными вечной жизни, то вот, мы обращаемся к язычникам” (Деян. 13:46).