Homilies on 2 Corinthians 20.1–20.2

"Now he who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food will supply and multiply your seed, and increase the fruits of your righteousness" [2 Cor 9:10]. One might especially admire Paul's wisdom here, that having urged them on from spiritual motives and from fleshly ones, he does the same again in the repayment, setting down rewards of both kinds. "He has scattered, he has given to the poor; his righteousness remains forever" belongs to the spiritual reward; but "multiply your seed" to the fleshly repayment. Yet he does not stop here, but passes again to spiritual things, continually setting them side by side; for "increase the fruits of your righteousness" is spiritual. And he does this tearing up by the roots the sluggish reasoning, and dissolving the fear of poverty from many sides, and also from this present example. For if God gives to those who sow the earth, if he supplies plenty to those who feed the body, much more to those who cultivate heaven, who take care of the soul; for he wishes these things to enjoy his providence more. But he does not set it down as a syllogism, nor in that way, as I said, but in the form of a prayer, at once making the reasoning plain and leading them more to hope, not only from what happens, but also from this prayer. "May he supply," he says, "and multiply your seed, and increase the fruits of your righteousness." Here again he hints at bounty without arousing suspicion; for "multiply and increase" is the language of one who indicates this. And at the same time he leaves them no need to seek more than necessities, saying "bread for food." For this too is above all admirable in him, as he established earlier as well: that in necessities he lets them seek nothing more than need, but in spiritual things he counsels great abundance. That is why he said above, "so that, having sufficiency, you may abound to every good work"; and here, "he who supplies bread for food ... multiply your seed," that is, the spiritual seed. For he does not ask simply for almsgiving, but for almsgiving with bounty. That is why he continually calls it seed. [For as seed sown in the ground] shows fields of grain, so almsgiving produces many sheaves of righteousness and shows unspeakable fruits.

Having prayed for such great plenty for them, he shows again where it must be spent, saying, "being enriched in everything for all liberality, which produces through us thanksgiving to God" [2 Cor 9:11]. Not so that you may spend it on what is not needful, but on those things which bring much thanksgiving to God. For God has made us masters of great things; and leaving the lesser to himself, has he not yielded the greater to us? For he himself is master of the food we perceive by the senses, but the food of the mind he has entrusted to us; for we are masters of showing our fields abounding. For this needs no rains nor temperate seasons, but only free choice, and it runs up to heaven itself. And here he calls bounty "liberality," "which produces through us thanksgiving to God." For what is done is not almsgiving only, but the occasion of much thanksgiving; or rather, not of thanksgiving only, but of many other things too. And he sets these down as he goes on, so that by showing how many are the achievements, he may make them readier. What, then, are these many things? Hear him saying, "For the ministry of this service not only supplies the wants of the saints, but also abounds through many thanksgivings to God; while, through the proof of this ministry, they glorify God for the obedience of your confession to the gospel, and for the liberality of your fellowship with them and with all; and by their prayer for you, as they long for you because of the surpassing grace of God in you" [2 Cor 9:12–14]. What he says is this: first, you not only fill up the wants of the saints, but you abound, that is, you supply them with more than they need; then through them you send up praise to God; for they glorify him for the obedience of your confession. For so as not to show them giving thanks for this only, I mean for receiving, see how he makes them lofty, as he himself says to the Philippians, "Not that I seek the gift" [Phil 4:17]; and he bears the same witness to these men. For they rejoice that you fill up their wants and relieve their poverty, but much more that you are so subject to the gospel; and a sign of this is your contributing so bountifully. For this is what the gospel enjoins. "And for the liberality of your fellowship with them and with all." And for this reason, he says, they glorify God, that you are so generous, not to them only, but to all. And this again becomes praise of those men, that they give thanks even for what is given to others. For they adorn not only their own affairs, he says, but those of others too, though they are in the utmost poverty; which is a sign of their great virtue. For nothing is so jealous as the race of the poor. But they are pure of this passion, being so far from grieving over what you share with others that they rejoice no less than over what they themselves receive. "And by their prayer for you." For these things they give thanks to God, he says; and for your love and for meeting you they pray, not because of the money, but so as to become spectators of the grace given to you.

Do you see Paul's wisdom, how having lifted them up he referred the whole to God, calling the thing a grace? For since he had spoken great things about them, calling them ministers and lifting them to a height (if indeed they ministered while he only served), and naming them approved, he shows that God is the cause of all these things; and he himself, with them, again offers up thanksgiving, saying, "Thanks be to God for his indescribable gift!" [2 Cor 9:15]. By "gift" here he means either the many good things [that come from almsgiving] to those who receive and those who give, or the unspeakable good things given to the whole world through his coming with great generosity; which one may most readily suppose. For so as both to restrain them and to make them more bountiful, he reminds them of what they have received from God. For this is the greatest thing for urging on to all virtue; that is why he closed his discourse here. And if the gift is indescribable, what could equal the madness of those who pry into his essence? Not only is his gift indescribable, but also "the peace that surpasses all understanding" [Phil 4:7], through which he reconciled things above to things below.

Let us strive, then, enjoying such great grace, to show a virtue of life worthy of it, and to make much account of almsgiving. And we shall do so if we flee excess, if drunkenness, if gluttony. For God has given food and drink, not for excess but for nourishment. For it is not wine that makes drunkenness; for if that were so, all would have to be drunk. "But," someone says, "even much of it ought not to harm." These are the words of drunkards. For if much harms, and not even so do you stand back from greed; if this is so shameful and harmful, and not even so do you cease from the evil desire; if it were allowed to drink much and suffer no harm, where would you have stopped in the service and ministry of greed? Would you not have desired even the rivers to become wine? Would you not have ruined and destroyed everything? If there is a measure of food, and by passing it we are harmed, and not even so do you bear the bridle, but bursting it you take what belongs to all, so as to serve the evil tyranny of gluttony, what would you not have done if this measure of nature had been taken away? Would you not have spent all your time on this? Ought he then to have made so absurd a desire strong, and not to have prevented the harm that comes from excess? And how many other harms would not have been born of this? But O the folly of those who, wallowing as in mire in drunkenness and their other profligacies, when they become a little sober, sit doing nothing else but uttering these words, "Why is this spent on that?" when they ought to judge their own offenses! For instead of saying, "Why has he set limits? Why is not everything carried along without order?" say, "Why do we not stop being drunk? Why do we take no fill? Why are we more senseless than the irrational animals?" These are the things we ought to ask one another, and to listen to the apostolic voice, and to know how many good things he bears witness come to these people from almsgiving, and to seize this treasure. For this makes men approved, as he himself said, this despising of money, and causes God to be glorified, and warms love, and makes men magnanimous, and appoints them priests, and to a priesthood that brings a great reward. For the merciful man is not clothed in a robe to the feet, nor does he carry bells, nor is he bound with a crown; but he is clad in the robe of kindness, holier than the sacred vestment, and anointed with oil not made of sensible matter but cultivated by the Spirit, and he has a crown made of compassions: "who crowns you," it says, "with mercy and compassions" [Ps 103:4]; and instead of wearing a plate bearing the name of God, he himself becomes like God. How? "You will become," he says, "like your Father who is in heaven" [Matt 5:45].

Do you wish to see his altar too? Not Bezalel built it [Exod 31:2–5], nor anyone else, but God himself; not of stones, but of a material brighter than heaven, of rational souls. "But the priest enters into the Holy of Holies." You may enter into places more awesome, offering this sacrifice, where no one is present but your Father who sees you in secret [Matt 6:4], where no one else sees. "And how," someone says, "is it possible not to be seen, when the altar stands in public?" For this is the wonder, that then double doors and curtains made the solitude; but now one may offer in public as in the Holy of Holies, and do it in a far more awesome way. For when you do it not for display before men, even if the whole world saw, no one saw, since you did it so. For he did not simply say, "Do not do it before men," but added, "to be seen by them" [Matt 6:1]. This altar is composed of the very members of Christ, and the body of the Master becomes an altar for you. Revere this very thing: you offer the victim on the flesh of the Master. This altar is more awesome even than the present one, not only than the old. But do not be troubled; for this one is wonderful because of the sacrifice laid upon it; but that of the merciful man not for this reason only, but also because it is composed of the very sacrifice which makes this one so. Again, this one is wonderful because it is stone by nature but becomes holy because it receives Christ's body; but that one, because it is itself the body of Christ. So that it is more awesome than this altar beside which you, the layman, stand. Does Aaron seem anything to you beside these things? Or the crown, or the bells, or the Holy of Holies? For why must we compare it any longer with that altar, when even compared with this one it has appeared so glorious? But you honor this altar because it receives the body of Christ, while you insult him who is himself the body of Christ and overlook him perishing. This altar you can see lying everywhere, in alleys and in market places, and you can sacrifice on it at every hour; for here too a sacrifice is performed. And as the priest stands calling down the Spirit, so you too call down the Spirit, not by voice but by deeds. For nothing so holds and kindles the fire of the Spirit as this oil poured out bountifully. And if you wish to see what becomes of the offerings, come, and I will show you this too. What then is the smoke? What is the sweet savor of this altar? Glory and thanksgiving. And how far does it go up? Only to heaven? Not at all; but it goes beyond heaven itself and the heaven of heaven, and stands beside the royal throne itself: "Your prayers and your alms," it says, "have gone up before God" [Acts 10:4]. And the sweet savor perceived by the senses does not even pierce much of the air; but this opens the very vaults of heaven. And you are silent, but the deed cries out; and it becomes a sacrifice of praise, not of a heifer slaughtered nor of a hide burned, but of a spiritual soul offering what is its own. For such a sacrifice is better approved than all [other] kindness. When, then, you see a poor believer, think that you are seeing an altar; when you see such a beggar, not only do not insult him, but even revere him; for so you will be able to have God gracious to you and to obtain the promised good things; which may we all attain, by the grace and lovingkindness of our Lord Jesus Christ, and so on.