Homilies on the Gospel of Matthew 76.1–76.5

“Then let those in Judea flee to the mountains; and let him who is on the housetop not go down to take what is in his house; and let him who is in the field not turn back to take his garments.”

Having spoken of the evils that would overtake the city, and of the apostles’ trials, and that they would remain unconquered and would run through the whole world, he speaks again of the calamities of the Jews, showing that when these men are illustrious, having taught the whole world, then those will be in calamities. And see how he describes the war, setting forth its unbearableness through things that seem to be small. “For then,” he says, “let those in Judea flee to the mountains.” Then—when? When these things happen, when the abomination of desolation stands in the holy place. Hence he seems to me to mean the armies. “Flee, then, at that time,” he says, “for there is no longer any hope of safety for you.” For since it had often happened that they recovered in grievous wars, as under Sennacherib, and again under Antiochus (for then too, when armies had come in and the temple had already been seized, the Maccabees rallied and turned affairs round the other way), so that they might not suspect now too that there would be some such change, he forbids them every such thought. “For one may be content,” he says, “to be saved now with the naked body.” Therefore he does not allow even those on the housetops to go into the house to take their garments, showing the inescapable evils and the boundless calamity, and that whoever falls into it must certainly perish. Therefore he adds also the one in the field, saying, “Nor let this one turn back to take his garments.” For if those inside flee, much more should those outside not take refuge there. “But woe to those who are with child and to those who nurse”: to the former, because they are more sluggish and cannot flee easily, weighed down by the burden of pregnancy; to the latter, because they are held by the bond of sympathy for their children and cannot save their nurslings with them. For money it is easy both to despise and to provide for, and clothes too; but the things of nature, how could one escape them? How could the pregnant woman become light? How will the nursing woman be able to disregard her child? Then again, showing the greatness of the calamity, he says, “Pray that your flight may not be in winter, nor on a sabbath. For then there will be great tribulation, such as has not been from the beginning of the world until now, nor ever will be.” Do you see that his word is addressed to the Jews, and that he speaks of the evils that would overtake them? For the apostles were surely not going to keep the sabbath, or to be there when Vespasian did these things. For most of them had already departed this life; and if any was left, he was then living in other parts of the world. And why neither in winter nor on a sabbath? In winter, because of the difficulty arising from the season; on a sabbath, because of the authority of the law. For since there was need of flight, and of the swiftest flight, and the Jews of that time neither dared to flee on a sabbath because of the law, nor was such a thing easy in winter, for this reason he says, “Pray.” “For then there will be tribulation such as has not been, nor ever will be.”

And let no one think this was said hyperbolically, but let him read the writings of Josephus and learn the truth of what was said. For no one could say this either, that the man was a believer and so exaggerated the tragedy in order to confirm what was said. For he was a Jew, and very much a Jew, and a zealot, and after the coming of Christ. What, then, does he say? That those terrors surpassed every tragedy, and that no such war ever overtook the nation. For so great was the famine that the mothers themselves fought over the eating of children, and wars arose over this; and he said that many, when dead, were ripped open through the middle of their bellies. Gladly, then, would I ask the Jews: whence came upon them a wrath so sent by God and so unbearable, more grievous than all that had happened before, not in Judea only, but everywhere in the world? Is it not plain that it was because of the crime of the cross and this rejection? All would say so, and with all and before all the very truth of the facts. And consider, I pray, the excess of the evils, when they appear more grievous not when compared with former time only, but with all the time to come. For neither in the whole world, nor in all time, past and future, will anyone be able to say that such evils have happened. And very reasonably; for no man ever dared, neither of those before nor of those after, a crime so lawless and horrible. Therefore he says, “There will be tribulation such as has not been, nor ever will be. And if those days had not been cut short, no flesh would have been saved; but for the sake of the elect those days will be cut short.” By these words he shows them deserving of a punishment more grievous than the one mentioned, meaning by “days” those of the war and of that siege. And what he says is this: If the war of the Romans against the city had prevailed longer, all the Jews would have perished (for by “all flesh” he here means the flesh of the Jews), both those outside and those inside. For they made war not only on those in Judea, but also proscribed and drove out those scattered everywhere, because of their hatred toward those in Judea.

And whom does he here call the elect? The believers who were caught in the midst of them. For so that the Jews might not say that these evils came about because of the preaching and the worship of Christ, he shows that not only were the believers not the cause of these things for them, but that, had they not been there, all would have perished root and branch. For if God had allowed the war to be prolonged, not even a remnant of the Jews would have remained; but so that the believers who had come from among them might not perish together with the unbelieving Jews, he quickly ended the battle and put an end to the war. Therefore he says, “But for the sake of the elect they will be cut short.” He said this to leave consolation to those of them caught in the midst, and to let them breathe again, so that they might not fear that they would perish along with the rest. And if here there is so much providence for them, that for their sake others too are saved, and remnants of the unbelieving Jews survive because of Christians, how great will their honor be at the time of the crowns? From this he also consoled them not to grieve at their own dangers, since those others too suffer such things, and for nothing, but to the harm of their own head. And he not only consoled them, but also drew them away henceforth from the Jewish customs, without their noticing it and without arousing suspicion. For if there will be no change henceforth, and the temple will not stand, it is plain that the law too will cease. But he did not say this openly; he hinted at it through their utter destruction. And he did not say it openly, so as not to strike them before the time. Therefore he did not at the start launch directly into speaking about these things, but having first bewailed the city, he put them under the necessity both of pointing out the stones and of asking the question, so that, as though answering their question, he might foretell all that was to come. And consider, I pray, the dispensation of the Spirit, that John wrote none of these things, so that he might not seem to be writing from the very history of what had happened (for he lived a long time after the capture); but those who died before the capture and saw none of these things, they write them, so that the strength of the prediction shines out from every side.

“Then if anyone says to you, Look, here is the Christ, or there, do not believe it. For false christs and false prophets will arise, and will give signs and wonders, so as to lead astray, if possible, even the elect. Look, I have told you beforehand. If, then, they say to you, Look, he is in the wilderness, do not go out; look, he is in the inner rooms, do not believe it. For as the lightning comes from the east and shines as far as the west, so will be the coming of the Son of Man. For wherever the carcass is, there the eagles will be gathered.” Having completed what concerns Jerusalem, he passes henceforth to his own coming, and tells its signs, useful not to them only, but also to us and to all who will be after us. “Then”—when? Here, as I have often said, the “then” does not belong to the sequence of the time of the things mentioned before; at any rate, where he wished to speak of sequence, he added, “Immediately after the tribulation of those days.” But here it is not so, but “then,” showing not what comes immediately after these things, but what belongs to the time when the things he was about to speak of will happen. So too when it says, “In those days John the Baptist comes,” it does not mean the time immediately following, but the time many years after, in which the things it was about to tell took place. For having spoken of the birth of Jesus, and of the coming of the magi, and of the death of Herod, it says at once, “In those days John the Baptist comes,” although thirty years had passed in between. But it is the custom of Scripture to use this manner of narrative. So here too, passing over all the time between, from the capture of Jerusalem to the preludes of the end, he speaks of the time a little before the end. “Then if anyone says to you,” he says, “Here is the Christ, or there, do not believe it.” For the present he secures them by the place, telling the marks of his second coming and the tokens of the deceivers. For not as at his first coming he appeared in Bethlehem, in a small corner of the world, with no one knowing it at the beginning—not so will it be then, he says, but openly and with all conspicuousness, so as to need no one to announce it. And this is no small sign that he does not come secretly. And see how here he says nothing about war (for he is setting out clearly the account of his coming), but about those who attempt to deceive. For some in the time of the apostles deceived the many: “For they will come,” he says, “and will deceive many”; but others will come before his second coming, who are more bitter even than those. “For they will give,” he says, “signs and wonders, so as to lead astray, if possible, even the elect.” Here he speaks of the Antichrist, and shows that there will be some also who will serve him; of whom Paul too speaks thus. For having called him the man of sin and the son of perdition, he added, “whose coming is according to the working of Satan with all power and signs and lying wonders, with all deception of unrighteousness among those who are perishing.” And see how he secures them: “Do not go out,” he says, “into the wilderness; do not go into the inner rooms.” He did not say, “Go, and do not believe,” but, “Do not go out, nor go away.” For great will be the deception then, because signs of deception too will be done. [3] Having said, then, how that one, the Antichrist, comes, namely in a place, he says how he himself comes. How, then, does he come? “As the lightning comes from the east and shines as far as the west, so will be the coming of the Son of Man. For wherever the carcass is, there the eagles too.” How, then, does the lightning appear? It needs no one to announce it, it needs no herald, but even to those sitting in houses and to those in their chambers it shows itself in an instant throughout the whole world. So will that coming be, appearing everywhere at once through the shining forth of its glory. And he tells another sign also: “Where the carcass is, there the eagles too,” signifying the multitude of the angels, of the martyrs, of all the saints. Then he tells of fearful wonders. And what are the wonders? “Immediately after the tribulation of those days,” he says, “the sun will be darkened.” The tribulation of what days does he mean? Of the Antichrist and of the false prophets. For great will be the tribulation then, when there are so many deceivers. But it is not prolonged to any length of time. For if the Jewish war was cut short for the sake of the elect, much more will this trial be contracted for the sake of these same. Therefore he did not say, “after the tribulation,” but, “immediately after the tribulation of those days the sun will be darkened”; for almost everything happens together. For the false prophets and the false christs will come and cause tumult, and immediately he himself will be present. For no small turmoil will then hold the world. And how does he come? With the creation itself henceforth being transformed. For “the sun will be darkened,” not destroyed, but overcome by the light of his coming; “and the stars will fall”—for what need will there be of them any longer, when there is no night?—“and the powers of the heavens will be shaken”; and very reasonably, seeing so great a change taking place. For if when the stars were made they so trembled and marveled (“For when the stars were made,” he says, “all angels praised me with a loud voice”), much more, seeing all things being refashioned, and their fellow servants giving account, and the whole world standing before a fearful tribunal, and those born from Adam until his coming being required to give account of all they did, how will they not tremble and be shaken? “Then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in heaven”: that is, the cross, brighter than the sun; since that is darkened and hidden, while this appears; and it would not appear unless it were far brighter than the rays of the sun. And why does the sign appear? So that the shamelessness of the Jews may be stopped more than abundantly. For Christ comes to that tribunal having the cross as his greatest plea, showing not only the wounds but also the shameful death. “Then the tribes will mourn.” For there is no need of accusation when they see the cross; and they will mourn that they gained nothing from his death, that they crucified him whom they ought to have worshiped. Have you seen how fearfully he sketched his coming? How he raised the spirits of the disciples? For this reason he sets down first the painful things and then the good, so that by this too he may console and refresh them. And he reminds them again of the passion and of the resurrection, and mentions the cross in a splendid guise, so that they may not be ashamed or pained, since he then comes holding it before him in place of a sign. And another evangelist says, “They will look on him whom they pierced.” For this reason the tribes will mourn, seeing that this is he. And since he had reminded them of the cross, he added, “They will see the Son of Man coming,” no longer on the cross, but “on the clouds of heaven, with power and great glory.” “For do not,” he says, “because you heard of the cross, think that it is something gloomy again; for he will come with power and great glory.” And he brings the cross so that their sin may stand self-condemned; as if someone struck with a stone should show the very stone, or his bloodied garments. And he comes on a cloud, as he was taken up; and seeing these things the tribes lament. Yet their terrors will not stop at laments; but the lament will be so that they may bring the verdict from their own selves and condemn themselves; and then again “he will send his angels with a great trumpet, and they will gather his elect from the four winds, from one end of the heavens to the other.” And when you hear this, think of the punishment of those who are left. For they will pay not that penalty only, but this one too. And as above he said that they will say, “Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord,” so here, that they will mourn. For since he had spoken to them of grievous wars, so that they might learn that besides the terrors here the torments there also await them, he brings them in mourning, and separated from the elect, and handed over to Gehenna; and by this again he rouses the disciples, showing from how many evils they will be delivered, and how many good things they will enjoy.

And why does he call them by angels, if he comes so openly? Honoring them in this way too. And Paul says that they will be caught up in clouds. He said this too when he was discoursing about the resurrection: “For the Lord himself,” he says, “will descend from heaven with a cry of command, with the voice of an archangel.” So the angels will gather them when they have risen, and the clouds will catch them up when they have been gathered; and all this happens in an instant, in a moment. For he does not call them while remaining above, but he himself comes with a trumpet. And what do the trumpets and the sound mean? They are for rousing, for gladness, for setting forth the amazement at what is happening, for the anguish of those who are left behind.

Alas, for that fearful day! When we ought to rejoice on hearing these things, we grieve, and are downcast, and gloomy. Or do I alone feel this, while you rejoice in hearing these things? For me at least, a kind of shuddering creeps in when these things are said, and I lament bitterly, and groan from the depth of my heart. For none of these things concerns me, but those that are said after them: the words to the virgins, the words to the one who buried the talent he had received, the words to the wicked servant. For these I weep: from how great a glory we are about to fall, from how great a hope of good things, and that continually and forever, because we will not exert a little zeal. For if the labor were great and the law heavy, we ought even so to do everything; but nevertheless many of the careless would seem to have some excuse—a cold one, but they would seem to have one—the excessiveness of the commands, and that the labor is great, and the time endless, and the burden unbearable. But now there is nothing of the kind to put forward; and this, above all, will gnaw us no less than Gehenna at that time, when for a small effort and a little sweat we shall have lost heaven and the unspeakable good things. For the time is short and the labor little; and yet we are slack and have fallen back. On earth you contend, and in heaven is the crown; you are punished by men, and honored by God; for two days you run, and for endless ages are the prizes; in a corruptible body is the wrestling, and in an incorruptible one the honors. And besides these things, consider this also, that even if we do not choose to suffer any of the painful things for Christ’s sake, we must in any case endure them otherwise. For if you do not die for Christ, you will not be immortal; nor, if you do not cast away your money for Christ, will you depart having it. He demands of you the things which you will give even if he does not demand them, because you are mortal; he wishes you to do by your own choice the things which you must do by necessity. He demands only that this be added: that they be done for his sake; since that these things happen and pass away comes about by the necessity of nature as well. Have you seen how easy the contest is? “What you must in any case suffer, choose to suffer for me; let only this be added, and I have obedience enough. The gold you are about to lend to another, lend to me, both for more interest and with greater security; the body you are about to put into another’s service, enlist it with me; for I exceed your labors with my returns out of great abundance.” But you, in other things, prefer the one who offers more, in loans and in buying and in military service; but Christ alone, who offers more than all, and infinitely more, you do not accept. And what is this great war? What is this great hatred? Whence, then, will you have pardon and excuse, when, for the very reasons for which you prefer some men to others, you do not bear to prefer God to men? Why do you entrust your treasure to the earth? “Give it into my hand,” he says. Does not the master of the earth seem to you more trustworthy than the earth? The earth gives back what was deposited, and often not even this; but he also pays you fees for its safekeeping. For he greatly loves us. Therefore if you wish to lend, he stands ready; if to sow, he himself receives it; if you wish to build, he draws you to himself, saying, “Build in my domains.” Why do you run to the poor, to men who are beggars, who even for small things cause you great troubles? But nevertheless, not even when we hear these things do we bear with it; but where there are battles and wars and brawls and lawsuits and false accusations, there we hasten.

Does he not, then, justly turn away from us and punish us, when he offers himself to us for all things, and we resist? It is plain to everyone. “For whether you wish to adorn yourself,” he says, “take my adornment; or to be armed, my arms; or to be clothed, my garment; or to be fed, my table; or to journey, my way; or to inherit, my inheritance; or to enter a homeland, the city of which I am the craftsman and builder; or to build a house, build among my tents. For I do not demand of you a reward for what I give, but I even owe you a reward for this very thing, if you are willing to use all that is mine. What could equal this munificence? I am father, I brother, I bridegroom, I house, I food, I garment, I root, I foundation, all whatever you wish, I; be in need of nothing. I will even serve you; for I came to serve, not to be served. I am friend, and member, and head, and brother, and sister, and mother; I am all things; only be on intimate terms with me. I was poor for you, and a wanderer for you; on the cross for you, in the tomb for you; above, I intercede for you with the Father; below, I have come for you as an ambassador from the Father. You are everything to me, brother and joint heir and friend and member.” What more do you want? Why do you turn away from the one who loves you? Why do you labor for the world? Why do you draw water into a pierced jar? For this is what it is to toil for the present life. Why do you card wool into the fire? Why do you box the air? Why do you run in vain? Does not every art have an end? It is plain to everyone. Show me too the end of your zeal for worldly things. But you cannot. “For vanity of vanities, all is vanity.” Let us go to the tombs: show me your father, show me your wife. Where is he who was clad in golden garments? he who sat in the chariot? he who had armies, the belt of office, the heralds? he who killed some and cast others into prison? he who put to death whom he wished and released whom he would? I see nothing but bones, and the moth, and the spider’s web. All those things are earth, all those a fable, all a dream and a shadow, and a bare tale, and a picture; or rather not even a picture. For the picture we at least see in an image; but here there is not even an image. And would that the terrors stopped at these things! But as it is, the things of honor and luxury and distinction go as far as a shadow, as far as words; but what came from them goes no longer as far as a shadow and words, but remains and will pass over with us there, and all will be plain: the robberies, the acts of covetousness, the acts of sexual immorality, the adulteries, the countless terrible things. These are not in an image, nor in ashes, but written above, both words and deeds. With what eyes, then, shall we see Christ? For if one could not bear to see his father, being conscious of having sinned against him, how shall we look upon him then, who is infinitely gentler than a father? How shall we bear it? For we shall stand before the judgment seat of Christ, and there will be an exact examination of everything. And if anyone disbelieves in the judgment to come, let him look at the things here: those in the prisons, those in the mines, those on the dunghills, the demon-possessed, the deranged, those wrestling with incurable diseases, those boxing with continual poverty, those living with famine, those stricken with incurable griefs, those in captivity. For these would not have suffered these things now, unless punishment and penalty were going to await also all the others who committed such sins. And if the rest endured nothing here, you must take this very fact as a sign that there is certainly something after our departure from here. For God, being the same God of all, would not have punished some and let others go unpunished who had committed the same or more grievous offenses, unless he were going to bring some punishment on them there. By these reasonings, then, and these examples, let us too humble ourselves; and let those who distrust the judgment believe henceforth, and become better; so that, having lived here worthily of the kingdom, we may obtain the good things to come, by the grace and love for mankind of our Lord Jesus Christ, to whom be the glory to …