Luke 18:18-23

par

Ver 18. And a certain ruler asked him, saying, Good Master, what shall I do to inherit eternal life? 19. And Jesus said to him, Why call you me good? none is good, save one, that is, God. 20. You know the commandments, Do not commit adultery, Do not kill, Do not steal, Do not bear false witness, Honor your father and your mother. 21. And he said, All these have I kept from my youth up. 22. Now when Jesus heard these things, he said to him, Yet lacks you one thing: sell all that you have, and distribute to the poor, and you shall have treasure in heaven: and come, follow me. 23. And when he heard this, he was very sorrowful: for he was very rich.

BEDE; A certain ruler having heard our Lord say, that only those who would be like little children should enter the kingdom of heaven, entreats Him to explain to him not by parable but openly by what works he may merit to obtain eternal life.

AMBROSE; That ruler tempting Him said, Good Master, he ought to have said, Good God. For although goodness exists in divinity and divinity in goodness, yet by adding Good Master, he uses good only in part, not in the whole. For God is good altogether, man partially.

CYRIL; Now he thought to detect Christ in blaming the law of Moses, while He introduced His own commands. He went then to the Master, and calling Him good, says that he wishes to be taught by Him, for he sought to tempt Him. But He who takes the wise in their craftiness answers him fitly as follows, Why call you me good? there is none good, save God alone.

AMBROSE; He does not deny that He is good, but points to God. None is good then except he be full of goodness. But should it strike any one that it is said, none is good, let this also strike him, save God, and if the Son is not excepted from God, surely neither is Christ excepted from good. For how is He not good who is born from good? A good tree brings forth good fruits. How is He not good, seeing that the substance of His goodness which He took to Him from the Father has not degenerated in the Son which did not degenerate in the Spirit. Your good spirit, he says, shall lead me into a land of uprightness. But if the Spirit is good who received from the Son, verily He also is good who gave It. Because then it was a lawyer who tempted Him, as is plainly strewn in another book, He therefore well said, None is good, save God, that He might remind him that it was written, You shall not tempt the Lord your God, but he the rather gives thanks to the Lord that He is good.

CHRYS. Or else; I shall not hesitate to call this ruler covetous, for with this Christ reproaches him, but I say not that he was a tempter.

TIT. BOST. When he says then, Good Master, what shall I do to inherit eternal life? it is the same as if he says, You are good; vouchsafe me then an answer to my question. I am learned in the Old Testament, but I see in you something far more excellent. For you make no earthly promises, but preach the kingdom of heaven. Tell me then, what shall I do to inherit eternal life? The Savior then considering his meaning, because faith is the way to good works, passes over the question he asked, and leads him to the knowledge of faith; as if a man was to ask a physician, "What shall I eat?" and he was to show him what ought to go before his food. And then He sends him to His Father, saying, Why call you me good? not that He was not good, for He was the good branch from the good tree, or the good Son of the good Father. AUG. It may seem that the account given in Matthew is different, where it is said, "Why ask you me of good?" which might apply better to the question which he asked, What good shall I do? In this place he both calls Him good, and asks the question about good. It will be best then to understand both to have been said, Why call you me good? and, Why ask you me of good? though the latter may rather be implied in the former.

TIT. BOST. After instructing him in the knowledge of the faith, He adds, you know the commandments. As though He said, Know God first, and then will it be time to seek what you ask.

CYRIL; But the ruler expected to hear Christ say, Forsake the commandments of Moses, and listen to Mine. Whereas He sends him to the former; as it follows, You shall not kill, you shall not commit adultery.

THEOPHYL. The law first forbids those things to which we are most prone, as adultery for instance, the incitement to which is within us, and of our nature; and murder, because rage is a great and savage monster. But theft and bearing false witness are sins which men seldom fall into. And besides, the former also are the more grievous sins, therefore He places theft and bearing false witness in the second place, as both less common, and of less weight than the other.

BASIL; Now we must not understand by thieves, only such as cut strips off hides, or commit robberies in the baths. But all such also as, when appointed leaders of legions, or installed governors of states or nations, are guilty of secret embezzlement, or violent and open exactions.

TIT. BOST. But you may observe that these commandments consist in not doing certain things; that if you have not committed adultery, you are chaste; if you steal not, honestly disposed; if you bear not false witness, truth-telling. Virtue then we see is rendered easy through the goodness of the Lawgiver. For He speaks of avoiding of evil, not practicing of good. And any cessation from action is easier than any actual work.

THEOPHYL. Because sin against parents, although a great crime, very rarely happens, He places it last of all, Honor your father and mother.

AMBROSE; Honor is concerned not only with paying respect, but also with giving bountifully. For it is honoring to reward deserts. Feed your father, feed your mother, and when you have fed them you have not requited all the pangs and agony your mother underwent for you. To the one you owe all you have, to the other all you are. What a condemnation, should the Church feed those whom you are able to feed! But it may be said, What was going to bestow upon my parents, I prefer to give to the Church. God seeks not a gift which will starve your parents, but the Scripture says as well that parents are to be fed, as that they are to be left for God's sake, should they check the love of a devout mind.

It follows, And he said, All these things have I kept from my youth up. JEROME; The young man speaks false, for if he had fulfilled that which was afterwards placed among the commandments, You shall love your neighbor as yourself, how was it that when he heard, Go and sell all that you have, and give to the poor, he went away sorrowful?

BEDE; Or we must not think him to have lied, but to have avowed that he had lived honestly, that is, at least in outward things, else Mark could never have said, And Jesus seeing him, loved him.

TIT. BOST. Our Lord next declares, that though a man has kept the old covenant, he is not perfect, since he lacks to follow Christ. You yet lack one thing, Sell all that you have, &c. As if He says, you ask how to possess eternal life; scatter your goods among the poor, and you shall obtain it. A little thing is that you spend, you receive great things.

ATHAN. For when we despise the world, we must not imagine we have resigned any thing great, for the whole earth in comparison of the heaven is but a span long; therefore even should they who renounce it be lords of the whole earth, yet still it would be nothing worth in comparison of the kingdom of heaven.

BEDE; Whoever then wishes to be perfect must sell all that he has, not a part only, as Ananias and Sapphira did, but the whole.

THEOPHYL. Hence when he says, All that you have, He inculcates the most complete poverty. For if there is any thing left over or remaining to you, you are its slave.

BASIL; He does not tell us to sell our goods, because they are by nature evil, for then they would not be God's creatures; He therefore does not bid us cast them away as if they were bad, but distribute them; nor is any one condemned for possessing them, but for abusing them. And thus it is, that to lay out our goods according to God's command both blots out sins, and bestows the kingdom.

CHRYS. God might indeed feed the poor without our taking compassion upon them, but He wishes the givers to be bound by the ties of love to the receivers.

BASIL; When our Lord says, Give to the poor, it becomes a man no longer to be careless, but diligently to dispose of all things, first of all by himself if in any measure he is able, if not, by those w ho are known to be faithful, and prudent in their management; for cursed is he who does the work of the Lord negligently.

CHRYS. But it is asked, how does Christ acknowledge the giving all things to the poor to be perfection, whereas St. Paul declares this very thing without charity to be imperfect. Their harmony is shown in the words which succeed, And come, follow me, which betokens it to be from love. For herein shall all men know that you are my disciples, if you have love one toward another.

THEOPHYL. Together with poverty must exist all the other virtues, therefore He says, Come, follow me, that is, In all other things be My disciples, be always following Me.

CYRIL; The ruler was not able to contain the new word, but being like an old bottle, burst with sorrow.

BASIL; The merchant when he goes to the market, is not loath to part with all that he has, in order to obtain what he requires, but you are grieved at giving mere dust and ashes that you may gain everlasting bliss.