Homilies on the Gospel of St. John and the Epistle to the Hebrews

NPNF (V1-14)St. Chrysostomart thou highminded? And how great a hell wouldest thou not deserve? If then thou desirest a highstate of mind, come, I will show thee the way to it; for thou dost not even know what it is. The manthen who gives heed to the present things as being great, is of a mean soul; so that there can neitherbe humility without greatness of soul, nor conceit except from littleness of soul. For as little childrenare eager for trifles, gaping upon balls and hoops and dice, 2013 but cannot even form an idea ofimportant matters; so in this case, one who is truly wise, will deem present things as nothing, (sothat he will neither choose to acquire them himself, nor to receive them from others;) but he whois not of such a character will be affected in a contrary way, intent upon cobwebs and shadows anddreams of things less substantial than these.Ver. 16–18 . “Verily I say unto you, the servant is not greater than his lord, neither he that issent greater than he that sent him. If ye know these things, happy are ye if ye do them. I speak notof you all 2014 —but that the Scripture may be fulfilled, He that eateth bread with Me hath lifted uphis heel against Me.”What He said before, this He saith here also, to shame them; “For if the servant is not greaterthan his master, nor he that is sent greater than him that sent him, and these things have been doneby Me, much more ought they to be done by you.” Then, lest any one should say, “Why now sayestThou these things? Do we not already know them?” He addeth this very thing, “I speak not to youas not knowing, but that by your actions ye may show forth the things spoken of.” For “to know,”belongeth to all; but “to do,” not to all. On this account He said, “Blessed are ye if ye do them”;and on this account I continually and ever say the same to you, although ye know it, that I may setyou on the work. Since even Jews “know,” but yet they are not “blessed”; for they do not what theyknow. 2015“I speak not,” He saith, “of you all.” O what forbearance! Not yet doth He convict the traitor,but veileth the matter, hence giving him room for repentance. He convicteth and yet doth not convicthim when He saith thus, “He that eateth bread with Me hath lifted up his heel against Me.” It seemsto me that the, “The servant is not greater than his lord,” was uttered for this purpose also, that ifany persons should at any time suffer harm either from domestics or from any of the meaner sort,they should not be offended; looking to the instance of Judas, who having enjoyed ten thousandgood things, repaid his Benefactor with the contrary. On this account He added, “He that eatethbread with Me,” and letting pass all the rest, He hath put that which was most fitted to restrain andshame him; “he who was fed by Me,” He saith, “and who shared My table.” And He spake thewords, to instruct them to benefit those who did evil to them, even though such persons shouldcontinue incurable.But having said, “I speak not of you all,” in order not to attach fear to more than one, 2016 He atlast separateth the traitor, speaking thus; “He that eateth bread with Me.” For the, “not of you all,”doth not direct the words to any single one, therefore He added, “He that eateth bread with Me”;showing to that wretched one that He was not seized in ignorance, but even with full knowledge;a thing which of itself was most of all fitted to restrain him. And He said not, “betrayeth Me,” but,2013ἀ στραγάλους , square bones used as dice.2014“ I speak not of you all, I know whom I have chosen, ” N.T.2015αὐτὰ2016lit. “ to many. ”391