Homilies on Hebrews 19

Having therefore, brethren, confidence to enter into the holy places by the blood of Jesus, by the new and living way which He has consecrated for us through the veil, that is to say, His flesh, and having a great priest over the house of God, let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience, and our body washed with pure water; let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering.

Having shown how great is the difference of the high priest, and of the sacrifices, and of the tabernacle, and of the covenant, and of the promise — and how great the distance between them, since the one set of things is temporary, the other eternal; the one near to vanishing away, the other abiding; the one paltry, the other perfect; the one types, the other the truth —

'For not according to a law of a carnal commandment,' he says, 'but according to the power of an indestructible life;'

'You are a priest for ever' (behold the perpetuity of the priest);

'For that which is becoming old and aging is near to vanishing away;'

but this covenant is new, and has remission of sins;

'For the law,' he says, 'made nothing perfect;'

'Sacrifice and offering you did not desire;'

and the one tabernacle was made with hands, but this one not made with hands;

and the one had the blood of goats, but this one the blood of the Master;

and the one had the priest standing, but this one seated;

since then all those things were inferior, and these greater, therefore he says,

'Having therefore, brethren, confidence.'

Confidence from whence? From the remission.

For just as sins, he says, produce shame, so the being forgiven all these produces confidence for us;

and not only this, but also our becoming fellow-heirs, and enjoying so great a love.

'For the entrance into the holy places.'

What does he here call the entrance? Heaven, and the approach unto the things that are spiritual.

That is, the way which He prepared, and of which He made a beginning;

for consecration (dedication) means, henceforth, the beginning of its use;

the way, he says, which He prepared, and through which He Himself walked.

Here he sets forth the full assurance of hope.

He strives to show that they have obtained all the greater things, seeing that now the gates of heaven have been opened, which did not happen even in Abraham's case.

And well does he say, 'A new and living way;'

for the first way was one of death, leading to Hades, but this one leads to life.

And he did not say, 'Of life,' but he called it 'living,' thus showing that it abides.

'Through the veil,' he says, 'that is, His flesh.'

This flesh first cut open for Him that way which He also says He consecrated, in that He Himself deigned to walk through it;

and with good reason did he call the flesh a veil;

for when it was taken up on high, then the things in the heavens were made manifest.

'Let us draw near,' he says, 'with a true heart.' Who are we to draw near? Whoever is holy in faith, in spiritual worship.

'With a true heart, in full assurance of faith;'

that is, since nothing is visible — neither the priest, nor the sacrifice, nor the altar is seen.

And yet even that priest was not visible, but he himself stood within, while all those others, the whole people, were outside.

But here he shows not only this, that the priest has entered into the holy places;

for this he declares by saying,

'And a great priest over the house of God;'

but also that we ourselves enter in.

For this reason he says, 'In full assurance of faith.'

For it is possible even to believe while doubting.

For instance, there are many even now who say that for some there is a resurrection, but for others there is not.

But this is not the full assurance of faith.

For we ought so to believe as concerning things that are seen.

For here indeed it is possible to be deceived in the things that are seen, but there it is not.

And here we entrust ourselves to sense-perception, but there to the Spirit.

'Having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience.'

Here he shows that not faith alone, but also a virtuous life is required, and that we should be conscious of nothing evil within ourselves.

For the holy things do not receive those who are not thus disposed with full assurance.

For they are holy, even the Holy of Holies.

Therefore here no human being is present.

They sprinkled the body, but we the conscience.

So that it is possible even now to be sprinkled all around, but by virtue itself.

'And having our body washed with pure water.'

By the washing here he means that which is not a cleansing of bodies, but of the soul.

'For he who promised is faithful.'

And in what respect is he who promised faithful? In that we must depart thither and enter into the kingdom.

Do not therefore be over-curious, nor demand reasonings.

Our affairs require faith.

'And let us consider one another,' he says, 'to provoke unto love and good works, not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is, but exhorting one another.'

'And so much the more, as ye see the day approaching.'

'The Lord is at hand; be careful for nothing.'

For now our salvation is nearer.

'The time henceforth is short.'

What is meant by 'Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together'? He knows that from being together and from assembling there is great strength.

'For where two or three,' he says, 'are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them.'

'That they may be one, even as we also are one.'

'The heart and soul of them all was one.'

And not for this reason only, but because the things of love also are increased through the assembling together.

And when love increases, of necessity the things of God also follow.

'And prayer,' he says, 'was made without ceasing by the people.'

Here he did not only exhort, but also rebuked.

'And let us consider one another,' he says, 'to provoke unto love and good works.'

He knows that this too comes about from their assembling together.

For just as iron sharpens iron, so also being together increases love.

For if a stone rubbed against a stone gives off fire, how much more soul mingled with soul? Consider:

he did not say 'unto envy,' but 'unto the provoking of love.'

What is meant by 'unto the provoking of love'? Unto loving and being loved the more.

And he adds, 'and of good works,' so as to receive zeal.

For if doing, he says, has greater force than speaking for the purpose of teaching,

you too have many teachers among the multitude who do this by their works.

What is meant by 'Let us draw near with a true heart'? That is, without hypocrisy.

'For woe to a fearful heart, and to slack hands.'

Let there be, he says, no falsehood in you.

Let us not say one thing and think another.

For this is not the mark of a true heart.

For faint-heartedness comes from not believing.

But how shall this come to be? If we bring ourselves to full assurance through faith.

'Having our hearts sprinkled.'

Why did he not say 'Having been cleansed,' but 'Having been sprinkled'? Because he wishes to show the difference of the sprinklings, and that the one is God's work, but the other ours.

For the washing and sprinkling of the conscience is God's work,

but to draw near with truth and in full assurance of faith is ours.

Then he also gives strength to faith from the truthfulness of him who promised.

What is meant by 'And having our body washed with pure water'? He speaks either of that which makes clean, or of that which has no blood.

Then he adds the perfect thing, love.

'Not forsaking,' he says, 'the assembling of ourselves together';

which some, he says, do, and cut apart the gatherings; this he forbids them.

'For a brother helped by a brother is like a strong city.'

'But let us consider one another to provoke unto love.'

What is meant by 'Let us consider one another'? For instance, if anyone is virtuous, let us imitate him, let us look to him, so as to love and to be loved;

for from love the good works come.

For love makes itself warmer, and from it are born all good things;

for there is no good thing which does not come through love.

Let us therefore confirm this toward one another;

'For love is the fulfilling of the law.'

We have no need of labors, nor of sweat, if we love one another;

it is a kind of self-moving road that leads to virtue.

For just as on the highway, if one finds the beginning, he is guided by it and needs no one to lead him by the hand;

so also in the case of love: only lay hold of the beginning, and straightway you are led by the hand by it and are set straight.

It is kind, it does not reckon the evil.

If a man considers his own self, how he is disposed toward himself, let him be so disposed toward his neighbor also.

No one envies himself; he wishes all good things for himself; he prefers himself to all; he desires to do everything for his own sake.

If, then, we were so disposed toward others as well, all dreadful things would be dissolved: there would be no enmities, there would be no covetousness.

For who would choose to overreach himself? No one.

But rather the very opposite.

Let us therefore hold all things in common, and let us not cease to gather ourselves together.

And if we do this, remembrance of wrongs would have no place.

For who would choose to bear a grudge against himself? Who would choose to be angry with himself? Do we not most of all pardon ourselves? If we are so disposed toward our neighbors also, there will never be any remembrance of wrongs.

And how is it possible, one says, so to love one's neighbor as one loves one's own self? If others had not done this, you would rightly think it impossible.

But since they did do it, it is plain that it fails to come about among us because of our own slothfulness.

Moreover, Christ enjoins nothing impossible, seeing that many have even surpassed His commands.

Who, then, did this? Paul, Peter, the whole choir of the saints.

But if I should say that they loved their neighbors, I shall say nothing great.

They loved their enemies as one could not love those of like mind with himself.

For who among us would choose, for the sake of those of like mind, to depart into hell when he is about to go into the kingdom? No one.

But Paul chose this for the sake of his enemies, of those who stoned him, of those who scourged him.

What pardon, then, shall we have, what excuse, if we do not show toward our friends even the smallest part of the love which Paul showed toward his enemies? And the blessed Moses too, before him, was willing for the sake of his enemies, of those who stoned him, to be blotted out of the book of God.

And David, seeing those who withstood him being slain, says:

I, the shepherd, have sinned; but these, what have they done? And having taken Saul into his hands, he was unwilling to slay him, but saved him alive, and that when he himself was about to be in peril.

But if these things were done under the Old Covenant, what pardon shall we have who live under the New, and yet do not even attain to the same measure as they? For if, unless our righteousness exceed that of the Pharisees and Scribes, we shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven,

then when we have even less than they, how shall we enter? Love, He says, your enemies, and you shall be like your Father who is in heaven.

For you do not benefit him, but yourself.

How? By doing this you become equal to God.

If he is loved by you, he has gained nothing great,

for he was loved by a fellow-servant.

But you, if you love your fellow-servant, have gained a great thing.

Do you see that you do not do a favor to him, but to yourself? For the prize is set not for him, but for you.

What then, one says, if he be wicked? So much the greater is the reward.

And you ought even to owe him thanks for his wickedness, though he remain evil while receiving countless benefits.

For if he were not exceedingly evil, your reward would not have been so exceedingly increased.

So that the very reason for not loving—the saying that he is wicked—this same is a reason for loving.

Take away the antagonist, and you take away the occasion for the crowns.

Do you not see the athletes, how they fill sacks with sand and so exercise themselves? But you have no need to contrive this.

Life is full of those who exercise you and make you strong.

Do you not see that the trees too, the more they are buffeted by the winds, so much the more do they become stronger and denser? We also, therefore, if we be long-suffering, shall also be strong.

For a man, it says, that is long-suffering is great in understanding;

but he that is faint-hearted is mightily foolish.

Do you see how great the praise of the one? Do you see how great the accusation of the other? Mightily foolish, that is, exceedingly.

Let us not, then, be faint-hearted toward one another.

For this does not come from enmity, but from having a small soul;

for if the soul be strong, it will bear all things easily, and nothing will be able to sink it, but it will bring it into calm harbors.

Which may it be granted us all to attain, by the grace and love toward mankind of our Lord

Jesus Christ, with whom, together with the Holy Spirit, be glory, might, and honor to the Father, now and ever, and unto the ages of ages.