Homilies on the Gospel of John 81

These things spoke Jesus, and lifted up His eyes to heaven, and said:

"Father, the hour has come; glorify Your Son, that Your Son also may glorify You."

"Whosoever shall do and teach," He says, "the same shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven."

For to practise philosophy in mere words is easy;

but the demonstration by deeds belongs to some noble and great soul.

Wherefore Christ also, when discoursing concerning forbearance, sets Himself forth in the midst, bidding us take our examples from thence.

For this reason, after this exhortation He also turns to prayer, teaching us in temptations to let go of all things and to flee for refuge to God.

For since He had said, "In the world you shall have tribulation," and had shaken their souls, by the prayer He raises them up again.

For as yet they gave heed to Him as to a man.

And for their sakes He does these things, just as also in the case of Lazarus, and He states the reason, that "Because of the multitude standing by I said it, that they may believe that You sent Me."

But in the case of the Jews these things were done with good reason;

yet in the case of the disciples, for what purpose? Even in the case of the disciples it was with good reason.

For those who after so many things were saying, "Now we know that You know all things," needed most of all to be confirmed.

And besides, the evangelist does not even call the matter a prayer;

but what does he say? "He lifted up His eyes to heaven," and rather calls it a converse with the Father.

But if elsewhere he calls it a prayer, and shows Him now bending His knees, now lifting His eyes to heaven, be not troubled.

For through these things we are taught the earnestness that should be in our supplications, that we may both, when standing, look upward, not with the eyes of the flesh only, but also with those of the mind;

and that we may bend our knees, contriting our own heart.

For Christ came not only to show Himself, but also to teach an unspeakable virtue.

But the one who teaches must teach not by words only, but also by deeds.

Let us then listen to what He says here:

"Father, the hour has come; glorify Your Son, that Your Son also may glorify You."

Again He shows us that it is not unwillingly that He comes to the cross.

For how could He be, who both prays that this may come to pass, and calls the matter a glory—and that not of Him alone who is crucified, but also of the Father? For so indeed it came to pass;

for not the Son only, but the Father also was glorified.

For before the cross not even the Jews knew Him;

for "Israel," He says, "has not known Me;"

but after the cross the whole world ran to Him.

Then He tells also the manner of the glory, and how He will glorify Him.

"As You have given Him authority over all flesh, that whatsoever You have given Him, He should not lose it."

For to do good continually is a glory to God.

But what is, "As You have given Him authority over all flesh"? Meanwhile He shows that the things of the preaching are not confined to the Jews only, but are extended also to the whole world, and He lays beforehand the foundations of the calling of the Gentiles.

"Do not go into the way of the Gentiles;"

but He is about after these things to say, "Go and make disciples of all the nations," and He shows that the Father also wills this.

For this very greatly offended the Jews, and the disciples too.

For not even after these things did they easily bear to touch the Gentiles, until they had received the teaching of the Spirit;

for indeed no small stumbling-block arose from this among the Jews.

So then, after so great a manifestation of the Spirit, Peter, when he came to Jerusalem, scarcely was able to escape the accusations, having told the matter of the sheet.

But what is, "You have given Him authority over all flesh"? When, pray, did He receive this authority, I will ask the heretics? Before He fashioned them, or after He fashioned them? For He Himself says it was after He had been crucified and had risen again.

"Go and make disciples of all the nations."

What then? Did He not have authority over His own works?

But He made them, yet had no authority over them after He had made them? And yet He is manifestly Himself doing all things, both in the ages above, both punishing some as sinners, and correcting others when they turn back (for "I will not hide," He says, "from my servant Abraham that which I am about to do");

and honouring others as doing well.

Then had He it once, but now lost it, and again received it? And what demon could have uttered such things? But if the authority is the same both then and now ("As the Father," He says, "raises the dead and quickens them, so also the Son quickens whom He will"), what is the meaning of what is said? He was about to send them to the Gentiles;

in order therefore that they might not think it an innovation, on account of His saying, "I was not sent except to the lost sheep of the house of Israel," He shows that this too seemed good to the Father.

And if He utters it with much lowliness, it is nothing marvellous;

for thus He was building up both those men at that time, and those who came after;

and, as I said, always by the excess of lowliness He greatly persuaded them that the things said were of condescension.

But what is, "Of all flesh"? For surely not all believed.

And yet, so far as concerned His part, all believed;

and if they gave no heed to the things spoken, the fault is not the teacher's, but of those who received them not.

"That whatsoever You have given Him, He may give to them eternal life."

But if here too He speaks in a more human manner, do not marvel.

For He does this both on account of the reasons already stated, and because He always guards against saying anything great about Himself, since this stood in the way with His hearers, because they had as yet no lofty imagination concerning Him.

John, at any rate, when he speaks from his own person, does not do thus, but raises his discourse to a loftier level, saying thus:

"All things were made through Him, and without Him was not anything made that was made;"

and that "He was Life," and that "He was Light," and that "He came to His own;"

not that He had not authority, unless He received it;

but that He gave to others also "authority to become children of God."

And Paul likewise calls Him equal to God.

But He Himself asks in a more human manner, saying thus:

"That whatsoever You have given Him, He may give to them eternal life."

"And this is eternal life, that they may know You the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent."

"The only true God" He says in contradistinction to those who are not gods.

For indeed He was about to send them among the Gentiles.

But if they will not endure this, and on account of this alone cast out the Son from being true

God—that is, cast out the Son from being true God—then proceeding thus they cast Him out also from being God at all.

"The glory that is from the only God you do not seek."

What then? Will the Son not be God? But if the Son is God, and the Father alone is called God, it is plain that the Son too is the true God, even though the Father alone is called the true One.

'Or is it only I and Barnabas?' Does he then exclude Barnabas? By no means.

For the word 'only' is set down to mark a distinction from others.

But if he is not the true God, how is he Truth? For Truth differs greatly from what is merely true.

Tell me, what shall we call one who is not a true man? Shall we not say he is not a man at all? So likewise, if the Son is not the true God, how is he God? And how does he make us gods and sons, if he himself is not true? But these matters we have treated more precisely elsewhere.

'I have glorified thee on the earth.'

For in heaven he had already been glorified, having glory by his very nature, and being worshipped by the angels.

It is not, then, of that glory that he speaks, the glory allotted to his essence—for that glory he retains full and complete, even if no one should glorify him—but he speaks of this glory which arises from the worship offered by men.

Therefore also the words 'Glorify me' are to be understood in this same sense.

And that you may learn that it is of this kind of glory that he speaks, hear what follows.

'I have finished the work which thou gavest me to do.'

And yet the matter was still at its beginning—or rather, not even at its beginning.

How then does he say, 'I have finished it'? Either because he had done all that was his own part to do;

or because he speaks of what is yet to be as though it had already come to pass;

or—what is best of all to say—because the whole was already accomplished, in that the root of all good things had been laid down, from which of necessity the fruits were bound to follow, and because he himself would be present and would lend his hand to what was thereafter to come about.

For this reason again he speaks in a condescending manner.

For if indeed he had waited to hear and to learn, these things would fall far short of his glory.

For that he came to this of his own will is plain from many considerations.

As when Paul says that 'He so loved us as to give himself up for us';

and, 'He emptied himself, taking the form of a servant';

and again, 'As the Father hath loved me, I also have loved you.'

'Glorify thou me, O Father, with thine own self, with the glory which I had with thee before the world was.'

And where is that glory? Let it be granted that among men he was fittingly without glory, on account of the garment that clothed him;

but how does he seek to be glorified even with God? What then does he mean here? The word is about the economy of salvation.

For the nature of the flesh had not yet been glorified, having neither enjoyed incorruption, nor shared in the royal throne.

For this reason he did not say, 'On the earth,' but, 'With thee.'

Of this glory we too shall partake, according to our own measure, if we are watchful.

Therefore Paul also says:

'If so be that we suffer with him, that we may also be glorified together with him.'

Worthy, then, of countless tears are those who, though such glory lies before them, plot against themselves through sloth and sleep;

and even if there were no hell, they would be more wretched than all men, seeing that when it lies in their power to reign and to be glorified together with the Son of God, they deprive themselves of so many good things.

For if one had to be cut in pieces, if one had to die ten thousand deaths, if one had to give up ten thousand lives and as many bodies each day—

ought one not to endure so much for so great a glory? But as it is, we do not even despise money, from which we shall later be parted even against our will;

we do not despise money, which wraps us round with countless evils, which remains here, which is not our own.

For it is not our own that we administer, even though we hold it as our patrimony.

But when there is added to it hell also, and the undying worm, and the unquenchable fire, and the gnashing of teeth—

how shall we bear these things? Tell me.

How long shall we fail to see clearly, but spend everything on daily quarrels, and rivalries, and profitless words, nourishing the earth, fattening the body, and neglecting the soul—making no account of things necessary, but bestowing great care on things superfluous and useless? We build splendid tombs, and buy costly houses, and drag about with us herds of servants of every kind, and devise sundry stewards,

appointing rulers over lands, over houses, over money, and rulers over rulers;

but of the soul, though it lies desolate, we take no account.

And what will be the end of all this? Do we not fill one belly? Do we not clothe one body? What is all this great tumult of affairs? Why ever, and to what end, do we hack and tear the soul that we have received, for the service of such things, contriving for ourselves a grievous bondage? For he who needs much is the slave of much, even though he seem to be master over these things.

For indeed the master is a slave to his servants, and offers them another and greater kind of attendance;

and in another way too he is a slave, since apart from them he dares not venture into the marketplace,

nor into the bath, nor into the field;

but these servants often go about everywhere without him.

But he who seems to be the lord, if the servants are not present, does not dare to go forth from his house; and even if he peeps out of the house alone, he thinks himself a laughing-stock.

Perhaps some laugh at us for saying these things;

but for this very reason they would be worthy of countless tears.

For that this is slavery, I would gladly ask you.

Would you wish to need someone to put the morsel to your mouth, or to bring the cup to your lips? Would you not count such service worthy of tears? And what if you needed people to carry you about in order to walk continually—would you not think yourself pitiable, and by this more wretched than all men? Then this is just how you ought to feel now.

For it makes no difference whether one suffers these things at the hands of irrational creatures or at the hands of men.

And tell me, do not the angels also differ from us in this very thing, that they do not need as much as we do? Therefore, the fewer things we need, the nearer we journey towards them;

but the more we need, the further we fall down into this perishable life.

And that you may learn that this is so, ask those who have grown old which life they count blessed—the one in which they were vainly ruled over, or the one in which they now rule over these things? For it is on this account that we called upon those very ones, since those who are drunk in their youth do not even know the excess of their bondage.

And what of those in fever? When they are very thirsty and drink much and need much, do they count themselves blessed then, or when, being restored to health, they are freed from that craving? You see that everywhere to need much is a pitiable thing, far from wisdom, and an intensifying of both bondage and desire? Why then do we willingly intensify our own wretchedness? For tell me, if it were possible to dwell without roof and walls and suffer no harm, would you not rather have chosen this? Why then do you multiply the tokens of your weakness? Is it not for this that we count Adam blessed, that he needed nothing—neither dwellings nor garments? 'Yes,' one says;

'but now we have come to stand in need.'

Why then do we increase our need? For if many cut away much even of what is needful (I mean servants, and dwellings, and money), what excuse could we have who go beyond mere need? The more you wrap yourself round with, the more slavish you have become.

For the more things you need, the more you have curtailed your freedom.

For perfect freedom is to need nothing at all;

and next to it is to need little, which the angels above all possess, and those who imitate them.

And to achieve this while yet remaining in a mortal body—consider how great is the praise it merits.

This too Paul spoke of when writing to the Corinthians;

and, 'That such may not have tribulation in the flesh.'

For this reason it is called 'money to be used' (chremata), that we may use it for what is needful, not that we may hoard it up and bury it;

for this is not to possess it, but to be possessed by it.

For if we are to aim at this, how we may make it much, and not that we may enjoy it for what is needful, the order is inverted, and those things possess us, not we them.

Let us then be delivered from this grievous bondage, and become at last free.

Why do we devise for ourselves countless and varied bonds? Are not the bond of nature, and the necessity of life, and the throng of countless affairs enough for you?

But do you weave for yourself yet other nets, and cast them about your feet? And when will you lay hold of heaven, and be able to stand at that height? For it is a thing greatly to be desired, greatly to be desired, that one who has cut through all these ropes should be able—

to lay hold of the city that is above.

so many other things there are that hinder us.

That we may overcome all these, let us cleave to a life of frugal simplicity.

For thus shall we lay hold also of life eternal, by the grace and loving-kindness of our Lord Jesus Christ, to whom be glory unto the ages of ages.