Matthew — Chapter 10

Because God will honour them in the presence of the angels and glorify diem eternally. The disciple, & c. Christ here animates His disciples to bear perse- cutions, says S. Chrys. by His own example. The disciple and the servant, such as ye are to Me, O ye Apostles, ought not to seek for greater honour and applause of men than his Master has. It is enough for the disciple, &c. That is to say, if the Jews have derided and caluminated Me, and called Me Beelzebub, ie., a friend and associate of Beelzebub — Me, who am Christ your Master and Lord, yea the Head of your family — i£ I say, they have dared to do such things against Me, who have proved Myself by so many miracles to be Messiah and the Son of God, how much more will they dare to do like things to you, My disciples and servants ! And if I quietly and bravely bear such things from them, how much rather ought ye to bear these things, yea even rejoice in them, because ye bear them for My sake, and in bearing them are made like unto me, and are, as it were, adorned with My raiment and My ornaments ! Hear what S. Hilary says upon this passage, “Let no kind of injuries, or reproaches in any wise affright us ; but let us rather embrace them as our glory, if only we may be made conformable to our Lord and His sufferings.” And as Tertullian says (lib. de bono Martyrii, c. 9.) “ Since the Lord and Master Himself has suffered per- secution, betrayal and death, how much more ought His disciples and servants to fulfil the same things, lest they should seem to be superior to Him in being exempt from evil; since this ought to suffice them for glory that they are made conformable to the sufferings of their Lord and Master.” Whence S. Ambrose says (fib. 2, de Abraham, c. 7.) “ The soul going forth to war bears not VOL. 11. » 34 8. MATTHEW, X. before her the likenesses of eagles or dragons ; but in the cross of Christ and in the name of Jesus she goes out to battle, strong with this sign, faithful to this standard.” S. Jerome (Fpist. 39, ad. Marcel) speaking of Blesilla, the daughter of S. Paula, who after the death of her husband became a nun, and was derided by the world, writes, “ Our Blesilla will laugh, and will count it no disgrace to hear the revilings of croaking frogs, when her Master was called Beelzebub.” You will ask who and what was Beelzebub ? He was the god and idol of the Ekronites. See 2 Kin. L 2, 3, 6. He is so called from Baal zebub , Le., the lord of the fly , or possessing flies, because he was worshipped and invoked against the pest of flies. Thus among the Greeks, Jupiter had the title of Atto/ivoc, or averter of flies, because they worshipped him that he might drive away flies. Thus the in- habitants of Cyrene when swarms of flies brought a pestilence, invoked the god Achor to drive them away, as Pliny tells us (lib. 8,c. 28). This idol Beelzebub seems also to have had the head of a fly. For the Sept, translates Beelzebub, the Lord Fly. Similarly the Egyptians represented the god Apis with the head and figure of an ox, Anubis of a dog, Hammon of a ram, and so on. Hence the Jews called Lucifer the prince of the devils, partly in derision partly from abomi- nation, the Fly God, or the god of flies. I say more upon Beelzebub on 2 Kin. L ver. 2. The Gr. codices in this place, as well as in Mar. iiL 22, and Lu. xi. 15, 18, 19, also Theophyl and others, always read Beelzebub, which some interpret to mean, Jupiter siercorarius, or the dungy Jove : for though zebal in Hebrew means a habitation, zcbel in Chald., Syriac, and Arabic, signifies dung, because the devil is, by reason of sin, most unclean, and so stirs men up to commit all uncleanness, especially the sins of drunkenness and im- purity. This is perhaps the origin of the name zebulus, or zabulus which S. Hilary and others of the ancients give to the devil, unless you prefer to derive it from the iEolic za for Sia, that is, zabulus instead of diabolus. Fear them not therefore, &c. The Gr. is a beautiful paronomasia, HARKS OP A PERFECT MAN. 35 or pun. There is nothing hid which shall not be unhid, nothing covered which shall not be uncovered. The meaning is, “ Although the Jews slander you as bemg not of God, but the Apostles and ambassadors of Beelzebub, yet fear ye not their derision or contempt, for God will in the end make plain your innocence and true religion, not only in the day of judgment, but even in this life.” So S. Chrysos. It might also be explained thus — “ Do not fear or shrink, O My Apostles from preaching My Gospel, for although but few may believe in the beginning, that it may appear hidden and concealed, yet it shall creep on by degrees, and its truth shall at length be known, and shall shine forth through the world.” Hear S. Ambr. (lib. de yacob. et vit. beat. c. 8), “ It is the part of a perfect man not to succumb to those things which seem to most, terrible and dreadful, but like a brave soldier to sustain the onset of the severest troubles. Thus S. Vincent acted when in his torments, he answered back the tyrant, “ Thou shalt see that I have more power when I am tormented than thou hast when thou art tormenting.” So too the Apostles shone the more brightly in the darkness of persecution. Of their virtue S. Bernard speaks (Serm. xxviL in Cant.), “As stars shine in the night, but are unseen by day, so does true virtue, which in prosperity often appears not, become conspicuous in adversity.” What Isay unto you, &c. Since the roofs of the houses in Judea are flat, it was possible to preach from them as from a lofty pulpit S. Jerome gives a threefold meaning, i. What ye have heard in a mystery, that preach ye plainly. 2. What ye have learned in secret, that speak ye in public. 3. What I have taught you in this one corner of Judea, boldly evangelize to the whole world. Mystically, S. Austin, “ What I say in darkness, ije., in fear, preach ye in the light, Le., in the confidence of the truth.” And feat not them which kill , &c. Do not, from fear of death with which the persecutors threaten you, deny My faith, or cease from the preaching which I have commanded you, for if ye do this, ye will incur the far worse death of the soul, even its eternal death d 2 36 S. MATTHEW, X. in hell. Truly does S. Chrys. say (Ifom. 5 ad pop!) “ He who is always afraid of hell will never fall into its flames.” This saying of Christ has reference to a most needful precept He bids us that we must not, through fear of tyrants, break the faith which we have pledged to God, nor violate His law. It may be further extended to things which are counselled, not commanded; but then it is a matter of counsel, not of precept. Thus Pope S. Clement extended it to the counsel of virginity. When SS. Nereus and Achilleus, the servants of S. Flavia Domitilla, who had been be- trothed to Aurelian the son of the Roman consul, counselled her to embrace virginity, and asked S. Clement to give her the veil, he answered bravely, “ For you, for her, and for me, I perceive there is prepared the palm of martyrdom. But forasmuch as Christ has laid it down that we must not fear them which kill the body, let us dis- regard mortals, that we may plainly and wholly obey the Author of everlasting life.” He therefore consecrated Domitilla, a virgin; which when Aurelian her betrothed heard, he beheaded SS. Nereus and Achilleus, and banished S. Domitilla to Pontus, where she completed her martyrdom by fire. At last S. Clement, being drowned in the sea, obtained the same palm. Thus were there four glorious victims of virginity. And the heroism of their action con- sisted in this — that it would have been lawful for them to persuade Domitilla to avoid the persecution by marrying Aurelian. But the love of chastity and of Christ gained the victory. Victorinus of Utica (lib. 3. Watidal. persecute .) relates that a matron named Dionysia, when she was exposed naked upon a lofty place and beaten with rods by the Arians, bravely answered, “Ye servants of the devil, that which ye think ye do to my shame is indeed my praise.” And when she beheld her only son, a little child turn pale at the torments, she animated him by reminding him of hell, lest the King should say to his servants, “ Cast him into outer darkness, where shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.” “ That is the life,” she said, “ to be desired which is always in pos- session.” And strengthening her child with these words, she soon made him a martyr. Thus far Victor. He relates in the same place THE MARTYR V1CT0RIANUS. 37 that Victorianus, the proconsul of Carthage, being asked by the ambassadors of King Hunneric to become an Arian, answered, u Being firm in God and Christ my Lord, I will tell ye what ye shall answer to your king : 1 Let him torment me with fire, let him expose me to beasts, let him excruciate me with every kind of torment ; if I should consent unto him, it would be in vain that I have been baptized into the Catholic Church. For if this present life were all, and we did not hope for another which is indeed eternal, still even so, I would not do what he requires for the sake of a little tem- poral glory, and be ungrateful to Him who hath bestowed His faith upon me who believe in Him.' At this reply the King was so enraged that no speech can express for how long and with what punishments he afflicted him. But he triumphing, and making in the Lord a happy consummation, received the martyr's crown." Thus Victor. Wisely spoke the martyr S. Flavian, “The body does not feel torments when the mind is in heaven, and has devoted itself to God with all its strength." Are not two sparrows sold for a farthing, &c. Farthing, this is the Roman as, Gr. assarion. It is a diminutive, and means a little as. For the assarius was the half, not of the ancient as, which was a pound, but of the later as, which was half an ounce. So that the assarius was the fourth part of the uncia, or ounce of brass, and therefore of very small value. This, which Enthym. renders by terunciola, or a little farthing was the price of two sparrows in Judea in the time of Christ Shall not fall upon the earth . For birds live in the air, and when they are pierced with arrows, or perish from any other cause, they fell to the earth. Without your Father : ie., without His providence and pleasure. If God hath so great care and providence of these little sparrows, what will he have of you ? For He is your Father, in that he hath given you reason, for similitude to Himself And He hath re-formed you in Christ, and made you like unto Christ Symbolically , S. Hilary says : “ The two sparrows are the body and the soul, which are bom as it were sparrows, that they should fly with spiritual wings toward Heaven, but the sinner sells them for an as. 38 S. MATTHEW, X. that is, a little pleasure, to the devil, that they may go down to hell” But the hairs of your head, &c. That is, God from eternity hath appointed and decreed not only the number of your members, but even of your hairs. Wherefore He knows it exactly, and dili- gently keeps them to the number which He willeth, so that not one can fall without His special providence, as Luke saith. Allegorically , the hairs of Christ are all the elect and those who shall be saved, for these adorn Christ as hair does the head. Tropo- logically, hairs are all the thoughts, words, and deeds of the faithful. So S. Cyril {lib. 8 in Levit .). Again, hairs are the minutest thoughts and intentions of the Saints. So Damascene. Feat ye not therefore, ye are of more value, Syr. more excellent. The Gr. is ha (ftifxre ye are preferable, ye excel. If God have such care of sparrows, much more will he have of you, Wherefore, rest secure in the fatherly bosom of His Providence in all persecutions and tribula- tions whatsoever. For He will deliver you out of them all, either by freeing you from them, or else by giving you the crown of martyrdom, and taking you to heaven, where there will be no more labour or pain. Whosoever therefore shall confess Me, &c. From this word confess , martyrs were anciently called confessors. Shall confess Me. The Gr. is iv ifwl, Le., in Me. For I will confess him, the Gr. is iv a vr£, i.e., in him. And so Tertullian reads {in Scorpiace c. 9). So also S. Luke xil 5. It is a Hebraism. For the Heb. constructs verbs of contact, whether bodily, mental, or spiritual contact, with the prep, a, in. The Heb. would be hoda bi, confess in Me, meaning confess Me. This is plain from the antithesis, shall deny Me. Maldonatus, however, takes it differently— shall confess, Le., shall glory in Me, answering to the Heb. hithraddeh, which, being in the Hithpael, has a reflexive force. To confess in oneself, Le,, to glory. The meaning is, whosoever, in the presence of tyrants, being in- terrogated concerning the faith, shall generously and constantly con- fess that he believeth in Me as the Messiah and the Son of God, him will I in like manner profess before God, and angels, and men, to be My disciple, and as such will I honour and glorify him. ON MARTYRDOM. $9 Martyrdom is the confession of Christ and the profession of Chris- tianity, even to torments and a cruel death, and therefore it is the highest love and honouring of Christ Wherefore the Apostles and Apostolic men have most ardently desired martyrdom. & Ignatius in his Epistle to the Romans, says, “ My love is crucified. There is not in me a fire of earthly, but of heavenly fuel. And I have living water which saith inwardly, Come to the Father.” S. Basil says (Him. 19 in S. Gordium, Mart.), “The martyrs speedily attain to heavenly glory by a violent and premature death. They endeavour speedily to migrate from this life, which ought rather to be called a lingering death, by means of short toil” We see, therefore, that he does not call death death, but as S. Sophia said to her daughter Anastasia (apud Surium, Octob. 25), “A good thing is departure from an evil world. It is joy, gladness, pleasure, splendour, beauty, light, a sweeter and fairer than earthly light.” S. Anthony, as S. Athana- sius testifies, when those who were about to become martyrs in the persecution of Maximian were being carried to Alexandria, rushed out of his monastery, and followed these victims of Christ, saying, “ Let us advance to the glorious triumphs of our brethren, that we may join them in their conflict” Tertullian thus concludes his apology in behalf of Christ and Christians — “ Well, then, do this, O ye excellent governors, since ye will be so much more acceptable to the populace, when ye have sacrificed the Christians to them. Crucify, torment, condemn us, tear our bodies to pieces. Your wickedness is the sure proof of our innocency. God has a meaning in allowing us to suffer. For when ye condemn a Christian woman to pollution rather than to a lion, ye confess that a stain upon modesty is reckoned by us to be far more dreadful than any death. And still all your most exquisite cruelties produce no effect 3 they only induce men to join us. We are multi- plied as often as you reap us. The blood of the Christians is their seed.” This same Tertullian wrote his Scorpiace against the Gnostics, who taught that it was permitted under torture to deny Christ with the mouth, so long as His faith were retained in the heart. The Pris- cillianists afterwards taught the same, whose motto was, “ Rights, 40 S. MATTHEW, X. peijuries, secrets, betray not” In the Scorpiace f i.e., an antidote against scorpions, meaning Gnostics, Tertullian treats altogether ot the good of martyrdom. S. Cyprian, too, following Tertullian as a master, according to his wont, wonderfully extols the martyrs and martyrdom. In his Epistle to the Martyrs , among other eulogiums, he scatters the following : “ The martyr is made a colleague of the Passion of Christ The martyrs give us a school of morals : the confessors shew us the beginning of virtues. The martyrs shall be assessors with Christ in the judgment. The martyrs obtain the king- dom of heaven without delay. The martyrs receive fruit a hundred- fold. The prayer of the martyrs deserves to be heard by God. By the triumphs of the martyrs the church is made glad. Martyrdom by the baptism of blood is of all things the most excellent” Lastly, the Standard Bearer, the Pnnce and the Captain of the Martyrs, is Christ Wherefore, the primitive bishops and fathers, as Julian the Apostate unwillingly acknowledged, “All flew to martyrdom like bees to a bee-hive,” to use S. Chrysostom’s words. S. Hubert, the successor of S. Lambert the martyr in the see of Liege, was wont to sigh because he was not his successor in martyrdom likewise. “O unhappy I,” he said, “whose sins have accumulated in such a heap that I am not worthy to be associated with such a man.” I have collected many more notes upon Martyrdom in Hosea, c. xi. sub finem. See also Victor of Utica on the Vandal persecution {lib. 2, 3), where he relates that when many of the orthodox were thrust by Hunneric, the Arian king, like swarms of locusts, into a narrow dungeon, full of every kind of filth, where the horror of the overpowering stench was worse than any torture, even here the Martyrs sang with exultation this hymn to the Lord, “ Such honour have all His Saints.” Think not that I am cotne } &c., that is to say, earthly peace: for Christ promised by Isaiah (ix. 6 and 7, and lxv. 25), that He would bring spiritual peace of mind, the peace of the union of the faithful among themselves, and with God and His Angels, which leads to peace and everlasting felicity in Heaven. But a sword: Le., separation , as S. Luke has (xii. 51), discord in HOW CHRIST SEPARATES MEN. 41 faith and religion. He means that He will separate His faithful people by reason of their faith from unbelievers. But the unbelievers will on their part take occasion to separate themselves from the faithful, and will hate them, and will deprive them of liberty and goods and life. This is what Christ especially refers to in what follows ; and this too entirely answers to the words of Micah (vii. 6) from which Christ here quotes. I am come to separate , &c. A marts foes shall be they of his own household \ Syriac. A man shall have as his enemies the sons of his own house. Because, as S. Chrys. says (Horn. 2 , cont. yudceos ), it shall come to pass that in the same house there shall be one faithful believer in Christ, whilst another shall continue unbelieving. A father will wish his son to return back from the faith to his former impiety. Foretelling this He saith, I am come to separate . Such shall be the victorious power of the Gospel that sons shall disregard their parents, daughters their mothers, and parents their children, and shall adventure their life and all things for the sake of godliness. Some are of opinion that Christ only applies the passage of Micah, using it in a different sense. But I reply that Micah was speaking literally of the calamity of sinful Jerusalem through the siege of the Chaldeans, as S. Jerome shows — that in it the inhabitants should be so distressed by sword and famine and pestilence that even brother would snatch away bread from brother, child from parent, wife from husband. But, allegorically this strife of the Jews signifies the discord and opposition of unbelieving parents and brethren and husbands against believers, whether Jews, or Gentiles in the time of Christ, especially when the faithful ran into peril of goods and fame, and even life itself. In this allegorical sense Christ cites Micah's words : and in an allegoiy, or parable it is not necessary to apply every word. He that loveth father , & c. That is, is not worthy to have Me for his Lord and Master, is not worthy of My name and company, My grace and kingdom, and the rest of My promises. The reason is, because Christ forasmuch as He is our God and Lord and Saviour, must be far preferred to parents and children. Wherefore he who prefers them to Christ so as for their sakes to revolt from the faith of 42 S. MATTHEW, X. Christ, treats Him unworthily, and does Him the highest dishonour. So S. Jerome and others. S. Saturus, when Hunneric threatened him that unless he became an Arian, he would give his wife in marriage to his camel driver, and when his wife, trembling at this, besought him to consent unto the king, answered like another Job, “Thou speakest as one of the foolish women speaketh. I should dread it, O woman, if there were nothing but the bitter sweetness of this life. Thou ministerest, O my wife to the artifices of the devil If thou lovedst thy spouse, thou wouldst never drag thine own husband to the second death. Let them tear away my children, let them separate my wife, let them take away my substance, yet will I rest secure upon the promises of my Lord. I will hold fast the words, ‘Whosoever forsaketh not wife, or children, or lands, or houses, he cannot be My disciple.' ” So Victor of Utica, And he thattaketh not (from the hand of the Lord upon his shoulders to bear it like Christ) his cross , &c. To bear the cross is to be ready for the sake of Christ to bear reproaches, stripes, imprisonments, and the most painful and ignominious death, such as was the death of the cross, which Christ vouchsafed to bear for us. Because, as S. Chrys. says, speaking in the name of Christ “ As I have brought you the utmost blessedness ; so I ask of you a singular obedience and affec- tion, that ye may be as lions in battle array.” Christ alludes to His future bearing of His own Cross. For it is altogether just and right, that after Christ bearing His cross for us, we also should follow Him, bearing our cross with love and reverence, and thus walk towards heaven. This is the exact literal sense. Mystically , the Cross is mortification. Listen to the Gloss, “ The Cross is borne in two ways, either when the body is affected by abstinence, or when the mind is touched with compassion for one's neighbour. Their neighbours' sins are an instrument of torture to the Saints.” Lastly, S. Jerome says, “ It is written in another Gospel, He that taketh not his Cross daily , lest we should suppose that a burning faith would suffice once for all : the Cross must be always carried, that we may show that we always love Christ” HOW TO FIND ONE’S LIFE. 43 He that findeih his life , &c. Findeth ought to be in the past tense ; for the Gr. is (o tvpuv). The meaning is, He that findeth his life ( } bx^ y )y that is, the corporeal safety of his life, when in peril of death 9 through denial of the faith, and of My name, such a one shall lose his soul (ypvxWy that is, the eternal salvation of his soul, which alone is real safety, and shall go away into hell. And, on the other hand, he who shall lose the present life of his soul or his life, on account of his profession of My name, he shall find health and safety, and the eternal happiness and gloiy of his soul (^xW> or life. He therefore who indulges his soul, loses it : he who mortifies it, saves it See the paradox which there is here. Life is made to con- sist in death, and death in life. Whence Tertullian says in his Scorpiace, “God hath willed to destroy death by death, tb shake off torments by torments, to give life by taking it away, to heal the flesh by wound- ing it, to save the soul by casting it away.” Observe the Heb. is matsa, Le., he hath found. Understand, he hath acquired, he hath gotten, he hath obtained, as the LXX. trans. in Job iii. 22 : and the Vulg. in i. Sam. xxxi. 3. Similarly the Gr. ivpioKut, literally, / light upon, frequently means, I obtain, rescue* I deliver, &c. The Latin invenire, lit to come upon, means to acquire or obtain anything. Thus any one is said to find, that is to obtain grace, favour, praise. So Gabriel said to the Blessed Virgin, Thou hast found favour, or grace with God, i.e., Thou hast come into favour with God : thou hast gained the love of God. In Gen. xxvi. 12, it is said, “ Isaac sowed in that land, and found, i.e., gained in that same year a hundred- fold.” ( Vulg.) For what any one finds sprung up in his field, that he gains. So here, He that findeth his life, that is, who gains it when it is as it were lost, and causes it as though to come to him afresh by denying Christ, this man shall lose it in another and a better life. Again matsa, he hath found, denotes liberty, sufficiency, abundance, power. So in Ps. xxl 9, “ Let Thy hand be found by all Thine enemies.” ( Vulg.) That is, let it suffice, let it be stronger and more powerful than Thine enemies. So here to find the soul is to acquire the liberty of the soul (anima), i.e., of the life, and abundance of pos- 44 S. MATTHEW, X. sessions, by denying the faith. For this was what kings and tyrants were wont to promise to those who would deny Christ He that receiveth you, Ac. For he who receive* an ambassador, in the ambassador receive* *e king who ha* sent him. The Apostles were *e ambassadors of Christ, and Christ of God. He, therefore, who receive* them, receive* Christ in *em, and in Christ, God Himself — according to *ese words of S. Paul — “ We are ambassadors for Christ, as *ough God did beseech you by us.” And again, in *e Epistle to *e Galatians, “ Ye did not reject me, but received me as an angel of God, even as Christ Jesus.” Christ here proposes *e rewards of *ose who should receive *e Apostles, that He may make provision for *e Apostles in *e poverty which He commanded them to observe — as, for instance, when they were preaching, that He might streng*en them in it, and might invite hosts to show them liberal hospitality. He that receiveth a prophet, &c. A prophet, i.e,, a teacher and preacher of *e Gospel such as *e Apostles were. For formerly *e office of *e prophets was not only to predict future events, but to teach *e people, and preach *e law and word of God. Shall receive a prophets reward, or hire (merces, Vulg.) Some ex- plain this as though reward from a prophet: and that far surpassing *e hospitality which *ey .have shown, because *ey shall receive from *e prophet *e grace and fai* of Christ, and *e benefit of *e prophet’s prayers. 2. Eu*ymius. A prophets reivard — ue., shall be equal to a prophet in his reward, shall be accounted worthy of equal honours wi* him. 3. And best Shall receive , &c., because as he co-operates wi* *e prophet, and assists him because he is a prophet and a preacher, so shall he be partaker of his labour, bis merit, and his reward, and yet not in equal degree, but proportionably wi* *e prophet, according to *e co-operation and love wi* which he co-operates wi* *e preacher. For so by common law *e receivers of thieves and robbers are awarded similar (*ough not equal) punishment wi* *e *ieves *emselves. Thus S. Chrysostom explains : M He shall receive that reward of a prophet which it is fitting that he should MEANING OF A PROPHET'S REWARD. 45 receive who receives a prophet.” S. Gregory ( Horn . 20 in Evang.) says the same. Although the elm bears no fruit of itselfj yet it supports the vine with its grapes : thus she makes her own what she kindly sustains of another’s. The same rule is indicated by the old law of war. “There shall be an equal share to him who goeth down into the battle with him who remaineth by the baggage. They shall alike divide the spoils.” (1 Sam. xxx. 24). A prophets reward, then, is that he shall receive the reward of his prophecy, or his preaching, because he assisted and promoted it ; for without that assistance the preacher could not have preached, forasmuch as he would have lacked food. Lasdy, by a prophets reward some understand the gift of pro- phecy; which S. Jerome (On Obadiah) thinks the prophet Obadiah obtained because he fed the prophets with bread and water in Jezebel’s persecution. “Forasmuch as he nourished a hundred prophets, he received the grace of prophecy, and from a prince became a general of the Church’s army. He fed at that time a little flock in Samaria; now he feeds the churches of Christ throughout all the world.” S. Epiphanius, S. Isidore, and others think the same, though it is more probable that the Obadiah of 1 Kin. 18 and the fourth of the Minor Prophets were different persons, as I have shown in the preface to Obadiah. He that receiveth a righteous man, &c. In the same way as I have said of a prophet Yea, though such a one shall be in sin, he shall receive the grace of repentance, and shall be made righteous. For to this men are often brought by the word and example of saints who are their guests, who obtain the grace of repentance by their prayers. So S. Francis, being received by a soldier to hospitality, foretold his speedy death, persuaded him to make his confession, and obtained from God his eternal salvation. For as soon as the soldier had confessed, he expired. (See S. Bonaventura, in his Life, c. 11.) And whosoever shall give to drink, &c. Cold water, as the cheapest of all things, and within the competence of the poorest to bestow. He does not say. savs S. Jerome, warm water, lest any one should 46 S. MATTHEW, X. make the want of fuel an excuse. And he does not speak of a goblet, or a flagon, but He says a cup, or glass. For who is so poor that he could not give, or at least cany, a cup of water? S. Augus- tine gives the same explanation. In the name of a disciple* <>., because he is My disciple, because he adheres to My teaching, and believes in Me. For this having respect to Christ, ennobles and exalts both the intention of the giver and the work itself ; that which is given to a Christian, Christ esteems as bestowed upon Himself, and as such recompenses it with a great reward. For if you should do the same work for a different reason, because the person benefited is your servant, or relation, or friend, the deed is of little or no merit in the eyes of God. For this would be an alms, or an act of natural pity ; but the former an act of super- natural mercy. So theologians and Suarez {lib. 2, de necessitat. gratia* c. xvi. 10). By these words of Christ it is intimated that a work of mercy done to a man only because he is a man, is of the natural order : but if it be done because he is a believer, a fellow citizen with the saints, and of the household of God, it is a work of mercy of a higher, that is, of a supernatural order. An illustrious example of this occurs in the life of S. Anastasia, V. and M. After her tongue had been cut off (Lat prctsdnde- retur ), and her teeth knocked out, being athirst, she asked for water (poposcit). A certain man named Cyril gave her to drink, and by that one cup of cold water purchased the crown of martyr- dom. For when Probus the governor understood that he had done this for a Christian woman because he was a Christian, he sent him to a martyr’s death. From these words of Christ some theologians (with Suarez) gather as probable, that grace in a just man is increased by remisser acts : as if, for example, a just man should have intense degrees of grace, say as eight, but should perform an act of almsgiving, by giving, for example, a cup of cold water to a poor man in a remiss kind of way — say as three — by which act he would nevertheless acquire an aug- mentation of his habitual intense grace as eight, by three additional grades, so that it would be intensified, or extended as eleven. See NO GOOD WORK WITHOUT REWARD. 47 the full discussion of this question in Suarez (Tom. 3 de Gratia , lib. 9, cap. 3, nu. 36). Lastly, Christ here signifies that no work, however small, done to a preacher, shall go without its reward. Of this nature are those remiss works which just men do in great abundance. And they would lose the reward of very many of their works, were it not that remiss works increase the more intense grace; for few Christians perform acts so intense that they equal, or exceed the habit ; and Christ here teaches that they do not lose their reward. 48