[5991] Tit. iii. 5.
[5992] 1 Pet. ii. 2.
[5993] Rom. viii. 29.
[5994] Gal. i. 15.
[5995] Ps. lxxi. 6.
[5996] Ps. cxxxix. 13.
[5997] Ps. xxii. 10.
[5998] Jude 1.
28. Close Relationship of Angels to Their "Little Ones."
With reference to the words, "When through the laver I became a child in Christ," [5999] it may be said, that there is no holy angel present with those who are still in wickedness, but that during the period of unbelief they are under the angels of Satan; [6000] but, after the regeneration, He who has redeemed us with His own blood consigns us to a holy angel, who also, because of his purity, beholds the face of God. And a third exposition of this passage might be something like the following, which would say, that as it is possible for a man to change from unbelief to faith, and from intemperance to temperance, and generally from wickedness to virtue, so also it is possible that the angel, to whom any soul has been entrusted at birth, may be wicked at the first, but afterwards may at some time believe in proportion as the man believes, and may make such advance that he may become one of the angels who always behold the face of the Father in heaven, [6001] beginning from the time that he is yoked along with the man who was foreknown and foreordained to believe at that time, the judgments of God, which are unspeakable and unsearchable and like to the depths, fitly bringing together all this harmonious relationship--angels with men. And it may be that as when a man and his wife are both unbelievers, sometimes it is the man who first believes and in time saves his wife, and sometimes the wife who begins and afterwards in time persuades her husband, so it happens with angels and with men. If, however, anything of this kind takes place in the case of other angels or not, you may seek out for yourself. But consider whether it may not be appropriate to say something of this kind in regard to each angel who is so honoured according to the word of the Saviour, that he is said to behold always the face of the Father who is in heaven. But since in what we said above, that the little ones have angels, but that the great have passed beyond such a position, some one will quote in opposition to us from the Acts of the Apostles, where it is written, that a certain maid Rhoda, when Peter knocked at the door, came to answer, and recognizing the voice of Peter, ran in and announced that Peter stood before the gate; but when they who were gathered together in the house wondered, and thought that it was quite impossible that Peter verily stood before the gate, they said, It is his angel. [6002] For the objector will say that, as they had learned once for all that each of the believers had some definite angel, they knew that Peter also had one. But he, who adheres to what we have previously said, will say that the word of Rhoda was not necessarily a dogma, and perhaps also the word of those who did not accurately know, when one as being little and God-fearing is governed by angels, and when now by the Lord Himself. After this, in order to establish our conception of the little one which we have brought forward, it will be said that we need no command about "not despising" in the case of the great, but we do need it in the case of the little; wherefore it is not merely said, "Do not despise one of these," pointing to all the disciples, but "one of these little ones," [6003] pointed out by Him, who sees the littleness and the greatness of the soul.
[5999] Cf. Tit. iii. 5; 1 Pet. ii. 2.
[6000] The text is perhaps corrupt.
[6001] Matt. xviii. 10.
[6002] Acts xii. 13-15.
[6003] Matt. xviii. 10.
29. The Little Ones and the Perfect.
But another might say that the perfect man is here called little, applying the word, "For he that is least among you all, the same is great," [6004] and will affirm that he who humbles himself and becomes a child in the midst of all that believe, though he be an apostle or a bishop, and becomes such "as when a nurse cherisheth her own children," [6005] is the little one pointed out by Jesus, and that the angel of such an one is worthy to behold the face of God. For to say that the little are here called perfect, according to the passage, "He that is least among you all, the same is great," [6006] and as Paul said, "Unto me who am less than the least of all saints was this grace given," [6007] will seem to be in harmony with the saying, "Whoso shall cause one of these little ones to stumble," [6008] and "So it is not the will of My Father in heaven, that one of these little ones should perish." [6009] For he, as has been stated, who is now little, could not be made to stumble nor perish, for "great peace have they who love the law of God, and there is no stumbling-block to them;" [6010] and he could not perish, who is least of all among all the disciples of Christ, and on this account becomes great; and, since he could not perish, he could say, "Who shall separate us from the love," [6011] etc. But he who wishes to maintain this last exposition will say that the soul even of the just man is changeable, as Ezekiel also testifies, saying, that the righteous man may abandon the commandments of God, so that his former righteousness is not reckoned unto him; [6012] wherefore it is said, "Whoso shall cause to stumble one of these little ones, [6013] and, "It is not the will of My Father which is in heaven that one of these little ones should perish." [6014]
[As for the exposition of the matters relating to "the hundred sheep," you may consult the homilies on Luke. [6015] ]
[6004] Luke ix. 48.
[6005] 1 Thess. ii. 7.
[6006] Luke ix. 48.
[6007] Eph. iii. 8.
[6008] Matt. xviii. 6.
[6009] Matt. xviii. 14.
[6010] Ps. cxix. 165.
[6011] Rom. viii. 35.
[6012] Ezek. xxxiii. 12.
[6013] Matt. xviii. 6.
[6014] Matt. xviii. 14.
[6015] Matt. xviii. 12-14.
30. The Sinning Brother.
"If thy brother sin against thee, go, shew him his fault between thee and him alone. [6016] " He, then, who attends closely to the expression, in proof of the surpassing philanthropy of Jesus, will say, that as the words do not suggest a difference of sins, they will act in a singular manner and contrary to the goodness of Jesus, who supply the thought, that these words are to be understood as being limited in their application to lesser sins. But another, also attending closely to the expression, and not wishing to introduce these extraneous thoughts, nor admitting that it is spoken about every sin, will say, that he who commits those great sins is not a brother, even if he be called a brother, as the Apostle says, "If any one that is named a brother be a fornicator, or covetous, or an idolater, etc., with such an one not to eat;" [6017] for no one who is an idolater, or a fornicator, or covetous, is a brother; for if he, who seems to bear the name of Christ, though he is named a brother, has something of the features of these, he would not rightly be called a brother. As then he, who says that such words are spoken about every sin, whether the sin be murder, or poisoning, or pæderasty, or anything of that sort, would give occasion of injury to the exceeding goodness of Christ, so, on the contrary, he who distinguishes between the brother and him who is called the brother, might teach that, in the case of the least of the sins of men, he who has not repented after the telling of the fault is to be reckoned as a Gentile and a publican, for sins which are "not unto death," [6018] or, as the law has described them in the Book of Numbers, not "death-bringing." [6019] This would seem to be very harsh; for I do not think that any one will readily be found who has not been censured thrice for the same form of sin, say, reviling, with which revilers abuse their neighbours, or those who are carried away by passion, or for over-drinking, or lying and idle words, or any of those things which exist in the masses. You will inquire, therefore, whether any observation of the passage has escaped the notice of those, who are influenced by their conception of the goodness of the Word, and grant pardon to those who have committed the greatest sins, as well as of those who teach that, in the case of the very least sins, he is to be reckoned as a Gentile and a publican, making him a stranger to the church, after he has committed three very trivial transgressions. But the following seems to me to have been overlooked by both of them, namely, the words, "Thou hast gained thy brother." [6020] It is assigned by the Word to him only who heard, and He no longer applies it in the case of him who has stumbled twice or thrice and been censured; but that which was to be said about him who was censured twice or thrice, corresponding to the saying, "Thou hast gained thy brother," He has left in the air, so to speak. He is not, therefore, altogether gained, nor will he altogether perish, or he will receive stripes. And attend carefully to the first passage, "If he hear thee, thou hast gained thy brother," and to the second passage, which is literally, "If he hear thee not, take with thyself one or two more, that at the mouth of two or three witnesses every word may be established." [6021] What, then, will happen to him who has been censured for the second time, after every word has been established by two or three witnesses, He has left us to conceive. And, again, "If he refuse to hear them"--manifestly, the witnesses who have been taken--"tell it," he says, "to the church;" [6022] and He does not say what he will suffer if he does not hear the church, but He taught that if he refused to hear the church, then he who had thrice admonished, and had not been heard, was to regard him for the future as the Gentile and the publican. [6023] Therefore he is not altogether gained, nor will he altogether perish. But what at all he will suffer, who at first did not hear, but required witnesses, or even refused to hear these, but was brought to the church, God knows; for we do not declare it, according to the precept, "Judge not that ye be not judged," [6024] "until the Lord come, who will both bring to light the hidden things of darkness and make manifest the counsels of the hearts." [6025] But, with reference to the seeming harshness in the case of those who have committed less sins, one might say that it is not possible for him who has not heard twice in succession to hear the third time, so as, on this account, no longer to be as a Gentile or a publican, or no longer to stand in need of the censure in presence of all the church. For we must bear in mind this, "So it is not the will of My Father in heaven that one of these little ones should perish." [6026] For if "we must all stand before the judgment-seat of Christ, that each one may receive the things done in the body, according to what he hath done, whether it be good or bad," [6027] let each one with all his power do what he can so that he may not receive punishment for more evil things done in the body, even if he is going to receive back for all the wrongs which he has done; but it should be our ambition to procure the reward for a greater number of good deeds, since "with what measure we mete, it shall be measured to us," [6028] and, "according to the works of our own hands shall it happen unto us," [6029] and not in infinite wise, but either double or sevenfold shall sinners receive for their sins from the hand of the Lord; since He does not render unto any one according to the works of his hands, but more than that which he has done, for "Jerusalem," as Isaiah taught, "received from the hand of the Lord double for her sins;" [6030] but the neighbours of Israel, whoever they may be, will receive sevenfold, according to the following expression in the Psalms, "Render unto our neighbours sevenfold into their bosom the reproach with which they have reproached Thee, O Lord." [6031] And other forms of payment in return could be found, which, if we apprehend, we shall know that to repent after any sin, whatever its greatness, is advantageous, in order that, in addition to our not being punished for more offences, there may be some hope left to us concerning good deeds done afterwards at some time, even though, before them, thousands of errors have been committed by anyone of us. For it would be strange that evil deeds should be reckoned to any one, but the better which are done after the bad should profit nothing; which may also be learned from Ezekiel, [6032] by those who pay careful consideration to the things said about such cases.