返回Chapter 24
Chapter 24
Chapter Twenty-Four
Lk. 24:1. In the first day of the week, very early, carrying the prepared spices, they came to the tomb, and together with them certain others;
On the first day of the week the women came to the tomb, carrying with them spices. They came very early, which the evangelist Matthew (Matt. 28:1) calls the evening of the Sabbath. For the deep morning is almost the same as the very late evening.
Lk. 24:2. But they found the stone rolled away from the tomb.
They found the stone rolled away from the tomb, for the Angel had rolled it away, as Matthew says (Matt. 28:2).
Lk. 24:3. And having entered, they did not find the body of the Lord Jesus.
Lk. 24:4. And while they were perplexed about this, behold, two men stood before them in dazzling garments.
When they entered inside, two men appear to them. One, mentioned by Matthew (Matt. 28:2), was sitting on the stone, while these two men stood inside the tomb. These are different visions.
Lk. 24:5. And when they were afraid and bowed down their faces to the earth, they said to them: why do you seek the living among the dead?
Lk. 24:6. He is not here: He is risen; remember how He spoke to you when He was still in Galilee,
Lk. 24:7. Saying that the Son of Man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men, and be crucified, and on the third day rise again.
Men appear in shining garments, on account of the brightness of the resurrection, and remind the women of what the Lord had told them, namely: that it was "necessary," that is, inevitable, for Him "to be delivered into the hands of sinful men," that is, the Romans, pagans and defiled ones, "and on the third day to rise again." Concerning how the resurrection is on the third day, we have spoken sufficiently in the commentary on Matthew (see ch. 28).
Lk. 24:8. And they remembered His words;
Lk. 24:9. And having returned from the tomb, they reported all these things to the eleven and to all the rest.
Lk. 24:10. They were Mary Magdalene, and Joanna, and Mary the mother of James, and the others with them, who told these things to the Apostles.
Lk. 24:11. And their words seemed to them as idle tales, and they did not believe them.
When they returned from the tomb and told the apostles about this, they were regarded as dreamers. So, by nature, the miracle of the resurrection seems incredible to people!
Lk. 24:12. But Peter, rising up, ran to the tomb and, stooping down, saw only the linen cloths lying there, and went away, wondering within himself at what had happened.
However, Peter does not delay, like fire that has taken hold of material, but runs to the tomb and sees only the linen cloths lying there. And from the fact that he reached the tomb, the first benefit is that instead of mocking, he marvels: "and he went away (it says), wondering in himself at what had happened." For how did the linen cloths alone remain, and that when the body had been anointed with myrrh? How much leisure did the thief have, when he left them properly folded, carried out the body, and that when soldiers had been posted? By "Mary, the mother of James," understand the Theotokos, for she was so called as the supposed mother of James, the son of Joseph, who was called the Less; I mean the Brother of God. For there was also James the Greater, one of the Twelve, the son of Zebedee.
Lk. 24:13. On that same day two of them were walking to a village sixty stadia from Jerusalem, called Emmaus;
Some say that one of these two was Luke himself, which is why the evangelist concealed his name.
Lk. 24:14. And they were talking among themselves of all these things which had happened.
They "were talking with each other about all these events" not as believers, but as people perplexed and amazed by the extraordinary occurrences, and not quickly able to come to terms with such a wondrous phenomenon.
Lk. 24:15. And while they conversed and reasoned among themselves, Jesus Himself, having drawn near, went with them.
Lk. 24:16. But their eyes were held, so that they did not recognize Him.
Jesus, having approached, went with them. For, having a body already spiritual and most Divine, He found no hindrance in distance of places to being with those with whom He wished. Therefore also the bodily features with which the Savior then appeared did not allow them to recognize Him. For He appeared to them, as Mark says (Mk. 16:12), "in another form" and with different features. He disposed of His body no longer according to the laws of nature, but supernaturally and spiritually. For this reason their eyes were held back so that they did not recognize Him. But why did He appear in another form, and why were their eyes held back? So that they might disclose all their perplexities, reveal their wound, and then receive the remedy; so that after a long interval He might appear to them more pleasant; so that He might teach them from Moses and the prophets, and only then be recognized; so that they might better believe that His body was no longer such as could be seen by all in general, but that although the very same body that had suffered had risen, it is visible only to those to whom He grants it; so that they might gain from this that great benefit of no longer wavering in their perplexities (concerning, for example) why He no longer goes about among the people, but would reflect within themselves that His manner of life after the resurrection differs greatly from the ordinary — not human, but most Divine — so that it serves as a figure of the future resurrection as well, in which we shall live as Angels and sons of God. So then, this is why their eyes were held back and they did not recognize Him. For He became visible to those for whom He wished.
Lk. 24:17. He said to them: What is this that you are discussing with one another as you walk, and why are you sad?
Lk. 24:18. One of them, named Cleopas, answered and said to Him: Are You the only one among those who have come to Jerusalem who does not know the things that have happened in it in these days?
Cleopas makes a reproach to the Lord, who appears in the form of a fellow traveler, and says: "Are you the only one of those who have come," that is, are you the only one of the inhabitants of Jerusalem who does not know what has happened? Others, however, understood the words "of those who have come" ("are you a stranger") in this way: are you the only stranger who lives outside Jerusalem, and are so indifferent to what is happening in it that you do not know about this?
Lk. 24:19. And He said to them: about what? They said to Him: about what happened with Jesus of Nazareth, Who was a prophet, mighty in deed and word before God and all the people;
See then what a very limited understanding they still had of the Lord. They called Him a man, "a prophet," as one might call Elijah, Joshua the son of Nun, or Moses; "mighty in deed and word": first deed, then word. For no word of a teacher is firm if the teacher does not first show himself to be a doer of it. So be mighty in deed first, then strive to have the word as well. Then God too will assist you. For first comes action, and then contemplation and illumination. If you do not clean the mirror with labor and sweat, you will not see the desired beauty. For "blessed are the pure in heart," and this is achieved through deeds, "for they shall see God" (Matt. 5:8), and this is the end of contemplation. One must be mighty in deed and word "before God," and then before "all the people." For one must please God first, and then strive to be, as far as possible, blameless before people as well. One must neither prefer people-pleasing to pleasing God, nor live as a stumbling block to many, but care for both, as the wise man also says: have regard for good things before God and men. And Paul says the same (2 Cor. 8:21).
Lk. 24:20. How our chief priests and rulers delivered Him up to be condemned to death and crucified Him.
Lk. 24:21. But we had hoped that He is the One Who should redeem Israel;
As if deceived in their hopes, they speak thus: we hoped that He would save others too, but He did not even save Himself. So faint-hearted and slow to believe were they! Their words resemble what those standing at the cross also said: "He saved others; He cannot save Himself" (Mk. 15:31). Therefore the Lord also calls them foolish and slow to believe. What do the words "to redeem Israel" mean? We have said before that the Jewish people, and especially the less discerning among them, expected in Christ a savior and deliverer from the evils oppressing them and from the yoke of Roman slavery, and they hoped that He would reign on earth. Therefore they also say: we hoped that He would deliver Israel from the Gentiles — the Romans — but He Himself did not even escape the unjust sentence passed upon Him.
Lk. 24:21. But with all that, it is now already the third day since this happened.
Lk. 24:22. But certain women also of our company astonished us: they were early at the tomb
Lk. 24:23. And they did not find His body, and when they came, they reported that they had also seen a vision of Angels, who say that He is alive.
"Already the third day now,... and certain women from among us astonished us" and so forth. They say this in a state of perplexity. It seems to me that these two men were in great vacillation of thought, neither too disbelieving nor too believing. For the words "we had hoped that He would redeem Israel" reveal unbelief; while the words "already the third day now" show that the people were already close to recalling the words of the Lord: "on the third day I will rise again" (Matt. 16:21, Mark 8:31, Luke 9:22, Luke 24:7). And the words "astonished us" reveal something similar, that is, the wavering of their unbelief. Taken together, however, these words truly belong to people who are in great doubt, since these people were brought into a state of perplexity and difficulty by the extraordinariness of the resurrection.
Lk. 24:24. And some of those who were with us went to the tomb and found it just as the women had said, but Him they did not see.
"And some of our people went," they say, that is, either Peter alone, or Peter and John. And from this it is evident that what some relate at length, others mention briefly and in passing, since John narrates more extensively about Peter and John going to the tomb (John 20:2–8), while this one (Luke), having mentioned a few, omitted their names.
Lk. 24:25. Then He said to them: O foolish ones and slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken!
Since they were thinking in human terms and suffered from great doubt, the Lord calls them "foolish and slow" to believe all that "the prophets had foretold." For it is possible to believe in part and to believe wholly. For example, whoever hopes that Christ will come for the salvation of the people, yet not for the salvation of souls, but for the restoration and deliverance of the Jewish nation, that person does not believe as much as one ought to believe. Likewise, whoever believes the words of David, "They pierced my hands and my feet" (Ps. 21:17), and the other words concerning the cross and the circumstances on the cross, as a prophecy spoken in the person of the Lord, and accepts the passages of Scripture about the suffering, but does not take into consideration the passages about the resurrection, such as, for example, these: "You will not leave my soul in Hades, nor will You allow Your Holy One to see corruption" (Ps. 15:10), "among the dead" (Ps. 87:6), "He releases the prisoners from their bonds" (Ps. 67:7), and similar ones — that person has a faith that is not perfect, but believes only in part.
Lk. 24:26. Not so? Was it not necessary for the Christ to suffer and to enter into His glory?
But one must believe the prophets in all things, both regarding the state of humiliation and regarding the state of glory. For Christ had to suffer — this is the humiliation. But He also had to enter into His glory — this is the glorification. Yet you are so foolish that, hearing Isaiah speak of both states, namely: "He was led as a sheep to the slaughter" and "the Lord desires to show Him light" (Isa. 53:7, 11), you accept the first but do not consider the second: you believe that He "was wounded," but that "the Lord desires to cleanse Him of His wound" (Isa. 53:5, 10), you do not even take to mind.
Lk. 24:27. Starting from Moses and from all the prophets, He explained to them the things said about Him in all the Scriptures.
But since, He says, you are "foolish," that is, "slow" (for if they were truly foolish, He would not have said anything to them at all), since you are slow, I will open your mind and make it quick in understanding. Therefore He explained to them from Moses and from all the prophets the things said concerning Him. The mystery of Abraham's sacrifice, when he, leaving Isaac alive, offered a ram as a burnt offering, served as a prefiguration concerning the Lord, as the Lord Himself says that "Abraham saw" His "day and rejoiced" (John 8:56). And this passage: "your life shall hang before you" (Deut. 28:66) points at one and the same time both to the crucifixion by the word "hang" and to the resurrection by the word "life." Scattered throughout the rest of the prophecies are sayings about the cross and the resurrection, especially among the most important prophets. Such passages can be gathered from them as well. Note, if you will, also this: that entrance into glory depends on the endurance of sufferings.
Lk. 24:28. And they drew near to the village where they were going; and He made as though He would go further.
The Lord "makes as if He would go further," without doubt, according to His humanity.
Lk. 24:29. But they constrained Him, saying: Stay with us, for the day is already declining toward evening. And He went in and stayed with them.
Lk. 24:30. And when He reclined at table with them, He took bread, blessed it, broke it, and gave it to them.
Lk. 24:31. Then their eyes were opened, and they recognized Him.
When He wills it, then their eyes are opened, and they recognize Him. This also signifies something else, namely: that those who partake of the blessed bread have their eyes opened to behold Him. For the flesh of the Lord possesses great and ineffable power.
Lk. 24:31. But He became invisible to them.
He becomes invisible to them, because He no longer had such a body as to remain with them bodily for a long time, and also in order that by such an action He might strengthen their love even more.
Lk. 24:32. And they said to one another: Did not our heart burn within us while He spoke to us on the road and while He explained the Scriptures to us?
Lk. 24:33. And they rose up the same hour, and returned to Jerusalem, and found the eleven Apostles gathered together, and those who were with them,
Lk. 24:34. Who said: the Lord truly rose and appeared to Simon.
Lk. 24:35. And they told of what had happened on the way, and how He was recognized by them in the breaking of bread.
They were so overjoyed that "in the same hour, they rose and returned to Jerusalem," though they did not return in the same hour, for they rose in that very hour, but returned after as much time as they needed to cover the distance of sixty stadia. During these hours, of course, the Lord also appeared to Simon, while these two men were making their way back to Jerusalem.
Their "heart" was "burning" either from the fire of the Lord's words, when through the Lord's explanation they were inwardly inflamed and agreed with His words as true, or, when He explained the Scriptures to them, their heart was beating and inwardly saying: This very One Who is explaining to us is the Lord.
Lk. 24:36. While they were speaking about these things, Jesus Himself stood in their midst and said to them: Peace to you.
Lk. 24:37. But they were terrified and frightened, and supposed that they were seeing a spirit.
The Lord, arranging all things for our salvation, stands in the midst of the disciples, with the intention of assuring them of the resurrection. And first, by the customary greeting of peace He calms their agitation, and then He shows that He Himself is their Teacher, who loves this greeting and who armed them with this greeting when He sent them out to preach (Matt. 10:12; Luke 10:5). But since this word did not quiet the agitation of their souls, He shows them in another way that He is the Son of God, who knows the hearts.
Lk. 24:38. But He said to them: Why are you troubled, and why do such thoughts enter into your hearts?
And it is acknowledged by all that to know hearts belongs to God alone (Ps. 139). He adds yet another proof as well – the touching of the hands and feet.
Lk. 24:39. Behold My hands and My feet, that it is I Myself; handle Me and see, for a spirit does not have flesh and bones as you see I have.
Lk. 24:40. And having said this, He showed them His hands and feet.
"You," He says, "consider Me a spirit or an apparition, such as commonly appear from the dead, especially at tombs. But know that a spirit has neither flesh nor bones, whereas I have both flesh and bones, albeit most divine and spiritual. For the Lord's body, though it was not a spirit, was 'spiritual,' that is, free from all material coarseness and governed by the spirit. The body that we now have is 'natural,' that is, it is governed by the soul and animated by natural and psychic properties and powers. But the body as it will be after the resurrection, Paul calls spiritual (1 Cor. 15:44), that is, it is animated and governed by the Spirit of God, not by the soul, having been ineffably and spiritually re-created for incorruption and preserved in it. This is how one must think of the Lord's body after the resurrection: namely, as spiritual, subtle, free from all coarseness, needing neither food nor anything else, although the Lord did eat for the sake of assurance. For if He ate, He ate not according to the nature of His body, but by a special dispensation, namely, to show that the very same body that had suffered had risen. But it was in the nature of this body to pass through closed doors and to move effortlessly from place to place."
Lk. 24:41. And while they yet believed not for joy, and wondered, He said unto them, Have ye here any meat?
Lk. 24:42. They gave Him a piece of broiled fish and some honeycomb.
Lk. 24:43. Taking it, He ate before them.
Lk. 24:44. And He said to them: these are the words which I spoke to you while I was still with you, that all things must be fulfilled which were written about Me in the Law of Moses and in the Prophets and the Psalms.
When the disciples still did not believe and were not convinced even by touch, the Lord added yet another proof — the partaking of food, consuming what was eaten by a certain divine power. For everything that is naturally eaten by the mouth passes out through the bowels, but He, as we have said, partakes not according to the law of nature, but by a special dispensation.
The foods He consumed seem to have a certain hidden meaning as well. By eating "a piece of broiled fish," the Lord indicates that by the fire of His Divinity He broiled our nature, which was swimming in the salt sea of this life, dried up all the moisture clinging to it from the deep waters, and especially from the waves, and thus made it divine food, rendering what was formerly unclean into a morsel pleasing to God. This is signified by the honeycomb, that is, the present sweetness of our nature, which was formerly rejected. Or, I also think that "broiled fish" signifies the active life, which by means of the coals of the desert and of silence destroys in us the excess of moisture and fatness, while "honeycomb" signifies knowledge or contemplation, since the words of God are sweet (Ps. 19:10). However, there is the honey of drones — pagan wisdom, and there is the honey of bees — divine wisdom, and the bee is Christ. Although it is small in size, for the word is brief and weak in power, since Paul preaches not with wisdom of words, lest the cross be made void (1 Cor. 1:17), nevertheless it is beloved by kings and common people alike, who use its labors for the health of their souls.
Lk. 24:45. Then He opened their mind to understand the Scriptures.
When the Lord had calmed and quieted the hearts of the disciples, having assured them of the reality of the resurrection of His body through His words, by allowing them to touch Him, and by partaking of food, then He opened their mind to understand the Scriptures. For if their soul had not been calmed, how would they have understood, being in a state of disorder, in a state of confusion? For "Be still," it is said, "and know" (Ps. 46:10).
Lk. 24:46. And He said to them: thus it is written, and thus it was necessary for the Christ to suffer,
After this He teaches them that "thus it was necessary for Christ to suffer." How then is it "thus"? On the wood of the Cross. Since destruction entered through a tree, corruption also had to be destroyed through a tree, and the delight of the tree had to be abolished by the Lord, who unconquerably endured the sufferings on the tree.
Lk. 24:46. and to rise from the dead on the third day,
Lk. 24:47. And that repentance and forgiveness of sins should be preached in His name among all nations,
Here the Lord speaks of baptism. For in it repentance is accomplished through confession and the putting away of former wickedness and impiety, and forgiveness of sins follows.
How should we understand that baptism is performed in the name of Christ alone, when elsewhere we are taught to perform it in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit? (Matt. 28:19). First, we shall say that when we say baptism is performed in the name of Christ, we do not mean that it must be performed in the name of Christ alone, but that one must perform baptism that is neither Jewish nor that of John, which served only for repentance, but the baptism of Christ, with which Christ was baptized, that is, a spiritual baptism that grants communion of the Holy Spirit and the forgiveness of sins, which He Himself demonstrated when He was baptized for our sake in the Jordan and manifested the Holy Spirit in the form of a dove.
Then, understand baptism in the name of Christ as follows: baptism into the death of Christ. For just as He died and on the third day rose again, so we too are figuratively buried in water, then come out of it incorruptible in soul and receive a pledge to be incorruptible in body itself.
And in another way: the name Christ (the Anointed One) in itself presents both the Father who anointed, and the anointing of the Spirit, and the Son who was anointed.
Forgiveness of sins comes "in the name of the Lord." Where then are the foul tongues of those who baptize in the name of Montanus and Priscilla and Maximilla? Truly, for those baptized in this way there is no forgiveness whatsoever, but rather sins are added, and therefore they have fallen into terrible perdition.
Lk. 24:47. beginning from Jerusalem.
The word went out "among all nations, beginning from Jerusalem." For when in Christ all of human nature was united and assumed, it no longer needed to be divided into two groups—Jews and Gentiles—but, beginning from Jerusalem, the word needed to dwell also among the Gentiles, so as to unite the entire human race.
Lk. 24:48. You are witnesses of these things.
That is, the sufferings and the resurrection.
Lk. 24:49. And I will send the promise of My Father upon you; but you, remain in the city of Jerusalem until you are clothed with power from on high.
Then, lest they be inwardly troubled by thoughts (such as, for example), how shall we, simple people, bear witness and be sent to the Gentiles, how shall we stand directly against the people of Jerusalem, who even killed You, Lord — for this reason He says: take courage, for I will soon send upon you "the promise of My Father," of which I spoke through Joel: "I will pour out of My Spirit upon all flesh" and so forth (Joel 2:28). So then, you who are now fearful and faint-hearted, remain in the city of Jerusalem until you are clothed with power not human, but heavenly. He did not say: until you "receive," but: until you "are clothed," showing through this that the spiritual armor would guard them from all sides.
Lk. 24:50. And He led them out of the city as far as Bethany, and lifting up His hands, He blessed them.
He led them out to Bethany; we think that this happened on the very fortieth day (from the resurrection). For what they speak of briefly, that (you should understand) takes place over the course of many days, as Luke himself also says in the Acts (Acts 1:3), that the Lord appeared to the disciples over the course of forty days, for He often appeared to them and often withdrew from them.
The Lord "blessed" the disciples, perhaps in order to impart to them a power that would preserve them until the descent of the Spirit, or perhaps also for our instruction, so that when we depart somewhere, we would entrust those under us to safekeeping through a blessing.
Lk. 24:51. And, while He blessed them, He was parted from them, and carried up into heaven.
And He began "to be carried up into heaven." Elijah ascended "into heaven" (4 Kings 2:11), for it seemed that he was carried up as if into heaven; but the Savior ascended into heaven itself as the forerunner of all, so that with His holy flesh He might appear before the face of God and seat it with the Father (Heb. 9:24): and now our nature in Christ receives worship from every angelic power.
Lk. 24:52. They worshipped Him and returned to Jerusalem with great joy.
Lk. 24:53. And they were continually in the temple, praising and blessing God. Amen.
Look at what courage! They had not yet received the Spirit, yet they live spiritually. Before they locked themselves in a house, but now they live in the midst of the chief priests and care nothing for worldly things, but, having despised everything, they constantly remain in the temple, praising and blessing God. Oh, if only we too, having become imitators of them, would constantly remain in a holy life, praising and blessing God with such a life! For a holy and virtuous life is glory and blessing to God, because to Him belongs all glory forever.
Amen.
Lk. 24:1. In the first day of the week, very early, carrying the prepared spices, they came to the tomb, and together with them certain others;
On the first day of the week the women came to the tomb, carrying with them spices. They came very early, which the evangelist Matthew (Matt. 28:1) calls the evening of the Sabbath. For the deep morning is almost the same as the very late evening.
Lk. 24:2. But they found the stone rolled away from the tomb.
They found the stone rolled away from the tomb, for the Angel had rolled it away, as Matthew says (Matt. 28:2).
Lk. 24:3. And having entered, they did not find the body of the Lord Jesus.
Lk. 24:4. And while they were perplexed about this, behold, two men stood before them in dazzling garments.
When they entered inside, two men appear to them. One, mentioned by Matthew (Matt. 28:2), was sitting on the stone, while these two men stood inside the tomb. These are different visions.
Lk. 24:5. And when they were afraid and bowed down their faces to the earth, they said to them: why do you seek the living among the dead?
Lk. 24:6. He is not here: He is risen; remember how He spoke to you when He was still in Galilee,
Lk. 24:7. Saying that the Son of Man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men, and be crucified, and on the third day rise again.
Men appear in shining garments, on account of the brightness of the resurrection, and remind the women of what the Lord had told them, namely: that it was "necessary," that is, inevitable, for Him "to be delivered into the hands of sinful men," that is, the Romans, pagans and defiled ones, "and on the third day to rise again." Concerning how the resurrection is on the third day, we have spoken sufficiently in the commentary on Matthew (see ch. 28).
Lk. 24:8. And they remembered His words;
Lk. 24:9. And having returned from the tomb, they reported all these things to the eleven and to all the rest.
Lk. 24:10. They were Mary Magdalene, and Joanna, and Mary the mother of James, and the others with them, who told these things to the Apostles.
Lk. 24:11. And their words seemed to them as idle tales, and they did not believe them.
When they returned from the tomb and told the apostles about this, they were regarded as dreamers. So, by nature, the miracle of the resurrection seems incredible to people!
Lk. 24:12. But Peter, rising up, ran to the tomb and, stooping down, saw only the linen cloths lying there, and went away, wondering within himself at what had happened.
However, Peter does not delay, like fire that has taken hold of material, but runs to the tomb and sees only the linen cloths lying there. And from the fact that he reached the tomb, the first benefit is that instead of mocking, he marvels: "and he went away (it says), wondering in himself at what had happened." For how did the linen cloths alone remain, and that when the body had been anointed with myrrh? How much leisure did the thief have, when he left them properly folded, carried out the body, and that when soldiers had been posted? By "Mary, the mother of James," understand the Theotokos, for she was so called as the supposed mother of James, the son of Joseph, who was called the Less; I mean the Brother of God. For there was also James the Greater, one of the Twelve, the son of Zebedee.
Lk. 24:13. On that same day two of them were walking to a village sixty stadia from Jerusalem, called Emmaus;
Some say that one of these two was Luke himself, which is why the evangelist concealed his name.
Lk. 24:14. And they were talking among themselves of all these things which had happened.
They "were talking with each other about all these events" not as believers, but as people perplexed and amazed by the extraordinary occurrences, and not quickly able to come to terms with such a wondrous phenomenon.
Lk. 24:15. And while they conversed and reasoned among themselves, Jesus Himself, having drawn near, went with them.
Lk. 24:16. But their eyes were held, so that they did not recognize Him.
Jesus, having approached, went with them. For, having a body already spiritual and most Divine, He found no hindrance in distance of places to being with those with whom He wished. Therefore also the bodily features with which the Savior then appeared did not allow them to recognize Him. For He appeared to them, as Mark says (Mk. 16:12), "in another form" and with different features. He disposed of His body no longer according to the laws of nature, but supernaturally and spiritually. For this reason their eyes were held back so that they did not recognize Him. But why did He appear in another form, and why were their eyes held back? So that they might disclose all their perplexities, reveal their wound, and then receive the remedy; so that after a long interval He might appear to them more pleasant; so that He might teach them from Moses and the prophets, and only then be recognized; so that they might better believe that His body was no longer such as could be seen by all in general, but that although the very same body that had suffered had risen, it is visible only to those to whom He grants it; so that they might gain from this that great benefit of no longer wavering in their perplexities (concerning, for example) why He no longer goes about among the people, but would reflect within themselves that His manner of life after the resurrection differs greatly from the ordinary — not human, but most Divine — so that it serves as a figure of the future resurrection as well, in which we shall live as Angels and sons of God. So then, this is why their eyes were held back and they did not recognize Him. For He became visible to those for whom He wished.
Lk. 24:17. He said to them: What is this that you are discussing with one another as you walk, and why are you sad?
Lk. 24:18. One of them, named Cleopas, answered and said to Him: Are You the only one among those who have come to Jerusalem who does not know the things that have happened in it in these days?
Cleopas makes a reproach to the Lord, who appears in the form of a fellow traveler, and says: "Are you the only one of those who have come," that is, are you the only one of the inhabitants of Jerusalem who does not know what has happened? Others, however, understood the words "of those who have come" ("are you a stranger") in this way: are you the only stranger who lives outside Jerusalem, and are so indifferent to what is happening in it that you do not know about this?
Lk. 24:19. And He said to them: about what? They said to Him: about what happened with Jesus of Nazareth, Who was a prophet, mighty in deed and word before God and all the people;
See then what a very limited understanding they still had of the Lord. They called Him a man, "a prophet," as one might call Elijah, Joshua the son of Nun, or Moses; "mighty in deed and word": first deed, then word. For no word of a teacher is firm if the teacher does not first show himself to be a doer of it. So be mighty in deed first, then strive to have the word as well. Then God too will assist you. For first comes action, and then contemplation and illumination. If you do not clean the mirror with labor and sweat, you will not see the desired beauty. For "blessed are the pure in heart," and this is achieved through deeds, "for they shall see God" (Matt. 5:8), and this is the end of contemplation. One must be mighty in deed and word "before God," and then before "all the people." For one must please God first, and then strive to be, as far as possible, blameless before people as well. One must neither prefer people-pleasing to pleasing God, nor live as a stumbling block to many, but care for both, as the wise man also says: have regard for good things before God and men. And Paul says the same (2 Cor. 8:21).
Lk. 24:20. How our chief priests and rulers delivered Him up to be condemned to death and crucified Him.
Lk. 24:21. But we had hoped that He is the One Who should redeem Israel;
As if deceived in their hopes, they speak thus: we hoped that He would save others too, but He did not even save Himself. So faint-hearted and slow to believe were they! Their words resemble what those standing at the cross also said: "He saved others; He cannot save Himself" (Mk. 15:31). Therefore the Lord also calls them foolish and slow to believe. What do the words "to redeem Israel" mean? We have said before that the Jewish people, and especially the less discerning among them, expected in Christ a savior and deliverer from the evils oppressing them and from the yoke of Roman slavery, and they hoped that He would reign on earth. Therefore they also say: we hoped that He would deliver Israel from the Gentiles — the Romans — but He Himself did not even escape the unjust sentence passed upon Him.
Lk. 24:21. But with all that, it is now already the third day since this happened.
Lk. 24:22. But certain women also of our company astonished us: they were early at the tomb
Lk. 24:23. And they did not find His body, and when they came, they reported that they had also seen a vision of Angels, who say that He is alive.
"Already the third day now,... and certain women from among us astonished us" and so forth. They say this in a state of perplexity. It seems to me that these two men were in great vacillation of thought, neither too disbelieving nor too believing. For the words "we had hoped that He would redeem Israel" reveal unbelief; while the words "already the third day now" show that the people were already close to recalling the words of the Lord: "on the third day I will rise again" (Matt. 16:21, Mark 8:31, Luke 9:22, Luke 24:7). And the words "astonished us" reveal something similar, that is, the wavering of their unbelief. Taken together, however, these words truly belong to people who are in great doubt, since these people were brought into a state of perplexity and difficulty by the extraordinariness of the resurrection.
Lk. 24:24. And some of those who were with us went to the tomb and found it just as the women had said, but Him they did not see.
"And some of our people went," they say, that is, either Peter alone, or Peter and John. And from this it is evident that what some relate at length, others mention briefly and in passing, since John narrates more extensively about Peter and John going to the tomb (John 20:2–8), while this one (Luke), having mentioned a few, omitted their names.
Lk. 24:25. Then He said to them: O foolish ones and slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken!
Since they were thinking in human terms and suffered from great doubt, the Lord calls them "foolish and slow" to believe all that "the prophets had foretold." For it is possible to believe in part and to believe wholly. For example, whoever hopes that Christ will come for the salvation of the people, yet not for the salvation of souls, but for the restoration and deliverance of the Jewish nation, that person does not believe as much as one ought to believe. Likewise, whoever believes the words of David, "They pierced my hands and my feet" (Ps. 21:17), and the other words concerning the cross and the circumstances on the cross, as a prophecy spoken in the person of the Lord, and accepts the passages of Scripture about the suffering, but does not take into consideration the passages about the resurrection, such as, for example, these: "You will not leave my soul in Hades, nor will You allow Your Holy One to see corruption" (Ps. 15:10), "among the dead" (Ps. 87:6), "He releases the prisoners from their bonds" (Ps. 67:7), and similar ones — that person has a faith that is not perfect, but believes only in part.
Lk. 24:26. Not so? Was it not necessary for the Christ to suffer and to enter into His glory?
But one must believe the prophets in all things, both regarding the state of humiliation and regarding the state of glory. For Christ had to suffer — this is the humiliation. But He also had to enter into His glory — this is the glorification. Yet you are so foolish that, hearing Isaiah speak of both states, namely: "He was led as a sheep to the slaughter" and "the Lord desires to show Him light" (Isa. 53:7, 11), you accept the first but do not consider the second: you believe that He "was wounded," but that "the Lord desires to cleanse Him of His wound" (Isa. 53:5, 10), you do not even take to mind.
Lk. 24:27. Starting from Moses and from all the prophets, He explained to them the things said about Him in all the Scriptures.
But since, He says, you are "foolish," that is, "slow" (for if they were truly foolish, He would not have said anything to them at all), since you are slow, I will open your mind and make it quick in understanding. Therefore He explained to them from Moses and from all the prophets the things said concerning Him. The mystery of Abraham's sacrifice, when he, leaving Isaac alive, offered a ram as a burnt offering, served as a prefiguration concerning the Lord, as the Lord Himself says that "Abraham saw" His "day and rejoiced" (John 8:56). And this passage: "your life shall hang before you" (Deut. 28:66) points at one and the same time both to the crucifixion by the word "hang" and to the resurrection by the word "life." Scattered throughout the rest of the prophecies are sayings about the cross and the resurrection, especially among the most important prophets. Such passages can be gathered from them as well. Note, if you will, also this: that entrance into glory depends on the endurance of sufferings.
Lk. 24:28. And they drew near to the village where they were going; and He made as though He would go further.
The Lord "makes as if He would go further," without doubt, according to His humanity.
Lk. 24:29. But they constrained Him, saying: Stay with us, for the day is already declining toward evening. And He went in and stayed with them.
Lk. 24:30. And when He reclined at table with them, He took bread, blessed it, broke it, and gave it to them.
Lk. 24:31. Then their eyes were opened, and they recognized Him.
When He wills it, then their eyes are opened, and they recognize Him. This also signifies something else, namely: that those who partake of the blessed bread have their eyes opened to behold Him. For the flesh of the Lord possesses great and ineffable power.
Lk. 24:31. But He became invisible to them.
He becomes invisible to them, because He no longer had such a body as to remain with them bodily for a long time, and also in order that by such an action He might strengthen their love even more.
Lk. 24:32. And they said to one another: Did not our heart burn within us while He spoke to us on the road and while He explained the Scriptures to us?
Lk. 24:33. And they rose up the same hour, and returned to Jerusalem, and found the eleven Apostles gathered together, and those who were with them,
Lk. 24:34. Who said: the Lord truly rose and appeared to Simon.
Lk. 24:35. And they told of what had happened on the way, and how He was recognized by them in the breaking of bread.
They were so overjoyed that "in the same hour, they rose and returned to Jerusalem," though they did not return in the same hour, for they rose in that very hour, but returned after as much time as they needed to cover the distance of sixty stadia. During these hours, of course, the Lord also appeared to Simon, while these two men were making their way back to Jerusalem.
Their "heart" was "burning" either from the fire of the Lord's words, when through the Lord's explanation they were inwardly inflamed and agreed with His words as true, or, when He explained the Scriptures to them, their heart was beating and inwardly saying: This very One Who is explaining to us is the Lord.
Lk. 24:36. While they were speaking about these things, Jesus Himself stood in their midst and said to them: Peace to you.
Lk. 24:37. But they were terrified and frightened, and supposed that they were seeing a spirit.
The Lord, arranging all things for our salvation, stands in the midst of the disciples, with the intention of assuring them of the resurrection. And first, by the customary greeting of peace He calms their agitation, and then He shows that He Himself is their Teacher, who loves this greeting and who armed them with this greeting when He sent them out to preach (Matt. 10:12; Luke 10:5). But since this word did not quiet the agitation of their souls, He shows them in another way that He is the Son of God, who knows the hearts.
Lk. 24:38. But He said to them: Why are you troubled, and why do such thoughts enter into your hearts?
And it is acknowledged by all that to know hearts belongs to God alone (Ps. 139). He adds yet another proof as well – the touching of the hands and feet.
Lk. 24:39. Behold My hands and My feet, that it is I Myself; handle Me and see, for a spirit does not have flesh and bones as you see I have.
Lk. 24:40. And having said this, He showed them His hands and feet.
"You," He says, "consider Me a spirit or an apparition, such as commonly appear from the dead, especially at tombs. But know that a spirit has neither flesh nor bones, whereas I have both flesh and bones, albeit most divine and spiritual. For the Lord's body, though it was not a spirit, was 'spiritual,' that is, free from all material coarseness and governed by the spirit. The body that we now have is 'natural,' that is, it is governed by the soul and animated by natural and psychic properties and powers. But the body as it will be after the resurrection, Paul calls spiritual (1 Cor. 15:44), that is, it is animated and governed by the Spirit of God, not by the soul, having been ineffably and spiritually re-created for incorruption and preserved in it. This is how one must think of the Lord's body after the resurrection: namely, as spiritual, subtle, free from all coarseness, needing neither food nor anything else, although the Lord did eat for the sake of assurance. For if He ate, He ate not according to the nature of His body, but by a special dispensation, namely, to show that the very same body that had suffered had risen. But it was in the nature of this body to pass through closed doors and to move effortlessly from place to place."
Lk. 24:41. And while they yet believed not for joy, and wondered, He said unto them, Have ye here any meat?
Lk. 24:42. They gave Him a piece of broiled fish and some honeycomb.
Lk. 24:43. Taking it, He ate before them.
Lk. 24:44. And He said to them: these are the words which I spoke to you while I was still with you, that all things must be fulfilled which were written about Me in the Law of Moses and in the Prophets and the Psalms.
When the disciples still did not believe and were not convinced even by touch, the Lord added yet another proof — the partaking of food, consuming what was eaten by a certain divine power. For everything that is naturally eaten by the mouth passes out through the bowels, but He, as we have said, partakes not according to the law of nature, but by a special dispensation.
The foods He consumed seem to have a certain hidden meaning as well. By eating "a piece of broiled fish," the Lord indicates that by the fire of His Divinity He broiled our nature, which was swimming in the salt sea of this life, dried up all the moisture clinging to it from the deep waters, and especially from the waves, and thus made it divine food, rendering what was formerly unclean into a morsel pleasing to God. This is signified by the honeycomb, that is, the present sweetness of our nature, which was formerly rejected. Or, I also think that "broiled fish" signifies the active life, which by means of the coals of the desert and of silence destroys in us the excess of moisture and fatness, while "honeycomb" signifies knowledge or contemplation, since the words of God are sweet (Ps. 19:10). However, there is the honey of drones — pagan wisdom, and there is the honey of bees — divine wisdom, and the bee is Christ. Although it is small in size, for the word is brief and weak in power, since Paul preaches not with wisdom of words, lest the cross be made void (1 Cor. 1:17), nevertheless it is beloved by kings and common people alike, who use its labors for the health of their souls.
Lk. 24:45. Then He opened their mind to understand the Scriptures.
When the Lord had calmed and quieted the hearts of the disciples, having assured them of the reality of the resurrection of His body through His words, by allowing them to touch Him, and by partaking of food, then He opened their mind to understand the Scriptures. For if their soul had not been calmed, how would they have understood, being in a state of disorder, in a state of confusion? For "Be still," it is said, "and know" (Ps. 46:10).
Lk. 24:46. And He said to them: thus it is written, and thus it was necessary for the Christ to suffer,
After this He teaches them that "thus it was necessary for Christ to suffer." How then is it "thus"? On the wood of the Cross. Since destruction entered through a tree, corruption also had to be destroyed through a tree, and the delight of the tree had to be abolished by the Lord, who unconquerably endured the sufferings on the tree.
Lk. 24:46. and to rise from the dead on the third day,
Lk. 24:47. And that repentance and forgiveness of sins should be preached in His name among all nations,
Here the Lord speaks of baptism. For in it repentance is accomplished through confession and the putting away of former wickedness and impiety, and forgiveness of sins follows.
How should we understand that baptism is performed in the name of Christ alone, when elsewhere we are taught to perform it in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit? (Matt. 28:19). First, we shall say that when we say baptism is performed in the name of Christ, we do not mean that it must be performed in the name of Christ alone, but that one must perform baptism that is neither Jewish nor that of John, which served only for repentance, but the baptism of Christ, with which Christ was baptized, that is, a spiritual baptism that grants communion of the Holy Spirit and the forgiveness of sins, which He Himself demonstrated when He was baptized for our sake in the Jordan and manifested the Holy Spirit in the form of a dove.
Then, understand baptism in the name of Christ as follows: baptism into the death of Christ. For just as He died and on the third day rose again, so we too are figuratively buried in water, then come out of it incorruptible in soul and receive a pledge to be incorruptible in body itself.
And in another way: the name Christ (the Anointed One) in itself presents both the Father who anointed, and the anointing of the Spirit, and the Son who was anointed.
Forgiveness of sins comes "in the name of the Lord." Where then are the foul tongues of those who baptize in the name of Montanus and Priscilla and Maximilla? Truly, for those baptized in this way there is no forgiveness whatsoever, but rather sins are added, and therefore they have fallen into terrible perdition.
Lk. 24:47. beginning from Jerusalem.
The word went out "among all nations, beginning from Jerusalem." For when in Christ all of human nature was united and assumed, it no longer needed to be divided into two groups—Jews and Gentiles—but, beginning from Jerusalem, the word needed to dwell also among the Gentiles, so as to unite the entire human race.
Lk. 24:48. You are witnesses of these things.
That is, the sufferings and the resurrection.
Lk. 24:49. And I will send the promise of My Father upon you; but you, remain in the city of Jerusalem until you are clothed with power from on high.
Then, lest they be inwardly troubled by thoughts (such as, for example), how shall we, simple people, bear witness and be sent to the Gentiles, how shall we stand directly against the people of Jerusalem, who even killed You, Lord — for this reason He says: take courage, for I will soon send upon you "the promise of My Father," of which I spoke through Joel: "I will pour out of My Spirit upon all flesh" and so forth (Joel 2:28). So then, you who are now fearful and faint-hearted, remain in the city of Jerusalem until you are clothed with power not human, but heavenly. He did not say: until you "receive," but: until you "are clothed," showing through this that the spiritual armor would guard them from all sides.
Lk. 24:50. And He led them out of the city as far as Bethany, and lifting up His hands, He blessed them.
He led them out to Bethany; we think that this happened on the very fortieth day (from the resurrection). For what they speak of briefly, that (you should understand) takes place over the course of many days, as Luke himself also says in the Acts (Acts 1:3), that the Lord appeared to the disciples over the course of forty days, for He often appeared to them and often withdrew from them.
The Lord "blessed" the disciples, perhaps in order to impart to them a power that would preserve them until the descent of the Spirit, or perhaps also for our instruction, so that when we depart somewhere, we would entrust those under us to safekeeping through a blessing.
Lk. 24:51. And, while He blessed them, He was parted from them, and carried up into heaven.
And He began "to be carried up into heaven." Elijah ascended "into heaven" (4 Kings 2:11), for it seemed that he was carried up as if into heaven; but the Savior ascended into heaven itself as the forerunner of all, so that with His holy flesh He might appear before the face of God and seat it with the Father (Heb. 9:24): and now our nature in Christ receives worship from every angelic power.
Lk. 24:52. They worshipped Him and returned to Jerusalem with great joy.
Lk. 24:53. And they were continually in the temple, praising and blessing God. Amen.
Look at what courage! They had not yet received the Spirit, yet they live spiritually. Before they locked themselves in a house, but now they live in the midst of the chief priests and care nothing for worldly things, but, having despised everything, they constantly remain in the temple, praising and blessing God. Oh, if only we too, having become imitators of them, would constantly remain in a holy life, praising and blessing God with such a life! For a holy and virtuous life is glory and blessing to God, because to Him belongs all glory forever.
Amen.