Беседа на слова: „И егда приближишася во Иерусалим, и приидоша в Вифсфагию к горе Елеонстей, тогда Иисус посла два ученика глаголя: идита в весь, яже прямо вама: и абие обряшета осля привязано, и жребя с ним: отрешивша приведита Ми“... (Матф. 21:1–2). Св. Иоанна Златоустого, архиепископа Константино

And when he drew near to Jerusalem, and came to Bethsphagia to the Mount of Olives, then Jesus sent two disciples, saying to them: Go all the way to you, and you will find a donkey tied, and a lot with him: having abandoned you, he will bring Me. And if anyone says anything to you, speak as the Lord demands it: Abiy, I will send it. All this happened, that what was spoken by the prophet Zechariah might be fulfilled, saying: Shout, O daughter of Zion: Behold, thy King cometh to thee, meek, and always upon the donkey, and upon the lot of the son of the bearer (Matt. 21:1-5). Christ had often gone to Jerusalem before, but he never went with such glory. Why is this so? Because then it was still the beginning of His construction, and He Himself was not so well known; Moreover, the time of suffering was not yet near. Therefore, He lived, no different from others, and for the most part hid Himself; otherwise His appearance would not have been so surprising, but would only have aroused greater anger in the Jews. When He showed many experiments of His power, and the cross was already at the door, then He glorifies Himself more decisively and with greater solemnity does everything that could ignite them. Of course, this could have been done from the very beginning, but it would have been unnecessary and useless. Have you thought about how many miracles there are here, and how many prophecies have been fulfilled? Christ said: you will find a donkey: and then he predicted that no one will interfere, but if they hear, they will remain silent. This served as a considerable accusation against the Jews: if Christ forces those unfamiliar to Him and those who have not seen Him to give up their property without any contradiction, and, moreover, (not even personally, but) through the disciples: then how guilty are the Jews who, having witnessed so many miracles performed by Him, did not believe Him! And don’t consider this event unimportant. In fact, what made these poor people, without any contradiction, give up their property? And what am I saying - without contradiction? without even asking, or having asked, shut up and give in? If they did not say anything when they were taking away their cattle, or, if they did say something, but hearing that the Lord demanded him, they yielded without any contradiction, then both are equally surprising, especially since they did not see Him Himself, but only the disciples. Through this, the Lord makes it clear that He could in every possible way prevent the gestural Jews when they came to seize Him and make them speechless; but I just didn’t want it. On the other hand, He teaches the disciples to sacrifice whatever He requires; if He commanded that the very soul be given, and they must sacrifice it without any contradiction. Indeed, if strangers to Him obeyed His demand, then how much more should they sacrifice everything to Him. Further: Christ fulfilled here another twofold prophecy - the prophecy of deeds, and the prophecy of words: the prophecy of deeds, when he sat on a donkey; prophecy of words - Zechariah the prophet, who said that the King would sit on a donkey. Mounting on a donkey, He fulfilled this last prophecy and, at the same time transforming the future by His actions, gave another prophecy. How? He foretold the calling of the unclean pagans - that He would rest in them, that they would come to Him and follow Him. Thus, prophecy followed prophecy. However, Christ did not deign to sit on a donkey not only for this reason, but also in order to give us the rule of life. He not only fulfilled prophecies and instilled the teaching of truth, but through this he also corrected our lives, everywhere making it a rule for us to satisfy only extreme needs. He had this kind of correction of our lives in mind everywhere. So, when the Lord deigned to be born on earth, he did not look for a richly decorated house, nor a rich and famous mother, but chose a poor one, who was betrothed to a woodmaker; born in a den and placed in a manger; also choosing disciples, he chose the rich and famous, but also among the poor the poorest, and not at all famous. Likewise, when He offered a meal, He sometimes offered barley bread; sometimes, just before the meal itself, he commanded the disciples to buy at the market; instead of a bed he used grass; He wore poor attire, no different even from the attire of the simplest people (and he didn’t even have a home); If He needed to move from one place to another, he walked on foot, and in such a way that sometimes he even got tired. When the Savior sat down, he did not look for a soft head, but sat on the bare ground (sometimes on a mountain, sometimes at a source, and even alone), he also set a measure for sadness itself: when it was necessary to cry, he cried quietly, everywhere, setting rules and boundaries to which it was permissible to reach, but beyond which one should not go. So now, if it happened that someone, due to weakness, had a need for an animal, then Christ made a restriction in this case too, showing that one should not ride on horses or mules, but should be content with a donkey, and never extend beyond what is necessary. But let's see how the prophecies come true - both in words and in deeds. What kind of prophecy is this? Behold, your King comes to me meekly, riding on a donkey and a young lot. He does not ride on a chariot, as other kings usually do - he does not demand tribute, does not instill fear with himself, does not have spearmen, but even here he shows the greatest meekness. Ask a Jew: was there any king who rode into Jerusalem on a donkey? He cannot point you to anyone except Christ alone. But He, as stated above, did this as a sign of the future. Here, through the colt, the Church and the new people are designated, which were once unclean, but after Jesus sat on it, they became clean. Notice how precise the whole foreshadowing is. The disciples untie the yoke: both the Jews and we are called into the new grace-filled Church through the apostles, and are also brought into it through the apostles. Our blessed and glorious fate aroused jealousy among the Jews: the donkey walks behind the colt. And indeed, after Christ sits on the Gentiles, then the Jews, out of a sense of competition, will come to Him, which Paul clearly shows when he says: for the blindness of part of Israel will be until the fulfillment of tongues comes: and thus all Israel will be saved (Rom. 11:25, 26). So, from what has been said, it is clear that this was a prophecy. Otherwise, there would have been no need to tell the Prophet in such detail about the age of the donkey. And not only is this clear from what has been said, but also that the apostles will bring them without difficulty. And indeed, just as here no one hindered the apostles when they led the animals, so no one could hinder them in calling the pagans when they caught them. Further: Christ sits not on a naked colt, but on the one covered with the clothes of the apostles: this is because the apostles, having taken the colt, give away everything that is theirs, just as Paul says: I will depend on sweetness and will be dependent on your souls (2 Cor. 12:15). But pay attention also to the obedience of the donkey, to how he, not at all trained and not yet knowing the bridle, did not rush quickly, but walked quietly and calmly: and this served as an omen of the future, expressing the obedience of the pagans and their quick change to a comfortable life. All this was accomplished with the word: having renounced, Mi will bring: and the disorderly came into order, and the unclean became clean. But look at the baseness of the Jews! Before, when Christ did so many miracles, they were never so surprised at Him; Now, seeing the people flocking, they are surprised. The whole city was shaken, they say, saying: Who is this? The people said: This is Jesus the prophet, who is from Nazareth of Galilee (Matthew 21:10–11). And here, when, apparently, they were saying something lofty, their thought was earthly, the most base, reptile. However, Christ did this not out of vanity, but in order, as was said, to fulfill the prophecy, and to teach edifying instructions, and at the same time to comfort the disciples who were lamenting about His death, letting them know that He endures all this voluntarily. Marvel at the accuracy with which everything was predicted by the prophets: some by David, and others by Zechariah. Let us do the same, let us sing His praises and give clothing to those who wear Him. Otherwise, what will we deserve? If then, at Christ’s entry into Jerusalem, some covered the donkey on which He was sitting with their clothes, and others spread clothes under her feet: then are we, who are commanded not only to take off our clothes, but also to exhaust everything for the sake of others, not to show any generosity, seeing Him naked? There the people in front and behind accompanied Him: why do we send Him away, even drive Him away with insult, when He Himself comes to us? How worthy of punishment this is, what vengeance! A needy Master comes to you, but you don’t even want to listen to His requests, but you still condemn and revile Him, hearing such words from Him! But if you are so thrifty, unyielding and stingy for one piece of bread and a few money, then what would happen to you if they demanded everything from you? You say: “What will be left as an inheritance for our children?” The main capital will remain, and income will increase, because treasure will be laid up for them in heaven. Even if we remained here forever, then even then we should not regret this wonderful waste; but if after a while we have to move from here, and, moreover, without anything - naked: then what excuse can we have for not giving our income to the hungry and oppressed? Give at least from your profits and do not hide anything from them: make the poor participants in them, and be a good steward of what is given to you from God. You will say: “I pay taxes.” So, do you neglect the poor because no one urgently demands this from you? Who will one day save you from unbearable torment? - nobody. If you are only concerned about paying the tax because those who do not pay it are severely punished here, then know that even more severe punishments are being prepared there: not bonds, not prison, but eternal fire. So, first of all, let's pay these taxes. This is very easy to do, and the reward for it is greater, and the benefits are greater; and if we remain insensitive to this, then an incomparably more painful punishment awaits us, an eternal punishment. If you say that you need to give for the maintenance of soldiers, then here too there is an army - beggars, and here is the battle that they are fighting for you. Having accepted alms, they propitiate God with their prayers, and by propitiating God, they destroy the slander of demons - and do not allow the evil spirit to strengthen and make constant attacks on you, but weaken its power. So, seeing these soldiers fighting the devil every day with petitions and prayers for you, demand this wonderful tribute from yourself - their food. The Heavenly King, out of His meekness, did not assign torturers to you, but wants you to voluntarily serve. If you give a little, He will accept; If, due to poverty, you put it off for a while, He does not force the poor. However, let us not despise His long-suffering; Let us treasure for ourselves not anger, but salvation, not death, but life, not punishment and torment, but honor and crowns. Here on earth, once you give something, you can’t take it back; there, on the contrary, you will receive yours with great honor and acquire greater and more spiritual benefits. God Himself gave you a receipt, saying: He who has mercy on the poor, gives back to God (Prov. 19:17), and also gave you a deposit and guarantee, despite the fact that He is God. What kind of collateral? - all the benefits of present life, both sensory and spiritual, as the beginnings of future benefits. The benefits you received are the following: He formed your body, He put a soul in you, honored you alone on earth with your mind, gave you the right to possess everything visible, imparted to you the knowledge of Himself, gave up your Son for you, gave you baptism, in which so many benefits flow alone, offered you a sacred meal, promising you the kingdom and unspeakable blessings. So, having received and still expecting so many benefits, why do you value so much a fragile property? And what excuse will you have? Do you really hope to apologize because you have children? But teach them to acquire such benefits; give this receipt to the children and leave them in debt to God. And know that although you leave this receipt for the children, you yourself, in turn, will receive it. These are spiritual blessings - they are very abundant. Let us not be so wretched, so ruthless and cruel to ourselves; but let us engage in this wonderful purchase in order to receive it ourselves after our departure, and leave it to our children, and be worthy of future blessings, by the grace and love of our Lord Jesus Christ, with whom to the Father and the Holy Spirit be glory, power, honor, now and ever and unto ages of ages. Amen 160. From the 66th conversation of St. Chrysostom on Evang. Matt. See Created. St. Chrysostom, in Russian. transl., vol. VII, published. 1901 St. Petersburg. Country 672–681. You might be interested in: