Беседа 50

John 7:25–27. Then some of the Jerusalemites said, “Isn’t this the one they are trying to kill?” Behold, He speaks openly, and they say nothing to Him: were not the rulers convinced that He is truly the Christ? But we know Him, where He comes from... 1. Jewish disputes regarding Jesus Christ. – 2. Jesus Christ exposes them and proves that they deliberately reject Him, knowing that He is the Messiah. – 3. He predicts his death. - Charity to the poor and punishment to those who do not do it. 1. In divine Scripture nothing is said without a purpose, since everything is spoken by the Holy Spirit. Therefore, we must examine everything carefully. Often, just from one word in it you can reach a whole thought, as, for example, in the passage now proposed. Many of the Jerusalemites said, “Isn’t this the one they are trying to kill?” Behold, He speaks openly, and they say nothing to Him.” Why is it added: “from the Jerusalemites”? By this, the evangelist shows that those who were primarily rewarded with great miracles were the most pitiful - that those who saw the greatest sign of His deity all submitted everything to the judgment of their corrupt superiors. In fact, wasn’t it a great sign that the people who were furious and breathing murder - the people who were watching Him and looking to kill Him, already having Him in their hands, suddenly calmed down? Who could do this? Who could so quickly tame such a great fury? However, even after such signs, look at their madness and fury! “Isn’t this the one they are trying to kill?” Look how they judge themselves! “Whom they seek to kill,” they say, “and they say nothing to Him.” And not only do they not say anything to Him, but even when He speaks with boldness. And speaking with boldness and with all freedom, He should have irritated them even more; but they do nothing to Him. “Were you not convinced that He is truly the Christ”? What do you think? What kind of judgment are you pronouncing about Him? We are said to be the opposite. Therefore they said: “But we know Him where He comes from.” What wickedness! What a contradiction! They do not even follow the verdict of their superiors, but pronounce their own judgment, unjust and worthy of their madness. “We know Him,” they say, “where He comes from. But when Christ comes, no one will know where He comes from” (John 7:27). Meanwhile, your leaders, when asked, specifically said that He should be born in Bethlehem. There were again those who said: “We know that God spoke to Moses; But we do not know where He comes from” (John 9:29). Here are the speeches of drunken people! And again: “Will Christ come from Galilee? Doesn’t the Scripture say that... from Bethlehem” (John 7:41–42)? This is the verdict of the furious people! We know and we don’t know. Christ comes from Bethlehem, and “When Christ comes, no one will know where He comes from.” What is clearer than this contradiction? But they only cared about not believing. What does Christ have to do with this? “And you know Me, and you know where I come from; and I came not of Myself, but He who sent Me is true, whom you do not know” (John 7:28); and again: “If you knew Me, you would also know My Father” (John 14:7). How does He say that they know Him and where He comes from; and then - that they know neither Him nor the Father? By saying this, He does not contradict Himself, no; but on the contrary, he speaks completely in accordance with Himself. Saying: “You do not know,” He means another knowledge, just as it is said: “But the sons of Eli were unworthy people; they did not know the Lord” (1 Samuel 2:12), and in another place: “Israel does not know [Me]” (Isaiah 1:3). In this sense, Paul also says: “They say that they know God, but in works they deny” (Titus 1:16). This means that even the one who knows may not know. So, He says this: if you know Me, you know that I am the Son of God. After all, the words: “where I come from” do not point to the place here, as can be seen from the addition: “and I did not come from Myself, but He who sent Me is true, whom you do not know.” By ignorance, Christ here means ignorance by works, about which Paul also speaks: “They say that they know God, but by works they deny.” It was not a sin of ignorance, but of an evil and vicious will. They know, and yet they want not to know. But what is the connection in all this? How does Christ, in rebuking them, say the same thing as they do? When they said: “But we know Him where He is from,” He added: “And you know Me.” How could they say: “We don’t know” when they themselves say: “We know”? But when they said: “We know where He comes from,” they expressed nothing more than that He is from the earth and the son of the tecton. And Christ, saying: “you know where I come from,” i.e. not from where you suppose, but from where He who sent Me lifted up their thoughts to heaven. The words: “I did not come from Myself” hint that they knew that He was sent from the Father, although they did not admit it. So He exposes them in two ways. And first, in order to shame them, He openly declares before everyone what they said only in secret. Then he reveals what was in their souls, saying as it were: I am not one of the rejected people and not one of those who come without any reason; “But he who sent me is true, whom you do not know.” What does it mean: “He who sent Me is true”? If He is true, then He sent truly. If He is true, then it follows that He who was Sent is true. 2. He proves this in another way, by catching them in his own words. Since they said: “When Christ comes, no one will know where He comes from,” then He draws the conclusion from here that He Himself is Christ. “No one will know,” they said, referring to any specific place. And from here He proves that He is the Christ, because He came from the Father, and He everywhere attributes the knowledge of the Father to Himself alone, saying: “Not that anyone has seen the Father except Him who is” from the Father (John 6:46). The words of Christ irritated them, because, having said: you do not know Him (the Father), and denouncing that they, knowing, pretend to not know, He really pricked and wounded them. “And they sought to seize Him, but no one laid hands on Him, because His hour had not yet come” (John 7:30). Do you see how they are held back by an invisible force and how their anger is curbed? But why didn’t the evangelist say that he held them back by invisible force; but - “because His hour has not yet come”? He wanted to express himself more humanely and humbly, so that Christ would be looked at as a human being. He speaks highly of Him everywhere; and therefore mixes this in here and there. When Christ says: “because I am from Him,” he speaks not as a prophet to whom knowledge is communicated, but as one who contemplates Him (the Father) and is with Him. “I know Him,” he says, “because I am from Him” (John 7:29). You see how He everywhere confirms His words: “I did not come from Myself,” and: “He who sent Me is true,” trying to convince that He should not be considered alien to God. And look what fruit comes from humble words. After this, it is said, many said: “When Christ comes, will He really do more signs than He has done?” (John 7:31). How many signs are there? There were only three signs, namely, the transformation of water into wine, the sign over the paralytic and over the son of a courtier, and the evangelist did not report any more. And from this it is clear that the evangelists, as I have often said, pass a lot in silence and tell us about why the leaders committed evil acts. “And they sought to seize Him” and kill Him. Who was looking? Not the people, who did not harass the authorities and could not be carried away by envy, but the priests. The people, for their part, said: “When Christ comes, will He really do more signs”? However, this was not a sound faith, but a faith that is usually found among ordinary people. By saying: “when he comes,” the people showed that they were not completely convinced that Jesus is the Christ. So, either for this reason the people said those words, or because he spoke in a crowded meeting. Since the leaders tried in every possible way to prove that He was not the Christ, the people said: let us assume that He is not the Christ; but will Christ be better than Him? Simple and rude people - I always say this - are attracted not by teaching or preaching, but by miracles. “The Pharisees heard such talk among the people, and they sent... ministers to arrest Him” (John 7:32). Do you see that the violation of the Sabbath was only an excuse and that this (the sympathy of the people) most of all hurt them? Since in the present case they did not find anything either in His words or in his deeds for which they could accuse, they wanted to seize Him for the sake of the people; but they themselves did not dare, foreseeing the danger, but sent hired servants. What violence and frenzy, or better yet, what madness! They themselves made attempts many times, but could not, and so they entrust this task to servants in order to somehow satisfy their rage. He talked a lot at the font, and they did nothing of the kind; They intended, however, to seize Him, but did not dare. And now they can no longer bear it, since the people were ready to rush to Him. What about Christ? “I will not be with you for a long time” (John 7:33). Having the power to both bow and frighten his listeners, He utters words filled with humility, and says, as it were: Why are you trying to kill Me and persecute Me? Be patient a little, - I will allow you to detain Me even without your efforts. Then, so that no one would think that in the words: “I will not be with you for a long time,” He speaks of a death common to all (and this is what they really thought) - so that, I say, who would not think this, and at the same time the fact that after death He will no longer act, He added: “and where I am, there you cannot come” (John 7:34). If He were to remain in the region of death, then they too could come (there), because we all go there. These words bowed simple people to Him, frightened the daring, and prompted the inquisitive to rush to listen, because there was not much time left and it would not always be possible to use the same teaching. And He did not simply say: I am here, but: “I will be with you,” that is, although you persecute and persecute Me, I will not stop arranging your happiness even for a short time, saying what relates to your salvation and instructing you. “And I will go to Him who sent Me.” This would naturally frighten them and make them uneasy, because (here) He shows that the time will come when they will need Him. “You will seek,” he says, “Me,” not only will you not forget, but “you will seek Me and will not find” (John 7:34). When did the Jews look for Him? Luke says that the wives wept for Him, and probably many others, both then and during the captivity of the city, remembered Christ and His miracles and desired His presence. Yet He said this in order to attract them to Himself. And indeed, both the fact that there was not much time left, and the fact that, after His departure, He would be desired for them and that it would no longer be possible to find Him - all this could dispose them to turn to Him. If His presence were not to be desired by them, then there would be nothing particularly important to them in His words. On the other hand, if it should have become desirable, but it would have been possible to find Him, then He would not have confused them with this. 3. Likewise, if He had remained among them for a long time, then in this case they would have been carefree. But now He disturbs and frightens them from all sides. And with the words: “I will go to Him who sent Me,” He shows that He will not suffer any harm from their evil intent and that His suffering will be voluntary. So, He made two predictions - one, that after a little time He would depart, the other, that they would not come to Him. That He predicted His death was, of course, not a matter of the human mind. Look, here David says: “Tell me, O Lord, my end and the number of my days, what it is, so that I may know what my age is” (Ps. 39:5). And no one can truly know this. From one thing (prediction) the other also receives certainty. And I think that those words were secretly applied to the servants and that Christ addressed his speech to them as well, which is what attracted them to Himself, showing that He knew why they came; He seemed to be saying this: be patient a little, and I will go away. “The Jews said among themselves: Where does He want to go?” (John 7:35). To tell the truth, those who wanted to free themselves from Him and used all means not to see Him should not have sought this out, but should have said: we are glad (that You are leaving); when will this happen? However, the words (of Christ) touched them somewhat and they began to ask each other, making unreasonable assumptions: “Where does he want to go? Doesn’t He want to go to the Greek Diaspora?” . What does it mean: “to the Hellenic dispersion”? This is what the Jews called the pagans because they were scattered everywhere and freely mixed with one another. The Jews themselves were subsequently subjected to the same reproach, because they too were scattered. But in ancient times the entire Jewish people were gathered in one place, and a Jew could not be found anywhere except Palestine. That is why they called the pagans dispersion, reviling them and boasting about themselves. What does it mean: “and where I am, you cannot come there”? At that time, the Jews were already mixed with the pagans and were in all countries of the world; therefore, if Christ were pointing here to the pagans, he would not have said: “you cannot come there.” And those who said: “Doesn’t He want to go into the Greek dispersion,” did not say: and destroy (the Hellenes), but: “teach.” Thus, they had already abandoned their anger and believed His words; If they didn’t believe it, they wouldn’t ask each other: “What do these words mean?” But this was said to the Jews; but I am afraid that those words will not apply to us either, i.e., that where He is, we cannot come there, because of our life full of sins. Christ says about His disciples: “I want them to be with Me where I am” (John 17:24); about us, I am afraid that the opposite will not be said: “where I am, you cannot come there.” In fact, how can we get there when we act contrary to the commandments? After all, in this life, if any of the warriors begins to act inconsistently with the dignity of the king, he will not have the opportunity to see the king, but on the contrary, he will lose his power and will be subject to the greatest punishment. Likewise, if we kidnap and covet, if we begin to show injustice and insult and do not give alms, then we will not only lose the opportunity to come there, but we will also suffer the same thing that happened to the virgins. But they could not enter where the Bridegroom was, but they withdrew because their lamps had gone out, i.e. grace left them. Indeed, this fire, which we have received by the grace of the Spirit, if we want, we can strengthen; if we don’t want to, we’ll immediately extinguish it. And when it fades away, there will be nothing left in our souls but darkness. Just as when a lamp is lit a great light appears, so when it is extinguished there is nothing left but darkness. Therefore it is said: “Do not quench the Spirit” (1 Sol. 5:19). It goes out when it has no oil, when it is subjected to any strong pressure from the wind, when it is suppressed and embarrassed (this is precisely why the fire goes out); suppressed by everyday worries and extinguished by evil desires. But, at the same time, nothing quenches the fire of the Spirit more than inhumanity, cruelty and predation. If we, not having oil, pour in more cold water (and this is extortion, cooling the souls of the oppressed with despondency), then how can it catch fire? And so we will leave here, carrying with us ash and ashes, surrounded by great smoke, which will expose us that we have extinguished our lamps. Where there is smoke, the fire must be allowed to go out. But God forbid anyone to hear this voice: “I don’t know you” (Matthew 25:12). And when can we hear it, if not when, seeing the poor, we remain in the same mood as if we had not seen? If we do not want to know Christ when He is hungry, then He will not recognize us when we need His mercy. And rightly so: whoever despises the unfortunate and does not give his own should not hope to receive anything from what is not his. Therefore, I beg you, let us strive and take care in every possible way so that our oil does not become scarce, so that our lamps are decorated, and we can enter the bridal chamber together with the Bridegroom, which may we all be worthy of, by the grace and love of our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom and with whom to the Father, with the Holy Spirit, be glory now and ever, and to the ages of ages. Amen. The paragraphs in the text were arranged by us – Editorial staff of “ABC of Faith” You might be interested in: