Беседа 46

Acts 21:18–19. The next day Paul came with us to James; All the elders also came. Having greeted them, Paul told in detail what God had done among the Gentiles through his ministry. The seductions of the Magi served to further glorify the apostolic miracles. - Jewish sects. - The case of the announcement of the young woman. 1. This (James) was the brother of the Lord and the bishop of Jerusalem, a great and wondrous man. Paul comes to him, just as before he was sent to him; and how, listen. “The next day,” says (the writer), “Paul came with us to Jacob.” Look how devoid of pride he is. “All the elders also came. Having greeted them, Paul told in detail what God had done among the pagans through his ministry.” Again he tells them what happened among the pagans, not out of vanity - let it not happen! - but to show God’s love for mankind and fill them with great joy. “Look, they listened and glorified God”; They did not extol Paul and marvel at him, but glorified God, because when he told them he attributed everything (to God). “When they heard it, they glorified God and said to him: You see, brother, how many thousands of Jews have believed, and all of them are zealots of the law. And they have heard about you, that you teach all the Jews who live among the Gentiles to depart from Moses, saying that they should not circumcise their children or walk according to the customs” (Acts 21:20-21). Look how modestly they speak too. Not (James) speaks as a bishop, with authority; but they make (Paul) himself a participant in the meeting, and immediately, from the very beginning, they seem to apologize by saying that they would not like (to see him accused). Do you see the necessity of this matter? “You see, brother,” they say, “how many thousands of Jews have believed”? They do not say: how many thousands we converted, but: “those who believed.” “And all of them,” they say, “are zealots of the law.” Two reasons: the multitude (of the Jews who believed) and the way they thought. If there were few of them, then even then they should not be neglected; if there are many of them, although not all of them adhered to the law, then this is an important matter. Next is the third reason. “And they have heard a lot about you,” they say, “that you teach all the Jews who live among the pagans to deviate from Moses, saying that they should not circumcise their children and should not act according to customs.” They did not say: they heard, but: “they heard enough,” i.e. convinced and believed “that you teach all the Jews who live among the pagans to depart from Moses, saying that they should not circumcise their children and should not act according to the customs.” Having said this, they continue: “So what? The people will surely gather; for they will hear that you have come. Do therefore what we tell you: we have four men who have a vow” (Acts 21:22-23). They say this as if they were advising, not as giving orders. “We have four people who have a vow. Having taken them, be cleansed with them, and bear the cost of the sacrifice for them, so that they may shave your head, and everyone will know that what they have heard about you is unjust, but that you yourself continue to keep the law” (Acts 21:24). They advise him to justify himself not with words, but with deeds: “so that they shave your head,” they say, “and everyone will know that what they heard about you is unfair, but that you yourself continue to keep the law.” They did not say: you teach, but: “what they heard about you is unjust,” again expressing that they are convinced of this; “that you yourself continue”, i.e. that in addition you yourself keep (the law). It was not only necessary to know whether he taught others, but also whether he himself complied. What, you say, if the pagans find out about this, won’t they be offended? How (they may be tempted) when we - the Jewish teachers - sent a message to them? “But we wrote about the Gentiles who believed, decreeing that they should not observe any such thing, but only keep themselves from things sacrificed to idols, from blood, from things strangled, and from fornication” (Acts 21:25). This is enough to refute it. Their words mean the following: just as we commanded them this, although we preach to the Jews, so you, although you preach to the pagans, act here in accordance with us. Paul, look, did not say: I can present Timothy, whom I circumcised, I can convince with a word; but he listened to them and did everything - because it was necessary. It wouldn’t be the same if he began to justify himself, or did it so that no one knew about it. The fact that he assumed the costs could also help eliminate suspicion. “Then Paul, having taken those men and purified himself with them, entered the church the next day and declared the end of the days of purification, when an offering was to be made for each of them” (Acts 21:26). "Declaring" ; so he himself made it known. “When the seven days were ended” (Acts 21:27). 2. Look how much time he devotes to this! “Then the Asian Jews, seeing him in the church, outraged all the people and laid hands on him, shouting: Men of Israel, help! this man teaches everyone everywhere against the people and the law and this place; Moreover, he brought Greeks into the church and desecrated this holy place” (Acts 21:27-28). Notice how they are always prone to rebellion: they shout without shame in the midst of (the church)! “For before this they had seen Trophimus the Ephesian with him in the city, and thought that Paul had brought him into the church. The whole city began to move, and there was a crowd of people; and seizing Paul, they dragged him out of the church, and immediately the doors were locked” (Acts 21:29-30). “Men,” they say, “Israeli, help! this man teaches everyone everywhere against the people and the law and this place.” What especially confused them, namely the church and the law, is what I point out. Meanwhile, Paul, enduring all this, did not reproach the apostles that they were the culprits of what happened to him: he was so generous! “They grabbed Paul and dragged him out of the church,” says (the writer), “and the doors were immediately locked.” They intended to kill him, and therefore they took him out so that they could do this with greater freedom. “When they wanted to kill him, news reached the commander of the regiment that all of Jerusalem was indignant. He immediately took the soldiers and centurions and rushed at them; When they saw the captain and the soldiers, they stopped beating Paul. Then the captain approached, took him and ordered him to be bound with two chains, and asked who he was and what he had done” (Acts 21:31-33). Why did he, intending to interrogate Paul, order him to be tied with two chains? In order to tame the rage of the people. “Among the people, some shouted one thing, and others another. He, unable to find out anything true due to confusion, ordered him to be led to the fortress. When he was on the stairs, the soldiers had to carry him due to embarrassment from the people, for many people followed and shouted: death to him! 29 (Acts 21:34–36). What does it mean: “death to him (take him)”? It was the custom of the Jews to say this against those whom they accused; so they said about Christ: “death to him,” i.e. destroy Him from among the living. But others think that the expression: take him means the same as we have according to Roman custom: put him under arrest. “When Paul entered the fortress, he said to the captain of the thousand, “Can I tell you something?” (Acts 21:37) When they carried him up the steps, he asks permission to say something to the captain, and look how meekly: “Is it possible,” he says, “to tell you something?” “And he said: do you know Greek? So, aren’t you the Egyptian who, just before these days, caused a disturbance and led four thousand robbers into the desert?” ( Acts 21:37–38 )? This Egyptian was an innovator and a rebel. Paul justifies himself and with his answer removes this suspicion. But let's turn to the above. “We have,” say (the presbyters), “four people who have a vow. Taking them, cleanse yourself with them." Paul does not resist this, but obeys. From this it is clear that it was not necessarily necessary to do this (that’s why they convince him), but that it was a matter of forethought and leniency. This was not an obstacle to preaching, because they gave the commandment (concerning the pagans). Therefore, Paul himself, having arranged such a thing, subsequently reproaches Peter, and does this not without reason, since what he did here, Peter there, hiding and holding his own opinion (Gal. 2:11-14). They did not say that you should not teach (the Jews) like the pagans, or that you need not preach to them, but that something more must be done so that they can make sure that you keep the law. This is a matter of indulgence, do not be afraid. And look, they did not convince him before explaining in advance that (this was required) by prudence and benefit. In Jerusalem, they say, it is permissible to do this. Do this here, so that you can do it outside (Jerusalem). “Then Paul,” says (the writer), “took those men the next day”; does not hesitate, but, showing his obedience in action, immediately takes those with whom he intended to perform the cleansing: so ardently did he share this foresight! But how, they will say, did the Asian Jews see him in the church? They were allowed to be there on some days. Look how all this happened according to God's will. When (some) Jews are convinced, then (others) attack; otherwise they would have attacked him. “Help,” they say, “men of Israel”; as if they had someone in their hands who was difficult to catch and hold, they shouted: “Help! this man teaches everyone everywhere" ; not only here, they say, but “everywhere.” The accusation is strengthened by related circumstances: “moreover,” they say, “he brought Greeks into the church and desecrated the holy place.” Under Christ they also came there to worship (John 12:20); but it says here that they did not come to worship. “And they grabbed Paul,” says (the writer), “and they dragged him out.” See how they take him out of the church; They did not think about laws or courts, and therefore they themselves began to beat him: so they are daring and shameless in everything! At this time (Paul) did not make excuses, but after; and that’s good, because then they wouldn’t listen. Why did they shout: take him? They were afraid that he would run away. Meanwhile, look with what humility Paul speaks to the captain. What is he saying? “Can I tell you something?” He was so meek, he behaved so humbly everywhere. “So, aren’t you,” asks (the commander of a thousand), “that Egyptian”? 3. Look at the wiles of the devil. This Egyptian was a deceiver and a seducer; (the devil) and hoped, hiding behind him, to present Christ and the apostles as participants in the crimes attributed to him. But I was not at all successful in this; on the contrary, the truth became even brighter and shone more brilliantly, without suffering anything from the wiles of the devil. If there had been no deceivers, and (the apostles) had won the victory, then perhaps others would have become suspicious. But if they also appeared, and these won the victory, then one cannot help but be surprised. For this reason, he is allowed to appear so that these may become more glorified, as (Paul) himself says in another place: “so that those who are skilled may be revealed among you” (1 Cor. 11:19). In a similar way, Gamaliel said: “Not long before this, Theudas appeared” (Acts 5:36). Regarding the robbers (Sicarei), some say that they were a kind of robbers who received this name from the fact that they carried swords, called by the Romans Sicae 30 . Others (they say they belonged) to one of the Jewish sects. (Jews) have three main sects: Pharisees, Sadducees and Essenes, who are called righteous because of their purity of life 31, and Sicarii because they were zealots 32. So, let us not grieve that there are heresies; There were also false Christs who plotted against Christ, both before and after, wanting to eclipse (Him). But the truth is not obscured and shines everywhere. It was the same with the prophets: false prophets appeared, but (the prophets) became brighter by comparison with them. This is how illness reveals health, darkness – light, storm – silence. The Greeks cannot say that (the apostles) were deceivers and seducers, because such people were exposed. The same thing happened with Moses: God allowed the magicians to act, so that Moses would not be mistaken for a magician; by His permission, they showed everyone how far the art of sorcery could extend, and they could not deceive further, but they themselves admitted they were defeated. Seducers do not cause us any harm, but they also make those who want to be attentive more perfect. But, you say, don’t they share the glory with us? Not with us, but with unreasonable people. Let us not be too concerned about fame from people and care about it more than necessary. We live for God, not for people; our citizenship is in heaven, not on earth; there are rewards and rewards for our labors, from there we expect honors, from there - crowns. We must care so much about people so as not to lead them into temptation and not give them a reason (to condemnation). If then, even though we do not give a reason, they begin to condemn us without reason and in vain, then we should laugh, and not cry. Try to do good before God and people; If, while you try to do good, someone else mocks you, don’t worry about it at all. There are examples of this in the Scriptures. “Do I now seek favor from men,” says (Paul), “or from God?” (Gal.1:10); and again: “Knowing the fear of the Lord, we admonish people, but we are open to God” (2 Cor. 5:11). And Christ said this about those who are tempted: “Leave them: they are blind leaders of the blind” (Matthew 15:14); and again: “Woe to you when all people speak well of you” (Luke 6:26); and again: “Let your light shine before people, so that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven” (Matthew 5:16). If in another place He says: “Whoever causes one of these little ones to stumble who believe in Me, it would be better for him if a millstone were hung around his neck and he were drowned in the depths of the sea” (Matthew 18:6), then do not be surprised at this; there is no contradiction here, but on the contrary, both are completely in agreement with each other. If (temptation) depends on us, then woe to us; if not from us, then nothing. And again (it is said): woe to you: “the name of God is blasphemed” (Rom. 2:24). What will happen, you say, if I do my duty, and another blasphemes? Nothing for you, but for him (woe), because the blasphemy was uttered by him. But how can you, while doing what is right, give others a reason (to condemn)? I will give you examples of this, but where do you want it, from the present or from the past? To prove that we should not be afraid of rumors, would you like me to point out the very thing that we are exploring now? Paul acted like a Jew in Jerusalem, but not in Antioch; he acted like a Jew, and others were tempted, but they were tempted unjustly. He is said to have greeted Nero's cupbearer and concubine. What do you think they didn’t say about him about this? But it's unfair. If he had inclined them to vices or to bad deeds, then it would have been possible (to condemn); and if for a righteous life, then for what? I'll tell you something that happened to one of my friends. Once, when the wrath of God befell us, and when he was still very young, and only in the rank of deacon, during the absence of the bishop and through the carelessness of the elders, it happened that many thousands suddenly received baptism in one night and were baptized all indiscriminately and without learning anything; he decided to take these people to him, a hundred and two hundred at a time, and talked with them about nothing else, but only about the sacraments, which were impossible for the uninitiated to approach them. When he did this, many thought that through this he was seeking power. But he didn't care about their opinion; however, he no longer continued to do this, but immediately stopped. So what? Was he the cause of temptation? Don't think. If he had done this without any reason, and had continued to do so, then I would rightly attribute such guilt to him. When, because another is tempted, a work pleasing to God may be stopped, then one should not pay attention to it; on the contrary, when through it we are not put into the need to offend God, then we should take care. Tell me: when we talk and denounce those who indulge in drunkenness, and someone is tempted by this, should I really stop talking? Listen to what Christ says: “Do you also want to go away?” (John 6:67)? Thus one should neither neglect nor be overly concerned about the weakness of others. Don't we see what doctors do? Whenever possible, they please the sick; and when this pleasing can cause harm, then they do not make concessions. It is good to observe moderation in everything. Many were tempted on the occasion of the announcement of one beautiful young woman, who remained a virgin, slandered her, and reviled those who announced them. So what? Is it really because of this that they should have stopped (the announcement)? No, because they did something that was not at all contrary, but very pleasing to God. Therefore, when some are tempted, we should only look at whether this is fair and whether it will not lead to our harm. “If food makes my brother stumble,” says (Paul), “I will never eat meat” (1 Cor. 8:13). And it is fair that abstaining from eating does not harm at all; if they are tempted by the fact that I refuse, then one should no longer pay attention to him. Who, you say, can be tempted by this? Many, as I know. So, abstinence occurs when it is indifferent; if we begin to look only at this one thing (the opinion of others), we will have to refrain from much; and on the contrary, if we do not pay attention to them, we will destroy many. So Paul also paid attention to the temptation of others; and how, listen: “being careful lest we be reprimanded by anyone, given such an abundance of offerings entrusted to our service” (2 Cor. 8:20): rejecting the bad opinion of others was not harmful. But when we are forced to allow great evil to happen because another is tempted, we should not pay attention to it. He himself, and not we, is to blame, because it is impossible to please him without harm. Many were tempted by the fact that some of the faithful were buried in churches, (claiming) that they should not be buried (here); but it is unfair, because there is no harm from it. The Jews were tempted because Peter ate with the Gentiles; he pleased them, but he (Paul) did not (Gal. 2:12). In everything we should, keeping the commandments of God, try in every possible way so as not to give rise to temptation, so that we ourselves do not find ourselves guilty and become worthy of the love of God, the grace and love of His Only Begotten, with whom to the Father, with the Holy Spirit, be glory, power, honor, now and ever, and to the ages of ages. Amen. These conversations were delivered by the saint in Constantinople in 400 or 401. The paragraphs in the text were arranged by us – Editorial staff of “ABC of Faith” (οσιοι, - hence the name of the Essenes). You might be interested in: