Беседа 26

Hebrews 11:20–22. Isaac blessed Jacob and Esau with faith in the future. By faith Jacob, dying, blessed each son of Joseph and bowed down on the top of his staff. By faith Joseph, at his death, recalled the exodus of the children of Israel and testified about his bones. 1. “Many,” says (the Lord), “the prophets and the righteous desired to see what you see, but did not see, and to hear what you hear, and did not hear” (Matthew 13:17). Did the righteous really know the whole future? Certainly. If the Son (of God) did not reveal himself to those who could not accept Him due to their weakness, then without a doubt he revealed himself to those glorified by virtues. So Paul now says that they knew the future, i.e. resurrection of Christ. Either this is what he says, or his words: “by faith in the future” do not refer to the future age, but to the one that will be here subsequently. Otherwise, how could a person in a foreign land give such blessings? And on the other hand, why did he, having received the blessing, not experience its fulfillment himself? You see, what can be said about Jacob is what I said about Abraham, i.e. that he did not take advantage of the blessing, but the fruits of this blessing passed on to his descendants, and he himself saw them in the future? Indeed, we know that his brother lived in great contentment. He spent his whole life in slavery, work, dangers, worries, grief and fear, and to Pharaoh’s question he answered: “few and miserable are the days of my life” (Gen. 47:9); and he was safe and completely free, and subsequently was terrible (for Jacob). When were the blessings (given to him) fulfilled, if not in the future? You see how the wicked have long enjoyed the blessings here, and the righteous, on the contrary, although not all. Here Abraham was a righteous man and enjoyed the blessings here, however, with sorrows and temptations - he had only wealth, and all his other circumstances were filled with sorrows. And it is impossible for a righteous person not to experience sorrows, even if he were rich - if he is ready to endure losses, injustices and everything else, then of necessity he experiences sorrows. Thus, although he enjoys wealth, he is not without sorrows. Why? Because he feels grief and sadness. If then the righteous experienced sorrows, then even more so now. “By faith in the future,” he says, “Isaac blessed Jacob and Esau.” Although Esau was the eldest, he puts Jacob ahead of him because of his virtues. Do you see what faith (Isaac) had? Why would he really promise such great benefits to his sons, if only not through faith in God? “By faith Jacob, when he died, blessed every son of Joseph.” Here it would be necessary to set out all his blessings, so that both his faith and prophecy would be more clearly revealed. “And he bowed,” he says, “on the top of his staff.” Here (the apostle) shows that James not only said, but hoped for the future so much that he showed it in action. Since another king had to rise from Ephraim, he says: “and bowed down on the top of his staff,” i.e., already an old man, he bowed to Joseph, expressing the worship that was to come to him from all the people. This had already been partially fulfilled when his brothers bowed to him, but it was to be fulfilled ten generations later. See how he predicted the future? Do you see what kind of faith the forefathers had, how they believed in the future? The examples given here serve as examples, some of patience in suffering and deprivation of all blessings, such as in relation to Abraham and Abel, others of faith in the existence of God and reward, such as in relation to Noah. The word - faith has many meanings - it expresses one thing or another; here it means that there will be reward, that not everyone will have the same thing, that one must strive before rewards. The example of Joseph is an example of one faith. Joseph heard that God announced and promised Abraham: “The whole earth... I will give to you and to your descendants forever” (Gen. 13:15), and therefore, being in a foreign land and not yet seeing the fulfillment of the promise, he did not lose heart, but believed so much that he reminded him of the exodus and made a testament about his bones. Thus, he not only believed himself, but also led others to faith. This is why he bequeathed that they should always remember the outcome; and he would not have bequeathed his bones if he had not been sure that there would be an outcome. If after this someone says: the righteous also took care of the graves, then we answer this: they cared for this very reason, and not for any other reason, because they knew that “the earth is the Lord’s and what fills it” (Ps. 23:1). This was not unknown to (Joseph), who lived in such wisdom and spent his whole life in Egypt. He, of course, could, if he wanted, return from there, and not complain and grieve; if he, having called his father there, bequeathed to take his bones out of there, then isn’t it obvious that for this reason? 2. But tell me, the bones of Moses himself lie in a foreign land? We do not know where the bones of Aaron, Daniel, Jeremiah and many of the apostles lie. The tombs of Peter, Paul, John and Thomas are known, but so many others are completely unknown. But we should not lament this and be faint-hearted; Wherever we are buried, “the earth is the Lord’s and the fullness of it.” What must be certainly happens; shedding tears, lamenting and mourning the dead is characteristic of cowardice. “By faith Moses, when he was born, was hidden by his parents for three months” (Heb. 11:23). Do you see how they here on earth hoped for what would happen after their death? And a lot really happened after their death. This is said to those who say: after their death, what they did not receive during life and what they did not hope for after death will be fulfilled. But Joseph did not say: God did not give the (promised) land during his lifetime to me, nor to my father, nor to my grandfather, whose virtue deserved respect - how can He honor vicious people with what He did not honor them with? He did not say so, but he overcame and overcame all this by faith. Having spoken about Abel, Noah, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, who are all glorious and famous, (the apostle) then further enhances the consolation by presenting unknown persons as examples. It is not at all surprising that famous people did this, and it is not so regrettable to be inferior to them; but it is regrettable to be lower than the faces of the unknown. He begins with the parents of Moses, people unknown and who had nothing like the son had; and then, continuing the speech, he more strongly expresses the absurdity (of unbelief), pointing to prodigal women and widows: “By faith,” he says, “Rahab the harlot, having received the spies in peace (and leading them through another path), did not perish with the unbelievers” (Heb. 11:31). Он представляет последствия не только веры, но и неверия, как например при Ное. Впрочем, нужно сказать о родителях Моисея. Pharaoh ordered the destruction of all male babies, and no one escaped danger. Почему же они надеялись спасти своё дитя? By faith. What faith? «…ибо видели они , – говорит, – что дитя прекрасно» . Самый вид его располагал их к вере. Thus, the righteous is given great grace from the very beginning, even from the cradle, and this is done not by nature, but by God. Look, in fact, the newborn child immediately turned out to be beautiful, and not ugly. Whose business was it? Not nature, but the grace of God, which moved the pagan Egyptian woman and inspired her so that she took and accepted (the baby). Meanwhile, their (his parents) faith did not have sufficient foundation - what could one hope from appearance alone? But you, he says (the apostle to his listeners), steal from works, having many deposits of faith; Indeed, to joyfully accept theft of property and the like is a matter of faith and patience. But since they believed, and then became faint-hearted, he shows that the faith of the ancients was long-lasting, such as the faith of Abraham, although circumstances apparently hindered it. “And they were not afraid,” he says, “of the king’s command.” Although it was carried out, they simply waited. This was the work of the parents, and Moses himself did not bring anything here. Then he again gives another example, close (to the listeners), and even much more. Which one exactly? “By faith Moses, having come of age, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh’s daughter, and rather wanted to suffer with the people of God than to have temporary sinful pleasure, and he considered the reproach of Christ to be greater wealth for himself than the treasures of Egypt; for he looked to the reward” (Heb. 11:24–26). He seems to say to them: none of you left the royal court, or the magnificent court, or such treasures, and did not refuse to be the king’s son when it was possible, as Moses did. And that he did not simply refuse this, (the apostle) explained by saying: “refused,” i.e. neglected, disdained. When heaven was ahead, it would be unnecessary to admire the Egyptian court. 3. And look how wonderfully Paul expressed himself here. He did not say: considering the sky and heavenly objects to be riches greater than the treasures of Egypt - but what? "Reproach of Christ". He considered being reviled for the sake of Christ better than living in pleasure; this in itself was a reward for him. “I would rather suffer with the people of God.” You, he says, suffer for yourself; but he chose to suffer for others and voluntarily exposed himself to such dangers, when he could have lived piously and enjoyed benefits. “...than to have temporary sinful pleasure.” What is here called sin is the reluctance to suffer with others: this, he says, he considered a sin. If he considered it a sin to be unwilling to suffer with others, then it follows that the great good is the suffering to which he voluntarily underwent, leaving the royal court. He did this with a vision of something great. That is why (the apostle) said: “he considered the reproach of Christ greater wealth for himself than the treasures of Egypt.” What does it mean: “reproach of Christ”? Those. such reproach that you endure, the reproach that Christ endured, or what he suffered for Christ, when they slandered him for the stone from which he brought out water: “And the stone,” he says, “was Christ” (1 Cor. 10:4). When does reproach of Christ occur? When we, leaving our fatherly customs, suffer reproach, - when, suffering, we resort to God. So he endured the reproach of Christ when he heard: “Are you thinking of killing me as you killed the Egyptian” (Ex. 2:14)? The reproach of Christ is to endure to the end and to the last breath, just as He himself endured reproach and heard: “if you are the Son of God” (Matthew 27:40), from those for whom he was crucified, from his fellow tribesmen. The reproach of Christ is when someone suffers reproach from his own, from those to whom he benefits. So Moses suffered reproach from the one to whom he did good. Here (the apostle) encourages them, showing that Christ and Moses, two famous persons, endured this way; this reproach is more Christ's than Moses', since it came from our own. And just as the latter did not resist at all, so the first did not send lightning, but when He was reviled, He endured everything from those who nodded their heads. Since, probably, they (the Jews of that time) heard the same thing and wanted reward, then (the apostle) says that Christ and Moses also suffered. Thus, a life filled with pleasures is sinful, and a life filled with reproaches is Christ’s. What do you want now? Reproach of Christ, or pleasure? “By faith he left Egypt, not fearing the king’s wrath, for he stood firm as if he had seen the invisible One” (Heb. 11:27). How do you say you weren’t afraid? Scripture, on the contrary, says that, having heard, he was afraid, therefore he sought salvation in flight, ran away, hid, and after that he was in fear. Take a closer look at what has been said; the words: “not fearing the king’s wrath” are said in relation to the fact that he later appeared again (before the king). If he had been afraid, he would not have appeared again afterwards and would not have taken upon himself the matter of intercession; and if he took on this matter, it means that he relied on God in everything. He did not say: (the king) is looking for me, seeking this, and I cannot return. Consequently, his flight was a matter of faith. Why, you say, didn’t he stay? To avoid exposing yourself to the intended danger. It is common for one who tempts (God) to rush into danger and say: I’ll see if God will save me. This is what the devil said to Christ: “If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down...” (Matthew 4:6). Do you see that it is the devil’s work to expose oneself to dangers in vain and in vain, and to test whether God will save us? (Moses) could not protect those who were so unappreciative of his benefits; therefore it would be absurd and reckless to remain there. Yet he did this because “seeing the Invisible One, he was steadfast.” Likewise, if we always contemplate God with our minds, if we constantly remember Him, then everything will turn out to be easy for us, everything will be bearable, we will bear everything comfortably and we will become above everything. After all, if at the sight of a loved one and even at the memory of him, our soul is encouraged and our mind is elevated, and we endure everything easily, enjoying this memory, then having in mind the One who has honored us with true love, and remembering Him, can he feel any sorrow, or be afraid of something terrible and dangerous? Will he ever be faint-hearted? Never. Everything seems difficult for us because we do not remember God as we should, we do not constantly have Him in our minds. He could rightly tell us: you have forgotten Me, and I will forget you. This is how a double evil occurs: we forget Him, and He forgets us. These two circumstances, although closely connected, still remain two. And it is a great thing for God to remember us; it is also great for us to remember Him; the choice of good depends on one, and success in it and completion on the other. Therefore the prophet says: “I remember You from the land of Jordan, from Hermon, from Mount Zoar” (Ps. 42:7). This is what the people of Israel say when they are in Babylon: “there they remembered You.” 4. This is also what we should say, like those who lived in Babylon. Although we do not live among (foreign) enemies, we are also among enemies. And of those, some lived like captives, while others did not feel captivity, such as Daniel and the three youths. They, while in captivity, were more glorious in this country than the king himself who captured them; and the captive bowed down to the captives. Do you see how great virtue is? In captivity itself (the king) served them as masters; therefore he was more of a prisoner than they were. It would not be so surprising if he bowed to them when he came to their fatherland, or if they reigned there. The amazing thing is that he who made them prisoners, took them captive and had them in his power in full view of everyone, was not ashamed to bow to them and make a sacrifice. Do you see how truly glorious are the works of God, but the works of men are darkness? He did not know that he was taking away his masters and throwing into the oven those whom he was supposed to worship; and for them all disasters were like a dream. Let us fear God, beloved, let us fear Him, and then, even if we are captured, we will be more glorious than everyone else. Let the fear of God be inherent in us, and then nothing will sadden us, whether it be poverty, or illness, or captivity, or slavery, or anything else regrettable, but even all this will help us achieve the opposite. They were prisoners, and the king bowed to them; Pavel was a skin maker, and they wanted to make a sacrifice to him as to God. Here the question arises - many ask: why did the apostles reject the sacrifice, tear their clothes, keep the people from this intention and say with tears: “Why are you doing this? And we are men like you” (Acts 14:15), and Daniel did nothing like that? That he was a humble man and gave glory to God no less than them is evident from many things. And, firstly, it is especially evident from the fact that he was loved by God; if he had arrogated divine honor to himself, then God would not have allowed him to remain alive, let alone prosper; secondly, from the fact that he said with great boldness: “But this mystery was revealed to me, not because I was wiser than anyone living, but so that the king’s understanding might be revealed” (Dan. 2:30); thirdly, from the fact that he was in the den for God and when the prophet brought him food, he said: “You have remembered me, O God” (Dan. 14:38), such was his humility and contrition! He was in a ditch for God, and considered himself unworthy of being remembered and heard by God. And we, daring to commit countless unclean deeds and being the most criminal of all, retreat (from God), unless our first prayer is heard. Truly, there is a great distance between them and us, like between heaven and earth, or even more. What are you saying, (prophet)? After so many exploits, after the miracle that happened in the ditch, do you consider yourself so humiliated? Yes, he says; no matter what we do, we are “worthless slaves” (Luke 17:10). So he fulfilled the gospel commandment even before it was spoken, and considered himself insignificant. God remembered me,” he said. And his very prayer, look how filled with humility it is. This is what the three youths said: “We have sinned and acted lawlessly” (Dan. 3:29), and they always showed their humility. Daniel had countless reasons to be proud, but he knew that he had all this because he did not become proud and did not destroy treasures. All people and the entire universe glorified him not only because the king, prostrating himself before him, made a sacrifice to him, but because he was recognized as a god by the one who was himself considered the god of the universe, as can be seen from the words of the prophet Jeremiah: “who dresses the earth like a robe,” and also: “I give all these lands into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar” to my servant (Jer. 27:6). And from his writings it is also clear that they marveled at him not only where he lived, but everywhere, and when he testified with his writings to slavery and a miracle, he became even more famous than if other nations themselves had seen him among themselves. In the same way, they were amazed at his wisdom: “behold,” says (the prophet), “you are wiser than Daniel” (Ezek. 28:3)? And after all this he was so humble that he was ready to die a thousand times for the Lord. 5. Why, with such humility, did he not reject both the worship of him from the king and the sacrifice? I won’t say anything about this: for me it’s enough just to propose a question, and I leave the rest to you, in order to at least in this way excite your mind. So, I exhort you to undertake everything out of the fear of God, having so many examples that we will certainly receive the blessings here if we sincerely strive for the future. And that (Daniel) did not act this way out of pride, this is clear from the words that he said: “Let your gifts remain with you” (Dan. 5:17). Here again another question arises: why did he, having refused in words, in fact accepted this honor and began to wear a chain? Herod, who heard the words: “the voice of God, and not man” (Acts 12:22), and did not give glory to God, was torn apart so that his entrails fell out; and he (Daniel) accepted divine honor, and not only in words. Here it is necessary to explain what this means. There the people could fall into greater idolatry, but not here. Why? Because when (Daniel) was considered this way, the honor belonged to God, as he himself said in advance: “This mystery was revealed to me, not because I was wiser than all the living” (Dan. 2:30). On the other hand, it is not visible that he accepted the sacrifice. Although the king said that a sacrifice must be made, it does not appear that this was carried out. And there they had already brought oxen for sacrifice, and they named one (apostle) Jupiter, the other Mercury. He accepted the chain in order to make himself noticeable (to others). But why didn't he apparently reject the victims? They had not yet performed (the sacrifices), but were just beginning, and yet the apostles prevented; therefore, the matter should have been stopped here; Moreover, all the people were there, and here was the king. Why the prophet did not reject, I said about this before - i.e. because he made a sacrifice to him not as to God, to the detriment of godly reverence, but on the occasion of a great miracle. How so? He issued such a command for the sake of God, thereby confessing His sovereignty; therefore, he did not take away his honor. But those were not so: they considered the apostles themselves to be gods, and that is why they were restrained. In addition, (Nebuchadnezzar) bowed beforehand, and then did so; and he worshiped him not as God, but as a wise man. However, it is not visible that he made a sacrifice; if he brought it, it was against Daniel’s will. Also: why did Nebuchadnezzar call him Belteshazzar, the name of God himself? So little (the pagans) respected their gods that the captive was given this name by the one who commanded everyone to worship various and varied idols and worshiped the dragon. Moreover, the Babylonians were much more unreasonable than the Listrians; therefore it was impossible to immediately bring them to their senses. And much could be said here, but for now this is enough. So, if we want to receive all the blessings, then we will seek the blessings of God. Just as those who seek worldly blessings lose both, so those who prefer the blessings of God receive both. Let us seek the last, and not the first, so that we may be worthy of the promised blessings in Christ Jesus our Lord. The paragraphs in the text were arranged by us. – Editorial staff of “ABC of Faith” You might be interested in: