Глава XXV

Matthew 25:1–4. Then the kingdom of heaven will be like ten virgins, who, taking their lamps, went out to meet the bridegroom (sponso et sponsae). But five of them were unwise, and five were prudent. And the five foolish men took their lamps and took no oil with them; and the prudent took oil in their vessels along with their lamps. 576 This parable, i.e. the likeness of ten virgins, foolish and prudent, some simply explain in relation to virgins, some of whom, according to the apostle, are virgins in both body and spirit (mente), while others, maintaining only bodily virginity, do not have other deeds corresponding to their [bodily] state, or [while maintaining virginity] due to the careful observation of their parents, in [their] thoughts they nevertheless entered into marriage (1 Cor. 7:36 ). But it seems to me that, based on the above, there is a different meaning in this place and the comparison in the parable refers not to virgin bodies, but to the entire human race. Indeed, just as two working in the field and two grinding with millstones denote two kinds of people: Christians and Jews or saints and sinners, who, having joined the church, apparently actually both plow and grind, but in reality they do everything hypocritically; so in the present case the ten virgins refer to all people who seem to believe in God and confirm their faith with the Holy Scriptures, whether they belong to the Church (ecclesiastici), Jews or heretics. They are all called virgins because they boast of the knowledge of the one God and the fact that their thoughts are not defiled by the shamelessness of idolatry. Those virgins who, in accordance with their faith, adorn themselves with their deeds, have oil; and those who, apparently, confess the Lord with the appropriate faith, but do not care 577 about doing good, do not have oil. By the five virgins, unreasonable and reasonable, we can understand the five feelings, which in some strive for the heavenly and desire the highest, while in others they thirst for earthly impurity and do not have the warmth of truth with which they could enlighten their hearts. About vision, hearing and touch in the spiritual sense it is said: “What we have heard, what we have seen with our eyes, what we have looked at, and what we have touched with our hands” (1 John 1:1). It is said about taste: “Taste and see how good the Lord is” (Ps. 33:9); about the sense of smell - “Because of the fragrance of your ointments, your name is like spilled ointment” 578, and: “We are the fragrance of Christ” (2 Cor. 2:15). Matthew 25:5. And as the groom slowed down, everyone dozed off and fell asleep Since no short time must pass between the first and second coming of the Lord. “Everyone dozed off,” i.e. died because the death of saints is called sleep. And then it is said: “fell asleep,” because after that they must be awakened. Matthew 25:6. But at midnight a cry was heard: behold, the groom is coming, go out to meet him. Suddenly, as if in the middle of a good night, when everyone is in a carefree state, when sleep is the heaviest (deepest), the coming of Christ will be proclaimed with the exclamations of angels and the thunder of the trumpets of the forces preceding Him. Let's say something that may be useful to the reader. According to Jewish tradition, Christ will come 579 in the middle of the night, similar to the exodus from Egypt, when the Passover was celebrated and the destroyer passed, and the Lord descended on the rooftops, and the doorposts of our entrances were sanctified with the blood of the lamb (Ex. 12:23). From here, in my opinion, the apostolic tradition arose that on the eve of Easter, before half-night, they would not allow the people awaiting the coming of Christ to leave [the church]. And after this time has passed and safety becomes certain, everyone spends the day as a holiday. That is why the psalmist said: “At midnight I rose to praise You for Your righteous judgments” (Ps. 119:62). Matthew 25:7. Then all those virgins stood up and decorated their lamps. 580 All the virgins stood up, and each one decorated her lamp, i.e. thoughts with which they received the oil of knowledge in order to have works of virtues that could shine before the True Judge. Matthew 25:8. But the foolish said to the wise, Give us your oil, for our lamps are going out. Those who find their lamps going out show that they are partly shining; however, in them there is no continuous 581 light, no incessant [good] deeds. So, if someone has a virgin soul and loves modesty, then he should not be content with mediocrity, which soon runs out and, when the heat rises, dries up, but must follow perfect virtue in order to have eternal light. Matthew 25:9. And the wise answered: so that there is no shortage for both us and you. They answer this way not out of stinginess, but out of fear. Indeed, after all, everyone will receive a reward according to their deeds, and on the day of judgment the virtues of some cannot exceed the vices of others. And just as during the Babylonian captivity Jeremiah could not help sinners, and he is told: “Do not ask for this people” (Jer. 7:16) so that day will be terrible, because everyone will have to take care of himself. Better go to those who sell and buy for yourself. This oil is bought and sold at a high price and acquired with great labor - by this we mean all the alms, virtues and advice of teachers. Matthew 25:10. When they went to buy, the groom came. True, as they are prudent, they give advice that it is impossible to meet the groom without oil for the lamps; but since the time for the purchase has already expired and, with the approach of the day of judgment, there is no longer any room left for repentance, as the psalmist says: “Who will glorify You in the grave” (Ps. 6:6), 583, then they are forced not to perform new deeds, but to give an account of their previous deeds. And those who were ready went in with him to the wedding feast, and the doors were shut. After the Day of Judgment there is no (or: no) means left to perform good deeds and to justify oneself. Matthew 25:11. Then other virgins come and say: Lord! God! open to us. True, their confession, revealed in the address 584 “Lord,” is excellent, and its repetition serves as a sign of faith. But what good is it if you call on Him with your lips, whom you deny with your works? Matthew 25:12. He answered and said to them, “Truly I say to you, I do not know you.” The Lord knows those who belong to Him, but whoever does not know [Him] will not be known (2 Tim. 2:19); 585 The Lord does not know the workers of iniquity; and although they are virgins, and although in a twofold respect, that is, both in purity of body and confession of the true faith, they can be glorified (1 Cor. 14:38), 586 however, since they do not have the oil of knowledge, it is a sufficient punishment for them that they are unknown to the Bridegroom. Matthew 25:13. 13 Watch therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour. I always urge the prudent reader not to rest on superstitious interpretations and [on what] is decisively expressed due to the desire of those who invent them; but so that he understands 587 the previous, middle and subsequent and coherently imagines everything that is written. So, from what He says: “Watch, for you know neither the day nor the hour,” everything that He said is explained, i.e., about the two who were in the field, and about the two grinders, and about the householder who entrusted his property to his servant, and about the ten virgins, and that these parables are prefaced so that, since we all do not know the day of judgment, we carefully prepare for ourselves the light of good deeds and so that the judge did not come while we are in a careless state. Matthew 25:14–15. For [this will happen in the same way] as a man going to a distant country called his servants and transferred his wealth to them. And he gave to one five talents, and to another two, and to the third one, to each according to his ability, and after that he set off. 588 This householder man is, undoubtedly, Christ, who, after the Resurrection, ascending to the Father as a Victor, calling His apostles, conveyed to them the teaching of the Gospel, not considering the breadth or narrowness in the sense of giving more to one and less to another, but giving according to the strength of the recipient; in the same way, the apostle says that he gives 589 milk to those who cannot take solid food (1 Cor. 3:2) 590. Therefore, in the end, He accepts with equal joy both the one who made ten out of five talents and the one who turned two talents into four. By five, two and one talents we must understand either the various gifts (gratias) that are given to everyone, or in the first case all the senses subjected to testing, in the second - reason and deeds, in the third - the understanding by which people differ from animals. Matthew 25:16. He who received five talents went and put them to work and acquired another five talents. Having received earthly feelings, he acquired knowledge of the heavenly, knowing the Creator through creatures, the incorporeal through the corporeal, the invisible through the visible and the eternal through the short-term. Matthew 25:17. In the same way, the one who received two talents acquired another two And this one, according to his strength, doubled everything that he studied in the law in the Gospel, i.e. (sive) he understood the knowledge and deeds of this life in the meaning of images of future bliss. Matthew 25:18. The one who received one talent went and buried it in the ground and hid his master’s money. The worthless slave, due to earthly affairs and the lust of this age, did not care about the Commandments of God and desecrated them, although another evangelist writes that he tied him up in a piece of linen (Luke 19:20), 591 i.e., he weakened the teaching of the Householder, spending his life in bliss and luxury. Matthew 25:19–20. After a long time, the master of those slaves comes and demands an account from them. And the one who had received five talents came and brought another five talents and said: Master! you gave me five talents; Behold, I acquired another five talents with them. The time between the Ascension of the Savior into heaven and His Second Coming is long. And if even the apostles must 592 give an account and 593 be resurrected under fear of the outcome of the judgment, then what should we do? Matthew 25:21–23. His master said to him: Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful in small things, I will put you over many things; enter into the joy of your master. The one who had received two talents also came up and said: Master! you gave me two talents; behold, I acquired the other two talents with them. His master said to him: Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful in small things, I will put you over many things; enter into the joy of your master. To both the servant, as I have already said, that is, to the one who made ten talents from five talents, and to the one who made the other two talents from two, the same word of praise is addressed. At the same time, it is necessary to note that what we have in this life, although it seems great and numerous, is small and not numerous in comparison with the future. “Enter,” he says, “into the joy of your Master” and receive what eye has not seen and ear has not heard and what has not entered the heart of man (1 Cor. 2:9). 594 But what more can be given to a faithful servant, if not to be with the Lord and to see the joy of His Lord? Matthew 25:24–25. The one who had received one talent came up and said: Master! I knew you that you were a cruel man, reaping where you did not sow, and gathering where you did not scatter, and, being afraid, I went and hid your talent in the ground; here's yours. The truly famous word: “Not to bear the guilt of sins” (i.e., to invent excuses for sins) (Ps. 140:4), 595, also applies to this slave, so that [with him] the crime of pride is added to laziness and negligence. Indeed, the one who should simply confess his inactivity and beg the householder - he, on the contrary, slanderes him and says that he followed a prudent decision - namely: not to endanger the integrity of the money [entrusted to him] while he turns it into profitable enterprises. Matthew 25:26–28. His master answered him: “You wicked and lazy servant!” You knew that I reap where I did not sow, and gather where I did not scatter; Therefore, you should have given my silver to the merchants, and when I came, I would have received mine with profit; So take the talent from him and give it to the one who has ten talents. What he saw as an excuse for himself turns into guilt for him. But he is also called an evil, crafty servant, because he blasphemed against the Lord. He is lazy because he did not want to double his talent, so for the first he is accused of pride, and for the second he is accused of negligence. “If,” He says, “you admit that I am harsh and cruel and chase after the stranger, and reap where I did not sow, then why did not the thought of this instill fear in you, so that you could know that I will seek what is mine much more carefully, and give my money, or silver, to the merchants; after all, in Greek both meanings are contained in the word άργύριον. “The words of the Lord,” says the psalmist, “pure words, like silver purified from the earth in a furnace, refined seven times” (Ps. 11:7). So, money and silver is the preaching of the Gospel and the word of God, which must be handed over to traders and money changers, which means: either to the rest of the teachers (the apostles also did this, appointing presbyters and bishops in individual countries), or to all those believers who can double the treasure and return it at a profit, i.e. through doing what they have learned verbally. And the talent is taken away and given to the one who created ten talents, for the purpose that we understand that although in both the work, i.e., in the work of the one who turned five into ten, and the one who turned two into four, the joy of the Lord is the same, but the one who worked more on the treasure from the Lord should be given a greater reward. That is why the apostle says: “It is proper that the elders who rule should be shown great honor, especially those who labor in the word and in teaching” (1 Tim. 5:17). From what the evil servant dared to say: “You reap where you did not sow, and gather where you did not scatter,” 596 we understand that the Lord accepts the good life of both pagans and philosophers, and treats differently those who lead their lives righteously, and differently to those who live unrighteously and, in comparison with that which serves the natural law, condemns those who do not care 597 for the written law. Matthew 25:29. For to everyone who has, more will be given and he will have an abundance, but from him who does not have, even what he has will be taken away. Although many people are naturally wise and have a sharp mind, however, if they are careless and, through idleness, destroy the benefit of nature, - in comparison with the one who is a little slower, but with labor and care, increases the lesser property that belongs to him - [such] lose the benefit of nature and see that the reward promised to them goes to others. This passage can also be understood this way: to the one who has faith and good will in God, even if, due to human weakness (ut homo), he had less than others in deeds, [such] will be given from the good Judge. And the one who did not have faith will lose even those blessings and other virtues that he apparently had by nature. And even very skillfully (eleganter) it is said: “Even what he had will be taken away from him.” In fact, what happens without faith in Christ should not be imputed to the one who made an abuse of it, but only to the one who added the good of nature even to an evil slave. Matthew 25:30. But throw the worthless slave into outer darkness: there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. The Lord is light; and whoever is driven away from Him is deprived of light. And what is crying and gnashing of teeth, we talked about this above. Matthew 25:31–34. When the Son of Man comes in His glory and all the holy angels with Him, then He will sit on the throne of His glory, and all nations will be gathered before Him; and will separate one from another, as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats; and He will put the sheep on His right hand, and the goats on His left. Then the King will say to those on His right hand: Come, you blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. Having in mind 598 two days later to celebrate Easter and be given up to death on the cross: to be mocked by people, to drink bile and vinegar, He directly proclaims the future glory of the winner, so that any temptation that might 599 arise can be eliminated with the promise of a reward. At the same time, it should be noted that the One who will be contemplated in greatness will be the Son of Man. And the following words: “And He will put the sheep on His right hand, and the goats on the left” 600 understand in accordance with what you read elsewhere: “The heart of a wise man is on the right side, and the heart of a fool on the left” (Eccl. 10:2) and above in the same Gospel: “Do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing” (Matthew 6, 3). “goats”, a lazy, frivolous animal, always burning with carnal lust (fervens ad coitum). Matthew 25:34–40. [end of 34th] [beginning of 40th]: Come, you blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world: for I was hungry, and you gave Me food; I was thirsty and you gave Me something to drink; I was a stranger and you accepted Me; I was naked and you clothed Me; I was sick and you visited Me; I was in prison, and you came to Me. Then the righteous will answer Him: Lord! when did we see you hungry and feed you? or to the thirsty and gave them something to drink? when did we see you as a stranger and accept you? or naked and clothed? When did we see You sick, or in prison, and came to You? And the King will answer them. This must be accepted in accordance with the foreknowledge of God, in whom what is to be accomplished has already been accomplished. Matthew 25:40–45. [end of 40th]: Truly I say to you: when [or: “as soon”] you did it to one of the least of My brethren, you did it to Me. Then He will also say to those on His left: Depart from Me, you cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. For if I felt hungry, then you did not give Me food; When I was thirsty, you gave Me no drink; when I was a stranger, you did not accept Me; [or] naked, then you did not cover Me; if I was sick or in prison, then you did not visit Me. Then they also answer Him, saying: “Lord, when did we see You hungry, or thirsty, or a stranger, or naked, or sick, or in prison, and did not serve You?” Then He answered them, saying: “Truly I say to you, since you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to Me.” 603 It is easy for us to understand (libera est intelligentia) that in every poor Christ, the hungry is satisfied, the thirsty is given drink, the wandering is brought under the roof, the naked is clothed, the sick is visited, and the prisoner receives consolation in conversation. But from the following words: “Since you did it to one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did it to me also,” it seems to me that this is not said about the poor in general, but about those who are poor in spirit, and stretching out his hand to whom He said: “My mother and my brothers are those who hear the word of God and do it” (Mark 3:34-35; Luke 8:21). Matthew 25:46. And these will go away into everlasting punishment, but the righteous into everlasting life. Prudent reader, pay attention to the fact that punishments are eternal, and eternal life should not subsequently have any end. In the translation: The Gospel of Matthew - ed. According to the new Synodal Russian translation: “Then the Kingdom of Heaven will be like ten virgins, who, taking their lamps, went out to meet the groom. Of these, five were wise and five were foolish. The foolish ones took their lamps and took no oil with them. The wise, together with their lamps, took oil in their vessels” - ed. The text states: (Song. 1, 3). According to the new Synodal Russian translation: (Song 1, 2) According to the new Synodal Russian translation: “Then all those virgins stood up and trimmed their lamps - ed. In the translation: incessant - ed. In the text according to the old Synodal Russian translation: “But whoever confesses You in hell” - ed. In the lane: name – ed. According to the new Synodal Russian translation: “But the solid foundation of God stands, having this seal: “The Lord knows those who are His”; and: “let everyone turn away from unrighteousness,” “whoever confesses the name of the Lord” - ed. According to the new Synodal Russian translation: “Whoever does not understand, let him not understand” - ed. According to the new Synodal Russian translation: “For He will act like a man who, going to a foreign country, called his servants and entrusted them with his property: and to one he gave five talents, to another two, to another one, to each according to his strength; and immediately set off" - ed. According to the new Synodal Russian translation: “I fed you with milk, and not with solid food” - ed. According to the new Synodal Russian translation: “The third came and said: Master! here is your mine, which I kept”, “wrapped in a scarf” - ed. According to the new Synodal Russian translation: “But, as it is written: eye did not see, ear did not hear, and it did not enter the heart of man” - ed. According to the new Synodal Russian translation: “For the forgiveness of sinful deeds” - ed. According to the new Synodal Russian translation: scattered - ed. According to the new Synodal Russian translation: “And He will put the sheep on His right hand, and the goats on His left” - ed. According to the new Synodal Russian translation: “Say to the whole congregation of the [sons of] Israel: on the tenth day of this month, let each one take for himself one lamb according to his family, one lamb per family” - ed. According to the new Synodal Russian translation: “Truly I say to you, just as you did it to one of the least of these brothers of Mine, you did it to Me. Then He will also say to those on the left side: Depart from Me, you cursed, into the everlasting fire prepared for the devil and his angels: for I was hungry, and you gave Me no food; I was thirsty, and you gave Me no drink; 43 I was a stranger, and they did not accept Me; I was naked, and they did not clothe Me; sick and in prison, and they did not visit Me. Then they too will answer Him: Lord! when did we see You hungry, or thirsty, or a stranger, or naked, or sick, or in prison, and did not serve You? Then he will answer them, “Truly I say to you, just as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to Me.” – ed. You might be interested in: