About the fronds

Already the gifts of spiritual triumph are shining, there are already signs of the all-glorious holiday, there is already news of the immaterial bridegroom, already Lazarus is reclining with the Lord, having received the guarantee of the general resurrection, already the gift of myrrh is filling the incense of those coming to baptism, already the faithful guards of the King have taken this leading city, already the faithful people, running out to meet the Lord, cry out with the words: “Hosanna in the highest” ( Matthew 21:9; Mark 11:10), as we have just heard, “blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord, the King of Israel!” ("blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord, the King of Israel") (John 12:13); blessed is he who walks, who always walks, who is with us, and who is by no means outside the faithful. Indeed, those people recognized the royal power and coming. Just as now, when the earthly king makes a campaign against the tyrant and returns with victory, all the citizens meet him in front of the city with flowers, repay him for the victory with songs of praise, weaving praises - and they are drawn to this not by the love of glory, but by the victory song and the desire (to glorify) - in exactly the same way, and to the Lord Christ, as the trophy-bearing king, (came out to meet) the whole multitude and announced with words and vayami that the one who arrives is the conqueror, or better, the known one is God. Only for God (were) then harmoniously heard voices, and for the rational the divine secrets were revealed: “Hosanna in the highest,” i.e., “save You, Who is in the highest.” This is how “Hosanna in the highest” is explained in Hebrew: above is salvation, and below is love for mankind. Oh, the knowledge of God of the people, participants in the angelic ministry! They walk on the earth and ascend to heaven, surrounded by a body and follow the incorporeal, Jews by name and Christians by action, secular by way of life and apostolic by confession; and they, like Peter, received revelation from above. How the supreme of the apostles, not by his own reflection, but by divine revelation, said to the Lord: “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God” (“you are... the Son of the living God”) (Matthew 16:16), and the Lord, showing that he received revelation not by his own thoughts, but from the Father, said, pleasing him: “Blessed are you, Simon, son of Jonah, because you are not flesh and blood have revealed this to you, but My Father who is in heaven" ("Blessed are you, Simon, var Jonah, for flesh and blood have not been revealed to you, but my Father who is in heaven") (Matthew 16:17), - in the same way, the people, having received the revelation from above, cried out to the Lord with the words: "Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord, the King of Israel!” ("Hosanna in the highest, blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord, the King of Israel") (John 12:13). But it is quite natural to say: “What and where do we have proof that this Jewish people received a revelation from above?” So, how can I prove it to you? In the very words of the Lord: “When the chief priests and scribes saw the miracles that He did, and the children shouting in the church and saying: Hosanna to the Son of David! - They were indignant and said to Him: Do you hear what they say? Jesus says to them: Yes! Have you never read: from the mouths of babes and sucklings You have ordained praise?” ("When they saw... the bishop and the scribes... the youths calling in the church and saying: Hosanna to the Son of David, they were indignant and said to Jesus: Do you hear what these are saying? And Jesus said to them: She, have you not brought any praise:... out of the mouth of a child and of those who piss have you brought praise?") (Matthew 21:15-16). And not only by the words of the Lord, but also by the unexpected gathering of people, the meeting and the deeds that he performed - by the fact that they not only shouted, but also held broken olive branches and date fronds in their hands, laid out their clothes and called them Savior, King and Lord - from where it is clear to everyone that they received a revelation from above. If they did not receive from above, then how did they know the King-Lord? He did not wear the diadem of a worldly king, He did not dress in a purple robe, He did not surround Himself with a multitude of troops, He was not preceded by horses with chariots and shields decorated with gold, He did not ride on a royal chariot covered with purple carpets, but sat on someone else's small foal, accompanied only by twelve disciples. How did the people know that He was the King, if they did not receive a revelation from above? They did not look for a worldly diadem on the Lord, because they recognized in Him the one who reigns without beginning; They did not look for the purple robe, because they saw Him clothed with light as with clothing; they did not see the surrounding multitude of soldiers, believing the prophet, who said: “thousands of thousands served Him and thousands of thousands of archangels stood before Him” (“thousands of thousands of them served him, and thousands of thousands stood before him”) (Dan. 7:10); They did not look for horsemen and chariots, because they learned that He was the one who took Elijah on the fiery chariot; and they recognized the evangelists, like the horses that accompanied Him, believing the prophet who spoke. Zechariah said about this that behind Him the horses were white, red, speckled and gray (Zechariah 6:2–3). White horse - Matthew, as having very clearly outlined the incarnation of the Lord; the gray horse is Mark, who wrote the Gospel very flowerily; speckled horse - Luke, as having set forth the works of the Lord very eloquently and variedly; the red horse is John, who showed the deity of Christ among the apostles as the brilliance of fire: “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God” (“in the beginning was the Word, and the Word was to God, and God was the Word”) (John 1:1). And the prophet Habakkuk called the apostles fast horses, spreading the Gospel throughout the whole earth: “You and your horses made a way through the sea” (“and you brought your horses onto the sea”) (Hab. 3:15); he figuratively called the whole world the sea. They did not seek from the Lord a cart decorated with stones, covered with purple, with royal weapons; they previously knew that (His) carriage was rushing forward with cherubim and seraphim, six-winged lights, since they believed the words: “he who sits on the Cherubim, reveal Yourself” (“he who sits on the Cherubim appears”) (Ps. 79:2). So, having received a revelation from God, that believing people of Jerusalem were not tempted by an insignificant foal, but were strengthened by the coming of the Master. Therefore, as soon as they saw that the Lord sat on the foal, immediately, prompted by prophetic predictions, taking the date fronds, they said to each other: “Why are we waiting, and do not go out to meet the spiritual date with the date fronds? Its fruit is full of sweetness and immortality; its leaves are the medicine of the universe; its trunk (i.e., the tree of the cross) is the salvation of the whole world and the trophies of victory over the devil. We have heard that our church cries out in the Song of Songs: “I would climb a palm tree, I would grab its branches” (“I will climb the date, I will hold its branches”) (Song. 7:9). Let us precede the church of the pagans, and we will greet them as a spiritual date and as a strong king. During this speech of the people, actions and glorifications (to them) of the Lord, the bishops and Pharisees, greatly upset, they reproached the people with the words: “What are you doing, that you are frivolously talking? As if you were approaching the son of a carpenter, calling him Lord, he has no place to bow his head; you are surrounded by royal cries who are sitting on a donkey’s foal. Stop it, you frivolous ones! That’s why we were sent to notice the frivolous among you, who repay punishment for insolence.” The people, having heard these words of the bishops, do not rush to indignation, but respond to them according to active grace: “You reproach us, Pharisees, and threaten us with punishment, as if you were uttering blasphemy! Who deserves punishment: you who read the Scripture and do not reflect, or we who hear and observe? Are we being deceived by offering date fronds to the Lord? Isn't He the date of truth? Was it not about Him that the prophet exclaimed: “The righteous blossoms like a palm tree” (“the righteous shall flourish like a phoenix”) (Ps. 91:13)? Didn't He give sight to the blind? Did He not grant unhindered running to the lame? Didn’t he make you carry the bed that the paralytic brought? Didn’t he raise four-day-old Lazarus from the dead? Is this why you are contemplating killing Lazarus? Have you not rejected the stone, and you yourself, like the stone, become rigid in unbelief? Did He not give it to you to untie the burial shrouds, so that you would not tell lies one after another, as with a man blind from birth, as if he jumped out of the grave? You Pharisees always slander what is beautiful and oppose the completely believing. Therefore, you agreed to kill Lazarus in order to destroy the faith of the people. If you kill Lazarus, then why can’t He resurrect him again? Let's see who gets tired - you in the murder, or He in the resurrection. You kill with deeds and with difficulty, (and) He resurrects with words. Who is more tired? Isn't the word easier than the deed? Are we Pharisees deceived because we approached the Lord as a King? Contemplating the foal, we become more strengthened. We recognize the mighty King, and we have the Scriptures at hand, so that you may wisely learn that it is not we who are deceived, but you who are deceived. You have the prophet Zechariah; expand his words; fear his sickle of vengeance; For a long time, preaching the gospel to Judah, he exclaimed: (Rejoice greatly, daughters of Zion: “Behold, your King is coming to you,... meek and quiet, sitting... on the foal of an ass’ son under the yoke” (“Behold, your King is coming to you... meek... always on the son of the yoke”) (Zechariah 9:9). We are not mistaken in reading Scripture: We recognize the King, do good to ourselves and convert those who doubt. You have a prophet, and you do not want to think about his prophecy. So, retreat, Pharisees! The more you press us, the more you excite our desire and jealousy. Therefore, we are not mistaken when we cry: “Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord! Hosanna in the highest! We know this name, Pharisees! This name freed us from Egypt, made the sea passable for us, peopled the desert and settled us in a land flowing with milk and honey, prepared a prophetic exclamation: “and let them know that you, whose only name is Lord, are the Most High over all the earth” (“let them know that your name is Lord, you are the only Highest in all the earth”) (Ps. 82:19). That the people are obedient, and the bishops are disobedient, listen to the evangelist: “The high priests decided to kill Lazarus also, because for his sake many of the Jews came and believed in Jesus” (“the bishops conferred, and they would kill Lazarus too, because many of them for his sake went away from the Jews and believed in Jesus”) (John 12:10–11). Do you see the bishop's madness? In order to destroy the faith of the people, they tried to kill Lazarus, saying to themselves: “If we only kill Jesus and leave Lazarus alive, then it will be of no use to us: seeing this, they believe in Him. So that even after death we will not have any obstacles in anyone’s faith in Jesus, let us kill Lazarus so that we can completely blot out his memory.” This and similar things were said by the bishops, as people of a vain mind, who did not understand that the Lord, who had to undergo voluntary death for the immortality of the world, did not think of leaving to the world as a souvenir only Lazarus and his resurrection, but also His invincible cross, which they would not be able to destroy, hide, or abolish, revealing the power of its action throughout the entire universe. What is a house without the sign of the cross, without a trophy against demons, without the protection of souls? What is a ship without a crucifix? What city does not have a guardian's cross? What king does not decorate his head with a cross? What virgin does not have a cross instead of a staff? What church is not fortified with a cross as with walls? The cross shines at night and serves as a torch during the day; He establishes the winter of misfortunes, establishes spring and summer, strengthens marriages, increases friendships, and dominates all good things. What about the evangelist? It is good to examine this passage from the beginning. Now you have heard the words of the evangelist: “Six days before the Passover Jesus came to Bethany, where Lazarus was dead, whom He raised from the dead” (“Before the six days of the Passover Jesus came to Bethany, where Lazarus was..., whom He raised from the dead”) (John 12:1). And what day is this - “before six days”? Which? The present day, denoting John the Baptist. Just as John preceded the Lord, so this one preceded the resurrection; and just as John, pointing his finger at the Lord, said: “Behold the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world” (“Behold, Lamb of God, take away the sins of the world”) (John 1:29), so this one, pointing to the future resurrection, exclaimed with the words: “Behold the mother of those who are born again!” “Six days before the Passover.” Listen: this day is not just “six days before the Passover,” but so that you learn cleanse yourself from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit. This day is a pre-purification - so that you cleanse yourself from all impurity, so that you destroy enmity and stop anger, so that you extinguish slander, so that you intensify love, so that you increase poverty, so that not only you celebrate, but also the needy person celebrates with you. If you do not give to the needy, and he grieves and you celebrate, then see to it that you do not receive the reward of the rich man who, having every day a brilliant joy, did not give a grain to Lazarus. So, give to the needy from your meal, do good to the needy, so that you will always celebrate, and the poor will be with you. If you do not do good to your poor fellow believer, who is in need of consolation, and he, out of need, not benefited by you, goes to the heretic and is consoled by him, then the latter will be more philanthropic than you. And every heretic attacks the shepherd. What about the evangelist? “Six days before the Passover Jesus came to Bethany, where Lazarus was who had died, whom He raised from the dead” (“Before the six days of Passover Jesus came to Bethany, where Lazarus was..., whom He raised from the dead.”). O wisdom of the Lord! He raised Lazarus to irritate the devil. Listen in short words. When the devil saw, during the Lord’s exclamation: “Lazarus, come out” (John 11:43), that all hell was destroyed and the underground forces could not hold him, and that, as if by an issued royal command, or better, by the action of the divine will, Lazarus’s hair was rooted from above, the weakened nerves were pulled together, the wastage of the body was filled, the scattered bones were united, life-giving breath entered, the mistress-soul took the former, old dwelling - when he saw this and the like, in fear and anxiety he ordered his forces with the words: “Resist, be strong, do not betray my kingdom! Oh, what I have suffered! The power of death, acquired by sin, is destroyed; whoever was in my power for four days, (him) now I give by force; an accident happened to me; I began to vomit those I had consumed. It’s not because of Lazarus that I’m crying, but I’m afraid that I might lose the others whom I’ve been holding back from Adam until now. I need diligence and a lot of strength; If I do not first seize the one who steals from me with a word, then He will abolish my entire existence. I found what to do - I know what to do! I have Jewish helpers; I hire Judas for myself; he always serves me well; being a lover of money, he valued the ointment of the woman who came at three hundred denarii, to her chagrin; and he valued the ointment at three hundred denarii, and sold the Lord of the world for thirty denarii. I need to work hard to prepare the cross. He took Lazarus from me, and I will drag Him here and count Him among the dead, so that He will know that there is no need to fight against more.” The powers of the underworld (in response): “Do you want to overthrow all of Jesus here? Look: don't bother yourself! You have experience over Him; you wrestled with Him in the wilderness; did you not come up three times and fall three times? If He comes down, what are you going to do?” Having consulted on this and the like, the devil aroused the Jews to great envy, incited them to kill Lazarus, who had risen from the dead, and prepare a cross for the Lord, so that the curse would become a blessing, and the tree of the cross salvation for everyone. By the resurrection of Lazarus, the devil was shocked, the Pharisees were confused, Martha was confirmed, Mary was glorified, the resurrection was foretold, the disciples were strengthened, and many of the believing Jews met our Lord Jesus Christ with branches and fronds, exclaiming and saying: “Hosanna in the highest, blessed is the king of Israel who comes in the name of the Lord.” To him be glory and power forever and ever. Amen. Creations attributed to St. John Chrysostom and in the Patrology of Min, classified as Spuria. The paragraphs in the text were arranged by us. – Editorial staff of “ABC of Faith”