61. Therefore, the more perfect are governed without a rod, while the weaker ones eat with a staff. But even Paul threatens with a rod, but in the spirit of meekness he visits those who sin. Finally, in order for you to know that he is a gentle teacher, he seeks the will of those whom he accuses: What do you want, he says, should I come to you with a rod, or in love and the spirit of meekness? (I Cor. IV, 21). He mentioned the rod once, and twice he added milder things, adding meekness to love. However, he had previously threatened with a rod, but he showed gentleness; for in the second letter to the Corinthians, he writes: I call God as my witness, that I did not come to Corinth again to spare you (II Cor. I, 23). Listen to the reason why he thought it necessary to spare them: So that I would not come to you again in sorrow (II Cor. II, 1). He put aside the rod and took on the feeling of charity.
(Vers. 4.)
(Verse 4.) And you have not greeted anyone on the way.
62. Perhaps to some, this may seem harsh and proud, and not in accordance with the gentle and humble command of the Lord, who even ordered that one should give up their place at the table. In this place, He commands His disciples: 'Do not greet anyone on the road.' (Luke 10:4) Although this is a common practice of grace. In this way, those who are lower in rank have often sought to win favor from those above them. Even the Gentiles have such exchanges of courtesies with Christians. How does the Lord tear away this use of humanity?
63. But consider this not only: You shall not greet anyone; but it is not in vain added, 'On your way'. Moreover, when Elisha (2 Kings 4:29) sent his servant to lay his staff on the body of the dead boy, he commanded him not to greet anyone on the way; for he ordered him to hasten in order to perform the duty of celebrating the resurrection, so that he would not be turned away from his task by the conversation of any passerby. Therefore, even here, the zeal for greeting is taken away, but the hindrance to devoutness is removed, so that when divine matters are commanded, human matters are temporarily set aside. Greeting is beautiful, but the mature execution of divine matters, which often delays and offends, is more beautiful. Therefore, even honorable things are prohibited, so that the grace of the ceremony does not creep in as an obstacle to duty and hinder the ministry, for which delay would be a fault.
64. (Verse. 8.) Now another virtue is this, that one should not wander from house to house with ease; so that we may preserve constancy even in hospitable love, and not easily dissolve the bond of friendship once formed; that we may prefer the message of peace, and that the first entrance of peace may be celebrated with a blessing: that we should be content with food and drink offered, not suppressing the banner of faith, and that we should preach the Gospel of the heavenly kingdom, shaking off the dust from our feet if anyone does not think they should be received into the hospitality of the city.
65. (Vers. 13-21.) It also teaches that those who do not follow the Gospel will be subject to a more severe punishment than those who considered the Law to be loosened; because if Tyre and Sidon had seen such great miracles of heavenly operations, they would not have disregarded the remedy of repentance. This worldly abundance or insolence should neither be compared to heavenly gifts, nor should it be left without remedy, as there is assistance for everyone to repent. Finally, it reveals the heavenly mystery that it pleased God to reveal His grace to little ones rather than to the wise of this world. The apostle Paul explained this more fully, saying: 'Did not God make the wisdom of this world foolish? For since, in the wisdom of God, the world did not know God through wisdom, it pleased God through the folly of preaching to save those who believe.' (I Cor. I, 20-21).
66. Therefore let us accept the little one, who does not know how to exalt himself, and boast of his skill in lofty words, like many philosophers do. It was a little one who said: O Lord, my heart is not exalted, nor are my eyes lofty, nor have I walked in great things, nor in wonders above me (Psalm CXXX, 1). And to show that this little one was not young, nor wise, but humble in his humility, and with a certain turning away from boasting, he added: But I have exalted my soul (Ibid., 2). You see how high this little one has been, how lofty at the pinnacle of virtues? Such little ones does the Apostle want us to be, when he says: If anyone among you thinks he is wise in this age, let him become a fool, so that he may become wise; for the wisdom of this age is foolishness before God (1 Corinthians 3:18-19).
67. (Verse 22.) The most beautiful place is connected to faith when it says that all things have been given to it by its Father. When you acknowledge all the laws, you do not deny the all-powerful, unchanging Father; when you acknowledge the given laws, you confess the Son, to whom by nature all things are rightfully his own, not granted as a gift through grace. He added:
(Ibid.) No one knows who the Son is except the Father, and who the Father is except the Son and anyone to whom the Son chooses to reveal him.
68. I remember that I did not mention this place in the books I wrote about Faith (Book IV On Faith, Chapter 6). But so that you may know, just as the Son reveals to whom He wills, the Father also reveals to whom He wills His Son, listen to the Lord Jesus Himself saying when He praised Peter for confessing Him to be the Son of God: Blessed are you, Simon Barjona, because flesh and blood did not reveal this to you, but My Father who is in heaven (Matthew 16:17).
69. (Verse 25.) This passage applies to those who consider themselves experts in the law, who grasp the words of the law but do not understand its meaning. From the very first chapter of the law, it shows that they are ignorant of the law, proving that in the beginning, the law immediately proclaimed the Father and the Son, and also announced the mystery of the Lord's incarnation. It says: You shall love the Lord your God... and you shall love your neighbor as yourself (Deut. 6:5).
70. (Verse 28.) So the Lord said to the scribe: Do this, and you will live. But he, who did not know his neighbor because he did not believe in Christ, answered: Who is my neighbor? Therefore, one who does not know Christ, does not know the Law either. For how can he know the Law, when he ignores the truth, when the Law proclaims the truth?
(Vers 30.)
(Verse 30.) A certain man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and he fell among robbers.
71. In order to better understand the place that has been proposed to us, let us revisit the ancient history of the city of Jericho. We remember that Jericho, as we read in the book called Joshua, was a great city surrounded by walls that could not be penetrated by iron or battering ram (Joshua 6:1). In that city, Rahab the prostitute lived. She received and provided shelter for the spies sent by Joshua, gave them instructions, and when the citizens asked about them, she hid them on her roof. In order to save herself and her people from the destruction of the city, she tied a scarlet cord in the window (Joshua 2:4ff). However, the invincible walls of the city itself fell down at the sound of the seven priestly trumpets and the shout of the jubilant people (Joshua 6:20).
See how each person keeps their own duty: the scouts guard, the prostitute has secrets, the conqueror has trust, the priest has religion. These do not fear danger for praise: she does not betray those she has taken on in danger: he is anxious to preserve trust more than to conquer, he entrusts his safety to the prostitute before the destruction of the city: but the weapons of religion are the insignia of the priest. Now, who would not think that it is a full miracle that no one from the whole city was saved, except for the one whom the prostitute freed?
This is the simple history of truth: which, if considered deeply, signifies wondrous mysteries. For Jericho is the figure of this world, into which Adam, expelled from paradise, that is, from celestial Jerusalem, descended through the transgression of his disobedience, that is, migrating from the spiritual to the earthly: to whom not a change of place, but a change of character, made exile from his nature. Far removed from that Adam, who enjoyed faultless bliss, when he fell into worldly sins, he fell into the hands of thieves: into whom he would not have fallen, if he had not made himself subject to the commandment of heavenly government. Who are these robbers, if not angels of the night and darkness, who sometimes transform themselves into angels of light, but cannot persevere? They strip us of the garments of spiritual grace, and thus are accustomed to inflict wounds; for if we keep the unblemished garments that we have received, we cannot feel the wounds of the robbers. Therefore be careful not to be stripped beforehand, as Adam was stripped beforehand, deprived of the protection of the heavenly commandment, and stripped of the garment of faith, and thus received a deadly wound: in which all of humanity would have perished, if that Samaritan descending had not healed his bitter wounds.
74. This Samaritan is not mediocre, who despised by the priest and the Levite, did not despise himself. Do not despise the name of the sect, for you will marvel at the interpretation of the word; for indeed, Samaritan is a term that signifies guardian. This is its interpretation. And who is a guardian, if not he of whom it is said: The Lord keeps the little ones (Psalm 114:6)? Therefore, just as one Jew is different in letter and another in spirit, so too is the Samaritan, one outwardly and another in secret. So who is this Samaritan descending? Indeed: He who descended from heaven, and who ascends to heaven, the Son of Man who is in heaven (John 3:13)? Seeing the half-dead man, whom no one had been able to heal before, just as she who had spent all her inheritance on doctors in order to stop her flowing blood: he came near him (Luke 8:43-44), that is, he became close to us by taking on our compassion and became our neighbor through the gift of mercy.
(Vers. 34.)
(Verse 34) And he bound up his wounds, pouring oil and wine on them.
75. This doctor has many medicines, with which he is accustomed to heal. His speech is a medicine. One of his speeches binds wounds, another soothes with oil, another pours wine. He binds wounds with a stricter command, soothes with the forgiveness of sin, just as he pierces with wine through the denunciation of judgment.
(Ibid.) And he placed, he said, on his beast.
76. Listen how he obligates himself: He carries our sins, and suffers for us (Isaiah 53:4): and a shepherd put a weary sheep on his shoulders (Luke 15:5). For a man has been made similar to a beast of burden; and therefore he has placed us on his beast of burden, so that we would not be like horses and mules; in order to abolish the weaknesses of our flesh by assuming our human body.
Finally, he led us into a stable, where we were animals. And indeed, it is a stable where the weary often take shelter after a long journey. Therefore, the Lord, who raises up the poor from the earth and lifts up the needy from the dung heap (Psalm 113:7), led us into the stable.