In a third way it is answered that the charge of being a Samaritan touched upon his own dishonor, but the charge about a demon touched upon divine dishonor and was blasphemy against the Holy Spirit, about which Matthew twelve speaks, and it detracted from the glory of the Father. Therefore the Lord taught us to endure our own reproaches, but not divine ones. And this is clear from his response: I do not have a demon, but I honor my Father.
75. Amen, amen I say to you. The Lord has shown that through his teaching there is liberation from the blindness of error and the servitude of sin; here now in a third place he shows that through it there is liberation from the damnation of death. And this indeed is shown as follows. First, against those reviling, he shows the efficacy of his word; second, against those arguing, he shows his excellence; third, to those marveling, his eternity; fourth, to those persecuting, his patient humility.
(Vers. 51.). There is set forth, then, first the commendation of the doctrine of Christ in this, that those who keep it are snatched from death, and this without any doubt: therefore he says: Amen, amen, I say to you, that is, I Jesus assert this in truth: If anyone keeps my word, he shall never taste death. This observance is through the keeping of the commandments; Ecclesiastes 8: "He who keeps the commandment shall experience no evil"; and Wisdom 6: "The keeping of the laws is the consummation of incorruption. And incorruption makes one to be near to God." And such a one does not taste death through experience, namely eternal death, although he may see it, according to that saying of Isaiah last chapter: "They shall go out and see the corpses of men who have transgressed against me"; Matthew 16: "There are some standing here who shall not taste death until they see the Son of Man coming in his kingdom."
76. (Vers. 52.). The Jews therefore said. Here secondly, as the Jews attack, he shows his excellence, which they assail as he teaches: whence they say: Now we know that you have a demon: they could not recognize the good, but were ready for evil: Jeremiah 4: "They are wise to do evil, but to do good they have no knowledge." And indeed they wish to show this by disproving the Lord's saying, both because it is false and because it is proud. That it is false, they show by this reasoning: Abraham is dead and the Prophets; and these kept the word of God: therefore what you say is false: If anyone keeps my word, etc. And that argument is from the greater: for if those who kept the word of God are dead, and those of whom it would seem more likely did not have immortality, therefore etc. For this reason they say: Abraham is dead, who namely kept the word of the Lord: whence in Genesis 22 it was said to Abraham: "In your seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed, because you have obeyed my voice." And the Prophets are dead, to whom the Lord spoke: Ecclesiasticus 46: "The bones of the Prophets sprout from their place." And you say: If anyone keeps my word, he shall never taste death; as if they were saying: you openly speak what is false: nor do you speak only what is false, but proudly: whence they say:
77. (Vers. 53.). Are you greater than our father Abraham, who is dead? As if they were saying: you are not greater, and he himself is dead: Genesis 25: "Failing in age, he died old and full of days"; and also the Prophets are dead: thus neither Abraham nor the Prophets were able to escape death: much less can you. Whom do you make yourself? As if they were saying: why do you praise and exalt yourself? And thus they accuse him that he was praising himself and speaking falsely, because he was setting himself before Abraham, since no one escapes death: 2 Kings 14: "We all die and like waters slip away into the earth, which do not return."
To this attack the Lord responds, showing his excellence in relation to Abraham. Before, however, he declares his excellence, he avoids arrogance, lest he seem to say this through boasting: therefore in responding he asserts that he does not seek his own glory: and for this reason he says:
78. (Verse 54.). Jesus answered: If I glorify myself, my glory is nothing, that is, it will be regarded by you as vain, just as the glory by which someone praises and commends himself is regarded as vain: whence they said to him above in the same chapter: "You bear witness about yourself; your witness is not true." That is, if I alone: I is taken distributively: Second Corinthians 10: "Not he who commends himself is approved, but he whom God commends." But not I alone glorify myself; rather, another with me; for this reason he says: It is my Father who glorifies me; whence above in chapter one: "We saw his glory, the glory as of the Only-begotten from the Father"; Second Peter 1: "Being made spectators of his greatness; for receiving from God the Father honor and glory," etc. Whom you say is your God, that is, whom you say as Father is your God: and thus you ought to believe him: for he is the God of Abraham and Isaac and Jacob, Exodus 3: but you do not believe: whence:
79. (Verse 55.). And you have not known him: for they were among those of whom it is said in Titus 1: "They profess to know God, but by their deeds they deny him." But I know him, and this indeed not out of boasting, but for the sake of speaking the truth. Whence: And if I say that I do not know him, I will be like you, a liar: and therefore it is necessary to say that I know him. Augustine: "Let arrogance be avoided in such a way that truth is not abandoned." And therefore he asserts this again: I do not say that I do not know him, but I know him and I keep his word: and this is truly to know God, because it is said in First John 2: "He who says that he knows God and does not keep his commandments is a liar." Thus therefore, having avoided arrogance, the Lord manifests his excellence: because they did not believe that he was greater than Abraham: therefore he shows that he is greater: therefore he says:
80. (Verse 56.). Abraham, your father, rejoiced to see my day: he saw it and was glad, as at one greater than himself. Gregory says that he then rejoiced when he saw three men and worshipped one, Genesis 18: whence Luke 10: "Blessed are the eyes that see what you see," etc.
Or it can be said otherwise, that Abraham rejoiced to see at the Lord's calling, Genesis 12.
But he saw and was glad in the Lord's firm promise, Genesis 15, where the Lord promised, and "Abraham believed, and it was reckoned to him as righteousness"; and again in the confirmation of the covenant, in the giving of circumcision it is said that Abraham laughed, whence also he was glad, Genesis 17.
81. (Vers. 57.). The Jews therefore said to him. Here, thirdly, as the Jews marveled, he showed his eternity. They marveled at what he said, that Abraham had seen his day; whence they say: You are not yet fifty years old, and you have seen Abraham? As if to say: this is altogether impossible. And it should be noted that they do not say: Abraham saw you, but you Abraham, as though always esteeming Abraham as greater. Chrysostom puts forty, because according to their estimation the Lord was approaching his fortieth year. To this astonishment, therefore, the Lord adds his response, in which he showed his eternity. And therefore it is not surprising if he gives immortality to others, because he also preceded Abraham, as the Creator precedes the creature; whence:
82. (Vers. 58.). Jesus therefore said to them: Amen, amen, I say to you, that is, I assert in truth: before Abraham was made, as a creature is brought into being, I am. He does not say: I was made, because his being did not begin; he does not say: I was, because his being does not pass into the past. Therefore it is said in Exodus three: "I am who I am," because his being is uncreated and intransible; whence Gregory: "The Divinity has no past tense, but always has being; therefore he rightly says: I am, not I was "; Ecclesiasticus twenty-four: "I came forth from the mouth of the Most High, the firstborn before every creature."
83. (Vers. 59.). They therefore took up stones, etc. Here, fourthly, as the Jews persecuted him, the Lord showed his humility: for they wished to stone him; therefore he says: The Jews therefore took up stones to cast at him. Gregory: "Unable to bear these words of eternity, the minds of the unbelieving ran to stones; and him whom they could not understand, they sought to crush." Therefore they wished to kill him, because he seemed to have blasphemed; whence Leviticus twenty-four: "He who blasphemes the name of the Lord shall surely die; the whole multitude shall stone him with stones." The Lord therefore humbly fled this unjust persecution, though he could have overcome it by power; whence he says: But Jesus hid himself and went out of the temple, according to that of Romans twelve: "Not defending yourselves, but give place to wrath"; and First Peter two: "When he was reviled, he did not revile in return."
Questions.
84. Question I. But it is asked here: since the Jews were scandalized and did not understand the Lord, because they understood only in a carnal manner, why is it that the Lord did not cease from preaching?
I respond: It must be said that the Lord spoke in such a way that they could have understood spiritually, but by the just judgment of God they were blinded; nor did he cease from preaching, because, as Gregory says, "when the perversity of the wicked increases, preaching ought not to be diminished, but increased."
85. Question II. It is asked concerning what he says: If I glorify myself, my glory is nothing.
On the contrary: 1. He who can testify can also praise: but above in the same chapter he said that he could testify concerning himself: therefore he could also glorify himself.
2. Likewise, the heretic objects: The Father glorifies the Son; the Son cannot glorify himself: therefore he is less than the Father.
I respond: This is solved in two ways: either such that what has now been said is understood according to his human nature: or such that glory is understood to be nothing not according to truth, but according to the estimation of the Jews.
86. Question III. Likewise, there is a question about what he says, that they did not know the Father, since it is said in the Law: Your God is one God: and this they believed.
I respond: It must be said that Father is said in two ways: in one way essentially, and thus the Jews knew God the Father, because in this way it belongs to the whole Trinity in relation to creation. In another way it is said personally in relation to the Son, and thus they did not know him, as Augustine says, just as they did not know the Son.
87. Question IV. Likewise, there is a question about the fact that the Lord hid himself. It seems that he feared and was imperfect, because it belongs to the imperfect to fear and to flee.
I respond: He hid himself as a sign that "truth, when it does not find a humble mind, flees," as Gregory says. As an example, "so that, even when we can resist, we may avoid the wrath of the proud," as Gregory also says. To preserve the opportune time, he hid himself who later offered himself to persecutions, in order to show that he was a true man: whence Augustine says: "As a man he fled from stones, but woe to those from whose stony hearts God flees."