Lk. 11:23. He who is not with Me is against Me; and he who does not gather with Me scatters.
Lk. 11:24. When the unclean spirit goes out of a man, it passes through waterless places, seeking rest, and not finding it, says: I will return to my house from which I came out;
Lk. 11:25. and, having come, he finds it swept and put in order;
Lk. 11:26. then it goes and takes with itself seven other spirits more evil than itself, and having entered, they dwell there, – and the last state of that man becomes worse than the first.
And in another way. What fellowship is there between Me and Beelzebub? My work is to gather the scattered children of God, while his work consists in scattering those who have been gathered. How then do you conclude about Me that I have fellowship with Satan? Truly, such a thought arose in you because you are now in greater fellowship with demons. The unclean spirit dwelt in you even before, when you served idols and killed the prophets. Then, apparently, he went out from you. But now he has returned again "to his house," that is, to your souls, with "seven spirits," that is, many (for the number "seven" in Scripture is often used in the sense of "many"), and made "the last state worse than the first" for you. For then, when you served idols, you killed the prophets, but you had not yet offered open insult to the Son of God, who for your sake appeared in the flesh. But now what hope of salvation is there, when you remain in the same ingratitude and audacity even after the Son became incarnate and works miracles for your sake?
"Waterless places" are the souls of those who have no softness whatsoever — souls that are hardened and preoccupied with themselves. Since the evil one has no place to dwell in such souls, he returns to the Jews, and the last state becomes worse for them than the first. Thus, they now no longer have prophets, for they killed the Word, nor anointing, for they crucified Christ (the Anointed One). Before, although they served idols, prophets and anointing were seen among them; but now they have lost everything, because they sinned against the Son of God.
Lk. 11:27. And it came to pass, as He spake these things, a certain woman of the company lifted up her voice, and said unto Him, Blessed is the womb that bare Thee, and the paps which Thou hast sucked!
While the Pharisees and scribes disparage the miracles of the Lord, a woman, a guileless and simple person, glorifies Him. Where are those who say that the Lord appeared in mere semblance? For behold the testimony that He was even nursed at the breast!
Lk. 11:28. But He said: blessed are those who hear the word of God and keep it.
But He blesses those who keep the word of God, not, however, in order to deprive His Mother of blessedness, but in order to show that even She would have received no benefit from having given birth to Him and nursed Him at Her breast, if She had not possessed all the other virtues. He says this also because it is timely. Since those who envied Him and did not listen to His words reviled those who did listen, He, contrary to them, especially blesses those who listen. Perhaps He also says this on account of the healed deaf man, so that he too, having heard the word, might keep it, lest the ability to hear that was granted him should serve to his condemnation.
Lk. 11:29. When the people were gathered thick together, He began to say: this generation is wicked; it seeketh a sign, and no sign shall be given to it, except the sign of Jonah the prophet;
"When... the people began to gather in great numbers," the Lord began to rebuke the foolish. Among them were some who desired that Jesus perform a sign from heaven; for they said: the signs He performs are from the earth, and He performs them by the power of Beelzebul, the prince of the world, who has authority over the earth; but He cannot perform signs from heaven, because He is not the Son of the Heavenly Father. Since some spoke thus, the Lord rebukes them and says: a sign shall be given to you that will prove that I am the true Son of the Heavenly Father. What sign? "The sign of Jonah," that is, the sign of the Resurrection (Jonah 2:1).
Lk. 11:30. For as Jonah was a sign to the Ninevites, so also shall the Son of Man be to this generation.
For just as he spent three days in the belly of the whale, so too shall I spend three days in the belly of the whale, the great beast, that is, Hades, and rise again. When Jonah, cast out by the whale and as if brought back to life, began to preach, the Ninevites listened (Jonah 3:3–6); but even after My Resurrection, this generation will not believe in Me. Therefore they will be condemned for not imitating the Ninevites, even though here is one greater than Jonah. For My dignity and manner of preaching represent a great difference. I am the Master, he is a servant. I preach the Kingdom of Heaven, he preached salvation from threatening destruction. I perform miracles, he performed no miracle.
Lk. 11:31. The queen of the south will rise up in the judgment with the men of this generation and will condemn them, for she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon; and behold, something greater than Solomon is here.
Lk. 11:32. The men of Nineveh shall rise up in the judgment with this generation, and shall condemn it: for they repented at the preaching of Jonah; and, behold, a greater than Jonah is here.
The Queen of the South shall likewise condemn this generation, for she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon.
By the "queen of the south," understand also every soul that is strong and steadfast in goodness. Let me explain. The north, when it serves as a symbol of the dwelling place of the adversary, is not approved by Scripture, because it chills and brings deadness and numbness; but the south (as the opposite of the north) is approved, because the south wind brings warmth, enlivening, and warms even the numbed parts. Therefore in the Song of Songs the bride, driving away the north, says: "Arise... from the north and come from the south" (Song 4:16), and the prophet again says: "And the one coming from the north I will remove from you," that is, Satan (Joel 2:20). Thus the soul that reigns in the south, that is, in the gracious land of the spiritual life, and that has grown strong through the exercise of active virtue, comes to hear wisdom, that is, ascends to contemplation. For the wisdom of Solomon, the peaceful king, is the contemplation of our Lord and God, which no one will attain unless through the exercise of active virtue he becomes a king and master in the virtuous life.
Lk. 11:33. No one, having lit a lamp, puts it in a hidden place, nor under a basket, but on a lampstand, so that those who enter may see the light.
Since the envious Jews, looking at the miracles, perversely interpreted them out of malice of mind, the Lord says the following: people who received a "lamp" from God, that is, the gift of the mind, by which we see, as if by a light given to us, hid their discernment and, darkening themselves with envy, do not see the miracles and benefactions, even though we received the mind for the purpose of placing it on a lampstand, so that others too might "see the light." In my opinion, He says this: Pharisee! You have knowledge — this is the lamp. You ought to have used this knowledge to recognize the miracles yourself and to declare and explain to others that they are the works of the Son of God, and not of Beelzebul. In this way, "those entering," that is, those newly introduced and just beginning, would have seen the light. For whoever is wise has already entered; but whoever is still learning is only entering.
Lk. 11:34. The lamp of the body is the eye; therefore, if your eye is clear, then your whole body will be full of light; but if it is bad, then your body will be dark.
Lk. 11:35. Look therefore whether the light that is in thee be not darkness.
Lk. 11:36. If then your whole body is wholly light, having no dark part, then it will be entirely light, as when a lamp illuminates you with its radiance.
But you, Pharisees, did not wish to do this, and the eye of the soul, that is, the mind, which was until now straight, you have twisted and darkened. For just as the eye of the body, whatever it is like, makes the body the same — for example, if it is clear, then the body is also light, and if it is dark, then the body is also gloomy — so too the soul is disposed according to the state of the mind. If the eye and the light received by it from God begin to be darkened by envy or covetousness, or to speak generally, by love for material things, then the soul too is darkened.
Lk. 11:37. When He was saying this, a certain Pharisee asked Him to dine with him. He came in and reclined at table.