6—5
Mt 6:19-34
19. Lay not up to yourselves treasures on earth: where the rust, and moth consume, and where thieves break through, and steal. 20. But lay up to yourselves treasures in heaven: where neither the rust nor moth doth consume, and where thieves do not break through, nor steal. 21. For where thy treasure is, there is thy heart also. 22. The light of thy body is thy eye. If thy eye be single, thy whole body shall be lightsome. 23. But if thy eye be evil thy whole body shall be darksome. If then the light that is in thee, be darkness: the darkness itself how great shall it be! 24. No man can serve two masters. For either he will hate the one, and love the other: or he will sustain the one, and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon. 25. Therefore I say to you, be not solicitous for your life, what you shall eat, nor for your body, what you shall put on. Is not the life more than the meat: and the body more than the raiment? 26. Behold the birds of the air, for they neither sow, nor do they reap, nor gather into barns: and your heavenly Father feedeth them. Are not you of much more value than they? 27. And which of you by taking thought, can add to his stature one cubit? 28. And for raiment why are you solicitous? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they labour not, neither do they spin. 29. But I say to you, that not even Solomon in all his glory was arrayed as one of these. 30. And if the grass of the field, which is to day, and to morrow is cast into the oven, God doth so clothe: how much more you, O ye of little faith? 31. Be not solicitous therefore, saying: What shall we eat: or what shall we drink, or wherewith shall we be clothed? 32. For after all these things do the heathens seek. For your Father knoweth that you have need of all these things. 33. Seek ye therefore first the kingdom of God, and his justice, and all these things shall be added unto you. 34. Be not therefore solicitous for to morrow; for the morrow will be solicitous for itself. Sufficient for the day is the evil thereof.
(19) Lay not up to yourselves treasures . Above, the Lord determined that we should not do works for the sake of glory. Here he teaches that we should not set riches as the end of our good works. For there are two evils — covetousness and vainglory — which follow upon each other. For many seek riches not for necessity but for display. Or it can be continued thus: The Lord above did not teach or exhort us to give alms or to pray, but he taught the manner of doing these things. Now he wishes to lead us to do these works: first, almsgiving; secondly, prayers, at the words Ask (Mt 7:7); thirdly, fasting, at the words Narrow is the way (Mt 7:14).
Or, in another way: Above he taught that we should give alms and fast not for glory; here he wishes further to show that "no man can serve two masters." But the first interpretation is more consonant with the text and is Chrysostom's. According to this sense, therefore, since all come to the same thing, he does two things: first, he teaches us to avoid excessive concern for riches; secondly, solicitude about necessities, at the words Therefore I say to you .
Regarding the first, he does two things. First, he warns us not to accumulate superfluous riches and proves it from the reason of their instability; secondly, from the harm that results, at the words For where thy treasure is .
Regarding the first, he does two things. First, he sets forth the instability of earthly riches; secondly, he sets forth the stability of heavenly riches, which we ought to accumulate, at the words But lay up to yourselves treasures .
He says, therefore, first: I say that we should not do good works for earthly glory, but neither should we accumulate riches, and this is Lay not up , etc., on earth , i.e., in any earthly thing. But according to this, it seems that kings and bishops act against this precept. But it must be said that two things are to be understood in a treasure, namely, abundance, which is twofold — necessary and superfluous. For a private man, it is superfluous to accumulate royal riches; but for a king it is not, because he needs them for the guardianship and defense of the kingdom. Hence what is forbidden is to accumulate riches beyond the necessity of one's person or office. The other thing understood in a treasure is the trust that is placed in riches, and this too is forbidden; and this is Lay not up to yourselves treasures : "Charge the rich of this world" (1 Tim 6:17); "They treasure up silver and gold" (Bar 3:17).
Consequently, he shows the instability: Where the rust and moth consume . And he sets forth three ways in which riches are literally destroyed: for riches are either held in metals, or in garments, or in gems and the like. Metals are consumed by rust; garments by moths; thieves carry off gems. Or, in another way: another reading has where the moth and they are consumed and consumption destroys ; and Chrysostom expounds this: temporal things are destroyed in three ways — on the part of the things themselves, because from the garment the moth proceeds; from the extravagance of the possessor, hence he says they consume ; from outsiders, hence he says thieves . But it could be said that this does not always happen; and Chrysostom says that even if it does not always happen, yet it frequently does; and even if it does not happen frequently, yet it is possible; and this is what the Lord wishes to argue, because he teaches us to place hope in things perpetual and stable: "What the locust left, the swarming locust has eaten" (Joel 1:4). Mystically, rust appears, but the moth is hidden; hence by "rust" can be understood carnal sins, and by "moth" spiritual sins. For some sins are committed against oneself, and this is understood by rust and moth; some cause scandal to another, and this by thieves. Or, in another way: rust dims what is beautiful, hence it can represent pride, which lies in ambush against good works to destroy them. As bronze, the moth corrodes garments, which are exterior works consumed by envy: "As a worm in wood" (Pr 25:20). Demons, moreover, when they cannot deceive, stealthily draw one to vainglory, and this is where thieves .
(20) Having set forth earthly instability, he sets forth the stability of the heavenly treasure. Hence lay up to yourselves treasures , i.e., accumulate a multitude of rewards in the heavenly places. And it should be noted, according to Augustine, that this is not to be understood of the corporeal heaven, because we should not fix our heart on any evil corporeal thing, nor have our treasure there. Hence in heaven should be understood as in spiritual goods, i.e., in God himself: "The heaven of heaven is the Lord's" (Ps 115:16). And he says "treasure" because if a carnal man wishes to accumulate more and more on earth, it should not suffice him to have just any state in heavenly things, but he should have a greater reward; and therefore he says treasure , i.e., be rich in rewards. And he says to yourselves , because as Job (35:7) says: "If you act justly, what do you give him?" How one should treasure up is shown in Luke 19 (Mt 19:21): "If you wish to be perfect." Therefore one treasures up through almsgiving, and therefore Chrysostom says that here he urges almsgiving. This treasure is incorruptible because it has no corruption from within — neither rust on the part of the body: "This corruptible must put on incorruptibility" (1 Cor 15:53); nor on the part of the soul: "Your people shall all be righteous" (Is 60:21); nor from without, i.e., from adversaries, that is, demons — and this is "where thieves break through" — neither secretly nor openly: "They shall not hurt nor destroy" (Is 11:9).
(21) For where thy treasure is . Here he wishes to show that we should treasure up in heaven and not on earth, first because of the harm that results, which is twofold. The first is the distraction of the heart; the second, alienation from God, at the words No man can serve two masters . Regarding the first, he does two things. First, he sets forth the harm of the distraction of the heart; secondly, he shows the magnitude of this harm, at the words The light of thy body .
He says, therefore: I said that thieves break through , etc. But there remains another disadvantage. Hence, where thy treasure is . For where the love is, there is the eye: "We look not at the things which are seen" (2 Cor 4:18); but these do the opposite: "The eyes of a fool are in the ends of the earth" (Pr 17:24).
(22) And because this harm, namely, the distraction of the heart, few consider, therefore the Lord shows how great this danger is by a certain example. Hence The light of thy body is thy eye ; through sensible things he instructs about intelligible things. And this can be read in two ways. First, so that the Lord proposes a likeness from the corporeal eye and afterward adapts the likeness to spiritual things, at the words If then the light that is in thee ; and this exposition is plain. And regarding this he does three things: first, he demonstrates the function of the eye; secondly, the advantage of a good eye; thirdly, the harm of a bad eye. He says, therefore: The light of thy body is thy eye , the corporeal eye, which directs like a lamp. If thy eye be single , i.e., strong for seeing, according to Jerome — otherwise it could not be understood of the corporeal eye. Hence "single" means strong for seeing. For when a man has a weak eye, one thing appears as two. Hence if the eye can fix on one thing because of its strength, thy whole body shall be lightsome ; for through the light of the eye, light is received to direct all the members in their acts. But if thy eye be evil , i.e., disturbed, namely, bleary, then also thy body , i.e., all the members, will act as though in darkness.
(23) Consequently, he adapts: If then the light that is in thee be darkness , namely, the light of reason, the darkness itself how great shall it be! Of this light, the Psalm says: "The light of your countenance is signed upon us" (Ps 4:6). He means to say, therefore, that if the heart, which is the eye of the soul, is darkened by applying itself to earthly things, the other eyes, which by their nature are darkness because they can only know corporeal things, will be the greatest darkness. Hence if reason, which has power over spiritual things, is directed to earthly things, then all the senses will be directed to earthly things; and this is if then the light , etc. Or, in another way: the Lord wishes here to speak of the spiritual eye, and if then the light , etc., is brought in to prove the preceding by an argument from the lesser. He says, therefore, the light of thy body is thy eye . Here "eye" can be expounded in four ways: of reason, as has been said, and this according to Chrysostom and Hilary. For just as by a lamp men are illuminated for seeing, so by reason for acting: "The spirit of man is the lamp of the Lord" (Pr 20:27). If thy eye be single , i.e., if your reason is wholly directed toward one thing, namely, toward God, thy whole body , etc.; and if evil , i.e., applied to earthly things, thy whole body , etc. And this can be understood in two ways. It will be lightsome or darksome as to present works: lightsome if all exterior members work for the sake of God — and this happens when reason is directed toward God, because then the members are kept pure from sin, since sin proceeds only from the consent of the mind; but darksome if reason has been occupied with earthly things, because then the members will be occupied with works of darkness: "Let us cast off the works of darkness" (Rom 13:12).
Or, in another way, according to Hilary: if the eye, i.e., if reason is simply directed toward God, thy whole body shall be lightsome , because from the brightness of the soul, brightness overflows to the body. Thus it is said: "The righteous will shine" (Mt 13:43). But if evil , etc. In another way, according to Augustine, by the eye is understood the intention. For just as a man first looks at the distance to his destination, then proceeds, so in acting, he first determines the end, and from the end the intention proceeds to acting; therefore the eye directs: "Her lamp does not go out at night" (Pr 31:18). Hence if the intention is pure, the work or the whole body of works proceeding from that intention will be pure — and this should be understood of things that are good in themselves, because as it is said in Romans: "Their condemnation is just" who said "Let us do evil" (Rom 3:8). But if the intention is perverted, the whole operation is rendered dark. Nor should it seem strange that works are signified by the body, because as it says in Colossians (3:5): "Put to death your members."
Thirdly, Chromatius says: the eye of the soul is faith, which directs every work: "Your word is a lamp to my feet" (Ps 119:105); it is "single" when it does not waver; but it "works through love" (Gal 5:6). But if faith is corrupted, the whole body, i.e., the work, is dark: "Whatever is not of faith is sin" (Rom 14:23). Or, in another way: the eye is the prelate, who is the eye of those he oversees, as in Kings: "The men said" etc., "Do not extinguish the lamp of Israel" (2 Sam 21:17); "According to the judge of the people" (Sir 10:2).
As to what he says, If then the light , according to the first exposition, he draws a syllogism from the preceding; but according to these expositions, he proves the preceding, as if to say: You say, "if your eye," etc.; proof: If then the light , about which less provision is made, the darkness itself , etc. If the light of reason is darkness, the work too; and as to this, the exposition does not change. But applied to the others, it is thus, because as Augustine says, anyone can know from his intention what he is like, but what effects his work has he cannot know. Hence the lamp is the intention, but the work is the darkness: "Everything that is manifest is light" (Eph 5:13), but the work is not manifest. Or, in another way, according to Augustine: there are two kinds of works, of light and of darkness. The works of light are works of justice. If, therefore, a work of justice in you is dark, i.e., done with an evil intention, the darkness itself , i.e., evil actions, how great shall it be! Or, in another way: if faith is bad, all other things that are directed by faith will also be bad; and similarly, if a prelate is bad, much more so his subjects.
(24) No man can serve two masters . Above, the Lord set forth one lesson, that we should not accumulate treasures on earth because the heart is distracted by this; now he sets forth another, namely, that it makes one alienated from God, and this is No man can serve two masters . Or it can be continued in another way: Above he warned that we should not accumulate treasures on earth but in heaven; but someone could say: I wish to accumulate both in heaven and on earth. And therefore the Lord here shows this to be impossible, saying No man can . But the first is better and is Chrysostom's. This text can be read in two ways: first, so that No man can is understood as a conclusion or inference, and then the Lord, according to the exposition of Chrysostom and Jerome, proceeds from common opinions to demonstrate his point. In another way, it can be understood as the Lord first proposing what he intends and then proceeding; and this according to Augustine. Let us pursue both. According to the first exposition, therefore, he does two things: first, he sets forth the common opinion and custom of men; secondly, he assigns the reason, at the words For either he will . He says, therefore, No man can . The reason for this appears if we understand what a servant properly is and what a master. For the character of a servant consists in this, that he belongs to another, namely, to the master. Hence his end is his master. But it is impossible for one to be carried toward two things as toward ultimate ends. If, therefore, to be a servant is to order one's acts toward the master as toward an ultimate end, it is impossible to serve two masters: "The bed is too narrow" (Is 28:20). Yet a servant could have two masters, of whom one is under the other, just as one end is under another; or according to the Gloss: "No man can serve two masters" who are contrary, because if they agree, they are one.
He assigns the reason: For either he will hate the one . And it should be known that dominion is twofold. For some rule in such a way that they are loved by their subjects, and this is royal dominion; some rule in such a way that they are feared, and this is that of tyrants. If, therefore, a servant serves a master with love, he must needs hate the contrary one; but if a servant serves with fear, then he must sustain , i.e., endure, the other ; and this is either he will hate the one , etc. About this dominion that is to be endured rather than loved: "When the wicked shall seize power, the people will groan" (Pr 29:2), i.e., "he will sustain" by enduring. "No man, therefore, can serve two masters"; but God and the devil are contrary because they incline to contrary things; therefore you cannot serve God and mammon . Mammon , i.e., riches, in the Persian language, according to Jerome.
Yet it should be known that it is one thing to abound in riches and another to serve them. For some abound and yet order them to good, and these do not serve riches; some have them and yet reap no fruit from them, neither bodily nor spiritual, and these serve them because they afflict themselves to accumulate riches: "There is also another evil" (Eccl 6:1). For in whatever thing a man establishes his ultimate end, that thing is his god: "Whose god is their belly" (Phil 3:19). Or by "mammon" is understood the devil, who presides over riches — not that he can give them, but because he uses them for deceiving. For a particular spirit presides over individual vices. Hence the spirit of avarice is said to entice men to sin through avarice. This is one exposition of No man can , namely, that it be read inferentially and generally. Augustine, however, understands it spiritually, namely, of God and the devil, who are contraries: "What agreement has Christ with Belial?" (2 Cor 6:15), and that you cannot be partakers of both: "How long do you halt between two sides?" (1 Kgs 18:21). Either he will hate the one , i.e., the devil, and love the other , i.e., God.
And note that he did not say the reverse, but said or he will sustain the one , because every creature naturally turns to loving God. But the devil, because he has a depraved nature, is immediately an object of horror, since no one loves evil; and therefore he said or he will sustain the one , because the devil is endured as an oppressive tyrant, just as someone would endure the master of a maidservant to whom he is joined — not because he loves the master but because of the maidservant. So the covetous man endures the devil because of covetousness, which is the maidservant of the devil. Hence when anyone wishes to enjoy any sin, in order to enjoy it he suffers the servitude of the devil; and this is or he will sustain the one . And insofar as he endures, he departs from the commandments of God, and in departing he despises; and this is and despise the other . But an objection is raised here from what is said, that God is not hated, because the Psalm says: "The pride of those who hate you" (Ps 74:23); therefore someone does hate God. Because of this authority, Augustine in his book of Retractations retracts what he had previously said, that God is not hated. But both are true: for if one considers what God is, namely, goodness itself, he cannot be hated, because good is always loved in itself; but he can be hated as to the effect that is contrary to one's will. Thus it is clear that one cannot serve two masters: "Woe to the sinner who walks the earth by two ways" (Sir 2:12).
(25) Therefore I say to you . After the Lord had shown that we should not set our end in superfluous earthly treasures, he wishes also to show the same regarding the acquisition of necessities; and this is Therefore I say to you . And regarding this he does two things: first, he forbids solicitude about necessities with respect to the present; secondly, with respect to the future, at the words Be not therefore solicitous for to morrow . Regarding the first, he does two things: first, he proposes what he intends; secondly, he proves the proposition, at the words Is not the life more . He says, therefore, Therefore I say to you — as if to say: because you cannot serve God and mammon, therefore no one should serve riches, so that you may serve God.
Nor for your life . But it seems that the soul does not need food. But it must be said that although it does not need food of itself, yet it needs it insofar as it is joined to the body, because otherwise it could not be there. Or "life" is taken here as bodily life: "He who loves his life" (Jn 12:25).
Nor for your body . Note that from this statement heresies took their origin. For according to Augustine, there were some who said that it was not lawful for a contemplative man to work, and against these Augustine wrote the book On the Work of Monks . But how what the Lord says should be understood, we must investigate from the saints. For it is said: "He who does not wish to work, let him not eat" (2 Thess 3:10), and this is understood of manual labor, as is clear from what precedes it. Hence even by way of example, the Apostle himself worked with his hands.
But are all bound to this? If all, it is either a precept or a counsel. If a precept, no one should omit it; if a counsel: to whom was this counsel given? It is clear that it was given to those people, because at that time there were no religious. But no one is bound to a counsel except by vow; therefore all could desist. It must be said that this is a precept and all are bound to it, because it is given to all. For the Apostle speaks to the whole Church. But something is commanded in two ways: in itself and on account of something else. For example: if you have taken up the cross to go overseas, it is commanded that you go, and this is commanded in itself; but that you seek a ship is commanded not for itself but on account of something else, because whoever is bound to some end is also bound to all the things that are for that end. But everyone is bound to the preservation of his life by the law of nature, and therefore they are bound to all other things by which life is preserved. If, therefore, someone has the means to live, he is not bound to labor with his hands; and therefore the Apostle does not say "with hands," but "he who does not wish to work," etc. — as if to say: you are bound to labor in the same way as you are bound to eat. But who is bound to labor with his hands — let this be set aside for the present. As for what he says, be not solicitous , it should be known that solicitude pertains to providence; but not every providence is solicitude. Rather, "solicitude" properly denotes providence with zeal, which is a vehement application of the mind. Hence here solicitude implies a vehement application of the mind. In this vehement application, sin can occur in four ways. First, when it is directed toward temporal things as toward an ultimate end; and according to this, it is reproved: "Anxious expectation will lead to destruction" (Pr 11:7). Secondly, when one excessively attends to acquiring temporal things; and so it is taken: "But to the sinner God gave gathering" etc. and afterward: "This also is vanity and empty solicitude" (Eccl 2:26). Thirdly, when the mind too much occupies itself with the thought of temporal things. Hence Jerome: "Solicitude is to be avoided, but labor is to be practiced"; and so it is taken: "He who is joined to a wife is solicitous" (1 Cor 7:33), because the heart is distracted to various things. Fourthly, when solicitude is accompanied by a certain fear and despair. For it seems to some that they can never acquire enough that could suffice for them. And all these things are forbidden here, as is clear from what follows. And in this last way it is taken: "Be not solicitous" about finding the donkeys (1 Sam 9:20), i.e., do not despair of finding them.