Chapter Three

¹ Now in the fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius Caesar, Pontius Pilate being governor of Judaea, and Herod being tetrarch of Galilee, and his brother Philip tetrarch of the region of Ituraea and Trachonitis, and Lysanias the tetrarch of Abilene, Annas and Caiaphas being the high priests, the word of God came to John the son of Zacharias in the wilderness. And he came into all the country about Jordan, preaching the baptism of repentance to He makes mention of the time and of the rulers rightly, that he may show that the succession of the Jewish rulers had failed in the time of Christ, Pilate, a man of another nation, being governor, and the sons of Herod the Ascalonite being tetrarchs; and so it may fittingly be believed that Christ was at hand, according to the prophecy of Jacob. “And the word of God came,” he says, “to John” — that you may learn that he did not come self-summoned to testify concerning Christ, but moved by the divine Spirit; for by “the word” you will understand either the Holy Spirit or the command of God. And the word of God came to John “in the wilderness”; for since the children of the wilderness — I mean the Church of the Gentiles — were to be more than those of her who had a husband — that is, the Jewish synagogue — fittingly the word and command of God comes to John while he is in the wilderness. And he preached to the peoples a “baptism of repentance,” that is, of confession. And this baptism aided them toward the remission of sins which is given through the baptism of Christ. For the baptism of John did not itself have remission of sins, but contributed to remission — that is, it prepared men to receive the baptism of Christ, which has

² the remission of sins; as it is written in the book of the words of Isaiah the prophet, saying: The voice of one crying in the wilderness, Prepare you the way of the Lord, make his paths straight. Every valley shall be filled, and every mountain and hill shall be brought low; and the crooked shall be made straight, and the rough ways shall be made smooth; and all flesh shall see the salvation of God. The “way” is the conduct that is according to Christ, which he bids to be prepared; for the Lord was about, almost at once, to preach. The “paths” are the commandments of the law, as already well-trodden, which he orders to be made straight; for the Pharisees were perverting the commandments. And the “way” may also be understood as the soul, and the “paths” as the thoughts and the deeds. We must, then, prepare our soul, and make our deeds and thoughts straight. Then, as though someone asked, “And how shall we accomplish this? For virtue is hard to work, having many ravines and difficulties, both from the wicked powers and from the passions dwelling within us” — he says that it shall be in no way laborious, but all things easy. For the ravines shall be filled — that is, our natural powers, which had grown weak toward the good and been brought low, shall be filled up again; and every mountain and hill — I mean the opposing powers, which through pride were lifted up — shall be brought low. For in truth both the opposing powers grew weak, and the desires that seem to be naturally set within us. And all things have been made smooth, and the crooked things have been brought to straightness. For Christ both abolished the opposing powers — which here are called mountains and hills — and revived our natural movements toward the good, which the evangelist called the ravines being filled. For this is why he was made flesh, that he might restore our nature to its proper state. “And all flesh,” he says, “shall see the salvation of God”: no longer Jews only and proselytes, but all flesh; for the Gospel reached to all the earth. There were many other things to say, but for the sake of clearness let these suffice.

³ Then said he to the multitudes that came forth to be baptized of him: O generation of vipers, who has warned you to flee from the wrath to come? Bring forth therefore fruits worthy of repentance, and begin not to say within yourselves, We have Abraham to our father; for I say to you, that God is able of these stones to raise up children to Abraham. And now also the axe is laid to the root of the trees; every tree therefore which brings not forth good fruit is hewn down He calls the Jews a generation of vipers, as oppressing their fathers and mothers; for they say that this creature is born by gnawing through the womb. But also they killed the prophets and the teachers. By “the wrath to come” he means the eternal punishment. And “fruits worthy of repentance” are not only the avoidance of evil, but also the working of the good; for this is truly the fruit and offspring of repentance — to work the good. “And begin not to say within yourselves” that “we are well-born,” and, trusting in your fathers, neglect virtue. For God will be able to give children to the patriarch even from these stones, as he did almost so before; for the womb of Sarah, being harder than stones, was nevertheless graced for childbearing. And the “axe” is the divine judgment, which hews the unworthy out of life. “If, then, you do not repent,” he says, “you shall be hewn out of life; for the axe is laid at the root of you, the trees.” The “root,” then, is life, as we said. But the “root” may also be understood as the kinship of Abraham, from which kinship of Abraham those who are not worthy to be his branches are hewn off, according to the Apostle. And the punishment is twofold; for the sinful and fruitless man is not only hewn off from kinship with the righteous, but also

⁴ and cast into the fire. And the people asked him, saying: What shall we do then? He answers and says to them: He that has two coats, let him impart to him that has none; and he that has meat, let him do likewise. Then came also publicans to be baptized, and said to him: Master, what shall we do? And he said to them: Exact no more than that which is appointed you. And the soldiers likewise demanded of him, saying: And what shall we do? And he said to them: Do violence to no man, neither accuse

⁵ falsely; and be content with your wages. And as the people were in expectation, and all men mused in their hearts of John, whether he were the Christ or not, John answered, saying to them all: I indeed baptize you with water; but one mightier than I comes, the latchet of whose shoes I am not worthy to unloose: he shall baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire; whose fan is in his hand, and he will thoroughly purge his floor, and will gather the wheat into his garner,

⁶ but the chaff he will burn with fire unquenchable. And many other things in his exhortation preached he to the people. John admonishes three orders that came to him: the multitudes, the publicans, and the soldiers. To the multitudes he exhorts attention to almsgiving, bidding him who has two coats to impart to him who has none; to the publicans, to exact nothing more — that is, to demand nothing beyond what is appointed; and to the soldiers, not to plunder, but to be content with their wages, that is, with the bounties customarily given by the king. And see how to the multitudes, as being guileless, he exhorts to do something good — that is, to impart — but to the publicans and soldiers, to abstain from evil; for these had not yet capacity, nor were able to do something good, but it was sufficient for them not to do evil. Some understand also, in a higher sense, “let him that has two coats impart to him that has none”; for they say the two coats are the spirit of Scripture and the letter. He, then, who has the two, John exhorts to impart to him who is wholly naked; that is, if anyone understands Scripture in both ways, according to the letter and according to the spirit, let him impart to him who has not — let him teach the ignorant, and give him at least the letter. And so great was John’s virtue, that all reckoned concerning him, whether perhaps he were the Christ. Repelling, then, such a supposition, he says: “And so great is the difference between me and Christ, that I baptize in water, but he in the Spirit and fire; and another thing, that I am not worthy even to loose the latchet of his shoes.” And what do these things signify? That “he will baptize you in the Spirit and fire” is altogether plain; for indeed he sent the Spirit to the apostles, and tongues of fire appeared, distributed among them. And that he was not worthy to loose the latchet of his shoes — according to the evident sense, that “I am not worthy even to be ranked as his lowest slave.” But in a more hidden sense, the Lord has two shoes: his coming from heaven to the earth, and his coming from earth to Hades; the manner of these two comings no one is able to loose, not even one like John. For who can tell either how he was made flesh, or how he descended into Hades? And “whose fan is in his hand” signifies this: that “even if he baptize you, do not think you are already innocent; but unless you show forth a blameless life thereafter, he will burn you with unquenchable fire.” For he is chaff who has a fruitless mind, and bears only the great rubbish of worldly affairs. “And many other things in his exhortation preached he to the people”; for good teaching is truly an exhortation, and may fittingly be called good tidings.

⁷ But Herod the tetrarch, being reproved by him for Herodias his brother’s wife, and for all the evils which Herod had done,

⁸ added yet this above all, that he shut up John in prison. Now when all the people were baptized, it came to pass, that Jesus also being baptized, and praying, the heaven was opened, and the Holy Spirit descended in a bodily shape like a dove upon him, and a voice came from heaven, which said: You are my beloved Son; in you I am well pleased. Fittingly the evangelist inserts here the things concerning Herod, all but saying this: while the multitude reasoned thus concerning John, Herod, being reproved by him, added this above all, the shutting of him up in prison. As though, then, in indignation he relates these things, and as one suffering grievously that, while the multitude held such an opinion of John, Herod did such deeds. And the heaven is opened, that it may be shown to us that baptism opens heaven to all, which Adam closed. And the Spirit comes down upon Jesus, that from this too we may learn that upon us also when baptized the Spirit comes; for the Lord surely had no need of the Spirit, but does all things for our sake, and himself becomes the firstfruits of all that we were afterward to receive, that he might become the firstborn among many brethren. And as a dove, that we may learn that we must be meek and pure; and because, as in the time of Noah the dove announced the cessation of God’s wrath, so here too the Holy Spirit reconciled us to God, having made a flood of sin. And he is called Son, the voice being borne from the Father, showing that to us also when baptized he granted adoption. “In you I am well pleased,” that is, “in you I have rested.”

⁹ And Jesus himself began to be about thirty years of age, being (as was supposed) the son of Joseph, who was of Heli, who was of Matthat, who was of Levi, who was of Melchi, who was of Janna, who was of Joseph, who was of Mattathias, who was of Amos, who was of Naum, who was of Esli, who was of Naggai, who was of Maath, who was of Mattathias, who was of Semei, who was of Joseph, who was of Juda, who was of Joanna, who was of Rhesa, who was of Zorobabel, who was of Salathiel, who was of Neri, who was of Melchi, who was of Addi, who was of Cosam, who was of Elmodam, who was of Er, who was of Jose, who was of Eliezer, who was of Jorim, who was of Matthat, who was of Levi, who was of Symeon, who was of Juda, who was of Joseph, who was of Jonan, who was of Eliakim, who was of Melea, who was of Menan, who was of Mattatha, who was of Nathan, who was of David, who was of Jesse, who was of Obed, who was of Booz, who was of Salmon, who was of Naasson, who was of Aminadab, who was of Aram, who was of Esrom, who was of Phares, who was of Juda, who was of Jacob, who was of Isaac, who was of Abraham, who was of Thara, who was of Nachor, who was of Saruch, who was of Ragau, who was of Phalec, who was of Eber, who was of Sala, who was of Cainan, who was of Arphaxad, who was of Sem, who was of Noe, who was of Lamech, who was of Mathusala, who was of Enoch, who was of Jared, who was of Maleleel, who was of Cainan, who was of Enos, who was of Seth, who was of Adam, who was of God. The Lord was baptized at thirty years of age, because this is the most perfect age, and at this age a man is either approved or disapproved. And Luke traces his genealogy in reverse order to Matthew, that he may show that he who has now been born in the flesh is from God. For see the genealogy, how it ascends to God; and at the same time, that we may learn that, in order to lead all the intervening fathers up to God and make them sons, for this reason he was made flesh. And I have another thing to say: the birth of the Lord was disbelieved, as being without seed; wishing, then, to show that at another time too a man came to be without seed, the evangelist ascends from the lowest up to Adam and to God, all but saying to us: “If you disbelieve how the second Adam came to be without seed, ascend with me in mind to the first Adam, and you will find him made without seed by God; and thenceforth, disbelieve no longer.” And some inquire how Matthew says Joseph was the son of Jacob, but Luke, the son of Heli; for it is impossible, they say, that the same man should be the son of two fathers. They say, then, to this, that Jacob and Heli were brothers by the same mother, but of different fathers; and when Heli died childless, Jacob took his wife, to raise up seed from her; and so Joseph is said to be the son of Jacob by nature, and of Heli by the law. For Jacob begot him by nature and truly, and so is his natural son; but of Heli he was a son according to the law only. For the law commanded that, if anyone died childless, his wife should be joined to his brother, and the child to be born of this should be reckoned to be the dead man’s, even though by nature it was the living man’s. So that the evangelists speak well, and do not contradict; for Matthew recorded the natural father of Joseph, but Luke the one reckoned his father according to the law, namely Heli — that both might show that for this reason the Lord was born, that he might by force sanctify both nature and law.