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1 <html>
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2 <head>
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3 </head>
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4 <body style=text-align:justify><blockquote>
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5 <p style="text-align: center"><span style="font-size: 60pt">3</span></p>
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6 <p style="text-align: center; margin-bottom: 0.125in"><span style="font-weight: bold">LECTURE 1</span></p>
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7 <BLOCKQUOTE><p>1 There was a certain Pharisee named Nicodemus, a member of the Sanhedrin. 2 He came to
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8 Jesus at night and said to him, &#8220;Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher come from God, for no
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9 one could perform the signs you perform, unless he had God with him.&#8221; 3 Jesus responded
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10 and said to him,</p>
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11 <p style="margin-left: 0.5in">&#8220;Amen, amen, I say to you,<BR>
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12 unless one is born again,<BR>
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13 he cannot see the kingdom of God.&#8221;</p>
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14 <p>4 Nicodemus said to him, &#8220;How can a man be born again when he is already an old man? Is it
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15 possible for him to return to his mother&#8217;s womb and be born all over again?&#8221; 5 Jesus replied,</p>
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16 <p style="margin-left: 0.5in">&#8220;Amen, amen, I say to you,<BR>
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17 unless one is born again of water and the Holy Spirit,<BR>
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18 he cannot enter the kingdom of God.<BR>
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19 6 What is born of flesh is itself flesh;<BR>
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20 and what is born of Spirit is itself spirit.&#8221;</p></BLOCKQUOTE>
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21 <p>423 Above, the Evangelist showed Christ&#8217;s power in relation to changes affecting nature;
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22 here he shows it in relation to our reformation by grace, which is his principal subject.
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23 Reformation by grace comes about through spiritual generation and by the conferring of
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24 benefits on those regenerated. First, then, he treats of spiritual generation. Secondly, of the
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25 spiritual benefits divinely conferred on the regenerated, and this in chapter five.</p>
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26 <p>As to the first he does two things. First, he treats of spiritual regeneration in relation to the
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27 Jews. Secondly, of the spreading of the fruits of this regeneration even to foreign peoples, and
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28 this in chapter four. Concerning the first he does two things. First, he explains spiritual
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29 regeneration with words. Secondly, he completes it with deeds (3:22).</p>
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30 <p>As to the first he does three things. First, he shows the need for a spiritual regeneration.
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31 Secondly, its quality (3:4). Thirdly, its mode and nature (3:9). As to the first he does two
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32 things. First, he mentions the occasion for showing this need. Secondly, the need itself for
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33 this regeneration (3:3).</p>
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34 <p>The occasion was presented by Nicodemus; hence he says, <span style="font-weight: bold">There was a certain Pharisee
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35 named Nicodemus. </span>And he describes him as to his person, from the time, and from his
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36 statements.</p>
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37 <p>424 he describes his person in three ways. First, as to his religion, because he was a Pharisee,
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38 hence he says, <span style="font-weight: bold">There was a certain Pharisee. </span>For there were two sects aniong the Jews: the
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39 Pharisees and the Sadducees. The Pharisees were closer to us in their beliefs, for they
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40 believed in the resurrection, and admitted the existence of spiritual creatures. The Sadducees,
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41 on the other hand, disagree more with us, for they believed neither in the resurrection to come
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42 nor in the existence of spirits. The former were called Pharisees, as being separated from the
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43 others. And because their opinion was the more credible and nearer to the truth, it was easier
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44 for Nicodemus to be converted to Christ. &#8220;I lived as a Pharisee, according to the strictest sect
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45 of our religion&#8221; (Acts 26:5).</p>
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46 <p>425 As to his name he says, <span style="font-weight: bold">named Nicodemus, </span>which means &#8220;victor,&#8221; or &#8220;the victory of the
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47 people.&#8221; This signifies those who overcame the world through faith by being converted to
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48 Christ from Judaism. &#8220;This is the victory that overcomes the world, our faith&#8221; (1 Jn 5:4).</p>
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49 <p>426 Thirdly, as to his rank he says, a <span style="font-weight: bold">member of the Sanhedrin. </span>For although our Lord did
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50 not choose the wise or powerful or those of high birth at the beginning, lest the power of the
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51 faith be attributed to human widsom and power&#8212;&#8220;Not many of you are learned in the worldly
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52 sense, not many powerful, not many of high birth. But God chose the simple ones of the
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53 world&#8221; (1 Cor 1:26)&#8212;still he willed to convert some of the wise and powerful to himself at
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54 the very beginning. And he did this so that his doctrine would not be held in contempt, as
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55 being accepted exclusively by the lowly and uneducated, and so that the number of believers
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56 would not be attributed to the rusticity and ignorance of the converts rather than to the power
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57 of the faith. However, he did not will that a large number of those converted to him be
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58 powerful and of high birth, lest, as has been said, it should be ascribed to human power and
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59 wisdom. And so it says, &#8220;many of those in authority believed in him&#8221; (below 12:42), among
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60 whom was this Nicodemus. &#8220;The rulers of the people have come together&#8221; (Ps 46:10).</p>
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61 <p>427 Then he describes him as to the time, saying, <span style="font-weight: bold">he came to Jesus at night. </span>In regard to
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62 this, it might be noted that in Scripture the quality of the time is mentioned as to certain
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63 persons in order to indicate their knowledge or the condition of their actions. Here an obscure
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64 time is mentioned, <span style="font-weight: bold">at night. </span>For the night is obscure and suited to the state of mind of
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65 Nicodemus, who did not come to Jesus free of care and anxiety, but in fear; for he was one of
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66 those of whom it is said that they &#8220;believed in him; but they did not admit it because of the
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67 Pharisees, so that they would not be expelled from the synagogue&#8221; (below 12:42). For their
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68 love was not perfect, so it continues, &#8220;For they loved the glory of men more than the glory of&#8217;
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69 God.&#8221;</p>
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70 <p>Further, night was appropriate to his ignorance and the imperfect understanding he had of
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71 Christ: &#8220;The night has passed, and day is at hand. So let us cast-off the works of darkness&#8221;
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72 (Rom 13:12); &#8220;They have not known or understood; they are walking in darkness&#8221; (Ps 81:5).</p>
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73 <p>428 Then he is described from his statements, when he says that Nicodemus said to Jesus:
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74 <span style="font-weight: bold">Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher come from God. </span>Here he affirms Christ&#8217;s office as
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75 teacher when he says, <span style="font-weight: bold">Rabbi, </span>and his power of acting, saying, <span style="font-weight: bold">for no one could perform the
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76 signs you perform, unles he had God with him. </span>And in both remarks he says what is true,
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77 but he does not affirm enough.</p>
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78 <p>He is right is calling Jesus <span style="font-weight: bold">Rabbi, </span>i.e., Teacher, because, &#8220;You call me Teacher and Lord; and
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79 you do well, for so I am,&#8221; as we read below (13:13). For Nicodemus had read what was
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80 written in Joel (2:23): &#8220;Children of Sion, rejoice, and be joyful in the Lord your God, because
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81 he has given you a teacher of justice.&#8221; But he says too little, because he says that Jesus came
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82 as a teacher from God, but is silent on whether he is God. For to come as a teacher from God
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83 is common to all good prelates: &#8220;I will give you shepherds after my own heart, and they will
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84 feed you with knowledge and doctrine,&#8221; as it says in Jeremiah (3:15). Therefore, this is not
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85 unique to Christ even though Christ taught in a manner unlike other men. For some teachers
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86 teach only from without, but Christ also instructs within, because &#8220;He was the true light,
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87 which enlightens every man&#8221; (above 1:9); thus he alone gives wisdom: &#8220;I will give you an
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88 eloquence and a wisdom&#8221; (Lk 21:15), and this is something that no mere man can say.</p>
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89 <p>429 He affirms his power because of the signs he saw. As if to say: I believe that you have
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90 come as a teacher from God, <span style="font-weight: bold">for no one could perform the signs you perform. </span>And he is
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91 speaking the truth, because the signs which Christ did cannot be worked except by God, and
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92 because God was with him: &#8220;He who sent me is with me&#8221; (below 8:29). But he says too little,
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93 because he believed that Christ did not perform these signs through his own power, but as
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94 relying on the power of another; as though God were not with him by a unity of essence but
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95 merely by an infusion of grace. But this is false, because Christ performed these signs not by
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96 an exterior power but by his own; for the power of God and of Christ is one and the same. It
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97 is similar to what the woman says to Elijah: &#8220;Because of this I know that you are a man of
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98 God&#8221; (1 Kgs 17:24).</p>
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99 <p>430 Then when he says that Jesus answered, <span style="font-weight: bold">Amen, amen, I say to you</span>, he sets down the
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100 necessity for spiritual regeneration, because of the ignorance of Nicodemus. And so he says,
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101 <span style="font-weight: bold">Amen, amen</span>. Here we should note that this word, <span style="font-weight: bold">amen</span>, is a Hebrew word frequently
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102 employed by Christ; hence out of reverence for him no Greek or Latin translator wanted to
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103 translate it. Sometimes it means the same as &#8220;true&#8221; or &#8220;truly&#8221;; and sometimes the same as &#8220;so
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104 be it.&#8221; Thus is the Psalms 71 (v 19), 88 (v 53), and 106, where we have, &#8220;So be it, so be it,&#8221;
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105 the Hebrew has &#8220;Amen, amen.&#8221; But John is the only Evangelist who duplicates or makes a
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106 twin use of this word. The reason for this is that the other Evangelists are concerned mainly
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107 with matters pertaining to the humanity of Christ, which, since they are easier to believe, need
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108 less reinforcement; but John deals chiefly with things pertaining to the divinity of Christ, and
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109 these, since they are hidden and remote from men&#8217;s knowledge and experience, require
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110 greater formal declaration.</p>
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111 <p>431 Next we should point out that at first glance this answer of Christ seems to be entirely
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112 foreign to Nicodemus&#8217; statement. For what connection is there between Nicodemus&#8217;
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113 statement, <span style="font-weight: bold">Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher come from God, </span>and the Lord&#8217;s reply,
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114 <span style="font-weight: bold">unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.</span></p>
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115 <p>But we should note, as has already been stated, that Nicodemus, having an imperfect opinion
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116 about Christ, affirmed that he was a teacher and performed these signs as a mere man. And so
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117 the Lord wishes to show Nicodemus how he might arrive at a deeper understanding of him.
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118 And as a matter of fact, the Lord might have done so with an argument, but because this
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119 might have resulted in a quarrel&#8212;the opposite of which was prophesied about him: &#8220;He will
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120 not quarrel&#8221; (Is 42:2)&#8212;he wished to lead him to a true understanding with gentleness. As if to
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121 say: It is not strange that you regard me as a mere man, because one cannot know these
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122 secrets of the divinity unless he has achieved a spiritual regeneration. And this is what he
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123 says: <span style="font-weight: bold">unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.</span></p>
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124 <p>432 Here we should point out that since vision is an act of life, then according to the diverse
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125 kinds of life there will be diversity of vision. For there is a sentient life which some living
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126 things share in common, and this life has a sentient vision or knowledge. And there is also a
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127 spiritual life, by which man is made like God and other holy spirits; and this life enjoys a
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128 spiritual vision. Now spiritual things cannot be seen by the sentient: &#8220;The sensual man does
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129 not perceive those things that pertain to the Spirit of God&#8221; (1 Cor 2:14), but they are
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130 perceived by the spiritual vision: &#8220;No one knows the things of God but the Spirit of God&#8221; (1
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131 Cor 2:11). So the apostle says: &#8220;You did not receive the spirit of slavery, putting you in fear
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132 again, but the spirit of adoption&#8221; (Rom 8:15). And we receive this spirit through a spiritual
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133 regenaration: &#8220;He saved us by the cleansing of regeneration in the Holy Spirit&#8221; (Ti 3:3).
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134 Therefore, if spiritual vision comes only through the Holy Spirit, and if the Holy Spirit is
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135 given through a cleansing of spiritual regeneration, then it is only by a cleansing of
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136 regeneration that we can see the kingdom of God. Thus he says, <span style="font-weight: bold">unless one is born again of
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137 water and the Holy Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. </span>As if to say: It is not
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138 surprising if you do not see the kingdom of God, because no one can see it unless he receives
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139 the Holy Spirit, through whom one is reborn a son of God.</p>
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140 <p>433 It is not only the royal throne that pertains to a kingdom, but also the things needed for
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141 governing the kingdom, such as the royal dignity, royal favors, and the way of justice by
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142 which the kingdom is consolidated. Hence he says, <span style="font-weight: bold">he cannot see the kingdom of God, </span>i.e.,
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143 the glory and dignity of God, i.e., the mysteries of eternal salvation which are seen through
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144 the justice of faith: &#8220;The kingdom of God is not food and drink&#8221; (Rom 14:17).</p>
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145 <p>Now in the Old Law there was a spiritual regeneration; but it was imperfect and symbolic:
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146 &#8220;All were baptized into Moses, in the cloud and in the sea&#8221; (1 Cor 10:2), i.e., they received
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147 baptism in symbol. Accordingly, they did see the mysteries of the kingdom of God, but only
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148 symbolically: &#8220;seeing from afar&#8221; (Heb 11:13). But in the New Law there is an evident
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149 spiritual regeneration, although imperfect, because we are renewed only inwardly by grace,
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150 but not outwardly by incorruption: &#8220;Although our outward nature is wasting away, yet our
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151 inward nature is being renewed day by day&#8221; (2 Cor 4:16). And so we do see the kingdom of
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152 God and the mysteries of eternal salvation, but imperfectly, for as it says, &#8220;Now we see in a
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153 mirror, in an obscure manner&#8221; (1 Cor 13:12). But there is perfect regeneration in heaven,
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154 because we will be renewed both inwardly and outwardly. And therefore we shall see the
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155 kingdom of God in a most perfect way: &#8220;But then we will see face to face,&#8221; as is said in 1
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156 Corinthians (13:12); and &#8220;When he appears we will be like him, because we will see him as
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157 he is&#8221; (1 Jn 3:2).</p>
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158 <p>434 It is clear, therefore, that just as one does not have bodily vision unless he is born, so one
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159 cannot have spiritual vision unless he is reborn. And according to the threefold regeneration,
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160 there is a threefold kind of vision.</p>
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161 <p>435 Note that the Greek reading is not &#8220;again,&#8221; but <i>anothe, </i>i.e., &#8220;from above,&#8221; which Jerome
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162 translated as &#8220;again,&#8221; in order to suggest addition. And this is the way Jerome understood the
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163 saying, <span style="font-weight: bold">unless one is born again. </span>It is as if he were saying: Unless one is reborn once more
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164 through a fraternal generation.</p>
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165 <p>Chrysostoin, however, says that to be &#8220;born from above&#8221; is peculiar to the Son of God,
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166 because he alone is born from above: &#8220;The one who came from above is above all things&#8221;
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167 (below 3:31). And Christ is said to be born from above both as to time (if we may speak
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168 thus), because he was begotten from eternity: &#8220;Before the daystar I begot you&#8221; (Ps 109:3), and
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169 as to the principle of his generation, because he proceeds from the heavenly Father: &#8220;I came
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170 down from heaven not to do my own will, but the will of him who sent me&#8221; (below 6:38).
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171 Therefore, because our regeneration is in the likeness of the Son of God, inasmuch as &#8220;Those
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172 whom he foreknew he predestined to become conformed to the image of his Son&#8221; (Rom
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173 8:29), and because that generation is from above, our generation also is from above: both as
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174 to the time, because of our eternal predestination, &#8220;He chose us in him before the foundation
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175 of the world&#8221; (Eph 1:4), and as to its being a gift of God, as we read below (6:44), &#8220;No one
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176 can come to me unless the Father, who sent me, draws him&#8221;; and &#8220;You have been saved by
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177 the grace of God&#8221; (Eph 2:5).</p>
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178 <p>436 Then when he says, <span style="font-weight: bold">Nicodemus said to him, </span>he gives the manner of and the reason for
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179 this spiritual regeneration. First, the doubt of Nicodemus is set forth. Secondly, Christ&#8217;s
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180 response (v 5).</p>
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181 <p>437 As to the first we should note that as stated in 1 Corinthians (2:14): &#8220;The sensual man
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182 does not perceive those things that pertain to the Spirit of God.&#8221; And so because Nicodemus
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183 was yet carnal and sensual, he was unable to grasp, except in a carnal manner, the things that
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184 were said to him. Consequently, what the Lord said ,to him about spiritual regeneration, he
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185 understood of carnal generation. And this is what he says: <span style="font-weight: bold">How can a man be born again
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186 when he is already an old man?</span></p>
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187 <p>We should note here, according to Chrysostom, that Nicodemus wanted to object to what was
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188 said by the Savior. But his objection is foolish, because Christ was speaking of spiritual
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189 regeneration, and he is objecting in terms of carnal regeneration. In like manner, all the
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190 reasons brought forth to attack the things of faith are foolish, since they are not according to
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191 the meaning of Sacred Scripture.</p>
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192 <p>438 Nicodemus objected to the Lord&#8217;s statement that a man must be born again according to
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193 the two ways in which this seemed impossible. In one way, on account of the irreversibility of
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194 human life; for a man cannot return to infancy from old age. Hence we read, &#8220;I am walking
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195 on a path,&#8221; namely, this present life, &#8220;by which I will not return&#8221; (Jb 16:23). And it is from
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196 this point of view that he says, <span style="font-weight: bold">How can a man be born again when he is already an old
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197 man? </span>As if to say: Shall he become a child once more so that he can be reborn? &#8220;He will not
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198 return again to his home, and his place will not know him any more&#8221; (Jb 7:10). In the second
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199 way, regeneration seemed impossible because of the mode of carnal generation. Forin the
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200 beginning, when a man is generated, he is small in size, so that his mother&#8217;s womb can
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201 contain him; but later, after he is born, he continues to grow and reaches such a size that he
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202 cannot be contained within his mother&#8217;s womb. And so Nicodemus says, <span style="font-weight: bold">Is it possible for
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203 him to return to his mother&#8217;s womb and be born all over again? </span>As if to say: He cannot,
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204 because the womb cannot contain him.</p>
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205 <p>439 But this does not apply to spiritual generation. For no matter how spiritually old a man
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206 might become through sin, accordto the Psalm (31:3): &#8220;Because I kept silent, all my bones
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207 grew old,&#8221; he can, with the help of divine grace, become new, according to the Psalm (102:5):
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208 &#8220;Your youth will be renewed like the eagle&#8217;s.&#8221; And no matter how enormous he is, he can
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209 enter the spiritual womb of the Church by the sacrament of baptism. And it is clear what that
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210 spiritual womb is; otherwise it would never have been said: &#8220;From the womb, before the
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211 daystar, I begot you&#8221; (Ps 109:3). Yet there is a sense in which his objection applies. For just
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212 as a man, once he is born according to nature, cannot be reborn, so once he is born in a
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213 spiritual way through baptism, he cannot be reborn, because he cannot be baptized again:
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214 &#8220;One Lord, one faith, one baptism,&#8221; as we read in Ephesians (4:5).</p>
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215 <p>440 Then we have the answer of Christ. Concerning this he does three things. First, he
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216 answers the arguments of Nicodemus by showing the nature of regeneration. Secondly, he
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217 explains this answer with a reason (v 6). Thirdly, he explains it with an example.</p>
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218 <p>441 He answers the objections by showing that he is speaking of a spiritual regeneration, not
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219 a carnal one. And this is what he says: <span style="font-weight: bold">unless one is born again of water and the Holy
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220 Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. </span>As if to say: You are thinking of a carnal
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221 generation, but I am speaking of a spiritual generation.</p>
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222 <p>Note that above he had said, <span style="font-weight: bold">he cannot see the kingdom of God, </span>while here he says, <span style="font-weight: bold">he
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223 cannot enter the kingdom of God, </span>which is the same thing. For no one can see the things of
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224 the kingdom of God unless he enters it; and to the extent that he enters, he sees. &#8220;I will give
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225 him a white stone upon which is written a new name, which no one knows but he who
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226 receives it&#8221; (Rv 5:5).</p>
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227 <p>442 Now there is a reason why spiritual generation comes from the Spirit. It is necessary that
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228 the one generated be generated in the likeness of the one generating; but we are regenerated
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229 as sons of God, in the likeness of his true Son. Therefore, it is necessary that our spiritual
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230 regeneration come about through that by which we are made like the true Son. and this conies
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231 about by Our having his Spirit: &#8220;If any one does not have the Spirit of Christ, he is not his&#8221;
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232 (Rom 8:9); &#8220;By this we know that we abide in him, and he in us: because he has given us of
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233 his Spirit&#8221; (1 Jn 4:13). Thus spiritual regeneration must come from the Holy Spirit. &#8220;You did
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234 not receive the spirit of slavery, putting you in fear again, but the spirit of adoption&#8221; (Rom
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235 8:15); &#8220;It is the Spirit that gives life&#8221; (below 6:63).</p>
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236 <p>443 Water, too, is necessary for this regeneration, and for three reasons. First, because of the
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237 condition of human nature. For man consists of soul and body, and if the Spirit alone were
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238 involved in his regeneration, this would indicate that only the spiritual part of man is
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239 regenerated. Hence in order that the flesh also be regenerated, it is necessary that, in addition
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240 to the Spirit through whom the soul is regenerated, something bodily be involved, through
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241 which the body is regenerated; and this,is water.</p>
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242 <p>Secondly, water is necessary for the sake of human knowledge. For, as Dionysius says, divine
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243 wisdom so disposes all things that it provides for each thing according to its nature. Now it is
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244 natural for man to know; and so it is fitting that spiritual things be conferred on men in such a
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245 way that he may know them: &#8220;so that we may know what God has given us&#8221; (1 Cor 2:12). But
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246 the natural manner of this knowledge is that man know spiritual things by means of sensible
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247 things, since all our knowledge begins in sense knowledge. Therefore, in order that we might
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248 understand what is spiritual in our regeneration, it was fitting that there be in it something
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249 sensible and material, that is, water, through which we understand that just as water washes
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250 and cleanses the exterior in a bodily way, so through baptism a man is washed and cleansed
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251 inwardly in a spiritual way.</p>
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252 <p>Thirdly, water was necessary so that there might be a correspondence of causes. For the cause
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253 of our regeneration is the incarnate Word: &#8220;He gave them power to become the sons of God,&#8221;
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254 as we saw above (1:12). Therefore it was fitting that in the sacraments, which have their
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255 efficacy from the power of the incarnate Word, there be something corresponding to the
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256 Word, and something corresponding to the flesh, or body. And spiritually speaking, this is
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257 water when the sacrament is baptism, so that through it we may be conformed to the death of
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258 Christ, since we are submerged in it during baptism as Christ was in the womb of the earth
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259 for three days: &#8220;We are buried with him by baptism&#8221; (Rom 6:4).</p>
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260 <p>Further, this mystery was suggested in the first production of things, when the Spirit of God
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261 hovered over the waters (Gn 1:2). But a greater power was conferred on water by contact with
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262 the most pure flesh of Christ; because in the beginning water brought forth crawling creatures
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263 with living souls, but since Christ was baptized in the Jordan, water has yielded spiritual
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264 souls.</p>
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265 <p>444 It is clear that the Holy Spirit is God, since he says, <span style="font-weight: bold">unless one is born again of water
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266 and the Holy Spirit </span>(<i>ex aqua et Spiritu Sancto</i>).<i> </i>For above (1:13) he says: &#8220;who are born not
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267 from blood, nor from the desires of the flesh, nor from man&#8217;s willing it, but from God (<i>ex
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268 Deo</i>).&#8221; From this we can form the following argument: He from whom men are spiritually
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269 reborn is God; but men are spiritually reborn through the Holy Spirit, as it is stated here;
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270 therefore, the Holy Spirit is God.</p>
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271 <p>445 Two questions arise here. First, if no one enters the kingdom of God unless he is born
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272 again of water, and if the fathers of old were not born again of water (for they were not
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273 baptized), then they have not entered the kingdom of God. Secondly, since baptism is of three
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274 kinds, that is, of water, of desire, and of blood, and many have been baptized in the latter two
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275 ways (who we say have entered the kingdom of God immediately, even though they were not
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276 born again of water), it does not seem to be true to say that <span style="font-weight: bold">unless one is born again of
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277 water and the Holy Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God.</span></p>
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278 <p>The answer to the first is that rebirth or regeneration from water and the Holy Spirit takes
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279 place in two ways: in truth and in symbol. Now the fathers of old, although they were not
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280 reborn with a true rebirth, were nevertheless reborn with a symbolic rebirth, because they
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281 always had a sense perceptible sign in which true rebirth was prefigured. So according to this,
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282 thus reborn, they did enter the kingdom of God, after the ransom was paid.</p>
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283 <p>The answer to the second is that those who are reborn by a baptism of blood and fire,
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284 although they do not have regeneration in deed, they do have it in desire. Otherwise neither
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285 would the baptism of blood mean anything nor could there be a baptism of the Spirit.
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286 Consequently, in order that man may enter the kingdom of heaven, it is necessary that there
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287 be a baptism of water in deed, as in the case of all baptized persons, or in desire, as in the case
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288 of the martyrs and catechumens, who are prevented by death from fulfilling their desire, or in
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289 symbol, as in the case of the fathers of old.</p>
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290 <p>446 It might be remarked that it was from this statement, <span style="font-weight: bold">unless one is born again of water
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291 and the Holy Spirit, </span>that the Pelagians derived their error that children are baptized not in
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292 order to be cleansed from sin, since they have none, but in order to be able to enter the
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293 kingdom of God. But this is false, because as Augustine says in his book, <i>The Baptism of
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294 Children, </i>it is not fitting for an image of God, namely, man, to be excluded from the kingdom
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295 of God except for some obstacle, which can be nothing but sin. Therefore, there must be
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296 some sin, namely, original sin, in children who are excluded from the kingdom.</p>
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297 <p>447 Then when he says, <span style="font-weight: bold">What is born of flesh is itself flesh, </span>he proves by reason that it is
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298 necessary to be born of water and the Holy Spirit. And the reasoning is this: No one can reach
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299 the kingdom unless he is made spiritual; but no one is made spiritual except by the Holy
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300 Spirit; therefore, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless he is born again of the Holy
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301 Spirit.</p>
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302 <p>So he says, what is born of flesh (<i>ex carne</i>) is itself flesh, i.e., birth according to the flesh
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303 makes one be born into the life of the flesh: &#8220;The first man was from the earth, earthly&#8221; (1
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304 Cor 15:47); <span style="font-weight: bold">and what is born of Spirit </span>(<i>ex Spiritu</i>) , i.e., from the power of the Holy Spirit,
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305 <span style="font-weight: bold">is itself spirit, </span>i.e., spiritual.</p>
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306 <p>448 Note, however, that this preposition <i>ex </i>(from, of, by) sometines designates a material
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307 cause, as when I say: &#8220;A knife is made of (<i>ex</i>)<i> </i>iron&#8221;; sometimes it designates an efficient
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308 cause, as when I say: &#8220;The house was built by (<i>ex</i>)<i> </i>a carpenter.&#8221; Accordingly, the phrase,
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309 <span style="font-weight: bold">what is born of </span>(<i>ex</i>)<i> </i>flesh is itself flesh, can be understood according to either efficient or
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310 material causality. As efficient cause, indeed, because a power existing in flesh is productive
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311 of generation; and as material cause, because some camal element in animals makes up the
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312 animal generated. But nothing is said to be made out of spirit (<i>ex spiritu</i>)<i> </i>in a material sense,
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313 since spirit is unchangeable, whereas matter is the subject of change; but it is said in the sense
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314 of efficient causality.</p>
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315 <p>According to this, we can discern a threefold generation. One is materially and effectively
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316 from (<i>ex</i>)<i> </i>the flesh, and is common to all who exist according to the flesh. Another is
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317 according to the Spirit effectively, and according to it we are reborn as sons of God through
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318 the grace of the Holy Spirit, and are made spiritual. The third is midway, that is, only
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319 materially from the flesh but effectively from the Holy Spirit. And this is true in the singular
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320 case of Christ: because he was born deriving his flesh materially from the flesh of his mother,
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321 but effectively from the Holy Spirit: &#8220;What she has conceived is of the Holy Spirit&#8221; (Mt
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322 1:20). Therefore, he was born holy: &#8220;The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of
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323 the Most High will overshadow you. And so the Holy One who will be born from you, will be
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324 called the Son of God&#8221; (Lk 1:35).</p>
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325 <p style="margin-bottom: 0.125in; margin-bottom: 0.125in">&#160;</p>
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326 <CENTER><p><B>LECTURE 2</B></p></CENTER>
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327 <BLOCKQUOTE><p style="margin-left: 0.5in">7 &#8220;Do not be surprised that I said to you,<BR>
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328 you must be born again.<BR>
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329 8 The wind blows where it wills,<BR>
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330 and you hear its sound, but you do not know<BR>
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331 where it comes from or where it goes.<BR>
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332 So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit.&#8221;</p>
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333 <p>9 &#8220;How can all this happen?&#8221; asked Nicodemus. 10 Jesus replied: &#8220;You are a teacher in Israel
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334 and you do not know these things?
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335 <P style="margin-left: 0.5in">11 &#8220;Amen, amen I say to you,<BR>
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336 that we know of what we speak,<BR>
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337 and we bear witness of what we see;<BR>
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338 but you do not accept our testimony.<BR>
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339 12 If I spoke of earthly things,<BR>
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340 and you did not believe me,<BR>
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341 how will you believe if I tell you of heavenly things?<BR>
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342 13 No one has gone up to heaven<BR>
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343 except the One who came down from heaven,<BR>
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344 the Son of Man, who lives in heaven.<BR>
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345 14 Just as Moses lifted up the serpent in the desert,<BR>
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346 so must the Son of Man be lifted up,<BR>
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347 15 so that everyone who believes in him may not be lost,<BR>
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348 but have eternal life.&#8221;</p></BLOCKQUOTE>
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349 <p>449 Above, in his instruction on spiritual generation, the Lord presented a reason; here he
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350 gives an example. For we are led to see that Nicodemus was troubled when he heard that
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351 <span style="font-weight: bold">what is born of Spirit is itself spirit. </span>And so the Lord says to him, <span style="font-weight: bold">Do not be surprised that
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352 I said to you, you must be born again.</span></p>
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353 <p>Here we should note that there are two kinds of surprise or astonishment. One is the
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354 astonishment of devotion in the sense that someone, considering the great things of God, sees
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355 that they are incomprehensible to him; and so he is full of astonishment: &#8220;The Lord on high is
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356 wonderful&#8221; (Ps 92:4), &#8220;Your testimonies are wonderful&#8221; (Ps 118:129). Men are to be
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357 encouraged, not discouraged, to this kind of astonishment The other is the astonishment of
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358 disbelief, when someone does not believe what is said. So Matthew (13:54) says: &#8220;They were
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359 astonished,&#8221; and further on adds that &#8220;They did not accept him.&#8221; It is from this kind of
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360 astonishment that the Lord diverts Nicodeintis wheii he proposes an example and says: <span style="font-weight: bold">The
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361 wind</span> (<i>spiritus</i>, wind, spirit)<span style="font-weight: bold"> blows where it wills. </span>In the literal sense, the same words can he
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362 explained in two ways.</p>
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363 <p>450 In the first way, according to Chrysostom, spiritus is taken for the wind, as in Psalm 148
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364 (v 8): &#8220;The winds of the storm that fulfill his word.&#8221; According to this interpretation, he says
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365 four things about the wind. First, the power of the wind, when he says, <span style="font-weight: bold">the wind blows
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366 where it wills. </span>And if you say that the wind has no will, one may answer that &#8220;will&#8221; is taken
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367 for a natural appetite, which is nothing more than a natural inclination, about which it is said:
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368 &#8220;He created the weight of the wind&#8221; (Jb 28:25). Secondly, he tells the evidence for the wind,
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369 when he says, <span style="font-weight: bold">and you hear its sound, </span>where &#8220;sound&#8221; (<i>vox</i>, voice, sound) refers to the sound
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370 the wind makes when it strikes a body. Of this we read: &#8220;The sound (<i>vox</i>) of your thunder was
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371 in the whirlwind&#8221; (Ps 76:19).</p>
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372 <p>Thirdly, he mentions the origin of the wind, which is unknown; so he says, <span style="font-weight: bold">but you do not
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373 know where it comes from, </span>i.e., from where it starts: &#8220;He brings forth the winds out of his
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374 storehouse&#8221; (Ps 134:7). Fourthly, he mentions the wind&#8217;s destination, which is also unknown;
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375 so he says, <span style="font-weight: bold">or where it goes</span> you do not know, i.e., where it remains.</p>
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376 <p>And he applies this similarity to the subject under discussion, saying, <span style="font-weight: bold">So it is with everyone
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377 who is born of the Spirit. </span>As if to say: If the wind, which is corporeal, has an origin which is
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378 hidden and a course that is unknown, why are you surprised if you cannot understand the
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379 course of spiritual regeneration.</p>
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380 <p>451 Augustine objects to this explanation and says that the Lord was not speaking here about
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381 the wind, for we know where each of the winds comes from and where it goes. For &#8220;Auster&#8221;
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382 comes from the south and goes to the north; &#8220;Boreas&#8221; comes from the north and goes to the
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383 south. Why, then, does the Lord say of this wind, you do not know where it comes from or
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384 where it goes?</p>
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385 <p>One may answer that there are two ways in which the source of the wind might be unknown.
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386 In one way, in general: and in this way it is possible to know where it comes from, i.e., from
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387 which direction of the world, for example, that Auster comes from the south, and where it
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388 goes, that is, to the north. In another way, in particular: and in this sense it is not known
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389 where the wind comes from, i.e., at which precise place it originated, or where it goes, i.e.,
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390 exactly where it stops. And almost all the Greek doctors agree with this exposition of
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391 Chrysostom.</p>
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392 <p>452 In another way, <i>spiritus</i> is taken for the Holy Spirit. And according to this, he mentions
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393 four things about the Holy Spirit. First, his power, saying, <span style="font-weight: bold">The Spirit blows where it wills,
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394 </span>because it is by the free use of his power that he breathes where he wills and when he wills,
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395 by instructing hearts: &#8220;One and the same Spirit does all these things, distributing to each as he
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396 wills&#8221; (1 Cor 12:11). This refutes the error of Macedonius who thought that the Holy Spirit
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397 was the minister of the Father and the Son. But then he would not be breathing where he
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398 willed, but where he was commanded.</p>
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399 <p>453 Secondly, he mentions the evidence for the Holy Spirit, when he says, <span style="font-weight: bold">and you hear its
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400 voice: </span>&#8220;Today, if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts&#8221; (Ps 94:8).</p>
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401 <p>Chrysostom objects to this and says that this cannot pertain to the Holy Spirit. For the Lord
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402 was speaking to Nicodemus, who was still an unbeliever, and thus not fit to hear the voice of
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403 the Holy Spirit. We may answer to this, with Augustine, that there is a twofold voice of the
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404 Holy Spirit. One is that by which he speaks inwardly in man&#8217;s heart; and only believers and
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405 the saints hear this voice, about which the Psalm (84:9) says: &#8220;I will hear what the Lord God
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406 says within me.&#8221; The other voice is that by which the Holy Spirit speaks in the Scriptures or
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407 through those who preach, according to Matthew (10:20): &#8220;For it is not you who speak, but
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408 the Holy Splirit who is speaking through you.&#8221; And this voice is heard by unbelievers and
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409 sinners.</p>
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410 <p>454 Thirdly, he refers to the origin of the Holy Spirit, which is hidden; thus he says, <span style="font-weight: bold">but you
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411 do not know where it comes from, </span>although you may hear its voice. And this is because the
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412 Holy Spirit comes from the Father and the Son: &#8220;When the Paraclete comes, whom I will
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413 send you from the Father, the Spirit of truth, who proceeds from the Father&#8221; (below 15:26).
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414 But the Father and the Son &#8220;dwell in inaccessible light, whom no man has seen or is able to
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415 see&#8221; (1 Tim 6:16).</p>
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416 <p>455 Fourthly, he gives the destination of the Holy Spirit, which is also hidden; and so he says,
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417 you do not know where it goes, because the Spirit leads one to a hidden end, that is, eternal
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418 happiness. Thus it says in Ephesians (1:14) that the Holy Spirit is &#8220;the pledge of our
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419 inheritance.&#8221; And again, &#8220;The eye has not seen, nor has the ear heard, nor has the heart of
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420 man conceived, what God has prepared for those who love him&#8221; (1 Cor 2:9).</p>
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421 <p>Or, <span style="font-weight: bold">you do not know where it comes from, </span>i.e., how the Spirit enters into a person, <span style="font-weight: bold">or
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422 where it goes, </span>i.e., to what perfection he may lead him: &#8220;If he comes toward me, I will not
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423 see him&#8221; (Jb 9:11).</p>
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424 <p>456 <span style="font-weight: bold">So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit, </span>i.e., they are like the Holy Spirit. And
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425 no wonder: for as he had said before, &#8220;What is born of Spirit is itself spirit,&#8221; because the
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426 qualities of the Holy Spirit are present in the spiritual man, just as the qualities of fire are
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427 present in burning coal.</p>
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428 <p>Therefore, the above four qualities of the Holy Spirit are found in one who has been born of
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429 the Holy Spirit. First of all, he has freedom: &#8220;Where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is
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430 freedom&#8221; (2 Cor 3:17), for the Holy Spirit leads us to what is right: &#8220;Your good Spirit will
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431 lead me to the right path&#8221; (Ps 142:10); and he frees us from the slavery of sin and of the law:
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432 &#8220;The law of the Spirit, of life in Christ, has set me free&#8221; (Rom 8:2). Secondly, we get an
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433 indication of him through the sound of his words; and when we hear them we know his
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434 spirituality, for it is out of the abundance of the heart that the mouth speaks.</p>
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435 <p>Thirdly, he has an origin and an end that are hidden, because no one can judge one who is
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436 spiritual: &#8220;The spiritual man judges all things, and he himself is judged by no one&#8221; (1 Cor
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437 2:15). Or, we do not know where such a person comes from, i.e., the source of his spiritual
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438 birth, which is baptismal grace; or where he goes, i.e., of what he is made worthy, that is, of
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439 eternal life, which remains concealed from us.</p>
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440 <p>457 Then the cause and reason for spiritual regeneration are set forth. First, a question is
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441 asked by Nicodemus; secondly, the Lord&#8217;s answer is given (v 10).</p>
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442 <p>458 It is apparent from the first that Nicodemus, as yet dull, and remaining a Jew on the level
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443 of sense, was unable to understand the mysteries of Christ in spite of the examples and
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444 explanations that were given. And so he says, <span style="font-weight: bold">How can all this happen?</span></p>
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445 <p>There are two reasons why one may question about something. Some question because of
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446 disbelief, as did Zechariah, saying: &#8220;How will I know this? For I am an old man, and my wife
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447 is advanced in age&#8221; (Lk 1:18); &#8220;He confounds those who search into mysteries&#8221; (Is 40:23).
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448 Others, on the other hand, question because of a desire to know, as the Blessed Virgin did
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449 when she said to the angel: &#8220;How shall this be, since I do not know man?&#8221; (Lk 1:34). It is the
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450 latter who are instructed. And so, because Nicodemus asked from a desire to learn, he
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451 deserved to be instructed.</p>
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452 <p>459 And this is what follows: <span style="font-weight: bold">Jesus replied. </span>First the Lord chides him for his slowness.
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453 Secondly, he answers his question (v 13).</p>
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454 <p>460 He chides him for his slowness, basing himself on three things. First, the condition of the
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455 person to whom he is speaking, when he says, <span style="font-weight: bold">You are a teacher in Israel. </span>And here the
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456 Lord did not chide him to insult him. Rather, because Nicodemus, presuming on his own
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457 knowledge, was still relying on his status as a teacher, the Lord wished to make him a temple
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458 of the Holy Spirit by humbling him: &#8220;For whom will I have regard? For he who is humble and
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459 of contrite spirit&#8221; (Is 66:2). And he says, <span style="font-weight: bold">You are a teacher, </span>because it is tolerable if a simple
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460 person cannot grasp profound truths, but in a teacher, it deserves rebuke. And so he says, You
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461 are a teacher, i.e., of the letter that kills (2 Cor 3:6), <span style="font-weight: bold">and you do not know these things? </span>i.e.,
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462 spiritual things. &#8220;For although you ought to be teachers by now, you yourselves need to be
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463 taught again&#8221; (Heb 5:12).</p>
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464 <p>461 You might say that the Lord would have rebuked Nicodemus justly if he had spoken to
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465 him about matters of the Old Law and he did not understand them; but he spoke to him about
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466 the New Law. I answer that the things which the Lord says of spiritual generation are
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467 contained in the Old Law, although under a figure, as is said in 1 Corinthians (10:2): &#8220;All
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468 were baptized into Moses, in the cloud and in the sea.&#8221; And the prophets also said this: &#8220;I will
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469 pour clean water upon you, and you will be cleansed from all your uncleanness&#8221; (Ez 36:25).</p>
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470 <p>462 Secondly, he rebukes him for his slowness on account of the character of the person who
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471 is speaking. For it is tolerable if one does not acquiesce to the statements of an ignorant
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472 person; but it is reprehensible to reject the statements of a man who is wise and who
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473 possesses great authority. And so he says, Amen, amen I say to you, that we <span style="font-weight: bold">know of what
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474 we speak, and we bear witness of what we see. </span>For a qualified witness must base his
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475 testimony on hearing or sight: &#8220;What we have seen and heard&#8221; (1 Jn 1:3). And so the Lord
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476 mentions both: <span style="font-weight: bold">we know of what we speak, and we bear witness of what </span>we see. Indeed,
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477 the Lord as man knows all things: &#8220;Lord, you know all things&#8221; (below 21:17); &#8220;The Lord,
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478 whose knowledge is holy, knows clearly&#8221; (2 Mc 6:30). Further, he sees all things by his
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479 divine knowledge: &#8220;I speak of what I have seen with my Father,&#8221; as we read below (8:38).</p>
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480 <p>He speaks in the plural, we know, we see, in order to suggest the mystery of the Trinity: &#8220;The
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481 Father, who dwells in me, he does the works&#8221; (below 14:10). Or, we know, i.e., I, and others
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482 who have been made spiritual, because &#8220;No one knows the Father but the Son, and he to
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483 whom the Son wishes to reveal him&#8221; (Mt 11:27).</p>
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484 <p><span style="font-weight: bold">But you do not accept our testimony, </span>so approved, so solid. &#8220;And his testimony no one
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485 accepts (below 3:32).</p>
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486 <p>463 Thirdly, he rebukes him for his slowness because of the quality of the things under
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487 discussion. For it is not unusual when someone does not grasp difficult matters, but it is
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488 inexcusable not to grasp easy things. So he says, <span style="font-weight: bold">If I spoke of earthly things, and you did
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489 not believe, how will you believe if I tell you of heavenly things? </span>As if to say: If you do not
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490 grasp these easy things, how will you be able to understand the progress of the Holy Spirit?
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491 &#8220;What is on earth we find difficult, and who will search Out the things in heaven,&#8221; as is said
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492 in Wisdom (9:10).</p>
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493 <p>464 But one might object that the above does not show that the Lord spoke of earthly things
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494 to Nicodemus. I answer, according to Chrysostom, that the Lord&#8217;s statement, <span style="font-weight: bold">If I spoke of
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495 earthly things, </span>refers to the example of the wind. For the wind, being something which is
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496 generable and corruptible, is regarded as an earthly thing. Or one might say, again according
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497 to Chrysostom, that the spiritual generation which is given in baptism is heavenly as to its
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498 source, which sanctifies and regenerates; but it is earthly as to its subject, for the one
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499 regenerated, man, is of the earth.</p>
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500 <p>Or one might answer, according to Augustine, that we must understand this in reference to
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501 what Christ said earlier: &#8220;Destroy this temple,&#8221; which is earthly, because he said this about
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502 the temple of his body, which he had taken from the earth.</p>
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503 <p><span style="font-weight: bold">If I spoke of earthly things, and you did not believe, how will you believe if I tell you of
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504 heavenly things? </span>As if to say: If you do not believe in a spiritual generation occurring in
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505 time, how will you believe in the eternal generation of the Son? Or, if you do not believe
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506 what I tell you about the power of my body, how will you believe what I tell you about the
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507 power of my divinity and about the power of the Holy Spirit?</p>
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508 <p>465 <span style="font-weight: bold">Jesus replied. </span>Here he answers the question. First, he lays down the causes of spiritual
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509 regeneration. Secondly, he explains what he says (3:16). Now there are two causes of spiritual
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510 regeneration, namely, the mystery of the incarnation of Christ, and his passion. So first, he
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511 treats of the incarnation; secondly, of the passion (3:14).</p>
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512 <p>466 Here we should consider, first of all, how this answer of Christ is an adequa~,e reply to
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513 the question of Nicodemus. For above, when the Lord was speaking of the Spirit, he said: <span style="font-weight: bold">you
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514 do not know where it comes from or where it </span>goes. We understand by this that spiritual
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515 regeneration has a hidden source and a hidden end. Now the things in heaven are hidden from
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516 us: &#8220;Who will search out the things in heaven?&#8221; (Wis 9:16). Therefore, the sense of
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517 Nicodemus&#8217; question, <span style="font-weight: bold">How can all this happen? </span>is this: How can something come from the
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518 secret things of heaven or go to the secret things of heaven? So before answering, the Lord
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519 expressed this interpretation of the question, saying, <span style="font-weight: bold">how will you believe if I tell you of
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520 heavenly things?</span></p>
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521 <p>And immediately he begins to show whose prerogative it is to ascend into heaven, namely,
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522 anyone who came down from heaven, according to the statement of Ephesians (4:10): &#8220;He
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523 who descended is he who ascended.&#8221; This is verified even in natural things, namely, that each
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524 body tends to a place according to its origin or nature. And so in this way it can come about
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525 that someone, through the Spirit, may go to a place which carnal persons do not know, i.e., by
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526 ascending into heaven, if this is done through the power of one who descended from heaven:
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527 because he descended in order that, in ascending, he might open a way for us: &#8220;He ascends,
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528 opening the way before them&#8221; (Mi 2:13).</p>
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529 <p>467 Some have fallen into error because of his saying, <span style="font-weight: bold">the One who came down from
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530 heaven, the Son of Man. </span>For since Son of Man designates human nature, which is composed
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531 of soul and body, then because he says that the Son descended from heaven, Valentinus
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532 wanted to maintain that he even took his body from heaven and thus passed through the
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533 Virgin without receiving anything from her, as water passes through a pipe; so that his body
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534 was neither of an earthly substance nor taken from the Virgin. But this is contrary to the
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535 statement of the Apostle, writing to the Romans (1:3): &#8220;who was made from the seed of
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536 David according to the flesh.&#8221;</p>
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537 <p>On the other hand, Origen said that he descended from heaven as to his soul, which, he says,
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538 had been created along with the angels from the very beginning, and that later this soul
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539 descended from heaven and took flesh from the Virgin. But this also conflicts with the
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540 Catholic faith, which teaches that souls do not exist before their bodies.</p>
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541 <p>468 Therefore, we should not understand that the Son of Man descended from heaven
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542 according to his human nature, but only according to his divine nature. For since in Christ
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543 there is one <i>suppositum</i>, or hypostasis, or person of the two natures, the divine and human
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544 natures, then no matter from which of these two natures this <i>suppositum</i> is named, divine and
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545 human things can be attributed to him. For we can say that the Son of Man created the stars
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546 and that the Son of God was crucified. But the Son of God was crucified, not according to his
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547 divine nature, but according to his human nature; and the Son of Man created the stars
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548 according to his divine nature. And so in things that are said of Christ, the distinction is not to
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549 be taken with respect to that about which they are said, because divine and human things are
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550 said of God and man indifferently; but a distinction must be made with respect to that
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551 according to which they are said, because divine things are said of Christ according to his
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552 divine nature, but human things according to his human nature. Thus, to descend from heaven
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553 is said of the Son of Man, not according to his human nature, but according to his divine
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554 nature, according to which it was appropriate to him to have been from heaven before the
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555 incarnation, as is said, &#8220;Heaven belongs to the Lord&#8221; (Ps 113:16).</p>
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556 <p>469 he is said to have come down, but not by local motion, becatise then he Would not have
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557 remained in heaven; for nothing which moves locally remains in the place from which it
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558 comes down. And so to exclude local motion, he adds, <span style="font-weight: bold">who lives in heaven. </span>As if to say: He
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559 descended from heaven in such a way as yet to be in heaven. For he came down from heaven
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560 without ceasing to be above, yet assuming a nature which is from below. And because he is
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561 not enclosed or held fast by his body which exists on earth, he was, according to his divinity,
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562 in heaven and everywhere. And therefore to indicate that he is said to have come down in this
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563 way, because he assumed a [human] nature, he said, <span style="font-weight: bold">the Son of Man </span>came down, i.e., insofar
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564 as he became Son of Man.</p>
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565 <p>470 Or it can be said, as Hilary does, that he came down from heaven as to his body: not that
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566 the material of Christ&#8217;s body came down from heaven, but that the power which formed it
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567 was from heaven.</p>
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568 <p>471 But why does he say, <span style="font-weight: bold">No one has gone up to heaven except the Son of Man, who lives
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569 in heaven? </span>For have not Paul and Peter and the other saints gone up, according to 2
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570 Corinthians (5:1): &#8220;We have a house in the heavens.&#8221; I answer that no one goes up into
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571 heaven except Christ and his members, i.e., those believers who are just. Accordingly, the
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572 Son of God came down from heaven in order that, by making us his members, he might
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573 prepare us to ascend into heaven: now, indeed, in hope, but later in reality. &#8220;He has raised us
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574 up, and has given us a place in heaven in Christ Jesus&#8221; (Eph 2:6).</p>
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575 <p>472 Here he mentions the mystery of the passion, in virtue of which baptism has its efficacy:
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576 &#8220;We who have been baptized into Christ Jesus, have been baptized into his death&#8221; (Rom 6:3).
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577 And with regard to this he does three things. First, he gives a symbol for the passion.
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578 Secondly, the manner of the passion. Thirdly, the fruit of the passion.</p>
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579 <p>473 He takes the symbol from the old law, in order to adapt to the understanding of
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580 Nicodemus; so he says, <span style="font-weight: bold">Just as Moses lifted up the serpent in the desert. </span>This refers to
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581 Numbers (21:5) when the Lord, faced with the Jewish people saying, &#8220;We are sick of this
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582 useless food,&#8221; sent serpents to punish them; and when the people came to Moses and he
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583 interceded with the Lord, the Lord commanded that for a remedy they make a serpent of
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584 bronze; and this was to serve both as a remedy against those serpents and as a symbol of the
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585 Lord&#8217;s passion. Hence it says that this bronze serpent was lifted up as a sign (Nm 21:9).</p>
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586 <p>Now it is characteristic of serpents that they are poisonous, but not so the serpent of bronze,
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587 although it was a symbol of a poisonous serpent. So, too, Christ did not have sin, which is
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588 also a poison: &#8220;Sin, when it is fully developed, brings forth death&#8221; (Jas 1:15); but he had the
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589 likeness of sin: &#8220;God sent his own Son, in the likeness of sinful flesh&#8221; (Rom 8:3). And thus
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590 Christ had the effect of the serpent against the insurgence of inflamed concupiscences.</p>
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591 <p>474 He shows the manner of the passion when he says, <span style="font-weight: bold">so must the Son of Man be lifted
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592 up: </span>and this refers to the lifting up of the cross. So below (12:34) when it says, &#8220;The Son of
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593 Man must be lifted up,&#8221; it also has, &#8220;He said this to indicate the manner of his death.&#8221;</p>
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594 <p>He willed to die lifted up, first of all, to cleanse the heavens: for since he had cleansed the
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595 things on earth by the sanctity of his life, the things of the air were left to be cleansed by his
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596 death: &#8220;through him he should reconcile all things to himself, whether on earth or in the
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597 heavens, making peace through his blood&#8221; (Col 1:20). Secondly, to triumph over the demons
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598 who prepare for war in the air: &#8220;the prince of the power of the air&#8221; (Eph 2:2). Thirdly, he
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599 wished to die lifted up to draw our hearts to himself: &#8220;I, if I am lifted up from the earth, will
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600 draw all to myself&#8221; (below 12:32). And fourthly, because in the death of the cross he was
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601 lifted up in the sense that there he triumphed over his enemies; so it is not called a death, but
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602 a lifting up: &#8220;He will drink from the stream on the way, therefore he will lift up his head&#8221; (Ps
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603 109:7). Fifthly, he willed to die lifted up because the cross was the reason for his being lifted
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604 up, i.e., exalted: &#8220;He became obedient to the Father even to death, the death of the cross; on
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605 account of which God has exalted him&#8221; (Phil 2:8).</p>
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606 <p>475 Now the fruit of Christ&#8217;s passion is eternal life; hence he says, so <span style="font-weight: bold">that everyone who
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607 believes in him, </span>performing good works, <span style="font-weight: bold">may not be lost, but have eternal life. </span>And this
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608 fruit corresponds to the fruit of the symbolic serpent. For whoever looked upon the serpent of
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609 bronze was freed from poison and his life was preserved. But he who looks upon the lifted up
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610 Son of Man, and believes in the crucified Christ, he is freed from poison and sin: &#8220;Whoever
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611 believes in me will never die&#8221; (below 11:26), and is preserved for eternal life. &#8220;These things
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612 are written that you may believe ... and that believing you may have life in his name&#8221; (below
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613 20:3 1).</p>
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614 <p style="margin-bottom: 0.125in; margin-bottom: 0.125in">&#160;</p>
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615 <p style="text-align: center; margin-bottom: 0.125in"><span style="font-weight: bold">LECTURE 3</span></p>
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616 <BLOCKQUOTE><p style="margin-left: 0.5in">16 &#8220;For God so loved the world
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617 <BR>that he gave his Only Begotten Son,
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618 <BR>so that whoever believes in him should not perish,
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619 <BR>but have eternal life.
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620 <BR>17 God did not send his Son into the world
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621 <br>to judge the world,
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622 <br>but that the world might he saved through him.
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623 <br>18 Whoever believes in him is not judged;
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624 <br>but whoever does not believe is already judged,
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625 <br>since he does not believe in the name of the
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626 <br>Only Begotten Son of God.
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627 <br>19 The judgment of condemnation is this:
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628 <br>the light came into the world,
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629 <br>and men loved darkness more than the light,
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630 <br>because their deeds were evil.
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631 <br>20 Everyone who practices evil hates the light,
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632 <br>and does not approach the light
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633 <br>for fear that his deeds might be exposed.
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634 <br>21 But everyone who practices the truth
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635 <br>comes to the light,
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636 <BR>to make clear that his deeds are done in God.&#8221;</p></BLOCKQUOTE>
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637 <p>476 Above, the Lord assigned as the cause of spiritual regeneration the coming down of the
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638 Son and the lifting up of the Son of Man; and he set forth its fruit, which is eternal life. But
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639 this fruit seemed unbelievable to men laboring under the necessity of dying. And so now the
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640 Lord explains this. First, he proves the greatness of the fruit from the greatness of God&#8217;s love.
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641 Secondly, he rejects a certain reply (v 17).</p>
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642 <p>477 Here we should note that the cause of all our good is the Lord and divine love. For to
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643 love is, properly speaking, to will good to someone. Therefore, since the will of God is the
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644 cause of things, good comes to us because God loves us. And God&#8217;s love is the cause of the
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645 good of nature: &#8220;You love everything which exists&#8221; (Wis 11:2 5). It is also the cause of the
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646 good which is grace: &#8220;I have loved you with an. everlasting love, and so I have drawn you&#8221;
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647 i.e., through grace (Jer 3 1:3). But it is because of his great love that he gives us the good of
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648 glory. So he shows us here, from four standpoints, that this love of God is the greatest.</p>
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649 <p>First, from the person of the one loving, because it is God who loves, and immeasurably. So
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650 he says, <span style="font-weight: bold">For God so loved: </span>&#8220;He has loved the people; all the holy ones are in his hand&#8221; (Dt
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651 33:3). Secondly, from the condition of the one who is loved, because it is man, a bodily
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652 creature of the world, i.e., existing in sin: &#8220;God shows his love for us, because while we were
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653 still his enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son&#8221; (Rom 5:8). Thus he
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654 says, <span style="font-weight: bold">the world. </span>Thirdly, from the greatness of his gifts, for love is shown by a gift; as
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655 Gregory says: &#8220;The proof of love is given by action.&#8221; But God has given us the greatest of
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656 gifts, his Only Begotten Son, and so he says, <span style="font-weight: bold">that he gave his Only Begotten Son. </span>&#8220;God did
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657 not spare his own Soil, but delivered him up for all of us&#8221; (Rom 8:32).</p>
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658 <p>He says his Son, i.e., his natural Son, consubstantial, not an adopted son, i.e., not those sons
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659 of which the Psalmist says: &#8220;I said: You are gods&#8221; (Ps 81:6). This shows that the opinion of
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660 Arius is false: for if the Son of God were a creature, as he said, the immensity of God&#8217;s love
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661 through the taking on of infinite goodness, which no creature can receive, could not have
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662 been revealed in him. He further says <span style="font-weight: bold">Only Begotten, </span>to show that God does not have a love
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663 divided among many sons, but all of it is for that Son whom he gave to prove the immensity
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664 of his love: &#8220;For the Father loves the Son, and shows him everything that he does&#8221; (below
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665 5:20).</p>
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666 <p>Fourthly, from the greatness of its fruit, because through him we have eternal life. Hence he
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667 says, <span style="font-weight: bold">so that whoever believes in him should not perish, but have eternal life, </span>which he
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668 obtained for us through the death of the cross.</p>
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669 <p>478 But did God give his Son with the intention that he should die on the cross? He did
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670 indeed give him for the death of the cross inasmuch as he gave him the will to suffer on it.
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671 And he did this in two ways. First, because as the Son of God he willed from eternity to
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672 assume flesh and to suffer for us; and this will he had from the Father. Secondly, because the
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673 will to suffer was infused into the soul of Christ by God.</p>
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674 <p>479 Note that above, when the Lord was speaking about the coming down which belongs to
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675 Christ according to his divinity, he called him the Son of God; and this because of the one
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676 <i>suppositum</i> of the two natures, as was explained above. And so divine things can be said
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677 about the <i>suppositum</i> of the human nature, and human things can be said about the
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678 <i>suppositum</i> of the divine nature, but not with reference to the same nature. Rather, divine
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679 things are said with reference to the divine nature, and human things with reference to the
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680 human nature. Now the specific reason why he here calls him the Son of God is that he set
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681 forth that gift as a sign of the divine love, through which the fruit of eternal life comes to us.
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682 And so, he should have been called by that name which indicates the power that produces
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683 eternal life; and this power is not in Christ as Son of Man but as Son of God: &#8220;This is the true
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684 God and eternal life,&#8221; as we read in 1 John (5:20); &#8220;In him was life&#8221; (above 1:4).</p>
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685 <p>480 Note also that he says, <span style="font-weight: bold">should not perish. </span>Someone is said to be perishing when he is
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686 hindered from arriving at the end to which he is ordained. But the end to which man is
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687 ordained is eternal life, and as long as he sins, he turns himself from that end. And although
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688 while he is living he cannot entirely perish in the sense that he cannot be restored, yet when
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689 he dies in sin, then he entirely perishes: &#8220;The way of the wicked will perish&#8221; (Ps 1:7).</p>
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690 <p>He indicates the immensity of God&#8217;s love in saying, <span style="font-weight: bold">have eternal life: </span>for by giving eternal
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691 life, he gives himself. For eternal life is nothing else than enjoying God. But to give oneself is
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692 a sign of great love: &#8220;But God, who is rich in mercy, has brought us to life in Christ&#8221; (Eph
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693 2:5), i.e., he gave us eternal life.</p>
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694 <p>481 Here the Lord excludes an objection that might be made. For in the old law it was
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695 promised that the Lord would come to judge: &#8220;The Lord will come to judge&#8221; (Is 3:14). So
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696 someone might say that the Son of God had not come to give eternal life but in order to judge
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697 the world. The Lord rejects this. First, he shows that he has not come to judge. Secondly, he
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698 proves it (v 18).</p>
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699 <p>482 So he says: The Son of God has not come to judge, because <span style="font-weight: bold">God did not send his Son,
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700 </span>referring to his first coming, <span style="font-weight: bold">into the world to judge the world, but that the world might
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701 be saved through him. </span>The same thing is found below (12:47): &#8220;I did not come to judge the
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702 world, but to save the world.&#8221;</p>
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703 <p>Now man&#8217;s salvation is to attain to God: &#8220;My salvation is in God&#8221; (Ps 61:8). And to attain to
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704 God is to obtain eternal life; hence to be saved is the same as to have eternal life. However,
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705 because the Lord says, &#8220;I did not come to judge the world,&#8221; men should not be lazy or abuse
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706 God&#8217;s mercy, or give themselves over to sin: because although in his first coming he did not
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707 come to judge but to forgive, yet in his second coming, as Chrysostom says, he will come to
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708 judge but not to forgive. &#8220;At the appointed time I will judge with rigor&#8221; (Ps 74:3).</p>
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709 <p>483 However, this seems to conflict with what is said below (9:39): &#8220;1 came into this world
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710 to judge.&#8221; I answer that there are two kinds of judgment. One is the judgment of distinction,
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711 and the Son has come for this in his first coming; because with his coming men are
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712 distinguished, some by blindness and some by the light of grace. The other is the judgment of
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713 condemnation; and he did not come for this as such.</p>
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714 <p>484 Now he proves what he had said, as though by a process of elimination, in the following
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715 way: Whoever will be judged will be either a believer or an unbeliever. But I have not come
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716 to judge unbelievers, because they are already judged. Therefore, from the outset, God did not
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717 send his Son to judge the world. So first he shows that believers are not judged. Secondly,
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718 that unbelievers are notjudged (v 18).</p>
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719 <p>485 He says therefore: I have not come to judge the world: because he did not come to judge
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720 believers, for <span style="font-weight: bold">Whoever believes in him is not judged, </span>with the judgment of condemnation,
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721 with which no one who believes in him with faith informed by love is judged: &#8220;Whoever
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722 believes ... will not encounter judgment, but will pass from death to life&#8221; (below 5:24). But he
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723 is judged with the judgment of reward and approval, of which the Apostle says: &#8220;It is the Lord
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724 who judges me&#8221; (1 Cor 4:4).</p>
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725 <p>486 But will there be many believing sinners who will not be damned? I reply that some
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726 heretics [e.g., Origen] have said that no believer, however great a sinner he may be, will be
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727 damned, but he will be saved by reason of his foundation of salvation, namely, his faith,
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728 although he may suffer some [temporary] punishment. They take as the basis of their error the
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729 statement of the Apostle: &#8220;No one can lay a foundation other that the one that has been laid,
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730 that is, Jesus Christ&#8221; (1 Cor 3:11); and further on: &#8220;If a man&#8217;s building burns ... he himself
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731 will be saved as one fleeing through fire&#8221; (3:15).</p>
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732 <p>But this view is clearly contrary to what the Apostle says in Galatians (5:1): &#8220;It is obvious
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733 what proceeds from the flesh: lewd conduct, impurity, licentiousness ... Those who do such
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734 things will not inherit the kingdom of God.&#8221; Therefore we must say that the foundation of
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735 salvation is not faith without charity (unformed faith), but faith informed by charity.
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736 Significantly therefore the Lord did not say, &#8220;whoever believes him,&#8221; but <span style="font-weight: bold">whoever believes
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737 in him, </span>that is, whoever by believing tends toward him through love <span style="font-weight: bold">is not judged, </span>because
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738 he does not sin mortally, thereby removing the foundation.</p>
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739 <p>Or one could say, following Chrysostom, that everyone who acts sinfully is not a believer:
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740 &#8220;They profess to know God, but they deny him by their actions&#8221; (Ti 1:16); but only one who
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741 acts worthily: &#8220;Show me your faith by your works&#8221; (Jas 2:18). It is only such a one who is not
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742 judged and not condemned for unbelief.</p>
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743 <p>487 Here [the Lord] shows that unbelievers are not judged. First he makes the statement;
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744 secondly, he explains it (v 19).</p>
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745 <p>488 Concerning the first we should note, according to Augustine, that Christ does not say,
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746 &#8220;whoever does not believe is judged,&#8221; but rather <span style="font-weight: bold">is not judged. </span>This can be explained in three
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747 ways. For, according to Augustine, whoever does not believe is not judged, because he is
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748 already judged, not in fact, but in God&#8217;s foreknowledge, that is, it is already known to God
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749 that he will be condemned: &#8220;The Lord knows who are his&#8221; (2 Tim 2:19). In another way:
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750 according to Chrysostom, <span style="font-weight: bold">whoever does not believe is already judged, </span>that is, the very fact
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751 that he does not believe is for him a condemnation: for not to believe is not to adhere to the
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752 light&#8212;which is to live in darkness, and this is a momentous condemnation: &#8220;All were bound
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753 with one chain of darkness&#8221; (Wis 17:17). &#8220;What kind ofjoy can I have, I who sit in darkness
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754 and do not see the light of heaven?&#8221; (Tb 5:12). In a third way: also according to Chrysostom,
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755 <span style="font-weight: bold">whoever does not believe is not judged, </span>that is, being already condemned, he displays the
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756 obvious reason for his condemnation. This is like saying that a person who is proven guilty of
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757 death is already dead, even before the sentence of death has been passed on him, because he
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758 is as good as dead.</p>
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759 <p>Hence Gregory says that in passing judgments there is a twofold order. Some will be
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760 sentenced by a trial; such are the ones who have something not deserving of condemnation,
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761 namely, the good of faith, that is, sinners who believe. But unbelievers, Whose reason for
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762 condemnation is manifest, are sentenced without trial; and of these it is said, <span style="font-weight: bold">whoever does
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763 not believe is already judged. </span>&#8220;In judgment the wicked will not stand&#8221; (Ps 1:6), that is, stand
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764 in trial.</p>
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765 <p>489 It should be noted that to be judged is the same as to be condemned; and to be
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766 condemned is to be shut out from salvation, to which only one road leads, that is, the name of
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767 the Son of God: &#8220;There is no other name under heaven given to men, by which we are saved&#8221;
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768 (Acts 4:12); &#8220;O&#8217;God, save me by your name&#8221; (Ps 53:3). Therefore, those who do not believe
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769 in the Son of God are cut off from salvation, and the cause of their damnation is evident.</p>
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770 <p>490 Here the Lord explains his statement that unbelievers have an evident cause for their
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771 condemnation. First, he sets forth the sign which shows this. Secondly, the fittingness of this
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772 sign (v 20).</p>
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773 <p>491 In the sign he sets forth he does three things. First, he mentions the gift of God. Secondly,
25a799388159 originals from http://www.josephkenny.joyeurs.com/CDtexts/SSJohn.htm
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774 the perversity of mind in unbelievers. Thirdly, the cause of this perversity.</p>
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775 <p>So he says: It is abundantly clear that <span style="font-weight: bold">whoever does not believe is already judged, </span>because
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776 <span style="font-weight: bold">the light came into the world. </span>For men were in the darkness of ignorance, and God
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777 destroyed this darkness by sending a light into the world so that men might know the truth: &#8220;I
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778 am the light of the world. He who follows me does not walk in darkness, but will have the
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779 light of life&#8221; (below 8:12); &#8220;To enlighten those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of
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780 death&#8221; (Lk 1:78). Now the light came into the world because men could not come to it: for
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781 &#8220;He dwells in inaccessible light, whom no man has seen or is able to see&#8221; (1 Tim 6:16).</p>
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782 <p>It is also clear from the perversity of mind in unbelievers who <span style="font-weight: bold">loved darkness more than the
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783 light, </span>i.e., they preferred to remain in the darkness of ignorance rather than be instructed by
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784 Christ: &#8220;They have rebelled against the light&#8221; (Jb 24:13); &#8220;Woe to you who substitute
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785 darkness for light, and light for darkness&#8221; (Is 5:20).</p>
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786 <p>And the cause of this perversity is that <span style="font-weight: bold">their deeds were evil: </span>and such deeds do not conform
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787 to the light but seek the darkness: &#8220;Let us cast off the works of darkness&#8221; (Rom 13:12), i.e.,
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788 sins, which seek the darkness; &#8220;Those who sleep, sleep at night&#8221; (1 Thes 5:7); &#8220;The eye of the
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789 adulterer watches for the darkness,&#8221; as we read in Job (24:15). Now it is by withdrawing from
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790 the light,which is unpleasant to him, that one does not believe the light.</p>
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791 <p>492 But do all unbelievers produce evil works? It seems not: for many Gentiles have acted
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792 with virtue; for example, Cato, and many others. I answer, with Chrysostom, that is it one
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793 thing to work by reason of virtue, and another by reason of a natural aptitude or disposition.
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794 For some act well because of their natural disposition, because their temperament is not
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795 inclined in a contrary way. And even unbelievers can act well in this way. For example, one
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796 may live chastely because he is not assailed by concupiscence; and the same for the other
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797 virtues. But those who act well by reason of virtue do not depart from virute, in spite of
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798 inclinations to the contrary vice, because of the rightness of their reason and the goodness of
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799 their will; and this is proper to believers.</p>
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800 <p>Or, one might answer that although unbelievers may have done good things, they do not do
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801 them for love of virute but out of vainglory. Further, they did not do all things well; for they
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802 failed to render to God the worship due him.</p>
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803 <p>493 Then when he says, <span style="font-weight: bold">Everyone who practices evil hates the light, </span>he shows the
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804 appropriateness of the sign he used. First, with respect to those who are evil. Secondly, with
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805 respect to the good.</p>
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806 <p>494 So he says: The reason why they did not love the light is that their works were evil. And
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807 this is plain because <span style="font-weight: bold">Everyone who practices evil hates the light. </span>He does not say,
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808 &#8220;practiced,&#8221; but rather practices: because if someone has acted in an evil way, but has
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809 repented and is sorry,seeing that he has done wrong, such a person does not hate the light but
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810 comes to the light. But Everyone who practices evil, i.e., persists in evil, is not sorry, nor does
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811 he come to the light, but he hates it; not because it reveals truth, but because it reveals a
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812 person&#8217;s sins. For an evil person still wants to know the light and the truth; but he hates to be
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813 unmasked by it. &#8220;If the dawn suddenly appears, they regard it as the shadow of death&#8221; Qb
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814 24:17). And so he <span style="font-weight: bold">does not approach the light; </span>and this <span style="font-weight: bold">for fear that his deeds might be
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815 exposed. </span>For no one who is unwilling to desert evil wants to be rebuked; this is fled from and
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816 hated. &#8220;They hate the one who rebukes at the city gate&#8221; (Am 5:10); &#8220;A corrupt man does not
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817 love the one who rebukes him&#8221; (Prv 15:12).</p>
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818 <p>495 Now he shows the same things with respect to the good, who practice the truth, i.e.,
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819 perform good works. For truth is found not only in thought and words. but also in deeds.
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820 Everyone of these <span style="font-weight: bold">comes to the light.</span></p>
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821 <p>But did anyone practice the truth before Christ? It seems not, for to practice the truth is not to
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822 sin; and &#8220;before Christ all have sinned&#8221; (Rom 3:23). I answer, according to Augustine, that he
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823 practices the truth in himself who is displeased at the evil he has done; and after leaving the
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824 darkness, keeps himself from sin, and repenting of the past, <span style="font-weight: bold">comes to the light, </span>with the
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825 special intention of making his actions known.</p>
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826 <p>496 But this conflicts with the teaching that no one should make public the good he has done;
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827 and this was a reason why the Lord rebuked the Pharisees. I answer that it is lawful to want
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828 one&#8217;s works to be seen by God so that they may be approved: &#8220;It is not the one who
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829 commends himself who is approved, but the one whom God commends&#8221; (2 Cor 10:18); &#8220;My
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830 witness is in heaven,&#8221; as is said in Job (16:20). It is also lawful to want them to be seen by
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831 one&#8217;s own conscience, so that one may rejoice: &#8220;Our glory is this: the testimony of our
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832 conscience&#8221; (2 Cor 1:12). But it is reprehensible to want them to be seen by men in order to
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833 be praised or for one&#8217;s own glory. Yet, holy persons desire that their good works be known to
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834 men for the sake of God&#8217;s glory and for the good of the faith: &#8220;Let your light so shine before
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835 men that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father in heaven&#8221; (Mt 5:16). Such a
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836 person <span style="font-weight: bold">comes to the light to make clear that his deeds are done in God, </span>that is, according
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837 to God&#8217;s commandment or through the grace of God. For whatever good we do, whether it be
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838 avoiding sin, repenting of what has been done, or doing good works, it is all from God: &#8220;You
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839 have accomplished all our works&#8221; (Is 26:12).</p>
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840 <p style="margin-bottom: 0.125in; margin-bottom: 0.125in">&#160;</p>
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841 <p style="text-align: center; margin-bottom: 0.125in"><span style="font-weight: bold">LECTURE 4</span></p>
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842 <BLOCKQUOTE><p>22 After this Jesus and his disciples came to Judean territory; he stayed there with his
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843 disciples and was baptizing. 23 But John also was baptizing at Aenon near Salim, where the
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844 water was plentiful, and people kept coming and were baptized. 24 John, of course, had not
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845 yet been thrown into prison. 25 A controversy arose between the disciples of John and the
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846 Jews concerning purification. 26 They went to John and said to him, &#8220;Rabbi, the man who
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847 was with you across the Jordan, the one of whom you have given testimony, he is here
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848 baptizing, and all the people are flocking to him.&#8221;</p></BLOCKQUOTE>
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849 <p>497 Above, the Lord gave us his teaching on spiritual regeneration in words, here he
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850 completes his teaching through action, by baptizing. First, two kinds of baptism are
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851 mentioned. Secondly, a question about their relationship is raised (v 25). As to the first, two
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852 things are done. Mention is first made of the baptism of Christ. Secondly, of the baptism of
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853 John.</p>
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854 <p>498 He says first, <span style="font-weight: bold">After this, </span>i.e., the teaching on spiritual regeneration, <span style="font-weight: bold">Jesus and his
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855 disciples came to Judean territory. </span>There is a question here about the literal meaning. For
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856 above, the Evangelist had said that the Lord had come from Galilee to Jerusalem, which is in
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857 Judean territory, where he taught Nicodemus. So how, after teaching Nicodemus, can he
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858 come into Judea, since he was already there?</p>
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859 <p>Two answers are given to this. According to Bede, after his discussion with Nicodemus,
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860 Christ went to Galilee, and after remaining there for a time, returned to Judea. And so <span style="font-weight: bold">After
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861 this Jesus and his disciples came to Judean territory, </span>should not be understood to mean
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862 that he came into Judea immediately after his talk with Nicodemus. Another explanation,
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863 given by Chrysostom, is that he did come into the territory of Judea immediately after this
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864 discussion: for Christ wanted to preach where the people gathered, so that many might be
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865 converted: &#8220;I have declared your justice in the great assembly&#8221; (Ps 3 9:10); &#8220;1 have spoken
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866 openly to the world&#8221; (below 18:20). Now there were two places in Judea where the Jewish
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867 people gathered: Jerusalem, where they went for their feasts, and the Jordan, where they
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868 gathered on account of John&#8217;s preaching and his baptism. And so the Lord used to visit both
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869 places; and after the feast days were over in Jerusalem, which is in one part of Judea, he went
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870 to another part, to the Jordan, where John was baptizing.</p>
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871 <p>499 As for the moral sense, Judea means &#8220;confession,&#8221; to which Jesus came, for Christ visits
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872 those who confess their sins or speak in praise of God: &#8220;Judea became his sanctuary&#8221; (Ps
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873 113:2). He stayed there, because he did not make a merely temporary visit: &#8220;We will come to
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874 him, and make our abode with him,&#8221; as it says below (14:23). <span style="font-weight: bold">And was baptizing, </span>i.e.,
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875 cleansing from sin; because unless one confesses his sins he does not obtain forgiveness: &#8220;He
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876 who hides his sins will not prosper&#8221; (Prv 28:13).</p>
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877 <p>500 Then when he says, <span style="font-weight: bold">But John also was baptizing, </span>the Evangelist presents the baptism of
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878 John. And in regard to this he does four things. First, he presents the person who is baptizing.
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879 Secondly, the place of the baptism. Thirdly, its fruit. Fourthly, the time.</p>
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880 <p>501 John is the person who is baptizing-, so he says, <span style="font-weight: bold">John also was baptizing. </span>There is a
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881 question about this: Since John&#8217;s baptism was ordained to the baptism of Christ, it seems that
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882 John should have stopped baptizing when Christ started to baptize, just as the symbol does
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883 not continue when the truth comes. Three reasons are given for this. The first is in relation to
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884 Christ, for John baptized in order that Christ might be baptized by him. But it was not fitting
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885 that John baptize just Christ; otherwise, on this point alone, it might seem that John&#8217;s baptism
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886 was superior to Christ&#8217;s. Accordingly, it was expedient that John baptize others before Christ,
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887 because before Christ&#8217;s teaching was to be made public it was necessary that men be prepared
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888 for Christ by John&#8217;s baptism. In this way, the baptism of John is related to the baptism of
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889 Christ as the catechesis or religious instruction given to prospects to teach and prepare them
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890 for baptism is related to the true baptism. It was likewise important that John baptize others
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891 after he had baptized Christ, so that John&#8217;s baptism would not seem to be worthless. For the
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892 same reason, the practice of the ceremonies of the old law was not abolished as soon as the
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893 truth came, but as Augustine says, the Jews could lawfully observe them for a time.</p>
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894 <p>The second reason relates to John. For if John had stopped baptizing at once after Christ
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895 began baptizing, it might have been thought that he stopped out of envy or anger. And
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896 because, as the Apostle says, &#8220;We ought to look after what is good, not only before God, but
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897 also before all men&#8221; (Rom 12:17), this is the reason why John did not stop at once.</p>
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898 <p>The third reason relates to John&#8217;s disciples, who were already beginning to act like zealots
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899 toward Christ and his disciples, because they were baptizing. So if John had entirely stopped
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900 from baptizing, it would have provoked his disciples to an even greater zeal and opposition to
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901 Christ and his disciples. For even while John continued baptizing, they were hostile to
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902 Christ&#8217;s baptism, as later events showed. And so John did not stop at once: &#8220;Take care that
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903 your freedom does not become a hindrance to those who are weak,&#8221; as is said in 1
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904 Corinthians (8:9).</p>
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905 <p>502 The place of his baptism was <span style="font-weight: bold">at Aenon near Salim, where the water was plentiful.
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906 </span>Another name for Salim is Salem, which is the village from which the king Melchizedek
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907 came. It is called Salim here because among the Jews a reader may use any vowel he chooses
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908 in the middle of his words; hence it made no difference to the Jews whether it was
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909 pronounced Salim or Salem. He added, <span style="font-weight: bold">where the water was plentiful, </span>to explain the name
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910 of this place, i.e., <span style="font-weight: bold">Aenon, </span>which is the same as &#8220;water.&#8221;</p>
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911 <p>503 The fruit of his baptism is the remission of sins; thus he says, <span style="font-weight: bold">people kept coming and
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912 were baptized, </span>i.e., cleansed: for as is stated in Matthew (3:5) and in Luke (3:7), great
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913 crowds came to John.</p>
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914 <p>504 The time is indicated when he says, <span style="font-weight: bold">John had not yet been thrown into prison. </span>He says
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915 this so that we may know that he began his narrative of Christ&#8217;s life before the other
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916 Evangelists. For the others began their account only from the time of John&#8217;s imprisonment.
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917 So Matthew (4:12) says: &#8220;When Jesus heard that John had been arrested, he withdrew into
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918 Galilee.&#8221; And so, because they had passed over the things that Christ did before John&#8217;s
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919 imprisonment, John, who was the last to write a Gospel, supplied these omissions. He
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920 suggests this when he says: <span style="font-weight: bold">John had not yet been thrown into prison.</span></p>
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921 <p>505 Note that by divine arrangement it came about that when Christ began to baptize, John
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922 did not continue his own baptizing and preaching for very long, in order not to create
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923 disunion among the people. But he was granted a little time so that it would not seem that he
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924 deserved to be repudiated, as was mentioned before. Again, by God&#8217;s arrangement, it came
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925 about that after the faith had been preached and the faithful converted, the temple was utterly
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926 destroyed, in order that all the devotion and hope of the faithful could be directed to Christ.</p>
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927 <p>506 Then when he says, <span style="font-weight: bold">A controversy arose</span>, he brings in the issue of the two baptisms.
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928 First, the issue is mentioned. Secondly, it is brought to John&#8217;s attention (v 26). Thirdly, the
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929 issue is resolved.</p>
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930 <p>507 Because both John and Christ were baptizing, the disciples of John, out of zeal for their
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931 teacher, started a controversy over this. And this is what he says, A controversy arose, i.e., a
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932 dispute, <span style="font-weight: bold">between the disciples of John, </span>who were the first to raise the issue, <span style="font-weight: bold">and the Jews,
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933 </span>whom the disciples of John had rebuked for preferring Christ, because of the miracles he did,
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934 to John, who did not do any miracles. The issue was <span style="font-weight: bold">concerning purification, </span>i.e., baptizing.
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935 The cause of their envy and the reason why they started the controversy was the fact that John
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936 sent those he baptized to Christ, but Christ did not send those he baptized to John. It seemed
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937 from this, and perhaps the Jews even said so, that Christ was greater than John. Thus, the
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938 disciples of John, having not yet become spiritual, quarreled with the Jews over the baptisms.
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939 &#8220;While there is envy and fighting among you, are you not carnal?&#8221; (1 Cor 3:3).</p>
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940 <p>508 They referred this issue to John; hence he says, <span style="font-weight: bold">They went to John. </span>If we examine this
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941 closely, we see that they were trying to incite John against Christ. Indeed, they are like the
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942 gossip and the double-tongued: &#8220;Those who gossip and are double-tongued are accursed, for
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943 they disturb many who are at peace&#8221; (Sir 28:15).</p>
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944 <p>So they bring up four things calculated to set John against Christ. First, they recall the
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945 previous unimportant status of Christ. Secondly, the good John did for him. Thirdly, the role
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946 which Christ took on. Fourthly, the loss to John because of Christ&#8217;s new role.</p>
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947 <p>509 They recall Christ&#8217;s unimportance when they say, <span style="font-weight: bold">the man who was with you, </span>as one of
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948 your disciples; and not the one you were with as your teacher. For there is no good reason for
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949 envy if honor is shown to one who is greater; rather, envy is aroused when honor is given to
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950 an inferior: &#8220;I have seen slaves on horses, and princes walking like slaves&#8221; (Ecc 10:7); &#8220;I
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951 called my servant, and he did not answer me&#8221; (Jb 19:16). For a master is more disturbed at
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952 the rebellion of a servant and a subject than of anyone else.</p>
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953 <p>510 Secondly, they remind John of the good he did Christ. Thus they do not say, &#8220;the one
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954 whom you baptized,&#8221; because they would then be admitting the greatness of Christ which was
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955 shown during his baptism when the Holy Spirit came upon him in the form of a dove and in
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956 the voice of the Father speaking to him. So they say, <span style="font-weight: bold">the one of whom you have given
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957 testimony, </span>i.e., we are very angry that the one you made famous and admired dares to repay
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958 you in this way: &#8220;The one who ate my bread has lifted his heel against me&#8221; (Ps 40:10). They
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959 said this because those who seek their own glory and personal profit from their office become
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960 dejected if their office is taken over by someone else</p>
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961 <p>511 And so thirdly, they even add that Christ took over John&#8217;s office for himself, when they
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962 say, <span style="font-weight: bold">he is here baptizing, </span>i.e., he is exercising your office; and this also distrubed them very
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963 much. For we generally see that men of the same craft are envious and underhanded with
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964 respect to one another; a potter envies another potter, but does not envy a carpenter. So, even
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965 teachers, who are seeking their own honor, become sad if another teaches the truth. In
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966 opposition to them, Gregory says: &#8220;The mind of a holy pastor wishes that others teach the
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967 truth which he cannot teach all by himself.&#8221; So also Moses: &#8220;Would that all the people might
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968 prophesy,&#8221; as we read in Numbers (11:29).</p>
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969 <p>512 Yet they were not satisfied with merely disturbing John, rather they report something that
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970 should really excite him, that is, the loss that John seemed to be having because of the office
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971 Christ took over. They give this when they say: <span style="font-weight: bold">and all the people are flocking to him, </span>i.e.,
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972 the ones who used to come to you. In other words, they have rejected and disowned you, and
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973 now are all going to his baptism. It is clear from Matthew (11:7) that they used to go to John:
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974 &#8220;What did you go into the desert to see?&#8221; The same envy affected the Pharisees against
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975 Christ; so they said: &#8220;Look, the whole world has gone after him&#8221; (below 12:19). However, all
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976 this did not set John againt Christ, for he was not a reed swaying in the wind, and this is clear
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977 from John&#8217;s answer to their question.</p>
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978 <p style="margin-bottom: 0.125in; margin-bottom: 0.125in">&#160;</p>
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979 <p style="text-align: center; margin-bottom: 0.125in"><span style="font-weight: bold">LECTURE 5</span></p>
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980 <BLOCKQUOTE><p>27 John replied and said:</p>
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981 <p style="margin-left: 0.5in">&#8220;No one can lay hold of anything
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982 <br>unless it is given to him from heaven.
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983 <p>28 &#8220;You yourselves are witnesses to the fact that I said: I am not the Christ, but the one sent
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984 before him.</p>
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985 <p style="margin-left: 0.5in">>29 &#8220;It is the groom who has the bride.
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986 <br>The groom&#8217;s friend waits there and listens to him,
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987 <br>rejoicing at hearing his voice.
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988 <br>Therefore in this case my joy is complete.
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989 <br>30 He must increase,
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990 <br>and I must decrease.
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991 <br>31 The One who came from above
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992 <br>is above all things.
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993 <br>He who is of earth is earthly,
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994 <br>and speaks of earthly things.
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995 <br>32a The One who comes from heaven
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996 <br>is above all things,
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997 <br>and he testifies to what he sees,
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998 <BR>and to what he hears.</p></BLOCKQUOTE>
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999 <p>513 Here we have John&#8217;s answer to the question presented to him by his disciples. Their
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1000 question contained two points: a complaint about the office Christ took on, and so they said,
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1001 <span style="font-weight: bold">he is here baptizing; </span>and about Christ&#8217;s increasing fame and reputation among the people,
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1002 and so they said, <span style="font-weight: bold">all the people are flocking to him. </span>Accordingly, John directs his answer to
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1003 these two complaints. First he answers the complaint about the office Christ took on.
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1004 Secondly, the complaint about Christ&#8217;s increasing reputation (v 30). As to the first he does
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1005 two things. First, he shows the source of Christ&#8217;s office and of his own. Secondly, their
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1006 difference (v 28). Thirdly, how Christ and he are related to these offices.</p>
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1007 <p>514 As to the first, note that although John&#8217;s disciples broach their question maliciously, and
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1008 so deserve to be rebuked, John nevertheless does not sharply reprove them; and this because
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1009 of their imperfection. For he feared that they might be provoked by a rebuke, leave him, and,
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1010 joining forces with the Pharisees, publicly harass Christ. In acting this way he was putting
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1011 into practice what is said of the Lord: &#8220;The burised reed he will not break&#8221; (Is 42:3). Again,
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1012 we should also note that he begins his answer not by telling them what is great and wonderful
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1013 about Christ, but what is common and obvious; and he did this on account oftheir envy. For
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1014 since the excellence of a person provokes others to envy, if John had stressed Christ&#8217;s
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1015 excellence at once, he would have fed the fire of their envy.</p>
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1016 <p>515 Thus he states something unpretentious, and says, <span style="font-weight: bold">No one can lay hold of anything
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1017 unless it is given to him from heaven; </span>and he said this to them in order to inspire them with
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1018 reverence. As if to say: If all men are going to him, it is God&#8217;s doing, because <span style="font-weight: bold">no one can lay
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1019 hold of anything, </span>in the order of perfection and goodness, unless it is given to him from
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1020 heaven. Therefore, if you oppose him, you oppose God. &#8220;If this plan or work is from men, it
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1021 will fail,&#8221; as is said in Acts (5:38). This is the way Chrysostom explains it, applying these
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1022 words to Christ.</p>
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1023 <p>Augustine, on the other hand, does much better when he refers them to John. <span style="font-weight: bold">No one can lay
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1024 hold of anything unless it is given to him from heaven: </span>as if to say: You are zealous on my
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1025 behalf and you want me to be greater than Christ; but that has not been given to me, and I do
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1026 not wish to usurp it: &#8220;No one takes this honor on himself&#8221; (Heb 5:4). This is the origin of
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1027 their offices.</p>
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1028 <p>516 Then follows the difference of their offices, when he says, You yourselves are witnesses.
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1029 As if to say: From the testimony which I bore to him, you can know the office committed to
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1030 me by Christ: for You yourselves are witnesses, i.e., you can testify, <span style="font-weight: bold">to the fact that I said: I
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1031 am not the Christ</span>&#8212;&#8220;He declared openly and did not deny&#8221; (above 1:20)&#8212;<span style="font-weight: bold">but the one sent
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1032 before him, </span>as a herald before a judge. And so from my own testimony you can know my
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1033 office, which is to go before Christ and prepare the way for him: &#8220;There was a man sent by
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1034 God, whose name was John&#8221; (above 1:6). But the office of Christ is to judge and to preside. If
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1035 we look at this closely we can see that John, like a skilful disputant, answers them with their
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1036 own arguments: &#8220;I judge you out of your own mouth,&#8221; as said in Luke (19:22).</p>
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1037 <p>517 He shows how John is related to his own office when he says: <span style="font-weight: bold">It is the groom who has
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1038 the bride. </span>First, he gives a simile. Secondly, he applies it to his own situation. With respect
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1039 to the first he does two things. First, he gives a simile which applies to Christ; and secondly,
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1040 to himself.</p>
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1041 <p>518 As to the first, we should note that on the human level it is the groom who regulates,
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1042 governs and has the bride. Hence he says, <span style="font-weight: bold">It is the groom who has the bride. </span>Now the
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1043 groom is Christ: &#8220;Like a bridegroom coming out of his bridal chamber&#8221; (Ps 18:6). His bride is
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1044 the Church, which is joined to him by faith: &#8220;I will espouse you to myself in faith&#8221; Mos 2:20).
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1045 In keeping with this figure, Zipporah said to Moses: &#8220;You are a spouse of blood to me&#8221; (Ex
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1046 4:25). We read of the marriage: &#8220;The marriage of the Lamb has come&#8221; (Rv 19:7). So, because
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1047 Christ is the groom, he has the bride, that is, the Church; but my part is only to rejoice in the
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1048 fact that he has the bride.</p>
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1049 <p>519 Consequently he says, <span style="font-weight: bold">The groom&#8217;s friend waits there and listens to him, rejoicing at
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1050 hearing his voice. </span>Although John had said earlier that he was not worthy to unfasten the strap
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1051 of Jesus&#8217; sandal, he here calls himself the friend of Jesus in order to bring out the faithfulness
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1052 of his love for Christ. For a servant does not act in the spirit of love in regard to the things
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1053 that pertain to his master, but in a spirit of servitude; while a friend, on the other hand, seeks
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1054 his friend&#8217;s interests out of love and faithfulness. Hence a faithful servant is like a friend to
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1055 his master: &#8220;If you have a faithful servant, treat him like yourself&#8221; (Sir 33:31). Indeed, it is
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1056 proof of a servant&#8217;s faithfulness when he rejoices in the prosperity of his master, and when he
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1057 obtains various goods, not for himself, but for his master. And so because John did not keep
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1058 the bride entrusted to his care for himself, but for the groom, we can see that he was a faithful
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1059 servant and a friend of the groom. It is to suggest this that he calls himself <span style="font-weight: bold">the groom&#8217;s
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1060 friend.</span></p>
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1061 <p>Those who are friends of the truth should act in the same way, not turning the bride entrusted
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1062 to their care to their own advantage and glory, but treating her honorably for the honor and
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1063 glory of the groom; otherwise they would not be friends of the groom but adulterers. This is
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1064 why Gregory says that a servant who is sent by the groom with gifts for the bride is guilty of
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1065 adulterous thoughts if he himself desires to please the bride. This is not what the Apostle did:
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1066 &#8220;I espoused you to one husband in order to present you to Christ as a chaste virgin&#8221; (2 Cor
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1067 11:2). And John did the same, because he did not keep the bride, i.e., the faithful, for himself,
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1068 but brought them to the groom, that is, to Christ.</p>
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1069 <p>520 And so by saying, <span style="font-weight: bold">the groom&#8217;s friend, </span>he suggests the faithfulness of his love. Further,
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1070 he suggests his constancy when he says, <span style="font-weight: bold">waits, </span>firm in friendship and faithfulness, not
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1071 extolling himself above what he really is: &#8220;I will stand my watch&#8221; (Hb 2:1); &#8220;Be steadfast and
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1072 unchanging&#8221; (1 Cor 15:58); &#8220;A faithful friend, if he is constant, is like another self&#8221; (Sir
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1073 6:11).</p>
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1074 <p>He suggests his attention when he says, <span style="font-weight: bold">and listens to him, </span>i.e., attentively considers the way
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1075 in which the groom is united to the bride. For according to Chrysostom, these words explain
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1076 the manner of this marriage, for it is accomplished through faith, and &#8220;faith comes through
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1077 hearing&#8221; (Rom 10:17). Or, he <span style="font-weight: bold">listens to him, </span>i.e., reverently obeys him, by caring for the
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1078 bride according to the commands of the groom: &#8220;I will listen to him as my master,&#8221; as is said
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1079 in Isaiah (50:4). This is in opposition to those evil prelates who do not follow Christ&#8217;s
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1080 command in governing the Church.</p>
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1081 <p>Likewise, he hints at his spiritual joy when he says, <span style="font-weight: bold">rejoicing at hearing his voice, </span>that is,
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1082 when the groom talks to his bride. And he says, <span style="font-weight: bold">rejoicing </span>(literally, &#8220;rejoicing with joy&#8221;), to
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1083 show the truth and perfection of his joy. For one whose rejoicing is not over the good, does
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1084 not rejoice with true joy. And so, if it made me sad that Christ, who is the true groom,
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1085 preaches to the bride, i.e., the Church, I would not be a friend of the groom; but I am not sad.</p>
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1086 <p>521 Therefore in this case my joy is complete, namely, in seeing what I have so long desired,
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1087 that is, the groom speaking to his bride. Or, my joy is complete, i.e., brought to its perfect and
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1088 due measure, when the bride. is united to the groom, because I now have my grace and I have
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1089 completed my work: &#8220;I will rejoice in the Lord, and I will take joy in God, my Jesus&#8221; (Hb
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1090 3:18).</p>
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1091 <p>522 Then when he says, <span style="font-weight: bold">He must increase, and I must decrease, </span>he answers their question
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1092 as to their complaint about the increasing esteem given to Christ. First, he notes that such an
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1093 increase is fitting. Secondly, he gives the reason for it (v 31).</p>
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1094 <p>523 So he says: You say that all the people are flocking to him, i.e., to Christ, and therefore
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1095 that he is growing in honor and esteem among the people. But I say that this is not
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1096 unbecoming, because He must increase, not in himself, but in relation to others, in the sense
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1097 that his power becoipe more and more known. <span style="font-weight: bold">And I must decrease, </span>in the reverence and
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1098 esteem of the people: for esteem and reverence are not due to me as if I were a principal; but
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1099 they are due to Christ. And therefore since he has come, the signs of honor are diminishing in
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1100 my regard, but increasing in regard to Christ, just as with the coming of the prince, the office
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1101 of the ambassador ceases: &#8220;When the perfect comes, what is imperfect will pass away&#8221; (1 Cor
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1102 13:10). And just as in the heavens the morning star appears and gives light before the sun,
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1103 only to cease giving light when the sun appears, so John went before Christ and is compared
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1104 to the morning star: &#8220;Can you bring out the morning star?&#8221; (Jb 38:32).</p>
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1105 <p>This is also signified in John&#8217;s birth and in his death. In his birth, because John was born at a
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1106 time when the days are getting shorter; Christ, however, was born when the days are growing
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1107 longer, on the twenty-fifth of December. In his death, because John dies shortened by
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1108 decapitation; but Christ died raised up by the lifting up of the cross.</p>
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1109 <p>524 In the moral sense, this should take place in each one of us. Christ must increase in you,
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1110 i.e., you should grow in the knowledge and love of Christ, because the more you are able to
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1111 grasp him by knowledge and love, the more Christ increases in you; just as the more one
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1112 improves in seeing one and the same light, the more that light seems to increase.
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1113 Consequently, as men advance in this way, their self-esteem decreases; because the more one
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1114 knows of the divine greatness, the less he thinks of his human smallness. As we read in
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1115 Proverbs (30:1): &#8220;The revelation spoken by the man close to God&#8221;; and then there follows: &#8220;I
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1116 am the most foolish of men, and the wisdom of men is not in me.&#8221; &#8220;I have heard you, but now
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1117 I see you, and so I reprove myself, and do penance in dust and ashes,&#8221; as we read in Job
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1118 (42:5).</p>
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1119 <p>525 Then when he says, <span style="font-weight: bold">The One who came from above is above all things, </span>he gives the
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1120 reason for what he has just said. And he does this in two ways. First, on the basis of Christ&#8217;s
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1121 origin. And secondly, by considering Christ&#8217;s teaching.</p>
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1122 <p>526 Regarding the first, we should note that in order for a thing to be perfect, it must reach
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1123 the goal fixed for it by its origin; for example, if one is born from a king, he should continue
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1124 to progress until he becomes a king. Now Christ has an origin that is most excellent and
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1125 eternal; therefore he must increase by the manifestation of his power, in relation to others,
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1126 until it is recognized that he is above all things. Thus he says, <span style="font-weight: bold">The One who came from
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1127 above, </span>that is, Christ, according to his divinity. &#8220;No one has gone up to heaven except the
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1128 One who came down from heaven&#8221; (above 3:13); &#8220;You are from below, I am from above&#8221;
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1129 (below 8:23).</p>
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1130 <p>527 Or, he <span style="font-weight: bold">came from above, </span>as to his human nature, i.e., from the &#8220;highest&#8221; condition of
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1131 human nature, by assuming it according to what was predominant in it in each of its states.
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1132 For human nature is considered in three states. First, is the state of human nature before sin;
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1133 and from this state he took his purity by assuming a flesh unmarked by the stain of original
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1134 sin: &#8220;A lamb without blemish&#8221; (Ex 12:5). The second state is after sin; and from this he took
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1135 his capability to suffer and die by assuming the likeness of sinful flesh as regards its
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1136 punishment, but not in its guilt: &#8220;God sent his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh&#8221; (Rom
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1137 8:3). The third state is that of resurrection and glory; and from this he took his impossibility
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1138 of sinning and his joy of soul.</p>
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1139 <p>528 Here we must be on guard against the error of those who say that there was left in Adam
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1140 something materially unmarked by the original stain, and this was passed on to his
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1141 descendants; for example, to the Blessed Virgin, and that Christ&#8217;s body was formed from this.
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1142 This is heretical, because whatever existed in Adam in a material way was marked by the
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1143 stain of original sin. Further, the matter from which the body of Christ was formed was
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1144 purified by the power of the Holy Spirit when he sanctified the Blessed Virgin.</p>
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1145 <p>529 <span style="font-weight: bold">The One who came from above, </span>according to his divinity as well as his human nature,
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1146 <span style="font-weight: bold">is above all things, </span>both by eminence of rank: &#8220;The Lord is high above all nations&#8221; (Ps
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1147 112:4), and by his authority and power: &#8220;He has made him the head of the Church,&#8221; as is said
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1148 in Ephesians (1:22).</p>
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1149 <p style="margin-bottom: 0.125in; margin-bottom: 0.125in">&#160;</p>
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1150 <p>530 Now he gives the reason for what he had said above (v 30), by considering the teaching
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1151 of Christ. First, he describes the doctrine of Christ and its grandeur. Secondly, the difference
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1152 in those who receive or reject this doctrine (v 32b). He does two things with respect to the
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1153 first. First, he describes John&#8217;s doctrine. Secondly, he describes the doctrine of Christ (v 32).</p>
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1154 <p>531 As to the first we should note that a man is known mainly by what he says: &#8220;Your accent
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1155 gives you away&#8221; (Mt 26:73); &#8220;Out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks&#8221; (Mt
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1156 12:34). This is why the quality of a teaching or doctrine is considered according to the quality
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1157 of its origin. Accordingly, in order to understand the quality of John&#8217;s doctrine, we should
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1158 first consider his origin. So he says, <span style="font-weight: bold">He who is of earth, </span>that is John, not only as to the matter
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1159 from. which he was made, but also in his efficient cause: because the body of John was
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1160 formed by a created power: &#8220;They dwell in houses of clay, and have a foundation of earth&#8221;
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1161 (Jb 4:19). Secondly, we should consider the quality of John himself, which is earthly; and so
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1162 he says, is earthly. Thirdly, the quality of his teaching is described: he <span style="font-weight: bold">speaks of earthly
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1163 things. </span>&#8220;You will speak of the earth&#8221; (Is 29:4).</p>
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1164 <p>532 But since John was full of the Holy Spirit while still in his mother&#8217;s womb, how can he
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1165 be said to speak of earthly things? I answer that, according to Chrysostom, John says he
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1166 speaks of earthly things by comparison with the teaching of Christ. As if to say: The things I
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1167 speak of are slight and inferior as becomes one of an earthly nature, in comparison to him &#8220;in
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1168 whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge&#8221; (Col 2:3); &#8220;As the heavens are
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1169 high above the earth, so my ways are high above your ways&#8221; (Is 55:9).</p>
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1170 <p>Or we could say according to Augustine, and this is a better explanation, that we can consider
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1171 what any person has of himself and what he has received from another. Now John and every
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1172 mere human of himself is of the earth. Therefore, from this standpoint, he has nothing to
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1173 speak of except earthly things. And it&#8217; he does speak of divine things, it is due to a divine
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1174 enlightenment: &#8220;Your heart has visions, but unless they come from the Almighty, ignore
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1175 them&#8221; (Sir 34:6). So the Apostle says, &#8220;It is not 1, but the grace of God which is with me&#8221; (1
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1176 Cor 15:10); &#8220;For it is not you who speak, but the Holy Spirit who is speaking through you&#8221;
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1177 (Mt 10:20). Accordingly, as regards John, he <span style="font-weight: bold">is earthly and speaks of earthly things. </span>And if
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1178 there was anything divine in him, it did not come from him, as he was the recipient, but from
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1179 the one enlightening him.</p>
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1180 <p>533 Now he describes the doctrine of Christ. And he does three things. First, he shows its
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1181 origin, which is heavenly; hence he says, <span style="font-weight: bold">The One who comes from heaven is above all
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1182 things. </span>For although the body of Christ was of the earth as regards the matter of which it was
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1183 made, yet it came from heaven as to its efficient cause, inasmuch as his body was formed by
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1184 divine power. It also came from heaven because the eternal and uncreated person of the Son
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1185 came from heaven by assuming a body. &#8220;No one has gone up to heaven except the One who
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1186 came down from heaven, the Son of Man, who lives in heaven&#8221; (above 3:13).</p>
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1187 <p>Secondly, he shows the dignity of Christ, which is very great; so he says, <span style="font-weight: bold">is above all things.
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1188 </span>This was explained above.</p>
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1189 <p>Thirdly, he infers the dignity of Christ&#8217;s doctrine, which is most certain, because <span style="font-weight: bold">he testifies
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1190 to what he sees and to what he hears. </span>For Christ, as God, is truth itself; but as man, he is its
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1191 witness: &#8220;For this was I born, and for this I came into the world: to testify to the truth&#8221; (below
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1192 18:37). Therefore, he gives testimony to himself: &#8220;You testify to yourself&#8221; (below 8:13). And
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1193 he testifies to what is certain, because his testimony is about what he has heard with the
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1194 Father: &#8220;I speak to the world what I have heard from my Father&#8221; (below 8:26); &#8220;What we
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1195 have seen and heard&#8221; (1 Jn 1:3).</p>
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1196 <p>534 Note that knowledge of a thing is acquired in through sight and in one way another way
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1197 through hearing. For by sight, a knowledge of a thing in acquired by means of the very thing
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1198 seen; but by hearing, a thing is not made known by the very voice that is heard, but by means
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1199 of the understanding of the one speaking. And so, because the Lord has knowledge which he
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1200 has received from the Father, he says, <span style="font-weight: bold">to what he sees, </span>insofar as he proceeds from the
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1201 essence of the Father; <span style="font-weight: bold">and to what he hears, insofar </span>as he proceeds as the Word of the
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1202 Father&#8217;s intellect. Now because among intellectual beings, their act of being is other than
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1203 their act of understanding, their knowledge through sight is other than their knowledge
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1204 through hearing. But in God the Father, the act of being (<i>esse</i>)<i> </i>and the act of understanding
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1205 (<i>intelligere</i>) are the same. Thus in the Son, to see and hear are the same thing. Moreover,
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1206 since even in one who sees there is not the essence of the thing seen in itself but only its
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1207 similitude, as also in the hearer there is not the actual thought of the speaker but only an
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1208 indication of it, so the one who sees is not the essence of the thing in itself, nor is the listener
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1209 the very thought expressed. In the Son, however, the very essence of the Father is received by
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1210 generation, and he himself is the Word; and so in him to see and to hear are the same.</p>
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1211 <p>And so John concludes that since the doctrine of Christ has more grandeur and is more certain
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1212 than his, one must listen to Christ rather than to him.</p>
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1213 <p style="margin-bottom: 0.125in; margin-bottom: 0.125in">&#160;</p>
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1214 <p style="text-align: center; margin-bottom: 0.125in"><span style="font-weight: bold">LECTURE 6</span></p>
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1215 <BLOCKQUOTE><p style="margin-left: 0.5in">32b &#8220;And his testimony no one accepts.
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1216 <br>33 But whoever accepts his testimony
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1217 <br>has given a sign [or certifies] that God is true.
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1218 <br>34 For the One whom God sends
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1219 <br>speaks the words of God,
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1220 <br>for God does not bestow the Spirit in fractions.
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1221 <br>35 The Father loves the Son,
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1222 <br>and has put everything into his hands.
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1223 <br>36 Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life.
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1224 <br>But whoever is unbelieving in the Son
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1225 <br>will not see life;
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1226 <BR>rather, the anger of God rests on him.&#8221;</p></BLOCKQUOTE>
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1227 <p>535 Above, John the Baptist commended the teaching of Christ; here, however, he considers
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1228 the difference in those who receive it. Thus, he treats of the faith that must be given to this
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1229 teaching. And he does three things. First, he shows the scarcity of those who believe.
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1230 Secondly, the obligation to believe (v 33). Lastly, the reward for belief (v 36).</p>
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1231 <p>536 He says therefore: I say that Christ has certain knowledge and that he speaks the truth.
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1232 Yet although few accept his testimony, that is no reflection on his teaching, because it is not
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1233 the fault of the teaching but of those who do not accept it: namely, the disciples of John, who
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1234 did not yet believe, and the Pharisees, who slandered his teaching. Thus he says, <span style="font-weight: bold">And his
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1235 testimony no one accepts.</span></p>
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1236 <p>537 <span style="font-weight: bold">No one</span> can be explained in two ways. First, so that it implies a few; and so some did
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1237 accept his testimony. He shows that some did accept it when he adds, &#8220;But whoever accepts
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1238 his testimony.&#8221; The Evangelist used this way of speaking before when he said: &#8220;He came unto
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1239 his own, and his own did not receive him&#8221; (above 1:11): because a few did receive him.</p>
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1240 <p>In another way, to accept his testimony is understood as to believe in God. But no one can
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1241 believe of himself, but only due to God: &#8220;You are saved by grace&#8221; (Eph 2:8). And so he says,
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1242 his testimony no one accepts, i.e., of himself, but it is given to him by God.</p>
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1243 <p>This can be explained in another way by realizing that Scripture refers to people in two ways.
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1244 As long as we are in this world the wicked are mingled with the good; and so Scripture
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1245 sometimes speaks of &#8220;the people,&#8221; or &#8220;they,&#8221; meaning those who are good; while at other
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1246 times, the same words can refer to the wicked. We can see this in Jeremiah (26): for first it
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1247 says that all the people and the priests sought to kill Jeremiah, and this referred to those who
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1248 were evil; then at once it says that all the people sought to free him, and this referred to those
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1249 who were good. In the same way, John the Baptist says, looking to the left, i.e., toward those
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1250 who are evil, <span style="font-weight: bold">And his testimony no one accepts; </span>and later, referring to those on the right,
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1251 i.e., to the good, he says, <span style="font-weight: bold">But whoever accepts his testimony.</span></p>
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1252 <p>538 <span style="font-weight: bold">But whoever accepts his testimony. </span>Here he speaks of the obligation to believe, i.e., to
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1253 submit oneself to divine truth. As to this he does four things. First, he presents the divine
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1254 truth. Secondly, he speaks of the proclamation of the divine truth (v 34). Thirdly, of the
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1255 ability to proclaim it ( v 34b). Fourthly, he gives the reason for this ability (v 35).</p>
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1256 <p>539 Man&#8217;s obligation to the faith is to submit himself to divine truth, and so he says that if
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1257 few accept his testimony that means that some do. Hence he says, <span style="font-weight: bold">whoever accepts his
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1258 testimony, </span>i.e., whoever he may be, <span style="font-weight: bold">has given a sign, </span>i.e., he ought to affix a certain sign or
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1259 has in fact placed a seal in his own heart, that Christ is God. And he [Christ] is true, because
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1260 he said that he is God. If he were not, he would not be true, but it is written: &#8220;God is true&#8221;
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1261 (Rom 3:4). Concerning this seal it is said: &#8220;Set me as a seal on your heart&#8221; (Sg 8:6), and &#8220;The
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1262 foundation of God stands firm, bearing a seal, etc.&#8221; as we read in 2 Timothy (2:19).</p>
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1263 <p>Or, following Chrysostom, he has given a sign, i.e., he has shown <span style="font-weight: bold">that God, </span>that is, the
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1264 Father, <span style="font-weight: bold">is true, </span>because he sent his Son whom he promised to send. The Fvangelist says this
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1265 to show that those who do not believe Christ deny the truthfulness of the Father.</p>
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1266 <p>540 Then immediately he adds a commendation of divine truth, saying, <span style="font-weight: bold">For the One whom
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1267 God sends speaks the words of God. </span>As if to say: He has given this as a sign, namely, that
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1268 Christ, whose testimony he accepts, <span style="font-weight: bold">the One whom God sends speaks the words of God.
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1269 </span>Consequently, one who believes Christ believes the Father: &#8220;I speak to the world what I have
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1270 heard from the Father&#8221; (below 8:26). So he expressed verbally nothing but the Father and the
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1271 words of the Father, because he has been sent by the Father, and because he is the Word of
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1272 the Father. Hence, he says that he even bespeaks the Father.</p>
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1273 <p>Or, if the statement <span style="font-weight: bold">God is true </span>refers to Christ, we understand the distinction of persons; for
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1274 since the Father is true God, and Christ is true God, it follows that the true God sent the true
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1275 God, who is distinct from him in person, but not in nature.</p>
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1276 <p>541 The ability to proclaim divine truth is present in Christ in the highest degree, because he
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1277 does not receive the Spirit in a partial way; and so he says, <span style="font-weight: bold">for God does not bestow the
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1278 Spirit in fractions.</span></p>
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1279 <p>You might say that although God sent Christ, yet not all that Christ says is from God, but only
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1280 some of the things; for even the prophets spoke at times from their own spirit, and at other
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1281 times from the Spirit of God. For example, we read that the prophet Nathan (2 Sm 7:3),
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1282 speaking out of his own spirit, advised David to build a temple, but that later, under the
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1283 influence of the Spirit of God, he retracted this. However, the Baptist shows that such is not
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1284 the case with Christ. For the prophets receive the Spirit of God only fractionally, i.e., in
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1285 reference to some things, but not as to all things. Consequently, not all they say are the words
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1286 of God. But Christ, who received the Spirit fully and in regards to all things, speaks the words
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1287 of God as to all things.</p>
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1288 <p>542 But how can the Holy Spirit be given in fractions, since he is immense or infinite,
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1289 according to the Creed of Athanasius: &#8220;Immense is the Father, immense the Son, immense the
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1290 Holy Spirit&#8221;? I answer that the Holy Spirit is given in fractions, not in respect to his essence
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1291 or power, according to which he is infinite, but as to his gifts, which are given fractionally:
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1292 &#8220;Grace has been given to each of us according to degree&#8221; (Eph 4:7).</p>
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1293 <p>543 We should note that we can understand in two ways what is said here, namely, that God
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1294 the Father did not give the Spirit to Christ in a partial way. We can understand it as applying
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1295 to Christ as God, and, in another way, as applying to Christ as man. Something is given to
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1296 someone in order that he may have it: and it is appropriate to Christ to have the Spirit, both as
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1297 God and as man. And so he has the Holy Spirit with respect to both. As man, Christ has the
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1298 Holy Spirit as Sanctifier: &#8220;The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because the Lord has anointed
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1299 me&#8221; (Is 6 1:1), namely, as man. But as God, he has the Holy Spirit only as manifesting
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1300 himself, inasmuch as the Spirit proceeds from him: &#8220;He will give glory to me,&#8221; that is, make
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1301 known, &#8220;because he will have received from me,&#8221; as is said below (16:14).</p>
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1302 <p>Therefore, both as God and as man, Christ has the Holy Spirit beyond measure. For God the
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1303 Father is said to give the Holy Spirit without measure to Christ as God, because he gives to
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1304 Christ the power and might to bring forth (<i>spirandi</i>)<i> </i>the Holy Spirit, who, since he is infinite,
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1305 was infinitely given to him by the Father: for the Father gives it just as he himself has it, so
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1306 that the Holy Spirit proceeds from him as much as from the Son. And he gave him this by an
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1307 everlasting generation. Similarly, Christ as man has the Holy Spirit without measure, for the
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1308 Holy Spirit is given to different men in differing degrees, because grace is given to each &#8220;by
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1309 measure&#8221; [cf., e.g., Mk 4:24; Mt 7:2]. But Christ as man did not receive a certain amount of
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1310 grace; and so he did not receive the Holy Spirit in any limited degree.</p>
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1311 <p>544 It should be noted, however, that there are three kinds of grace in Christ: the grace of [the
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1312 hypostatic] union, the grace of a singular person, which is habitual, and the grace of headship,
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1313 which animates all the members. And Christ received each of these graces without measure.</p>
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1314 <p>The grace of union, which is not habitual grace, but a certain gratuitous gift, is given to Christ
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1315 in order that in his human nature he be the true Son of God, not by participation, but by
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1316 nature, insofar as the human nature of Christ is united to the Son of God in person. This union
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1317 is called a grace because he had it without any preceding merits. Now the divine nature is
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1318 infinite; hence from that union he received an infinite gift. Thus it was not by degree or
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1319 measure that he received the Holy Spirit, i.e., the gift and grace of union which, as gratuitous,
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1320 is attributed to the Holy Spirit.</p>
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1321 <p>His grace is termed habitual insofar as the soul of Christ was full of grace and wisdom: &#8220;the
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1322 Only Begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth&#8221; (above 1:14). We might wonder if Christ
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1323 did receive this grace without measure. For since such grace is a created gift, we must admit
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1324 that it has a finite essence. Therefore, as far as its essence is concerned, since it is something
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1325 created, this habitual grace was finite. Yet Christ is not said to have received this in a limited
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1326 degree for three reasons.</p>
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1327 <p>First, becatise of the one who is receiving the grace. For it is plain that each thing&#8217;s nature has
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1328 a finite capacity, because even though one might receive an infinite good by knowing, loving
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1329 and enjoying it, nevertheless one receives it by enjoying it in a finite way. Further, each
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1330 creature has, according to its species and nature, a finite amount of capacity. But this does not
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1331 make it impossible for the divine power to make another creature possessing a greater
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1332 capacity; but then such a creature would not be of a nature which is specifically the same, just
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1333 as when one is added to three, there is another species of number. Therefore, when some
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1334 nature is not given as much of the divine goodness as its natural capacity is able to contain,
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1335 then it is seen to be given to it by measure; but when its total natural capacity is filled, it is not
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1336 given to it by measure, because even though there is a measure on the part of the one
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1337 receiving, there is none on the part of the one giving, who is prepared to give all. Thus, if
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1338 someone takes a pail to a river, he sees water present without measure, although he takes the
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1339 water by measure on account of the limited dimensions of the pail. Thus, the habitual grace of
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1340 Christ is indeed finite according to its essence, but it is said to be given in an infinite way and
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1341 not by measure or partially, because as much was given to him as created nature was able to
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1342 hold.</p>
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1343 <p>Secondly, Christ did not receive habitual grace in a limited way by considering the gift which
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1344 is received. For every form or act, considered in its very nature, is not finite in the way in
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1345 which it is made finite by the subject in which it is received. Nevertheless, there is nothing to
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1346 prevent it from being finite in its essence, insofar as its existence (<i>esse</i>) is<i> </i>received in some
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1347 subject. For that is infinite according to its essence which has the entire fulness of being
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1348 (<i>essendi</i>): and this is true of God alone, who is the supreme <i>esse. </i>But if we consider some
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1349 &#8220;spiritual&#8221; form as not existing in a subject, for example, whiteness or color, it would not be
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1350 infinite in essence, because its essence would be confined to some genus or species;
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1351 nevertheless it would still possess the entire fulness of that species. Thus, considering the
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1352 nature of the species, it would be without limit or measure, since it would have everything
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1353 that can pertain to that species. But if whiteness or color should be received into some
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1354 subject, it does not always have everything that pertains necessarily and always to the nature
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1355 of this form, but only when the subject has it as perfectly as it is capable of being possessed,
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1356 i.e., when the way the subject possesses it is equivalent to the power of the thing possessed.
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1357 Thus, Christ&#8217;s habitual grace was finite according to its essence; yet it is said to have been in
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1358 him without a limit or measure because he received everything that could pertain to the nature
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1359 of grace. Others, however, do not receive all this, but one receives in one way, and another in
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1360 another way: &#8220;There are different graces&#8221;</p>
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1361 <p>The third reason for saying that the habitual grace of Christ was not received in a limited way
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1362 is based on its cause. For an effect is in some way present in its cause. Therefore, if someone
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1363 has an infinite power to produce something, he is said to have what can be produced without
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1364 measure and, in a way, infinitely. For example, if someone has a fountain which could
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1365 produce an infinite amount of water, he would be said to have water in an infinite way and
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1366 without measure. Thus, the soul of Christ has infinite grace and grace without measure from
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1367 the fact that he has united to himself the Word, which is the infinite and unfailing source of
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1368 the entire emanation of all created things.</p>
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1369 <p>From what has been said, it is clear that the grace of Christ which is called capital grace,
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1370 insofar as he is head of the Church, is infinite in its influence. For from the fact that he
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1371 possessed that from which the gifts of the Spirit could flow out without measure, he received
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1372 the power to pour them out without measure, so that the grace of Christ is sufficient not
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1373 merely for the salvation of some men, but for all the people of the entire world: &#8220;He is the
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1374 offering for our sins; and not for ours only, but also for those of the entire world&#8221; ( 1 Jn 2:2),
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1375 and even for many worlds, if they exsited.</p>
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1376 <p style="margin-bottom: 0.125in; margin-bottom: 0.125in">&#160;</p>
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1377 <p>545 Christ also had the ability appropriate for declaring divine truth, because all things are in
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1378 his power; hence he says, <span style="font-weight: bold">The Father loves the Son, and has put everything into his
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1379 hands. </span>This can refer to Christ both as man and as God, but in different ways. If it refers to
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1380 Christ according to his divine nature, then <span style="font-weight: bold">loves </span>does not indicate a principle but a sign: for
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1381 we cannot say that the Father gives all things to the Son because he loves him. There are two
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1382 reasons for this. First, because to love is an act of the will; but to give a nature to the Son is to
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1383 generate him. Therefore, if the Father gave a nature to the Son by his will, the will of the
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1384 Father would be the principle of the generation of the Son; and then it would follow that the
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1385 Father generated the Son by will, and not by nature; and this is the Arian heresy.</p>
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1386 <p>Secondly, because the love of the Father for the Son is the Holy Spirit. So, if the love of the
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1387 Father for the Son were the reason why the Father put everything into his hands, it would
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1388 follow that the Holy Spirit would be the principle of the generation of the Son; and this is not
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1389 acceptable. Therefore, we should say that <span style="font-weight: bold">loves </span>implies only a sign. As if to say: The perfect
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1390 love with which <span style="font-weight: bold">the Father loves the Son, </span>is a sign that the Father <span style="font-weight: bold">has put everything into
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1391 his hands, </span>i.e., everything which the Father has: &#8220;All things have been given to me by my
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1392 Father- (Mt 11:27); &#8220;Jesus, knowing that the Fallier had given all things into his hands&#8221;
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1393 (below 13:3).</p>
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1394 <p>But if loves refers to Christ as man, then it implies the notion of a principle, so that the Father
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1395 is said to have put everything into the hands of the Son, everything, that is, that is in heaven
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1396 and on earth: &#8220;All authority has been given to me, in heaven and on earth,&#8221; as he says in
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1397 Matthew (28:18); &#8220;He has appointed him [the Son] the heir of all things&#8221; (Heb 1:2). And the
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1398 reason why the Father gives to the Son is because he loves the Son; hence he says, <span style="font-weight: bold">The
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1399 Father loves the Son, </span>for the Father&#8217;s love is the reason for creating each creature: &#8220;You love
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1400 everything which exists, and hate nothing which you have made&#8221; (Wis 11:25). Concerning
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1401 his love for the Son we read in Matthew (3:17): &#8220;This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well
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1402 pleased&#8221;; &#8220;He has brought us into the kingdom of the Son of his love,&#8221; that is, i.e., of his
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1403 beloved Son (Col 1:13).</p>
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1404 <p>546 Then when he says, <span style="font-weight: bold">Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life, </span>he shows the fruit of
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1405 faith. First, he sets forth the reward for faith. Secondly, the penalty for unbelief (v 36b).</p>
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1406 <p>547 The reward for faith is beyond our comprehension, because it is eternal life. Hence he
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1407 says, <span style="font-weight: bold">Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life. </span>And this is shown from what has already
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1408 been said. For if the Father has given everything he has to the Son, and the Father has eternal
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1409 life, then he has given to the Son to be eternal life: &#8220;Just as the Father possesses life in
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1410 himself, so he has given it to the Son to have life in himself&#8221; (below 5:26): and this belongs
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1411 to Christ insofar as he is the true and natural Son of God. &#8220;That you may be in his true Son,
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1412 Christ. This is the true God and eternal life&#8221; (1 Jn 5:20). <span style="font-weight: bold">Whoever believes in the Son </span>has
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1413 that toward which he tends, that is, the Son, in whom he believes. But the Son is eternal life;
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1414 therefore, whoever believes in him has eternal life. As it says below (10:27): &#8220;My sheep hear
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1415 my voice ... and I give them eternal life.&#8221;</p>
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1416 <p>548 The penalty for unbelief is unendurable, both as to the punishment of loss and as to the
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1417 punishment of sense. As to the punishment of loss, because it deprives one of life; hence he
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1418 says, <span style="font-weight: bold">whoever is unbelieving in the Son will not see life. </span>He does not say, &#8220;will not have,&#8221;
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1419 but will not see, because eternal life consists in the vision of the true life: &#8220;This is eternal life:
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1420 that they may know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent&#8221; (below
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1421 17:3): and unbelievers will not have this vision and this knowledge: &#8220;Let him not see the
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1422 brooks of honey&#8221; (Jb 4:19), that is, the sweetness of eternal life. And he says, <span style="font-weight: bold">will not see,
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1423 </span>because to see life itself is the proper reward for faith united with love.</p>
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1424 <p>The punishment of sense is unendurable because one is severely punished; so he says: <span style="font-weight: bold">the
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1425 anger of God rests on him. </span>For in the Scriptures anger indicates the pain with which God
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1426 punishes those who are evil. So when he says, the anger of God, the Father, rests on him, it is
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1427 the same as saying: They will feel punishment from God the Father.</p>
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1428 <p>Although the Father &#8220;has given all judgment to the Son,&#8221; as we read below (5:22), the Baptist
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1429 refers this to the Father in order to lead the Jews to believe in the Son. It is written about this
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1430 judgment: &#8220;It is a terrible thing to fall into the hands of the living God&#8221; (Heb 10:31). He says,
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1431 <span style="font-weight: bold">rests on him</span>, because this punishment will never be absent from the unbelieving, and
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1432 because all who are born into this mortal life are the objects of God&#8217;s anger, which was first
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1433 felt by Adam: &#8220;We were by nature,&#8221; that is, through birth, &#8220;children of anger&#8221; (Eph 2:3). And
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1434 we are freed from this anger only by faith in Christ; and so the anger of God rests on those
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1435 who do not believe in Christ, the Son of God.</p>
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1436 </body>
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1437
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1438 </html>