Homily 5 — Hebrews 2, verse 16, to 3, verse 6

“For truly he does not take hold of angels, but he takes hold of the seed of Abraham. Therefore he had to be made like his brothers in every respect.” [a]

Paul wants to show God’s great kindness toward humankind, and the love he had for the human race. So, after saying, “Since, then, the children shared in blood and flesh, he himself likewise took part in the same” (Hebrews 2, verse 14), he follows the subject up in this passage. Do not take lightly what is said here, and do not think it a small matter that he took our flesh upon himself. He did not grant this to angels: “For truly he does not take hold of angels, but of the seed of Abraham.” What is he saying? That he did not take on himself the nature of an angel, but the nature of a man. But what does “he takes hold of” mean? He did not grasp (he means) the nature that belongs to angels, but ours.

But why did he not say “he took on himself,” instead of using this expression, “he takes hold of”? It comes from the picture of people chasing those who turn away from them, and doing everything to overtake them as they flee and to take hold of them as they leap away. Human nature was fleeing from him, and fleeing far away — for we “were far off” (Ephesians 2, verse 13) — and he pursued us and overtook us. He showed that he did this only out of kindness, and love, and tender care. When Paul says, “Are they not all ministering spirits, sent out to serve for the sake of those who will inherit salvation?” (Hebrews 1, verse 14), he shows how deeply concerned God is for human nature, and how much account he makes of it. In the same way, here he sets it out far more strongly by a comparison, for he says, “He does not take hold of angels.”

And truly it is a great and wonderful thing, and full of amazement, that our flesh should sit on high and be worshiped by angels and archangels, by the cherubim and the seraphim. I have often thought about this myself, and I am amazed at it, and I imagine great things for the human race. For I see that the beginnings are great and splendid, and that God has great zeal on behalf of our nature. Besides, he did not say simply, “He takes hold of men.” He wanted to lift the Hebrews up and to show that their race is great and honorable, so he says, “but he takes hold of the seed of Abraham.”

“Therefore he had to be made like his brothers in every respect.” What does “in every respect” mean? He was born (he means), he was brought up, he grew, he suffered everything that he had to, and at last he died. That is what “to be made like his brothers in every respect” means. He had spoken at length about Christ’s majesty and the glory on high, and now he begins on the plan of salvation. And see how forcefully he does this — how he shows him eager to be made like us, which was a sign of great care. Above he had said, “Since, then, the children shared in flesh and blood, he himself likewise took part in the same”; and here too he says, “to be made like his brothers in every respect.”

This is all but saying: he who is so great, he who is “the radiance of his glory,” he who is “the exact imprint of his person,” he who “made the worlds,” he who “sits at the right hand of the Father” — he was willing and eager to become our brother in every respect. That is why he left the angels and the other powers, came down to us, took hold of us, and did countless good things for us. He destroyed death, he threw the devil out of his tyranny, he set us free from slavery. It was not only by making himself our brother that he honored us, but in other ways beyond number. For he was willing also to become our high priest with the Father, as Paul goes on to say:

“So that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest in the things that concern God.” This is why (he means) he took our flesh upon himself: only out of love for humankind, so that he might have mercy on us. There is no other reason for the plan of salvation but this alone. He saw us thrown to the ground, perishing, under the tyranny of death, and he had compassion on us. “To make reconciliation,” he says, “for the sins of the people. So that he might be a merciful and faithful high priest.” [e]

What does “faithful” mean? True, and able. For the Son is a faithful high priest, able to set free from their sins those whose high priest he is. So it was in order to offer a sacrifice able to purify us that he became man.

That is why he added, “in the things that concern God” — that is, for the sake of what has to do with God. We had become complete enemies of God (he would say), condemned, disgraced, and there was no one to offer sacrifice for us. He saw us in that condition and had compassion on us — not by appointing a high priest for us, but by becoming our high priest himself. And in what sense he was “faithful,” he added: “to make reconciliation for the sins of the people.”

Verse 18: “For because he himself suffered when he was tested,” he says, “he is able to help those who are being tested.”

This is altogether lowly and base, and unworthy of God. “For because he himself suffered,” he says. He is speaking here of the one who was made flesh, and he said it to give his hearers full assurance, because of their weakness. That is (he would say), he went through the very experience of what we have suffered. He is not ignorant of our sufferings now. He does not know them only as God; as man too he has come to know them, through the testing he underwent. He suffered much; he knows how to feel with us. And yet God cannot suffer. But here he is describing what belongs to his becoming man, as if he had said: even the very flesh of Christ suffered many terrible things. He knows what distress is; he knows what trial is, no less than we who have suffered, for he himself has suffered too.

(What, then, does “he is able to help those who are being tested” mean? It is as if someone were to say: he will reach out his hand with great eagerness; he will feel with them.)

Since they wanted something great, and wanted an advantage over the converts from the Gentiles, he shows them that they do have an advantage here — without hurting the converts from the Gentiles at all. In what respect? In this: salvation is from them; he took hold of them first; it was from their race that he took flesh. “For,” he says, “he does not take hold of angels, but he takes hold of the seed of Abraham.” By this he both honors the patriarch and shows what “the seed of Abraham” is. He reminds them of the promise made to Abraham, which said, “To you and to your seed I will give this land” (Genesis 13, verse 15). By this smallest of things he shows the closeness of the relationship, in that they were “all of one.” But that closeness was not great. So he comes back to the subject, and from then on he dwells on the plan of salvation carried out in the flesh, and says: even his mere willingness to become man was a proof of great care and love; but now it is not this alone — there are also the undying benefits given to us through him. For he says, “to make reconciliation for the sins of the people.” [h]

Why did he not say “of the world” instead of “of the people,” since he took away the sins of all? Because up to this point his discourse was about the Hebrews. So too the angel said to Joseph, “You shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people” (Matthew 1, verse 21). For this had to happen first: he came for this purpose, to save them, and then through them the rest — although the opposite came to pass. The apostles too said this at the beginning: “To you God, having raised up his Son, sent him to bless you” (Acts 3, verse 26); and again, “To you the word of this salvation was sent” (Acts 13, verse 26). Here he shows the noble birth of the Jews when he says, “to make reconciliation for the sins of the people.” For the time being he speaks this way. But that it is he who forgives the sins of all people he made plain, both in the case of the paralyzed man, when he said, “Your sins are forgiven” (Mark 2, verse 5), and in the case of baptism, for he says to the disciples, “Go and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit” (Matthew 28, verse 19).

But once Paul has taken up the subject of the flesh, he goes on to say all the lowly things without any fear. See what he says next, in Hebrews 3, verses 1 and 2: “Therefore, holy brothers and sisters, sharers in the heavenly calling, consider the apostle and high priest of our confession, Christ Jesus, who was faithful to the one who appointed him, or made him, as Moses also was faithful in all his house.” [i]

He is about to set Christ beside Moses in comparison, so he has led his discourse to the law of the high priesthood, for they all held Moses in high esteem. And he is already sowing beforehand the seeds of Christ’s superiority. So he begins from the flesh, from his human nature, and goes up to his being God, where there was no longer any comparison. He began from the flesh by granting equality for the moment, and he says, “as Moses also was in all his house.” He does not show Christ’s superiority at first, so that the hearer will not start away and immediately stop up his ears. For though they were believers, their consciences were still strongly attached to Moses. “Who was faithful,” he says, “to the one who made him.” Made him what? “Apostle and high priest.” He is not speaking here at all of his being, nor of his being God, but so far only of human dignities.

“As Moses also was in all his house” — that is, either among the people or in the temple. But here he uses the expression “in his house” just as one might speak of those in a household: like a guardian and steward of a household, so was Moses to the people. That by “house” he means the people, he shows by adding, “whose house we are” (Hebrews 3, verse 6) — that is, we are part of what he made. Then comes the superiority.

Verse 3: “For this man was counted worthy of more glory than Moses” — again he is speaking of the flesh — “by as much as the one who built the house has more honor than the house.” Moses himself (he means) was part of the house. (He did not say, “The one was a servant, but the other a master,” but he hinted at it quietly.) If the people were the house and Moses was one of the people, then certainly he was one of the household. We are used to speaking this way ourselves: so-and-so is of so-and-so’s house. Here he is speaking of a house, not of the temple, for the temple was not built by God but by human beings. But the one who made him — he means Moses — is God. And see how quietly he shows the superiority. “Faithful,” he says, “in all his house” — Moses being himself part of the house, that is, of the people. The builder has more honor than the house. Yet he did not say, “The craftsman has more honor than his works,” but “the one who built the house, more than the house.” Verse 4: “But the one who built all things is God.” You see that he is speaking not about the temple but about the whole people.

Verse 5: “And Moses truly was faithful in all his house as a servant, for a testimony of the things that were to be spoken.”

See yet another point of superiority, the one drawn from the Son and the servants. You see again that by the name “the Son” he points to a true relationship.

Verse 6: “But Christ as a Son over his own house.”

Do you see how he separates the thing made from its maker, the servant from the son? The one enters into his Father’s property as its master, the other as a servant.

“Whose house we are” — God’s, that is — “if we hold fast the confidence and the boasting of the hope firm to the end.” Here again he encourages them to press on nobly and not to fall. We will be God’s “house” (he says), as Moses was, “if we hold fast our confidence and our boasting firm to the end.” But the man who is distressed in his trials and falls (he would say) does not boast. The man who is ashamed, who hides himself, has no confidence; the man who is perplexed does not boast. And then he praises them as well, by saying, “if we hold fast the confidence and the boasting of the hope firm to the end.” This implies that they had already made a beginning, but that the end is needed — and not merely to stand, but to keep their hope firm “in full assurance of faith,” unshaken by their trials.

And do not be astonished that the words “he himself suffered when he was tested” (Hebrews 2, verse 18) are spoken in a more human way. Scripture says of the Father, who did not become flesh, “The Lord looked down from heaven and saw all the children of men” (Psalm 14, verse 2) — that is, he made himself exactly acquainted with all things. And again: “I will go down and see whether they have done altogether according to the outcry against them” (Genesis 18, verse 21). And again: “God cannot endure the evil ways of men” (Genesis 6, verse 5) — here the divine Scripture shows the greatness of his anger. If such things are said of the Father, much more are they said of Christ, who actually suffered in the flesh. Many people regard experience as the surest way of knowing, so Paul wants to show that he who has suffered knows what human nature suffers. [l]

“Hence, holy brothers and sisters” — he says “hence” in place of “for this reason” — “sharers in a heavenly calling.” (Seek nothing here, if you have been called there. The reward is there; the recompense is there. What then?) “Consider the apostle and high priest of our confession, Christ Jesus, who was faithful to the one who appointed him, as Moses also was faithful in all his house.” (What does “who was faithful to the one who appointed him” mean? It means well disposed, guarding what belongs to him, not letting his own be carried off lightly — “as Moses also was in all his house.”) That is: know who your high priest is, and what he is, and you will need no other comfort or encouragement. He calls him “apostle” because he was “sent,” and “high priest of our confession,” that is, of the faith. This one too was entrusted with a people, as the other was entrusted with leading a people — but a greater people, and on higher grounds.

“For a testimony of the things that will be spoken.” What do you mean? Does God accept the testimony of human beings? Yes, certainly. If he calls heaven and earth and hills to witness — saying through the prophet, “Hear, O heaven, and give ear, O earth, for the Lord has spoken” (Isaiah 1, verse 2), and, “Hear, you ravines, you foundations of the earth, for the Lord has a dispute with his people” (Micah 6, verse 2) — much more does he call human beings. That is, they are to be witnesses when the Jews themselves turn shameless.

Verse 6: “But Christ as a Son.” The one takes care of what belongs to others; this one, of what is his own.

“And the boasting of the hope.” He did well to say “of the hope.” All the good things lay in hope, and yet we ought to “hold it fast” in such a way that we boast even now, as though over things that had already happened. That is why he says, “the boasting of the hope.”

And he adds, “let us hold it firm to the end.” For “we are saved by hope” (Romans 8, verse 24). If, then, “we are saved by hope,” and “wait for it with endurance” (Romans 8, verse 25), let us not be grieved by present things, nor look now for the things that were promised for later. “For,” he says, “hope that is seen is not hope.” Because the good things are great, we cannot receive them here, in this passing life. Why, then, did he tell us of them beforehand, when he was not going to give them here? So that by the promise he might refresh our souls, by the pledge strengthen our zeal, anoint us for our contests, and stir up our minds. That is why all these things were done.

So let us not be troubled — let no one be troubled — when he sees the wicked prospering. The recompense is not here, either for wickedness or for virtue. And if in some case there is recompense here, for wickedness or for virtue, it is not in proportion to what is deserved; it is only a kind of taste of the judgment, so that those who do not believe in the resurrection may be brought to their senses at least by what happens here. So when we see a wicked man rich, let us not be downcast; when we see a good man suffering, let us not be troubled. For the crowns are there, and the punishments are there. [n]

And from another point of view too: it is not possible for a bad man to be altogether bad; he may have some good things as well. Nor is it possible for a good man to be altogether good; he may have some sins as well. So when the wicked man prospers, it is for evil on his own head: having received here the reward for those few good things, he may be punished in full there. That is why he receives his recompense in this life. And most blessed of all is the one who is punished here, so that, having put away all his sins, he may depart approved and pure, with no account left to give.

Paul teaches us this when he says, “That is why many among you are weak and sick, and many sleep” (First Corinthians 11, verse 30); and again, “I have handed such a one over to Satan” (First Corinthians 5, verse 5). And the prophet says, “She has received from the Lord’s hand double for her sins” (Isaiah 40, verse 2). And David again: “Look at my enemies, how they have multiplied beyond the hairs of my head, and with an unjust hatred they have hated me”; “and forgive all my sins” (Psalm 25, verses 19 and 18). And another again: “O Lord our God, give us peace, for you have repaid us all things” (Isaiah 26, verse 12). These words show that good men receive here the punishments for their sins.

But where are the wicked shown receiving their good things here and being punished in full there? Hear Abraham saying to the rich man, “You received your good things, and Lazarus evil things” (Luke 16, verse 25). What good things? By saying here “you received,” and not “you took,” he shows that each was treated according to what was due him, the one in prosperity and the other in adversity. And he says, “That is why he is comforted” here — for you see him pure from sins — “and you are in torment.” So let us not be perplexed when we see sinners doing well here; but when we ourselves are afflicted, let us rejoice. For this very thing is the paying off of the penalty for our sins.

So let us not look for ease. Christ promised distress to his disciples, and Paul says, “All who want to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will suffer persecution” (Second Timothy 3, verse 12). No noble-spirited wrestler, once he is in the contest, looks for baths and a table full of food and wine. That is not for a wrestler, but for a lazy man. The wrestler contends with dust, with oil, with the heat of the sun’s rays, with much sweat, with strain and pressure. This is the time for contest and for fighting — and so also for being wounded, for being bloody, for being in pain. Hear what the blessed Paul says: “That is how I fight, not as one who beats the air” (First Corinthians 9, verse 26). Let us consider that our whole life is spent in combat, and then we will never look for rest, and we will never think it strange when we are afflicted, any more than a boxer thinks it strange to be in combat. There is another season for rest. Through distress we must be made perfect. [p]

And even if there is no persecution and no distress, there are still other afflictions that befall us every day. And if we do not bear these, we would hardly endure those. “No trial has overtaken you,” it says, “except what is common to human beings” (First Corinthians 10, verse 13). So let us pray to God that we may not come into trial; but if we do come into it, let us bear it nobly. Not throwing oneself into dangers is the mark of prudent people; bearing them nobly is the mark of noble people and true philosophers. So let us not cast ourselves into dangers lightly, for that is rashness. Nor yet, if we are led into them and called by circumstances, let us give in, for that is cowardice. If the good news calls us, let us not refuse. But in an ordinary case, when there is no reason, no need, no necessity calling us in the fear of God, let us not rush in. That is mere display and a useless love of show. But should anything happen that does harm to religion, then even if we must endure ten thousand deaths, let us refuse nothing. Do not go challenging trials when you find the things of godliness prospering as you would wish. Why bring down on yourself needless dangers that bring no gain?

I say these things because I want you to keep the laws of Christ, who commands us to “pray that we may not enter into trial” (Matthew 26, verse 41), and commands us to “take up the cross and follow” him (Matthew 16, verse 24). These things do not contradict each other — no, they are in the closest harmony. Be ready as a brave soldier is: always in your armor, sober, watchful, always on the lookout for the enemy. But do not start wars, for that is the act not of a soldier but of a man who stirs up revolt. If, on the other hand, the trumpet of godliness calls you, go out at once, count your life as nothing, enter the contest with great eagerness, break through the enemy’s battle line, strike the devil in the face, set up your trophy. But if godliness is in no way harmed, and no one is laying waste our teachings — I mean those that concern the soul — and no one is forcing us to do anything displeasing to God, do not go meddling.

The Christian’s life must be full of bloodshed — I do not mean shedding the blood of others, but being ready to shed one’s own. So let us pour out our own blood, when it is for Christ’s sake, as readily as one would pour out water (for the blood that flows through the body is water), and let us put off our flesh as calmly as one would take off a garment. And we will do this if we are not bound to wealth, or to houses, or to our attachments — if we are free of everything. If those who live the life of earthly soldiers say goodbye to everything, and go wherever the war calls them, and make journeys, and endure everything with a ready mind, how much more ought we, the soldiers of Christ, to be prepared in this way, and to set ourselves firmly against the war of the passions.

There is no persecution now — and God grant there may never be. But there is another war: the war of the love of money, of envy, of the passions. Paul describes this war when he says, “We do not wrestle against flesh and blood” (Ephesians 6, verse 12). This war is always at hand. That is why he wants us always to stand armed; and because he wants us always to stand armed, he says, “Stand, having girded yourselves” (Ephesians 6, verse 14). That word too belongs to the present moment, and tells us that we must always be armed. For great is the war waged through the tongue, great the war through the eyes, and we must hold it down; great too is the war of the cravings. [t]

That is why he begins at that point when he arms the soldier of Christ. “Stand,” he says, “having your loins girded,” and he added, “with truth” (Ephesians 6, verse 14). Why “with truth”? Because craving is a mockery and a lie. That is why the prophet says, “My loins are filled with mockings” (Psalm 38, verse 7). The thing is not pleasure, but a shadow of pleasure. “Having your loins,” he says, “girded with truth” — that is, with true pleasure, with chastity, with orderly conduct. He gives this advice because he knows how unreasonable sin is, and he wants all our members to be fenced around. For “unjust anger,” it says, “will not be held guiltless” (Sirach 1, verse 22).

He also wants us to have a breastplate and a shield around us. For desire is a wild beast that springs out easily, and we will need countless walls and fences to overcome it and hold it back. That is why God built this part of our body especially with bones, as if with stones, and put a support around it, so that desire could never break or cut its way through and easily injure the whole man. For it is a fire, it says, and a great storm, and no other part of the body could endure its violence. The physicians also say that this is why the lungs are spread beneath the heart: so that the heart, set into something soft and tender, and beating as it were into a kind of sponge, may be continually cushioned, and may not be hurt by the violence of its beating against the hard, unyielding breastbone. So we need a strong breastplate, to keep this wild beast always quiet.

We also need a helmet. The reasoning faculty is there, and through it we can either be saved, when what is right is done, or be ruined. That is why he says, “the helmet of salvation” (Ephesians 6, verse 17). The brain is by nature tender, and so it is covered above by the skull, as by a kind of shell. And it is the cause for us of all things, both good and evil, since it knows what is fitting and what is not. Yes, and our feet and our hands need armor too — not these hands and these feet, but, as before, those of the soul: the hands, so that they may be busy with what is right; the feet, so that they may walk where they ought. So let us arm ourselves thoroughly, and we will be able to overcome our enemies and to crown ourselves with the wreath in Christ Jesus our Lord, with whom, to the Father, together with the Holy Spirit, be glory, might, and honor, now and always, and forever and ever. Amen.