Lectio 3
Lecture 3
Aspectus ministorum Satanae
Appearance of Satan’s ministers
11:9 Et cum essem apud vos, et egerem, nulli onerosus fui: nam quod mihi deerat, suppleverunt fratres, qui venerunt a Macedonia: et in omnibus sine onere me vobis servavi, et servabo. [n. 392]
11:9 And when I was present with you and was in need, I was a burden to no man: for that which was wanting to me, the brethren supplied who came from Macedonia. And in all things I have kept myself from being burdensome to you: and so I will keep myself. [n. 392]
11:10 Est veritas Christi in me, quoniam haec gloriatio non infringetur in me in regionibus Achaiae. [n. 397]
11:10 The truth of Christ is in me, that this glorying shall not be broken off in me in the regions of Achaia. [n. 397]
11:11 Quare? quia non diligo vos? Deus scit. [n. 399]
11:11 Why? Because I do not love you? God knows it. [n. 399]
11:12 Quod autem facio, et faciam: ut amputem occasionem eorum qui volunt occasionem, ut in quo gloriantur, inveniantur sicut et nos. [n. 401]
11:12 But what I do, that I will do: that I may cut off the occasion from those who desire an occasion: that wherein they glory, they may be found even as we. [n. 401]
11:13 Nam ejusmodi pseudoapostoli sunt operarii subdoli, transfigurantes se in apostolos Christi. [n. 404]
11:13 For such false apostles are deceitful workmen, transforming themselves into the apostles of Christ. [n. 404]
11:14 Et non mirum: ipse enim Satanas transfigurat se in angelum lucis. [n. 406]
11:14 And no wonder: for Satan himself transforms himself into an angel of light. [n. 406]
11:15 Non est ergo magnum, si ministri ejus transfigurentur velut ministri justitiae: quorum finis erit secundum opera ipsorum. [n. 408]
11:15 Therefore it is no great thing if his ministers be transformed as the ministers of justice, whose end shall be according to their works. [n. 408]
392. Ostenso quod quando primo eis praedicavit in ipso adventu, evangelizavit eis gratis, hic ostendit quod nec etiam contrahendo moram apud eos, accepit ab eis sumptus. Et
392. Having shown that when he first preached to them during his first visit, he preached to them without charge, he now shows that not even during his long stay among them did he accept any payments from them.
primo hoc ostendit,
First, he shows this;
secundo vero respondet cuidam tacitae quaestioni, ibi nam quod mihi, et cetera.
second, he answers a tacit question, at for that which was wanting to me.
393. Dicit ergo: non solum quando primo veni ad vos non accepi a vobis sumptus; sed etiam cum essem apud vos diu et etiam egerem, ut ostendat quod non dimisit eis sumptus propter divitias, nulli onerosus fui, aliquid ab aliquo accipiendo. In quo apparet causa quare dimisit: quia Corinthii, propter avaritiam eis innatam, reputabant sibi onus ministrare sumptus. I Cor. IX, 12: non sumus usi hac potestate, sed omnia sustinemus, et cetera.
393. He says, therefore: I took no payments from you not only when I first came to you, but also when I was present with you for some time and was in need, in order to show that he did not forego the payments, because he was rich: I was a burden to no man by taking anything from anyone. This reveals the cause why he forewent it, namely, because the Corinthians in their innate avarice considered it a burden to minister to him. We have not made use of this right, but we endure anything rather than put an obstacle in the way of the Gospel of Christ (1 Cor 9:12).
394. Sed possent isti dicere: unde ergo habuisti necessaria? Et ideo respondet dicens quod ab aliis ecclesiis. Ideo scilicet nihil accepi, quia illud quod mihi deerat, scilicet a pretio quod lucrabatur nocte laborando manibus suis, apud Aquilam et Priscam. Erat enim scenofactoriae artis, per quam lucrabatur sibi necessaria. Act. XX, 34: ad ea quae mihi opus erant, et cetera. Illud ergo quod deerat non dedistis vos, sed suppleverunt fratres qui venerunt a Macedonia, scilicet Philippenses, qui erant valde liberales. Unde de hoc in epistola ad Philippenses commendat eos: Phil. IV, 15: nulla ecclesia communicavit mihi in ratione dati et accepti, nisi vos. Sed Corinthii erant avari.
394. But they could ask: where did you get what you needed? So he answers: from the other churches. Therefore I took nothing, because that which was wanting to me was supplied from the wage I earned by working at night with Aquila and Priscilla, for he practiced the tentmaker’s art, from which he furnished his necessities. You yourselves know that these hands ministered to my necessities, and to those who were with me (Acts 20:34). Therefore, that which was lacking you did not give, but the brethren supplied who came from Macedonia, namely, the Philippians, who were very generous; for which the Apostle commended them in the epistle to the Philippians: no church entered into partnership with me in giving and receiving except you only (Phil 4:15). But the Corinthians were avaricious.
395. Consequenter cum dicit et in omnibus sine onere, etc., ostendit quomodo se habebit in hoc ad eos in futurum, dicens, quod etiam sine onere vult se habere ad eos. Et
395. Then when he says, and in all things I have kept myself from being burdensome to you: and so I will keep myself, he shows how he plans to act toward them in this matter in the future, saying that he does not want to be a burden to them.
circa hoc duo facit.
In regard to this he does two things.
Primo ponit suam rationem communem;
First, he gives his general reason;
secundo confirmat eam, ibi est veritas Christi, et cetera.
second, he confirms it, at the truth of Christ.
396. Dicit ergo: non solum feci hoc, scilicet quod gratis vobis evangelizavi et nulli onerosus fui, sed etiam in omnibus servabo me vobis sine onere, sicut usque modo servavi, non dure reprehendendo, non severe corrigendo, nec vestra accipiendo. Act. III: argentum et aurum et vestem nullius concupivi. Num. XVI, 15: tu scis quod nec asellum quidem acceperim ab eis, dicit Moyses ad Dominum. Samuel dicit, I Reg. c. XII, 3: loquimini de me, si oppressi, et cetera.
396. He says, therefore: not only have I preached the Gospel to you without charge and was a burden to no man, but also I have kept myself from being burdensome to you: and so I will keep myself, not rebuking you sharply or correcting you severely or accepting anything: I coveted no one’s silver or gold or apparel (Acts 20:33); I have not taken one ass from them, and I have not harmed one of them (Num 16:15); and Samuel says: testify against me before the Lord and before his anointed . . . whom have I oppressed? (1 Sam 12:3).
397. Et quod ita facturus sit, confirmat ex duobus.
397. That he will continue to do so he confirms in two ways.
Primo ex eo qui loquitur in ipso, scilicet Christo, qui est veritas, a qua non potest esse falsum. Et ideo dicit est veritas Christi in me, etc., quasi dicat: hoc quod dixi verum est, quia veritas Christi loquitur in me, et cetera. Hoc infra ultimo: an experimentum quaeritis eius qui in me, et cetera.
First, by reason of the one who speaks in him, namely, Christ, who is the truth from which nothing false can come; hence he says, the truth of Christ is in me. As if to say: what I say is true, because the truth of Christ speaks in me: do you seek a proof of Christ who speaks in me? (2 Cor 13:3)
Vel hoc potest accipi per modum iurantis. Quasi dicat: Deus, qui est veritas et est in me scrutans corda, sit mihi testis, quod ita servabo me. Rom. I, 9: testis est mihi Deus, et cetera.
Or this can be taken as an oath, as if to say: God, who is truth, and who is in me searching my heart is my witness that I will keep myself so. For God is my witness, whom I serve with my spirit in the Gospel of his Son (Rom 1:9).
398. Secundo, ex eo quod non intendit minuere gloriam suam, sed augere.
398. Second, from the fact that he does not intend to lessen his glory, but to increase it.
Apostolus enim attribuebat sibi apud Christum ad magnam gloriam quod ipse solus, inter apostolos, sine sumptu praedicabat Corinthiis. Et ideo dicit: ideo servabo me sine onere, quoniam non infringetur, id est non minuetur, in me haec gloria, quod scilicet gratis praedico vobis, et quod a licitis abstineo, propter salutem vestram: quae quidem est gloria Christi, quia ipse glorificatur per hoc in me; vel quia ego hanc gloriam habeo specialiter apud Christum. Quae quidem refringeretur in regionibus Achaiae, ubi Corinthus erat metropolis, si recepisset ab eis, quia avari erant. Habitabant enim in maritimis, et erant intenti mercationibus, et tales consueverunt esse avari. I Cor. IX, 15: bonum est mihi magis mori, quam ut gloriam meam quis evacuet.
For the Apostle attributed to himself before Christ as his great glory that he alone of all the apostles preached to the Corinthians without payment; hence he says: so I will keep myself from being burdensome to you; that this glorying shall not be broken off, i.e., lessened, in me, namely, that I preached to you freely and that I refrained from what is lawful for your salvation which is Christ’s glory, because he is glorified in me by this, or because I particularly have this glory with Christ. This would have been broken off in the regions of Achaia, where Corinth was the metropolis, if he had taken anything from them, because they were avaricious. For I would rather die than have any one deprive me of my ground for boasting (1 Cor 9:15).
399. Consequenter cum dicit quare? Quia non, etc., ponit causam quare non accepit sumptus ab eis. Et
399. Then when he says, and why?, he presents the cause why he did not take payment from them.
circa hoc duo facit.
Concerning this he does two things.
Primo excludit falsam causam;
First, he excludes the false cause;
secundo astruit veram, ibi quod autem facio, et cetera.
second, he gives the true one, at but what I do.
400. Circa primum sciendum est, quod pseudo imponebant Apostolo, quod ideo non recipiebat a Corinthiis sumptus, quia non diligebat eos, et quia non intendebat eis benefacere et servire. Dicit ergo quare, scilicet hoc facio, quia non diligo vos, id est pro odio quod habeo ad vos, sicut dicunt pseudo? Deus scit quod diligo vos, et quod non pro odio hoc facio. Io. ult.: Domine, tu scis, quia amo te.
400. In regard to the first it should be noted that the false apostles charged the Apostle with not taking payment from the Corinthians, because he did not love them and because he did not intend to help and serve them. He says, therefore: why do I do this? Because I do not love you?, i.e., is it from any hatred I bear towards you, as the false apostles claim? God knows that I love you and that I do not do this out of hatred: yes, Lord; you know that I love you (John 21:15).
401. Sic ergo, exclusa causa falsa, sequitur vera, ibi quod autem facio, et cetera. Et
401. Therefore, having removed the false cause, he gives the true one, at but what I do.
circa hoc duo facit.
Concerning the he does two things.
Primo ponit veram causam;
First he states the true cause;
secundo rationem huius assignat, ibi nam eiusmodi pseudo, et cetera.
second, the reason for it, at for such false apostles.
402. Circa primum sciendum est, quod pseudo, ut dictum est, quaerebant lucra et gloriam propriam. Et ideo, ut in reverentia haberentur, nitebantur exterius sequi vestigia Apostoli, vel etiam, si potuissent, excellere ipsum.
402. In regard to the first it should be noted that the false apostles, as has been stated, were seeking their own profit and glory; therefore, in order to be held in reverence, they tried to follow the example of the Apostle outwardly or even excel him, if they could.
Dicit ergo Apostolus: si ergo volunt me imitari, in hoc imitentur, ut nihil accipiant. Et quia sciebat quod pseudo praedicabant ut acciperent, et, per consequens, quod non praedicarent si deficeret eis lucrum, dicit quod facio, ideo facio et faciam hoc, non propter odium, sed ut amputem occasionem eorum, scilicet pseudo, qui volunt, supple meo exemplo, habere occasionem accipiendi vestra.
Therefore the Apostle says: if you wish to imitate me, let them imitate me in taking nothing. And because he knew that the false apostles preached in order to take and, consequently, would not preach if their gain ceased, he says: but what I do, that I will do, and what I will do is not out of hatred, but that I may cut off the occasion from those, namely, the false apostles, who desire from my example to have an occasion for taking what is yours.
Sciebat enim, secundum Ambrosium, quod si non acciperent, non diu praedicarent. E contrario dicitur Prov. VI: da occasionem sapienti, et cetera. Et hoc, ut tales inveniantur, scilicet pseudo, sicut et nos, scilicet non accipientes pecunias, sicut et nos non accipimus. In quo quidem ipsi gloriantur, scilicet quod imitantur nos, et ego nolo, si perfecte volunt nos imitari, quod accipiant. I Cor. VII, 7: volo omnes homines esse sicut me, scilicet non accipientes.
For he knew, according to Ambrose, that they would not preach very willingly, if they received nothing; whereas on the contrary it is stated: give instruction to a wise man, and he will be still wiser; teach a righteous man and he will increase in learning (Prov 9:9). And this that they may be found, that is, the false apostles, on the same terms as we, namely, not receiving money, even as we do not receive it. Indeed they glory in the fact that they imitate us; and I am unwilling, if they would imitate me completely, that they would receive: I wish that all were as I myself am (1 Cor 7:7), namely, not receiving.