Lectio 1
Lecture 1
Praedicens in Jerusalem
Preaching in Jerusalem
2:1 Deinde post annos quatuordecim, iterum ascendi Jerosolymam cum Barnaba, assumpto et Tito. [n. 51]
2:1 Then, after fourteen years, I went up again to Jerusalem with Barnabas, taking Titus also with me. [n. 51]
2:2 Ascendi autem secundum revelationem: et contuli cum illis Evangelium, quod praedico in gentibus, seorsum autem iis qui videbantur aliquid esse: ne forte in vacuum currerem, aut cucurrissem. [n. 56]
2:2 And I went up according to revelation and communicated to them the Gospel which I preach among the gentiles: but separately to them who seemed to be something: lest perhaps I should run or had run in vain. [n. 56]
2:3 Sed neque Titus, qui mecum erat, cum esset gentilis, compulsus est circumcidi: [n. 60]
2:3 But neither was Titus, who was with me, being a gentile, compelled to be circumcised, [n. 60]
2:4 sed propter subintroductos falsos fratres, qui subintroierunt explorare libertatem nostram, quam habemus in Christo Jesu, ut nos in servitutem redigerent. [n. 62]
2:4 But because of false brethren brought in unawares, who came in privately to spy on our liberty which we have in Christ Jesus, that they might bring us into servitude. [n. 62]
2:5 Quibus neque ad horam cessimus subjectione, ut veritas Evangelii permaneat apud vos:
2:5 To whom we yielded not by subjection: no, not for an hour: that the truth of the Gospel might continue with you.
51. Postquam Apostolus in praecedenti cap., commendavit auctoritatem Evangelicae doctrinae secundum seipsam, nunc in isto cap. commendat ipsam ex parte aliorum apostolorum et sua simul. Et
51. After commending the authority of the Gospel teaching according to itself in the preceding chapter, the Apostle now in this chapter commends it on the part both of the other apostles and of himself.
circa hoc duo facit.
About this he does two things.
Primo commendat auctoritatem suae doctrinae ex approbatione aliorum apostolorum;
First, he commends the authority of his teaching because of its approval by the other apostles;
secundo ex exemplo sui et aliorum apostolorum, ibi nos natura Iudaei, non ex gentibus, et cetera.
second, from the example both of himself and of the other apostles, at we by nature are Jews: and not of the gentiles (Gal 2:15).
Circa primum duo facit.
Concerning the first he does two things.
Primo ostendit quod alii apostoli approbaverunt suam doctrinam;
First, he shows that the other apostles approved his teaching;
secundo ostendit quod libere reprehendit alios apostolos in his quae contraria suae doctrinae dicebant, ibi cum venisset Petrus, et cetera.
second, that he fearlessly rebuked the other apostles in matters where they opposed his teaching, at but when Cephas was come (Gal 2:11).
Circa primum duo facit.
As to the first he does two things.
Primo agit de collatione quam habuit cum apostolis;
First, he treats of the discussion he had with the apostles;
secundo insinuat quid inde secutum sit, ibi sed neque Titus, et cetera.
second, he narrates the consequences of that discussion, at but neither was Titus.
Circa primum duo facit.
Regarding the first he does two things.
Primo ponit circumstantias ipsius collationis;
First, he gives the circumstances of that discussion;
secundo ponit ipsam collationem, ibi et contuli cum illis, et cetera.
second, what they discussed, at and communicated to them the Gospel.
Quantum ad primum tangit quatuor circumstantias, scilicet tempus, locum, testes, et motivum ipsius.
With respect to the first he touches upon four things, namely the time, the place, the witnesses, and the motive.
52. Describit autem tempus, cum dicit deinde post annos quatuordecim.
52. He mentions the time when he says, then, after fourteen years.
Sed contra est, quia Apostolus fuit conversus primo anno post passionem Christi, et post tres ivit in Ierusalem, et sic sunt quatuor, et hic dicit post annos quatuordecim, iterum ivit in Ierusalem, et sic fiunt decem et octo; et tunc invenit Petrum in Ierusalem. Et hoc non potest esse, quia Petrus sedit in Antiochia septem annis; in Roma vero viginti quinque annis. Et sic essent duo de viginti, et septem (qui sunt viginti quinque anni) antequam iret Romam, et Romae moratus est viginti quinque annis; ergo vixisset Petrus post passionem Christi quinquaginta annis, quod est falsum: quia quadragesimo anno a passione Christi passus est Petrus Romae, ut in historia habetur, quod fuit tempore Neronis.
Here some might object that if the Apostle was converted in the first year after the passion of Christ, and went to Jerusalem three years later, that makes four years. But he says, after fourteen years I went once more to Jerusalem, which makes a total of eighteen years, at which time he found Peter in Jerusalem. But this cannot be, because Peter had his See at Antioch seven years, and then at Rome for twenty-five years. So that makes eighteen plus seven, i.e., twenty-five years, before he went to Rome, and twenty-five years more he remained there. Hence Peter would have lived for fifty years after the passion of Christ, which is false, for in the fortieth year after the passion of Christ, Peter was martyred at Rome in the reign of Nero, as is recorded in history.
Respondeo. Dicendum, quod cum dicitur deinde, etc., non est intelligendum quod post tres annos iterum elapsi sint quatuordecim anni, antequam iret in Ierusalem, sed quod anno quartodecimo suae conversionis iterum ascendit. Nec sunt addendi supra istos quatuordecim, septem anni, quibus Petrus rexit Ecclesiam Antiochenam, quia ante istos annos incepit regere. Et cum Antiochia sit prope Ierusalem, potuit esse ut aliquando Petrus ivisset in Ierusalem, et tunc Paulus invenerit eum ibi. Et sic colligitur ex historia, quod post annos quatuordecim Petrus venit Romam tempore Claudii imperatoris, et existens ibi viginti quinque annis, complevit numerum triginta novem annorum, et mortuus est quadragesimo anno post passionem Domini.
I answer that when he says, then, after fourteen years, it is not to be understood that after three years there was another lapse of fourteen years before he went to Jerusalem, but that he went again in the fourteenth year of his conversion. Nor should the seven years that Peter ruled the Church at Antioch be added to those fourteen years, because he began his rule before those years. Furthermore, since Antioch is near Jerusalem, Peter could at times have come to Jerusalem and Paul found him there then. Consequently, what is gathered from history is that after fourteen years Peter went to Rome in the reign of Claudius the Emperor and lived there for twenty-five years, making a total of thirty-nine years, and he died in the fortieth year after the passion of Our Lord.
Dicit autem signanter, quatuordecim, ut ostendat, quod non indigebat apostolorum instructione, si quatuordecim annis fuit sine eis.
Yet he purposely said fourteen in order to show that he did not need instructions from the apostles, if he went for fourteen years without them.
53. Locum vero describit, cum dicit Ierosolymam. Et dicit ascendi, quia in alto posita est. Ascendit autem Ierosolymam, ut ostenderet se concordare cum prophetia quae dicit Is. II, 3: de Sion exibit lex, et cetera.
53. He gives the place when he says, Jerusalem. And he says, I went up, because it is built on a height. He went up to Jerusalem in order to show that he was in accord with the prophecy: for the law shall come forth from Zion: and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem (Isa 2:3).
54. Testes describit, cum dicit cum Barnaba, assumpto et Tito. Barnabas Iudaeus erat, Titus vero gentilis. Cum eis ergo ascendit, ut haberet testes suae doctrinae, et ut in nullam partem, sive Iudaeorum, sive gentilium, ostendat se declinare. Deut. XVII: in ore duorum vel trium stat omne verbum.
54. He gives the witnesses when he says, with Barnabas, taking Titus also with me. Now Barnabas was a Jew, but Titus a gentile. He went up with them, therefore, in order to have witnesses to his teaching and to show that he leaned neither to the side of the Jews nor the gentiles: in the mouth of two or three witnesses every word shall stand (Deut 19:15).
55. Motivum autem describit, cum dicit secundum revelationem Dei, id est, Deo revelante et praecipiente sibi quod ascenderet in Ierusalem. Ex hoc colligi potest quod omnes actus apostolorum et motus fuerunt secundum instinctum Spiritus Sancti. Iob c. XXXVII, 11: nubes spargunt lumen suum, et cetera.
55. He gives his motive when he says, according to a revelation from God, i.e., because God revealed and commanded him to go up to Jerusalem. From this can be gathered that all the acts and movements of the apostles were according to an instinct of the Holy Spirit: the clouds spread their light which go round about (Job 37:11).
56. Consequenter cum dicit et contuli, etc., agit de ipsa collatione, ubi tria facit.
56. Then when he says, and communicated to them, he describes the conversation. About this he does three things.
Primo manifestat materiam super quam contulit; secundo personas cum quibus contulit; et tertio causam propter quam contulit.
First, he mentions the subject of their conversation; second, the persons with whom he conferred; third, the reason why he conferred with them.
Materia de qua contulit, fuit Evangelium. Et ideo dicit contuli cum illis Evangelium Dei, et cetera. Personae cum quibus contulit sunt maiores et excellentiores inter apostolos seorsum autem cum his, et cetera. Sed causa utilis et necessaria ne scilicet in vacuum, et cetera.
The subject about which he conferred was the Gospel; hence he says, I communicated to them the Gospel; the persons with whom he conferred were the senior and more outstanding apostles; hence he says, but separately to them who seemed to be something. But the reason, both useful and necessary, was lest I should run or had run in vain.
57. Quantum ad primum dicit ascendi Ierosolymam, ubi contuli cum illis, tamquam cum amicis et paribus, Evangelium quod praedicavi in gentibus, non ut addiscerem, quia iam doctus eram a Christo, non ut certificarer, quia sic certus sum quod si angelus diceret contrarium, non crederem, ut patet supra I cap.
57. Regarding the first, he says, I went up to Jerusalem where I communicated to them, as to friends and equals, the Gospel which I preach among the gentiles, not in order to learn, because I had already been taught by Christ, nor in order to be reassured, because I am so certain, that if an angel were to say the contrary, I would not believe him, as is plain above (Gal 1:8).
Sed contuli propter duo, scilicet ad insinuandam unitatem doctrinae meae cum doctrina aliorum Apostolorum. I Cor. I, 10: idipsum dicatis omnes, et cetera. Contulit ergo cum eis quasi idem verbum cum eis, sed non pares habuit. Item ad vitandum calumniam aliorum. Apostolus enim quia non fuerat conversatus cum Christo, nec edoctus ab apostolis, sed statim post conversionem suam incepit praedicare quae erant odiosa Iudaeis, et specialiter de vocatione gentium, et quod non debebant servari legalia.
But I conferred for two reasons: namely, to show the unity of my teaching with that of the other apostles: that you all speak the same thing and that there be no schisms among you (1 Cor 1:10). Hence he conferred with them as one having the same word as they, and not as an adversary. Also, to avoid false accusation from others. For the Apostle had not lived with Christ or been taught by the apostles, but immediately after his conversion began to preach things odious to the Jews, especially the vocation of the gentiles and that they should not observe the justifications of the law.
Sic ergo contulit Evangelium.
In this way, then, he conferred about the Gospel.
58. Sed cum quibus hoc fecerit, ostendit subdens seorsum autem his, etc., quasi dicat: non cum omnibus, sed cum his qui erant inter alios alicuius auctoritatis et momenti, scilicet cum Petro, Iacobo et Ioanne et aliis magnis. Eccli. IX, 21: cum sapientibus et prudentibus tracta, et cetera. Sed seorsum, etc., non quod turpia vel falsa cum eis tractaret vel conferret, sicut haeretici faciunt, sed quia sciebat ibi esse Iudaeos calumniantes, propterea quia de legalibus docuerat. Et ideo ne veritas pateret calumniae, cum illis seorsum contulit, qui non calumniarentur. Prov. XXV, 9: causam tuam tracta cum amico tuo, et secretum extraneo ne reveles, et cetera. Eccli. VIII, 21: coram extraneo ne facias consilium, et cetera.
58. But he indicates the ones with whom he did this, when he adds, but separately to them who seemed to be something. As though to say: not with all, but with those who were of some authority and importance among them, namely, with Peter, James and John and the other great ones: treat with the wise and prudent (Sir 9:21). But separately, not to talk or treat with them about ignoble or false things, as heretics do, but because he was aware of the presence there of Jews who brought false charges against him for his teachings about the law. Hence, in order that the truth might prevail over false charges, he spoke separately with those who would not bring false charges against him: treat your cause with your friend, and discover not the secret to a stranger (Prov 25:9); before a stranger do no matter of counsel: for you do not know what he will bring forth (Sir 8:21).
Sic ergo patet et materia collationis et personae.
Thus the subject of the discussion as well as the persons are made known.