Lectio 4
Lecture 4
Patientia in tribulatione
Patience in tribulation
10:32 Rememoramini autem pristinos dies, in quibus illuminati, magnum certamen sustinuistis passionum: [n. 536]
10:32 But call to mind the former days, wherein, being illuminated, you endured a great fight of afflictions. [n. 536]
10:33 et in altero quidem opprobriis et tribulationibus spectaculum facti: in altero autem socii taliter conversantium effecti. [n. 538]
10:33 And on the one hand indeed, by reproaches and tribulations, were made a gazingstock; and on the other, became companions of those who were used in such sort. [n. 538]
10:34 Nam et vinctis compassi estis, et rapinam bonorum vestrorum cum gaudio suscepistis, cognoscentes vos habere meliorem et manentem substantiam. [n. 539]
10:34 For you both had compassion on those who were in bands and took with joy the being stripped of your own goods, knowing that you have a better and a lasting substance. [n. 539]
10:35 Nolite itaque amittere confidentiam vestram, quae magnam habet remunerationem. [n. 541]
10:35 Do not therefore lose your confidence which has a great reward. [n. 541]
10:36 Patientia enim vobis necessaria est: ut voluntatem Dei facientes, reportetis promissionem. [n. 543]
10:36 For patience is necessary for you: that, doing the will of God, you may receive the promise. [n. 543]
10:37 Adhuc enim modicum aliquantulum, qui venturus est, veniet, et non tardabit. [n. 545]
10:37 For yet a little and a very little while, and he that is to come will come and will not delay. [n. 545]
10:38 Justus autem meus ex fide vivit: quod si subtraxerit se, non placebit animae meae. [n. 548]
10:38 But my just man lives by faith: but if he withdraw himself, he shall not please my soul. [n. 548]
10:39 Nos autem non sumus subtractionis filii in perditionem, sed fidei in acquisitionem animae. [n. 550]
10:39 But we are not the children of withdrawing unto perdition, but of faith to the saving of the soul. [n. 550]
536. Supra Apostolus monuit ad inhaerendum Christo per fidem, spem, et caritatem. Ad quod induxit per rationes terrentes, hic ponit rationes demulcentes, sicut bonus medicus postquam secuit, ponit unctiones lenientes. Inter omnia enim commendatio de bene gestis est unum quod maxime provocat ad bonum inceptum continuandum. Virtus enim laudata crescit in immensum. Pondus et immensum gloriae calcar habet.
536. After exhorting them by frightening reasons to cling to Christ by faith, hope, and charity, the Apostle now gives pleasing reasons, as a good physician after cutting applies soothing lotions. For of all commendations for doing good, there is one which best stimulates a person to persevere in a good work already begun. For virtue praised acquires an immense drive, and glory is a strong stimulus.
Et circa hoc facit duo:
In regard to this he does two things:
primo enim commemorat eis bona quae fecerant;
first, he recalls the good things they had done;
secundo hortatur ad implendum quod restat, ibi nolite itaque amittere.
second, he urges them to finish what still remains, at do not therefore lose.
Circa primum facit tria
In regard to the first he does three things:
primo enim in generali commemorat tribulationes, quas pro fide passi sunt;
first, he recalls in a general way the tribulations they suffered for the faith;
secundo describit tribulationum modos, ibi et in altero;
second, he describes the kinds of tribulations, at and on the one hand;
tertio exponit eas in speciali, ibi nam et vinctis.
third, he explains these in detail, at for you both had compassion.
537. Quia ergo ex bene gestis homo exercitatur ad melius, sicut aliquando ex malis e contrario desperat de seipso, ideo recitat bona eorum, dicens rememoramini. Ier. II, v. 2: recordatus sum tui, id est, bonorum, quae egisti. Dies pristinos, id est primordia conversionis vestrae, in quibus illuminati per fidem, quae illuminat animam et purgat. Act. XV, 9: fide purificans corda eorum. Is. LX, 1: surge, illuminare, Ierusalem. Hoc autem est per fidem Christi. Eph. c. III, 17: habitare Christum per fidem, et cetera. Lc. I, 79: illuminare his qui in tenebris, et in umbra mortis sedent. Primum enim lumen animae est fides.
537. Therefore, because past success stimulates a person to do better, just as bad fortune on the contrary leads to despair, he recalls their past good deeds, saying, but call to mind: I have remembered you (Jer 2:2), i.e., the good you accomplished; the former days, i.e., the first days of your conversion, wherein, being illuminated by faith, which enlightens and cleanses the soul: purifying their hearts by faith (Acts 15:9); arise, be enlightened, O Jerusalem (Isa 60:1). But this is accomplished by faith in Christ: that Christ may dwell in your hearts (Eph 3:17); to enlighten those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death (Luke 1:79). For the first light of the soul is faith.
Sustinuistis magnum certamen passionum, id est, magnas passiones contra vos certantes, vobis illatas ab his qui Christum persequebantur in vobis. Act. IX, 4: Saule, Saule, quid me persequeris? Me, inquam, in membris meis, quia, ut dicit Augustinus, in sermone super verbo isto, membris in terra positis caput de caelo clamat. Sap. X, 12: certamen forte dedit illi, ut vinceret. II Tim. IV, v. 7: certavi bonum certamen. Sicut enim dicitur Act. VIII, 1, facta est persecutio magna in Ecclesia post mortem Stephani. I Thess. c. II, 14: vos enim imitatores facti estis Ecclesiarum Dei, quae sunt in Iudaea, quoniam eadem passi estis vos a contribulibus vestris, sicut et ipsi a Iudaeis. Si ergo a principio incepistis sustinere, vituperabile esset modo deficere.
You endured a great fight of afflictions, i.e., struggled against the great suffering inflicted on you by those who persecuted Christ in you: Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me? (Acts 9:14), me, I say, in my members, because, as Augustine says in a sermon on this text: while the members were on earth, the head cried from heaven. She gave him strong conflict, that he might overcome (Wis 10:12); I have fought a good fight (2 Tim 4:7). For, as it is recorded in Acts, a great persecution arose against the Church after Stephen’s death (Acts 8). For you, brethren, are become imitators of the Churches of God which are in Judea; for you also have suffered the same things from your own countrymen, even as they have from the Jews (1 Thess 2:14). Therefore, if you began to endure from the beginning, it would be blameworthy to give up now.
538. Consequenter cum dicit et in altero, ostendit quae fuerint illae tribulationes. Dupliciter enim patitur aliquis, scilicet in se tribulationem sustinendo, et in alio alienae tribulationi compatiendo. Utroque autem modo illi passi sunt.
538. Then, when he says, and on the one hand indeed, he shows what these afflictions were. For a person suffers in two ways: in himself, by enduring affliction, and in someone else, by taking pity on another’s affliction. But they suffered in both ways.
Quantum ad primum dicit in altero, scilicet quantum ad vos, facti estis spectaculum opprobriis, quod gravissimum est sapienti. Quod enim unus fatuus irridetur, non est grave, etiam si multa ei irrisio ab aliis inferatur: sapienti vero grave est; sed si tribuletur et irrideatur a tribulante, hoc gravissimum est. In hoc ergo ostendit magnitudinem afflictionis ipsorum, quia facti erant spectaculum, id est, quia nullus eis compatiebatur, immo magis irrisori congaudebant in afflictionibus ipsorum, scilicet in opprobriis. Ps. LXVIII, 10: opprobria exprobrantium tibi ceciderunt super me. Et tribulationibus. Ps. XXXIII, 20: multae tribulationes iustorum. I Cor. IV, 9: spectaculum facti sumus mundo, scilicet ad irrisionem, et angelis, ad congratulationem, et hominibus, scilicet ratione utentibus, ad imitationem.
In regard to the first way, he says, and on the one hand, i.e., with respect to yourselves, you were made a gazingstock, which is very disagreeable for a wise man. For if a fool is mocked, it is not serious, even if he endures a great amount of derision from others, but to a wise man it is a burden. Furthermore, if he is troubled and mocked by his persecutor, it is very disagreeable. Therefore, he shows how great their affliction was, because they were made a gazingstock, i.e., no one took pity on them but instead rejoiced in their afflictions, i.e., in their reproaches: the reproaches of those who reproached you are fallen upon me (Ps 69:10); many are the tribulations of the just (Ps 34:20); we are made a spectacle to the world, unto derision, and to angels unto congratulation, and to men who use their reason unto imitation (1 Cor 4:9).
Quantum ad secundum dicit, quod in altero effecti sunt socii taliter conversantium, id est eorum, qui talia patiebantur; et hoc per compassionem, et per subministrationem. Rom. XII, 13: necessitatibus sanctorum, et cetera.
In regard to the second, he says, and on the other, became companions of those who were used in such sort, i.e., of those who suffered such things: and this by compassion and by administering aid: communicating to the necessities of the saints (Rom 12:13).
539. Deinde cum dicit nam et vinctis compassi estis, ponit quod dixerat, et primo quantum ad secundum, scilicet quomodo sunt compassi. Inter Iudaeos enim multi erant vincti, sicut de Paulo dicitur Act. VIII, 3, quod devastabat Ecclesiam tradens in custodiam viros et mulieres. Istis compassi sunt ministrando necessaria. Matth. XXV, 36: in carcere eram, et venistis ad me.
539. Then when he says, for you both had compassion on them, he explains what he had said. First of all in regard to the second, namely, how they had compassion, for among the Jews many were in bands, as it says in Acts that Paul made havoc in the Church, committing men and women to prison (Acts 8:3). I was in prison and you visited me (Matt 25:36).
Quantum ad primum dicit et rapinam bonorum vestrorum, scilicet pro hac causa factam, quia scilicet vinctis ministrabant, cum gaudio suscepistis. Iac. I, 2: omne gaudium existimate, fratres, et cetera. Act. V, 41: ibant Apostoli gaudentes, et cetera.
In regard to the first, he says, and took with joy the being stripped of your own goods for helping those in bands: count it all joy, when you shall fall into diverse temptations (Jas 1:2); the Apostles went from the presence of the council, rejoicing that they were accounted worthy to suffer reproach for the name of Jesus (Acts 5:41).
540. Sed quare cum gaudio? Numquid amandae sunt tribulationes? Certe videtur quod non, quia dicit Augustinus: tolerari iubes eas, non amari.
540. But with what joy? Should tribulations be loved? It certainly seems not, because Augustine says: you are commanded to bear them, not love them.
Respondeo. Dicendum est, quod non amantur propter se, sed propter aliud, et sic isti amabant eas.
I answer that they are not loved for their own sake, but for something else: and that is the way they loved them.
Unde subdit cognoscentes vos habere meliorem et manentem substantiam, scilicet alias divitias principaliores, quae augentur ex subtractione istarum, quibus dicuntur meliores. Temporales enim vanae sunt, quia sunt in his quae sunt infra hominem; spirituales autem in ipso Deo, scilicet in fruitione Dei. Is. XXXIII, 6: divitiae salutis sapientia et scientia, timor Domini ipse est thesaurus eius. Item sunt manentes, quia istae deficiunt in se et auferri possunt, illae vero non. Matth. c. VI, 19: nolite thesaurizare vobis thesauros in terra, ubi aerugo et tinea demolitur, et ubi fures effodiunt, et cetera.
Hence, he adds, knowing that you have a better and a lasting substance, namely, other riches more important, which are increased by the removal of those riches, by which they are called better. For temporal riches are hollow, because they consist in things that are beneath men; but spiritual riches consist in God, namely, in the enjoyment of God: riches of salvation, wisdom and love; the fear of the Lord in his treasure (Isa 33:6). Furthermore, they last, because the others fail of themselves and can be taken away; but these cannot: lay not up to yourselves treasures on earth, where the rust and moth consume, and where thieves break in and steal. But lay up to yourselves treasures in heaven (Matt 6:19).
541. Deinde cum dicit nolite itaque, ostendit quid eis restat faciendum, scilicet confidentiam acceptam ex bonis operibus conservare.
541. Then when he says do not therefore lose, he shows what remains for them to do, i.e., to retain the confidence obtained from their good works.
Et circa hoc facit tria:
In regard to this he does three things:
primo enim ponit monitionem;
first, he gives an admonition;
secundo docet modum monitionem servandi, ibi patientia enim;
second, he teaches how to observe the admonition, at for patience;
tertio probat per auctoritatem, ibi adhuc enim modicum.
third, he proves this with an authority, at for yet a little.
542. Dicit ergo: ex quo tot bona in primordiis conversationis vestrae operati estis, ex quibus multam confidentiam debetis habere apud Deum, nolite itaque amittere confidentiam vestram, quod profecto sequeretur si a bonis desisteretis, quae magnam habet remunerationem. Matth. V, 12: gaudete in illa die et exultate, quoniam merces vestra copiosa est in caelis. Gen. XV, 1: ego protector tuus sum, et merces tua magna nimis.
542. He says, therefore: inasmuch as you have done so many good things in the first days of your conversion, it should cause you to have much confidence in God; do not therefore lose your confidence, which you will lose, if you stop doing good: which has a great reward: be glad and rejoice for your reward is very great in heaven (Matt 5:12); I am your protector and your reward exceeding great (Gen 15:1).
543. Modus servandi est patientia. Unde dicit patientia enim vobis necessaria est. Sicut autem mansuetudo est moderativa irae, ita patientia ponit modum in tristitiis, ut scilicet non excedant modum rationis. Contingit autem aliquando tristitia ex malis illatis, aliquando vero ex bonis dilatis. Prov. c. XIII, 12: spes quae differtur affligit animam. Quantum autem ad primum dicitur patientia, sed quantum ad secundum dicitur longanimitas. Hic accipitur patientia pro utroque, et quantum ad sufferentiam malorum, et quantum ad longanimitatem bonorum dilatorum. Dicit ergo, quod quantum ad utrumque patientia nobis necessaria est. Prov. XVI, 32: melior est patiens forti viro. Lc. XXI, 19: in patientia vestra possidebitis animas vestras. Iac. I, 4: patientia opus perfectum habet.
543. The way to keep it is patience; hence, he says, for patience is necessary for you. For just as meekness moderates anger, so patience puts a limit to sadness, so that it will not exceed the bounds of reason. But sadness is sometimes caused by evils inflicted or by goods deferred: hope that is deferred, afflicts the soul (Prov 13:12). But it is properly called patience when it is concerned with the first; but long-suffering, when it is concerned with the second. Here, however, patience stands for both: not only for enduring evil, but for long-suffering in the face of good things deferred. He says, therefore, that in regard to both, patience is necessary for us: the patient man is better than the valiant (Prov 16:32); in your patience you shall possess your souls (Luke 21:19); patience has a perfect work (Jas 1:4).
544. Et ad quid est necessaria? Ut voluntatem Dei facientes reportetis repromissionem, id est, implentes voluntatem Dei, quae fit per impletionem mandatorum Dei, quia mandata sunt signa voluntatis Dei, unde facientes voluntatem Dei, scilicet voluntatem signi. Sic enim aliquando accipitur voluntas Dei in Scriptura. Ps. CII, 21: ministri eius, qui facitis voluntatem eius. Et sic reportabitis promissionem, id est, rem promissam, quae operantibus datur. Matth. XX, 8: voca operarios, et redde illis mercedem. Lc. XXI, v. 19: in patientia vestra possidebitis animas vestras. Matth. XXIV, 13: qui perseveraverit usque in finem, hic salvus erit. Ier. XVIII, 7: repente loquar adversus gentem, et adversus regnum, ut eradicem et disperdam illud, et cetera.
544. Why is it necessary? That, doing the will of God, you may receive the promise, i.e., fulfilling God’s will, which is done by obeying God’s commandments, which are the signs of God’s will. Hence, doing the signified will of God, which is the way God’s will is sometimes taken in the Scripture: his ministers who do his will (Ps 103:21). Thus, you will receive the promise, i.e., the things promised, which is given to those who work: call the workers and give them their hire (Matt 20:8); in your patience you shall possess your souls (Luke 21:19); he that perseveres unto the end, he shall be saved (Matt 24:13); I will suddenly speak against a nation and against a kingdom, to root out, and to pull down, and to destroy it. If that nation against which I have spoken shall repent of their evil, I also will repent of the evil I have thought to do to them. And I will suddenly speak of a nation and of a kingdom, to build up and plant it (Jer 18:7).