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His Godhead indicated by two successive Miracles. 417 perplexity, saying, What manner of man is this? since MATT. while the sleep and the outward appearance shewed Man, 29. the sea and the calm declared Him God.

VIII.

For because Moses had once done some such thing, in this regard also doth He signify His own superiority, and that the one works miracles as a slave, the other as Lord. Thus, He put forth no rod, as Moses did, neither did He stretch forth His hands to Heaven, nor did He need any prayer, but, as was meet for a Master commanding His handmaid, or a Creator His creature, so did He quiet and curb it by word and command only; and all the surge was straightway at an end, and not one trace of the disturbance remained. For this the Evangelist declared, saying, And there was a great calm. v. 26. And that which had been spoken of the Father as a great thing, this He shewed forth again by His works. And what had been said concerning Him? He spake, it saith, and the stormy wind ceased'. So here likewise, He spake, and there 'Ps.107, was a great calm. And for this most of all did the multitudes LXX. marvel at him; who would not have marvelled, had He done it in such manner as did Moses.

[2.] Now when He is departed from the sea, there follows another miracle yet more awful. For men possessed with devils, like wicked runaways at sight of their master, said,

25.

What have we to do with Thee, Jesus, Thou Son of God? v. 29. Art Thou come hither to torment us before the time?

For, because the multitudes called Him Man, the devils came proclaiming His Godhead, and they that heard not the sea swelling and subsiding, heard from the devils the same cry, as it by its calm was loudly uttering.

Then, lest the thing might seem to come of flattery, according to their actual experience they cry out and say, Art Thou come hither to torment us before the time? With this view, then, their enmity is avowed beforehand, that their entreaty may not incur suspicion. For indeed they were invisibly receiving stripes, and the sea was not in such a storm as they; galled, and inflamed, and suffering things intolerable from His mere presence. Accordingly, no man daring to bring them to Him, Christ of Himself goes unto them.

And Matthew indeed relates that they said, Art Thou come

Ee

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The Miracle of the Dæmoniacs.

HOM. hither before the time to torment us? but the other Evan

XXVIII.

2, 3. gelists have added, that they also entreated and adjured Mark Him not to cast them into the deep'. For they supposed that their punishment was now close upon them, and feared, as even now about to fall into vengeance.

5, 10.

Luke 8, 31.

2 οἱ περὶ τὸν Λου κᾶν.

And though Luke and those who follow him2 say that it was one person, but this Evangelist two, this doth not exhibit any discrepancy at all. I grant if they had said, there was only one, and no other, they would appear to disagree with Matthew; but if that spake of the one, this of the two, the statement comes not of disagreement, but of a different manner of narration. That is, I for my part think, Luke singled out the fiercest one of them for his narrative, wherefore also in more tragical wise doth he report their miserable case; as, for instance, that bursting his bonds and chains he used to wander about the wilderness. And Mark saith, that he also cut himself with the stones.

And their words too are such as well betray their implacable and shameless nature. For, saith he, Art thou come hither to torment us before the time? You see, that they had sinned, they could not deny, but they demand not to suffer their punishment before the time. For, since He had caught them in the act of perpetrating those horrors so incurable and lawless, and 3g deforming and punishing3 His creature in every way; and μένους. they supposed that He, for the excess of their crimes, would not await the time of their punishment: therefore they besought and entreated Him: and they that endured not even bands of iron come bound, and they that run about the mountains, are gone forth into the plain; and those who hinder all others from passing, at sight of Him blocking up the way, stand still.

[3.] But what can be the reason that they love also to dwell in the tombs? They would fain suggest to the multitude a pernicious opinion, as though the souls of the dead become Dæmons, which God forbid we should ever admit into our

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VIII.

in 29.

Souls departed do not become Dæmons, nor wander. 419 conception. "But what then wilt thou say," one may ask, MATT. " when many of the sorcerers take children and slay them, i order to have the soul afterwards to assist them?" Why, whence is this evident? for of their slaying them, indeed, many tell us, but as to the souls of the slain being with them, whence knowest thou it, I pray thee? "The possessed themselves," it is replied, "cry out, I am the soul of such a one." But this too is a kind of stage-play, and devilish deceit. For it is not the spirit of the dead that cries out, but the evil spirit that feigns these things in order to deceive the hearers. For if it were possible for a soul to enter into the substance of an evil spirit, much more into its own body.

And besides, it stands not to reason that the injured soul should cooperate with the wrong-doer, or that a man should be able to change an incorporeal power into another substance. For if in bodies this were impossible, and one could not make a man's body become that of an ass; much more were this impossible in the invisible soul; neither could one transform it into the substance of an evil spirit. So that these are the sayings of besotted old wives, and spectres to frighten children.

3, 1.

Nor indeed is it possible for a soul, torn away from the body, to wander here any more. For the souls of the righteous are in the hand of God'; and if of the righteous, then those Wisd. children's souls also; for neither are they wicked: and the souls too of sinners are straightway led away hence. And it is evident from Lazarus and the rich man; and elsewhere too Christ saith, This day they require thy soul of thee2.2 Luke 12, 20. And it may not be that a soul, when it is gone forth from the body, should wander here; nor is the reason hard to see. For if we, going about on the earth which is familiar and well known to us, being encompassed with a body, when we are journeying in a strange road, know not which way to go unless we have some one to lead us; how should the soul, being rent away from the body, and having gone out from all her

Martyrs. I mean, because they die violent deaths, he wishing to diffuse an evil impression of them, did this. This however he could not do, but another very grievous result he did accomplish. He induced by these doctrines the sor

He

cerers that minister to him to butcher
the bodies of many tender youths, in the
hope that they would become Dæmons,
and in return minister to them."
proceeds to argue against the supersti-
tion much as in the text here.

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Why the Swine were allowed to be possessed.

HOMIL. accustomed region, know where to walk without one to shew 3, 4. her the way?

XXVIII.

7, 59.

3 Gen.

LXX.

And from many other things too one might perceive, that it is not possible for a disembodied soul to remain here. Acts For both Stephen saith, Receive my spirit'; and Paul, To Phil. 1, depart and to be with Christ is far better; and of the Patri23. arch too the Scripture saith, that he was gathered unto his 15,15.in fathers, being cherished in a good old age'. And as to the proof, that neither can the souls of sinners continue here; hear the rich man making much entreaty for this, and not obtaining it; since had it been at all possible, he would have ♦ Luke come, and have told what had come to pass there. Whence 16, 27. it is evident that after their departure hence our souls are led away into some place, having no more power of themselves to come back again, but awaiting that dreadful Day.

28.

[4.] Now, should any one say, " And wherefore did Christ fulfil the devils' request, suffering them to depart into the herd of swine?" this would be our reply, that He did so, not as yielding to them, but as providing for many objects thereby. One, to teach them that are delivered from those wicked tyrants, how great the malice of their insidious enemies : another, that all might learn, how not even against swine are they bold, except He allow them; a third, that they would have treated those men more grievously than the swine, unless even in their calamity they had enjoyed much of God's providential care. For that they hate us more than the brutes is surely evident to every man. So then they that spared not the swine, but in one moment of time cast them all down the precipice, much more would they have done so to the men whom they possessed, leading them towards the desert, and carrying them away, unless even in their very tyranny the guardian care of God had abounded, to curb and check the excess of their violence. Whence it is mani

fest that there is no one, who doth not enjoy the benefit of God's Providence. And if not all alike, nor after one manner, this is itself a very great instance of Providence: in that according to each man's profit, the work also of Providence is displayed.

And besides what hath been mentioned, there is another thing also, which we learn from this; that His Providence is

Mystery of the Destruction of the Swine.

421

VIII.

not only over all in common, but also over each in particular; MATT. which He also declared with respect to His disciples, saying, 34. But the very hairs of your head are numbered'. And from Matt. these demoniacs too, one may clearly perceive this; who 10, 30. would have been choked long before, if they had not enjoyed the benefit of much tender care from above.

For these reasons then He suffered them to depart into the herd of swine, and that they also who dwelt in those places should learn His power. For where His name was great, He did not greatly display Himself: but where no one knew Him, but they were still in an insensible condition, He made His miracles to shine out, so as to bring them over to the knowledge of His Godhead. For it is evident from the event that the inhabitants of that city were a sort of senseless people; for when they ought to have adored and marvelled at His power, they sent Him away, and besought v. 34. Him that He would depart out of their coasts.

But for what intent did the devils destroy the swine? Every where they have laboured to drive men to dismay, and every where they rejoice in destruction. This, for instance, the devil did with respect to Job, although in that case too God suffered it, but neither in that case as complying with the devil, but willing to shew His own servant the more glorious, cutting off from the evil spirit all pretext for his shamelessness, and turning on his own head what was done against the righteous man. Because now also the contrary of what they wished came to pass. For the power of Christ was gloriously proclaimed, and the wickedness of the dæmons, from which He delivered those possessed by them, was more plainly indicated; and how they want power to touch even swine, without permission from the God of

all.

2 κατά

And if any would take these things in a hidden sense, ἀναγω

there is nothing to hinder. For the history indeed is this, y but we are to know assuredly, that the swinish sort of men are especially liable to the operations of the dæmons. And as long as they are men that suffer such things, they are often able yet to prevail; but if they are become altogether swine, they are not only possessed, but are also cast down the precipice. And besides, lest any should suppose what was

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