Church Fathers Commentary Luke 5

St. Ambrose of Milan: When the Lord had performed many and various kinds of cures, the crowd began to pay attention to neither time nor place in their desire to be healed. When evening came, they followed; a lake was before them, yet they still pressed on, as it is said, And it came to pass, as the people pressed upon him.

St. John Chrysostom: For they clung to Him with love and admiration and longed to keep Him with them. Who would depart while He performed such miracles? Who would not be content just to see His face and the mouth that uttered such things? He was admired not only for performing miracles, but His entire appearance was overflowing with grace. Therefore, when He speaks, they listen to Him in silence, not interrupting the flow of His discourse, for it is said, that they might hear the word of God. It follows, And he stood near the lake of Gennesaret.

The Venerable Bede: The Lake of Gennesaret is said to be the same as the Sea of Galilee or the Sea of Tiberias. It is called the Sea of Galilee from the adjacent province and the Sea of Tiberias from a neighboring city. Gennesaret, however, is the name given to it from the nature of the lake itself (which is thought to generate its own breeze from its crossing waves), being the Greek expression for "making a breeze for itself." For the water is not steady like that of a lake but is constantly agitated by the breezes blowing over it. It is sweet to the taste and wholesome to drink. In the Hebrew language, any body of water, whether sweet or salt, is called a sea.

Theophylact of Ohrid: But the Lord sought to avoid glory the more it pursued Him, and therefore, separating Himself from the crowd, He entered a boat, as it is said, And he saw two ships standing by the lake: but the fishermen were gone out of them, and were washing their nets.

St. John Chrysostom: This was a sign of leisure, but according to Matthew, He finds them mending their nets. For so great was their poverty that they had to patch up their old nets, being unable to buy new ones. But our Lord was very eager to gather the crowds, so that no one would be left behind and all might see Him face to face. He therefore gets into a boat, as it is said, And he entered into a ship, which was Simon’s, and prayed him.

Theophylact of Ohrid: Notice the gentleness of Christ: He asks Peter. And notice the willingness of Peter, who was obedient in all things.

St. John Chrysostom: After performing many miracles, He begins His teaching again, and being on the sea, He fishes for those who were on the shore. Thus, it follows, And he sat down and taught the people out of the ship.

St. Gregory of Nazianzus: He condescended to all in order to draw a fish from the deep—that is, a person swimming in the ever-changing scenes and bitter storms of this life.

The Venerable Bede: Now mystically, the two boats represent circumcision and uncircumcision. The Lord sees these because He knows who are His among each people, and by seeing them—that is, by a merciful visitation—He brings them nearer to the tranquility of the life to come. The fishermen are the teachers of the Church, because with the net of faith they catch us and bring us, as it were, ashore to the land of the living. But these nets are at one time spread for catching fish, and at another time washed and folded. For not every time is suitable for teaching; at one time the teacher must speak, and at another time we must discipline ourselves. Simon's boat is the early Church, of which St. Paul says, He that wrought effectually in Peter to the apostleship of the circumcision. The boat is rightly called one, for among the multitude of believers there was one heart and one soul.

St. Augustine of Hippo: From this boat He taught the crowd, for by the authority of the Church He teaches the Gentiles. The Lord entering the boat and asking Peter to push out a little from the land signifies that we must be moderate in our words to the crowd, so that they are neither taught earthly things, nor do they rush from earthly things into the depths of the sacraments. Alternatively, the Gospel must first be preached to the neighboring Gentile countries, so that (as He later says, Launch out into the deep) He might then command it to be preached to more distant nations.

St. Cyril of Alexandria: After teaching the people sufficiently, He returns to His mighty works and, by the act of fishing, fishes for His disciples. Thus, it says, When he had left off speaking, he said to Simon, Launch out into the deep, and let down your nets for a draught.

St. John Chrysostom: For in His condescension to humanity, He called the wise men by a star, and the fishermen by their craft of fishing.

Theophylact of Ohrid: Peter did not refuse to obey, as it says, And Simon answering said to him, Master, we have toiled all night and have taken nothing. He did not go on to say, “I will not listen to you, nor expose myself to additional labor,” but rather adds, Nevertheless, at your word I will let down the net.

But our Lord, since He had taught the people from the ship, did not leave the master of the ship without a reward, but conferred on him a double kindness: first, giving him a multitude of fish, and next, making him His disciple. As it says, And when they had done this, they enclosed a great multitude of fishes. They took so many fish that they could not pull them out, but sought the help of their companions, as it follows: But their net broke, and they beckoned to their partners who were in the other ship to come... Peter summons them by a sign, being unable to speak from astonishment at the catch of fish. We next hear of their assistance: And they came and filled both the ships.

St. Augustine of Hippo: John does seem to speak of a similar miracle, but this is very different from the one he records. That one took place after our Lord’s resurrection at the Lake of Tiberias, and not only the time but the miracle itself is very different. For in the latter, the nets, being let down on the right side, took one hundred and fifty-three fish, and these of a large size. It was necessary for the Evangelist to mention this, because even though the fish were so large, the nets were not broken.

This would seem to refer to the event Luke relates, where, because of the multitude of fish, the nets were broken.

St. Ambrose of Milan: Symbolically, the ship of Peter, according to Matthew, is battered by the waves; according to Luke, it is filled with fish, so that you might understand the Church is at first wavering, and at last abounding. The ship that holds Peter is not shaken—that is, the same ship that also holds Judas. Peter was in each, but the one who trusts in his own merits is disturbed by another’s. Let us then beware of a traitor, so that many of us are not tossed about because of one person. Trouble is found where faith is weak; safety is found where love is perfect.

Lastly, though others are commanded, Let down your nets, to Peter alone it is said, Launch out into the deep—that is, into deep theological inquiries. What is so deep as the knowledge of the Son of God? The nets of the Apostles, which they are ordered to let down, are the interweaving of words and, as it were, certain folds of speech and intricacies of argument, which never let those escape whom they have once caught. And rightly, nets are the apostolic instruments for fishing, which do not kill the fish that are caught, but keep them safe, bringing those who are tossing in the waves up from the depths below to the regions above.

But he says, Master, we have toiled the whole night and have caught nothing, for this is not the work of human eloquence but the gift of a divine calling. Yet those who had previously caught nothing, at the word of the Lord enclosed a great multitude of fishes.

St. Cyril of Alexandria: Now this was a symbol of the future. For they will not labor in vain who let down the net of gospel doctrine, but will gather the multitudes of the Gentiles.

St. Augustine of Hippo: Now, the fact that the nets were breaking, and the ships were so filled with the multitude of fish that they began to sink, signifies that there will be in the Church such a great multitude of carnal people that unity will be shattered, and it will be split into heresies and schisms.

The Venerable Bede: The net is broken, but the fish do not escape, for the Lord preserves His own amid the violence of persecutors.

St. Ambrose of Milan: But the other ship represents Judea, from which James and John are chosen. These, then, came from the synagogue to Peter's ship in the Church, so that they might fill both ships. For at the name of Jesus every knee shall bow, whether Jew or Greek.

The Venerable Bede: Alternatively, the other ship is the Church of the Gentiles, which is also filled with chosen fish, since one ship was not sufficient. For the Lord knows who are His, and with Him the number of His elect is certain. And when He does not find as many believers in Judea as He knows are destined for eternal life, He seeks, as it were, another ship to receive His fish, and also fills the hearts of the Gentiles with the grace of faith.

And it is fitting that when the net broke, they called to their companions' ship for help, since the traitor Judas, Simon Magus, Ananias and Sapphira, and many of the disciples, turned back. And then Barnabas and Paul were set apart for the apostleship to the Gentiles.

St. Ambrose of Milan: We may also understand the other ship to be another Church, since several are derived from the one Church.

St. Cyril of Alexandria: But Peter beckons to his companions to help them. For many follow the labors of the Apostles: first, those who produced the writings of the Gospels; next, the other leaders and shepherds of the Church; and then those skilled in teaching the truth.

The Venerable Bede: The filling of these ships continues until the end of the world. But the fact that the ships, when filled, begin to sink—that is, they are weighed down low in the water (for they do not sink completely, but are in great danger)—the Apostle explains when he says, In the last days perilous times shall come; men shall be lovers of their own selves, etc. For the sinking of the ships represents when people, through vicious habits, fall back into the world from which they have been chosen by faith.

The Venerable Bede: Peter was astonished by the divine gift, and the more he feared, the less he now presumed. As it is said, When Simon Peter saw it, he fell down at Jesus’ knees, saying, Depart from me; for I am a sinful man, O Lord.

St. Cyril of Alexandria: For recalling the sins he had committed, he was alarmed and trembled. As someone unclean, he believed it was impossible for him to receive Him who is clean, for he had learned from the Law to distinguish between what is defiled and what is holy.

Gregory of Nyssa: When Christ commanded them to let down the nets, the multitude of fish caught was just as great as the Lord of the sea and land willed. For the voice of the Word is the voice of power, at whose command light and the other creatures came forth at the beginning of the world. Peter marveled at these things, for he and all who were with him were astonished.

St. Augustine of Hippo: He does not mention Andrew by name, who, however, is thought to have been in that ship, according to the accounts of Matthew and Mark. It follows, And Jesus said to Simon, Fear not.

St. Ambrose of Milan: You also should say, Depart from me, for I am a sinful man, O Lord, so that God may answer, Fear not. Confess your sin, and the Lord will pardon you. See how good the Lord is, who gives so much to people that they have the power of bringing others to life. As it follows, From henceforth you shall catch men.

The Venerable Bede: This applies especially to Peter himself, for the Lord explains to him what this catching of fish means: that just as he now catches fish with a net, so in the future he will catch men with words. The entire sequence of this event shows what happens daily in the Church, of which Peter is a type.

St. John Chrysostom: But notice their faith and obedience. For though they were eagerly engaged in their work of fishing, when they heard Jesus’ command, they did not delay, but forsook all and followed Him. Such is the obedience that Christ demands of us; we must not neglect it, even when pressed by some great necessity. Thus, the text continues, And having brought their ships to land.

St. Augustine of Hippo: Matthew and Mark state the matter here briefly, explaining how it was done, while Luke explains it more fully. There seems to be this difference, however: Luke records that our Lord said only to Peter, From henceforth you shall catch men, whereas the others relate that it was spoken to both of them. But surely it could have been said first to Peter when he marveled at the immense catch of fish, as Luke suggests, and afterward to both, as the other two have related.

Alternatively, we must understand that the event took place as Luke relates it, and that the others were not called by the Lord at that time. Instead, it was only foretold to Peter that he would catch men, not that he would no longer be employed in fishing. This leaves room to suppose that they returned to their fishing, so that what Matthew and Mark describe could happen later. For at that time, the ships were not brought ashore as if they intended to return; instead, they followed Him as He called or commanded them to come.

But if, according to John, Peter and Andrew followed Him near the Jordan, how can the other Evangelists say that He found them fishing in Galilee and called them to be disciples? The only explanation is that they did not encounter the Lord near the Jordan in a way that meant they joined Him inseparably. Instead, they only learned who He was, and after marveling at Him, returned to their own affairs.

St. Ambrose of Milan: But mystically, those whom Peter catches by his word, he does not claim as his own prize or his own gift. Depart, he says, from me, O Lord. Therefore, do not be afraid to also attribute what is yours to the Lord, for what was His, He has given to us.

St. Augustine of Hippo: Alternatively, Peter speaks in the character of the Church, which is full of worldly people: Depart from me, for I am a sinful man. It is as if the Church, crowded with such people and nearly sunk by their vices, casts off, so to speak, the rule of spiritual things, in which the character of Christ shines most brightly.

For people do not tell the good servants of God to depart from them with their tongues, but with the testimony of their deeds and actions, they persuade them to leave so that they will not be governed by the righteous. And yet, they hasten all the more anxiously to pay them honor, just as Peter showed his respect by falling at our Lord's feet, but his true disposition by saying, Depart from me.

The Venerable Bede: But the Lord calms the fears of worldly people, so that no one, trembling at the awareness of his guilt or astonished by the innocence of others, would be afraid to undertake the journey of holiness.

St. Augustine of Hippo: But the Lord did not depart from them, thereby showing that good and spiritual people, when they are troubled by the wickedness of the many, should not wish to abandon their ecclesiastical duties in order to live a more secure and tranquil life, so to speak. Bringing their ships to land and forsaking all to follow Jesus may represent the end of time, when those who have clung to Christ will depart completely from the storms of this world.

St. Ambrose of Milan: The fourth miracle after Jesus came to Capernaum was the healing of a leprous man. But since He illuminated the fourth day with the sun and made it more glorious than the rest, we ought to consider this work more glorious than those that came before. As it is said, And it came to pass, when he was in a certain city, behold a man full of leprosy. It is right that no definite place is mentioned where the leprous man was healed, to signify that not just one people of a particular city, but all nations were healed.

St. Athanasius of Alexandria: The leper worshipped the Lord God in His bodily form. He did not consider the Word of God to be a creature because of His flesh, nor did he think lightly of the flesh He put on because He was the Word. Instead, in a created temple he adored the Creator of all things, falling on his face, as it follows: And when he saw Jesus he fell on his face, and pleaded with him.

St. Ambrose of Milan: In falling on his face, he showed his humility and modesty, for everyone should blush at the stains of his life. Yet his reverence did not hold back his confession; he shows his wound and asks for a remedy, saying, If you will, you can make me clean. He doubted the Lord's will not from a distrust of His mercy, but because he was held back by an awareness of his own unworthiness. But the confession is one full of devotion and faith, placing all power in the will of the Lord.

St. Cyril of Alexandria: For he knew that leprosy does not yield to the skill of physicians, but he saw demons cast out by divine authority and multitudes cured of various diseases, all of which he understood to be the work of the divine arm.

Titus of Bostra: Let us learn from the leper's words not to go about seeking the cure of our bodily infirmities, but to commit everything to the will of God, who knows what is best for us and arranges all things according to His will.

St. Ambrose of Milan: He heals in the same manner in which He had been asked to heal, as it follows: And Jesus put forth his hand, and touched him. The law forbids touching a leper, but He who is the Lord of the law does not submit to the law, but makes the law.

He did not touch the man because He was unable to cleanse him otherwise, but to show that He was neither subject to the law nor, as a man, feared the contagion. For He who delivered others from pollution could not be contaminated Himself. On the contrary, He touched him so that the leprosy, which usually contaminated anyone who touched it, might be expelled by the touch of the Lord.

Theophylact of Ohrid: For His sacred flesh has a healing and life-giving power, as it is indeed the flesh of the Word of God.

St. Ambrose of Milan: In the words that follow, I will, be you clean, you have His will expressed, and you also have the result of His mercy.

St. Cyril of Alexandria: The royal command proceeds from majesty alone. How then can the Only-Begotten, who by His mere will can do all things, be counted among the servants? We read of God the Father that He has done whatever He pleased. But how can He who exercises the power of His Father differ from Him in nature? Besides, whatever things have the same power are usually of the same substance.

Let us, then, admire Christ in these things, working both divinely and bodily. For it is God's part to will something so that it is done accordingly, but it is man's part to stretch out his hand. Therefore, one Christ is perfected from two natures, because the Word was made flesh.

Gregory of Nyssa: Because the Deity is united with each part of man—that is, both soul and body—the signs of a heavenly nature are evident in each. The body declared the Deity hidden in it when, by touching, it provided a remedy; but the soul, by the mighty power of its will, showed the divine strength.

For as the sense of touch is the property of the body, so the motion of the will is the property of the soul. The soul wills; the body touches.

St. Ambrose of Milan: He says, I will, for Photinus; He commands, for Arius; He touches, for Manichaeus. But there is nothing between God’s work and His command, so that in the healer's inclination we may see the power of the work. Hence it follows, And immediately the leprosy departed from him.

But so that this spiritual leprosy does not become rampant among us, let each of us avoid boasting, following the example of our Lord’s humility. For it follows, And he commanded him that he should tell it to no one, so that He might truly teach us that our good deeds are not to be made public but should rather be concealed, and that we should refrain not only from gaining money but even from gaining favor.

Or perhaps the reason for His command of silence was that He preferred those who believed of their own accord rather than from the hope of receiving a benefit.

St. Cyril of Alexandria: Though the leper was silent, the voice of the event itself was enough to proclaim it to all who acknowledged the power of the Healer through him.

St. John Chrysostom: Since men frequently remember God when they are sick but grow dull when they recover, He commands him to always keep God before his eyes, giving glory to God. Hence it follows, But go and show yourself to the Priest, so that the cleansed leper would submit himself to the priest's inspection and so, by his approval, be counted as healed.

St. Ambrose of Milan: This was also so the priest would know that he was cured not by the order of the law but by the grace of God, which is above the law. And since a sacrifice is commanded by the regulation of Moses, the Lord shows that He does not abrogate the law, but fulfills it, as it follows: And offer for your cleansing according as Moses commanded.

St. Augustine of Hippo: He seems here to approve of the sacrifice that had been commanded through Moses, even though the Church does not require it. It can therefore be understood to have been commanded because that most holy sacrifice, which is His body, had not yet begun.

For it was not right that the typical sacrifices should be taken away before that which was typified could be confirmed by the witness of the Apostles’ preaching and the faith of believers.

St. Ambrose of Milan: Or, because the law is spiritual, He seems to have commanded a spiritual sacrifice. Hence He said, As Moses commanded. Lastly, He adds, for a testimony to them. The heretics understand this incorrectly, saying that it was meant as a reproach to the law. But how could He order an offering for cleansing according to the commandments of Moses if He meant this as an attack against the law?

St. Cyril of Alexandria: He says, then, for a testimony to them, because this deed reveals that Christ in His incomparable excellence is far above Moses. For when Moses could not rid his sister of her leprosy, he prayed to the Lord to deliver her. But the Savior, in His divine power, declared, I will, be you clean.

St. John Chrysostom: Or, it means for a testimony against them—that is, as a rebuke to them and a testimony that I respect the law. For He is saying, “Now that I have cured you, I am sending you for the examination of the priests, so that you may bear witness for me that I have not violated the law.”

And although the Lord, in performing His cures, advised telling no one, instructing us to avoid pride, yet His fame spread everywhere, instilling the miracle into the ears of everyone, as it follows: But so much the more went there a fame abroad of him.

The Venerable Bede: The perfect healing of one man brings many multitudes to the Lord, as it follows: And great multitudes came together that they should be healed. For the leper, so that he might show both his outward and inward cure, does not cease to tell of the benefit he had received, even though forbidden, as Mark says.

St. Gregory the Great: Our Redeemer performs His miracles by day and passes the night in prayer, as it follows: And he withdrew himself into the wilderness, and prayed. He was hinting, so to speak, to ideal preachers that just as they should not entirely desert the active life for the love of contemplation, they should not despise the joys of contemplation because of an excess of activity. Instead, in silent thought, they should absorb what they might later give back in words to their neighbors.

The Venerable Bede: Now, that He retired to pray is something you would not ascribe to the nature that says, I will, be you clean, but to the nature that put forth its hand and touched the leper. This is not to say, according to Nestorius, that there is a double person of the Son, but that in the same person, just as there are two natures, so there are two operations.

St. Gregory of Nazianzus: He indeed performed His works among the people, but for the most part, He prayed in the wilderness, thereby sanctioning the freedom to rest for a while from labor to commune with God with a pure heart.

For He needed no change or retirement, since there was nothing in Him that could be relaxed, nor was there any place in which He might confine Himself, for He was God. Rather, it was so that we might clearly know that there is a time for action and a time for the higher occupation of prayer.

The Venerable Bede: Typologically, the leprous man represents the whole human race, languishing with sins that are like leprosy, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. Thus, by the hand that was put forth—that is, the Word of God partaking of human nature—they might be cleansed from the vanity of their old errors and offer their bodies for cleansing as a living sacrifice.

St. Ambrose of Milan: But if the word is the healing of leprosy, then contempt for the word is the leprosy of the mind.

Theophylact of Ohrid: But note that after a man has been cleansed, he is then worthy to offer this gift: namely, the body and blood of the Lord, which is united to the Divine nature.

St. Cyril of Alexandria: The Scribes and Pharisees who had become witnesses to Christ’s miracles also heard Him teaching. This is why it is said, And it came to pass on a certain day, as he was teaching, that there were Pharisees sitting by... And the power of the Lord was present to heal them. This was not as though He borrowed power from another; rather, as God and Lord, He healed by His own inherent power.

Now, people often become worthy of spiritual gifts, but they generally depart from the rule known to the Giver of those gifts. This was not so with Christ, for the divine power continued to abound in providing remedies. But because so great a number of Scribes and Pharisees had gathered, it was necessary that something be done to demonstrate His power before these men who disregarded Him. He therefore performed the miracle on the paralyzed man, who, since medical art had failed, was carried by his relatives to a higher and heavenly Physician. As the text continues, And behold men brought him.

St. John Chrysostom: But the men who brought in the paralytic are to be admired, since, finding they could not enter through the door, they attempted a new and untried way. As the text continues, And when they could not find by what way they might bring him in, they went upon the housetop... By uncovering the roof, they let down the couch and placed the paralytic in the middle, as it follows, And they let him down through the tilings. Some might interpret this to mean that the opening itself was let down, from which they lowered the couch of the paralyzed man through the tiles.

The Venerable Bede: As the Lord was about to cure the man of his paralysis, He first loosened the chains of his sins. He did this to show the man that he was punished with the loosening of his joints because of the bonds of his sins, and that unless those bonds were released, he could not be healed and recover his limbs. This is why the text says, And when he saw their faith...

St. Ambrose of Milan: The Lord is mighty, who pardons one person for the good deed of another; while He approves of the one, He forgives the other's sins. Why, O man, does your fellow man not prevail with you, when with God a servant has both the freedom to intercede on your behalf and the power to obtain what he asks? If you despair of pardon for grave sins, bring the prayers of others; bring the Church to pray for you. At the sight of this, the Lord may pardon what man denies you.

St. John Chrysostom: But the faith of the sufferer himself was also combined in this, for he would not have allowed himself to be let down if he had not believed.

St. Augustine of Hippo: Our Lord’s statement, Man, your sins are forgiven, means that the man had his sins forgiven because, being human, he could not say, “I have not sinned.” At the same time, it also shows that the One who forgave sins might be known to be God.

St. John Chrysostom: If we suffer bodily, we are very concerned to get rid of the affliction. But when harm has come to the soul, we delay, and so we are not cured of our bodily ailments either. Let us then remove the fountain of evil, and the waters of sickness will cease to flow. But from fear of the multitude, the Pharisees dared not openly expose their intentions, but only meditated on them in their hearts. This is why the text continues, And they began to reason, saying, Who is this which speaks blasphemies?

St. Cyril of Alexandria: By this, they hastened to condemn Him to death, for the law commanded that whoever blasphemed God should be punished with death.

St. Ambrose of Milan: From His very works, therefore, the Son of God receives a testimony. For the evidence is more powerful when people confess unwillingly, and the error is more fatal when those who deny are left to the consequences of their own assertions. This is why they say, Who can forgive sins, but God only? Great is the madness of an unbelieving people! Though they confess that God alone can forgive sins, they do not believe God when He forgives sins.

The Venerable Bede: For they speak the truth that no one can forgive sins but God, yet He also forgives through those to whom He has given the power to forgive. Therefore, Christ is proved to be truly God, because He is able to forgive sins as God.

St. Ambrose of Milan: The Lord, wishing to save sinners, shows Himself to be God by knowing their secret thoughts, as He says, But that you may know.

St. Cyril of Alexandria: It is as if He were saying, “O Pharisees, since you say, Who can forgive sins, but God alone? I answer you: Who can search the secrets of the heart but God alone, who says through His prophet, I am the Lord that searches the hearts, and tries the reins?”

St. John Chrysostom: It is as if Christ said, “If, then, you disbelieve the first miracle (that is, the forgiveness of sins), behold, I add another proof: I lay open your inmost thoughts. And another: I make the body of the paralyzed man whole.” This is why He adds, Whether is it easier? It is very plain that it is easier to restore the body to health. For as the soul is far nobler than the body, so the forgiveness of sins is more excellent than the healing of the body. But since you do not believe the former, because it is hidden, I will add the inferior, yet more visible miracle, so that the hidden one may be made manifest by it.

Indeed, in addressing the sick man, He did not say, I forgive you your sins, expressing His own power, but, Your sins are forgiven you. But they compelled Him to declare His own power to them more plainly when He said, But that you may know.

Theophylact of Ohrid: Observe that He forgives sins on earth. For while we are on earth, we can blot out our sins. But after we are taken from the earth, we will not be able to confess, for the gate will be shut.

St. John Chrysostom: He shows the pardon of sins by the healing of the body. This is why it follows, He says to the sick of the palsy, I say to you, Rise. But He demonstrates the healing of the body by the carrying of the bed, so that what took place might not be considered an illusion. This is why it follows, Take up your bed. It is as if He said, “I was willing through your suffering to cure those who think they are healthy while their souls are sick, but since they are unwilling, go and correct your own household.”

St. Ambrose of Milan: There is no delay; health is present instantly. The words and the healing happen in the same moment. This is why it says, And immediately he rose. From this fact, it is evident that the Son of Man has power on earth to forgive sins. He said this for Himself and for us. For as God made man, and as the Lord of the Law, He forgives sins; and we also have been chosen to receive this same marvelous grace from Him.

For it was said to the disciples, Whose sins you remit, they are remitted to them. How can He not forgive sins Himself, when He has given the power to do so to others? The kings and princes of the earth, when they acquit murderers, release them from their present punishment but cannot atone for their crimes.

They behold him rising up, still disbelieving, and marvel at his departure, as the text says, And they were all amazed.

St. John Chrysostom: The Jews progressed by degrees, glorifying God, yet not thinking He was God, for His flesh was an obstacle to them. Still, it was no small thing to consider Him the chief of mortal men and to believe He had come from God.

St. Ambrose of Milan: But they would rather fear the miracles of divine works than believe them, as the text says, And they were filled with fear. If they had believed, they would not have feared, but loved; for perfect love casts out fear.

But this was no careless or insignificant cure of the paralytic, since our Lord is said to have prayed first, not for the sake of the petition, but as an example.

St. Augustine of Hippo: Regarding the paralytic, we may understand that the soul, with its faculties (that is, its operations) relaxed, seeks Christ (that is, the meaning of God’s Word). However, it is hindered by the crowds. This means it cannot arrive at the knowledge of Christ unless it uncovers the secrets of the thoughts—that is, the obscure parts of the Scriptures.

The Venerable Bede: The house where Jesus was is fittingly described as covered with tiles, since beneath the humble covering of the letters of Scripture is found the spiritual power of grace.

St. Ambrose of Milan: Now, let every sick person have people who will pray for his salvation. Through them, the loosened joints of our life and our halting steps may be renewed by the remedy of the heavenly Word. Let there be, then, certain monitors of the soul to raise the human mind to higher things, even though it has grown dull through the weakness of the physical body. With their help, the mind can again easily raise and humble itself, and so be placed before Jesus, worthy to be presented in the Lord’s sight. For the Lord looks upon the humble.

St. Augustine of Hippo: The men who let him down may signify the teachers of the Church. But the fact that he is let down with the couch signifies that a person ought to come to know Christ while still abiding in the flesh.

St. Ambrose of Milan: But the Lord, pointing to the full hope of the resurrection, pardons the sins of the soul and removes the weakness of the flesh. For this is the healing of the whole person. Although it is a great thing to forgive people's sins, it is much more divine to give resurrection to their bodies, since God is indeed the resurrection. But the bed that he is ordered to take up is nothing other than the human body.

St. Augustine of Hippo: This means that the infirm soul should no longer rest in carnal joys, as if in a bed, but should instead restrain its carnal affections and move toward its own home—that is, the resting place of the secrets of its heart.

St. Ambrose of Milan: Or, the soul may seek its own home again—that is, return to Paradise. For that is its true home, which first received humanity and was lost not by fair means, but by treachery. Rightly, then, is the soul restored there, since He has come who will undo the treacherous knot and reestablish righteousness.