Church Fathers Commentary Mark 11

St. John Chrysostom: Now that the Lord had given sufficient proof of His virtue and the cross was near, even at the door, He acted more openly in those things that were about to incite them against Him. Therefore, although He had gone up to Jerusalem so often, He had never done so in such a conspicuous manner as now.

Theophylact of Ohrid: This was so that, if they were willing, they might recognize His glory and know from the prophecies fulfilled concerning Him that He is very God. And if they were unwilling, they might receive a greater judgment for not having believed in so many wonderful miracles.

Describing this illustrious entrance, the Evangelist therefore says, And when they came near to Jerusalem, and Bethany, at the Mount of Olives, he sends forth two of His disciples.

The Venerable Bede: Bethany is a small village or town on the side of the Mount of Olives, where Lazarus was raised from the dead. But the way He sent His disciples and for what purpose is shown in these words: And says to them, Go your way into the village opposite you.¹

Theophylact of Ohrid: Now consider how many things the Lord foretold to His disciples. He told them they would find a colt, for the text continues, And as soon as you have entered it, you will find a colt tied, on which no one has ever sat; untie him and bring him.

He foretold that they would be prevented from taking it, for it follows, And if anyone says to you, ‘Why are you doing this?’ say, ‘The Lord has need of him.’

He also foretold that upon saying this, they would be allowed to take the colt, for it continues, And immediately he will send him here. Just as the Lord had said, so it was fulfilled. Thus, the text goes on: And they went their way and found the colt tied by the door outside, in a place where two ways meet; and they untied him.

St. Augustine of Hippo: Matthew says there was an ass and a colt, but the other evangelists do not mention the ass. When both may be the case, there is no disagreement, even if one evangelist mentions one thing and a second mentions another. How much less, then, should a question be raised when one mentions one animal, and another mentions that same one and an additional one?²

It goes on: And some of those who stood there said to them, “What are you doing, untying the colt?” And they said to them just as Jesus had commanded, and they allowed them to take it—that is, the colt.

Theophylact of Ohrid: But they would not have allowed this if the divine power had not been upon them to compel them—especially since they were country people and farmers, yet they allowed the disciples to take away the colt.

It goes on: And they brought the colt to Jesus and cast their garments on him; and He sat on him.

Pseudo-Chrysostom: It is not that He was compelled by necessity to ride on a colt from the Mount of Olives to Jerusalem, for He had traveled throughout Judea and all of Galilee on foot. Rather, this action of His is symbolic.³

It goes on: And many spread their garments on the road—that is, under the feet of the colt—and others cut down branches from the trees and scattered them on the road.

Pseudo-Jerome: This, however, was done more to honor Him and as a Sacrament than out of necessity.

It goes on: And those who went before and those who followed cried out, saying, “Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.”

Theophylact of Ohrid: For the multitude, until it was corrupted, knew its duty, and for this reason each person honored Jesus according to his own ability. Therefore, they praised Him and took up the hymns of the Levites, saying, “Hosanna.” According to some, this means “save me,” but according to others, it means a hymn. I, however, suppose the first to be more probable, for in Psalm 117 it says, Save now, I beseech you, O Lord, which in Hebrew is “Hosanna” (Psalm 117:25).

The Venerable Bede: But “Hosanna” is a Hebrew word composed of two parts, one imperfect and the other complete. For “save” or “preserve” is “hosy” in their language, while “anna” is a supplicatory interjection, just as “heu” in Latin is an exclamation of grief.

Pseudo-Jerome: They cry out “Hosanna,” that is, “save us,” so that people might be saved by Him who was blessed, who was a conqueror, and who came in the name of the Lord—that is, of His Father. For the Father is so called because of the Son, and the Son is so called because of the Father.

Pseudo-Chrysostom: And so they give glory to God, saying, Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord. They also bless the kingdom of Christ, saying, Blessed be the coming kingdom of our father David.⁴

Theophylact of Ohrid: They called the kingdom of Christ the kingdom of David, both because Christ was descended from the seed of David and because “David” means “a man of a strong hand.” For whose hand is stronger than the Lord’s, by which so many and such great miracles were performed?

Pseudo-Chrysostom: For this reason, the prophets also so often call Christ by the name of David, on account of Christ’s descent from David according to the flesh.⁵

The Venerable Bede: We read in the Gospel of John that He fled to a mountain so that they would not make Him their king. Now, however, as He comes to Jerusalem to suffer, He does not shun those who call Him king. He does this to teach them openly that He was King over an empire not temporal and earthly, but everlasting in the heavens, and that the path to this kingdom was through contempt of death.

Observe, also, the agreement of the multitude with the words of Gabriel: The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David (Luke 1:32). This means that He Himself, by word and deed, would call to a heavenly kingdom the nation to which David once provided a temporal government.

Pseudo-Chrysostom: Furthermore, they give glory to God when they add, Hosanna in the highest, that is, “Praise and glory be to the God of all, who is in the highest.”⁶

Pseudo-Jerome: Or, “Hosanna” means save “in the highest” as well as in the lowest, so that the just may be built upon the ruin of the angels, and that those on the earth and those under the earth should be saved. In a mystical sense, the Lord also approaches Jerusalem, which is “the vision of peace,” where happiness remains fixed and unmoving, being, as the Apostle says, the mother of all believers (Galatians 4:26).

The Venerable Bede: Bethany means “house of obedience,” because by teaching many before His Passion, He made for Himself a house of obedience. It is said to be placed on the Mount of Olives because He cherishes His Church with the anointing of spiritual gifts and with the light of piety and knowledge.

But He sent His disciples to a strongholdⁱ that was opposite them. This means He appointed teachers to penetrate the ignorant parts of the world—into, as it were, the walls of the stronghold set against them.

Pseudo-Jerome: The disciples of Christ are called two by two and sent two by two, since love implies more than one person, as it is written, Woe to him that is alone (Ecclesiastes 4:10). Two people lead the Israelites out of Egypt; two bring down the cluster of grapes from the Holy Land.

This is so that those in authority might always join together activity and knowledge, uphold the two commandments from the Two Tablets, be washed from two fountains, carry the ark of the Lord on two poles, know the Lord between the two Cherubim, [p 223] and sing to Him with both mind and spirit.

Theophylact of Ohrid: The colt, however, was not necessary for Him; He sent for it to show that He would transfer Himself to the Gentiles.

The Venerable Bede: For the colt of the ass, undisciplined and unshackled, symbolizes the Gentile peoples, on whom no one had yet sat. This is because no wise teacher had, by teaching them the things of salvation, put upon them the bridle of correction to compel them to restrain their tongues from evil or to guide them into the narrow path of life.

Pseudo-Jerome: But they found the colt tied by the door outside, because the Gentile people were bound by the chain of their sins before the door of faith—that is, outside the Church.

St. Ambrose of Milan: Or else, they found it bound before the door because whoever is not in Christ is outside, on the road; but he who is in Christ is not outside. The evangelist added “on the road,” or “in a place where two ways meet,” where there is no certain possession for anyone—no stall, no food, no stable.

Miserable is the service of one whose rights are unfixed, for he who does not have the one Master has many. Strangers bind him so that they may possess him; Christ sets him free in order to keep him, for He knows that gifts are stronger ties than bonds.⁷

The Venerable Bede: Or else, the colt fittingly stood in a place where two ways meet because the Gentile people did not keep to any certain road of life and faith, but in their error followed many doubtful paths of various sects.

Pseudo-Jerome: Or, “in a place where two roads meet” refers to the freedom of the will, hesitating between life and death.

Theophylact of Ohrid: Or else, “in a place where two roads meet” refers to this life, but the colt was set free by the disciples through faith and baptism.

Pseudo-Jerome: But some said, “What are you doing?” as if to say, “Who can remit sins?”

Theophylact of Ohrid: Or else, those who tried to prevent them are the demons, who were weaker than the Apostles.

The Venerable Bede: Or else, this refers to the master of error, who resisted the teachers when they came to save the Gentiles. But after the power of the Lord’s faith appeared to believers, the faithful people were freed from the objections of their adversaries and were brought to the Lord, whom they bore in their hearts.

By the garments of the Apostles, which they put on the colt, we may understand the teaching of virtues, the interpretation of the Scriptures, or the various doctrines of the Church. With these, they clothe the hearts of men—once naked and cold—and make them fit to become the seat of Christ.

Pseudo-Jerome: Or else, they put their garments on it, meaning they bring to them the first robe of immortality by the Sacrament of Baptism. And Jesus sat on it, that is, He began to reign in them, so that sin should not reign in their unruly flesh, but righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Spirit.

Again, many spread their garments on the road, under the feet of the foal of the ass. What are the feet but those who carry the burden and are the least esteemed, whom the Apostle has set to judge (1 Corinthians 6:4)? And these too, though they are not the back on which the Lord sat, are nevertheless instructed by John along with the soldiers.

The Venerable Bede: Or else, many strew their garments on the road because the holy martyrs cast off the garment of their own flesh and prepare a way for the simpler servants of God with their own blood. Many also strew their garments on the road because they tame their bodies with abstinence, so that they may prepare a way for God to the mountain or give good examples to those who follow them.

And those who cut down branches from the trees are those who, in teaching the truth, gather the sayings of the Fathers from their writings and, by their humble preaching, scatter them in God’s path as He comes into the soul of the hearer.

Theophylact of Ohrid: Let us also strew the path of our life with branches we cut from the trees—that is, let us imitate the saints. For they are the holy trees from which anyone who imitates their virtues cuts down branches.

Pseudo-Jerome: For the righteous shall flourish like a palm tree, confined in their roots but spreading out wide with flowers and fruits. For they are a pleasing aroma to Christ and strew the way of God’s commandments with their good reputation. Those who went before are the prophets, and those who followed are the Apostles.

The Venerable Bede: And because all the elect—whether those who were so in Judea or those who are so now in the Church—believed and now believe in the Mediator between God and man, both those who go before and those who follow cried out, “Hosanna.”

Theophylact of Ohrid: But both our past and future deeds must be done for the glory of God. For some people make a good beginning in their past life, but their later life does not correspond with their former, nor does it end for the glory of God.

The Venerable Bede: As the time of His passion approached, the Lord chose to go to the place of His passion to show that He underwent death of His own accord. Therefore, it is said, And Jesus entered into Jerusalem, and into the temple.

By going to the temple upon first entering the city, He shows us a model of piety to follow: if we happen to enter a place where there is a house of prayer, we should go there first.

We should also understand from this that such was the Lord's poverty, and so little did He flatter anyone, that in such a large city He found no one to host Him and had no place to stay. Instead, He lived in a small country village with Lazarus and his sisters, for Bethany is a Jewish village.

Therefore, the text continues: And when He had looked round about upon all things (that is, to see whether anyone would host Him), and now the eventide was come, He went out into Bethany with the twelve.

He did not do this only once. During all five days, from the time He came to Jerusalem until the day of His passion, He always did the same thing: during the day He taught in the temple, but at night, He went out and stayed on the Mount of Olives.

The passage continues: And on the morrow, when they were come from Bethany, He was hungry.

St. John Chrysostom: Why was He hungry in the morning, as Matthew says, except that as part of a divine plan, He allowed His flesh to feel it? ¹

The text continues: And seeing a fig tree afar off having leaves, He came, if haply He might find any thing thereon.

Now, it is clear that this reflects the disciples' assumption. They thought Christ went to the fig tree for this reason and cursed it because He found no fruit on it.

For the passage continues: And when He came to it, He found nothing but leaves; for the time of figs was not yet. And Jesus answered and said unto it, No man eat fruit of thee hereafter for ever.

He therefore curses the fig tree for the sake of His disciples, so that they would have faith in Him. For while He always bestowed blessings and punished no one, it was necessary to give them a proof of His power to punish, so they might learn that He could also cause the persecuting Jews to wither. However, He was unwilling to demonstrate this power on people, which is why He showed them a sign of His punishing power on a plant.

This proves that He came to the fig tree mainly for this reason, and not because of hunger. For who would be so foolish as to suppose that He felt such great pains of hunger in the morning? What prevented the Lord from eating before He left Bethany? Nor can it be said that seeing figs aroused His hunger, for it was not the season for figs. And if He were hungry, why did He not seek food elsewhere, rather than from a fig tree that could not bear fruit out of season? Furthermore, what punishment did a fig tree deserve for not having fruit before its time?

From all this, we can infer that He wished to show His power, so that their minds would not be crushed by His passion.

Theophylact of Ohrid: He wished to show His disciples that if He chose, He could in a moment exterminate those who were about to crucify Him. In a mystical sense, however, the Lord entered the temple but came out of it again to show that He left it desolate and vulnerable to the plunderer.

The Venerable Bede: Furthermore, He looks upon the hearts of all, and when He finds no place to lay His head among those who oppose the truth, He withdraws to the faithful and dwells with those who obey Him. For Bethany means “house of obedience.”

Pseudo-Jerome: He went to the Jews in the morning, and He visits us in the evening of the world.

The Venerable Bede: Just as His words are parables, so also are His deeds. Therefore, He comes hungry to seek fruit from the fig tree, and though He knew it was not yet the season for figs, He condemns it to perpetual barrenness. He did this to show that the Jewish people could not be saved through the leaves—that is, the words of righteousness they possessed—without the fruit of good works, but would instead be cut down and cast into the fire.

His hungering, therefore, signifies His desire for the salvation of humankind. He saw the fig tree (the Jewish people) which had leaves (the words of the Law and the Prophets), and He sought the fruit of good works on it by teaching, rebuking, and working miracles. But He did not find it, and so He condemned it.

You too, unless you wish to be condemned by Christ at the judgment, must beware of being a barren tree. Instead, offer to Christ the fruit of piety that He requires.

St. John Chrysostom: We may also say, in another sense, that the Lord sought fruit on the fig tree before its time and, not finding it, cursed it. This is because all who fulfill the commandments of the Law are said to bear fruit in their proper season—for instance, the commandment, Thou shalt not commit adultery. But a person who not only abstains from adultery but remains a virgin, which is a greater thing, surpasses them in virtue. The Lord requires from the perfect not only the observance of virtue but also that they bear fruit beyond what the commandments require.

The Venerable Bede: What the Lord had done figuratively when He cursed the barren fig tree, He now shows more openly by casting the wicked out of the temple. For the fig tree was not at fault for not having fruit before its season, but the priests were blameworthy, which is why it is said, And they come to Jerusalem; and Jesus went into the temple, and began to cast out those who sold and bought in the temple. It is probable, however, that He found them buying and selling things in the temple that were necessary for its ministry. If, then, the Lord forbids people from conducting worldly business in the temple—matters they could freely attend to anywhere else—how much more do those who carry on unlawful activities in the temple consecrated to Him deserve a greater measure of heaven's anger?

It goes on: and overthrew the tables of the moneychangers.

Theophylact of Ohrid: He calls them moneychangers, who exchanged a particular kind of money, as the word itself refers to a small brass coin.

The Venerable Bede: Because the Holy Spirit appeared over the Lord in the form of a dove, the gifts of the Holy Spirit are fittingly represented by the name "doves." Therefore, the Dove is sold when the laying on of hands, by which the Holy Spirit is received, is sold for a price. Again, He overturns the seats of those who sell doves because those who sell spiritual grace are deprived of their priesthood, either before men or in the eyes of God.

Theophylact of Ohrid: But if a person, by sinning, gives up the grace and purity of baptism to the devil, he has sold his Dove and for this reason is cast out of the temple.

There follows: And would not allow that anyone should carry any vessel through the temple.

The Venerable Bede: He is speaking of those vessels that were carried there for the purpose of commerce. But God forbid that this should be taken to mean that the Lord cast out of the temple, or forbade people to bring into it, the vessels consecrated to God. For here He shows a type of the judgment to come, as He thrusts the wicked away from the Church and, by His everlasting word, restrains them from ever again entering to trouble the Church.

Furthermore, sorrow sent into the heart from above removes the sins that were in the souls of the faithful, and divine grace assists them so that they never commit them again.

It goes on: And He taught, saying to them, My house shall be called of all nations the house of prayer.

Pseudo-Jerome: This is according to Isaiah 56:7. But you have made it a den of thieves, according to Jeremiah 7:11.

The Venerable Bede: He says, "to all nations," not to the Jewish nation alone, nor in the city of Jerusalem alone, but over the whole world. And He does not say a house of bulls, goats, and rams, but of prayer.

Theophylact of Ohrid: Furthermore, He calls the temple "a den of thieves" on account of the money being gained there, for thieves always band together for profit. Since they sold those animals offered in sacrifice for the sake of profit, He called them thieves.

The Venerable Bede: For they were in the temple for this purpose: either to persecute with physical punishment those who did not bring gifts, or to spiritually kill those who did. The mind and conscience of the faithful is also the temple and the house of God. But if it produces perverse thoughts to the harm of anyone, it may be said that thieves haunt it as a den.

Therefore, the mind of the faithful becomes a den of thieves when, leaving the simplicity of holiness, it plots what may harm others.

St. Augustine of Hippo: John, however, relates this in a very different order, which makes it clear that the Lord did this not just once, but twice. The first time was related by John, and the last by the other three. ¹

Theophylact of Ohrid: This also leads to the greater condemnation of the Jews, because even though the Lord did this multiple times, they still did not correct their conduct.

St. Augustine of Hippo: In this, Mark again does not keep the same order as Matthew. Matthew connects the facts with the sentence, And He left them, and went out of the city into Bethany (Matthew 21:17). According to his account, it was after returning from there in the morning that Christ cursed the tree. Therefore, it is more probable that Matthew has preserved the correct order of events regarding the ejection of the buyers and sellers from the temple. Mark, therefore, passed over what was done on the first day when Jesus entered the temple. Remembering it later, he inserted it after he had said that Jesus found nothing on the fig tree but leaves—an event that both he and Matthew testify occurred on the second day. ²

Glossa Ordinaria: But the Evangelist shows what effect the Lord's correction had on the ministers of the temple when he adds, and the Scribes and Chief Priests heard it, and sought how they might destroy him. This is according to the saying of Amos: They hate him that rebuketh in the gate, and they abhor him that speaketh uprightly (Amos 5:10). From this wicked design, however, they were kept back for a time solely by fear.

This is why it is added, For they feared Him, because all the people were astonished at His doctrine. For He taught them as one having authority, and not as the Scribes and Pharisees, as is said elsewhere.

Pseudo-Jerome: The Lord, leaving darkness behind Him in the hearts of the Jews, went out like the sun from that city to another which was well-disposed and obedient. This is what is meant when it is said, And when evening had come, He went out of the city.

But the sun sets in one place and rises in another, for the light, taken from the Scribes, now shines in the Apostles. Therefore, He returns to the city. For this reason, it is added, And in the morning, as they passed by, (that is, going into the city,) they saw the fig tree dried up from the root.

Theophylact of Ohrid: The greatness of the miracle is apparent in the drying up of such a juicy and green tree. Although Matthew says that the fig tree was immediately dried up and that the disciples wondered when they saw it, we should not be perplexed that Mark now says the disciples saw it dried up the next day. What Matthew says must be understood to mean that they did not see it immediately, but on the following day.

St. Augustine of Hippo: The meaning is not that the tree dried up at the moment they saw it, but immediately after the Lord spoke His word. They saw it not beginning to dry up, but completely dried up, and from this they understood that it had withered instantly after our Lord spoke. ¹

Pseudo-Jerome: The fig tree withered from the roots represents the synagogue, which has been withered since the time of Cain and the others from whom all the blood from Abel to Zechariah is required.

The Venerable Bede: Furthermore, the fig tree was dried up from the roots to show that the nation was not just impious for a time or in part. It was to be struck forever, not merely to be afflicted by attacks from outside nations and then set free, as had often happened before.

Alternatively, it was dried up from the roots to show that the nation was stripped not only of the external favor of man but entirely of the favor of heaven within it, for it lost both its life in heaven and its country on earth.

Pseudo-Jerome: Peter perceives the dry root that was cut off and has been replaced by the beautiful and fruitful olive tree, called by the Lord. Therefore, the text continues: And Peter, calling to remembrance, says to Him, "Master, behold, the fig tree which you cursed is withered away."

St. John Chrysostom: The disciples’ wonder was a consequence of their imperfect faith, for this was not a great thing for God to do. Since they did not yet clearly know His power, their ignorance caused them to express their amazement. Therefore, it is added, And Jesus answering says to them, "Have faith in God. For verily I say unto you, That whosoever shall say unto this mountain..." and so on. This means that you will not only be able to dry up a tree, but also to move a mountain by your command and order.

Theophylact of Ohrid: Consider the divine mercy, which confers on us—if we approach Him in faith—the power of miracles that He Himself possesses by nature, so that we might even be able to move mountains.

The Venerable Bede: The Gentiles who attack the Church often object that we have never had full faith in God, because we have never been able to move mountains. It could be done, however, if necessity required it. We read that it was once done through the prayers of the blessed Father Gregory of Neocaesarea, Bishop of Pontus, by which a mountain moved to provide as much space as the inhabitants of a city needed.

St. John Chrysostom: Alternatively, just as He did not dry up the fig tree for its own sake but as a sign that Jerusalem would be destroyed and to show His power, so also must we understand the promise concerning the mountain—although such a removal is not impossible for God.

Pseudo-Jerome: Christ, then, who is the mountain that grew from the stone cut out without hands, is taken up and cast into the sea when the Apostles rightly say, Let us turn to other nations, since you judged yourselves unworthy of hearing the word of God (Acts 13:46).

The Venerable Bede: Alternatively, because the devil is often called a mountain on account of his pride, this mountain is taken up from the earth and cast into the sea at the command of those who are strong in faith. This happens whenever, through the preaching of the word of God by holy teachers, the unclean spirit is expelled from the hearts of those foreordained to life and is then allowed to exert his tyrannical power over the troubled and embittered souls of the faithless.

At such a time, he rages all the more fiercely, the more he grieves at being prevented from harming the faithful.

The passage continues: Therefore I say to you, whatever things you desire when you pray, believe that you receive them, and you will have them.

Theophylact of Ohrid: For whoever sincerely believes evidently lifts up his heart to God and is joined to Him. His burning heart feels sure that he has received what he asked for—a feeling that anyone who has experienced it will understand. It seems to me that those who experience this are people who pay close attention to the measure and manner of their prayers. For this reason, the Lord says, You will receive whatever you ask in faith. For the one who believes he is entirely in God's hands, and who intercedes with tears, feels as if he has hold of the Lord's feet in prayer; he will receive what he has rightly asked for.

Do you want to receive what you ask for in another way? Forgive your brother if he has sinned against you in any way. This is what is added next: And when you stand praying, forgive, if you have anything against anyone, that your Father also who is in heaven may forgive you your trespasses.

Pseudo-Jerome: Mark has, as is his custom, expressed seven verses of the Lord's Prayer in this one passage. But what more can a person whose sins are all forgiven require, except to persevere in what has been granted to him?

The Venerable Bede: We must observe that there is a difference among those who pray. The one who has perfect faith, which works by love, can by his prayer or even his command remove spiritual mountains, as Paul did with Elymas the sorcerer. But let those who are unable to reach such a height of perfection pray that their sins may be forgiven them, and they will obtain what they pray for, provided that they first forgive those who have sinned against them.

If, however, they disdain to do this, not only will they be unable to perform miracles by their prayers, but they will not even be able to obtain pardon for their sins. This is implied in what follows: But if you do not forgive, neither will your Father who is in heaven forgive your trespasses.

Theophylact of Ohrid: They were angry with the Lord for having cast out of the temple those who had made it a place of merchandise, and therefore they came up to Him to question and tempt Him.

Therefore it is said: And they come again to Jerusalem: and as He was walking in the temple, there come to Him the Chief Priests, and the Scribes, and the elders, and say unto Him, By what authority doest thou these things? and who gave thee authority to do these things? (Mark 11:27-28).

It was as if they had said, "Who are you that you do these things? Do you make yourself a teacher and ordain yourself Chief Priest?"

The Venerable Bede: Indeed, when they ask, By what authority doest thou these things?, they doubt that it is the power of God and wish it to be understood that what He did was the devil's work. When they also add, Who gave thee this authority?, they are clearly denying that He is the Son of God, since they believe He works miracles not by His own power, but by another's.

Theophylact of Ohrid: Furthermore, they said this, thinking to bring Him to judgment. If He said, "By my own power," they could seize Him; but if He said, "By the power of another," they could make the people abandon Him, for they believed Him to be God. But the Lord asks them about John, not without reason or in a deceptive way, but because John had borne witness to Him.

Therefore, what follows is: And Jesus answered and said unto them, I will also ask of you one question, and answer me, and I will tell you by what authority I do these things. The baptism of John, was it from heaven, or of men? answer me. (Mark 11:29-30).

The Venerable Bede: The Lord could indeed have refuted the objections of His tempters with a direct answer, but He prudently asks them a question so that they might be condemned either by their silence or by their answer. This is evident from what is added: And they reasoned with themselves, saying, If we shall say, From heaven; he will say, Why then did ye not believe him? (Mark 11:31).

It was as if He had said, "He whom you would confess to have had his prophecy from heaven testified about Me, and you have heard from him by what authority I do these things."

It continues: But if we shall say, Of men; they feared the people. (Mark 11:32).

They saw then that whatever they answered, they would fall into a snare. Fearing being stoned, they feared confessing the truth even more.

Therefore, it continues: And they answered and said unto Jesus, We cannot tell. (Mark 11:33).

Pseudo-Jerome: They envied the Lamp and were in the dark; therefore it is said, I have ordained a lamp for mine anointed; his enemies will I clothe with shame. (Psalm 132:17-18).

Then follows: And Jesus answering saith unto them, Neither do I tell you by what authority I do these things. (Mark 11:33).

The Venerable Bede: It was as if He had said, "I will not tell you what I know, since you will not confess what you know."

Furthermore, we must observe that knowledge is hidden from those who seek it for two primary reasons: either the seeker lacks the capacity to understand what he is looking for, or, because of his contempt for the truth or some other fault, he is unworthy of having it revealed to him.