Church Fathers Commentary Mark 9:43-50

"And if thy hand cause thee to stumble, cut it off: it is good for thee to enter into life maimed, rather than having thy two hands to go into hell, into the unquenchable fire. [where their worm dieth not, and the fire is not quenched.] And if thy foot cause thee to stumble, cut it off: it is good for thee to enter into life halt, rather than having thy two feet to be cast into hell. [where their worm dieth not, and the fire is not quenched.] And if thine eye cause thee to stumble, cast it out: it is good for thee to enter into the kingdom of God with one eye, rather than having two eyes to be cast into hell; where their worm dieth not, and the fire is not quenched. For every one shall be salted with fire. Salt is good: but if the salt have lost its saltness, wherewith will ye season it? Have salt in yourselves, and be at peace one with another." — Mark 9:43-50 (ASV)

The Venerable Bede: Because the Lord had taught us not to offend those who believe in Him, He now warns us, in turn, how careful we must be of those who offend us—that is, those who by their words or conduct try to drag us into the perdition of sin. Therefore He says, And if thy hand offend thee, cut it off.

St. John Chrysostom: He does not say this about our limbs, but about our intimate friends, whom we consider to be as necessary to us as our own limbs. For nothing is as harmful as wicked company.¹

The Venerable Bede: That is, by the name “hand,” He means an intimate friend whose help we need daily. But if such a person should wish to harm us in matters concerning our soul, he must be removed from our company, lest, by choosing to share this life with someone who is lost, we perish along with him in the life to come.

Therefore, it follows, It is better for thee to enter into life maimed, than having two hands to enter into hell.

Glossa Ordinaria: By “maimed,” He means being deprived of the help of a friend, for it is better to enter into life without that friend than to go with him into hell.

Pseudo-Jerome: Alternatively, It is better for thee to enter into life maimed—that is, without the high position you have desired—than, having two hands, to go into eternal fire. The two “hands” for a high position are humility and pride; cut off pride, and hold to a state of humility.

Pseudo-Chrysostom: Then He introduces the testimony of prophecy from the prophet Isaiah, saying, Where their worm dieth not, and the fire is not quenched (Isaiah 66:24). He does not say this about a visible worm, but calls the conscience a worm, gnawing at the soul for not having done any good. For each of us will become our own accuser by recalling what we have done in this mortal life, and so their worm remains forever.²

The Venerable Bede: And as the worm is the pain that accuses from within, so the fire is a punishment that rages outside of us. Alternatively, the worm means the decay of hell, and the fire means its heat.

St. Augustine of Hippo: Those who hold that both of these—the fire and the worm—are pains of the soul and not of the body also say that those separated from the kingdom of God are tortured, as if by fire, with the pangs of a soul that repents too late and without hope. They reasonably argue that fire can represent that burning grief, as the Apostle says, Who is offended, and I burn not? (2 Corinthians 11:29).³

They also think that the worm must be understood as this same grief, as it is said: As a moth destroys a garment, and a worm wood, so grief tortures the heart of man (Proverbs 25:20, Vulgate).

All those who do not hesitate to affirm that there will be pain of both body and soul in that punishment also affirm that the body is burned by the fire. This is more credible, because it would be absurd for either the pains of the body or of the soul to be absent there. Still, I think it is easier to say that both punishments belong to the body than that neither does.

Therefore, it seems to me that Holy Scripture is silent here about the pains of the soul, because it naturally follows that the soul is also tortured through the pains of the body.

Let each person therefore choose which interpretation he prefers: either to refer the fire to the body and the worm to the soul—the one literally, the other figuratively—or to refer both literally to the body. For living things can exist even in fire, burning without being consumed and in pain without dying, by the wondrous power of the Almighty Creator.

The passage continues: And if thy foot offend thee, cut it off: it is better for thee to enter halt into life, than having two feet to be cast into hell, into the fire that never shall be quenched; where their worm dieth not, and the fire is not quenched.

The Venerable Bede: A friend is called a “foot” because of the service he provides in going about for us, since he is, so to speak, at our service.

The passage continues: And if thine eye offend thee, pluck it out: it is better for thee to enter into the kingdom of God with one eye, than having two eyes to be cast into hell fire; where their worm dieth not, and the fire is not quenched.

A friend who is useful, diligent, and sharp in perception is called an “eye.”

St. Augustine of Hippo: Here it truly appears that those who do devout acts in the name of Christ—even before they have joined the company of Christians and been washed in the Christian Sacraments—are more useful than those who, though already bearing the name of Christian, drag their followers with them into everlasting punishment by their doctrine.⁴

The Lord orders that these people, described as members of the body like an offending eye or hand, be torn from the body—that is, from the fellowship of unity itself. This is so that we might enter everlasting life without them, rather than go to hell with them.

Separating from such people consists in not yielding to them when they try to persuade one to do evil—that is, when they cause one to stumble. If their wickedness becomes known to all the good people with whom they are connected, they are cut off from all fellowship entirely, even from partaking in the heavenly Sacraments.

However, if they are known only to a few, while their wickedness is unknown to the majority, they are to be tolerated. But this must be done in such a way that we do not consent to join their iniquity, and the fellowship of the good is not abandoned because of them.

The Venerable Bede: Because the Lord had mentioned the worm and the fire three times, He adds, so that we may be able to avoid this torment, For every one shall be salted with fire.

The stench of worms always arises from the corruption of flesh and blood. Therefore, fresh meat is seasoned with salt so that the moisture of the blood is dried up and it does not breed worms. And while that which is salted with salt keeps away the putrefying worm, that which is salted with fire—that is, seasoned with flames on which salt is sprinkled—not only casts off worms but also consumes the flesh itself.

Therefore, flesh and blood breed worms. That is, carnal pleasure, when unopposed by the seasoning of self-control, produces everlasting punishment for the self-indulgent. If anyone wishes to avoid this stench, let him be careful to chasten his body with the salt of self-control and his mind with the seasoning of wisdom, freeing it from the stain of error and vice.

For salt means the sweetness of wisdom, and fire means the grace of the Holy Spirit.

He says, therefore, Every one shall be salted with fire, because all the elect must be purged by spiritual wisdom from the corruption of carnal concupiscence. Alternatively, the fire is the fire of tribulation, by which the patience of the faithful is tested, so that it may have its perfect work.

Pseudo-Chrysostom: Similar to this is what the Apostle says, And the fire shall try every man's work of what sort it is (1 Corinthians 3:13).⁵

Afterward, he brings in testimony from Leviticus, which says, And every oblation of thy meat offering shalt thou season with salt (Leviticus 2:13).

Pseudo-Jerome: The oblation of the Lord is the human race, which is salted here by means of wisdom, while the corruption of the blood—the nurturer of decay and the mother of worms—is being consumed. This offering will also be tested there by the purgatorial fire.ⁱ

The Venerable Bede: We may also understand the altar to be the heart of the elect, and the victims and sacrifices offered on the altar to be good works. But in all sacrifices, salt must be offered, for a work is not good if it is not purged by the salt of wisdom from all corruption of vainglory and other evil and superfluous thoughts.

Pseudo-Chrysostom: Alternatively, it means that every sacrificial gift, which is accompanied by prayer and helping our neighbor, is salted with that divine fire about which it is said, I am come to send fire on earth (Luke 12:49). Regarding this, it is added, Salt is good; that is, the fire of love.⁶

But if the salt have lost his saltness—that is, if it is deprived of itself and of that unique quality by which it is called good—wherewith will ye season it? For there is salt that has saltiness, meaning it has the fullness of grace, and there is salt that has no saltiness, for that which is not peaceful is unseasoned salt.

The Venerable Bede: Or, the good salt is the frequent hearing of God’s word and the seasoning of the hidden parts of the heart with the salt of spiritual wisdom.

Theophylact of Ohrid: For as salt preserves flesh and does not allow it to breed worms, so also the teaching of the instructor, if it can dry up what is evil, restrains carnal people and does not allow the undying worm to grow in them.

But if the teaching is without saltiness—that is, if its power to dry up and preserve is gone—with what will it be salted?

Pseudo-Chrysostom: Or, according to Matthew, the disciples of Christ are the salt that preserves the whole world, resisting the decay that comes from idolatry and sinful fornication. For it may also mean that each of us has salt, insofar as we contain within ourselves the graces of God.⁷

Therefore, the Apostle also joins together grace and salt, saying, Let your speech be always with grace, seasoned with salt (Colossians 4:6).

For salt is the Lord Jesus Christ, who was able to preserve the whole earth and made many to be salt in the earth. And if any of these are corrupted (for it is possible for even the good to be changed into corruption), they are worthy of being cast out.

Pseudo-Jerome: Alternatively, the salt that is saltless is that which loves the chief place and does not dare to rebuke others.

Therefore, it follows, Have salt in yourselves, and have peace one with another. That is, let the love of your neighbor temper the saltiness of rebuke, and let the salt of justice season the love of your neighbor.

St. Gregory the Great: Or this is said against those whose greater knowledge, while raising them above their neighbors, cuts them off from the fellowship of others. Thus, the more their learning increases, the more they unlearn the virtue of harmony.⁸

The one who strives to speak with wisdom should also be very fearful that his eloquence might throw the unity of his hearers into confusion, or that, while trying to appear wise, he might unwisely cut apart the bonds of unity.⁹

Theophylact of Ohrid: Alternatively, he who binds himself to his neighbor by the tie of love has salt, and in this way has peace with his neighbor.

St. Augustine of Hippo: Mark relates that the Lord said these things in sequence and has recorded some things omitted by the other Evangelists, some that Matthew also related, and others that both Matthew and Luke relate, but on different occasions and in a different series of events.¹⁰

Therefore, it seems to me that our Lord repeated discourses here that He had used in other places, because they were sufficiently relevant to this saying of His, in which He stopped them from forbidding miracles to be worked in His name, even by someone who did not follow Him along with His disciples.

1. Hom. in Matt., 59
2. Vict. Ant. e Cat. in Marc.
3. de Civ. Dei, 21, 9
4. de. Con. Evan., 4, 6
5. Vict. Ant. e Cat. in Marc.
6. Vict. Ant. in Cat.
7. Vict. Ant. in Cat.
8. De cura past., iii, e.22
9. De cura past., ii, 4
10. de. Con, iv. 6