Church Fathers Commentary Matthew 13:51-52

"Have ye understood all these things? They say unto him, Yea. And he said unto them, Therefore every scribe who hath been made a disciple to the kingdom of heaven is like unto a man that is a householder, who bringeth forth out of his treasure things new and old." — Matthew 13:51-52 (ASV)

Glossa Ordinaria: When the crowd had departed, the Lord spoke to His disciples in parables, through which they were instructed only to the extent that they understood them. For this reason He asks them, "Have you understood all these things?" They say to him, "Yes, Lord." ¹

St. Jerome: This was spoken especially to the Apostles, for He wanted them not merely to hear like the crowd, but to understand, since they would have to teach others.

St. John Chrysostom: Then He praises them because they had understood. He says to them: "Therefore every scribe instructed in the kingdom of heaven is like a householder who brings out of his treasure things new and old."

St. Augustine of Hippo: He did not say "old and new," as He surely would have if He had not preferred to preserve the order of value rather than the order of time. But the Manichaeans, while they think they should keep only the new promises of God, remain in the "old man" of the flesh and put on a new kind of error. ²

With this conclusion, did He wish to show whom He meant by the "treasure hidden in the field"—in which case we might understand the Holy Scriptures to be meant here, with "things new and old" representing the two Testaments? Or did He intend that a person should be considered learned in the Church who understood that the Old Scriptures were explained in parables, taking principles from these new Scriptures, since in them the Lord also proclaimed many things in parables? ³

If He, then, in whom all those old Scriptures find their fulfillment and revelation, still speaks in parables until His passion tears the veil—at which time nothing hidden will remain unrevealed—how much more were those things written about Him so long before clothed in parables.

The Jews took these literally, being unwilling to be instructed in the kingdom of heaven.

St. Gregory the Great: But if by "new and old" in this passage we understand the two Testaments, we would have to deny that Abraham was learned, for although he indeed knew some events of the Old Testament, he had not read the words. Nor can we compare Moses to a learned householder, for although he composed the Old Testament, he did not have the words of the New. But what is said here can be understood to refer not to those who have been, but to those who would later be in the Church. They "bring forth things new and old" when they proclaim the teachings of both Testaments in their words and in their lives.

St. Hilary of Poitiers: Speaking to His disciples, He calls them "Scribes" on account of their knowledge, because they understood the things He presented, both new and old—that is, from the Law and from the Gospels. Both are from the same householder and are treasures of the same owner. He compares them to Himself under the figure of a householder because they had received the doctrine of things both new and old from His treasury of the Holy Spirit.

St. Jerome: Alternatively, the Apostles are called instructed "Scribes," being the Savior's notaries who wrote His words and precepts on the "fleshy tables of the heart" with the sacraments of the heavenly kingdom. They abounded in the wealth of a householder, bringing forth from the stores of their doctrine things new and old. Whatever they preached in the Gospels, they proved by the words of the Law and the Prophets. This is why the Bride speaks in the Song of Songs 7:13: "I have kept for thee, my beloved, the new with the old."

St. Gregory the Great: Alternatively, the "old things" are that the human race, for its sin, should suffer eternal punishment; the "new things" are that people should be converted and live in the kingdom. First, He presented a comparison of the kingdom to a treasure found and a pearl of great price. After that, He described the punishment of hell in the burning of the wicked and then concluded with, "Therefore every Scribe..." and so on. It is as if He had said: A learned preacher in the Church is one who knows how to bring forth new things concerning the sweetness of the kingdom and to speak of old things concerning the severity of punishment, so that punishment may at least deter those whom rewards do not motivate.

1. non occ.
2. City of God, book xx, ch. 4
3. Quaest. in Matt., q. 16