Church Fathers Commentary Matthew 16:1-4

"And the Pharisees and Sadducees came, and trying him asked him to show them a sign from heaven. But he answered and said unto them, When it is evening, ye say, [It will be] fair weather: for the heaven is red. And in the morning, [It will be] foul weather to-day: for the heaven is red and lowering. Ye know how to discern the face of the heaven; but ye cannot [discern] the signs of the times. An evil and adulterous generation seeketh after a sign; and there shall no sign be given unto it, but the sign of Jonah. And he left them, and departed." — Matthew 16:1-4 (ASV)

St. John Chrysostom: Just as the Lord sent the crowds away after the miracle of the five loaves, so also now He sends them away—not on foot, but by boat, so that the crowds might not follow Him. And He sent away the multitude, and entered into a ship, and came into the coasts of Magedan.

St. Augustine of Hippo: Mark says Dalmanutha; no doubt it is the same place under a different name, for many copies of the Gospel according to Mark have Magedan.¹

Rabanus Maurus: This Magedan is the country opposite Gerasa, and is interpreted as “fruits” or “a messenger.” It signifies a garden, of which it is said, A garden enclosed, a fountain sealed (Song of Songs 4:12), in which the fruits of virtues grow and where the name of the Lord is announced.

This teaches us that after preachers have ministered the word to the crowd, they ought to refresh themselves with the fruits of virtue within the chamber of their own heart.

It follows: And there came to him Pharisees and Sadducees, tempting him, and they desired him to show them a sign from heaven.

Remigius of Auxerre: What astonishing blindness of the Pharisees and Sadducees! They asked for a sign from heaven, as though the things they now saw were not signs. John shows what sign they desired, for he relates that after the feeding with the five loaves, the crowds came to the Lord and said, What sign do you do, that we may see it and believe you? Our fathers ate manna in the desert, as it is written, He gave them bread from heaven to eat (John 6:30-31).

Therefore, when they say here, Show us a sign from heaven, they mean, “Cause it to rain manna for one or two days, so that the whole people may eat, as was done for a long time in the desert.” But He, looking into their thoughts as God and knowing that they would not believe even if a sign from heaven were shown to them, would not give them the sign for which they asked. As it follows, But he answered and said to them, When it is evening, you say, It will be fair weather; for the sky is red, etc.

St. Jerome: This is not found in most copies of the Greek text.ⁱ The meaning, however, is clear: that fair and rainy days can be foretold by the condition and harmony of the elements. Yet the Scribes and Pharisees, who seemed to be doctors of the Law, could not discern the Savior's coming from the predictions of the Prophets.

St. Augustine of Hippo: We might also understand this saying in this way: When it is evening, you say, It will be fair weather, for the sky is red, refers to the fact that by the blood of Christ's passion at His first coming, the forgiveness of sin is given. And the words, And in the morning, It will be foul weather today, for the sky is red and lowering, mean that at His second coming He will come with fire before Him.²

Glossa Ordinaria: Alternatively: The sky is red and lowering means that the Apostles suffer after the resurrection, by which you may know that I will judge hereafter. For if I do not spare the good who are mine from present suffering, I will not spare others hereafter. You can therefore discern the face of the sky, but the signs of the times you cannot.

Rabanus Maurus: By the signs of the times He means His own coming, or passion, to which the evening redness of the heavens may be compared. He also means the tribulation that will come before His second coming, to which the morning redness with the lowering sky may be compared.

St. John Chrysostom: Just as there is one sign in the sky for fair weather and another for rain, so you ought to think concerning me. Now, in this My first coming, there is a need for these signs that are done on the earth; but those that are done in heaven are reserved for the time of the second coming.

Now I come as a physician, but then I will come as a judge. Now I come in secret, but then I will come with great splendor, when the powers of the heavens will be shaken. But now is not the time for those signs; now I have come to die and to suffer humiliation. As it follows, An evil and adulterous generation seeks after a sign, and there shall no sign be given it, but the sign of the prophet Jonah.

St. Augustine of Hippo: Matthew has already recorded this. From this we may learn for our own information that the Lord spoke the same things many times. This helps us understand that when there are contradictions that cannot be explained, it may be because the same sayings were uttered on two different occasions.

Glossa Ordinaria: He says, Evil and adulterous generation, meaning it is an unbelieving generation, having a carnal and not a spiritual understanding.³

Rabanus Maurus: A sign from heaven, such as they asked for, is not given to this generation that tempted the Lord in this way, though many signs are given on the earth. A sign is given only to the generation of those who sought the Lord, in whose sight He ascended into heaven and sent the Holy Spirit.

St. Jerome: But what is meant by the sign of Jonah has been explained above.

St. John Chrysostom: When the Pharisees heard this, they should have asked Him what He meant. But they had not asked at first with any desire to learn, and therefore the Lord leaves them, as it follows: And he left them, and went his way.

St. Jerome: That is, leaving the evil generation of the Jews, He passed over the strait, and the people of the Gentiles followed Him.

St. Hilary of Poitiers: Observe that we do not read here, as in other places, that He sent the crowds away and departed. Instead, because the error of unbelief held the minds of the presumptuous, it is said that He left them.

1. de Cons. Ev., ii, 51
2. Quaest Ev., i, 20
3. interlin.