Church Fathers Commentary Matthew 24:45-51

"Who then is the faithful and wise servant, whom his lord hath set over his household, to give them their food in due season? Blessed is that servant, whom his lord when he cometh shall find so doing. Verily I say unto you, that he will set him over all that he hath. But if that evil servant shall say in his heart, My lord tarrieth; and shall begin to beat his fellow-servants, and shall eat and drink with the drunken; the lord of that servant shall come in a day when he expecteth not, and in an hour when he knoweth not, and shall cut him asunder, and appoint his portion with the hypocrites: there shall be the weeping and the gnashing of teeth." — Matthew 24:45-51 (ASV)

St. Hilary of Poitiers: Although the Lord had given a general exhortation above for all to maintain unwearied vigilance, He now adds a special charge to the rulers of the people—that is, the Bishops—to be watchful in looking for His coming. He calls such a person a faithful servant and wise manager of the household, careful for the needs and interests of the people entrusted to him.

St. John Chrysostom: That He says, "Who then is a faithful and wise servant," does not imply ignorance, for we find even the Father asking a question, such as, Adam, where art thou? (Genesis 3:9).

Remigius of Auxerre: Nor does it imply the impossibility of attaining perfect virtue, but only its difficulty.

Glossa Ordinaria: For such a "faithful" servant is indeed rare—one who serves his Master for his Master's sake, feeding Christ's sheep not for financial gain but for love of Christ. He is "skilled" to discern the abilities, life, and character of those placed under him. He is one whom "the Lord sets over," meaning he is called by God and has not thrust himself into the position.¹

St. John Chrysostom: He requires two things of such a servant: fidelity and prudence. He calls him "faithful" because he appropriates none of his Lord's goods to himself and wastes nothing idly or unprofitably. He calls him "prudent" because he knows how he ought to use the things entrusted to him.

Origen of Alexandria: Or, one who makes progress in the faith, though he is not yet perfect in it, is ordinarily called "faithful," and one who has a natural quickness of intellect is called "prudent." Whoever observes will find many who are faithful and zealous in their belief but not, at the same time, prudent; for God hath chosen the foolish things of the world (1 Corinthians 1:27). Conversely, you will see others who are quick and prudent but have weak faith, for the union of faith and prudence in the same person is very rare.

To give food in due season requires prudence, while not taking away food from the needy requires faithfulness. The literal sense obliges us to this: that we be faithful in distributing the Church's revenues, that we do not devour what belongs to the widows, that we remember the poor. We must not take the words, The Lord hath ordained, that they which preach the Gospel should live of the Gospel (1 Corinthians 9:14), as an occasion to seek more than simple food and necessary clothing, or to keep more for ourselves than we give to those who suffer want.

And we must be prudent to understand the circumstances of those in need: from where their needs arise, what their upbringing has been, and what the necessities of each person are. It requires much prudence to distribute the Church's revenues fairly.

Likewise, let the servant be faithful and prudent, so that he does not lavish intellectual and spiritual food on those for whom it is not intended, but dispenses it according to each person's need. For one person, a word that edifies their behavior and guides their conduct is more beneficial than one that merely imparts knowledge. But for others who can grasp deeper truths, he must not fail to explain these more profound things. If he offers them only common teachings, he risks being despised by those who have naturally keener minds or have been sharpened by the discipline of worldly learning.

St. John Chrysostom: This parable may also be applied to the case of secular rulers, for each person ought to use what he has for the common benefit, and not to the harm of his fellow servants or to his own ruin—whether it be wisdom, authority, or whatever else he has.

Rabanus Maurus: The "lord" is Christ; the "household" over which He appoints is the Church Catholic. It is hard, then, to find one person who is both "faithful and wise," but not impossible. For He would not pronounce a blessing on a character that could never exist, as when He adds, "Blessed is that servant whom his lord when he comes shall find so doing."

St. Hilary of Poitiers: This means being obedient to his Lord's command, dispensing the word of life through timely teaching to a household that is to be nourished for the food of eternity.

Remigius of Auxerre: It should be observed that as there is a great difference of merit between good preachers and good hearers, so there is a great difference between their rewards. The good hearers, if He finds them watching, He will make them sit down to eat, as Luke says; but the good preachers "He will set over all His goods."

Origen of Alexandria: This is so that he may reign with Christ, to whom the Father has committed all that is His. And just as the Son is set over all that is His Father's, He will share His dignity and glory with His faithful and wise stewards, so that they also may be above the whole creation.

Rabanus Maurus: This means not that only they will be rewarded, but that they, before others, will be rewarded for their own lives as well as for their oversight of the flock.

St. Hilary of Poitiers: Or, "shall set him over all his goods," means that God shall place him in His own glory, because beyond this there is nothing better.

St. John Chrysostom: And He instructs His hearer not only by the honor that awaits the good but by the punishment that threatens the wicked, adding, "But if that evil servant shall say in his heart, etc."

St. Augustine of Hippo: The character of this servant is shown in his behavior, which is expressed by his good Master: his tyranny, "and shall begin to beat his fellow servants," and his sensuality, "and to eat and drink with the drunken." So when he says, "My Lord delays His coming," he should not be thought to speak from a desire to see the Lord, like the one who said, My soul is athirst for the living God; when shall I come? (Psalm 42:2). This shows that the psalmist was grieved by the delay; to his longing heart, what was hastening toward him seemed to be arriving slowly.²

Origen of Alexandria: And every bishop who does not minister as a fellow servant but rules by force as a master—and often a harsh one—sins against God. He also sins if he does not cherish the needy but feasts with the drunken, and is continually sleeping because his Lord is not coming for a long time.

Rabanus Maurus: Figuratively, we may understand his beating his fellow servants as offending the consciences of the weak by word or by evil example.

St. Jerome: "The lord of that servant will come on a day when he does not look for him" is meant to rouse the stewards to watchfulness and care. "He will cut him in two" is not to be understood as execution by the sword, but that he will be separated from the company of the saints.

Origen of Alexandria: Or, "He will cut him in two," meaning his spirit—that is, his spiritual gift—will return to God who gave it, but his soul will go with his body into hell. The righteous man, however, is not cut in two; instead, his soul, with his spirit—that is, with his spiritual gift—enters the kingdom of heaven. Those who are cut in two have no part of that spiritual gift from God from that point on. All that remains to them is the part that was their own—that is, their soul, which will be punished with their body.

St. Jerome: "And will assign him his portion with the hypocrites"—that is, with those who were in the field or grinding at the mill and were nevertheless left behind. For just as we often say that a hypocrite is one thing but presents himself as another, so too in the field and at the mill, these people seemed to be doing the same as others, but the outcome proved that their purpose was different.

Rabanus Maurus: Or, "appoints him his portion with the hypocrites," means a twofold share of punishment, that of fire and frost. To the fire belongs the "weeping," and to the frost the "gnashing of teeth."ⁱ

Origen of Alexandria: Or, there will be "weeping" for those who have lived wrongly in this world, and "gnashing of teeth" for those who have enjoyed an irrational peace. Because they were unwilling to suffer bodily pain, the torture now forces their teeth to chatter—the same teeth with which they ate the bitterness of wickedness. From this we can learn that the Lord appoints not only the faithful and wise over His household, but also the wicked. It will not save them to have been appointed over His household, but only if they have given the others their food in due season and have abstained from beatings and drunkenness.

St. Augustine of Hippo: Putting aside this wicked servant, who undoubtedly hates his Master's coming, let us set before our eyes these good servants who anxiously expect their Lord's coming. One looks for His coming sooner, another later, and the third confesses his ignorance of the matter.³

Let us see which view is most agreeable to the Gospel. One says, "Let us watch and pray, because the Lord will come quickly." Another says, "Let us watch and pray, because this life is short and uncertain, though the Lord's coming may be distant." The third says, "Let us watch, because this life is short and uncertain, and we do not know the time when the Lord will come." What else does this man say but what we hear the Gospel say, "Watch, for you do not know the hour in which the Lord will come"?

All of them, through longing for the kingdom, desire that what the first one thinks is true. If it should happen that way, the second and third would rejoice with him. But if it does not happen, it is to be feared that the belief of the first one's supporters might be shaken by the delay, and they might begin to think that the Lord's coming is not just distant, but will never happen.

The one who believes with the second that the Lord's coming is distant will not be shaken in faith, but will receive an unexpected joy. And the one who confesses his ignorance about which is true wishes for the first outcome and is resigned to the other, but errs in neither case, because he neither affirms nor denies either.

1. ord.
2. Ep. 199, 1
3. Ep. 199, in fin.