Church Fathers Commentary Matthew 26:69-75

"Now Peter was sitting without in the court: and a maid came unto him, saying, Thou also wast with Jesus the Galilaean. But he denied before them all, saying, I know not what thou sayest. And when he was gone out into the porch, another [maid] saw him, and saith unto them that were there, This man also was with Jesus of Nazareth. And again he denied with an oath, I know not the man. And after a little while they that stood by came and said to Peter, Of a truth thou also art [one] of them; for thy speech maketh thee known. Then began he to curse and to swear, I know not the man. And straightway the cock crew. And Peter remembered the word which Jesus had said, Before the cock crow, thou shalt deny me thrice. And he went out, and wept bitterly." — Matthew 26:69-75 (ASV)

St. Augustine of Hippo: Among the other insults against our Lord was the threefold denial of Peter, which the various Evangelists relate in a different order. Luke places Peter's trial first and the Lord's mistreatment after that, while Matthew and Mark reverse this order.¹

St. Jerome: "Peter sat outside," so that he might see the outcome and not arouse suspicion by getting too close to Jesus.

St. John Chrysostom: And he, who drew his sword and cut off the ear when he saw his Master being seized, now becomes a denier when he sees Him enduring such insults, unable to withstand the taunts of a lowly servant girl.

A servant girl came to him, saying, You also were with Jesus of Galilee.

Rabanus Maurus: What does it mean that a servant girl is the first to accuse him, when men would have been more likely to recognize him? It is so that this gender, which might seem to have sinned in some way regarding the Lord's death, might also be redeemed by His passion. He denied it before them all, because he was afraid to reveal himself. His saying, I do not know, shows that he was not yet willing to die for the Savior.

St. Leo the Great: For this reason, it seems he was permitted to falter, so that the remedy of repentance might be demonstrated in the head of the Church. This was so that no one would dare to trust in their own strength, when even the blessed Peter could not escape the danger of human weakness.²

St. John Chrysostom: But he denied not once, but twice and three times within a short period.

St. Augustine of Hippo: We understand that after he went out following his first denial, the rooster crowed the first time, as Mark relates.

St. John Chrysostom: This shows that the sound did not prevent his denial or bring his promise to mind.

St. Augustine of Hippo: The second denial did not happen outside the door, but after Peter had returned to the fire. The second servant girl did not see him after he had already gone out, but rather as he was going out. His getting up to leave drew her attention, and she said to those standing around the fire in the hall, This fellow also was with Jesus of Nazareth. Hearing this, he who had started to leave returned so that he could vindicate himself with a denial.

Or, what is more likely, he did not hear what was said about him as he was leaving. Instead, it was after he came back that the servant girl, and the other man whom Luke mentions, said to him, And you also are one of them.

St. Jerome: And again he denied it with an oath: ‘I do not know the man.’ I know that some, out of a sense of piety toward the Apostle Peter, have interpreted this passage to mean that Peter denied the Man and not the God, as if he meant, “I do not know the Man, because I know the God.” But the intelligent reader will see that this is trifling, for if Peter did not deny Him, then the Lord spoke falsely when He said, You will deny me three times.ⁱ

St. Ambrose of Milan: I would rather that Peter deny Him than that the Lord be made out to be false.³

Rabanus Maurus: In this denial of Peter, we affirm that Christ is denied not only by one who denies that He is the Christ, but also by one who denies being a Christian.

St. Augustine of Hippo: Let us now come to the third denial. And after a little while the bystanders came up and said to Peter, ‘Surely you also are one of them,’ (Luke’s words are, About an hour later, (Luke 22:59)) for your accent gives you away.

St. Jerome: This was not because Peter had a different language or nationality—he was a Hebrew, just like his accusers. Rather, every province and district has its own peculiarities of speech, and he could not disguise his native pronunciation.

Remigius of Auxerre: Observe how harmful association with evil people is; it even drove Peter to deny the Lord, whom he had previously confessed to be the Son of God.

Rabanus Maurus: Observe that the first time he said, I do not know what you are saying. The second time, he denied it with an oath. The third time, he began to curse and to swear, ‘I do not know the man.’ For to persist in sinning increases sinfulness, and whoever disregards minor sins falls into greater ones.

Remigius of Auxerre: Spiritually, Peter's denial before the rooster crows represents those who, before Christ's resurrection, did not believe Him to be God, being perplexed by His death. His denial after the first crowing represents those who are in error concerning both of Christ's natures, the human and the divine. The first servant girl signifies desire; the second, carnal delight; and the bystanders signify demons, for it is by them that people are led to deny Christ.

Origen of Alexandria: Alternatively, the first servant girl is understood to be the Synagogue of the Jews, which often compelled the faithful to deny Christ. The second represents the congregations of the Gentiles, who also persecuted Christians. Those who stood in the hall signify the ministers of various heresies, who likewise compel people to deny the truth of Christ.

St. Augustine of Hippo: Peter also denied Him three times because heretical error concerning Christ is limited to three kinds: errors respecting His divinity, His humanity, or both.⁴

Rabanus Maurus: After the third denial comes the rooster's crow. By this, we may understand a Doctor of the Church who, with a rebuke, rouses the slumbering, saying, Awake to righteousness, and do not sin (1 Corinthians 15:34). Thus, Holy Scripture often uses fixed periods to signify the nature of different situations,ⁱ just as Peter sinned at midnight and repented at the rooster's crow.

St. Jerome: In another Gospel, we read that after Peter's denial and the rooster's crow, the Savior looked at Peter (Luke 22:61), and with His look, He called forth those bitter tears. For it was not possible that one on whom the Light of the world had looked could remain in the darkness of denial. Therefore, he went out and wept bitterly. He could not repent while sitting in Caiaphas's hall, but went out from the assembly of the wicked to wash away the stain of his fearful denial.

St. Leo the Great: O holy Apostle, blessed are your tears, which had the power of holy Baptism in washing away the sin of your denial. The right hand of the Lord Jesus Christ was with you to hold you up before you were completely thrown down, and in the midst of your perilous fall, you received strength to stand. The Rock quickly returned to its stability, recovering such great fortitude that he who had faltered during Christ's passion would endure his own subsequent suffering with fearlessness and constancy.⁵

1. de Cons. Ev., iii, 6
2. Serm. 60, 4
3. Luc., 22, 57
4. Quaest. Ev., i, 45
5. Serm. 60, 4