Church Fathers Commentary Matthew 7:21-23

"Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father who is in heaven. Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy by thy name, and by thy name cast out demons, and by thy name do many mighty works? And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity." — Matthew 7:21-23 (ASV)

St. Jerome: Just as He had said above that those who have the robe of a good life are still not to be received because of the ungodliness of their doctrines, so now, on the other hand, He forbids us to have fellowship in the faith with those who, while strong in sound doctrine, destroy it with evil works. For the servants of God must ensure that their work is validated by their teaching, and their teaching by their works.

And therefore He says, Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, enters into the kingdom of heaven.

St. John Chrysostom: In this, He seems to address the Jews especially, who placed all their confidence in dogmas, as Paul accuses them, If thou art called a Jew, and restest in the Law.¹

Pseudo-Chrysostom: Alternatively, having taught that the false and true prophets are to be discerned by their fruits, He now teaches more plainly what the fruits are by which we are to discern godly from ungodly teachers.

St. Augustine of Hippo: For even in the very name of Christ we must be on our guard against heretics and all who misunderstand and love this world, so that we may not be deceived. Therefore He says, Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord.²

But this creates a potential conflict with the Apostle's statement, No man can say that Jesus is the Lord, but by the Holy Ghost (1 Corinthians 12:3). For we cannot say that those who will not enter the kingdom of heaven have the Holy Spirit. The Apostle uses the word “say” to express the will and understanding of the one who speaks. A person only truly “says” something, in this sense, when the sound of their voice expresses their actual will and purpose. The Lord, however, uses the word in its ordinary sense, referring to someone who speaks without willing or understanding what they say.

St. Jerome: For Scripture is accustomed to treat words as deeds, according to which the Apostle declares, They make confession that they know God, but in works deny him (Titus 1:16).

Pseudo-Ambrose: For all truth, by whomever it is spoken, is from the Holy Spirit.³

St. Augustine of Hippo: Therefore, let us not think that saying, “Lord, Lord,” is one of the fruits He had spoken of earlier, which would make someone seem to us to be a good tree. The true fruit spoken of is to do the will of God, which is why He continues, But he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven, he shall enter into the kingdom of heaven.⁴

St. Hilary of Poitiers: For it is obedience to God's will, not merely calling on His name, that finds the way to the heavenly kingdom.

Pseudo-Chrysostom: And the Lord Himself teaches what the will of God is, saying, This is the will of him that sent me, that every man that seeth the Son and believeth on him should have eternal life (John 6:40). The word “believe” refers to both confession and conduct. Therefore, whoever does not confess Christ or does not walk according to His word will not enter the kingdom of heaven.

St. John Chrysostom: He did not say, “he that does My will,” but “the will of my Father,” for it was fitting, for the time being, to adapt it to their weakness. But the one secretly implied the other, since the will of the Son is no different from the will of the Father.

St. Augustine of Hippo: In this, it is also important that we are not deceived by the name of Christ, not only in the case of those who bear the name but do not do the deeds, but even more so by certain works and miracles. The Lord performed such things because of the unbelieving, but He also warned us not to be deceived by them into supposing that invisible wisdom is present wherever there is a visible miracle. This is why He adds, Many will say to me in that day.⁵

St. John Chrysostom: See how He secretly introduces Himself here. At the end of His sermon, He reveals Himself as the Judge. He had shown the punishment that awaits sinners before, but only now does He reveal who it is that will punish them, saying, Many will say to me in that day.

Pseudo-Chrysostom: This will happen when He comes in the majesty of His Father, when no one will dare to defend a lie with many contentious words or to speak against the truth. It is a time when each person’s work will speak and their mouth will be silent, when no one will come forward for another, but each will fear for himself. For in that judgment, the witnesses will not be flattering men but truth-speaking Angels, and the Judge is the righteous Lord. This is why He vividly depicts the cry of people who are fearful and in distress, saying, Lord, Lord. For calling on Him once is not enough for someone compelled by terror.

St. Hilary of Poitiers: They even assure themselves of glory for their prophesying in their teaching, for casting out demons, and for their mighty works. Because of this, they promise themselves the kingdom of heaven, saying, Have we not prophesied in thy name?

St. John Chrysostom: Some say that these people spoke falsely and therefore were not saved. But they would not have dared to say this to the Judge in His presence. The very nature of their question and His answer proves that they spoke this way before Him. Having been admired by all on earth for the miracles they performed, and then seeing themselves punished in judgment, they ask in astonishment, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name?

Others say that they committed sinful deeds not while they were working miracles, but at a later time. But if this were so, the very point the Lord wished to prove would not be established—namely, that neither faith nor miracles are of any value without a good life. As Paul also declares, If I have faith, so that I could remove mountains, and have not charity, I am nothing (1 Corinthians 13:2).

Pseudo-Chrysostom: But note that He says, “in my name,” not “in My Spirit.” For they prophesy in the name of Christ but with the spirit of the Devil; such are the fortune-tellers. They can be known by this: the Devil sometimes speaks falsely, but the Holy Spirit never does. However, the Devil is sometimes permitted to speak the truth, so that he can make his lies more believable by this rare instance of truth.

They may also cast out demons in the name of Christ, even though they have the spirit of His enemy. Or rather, they do not truly cast them out but only seem to, with the demons acting in collusion with them. They also perform mighty works—that is, miracles—but these are not useful and necessary ones, but rather pointless and fruitless.

St. Augustine of Hippo: Consider also what the magicians did in Egypt to oppose Moses.

St. Jerome: Alternatively, the ability to prophesy, work wonders, or cast out demons by divine power is often not due to the merit of the one who performs the works. Instead, either the invocation of Christ's name itself has this power, or it is permitted for the condemnation of those who invoke it, or it is for the benefit of those who see and hear.

This is so that, however much they may despise the people who work the wonders, they may still give honor to God. Thus, Saul, Balaam, and Caiaphas prophesied; the sons of Sceva in the Acts of the Apostles were seen to cast out demons; and Judas, with the soul of a traitor, is said to have performed many signs among the other Apostles.

St. John Chrysostom: For not everyone is equally suited for all things; some have a pure life but do not have great faith, while others have the reverse. Therefore, God used those with miraculous gifts to call the pure in life to demonstrate greater faith, and He called those who had faith but lacked a pure life to live better by means of this indescribable gift of miracles. To that end, He gave them this grace in great abundance. And they say, We have done many mighty works. But because they were ungrateful to the One who honored them this way, it rightly follows, Then will I confess unto you, I never knew you.

Pseudo-Chrysostom: For great wrath must be preceded by great patience, so that God's sentence may be made more just, and the death of sinners more deserved. God does not “know” sinners because they are not worthy of being known by God. This is not because He is altogether ignorant of them, but because He does not acknowledge them as His own. For God knows all people according to their nature, but He seems not to “know” them because He does not love them, just as they seem not to know God because they do not serve Him worthily.

St. John Chrysostom: He says to them, I never knew you, as if to say, not only on the day of judgment, but not even when you were working miracles. For there are many whom He abhors now, yet He withholds His wrath before their final punishment.

St. Jerome: Note that He says, I never knew you, as an argument against those who say that all human souls have always existed as rational creatures.ⁱ

St. Gregory the Great: From this sentence, we learn that among people, love and humility—not mighty works—are to be valued. This is also why the Holy Church, if there are any miracles performed by heretics, despises them, because she knows they lack the mark of holiness. And the proof of holiness is not to work miracles, but to love our neighbor as ourselves, to think truly of God, and to think of our neighbor as better than ourselves.⁶

St. Augustine of Hippo: But let it never be said, as the Manichees claim, that the Lord spoke these things about the holy Prophets. He spoke of those who, after the preaching of His Gospel, seem to themselves to be speaking in His name without knowing what they are saying.⁷

St. Hilary of Poitiers: But the hypocrites boasted in this way, as though they spoke by their own power and as though the power of God—which is invoked—did not work all these things. In reality, reading has brought them knowledge of His doctrine, and the name of Christ casts out the demons.

Therefore, that blessed eternity is to be earned from within ourselves. We must put forth something from ourselves so that we may will what is good, avoid all evil, and do what He would have us do, rather than boast of what He enables us to do. He then disowns and banishes these people for their evil works, saying, Depart from me, ye that work iniquity.

St. Jerome: He does not say, “who have worked,” but “who work iniquity,” so that He does not seem to eliminate the possibility of repentance. “You,” that is, are those who, up to the present hour when judgment comes, still retain the desire to sin, even though you no longer have the opportunity.

Pseudo-Chrysostom: For death separates the soul from the body, but it does not change the disposition of the heart.

1. Hom., xxiv. Rom. 2, 17
2. Serm. in Mont., ii, 24
3. Comm. in 1 Cor 12, 3
4. non occ.
5. Serm. in Mont., ii, 25
6. Mor., xx, 7
7. Cont. Adv. Leg. ii. 4