Eusebius of Caesarea, Fragments on Luke

of those who were called, those who were occupied with other things. For it teaches that the cares of life distract and draw one away from the call; and that these are various: for either being occupied with possessions and fields, they have preferred these to the call, so as to dare to refuse the call on account of these things; or being worn out by the business of life; or entangled in the bond of marriage and children; or occupied with some other such cares. For these and such things are accustomed to bring on and distract those who dare on this account to refuse the grace, and the caller, and the banquet of the new covenant, and the rational food; of all of which they deprived themselves, according to the given interpretation, those who preferred the pleasures of the present life—that is, wealth and business and marriage—to the heavenly call, and on account of these things refused the grace; but according to another version, those who were first deemed worthy of the call, and these were they of the circumcision, who indeed on the pretext of being occupied with what is better, scorned the call. For as having fields, their own abundant readings, and as possessing ploughing oxen, their own prophets, and as living with some wisdom as with a wife, they made light of the gospel grace. -But since they were so dull of heart, He weaves a parable sufficient for a demonstration of the economy that would be concerning them; for looking to "you shall be blessed," and to "it will be repaid to you at the resurrection of the just," the one reclining with him blesses the one who is about to be deemed worthy of the bread in the kingdom. And this was that which, as a repayment for philanthropy toward the poor, would be given back to the one who is blessed at the resurrection of the just, the resurrection and the kingdom of God being understood as one and the same. Therefore, to the one who had said, "Blessed is he who will eat bread in the kingdom of God," the Savior shows by means of the parable who this blessed one might be. Since, then, many were called to the supper for which all things were ready (for the master of the house makes such a supper worthily of the kingdom), but they refused the grace, concerning these a decision was brought forth 24.580 which said that: None of those men who were called, and who refused on account of the occupations of life, will taste of my supper; but he says that others instead of these, who are not entangled in the business of life, will be deemed worthy of the blessed supper, certain poor and blind and maimed, who in no way refused the call, because of neither buying, nor selling, nor having leisure for marriage, nor being distracted by any other such things, but readily and eagerly accepting the grace; whom the one who called will first make healthy, being able to easily heal every disease and every infirmity; then, etc. as in col. 573 . Of all of which those who refused deprived themselves, the rulers of the synagogue of the Jews; after whom the multitude obeyed, living in the polity according to the law as in the broad places of a city. -Perhaps through these he was alluding to those from the Gentiles, who were about to come to his word. And such were the former idolaters, whose souls had been maimed by wicked demons; whom the host, having received them according to the promise, will first restore whole and healthy, opening the eyes of the blind, and healing every disease and every infirmity of their souls; then he will set before them the spiritual supper. First, then, were called those of the circumcision, who also scorned the grace; and second after them were those from the foreign nations, who before were blind and maimed and lame and deaf in their minds, who also readily obeyed; and there would be in the broad places those walking the wide road of destruction, and living without teaching and doctrines; but in the narrow streets, those who constrain wickedness by whatever pretext; but the rest, the third who are called from the ends of the roads and hedges, those in Hades

τῶν κεκλημένων τοὺς περὶ ἕτερα ἠσχολημένους. Περισπᾷν γὰρ καὶ ἀφέλκειν τῆς κλήσεως τὰς τοῦ βίου φροντίδας διδάσκει· ταύτας δ' εἶναι διαφόρους ἢ γὰρ περὶ τὰ κτήματα καὶ ἀγροὺς ἀσχολούμενοι, ταῦτα τῆς κλήσεως προτετιμήκασιν, ὡς παραιτήσασθαι τολμῆσαι διὰ ταῦτα τὴν κλῆσιν· ἢ περὶ τὰς τοῦ βίου πραγματείας κατατριβόμενοι· ἢ δεσμῷ γάμων καὶ παίδων ἐμπεπλεγμένοι· ἤ τισιν ἄλλοις τοιούτοις φροντίσμασιν ἠσχολημένοι. Ταῦτα γὰρ καὶ τοιαῦτα ἐπάγειν καὶ περιέλκειν εἴωθε τοὺς διὰ ταῦτα τὴν χάριν παραιτεῖσθαι τολμῶντας, καὶ τὸν κλήτορα, καὶ τὸ τῆς καινῆς διαθήκης συμπόσιον, καὶ τὴν λογικὴν τροφήν· ὧν ἁπάντων ἐστέρησαν ἑαυτοὺς, κατὰ μὲν τὴν ἀποδοθεῖσαν ἑρμηνείαν, οἱ προτιμήσαντες τῆς οὐρανίου κλήσεως τὰ ἡδέα τοῦ παρόντος βίου, πλοῦτον δηλαδὴ καὶ πραγματείας καὶ γάμον, καὶ διὰ ταῦτα τὴν χάριν παραιτησάμενοι· κατὰ δ' ἑτέραν ἐκδοχὴν οἱ πρῶτοι τῆς κλήσεως ἠξιωμένοι, οὗτοι δ' ἦσαν οἱ ἐκ περιτομῆς, οἳ δὴ προφάσει τῆς περὶ τὸ κρεῖττον ἀσχολίας τὴν κλῆσιν ὕβρισαν. Ὡς γὰρ ἔχοντες ἀγροὺς τὰ παρ' αὐτοῖς ἀμφιλαφῆ ἀναγνώσματα, καὶ ὡς βόας ἀροτῆρας κεκτημένοι τοὺς παρ' αὐτοῖς προφήτας, καὶ ὡς ἂν σοφίᾳ τινὶ οἷα δὴ γυναικὶ συμβιοῦντες, τὴν εὐαγγελικὴν ἐξευτέλισαν χάριν. -Ἐπειδὴ δὲ ἦσαν οὕτω παχεῖς τὴν καρδίαν, ἐξυφαίνει παραβολὴν ἀποχρώντως ἔχουσαν εἰς παράδειξιν τῆς ἐπ' αὐτοῖς ἐσομένης οἰκονομίας· πρὸς γὰρ τὸ μακάριος ἔσῃ ἀποβλέπων, καὶ πρὸς τὸ ἀνταποδοθήσεταί σοι ἐν τῇ ἀναστάσει τῶν δικαίων, ὁ συνανακείμενος μακαρίζει τὸν μέλλοντα καταξιοῦσθαι τοῦ ἐν τῇ βασιλείᾳ ἄρτου. Οὗτος δὲ ἦν ὁ κατ' ἀνταπόδοσιν τῆς εἰς τοὺς πτωχοὺς φιλανθρωπίας, ἐν τῇ ἀναστάσει τῶν δικαίων ἀποδοθησόμενος τῷ μακαριζομένῳ, τῆς ἀναστάσεως καὶ τῆς τοῦ Θεοῦ βασιλείας μιᾶς καὶ τῆς αὐτῆς νοουμένης. Πρὸς οὖν τὸν εἰρηκότα, Μακάριος ὅστις φάγεται ἄρτον ἐν τῇ βασιλείᾳ τοῦ Θεοῦ, τίς ἂν γένοιτο οὗτος ὁ μακάριος, διὰ τῆς παραβολῆς ὁ Σωτὴρ παρίστησιν. Ἐπειδὴ τοίνυν ἐκλήθησαν πολλοὶ εἰς τὸ πάντα ἕτοιμα φέρον δεῖπνον τῆς γὰρ βασιλείας ἀξίως ὁ οἰκοδεσπότης τὸ τοιοῦτον ποιεῖ δεῖπνον, παρῃτήσαντο δὲ τὴν χάριν, περὶ μὲν τούτων ἀπόφασις ἐξενήνεκται 24.580 ἡ φήσασα ὅτι· Οὐδεὶς τῶν ἀνδρῶν ἐκείνων τῶν κεκλημένων, καὶ διὰ τὰς βιωτικὰς ἀσχολίας παραιτησαμένων, γεύσεταί μου τοῦ δείπνου· ἑτέρους δ' ἀντὶ τούτων τοὺς μὴ περιπεπλεγμένους ταῖς τοῦ βίου πραγματίαις, καταξιωθήσεσθαί φησι τοῦ μακαρίου δείπνου, πτωχούς τινας καὶ τυφλοὺς καὶ ἀναπήρους, τοὺς μηδαμῶς παραιτησαμένους τὴν κλῆσιν, διὰ τὸ μήτε ἀγοράζειν, μήτε πιπράσκειν, μήτε γάμῳ σχολάζειν, μήθ' ὑφ' ἑτέρων τινῶν τοιούτων περιέλκεσθαι, προθύμως δὲ καὶ ἑτοίμως καταδέχεσθαι τὴν χάριν· οὓς ὁ καλέσας πρῶτον μὲν ὑγιεῖς καταστήσει, οἷός τε ὢν ῥᾳδίως πᾶσαν νόσον καὶ πᾶσαν μαλακίαν θεραπεύειν· ἔπειτα, etc. ̣ut col. 573 ̣. Ὧν ἁπάντων ἐστέρησαν ἑαυτοὺς οἱ παραιτησάμενοι, τῆς Ἰουδαίων συναγωγῆς οἱ ἄρχοντες· μεθ' οὓς ἡ πληθὺς ὑπήκουσεν, ὡς πλατείαις πόλεως τῇ κατὰ νόμον πολιτείᾳ ζῶσα. -Τάχα δὲ διὰ τούτων τοὺς ἐξ ἐθνῶν ᾐνίττετο, τῷ αὐτοῦ λόγῳ προσιέναι μέλλοντας. Τοιοῦτοι δὲ ὑπῆρχον οἱ πρὶν εἰδωλολάτραι ὑπὸ δαιμόνων πονηρῶν τὰς ψυχὰς λελωβημένοι· οὓς ἀκολούθως τῇ ἐπαγγελίᾳ ὑποδεξάμενος ὁ ἑστιάτωρ, πρῶτα μὲν σώους καὶ ὑγιεῖς ἀποκαταστήσει, ἀνοίξας τυφλῶν ὀφθαλμοὺς, πᾶσάν τε νόσον καὶ πᾶσαν μαλακίαν τῶν ψυχῶν αὐτῶν ἰασάμενος· ἔπειτα τὸ πνευματικὸν αὐτοῖς παραθήσει δεῖπνον. Πρῶτοι μὲν οὖν ἐκλήθησαν οἱ ἐκ περιτομῆς, οἳ καὶ τὴν χάριν καθύβρισαν· δεύτεροι δὲ μετ' ἐκείνους οἱ ἐκ τῶν ἀλλοφύλων ἐθνῶν, οἱ πρὶν τὰς διανοίας τυφλοὶ καὶ ἀνάπηροι καὶ χωλοὶ καὶ κωφοὶ, οἳ καὶ προθύμως ὑπήκουσαν· εἶεν δ' ἂν ἐν πλατείαις μὲν οἱ τὴν εὐρύχωρον τῆς ἀπωλείας ὁδὸν βαδίζοντες, καὶ βιοῦντες ἄνευ διδαχῆς καὶ δογμάτων· ἐν δὲ ῥύμαις, οἱ συστέλλοντες τὴν κακίαν οἵᾳ δήποτε προφάσει· οἱ δὲ λοιποὶ, οἱ ἐξ ἐσχάτων ἀπὸ τῶν ὁδῶν καὶ φραγμῶν καλούμενοι τρίτοι, αἱ ἐν ᾅδου