John Chrysostom, On Matthew

that Christ who was preached by the Prophets. For when you have numbered the generations, and have learned from the time, that this is He, you will easily receive also the miracle which took place concerning the birth. For since he was about to declare something great, that He was born of a Virgin, before numbering the time, he overshadows what was said, having said, ‘the husband of Mary,’ or rather he even shortens the narrative of the birth itself; but then he numbers the years, reminding the hearer that this is He, whom the patriarch Jacob said would come when the Jewish rulers should at length fail; whom the prophet Daniel proclaimed beforehand would arrive after those many weeks. And if anyone should wish to reckon these years, spoken by the angel to Daniel in the number of weeks, from the rebuilding of the city down to His birth, he will see that these agree with those. How then was He born, you say? His mother Mary being betrothed. He did not say, ‘a Virgin,’ but simply, ‘His mother,’ so that the account might be more easily received. Therefore, having first prepared the hearer to expect to hear something ordinary, and having held him with this, he then startles him by introducing the paradoxical matter, saying that, Before they came together, she was found with child of the Holy Ghost. He did not say, ‘Before she was brought into the house of the bridegroom;’ for she was within. For it was a custom for the ancients for the most part to have their betrothed women in the house, a thing which one might see happening even now; and Lot’s sons-in-law were inside with him. So she too was inside with Joseph. 3. And for what reason did she not conceive before the betrothal? So that, as I said from the beginning, what was happening might for a time be kept in shadow, and that the Virgin might escape all evil suspicion. For when he who of all men ought to be jealous is seen not only not exposing her, nor dishonoring her, but even receiving and caring for her after her conception, it is clear that if he had not been clearly convinced that what was conceived was from the operation of the Spirit, he would not have kept her, and served her in all other things. And very appropriately has he put, ‘she was found with child;’ which is wont to be said of things that are strange, and happen contrary to all expectation, and are not looked for. Do not then proceed further, nor seek anything more than what has been said, nor say: And how did the Spirit work this from a virgin? For if when nature is working it is impossible to explain the manner of the formation, how shall we be able to explain these things when the Spirit is working miracles? For so that you do not weary the evangelist, nor annoy him by continually asking these things, having stated who worked the miracle, 57.43 he was released. For I know nothing more, he says, than that what has been conceived is of the Holy Ghost. Let those be ashamed who pry into the generation from above. For if no one is able to explain this generation, which has ten thousand witnesses, and was proclaimed so many ages ago, and was made manifest, and was handled, what excess of madness do they leave behind, who pry and meddle into that ineffable one? For neither Gabriel, nor Matthew, were able to say anything more, than that it was of the Spirit only; but how of the Spirit, and in what manner, none of them explained; for it was not possible. Nor should you think that you have learned the whole, when you hear ‘of the Spirit’; for we are still ignorant of many things, even when learning this; for instance, how the Infinite is in a womb; how He who contains all things is carried by a woman; how the Virgin gives birth, and remains a virgin. How did the Spirit, tell me, form that temple? how did He not take all the flesh from the womb, but a part of it, and increase and fashion it? For that He came forth from the flesh of the Virgin, he made clear by saying, For that which is conceived in her; and Paul, Made of a woman; silencing those who say that Christ passed through as through a pipe. For if this were so, what need of the womb? If this were so, He has nothing in common with us; but that flesh is some other kind, not of our dough. How then is He of the root of Jesse? how a rod? how Son of man? how

ἐκεῖνος ὁ Χριστὸς ὁ διὰ τῶν Προφητῶν κηρυχθείς. Ὅταν γὰρ ἀριθμήσῃς τὰς γενεὰς, καὶ μάθῃς ἀπὸ τοῦ χρόνου, ὅτι οὗτος ἐκεῖνός ἐστιν, εὐκόλως δέξῃ καὶ τὸ θαῦμα τὸ περὶ τὴν γέννησιν συμβάν. Ἐπειδὴ γὰρ ἔμελλε μέγα τι φθέγγεσθαι, ὅτι ἐκ Παρθένου ἐτέχθη, πρὶν ἢ μὲν ἀριθμῆσαι τὸν χρόνον, συσκιάζει τὸ εἰρημένον, Ἄνδρα Μαρίας, εἰπὼν, μᾶλλον δὲ καὶ συντέμνει τὴν διήγησιν αὐτῆς τῆς γεννήσεως· ἀριθμεῖ δὲ καὶ τὰ ἔτη λοιπὸν, ἀναμιμνήσκων τὸν ἀκροατὴν, ὅτι οὗτος ἐκεῖνός ἐστιν, ὃν ὁ πατριάρχης Ἰακὼβ, ἐπιλιπόντων λοιπὸν τῶν Ἰουδαϊκῶν ἀρχόντων, παρέσεσθαι ἔφησεν· ὃν ὁ προφήτης ∆ανιὴλ μετὰ τὰς ἑβδομάδας τὰς πολλὰς ἐκείνας ἥξειν προανεφώνησε. Κἂν ἐθελήσῃ τις τὰ ἔτη ταῦτα τὰ ἐν ἑβδομάδων ἀριθμῷ παρὰ τοῦ ἀγγέλου εἰρημένα τῷ ∆ανιὴλ ἀπὸ τῆς οἰκοδομῆς τῆς πόλεως ἀριθμῶν καταβῆναι εἰς τὴν αὐτοῦ γέννησιν, ὄψεται ταῦτα ἐκείνοις συμφωνοῦντα. Πῶς οὖν ἐγεννήθη, εἰπέ; Μνηστευθείσης τῆς μητρὸς αὐτοῦ Μαρίας. Οὐκ εἶπε, Παρθένου, ἀλλ' ἁπλῶς, Μητρὸς, ὥστε εὐπαράδεκτον γενέσθαι τὸν λόγον. ∆ιὸ πρότερον παρασκευάσας προσδοκᾷν τὸν ἀκροατὴν ἀκούσεσθαί τι τῶν συνήθων, καὶ κατασχὼν τούτῳ, τότε ἐκπλήττει τῇ τοῦ παραδόξου πράγματος ἐπαγωγῇ, λέγων, ὅτι Πρὶν ἢ συνελθεῖν αὐτοὺς, εὑρέθη ἐν γαστρὶ ἔχουσα ἐκ Πνεύματος ἁγίου. Οὐκ εἶπε· Πρὶν ἢ ἀχθῆναι αὐτὴν εἰς τὴν οἰκίαν τοῦ νυμφίου· καὶ γὰρ ἔνδον ἦν. Ἔθος γὰρ τοῖς παλαιοῖς ὡς τὰ πολλὰ ἐν οἰκίᾳ τὰς μεμνηστευμένας ἔχειν, ὅπου γε καὶ νῦν τοῦτο γινόμενον ἴδοι τις ἄν· καὶ οἱ γαμβροὶ δὲ τοῦ Λὼτ ἔνδον ἦσαν μετ' αὐτοῦ. Ἔνδον οὖν καὶ αὐτὴ μετὰ τοῦ Ἰωσὴφ ἦν. γʹ. Καὶ τίνος ἕνεκεν οὐ πρὸ τῆς μνηστείας ἐκύησεν; Ἵνα, ὅπερ ἔφην ἐξ ἀρχῆς, συσκιασθῇ τὸ γινόμενον τέως, καὶ ἵνα πᾶσαν πονηρὰν διαφύγῃ ἡ Παρθένος ὑπόνοιαν. Ὅταν γὰρ ὁ ζηλοτυπεῖν ὀφείλων μάλιστα πάντων φαίνηται μὴ μόνον ἐκπομπεύων αὐτὴν, μηδὲ ἀτιμάζων, ἀλλὰ καὶ δεχόμενος καὶ θεραπεύων μετὰ τὴν κύησιν, εὔδηλον ὅτι εἰ μὴ σαφῶς ἦν πεπεικὼς ἑαυτὸν, ὅτι ἐκ τῆς τοῦ Πνεύματος ἐνεργείας τὸ γεγεννημένον, οὐκ ἂν κατέσχε, καὶ τἄλλα πάντα ὑπηρέτησε. Κυρίως δὲ σφόδρα καὶ τὸ, Εὑρέθη ἐν γαστρὶ ἔχουσα, τέθεικεν· ὅπερ ἐπὶ τῶν παραδόξων, καὶ παρ' ἐλπίδα πᾶσαν ἐκβαινόντων, καὶ οὐ προσδοκωμένων λέγεσθαι εἴωθε. Μὴ τοίνυν περαιτέρω χώρει, μηδὲ ζήτει πλέον τι τῶν εἰρημένων, μηδὲ λέγε· Καὶ πῶς τὸ Πνεῦμα εἰργάσατο τοῦτο ἐκ παρθένου; Εἰ γὰρ τῆς φύσεως ἐργαζομένης ἀδύνατον ἑρμηνεῦσαι τῆς διαπλάσεως τὸν τρόπον, πῶς τοῦ Πνεύματος θαυματουργοῦντος δυνησόμεθα ταῦτα εἰπεῖν; Ἵνα γὰρ μὴ κόπτῃς τὸν εὐαγγελιστὴν, μηδὲ ἐνοχλῇς συνεχῶς ταῦτα ἐρωτῶν, εἰπὼν τὸν ἐργασάμενον τὸ θαῦμα, 57.43 ἀπηλλάγη. Οὐδὲν γὰρ οἶδα, φησὶ, πλέον, ἀλλ' ἢ ὅτι ἐκ Πνεύματος ἁγίου γέγονε τὸ γεγενημένον. Αἰσχυνέσθωσαν οἱ τὴν ἄνω περιεργαζόμενοι γέννησιν. Εἰ γὰρ ταύτην τὴν μυρίους ἔχουσαν μάρτυρας, καὶ πρὸ τοσούτων ἀνακηρυχθεῖσαν χρόνων, καὶ φανεῖσαν, καὶ ψηλαφηθεῖσαν, οὐδεὶς ἑρμηνεῦσαι δύναται, ποίαν καταλείπουσι μανίας ὑπερβολὴν οἱ τὴν ἀπόῤῥητον ἐκείνην περιεργαζόμενοι καὶ πολυπραγμονοῦντες; Οὐδὲ γὰρ ὁ Γαβριὴλ, οὐδὲ ὁ Ματθαῖος ἐδυνήθησάν τι πλέον εἰπεῖν, ἀλλ' ἢ ὅτι ἐκ Πνεύματος μόνον· τὸ δὲ, πῶς ἐκ Πνεύματος, καὶ τίνι τρόπῳ, οὐδεὶς τούτων ἡρμήνευσεν· οὐδὲ γὰρ δυνατὸν ἦν. Μηδὲ νομίσῃς τὸ πᾶν μεμαθηκέναι, ἐκ Πνεύματος ἀκούων· καὶ γὰρ πολλὰ ἀγνοοῦμεν ἔτι, καὶ τοῦτο μανθάνοντες· οἷον, πῶς ὁ ἄπειρος ἐν μήτρᾳ ἐστί· πῶς ὁ πάντα συνέχων κυοφορεῖται ὑπὸ γυναικός· πῶς τίκτει ἡ Παρθένος, καὶ μένει παρθένος. Πῶς ἔπλασεν, εἰπέ μοι, τὸ Πνεῦμα τὸν ναὸν ἐκεῖνον; πῶς οὐ πᾶσαν τὴν σάρκα ἀπὸ τῆς μήτρας ἔλαβεν, ἀλλὰ μέρος αὐτῆς, καὶ ηὔξησε καὶ διετύπωσεν; Ὅτι μὲν γὰρ ἀπὸ τῆς σαρκὸς τῆς Παρθένου προῆλθεν, ἐδήλωσεν εἰπών· Τὸ γὰρ ἐν αὐτῇ γεννηθέν· καὶ ὁ Παῦλος, Γενόμενος ἐκ γυναικός· ἐπιστομίζων τοὺς λέγοντας, ὅτι ὥσπερ διά τινος σωλῆνος παρῆλθεν ὁ Χριστός. Εἰ γὰρ τοῦτο ἦν, τίς χρεία τῆς μήτρας; Εἰ τοῦτο ἦν, οὐδὲν ἔχει κοινὸν πρὸς ἡμᾶς· ἀλλ' ἄλλη τίς ἐστιν ἐκείνη ἡ σὰρξ, οὐ τοῦ φυράματος τοῦ ἡμετέρου. Πῶς οὖν ἐκ τῆς ῥίζης Ἰεσσαί; πῶς δὲ ῥάβδος; πῶς υἱὸς ἀνθρώπου; πῶς