John Chrysostom, On the Beginning of Acts

did Paul observe? Do you wish that I prove to you other laws that he observed? Pay close attention. He once went up to Jerusalem, and when the apostles saw him, they said to him: You see, brother Paul, how many thousands there are of the Jews who have come together, and all these have been taught concerning you, that you teach apostasy from the law. What then? Do what we tell you. There are with us men who have a vow on themselves; take these men and purify yourself with them, and shave your head with them, so that they may be assured by deed that there is nothing to what they have been taught concerning you, but that you yourself also keep the law of Moses. Do you see a wonderful condescension? He observes seasons, in order to abolish the observance of seasons; he applies circumcision, in order to put a stop to circumcision; he offers a sacrifice, in order to destroy the observance of sacrifices. And that he did these things for this reason, hear him say: To those under the law I became as one under the law, that I might win those under the law, and being free from all, 51.103 I have made myself a slave to all. And Paul did these things in imitation of his own Master. For just as he, Being in the form of God, did not consider it robbery to be equal with God, but emptied himself, taking the form of a slave, and being free became a slave; so also this man, being free from all, made himself a slave to all, so as to win all. The Master became a slave by taking on our nature, in order to make the slaves free; He bowed the heavens and came down, in order to lead up to heaven those who remain below. He bowed the heavens; he did not say, He left the heavens and came down, but He bowed them, making the ascent to the heavens easier for you. Paul also imitated him according to his ability, for which reason he also said: Be imitators of me, as I am of Christ. And how did you, O blessed Paul, become an imitator of Christ? How? Because I seek not my own advantage, but that of the many, that they may be saved, and being free from all, I have made myself a slave to all. Therefore, nothing is better than this slavery, for it becomes the cause of freedom for others. Paul was a spiritual fisherman; For I will make you, he says, fishers of men; for this reason he also did these things. For fishers too, when they see the fish has swallowed the hook, do not pull it in immediately, but giving way, they follow it for a long distance, waiting for the hook to be well fixed, so that they may thus draw in the catch with safety. So also the apostles did then; they cast the hook of the teaching of the word into the Jewish soul, but they pulled back rashly, and held fast, leading themselves to circumcision, to feasts, to the observance of seasons, to sacrifices, to shaving and doing other such things; but the apostles followed them everywhere, and did not pull back; so that even if you seek circumcision, he says, I do not resist, but I follow; and if you ask for a sacrifice, I sacrifice, and if you wish me, who have departed from your way of life, to be shaven, I am present, and do what is commanded; and if you command me to observe Pentecost, not even in this do I contend; but wherever you may lead about, I follow and give way, waiting for the hook of the word to be fixed in you, so as to be able to draw out with safety your whole nation from the old worship and way of life. For this reason I also came from Ephesus to Jerusalem. Do you see how much Paul followed the fishing of the fish, giving way to the word? do you see that the observance of seasons, and the condescension of circumcision, and the participation in sacrifices was done for this reason, not that they themselves might return to the old way of life, but that they might lead back to the truth those who were sitting beside the types? For he who sits on high, if he remains always on high, will never be able to lead up the one who lies below, but it is necessary for the former to be humbled first, and then for the latter to be exalted. For this reason the apostles came down from the height of the evangelical way of life, so that from the lowliness of the Judaic way of life they might lead the Jews up to that height.

ἐτήρησεν ὁ Παῦλος; Βούλεσθε καὶ ἄλλα ὑμῖν ἀποδείξω νόμιμα τηροῦντα αὐτόν; Προσέχετε ἀκριβῶς. Ἀνῆλθέ ποτε εἰς Ἱεροσόλυμα, καὶ ἰδόντες αὐτὸν οἱ ἀπόστολοι ἔλεγον αὐτῷ· Θεωρεῖς, ἀδελφὲ Παῦλε, πόσαι μυριάδες εἰσὶν Ἰουδαίων τῶν συνεληλυθότων, καὶ οὗτοι πάντες κατήχηνται περὶ σοῦ, ὅτι ἀποστασίαν ἀπὸ τοῦ νόμου διδάσκεις. Τί οὖν; Ποίησον ὅ σοι λέγομεν. Εἰσὶ παρ' ἡμῖν ἄνδρες εὐχὴν ἔχοντες ἐν ἑαυτοῖς· τούτους λαβὼν ἁγνίσθητι σὺν αὐτοῖς, καὶ ξύρησαι τὴν κεφαλὴν μετ' αὐτῶν, ἵνα ἔργῳ πιστωθῶσιν, ὅτι ὧν κατήχηνται περὶ σοῦ οὐδέν ἐστιν, ἀλλὰ τηρεῖς καὶ αὐτὸς τὸν νόμον τοῦ Μωϋσέως. Εἴδετε συγκατάβασιν θαυμασίαν; Καιροὺς παρατηρεῖ, ἵνα ἀνέλῃ καιρῶν παρατήρησιν· περιτομὴν περιτίθησιν, ἵνα παύσῃ περιτομήν· θυσίαν προσάγει, ἵνα καθέλῃ τὴν παρατήρησιν τῶν θυσιῶν. Καὶ ὅτι διὰ τοῦτο ταῦτα ἐποίει, ἄκουσον αὐτοῦ λέγοντος· Ἐγενόμην τοῖς ὑπὸ νόμον, ὡς ὑπὸ νόμον, ἵνα τοὺς ὑπὸ νόμον κερδήσω, καὶ ἐλεύθερος ὢν ἐκ πάντων, 51.103 πᾶσιν ἐμαυτὸν ἐδούλωσα. Ἐποίει δὲ ταῦτα ὁ Παῦλος μιμούμενος τὸν ἑαυτοῦ ∆εσπότην. Καθάπερ γὰρ αὐτὸς Ἐν μορφῇ Θεοῦ ὑπάρχων οὐχ ἁρπαγμὸν ἡγήσατο τὸ εἶναι ἴσα Θεῷ, ἀλλ' ἑαυτὸν ἐκένωσε μορφὴν δούλου λαβὼν, καὶ ἐλεύθερος ὢν δοῦλος γέγονεν· οὕτω καὶ οὗτος ἐλεύθερος ὢν ἐκ πάντων πᾶσιν ἑαυτὸν ἐδούλωσεν, ὥστε πάντας κερδᾶναι. ∆οῦλος ἐγένετο τὴν φύσιν τὴν ἡμετέραν ἀναλαβὼν ὁ ∆εσπότης, ἵνα τοὺς δούλους ἐλευθέρους ποιήσῃ· Ἔκλινεν οὐρανοὺς, καὶ κατέβη, ἵνα τοὺς κάτω μένοντας ἀναγάγῃ εἰς οὐρανόν. Ἔκλινεν οὐρανούς· οὐκ εἶπε· Κατέλιπεν οὐρανοὺς, καὶ κατέβη, ἀλλ' Ἔκλινεν, εὐκολωτέραν σοι τὴν ἄνοδον ποιῶν τὴν εἰς τοὺς οὐρανούς. Τοῦτον καὶ ὁ Παῦλος ἐμιμήσατο κατὰ δύναμιν, διὸ καὶ ἔλεγε· Μιμηταί μου γίνεσθε, καθὼς κἀγὼ Χριστοῦ. Καὶ πῶς σὺ, ὦ μακάριε Παῦλε, τοῦ Χριστοῦ ἐγένου μιμητής; Πῶς; Ἐπειδὴ οὐδαμοῦ ζητῶ τὸ ἐμαυτοῦ συμφέρον, ἀλλὰ τὸ τῶν πολλῶν, ὅπως σωθῶσι, καὶ ἐλεύθερος ὢν ἐκ πάντων, πᾶσιν ἐμαυτὸν ἐδούλωσα. Οὐδὲν τοίνυν ταύτης τῆς δουλείας βέλτιον, ἐλευθερίας γὰρ ἑτέροις αἰτία γίνεται. Ἁλιεὺς ἦν πνευματικὸς ὁ Παῦλος· Ποιήσω γὰρ ὑμᾶς, φησὶν, ἁλιεῖς ἀνθρώπων· διὰ τοῦτο καὶ ταῦτα ἐποίει. Καὶ γὰρ καὶ οἱ ἁλιεῖς, ἐπειδὰν ἴδωσι τὸν ἰχθὺν καταπιόντα τὸ ἄγκιστρον, οὐκ εὐθέως ἀνθέλκουσιν, ἀλλ' ἐνδιδόντες μέχρι πολλοῦ διαστήματος ἀκολουθοῦσιν ἀναμένοντες ἐμπαγῆναι τὸ ἄγκιστρον καλῶς, ἵνα οὕτω μετὰ ἀσφαλείας τὴν θήραν ἑλκύσωσιν. Οὕτω καὶ οἱ ἀπόστολοι τότε ἐποίουν· ἐνέβαλλον τὸ ἄγκιστρον τῆς διδασκαλίας τοῦ λόγου ψυχῇ τῇ Ἰουδαϊκῇ, οἱ δὲ ἀνθεῖλκον εἰκῆ, καὶ κατέσχον εἰς περιτομὴν ἑαυτοὺς ἄγοντες, εἰς ἑορτὰς, εἰς καιρῶν παρατήρησιν, εἰς θυσίας, εἰς τὸ ξυρᾶσθαι καὶ ἕτερα τοιαῦτα ποιεῖν· οἱ δὲ ἀπόστολοι πανταχοῦ ἠκολούθουν αὐτοῖς, καὶ οὐκ ἀνθεῖλκον· ὥστε κἂν περιτομὴν ζητῇς, φησὶν, οὐκ ἀντιτείνω, ἀλλ' ἕπομαι· κἂν θυσίαν αἰτῇς, θύω, κἂν ξυρᾶσθαι βουληθῇς ἐμὲ τὸν ἀποστάντα τῆς σῆς πολιτείας, πάρειμι, καὶ ποιῶ τὸ κελευόμενον· κἂν Πεντηκοστὴν κελεύῃς παρατηρῆσαί με, οὐδὲ ἐνταῦθα φιλονεικῶ· ἀλλ' ὅπουπερ ἂν περιάγῃς, ἀκολουθῶ καὶ ἐνδίδωμι ἐμπαγῆναί σοι ἀναμένων τοῦ λόγου τὸ ἄγκιστρον, ὥστε δυνηθῆναι μετὰ ἀσφαλείας ἅπαν ὑμῶν ἐξελκύσαι τὸ ἔθνος τῆς παλαιᾶς λατρείας καὶ πολιτείας. ∆ιὰ τοῦτο γὰρ καὶ ἀπὸ Ἐφέσου εἰς Ἱεροσόλυμα ἦλθον. Ὁρᾷς πόσονπαρηκολούθησεν ὁ Παῦλος τῇ ἁλείᾳ τῶν ἰχθύων ἐνδιδοὺς τῷ λόγῳ; ὁρᾷς ὅτι ἡ παρατήρησις τῶν καιρῶν, καὶ ἡ συγκατάβασις τῆς περιτομῆς, καὶ ἡ κοινωνία τῶν θυσιῶν διὰ τοῦτο ἐγίνετο, οὐχ ἵνα αὐτοὶ πρὸς τὴν παλαιὰν ἐπανέλθωσι πολιτείαν, ἀλλ' ἵνα ἐκείνους τοῖς τύποις παρακαθημένους πρὸς τὴν ἀλήθειαν ἐπαναγάγωσιν; Ὁ γὰρ ἐν ὕψει καθήμενος, ἐὰν διαπαντὸς ἐπὶ τοῦ ὕψους μένῃ, οὐδέποτε δυνήσεται τὸν κάτω κείμενον ἀναγαγεῖν, ἀλλὰ δεῖ πρότερον ἐκεῖνον ταπεινωθῆναι, καὶ τότε τοῦτον ὑψωθῆναι. ∆ιὰ τοῦτο κατέβησαν οἱ ἀπόστολοι ἀπὸ τοῦ ὕψους τῆς πολιτείας τῆς εὐαγγελικῆς, ἵνα ἀπὸ τῆς ταπεινότητος τῆς πολιτείας τῆς Ἰουδαϊκῆς ἀναγάγωσιν εἰς τὸ ὕψος ἐκεῖνο τοὺς Ἰουδαίους.