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(Having called them to him); then also in due season. For after their refutation and the victory over them, and the accusation from the prophet, then he begins his legislation, when they also received what was said more easily. And he does not simply call them to him, but also makes them more attentive. For “Understand,” he says; that is, “Perceive, be roused up”; for such is the law about to be written. For if they broke the law, and at the wrong time, because of their own tradition, and you listened; much more should you listen to me who at the fitting time am leading you to a greater philosophy. And he did not say, “The observance of foods is nothing,” nor that “Moses commanded wrongly,” nor that he was “condescending”; but in the manner of exhortation and counsel, and taking his testimony from the nature of things, he says, Not what enters into the mouth defiles the man, but what comes out of the mouth; taking refuge in nature itself, and legislating, and declaring. And hearing these things, they said nothing in reply, nor did they say, “What are you saying? When God has given countless commands about the observance of foods, are you legislating such things?” but since he had thoroughly silenced them, not only by refuting them, but also by bringing their deceit into the open, and exposing what was done by them in secret, and revealing the secrets of their mind, being silenced they went away. But consider, how he does not yet dare to speak out plainly against the foods. For this reason he did not say, “Foods,” but, “Not what enters defiles the man”; which one might likely suspect also referred to unwashed hands. For he himself was speaking about foods, but it would have been understood also concerning these things. For so great was the observance of foods, that even after the resurrection Peter said, “Not so, Lord; for I have never eaten anything common or unclean.” For even if he said these things for the sake of others, and so as to leave himself a defense against those who were accusing him, in order to show that he both objected, and was not even so permitted, nevertheless it shows how great was the suspicion concerning the matter. For this very reason, he too did not speak openly about foods from the beginning, but, “What enters into the mouth”; and again, when he seemed later to speak more clearly, he obscured it at the end, saying, “But to eat with unwashed hands does not 58.514 defile the man”; so that he might seem to have taken his starting point from this, and to be speaking about it for the time being. For this reason he did not say, “But to eat foods does not defile the man”; but as though he were speaking about that, so that they might have nothing to say in reply. When they heard these things, therefore, he says, the Pharisees were offended, not the crowds. For coming to him, he says, his disciples said to him, “Do you know that the Pharisees were offended when they heard this saying?” And yet nothing was said to them. What then did Christ do? He did not resolve the offense for them, but rebuked them, saying, “Every plant, which my heavenly Father has not planted, shall be rooted up.” For he knows both when to disregard offenses, and when not to disregard them. Elsewhere, for instance, he says, “But lest we should offend them, cast a hook into the sea”; but here he says, “Let them alone: they are blind leaders of the blind. And if the blind lead the blind, both shall fall into a ditch.” But the disciples said these things, not only as grieving for them, but also because they themselves were quietly troubled. But since they did not dare to say this on their own account, they wished to learn by way of their narrative about others. For that this is so, hear how after this the fervent Peter, who is always first, came forward and said, “Declare to us this parable”; revealing the turmoil in his soul, and though not daring to say openly, “I am offended,” yet asking to be freed from his disturbance through the interpretation; for which reason he was also rebuked. What then does Christ say? “Every plant, which my heavenly Father has not planted, shall be rooted up.” Those who are sick with the Manichaean heresy say this was spoken concerning the Law; but what was said before silences them. For if he were speaking about the Law, how could he above defend it and contend, saying, “Why

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Προσκαλεσάμενος)· ἔπειτα καὶ τῷ καιρῷ. Μετὰ γὰρ τὸν ἐκείνων ἔλεγχον καὶ τὴν νίκην τὴν κατ' αὐτῶν, καὶ τὴν παρὰ τοῦ προφήτου κατηγορίαν, τότε ἄρχεται τῆς νομοθεσίας, ὅτε καὶ εὐκολώτερον κατεδέχοντο τὰ λεγόμενα. Καὶ οὐχ ἁπλῶς αὐτοὺς προσκαλεῖται, ἀλλὰ καὶ προσεκτικωτέρους ποιεῖ. Συνίετε γὰρ, φησί· τουτέστι, Νοήσατε, διανάστητε· τοιοῦτος γὰρ ὁ μέλλων γράφεσθαι νόμος. Εἰ γὰρ αὐτοὶ τὸν νόμον ἔλυσαν, καὶ παρὰ καιρὸν, διὰ τὴν ἰδίαν παράδοσιν, καὶ ἠκούσατε· πολλῷ μᾶλλον ἐμοῦ ἀκούειν χρὴ τοῦ κατὰ τὸν προσήκοντα καιρὸν ἐπὶ μείζονα ὑμᾶς ἄγοντος φιλοσοφίαν. Καὶ οὐκ εἶπεν, Οὐδέν ἐστιν ἡ παρατήρησις τῶν βρωμάτων, οὐδ' ὅτι Μωϋσῆς κακῶς προσέταξεν, οὐδ' ὅτι συγκαταβαίνων· ἀλλ' ἐν τάξει παραινέσεως καὶ συμβουλῆς, καὶ ἀπὸ τῆς τῶν πραγμάτων φύσεως τὴν μαρτυρίαν λαβὼν, φησίν· Οὐ τὰ εἰσερχόμενα εἰς τὸ στόμα κοινοῖ τὸν ἄνθρωπον, ἀλλὰ τὰ ἐκπορευόμενα διὰ τοῦ στόματος· ἐπὶ τὴν φύσιν αὐτὴν καταφεύγων, καὶ νομοθετῶν, καὶ ἀποφαινόμενος. Καὶ ταῦτα ἀκούοντες οὐδὲν ἀντεῖπον ἐκεῖνοι, οὐδὲ εἶπον· Τί λέγεις; τοῦ Θεοῦ μυρία παραγγείλαντος περὶ βρωμάτων παρατηρήσεως, σὺ τοιαῦτα νομοθετεῖς; ἀλλ' ἐπειδὴ σφόδρα αὐτοὺς ἐπεστόμισεν, οὐ τῷ ἐλέγξαι μόνον, ἀλλὰ καὶ τῷ τὸν δόλον αὐτῶν εἰς μέσον ἀγαγεῖν, καὶ τὸ λάθρα γινόμενον παρ' αὐτῶν ἐκπομπεῦσαι, καὶ τὰ ἀπόῤῥητα τῆς διανοίας ἀνακαλύψαι, ἐπιστομισθέντες ἀπῆλθον. Σὺ δέ μοι σκόπει, πῶς οὐδέπω θαῤῥεῖ σαφῶς κατατολμῆσαι τῶν βρωμάτων. ∆ιὰ τοῦτο οὐδὲ εἶπε, Τὰ βρώματα, ἀλλ', Οὐ τὰ εἰσερχόμενα κοινοῖ τὸν ἄνθρωπον· ὅπερ εἰκὸς ἦν καὶ περὶ τῶν ἀνίπτων χειρῶν ὑποπτεύειν. Αὐτὸς μὲν γὰρ περὶ βρωμάτων ἔλεγεν, ἐνοήθη δ' ἂν καὶ περὶ τούτων. Τοσαύτη γὰρ ἦν ἡ παρατήρησις τῶν βρωμάτων, ὡς καὶ μετὰ τὴν ἀνάστασιν τὸν Πέτρον εἰπεῖν· Οὐχὶ, Κύριε, ὅτι οὐδέποτε ἔφαγον πᾶν κοινὸν ἢ ἀκάθαρτον. Εἰ γὰρ καὶ δι' ἑτέρους ταῦτα ἔλεγε, καὶ ὥστε καταλιπεῖν ἑαυτῷ ἀπολογίαν πρὸς τοὺς ἐγκαλοῦντας, ἵνα δείξῃ ὅτι καὶ ἀντεῖπε, καὶ οὐδὲ οὕτω συνεχωρήθη, ὅμως δείκνυσι πολλὴν οὖσαν τοῦ πράγματος τὴν ὑπόνοιαν. ∆ιά τοι τοῦτο καὶ αὐτὸς ἐξ ἀρχῆς οὐ φανερῶς εἶπε περὶ βρωμάτων, ἀλλὰ, Τὰ εἰσερχόμενα εἰς τὸ στόμα· καὶ πάλιν, ὅτε σαφέστερον ἔδοξεν ὕστερον λέγειν, ἀπὸ τοῦ τέλους αὐτὸ συνεσκίασεν εἰπών· Τὸ δὲ ἀνίπτοις χερσὶ φαγεῖν οὐ 58.514 κοινοῖ τὸν ἄνθρωπον· ἵνα δόξῃ ἐντεῦθεν τὴν ἀρχὴν εἰληφέναι, καὶ περὶ αὐτοῦ διαλέγεσθαι τέως. ∆ιὰ τοῦτο οὐκ εἶπε· Τὸ δὲ βρώματα φαγεῖν οὐ κοινοῖ τὸν ἄνθρωπον· ἀλλ' ὡς περὶ ἐκείνου διαλεγόμενος, ἵνα μηδὲν ἔχωσιν ἀντειπεῖν ἐκεῖνοι. Ταῦτα τοίνυν ἀκούσαντες ἐσκανδαλίσθησαν, φησὶν, οἱ Φαρισαῖοι, οὐχ οἱ ὄχλοι. Προσελθόντες γὰρ, φησὶν, οἱ μαθηταὶ αὐτοῦ εἶπον αὐτῷ· Οἶδας ὅτι οἱ Φαρισαῖοι ἀκούσαντες τὸν λόγον ἐσκανδαλίσθησαν; Καίτοιγε οὐδὲν πρὸς αὐτοὺς εἴρητο. Τί οὖν ὁ Χριστός; Οὐκ ἔλυσε τὸ σκάνδαλον ἐκείνοις, ἀλλ' ἐπετίμησε, λέγων· Πᾶσα φυτεία, ἣν οὐκ ἐφύτευσεν ὁ Πατήρ μου ὁ οὐράνιος, ἐκριζωθήσεται. Οἶδε γὰρ καὶ καταφρονεῖν σκανδάλων, καὶ μὴ καταφρονεῖν. Ἀλλαχοῦ γοῦν φησιν· Ἵνα δὲ μὴ σκανδαλίσωμεν αὐτοὺς, βάλε ἄγκιστρον εἰς τὴν θάλασσαν· ἐνταῦθα δέ φησιν· Ἄφετε αὐτούς· ὁδηγοί εἰσι τυφλοὶ τυφλῶν. Τυφλὸς δὲ τυφλὸν ἐὰν ὁδηγῇ, ἀμφότεροι εἰς βόθυνον ἐμπεσοῦνται. Ταῦτα δὲ ἔλεγον οἱ μαθηταὶ, οὐχ ὡς ὑπὲρ ἐκείνων ἀλγοῦντες μόνον, ἀλλὰ καὶ αὐτοὶ ἠρέμα θορυβούμενοι. Ἐπειδὴ δὲ οὐκ ἐτόλμων εἰπεῖν ἐξ οἰκείου προσώπου τοῦτο, ἐν τῇ περὶ ἑτέρων διηγήσει μανθάνειν ἐβούλοντο. Ὅτι γὰρ τοῦτό ἐστιν, ἄκουσον πῶς μετὰ ταῦτα ὁ θερμὸς καὶ πανταχοῦ προφθάνων Πέτρος προσελθών φησι· Φράσον ἡμῖν τὴν παραβολὴν ταύτην· τὸν ἐν τῇ ψυχῇ θόρυβον ἐκκαλύπτων, καὶ φανερῶς μὲν οὐ τολμῶν εἰπεῖν, ὅτι Σκανδαλίζομαι, ἀξιῶν δὲ διὰ τῆς ἑρμηνείας ἀπαλλαγῆναι τοῦ θορύβου· διὸ καὶ ἐπετιμᾶτο. Τί οὖν ὁ Χριστός φησι· Πᾶσα φυτεία, ἣν οὐκ ἐφύτευσεν ὁ Πατήρ μου ὁ οὐράνιος, ἐκριζωθήσεται. Τοῦτο περὶ τοῦ νόμου φασὶν εἰρῆσθαι οἱ τὰ Μανιχαίων νοσοῦντες· ἀλλ' ἐπιστομίζει τὰ ἔμπροσθεν εἰρημένα αὐτούς. Εἰ γὰρ περὶ τοῦ νόμου ἔλεγε, πῶς ἀνωτέρω ἀπολογεῖται ὑπὲρ αὐτοῦ καὶ μάχεται λέγων· ∆ιατί