John Chrysostom, On the Parable of the Fig Tree

In parabolam de ficu

On the parable concerning the fig tree, a homily.

59.585 1. An eye seeing either a flowering tree, or a water-bearing spring, is drawn by the sight itself, and turns the mind of the heart there. Similarly, he who hears through words of deeds and histories, stretches his mind toward them, so that such a one is in body in this place, but in mind in that place, where the account of the history unfolds the matter. Something of this sort has also happened to me, beloved. For having heard the evangelist recounting the events that happened in Bethany concerning the fig tree, I am here in body; but in my mind I imagine myself to be there; and I think I am now following the Lord Jesus, and seeing the fig tree before the Master's command flourishing and full of leaves, but after the Lord's command, hideous and withered. For in the morning, it says, as Jesus was returning to the city, he was hungry. And seeing a fig tree, he went to it, and found nothing on it but leaves only; and he says to it: May no fruit ever come from you again for ever; and immediately 59.586 it withered. For this was just now read to us. The miracle astounds me; my mind is divided.

For whenever I wish to recount the substance of the history, immediately with the history the miracles draw one toward them. And just as when someone sees a golden jar having precious stones within, bearing written mysteries in themselves, he wishes to see the jar on account of the brilliance of its form, but is drawn in the opposite direction by the stones within; for he is eager both to gaze upon the beauty of the stones, and to know the mysteries written in them; so too I, seeing the history of the letter to be brilliant and most beautiful, am held there in my mind; but I am drawn back again by the spiritual contemplation, which promises to show me wonders greater than the history. For in the morning, it says, as Jesus was returning to the city, he was hungry. O inexpressible and indescribable mystery! He was hungry, who feeds the whole world; he was hungry, who from five loaves fed five thousand to the full; he was hungry, who from clay 59.587 fashioned living eyes; he was hungry, who walked upon the waves of the sea, and did not dip his feet in the water; he was hungry, who by thought alone changed water into wine; he was hungry, who drew souls from their tabernacles, and by a word housed them there again. And how does Isaiah say, The eternal God will not hunger, nor will he grow weary? But that Christ is God is surely clear to everyone who believes the Scripture which says: In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. How then did God hunger? The form of a servant hungered; but the will of the Master in him fed five thousand. The man who was seen went to the fig tree; but the divinity conceived in him was everywhere. He saw the fig tree fruitless as a man, he withered it by a word as God. He said, May no fruit ever come from you again for ever; and the deed followed the word; and immediately the fig tree withered. The word is human, but the deed divine. But the contemplation concerning the fig tree is much-disputed among us, beloved, having been interpreted by many, as it seems to me, not with accuracy; nevertheless I shall tell you the solutions of those before me, and we shall offer the excellent fruits of our own labors. For the meaning lying in the history of the letter is hard to grasp, having the brilliance of the mystery hidden in great depth.

In parabolam de ficu

Εἰς τὴν παραβολὴν περὶ συκῆς, ὁμιλία.

59.585 αʹ. Ὀφθαλμὸς μὲν ὁρῶν ἢ δένδρον ἀνθοφόρον, ἢ πηγὴν ὑδροτόκον, ὑπ'

αὐτῆς τῆς θέας ἕλκεται, καὶ τὸν τῆς καρδίας νοῦν μεταστρέφει ἐκεῖ. Ὁμοίως δὲ καὶ ὁ ἀκούων διὰ λόγων πράξεις καὶ ἱστορίας, πρὸς ἐκείνας τὴν διάνοιαν ἀνατείνει, ὡς εἶναι τὸν τοιοῦτον τῷ μὲν σώματι ἐν τῷδε τῷ τόπῳ, τῇ δὲ διανοίᾳ ἐν ἐκείνῳ τῷ τόπῳ, ἔνθα ὁ λόγος τῆς ἱστορίας διαστρέφει τὸ πρᾶγμα. Τοιοῦτόν τι καὶ ἐμοὶ συμβέβηκεν, ἀγαπητοί. Ἀκούσας γὰρ τοῦ εὐαγγελιστοῦ διηγουμένου τὰ ἐν Βηθανίᾳ κατὰ τὴν συκῆν γεγονότα πράγματα, ὧδε μέν εἰμι τῷ σώματι· τῇ δὲ διανοίᾳ ἐμαυτὸν εἶναι ἐκεῖ φαντάζομαι· καὶ οἴομαι νῦν ἀκολουθεῖν τῷ ∆εσπότῃ Ἰησοῦ, καὶ ὁρᾷν τὴν συκῆν πρὸ μὲν τοῦ ∆εσποτικοῦ προστάγματος ἀνθηρὰν καὶ κατάκομον, μετὰ δὲ τὸ Κυριακὸν πρόσταγμα στυγερὰν καὶ κατάξηρον. Πρωΐας γὰρ, φησὶν, ἐπανάγων ὁ Ἰησοῦς εἰς τὴν πόλιν, ἐπείνασε. Καὶ ἰδὼν συκῆν, ἦλθεν ἐπ' αὐτὴν, καὶ οὐδὲν εὗρεν ἐν αὐτῇ εἰ μὴ φύλλα μόνον· καὶ λέγει αὐτῇ· Μηκέτι ἐκ σοῦ καρπὸς γένηται εἰς τὸν αἰῶνα· καὶ εὐθέως 59.586 ἐξηράνθη. Τοῦτο γὰρ ἀρτίως ἡμῖν ὑπανεγνώσθη. Ἐκπλήττει με τὸ θαῦμα· μεμέρισταί μου ἡ διάνοια.

Ὅταν γὰρ βουληθῶ τὸ πρᾶγμα τῆς ἱστορίας διηγήσασθαι, εὐθέως μετὰ τῆς ἱστορίας τὰ θαύματα πρὸς αὐτὰ ἐπισπᾶται. Καὶ ὥσπερ ὁπόταν ἴδῃ τις στάμνον χρυσῆν ἔχουσαν ἔνδοθεν λίθους τιμίους, φέροντας ἐν ἑαυτοῖς γεγραμμένα μυστήρια, θέλει μὲν ὁρᾷν τὴν στάμνον διὰ τὴν τοῦ εἴδους στιλβότητα, ἀνθέλκεται δὲ ὑπὸ τῶν ἔνδοθεν λίθων· σπεύδει γὰρ καὶ τὸ τῶν λίθων περιαθρῆσαι κάλλος, καὶ τὰ ἐν αὐτῇ γεγραμμένα μυστήρια γνῶναι· ὡσαύτως κἀγὼ ὁρῶν μὲν τὴν τοῦ γράμματος ἱστορίαν λαμπρὰν καὶ περικαλλῆ τυγχάνουσαν, ἐκεῖ κατέχομαι τὸν νοῦν· ἀνθέλκομαι δὲ πάλιν ὑπὸ τῆς τοῦ πνεύματος θεωρίας, μείζονά μοι τῆς ἱστορίας ἐπαγγελλομένης δεικνύειν τὰ θαύματα. Πρωΐας γὰρ, φησὶν, ἐπανάγων ὁ Ἰησοῦς εἰς τὴν πόλιν, ἐπείνασεν. Ὢ ἀνεκφράστου καὶ ἀνεκδιηγήτου μυστηρίου! Ἐπείνασεν ὁ τρέφων πᾶσαν τὴν οἰκουμένην· ἐπείνασεν ὁ ἐκ πέντε ἄρτων πεντάκις χιλίους εἰς κόρον ἐκθρέψας· ἐπείνασεν ὁ ἐκ πηλοῦ 59.587 ζῶντας ὀφθαλμοὺς ἐργασάμενος· ἐπείνασεν ὁ ἐπὶ τῶν κυμάτων τῆς θαλάσσης περιπατήσας, καὶ τοὺς πόδας εἰς τὸ ὕδωρ μὴ βάψας· ἐπείνασεν ὁ ἐννοίᾳ μόνῃ τὸ ὕδωρ εἰς οἶνον μετατρέψας· ἐπείνασεν ὁ ψυχὰς ἐκ τῶν σκηνωμάτων ἐκσπάσας, καὶ πάλιν αὐτὰς εἰσοικίσας λόγῳ. Καὶ πῶς λέγει ὁ Ἡσαΐας, Ὁ Θεὸς ὁ αἰώνιος οὐ πεινάσει, οὐδὲ κοπιάσει; Χριστὸς δὲ ὅτι Θεὸς παντί που δῆλον τῷ πιστεύοντι τῇ Γραφῇ λεγούσῃ· Ἐν ἀρχῇ ἦν ὁ Λόγος, καὶ ὁ Λόγος ἦν πρὸς τὸν Θεὸν, καὶ Θεὸς ἦν ὁ Λόγος. Πῶς οὖν ἐπείνασεν ὁ Θεός; Ἐπείνασεν ἡ τοῦ δούλου μορφή· διέθρεψε δὲ πεντακισχιλίους ἡ ἐν αὐτῷ τοῦ ∆εσπότου βουλή. Ἦλθεν ἐπὶ τὴν συκῆν ὁ ὁρώμενος ἄνθρωπος· ἦν δὲ πανταχοῦ ἡ ἐν αὐτῷ νοουμένη θεότης. Εἶδε τὴν συκῆν ἄκαρπον ὡς ἄνθρωπος, ἐξήρανε ταύτην λόγῳ ὡς Θεός. Εἶπε, Μηκέτι ἐκ σοῦ καρπὸς γένηται εἰς τὸν αἰῶνα· καὶ τὸ ἔργον ἠκολούθησε τῷ ῥήματι· καὶ εὐθὺς ἡ συκῆ ἐξηράνθη. Τὸ ῥῆμα ἀνθρώπινον, τὸ δὲ ἔργον θεϊκόν. Ἀλλὰ πολυζήτητος ἡμῖν, ἀγαπητοὶ, ἡ θεωρία ἡ κατὰ τὴν συκῆν, παρὰ πολλοῖς μὲν ἑρμηνευθεῖσα, ὡς ἔμοιγε δοκεῖ, οὐκ ἠκριβωμένως· πλὴν τὰς τῶν προλαβόντων ὑμῖν λέξω λύσεις, καὶ τὰς ἡμῖν πεπονημένας προσκομίσομεν ἀριστείας. ∆ύσληπτος γὰρ ὁ ἐν τῇ ἱστορίᾳ τοῦ γράμματος κείμενος νοῦς, πολλῷ τῷ βάθει κεκρυμμένην ἔχων τὴν τοῦ μυστηρίου στιλβότητα.