Rewards For Remaining

Si manseritis in me... Supra ostendit, se esse fructus originem per oppositum mansionis; hic nunc ostendit per ipsam mansionm, quae fructum dat et respectu mi et respectu proximi. Respectu sui: Si manseritis in me, et verba mea in vobis manserint; non sicut illi, de quibus Lucae octavo: Ad tempus credunt et in tempore tentationis recedunt; sed sicut illi, de quibus in Psalmo: Qui servant testamentum eius et memores sunt mandatorum ipsius ad faciendum ea. Quodcumque volueritis, petetis, et fiet vobis. Supra nono: Si quis voluntatem Dei facit , hunc exaudi. Non solum est fructus respectu sui, sed etiam proximi convertendi ad Dei gloriam; ideo subdit: In hoc clarificatus est Pater meus, ut fructum plurimum afferatis... Ut scilicet homines convertantur vestro verbo et exemplo ; Matthaei quinto: Sic luceat lux vestra coram hominibus, ut videant opera vestra bona et glorificent Patrem vestrum, qui in caelis est; et ex hoc, Efficiamini mei discipuli, Id est imitatores mei, qui plurimum fructam attuli per meam mortem, sicut supra duodecimo: Si granum frumenti mortuum fuerit , multum fructum affert. Sic etiam Apostoli; unde Ecclesia cantat de eis, quod plantaverunt Ecelesiam sanguine suo; ad Colossenses primo: Adimpleo ea quae desunt passionum Christi. Sanctus Bonaventura, Commentarius In Evangelium Ioannem, Caput XV Source: Here, p447-8

'If he remains in me...' 1 Having just shown what the reward will be for those who are opposed to remaining with Him, He now shows what it will be for those who do remain, which reward is given with regards to the one who remains and with regards to his neighbour. As regards the one who does remain: 'If you remain in me, my words shall remain in you.' Not as those who in the eighth chapter of Luke: 'Believe for a time and in the time of trial fall away,' but as those who, as it says in the Psalm, 'Keep His testament and are mindful in the doing of His commandments.' 2 'And whatever you wish, ask, and it shall be yours.' In the ninth chapter of this Gospel: 'If someone does the will of God, he will be heard.' 3 And there is not only reward for the one who remains, but even in the turning of his neighbour to the glory of God. Therefore He adds: 'In this my Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit...' That is, you convert men by your word and example. In the fifth chapter of Matthew: 'So let your light shine before men, that they might see your good works and glorify your Father who is in heaven.' 4 And because of this, 'You are made my disciples,' That is, imitators of me, as in the twelfth chapter of this Gospel, 'If a grain of wheat dies, it bears much fruit.' 5 So even the Apostles, whence the Church sings concerning them, 'They have nurtured the Church with their blood.' And in the first chapter of the letter to the Colossians: 'I complete those things lacking in the passion of Christ.' 6 Saint Bonaventura, Commentary On The Gospel Of Saint John, Chapter 15 1 Jn 15.7 2 Lk 8.13, Ps 102.18 3 Jn 9.31 4 Mt 5.16 5 Jn 12.25 6 Colos 1.24

Truth And Reward

Ἔστιν ὁ ἀλήθειαν λέγων καὶ ὑπὸ ἀφρόνων μισούμενος, κατὰ τὸν Ἀπόστολον· καὶ ἔστιν ὁ ὑποκρινόμενος καὶ διὰ τοῦτο ἀγαπώμενος. Ὅμως οὐδέτερον τῶν ἀνταποδόσεων τούτων πολυχρόνιον γίνεται, διότι ὁ Κύριος, ἐν ἰδίῳ καιρῷ, ἐκάστῳ τὸ δέον ἀνταποδίδωσιν. Ἅγιος Μάρκος ὁ Ἐρημίτης, Περὶ Τῶν Οἰομένων Ἐξ Ἔργων Δικαιοῦσθαι Source: Migne PG 65.957b

He who speaks the truth shall have the hatred of the mindless, according to the Apostle, 1 and he who lies shall be loved because of that. But neither of these rewards last for a long time, rather it is the Lord who to each in his own time shall give the fitting reward. Saint Mark The Ascetic, On Those Who Think Themselves Justified By Works 1 Jn 8.40

Love And Enemies

Ecce Dominus usque ad inimicos caritatem jubet extendi, et usque ad persecutores Christiani cordis benevolentiam dilatari. Et quae merces operum tantorum dabitur? vel quod munus praecepto huic obedientibus confertur? Ipse demonstret a se praeparatam caritati mercedem, qui per Spiritum sanctum gratis ipsam dignatur infundere caritatem: ipse nobis dicat quid pro caritate redditurus sit dignis, qui eamdem caritatem donare dignetur indignis. Dicat igitur Dominus, dicat, et proprio sermone magnitudinem nobis suae promissionis ostendat: Ut sitis, inquit, filii Patris vestri qui in coelis est. Cum enim diligendos praeciperet inimicos, amarum forsitan erat quod audienti jubebatur: sit, quaeso, dulce quod obedienti promittitur. Teneatur ergo dulcedinis hujus in corde suavitas, et amaritudinis illius superabitur difficultas. Qui enim dilexerint inimicos suos, et benefecerint eis qui eos oderunt, filii Dei erunt. Sanctus Fulgentius Ruspensis, Sermo V, De caritate Dei ac proximi Source: Migne PL 65.739b-c

Behold, the Lord commands that our love should extend to enemies, and that the heart of the Christian should reach out even to those who are persecutors. 1 And what is the reward that shall be given for such a great work? Or what gift shall be conferred on those who are obedient to this command? He in Himself has shown the reward prepared for love, which is that a man is made worthy to be filled with the Holy Spirit. He shall tell us what is worthy to be returned for love, He who gives that same love to those unworthy. So the Lord shall say, and with His own show us the greatness of His promise: 'That you be sons of your Father who is in heaven.' 1 Perhaps in this commanding of us to love our enemies, that which was commanded was bitter to those who heard it. But I think that what is promised to those who obey is sweet. Therefore let the sweetness of this delight be held in the heart, and it shall overcome the bitterness of all difficulties. They who have loved their enemies and have done well to those who hate them, they shall be sons of God. Saint Fulgentius of Ruspe, from Sermon 5, On Love of God and One's Neighbour 1 Mt 5.44 2 Mt 5.45

Preparing For The Kingdom

Appropinquabit enim regnum caelorum... Id est, beatitudo regni caelestis: quam praeparavit fidelibus Deus, ac si dicat, Parate vos per poenitentiam et per patientiam ad percipiendam beatitudinem regni caelestis: qui appropinquabit tempus mercedis reddendae. Qui mala timetis, aut concupiscitis bona, attendite, quia appropinquabit regnum caelorum. Si vos mala non terrent, vel bona delectant: aut si regna non concupiscitis, vel tormenta timete. Gaudeant justi, quia jam finiuntur mala eorum, et incipiunt bona. Lugeant peccatores, quia jam transeunt bona eorum, et incipiunt mala. Quid nocuit hominibus justis, quia mala passi sunt, cum coeperint esse in bonis? Nam et recordatio transactorum malorum non solum non nocet, sed adhuc magis delectat. Nam mala quamdiu praesentia sunt, gravia videntur: cum vero transacta fuerint, recordatio eorum gloriata est. Aut quid prodest peccatoribus, quia bona sunt consequuti, cum coeperint esse in malis? Nam recordatio transactorum bonorum non solum non adjuvat, sed adhuc amplius gravat. Nam quamdiu praesentia sunt, delectabilia videntur: cum vero transacta fuerint, recordatio eorum magis affligit. Et ista praedicatio poenitentiae qualem fructum contulit Christo? Seminavit verbum poenitentiae, et immaculatos praedicatores justitiae messuit. Opus Imperfectum in Matthaeum, Homilia VI Source: Migne PG 56.674

For the kingdom of heaven is at hand... 1 That is, the blessedness of the heavenly kingdom, that God has prepared for His faithful ones, 2 as if He said, 'Prepare yourself through penance and through patience to take possession of the blessedness of the heavenly kingdom, for the time for the giving of the reward is near.' You who fear evil or desire good things, attend, because the kingdom of heaven is near. If evil things do not trouble you, if you do not delight in good things, either you do not desire the kingdom of heaven, or you do not fear torment. But let the righteous delight, because now their evils are coming to an end, and good things are beginning. But let sinners lament, because now their good things are passing away, and their evils are beginning. How has it harmed righteous men that because they have suffered evils, they now begin to be among good things? For the remembrance of evils undergone not only does no harm, but delights all the more. For while evils were present, they seemed so heavy, when however they have passed away, the memory is glorious. Or how shall it profit sinners, that with their goods passing away, they begin to be among evil things? The remembrance of their bygone goods will not help them, but rather it will increase their distress. For while such things were present, they seemed delightful, but when they have passed away, the memory of them is a greater affliction. And this preaching of penance, what sort of fruit does it bear for Christ? He sows the word of penance, and he reaps immaculate proclaimers of righteousness. Opus Imperfectum on Matthew, from Homily 6 1 Mt 4.17 2 Mt 25.41, 1 Cor 2.9

Attention And Reward

Υἱέ ἐμῇ ῥήσει πρόσεχε τοῖς δὲ ἐμοῖς λόγοις παράβαλε σὸν οὖς. Ὅπως μὴ ἐκλίπωσίν σε αἱ πηγαί σου φύλασσε αὐτὰς ἐν σῇ καρδίᾳ, ζωὴ γάρ ἐστιν τοῖς εὑρίσκουσιν αὐτὰς καὶ πάσῃ σαρκὶ ἴασις Καθάπερ νηπίῳ τινὶ παιδίῳ ἔπαθλα ἀεὶ ταῖς προσοχαῖς τίθησι, αὶ διεγείρει ἔξω που διεπτσημενον. Πηγαὶ δὲ ζωῆς, αἱ ἀρεταὶ, ἀφ' ὦν τὸ ζῶν ὕδωρ, ἡ γνῶσις ἡ τοῦ Χριστοῦ. Τῷ κατὰ σοφίαν προκόπτοντι, πολλαὶ πηγαὶ, καὶ οὐ μία γίνεται· ἀλλὰ κατὰ τὸ πλῆθος τῶν ἀρετῶν. Τοῖς τὰς παραινέσεις, φησὶ, φυλάττουσι ταύτας, ζωὴ γίνονται· αὖται τὸ ἆθλον. Δίδυμος Αλεξανδρεύς, Εἰς Παροιμιας, Κεφ' Δ’ Source: Migne PG 39.1628b

Attend to my words, O son, and incline your ear to my speech. Guard the founts in your heart that they not fail, for they are life to all who find them and the health of every flesh. 1 Just as a mindless boy may have his attention drawn by some reward and it may raise him up from where he has fallen. The founts of life are the virtues from where flows the water of life, which is the knowledge of Christ. According to advancing wisdom there are many founts not one, for they are as the number of the virtues. Those who observe these counsels, he says, they shall live, which is the reward Didymus the Blind, On Proverbs, Chapter 4 1 Prov 4.20-22 LXX

The Fruits Of Choosing

Fiat manus tua ut salvum me faciat, quoniam mandata tua elegi. Aliis gloriam saeculi eligentibus, aliis venerationem elementorum ac daemonum capessentibus, aliss terrenas opes expetentibus, sanctus iste mandata Dei elegit. Elegit autem non naturali necessitate, sed voluntate pietatis: quia unicuique ad id quod volet via est proposita vivendi, et appetendi atque agendi permissa libertas. Et ob id uniuscujusqie aut poena aut praemiis afficetur electio. Sanctus Hilarius Pictaviensis,Tractatus super Psalmos, Tractatus in Psalmum CXVIII Source: Migne PL 9.641a

May it be that your hand saves me, because I have chosen your commandments. 1 It is for others to choose the glory of the age, it is for others to take to the veneration of the elements of the world and demons, it is for others to seek worldly wealth, this holy man chooses the commandments of God. Yet he does not choose on account of some necessity of nature but by the will of piety, because each one chooses according to the purpose of his way of living, and freedom is given for that desiring and doing. And because of this the choice of each one shall bring about punishment or reward. Saint Hilary of Poitiers, Homilies on the Psalms, from Psalm 118 1 Ps 118.173

Weariness And The Good

Bonum autem facientes, non deficiamus: tempore enim suo metemus, non deficientes. Cohortatur eos ad studium perseverantiae, qui in hac vita mercedem boni operis exspectant, nescientes quia sicut in semine aliud sationis, aliud messis est tempus: sic et in praesenti vita, sementem esse opera, quae vel in spiritu, vel in carne metantur, messem vero futurum judicium, et pro qualitate vel diversitate sementis, diversas nos facere messuras, centesimum et sexagesimum, et tricesimum fructum, quam segetem nemo potest metere deficiens. Qui enim perseveraverit usque in finem, hic salvus erit. Sicut et in alio loco praecipitur: Esto non deficiens . Quale est autem, ut cum peccatores quotidie in malis operibus augeantur, nos in bono opere lassemur? Sanctus Hieronymus, Commentariorum in Epistolam ad Galatas, Liber III, Cap VI Source: Migne PL 26.432a

But in the doing of good, let us not become weary. We will reap in time if we do not become weary. 1 He exhorts them to have an eagerness for endurance, they who in this life hope for the reward of good works, not knowing that as there is one sort of satisfaction in sowing, there is another at the harvest, and so in this present life the works sown, whether reaped in the spirit or in the flesh, shall have the harvest of future judgement, and the type and difference of the sowing make different harvests for us, a hundred fold and sixty fold and thirty fold, 2 which crop no one is able to harvest if he wearies. 'He who endures until the end, he shall be saved.' 3 As in another place it is commanded: 'Do not become weary.' 4 Why is it that when every day sinners increase in wicked works, we should grow tired of good works? Saint Jerome, Commentary on the Letter to the Galatians, Book 3, Chapter 6 1 Galat 6.9 2 Mt 13.8 3 Mt 24.13 4 Isaiah 5.27

Suffering And Understanding

Propter quod non sustinentes amplius, placuit nobis remanere Athenis, solis: et misimus Timotheum fratrem nostrum, et ministrum Dei in Evangelio Christi, ad confirmandos vos, et exhortandos pro fide vestra: ut nemo moveatur in tribulationibus istis : ipsi enim scitis quod in hoc positi sumus. Nam et cum apud vos essemus, praedicebamus vobis passuros nos tribulationes, sicut et factum est, et scitis. Desiderii supra memorati causas expressit. Idcirco enim praesentes esse apud eos volebant, ita animas eorum firmarent; ne quis ex his scandalum pateretur de pressuris apostolorum, ut qui tanta signa facerent, aliquando infirmarentur; ita humiliati, ut verberibus et vinculis subjicerentur. Ad quam rem excusandam Timotheum missum testatur idoneum doctorem, qui ostenderet hinc merita crescere christianis, si pro nomine Domini passi gratias agant, a quo hujus rei mercedem exspectant, simulque preces Deo funderunt, ut stabiles essent. Quam persecutionem idcirco se passuos praedicaverant; ut per id quod praescientiam hujus rei habere se protestarentur, posses se effuere et declinare has injurias approbarent: sed quia spes magna in his est, ideo dicit illatas sufferre quidem libenter Ambrosiaster, In Epistolam ad Thessalonicenses Primam Caput III Source: Migne PL 17.447a-b

For which reason, when we could bear it no longer, we thought it good to remain at Athens alone, and we sent Timothy, our brother and servant of God in the Gospel of Christ, to strengthen you and exhort you concerning your faith, that no one should be moved by these tribulations, for yourselves know that this is our lot, for even when we were with you we preached that we would suffer afflictions, just as it has come to pass, and you know. 1 He speaks of the reasons for the desire mentioned. For they wished to be present with them that they might strengthen their souls, lest some scandal be suffered because of the affliction of the Apostles, that they who made such great signs, at another time were weak, and humiliated, so that they were subject to blows and chains. To which he bears witness he sent the capable teacher Timothy to explain the matter, he who was to show how merit increases for Christians if suffering for the name of the Lord they give thanks, by which they may hope for a reward for these things, and at the same time pour forth prayers, that they might remain firm. And this perseuction which they were to suffer they had preached about, so that because of this prescience of the things which they had declared they would have, it were possible they might have approved flight and refusal of these injuries, but because there is great hope in these things, therefore he says that they willingly suffered what came upon them. Ambrosiaster, Commentary On The First Letter of Saint Paul To The Thessalonians, Chapter 3 1 1 Thes 3.1-4

Endurance And Reward

Existimo ergo quod non sint condignae passiones hujus temporis ad futuram gloriam, quae revelabitur in nobis. Exhortatio haec ad superiora pertinet, per quam ostendit parva esse, quae hic possunt a perfidis irrogari, ad comparationem decreti muneris in futuro saeculo. Propterea nos jubet ad omnia exitia paratos esse debere, quia magna pro his repromissa sunt praemia; ut in tribulatione consoletur se animus, et spe crescat. Nam et quosdam, immo multos scimus pro praesentibus lucris, ad modicum utique profuturis, quam asperos et duros subire labores, et ad quae tendunt aliquando, quia ipsa vita fragilis est et incerta, pervenire non possunt. Nautae pro quibus commodis tantis se procellis et tempestatibus credunt; cum sciant in his magis mortem ante oculos esse, quam vitam? Et milites spe praesentis praemii, cum incerta victoria sit, in gladios insurgere non dubitant. Quanto ergo magis pro Christo patiendum est, cujus etiam protelata sunt nobis beneficia: qui pro parvis magnifica, pro terrenis coelestia, et pro temporalibus perpetua praemia cum gloria pollicetur! Pro Christo dicimur pati, cum nobis non illi proficiat, quod patimur: sed quia ille occasionem quaerit remunerandi nos, hoc praecipit; ut bonus enim vel profusus largitor causam quaerit, quomodo donet aut indignis, aut verecundis. Denique ut ipsa exitia tolerari possint, ipse suggerit vires. Ambrosiaster, In Epistolam ad Romanos, Caput VIII Source: Migne PL 17.124a-b

Therefore I judge that the sufferings of this time are not worth comparing to the glory that shall be revealed to us. 1 This exhortation relates to what we have just read, by which he shows that the things it is possible may inflicted by the wicked here are small in comparison with the reward decreed in the future age. Because of which he admonishes us to be prepared for every sort of mischief, because the rewards promised for these things are so great, whence the soul may be consoled in tribulation and grow in hope. We know how bitter and hard are the labours we undergo for present gain, and for the little we get in the future, and that because life is fragile and uncertain that sometimes there is no gain at all. Consider how sailors give themselves to such great storms and tempests for such things, when they know that in these things death is more likely to be set before their eyes than life. And that soldiers do not hesitate to take up the sword for the hope of present reward, when victory is uncertain. How much more, therefore, should we suffer for Christ, whose blessings are spread out before us, He who offers great things for little things, heavenly things for worldly things, eternal rewards for temporal ones. We are said to suffer for Christ, when it benefits us and not Him, but because He seeks for an occasion to reward us, this is what He commands. For like a good and generous benefactor, He seeks a reason to give to those who are either unworthy or bashful. And then, that adversities be endured, He even supplies the strength. Ambrosiaster, Commentary On The Letter of Saint Paul To The Romans, Chapter 8 1 Rom 8.18

The Poor Man's Refuge

Kαὶ ἐγένετο Kύριος καταφυγὴ τῷ πένητι βοηθὸς ἐν εὐκαιρίαις ἐν θλίψει. Kαὶ ἐλπισάτωσαν ἐπὶ σὲ οἱ γινώσκοντες τὸ ὄνομά σου ὅτι οὐκ ἐγκατέλιπες τοὺς ἐκζητοῦντάς σε, Kύριε Ποίῳ δὲ πένητι καταφυγὴ γέγονεν ὁ κριτὴς, ἢ τῷ κατὰ τὸν πρῶτον βίον τὴν στενὴν ὠδευκότι καὶ τεθλιμμένην, καὶ τῷ μακαριζομένῳ πτωχῷ, δηλονότι τῷ πνεύματι; Τοῦτο δὲ μαθόντες οἱ γινώσκοντες τὸ ὄνομα σου, καὶ ὅτι ἐν τῷ τῆς δικαιοκρισίας καιρῷ τοὺς ἐκζητοῦντες σε νῦν οὐκ ἐγκαταλείψεις, ἐντεῦθεν ἐλπιζέτωσαν ἐπὶ σὲ πάντα διὰ τὰς ἀμοιβὰς ὑπομένοντες. Εὐσέβιος ὁ Καισάρειος, Ὑπομνηματα Ἐις Τους Ψαλμους, Ψαλμὸς Θ’ Source: Migne PG 23.132d-133a

And the Lord is made a refuge for the poor man, a helper in good time, in tribulation. And they hope in you who know your name, because you do not forsake those who seek you, O Lord. 1 To which poor man is the judge made a refuge, unless the one who has entered upon the course of the difficult and narrow way, and to that blessed poor man who is clearly so in the spirit? 2 And those who know your name, learning this, even that your just judgements in good time will not forsake those who seek you, so they hope in you, enduring all things for the reward. Eusebius of Caesarea, Commentary on the Psalms, from Psalm 9 1 Ps 9.10-11 2 Mt 7.13, 5.3

Gaining The Reward

Mὴ ἀποβάλητε οὖν τὴν παρρησίαν ὑμῶν, ἥτις ἔχει μεγάλην μισθαποδοσίαν... Διδάσκει δὲ καὶ πῶς τῶν ἐπάθλων τυχεῖν δυνατόν· ὅτι δι' ὑπομονῆς καὶ τοῦ μὴ ἀψικόρως ἔχειν περὶ τὸ πληροῦν τὰ ἐξαίρετα τῶν κατορθωμάτων, ἀλλὰ διψῇν μὲν ἀεὶ, καὶ ἀκορέστως ἔχειν, καὶ ἀπλήστως ἐρᾷν παντὸς ἀγαθοῦ πράγματος, καὶ κατασωρεύειν ἑαυτοῖς τὴν ἐκ πράξεων εὐδοκίμησιν, ἐν τοιαύταις δὲ εἶναι προθυμίαις, ἐν αἶσπερ ἂν εἶεν καὶ οἱ τοῦ πλουτεῖν ἐρασταὶ, περὶ ὦν γέγραπται· Ἀγαπῶν ἀργύριον, οὐ πλησθήσεται ἀργυρίου. Εἰ δὲ οὐ κορέννυσιν ἐκείνους τὰ γήῖνα καὶ πρόσκαιρα καὶ εὐμάραντα, πῶς οὐκ ἀναγκαῖον ἡμᾶς θερμοτέραις κεχρῆσθαι ταῖς ἐπιθυμίαις, ἵνα κερδάνωμεν τὰ παρὰ Θεοῦ, ἅ καὶ εἰς ἀπεράντους αἰῶνας ἐκτείνεται, καὶ ἀκατάληκτον ἔχει τὴν εὐθυμίαν; Ἅγιος Κύριλλος Ἀλεξανδρείας,Εἰς τὴν πρὸς Ἑβραίους Ἐπιστολὴν, Ἐκλογαι Source: Migne PG 74.989b-c

Do not cast away your confidence, which has a great reward... 1 He teaches how it is possible that the reward comes to us, which is by endurance and constancy in whatever good work we have chosen to do, for we should always thirst and never be satisfied, even with unquenchable love for every good deed, because of which good doing a great account is heaped up for us, whence our eagerness should be like that which others have for the seeking out of wealth, concerning whom it is written: 'He who loves silver, he shall not be filled with silver.' 2 For if there is no satisfying their desire for worldly things, which are transitory and swiftly wither, shall we be less fervent to burn for that which enriches us with God, and which the eternal age stores up and is treasured in endless happiness? Saint Cyril of Alexandria, Commentary On The Letter to Hebrews, Fragment 1 Heb 10.35 2 Sirach 5.9

Hope For The Future

Et promissa ipsius exspectamus, in quibus justitia habitat. Justitia habitat in futuro saeculo, quia tunc cuique fidelium pro modo sui certaminis reddetur corona justitiae, quod in hac vita nequaquam fieri potest, juxta illud Salomonis: Vidi sub sole in loco judicii impietatem, et in loco justitiae iniquitatem. Et dixi in corde meo: Justum et impium judicabit Deus, et tempus omni rei tunc erit. Et iterum: Vidi, inquit, calumnias quae sub sole geruntur, et lacrymas innocentium, et consolatorem neminem, nec posse resistere eorum violentiae cunctorum auxilio destitutos, et laudavi magis mortuos quam viventes. Ideo namque magis mortuos innocentes quam viventes laudavit, quia illi adhuc in certamine positi, isti autem perpetuae beatitudinis sunt mercede donati. Ideo autem sub sole calumnias se vidisse querebatur, quia supra solem noverat Judicem esse justum, qui in altis habitat, et humilia respicit, supra solem mansiones in quibus justi debita justitiae suae praemia percipiant. Potest hoc quod ait: in quibus justitia habitat, etiam juxta illud Psalmistae intelligi: Haec porta Domini, justi intrabunt per eam. Et in Apocalypsi, de civitate superna Joannes: Nec intrabit in eam, inquit, aliquid coinquinatum et faciens abominationem et mendacium, nisi qui scripti sunt in libro vitae Agni. Sancta Beda, In II Epistolam Sancti Petri, Caput III Source: Migne PL 93.82d-83b

And let us hope for His promises, in which justice dwells. 1 Justice dwells in the future age, because then shall be given to each of the faithful a crown of righteousness because of his struggle, which is not at all possible in this life. As Solomon says: 'I saw beneath the sun wickedness in the place of judgement, and in the place of righteousness iniquity, and I said in my heart, God shall judge the just man and the impious man, and then shall be the time of every thing.' 2 And again he says, 'I saw wrongs done beneath the sun, and the tears of the innocent, and they had no one to comfort them, nor could they resist the violence of them, utterly destitute of help, and I praised the dead more than the living.' 3 Thus he praised the innocent dead more than the living because the latter are still involved in the struggle and the former have received the reward of eternal beatitude. Therefore, having looked on wrongs beneath the sun, he complains to himself because he knows that above the sun there is a righteous judge, who dwells in the heights, 'who looks down on the humble,' 4 and there are those resting places above the the sun where the righteous receive the fitting reward of righteousness. 5 It is possible that when he says, 'in which justice dwells,' that it may be understood in the manner of Psalmist: 'This is the gate of the Lord, the righteous shall enter through it.' 6 And John says in the Apocalypse, concerning the heavenly city, 'They shall not enter into it who are defiled, and who make abominations, and who lie, but only those who are written in the book of life of the Lamb.' 7 Saint Bede, Commentary on the Second Letter of Peter, Chapter 3 1 2 Pet 3.13 2 Eccle 3.17 3 Eccle 4.2 4 Ps 112.5-6 5 Jn 14.1-2 6 Ps 117.20 7 Apoc 21.27

Promises And Rewards

Ἐπὶ δὲ αὐτὸν ἐξανθήσει τὸ ἁγίασμα μου. Τί ἐστιν, Ἐπὶ δὲ αὐτὸν; Ἐπὶ τὸν λαόν. Τὸ ἁγίασμα ἕτερος Τὸ κέρας εἶπεν. Ἄλλος Ἀφόρισμα αὐτοῦ. Ἄλλος, Τὸ ἀφωρισμένον αὐτοῦ. Τί ποτ' οὖν ἐστι τὸ εἰρημένον; Ἐμοὶ δοκεῖ τὴν εὐπραγίαν λέγειν, τὴν ἀσφάλειαν, τὴν ἰσχὺν.Ἄπερ ἐξ ἀρχῆς ἀφώρισα αὐτῷ, ταῦτα μενεῖ ἀνθοῦντα, φησὶ, βρύοντα, οὐ μαραινόμενα, οὐδε καταπίπτοντα· ἀλλὰ ταῦτα πάντα ἔσται, τοῦ διορισμοῦ τοῦ ἔμπροσθεν εἰρημένου μένοντος. Ποίου δὴ τούτου; Ἐὰν φυλάξωνται οἱ υἱοί σου τὴν διαθήκην μου. Οὐ γαρ μόναι αἱ ὑποσχέσεις τοῦ Θεου παρέχουσαιν ἡμῖν τὰ ἀγαθὰ, ἂν μὴ καὶ ἡμεῖς τὰ παρ' ἑαυτῶν ποιῶμεν, οὐδὲ χρὴ τούτοις προσέχοντας ἀναπεπτωκέναι, καὶ ὑπτίους εἶναι. Πολλὰ γὰρ καὶ τῶν ἀγαθῶν ὦν ἐπηγγείλατο ὁ Θεὸς οὐ ποιεῖ, τῶν τὰς ἐπαγγελίας δεξαμένων ἀναξίων εὑρισκομένων· ὥσπερ καὶ τὰ κακὰ, ἂ ἠπείλησεν, εἰς ἔργον οὐκ ἄγει, τῶν παροξυνάντων αὐτὸν ὕστερον μεταβαλλομένων, καὶ τὴν ὀργὴν ἀποκρουσαμένων. Ταῦτα οὖν εἰδότες, μήτε διὰ τὰς ὑποσχέσεις ῥᾳθυμῶμεν, ἵνα μὴ καταπέσωμεν, μήτε διὰ τὰς ἀπειλὰς ἀπογινώσκωμεν, ἀλλὰ μεταβαλλώμεθα. Οὕτω γὰρ δυνησόμεθα τῶν μελλόντων ἐπιτυχεῖν ἀγαθῶν. Ἅγιος Ἰωάννης ὁ Χρυσόστομος Εἰς Τον ΡΛΑ´ Ψαλμον Source: Migne PG 55.384

Over him my sanctification shall flourish. 1 What is this, 'Over him?' Over the people. That which is called sanctification is also named a horn. 2 Otherwise His separated ones. What then is said here? It seems to me that it speaks of prosperity, security, and strength. Those which I separated from the beginning, these, He says, shall continue to flourish, prospering, not withering, not falling away. But all these things shall be only if the first condition spoken of shall remain. What is this? 'If your sons guard my testament.' 3 God does not only give promises of good things to us, but we must also do things for them, not neglecting our care for them and turning away. For God does not bring about the many goods promised if those who received the promises are then found to be unworthy, just as when evils are threatened against the doing of some deed, if those who had vexed later change, then the anger is put aside. Thus knowing these things, let us not be neglectful of those things which have been promised, lest we be ruined. Nor let us dismiss threats, but change. Thus we shall be able to come to future goods. Saint John Chrysostom, On The Psalms, from Psalm 131 1 Ps 131.18 2 Ps 131.17 3 Ps 131.12

The Death Of A Good Man

Germanus: Ergo si interemptus justus non solum nihil mali perpessus est, sed etiam mercedem passionis assequitur, quomodo in reatum vocabitur, qui non nocuit mortem inferendo, sed profuit? Theodorus: Nos de proprietate boni malique, vel ejus quod diximus esse medium disputamus, non de affectu eorum qui ista committunt. Nec enim quis impius vel iniquus idcirco impunitus erit, quia malitia sua justo nocere non potuit. Tolerantia enim et virtus justi non illi qui mortem vel supplicia intulit, sed illi proficit ad mercedem qui illata sibi patienter excepit. Ideoque et hic merito punietur pro crudelitatis saevitia, qua malum voluit inferre, et ille nihilominus nihil mali perpessus est, quia, virtute animi sui patienter tentationes doloresque sustentans, ea quae malo proposito illata sunt, ad profectum melioris status et aeternae vitae fecit beatitudinem pertinere. Sanctus Ioannes Cassianus, Collationes, Collatio IV, De Nece Sanctorum, Caput VII-VIII Source: Migne PL 49.654b-655a

Germanus: Therefore if a righteous man who is slain not only suffers no evil by being killed, but indeed gains a reward from his suffering, how shall he be called guilty who has done him no harm by killing him but advantaged him? Theodore: We are discussing the actual properties of things good and bad, and what we call indifferent, and not the characters of those who do these things. Nor should any impious or evil man go unpunished because his wickedness was not able to harm a righteous man. For the endurance and virtue of a righteous man does not profit the one who causes death or suffering, but he who patiently endures what is inflicted on him advances to the reward. Thus he who meant to do evil is rightly punished for savage cruelty, and the other suffers no evil, because in the virtue of his soul he patiently endures his trial and suffering, by which the evil deliberately inflicted upon him is to his advantage for a better state, and leads to the bliss of eternal life. Saint John Cassian, Conferences, Conference 6, On The Death of the Saints, Chaps 7-8

Eating The Fruit Of Labours

Τοὺς πόνους τῶν καρπῶν σου φάγεσαι. Ψαλμικόν ἐστι μελῴδημα, παντὶ βίῳ χρήσιμον. Καὶ οἱ σεμνότητος φροντίζοντες, φησὶ, φάγεσθε τοὺς καρποὺς αὐτῆς, στεφάνοις παρὰ τοῦ Θεοῦ ἀκηράτοις τιμώμενοι· καὶ οἱ ἀκόλαστοι δηλονότι καὶ ἄδικοι, τὰ ἐπέχειρα τῶν κακῶν πράξεων κομιούμενοι. Ἅγιος Ἰσίδωρος Του Πηλουσιώτου, Βιβλίον Πρῶτον, Ἐπιστολὴ ΥΙΔ´ Παλλαδιῳ Διακονῳ Source: Migne PG 78.412d

'You shall eat the fruit of your labours.' 1 Here is a Psalm attuned for the good of every sort of life. It is as if he had said, 'You who have care for a holy and upright life, you shall eat the fruit of that, honoured by God with immortal crowns. But you who are intemperate and unrighteous, you shall receive punishment for your evil deeds.' Saint Isidore of Pelusium, Book 1, Letter 414, To Palladius the Deacon 1 Ps 127.2

Crowns And Garlands

Qui tamen et viri caput est et feminae facies, vir ecclesiae Christus Iesus, quale, oro te, sertum pro utroque sexu subiit? Ex spinis, opinor, et tribulis, in figuram delictorum quae nobis protulit terra carnis, abstulit autem virtus crucis, omnem aculeum mortis in dominici capitis tolerantia obtundens, certe praeter figuram: contumelia in promptu est, et dedecoratio et turpitudo et his implexa saevitia. Quae tunc Domini tempora et foedaverunt et lancinaverunt, uti tu nunc laurea et myrto et olea et inlustriore quaque fronde et, quod magis usui est, centenariis quoque rosis de horto Midae lectis et utrisque liliis et omnibus violis coroneris, etiam gemmis forsitan et auro, ut et illam Christi coronam aemuleris, quae postea ei obvenit? Atquin et favos post fella gustauit, nec ante rex gloriae a caelestibus salutatus est quam rex Iudaeorum proscriptus in cruce, minoratus primo a patre modico quid citra angelos, et ita gloria et honore coronatus. Si ob haec caput ei tuum debes, tale, si forte, ei repende, quale suum pro tuo obtulit, aut nec floribus coroneris si spinis non potes, quia floribus non potes. Serva Deo rem suam intaminatam. Ille eam, si volet, coronabit. Immo et vult, denique invitat : Qui vicerit, inquit, dabo ei coronam vitae. Esto et tu fidelis ad mortem, decerta et tu bonum agonem, cuius coronam et apostolus repositam sibi merito confidit. Accipit et angelus victoriae coronam, procedens in candido equo ut uinceret; at alius iridis ambitu ornatur caelesti prasio. Sedent et presbyteri coronati, eodemque auro et ipse filius hominis super nubem micat. Si tales imagines in visione, quales veritates in repraesentatione? Illas aspice, illas adora. Quid caput strophiolo aut dracontario damnas, diademati destinatum? Nam reges nos Deo et Patri suo fecit Christus Iesus. Quid tibi cum flore morituro? Habes florem ex virga Iesse, super quem tota divini Spiritus gratia requievit, florem incorruptum, immarcescibilem, sempiternum. Tertullianus, De Corona Militis, Caput XIV-XV Source: Migne PL 2.97b-102a

But what sort of garland,I ask, did He who is the head of the man and the glory of the woman, 1 Jesus Christ, the husband of the Church, submit to for both sexes? Of thorns, I think, and thistles, a figure of the sins which the earth of the flesh brought forth for us, but which the power of the cross removed, every sting of death blunted by its endurance by the head of our Lord. Certainly besides the figure there is eager insolence, and dishonour, and infamy, and with these the ferocity involved in the cruel things which then disfigured and lacerated the temples of the Lord, and is that so that you may now be crowned with laurel and myrtle and olive, and any celebrated branch, and, of much more use, with a hundred roses too, culled from the garden of Midas, and with both kinds of lily and every sort of violet, perhaps also with gems and gold, so as even to rival that crown of Christ which afterwards He obtained? But He tasted the honey after the gall, and He was not greeted as the King of Glory by the heavens until He had been condemned to the cross as the King of the Jews, having first been made by the Father a little less than the angels for a time, and so crowned with glory and honour. If for these things you owe your own head to Him, repay it if you can, such as He presented His for yours, or do not be crowned with flowers at all, if you cannot be with thorns, because you will not be with flowers. Keep for God His own property untainted, for He will crown it if He chooses. And indeed He does choose and He calls us to it. To him who conquers He says, 'I will give him a crown of life.' You also be faithful to death, 2 you also fight the good fight, whose crown the Apostle was rightly confident had been laid up for him. 3 The angel receives a crown of victory, who goes forth on a white horse, conquering and to conquer, and another is adorned with an encircling rainbow, a celestial meadow. The elders sit crowned with the same gold, and the Son of Man Himself flashes out above the clouds. 4 If such are the appearances in the vision, of what sort will be the realities represented? Look at those crowns, inhale those odours. Why condemn the head destined for a diadem to a little chaplet or a twisted headband? For Jesus Christ has made us kings to God and His Father. What to you is the flower which is to die? You have a flower from the shoot of Jesse, upon which the grace of the Divine Spirit in all its fullness rested, a flower undefiled, unfading, everlasting. Tertullian, On The Crown, Chap 14-15 1 2 Tim 4.8 2 Apoc 2.10 3 2 Tim 4.7-8 4 Apoc 6.2, 10.1, 4.4, 14.14

Guarding And Reward

Nam et servus tuus custodiet ea, in custodiendo illa retribulatio multa. Cum dicit: Servus tuus, justum significat et devotum. Custodiet ea, dulcedine scilicet illa pellectus, quia nequissimis mentibus iudicia Domini semper amara sunt. Et inspice quod dictum est, custodiet ea; ut non solum ad tempus earum rerum suscipi videatur affectus, sed usque in ultimum vitae spatium in tali devotione versetur. Post obedientiam praemia subsequuntur, id est retributio multa. Tanta enim divinae clementiae dona sunt, quae nequeunt comprehendi. Sic enim de his Apostolus dicit: Quod nec oculus vidit, nec auris audivit, nec in cor hominis ascendit, quae praeparavit Deus diligentibus se. Merito ergo dicta sunt multa, quia comprehendi non poterant universa. Cassiodorus, Expositio In Psalterium, Psalmus XVIII Source: Migne PL 70.142a-b

For your servant shall guard these things, and in the guarding there shall be much reward. 1 When he says: 'Your servant' he means the righteous and devout. He shall guard what has attracted with sweetness, because the judgments of God are always bitter to wicked minds. And observe that it is said: 'shall guard' so that not only does it seem that for a time while he is moved he shall take up these things, but even to the end of the span of life he shall conduct himself devotedly about such things. After obedience rewards follow, that is, much reward. The gifts of Divine clemency are so great that they cannot be comprehended. So the Apostle says concerning this; 'What the eye has not seen, nor the ear heard, nor the heart of a man risen to, what God has prepared for those who love Him.' 2 Rightly, therefore, they are much, because the whole cannot be comprehended. Cassiodorus, Commentary On The Psalms, Psalm 18 1 Ps 18.4 2 1 Cor 2.9

The Body's Rising

Et si obiiciatur, quod corpus non est nisi sicut instrumentum in operibus virtutum: instrumentum autem praemiari non debet: et sic corpus non oportet resurgere. Dicendum quod corpus in agendo cum anima est unum compositum cum ea: et ideo plus est quam instrumentum. Oportet igitur, quod resurgat. Sanctus Albertus Magnus, Commentarium in Mattheum, Caput XXII Source: Here, p361

And if it is objected that the body is nothing more than an instrument in the works of virtue, and because it is a mere instrument it should not receive a reward, and so the body should not rise, it must be said that the body acting with the soul is one whole with it, and therefore it is much more than an instrument. Therefore it befits that it shall rise. Saint Albert The Great, Commentary On The Gospel of St Matthew, Chapter 22

Love And Reward

Si enim diligitis eos qui vos diligunt, quam mercedem habebitis? Nonne et publicani hoc faciunt? Ubi ostendit, quamvis nostris temporibus vix aliquis perfecte diligentes se diligat, quod non multa justitia sit, si eos, juxta legis decreta, tantum diligimus qui nos diligunt. Ideo dicit: Quam mercedem habebitis? Ac si respondeat, nullam. Non quod aliquam exinde non habeant mercedem, profecto quia dilectio qua diligitur ab alio quem diligit, jam merces dilectionis est. Sed quia pro talibus merces illa quae in coelis copiosa promittitur, non datur, idcirco quasi nulla dicitur. Quia, etsi merces esse potest, apud Deum tamen nulla est, propterea recte nec merces vocatur; merces autem filiorum, sola adoptio creditur. Unde, si quis eam desiderat adipisci, exempla adoptionis teneat. Alioquin quid plus publicanis affert vestra dilectio? Nonne et ipsi diligentes se diligunt? Publicani autem erant exactores Romanorum, quos Judaei sic appellabant, quia de repubilca curam gerebant. Sectabantur autem lucra, exigebant vectigalia; negotiationes quoque, fraudes ac furta, et scelerata perjuria exercebant; quorum dilectioni ad invicem legalis dilectio comparata, nihil videtur habere meriti, quod non ex officio debitae charitatis venit, sed ex recompensatione lucri. Sanctus Paschasius Radbertus Corbeiensis, Expositio In Evangelium Matthaei, Lib II, Cap V Source: Migne PL 120.265b-d

If you love those who love you, what reward will you have? Is it not that even the tax collectors do this? 1 Where He shows, although in our times there is scarely anyone who truly loves the lovers of himself, that there is little righteousness if we love, according to the decree of the Law, only those who love us. Therefore He says: 'What reward will you have?' As if He would answer: 'None.' Not that from it they will not have some reward, because without doubt the love with which someone is loved by another whom he loves is now the reward of love. But since it is because of such a thing that the copious reward which is promised in heaven is not given, so it is spoken of as being 'nothing'. Because even if there is a reward, yet to God it is nothing, and therefore it is rightly not called a reward, for the reward of sons is deemed only to be adoption. Whence, if someone desires to obtain that, he holds to the examples of adoption. Besides, what does your love have more than the tax collectors have? Do they not love those who love them? The tax collectors of the Romans were called 'publicani' by the Jews because they had care for public matters. They pursued money, exacting taxes, and even exerted themselves in deceitful and fraudulent practices and criminal perjury, and the love according to the Law being compared to theirs seems to have no merit, because it comes not from the wanted duty of charity, but according to the reward of wealth. Saint Paschasius Radbertus, Commentary On The Gospel of Saint Matthew, Book 2 Chap 5 1 Mt 5.46

The Testimony Of Death

Illud quoque egregium, quod ait Scriptura: Ante mortem non laudaveris quemquam. Unusquisque enim in novissimis suis cognoscitur, et in filiis suis aestimatur, si bene filios suos instituit, et disciplinis competentibus erudivit. Siquidem ad negligentiam patris refertur dissolutio filiorum. Tum quia unusquisque, quandiu vivit, obnoxius est lapsui, nec senectus immunis a crimine; ideo legis quia Abraham mortuus est in senectute bona, eo quod in bonitate propositi sui permansit. Mors igitur vitae est testimonium. Nam si laudari ante gubernator non potest, quam in portum navem deduxerit, quomodo laudabis hominem, priusquam in stationem mortis successerit? Et ipse sui est gubernator, et ipse vitae hujus jactatur profundo, quandiu in salo isto, tandiu inter naufragia. Dux ipse nisi confecto praelio non sumit lauream, nec miles arma deponit, nec stipendii mercedem adipiscitur, nisi hoste superato. Mors igitur stipendiorum plenitudo, summa mercedis, gratia missionis est. Sanctus Ambrosius Mediolanensis, De Bono Mortis, Caput VIII Source: Migne PL 14.556b-c

That is also excellent which Scripture says: 'You shall not praise any man before his death.' 1 Any man is known by his last days, and he is judged by his offspring, if he has raised good sons, and educated them sufficiently in studies. Indeed wayward children are referred to the negligence of the father. So as anyone while he lives is liable to fall, nor is an old man immune from error,  thus you read that 'Abraham died in good old age.' 2 by which it is asserted that he remained in a good state. Death, therefore, is a testimony of life. For if it is not possible to praise a pilot before he leads the ship into port, how will you praise a man before he has arrived at the resting place of death? He is the pilot of his own life cast out on the deep, where there will be plain sailing and where there will be shipwrecks. A general, unless he is victorious in battle, does not receive laurels, nor does a soldier put down his arms or obtain the reward of his pay until the enemy is conquered. Therefore death is the fullness of pay, the consummation of reward, the joy of discharge after service. Saint Ambrose, On the Good of Death, Chapter 8 1 Sirach 11.28 2 Gen 25.8