Mk 1:14-18 And passing along beside the Sea of Galilee, he saw Simon and Andrew, etc. These were the first who were called to follow the Lord—fishermen and unlearned men—sent to preach, lest the faith of believers should be thought to rest not on the power of God but on eloquence and learning.
Mk 1:19-20 But one may ask how it is that he is said to have called two fishermen first, Peter and Andrew, and then, having gone on a little further, two others, the sons of Zebedee, as Matthew and Mark relate, whereas Luke says that their boats were filled with that great catch of fish and mentions James and John as Peter’s partners. He says that the sons of Zebedee were called to help draw out the nets, which they could not pull in because of the great multitude of fish that had been caught, and that Jesus said only to Peter, “Do not fear; from now on you will be catching men” (Luke 5). Yet Luke also says that they followed him, having brought their boats to land.
From this it is to be understood that what Luke relates happened first, and that at that time they were not yet called by the Lord, but only foretold that he would make them catch men. It was said to them in such a way as though they would no longer catch fish—yet it was not said that they would never again catch fish, for after the Lord’s resurrection they are found fishing. It was said, therefore, that from then on they would catch men; it was not said that they would no longer catch fish. Hence, according to Luke, it is to be understood that they returned to fishing as usual, so that what Matthew and Mark relate might take place: namely, that he called them two by two and commanded them to follow him—first the two, Peter and Andrew, then the other two, the sons of Zebedee. For then, without bringing the boats ashore as if intending to return, they followed him as one who was calling and commanding them to follow.
Mk 1:21 And they enter Capernaum, and immediately on the sabbath he entered the synagogue and taught them. That he frequently chose the sabbath for the gifts of his healing and teaching shows that he was not under the Law but above the Law—he who came not to destroy the Law but to fulfill it. Nor did he choose the Jewish sabbath, on which it was not permitted to kindle a fire or move hand or foot, but the true sabbath, and the rest pleasing to the Lord: that we should refrain, for the salvation of souls, from servile work, that is, from all unlawful deeds.
Mk 1:22 And they were astonished at his teaching, etc. For they taught the people what was written in Moses and the prophets, but Jesus, as God and Lord of Moses himself, preached to the people according to the freedom of his own will, either adding to the Law things that seemed lacking or interpreting it differently, as we read in Matthew: “It was said to those of old … but I say to you” (Matt. 5).
Mk 1:23-4 And there was in their synagogue a man with an unclean spirit, etc. This confession is not one of free will, for which a reward of confessing follows, but a forced confession of necessity, which compels the unwilling to confess. Just as runaway slaves, after a long time, if they see their master, beg for nothing but mercy from beatings, so too the demons, seeing the Lord suddenly present on earth, believed that he had come to judge them. The presence of the Savior is torment to demons.
Mk 1:25-26 And Jesus rebuked him, saying, “Be silent and come out of the man.” Since through the envy of the devil death entered the world (Wis. 2:24), therefore against the very author of death the medicine of salvation had to work in order: first, that the serpent’s tongue should be restrained, lest it spread its poison further; second, that the woman who was first deceived should be healed of the fever of carnal concupiscence; third, that the man who listened to the evil counsel of his wife should be cleansed from the leprosy of his error—so that in the Lord there might be the same order of restoration as there had been of the fall in the first-formed parents.
And the unclean spirit, tearing him and crying out with a loud voice, came out of him. Luke says of the unclean spirit that it so came out of the man that it did him no harm. It may therefore seem contrary how, according to Mark, it tore him—or, as some manuscripts have it, convulsed him—whom, according to Luke, it did no harm. But Luke himself says: “And when the demon had thrown him down in their midst, it came out of him and did him no harm” (Luke 4). From this it is understood that what Mark calls “convulsing” or “tearing” is what Luke calls “throwing him down in their midst,” and that what follows—“it did him no harm”—means that this violent tossing of the limbs and affliction did not weaken him, as demons sometimes depart leaving certain members amputated or torn away.
Mk 1:27-28 And they were all amazed, so that they questioned among themselves, etc. Having seen the power of the miracle, they marvel at the newness of the Lord’s teaching, and are stirred to inquire about what they had heard by what they had seen. For signs were done precisely for this purpose: whether those which the Lord himself worked in the humanity he had assumed, or those which he granted his disciples to perform, so that through them the Gospel of the kingdom of God which was preached might be believed more firmly—since those who promised heavenly joys to those on earth showed heavenly and divine works on earth.
And they were astonished at his teaching, etc. For they taught the
people what was written in Moses and the prophets, but Jesus, as God and
Lord of Moses himself, preached to the people according to the freedom
of his own will, either adding to the Law things that seemed lacking or
interpreting it differently, as we read in Matthew: “It was said to
those of old … but I say to you” (Matt. 5).
The disciples, as mere men, did all things by the Lord’s gift. But the Lord himself, singular in the power of his might, worked healings and miracles, and spoke in the world what he heard from the Father. For even earlier, as the Gospel testifies, he was teaching them as one having authority, and not as the scribes (Matt. 7). And now, with the crowd bearing witness, “he commands even the unclean spirits with authority, and they obey him”
Mk 1:29-31 And immediately, going out from the synagogue, they came into the house of Simon, etc. If we say morally that the man freed from the demon signifies a mind cleansed from unclean thoughts, then fittingly the woman afflicted with fevers but healed at the Lord’s command represents the flesh restrained from the heat of its concupiscence by the precepts of continence. For all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and blasphemy (Eph. 4) are the frenzy of an unclean spirit. But fornication, impurity, lust, evil desire, and greed, which is idolatry (Eph. 5)—understand these as the fever of seductive flesh.
And immediately they told him about her. And approaching, he raised her up, taking her by the hand. In Luke’s Gospel it is written that they asked him on her behalf, and standing over her he commanded the fever. For sometimes the Savior heals the sick when asked, sometimes of his own accord, showing that with regard to the passions of vices he always yields to the prayers of the faithful, and that he sometimes grants even those things which they themselves scarcely understand about themselves, or forgives things not understood to those who ask devoutly, according to what the Psalmist prays: “Who understands his faults? Cleanse me from my hidden sins, O Lord” (Ps. 19[18]).
And immediately the fever left her, and she served them. It is natural for those who suffer from fevers, when health begins to return, to feel weariness and the discomfort of sickness. But the health which is bestowed by the Lord’s command returns at once—and not only returns, but with such accompanying strength that she immediately suffices to serve those who had helped her. And according to the laws of spiritual interpretation, the members which once served uncleanness unto iniquity now serve righteousness unto eternal life.
Mk 1:32-34 Now when evening came, when the sun had set, they brought to him all who were sick, etc. The setting of the sun signifies the passion and death of him who said, “As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world” (John 9). And when the sun has set, more demoniacs than before, and more sick, are healed—because he who, while living temporally in the flesh, taught a few of the Jews, after trampling down the kingdom of death, sent the gifts of faith and salvation to all nations throughout the world. Of whose ministers, as heralds of life and light, the Psalmist sings: “The way is open for him who ascends over the setting” (Ps. 68[67]). For the Lord ascended “over the setting,” because from where he set in his passion, from there he manifested his greater glory by rising again.
And he cast out many demons, etc. Luke writes of these more explicitly: “Demons also came out of many, crying out and saying, ‘You are the Son of God!’ And rebuking them, he would not allow them to speak, because they knew that he was the Christ” (Luke 4). The demons therefore confessed the Son of God and knew him to be the Christ—him whom the devil had recognized as worn by the forty days’ fast, yet had not been able to discover by tempting whether he was God. Now, through the signs, he either understood or rather suspected that he was God.
He did not therefore persuade the Jews to crucify him because he thought that he was not the Christ or the Son of God, for he did not foresee that by his death he himself would be condemned. For truly the Apostle says of this mystery hidden from ages that none of the rulers of this age knew it: “For if they had known it, they would never have crucified the Lord of glory” (1 Cor. 2).
Why the Lord forbade the demons to speak, the Psalmist makes clear, saying: “But to the sinner God said: ‘Why do you recite my statutes and take my covenant on your lips? You who hate discipline’” (Ps. 50[49]), and so forth. Lest anyone, hearing the preacher, should be led astray—for the devil is a wicked teacher, often mixing falsehood with truth so that he may cloak the poison of deceit under the appearance of truth.
Mk 1:35-39 And rising very early, he went out and went to a deserted place, etc. If in the setting of the sun the death of the Savior is expressed, why should not his resurrection be indicated at dawn when the light returns? With his light revealed, he went to the desert of the Gentiles, and there he prayed in his faithful ones, because by the grace of his Spirit he stirred their hearts to the power of prayer.
And he was preaching in their synagogues and throughout all Galilee, and casting out demons. By this preaching which is said to have taken place in Galilee is also understood that discourse delivered on the mountain, of which Matthew makes mention. For Mark continues in this way…
Mk 1:40 And a leper came to him, beseeching him, etc. With regard to this cleansed leper, the account is connected in such a way that he is understood to be the very one whom Matthew mentions as having been cleansed at the time when, after that discourse, the Lord came down from the mountain. For Matthew says: “And when he came down from the mountain, great crowds followed him” (Matt. 8). “And behold, a leper came and adored him, saying, ‘Lord, if you will, you can make me clean,’” etc.
And because the Lord said, “I have not come to destroy the Law, but to fulfill it” (Matt. 5), that man—who was excluded by the Law—presumed that he could be cleansed by the Lord’s power, judging that the grace which could wash away the stain of leprosy was not from the Law but above the Law. Yet just as the authority of power is declared in the Lord, so in that man the firmness of faith is made manifest. He fell upon his face, which is an act of humility and shame, so that each person might blush over the stains of his own life; yet shame did not repress his confession. He showed his wound and asked for a remedy, and this very act is a confession full of religion and faith: “If you will,” he says, “you can make me clean.” In the will of the Lord he attributes the power. As for the Lord’s will, he did not doubt it as one distrustful of mercy, but, conscious of his own defilement, he did not presume upon it.
Mk 1:41-42 But Jesus, having compassion on him, stretched out his hand and touched him, and said to him, “I will; be clean.” And when he had said this, immediately the leprosy departed from him, and he was cleansed. There is nothing intermediate between the work of God and his command, because the work is in the command itself. Hence it is said: “He spoke, and they were made” (Ps. 33[32]). You see the work: he spoke, and they were made. You see, therefore, that it cannot be doubted that the will of God is power. If then his will is power, those who assert one will necessarily assert one power. Accordingly, as one having the power to heal and the authority to command, he does not shrink from giving testimony to the authority of his action. “I will,” he says, against Photinus; he commands, against Arius; he touches, against Manichaeus.
And indeed the Law forbids the touching of lepers, but because the Lord is the Lord of the Law, he does not submit to the Law but makes the Law. He did not therefore touch him because he could not cleanse without touching, but to prove that he was not subject to the Law. Nor did he fear contagion as men do, but because he could not be defiled—he who freed others. The leprosy is put to flight by the Lord’s touch, which used to contaminate the one who touched it. And at the same time there is that wonderful fact: he healed by the same manner in which he had been entreated. “If you will, you can make me clean.” “I will,” he says, “be clean.” You have the will; you also have the effect of mercy. Therefore it is not, as many of the Latins think, to be joined and read as “I wish to cleanse,” but to be separated, so that first he says, “I will,” and then commands, “be clean.”
Mk 1:43 And sternly charging him, he immediately sent him away, etc. Why is he commanded to tell no one? So that we might learn that our benefits are not to be made public but restrained, lest we abstain not only from the reward of money but also from the reward of grace.
Mk 1:44 “But go, show yourself to the chief of the priests,” etc. He is commanded to show himself to the priest so that the priest might understand that he was healed not by the order of the Law but by the grace of God above the Law. He is commanded to offer the sacrifice so that the Lord might show that he did not abolish the Law but fulfilled it—he who, walking according to the Law, healed above the Law those whom the remedies of the Law had not healed. He rightly added, “for a testimony to them,” that is, if they believe, if the leprosy of impiety departs.
But if it troubles anyone how the Lord seems to approve the Mosaic sacrifice when the Church has not received it, let him remember that the sacrifice of the saints, which is his body, had not yet begun. He had not yet offered his own holocaust in his passion. Nor was it fitting that the symbolic sacrifices be removed before that which they signified had been confirmed by the testimony of the apostles preaching and of the peoples believing.
And because typologically the man sick with sins signifies the human race, he is described not only as a leper but, according to Luke’s Gospel, as “full of leprosy.” For “all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Rom. 3). That is to say, so that by the outstretched hand of the Savior—that is, by the incarnate Word of God touching human nature—they might be cleansed from the varied forms of ancient error, and with the apostles hear: “You are already clean because of the word which I have spoken to you” (John 15). And that those who for a long time were abominable, separated from the camps of the people of God, might at last be restored to the temple and be able to be presented to the priest—to him of whom it is said, “You are a priest forever” (Ps. 110[109])—hearing from the Apostle: “For the temple of God is holy, and you are that temple” (1 Cor. 3). And let them offer for their cleansing what Moses commanded, that is, let them present their bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God (Rom. 12).
Mk 1:45 But he, going out, began to proclaim and spread the report, so that Jesus could no longer openly enter a town, but was outside in deserted places; and people came to him from every side. The perfect salvation of one draws many crowds to the Lord. For although he himself wished both inwardly and outwardly to teach that one who had been healed should keep silence about the benefit received, yet he who had received it did not keep silent as he had been commanded by the one from whom he had received it; rather, fulfilling the office of an evangelist, as soon as he went out he began to proclaim and spread the word.
Hence it is rightly asked why the Lord ordered some of the things he did to be kept hidden, and yet they could not be hidden even for an hour. For did the only-begotten Son, coeternal with the Father and the Holy Spirit, have a will in this matter which he could not accomplish? Rather, it must be noted that our Redeemer, through his mortal body, set before us as an example of action everything that he did. For when he worked a miracle, he commanded silence—and yet it could not be kept silent—so that his chosen ones, following the example of that teaching, might in the great things they do indeed desire in their will to remain hidden, but might be revealed against their will in order to benefit others. Thus, it is a mark of great humility that they desire their works to be kept silent, and of loftiness that their works cannot be kept silent.
Therefore the Lord did not will something and fail to accomplish it; rather, he gave, through those deeds—even when they were unwilling—a teaching example of what his members ought to will.
CONTINUE
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