Jeremias 20
Origen of Alexandria · Comentário Patrístico (catena)
Jeremias 20:7
How then does the prophet say, "You deceived me, Lord, and I was deceived"? Can God deceive? I am at a loss how I can accommodate the word. For if through God and his Word I do see something in it, what will be said requires suitable accommodation.…It suffices to express a single useful example for what has been presented. When guiding children, we speak to children; and we do not speak to them as we do to mature people, but we speak to them as children who need training, and we deceive children when we frighten children in order that it may halt the lack of education in youth. And we frighten children when we speak through words of deceit on account of what is basic to their infancy, in order that through the deceit we may cause them to be afraid and to resort to teachers both to declare and to do what is applicable for the progress of children. We are all children to God, and we need the discipline of children. Because of this, God, since he cares about us, deceives us, even if we do not perceive the deceit beforehand, lest as those who have gone beyond the infant we may no longer be trained through deceit but through acts. In one way the child is led into fear, in another way into progressing in age and crossing beyond the age of childhood. — HOMILIES ON JEREMIAH 19:15.3-5
Jeremias 20:7
Perhaps then, as a father wishes to deceive a son in his own interest while he is still a boy, since he cannot be helped any other way unless the boy is deceived, as a healer makes it his business to deceive the patient who cannot be cured unless he receives words of deceit, so it is also for the God of the universe, since what is prescribed has to help the human race. Let the healer say to the patient, "It is necessary that you have surgery, you must be cauterized, but you must suffer severely," and that patient would not continue. But sometimes he says another thing, and he hides that surgery, the cutting knife, under the sponge, and again he conceals, as I shall call it, under the honey, the nature of the bitter and annoying drug, wanting not to mislead but to heal the one who is cured. With such remedies the whole divine Scripture is filled, and some of what is concealed is pleasant, but some of what is concealed is bitter. If you see a father who threatens as if he hates the son, and who says to the son frightful things and who does not show affection but who conceals love for the son, one knows that he wants to deceive the child. For it is not fitting for the son to be assured of the love of the father, the goodwill of his devotion. For he will be set free and will not be disciplined. That is why he hides the sweetness of the affection and exhibits the bitterness of deceit.By analogy to the father and the healer, such is something of what God does. There are certain bitter things with which he cures the most righteous and wise. For it is necessary to punish every sinner for his sins. "Do not be misled, God is not mocked," "neither the immoral nor the adulterer nor homosexual nor thief nor drunkard nor reviler nor robber will inherit the kingdom of God." If this was understood and viewed carefully by those who cannot see the surgical knife beneath the sponge, by those who are unable to understand the bitter medicine beneath the honey, a person would become faint-hearted. For who among us has not been conscious of himself drinking without purpose and getting drunk? Who among us is pure from theft and from the desire to take what is necessary, not as one ought? But see what the Word says, "Do not be misled, for these persons will not inherit the kingdom of God." It is necessary that the mystery in this passage be concealed, so that most people may not become faint-hearted lest when learning the facts they may expect the final departure not as a rest but as a punishment.… For I know that if I leave, it is necessary that my "wood" be burned in me, and I have reviler wood, and I have the wood of drunkenness, the wood of theft and many other woods built up in my building. You know that all of these things escape the notice of many of those who have believed, and it is good it escapes the notice. And each of us thinks, since he has not been an idolater, since he has not been immoral—would that we were pure in such areas—that after he has been set free from this life, he will be saved. We do not see that "all of us must appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may receive either good or evil according to what he has done in the body." — HOMILIES ON JEREMIAH 20:3.2-3
Jeremias 20:7
So since the healer sometimes keeps hidden the surgical knife under the tender and soft sponge, and also the father conceals the affection through the appearance of threat, and the deceits—some of which take away the tumors and varicose veins and whatever else weakens the condition of the body … something then such as this is what the prophet has understood that God does in mystery, and he says, when he sees in what ways he was deceived for good reason by God, "You deceived me, Lord, and I was deceived." It brought him to so great a grace that he prayed and said to God, "Deceive me, if this is beneficial." For the deceit from God is one thing, the deceit from the Serpent another. See what the woman says to God, "The serpent deceived me, and I ate," and the deceit from the serpent caused Adam and his woman to leave the paradise of God. But the deceit that happened to the prophet, who said, "You have deceived me, and I was deceived," brought him to a very great grace of prophecy, by increasing in him power, by bringing him maturity and by being able to serve the will of the word of God without fearing people.Thus, when we also consider these things, for the present and for the future, let us also pray to be deceived by God, and let not the serpent deceive us. — HOMILIES ON JEREMIAH 20:3.4-5
Jeremias 20:7
We must understand that the deceit of God is of another kind from our deceit with which we deceive.… God does not tyrannize but rules, and when he rules, he does not coerce but encourages, and he wishes that those under him yield themselves willingly to his direction so that the good of someone may not be according to compulsion but according to his free will.… In sum, God seeks a way, in a manner of speaking, whereby one would want to do with free will what God wishes. The tradition then also was saying to me something like this: He wants to send Jeremiah who prophesies to all of the nations and before all of the nations to the people, but since the prophecies have had something quite gloomy—for they imparted punishments with which each according to his deserts will be punished—and he knew the choice of the prophet, who does not want to prophesy to the people Israel what is bad, for this reason he arranged to say, "Take this cup, and make all the nations to whom I commissioned you drink." God then ordered Jeremiah to take the cup, but when he urged him in taking the cup of unmixed wine, he says, "And I commission you to all of the nations with this cup of unmixed wine." But after Jeremiah heard that he was sent to all of the nations as one who supplied them a cup of anger, a cup of punishments, since he did not guess that also Israel was about to drink from the cup of punishment, since he was deceived, he took the cup from which all of the nations drink. After he took the cup, he heard, "And cause Jerusalem to drink first." Since then it seemed to be one way and happened to him in another, for this reason he then said, "You deceived me, Lord, and I was deceived." — HOMILIES ON JEREMIAH 20:2.1-2
Jeremias 20:8-9
And so far as the literal truth is concerned, it is useful to recount what things Jeremiah suffered among the people, with respect to which he said, "And I said, I will not speak, nor will I call on the name of the Lord." And again, elsewhere, "I was continually being mocked." And how great sufferings he endured from the then king of Israel are written in his prophecy. And it is also written that some of the people often came to stone Moses to death. His homeland was not the stones of any place but was instead the people who followed him, among whom also he was dishonored. — COMMENTARY ON THE GOSPEL OF MATTHEW 10:18
Jeremias 20:9
That people then were sick. There were all kinds of diseases among those who had the name of the people of God. God sent to them the prophets as healers. One of the healers was Jeremiah. He reproved the sinners, since he wanted those who do evil to return. Yet, though needing to hear what was said, they accused the prophet, and they accused before judges similar to themselves. And always the prophet was judged by those who, with respect to his prophecy, had been cured but were not cured because of their own disobedience. It is due to them that he says, "And I said, 'I will no longer speak nor name the name of the Lord.' But it happened as a burning fire flaming in my bones, and I am weakened on all sides, and I cannot bear it." He said, seeing himself as one who always is judged, abused, accused and falsely testified against, "Woe is me, mother. What kind of man did you bear me?" He was not speaking as a man who judges but as one who is judged, and not as one who disputes but one who is disputed over all of the earth. Since those who are sick do not hear him when he advises for their good and well being, he says, "I have not helped." — HOMILIES ON JEREMIAH 14:2