Orthodox Christians who read the Gospel every day find more and more new meanings in this Book. As you know, there are four canonical Gospels included in the New Testament - from Matthew, Mark, Luke and John. Each of these Books has its own characteristics.
In order to correctly understand the meaning of what is written, you can use special interpretations or explanations (only from verified authoritative sources), since it may not be clear to a person not versed in the topic what is being said. Today we will get acquainted with the Gospel of Mark, we will analyze its features and differences.
General characteristics of the entire Gospel of Mark
Judging by the structure of the text and the narrative itself, we can say that this Gospel is semantically divided into two parts. The first half begins with the sermon of John the Baptist, who was sent by the Lord to prepare the people of Israel for the coming of Christ.
The following is the story of the baptism of the Savior Himself, His first sermons and miracles. And in the Gospel of Mark, the first miracle performed by the Lord is the casting out of an evil spirit. One of the most cruel manifestations of evil in a person’s life is obvious obsession. It is scary not only because a person loses power over himself, but also in its external expression.
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Interpretation of Blessed Theophylact, Archbishop of Bulgaria on the Gospel of Mark
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Preface
The Holy Gospel of Mark was written in Rome ten years after the Ascension of Christ. This Mark was a student and follower of Petrov, whom Peter even calls his son, of course, spiritual. He was also called John; was a nephew of Barnabas; accompanied the Apostle Paul. But for the most part he was with Peter, with whom he was also in Rome. Therefore the faithful at Rome asked him not only to preach to them without Scripture, but also to set down for them the works and life of Christ in Scripture; He barely agreed to this, however, he wrote. Meanwhile, it was revealed to Peter by God; that Mark wrote the Gospel. Peter testified that it was true. Then he sent Mark as a bishop to Egypt, where with his preaching he founded a church in Alexandria and enlightened everyone living in the midday country. The distinctive features of this Gospel are clarity and the absence of anything difficult to understand. Moreover, the real evangelist is almost similar to Matthew, except that it is shorter, and Matthew is more extensive, and that Matthew at the beginning mentions the Nativity of the Lord in the flesh, and Mark began with the prophet John. Hence, some, not without reason, see the following sign in the evangelists: God, sitting on the cherubim, whom Scripture depicts as four-faced (Ezek. 1:6), taught us a fourfold Gospel, animated by one spirit. So, each of the cherubim has one face that is called like a lion, another like a man, a third like an eagle, and a fourth like a calf; so it is in the matter of evangelical preaching. The Gospel of John has the face of a lion, for the lion is the image of royal power; so John began with royal and sovereign dignity, with the Divinity of the Word, saying: “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God.” The Gospel of Matthew has a human face because it begins with the carnal birth and incarnation of the Word. The Gospel of Mark is compared to an eagle because it begins with a prophecy about John, and the gift of prophetic grace, as the gift of acute vision and insight into the distant future, can be likened to an eagle, which is said to be gifted with the keenest vision, so that it alone Of all the animals, without closing his eyes, he looks at the sun. The Gospel of Luke is like a calf because it begins with the priestly ministry of Zechariah, who offered incense for the sins of the people; then they also sacrificed the calf. So, Mark begins the Gospel with a prophecy and a prophetic life. Listen to what he says!
Chapter first
The beginning of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God, as it is written in the prophets: Behold, I send My angel before Thy face, who will prepare Thy way before Thee. The voice of one crying in the wilderness: Prepare the way of the Lord, make His paths straight. The evangelist presents John, the last of the prophets, as the beginning of the Gospel of the Son of God, because the end of the Old Testament is the beginning of the New Testament. As for the testimony of the Forerunner, it is taken from two prophets - from Malachi: “Behold, I am sending My angel, and he will prepare the way before Me” (3:1) and from Isaiah: “The voice of one crying in the wilderness” (40:3) And so on. These are the words of God the Father to the Son. He calls the Forerunner an Angel for his angelic and almost ethereal life and for the announcement and indication of the coming Christ. John prepared the way of the Lord, preparing the souls of the Jews through baptism to accept Christ: “before Your face” means Your Angel is close to You. This signifies the closeness of the Forerunner to Christ, since even before kings, primarily related persons are honored. “The voice of one crying in the wilderness,” that is, in the Jordanian desert, and even more so in the Jewish synagogue, which was empty in relation to good. “The path” means the New Testament, “paths” means the Old, as repeatedly violated by the Jews. They had to prepare for the path, that is, for the New Testament, and correct the paths of the Old, for although they had accepted them in ancient times, they later turned away from their paths and got lost. John appeared, baptizing in the wilderness and preaching a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. And the whole country of Judea and the people of Jerusalem came out to him, and they were all baptized by him in the Jordan River, confessing their sins. John's baptism did not have remission of sins, but introduced only repentance for people. But how does Mark say here: “for the forgiveness of sins”? To this we answer that John preached a baptism of repentance. What was the point of this sermon? To the remission of sins, that is, to the baptism of Christ, which already included the remission of sins. When we say, for example, that such and such came before the king, commanding that food be prepared for the king, we mean that those who fulfill this command are favored by the king. So it is here. The Forerunner preached the baptism of repentance so that people, having repented and accepted Christ, would receive remission of sins. John wore clothes made of camel's hair and a leather belt around his waist, and ate locusts and wild honey. We already talked about this in the Gospel of Matthew; now we will only say about what is omitted there, namely: that John’s clothing was a sign of mourning, and the prophet showed in this way that the repentant should cry, since sackcloth usually serves as a sign of crying; the leather belt meant the deadness of the Jewish people. And that these clothes meant crying, the Lord himself says about this: “We sang sad songs to you (Slavic “lamentation”), and you did not cry,” calling here the life of the Forerunner weeping, because he further says: “John came, neither did he eat, neither drinks; and they say, “He has a demon” (Matthew 11:17-18). Likewise, the food of John, pointing here, of course, to abstinence, was at the same time an image of the spiritual food of the Jews of that time, who did not eat clean birds of the air, that is, did not think about anything lofty, but fed only on the word exalted and aimed at grief, but again falling to the ground . For locusts (“locusts”) are an insect that jumps up and then falls to the ground again. In the same way, the people ate honey produced by bees, that is, prophets; but it remained with him without care and was not increased by deepening and correct understanding, although the Jews thought that they understood and comprehended the Scripture. They had the Scriptures, like some honey, but they did not labor at them and did not study them. And he preached, saying: He who is mightier than I is coming after me, whose sandal strap I am not worthy to stoop down to untie; I baptized you with water, and He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit. “I,” he says, “are not worthy to be even His lowest servant, who would untie the belt, that is, the knot on the strap of his boots. They understand, however, this: everyone who came and was baptized by John was released through repentance from the bonds of their sins when they believed in Christ. Thus, John loosed the belts and bonds of sin in everyone, but in Jesus he could not loose such a belt, because this belt, that is, sin, was not found with Him. And it came to pass in those days that Jesus came from Nazareth of Galilee and was baptized by John in the Jordan. And when he came out of the water, John immediately saw the heavens opening and the Spirit like a dove descending on Him. And a voice came from heaven: You are my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased. Jesus does not come to baptism for the remission of sins, for He did not create sin, nor to receive the Holy Spirit, for how could John’s baptism bestow the Spirit when it did not cleanse sins, as I said? But He did not go to be baptized for repentance, since He was greater than the Baptist himself (Matthew 11:11). So, why does it come? No doubt, so that John would announce Him to the people. Since many flocked there, He deigned to come in order to be testified before many who He is, and at the same time in order to fulfill “all righteousness,” that is, all the commandments of the Law. Since obedience to the baptizing prophet, as sent from God, was also a commandment, then Christ fulfills this commandment. The Spirit descends not because Christ has a need for it (for in essence He abides in Him), but so that you know that the Holy Spirit also descends on you at baptism. When the Holy Spirit descended, the testimony was immediately spoken. Since the Father spoke from above: “You are My Son,” so that those who heard would not think that He was speaking about John, the Spirit descended on Jesus, showing that this was said about Him. The heavens are opened so that we know that they are also opened to us when we are baptized. Immediately after this, the Spirit leads Him into the wilderness. And He was there in the wilderness for forty days, tempted by Satan, and was with the beasts; and Angels served Him. Teaching us not to lose heart when, after baptism, we fall into temptation, the Lord goes up into the mountain to face temptation, or, better yet, does not go away, but is led away by the Holy Spirit, showing through the fact that we ourselves should not fall into temptation, but accept them when they come. befall us. And he goes up the mountain so that, due to the desolation of the place, the devil will have boldness and can approach Him; for he usually attacks when he sees that we are alone. The place of temptation was so wild that there were many animals there. The angels began to serve Him after He defeated the tempter. All this is stated in more detail in the Gospel of Matthew. After John was betrayed, Jesus came to Galilee, preaching the Gospel of the Kingdom of God and saying that the time is fulfilled and the Kingdom of God is at hand: repent and believe in the Gospel. Having heard that John had been handed over to prison, Jesus retired to Galilee in order to show us that we should not fall into temptation ourselves, but avoid them, and when we fall, endure. Christ preaches, apparently, the same thing as John, something like: “repent” and “the Kingdom of God is at hand.” But in fact, it is not the same thing: John says “repent” in order to turn away from sins, and Christ says “repent” in order to lag behind the letter of the Law, which is why he added: “believe in the Gospel,” for he whoever wants to believe according to the Gospel has already abolished the Law. The Lord says that “the time is fulfilled” for the Law. Hitherto, he says, the Law was in effect, but from now on the Kingdom of God comes, life according to the Gospel. This life is rightly presented as the “Kingdom” of Heaven, for when you see that someone who lives according to the Gospel behaves almost as if incorporeal, how can you not say that he already has the Kingdom of Heaven (where there is no food or drink), although it seems to still exist? far. As he passed near the Sea of Galilee, he saw Simon and his brother Andrew casting nets into the sea, for they were fishermen. And Jesus said to them, Follow me, and I will make you become fishers of men. And they immediately left their nets and followed Him. And having gone a little way from there, He saw James Zebedee and John his brother also in a boat mending nets; and immediately called them. And they, leaving their father Zebedee in the boat with the workers, followed Him. Peter and Andrew were at first disciples of the Forerunner, and when they saw Jesus testified by John, they joined Him. Then, when John was betrayed, they went back to their previous occupation with sorrow. So, Christ now calls them a second time, for the real calling is already the second. Notice that they were nourished by their righteous works, and not by their unrighteous activities. Such people were worth being the first disciples of Christ. Immediately leaving what was in their hands, they followed Him; for one must not delay, but must follow immediately. After these he catches James and John. And these, although they themselves were poor, nevertheless supported their elderly father. But they left their father not because leaving parents is a good deed, but because he wanted to prevent them from following the Lord. So you, when your parents hinder you, leave them and follow the Good. Apparently, Zebedee did not believe, but the mother of these apostles believed and, when Zebedee died, she also followed the Lord. Take this into account, too, that action is called first, and then contemplation, for Peter is the image of action, because he was of a fiery character and always warned others about what is characteristic of action; John, on the contrary, represents contemplation in himself, for he was a theologian par excellence. And they come to Capernaum; and soon on the Sabbath He entered the synagogue and taught. And they marveled at His teaching, for He taught them as one having authority, and not as the scribes. Where did you come to Capernaum from? From Nazareth, and on the Sabbath day. When they usually gathered to read the law, then Christ came to teach. For the Law also commanded to celebrate the Sabbath, so that people would read, gathering together for this purpose. The Lord taught accusatoryly, and not flatteringly, like the Pharisees: he urged them to do good, and threatened those who were disobedient with torment. In their synagogue there was a man possessed by an unclean spirit, and he cried out: leave him alone! What have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth? You have come to destroy us! I know You, who You are, the Holy One of God. But Jesus rebuked him, saying: Be silent and come out of him. Then the unclean spirit, shaking him and crying out with a loud voice, came out of him. And everyone was horrified, so they asked each other: what is this? What is this new teaching that He commands even the unclean spirits with authority, and they obey Him? And soon rumors about Him spread throughout the entire region in Galilee. Evil spirits are called “unclean” because they love all kinds of unclean things. The demon considers leaving a person to be “destruction” for himself. Evil demons generally blame themselves for suffering when they are not allowed to do evil to people. Moreover, being carnal and accustomed to enjoying substances, they seem to suffer great hunger when they do not live in bodies. That is why the Lord says that the demonic race is driven out by fasting. The unclean one did not say to Christ: You are holy, since many of the prophets were holy, but he said “Holy One,” that is, the Only One, Holy in His essence. But Christ forces him to remain silent, so that we know that demons must stop their mouths, even if they speak the truth. The demon rushes and violently shakes the one possessed by it, so that eyewitnesses, seeing the calamity the person is being delivered from, will believe for the sake of the miracle. Soon leaving the synagogue, they came to the house of Simon and Andrew with James and John. Simonov's mother-in-law was in a fever; and immediately they tell Him about her. Approaching, He lifted her up, taking her hand; and the fever immediately left her, and she began to serve them. By Saturday evening, as usual, the Lord went to the disciples’ house to eat. Meanwhile, the one who was supposed to serve in this regard was overcome with fever. But the Lord heals her, and she begins to serve them. These words make it clear that you, when God heals you from an illness, must use your health to serve the saints and to please God. Being possessed is a kind of fever, and a person is angry and out of anger becomes bold with his hands. But if the word holds his hand and meekly stretches it out, then the one previously burned with anger begins to serve the word. For the angry one, when the word restrains his hand, rebels, and thus anger serves the word. When evening came, when the sun set, they brought to Him all the sick and demon-possessed. And the whole city gathered at the door. And He healed many who were suffering from various diseases; He cast out many demons, and did not allow the demons to say that they knew that He was the Christ. It is not without reason that it was added: “when the sun set.” Since they thought that it was impermissible to heal on the Sabbath, they waited until sunset and then began to bring the sick for healing. “He healed many”, it is said instead of “all”, because all make up a multitude; or: he did not heal everyone because some turned out to be unbelievers, who were not healed for their unbelief, but he healed “many” of those brought, that is, those who had faith. He did not allow demons to speak in order, as I said, to teach us not to believe them, even if they spoke the truth. Otherwise, if they find someone who completely trusts them, then what the damned ones won’t do, mixing lies with the truth! So Paul forbade the inquisitive spirit to say: “These people are servants of the Most High God”; The Holy Man did not want to hear feedback and testimony from unclean lips. And in the morning, getting up very early, he went out and retired to a deserted place, and there he prayed. Simon and those who were with him followed Him and, having found Him, they said to Him: everyone is looking for You. He says to them: let us go to the neighboring villages and cities so that I can preach there too, for this is why I came. And He preached in their synagogues throughout Galilee and cast out demons. After healing the sick, the Lord goes to a secluded place, teaching us not to do anything for show, but if we do any good, we should hasten to hide it. And He also prays in order to show us that whatever good we do must be attributed to God and said to Him: “Every good gift and every perfect gift is coming down from above, from the Father of lights” (James 1:17). Christ Himself did not even need to pray. Further, when the people sought and greatly desired Him, He does not give itself to Him, although it accepts it with favor, but also goes to others in need of healing and instruction. For the work of teaching should not be limited to one place, but the rays of the word must be scattered everywhere. But look how He combines action with teaching: He preaches, and then casts out demons. So teach and do things together, so that your word is not in vain. Otherwise, if Christ had not shown miracles at the same time, then His word would not have been believed. A leper comes to Him and, begging Him and falling on his knees before Him, says to Him: if you want, you can cleanse me. Jesus, having compassion on him, stretched out his hand, touched him and said to him: I want you to be clean. After this word, the leprosy immediately left him, and he became clean. The leper was prudent and believed; therefore he did not say: if you ask God; but believing in Him as God, he said: “if you want.” Christ touches him as a sign that nothing is unclean. The law forbade touching a leper as unclean; but the Savior, wanting to show that there is nothing unclean by nature, that the requirements of the Law should be abolished and that they have power only over people, touches the leper - while Elisha was so afraid of the Law that he did not even want to see Naaman, the leper who asked healing. And, looking at him sternly, he immediately sent him away and said to him: See that you don’t say anything to anyone, but go, show yourself to the priest and offer for your cleansing what Moses commanded, as a testimony to them. And he, going out, began to proclaim and tell about what had happened, so that Jesus could no longer openly enter the city, but was outside, in deserted places. And they came to Him from everywhere. And from this we also learn not to show off ourselves when we show kindness to someone, for Jesus Himself commands the one who has purified himself not to talk about Him. Although He knew that he would not listen and would divulge it, however, as I said, teaching us not to love vanity, he orders us not to tell anyone. But on the other hand, anyone who has benefited should be grateful and grateful, even if his benefactor does not need it. So the leper divulges the good deed he has received, despite the fact that the Lord did not tell him to. Christ sends him to the priest, because according to the command of the Law, a leper could only enter the city by a priestly announcement about his cleansing from leprosy, otherwise he had to be expelled from the city. At the same time, the Lord commands him to bring a gift, as those who were purified as usual brought: this is evidence that He is not an opponent of the Law, on the contrary, He values it so much that He commands to fulfill what is commanded in the Law.
Chapter two
A few days later He came again to Capernaum; and it was heard that He was in the house. Many immediately gathered, so that there was no longer room at the door; and He spoke the word to them. And they came to him with the paralytic, who was carried by four; and not being able to approach Him due to the crowds, they opened the roof of the house where He was, and, having dug through it, lowered the bed on which the paralytic lay. Jesus, seeing their faith, says to the paralytic: child! your sins are forgiven you. After the Lord’s ascension to Capernaum, many, hearing that He was in the house, gathered in the hope of convenient access to Him. Moreover, the faith of the men who brought the paralytic was so great that they broke through the roof of the house and lowered him. Therefore, the Lord gives him healing, seeing the faith of those who brought it or the faith of the paralytic himself. For he himself would not have allowed himself to be taken if he had not believed that he would be healed. However, the Lord often healed for the sake of faith one offerer, although the offerer was not a believer, and, on the contrary, often healed for the sake of the faith of the offerer, although those offering did not believe. First of all, He forgives the sins of the sick person, and then heals the illness because the most difficult illnesses mostly arise from sins, just as in the Gospel of John the Lord causes the illness of one paralytic from sins. This paralytic mentioned in John is not the same as the one mentioned now; on the contrary, they are two different people. For the one mentioned in John did not have a helping person, but the one who is present has four; the first was at the sheep's font, and this one was in the house; that one is in Jerusalem, and this one is in Capernaum. You can find other differences between them. But it must be said that the one mentioned in Matthew (chapter 9) and here in Mark are one and the same. Some of the scribes sat there and thought in their hearts: Why does He blaspheme so much? who can forgive sins except God alone? Jesus, immediately knowing in His spirit that they were thinking this way in themselves, said to them, “Why are you thinking this way in your hearts?” What's easier? Should I say to the paralytic: your sins are forgiven? go say: get up, take your bed and walk? But so that you may know that the Son of Man has power on earth to forgive sins, he says to the paralytic: I say to you, get up, take up your bed and go to your house. He immediately got up and, taking the bed, went out in front of everyone, so that everyone was amazed and glorified God, saying: we have never seen anything like this. The Pharisees accused the Lord of blasphemy for forgiving sins, since this belongs to God alone. But the Lord gave them another sign of His Divinity - knowledge of their hearts: because God alone knows everyone’s heart, just as the prophet says: “You alone know the heart of all” (2 Chron. 6:30; 3 Kings 8:39). Meanwhile, the Pharisees, although it was revealed by the Lord what was in their hearts, remain insensitive, and they do not yield to the one who knows their hearts so that He can heal their sins. Then the Lord, through healing the body, confirms that He also healed the soul, that is, through the obvious, He confirms the hidden and through the easiest, the most difficult, although it seemed otherwise to them. For the Pharisees considered healing the body, as a visible action, to be the most difficult, and healing the soul, as an invisible action, the easiest, and they reasoned as if like this: here is a deceiver who rejects the healing of the body as an obvious matter, and heals the invisible soul, saying: “ your sins are forgiven." If He really could heal, He would probably heal the body and not resort to the invisible. Therefore, the Savior, showing them that He can do both, says: what is easier to heal, the soul or the body? Without a doubt, the body; but it seems to you the opposite. So, I will heal the body, which is really easy, but only seems difficult to you, and thereby I will assure you of the healing of the soul, which is really difficult, and seems easy only because it is invisible and undeniable. Then he says to the paralytic: “Get up, take up your bed,” in order to further assure the reality of the miracle, that it was not dreamy, and at the same time show that He not only healed the sick man, but also gave him strength. This is what the Lord does with spiritual infirmities: he not only frees us from sins, but also gives us strength to fulfill the commandments. So, I, the paralytic, can be healed. For even now there is Christ in Capernaum, in the house of consolation, that is, in the Church, which is the house of the Comforter. I am relaxed because the powers of my soul are inactive and motionless for good; but when the four evangelists take me and bring me to the Lord, then I will hear His word: “child!” For I become the son of God through fulfilling the commandments, and my sins will be forgiven. But how will they bring me to Jesus? - Having broken the blood. What about shelter? The mind is the top of our being. On this roof there is a lot of earth and tiles, that is, earthly affairs; but when all this is thrown off, when the power of the mind is broken and freed from heaviness, when I then go down, that is, I humble myself (I should not ascend as a result of the relief of my mind, but after relief I am obliged to descend, that is, humble myself), then I will be healed and take my bed, that is, the body, exciting it to fulfill the commandments. For one must not only rise from sin and recognize one’s sin, but also take a bed, that is, a body, to do good. Then we can achieve contemplation, so that all our thoughts will say: “We have never seen anything like this,” that is, we have never had such understanding as we do now, having been healed from relaxation. He who is cleansed of sins truly sees. And Jesus went out again to the sea; and all the people went to Him, and He taught them. As He passed, He saw Levi Alpheus sitting at the toll collection, and said to him: Follow Me. And he got up and followed Him. And as Jesus reclined in his house, his disciples and many publicans and sinners reclined with him; for there were many of them, and they followed Him. The scribes and the Pharisee, seeing that He was eating with publicans and sinners, said to His disciples: How is it that He eats and drinks with tax collectors and sinners? Hearing this, Jesus said to them: It is not those who are healthy who need a doctor, but those who are sick; I came not to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance. After performing a miracle over the leper, the Lord went to the sea, probably seeking solitude, but the people again flocked to Him. Know that the more you avoid fame, it will chase you; and if you chase after her, she will run away from you. The Lord had just retired to the sea when the people again ran after Him. However, He left from here too, and caught Matthew on the way. Now called Levi in Mark is Matthew, since he had two names. Therefore, Luke and Mark, hiding his real name, call him Levi. But he himself is not ashamed; on the contrary, he openly speaks about himself: Jesus saw Matthew the publican (Matthew 9:9). So we will not be ashamed to reveal our sins. Levi sat at the collection of duties, doing, according to his duties, either collecting taxes from someone, or drawing up a report, or whatever else tax collectors usually did in their places of work. But now he turned out to be so zealous for Christ that, leaving everything, he followed Him and in great joy called many to dinner. And the Pharisees begin to blame the Lord, presenting themselves, of course, as pure people. But the Lord said to this: “I came to call not the righteous,” that is, you who justify yourself (he speaks in the form of mockery of them), “but sinners,” to call, however, not so that they remain sinners, but “ to repentance,” that is, so that they would turn. “To repentance,” he said, “so that you do not think that, calling sinners, He does not correct them at all.” The disciples of John and the Pharisees fasted. They come to Him and say: Why do the disciples of John and the Pharisees fast, but Your disciples do not fast? And Jesus said to them, “Can the sons of the bridal chamber fast while the bridegroom is with them?” As long as the bridegroom is with them, they cannot fast, but the days will come when the bridegroom is taken away from them, and then they will fast in those days. John's disciples, as still imperfect, adhered to Jewish customs. Therefore, some of those who came to Christ presented them as an example and blamed Him for the fact that His disciples did not fast equally with those. And He said to them: Now I, the Bridegroom, am with them, and therefore they should rejoice and not fast; but when I am taken from this life, then, being exposed to adversity, they will both fast and mourn. He calls Himself the “Bridegroom” not only because He betrothed virgin souls to Himself, but also because the time of His first coming is a time of no crying and grief for those who believe in Him, and not a difficult time, but one that calms us down with baptism without the works of the law. Indeed, what kind of work is it to be baptized? And yet in this easy task we find salvation. “The sons of the bridal chamber” are the apostles, because they were worthy of the joy of the Lord and became partakers of all heavenly blessings and consolation. You can also understand that every person, when he commits virtue, is “the son of the bridal chamber,” and as long as he has the Bridegroom-Christ with him, he does not fast, that is, he does not perform works of repentance; for why should one repent who does not fall? When the Bridegroom-Christ is taken away from him, when, that is, he falls into sin, then he begins to fast and repent in order to heal sin. No one puts patches of unbleached fabric on old clothes: otherwise the newly sewn garment will be torn away from the old one, and the hole will be even worse. No one puts new wine into old wineskins: otherwise the new wine will burst the skins, and the wine will flow out, and the skins will be lost; but new wine must be put into new wineskins. Just as an “unbleached”, that is, a new patch, due to its hardness, will only tear apart old clothes if it is sewn to it, and just as new wine, due to its strength, will burst old wineskins, so My disciples are not yet strong, and therefore, if we burden them, Through this we will harm them, since, due to the weakness of their minds, they are still like old clothes. So, one should not impose the heavy commandment of fasting on them. Or you can understand this way: Christ’s disciples, being already new people, cannot serve the old customs and laws. And it happened on the Sabbath that He passed through the sown fields, and His disciples began to pluck the ears of corn along the way. And the Pharisees said to Him: Look, what are they doing on the Sabbath that ought not to be done? He said to them: Have you never read what David did when he had need and was hungry, he and those who were with him? how did he enter the house of God in the presence of Abiathar the high priest and eat the showbread, which no one was to eat except the priests, and gave it to those with him? And he said to them, The Sabbath is for man, and not man for the Sabbath: therefore the Son of Man is lord of the Sabbath. The Lord's disciples pluck ears of corn, as if they were accustomed to live outside the law. When the Pharisees began to be indignant at this, Christ stopped their mouths, pointing to David, who out of necessity broke the law under the bishop Abiathar. Fleeing from Saul, the prophet David came to this bishop and deceived him, saying that he was sent by the king out of dire military necessity. Here he ate the showbread and took back the sword of Goliath, which he had once dedicated to God. There were twelve loaves of bread; They reclined at the table every day, six on the right side and six on the left side of the table. Some ask: why did the evangelist call the bishop Abiathar here, while the book of Kings calls him Ahimelech (1 Sam. 21)? We can say to this that the bishop had two names: Ahimelech and Abiathar. It can be explained differently, namely: the book of Kings speaks about the then priest Ahimelech, and the evangelist about Abiathar, the then bishop, and therefore their testimonies do not contradict one another. The priest at that time was Ahimelech, and Abiathar was then the bishop. In the highest sense, understand it this way: Christ’s disciples go on Saturday, that is, in peace of mind (Saturday means peace); therefore, when they have gained freedom from passions and from the attacks of demons, then they complete the journey, that is, they become guides to virtue for others, plucking and uprooting all earthly and low dreamy growths. For whoever does not first free himself from passions and adjust himself to a quiet way of life cannot guide others and be a leader for their good.
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