CHAPTER TEN
CHAPTER TEN
10:1 N« there was a certain man in Caesarea by the name of Cornelius, and so forth. One does not attain faith by virtues, but rather one attains virtues by faith, as the blessed Pope Gregory explains.' Cornelius, he says, whose almsdeeds before his baptism were praised by an angelic witness,? did not come to faith by works, but came to works by faith. For if he had not believed in the true God even before his baptism, to whom was he praying? > Or how had almighty God heard this man, tif it was not that he had been asking to be perfected in the good by this very God? Therefore he knew
God as the creator of all things, but he did not know that the all-powerful Son had become flesh. He had faith, this man whose prayers and almsdeeds were able to please
[God], and by his good deeds he earned the right to know God perfectly and to believe in the mystery of the incarnation of his Only-begotten, so that he might approach the sacrament of baptism. Therefore, through faith he came to works, yet through works he was strengthened in faith.
10:3
About the ninth hour of the day he saw clearly in a vision, and so forth. It is fitting that it was at the ninth hour that he received the divine message concerning the baptism he was to ask for, since he was to be baptized in the death of the one who sent forth his spirit at the ninth hour.
10:5
And now send men to Jaffa. When, upon the 1. Greg., Hom. in Ezk. 2, 7, 9 (CC 142:322, 264-323, 280).
2. Ac 10:3-4.
3. Ac 10:2.
4. Mt 27:46.
Chapter Ten acceptance of his almsdeeds and prayers,*° the order was given for the summoning of the teacher of salvation, a sign was clearly given that by his almsdeeds and prayers he should seek full knowledge of his salvation from the Lord.
10:7
He called two of his domestic servants and a soldier who feared the Lord. Cornelius sent three people to Peter because the gentile world, which was to come to believe in the faith of the apostles, had subjugated Europe,
Asia, and Africa, which were to be taken over partly by military zeal (that is, by urgent preaching), and partly by domestic business dealings. Note also that one soldier and two domestic servants were sent, for among the members of the church, the greater their strength, the fewer you will find. There are more who know how to hear the word than those who know how to speak it.
10:9a Peter went up to the upper part [of the house].
This signifies that when the church has left behind earthly desires she will have her way of life!* in heaven.
10:96
So that he might pray, at about the sixth hour.
At the sixth hour, in the midst of his prayer, Peter became hungry—hungry indeed for the salvation of the world, which in the sixth age the Lord had come to seek and to save.° He [Christ] himself also wished to indicate this when, at the same hour of the day, he became thirsty at the Samaritan well.'
10:1la_ And [he saw] a certain vessel coming down like a great linen sheet. This vessel signifies the church, endowed with an incorruptible faith, for a moth, which corrupts other cloth, does not consume linen. Therefore, whoever wishes to be part of the mystery of the catholic church should root out from his heart the corruption of 5. Ac 10:4.
6. Arat., De act. ap. 1 (CSEL 72:65, 881/883).
7. Jn 4:5-7.
Chapter Ten
evil thoughts, and in this way he may be incorruptibly strengthened in faith, so that he will not be consumed by berverse thoughts, like moths, in his mind.® Alternatively, the moth is a heretic, wishing to corrupt the Lord's robe, but unable to do so because the Lord does not permit it.
This is also prefigured by the Lord's tunic, which the soldiers did not presume to tear.?
10:11b Lowered by its four corners from heaven to earth. The four corners by which the linen sheet hangs down designate the four regions of the world to which the church extends,!° for she is the city of our God upon his holy mountain, spreading sounds of joy to every land.
[That the sheet] is lowered from heaven indicates that she will be preserved as well as increased only by the grace of the Holy Spirit coming upon her. Hence John says in the Apocalypse, I saw the holy city, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God.'? Also, the four corners may be figures of the evangelists, through whom the church is nourished and exalted with heavenly gifts.
10:12
In it were all the four-footed beasts and the serpents of the earth, and the winged creatures of the sky. These animals are all the nations, unclean in their error, but cleansed by a threefold lowering,!> that is, by the mystery of the holy Trinity in baptism. Leaving behind the form of man, they take on the shapes of beasts and serpents.
Hence, because of his treacherous and wicked character, it is said of Herod, Go and say to that fox;'4 and the Pharisees are referred to as a brood of vipers.'> Of the lustful it is said, Horses made mad for their mares,' of the shameless, Do not give what is holy to dogs,'' and of the 8. Aug., Serm. 149, 5, 6, and 8, 9 (PL 38:802; 803).
9. Jn 19:23-24.
10. Aug., Serm. 149, 5, 6 (PL 38:802); Arat., De act. ap. 1 (CSEL 72:66, 904/906).
11. Ps 48:1-2 (47:2).
12. Rv 21:2.
13. Ac 10:16.
14. Lk 13:32.
15. Mt 3:7.
16. Jr 5:8.
17. Mt 7:6.
Chapter Ten voluptuous, Do not cast your pearls before swine.'® Of those who are proud and at the same time treacherous it is said, The foxes have dens and the birds of the air have nests.'° And of all people in general it is said, And man, when he was held in esteem (that is, made in the image of God), did not understand; he was like foolish cattle.?°
Solomon, however, shows man as he truly is, that is, uncorrupted, when he says, Fear God and keep his commandments, for this ts all there is to man.?!
10:13
Arise, Peter. Kill and eat. It [the voice that Peter heard] told him: Arise to make ready to preach the gospel.
Kill in the gentiles what they had been, and make [them] what you are; for whoever eats food lying outside of himself turns it into his own body. Therefore it [the voice] taught that the nations, which had formerly lain outside through their lack of belief, would, once their former life had been put to death, be incorporated within the society of the church. This Peter indicates, just as the apostle Paul said of himself: Through the law I have died to the law that I may live to God in Christ.?? And again, It is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me.23 Indeed, those who are taken in by heretics are as though devoured by death while they are still alive.
10:14
For I have never eaten anything common or unclean. The Jewish people, priding themselves on being
God's portion, called foods which all people use 'common': for example, the flesh of swine, the oyster, the hare, and the kind of animals which do not have cloven hoofs or which do not chew the cud; and among the fish, those which are not covered with scales.?4 'Unclean' foods is used to refer to the flesh of beasts or reptiles which are not edible by any mortals.
18. Ibid.
19. Mt 8:20.
20. Ps 49:12 (48:13).
21. Qo 12:13.
22) Ga2st9.
23. Ga 2:20.
24. Jer., Comm. in Mt. 2, 15, 11 (CC 77:128, 1447-129, 1451); Lv 11:2-8; Dt 14:3-20.
Chapter Ten
10:16a Now this happened three times.
For the mystery of the holy Trinity was to be preached throughout the four regions of the world by the twelve apostles.?5 It is for this reason that four linen cords were let down from heaven three times. Or, as it is interpreted by the blessed
Ambrose,"° The third repetition of the figure expressed the operation of the Trinity. And so in the mysteries2* a threefold question is put and a three-fold confirmation is proclaimed. Nor can anyone be purified except by a threefold confession. Hence in the gospel Peter himself was asked three times whether he loved the Lord,?' so that his threefold response might loose the bonds with which he had bound himself by denying the Lord. These things shown to Peter were very appropriate to the situation, since the gentile Cornelius appealed to him to show him that he should not hesitate to entrust the Christian faith to the uncircumcised.3* For he was from among those living things shown in the evangelical vessel.?® Hence it was confirmed by the Holy Spirit that he should act in the same way.
10:16b And immediately the vessel was taken up into heaven. After the three-fold lowering the vessel was taken up to heaven, since after the affairs?? of this world, through which the church travels as a pilgrim who has been cleansed by faith and baptism, there then follows a happy and everlasting heavenly dwelling.
10:19
The Spirit said to him [Peter], 'Behold, three men are looking for you.' It was in his mind that he heard this from the Spirit, not by way of his physical ear.
10:20
Arise, therefore, and descend and go with them. He was ordered to descend from the roof and to go
25. Aug., Serm. 149, 9, 10 (PL 38:803).
26. Ambr., De spir. sancto 2, 10, 105 (CSEL 79:127, 40/46).
27. Jn 21:15-17.
28. The vessel of Ac 10:11.
29. 'affairs': conversationem.
Chapter Ten to preach in order to show that the church should not only watch for the Lord by climbing to the heights, but, returning to the active life as if rising from her bed, she should preach this same Lord to all the lowliest and to those still situated outside, as it were, but [who are] nevertheless knocking at the door of Simon, that is, at the door of obedience.3° As the Lord said, You will see heaven opened and the angels of God ascending and descending upon the Son of Man.3' It is well that it is mentioned that Peter's house was situated by the seashore,*? for the sea designates the wave-tossed tumults and frenzies of the world, where greedy men pursue and devour each other like voracious fish. The saints' way of life is in heaven,*> and although the earthly house in which they dwell may be destroyed, they have a building from God, an eternal house in heaven not made by human hands. +4 10:21
Behold, Iam the one you are looking for. What is the reason for your coming? The Spirit told the soldiers to visit [Peter], and concerning the cause of their coming he [the Spirit] was silent, because in order to preserve the humility of the human mind, at times the spirit of prophecy partly touches the soul and partly does not.35
10:25
And it happened that when Peter entered, Cornelius met him and, falling at his feet, made obeisance.
By the posture of his body Cornelius demonstrated what devotion he had within his heart. He came as a pupil to meet his teacher, and full of zeal, with pure heart, attentive ears, and eager desire, he received the word of faith. Now one who is slowly dragged to belief is as though raised up from a prone position by his teacher. However, one who, out of shame for the stains of his life, shows signs of humility
30. Jer., De nom. Hebr. (CC 72:148, 4).
ikejnels5 i 32. Ac 10:6.
33. Ph 3:20.
34.2 Co 5:1.
35. Greg., Hom. in Ezk. 1, 1, 11-12 (CC 142:10, 210/213).
Chapter Ten
and of shame at once by falling prostrate on his face justly deserves to be raised up by his master.
10:26
But Peter raised him up, saying, 'Arise, I myself am also a man.' The holiness of his action merited mutual equality. On the other hand, in the [case of the] guilt of Ananias and Saphira his [Peter's] zeal for vengeance revealed his prerogative of power.%¢ 10:28
God has revealed to me that I should call no one common or unclean. Surely he revealed this at the time when the angelic voice cried out, What God has made clean you should not call common.37
10:30
Three days ago at this very hour I was praying at the ninth hour in my house, and behold, a man stood before me, and so forth.** In the Greek, and in some
Latin manuscripts, it is written thus.3® Three days ago at this very hour I was fasting and worshipping from the sixth hour to the ninth, and behold, a man, and so forth. And it was very fitting that his prayer was heard, since he persevered in the earnestness of his prayer for three hours, extending it from the sixth hour to the ninth—the time at which the Lord himself, whom he entreated, was praying, with his hands stretched out upon the cross, for the salvation of the whole world.%?
10:36
He sent his word to the children of Israel, announcing peace through Jesus Christ, who is Lord of all. He says: It is clear that God is no respecter of persons,*° for he sent his only-begotten Son, who is the Lord and creator of all, to make peace with the human race. In his name, as the prophets bore witness, not only the Jews, but all who believe, may receive forgiveness of sins.
10:37
You know the account of what took place 36. Ac 5:4.
37. Ac 10:15.
38. e.
39. Mt 27:45-46.
40. Ac 10:34.
Chapter Ten through all of Judaea, and so forth. He sums up briefly everything said in the creed: that Jesus is the christ, that he is Lord of all, that he was sent to reconcile the world to God, that he was announced by John's voice, that he was anointed by the Holy Spirit, that he was declared through miracles to be abiding in God, that he was crucified and raised from the dead and was manifested to his own, that he will come at the end as the judge of all, and also that through faith he will extend his church throughout the whole world.
10:38a How God anointed him with the Holy Spirit and with power. Another text'! says: Inasmuch as God anointed him. John preached Jesus inasmuch as God anointed him with the Holy Spirit at the time when he said,
He will baptize you in the Holy Spirit;*? and again, I saw the Spirit descending as a dove upon him.*> Jesus was anointed not with oil, but with the gift of grace, which is signified by the visible oil with which the church anoints those who are baptized. Yet, Christ was not anointed with the Holy Spirit at the time when it descended as a dove upon him at his baptism, for at that time he condescended to prefigure his body, that is, his church, in which the baptized principally receive the Holy Spirit. Rather he must be understood to have been anointed with a mystical and invisible anointing when the Word of God was made flesh, that is, when human nature, without any preceding merits from good works, was joined to God the Word in the womb of the Virgin, so as to become one person with him. Because of this we confess that he was born of the Holy Spirit and of the virgin Mary.*4 10:38b For God was with him. That is, the Father was with the Son, for it is better to understand it in this way
41. e.
42. Mt 3:11.
43. Jn 1:32.
44, Aug., De trin. 15, 26 (CC 50A:526, 49-527, 60).
Chapter Ten
than as signifying that the Son's divinity dwelt together with the human nature which he assumed, lest we seem to double
Christ's person and fall into the teaching of Nestorius.5* 10:41 [He was seen] by us who ate and drank with him after he rose from the dead. Blessed Peter here explains what was not stated in the gospel,®* namely that after the resurrection he had drunk with the Lord—unless perhaps we should believe that this was referred to in the place where he [Christ] said, Until I drink of it [the fruit of the vine] anew with you in the house of my Father.*5
10:44
The Holy Spirit fell down upon everyone who was listening to his message. Lest there might be any hesitation about conferring baptism upon the gentiles, support was supplied by the testimony of the Holy Spirit, who in an unexpected sequence of events acted in advance of the waters of the baptismal bath, which are ordinarily the means of sanctification.** This is reported to have happened once in testimony to the faith of the gentiles, but never in the case of the Jews.
10:48
And he [Peter] ordered them to be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ. Since the rule of the church is that the faithful are baptized in the name of the holy Trinity, a question arises as to how it is that in the whole text of this book Luke bears witness to the giving of baptism only in the name of Jesus Christ. The blessed Ambrose resolves this question as follows:47 Through the unity of the name the mystery is completed. If you say 'Christ,' you have designated at the same time God the Father, by whom the Son was anointed, and the Son who was himself anointed, and the Spirit with whom he was anointed, for it is written, Jesus of Nazareth, how God anointed him
45. Mt 26:29.
46. Ac 10:45-47.
47. Ambr., De spir. sancto 1, 3, 43-45 (CSEL 79:32, 55-33, 74).
Chapter Ten with the Holy Spirit. '48 If you say, 'the Father,' you also indicate at the same time his Son and the Spirit of his mouth (if, moreover, you also comprehend this in your heart). And if you say, 'the Spirit,' you have also named
God the Father, from whom the Spirit proceeds, and also the Son, because the Spirit is also the Son's. Hence, as authority may be joined to reason, scripture indicates that we can also properly be baptized in the Spirit when it says,
'But you will be baptized in the Holy Spirit.'*9 And the apostle says, 'For in one body we were all baptized into one Spirit. °° According to another way of looking at the question, it is particularly appropriate for us to be baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, since, as the apostle says, All of us who have been baptized in Christ Jesus have been baptized in his death,*' and so forth.
48. Ac 10:38.
49. Ac 1:5.
DOs IW Com233:
51. Rm 6:3.
NOTES TO CHAPTER TEN
1. 'Way of life': conversationem. See note 3 to ch. 1.
2. As its context makes clear, the word 'mysteries' as used by Saint Ambrose refers to baptism.
3. 'To the uncircumcised': Laistner's text reads in circumcisis, which would demand the translation 'to the circumcised.' The context, however, clearly demands 'to the uncircumcised.' In Laistner's 1939 text (48, 12/13), in occurs at the end of a line, suggesting that a hyphen was omitted by the printer and this error was incorporated in (CC 121:51, 94). Migne's edition reads incircumcisis (PL 92:968B).
4. In the Retr. on this verse (CC 121:141, 44/52), Bede again gives the Greek reading, observing that it is 'fuller and clearer' than the Latin because it makes plain that Cornelius not only was praying three days ago, but that in fact he had been fasting and praying daily for four days, from the sixth hour to the ninth, and that he therefore deserved to obtain what he sought so insistently.
5. See note 4 to ch. 3.
6. Bede apparently refers to the fact that in Luke's postresurrection account reference is made only to Christ's eating with his disciples, not to his drinking with them (Lk 24:30, 42).