Homily 6

Acts 2:22-36

"Men of Israel, hear these words: Jesus of Nazareth, a Man attested by God to you by miracles, wonders, and signs which God did through Him in your midst, as you yourselves also know--

"Him, being delivered by the determined purpose and foreknowledge of God, you have taken by lawless hands, have crucified, and put to death;

"whom God raised up, having loosed the pains of death, because it was not possible that He should be held by it.

"For David says concening Him:

'I foresaw the Lord always before my face,
'For He is at my right hand, that I may not be shaken.

'Therefore my heart rejoiced, and my tongue was glad;
'Moreover my flesh also will rest in hope.

'For You will not leave my soul in Hades,
'Nor will You allow Your Holy One to see corruption.

'You have made known to me the ways of life;
You will make me full of joy in Your presence.'

"Men and brethren, let me speak freely to you of the patriarch David, that he is both dead and buried, and his tomb is with us to this day.

"Therefore being exalted to the right hand of God, and having received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, He poured out this which you now see and hear.

"For David did not ascend into the heavens, but he says himself:

'The Lord said to my Lord,
"Sit at My right hand,

"Till I make Your enemies Your footstool." '

"Therefore let all the house of Israel know assuredly that God has made Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Christ."

Me

Peter speaks directly to the Jews, saying that they have put Christ to death- point-blank saying "you have done this."

He looks back to the Psalms, showing that David could not have been speaking about himself because the Psalms speak of an incorruptible one, whereas the tomb of David is well-known. Therefore, says Peter, these Psalms are a prophecy about Christ.

Chrysostom

Chrysostom begins by pointing out the softness of Peter's speech-- he does not immediately proclaim the divinity of Christ Jesus, nor does he "say, 'Do as I bid you,' but, Hear; as being not at all exacting." (37) And Peter also claims the Jews as witnesses, saying that God wrought signs by Christ "in the midst of you." (38) Then he brings David in as another witness-- "an authority which sets aside all human reasoning." (39) "Now if he be David's Lord," says Chrysostom, "much more shall [the Jews] not disdain Him." (41)

Chrysostom moves on to a sermon about wrath and virtue:

God promises a Kingdom, and is despised: the Devil helps us to hell, and he is honored! (42)

The long-suffering and meek, he says, can quench the heat of a passionate man in a moment, faster even than "iron, made red-hot and dipped into water, so quickly parts with its heat." (43)

Nothing worse than anger, my beloved, nothing worse than unseasonable wrath... Many a time has a mere word been blurted out in anger, which needs for its curing a whole lifetime, and a deed has been done which was the ruin of the man for life. (43)

Homily Five

Acts 2:14-21

But Peter, standing up with the eleven, raised his voice and said to them, "Men of Judea and all who dwell in Jerusalem, let this be known to you, and heed my words.

"For these are not drunk, as you suppose, since it is only the third hour of the day.

"But this is what was spoken by the prophet Joel:

"And it shall come to pass in the last days, says God,
That I will pour out my Spirit on all flesh:
Your sons and your daughters shall prophesy,
Your young men shall see visions,
Your old men shall dream dreams.

"And on My menservants and on My maidservants
I will pour out My Spirit in those days;
And they shall prophesy.

"I will show wonders in heaven above
And signs in the earth beneath:
Blood and fire and vapor of smoke.

"The sun shall be turned into darkness,
And the moon into blood,
Before the coming of the reat and awesome day of the Lord.

"And it shall come to pass
That whoever calls on the name of the Lord
Shall be saved."

Me

Peter responsd to the accusations of drunkenness by explaining how this fulfilled a prophecy.

Chrysostom

Chrysostom notes how gently Peter replies to his detractors, saying "We are not drunk as you suppose" rather than "as you accuse."

He also notes that Peter does not first speak directly of Christ, but rather of the prophecy which can "fight its own battle."

The remainder of the sermon is speaking to Marcionism and to those who believe there is no hell-- it's popular to dislike those who lay down the law, but in the end this law is more necessary than parties are.

And Chrysostom reminds us that all are without excuse, that as far as India and Spain is Christ known.