Tell us, by what authority dost thou these things?

St Luke Chapter XX : Verses 1-8

Contents

• Luke xx. Verses 1-8.  Douay-Rheims (Challoner) text & Latin text (Vulgate)
• Douay-Rheims 1582 text
• Annotations based on the Great Commentary

Luke xx. Verses 1-8.

The baptism of John, was it from heaven, or of men?
J-J Tissot. brooklyn Museum.

1 And it came to pass, that on one of the days, as he was teaching the people in the temple, and preaching the gospel, the chief priests and the scribes, with the ancients, met together,

Et factum est in una dierum, docente illo populum in templo, et evangelizante, convenerunt principes sacerdotum, et scribæ cum senioribus,

2 And spoke to him, saying: Tell us, by what authority dost thou these things? or, Who is he that hath given thee this authority?

et aiunt dicentes ad illum : Dic nobis in qua potestate haec facis? aut quis est qui dedit tibi hanc potestatem?

3 And Jesus answering, said to them: I will also ask you one thing. Answer me:

Respondens autem Jesus, dixit ad illos : Interrogabo vos et ego unum verbum. Respondete mihi :

4 The baptism of John, was it from heaven, or of men?

baptismus Joannis de cælo erat, an ex hominibus?

5 But they thought within themselves, saying: If we shall say, From heaven: he will say: Why then did you not believe him?

At illi cogitabant intra se, dicentes : Quia si dixerimus : De cælo, dicet : Quare ergo non credidistis illi?

6 But if we say, Of men, the whole people will stone us: for they are persuaded that John was a prophet.

Si autem dixerimus : Ex hominibus, plebs universa lapidabit nos : certi sunt enim Joannem prophetam esse.

7 And they answered, that they knew not whence it was.

Et responderunt se nescire unde esset.

8 And Jesus said to them: Neither do I tell thee by what authority I do these things.

Et Jesus ait illis : Neque ego dico vobis in qua potestate hæc facio.

Douay-Rheims : 1582 text

1. AND it came to paſſe in one of the daies, when he was teaching the people in the Temple & euangelizing, the cheefe Prieſts & the Scribes with the Ancients aſſembled,

2. and ſpake ſaying to him, Tel vs, in what power doeſt theſe things? or, who is he that hath giuen thee this power?
3. And IESVS anſwering, ſaid to them: I also wil aſke you one word. Answer me,
4. The Baptiſme of Iohn was it from Heauen, or of men?
5. But they thought within themſelues, ſaying: That if we say, From Heauen, he wil ſay: Why then did you not beleeue him?
6. But if we ſay, of men, the whole people wil ſtone vs: for they are certaine that Iohn is a Prophet.
7. And they anſwered that they knew not whence it was.
8. And IESVS ſaid to them: Neither doe I tel you in what power I doe theſe things.

 

Annotations

[Taken from the Great Commentary on Chapter xxi of St Matthew's Gospel concerning the same exchange. The verse numbers of St Luke's Gospel have been inserted.]

    2.  Tell us, by what authority dost thou these things? or, Who is he that hath given thee this authority? By what power (Vulg.), Greek, ἐξουσίᾳ, i.e., authority; meaning, “Who gave Thee right and authority to teach in the Temple? to cast out of it the buyers and sellers? and to call the people together to acclaim thee by Hosanna as the Teacher and the Messiah?

    3. And Jesus answering, said to them: I will also ask you one thing, which if ye tell me, I in like wise will tell you by what authority I do these things. It is commonly said, He does not put an end to a suit who resolves a suit by a suit. For thus dishonest lawyers, when they have no faith in their cause, get up another cause and lawsuit, so that they may quibble and escape condemnation. So also when the heretics cannot reply to the arguments of Catholics, they bring forward other arguments, so as to find a way of escape from their heresy and ignorance. But Christ does not here act so, but he proposes another question, on the solution of which depended the answer to the question proposed by the Scribes. Thus—“Ye do not believe Me when I say that I have received power from God, believe then John the Baptist who bare witness to Me, that I have been sent by God to do these things.”

    4. The baptism of John, was it from heaven, or of men? By the baptism of John, Christ means his testimony, doctrine, and the whole of his preaching concerning Him. There is a synecdoche. This is Christ’s argument, bearing upon the Scribes with irresistible force. Thus, “Ye ask, from whence I have power—from God or from men? I, in reply, ask you, from whom had John power to preach and baptize—from God or from men? If he had that authority from God, as all allow, then have I the same authority from God. For this was the witness which John gave of Me, teaching that he was the servant, but I the Messiah, the Son of God. And this he did when ye sent messengers to him expressly about this very thing, to ask him if he were the Messias.” (John i. 20, 26, 27.)

    from Heaven, come from God. Where observe: The Hebrews by metonyme, by which that which holds is put for what is held, call God שמים, Scamaim, i.e., Heaven. The Greek poets, following this usage, called the father of Saturn οὔρανον, and the Latins, cœlum. Thus Caninius (de nomin. Hebrœis, c. 2). Hence the Jews worshipped Heaven and the stars as God. Hence Christians who apostatized from Christianity to Judaism were formerly called cœlicolæ, against whom there are extant rescripts of the emperors Theodosius and Honorius (lib. 18, de Judœis et cœlicolis). See Baronius, A.D. 408. Hence also the poet sings of the Jews—

    “They adore shining clouds and the divinity of Heaven.”

    For the Heaven by its immensity, beauty, motion, adornment, and influx, carries every one away with admiration of it. “Whence Heaven” (cœlum), says Sipontius, “is so called because it is, as it were, sculptured (cœlatum) with stars and constellations.” But Varro (lib. 4, de linguâ Latinâ) derives it from κοίλος, i.e., hollow, because it embraces all created things in its cavity. Hence God is, as it were, the Atlas of Heaven and earth, of whom Virgil says (lib. 6, Æn.)—

“Where Heaven-bearing Atlas turns round the Heaven,

Furnished with burning stars upon his shoulders.”

    Wherefore many nations have worshipped Heaven as a god. As Cicero (lib. 2, de Divinat.) says, “I have always said, and I will say, that the race of the gods belongs to Heaven.” The same (in Somnio Scipionis) says, “And I give thanks to thee, O highest sun, and to you the rest of the heavenly ones.” And Pliny (lib. 7, cap. 33) says, “Divinity and a certain most noble association of women from Heaven was in the Sibyl.” Hear also S. Augustine (lib. x. de Civit, cap. 1), “And they call the gods themselves cœlicolœ, for no other reason than that they inhabit (colant) Heaven, not, indeed, worshipping, but inhabiting—as it were, colonists (coloni) of Heaven.” Lastly, Heaven is the throne of God, and the seat of His majesty and glory, as well as of the holy angels and beatified men.

    Learn from hence to be ambitious of Heaven, to sigh after Heaven, to despise the earth and earthly things, and to say with our S. Ignatius, “How mean to me is the earth when I look at Heaven.” For he who seeks Heaven, seeks paradise, happiness, a blessed eternity—he desires the God of Heaven. “O Israel, how great is the house of God, and vast the place of His possession!” (Baruch iii. 24. See the passage.)

    5. But they thought within themselves, saying:  Greek, διελογίζοντο, i.e., they thought and conferred among themselves, deliberating what to answer Christ, being anxious and perplexed.

    If we shall say, From heaven: he will say: Why then did you not believe him? 6. But if we say, Of men, the whole people will stone us: for they are persuaded that John was a prophet. Wherefore did ye not believe him, declaring Me to be Messiah, and persuading you to prepare by repentance for My grace and salvation? We fear the multitude, understand, lest they should stone us, for all held John to be a true and a great prophet, and therefore sent by God. For a prophet is the ambassador, seer, and interpreter of God. Thus it is said of Christ (John i.), “We saw His glory, the glory as of the Only Begotten of the Father,” where as denotes reality, not similitude. Meaning, “We saw the glory of Him, as verily the Only Begotten Son of God, or, of Him who was the true and Only Begotten of God.”

    7. And they answered Jesus and said, We know not. They lie; for they had seen the life of John, as well as his most holy and divine preaching, sealed by his death and martyrdom for the sake of chastity. But dishonesty would rather lie than be convicted of falsehood and convinced of dishonesty.

    8. And Jesus said to them: Neither do I tell thee by what authority I do these things. It means, “Ye are not willing to answer My question, wherefore neither will I answer yours, because the solution of yours depends upon Mine. But ye say that ye do not know it, and ye lie. I say that I know, but am unwilling to say; and I speak the truth, that I may confound and put down your insolence.” For by this answer Christ stopped the mouth of the Scribes, so that they were as silent as mice, nor did they dare again to open their lips. Whence S. Jerome says: “He showed that they knew, but would not answer, and that He knew, and did not answer, because they kept back what they knew.

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The Vladimirskaya Icon. >12th century.

SUB tuum præsidium confugimus, Sancta Dei Genitrix. Nostras deprecationes ne despicias in necessitatibus, sed a periculis cunctis libera nos semper, Virgo gloriosa et benedicta. Amen.

 

 

Totus tuus ego sum

Et omnia mea tua sunt;

Tecum semper tutus sum:

Ad Jesum per Mariam.