I will open My mouth in parables; I will utter things kept secret from the foundation of the world

 

 Another parable He put forth to them, saying:  "The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, which a man took and sowed in his field, which indeed is the least of all the seeds; but when it is grown it is greater than the herbs and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and nest in its branches." 

 

Another parable He spoke to them:  "The kingdom of heaven is like leaven, which a woman took and hid in three measures of meal till it was all leavened."  

 

All these things Jesus spoke to the multitude in parables; and without a parable He did not speak to them, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet, saying:

"I will open My mouth in parables;

I will utter things kept secret from the foundation of the world." 

 

- Matthew 13:31–35 

  

In yesterday's reading, Jesus gave the parable of the wheat and the tares (weeds):  Another parable He put forth to them, saying:  "The kingdom of heaven is like a man who sowed good seed in his field; but while men slept, his enemy came and sowed tares among the wheat and went his way.  But when the grain had sprouted and produced a crop, then the tares also appeared. So the servants of the owner came and said to him, 'Sir, did you not sow good seed in your field?  How then does it have tares?'  He said to them, 'An enemy has done this.'  The servants said to him, 'Do you want us then to go and gather them up?'  But he said, 'No, lest while you gather up the tares you also uproot the wheat with them.  Let both grow together until the harvest, and at the time of harvest I will say to the reapers, "First gather together the tares and bind them in bundles to burn them, but gather the wheat into my barn."'"

 

  Another parable He put forth to them, saying:  "The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, which a man took and sowed in his field, which indeed is the least of all the seeds; but when it is grown it is greater than the herbs and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and nest in its branches."  Another parable He spoke to them:  "The kingdom of heaven is like leaven, which a woman took and hid in three measures of meal till it was all leavened."  My study Bible cites the commentary of Theophylact, who writes that the mustard seed and the leaven represent the disciples.  For they began as just a few men, but "soon encompassed the whole earth."  They also stand for faith entering a person's soul, which then causes an inward growth of virtue.  This soul will become god-like and can receive even angels (the birds of the air come and nest in its branches).  

 

 All these things Jesus spoke to the multitude in parables; and without a parable He did not speak to them, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet, saying:  "I will open My mouth in parables; I will utter things kept secret from the foundation of the world."  This quotation is from Psalm 78:2.  For an elaboration on the reason Jesus speaks in parables, see this reading.  

 

 The two very simple parables that Jesus gives in today's reading give us yet more dimensions (so to speak) in which the kingdom of heaven works in our world.  The first, the parable of the Mustard Seed, tells us a story of explosive and surprising growth, leading to developments which are unanticipated from such a small -- even tiny -- beginning.  The mustard seed is unassuming, humble, almost infinitesimal in its smallness.  And yet, the growth that comes from it is towering, as far as plants go; it even spreads enough and grows enough so that it can support other life:  the birds of the air who may take shelter in its branches.  We shouldn't forget that Jesus has already spoken of Himself as the Sower, and so this very tiny little seed is also part of the word of God.  It grows seemingly exponentially, in Jesus' description of the resulting tree-like herb.  The parable of the Leaven describes a different kind of growth.  This growth is not exterior and not exponential.  Rather it is an interior growth.  It describes an enzyme-like movement that entirely changes a substance into something other than what it was.  Elsewhere my study Bible comments that this is a rare instance in Scripture in which leaven is used as a positive influence.  Most often, leaven is used as an adulterating substance, that disturbs the purity of something.  But Jesus uses it positively here, to teach us about the work of the kingdom of heaven within us, and within our families and communities, extending even to to nations and to the world.  Similarly to the metaphors of salt and light to Christians within communities and in the world, leaven as metaphor for the kingdom of heaven gives us an image of even greater depth of influence and transformation.  It teaches us about the kind of change wrought by the presence of the kingdom of God within us, and the presence of the Holy Spirit.  We are meant to be transformed, transfigured.  Even as Christ Himself was transfigured (Luke 17:1-2), we are given an image of the presence of the kingdom of God and its work within us and in our world.  However, as the very act of Christ choosing to speak in parables indicates, these effects also depend on faith, on our capacity for hearing and seeing and recognizing the precious value of the things He offers.  So much depends upon our hearts and our desires as well, a synergy that also depends upon our "yes" as well, our cooperation.  In today's reading, Jesus speaks of small things, easily overlooked, which have a great impact.  Perhaps in them is illustrated the question:  "For who has despised the day of small things?" (Zechariah 4:10).  St. Matthew tells us that by speaking in parables, Jesus fulfills the words of the psalmist, whom he calls a prophet, "I will open My mouth in parables; I will utter things kept secret from the foundation of the world."  All this work of the kingdom of heaven is hidden, secret.  But it takes those with the eyes and ears to perceive and to know its working within us and among us.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I will open My mouth in parables; I will utter things kept secret from the foundation of the world

 

 Another parable He put forth to them, saying:  "The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, which a man took and sowed in his field, which indeed is the least of all the seeds; but when it is grown it is greater than the herbs and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and nest in its branches." Another parable He spoke to them:  "The kingdom of heaven is like leaven, which a woman took and hid in three measures of meal till it was all leavened.  All these things Jesus spoke to the multitude in parables; and without a parable He did not speak to them, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet, saying:

    "I will open My mouth in parables;

    I will utter things kept secret from the foundation of the world."

 

- Matthew 13:31-35 

 

In Matthew's chapter 13, Jesus begins preaching to the crowds in parables, beginning with the parable of the Sower (see Tuesday's reading).  Yesterday we read that Jesus taught another parable, saying:  "The kingdom of heaven is like a man who sowed good seed in his field; but while men slept, his enemy came and sowed tares among the wheat and went his way.  But when the grain had sprouted and produced a crop, then the tares also appeared.  So the servants of the owner came and said to him, 'Sir, did you not sow good seed in your field?  How then does it have tares?'  He said to them, 'An enemy has done this.'  The servants said to him, 'Do you want us then to go and gather them up?'  But he said, 'No, lest while you gather up the tares you also uproot the wheat with them.  Let both grow together until the harvest, and at the time of the harvest I will say to the reapers, "First gather together the tares and bind them in bundles to burn them, but gather the wheat into my barn."'"

 

Another parable He put forth to them, saying:  "The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, which a man took and sowed in his field, which indeed is the least of all the seeds; but when it is grown it is greater than the herbs and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and nest in its branches." Another parable He spoke to them:  "The kingdom of heaven is like leaven, which a woman took and hid in three measures of meal till it was all leavened.  All these things Jesus spoke to the multitude in parables; and without a parable He did not speak to them, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet, saying:  "I will open My mouth in parables; I will utter things kept secret from the foundation of the world."  My study Bible claims that the mustard seed and the leaven represent the disciples who, according to Theophylact, began as just a few men, but "soon encompassed the whole earth."  They also stand for faith which enters a person's soul, and causes an inward growth of virtue.  This soul can become godlike, and can receive even angels.  Christ quotes from Psalm 78:2; see also Romans 16:25-26; 1 Corinthians 2:7; Ephesians 3:9; Colossians 1:26.

Christ's parables today speak of an explosive growth, something that grows strangely and mysteriously, without obvious explanation.  Of course, ancient people understood leaven and how it worked and what it did.  Ancient people understood that their lives were dependent upon tiny seeds, which could grow crops for sustenance and survival.  Today we have science which studies these kinds of natural phenomena and can explain the processes in scientific terms and how they work.  But the mystery still remains:  Who created these things?  Who planned such work?  Who programmed this kind of growth?  And growth remains mysterious, and something to marvel at.  But for the parables, we're being given a word-picture that corresponds to something Jesus is teaching us about.  What is the subject here?  Jesus tells us that when He begins each parable with the phrase, "The kingdom of heaven is like . . .."  He's teaching us about this mysterious thing He's been preaching all along, the kingdom of heaven.  For His preaching is all about the gospel of the Kingdom.  So, it's our job to ask, then, how is the kingdom of heaven like leaven?  How is it like a mustard seed?  Can we see it grow?  How do we know it's growing?  And in both cases, it's just like the examples He's given.  It's mysterious.  A mystery is literally something that is hidden or secret.  It's not something that comes with observation, as Jesus will also say of the kingdom of God.  In Luke 17:20-21, Jesus says to the Pharisees who demand answers, "The kingdom of God does not come with observation; nor will they say, 'See here!' or 'See there!' For indeed, the kingdom of God is within you."  So we find also this mysterious reality that doesn't come with observation, scientific or otherwise.  To add the mysterious quality, we can understand Christ's words in the passage from Luke to mean that the Kingdom is both "within you" and "among you."  The truth is that, like so much of Scripture, it is not a choice to debate; both meanings apply and must remain.  These "riddles" or "allegories" of both leaven and the mustard seed tell us about  what happens in communities and in the world, and also about what happens within human beings to produce fruit of the Spirit, such as those St. Paul names in Galatians 5:22-23:  "But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control.  Against such there is no law."  This is what we look for within ourselves, and hopefully as characteristics of our community.  It is within such a community or such a person that one may find that even "the birds of the air come and nest in its branches" -- that the angels may be drawn and dwell with such a person and within such a community, leading us to yet more growth of this mysterious community.  So when we come across such parables, we are assured that we should not be surprised by the things we see within our communities and within ourselves, and if those things we see reveal this fruit of the Spirit, and expressions of such, then we should know that this is the way this mysterious Kingdom works and grows:  from within like the leaven that leavens the whole lump, and also as a kind of organic growth and expansion like the mustard seed.  These are the signs of the presence of Christ's Kingdom.  Do you find that you change and grow, so that people wonder at how different a person you've grown through your faith?  Are there good things that come out of a community, like love and care for one another, services to help those who need it, love and companionship for those who otherwise lack and need such?   Do you find that a love of the word grows in you, or a love of God, or a capacity for charity to others?  These are the parables we must consider, and we mustn't be surprised, for this is the gospel of the kingdom of heaven.  These things "kept secret from the foundation of the world" are within us and among us, though "the world" may not understand.

 

 

To what shall we liken the kingdom of God? Or with what parable shall we picture it?

 

 Also He said to them, "Is a lamp brought to be put under a basket or under a bed?  Is it not to be set on a lampstand?  For there is nothing hidden which will not be revealed, nor has anything been kept secret but that it should come to light.  If anyone has ears to hear, let him hear."  

 

Then He said to them, "Take heed what you hear.  With the same measure you use, it will be measured to you; and to you who hear, more will be given.  For whoever has, to him more will be given; but whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken away from him."

And He said, "The kingdom of God is as if a man should scatter seed on the ground, and should sleep by night and rise by day, and the seed should sprout and grow, he himself does not know how.  For the earth yields crops by itself:  first the blade, then the head, after that the full grain in the head.  But when the grain ripens, immediately he puts in the sickle, because the harvest has come."

Then He said, "To what shall we liken the kingdom of God?  Or with what parable shall we picture it?  It is like a mustard seed which, when it is sown on the ground, is smaller than all the seeds on earth; but when it is sown, it grows up and becomes greater than all herbs, and shoots out large branches, so that the birds of the air may nest under its shade."  

 

And with many such parables He spoke the word to them as they were able to hear it.  But without a parable He did not speak to them.  And when they were alone, He explained all things to His disciples. 

 

- Mark 4:21-34 

 

Yesterday we read that again Jesus began to teach by the sea.  And a great multitude was gathered to Him, so that He got into a boat and sat in it on the sea; and the whole multitude was on the land facing the sea.  Then He taught them many things by parables, and said to them in His teaching:  "Listen!  Behold, a sower went out to sow.  And it happened, as he sowed, that some seed fell by the wayside; and the birds of the air came and devoured it.  Some fell on stony ground, where it did not have much earth; and immediately it sprang up because it had no depth of earth.  But when the sun was up it was scorched, and because it had no root it withered away.  And some seed fell among thorns; and the thorns grew up and choked it, and it yielded no crop.  But other seed fell on good ground and yielded a crop that sprang up, increased and produced:  some thirtyfold, some sixty, and some a hundred."  And He said to them, "He who has ears to hear, let him hear!"  But when He was alone, those around Him with the twelve asked Him about the parable.  And He said to them, "To you it has been given to know the mystery of the kingdom of God; but to those who are outside, all things come in parables, so that 'Seeing they may see and not perceive, and hearing they may hear and not understand; lest they should turn, and their sins be forgiven them.'"And He said to them, "Do you not understand this parable?  How then will you understand all the parables?  The sower sows the word.  And these are the ones by the wayside where the word is sown.  When they hear, Satan comes immediately and takes away the word that was sown in their hearts.  These likewise are the ones sown on stony ground who, when they hear the word, immediately receive it with gladness; and they have no root in themselves, and so endure only for a time.  Afterward, when tribulation or persecution arises for the word's sake, immediately they stumble.  Now these are the ones sown among thorns; they are the ones who hear the word, and the cares of this world, the deceitfulness of riches, and the desires for other things entering in choke the word, and it become unfruitful.  But these are the ones sown on good ground, those who hear the word, accept it, and bear fruit:  some thirtyfold, some sixty, and some a hundred."

 

 Also He said to them, "Is a lamp brought to be put under a basket or under a bed?  Is it not to be set on a lampstand?  For there is nothing hidden which will not be revealed, nor has anything been kept secret but that it should come to light.  If anyone has ears to hear, let him hear."  Here Jesus seems to promise that the truths "hidden" in the parables are those things which are meant to come to light.  In effect, His truth is light.  It is spiritual illumination.  In His parables is enlightenment, meant to be revealed, but we must have ears to hear.  If we think of the kind of lamp that Christ is referring to, an oil lamp whose light comes from a flame, then we can know that the truth of Christ is like a flame, a fire that is meant to shed light to all.

 

Then He said to them, "Take heed what you hear.  With the same measure you use, it will be measured to you; and to you who hear, more will be given.  For whoever has, to him more will be given; but whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken away from him."  My study Bible says this is a call to attentive listening and discriminating response.  It says that we must not only hear, but hear properly.  More will be given to those who respond to Christ with open hearts; they will grow in understanding.  There is a beautiful quotation given from Mark the Ascetic:  "Do the good you know, and what you do not know will be revealed to you."  

And He said, "The kingdom of God is as if a man should scatter seed on the ground, and should sleep by night and rise by day, and the seed should sprout and grow, he himself does not know how.  For the earth yields crops by itself:  first the blade, then the head, after that the full grain in the head.  But when the grain ripens, immediately he puts in the sickle, because the harvest has come."  My study Bible informs us that this parable is given only in Mark's Gospel.  It notes that the kingdom as used here refers to the whole span of God's dispensation or plan of salvation.  The man is Christ, and the seed is the gospel (see in yesterday's reading, above, Mark 4:13-20).  His sleep indicates Christ's death, from which He will rise.  My study Bible notes also that the man does not know how the seed grows, showing that Christ does not manipulate our response to the gospel, but each person is free to receive it and to let it grow in one's own heart.  The harvest is a figurative image of the Second Coming, when all will be judged on their reception of the gospel.  

Then He said, "To what shall we liken the kingdom of God?  Or with what parable shall we picture it?  It is like a mustard seed which, when it is sown on the ground, is smaller than all the seeds on earth; but when it is sown, it grows up and becomes greater than all herbs, and shoots out large branches, so that the birds of the air may nest under its shade."   My study Bible refers us to a parallel passage in Matthew 13:31-33, in which Jesus couples this beautiful parable of the mustard seed with the parable of the leaven (not found here in Mark).  But each parable teaches about the growth of the kingdom.  In that passage, Theophylact comments that each represents the disciples.  They began as just a few individuals, but "soon encompassed the whole earth."  They also stand for faith entering a person's soul, which causes an inward growth of virtue -- the soul may become "godlike" and can receive even angels (the birds of the air may nest under its shade).

 

And with many such parables He spoke the word to them as they were able to hear it.  But without a parable He did not speak to them.  And when they were alone, He explained all things to His disciples.  Again we note that to unbelievers, the parables remain bewildering.  But to those with simple faith, these stories using common images are meant to reveal truth in ways they can grasp, as they were able.

 

 Jesus said, "To what shall we liken the kingdom of God?  Or with what parable shall we picture it?  It is like a mustard seed which, when it is sown on the ground, is smaller than all the seeds on earth; but when it is sown, it grows up and becomes greater than all herbs, and shoots out large branches, so that the birds of the air may nest under its shade."  The parable of the Mustard Seed has ever been one of my favorites.  I couldn't precisely say why, because there are so many elements to the parable that are there to charm in the beautiful details.  Whether it is the brilliant yellow color of small mustard flowers, or the beautiful sense of the birds of the air who find a home and nest under the shade of this sturdy herb's branches, there is something powerfully poetic in this parable.  It shines with the beauty of small things, through which works the grace and power -- and great growth -- of the very kingdom of the eternal and omnipresent God.  For the ancient earliest Christians, it is paradox through which we find God and the presence of the Kingdom.  This small little parable, about small little things through which surprisingly grows the greatest of all, has all of the elements of the beauty of Christianity, and particularly so because it is from the mouth of God the Word, the Logos, who is Jesus Christ.  How could we have all of these beautiful small elements:  the flowers, the tiniest seed, a sturdy bush which is still an herb, and the place where the birds of the air (the angels) may nest and find shade, a harbor for what is good in a world which is also plagued by what is not good.  We have the beauty of the small which God chooses to be made great, which God blesses with power and with grace, through which God chooses to establish God's kingdom.  Can you imagine -- what does it mean when we stop to think of it? -- that the angels may come and rest in the branches we grow through our faith and God's grace, and serve and minister to us?  Can we imagine that we shelter the angels themselves in the communities we build by loving one another as He has loved us (John 13:34-35).  This is the powerful pull of the Kingdom, the beauty and poetry of Christianity, the paradox of the One who said to St. Paul, "My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness" (2 Corinthians 12:9).   For if you miss this beauty, you miss Christianity.  This is the grace and paradox, beauty and poetry, that captured the ancient world, even the cultures for whom beauty, truth, and goodness were already understood as aspects of the divine -- those which gave us poetry, drama, music, art, philosophy, architecture, and all that we know as classical culture.  What they lacked, even in the splendor of their empires and great achievements, was this paradox of the great and powerful that acts through the small, the God who could become human, emptying Himself to die for us, and to give us Resurrection and the defeat of death.  Let us consider this parable and its powerful testimony yet today of the beauty of the small and tender, which houses great things, for whom the angels may serve us and take shelter in our faith.

 

 

 

 

Did not He who made the outside make the inside also? But rather give alms of such things as you have; then indeed all things are clean to you

 

 And as He spoke, a certain Pharisee asked Him to dine with him.  So He went in and sat down to eat.  When the Pharisee saw it, he marveled that He had not first washed before dinner.  Then the Lord said to him, "Now you Pharisees make the outside of the cup and dish clean, but your inward part is full of greed and wickedness.  Foolish ones!  Did not He who made the outside make the inside also?  But rather give alms of such things as you have; then indeed all things are clean to you.  But woe to you Pharisees!  For you tithe mint and rue and all manner of herbs, and pass by justice and the love of God.  These you ought to have done, without leaving the others undone.  Woe to you Pharisees!  For you love the best seats in the synagogues and greetings in the marketplaces.  Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites!  For you are like graves which are not seen, and the men who walk over them are not aware of them."  

 

Then one of the lawyers answered and said to Him, "Teacher, by saying these things You reproach us also."  And He said, "Woe to you also, lawyers!  For you load men with burdens hard to bear, and you yourselves do not touch the burdens with one of your fingers.  Woe to you!  For you build the tombs of the prophets, and your fathers killed them.  In fact, you bear witness that you approve the deeds of your fathers; for they indeed killed them, and you build their tombs.  Therefore the wisdom of God also said, 'I will send them prophets and apostles, and some of them they will kill and persecute,' that the blood of all the prophets which was shed from the foundation of the world may be required of this generation, from the blood of Abel to the blood of Zechariah who perished between the altar and the temple.  Yes, I say to you, it shall be required of this generation.  Woe to you lawyers!  For you have taken away the key of knowledge.  You did not enter in yourselves, and those who were entering in you hindered."

 

- Luke 11:37–52 

 

Yesterday we read that, as Jesus taught the people, a certain woman from the crowd raised her voice and said to Him, "Blessed is the womb that bore You, and the breasts which nursed You!"  But He said, "More than that, blessed are those who hear the word of God and keep it!"  And while the crowds were thickly gathered together, He began to say, "This is an evil generation.  It seeks a sign, and no sign will be given to it except the sign of Jonah the prophet.  For as Jonah became a sign to the Ninevites, so also the Son of Man will be to this generation.  The queen of the South will rise up in the judgment with men of this generation and condemn them, for she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon; and indeed a greater than Solomon is here.  The men of Nineveh will rise up in the judgment with this generation and condemn it, for they repented at the preaching of Jonah; and indeed a greater than Jonah is here.  No one, when he has lit a lamp, puts it in a secret place or under a basket, but on a lampstand, that those who come in may see the light.  The lamp of the body is the eye.  Therefore, when your eye is good, your whole body also is full of light.  But when your eye is bad, your body also is full of darkness.  Therefore take heed that the light which is in you is not darkness.  If then your whole body is full of light, having no part dark, the whole body will be full of light, as when the bright shining of a lamp gives you light."   

And as He spoke, a certain Pharisee asked Him to dine with him.  So He went in and sat down to eat.  When the Pharisee saw it, he marveled that He had not first washed before dinner.  Then the Lord said to him, "Now you Pharisees make the outside of the cup and dish clean, but your inward part is full of greed and wickedness.  Foolish ones!  Did not He who made the outside make the inside also?  But rather give alms of such things as you have; then indeed all things are clean to you.  But woe to you Pharisees!  For you tithe mint and rue and all manner of herbs, and pass by justice and the love of God.  These you ought to have done, without leaving the others undone.  Woe to you Pharisees!  For you love the best seats in the synagogues and greetings in the marketplaces.  Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites!  For you are like graves which are not seen, and the men who walk over them are not aware of them."  Christ's criticisms of the Pharisees focus on their hypocrisy.  They scrupulously follow the rules and customs established, marking outward piety in appearance, but neglect the internal reality these practices are meant to uphold.  Thus Jesus asks, "Did not He who made the outside make the inside also?"  To pass by justice and the love of God is to neglect the weightier matters of God (Matthew 23:23).  My study Bible comments that because the example of a leader can be so influential, leaders who do not love God can hinder others from finding God as well.  Therefore leaders are held to a higher standard (James 3:1).  For Orthodox Christians in particular, these warnings are to be taken to heart today.  My study Bible adds that the Church has maintained the ancient practices of tithing, sacred vessels, holy rites, and following tradition handed down from Church Fathers.  It notes that these practices can be expressions of deep faith, lead a person to deeper commitment to God, and safeguard our life in Christ, or they can be observed without ever taking them to heart and lead to condemnation.  

Then one of the lawyers answered and said to Him, "Teacher, by saying these things You reproach us also."  And He said, "Woe to you also, lawyers!  For you load men with burdens hard to bear, and you yourselves do not touch the burdens with one of your fingers.  Woe to you!  For you build the tombs of the prophets, and your fathers killed them.  In fact, you bear witness that you approve the deeds of your fathers; for they indeed killed them, and you build their tombs.  Therefore the wisdom of God also said, 'I will send them prophets and apostles, and some of them they will kill and persecute,' that the blood of all the prophets which was shed from the foundation of the world may be required of this generation, from the blood of Abel to the blood of Zechariah who perished between the altar and the temple.  Yes, I say to you, it shall be required of this generation.  Woe to you lawyers!  For you have taken away the key of knowledge.  You did not enter in yourselves, and those who were entering in you hindered."  My study Bible explains that woe is a term indicating complete and devastating destruction (Luke 6:14-26; see Isaiah 5:18-24; Amos 5:18-19; Revelation 12:12).  Regarding the prophet Zechariah, some patristic teachers say that this was the prophet at the time of Joash the king (2 Chronicles 24:20-22), and others say it refers to the father of St. John the Baptist, who, according to tradition, was also murdered in the temple (Luke 1:5-25; 57-80).  

St. Ambrose comments on Jesus' remark to the Pharisee, "But rather give alms of such things as you have; then indeed all things are clean to you."  He writes that Jesus is saying that acts of mercy and compassion cleanse us (see also Christ's parable of the Sheep and the Goats).  It is a chastisement for their superiority, self-righteousness, and hypocrisy.  But let us note how acts of compassion would work to undo the criticisms of Christ, for acts of compassion would also heal the harsh hypocrisy of legal imposition that keeps the key of knowledge from those whom they are meant to lead.  Compassion, writes St. Ambrose, becomes a remedy for what ails the society.  Moreover, the word of God is another grace that would be a remedy for the circumstances.  Augustine points out that any act of mercy is an example of almsgiving:  not simply giving food or clothing to those who need them, but visiting the sick or those in prison "redeems the captive, bears the burdens of the weak, leads the blind, comforts the sorrowful, heals the sick, shows the erring the right way, gives advice to the perplexed, and does whatever is needful for the needy."  To forgive a trespass or spiritual debt is to give alms.  Even for someone in power to correct an abusive underling is an act of mercy (Proverbs 3:12).  All of these are remedies for the spiritual problems Jesus describes, and there are as many acts of compassion as circumstances we have in life.    Finally, to give the word of God, the "key of knowledge," is compassion, for it begins as the grace of God.  Standing before these men is One who comes in grace and who offers the word of God (indeed, who is the Word of God), but because their own internal hearts are hardened, they do not nurture this love within themselves and cannot therefore recognize Christ either.  Therefore, true acts of compassion, a cleansing of the "inside of the cup," would also begin to remedy this situation, restoring them to true spiritual leadership for the people in their places of power.  But instead, they will emulate their fathers who built the tombs of the prophets who came before Christ, and seek the murder the One who comes in grace with the key of knowledge for all.  It must be seen that this desire to murder is an expression of the failure of spiritual leadership, the ultimate expression of hypocrisy which is zealous only for its own place and position in the world, but not for the love of God which both asks from us and is nurtured by humility and compassion.   Who can understand the forgiveness of Christ without the exercise of compassion?  In Christ's statement, therefore, we can read a recipe for repentance and transformation, a remedy for hardness of heart, a beginning of understanding, which no legalistic zeal can give us despite the outward appearance of piety.  Let us remember the acts of compassion Christ will look for in the time of His own judgment, and go and do likewise.  Even the smallest, most obscure act of kindness, unknown to anyone else, is the best road to faith.