←
Explanation for:
Matthew
23
:
36
Amen I say to you, all these things shall come upon this generation.
9
more explanations
& daily audio-books
spoken by
– enjoy in Theosis App –
Start your
Bible-journey
with explanations
& daily audio-books
only 4$* per month
{"arr":[{"author-name":"Jerome of Stridon","author-image":"https://cdn.prod.website-files.com/6864003fdf3714da6ff0b33a/68c88dcd3432c6dd41375498_Jerome%20of%20Stridon.png","category":"Holy Fathers and Teachers","century":4,"exegesis-text":"Let us briefly examine why the blood of Abel the righteous, extending to the blood of Zechariah son of Barachiah, is held against this generation, despite the fact that none were killed by them. Scripture delineates two categories of people, the righteous and the wicked, as though each group consists of distinct individuals. One example is found in the question of who may ascend the Lord's holy mountain or stand in His sanctuary. After describing those who may ascend, who belong to various ages, the Scripture concludes: Such is the generation of those who seek Him, who seek Your face, O God of Jacob. Additionally, it proclaims concerning all the saints: The generation of the upright shall be blessed. Conversely, regarding the wicked, it states: The generation of poisonous serpents, and that all shall be liable for this generation. Similarly, in the book of Ezekiel, the prophetic declaration details the sins of the land and adds: And if these three men, Noah, Daniel, and Job, are in it, I will not forgive the iniquities of that land. This signifies that Noah, Job, and Daniel represent all righteous individuals who embody similar virtues. Likewise, those who oppose the Apostles, akin to Cain and Joash, are depicted as belonging to the same lineage."},{"author-name":"John Chrysostom","author-image":"https://cdn.prod.website-files.com/6864003fdf3714da6ff0b33a/68c88ea76859f9f8e2ffd3ee_John%20Chrysostom.png","category":"Holy Fathers and Teachers","century":4,"exegesis-text":"Consider the extent of Christ’s warnings to them. He stated, \\"You condemn your ancestors, claiming that you would not align yourselves with their actions;\\" this indeed brought them considerable shame. Then He pointed out that, in judging them, they were in fact committing greater offenses, which further shamed them. Ultimately, He declared, \\"This will not be overlooked,\\" instilling great fear in them as He reminded them of Gehenna. Yet since Gehenna felt distant, Christ referred to the current tribulations, saying, \\"All these things shall come upon this generation.\\" \\n\\nMoreover, Christ associated the gravest trials with punishment, asserting that they would endure the heaviest consequences. Despite this, nothing improved their spirits. If one might wonder why they face such severe punishment, I would respond that it is because they act with more cruelty than others, failing to learn from the past. Recall the words of Lamech, \\"If Cain is avenged sevenfold, then Lamech seventy times seven\\" (Genesis 4:24), meaning he acknowledged himself as deserving of greater punishment than Cain, not for Cain's act of fratricide, but for lacking the insight that should have come from it.\\n\\nIt is not that any should be punished for the sins of another, but after observing many sinners and their subsequent punishments, they grew no wiser. Instead, they too surrendered to sin, deserving of the same penalties. Christ conveniently reminded them of Abel, illustrating that this murder, as well, stemmed from envy. So what can you say now? Are you unaware of the fate of Cain? Did God overlook his deeds? Did He not impose on him a grave penalty? Have you not heard of the suffering inflicted upon your ancestors when they persecuted the prophets? Were they not subjected to untold afflictions? How have you not improved?\\n\\nYet why should I dwell on the punishments borne by your forefathers? You who judge your ancestors—why do you act even more wickedly than they did? You have declared that the wicked shall face destruction (Matthew 21:41). What justifications can you offer for committing such brazen transgressions after pronouncing that judgment? And who is this Zechariah? Some consider him the father of John; others see him as a prophet, or another priest known as Joddai. What a grievous act this was! They not only murdered the saints but did so within sacred spaces. \\n\\nIn uttering these words, Christ not only instilled fear in them but also comforted His disciples, showing that the righteous had previously endured similar trials. He warned them that, just as they had inflicted punishment, they too would face severe consequences. Therefore, He designated His disciples as prophets, wise men, and scribes, removing any pretext of justification the Jews might claim. Now, He asserted, you cannot allege that you suffered temptation from those outside your community; you have come to be murderers and are eager for blood.\\n\\nThus, He noted before, \\"I will send prophets and scribes.\\" All the prophets chastised them for the same offenses, claiming they mixed blood with blood and were men of violence (Hosea 4:2). This is why God required offerings of blood, illustrating that if blood is deemed precious in animals, it is even more so in humans. Thus, He declared to Noah, \\"I will require the blood of every man\\" (Gen. 9:6). There are countless evidences of God's prohibition against killing. This is why He instructed against consuming anything that had been strangled.\\n\\nOh, how immense is God’s mercy, for even knowing that the Jews would gain nothing from it, He still sent forth His message! \\"I will send,\\" He said, \\"though I am aware they shall be killed.\\" Hence, the Jews were reproved for their empty claim of not being complicit with their fathers. They killed the prophets, showing no honor to the places of worship or the dignity of those they persecuted. They harmed not common individuals, but rather prophets and wise men, to escape derision from them. When Christ referred to prophets, He included the apostles and their successors, as many had prophesied.\\n\\nIn an effort to heighten their dread, He proclaimed, \\"Amen, amen, I say unto you, all these things shall come upon this generation,\\" meaning all these calamities will befall you, and I will avenge them with severity. For whoever witnesses numerous sinners and remains uncorrected, perpetuating the same sins—and going further—shall be punished even more severely. Just as if he had chosen to reflect, he could have greatly benefited from the lessons of others' failures, thus becoming worthy of lesser punishment. Yet, lacking transformation, he becomes deserving of greater penalties for having had ample opportunities to learn from those who previously sinned and paid the price without reaping any benefit for himself."},{"author-name":"Euthymios Zigabenos","author-image":"https://cdn.prod.website-files.com/6864003fdf3714da6ff0b33a/68c96d263b8c22d9c467bdab_no-pic-theosis.png","category":"Christian Authors","century":11,"exegesis-text":"In warning them of the horrors of Gehenna, he did not unsettle them since that fate seemed far off; instead, he instilled fear by speaking of imminent disasters. Thus, he proclaimed that these severe judgments would befall this generation, referring to them directly. Indeed, under the rule of Titus and Vespasian, they faced tremendous suffering brought upon them by the Romans."},{"author-name":"Michail (Lusin)","author-image":"https://cdn.prod.website-files.com/6864003fdf3714da6ff0b33a/68c89550c567e172d15b3055_Michail%20(Lusin).png","category":"Christian Authors","century":19,"exegesis-text":"\\"All these things shall come upon this generation\\" – the full measure of God's wrath for the innocent blood that was spilled. The devastation of Jerusalem, which transpired approximately 36 years later, along with the dispersion of the people and the dire afflictions they endured, was a precise realization of this prophecy. \\"He who observes numerous wrongdoers yet remains unreformed, committing the same offenses and even more grievous ones, shall face the gravest punishment. For had he truly desired to change, he could have improved himself by learning from the many examples set by others; but since he failed to amend his ways, he is deserving of harsher judgment, having had numerous opportunities to gain wisdom from those who sinned before him and faced their own consequences, yet gleaned no benefit for himself.\\""},{"author-name":"Abbot Panteleimon about the Trinity","author-image":"https://cdn.prod.website-files.com/6864003fdf3714da6ff0b33a/68c96d263b8c22d9c467bdab_no-pic-theosis.png","category":"Christian Authors","century":19,"exegesis-text":"All the prophets have admonished you for mixing blood with blood and for being people of violence. Therefore, I assure you that this judgment is imminent; the cup of God's fury will soon be poured out. You persist in your wickedness despite the warnings and threats, and as a result, divine retribution will certainly fall upon you for all the innocent blood that has been unjustly spilled. Recently, the Lord shed tears as He entered Jerusalem with solemnity, and once again, His deep sorrow for the afflicted city echoes in His words. St. Chrysostom reflects that it embodies the voice of mercy, compassion, and profound love. It is as if, before a cherished beloved who continually scorns the one who loves her, He justifies His actions when He intends to enact judgment upon her."},{"author-name":"Gladkow B.I.","author-image":"https://cdn.prod.website-files.com/6864003fdf3714da6ff0b33a/68c88bf0ceef8c96e09a6521_Gladkow%20B.I..png","category":"Christian Authors","century":19,"exegesis-text":"\\"Verily, I say to you,\\" Jesus proclaimed to the crowd, \\"that all of this burden rests upon them!\\""},{"author-name":"Paul Matwejewski","author-image":"https://cdn.prod.website-files.com/6864003fdf3714da6ff0b33a/68c8969f5be0d592d5a10576_Paul%20Matwejewski.png","category":"Christian Authors","century":19,"exegesis-text":"With these statements, the Lord powerfully conveyed to His audience that the moment of divine judgment was approaching for all the injustices that have ever occurred on the earth, beginning with the murder of Abel (Gen. 4:8) and extending to the execution of Zacharias, likely the individual stoned within the Lord's temple (2 Chron. 24:21). These two significant events, one marking the commencement of Old Testament narrative and the other signaling its conclusion, are emphasized by the Lord, even as the entirety of Jewish history was replete with atrocities demanding retribution. The blood of the innocent shed on earth would bring consequences upon the Jews of that era, as Blessed Theophylact notes, “they had to be punished more than their forebears, as they failed to repent even in the face of such examples” and repeated the sins of their ancestors."},{"author-name":"Bogolepow D.P.","author-image":"https://cdn.prod.website-files.com/6864003fdf3714da6ff0b33a/68c96d263b8c22d9c467bdab_no-pic-theosis.png","category":"Christian Authors","century":19,"exegesis-text":"Regarding the discourse on the lethal intentions harbored by the Pharisees towards Him, Christ foresaw all the slayings of God's prophets that occurred throughout the Old Testament and those yet to come in the New Testament. He then delivered a definitive pronouncement of judgment upon the Jewish nation, indicating that retribution would befall them for the innocent blood shed on the earth, extending from the blood of Abel to that of Zechariah the son of Barachiah. After declaring this judgment, the Lord confirmed that it would indeed be realized, inevitably striking this generation (the fall of Jerusalem and the dispersion of the Jewish people were manifestations of this judgment)."},{"author-name":"Alexander Gorsky","author-image":"https://cdn.prod.website-files.com/6864003fdf3714da6ff0b33a/68c8884037c1e1c51e1332e2_Alexander%20Gorsky.png","category":"Christian Authors","century":19,"exegesis-text":"Foretelling what is to come, He declared, \\"Look, I will send you once more prophets, wise individuals, and scholars, and some of them you will murder and crucify (Simeon, the Lord's brother, Euseb. 10:32). Others you will beat in your synagogues and pursue from city to city. This will bring to completion the measure of your ancestors' wickedness, and upon you will rest all the blood of the righteous that has been shed since the beginning of time (the first and last recorded in the accounts of the Old Testament, those who were unjustly slain, set the bounds of divine retribution).\\""}]}
Support this project and get full access for only 4$/month
Commentarie text can’t be scrolled on PC at the moment. Please use your phone. We’re working on a fix.
