The Great Commentary of Cornelius a Lapide: S. Luke
Fifthly and best : Be not anxious about the heavenly bodies over your head — the constellations of the stars and their courses — the shifting of the clouds — the breath of the winds, so as to judge from them of the future abundance or deficiency of your crops ; as in Jer. x. 2, “ Be not dismayed at the signs of heaven, for the heathen are dismayed at them ; ” and Eccles. xi. 4, “ He that observeth the wind shall not sow, and he that regardeth the clouds shall not reap.” So Toletus, Vatablus, &c. Vatablus says, “ Be not uneasy, as one who turns his face askance to the heavens from anxiety.” “ Be not wavering in your minds as a pendulum in the air, looking to human assistance in different directions, and not anchoring on the providence of God.” The Arabic version says, “ Be ye not anxious.” For all things point in this direction, that Christ will remove from us too great anxiety as to our support and clothing, and will impress on us a sure confidence in God by which to look with certainty to His Fatherly providence for all these things. The Greek word μετεωρίζεσθε conveys the idea of one whose mind is in doubt and suspense and is unfixed, who will judge by the result, and is, as Gaza calls it, “ wavering ” (pensilis). Others render it, “ Do not look out from afar off,” or as we commonly say, Do not make a long discursus, as though you would have no room for a Divine Providence, or as if you doubted of it. And F. Lucas : “ Be not over-anxious, as looking out with anxiety for what may happen in the far distant future, and taking thought long before for your future bodily needs, and looking forward in the distant times to come with solicitude about your food and clothing, as S. Matthew clearly explains it, ‘Be not therefore anxious for the morrow.’” vi. 34. All these words tend to the same point, forbidding us to show too great anxiety for the future, and directing us to resign it into the hands of Providence ; to trust in it and securely rest upon it. Following this precept of Christ, S. Thomas wished and ordered all his brotherhood to live for the day and reserve nothing for the morrow, but to give what was over and above their day's need to the poor; as being confident that God would provide for the morrow, as He did to Elijah and Paul the first hermit, sending them food daily by a raven ; and as the children of Israel, who were certainly three millions, were fed daily in the desert with manna sufficient for their support, which was rained down upon them from heaven for forty years, while their clothes remained undamaged and perfect and even grew with the growing children.
Ver. 32. — Fear not, little flock. Fear not lest your food and raiment fail you, and lest, if you lay aside all anxiety and sell your goods and give to the poor, these things should not be added to you ; if you seek firstly the kingdom of God. “ Little flock,” — little, because, firstly, the faithful were so few and these poor either in position and property , or in election and feeling, or in spirit ; for they despised the riches of the world that they might strive after those of heaven, and therefore, they were little in the eyes of the world, they were of no account, and were despised. But now that the faith of Christ has so spread throughout the whole world, that kings and princes are subdued to it, it is no longer a little flock but a most ample and powerful church. Secondly, the flock of faithful men is little if compared with the angels who are without number, says Euthymius, according to the words, Dan. vii. 10, “Thousand thousands ministered unto Him, and ten thousand times ten thousand stood before Him.”
Thirdly, The flock is little if compared with the immense multitude of unbelievers and wicked. Bede adds, “ It is called a little flock either on account of its humility or in comparison with the greater number of the reprobate. Then all the faithful, from the example of Christ, will willingly reduce themselves to Christian humility and poverty, especially the apostles and disciples of Christ. Hence Christ says, ‘Sell that thou hast.’ ” It appears that “ flock ” (pusillus) is here put in the nominative instead of the vocative as is done in other passages. This nominative is more forcible and significant than the vocative would be. Wherefore, although we might explain something, e.g., Fear not, you who are a little flock, that the nominative might remain, yet the nominative is more tersely and strongly put for the vocative by adding nothing. Fear not then, O ye faithful, for although you are a little flock, God estimates you highly, and has a great and peculiar care of you, and Christ the Lord is your shepherd, who will feed you abundantly, according to the words, “ I am the good Shepherd” (S. John x. 11), and the others (Ps. xxiii. 1, 2), “ The Lord is my shepherd, therefore can I lack nothing ” — “ He shall feed me in a green pasture, and lead me forth beside the waters of comfort.” S. Peter Chrysologus (serm. xxii.) : “A small flock to the world is a large one to God ;” and (xxiii): “ Humility has gained what pride lost, and the little flock has subdued entire and various savagenesses (nations) by its meekness ; for the little flock conquered and destroyed as many kinds of beasts as it subdued nations to the yoke of Christ. It did this not by bearing , not by fighting but by dying for Christ.”
It is your Father's good pleasure to give you the kingdom . To you who are not slow, not idle, not presuming on the mere mercy of God, but who hear My words and truly obey them ; who therefore bear your cross after Me, mortify your passions, and are continually zealous in good works. “ To give,” not absolutely, but upon conditions — namely, that you persevere in My faith and love and in obedience even to death — for to Judas, who afterwards apostatised from Christ, the kingdom was not given. Christ gives the reason why the disciples, though a little flock and poor, should not fear lest needful things should be withheld from them, for He says, “ Since God so loved you as to destine you for heavenly riches and the kingdom of God, He will assuredly not refuse you these worthless earthly riches, as far as they are necessary for your journey towards the kingdom of heaven, and that you may adorn it by your life and conversation.” So S. Cyril, in the Catena , “ He who has given you gifts of such great price, how will He be not merciful to you but suffer you to perish of hunger?”
Ver. 33. — Sell that ye have , and give alms . This is a counsel, not a precept, as Pelagius would have it, who said that all Christians ought to be poor, from the precept of Christ. This is shewn by the words of Christ (Matt. xix. 21), “If thou wouldst be perfect, go sell that thou hast and give to the poor.” That you may study evangelical perfection, sell what you possess and give the price to the poor, that you may follow Me who am poor in spirit in a like poverty, and with me despise earthly riches, that so you may obtain heavenly ones. Do this with the end that you may show yourselves not anxious for food and raiment, but that you depend solely on God, and look to Him for all those needs of life which He Himself has promised to all who seek His kingdom. For this reason the first Christians, following the counsel of Christ, sold all that they had and laid the price at the feet of the apostles, that they might distribute them among the poor believers (Acts ii 3, 4). So Bede : “Fear not that you will lack the needful things of life, but rather sell what you possess for alms. This is done worthily when he who lives by the labour of his hands, despises all things, and gives alms.”
Provide yourselves bags which wax not old. Wax not old, and
from which, therefore, the coin of spiritual alms cannot drop out and be lost, as the money of the world often falls from the old and worn-out purses of the rich. The purses that wax not old are the bosoms of the poor, and more especially the mind and memory of God, in which He keeps as in a purse your alms and good works, that He may return you the most ample rewards for them in the day of judgment . This He Himself explains, adding, a treasure in the heavens that faileth not , where no thief draweth near, neither moth destroyeth . From this Chrysologus rightly concludes, “ What have they to do with the earth who possess heaven — what with human affairs who have gained divine ones — unless, perhaps, they find pleasure in lamentations, choose labours, delight in dangers, love the most cruel deaths, and find the evil things that are brought upon them more pleasing than the good ones ? ”