And he stretched forth his hand toward his disciples, and said,
Behold my mother and my brothers!
All Commentaries on Matthew 12:49 Go To Matthew 12
John Chrysostom
AD 407
But do thou, I pray, examine not the words only, which contain a moderate reproof, but also the unbecoming conduct of His brethren, and the boldness wherewith they had been bold and who was the person reproving it, no mere man, but the only-begotten Son of God; and with what purpose He reproved; that it was not with intent to drive them to perplexity, but to deliver them from the most tyrannical passion and to lead them on little by little to the right idea concerning Himself, and to convince her that He was not her Son only, but also her Lord: so will you perceive that the reproof is in the highest degree both becoming Him and profitable to her, and withal having in it much gentleness. For He said not, Go your way, tell my mother, you are not my mother, but He addresses Himself to the person that told Him; saying, Who is my mother? together with the things that have been mentioned providing for another object also. What then is that? That neither they nor others confiding in their kindred, should neglect virtue. For if she is nothing profited by being His mother, were it not for that quality in her, hardly will any one else be saved by his kindred. For there is one only nobleness, to do the will of God. This kind of noble birth is better than the other, and more real.
Knowing therefore these things, let us neither pride ourselves on children that are of good report, unless we have their virtue; nor upon noble fathers, unless we be like them in disposition. For it is possible, both that he who begot a man should not be his father, and that he who did not beget him should be. Therefore in another place also, when some woman had said, Blessed is the womb that bare You, and the paps which You have sucked; He said not, The womb bare me not, neither did I suck the paps, but this, Yea rather, blessed are they that do the will of my Father. Do you see how on every occasion He denies not the affinity by nature, but adds that by virtue? And His forerunner too, in saying, O generation of vipers, think not to say, We have Abraham to our father, Matthew 3:7, 9 means not this, that they were not naturally of Abraham, but that it profits them nothing to be of Abraham, unless they had the affinity by character; which Christ also declared, when He said, If you were Abraham's children, you would do the works of Abraham; John 8:39 not depriving them of their kindred according to the flesh, but teaching them to seek after that affinity which is greater than it, and more real.
This then He establishes here also, but in a manner less invidious, and more measured, as became Him speaking to His mother. For He said not at all, She is not my mother, nor are those my brethren, because they do not my will; neither did He declare and pronounce judgment against them; but He yet left in it their own power to choose, speaking with the gentleness that becomes Him.
