And the whiteness pilled away from the corners of his eyes: and when he saw his son, he fell upon his neck.
All Commentaries on Tobit 11:13 Go To Tobit 11
Bede
AD 735
And the Jewish people, on realizing the very bitter malice of the most wicked enemy, will recover the light they have lost. The white film that had obstructed his eyes denotes the folly of self-indulgence. For “they have a zeal for God, but it is not based on knowledge,” and as Paul says again, “seeking to establish their own righteousness, they did not submit to the righteousness of God.” The black pupil of the eye sees, the white one grows dark; and people who in their own estimation are wise, saying, “Are we also blind?” in such people there is no truth. But those who are aware of their frailty and ignorance and know how to say, “My God, enlighten my darkness,” are destined to enjoy the light of life in the Lord. Moreover, the white film was well compared with the skin of an egg. By the egg hope is surely indicated, because it is obviously not alive, not an animate creature, but it is hoped by the bird that laid it that sometime it may live, walk, run and fly. And the apostle says, “But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait for it with patience.” Thus in the Gospel parable by the terms “bread,” “fish” and an “egg” the three supreme virtues, namely, faith, hope and love, are symbolized.
