God also bearing them witness, both with signs and wonders, and with various miracles, and gifts of the Holy Spirit, according to his own will?
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George Leo Haydock
AD 1849
The miraculous powers of the Almighty bestowed in the early ages of the Church, for the establishment and propagation of the faith, became afterwards less frequent, as there was less need of them; but they have ever been totally withdrawn, as some pretend, nor has there passed a single age from that of the apostles down to the present time, in which several most evident and stupendous miracles have not been wrought in the Catholic Church.
How then was it confirmed? What if those that heard were forgers? Says some one. This objection then he overthrows, and shows that the grace was not human. If they had gone astray, God would not have borne witness to them; for he subjoined Hebrews 2:4, God also bearing witness with them. Both they indeed bear witness, and God bears witness too. How does He bear witness? Not by word or by voice, (though this also would have been worthy of belief): but how? By signs, and wonders, and various miracles. (Well said he, various miracles, declaring the abundance of the gifts: which was not so in the former dispensation, neither so great signs and so various.) That is, we did not believe them simply, but through signs and wonders: wherefore we believe not them, but God Himself.
And by gifts of the Holy Ghost, according to His own will.
What then, if wizards also do signs, and the Jews said that He cast out devils through Beelzebub? Luke 11:15 But they do not such kind of signs: therefore...
89. – After showing in a number of ways Christ’s superiority over the angels, the Apostle here concludes that Christ’s doctrine, namely, the New Testament, deserves more obedience than the Old Testament. In regard to this he does three things: first, he states the conclusion intended; secondly, he supports this conclusion with a reason (v. 2); thirdly, he confirms the consequence (v. 5).
90. – In regard to the first it should be noted that after giving the judicial and moral precepts of the Law in Ex. (chap. 25), He continues in verse 20: ‘Behold, I shall send my angel, who shall go before you and shall bring you into the land;’ and then adds, ‘Take notice of him and hear his voice, and do not think him one to be condemned’ (Ex. 23:21). Therefore, if the commandment of an angel, through whom the Law was delivered, is obeyed, they will enter heaven. Hence, it says in Mt. (19:17): ‘If you will enter into life, keep the commandments.’ Therefore it is necessary to keep those commandment...
