Jesus answered and said unto him,
What I do you know not now; but you shall know hereafter.
Read Chapter 13
Cornelius a Lapide
AD 1637
Jesus answered and said to him, What I do thou knowest not now, but hereafter thou shalt know. Christ means that in this washing of feet, mysteries are hidden which as yet Peter knew not. "Peter," says S. Ambrose (in his work, De iis qui initiantur, ch6), "saw not the hidden meaning, and therefore rejected the service, thinking that the humility of the servant would be compromised should he suffer his Lord to do him this office." "Hereafter thou shalt know," that Isaiah , first, "when I shall tell you (ver14) that I do this to give to thee, to the apostles, and to the rest of the faithful an example of the greatest humility and most sublime charity;" so S. Cyril interprets. Secondly, because by this ablution penance is signified, and this sacrament must precede that of the Eucharist, as thou, 0 Peter, shalt understand after the Holy Spirit has been sent, for "He shall teach you all things." So S. Cyprian, (Tract. de Cœnâ Dom.), S. Pacianus ( Ephesians 1 , contra Novat.), S. Gregory (...
Inasmuch therefore as He had come to what manifestly and obviously is the central point of the incident before us, He says: "If thou shouldst refuse to receive this strange and novel lesson of humility, thou wouldst find no part or lot with Me." And since oftentimes our Lord Jesus the Christ, taking small matters as the suggestive occasions of His discourses, makes His exposition of general application; and, drawing out to a wide range the lessons arising out of a single event or the words spoken solely with regard to some individual circumstance, introduces into the discussion of the matters in hand a rich abundance of profitable illustrations: we shall suppose that in this also He meant to say that unless through His grace a man washes away from himself the defilement of sin and error, he will have no share in the life that proceeds from Him, and will remain without a taste of the kingdom of heaven. For the uncleansed may not enter the mansions above, but only they who have their con...
That is you shall know how great is the gain from this, the profit of the lesson, and how it is able to guide us into all humblemindedness. What then does Peter? He still hinders Him, and says,
