And the Lord said unto him,
Now do you Pharisees make clean the outside of the cup and the platter; but your inward part is full of extortion and wickedness.
Read Chapter 11
Ambrose of Milan
AD 397
In what follows there is no doubt that the suffering of the body is shown by the name of cup, when the Lord says, “Should I not drink the cup that my Father has given me?” Whoever swallows bodily frailty in spiritual love and pours it into the mind and spirit so that the interior drains the weakness of the exterior drinks his body. You perceive that the inside, not the outside, of this cup or platter defiles us. A good teacher taught us how we should cleanse the pollution of our body, saying, “Give alms, and behold, all things are clean to you.” Do you see how many remedies there are? Compassion cleanses us. The Word of God cleanses us, according to what it is written: “Now you are clean by reason of the word that I have spoken to you.” Not only in this passage but also in others you have revealed how great grace is. “Alms delivers from death.” “Store up alms in the heart of the poor, and it shall obtain help for you on the evil day.” –.
What our Lord says, “Give alms, and behold, all things are clean to you,” applies to all useful acts of mercy. It does not apply just to the one who gives food to the hungry, drink to the thirsty, clothing to the naked, hospitality to the wayfarer or refuge to the fugitive. It also applies to one who visits the sick and the prisoner, redeems the captive, bears the burdens of the weak, leads the blind, comforts the sorrowful, heals the sick, shows the erring the right way, gives advice to the perplexed, and does whatever is needful for the needy. Not only does this person give alms, but the person who forgives the trespasser also gives alms as well. He is also a giver of alms who, by blows or other discipline, corrects and restrains those under his command. At the same time he forgives from the heart the sin by which he has been wronged or offended or prays that it be forgiven the offender. Such a person gives alms not only because he forgives and prays but also because he rebukes and a...
And the Lord said unto him, Now do ye Pharisees make clean the outside of the cup and platter. Ye take care to wash the body, but are careless as to the cleansing of the heart. The word "now" gives point to the rebuke.
What did the Savior say? He appropriately rebuked them, saying, “Now you Pharisees clean the outside of the cup and the dish, but what is in you is full of looting and wickedness.” It would have been easy for the Lord to use other words with the view of instructing the foolish Pharisee, but he has found an opportunity. He connects his teaching with what was before their eyes. Since it was the time for eating and sitting at the table, he takes as a plain comparison the cup and the dish. He shows that those who sincerely serve God must be pure and clean, not only from bodily impurity but from what is hidden within in the mind. Utensils that serve the table must be cleansed from those impurities that are on the outside as well from those that are within. He says that he who made that which is on the outside also made that which is on the inside. This means that he who created the body also made the soul. Since they are both the works of one virtueloving God, their purification must be uni...
