Ephrem the Syrian |
Ephrem’s commentary on the Diatessaron does not treat the
whole text, and it spends more time on certain passages than others. Some of
Ephrem’s interpretations of the parables focus exclusively on the literal,
non-allegorical meaning (e.g., the Laborers in the Vineyard, 15.14-17; the
Pharisee and the Tax Collector, 15.24; the Unjust Judge, 16.16). Ephrem also,
however, utilizes significant amounts of typology and symbolism in his
commentaries, and he elaborates the themes he discovers there and compares them
to types and symbols from Hebrew Bible narratives that in his view reflect upon
the passage (Griffith 2004: 1406). Note, for example, how Ephrem indicates that
the Lost Coin could not only symbolize someone who strayed from the
“righteousness of nature” but also “the image of Adam” and Adam’s fall (14.19;
cf. the Unjust Steward, 11.21).
Ephrem’s concern for the poor permeates his commentary on the
Diatessaron. His comments on the
parable of the Sower, for example, include an admonition to the rich not to let
the thorns of wealth hinder their faith (11.16). He also devotes extended
sections on the rich man—so “confident in his earthly wealth” (15.3)—who asks
Jesus what he must do to inherit eternal life (e.g., Luke 18:18-25), before
explaining the meaning of the Rich Man and Lazarus parable. After the rich man
and Lazarus died, the rich man’s agony was increased because he was able to see
Lazarus rejoicing while he was being tortured in Hades. The context of the
passage suggests, Ephrem argues, that Jesus was comparing the rich man to the
Jewish priests and Lazarus to his disciples (15.12). Ephrem then, however,
discusses the moral implications of the parable:
See then! The more the rich man
lived sumptuously, the more [Lazarus] was humbled. The more Lazarus was made
low, the greater was his crown. Why was it, therefore, that he should have seen
Abraham above all the just, and Lazarus in his bosom? It was because Abraham
loved the poor that he saw him, so that we might learn that we cannot hope for
pardon at the end, unless the fruits of pardon can be seen in us. If then
Abraham, who was friendly to strangers, and had mercy on Sodom, was not able to
have mercy on the one who did not show pity to Lazarus, how can we hope that
there will be pardon for us? (15.13; Ephrem the Syrian 1994: 235-36)
Ephrem interprets the parable in a
similar way in The Hymns on Paradise
by noting how Abraham, “who even had pity on Sodom,” has no pity for the rich
man “who showed no pity” (1.12, cf. 1.17). In Hymn 7, Ephrem elaborates that we
should learn about God’s justice from this parable:
And may I learn
how much I will then have received
From that parable of the Rich Man
Who did not even
give to the poor man
The leftovers from his banquet;
And may I see
Lazarus,
Grazing in Paradise,
And look upon
the Rich Man,
In anguish,
So that the
might of justice outside
May cause me fear,
But the breath
of grace within
May bring me comfort (7.27; Brock
1990: 129).
No comments:
Post a Comment