Matthew 18:10
Because a great and hard-to-count host of demons wanders this whole world, overturning our affairs by many kinds of deceit, Christ has set tutors over us from heaven — not as if human nature were inferior (far from it; they are far above what is ours, and the point is clear), but as ones who oppose demonic greed with their own strength and are able to contend for our life. With everything else, Christ has also set this right for our souls.
Long ago, when we were ruined, heaven was shut, and the angels took no account of any of us, as if sharing the Master of all’s indignation at the insult. But when God was pleased “to sum up all things in Christ,” he came to earth, brought the holy angels down, and appointed them guardians of our life (Matthew 18:10). That is why he also said, “You will see heaven opened, and the angels of God ascending and descending on the Son of Man” (John 1:51) — “of Man,” that is, for the sake of the human. Heaven, shut in the times already past, he opened for us, so that running up and down for our sake they might be servants of the economy accomplished for us through Christ.
Paul too says this: “Are they not all ministering spirits,” (Hebrews 1:14) and what follows. Jacob our forefather’s dreams have the same force: he saw, as he said, “the ladder” (Genesis 28:12) reaching from earth “to heaven,” and <the dream> signifies nothing else, I think, than that in due times there will be ascent and descent for the holy angels because the Only-Begotten shines in the world with flesh for the human. It is most dreadful, then, that those deemed worthy of such care from God — allotted angels as overseers and tutors — should be ranked as of no account, and that by us, their fellow-servants and brothers.
Greek
Ἐπειδήπερ τις πολλὴ καὶ δυσαρίθμητος δαιμόνων πληθὺς τόδε τὸ σύμπαν περιφοιτᾷ πολυτρόποις ἀπάταις τὰ καθ' ἡμᾶς καταστρέφουσα, οὐρανόθεν ἡμῖν ἐπέστησεν ὁ Χριστὸς τοὺς παιδαγωγοὺς οὐχ ὡς τῆς ἀνθρώπου φύσεως τὸ ἔλαττον ἀποφερομένης–πολλοῦ γε καὶ δεῖ· μακρὰν γὰρ τῶν καθ' ἡμᾶς ἐκεῖνοι καὶ ἐναργὴς ὁ λόγος–ἀλλ' ὡς ταῖς τῶν δαιμονίων πλεονεξίαις τὴν ἰδίαν ἰσχὺν ἀντεξάγοντας καὶ τῆς ἡμετέρας ζωῆς ὑπεραθλεῖν ἰσχύοντας· κατώρθωκεν δὲ καὶ τοῦτο μετὰ τῶν ἄλλων ἁπάντων ταῖς ἡμετέραις ψυχαῖς ὁ Χριστός. πάλαι μὲν ἀχρειωθέντων ἡμῶν ἀπεκέκλειστο ὁ οὐρανὸς καὶ οὐδένα τῶν καθ' ἡμᾶς ἐποιοῦντο λόγον οἱ ἄγγελοι οἱονεὶ τῷ πάντων δεσπότῃ συναγανακτοῦντες ὡς ὑβρισμένῳ. ἐπειδὴ δὲ ηὐδόκησεν ὁ θεὸς "ἀνακεφαλαιώσασθαι τὰ πάντα ἐν τῷ Χριστῷ", κατεκόμισεν ἐλθὼν ἐπὶ γῆς καὶ τοὺς ἁγίους ἀγγέλους καὶ τῆς ἡμετέρας ζωῆς κηδεμόνας ἀπέδειξεν. διὸ καὶ ἔλεγεν· "ὄψεσθε τὸν οὐρανὸν ἀνεῳγότα καὶ τοὺς ἀγγέλους τοῦ θεοῦ ἀναβαίνοντας καὶ καταβαίνοντας ἐπὶ τὸν υἱὸν τοῦ ἀνθρώπου". "τοῦ ἀνθρώπου", τοῦτο ἔστιν διὰ τὸν ἄνθρωπον· κεκλεισμένον γὰρ κατὰ τοὺς ἤδη παρῳχηκότας καιροὺς ἤνοιξεν ἡμῖν τὸν οὐρανόν, ἵνα δι' ἡμᾶς ἄνω τε καὶ κάτω θέοντες ὑπουργοί τινες εἶεν τῆς εἰς ἡμᾶς τελουμένης οἰκονομίας διὰ Χριστοῦ. τοῦτο οὖν καὶ ὁ Παῦλός φησιν· "οὐχὶ πάντες εἰσὶν λειτουργικὰ πνεύματα" καὶ ἑξῆς. ταύτην ἔχει τὴν δήλωσιν καὶ τῶν ἐνυπνίων <τοῦ> προπάτορος ἡμῶν Ἰακὼβ ἡ δύναμις· τεθέαται, ὡς ἔφη, "τὴν κλίμακα" διήκουσαν ἀπὸ γῆς "εἰς τὸν οὐρανόν", οὐδὲν οἶμαι κατασημαίνοντος <τοῦ ὀνείρου> ἕτερον ἢ ὅτι κατὰ καιροὺς ἄνοδος τε καὶ κάθοδος ἔσται τοῖς ἁγίοις ἀγγέ λοις διὰ τὸν ἄνθρωπον ἐπιλάμποντα ἐν κόσμῳ μετὰ σαρκὸς τοῦ μονο γενοῦς. πάνδεινον οὖν ἄρα τοὺς τοσαύτης φροντίδος ἠξιωμένους παρὰ θεοῦ ὡς ἐπιστάτας καὶ παιδαγωγοὺς ἀγγέλους καταλαχεῖν ἐν τῷ μη δενὶ τετάχθαι λόγῳ καὶ τοῦτο παρ' ἡμῖν τοῖς ὁμοδούλοις καὶ ἀδελφοῖς.
About this text
Catena fragments on Matthew (CPG 5206). Contents follow Matthew chapter and verse. Edition fragment numbers stay in About this text and under each passage.
English follows the named copy-text (Aegean/khazarzar Migne PG 72 extract). Other prints were checked as noted; no silent merge of recensions.
Witnesses
- Copy-text Migne PG 72 Commentarii in Matthaeum (Aegean Digital Patrologia / khazarzar) (Greek · CPG 5206 catena fragments (290 parsed heads))
- Checked print matia.gr mirror of same Aegean extract (Greek · Byte-identical PDF; integrity check only)
- Checked print Internet Archive PG 72 volume OCR (bim … 1859_72) (Greek (OCR damaged) · Locus confirmation only; not used as reading text)
This is an AI-assisted study translation. Source fidelity and completeness have not been independently certified. Open Greek on each section for the source text. This is not a complete critical edition.