The distinction between hating parents and hating God

Things said about the Savior: 'Understand the apostle and high priest of our confession, faithful in him who made him' (Hebrews 3:6). He made him an apostle; he did not merely make him, but an apostle. And behold, the essence of the Son is eternal. But to become an apostle happens then, when some depart from him; for he is sent to those far off. And observe that the becoming an apostle co-exists with him being far from certain ones, those having been distanced from him.

Again, he becomes high priest when he is set over those for whom he is consecrated. But it is not then that the hypostasis of the Savior has become, as those think, but the beginning, the high priesthood. Thus also in the deeds of the apostles he says: 'Let all the house of Israel know securely this, that God made him both Lord and Christ' (Acts 20:25). He becomes Lord of those fleeing to serve him. If therefore anyone begins to serve him even today, he has become Lord to him today. And if anyone subjects him to his own kingdom and to his own priesthood, he has become Christ to him today; for the Christ declares nothing other than king and high priest.

Indeed, Aaron was said to be the Lord's Christ, and the kings were said to be the Lord's Christs, and concerning Saul: 'The Lord is a witness, and his Christ' (1 Samuel 24:6). And this: 'Do not touch my Christs.' 'My helper' therefore means 'become, do not lead me astray'; do not send me away from you. Concerning some it is said: 'God will cast them away, because they did not listen to him, and they shall be wanderers among the nations' (Psalm 80:12). When they depart, they were led astray here and there, no longer having a firm purpose. And he assigns the cause to us: 'because they did not listen.' It is not God's will to cast anyone away from him. But it is his will to send away those who did not listen, so that he might not seem to hate virtue. And since they did not listen, 'according to the abundance of their lawlessness, cast them out, because they have turned aside from you, Lord' (Psalm 64:6). This is what it means to be led astray.

And they say also that the word is etymologized such that the iron filings are called the 'koras'. Easily the filings are scattered like dust. May I not become such a thing as to be led astray. I wish to be a vessel of gold or a vessel of bronze, but certainly not the dross.

And it is sent away and cast out. 9 And do not leave me, Lord God my Savior. For you are also my Lord—for I serve you—and my God—for I am a child of Abraham, and God is 'of Abraham and of Isaac' (Gen 21:10) and clearly of them—I am as a slave toward a lord, as one worshipping sincerely toward God, being healed, as one being saved toward a Savior. Since therefore all these things have become mine, you do not leave me.

10 For my father and my mother have left me. I wish to clarify this with an explicit evangelical sense, so that it may be understood from that. And the Old Scripture and the Gospel and the very exhortations of the Savior teach to love father and mother. Listen: if anyone hates a father, he does not hate him as a father, but as an impious man; and he hates him not in his capacity as father, but in his capacity as impious. And he who loves a father, does so because of this, that he truly pursues him when he is thus trained by fear and instruction, when he is thus trained as a righteous man. 'Well' indeed 'a father trains a righteous man'. I have said therefore that almost all the Scriptures speak against and punish those who fall away from the honor of parents: 'he who slanders a father or mother shall be executed by death'. Therefore listen: 'he who loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me'. Even though it says 'honor your parents and love father and mother' (Ex 20:12), but when one does so above God, he is slandered; for when he is about to confess the truth while being restrained by persecution, and when he says, 'because of the old age of the father and the mother I do not wish to die', and betrays them, loving the parents above God, he has preferred the disposition toward the parents over the piety toward God. And this is what is slandered.

In the Gospel, indeed, the Savior says: 'Having turned', he says, 'Jesus said to the crowds: If anyone wants to come after me, if he does not hate his father and his mother and his wife and his brothers and his children, he cannot be my disciple' (Luke 14:26). If you have legislated honor concerning parents and promised me great labors saying: 'Honor your father and your mother, so that it may go well with you and you may be long-lived on the earth' (Matt 19:17), how do you now say: 'If someone does not hate father and mother, he cannot follow me'? The hatred here is called differently, the hatred not...