The Sower and the Harvest of the Church

I am defeated, devil. For the earth belongs to the Lord, and the Church of Christ is always being cultivated by the heavenly rain, ever-flourishing and bearing fruit for Christ, thirtyfold, sixtyfold, and a hundredfold.

The sower, he says, went out to sow; and one fell upon the path, that Greek deception. Then the flying things came, the sharp-eyed snatchers of demons, and they devoured it. Another fell upon the rocky places—the hard-hearted choice of the Jews, I say—and immediately there sprouted a plant of presumption and lawlessness. Such is the way of the Jews. For while legislating in the wilderness, they said to Moses, 'All that God has said, we will do and we will listen.' Yet they, promising these things, worship an unspiritual calf and preferred the dead to the living God. Another fell upon the thorns, those rough-centered and blasphemous-tongued heresies which daily choke the seed of piety.

Another fell upon the good earth, the Church of Christ, the fruitful, bearing thirtyfold, sixtyfold, and a hundredfold. Thirty is the yoke of prudence; sixty is of angel-like virginity; a hundred is of divine justice, of purity, and of the manliness of the martyrs. For the preachers of piety, evangelizing to all the coming of the Lord at the end, were saying, 'In this manner he will come, the way in which you saw him being taken up.' For two men appeared in white clothing. Two, so that the truth might be believed; men, so that I might support the disciples into manliness; wearing white, so that they might brighten the minds of those hearing.

What then were those seen preaching? Men of Israel, why do you stand looking into the heaven? Why do you gaze into the heaven? Rather, considering the maker of heaven, you glorified the greatness of the one being taken up, and you marveled at his condescension of philanthropy, because having united to himself a man of the earth, he promoted him to a citizen of heaven and made him an inhabitant of heaven; marvel! Where did he lift up the one lying below? Why do you stand looking into the heaven? In this way he will come. How? Surrounding our own body, presenting the side pierced by the spear, so that the Jews might see the one they pierced; and we might be worthy to see his face with boldness, and we might obtain the promised good things, by the grace and philanthropy of our Lord Jesus Christ; with whom to the Father and the Holy Spirit be glory, power, and honor, now and always, and unto the ages of ages. Amen.