Thus saith the Lord to me: Go, and get thee a linen girdle, and thou shalt put it about thy loins, and shalt not put it into water.2 And I got a girdle accoding to the word of the Lord, and put it about my loins.3 And the word of the Lord came to me the second time, saying:4 Take the girdle which thou hast got, which is about thy loins, and arise, and go to the Euphrates, and hide it there in a hole of the rock.5 And I went, and hid it by the Euphrates, as the Lord had commanded me.6 And it came to pass after many days, that the Lord said to me: Arise, go to the Euphrates, and take from thence the girdle, which I commanded thee to hide there.7 And I went to the Euphrates, and digged, and took the girdle out of the place where I had hid it: and behold the girdle was rotten, so that it was fit for no use.8 And the word of the Lord came to me, saying:9 Thus saith the Lord: after this manner will I make the pride of Juda, and the great pride of Jerusalem to rot.10 This wicked people, that will not hear my words, and that walk in the perverseness of their heart, and have gone after strange gods to serve them, and to adore them: and they shall be as this girdle which is fit for no use.11 For as the girdle sticketh close to the loins of a man, so have I brought close to me all of the house of Israel, and all the house of Juda, saith the Lord: that they might be my people, and for a name, and for a praise, and for a glory: but they would not hear.
Furthermore, this Paul said strongly that "the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking"—or abstinence from wine or meat—"but of righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit." Which of them goes around like Elijah wearing a sheepskin and a leather belt? Which of them wears no shoes and nothing but a piece of sackcloth like Isaiah? Or with nothing on but a linen loincloth, like Jeremiah?
The blessed John disdained sheep's wool because it savored of luxury; he preferred camel's hair and clothed himself in it, giving us an example of simple, frugal living. Incidentally, he also ate only honey and locusts, food that is sweet and with a spiritual significance. So it was that he prepared the way of the Lord and kept it humble and chaste. He fled from the false pretenses of the city and led a peaceful life in the desert with God, away from all vanity, boasting and servitude. How could he possibly have worn a purple mantle? Elijah used a sheepskin for his garment and girded it tight with a belt made of leather. Isaiah, another historic prophet, went "naked and without sandals" and often put on sackcloth as a garment of humility. If you protest and make mention of Jeremiah, he wore only a loincloth made of linen.
Thou hast forsaken the God that beget thee, and hast forgotten the Lord that created thee.19 The Lord saw, and was moved to wrath: because his own sons and daughters provoked him.20 And he said: I will hide my face from them, and will consider what their last end shall be: for it is a perverse generation, and unfaithful children.21 They have provoked me with that which was no god, and have angered me with their vanities: and I will provoke them with that which is no people, and will vex them with a foolish nation.
There is peace and joy in the hearts of those upon whom the face of the Lord looks. But for those from whom he turns away there is an accumulation of evils. He does not desire to look upon evil, because he is good. But if he deliberately looks toward evil, then wickedness takes root, because of humankind's infidelity.
And many of the Jews were come to Martha and Mary, to comfort them concerning their brother.20 Martha therefore, as soon as she heard that Jesus had come, went to meet him: but Mary sat at home.21 Martha therefore said to Jesus: Lord, if thou hadst been here, my brother had not died.22 But now also I know that whatsoever thou wilt ask of God, God will give it thee.23 Jesus saith to her: Thy brother shall rise again.24 Martha saith to him: I know that he shall rise again, in the resurrection at the last day.25 Jesus said to her: I am the resurrection and the life: he that believeth in me, although he be dead, shall live:†26 And every one that liveth, and believeth in me, shall not die for ever. Believest thou this?27 She saith to him: Yea, Lord, I have believed that thou art Christ the Son of the living God, who art come into this world.
(Hom. lxii. 2) Two miles. This is mentioned to account for so many coming from Jerusalem: And many of the Jews came to Martha and Mary, to comfort them concerning their brother. But how could the Jews be consoling the beloved of Christ, when they had resolved that whoever confessed Christ should be put out of the synagogue? Perhaps the extreme affliction of the sisters excited their sympathy; or they wished to shew respect for their rank. Or perhaps they who came were of the better sort; as we find many of them believed. Their presence is mentioned to do away with all doubt of the real death of Lazarus.
(Hom. lxii. 2.) Martha does not take her sister with her, because she wants to speak with Christ alone, and tell Him what has happened. When her hopes had been raised by Him, then she went her way, and called Mary.
(Hom. lxii. 3) She believed in Christ, but she believed not as she ought. She did not speak as if He were God: If Thou hadst been here, my brother had not died.
(Hom. lxii. 3) Nor did she know that He wrought His miracles by His own independent power: But I know that even now, whatsoever Thou will ask of God, God will give it Thee. She only thinks Him some very gifted man.
(Hom. lxii. 3) But our Lord taught her the truths which she did not know: Jesus saith unto her, Thy brother shall rise again. Observe, He does not say, I will ask God, that he may rise again, nor on the other hand does He say, I want no help, I do all things of Myself; a declaration which would have been too much for the woman; but something between the two, He shall rise again.
(Hom. lxii) She had often heard Christ speak of the resurrection. Jesus now declares His power more plainly: Jesus said unto her, I am the resurrection and the life. He needed therefore none to help Him; for if He did, how could He be the resurrection. And if He is the life, He is not confined by place, but is every where, and can heal every where.
(Hom. lxii) To Martha’s, Whatsoever Thou shall ask, He replies, He that believeth in Me, though he were dead, yet shall he live: shewing her that He is the Giver of all good, and that we must ask of Him. Thus He leads her to the knowledge of high truths; and whereas she had been enquiring only about the resurrection of Lazarus, tells her of a resurrection in which both she and all present would share.
About CSB. A personal translation of the New Testament, rendered directly from the public-domain Greek in a literary style — not a scholarly critical edition, and not for liturgical or doctrinal authority. It is one reader's work, offered for enjoyment; where it matters, weigh it against an established translation. (Placeholder text — final wording to come.)