Thomas Aquinas

After the Apostle commended the ministry of the new testament, both as to its dignity and as to its use, he consequently here commends it as to its reward; although he treated of the reward in some respect, in some way and incompletely, above, here nonetheless he treats of this completely. Concerning this he does three things. For first he treats of the reward; second, of the preparation and the reception of the reward, at "and therefore we strive whether," etc.; third, of the cause of both, namely of the preparation and of the reward which is awaited, at "but all things are of God, who reconciled," etc.

Concerning the first he does two things. First he sets down the reward that is awaited; second he expresses the desire for the awaited reward, at "for in this we groan," etc. But because the reward which is awaited is inestimable, namely of heavenly glory, he therefore says "we know that," etc., as if to say, according to the Gloss, that it truly works in us a weight of glory, because this glory will be in the bodies, not only in the souls.

"For," that is, because; "we know," that is, we are certain, because we already have it in hope, "that if our earthly house," that is, the body. For man, as has been said, is called mind, since it is the more principal part in man; and this mind is related to the body as a man is related to a house. For just as, when a house is destroyed, the man inhabiting it is not destroyed but remains, so, when the body is destroyed, the mind or rational soul is not destroyed, but remains. The earthly body, therefore, is called "the house of habitation," that is, in which we dwell. Job 4:19: "who dwell in houses of clay," etc. "Be dissolved," that is, be destroyed. "We know," I say, that we have "a building," that is, an edifice, "from God," that is, prepared by God. An edifice, I say, "a house not made with hands," that is, not by the work of man, nor by the work of nature, but an incorruptible body, which we shall assume; and this indeed is not made with hands, because incorruptibility in our bodies comes only from divine operation. Phil. 3:21: "he will reform the body of our lowliness," etc. "An eternal house," that is, a house prepared from eternity. Isa. 33:20: "a tabernacle that shall by no means be destroyed, in the heavens." Matt. 5:12: "your reward is abundant in heaven."

This exchange, namely that in place of the earthly house they should have the heavenly, Job desired, saying in chapter 14:14: "all the days in which I now serve as a soldier." This exposition is according to the Gloss. But nevertheless it is not according to the apostolic sense, nor does it agree with what precedes or what follows. For since he has one continuous subject matter of which he speaks, he does not interpose another. And therefore let us see what the Apostle intends to say.

Now it must be known that the Apostle wishes here to show that the saints reasonably endure tribulations, by which the present life is corrupted, because from this they immediately arrive at glory—not at a glorious body, as is said in the Gloss. And therefore he says: "therefore we have endured, for," that is, because, "we know," that is, we hold for certain, "that if our earthly house of this habitation," that is, the body, "be dissolved," that is, be corrupted through death, "we have," immediately, not in hope but in reality, a better house, namely a building, "a house not made with hands," that is, heavenly glory, not a glorious body. Of this house, moreover, it is said in John 14:2: "in my Father's house there are many mansions," etc. And this indeed is from God, not made with hands, because eternal glory is God himself. Ps. 30:3: "be to me a protecting God, and a house," etc. And "eternal," according to the letter, because God himself is eternal. "In heaven," that is, in the heights, because as soon as the body is corrupted, the holy soul attains this glory not in hope, but in reality. For even before the body is dissolved, we have this house in hope. Thus, therefore, the reward of the saints is admirable and desirable, because it is heavenly glory.

Therefore he consequently subjoins the desire of the saints for this reward, saying "for in this we groan," etc. Where he does three things. First he expresses the desire of grace for the reward itself; second he shows that the desire of grace is retarded by the desire of nature, at "for we also who are in this tabernacle," etc.; third he shows how the desire of grace conquers the desire of nature, at "being confident therefore," etc.

But the desire of grace is with fervor. "For in this we groan," etc., as if to say: this is the true proof that we have a house not made with hands, because if the desire of nature is not in vain, much less is the desire of grace in vain. Since, therefore, we have a most fervent desire of grace for heavenly glory, it is impossible that it should be in vain. And this is what he says, "we groan," that is, we desire by groaning, "in this"—that is, we being retarded in the desire of the soul. Ps. 119:5: "woe is me, that my sojourning," etc. For in that we are "desiring," that is, we desire, "to be clothed upon with our habitation," that is, the enjoyment of glory, "which is from heaven," that is, heavenly; which is called "habitation" because in that very glory the saints dwell as in their consolation. Matt. 25:21-23: "enter into the joy of your lord."

But by saying "to be clothed upon," he gives to understand that that heavenly house, of which he had spoken above, is not something separated from man, but something inhering in man. For a man is not said to put on a house, but a garment; a house, however, someone is said to inhabit. These two, therefore, he joins together, saying "to be clothed upon with the habitation," by which he shows that that desire is for something inhering, because it is put on, and something containing and exceeding, because it is inhabited.

But because he did not simply say "to be clothed," but "to be clothed upon," he subjoins the reason for his statement, saying "if so be that being clothed, we shall not be found naked." As if to say: if the soul were clothed with the heavenly habitation in such a way that it were not stripped of the earthly habitation, that is, our body were not corrupted through death, then the heavenly acquisition of that habitation would be a clothing-upon. But because it is necessary that it be emptied of the earthly habitation, in order that it be clothed with the heavenly, it cannot be called a clothing-upon, but a simple clothing. And therefore he says "if so be that being clothed, we shall not be found naked," as if to say: we would indeed be clothed upon, if we were found clothed, and not naked. For one who is naked is not said to be clothed upon, but only clothed.

The Gloss, however, expounds otherwise, concerning a spiritual garment, saying: we desire to be clothed upon, which indeed will come to pass, yet on this condition, if we are found clothed, namely with virtues, and not naked, namely of virtues. Of these garments it is said in Col. 3:12: "put on, as the elect of God," etc. As if to say: no one will arrive at that glory, unless he has the virtues. This exposition, indeed, does not seem to agree with the intention of the Apostle.

Thus, therefore, the desire of grace is fervent for the reward, but nevertheless it is retarded by the desire of nature, which he shows when he says "for while we are in this tabernacle," etc. Where first he sets down the condition of the natural desire; second he shows that even this state of the natural desire is from God, at "now he that works us," etc.

Now the condition of the desire is a natural one retarding the desire of grace, because we would wish to be found clothed and not naked, that is, we would wish in such a way that the soul might arrive at glory, that the body not be corrupted through death. The reason for which is that a natural desire is present in the soul to be united to the body; otherwise death would not be penal. And this is what he says, "for," we, "who are in this tabernacle," that is, who dwell in this mortal body—2 Peter 1:14: "I know that the putting off of my tabernacle is swift"—"we groan," that is, within, in the heart, not only outwardly in voice, we groan, Isa. 59:11: "we shall groan like meditating doves," because it is hard to think about death.

And yet "burdened," as though something existed against our desire, in that we cannot arrive at glory unless we lay down the body, which is so contrary to natural desire, as Augustine says, that not even old age itself could take away from Peter the fear of death. And therefore he says "for that we would not be unclothed," namely of the earthly tabernacle, "but clothed upon," with supercelestial glory, or, according to the Gloss, with a glorious body.

But because it might seem unfitting that the body should, on the one hand, be corruptible by its own nature, if it had not been previously dissolved, and on the other hand, by reason of glory, be glorious, he subjoins the manner in which he would wish it to come about, saying "that what is mortal may be swallowed up," etc., as if to say: we do not wish to be clothed upon in such a way that the body remains mortal, but in such a way that glory takes away wholly the corruption of the body, without bodily dissolution. And therefore he says "that what is mortal may be swallowed up," that is, the very corruption of the body, "by life," namely of glory. 1 Cor. 15:54: "death is swallowed up in victory," etc.