Gregory the Great — on Ezek 3:1 (Homilies on Ezekiel, Book 1, Homily 10)

“When certain people read the writings of sacred Scripture, upon penetrating its more sublime passages, they tend to despise with a swelling sense of pride the lesser commandments that were given for the weaker ones, and they wish to change them into another meaning. If they rightly understood the lofty things in it, they would not hold even the smallest commandments in contempt, because the divine precepts speak in certain ways to the great, yet in other ways they are suited to the little ones, who through increases of understanding grow as if by certain steps of the mind, and arrive at comprehending greater things. Hence now it is said to the holy prophet: "Son of man, eat whatever you find." Whatever is found in sacred Scripture must be consumed, because both its small things compose a simple life, and its great things build up subtle understanding. It follows: "Eat this scroll, and go speak to the sons of Israel. And I opened my mouth, and he fed me with that scroll." Holy Scripture is our food and drink. Hence even the Lord threatens through another prophet: "I will send a famine upon the land, not a famine of bread, nor a thirst for water, but of hearing the word of the Lord." He who says that we are worn down by hunger and thirst when his speech is withdrawn, demonstrates that his words are both our food and our drink. But it should be noted that they are sometimes food, sometimes drink. For in more obscure matters that cannot be understood unless they are explained, holy Scripture is food, because whatever is explained so that it may be understood is, as it were, chewed so that it may be swallowed. But in more open matters it is drink. For we swallow drink without chewing. Therefore we drink the more open things by command, because we are able to understand them even without explanation. But because the prophet Ezekiel was about to hear many obscure and perplexing things, he is by no means told concerning the sacred volume, "drink," but "eat." As if it were openly said: Work through it and understand it, that is, first chew, and then swallow. But in the words of sacred speech this order of our study must be observed, that we come to know these things so that, having been pierced with compunction for our iniquity, and recognizing the evils we have done, we may avoid doing others. And when now from the great practice of tears there begins to be confidence concerning the remission of sins, through the words of God which we understand let us also draw others to life. For they are to be understood for this purpose, that they may both profit us and be conferred upon others with spiritual intention. Whence it is now well said: "Eat this scroll, and go, speak to the children of Israel." As if it were said to him concerning the sacred food: Eat and feed, be filled and bring forth, receive and scatter, be strengthened and labor.”