Catena Aurea

21. But, behold, the hand of him that betrayeth me is with me on the table.

22. And truly the Son of man goeth, as it was determined: but woe unto that man by whom he is betrayed.

23. And they began to enquire among themselves, which of them it was that should do this thing.

AUGUSTINE. (de Con. Ev. l. iii. c. 1.) When our Lord had given the cup to His disciples, He again spoke of His betrayer, saying, But, behold, the hand of him that betrayeth me, &c.

THEOPHYLACT. And this He said not only to shew that He knew all things, but also to declare unto us His own especial goodness, in that He left nothing undone of those things which belonged to Him to do; (for He gives us an example, that even unto the end we should be employed in reclaiming sinners;) and moreover to point out the baseness of the traitor who blushed not to be His guest.

CHRYSOSTOM. (Hom. 82. in Matt.) Yet though partaking of the mystery, he was not converted. Nay, his wickedness is made only the more awful, as well because under the pollution of such a design, he came to the mystery, as that coming he was not made better, either by fear, gratitude, or respect.

BEDE. And yet our Lord does not especially point him out, lest being so plainly detected, he might only become the more shameless. But He throws the charge on the whole twelve, that the guilty one might be turned to repentance. He also proclaims his punishment, that the man whom shame had not prevailed upon, might by the sentence denounced against him be brought to amendment. Hence it follows, And truly the Son of man goeth, &c.

THEOPHYLACT. Not as if unable to preserve Himself, but as determining for Himself to suffer death for the salvation of man.

CHRYSOSTOM. (Hom. 81. in Matt.) Because then Judas in the things which are written of him acted with an evil purpose, in order that no one might deem him guiltless, as being the minister of the dispensation, Christ adds, Woe unto that man by whom he is betrayed.

BEDE. But woe also to that man, who coining unworthily to the Table of our Lord, after the example of Judas, betrays the Son, not indeed to Jews, but to sinners, that is, to his own sinful members. Although the eleven Apostles knew that they were meditating nothing against their Lord, yet notwithstanding because they trust more to their Master than themselves, fearing their own infirmities, they ask concerning a sin of which they had no consciousness.

BASIL. (in Reg. Brev. ad int. 301.) For as in bodily diseases there are many of which the affected are not sensible, but they rather put faith in the opinion of their physicians, than trust their own insensibility; so also in the diseases of the soul, though a man is not conscious of sin in himself, yet ought he to trust to those who are able to have more knowledge of their own sins.