Homilies on Second Corinthians

“If he that comes preaches another Jesus, whom we did not preach, or if you receive a different Spirit which you did not receive, or a different Gospel which you did not accept, you do well to bear with him.”

And he does not say, 'Lest by any means as Adam was deceived.' but shows that those men are but women who are thus abused, for it is the part of woman to be deceived. And he did not say, 'so ye also should be deceived.' but keeping up the metaphor, he says, “so your minds should be corrupted from the simplicity that is toward Christ.” 'From the simplicity, I say, not from wickedness; neither out of wickedness [is it], nor out of your not believing, but out of simplicity.' But, nevertheless, not even under such circumstances are the deceived entitled to forgiveness, as Eve showed. But if this does not entitle to forgiveness, much more will it not do so, when through vain-glory any is so.

2. “For if he that comes preaches another Jesus whom we did not preach:” showing hereby that their deceivers were not Corinthians, but persons from some other quarter previously corrupted: wherefore he says, “he that comes.”

“If you receive a different Spirit, if a different Gospel which you did not accept, you do well to bear” with him. What do you say? You that said to the Galatians, “If any preach another Gospel to you than that you have received, let him be anathema;” do you now say, “ye do well to bear” with him? And yet on this account it were meet not to bear with, but to recoil, from them; but if they say the same things, it is meet to bear with them. How then do you say, 'because they say the same things, it is not meet to bear with them?' for he says, 'if they said other things, it were meet to bear with them.' Let us then give good heed, for the danger is great, and the precipice deep, if men run past this carelessly; and what is here said gives an entrance to all the heresies. What then is the sense of these words? Those persons so boasted as if the Apostles taught incompletely, and they were introducing somewhat more than they. For it is probable that with much idle talk, they were bringing in senseless rubbish so as to overlay these doctrines. And therefore he made mention of the serpent and of Eve who was thus deceived by the expectation of acquiring more. And alluding to this in the former Epistle also, he said, “Now you have become rich, you have reigned as kings without us;” and again, “we are fools for Christ's sake, but you are wise in Christ.” Since then it was probable that using the wisdom which is without, they talked much idly, what he says is this: that 'if these persons said any thing more, and preached a different Christ who ought to have been preached, but we omitted it, “ye do well to bear” with them.' For on this account he added, “whom we did not preach.” 'But if the chief points of the faith are the same, what have ye the more of them? For whatsoever things they may say, they will say nothing more than what we have said.' And observe with what precision he states the case. For he did not say, 'if he that comes says any thing more;' for they did say something more, haranguing with more authority and with much beauty of language; wherefore he did not say this, but what? [If] “he that comes preaches another Jesus,” a thing which had no need of that array of words: “or ye receive a different Spirit,” (for neither was there need of words in this case;) that is to say, 'makes you richer in grace;' or “a different Gospel which you did not accept,” (nor did this again stand in need of words,) “ye do well to bear” with him. But consider, I pray you, how he every where uses such a definition as shows that nothing very great, nor indeed any thing more, had been introduced by them. For when he had said, “If he that comes preaches another Jesus,” he added, “whom we did not preach;” and “ye receive a different Spirit,” he subjoined, “which you did not receive; or a different Gospel,” he added, “which you did not accept,” by all these showing that it is meet to attend to them, not simply if they say something more, but if they said any thing more which ought to have been said and was by us omitted. But if it ought not to have been said, and was therefore not said by us; or if they say only the same things as we, why gape ye so admiringly upon them? 'And yet if they say the same things,' says one, 'wherefore do you hinder them?' Because that using hypocrisy, they introduce strange doctrines. This however for the present he does not say, but afterwards asserts it, when he says, “They fashion themselves into Apostles of Christ;” for the present he withdraws the disciples from their authority by less offensive considerations; and this not out of envy to them, but to secure these. Else why does he not hinder Apollos, who was, however, a “learned man, and mighty in the Scriptures;” but even beseeches him, and promises he will send him? Because together with his learning he preserved also the integrity of the doctrines; but with these it was the reverse. And therefore he wars with them and blames the disciples for gaping admiringly upon them, saying, 'if anything that should have been said we omitted and they supplied, we do not hinder you from giving heed to them: but if all has been fully completed by us and nothing left deficient, whence is it that they caught you?' Wherefore also he adds,