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| The Freedom of Sons.
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11. The
Freedom of Sons.
And this may be put in another way. There are some
who are kings’ sons on the earth, and yet they are not sons of
those kings, but sons, and sons absolutely; but others, because of
their being strangers to the sons of the kings of the earth, and sons
of no one of those upon the earth, but on this very account are sons,
whether of God or of His Son, or of some one of those who are
God’s. If, then, the Saviour inquires of Peter, saying,
“The kings of the earth from whom do they receive toll or
tribute—from their own sons or from strangers?”5910
and Peter replies not from their own sons,
but “from strangers,” then Jesus says about such as are
strangers to the kings of the earth, and on account of being free are sons,
“Therefore the sons are free;”5911
for the sons of the kings of the earth are not free, since “every
one that committeth sin is the bond-servant of sin,”5912
but they are free who abide in the truth of
the word of God, and on this account, know the truth, that they also
may become free from sin. If, any one then, is a son simply, and
not in this matter wholly a son of the kings of the earth, he is
free. And nevertheless, though he is free, he takes care not to
offend even the kings of the earth, and their sons, and those who
receive the half-shekel; wherefore He says, “Let us not cause
them to stumble, but go thou and cast thy net, and take up the fish
that first cometh up,”5913
etc. But I
would inquire of those who are pleased to make myths about different
natures, of what sort of nature they were, whether the kings of the
earth, or their sons, or those who receive the half-shekel, whom the
Saviour does not wish to offend; it appears of a verity, ex
hypothesi, that they are not of a nature worthy of praise, and yet
He took heed not to cause them to stumble, and He prevents any
stumbling-block being put in their way, that they may not sin more
grievously, and that with a view to their being saved—if they
will—even by receiving Him who has spared them from being caused
to stumble. And as in a place verily of consolation,—for
such is, by interpretation, Capernaum,—comforting the disciple as
being both free and a son, He gives to him the power of catching the
fish first, that when it came up Peter might be comforted by its coming
up and being caught, and by the stater being taken from its mouth, in
order to be paid to those whose the stater was, and who demanded as
their own such a piece of money.E.C.F. INDEX & SEARCH
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