Chapter 106.—240. Petilianus said: "Woe unto you, therefore, who, by doing violence to what is holy, cut away the bond of unity; whereas the prophet says, ‘If the people shall sin, the priest shall pray for them: but if the priest shall sin, who will pray for him?’"
241. Augustin answered: I seemed too a little while ago, when we were disputing about the oil of the sinner, to anoint your forehead, in order that you might say, if you dared, whether you yourself were not a sinner. You have had the hardihood to say as much. What a portentous sin! For in that you assert yourself to be a priest, what else have you maintained by quoting this testimony of the prophet, save that you are wholly without
sin? For if you have sin, who is there that shall pray for you, according to your understanding of the words? For thus you blazon yourselves among the wretched people, quoting from the prophet: "If the people shall sin, the priest shall pray for them: but if the priest shall sin, who will pray for him?2300
to the intent that they may believe you to be without
sin, and entrust the wiping away their
sins to your prayers. Truly ye are great men, exalted above your fellows, heavenly, godlike,
angels indeed rather than men, who
pray for the people, and will not have the people
pray for you! Are you more
righteous than
Paul, more
perfect than that great
apostle, who was wont to commend himself to the prayers of those whom he taught? "Continue," he says, "in prayer, and watch in
the same with thanksgiving; withal praying also for us, that
God would open unto us a
door of utterance, to speak the
mystery of
Christ, for which I am also in
bonds; that I may make it manifest, as I ought to speak."
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See how prayer is made for an
apostle, which you would have not made for a
bishop. Do you perceive of how devilish a
nature your
pride is? Prayer is made for an
apostle, that he may make manifest the
mystery of
Christ as he ought to speak. Accordingly, if you had a pious people under you, you ought to have exhorted them to
pray for you, that you might not give utterance as you ought not. Are you more
righteous than the
evangelist John, who says, "If we say that we
have no
sin, we
deceive ourselves, and the
truth is not in us?"
2302
Finally, are you more
righteous than Daniel, whom you yourself quoted in this very
epistle, going so
far as to say, "The most
righteous king cast forth Daniel, as he supposed, to be
devoured by
wild beasts?"—a thing which he never did suppose, since he said to Daniel himself, in the most friendly spirit, as the context of the lesson shows, "Thy
God, whom thou servest continually, He will
deliver thee."
2303
But on this subject we have already said much. With regard to the
question now before us, viz., that Daniel was most
righteous, it is
proved not by your
testimony, though that might be sufficient for me in the argument which I hold with you, but by the
testimony of the Spirit of
God, speaking also by the mouth of Ezekiel, where he named three men of most eminent
righteousness,
Noah, Daniel, and Job, who, he said, were the only men that could be
saved from a certain
excessive
wrath of
God, which was hanging over all the
rest.
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A man, therefore, of the highest
righteousness, one of three conspicuous for
righteousness,
prays, and says, "While I was speaking, and praying, and confessing my
sin, and the
sin of my people
Israel, and presenting my
supplication before the
Lord my
God."
2305
And you say that you are without
sin, because forsooth you are a
priest; and if the people
sin, you
pray for them: but if you
sin, who shall
pray for you? For clearly by the impiety of such arrogance you show yourself to be unworthy of the mediation of that
Priest whom the
prophet would have to be understood in these words, which you do not understand. For now that no one may ask why this was said, I will explain it so
far as by
God’s
grace I
shall be able.
God was preparing the minds of men, by His
prophet, to desire a
Priest of such a sort that none should
pray for Him. He was Himself prefigured in the times of the first people and the first
temple, in which all things were figures for our ensample. Therefore the high
priest used to enter alone into the holy of holies, that he might make
supplication for the people, which did not enter with the
priest into that inner
sanctuary;
2306
just as our High
Priest is entered into the
secret places of the heavens, into that truer holy of holies, whilst we for whom He
prays are still placed here.
2307
It is with this reference that the
prophet says, "If the people shall
sin, the
priest shall
pray for them: but if the
priest shall
sin, who will
pray for him?"
Seek therefore a
priest of such a
kind that he cannot
sin, nor need that one should
pray for him. And for this reason prayer is made for the
apostles by the people;
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but for that
Priest who is the Master and
Lord of the
apostles is prayer not made. Hear John confessing this, and saying, "My little
children, these things
write I unto you, that ye
sin not. And if any man
sin, we have an Advocate with the
Father,
Jesus Christ the
righteous, and He is the
propitiation for our
sins."
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"
We have," he says; and "for
our sins." I pray you, learn humility, that you may not fall, or rather, that in time you may arise again. For had you not already fallen, you never would have used such words.
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