Commentary on the Gospel According to John, Books 13-32

Book 28

BOOK TWENTY-EIGHT HOSE WHO INVESTIGATE the natures of numbers have said that six is the first perfect number, being equal to its own parts, both from the combination of what is doubled from the unit, one and two, which is three, a prime number, and the doubling of the number arrived at, now I mean from the two, for when the two has been multiplied by three it makes six.1 (2) But they say the second perfect number is twentyeight , being composed both of the compound of the doubling beginning from the unit until the first number results, and the doubling of the number arrived at. For four is the number doubled from the unit in the order one, two, four. (3) Now, the combination of these numbers is seven, which is itself also a prime number, since it is measured by the unit alone; and when four is multiplied by seven, it makes twenty-eight, also itself equal to its own parts.2 (4) Now for this reason I think [the number] 3 that is related to the preparation of the tent of witness is grasped by Moses who was instructed in "all the wisdom of the Egyptians ,"4 for the curtains are twenty-eight cubits in length. (5) And, indeed, the tent of witness which was prepared for the glory of God had to contain the number twenty-eight among the special numbers.5 (6) Since, holy brother Ambrose, we have reached this section of the commentaries on the Gospel according to 1. Cf. Philo, op. 3. Preuschen demonstrates the scheme as: 6=(1+2)X2, or 6=1+2+3. 2. I.e. 28=(1+2+4)x4, or 28=1+2+4+7+14 (Preuschen). 3. My addition, based on Wendland's suggestion. Preuschen indicates that the text is corrupt at this point. 4. Cf. Acts 7.22. 5. Cf. Ex 26.2. 292 COMMENTARY ON JOHN, BOOK 28 293 John (for, if God grants, this will be the twenty-eighth volume on the Gospel), let us call upon God, who is perfect and is the provider of perfection through our perfect high priest Jesus Christ,6 that he might grant that our mind discover the truth about the matters that will be investigated and their composition, and thus let us proceed to what follows . Jesus says, Take away the stone. (John 11.39) Jesus Does Not Take the Stone Away Himself (7) Here Jesus himself does not take away the stone that lies upon the cave, but says, "Take away the stone." In Genesis , on the other hand, when "there was a large stone on the mouth of the well, and the custom was to gather all the flocks there and roll back the stone from the mouth of the well, and gather and water the sheep, and restore the stone to the mouth of the well in its place,"7 and when this had not yet taken place because the flocks had not been gathered,8 Jacob, when he saw "Rachel, the daughter of Laban his mother's brother, and the sheep of Laban his mother's brother, himself approached and rolled back the stone from the mouth of the well and watered the sheep of Laban his mother's brother."9 Inasmuch as there is this difference , we wish to examine both stones together so that we may grasp the reason that here Jesus himself did not take away the stone from the cave, but said, "Take away the stone," yet in Genesis Jacob himself rolled the stone away from the mouth of the well. (8) Consider if we can say that, because the cave was a tomb, Jesus himself must not touch the stone upon the cave, but only command those suitable for the work to take the stone away. On the other hand, Jacob himself had to grasp the stone that was lying on the mouth of the well and keeping those sheep, from which would come the spotted sheep, 6. Cf. Heb 2.17. 8. Cf. Gn 29.8. 7. Cf. Gn 29.2-3. 9. Cf. Gn 29. 10. 294 ORIGEN even the portion of Jacob,lO from drinking, and when he had approached the stone he had to roll it back from the mouth of the well that the sheep of Laban his mother's brother might be watered. (9) And it was necessary...