Some unsearchable fear creeps in when you think about this text and at the same time project it onto...
Some unsearchable fear creeps in when you think about this text and at the same time project it onto the present state of affairs in the world. "But He said: Woe to you lawyers also, because you load people with burdens hard to bear, and you yourselves do not touch the burdens with one of your fingers". The point is not even that some of our spiritual fathers force us to fast too severely, or that someone lays too strict penances on us. It seems that none of this is really a sign of the present day. Perhaps somewhere there are priests who are strict beyond measure. But overall, this is not at all the spirit of our days. Any normal priest understands that simply being an ordinary decent Christian against the background of our maddened, corrupted, terrifying age is already a very difficult task, to say nothing of ascetic feats among laypeople.
But it seems that this is only the most direct meaning of today's reading, while it also contains deeper layers of meaning. Now these words of the Lord call to our memory other words as well. "They will put you out of the synagogues; but the hour is coming when whoever kills you will think that he is offering service to God" (John 16:2). Now the closeness of these two texts is strong.
Why will he think that he is offering service to God? Why do some "Muslims" think that by killing Christians they are offering service to Allah? Why do some "Christians" think that by dropping bombs on civilians in Iraq, on children and women, they are doing a God-pleasing, good, kind, and just thing? Why?
And the answer to this question, strangely enough, lies precisely in the words Jesus speaks today. We are obedient to "lawyers"; they guide us like donkeys on whom burdens are loaded, and we obey them. We even have such words as "spiritual leader." But it seems to me that this is some kind of oxymoron, nonsense, an impossible expression. In principle there can be no such concept as a spiritual leader. In the spirit only the Spirit can guide us, and everything else is not in the spirit, but simply criminal, a matter for court. But one must strain oneself, labor, read, think, pray. Here everything is simple: the mullah said that it is written in the Quran, if you meet an unbeliever, strike the neck with the sword (the 47th sura, "Muhammad"), so go kill Christians. But it turns out that in fact something completely different is meant; the passage is about a battle, but this requires going deeply into it, looking at different translations, simply having an integral vision and living communion with God. And Christians hear their children being killed to shouts of "Allahu akbar" and begin to hate, or even behave in such a way that the only word a believer can use toward them is "infidel." And they forget that Christ teaches love, not hatred; they forget because they turn not to Christ, but to presidents who call themselves believers, to leaders - in a word, to "lawyers."
One wants to say: people, look more carefully at the words the Lord speaks today: "that you load people with burdens hard to bear, and you yourselves do not touch these burdens with a single finger." Are we donkeys, that burdens should be loaded on us? Woe to them, yes; but we should not offer them our backs.
2
2:1 Therefore - The apostle now makes a transition from the gentiles to the Jews, till, at Rom 2:6, he comprises both. Thou art inexcusable - Seeing knowledge without practice only increases guilt. O man - Having before spoken of the gentile in the third person, he addresses the Jew in the second person. But he calls him by a common appellation, as not acknowledging him to be a Jew.See verses Rom 2:17, Rom 2:28. Whosoever thou art that judgest - Censurest, condemnest.For in that thou judgest the other - The heathen.Thou condemnest thyself; for thou doest the same things - In effect; in many instances.
2:2 For we know - Without thy teaching That the judgment of God - Not thine, who exceptest thyself from its sentence. Is according to truth - Is just, making no exception, Rom 2:5, Rom 2:6, Rom 2:11; and reaches the heart as well as the life, Rom 2:16.
2:3 That thou shalt escape - Rather than the gentile.
2:4 Or despisest thou - Dost thou go farther still, - from hoping to escape his wrath, to the abuse of his love?.The riches - The abundance. Of his goodness, forbearance, and longsuffering - Seeing thou both hast sinned, dost sin, and wilt sin. All these are afterwards comprised in the single word goodness. Leadeth thee - That is, is designed of God to lead or encourage thee to it.
2:5 Treasurest up wrath - Although thou thinkest thou art treasuring up all good things. O what a treasure may a man lay up either way, in this short day of life! To thyself - Not to him whom thou judgest. In the day of wrath, andrevelation, and righteous judgment of God - Just opposite to "the goodness and forbearance and longsuffering" of God. WhenGod shall be revealed, then shall also be "revealed" the secrets of men's hearts, Rom 2:16.Forbearance and revelation respect God, and are opposed to each other; longsuffering and righteous judgment respect the sinner; goodness and wrath are words of a more general import.
2:6 Pro 24:12
2:7 To them that seek for glory - For pure love does not exclude faith, hope, desire, Co1 15:58.
2:8 But to them that are contentious - Like thee, O Jew, who thus fightest against God. The character of a false Jew is disobedience, stubbornness, impatience. Indignation and wrath, tribulation and anguish - Alluding to Psa 78:49"He cast upon them," the Egyptians. "thefierceness of his anger, wrath, and indignation, and trouble;" and finely intimating, that the Jews would in the day of vengeance be more severely punished than even the Egyptians were when God made their plagues so wonderful.
2:9 Of the Jew first - Here we have the first express mention of the Jews in this chapter. And it is introduced with great propriety. Their having been trained up in the true religion, and having had Christ and his apostles first sent to them, will place them in the foremost rank of the criminals that obey not the truth.
2:10 But glory - Just opposite to "wrath," from the divine approbation. Honour - Opposite to "indignation," by the divine appointment; and peace now and for ever, opposed to tribulation and anguish.
2:11 For there is no respect of persons with God - He will reward every one according to his works. But this is well consistent with his distributing advantages and opportunities of improvement, according to his own good pleasure.