Acts 21:17Meaning & Commentary from the Church Fathers

You can receive the Father of Christ also, and you do not wish to do it. "I was a stranger," He says, "and you received Me" (Mt 25:35). Again He says, "As you did it to one of the least of these My brethren, you did it to Me" (Mt 25:40).

If he is faithful and a brother, then Christ comes in his person. This is so even if he is not Paul, and even if he is the least of all. Open your house and receive him.

"He who receives a prophet," it is said, "shall receive a prophet's reward" (Mt 10:41). Therefore, he who receives Christ shall receive the reward proper to one who receives Christ.

Do not doubt the truth of His words, but believe. He Himself said that He comes in their person. So that you would not doubt this, He appointed punishments for those who do not receive them, and honors for those who receive them.

He would not have done this if He Himself were not the One honored and insulted. "You received Me," He says, "into your dwelling. I will receive you into the kingdom of My Father.

You delivered Me from hunger. I will deliver you from sins. You looked upon Me in bonds. I will show you set free. You cared for Me as a stranger. I will make you a citizen of heaven.

You gave Me bread. I will give you the whole kingdom as your inheritance and possession." "Come," He says, "inherit the Kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world" (Mt 25:34).

He did not say, "Receive," but, "Inherit." This means full possession, as when we say, "I inherited such and such a thing." You did something for Me in secret. I will proclaim it openly.

What you did I count as mercy. What I do, I count as a debt. You began, He says, and I act after you and in response to you.

I am not ashamed to confess the good deeds shown to Me, nor the things from which you delivered Me: hunger, nakedness, and estrangement. You looked upon Me in bonds, and you yourself will not see the fire of Gehenna.

You cared for Me when I was sick, and you yourself will experience neither toll-houses nor punishments. O truly blessed are the hands that perform such good works, and have been counted worthy to serve Christ.

The feet that went to prisons for Christ will pass easily through the fire. The hands that touched Him in bonds will not feel the weight of shackles. You clothed Him in a garment, and you will be clothed in the garment of salvation.

You were with Him in prison, and you will be with Him in the Kingdom. He confesses this without shame, but acknowledges that you cared for Him.

The patriarch Abraham did not know that he was receiving angels, and yet he received them. Let us be ashamed, I exhort you. He sat at midday in a foreign land, without even a span of earth belonging to him.

He was a stranger, and yet a stranger received strangers. He was a citizen of heaven. For this reason he did not become a stranger even upon earth.

But we, by not receiving strangers, become strangers ourselves more than that stranger was. He had no house. A tent served as his dwelling. Yet see how generous he was. He slaughtered a calf and prepared cakes.

Hear how zealous he was. He did this himself, together with his wife. Look also at his humility. He bowed down and begged them to visit him (Gen 18).

All these things are needed by one who receives strangers: zeal, warm-heartedness, and generosity. The soul of a stranger is self-conscious and ashamed. If he is not shown the utmost warmth, he leaves as though rejected.

Such a reception is far worse than a direct refusal. Therefore Abraham bows down, greets them with words, and offers them a seat. Who could have doubted his warm-heartedness, seeing how he acted?

But you will say, "We are not in a foreign land." If we wish, we can imitate him even here. How many of our brethren are strangers? We have a common ecclesial dwelling, which we call a guest-house.

Show zeal yourselves also. Sit at the doors and receive those who come. If you do not wish to do this in your homes, then help their needs in some other way.

But you will say, "Does the Church not have resources?" It does, but what is that to you? If they are fed from the common possessions of the Church, can that bring you any benefit?

When someone else prays, are you therefore not obliged to pray? Why do you not say, "The priests pray, so why should I pray?" But, you say, "I give to one who cannot go there."

Then give at least to such a person. This is our concern, that you would only give. Hear what Paul says: "They must provide for them, and not burden the Church" (1 Tim 5:16).

Do this however you wish, only do it. Yet I will not say, "Do not burden the Church," but rather, "Do not burden yourself." By such arguments you will do nothing, leaving everything to her.

For this reason the Church established a common dwelling for strangers, so that you would not say this. But you say, "The Church has resources. It has money and income." Tell me, does she not also have expenses?

Does she not have daily expenditures? "Certainly," you say. Why, then, do you not help her poverty? I am ashamed to say this, yet I do not compel anyone at all.

If anyone thinks this is being said for profit, let him establish a guest-house in his own home. Let him place there a bed, a table, and a lamp.

Is it not strange? When soldiers arrive, you have special quarters for them, show great zeal, and provide them with everything, because they defend you in bodily war. But for strangers you have no place where they may stay.

Surpass the Church. Do you wish to put us to shame? Do it. Surpass us in generosity. Establish a dwelling where Christ may come. Say, "This is Christ's cell. This house is appointed for Him."

Even if this dwelling is not rich, He does not disdain it. Christ walks in the form of the naked and the stranger, needing only shelter. Provide Him at least this. Do not be cruel and inhuman.

You are so ardent in worldly affairs. Do not be cold in spiritual ones. Entrust this to a very faithful servant, and let him bring in the needy, the poor, and the homeless.

I say this to put you to shame. It would be fitting to receive them in the upper part of the house. But if you do not wish this, then receive Christ at least below, even where the mules and servants stay.

Perhaps you shudder on hearing this. But what can be done, if you do not even do this? I exhort you. I speak to you: take care for this. And again you do not wish to do it?

Then do it another way. There are many poor men and women. Make it a rule that at least one of them should always be with you. Let the poor man at least be the guardian of the house.

Let him be for you a wall and enclosure, a shield and spear. Where almsgiving is present, the devil and no other evil dares to enter. Let us not neglect this good.

Now one place is appointed for the carriage, and another for the litter, but not one for Christ the stranger. Abraham received strangers in the very place where he himself lived.

His wife stood like a servant, while they sat like masters. He did not know that he was receiving Christ. He did not know that he was receiving angels. If he had known, he would have given them everything.

But we know that we receive Christ, and still we do not show the same zeal that he showed, although he thought he was receiving men.

But you will say, "Many of them are deceivers and ungrateful." Your reward will be all the greater if you receive them in the name of Christ. If you are certain that they are deceivers, then do not receive them into your house.

But if you are not certain, why do you condemn without distinction? "For that reason," you say, "I send them to the guest-house." But what justification do we have if we do not receive even those whom we do not know?

What justification do we have if we shut the doors against all? Let our house be Christ's haven for everyone. Let us ask of them a reward, not silver, but that they make our house Christ's haven.

Let us go everywhere, draw them to ourselves, and pursue them as though they were spoils. Here we receive benefactions more than we bestow them.

I do not command you to slaughter a calf. Give bread to the hungry, clothing to the naked, and shelter to the stranger.

So that you may not say in your defense that there is a common ecclesial dwelling, I say this: contribute there, and through this you will have received the poor yourself. For Abraham received a reward even for what was done by his servants (Gen 14:14).

His servants also had been taught in this way. They ran and did not grumble, as ours do, because he had made them pious. He led them to war, and they did not grumble. So devoted to wisdom were they.

He cared for all of them as he cared for himself, and he seemed to say, like Job, "I too was formed from clay" (Job 33:6).

Therefore let us care for our own salvation, and let us also have great concern for our servants, so that they too may be good and zealous. Let our servant also be taught what must be done for God.

If we order them in this way, then virtue will not be difficult for us.

In war, if the soldiers are well ordered, the commander conducts the battle easily. If this is not so, the opposite occurs. On a ship, when all the crew act in harmony, the pilot easily directs the rudder.

So also here, if your servants are taught the good, you will not readily become irritated. You will not be grieved, angry, or condemn. Sometimes you yourself will be ashamed before your servants, if they are worthy.

Sometimes they will help you and praise your good deeds. In this way everything pleasing to God will be accomplished by all of them. The whole house will be filled with blessing.

By doing what is pleasing to God, we ourselves will receive great help from above. May we all be counted worthy of it, by the grace and love for mankind of our Lord Jesus Christ.

With Him, to the Father, together with the Holy Spirit, be glory, dominion, and honor, now and ever, and unto the ages of ages. Amen.

This accusation was unjust if it meant that Paul rejected the outward observance of Judaism in itself. He rejected it only as a means of man’s justification and sanctification.

His chief principle was this: no one should abandon the earthly, national, and civil relations in which he had lived before Christianity, unless there were weighty reasons for doing so.

In accordance with this principle, Paul also allowed Jews to remain with their Jewish institutions. The observance of the law of Moses belonged to these (1 Cor 7:17, 18).

Therefore, in order to refute this accusation by action itself, James proposed that Paul publicly bear witness, through respect for Jewish rites, that he was not an enemy of the Jewish law.

Paul accepted this proposal and resolved, with four brethren from among the Jews, to take upon himself a Nazirite vow for seven days.

Consequently, he subjected himself to the same renunciations required of Nazirites. He announced to the priests of the temple that he would pay for himself and his fellow participants the sum due from them for offering sacrifice to God at the release from the vow.

Perhaps someone may say: if someone had brought Paul to me, I too would gladly have done the same with great zeal. But behold, you can show hospitality to the Lord, to Paul.

‘Whoever receives one such child in My name receives Me’ (Mt 18:5). The less the brother is, the more Christ comes in his person.

For the one who receives a great man does this out of vainglory. But the one who receives a little one does this purely for Christ.

Do this. Arrange a dwelling where Christ may come. Say: this is Christ’s cell, this house is appointed for Him. Though this dwelling be poor, He does not disdain it.

Christ walks in the form of one naked and a stranger, needing only a covering. Provide Him at least this. Do not be cruel and inhuman. You are so lively in earthly affairs; do not be cold in spiritual affairs.”