THEOSISTheodoret of Cyrus
This reveals that even the house of God was regarded as unholy by them, leading them to conduct themselves within it as they did in their own dwelling places. Therefore, the Lord declared, "And I died in my fury, and in the beating. I punished them for their iniquities, and delivered them to be beaten." Subsequently, He urged them to abandon their past ways and to renounce wickedness for their own benefit and that of their leaders. If they complied, He vowed to make His presence known among them eternally. They could have enjoyed these blessings had they embraced the Lord who had come to them. However, upon seeing Him, they conspired, saying, "This is the heir; come, let us kill Him, and the inheritance will be ours" (Matthew 21:38). As a consequence, God removed them from the vineyard, scattering them throughout the world, and entrusted the vineyard to other workers, so that He might be with them in the coming ages, receiving the fruits of their labor.