Page:Ninety-nine homilies of S. Thomas Aquinas upon the epistles and gospels for forty-nine Sundays of the Christian year (IA ninetyninehomili00thom).pdf/129

 flesh we shall die; for it follows that there is a threefold death from the pleasure of the flesh—(1) the death of sin ; X'2) the death of nature, Ecelus. xxxvii. 34, “ By surfeiting many have perished(3) the death of Gehena, Gal. vi. 8, “ He that soweth to his flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption Psal. xxxiii, 22, Vulg., “ The death of the wicked is very evil.”

III. On the third head, it is to be noted that a threefold life is acquired by the mortification of the flesh—(1) prolongation of natural life, Ecclus. xxxvii. 31, “He that is temperate shall prolong life (2) the life of grace, Rom. viii. 6, “ To be spiritually minded is life and peace (3) the prolongation of the life of glory, 2 Cor. iv. 11, “Always bearing about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus, that the life of Jesus might be made manifest in our body.”

The Lord in this Gospel signifies the three kinds of trees which are in the island of this world. Firstly, He signifies the tree bringing forth good fruits, “Every good tree.” Secondly, that bringing forth evil fruits, “A corrupt tree,” &c. Thirdly, the tree bringing forth no fruits, “ Every tree that bringeth not forth good fruit,” &c.

I. The Lord commends the first tree to us for three reasons. First, from the multiplicity of fruits—“ fruit.” He speaks plurally, that the just who is here called a good tree ought to produce much fruit: for it ought to produce twelve fruits —(1) charity; (2) joy; (3) peace; (4) patience ; (5) long suffering ; (G) goodness ; (7) gentleness ; (8) mildness ; (9) faith; (10) modesty; (11) continency; (12) chastity. Gal. v. 22, “ But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace,” &c. Secondly, He commends it for the preciousness of the fruits,