Page:Ninety-nine homilies of S. Thomas Aquinas upon the epistles and gospels for forty-nine Sundays of the Christian year (IA ninetyninehomili00thom).pdf/79

 III. On the third head it is to be noted, that there will be deliverance there from five evils—(1) From the vexation of daemons: Isa. xiv. 3, “ And it shall come to pass in that day that the Lord shall give thee rest from thy sorrow, and from thy fear, and from the hard bondage.” (2) From the affliction of all evil: Tobit xiii. 19, “The Lord our God hath delivered Jerusalem His city from all her troubles.” (3) From the corruption of the creature: Rom. viii. 21, “The creature itself also shall be delivered from the bondage of corruption.” (4) From the death of the body: Rom. vii. 24, 25, “Who shall deliver me from the body of this death ? I thank God through Jesus Christ our Lord.” (5) Liberty from the servitude of sin: S. John viii. 36, “If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed.” Blessed, therefore, is that city where there is no evil, where all is good. To which good may we be brought, &c.

There are three things especially in this Gospel which Jesus is said to have done. Firstly, He “ went over the sea.” Secondly, He ascended into a mountain: “ went up into a mountain.” Thirdly, He fed multitudes: “ Jesus took bread,” &c.

I. On the first head it is to be noted, that Jesus did three things in connection with the sea—(1) He calmed it. (2) He walked upon it with dry feet. (3) He went over it. These three things Christ did in the world: Ps. civ. 25, “ This great and wide sea.” (1) Christ calmed the world in reconciling it with God the Father. (2) Walking over the world with dry feet, by loving nothing earthly. (3) He went over the world, ascending into heaven. Of the first: 2 Cor. v. 19, “ God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto Himself.” Of the second: S. John xiv. 30, “ The prince of this world cometh, and hath nothing in Me.” Of