On the Conversion of St. Paul: Homily of St. Bede the Venerable, Priest

 

On the Conversion of St. Paul: Homily of St. Bede the Venerable, Priest

 

He is a perfect man who, going, sells all that he has and gives to the poor, and coming, follows Christ, for he shall have a never- ending treasure in heaven. And hence at Peter's well-chosen question Jesus says to men of this kind, "Amen I say to you, that you who have followed me, in the regeneration, when the Son of man shall sit on the seat of his majesty, you also shall sit on twelve seats judging the twelve tribes of Israel."

 

He taught those who labor for His name's sake in this life to hope for a reward in the next; that is, in the regeneration, when they who were born as men into this frail life shall have been regenerated into life eternal by rising again. And truly it is a just reward that they, who here disregard the glory of human greatness for the sake of Christ, who could not be drawn away from following His footsteps by any motive, should there sit With Him as glorified judges.

 

But let no one think that only the twelve apostles (for Matthias was chosen in the place of the apostate Judas) will be judges; just as not only are the twelve tribes of Israel to be judged. Otherwise, the tribe of Levi, which is the thirteenth, would escape judgment. And Paul, who is the thirteenth Apostle, would be deprived of his privilege of judging, although he himself says, "Know ye not that we shall judge angels? how much more the things of this world?"

 

For you should know that all who, after the example of the apostles, have left all things and followed Christ, are going to sit in judgment with Him, just as every race of mortal men- is to be judged. For since universality is often denoted in Scripture by the number twelve, the great number of all those who are to judge is shown by the twelve seats of the Apostles, just as by the twelve tribes of Israel the universality 'Of all those to bo judged is designated.