Bede

And should not this daughter of Abraham whom Satan has bound for eighteen years long, be set free from this bondage on the Sabbath day? The daughter of Abraham is any faithful soul, the daughter of Abraham is the Church gathered from both peoples into the unity of faith, which, after the time of the law and the fulfillment of the Lord's resurrection, through the sevenfold grace of the Holy Spirit, broke the bonds of long captivity. Indeed, in this way, perhaps the mystery of the Sabbath and the eighteen years can conveniently be understood. It is therefore mystically the same to release the ox or the donkey from the stall to lead it to drink, as it is to raise the daughter of Abraham from the bond of harmful oppression, that is, the Church gathered from Jews and Gentiles to be freed from the snares of sins through the water of baptism, and to be lifted up to hope for heavenly things. Certainly, it must be noted that the most impious heresy, from the fact that the Lord said, the woman bound by Satan, tries to assert that the afflictions of human bodies do not pertain to God as their author, but rather to the devil, as if the devil, although always desiring to harm, could harm anyone unless he received power from the Almighty. For what else is declared not only in the book of blessed Job, which the aforementioned heresy, along with the other books of the Old Testament, and with God Himself who gave it, malignantly spurns as being under the rule of an evil world prince, but also in the Gospel, where the demons could not even enter into the swine unless He Himself permitted it, as we have also taught above."

Now the man, is Christ, the garden, His Church, to be cultivated by His discipline. He is well said to have taken the grain, because the gifts which He together with the Father gave to us from His divinity, He took from His humanity. But the preaching of the Gospel grew and was disseminated throughout the whole world. It grows also in the mind of every believer, for no one is suddenly made perfect. But in its growth, not like the grass, (which soon withers,) but it rises up like the trees. The branches of this tree are the manifold doctrines, on which the chaste souls, soaring upwards on the wings of virtue, build and repose.

The Satum is a kind of measure in use in the province of Palestine, holding about a bushel and a half.

Or, by the leaven He speaks of love, which kindles and stirs up the heart; the woman, that is, the Church, hides the leaven of love in three measures, because she bids us love God with all our hearts, all our minds, and all our strength. And this until the whole is leavened, that is, until love moves the whole soul into the perfection of itself, which begins here, but will be completed hereafter.

And again he said, "To what shall I compare the kingdom of God, and what is it like? It is like leaven that a woman took and hid in three measures of flour until the whole was leavened." A measure called "satum" is a unit of measure according to the custom of the province of Palestine, holding one and a half modii. Therefore, the leaven refers to love, which heats up and stirs the mind. That woman, to whom he previously laid his hands and who immediately stood up straight glorifying God, signifies the Church, of which we are the flour; all who, through the exercise of fear and hope, are ground down by the upper and lower millstones, so that according to the Apostle, we may be one bread and one body in Christ. Therefore, the woman hid the leaven of love in three measures of flour, because the Church commands that we love the Lord with all our heart, all our soul, all our strength. Under the type of Sarah, it is said to Abraham: "Hurry, get three measures of fine flour, knead it, and make cakes" (Gen. XVIII). Also, in the three measures of flour, the three fruits of the Lord's seed can be understood, namely the thirtieth, the sixtieth, and the hundredth, that is, of the married, the continent, and the virgins. And it is fitting that he says until the whole was leavened, because the love hidden in our mind ought to grow until it changes the whole mind into its perfection, so that the soul can love, act, and remember nothing except the love of its Creator. This indeed begins here, but there it is perfected, where, since God is all in all, he warms everyone with the same fire of his love.

Urged thereto by their love of safety, yet shall not be able, frightened by the roughness of the road.

The master of the house is Christ, who since as very God He is every where, is already said to be within those whom though He is in heaven He gladdens with His visible presence, but is as it were without to those whom while contending in this pilgrimage, He helps in secret. But He will enter in when He shall bring the whole Church to the contemplation of Himself. He will shut the door when He shall take away from the reprobate all room for repentance. Who standing without will knock, that is, separated from the righteous will in vain implore that mercy which they have despised. Therefore it follows, And he will answer and say to you, I know you not whence ye are.

Or mystically, he eats and drinks in the Lord's presence who eagerly receives the food of the word. Hence it is added for explanation, Thou hast taught in our streets. For Scripture in its more obscure places is food, since by being expounded it is as it were broken and swallowed. In the clearer places it is drink, where it is taken down just as it is found. But at a feast the banquet does not delight him whom the piety of faith commends not. The knowledge of the Scriptures does not make him known to God, whom the iniquity of his works proves to be unworthy; as it follows, And he will say unto you, I know not whence ye are; depart from me.

But the twofold punishment of hell is here described, that is, the feeling cold and heat. For weeping is wont to be excited by heat, gnashing of teeth by cold. Or gnashing of teeth betrays the feeling of indignation, that he who repents too late, is too late angry with himself.

Many also at first burning with zeal, afterwards grow cold; many at first cold, on a sudden become warm; many despised in this world, will be glorified in the world to come; others renowned among men, will in the end be condemned.

Then you will begin to say: We ate and drank in your presence, and you taught in our streets. Or simply to be understood that the Jews, rejecting the mysteries of faith, think themselves known to the Lord if they only bring victims to the temple, feast before the Lord, listen to the reading of the prophets, not knowing what the Apostle says: The kingdom of God is not food and drink, but righteousness and peace, and joy in the Holy Spirit (Rom. XIV); and elsewhere: Whose god is their belly, and whose glory is in their shame (Phil. III), that is, in carnal circumcision; or mystically it is to be felt that they eat and drink before the Lord, who receive the food of the word with worthy eagerness. Hence, those who say these things, as if explaining, add: And you taught in our streets. For sacred Scripture is sometimes food for us, sometimes drink. In more obscure places it is food, because it is as if it is broken down by explaining and swallowed by chewing. Truly, it is drink in clearer places, because it is taken in as it is found. Therefore, they testify that they understood both the hidden and revealed commands of the sacred word, who complain to the judge rejecting them that they ate and drank before him. But it is greatly to be feared what is added.