Against Heresies: Book V

FOR THIS REASON: when about to undergo His sufferings, so He might announce to Abraham and those with him the good news of the inheritance being made available, Christ, after He had given thanks while holding the cup, drank from it and gave it to the disciples, saying to them: “Drink all of it: this is My blood of the new covenant, which will be shed for many for the remission of sins. But I tell you, I will not drink from this vine again until that day when I drink it new with you in my Father’s kingdom.” Thus, He will renew the inheritance of the earth and reorganize the mystery of the glory of His sons, as David says, “He who has renewed the face of the earth.” He promised to drink from the fruit of the vine with His disciples, indicating both the inheritance of the earth, in which the new fruit of the vine is consumed, and the resurrection of His disciples in the flesh. For the new flesh that rises again is the same that also received the new cup. He cannot be understood as drinking from the fruit of the vine while settled with His disciples above in a super-celestial place; nor are those who drink it without flesh, for drinking what flows from the vine pertains to flesh, not spirit.

AND FOR THIS REASON THE LORD DECLARED: “When you make a dinner or a supper, do not invite your friends, nor your neighbors, nor your relatives, in case they invite you back and repay you. Instead, invite the lame, the blind, and the poor, and you shall be blessed, because they cannot repay you, but you will be repaid at the resurrection of the just.” And again He says, “Whoever has left lands, or houses, or parents, or siblings, or children for My sake, shall receive a hundred times as much in this world, and in the world to come, shall inherit eternal life.” For what are the hundred-fold rewards in this world, the meals given to the poor, and the suppers for which a return is made? These are to take place in the times of the kingdom, that is, on the seventh day, which has been sanctified, in which God rested from all the works He created, which is the true Sabbath of the righteous, during which they shall not be engaged in any earthly work; but will have a table prepared for them by God, providing them with all kinds of dishes.

Isaac's blessing for his younger son Jacob holds the same meaning when he says, "Behold, the smell of my son is like the smell of a field that the Lord has blessed." However, "the field is the world." Therefore, he added, "God give you the dew of heaven and the richness of the earth, plenty of grain and wine. Let the nations serve you, and may kings bow down to you; be lord over your brother, and may your father's sons bow to you.

CURSED BE ANYONE WHO CURSES YOU: and blessed be anyone who blesses you." If anyone does not see these things as relating to the appointed kingdom, he must face much contradiction, like the Jews, who are in absolute confusion. For not only did the nations not serve Jacob in this life, but even after receiving the blessing, he himself served his uncle Laban the Syrian for twenty years after leaving his home.

Moreover, he was not made lord over his brother but instead bowed to his brother Esau upon returning from Mesopotamia to his father and offered many gifts to him.

Furthermore, Jacob did not inherit much grain and wine here; he migrated to Egypt due to the famine in the land he lived in and became subject to Pharaoh, who was ruling over Egypt at that time.

Therefore, the predicted blessing undoubtedly pertains to the times of the kingdom, when the righteous will reign upon rising from the dead; when creation, having been renewed and freed, will yield an abundance of all kinds of food from the dew of heaven and the fertility of the earth.

As the elders who saw John, the disciple of the Lord, related, they heard from him how the Lord taught about these times, saying: The days will come when vines will grow with each having ten thousand branches, each branch having ten thousand twigs, and each twig ten thousand shoots, and each shoot ten thousand clusters, and every cluster will have ten thousand grapes. When pressed, each grape will yield twenty-five metretes of wine. When any saint picks a cluster, another will cry out, "I am a better cluster, take me; bless the Lord through me." Similarly, the Lord declared that a grain of wheat would produce ten thousand ears, each ear having ten thousand grains, and every grain would yield ten pounds of clear, pure, fine flour.

All other fruit-bearing trees, seeds, and grasses would produce in similar proportions. All animals, feeding only on the earth's produce, will become peaceful and harmonious with each other and be perfectly subject to man in those days.

4. These things are documented in writing by Papias, the listener of John and a companion of Polycarp, in his fourth book; he compiled five books in total. He adds, "Now these things are credible to believers." He mentions that when the traitor Judas questioned them and asked, "How can things about to bring forth so abundantly be done by the Lord?" the Lord replied, "Those who live in these times will see." When prophesying about these times, Isaiah says: "The wolf will live with the lamb, and the leopard will rest with the goat; the calf, the bull, and the lion will eat together, and a little boy will lead them. The ox and the bear will graze together, and their young will be safe together; and the lion will eat straw like the ox. The infant will put his hand into the viper's nest, and they will do no harm nor cause any damage on my holy mountain." And he repeats, "Wolves and lambs will graze together, and the lion will eat straw like the ox, and the serpent will eat dust as if it were bread; and they will neither harm nor trouble anything on my holy mountain, says the Lord."

I KNOW THAT SOME PEOPLE TRY TO APPLY THESE WORDS TO THE SITUATION OF WILD MEN FROM DIFFERENT NATIONS AND VARIOUS HABITS WHO COME TO BELIEVE: and when they believe, live in harmony with the righteous. While this is true now regarding some people from various nations joining the harmony of the faith, in the resurrection of the just, these words will also apply to the animals mentioned. For God is rich in all things. When creation is restored, it is right that all animals should obey and be subject to humans and return to the diet initially given by God (as they were originally in obedience to Adam), which is the produce of the earth. However, another occasion should be sought to show that the lion will then eat straw. This indicates the large size and rich quality of the fruits. For if the lion eats straw at that time, the wheat itself must be of such quality that its straw would serve as suitable food for lions.