Luke 19:42

Secondly, as to the foolish joy of the royal city, he adds: Saying: If you had known, even you, through foresight, you would have wept, supply: through penitence; whence the Gloss: "If you had known the ruin that threatens, you would have wept." And here …

(Hom. 39. in Ev.) The merciful Redeemer wept then over the fall of the false city, which that city itself knew not was about to come upon it. As it is added, saying, If thou hadst known, even thou (we may here understand) wouldest weep. Thou who now rejoicest, for thou knowest not what is at hand. It follows, at least in this thy day. For when she gave herself up to carnal pleasures, she had the things which in her day might be her peace. But why she had present goods for her peace, is explained by what follows, But now they are hidden from thy eyes. For if the eyes of her heart had not been hidden from the future evils which were hanging over her, she would not have been joyful in the prosperity of the present. Therefore He shortly added the punishment which was near at hand, saying, For the days shall come upon thee.

(Hom. 39. in Ev.) For our Redeemer does not cease to weep through His elect whenever he perceives any to have departed from a good life to follow evil ways. Who if they had known their own damnation, hanging over them, would together with the elect shed tears over themselves. But the corrupt soul here has its day, rejoicing in the passing time; to whom things present are its peace, seeing that it takes delight in that which is temporal. It shuns the foresight of the future which may disturb its present mirth; and hence it follows, But now are they hid from thine eyes.

To which the weeping Lord rightly says: "If you had known, even you"—understand: you would weep—you who now, because you do not know what threatens, rejoice. Whence it is also added: "And indeed in this your day, the things that are for your peace." For when it gave itself to the pleasures of the flesh and did not foresee the evils to come, it had in its day those things which could be for its peace. But why it had present goods for peace is made clear when it is said: "But now they are hidden from your eyes." For if the evils which threatened had not been hidden from the eyes of its heart, it would not have been joyful in present prosperity. The sentence which follows fittingly applies to the soul about to perish: "And indeed in this your day, the things that are for your peace, but now they are hidden from your eyes." Here the perverse soul has its own day, which rejoices in transitory time. For such a soul the things present are for peace, because while it rejoices in temporal things, while it is exalted by honors, while it dissolves in carnal pleasure, while it is terrified by no fear of future punishment, it has peace in its day, which will have the grave scandal of its damnation in another's day. For there it will be afflicted, where the just will rejoice; and all the things which now are for its peace will then be turned into the bitterness of strife, because it will begin to quarrel with itself as to why it did not dread the damnation it suffers, why it closed the eyes of its mind from foreseeing the evils to follow. […]

And as He drew near, seeing the city, He wept over it, saying: If you had known, even you. Because it is written that the Lord wept at this destruction of Jerusalem which was undertaken by the Roman princes Vespasian and Titus, no one who …

And indeed in this your day, what is to your peace. For when it was giving itself to carnal pleasures, it did not foresee the evils about to come, it had, in its day, what could have been for its peace. Why it would have …

But now they are hidden from your eyes. For if the evils that were impending had not been hidden from the eyes of his heart, he would not have rejoiced in present prosperity. Moreover, the punishment that was imminent from the Roman leaders, as I …

He weeps over the insensibility of Jerusalem and says: "if you, even you, had known in this your day the things that make for your peace." That is, if only you had known even now what is to your benefit and leads to peace and …

Saying, if thou hadst, known, even thou,....

(See on Lu 13:9.) thy peace--glancing perhaps at the name of the city. (Heb 7:2) [WEBSTER and WILKINSON]. How much is included in this word! now . . . hid--It was His among His last open efforts to "gather them," but their eyes were judicially closed.

when beheld . . . wept--Compare La 3:51, "Mine eye affecteth mine heart"; the heart again affecting the eye. Under this sympathetic law of the relation of mind and body, Jesus, in His beautiful, tender humanity, was constituted even as we.

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We learn, firstly, from these verses — how great is the tenderness and compassion of Christ towards sinners. We are told that when He came near Jerusalem for the last time, "He beheld the city, and wept over it." He well knew the character of the inhabitants of Jerusalem. Their cruelty, their self-righteousness, their stubbornness, their obstinate prejudice against the truth, their pride of heart — were not hidden from Him.

We learn, firstly, from these verses — how great is the tenderness and compassion of Christ towards sinners. We are told that when He came near Jerusalem for the last time, "He beheld the city, and wept over it." He well knew the character of the inhabitants of Jerusalem. Their cruelty, their self-righteousness, their stubbornness, their obstinate prejudice against the truth, their pride of heart — were not hidden from Him. He well knew what they were going to do to Him within a very few days — His unjust judgment, His delivery to the Romans, His sufferings, His crucifixion — were all spread out distinctly before His mind's eye! And yet knowing all this, our Lord pitied Jerusalem! "He beheld the city, and wept over it." We err greatly if we suppose that Christ cares for none but His own believing people. He cares for all. His heart is wide enough to take an interest in all mankind. His compassion extends to every man, woman, and child on earth. He has a love of 'general pity' for the man who is going on still in wickedness — as well as a love of 'special affection' for the sheep who hear His voice and follow Him. He is not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance. Hardened sinners are fond of making excuses for their conduct. But they will never be able to say that Christ was not merciful, and was not ready to save. We know but little of true Christianity, if we do not feel a deep concern about the souls of unconverted people. A lazy indifference about the spiritual state of others — may doubtless save us much trouble. To have no concern whether our neighbors are going to Heaven or Hell — is no doubt the way of the world. But a man of this spirit is very unlike David, who said, "Rivers of waters run down my eyes — because men do not obey your law."