Before us are the next verses from the sixth chapter of Matthew’s Gospel—verses 16 and 17:
Moreover when ye fast, be not, as the hypocrites, of a sad countenance: for they disfigure their faces, that they may appear unto men to fast. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward. But thou, when thou fastest, anoint thine head, and wash thy face.
This verse belongs to the category of those that can be misinterpreted if understood too literally. Saint John Chrysostom writes:
“To give alms in complete secrecy is not always possible. But to pray and fast in secret—this is certainly possible. Therefore, when the Lord said: Let not thy left hand know what thy right hand doeth (Matt. 6:3), He did not mean the physical hands, but that we must make every effort to hide our deeds from all. In the same spirit, He commands us to go into a closed room—not because it is obligatory or best to pray there, but to signify secrecy.
In the same way, here, when He commands us to anoint our heads, He does not mean that we are literally required to anoint ourselves with oil. If this were so, we would all be transgressors of this commandment—first among them the communities of desert ascetics, who retreat to the mountains and strive most fervently to keep the commandment of fasting. Clearly, then, this is not what the Saviour commanded.
In ancient times, it was customary to anoint oneself in times of joy and celebration—as we see in the examples of David and Daniel. Thus, Christ commands us to anoint our heads not as a literal obligation, but as a way of urging us to make every effort to conceal our fasting—this spiritual treasure. And if you would be assured of this interpretation, consider how the Lord Himself fulfilled His own command when He fasted in secret for forty days, without anointing His head or washing His face. Yet He did so without any trace of vainglory.”
Saint Gregory Palamas provides a spiritual interpretation of these words:
“If one were to say—elevating the meaning—that here head refers to the soul’s governing faculty, that is, the mind, and that face refers to the soul’s imaginative faculty (imagination), which is the seat of impressions that arise from the senses, then this would be good. For while we fast, we ought to anoint the head with oil—that is, make the mind merciful—and wash the face—that is, purify the imagination—of shameful and impure thoughts, of anger and of every deceit.”
We now continue with the next verse:
That thou appear not unto men to fast, but unto thy Father which is in secret: and thy Father, which seeth in secret, shall reward thee openly.
Blessed Augustine addresses here a spiritual problem that remains deeply relevant today. Perhaps you have seen in churches individuals who attempt to draw attention to themselves. Here is how Augustine writes:
“One must take care to note that boastfulness may be seen not only in the splendor and luxury of material things, but also in the harshest and most sorrowful expressions. These are even more dangerous, for they mislead under the guise of serving God. A man who glitters with excessive ornamentation, with fine clothing or other forms of display, can easily be exposed as someone attached to this world—and he deceives no one under the appearance of sanctity.
But the man who, while professing Christianity, wears rags and dishevelled garments in order to draw attention to himself (doing so intentionally, not from necessity), can only be rightly judged by his other deeds: whether he acts from disdain for worldly vanities or from secret pride. For the Lord Himself has taught us to beware of wolves in sheep’s clothing: By their fruits ye shall know them (Matt. 7:16). When such individuals—faced with certain trials—begin to withdraw or abandon what they once strove for, it becomes unmistakably clear to all whether he was a wolf in sheep’s clothing or truly a sheep.”
Personally, I found this interpretation particularly important, for I once witnessed a man who, both inside and outside the church, wore beggar’s garments and pretended to be an ascetic, offering advice to the parishioners. As we see, this phenomenon was present even in the fifth century—and it is no less present today.
Ava Justin of Ćelije beautifully reveals the essence of virtue and the spiritual struggle to conceal our virtue from others.
This pillar of the Church in the 20th century writes:
“Virtue loses its eternal meaning if it is practiced for the sake of men, for vainglory, and not for God or for the sake of virtue itself. God-manly fasting is a necessary struggle in the Christian life, for only it, when united with prayer, expels from human nature every impurity—both human and demonic.
When a Christian practices the God-manly virtue of fasting, he should conceal it from others whenever possible. Let sorrow and a spirit of repentance not be visible to men. But even if others do see it, let it be sincere and from the heart, and let it not aim to bring praise and glory from men. That which men do not see—God sees.”
This, however, does not mean, according to Father Daniil Sysoev, that one should deny fasting when asked directly—for even such a confession is a form of witnessing to one’s faith. The point is not to display our faith for the sake of praise or attention, to elevate ourselves above others, or to appear somehow exceptional.
Verses 19 and 20 of Matthew 6 read as follows:
Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal: But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal.
Saint John Chrysostom, in his explanation of these verses, insightfully exposes what lies behind a desire that still dominates the minds of many today—the desire to become rich. He writes:
“Indeed, nothing kindles love for wealth so much as vainglory. A retinue of servants… horses adorned with gold, silver tables, and other such ridiculous things were not invented to satisfy necessity or provide enjoyment, but to display oneself before others.
Jesus Christ first taught that we should be merciful; and here, with the words Lay not up treasures, He shows to what extent we are to be merciful. Since avarice holds such powerful sway over people, it was not possible to begin directly with a teaching on despising wealth. The Saviour uproots this passion gradually and frees us from it step by step…
What are you afraid of, Christ asks? That your wealth will be depleted if you give alms? No. Give alms, and it will not be spent. In fact, it is a wondrous thing: your wealth will not only remain but increase, because to it will be added heavenly rewards.
Christ also encourages charity from another angle—not by saying that if you give alms your wealth will be preserved, but by threatening the opposite: that if you do not give, your wealth will be destroyed.
The Fathers also interpret these verses in terms of spiritual struggle and inner life.
Earthly treasures are understood as the pursuit of praise, popularity, and human approval.
Euthymios Zigabenos writes:
“Moth and rust refer to thoughts that arise in the soul and secretly destroy all spiritual goods; the thieves that break in represent praises from others, which plunder our hidden storehouses of virtue.”
Saint Nilus of Sinai expands this interpretation:
“…The moth signifies vanity that is born within us and consumes what is good in us, while the thieves represent external praise.”
Thus, the saint warns against a particular danger faced by those who are embedded in the life of the Church and engaged in spiritual struggle. If they do not remain watchful, such thoughts can secretly steal the fruit of all their efforts.
Saint Nilus then gives a spiritual rule: even when we recognize that such thoughts have begun to arise, we should not abandon the struggle. Rather, we must oppose them and pray for help from the Lord. He writes:
“Let no one be so conquered by passion or lulled by the love of praise that he loses all the fruit of his labour. Let him remain sober-minded, so that even if such evil thoughts begin to undermine him, he may destroy them before they cause harm—defeating them at the very moment of their appearance.”
We continue with verse 21:
“For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.”
In their interpretation of this verse, the Holy Fathers offer several practical insights by which we may examine and evaluate the condition of our inner life.
Saint Maximus the Confessor writes with great depth:
“When you notice that your mind delights in material objects and dwells gladly in thoughts about them, then know that you love them more than God.”
Of course, this does not mean that someone who, living in the world, thinks about necessary material matters is cold toward God. The Saint is referring to a person’s consistent and persistent fixation on attaining a specific material goal, which has become the center of life and a kind of substitute for true meaning.
Saint Nilus of Sinai profoundly connects aspects of daily life—often thought irrelevant to spiritual growth—with our spiritual state. He writes:
“Our thoughts and way of thinking inevitably reflect our deeds. Whatever our actions are directed towards, our memory and mind will cling to. Therefore, we must fix our sober attention on the heavenly treasures that cannot be stolen.”
Thus, our daily routine, in which we spend much of our time, is by no means spiritually neutral—it can indeed draw us closer to God, provided we are able to lift our minds to Him even amid repetitive, day-to-day tasks.
This theme is further developed by Saint Theophan the Recluse, who provides profoundly helpful advice on how to keep our thoughts close to God while fulfilling daily responsibilities. In a letter, he writes:
“How can one live without activity? For idle sloth is sinful. Something must be done—household duties, practical work. That is your responsibility. One should not abandon social obligations; they must be preserved, for they are a debt owed to human society.
But all such work can—and must—be done in a way that does not drive away thoughts of God. How? There exists a deeply rooted superstition among us, nearly universal, that as soon as one takes up domestic or practical work, one exits the realm of divine or God-pleasing activity. Hence, when someone desires to live a God-pleasing life, they assume that they must flee society—leave home, enter the desert or the forest. But this is a great error.
Daily duties and social obligations—upon which the wellbeing of one’s family and community depends—are divinely ordained works, and fulfilling them is not a departure from godliness, but a path to God Himself. Because of this false idea, people go about their duties without even thinking of God…
What is needed is to interpret all things that surround you through a spiritual lens and to so impress that interpretation into your mind that, when your eyes perceive a material object, your intellect simultaneously perceives a spiritual truth.
For example, if you see a stain on a white cloth and feel discomfort or sorrow, interpret this as an image of how painful and grievous it must be for the Lord, for the angels, and for the saints to behold the stains of sin upon our soul—originally created in the image of God, renewed in the waters of Baptism, and washed again by the tears of repentance.
If you hear small children creating disorder while left alone at home, let it remind you of how disorder and noise erupt in the soul when attention to God and the fear of God depart.
If you sense the fragrance of a rose or some other pleasant aroma, followed by a sudden stench that compels you to turn away, let it signify this: every soul has its own spiritual fragrance—good souls emit a sweet aroma, while corrupt souls give off a foul one. The holy angels and saints—and at times even the righteous on earth—can sense this fragrance and either rejoice or grieve accordingly.
I say this only by way of example. Every object and event can awaken different spiritual reflections in different people. Everything that surrounds you—everything you encounter—interpret it as seems most spiritually beneficial to you.
Begin with your own home: interpret the house, the walls, the roof, the foundation, the windows, the stove, the tables, the mirrors, the chairs, and all the other items. Then move on to the people: interpret your parents, children, siblings, relatives, servants, guests, and all others. Then interpret the flow of daily life: waking from sleep, greeting others, meals, work, departures and returns, tea-drinking, receiving visitors, singing, day, night, sleep, and everything else.”
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Adapted and compiled for contemporary readers from Patristic commentaries by Stanoje Stanković.
