I ask, what could be said more clearly against that pernicious opinion and presumption of ours, by which we want to attribute everything that we do to our free will and to our own effort? Do not say in your heart, when the Lord your God has destroyed them in your sight: Because of my righteousness the Lord has led me in to possess this land. Did he not express himself clearly to those whose souls’ eyes are open and whose ears hear? Namely, when you have enjoyed a notable success in warring against the carnal vices and you see that you have been freed from their filthiness and from this world’s way of life, you should not be puffed up with the success of the struggle and the victory and ascribe this to your own strength and wisdom, believing that you were able to obtain victory over evil spirits and carnal vices through your own efforts and application and free will. There is no doubt that you would never have been able to prevail over these if the Lord’s help had not fortified and protected you.

This is why Moses fasted for forty days, and Elijah, and the Mediator himself, our Lord Jesus Christ: because in this time-bound state of ours restraint from bodily attractions and allurements is very necessary. The people also spent forty years wandering in the desert, and forty days of rain produced the flood.^[1] The Lord spent forty days after his resurrection with his disciples, to convince them of the reality of his risen body. This suggests that in this life, in which we are in exile away from the Lord, the number forty stands, as I have just said, for our need to celebrate the memorial of the Lord’s body, which we do in the church until he comes.^[2]

Fasting these forty days and nights, holy Moses too merited to speak with God, to stand and stay with him and to receive the precepts of the law from his hand. For although this human condition prevented him from seeing God, yet the grace of his fasting drew him into close contact with the Divinity. For to fast frequently is a portion of God’s virtues in ourselves, since God himself always fasts. He is more familiar, intimate and friendly with the person in whom he sees more of his works, as Scripture says, And Moses spoke with God face to face like one speaking with his friend.^[1]

Every form of nourishment is called bread in the Scriptures. This is clear from what is written concerning Moses: for forty days he neither ate bread nor drank water. The word that nourishes is multidimensional and varied. Not everyone can receive the solid and strong nourishment of God’s teachings. Therefore, wishing to give an athlete’s nourishment suitable to the more perfect, [Christ] says, The bread that I will give is my flesh, which I will give for the life of the world.^[1] See

Moses anticipates the name of the ecclesia once again when he says of the tablets: And on them were inscribed all the words that the Lord spoke to you on the mountain from the midst of the fire on the day of the assembly. It is as if he might have said more plainly: you were called and gathered together.

It was not the people alone that sinned but also Aaron, the high priest. For Moses says, And the wrath of the Lord was upon Aaron; and I prayed for him, he says, and God forgave him. Now Moses made supplication on behalf of the high priest who sinned and prevailed upon the Lord by his importunity. If so, will not Jesus, his only-begotten Son, imploring God in our behalf, more so prevail? If he did not prevent Aaron, because of his falling away, from acceding to the high priesthood, can it be that he will prevent you, coming from paganism, from attaining salvation?