On the Blessing and Benefits of a Seeing Eye and Hearing Ears
From Dr. Luther’s Lectures on Genesis (23:5–6):
“It is evident that God endowed Abraham and his church with extraordinary influence and distinction among the heathen, just as above at the court of King Abimelech [Genesis 21:22–34], who grants him the use of the land and esteems him highly, although he owned nothing of it and was compelled to leave after the king died.
“Thus the people of Hebron, a heathen nation, honor him and call him a prince of God [Genesis 22:6]; this shows that they heard Abraham’s sermons and believed in the God of Abraham. For wherever the most saintly Patriarch was, he produced very much fruit through the Word and Spirit by teaching, exhorting, and reproving; and through his preaching the heathen heard and saw the great deeds of God and therefore believed and were saved. Consequently, they properly respected him as a lord, just as Sarah addressed him as lord (Gen. 18:12), and they called him a prince of God.
“It is a great good fortune when princes have with them guests of this kind, recognize God and Christ in them, and treat them with respect, and when the guest and prince, in turn, does his duty by teaching in a godly and faithful manner. It is a very rare blessing for godly priests to have a safe and quiet place where they may teach. It is an extraordinary gift, which the devil, the most malevolent enemy of God and the salvation of man, often obstructs and disturbs.
“But where there is such harmony that the princes of a land honor, protect, and support ministers for spreading abroad spiritual things, one may truly say that a paradise of the world is there.
“But if ministers are despised, ridiculed, and treated with contempt, as happened to Isaiah and other Prophets, although they were most excellent and faithful teachers, it is the surest evidence of God’s wrath and of impending disasters; for contempt of so great a blessing as is tendered to men by godly ministers has never gone unpunished.
“On the other hand, the condition of ungodly and wicked priests is commonly better; for they have princes who are most obsequious and very ready to grant every favor, just as the pope made all the kings and princes of the world beholden to him and exceedingly lavish, not only with their properties and wealth but also with their bodies. But in return for such great favors he led them astray and gained them for the devil.
“Today the ministry has been successfully cleansed of all error and idolatry. But how is it received and treated in the world? It is reviled, expelled, and trampled underfoot; and the ministers are killed.
“Through His boundless favor God has granted us hospitality under Their Most Serene Highnesses the Princes of Saxony, Duke John Frederick, the elector, and his brother Ernest. But as great as are the benignity, the favor, and the goodwill of the princes, so great are the exceedingly savage hatred, the ill will, and the contempt among the nobles, officials, burghers, and peasants, who, if they could do what they desire, would long since have expelled us from these abodes.
“Therefore the affection, respect, and courtesy of the Hebronites toward Abraham are amazing. They recognized that he was a guest who was making all the inhabitants and citizens of that place rich, not with wealth, with gold and silver, but with heavenly and spiritual gifts, since he pointed out the way of salvation and freed their souls from sin and hell through the Word, in short, that he abounded in every kind of blessing. Accordingly, they, in turn, have a high regard for him, love him, and gladly listen to him, just as above he encountered similar goodwill at the court of King Abimelech.
“Furthermore, ‘prince of God’ is the honorable and impressive title with which the Hebronites address Abraham [Genesis 22:6], not because he ruled over them politically, but because he had a large number of domestics in his house, more than 1,000 men. On this account they call him a prince of God who rules the best and saintliest men in his house. It is as though they were saying: ‘We do not have such a faithful people, such saintly, obedient, and humble servants as you have. Your rule is godlike, and it makes men saintly.’
“And it is indeed an extraordinary gift of God when princes rule their subjects wisely and well, and the subjects, in turn, are obedient. For God makes both: a seeing eye, that is, a real teacher, bishop, or magistrate; and a hearing ear, that is, obedient subjects and listeners. Where either is lacking, there is anarchy and a very evil situation; for it is not enough if you are only a hearing ear without a seeing eye, and vice versa.
“Among the Hebronites Abraham was the seeing eye by virtue of his teaching and his rule over his domestics, and the Hebronites were the hearing ear. There the Word bore abundant fruit.
“But if the eye does not see — as the pope is a blind and accursed eye — and the ear nevertheless hears — as up to this time we have most eagerly heard and accepted his traditions — there one has the surest road to destruction.
“Today we have the seeing eye, that is, the pure doctrine of the Word; but we do not find a hearing ear, because our doctrine is held in contempt, yes, is horribly cursed. Where both are to be found, however, God has surely brought this about, and it is a divine miracle, in which God and the angels in heaven take pleasure” (Luther’s Works AE, Vol. 4, pages 209–212).