600 GOSPEL ACCORDING TO CHAP. XvIII. thou artprayingfor,He would have theeask and receive what His goodnessislongingto impart. He neverrefuses His blessingstothem thatpray,but ratherstirsmen up by His mercynottofaintinpraying.GladlyaccepttheLord's encouragement: be willingtodo what He commands,notto do what He forbids.Lastly,considerwhat a blessedprivi legeisgrantedthee,to talkwith God in thy prayers,and make known to Him allthy wants,whileHe though not in words,yetby His mercy,answersthee,forHe despiseth notpetitions,He tiresnotbutwhen thou artsilent.BEDE. We shouldsay thathe isalwayspraying,and faintsnot, who neverfailsto pray at the canonicalhours. Or all thingswhichtherighteousman doesand saystowardsGod, Aug.lib.areto be countedas praying.AUG. Our Lord uttersHisii.qu.45.parahieS,eitherforthe sake of the comparison,as in the instanceofthecreditor,who when forgivinghistwo debtors allthattheyowed him was most lovedby him who owed him most; or on accountof the contrast,from which He draws His conclusion; as,forexample,ifGod so clothethe grassofthefield,whichto-dayis,and to-morrowiscastinto theoven,shallHe not much more clotheyou,0 ye oflittle faith? So alsoherewhen He bringsforwardthecaseofthe unjustjudge. THEOPHYL. We may observe,thatirreverence towardsman isa tokenof a greaterdegreeof wickedness. For as many as fearnot God, yet are restrainedby their shame beforemen, are so farthe lesssinful;but when a man becomes recklessalsoofothermen, the burdenof hissinsisgreatlyincreased.- It follows,And therewas a widow in thatcity.AUG. The widow may be saidto resemblethe Church, which appears desolateuntilthe Lord shallcome, who now secretlywatchesoverher. But inthefollowingwords,And she came unto Him, saying,Avenge me, fyc.,we aretold the reasonwhy the electof God pray thatthey may be avenged;which we findalsosaidof the martyrs in the Rev.6,10.Revelationsof St.John, though at the same time we are veryplainlyremindedto pray forour enemiesand perse cutors. This avengingof the righteousthen we must understandto be that the wicked may perish. And they perishin two ways,citherby conversionto rightc