682 GOSPEL ACCORDING TO CHAP. XXI. ofthesiege,but theperiodjustbefore,when firstthearmed soldiersbegan to dispersethemselvesthroughthe partsof Galileeand Samaria. .*"*' AUG. But whereMatthew and Mark havewritten,Neither UDl SUp. lethim whichisin thefieldreturnback to takehisclothes, Luke adds more clearly,And letnot them thatare inthe countriesenterthereinto,for thesebe thedaysof vengeance, thatallthethingswhicharewrittenmay befulfilled.BEDE. And thesearethe days of vengeance,thatis,the daysex- Anir. actingvengeanceforour Lord'sblood. AUG. Then Lukesup' followsinwordssimilarto thoseof the othertwo; But woe tothem thatarewithchild,and them thatgivesuckinthose days; and thus has made plainwhat might othewisehave been doubtful,namely,thatwhat was saidof the abomina tionofdesolationbelongednot to theend oftheworld,but the takingofJerusalem.BEDE. He saysthen,Woe tothem thatnurse,or givesuck,as some interpretit,whose womb or arms now heavy withthe burden of children,causeno slightobstacleto thespeedofflight.THEOPHYL. But some saythattheLord herebysignifiedthedevouringofchildren, whichJosephusalsorelates. ciirys. CHRYS. He nextassignsthecauseofwhat he had justnow oppug. said,For thereshallbegreatdistressin theland,and wrath mou.vit.Vp0n (fa pe0pie.For the miseriesthattookholdofthem were such as,in the words of Josephus,no calamitycan henceforthcomparetothem. EUSEB. For sointruthitwas, thatwhen theRomans came and weretakingthecity,many multitudesoftheJewishpeopleperishedinthemouth ofthe sword; as itfollows,And theyshallfallby theedgeofthe sword. But stillmore were cut offby famine. And these thingshappenedat firstindeedunder Titusand Vespasian, but afterthem in the timeof HadriantheRoman general, when the land of theirbirthwas forbiddento theJews. Hence itfollows,And theyshallbe ledaway captiveintoall nations.For theJews filledthe whole land,reachingeren to theendsof the earth,and when theirlandwas inhabited by strangers,they alonecouldnot enterit; as itfollows, And Jerusalemshallbe troddendown of theGentiles,unlit thetimesof the Gentilesbefulfilled.BEDE. Which indeed Rom.n, tlieApOstlemakes mentionof when he says,Blindnessin 25.