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he went down rejoicing. The prophet who grieves, who reproves, met him; not as an enemy, but as one sparing him he declared not his own sentence, but that of God.

After the sentence he put on sackcloth, and stripped off his lordship. For it is written, that the prophet himself, who was sent for the sentence, heard from God that, Because Ahab pleaded, fearing the threat, the things I have said will not be in his days. I am compelled to desire a good medicine. David the holy, and holy even after the sin, of the ten commandments in one instance broke three. Since we are speaking to you, let us also speak more clearly. There was adultery, and murder, and desire for another's wife. The just man sinned, and God made him the judge of his own sin. For since we do not see the beam in our own eye, but the speck in another's, He presents to him his own case as if it were another's, and says, that "There were two men in one city, one rich, and the other poor. The rich man had many things; but the poor man had one ewe lamb, which also slept in his bosom (and this is a mystery of a woman), it ate with him, and drank from his cup. There came, he says, a traveler to the rich man;" and well that he was a "traveler;" for David had no habit in these things. "So a traveler came to him. Sparing, he says, to sacrifice for the traveler from what he had, the one ewe lamb, he says, of the poor man he seized and sacrificed." However much the strong man may fall, he has a swift resurrection.

David is indignant; for David existed even when fallen. "As the Lord lives, the one who has done this is worthy of death." He passed sentence upon himself. When he passed sentence, the prophet revealed who the man is. Immediately he came to the medicine; he saw the wound; he fled to the physician. "I have sinned," he says, and immediately the healing. "And the Lord has put away your sin. 31.1480" For what do you wish, for one sin to be counted against the holy, or much righteousness? He committed a sin, but he also performed many acts of righteousness. What is just for a just God, to remember the few, or to forget the many? Let there be scales, and with what we measure, it will be measured to us. If the sins are more, let him be a sinner; but if the righteous deeds are more, let him be righteous. One and one. For among us all things are said by the majority. And there is something whiter than white, and in comparison something sweeter than sweet. Thus we are also righteous as men, not as sin is righteousness. Wherefore the Son of God is called righteousness; but we are righteous by participation in righteousness. And Moses spoke something with his tongue, but it was not recorded in the history. And Abraham is found faithful, and yet there is a place where he disbelieved. I do not accuse the righteous, but I glorify God. I do not urge, that we should sin. Enoch pleased God, says the Scripture, after he begot his son. If he pleased after this, it is possible for one not pleasing to please. But let us come to the New, having yet more from the Old. For also Manasseh who placed four-faced idols in the temple of God, so that wherever one entered he would worship the idols, after repenting was called back from captivity. Let us come to the New. For from that which they most wish to shut out repentance, from it repentance is most proclaimed. Let us ask the Savior, Why did you come? and he answers: "I came not to save the righteous, but sinners, he says, to repentance."

Let us examine him, What are you carrying on your shoulders? A lost, he says, sheep. Over what is there joy in heaven? he says, Over a sinner who repents. Angels rejoice, and you are envious? God receives with joy, and you forbid it? Let us flee more vehemently to the good God. Two, he says, there were, both sons (you cannot say to me that the repentance here is from the Gentiles, but both sons, dividing equally). The younger squanders what he had; being righteous, he falls. And having spent all, he came to repentance, and hastens to the father, and rehearses, to the father

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κατῆλθε χαίρων. Ἀπήντησεν ὁ λυπῶν, ὁ ἐλέγχων προφήτης· οὐχὶ ἐχθρὸς, ἀλλ' ὡς φειδόμε νος ἀπεφήνατο οὐ τὴν ἑαυτοῦ ἀπόφασιν, ἀλλὰ τὴν τοῦ Θεοῦ.

Μετὰ τὴν ἀπόφασιν ἐνεδύσατο σάκκον, καὶ ἀποδύεται τὴν δεσποτείαν. Γέγραπται γὰρ, ὅτι αὐτὸς ὁ προφήτης, ὁ ἀποσταλεὶς ἐπὶ τὴν ἀπόφασιν, ἤκουσε παρὰ τοῦ Θεοῦ, ὅτι Ἐπειδὴ ἐδεήθη Ἀχαὰβ, τὴν ἀπειλὴν φοβούμενος, οὐκ ἔσται ἃ εἶπον ἐν ταῖς ἡμέ ραις αὐτοῦ. Ἀναγκάζομαι ἐπιθυμῆσαι καλοῦ φαρμά κου. ∆αβὶδ ὁ ὅσιος, καὶ μετὰ τὴν ἁμαρτίαν ὅσιος, τῶν δέκα ἐντολῶν ἐν μιᾷ ὑποθέσει τρεῖς παρέβη. Ἐπειδὴ ὑμῖν λαλοῦμεν, εἴπωμεν καὶ σαφέστερον. Γέγονε μοι χεία, καὶ φόνος, καὶ ἐπιθυμία ἀλλοτρίας γυναικός. Ἥμαρτεν ὁ δίκαιος ἄνθρωπος, καὶ ὁ Θεὸς κριτὴν αὐ τὸν ἐποίησε τῆς ἰδίας ἁμαρτίας. Ἐπειδὴ γὰρ οὐ βλέ πομεν δοκὸν ἐν ὀφθαλμῷ ἡμῶν, κάρφος δὲ ἐν ἀλλο τρίῳ, εἰσάγει αὐτῷ τὴν δίκην αὐτοῦ ὡς ἀλλοτρίαν, καί φησιν, ὅτι «∆ύο ἄνδρες ἦσαν ἐν πόλει μιᾷ, ὁ μὲν πλούσιος, ὁ δὲ πένης. Τῷ πλουσίῳ ὑπῆρχε πολλά· τῷ δὲ πένητι ἀμνὰς μία, ἣ καὶ ἐν τῷ κόλπῳ αὐτοῦ ἐκάθ ευδε (τοῦτο δὲ γυναικὸς μυστήριον), μετ' αὐτοῦ ἤσθιε, καὶ ἐκ τοῦ ποτηρίου αὐτοῦ ἔπινεν. Ἦλθε φη σι, ξένος τῷ πλουσίῳ·» καλῶς δὲ ὅτι «ξένος·» οὐ γὰρ ἐν τούτοις εἶχε συνήθειαν ὁ ∆αβίδ. «Ἦλθεν οὖν αὐτῷ ξένος. Ἐάσας, φησὶ, τῷ ξένῳ ἀφ' ὧν εἶχε θῦσαι, τὴν μίαν ἀμνάδα, φησὶ, τοῦ πένητος ἀφαρπάσας θύει.» Ὅσον ἂν πέσῃ ὁ ἰσχυρὸς, ταχεῖαν ἔχει τὴν ἀνάστασιν.

Ἀγανακτεῖ ὁ ∆αβίδ· ἦν γὰρ ∆αβὶδ καὶ πεσών. «Ζῇ Κύριος, ἄξιος θανάτου ἐστὶν ὁ ποιήσας τοῦτο.» Ἀπεφήνατο αὐτὸς καθ' ἑαυτοῦ. Ὡς ἀπεφήνατο, ἐφανέρωσεν ὁ προφήτης τίς ἐστιν ὁ ἄνθρωπος. Εὐθὺς ἐπὶ τὸ φάρμακον ἐλήλυθεν· εἶδε τὸ τραῦμα· προσέφυγε τῷ ἰατρῷ. «Ἥμαρτον,» φησὶ, καὶ εὐθὺς ἡ ἴασις. «Καὶ ὁ Κύριος παρήνεγκέ σου τὸ ἁμάρτη 31.1480 μα.» Τί γὰρ βούλει, ἓν ἁμάρτημα λογισθῆναι ὁσίοις, ἢ πολλὴν δικαιοσύνην; Ἐποίησεν ἁμαρτίαν, ἀλλ' ἐποίησε καὶ πολλὰς δικαιοσύνας. Τί δίκαιον παρὰ δικαίῳ Θεῷ, τῶν ὀλίγων μνημονεῦσαι, ἢ τῶν πολλῶν ἐπιλανθάνεσθαι; Ἔστω ζυγὸς, καὶ ᾧ μετροῦμεν, μετρηθήσεται ἡμῖν. Εἰ πλείονα τὰ ἁμαρτήματα, ἔστω ἁμαρτωλός· εἰ δὲ πλείονα τὰ δικαιώματα, ἔστω δί καιος. Εἷς καὶ εἷς. Τὰ γὰρ παρ' ἡμῖν πάντα ἐκ τοῦ πλείονος λέγεται. Καὶ τοῦ λευκοῦ ἐστι λευκότερον, καὶ τοῦ γλυκέος εἰς σύγκρισιν ἄλλο γλυκύτερον. Οὕ τως καὶ οἱ δίκαιοί ἐσμεν ὡς ἄνθρωποι, οὐχ ὡς ἡ ἁμαρτία δικαιοσύνη. Ὅθεν ὁ Υἱὸς τοῦ Θεοῦ δικαιο σύνη ἀκούει· ἡμεῖς δὲ μεταλήψει δικαιοσύνης δίκαιοι. Καὶ Μωϋσῆς ἐλάλησέ τι τῇ γλώττῃ, ἀλλ' οὐκ ἀπελή φθη τῇ ἱστορίᾳ. Καὶ Ἀβραὰμ εὑρίσκεται πιστὸς, καὶ ἔστιν ὅπου ἠπίστησεν. Οὐ τῶν δικαίων κατηγορῶ, ἀλλὰ τὸν Θεὸν δοξάζω. Οὐ προτρέπομαι, ἵνα ἁμαρτή σωμεν. Ἤρεσεν Ἐνὼχ τῷ Θεῷ, λέγει ἡ Γραφὴ, μετὰ τὸ γεννῆσαι τὸν υἱόν. Εἰ μετὰ ταῦτα ἤρεσεν, ἔστιν ἀρέσαι μὴ ἀρεσκόμενον. Ἀλλ' ἔλθωμεν ἐπὶ τὴν Καινὴν, ἔτι πλείονα ἔχοντες ἀπὸ τῆς Παλαιᾶς. Καὶ γὰρ Μανασσῆς ὁ τε τραπρόσωπα εἴδωλα ἐν τῷ ναῷ τοῦ Θεοῦ θεὶς, ἵν' ὅθεν ἄν τις εἰσέλθῃ τοῖς εἰδώλοις προσκυνήσῃ, μετανοήσας ἀνεκλήθη ἐκ τῆς αἰχμαλωσίας. Ἔλθωμεν ἐπὶ τὴν Καινήν. Ἀφ' ἧς γὰρ μάλιστα θέλουσιν ἀπο κλεῖσαι τὴν μετάνοιαν, ἀπ' αὐτῆς μάλιστα κηρύττε ται ἡ μετάνοια. Πυνθανώμεθα τοῦ Σωτῆρος, Τί ἦλ θες; καὶ ἀποκρίνεται· «Οὐκ ἦλθον δικαίους σῶσαι, ἀλλὰ ἁμαρτωλοὺς, φησὶν, εἰς μετάνοιαν.»

Ἐξετάσω μεν αὐτὸν, Τί βαστάζεις ἐπ' ὤμων; Ἀπολωλὸς, λέ γει, πρόβατον. Ἐπὶ τίνος γίνεται χαρὰ ἐν οὐρανοῖς; λέγει, Ἐπί τινος ἁμαρτωλοῦ μετανοοῦντος. Ἄγγελοι χαίρουσι, καὶ σὺ βασκαίνεις; Ὁ Θεὸς χαίρων δέχε ται, καὶ σὺ κωλύεις; Σφοδρότερον προσφευξώμεθα ἀγαθῷ Θεῷ. ∆ύο, φησὶν, ἦσαν, ἀμφότεροι υἱοὶ (οὐ δύνασαί μοι εἰπεῖν, ὅτι ἡ ἀπὸ Ἑλλήνων ἐστὶν ἡ ὧδε μετάνοια, ἀλλ' ἀμφότεροι υἱοὶ, ἐξ ἴσου μερίσαντες). Ἀναλίσκει ὃ εἶχεν ὁ νεώτερος· δίκαιος ὢν, ἐκπίπτει. Ἀναλώσας δὲ πάντα, ἦλθεν ἐπὶ μετάνοιαν, καὶ σπεύ δει πρὸς τὸν πατέρα, καὶ μελετᾷ, πατρὶ