John Chrysostom, On False Prophets

in the Scriptures of the Old and New Testament, crying out and awakening us from our sloth. But we do the opposite, as Isaiah the prophet said, that With their ears they heard heavily, and their eyes they have closed. Oh, how many and how great writings we hear and do not understand! Whence also we shall be without excuse in the day of judgment, when he comes who illumines the hidden things of darkness, and reveals the counsels of hearts when the judgment seat is set, and the books 59.555 are opened, which we now mock when we hear, and do not accept. For each of us has strayed in his own way, leaving the straight path, and we have become as from the beginning, when you did not rule over us, Lord. And truly in us was fulfilled the prophecy of David, saying: And they were mingled among the nations, and learned their works. For this reason we are humbled in all the earth because of our sins, and the ends of the ages have come upon us, as it is written; and the shepherds are wolves, and the sheep are shattered; and the famine is at the doors, not a famine of bread and a thirst for water, but a famine of hearing the word of God. Therefore let no one who hopes in the Lord despair. Do not be disheartened, therefore, always looking to the one who said, I am with you. 2. Be of good courage, therefore; for the Lord will not let the souls of the righteous starve. Concerning this famine the Lord says through the prophet: And it shall be in those days, I will send a famine upon the land; not a famine of bread, nor a thirst for water, but a famine of hearing the word of God. And they shall run about from east to west, seeking the word of the Lord. Do you see that he does not speak of bread? For God was not speaking about bread. O terrible, and soul-destroying, and harmful famine! O famine that is the harbinger of eternal punishment! This is the famine that is the purveyor of every evil thing; this is the famine, the cause of every evil. Foreseeing this coming famine, the prophet David beseeched God, saying: My God, be not silent from me. And concerning the zealous faithful he prophesied, saying: To deliver their souls from death, and to feed them in famine. And elsewhere he says: And in days of famine they will be satisfied; and again, The Lord is merciful and compassionate; he has given food to those who fear him. David said these things concerning those who search the Scriptures, that they will not hunger. Let us search the Scriptures, brothers, so that we may not hunger when the soul-destroying famine comes; let us search, so that we may not be led astray, and be carried about by every wind. Therefore the Lord says to those who are negligent: You are mistaken, not understanding the Scriptures. For truly such people are mistaken. For from where has the soul-killing famine come? Is it not from not searching the Scriptures? Oh, of how many good things have we deprived ourselves, by abandoning the divine Scriptures! for the command is of the Lord. Search laboriously, search and seek, and you will find much indescribable wealth, and a treasure hidden in the field; you will understand the divine Scripture. Search, and you will find, and having found, sell all that you have, and buy that field, the good knowledge of the holy Scriptures, in which the Son is hidden, the true Wisdom of the Father; whom having found, you will be blessed, as it is written, that Blessed is the man who has found wisdom. Search, beloved, whether you happen to be rich or poor, whether slave or free, whether male or female. Search the Scriptures. For the divine Scripture is a storehouse of every good thing. But let us return to the subject at hand; for the discourse is about the end of the age, and about false prophets, and false teachers, and about godless heretics, who like torrents have flooded everywhere, and are deceiving many. And from where has this happened? It is clear that it is from the ignorance and inexperience of the leaders; for where there is inexperience of shepherds, there of sheep

Γραφαῖς Παλαιᾶς τε καὶ Καινῆς ∆ιαθήκης, βοῶντα καὶ διυπνίζοντα ἡμᾶς ἐκ τῆς ῥᾳθυμίας ἡμῶν. Ἡμεῖς δὲ τὸ ἐναντίον ποιοῦμεν, καθὼς εἶπεν Ἡσαΐας ὁ προφήτης, ὅτι Τοῖς ὠσὶν αὐτῶν βαρέως ἤκουσαν, καὶ τοὺς ὀφθαλμοὺς αὐτῶν ἐκάμμυσαν. Ὢ πόσων καὶ πηλίκων γραμμάτων ἀκούοντες οὐ συνιοῦμεν! Ὅθεν καὶ ἀναπολόγητοι ἐσόμεθα ἐν τῇ ἡμέρᾳ τῆς διαγνώσεως, ὅταν ἔλθῃ ὁ φωτίζων τὰ κρυπτὰ τοῦ σκότους, καὶ φανερῶν τὰς βουλὰς τῶν καρδιῶν ὅταν τὸ κριτήριον καθίσῃ, καὶ βίβλοι 59.555 ἀνοιχθῶσιν, ἃς νῦν χλευάζομεν ἀκούοντες, καὶ οὐ παραδεχόμεθα. Ἕκαστος γὰρ ἡμῶν τῇ ἰδίᾳ ὁδῷ ἐπλανήθημεν, καταλείποντες τὴν εὐθεῖαν ὁδὸν, καὶ ἐγενόμεθα ὡς τὸ ἀπ' ἀρχῆς, ὅτε οὐκ ἦρχες ἡμῖν, Κύριε. Καὶ ἀληθῶς εἰς ἡμᾶς ἐπληρώθη ἡ προφητεία ∆αυῒδ λέγουσα· Καὶ ἐμίγησαν ἐν τοῖς ἔθνεσι, καὶ ἔμαθον τὰ ἔργα αὐτῶν. ∆ιὰ τοῦτό ἐσμεν ταπεινοὶ ἐν πάσῃ τῇ γῇ διὰ τὰς ἁμαρτίας ἡμῶν, καὶ εἰς ἡμᾶς κατήντησε τὰ τέλη τῶν αἰώνων, ὡς γέγραπται· καὶ οἱ ποιμένες λύκοι, καὶ τὰ πρόβατα συντετριμμένα· καὶ ὁ λιμὸς ἐπὶ θύραις, οὐ λιμὸς ἄρτου καὶ δίψα ὕδατος, ἀλλὰ λιμὸς τοῦ ἀκοῦσαι λόγον Θεοῦ. Μηδεὶς οὖν τῶν ἐλπιζόντων ἐπὶ Κύριον ἀπογινωσκέτω. Μὴ οὖν ἀθυμεῖτε, προορῶντες πάντοτε τὸν εἰπόντα, ὅτι Μεθ' ὑμῶν εἰμι. βʹ. Θαρσεῖτε οὖν· οὐ γὰρ λιμοκτονήσει Κύριος ψυχὰς δικαίων. Περὶ τούτου τοῦ λιμοῦ λέγει ὁ Κύριος διὰ τοῦ προφήτου· Καὶ ἔσται ἐν ταῖς ἡμέραις ἐκείναις, ἐπάγω λιμὸν ἐπὶ τὴν γῆν· οὐ λιμὸν ἄρτου, οὐδὲ δίψαν ὕδατος, ἀλλὰ λιμὸν τοῦ ἀκοῦσαι λόγον Θεοῦ. Καὶ περιδραμοῦνται ἀπὸ ἀνατολῶν ἕως δυσμῶν, ζητοῦντες τὸν λόγον Κυρίου. Ὁρᾷς, ὅτι οὐ περὶ ἄρτου λέγει; Θεὸς γὰρ οὐ περὶ τοῦ ἄρτου ἔλεγεν. Ὢ λιμοῦ δεινοῦ, καὶ ψυχοφθόρου, καὶ βλαβεροῦ! ὢ λιμοῦ τῆς αἰωνίου κολάσεως προξένου! Οὗτος ὁ λιμός ἐστιν ὁ χορηγὸς παντὸς πονηροῦ πράγματος· οὗτος ὁ λιμὸς, ὁ αἴτιος παντὸς κακοῦ. Τοῦτον τὸν λιμὸν προθεωρήσας ὁ προφήτης ∆αυῒδ ἐρχόμενον παρεκάλει τὸν Θεὸν, λέγων· Ὁ Θεός μου, μὴ παρασιωπήσῃς ἀπ' ἐμοῦ. Καὶ περὶ τῶν σπουδαίων πιστῶν προεφήτευσε λέγων· Ῥύσασθαι ἐκ τοῦ θανάτου τὰς ψυχὰς αὐτῶν, καὶ διαθρέψαι αὐτοὺς ἐν λιμῷ. Καὶ ἀλλαχοῦ λέγει· Καὶ ἐν ἡμέραις λιμοῦ χορτασθήσονται· καὶ πάλιν, Ἐλεήμων καὶ οἰκτίρμων ὁ Κύριος τροφὴν ἔδωκεν τοῖς φοβοῦσιν αὐτόν. Ταῦτα εἶπεν ὁ ∆αυῒδ περὶ τῶν ἐρευνώντων τὰς Γραφὰς, ὅτι οὐ πεινάσουσιν. Ἐρευνήσωμεν τὰς Γραφὰς, ἀδελφοὶ, ἵνα μὴ πεινάσωμεν ἐλθόντος τοῦ ψυχοφθόρου λιμοῦ· ἐρευνήσωμεν, ἵνα μὴ πλανηθῶμεν, καὶ περιφερώμεθα παντὶ ἀνέμῳ. ∆ιό φησιν ὁ Κύριος πρὸς τοὺς ἀμελοῦντας· Πλανᾶσθε, μὴ νοοῦντες τὰς Γραφάς. Ἀληθῶς γὰρ οἱ τοιοῦτοι πλανῶνται. Πόθεν γὰρ ὁ ψυχοκτόνος ἐπῆλθεν λιμός; οὐχὶ ἐκ τοῦ μὴ ἐρευνᾷν τὰς Γραφάς; Ὢ πόσων ἀγαθῶν ἑαυτοὺς ἀπεστερήσαμεν, καταλιπόντες τὰς θείας Γραφάς! δεσποτικὸν γὰρ τὸ πρόσταγμα. Ἐρεύνησον ἐμπόνως, ἐρεύνησον καὶ ζήτησον, καὶ εὑρήσεις πολὺν τὸν ἀνείκαστον πλοῦτον, καὶ θησαυρὸν κεκρυμμένον ἐν τῷ ἀγρῷ· νοήσεις τὴν θείαν Γραφήν. Ἐρεύνησον, καὶ εὑρήσεις, καὶ εὑρὼν, πάντα ὅσα ἔχεις πώλησον, καὶ ἀγόρασον τὸν ἀγρὸν ἐκεῖνον, τὴν καλὴν γνῶσιν τῶν ἁγίων Γραφῶν, ἐν αἷς κέκρυπται ὁ Υἱὸς, ἡ ἀληθινὴ Σοφία τοῦ Πατρός· ὃν εὑρὼν, μακάριος ἔσῃ, καθὼς γέγραπται, ὅτι Μακάριος ἄνθρωπος, ὃς εὗρεν σοφίαν. Ἐρεύνησον, ἀγαπητὲ, κἂν πλούσιος τυγχάνῃς ἢ πένης, εἴτε δοῦλος, εἴτε ἐλεύθερος, εἴτε ἄῤῥην, εἴτε θῆλυ. Ἐρευνᾶτε τὰς Γραφάς. Ἡ γὰρ θεία Γραφὴ ταμιεῖόν ἐστι παντὸς ἀγαθοῦ. Ἀλλ' ἐπὶ τὸ προκείμενον ἐπανέλθωμεν· περὶ γὰρ συντελείας ὁ λόγος, καὶ περὶ ψευδοπροφητῶν, καὶ ψευδοδιδασκάλων, καὶ περὶ ἀθέων αἱρετικῶν, χειμάῤῥων δίκην ἐπικλυσάντων πανταχοῦ, καὶ πλανώντων πολλούς. Καὶ πόθεν τοῦτο συμβέβηκεν; ∆ῆλον ὅτι ἐκ τῆς ἀγνωσίας καὶ ἀπειρίας τῶν προϊσταμένων· ὅπου γὰρ ἀπειρία ποιμένων, ἐκεῖ προβάτων