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he was hurrying, and having climbed up the tree he was looking around for Christ, and in his thought he was mounting the cloud.

And when Zacchaeus saw Christ, he said fittingly: To you I have lifted up my eyes, who dwell in heaven. Zacchaeus saw the Lord, and was inflamed with more desire; He touched his heart, and he became a different man, instead of a publican a zealot, instead of an unbeliever a believer, and instead of a wolf a sheep bearing a seal. Who so longs for a father, or a mother, who ever so loved a wife or children, as Zacchaeus loved the Lord, as can be proved from the deed itself? For he gave all his possessions to the poor for Christ's sake, and to those whom he had defrauded, he restored fourfold. O the good manner of the disciple, O the clemency and divine power of the teacher, who by only being seen leads him to action! For the Lord had not yet spoken a word of instruction to Zacchaeus, but was only seen by the one who desired, and the power of faith was drawn up beyond the heart of the one desiring. Something like this also happened in the case of the woman with the issue of blood; for approaching the Lord, and asking him to heal her, she did not wait for the touch of his hand, but she herself came forward and secretly touched the hem of his garment; and the power of healing was drawn out by the one who touched, as by a sponge. And Zacchaeus, unaware, did this, being carried by divine zeal, and burning with spiritual love he ran to the sycamore tree; but the Lord, seeing something mystical, said, Come down; I know your soul, I know your holy love; Come down; remember that Adam, having been stripped naked, hid under a fig tree; but you, wishing to be saved, do not run up a sycamore tree. I must dry up this sycamore, and plant another, a cross. That is a good tree, run up to that one with the step of your soul. For from there you will be ready to dart to heaven; on this tree the serpent also entwines itself with the leaves, on this it hides, in this it has nested; hasten, come down before it whispers to your soul, as it also did to Eve, persuading her to taste of the sweet pleasure; hasten, come down; while I am standing here, come down; for while I am watching it, it is muzzled. Hasten, come down, I do not want to leave you on the sycamore tree, I do not want you to be lost; for you are my sheep, you have run to me. Hasten, come down, and go before me to your house; I must rest there.

For where there is faith, there I rest; where there is love, there I go. I know what you are about to do; I know that you are about to give all your possessions to the poor, and first to restore fourfold to those you have defrauded. With such people I gladly lodge. And Zacchaeus hurried and came down, and went to his house, and received Jesus. And being filled with joy, he stood and said; not walking, not sitting, but standing, in order to show the unchangeable mind of his soul; he stood and said, when, fervent in spirit, having understood without regret, he was striving; for he knew where he was sowing, and where he was about to reap; and he said: Behold, half of my possessions I give to the poor; and to those whom I have defrauded, I restore fourfold. O pure confession, proceeding from a pure heart; a shameless confession standing by the shameless glory of God, breathing forth faith, and blossoming with righteousness! Of which righteousness may the God of all make us worthy, by the grace and loving-kindness of our Lord Jesus Christ, to whom be the glory and the power for ever and ever. Amen.

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ἠπείγετο, καὶ ἐπὶ τὸ δένδρον ἀναβὰς περιεβλέπετο τὸν Χριστὸν, καὶ τῇ διανοίᾳ τῆς νεφέλης ἐπέβαινεν.

Ἰδὼν δὲ τὸν Χριστὸν ὁ Ζακχαῖος, ἁρμοζόντως ἔλεγε· Πρὸς σὲ ἦρα τοὺς ὀφθαλμούς μου τὸν κατοικοῦντα ἐν τῷ οὐρανῷ. Εἶδε Ζακχαῖος τὸν Κύριον, καὶ πλέον πρὸς πόθον ἐξεφλέγετο· ἥψατο αὐτοῦ τῆς καρδίας, καὶ ἄλλος ἐξ ἄλλου ἐγίνετο, ἀντὶ τελώνου ζηλωτὴς, ἀντὶ ἀπίστου πιστὸς, καὶ ἀντὶ λύκου πρόβατον σφραγιδοφόρον. Τίς οὕτω ποθεῖ πατέρα, ἢ μητέρα, τίς οὕτω ποτὲ ἠγάπησε γυναῖκα ἢ τέκνα, ὡς Ζακχαῖος τὸν Κύριον, ὡς ἐξ αὐτοῦ τοῦ πράγματος ἔστι δοκιμάσαι; Πάντα γὰρ αὐτοῦ τὰ ὑπάρχοντα διὰ τὸν Χριστὸν τοῖς πένησιν ἔδωκε, καὶ οὓς ἐσυκοφάντησε, τετραπλασίονα ἀπέδωκεν. Ὢ μαθητοῦ τρόπος ἀγαθὸς, ὢ διδασκάλου ἐπιείκεια καὶ δύναμις θεία, ἐκ τοῦ ὀφθῆναι μόνον τὸν Ἰησοῦν εἰς πρᾶξιν ἐνάγοντα! Οὔπω γὰρ κατηχητικὸν λόγον τῷ Ζακχαίῳ ἔλεγεν ὁ Κύριος, ἀλλ' ὤφθη μόνον τῷ ποθοῦντι, καὶ ἡ τῆς πίστεως δύναμις ὑπὲρ τῆς τοῦ ποθοῦντος καρδίας ἀνείλκετο. Τοιοῦτόν τι γέγονε καὶ ἐπὶ τῆς αἱμοῤῥοούσης· προσελθοῦσα γὰρ τῷ Κυρίῳ, καὶ ἀξιοῦσα αὐτὸν, ἵνα ἰάσηται αὐτὴν, οὐ μὴν ἐξεδέχετο τὴν ἀφὴν τῆς χειρὸς, ἀλλὰ αὐτὴ προσελθοῦσα ἥψατο αὐτοῦ τοῦ κρασπέδου κρυφίως· καὶ ἡ δύναμις τῆς ἰάσεως ὑπὸ τῆς ἁψαμένης ὡς σπόγγος εἵλκετο. Καὶ ὁ μὲν Ζακχαῖος ἀγνοῶν ἐποίει, θείῳ ζήλῳ φερόμενος, καὶ πνευματικῷ ἔρωτι φλεγόμενος ἐπὶ τὴν συκομορέαν ἔτρεχεν· ὁ δὲ Κύριος μυστικόν τι θεωρήσας, ἔλεγε, Κατάβηθι· οἶδά σου τὴν ψυχὴν, οἶδά σου τὸν ὅσιον ἔρωτα· Κατάβηθι· μνήσθητι ὅτι ὁ Ἀδὰμ γυμνωθεὶς, ὑπὸ συκῆν ἐκρύβη· σὺ δὲ θέλων σωθῆναι, ἐπὶ συκομορέαν μὴ ἀνάτρεχε. ∆εῖ με τὸ συκόμορον τοῦτο ξηρᾶναι, καὶ ἄλλο φυτεῦσαι, σταυρόν. Ἐκεῖνο χρηστὸν δένδρον ἐστὶν, ἐπ' ἐκεῖνο βήματι ψυχῆς ἀνάτρεχε. Ἐκεῖθεν γὰρ εἰς οὐρανοὺς ἕτοιμος ἀκοντίζῃ· εἰς τοῦτο τὸ δένδρον καὶ ὁ ὄφις τοῖς φύλλοις περιπλέκεται, εἰς τοῦτο κρύπτεται, ἐν τούτῳ ἐνόσσευσε· σπεῦσον, κατάβηθι πρὸ τοῦ αὐτὸν ψιθυρίζειν τῇ ψυχῇ σου, ὡς καὶ ἐπὶ τῆς Εὔας πείσας αὐτὴν γεύσασθαι τῆς γλυκείας ἡδονῆς· σπεῦσον, κατάβηθι· ἕως ἕστηκα ἐγὼ, κατάβηθι· ἐμοῦ γὰρ ὁρῶντος αὐτὸν, ἐκεῖνος πεφίμωται. Σπεῦσον, κατάβηθι, οὐ θέλω σε ἐᾶσαι ἐπὶ τὴν συκομορέαν, οὐ θέλω σε ἀπολέσθαι· ἐμὸν γὰρ εἶ πρόβατον, ἐμοὶ προσέδραμες. Σπεῦσον, κατάβηθι, καὶ πρόλαβε εἰς τὸν οἶκόν σου· δεῖ με ἀναπαύειν ἐκεῖ.

Ὅπου γὰρ πίστις, ἐκεῖ ἀναπαύομαι· ὅπου ἀγάπη, ἐκεῖ ἀπέρχομαι. Οἶδα τί μέλλεις ποιεῖν· οἶδα ὅτι ὅλα σου τὰ ὑπάρχοντα μέλλεις διδόναι πένησι, καὶ πρῶτον ἀποδιδόναι οἷς ἐσυκοφάντησας, τετραπλασίονα. Παρὰ τοῖς τοιούτοις ἡδέως αὐλίζομαι. Καὶ ὁ Ζακχαῖος σπεύσας κατέβη, καὶ ἀπῆλθεν εἰς τὸν οἶκον αὐτοῦ, καὶ Ἰησοῦν ὑπεδέξατο. Χαρᾶς δὲ ἐμπλησθεὶς, σταθεὶς εἶπεν· οὐ περιπατῶν, οὐ καθήμενος, ἀλλὰ σταθεὶς, ἵνα δείξῃ τὴν τῆς ψυχῆς αὐτοῦ ἀμετάθετον γνώμην· σταθεὶς εἶπεν, ὅτε ζέων τῷ πνεύματι, ἀμεταμέλητα νοήσας ἠγωνίζετο· ᾔδει γὰρ ὅπου σπείρει, καὶ ὅπου μέλλει θερίζειν· καὶ εἶπεν· Ἰδοὺ τὰ ἡμίση τῶν ὑπαρχόντων μου δίδωμι τοῖς πτωχοῖς· καὶ οὓς ἐσυκοφάντησα, τετραπλασίονα ἀποδίδωμι. Ὢ ἐξομολόγησις καθαρὰ, ἐκ καρδίας καθαρᾶς προερχομένη· ἐξομολόγησις ἀνεπαίσχυντος ἀνεπαισχύντῳ δόξῃ Θεοῦ παρισταμένη, πίστιν ἀποπνέουσα, καὶ δικαιοσύνην ἀνθοῦσα! ἧς δικαιοσύνης καταξιώσειεν ἡμᾶς ὁ τῶν ὅλων Θεὸς, χάριτι καὶ φιλανθρωπίᾳ τοῦ Κυρίου ἡμῶν Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ, ᾧ ἡ δόξα καὶ τὸ κράτος εἰς τοὺς αἰῶνας τῶν αἰώνων. Ἀμήν.