John Chrysostom, On the Beheading of Saint John

binding, he shut him up; through a woman he cut off John, the lamp of the whole world. But what shall I say about men? Through a woman he cast down the angels from heaven; through a woman he slaughters all, murders all, dishonors all, insults all. For a shameless woman spares no one; she does not honor a Levite, she is not in awe of a priest, she does not respect a prophet. O evil of evils most evil, a wicked woman! If she is poor, she is rich in wickedness; and if she has wealth cooperating with her wickedness, the evil is twofold, the creature unbearable, the disease incurable, the beast untamed. I know that even asps are tamed by flattery, and lions and tigers and leopards are calmed by being tamed; but a wicked woman both rages when insulted and is puffed up when flattered. And if she has a husband who is a ruler, night and day she incites him to murder by prying him open with her words, as Herodias did to Herod; and if she has a poor husband, she stirs him up to anger and fights; and if she happens to be a widow, she herself on her own dishonors everyone. For by fear of the Lord she does not restrain her tongue, she does not look to the future judgment, she does not look up to God, she does not know how to keep the laws of friendship.

It is nothing for a wicked woman to hand her own husband over to death. Of course, his own wife handed over the righteous Job to the death of blasphemy, saying: "Say some word against the Lord, and die." O wicked nature! O unholy choice! She had no pity seeing her own husband’s inner parts being burned by seething ulcers, as if by sparkling coals, and his whole flesh consumed by worms; she was not bent to pity, seeing him writhing completely, and weary and struggling, and bearing continuous gasps with a gaping mouth in pain. She was not softened to compassion seeing the one who once approached in royal purple, then lying on a dungheap naked in body; she did not remember her former intimacy with him, nor how many glorious and beautiful things she had blossomed with on account of him. But what? "Say some word against the Lord, and die." O grace of a woman! O soothing poultice for pains! O law of marital friendship! When you were ever sick, did he utter such a word, and did he not wipe away your sickness with prayers and good deeds? For was the temporary discipline not enough for him, but you also procure for him eternal punishment through blasphemy? Or do you not know that "Every blasphemy and sin will be forgiven men; but the blasphemy against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven, neither in this age, nor in the one to come"? Do you wish to see another spouse of this wickedness? Look at Delilah for me. For she too, having shaved and bound the most courageous Samson, handed him over to the foreigners, her own husband, her own spouse, whom she cherished, whom she caressed, whom she flattered, whom she pretended to love more than herself; whom she loved yesterday, today she deceived; whom she cherished lovingly yesterday, today she buried deceitfully. And was he not handsome? And who was more handsome than him at that time, who bore seven 59.488 locks upon his head, carrying the image of the sevenfold grace? And was he not courageous? And who was more courageous than him, who alone strangled a fearsome lion on the road, and with one jawbone of a donkey laid low a thousand foreigners? But was he not also holy?

He was so holy that once when he was thirsty in a scarcity of water, he prayed, and from the dead jawbone held in his hand water gushed forth, and from there he drew the cure for his thirst. And this man, so handsome, so courageous, so holy, his own wife, having bound him as an enemy, handed over to the foreigners. And from where, then, did a woman prevail over one so courageous? From the husband’s own goodness. For having stripped from him at night the mystery of his strength, she laid him low, naked, with strong thongs. For this reason Wisdom commands you: "From her who lies in your bosom beware of confiding anything to her." What beast, tell me, has ever plotted such things against its own male? what serpent wants its own mate to perish? what

δεσμεύσας κατέκλεισε· διὰ γυναικὸς τὸν παντὸς κόσμου λύχνον Ἰωάννην ἀπέτεμε. Τί δὲ λέγω περὶ ἀνθρώπων; ∆ιὰ γυναικὸς τοὺς ἀγγέλους οὐρανόθεν κατέβαλε· διὰ γυναικὸς πάντας κατασφάζει, πάντας φονεύει, πάντας ἀτιμάζει, πάντας ὑβρίζει. Γυνὴ γὰρ ἀναιδὴς οὐδενὸς φείδεται· οὐ Λευΐτην τιμᾷ, οὐχ ἱερέα ἐντρέπεται, οὐ προφήτην αἰδεῖται. Ὢ κακὸν κακοῦ κάκιστον γυνὴ πονηρά! Κἂν μὲν πενιχρὰ ᾖ, τῇ κακίᾳ πλουτεῖ· ἐὰν δὲ πλοῦτον ἔχῃ τῇ πονηρίᾳ συνεργοῦντα, δισσὸν τὸ κακὸν, ἀφόρητον τὸ ζῶον, ἀθεράπευτος νόσος, ἀνήμερον θηρίον. Ἐγὼ οἶδα καὶ ἀσπίδας κολακευομένας ἡμεροῦσθαι, καὶ λέοντας καὶ τίγρεις καὶ παρδάλεις τιθασσευομένας πραΰνεσθαι· γυνὴ δὲ πονηρὰ καὶ ὑβριζομένη μαίνεται, καὶ κολακευομένη ἐπαίρεται. Κἂν ἔχῃ ἄνδρα ἄρχοντα, νύκτωρ καὶ μεθ' ἡμέραν τοῖς λόγοις αὐτὸν ἐκμοχλεύουσα πρὸς δολοφονίαν ὀξύνει, ὡς Ἡρωδιὰς τὸν Ἡρώδην· κἂν πένητα ἔχῃ ἄνδρα, πρὸς ὀργὰς καὶ μάχας αὐτὸν διεγείρει· κἂν χήρα τυγχάνῃ, αὐτὴ δι' ἑαυτῆς τοὺς πάντας ἀτιμάζει. Φόβῳ γὰρ Κυρίου οὐ χαλινοῦται τὴν γλῶτταν, οὐκ εἰς τὸ μέλλον κριτήριον ἀποβλέπει, οὐκ εἰς Θεὸν ἀναβλέπει, οὐ φιλίας οἶδε θεσμοὺς φυλάττειν.

Οὐδέν ἐστι γυναικὶ πονηρᾷ τὸν ἴδιον ἄνδρα παραδοῦναι εἰς θάνατον. Ἀμέλει γοῦν τὸν δίκαιον Ἰὼβ ἡ ἰδία γυνὴ πρὸς θάνατον τῆς βλασφημίας παρεδίδω, λέγουσα· Εἰπόν τι ῥῆμα πρὸς Κύριον, καὶ τελεύτα. Ὢ φύσεως πονηρᾶς! ὢ προαιρέσεως ἀνοσίας! Οὐκ ἠλέησεν ὁρῶσα τοῦ ἰδίου ἀνδρὸς τὰ σπλάγχνα ὑπὸ τῶν ἀναζεουσῶν φλυκταινῶν, ὥσπερ ὑπὸ ἀνθράκων σπινθηροβόλων καιόμενα, καὶ ὅλας τὰς σάρκας τοῖς σκώληξι συνειλημμένας· οὐκ ἐκάμφθη πρὸς οἶκτον, ὁρῶσα αὐτὸν ὅλον δι' ὅλου ἑλισσόμενον, καὶ κάμνοντα καὶ ἀγωνιῶντα, καὶ συνεχῆ ἄσθματα μετὰ πόνου κεχηνότι τῷ στόματι φέροντα. Οὐκ ἐμειλίχθη πρὸς εὐσπλαγχνίαν ὁρῶσα τόν ποτε ἐν βασιλικῇ πορφυρίδι προσιόντα, τότε ἐπὶ κοπρίας κείμενον γεγυμνωμένον τῷ σώματι· οὐκ ἐμνημόνευσε τῆς πρὸς αὐτὸν ἀρχαίας συνηθείας, οὐδ' ὅσα δι' αὐτὸν ἐπίδοξα καὶ καλὰ ἤνθησεν αὕτη. Ἀλλὰ τί; Εἰπόν τι ῥῆμα πρὸς Κύριον, καὶ τελεύτα. Ὢ χάρις γυναικός! ὢ μάλαγμα ὀδύνων προμαλακτήριον! ὢ φιλίας ὁμοζύγου θεσμός! Ἆρα σοῦ ποτε ἀῤῥωστούσης τοιοῦτον ἐφθέγξατο ῥῆμα, καὶ οὐχὶ εὐχαῖς καὶ εὐποιίαις τὴν νόσον σου ἀπέσμηξεν; οὐκ ἤρκει γὰρ αὐτῷ ἡ πρόσκαιρος παιδεία, ἀλλὰ καὶ αἰώνιον αὐτῷ προξενεῖς τὴν κόλασιν διὰ τῆς βλασφημίας; ἢ οὐκ οἶδας, ὅτι Πᾶσα βλασφημία καὶ ἁμαρτία ἀφεθήσεται ἀνθρώποις· ἡ δὲ κατὰ τοῦ Πνεύματος τοῦ ἁγίου βλασφημία, οὐκ ἀφεθήσεται οὔτε ἐν τῷ αἰῶνι τούτῳ, οὔτε ἐν τῷ μέλλοντι; Θέλεις ἰδεῖν καὶ ἄλλην τῆς πονηρίας ταύτης ὁμόζυγον; Ἴδε μοι τὴν ∆αλιλάν. Καὶ γὰρ ἐκείνη τὸν ἀνδρειότατον Σαμψῶνα ξυρήσασα καὶ δήσασα, τοῖς ἀλλοφύλοις παρέδωκε, τὸν ἴδιον ἄνδρα τὸν ἴδιον σύνευνον, ὃν ἔθαλπεν, ὃν ἐθώπευεν, ὃν ἐκολάκευεν, ὃν ὑπὲρ ἑαυτὴν ἀγαπᾷν ὑπεκρίνατο· ὃν χθὲς ἠγάπα, σήμερον ἠπάτα· ὂν χθὲς ἔθαλπεν ἀγαπῶσα, σήμερον ἔθαπτεν ἀπατῶσα. Καὶ μὴν οὐκ ἦν ὡραῖος; Καὶ τίς αὐτοῦ ὡραιότερος κατ' ἐκεῖνο καιροῦ, ὃς ἑπτὰ βο 59.488 στρύχους ἐπὶ κεφαλῆς ἔφερε, τῆς ἑπταφώτου χάριτος τὴν εἰκόνα βαστάζων; Καὶ μὴν οὐκ ἦν ἀνδρεῖος; Καὶ τίς αὐτοῦ ἀνδρειότερος, ὅς γε λέοντα φοβερὸν ἐν ὁδῷ μόνος ἀπέπνιξε, καὶ ἐν μιᾷ σιαγόνι ὄνου χιλίους ἀλλοφύλους κατέστρωσεν; Ἀλλὰ καὶ οὐχ ἅγιος ἦν;

Τοσοῦτον ἦν ἅγιος, ὡς διψήσαντα αὐτόν ποτε ἐν σπάνει ὕδατος εὔξασθαι, καὶ ἐκ τῆς κατεχομένης ἐν τῇ χειρὶ αὐτοῦ σιαγόνος νεκρᾶς ὕδωρ πηγάσαι, κἀκεῖθεν τὸ ἴαμα τῆς δίψης ἀρύσασθαι. Καὶ τὸν οὕτως ὡραῖον, τὸν οὕτως ἀνδρεῖον, τὸν οὕτως ἅγιον, ἡ ἰδία γυνὴ, ὡς πολέμιον δήσασα, τοῖς ἀλλοφύλοις παρέδωκε. Καὶ πόθεν ἆρα γυνὴ τοῦ οὕτως ἀνδρείου κατίσχυσεν; Ἐκ τῆς οἰκείας τοῦ ἀνδρὸς ἀγαθότητος. Τὸ γὰρ μυστήριον αὐτοῦ τῆς ἰσχύος νύκτωρ ἀποσυλήσασα, γυμνὸν αὐτὸν ἱμᾶσιν ἰσχυροῖς κατέστρεψε. ∆ιὰ τοῦτο παραγγέλλει σοι ἡ Σοφία· Ἀπὸ τῆς συγκοίτου σου φυλάσσου τοῦ ἀναθέσθαι τι αὐτῇ. Ποῖον, εἰπέ μοι, θηρίον κατὰ τοῦ ἰδίου ἄῤῥενος τοιαῦτα ἐμελέτησε πώποτε; τίς δράκαινα τὸν ἴδιον ὁμόζυγον ἀπολέσθαι θέλει; ποία