they plunder the labors of others, being at leisure in idleness and sitting beside the crossroads. Someone sailed the sea, fought with surges, warred with winds, cut through the long and difficult-to-manage sea, but Zacchaeus took away the profit with the tax. A shepherd living with drought and scorching heat, rain and snow and frost, having the projections of rocks for a hut, cheese and milk for food, the unworked hide of the sheep for a garment, but this rustic, this poor man, this one who consorts with mountains, fell into the hands of Zacchaeus, having his flocks tithed, being robbed according to the law, being slain without a sword. For the one struck by iron and receiving a lighter wound is gone, having escaped the harshness of the suffering through unconsciousness, but the one pierced by involuntary poverty has his pain as death and has died; not being consumed once, but he dies always, little by little.

And to speak briefly, just as impregnable fortresses are to soldiers and reefs are to pilots and suspected ambushes are to those at war, so to merchants and travelers, to herdsmen and shepherds, Zacchaeus was to be avoided.But this man, so frenzied about the irrational collection of money, seeking to see Jesus, was not able; for both the smallness of his stature and the weight of his injustice held him down. Wherefore now, healing the littleness of his stature with the inventiveness of his intelligence, running on ahead, he climbed up into a sycamore tree and is hidden under the thick foliage of the leaves, thinking to see and not be seen, supposing he was hidden from the one who knows all; which indeed the woman with the issue of blood also underwent, thinking to steal from Jesus, the one who is gladly stolen from in such ways. But she, even having come near, touched the hem of his garment, but this man, being far off, laid hold of Christ by faith. Therefore he goes up on the tree, healing the evils of Adam; for the one is led astray by the tree, fleeing God, but the other is saved from a tree, desiring to see God. For hearing that he works many and extraordinary wonders, that besides the bodies he also heals souls, taking away the sins of souls, and granting freedom from suffering to bodies, he desired to see the one who forgives all things for all people, reasoning with himself: "Who then is this Jesus, who cleanses lepers, who heals the blind, who forgives the sins of those who ask? Of what sort is his appearance, what is his form? Does he know all things? Does he also discern the thoughts of the absent? Or does he examine only the reasonings of those present? Does he, as God, trace out the thoughts of each person's heart? How then shall I know these things? Whom shall I take as a teacher of these things? Whom? Experience, the teacher of all. Having climbed up the tree, I am hidden under the thick foliage of the leaves. I remain hidden and I learn if I am able to be saved. If he knows the movement of my soul, I know that he will wipe out the sin of my soul; this one thing then I will know, that he knows the hidden things of my reasonings.

If, while being pressed by the crowd, he sees me, the one who is hidden, and not only sees but also reveals the desire of my soul, I choose to cast away all things and to find the one. I want to imitate Matthew; for he too was a tax collector like me, but Matthew did not run to him of his own accord, but being called, he obeyed. And perhaps seeing him and thinking him one of the travelers, he cupped his hands and spread out a deep fold of his garment, preparing himself by habit for the taking, and wishing to collect tax from Christ, he was taxed in turn by him, not even according to form, but giving his whole self. For as soon as he heard: Come after me, he surpassed the call with his eagerness, running past with swifter speed the one who was drawing him on. If therefore he calls tax collectors, and not only calls but also justifies, the swarm of my past evils does not harm me; for if Elisha, by casting salt on the nourishing spring, made its barrenness fruitful, surely he too, having seasoned my soul with grace as with salt, the fruitfulness of virtue

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τοὺς πόνους ληΐζονται ἀργίᾳ σχολάζοντες καὶ ταῖς τριόδοις παρακαθήμενοι. Ἔπλεέν τις τὴν θάλασσαν, τρικυμίαις ἐμάχετο, πνεύ μασιν ἐπολέμει, μακρὸν καὶ δυσήνιον τὸ πέλαγος ἔτεμνεν, Ζακχαῖος δὲ ἀφῃρεῖτο τῷ τέλει τὸ κέρδος. Ποιμὴν ἀν αὐχμῷ καὶ καύσωνι, ὄμβρῳ καὶ χιόνι καὶ πάχνῃ συζῶν, καλύβην ἔχων τὰς ἐξοχὰς τῶν πετρῶν, τροφὴν τυρὸν καὶ γάλα, ἱμάτιον ἀνέργαστον τῶν προβάτων τὴν δοράν, ἀλλ' οὗτος ὁ ἄγροικος, ὁ πένης, ὁ ὄρεσιν προσομιλῶν Ζακχαίῳ περιέπιπτεν δεκατευόμε νος τὰ θρέμματα, ἐννόμως λῃστευόμενος, ἄνευ ξίφους ἀναιρού μενος. Σιδήρῳ γὰρ ὁ πληγεὶς καὶ ῥεῖον τὸ τραῦμα λαβὼν οἴχεται ἀναισθησίᾳ φυγὼν τοῦ πάθους τὴν χαλεπότητα, ὁ δὲ ἀκουσίῳ πενίᾳ τετοξευμένος θάνατον ἔχει τὸν πόνον καὶ τέθνηκεν· οὐχ ἅπαξ δαπανούμενος, θνῄσκει δὲ ἀεὶ κατὰ μικρόν.

Καὶ ἵνα συντόμως εἴπω, ὥσπερ στρατιώταις τὰ δυσάλωτα φρούρια καὶ τοῖς κυβερνήταις αἱ ὕφαλοι πέτραι καὶ τοῖς πολεμοῦσιν οἱ ὕποπτοι λόχοι, οὕτως ἐμπόροις καὶ ὁδοιπόροις, βουκόλοις καὶ ποιμέσιν Ζακχαῖος φευκτὸς ἦν.Ἀλλ' οὗτος οὕτω περὶ τὴν ἄλογον τῶν χρημάτων συλλογὴν μεμηνὼς ζητῶν τὸν Ἰησοῦν ἰδεῖν οὐκ ἠδύνατο· κατεῖχεν γὰρ αὐτὸν καὶ ἡλικίας σμικρότης καὶ ἀδικίας βαρύτης. Ὅθεν νῦν ἰώμενος τῆς ἡλικίας τὴν εὐτέλειαν τῇ τῆς συνέσεως ἐπινοίᾳ προδραμὼν ἔμπροσθεν ἀνέβη ἐπὶ συκομοραίαν καὶ κρύπτεται ὑπὸ τὸ ἀμφιλαφὲς τῶν φύλλων οἰόμενος ὁρᾶν καὶ μὴ ὁρᾶσθαι, νομίζων λανθάνειν τὸν πάντα εἰδότα· ὃ δὴ καὶ ἡ αἱμορροοῦσα ὑπέστη οἰομένη κλέπτειν τὸν Ἰησοῦν τὸν ἡδέως τὰ τοιαῦτα κλεπτόμενον. Ἀλλ' ἐκείνη κἂν ἐγγὺς γενομένη τοῦ κρασπέδου ἐφήψατο, οὗτος δὲ πόρρωθεν ὢν πίστει τοῦ Χριστοῦ ἐπελάβετο. Ὅθεν ἄνεισιν ἐπὶ τὸ ξύλον τὰ τοῦ Ἀδὰμ θεραπεύων κακά· ὁ μὲνγὰρ ὑπὸ τοῦ ξύλου πλανᾶται τὸν θεὸν φεύγων, ὁ δὲ ἀπὸ ξύλου σῴζεται τὸν θεὸν ἰδεῖν ἐπιθυμῶν. Ἀκούων γὰρ ὡς πολλὰ καὶ παράδοξα ἐργάζεται θαύματα, ὡς πρὸς τοῖς σώμασιν καὶ τὰς ψυχὰς ἰατρεύει, τῶν μὲν ψυχῶν τὰς ἁμαρτίας ἀφαιρούμενος, τοῖς δὲ σώμασιν ἀπάθειαν χαριζόμενος, ἐπεθύμησεν ἰδεῖν τὸν πάντα πᾶσι συγχωροῦντα λογισάμενος παρ' ἑαυτῷ·«Τίς ποτε ἆρά ἐστιν οὗτος ὁ Ἰησοῦς ὁ λεπροὺς καθαίρων, ὁ τυφλοὺς ἰώμενος, ὁ τὰ ἁμαρτήματα τοῖς αἰτοῦσι συγχωρῶν; Ποταπὸς τὸ εἶδος, ὁποῖος τὴν μορφήν; Ἆρα πάντα οἶδεν; ἆρα καὶ τῶν ἀπόντων τὰς γνώμας δοκιμάζει; ἢ τῶν συνόντων μόνον τοὺς λογισμοὺς ἐξετάζει; ἆρα ὡς θεὸς τῆς ἑκάστου καρδίας ἀνιχνεύει τὰ νοήματα; Πόθεν οὖν ταῦτα γνῶ; τίνα τούτων διδάσκαλον λάβω; τίνα; Τὴν πεῖραν, τὴν πάντων διδάσκαλον. Ἀνελθὼν ἐπὶ τὸ δένδρον κρύπτομαι ὑπὸ τὸ ἀμφιλαφὲς τῶν φύλλων. Λανθάνω καὶ μανθάνω εἰ δύναμαι σωθῆναι. Ἐὰν γνῷ μου τῆς ψυχῆς τὸ κίνημα, οἶδα ὅτι ἐξαλείφει μου τὸ τῆς ψυχῆς ἁμάρτημα· ἓν τοῦτο οὖν γνώσομαι ὅτι οἶδεν τῶν λογισμῶν τὰ κρυπτά.

Ἐὰν ὑπὸ τοῦ πλήθους συνεχόμενος ἴδῃ με τὸν λανθάνοντα καὶ μὴ μόνον ἴδῃ ἀλλὰ καὶ τῆς ψυχῆς μου ἐκκαλύψῃ τὸν ἔρωτα, αἱροῦμαι πάντα ῥῖψαι καὶ ἕνα εὑρεῖν. Μιμήσασθαι Ματθαῖον θέλω· καὶ γὰρ ἐκεῖνος τελώνης ἦν ὡς καὶ ἐγώ, ἀλλὰ Ματθαῖος μὲν οὐκ αὐθαιρέτως προσέδραμεν, ἀλλὰ κληθεὶς ὑπήκουσεν. Τάχα δὲ αὐτὸν καὶ ὁρῶν καὶ ἕνα τῶν ὁδοιπόρων νομίζων τὰς χεῖρας ἐκοίλανεν καὶ βαθὺν ἐφήπλωσε κόλπον τῇ συνηθείᾳ πρὸς τὴν λῆψιν ὀχηματιζόμενος καὶ τελωνῆσαι τὸν Χριστὸν θέλων ἀντετελωνήθη παρ' αὐτοῦ οὐδὲ κατὰ σχῆμα, ἀλλ' ὅλον ἑαυτὸν ἐπιδούς. Ἅμα γὰρ ἤκουσεν· ∆εῦρο ὀπίσω μου, ὑπερέβη τὴν κλῆσιν τῇ προθυμίᾳ ὀξυτέρῳ τάχει παρατρέχων τῷ ἐφελκομένῳ. Εἰ τελώνας οὖν καλεῖ καὶ οὐ καλεῖ μόνον ἀλλὰ καὶ δικαιοῖ, οὐ βλάπτει με τῶν προλαβόντων κακῶν ὁ ἑσμός· εἰ γὰρ ὁ Ἐλισσαῖος ἅλας ἐπιβαλὼν τῇ θρεψαμένῃ πηγῇ τὸ ἄγονον αὐτῆς γόνιμον εἰργάσατο, πάντως καὶ αὐτὸς τῇ χάριτι ὡς ἅλατι ἀρτύσας μου τὴν ψυχὴν καρπογονίαν ἀρετῆς

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