John Chrysostom, On the Prophet Elijah

suggests a giving. Before being overcome by the famine, he did not permit God His loving-kindness concerning the rains, but said: There shall not be in these years dew or rain upon the earth, except by the word of my mouth. But now he permits it, and already dictates the prelude of the release, but while he dictated it, he did not yet bring forward the request. What then does the fount of loving-kindness do? Again He brings to him a third device of loving-kindness; for He commands the soul of the widow's child to depart from the body. For while honoring the prophet, He did not undo the blessing, nor did He cause the jar to fail, so that he might be driven to the necessity of loving-kindness. For it would have been an outrage to the prophet if the things of the blessing from him were overturned; and this would have damaged the faith of the Gentile widow, as if the blessing 56.585 had happened by chance for a short time. For this reason God does not overturn the blessing, but brings a third device to the prophet; for He causes the widow's child to die, pushing the prophet into the necessity of demanding from Him. For the widow, when her child died, surrounded the prophet with tears. Would that, she says, I had perished beforehand in the famine, and died before your blessing, than to have become a spectator of my dead son. The prophet was ashamed at what had happened; Are these, he says to the widow, the wages for your hospitality to me? Before my reception, she was blessed with a child; after my reception, a lamentation for her beloved child.

Elijah, being ashamed at what happened, and turning the matter over in his mind, perceived that what had happened was a device of the Master of all, he perceived the divine device. And what does he say? Woe is me, Lord, the witness of the widow, with whom I am dwelling with her! But what is it that he wants to say? From you, he says, came the testimony to me concerning the woman; you, he says, said: I will command a widow woman to feed you, surely testifying to the woman's pious disposition. To her you moved me from those places, and she whom you have honored with your testimony, her you now punish with the death of her child? Woe is me, Lord, the witness of the widow, with whom I am dwelling with her, you have put her son to death! This that happened, he says, is not a death of nature; what has happened is of your device, to contrive against me a necessity for loving-kindness, so that when I say to you, Lord, have mercy on the dead son of the widow, you also might say back to me: Have mercy on my son Israel. You are pushing me toward loving-kindness; I perceive your stratagems, O Master, so that when I say to you, Save the dead son of the widow, you yourself might say back to me: You, pity Israel who is dead from the famine. You ask a favor of me, be asked a favor in return; release the decree of the famine, and I will release the sentence of death. When therefore God saw Elijah, subdued by many things, and having become more loving, then at last He brings more clearly to him the words of loving-kindness, as he no longer considered the release of the punishment an outrage. Go, He says. Words of an embassy from God to the servant; God Himself through Himself sends an embassy to the servant concerning loving-kindness. Go, He says. Since you have become, He says, more loving, 56.586 receive also my words of loving-kindness; since you have known me to be constrained by the birth-pangs of loving-kindness, hear me at last more clearly. I am in travail for the release of the punishment, I hasten toward the provision of reconciliations, I am ashamed of the tears of those being punished.

All sinners, O prophet, hold a written bond of my loving-kindness; do not make me appear a liar among them. But hear also the words of the document, which you yourself also know: I do not desire the death of the sinner, as that he should turn and live. Elijah submitted his ears, he subjected his soul to the things spoken by God. Go, He says, and show yourself to Ahab. I am not reconciled without you being reconciled; you grant to those being punished the

ὑποφθέγγεται δόσιν. Πρὶν τῷ λιμῷ δαμασθῆναι, οὐκ ἐπέτρεπε Θεῷ τὴν περὶ τοὺς ὄμβρους φιλανθρωπίαν, ἀλλ' ἔλεγεν· Οὐκ ἔσται τὰ ἔτη ταῦτα δρόσος ἢ ὑετὸς ἐπὶ τῆς γῆς, εἰ μὴ διὰ λόγου στόματός μου. Νῦν δὲ ἐπιτρέπει, καὶ ἤδη τὸ τῆς λύσεως ὑπαγορεύει προοίμιον, ἀλλ' ὑπηγόρευε μὲν, οὔπω δὲ προσῆγε τὴν αἴτησιν. Τί οὖν ἡ τῆς φιλανθρωπίας πηγή; Πάλιν αὐτῷ τρίτην μηχανὴν φιλανθρωπίας προσάγει· κελεύει γὰρ τὴν ψυχὴν τοῦ τῆς χήρας παιδίου μεταστῆναι τοῦ σώματος. Τιμῶν μὲν γὰρ τὸν προφήτην, τὴν εὐλογίαν οὐκ ἔλυεν, οὐδὲ ἐπιλεῖψαι τὸν καμψάκην ἐποίει, ὥστε πρὸς ἀνάγκην αὐτὸν συνελαθῆναι φιλανθρωπίας. Ἦν γὰρ ὕβρις τῷ προφήτῃ, εἰ τὰ τῆς εὐλογίας ἀνετράπη τῆς παρ' αὐτοῦ· καὶ τῆς ἐθνικῆς δὲ χήρας τοῦτο τὴν πίστιν κατέβλαπτεν, ὡς ἀπὸ συντυχίας τῆς εὐλογίας 56.585 ἐπιτυχούσης μικρόν. ∆ιὰ τοῦτο ὁ Θεὸς τὴν μὲν εὐλογίαν οὐκ ἀνατρέπει, τρίτην δὲ προσάγει μηχανὴν τῷ προφήτῃ· ποιεῖ γὰρ τὸ τῆς χήρας ἀποθανεῖν παιδίον, τὸν προφήτην εἰς ἀνάγκην ὠθῶν τῆς πρὸς αὐτὸν ἀξιώσεως. Ἡ γὰρ χήρα, τεθνηκότος τοῦ τέκνου, περιέστη τὸν προφήτην σὺν δάκρυσιν. Εἴθε, φησὶ, λιμῷ προαπολώλειν, καὶ πρὸ τῆς σῆς εὐλογίας ἀποτεθνήκειν, ἢ τοῦ υἱοῦ ἐγεγόνειν θεατὶς τεθνεῶτος. Ἠσχύνετο τὸ συμβὰν ὁ προφήτης· Οὗτοι, φησὶ τῇ χήρᾳ, τῆς εἰς ἐμὲ ξενοδοχίας οἱ μισθοί; Πρὸ τῆς ἐμῆς δεξιώσεως, εὔτεκνος· μετὰ τὴν δεξίωσιν τὴν ἐμὴν περὶ τέκνον τὸ φιλούμενον παρ' αὐτῇ θρηνῳδία.

Αἰσχυνόμενος τὸ συμβὰν ὁ Ἠλίας, καὶ καθ' ἑαυτὸν περιστρέφων τὸ πρᾶγμα, ᾔσθετο τέχνην οὖσαν τοῦ πάντων ∆εσπότου τὸ γεγενημένον, ᾔσθετο τὴν τέχνην τὴν θείαν. Καὶ τί φησιν; Οἴμοι, Κύριε, ὁ μάρτυς τῆς χήρας, μεθ' ἧς ἐγὼ κατοικῶ μετ' αὐτῆς! Τί δέ ἐστιν ὃ βούλεται λέγειν; Παρὰ σοῦ, φησὶν, ἡ περὶ τῆς γυναικὸς πρός με μαρτυρία· σὺ, φησὶν, εἶπας· Ἐντελοῦμαι γυναικὶ χήρᾳ τοῦ διαθρέψαι σε, πάντως τῇ τῆς γυναικὸς μαρτυρῶν ὡς εὐσεβεῖ προαιρέσει. Πρὸς ταύτην ἐξ ἐκείνων με τῶν τόπων μετέστησας, καὶ ἣν τετίμηκας τῇ παρὰ σοῦ μαρτυρίᾳ, ταύτην νῦν τῷ τοῦ τέκνου τιμωρῇ θανάτῳ; Οἴμοι, Κύριε, ὁ μάρτυς τῆς χήρας, μεθ' ἧς ἐγὼ κατοικῶ μετ' αὐτῆς, σὺ ἐθανάτωσας τὸν υἱὸν αὐτῆς! Οὐκ ἔστι, φησὶ, τὸ συμβὰν τῆς φύσεως θάνατος· τῆς τέχνης τῆς σῆς τὸ γεγενημένον, μηχανᾶσαι κατ' ἐμοῦ φιλανθρωπίας ἀνάγκην, ἵν' ὅταν εἴπω πρὸς σὲ, Κύριε, τὸν υἱὸν τῆς χήρας τὸν νενεκρωμένον ἐλέησον, ἀντιφθέγξῃ καὶ σὺ πρός με· Τὸν υἱόν μου τὸν Ἰσραὴλ ἐλέησον. Πρὸς φιλανθρωπίαν ὠθεῖς με· αἰσθάνομαί σου τῶν τεχνασμάτων, ὦ ∆έσποτα, ἵνα ὅταν εἴπω σοι, Τὸν υἱὸν τῆς χήρας τὸν τεθνεῶτα διάσωσον, ἀντιφθέγξῃ καὶ αὐτὸς πρός με· Τὸν Ἰσραὴλ σὺ τῷ λιμῷ νενεκρωμένον κατοίκτειρον. Αἰτεῖς με χάριν, ἀνταιτήθητι χάριν· λῦσον τοῦ λιμοῦ τὴν ἀπόφασιν, καὶ λύω τοῦ θανάτου τὴν ψῆφον. Ὡς οὖν εἶδεν ὁ Θεὸς Ἠλίαν, πολλοῖς ἐκδαμασθέντα, καὶ γεγενημένον φιλανθρωπότερον, τότε λοιπὸν προσάγει φανερώτερον πρὸς αὐτὸν τῆς φιλανθρωπίας τοὺς λόγους, ὡς οὐκέτι λοιπὸν τὴν τῆς τιμωρίας λύσιν λογιζόμενον ὕβριν. Πορεύθητι, φησί. Πρεσβείας τοῦ Θεοῦ πρὸς τὸν δοῦλον ῥήματα· αὐτὸς δι' ἑαυτοῦ ὁ Θεὸς περὶ φιλανθρωπίας πρὸς τὸν δοῦλον πρεσβεύει. Πορεύθητι, φησίν. Ἐπειδὴ ἐγένου, φησὶ, φιλανθρωπότερος, 56.586 δέξαι μου καὶ τῆς φιλανθρωπίας τοὺς λόγους· ἐπειδή με ταῖς τῆς φιλανθρωπίας ὠδῖσι συνεχόμενον ἔγνως, ἄκουέ μου λοιπὸν φανερώτερον. Ὠδίνω τῆς τιμωρίας τὴν λύσιν, ἐπείγομαι πρὸς χορηγίαν καταλλαγῶν, αἰσχύνομαι τῶν κολαζομένων τὰ δάκρυα.

Πάντες ἁμαρτωλοὶ, ὦ προφῆτα, κρατοῦσί μου φιλανθρωπίας χειρόγραφον· μή με ποιήσῃς παρ' αὐτοῖς ψευδολόγον φανῆναι. Ἄκουε δὲ καὶ τῶν τοῦ γραμματείου φωνῶν, ἅσπερ οἶδας καὶ αὐτός· Οὐ βούλομαι τὸν θάνατον τοῦ ἁμαρτωλοῦ, ὡς τὸ ἐπιστρέψαι καὶ ζῇν αὐτόν. Ὑπέταξεν ὁ Ἠλίας τὰ ὦτα, ὑπέθηκε τὴν ψυχὴν τοῖς παρὰ τοῦ Θεοῦ λαλουμένοις. Πορεύθητι, φησὶ, καὶ ὄφθητι τῷ Ἀχαάβ. Οὐ καταλλασσόμενος χωρὶς σοῦ καταλλάσσομαι· σὺ παράσχου τοῖς κολαζομένοις τὴν