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of the law, nor taking another, did he bring her in to the free woman; which indeed many do on the pretext of childbearing, fulfilling their own licentiousness, and casting some out, and bringing others in; and some even equipping themselves with concubines, and filling their houses with countless wars. But not so that just man, but he remained loving the wife allotted to him by God, and he besought the Lord of nature to correct the bonds of nature, and he did not reproach his wife. And whence do we know that he did not reproach her? From the Scripture itself. If he had reproached her, the Scripture would have said this too, and would not have been silent; for it tells of the good deeds of the just, and their failings, so that we may flee the one and emulate the other. For instance, when the bride Rachel lamented to his son, and he rebuked her, it set down both, and Scripture did not hide it. For since she said, "Give me children, or else I die," what does he say? "Am I in God's stead, who has withheld from you the fruit of the womb?" Give me children. The request is womanish and irrational. You say to your husband, "Give me children," bypassing the Lord of nature? For this reason he also, answering more sharply, repressed her irrational request, and taught from whom she ought to ask. But not so, neither did he say any such thing, nor did she lament and mourn to him. From this we are taught self-control and faith. 51.369 For to have besought God shows his faith; and not to cast out his wife makes his self-control manifest to us; and neither to reproach, nor to despair, makes clear both his endurance and his philosophy and his great forbearance and his affection for his wife. For neither, as many do now in such circumstances, resorting to sorceries and charms, these superfluous and unprofitable and harmful things, that also destroy the soul, did he do, but leaving all these things, and scorning all human means, he ran to the Lord of nature who alone is able to correct these things.

6. Hear these things, men, be instructed, women, let us imitate the just man

all. Let nothing be more honored to a wife than her husband, nothing more desired by a husband than his wife. This holds our whole life together, for a wife to be of one mind with her husband; this holds the entire world together. For just as when the foundation is shaken, the whole building collapses; so too when marriages are in strife, our entire life is overturned. For see: the world is composed of cities, the cities of households, the households of men and women. If, therefore, war should enter between men and women, war has entered the households; and when these are disturbed, the cities also become unsettled; and when cities are in strife, the whole world must needs be filled with turmoil, and war, and battle. For this reason God has made great provision for this matter; for this reason he does not permit a man to cast out his wife, except only for fornication. What then if she is a scold, he says, if she is extravagant and lavish, and has countless other failings? Bear all things nobly, and do not cast her out because of the failings, but correct the failings. For this reason you hold the place of the head, that you may know how to heal the body. For our body, even if it has countless wounds, we do not cut off the head. Therefore do not cut off your wife from yourself; for the wife is for us in the place of the body. For this reason also the blessed Paul said: So husbands ought to love their wives, as their own bodies. And for wives the same law is for us: as you love your own head, O wife, and if you honor it, so honor your husband; for not in vain do we make so great a discourse on this matter. I know how many good things it is the cause of, for a wife not to be at variance with her husband; I know how many evils it is the occasion of, when these are at variance with each other. For then not wealth, not fine children, not many children, not

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νόμου, οὔτε ἑτέραν λαβὼν, τῇ ἐλευθέρᾳ ἐπεισήγαγεν· ὃ δὴ πολλοὶ ποιοῦσι προφάσει παιδοποιίας, τὴν ἀσέλγειαν τὴν ἑαυτῶν πληροῦντες, καὶ τὰς μὲν ἐκβάλλοντες, τὰς δὲ εἰσάγοντες· οἱ δὲ καὶ παλλακίδας ἐφοπλίζοντες, καὶ μυρίων τὰς οἰκίας πληροῦντες πολέμων. Ἀλλ' οὐκ ἐκεῖνος ὁ δίκαιος οὕτως, ἀλλ' ἔμενε στέργων τὴν κληρωθεῖσαν αὐτῷ παρὰ τοῦ Θεοῦ γυναῖκα, καὶ παρεκάλει τὸν τῆς φύσεως ∆εσπότην διορθῶσαι τῆς φύσεως τὰ δεσμὰ, καὶ οὐκ ὠνείδισε τῇ γυναικί. Καὶ πόθεν, ὅτι οὐκ ὠνείδισεν; Ἐξ αὐτῆς τῆς Γραφῆς. Εἰ ὠνείδισεν, εἶπεν ἂν ἡ Γραφὴ καὶ τοῦτο, καὶ οὐκ ἐσιώπησε· καὶ γὰρ τὰ κατορθώματα λέγει τῶν δικαίων, καὶ τὰ ἐλαττώματα, ἵνα τὰ μὲν φύγωμεν, τὰ δὲ ζηλώσωμεν. Ὅτε γοῦν πρὸς τὸν υἱὸν αὐτοῦ ἡ νύμφη ἡ Ῥαχὴλ ἀπωδύρετο, κἀκεῖνος ἐπέπληξεν, ἀμφότερα τέθεικε, καὶ οὐκ ἀπέκρυψεν ἡ Γραφή. Ἐπειδὴ γὰρ εἶπε, ∆ός μοι τέκνα, εἰ δὲ μὴ, ἀποθανοῦμαι, τί φησιν ἐκεῖνος; Μὴ Θεὸς ἐγὼ, ὃς ἐστέρησέ σε καρποῦ κοιλίας; ∆ός μοι τέκνα. Γυναικώδης ἡ αἴτησις καὶ ἀλόγιστος. Τῷ ἀνδρὶ λέγεις, ∆ός μοι τέκνα, παραδραμοῦσα τὸν τῆς φύσεως ∆εσπότην; ∆ιὰ τοῦτο καὶ ἐκεῖνος πληκτικώτερον ἀποκρινάμενος κατέστειλεν αὐτῆς τὴν ἄλογον αἴτησιν, καὶ ἐδίδαξε παρὰ τίνος δεῖ αἰτεῖν. Ἀλλ' οὐχ οὕτως, οὔτε αὐτὸς οὐδὲν τοιοῦτον εἶπεν, οὔτε ἐκείνη πρὸς τοῦτον ἀπωδύρατο καὶ ἐθρήνησεν. Ἐντεῦθεν σωφροσύνην παιδευόμεθα καὶ πίστιν. Τὸ 51.369 μὲν γὰρ δεηθῆναι τοῦ Θεοῦ, τὴν πίστιν αὐτοῦ δείκνυσι· τὸ δὲ μὴ ἐκβαλεῖν τὴν γυναῖκα, τὴν σωφροσύνην ἡμῖν καθίστησι φανεράν· τὸ δὲ μήτε ὀνειδίσαι, μήτε ἀπογνῶναι, καὶ τὴν ὑπομονὴν καὶ τὴν φιλοσοφίαν καὶ τὴν πολλὴν ἐπιείκειαν καὶ τὴν φιλοστοργίαν τὴν πρὸς τὴν γυναῖκα δήλην ποιεῖ. Οὐδὲ γὰρ, καθάπερ πολλοὶ ποιοῦσι νῦν ἐν ταῖς τοιαύταις περιστάσεσιν εἰς μαγγανείας καὶ γοητείας καταφεύγοντες, τὰ περιττὰ ταῦτα καὶ ἀνόνητα καὶ βλαβερὰ, καὶ ψυχὴν ἀπολλύντα, ἐκεῖνος ἐποίησεν, ἀλλὰ ἅπαντα ταῦτα ἀφεὶς, καὶ πάντων τῶν ἀνθρωπίνων καταγελάσας, πρὸς τὸν τῆς φύσεως ∆εσπότην τὸν δυνάμενον ταῦτα διορθοῦν μόνον ἀνέδραμεν.

ςʹ. Ἀκούσατε ταῦτα, ἄνδρες, παιδεύθητε, γυναῖκες, μιμησώμεθα τὸν δίκαιον

ἅπαντες. Μηδὲν ἔστω γυναικὶ ἀνδρὸς τιμιώτερον, μηδὲν ἀνδρὶ γυναικὸς ποθεινότερον. Τοῦτο πάντων ἡμῶν συγκρατεῖ τὴν ζωὴν, τὸ ὁμονοεῖν γυναῖκα πρὸς ἄνδρα· τοῦτο συνέχει τὸν κόσμον ἅπαντα. Καθάπερ γὰρ τοῦ θεμελίου σαλευθέντος, πᾶσα ἡ οἰκοδομὴ καταφέρεται· οὕτω καὶ γάμων στασιαζόντων, ἅπας ὁ βίος ἡμῶν ἀνατρέπεται. Ὅρα γάρ· ὁ κόσμος ἐκ τῶν πόλεων συνέστηκεν, αἱ πόλεις ἐκ τῶν οἰκιῶν, αἱ οἰκίαι ἐξ ἀνδρῶν καὶ γυναικῶν. Ἂν τοίνυν ἐπεισέλθῃ πόλεμος μεταξὺ τῶν ἀνδρῶν καὶ τῶν γυναικῶν, εἰς τὰς οἰκίας εἰσῆλθεν ὁ πόλεμος· τούτων δὲ ταραττομένων, καὶ αἱ πόλεις ἀνάστατοι γίνονται· πόλεων δὲ στασιαζουσῶν, καὶ τὴν οἰκουμένην πᾶσαν ἀνάγκη ταραχῆς ἐμπεπλῆσθαι, καὶ πολέμου, καὶ μάχης. ∆ιὰ τοῦτο ὁ Θεὸς πολλὴν ἐποίησε τοῦ πράγματος τούτου τὴν πρόνοιαν· διὰ τοῦτο οὐκ ἀφίησιν ἐκβαλεῖν γυναῖκα, ἀλλ' ἢ ἐπὶ πορνείᾳ μόνον. Τί οὖν ἂν λοίδορος ᾖ, φησὶν, ἂν δαπανηρὰ καὶ πολυτελὴς, καὶ μυρία ἕτερα ἐλαττώματα ἔχῃ; Φέρε πάντα γενναίως, καὶ μὴ ἐκβάλῃς διὰ τὰ ἐλαττώματα, ἀλλὰ διόρθωσον τὰ ἐλαττώματα. ∆ιὰ τοῦτο κεφαλῆς ἐπέχεις χώραν, ἵνα εἰδῇς θεραπεύειν τὸ σῶμα. Καὶ γὰρ τὸ σῶμα τὸ ἡμέτερον, κἂν μυρία ἔχῃ τραύματα οὐκ ἀποτέμνομεν τὴν κεφαλήν. Μὴ τοίνυν μηδὲ τὴν γυναῖκα ἀποτέμνῃς ἑαυτοῦ· ἐν τάξει γὰρ ἡμῖν ἐστι τοῦ σώματος ἡ γυνή. ∆ιὰ τοῦτο καὶ ὁ μακάριος Παῦλος ἔλεγεν· Οἱ ἄνδρες οὕτως ὀφείλουσιν ἀγαπᾷν τὰς γυναῖκας, ὡς τὰ ἑαυτῶν σώματα. Καὶ πρὸς τὰς γυναῖκας δὲ ὁ αὐτὸς νόμος ἡμῖν· ὡς τὴν ἑαυτῆς φίλει κεφαλὴν, ὦ γύναι· καὶ εἰ τιμᾷς, οὕτω τίμα τὸν ἄνδρα· οὐ γὰρ εἰκῆ τοσοῦτον ὑπὲρ τοῦ πράγματος ποιούμεθα λόγον. Οἶδα ὅσων ἀγαθῶν αἴτιόν ἐστι, τὸ γυναῖκα πρὸς ἄνδρα μὴ διχοστατεῖν· οἶδα ὅσων κακῶν ἐστιν ὑπόθεσις, ὅταν οὗτοι πρὸς ἑαυτοὺς διαστασιάζωσι. Τότε γὰρ οὐ πλοῦτος, οὐκ εὐπαιδία, οὐ πολυπαιδία, οὐκ