fruit from it, and found none. And when he found none, he rebuked it, saying: May no fruit ever come from you again. In what did the fig tree sin? For does it have the fruit-bearing by its rational authority? Does not the Creator, when he wishes, provide 59.603 the energy for fruit-bearing? Then, it was not the season for figs; for the Gospel testifies to this. Who of ordinary men, let alone God, demands fruit out of season? Did you not establish the seasons, O creator? Did you not give seasons and times for fruit-bearing? Why then do you demand it outside the season which you appointed? But even if it were the season for figs, and the fig tree did not bear fruit, was it the fault of its nature? Does it offer fruit when it wants? Does it not bring forth fruit when it is commanded? For what reason, then, does he rebuke the fig tree? Since he was about to undergo the passion, so that they might not think he suffered through weakness, he demonstrates his power on an inanimate object, to show that he was able to wither all who contradicted him, to destroy all who fought against God. But since he came not to judge the world, but to save it, as he himself said, he demonstrates his power on the inanimate object, but reserves his love for humanity for men. So also here he allowed the blind man to follow, so that the fresh memory might dispel the scandal, so that they might have the miracle-working shining forth. But another miracle succeeded this one; for after the blind man received his sight, another blind man saw with his soul. Who was this? The chief tax collector, blinded by money, who had his soul blinded by greed; for nothing so blinds the soul as money. For this reason Moses says: For gifts blind the eyes of men, and pervert righteous words. The chief tax collector came, and Jesus passed by, who dissolves all sin, who destroys all evil, who changes darkness into light, and makes the crooked straight. Zacchaeus was short in stature, but extended in his desire; short in body, but great in spirit; for he sought to see Jesus, and could not because of his short stature; and going ahead, by a device he provides for what was lacking in his stature; for he runs up into a sycamore tree, and saw Jesus passing by. But our Lord Jesus Christ, of whom Paul says, "Who is able to do exceedingly above what we ask or think," did not give him as much as he desired, but beyond what he expected. For the one desired only to see, but the other deemed him worthy also of a reception. And he who saw his intention says to him (for before he climbed into the fig tree, he knew his intention): Zacchaeus, make haste and come down. A good fowler is the Savior, bringing down a soul from a tree. Zacchaeus, make haste and come down. He extended to him the reed of the word, applied the lime of love, took him by the wings of his mind, and gathers him into his own Church. And see what he does. And lest you think it was the word that compelled, but that the word of God is like a fowler, blessed Zechariah says: And the Lord showed me a fowler's vessel, and said to me: I will not pass by my people until, he says, I have caught him with lime. Thus the truth is testified, that the word of God is bird-lime, entwining souls with love as with lime; and just as that glue can no longer separate what is held from what holds it, so also the souls united to the Savior are glued as if by the fowler's glue. For this reason the good fledgling David, having been caught, said: My soul has clung to you; and again the Apostle, But he who is joined to the Lord is one spirit. He catches Zacchaeus with lime, and brings him down from the tree, and brings himself into his tent, which he himself had once darkened with sins, but today the luminary of piety has illuminated. When therefore the Savior entered, the tax collector received him rejoicing. Oh, the great goodness of the Master! the sinless one with sinners, the fount of justice with the matter of injustice; for the matter of injustice is greed. He entered the house of the tax collector, not being insulted by the darkness of greed, but by the dawn of justice, greed

παρ' αὐτῆς καρπὸν, καὶ οὐχ εὗρεν. Ὡς δὲ οὐχ εὗρεν, ἐπετίμησε λέγων· Μηδέποτε ἐκ σοῦ καρπὸς γένηται εἰς τὸν αἰῶνα. Τί ἥμαρτεν ἡ συκῆ; μὴ γὰρ ἐξουσίᾳ λογικῇ ἔχει τὴν καρποφορίαν; οὐχ ὅτε βούλεται ὁ κτίστης, παρέχει 59.603 ἐνέργειαν τῇ καρποφορίᾳ; Εἶτα οὔτε ὁ καιρὸς ἦν τῶν σύκων· τοῦτο γὰρ ἐπιμαρτύρεται τὸ Εὐαγγέλιον. Τίς δὲ οὕτω τῶν κοινῶν ἀνθρώπων, μήτι γε ὁ Θεὸς, ἐν ἀκαίρῳ καιρῷ καρπὸν ἀπαιτεῖ; τοὺς καιροὺς οὐ σὺ ἔπηξας, ὁ δημιουργός; οὐ σὺ ἔδωκας καιροὺς καὶ χρόνους τῇ καρποφορίᾳ; Τί τοίνυν ἀπαιτεῖς παρὰ τὸν καιρὸν, ὃν ἔταξας; Εἰ δὲ καὶ καιρὸς ἦν σύκων, μὴ ἤνεγκε δὲ ἡ συκῆ καρπὸν, ἔγκλημα ἦν τῆς φύσεως; μὴ, ὅτε βούλεται, προσφέρει; οὐχ, ὅτε κελεύεται, προσάγει καρποφορίας; Τίνος οὖν ἕνεκεν ἐπιτιμᾷ τῇ συκῇ; Ἐπειδὴ ἔμελλε τὸ πάθος ὑφίστασθαι, ἵνα μὴ νομίσωσιν αὐτὸν δι' ἀσθένειαν πάσχειν, ἐν τῷ ἀψύχῳ ἐνδείκνυται τὴν δύναμιν, ἵνα δείξῃ, ὅτι πάντας ἠδύνατο ξηρᾶναι τοὺς ἀντιλέγοντας, πάντας ἀφανίσαι τοὺς θεομάχους. Ἀλλ' ἐπειδὴ οὐκ ἦλθε κρῖναι τὸν κόσμον, ἀλλὰ σῶσαι, ὡς αὐτὸς ἔφησε, τὴν μὲν δύναμιν ἐνδείκνυται ἐπὶ τῆς ἀψύχου, τὴν δὲ φιλανθρωπίαν ταμιεύεται τοῖς ἀνθρώποις. Οὕτω καὶ ἐνταῦθα συνεχώρει τῷ τυφλῷ ἀκολουθεῖν, ἵνα νεάζουσα ἡ μνήμη διαλύσῃ τὸ σκάνδαλον, ἵνα ἔχωσι τὴν θαυματουργίαν ἀπαστράπτουσαν. Ἀλλὰ διεδέξατο τὸ θαῦμα ἕτερον· μετὰ γὰρ τὴν ἀνάβλεψιν τοῦ τυφλοῦ, ἀνέβλεψεν ἄλλος τυφλὸς τὴν ψυχήν. Τίς οὗτος; Ὁ ἀρχιτελώνης ὁ τυφλώττων περὶ τὰ χρήματα, ὁ τῇ πλεονεξίᾳ τυφλὴν τὴν ψυχὴν ἔχων· οὐδὲν γὰρ οὕτως ἀποτυφλοῖ τὴν ψυχὴν, ὡς τὰ χρήματα. ∆ιὰ τοῦτό φησι Μωϋσῆς· ∆ῶρα γὰρ ἀποτυφλοῖ ὀφθαλμοὺς ἀνθρώπων, καὶ λυμαίνεται ῥήματα δίκαια. Ἦλθεν ὁ ἀρχιτελώνης, καὶ παρῄει ὁ Ἰησοῦς, ὁ πᾶσαν ἁμαρτίαν διαλύων, ὁ πᾶσαν κακίαν ἀφανίζων, ὁ μεταβάλλων τὸ σκότος εἰς φῶς, καὶ τὰ σκολιὰ εἰς εὐθεῖαν ἄγων. Ὁ Ζακχαῖος βραχὺς ἦν τὴν ἡλικίαν, ἐκτεταμένος δὲ τὸν πόθον· βραχὺς τὸ σῶμα, μέγας δὲ τὸ φρόνημα· ἐζήτει γὰρ τὸν Ἰησοῦν ἰδεῖν, καὶ οὐκ ἠδύνατο διὰ τὸ βραχὺ τῆς ἡλικίας· καὶ προλαβὼν, μηχανῇ πορίζεται τὸ ἐλλεῖπον τῆς ἡλικίας· ἀνατρέχει γὰρ ἐπὶ συκομορέαν, καὶ παριόντα τὸν Ἰησοῦν ἑώρα. Ἀλλ' ὁ Κύριος ἡμῶν Ἰησοῦς Χριστὸς, περὶ οὗ φησιν ὁ Παῦλος, «Ὁ εἰδὼς ἐκ περισσοῦ ποιεῖν ὧν αἰτούμεθα ἢ νοοῦμεν,» οὐ τοσοῦτον αὐτῷ ἔδωκεν, ὅσον ἐπόθησεν, ἀλλ' ὑπὲρ ὃ προσεδόκησεν. Ὁ μὲν γὰρ ἰδεῖν μόνον ἐπόθησεν, ὁ δὲ καὶ τῆς δεξιώσεως αὐτὸν ἠξίωσε. Καί φησι πρὸς αὐτὸν ὁ θεασάμενος αὐτοῦ τὴν διάνοιαν (πρὶν γὰρ ἀναβῇ εἰς τὴν συκῆν, οἶδεν αὐτοῦ τὴν διάνοιαν)· Ζακχαῖε, σπεύσας κατάβηθι. Καλὸς ἰξευτὴς ὁ Σωτὴρ, ἀπὸ δένδρου ψυχὴν καταφέρων. Ζακχαῖε, σπεύσας κατάβηθι. Ἐξέτεινεν αὐτῷ τὸν κάλαμον τοῦ λόγου, περιέθηκε τὸν ἰξὸν τῆς ἀγάπης, ἔλαβεν αὐτὸν ἀπὸ τῶν πτερύγων τῆς διανοίας, καὶ συνάγει αὐτὸν ὑπὸ τὴν ἑαυτοῦ Ἐκκλησίαν. Καὶ ὅρα, τί ποιεῖ. Ἵνα δὲ μὴ νομίσῃς τὸ ῥῆμα εἶναι τὸ βιασάμενον, ἀλλ' ὅτι ὁ λόγος τοῦ Θεοῦ ὡς ἰξευτής ἐστι, λέγει ὁ μακάριος Ζαχαρίας· Καὶ ἔδειξέ μοι Κύριος ἄγγος ἰξευτοῦ, καὶ εἶπέ μοι· Οὐ μὴ παρέλθω τὸν λαόν μου, ἕως ἂν, φησὶν, ἰξεύσω αὐτόν. Οὕτως ἀλήθεια μεμαρτυρημένη, ὅτι ὁ λόγος τοῦ Θεοῦ ἰξός ἐστι, τῇ ἀγάπῃ ὡς ἰξῷ τὰς ψυχὰς περιπλέκων· καὶ ὥσπερ ἐκείνη ἡ κόλλα οὐ δύναται λοιπὸν τὸ κατεχόμενον διαστῆσαι τοῦ κατέχοντος, οὕτω καὶ αἱ ψυχαὶ αἱ τῷ Σωτῆρι ἡνωμέναι κολλῶνται ὥσπερ τῇ κόλλῃ τοῦ ἰξευτοῦ. ∆ιὰ τοῦτο ὁ πιασθεὶς καλὸς νεοσσὸς ∆αυῒδ ἔλεγεν· Ἐκολλήθη ἡ ψυχή μου ὀπίσω σου· καὶ πάλιν ὁ Ἀπόστολος, Ὁ δὲ κολλώμενος τῷ Κυρίῳ ἓν πνεῦμά ἐστιν. Ἰξεύει τὸν Ζακχαῖον, καὶ κατάγει αὐτὸν ἀπὸ τοῦ δένδρου, καὶ εἰσάγει ἑαυτὸν εἰς τὴν σκηνὴν αὐτοῦ, ἣν ποτὲ μὲν αὐτὸς ταῖς ἁμαρτίαις ἐγνόφωσε, σήμερον δὲ ὁ φωστὴρ τῆς εὐσεβείας κατηύγασεν. Ὡς οὖν εἰσῆλθεν ὁ Σωτὴρ, ὑπεδέξατο αὐτὸν ὁ τελώνης χαίρων. Ὢ τῆς πολλῆς ἀγαθότητος τοῦ ∆εσπότου! ὁ ἀναμάρτητος μετὰ ἁμαρτωλῶν, ἡ πηγὴ τῆς δικαιοσύνης μετὰ τῆς ὕλης τῆς ἀδικίας· ὕλη γὰρ ἀδικίας, πλεονεξία. Εἰσῆλθεν εἰς τὴν οἰκίαν τοῦ τελώνου, οὐ τῷ γνόφῳ τῆς πλεονεξίας ὑβριζόμενος, ἀλλὰ τῇ αὐγῇ τῆς δικαιοσύνης τὴν πλεονεξίαν