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keeps the seasons? Who has set the well-ordered laws of nature? Who has appointed the courses of day and night? These things are beyond that generation. No, he says, but they have come to be of their own accord. And how could so much good order come to be of its own accord? Whence then, he says, are the rich, the healthy, the esteemed—some from avarice, some from inheritance, some from violence? For what reason, then, has God allowed the wicked to prosper? Because the recompense according to worth is not here, but in the time to come; then show me such a thing happening. For now, give it to me here, he says, and I do not seek it there. But for this reason you do not receive, because you seek. For if, being without pleasure, you seek these things so as to prefer them to those, how much more so if you also enjoyed pure pleasure. For this reason He shows you these things, that they are nothing, that they are indifferent; for if they were not indifferent, He would not have given them to those men also. Tell me, is it not an indifferent thing to be dark, or tall, or short? So too is wealth. For tell me, in necessary things has it not been given equally to all, such as the aptitude for virtue, the distribution of spiritual gifts? If you knew the benefits of God, you would not, while enjoying those other things equally, be indignant at these, nor would you have sought this advantage, knowing that equality of portion? Just as if a servant, receiving food from his master and clothing and lodging, and enjoying all other things equally with the others, should think he has more than the others if he had extra hair on his head, or longer fingernails; in the same 62.509 way such a person is vainly proud of these things, in which he has a temporary enjoyment. For these reasons He draws us away from them, that He might quench this madness, that He might transfer the desire for them to heaven. But we are not even so brought to our senses. For as a child, if it has something childish and prefers this to necessary things, the father deprives it of the childish things, that he might transfer it, even unwillingly, to what is perfect. So also God does everything, that He might transfer us to heaven. "How then," he says, "does He permit the wicked to be rich?" Because He takes little account of them. How then also the righteous? Not He Himself, but He simply allows it. And these things have now been spoken by us superficially, as to those who are ignorant of the Scriptures; but if you wished to believe and to attend to the divine words, we would have had no 62.510 need of these words; for from these we would have known all things. For that you may learn that wealth is nothing, nor health, nor glory, I show you many, who when it is in their power to gain, do not gain, who when it is in their power to be healthy, waste away their own bodies, who when it is in their power to enjoy glory, do all things so as to be despised. No one, however, being good, is eager to be bad. Let us therefore cease from seeking the good things here, and let us seek those in the heavens. For thus we shall be able both to obtain them, and we shall enjoy eternal nourishment, by the grace and loving-kindness of our Lord Jesus Christ, with whom to the Father, together with the Holy Spirit, be glory, dominion, honor, now and ever, and unto the ages of ages. Amen.

HOMILY II. Now the end of the commandment is love out of a pure heart and

of a good conscience and of unfeigned faith; from which some having swerved have turned aside unto vain jangling; desiring to be teachers of the law, not

understanding neither what they say, nor whereof they affirm. 1. Nothing so ruins the race of men, as to despise friendship,

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ὡρῶν φυλάττει; τίς τοὺς εὐτάκτους τῆς φύσεως νόμους τέθεικε; τίς ἡμέρας καὶ νυκτὸς δρόμους ἔταξε; Ταῦτα ἐκείνης τῆς γενέσεως ἀνώτερά ἐστιν. Οὒ, φησὶν, ἀλλ' αὐτόματα γέγονε. Καὶ πῶς ἂν εὐταξία τοσαύτη αὐτομάτη γένοιτο ἄν; Πόθεν οὖν, φησὶν, οἱ πλούσιοι, οἱ ὑγιαίνοντες, οἱ εὐδοκιμοῦντες, οἱ μὲν ἀπὸ πλεονεξίας, οἱ δὲ ἀπὸ κληρονομίας, οἱ δὲ ἀπὸ βίας; τίνος οὖν ἕνεκεν εὐημερεῖν τοὺς κακοὺς συνεχώρησεν ὁ Θεός; Ὅτι οὐκ ἔστιν ἐνταῦθα ἡ τοῦ κατ' ἀξίαν ἀντίδοσις, ἀλλ' ἐν τῷ μέλλοντι καιρῷ· τότε μοι δεῖξον τοιοῦτόν τι γινόμενον. Τέως ἐνταῦθά μοι δὸς, φησὶ, καὶ ἐκεῖ οὐ ζητῶ. Ἀλλὰ διὰ τοῦτο οὐ λαμβάνεις, ἐπεὶ ζητεῖς. Εἰ γὰρ ἐκτὸς ὢν τῆς ἡδονῆς οὕτως αὐτὰ ζητεῖς, ὡς ἐκείνων προτιμᾷν, πολλῷ μᾶλλον, εἰ καὶ ἡδονῆς καθαρᾶς ἀπέλαυες. ∆ιὰ τοῦτο ταῦτα δείκνυσί σοι, ὅτι οὐδέν εἰσιν, ὅτι ἀδιάφορά ἐστιν· οὐ γὰρ ἂν, εἰ μὴ ἀδιάφορα ἦν, καὶ ἐκείνοις αὐτὰ ἔδωκεν ἄν· εἰπέ μοι, τὸ μέλανα εἶναι, ἢ μακρὸν, ἢ μικρὸν, οὐχὶ ἀδιάφορον· οὕτω καὶ ὁ πλοῦτος. Εἰπὲ γάρ μοι, ἐπὶ τῶν ἀναγκαίων οὐκ ἐξ ἴσης πᾶσι δέδοται, οἷον ἐπιτηδειότης πρὸς ἀρετὴν, τῶν πνευματικῶν δωρεῶν ἡ διανομή; Εἰ ᾔδεις τοῦ Θεοῦ τὰς εὐεργεσίας, οὐκ ἂν ἐκείνων ἐξ ἴσης ἀπολαύων ἐν τούτοις ἠγανάκτησας, οὐδ' ἂν ταύτην τὴν πλεονεξίαν ἐζήτησας. ἐκείνην τὴν ἰσομοιρίαν εἰδώς; Ὥσπερ ἂν ὁ οἰκέτης τροφὰς μὲν τὰς παρὰ δεσπότου καὶ ἐνδύματα καὶ οἰκήματα καρπούμενος, καὶ πάντων τῶν ἄλλων ἐξ ἴσης τοῖς ἄλλοις ἀπολαύων, εἰ τρίχας ἔχοι περιττὰς ἐπὶ τῆς κεφαλῆς, ἢ ὄνυχας μείζονας, πλέον ἔχειν νομίζοι τῶν ἄλλων· τὸν αὐτὸν 62.509 δὴ τρόπον καὶ ὁ τοιοῦτος μάτην ἐπὶ τούτοις μέγα φρονεῖ, ἐφ' οἷς τὴν ἀπόλαυσιν πρόσκαιρον ἔχει. ∆ιὰ ταῦτα ἡμᾶς ἀφίστησιν αὐτῶν, ἵνα τὴν μανίαν ταύτην σβέσῃ, ἵνα μεταγάγῃ τὸν πρὸς αὐτὰ πόθον εἰς τὸν οὐρανόν. Ἡμεῖς δὲ οὐδὲ οὕτω σωφρονιζόμεθα. Ὡς γὰρ τὸ παιδίον εἴ τι παιδικὸν ἔχοι, καὶ προτιμᾷ τοῦτο τῶν ἀναγκαίων, ἀποστερεῖ αὐτὸ ὁ πατὴρ τῶν παιδικῶν, ἵνα καὶ ἄκοντα μεταγάγῃ πρὸς τὸ τέλειον. οὕτω καὶ ὁ Θεὸς πάντα ποιεῖ, ἵνα ἡμᾶς μεταγάγῃ εἰς τὸν οὐρανόν. Πῶς οὖν τοὺς πονηροὺς ἀφίησι πλουτεῖν, φησίν; Ὅτι οὐ πολὺς αὐτῷ λόγος ἐκείνων. Πῶς οὖν καὶ τοὺς δικαίους; Οὐκ αὐτὸς, ἀλλ' ἁπλῶς συγχωρεῖ. Καὶ ταῦτα μὲν νῦν ἐπιπολαίως ἡμῖν εἴρηται, ὡς πρὸς ἀγνοοῦντας τὰς Γραφάς· εἰ δὲ ἐβούλεσθε πιστεύειν καὶ προσέχειν τοῖς θείοις λόγοις, οὐδὲν ἂν 62.510 ἡμῖν τούτων ἐδέησε τῶν λόγων· ἐκ τούτων γὰρ πάντα ἂν ᾔδειμεν. Ἵνα γὰρ μάθῃς, ὅτι οὐδέν ἐστιν ὁ πλοῦτος, οὔτε ἡ ὑγεία, οὔτε ἡ δόξα, ἐγώ σοι δείκνυμι πολλοὺς, οἷς ἐξὸν κερδαίνειν, οὐ κερδαίνουσιν, οἷς ἐξὸν ὑγιαίνειν, κατατήκουσιν ἑαυτῶν τὰ σώματα, οἷς ἐξὸν δόξης ἀπολαύειν, πάντα πράττουσιν, ὥστε καταφρονεῖσθαι. Οὐδεὶς μέντοι ἀγαθὸς ὢν, σπουδάζει εἶναι κακός. Οὐκοῦν παυσώμεθα τοῦ ζητεῖν τὰ ἐνταῦθα ἀγαθὰ, καὶ ζητήσωμεν τὰ ἐν οὐρανοῖς. Οὕτω γὰρ αὐτῶν καὶ τυχεῖν δυνησόμεθα, καὶ τῆς ἀϊδίου τροφῆς ἀπολαύσομεν, χάριτι καὶ φιλανθρωπίᾳ τοῦ Κυρίου ἡμῶν Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ, μεθ' οὗ τῷ Πατρὶ ἅμα τῷ ἁγίῳ Πνεύματι δόξα, κράτος, τιμὴ, νῦν καὶ ἀεὶ, καὶ εἰς τοὺς αἰῶνας τῶν αἰώνων. Ἀμήν.

ΟΜΙΛΙΑ Βʹ. Τὸ δὲ τέλος τῆς παραγγελίας ἐστὶν ἀγάπη ἐκ καθαρᾶς καρδίας καὶ

συνειδήσεως ἀγαθῆς καὶ πίστεως ἀνυποκρίτου· ὧν τινες ἀστοχήσαντες, ἐξετράπησαν εἰς ματαιολογίας, θέλοντες εἶναι νομοδιδάσκαλοι, μὴ

νοοῦντες μήτε ἃ λέγουσι, μήτε περὶ τίνων διαβεβαιοῦνται. αʹ. Οὐδὲν οὕτω λυμαίνεται τὸ τῶν ἀνθρώπων γένος, ὡς τὸ φιλίας καταφρονεῖν,