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when the charge was brought, and the condemnation became clear, which he was justly to endure, he became so savage and cruel toward his fellow servant; if none of these things 51.26 had happened, to what lengths of savagery would he not have sunk? For this reason God did and arranged all these things, checking beforehand that harshness of his. But if he was corrected by none of these things, the fault is not with the teacher, but with him who did not accept the correction. But nevertheless let us see how He deals with his wound. Therefore falling, he says, at his feet, he besought him, saying: Have patience with me, and I will pay you everything. And yet it was said that he did not have the means to pay; but such is the habit of debtors, even if they have nothing to pay, they make promises, so as to be freed from the present terrors. Let us hear, as many of us as are slothful in prayer, how great is the power of supplications. This man did not display fasting, not poverty, nor anything else of that kind, but being destitute and stripped of all virtue, since he only besought the master, he was able to draw him to mercy. Let us not therefore give up in our supplications. For who could be more sinful than this man, who was liable for so many charges, and possessed no good deed, small or great? But nevertheless he did not say to himself: I have no confidence, I am full of shame, how can I approach? how can I beseech? which many sinners say, suffering from a diabolical piety. You have no confidence? For this reason approach, that you may acquire great confidence. For is it a man who is about to be reconciled to you, that you should be ashamed and blush? It is God, who desires more than you to free you from your charges; you do not so desire your own safety, as he longs for your salvation; and this he has taught us through the very works. You have no confidence? For this reason you will be able to have confidence, because you are so disposed; for the greatest confidence is to not think one has confidence; just as, therefore, the greatest shame is to justify oneself before the Lord. That man is unclean, even if he be the holiest of all men; just as, therefore, he becomes righteous who has persuaded himself to be the last of all. And witnesses of what is said are the Pharisee and the publican. Let us not, therefore, despair in our sins, nor give up, but let us approach God, fall down, beseech, which this man did, having used a good disposition up to this point. Both not to give up, and not to despair, and to confess one's sins, and to ask for some postponement and delay, all these things are good, and of a contrite mind, and of a humbled soul. But what followed was no longer like what went before; for what he gathered through supplication, these things he poured out all at once through his anger toward his neighbor. But for now let us come to the manner of the forgiveness; let us see how he forgave him, and from where the master came to this. Being moved with compassion, his lord, it says, released him, and forgave him the debt. That one asked for a delay, this one gave forgiveness; so that that one received more than he asked. Wherefore Paul also says: To him that is able to do all things exceedingly abundantly above what we ask or think. For you are not even able to conceive so much, as he has prepared to give you. Therefore do not be ashamed, nor blush; rather be ashamed 51.27 indeed of your sins, but do not despair, nor desist from prayer, but approach even being a sinner, that you may reconcile your Master, that you may grant him to show forth his own love for mankind in the forgiveness of your sins; since if you are afraid to approach you have hindered his goodness, you have prevented the abundance of his kindness, at least as far as it concerns you. Let us not, therefore, fall back, nor be hesitant in our prayers. For even if we should be carried down to the very pit of wickedness, he will be able to draw us up quickly from there.

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ἐπενεχθείσης, καὶ τῆς καταδίκης γενομένης δήλης, ἣν ὑπομεῖναι δίκαιος ἦν, οὕτως ἄγριος καὶ ὠμὸς περὶ τὸν σύνδουλον ἐγένετο· εἰ μηδὲν τούτων 51.26 ἐξέβη, ποῦ οὐκ ἂν ἐξώλισθεν ἀγριότητος; ∆ιὰ τοῦτο ταῦτα πάντα ὁ Θεὸς ἐποίει καὶ ἐπραγματεύετο, προαναστέλλων αὐτοῦ τὴν ἀπήνειαν ἐκείνην. Εἰ δὲ μηδενὶ διωρθώθη τούτων, οὐ παρὰ τὸν διδάσκαλον, ἀλλὰ παρ' ἐκεῖνον τὸν μὴ δεξάμενον τὴν διόρθωσιν ἡ αἰτία. Πλὴν ἀλλ' ἴδωμεν πῶς αὐτῷ μεθοδεύει τὸ ἕλκος. Πεσὼν οὖν, φησὶ, παρὰ τοὺς πόδας αὐτοῦ, παρεκάλει αὐτὸν λέγων· Μακροθύμησον ἐπ' ἐμοὶ, καὶ πάντα σοι ἀποδώσω. Καὶ μὴ μὴν εἶπεν, ὅτι οὐκ εἶχεν ἀποδοῦναι· ἀλλὰ τοιοῦτον τῶν ὀφειλόντων τὸ ἔθος, κἂν μηδὲν ἔχωσιν ἀποδοῦναι, ἐπαγγέλλονται, ὥστε τῶν παρόντων ἀπαλλαγῆναι δεινῶν. Ἀκούσωμεν ὅσοι ῥᾳθυμοῦμεν εὐχῆς, πόση τῶν δεήσεων ἡ δύναμις. Οὐ νηστείαν ἐπεδείξατο οὗτος, οὐκ ἀκτημοσύνην, οὐκ ἄλλο τῶν τοιούτων οὐδὲν, ἀλλ' ἔρημος ὢν καὶ γυμνὸς πάσης ἀρετῆς, ἐπειδὴ παρεκάλεσε τὸν δεσπότην μόνον, ἴσχυσεν αὐτὸν ἐπισπάσασθαι πρὸς ἔλεον. Μὴ τοίνυν ἀπαγορεύωμεν ἐν ταῖς δεήσεσι. Τίς γὰρ τούτου γένοιτ' ἂν ἁμαρτωλότερος, ὃς τοσούτοις μὲν ἐγκλήμασιν ὑπεύθυνος ἦν, κατόρθωμα δὲ οὐ μικρὸν, οὐ μέγα ἐκέκτητο; Ἀλλ' ὅμως οὐκ εἶπε πρὸς ἑαυτόν· Ἀπαῤῥησίαστός εἰμι, αἰσχύνης γέμω, πῶς δύναμαι προσελθεῖν; πῶς δύναμαι παρακαλέσαι; ὃ πολλοὶ τῶν ἁμαρτανόντων λέγουσι, διαβολικὴν νοσοῦντες εὐλάβειαν. Ἀπαῤῥησίαστος εἶ; ∆ιὰ τοῦτο πρόσελθε, ἵνα κτήσῃ παῤῥησίαν πολλήν. Μὴ γὰρ ἄνθρωπός ἐστιν ὁ μέλλων σοι καταλλάττεσθαι, ἵνα αἰσχυνθῇς καὶ ἐρυθριάσῃς; Θεός ἐστιν, ὁ σοῦ μᾶλλον βουλόμενος ἀπαλλάξαι σε τῶν ἐγκλημάτων· οὐχ οὕτω σὺ τῆς σεαυτοῦ ἀσφαλείας ἐπιθυμεῖς, ὡς ἐκεῖνος ἐφίεταί σου τῆς σωτηρίας· καὶ τοῦτο δι' αὐτῶν τῶν ἔργων ἡμᾶς ἐπαίδευσεν. Οὐκ ἔχεις παῤῥησίαν; ∆ιὰ τοῦτο δυνήσῃ παῤῥησίαν ἔχειν, ὅτι οὕτω διάκεισαι· μεγίστη γὰρ παῤῥησία, τὸ μὴ νομίζειν ἔχειν παῤῥησίαν· ὥσπερ οὖν αἰσχύνη μεγίστη, τὸ δικαιοῦν ἑαυτὸν ἐνώπιον Κυρίου. Ἐκεῖνος ἀκάθαρτός ἐστι, κἂν ἁπάντων ἀνθρώπων ἁγιώτερος ᾖ· ὥσπερ οὖν δίκαιος γίνεται ὁ πείσας ἑαυτὸν πάντων ἔσχατον εἶναι. Καὶ μάρτυρες τῶν λεγομένων ὁ Φαρισαῖος καὶ ὁ τελώνης. Μὴ τοίνυν ἀπογινώσκωμεν ἐν τοῖς ἁμαρτήμασι, μηδὲ ἀπαγορεύωμεν, ἀλλὰ προσερχώμεθα τῷ Θεῷ, προσπίπτωμεν, παρακαλῶμεν, ὅπερ οὗτος ἐποίησε, μέχρι τούτου καλῇ τῇ γνώμῃ χρησάμενος. Τό τε μὴ ἀπαγορεῦσαι, τό τε μὴ ἀπογνῶναι, τό τε ὁμολογῆσαι τὰ ἡμαρτημένα, τό τε αἰτῆσαι ἀναβολήν τινα καὶ μέλλησιν, ταῦτα πάντα καλὰ, καὶ διανοίας συντετριμμένης, καὶ τεταπεινωμένης ψυχῆς. Τὰ δὲ ἐντεῦθεν οὐκ ἔτι ὅμοια τοῖς προτέροις· ἅπερ γὰρ διὰ τῆς ἱκετηρίας συνήγαγε, ταῦτα ἀθρόον ἐξέχεεν ἅπαντα διὰ τῆς εἰς τὸν πλησίον ὀργῆς. Ἀλλὰ τέως ἐπὶ τὸν τρόπον τῆς συγχωρήσεως ἔλθωμεν· ἴδωμεν πῶς αὐτὸν ἀφῆκε, καὶ πόθεν ἐπὶ τοῦτο ἦλθεν ὁ δεσπότης. Σπλαγχνισθεὶς ὁ κύριος αὐτοῦ, φησὶν, ἀπέλυσεν αὐτὸν, καὶ τὸ δάνειον ἀφῆκεν αὐτῷ. Ἐκεῖνος μέλλησιν ᾔτησεν, οὗτος συγχώρησιν ἔδωκεν· ὥστε πλέον οὗ ᾔτησεν, ἔλαβεν ἐκεῖνος. ∆ιὸ καὶ Παῦλός φησι· Τῷ δυναμένῳ πάντα ποιῆσαι ὑπὲρ ἐκ περισσοῦ ὧν αἰτούμεθα ἢ νοοῦμεν. Οὐδὲ γὰρ ἰσχύεις ἐννοῆσαι τοσαῦτα, ὅσα ἐκεῖνός σοι παρεσκεύασται δοῦναι. Μὴ τοίνυν αἰσχυνθῇς, μηδὲ ἐρυθριάσῃς· μᾶλλον δὲ αἰσ51.27 χύνου μὲν ἐπὶ τοῖς ἁμαρτήμασι, μὴ ἀπογίνωσκε δὲ, μηδὲ ἀφίστασο τῆς εὐχῆς, ἀλλὰ πρόσελθε καὶ ἁμαρτωλὸς ὢν, ἵνα καταλλάξῃς σου τὸν ∆εσπότην, ἵνα δῷς αὐτῷ τὴν οἰκείαν φιλανθρωπίαν ἐν τῇ συγχωρήσει τῶν ἁμαρτιῶν τῶν σῶν ἐπιδείξασθαι· ὡς ἐὰν φοβηθῇς προσελθεῖν ἐνεπόδισας αὐτοῦ τῇ ἀγαθότητι, διεκώλυσας αὐτοῦ τῆς χρηστότητος τὴν δαψίλειαν, τό γε εἰς σὲ ἧκον. Μὴ τοίνυν ἀναπίπτωμεν, μηδὲ ὀκνῶμεν ἐν ταῖς εὐχαῖς. Κἂν γὰρ πρὸς αὐτὸ τῆς κακίας κατενεχθῶμεν τὸ βάραθρον, ταχέως ἐκεῖθεν ἡμᾶς ἀνασπάσαι δυνήσεται.