John Chrysostom, On Repentance

to be lifted up, after having competed with the powers above, and to have endured the heat, after trampling upon the furnace of pleasure; then they were called foolish, and justly foolish, because having done the great thing, they were defeated by the small one. And the foolish, he says, came, 49.294 and said to the wise: Give us oil from your vessels. But they said: We cannot give you, lest there not be enough for us and for you; doing this not out of heartlessness, nor out of wickedness, but because of the urgency of the time; for the bridegroom was about to come. They too had lamps; but while those had oil, these did not have any. For the fire is virginity, and the oil is almsgiving. Just as fire, then, if it does not have oil poured upon it, vanishes, so also virginity, if it does not have almsgiving, is extinguished. Give us oil from your vessels. And they to them: We cannot give you. But this saying is not of wickedness but of fear: Lest there not be enough for us and for you; lest, while we seek to enter all together, we all remain outside; But go and buy from those who sell. And who are the merchants of this oil? The poor, who sit for alms before the church. And for how much? For as much as you wish; I do not set a price, so that you may not plead poverty. For as much as you have, for that much buy; do you have an obol? buy heaven; not because heaven is cheap, but because the Master is a lover of mankind. Do you not have an obol? give a cup of cold water; Whoever gives a cup of cold water to drink to one of these least ones for my sake, will by no means lose his reward. Heaven is a market and a business, and we are neglectful. Give bread, and receive paradise; give small things, and receive great things; give mortal things, and receive immortal things; give corruptible things, and receive incorruptible things. If there were a festival, and it had low prices, and an abundance of food, and many things were sold for little, would you not, having sold your possessions and having put everything else second, have taken hold of that business? And where things are corruptible, you show such zeal; but where the business is immortal, are you so idle and listless? Give to the poor man, so that even if you are silent, ten thousand mouths may speak in your defense, with almsgiving being present and pleading your case; almsgiving is a ransom for the soul. For this reason, just as basins filled with water are before the doors of the church, so that you may wash your hands; so outside the church the poor sit, so that you may wash the hands of the soul. Have you washed your physical hands with water? wash the hands of the soul with almsgiving. Do not plead poverty; the widow in the extremity of poverty showed hospitality to Elijah, and poverty was not an obstacle, but with much joy she received him; wherefore she also received worthy fruits, and reaped the ear of corn of almsgiving. But perhaps the hearer says, Give me Elijah. Why do you seek Elijah? I give you the Master of Elijah, and you do not feed him. If you had found Elijah, how would you have shown him hospitality? It is the declaration of Christ the Master of all: Whoever has done it to one of these least ones, has done it to me. If a king had invited someone to dinner, and 49.295 with his servants standing by said to them: Give many thanks to this man in my place; this man nourished and received me when I was in poverty, this man bestowed many kindnesses on me in a time of distress; how would not each one have spent all his money on that man to whom the king gave thanks? how would he not have defended him? how would not each one have been eager to present himself and become a friend to him? 3. Have you seen the power of the word? But if in the case of a human king the matter has such honor, consider Christ on that day calling in the presence of angels and every power, and saying: This one showed me hospitality on earth; this one did ten thousand kindnesses to me;

ἀναπτερῶσαι, μετὰ τὸ πρὸς τὰς ἄνω δυνάμεις τὴν ἅμιλλαν ἔχειν, καὶ τὸν καύσωνα ὑπομεῖναι, μετὰ τὸ τὴν κάμινον τῆς ἡδονῆς καταπατῆσαι· τότε μωραὶ ἤκουσαν, καὶ δικαίως μωραὶ, ὅτι τὸ μέγα ποιήσασαι, ὑπὸ τοῦ μικροῦ ἡττήθησαν. Καὶ προσῆλθον, φησὶν, αἱ μωραὶ, 49.294 καὶ εἶπον ταῖς φρονίμοις· ∆ότε ἡμῖν ἔλαιον ἐκ τῶν ἀγγείων ὑμῶν. Αἱ δὲ εἶπον· Οὐ δυνάμεθα δοῦναι ὑμῖν, μήποτε οὐκ ἀρκέσῃ ἡμῖν καὶ ὑμῖν· οὐ δι' ἀσπλαγχνίαν τοῦτο ποιοῦσαι, οὐδὲ διὰ κακίαν, ἀλλὰ διὰ τὸ στενὸν τοῦ καιροῦ· ἔμελλε γὰρ ὁ νυμφίος ἔρχεσθαι. Εἶχον καὶ αὐταὶ λαμπάδας· ἀλλ' ἐκείνων μὲν εἶχον ἔλαιον, αὐτῶν δὲ οὐκ εἶχον. Τὸ γὰρ πῦρ ἐστιν ἡ παρθενία, τὸ δὲ ἔλαιον ἐστὶν ἡ ἐλεημοσύνη. Ὥσπερ οὖν τὸ πῦρ, ἐὰν μὴ ἔχῃ ἔλαιον ἐπιστάζον, ἀφανίζεται, οὕτω καὶ ἡ παρθενία, ἐὰν μὴ ἔχῃ ἐλεημοσύνην, σβέννυται. ∆ότε ἡμῖν ἔλαιον ἐκ τῶν ἀγγείων ὑμῶν. Αἱ δὲ πρὸς αὐτάς· Οὐ δυνάμεθα δοῦναι ὑμῖν. Ἀλλ' οὐ κακίας τὸ ῥῆμα τοῦτο ἀλλὰ φόβου· Μήποτε οὐκ ἀρκέσῃ καὶ ἡμῖν καὶ ὑμῖν· μήποτε ὡς ζητοῦμεν ὅλαι εἰσελθεῖν, ὅλαι ἀπομείνωμεν· Ἀλλ' ἀπελθοῦσαι ἀγοράσατε ἀπὸ τῶν πωλούντων. Τίνες δὲ οἱ ἔμποροι τοῦ ἐλαίου τούτου; Οἱ πτωχοὶ, οἱ πρὸς τὴν ἐλεημοσύνην καθεζόμενοι πρὸ τῆς ἐκκλησίας. Καὶ πόσου; Ὅσου θέλεις· τιμὴν οὐκ ἐπιτίθημι, ἵνα μὴ πενίαν προβάλλῃ. Ὅσον ἔχεις, τοσούτου ἀγόρασον· ἔχεις ὀβολόν; ἀγόρασον τὸν οὐρανόν· οὐχ ὅτι εὔωνος ὁ οὐρανὸς, ἀλλ' ὅτι φιλάνθρωπος ὁ ∆εσπότης. Οὐκ ἔχεις ὀβολόν; ποτήριον δὸς ψυχροῦ ὕδατος· Ὃς ἂν ποτίσῃ ποτήριον ψυχροῦ ὕδατος ἕνα τῶν ἐλαχίστων τούτων ἕνεκα ἐμοῦ, οὐ μὴ ἀπολέσῃ τὸν μισθὸν αὐτοῦ. Ἐμπορία καὶ πραγματεία ὁ οὐρανὸς, καὶ ἡμεῖς ἀμελοῦμεν. ∆ὸς ἄρτον, καὶ λαβὲ παράδεισον· δὸς μικρὰ, καὶ λαβὲ μεγάλα· δὸς θνητὰ, καὶ λαβὲ ἀθάνατα· δὸς φθαρτὰ, καὶ λαβὲ ἄφθαρτα. Εἰ ἦν πανήγυρις, καὶ εὐωνίαν ἔχουσα, καὶ ἀφθονίαν σιτίων, καὶ τὰ πολλὰ ὀλίγου πιπρασκόμενα, οὐκ ἂν τὰς οὐσίας διαπωλήσαντες, καὶ πάντα δεύτερα θέντες, τῆς πραγματείας ἐκείνης περικρατεῖς ἐγένεσθε; Καὶ ὅπου μὲν φθαρτὰ, τοσαύτην ἐνδείκνυσθε σπουδήν· ὅπου δὲ πραγματεία ἀθάνατος, τοσοῦτο ῥᾳθυμεῖτε καὶ ἀναπεπτώκατε; ∆ὸς πένητι, ἵνα κἂν σὺ σιωπᾷς, καὶ μυρία στόματα ὑπὲρ σοῦ ἀπολογῶνται, τῆς ἐλεημοσύνης ἐνεστώσης καὶ συνηγορούσης· λύτρον ψυχῆς ἐστιν ἐλεημοσύνη. ∆ιὰ τοῦτο ὥσπερ οἱ λουτῆρες ὕδατος πεπληρωμένοι εἰσὶ πρὸ τῶν θυρῶν τῆς ἐκκλησίας, ἵνα νίψῃ τὰς χεῖρας· οὕτω τῆς ἐκκλησίας ἔξω οἱ πένητες καθέζονται, ἵνα πλύνῃς τὰς χεῖρας τῆς ψυχῆς. Ἔπλυνας τὰς χεῖρας τὰς αἰσθητὰς τῷ ὕδατι; πλῦνον τὰς χεῖρας τῆς ψυχῆς τῇ ἐλεημοσύνῃ. Μὴ πενίαν προβάλλου· ἡ χήρα ἐν τῷ ἐσχάτῳ τῆς πενίας ἐξένισε τὸν Ἠλίαν, καὶ ἡ πενία κώλυμα οὐκ ἐγένετο, ἀλλὰ μετὰ πολλῆς τῆς χαρᾶς αὐτὸν ὑπεδέξατο· διὸ καὶ ἀξίους ἀπέλαβε τοὺς καρποὺς, καὶ ἐθέρισε τὸν στάχυν τῆς ἐλεημοσύνης. Ἀλλ' ἴσως ὁ ἀκροατής φησι, ∆ός μοι τὸν Ἠλίαν. Τί ζητεῖς τὸν Ἠλίαν; τὸν ∆εσπότην σοι δίδωμι τοῦ Ἠλία, καὶ οὐ τρέφεις αὐτόν. Τὸν Ἠλίαν εἰ εὗρες, πῶς ἂν ἐξένισας αὐτόν; Χριστοῦ ἐστι τοῦ ∆εσπότου τῶν ὅλων ἀπόφασις· Ὃς ἂν ποιήσῃ ἑνὶ τῶν ἐλαχίστων τούτων, ἐμοὶ ἐποίησεν. Εἰ βασιλεὺς ἕνα τινὰ ἐκάλεσεν ἐπὶ τοῦ δείπνου, καὶ 49.295 τῶν θεραπόντων παρεστηκότων εἶπε πρὸς αὐτούς· Εὐχαριστήσατε τούτῳ πολλὰ ἀντ' ἐμοῦ· οὗτός με ἐν πενίᾳ ὄντα διέθρεψε καὶ ἐξένισεν, οὗτος ἐμοὶ πολλὰς εὐεργεσίας ἐν καιρῷ στενοχωρίας παρέσχε· πῶς οὐκ ἂν ἕκαστος τὰ χρήματα αὐτοῦ ὅλα πρὸς ἐκεῖνον ἀνήλωσεν, ᾧ ὁ βασιλεὺς ηὐχαρίστησε; πῶς οὐκ ἂν ἀπελογίσατο; πῶς οὐκ ἂν ἕκαστος ἐσπούδασεν ἑαυτὸν αὐτῷ παραθέσθαι καὶ φιλιωθῆναι; γʹ. Εἴδετε τὴν δύναμιν τοῦ λόγου; Εἰ δέ γε ἐπὶ βασιλέως ἀνθρώπου τοσαύτην τιμὴν ἔχει τὸ πρᾶγμα, ἐννόησον Χριστὸν ἐν ἐκείνῃ τῇ ἡμέρᾳ καλοῦντα ἐπὶ ἀγγέλων καὶ πάσης δυνάμεως, καὶ λέγοντα· Οὗτός με ἐν τῇ γῇ ἐξένισεν· οὗτός με μυρία εὐηργέτησεν·