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they provoked God, and because they devised a wicked counsel against their own soul, which came to be more against themselves than against the one it was planned against, they have suffered these things. Therefore they will eat the fruits of their works, and woe has come to the lawless people, since according to the works of his hands, being evil, it will happen to him; "for whatever a man sows, that he will also reap." 1.30 Your taskmasters glean you. Of those who sin in some way, some stumble knowingly, being overcome by evil, while being pricked and wounded in conscience for what they do; but others, being in ignorance, are carried along like cattle. But there is a third kind, worse than those previously mentioned, who in addition to their own destruction, also subject others through deceit to similar offenses. The word of God, therefore, seeing many among the Jews stumbling in error, distinguishes them from those previously accused, and exhorts them through the preceding words, as Christ and the lover of mankind, and calls them his people, exhortatively making them his own and drawing them to the knowledge of himself. Therefore every person is his, even if he sins; therefore he brings them to himself, granting pardon to those who sin in ignorance, which is why he says: my people. Then he rebukes those who were the cause of their unbelief in him, whom he previously called "mockers." Therefore he says: my people, your taskmasters glean you; for the rulers of the Jewish nation, wishing to collect the profits from God through firstfruits and tithes and the other things offered to them as rulers and teachers, did not permit them to receive the knowledge of Christ. This indeed he shows, saying: your taskmasters glean you, and those who demand payment will lord it over you. And what were they demanding but the aforementioned profits, for the sake of which they did not even rebuke sinners, but speaking to all with flattery, they called them blessed? Therefore he also rebukes these, saying: my people, those who call you blessed lead you astray and confuse the path of your feet; for turning them away from the straight path that leads to the saving word, they perverted the steps of their soul. And of those who are deceived by the blessing, the path of their feet is also thrown into confusion; because affliction calls one to humility, but blessing produces arrogance. Consistently, then, to those who do such things he says next: but now the Lord will stand for judgment, and again: the Lord himself will come to judgment with the elders of the people and with his rulers. Therefore, as elders and rulers who do not cultivate the vineyard through sound teaching and good examples in our own lives, we will be accused of these things. Then, as if standing at the judgment seat of the Lord, he blames and rebukes them to their face, saying: But why have you burned my vineyard, and why is the plunder of the poor in your houses? Why do you wrong my people and shame the face of the poor? if we keep in our houses the things given for the relief of the poor, depriving the needy. It is the custom of those who do wrong and deprive others, whenever they are accused by those they have wronged, to shame them with insults and abuse, despising them and threatening them with blows. This, therefore, he says: you turn the shame that belongs to you from your injustice onto the poor through your tyranny. And now he calls them his people, and his burnt vineyard he calls those who have been deceived by the plundering and perversion of their teachers, whom he calls back and, turning them to himself, turns them away from the perverse teaching of those previously mentioned. And very consistently, having prophesied the first coming of the Savior and the perversion of the rulers of the people, he hands down the things concerning his second arrival, saying: the Lord himself will come to judgment with the elders of the people and with his rulers. 1.31

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παρεπίκραναν τὸν θεὸν καὶ ὅτι ἐβουλεύσαντο βουλὴν πονηρὰν τὴν κατὰ τῆς ἑαυτῶν ψυχῆς, μᾶλλον ἢ κατὰ τοῦ βουλευσαμένου γενομένην ταῦτα πεπόνθασιν. διὸ τὰ γενήματα τῶν ἔργων αὐτῶν φάγονται καὶ οὐαὶ γέγονεν τῷ ἀνόμῳ λαῷ, ἐπειδὴ κατὰ τὰ ἔργα τῶν χειρῶν αὐτοῦ πονηρὰ ὄντα συμβήσεται αὐτῷ· «ὁποῖα γάρ τις ἂν σπείρῃ, τοιαῦτα καὶ θερίσει». 1.30 Οἱ πράκτορες ὑμῶν καλαμῶνται ὑμᾶς. τῶν κατά τι πλημμελούντων οἱ μὲν πταίουσιν ἐν γνώσει νικώμενοι ὑπὸ τῆς κακίας, κεντούμενοι δὲ καὶ τιτρωσκόμενοι τὸ συνειδὸς ἐφ' οἷς πράττουσιν, οἱ δ' ἐν ἀγνοίᾳ τυγχάνοντες τρόπον βοσκημάτων φέρονται. τρίτοι δέ εἰσιν τῶν προλεχθέντων χείρους, οἱ πρὸς τῇ ἑαυτῶν ἀπωλείᾳ καὶ ἑτέρους διὰ ἀπάτης τοῖς ὁμοίοις ὑποβάλλοντες ἀτοπήμασιν. ὁ τοίνυν τοῦ θεοῦ λόγος πολλοὺς ὁρῶν παρὰ Ἰουδαίοις κατὰ πλάνην πταίοντας ἀφορίζει μὲν τῶν ἔμπροσθεν κατηγορηθέντων, παρακελεύεται δ' αὐτοῖς διὰ τῶν προκειμένων, οἷα Χριστὸς καὶ φιλάνθρωπος καὶ λαὸν αὐτοῦ ὀνομάζει προτρεπτικῶς ἰδιοποιούμενος καὶ ἕλκων ἐπὶ τὴν ἑαυτοῦ γνῶσιν. πᾶς τοίνυν ἄνθρωπος αὐτοῦ τυγχάνει κἂν ἁμαρτάνῃ· ἐπάγεται τοίνυν πρὸς ἑαυτὸν συγγνώμην νέμων τοῖς κατὰ ἄγνοιαν πλημμελοῦσιν, διό φησι· λαός μου. εἶτ' ἐλέγχει τοὺς αἰτίους αὐτοῖς γινομένους τῆς εἰς αὐτὸν ἀπιστίας, οὓς διὰ τῶν ἔμπροσθεν «ἐμπαίκτας» ὠνόμασεν. διό φησι· λαός μου, οἱ πράκτορες ὑμῶν καλαμῶνται ὑμᾶς· βουλόμενοι γὰρ τὰ παρὰ τοῦ θεοῦ κέρδη συνάγειν οἱ ἄρχοντες τοῦ Ἰουδαίων ἔθνους δι' ἀπαρχῶν καὶ δεκατῶν καὶ τῶν ἄλλων αὐτοῖς ὡς ἄρχουσι καὶ διδασκάλοις προσφερομένων, οὐκ ἐπέτρεπον τὴν εἰς τὸν Χριστὸν γνῶσιν αὐτοὺς ἀναλαβεῖν. ὃ δὴ παρίστησιν λέγων· οἱ πράκτορες ὑμῶν καλαμῶνται ὑμᾶς, καὶ οἱ ἀπαιτοῦντες κυριεύσουσιν ὑμῶν. τίνα δὲ ἀπαιτοῦντες ἢ τὰ προλεχθέντα κέρδη, ὧν ἕνεκα οὐδὲ τοὺς ἁμαρτάνοντας ἤλεγχον, πάντας δὲ πρὸς κολακείαν ὁμιλοῦντες ἐμακάριζον αὐτούς; διὸ καὶ τούτους ἀπελέγχει φάσκων· λαός μου, οἱ μακαρίζοντες ὑμᾶς πλανῶσιν ὑμᾶς καὶ τὴν τρίβον τῶν ποδῶν ὑμῶν ταράσσουσιν· ἀποτρέποντες γὰρ τῆς εὐθείας ὁδοῦ τῆς ἀγούσης ἐπὶ τὸν σωτήριον λόγον, διέστρεφον αὐτῶν τὰ τῆς ψυχῆς βήματα. τῶν δὲ ἀπατωμένων ἐπὶ τῷ μακαρισμῷ καὶ ἡ τρίβος τῶν ποδῶν συνταράσσεται· διότι ἡ μὲν θλῖψις ἐπὶ ταπείνωσιν προσκαλεῖται, ὁ δὲ μακαρισμὸς φυσίωσιν ἐμποιεῖ. Ἀκολούθως οὖν τοῖς τοιάδε δρῶσιν ἑξῆς ἐπιλέγει· ἀλλὰ νῦν καταστήσεται εἰς κρίσιν κύριος, καὶ πάλιν· αὐτὸς κύριος εἰς κρίσιν ἥξει μετὰ τῶν πρεσβυτέρων τοῦ λαοῦ καὶ μετὰ τῶν ἀρχόντων αὐτοῦ. πρεσβύτεροι οὖν καὶ ἄρχοντες οἱ μὴ διὰ τῆς ὑγιαινούσης διδασκαλίας καὶ τῶν κατὰ τὸν ἴδιον βίον ἀγαθῶν ὑποδειγμάτων τὸν ἀμπελῶνα γεωργοῦντες ταῦτα ἐγκληθησόμεθα. εἶθ' ὡς παραστὰς τῷ τοῦ κυρίου βήματι καταμέμφεται καὶ εἰς πρόσωπον αὐτοὺς ἀπελέγχει λέγων· Ὑμεῖς δὲ τί ἐνεπυρίσατε τὸν ἀμπελῶνά μου καὶ ἡ ἁρπαγὴ τοῦ πτωχοῦ ἐν τοῖς οἴκοις ὑμῶν; τί ὑμεῖς ἀδικεῖτε τὸν λαόν μου καὶ τὸ πρόσωπον τῶν πτωχῶν καταισχύνετε; ἐὰν τὰ εἰς λόγον τῆς ἀναπαύσεως τῶν πενήτων διδόμενα ἐν τοῖς οἴκοις ἔχωμεν ἀποστεροῦντες τοὺς ἐνδεεῖς. ἔθος τοῖς ἀδικοῦσι καὶ ἀποστεροῦσιν, ἐπειδὰν ἐγκαλῶνται παρὰ τῶν ἠδικημένων, ὕβρεσι καὶ λοιδορίαις καταισχύνειν αὐτοὺς ἐξευτελίζοντες καὶ πληγὰς ἀπειλοῦντες. τοῦτο οὖν φησι τὴν ὑμῖν προσήκουσαν ἐκ τῆς ἀδικίας αἰσχύνην ταύτην ἐκ τῆς τυραννίδος ὑμῶν τοῖς πτωχοῖς περιτρέπετε. λαὸν δὲ αὐτοῦ καὶ νῦν ἀποκαλεῖ καὶ ἀμπελῶνα αὐτοῦ ἐμπεπυρισμένον τοὺς κατὰ συναρπαγὴν καὶ διαστροφὴν τῶν διδασκάλων ἠπατημένους, οὓς ἀνακαλούμενος καὶ πρὸς ἑαυτὸν ἐπιστρέφων ἀποτρέπει τῆς τῶν προλεχθέντων διαστρόφου διδασκαλίας. σφόδρα δὲ ἀκολούθως τὴν πρώτην τοῦ σωτῆρος παρουσίαν θεσπίσας καὶ τὴν τῶν ἀρχόντων τοῦ λαοῦ διαστροφήν, τὰ περὶ τῆς δευτέρας ἀφίξεως αὐτοῦ παραδίδωσιν λέγων· αὐτὸς κύριος εἰς κρίσιν ἥξει μετὰ τῶν πρεσβυτέρων τοῦ λαοῦ καὶ μετὰ τῶν ἀρχόντων αὐτοῦ. 1.31