In job (sermones 14) (olim sub auctore joanne chrysostomo)

 In ausitis, whose name was job. and that man was blameless, just, god-fearing, true, abstaining from every evil thing. such was adam also before he wa

 Rooted and founded, and secured up to the very arches of heaven. the first messenger came, and says to job: the yokes of oxen were plowing, and raider

 Your sons, he says, and your daughters were eating and drinking at the house of their eldest brother. see how the blessed job was filled with all unde

 In this job sinned not at all before the lord, but for all these things he offered a whole thanksgiving instead of a sacrifice to god, saying: blessed

 Having blossomed from the root, a judge of righteousness. that one warred against nature, and considered his brother a stranger this one considered e

 Those snatched away from polytheism, those gathered from wickedness, those assembled from fornication and adultery, he did not add the summit of virtu

 The sequence of theorems. and may it be granted to us to celebrate the feast genuinely, and having shared in the sufferings of the saints, to share al

 Rather in temporary wealth, but in that of piety. but some other wise man, taking the saying in a common sense, thinks that great works are vineyards

 Runners, called *cursores* in latin but when they drag some away in dishonor, do they send out other harsh and cruel soldiers? so also god sends mini

 Heaven because all earthly things have been trodden underfoot by him, because he has all men under his feet. having gone about, he said, the earth, an

 To the one who wronged you, why do you worship the one who consumes your possessions? fire fell from heaven. job heard, and again bore it nobly. for h

 A wife was left, not because the devil spared her, but because he kept the weapon for himself. for since he knew that through a woman he had overcome

 To contend peter was able to act bravely without a promise, the apostles were able to contend for virtue without receiving a promise of good things

 Of the one who knows all things. from where do you come? see the wisdom of god see the cunning of the devil. for god knew from where he had come, tha

 Job with a malignant sore from foot to head. he made his whole body one wound, one 56.578 bruise. for it was necessary for him, the combatant, to be c

 The magnitude, he insults inanimate things, and fulfills the full measure of his suffering, not daring against god, but accusing himself and the day

 He suffered also in the case of job. he destroyed martyrs, in order to extinguish the church, not knowing that after the martyrs the church would flou

 This not out of ambition, but out of guilelessness, when he says: i have not disregarded the judgment of my manservant, or of my maidservant, when the

 You were. did you, then, call to judgment the one more ancient than the ages, the creator of the creation? when i stretched a line upon the earth, whe

 Again on the day of the resurrection they will receive him from the tomb into the kingdom, and with one accord they will enjoy those ineffable and ete

of the one who knows all things. From where do you come? See the wisdom of God; see the cunning of the devil. For God knew from where he had come, that he had come defeated by the righteous man; but God wishes to see if he graciously confesses his defeat. From where have you come? The devil, hiding his defeat, for he was ashamed, uses the same voice as the first time: "Having gone round the earth, and walked through what is under heaven, I am here." For this did you go out? For this did you ask? did you not say, "Hand over to me the possessions of Job"? why do you hide the contest, so that you may conceal the crown of victory? Speak of the contest, you cursed one, speak also of the struggle, so that you may proclaim the victory. But what the devil hid out of envy, the Master of all praises with virtuous philosophy. Have you set your mind against my servant? What you hide, I know. For God often asks, not that He may learn, but that He may test the intention of those being asked, whether they confess graciously. Thus he asked Cain: "Where is Abel your brother?" He wished that the one who did evil would at least stand as his own accuser, so that his accusation might blunt the magnitude of the crime. For everyone who accuses himself softens the judge's indignation. Just as, then, He asked Cain, "Where is Abel your brother?" but he, thinking the question was from ignorance, says, "I do not know; am I my brother's keeper?" and when He tested the intention, then He convicted the unholy deed, saying: "The voice of your brother's blood cries to me from the ground." thus if, having asked, He sees one being ungracious, He convicts him as an evildoer. And now, since by questioning the devil He does not learn from him the defeat which he suffered, He himself exposes his defeat, and praises the victory of the righteous man. Have you set your mind against my servant Job, that there is none like him, guileless, on the earth? Here pay close attention, I beseech you, and do not pass over the words of the divine Scriptures. In the first testimony, the word "guileless" was nowhere said, but in the second. In the first, God: "Have you set your mind against my servant Job, that there is none like him on the earth, a man blameless, just, true, abstaining from every evil thing?" The word "guileless," He did not add there; but after the victory and the contest He adds to him, as a crown, the praise that accords with his struggles. For since, while suffering countless things, he bore the calamity without malice, not blaspheming against the Master, but judging all things with goodness, and having said: "If we have received good things from the hand of the Lord, shall we not endure evil things?" since the saying was of guilelessness, He weaves for him a crown of guilelessness, that "There is not among men one like him, guileless." But why did you say to destroy his possessions for nothing? which is to say, "In vain did you envy his abundance?" You said the man was pious on account of his wealth; he was stripped of his possessions, and he was not stripped of the truth. You, therefore, devil, said to destroy his possessions for nothing. Malice is not at a loss for its own wickedness. It finds again another suspicion able to extinguish the courage of the virtuous man. So he says to God: "Skin for skin, and all that a man has, he will give for his soul." "Nothing great," he says, "if he lost possessions; gladly he despised all things, so that he might save himself." "But if you wish to test him, touch his flesh; surely he will bless you to your face." The word "bless" is instead of "curse." For Scripture has covered the evil speech with a euphemism. 2. And why are these things written? So that you, the believer, may learn, when you recount the shameful evils of others, to cover them with the dignity of your words. Do not pride yourself in doing shameful things, but pride yourself when you escape the speaking of shameful things. For this reason the Apostle says: "Let no corrupt word proceed out of your mouth." Then God hands over the combatant to a second trial, not Himself learning from the trial what kind of combatant he was, but shaming the devil by the trial. For God before all things knows all things. But the devil went out from the presence of the Lord, and struck the

πάντα εἰδότος. Πόθεν σὺ ἔρχῃ; Βλέπε τοῦ Θεοῦ τὴν σοφίαν· βλέπε τοῦ διαβόλου τὴν πανουργίαν. Ὁ μὲν Θεὸς ᾔδει πόθεν ἦλθεν, ὅτι ἡττηθεὶς παρὰ τοῦ δικαίου ἦλθε· βούλεται δὲ ὁ Θεὸς ἰδεῖν, εἰ εὐγνωμόνως ὁμολογεῖ τὴν ἧτταν. Πόθεν σὺ παραγέγονας; Ὁ διάβολος κρύψας τὴν ἧτταν, ᾐσχύνετο γὰρ, τῇ αὐτῇ κέχρηται φωνῇ τῇ πρώτῃ· Περιελθὼν τὴν γῆν, καὶ ἐμπεριπατήσας τὴν ὑπ' οὐρανὸν, πάρειμι. Εἰς τοῦτο γὰρ ἐξῆλθες; τοῦτο ᾔτησας; οὐ σὺ εἶπας, Ἔκδος μοι τὰ ὑπάρχοντα τοῦ Ἰώβ; διὰ τί κρύπτεις τὸν ἀγῶνα, ἵνα ἀφανίσῃς τὸν στέφανον τῆς νίκης; Εἰπὲ τὸν ἀγῶνα, κατηραμένε, εἰπὲ καὶ τὴν πάλην, ἵνα κηρύξῃς τὴν νίκην. Ἀλλ' ὃ ἔκρυψε φθονῶν ὁ διάβολος, ἀνυμνεῖ τῇ ἐναρέτῳ φιλοσοφίᾳ ὁ πάντων ∆εσπότης. Προσέσχες τῇ διανοίᾳ σου κατὰ τοῦ θεράποντός μου; Ὃ κρύπτεις, ἐγὼ γνωρίζω. Ἐρωτᾷ γὰρ ὁ Θεὸς πολλάκις, οὐχ ἵνα μάθῃ, ἀλλ' ἵνα τῶν ἐρωτωμένων γυμνάσῃ τὴν πρόθεσιν, εἰ εὐγνωμόνως ὁμολογοῦσιν. Οὕτως ἠρώτησε τὸν Κάϊν· Ποῦ Ἄβελ ὁ ἀδελφός σου; Ἠβουλήθη αὐτὸν τὸν τὸ κακὸν δράσαντα κἂν κατήγορον ἑαυτοῦ στῆναι, ἵνα ἡ αὐτοῦ κατηγορία ἀμβλύνῃ τὸ μέγεθος τοῦ ἐγκλήματος. Πᾶς γὰρ ἑαυτοῦ κατηγορῶν πραΰνει τοῦ δικαστοῦ τὴν ἀγανάκτησιν. Ὥσπερ οὖν τότε ἠρώτα τὸν Κάϊν· Ποῦ Ἄβελ ὁ ἀδελφός σου; ὁ δὲ νομίσας τὴν ἐρώτησιν ἀπὸ ἀγνοίας εἶναι, λέγει, Οὐκ οἶδα· μὴ φύλαξ τοῦ ἀδελφοῦ μου εἰμί; καὶ ὅτε ἐδοκίμασε τὴν πρόθεσιν, τότε ἤλεγξε τὴν ἀνοσιουργίαν λέγων· Φωνὴ αἵματος τοῦ ἀδελφοῦ σου βοᾷ πρός με ἐκ τῆς γῆς· οὕτως ἐὰν ἐρωτήσας ἴδῃ ἀγνωμονοῦντα, ἐλέγχει κακουργοῦντα. Καὶ νῦν ἐπειδὴ ἐρωτῶν τὸν διάβολον οὐ μανθάνει παρ' αὐτοῦ τὴν ἧτταν, ἣν ὑπέστη, αὐτὸς στηλιτεύει αὐτοῦ τὴν ἧτταν, καὶ ἀνυμνεῖ τοῦ δικαίου τὴν νίκην. Προσέσχες τῇ διανοίᾳ σου κατὰ τοῦ θεράποντός μου Ἰὼβ, ὅτι οὐκ ἔστιν κατ' αὐτὸν ἄκακος ἐπὶ τῆς γῆς; Ἐνταῦθα πρόσεχε ἀκριβῶς, παρακαλῶ, καὶ μὴ παρέρχου τὰ ῥήματα τῶν θείων Γραφῶν. Ἐν τῇ πρώτῃ μαρτυρίᾳ οὐδαμοῦ ἐλέχθη τὸ, Ἄκακος, ἀλλ' ἐν τῇ δευτέρᾳ. Ἐν τῇ πρώτῃ ὁ Θεός· Προσέσχες τῇ διανοίᾳ σου κατὰ τοῦ θεράποντός μου Ἰὼβ, ὅτι οὐκ ἔστι κατ' αὐτὸν ἐπὶ τῆς γῆς, ἄνθρωπος ἄμεμπτος, δίκαιος, ἀληθινὸς, ἀπεχόμενος ἀπὸ παντὸς πονηροῦ πράγματος; Τὸ, Ἄκακος, ἐκεῖ οὐ προσέθηκε· μετὰ δὲ τὴν νίκην καὶ τὸν ἀγῶνα προστίθησιν αὐτῷ ὥσπερ στέφανον τὴν εὐφημίαν συνᾴδουσαν αὐτοῦ τοῖς ἀγωνίσμασιν. Ἐπειδὴ γὰρ μυρία πάσχων, ἀκάκως ἤνεγκε τὴν συμφορὰν, μὴ βλασφημήσας κατὰ τοῦ ∆εσπότου, ἀλλ' ἀγαθότητι κρίνας τὰ πάντα, καὶ εἰρηκώς· Εἰ τὰ ἀγαθὰ ἐδεξάμεθα ἐκ χειρὸς Κυρίου, τὰ κακὰ οὐχ ὑποίσομεν; ἐπειδὴ ἀκακίας ἦν τὸ ῥῆμα, ἀκακίας αὐτοῦ πλέκει τὸν στέφανον, ὅτι Οὐκ ἔστι τῶν κατ' αὐτὸν ἄνθρωπος ἄκακος. Σὺ δὲ διὰ τί εἶπας ἀπολέσαι τὰ ὑπάρχοντα αὐτοῦ διὰ κενῆς; ἀντὶ τοῦ, Μάτην αὐτοῦ τῇ περιουσίᾳ ἐφθόνησας; Εἶπες προφάσει τῶν χρημάτων εὐσεβεῖν τὸν ἄνδρα· ἐγυμνώθη τῶν κτημάτων, καὶ οὐκ ἐγυμνώθη τῆς ἀληθείας. Σὺ οὖν, διάβολε, εἶπες ἀπολέσαι τὰ ὑπάρχοντα αὐτοῦ διὰ κενῆς. Οὐκ ἀπορεῖ ἡ κακία τῆς ἑαυτῆς πονηρίας. Εὑρίσκει πάλιν ὑπόνοιαν ἄλλην δυναμένην σβέσαι τοῦ ἐναρέτου τὴν ἀνδρείαν. Λέγει οὖν τῷ Θεῷ· ∆έρμα ὑπὲρ δέρματος, καὶ πάντα, ὅσα ἔχει ἄνθρωπος, δώσει ὑπὲρ τῆς ψυχῆς αὐτοῦ. Οὐδὲν, φησὶ, μέγα, εἰ ἀπώλεσε κτήματα· ἡδέως πάντων κατεφρόνησεν, ἵνα ἑαυτὸν σώσῃ. Ἀλλ' εἰ βούλει δοκιμάσαι αὐτὸν, Τῶν σαρκῶν αὐτοῦ ἅψαι· ἧ μὴν εἰς πρόσωπόν σε εὐλογήσει. Τὸ, Εὐλογήσει, ἀντὶ τοῦ, Καταράσεται. Ἡ γὰρ Γραφὴ τῇ εὐφημίᾳ τὴν δυσφημίαν ἐκάλυψε. βʹ. Καὶ διὰ τί ταῦτα γέγραπται; Ἵνα σὺ ὁ πιστὸς μάθῃς, ὅτε τῶν ἀλλοτρίων κακῶν διηγῇ τὰ αἰσχρὰ, καλύπτειν αὐτὰ τῇ σεμνότητι τῶν λέξεων. Μὴ σεμνύνου αἰσχρὰ πράττων, ἀλλὰ σεμνύνου ὅταν τῶν αἰσχρῶν διαφύγῃς τὴν ὁμιλίαν. ∆ιὰ τοῦτό φησιν ὁ Ἀπόστολος· Πᾶν ῥῆμα αἰσχρὸν μὴ ἐκπορευέσθω ἐκ τοῦ στόματος ὑμῶν. Εἶτα ὁ Θεὸς παραδίδωσιν εἰς δευτέραν πεῖραν τὸν ἀγωνιστὴν, οὐκ αὐτὸς ἐκ τῆς πείρας μανθάνων οἷος ἦν ὁ ἀγωνιστὴς, ἀλλὰ τὸν διάβολον καταισχύνων ἐκ τῆς πείρας. Θεὸς γὰρ πρὸ τῶν ἁπάντων οἶδε τὰ πάντα. Ἐξῆλθε δὲ ὁ διάβολος ἀπὸ προσώπου Κυρίου, καὶ ἔπαισε τὸν