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of the bitterest slavery, or rather, not even to come under the yoke in the first place, since once having entered, it is then necessary to be a slave as long as it seems good to the wife. And that I am not speaking simply by conjecture concerning Paul’s opinion is easy to learn from the disciples. For not even they previously thought marriage was burdensome and oppressive, but when they heard the Lord confining them to this necessity to which Paul then confined the Corinthians. For “Whoever divorces his wife except for the cause of fornication makes her commit adultery,” and “The husband does not have authority over his own body,” are spoken with different words, but with the same meaning. But if one were to examine Paul’s saying more accurately, it rather intensifies the tyranny and makes the slavery more burdensome. For the Lord does not permit a man to cast his wife out of the house. But Paul also takes away the authority over his own body, handing over all his rule to the wife and subjugating him more than a slave bought with silver. For it is often possible for this one to obtain even complete freedom, if he should ever be able, having procured money, to pay down the price to the master. But the husband, even if he has the most difficult wife of all, is compelled to endure the slavery and is able to find no release nor escape from this despotism.

29 That “do not deprive one another” is an inducement to virginity. Having said, then: “The wife does not have authority over her own body,” he adds: “Do not deprive one another, except perhaps by agreement for a set time, that you may devote yourselves to prayer and fasting, and come together again.” At this point I think many of those who have undertaken virginity both blush and are ashamed at Paul’s great condescension. But do not be afraid, nor feel anything foolish. For these things also seem to be a concession to the married, but if one were to examine them accurately, one will find they are of the same opinion as the previous ones. For if someone wanted to go through them simply, cutting them off from the underlying reason, the words would seem to be those of a matchmaker rather than of an apostle. But if he were to unfold the whole purpose, he will find this exhortation to be fitting for the apostolic dignity. For why does he elaborate further on this point? For was it not enough to have shown this more soberly through the statements above and to have stopped the exhortation there? For what more does “Do not deprive one another, except perhaps by agreement for a set time” have than “Let the husband render to his wife the affection due” and “The husband does not have authority over his own body”? Nothing more, indeed. But what was said there briefly and dimly, he has here worked out more clearly through more words. And he does this in imitation of the holy Samuel of God. For just as he with all accuracy explains the laws concerning the kingdom to the common people, not so that they might accept but so that they might not accept, and while the matter seems to be one of instruction, in truth it was a kind of dissuasion from their ill-timed desire, so also Paul more continuously and clearly turns over the tyranny of marriage, wishing by these very words to draw them out from it. For having said, “The wife does not have authority over her own body,” he adds, “Do not deprive one another except perhaps by agreement, that you may devote yourselves to fasting and prayer.” Do you see how unsuspectingly and unobtrusively he led those who remained in marriage into the practice of continence? For at the beginning he simply praised the matter, saying, “It is good for a man not to touch a woman.” But here he also added an exhortation, saying, “Do not deprive one another except perhaps by agreement.” But why did he introduce what he wished to set down in an exhortation and not in the form of a command? For he did not say, “Deprive one another, but by agreement, that you may devote yourselves to prayer,” but what? “Do not deprive one another except perhaps by agreement.” Because this way of speaking was gentler, showing the teacher’s opinion on this not with harshness

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πικροτάτης δουλείας, μᾶλλον δὲ μηδὲ τὴν ἀρχὴν τὸν ζυγὸν ὑπελθεῖν, ἐπειδὴ εἰσελθόντα ἅπαξ δουλεύειν ἀνάγκη λοιπὸν ἕως ἂν τῇ γυναικὶ τοῦτο δοκῇ. Καὶ ὅτι οὐχ ἁπλῶς καταστοχαζόμενος λέγω τῆς τοῦ Παύλου γνώμης ἀπὸ τῶν μαθητῶν ῥᾴδιον τοῦτο καταμαθεῖν. Οὐδὲ γὰρ ἐκεῖνοι πρότερον φορτικὸν εἶναι καὶ ἐπαχθὲς τὸν γάμον ἐνόμισαν, ἀλλ' ὅτε ἤκουσαν τοῦ κυρίου εἰς ταύτην αὐτοὺς κατακλείοντος τὴν ἀνάγκην εἰς ἣν καὶ τοὺς Κορινθίους ὁ Παῦλος τότε. Τὸ γὰρ «Ὃς ἂν ἀπολύσῃ τὴν γυναῖκα αὐτοῦ παρεκτὸς λόγου πορνείας ποιεῖ αὐτὴν μοιχᾶσθαι», καὶ τὸ «Ὁ ἀνὴρ τοῦ ἰδίου σώματος οὐκ ἐξουσιάζει», ῥήμασι μὲν ἑτέροις, γνώμῃ δὲ εἴρηται τῇ αὐτῇ. Εἰ δέ τις ἀκριβέστερον καταμάθοι τὸ τοῦ Παύλου, μᾶλλον ἐπιτείνει τὴν τυραννίδα καὶ φορτικωτέραν ἐργάζεται τὴν δουλείαν. Ὁ μὲν γὰρ κύριος οὐκ ἀφίησι τὸν ἄνδρα ἐκ τῆς οἰκείας ἐκβαλεῖν τὴν γυναῖκα. Ὁ δὲ Παῦλος καὶ τὴν τοῦ οἰκείου σώματος ἐξουσίαν παραιρεῖται, πᾶσαν αὐτοῦ τὴν ἀρχὴν τῇ γυναικὶ παραδιδοὺς καὶ ἀργυρωνήτου μᾶλλον ὑποτάξας οἰκέτου. Τούτῳ μὲν γὰρ ἔξεστι πολλάκις καὶ παντελοῦς ἐλευθερίας τυχεῖν, εἰ δυνηθείη ποτὲ εὐπορήσας ἀργυρίου καταθεῖναι τὴν τιμὴν τῷ δεσπότῃ. Ὁ δὲ ἀνὴρ κἂν τὴν ἁπάντων ἀργαλεωτέραν ἔχῃ γυναῖκα, στέργειν ἀναγκάζεται τὴν δουλείαν καὶ λύσιν οὐδεμίαν οὐδὲ διέξοδον ταύτης δύναται τῆς δεσποτείας εὑρεῖν.

29 Ὅτι τὸ μὴ ἀποστερεῖτε ἀλλήλους εἰς παρθενίαν ἐστὶν ἐνάγοντος. Εἰπὼν τοίνυν· «Ἡ γυνὴ τοῦ ἰδίου σώματος οὐκ ἐξουσιάζει», ἐπάγει· «Μὴ ἀποστερεῖτε ἀλλήλους εἰ μή τι ἂν ἐκ συμφώνου πρὸς καιρὸν ἵνα σχολάσητε τῇ προσευχῇ καὶ τῇ νηστείᾳ, καὶ πάλιν ἐπὶ τὸ αὐτὸ συνέρχεσθε.» Πολλοὺς ἐνταῦθα τῶν τὴν παρθενίαν ἐπανῃρημένων οἶμαι καὶ ἐρυθριᾶν καὶ αἰσχύνεσθαι ἐπὶ τῇ πολλῇ συγκαταβάσει τοῦ Παύλου. Ἀλλὰ μὴ δείσητε μηδὲ ἀβέλτερόν τι πάθητε. ∆οκεῖ μὲν γὰρ καὶ ταῦτα εἶναι χαριζομένου τοῖς γεγαμηκόσιν, εἰ δέ τις αὐτὰ ἀκριβῶς διασκέψαιτο τῆς αὐτῆς ὄντα τοῖς προτέροις εὑρήσει γνώμης. Εἰ μὲν γάρ τις αὐτὰ ἁπλῶς ἐπιέναι βούλοιτο τῆς προκειμένης ἀποκόπτων αἰτίας, δόξει νυμφευτρίας εἶναι μᾶλλον ἢ ἀποστόλου τὰ ῥήματα. Εἰ δὲ τὸν σκόπον ἅπαντα ἀναπτύξειε καὶ ταύτην καιρίαν εὑρήσει τῆς ἀποστολικῆς ἀξίας τὴν παραίνεσιν. ∆ιὰ τί γὰρ μακρότερον ἐπέξεισι τούτῳ τῷ λόγῳ; Οὐ γὰρ ἤρκει διὰ τῶν ἀνωτέρω τοῦτο σεμνότερον ἐνδειξάμενον μέχρις ἐκείνου στῆσαι τὴν παραίνεσιν; Τί γὰρ ἔχει πλεῖον τοῦ «Τῇ γυναικὶ ὁ ἀνὴρ τὴν ὀφειλομένην εὔνοιαν ἀποδιδότω» καὶ «Ὁ ἀνὴρ τοῦ ἰδίου σώματος οὐκ ἐξουσιάζει», τὸ «Μὴ ἀποστερεῖτε ἀλλήλους, εἰ μή τι ἂν ἐκ συμφώνου πρὸς καιρόν»; πλέον μὲν οὐδέν. Τὸ δὲ ἐν βραχεῖ καὶ ἀμυδρῶς εἰρημένον ἐκεῖ διὰ πλειόνων ἐνταῦθα σαφέστερον ἐξειργάσατο. Ποιεῖ δὲ τοῦτο μιμούμενος τὸν ἅγιον τοῦ Θεοῦ Σαμουήλ. Καθάπερ γὰρ ἐκεῖνος μετὰ πάσης ἀκριβείας τοὺς περὶ τῆς βασιλείας ἐξηγεῖται νόμους τοῖς ἰδιώταις, οὐχ ἵνα δέξωνται ἀλλ' ἵνα μὴ δέξωνται, καὶ δοκεῖ μὲν διδασκαλίας τὸ πρᾶγμα εἶναι, τὸ δὲ ἀληθὲς ἀποτροπή τις ἦν τῆς ἐπιθυμίας αὐτῶν τῆς ἀκαίρου, οὕτω καὶ ὁ Παῦλος τοῦ γάμου τὴν τυραννίδα συνεχέστερον στρέφει καὶ σαφέστερον, τούτους αὐτοὺς τοῖς ῥήμασιν ἐκεῖθεν ἐξελκύσαι βουλόμενος. Εἰπὼν γάρ· «Ἡ γυνὴ τοῦ ἰδίου σώματος οὐκ ἐξουσιάζει», ἐπάγει· «Μὴ ἀποστερεῖτε ἀλλήλους εἰ μή τι ἂν ἐκ συμφώνου, ἵνα σχολάσητε τῇ νηστείᾳ καὶ τῇ προσευχῇ.» Ὁρᾷς πῶς ἀνυπόπτως καὶ ἀνεπαχθῶς τοὺς ἐν τῷ γάμῳ μένοντας εἰς τὴν τῆς ἐγκρατείας γυμνασίαν ἐνήγαγε; Παρὰ μὲν γὰρ τὴν ἀρχὴν ἁπλῶς τὸ πρᾶγμα ἐπῄνεσεν εἰπών· «Καλὸν ἀνθρώπῳ γυναικὸς μὴ ἅπτεσθαι.» Ἐνταῦθα δὲ καὶ παραίνεσιν προσέθηκεν εἰπών· «Μὴ ἀποστερεῖτε ἀλλήλους εἰ μή τι ἂν ἐκ συμφώνου.» ∆ιὰ τί δὲ καὶ ἐν παραινέσει ὅπερ θεῖναι ἠβούλετο εἰσήγαγεν ἀλλ' οὐκ ἐν ἐπιτάγματος σχήματι; Οὐ γὰρ εἶπεν· ἀποστερεῖτε μὲν ἀλλήλους, συμφώνως δέ, ἵνα σχολάσητε τῇ προσευχῇ, ἀλλὰ τί; «Μὴ ἀποστερεῖτε ἀλλήλους εἰ μή τι ἂν ἐκ συμφώνου.» Ὅτι οὗτος προσηνέστερος ὁ λόγος ἐγένετο, τοῦ διδασκάλου τὴν γνώμην δεικνὺς οὐ μετὰ σφοδρότητος τοῦτο