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worthy? "If they receive you," He says. "But if they do not receive you, nor hear your word, truly I say to you, it will be more tolerable for the land of Sodom and Gomorrah in the day of judgment than for that city." What then is the benefit, that you receive us, and do not listen to the things spoken by us? what is the gain, that you pay us court, and do not attend to the things said to you? That is honor to us, that is wonderful service, which benefits both you and us, if you listen to us. Hear also Paul saying, "I did not know, brethren, that he was the high priest." Hear also Christ saying, "All therefore whatsoever they bid you observe, that observe and do." You do not despise me, but the priesthood; if you see one stripped of this, then despise him; then not even I can bear to command. But as long as we sit upon this throne, as long as we have the presidency, we have both the dignity and the power, even if we are unworthy. If the throne of Moses was so venerable, that for its sake they were heard, much more the throne of Christ. We have succeeded to that throne; from this we speak, since Christ also has placed in us the ministry of reconciliation. Ambassadors, whoever they may be, because of the dignity of the embassy enjoy much honor. For see: they come alone into the midst of a land of barbarians, between so many enemies; and because the law of the embassy has great power, all honor them, all look to them, all send them forth with safety. We too, then, have undertaken the office of an embassy, and we have come from God; for this is the dignity of the episcopate. We have come to you as ambassadors, asking you to end the war, and we say on what terms; not promising to give cities, nor so and so many measures of grain, nor slaves, nor gold, but the kingdom of heaven, eternal life, fellowship with Christ, the other good things, which it is not possible for us to speak, nor for you to hear, as long as we are in this flesh and in the present life. We are ambassadors then; and we wish to enjoy honor; not for our own sakes, far from it; for we know its worthlessness; but for your sakes, that you may hear the things from us with earnestness, that you may be benefited, that you may not attend to what is said with sloth or inattention. Do you not see how all treat ambassadors? We are ambassadors of God to men. But if this is harsh to you, it is not we, but this episcopate; not so-and-so, but the bishop. Let no one listen to me, but to the dignity. Let us therefore do all things according to what seems good to God, that we may live to the glory of God, and be counted worthy of the good things promised to those who love Him, by grace and loving-kindness, and what follows.

HOMILY IV. And you, who were once alienated and enemies in your mind by wicked works, yet now has he reconciled in the body of his flesh through death, to present you holy and unblameable and unreproveable

in his sight. 1. Here, then, he shows that He reconciled them even when they were unworthy of reconciliation. For to say that they were under the power of darkness, shows the calamity in which they were. But lest, on hearing "power of darkness," you should think it a necessity, he adds: "And you, being alienated;" so that it seems to say the same thing, but it is not; for it is not the same thing to deliver from evils one who has suffered evil by necessity, and one who has willingly submitted to it. For the former is worthy to be pitied, but the latter to be hated. "But nevertheless you," he says, not

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ἀξία γίνεται; Ἐὰν δέξωνται ὑμᾶς, φησίν. Ἐὰν δὲ μὴ δέξωνται ὑμᾶς, μηδὲ ἀκούσωσι τὸν λόγον ὑμῶν, ἀμὴν λέγω ὑμῖν, ἀνεκτότερον ἔσται γῇ Σοδόμων καὶ Γομόῤῥας ἐν ἡμέρᾳ κρίσεως, ἢ τῇ πόλει ἐκείνῃ. Τί οὖν ὄφελος, ὅτι δέχεσθε ἡμᾶς, καὶ οὐκ ἀκούετε τῶν παρ' ἡμῶν λεγομένων; τί τὸ κέρδος, ὅτι θεραπεύετε, καὶ οὐ προσέχετε τοῖς λεγομένοις ὑμῖν; Ἐκείνη ἐστὶ τιμὴ ἡμῖν, ἐκείνη θεραπεία θαυμαστὴ, ἡ καὶ ὑμᾶς ὠφελοῦσα καὶ ἡμᾶς, ἐὰν ἡμῶν ἀκούητε. Ἀκούετε καὶ τοῦ Παύλου λέγοντος, Οὐκ ᾔδειν, ἀδελφοὶ, ὅτι ἀρχιερεύς ἐστιν. Ἄκουε καὶ τοῦ Χριστοῦ λέγοντος, Πάντα ὅσα ἂν λέγωσιν ὑμῖν τηρεῖν, τηρεῖτε καὶ ποιεῖτε. Οὐκ ἐμοῦ καταφρονεῖς, ἀλλὰ τῆς ἱερωσύνης· ἂν ἴδῃς ταύτης γυμνὸν, τότε καταφρόνει, τότε οὐδὲ ἐγὼ ἀνέχομαι ἐπιτάττειν. Ἕως δ' ἂν ἐπὶ τοῦ θρόνου τούτου καθήμεθα, ἕως ἂν τὴν προεδρίαν ἔχωμεν, ἔχομεν καὶ τὴν ἀξίαν καὶ τὴν ἰσχὺν, εἰ καὶ ἀνάξιοί ἐσμεν. Εἰ ὁ Μωϋσέως θρόνος οὕτως ἦν αἰδέσιμος, ὡς δι' ἐκεῖνον ἀκούεσθαι, πολλῷ μᾶλλον ὁ τοῦ Χριστοῦ θρόνος. Ἐκεῖνον ἡμεῖς διεδεξάμεθα· ἀπὸ τούτου φθεγγόμεθα, ἀφ' οὗ καὶ ὁ Χριστὸς ἔθετο ἐν ἡμῖν τὴν διακονίαν τῆς καταλλαγῆς. Οἱ πρέσβεις, οἷοίπερ ἂν ὦσι, διὰ τὸ τῆς πρεσβείας ἀξίωμα πολλῆς ἀπολαύουσι τῆς τιμῆς. Ὅρα γάρ· εἰς μέσην βαρβάρων ἔρχονται τὴν γῆν μόνοι, μεταξὺ τοσούτων πολεμίων· καὶ ἐπειδὴ μεγάλα ὁ τῆς πρεσβείας ἰσχύει νόμος, πάντες αὐτοὺς τιμῶσι, πάντες εἰς αὐτοὺς ἀποβλέπουσι, πάντες μετὰ ἀσφαλείας ἐκπέμπουσι. Καὶ ἡμεῖς τοίνυν πρεσβείας ἀνεδεξάμεθα λόγον, καὶ ἥκομεν παρὰ τοῦ Θεοῦ· τοῦτο γάρ ἐστι τὸ τῆς ἐπισκοπῆς ἀξίωμα. Ἥκομεν πρὸς ὑμᾶς πρεσβεύοντες, ἀξιοῦντες καταλῦσαι τὸν πόλεμον, καὶ λέγομεν ἐπὶ τίσιν· οὐ πόλεις ἐπαγγελλόμενοι δώσειν, οὐδὲ σίτου μέτρα τόσα καὶ τόσα, οὐδὲ ἀνδράποδα, οὐδὲ χρυσίον, ἀλλὰ βασιλείαν οὐρανῶν, ζωὴν αἰώνιον, συνουσίαν τὴν μετὰ Χριστοῦ, τὰ ἄλλα ἀγαθὰ, ἃ μήτε εἰπεῖν δυνατὸν ἡμῖν, μήτε ὑμῖν ἀκοῦσαι, ἕως ἂν ἐν τῇ σαρκὶ ταύτῃ ὦμεν καὶ τῷ παρόντι βίῳ. Πρεσβεύομεν τοίνυν· ἀπολαύειν δὲ βουλόμεθα τιμῆς· οὐ δι' ἡμᾶς, μὴ γένοιτο· ἴσμεν γὰρ αὐτῆς τὸ εὐτελές· ἀλλὰ δι' ὑμᾶς, ἵνα ὑμεῖς μετὰ σπουδῆς τὰ παρ' ἡμῶν ἀκούητε, ἵνα ὑμεῖς ὠφελῆσθε, ἵνα μὴ μετὰ ῥᾳθυμίας ἢ ἀπροσεξίας προσέχητε τοῖς λεγομένοις. Οὐχ ὁρᾶτε τοὺς πρέσβεις πῶς πάντες αὐτοὺς περιέπουσιν; Ἡμεῖς Θεοῦ πρέσβεις ἐσμὲν πρὸς ἀνθρώπους. Εἰ δὲ πρόσαντες ὑμῖν τοῦτο, οὐχ ἡμεῖς, ἀλλ' αὕτη ἡ ἐπισκοπή· οὐχὶ ὁ δεῖνα, ἀλλ' ὁ ἐπίσκοπος. Μηδεὶς ἐμοῦ ἀκουέτω, ἀλλὰ τοῦ ἀξιώματος. Πάντα τοίνυν ποιῶμεν κατὰ τὸ τῷ Θεῷ δοκοῦν, ἵνα εἰς δόξαν Θεοῦ ζήσωμεν, καὶ καταξιωθῶμεν τῶν ἐπηγγελμένων ἀγαθῶν τοῖς ἀγαπῶσιν αὐτὸν, χάριτι καὶ φιλανθρωπίᾳ, καὶ τὰ ἑξῆς.

ΟΜΙΛΙΑ ∆ʹ. Καὶ ὑμᾶς ποτε ἐχθροὺς ὄντας καὶ ἀπηλλοτριωμένους τῇ διανοίᾳ ἐν τοῖς ἔργοις τοῖς πονηροῖς, νυνὶ δὲ ἀποκατήλλαξε τῷ σώματι τῆς σαρκὸς αὑτοῦ διὰ τοῦ θανάτου, παραστῆσαι ὑμᾶς ἁγίους καὶ ἀμώμους καὶ ἀνεγκλήτους

καὶ ἐνώπιον αὐτοῦ. αʹ. Ἐνταῦθα λοιπὸν δείκνυσιν, ὅτι καὶ ἀναξίους ὄντας καταλλαγῆς κατήλλαξε. Τὸ μὲν γὰρ εἰπεῖν, ὅτι ὑπὸ τὴν ἐξουσίαν τοῦ σκότους ἦσαν, δείκνυσι τὴν συμφορὰν, ἐν ᾗ ἦσαν. Ἀλλ' ἵνα μὴ ἀκούσας ἐξουσίαν σκότους, ἀνάγκην νομίσῃς εἶναι, ἐπάγει· Καὶ ὑμᾶς ὄντας ἀπηλλοτριωμένους· ὥστε δοκεῖ μὲν τὸ αὐτὸ λέγειν, οὐκ ἔστι δέ· οὐ γάρ ἐστιν ἴσον ἀνάγκῃ κακῶς παθόντα, καὶ ἑκόντα τοῦτο ὑπομείναντα ἀπαλλάξαι τῶν δεινῶν. Ἐκεῖνος μὲν γὰρ ἐλεεῖσθαι ἄξιος, οὗτος δὲ μισεῖσθαι. Ἀλλ' ὅμως ὑμᾶς, φησὶν, οὐχὶ