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to be clean from filth? We all, therefore, are in need of mercy, but not all of us are worthy of being shown mercy. For even if it is mercy, it still seeks out the one who is worthy; just as he himself said to Moses: I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion. Therefore, the one who has done something worthy of receiving mercy will say: Have mercy on me; but the one who has cast himself out from obtaining this pardon will say in vain: Have mercy. For if mercy were to come upon all, no one would be punished. But this too involves a certain judgment, and it seeks out the worthy and the suitable person, so that he may enjoy it. 2. Indeed, many have often been guilty of the same sins, and have not paid the same penalty, having other preceding causes for them; and, if you wish, let us now dwell on this topic. All the Jews sinned, and committed idolatry; but not all paid the same penalty; but some fell, while others enjoyed pardon. For in sins, not only the nature of what has happened is examined, but also the intention, and the occasion, and the cause, and what comes after the sin; whether some persisted, while others repented, and whether it was out of circumstance, or by deceit, or by design. And there are many things that are examined, and the difference of time, and the state of one's life. For instance: they sinned in the Old [Testament], and they sin in the New; but both do not pay the 55.73 same penalty, but these a more severe one. And Paul, making this clear, said: Anyone who has set aside the law of Moses dies without compassion on the evidence of two or three witnesses. How much worse punishment, do you think, will he be thought worthy of, who has trampled underfoot the Son of God, and has counted the blood of the covenant as a common thing? But when he says, How much worse punishment, do you think, will he be thought worthy of, he shows that the punishment is intensified. They sinned before the law, and in the law. Again, the former pay a milder penalty. And making this clear, he said: For all who have sinned without the law will also perish without the law. The phrase, "without the law," is not more severe, but milder. And all who have sinned under the law will be judged by the law. Why is that? Because the one group has nature as their accuser; but the other has, along with nature, the law as well; and the more instruction they have enjoyed, the greater the punishment they will undergo. Again, the same thing can be seen to happen based on dignities, and this is clear from the sacrifice. Indeed, for the whole people when they sinned, a sacrifice was offered as great as that for the priest alone; the scripture showing that the greater the dignity, the more severe also is the punishment in those things in which they sin. For this very reason, the woman who simply committed fornication was put to death; but the priest's daughter was burned. It is also possible to see from another perspective pardon and intensification of punishment occurring; for example, when one, having sinned, pays the penalty here, while another enjoys luxury. For the one will undergo a greater punishment there, the other a lesser, unless he has been absolved of everything here. And Christ, making this clear, introduces Abraham saying to the rich man: You received your good things, and he his evil things; and now he is comforted, but you are in anguish. But this one has put away the entire punishment, because of the evils he suffered; but others not entirely, but in part; for which reason they are punished more mildly. One might also see a difference in punishment arising from heightened understanding and from simplicity, when he says: The servant who knew his master’s will, and did not do it, will be beaten with many stripes; but the one who did not know, and did not do it, will be beaten with few stripes. And one might find many other things that make a difference in punishment, and a difference in mercy and loving-kindness. But consider also in the case of the first-formed man. Eve sinned, Adam also sinned, and the sin was one. For both ate from the tree, but both did not pay the same penalty. Cain murdered, and Lamech murdered; and the one was shown mercy, but the other

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καθαρὸς εἶναι ἀπὸ ῥύπου; Πάντες τοίνυν ἐλέους δεόμεθα, ἀλλ' οὐ πάντες ἄξιοί ἐσμεν τοῦ ἐλεεῖσθαι. Καὶ γὰρ εἰ καὶ ἔλεός ἐστιν, ὅμως τὸν ἄξιον ἐπιζητεῖ· καθάπερ αὐτὸς πρὸς Μωϋσῆν ἔφη· Ἐλεήσω ὃν ἂν ἐλεῶ, καὶ οἰκτειρήσω ὃν ἂν οἰκτείρω. Ὁ μὲν οὖν ἄξιόν τι τοῦ ἐλεηθῆναι ποιήσας, ἐρεῖ· Ἐλέησόν με· ὁ δὲ ἐκβαλὼν ἑαυτὸν τοῦ ταύτης τυχεῖν τῆς συγγνώμης, μάτην ἐρεῖ τό· Ἐλέησον. Εἰ γὰρ ἐφ' ἅπαντας ἔμελλεν ὁ ἔλεος ἔρχεσθαι, οὐδεὶς ἂν ἐκολάσθη. Ἀλλὰ καὶ οὗτος ἔχει τινὰ κρίσιν, καὶ τὸν ἄξιον ἐπιζητεῖ καὶ τὸν ἐπιτήδειον, ὥστε αὐτοῦ ἀπολαῦσαι. βʹ. Πολλοὶ γοῦν πολλάκις τοῖς αὐτοῖς ἁμαρτήμασιν ὑπεύθυνοι γεγόνασι, καὶ οὐ τὴν αὐτὴν ἔδοσαν δίκην, ἑτέρας ἔχοντες αἰτίας προϊσταμένας αὐτῶν· καὶ, εἰ βούλεσθε, τούτῳ νῦν ἐνδιατρίψωμεν τῷ λόγῳ. Ἥμαρτον Ἰουδαῖοι πάντες, καὶ εἰδωλολάτρησαν· ἀλλ' οὐ πάντες τὴν αὐτὴν ἔδοσαν δίκην· ἀλλ' οἱ μὲν ἔπεσον, οἱ δὲ συγγνώμης ἀπέλαυσαν. Ἐν γὰρ τοῖς ἁμαρτήμασιν οὐχ ἡ φύσις ζητεῖται μόνον τοῦ γεγενημένου, ἀλλὰ καὶ ἡ γνώμη, καὶ ὁ καιρὸς, καὶ ἡ αἰτία, καὶ τὰ μετὰ τὴν ἁμαρτίαν· εἰ οἱ μὲν ἐνέμειναν, οἱ δὲ μετενόησαν, καὶ εἰ ἐκ περιστάσεως, καὶ εἰ κατὰ ἀπάτην, καὶ κατὰ μελέτην. Καὶ πολλά ἐστι τὰ ζητούμενα, καὶ καιροῦ διαφορὰ, καὶ πολιτείας κατάστασις. Οἷόν τι λέγω· ἥμαρτον οἱ ἐν τῇ Παλαιᾷ, ἁμαρτάνουσι καὶ οἱ ἐν τῇ Καινῇ· οὐ τὴν 55.73 αὐτὴν δὲ διδόασιν ἀμφότεροι δίκην, ἀλλ' οὗτοι χαλεπωτέραν. Καὶ τοῦτο δηλῶν ὁ Παῦλος ἔλεγεν· Ἀθετήσας τις νόμον Μωϋσέως, χωρὶς οἰκτιρμῶν ἐπὶ δυσὶν ἢ τοισὶ μάρτυσιν ἀποθνήσκει. Πόσῳ, δοκεῖτε, χείρονος ἀξιωθήσεται τιμωρίας ὁ τὸν Υἱὸν τοῦ Θεοῦ καταπατήσας, καὶ τὸ αἷμα τῆς διαθήκης κοινὸν ἡγησάμενος; Ὅταν δὲ εἴπῃ, Πόσῳ. δοκεῖτε, χείρονος ἀξιωθήσεται τιμωρίας, ἐπιτεταμένην δείκνυσι τὴν κόλασιν. Ἥμαρτον οἱ πρὸ τοῦ νόμου, καὶ οἱ ἐν τῷ νόμῳ. Πάλιν οἱ πρότεροι ἡμερωτέραν διδόασι δίκην. Καὶ τοῦτο δηλῶν ἔλεγεν· Ὅσοι γὰρ ἀνόμως ἥμαρτον, ἀνόμως καὶ ἀπολοῦνται. Τὸ, Ἀνόμως, οὐχὶ χαλεπώτερον, ἀλλ' ἡμερώτερον. Καὶ ὅσοι ἐν νόμῳ ἥμαρτον, διὰ νόμου κριθήσονται. Τί δή ποτε; Ὅτι οἱ μὲν τὴν φύσιν ἔχουσι κατήγορον· οἱ δὲ μετὰ τῆς φύσεως καὶ τὸν νόμον· καὶ ὅσῳ πλείονος ἀπέλαυσαν τῆς διδασκαλίας, τοσούτῳ μείζονα ὑποστήσονται κόλασιν. Πάλιν καὶ ἀπὸ τῶν ἀξιωμάτων τὸ αὐτὸ ἔστιν ἰδεῖν συμβαῖνον, καὶ δῆλον ἀπὸ τῆς θυσίας. Ὑπὲρ παντὸς γοῦν τοῦ λαοῦ τοσαύτη προσεφέρετο θυσία ἁμαρτόντος, ὅση ὑπὲρ τοῦ ἱερέως μόνου· δηλοῦντος τοῦ λόγου, ὅτι ὅσῳ μεῖζον τὸ ἀξίωμα, τοσούτῳ χαλεπωτέρα καὶ ἡ κόλασις ἐν οἷς ἁμαρτάνουσι. ∆ιὰ δὴ τοῦτο ἡ μὲν ἁπλῶς πορνεύσασα ἀνῃρεῖτο· ἡ δὲ τοῦ ἱερέως θυγάτηρ κατεκαίετο. Ἔστι καὶ ἑτέρωθεν ἰδεῖν συγγνώμην καὶ ἐπίτασιν τιμωρίας γινομένην· οἷον, ὅταν τις ἁμαρτὼν, ἐνταῦθα δῷ δίκην, ἕτερος δὲ τρυφῆς ἀπολαύσῃ. Ὁ μὲν γὰρ μείζονα ἐκεῖ, ὁ δὲ ἐλάττονα ὑποστήσεται τιμωρίαν, ἐὰν μὴ ἐνταῦθα πάντα ἀπολύσηται. Καὶ τοῦτο δηλῶν ὁ Χριστὸς εἰσάγει τὸν Ἀβραὰμ λέγοντα τῷ πλουσίῳ· Ἀπέλαβες τὰ ἀγαθά σου, οὗτος δὲ τὰ κακά· καὶ νῦν οὗτος παρακαλεῖται, σὺ δὲ ὀδυνᾶσαι. Ἀλλ' οὗτος μὲν ὁλόκληρον ἀπέθετο τὴν τιμωρίαν, δι' ἃ ἔπαθε κακῶς· ἕτεροι δὲ οὐχ ὁλόκληρον, ἀλλ' ἐκ μέρους· διὸ καὶ ἡμερώτερον κολάζονται. Ἴδοι δ' ἄν τις καὶ ἀπὸ συνέσεως ἐπιτεταμένης καὶ ἀπὸ ἀφελείας διαφορὰν γινομένην κολάσεως, ὅταν λέγῃ· Ὁ δοῦλος ὁ εἰδὼς τὸ θέλημα τοῦ κυρίου αὐτοῦ, καὶ μὴ ποιήσας, δαρήσεται πολλάς· ὁ δὲ μὴ εἰδὼς, μηδὲ ποιήσας, δαρήσεται ὀλίγας. Καὶ πολλὰ ἕτερα εὕροι τις ἂν τὰ ποιοῦντα διαφορὰν κολάσεως, καὶ διαφορὰν ἐλέους καὶ φιλανθρωπίας. Σκόπει δὲ καὶ ἐπὶ τοῦ πρωτοπλάστου. Ἥμαρτεν ἡ Εὔα, ἥμαρτε καὶ ὁ Ἀδὰμ, καὶ τὸ ἁμάρτημα ἕν. Ἀμφότεροι γὰρ ἔφαγον ἀπὸ τοῦ ξύλου, οὐκ ἀμφότεροι δὲ τὴν αὐτὴν ἔδοσαν δίκην. Ἔσφαξεν ὁ Κάϊν, καὶ ἔσφαξεν ὁ Λάμεχ· καὶ ὁ μὲν ἠλεεῖτο, ὁ δὲ