John Chrysostom, On the Beginning of Acts

Truly, if he is a mere man, why do you fear his blood? How many prophets have you killed, how many righteous men have you slaughtered, O Jew, and you did not fear the blood of any of them? For what reason do you fear here? The crucified one truly shook their conscience, and unable to hide the anguish they had, even unwillingly before their enemies they confess their own weakness. And when they were crucifying him they cried out, saying: His blood be upon us and upon our children; so they despised his blood. But after the cross, seeing his power shining forth, they are afraid and are in anguish, and they say: Do you want to bring this man’s blood upon us? And yet if he was a deceiver and an enemy of God, as you say, lawless Jews, for what reason do you fear his blood? For you should even glory in the murder, if he was such a man. But since he was not such a man, for this reason they tremble.

9. Do you see from every side that even the enemies are in anguish and afraid? Did you see their anguish? Learn also the love for mankind of the crucified one. For they said: His blood be on us, and on our children; but Christ did not do so; but supplicating the Father he says: Father, forgive them; for they do not know what they are doing. For if his blood had come upon them and upon their children, apostles would not have come from their children; three thousand would not have believed at once, nor would five thousand. Do you see how they, being cruel and harsh toward their own offspring, even ignored nature itself, but God became more loving to mankind than all fathers, and more tenderly affectionate than mothers? 51.111 For his blood did come upon them and upon their children; but upon the children, not all of them, but only on those who imitated their fathers' impiety and lawlessness, and as many as were sons to them not according to the succession of nature, but according to the madness of their choice, these alone have become responsible for the evils. Consider also for me from another perspective the goodness and love for mankind of God. For he did not immediately bring punishment and retribution upon them, but let forty and more years pass after the cross. For the Savior himself was crucified under Tiberius; but their city was captured under Vespasian and Titus. For what reason, then, did he let this time pass afterwards? Wishing to give them an opportunity for repentance, so that they might put off their sins, so that they might ward off the accusations. But since, having received a period for repentance, they remained incurably disposed, he then brought upon them the punishment and the retribution, and having destroyed the city he led them out, scattering them throughout the whole world, and doing this out of love for mankind. For he scattered them, so that everywhere in the world they might see worshipped the Christ crucified by them, so that seeing him worshipped by all and learning his power, they might recognize the excess of their own impiety, and having recognized it, they might return to the truth. And so the captivity became a teaching for them, and the punishment an admonition; for if they had remained in the land of Judea, they would not have known the truth of the prophets. For what did the prophets say? Ask of me, and I will give you the nations for your inheritance, and the ends of the earth for your possession. It was necessary, therefore, for them to go out to the ends of the earth, so that they might see with their own eyes that Christ possesses even the ends of the earth. Again, then, another prophet says: And they will worship him, each from his own place. It was necessary, therefore, for them to be scattered to every place 51.112 of the earth, so that they might see with their own eyes each one worshipping him from his own place. Again another said: The earth shall be filled with the knowledge of the Lord, as much water covers the seas. It was necessary, therefore, for them to go away into all the earth, so that they might see it filled with the knowledge of the Lord, and the seas, that is, these spiritual Churches, filled with piety. For these reasons God scattered them throughout all the earth; for if in

μὴν, εἰ ἄνθρωπός ἐστι ψιλὸς, τί δέδοικας αὐτοῦ τὸ αἷμα; πόσους ἀνεῖλες προφήτας, πόσους ἔσφαξας δικαίους, ὦ Ἰουδαῖε, καὶ οὐδενὸς αὐτῶν τὸ αἷμα ἐφοβήθης; τίνος ἕνεκεν ἐνταῦθα φοβῇ; Κατέσεισεν αὐτῶν ὄντως τὸ συνειδὸς ὁ σταυρωθεὶς, καὶ τὴν ἀγωνίαν ἣν εἶχον κρύψαι μὴ δυνάμενοι, καὶ ἄκοντες ἐπὶ τῶν ἐχθρῶν ὁμολογοῦσι τὴν οἰκείαν ἀσθένειαν. Καὶ ὅτε μὲν ἐσταύρουν αὐτὸν ἐβόων λέγοντες· Τὸ αἷμα αὐτοῦ ἐφ' ἡμᾶς καὶ ἐπὶ τὰ τέκνα ἡμῶν· οὕτω κατεφρόνουν τοῦ αἵματος αὐτοῦ. Μετὰ δὲ τὸν σταυρὸν ἰδόντες αὐτοῦ τὴν δύναμιν διαλάμπουσαν, φοβοῦνται καὶ ἀγωνιῶσι, καὶ λέγουσι· Βούλεσθε ἐπαγαγεῖν ἐφ' ἡμᾶς τὸ αἷμα τοῦ ἀνθρώπου τούτου; Καίτοι γε εἰ πλάνος ἦν καὶ ἀντίθεος, καθώς φατε, Ἰουδαῖοι παράνομοι, τίνος ἕνεκεν αὐτοῦ δεδοίκατε τὸ αἷμα; Καὶ γὰρ καὶ ἐγκαλλωπίζεσθαι ἔδει τῷ φόνῳ, εἰ τοιοῦτος ἦν. Ἀλλ' ἐπειδὴ τοιοῦτος οὐκ ἦν, διὰ τοῦτο τρέμουσιν.

θʹ. Ὁρᾷς πανταχόθεν καὶ τοὺς ἐχθροὺς ἀγωνιῶντας καὶ δεδοικότας; εἶδες αὐτῶν τὴν ἀγωνίαν; Μάθε καὶ τοῦ σταυρωθέντος τὴν φιλανθρωπίαν. Ἐκεῖνοι μὲν γὰρ ἔλεγον· Τὸ αἷμα αὐτοῦ ἐφ' ἡμᾶς, καὶ ἐπὶ τὰ τέκνα ἡμῶν· ὁ δὲ Χριστὸς οὐκ ἐποίησεν οὕτως· ἀλλὰ πρὸς τὸν Πατέρα καθικετεύων λέγει· Πάτερ, ἄφες αὐτοῖς· οὐ γὰρ οἴδασι τί ποιοῦσιν. Εἰ γὰρ ἐγένετο τὸ αἷμα αὐτοῦ ἐπ' αὐτοὺς καὶ ἐπὶ τὰ τέκνα αὐτῶν, οὐκ ἂν ἀπὸ τῶν τέκνων αὐτῶν ἐγένοντο ἀπόστολοι· οὐκ ἂν ὁμοῦ τρισχίλιοι ἐπίστευσαν, οὐκ ἂν πεντακισχίλιοι. Ὁρᾷς πῶς ἐκεῖνοι μὲν ὠμοὶ καὶ ἀπηνεῖς περὶ τὰ ἔκγονα αὐτῶν ὄντες καὶ τὴν φύσιν αὐτὴν ἠγνόησαν, ὁ δὲ Θεὸς πατέρων ἁπάντων φιλανθρωπότερος, καὶ μητέρων φιλοστοργότερος γέγονεν; 51.111 Ἐγένετο μὲν γὰρ τὸ αἷμα αὐτοῦ ἐπ' αὐτοὺς καὶ ἐπὶ τὰ τέκνα αὐτῶν· ἐπὶ τὰ τέκνα δὲ οὐχὶ πάντα, ἀλλ' ἐπ' ἐκεῖνα μόνον τὰ μιμησάμενα τὴν πατρικὴν ἀσέβειαν καὶ παρανομίαν, καὶ ὅσοι ἦσαν αὐτοῖς υἱοὶ οὐ κατὰ τὴν τῆς φύσεως διαδοχὴν, ἀλλὰ κατὰ τὴν τῆς προαιρέσεως μανίαν, οὗτοι μόνοι γεγόνασιν ὑπεύθυνοι τῶν κακῶν. Σκόπει δέ μοι καὶ ἑτέρωθεν τὴν ἀγαθότητα καὶ φιλανθρωπίαν τοῦ Θεοῦ. Οὐ γὰρ εὐθέως ἐπήγαγεν ἐπ' αὐτοὺς τὴν κόλασιν καὶ τὴν τιμωρίαν, ἀλλὰ τεσσαράκοντα καὶ πλείονα ἔτη διέλιπε μετὰ τὸν σταυρόν. Αὐτὸς μὲν γὰρ ὁ Σωτὴρ ἐπὶ Τιβερίου ἐσταυρώθη· ἡ δὲ πόλις αὐτῶν ἐπὶ Οὐεσπασιανοῦ καὶ Τίτου ἑάλω. Τίνος οὖν ἕνεκεν τὸν μετὰ ταῦτα τοῦτον χρόνον διέλιπεν; Βουλόμενος αὐτοῖς δοῦναι καιρὸν μετανοίας, ὥστε ἀποδύσασθαι τὰ πεπλημμελημένα, ὥστε ἀποκρούσασθαι τὰ ἐγκλήματα. Ἐπειδὴ δὲ καὶ προθεσμίαν μετανοίας λαβόντες ἔμενον ἀνιάτως ἔχοντες, ἐπήγαγε λοιπὸν αὐτοῖς τὴν κόλασιν καὶ τὴν τιμωρίαν, καὶ τὴν πόλιν καθελὼν ἐξήγαγεν αὐτοὺς διασπείρας πανταχοῦ τῆς οἰκουμένης, καὶ τοῦτο διὰ φιλανθρωπίαν ποιῶν. ∆ιέσπειρε γὰρ αὐτοὺς, ἵνα πανταχοῦ τῆς οἰκουμένης προσκυνούμενον ἴδωσι τὸν ὑπ' αὐτῶν σταυρωθέντα Χριστὸν, ἵνα ὁρῶντες αὐτὸν προσκυνούμενον ὑπὸ πάντων καὶ μαθόντες αὐτοῦ τὴν δύναμιν, ἐπιγνῶσι τῆς οἰκείας ἀσεβείας τὴν ὑπερβολὴν, καὶ ἐπιγνόντες ἐπανέλθωσι πρὸς τὴν ἀλήθειαν. Καὶ λοιπὸν ἡ αἰχμαλωσία αὐτοῖς διδασκαλία ἐγίνετο, καὶ ἡ τιμωρία νουθεσία· εἰ γὰρ ἔμενον ἐπὶ τῆς Ἰουδαίας γῆς, οὐκ ἂν ἔγνωσαν τῶν προφητῶν τὴν ἀλήθειαν. Τί γὰρ καὶ ἔλεγον οἱ προφῆται; Αἴτησαι παρ' ἐμοῦ, καὶ δώσω σοι ἔθνη τὴν κληρονομίαν σου, καὶ τὴν κατάσχεσίν σου τὰ πέρατα τῆς γῆς. Ἔδει τοίνυν αὐτοὺς ἐξελθεῖν εἰς τὰ πέρατα τῆς γῆς, ἵνα ἴδωσιν οἰκείοις ὀφθαλμοῖς, ὅτι καὶ τὰ πέρατα τῆς γῆς κατέχει ὁ Χριστός. Πάλιν οὖν ἕτερος προφήτης λέγει· Καὶ προσκυνήσουσιν αὐτῷ ἕκαστος ἐκ τοῦ τόπου αὐτοῦ. Ἔδει τοίνυν αὐτοὺς εἰς ἅπαντα διασπαρῆναι τόπον 51.112 τῆς γῆς, ἵνα ἴδωσιν οἰκείοις ὄμμασιν ἕκαστον ἐκ τοῦ τόπου αὐτοῦ προσκυνοῦντα αὐτόν. Πάλιν ἄλλος εἶπε· Πλησθήσεται ἡ γῆ τοῦ γνῶναι τὸν Κύριον, ὡς ὕδωρ πολὺ κατακαλύψαι θαλάσσας. Ἔδει τοίνυν αὐτοὺς εἰς ἅπασαν τὴν γῆν ἀπελθεῖν, ὥστε ἰδεῖν αὐτὴν πεπληρωμένην τοῦ γνῶναι τὸν Κύριον, καὶ τὰς θαλάσσας, τουτέστι τὰς πνευματικὰς ταύτας Ἐκκλησίας, τῆς θεοσεβείας μεμεστωμένας. ∆ιὰ ταῦτα διέσπειρεν αὐτοὺς ὁ Θεὸς πανταχοῦ τῆς γῆς· εἰ γὰρ ἐν