John Chrysostom, On Lazarus

those were dreams, I was cast out of my homeland, I was deprived of freedom; for God's sake I did not yield to my mistress calling me to adultery; for chastity and virtue I am punished; and not even so did He defend me, nor did He stretch out a hand, but allowed me to be given over to successive bonds and continuous misfortunes; for after the pit, slavery, after slavery, a plot, after a plot, slander, after slander, prison. But none of these things troubled him, but he remained, trusting in hope, and knowing that the things that had been said would never fall away. For God was able to fulfill them on that very day, but so that He might display both His own power, and the faith of His servants, He allows a long time to intervene in between, and many hindrances to occur, so that you might learn His strength, fulfilling the promises then, when one falls into despair, and you might see the endurance and faith of His servants, who in none of the intervening events fall away from the good expectation. But, as I was saying, these returned, with the famine, like some soldier, pushing them headlong and presenting them to the ruler Joseph, and they wanted to buy grain; and what does he say to them? You are spies. And they said among themselves, What ever is this? we came to trade for food, and we are in danger for our life? Rightly so, since he also brought you food, and was in danger for his life; but he indeed endured it in truth, while you suffer this in pretense; for he was not an enemy, but took on the mask of an enemy, so that he might learn with accuracy the things concerning the household. For since they had been wicked and ungrateful toward him, and he did not see Benjamin being with them, fearing for the boy, lest that one also had suffered the same things as his brother, he orders one to be bound and left there; then that they all, having taken the grain, should depart, having threatened them with death, if they did not bring their brother. When therefore these things happened, and he said, Leave one here, and bring your brother; but if not, you shall surely die; what did they say to one another? Yes, we are guilty concerning our brother, when he pleaded with us. Do you see after how much time they remembered that sin? And to their father they said; A wicked beast devoured Joseph; but with Joseph himself present and listening, they exposed the sin. What could be more paradoxical than this? A tribunal takes place without examinations, and a defense without an accusation, and proof without witnesses, with the very ones who did the deed accusing themselves, and parading what had been done in secret. Who persuaded, who compelled them to bring into the open things dared so long a time before? Is it not evident that the conscience, the incorrupti48.1016ble judge, was continually shaking their mind, and troubling their soul? And he who was then murdered sat judging them in silence; and with no sentence being passed, they themselves brought the condemning vote against themselves. And while they were saying these things, another made a defense, saying; Did I not speak to you, saying thus; Do not harm the boy, nor do him any evil, because he is our brother; and behold now his blood is required, he says, from our hands? And yet he who was saying these things said nothing about that murder and slaughter, but sitting there he was seeking nothing of the sort, but was seeking the other brother; but their conscience, seizing the opportunity, rose up and laid hold of their mind, and with no one compelling them, it prepared them to confess the things that had been dared. We also often suffer these things, when our sins have passed; for being tested in terrible things and circumstances, we remember our former sins. 7. Knowing all these things, therefore, whenever we do something evil, let us not wait for misfortunes and circumstances nor dangers and bonds, but at every hour and day let us stir up this tribunal within ourselves, and bring the votes against ourselves, and let us try in every way to make our defense to God, and let us neither ourselves concerning the resurrection and the

ὀνείρατα ἐκεῖνα ἦν, ἐξέπεσον τῆς πατρίδος, ἀπεστερήθην ἐλευθερίας· διὰ τὸν Θεὸν οὐκ εἶξα τῇ δεσποίνῃ πρὸς μοιχείαν καλούσῃ· διὰ σωφροσύνην καὶ ἀρετὴν κολάζομαι· καὶ οὐδὲ οὕτως ἤμυνεν, οὐδὲ χεῖρα ὤρεξεν, ἀλλ' εἴασε παραδοθῆναι δεσμοῖς ἐπαλλήλοις καὶ συνεχέσι συμφοραῖς· μετὰ γὰρ τὸν λάκκον δουλεία, μετὰ δουλείαν ἐπιβουλὴ, μετὰ ἐπιβουλὴν συκοφαντία, μετὰ συκοφαντίαν δεσμωτήριον. Ἀλλ' οὐδὲν τούτων αὐτὸν ἐθορύβει, ἀλλ' ἔμενε τῇ ἐλπίδι θαῤῥῶν, καὶ εἰδὼς ὅτι τὰ εἰρημένα οὐ διαπεσεῖται οὐδέποτε. Ἐδύνατο μὲν γὰρ ὁ Θεὸς καὶ παρ' αὐτὴν αὐτὰ πληρῶσαι τὴν ἡμέραν, ἀλλ' ἵνα καὶ τὴν αὐτοῦ δύναμιν ἐπιδείξηται, καὶ τὴν πίστιν τῶν αὐτοῦ δούλων, ἀφίησι χρόνον μεταξὺ παρεμπεσεῖν μακρὸν, καὶ πολλὰ γενέσθαι κωλύματα, ἵνα καὶ τὴν αὐτοῦ μάθῃς ἰσχὺν, τότε πληροῦντος τὰ ἐπηγγελμένα, ὅταν εἰς ἀπόγνωσιν ἐμπέσῃ, καὶ τὴν τῶν δούλων ἴδῃς ὑπομονὴν καὶ πίστιν, οὐδενὶ τῶν ἐν μέσῳ συμβαινόντων τῆς ἀγαθῆς προσδοκίας ἐκπιπτόντων. Ἀλλ', ὅπερ ἔλεγον, ἐπανῆλθον οὗτοι, τοῦ λιμοῦ, καθάπερ στρατιώτου τινὸς, ἐπὶ κεφαλὴν αὐτοὺς ὠθοῦντος καὶ παριστάντος ἄρχοντι τῷ Ἰωσὴφ, καὶ ἐβούλοντο πρίασθαι σῖτον· ὁ δὲ τί φησι πρὸς αὐτούς; Κατάσκοποί ἐστε. Οἱ δὲ εἶπον ἐν ἑαυτοῖς, Τί ποτε τοῦτό ἐστι; τροφὴν ἤλθομεν ἐμπορευσόμενοι, καὶ περὶ ψυχῆς κινδυνεύομεν; Εἰκότως, ἐπεὶ καὶ αὐτὸς τροφὴν ὑμῖν ἐκόμισε, καὶ περὶ τῆς ζωῆς ἐκινδύνευσεν· ἀλλ' αὐτὸς μὲν ἀληθείᾳ ὑπέμενεν, ὑμεῖς δὲ ὑποκρίσει τοῦτο πάσχετε· οὐ γὰρ ἐχθρὸς ἦν, ἀλλὰ προσωπεῖον ἀνέλαβεν ἐχθροῦ, ἵνα τὰ κατὰ τὴν οἰκίαν μετὰ ἀκριβείας μάθῃ. Ἐπειδὴ γὰρ πονηροὶ περὶ αὐτὸν ἐγένοντο καὶ ἀγνώμονες, τόν τε Βενιαμὶν οὐκ εἶδε μετ' αὐτῶν ὄντα, δείσας ὑπὲρ τοῦ παιδὸς, μήποτε κἀκεῖνος τὰ ἀδελφὰ αὐτῷ πέπονθε, κελεύει δεθῆναί τινα ἕνα καὶ ἀφεθῆναι ἐκεῖ· εἶτα αὐτοὺς λαβόντας τὸν σῖτον ἅπαντας ἀπελθεῖν, ἀπειλήσας θάνατον αὐτοῖς, εἰ μὴ τὸν ἀδελφὸν τὸν ἑαυτῶν ἐπαγάγοιεν. Ἐπεὶ οὖν ταῦτα ἐγένετο, καὶ εἶπεν, Ἄφετέ τινα ἐνταῦθα, καὶ τὸν ἀδελφὸν ὑμῶν ἀγάγετε· εἰ δὲ μὴ, θανάτῳ ἀποθανεῖσθε· τί πρὸς ἀλλήλους ἔλεγον ἐκεῖνοι; Ναὶ, ἐν ἁμαρτίαις ἐσμὲν περὶ τοῦ ἀδελφοῦ ἡμῶν, ὅτε κατεδέετο ἡμῶν. Εἶδες μετὰ πόσον χρόνον τῆς ἁμαρτίας ἀνεμνήσθησαν ἐκείνης; Καὶ πρὸς μὲν τὸν πατέρα ἔλεγον· Θηρίον πονηρὸν κατέφαγε τὸν Ἰωσήφ· αὐτοῦ δὲ τοῦ Ἰωσὴφ παρόντος καὶ ἀκούοντος, τὴν ἁμαρτίαν ἐξήλεγχον. Τί τούτου παραδοξότερον γένοιτ' ἄν; ∆ικαστήριον χωρὶς ἐλέγχων γίνεται, καὶ ἀπολογία χωρὶς κατηγορίας, καὶ ἀπόδειξις ἄνευ μαρτύρων, αὐτῶν τῶν τὸ πρᾶγμα ἐργασαμένων ἑαυτοὺς ἐλεγχόντων, καὶ τὸ λάθρα γεγενημένον ἐκπομπευόντων. Τίς ἔπεισε, τίς ἠνάγκασεν εἰς μέσον ἐξενεγκεῖν τὰ πρὸ τοσούτου τολμηθέντα χρόνου· Οὐκ εὔδηλον, ὅτι τὸ συνειδὸς, ὁ ἀπαραλόγι48.1016 στος δικαστὴς, συνεχῶς αὐτῶν κατέσειε τὴν διάνοιαν, καὶ τὴν ψυχὴν ἐθορύβει; Καὶ ὁ φονευθεὶς τότε ἐκάθητο σιγῇ δικάζων αὐτούς· καὶ μηδεμιᾶς ἐξενεχθείσης ἀποφάσεως καθ' ἑαυτῶν τὴν καταδικάζουσαν αὐτοὺς ψῆφον αὐτοὶ ἔφερον. Καὶ οὗτοι μὲν ταῦτα ἔλεγον· ἕτερος δὲ ἀπελογεῖτο, λέγων· Οὐκ ἐλάλησα πρὸς ὑμᾶς, οὕτω λέγων· Μὴ ἀδικήσητε τὸ παιδάριον, μηδὲ ποιήσητε αὐτὸν μηδὲν κακὸν, ὅτι ἀδελφὸς ἡμῶν ἐστι· καὶ ἰδοὺ νῦν τὸ αἷμα αὐτοῦ ἐκζητεῖται, φησὶν, ἐκ τῶν χειρῶν ἡμῶν; Καίτοι οὐδὲν αὐτὸς ὁ ταῦτα λέγων περὶ τοῦ φόνου καὶ τῆς σφαγῆς ἐκείνης εἶπεν, ἀλλ' αὐτὸς μὲν καθήμενος οὐδὲν τοιοῦτον ἐζήτει, ἀλλὰ τὸν ἕτερον ἀδελφὸν ἐπεζήτει· τὸ δὲ συνειδὸς αὐτῶν ἐπιλαβόμενον καιροῦ, διανέστη καὶ καθήψατο τῆς ἐκείνων διανοίας, καὶ μηδενὸς ἀναγκάζοντος, τὰ τετολμημένα ὁμολογῆσαι παρεσκεύασε. Ταῦτα καὶ ἡμεῖς πολλάκις πάσχομεν, παρελθόντων τῶν ἁμαρτημάτων· ἐν δεινοῖς γὰρ ἐξεταζόμενοι καὶ περιστάσεσι, μνημονεύομεν τῶν προτέρων ἁμαρτημάτων. ζʹ. Ἅπερ οὖν ἅπαντα εἰδότες, ἐπειδάν τι πράξωμεν πονηρὸν, μὴ ἀναμένωμεν συμφορὰς καὶ περιστάσεις μηδὲ κινδύνους καὶ δεσμὰ, ἀλλὰ καθ' ἑκάστην ὥραν τε καὶ ἡμέραν ἀνακινῶμεν παρ' ἑαυτοῖς τὸ δικαστήριον τοῦτο, καὶ τὰς ψήφους καθ' ἑαυτῶν φέρωμεν, καὶ πειρώμεθα παντὶ τρόπῳ ἀπολογεῖσθαι τῷ Θεῷ, καὶ μήτε αὐτοὶ περὶ τῆς ἀναστάσεως καὶ τῆς