John Chrysostom, Against the Jews

11. Who, then, attempted it? Those who always resist the Holy Spirit, the innovators and rebels. For after the desolation that happened under Vespasian and Titus, these Jews, having organized under Hadrian, were eager to return to their former state, not knowing that they were fighting against a decree of God, which commanded that the city be desolate forever. But it is impossible for one who fights against God to prevail. Having clashed, therefore, with the emperor, they again forced him to bring about a complete desolation. For he, having overthrown them, and subdued them, and destroyed all the remnants, so that they might no longer be able to act shamelessly, set up his own statue. Then, realizing that in time this statue would happen to fall down, so as to inflict upon them an incurable brand of their defeat and a proof of that shamelessness, he placed his own name on the remains of the city. For since he was called Aelius Hadrianus, he enacted that the city should be so called, and from that time it has been named Aelia until the present day, from the name of him who conquered and overthrew it. Do you see the first attempt of the shameless Jews? Behold also the one after that. Again, under Constantine, they attempted the same things. But the emperor, seeing their attempt, cut off their ears and placed this symbol of disobedience upon their bodies, and led them about everywhere like certain fugitives and scoundrels, making them conspicuous to all by the mutilation of their bodies, and admonishing all everywhere never again to attempt the same things. But these things are ancient and old; or rather, this is known to those who are yet our elders and old men. But what I am about to say now is plain and manifest even to the very young. For it happened neither under Hadrian nor Constantine, but under an emperor who lived twenty years ago, in our own generation. For under Julian, who surpassed all emperors in impiety, when he called them to the sacrifices of idols, and was drawing them to his own impiety; then, when he proposed the ancient manner of worship, and said, "Thus also was God worshipped in the time of your forefathers," they unwillingly confessed then these things, which we have now shown, that it is not possible to sacrifice outside the city, but that they transgress in doing anything whatsoever in a foreign land. "So if you wish," they said, "to see us sacrificing, give us back the city, raise up the temple, show us the holy of holies, raise up the altar, and we will sacrifice now just as before." And were not the defiled and shameless ones ashamed, asking these things from an impious man and a Hellene, and calling upon his defiled hands for the building of the holy things; and did they not perceive they were attempting impossible things, nor understand that if it had been a man who had destroyed those things, it would have been possible to receive them again from 48.901 a man; but since it was God who overthrew their city, it is impossible for human power ever to subvert the things decreed by the divine vote. "For what the holy God has planned," it says, "who shall scatter? And His high hand, who shall turn it back?" For just as what He raises up and wills to remain, it is impossible for men to overthrow; so also what He overthrows and wills to remain overthrown, it is not possible to raise up again. But let it be, O Jews, that the emperor was giving the temple, and raising up the altar, as you vainly suspect; was he also able to send down fire for you from heaven? But this not being the case, your sacrifice was accursed and unclean. For this reason, at least, the sons of Aaron perished, because they brought in a strange fire. But nevertheless, being blind to all things, they begged him, and beseeched him to assist and take part in the building of the temple. And he both spent money, and sent supervisors for the work from the high office, and moved artisans from everywhere, and did and managed everything, gently and little by little, until he might cast them into sacrificing, expecting from there to come easily to the worship of idols, and at the same time

ιαʹ. Ποῖοι τοίνυν ἐπεχείρησαν; Οἱ ἀεὶ τῷ Πνεύματι τῷ ἁγίῳ ἀντιπίπτοντες, οἱ νεωτεροποιοὶ καὶ στασιασταί· μετὰ γὰρ τὴν Οὐεσπασιανοῦ καὶ Τίτου γενομένην ἐρήμωσιν ἐπὶ Ἀδριανοῦ συστάντες οὗτοι οἱ Ἰουδαῖοι ἐσπούδαζον ἐπὶ τὴν προτέραν πολιτείαν ἐπανελθεῖν, οὐκ εἰδότες ὅτι ψήφῳ Θεοῦ πολεμοῦσι, κελευούσῃ διὰ παντὸς ἐρημοῦσθαι τὴν πόλιν· τὸν δὲ Θεῷ πολεμοῦντα περιγενέσθαι ἀμήχανον. Συῤῥήξαντες τοίνυν τῷ βασιλεῖ, πάλιν εἰς ἀνάγκην αὐτὸν κατέστησαν παντελοῦς ἐρημώσεως. Καθελὼν γὰρ αὐτοὺς ἐκεῖνος, καὶ χειρωσάμενος, καὶ τὰ λείψανα ἀφανίσας πάντα, ἵνα μηδὲ ἀναισχυντεῖν ἔχωσι λοιπὸν, τὸν ἀνδριάντα ἔστησε τὸν ἑαυτοῦ· εἶτα συνιδὼν, ὅτι συμβαίνει χρόνῳ ποτὲ τοῦτον καταπεσεῖν, ὥστε αὐτοῖς ἐνθεῖναι καυτῆρα ἀνίατον τῆς ἥττης καὶ τῆς ἀναισχυντίας ἐκείνης ἔλεγχον, τὸ ὄνομα τὸ ἑαυτοῦ τοῖς τῆς πόλεως ἐπέθηκε λειψάνοις. Ἐπειδὴ γὰρ Αἴλιος Ἀδριανὸς ἐχρημάτιζεν, οὕτω καὶ τὴν πόλιν καλεῖσθαι ἐνομοθέτησεν, ἐκεῖθέν τε Αἰλία μέχρι τοῦ νῦν ὀνομάζεται ἀπὸ τῆς ἐπωνυμίας τοῦ κρατήσαντος καὶ καθελόντος αὐτήν. Ὁρᾷς τὴν πρώτην ἐπιχείρησιν τῶν ἀναισχύντων Ἰουδαίων; Βλέπε καὶ τὴν μετ' ἐκείνην. Πάλιν ἐπὶ Κωνσταντίνου τοῖς αὐτοῖς ἐπεχείρησαν. Ὁ δὲ βασιλεὺς ἰδὼν τὴν ἐπιχείρησιν αὐτῶν, τὰ ὦτα αὐτῶν ἀποτεμὼν καὶ τὸ τῆς παρακοῆς σύμβολον ἐνθεὶς αὐτῶν τῷ σώματι, πανταχοῦ περιῆγε καθάπερ τινὰς δραπέτας καὶ μαστιγίας, διὰ τῆς τοῦ σώματος πηρώσεως ἅπασι καταδήλους ποιῶν, καὶ τοὺς πανταχοῦ σωφρονίζων, μηκέτι τοῖς αὐτοῖς ἐπιχειρεῖν πράγμασιν. Ἀλλὰ ταῦτα μὲν ἀρχαῖα καὶ παλαιά· μᾶλλον δὲ τοῦτο μὲν τοῖς ἔτι πρεσβυτέροις καὶ γέρουσιν ἡμῶν ἐστι γνώριμον. Ὃ δὲ μέλλω νῦν ἐρεῖν, καὶ τοῖς σφόδρα νέοις δῆλόν ἐστι καὶ καταφανές. Οὐδὲ γὰρ ἐπὶ Ἀδριανοῦ καὶ Κωνσταντίνου γέγονεν, ἀλλ' ἐπὶ βασιλέως πρὸ εἴκοσι ἐτῶν γεγενημένου ἐπὶ τῆς γενεᾶς τῆς ἡμετέρας. Ἰουλιανοῦ γὰρ, τοῦ πάντας ἀσεβείᾳ τοὺς βασιλέας νικήσαντος, καλοῦντος αὐτοὺς ἐπὶ τὰς τῶν εἰδώλων θυσίας, καὶ ἐπισπωμένου πρὸς τὴν οἰκείαν ἀσέβειαν· εἶτα τὸν παλαιὸν τῆς θεραπείας προβαλλομένου τρόπον, καὶ λέγοντος, ὅτι Καὶ ἐπὶ τῶν προγόνων τῶν ὑμετέρων οὕτως ὁ Θεὸς ἐθεραπεύετο, καὶ ἄκοντες ὡμολόγουν τότε ταῦτα, ἅπερ ἡμεῖς ἀπεδείξαμεν νῦν, ὅτι τῆς πόλεως ἔξω θύειν οὐκ ἔνι, ἀλλὰ παρανομοῦσι πᾶν ὁτιοῦν ἐπιτελοῦντες ἐπὶ γῆς ἀλλοτρίας. Ὥστε εἰ βούλει, ἔφασαν, ἡμᾶς θύοντας ἰδεῖν, ἀπόδος ἡμῖν τὴν πόλιν, ἀνάστησον τὸν ναὸν, δεῖξον ἡμῖν τὰ ἅγια τῶν ἁγίων, ἀνάστησον τὸν βωμὸν, καὶ θύσομεν καὶ νῦν καθάπερ καὶ πρότερον. Καὶ οὐκ ᾐσχύνοντο οἱ μιαροὶ καὶ ἀναίσχυντοι παρὰ ἀνδρὸς ἀσεβοῦς καὶ Ἕλληνος ταῦτα αἰτοῦντες, καὶ τὰς μιαρὰς ἐκείνου χεῖρας καλοῦντες ἐπὶ τὴν τῶν ἁγίων οἰκοδομήν· καὶ οὐκ ᾐσθάνοντο ἀδυνάτοις ἐπιχειροῦντες πράγμασιν, οὐδὲ συνεῖδον, ὅτι εἰ μὲν ἄνθρωπος ἦν ὁ καταλύσας ἐκεῖνα, ἐνῆν καὶ παρὰ 48.901 ἀνθρώπου πάλιν λαβεῖν αὐτά· Θεοῦ δὲ ὄντος τοῦ καθελόντος αὐτῶν τὴν πόλιν, ἀμήχανον τὰ τῇ θείᾳ δόξαντα ψήφῳ δύναμιν ἀνθρωπίνην παρατρέψαι ποτέ. Ἃ γὰρ ὁ Θεὸς ὁ ἅγιος βεβούλευται, φησὶ, τίς διασκεδάσει; καὶ τὴν χεῖρα αὐτοῦ τὴν ὑψηλὴν τίς ἀποστρέψει; Ὥσπερ γὰρ ἃ ἂν ἀναστήσῃ καὶ βουληθῇ μένειν, καθελεῖν ἀδύνατον ἀνθρώποις· οὕτως ἅπερ ἂν καθέλῃ καὶ βούληται μένειν καθηρημένα, ἀναστῆσαι πάλιν οὐκ ἔνι. Ἔστω δὲ, Ἰουδαῖοι, ὅτι βασιλεὺς τὸν ναὸν ἐδίδου, καὶ τὸν βωμὸν ἀνίστα, καθάπερ ὑμεῖς ὑποπτεύετε μάτην· μὴ καὶ τὸ πῦρ ἄνωθεν ὑμῖν ἀφεῖναι ἐκ τῶν οὐρανῶν δυνατὸς ἦν; τούτου δὲ οὐκ ὄντος, ἐναγὴς καὶ ἀκάθαρτος ἦν ἡ θυσία ὑμῶν. ∆ιὰ τοῦτο γοῦν οἱ παῖδες Ἀαρὼν ἀπώλοντο, ἐπειδὴ πῦρ ἀλλότριον εἰσήνεγκαν. Ἀλλ' ὅμως πρὸς ἅπαντα τυφλώττοντες παρεκάλουν αὐτὸν, καὶ ἱκέτευον συνάρασθαι καὶ συνεφάψασθαι τῆς οἰκοδομῆς τοῦ ναοῦ. Ὁ δὲ καὶ χρήματα ἀνήλωσε, καὶ ἐπιστάτας τοῦ ἔργου ἔπεμψε τοὺς ἀπὸ τῆς μεγάλης ἀρχῆς, καὶ τεχνίτας πάντοθεν ἐκίνησε, καὶ πάντα ἐποίει καὶ ἐπραγματεύετο, ἠρέμα καὶ κατὰ μικρὸν ἄχρις αὐτοὺς εἰς τὸ θύειν ἐμβάλῃ, προσδοκῶν ἐκεῖθεν ἐπὶ τὴν τῶν εἰδώλων θεραπείαν ἥξειν ῥᾳδίως, ὁμοῦ τε