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that you may see more clearly, let us make, if you please, two cities, one of the rich only, and the other of the poor; and let there be no poor person in the city of the rich, nor any rich man in the city of the poor; and let us see which will be better able to suffice for itself. Therefore, in that city, the city of the wealthy, there will be no artisan, no builder, no carpenter, no shoemaker, no baker, no farmer, no coppersmith, no rope-maker, nor any other such person. For which of the rich would ever choose to pursue these things, when even those who practice them, whenever they become wealthy, do not endure the hardship of these labors? How then will this city of ours stand? The rich, he says, by giving money, will buy these things from the poor. But how will they build houses, or will they buy this too? But this would not be in the nature of things. Therefore it is necessary to summon the artisans there, and to corrupt the law which we established from the beginning, when founding the city. Let us then also see the city of the poor, whether it too will be similarly in want, being deprived of the rich; first having purged away in our argument wealth, such as gold, silver, precious stones, and garments of silk and purple and interwoven with gold, and having driven this from there. What then? on this account will the affairs of this city be in want, tell me? In no way. For whether one needs to build, or to forge iron, or to weave a garment, there is no need of gold and silver and pearls, but of skill and hands. And what? if one needs to farm and dig the earth, is there a need of the rich or of the poor? It is surely clear to everyone that it is of the poor. Where then shall we need the rich hereafter, unless it were necessary to destroy this city? When therefore you see someone shining outwardly from his garments and his large retinue, unfold his conscience, and you will find much dust. Consider Paul, Peter; consider John, Elijah, or rather the Son of God himself, who had nowhere to lay his head; become a zealous follower of him and of his servants, and imagine their unspeakable wealth. But if, having looked up for a little, you should be darkened again by this, just as in a shipwreck when a storm has come on, hear the declaration of Christ, saying, that it is impossible for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of heaven; and against this declaration set the mountains and the earth and the sea, and all things, if you wish, make them by your word to be gold, and you will see nothing equal to the loss that comes to you from there. For if each of you who are rich possessed a whole world, and each of them had as many people as are now everywhere on land and sea and the inhabited world, and each possessed land and sea and the buildings everywhere and cities and nations, and from every quarter gold flowed for him instead of water, instead of springs, I would not say that those who are so rich, 63.642 and have fallen from the kingdom, are worth three obols. For if now, desiring wealth that perishes, they are tormented when they do not obtain it; if they were to have a sense of those good things, what then will suffice for their consolation? Tell me now, if someone brought you into a palace, and arranged for the king to converse with you in the presence of all, and made you his companion at table and in life, would you not say that you were more blessed than all? But when you are about to ascend into heaven, and to stand beside the King of all, and to shine as brightly as the angels, and to enjoy that unapproachable glory, do you doubt whether you ought to give away your money, when you ought, even if it were necessary to lay down life itself, to leap and exult and be winged with pleasure? But you, in order to get an office that provides you with opportunities for theft (for I do not call such a thing gain), both cast away your possessions, and having borrowed from others, if need be, do not hesitate to mortgage your wife and children; but when the kingdom of heaven is set before you, an office which has no successor, do you hesitate and shrink back and gape after money? But alas for the great insensibility! that of such things

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σαφέστερον ἴδῃς, ποιήσωμεν, εἰ δοκεῖ, δύο πόλεις, τὴν μὲν πλουσίων μόνων, τὴν δὲ πενήτων· καὶ μήτε ἐν τῇ τῶν πλουτούντων ἔστω τις πένης, μήτε ἐν τῇ τῶν πενήτων ἔστω τις πλούσιος ἀνήρ· καὶ ἴδωμεν ποία μᾶλλον ἀρκέσαι ἑαυτῇ δυνήσεται. Οὐκοῦν ἐν μὲν ἐκείνῃ, τῇ τῶν εὐπόρων, οὐδεὶς ἔσται δημιουργὸς, οὐκ οἰκοδόμος, οὐ τέκτων, οὐχ ὑποδηματοῤῥάφος, οὐκ ἀρτοποιὸς, οὐ γεωργὸς, οὐ χαλκοτύπος, οὐ σχοινοστρόφος, οὐκ ἄλλο τῶν τοιούτων οὐδέν. Τίς γὰρ ἂν ἕλοιτο τῶν πλουτούντων ταῦτα μετιέναι ποτὲ, ὅπου γε καὶ αὐτοὶ οἱ ταῦτα μεταχειρίζοντες, ὅταν εὐπορήσωσιν, οὐκ ἀνέχονται τῆς ἀπὸ τῶν ἔργων τούτων ταλαιπωρίας; Πῶς οὖν ἡ πόλις στήσεται ἡμῖν αὕτη; ∆όντες, φησὶν, ἀργύριον οἱ πλουτοῦντες, ταῦτα ὠνήσονται παρὰ τῶν πενήτων. Πῶς δὲ οἰκίας οἰκοδομήσονται, ἢ καὶ τοῦτο ὠνήσονται; Ἀλλ' οὐκ ἂν ἔχοι τοῦτο φύσιν. Οὐκοῦν ἀνάγκη τοὺς τεχνίτας ἐκεῖ καλεῖν, καὶ διαφθείρειν τὸν νόμον ὃν ἐθήκαμεν ἐξ ἀρχῆς, τὴν πόλιν οἰκίζοντες. Ἴδωμεν οὖν καὶ τὴν τῶν πενήτων πόλιν, εἰ καὶ αὕτη ὁμοίως ἐνδεῶς διακείσεται τῶν πλουτούντων ἐστερημένη· πρότερον διακαθάραντες τῷ λόγῳ τὸν πλοῦτον, οἷον χρυσὸν, ἄργυρον, λίθους τιμίους, καὶ ἱμάτια σηρικὰ καὶ ἁλουργὰ καὶ διάχρυσα, καὶ τοῦτο ἐκεῖθεν ἀπελάσαντες. Τί οὖν; παρὰ τοῦτο ἐνδεῶς σχήσει τὰ τῆς πόλεως ταύτης, εἰπέ μοι; Οὐδαμῶς. Ἄν τε γὰρ οἰκοδομεῖν δέῃ, ἄν τε σίδηρον χαλκεύειν, ἄν τε ἱμάτιον ὑφαίνειν, οὐ χρυσοῦ καὶ ἀργύρου δεῖ καὶ μαργαριτῶν, ἀλλὰ τέχνης καὶ χειρῶν. Τί δέ; ἂν γεωργεῖν δέῃ καὶ σκάπτειν τὴν γῆν, πλουτούντων ἢ πενομένων χρεία; Παντί που δῆλον ὅτι πενήτων. Ποῦ οὖν δεησόμεθα τῶν πλουτούντων λοιπὸν, πλὴν εἰ μὴ καθελεῖν δέοι τὴν πόλιν ταύτην; Ὅταν οὖν ἴδῃς τινὰ λάμποντα ἔξωθεν ἀπὸ τῶν ἱματίων καὶ τῆς πολλῆς δορυφορίας, ἀνάπτυξον αὐτοῦ τὸ συνειδὸς, καὶ πολλὴν εὑρήσεις τὴν κόνιν. Ἐννόησον τὸν Παῦλον, τὸν Πέτρον· ἐννόησον τὸν Ἰωάννην, τὸν Ἠλίαν, μᾶλλον δὲ αὐτὸν τὸν τοῦ Θεοῦ Υἱὸν, τὸν οὐκ ἔχοντα ποῦ τὴν κεφαλὴν κλῖναι· ἐκείνου γενοῦ ζηλωτὴς καὶ τῶν ἐκείνου δούλων, καὶ τὸν ἄφατον τούτων φαντάζου πλοῦτον. Εἰ δὲ μικρὸν διαβλέψας, ἐκ τούτου σκοτισθείης πάλιν, καθάπερ ἔν τινι ναυαγίῳ καταιγίδος ἐπελθούσης, ἄκουσον τῆς ἀποφάσεως τοῦ Χριστοῦ λεγούσης, ὅτι ἀδύνατον πλούσιον εἰσελθεῖν εἰς τὴν βασιλείαν τῶν οὐρανῶν· καὶ πρὸς τὴν ἀπόφασιν ταύτην θὲς τὰ ὄρη καὶ τὴν γῆν καὶ τὴν θάλασσαν, καὶ πάντα, εἰ βούλει, τῷ λόγῳ ποίησον εἶναι χρυσὸν, καὶ οὐδὲν ὄψει ἴσον τῆς ζημίας τῆς ἐκεῖθέν σοι γινομένης. Εἰ γὰρ τῶν πλουτούντων ὑμῶν ἕκαστος ὁλόκληρον ἐκέκτητο κόσμον, καὶ ἕκαστος αὐτῶν τοσούτους εἶχεν ἀνθρώπους, ὅσοι νῦν εἰσι πανταχοῦ γῆς καὶ θαλάσσης καὶ οἰκουμένης, καὶ ἕκαστος γῆν καὶ θάλατταν καὶ τὰ πανταχοῦ οἰκοδομήματα καὶ πόλεις καὶ ἔθνη ἐκέκτητο, καὶ πανταχόθεν ἀντὶ ὕδατος, ἀντὶ πηγῶν αὐτῷ τὸ χρυσίον ἐπέῤῥει, τριῶν ὀβολῶν οὐκ ἂν ἔφην ἀξίους εἶναι τοὺς οὕτω πλουτοῦντας, 63.642 καὶ τῆς βασιλείας ἐκπεσόντας. Εἰ γὰρ νῦν χρημάτων τῶν ἀπολλυμένων ἐφιέμενοι, ὅταν μὴ ἐπιτύχωσι, βασανίζονται· εἰ λάβοιεν αἴσθησιν τῶν ἀγαθῶν ἐκείνων, τί λοιπὸν ἀρκέσει εἰς παραμυθίαν αὐτοῖς; Εἰπὲ δή μοι, εἴ τίς σε εἰς βασίλεια εἰσήγαγε, καὶ παρόντων πάντων διαλεχθῆναί σοι τὸν βασιλέα παρεσκεύασε, καὶ ὁμοτράπεζον αὐτῷ καὶ ὁμοδίαιτον ἐποίησεν, οὐ πάντων ἂν ἔφης σαυτὸν εἶναι μακαριώτερον; Εἰς δὲ τὸν οὐρανὸν ἀναβῆναι μέλλων, καὶ παρ' αὐτὸν ἑστάναι τὸν Βασιλέα τῶν ὅλων, καὶ τοῖς ἀγγέλοις ἀντιλάμπειν, καὶ τῆς ἀπροσίτου δόξης ἀπολαύειν ἐκείνης, ἀμφιβάλλεις εἰ δέοι προέσθαι χρήματα, δέον εἰ καὶ τὴν ζωὴν αὐτὴν ἀποδύσασθαι ἔδει, σκιρτᾷν καὶ ἀγάλλεσθαι καὶ πτεροῦσθαι ὑπὸ τῆς ἡδονῆς; Σὺ δὲ ἵνα μὲν ἀρχὴν λάβῃς τὴν παρέχουσάν σοι κλοπῶν ἀφορμὰς (οὐ γὰρ κέρδος ἐγὼ τὸ τοιοῦτο καλῶ), καὶ τὰ ὄντα ἐκβάλλεις, καὶ τὰ ἑτέρων δανεισάμενος, εἰ δέοι, καὶ τὴν γυναῖκα καὶ τὰ τέκνα ὑποθέσθαι οὐ κατοκνεῖς· τῆς δὲ βασιλείας τῶν οὐρανῶν προκειμένης τῆς οὐδένα διάδοχον ἐχούσης ἀρχῆς, ὀκνεῖς καὶ ἀναδύῃ καὶ πρὸς χρήματα κέχηνας; Ἀλλ' οἴμοι τῆς πολλῆς ἀναισθησίας! ὅτι τοιούτων