57

shall I say that which is small? And after it is removed, for a long time it leaves behind the pain of the wound; and for this reason there is need of much care and healing, so as to be completely freed from it; for it is not enough to remove only the sin, but one must also heal the place that was wounded. But I fear lest what is said be for us rather than for others, that, The earth which has drunk the rain that often comes upon it; for we are always drinking, we are always hearing, but we immediately lose the moisture, when the sun has risen, and for this reason we bring forth thorns. What then are the thorns? Let us hear what Christ says, that the care of this world, and the deceitfulness of riches choke the word, and it becomes unfruitful. For the earth that has drunk, he says, the rain that often comes upon it, and brings forth a useful herb. 2. Nothing is so useful as purity of life, nothing so well-ordered as an excellent life, nothing so useful as virtue. And bringing forth, he says, a herb useful for those for whom it is also tilled, partakes of blessing from God. Here he says that God is the cause of all things, gently striking at the Greeks, who ascribe the generation of fruits to the power of the earth. For neither are the husbandman's hands, he says, what rouses the earth to the bearing of fruits, but the command from God; for this reason he says: It partakes of blessing from God. And see how in the case of the thorns he did not say, bringing forth thorns, nor did he use this useful word, but what? Bringing out thorns, as one might say, casting up, casting out. Rejected, he says, and near to a curse. Ah, what great comfort the word has! For he said near to a curse, not a curse; and he who has not yet fallen into the curse, but has come near, will also be able to get far away. And not by this alone did he comfort, 63.85 but also by what follows; for he did not say, Rejected, and near to a curse, which will be burned; but what? Whose end is for burning; showing that if it so persists to the end, it will suffer this. So that, if we cut out and burn up the thorns, we shall be able to enjoy countless good things, and become approved, and partake of blessing. And he rightly called sin a thistle, saying, But bringing forth thorns and thistles; for from whatever side you take hold of it, it strikes and bites, and is unseemly even to look at. Having therefore rebuked them sufficiently, and frightened and struck them, he heals them again, so as not to cast them down too much, and make them supine; for he who strikes the sluggish makes him more sluggish. He therefore neither flatters them entirely, so as not to puff them up, nor does he strike them entirely, so as not to make them more supine; but having injected a little of the reproof, he applies much of the healing through what follows, so that he may accomplish what he wishes. For what does he say? But we are persuaded of better things concerning you, beloved, and things that accompany salvation, though we thus speak. That is, we do not say these things as having condemned you, nor as thinking you full of thorns, but fearing lest this should happen; for it is better to frighten you with words, that you may not suffer in deeds. And this is especially characteristic of Paul's wisdom. And he did not say, We think, nor, We conjecture, nor, We expect, nor, We hope, but what? We are persuaded. Which he also said when writing to the Galatians; But I have confidence in you in the Lord, that you will think nothing else. He did not say, You think, but, You will think. For there, since they were strongly condemned, and he could not praise them for their present state, he does this from their future state, saying, You will think nothing else; but here, from their present state: But we are persuaded of better things concerning you, beloved, and things that accompany salvation, though we thus speak. And since from their present state he could not say so much, he constructs his comfort from the past, and says: For God is not unrighteous to forget your work, and the labor of love, which you showed toward his name, in that you have ministered to the saints, and do minister. Ah, how he recovered their soul and strengthened it, by reminding them of their past deeds, and bringing them to the necessity of not expecting to have been forgotten.

57

λέγω αὐτὸ τὸ μικρόν; Καὶ μετὰ τὸ ἐξαιρεθῆναι, ἐπιπολὺ τῆς πληγῆς τὴν ὀδύνην ἐναφίησι· καὶ διὰ τοῦτο δεῖ θεραπείας πολλῆς καὶ ἰατρείας, ὥστε τέλεον αὐτῆς ἐλευθερωθῆναι· οὐδὲ γὰρ ἀρκεῖ τὸ ἐξελεῖν μόνον τὴν ἁμαρτίαν, ἀλλὰ δεῖ καὶ τὸν πληγέντα θεραπεῦσαι τόπον. Ἀλλὰ δέδοικα μὴ πρὸς ἡμᾶς ᾖ τὸ λεγόμενον μᾶλλον ἢ πρὸς ἑτέρους, τὸ, Γῆ ἡ πιοῦσα τὸν ἐπ' αὐτῆς πολλάκις ἐρχόμενον ὑετόν· ἀεὶ γὰρ πίνομεν, ἀεὶ ἀκούομεν, ἀλλ' εὐθέως τὴν νοτίδα ἀπόλλυμεν, τοῦ ἡλίου ἀνατείλαντος, καὶ διὰ τοῦτο ἀκάνθας ἐκφέρομεν. Τίνες οὖν αἱ ἄκανθαι; Ἀκούσωμεν τοῦ Χριστοῦ λέγοντος, ὅτι ἡ μέριμνα τοῦ αἰῶνος τούτου, καὶ ἡ ἀπάτη τοῦ πλούτου συμπνίγει τὸν λόγον, καὶ ἄκαρπος γίνεται. Γῆ γὰρ ἡ πιοῦσα, φησὶ, τὸν ἐπ' αὐτῆς πολλάκις ἐρχόμενον ὑετὸν, καὶ τίκτουσα βοτάνην εὔθετον. βʹ. Οὐδὲν οὕτως εὔθετον, ὡς βίου καθαρότης, οὐδὲν οὕτως εὔρυθμον, ὡς βίος ἄριστος, οὐδὲν οὕτως εὔθετον, ὡς ἀρετή. Καὶ τίκτουσα, φησὶ, βοτάνην εὔθετον ἐκείνοις δι' οὓς καὶ γεωργεῖται, μεταλαμβάνει εὐλογίας ἀπὸ τοῦ Θεοῦ. Ἐνταῦθά φησι τὸν Θεὸν αἴτιον τῶν ἁπάντων γίνεσθαι, πλήττων τοὺς Ἕλληνας ἠρέμα, τοὺς τῇ δυνάμει τῆς γῆς τῶν καρπῶν τὴν γέννησιν ἐπιγράφοντας. Οὐδὲ γὰρ αἱ γεωργικαὶ χεῖρες, φησὶν, εἰσὶν αἱ τὴν γῆν πρὸς τὴν τῶν καρπῶν φορὰν διεγείρουσαι, ἀλλὰ τὸ παρὰ τοῦ Θεοῦ πρόσταγμα· διὰ τοῦτό φησι· Μεταλαμβάνει εὐλογίας ἀπὸ τοῦ Θεοῦ. Καὶ ὅρα πῶς ἐπὶ τῶν ἀκανθῶν οὐκ εἶπε, τίκτουσα ἀκάνθας, οὐδὲ τῷ χρησίμῳ τούτῳ ὀνόματι ἐχρήσατο, ἀλλὰ τί; Ἐκφέρουσα ἀκάνθας ὡς ἂν εἴποι τις, ἐκβράσσουσα, ἐκβάλλουσα. Ἀδόκιμος, φησὶ, καὶ κατάρας ἐγγύς. Βαβαὶ, πόσην ἔχει παραμυθίαν ὁ λόγος! Κατάρας γὰρ εἶπεν ἐγγὺς, οὐ κατάρα· ὁ δὲ μηδέπω εἰς τὴν κατάραν ἐμπεσὼν, ἀλλ' ἐγγὺς γενόμενος, καὶ μακρὰν γενέσθαι δυνήσεται. Καὶ οὐ τούτῳ μόνῳ παρεμυθή 63.85 σατο, ἀλλὰ καὶ τῷ ἑξῆς· οὐ γὰρ εἶπεν, Ἀδόκιμος, καὶ κατάρας ἐγγὺς, ἥτις καήσεται· ἀλλὰ τί; Ἧς τὸ τέλος εἰς καῦσιν· δηλῶν ὅτι ἐὰν μέχρι τέλους οὕτως ἐπιμείνῃ, τούτῳ πείσεται. Ὥστε, ἐὰν ἐκτέμωμεν καὶ κατακαύσωμεν τὰς ἀκάνθας, δυνησόμεθα τῶν μυρίων ἀπολαῦσαι ἀγαθῶν, καὶ γενέσθαι δόκιμοι, καὶ εὐλογίας μετασχεῖν. Εἰκότως δὲ τὴν ἁμαρτίαν τρίβολον ἐκάλεσεν, εἰπὼν, Ἐκφέρουσα δὲ ἀκάνθας καὶ τριβόλους· ὅθεν γὰρ ἂν αὐτὴν κατάσχῃς, πλήττει καὶ δάκνει, καὶ ἔστιν ἀειδὴς καὶ τῷ ἰδεῖν. Καθαψάμενος τοίνυν αὐτῶν ἱκανῶς, καὶ φοβήσας καὶ πλήξας, θεραπεύει πάλιν, ὥστε μὴ πλέον καταβαλεῖν, καὶ ὑπτίους ἐργάσασθαι· τὸν γὰρ νωθρὸν ὁ πλήττων νωθρότερον ἐργάζεται. Οὔτε οὖν πάντη κολακεύει, ὥστε μὴ ἐπᾶραι, οὔτε πάντη πλήττει, ὥστε μὴ ὑπτιωτέρους ποιῆσαι· ἀλλ' ὀλίγον ἐμβαλὼν τὸ πληκτικὸν, πολὺ τὸ θεραπευτικὸν προσφέρει διὰ τῶν ἐπαγομένων, ὥστε ὃ βούλεται κατορθῶσαι. Τί γάρ φησι; Πεπείσμεθα δὲ περὶ ὑμῶν, ἀγαπητοὶ, τὰ κρείττονα, καὶ ἐχόμενα σωτηρίας, εἰ καὶ οὕτω λαλοῦμεν. Τουτέστιν, οὐχ ὡς κατεγνωκότες ὑμῶν ταῦτα λέγομεν, οὐδὲ ὡς νομίζοντες ὑμᾶς ἀκανθῶν πλήρεις, ἀλλὰ δεδοικότες μὴ τοῦτο γένηται· βέλτιον γὰρ ὑμᾶς τοῖς ῥήμασι φοβῆσαι, ἵνα μὴ τοῖς πράγμασιν ἀλγήσητε. Καὶ τοῦτο τῆς συνέσεως Παύλου μάλιστα. Καὶ οὐκ εἶπε, Νομίζομεν, οὐδὲ, Στοχαζόμεθα, οὐδὲ, Προσδοκῶμεν, οὐδὲ, Ἐλπίζομεν, ἀλλὰ τί; Πεπείσμεθα. Ὃ καὶ Γαλάταις γράφων ἔλεγε· Πέποιθα δὲ εἰς ὑμᾶς ἐν Κυρίῳ, ὅτι οὐδὲν ἄλλο φρονήσετε. Οὐκ εἶπε, Φρονεῖτε, ἀλλὰ, Φρονήσετε. Ἐκεῖ μὲν γὰρ ἐπειδὴ σφόδρα κατεγνωσμένοι ἦσαν, καὶ οὐκ εἶχεν αὐτοὺς ἀπὸ τῶν παρόντων ἐπαινέσαι, ἀπὸ τῶν μελλόντων τοῦτο ποιεῖ, Οὐδὲν ἄλλο φρονήσετε, λέγων· ἐνταῦθα δὲ ἀπὸ τῶν παρόντων· Πεπείσμεθα δὲ περὶ ὑμῶν, ἀγαπητοὶ, τὰ κρείττω, καὶ ἐχόμενα σωτηρίας, εἰ καὶ οὕτω λαλοῦμεν. Καὶ ἐπειδὴ ἀπὸ τῶν παρόντων οὐ τοσαῦτα εἶχεν εἰπεῖν, ἀπὸ τῶν παρελθόντων κατασκευάζει τὴν παραμυθίαν, καί φησιν· Οὐ γὰρ ἄδικος ὁ Θεὸς ἐπιλαθέσθαι τοῦ ἔργου ὑμῶν, καὶ τοῦ κόπου τῆς ἀγάπης, ἧς ἐνεδείξασθε εἰς τὸ ὄνομα αὐτοῦ, διακονήσαντες τοῖς ἁγίοις καὶ διακονοῦντες Βαβαὶ, πῶς αὐτῶν ἀνεκτήσατο τὴν ψυχὴν καὶ ἀνέῤῥωσε, τῶν παλαιῶν ἀναμνήσας πραγμάτων, καὶ εἰς ἀνάγκην καταστήσας τοῦ μὴ προσδοκᾷν ἐπιλελῆσθαι