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you have sharpened. But did you suffer evil first? But not to suffer, but to do evil, this is to suffer evil. But consider: Cain slew, Abel was slain; who then was the dead one? The one crying out after death; For, he says, the voice of your brother Abel's blood cries out to me; or the one trembling and fearing while living? For this one, this one was more pitiful than any corpse. Do you see how it is better to be wronged, even if one goes as far as murder? Learn how it is worse to do wrong, even if one has the power to shed blood. That one struck and cast down his brother, but the one was crowned, while the other was punished; Abel was killed and slain unjustly, but while dying he accused and overcame and subdued; but the other, even while living, was silent and ashamed and was convicted, and brought about the opposite of what he wanted. For he killed him, since he saw him beloved, expecting also to cast him out from that love; but he intensified the affection more greatly, and God sought him out more when he was dead, saying, Where is Abel your brother? For you did not extinguish the longing with envy, but rather kindled it; you did not diminish the honor by the slaughter, but increased it more. For before this God had even subjected him to you; but since you killed him, even in death he will punish you; so great is the affection for him from me. Who then was the one condemned? the one punishing, or the one being punished? the one enjoying so much honor from God, or the one given over to some new and strange punishment? You did not fear him when he was alive, he says; therefore, fear him now that he is dead; you did not tremble when you were about to bring the sword upon him; you will be seized by a continual trembling after shedding the blood; while living he was a servant to you, and you did not endure it; for this reason, having died, he has become a fearful master to you 60.467. Therefore, considering these things, beloved, let us flee envy, let us extinguish wickedness, giving love in return to one another, that we may reap the good things from it, both in 60.468 the present life, and in the life to come, by the grace and loving-kindness of our Lord Jesus Christ, to whom be the glory and the power for ever and ever. Amen.

HOMILY IX.

But it was not written for his sake alone, that it was reckoned to him for righteousness; but also

for us, to whom it is to be reckoned, to those who believe in Him who raised Jesus our Lord from the dead. 1. Having said many and great things about Abraham, and about his faith and his righteousness and the honor from God, so that the hearer might not say, And what is this to us? for he is the one who was justified; he again places us near the patriarch. Such is the power of spiritual words. For the one from the Gentiles, the one who has just approached, the one who has done nothing, he said not only has nothing less than the believing Jew, but not even than the patriarch; or rather, if one must say something astonishing, even much more. For so great is our noble birth, that his faith is a type of ours. And he did not say, But if it was reckoned to him, it is likely it will be to us also, so that he might not make it a syllogism; but he utters it with the authority of the divine laws, and makes the whole thing a decree of Scripture. For why was it written, he says, but that we might learn that we too are justified in this way? For we have believed in the same God concerning the same matters, even if not concerning the same persons. And having spoken of our faith, he also speaks of the ineffable loving-kindness of God, which he always turns to, bringing the cross into the midst; which he also now has shown, saying: Who was delivered up for our trespasses, and was raised for our justification. See how, having stated the cause of his death, he makes it also a proof of his resurrection. For why was he crucified, he says? Not for his own sin; and this is clear from the resurrection. For if he were a sinner, how did he rise? but if he did rise, it is very clear that he was not a sinner; but if he was not a sinner, how was he crucified? For others. And if for others, he certainly rose. For that you may not say,

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ἠκόνησας. Ἀλλ' ἔπαθες πρῶτος κακῶς; Ἀλλ' οὐ τὸ παθεῖν, ἀλλὰ τὸ ποιῆσαι κακῶς, τοῦτό ἐστι τὸ παθεῖν κακῶς. Σκόπει δέ· ἔσφαξεν ὁ Κάϊν, ἐσφάγη ὁ Ἄβελ· τίς οὖν ἦν ὁ νεκρός; Ὁ μετὰ τὸν θάνατον βοῶν· Φωνὴ γὰρ, φησὶ, τοῦ αἵματος Ἄβελ τοῦ ἀδελφοῦ σου βοᾷ πρός με· ἢ ὁ ἐν τῷ ζῇν τρέμων καὶ δεδοικώς; Οὗτος γὰρ, οὗτος νεκροῦ παντὸς ἐλεεινότερος ἦν. Εἶδες πῶς βέλτιον τὸ ἀδικεῖσθαι, κἂν μέχρι φόνου τις χωρῇ; Μάθε πῶς χεῖρον τὸ ἀδικεῖν, κἂν μέχρις αἵματός τις ἰσχύσῃ. Ἔπληξε καὶ κατέβαλε τὸν ἀδελφὸν ἐκεῖνος, ἀλλ' ὁ μὲν ἐστεφανοῦτο, ὁ δὲ ἐκολάζετο· ἀνῃρέθη καὶ ἐσφάγη παρὰ τὸ δίκαιον ὁ Ἄβελ, ἀλλ' ὁ μὲν τελευτῶν κατηγόρει καὶ ἀνῄρει καὶ ἐχειροῦτο· ὁ δὲ καὶ ζῶν ἐσίγα καὶ ᾐσχύνετο καὶ ἡλίσκετο, καὶ τοὐναντίον οὗπερ ἤθελε κατεσκεύαζεν. Ἀνῄρει γὰρ, ἐπειδὴ ἀγαπώμενον εἶδε, προσδοκῶν καὶ τῆς ἀγάπης ἐκβάλλειν αὐτόν· ἐπέτεινε δὲ τὸ φίλτρον μειζόνως, καὶ ἀποθανόντα μᾶλλον ὁ Θεὸς αὐτὸν ἐπεζήτει, Ποῦ ἐστιν Ἄβελ ὁ ἀδελφός σου; λέγων. Οὐ γὰρ ἔσβεσας τὸν πόθον τῷ φθόνῳ, ἀλλ' ἀνῆψας μᾶλλον· οὐκ ἠλάττωσας τὴν τιμὴν τῇ σφαγῇ, ἀλλ' ἐπέτεινας πλέον. Πρὸ τούτου μὲν γάρ σοι καὶ ὑπέταξεν αὐτὸν ὁ Θεός· ἐπειδὴ δὲ αὐτὸν ἀνεῖλες, καὶ τετελευτηκώς σε τιμωρήσεται· τοσοῦτον ἐμοὶ παρ' αὐτοῦ τὸ φίλτρον. Τίς οὖν ἦν ὁ καταδικασθείς; ὁ κολάζων, ἢ ὁ κολαζόμενος; ὁ τοσαύτης ἀπολαύων παρὰ τῷ Θεῷ τιμῆς, ἢ ὁ καινῇ τινι καὶ παραδόξῳ διδόμενος τιμωρίᾳ; Οὐκ ἐφοβήθης αὐτὸν ζῶντα, φησίν· οὐκοῦν φοβήθητι τελευτήσαντα· οὐκ ἔτρεμες μέλλων ἐπάγειν τὸ ξίφος· ληφθήσῃ τρόμῳ μετὰ τὸ ἐκχέαι τὸ αἷμα διηνεκεῖ· ζῶν σοι δοῦλος ἦν, καὶ οὐκ ἠνείχου· διὰ τοῦτο τελευτήσας, δεσπότης σοι 60.467 γέγονε φοβερός. Ταῦτ' οὖν ἐννοοῦντες, ἀγαπητοὶ, φύγωμεν φθόνον, σβέσωμεν κακίαν, ἀγάπην ἀντιδιδόντες ἀλλήλοις, ἵνα τὰ ἐκ ταύτης καρπωσώμεθα ἀγαθὰ, καὶ κατὰ 60.468 τὸν παρόντα βίον, καὶ κατὰ τὴν μέλλουσαν ζωὴν, χάριτι καὶ φιλανθρωπίᾳ τοῦ Κυρίου ἡμῶν Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ, ᾧ ἡ δόξα καὶ τὸ κράτος εἰς τοὺς αἰῶνας τῶν αἰώνων. Ἀμήν.

ΟΜΙΛΙΑ Θʹ.

Οὐκ ἐγράφη δὲ δι' αὐτὸν μόνον, ὅτι ἐλογίσθη αὐτῷ εἰς δικαιοσύνην· ἀλλὰ καὶ

δι' ἡμᾶς, οἷς μέλλει λογίζεσθαι, τοῖς πιστεύουσιν ἐπὶ τὸν ἐγείραντα Ἰησοῦν τὸν Κύριον ἡμῶν ἐκ νεκρῶν. αʹ. Πολλὰ καὶ μεγάλα περὶ τοῦ Ἀβραὰμ εἰπὼν, καὶ περὶ τῆς πίστεως αὐτοῦ καὶ τῆς δικαιοσύνης καὶ τῆς παρὰ τοῦ Θεοῦ τιμῆς, ἵνα μὴ λέγῃ ὁ ἀκροατὴς, Καὶ τί πρὸς ἡμᾶς; ἐκεῖνος γάρ ἐστιν ὁ δικαιωθείς· ἵστησιν ἡμᾶς ἐγγὺς τοῦ πατριάρχου πάλιν. Τοσαύτη τῶν πνευματικῶν λόγων ἡ δύναμις. Τὸν γὰρ ἐξ ἐθνῶν, τὸν ἄρτι προσελθόντα, τὸν οὐδὲν ἐργασάμενον, οὐ μόνον τοῦ Ἰουδαίου τοῦ πιστοῦ οὐδὲν ἔφησεν ἔλαττον ἔχειν, ἀλλ' οὐδὲ τοῦ πατριάρχου· μᾶλλον δὲ, εἰ χρή τι θαυμαστὸν εἰπεῖν, καὶ πολλῷ πλέον. Τοσαύτη γὰρ ἡμῶν ἡ εὐγένεια, ὡς τὴν ἐκείνου πίστιν τῆς ἡμετέρας τύπον εἶναι. Καὶ οὐκ εἶπεν, Εἰ δὲ ἐκείνῳ ἐλογίσθη, εἰκὸς ὅτι καὶ ἡμῖν, ἵνα μὴ ποιήσῃ αὐτὸ συλλογισμόν· ἐξ αὐθεντίας δὲ τῶν θείων φθέγγεται νόμων, καὶ τῆς Γραφῆς ἀπόφασιν αὐτὸ ὅλον ποιεῖ. ∆ιὰ τί γὰρ ἐγράφη, φησὶν, ἀλλ' ἢ ἵνα μάθωμεν, ὅτι καὶ ἡμεῖς οὕτω δικαιούμεθα; τῷ γὰρ αὐτῷ Θεῷ πεπιστεύκαμεν ὑπὲρ τῶν αὐτῶν πραγμάτων, εἰ καὶ μὴ ἐπὶ τῶν αὐτῶν προσώπων. Εἰπὼν δὲ τὴν πίστιν ἡμῶν, λέγει καὶ τὴν τοῦ Θεοῦ φιλανθρωπίαν τὴν ἄφατον, ἣν ἀεὶ περιστρέφει, τὸν σταυρὸν εἰς μέσον φέρων· ὃ καὶ νῦν ἐδήλωσεν εἰπών· Ὃς παρεδόθη διὰ τὰ παραπτώματα ἡμῶν, καὶ ἠγέρθη διὰ τὴν δικαίωσιν ἡμῶν. Ὅρα πῶς τὴν αἰτίαν εἰπὼν τοῦ θανάτου, τὴν αὐτὴν καὶ ἀπόδειξιν ἀναστάσεως ποιεῖται. ∆ιὰ τί γὰρ ἐσταυρώθη, φησίν; Οὐ δι' οἰκείαν ἁμαρτίαν· καὶ δῆλον ἐκ τῆς ἀναστάσεως. Εἰ γὰρ ἦν ἁμαρτωλὸς, πῶς ἀνέστη; εἰ δὲ ἀνέστη, εὔδηλον ὅτι ἁμαρτωλὸς οὐκ ἦν· εἰ δὲ ἁμαρτωλὸς οὐκ ἦν, πῶς ἐσταυρώθη; ∆ι' ἑτέρους. Εἰ δὲ δι' ἑτέρους, πάντως ἀνέστη. Ἵνα γὰρ μὴ λέγῃς,