John Chrysostom, On Lazarus

and escorting him, and establishing him in the place of rest after those many afflictions and the narrow journey. Did you see how wide the narrow gate and the afflicted way appear in the end? See, then, also the destructive ends of the broad way. He died, it says, the rich man also, and was buried. No one going before him, no one escorting him, no one guiding him, as with Lazarus. For since on the broad way he enjoyed all these things, and had many to escort him, to serve him—I mean flatterers, parasites—when he reached the end, he became naked and bereft of all things after those many comforts, or rather, after that brief comfort and prosperity. For all the present life is short, when compared to the age to come. After the brief comfort, therefore, which he enjoyed while walking the broad way, the place of distress and affliction received him. And the one, indeed, was resting in the bosom of the patriarch, receiving the rewards for his labors and great suffering, and after the famine and the sores and lying at the gate, he partook of that ineffable rest which cannot even be explained in words; but the other, after the luxury and comfort and great gluttony and drunkenness, having come down to that inexorable punishment, was being scorched. And so that each of them might learn from the reality of things, the one the gain of the narrow way, the other the loss and destruction of the broad way, they see each other from a great distance. But hear how: And in Hades, it says, lifting up his eyes, being in torments, he sees Abraham from afar, and Lazarus in his bosom. And it seems to me, that upon seeing such a sudden reversal of things, and the one who had been cast at the gate, and exposed to the tongues of dogs, enjoying such boldness, and dwelling in the bosom of the patriarch, while he himself was enveloped in so much shame, and along with this was also being scorched by the fire, he felt the pain even more. Seeing, therefore, that things had changed to the opposite, and that he himself had, so to speak, lived luxuriously in a dream and a shadow, and was now enduring unbearable punishment, and after the broad way and the wide gate had come to such a 48.1051 narrow end; but that for the other the opposite had happened, and that because of his endurance here he was enjoying those ineffable good things; and being at a loss, and having learned by experience the deceit which he had endured by choosing the broad way his whole life, he makes a supplication to the patriarch, and utters pitiful words, and full of tears. And he who before this did not even turn to, nor endure to see Lazarus, the poor man, the one cast at his gate, but even detested him, so to speak, because of the stench of his sores, and his own foolishness, in which he lived continuously in luxury, now beseeches the patriarch, and says: Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus, that he may dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue, for I am in anguish in this flame. The words are sufficient to draw forth pity; but nevertheless he gained nothing more even so; for the confession was untimely, and the plea was not made at the proper time. Send, he says, that Lazarus, the poor man, whom before this I detested, with whom I did not share the crumbs; I beg for him now, and I seek that finger which the dogs used to lick. Did you see how the punishment humbled him? Did you see how the broad way came to a narrow end? And he does not make his supplication to Lazarus, but to the patriarch. Reasonably so; for he did not even dare to look at the poor man. For he was considering, I think, his own inhumanity, and reckoning the mercilessness which he had shown toward him, he suspected that perhaps he would not even deem him worthy of a response. For this reason, therefore, he does not make his plea to him, but beseeches the patriarch. But nevertheless, not even so

καὶ δορυφοροῦντες, καὶ εἰς τὸ τῆς ἀνέσεως χωρίον μετὰ τὰς πολλὰς ἐκείνας θλίψεις καὶ τὴν στενὴν ὁδοιπορίαν ἀποκαθιστῶντες. Εἶδες ὅσον τῆς στενῆς πύλης καὶ τῆς τεθλιμμένης ὁδοῦ τὸ πλάτος ἐν τῷ τέλει φαίνεται; Ὅρα λοιπὸν καὶ τῆς εὐρυχώρου ὁδοῦ τὰ ὀλέθρια τέλη. Ἀπέθανε, φησὶ, καὶ ὁ πλούσιος, καὶ ἐτάφη. Οὐδεὶς ὁ προηγούμενος, οὐδεὶς ὁ δορυφορῶν, οὐδεὶς ὁ ὁδηγῶν, καθάπερ τὸν Λάζαρον. Ἐπειδὴ γὰρ ἐν τῇ εὐρυχώρῳ ὁδῷ τούτων ἁπάντων ἀπήλαυε, καὶ πολλοὺς ἔσχε τοὺς δορυφοροῦντας, τοὺς θεραπεύοντας, τοὺς κόλακας λέγω, τοὺς παρασίτους, ἡνίκα πρὸς τὸ τέλος ἔφθασε, γυμνὸς καὶ ἔρημος ἁπάντων γέγονε μετὰ τὰς πολλὰς ἐκείνας ἀνέσεις, μᾶλλον δὲ μετὰ τὴν βραχεῖαν ἐκείνην ἄνεσιν καὶ εὐημερίαν. Ἅπας γὰρ ὁ παρὼν βίος βραχὺς, τῷ μέλλοντι αἰῶνι συγκρινόμενος. Μετὰ τὴν βραχεῖαν τοίνυν ἄνεσιν, ἧς ἀπήλαυσε τὴν εὐρύχωρον ὁδὸν βαδίζων, τὸ τῆς στενοχωρίας καὶ τῆς θλίψεως χωρίον αὐτὸν ἐδέξατο. Καὶ ἐκεῖνος μὲν ἐν τοῖς κόλποις τοῦ πατριάρχου ἐπανεπαύετο, τῶν πόνων καὶ τῆς πολλῆς ταλαιπωρίας τὰς ἀμοιβὰς ἀπολαμβάνων, καὶ μετὰ τὸν λιμὸν καὶ τὰ ἕλκη καὶ τὴν ἐν τῷ πυλῶνι κατάκλισιν, τῆς ἀποῤῥήτου ἐκείνης ἀνέσεως καὶ οὐδὲ λόγῳ ἑρμηνευθῆναι δυναμένης μετεῖχεν· οὗτος δὲ μετὰ τὴν τρυφὴν καὶ ἄνεσιν καὶ γαστριμαργίαν τὴν πολλὴν καὶ τὴν μέθην εἰς τὴν ἀπαραίτητον κόλασιν ἐκείνην καταντήσας ἀπετηγανίζετο. Καὶ ἵνα ἑκάτερος αὐτῶν διὰ τῶν πραγμάτων μάθῃ, ὁ μὲν τῆς στενῆς ὁδοῦ τὸ κέρδος, ὁ δὲ τῆς εὐρυχώρου τὴν ζημίαν καὶ τὸν ὄλεθρον, ἀπὸ πολλοῦ τοῦ διαστήματος ἀλλήλους ὁρῶσιν. Ἄκουε δὲ πῶς· Καὶ ἐν τῷ ᾅδῃ, φησὶν, ἐπάρας τοὺς ὀφθαλμοὺς αὐτοῦ, ὑπάρχων ἐν βασάνοις, ὁρᾷ τὸν Ἀβραὰμ ἀπὸ μακρόθεν, καὶ Λάζαρον ἐν τοῖς κόλποις αὐτοῦ. Ἐμοὶ δὲ δοκεῖ, ὅτι θεασάμενος τὴν ἀθρόαν οὕτω τῶν πραγμάτων μεταβολὴν, καὶ τὸν μὲν ἐν τῷ πυλῶνι ἐῤῥιμμένον, καὶ ταῖς γλώσσαις τῶν κυνῶν προκείμενον, τοσαύτης ἀπολαύοντα τῆς παῤῥησίας, καὶ τοῖς κόλποις τοῦ πατριάρχου ἐνδιαιτώμενον, ἑαυτὸν δὲ τοσαύτῃ αἰσχύνῃ περιβεβλημένον, καὶ μετὰ ταύτης καὶ ὑπὸ τοῦ πυρὸς ἀποτηγανιζόμενον, πλείονα τῆς ὀδύνης τὴν αἴσθησιν ἐλάμβανεν. Ὁρῶν τοιγαροῦν εἰς τὸ ἐναντίον τὰ πράγματα μεταστάντα, καὶ αὐτὸν μὲν, ὡς εἰπεῖν, ἐν ὀνείρῳ καὶ σκιᾷ τρυφήσαντα, καὶ νῦν τὴν ἀφόρητον κόλασιν ὑπομένοντα, καὶ μετὰ τὴν εὐρύχωρον ὁδὸν καὶ τὴν πλατεῖαν πύλην εἰς οὕτω 48.1051 στενὸν καταστρέψαντα τέλος· ἐπ' ἐκείνου δὲ τὰ ἐναντία συμβεβηκότα, καὶ διὰ τὴν ἐνταῦθα ὑπομονὴν τῶν ἀποῤῥήτων ἐκείνων ἀγαθῶν αὐτὸν ἀπολαύοντα· καὶ ἐν ἀμηχανίᾳ γεγονὼς, καὶ τῇ πείρᾳ μαθὼν τὴν ἀπάτην, ἣν ὑπέμεινε δι' ὅλου τὴν εὐρύχωρον ὁδὸν ἑλόμενος, ἱκετηρίαν τίθησι πρὸς τὸν πατριάρχην, καὶ ἐλεεινὰ φθέγγεται ῥήματα, καὶ δακρύων γέμοντα. Καὶ ὁ πρὸ τούτου μηδὲ ἐπιστρεφόμενος, μηδὲ ἰδεῖν ἀνεχόμενος τὸν Λάζαρον, τὸν πένητα, τὸ ἐν τῷ πυλῶνι ἐῤῥιμμένον, ἀλλὰ καὶ βδελυττόμενος αὐτὸν, ὡς εἰπεῖν, διὰ τὴν τῶν ἑλκῶν δυσωδίαν, καὶ τὴν οἰκείαν βλακείαν, ἐν ᾗ διηνεκῶς τρυφῶν διῆγε, νῦν ἱκετεύει τὸν πατριάρχην, καί φησι· Πάτερ Ἀβραὰμ, ἐλέησόν με, καὶ πέμψον Λάζαρον, ἵνα βάψῃ τὸ ἄκρον τοῦ δακτύλου αὐτοῦ ὕδατος, καὶ καταψύξῃ τὴν γλῶσσάν μου, ὅτι ὀδυνῶμαι ἐν τῇ φλογὶ ταύτῃ. Ἱκανὰ τὰ ῥήματα εἰς οἶκτον ἀφελκύσασθαι· ἀλλ' ὅμως οὐδὲ οὕτως ὤνησέ τι πλέον· ἄκαιρος γὰρ ἡ ἐξομολόγησις καὶ ἡ παράκλησις οὐκ ἐν καιρῷ τῷ δέοντι γινομένη. Πέμψον, φησὶ, τὸν Λάζαρον ἐκεῖνον, τὸν πένητα, ὃν πρὸ τούτου ἐβδελυττόμην, ᾧ τῶν ψιχίων οὐ μετεδίδουν· ἐκείνου δέομαι νῦν, καὶ τὸν δάκτυλον ἐκεῖνον ἐπιζητῶ, ὂν οἱ κύνες ἔλειχον. Εἶδες πῶς συνέστειλεν αὐτὸν ἡ τιμωρία; εἶδες πῶς εἰς στενὸν τέλος κατήντησεν ἡ εὐρύχωρος ὁδός; Καὶ οὐ ποιεῖται πρὸς τὸν Λάζαρον τὴν ἱκετηρίαν, ἀλλὰ πρὸς τὸν πατριάρχην. Εἰκότως· οὐδὲ γὰρ Ἀντιβλέψαι ἐτόλμα τῷ πένητι. Ἐνενόει γὰρ, οἶμαι, τὴν οἰκείαν ἀπανθρωπίαν, καὶ τὸ ἀνηλεὲς λογιζόμενος ὅπερ εἰς αὐτὸν ἐπεδείξατο, ὑπώπτευεν αὐτὸν ἴσως μηδὲ ἀποκρίσεως ἀξιοῦν. ∆ιά τοι τοῦτο οὐδὲ πρὸς αὐτὸν ποιεῖται τὴν παράκλησιν, ἀλλὰ τὸν πατριάρχην ἱκετεύει. Ἀλλ' ὅμως οὐδὲ οὕτως