John Chrysostom, On John

are you seeking? What is this? He who knows the hearts of men, who enters into our thoughts, does He ask? But not so that He might learn (for how could He?), but so that through the question He might make them more at ease with Him, and impart to them greater confidence, and show that they were worthy of a hearing. For it was likely they would blush and be afraid, since they were strangers, and had heard such things testified concerning their Master. Therefore, to dissolve all these things, their shame, their fear, He asks, and did not allow them to come to the house in silence; and yet the 59.118 same thing would have happened, even if He had not asked. For they would have remained following Him, and walking at His heels they would have arrived at the house. For what reason then does He ask? To accomplish what I have said, both calming their mind, which was blushing and still anxious, and giving them courage. They showed their desire not only by following, but also by their question. For not yet having learned from Him, nor having heard Him, they call Him Teacher, pushing themselves into the company of the disciples, and showing the reason for which they followed, namely, to hear something useful. Behold for me also their understanding. They did not say, 'Teach us about doctrines or some other necessary thing'; but what? 'Where do you stay?' For in quiet, as I said before, they wished both to say something to Him, and to hear something from Him, and to learn. Therefore they neither postponed it, nor said, 'We will certainly come tomorrow, and we will hear you speak in public'; but they demonstrate the great eagerness they had for hearing, by not being turned away even by the hour. For it happened that the sun was already towards its setting. For it was about the tenth hour, he says. For this reason Christ does not give the address of the house, nor the location, but draws them more to follow, showing that He had accepted them. And for this reason He Himself did not say any such thing as, 'It is untimely for you to enter a house now; you will hear tomorrow if you wish anything, return home now'; but He converses with them as with friends and those who had been with Him a long time. How then does He say elsewhere, 'But the Son of Man has nowhere to lay His head'; but here He says, 'Come and see where I am staying'? Because, 'has nowhere to lay His head,' indicates that He did not possess His own lodging, not that He did not stay in a house; for this is also the meaning of the saying. That they remained with Him that day, the Evangelist said; but for what reason, he no longer added, as the cause was evident. For it was for no other reason that they followed Him, nor that Christ drew them to Him, but for the sake of teaching; which they enjoyed so abundantly and eagerly, even in one night, that they immediately went to hunt for others. 4. Therefore, let us also learn from this to set aside all secondary matters for the sake of divine hearing, and to consider no time inopportune, but even if one must go to a stranger's house, or become known to great men while being unknown, or at an unseasonable hour of the day, or at any time whatever, never to neglect this business. Food, therefore, and baths and dinners, and the other things of life, let them have their appointed time; but let teaching concerning the philosophy from above have no appointed hour, but let all time be its time. For, he says, 'in season, out of season, reprove, rebuke, exhort.' And the Prophet also says, 'In His law he will meditate day and night'; and Moses commanded the Jews to do this continually. For the things of life, I mean baths and dinners, although necessary, yet when done continuously make the body feeble; but the teaching of the soul, the more it is intensified, the stronger it makes the soul that receives it. But now we set aside every time for trifles and unprofitable chatter, and we sit together in vain in the morning, and at 59.119 afternoon, and midday, and in the evening itself, and we have appointed places for this purpose; but hearing the divine doctrines once or twice a week, we are nauseated, we become sated. What then is the cause? We are ill-disposed in

ζητεῖτε; Τί τοῦτο; ὁ εἰδὼς τὰς καρδίας τῶν ἀνθρώπων, ὁ τοῖς λογισμοῖς ἡμῶν ἐμβατεύων, οὗτος ἐρωτᾷ; Ἀλλ' οὐχ ἵνα μάθῃ (πῶς γάρ;), ἀλλ' ἵνα διὰ τῆς ἐρωτήσεως μᾶλλον αὐτοὺς οἰκειώσηται, καὶ πλείονος μεταδῷ τῆς παῤῥησίας, καὶ δείξῃ τῆς ἀκροάσεως ὄντας ἀξίους. Εἰκὸς γὰρ ἦν ἐρυθριᾷν καὶ δεδοικέναι, ἅτε ἀγνῶτας ὄντας, καὶ τοιαῦτα περὶ αὐτοῦ τοῦ διδασκάλου μαρτυροῦντος ἀκηκοότας. Ταῦτ' οὖν ἅπαντα λύων, τὴν αἰδὼ, τὸν φόβον, ἐρωτᾷ, καὶ οὐκ εἴασε σιγῇ μέχρι τῆς οἰκίας ἐλθεῖν· καίτοι τὸ 59.118 αὐτὸ ἂν ἐγένετο, καὶ εἰ μὴ ἠρώτησε. Παρέμειναν γὰρ ἂν ἀκολουθοῦντες αὐτῷ, καὶ κατὰ πόδας βαδίζοντες ἐπέστησαν τῇ οἰκίᾳ. Τίνος οὖν ἕνεκεν ἐρωτᾷ; Τοῦτο ὅπερ εἶπον κατασκευάζων, καταπραΰνων τε αὐτοῖς τὸν λογισμὸν ἐρυθριῶντα, ἔτι καὶ ἀγωνιῶντα, καὶ παρέχων θαῤῥεῖν. Οὐ διὰ τῆς ἀκολουθήσεως δὲ μόνον τὸν πόθον, ἀλλὰ καὶ διὰ τῆς ἐρωτήσεως ἐφανέρωσαν. Οὐδὲ γὰρ οὐδέπω μαθόντες παρ' αὐτοῦ, οὐδὲ ἀκούσαντες, διδάσκαλον αὐτὸν καλοῦσιν, εἰς τοὺς μαθητὰς εἰσωθοῦντες ἑαυτοὺς, καὶ τὴν αἰτίαν δεικνύντες, δι' ἣν ἠκολούθουν, ὥς τι τῶν χρησίμων ἀκουσόμενοι. Θέα δέ μοι καὶ τὴν σύνεσιν. Οὐκ εἶπον· ∆ίδαξον ἡμᾶς περὶ δογμάτων ἤ τινος ἑτέρου τῶν ἀναγκαίων· ἀλλὰ τί; Ποῦ μένεις; Μετὰ γὰρ ἡσυχίας, ὅπερ ἔμπροσθεν ἔφην, καὶ εἰπεῖν τι πρὸς αὐτὸν, καὶ ἀκοῦσαί τι παρ' αὐτοῦ, καὶ μαθεῖν ἤθελον. ∆ιόπερ οὐδὲ ἀνεβάλοντο, οὐδὲ εἶπον· Ἥξομεν πάντως αὔριον, καὶ ἀκουσόμεθα διαλεγομένου σου δημοσίᾳ· ἀλλὰ τὴν πολλὴν σπουδὴν ἢν εἶχον περὶ τὴν ἀκρόασιν ἐπιδείκνυνται, τῷ μηδὲ ὑπὸ τῆς ὥρας ἀποτραπῆναι. Καὶ γὰρ ἔτυχε λοιπὸν πρὸς δυσμὰς ὁ ἥλιος ὤν. Ὥρα γὰρ ἦν ὡς δεκάτη, φησί. ∆ιὰ τοῦτο καὶ ὁ Χριστὸς οὐ λέγει τὰ σημεῖα τῆς οἰκίας, οὐδὲ τὸν τόπον, ἀλλ' ἐπισπᾶται πλέον αὐτοὺς πρὸς τὴν ἀκολούθησιν, δεικνὺς ὅτι αὐτοὺς ἀπεδέξατο. Καὶ διὰ τοῦτο οὐδὲ αὐτὸς τοιοῦτόν τι εἶπεν· ἄκαιρόν ἐστιν εἰς οἰκίαν νῦν ὑμᾶς εἰσελθεῖν, ἀκούσεσθε αὔριον εἴ τι βούλεσθε, ἀναχωρήσατε οἴκαδε νῦν· ἀλλ' ὡς πρὸς φίλους καὶ πολὺν αὐτῷ συγγεγονότας χρόνον, οὕτω διαλέγεται. Πῶς οὖν ἀλλαχοῦ φησιν· Ὁ δὲ Υἱὸς τοῦ ἀνθρώπου οὐκ ἔχει ποῦ τὴν κεφαλὴν κλίνῃ· ἐνταῦθα δὲ λέγει, Ἔρχεσθε καὶ ἴδετε ποῦ μένω; Ὅτι τὸ, Οὐκ ἔχει ποῦ τὴν κεφαλὴν κλίνῃ, δηλωτικόν ἐστι τοῦ μηδὲ ἴδιον καταγώγιον κεκτῆσθαι, οὐχ ὅτι ἐν οἰκίᾳ οὐ κατέμενε· καὶ γὰρ καὶ ἡ παραβολὴ τοῦτο βούλεται. Ὅτι μὲν οὖν παρ' αὐτῷ ἔμειναν τὴν ἡμέραν ἐκείνην, εἶπεν ὁ Εὐαγγελιστής· τίνος δὲ ἕνεκεν, οὐκ ἔτι προσέθηκεν, ὡς δήλου τῆς αἰτίας οὔσης. Οὐδὲ γὰρ ἑτέρου τινὸς ἕνεκεν οὔτε αὐτῷ ἠκολούθησαν, οὔτε ὁ Χριστὸς αὐτοὺς ἐπεσπάσατο, ἀλλ' ἢ διὰ τὴν διδασκαλίαν· ἧς οὕτω δαψιλῶς καὶ προθύμως ἀπέλαυσαν, καὶ ἐν νυκτὶ μιᾷ, ὡς εὐθέως θατέρους καὶ ἐφ' ἑτέρων θήραν ἐλθεῖν. δʹ. Οὐκοῦν καὶ ἡμεῖς ἐντεῦθεν διδαχθῶμεν πάντα πάρεργα τίθεσθαι τῆς θείας ἀκροάσεως, καὶ μηδένα καιρὸν ἄκαιρον εἶναι νομίζειν, ἀλλὰ κἂν εἰς οἰκίαν ἀλλοτρίαν ἀπελθεῖν δέῃ, κἂν γνώριμον ἀνδράσι γενέσθαι μεγάλοις ἀγνῶτα ὄντα, κἂν ἀωρὶ τῆς ἡμέρας, κἂν οἱῳδήποτε καιρῷ, μηδέποτε ταύτης ἀμελεῖν τῆς ἐμπορίας. Τροφὴ μὲν οὖν καὶ λουτρὰ καὶ δεῖπνα, καὶ τὰ ἄλλα τὰ βιωτικὰ, καιρὸν ἐχέτω τὸν ὡρισμένον· διδασκαλία δὲ περὶ φιλοσοφίας τῆς ἄνω, μηδεμίαν ἀφωρισμένην ὥραν ἐχέτω, ἀλλ' ἅπας αὐτῆς ἔστω ὁ καιρός. Εὐκαίρως γὰρ, φησὶν, ἀκαίρως ἔλεγξον, ἐπιτίμησον, παρακάλεσον. Καὶ ὁ Προφήτης δέ φησιν, Ἐν τῷ νόμῳ αὐτοῦ μελετήσει ἡμέρας καὶ νυκτός· καὶ τοῖς Ἰουδαίοις δὲ ὁ Μωϋσῆς διαπαντὸς τοῦτο ποιεῖν ἐκέλευε. Τὰ μὲν γὰρ βιωτικὰ, βαλανεῖα λέγω καὶ δεῖπνα, εἰ καὶ ἀναγκαῖα, ὅμως συνεχῶς γινόμενα τὸ σῶμα ἐξίτηλον ἐργάζεται· ἡ δὲ τῆς ψυχῆς διδασκαλία, ὅσῳπερ ἂν ἐπιτείνηται, τοσούτῳ τὴν δεχομένην ἰσχυροτέραν ποιεῖ ψυχήν. Νῦν δὲ λήροις μὲν καὶ φλυαρίαις ἀνονήτοις πάντα καιρὸν ἀφορίζομεν, καὶ τὸν ὑπὸ τὴν ἕω, καὶ τὸν 59.119 περὶ δείλης, καὶ μεσημβρίαν, καὶ ἑσπέραν δὲ αὐτὴν συνεδρεύομεν εἰκῆ, καὶ τόπους εἰς τοῦτο ἀπετάξαμεν· τῶν δὲ θείων δογμάτων ἅπαξ ἢ δὶς τῆς ἑβδομάδος ἀκούοντες, ναυτιῶμεν, διακορεῖς γινόμεθα. Τί οὖν τὸ αἴτιον; Κακῶς διακείμεθα τὴν