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he feared the daily increasing prosperity, and compels the just man to move away from there. And it is worthwhile to hear the very words of the divine Scripture, so that through them we may behold the goodwill of God, which he displays toward his own servants. And Isaac sowed, it says, in that land, and found a hundredfold of barley in that year. Did you see the generosity of the Master? Did you see the increase of beneficence? But let us also see the jealousy of the king, what it became on account of the just man's prosperity. Go away from us, he says, because you have become 63.681 mightier than us. And truly he was mightier, having the alliance from above in all things, and being guarded by the right hand of God. Where then are you driving the just man away? Do you not know that wherever he may happen to go, he must be in the domain of his own Master? For even if you compel 63.682 him to go away into the desert itself, he has so resourceful a Master, as to show him to be much more illustrious even when he is there. For through contraries He very often manages contrary things. To Him is due glory, power, honor and worship, with the Father and the Holy Spirit, for ever. Amen.

SERMON XVIII. Concerning hatred and enmity. If anyone has been wronged by his neighbor, let him take David into memory and into

his mind, so that, while his heart yet lives, by the memory of this most meek and long-suffering man he may be able to dissipate the sea of wrath. For why is your brother your enemy? Did he insult you? but he has done no wrong. But for the sake of money do you allow him to be an enemy? No, I beseech you. Do not put off cutting the cords of wrath; for delays beget postponements; if today you put it off, you blush the more; and if you add tomorrow, the shame is greater; and on the third, by prolonging the delay you will be shamed even more. Grant me, I beseech you, to say these things with readiness; make me hear that we have accomplished something from this continuous teaching; that someone having gone away immediately embraced an enemy with both his hands, clung to him, embraced him, kissed him tenderly, wept; for even if that man is a wild beast, or a stone, or anything at all, being softened by such friendliness he will be tamed; and you will both deliver yourself from accusations, and you will gain him, having drawn him to goodwill. And do not say to me, that I have a vile enemy, wicked, corrupt, incorrigible, and I am not able to be reconciled to him. For whatever you might say, he is not worse than Saul; who, having been saved by David once, twice, and many times, himself plotted against him countless times; then having been benefited in return for these things, he persisted in maintaining his own wickedness. For what can you say? that he cut off your land, and wronged you in the field, and transgressed the boundaries of your house, and seized your slaves, and insulted you, and defrauded you, and brought you to poverty? But he has not yet sought to take away your life, not twice and thrice and many times, nor after being benefited so many times, nor after falling into your hands many times and being saved. But even if this were so, even so David again has the advantage, because being brought up under more imperfect laws, which demand nothing of the sort, he reached the very summit of grace. And you indeed often bear a grudge, being angry over past things; but this man, even fearing for the future, and knowing precisely that the city would be uninhabitable for him, and life unlivable, if he saved his enemy, did not cease from his care for him, but did everything, nurturing the enemy against himself. What then is it, tell me, that you charge against your enemy for which you are unwilling to be reconciled? For what great wrong has he done you? Did he take away your money? But if you bear the robbery nobly, you will receive as great a reward as if you had placed it in the hands of the poor. For both the one who has given to the poor, and the one who has not plotted against or even cursed 63.682 the one who defrauded him for God's sake, have done the same things. Therefore when the reason for the expense is one, it is clear that the crown is also one. But did he plot against your life and attempt to kill you? martyrdom is yours the

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ἡμέραν αὐξανομένην τὴν εὐπορίαν ἐδεδοίκει, καὶ μεταναστῆναι ἐκεῖθεν καταναγκάζει τὸν δίκαιον. Ἄξιον δὲ ἀκοῦσαι καὶ αὐτῶν τῶν ῥημάτων τῆς θείας Γραφῆς, ἵνα δι' αὐτῶν θεασώμεθα τοῦ Θεοῦ τὴν εὔνοιαν, ἢν περὶ τοὺς αὐτοῦ οἰκέτας ἐπιδείκνυται. Ἔσπειρε δὲ, φησὶν, Ἰσαὰκ ἐν τῇ γῇ ἐκείνῃ, καὶ εὗρεν ἑκατοστεύουσαν κριθὴν ἐν τῷ ἐνιαυτῷ ἐκείνῳ. Εἶδες φιλοτιμίαν ∆εσπότου; εἶδες ἐπίτασιν εὐεργεσίας; Ἀλλ' ἴδωμεν καὶ τοῦ βασιλέως τὸν ζῆλον, οἷος ἐγίνετο διὰ τὴν τοῦ δικαίου εὐπορίαν· Ἄπελθε, φησὶν, ἀφ' ἡμῶν, ὅτι δυνατώτερος ἡμῶν 63.681 ἐγένου. Καὶ ἀληθῶς δυνατώτερος ἦν, τὴν ἄνωθεν συμμαχίαν ἔχων ἐν ἅπασι, καὶ ὑπὸ τῆς τοῦ Θεοῦ δεξιᾶς φρουρούμενος. Ποῦ τοίνυν ἀπελαύνεις τὸν δίκαιον; οὐκ οἶσθα ὅτι ὅπου ἂν αὐτὸν συμβαίη ἀπελθεῖν, ἐν τοῖς τοῦ ∆εσπότου τοῦ ἑαυτοῦ εἶναι αὐτὸν ἀνάγκη; Κἂν γὰρ εἰς αὐτὴν τὴν ἔρημον ἀπελθεῖν καταναγκά 63.682 σῃς, οὕτως εὐμήχανον ∆εσπότην ἔχει, ὡς κἀκεῖ γενόμενον πολλῷ πλέον περιφανέστερον ἀποδεῖξαι. ∆ιὰ γὰρ τῶν ἐναντίων μάλιστα τὰ ἐναντία πολλάκις οἰκονομεῖ. Αὐτῷ πρέπει δόξα, κράτος, τιμὴ καὶ προσκύνησις, σὺν τῷ Πατρὶ καὶ τῷ ἁγίῳ Πνεύματι, εἰς τοὺς αἰῶνας. Ἀμήν.

ΛΟΓΟΣ ΙΗʹ. Περὶ μίσους καὶ ἔχθρας. Εἴ τις παρὰ τοῦ πλησίον ἠδίκηται, εἰς μνήμην τὸν ∆αυῒδ λαμβανέτω καὶ εἰς

νοῦν βαλλέσθω, ἵνα, ὡς ἔτι ζῇ ἡ καρδία, τῇ μνήμῃ τοῦ πραοτάτου καὶ ἀνεξικάκου τούτου δυνηθῇ τὸ πέλαγος τῆς μήνιδος διαλῦσαι. ∆ιὰ τί γάρ σου ἐχθρός ἐστιν ὁ ἀδελφός; Ὕβρισέ σε; ἀλλ' οὐδὲν ἠδίκησεν. Ἀλλὰ χρημάτων ἕνεκεν τοῦτον περιορᾷς ἐχθραίνοντα; μὴ, παρακαλῶ. μὴ ἀναβάλῃ τὰ τῆς μήνιδος διακόψαι σχοινία· αἱ γὰρ ἀναβολαὶ μελλήσεις τίκτουσιν· ἂν σήμερον ὑπερθῇ, μᾶλλον ἐρυθριᾷς· κἂν αὔριον προσθῇς, μείζων ἡ αἰσχύνη· κἂν τὴν τρίτην, ἐπὶ πλέον αἰσχυνθήσῃ τὴν ἀναβολὴν μηκυνόμενος. ∆ότε μοι, παρακαλῶ, μετὰ προθυμίας ταῦτα λέγειν· ποιήσατέ με ἀκοῦσαι ὅτι ἀπὸ τῆς συνεχοῦς ταύτης διδασκαλίας ἠνύσαμέν τι· ὅτι ἐχθρόν τις ἀπελθὼν εὐθέως περιέβαλεν ἄμφω τὼ χεῖρε, περιεχύθη, περιεπλάκη, κατεφίλησεν, ἐδάκρυσε· κἂν γὰρ θηρίον ἐκεῖνος ᾖ, κἂν λίθος, κἂν ὁτιοῦν, ὑπὸ τῆς τοιαύτης καταμαλαχθεὶς φιλοφροσύνης ἡμερωθήσεται· καὶ σαυτὸν μὲν ἀπαλλάξεις τῶν ἐγκλημάτων, ἐκεῖνον δὲ πρὸς εὔνοιαν ἐπισπασάμενος κερδανεῖς. Καὶ μή μοι λέγε, ὅτι Μιαρὸν ἐχθρὸν ἔχω, πονηρὸν, διεφθαρμένον, ἀδιόρθωτον, καὶ καταλλάξαι αὐτὸν οὐ δύναμαι. Οἷον γὰρ ἂν εἴπῃς, οὐκ ἔστι τοῦ Σαοὺλ χείρων· ὃς καὶ ἅπαξ καὶ δὶς καὶ πολλάκις διασωθεὶς ὑπὸ τοῦ ∆αυῒδ, αὐτὸς μυριάκις ἐπεβουλεύσατο· εἶτα ἀντὶ τούτων εὐεργετηθεὶς, ἔμενε τὴν ἑαυτοῦ πονηρίαν διατηρῶν. Τί γὰρ ἔχεις εἰπεῖν; ὅτι γῆν ἀπετέμετο, καὶ ἐν ἀγρῷ ἠδίκησε, καὶ οἰκίας ὅρια ὑπερέβη, καὶ ἀνδράποδα ἥρπασε, καὶ ὕβρισε, καὶ ἐπλεονέκτησε, καὶ εἰς πενίαν ἤγαγεν; Ἀλλ' οὔπω τὴν ψυχὴν ἀφελέσθαι ἐσπούδασεν, οὐχὶ δὶς καὶ τρὶς καὶ πολλάκις, ἀλλ' οὐδὲ τοσαῦτα εὐεργετηθεὶς, οὐδὲ εἰς τὰς χεῖρας τὰς σὰς πολλάκις ἐμπεσὼν καὶ διασωθείς. Εἰ δὲ καὶ τοῦτο, καὶ οὕτω πλεονεκτεῖ πάλιν ὁ ∆αυῒδ, ὅτι ἀτελεστέροις ἐντρεφόμενος νόμοις, καὶ οὐδὲν ἀπαιτοῦσι τοιοῦτον, πρὸς αὐτὴν τὴν κορυφὴν τὴν ἐν τῇ χάριτι ἔφθασε. Καὶ σὺ μὲν πολλάκις ὑπὲρ τῶν παρελθόντων ὀργιζόμενος μνησικακεῖς· οὗτος δὲ καὶ ὑπὲρ τῶν μελλόντων δεδοικὼς, καὶ εἰδὼς ἀκριβῶς ὅτι ἀοίκητος αὐτῷ ἔσται ἡ πόλις, καὶ ἀβίωτος ὁ βίος σώσαντι τὸν ἐχθρὸν, οὐκ ἀφίστατο τῆς ἐκείνου κηδεμονίας, ἀλλὰ πάντα ἔπραττε καθ' ἑαυτοῦ τὸν πολέμιον τρέφων. Τί δήποτέ ἐστιν, εἰπέ μοι, ὅπερ ἐγκαλῶν τῷ ἐχθρῷ οὐ βούλει καταλλαγῆναι; τί γάρ σε τοσοῦτον ἠδίκησε; Χρήματά σε ἀφείλετο; ἀλλ' ἐὰν ἐνέγκῃς γενναίως τὴν ἁρπαγὴν, τοσοῦτον λήψῃ μισθὸν, ὅσον ἂν εἰ ταῖς τῶν πενήτων χερσὶν ἐναπέθηκας. Καὶ γὰρ ὁ πένησι δεδωκὼς, καὶ ὁ τῷ πλεονεκτήσαντι μὴ ἐπιβουλευσάμενος ἢ καὶ καταρα 63.682 σάμενος διὰ τὸν Θεὸν, τὰ αὐτὰ πεποιήκασιν. Ὅταν οὖν ἡ ὑπόθεσις τῆς δαπάνης ᾖ μία, εὔδηλον ὅτι καὶ ὁ στέφανος εἷς. Ἀλλ' εἰς ψυχὴν ἐπεβούλευσε καὶ ἀνελεῖν ἐπεχείρησε; μαρτύριόν σοι τὸ