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change, but we expect there will be a very swift calm, and casting the end of all the tumults that possess us upon God, let us ourselves take up our usual subjects again, and let us bring our customary teaching into our midst. For I want to discourse with you again about the same subject, so as to pull up by the roots from your mind the evil habit of swearing oaths. Therefore it is necessary to resort again to the same supplication. For I previously exhorted you, taking the severed head of John, and still dripping with warm blood, for each of you to depart to your homes in this way, and to imagine that you see it before your eyes, uttering a voice and saying: ‘Hate my murderer, the oath.’ What reproof did not do, this an oath did; what a tyrant’s anger could not do, this the necessity of keeping an oath brought about. And when he was being rebuked publicly in the hearing of all, the tyrant bore the censure nobly, but when he cast himself into the necessity of an oath, then he cut off that blessed head. This very same thing I now also exhort, and I do not cease exhorting, that wherever we may go, we go carrying this head, and showing it to all, crying out and accusing oaths. For even if we are very lazy and negligent, seeing the eyes of that head looking terribly at us and threatening those who swear, being disciplined by this fear more effectively than by any bridle, we will be able easily to restrain and turn away our tongue from the impulse toward oaths. For the oath does not have only this terrible aspect, that whether transgressed or kept, it punishes those who are caught in it, something one would not see happen in any of the other sins; but also another evil, no less than this one. And what is this? That it is often impossible to keep an oath even for those who wish and are eager to do so. For first, one who is constantly swearing—both willingly and unwillingly, both knowingly and unknowingly, both in earnest and in jest, and often carried away by anger and by many other things—will certainly commit perjury. And no one will contradict this; it is so agreed and clear that one who swears many oaths must also be a perjurer. Secondly, even if he does not suffer this by being carried away, or unwillingly, or unknowingly, by the very 49.145 nature of the matter, both knowingly and willingly, he will be compelled to commit perjury anyway. For often when we are having breakfast at home, and one of the servants makes a mistake, the wife has sworn she will scourge him; then the husband has sworn the opposite, obstinately insisting on the contrary and not giving way. Here, whatever they may do, perjury must necessarily result; for it is no longer possible for them to keep the oath, even if they wish and are eager to do so; but whatever happens, one of them will be caught in perjury; or rather, both of them certainly; and how, I shall say; for this is the strange thing. The one who swore to scourge the male or female servant, and was then prevented, has both perjured himself by not doing what he swore, and has also put the charge of perjury on the one who prevented and interrupted the keeping of the oath. For not only those who commit perjury, but also those who impose this necessity on others are responsible for the same crimes. And one might see this happening not only in homes, but also in the marketplaces, and especially in fights, when men boxing with one another swear opposite oaths, one that he will strike, the other that he will not be struck; one that he will take away the cloak, the other that he will not allow it; one that he will demand the money, the other that he will not give it back; and they swear many other such contrary things in their contentiousness. And one might see this happening in workshops and schools. For often a craftsman has sworn to his apprentice that he will not let him eat or drink before, until he completes all the work that was given. And a tutor has often done this to a youth, and a mistress to a maidservant, and it is necessary, when evening has come and the work is not finished, either for those who did not finish to perish from hunger, or for those who

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μεταβολὴν, ἀλλὰ ταχίστην προσδοκῶμεν ἔσεσθαι γαλῄνην, καὶ τὸ τέλος ἁπάντων τῶν κατεχόντων ἡμᾶς θορύβων ῥίψαντες ἐπὶ τὸν Θεὸν, αὐτοὶ τῶν συνήθων ἁπτώμεθα πάλιν, καὶ τὴν εἰωθυῖαν διδασκαλίαν εἰς μέσον ἀγάγωμεν. Πάλιν γὰρ ὑμῖν περὶ τῆς αὐτῆς ὑποθέσεως διαλεχθῆναι βούλομαι, ὥστε πρόῤῥιζον ἀπὸ τῆς διανοίας ὑμῶν ἀνασπάσαι τὴν πονηρὰν τῶν ὅρκων συνήθειαν. ∆ιόπερ ἀνάγκη πάλιν ἐπὶ τὴν αὐτὴν καταφυγεῖν ἱκετηρίαν. Καὶ γὰρ παρεκάλεσα πρώην ὑμᾶς τὴν κεφαλὴν Ἰωάννου λαβόντας ἀποτετμημένην, καὶ θερμοῦ τοῦ αἵματος ἔτι ἀποστάζουσαν, οὕτως ἀπελθεῖν οἴκαδε ἕκαστον, καὶ νομίζειν πρὸ τῶν ὀφθαλμῶν ὁρᾷν αὐτὴν φωνὴν ἀφιεῖσαν καὶ λέγουσαν· Μισήσατέ μου τὸν σφαγέα τὸν ὅρκον. Ὅπερ ἔλεγχος οὐκ ἐποίησε, τοῦτο ὅρκος ἐποίησεν· ὅπερ θυμὸς τυραννικὸς οὐκ ἴσχυσε, τοῦτο εὐορκίας ἀνάγκη παρεσκεύασε. Καὶ ὅτε μὲν ἠλέγχετο δημοσίᾳ πάντων ἀκουόντων, ἤνεγκε γενναίως τὴν ἐπιτίμησιν ὁ τύραννος, ὅτε δὲ εἰς ὅρκων ἀνάγκην ἑαυτὸν ἐνέβαλε, τότε τὴν μακαρίαν ἐκείνην ἀπέτεμε κεφαλήν. Τὸ αὐτὸ δὴ τοῦτο καὶ νῦν παρακαλῶ, καὶ παρακαλῶν οὐ παύομαι, ὥστε ὅπουπερ ἂν ἀπίωμεν, ταύτην βαστάζοντας τὴν κεφαλὴν ἀπιέναι, καὶ πᾶσιν αὐτὴν ἐπιδεικνύναι βοῶσαν καὶ τῶν ὅρκων κατηγοροῦσαν. Κἂν γὰρ σφόδρα ὦμεν ῥᾴθυμοι καὶ ὀλίγωροι, τοὺς ὀφθαλμοὺς τῆς κεφαλῆς ἐκείνης ὁρῶντες φοβερὸν εἰς ἡμᾶς βλέποντας καὶ ἀπειλοῦντας ὀμνύουσι, χαλινοῦ παντὸς εὐτονώτερον τῷ φόβῳ τούτῳ σωφρονισθέντες, ἅγχειν καὶ ἀποστρέφειν δυνησόμεθα ῥᾳδίως τὴν γλῶτταν ἀπὸ τῆς ἐπὶ τοὺς ὅρκους ὁρμῆς. Οὐδὲ γὰρ τοῦτο μόνον τὸ δεινὸν ἔχει ὁ ὅρκος, ὅτι καὶ παραβαινόμενος καὶ φυλαττόμενος κολάζει τοὺς ἁλισκομένους, ὅπερ ἐν οὐδενὶ τῶν ἄλλων ἁμαρτημάτων συμβαῖνον ἴδοι τις ἄν· ἀλλὰ καὶ ἕτερον οὐκ ἔλαττον τούτου κακόν. Τί δὲ τοῦτό ἐστι; Τὸ μηδὲ βουλομένοις μηδὲ σπουδάζουσι δυνατὸν εἶναι εὐορκῆσαι πολλάκις. Πρῶτον μὲν γὰρ ὁ διηνεκῶς ὀμνὺς, καὶ ἑκὼν καὶ ἄκων, καὶ ἀγνοῶν καὶ εἰδὼς, καὶ σπουδάζων καὶ παίζων, καὶ ὑπὸ θυμοῦ πολλάκις ἐκφερόμενος καὶ ὑπὸ ἑτέρων πολλῶν, ἐπιορκήσει πάντως. Καὶ πρὸς ταῦτα οὐδεὶς ἀντερεῖ· οὕτως ἐστὶν ὡμολογημένον καὶ δῆλον, ὅτι τὸν πολύορκον ἀνάγκη καὶ ἐπίορκον εἶναι. ∆εύτερον δὲ, ὅτι κἂν μὴ συναρπασθεὶς μηδὲ ἄκων μηδὲ ἀγνοῶν τοῦτο πάθῃ, ὑπ' αὐτῆς τοῦ πρά 49.145 γματος τῆς φύσεως, καὶ εἰδὼς καὶ ἑκὼν, ἀναγκασθήσεται ἐπιορκῆσαι πάντως. Πολλάκις γοῦν ἐπὶ τῆς οἰκίας ἀριστοποιουμένων ἡμῶν, καὶ τῶν οἰκετῶν τινος διαμαρτόντος, ὤμοσε μαστιγώσειν ἡ γυνή· εἶτα ἀντώμοσεν ὁ ἀνὴρ, τὰ ἐναντία ἐπιφιλονεικῶν καὶ οὐκ ἐκτρέπων. Ἐνταῦθα κἂν ὅ τι ἂν ποιήσωσιν, ἀνάγκη πάντως ἐπιορκίαν συστῆναι· οὐδὲ γὰρ βουλομένοις αὐτοῖς οὐδὲ σπουδάζουσι φυλάξαι δυνατὸν τὸν ὅρκον λοιπόν· ἀλλ' ὅπερ ἂν γένηται, θάτερος αὐτῶν ἐπιορκίᾳ ἁλώσεται· μᾶλλον δὲ ἀμφότεροι πάντως· καὶ πῶς, ἐγὼ λέγω· τοῦτο γάρ ἐστι τὸ παράδοξον. Ὁ ὀμόσας μαστιγώσειν τὸν οἰκέτην ἢ τὴν θεραπαινίδα, εἶτα κωλυθεὶς, αὐτός τε ἐπιώρκησε μὴ ποιήσας ὅπερ ὤμοσε, καὶ τῷ κωλύσαντι πάλιν καὶ διακόψαντι τὴν εὐορκίαν τὸ ἕγκλημα τῆς ἐπιορκίας περιέστησεν. Οὐ γὰρ οἱ ἐπιορκοῦντες μόνον, ἀλλὰ καὶ οἱ ἑτέροις τὴν ἀνάγκην ταύτην ἐφιστῶντες ὑπεύθυνοι τῶν αὐτῶν ἐγκλημάτων εἰσίν. Οὐκ ἐν οἰκίαις δὲ μόνον, ἀλλὰ καὶ ἐν ταῖς ἀγοραῖς ἴδοι τις ἂν τοῦτο γινόμενον, καὶ ἐν ταῖς μάχαις μάλιστα, ὅταν πρὸς ἀλλήλους πυκτεύοντες ἀντομνύωσιν, ὁ μὲν τυπτήσειν, ὁ δὲ μὴ τυπτήσεσθαι· ὁ μὲν ἀφαιρήσειν τὸ ἱμάτιον, ὁ δὲ οὐκ ἐπιτρέψειν· ὁ μὲν ἀπαιτήσειν τὸ ἀργύριον, ὁ δὲ οὐκ ἀποδώσειν· καὶ πολλὰ δὲ ἕτερα ἐναντία τοιαῦτα φιλονεικοῦντες ὀμνύουσι. Καὶ ἐν ἐργαστηρίοις δὲ καὶ διδασκαλείοις ἴδοι τις ἂν τοῦτο συμβαῖνον. Πολλάκις γοῦν τεχνίτης διωμόσατο τῷ μαθητῇ μὴ πρότερον αὐτὸν ἀφήσειν φαγεῖν καὶ πιεῖν, ἕως ἂν τὸ δοθὲν ἔργον ἅπαν ἀνύσῃ. Τοῦτο δὲ καὶ παιδαγωγὸς πολλάκις πρὸς νέον, καὶ πρὸς θεράπαιναν ἐποίησε δέσποινα, καὶ ἀνάγκη τῆς, ἑσπέρας καταλαβούσης, καὶ τοῦ ἔργου μὴ πληρωθέντος, ἢ λιμῷ διαφθαρῆναι τοὺς οὐκ ἀνύσαντας, ἢ ἐπιορκῆσαι τοὺς