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more securely. For commerce is subject both to the winds and the waves of the sea and to many shipwrecks; and seeds, both to droughts and to floods and to other irregularities of the weather; but the money deposited into the hand of the Lord is superior to every plot, and no one is able to snatch what has once been given from the hand of the one who received it, but it remains, producing for us much and unspeakable fruit, and bringing a rich harvest in its season. For if a man who has received will not neglect it, but will return the favor, how much more Christ. For He who gives even without receiving, how will He not give after He has received? Hear Solomon: He who has mercy on a poor man, he says, lends to God. Have you seen a strange and paradoxical kind of loan? One is the one who receives, and another is the one who makes himself responsible for the loan. Why did he not say, "He who has mercy on a poor man gives to God," but "lends"? So that you may not think the reward is simple. Scripture knows our greed; it has observed that our insatiability, looking toward avarice, seeks a surplus, and that nowhere does one with money wish to lend to the poor without security, or a mortgage, or collateral, or a guarantee. And since God knows that without these things no one lends, nor looks to philanthropy, but only looks to profit, and the poor man is destitute of all these things, having no mortgage, for he possesses nothing, bringing no collateral, for he is naked, providing no guarantor, for he is distrusted because of his poverty; when He saw the one in danger because of his poverty, and the one with money in danger because of his inhumanity, He placed Himself in the middle, a guarantor for the poor man, and collateral for the lender. He who has mercy on a poor man, he says, lends to God. And yet when we need to lend, we carefully seek out those who give much, and we look around for the grateful; but here we do the opposite, we pass over the grateful God, who provides a hundredfold, and we seek after those who will not even pay us back the principal. For what will the belly repay us, consuming the greater part? Dung and corruption. And what of vainglory? Envy and malice. And what of avarice? Care and anxiety. And what of debauchery? Gehenna and the venomous worm. For these are the debtors of the rich, paying them this interest on the principal, the evils here and the terrible things to be expected. For what reason then do you not give to the one who will surely give, and who will give more? Perhaps because He gives after a long time. And yet He gives here too; for he who says is not false: Seek the kingdom of heaven, and all these things will be added to you. Besides these things, even to receive after a long time increases your wealth; for the interest becomes greater. For we also see lenders doing this in the case of borrowers, lending more readily to those who pay after a long time. For the one who repays the whole amount immediately has cut short the course of the interest; but the one who has held it for a longer time has also made the profit 63.719 greater. Then in the case of men we are not displeased at the delay, but we even contrive for it to be longer; but in the case of God shall we be so fainthearted? He who has mercy on a poor man, lends to God. And you borrow from me, Lord, the alms for the poor man? So that you may one day repay me these things, give me the time of the repayment; set the deadline for the recovery. When and where do I repay you the debt? When the Son of man shall sit upon the throne of his glory, and he shall set the sheep on his right hand, but the goats on the left; and he shall say to them on his right hand: Come, you blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. For what things? Because I was hungry, and you gave me to eat; I was thirsty, and you gave me to drink; I was naked, and you clothed me. And why, O Lord, do you not make mention of other ways, but only of almsgiving? I do not judge, he says, sin, but inhumanity; I do not judge those who have sinned, but those who have not repented; for inhumanity I condemn you, because having such and so great a medicine

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ἀσφαλέστερον. Ἡ μὲν γὰρ ἐμπορία καὶ πνεύμασι καὶ κύμασι θαλάσσης ὑπόκειται καὶ ναυαγίοις πολλοῖς· καὶ τὰ σπέρματα καὶ αὐχμοῖς καὶ ἐπομβρίαις καὶ ἑτέραις ἀέρων ἀνωμαλίαις· τὰ δὲ εἰς τὴν χεῖρα τοῦ Κυρίου καταβαλλόμενα χρήματα ἀνώτερα πάσης ἐστὶν ἐπιβουλῆς, καὶ οὐδεὶς δύναται ἁρπάζειν ἐκ τῆς χειρὸς τοῦ λαβόντος τὰ δοθέντα ἅπαξ, ἀλλὰ μένει πολὺν ἡμῖν καὶ ἄφατον ἐργαζόμενα τὸν καρπὸν, καὶ τὸν ἀμητὸν ἐν καιρῷ φέροντα πλούσιον. Εἰ γὰρ ἄνθρωπος οὐ περιόψεται λαβὼν, ἀλλ' ἀποδώσει τὴν χάριν, πολλῷ μᾶλλον ὁ Χριστός. Ὁ γὰρ καὶ χωρὶς τοῦ λαβεῖν διδοὺς, πῶς μετὰ τοῦ λαβεῖν οὐ δώσει; Ἄκουε Σολομῶντος· Ὁ ἐλεῶν πτωχὸν, φησὶ, δανείζει Θεῷ. Εἶδες δανείου φύσιν ξένην καὶ παράδοξον; Ἕτερός ἐστιν ὁ λαμβάνων, καὶ ἕτερος ὁ τῷ δανείῳ ὑπεύθυνον ἑαυτὸν καθιστῶν. ∆ιὰ τί οὐκ εἶπεν, Ὁ ἐλεῶν πτωχὸν δίδωσι Θεῷ, ἀλλὰ, ∆ανείζει; Ἵνα μὴ ἁπλῆν τὴν ἀντιμισθίαν νομίσῃς. Οἶδεν ἡ Γραφὴ τὴν ἡμετέραν πλεονεξίαν· προσέσχεν ὅτι ἡ ἀπληστία ἡμῶν πρὸς πλεονεξίαν βλέπουσα τὸν πλεονασμὸν ζητεῖ, καὶ μηδαμοῦ τὸν χρήματα ἔχοντα δανείζειν θέλοντα τῷ πτωχῷ ἄνευ ἀσφαλείας, ἢ ὑποθήκης, ἢ ἐνεχύρων, ἢ ἐγγύης. Καὶ ἐπειδὴ οἶδεν ὁ Θεὸς, ὅτι ἐκτὸς τούτων οὐδεὶς δανείζει, οὐδὲ εἰς φιλανθρωπίαν βλέπει, ἀλλ' εἰς μόνον τὸ κέρδος ὁρᾷ, πάντων δὲ τούτων ἔρημος ὁ πτωχὸς, οὐχ ὑποθήκην ἔχων, κέκτηται γὰρ οὐδὲν, οὐκ ἐνέχυρα φέρων, γεγύμνωται γὰρ, οὐ τὸν ἀντιφωνοῦντα παρέχων, ἀπιστεῖται γὰρ διὰ τὴν ἀπορίαν· ὡς εἶδεν αὐτὸν μὲν διακινδυνεύοντα τῇ ἀπορίᾳ, τὸν δὲ ἔχοντα χρήματα κινδυνεύοντα διὰ τὴν ἀπανθρωπίαν, μέσον ἑαυτὸν παρενέθηκεν, ἔγγυον μὲν τῷ πένητι, ἐνέχυρον δὲ τῷ δανείζοντι Ὁ ἐλεῶν πτωχὸν, φησὶ, δανείζει Θεῷ. Καὶ μὴν ἂν δανείζειν δέῃ, τοὺς πολὺ διδόντας περιεργαζόμεθα, καὶ τοὺς εὐγνώμονας περισκοποῦμεν· ἐνταῦθα δὲ τοὐναντίον ποιοῦμεν, τὸν μὲν εὐγνωμονοῦντα Θεὸν, καὶ ἑκατονταπλασίονα παρέχοντα ἀφίεμεν, τοὺς δὲ ἀποδώσοντας ἡμῖν οὐδὲ τὸ κεφάλαιον, τούτους ἐπιζητοῦμεν. Τί γὰρ ἡμῖν ἡ γαστὴρ ἀποδώσει, τὰ πλείονα καταναλίσκουσα; κόπρον καὶ φθοράν. Τί δὲ ἡ κενοδοξία; φθόνον καὶ βασκανίαν. Τί δὲ ἡ φειδωλία; φροντίδα καὶ μέριμναν. Τί δὲ ἡ ἀσέλγεια; γέενναν καὶ σκώληκα ἰοβόλον. Οὗτοι γὰρ τῶν πλουτούντων οἱ χρεῶσται, τούτους τοῦ κεφαλαίου τοὺς τόκους καταβάλλοντες, τὰ ἐνταῦθα κακὰ καὶ τὰ προσδοκώμενα δεινά. Τίνος οὖν ἕνεκεν οὐ δίδως τῷ καὶ δώσοντι πάντως, καὶ πλείονα δώσοντι; Τάχα ὅτι διὰ πολλοῦ δίδωσι χρόνου. Καίτοι γε καὶ ἐνταῦθα δίδωσιν· ἀψευδὴς γὰρ ὁ λέγων· Ζητεῖτε τὴν βασιλείαν τῶν οὐρανῶν, καὶ ταῦτα πάντα προστεθήσεται ὑμῖν. Χωρὶς δὲ τούτων, καὶ τὸ διὰ μακροῦ λαβεῖν τοῦ χρόνου πλεονάζει σοι τὸν πλοῦτον· ὁ γὰρ τόκος γίνεται πλείων. Καὶ γὰρ καὶ ἐπὶ τῶν δανειζομένων τοῦτο ὁρῶμεν τοὺς δανειστὰς ποιοῦντας, προθυμότερον τοῖς μετὰ πολὺν καταβάλλουσι χρόνον δανείζοντας. Ὁ μὲν γὰρ τὸ πᾶν εὐθέως ἀποδοὺς, ἐνέκοψε τοῦ τόκου τὸν δρόμον· ὁ δὲ ἐπὶ πλείονα κατασχὼν χρόνον, καὶ τὴν ἐργασίαν 63.719 πλείω πεποίηκεν. Εἶτα ἐπὶ ἀνθρώπων μὲν οὐ δυσχεραίνομεν τὴν ἀναβολὴν, ἀλλὰ καὶ σοφιζόμεθα αὐτὴν πλείω γενέσθαι· ἐπὶ Θεοῦ δὲ οὕτω μικροψύχως διακεισόμεθα; Ὁ ἐλεῶν πτωχὸν, δανείζει Θεῷ. Καὶ δανείζῃ παρ' ἐμοῦ, Κύριε, τὴν εἰς τὸν πτωχὸν ἐλεημοσύνην; Ἵνα ποτέ μοι ταῦτα ἀποδῷς, δός μοι τῆς ἀντιδόσεως τὸν καιρόν· ὅρισον τῆς ἀπολήψεως τὴν προθεσμίαν. Πότε καὶ ποῦ σοι τὴν ὀφειλὴν ἀποδίδωμι; Ὅταν καθίσῃ ὁ Υἱὸς τοῦ ἀνθρώπου ἐπὶ θρόνου δόξης αὐτοῦ, καὶ στήσῃ τὰ μὲν πρόβατα ἐκ δεξιῶν, τὰ δὲ ἐρίφια ἐξ εὐωνύμων· καὶ ἐρεῖ τοῖς ἐκ δεξιῶν αὐτοῦ· ∆εῦτε, οἱ εὐλογημένοι τοῦ Πατρός μου, κληρονομήσατε τὴν ἡτοιμασμένην ὑμῖν βασιλείαν ἀπὸ καταβολῆς κόσμου. Ὑπὲρ τίνων; Ὅτι ἐπείνασα, καὶ ἐδώκατέ μοι φαγεῖν· ἐδίψησα, καὶ ἐποτίσατέ με· γυμνὸς ἤμην, καὶ ἐνεδύσατέ με. Καὶ διὰ τί, ὦ Κύριε, οὐκ ἄλλων ὁδῶν φέρεις μνήμην, ἀλλ' ἢ τῆς ἐλεημοσύνης; Οὐ κρίνω, φησὶ, τὴν ἁμαρτίαν, ἀλλὰ τὴν ἀπανθρωπίαν· οὐ κρίνω τοὺς ἁμαρτήσαντας, ἀλλὰ τοὺς μὴ μετανοήσαντας· ὑπὲρ ἀπανθρωπίας ὑμᾶς καταδικάζω, ὅτι ἔχοντες τοσοῦτον καὶ τηλικοῦτον φάρμακον