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you overturn the house; how can you overlook the poor man lying in rags and grass and mud, 63.726 and enduring all the cold? What wild beast would not be broken by these things? Who is so cruel and inhuman as not to be tamed by these things? But indeed there are some who have come to such a point of harshness, as not only not to pity and weep and share in their misfortunes, but also often to insult them and to say that they suffer what they deserve. For what reason do they suffer what they deserve, tell me, because they want to be fed and not to starve? No, he says, but because they are idle. And you, are you not idle while you live luxuriously? Do you not often engage in a work more grievous than any idleness, by seizing and using force and being greedy? It would have been better if you also practiced such idleness; for to be idle in this way is much better than to be greedy and to seize. When, therefore, you see a poor man and say, "I am choked with rage that being young, so healthy, having nothing, he wants to be fed while being idle;" say these very things you said to yourself; or rather, allow him to say them with boldness to you, "I am choked with rage that being healthy you are idle, and do nothing of what God commanded." And you indeed accuse him of idleness, but he accuses you also of wicked deeds, because you seize and are greedy and overturn the houses of others. But does he lie much and make things up? But for this reason too he is worthy of pity, that he has fallen into such necessity as to be shameless in such ways. But we not only do not pity him, but we also add those cruel words, saying, "Has he not received once and twice?" What then? Must he not be fed again, because he was fed once? Why do you not also lay down these laws for your own stomach, and say to it, "You were filled yesterday, do not seek now;" but you burst that even beyond measure, and turn away from this man who asks for what is moderate? and how do you yourself wish to be heard when you entreat? For he who has overlooked the afflicted, and has not given from what is his own, how will he seek to receive from what is not his own? Are not these things worthy of accusation, that while feeding parasites and flatterers, we do not consider the matter a loss; but if we see a poor man approaching, worn out by hunger and cold, not only do we overlook him, but we also trample on him immediately? For why does he not work, he says; and why is he fed while idle? But do you have what you have by working? Did you not receive a paternal inheritance? And if you do work, do you for this reason reproach another? But he is an impostor. What are you saying? For the sake of some bread and a garment you call him an impostor? But he sells it immediately, he says. But do you manage all your own affairs well? What then, are all poor from idleness? no one from shipwreck? no one from law-courts? no one from theft? no one from sickness? no one from dangers? no one from another circumstance? But if we hear someone lamenting such things, and crying out loudly, and looking up to heaven naked, we immediately call him an impostor, a cheat, a dissembler. Are you not ashamed to call someone an impostor? Give nothing, and do not accuse the poor man. But he has, he says, and he puts on an act. This is an accusation against you, not against him; he knows he is dealing with cruel people, with beasts rather than with men, and that even if he utters a piteous word, he moves no one; and for this reason he is forced 63.727 to put on a more piteous appearance for himself, in order to bend your soul. O the cruelty! O the harshness! O the inhumanity! if we see a poor man approaching in a free man's guise, "This man is an impostor," one says, "and so that he may seem to be from a noble family, he approaches in this way;" if we see one naked or wearing rags, we revile this one too. O this shameless brutality! If you wish, give; if you do not wish, send him away. Why are you miserable and wretched? Why do you not pity him yourself, and you turn away those who wish to? For when so-and-so hears from you that this one is a cheat, that one a hypocrite, he gives neither to these nor to those; for he will suspect that all are such. And for what reason, he says, do they bare their mutilated limbs? Because of you; if we were merciful, they would have no need of these tricks; if from their first approach they persuaded, they would not have contrived so many things. For who is so wretched as to wish

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ἀνατρέπεις τὸν οἶκον· πῶς τὸν πένητα ἐν ῥακίοις καὶ χόρτοις καὶ πηλῷ κείμε 63.726 νον, καὶ ἅπαντα κρυμὸν ὑπομένοντα περιορᾷς; ποῖον θηρίον τούτοις οὐ κατακλασθείη τοῖς πράγμασι; τίς οὕτως ὠμὸς καὶ ἀπάνθρωπος, ὡς μὴ γενέσθαι τούτοις ἥμερος; Ἀλλὰ γάρ εἰσί τινες οἳ πρὸς τοσοῦτον ἀπηνείας ἥκασιν, ὡς οὐ μόνον οὐκ ἐλεεῖν καὶ δακρύειν καὶ συνδιαλύειν τὰς συμφορὰς, ἀλλὰ καὶ ὑβρίζειν πολλάκις καὶ λέγειν, ἄξια πάσχειν αὐτούς. Τίνος ἕνεκεν ἄξια πάσχουσιν, εἰπέ μοι, ὅτι τρέφεσθαι βούλονται καὶ μὴ λιμώττειν; Οὐχὶ, φησὶν, ἀλλ' ὅτι ἀργοῦντες. Σὺ δὲ οὐκ ἀργῶν σπαταλᾷς; οὐχὶ καὶ ἐργασίαν πολλάκις πάσης ἀργίας χαλεπωτέραν ἐργάζῃ, ἁρπάζων καὶ βιαζόμενος καὶ πλεονεκτῶν; Κρεῖττον ἦν, εἰ καὶ σὺ τοιαύτην ἤργεις ἀργίαν· τοῦ γὰρ πλεονεκτεῖν καὶ ἁρπάζειν τὸ οὕτως ἀργεῖν κατὰ πολὺ βέλτιον. Ὅταν οὖν ἴδῃς πένητα καὶ εἴπῃς, ὅτι Ἀποπνίγομαι ὅτι νέος ὢν, οὕτως ὑγιὴς, μηδὲν ἔχων βούλεται τρέφεσθαι ἀργὸς ὤν· ταῦτα ἅπερ εἶπας εἰπὲ πρὸς ἑαυτόν· μᾶλλον δὲ ἐκείνῳ δὸς αὐτὰ μετὰ παῤῥησίας εἰπεῖν πρὸς σὲ, ὅτι Ἀποπνίγομαι ὅτι ὑγιὴς ὢν ἀργεῖς, καὶ οὐδὲν πράττεις ὧν προσέταξεν ὁ Θεός. Καὶ σὺ μὲν ὑπὲρ ἀργίας ἐγκαλεῖς, αὐτὸς δέ σοι καὶ ὑπὲρ ἔργων πονηρῶν, ὅτι ἁρπάζεις καὶ πλεονεκτεῖς καὶ τὰς ἑτέρων ἀνατρέπεις οἰκίας. Ἀλλὰ ψεύδεται πολλὰ καὶ πλάττεται; Ἀλλὰ καὶ ἐντεῦθεν ἄξιος ἐλεεῖσθαι, ὅτι εἰς τοιαύτην ἐνέπεσεν ἀνάγκην, ὡς καὶ τοιαῦτα ἀναισχυντεῖν. Ἡμεῖς δὲ οὐ μόνον οὐκ ἐλεοῦμεν, ἀλλὰ καὶ τὰ ὠμὰ ἐκεῖνα προστίθεμεν ῥήματα, Οὐκ ἔλαβεν ἅπαξ καὶ δίς; λέγοντες. Τί οὖν; οὐ δεῖ τραφῆναι πάλιν, ἐπειδὴ ἅπαξ ἐτράφη; διὰ τί μὴ καὶ τῇ σαυτοῦ γαστρὶ τούτους τίθης τοὺς νόμους, καὶ λέγεις πρὸς αὐτὴν, Ἐνεπλήσθης χθὲς, μὴ ζήτει νῦν· ἀλλ' ἐκείνην μὲν καὶ ὑπὲρ τὸ μέτρον διαῤῥηγνύεις, τοῦτον δὲ καὶ τὰ σύμμετρα αἰτοῦντα ἀποστρέφῃ; καὶ πῶς αὐτὸς εἰσακουσθῆναι βούλει παρακαλῶν; Ὁ γὰρ περιιδὼν τὸν θλιβόμενον, καὶ μὴ δοὺς ἐκ τῶν αὐτοῦ, πῶς ζητήσει λαβεῖν ἐκ τῶν οὐκ αὐτοῦ; Ἆρα οὐχὶ κατηγορίας ἄξια ταῦτα, ὅτι παρασίτους μὲν τρέφων καὶ κόλακας, ζημίαν τὸ πρᾶγμα οὐχ ἡγούμεθα εἶναι· εἰ δὲ πένητα προσιόντα λιμῷ καὶ κρυμῷ κατατεινόμενον ἴδωμεν, οὐ μόνον περιορῶμεν αὐτὸν, ἀλλὰ καὶ κατεπεμβαίνομεν εὐθέως; Τί γὰρ οὐκ ἐργάζεται, φησί· τί δὲ ἀργῶν τρέφεται; Σὺ δὲ ἐργαζόμενος ἔχεις ἃ ἔχεις; οὐχὶ κλῆρον πατρῷον λαβών; εἰ δὲ καὶ ἐργάζῃ, διὰ τοῦτο ὀνειδίζεις ἑτέρῳ; Ἀλλ' ἐπιθέτης ἐστί. Τί λέγεις; ἄρτου τινὸς ἕνεκεν καὶ ἱματίου ἐπιθέτην καλεῖς; Ἀλλ' εὐθέως πωλεῖ αὐτὸ, φησί. Σὺ δὲ πάντα τὰ σαυτοῦ καλῶς διοικεῖς; Τί δὲ, πάντες ἀπὸ ἀργίας πένονται; οὐδεὶς ἀπὸ ναυαγίου; οὐδεὶς ἀπὸ δικαστηρίων; οὐδεὶς ἀπὸ κλοπῆς; οὐδεὶς ἀπὸ νόσου; οὐδεὶς ἀπὸ κινδύνων; οὐδεὶς ἀπὸ ἄλλης περιστάσεως; Ἀλλ' ἂν ἀκούσωμέν τινος τοιαῦτα ἀποδυρομένου, καὶ μεγάλα βοῶντος, καὶ γυμνοῦ ἀναβλέποντος εἰς τὸν οὐρανὸν, εὐθέως τὸν ἐπιθέτην, τὸν ἀπατεῶνα, τὸν εἴρωνα καλοῦμεν. Οὐκ αἰσχύνῃ τινὰ ἐπιθέτην καλεῖν; Μηδὲν δῷς, καὶ μὴ κατηγορήσῃς τοῦ πένητος. Ἀλλ' ἔχει, φησὶ, καὶ σχηματίζεται. Τοῦτο σοῦ κατηγορία, οὐκ ἐκείνου· οἶδε πρὸς ὠμοὺς ἔχων, πρὸς θηρία μᾶλλον ἢ πρὸς ἀνθρώπους, καὶ ὅτι κἂν ἐλεεινὸν φθέγξηται ῥῆμα, οὐδένα ἐφέλκεται· καὶ διὰ τοῦτο ἀναγκάζεται 63.727 καὶ σχῆμα περιθεῖναι ἑαυτῷ ἐλεεινότερον, ἵνα σου τὴν ψυχὴν ἐπικλάσῃ. Ὢ τῆς ὠμότητος! ὢ τῆς ἀπηνείας! ὢ τῆς ἀπανθρωπίας! ἐὰν ἴδωμεν πένητα ἐν ἐλευθερίῳ σχήματι προσιόντα, Οὗτος ἐπιθέτης ἐστὶ, φησὶ, καὶ ἵνα ἀπὸ εὐγενῶν εἶναι δόξῃ, οὕτω πρόσεισιν· ἐὰν ἴδωμεν γυμνὸν ἢ ῥακοδυτοῦντα, καὶ τοῦτον κακίζομεν. Ὢ τῆς ἀναισχύντου ταύτης θηριωδίας! Ἂν μὲν βούλῃ, δός· ἂν δὲ μὴ βούλῃ, ἀπόπεμψον. ∆ιὰ τί ἄθλιος εἶ καὶ ταλαίπωρος; διὰ τί οὐδὲ αὐτὸς ἐλεεῖς, καὶ τοὺς θέλοντας ἀποτρέπεις; ὅταν γὰρ ὁ δεῖνα ἀκούσῃ παρὰ σοῦ, ὅτι οὗτος ἀπατεὼν, ἐκεῖνος ὑποκριτὴς, οὐδὲ τούτοις δίδωσιν, οὔτε ἐκείνοις· πάντας γὰρ ὑποπτεύσει τοιούτους εἶναι. Καὶ τίνος ἕνεκεν, φησὶ, τὰ ἠκρωτηριασμένα μέλη γυμνοῦσι; ∆ιὰ σέ· εἰ ἐλεήμονες ἦμεν, οὐκ ἔδει τούτων αὐτοῖς τῶν τεχνῶν· εἰ ἐκ πρώτης προσόδου ἔπειθον, οὐκ ἂν τοσαῦτα ἐμηχανήσαντο. Τίς γάρ ἐστιν οὕτως ἄθλιος, ὡς θέλειν