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choosing instead of finding what is profitable for others, but gladly destroying others along with themselves, when it is possible to save both others and themselves. For this reason sparrows have wings, so that they may escape the trap; for this reason 63.740 men have reason, so that they may escape sins. But do you say that you are ignorant of sins? And how could this be reasonable? For if concerning the sins of others you both write laws and define punishments and are an exact judge, what defense would you have for the things in which you yourself sin, saying you are ignorant of what must be done? You and he both committed adultery; for what reason then do you punish him, but deem yourself worthy of pardon? For if you knew that adultery was evil, you ought not to punish another either; but if you punish another, but think that you escape the punishment, how would it be reasonable, not to render the same justice for the same sins? For by the judgment, he says, that you pass against another, by this God will judge you. And hear Paul saying: Do you suppose this, O man, who judges those who do evil, and does the same things, that you will escape the judgment of God? You have not escaped your own judgment, and will you escape God's? And how could this be reasonable? For it is not the same thing to sin simply, as to have sinned and punished another, and then to fall into the same things again. For if you punish the one who has sinned less, even though you are about to shame yourself, how will God not condemn and judge more severely you who have trespassed more greatly—and this when He is not about to shame Himself—you who are already condemned by your own reasoning? But if you say, I know that I am worthy of punishment, but you despise it because of His long-suffering, and you are confident because you have not been punished immediately; then you would be right to fear and tremble for this reason. For the delay in your punishment happens not that you might escape punishment, but that you might receive a harsher one, if you remain uncorrected. For if someone sins greatly, but does it secretly and scandalizes no one, he will pay a lesser penalty than one who has sinned less, but with boldness and has scandalized many. For the lowly and abject man, even if he is tripped up and falls, does not bring such great harm to the community; but he who stands as if on some height, on the summit of virtue with much prominence, and is known and manifest to all, and admired by all, when he is assailed by malice and falls, he works a great fall and damage, not only because he has fallen from a height, but also because he has made many of those who look to him more careless. And just as in a body, if one member is corrupted, the harm is not great; but if the eyes are blinded, or the head is injured, the whole body becomes useless; so also it can be said of those who have achieved many good things, when they are extinguished, when they contract some stain, they bring a complete and unbearable harm to the rest of the body. Therefore, do not fear the plot of a judge, but fear the power of sin. A man does not harm you, unless you harm yourself. Even if you have no sin, even if ten thousand swords are set against you, God will deliver you; if you have sin, even if you are in paradise, you fall away. Adam was in paradise, and he fell; Job was on a dunghill, and he was crowned. What did paradise profit that one? What did the dunghill harm this one? No one plotted against that one, and he was tripped up; the devil plotted against this one, and he was crowned. Did he not take his possessions? but he did not plunder his piety. Did he not snatch 63.741 away his children? but he did not shake his faith. Did he not tear his body apart? but he did not find the treasure. Keep this law for me, I beg and I clasp your knees, if not with my hand, then with my mind, and I pour out tears; keep this law for me, and no one will ever be able to wrong you. Have you seen the prophet and king, I mean David, warring, falling, rising, and conquering? Have you seen sin pressing upon him, and being slain through repentance? Do you see him even after the grace of the Spirit, after his boldness toward God, after a multitude of achievements, after so many trophies, proclaiming and saying:

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αἱρούμενοι ὑπὲρ τοῦ τὸ ἑτέρων συμφέρον εὑρεῖν, ἀλλ' ἡδέως μεθ' ἑαυτῶν καὶ ἑτέρους προσαπολλύντες, παρὸν καὶ ἑτέρους καὶ ἑαυτοὺς διασῶσαι. ∆ιὰ τοῦτο πτερὰ τοῖς στρουθίοις, ἵνα φύγῃ παγίδα· διὰ τοῦτο 63.740 λογισμοὶ τοῖς ἀνθρώποις, ἵνα ἐκφύγωσιν ἁμαρτήματα. Ἀλλ' ἀγνοεῖν λέγεις σὺ τὰ ἁμαρτήματα; Καὶ πῶς ἂν ἔχοι τοῦτο λόγον; Εἰ γὰρ ἐπὶ τοῖς ἑτέρων ἁμαρτήμασι καὶ νόμους γράφεις καὶ τιμωρίας ὁρίζεις καὶ ἀκριβὴς εἶ δικαστὴς, ποίαν ἂν σχοίης ἀπολογίαν ἐν οἷς αὐτὸς ἁμαρτάνεις, λέγων ἀγνοεῖν τὰ πρακτέα; Ἐμοίχευσας καὶ σὺ κἀκεῖνος· τίνος οὖν ἕνεκεν ἐκεῖνον μὲν κολάζεις, σαυτὸν δὲ συγγνώμης ἀξιοῖς; Εἰ μὲν γὰρ ᾔδεις κακὸν τὴν μοιχείαν, οὐδὲ ἕτερον τιμωρεῖσθαι ἔδει· εἰ δὲ ἕτερον μὲν κολάζεις, σὺ δὲ νομίζεις διαφεύγειν τὴν κόλασιν, πῶς ἂν ἔχοι λόγον, τῶν αὐτῶν ἁμαρτημάτων μὴ τὰς αὐτὰς διδόναι δίκας; Ἀπὸ γὰρ τῆς ψήφου, φησὶν, ἧς ἐνέγκῃς καθ' ἑτέρου, ἀπὸ ταύτης σε κρινεῖ ὁ Θεός. Καὶ ἄκουε Παύλου λέγοντος· Λογίζῃ τοῦτο, ἄνθρωπε, ὁ κρίνων τοὺς κακῶς πράσσοντας, καὶ ποιῶν αὐτὰ, ὅτι σὺ ἐκφεύξῃ τὸ κρίμα τοῦ Θεοῦ; Τὸ σὸν οὐκ ἐξέφυγες κρίμα, καὶ τὸ τοῦ Θεοῦ διαφεύξῃ; καὶ πῶς ἂν ἔχοι τοῦτο λόγον; Οὐ γάρ ἐστι ταὐτὸν ἁμαρτάνειν ἁπλῶς, καὶ ἕτερον ἁμαρτόντα καὶ κολάσαντα, τοῖς αὐτοῖς περιπεσεῖν πάλιν. Εἰ γὰρ σὺ τὸν ἐλάττονα ἁμαρτόντα κολάζεις, καίτοι γε μέλλων αἰσχύνειν σαυτὸν, πῶς ὁ Θεὸς τὸν μείζονα πλημμελήσαντά σε, καὶ ταῦτα οὐ μέλλων ἑαυτὸν αἰσχύνειν, οὐ καταδικάσει καὶ κατακρινεῖ μειζόνως, ἤδη κατακεκριμένον ἀπὸ τῶν οἰκείων λογισμῶν; Εἰ δὲ λέγεις ὅτι Οἶδα μὲν ὅτι ἄξιός εἰμι κολάσεως, διὰ δὲ τὴν μακροθυμίαν καταφρονεῖς, καὶ διὰ τὸ μὴ δοῦναι παρὰ πόδας δίκην θαῤῥεῖς· δεδοικέναι μὲν οὖν καὶ τρέμειν διὰ τοῦτο ἂν εἴης δίκαιος. Οὐ γὰρ εἰς τὸ μὴ δοῦναι δίκην, ἀλλ' εἰς τὸ δοῦναι χαλεπωτέραν, εἰ μένοις ἀδιόρθωτος ὢν, τὸ μήπου δοῦναι, συμβήσεταί σοι. Καὶ γὰρ, ἂν μέγα τις ἁμάρτῃ, λαθὼν δὲ τοῦτο ἐργάσηται, καὶ μηδένα σκανδαλίσῃ, ἐλάττονα δώσει δίκην τοῦ καταδεέστερα μὲν ἡμαρτηκότος, μετὰ παῤῥησίας δὲ καὶ τοὺς πολλοὺς σκανδαλίσαντος. Ὁ μὲν γὰρ εὐτελὴς καὶ ἀπεῤῥιμμένος, κἂν ὑποσκελισθῇ καὶ καταπέσῃ, οὐ τοσαύτην τῷ κοινῷ φέρει βλάβην· ὁ δὲ ὥσπερ ὕψει τινὶ τῇ τῆς ἀρετῆς κορυφῇ μετὰ πολλῆς τῆς περιφανείας ἑστὼς, καὶ πᾶσι γνώριμος καὶ δῆλος ὢν, καὶ παρὰ πάντων θαυμαζόμενος, ὅταν ἐπηρεασθεὶς καταπέσῃ, μεγάλην τὴν πτῶσιν καὶ ζημίαν ἐργάζεται, οὐχ ὅτι μόνον ἐξ ὕψους κατέπεσεν, ἀλλ' ὅτι καὶ πολλοὺς ῥᾳθυμοτέρους ἐποίησε τῶν εἰς αὐτὸν βλεπόντων. Καὶ καθάπερ ἐν σώματι, μέλους μὲν ἑτέρου διαφθαρέντος, οὐ πολλὴ ἡ βλάβη· τῶν δὲ ὀφθαλμῶν πηρωθέντων, ἢ τῆς κεφαλῆς βλαβείσης, ὅλον τὸ σῶμα ἄχρηστον γίνεται· οὕτω δὴ καὶ ἐπὶ τῶν πολλὰ κατορθωκότων ἔστιν εἰπεῖν, ὅταν ἐκεῖνοι σβεσθῶσιν, ὅταν κηλῖδά τινα προστρίψωνται, ὁλόκληρον καὶ ἀφόρητον τῷ λοιπῷ σώματι τὴν βλάβην φέρουσι. Μὴ τοίνυν φοβηθῇς ἐπιβουλὴν δικαστοῦ, ἀλλὰ φοβήθητι ἁμαρτίας δύναμιν. Ἅνθρωπός σε οὐ βλάπτει, ἐὰν μὴ σὺ σεαυτὸν βλάψῃς. Κἂν μὴ ἔχῃς ἁμαρτίαν, κἂν μυρία ξίφη ἐπίκεινται, ἐξελεῖταί σε ὁ Θεός· ἐὰν ἔχῃς ἁμαρτίαν, κἂν ἐν παραδείσῳ ᾖς, ἐκπίπτεις. Ἐν παραδείσῳ ἦν ὁ Ἀδὰμ, καὶ ἔπεσεν· ἐν κοπρίᾳ ἦν ὁ Ἰὼβ, καὶ ἐστεφανώθη. Τί ὠφέλησεν ἐκεῖνον ὁ παράδεισος τί ἔβλαψε τοῦτον ἡ κοπρία; Ἐκείνῳ οὐδεὶς ἐπεβούλευσε, καὶ ὑπεσκελίσθη· τούτῳ ὁ διάβολος, καὶ ἐστεφανώθη. Οὐ τὰ χρήματα αὐτοῦ ἔλαβεν; ἀλλὰ τὴν εὐσέβειαν αὐτοῦ οὐκ ἐσύλησεν. Οὐ τοὺς παῖδας αὐτοῦ ἥρ 63.741 πασεν; ἀλλὰ τὴν πίστιν οὐκ ἐσάλευσεν. Οὐ τὸ σῶμα αὐτοῦ διέῤῥηξεν; ἀλλὰ τὸν θησαυρὸν οὐκ εὗρε. Τοῦτόν μοι τὸν νόμον τηρήσατε, παρακαλῶ καὶ γονάτων ὑμῶν ἅπτομαι, εἰ μὴ καὶ τῇ χειρὶ, ἀλλὰ τῇ γνώμῃ, καὶ δάκρυα ἐκχέω· τοῦτόν μοι τὸν νόμον τηρήσατε, καὶ οὐδεὶς ὑμᾶς οὐδέπω ἀδικῆσαι δυνήσεται. Εἴδετε τὸν προφήτην καὶ βασιλέα, τὸν ∆αυῒδ λέγω, πολεμοῦντα, πίπτοντα, ἐγειρόμενον καὶ νικῶντα; εἴδετε τὴν ἁμαρτίαν ἐπικειμένην, καὶ σφαζομένην διὰ τῆς μετανοίας; Βλέπετε αὐτὸν καὶ μετὰ τὴν τοῦ Πνεύματος χάριν, μετὰ τὴν πρὸς Θεὸν παῤῥησίαν, μετὰ κατορθωμάτων πλῆθος, μετὰ τρόπαια τοσαῦτα ἀνακηρύττοντα καὶ λέγοντα·