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those who lay up treasures on earth? But lay up treasures in heaven, where there is no moth, nor worm that consumes, nor thief who breaks in. O wretched and miserable one; you entrust your treasure to the earth, and you do not trust God who said: What you have done for one of these your brethren, you have done for me? What excuse will you have? Do you love gold, the bloodthirsty, the enemy to all, yet desired by all, the one loved by all, yet plotting against all, the runaway, the servant, the ungrateful one? Do you not know what wealth is like? like a shameless prostitute, she speaks with this one, from there she nods to that one, with another she makes an agreement. What are you, O man? Today a ruler, and tomorrow one who is ruled; today rich, and tomorrow poor; today you judge, and tomorrow you are judged. Do you see the changeableness of life; does it not run by like a shadow? is it not more worthless than smoke? is it not torn apart like a spider's web? Shall I not cease instructing you? even if you do not do it. For it is written: Speak into the ears of those who hear. Disobedience works death. Imitate also that widow who gave the two small coins, how she was justified. Do you not have two small coins? Give one. Whatever you have, even bread; or even groan on seeing the poor man, and your prayer is accepted. For He who knows the secrets of each person's mind, He who knows all things before they come to be, knows that if you had, you would give. 95.1509 For he searches the heart and knows. For man will look upon the face, but God upon the heart. do you labor in vain, O rich man, hiding what belongs to the poor among your own things? why, when asked by them, are you vexed as if spending from your own home? They want their patrimony, not yours; what was entrusted to you for them, you did not receive born with you. Give also its use; gain profit, and it is enough for you, for you were commanded to give, not to receive. His are the robberies, and others' are the pleasures. His are the curses, and others' are the healings. Against him are the groans, and with others are the surpluses. Against him are the tears, and with others is the money; He is punished in Hades, and others often, reveling in his things, sing psalms. Lions, and bears, and leopards, in the midst of the cities, for whose sake are they lavishly fed, while the beggar, wasted away, crawls upon the ground? And the lion, being cherished, belches up the savor of public meats. If I ask the need for this, I will rather be covered in shame. For men sharpen the teeth of wild beasts against men. Do not tell me, "I fear poverty." You fear poverty, and you do not fear sin? Do not fear poverty, but sin, the mother of punishment. The Master asks for what is commanded, and you do not give to Him. For when you hear him saying: 'Whatever you did for one of these my brethren, you did for me,' see that whatever you give to the poor man, you give to Christ. If therefore you do not give to Him, how will you ask on that day, that He may have mercy on you? Will He not accuse you, saying, 'You saw me hungry, and you did not feed me? You saw me thirsty, and you did not give me drink? You saw me naked, and you did not clothe me?' What then will you say to Him, or what excuse have you? You are clothed in silks, and rabbit-furs, and goat-skins, and the poor man does not have a rag. And you eat pheasants and geese, and whatever delicacies there are, and the poor man cannot fill his own belly with bread. You have walls with golden ceilings and variegated Lacedaemonian marble, and pillars, and golden capitals of pillars, and the poor man does not have a hut. And sometimes you have your house from robbery, from greed. And you die, and you depart having nothing, and your house remains a perpetual accuser, convicting your deeds. For everyone who passes by will say: 'This is the house of the robber, of the greedy man. How many widows did he mistreat? How many orphans did he make? How much property did he seize? How many poor people did he defraud?' Do not tell me, "I am a Consul," or "I am a Prefect." I do not recognize rank; I do not slander wealth; but those who use a good thing 95.1512 badly. For to be rich is not evil; for if God made anything, it is very good. For the sake of money we have sold the free elements. The roads are tolled; the waters are controlled by masters; the air is subjected to voices. The talkative, and tax collectors, and publicans, oppress the cities. The

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οἱ θησαυρίζοντες ἐπὶ τῆς γῆς; ἀλλὰ θησαυρίζετε ἐν οὐρανῷ, ὅπου οὐκ ἔστιν ἡ σῆς, οὐδὲ σκώληξ κατεσθίων, οὐδὲ λῃστὴς διορύσσων. Ὦ ἄθλιε καὶ ταλαίπωρε· τῇ γῇ πιστεύεις τὸν θησαυρόν σου, καὶ τῷ Θεῷ οὐ πιστεύεις τῷ εἰπόντι· Ὃ ἑνὶ τούτων τῶν ἀδελφῶν σου ἐποιήσατε, ἐμοὶ ἐποιήσατε; Ποίαν συγγνώμην ἕξεις; Χρυσὸν φιλεῖς τὸν αἱμοβόρον, τὸν πᾶσι πολέμιον, καὶ πᾶσι ποθεινὸν, τὸν ὑπὸ πάντων φιλούμενον, καὶ πᾶσιν ἐπιβουλεύοντα, τὸν δραπέτην, τὸν οἰκέτην, τὸν ἀγνώμονα; Οὐκ οἶδας οἷός ἐστιν ὁ πλοῦτος; καθάπερ πόρνη ἀσυνείδητος, τούτῳ ὁμιλεῖ, ἐκεῖθεν ἐκείνῳ νεύει, ἄλλῳ συντίθεται. Τί εἶ, ἄνθρωπε; Σήμερον ἄρχων, καὶ αὔριον ἀρχόμενος· σήμερον πλούσιος, καὶ αὔριον πένης· σήμερον δικάζεις, καὶ αὔριον δικάζῃ. Ὁρᾷς τὴν τοῦ βίου μεταβολήν· οὐχ ὡς σκιὰ παρατρέχει; οὐ κάπνου εὐτελέστερος; οὐχ ὡς ἀράχνη διασπᾶται; Οὐ παύσομαι ὑμᾶς παιδεύων; κἄν τε μὴ ποιῆτε. Γέγραπται γάρ· Λάλει εἰς ὦτα ἀκουόντων. Παρακοὴ θάνατον ἐργάζεται. Μιμήσασθε καὶ τὴν χήραν ἐκείνην τὴν τοὺς δύο ὀβολοὺς δώσασαν, πῶς ἐδικαιώθη. ∆ύο ὀβολοὺς οὐκ ἔχεις; ἕνα δός. Ὃ ἔχεις, κἂν ἄρτον· κἂν στέναξον ἰδὼν τὸν πένητα, καὶ δέδεκται ἡ δέησις. Ὁ γὰρ ἐπιστάμενος τὰ ἀπόῤῥητα τῆς διανοίας ἑκάστου, ὁ τὰ πάντα ἐπιγνοὺς πρὶν γενέσεως, οἶδεν ὅτι εἰ εἶχες, ἐδίδους. 95.1509 Τὴν γὰρ καρδίαν ἐξερευνᾷ καὶ οἶδεν. Ἄνθρωπος γὰρ ὄψεται εἰς πρόσωπον, Θεὸς δὲ εἰς καρδίαν. ματαιοπονεῖς, ὦ πλούσιε, τὰ τῶν πενήτων ἐν τοῖς σοῖς ἀποκρύπτων; τί αἰτούμενος παρ' αὐτῶν, ἀγανακτεῖς ὡς οἴκοθεν ἀναλίσκων; τὰ πατρῷα θέλουσιν, οὐ τὰ σά· τὰ ἐγχειρισθέντα σοι δι' αὐτοὺς, οὐ μετὰ σοῦ γεννηθέντα ἔλαβες. ∆ὸς καὶ τὴν χρῆσιν· κέρδανον, καὶ ἀρκεῖ σοι, ὅτι διδόναι οὐ λαμβάνειν προσετάχθης. Αὐτοῦ αἱ ἁρπαγαὶ καὶ ἄλλων αἱ ἡδοναί. Αὐτοῦ αἱ κατάραι, καὶ ἄλλων αἱ θεραπεῖαι. Κατ' αὐτοῦ οἱ στεναγμοὶ, καὶ παρ' ἑτέροις οἱ πλεονασμοί. Κατ' αὐτοῦ τὰ δάκρυα, καὶ παρ' ἑτέροις τὰ χρήματα· Αὐτὸς ἐν ᾅδῃ κολάζεται, καὶ ἄλλοι πολλάκις ἐν τοῖς αὐτοῦ τρυφῶντες ψάλλουσιν. Λέοντες μὲν, καὶ ἄρκτοι, καὶ παρδάλεις, ἐν μέσαις ταῖς πόλεσι, τίνος χάριν φιλοτίμως σιτίζονται, ὁ δὲ πτωχὸς ἐπὶ τοῦ ἐδάφους ἕρπει συντετηκώς; Καὶ ὁ λέων θαλπόμενος τῶν δημοσίων κρεῶν τὴν κνίσσαν ἐρεύγεται. Οὗτινος τὴν χρείαν ἐὰν ἐρωτήσω, μᾶλλον ἐγκαλυφθήσομαι. Θηρίων γὰρ ὀδόντας ἀκονῶσιν οἱ ἄνθρωποι κατὰ ἀνθρώπων. Μή μοι λέγε, ὅτι Πενίαν φοβοῦμαι. Πενίαν φοβῇ, καὶ ἁμαρτίαν οὐ φοβῇ; Πενίαν μὴ φοβηθῇς, ἀλλ' ἁμαρτίαν τὴν μητέρα τῆς κολάσεως. Ὁ ∆εσπότης αἰτεῖ ἐντολὴν, καὶ οὐ δίδως αὐτῷ. Ὅταν γὰρ ἀκούσῃς αὐτοῦ λέγοντος· Ὅ τι ἑνὶ ἐκ τούτων τῶν ἀδελφῶν μου ἐποιήσατε, ἐμοὶ ἐποιήσατε, ὅρα, ὅ τι ἂν δῷς τῷ πένητι, τῷ Χριστῷ δίδως. Ἐὰν οὖν μὴ δῷς αὐτῷ, πῶς σὺ αἰτήσῃ ἐν ἐκείνῃ τῇ ἡμέρᾳ, ἵνα ἐλεήσῃ σε; Ἆρα σοι οὐκ ἐγκαλεῖ, ὅτι Πεινῶντά με εἶδες, καὶ οὐκ ἔθρεψας; ∆ιψῶντά με εἶδες, καὶ οὐκ ἐπότισας; γυμνόν με εἶδες, καὶ οὐκ ἐνέδυσας; Τί ἆρα ἐρεῖς αὐτῷ, ἢ ποίαν συγγνώμην ἔχεις; Σὺ μὲν σηρικὰ, καὶ λαγῷα, καὶ αἴγεια περιβέβλησαι, καὶ ὁ πένης ῥάκος οὐκ ἔχει. Καὶ σὺ τρώγεις φασιανοὺς καὶ χῆνας, καὶ ὅσα εἰσὶν ἐν ἐδέσμασι, καὶ ὁ πένης οὐκ ἰσχύει τὴν ἑαυτοῦ κοιλίαν ἄρτων χορτάσαι. Σὺ ἔχεις τοίχους χρυσορόφους καὶ μάρμαρα Λακεδαιμόνια ποικίλα, καὶ κίονας, καὶ περικεφαλαίας κιόνων χρυσᾶς, καὶ ὁ πένης καλύβην οὐκ ἔχει. Καὶ ἐνίοτε ἔχεις τὸν οἶκον ἀπὸ ἁρπαγῆς, ἀπὸ πλεονεξίας. Καὶ συντελευτᾷς, καὶ ἀπάγεις μηδὲν ἔχων, καὶ μένει ὁ οἶκός σου διηνεκὴς κατήγορος, ἐλέγχων τὰς σὰς πράξεις. Ἕκαστος γὰρ ὁ παρερχόμενος μέλλει λέγειν· οὗτος ὁ οἶκος τοῦ ἅρπαγος, τοῦ πλεονέκτου. Πόσας χήρας ἐκάκωσε; πόσους ὀρφανοὺς ἐποίησε; πόσα ὑπάρχοντα καθήρπασε; πόσους πένητας ἐπλεονέκτησε; Μή μοι λέγε, ὅτι Ὕπατός εἰμι, ἢ ὅτι Ὕπαρχός εἰμι. Οὐκ οἶδα ἀξίωμα· οὐ διαβάλλω πλοῦτον· ἀλλὰ τοὺς τῷ καλῷ 95.1512 κακῶς κεχρημένους. Οὐ γὰρ κακὸν τὸ πλουτεῖν· εἴ τι γὰρ ἐποίησεν ὁ Θεὸς, καλὰ λίαν ∆ιὰ τὰ χρήματα τὰ ἐλεύθερα στοιχεῖα πεπράκαμεν. Αἱ ὁδοὶ τελωνοῦνται· τὰ ὕδατα δεσποτεύονται· ὁ ἀὴρ φωναῖς ὑποβάλλεται. Πολυλόγοι, καὶ φορολόγοι, καὶ τελῶναι, τὰς πόλεις συνέχουσιν. Οἱ