208
That is, may he fall under the power of wicked and treacherous accusers, and not prevail over them. For this is what it means, When he is judged, let him come forth condemned. And he was not satisfied with this punishment, but with this condemnation he prays that some other person after him should take his office, saying, Let another take his office. And he does not stop here, but even blocks up the only remaining harbor, deeming him unworthy to receive any mercy even from God, and saying: And let his prayer become sin. And indeed he deems him worthy to suffer an untimely death. For, he says, let his days be few. And he does not stop here either, although it would have been enough to say only these things, but he also adds more, which is a sign of a fiercely inflamed soul, not to be satisfied with one or a second punishment, but to ask for so many to be inflicted. But the things that follow are much more grievous than these. For he curses those 55.259 left behind with orphanhood and widowhood. And yet these things necessarily happen when he has departed; but nevertheless, he also places these things in the order of a curse, seething with anger. And he does not stop at orphanhood, but even after such misfortunes he proceeds further, increasing the terror, deeming his children worthy to become vagrants and wanderers. For, Let his children be wanderers, he says, and let them beg. That is, may they not stand still in their wandering, nor have an abundance of necessary food, nor cease from constantly changing place from place, being driven out, pursued throughout all the earth, and finding nowhere a place to stand. And after these things he also curses them with poverty, and an extreme and unbearable poverty, so that they may not receive help even from their relatives, but wander about, begging for it from strangers and unknown people. And hear how he indicates this and sets it forth. For after saying, Let his children be wanderers and let them beg, he adds: Let them be cast out of their desolate places, and let the creditor search out all that he has, and let strangers plunder his labors. This is another kind of misfortune, for their possessions to be given over to plunder, and to bear the plots of creditors, and to be abused in every way, and what is more grievous, in the midst of so many evils to be destitute of a protector; and he curses this saying: Let there be none to help him. For the evils themselves in themselves are unbearable; but when one does not even have a protector, they are much more grievous. Nor let there be any to pity his orphans. Alas! what greatness of anger, when not even untimely orphanhood meets with mercy, and not only mercy, but is also surrounded by utter destruction! For, he says, Let his children be for destruction. In one generation let his name be blotted out. Have you seen a speech full of anger, and stopping nowhere? And he prays for them to live with varied and manifold misfortune, and to be given over to utter ruin, and to perish anonymously. And as if the misfortune of the children were not enough, he adds again: Let the iniquity of his fathers be remembered, and let not the sin of his mother be blotted out. Let them be before the Lord continually, and let their memory be destroyed from the earth. For this is a special mark of anger, to break into pieces the general misfortunes he mentioned, and continually to turn over the same things. For having said, Let the iniquity of his fathers be remembered, he added: And let it not be blotted out. And yet it is the same thing; but nevertheless his anger made him say both; but what he wants to say is this: Kill him, slay him, do away with him. Have you seen the multitude of curses? But, if you wish, I will again recount them from the beginning. May he fall among wicked men, he says, may he be accused, may he be overcome by them, may he be condemned, may he suffer an untimely death, may he be cast out from his office, and may he see it transferred not even to his descendants, but to some others; may his wife perish, and the
208
Τουτέστιν, ὑπὸ κατηγόροις γένοιτο πονηροῖς ἀνθρώποις καὶ ἐπιβούλοις, καὶ μὴ περιγένοιτο αὐτῶν. Τοῦτο γάρ ἐστιν, Ἐν τῷ κρίνεσθαι αὐτὸν ἐξέλθοι καταδεδικασμένος. Καὶ οὐκ ἠρκέσθη ταύτῃ τῇ τιμωρίᾳ, ἀλλὰ μετὰ τῆς καταδίκης ταύτης εὔχεταί τινα ἕτερον μετ' ἐκεῖνον τὴν ἐκείνου λαβεῖν τιμὴν, λέγων, Τὴν ἐπισκοπὴν αὐτοῦ λάβοι ἕτερος. Καὶ οὐδὲ ἐνταῦθα ἵσταται, ἀλλὰ καὶ τὸν μόνον καταλελειμμένον λιμένα προσχώννυσι, μηδὲ ὑπὸ τοῦ Θεοῦ τινὸς φιλανθρωπίας τυχεῖν ἀξιῶν καὶ λέγων· Καὶ ἡ προσευχὴ αὐτοῦ γενέσθω εἰς ἁμαρτίαν. Καὶ μέντοι καὶ θάνατον ἄωρον ὑπομεῖναι ἀξιοῖ. Γενηθήτωσαν γὰρ, φησὶν, αἱ ἡμέραι αὐτοῦ ὀλίγαι. Καὶ οὐδὲ ἐνταῦθα ἵσταται, καίτοι καὶ τὸ ταῦτα μόνα εἰπεῖν ἤρκει, ὁ δὲ καὶ ἐπιτίθησιν, ὅπερ σφόδρα ἐστὶν ἐκκεκαυμένης ψυχῆς, τὸ μὴ μιᾷ μηδὲ δευτέρᾳ ἀρκεσθῆναι τιμωρίᾳ, ἀλλὰ τοσαύτας ἐπαχθῆναι αἰτεῖν. Τὰ δὲ ἐντεῦθεν ἔτι πολλῷ τούτων χαλεπώτερα. Καὶ γὰρ ὀρφανίαν, καὶ χηρείαν τῶν 55.259 λειπομένων κατεύχεται. Καίτοι γε ταῦτα ἀπελθόντος ἐξ ἀνάγκης γενέσθαι συμβαίνει· ἀλλ' ὅμως καὶ ταῦτα ἐν τάξει τίθησιν ἀρᾶς, τῷ θυμῷ ζέων. Καὶ οὐδὲ μέχρι τῆς ὀρφανίας ἵσταται, ἀλλὰ καὶ μετὰ τοιαύτας συμφορὰς πρόεισι περαιτέρω, τὸ δεινὸν αὔξων, πλανήτας καὶ μετανάστας ἀξιῶν γενέσθαι τοὺς ἐκείνου. Σαλευόμενοι γὰρ μεταναστήτωσαν οἱ υἱοὶ αὐτοῦ, φησὶ, καὶ ἐπαιτησάτωσαν. Τουτέστι, μὴ στῶσι πλανώμενοι, μηδὲ τῆς ἀναγκαίας εὐπορήσωσι τροφῆς, μηδὲ παύσωνται τόπον ἐκ τόπου συνεχῶς ἀμείβοντες, ἐλαυνόμενοι, διωκόμενοι κατὰ πᾶσαν τὴν γῆν, καὶ μηδαμοῦ χώραν τοῦ στῆναι εὑρίσκοντες. Μετὰ δὲ τούτων καὶ πενίαν αὐτῶν κατεύχεται, καὶ πενίαν ἐσχάτην καὶ ἀφόρητον, ὥστε μηδὲ τῆς παρὰ τῶν συγγενῶν ἐπικουρίας τυχεῖν, ἀλλὰ περιιέναι, παρὰ ξένων καὶ ἀγνώστων προσαιτοῦντας ταύτην. Καὶ ἄκουε πῶς τοῦτο δηλῶν παρατίθησι. Μετὰ γὰρ τὸ εἰπεῖν· Μεταναστήτωσαν οἱ υἱοὶ αὐτοῦ, καὶ ἐπαιτησάτωσαν, ἐπάγει· Ἐκβληθήτωσαν ἐκ τῶν οἰκοπέδων αὐτῶν, καὶ ἐξερευνησάτω δανειστὴς πάντα ὅσα ὑπάρχει αὐτῷ, καὶ διαρπασάτωσαν ἀλλότριοι τοὺς πόνους αὐτοῦ. Τοῦτο ἑτέρας συμφορᾶς εἶδος, τὸ εἰς διαρπαγὴν δοθῆναι τὰ αὐτῶν, καὶ δανειστῶν φέρειν ἐπιβουλὰς, καὶ παντὶ τρόπῳ ἐπηρεάζεσθαι, καὶ τὸ δὴ χαλεπώτερον, ἐν τοσούτοις κακοῖς ἔρημον εἶναι προστάτου· καὶ τοῦτο κατεύχεται λέγων· Μὴ ὑπαρξάτω αὐτῷ ἀντιλήπτωρ. Τὰ γὰρ κακὰ αὐτὰ καθ' ἑαυτὰ ἀφόρητα· ὅταν δὲ μηδὲ τὸν προϊστάμενον ἔχῃ, πολλῷ χαλεπώτερα. Μηδὲ γενηθήτω οἰκτίρμων τοῖς ὀρφανοῖς αὐτοῦ. Βαβαί! πόσον θυμοῦ μέγεθος, ὅταν μηδὲ τὸ ἄωρον τῆς ὀρφανίας ἐλέους τυγχάνῃ, καὶ οὐ μόνον ἐλέους, ἀλλὰ καὶ ἀπωλείᾳ ἐσχάτῃ περιβάλληται! Γενηθήτω γὰρ, φησὶ, τὰ τέκνα αὐτοῦ εἰς ἐξολόθρευσιν. Ἐν γενεᾷ μιᾷ ἐξαλειφθείη τὸ ὄνομα αὐτοῦ. Εἶδες λόγον θυμοῦ γέμοντα, καὶ οὐδαμοῦ ἱστάμενον; Καὶ ζῆσαι μετὰ συμφορᾶς αὐτοὺς εὔχεται ποικίλης καὶ παντοδαπῆς, καὶ πανωλεθρίᾳ παραδοθῆναι, καὶ ἀνωνύμως ἀπολέσθαι. Καὶ ὥσπερ οὐκ ἀρκούσης τῆς συμφορᾶς τῶν παίδων, ἐπάγει πάλιν· Ἀναμνησθείη ἡ ἀνομία τῶν πατέρων αὐτοῦ, καὶ ἡ ἁμαρτία τῆς μητρὸς αὐτοῦ μὴ ἐξαλειφθείη. Γενηθήτωσαν ἐναντίον Κυρίου διαπαντὸς, καὶ ἐξολοθρευθείη ἐκ γῆς τὸ μνημόσυνον αὐτῶν. Τοῦτο γὰρ μάλιστα θυμοῦ, τὸ κατακερματίζειν ἃς εἶπε καθόλου συμφορὰς, καὶ συνεχῶς τὰ αὐτὰ περιστρέφειν. Εἰπὼν γὰρ, Ἀναμνησθείη ἡ ἀνομία τῶν πατέρων αὐτοῦ, ἐπήγαγε· Καὶ μὴ ἐξαλειφθείη. Καίτοι τὸ αὐτό ἐστιν· ἀλλ' ὅμως ὁ θυμὸς καὶ ἀμφότερα παρεσκεύασεν αὐτὸν εἰπεῖν· ὃ δὲ βούλεται εἰπεῖν τοῦτό ἐστιν· Ἀπόκτεινον αὐτὸν, σφάξον, ἄνελε. Εἶδες ἀρᾶς πλῆθος; Ἀλλ', εἰ βούλει, πάλιν ἄνωθεν αὐτὰ συλλογίσομαι. Περιπέσοι πονηροῖς ἀνθρώποις, φησὶ, κατηγορηθείη, κρατηθείη παρ' αὐτῶν, καταδικασθείη, ἄωρον ὑποσταίη θάνατον, ἐκβληθείη τῆς τιμῆς, καὶ μηδὲ εἰς ἐκγόνους, ἀλλ' εἰς ἑτέρους τινὰς ταύτην μεταφερομένην ἴδοι· ἡ γυνὴ αὐτοῦ ἀπόλοιτο, καὶ τὰ