John Chrysostom, On Matthew

238

in addition, I myself would say to you, that these would not be works, but almsgiving, and prayers, and protections of the wronged, and such things as these, from which we live continually in idleness. But yet God never said to us, Because you are idle, I do not light the sun for you; because you do nothing of the necessary things, I extinguish the moon, I maim the womb of the earth, I hold back the lakes, the springs, the rivers, I make the air disappear, I withhold the yearly rains; but He provides all things for us with abundance. And to some who are not only idle, but also do evil things, He grants the enjoyment of these things. Whenever, therefore, you see a poor man, and say, I am choked because this man, being young, healthy, having nothing, wishes to be fed while idle, being perhaps a servant and a runaway, and having left his own master; these things, which I have said, say to yourself, or rather, allow him to say them to you with boldness, and he will say more justly, that I am choked, because being healthy you are idle, and you do none of the things which God commanded, but having run away from the commands of the Master, you go about as if dwelling in the foreign land of wickedness, getting drunk, being debauched, stealing, robbing, overthrowing the houses of others. And you accuse him for idleness; but I accuse you for evil works, when you plot, when you swear, when you lie, when you rob, when you do countless such things. 4. But I say these things, not legislating for idleness; may it not be; but even strongly wishing all to be at work; for idleness has taught every evil; but I exhort you not to be merciless, nor cruel. Since Paul also, having found much fault and having said: If any man will not work, neither let him eat; he did not stop there, 57.410 but he added: But you, be not weary in well-doing. And yet these things are contradictory. For if you commanded them not to eat, how do you advise us to give? Yes, he says; for I commanded to turn away from them, and not to associate with them, and again I said: Do not count them as enemies, but admonish them; not legislating contradictory things, but very much in agreement. For if you are ready for mercy, that poor man will also quickly be rid of his idleness, and you of your cruelty. But he lies a lot and makes things up, one says. But for this reason also he is worthy to be pitied, that he has fallen into such necessity, as to be shameless in such matters. But we not only do not pity him, but we also add those cruel words, saying, Have you not received once and twice? What then? Does he not need to be fed again, because he was fed once? Why do you not set these laws for your own stomach, and say to it also: You were filled yesterday and the day before, do not seek now? But you burst that beyond measure, and you turn away from this one who asks for a moderate amount, though you ought for this reason to pity him, that he is compelled to come to you each day. For even if you are moved by nothing else, for this reason you ought to pity him; for by the necessity of poverty he is forced to do these things. And do you not pity him, that hearing such things he is not ashamed; for necessity is stronger. But you not only do not pity, but you also make a show of it; and though God has commanded to give in secret, you stand there making public the one who has approached, and reproaching him, for things for which you ought to have pitied him. For if you do not want to give, why do you also accuse, and crush his wretched and miserable soul? He came as to a harbor seeking your hands; why do you raise waves, and make the storm more difficult? Why do you condemn his shamelessness? For would he have approached, if he had expected to hear such things? But if he approached even knowing these things beforehand, for this reason it is right to pity him, and to shudder at your cruelty, because not even so, seeing his unrelenting necessity upon him, do you become gentler, nor do you think the fear of famine is sufficient for him as a defense for his shamelessness, but you accuse him of shamelessness; and yet you yourself have often been more shameless, and for more grievous matters. For here his shamelessness brings pardon, but we often act shamelessly while doing things worthy of punishment; and when we ought to consider those things and become humble, we instead trample on these wretched ones, and to those asking for remedies we add wounds. For if not

238

προσθήκην, εἴποιμι ἄν σοι καὶ αὐτὸς, ὅτι ταῦτα οὐκ ἂν εἴη ἔργα, ἀλλ' ἐλεημοσύνη, καὶ εὐχαὶ, καὶ τῶν ἀδικουμένων προστασίαι, καὶ ὅσα τοιαῦτα, ὧν ἐν ἀργίᾳ ζῶμεν διαπαντός. Ἀλλ' ὅμως ἡμῖν οὐδέποτε εἶπεν ὁ Θεὸς, Ἐπειδὴ ἀργεῖς, οὐκ ἀνάπτω σοι τὸν ἥλιον· ἐπειδὴ οὐδὲν πράττεις τῶν ἀναγκαίων, τὴν σελήνην σβεννύω, πηρῶ τὴν γαστέρα τῆς γῆς, κωλύω τὰς λίμνας, τὰς πηγὰς, τοὺς ποταμοὺς, ἀφανίζω τὸν ἀέρα, ἐπέχω τοὺς ἐτησίους ὑετούς· ἀλλὰ πάντα μετὰ δαψιλείας ἡμῖν παρέχει. Ἐνίοις δὲ οὐ μόνον ἀργοῦσιν, ἀλλὰ καὶ πονηρὰ πράττουσι τούτων χαρίζεται τὴν ἀπόλαυσιν. Ὅταν τοίνυν ἴδῃς πένητα, καὶ εἴπῃς, Ἀποπνίγομαι ὅτι νέος ὢν οὗτος, ὑγιὴς, οὐδὲν ἔχων, βούλεται τρέφεσθαι ἀργῶν, οἰκέτης που καὶ δραπέτης ὢν, καὶ τὸν ἑαυτοῦ δεσπότην καταλιπών· ταῦτα, ἅπερ εἶπον, εἰπὲ πρὸς ἑαυτὸν, μᾶλλον δὲ ἐκείνῳ δὸς αὐτὰ μετὰ παῤῥησίας εἰπεῖν πρὸς σὲ, καὶ δικαιότερον ἐρεῖ, ὅτι Ἀποπνίγομαι, ὅτι ὑγιὴς ὢν ἀργεῖς, καὶ οὐδὲν πράττεις ὧν ἐπέταξεν ὁ Θεὸς, ἀλλὰ δραπετεύσας ἀπὸ τῶν ἐπιταγμάτων τοῦ ∆εσπότου, περιέρχῃ καθάπερ ἐν ἀλλοδαπῇ τῇ κακίᾳ διατρίβων, μεθύων, κραιπαλῶν, κλέπτων, ἁρπάζων, τὰς ἑτέρων ἀνατρέπων οἰκίας. Καὶ σὺ μὲν ὑπὲρ ἀργίας ἐγκαλεῖς· ἐγὼ δὲ ὑπὲρ ἔργων πονηρῶν, ὅταν ἐπιβουλεύῃς, ὅταν ὀμνύῃς, ὅταν ψεύδῃ, ὅταν ἁρπάζῃς, ὅταν μυρία τοιαῦτα ποιῇς. δʹ. Ταῦτα δὲ λέγω, οὐχὶ νομοθετῶν ἀργεῖν· μὴ γένοιτο· ἀλλὰ καὶ σφόδρα βουλόμενος πάντας ἐν ἔργοις εἶναι· πᾶσαν γὰρ κακίαν ἐδίδαξεν ἡ ἀργία· παρακαλῶ δὲ μὴ ἀνηλεεῖς εἶναι, μηδὲ ὠμούς. Ἐπεὶ καὶ Παῦλος μυρία μεμψάμενος καὶ εἰπών· Εἴ τις οὐ θέλει ἐργάζεσθαι, μηδὲ ἐσθιέτω· οὐκ ἔστη μέχρι τούτου, 57.410 ἀλλὰ προσέθηκεν· Ὑμεῖς δὲ μὴ ἐκκακήσητε τὸ καλὸν ποιοῦντες. Καὶ μὴν ταῦτα ἐναντία ἐστίν. Εἰ γὰρ ἐκέλευσας αὐτοὺς μὴ ἐσθίειν, πῶς ἡμῖν παραινεῖς διδόναι; Ναὶ, φησί· καὶ γὰρ ἐκέλευσα αὐτοὺς ἀποστρέφεσθαι, καὶ μὴ ἀναμίγνυσθαι, καὶ πάλιν εἶπον· Μὴ ἐχθροὺς ἡγεῖσθε, ἀλλὰ νουθετεῖτε· οὐκ ἐναντία νομοθετῶν, ἀλλὰ καὶ πάνυ συνᾴδοντα. Ἂν γὰρ σὺ πρὸς ἔλεον ἕτοιμος ᾖς, κἀκεῖνος ταχέως ὁ πένης τῆς ἀργίας ἀπαλλαγήσεται, καὶ σὺ τῆς ὠμότητος. Ἀλλὰ ψεύδεται πολλὰ καὶ πλάττεται, φησίν. Ἀλλὰ καὶ ἐντεῦθεν ἄξιος ἐλεεῖσθαι, ὅτι εἰς τοιαύτην κατέπεσεν ἀνάγκην, ὡς καὶ τοιαῦτα ἀναισχυντεῖν. Ἡμεῖς δὲ οὐ μόνον οὐκ ἐλεοῦμεν, ἀλλὰ καὶ τὰ ὠμὰ ἐκεῖνα προστίθεμεν ῥήματα, Οὐκ ἔλαβες ἅπαξ καὶ δίς; λέγοντες. Τί οὖν; οὐ δεῖται τραφῆναι πάλιν, ἐπειδὴ ἅπαξ ἐτράφη; ∆ιατί μὴ καὶ τῇ σαυτοῦ γαστρὶ τούτους τιθεῖς τοὺς νόμους, καὶ λέγεις καὶ πρὸς αὐτήν· Ἐνεπλήσθης χθὲς καὶ πρὸ τῆς χθὲς, μὴ ζήτει νῦν; Ἀλλ' ἐκείνην μὲν καὶ ὑπὲρ τὸ μέτρον διαῤῥηγνύεις, τοῦτον δὲ καὶ τὰ σύμμετρα αἰτοῦντα ἀποστρέφῃ, ὀφείλων διὰ τοῦτο αὐτὸν ἐλεεῖν, ὅτι καθ' ἑκάστην ἀναγκάζεταί σοι προσιέναι τὴν ἡμέραν. Εἰ γὰρ καὶ μηδαμόθεν ἑτέρωθεν ἐπικάμπτῃ, διὰ τοῦτο αὐτὸν ἔδει σε ἐλεεῖν· τῇ γὰρ τῆς πενίας ἀνάγκῃ ταῦτα βιάζεται καὶ ποιεῖ. Καὶ οὐκ ἐλεεῖς αὐτὸν, ὅτι τοιαῦτα ἀκούων οὐκ αἰσχύνεται· ἡ γὰρ ἀνάγκη δυνατωτέρα. Σὺ δὲ οὐ μόνον οὐκ ἐλεεῖς, ἀλλὰ καὶ ἐκπομπεύεις· καὶ τοῦ Θεοῦ κελεύσαντος λάθρα διδόναι, ἕστηκας δημοσιεύων τὸν προσελθόντα, καὶ ὀνειδίζων, ὑπὲρ ὧν ἐλεεῖν ἐχρῆν. Εἰ γὰρ μὴ βούλει δοῦναι, τί καὶ ἐγκαλεῖς, καὶ συντρίβεις τὴν ταλαίπωρον καὶ ἀθλίαν ψυχήν; Ἦλθεν ὡς εἰς λιμένα τὰς σὰς χεῖρας ἐπιζητῶν· τί κύματα ἐγείρεις, καὶ χαλεπώτερον τὸν χειμῶνα ἐργάζῃ; Τί καταγινώσκεις ἀνελευθερίαν; Μὴ γὰρ, εἰ προσεδόκησε τοιαῦτα ἀκούσεσθαι, προσῆλθεν ἄν; Εἰ δὲ καὶ ταῦτα προειδὼς προσῆλθε, διὰ τοῦτο ἄξιον κἀκεῖνον ἐλεεῖν, καὶ τὴν σὴν φρίττειν ὠμότητα, ὅτι οὐδὲ οὕτως, ἀπαραίτητον ἐπικειμένην ὁρῶν ἀνάγκην, ἡμερώτερος γίνῃ, οὐδὲ ἀρκεῖν αὐτῷ νομίζεις εἰς ἀπολογίαν τῆς ἀναισχυντίας τὸ τοῦ λιμοῦ δέος, ἀλλ' ἀναισχυντίαν ἐγκαλεῖς· καίτοι μείζονα αὐτὸς ἠναισχύντησας πολλάκις, καὶ ὑπὲρ χαλεπῶν πραγμάτων. Ἐνταῦθα μὲν γὰρ καὶ συγγνώμην ἡ ἀναισχυντίᾳ φέρει, ἡμεῖς δὲ πολλάκις κολάσεως ἄξια πράττοντες ἀναιδευόμεθα· καὶ δέον ἐννοοῦντας ἐκεῖνα ταπεινοὺς γίνεσθαι, καὶ ἐπεμβαίνομεν τοῖς ταλαιπώροις τούτοις, καὶ φάρμακα αἰτοῦσι τραύματα προστίθεμεν. Εἰ γὰρ μὴ