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as Paul seeks, saying: He who sows in blessings, will also reap in blessings. But see how the Prophet also uses the words excellently. For he did not say, He distributed, he divided, but, He scattered, at once showing the abundance of the giver, and calling the matter a seed. For such are those who sow; they scatter what is stored up, and they give away what is manifest, that they may receive what is to come. This is better than collecting; for to scatter thus is much better than to gather. Money is scattered, and righteousness is gathered; the things that do not last are scattered, that the things that do last may be provided. Farmers also do this. But they do so with uncertain things; for it is the earth that receives; but you sow into the hand of God, from which it is impossible to lose anything. When, therefore, you see that gold is beautiful, and you hesitate to cast it out, think of those who sow, think of those who lend, think of the merchants, who begin with expense and costs, and each of these entrusting their affairs to uncertain things; for both waves and the bosom of the earth, and the notes of debtors, are all uncertain. For often lenders have suffered the loss of their principal; but he who farms heaven fears none of these things, but can be confident about both the principal and the interest, if indeed such a thing should be called interest, and not much more than the principal. For the principal is money; but the interest is the kingdom of heaven. Do you see the nature of a loan, that has the interest much greater than the principal? And these things are in the future; but in the present you will enjoy great freedom. You will have security, you will extinguish the desire of slanderers and conspirators; you will live your whole life in safety, not stretched by the cares of existing things, but winged by the hopes of things to come. His horn will be exalted in glory. That which is most longed for by men, this he constantly sets forth, the brilliant and distinguished, which will both succeed them there, and will be theirs here with great abundance. For no one is so brilliant and glorious as the merciful man. 6. And if you wish, take those who spend their own things in vain in the hippodromes and in the theaters; bring the merciful man into the midst, and then you will see how great is the fruit for each; how everyone applauds this one continuously, and admires him, considering him a common father and harbor; but that one, after applauding him for that day alone with some untimely and irrational impulse, they afterward slander, as inhuman, as cruel, as vainglorious, as a servant of licentiousness and a minister of wickedness. But also in assemblies, if ever such discussions arise, the expenditures of those men are stigmatized, and the expenses are slandered; but of these, there is no one so shameless and defiled, who, though he be ten thousand times most cruel 55.299 and inhuman, will not be a praiser and admirer. For such is virtue; it is praiseworthy even among those who do not practice it; just as, therefore, vice is detestable even among those who practice it, and full of accusation. For this reason, not even those who receive praise them, prostitutes, and charioteers, and dancers, but they will even speak ill of them; but this one not only the poor who received, but also all those who did not enjoy his generosity will admire and love. The sinner will see, and will be angry; he will gnash his teeth and melt away. Such is virtue; burdensome and oppressive to vice. For just as fire burns up the thorns, so indeed philanthropy provokes the inhuman and the cruel; for it is a refutation of them and an accusation of their vice. But see him, not daring even in his melting away to accuse or to look against the bright eye of virtue, but melting in his mind, and showing his pain through his teeth, yet not daring to utter a word, but melting away and

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οἷον ὁ Παῦλος ζητεῖ λέγων· Ὁ σπείρων ἐπ' εὐλογίαις, ἐπ' εὐλογίαις καὶ θερίσει. Ὅρα δὲ πῶς καὶ ὁ Προφήτης ἄριστα ταῖς λέξεσι κέχρηται. Οὐ γὰρ εἶπε, ∆ιέδωκε, διένειμεν, ἀλλ', Ἐσκόρπισεν, ὁμοῦ καὶ τὴν δαψίλειαν τοῦ παρέχοντος δηλῶν, καὶ σπόρον τὸ πρᾶγμα ὀνομάζων. Τοιοῦτον γὰρ οἱ σπείροντες· σκορπίζουσι τὰ ἀποκείμενα, καὶ τὰ δῆλα προδιδόασιν, ἵνα τὰ μέλλοντα λάβωσι. Τοῦτο συλλογῆς κρεῖττον· καὶ γὰρ οὕτω σκορπίζειν πολλῷ τοῦ συλλέγειν βέλτιον. Σκορπίζεται χρήματα, καὶ συλλέγεται δικαιοσύνη· σκορπίζεται τὰ μὴ μένοντα, ἵνα πορισθῇ τὰ μένοντα. Τοῦτο καὶ γηπόνοι ποιοῦσιν. Ἀλλ' ἐκεῖνοι μὲν ἐπ' ἀδήλοις· γῆ γάρ ἐστιν ἡ ὑποδεχομένη· σὺ δὲ εἰς τὴν χεῖρα τοῦ Θεοῦ, ὅθεν οὐδὲν ἔστιν ἀπολέσαι. Ὅταν οὖν ἴδῃς, ὅτι τὸ χρυσίον καλὸν, καὶ ὀκνήσῃς ἐκβαλεῖν, ἐννόησον τοὺς σπείροντας, ἐννόησον τοὺς δανείζοντας, ἐννόησον τοὺς ἐμπόρους, οἳ ἀπὸ δαπάνης ἄρχονται καὶ ἀναλωμάτων, καὶ ταῦτα ἕκαστος τούτων ἀδήλοις ἐγχειρίζων τοῖς πράγμασι· καὶ γὰρ καὶ κύματα καὶ κόλποι γῆς, καὶ γραμματεῖα τῶν ὀφειλόντων, πάντα ἄδηλα. Καὶ γὰρ πολλάκις ἐν τῷ κεφαλαίῳ τὴν ζημίαν ὑπέμειναν οἱ δανείσαντες· ὁ δὲ τὸν οὐρανὸν γεωργῶν, οὐδὲν τούτων δέδοικεν, ἀλλὰ καὶ περὶ τοῦ κεφαλαίου καὶ περὶ τοῦ τόκου θαῤῥεῖν ἔχει, εἴ γε τὸ τοιοῦτον τόκον δεῖ καλεῖν, ἀλλ' οὐχὶ καὶ τοῦ κεφαλαίου πολλῷ πλέον. Τὸ μὲν γὰρ κεφάλαιον χρήματα· ὁ δὲ τόκος οὐρανῶν βασιλεία. Εἶδες δανείσματος φύσιν, τοῦ κεφαλαίου πολλῷ μείζονα ἔχουσαν τὸν τόκον; Καὶ ταῦτα μὲν ἐν τῷ μέλλοντι· ἐν δὲ τῷ παρόντι ἐλευθερίας ἀπολαύσῃ πολλῆς. Τὸ ἀνεπιβούλευτον ἕξεις, τῶν συκοφαντῶν καὶ τῶν ἐπιβουλευτῶν τὴν ἐπιθυμίαν σβέσεις· ἐν ἀδείᾳ βιώσῃ τὸν ἅπαντα βίον, οὔτε ταῖς φροντίσι τῶν ὄντων ἀποτεινόμενος, ἀλλὰ ταῖς ἐλπίσι τῶν μελλόντων πτερούμενος. Τὸ κέρας αὐτοῦ ὑψωθήσεται ἐν δόξῃ. Ὃ μάλιστα ποθεινὸν ἀνθρώποις, τοῦτο συνεχῶς τίθησι, τὸ λαμπρὸν καὶ ἐπίσημον, ὃ καὶ ἐκεῖ αὐτοὺς διαδέξεται, καὶ ἐνταῦθα αὐτοῖς μετὰ πολλῆς ἔσται τῆς περιουσίας. Οὐδεὶς γὰρ οὕτω λαμπρὸς καὶ ἐπίδοξος, ὡς ὁ ἐλεήμων. ςʹ. Καὶ εἰ βούλει, λάβε τοὺς ἐν ταῖς ἱπποδρομίαις καὶ ἐν τοῖς θεάτροις εἰκῆ τὰ αὑτῶν δαπανῶντας· ἄγε εἰς μέσον τὸν ἐλεήμονα, καὶ τότε ὄψει ὅσος ἑκατέροις ὁ καρπός· πῶς τοῦτον μὲν ἅπαντες κροτοῦσι διηνεκῶς, καὶ θαυμάζουσι, κοινὸν πατέρα καὶ λιμένα ἡγούμενοι· ἐκεῖνον δὲ τὴν ἡμέραν ἐκείνην κροτήσαντες μόνον ἀκαίρῳ τινὶ καὶ ἀλογίστῳ ὁρμῇ, μετὰ ταῦτα διαβάλλουσιν, ὡς ἀπάνθρωπον, ὡς ὠμὸν, ὡς κενόδοξον, ὡς ἀσελγείας διάκονον καὶ πονηρίας ὑπηρέτην. Ἀλλὰ καὶ ἐν τοῖς συλλόγοις, εἴποτε τοιοῦτοι γίνονται λόγοι, ἐκείνων μὲν τὰ ἀναλώματα στίζεται, καὶ διαβάλλονται αἱ δαπάναι· τούτων δὲ οὐδείς ἐστιν οὕτως ἀναίσχυντος καὶ μιαρὸς, ὃς κἂν μυριάκις ὠμότατος ᾖ 55.299 καὶ ἀπάνθρωπος, οὐκ ἔσται ἐπαινέτης καὶ θαυμαστής. Τοιοῦτον γὰρ ἡ ἀρετή· καὶ παρὰ τοῖς μὴ μετιοῦσιν αὐτὴν ἐπαινετή· ὥσπερ οὖν ἡ κακία καὶ παρὰ τοῖς μετιοῦσι βδελυρὰ, καὶ κατηγορίας ἀνάμεστος. ∆ιά τοι τοῦτο ἐκείνους μὲν οὐδὲ οἱ λαμβάνοντες ἐπαινοῦσι, πόρναι, καὶ ἡνίοχοι, καὶ ὀρχησταὶ, ἀλλὰ καὶ κακῶς ἐροῦσι· τοῦτον δὲ οὐχ οἱ λαβόντες πένητες μόνον, ἀλλὰ καὶ οἱ μὴ τῆς φιλοτιμίας ἀπολαύσαντες θαυμάσονται καὶ φιλήσουσιν ἅπαντες. Ἁμαρτωλὸς ὄψεται, καὶ ὀργισθήσεται· τοὺς ὀδόντας αὐτοῦ βρύξει καὶ τακήσεται. Τοιοῦτον ἡ ἀρετή· ἐπαχθὲς καὶ φορτικὸν τῇ κακίᾳ. Καὶ γὰρ καθάπερ τὸ πῦρ ἐκκαίει τὰς ἀκάνθας, οὕτω δὴ καὶ ἡ φιλανθρωπία τοὺς ἀπανθρώπους καὶ ὠμοὺς παροξύνει· ἔλεγχος γὰρ αὐτῶν ἐστι καὶ κατηγορία τῆς κακίας. Ἀλλ' ὅρα αὐτὸν οὐδὲ ἐν τῇ τηκεδόνι τολμῶντα κατηγορῆσαι καὶ ἀντιβλέψαι τῷ φαιδρῷ τῆς ἀρετῆς ὄμματι, ἀλλὰ καὶ τὴν διάνοιαν τηκόμενον, καὶ τὴν ὀδύνην διὰ τῶν ὀδόντων ἐπιδεικνύμενον, ῥῆμα δὲ ἐξενεγκεῖν οὐ τολμῶντα, ἀλλὰ τηκόμενον καὶ