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do not do as they do. For they say and do not do.” Then next, refuting them to their face, he said: “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for you shut the kingdom of heaven in people's faces;” and again: “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, for you are like whitewashed tombs.” Because of such rebukes, therefore, they devised the plot against him. Wherefore he says here: “Zeal for your house has consumed me, 23.741 and the reproaches of those who reproach you have fallen on me. And I covered my soul with fasting, and it became a reproach to me.” When, he says, I saw your house filled with all lawlessness, and sometimes becoming a house of trade, and sometimes a den of thieves, being fired by divine zeal, I drove out those transgressing within; but also when by their own lawless deeds they brought reproach upon you, God, whose worship they professed, again taking such reproaches upon myself, I was compelled to use boldness, and to offer them rebukes therapeutically; but when I saw them being insensitive, and not turning back from my rebukes, lamenting their destruction, I fasted and afflicted myself on their behalf. But they, even so, reproached me, mocking and deriding my fast. And wishing to show them an example of repentance, not only did I afflict myself with fasts, but I also made my garment sackcloth, punishing and chastising my own flesh, showing them by the very deed a manner of confession and of purification from former sins. But they, laughing even at these things, had me for a byword, gathering together and sitting at their own gates, making all their conversation about me, and, so to speak, chattering to one another in their mockery of me. And it was not enough for them to mock and deride my ascetic practices on their behalf, but also, organizing drinking parties, they went through songs and odes against me, babbling in their wine and getting drunk in their drunken insults against me. At which I still more covered my soul with fasting, and I put on sackcloth as my garment, weeping for their destruction. Therefore, according to Aquila it is said: “And I wept with my soul in fasting, and it became a reproach to me. And he gave my clothing as sackcloth, and I became a byword to them. Those sitting at the gate talked about me; and the songs of those drinking strong drink.” and according to Symmachus: “And to me weeping for my soul with fasting it became a reproach to me. And making my garment sackcloth, I also became a byword to them. Those sitting in the gate talked about me, and those who drink strong drink sang about me.” But it is necessary to examine these things along with how it is said by the Savior in the Gospels: “John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, ‘He has a demon.’ The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, ‘Look, a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners.’” But you will say these things happened at the beginning of the Gospel, when because his disciples were not fasting, making the defense on their behalf, he said: “The sons of the bridechamber cannot fast as long as the bridegroom is with them; the bridegroom will be taken away from them, and then they will fast.” For do you see how he himself also knew the time for fasting? If, therefore, you were to examine the time of his passion along with the things at hand before us, you would find how 23.744 these things were fulfilled, when, the bridegroom finally being taken away, his disciples also fasted. At which it was not unlikely that he also foresaw how a little later he would be alienated from them, and how the entire nation of the circumcised people would demand his blood, and how Peter would deny him, and such things would be dared against him, that darkness would take over the

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αὐτῶν μὴ ποιεῖτε. Λέγουσι γὰρ καὶ οὐ ποιοῦσιν.» Εἶθ' ἑξῆς ἀπελέγχων αὐτοὺς εἰς αὐτῶν πρόσωπον ἔλεγεν· «Οὐαὶ ὑμῖν; Γραμματεῖς καὶ Φαρισαῖοι ὑποκριταὶ, ὅτι κλείετε τὴν βασιλείαν τῶν οὐρανῶν ἔμπροσθεν τῶν ἀνθρώπων·» καὶ πάλιν· «Οὐαὶ ὑμῖν, γραμματεῖς καὶ Φαρισαῖοι, ὅτι παρομοιάζετε τάφοις κεκονιαμένοις.» Τῶν γοῦν τοιούτων ἐλέγχων ἕνεκα τὴν ἐπιβουλὴν αὐτῷ συνεσκευάσαντο. ∆ιόπερ ἐνταῦθά φησιν· «Ὁ ζῆλος τοῦ οἴκου σου κατέφαγέ με, 23.741 καὶ οἱ ὀνειδισμοὶ τῶν ὀνειδιζόντων σε ἐπέπεσαν ἐπ' ἐμέ. Καὶ συνεκάλυψα ἐν νηστείᾳ τὴν ψυχήν μου, καὶ ἐγενήθη εἰς ὀνειδισμοὺς ἐμοί.» Ὅτε μὲν, φησὶν, ἑώρων τὸν σὸν οἶκον πάσης πληρούμενον ἀνομίας, καὶ ποτὲ μὲν γιγνόμενον οἶκον ἐμπορίου, ποτὲ δὲ σπήλαιον λῃστῶν, πυρούμενος ὑπὸ θείου ζήλου, ἤλαυνον τοὺς ἔνδον παρανομοῦντας· ἀλλὰ καὶ ὅτε ταῖς ἑαυτῶν ἀθεμίτοις πράξεσιν ὄνειδος περιῆπτόν σοι τῷ Θεῷ, οὗ τὴν θεοσέβειαν ἐπηγγέλλοντο, πάλιν εἰς ἑαυτὸν ἀναλαμβάνων τοὺς τοιούτους ὀνειδισμοὺς, ἠναγκαζόμην παῤῥησίᾳ χρῆσθαι, καὶ τοὺς ἐλέγχους αὐτοῖς θεραπευτικῶς προσφέρειν· ὅτε δὲ ἑώρων ἀναισθήτως αὐτοὺς ἔχοντας, καὶ μὴ ἐπιστρεφομένους τοὺς ἐμοὺς ἐλέγχους, ἀποκλαιόμενος αὐτῶν τὴν ἀπώλειαν, ἐνήστευον καὶ κατεπόνουν ἐμαυτὸν ὑπὲρ αὐτῶν. Οἱ δὲ καὶ οὕτως ὠνείδιζόν μοι διασύροντες καὶ χλευάζοντες τὴν ἐμὴν νηστείαν. Βουλόμενος δὲ αὐτοῖς ὑπογραμμὸν μετανοίας δεικνύναι, οὐ μόνον νηστείαις ἐμαυτὸν κατεπόνουν, ἀλλὰ καὶ τὸ ἔνδυμά μου σάκκον ἐποιούμην, κολάζων καὶ τιμωρούμενος τὴν ἐμαυτοῦ σάρκα, αὐτῷ τε ἔργῳ τρόπον ἐξομολογήσεως καὶ τῶν προτέρων ἁμαρτημάτων καθάρσεως ἐπιδεικνὺς αὐτοῖς. Οἱ δὲ καὶ ταῦτα γελῶντες ἀντὶ παραβολῆς με εἶχον, συνερχόμενοι μὲν ἅμα καὶ πρὸς ταῖς ἑαυτῶν πύλαις καθεζόμενοι, πᾶσαν δὲ τὴν ἑαυτῶν ὁμιλίαν περὶ ἐμοῦ ποιούμενοι, καὶ μονονουχὶ ἀδολεσχοῦντες πρὸς ἀλλήλους ἐν τῇ κατ' ἐμοῦ χλεύῃ. Οὐκ ἀπήρκει δὲ αὐτοῖς διασύρειν καὶ χλευάζειν τὰς ἐμὰς ὑπὲρ αὐτῶν ἀσκήσεις, ἀλλὰ καὶ συμπόσια συγκροτοῦντες, ᾠδὰς καὶ ᾄσματα εἰς ἐμὲ διεξῄεσαν οἰνοφλυγοῦντες καὶ μεθυσκόμενοι ἐν ταῖς κατ' ἐμοῦ παροινίαις. Ἐφ' οἷς ἔτι μᾶλλον ἐγὼ συνεκάλυπτον ἐν νηστείᾳ τὴν ψυχήν μου, καὶ ἐτιθέμην τὸ ἔνδυμά μου σάκκον, τὴν αὐτῶν ἀπώλειαν ἀποκλαιόμενος. ∆ιὸ κατὰ τὸν Ἀκύλαν εἴρηται· «Καὶ ἔκλαυσα ἐν νηστείᾳ ψυχήν μου, καὶ ἐγενήθη εἰς ὀνειδισμοὺς ἐμοί. Καὶ ἔδωκεν ἔνδυσίν μου σάκκον, καὶ ἐγενόμην αὐτοῖς εἰς παραβολήν. Ὡμίλουν ἐν ἐμοὶ καθήμενοι πύλην· καὶ ψαλμοὶ πινόντων μέθυσμα.» κατὰ δὲ τὸν Σύμμαχον· «Καὶ κλάοντι μετὰ νηστείας τὴν ψυχήν μου ἐγένετο εἰς ὄνειδος ἐμοί. Καὶ τάσσων τὸ ἔνδυμά μου σάκκον, καὶ ἐγενόμην αὐτοῖς εἰς παραβολήν. ∆ιηγοῦντό με καθήμενοι ἐν πύλῃ, καὶ ἔψαλλόν με οἱ πίνοντες μέθυσμα.» Ἀλλὰ τούτοις συνεξετάσαι ἀναγκαῖον, πῶς εἴρηται ὑπὸ τοῦ Σωτῆρος ἐν Εὐαγγελίοις· «Ἦλθεν Ἰωάννης μήτε ἐσθίων μήτεπίνων, καὶ λέγουσιν· ∆αιμόνιον ἔχει. Ἦλθεν ὁ Υἱὸς τοῦ ἀνθρώπου ἐσθίων καὶ πίνων, καὶ λέγουσιν· Ἰδοὺ ἄνθρωπος φάγος καὶ οἰνοπότης, τελωνῶν φίλος καὶ ἁμαρτωλῶν.» Ἀλλ' ἐρεῖς ταῦτα κατ' ἀρχὰς τοῦ Εὐαγγελίου γίγνεσθαι, ὅτε διὰ τὸ μὴ νηστεύειν τοὺς μαθητὰς αὐτοῦ, τὴν ὑπὲρ αὐτῶν ἀπολογίαν ποιούμενος, ἔφασκεν· «Οὐ δύνανται οἱ υἱοὶ τοῦ νυμφῶνος νηστεύειν, ἐφ' ὅσον μετ' αὐτῶν ἐστιν ὁ νυμφίος· ἀρθήσεται ἀπ' αὐτῶν ὁ νυμφίος, καὶ τότε νηστεύσουσιν.» Ὁρᾷς γὰρ, ὡς καὶ αὐτὸς ἠπίστατο τὸν τῆς νηστείας καιρόν; Εἰ τοίνυν τὸν καιρὸν τοῦ πάθους αὐτοῦ συνεξετάσειας τοῖς μετὰ χεῖρας προκειμένοις, εὕροις ἂν ὅπως 23.744 ταῦτα ἐπληροῦτο, ὅτε λοιπὸν αἰρομένου τοῦ νυμφίου καὶ οἱ μαθηταὶ αὐτοῦ ἐνήστευον. Ἐφ' οἷς οὐκ ἀπεικὸς ἦν καὶ αὐτὸν προορῶντα, ὡς μικρὸν ὕστερον ἀπηλλοτριωμένος ἔσται αὐτοῖς, καὶ ὡς τὸ πᾶν ἔθνος τοῦ ἐκ περιτομῆς λαοῦ τὸ αἷμα αὐτοῦ ἐξαιτήσεται, καὶ ὡς Πέτρος αὐτὸν ἀρνήσεται, καὶ τοιαῦτα κατ' αὐτοῦ τολμηθήσεται, ὥστε σκότος διαλαβεῖν τὸ