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they work, adding the slaughter, and everywhere, both by what they do and by what they say, entangling themselves in inescapable evils. For after these things, when Pilate gave them the choice, they chose for the robber to be released rather than Jesus; but him who had done no wrong, but had even done so many good works, they were killing. 3. What then did he do? When he saw that he was laboring in vain, and that they would not endure to receive the silver pieces, He cast them into the temple, and went and hanged himself. But the chief priests took the silver pieces and said; It is not lawful to put them into the treasury, since it is the price of blood. And having taken counsel, they bought with them the potter's field for a burial place for strangers. Therefore that field was called The Field of Blood to this day. Then was fulfilled that which was spoken by Jeremiah the prophet, saying; And they took the thirty pieces of silver, the price of him that was valued, and gave them for the potter's field, as the Lord appointed me. Do you see again how they are condemned by their very own conscience? 58.761 For since they knew that they had purchased the murder, they did not put it into the treasury, but bought a field for the burial of strangers. And this also became a testimony against them, and a proof of the betrayal. For the name of the place, more clearly than a trumpet, proclaimed to all their blood-guiltiness. And they do not do it simply, but after taking counsel, and so in every case, so that no one might be guiltless of the audacious act, but all be responsible. And prophecy foretold these things from of old. Do you see not only the apostles, but also the prophets, relating the reproachful things with accuracy, and from every side proclaiming the Passion and showing it beforehand? This the Jews also, without being aware of it, brought to pass. For if they had cast it into the treasury, the matter would not have become so manifest; but now, by purchasing a field, they made the whole thing clear even to later generations. Hear, all you who think to do good deeds out of murders, and take the price of human souls. These acts of almsgiving are Jewish, or rather, satanic. For there are, there are even now, those who, plundering countless things from others, think to make amends for the whole, if they throw down ten or a hundred gold pieces. Concerning whom the prophet also says; You covered my altar with tears. Christ does not wish to be fed by covetousness, He does not accept this food. Why do you insult the Master, by bringing unclean things to Him? It is better to overlook one wasting with hunger, than to feed him from such things. The one is cruel, the other is both cruel and insolent. It is better to give nothing, than the things of others to others. For tell me, if you saw two people, one naked, the other having a cloak, and then, having stripped the one with the cloak, you clothed the naked one, have you not done an injustice? It is surely clear to everyone. If, then, when you give all of what you took to another, you have done an injustice, not shown mercy; when you give not even the smallest part of what you seize, and call the act almsgiving, what punishment will you not undergo? For if men were accused for offering lame animals, what pardon will you obtain who do worse things? For if the thief, giving back to the Lord Himself, still does wrong, and does wrong in such a way that he can scarcely atone for the crime with a fourfold addition, and this under the Old Covenant; one who does not steal, but uses violence, and gives not even to the one from whom he took, but to another in his place, and not fourfold, but not even half, and not living under the Old, but under the New Covenant, consider how much fire he gathers upon his own head. But if he does not yet pay the penalty, for this very reason then bewail him, because he is treasuring up for himself greater wrath, unless he repents. For what? Do you think, He says, that they alone were sinners, on whom the tower fell? No, I tell you, but unless you repent, you too will suffer the same things. Let us therefore repent and give alms pure of covetousness, and having great abundance. Consider that the Jews supported eight thousand Levites, and besides the Levites also widows and orphans, and performed many other public services, and besides this also went on military campaigns; but now fields, and houses, and rents of dwellings, and carriages, and mule-drivers, and

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ἐργάζονται, προστιθέντες τὴν σφαγὴν, καὶ πανταχοῦ, καὶ δι' ὧν ποιοῦσι, καὶ δι' ὧν λέγουσιν, ἀφύκτοις ἐμπλέκοντες ἑαυτοὺς κακοῖς. Καὶ γὰρ μετὰ ταῦτα, ἐπιτρέψαντος τοῦ Πιλάτου, τὸν μὲν λῃστὴν εἵλοντο ἀφεθῆναι μᾶλλον, ἢ τὸν Ἰησοῦν· τὸν δὲ οὐδὲν ἠδικηκότα, ἀλλὰ καὶ τοσαῦτα εὐεργετηκότα, ἀνῄρουν. γʹ. Τί οὖν ἐκεῖνος; Ὡς εἶδεν ἀνόνητα πονῶν, καὶ οὐκ ἀνεχομένους δέξασθαι τὰ ἀργύρια, Ἔῤῥιψεν αὐτὰ εἰς τὸν ναὸν, καὶ ἀπελθὼν ἀπήγξατο. Οἱ δὲ ἀρχιερεῖς λαβόντες τὰ ἀργύρια, εἶπον· Οὐκ ἔξεστι βαλεῖν αὐτὰ εἰς τὸν κορβονᾶν, ἐπεὶ τιμὴ αἵματός ἐστι. Καὶ συμβούλιον λαβόντες, ἠγόρασαν ἐξ αὐτῶν τὸν ἀγρὸν τοῦ κεραμέως εἰς ταφὴν τοῖς ξένοις. ∆ιὸ ἐκλήθη ὁ ἀγρὸς ἐκεῖνος Ἀγρὸς αἵματος ἕως τῆς σήμερον. Τότε ἐπληρώθη τὸ ῥηθὲν διὰ Ἱερεμίου τοῦ προφήτου λέγοντες· Καὶ ἔλαβον τὰ τριάκοντα ἀργύρια, τὴν τιμὴν τοῦ τετιμημένου, καὶ ἔδωκαν αὐτὰ εἰς τὸν ἀγρὸν τοῦ κεραμέως, καθὰ συνέταξέ μοι Κύριος. Εἶδες πάλιν αὐτόθεν κατακρινομένους ὑπὸ τοῦ συνει 58.761 δότος; Ἐπειδὴ γὰρ ᾔδεσαν, ὅτι τὸν φόνον ἠγόρασαν, οὐκ ἔβαλον εἰς τὸν κορβονᾶν, ἀλλ' ἠγόρασαν ἀγρὸν εἰς ταφὴν τοῖς ξένοις. Ἐγίνετο δὲ καὶ τοῦτο μαρτύριον κατ' αὐτῶν, καὶ τῆς προδοσίας ἔλεγχος. Τὸ γὰρ ὄνομα τοῦ χωρίου σάλπιγγος λαμπρότερον πᾶσιν ἀνεκήρυττε τὴν μιαιφονίαν αὐτῶν. Καὶ οὐδὲ ἁπλῶς αὐτὸ ποιοῦσιν, ἀλλὰ συμβούλιον λαβόντες, καὶ πανταχοῦ οὕτως, ἵνα μηδεὶς ἀθῶος ᾖ τοῦ τολμήματος, ἀλλὰ πάντες ὑπεύθυνοι. Ταῦτα δὲ ἄνωθεν προὔλεγεν ἡ προφητεία. Ὁρᾷς οὐχὶ τοὺς ἀποστόλους μόνον, ἀλλὰ καὶ τοὺς προφήτας τὰ ἐπονείδιστα μετὰ ἀκριβείας διηγουμένους, καὶ πάντοθεν τὸ πάθος ἀνακηρύττοντας καὶ προεμφαίνοντας; Τοῦτο καὶ Ἰουδαῖοι μὴ συνειδότες ὑπέμενον. Εἰ γὰρ εἰς τὸν κορβονᾶν ἐνέβαλον, οὐκ ἂν οὕτω τὸ πρᾶγμα κατάδηλον ἐγένετο· νυνὶ δὲ χωρίον ὠνησάμενοι, καὶ ταῖς μετέπειτα γενεαῖς δῆλον ἐποίησαν τὸ πᾶν. Ἀκούσατε ὅσοι ἀπὸ φόνων δοκεῖτε εὐποιΐας ποιεῖν, καὶ τιμὴν λαμβάνετε ψυχῶν ἀνθρώπων. Ἰουδαϊκαὶ αὗται αἱ ἐλεημοσύναι, μᾶλλον δὲ σατανικαί. Εἰσὶ γὰρ, εἰσὶ καὶ νῦν, οἳ μυρία ἑτέρων ἁρπάζοντες, ὑπὲρ τοῦ παντὸς ἀπολογεῖσθαι νομίζουσι, ἂν δέκα χρυσίνους ἢ ἑκατὸν καταβάλωσι. Περὶ ὧν καὶ ὁ προφήτης φησίν· Ἐκαλύπτετε δάκρυσι τὸ θυσιαστήριόν μου. Οὐ βούλεται Χριστὸς πλεονεξίᾳ τρέφεσθαι, οὐ δέχεται ταύτην τὴν τροφήν. Τί τὸν ∆εσπότην ὑβρίζεις, ἀκάθαρτα προσάγων αὐτῷ; Βέλτιον λιμῷ τηκόμενον περιορᾷν, ἢ τρέφειν ἀπὸ τοιούτων. Ἐκεῖνο ὠμοῦ, τοῦτο καὶ ὠμοῦ καὶ ὑβριστοῦ. Βέλτιον μηδὲν δοῦναι, ἢ τὰ ἄλλων ἑτέροις. Εἰπὲ γάρ μοι, εἴ τινας εἶδες δύο, τὸν μὲν γυμνὸν, τὸν δὲ ἱμάτιον ἔχοντα, εἶτα τὸν ἔχοντα τὸ ἱμάτιον ἀποδύσας, περιέβαλες τὸν γυμνὸν, ἆρ' οὐκ ἠδίκησας; Παντί που δῆλον. Εἰ δὲ ὅπερ ἔλαβες ἑτέρῳ δοὺς ἅπαν, ἠδίκησας, οὐκ ἠλέησας· ὅταν μηδὲ τὸ πολλοστὸν μέρος δῷς ὧν ἁρπάζεις, καὶ ἐλεημοσύνην τὸ πρᾶγμα καλῇς, ποίαν οὐκ ὑποστήσῃ τιμωρίαν; Εἰ γὰρ χωλὰ ἄλογα προσφέροντες ἄνθρωποι ἐνεκαλοῦντο, σὺ χαλεπώτερα ποιῶν ποίας τεύξῃ συγγνώμης; Εἰ γὰρ αὐτῷ ἀποδιδοὺς τῷ Κυρίῳ ὁ κλέπτης ἔτι ἀδικεῖ, καὶ οὕτως ἀδικεῖ, ὡς τετραπλασίονι προσθήκῃ μόλις λῦσαι τὸ ἔγκλημα, καὶ ταῦτα ἐπὶ τῆς Παλαιᾶς· ὁ μὴ κλέπτων, ἀλλὰ βιαζόμενος, καὶ μηδὲ αὐτῷ τῷ ἀφαιρεθέντι διδοὺς, ἀλλ' ἀντ' ἐκείνου ἑτέρῳ, καὶ μηδὲ τετραπλασίονα, ἀλλὰ μηδὲ τὰ ἡμίση, καὶ μηδὲ ἐν τῇ Παλαιᾷ, ἀλλ' ἐν τῇ Καινῇ πολιτευόμενος, ἐννόησον ὅσον ἐπὶ τὴν ἑαυτοῦ κεφαλὴν συνάγει τὸ πῦρ. Εἰ δὲ οὐδέπω δίδωσι τὴν δίκην, δι' αὐτὸ μὲν οὖν τοῦτο αὐτὸν θρήνησον, ὅτι μείζονα ἑαυτῷ θησαυρίζει τὴν ὀργὴν, εἰ μὴ μεταμεληθείη. Τί γάρ; ∆οκεῖτε, φησὶν, ὅτι ἐκεῖνοι μόνοι ἦσαν ἁμαρτωλοὶ, ἐφ' οὓς ὁ πύργος κατηνέχθη; Οὐχὶ, λέγω ὑμῖν, ἀλλ' ἐὰν μὴ μετανοήσητε, καὶ ὑμεῖς τὰ αὐτὰ πείσεσθε. Μετανοήσωμεν τοίνυν καὶ δῶμεν ἐλεημοσύνην πλεονεξίας καθαρὰν, καὶ πολλὴν ἔχουσαν τὴν δαψίλειαν. Ἐννοήσατε ὅτι Ἰουδαῖοι Λευΐτας ὀκτακισχιλίους ἔτρεφον, καὶ μετὰ τῶν Λευϊτῶν καὶ χήρας καὶ ὀρφανοὺς, καὶ πολλὰ ἕτερα ἐλειτούργουν, καὶ μετὰ τούτου καὶ ἐστρατεύοντο· νυνὶ δὲ ἀγροὶ, καὶ οἰκίαι, καὶ μισθώματα οἰκημάτων, καὶ ὀχήματα, καὶ ὀρεωκόμοι, καὶ