John Chrysostom, On the Drachma and "A Certain Man Had Two Sons"

In drachmam et in illud: Homo quidam habebat duos filios

On the Gospel according to Luke, on the drachma, and on, "A certain man had two sons."

61.781

Again the bosom of Christ sends forth a honeycomb as an unceasing stream of love; again the torch-bearing wisdom of Christ, having lit a lamp and placed it on the lampstand of the cross, illumines the whole world toward piety. Using this lamp, the wisdom of God, having sought and found the one lost drachma, joined it to the nine drachmas of the angels. But who might the woman be who has the ten drachmas, it is necessary, beloved, to say. This is the wisdom of God, having the ten drachmas. Which? Count them: angels, archangels, Principalities, Authorities, Powers, Thrones, Dominions, Cherubim, Seraphim, and Adam the first-formed. This drachma of Adam, devoured by the malice of the devil, and dragged down into this abyss of life, and buried by the many-voiced pleasures of sins, the wisdom of God came and found. How did she find it, beloved? She came from heaven, takes the earthenware lamp of the body, lights it with the light of the Godhead, places it upon the lampstand of the cross, seeks the drachma, and folded it in the court and pasture of the angels. But perhaps some of those standing here, who have sinned after baptism, will say: What is it to us, if Adam was saved? How may we receive mercy? How may we be saved, for we have transgressed after baptism? To whom we say: You of such sort, do not be afraid, do not be alarmed, do not be troubled, do not lose heart; for God did not care for Adam and despise you; but if for him there was a woman having ten drachmas, for you there is a compassionate father, having two sons, and embracing the one who had gone astray again.

For he became all things to all people, that he might win all. We have just heard the Gospel saying: A certain man had two sons; and the younger of them came to his father and said: Father, give me the substance. And he divided his living between them. And not many days after, the younger son gathered all together and journeyed into a far country; and there wasted his living, living riotously. And when he had spent all, a mighty famine arose in that country; and he went to one of the citizens, and the citizen sent him into the fields to feed swine. And he desired to fill his belly with the husks that the swine ate; and no one gave to him. But coming to himself, he said: How many hired servants of my father's have bread enough and to spare, and I perish here with hunger? I will arise and go to my father, and I will say to him: Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you, and am no longer worthy to be called your son; make me as one of your hired servants. The meaning of this we must not seek outside, but within ourselves. For on our account the parables are spoken, and on our account they are read, so that no one may despair of himself, even if he be a great sinner; but may approach God repenting and seeking propitiation from him, especially if any one of you through faith in the Lord has become a son of God. For as many as received him, it says, to them he gave power to become children of God.

If, therefore, any of you through faith in our Lord has become his son, and was estranged from him, not by place, but by manner of life; if the famine has touched anyone, not of common bread, but of heavenly (For the bread, he says, of heaven he gave to them; bread

In drachmam et in illud: Homo quidam habebat duos filios

Εἰς τὸ κατὰ Λουκᾶν Εὐαγγέλιον, εἰς τὴν δραχμὴν, καὶ εἰς τὸ, "Ἄνθρωπός τις εἶχε δύο υἱούς."

61.781

Πάλιν οἱ κόλποι Χριστοῦ ἄπαυστον νᾶμα τῆς ἀγάπης μέλιμα βλαστάνουσι· πάλιν ἡ τοῦ Χριστοῦ λαμπαδοῦχος σοφία ἅψασα λύχνον, καὶ ἐπὶ τὴν λυχνίαν τοῦ σταυροῦ ἐπιθεῖσα, πᾶσαν τὴν οἰκουμένην δᾳδουχεῖ πρὸς εὐσέβειαν. Τούτῳ τῷ λύχνῳ χρησαμένη ἡ τοῦ Θεοῦ σοφία, τὴν μίαν τῶν δραχμῶν ἀπολωλυῖαν ζητήσασα, καὶ εὑραμένη, ταῖς ἐννέα δραχμαῖς τῶν ἀγγέλων συνέζευξε. Τίς δὲ ἂν εἴη ἡ γυνὴ ἡ ἔχουσα τὰς δέκα δραχμὰς, ἀναγκαῖον, ἀγαπητοὶ, εἰπεῖν. Αὕτη ἐστὶν ἡ τοῦ Θεοῦ σοφία, ἔχουσα τὰς δέκα δραχμάς. Ποίας; Ψήφισον· ἀγγέλους, ἀρχαγγέλους, Ἀρχὰς, Ἐξουσίας, ∆υνάμεις, Θρόνους, Κυριότητας, Χερουβὶμ, Σεραφὶμ, καὶ Ἀδὰμ τὸν πρωτόπλαστον. Ταύτην τὴν δραχμὴν τοῦ Ἀδὰμ ὑπὸ τῆς τοῦ διαβόλου κακίας ἐκβοσκηθεῖσαν, καὶ εἰς τόνδε τὸν βυθὸν τοῦ βίου καθελκυσθεῖσαν, καὶ ταῖς πολυφθόγγοις ἡδοναῖς τῶν ἁμαρτημάτων χωσθεῖσαν, ἐλθοῦσα ἡ τοῦ Θεοῦ σοφία ἀνεύρατο. Πῶς εὕρατο, ἀγαπητοί; Ἦλθεν ἐξ οὐρανῶν, λαμβάνει τὸν ὀστράκινον λύχνον τοῦ σώματος, ἅπτει τῷ φωτὶ τῆς θεότητος, ἐπιτίθησι τῇ λυχνίᾳ τοῦ σταυροῦ, ζητεῖ τὴν δραχμὴν, εἰς τὴν αὐλὴν καὶ τῶν ἀγγέλων νομὴν ἐμάνδρευσεν αὐτήν. Ἀλλ' ἴσως ἐροῦσί τινες τῶν ἐνθάδε ἑστώτων, οἵτινες μετὰ τὸ βάπτισμα ἥμαρτον, λέγοντες· Τί πρὸς ἡμᾶς, εἰ Ἀδὰμ ἐσώθη; πῶς ἡμεῖς ἐλεηθῶμεν; πῶς σωθῶμεν, ὅτι μετὰ τὸ βάπτισμα ἠνομήσαμεν; Πρὸς οὓς λέγομεν· Οἱ τοιοῦτοι, μὴ φοβεῖσθε, μὴ θροεῖσθε, μὴ ταράσσεσθε, μὴ ἀθυμεῖτε· οὐ γὰρ περὶ μὲν τοῦ Ἀδὰμ ἐμέλησε τῷ Θεῷ, ὑμῶν δὲ κατεφρόνησεν· ἀλλ' ἐκείνῳ μὲν εἰ ἐγένετο γυνὴ ἔχουσα δραχμὰς δέκα, σοὶ δὲ γίνεται πατὴρ εὔσπλαγχνος, ἔχων δύο υἱοὺς, καὶ τὸν πεπλανημένον πάλιν ἐναγκαλιζόμενος.

Τοῖς γὰρ πᾶσι τὰ πάντα γέγονεν, ἵνα τοὺς πάντας κερδήσῃ. Ἀρτίως ἠκούσαμεν τοῦ Εὐαγγελίου λέγοντος· Ἄνθρωπός τις εἶχε δύο υἱούς· καὶ προσελθὼν ὁ νεώτερος αὐτῶν τῷ πατρὶ εἶπε· Πάτερ, δός μοι τὴν οὐσίαν. Ὁ δὲ διεῖλεν αὐτοῖς τὸν βίον. Καὶ οὐ μετὰ πολλὰς ἡμέρας συναγαγὼν ἅπαντα ὁ νεώτερος υἱὸς ἀπεδήμησεν εἰς χώραν μακράν· κἀκεῖ ἀνήλωσε τὸν βίον αὑτοῦ, ζῶν ἀσώτως. ∆απανήσαντος δὲ αὐτοῦ πάντα, ἐγένετο λιμὸς ἰσχυρὸς κατὰ τὴν χώραν ἐκείνην· καὶ προσῆλθεν ἑνὶ τῶν πολιτῶν, καὶ πέμπει αὐτὸν ὁ πολίτης εἰς ἀγροὺς βόσκειν χοίρους. Καὶ ἐπεθύμει γεμίσαι τὴν κοιλίαν αὑτοῦ ἀπὸ τῶν κερατίων ὧν ἤσθιον οἱ χοῖροι· καὶ οὐδεὶς ἐδίδου αὐτῷ. Εἰς ἑαυτὸν δὲ γενόμενος ἔφη· Πόσοι νῦν μίσθιοι παρὰ τῷ πατρί μου ἄρτων περισσεύουσιν, ἐγὼ δὲ ὧδε λιμῷ ἀπόλλυμαι; Ἀναστὰς πορεύσομαι πρὸς τὸν πατέρα μου· καὶ ἐρῶ αὐτῷ· Πάτερ, ἥμαρτον εἰς τὸν οὐρανὸν, καὶ ἐνώπιόν σου, καὶ οὐκ ἔτι εἰμὶ ἄξιος κληθῆναι υἱός σου· ποίησόν με ὡς ἕνα τῶν μισθίων σου. Τούτου δὲ τὸν νοῦν οὐκ ἔξω δεῖ περιζητεῖν, ἀλλ' ἐν ἡμῖν αὐτοῖς. ∆ιὰ γὰρ ἡμᾶς εἴρηνται αἱ παραβολαὶ, καὶ δι' ἡμᾶς ἀναγινώσκονται, ἵνα μηδεὶς ἑαυτὸν ἀπελπίσῃ, κἂν σφόδρα ἁμαρτωλὸς τυγχάνῃ· ἀλλὰ προσέλθῃ τῷ Θεῷ μετανοῶν καὶ ζητῶν παρ' αὐτοῦ ἱλασμὸν, μάλιστα εἴ τις ὑμῶν διὰ τῆς πίστεως τῆς εἰς τὸν Κύριον γέγονε τοῦ Θεοῦ υἱός. Ὅσον γὰρ ἐδέξαντο αὐτὸν, φησὶν, ἔδωκεν αὐτοῖς ἐξουσίαν τέκνα Θεοῦ γενέσθαι.

Εἴ τις οὖν ὑμῶν διὰ τῆς εἰς τὸν Κύριον ἡμῶν πίστεως γέγονεν αὐτοῦ υἱὸς, καὶ ἐμακρύνθη ἀπ' αὐτοῦ, οὐ τόπῳ, ἀλλὰ τρόπῳ· εἴ τινος ἥψατο ὁ λιμὸς, οὐ τοῦ κοινοῦ ἄρτου, ἀλλὰ τοῦ ἐπουρανίου (Ἄρτον γὰρ, φησὶν, οὐρανῶν ἔδωκεν αὐτοῖς· ἄρτον