John Chrysostom, On "If anyone is in Christ, a new creation"

it came to be; for the teaching is not about created things. Behold, the Word: In the beginning was the Word. How many tyrants, since the fisherman uttered this word, wished to destroy it, and were not able? But, wherever you go, you hear, that "In the beginning was the Word;" whether in the country, or in the city, it has come first, "In the beginning was 64.27 the Word;" and in Persia and in India and in the land of the Mauritanians this word shines more brightly than the sun. For the sun shines by day, but is hidden by night; but this word emits its own splendor even by night, being inscribed on the mind of each person. The one who wrote it has died, and the word shines on; the body of the one who spoke it was dissolved? and the word flourishes beyond the sun. Wherever you go, the word has gone before, "In the beginning was the Word." And each one, both woman and man, both slave and free, both king and commoner, both rulers and ruled, meditate upon it in their heart, and no one is able to erase this most beautiful inheritance, but it remains preserving its wealth. Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away.

A word the devil was not strong enough to erase; why? Because it is not a mere word, but the word of God. Therefore do not be ashamed when you hear: The fisherman uttered these things, the one who mended nets. Did you see how he sat at the very bottom of poverty and ascended to the summit of virtue? But lest, having begun one thing, we lead our discourse to another by the flow of our speech, letting our thoughts roll out of control, come now, let us use a bridle on our tongue and bring our subject back to our former promise. What then does the tentmaker say, the man of the marketplace? For I will not cease continually sounding these words, because of the madness of the many and their unphilosophical opinion. For since many in the marketplace, when they want to insult someone, say, "Market-lounger?" what is it, "Market-lounger?" what is a man of the marketplace? tell me; Is it a crime to be a man of the marketplace? Is it a crime to stand in the marketplace and work? it is a crime to remain indoors and seize the things of others. Learn what is an insult, and what is a commendation, and do not mock; to be a man of the marketplace is not a crime, but to be a robber, to be covetous. What good do you do me, that you sit in a chamber, and are a wolf? and what harm does the poor man do me standing in the marketplace, imitating an ox and a plowman? You are a man of the marketplace, you are an artisan? These are not crimes; these are praises, because you gather your food from just labors, not meddling in the houses of others. Therefore, it is not a crime to be a man of the marketplace, nor to be an artisan; but what is a crime? To live in idleness; indeed, would that it were only idle, and not doing evil. Paul was a man of the marketplace, and stood at his workshop; and he was not such a one before the Gospel, he was changed after the Gospel. But he both preached and stitched skins; he preached and stayed with Priscilla and Aquila, because they were of the same trade; for they were tentmakers by trade. O philosophy of Paul! O lofty mind, and unconquerable will! O thought that has touched the vault of heaven! O soul that looks down on all things seen! O will! he considered the fantasies of life to be a spider's web; he did not go to kings, nor did he go to the rich, he did not go to the well-to-do, but he went to tentmakers because they were of the same trade, and he was not ashamed to reveal his occupation, but made this clear to all. He stood in the marketplace preaching the Gospel, raising the dead, cleansing lepers, and was not ashamed of the place, but gloried in the manner, and stood in the marketplace; and while he was selling skins, others were saying, "Raise the dead man;" and two women were standing there, one saying, "Make me the skin into a mattress," and the other saying, "Raise my son," and he answered them both; and this was no hindrance to him, but both his hands were working, and grace was at work, and the tentmaker answered both, providing to the one from his craft, and to the other from grace. What do you want? I will make the skin a mattress; for I stitch skins.

ἐγένετο· οὐ γὰρ περὶ δημιουργημάτων ἡ διδασκαλία. Ἰδοὺ Λόγος· Ἐν ἀρχῇ ἦν ὁ Λόγος. Πόσοι τύραννοι ἐξότε ἐφθέγξατο ὁ ἁλιεὺς τὸ ῥῆμα τοῦτο ἀφανίσαι ἤθελον, καὶ οὐκ ἴσχυσαν; ἀλλ', ὅπου ἂν ἀπέλθῃς, ἀκούεις, ὅτι Ἐν ἀρχῇ ἦν ὁ Λόγος· κἂν ἐν χώρᾳ, κἂν ἐν πόλει, προέλαβεν, Ἐν ἀρχῇ ἦν 64.27 ὁ Λόγος· καὶ ἐν Περσίδι καὶ ἐν Ἰνδίᾳ καὶ ἐν τῇ Μαυριτανῶν χώρᾳ λάμπει τὸ ῥῆμα τοῦτο ἡλίου φανερώτερον. Ὁ μὲν γὰρ ἥλιος ἐν ἡμέρᾳ φαίνει, ἐν νυκτὶ δὲ κρύπτεται· τὸ δὲ ῥῆμα καὶ ἐν νυκτὶ τὴν ἑαυτοῦ λαμπηδόνα ἀφίησι, τῇ ἑκάστου διανοίᾳ ἐγγέγραπται. Ἀπέθανεν ὁ γράψας, καὶ τὸ ῥῆμα λάμπει· τὸ σῶμα διελύθη τοῦ εἰπόντος; καὶ τὸ ῥῆμα ὑπὲρ τὸν ἥλιον ἀκμάζει. Ὅπου ἂν ἀπέλθῃς, προέλαβε τὸ ῥῆμα, Ἐν ἀρχῇ ἦν ὁ Λόγος. Καὶ ἕκαστος, καὶ γυνὴ καὶ ἀνὴρ, καὶ δοῦλος καὶ ἐλεύθερος, καὶ βασιλεὺς καὶ ἰδιώτης, καὶ ἄρχοντες καὶ ἀρχόμενοι, μελετῶσιν αὐτὸ ἐν τῇ καρδίᾳ, καὶ οὐδεὶς ἐξαλεῖψαι δύναται τὴν καλλίστην ταύτην κληρονομίαν, ἀλλὰ μένει διατηρῶν τὸν πλοῦτον. Ὁ οὐρανὸς καὶ ἡ γῆ παρελεύσονται, οἱ δὲ λόγοι μου οὐ μὴ παρέλθωσι.

Ῥῆμα οὐκ ἴσχυσεν ἐξαλεῖψαι ὁ διάβολος· διὰ τί; Ὅτι οὐ ῥῆμα ψιλὸν, ἀλλὰ ῥῆμα Θεοῦ. Μὴ τοίνυν αἰσχύνου ὅταν ἀκούσῃς· Ταῦτα ὁ ἁλιεὺς ἐφθέγξατο, ταῦτα ὁ σαγήνας ῥάπτων. Εἶδες πῶς εἰς αὐτὸν τὸν πυθμένα τῆς πενίας ἐκάθητο καὶ ἀνέβη εἰς τὴν κορυφὴν τῆς ἀρετῆς; Ἀλλ' ἵνα μὴ ἑτέρων ἀρξάμενος, ἐφ' ἕτερα τὸν λόγον ἀγάγωμεν τῇ ῥύμῃ τῶν λεγομένων, τὰ νοήματα ἀφέντες ἐκκυλίεσθαι, φέρε δὴ χαλινῷ τῇ γλώττῃ χρησάμενοι τὴν ὑπόθεσιν ἐπὶ τὴν προτέραν ὑπόσχεσιν ἐπαναγάγωμεν. Τί οὖν φησιν ὁ σκηνοποιὸς, ὁ ἀγοραῖος; οὐ γὰρ παύσομαι συνεχῶς ταῦτα εὐηχῶν τὰ ῥήματα, διὰ τὴν τῶν πολλῶν ἀπόνοιαν καὶ τὴν ἀφιλόσοφον αὐτῶν γνώμην. Ἐπειδὴ γὰρ πολλοὶ κατὰ τὴν ἀγορὰν, ἐπειδὰν ὑβρίσωσι, λέγουσιν, Ἀγοραῖε; τί ἐστιν, Ἀγοραῖε; τί ἐστιν ἀγοραῖος; εἰπέ μοι· μὴ γὰρ ἔγκλημα τὸ εἶναι ἀγοραῖον; μὴ γὰρ ἔγκλημα τὸ ἑστάναι ἐπ' ἀγορᾶς καὶ ἐργάζεσθαι; ἔγκλημα τὸ ἔνδον μένοντα τὰ τῶν ἄλλων ἁρπάζειν. Μάθε τί ὕβρις, καὶ τί ἐγκώμιον, καὶ μὴ καταγέλα· ἀγοραῖον εἶναι οὐκ ἔστιν ἔγκλημα, ἀλλὰ τὸ ἅρπαγα εἶναι, τὸ πλεονέκτην εἶναι. Τί με ὠφελεῖς, ὅτι κάθῃ ἐν θαλάμῳ, καὶ λύκος εἶ; τί δέ με βλάπτει ὁ πένης ἐν ἀγορᾷ ἑστηκὼς καὶ βοῦν καὶ ἀροτῆρα μιμούμενος; Ἀγοραῖος εἶ, χειροτέχνης εἶ; οὐκ ἔστι ταῦτα ἐγκλήματα· ἐγκώμια ταῦτά ἐστιν, ὅτι ἀπὸ δικαίων πόνων τὴν τροφὴν συνάγεις, οὐκ ἀλλοτρίας περιεργαζόμενος οἰκίας. Οὐκ ἔστιν οὖν ἔγκλημα τὸ ἀγοραῖον εἶναι, οὐδὲ τὸ χειροτέχνην εἶναι· ἀλλὰ τί ἐστιν ἔγκλημα; τὸ ἀργῶς ζῇν· εἴθε μὲν οὖν ἀργὸν, καὶ μὴ κακῶς ἐργαζόμενον. Ἀγοραῖος ἦν ὁ Παῦλος, καὶ ἐπ' ἐργαστηρίου εἰστήκει· καὶ οὐκ ἦν πρὸ τοῦ Εὐαγγελίου τοιοῦτος, μετὰ τὸ Εὐαγγέλιον μετεβάλλετο. Ἀλλὰ καὶ ἐκήρυττε καὶ δέρματα ἔραπτεν· ἐκήρυττε καὶ ἔμενε παρὰ Πρισκίλλᾳ καὶ Ἀκύλᾳ, ∆ιὰ τὸ ὁμότεχνον· ἦσαν γὰρ σκηνοποιοὶ τὴν τέχνην. Ὦ φιλοσοφία Παύλου! ὦ φρόνημα ὑψηλὸν, καὶ γνώμη ἀχείρωτος! ὦ διάνοια τῆς ἁψῖδος τοῦ οὐρανοῦ ἁψαμένη! ὦ ψυχὴ πάντων ὑπερορῶσα τῶν ὁρωμένων! ὦ γνώμη! ἀράχνην ἐνόμιζε τοῦ βίου τὰς φαντασίας· οὐκ ἀπῆλθε πρὸς βασιλέας, οὐδὲ ἀπῆλθε πρὸς πλουσίους, οὐκ ἀπῆλθε πρὸς εὐπόρους, ἀλλὰ πρὸς σκηνοποιοὺς ἀπῆλθε διὰ τὸ ὁμότεχνον, καὶ οὐκ ᾐσχύνετο ἐκκαλύπτων ἑαυτοῦ τὸ ἐπιτήδευμα, ἀλλὰ πᾶσι τοῦτο κατάδηλον εἰργάζετο. Ἐν ἀγορᾷ εἱστήκει τὸ Εὐαγγέλιον κηρύττων, νεκροὺς ἐγείρων, λεπροὺς καθαίρων, καὶ οὐκ ᾐσχύνετο τῷ τόπῳ, ἀλλὰ ἐνεκαλλωπίζετο τῷ τρόπῳ, καὶ εἰστήκει ἐν ἀγορᾷ· καὶ ὁ μὲν ἐξεδίδου δέρματα, οἱ δὲ ἔλεγον, Ἀνάστησον τὸν νεκρόν· καὶ εἱστήκεισαν δύο γυναῖκες, ἡ μὲν λέγουσα, Ποίησόν μοι τὸ δέρμα στρῶμα, ἡ δὲ λέγουσα, Ἀνάστησον τὸν υἱόν μου, καὶ ἀμφοτέραις ἀπεκρίνατο· καὶ τοῦτο κώλυμα ἐκείνου οὐκ ἐγίνετο, ἀλλὰ καὶ αἱ χεῖρες εἰργάζοντο, καὶ ἡ χάρις ἐνήργει, καὶ ἀμφοτέραις ἀπεκρίνατο ὁ σκηνοποιὸς, τῇ μὲν τὸ ἀπὸ τῆς τέχνης, τῇ δὲ τὸ ἀπὸ τῆς χάριτος παρέχων. Σὺ τί βούλει; στρῶμα τὸ δέρμα ἐγὼ ποιῶ· δέρματα γὰρ ῥάπτω.