3. Then he continues: "and those who have tasted the heavenly gift," i.e., the forgiveness of sins, "who have been made partakers of the Holy Spirit, and have tasted the good word of God," here he speaks of the teaching, "and the powers of the world to come." What powers does he understand? Either (the power) to work miracles, or the pledge of the Spirit. "And those who have fallen away are to be renewed again by repentance, when they again crucify the Son of God in themselves and mock [Him]." "Renew," he says, "by repentance," i.e., through repentance. What is this? Is repentance rejected? No, not repentance, not at all, but a second renewal with the font (baptism). He said, "For it is impossible... to renew by repentance", did not stop, but after the word: "impossible", he added: "again they crucify the Son of God in themselves... to renew again", i.e. to make new, and only the font makes new: "it is renewed," it is said, "like an eagle, thy youth" (Psalm 102:5).

The effect of repentance consists in the fact that it delivers those who have become new and then through the sins of those who have become old again from this decrepitude and returns them to a state of renewal; but he can no longer raise him to his former brightness, because there (in baptism) everything was a work of grace. "When they crucify the Son of God again in themselves," he says, "and mock [Him]." The meaning of his words is as follows: baptism is the cross, because "our old man is crucified with Him" (Romans 6:6); and again: "We are united to Him in the likeness of His death"; and again: "We were buried with Him by baptism into death" (Romans 6:5,4). Just as it is impossible to crucify Christ another time, because this would mean exposing Him to mockery, so it is impossible to be baptized a second time. If "death no longer has power over Him" (Romans 6:9), if He was resurrected, having become the conqueror of death through His resurrection, if He trampled down death by His death, then to crucify Him again means to present everything as a fable and a disgrace. And whoever is baptized a second time actually crucifies Him again. What does it mean, "crucified again"? Again nailing Him to the cross. As Christ died on the cross, so we die in baptism, we die not in the flesh, but to sin. Look: there is death, and there is death; He died in the flesh, and we die to sin. In baptism our old man is buried and a new one arises, conformed to the likeness of His death. Thus, if it is necessary to be baptized again, then it is necessary that this (new person) die again, because baptism is nothing but the death of the immersed and the rising of the new. And well (the Apostle) said: "They crucify again in themselves," because he who does this acts as if forgetting about the former grace, and disposes his life carelessly, as if hoping for a second baptism. Therefore, it is necessary to be attentive and careful. What does it mean: "those who have tasted the heavenly gift"? That is, those who have received the remission of sins, because to bestow such grace is proper to God alone, and this grace is entirely grace. "Shall we remain in sin, that grace may abound? By no means" (Romans 6:1). If we always hope for salvation by grace, then we will never become virtuous; where there is only grace, there we can give ourselves over to carelessness. If we knew that our sins could be washed away again (by baptism), would we cease to sin? I don't think so. Many gifts are understood here (the Apostle); And what kind, listen. Thou hast been vouchsafed, he says, so great a forgiveness, thou who sat in darkness, who was an enemy, an enemy, an outcast, a godless, a lost; being so, thou hast suddenly been enlightened, vouchsafed the Spirit, the heavenly gift, adoption, the kingdom of heaven, the mysteries of the ineffable, and other blessings, and after that thou hast not become better, and therefore, being worthy of perdition, and at the same time having received salvation and honor, as if having done great deeds, how can thou be baptized again? By two proofs he confirms the impossibility of this deed, and the strongest of them he puts after: the first is that he who has been vouchsafed such blessings and has betrayed all that has been given to him is not worthy to receive renewal again; the second is that it is impossible to crucify (the Son of God) again, because that would mean exposing Him to desecration. So, no, there is no second baptismal font. If it had, there would have been a third, and a fourth, and the next one would always destroy the previous one, and its another again, and so on to infinity. Having said: "And those who have tasted the good word of God, and the powers of the world to come," (the Apostle) does not reveal all this, but only hints, and as if he says: to live like the angels, not to need anything earthly, to be sure that adoption (to God) brings us future blessings, to hope to enter the unapproachable sanctuary – all this is taught by the Spirit. What does it mean: "and the powers of the age to come"? It means eternal life, an angelic state. We have already received the pledge of this from the Spirit through faith. Tell me, then, if you were brought into the king's palaces, and if all that was there were entrusted to you, and then you squandered everything, could it be entrusted to you again?

4. And so, what then, you say, is there no repentance? There is repentance, but there is no second baptism. Repentance has great power; it can, if he wishes, free a man who is deeply immersed in sin, and when he is in danger, put him in safety, even if he has reached the very depths of evil. This can be seen from many places (Scripture). "Do they not rise when they fall," says (the prophet), "and having turned from the way, do they not return" (Jeremiah 8:4)? It can, if we wish, again depict Christ in us; Listen, indeed, to what Paul says: "My children, for whom I am again in the pangs of childbirth, until Christ is formed in you!" (Gal. 4:19); only we must begin to repent. Look at God's love for mankind: we should have been punished with all kinds of punishment from the very beginning, because, having accepted the natural law and received a thousand blessings, we did not know the Lord and led an unclean life; but He not only did not punish us, but also granted us innumerable blessings, as if we had accomplished great feats.

We have fallen away again, but even after that He does not punish us, but has given us the medicine of repentance, which can destroy and blot out all our sins, only if we know what this medicine consists of and how it should be used. What is the medicine of repentance, and how is it used? First, (it consists) of the consciousness of one's sins and confession of them. "But I have made my sin known to Thee," says (the prophet), "and have not hidden my iniquity"; and again: "I said, 'I will confess my transgressions to the Lord,' and Thou hast taken away from me the guilt of my sin" (Psalm 31:5); and again, "Remember me; let us sue; speak thou, that thou mayest be justified" (Isaiah 43:26); and again: "The righteous accuse himself in the first words" (Prov. 18:17). Secondly, (repentance consists) of great humility; it is like a golden chain, which, if taken as a beginning, follows everything. In the same way, if you confess your sins as you should, then the soul will be humbled, because the conscience, tormenting it, makes it humble. With humility one must combine something else, so that it may be such as the blessed David prayed for when he said: "Make in me a pure heart, O God" (Psalm 50:12); and again: "Thou shalt not despise a contrite and humble heart, O God" (Psalm 50:19). A contrite heart is not indignant, does not offend, but is always ready to endure suffering, and does not rebel itself. This is what the contrition of the heart consists in, when, although it is itself offended, although it suffers evil, it remains calm and is not aroused to revenge. After humility, intense prayers and abundant tears are needed day and night. "Every night I wash," says (the prophet), "my bed, with my tears I wet my bed" (Psalm 6:7); and again: "I eat ashes as bread, and I dissolve my drink with tears" (Psalm 101:10). And after such fervent prayers, great mercy is needed. It especially makes the medicine of repentance strong. Just as in medical remedies, although the medicine contains many herbs, but the main one is one, so in repentance mercy is like a multi-healing herb, and even on it everything depends. Listen to what the Divine Scripture says: "Give rather alms of what you have, then all will be pure with you" (Luke 11:41); and again: "Atone for thy sins with righteousness, and thy iniquities with mercy to the poor" (Dan. 4:24); and again: "Water will quench the flame of fire, and alms will cleanse sins" (Sir. 4:30). Further, (it is necessary) not to be angry, not to bear grudges, and to forgive all their sins: "Man harbors anger against man," says (the Most Wise), "but asks forgiveness of the Lord" (Sir. 29:3). "For if ye forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will forgive you also" (Matthew 6:14). Likewise, it is necessary to turn the brethren away from error: "Being converted," says (the Lord), "strengthen thy brethren, that thy sins may be forgiven thee" (Luke 22:32). A sincere treatment of the priests is also necessary: "and if he," it is said, "has committed sins, they shall be forgiven him" (James 5:15); (It is necessary) to protect those who are offended, not to be angry, to endure everything meekly.

5.

As he who enters the door is already inside, so is he who thinks about his own sins. Whoever thinks about them daily will certainly reach the point of their healing; And whoever only says: I am a sinner, but does not imagine his sins separately and does not say: In this and that I have sinned, he will never cease to sin, he will often confess, but will never think about his correction. It is only necessary to begin, and all the rest will certainly follow, if only an attack is made: in everything the beginning and the attack are difficult. So, let us put this (foundation), and everything will be easy and convenient.

Let us begin repentance, I exhort you, one with fervent prayers, another with abundant tears, a third with contrition; and the latter, however small, is not useless: "I have seen his ways," says (the Lord), "and I will heal him, and will lead him, and comfort him" (Isa. 57:17-8). In general, let us begin with mercy, with forgiveness of one's neighbors' sins, with forgetting offenses, with abstaining from rancor and vindictiveness, thus humbling our souls. If we were constantly reminded of our sins, then none of the external objects could arouse in us pride, nor riches, nor might, nor power, nor power, nor glory; even if we were sitting on the king's seat, then we would weep bitterly. Blessed David was a king, and yet he said: "Every night I wash my bed, with my tears I wet my bed" (Psalm 6:7); neither the scarlet robe nor the diadem did him any harm or arouse pride in him, because he was aware that he was a man; he had a broken heart, and therefore he wept. What are human works? Ashes and dust, dust before the wind, smoke and shadow, leaves and flowers blown away by the wind, dream, dream, and fable, the empty vibration of the air, easily excited, the feather tossed, the current unstable, and everything that can be more insignificant than this. Why, tell me, do you think so much of yourself? What title do you consider great? Isn't it a consul? Many, indeed, do not know anything higher than this title. But even he who is not a consul is in no way worse than one who was in such a brilliant and glorious rank; both have the same dignity, both will equally cease to exist after a short time. When he was consul, tell me, how long? Two days? This also happens in dreams. But here, you say, is a dream. What then? Is not what happens during the day a dream? Why, tell me, can we not call it a dream? Just as dreams are invalid at the onset of day, so what happens during the day becomes invalid at the onset of night. Night and day continue in the same way, and have equally divided all the time between them. Therefore, just as during the day no one admires what happened to him at night, so at night it is impossible to admire what happens during the day. Were you a consul? And I was; Only you - during the day, and I - at night. But what's the matter? You have nothing more than I do because of this, unless you consider the title of consul and the pleasure of words alone to be an advantage. To put it more clearly: if, for example, I say, "So-and-so," and ascribe this name to him, as soon as it is said, has it not already passed? That's all. The consul has appeared, and he is no more. But let us suppose that he was consul for a year, two, three, four years: were there any consuls who consulated for ten years? No. Paul was not like that: he was always glorious during his lifetime, not a day, not two, not ten, not twenty, not thirty days, and not ten years, not twenty and not thirty; but even four hundred years have passed since his death, and even now he is still glorious, and even much more glorious: than during his lifetime. And this is still on earth; And who can depict the glory of the saints in heaven with a word? Therefore, I exhort you, let us seek this glory, strive for it, in order to attain it, because this glory is true glory; but let us shun all worldly things, that we may receive grace and mercy in Christ Jesus our Lord, with whom to the Father with the Holy Spirit be glory, dominion, honor, and worship, now and ever, and unto the ages of ages. Amen.

DISCOURSE 10

"The earth, which has drunk the rain that has fallen upon it many times, and brings forth a grain that is useful to those for whom it is cultivated, receives a blessing from God; but she that yieldeth thorns and thistles is worthless, and is near to a curse, the end of which is burning" (Hebrews 6:7-8).

1. With fear we must listen to the word of God, with fear and great trembling: "Serve," says the Psalmist, "to the Lord with fear, and rejoice with trembling" (Psalm 2:11). But if our very joy and gladness should be with trembling, then when something terrible is said, what is it now, what punishment do we not deserve, if we hear it without trembling? Having shown that those who have fallen away cannot be baptized a second time, and that it is impossible for them to receive remission (of sins) through the font (of baptism), and having explained how terrible this is, (the Apostle) continues: "The earth, which has drunk the rain that has fallen on it many times, and brings forth cereal, which is useful to those for whom it is cultivated, receives a blessing from God; but she that produces thorns and thistles is worthless, and is near to a curse, the end of which is burning." Let us be afraid, beloved! This is not Pavlov's threat, these are not human words; it is the Holy Spirit, Christ, which spoke in Paul. Who is clean from these thorns? Even if we were pure, we ought not to remain still, but to be afraid and trembling, lest thorns grow in us; and if we are all made up entirely of thorns and thistles, tell me, how can we remain calm and careless? What makes us careless? If he who thinks that he is standing must fear lest he fall, "who thinks that he is standing," it is said, "take heed lest he fall" (1 Cor. 10:12), then how much should the fallen man take care to get up? If Paul feared, "lest, preaching to others, he himself should remain unworthy" (1 Cor. 9:27), if he, so worthy, feared to become unworthy, then we, who have already become unworthy, what justification and forgiveness will we have, having no fear, but fulfilling Christian duties, as if it were some custom, and only for appearances? Let us be afraid, beloved! "For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven" (Romans 1:18). Let us be afraid, because he reveals himself not only to "wickedness," but also to every "unrighteousness," small and great. At the same time, (the Apostle) also points to God's love for mankind; and by rain he calls teaching, and what he said above in the words, "For you ought to have been teachers," he says the same here. And in many places the Scripture calls the teaching rain: "And I will command the clouds not to pour rain on it," says (the Lord) about the vineyard (Isaiah 5:6); and in another place the same thing is called the famine of bread and the thirst for water (Amos 8:11); and again: "The stream of God is full of water" (Psalm 64:10). "The earth," he says, "drinking the rain that falls on it many times." Here he expresses that they both received and drank his word, and were often vouchsafed to hear it, but did not benefit from it. If, he says, you had not been cultivated, if you had not received rain, then the evil would not have been so great, because "If I had not come," says (Christ), "and had not spoken to them, they would have had no sin" (John 15:22); but if you have often drunk and taken, why have you grown something else instead of fruit? "He expected," says (the Lord), "that he would bring forth good grapes, he brought wild berries" (Isa. 5:4). Do you see that the Scriptures everywhere call sins thorns? And David says: "I became a sufferer when thorns pierced into me" (Psalm 31:4). (Thorn) does not simply enter, but pierces; and though there be a little of it left, yet if it is not all pulled out, then even the smallest part of it produces pain as well as the thorns. But what do I say: a little? Even after it is pulled out, there is still pain in the wound for a long time. Therefore, it is necessary to treat and use it for a long time in order to free oneself from it completely; It is not enough to pluck out the sin, but it is also necessary to heal the affected place. I am afraid that the words (of the Apostle) do not apply to us more than to others: "The earth, which drank the rain that fell upon it many times"; After all, we are constantly drinking, constantly listening, but as soon as the sun rises, we lose moisture, and therefore we grow thorns. What kind of thorns are these? Let us listen to Christ, who says: "The care of this world and the deceitfulness of riches choke the word, and it is fruitless" (Matthew 13:22). "The earth, which has drunk the rain that has fallen on it many times, and which brings forth the grain that is useful."

2. There is nothing so useful as purity of life, nothing so beautiful as a comfortable life, nothing so desirable as virtue. "And the one that grows," he says, "the grain that is useful to those for whom it is cultivated, receives the blessing of God." Here he inspires that God is the author of everything, and in a certain way rebukes the pagans, who ascribed the production of fruits to the power of the earth. It is not the hands of the farmer, he says, that stir up the earth to bear fruit, but the command of God; therefore it is expressed thus: "receives a blessing from God." And look: he did not say about thorns: "thorns and thistles," he did not use such an approving expression, but what? – "producing thorns and thistles" – as it were: vomiting, throwing out. "Worthless and close to damnation." Oh, what consolation is contained in these words! "Near," he says, "to a curse," and did not say, "accursed; i.e. it has not yet been subjected to the curse, but is only close to it, but may be far from it. And not only with these words does he console, but also with the following; He did not say, "It is useless, it is close to a curse, and will be burned," but what? "whose end is burning"; expresses that if she remains like this to the end, she will tolerate this too. Consequently, if we pluck up and burn thorns, we can receive many blessings, become useful, and be worthy of blessing. He justly calls sin thorns in the words: "Producing thorns and thistles," because (sin), if you hold on to it firmly, pierces and, and is even ugly in appearance. And so, having rebuked them sufficiently, frightened and rebuked, (the apostle) then comforts them, so as not to strike them too much, and so that they do not become careless, because a lazy man, when he is punished (too much), becomes even more lazy. For this reason (the Apostle) does not approve of them for everything, so that they do not become proud, and does not reproach them for everything, so as not to make them more careless, but after saying a little reproach, in further words he offers great consolation, so that in this way he may attain his goal. What does he say? "Nevertheless, of you, beloved, we hope that you are in a better [condition] and hold fast to salvation, although we say so" (Hebrews 6:9), i.e., we say this not because we despair of you or consider you full of thorns, but because we fear that this may happen; It is better to inspire you with fear in words than to experience sorrow in deed. This is especially shown by the wisdom of Paul. He did not say: we think, we assume, we expect, we hope, but what? "We hope." So in the Epistle to the Galatians he says: "I am confident of you in the Lord, that you will not think otherwise" (Gal. 5:10); He did not say, "You understand," but, "You will not think otherwise," since (the Galatians) were then very worthy of condemnation, and (the Apostle) could not praise them for their present works, then he praises them for future ones: "You will not," he says, "think otherwise." And here he praises (the Jews) for their present works: "We hope that you are in a better [condition] and hold on to salvation, although we say so." But since he could not praise them much for their present works, he borrows consolation from the deeds of the past and says: "For God is not unrighteous, that he should forget your work, and the labor of love which you have shown in His name, in serving and ministering to the saints" (Hebrews 6:10). Oh, how he encouraged and strengthened their souls, remembering their former deeds and presenting the need to hope that God had not forgotten (their feats)! Truly, whoever is not convinced of God's justice and that He will reward each one according to the merits of this life is inevitably sinning and saying that God is unrighteous. That is why he inspired them with the need to fully hope for future retribution. Whoever despairs of the present and loses heart can be encouraged by the future. So also in the Epistle to the Galatians (Paul) says: "Ye have walked well: who has stopped you, that ye should not obey the truth" (Gal. 5:7)? and again: "Have you suffered so much in vain? Oh, if only it were useless!" (Gal. 3:4); and just as here he combines approval with rebuke, when he says: "For [judging by] the time, you should have been teachers" (Heb. 5:12), so there: "So quickly pass on to another gospel" (Gal. 1:6). Praise is also reproachful, because we are amazed when something great falls. Do you see how praise is hidden in the very rebuke and accusation? And he does not speak this only from himself, but in the name of all; He did not say, "I hope," but, "We hope that you are in a better [condition]," that is, better. Here he speaks either of their lives or of their retribution. Having said above, "Worthless and close to a curse, the end of which is burning," then, lest they should think that he is saying this of them, he immediately adds, "God is not unrighteous, that he should forget your work and the work of love," and thereby expresses that it is not of them that he speaks, "though we say so." But if you do not speak of us, why do you touch us, calling us lazy, and inspiring fear, reminding us of thorns? "We desire," he says, "that each one of you, for the perfect assurance of hope, should show the same zeal to the end, that you may not be slothful, but imitate those who by faith and patience inherit the promises" (Hebrews 6:11-12).

3. "We will," he says; therefore, we do not want this only in words. But tell me, what do you want? We wish you to be virtuous, not by condemning you for the past, but by fearing for the future. Nor did he say, "Condemning not for the past, but for the present, because you have become corrupt and careless." But see how meekly he expressed this, and did not utter reproach. What does he say? "We desire that each of you, for the complete assurance of hope, show the same zeal to the end." Paul's wisdom is amazing: he does not directly express that they have weakened, that they have fallen, because to say: "We desire that each of you" is to say: I wish that you were always scrupulous, that as you were before, so that you will be now and in the future; by this he makes his rebuke more meek and acceptable. Nor did he say, "I want," which would show the power of the teacher, but he says, "we will," using an expression that shows fatherly love, and means more than "I want," and as if he were saying, "Forgive me if we say anything unpleasant." "We desire that each of you, for the complete assurance of hope, show the same zeal to the end." What does this mean? Hope, he says, endures, it strengthens; do not weaken and do not despair, lest your hope be superfluous; he who does good hopes for good, and never despairs. "Lest ye be slothful" – yet – let you not, although he said above: "Ye have become incapable of listening" (Hebrews 5:11). But note that there he indicated only the inability to listen, and here, although he uses a similar expression, he still hints at something else: instead of saying, "Do not remain lazy," he said, "Lest you become lazy." Again their guilt postpones them to the future, saying: "That ye may not be slothful"; and since the future tense does not yet exist, we cannot be guilty. He who is persuaded as lazy to be diligent at the present time may become still more lazy; but it is not the same with him who is (persuaded to reform) for the future. "We desire," he says, "that each of you." Great love! (Paul) cares equally for the great and the small, remembers all, despises no one, but equally cares for each and gives equal honor to all; by this he is all the more disposed to accept his words, in spite of their severity. "So that you do not become lazy," he says. As inaction harms the body, so does not exercise in good make the soul careless and weak. "But they have imitated those who by faith and patience inherit the promises." Who these (heirs) are, he explains further. Beforehand he said: "Imitate your former good deeds; and then, so that they do not ask: which one? - he points to the forefather (Abraham), presenting examples of good deeds in their own deeds, and as proof that they are not forgotten, the example of the forefather. He does this so that they do not say that they are forgotten and abandoned as unworthy, but that they know that to spend life in the midst of temptations is the lot of especially valiant people, and that God has always done this to wondrous and great men. It is necessary, he says, to endure everything with longsuffering, because this is what it means to believe. If I were to say, "Behold, I give unto thee, and thou wouldst immediately receive," what should thou believe? There would be no place for your faith here, but I warn and give as promised. But if I say, "Behold, I give to you, but I will give it to you in a hundred years, and you will not despair," then you consider me worthy of faith and have a proper opinion of me. Do you see that unbelief often comes not only from hopelessness, but also from faint-heartedness and impatience, and does not depend on the one who promised? "God is not unrighteous," he says, "so that he may forget your work and the labor of love which you have shown in His name by serving and serving the saints." He gives an important testimony about them, pointing not only to their deeds, but also to their diligent works, just as he says in another place: "And not only what we hoped, but they gave themselves, first to the Lord, [then] to us" (2 Cor. 8:5). "They did it in His name, serving and ministering to the saints." See how he comforts them again, adding: "having served and served"; even now you serve, he says, encouraging them and suggesting that they did not do this for men, but for God. "They did," he says, not just for the saints, but for God; this is the meaning of the words, "In His name," in which he seems to say, "You have done all things in His name." Therefore, He who has received such diligence and love from you will never despise you or forget you.

4. Hearing this, let us serve the saints, I exhort you. And every believer is holy, because he is a believer; even if he is a layman, he is holy. "For," says (alostol), "the unbelieving husband is sanctified by the believing wife, and the unbelieving wife is sanctified by the believing husband" (1 Cor. 7:14). You see: faith brings sanctification. If we see a layman in wickedness, let us give a helping hand. It is not only for those who live in the mountains that we should take care of; Of course, they are holy both in life and in faith, but they are also holy in faith, and many of them are holy in life. We will not (act in such a way that) when we see a monk in prison, we will go to him, and when we see a layman, we will not go; and the latter is also holy, and also our brother. But what, you say, if he is unclean and wicked? Listen to what Christ says: "Judge not, that ye be not judged" (Matthew 7:1). You do it for God. But what am I saying? Even if we see a pagan in misfortune, it is necessary to do good to him, and in general to every person in unfortunate circumstances, especially to a believing layman. Listen to what Paul commands: "Let us do good to all, and especially to those who are in the faith" (Gal. 6:10). I do not understand whence came (the contrary opinion) and how the (contrary) custom was strengthened among us.

And in order for you to be convinced of this, listen to what Christ says in the next parable. "A certain man," He says, "was going from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell into the hands of robbers..." They, having beaten him, left him half-dead on the road. By chance a certain Levite was walking along that road, and seeing him, he passed by; A certain priest did the same, and passed by. But after them came a certain Samaritan, and showed great compassion to him: he bound up his wounds, poured oil on them, put him on a donkey, brought him to the inn, and said to its keeper, "Take care of him, and, behold his great love, if you spend more, I will give it to you." Then (Christ) asked: "Which of these three, do you think, was the neighbor of the robbers?" And when the lawyer answered: "He who showed him mercy", then He said: "Go, and you do likewise" (Luke 10:30-37). Notice this parable spoken (by the Lord); He did not say that the Jew was to the Samaritan, but that the Samaritan showed such mercy. From this we learn that we should take care of everyone equally, and not do good only by faith, and not think about others. In the same way, when you see someone suffering, do not inquire anything about him; He has the right to help because he suffers. If you help an ass when you see it dying, and do not ask whose it is, how much more should you not ask about the person whose it is; he is God's, even though he be a Gentile, even though he be a Jew. If he is unfaithful, but needs help. If you were allowed to examine and judge, you could say this; but now the very misfortune does not permit you to make investigations. If it is not proper to judge the healthy and examine the deeds of others, how much more so to those who suffer. Otherwise, what (will be)? Have you seen him happy, prosperous, that you say that he is evil and vicious? He suffers; but if you see him suffering, do not say that he is wicked. When we see a man prospering, then, perhaps, we can say this about him; but when we see a person suffering and in need of help, we should not say that he is vicious; This is a sign of cruelty, inhumanity and arrogance. Who, tell me, was more wicked than the Jews? God punished them, and punished them justly, very justly; but to those who had compassion on them, He was well pleased, and to those who rejoiced in their misfortune, He punished. "And you are not sick," says (the prophet), "because of the calamity of Joseph" (Amos 6:6). And in another place it says: "Save those who are taken to death" (Proverbs 24:11). It is said, "Search, and find out who they are," though for the most part those who are led away to death are wicked, but it is simply said, "Save," whoever they may be. This is what mercy especially consists of. Whoever does good to a friend, without a doubt, does not do it for God's sake; and whoever does it to a stranger, does it exclusively for God. (The Most Wise) says: do not spare money, and even if you have to spend everything, give it back; but we, seeing those who are exhausted, tormented, and suffering, are more cruel than a thousand deaths, and often unjustly, we grudge money and do not spare the brethren; We guard the soulless and do not think about the soul. Meanwhile, Paul commands "to instruct the adversaries with meekness, lest God give them repentance unto the knowledge of the truth, that they may be freed from the snare of the devil, who has ensnared them in his own will" (2 Tim. 2:25-26). "Will he not give," he says, "do you see what long-suffering his words are filled with? Let us also imitate him and consider no one hopeless. Fishermen, throwing their nets into the sea, often do not pull anything out, but when they throw it for the last time, they get everything. So we do not despair, but we hope that you will suddenly show us ripe fruits. And the farmer, having sown seeds, endures one day and another, and waits a long time, and then suddenly sees everywhere in sprouted fruit. This, we hope, will be with you, through the grace and love of mankind of our Lord Jesus Christ, with Whom to the Father with the Holy Spirit be glory, dominion, and honor, now and ever, and unto the ages of ages. Amen.