Also an exhortation to the people to bravely endure the threatening calamity, following the example of what happened to Job and the Ninevites; and that it is not death that should be feared, but sin; and that it means to die badly; and that one should be careful to avoid oaths.

For this reason many are now undertaking a long journey by sea, and from the ends of the earth they go to Arabia to see this festering, and when they see it, to kiss the earth, which was the field of the exploits of this crown-bearer, and has received in itself blood more precious than any gold. It is not so much the scarlet robe that glitters, as this body shone then, stained not with someone else's blood, but with its own blood. And his wounds were more precious than any stones, because pearls in themselves do not bring us any benefit in life, and they do not supply any essential need for those who possess them, while those wounds bring comfort in all sorrow. And in order that you may be convinced of the truth of this, show him who has lost his lawful and only son an innumerable number of pearls: you will not ease his misfortune, nor heal his sorrows; but if you remind him of Job's wounds, you can easily heal him with these words: Why are you grieving, O man? Thou didst lose only one child, and the blessed one, having lost a whole host of children, was smitten even in the flesh, and sat naked on the pus, poured with pus on all sides, while his flesh gradually withered; and this was a man "blameless, just, and God-fearing, and shunning evil" (Job 1:1), whose virtue God bore witness to. If you say these words, you will extinguish the sorrow in the lamenting one and destroy all sorrow, and thus the wounds of the righteous are more useful than pearls! Therefore, imagine this ascetic and imagine that you yourself see that pus, and on this pus he sits – this golden statue sprinkled with precious stones, and I do not know what else to call it – because I cannot find such an expensive substance to which this bloody body could be likened. Thus this flesh was incomparably more precious than any substance, and the wounds were lighter than the rays of the sun. The rays illuminate the bodily gaze, and these enlighten the eyes of our mind; they completely blind the devil. That is why the devil, after that defeat, departed, and did not appear again. And you, beloved, know from here how great is the benefit of sorrow. As long as the righteous man was rich and enjoying peace, the devil had occasion to slander him; though falsely, he could nevertheless say: "Is it for nothing that Job fears God" (Job 1:9)? And when he had taken everything from him and made him poor, he did not dare to open his mouth. As long as Job was rich, the devil promised to fight with him, and threatened to overthrow him; and when he had made him poor, deprived him of everything, and plunged him into extreme illness, then he departed. While his body was healthy, the devil raised his hands against him, but when he covered his flesh with wounds, then, defeated, he turned to flight.

You see how much better and more useful poverty is for the prudent than riches, infirmity and sickness are health, temptation is calm, and how much more glorious and powerful they make ascetics! Who has seen or heard of such a wonderful contest? Ordinary wrestlers, as soon as they strike their opponents in the head, immediately win the victory and receive crowns; but the devil, when he smote the body of the righteous man, covered him with various sores and brought him to exhaustion, then he was overcome and departed; And though He pierced his side on all sides, yet He did not gain anything, because He did not steal the treasure that was stored there, but made it more visible to us, and through these holes He gave everyone the opportunity to look into the interior (of the sufferer) and see all his riches. When he hoped to gain the upper hand, then he departed with great shame, and uttered no more sound. What's wrong, the devil? Why are you running away? Has not everything been fulfilled according to your desire? Have you not destroyed his sheep, oxen, horses, and mules? Did He not destroy all his children, and wound all his flesh? Why did you run away? And for this reason, he answers, although everything was fulfilled according to my desire, yet that which I especially sought and for which I did everything else, was not fulfilled: he did not utter blasphemy against God! In order to achieve this, I did everything else; and since this did not happen, it is of no use to me to destroy his wealth, to destroy his children, and to defeat his body; the opposite of what I desired came out: I made my opponent more glorious and brilliant. Have you been convinced, beloved, how great is the benefit of misfortune? Job's healthy body was beautiful; but it became even more beautiful when it was ulcerated by wounds: for example, wool is beautiful even before dyeing, but when it becomes purple, it receives inexplicable beauty and pleasantness. And if the devil had not uncovered Job, we would not have known the valor of the conqueror; if he had not struck his body with sores, the rays would not have shone from within; if he had not planted him on a festering pot, we would not have known his riches. Not so brilliant is the king sitting on the throne, as glorious and brilliant was Job, sitting on the festering pit: after the royal throne is death, and after this festering is the kingdom of heaven.

2. Thinking about all this, let us be encouraged from the despondency that has taken possession of you. These stories I offer to you, not that you may praise my speech, but that you may imitate the virtue and patience of those valiant men; so that you may know from your very deeds that of all the evils of men, sin alone is real evil, and not poverty, not sickness, not offense, not backbiting, not dishonor, and not even death, this seems to be the most extreme of all evils. For those who are inquisitive, these calamities are such only in name, and not in reality: to anger God and do anything displeasing to Him is the true misfortune! Indeed, what is terrible in death, tell me? Is it that it rather leads you to a quiet harbor and to that serene life? If man does not kill you, will not the very law of nature, at a certain time, separate the body from the soul? Let not now happen what we fear; But this will be a little later. I say this, not because I expect anything terrible or sad, but because I am ashamed of those who fear death. Do you expect such blessings, "eye has not seen, ear has not heard, and it has not entered into the heart of man" (1 Corinthians 2:9), and you are not in a hurry to enjoy them, you are negligent and delayed, and not only do you tarry, but you are also afraid and tremble? And how shameful are you not to grieve over death, when Paul sighed because of the present life, and in the Epistle to the Romans said: "All creation groans together and is tormented until now; and we ourselves, having the firstfruits of the Spirit, also groan within ourselves" (Rom. 8:22-23)? And he said this not to condemn the present, but out of a strong desire for the future. I have tasted, he says, of grace, and I do not endure delay; I have the beginnings of the Spirit, and I strive for complete possession; I ascended to the third heaven, I saw that ineffable glory, I saw the royal splendour, I knew what I was losing by being here, and therefore I sighed.

So let me, you say, become like Paul, and I will never fear death. And what hinders you, O man, from becoming like Paul? Wasn't he poor? Isn't he a tent maker? Isn't he an ordinary man? If he had been rich and of noble birth, the poor who were called to imitate him could certainly have excused themselves by their poverty. But now you can say nothing of the sort, because this man was a craftsman and earned his living by daily labors. In addition, in childhood you inherited piety from your parents, and from the first years you were imbued with the Holy Scriptures; and he was a blasphemer, and a persecutor, and an offender, and a destroyer of the church, but in spite of this, he was so suddenly changed that he surpassed all in the power of his zeal, and he cries: "Be ye imitators of me, as I am of Christ" (1 Cor. 11:1). He imitated the Lord, and you do not imitate your fellow servant, you who have been brought up in piety from your youth, the one who has already changed and accepted the faith. Do you not know that sinners, although they live, are dead, and the righteous, although they die, are alive? And these are not my words, but the sentence of Christ, who said to Martha: "He that believeth on me, though he die, shall live" (John 11:25). Is our teaching a fable? If you are a Christian, then believe in Christ; if you believe in Christ, then show me faith in works. How will you show faith in deeds? - If you despise death, this is what distinguishes us from the infidels.

They rightly fear death, because they have no hope of resurrection; But you, who are on a better path and have the opportunity to inquire about the hope of the future, what excuse will you find when, believing in the resurrection, you fear death, like those who do not believe in the resurrection? But I am afraid, you say, not of death; I am not afraid to die, but to die badly, to be beheaded. So did John die badly because he was beheaded? And Stephen also died badly, because he was stoned? And all the martyrs, in your opinion, died a miserable death, because some were deprived of life by fire, and others by iron; some are thrown into the sea, others from the rapids; and some in the jaws of beasts, and thus died? To die badly, man, does not mean to die a violent death, but to die in sins. Listen to how the prophet is curious about this. "Evil shall kill the sinner" (Psalm 33:22), he says. He did not say, "A violent death is cruel," but, "Evil shall kill the sinner." And rightly so: because after their departure from here there is an intolerable punishment, endless torments, a poisonous worm, an unquenchable fire, utter darkness, insoluble bonds, gnashing of teeth, sorrow, distress, and eternal condemnation.

3. When such calamities await sinners, what will it profit them if they end their lives at home and in their beds? Nor will the righteous be harmed by ending their present life by the sword, or by iron and fire, when they have to pass on to eternal blessings. Truly, "evil will kill the sinner." Such was the death of the rich man who showed contempt for Lazarus, and although he ended his life at home, in bed, in the presence of friends, by his own death, yet after his departure he burned in fire and could not find there any consolation in the well-being of the present life. Not so with Lazarus: although he suffered a violent death in the courtyard of the rich man, among the dogs that licked his wounds (for what can be more painful than hunger?), yet, after his departure, he began to enjoy eternal blessings there, rejoicing in the bosom of Abraham. What harm was it to him that he died violently, and what profit did it do to the rich man that he died nonviolently?

But we, you say, are afraid of dying not violently, but innocently; we are afraid, without doing anything of which we are suspected, to be punished on an equal basis with those caught in a crime. What do you say? "Tell me." Are you afraid to die innocently, to die on business - do you want to? And who would be so miserable and miserable that, when he were to die undeservedly, he would rather die for his deeds? If we must fear death, then we must fear that which befalls us by works: for the dead undeservedly, through this very thing, enters into communion with all the saints. Most of those who pleased God and were glorified died an undeserved death, and the first of them was Abel. He was killed not because he had sinned against his brother in any way, or because he had insulted Cain, but because he revered God. And God allowed this, whether by loving him or hating him? Obviously, loving and desiring to give him a most brilliant crown for such an unrighteous death. You see that one should not fear a violent and undeserved death, but death in sins. Abel died undeservedly, Cain lived "groaning and trembling" (Gen. 4:12)

If that fear had settled in our soul, it could not have entered it. And I will try to explain this not by any distant circumstances, but by local ones, the very ones that have happened to us these days. When the decree came from the tsar about the collection of the tribute, which seemed intolerable, everyone was indignant, everyone argued, began to be vexed and indignant, and, meeting with each other, said: "Life is not for us; the city was ruined; no one is able to endure such a heavy tax!" - and everyone lamented, as if they had been driven to the last extremity. Then, when the criminal deed was committed; And some obscene and depraved people, having violated the laws, overthrew the statues, and involved everyone in extreme danger, so that, having irritated the king, we now began to fear for life itself, - we are no longer troubled by the loss of property, but, instead of all those speeches, I hear others: "Let the king take our property; we will gladly give up both fields and estates, if only He promises to save us at least a naked body." And so, until the fear of death seized us, we were anxious about the loss of our possessions; but when those lawless riots were committed, the fear of death drove away the grief for the loss. In the same way, if the fear of hell possessed our souls, the fear of death would not take possession of us; but just as in the body, when two diseases befall us, the stronger usually suppresses the weakest, so it would happen here. If there were a fear of future punishment in the soul, it would suppress all human fear, so that whoever constantly remembers hell will look with a smile at all death; and this will not only free him from present sorrow, but will also deliver him from the future flame. Whoever is always afraid of hell will never fall into the fire of hell, because this constant fear makes him wiser. Let me now say to you: "Brethren! be not children in mind: be babes for evil" (1 Cor. 14:20).

We really have a childish fear when we are afraid of death, and not afraid of sin. Little children are frightened by masks, and are not afraid of fire, and if they happen to be brought to a lighted candle, they, fearing nothing, stretch out their hand to the candle and the fire; an insignificant mask frightens them, but they are not afraid of what is really frightening – fire. In the same way, we are afraid of death, which is an insignificant mask, and we are not afraid of sin, which is truly terrible and, like fire, devours the conscience. And this, as a rule, does not arise from the essence of the matter itself, but from our foolishness: so that if we consider what death is, we will never fear it. What is death? It is the same as taking off one's clothes: the body, like a garment, clothes the soul, and through death we lay it off for a short time, in order to receive it again in the brightest form. What is death? A temporary journey, a sleep that is longer than usual. Therefore, if you fear death, fear sleep, if you grieve for the dead, then grieve for those who eat and drink: as this is a natural thing, so is that. Do not grieve over what happens according to the law of nature, but rather grieve for what comes from evil will; do not weep for the dead, but weep for him who lives in sins.

4. Do you want me to tell you another reason why we are afraid of death? We do not live as we should, we do not have a clear conscience. If it were, nothing would frighten us, neither death, nor hunger, nor loss of property, nor anything like that. Nothing of this kind can harm or deprive him of inner pleasure to a virtuous person, because he who is nourished by good hopes cannot be plunged into despondency. Indeed, can men do anything that would make a valiant man grieve? Will they take money from him? But he has wealth in heaven. Will they be expelled from the fatherland? But through this they resettle him in the heavenly city. But he has a free conscience, and does not feel external chains. Will they kill the body? But it will rise again. And as he who fights with a shadow and strikes in the air cannot smite anyone; so he who is hostile to the righteous fights only with the shadow, wastes his strength, and cannot inflict a single blow on him. Therefore, give me only firm faith in the kingdom of heaven, and kill me, if you will, today. I will thank you for your death, because through it you will soon relocate me to those blessings. It is about this, they say, that we also grieve that, delayed by a multitude of sins, we shall not reach the kingdom there. So stop weeping for death and weep for your sins, that you may atone for them. Sorrow is also in order that we may use it for the destruction of our sins, and not in order that we may grieve for the loss of property, for death, or for anything else of the kind. That this is so, I will explain to you with an example. Medicines are prescribed only for those diseases that they can destroy, and not for those for which they are of no use. I will tell you roughly to make my speech even clearer: a remedy that can use only diseased eyes, and not any other disease, you justly recognize as prescribed only for an eye disease, and not for the stomach, not for the hands, and not for any other member. Let us turn the speech to sorrow and find that it does not help us in any other circumstances, but only corrects sin: therefore, obviously, it is intended only for the destruction of it. Let us examine each of the calamities that befall us, and, adding sorrow to them, see what benefit it has. Who lost property? He was saddened; but did not compensate for the losses. Who lost his son? He grieved; but He did not raise up the dead, and did not benefit him who had departed. Who suffered beatings, beatings, insults? He gave himself over to sorrow; But he did not take the offense away from himself. Who has fallen into weakness and the most grievous illness? He began to grieve; but he did not destroy the disease, on the contrary, he intensified it. Do you see that in none of these calamities does sorrow help in the least? But whoever sinned, and was grieved: he destroyed sin, made amends for his guilt. Where can you see this? From the words of the Lord: speaking of a certain sinner, He said: "Because of the sin of his covetousness, I was angry and smote him, I hid my face and was indignant; but he turned away, and went in the way of his heart" (Isaiah 57:17). That is why Paul said: "For Godly sorrow worketh unfailing repentance unto salvation, but worldly sorrow worketh death" (2 Cor. 7:10). Therefore, as is evident from what has been said, if sorrow cannot compensate for the loss of property, or offense, or shame, or beatings, or sickness, or death, or anything else of the kind, but only contributes to the destruction of sin and blots it out; then, obviously, it is intended for him alone. Therefore, let us no longer grieve over the loss of property, but let us grieve only when we sin. In this case, there is great benefit from sorrow. What have you lost? Do not grieve: this will not help you in the least. Have sinned? Sorrows: it is useful. Enter into the understanding and wisdom of God. Sin gave birth to two fruits for us: sorrow and death. "In the day that you eat of it," says God, "you will surely die" (Gen. 2:17), and to the woman: "in sickness"[1] "you will bear children" (Gen. 3:16). By the same two means (God) destroyed sin, and arranged it so that a mother perishes from her children. And that, like tribulation, death destroys sin is evident both from the example of the disciples and from the words of Paul to sinners: "For this reason many of you are weak and sick, and many die" (1 Cor. 11:30). You sin, he says, that this is why you die, so that by death your sins may be blotted out. Wherefore he added: "For if we had judged ourselves, we would not have been judged. But being judged, we are chastened by the Lord, lest we be condemned with the world" (1 Cor. 11:31-32). As a worm is born of a tree, and gnaws at a tree, and as a moth eats the wool, from which it is born; Thus tribulation and death were born of sin and destroy sin. Therefore, let us not fear death, but let us fear only sin and grieve over it. I say this not because I expect anything terrible: no, but because I desire that you constantly have this fear in you, and by your very deeds fulfill the law of Christ. "Whoever does not take up his cross," says the Lord, "and follows me, is not worthy of me" (Matt. 10:38). He said this, not so that we should carry wood on our shoulders, but that we might always have death before our eyes, just as Paul died every day (1 Cor. 15:31), laughed at death, and despised real life. Thou art a warrior, and thou standest in line continually; but a warrior who fears death will never do anything valiant. In the same way, a Christian who fears dangers will not do anything great and glorious; on the contrary, he himself can be easily overcome; but the brave and magnanimous are invincible and invincible. And how the three youths, not fearing the fire, escaped the fire; so we, too, if we do not fear death, will escape death. They were not afraid of the fire, for it is not a crime to be burned; but they feared sin, because it is a crime to live ungodly. Let us imitate these and all the righteous like them; let us not be afraid of dangers, and we shall avoid dangers.

5. "I am not a prophet, nor the son of a prophet" (Amos 7:14), yet I know for sure what will happen; and I proclaim loudly and clearly that if we change, take care of our souls in some way, and abandon sin, then there will be nothing unpleasant or sad for us. And I know this clearly on the basis of God's love for mankind and how the Lord dealt with people, with cities, tribes and entire nations. He also threatened the city of the Ninevites, and said: "Three more days[2] and Nineveh will be destroyed" (Jonah 3:4).

For who, hearing of what was with the Ninevites, will not be of good cheer, even though he be the most careless man? Thus, God allowed His prophecy not to be fulfilled rather than for the city to perish. However (it cannot be said that), the prophecy was not fulfilled. If the sentence had not been carried out while people remained in the same sins, then the prediction could still be blamed; but if God ceased to be angry when they were changed and ceased to sin, then who else can accuse prophecy and denounce the prophecy of falsehood? God then also preserved the law which He had decreed to all men from the beginning through the prophet. What is the law? "Sometimes I will say of a nation and a kingdom, that I will root it out, and crush it, and destroy it; but if this people, upon whom I have spoken these things, turn from their evil deeds, I will put off the evil which I have thought to do to them" (Jeremiah 18:7-8). By keeping this law, He saved those who had reformed, and delivered those who had departed from iniquity from His wrath. He knew the virtue of the foreigners, and therefore He compelled the prophet to hurry. And then the city was troubled when he heard the prophetic voice; but from this fear he did not suffer, but also benefited. This fear gave rise to salvation; the threat averted the danger; the sentence of destruction stopped the destruction (Jonah 3:4). Oh, wonderful and marvellous thing! The sentence that threatened death gave birth to life! The sentence, after it had already been pronounced, remained unexecuted, not as with secular judges: with these - to pronounce the sentence means to carry it out, and with God, on the contrary, to pronounce the sentence means to make it invalid. If the sentence had not been pronounced, the sinners would not have heard; but if they had not heard, they would not have repented, would not have rejected punishment, and would not have received miraculous salvation. And how is it not a wonderful thing when the judge pronounces a sentence, and the defendants destroy the sentence by repentance? They did not flee from the city, as we do now, but remained and thus fortified it. He was a trap, and they made him a bulwark; was a moat and an abyss, and they turned it into a guard tower. They heard that the buildings would fall, and they did not flee from the buildings, but fled from their sins; no one has left his home as we do now, but each has left his evil way. Did the walls really (they said) give rise to the wrath of God? We are the culprits of the wound, and we must also prepare a cure. Therefore, the Ninevites entrusted their salvation not to a change of places, but to a change of morals.

6.