368 WORKS OF ST. CHRYSOSTOM. [HOMILY X. suffer. Has a want of possessions overtaken thee ? But these also are things to be acquired, and again to be lost, and that abide here. But is it plots and false accusations of enemies ? But it is not we that are injured by these, but they who are the authors of them. " For the soul," he says, " that sinneth, itself shall also die." (Ezek. xviii. 4.) And he has not sinned who suffers the evil, but he who has done the evil. Upon him therefore that is dead you ought not to take revenge, but to pray for him that you may deliver him from death. Do you not see how the bee dies upon the sting? By that animal God instructs us not to grieve our neigh bors. For we ourselves receive death first. For by striking them perhaps we have pained them for a little time, but we ourselves shall not live any longer, even as that animal will not. And yet the Scripture commends it, saying that it is a worker, whose work kings and private men make use of for their health. (Ecclus. xi. 3.) But this does not preserve it from dying, but it must needs perish. And if its other excellence does not deliver it when it does injury, much less will it us. For indeed it is the part of the fiercest beasts, when no one has injured thee, to begin the in jury, or rather not even of beasts. For they, if thou permittest them to feed in the wilderness, and dost not by straitening them reduce them to necessity, will never harm thee, nor come near thee, nor bite thee, but will go their own way. But you being a rational man, honored with so much rule and honor and glory, do not ] even imitate the beasts in your conduct to your fellow- creature, but you injure your brother, and de vour him. And how will you be able to excuse yourself? Do you not hear Paul saying, " Why not rather take wrong ? Why not rather be de frauded? Nay, but ye yourselves do wrong, and defraud, and that your brethren." (i Cor. vi. 7, 8.) Do you see that suffering wrong con sists in doing wrong, but that to suffer wrong fully is to receive a benefit? For tell me, if any one were to revile his rulers, if he were to insult those in power, whom does he injure? Himself, or them? Clearly himself. Then he who insults a ruler insults not him, but himself and he that insults a Christian does he not through him insult Christ? By no means, thou sayest. W 7 hat sayest thou? He that casts a stone at the images of the king (Emperor), at whom does he cast a stone ? is it not at himself? Then does he who casts a stone at the image of an earthly king, cast a stone at himself, and does not he who insults the image of God (for man is the image of God) injure himself? 1 [This negative, given in the printed editions, though wanting in the known MSS., seems a necessity to the sense. J. A. B.] How long shall we love riches ? For I shall not cease exclaiming against them : for they are the cause of everything. How long do we not get our fill of this insatiable desire? What is the good of gold ? I am astonished at the thing ! There is some enchantment in the business, that gold and silver should be so highly valued among us. For our own souls indeed we have no re gard, but those lifeless images engross much attention. Whence is it that this disease has invaded the world? Who shall be able to effect its destruction? What reason can cut off this evil beast, and destroy it with utter destruction ? The desire is deep sown in the minds of men, even of those who seem to be religious. Let us be put to shame by the commands of the Gos pel. Words only lie there in Scripture, they are nowhere shown by works. And what is the specious plea of the many? I have children, one says, and I am afraid lest I myself be reduced to the extremity of hunger and want, lest I should stand in need of others. I am ashamed to beg. For that reason there fore do you cause others to beg ? I cannot, you say, endure hunger. For that reason do you expose others to hunger? Do you know what a dreadful thing it is to beg, how dreadful to be perishing by hunger? Spare also your breth ren ! Are you ashamed, tell me, to be hungry, and are you not ashamed to rob? Are you afraid to perish by hunger, and not afraid to destroy others ? And yet to be hungry is neither a disgrace nor a crime ; but to cast others into such a state brings not only disgrace, but ex treme punishment. All these are pretenses, words, trifles. For that it is not on account of your children that you act thus, they testify who indeed have no children, nor will have, but who yet toil and harass themselves, and are busy in acquiring wealth, as much as if they had innumerable children to leave it to. It is not the care for his children that makes a man covetous, but a disease of the soul. On this account many even who have not children are mad about riches, and others living with a great number of chil dren even despise what they have. They will accuse thee in that Day. For if the necessities of children compelled men to accumulate riches, they also must necessarily have the same long ing, the same lust. And if they have not, it is not from the number of children that we are thus mad, but from the love of money. And who are they, you say, who having children, yet despise riches? Many, and in many places. And if you will allow me, I will speak also of instances among the ancients. Had not Jacob twelve children? Did he not lead the life of a hireling ? Was he not wronged by his kinsman? and did he not often disap-