Basil of Caesarea : Remember the compassion of God, how he heals with olive oil and wine. Do not despair of salvation. Recall the memory of what has been written, how he that falls rises again, and he that is turned away turns again, he that has been smitten is healed, he that is caught by wild beasts escapes, and he that confesses is not rejected. The Lord does not wish the death of the sinner, but that he return and live. Be not contemptuous as one who has fallen into the depths of sins.There is still time for patience, time for forbearance, time for healing, time for amendment. Have you slipped? Rise up. Have you sinned? Cease. Do not stand in the way of sinners, but turn aside; for then you will be saved when turning back you bewail your sins. In fact, from labors there is health; for sweat, salvation. So take heed, lest, in wishing to keep your contracts with others, you transgress your covenants with God that you confessed before many witnesses. Do not, therefore, because of certain human considerations, hesitate to come to me. For, receiving my dead, I shall lament; I shall care for him, "I shall weep bitterly for the devastation of the daughter of my people." All welcome you, all will aid you in your sufferings. Do not lose heart; be mindful of the days of old. There is salvation; there is amendment. Have courage; do not despair. There is no law that passes sentence of death without pity, but grace, exceeding the chastisement, awaits the amendment. Not yet have the doors been closed; the Bridegroom listens; sin is not the master. Again take up the struggle; do not draw back, but pity yourself and all of us in Jesus Christ, our Lord, to whom be glory and might, now and forever, for ages of ages. Amen. — LETTER 44 Jerome : (Verse 4.) Therefore I said, depart from me; I will weep bitterly: do not try to console me concerning the devastation of the daughter of my people. If the prophet weeps in the devastation of Babylon with great sorrow, and says: Anguish has taken hold of me, as the anguish of a woman in labor: I fell down when I heard it, I was troubled when I saw it, my heart became faint, darkness stunned me: Babylon, my beloved, has become a wonder to me, how much more now, in the ruin of her city, can she receive no consolation, surrendering herself entirely to mourning! — Commentary on Isaiah Jerome : (Verse 4.) Therefore I said: Depart from me, I will weep bitterly: labour not to comfort me, for the devastation of the daughter of my people. LXX: Therefore I said: Let me alone, I will weep bitterly: labour not to comfort me, for the destruction of the daughter of my people. And Samuel wept for Saul (1 Samuel 15), and the Lord and Savior wept for Jerusalem (Luke 19; 2 Corinthians 12:21): and the Apostle wrote to the Corinthians: For if I cause you sorrow, who is there to make me glad but the one whom I have pained? And I wrote as I did, so that when I came I would not be distressed by those who should have made me rejoice. I had confidence in all of you, that you would all share my joy. For I wrote to you out of great distress and anguish of heart and with many tears, not to grieve you but to let you know the depth of my love for you. (2 Corinthians 2:2-4). So with a compassionate affection, he speaks to others: Who is weak, and I am not weak? Who is made to fall, and I am not indignant? (2 Corinthians 11:29)? Therefore, seeing the people once climb the empty rooftops of vain visions, and being in turmoil; and all its leaders fleeing, and being bound by the chains of sins, the Prophet bursts into tears and dismisses the comforters, and with bitter weeping testifies that he weeps not for his sons, but for the daughter of his people, who has lost her dignity of manhood. — Commentary on Isaiah John Chrysostom : Grief is often capable of refreshing distressed souls, and of rendering a burdened conscience light: consider how often women, when they have lost their most beloved children, break their hearts, and perish, if they are forbidden to mourn, and to shed tears. But if they do all which those who are sad, are wont to do, they are relieved, and receive consolation. And what wonder that this should be the case with women, when you may even see a prophet affected in a similar manner? Therefore he was continually saying, "Suffer me—I will weep bitterly—labour not to comfort me, because of the spoiling of the daughter of my people." So that, oftentimes, sadness is the bearer of consolation; and if it is so with regard to this world, much more with regard to spiritual things. — HOMILIES CONCERNING THE STATUES 18:8 John Chrysostom : It is, after all, the practice of the prophets and the just to grieve not only for themselves but also for the rest of humankind. — HOMILIES ON Genesis 29:7