2O2 WORKS OF ST. CHRYSOSTOM. [HOMILY IV. overwhelming rain? what if He rained down fire ? what if He sent flies ? But what do I say ? if He were so to do l as He once did, would not all perish ? IfHe were to shake the earth, would not all perish? It is now seasonable to say, "What is man, that Thou art mindful of him? " (Ps. viii. 4.) Were He only to threaten the earth, all men would become one tomb. " As a drop of water from the bucket," it is written, " so are the nations in His sight, they shall be counted as very small dust, as the turning of the balance." (Isa. xl. 15.) It were as easy for Him to destroy all things, and to make them again, as for us to turn the balance. He thenwho has such power over us, and sees us sinning every day, and yet punishes us not, how is it but by mercy He bears with us ? Since beasts too exist by mercy : "Thou, Lord, wilt preserve both men and beasts." (Ps. xxxvi. 7.) He looked upon the earth, and filled it with living things. And wherefore ? For thy sake ! And wherefore did He make thee ? Through His goodness. There is nothing better than oil. It is the cause of light, and there also it is the cause of light. 2 " Then shall thy light break forth as the morning " (Isa. Iviii. 8), saith the Prophet, ifthou showest pity upon thy neighbour. And as natu ral oil contains light, so then doth mercy [alms] grant us a great, a marvelous light. Much men tion doth Paul, too, make of this mercy. In one place, hear him say, " Only that we should re member the poor." (Gal. ii. 10.) And in another, " If it be meet for me to go also." (i Cor. xvi. 4.) And in every place, turn where you will, ye see him anxious about this very thing. And again, "And let our people also learn to maintain good works." (Tit. iii. 14.) And again, " These things are good and profita ble unto men." (Tit. iii. 8.) Listen to a cer tain other one who saith, " Alms 3do deliver from death " (Tob. xii. 9) ; IfThou takest away pity, "Lord, Lord, who shall stand" (Ps. cxxx. 3) ; and it is said, If Thou enterest " into judgment with thy servant" (Ps. cxliii. 2) ; " A great thing 1 [So the best group of MSS., though Field retains the reading of the other group, " if he were to make darkness." The vague ex pression, " so to do as He once did," probably refers to the universal destruction at the Deluge. J. A. B.J 2 [There is a queer play upon the words e\aiov, " oil," and eAeov, " mercy," which in Chrys. s day (as in Mod. Greek) were pronounced alike. As oil in the natural, so mercy in the spiritual sphere, he says, is the cause of light. J. A. B.] 3 [The Greek word which we borrow and contract into " alms" is derived from the word here rendered pity and mercy. J. A. B.] is man"; why? "and an honorable thing is a merciful man." (Prov. xx. 6, LXX.) For this is the true character of man, to be merciful, yea rather the character of God, to show mercy. Dost thou see, how strong is the mercy ofGod ? This made all things, this formed the world, this made the angels, it was through mere good ness. For this cause, too, He threatened hell, that we may attain unto the kingdom, and through mercy we do attain unto the kingdom. For wherefore did God, being alone, create so many beings ? was it not through goodness ? was it not through love to men? If you ask why such and such things are, you will always find your answer in Goodness. Let us show mercy to our neighbors, that mercy may be shown to us. These acts of mercy 4 we show not so much to them, as lay up for ourselves against That Day. When the flame of the fire is great, this oil (mercy) is that which quenches the fire, and this brings light to us. Thus by this means shall we be freed from the fire of hell. For whence will He be compassionate and show mercy? Mercy comes of love ! Nothing in censes God so much as to be pitiless. " A man was brought to him who owed him ten thousand talents, and he was moved with compassion, and forgave him. And there were owing to that man from his fellow-servant a hundred pence, and he caught him by the throat. Therefore the Lord delivered him to the tormentors, till he should pay what was due." Let us on hear ing this be merciful to those who are our debt ors in money or in sins. Let no one remember evils, if at least he does not wish to injure him self; for he does not so much aggrieve the other (as he injures himself). For he 5 either will follow him with vengeance, or he has not done so ; but dost thou thyself, while not forgiving thy neighbor his sins, seek for a kingdom ? Lest this should happen to us, let us forgive all, (for it is ourselves that we pardon,) that God may forgive us our sins, and so we may obtain the good things which are in store, through the grace and lovingkindness, &c. * al. This oil; see note 2; and on Rom. xiv. 13, Horn, xxv., Tr. p. 425, note g; and on Matt, xxv., Horn. Ixxviii. init., also Horn, on Stat. vi., Tr. p. 130, note c. He may mean here to distinguish the fire of Hell, from which we may be freed, from that which is to rage, but to be quenched. 6 [This probably means God, as suggested by the altered text, which ofcourse tinkered so obscure a passage. J. A. B.]