Caesarius of Arles : If we notice carefully, dearly beloved, we will realize that Joseph did to his brothers what we believe God did to blessed Jacob. Truly he was so holy that he could not have hated them. Therefore we must believe that he wearied them with so many tribulations, in order to arouse them to a confession of their sin and the healing of repentance. Finally, with great grief, they said they suffered those ills deservedly, because they had sinned against their brother, "whose anguish of heart they witnessed." Since blessed Joseph knew that his brothers could not be forgiven their sin of murder without much penance, once, twice and a third time he worried them with salutary trials as with a spiritual fire. His purpose was not to vindicate himself but to correct them and free them from so grave a sin. Furthermore, before they confessed their sin and consumed the crime that they had committed by mutual reproaches, he did not cause himself to be recognized or give them the kiss of peace. However, when Joseph saw them humbly afflicted for the sin they had committed, he kissed them one by one and wept over each one, moistening their necks as they trembled in fear with the dew of his tears and washing away the hatred of his brothers with the tears of charity. — SERMON 91.6 John Chrysostom : This, you see, is what sin is like: when it is done and takes effect, then it shows the excess of its own impropriety. Just as an inebriate imbibes great quantities of drink without feeling any harmful effects of the wine but later comes to know the extent of the damage from his exploits, so too with sin. When it is committed, it clouds the mind, and like a dense fog it blinds the intellect, but later conscience is stirred and flays the mind unmercifully with every kind of accusation, highlighting the impropriety of what was done. Notice, after all, in this case too, these men coming to their senses, and, when they saw danger pressing upon them from all sides, they then admitted what had been done by them and said, "True, we are being punished for our brother since we ignored his distress of spirit." It is not idly or to no purpose, they are saying, that we suffer this, but rightly so, and quite rightly: we are paying the penalty for the inhumanity and savagery we displayed toward our brother. "We ignored his distress of spirit when he pleaded with us without our heeding him." Since we proved lacking in compassion, they say, and displayed great savagery, hence we too now experience the same: "So for this reason this distress has come upon us." — HOMILIES ON Genesis 64.9