I2O WORKS OF ST. CHRYSOSTOM. [HOMILY XIV. cation ; do not make a display of the offense, nor revel in it ; thou wilt be doing no good to him that hears thee ; rather, it is likely, thou wilt hurt him, by giving him a stimulus. Whereas, advise him what to do, and thou art conferring on him a great obligation. Discipline him how to keep silence, teach him to revile no man, and thou hast taught him his best lesson, thou wilt have conferred upon him the highest obligation. Discourse with him on contrition, on piety, on almsgiving ; all these things will soften his soul, for all these things he will own his obligation. Whereas by exciting his laughter, or by filthy communication, thou wilt rather be inflaming him. Applaud the wickedness, and thou wilt overturn and ruin him. Or else he means l thus, " that it may make them, the hearers, full of grace." For as sweet ointment gives grace to them that partake of it, so also does good speech. Hence it was more over that one said, " Thy name is as ointment poured forth." (Cant. i. 3.) It caused them to exhale that sweet perfume. Thou seest that what he continually recommends, he is saying now also, charging every one according to his several ability to edify his neighbors. Thou then that givest such advice to others, how much more to thyself ! Ver. 30. "And grieve not," he adds, "the Holy Spirit of God." A matter this more terrible and startling, as he also says in the Epistle to the Thessalonians ; for there too he uses an expression of this sort. " He that rejecteth, rejecteth not man, but God." (i Thess. iv. 8.) So also here. If thou utter a reproachful word, .if thou strike thy brother, thou art not striking him, thou art " grieving the Holy Spirit." And then is added further the benefit bestowed, in order to heighten the rebuke. " And grieve not the Holy Spirit," saith He, " in whom ye were sealed unto the day of re demption." He it is who marks us as a royal flock ; He, who separates us from all former things ; He, who suffers us not to lie amongst them that are exposed to the wrath of God, and dost thou grieve Him ? Look how startling are his words there ; " For he that rejecteth," saith he, " re jecteth not man, but God : " and how cutting they are here, " Grieve not the Holy Spirit," saith he, " in whom ye were sealed." MORAL. Let this seal then abide upon thy mouth, 2 and never destroy the impression. A spiritual mouth never utters a thing of the kind. Say not, " It is nothing, if I do utter an unseemly word, if I do insult such an one." For this very reason is it a great evil, because it seems to be 1 [" It means that it may impart a blessing, bestow a benefit,on the hearers. " Meyer and Ellicott. G. A.]2 [This is probably a misapplication of Paul s words here. The sealing here mentioned is quite the same as at chap. i. 13. G. A.] nothing. For things which seem to be nothing are thus easily thought lightly of ; and those which are thought lightly ofgo on increasing; and those which go on increasing become incurable. Thou hast a spiritual mouth. Think what words thou didst utter immediately upon being born, 3 what words are worthy of thy mouth. Thou callest God, " Father," and dost thou straightway revile thy brother? Think, whence is it thou callest God, "Father"? Is it from nature ? No, thou couldest never say so. Is it from thy goodness? No, nor is it thus. But whence then is it? It is from pure lovingkind- ness, from tenderness, from His great mercy. Whenever then thou callest God, " Father," consider not only this, that by reviling thou art committing things unworthy of that, thy high birth, but also that it is of lovingkindness that thou hast that high birth. Disgrace it not then, after receiving it from pure lovingkindness, by showing cruelty towards thy brethren. Dost thou call God "Father," and yet revile? No, these are not the works of the Son of God. These are very far from Him. The work of the Son of God was to forgive His enemies, to pray for them that crucified Him, to shed His blood for them that hated Him. These are works worthy of the Son of God, to make His enemies, the ungrateful, the dishonest, the reckless, the treacherous, to make these brethren and heirs : not to treat them that are become breth ren with ignominy like slaves. 4 Think what words thy mouth uttered, of what table these words are worthy. Think what thy mouth touches, what it tastes, of what man ner of food it partakes ! Dost thou deem thyself to be doing nothing grievous in railing at thy brother? How then dost thou call him brother? And yet if he be not a brother, how sayest thou, " Our Father " ? For the word " Our " is indi cative of many persons. Think withwhom thou standest at the time of the mysteries ! With the Cherubim, with the Seraphim ! The Sera phim revile not : no, their mouth fulfills this one only duty, to sing the Hymn of praise, to glorify 5 God. And how then shalt thou be able to say with them, " Holy, Holy, Holy," 6 if thou use thy mouth for reviling ? Tell me, I pray. Suppose there were a royal vessel, and that al ways full of royal dainties, and set apart for that 3 [cfvorjo-ov Tiva. fvOetas t<)>dey<a pynara. Te^Sei?, K.T.A. This evidently refers to baptism and the services and words used in con nection therewith. Bingham says, " The catechumens did not learn the creed and the Lord s prayer till immediately before baptism." And Chrysostom says, " An unbaptized person cannot yet call God his Father." St. Augustine also says in one of his homilies, " Now learn the Lord s prayer, which ye must repeat eight days hence, when ye are to be baptized." So they received it (that is, the Lord s prayer) only on Saturday before Palm Sunday, in order to repeat it on Saturday before Easter, which was the day of their baptism. Antiquities, Bk. x. ch. v. sec. 9. G. A.] 4 [This paragraph has reference to the celebration of the Euchar ist, concerning which, see Chrysostom s Horn, xviii. on 2 Cor. (viii. 24).-G. A.] 8 oytaeip. ayios, ayios, ayio?.