Беседа XXXVI

“According to these words, the word of the Lord came to Abram in a vision at night 311, saying: Do not be afraid, Abram; I protect you, your reward will be great” (Gen. 15:1). 1. The virtue of the righteous is like a treasury containing much and unspeakable wealth. Just as from such a treasury, even if someone took a small part, he could create no small prosperity for himself, so in the virtue of this patriarch (Abraham) everyone will find the same. In fact, almost every day offering you instruction from his life, and, moreover, imparting this pleasure to you in great abundance, we have not yet been able to recount even a small part of his virtues. So abundant are his virtues! And just as from a source that pours out abundant streams, although everyone draws, they not only do not reduce the streams flowing from it, but the more there are who draw, the more powerfully the flow of water rushes - so we see the same thing in this most wonderful forefather. How much, starting from his time to the present, they draw from the source of his perfections - and not only have they not exhausted the streams, but his perfections are revealed even more abundantly. Like a kind of golden chain, we find in the Divine Scripture a series of legends about him, in such an order that we first see evidence of his own wisdom, and then immediately after them the following rewards (to him) from God. And in order for you to be convinced that this is exactly the case, it is necessary to briefly repeat to you what has already been said about him, and you will see both the superior power of the faith of the righteous man, which he showed regarding the promises of God, and the generous rewards he received from the man-loving God. Truly, this righteous man alone teaches us all to be zealously ready for deeds of virtue, in the hope of reward from above, and seeing how generous our Master is in rewards, to endure with complacency everything that in real life seems difficult, feeding on the hope of rewards. Consider, I ask you, how he (Abraham) prepared himself at the very beginning, with the help only of the reason innate to our nature, without having any outside mentor, but while still being raised by unfaithful parents, he prepared, I say, himself for the fact that he was worthy of Divine revelation. Since at an early age he did not follow his father’s errors in anything, but showed zeal for pleasing God, he was rewarded with a Heavenly visit while still in the land of the Chaldeans. Blessed Stephen testifies to this very clearly, saying: “The God of glory appeared to our father Abraham, who is in Mesopotamia, before he even dwelt in Harran” (Acts 7:2). Do you know how this phenomenon called him from there (from Mesopotamia)? Of course, he, pleasing God, showed respect to his parents; but (he) was loved so much by his father that for his sake (his father) withdrew from there, and out of love for his son, decided to leave his fatherland and settle in a foreign country. But look attentively how this very visitation of God, which happened to him (Abraham) for his first virtues, makes his same virtues even more brilliant after that. He decided to leave his native country and settle in a foreign country in order to fulfill God’s commandment. And he was ready, it seems to me, even without relatives, to undertake the journey alone, but, as I said before, the virtue of this husband and his love for his parents prompted his father to accompany him. When they came to Haran, they set up a tabernacle here. And after the death of Terah (that was his father’s name), God again commands him to come out of there. “Get out,” he says, “from your land, and from your kindred... and go to the land that I will show you” (Gen. 12:1). Since he and his entire household moved to Haran, the One who commanded him to leave from there added: “from your land and from your kindred,” showing that He (God) wanted him to make the journey alone and not take any brother with him, i.e. Nahor, and no one else. “From your land,” said (God), “because, having lived there for quite some time, they built a dwelling for themselves in that land, as if already in their own fatherland. And although he was still mourning his parents, although his wandering was then in many ways difficult and inconvenient, he hastened with all zeal to fulfill the command of the Lord, not even knowing where the end of his wandering would be. In fact, the Lord did not tell him: go to this or that land, but - “I will show you.” And despite the fact that the command was so vague, he, without investigating at all, fulfilled the command. He took his nephew (Lot) with him, showing his virtue in this too: taking him while still young, he little by little formed in him an imitator of his virtue and for this he did not want to leave him, but accepted him as a participant in his journey; if my father, he (Abraham) reasoned, being unfaithful, out of love for me, decided to leave his fatherland, where we were born and raised, followed me and ended his life in a foreign country, then all the more I cannot leave here (in my former fatherland) the son of (my) brother, a young man, who from an early age has been revealing in himself a gradual increase in virtue. 2. When, thus, showing his love for God in everything, he (Abraham) made such a journey, and finally came to Palestine and entered the borders of the Canaanites, God, wanting to strengthen his zeal and extend a helping hand to him, appeared to him and said: “To your seed will I give this land” (Gen. 12:7). What he wanted and wanted badly, i.e. continuation of his family, then God immediately promises him, rewarding him for such great labors. Since by nature 312 he did not have children and the years no longer allowed him to hope to have them, God, with His promise, encourages the ascetic, makes him even more courageous and, as it were, returns him youth for further exploits. And look how this righteous man, after such a promise, undertakes another new feat. When famine came and there was great poverty in the land of Canaan, he hastened to Egypt; but, wanting to find means to satisfy his hunger there, he was exposed to even greater dangers. The beauty and beauty of his wife Sarah threatened him with death. Therefore, “while still approaching to enter Egypt,” he says to her: “We know, as ... You are of good character” (Gen. 12:11), I know the beauty of your face and I fear the intemperance of the Egyptians. So, if they see you and find out that I treat you like a wife, they will leave you alive to satisfy their insane passion, but they will kill me so that they can commit their iniquity without fear, because then there will be no one to reveal it to. So, say that I am your brother. Notice the adamantine soul, notice the heart, stronger than iron. The upcoming misfortune did not shake his spirit; He neither thought nor said to himself: Was it for this reason that I left my fatherland and, having shown such great obedience, came to a foreign country to be subjected to such disasters? Wasn’t it promised to me shortly before: “To your seed will I give this land?” It is the fear of adultery and death that revolts our souls. But he didn’t even allow himself to think of anything like that. He had only one thing in mind in such a dangerous adventure, how to avoid at least one of the two dangers facing him. Thus, he himself used all his prudence and courage, and his wife, showing love for her husband and obedience, assisted (him) by acting as was invented. But when they had already done everything in their power, and yet, humanly, they could lose all hope, so that the lawless intention (of the Egyptians) was almost carried out, then God’s great providence was shown for him (Abraham), God not only snatched his wife from reproach, showed His wrath against the king and his whole house, but also helped the patriarch to return from Egypt to Palestine with great glory. See how the humane Lord, giving His help to the ascetic amidst temptations, makes him even stronger for further exploits; never leaving him without His help, He clearly shows such providence in everything that he, enduring a little, is rewarded with much, much more than human strength. Do you see the patience of the righteous? Look now, upon his return from Egypt, how great his humility was and how much meekness there was in him. When he returned from Egypt with great wealth, and he was not alone, but his nephew accompanied him, then “the land cannot contain them,” it is said, “that they can live together” (Gen. 13:6), since they had a lot of property, which is why a quarrel arose between the shepherds of Lot and Abraham. Then the righteous man, showing the meekness of his soul and the height of his wisdom, called Lot and said to him: “Let there be no strife between me and you, and between your shepherds and between my shepherds, for we are brethren of men” (Gen. 13:8). As it were, he said to Lot: there is nothing better than peace and nothing worse than quarrel; So, in order to eliminate any reason for a quarrel, choose which part of the land you want, and leave me the other, and we will be far from any quarrel and strife. Do you see your husband's virtue? He conceded the choice of the best land to the young man, and he himself was content with the worst. Look now how great a reward he received for such an act. As soon as the separation was completed and Lot left, God said to Abraham: “Looking at your eyes, look at all this land on all sides, just as you see all (the land) that you see, I will give it to you and to your seed forever” (Gen. 13:14-15). See how greatly he is honored for the humility he showed towards his nephew. Having given up a little, he was rewarded with much more; and he (Lot), having chosen the better part, a little later, was exposed to dangers and not only did not gain anything from his choice, but was unexpectedly captured, lost (everything) and left without shelter and home, and then in fact he learned the high virtue of the righteous and he himself learned never to do so (as he did). In fact, as soon as Lot made his home in Sodom, a fierce war broke out: the kings of the neighboring nations, attacking with great force, completely devastated that entire country. Having beaten the giants and expelled the Amalekites, they forced the king of Sodom and Gomorrah to flee, captured all the heights and, capturing the cavalry of the king of Sodom, taking Lot and their wives captive with all their property, they left. 3. But look again how great God’s providence is. Wanting to free Lot and glorify the patriarch (Abraham), God awakens the righteous man to help his nephew. Having learned about what had happened, the forefather and his household rushed towards those kings, easily defeated them and freed Lot and the wives, and all the king’s cavalry. Having won such a glorious victory, he clearly showed everyone God’s providence for him, and the fact that he accomplished such a great deed not by his own strength, but strengthened by heavenly help. However, he managed to become a teacher of piety for everyone who lived in Sodom, through his conversations with their king. When the king, having met with him and giving thanks for what he had done, promised to cede all the cavalry to him, and take only people for himself - note here again the great soul of the righteous man, how at the same time he reveals his wisdom, showing that he is above such gifts, and leads him (the king) to the knowledge of piety - then the forefather did not just tell him: I will not allow myself to take anything from you, because I have no need for any such a reward, but what? “I will lift up my hand to God the highest” (Gen. 14:22). He seemed to inspire the king: the gods you worship are not gods, but stones and wood; there is one God above all, who created heaven and earth. “From thread to thong” I will not take from you (Gen. 14:23), so that you do not think that I took revenge for you only for this, and so that you cannot say that you enriched me. He who gave me victory and provided triumph also gives me the means to enrich myself. Look what benefit the king could have received from the words of the patriarch if he wanted: he taught him not to rely on his own strength in the future, but to recognize the Creator of all things, to despise man-made deities and to serve the God of all things, the Creator of everything and the source of good things. And in general, the king could see Abraham’s virtue in everything. So that he does not think that he (Abraham) despises his gifts out of pride and arrogance, he tells him: I will not take anything, because I have no need and do not want my wealth to increase from others, but to those who participated with me in dangers, I will allow them to take a few so that they have at least a small reward for their labors. This is how the righteous man answered the king of Sodom. But when Melchizedek, the king of Salem, having brought out bread and wine, offered him (since he was, it is said, “a priest of the most high God”), he (Abraham) accepted what was offered from him and, wishing to thank him for the blessing received from him and for the glorification of God (since Melchizedek said, as it is written: “Blessed is Abram of the highest God,... and blessed is God, whom thy enemies have delivered under thy hands” ( Gen. 14:19–20)), gives him a tithe of everything he received from the spoils. You see how the piety of the righteous is revealed in everything; He did not want to take anything from the king of Sodom - “from a thread to a belt,” but he took what was offered from Melchizedek, reciprocating him from himself. By this he teaches us to observe greater discrimination, and not just indiscriminately accept from everyone. The King of Sodom, although he expressed his good feelings with gifts, was unfaithful and needed edification. Therefore (Abraham) rejected his gifts, but made every effort to lead him to the true knowledge of God, both by refusing to accept the gifts and by what he said to him. From Melchizedek he accepts (gifts) fairly, because Divine Scripture testifies to the virtue of this man, saying: “He was a priest of the highest God.” On the other hand, this event was a foreshadowing of Christ, and even that very thing that was brought (by Melchizedek) foreshadowed something mysterious. Therefore, it had to be so that Abraham, having accepted (the gifts) and mutually rewarded (Melchizedek), showed the greatness of his virtue. He gave Melchizedek a tithe, expressing a pious thought in this too. Our word may have spread too far, but not in vain and not without reason. We briefly recounted from the very beginning up to the present reading about the courage of the righteous man, about his generosity, about his extraordinary faith, about the wisdom of his mind, about the greatness of his humility, amazing contempt for wealth, about the continuous providence and favor of God towards him, and about how all the visits to him (from above) each time revealed in the righteous man more and more greatness, more and more glorified him. But if you are willing and are not tired, let us take up what has just been read, and, having offered a little, we will finish the word so that you will know what reward he (Abraham) receives for not accepting the gifts of the king of Sodom. What is said? “By these words the word of the Lord came to Abram.” Why does it begin like this: “According to these words?” After what verbs, tell me? Is it not clear that after those which he spoke to the king of Sodom, i.e. after the contempt and rejection of his gifts, after the edification that he did through the rejection of gifts, directing him to piety and knowledge of the Creator of all things - “according to these words”, i.e. after he gave tithes to Melchizedek? When, the Scripture says, he fulfilled all this on his part, then, “according to these words, the word of the Lord came to Abram in a vision at night, saying: Do not be afraid, Abram; I protect you, your reward will be great” (Gen. 15:1). 4. Notice the Lord’s love for mankind, how quickly and without delay He rewards His ascetic with His good deeds, thus strengthening and renewing his strength. “The word of the Lord came in a vision during the night.” Why at night? In order for his (the Lord’s) words to be accepted in silence. And he says to him: “Do not be afraid, Abram,” - take note of the special care (of God). Why did he say, “don’t be afraid”? Since he, caring little about the gifts of the king (of Sodom), despised such great wealth, God says to him: “Do not be afraid” that you despised such gifts and do not think that your acquisition will decrease from this. "Don't be afraid" . And in order to further excite his spirit, speaking to him, he adds his name to the word: “Do not be afraid, Abram.” And it serves no little purpose to encouragement if the name of the one who is called is pronounced. Then he says: “I am protecting you.” And this saying is significant. I, who called you from the land of the Chaldeans; I who brought you here; I, who freed you from dangers in Egypt; I, who promised several times to give you and your seed this land; I'm protecting you. I, who every day glorify you more and more before everyone; I protect you, i.e. I struggle for you, I will fight for you, I provide for you and make everything difficult for you easy, “I protect you, your reward will be great.” You did not want to take rewards for the labors that you suffered, exposing yourself to such great dangers, but you despised the gifts of the king (of Sodom), so I will give you a reward not such as you could have received (from the king), but great, very great. “Your reward,” it is said, “will be very much.” Do you see the generosity of the Lord? Do you see the significance of the words? Do you see how He inspired the ascetic of piety? Do you see how He strengthened his spirit? He who knew the secrets of his heart saw that the righteous man needed such comforting words. In fact, look what the patriarch says, encouraged by these words: “And Abram said: Master, what have you done? But I am forgiven without children” (Gen. 15:2). When the Lord promised him a reward, and a great, very great reward, then he, revealing the sorrow of his soul and the despondency that constantly tormented him due to childlessness, said: Lord, what will You give me? Now I have already reached a ripe old age, and I am “letting go” 313 childless? Look how even in ancient times the righteous man waxed philosophical, calling the exodus from this life “release” 314. Truly, those who strive diligently in virtue, when they migrate from this life, then, truly, they are, as it were, released from suffering and from bonds: for those living virtuously, death is precisely a transition from worse to better, from temporary life to unceasing, immortal and endless. “As for me,” he says, “I am freed from childlessness.” And in order to incline the Lord to mercy, he did not stop there, but what else did he say? “The son of Mazek 315 of my household,... because you did not give me seed, this will be my heir” (Gen. 15:3). Such words show the great sorrow of the soul; he seems to be saying to God: I am not worthy of what my servant is worthy of; I will die childless and fatherless, and this servant of mine will be the heir of both what has already been given to me from You, and what You promised me several times, saying: “To your seed I will give this land.” Note here also the virtue of the righteous. Having such thoughts in his soul, he was never annoyed, never grumbled; no, and now, encouraged by the words of God, he approaches the Lord with hope, declares to him the confusion of his thoughts and shows the wound of his soul, which is why he received quick healing: “and abiye,” it is said, “the voice of the Lord came to him” (Gen. 15:4). Notice the accuracy of Scripture: it is said: “abiye”, i.e. The Lord did not allow the righteous to grieve for a short time, but gives quick consolation and eases the burden of sorrow by talking with him: “and abiye,” it is said, “the voice of the Lord came to him, saying: This shall not be your heir, but the one who comes out from you will be your heir” (Gen. 15:4). Is this, he says, what you were afraid of? Does this increase your sorrow? So, know that this will not be your heir, “but whoever comes from you will be your heir.” Do not look at human nature, do not think about your old age, nor about the barrenness of Sarah, but believing in the power of the One who promises you, stop being discouraged, be comforted and be sure that you will have an heir who will be born of you. Then, since the promise was above nature and exceeded human reason (because his spirit was much disturbed by the obstacle from nature itself and his own old age, and the already mature infertility of Sarah), the Lord extends the power of His promises even further, so that the righteous, seeing the generosity of the one who promises, will have even more hope. “I took him out and said to him: look at the sky and count the stars, if you can count them. And he said: so shall your seed be. And Abram believed in God, and it was reckoned to him as righteousness” (Gen. 15:5-6). Why is it noted: “take him out”? Since it was said above that God appeared to him at night in a vision and talked with him, and now he wants to point out to him the countless number of stars in the sky, it is said: “I will take him out, and say: look at the sky and count the stars, if you can count them out. And he said: so shall your seed be.” Sublime revelation, great promise! But if we think about the power of the Promiser, then it will not seem extraordinary to us at all. The One who formed the body from the earth, Who from the carrier made everything visible, He could bestow (to Abraham) a promise that surpasses nature. 5. Do you see the mercy of the Lord? When the righteous man said: “I am released without children,” and already being, as it were, at the very doors of death and not seeing any possibility of having children, he uttered in such a state of mind the words: “Mazek, the son of my household, my heir will be,” then the Lord, wanting to resurrect his spirit and strengthen his heart, frees him from his overwhelming fear, elevates his thought with both the promise and the very greatness of the gift; pointing to many stars and announcing that the same number of offspring will come from him, returns to him comforting hopes. Hearing such a promise from the Lord, the righteous man abandoned all human reasoning, and, no longer paying attention to himself or to Sarah, who presented many obstacles to the fulfillment of the promise, but having become above everything human and knowing that God is able to give the supernatural, he believed the words spoken (from the Lord), did not allow any doubt in himself and did not waver in faith regarding what was said to him. This is a sign of true faith: when the promises are beyond human understanding and we firmly trust in the power of the one who promises. “Faith is,” as Blessed Paul says, “the revelation of things hoped for, the revelation of things not seen” (Heb. 11:1). And in another place: “For if anyone sees, he also hopes” (Rom. 8:24). So, faith is when we believe the invisible, fixing our thoughts on the immutable faithfulness of the Promiser. This is what this righteous man (Abraham) did - showing great and sincere faith regarding what was promised to him, for which the Divine Scripture praises him, since it immediately adds: “And Abram believed in God, and it was imputed to him as righteousness.” Do you see how, even before the fulfillment of the promises, he received a proportionate reward for just believing? It was credited to him as truth that he believed the promise of God and did not test with human reasoning what God said. So, let us also learn from the forefather to believe the words of God and trust in His promises, not to examine them for our own reasons, but to show complacency. This can make us righteous and prepare us more quickly to receive what is promised (from God). God promised Abraham that from his seed there would come a great multitude (of offspring), and this promise was above the nature and order of human affairs, which is why faith brought him (Abraham) justification before God. But if we are attentive, we are promised much more - something that can far surpass any human concept; Let us only believe in the power of Him who promises, so that we may receive justification from faith and receive the promised benefits. What is especially promised to us exceeds all human understanding and surpasses all reasoning. So great are the promises! In fact, not only in the present age does the Lord promise us the continuation of life and the enjoyment of visible blessings, but also after our departure from here and the destruction of our bodies, when our bodies turn to dust and ashes, He promises (the Lord) to resurrect them and place them in greater glory. “For it is fitting,” says blessed Paul, “that this corruptible should put on incorruption, and this dead thing should put on immortality” (1 Cor. 15:53). And after the resurrection of our bodies, the Lord promises to grant us the pleasure of the Kingdom, communion with the saints, endless peace and those unspeakable blessings, “for which no eye has seen, nor an ear heard, nor has entered into the heart of man” (1 Cor. 2:9). So, do you see how great is the superiority of promises? Do you see the greatness of the gifts? 6. Reflecting on this and knowing the truth of what was promised, let us carefully prepare ourselves for deeds of virtue, so that we can enjoy the promised benefits; We will not prefer temporary blessings to our salvation and the enjoyment of such great blessings; we will not talk about the works of virtue, but we will think about rewards; Let’s not look at the waste of money when it should be given to the poor, but let’s imagine the consequences that arise from this. This is why the Divine Scripture likened alms to a seed, so that we would do it with joy and great desire. If those who throw into the ground and scatter the collected and stored seeds do it with great joy, feeding on good hopes and imagining ears full of grains, then it is much more fitting to rejoice and admire those who are worthy to sow spiritual things - because they, sowing on earth, will reap in heaven, throwing money, receiving forgiveness of sins and acquiring a pledge of hope, and by giving here (alms), prepare for themselves eternal peace and cohabitation with the saints. And if we choose chastity, then we will not pay attention to the fact that this virtue is combined with work, or that virginity requires a great feat, but let us think about the inheritance awaiting us; always thinking about this, we will curb the impulses of evil desires, defeat the desires of the flesh and lighten the burden of work with the hope of reward. Truly, the hope of obtaining some benefits gives courage to venture into obvious dangers; and even more so, it will help us to courageously overcome difficulties in virtue. In fact, if you think that by working a little and keeping the burning lamp of virginity, you can be rewarded with a blessed life in the future and enter with the Bridegroom (into the Kingdom of Heaven), if only you have lit lamps and enough oil in them, i.e. good deeds, then how can you not endure with all ease all the hard things (in life), remembering what Blessed Paul said: “Have peace and holiness with everyone, in whom no one else will see the Lord” (Heb. 12:14)? Do you see how the apostle connects peace with holiness? So that we understand that he requires not only purity of body, but also peace, he mentioned both in good time, wanting to establish (in us) both, so that we would restrain our thoughts, not allowing ourselves any indignation or confusion (mental), but lead a calm and serene life, and so that all others would be treated peacefully, be quiet, meek and forgiving, so that all the traits of virtue would be reflected on our face. Thus, we can despise the glory of this life, preferring the true glory to it, and be more concerned about humility, and consider all the happiness of this life as nothing, in order to enjoy true and lasting happiness and be worthy to see Christ. “Blessed,” it is said, “are those who are pure in heart, so that they will see God” (Matthew 5:8). So, let us clear our conscience and carefully take care to improve our lives, so that, having spent the present century in all virtue, we will be rewarded for our deeds here in the next century, by the grace and love of our Lord Jesus Christ, with whom to the Father, with the Holy Spirit, be glory, power, honor, now and ever, and to the ages of ages. Amen. Zlat.: ἐν ὁράματι τῆς νυκτὸς according to sp. Koislian. (X in “Holmes”), – Dorothea and many others. others; in Lucian, as in Heb. t., νυκτὸς – “at night” is not read. Of course Sarah's barrenness. Zlat. Μαζὲκ according to sp. Dorothea; in Lucian. sp. Μασὲκ; in euros t. "bag" "possession". You might be interested in: