Беседа XXXVII

“The Lord said to Abram: I am God, who brought you out from the land of the Chaldeans, to give you this land to inherit 316. Speech: Master Lord, by what means will I understand how the Imam will inherit?” (Gen.15:7-8). 1. Great is the power of Divine Scripture and great is the wealth of thoughts hidden in its words. Therefore, listening to it carefully, we must experience it a lot in order to receive abundant benefit from it. That is why Christ commanded: “Test the Scriptures” (John 5:39), so that we would not engage in just simple reading of it, but so that, by exploring the depth of Scripture, we could comprehend its true meaning. This is the property of Scripture: in its few words you can often find a great variety of thoughts. Since it is a Divine teaching, and not a human one, it can be seen that all of it is opposite to human wisdom. I'll explain how. There (I'm talking about human wisdom) all the efforts of people are directed to the presentation of words; here it is quite the opposite: (Holy Scripture) does not mean the beauty of words, or their (skillful) combination; it in itself has Divine grace, which imparts brilliance and beauty to its words. And again, there (in human writings) among the vast and indescribable idle talk one can hardly find any thought; and here (in the Holy Scriptures), as you already know, even a short saying was often enough for us to compose a whole teaching. So yesterday, having offered you what we had read, we only touched on the beginning, but since we found a great wealth of thoughts, we could not continue the conversation further, so as not to burden your memory with the abundance (of thoughts), and so that what was said could no longer be forgotten. Therefore, I want (today) to continue the conversation in the same order, and with what was said yesterday, to put together the real word, so that, having thus completed the explanation of the entire reading, I will let you go from here. I just ask you to carefully listen to what is said to you, because although this is our work, the benefit from it is yours, or, better said, the general one. However, what am I saying – our work? No, it is a gift of God's grace. So, let us also carefully accept what is given to us from God, so that we can leave here (the church) with some acquisition for the salvation of our souls. This is why we offer you this spiritual meal every day, so that through continuous teaching and exercise in the Divine Scripture you can protect yourself from all slander of the evil spirit. When he sees that we are putting great effort into spiritual pursuits, he will not only not attack us, but will not even dare to look directly at us, knowing that his attempts will be in vain, and that his insolence will turn on his own head. So, turning to what was said yesterday, let us explain in order what still remains (to be stated). What did we talk about yesterday? We set forth the promises (of God) to Abraham when God commanded him to look up to the sky and look at the many stars. “Imagine the stars,” He tells him, “if you can annihilate them. And he said, “So shall your seed be” (Gen. 15:5). Then the Divine Scripture, showing us the love for God in the soul of the forefather and the fact that he, looking at the Promiser and thinking about His power, believed what was said, says: “And Abram believed God, and imputed it to him as righteousness.” Until now we talked yesterday and could not extend further, why now it is necessary to follow further sayings (of the Scriptures). What does Scripture say? “The Lord said to Abram: I am God, who brought you out from the land of the Chaldeans, to give you this land to inherit” (Gen. 15:7–8). Notice the condescension of God, how God wants to strengthen his (Abraham’s) faith and convince him so that he has complete confidence in receiving what was promised, as if telling him: remember that I called you from home. These words of the Lord to the forefather turn out to agree with what blessed Stephen said, namely, that Abraham was called both from his home and from Chaldea itself by the command of God. Following his (Abraham’s) intention, his father, as we said before, although he was unfaithful, but motivated by great love for him, accompanied him, followed him and left (from the house). So, in the present case (the Lord) reminds him (Abraham) what care He had for him from the very beginning, letting him understand that He commanded him to take such a path because He was preparing something great for him and wanted to fulfill and bring into effect all the promises given to him. “I am the one who brought you out from the land of the Chaldeans, to give you this land to inherit.” Did I call you from there (from Chaldea) without a reason? Was it in vain and without purpose that I brought you out from there? For this reason I commanded you to go to Palestine, leave your father’s house and come to this land so that you will inherit it. So, think what kind of care you have enjoyed from Me since you left Chaldea until now, and how through My assistance and providence for you you have become glorified and are becoming even more and more glorious from day to day; think about this, and firmly believe My words. Do you see a special love for humanity? Do you see the greatest condescension? You see how God wants to strengthen (Abraham’s) soul and make his faith even stronger, so that henceforth, not paying attention to the weaknesses of nature, but thinking about the power of the One who gives him promises, he would have such boldness (hopes), as if these promises had already been fulfilled in practice. 2. But look again how the forefather, encouraged by such words (of the Lord), demands even greater confirmation for himself. “Sovereign Lord,” he says, “by what reason will I understand that the Imam will inherit” (Gen. 15:8)? Although the Divine Scripture had previously testified about him (Abraham) that he believed the words of God, which is why it was imputed to him as truth, but when (Abraham) heard the words: “For this reason I brought you out of the land of the Chaldeans, to give you this land as an inheritance,” he says: I cannot help but believe your words, but at the same time I would like to know how I will inherit it. Now I myself have already reached old age and to this day I pass through this earth like a wanderer, but what will happen in the future I cannot comprehend with the human mind. So, he says, although from the very beginning I believed the words spoken (by You), because they were spoken by You, and You can bring from non-existence into existence, You create and transform everything, yet I ask You about this, I ask not out of unbelief; Since You again mentioned the inheritance, I would like to receive some more tangible and clear sign for me, which would strengthen my weak mind. What (does) the good Lord? Condescending to His servant and wanting to strengthen his soul (since he saw that he was aware of his weakness and believed the promise, but only wanted to get some kind of certificate), He said to him: “Take Me a three-year-old young woman, and a three-year-old goat, and a ram, and a turtle dove, and a dove” (Gen. 15:9). See how humanly the Lord makes a covenant with him. Just as we people, when we promise someone something and want to confirm our promise so that he does not doubt our words, we give him some kind of sign or guarantee so that, looking at him, he can be sure of the unfailing fulfillment of the promise, so did the man-loving Lord, when Abraham said: “By what means will I understand?” - He says: here I will do this for you: “Take Me a three-year-old young woman, and a three-year-old goat, and a ram, and a turtle dove, and a dove.” Look to what simplicity the all-good Lord intends to condescend to authenticate his forefather. Since the ancients had the custom of concluding contracts in this way and confirming them in this way (as the covenant of God with Abraham is described in the Holy Scriptures), He (God) also follows the same path. “And they took,” it says, “and divided them into floors” (Gen. 15:10). It should be noted that it was not in vain and not without reason that He (God) appointed the very age 317: He commanded to take three years old, i.e. mature and perfect. “And I divided (Abraham) into halves, and set one against the other, but did not separate the birds” (Gen. 15:10). And sitting, he guarded the divided parts so that the flying birds would not damage them, and he (Abraham) did this all day long. “The other 318 birds flew down onto their bodies, 319 being torn apart: and Abram sat near them. When the sun set, horror attacked Abram, and behold, great and dark fear 320 attacked” (Gen. 15:11-12). Why (was this) at sunset, when the day was already approaching evening? All this is to make him (Abraham) more attentive: for this purpose, “horror ... and great dark fear” attacked him, so that all these phenomena would bring him to his senses to the vision of God. God always does this. So later, when He wanted to give Moses the Law and Commandments on Mount Sinai, it was said that there was darkness and a storm, and a smoking mountain (Ex. 19:16-18). Why does Scripture say: “Touch the mountains, and they smoke” (Ps. 103:32). Since the incorporeal cannot be visible with sensory eyes, the Lord wants to mark His presence for us (with special phenomena). So, when the righteous man (Abraham) was struck, and fear and horror shook his soul, it was said to him: you said: “Why will I understand” (the fulfillment of the promise) and desired to receive a sign how you will inherit this land? Here I give you a sign: you must have great faith in order to know that I can bring (human) affairs to good hopes even from the most unfavorable circumstances. “And it was said to Abram: He who knows, hang him, that your seed will be abject in a land that is not theirs, and they will enslave me, and embitter me, 321 and humble me for four hundred years. But the tongue will work for it, I have judged: until then they will go forth with much wealth” (Gen. 15:13-14). This word is great and requires a courageous and sublime soul, leaving everything human below itself. In fact, if the forefather (Abraham) did not have a strong, courageous and philosophical soul, such words could even confuse him. “You who know hang them,” it is said, “for your seed will be abject in a land that is not theirs, and they will enslave you, and embitter you, and humble you for 322 four hundred years. But to the tongue that they have worked for, I judge: they will still come forth with much wealth.” 3. Do not be surprised, he says, looking at yourself and your old age, at the barrenness of Sarah and the deadness of her womb, and do not think that I said anything much, saying that “to your seed will I give this land.” I not only predict this for you, but also that your seed will be resettled in a foreign land. God did not say: to Egypt and did not name the land by name, but said: in a land “not his own”; there (your descendants) will endure slavery and poverty, and they will be embittered not for a short time and not for a small number of years, but “four hundred years.” But I will take vengeance for them: “I will judge the tongue that has wrought it” and will make sure that they return here “with much wealth.” Predicting to Abraham what was undoubtedly going to happen later, announcing to him about slavery, and about the coming to Egypt, and about the wrath that the Egyptians would experience for his descendants, and about their glorious return (from there), God shows him that not only will supernatural works (of God) be performed on him, and not only on him will everything foretold by God, after such great obstacles, be fulfilled, but that the same will happen to all of his seed. And this, he says, I told you now so that before you depart from this life you would know what awaits your descendants. But “you,” he says further, “go back to your father 323 and be nourished better in your old age.” He didn’t say “you will die”, but “you will leave”, as if he had to go on a journey and move from one homeland to another. “You will go,” he says, “to your fathers,” meaning not carnal (fathers), because how could this be when his father was unfaithful? It was not possible for the faithful forefather to go to the same place (with the infidels). “The chasm is great,” it is said, “between us and you” (Luke 16:26). Why did He (God) say: “Thy Father?” He designated (with this word) the righteous, such as: Abel, Noah, Enoch and the like. “Teacher is kinder in old age.” Maybe someone will say what a good old age he (Abraham) had when he spent his whole life in such sorrows? Don't look at it, man; and think about his everlasting glory, how he, being a wanderer, without a fatherland, without a home, was glorious and how he always benefited from the intercession of God. So, do not judge things according to current concepts and do not think that that old age is good, which passes in pleasures and luxury, in the possession of wealth, many slaves, a crowd of servants. All this would not make old age good; on the contrary, it would subject a person to great condemnation who, even in old age, does not want to come to his senses and, at his last breath, does not think about what is necessary, but every day works his stomach, chases after feasts, indulges in drunkenness, and who, not much later, will have to give an account for all this. Only the one who has spent his life in such virtue (like Abraham), truly “qualified in good old age,” ends his life, and for his labors here finds reward and reward in the future (age). That is why (the Lord) says: so it will be with your descendants, and you yourself will go away, “fed better in your old age.” Notice again here that if the righteous man did not have great courage and lofty wisdom, then how could this also confuse his thoughts! If he had been like many others, he would have said: Why do you promise to spread such a great descendant from me if they must undergo such great calamities and endure slavery for so many years? What good does it do me? But the righteous man did not think of anything like that; on the contrary, as a well-meaning member of the household, he accepted everything from God with love and put everything pleasing to Him above his reasoning. Then (God) determines for him the time of liberation from slavery. Having spoken about the number of years (slavery) - “four hundred” - he further says: “in the fourth generation these will return” (Gen. 15:16). Here someone may be perplexed at how it is said that they must slave for “four hundred years,” while they did not even spend half of these years in Egypt. But that is why it is not said that they will spend four hundred years “in Egypt,” but it is only said: “in a land that is not theirs,” so that to the years they spent in Egypt, one can add the time of the life of the forefather himself, in which he was commanded to leave Harran. From that time on, Scripture also shows us the number of his years, saying that he was seventy-five years old when he left Harran. And if anyone from this time counts until the exodus from Egypt, he will find the total number of years 324. And we can also say that the Lord, being philanthropic and always proportioning punishments to our weakness, as soon as he saw that they were exhausted from labor, and that the Egyptians were showing them great cruelty, before a certain time he took vengeance and brought them to freedom. This is the property of Him (the Lord): while arranging our salvation in every possible way, He, although He threatens with punishments, but if we show an appeal to (Him), He cancels His sentence. And vice versa again, although He promises to give us some good, but if we, for our part, do not do what depends on ourselves, then He does not fulfill his promise, so that this does not make us even worse. You can see all this for yourself if you only read the Divine Scripture with diligence. “But in the fourth generation these will return: the sins of the Amorites are not fulfilled until now” (Gen. 15:16). Then, he says, the time will come to free those (descendants of Abraham), and condemn these (Amorites) and expel them from their land for the many sins they have committed. So, both, the restoration of some and the destruction of others, will thus be accomplished at the proper time. “Before it is fulfilled,” he says, “sin them.” As it were, He said: they have not yet committed such a multitude of crimes that they should suffer such punishment. Being philanthropic, the Lord not only does not impose punishments greater than sins, but, on the contrary, (sends) much less. That is why He shows great patience to the Amorites, so that, having brought punishment upon themselves, they would no longer have any excuse. 4. You see how the Lord revealed everything with precision to the forefather in order to strengthen his faith in every possible way, and so that from what was said he could be convinced that everything that concerned himself and his descendants would certainly come true as was predicted to him. Then, when Abraham fully accepted the prophecy and received a sufficient sign of what would happen to him, “when,” it is said, “the sun was in the west, there was a fire: and behold, there were smoking caves, and candles of fire, which came from between the heaves” (Gen. 15:17). The flame, oven and candles appeared so that the righteous would understand the firmness of the covenant (of God with him) and the action (in this) of the power of God. Then, when all this was over, when the fire destroyed the offered parts (animals), “a covenant,” it is said, “The Lord made a covenant to Abram on that day, saying: To your seed will I give this land, from the river of Egypt, even to the great river Euphrates: the Kenites, and the Kenezites, and the Kedmonites, and the Hittites, and the Perizzites, and the Raphites, and the Amorites, and the Canaanites, and the Hivites, and The Girgashites and the Jebusites” (Gen. 15:18–21). Look how again the Lord continues to confirm His promise to him. “A testament,” it is said, “a covenant, saying: To your seed will I give this land.” Then, so that the righteous man, by the space of the earth and by the vastness of the borders, can conclude how his seed will spread, he says: “From the river of Egypt even to the great river Euphrates,” - so great, he says, will your seed be. Notice how in everything He (God) wants to show him the extraordinary multitude (of his descendants). Having said before that he will make his seed as countless as many stars, he now shows him the vastness of the limits, so that from here he will know how far his future offspring will spread. And not only this (he showed), but he separately mentions those nations whom he intended to give to his seed for possession, in order to provide the righteous with complete identification. But when such great promises had already been given, Sarah still remained barren and their old age increased; and this so that, having presented the greatest proof of their faith, they would at the same time recognize both the weakness of human nature and the greatness of the power of God. But so that we again do not spread our teaching too far, let us dwell on this thought and end the word by calling you to be imitators of your forefather. Think, in fact, beloved, what kind of reward he received for those words that he said to the King of Sodom, or better - for all the virtues that he showed throughout his entire life, and what condescension the Lord showed him, showing us all in the events of the life of this forefather the greatness of his generosity, and that if we do at least a little on our part, He will immediately reward us with great gifts, if only we show ourselves sincere faith, like this righteous man, and never wavered in their thoughts, but had a constantly strong spirit. This is how Abraham became famous. Listen to how blessed Paul glorifies his faith, which he showed in himself from the very beginning: “By faith,” he says, “by obeying the call of Abraham, he went out to the place he wanted to receive, and from there he did not know what was coming” (Heb. 11:8), drawing our attention to what God said: “depart from your land and go to the land that I will show you.” Do you see a strong faith, do you see a sincere spirit? Let us also imitate him, withdraw in thought and desire from the affairs of real life and direct our path to heaven. After all, we can, if we only want, even living here, be on the way there (to heaven), when we begin to do what is worthy of heaven, when we do not have an addiction to the goods of the world, when we do not seek vain glory in this life, but despising it, we strive to achieve another glory, true and always abiding; when we will not indulge in the luxury of clothing and worry about decorating the body, but will transfer all this concern for external decoration to the care of the soul and will not tolerate it being naked and deprived of the clothes of virtue; when we despise luxury, flee gluttony, we will not chase after feasts and dinners, but we will be content with what is necessary, according to the apostolic instruction: “having food and clothing, we will be content with these” (1 Tim. 6:8). And what is the benefit, tell me, in excess, in the fact that the stomach is torn from satiety, or the mind is upset from the immoderate use of wine? Isn’t this where all evil is born, both for the body and for the soul? What causes these many different diseases and disorders? Is it because, exceeding the limit, we burden the womb with too heavy a load? Why also adultery, fornication, theft, covetousness, murder, robbery and all corruption of the soul? Is it because we strive for more than what is proper? Just as Paul called the love of money the root of all evil, so the one who calls immoderation and our desire to go beyond need in everything will not be in error. Indeed, if we wanted to not look for anything superfluous in food, clothing, housing, or other bodily needs, but only what is necessary, then the human race would be freed from many evils. 5. I don’t know why each of us is more or less susceptible to the disease of covetousness and never tries to limit ourselves to what is necessary, but, contrary to the apostolic instruction: “If we have this garment, we will be content with these,” we do everything as if we do not know that for everything that exceeds the necessary needs, we will have to give an account and answer, as having improperly used what has been given to us from the Lord. After all, we should not use what He has given us only for our pleasure, but also to alleviate the needs of our neighbors. So, how worthy of forgiveness can those be who show delicacy in their clothes, try to clothe themselves in silk fabrics, and what is especially bad, are still proud of it, whereas they should be ashamed, afraid and trembling, because they do not put on such clothes out of need and not for benefit, but for the sake of laziness and vanity, in order to be amazed at them in the marketplace. A person who has the same nature as you walks naked, not having even rough clothing to cover himself with; but nature itself does not attract you to compassion, nor conscience urges you to help your neighbor, nor the thought of that (last) terrible day, nor the fear of Gehenna, nor the greatness of the promises, nor the fact that our common Lord assimilates everything that we provide to our neighbors. But as if having a heart of stone and being alien to the same nature, such people, putting on expensive clothes, think that they are already becoming higher than human nature, and do not think about how great a responsibility they are exposing themselves by badly disposing of what is entrusted to them from the Lord, and more willingly allowing the prayers to destroy their clothes, rather than (wishing) to give any part of them to their fellow servants, and thus they are already preparing for themselves the cruelest fire Gehenna. Even if the rich shared everything they had with the poor, they would not escape punishment for what they do, luxuriously in clothes and feasts. What kind of punishment, in fact, are not worthy of those who try in every possible way, as often as possible, to clothe themselves in silk and shiny gold, or otherwise embellished clothes, and in them proudly go to the marketplace, and leave Christ in disdain, naked and without even the necessary food in abundance? I especially address these words to women. Among them we find the most passion for decoration and immoderation, for dressing in gold clothes, wearing gold on the head, neck and other parts of the body, and being vain about it. How many poor people, tell me, could be fed, and how many naked bodies could be covered with only what is hung on the ears (of women) without any need and without benefit, but only to the harm and damage of the soul? That is why the teacher of the universe, having said: “Having food and clothing,” also addresses the word to women and says: “(Wives) should adorn themselves, not with wickerwork, or gold, or beads, or costly garments” (1 Tim. 2:9). You see how he does not want them to be adorned with such clothes, clothed in gold and valuable stones, but to strive for the true adornment of the soul, to elevate its beauty with good deeds, and not to show it (while caring about decorating the body) in uncleanness, in dirt, in sackcloth, worn out by hunger, exhausted from the cold. Such care for the body and such decoration of it testify to the ugliness of the soul, the luxury of the body reveals the hunger of the soul, the wealth of its clothes exposes its nakedness. It is impossible, after all, for someone who cares about the soul and values ​​its goodness and beauty to take care of external decoration, just as it is impossible for someone who is preoccupied with appearance, the beauty of clothing, or gold jewelry to put proper effort into caring for the soul. In fact, can a soul ever rise to the knowledge of its needs or enter into contemplation about spiritual things, completely devoted to earthly things, crawling, so to speak, on the earth, never able to be lifted up by the thought of grief, but sunk down under its own weight of countless sins? And how many misfortunes are born from this is now impossible to describe in words; this should be left to the consciousness of those who are too busy cleaning up how much sorrow they receive from here every day. So, if any golden thing is damaged, great noise and confusion will surround the whole house; if a servant steals, whips, blows and bonds fall on everyone; whether some envious people, intending evil, accidentally deprive them of their property - again great and unbearable sadness; if misfortunes happen that plunge (the rich) into extreme poverty - life becomes harder for them than death; whether something else happens, everything causes great sorrow. And in general it is impossible to find a calm soul in those who do such things. Just as the waves of the sea never stop and cannot be counted, since they constantly follow one after another, so it is impossible to list all the worries that arise from this. Let us, I beg you, avoid excess in everything and not exceed the limits of your needs. True wealth and inexhaustible possessions consist in desiring only what is necessary and properly using what is superfluous. Such (a person) can never fear poverty, will not endure sorrows and experience worries; he will be safe from slander, free from intruders and, generally speaking, will live in an undisturbed world, enjoying peace and quiet; and what is most important and above all blessings, such (a person) will receive many of God’s mercies, as a faithful steward of the property of his Lord. “Blessed,” it is said, “is that servant whose Lord has come and will find him doing these things” (Luke 12:43), i.e. dividing the property among fellow servants, not locking it behind doors and locks, not leaving it as food for worms, but alleviating the needs of the poor, managing what was given from the Lord in the manner characteristic of a good and faithful steward. For such a good disposition, we will receive a great reward and will be worthy of the promised benefits, by the grace and love of our Lord Jesus Christ, with whom to the Father and the Holy Spirit be glory, power, honor, now and ever, and to the ages of ages. Amen. Zlat.: αὐτὴν according to sp. Dorothea and many others others, as well as the Heb. T.; in Lucian. sp. not readable. Those. animals that he required to enter into a covenant with Abraham. Zlat.: ἕτερα, which was added probably for clarity. – τὰ διχοτομηθέντα, according to sp. Dorotheus, instead of τὰ διχοτομήματα αὐτῶν - “pulling them out” in Lucian. and other sp. – φόβος μέγας καὶ σκοτεινὸς ; in Lucian. sp. instead, γνόφος σκοτεινὸς - “dark darkness.” Zlat.: κακώσουσι... ταπεινώσουσι without αὐτοὺ`ς – “I”, according to some. Greek sp.; in Lucian. sp. with the first verb αὐτοὺ`ς is read. Here, with ταπεινώσουσιν, αὐτοὺ`ς is added, from which we can conclude that the text of Chrysostom’s conversations does not always serve as an accurate rendering of the Greek language that the saint had. text of the Bible. Μετ᾿ εἰρήνης – “in the world”, read in most Greek. sp., including Lucianov., is absent from Chrysostom. You might be interested in: