Ambrose of Milan

(Verse 11.) But the meek shall possess the land, and shall delight in the abundance of peace. They rightfully possess the land in which God himself rests; as was revealed by the divine oracle through Isaiah, saying: Upon whom shall I rest, if not upon the humble and quiet, and those who tremble at my words (Isaiah 66:2)? Who are the meek, if not those whom no stimulus of discord agitates, no anger disturbs, no cruelty inflames with rage? And therefore, because they loved not wines, nor feasts, nor riches, but the peace of the Lord, being established in the body; for that pleasure of bodily delights, which they thought themselves to be defrauded of, that they might obtain eternal grace, they shall be delighted in the multitude of peace, which our Lord Jesus bestowed on the human race in His days; as the prophecy, which has not lied, comprehends, asserting: In His days shall justice spring up, and abundance of peace, until the moon be taken away (Psalm 71:7). Therefore, what is the peace by which the people of all the churches have multiplied, if not the peace about which the Lord said: My peace I leave with you, my peace I give to you (John 14:27)? He gave peace, who calmed the wars of the souls.

(Verse 14.) Moreover, he adds: Behold, they have unsheathed the sword, sinners have bent their bow, to cast down the needy and the destitute. What is the sword of the sinner, if not the opposite of the sword of the Holy Spirit? Scripture has taught me this sword; the Apostle taught it, saying that we have the breastplate of righteousness, and the shield of faith, and the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God (Ephesians 6:14 et seq.). Therefore, the word of God is the sword of the Holy Spirit. On the contrary, indeed, the sword of the most wicked spirit is the evil word. With this sword, the Apostle Peter struck Ananias and Sapphira with his words as if with a certain sword; with this sword, Paul took away the sight of Elymas who opposed his arguments and filled him with the darkness of blindness. Now consider to me, you sinning quarrelers, boasting in bitter insolence, and bringing forth reproaches of accusations; if you hear them, will you not say: Sinners have drawn their swords; when foul speech is brought forth from the mouth as if from a wanton sheath, which should have been restrained and hidden? Similarly as the sword is called the word of God, and the same is the speech of the sinner: so also the bow which sinners stretch, is their mind; and the arrow which they shoot, is a poisoned word. For as Christ is an arrow, who is the Word of God, of whom it is said: I have set thee as a chosen arrow (Isaiah 49:2), which is brought forth out of the quiver of God: so the arrows of the treacherous are, which being shot from a certain bow of wickedness, wound the unsuspecting innocent, unless their fiery darts are repelled by the shield of faith. And therefore, as a soldier, you must be anxious in battle; because the fight is not only against flesh and blood, but also against the spiritual wickedness that cannot be seen. May you have strong weapons from God, so that you can easily draw the arrows you want: so that the enemy cannot oppress you as a poor and unarmed person. Be strong in God, be rich in God, so that it can be said of you: The redemption of a man's soul, his riches (Prov. XIII, 8). With an abundance of the treasure of wisdom, be rich in word and good works, so that you may be fortified. Avoid the wealth of the sinner, lest they find a way to harm you. Be merciful, so that you may remain invulnerable or be able to heal yourself if you are wounded. There is also the poor person whom your adversaries want to wound, from that number of whom the Savior said: Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven (Matthew 5:3).

(Verse 15.) And therefore the spear of sinners will enter into their hearts, and their bow will be broken. Just as peace returns to the servants of God from those who do not receive the blessed peace, so too the wickedness of sinners, with which they try to harm the righteous, will turn back to their own destruction; so that they may be killed by their own weapons and wounds. For often the javelins are thrown back upon those who threw them. This also happened in a recent war, when the unbelievers and sacrilegious attacked someone who trusted in the Lord and tried to take away his kingdom, threatening the churches of the Lord with cruel persecutions; so that suddenly a wind arose, which stripped the shields from the hands of the unbelievers, and turned the weapons and missiles against the army of the sinner. The enemy was still missing, and now they could not withstand the battles of the winds, and they were struck by their own spears. And what is worse, those wounds were not of the body, but of the mind; for they were losing heart, as they realized they were fighting against God. So they went out as provocateurs, and from the quiver of their own hearts they brought forth poisoned arrows of treachery against the Christian people; but their impiety turned back upon their own heads. Finally, they themselves are undone by their own treachery, and the Lord has dispersed the traps prepared for the faithful; so that not only could they not harm the pious, but they were exposed by their own resources and turned their weapons against the enemy. How much better would it have been if they had not drawn their sword from its sheath, that is, if they had not uttered impious words at all? For if everyone must give an account for idle talk, how much more will they atone for words of sacrilege with severe punishments?

You have tested us with fire, says David (Ps. XVI, 3). Therefore, we will all be tested by fire. And Ezekiel says: Behold, the Lord Almighty is coming; and who will endure the day of his coming, or who will stand when he appears to us? For he will come like the fire of a refiner and like the lye of a launderer; and he will sit refining and purifying like gold and silver: and he will purify the sons of Levi and pour them out like gold and like silver, and they will offer sacrifice to the Lord in righteousness (Malachi III, 2 and 3). Therefore, the sons of Levi will be purified by fire, by the fire of Ezekiel, by the fire of Daniel. But although they will be tested by fire, they will still say: We have passed through fire and water (Ps. 65:12). Others will remain in the fire: the fire will rain on them, like the Hebrew boys who were thrown into the fiery furnace; but the avenging fire will consume the ministers of wickedness. Woe to me if my work should burn, and I suffer loss from this labor! And if the Lord will save His servants, we will be saved by faith, yet saved as if by fire; and even if we are not consumed, still we will be burned. However, how some remain in fire, others pass through, the divine Scripture teaches us in another place. Indeed, in the Red Sea the people of the Egyptians were submerged (Exod. XIV, 22 et seq.), but the people of the Hebrews passed through; Moses passed through, Pharaoh was precipitated: for graver sins had submerged him. In this manner sacrilegious individuals will be cast into the lake of burning fire, who have hurled proud insults at God. Let us therefore follow the pillar of fire placed here, which illuminates us while we are placed in this body, and shows us the way; so that in the future the cloud may cool the heat of the night for us: that we may be able to relieve the savage fires.

But let us see what the Scripture says: 'Let the Lord break the bow of the wicked. But He placed His own bow in the clouds, so that the floods would cease and peace would be restored.' Therefore, let us believe that the adversary and wicked one extends his bow in order to disturb peaceful hearts, stir up storms, and incite winds. Let us pray, then, that our Lord God dissolve the bow of wickedness; let Him be present to His poor and needy, who, out of fear of God, have led themselves to believe that wealth should not be desired, the property of the less fortunate should not be seized, and the widows should not be robbed of their inheritance left by their ancestors.

(Vers. 16.) It is better to be a little just, than to have many riches from the sins of the wicked. Therefore, riches are not condemned, but the riches of sinners; unless perhaps because a sinner said: All these things have been delivered to me, and I give them to whomever I wish (Luke 4:6). Furthermore, since riches inflame the torch of greed more, and each person desires greater things, they do not turn away from the paths of sin. Hence, the Savior said: Make friends for yourselves with the mammon of wickedness (Luke 16:9). For the census of wickedness is the one who is in the power of the devil, to whom he wants to give it. It can also be understood: It is better for the unjust to have little than for the wealthy sinners to have many riches; because there is one who is rich in words, like the philosophers of this world who discuss sacrilege, the movement of the stars, the star of Jupiter and Saturn, the generation of humans, the worship of idols, geometry, and dialectic. Therefore, philosophers are rich in speech, poor in faith, devoid of truth. And there are many simple priests of the Lord, poor in speech but exalted in abstinence and virtue. They speak deceit to many, while only a few affirm the faith; they lose their own priests daily, while this one gains the poor people for the Church, with a significant number of believers. Therefore, whoever hears these (priests) and sees the quality of their works, says: It is better to have little with righteousness, than great riches with many sins. Hence, Solomon derived that saying which he seemingly put forth as his own: From much talking, you will not escape sin (Proverbs 10:19). Therefore dialectic flows with an abundance of words, while piety preserves the fear of God. Thus, one should be sparing in words, rich in spirit, and more inclined to fear than to boast empty words. For fear is the discipline of wisdom: loquacity is the shipwreck of innocence and virtue, and an incentive to falling and fault.

(Verse 17.) For the arms, he says, of the sinners will be broken. So that their actions cannot bring any impediment to the righteous; so that the rod of the sinners is not left over the lot of the righteous. And Paul says: May God crush Satan under your feet (Rom. XVI, 20). For if his arm has been broken, he himself will be completely crushed, and his comments will be trampled upon, like the venom of a serpent.

But the Lord strengthens the righteous, with the arm of the adversary broken. And therefore the righteous says: And you have confirmed your hand upon me (Ps. 37:3). And Job says: The hand of the Lord has touched me (Job 19:21). So the Lord sent his hand upon his servant, and he broke the hand of the sinner that he had sent against him with power. Thus the devil was deceived by his own words, who said: Stretch forth your hand against him, and let us see if he will not bless you to your face (Job 2:5). For he did not dare to say curses, but he left this to be understood. God sent his hand, and Job was strengthened. He began to bless, who was believed to curse; for he heals the righteous, when the divine hand touches, it does not harm. He sent his hand, and every spot of leprosy fled; he touched the eyes of the blind, and the blindness was removed, and the light of the eyes shone forth. Therefore, always seek to be strengthened, for even you who stand, see lest you fall. We must stand in order to be strengthened by the Lord. The world is slippery, we swiftly slide. Therefore, let us pray that the Lord deems us worthy to establish and strengthen us.

(Verse 18, 19.) Do not think that the Lord does not know your way. If you are righteous, He knows. Believe what the Prophet says: The Lord knows the ways of the blameless; and their inheritance will be blameless. They will not be put to shame in times of trouble. Those who know the Lord are known by the Lord. He knows the righteous, He does not know the unjust; therefore He will say to the unjust: Depart from me, all you who practice iniquity: I do not know you (Matthew 7:23); that is, because you are unworthy of divine knowledge. I do not know you; because you yourselves desired not to know me. Your works do not know me, your deeds do not know me; even if you say that you know me, your sins convict you. Every sin is from evil: but whoever does not sin remains in me, this is written by John (1 John 3:6). What shall I say about the Lord, because he despises the wicked to know? Paul despises those who said: If anyone among you is a prophet or spiritual, let him recognize what I write to you: but whoever does not recognize, shall not be recognized (1 Corinthians 14:37-38). And elsewhere it is written: The Lord knows those who are his (2 Timothy 2:19). Let us therefore be of the Lord, so that the Lord may recognize us, and let every one who invokes the name of the Lord turn away from iniquity.

The Greek has: The Lord knows the days of the immaculates. For there are the days of Elijah, there are the days of Nebuchadnezzar; therefore the Gospel has: In the days of Elijah, when the heavens were closed (Luke IV, 25). It was a night for the faithless, but it was light for Elijah; the heavens were closed for the faithless, but they were open for Elijah; there was hunger for the faithless, but abundance for Elijah; for he could not hunger, to whom heavenly food was provided; nor did he hunger, who himself fed others. Therefore, for him it is a just day in darkness; because even light shines in darkness. And Joseph was in Egypt, and midday shone upon him; as it is said below: But to the sinner God said: why do you recount my justices (Ps. XLIX, 16)? Justice is light, because you have above: And he will bring forth your justice as the light (Ps. XXXVI, 6). Therefore, you have what may shine in you, if you follow justice. The day shines for you, the night shines for you; because to the faithful even the night will be illuminated like day. Therefore, the Lord knows the just, because he enlightens every man coming into this world (John 1:9), that is, the one who lives according to the image and likeness of God; the one who recognizes himself as a human being, in order to avoid the lust of horses, the madness of wild animals, the fear of rabbits, the deceit of foxes, the rapacity of wolves; the man who acts as if he has come into this world; who is not born of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, but of God. So you have come, do not stay, do not cling to earthly things. In order to know that the days are good, listen to what Abraham said: . . . he saw my day, and was glad (John 8:56) . Good is the day for those who know the good Son of God, and confess the Lord. And again he warns us to be careful, because there are evil days (Ephesians 5:16) . What are evil days? Those in which evil is certainly recognized, which comes from evil. Or perhaps the days of this age are evil; because the age is in the power of the evil one. But we also read after a hundred years, the day of evil: In the evil day the Lord will deliver him (Ps. 40:2), that is, on the day of judgment, evil indeed on account of the punishments of many. For it is necessary that the unjust be tormented, and the just suffer with them; because even the angels rejoice when one sinner is saved from death. Therefore, they suffer with him when he is punished; although elsewhere we have read: The just shall rejoice when he shall see the revenge (Ps. 57:11), which I reserve for its proper place; although frequently you may have heard why he rejoices; but let us not insert one occupation into another.


The Lord knows the days of the immaculate, for by the grace of His immaculate innocence and fullness, He has mercy, He does not have mercy on the erring. They do not have a day, for they flee from the light, of whom it is beautifully said: Their days pass like a shadow (Psalm 143:4). Therefore, knowledge of God is a matter of worthiness, not of vision. His eyes are light: those whom He looks upon, He illuminates; and therefore, His eyes are the days of the just.

Therefore, their inheritance will be eternal; because they sought eternal goods, not the fleeting benefits of inheritance. And they will not have anything to be ashamed of in the time of evil, that is, the celestial judgment: and in days of hunger they will be satisfied; because man does not live by bread alone, but by every word of God (Matthew 4:4). But who is this man? I know a man in Christ who fourteen years ago (whether in the body I do not know, or out of the body I do not know, God knows) was caught up to the third heaven (2 Corinthians 12:2). Therefore, that person who is in Christ, who does not know himself to be in the flesh, who does not walk in the flesh but in the spirit; that person who is caught up not only to heaven, but even to the third heaven, is caught up to paradise, and hears secret words that are not lawful for a man to utter; who does not boast in his own virtues, but in his weaknesses: he does not live on bread alone, but on every word of God. For the Word of God is life, because the Word became flesh. Whereas the Evangelist excellently said: That which was made in him, is life. (John 1:14).

The Alexandrians and Egyptians indeed read: All things were made through him, and without him, nothing was made that was made (John, 1); and with a distinction added, they subject: In him is life (John, 5). Let that distinction be preserved for the faithful: I am not afraid to read: What was made in him, is life; and the Arian has nothing to hold onto, because I do not consider his poisons, but recognize the custom of sacred reading. For He did not say: The Word was made before all beginning. He did not say: The Word was made; but if you desire to hear what He did say: The Word, He says, was with God. The Word was with God, which worked with Him, which ruled with Him. He did not say: The Word was made; but He said: God was the Word: and God is not made, but is the Maker and Creator. Open your ears, and hear: All things were made by Him, and without Him was made nothing. Do you learn to be the Son, in whom the fullness of divinity is? Open your ears a little more and listen to what he says: What has been made in him is life. In him, he says, it was made: the Word of God was not made. Or if this moves you to calumny, because he said: in him it was made; do you also calumniate God the Father, because the Son of God said: But whoever does the truth comes to the light, that their works may be manifested, because they are done in God (John 3:21)? But because David said, I will confess to you, O Lord, because you have heard me, and have become my salvation (Psalm 117:21); that is, you have turned to me for salvation, you have worked for my salvation. I could use other examples, but I do not want you to believe me; lest you think these are the arguments of cleverness, not the testimonies of truth.

He himself is the thundering son, he himself who reclined on Christ's breast, he himself to whom the Lord did not keep his secrets silent, to whom Peter hinted to inquire about the Lord, and he inquired, and the Lord revealed; let him himself explain what he thought about what he said: That which was made in him is life. Therefore, listen to the interpreter, because he already guarded against your calumnies, Ariane: That which was from the beginning; and what we have heard, and seen with our eyes; what we have looked upon, and our hands have handled of the Word of life, and life appeared (1 John 1:1). Therefore, the flesh that appeared in Christ, or Christ in the flesh, is our life in all things. His divinity is life; His eternity is life; His flesh is life; His passion is life. Hence Jeremiah also says: 'In His shadow we shall live' (Lamentations 4:20). The shadow of His wings, the shadow of the cross, is the shadow of His passion. His death is life; His wounds are life; His blood is life; His burial is life; His resurrection is life for all. Do you want to know that death is its own life? In death, he says, we are baptized with him... so that we may walk with him in the newness of life (Rom. VI, 3 and 4). And he himself said: Amen, amen I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the ground and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it brings forth much fruit (John XII, 4 and 5). He himself, the grain, was loosened from us and died, so that he might bring forth much fruit in us. Therefore, death is the fruit of life. Whatever is done in him, is life. Flesh is made in him, is life; infancy is made in him, is life; judgment is made in him, is life; death is made in him, is life; forgiveness of sins is made in him, is life; wound is made in him, is life; illusion is made in him, is life; division is made in him, is life; burial is made in him, is life; resurrection is made in him, is life. See how great in Him there were made things which are the conversion of our life, so that what perished might be restored. At last, a sale was made in Him, it is life: a redemption was made in Him, it is life. For death He was sold by Judas, bought by the Jews for death, so that we might be redeemed by His precious blood unto life. This is the life which was made, this is the life which appeared, this is the life which we heard, this is the life which was with the Father; because He Himself, who was in the beginning, after, was born of a Virgin, so that He might be life to those who are to die.


Let us explore this proposed place. What is a human in Christ? It is being made in Christ, in whom everything is made, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers, all things were created through him and for him, and he is before all things, and in him all things hold together (Colossians 1:16-17), that is, in his power. Therefore, a human in Christ is one who is made in his image and likeness: a human in Christ is one who is entirely in Christ. For just as God, through the unity and fullness of divinity, the Father is the whole God in the Son, and the Son in the Father; so through intention and the affection of piety (as if for example, not for comparison), the whole man is in Christ; for whoever clings to the Lord is one spirit. Therefore, the man in Christ is not the earthly one, not the one of sin; but the man of Christ. What then moves: That which was done in him is life; if also the especially inner man, was made in him, crucified in him, renewed in him, buried in him, and buried with him, raised up in him? What moves, as I have said, is that it is written: That which was done in him, is life; when a man says: In God we will do our virtue (Psalm 59:14). If you ask what life is, if it is moved by what was done in him, understand. Indeed, life is the Church. It was done in him, in his side, Eva was resurrected in him. Eva, however, is life, that is, what was done; because Eva, who had perished, was saved through the Church, that is, through the generation of her children, as it is written (1 Timothy 2:15); because the heritage sobriety of the previous disobedient woman has repaired the offence. And even Paul himself was caught up to life, who before was a persecutor unto death.

We have wandered too long, so that we may speak about that man who delivered not only bread, but also every word of God. Let us return to the psalm: Therefore the blameless shall not be put to shame on the day of judgment, and in the days of famine they shall be satisfied.

(Verse 20.) They are gone like smoke that is gone. The Greek 'ἐξέλιπον' means, they have failed. You see someone suddenly come to power and receive honors; you regard them as lofty. You see another succeed them; don't you say about them: Where is the one who was honored and exalted? They have failed. Therefore, the Greek adds more; because where someone is believed to be honored and exalted, there they are surpassed by their own downfall; so that you may understand that the passing of rivers has passed sooner than it has come; and while you wait for what is to come, the currents have already flowed by. On the contrary, the humble and meek, while being subjected and oppressed by the rich, were exalted by their humility and suddenly shone forth. Therefore, Paul took pleasure in weaknesses, not in virtues.

But let us consider, lest anyone think that he has boasted in revelations; and let us repeat them, so that he may defend himself as the teacher of humility. I know a man in Christ, fourteen years ago, whether in the body I do not know, or outside of the body I do not know, God knows, who was caught up to the third heaven (2 Cor. XII, 2). He says that it was revealed to him fourteen years ago, and yet he kept and suppressed the revelation for so long; he would not have said it unless he had judged it useful for us to hear; lest we be exalted by revelations. For if Paul did not boast in such great grace, neither should we boast. Did the young man himself boast, should the old man boast? Then he could not deny being caught up to the third heaven; and yet he testified that he did not know whether he was caught up in the body or out of the body. Therefore, he does not boast about knowledge; but about ignorance, and he proclaims God's grace towards him. What belongs to knowledge, he denies; what belongs to charity, he confesses: for knowledge puffs up, but charity builds up. And again, he said of such a person who was caught up: in what way he was caught up, whether in the body or outside the body, he himself was uncertain. See the scale of wisdom. He established himself as one in Christ, and the other as himself, who says: I do not know. What is foreign, he exalts. What is his own, he humbles. And he heard, he says, unutterable words (1 Corinthians 12:4). He did not say: I heard, but he did not deny that another heard. Therefore, he preferred to indicate himself as a modest witness rather than a prophet, and he refused to appear as the arbiter of heavenly secrets. For it is the testimony of truth, not to shrink from boasting in deserved exaltation. Therefore, it is said: 'For this I will boast; but for myself, I will not boast.' (Ibid., 5).

But what is it that he says he heard, a man, and that man in Christ, which is not lawful for a man to speak? How does this agree, that it was not lawful for a man to speak, which was lawful for a man to hear? If it is not lawful for the man who heard to speak, how was he trusted to hear what was not permitted to speak? What is this difference? If it was to another man who was external, how could a man know what it was not lawful for a man to hear? It seems that the grace of speaking did not fail that man who was in Christ, to whom it did not fail; but it failed in those who were listening, because they lacked the place, the time, and the merit. For he heard it in heaven; and therefore it was judged inappropriate for him to speak on earth what he had heard in heaven; for in this very earth is such a distinction, that what is sung in one region is not sung in another, as it is written: 'How shall we sing the Lord's song in a foreign land?' (Psalm 136:4) Finally, the Hebrews did not sing in the land of captivity, which they were accustomed to singing in their own country. This land of captivity is different from the land of liberty; the former is a land of sin, while the latter is a land of eternal peace. The former is earthly, while the latter is heavenly. Therefore, Paul now proclaims in heaven what he could not proclaim on earth; for the secrets of wisdom are to be spoken among the perfected.

However, what does the mention of this revelation accomplish, except to teach that in revelations there should be no boasting, but in weaknesses; for weakness is both the medicine of revelation and the exercise of virtue? On the other hand, revelation is the slippery slope of pride; for the apostle Paul himself, who was caught up to the third heaven, received a thorn in the flesh, lest he should be exalted by the greatness of the revelation. Therefore, weakness comes to the rescue, lest grace should be turned into danger. Therefore, weakness is more useful than grace. This same weakness is also the workshop of virtue; as the Lord testified to the Apostle himself, because strength is perfected in weaknesses (II Cor. XII, 9). Finally, after the revelation, he asked for the remedy of health and did not obtain it; but in weakness, he did not seek a remedy, but completed his course and found the crown.

(Verse 21.) The sinner borrows and does not repay; but the righteous shows mercy and gives. This also applies to the person of Paul, because the righteous shows mercy and gives. See how he divides the Lord's words, see how he lends the Lord's silver. He received one mina and returned two; he received two and returned four; he received five and returned ten. He did not tie up in a handkerchief what he had received, but he spent it on moneylenders; and what he had spent, he received back with interest. And so he freed the one receiving from the greatest sin, lest the money of the Lord would perish with him; and he redeemed himself to be appointed over ten cities. Look in the letters for which are the ten cities that he mentions; although the apostles are not bound by a prescribed number, to whom it was said: Go throughout the whole world and preach the Gospel to every creature (Mark 16:15). Therefore, he distributed the money of the Lord from Jerusalem through the East, Illyricum, and Italy. And lest anyone think that he was lending his own money, he testified that it was the Lord's money, saying: But to those who are joined in marriage, I give this command (not I, but the Lord): A wife must not separate from her husband (1 Corinthians 7:10). And elsewhere: Do you seek proof that Christ is speaking in me? (2 Corinthians 13:3). Finally, the king himself said this, in which he represents the Lord: You should have entrusted my money to the bankers. He said, 'my money', not yours. Therefore, he shows mercy and gives. How he gives, you may hear him saying: I teach through all the churches. But the sinner borrows and does not repay (I Cor. VII, 17). See the rich man lending, and not returning: the poor man receiving, and immediately rewarding, so that he may not be in another's debt for long. These are moral teachings.

Now behold the mystic poor, that is, the simple and God-fearing one, who hears the word of chastity and keeps it; who hears of mercy and practices it; who hears of meekness and does not become angry. But that rich one, arrogant and proud, hears indeed, but rejects the words of God; who hears of the condemnation of lust and indulges in it even more. In the end, the Church fulfills what it has received, but the Synagogue does not fulfill it. Know the Church to be freed: (Jesus) says, 'They were yours, and you gave them to me, and they have kept your word' (John 17:6). And elsewhere: 'For the Father himself loves you, because you have loved me' (John 16:27). Therefore, the Church returned the money of charity that it received from the Lord, but the Synagogue did not return it. Therefore, it is said of the Jews: 'If I had not come and spoken to them, they would not have sin; but now they have no excuse for their sin' (John 15:24); because they have certainly heard and not believed. Therefore, it is proven that sinners have borrowed and not paid back. Thus, the sinner is always in need, while the righteous person abounds and gives, whose conscience is rich. Therefore, the Jews became poor in their wealth: The wealthy became poor and hungry (Psalm 33:11); However, the Christians have not lacked in the wealth of their simplicity.

(Verse 22.) Therefore, the righteous is good; and for this reason, Scripture adds: For those who bless him shall possess the land; but those who curse him shall be destroyed. How does the righteous possess the land, or what land, when Scripture says: Will you alone dwell on the earth? (Isaiah 5:8) And elsewhere: Woe to those who dwell on the earth (Revelation 8:13), which is a word of rebuke and curse. Therefore, whose blessed possession is the land? Not of that which is hidden in darkness and filled with bitterness: but of that which flows with honey and milk, that is, has the grace of sweetness, and the radiance of eternal light. Receive the sweetness of good honey; indeed, above honey: Pain and groaning and sadness will flee away (Isaiah 35:10); for the sweetness of grace will exclude the bitterness of human frailty. And elsewhere: And he will wipe away every tear from their eyes; and death shall be no more, nor mourning (Revelation 21:4). They will also receive the brightness of milk. And they will not need a lamp, nor the light of the sun; for the Lord himself will illuminate them, and they will reign forever and ever. Amen (Rev. XXIV, 5).

There is also the mystical just one, who shows mercy and grants, who has given us all the words that He received from the Father, and has forgiven us the debt of our sins, and has paid for our debts with His own blood; so that we would not be in debt to another, but that the good creditor would have us in His own debt. And there is also that sinner who has gathered what he did not produce, and has borrowed what he did not possess, and does not want to give back what he received. Listen, for the devil has borrowed: 'To you,' he says, 'I will give all this power and their glory (because they have been given to me, and I give them to whom I want) if you will fall down and worship me' (Luke 4:6). Most wicked one, you have accepted for temptation, not for death; that is, you have accepted for the testing of God's servants, not for their annihilation; you have accepted for the worship of God, not for his denial; you have accepted secular things, why do you take away things that are eternal? you have accepted things of this world, why do you want to take away things that are of Christ? Give those things to whom you want, we do not envy. Why are the things we desire envied by you? You want to be worshipped, who are more wicked than all, and yet unworthy of service yourself.

(Verse 23.) The steps of a man are established by the Lord. The Greek word διαβήματα means 'steps' or 'transitions'. And therefore it is said to you: If you pass through water, rivers will not stop you (Isaiah 43:2). Therefore, cross over, do not hesitate; like a good traveler, when he comes to a sign on the road, he does not stop, but passes through; and you are on a journey, as long as you are in this course. If Paul had stopped, he would not have completed his race. See that he does not say: And you who stand, be careful not to fall (1 Corinthians 10:12). For surely the one who passes by cannot fear to fall. I saw, he said, the wicked exalted and lifted up above the cedars of Lebanon; and I passed by, and behold, he was no more (below verse 35). Therefore, seeing the wicked exalted, who did not stand, he did not stumble: if he had stood and marveled at him, and had followed him, he would have stumbled and fallen like a wicked person. Thus, when Moses saw the bush burning but not consumed, he said: I will go and see this great sight as I pass by (Exodus III, 3). He who passes from this world sees a great sight: he who breaks the chains of this bond by which we are bound to this body sees a great sight. Moses, as it is read in Exodus, sees many miracles: not so great does another see who is not in Exodus. The same Moses passed over: the people of the fathers also passed over, for they came out of the land of captivity. Therefore, their steps were directed by the Lord, to whom by night a pillar of fire shone, and by day a cloud; so that neither the heat of the day afflicted the travelers, nor did the darkness of the night bring hindrance to those journeying.

And you deserve by your deeds and prayers that your steps may be directed by the Lord, and that your feet may not be moved; for it is written: As for me, my feet were almost moved; my steps had well nigh slipped (Psalm 73:2). It is also necessary to be careful not to forsake the straight path, and not to be deceived by the byways of crooked ways; therefore it is said: Prepare the way of the Lord, make straight his paths (Isaiah 40:3). Let us therefore prepare the way for the Lord our God in our minds; let us make straight the paths of our souls, so that we may not stumble; let not our steps be poured out like the steps of Lot's wife, who looked behind her and could not keep her steps, but they were poured out, when suddenly she was turned into salt; let them not be poured out like the Egyptians, whose steps were swallowed up by the waves of the sea. Those Hebrews who were with Moses, because they sinned in the desert, fell the footprints, lest they enter the land of resurrection.

Is it not also nicely said about these things, because their efforts have been wasted, the hopes of which have been dashed, their wishes have been abandoned. Consider, for example, someone who for several years has had a desire for righteousness, a commitment to chastity, an attentiveness to a more disciplined life, a devoted intention to servitude, and a diligent observance of duty; suddenly, however, they have changed, have departed from the monastery, have bid farewell to fasts, have renounced abstinence, have indulged in pleasures, and have pursued luxury. They recently left the monasteries and are now masters of luxury, spreaders of incontinence, inciters of impudence, detractors of modesty. Don't you nicely say about them: Their steps have been poured out, those whom it repented to have directed well? Therefore, they perform repentance of a new kind for virtues, and they do not act for sins. But they have gone out from us, says John, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they would have remained with us (I John II, 19). Therefore, they have condemned their own way, to whom it is fitting to say: O you who have forsaken the straight paths, by going into the ways of darkness; and you who rejoice in evil, and delight in wickedness, whose paths are crooked, and whose course is winding, like their slippery and winding master; why have you begun to hate the straight way, and forsaken the just counsel? (Prov. II, 13 et seq.) Has not the Lord directed you: but the one whom the Lord directs, will desire his way, as it is written, and will delight in his paths.


Nevertheless, both can be understood: in this way there is a middle ground, namely that the person who is guided by the Lord will desire the Lord's way; because with Him as the guide, all labor is lightened, all obstacles are removed, incentives are provided: and the Lord Himself does not reject, but willingly accepts the path of the man whom He Himself has directed to virtue. Indeed, the steps of the man are beautifully said to be directed by the Lord; because it is not of one who is unwilling or running, but of one who is merciful, to keep the path without stumbling. For the one who plants and waters is nothing, but God who gives the increase. To Him alone belongs the glory of virtues.

Finally, even the righteous person sometimes falls; but if they are truly righteous, when they fall, they will not be disturbed. Whatever pertains to condition falls; what pertains to righteousness rises again: because God does not forsake the righteous, but strengthens their hand. Why did he say hand and not foot? Unless perhaps because someone who falls does not slip more with their foot, but rather a weak person is often deceived on a slippery surface or stumbles upon a rock; but understand here the fall of the righteous person, that is, of the stronger one. Finally, concerning the people who struggle, if they bend a knee or stumble with a foot, they are considered defeated; but an athlete who has skill in wrestling, and wrestles for a crown, even willingly plants a knee in order to win; and if they stumble, they are not excluded; and if someone superior to them presses upon them, while still supporting themselves with their hands, they have the right to fight; and their prize is not taken away, unless they are thrown on their belly or stretched out by a bond of the arms. Hence frequent contests arise; because there are many types of falls that are both numerous and unknown to most. For their conditions are properly called ruins, for they are called πτώματα in Greek. Therefore, when it is squeezed and pressed, it often turns over and becomes above what it was below, and while the higher one rises, it knocks down the higher one: which the Scripture seems to signify when it says: You have turned all his bed in his sickness (Psalm 40:4). Therefore, it is said of him: When a good athlete falls, he will not be disturbed; for many want to be held back, so that they may conquer earlier, who presume about art. But even if someone, as I will use the very word, has been assigned both the first and second, he is not excluded; although it is sometimes possible for him to repair the struggle, and it often happens that he who has overcome in the second contest yields. Therefore, even if a just person has stumbled and fallen into an offense, let him not abandon the pursuit of devotion and faith, let him hold onto sobriety, let him practice repentance, let him often repair himself. Therefore, Peter asks: 'If my brother sins against me, how many times shall I forgive him? Up to seven times?' (Matthew 18:21-22). And the Lord replied: Not just seven times, but seventy-seven times. But so that you may know that we are athletes and are propelled, and others rush forward, and many are thrown down, listen to the one who says: The Lord upholds all who fall, and lifts up all who are cast down (Psalm 145:14). Therefore, David himself, or the one who spoke in the Prophet, says about himself: I was pushed hard, so that I was falling; but the Lord helped me (Psalm 118:13); for Jesus did not fall, but was pushed. For when he Himself raised the dead, how could He Himself be hindered? And indeed, when the just man falls, Scripture testifies that he can rise again, saying: Does not the one who falls, add that he may rise again; or the one who turns away, will he not return? Woe to those who turn away with shameless turning, says the Lord (Jeremiah VIII, 4 and 5).

Indeed, may the champion of Christ be inescapable and unbeatable, and glorious in every age, in every kind of virtue, as he himself says: But in all things we overwhelmingly conquer through him who loved us (Rom. VIII, 37). What does 'in all things' mean? There are athletes who are called boys, youths, men; that is, παῖδες, ἐφήβοι, πύκται. Scripture also recognizes these ages in wrestlers, as David says: Do not turn your face away from your servant (Psal. LXVIII, 18); and I was young, and now I am old (Later in verse 25). And John also says: I write to you, children; because you have known the Father: I write to you, young men; because you have overcome the evil one: I write to you, fathers; because you have known him who is from the beginning. (1 John 2:12 et seq.) And writing to the fathers, he designates those who are mature in the process of faith and devotion. Therefore, these are virtues, not ages of weakness; for even a child is not without virtue, who has known the Father God of virtues. From that boy, these are the boys who, before knowing how to call their father or mother, received the virtue of Damascus and the spoils of Samaria. He himself is the boy who was born to us, the son who was given to us, whose authority is upon his shoulders. He taught us that childhood is a virtue, saying: Allow the children and do not hinder them from coming to me (Luke XVIII, 16). And elsewhere: Truly, truly, I say to you, unless you turn and become like this boy, you will not enter the kingdom of heaven (Matthew XVIII, 3). Moreover, it is often the case that boys surpass men in physical strength. And especially if we consider the age of boyhood, a boy cannot either know all the uses or withstand the force of resistance. Nevertheless, we know that frequently boys, whom they were not able to carry, they have conquered. Such is the strength of the soul that it excludes the weakness of age.

However, as the boys are, so are the adolescents, that is, spiritual. The Scripture knows the young man Paul, now near to conversion (Acts VII, 57); it also knows Eutychus, a young man who, while listening attentively to Paul's speeches, fell asleep, fell from the third floor, and rose again (Acts XX, 9); it also knows John, the young man who reclined on Christ's chest (John XIII, 23), who was so brave that he did not fear persecution and overcame evil. Here is the boy who left his earthly father (Matthew 4:20), following the Father whom he knew to be eternal; as a young man, clothed in a linen garment, he followed the Lord during his Passion, having left behind everything that was his own (Mark 14:51); as he grew older, he came to know that the Word of God was always and forever in the beginning (John 1:1-2), and he proved it by remaining in Him.

Scripture also teaches us about spiritual men, as the prophet Agabus says: 'This man, whose belt this is, the Jews will bind in Jerusalem' (Acts 21:11). And Festus says: 'There is a certain man left by Felix in custody' (Acts 25:14). Before his passion, Paul is said to be a young man, but in his passion he is referred to as a man who has finished the race and is now close to the crown.

We have known the ages striving for faith and devotion, let us also understand the various types of individual contests. Let this also be taught to us by the content of Scripture.In this secular struggle, there are some who engage in a simple and legitimate kind of wrestling and contend only with the restraints of the body, not knowing how to strike, and are called wrestlers; others who mix the throwing of punches with the entanglement of limbs, with every right to strike themselves: these are called pammacharians, because they have power over every dispute and fight against them; others who contend against each other with gloves and whose heads are torn apart, are tormented: these are called boxers.


Paul the Apostle underwent all these struggles, as he himself demonstrates. Therefore, he says: Because our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against rulers and authorities, and (to use a summary) against spiritual wickedness (Ephesians VI, 12). In most Latin texts, the word used is 'colluctatio', while in all Greek texts it is written as 'πάλη', which in Greek means 'wrestling' and in Latin means 'struggle'. And truly it is a struggle; because flesh and blood, and spiritual wickedness, are overcome through patient endurance and bodily self-control, and through the moderation of the mind. Anger, rage, slaughter, weapons are the devils. Also, elsewhere it signifies that when he says: In more than enough afflictions, frequently in deaths (2 Corinthians 11:23). But in Jerusalem he was struck with fists; where when the soldiers intervened, the Jews sometimes stopped striking Paul, the high priest Ananias ordered those standing by to strike him on the mouth, to which the Apostle replied: God will begin to strike you, you whitewashed wall. And do you, sitting in judgment, judge me according to the law, and order me to be struck outside the law? Surely he knew how to answer, who struck the high priest with a heavier blow; for he himself was physically struck: he reported that he was struck in the soul by Christ. Also, writing in his first letter to the Corinthians, he says: Therefore I so run, not as uncertainly: so I fight, not as one beating the air. What he said in Latin, 'I fight,' he says in Greek, πυκτεύω. And truly, like a good athlete, he beat not the air but the aerial powers and the leaders of the Jews, because they did not have Jesus the Lord as their leader. In every struggle, therefore, the Apostle is proven, who also received the crown of completing the race. Hence, he himself says: I can do all things in him who strengthens me (Philippians 4:13).

And Christ also has those who, in their youth, conquer those who are older; just as Daniel, a young boy filled with spirit, rebuked the elders of the Jews and threw them down to death. And he also has others who, before they were born, struggled in their mother's womb. Finally, Jacob supplanted his brother Esau and overcame evil; and thus he came out of the womb of his mother, showing the emblem of victory and turning the foot of the defeated elder brother. Jeremiah was sanctified and approved in the womb of his mother. John the Baptist knew that the Prince of human struggle and the rewarder of those who wrestled had not yet come, and leaping forth from the womb of his mother, he deserved the prize of devout confession. He was rightly designated for the crown even then, who before all others had offered his name to the struggle of faith in Christ and had proclaimed the virtue of his name. A good proclaimer, who stirred others to the contest. And truly a good proclaimer; who shouted with such a loud voice that the secrets of heaven echoed in response to his sound. What more can be said? He moved the earth, filled the heavens. And for this reason, He received the name of Voice, because the Sacred Word of God preceded, just as He Himself taught us, saying: I am the voice of one crying in the desert (John 1:23). Isaiah the prophet said this about Himself: He strengthened this proclamation (Isaiah 40:3). We have heard what the herald said: Prepare the way of the Lord, make His paths straight (John 1:23). This is a unique and singular voice, so resounding that it is heard by all; so sweet that it soothes the hearts of all. Therefore, the Lord strengthened these athletes to win; for He never abandons His own and leaves them behind.

If you take it at face value, the meaning is obvious: in his own lifetime, David never saw the just forsaken. But a lifespan is brief, and the statement is moreover incredible. We have seen plenty of just people in this world who have been forsaken by people as soon as those just ones are persecuted by people in power. No one dares to go near them so long as they are subject to fear and injury. Remember what Job said: “My brothers have departed far from me, they recognize strangers more than they recognize me; my friends have become merciless and those who knew me once have forgotten even my name.” As for David, not only was he deserted, but also he was even attacked by his friends and those closest to him by family ties: “My friends,” he says, “and my neighbors have advanced against me.” How, I ask, can David state that which is the exact opposite of this? We can only understand it in this sense: the just person, even if forsaken by the world, is not abandoned by the Lord. Even Job on his dunghill was not deserted by the Lord. In the council of the angels, the Lord had praised Job with his own voice; and he allowed him to be tempted only so that he might win the crown. He allowed Job’s body to undergo severe testing, but he spared his life.

(Verse 25.) And therefore the Prophet added: I was young, and I grew old: so the Latins have it; but some according to the Greeks have it: I was young, and indeed I grew old, and I have not seen the righteous forsaken, nor his seed seeking bread. Clearly, for those who want to understand, the meaning is evident, that during his lifetime David did not see the righteous forsaken. But this is both a short time and incredible; for we see many righteous people in the world being abandoned by others, when they are persecuted by some of the powerful; and no one dares to approach them, when they see them in fear or in injury. Where Job says: My brothers have gone far from me; they have ignored me more than strangers. My friends have become merciless; those who knew me have forgotten my name (Job 19:13). David also not only laments being abandoned, but also being attacked by his friends and neighbors: My friends and neighbors draw near against me, he says (Psalm 38:12). Therefore, if the righteous are found forsaken in this world, how can David say the opposite? Unless you understand that even though the righteous may be abandoned in the world, they are not abandoned by the Lord. For Job, even when he was in the dirt (Job 2:3), was not abandoned by the Lord, whom the Lord himself praised with his own voice in the council of angels, whom he allowed to be tested, so that he might be crowned; but the temptation was given to his body, and denied to his soul. Nor was David, to whom the kingdom was given to rule over the chosen people, abandoned: whom, driven away from the boundaries of his kingdom by murderous battles, he restored to the rights of victory. Likewise, Jacob, Elijah and Elisha, and John the Baptist, and others who wandered around in goat skins in deserts, and mountains, and caves, and holes in the earth, even though they seem to have endured many jeers and bitter tortures; nevertheless, they were not abandoned. Indeed, when Jacob fled with his brother and wandered alone through the desert, he fell asleep and upon waking saw a multitude of heavenly hosts. It is said: 'This place is called the camp of angels' (Genesis 32:2). It was not enough to call it a camp; but camps that would be fitting for such a multitude. Therefore, you see that he thought he was alone, and the camps of the heavenly army followed him; just as in the time of our fathers and Moses, so that they would not thirst in the desert, a rock (as it is written) followed them. For when we read in Exodus (Exod. XVII, 6) that when the people were thirsty, Moses struck the rock with his staff, and water flowed out, and the people of God drank; again we read in Leviticus, or in Numbers, that Moses again touched the rock with his staff (Num. XX, 11), and water gushed out for the fathers to drink; the Apostle has interpreted this brilliantly, saying: They drank from the rock that followed them; and the rock was Christ (I Cor. X, 4). Therefore, the Lord did not abandon those who were complaining, murmuring, and transgressing, but He followed them. What should I say about Elijah and Elisha, to whom horses and fiery chariots came from heaven as they were journeying through the desert? How was Elijah abandoned, who was invited by Christ (Matt. 17:3)? How was he abandoned on earth, but taken up to heaven? How was he needy, naked, and empty, but left the disciple with a double portion of the spirit; so that with one melody he gifted a river, made the Jordan flow backwards, fed the army of kings in the desert, and ministered to those who were thirsty? According to his will, cups flowed from the sky, and the dead rose again on earth. How was Elisha abandoned, who, surrounded by the Syrian army, was about to be taken captive to the king? But when his servant Gehazi said, 'Oh, my master, what shall we do?' Elisha replied, 'Don't be afraid, for there are more with us than with them.' And he said, 'Lord, open his eyes so that he may see.' And his eyes were opened, and he saw the mountain, full of countless horses and chariots of fire, surrounding them (2 Kings 6:16-17). Paul also, who said that he was tossed about by dangers at sea and dangers in the wilderness (2 Cor. XI, 26), nevertheless he himself testified, saying: If God is for us, who can be against us (Rom. VIII, 31)? Therefore, if he was abandoned and forsaken by men, he abounds and flourishes before God. For even Elijah was forsaken, so that he said: Lord, take my life (3 Kings XIX, 4); and yet he thrived before God, so that he was formidable in strength to those very kings.


How could a young man like David come to understand this? For young men are more concerned with temporal things than with eternal things, because youth tends towards vice. But there are some who are old in their youth, and others who are young in their old age. Indeed, there are men whose minds are esteemed for the wisdom of the elderly, in whom old age is an untainted life, in whom gray wisdom flourishes: such was Jeremiah, who, when he mentioned his youthful age and excused himself for appearing unfit for the duty of preaching, the Lord said to him: Do not say: 'I am young'; for you shall go to all to whom I shall send you, and you shall speak (Jerem. 1, 7). So he did not consider him a young man whom he judged suitable for the grace of prophecy. Such was the young man David, who was renewed and blossomed again, as he himself said (Ps. 102:5), like the youth of an eagle. Therefore, it must be understood in this way: I was young; but sanctified, but placed as a prophet among the nations, so that I could already know the mysteries of the heavenly kingdom and consider the true rewards of justice: but I have not seen the righteous forsaken. Moreover, strengthened by experience and duty, I acquired the fruits of wisdom. The same grace seemed to stay with me in regards to justice.

We have explained, as best we can, how he said: I was young; but how he added: Indeed, I have grown old, let us consider. Youth is good, but old age is better; for whoever perseveres until the end, he will be saved. Hence, it was not said lightly of the patriarch Abraham (Gen. XXV, 8) that he was nourished in good old age. And the old John began to write the Gospel, or the Epistles, who, when he refused to write as an apostle, wrote as an elder (Epist. II and III); nor is he esteemed any less, to whom a certain swan-like grace of old age is abundant. Writing to Philemon, he says: Since you are such a person as Paul, an old man, and now also a prisoner of Christ Jesus, I beseech you for my son whom I have begotten in my chains, Onesimus (Philem. 9-10). Therefore, willing to do the utmost for him, he compared him to the old man Paul, not to the young man; and there he gloried in being an old man, where he is now held in chains. And see the difference; the young man is spoken of in the sufferings of another, the old man in his own (Acts VII, 57). There, like a young man, he kept the Jewish garments; here, as an old man, he took off the garments of his body. In the end, Peter is said to be an old man there, where the struggle of his passion is: 'When you were younger,' he said, 'you used to dress yourself and go wherever you wanted; but when you grow old, you will stretch out your hands, and someone else will dress you and lead you where you do not want to go.' He said this, indicating by what kind of death he would glorify God (John 21:18). Before the contest, a young man is called a young man, but in the contest an old man, who has fulfilled every contest. Therefore, David, that warrior in his youth, says this, peaceful in his old age: 'I was young, but I do not want you to still consider me young. For indeed, I have grown old and have not seen the righteous forsaken, nor his seed seeking bread.'

What is the seed of the just? The promises were made to Abraham and his seed; not to seeds, as in many; but as in one: And to thy seed, which is Christ (Galatians III, 16). Hear the seed of the just. My little children, of whom I am in labor again, until Christ be formed in you (Galatians IV, 19). And now, if any one coming from the Gentiles hears our word and the Lord should vouchsafe to help him, so that Christ be formed in his soul, where the birth of faith may be carried on, Christ shall be his seed. There, in both. Therefore Abraham was both the father of a generation according to the flesh, and he who first poured forth the word of the Lord in the hearts of the just. And therefore this seed of Abraham does not require these loaves which provide bodily nourishment, because it has the bread of justice, which descends from heaven (John 8:39). For just as those who do not do the works of Abraham are denied to be his children, so are they the seed of Abraham and are received among his children who perform his work. Indeed, the seed of Abraham was Elijah, to whom an angel provided nourishment, and he walked in the power of that food for forty days. He did not require the nourishment of this body, but the seed of Abraham, to whom bread was brought down from heaven. Finally, ravens provided him with daily feasts. Thus, he was in need of everything, having nothing of his own, and he was sent to give food to others. Indeed, the seed of Daniel, who, placed among lions, had bronze dishes filled with the meals of harvesters carried to him by the prophet Habakkuk. Therefore, this is the bread of angels, which humans have eaten; for it is written: 'Man ate the bread of angels' (Psalm 78:25). This is the bread about which David said: 'The Lord feeds me, and I lack nothing; he has placed me in a green pasture. He has led me to the water of refreshment' (Psalm 22:2). Good David taught me the bread of angels, and he himself taught me the water of refreshment. This spiritual refreshment is rest for the internal mind. Good water, which washes away sin, cleanses the inner being. Let us hear what this water is. If anyone is thirsty, let them come to me, and let them drink. Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture says, rivers of living water will flow from within them. But he was speaking about the Spirit, whom those who were going to believe in him were about to receive. Therefore, the righteous person does not need this bread, nor water for refreshment, for the Holy Spirit is their rest and refreshment.

(Verse 26.) But how can he be in need who has mercy and lends all day? What is it that the righteous person lends? Not bronze, not iron, not lead, but silver purified by fire. He brings this to the table of the Lord, and distributes it to those who seek it: to one person, to two, to five minas daily he distributes, and it never runs out. But we have heard that lending at interest is condemned in the Law, with Moses saying: You shall not lend at interest (Deuteronomy 23:19). There is a twofold division: one of money, the other of grace. Divide both; for it is written: If you offer rightly, but do not divide rightly, you have sinned: be still (Genesis IV, 7). And you divide rightly, so as not to sin. Let Moses himself teach you to divide, who admonished to divide rightly; that you may follow what Abel did, who divided rightly: and flee from what Cain the murderer did, who did not know how to divide rightly. Therefore the Holy Spirit divides divisions, who, dividing all things, gives to each according to his will: He as He wills, you as you are able, as you are capable with your talent. Divide when the Law speaks about money, and when it speaks about grace. For it is said to you: You shall lend to nations, whose Lord demands interest: but you shall not borrow (Deuteronomy XV, 6). There is both money of interest, and grace, whose Lord demands interest; money of interest has material wealth, grace bestows faith. Lend therefore faith to nations, so that grace may abound to you: but you, do not borrow as if needy, but as if rich and wealthy, lend with interest. Peter lent, Paul lent, John the Evangelist lent, both lent, and they did not need; that is, they lent Christ's money, they did not lend money for interest. So lend, and do not cease to lend. Do you hear what Scripture says: All day long he is gracious and lends. The righteous man lends during the day, the greedy person at night; for grace is of the light, but greed is of the darkness. And therefore, the seed of the lender's faith will be in blessing, surely having the reward of blessings.