ΕΠΙΣΤΟΛΗ ΙΖʹ

Reassurance and Counsel for Bodily Health

Chrysostom reassures Olympias about his own hardships and urges her to care for her body, using medicine and physicians, while addressing the link between despondency and illness.

As for the severity of the winter, the weakness of our stomach, and the Isaurian raids—don't worry about us at all, and don't wear yourself out with anxiety. For the winter has been just what you'd expect in Armenia—there's no need to say more—but it doesn't do us any serious harm. For seeing this coming, we take many precautions to ward off the harm that comes from it: we keep a fire burning constantly, enclose the room where we stay on all sides, use plenty of coverings, and remain indoors all the time.¹ That is burdensome for us, to be sure, but it's bearable because of the benefit it brings. For as long as we stay indoors, we aren't hard pressed by the frost; but if we're forced to go out even a little and face the outdoor air, we take no small harm. So I urge your Honor, and ask it as a very great favor, to take great care to set right the weakness of your body.² For despondency also produces illness; and when the body is already worn down and weakened, and is left in great neglect, and has neither the benefit of physicians, nor a mild climate, nor an abundance of what it needs—consider that this adds no small measure to the trouble.³ So I urge your Honor to use various skilled physicians and medicines that can set such things right. Since we ourselves, only a few days ago, when our stomach was prone to vomiting because of the state of the air, used both other care and the medicine sent by my lady, the most proper Syncletium, and after needing to apply it for no more than three days, set its weakness right. So I urge you also to use this medicine and to arrange for some of it to be sent to us again. For when we again felt some upset, we used it again and put everything right. For it calms inflammations deep within, draws off moisture, is moderately warm, imparts no ordinary vigor, and rouses appetite for food—and in a few days it gave us proof of all these things.⁴ So see to it that my lord, the most honorable Count Theophilus, is asked to prepare some of it for us again and send it.⁵ And don't let our wintering here grieve you. For we are much more comfortable and healthier now than last year—so that if you yourself were taking the proper care, you would be far better off. But if you say that your illnesses have sprung from despondency, how is it you still seek letters from us, having gained nothing from them toward good cheer, but so steeped in the tyranny of despondency that you even long now to depart from this life? Don't you know how great a reward lies ready even for sickness? Haven't I often spoken with you on this subject both in person and through letters? But since perhaps either the press of affairs, or the very nature of the illness, and the successive troubles won't let you keep the memory of what was said always ringing in your ears, listen again as we apply the same remedies to the sores of your despondency: "For to write the same things," he says, "is not irksome to me, and for you it is safe."⁶⁷

The Crown of Endurance in Sickness

Chrysostom extols endurance in bodily sickness as the highest form of virtue, using the examples of Job, Paul, Timothy, and Lazarus to show how illness purifies sin and increases heavenly reward.

So what am I saying and writing, then? Nothing, Olympias, equals endurance in suffering when it comes to the measure of approval. For this above all is the queen of goods and the crown of crowns; and just as this endurance surpasses other achievements, so within it this particular form is more brilliant than the rest.⁸ Perhaps what I've said is unclear; so I'll make it clearer. What, then, do I mean? Not being robbed of money, even if someone is stripped of everything he owns; not falling from honor; not being driven from one's country and carried off into exile; not being worn down by toil and sweat; not living in a prison and wearing chains; not insults and abuse and mockery—and don't think even this is a small form of fortitude: bearing such things nobly. And Job shows it—that man so great and of such stature—who was not lightly shaken by this trial. But neither this, nor the loss of children, even if all of them are snatched away at once, nor enemies continually trampling him underfoot, nor any other such thing, nor even the very peak of what people take to be painful—death itself, so fearful and dreadful—is as heavy as sickness of the body.⁹ And the greatest athlete of endurance shows this too: when he fell into bodily disease, he thought death would be a release from the evils gripping him; and when he was suffering all the other things, he barely even felt them, even though he was taking blow after blow, and the fatal stroke last of all. For this too was no small thing, but was part of the cruellest malice of the one warring against him: not to deal the fatal blow against the children while he was still young and just entering the contests, but when he was already worn down by the dense succession of arrows—and to deal that blow so cruelly that he destroyed them all at once, from both sexes, in an untimely age and by a violent death, and made the very manner of their death an improvised tomb for them.¹⁰ For he did not see them lying on a bed, nor kiss their hands, nor hear their last words, nor touch their feet and knees, nor close their mouths, nor shut the eyes of those about to die—things that are no small consolation to fathers parting from their children; nor did he escort some to the tomb and, returning, find the others a comfort for those who had gone. No: at the time of a feast—a feast overflowing not with drunkenness but with love—at a table of brotherly affection, he heard that they had all been buried under the ruins as they lay on the couch, and that everything had been mixed together at once: the blood, the wine, the cups, the roof, the table, the dust, the limbs of the children. And yet, when he heard these things — and before them, the other losses that were hard enough in their own right, for those too had been lost terribly: both the flocks and the entire herds, some of which the wicked messenger of this tragedy said had been consumed by fire coming down from above, and others seized all at once by various enemies and cut down along with the shepherds themselves. But still, seeing so great a storm raised up in a moment's span over his fields, his house, his livestock, and his children — wave after wave, continuous reefs, deep gloom, and a surge too hard to bear — he was neither worn down by discouragement, nor did he almost even feel what had happened, except so far as he was a human being and a father.¹¹ But when he was handed over to disease and sores, then he also sought death; then he also mourned and lamented — so that you may learn how this is harder than all the rest, and the highest form of endurance. Even the wicked demon himself knows this. When he had set all those things in motion and saw the athlete remaining calm and unshaken, he attacked this as the greatest contest, saying: 'Everything else is bearable — even if someone loses a child, property, or anything else (for that is what "Skin for skin" means) — but the mortal blow is when someone experiences pain in the body.'¹² That is exactly why, after being defeated in this contest, he could not even mutter a word — even though he had argued back most shamelessly about the earlier trials too. Here, though, he could not even come up with another shameless excuse; he covered his face and withdrew. But don't think this gives you an excuse to long for death yourself, just because that man longed for death when he could not bear the pains. For, think about when he desired it and how things stood then: the Law wasn't yet given, the prophets hadn't yet appeared, grace hadn't yet been poured out as it has now, and he also had no share in any other philosophy.¹³ For more is demanded of us than of those who lived back then, and greater contests are set before us. Listen to Christ saying: "Unless your righteousness surpasses that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven."¹⁴ So don't think that praying for death now clears you of blame; instead, listen to Paul saying: "To depart and be with Christ is far better, but to remain in the flesh is more necessary for your sake." For the more affliction intensifies, the more the crowns also increase; the more gold is refined in the fire, the purer it becomes; the farther a merchant sails the sea, the more cargo he gathers. So don't think a small contest is set before you now—no, of all you have endured, this is the highest: I mean the contest that comes with the sickness of the body. For even for Lazarus—and even if I've said this to you many times, nothing keeps me from saying it now too—this was enough for salvation. And though Abraham kept his house open in common for passers-by, lived continually as a sojourner by God's command, and slaughtered his own true son, his only-begotten, the one given to him in extreme old age, the man who had done none of these things went into Abraham's bosom, because he bore with ease poverty and sickness and abandonment by those who should have cared for him.¹⁵¹⁶ For this good is so great for those who bear it bravely that if it finds someone who has committed the greatest sins, it frees him from the heaviest burden of his sins; and if it finds someone who has done well and is righteous, it becomes an addition—not a small one but a truly immense one—of confidence before God.¹⁷ For it is both a brilliant crown for the righteous—shining far beyond the sun—and the greatest purification for those who have sinned. That is why Paul hands the man who violated his father's marriage and corrupted his father's bed over to the destruction of the flesh, purifying him by this means.¹⁸ To prove that what was being done was a purification of such a great stain, listen to him saying: "so that the spirit may be saved in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ." And when he charges others with another most dreadful sin—those who partake unworthily of the sacred table and of those ineffable mysteries—and says that such a person "will be guilty of the body and blood of the Lord," see how he says that they too are cleansed of this grave stain, speaking this way: "For this reason many among you are weak and sick."¹⁹ Then, showing that their case will not stop at this punishment alone, but that there will be some gain from the matter—release from the penalties for this sin—he added: "For if we judged ourselves, we would not be judged.²⁰ But as it is, when we are judged, we are disciplined by the Lord, so that we may not be condemned with the world."^✦ And that those who have accomplished great things also gain much from this is clear both from Job, who shone more brightly because of it, and from Timothy, who—excellent as he was, entrusted with such a ministry, and traveling throughout the world with Paul—lived not two or three days, nor ten or twenty or a hundred, but many continuous days in illness, his body weakened with great severity.²¹ And making this clear, Paul said: "Use a little wine for your stomach and your frequent illnesses." And the one who raises the dead didn't heal his illness, but left him to remain in the furnace of disease, so that from this too a very great wealth of bold confidence might be stored up for him. For what he himself had received from the Master, and what he had been taught by him, these same things he also taught his disciple. For even if he didn't fall into illness, still trials no less severe than illness buffet him and bring great pain upon the flesh.²² "For there was given me," he says, "a thorn in the flesh, a messenger of Satan, to buffet me" — meaning the blows, the bonds, the chains, the prisons, being led away, being torn, being stretched taut, often being stretched out for the whip by public torturers. And so, unable to bear the pains that came upon his flesh from this, he said: "For this I pleaded with the Lord three times" — by "three times" here meaning "often" — "that I might be freed from this thorn." Then, when he didn't get what he asked, having learned the gain in the matter, he both grew quiet and took delight in what was happening. And so you too, even if you stay at home and are fixed to your bed, don't think you're living an idle life; for you endure things harder than those who are dragged by torturers, torn, and stretched — harder than those who suffer the extreme — since you have as a constant, live-in torturer the severity of this illness. So then neither long for death now, nor neglect medical care; for this too is not safe.²³ This is why Paul also strongly urges Timothy to take great care of himself. So then, as far as the illness is concerned, it's enough to say this much.

Hope and Victory Over Despondency

Chrysostom encourages Olympias to hope for reunion, recounts his own survival through trials, and calls her to overcome despondency by showing deeds of health, finding comfort in his well-being and the heavenly enrollment of her company.

But if being separated from us is what causes your despondency, expect a resolution to this too. And I'm not saying this now just to comfort you—I know it will certainly happen. Because if it weren't going to happen, I think I would have left here long ago, at least as far as the trials placed on me are concerned.²⁴ For setting aside everything that happened in Constantinople, after I left there you can learn how much I've endured on this long, hard road—most of it enough to bring on death—how much after arriving here, how much after the move from Cucusus, and how much after the stay in Arabissus. But we've escaped all of it, and now we're in health and great safety—so much so that even all the Armenians are astonished that in a body so weak and spider-thin I bear such unbearable cold, and that I can still breathe, while those used to the winter suffer no ordinary hardship from it. But we've remained unharmed to this day, having escaped the hands of robbers who attacked again and again, living with a shortage of basic necessities, and not even able to bathe—though when we were staying there we constantly needed one; now, though, we've reached such a condition that we don't even desire that comfort, and have even grown healthier by going without it.²⁵ And neither the harshness of the climate, nor the desolation of the places, nor the scarcity of goods for sale, nor the lack of people to care for us, nor the ignorance of doctors, nor the want of baths, nor being shut up entirely in one room as in a prison, nor not moving about—which I always continually needed—nor living constantly with smoke and fire, nor fear of robbers, nor endless siege, nor anything else of the kind has gotten the better of us; on the contrary, we're in a healthier state than we were there, though there we enjoyed a great deal of care. So take all this into account, drive off the despondency that now grips you over these things, and don't impose on yourself penalties that are needless and harsh. I sent you what I wrote earlier: that no one else can harm the person who does not wrong himself. And that's the contest that the discourse I've now sent to Your Honor was fighting. So keep going over it constantly, and if you're well, keep it on your lips as well. It will be a sufficient remedy for you, if you're willing. But if you keep contending with us, and neither care for yourself nor, though you enjoy countless counsel and comfort, are willing to rise out of the swamps of despondency, then we ourselves will not readily agree to send you frequent and long letters—not if you're going to gain nothing from them toward good cheer. How, then, will we know this? Not if you say so, but if you show it by what you do—since even now you've said that nothing else, but despondency, produced this illness of yours. So since you yourself admitted this, if you don't recover from the illness, we won't be persuaded that you've been freed from the despondency too. For if despondency is what produces the illness, as you yourself wrote, it's clear that once it's dissolved, the illness too will be done away with along with it—and when the root is pulled up, its branches perish with it as well. So if they remain flowering and thriving and bearing fruit that doesn't belong, we can't be persuaded that you've been freed from the root. So don't show me words—show me deeds; and if you're well, you'll see letters sent to you again that go beyond all measure of words. And don't think it's a small comfort to you that we are alive, that we are well, and that though we are in such great crises of affairs we have been freed from disease and sickness—something that, as I've learned, deeply grieves and pains our enemies. So it follows that you too should count this the greatest encouragement and the chief consolation.²⁶ Don't call your company desolate—the company that is now enrolled all the more in the heavens through the sufferings it endures.^✦²⁷ I was deeply grieved over Pelagius the monk. So consider how many crowns those who stand firm bravely are worthy of, when men who have spent their lives in such great ascetic discipline and endurance are seen being dragged under like this.^✦²⁸

Read the original Greek

Τῆς σφοδρότητος ἕνεκεν τοῦ χειμῶνος καὶ τῆς τοῦ στομάχου ἡμῶν ἀσθενείας καὶ τῶν Ἰσαυρικῶν καταδρομῶν, μηδὲν ἕνεκεν ἡμῶν μερίμνα μηδὲ κατάτεινε σαυτὴν φροντίσιν. Ὁ μὲν γὰρ χειμὼν γέγονεν οἷον εἰκὸς ἐν Ἀρμενίᾳ εἶναι· οὐδὲν γὰρ δεῖ πλέον εἰπεῖν· ἡμᾶς δὲ οὐ μέγα τι παραβλάπτει. Ταῦτα γὰρ προορῶντες πολλὰ μηχανώμεθα πρὸς τὸ τὴν ἐντεῦθεν διακρούσασθαι βλάβην καὶ πῦρ ἀνακαίοντες συνεχῶς καὶ τὸ δωμάτιον ἔνθα καταμένομεν πανταχόθεν περιφράττοντες καὶ ἐπιβλήμασι κεχρημένοι πλείοσι καὶ διὰ παντὸς ἔνδον μένοντες. Ὅπερ ἐστὶ μὲν ἡμῖν ἐπαχθές, πλὴν διὰ τὸ ἐντεῦθεν κέρδος φορητόν. Ἕως γὰρ ἔνδον μένωμεν, οὐ σφόδρα κατατεινόμεθα τῷ κρυμῷ· ἐὰν δὲ ἀναγκασθῶμεν μικρὸν προελθεῖν καὶ τῷ ἔξω ὁμιλῆσαι ἀέρι, οὐ μικρὰν προστριβόμεθα βλάβην. ∆ιὸ καὶ τὴν τιμιότητά σου παρακαλῶ καὶ ἐν μεγίστης αἰτῶ χάριτος μέρει πολλὴν ποιεῖσθαι ἐπιμέλειαν, ὥστε τὴν τοῦ σώματός σου διορθοῦν ἀσθένειαν. Ποιεῖ μὲν γὰρ νόσον καὶ ἀθυμία· ὅταν δὲ καὶ σῶμα πεπονηκὸς ᾖ καὶ ἐξησθενημένον, καὶ ἐν ἀμελείᾳ κέηται πολλῇ, καὶ μήτε ἰατρῶν ἀπολαύῃ μήτε ἀέρων εὐκρασίας μήτε τῆς τῶν ἐπιτηδείων ἀφθονίας, ἐννόησον ὅτι οὐ μικρὰ ἐντεῦθεν προσθήκη γίνεται τοῦ δεινοῦ. ∆ιὸ παρακαλῶ σου τὴν τιμιότητα καὶ ἰατροῖς διαφόροις καὶ ἐμπείροις καὶ φαρμάκοις χρῆσθαι τοῖς τὰ τοιαῦτα διορθοῦν δυναμένοις.

Ἐπεὶ καὶ ἡμεῖς πρὸ τούτων τῶν ὀλίγων ἡμερῶν, εὐεμπτώτως ἡμῖν ἔχοντος τοῦ στομάχου πρὸς τοὺς ἐμέτους ἐκ τῆς τοῦ ἀέρος καταστάσεως τῇ τε ἄλλῃ ἐπιμελείᾳ χρησάμενοι καὶ τῷ φαρμάκῳ τῷ ἀπεσταλμένῳ παρὰ τῆς κυρίας μου τῆς κοσμιωτάτης Συγκλητίου, καὶ οὐ δεηθέντες πλέον ἢ τριῶν ἡμερῶν αὐτὸ ἐπιθεῖναι διωρθώσαμεν αὐτοῦ τὴν ἀσθένειαν. Παρακαλῶ τοίνυν καὶ αὐτήν σε χρήσασθαι τούτῳ καὶ παρασκευάσαι πάλιν ἡμῖν ἐξ αὐτοῦ πεμφθῆναι. Καὶ γὰρ πάλιν αἰσθανόμενοί τινος ἀνατροπῆς, πάλιν αὐτῷ ἐχρησάμεθα καὶ τὸ πᾶν διωρθώσαμεν. Καὶ γὰρ φλεγμονὰς καταστέλλει τὰς ἐν τῷ βάθει, νοτίδα ἀνιμᾶται καὶ συμμέτρως ἐστὶ θερμὸν καὶ τόνον ἐντίθησιν οὐ τὸν τυχόντα καὶ ὄρεξιν διεγείρει τὴν πρὸς τὰ σιτία καὶ τούτων ἁπάντων ἡμῖν ἐν ὀλίγαις ἡμέραις πεῖραν παρέσχεν. Ποίησον τοίνυν παρακληθῆναι τὸν δεσπότην μου τὸν αἰδεσιμώτατον Θεόφιλον τὸν κόμητα, ὥστε πάλιν ἐξ αὐτοῦ κατασκευάσαι ἡμῖν καὶ ἀποστεῖλαι. Καὶ μή σε λυπείτω τὸ ἐνταῦθα ἡμᾶς χειμάζειν· καὶ γὰρ πολλῷ ῥᾷον καὶ ὑγιεινότερον νῦν ἢ πέρυσι διακείμεθα, ὥστε εἰ καὶ αὐτὴ τὴν προσήκουσαν ἐπιμέλειαν ἐποιοῦ, πολλῷ ἂν ἄμεινον διετέθης. Εἰ δὲ ἐξ ἀθυμίας φῂς τετέχθαι σοι τὰ νοσήματα, πῶς πάλιν ἐπιστολὰς ζητεῖς παρ' ἡμῶν μηδὲν ἐντεῦθεν εἰς εὐθυμίαν καρπωσαμένη, ἀλλ' οὕτω τῇ τυραννίδι τῆς ἀθυμίας βαπτισθεῖσα ὡς καὶ ἐπιθυμεῖν νῦν τῆς ἐντεῦθεν ἀποδημίας; Οὐκ οἶσθα ὅσος καὶ ἀρρωστίας κεῖται μισθός; Οὐ πολλάκις σοι καὶ παρὼν καὶ δι' ἐπιστολῶν ταύτης ἕνεκα διείλεγμαι τῆς ὑποθέσεως; Ἀλλ' ἐπειδὴ ἴσως ἢ ὁ τῶν πραγμάτων ὄχλος ἢ αὐτὴ τῆς ἀρρωστίας ἡ φύσις καὶ αἱ ἐπάλληλοι περιστάσεις οὐκ ἐῶσί σε διηνεκῶς ἔναυλον ἔχειν τῶν εἰρημένων τὴν μνήμην, ἄκουε πάλιν τὰ αὐτὰ ἐπᾳδόντων ἡμῶν τοῖς ἕλκεσί σου τῆς ἀθυμίας· «Τὰ γὰρ αὐτὰ γράφειν, φησίν, ἐμοὶ μὲν οὐκ ὀκνηρόν, ὑμῖν δὲ ἀσφαλές.»

Τί οὖν καὶ λέγω καὶ γράφω; Οὐδέν, Ὀλυμπιάς, τῆς ἐν ἀλγηδόσιν ὑπομονῆς εἰς εὐδοκιμήσεως λόγον ἴσον. Ἡ γὰρ βασιλὶς τῶν ἀγαθῶν καὶ τῶν στεφάνων ἡ κορωνὶς αὕτη μάλιστά ἐστι· καὶ καθάπερ αὕτη τῶν ἄλλων κρατεῖ κατορθωμάτων, οὕτως ἐν αὐτῇ τοῦτο μάλιστα τὸ εἶδος τῶν ἄλλων ἐστὶ λαμπρότερον. Τάχα ἀσαφὲς τὸ εἰρημένον· οὐκοῦν αὐτὸ ποιήσω σαφέστερον. Τί οὖν ἐστιν ὅ φημι; Οὐ τὸ χρήματα ἀφαιρεθῆναι, κἂν πάντων τις γυμνωθῇ τῶν ὄντων, οὐ τὸ τιμῆς ἐκπεσεῖν, οὐ τὸ πατρίδος ἐκβληθῆναι καὶ πρὸς τὴν ὑπερορίαν ἀπενεχθῆναι, οὐ τὸ πόνῳ καὶ ἱδρῶτι κατατείνεσθαι, οὐ τὸ δεσμωτήριον οἰκεῖν καὶ ἅλυσιν περικεῖσθαι, οὐκ ὀνειδισμοὶ καὶ λοιδορίαι καὶ σκώμματα· μὴ γὰρ μηδὲ τοῦτο μικρὸν νομίσῃς εἶναι καρτερίας εἶδος τὸ γενναίως τὰ τοιαῦτα ἐνεγκεῖν. Καὶ δείκνυσιν ὁ Ἰὼβ ὁ τοσοῦτος καὶ τηλικοῦτος ἀνὴρ οὐχ ὡς ἔτυχεν ὑπὸ τούτου θορυβηθεὶς τοῦ πειρασμοῦ, ἀλλ' οὐδὲ τοῦτο, οὐ παίδων ἀποβολή, κἂν ἀθρόον πάντες ἀναρπασθῶσιν, οὐκ ἐχθροὶ συνεχῶς ἐπεμβαίνοντες, οὐκ ἄλλο τῶν τοιούτων οὐδέν, οὐκ αὐτὸς ὁ κολοφὼν τῶν δοκούντων εἶναι λυπηρῶν, ὁ θάνατος, ὁ φοβερὸς οὕτω καὶ φρικώδης, οὕτως ἐστὶ βαρὺς ὡς σώματος ἀρρωστία. Καὶ ταῦτα δείκνυσιν ὁ μέγιστος τῆς ὑπομονῆς ἀθλητὴς ὅς, ἐπειδὴ σωματικῇ περιέπεσε νόσῳ, ἀπαλλαγὴν τῶν κατεχόντων δεινῶν τὴν τελευτὴν εἶναι ἐνόμισε· καὶ ὅτε μὲν τὰ ἄλλα ἔπασχεν ἅπαντα, οὐδὲ ᾐσθάνετο, καίτοι ἐπαλλήλους δεχόμενος τὰς πληγὰς καὶ τελευταίαν τὴν καιρίαν. Οὐδὲ γὰρ τοῦτο μικρόν, ἀλλὰ καὶ τῆς χαλεπωτάτης τοῦ πολεμοῦντος αὐτῷ κακουργίας, τὸ μὴ νεάζοντι μηδὲ νῦν εἰς τοὺς ἀγῶνας καθιέντι πρῶτον, ἀλλ' ἤδη τῇ πυκνότητι τῶν ἐπαλλήλων βελῶν κατειργασμένῳ, τότε τὴν καιρίαν δοῦναι τὴν ἐπὶ τοῖς παισὶ πληγήν, καὶ ταύτην οὕτω χαλεπῶς ὡς καὶ ἐξ ἑκατέρας τῆς φύσεως καὶ πάντας ἀθρόον, καὶ ἐν ἀώρῳ ἡλικίᾳ καὶ βιαίᾳ τελευτῇ διαφθεῖραι καὶ τοῦ θανάτου τὸν τρόπον ἐσχεδιασμένον αὐτοῖς ἐργάσασθαι τάφον. Οὐδὲ γὰρ εἶδεν ἐν κλίνῃ κειμένους, οὐδὲ ἐφίλησε χεῖρας, οὐδὲ ἐσχάτων ἤκουσε ῥημάτων, οὐδὲ ποδῶν ἥψατο καὶ γονάτων, οὐ στόμα συνεῖλεν, οὐ καθεῖλεν ὀφθαλμοὺς μελλόντων αὐτῶν τελευτᾶν ἅπερ οὐ μικρὰ εἰς παραμυθίαν τοῖς παίδων χωριζομένοις πατράσιν· οὐδὲ τοὺς μὲν προέπεμψεν ἐπὶ τὸν τάφον, τοὺς δὲ ἐπανελθὼν εὗρε παραμυθίαν τῶν ἀπελθόντων· ἀλλ' ἐν καιρῷ συμποσίου, συμποσίου οὐ μέθην, ἀλλ' ἀγάπην βρύοντος, ἐν τραπέζῃ φιλαδελφίας, ἐπὶ στιβάδος κειμένους ἤκουσε πάντας κατακεχῶσθαι καὶ πάντα ὁμοῦ μιγῆναι, τὸ αἷμα, τὸν οἶνον, τὰς κύλικας, τὸν ὄροφον, τὴν τράπεζαν, τὴν κόνιν, τὰ μέλη τῶν παίδων.

Ἀλλ' ὅμως ἡνίκα μὲν ταῦτα ἤκουσε, καὶ πρὸ τούτων τὰ ἄλλα καὶ αὐτὰ χαλεπά· καὶ γὰρ κἀκεῖνα χαλεπῶς ἀπολώλει· τά τε ποίμνια καὶ ὁλοκλήρους ἀγέλας, τὰς μὲν ὑπὸ πυρὸς ἄνωθεν κατενεχθέντος ἀνηλῶσθαι ἔλεγεν ὁ πονηρὸς τῆς τραγῳδίας ταύτης ἄγγελος, τὰς δὲ ὑπὸ πολεμίων διαφόρων ἀθρόον πάσας ἀναρπαγῆναι καὶ κατακοπῆναι σὺν αὐτοῖς τοῖς ποιμέσιν. Ἀλλ' ὅμως τοσαύτην ζάλην ἐν βραχείᾳ καιροῦ ῥοπῇ διεγερθεῖσαν ὁρῶν ἐπὶ τῶν ἀγρῶν, ἑπὶ τῆς οἰκίας, ἐπὶ τῶν θρεμμάτων, ἐπὶ τῶν παίδων, ἐπάλληλα τὰ κύματα καὶ τὰς σπιλάδας συνεχεῖς καὶ τὸν ζόφον βαθὺν καὶ τὸ κλυδώνιον ἀφόρητον, οὔτε ἀθυμίᾳ κατετείνετο, οὔτε ᾐσθάνετο σχεδὸν τῶν γεγενημένων πλὴν τοσοῦτον ὅσον ἄνθρωπος ἦν καὶ πατήρ. Ἐπειδὴ δὲ νόσῳ παρεδόθη καὶ ἕλκεσι, τότε καὶ θάνατον ἐπεζήτει, τότε καὶ ἀποδύρεται καὶ θρήνει, ἵνα μάθῃς πῶς τοῦτο πάντων ἐστὶ χαλεπώτερον καὶ τῆς ὑπομονῆς τὸ ἄκρον εἶδος. Καὶ τοῦτο οὐδὲ αὐτὸς ὁ πονηρὸς ἀγνοεῖ δαίμων, ἀλλ' ἐπειδὴ πάντα ἐκεῖνα κινήσας, ἑώρα τὸν ἀθλητὴν ἀτάραχον μένοντα καὶ ἀθόρυβον, ὡς ἐπὶ μέγιστον ἆθλον τοῦτον ὥρμησε λέγων ὅτι «Τὰ μὲν ἄλλα πάντα φορητά, κἂν παῖδά τις ἀποβάλῃ κἂν κτήματα κἂν ἀλλοτιοῦν –τοῦτο γάρ ἐστι· «∆έρμα ὑπὲρ δέρματος»–, ἡ δὲ καιρία πληγή, ὅταν ἐν σώματί τις δέξηται τὰς ὀδύνας.» ∆ιά τοι τοῦτο μετὰ τὸν ἆθλον τοῦτον ἡττηθείς, οὐδὲ γρῦξαι ἔσχεν, εἰ καὶ τὰ μάλιστα καὶ τὰ πρότερα ἀναισχύντως ἀντέλεγεν. Ἐνταῦθα μέντοι οὐδὲ ἀναίσχυντον πλάσαι τι λοιπὸν εὗρεν, ἀλλ' ἐγκαλυψάμενος ἀνεχώρησεν.

Ἀλλὰ μὴ νόμιζέ σοι τοῦτο ἀπολογίαν εἶναι εἰς τὸ καὶ αὐτῆς ἐπιθυμεῖν τελευτῆς, εἰ ἐκεῖνος ἐπεθύμει θανάτου τὰς ὀδύνας οὐ φέρων. Ἐννόησον γὰρ πότε ἐκεῖνος ἐπεθύμει καὶ πῶς τῶν πραγμάτων διακειμένων, οὐ νόμου δοθέντος, οὐ προφητῶν φανέντων, οὐ τῆς χάριτος οὕτως ἐκχυθείσης οὐδὲ ἄλλης φιλοσοφίας μετασχών. Ὅτι γὰρ ἡμεῖς τῶν τότε πολιτευομένων πλείονα ἀπαιτούμεθα καὶ μείζονα ἡμῖν κεῖται τὰ σκάμματα, ἄκουσον τοῦ Χριστοῦ λέγοντος· «Ἐὰν μὴ περισσεύσῃ ἡ δικαιοσύνη ὑμῶν πλέον τῶν γραμματέων καὶ Φαρισαίων, οὐ μὴ εἰσέλθητε εἰς τὴν βασιλείαν τῶν οὐρανῶν.» Μὴ τοίνυν τὸ εὔχεσθαι νῦν τελευτὴν ἀπηλλάχθαι ἐγκλήματος νόμιζε, ἀλλ' ἄκουε τῆς τοῦ Παύλου φωνῆς τῆς λεγούσης· «Τὸ ἀναλῦσαι καὶ σὺν Χριστῷ εἶναι πολλῷ μᾶλλον κρεῖσσον, τὸ δὲ ἐπιμεῖναι τῇ σαρκὶ ἀναγκαιότερον δι' ὑμᾶς.» Ὅσῳ γὰρ ἂν ἐπιτείνηται τὰ τῆς θλίψεως, τοσούτῳ πλεονάζει καὶ τὰ τῶν στεφάνων· ὅσῳ ἂν πυρωθῇ τὸ χρυσίον, τοσούτῳ καθαρώτερον γίνεται· ὅσῳ μακρότερον ἂν πλεύσῃ πέλαγος ἔμπορος, τοσούτῳ πλείονα συνάγει τὰ φορτία. Μὴ τοίνυν νομίσῃς μικρόν σοι προκεῖσθαι νῦν ἆθλον, ἀλλὰ πάντων ὧν ὑπομεμένηκας τὸν ὑψηλότερον τὸν ἐπὶ τῇ τοῦ σώματος ἀρρωστίᾳ λέγω. Καὶ γὰρ καὶ τῷ Λαζάρῳ –εἰ γὰρ καὶ πολλάκις τοῦτο εἴρηκα πρὸς σέ, οὐδὲν κωλύει καὶ νῦν εἰπεῖν –, ἤρκεσε τοῦτο εἰς σωτηρίαν· καὶ τοῦ κοινὴν τὴν οἰκίαν τοῖς παριοῦσι κεκτημένου καὶ μετανάστου συνεχῶς γινομένου διὰ τὸ τοῦ Θεοῦ πρόσταγμα καὶ τὸν υἱὸν κατασφάξαντος τὸν γνήσιον, τὸν μονογενῆ, τὸν ἐν ἐσχάτῳ γήρᾳ δοθέντα, ὁ μηδὲν τούτων πεποιηκὼς εἰς τοὺς κόλπους ἀπῄει, ἐπειδὴ ἤνεγκεν εὐκόλως πενίαν καὶ ἀρρωστίαν καὶ τὴν τῶν προστησομένων ἐρημίαν. Τοσοῦτον γάρ ἐστιν ἀγαθὸν τοῦτο τοῖς γενναίως φέρουσι ὅτι κἂν τὰ μέγιστα ἡμαρτηκότα τινὰ εὕρῃ, ἀπαλλάττει τοῦ βαρυτάτου τῶν ἁμαρτημάτων φορτίου· κἂν κατωρθωκότα καὶ δίκαιον ὄντα, οὐ μικρᾶς ἀλλὰ καὶ σφόδρα μεγίστης παρρησίας γίνεται προσθήκη.

Καὶ γὰρ καὶ στέφανός ἐστι λαμπρὸς ἐπὶ τῶν δικαίων, καὶ ὑπὲρ τὸν ἥλιον μεθ' ὑπερβολῆς λάμπων, καὶ καθάρσιον μέγιστον ἐπὶ τῶν ἡμαρτηκότων. ∆ιά τοι τοῦτο τὸν διορύξαντα γάμον πατρῷον καὶ τὴν εὐνὴν διαφθείραντα τὴν ἐκείνου εἰς ὄλεθρον τῆς σαρκὸς παραδίδωσιν ὁ Παῦλος, τούτῳ καθαίρων αὐτὸν τῷ τρόπῳ. Ὅτι γὰρ καθάρσιον τὸ γινόμενον ἦν τῆς τοσαύτης κηλῖδος, ἄκουσον αὐτοῦ λέγοντος· «Ἵνα τὸ πνεῦμα σωθῇ ἐν τῇ ἡμέρᾳ τοῦ Κυρίου ἡμῶν Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ.» Καὶ ἑτέροις δὲ ἐγκαλῶν φρικωδεστάτην ἑτέραν ἁμαρτίαν τοῖς τῆς ἱερᾶς τραπέζης ἀναξίως ἀπολαύουσι καὶ τῶν ἀπορρήτων μυστηρίων ἐκείνων καὶ εἰπὼν ὅτι ὁ τοιοῦτος «ἔνοχος ἔσται τοῦ σώματος καὶ τοῦ αἵματος τοῦ Κυρίου», ὅρα πῶς φησι καὶ αὐτοὺς καθαίρεσθαι τῆς χαλεπῆς ταύτης κηλῖδος οὕτω λέγων· «∆ιὰ τοῦτο ἐν ὑμῖν πολλοὶ ἀσθενεῖς καὶ ἄρρωστοι.» Εἶτα δεικνὺς ὅτι οὐ μέχρι τῆς τιμωρίας ταύτης στήσεται τὰ ἐκείνων, ἀλλ' ἔσται τι κέρδος ἀπὸ τοῦ πράγματος τὸ τῶν εὐθυνῶν τῶν ἐπὶ τῇ ἁμαρτίᾳ ταύτῃ ἀπαλλαγῆναι ἐπήγαγεν· «Εἰ γὰρ ἑαυτοὺς ἐκρίνομεν, οὐκ ἂν ἐκρινόμεθα. Νῦν δὲ κρινόμενοι, ὑπὸ Κυρίου παιδευόμεθα, ἵνα μὴ σὺν τῷ κόσμῳ κατακριθῶμεν.» Ὅτι δὲ καὶ οἱ τὰ μεγάλα κατωρθωκότες ἐντεῦθεν πολλὰ κερδαίνουσιν, ἀπό τε τοῦ Ἰὼβ δῆλον μειζόνως ἐντεῦθεν λάμψαντος, ἀπό τε τοῦ Τιμοθέου ὃς οὕτω καλὸς ὢν καὶ τοιαύτην διακονίαν ἐγκεχειρισμένος καὶ συμπεριιπτάμενος Παύλῳ τὴν οἰκουμένην, οὐ δύο καὶ τρεῖς ἡμέρας, οὐδὲ δέκα καὶ εἴκοσι καὶ ἑκατόν, ἀλλὰ πολλὰς καὶ συνεχεῖς ἐν ἀρρωστίᾳ ἔζη, τοῦ σώματος αὐτῷ μετὰ πολλῆς τῆς σφοδρότητος ἐξησθενημένου. Καὶ τοῦτο δηλῶν ὁ Παῦλος ἔλεγεν· «Οἴνῳ ὀλίγῳ χρῶ διὰ τὸν στόμαχόν σου καὶ τὰς πυκνάς σου ἀσθενείας.»

Καὶ οὐ διώρθωσεν αὐτοῦ τὴν ἀσθένειαν ὁ νεκροὺς ἐγείρων, ἀλλ' ἀφῆκεν εἶναι ἐν τῇ καμίνῳ τῆς νόσου, ὥστε μέγιστον αὐτῷ καὶ ἐντεῦθεν συναχθῆναι παρρησίας πλοῦτον. Ὧν γὰρ αὐτὸς ἀπολέλαυκε παρὰ τοῦ ∆εσπότου, καὶ ἅπερ ἐπαιδεύθη παρ' ἐκείνου, ταῦτα καὶ τὸν μαθητὴν ἐδίδασκεν. Εἰ γὰρ καὶ μὴ ἀρρωστίᾳ περιέπιπτεν, ἀλλ' ἀρρωστίας οὐκ ἔλαττον πειρασμοῖς αὐτὸν κολαφίζουσι καὶ πολλὴν ὀδύνην ἐπιφέρουσι τῇ σαρκί. «Ἐδόθη γάρ μοι, φησί, σκόλοψ τῇ σαρκί, ἄγγελος Σατᾶν, ἵνα με κολαφίζῃ», τὰς πληγὰς λέγων, τὰ δεσμά, τὰς ἁλύσεις, τὰ δεσμωτήρια, τὸ ἄγεσθαι, σπαράττεσθαι, κατατείνεσθαι, προτείνεσθαι μάστιξιν ὑπὸ δημίων πολλάκις. ∆ιὸ καὶ μὴ φέρων τὰς ὀδύνας τὰς ἐντεῦθεν τῇ σαρκὶ προσγινομένας ἔλεγεν· «Ὑπὲρ τούτου τρὶς τὸν Κύριον παρεκάλεσα – τρὶς ἐνταῦθα τὸ πολλάκις λέγων –ὥστε ἐλευθερωθῆναι τοῦ σκόλοπος τούτου.» Εἶτα ἐπειδὴ οὐκ ἐπέτυχε, μαθὼν τοῦ πράγματος τὸ κέρδος καὶ ἡσύχασε καὶ ἥσθη τοῖς γινομένοις. Καὶ σὺ τοίνυν κἂν οἴκοι μένῃς καὶ τῇ κλίνῃ προσηλωμένη ἦς, μὴ νόμιζε ἀργὸν βίον ζῇν· τῶν γὰρ ὑπὸ δημίων ἑλκομένων, σπαραττομένων, τεινομένων, τῶν τὰ ἔσχατα πασχόντων χαλεπώτερα ὑπομένεις δήμιον διηνεκῆ καὶ σύνοικον ἔχουσα, τῆς ἀρρωστίας ταύτης τὴν ὑπερβολήν. Μὴ τοίνυν μήτε τελευτῆς ἐπιθύμει νῦν, μήτε ἀμέλει θεραπείας· οὐδὲ γὰρ τοῦτο ἀσφαλές.

∆ιὰ τοῦτο καὶ Τιμοθέῳ παραινεῖ σφόδρα ἐπιμελεῖσθαι ἑαυτοῦ ὁ Παῦλος. Τῆς μὲν οὖν ἀρρωστίας ἕνεκεν ἀρκεῖ ταῦτα εἰπεῖν.

Εἰ δὲ τὸ κεχωρίσθαι ἡμῶν ποιεῖ σοι τὴν ἀθυμίαν, προσδόκα καὶ τούτου λύσιν. Καὶ τοῦτο οὐχ ἵνα παρακαλέσω σε, εἶπον νῦν, ἀλλ' οἶδα ὅτι πάντως ἔσται. Εἰ γὰρ μὴ ἔμελλεν ἔσεσθαι, πάλαι ἄν, ὡς ἔγωγε οἶμαι, ἀπεληλύθειν ἐντεῦθεν τό γε ἧκον εἰς τοὺς ἐπενεχθέντας μοι πειρασμούς. Ἵνα γὰρ τὰ ἐν Κωνσταντινουπόλει παρῶ πάντα, μετὰ τὴν ἐκεῖθεν ἔξοδον, ἔξεστι μαθεῖν ὅσα κατὰ τὴν ὁδὸν τὴν μακρὰν ταύτην καὶ χαλεπὴν ὧν τὰ πλείω ἱκανὰ ἦν θάνατον τεκεῖν ὑπομεμένηκα, ὅσα μετὰ τὴν ἐνταῦθα ἄφιξιν, ὅσα μετὰ τὴν μετανάστασιν τὴν ἀπὸ Κουκουσοῦ, ὅσα μετὰ τὴν ἐν Ἀραβισσῷ διατριβήν. Ἀλλὰ ταῦτα πάντα διεφύγομεν καὶ νῦν ἐσμεν ἐν ὑγιείᾳ καὶ ἀσφαλείᾳ πολλῇ, ὡς καὶ Ἀρμενίους πάντας ἐκπλήττεσθαι ὅτι ἐν οὕτως ἀσθενεῖ σώματι καὶ ἀραχνώδει οὕτως ἀφόρητον φέρω κρυμόν, ὅτι ἀναπνεῖν δύναμαι, τῶν ἐθάδων τοῦ χειμῶνος οὐ τὰ τυχόντα ἐντεῦθεν πασχόντων. Ἀλλ' ἡμεῖς ἐμείναμεν ἀβλαβεῖς μέχρι τῆς σήμερον, καὶ λῃστῶν χεῖρας διαφυγόντες πολλάκις ἐπελθόντων καὶ ἀπορίᾳ ἀναγκαίων συζῶντες καὶ μηδὲ βαλανείῳ χρῆσθαι δυνάμενοι· καίτοι ἡνίκα αὐτόθι διετρίβομεν, συνεχῶς τούτου δεόμενοι, νῦν δὲ ἐν τοσαύτῃ ἕξει κατέστημεν ὡς μηδὲ ἐπιθυμεῖν τῆς ἐντεῦθεν παραμυθίας, ἀλλὰ καὶ ὑγιεινότεροι ταύτῃ γενέσθαι. Καὶ οὔτε ἀέρων δυσκολία, οὐ τόπων ἐρημία, οὐκ ὠνίων στενοχωρία, οὐ τῶν θεραπευσόντων ἐρημία, οὐκ ἰατρῶν ἀμαθία, οὐ βαλανείων ἀπορία, οὐ τὸ διόλου, καθάπερ ἐν δεσμωτηρίῳ, ἐν ἑνὶ οἰκήματι καθεῖρχθαι, οὐ τὸ μὴ κινεῖσθαι οὗπερ ἀεὶ συνεχῶς ἐδεόμην, οὐ τὸ καπνῷ καὶ πυρὶ διηνεκῶς ὁμιλεῖν, οὐ λῃστῶν φόβος, οὐ πολιορκία διηνεκής, οὐκ ἄλλο τῶν τοιούτων οὐδὲν ἡμῶν περιγέγονεν· ἀλλ' ὑγιεινότερον διακείμεθα ἢ αὐτόθι ἦμεν πολλῇ μέντοι κεχρημένοι τῇ ἐπιμελείᾳ. Ταῦτα οὖν ἅπαντα λογιζομένη διακρούου τὴν κατέχουσάν σε νῦν ὑπὲρ τούτων ἀθυμίαν καὶ μὴ σαυτὴν ἀπαίτει δίκας περιττὰς καὶ χαλεπάς.

Ἔπεμψά σοι ἅπερ ἔγραψα πρώην ὅτι «Τὸν ἑαυτὸν οὐκ ἀδικοῦντα οὐδεὶς ἕτερος παραβλάψαι δυνήσεται», καὶ τοῦτον ἠγωνίσατο τὸν ἀγῶνα ὁ λόγος ὃν ἀπέσταλκά σου τῇ τιμιότητι νῦν. Συνεχῶς δὴ οὖν αὐτὸν ἐπέρχου· εἰ δὲ ὑγιαίνοις, καὶ ἐπὶ γλώσσης φέρε. Ἱκανὸν γὰρ ἔσται σοι φάρμακον, ἐὰν θέλῃς. Εἰ δὲ φιλονεικοίης ἡμῖν καὶ μήτε θεραπεύοις σαυτήν, μήτε μυρίας ἀπολαύουσα παραινέσεώς τε καὶ παρακλήσεως βουληθείης ἀνενεγκεῖν ἐκ τῶν τελμάτων τῆς ἀθυμίας, οὐ ῥᾳδίως οὐδὲ ἡμεῖς ὑπακουσόμεθα πρὸς τὸ πυκνάς σοι καὶ μακρὰς πέμπειν ἐπιστολάς, εἰ μηδὲν μέλλοις ἐντεῦθεν κερδαίνειν εἰς εὐθυμίαν. Πῶς οὖν τοῦτο εἰσόμεθα; Οὐκ ἐὰν λέγῃς, ἀλλ' ἐὰν διὰ τῶν πραγμάτων δεικνύῃς, ἐπεὶ καὶ νῦν ἔφης μηδὲν τῶν ἄλλων, ἀλλὰ τὴν ἀθυμίαν σοι τὴν νόσον εἰργάσθαι ταύτην. Ἐπεὶ οὖν αὐτὴ τοῦτο ὡμολόγησας, ἂν μὴ τῆς ἀρρωστίας ἀπαλλαγῇς, οὐ πεισόμεθα ὅτι καὶ τῆς ἀθυμίας ἀπήλλαξαι. Εἰ γὰρ αὕτη ἐστὶν ἡ τὴν νόσον ποιοῦσα, καθὼς καὶ αὐτὴ ἐπέσταλκας, εὔδηλον ὅτι λυθείσης αὐτῆς κἀκείνη συναναιρεθήσεται, καὶ τῆς ῥίζης ἀνασπασθείσης καὶ οἱ ταύτης συναπόλλυνται κλάδοι. Ὡς ἐὰν μένωσιν ἀνθοῦντες καὶ ἀκμάζοντες καὶ καρπὸν φέροντες τὸν οὐ πρέποντα, οὐ δυνάμεθα πεισθῆναι ὅτι τῆς ῥίζης ἠλευθέρωσαι.

Μὴ τοίνυν μοι ῥήματα ἀλλὰ πράγματα δεῖξον, κἂν ὑγιαίνῃς, ὄψει πάλιν ἐπιστολὰς πεμπομένας σοι λόγων ὑπερβαινούσας μέτρον. Μὴ δὲ μικρὰν νόμιζέ σοι παράκλησιν εἶναι ὅτι ζῶμεν, ὅτι ὑγιαίνομεν, ὅτι ἐν τοσαύταις πραγμάτων ὄντες περιστάσεσιν νόσου καὶ ἀρρωστίας ἀπηλλάγμεθα, ὃ τοὺς ἐχθροὺς ἡμῶν, ὡς ἔγνων, σφόδρα λυπεῖ καὶ ὀδυνᾷ. Ἀκόλουθον οὖν καὶ ὑμᾶς μεγίστην ταύτην ἡγεῖσθαι παράκλησιν καὶ κεφάλαιον παραμυθίας. Μὴ κάλει τὴν συνοδίαν σου ἔρημον τὴν νῦν μειζόνως ἐν οὐρανοῖς ἐγγεγραμμένην διὰ τῶν παθημάτων ὧν ὑπομένει. Σφόδρα ἤλγησα ὑπὲρ Πελαγίου τοῦ μονάζοντος. Ἐννόησον τοίνυν ὅσων ἄξιοι στεφάνων εἰσὶν οἱ γενναίως στάντες, ὅταν ἄνδρες ἐν τοσαύτῃ ἀσκήσει διαγαγόντες καὶ καρτερίᾳ οὕτω φανῶσιν ὑποσυρόμενοι.

Scripture echoes

↩1Cor.11.31-1Cor.11.32 — But if we examined ourselves, we would not be judged. 1Cor.11.32 — But when we are judged by the Lord, we are disciplined so that we may not be condemned along with the world.
↩Luke.10.20;Heb.12.23;Phil.4.3 — Nevertheless, do not rejoice in this, that the spirits submit to you, but rejoice that your names are written in heaven. Heb.12.23 — to the assembly and festival gathering of the firstborn who are enrolled in heaven, and to God the judge of all, and to the spirits of the righteous made perfect, Phil.4.3 — Yes, I ask you also, true companion, help these women, for they labored with me in the gospel together with Clement and the rest of my fellow workers, whose names are in the book of life.
↩1Cor.9.25;2Tim.4.8;Jas.1.12;1Pet.5.4 — Everyone who competes in the games exercises self-control in all things. They do it to receive a perishable wreath, but we an imperishable one. 2Tim.4.8 — From now on, there is reserved for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will give me on that day — and not only to me, but also to all who have loved his appearing. Jas.1.12 — Blessed is the man who endures temptation; for when he has been approved, he will receive the crown of life, which the Lord has promised to those who love him. 1Pet.5.4 — And when the Chief Shepherd is revealed, you will receive the unfading crown of glory.

Notes

1 ↩ἐπιβλήμασι: coverings/hangings/wraps used against cold; rendered as 'coverings'.
2 ↩τὴν τιμιότητά σου: formal honorific address ('your Honor' / 'your Dignity'); kept as 'your Honor'.
3 ↩ἀθυμία: spiritual/emotional despondency or dejection (a key Chrysostomian term); rendered 'despondency' rather than generic 'sadness' or clinical 'depression'.
4 ↩τόνον: medical 'tone'/vigor of the system; rendered 'vigor' for natural modern sense without losing the physiological claim.
5 ↩ἐξ αὐτοῦ may mean 'of/from that medicine' or 'through him'; sense taken as having Count Theophilus prepare and send a fresh supply of the same remedy.
6 ↩ἀθυμία rendered 'despondency' (not mere sadness) to keep the patristic spiritual force of dejection as a tyrannizing interior state.
7 ↩τῆς ἐντεῦθεν ἀποδημίας taken as desire to leave this life (death), not mere change of place, given the illness/despondency context.
8 ↩αὕτη tracks endurance (ὑπομονή) from s1; τοῦτο ... τὸ εἶδος points ahead to endurance under bodily pain, clarified in s4–s6.
9 ↩οὐχ ὡς ἔτυχεν: not casually/lightly; Job was seriously disturbed by the bodily trial. The long οὐ ... οὐ ... series denies that any of the named calamities equals bodily sickness in weight.
10 ↩ἐξ ἑκατέρας τῆς φύσεως: from both sexes/natures (sons and daughters). ἐσχεδιασμένον ... τάφον: the manner of death itself became their makeshift grave (the house fallen on them).
11 ↩σπιλάδες can mean sea-reefs/rocks or storm-squalls; rendered as "reefs" to keep the continuous sea-storm metaphor with waves, gloom, and surge.
12 ↩ἆθλον here is the contest/prize of trial; rendered "contest" to match the athletic metaphor for Job as athlete of endurance.
13 ↩φιλοσοφίας here is patristic for a formed way of wisdom/life, not merely academic philosophy; rendered 'philosophy' to keep the source term.
14 ↩σκάμματα are athletic wrestling-pits/arenas; rendered 'contests' to preserve Chrysostom's contest metaphor without archaic sports jargon.
15 ↩The long genitive describing hospitality, sojourning, and the near-sacrifice of the only son is not named in the Greek; the referent is Abraham by the following 'into the bosom' (κόλπους) and Genesis typology. Made explicit for intelligibility.
16 ↩τὴν τῶν προστησομένων ἐρημίαν: 'desertion/emptiness of those who would stand over/care for him'—rendered as abandonment by those who should have cared for him.
17 ↩παρρησία kept as 'confidence before God' (spiritual boldness of access), not mere social boldness or frank speech.
18 ↩διορύξαντα γάμον πατρῷον and εὐνὴν ... τὴν ἐκείνου allude to the incest case in 1 Cor 5:1; ὄλεθρον τῆς σαρκός echoes Paul's handing the offender over for the destruction of the flesh (1 Cor 5:5).
19 ↩ἱερᾶς τραπέζης and ἀπορρήτων μυστηρίων name the Eucharist; English keeps sacred table and ineffable mysteries for sacramental gravity without archaism.
20 ↩εὐθυνῶν rendered as penalties/accountability before judgment for the sin; it can also mean the reckoning or charges themselves.
21 ↩συμπεριιπτάμενος is a vivid 'flying about with' image of missionary travel; rendered as flying about the inhabited world with Paul to keep the force without stiff calque.
22 ↩πειρασμοῖς is dative with finite verbs κολαφίζουσι / ἐπιφέρουσι; rendered as trials as the buffeting force, in line with the following 2 Cor 12 quotation.
23 ↩θεραπείας can mean treatment, medical care, or more broadly attendance/healing care; rendered as medical care to match the illness context.
24 ↩ἀπεληλύθειν ἐντεῦθεν: likely means he would already have died under his trials (so providence preserving him proves the promised λύσις will come); could also be heard more weakly as forced departure from the place.
25 ↩αὐτόθι ('there') most naturally points back to Constantinople / home life before exile, in contrast with present conditions in Armenia.
26 ↩ὑμᾶς is plural: Chrysostom widens the address beyond Olympias alone (her circle/companions), while still speaking within the letter to her.
27 ↩συνοδία can mean traveling company, household circle, or spiritual fellowship; 'company' keeps the communal sense without over-specifying.
28 ↩ὑποσυρόμενοι literally 'being dragged under/swept away'; rendered as moral or spiritual collapse under pressure, following the grief over Pelagius in the previous sentence.

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