Homilies on the Gospel of St. John and the Epistle to the Hebrews

NPNF (V1-14)St. Chrysostom131we should not be condemned with the world” ( 1 Cor. xi. 32 ); for the punishments here are forwarning, there for vengeance.“What then,” saith one, “do all diseases proceed from sin?” Not all, but most of them; and someproceed from different kinds of loose living, 1004 since gluttony, intemperance, and sloth, producesuch like sufferings. But the one rule we have to observe, is to bear every stroke thankfully; forthey are sent because of our sins, as in the Kings we see one attacked by gout ( 1 Kings xv. 23 );they are sent also to make us approved, as the Lord saith to Job, “Thinkest thou that I have spokento thee, save that thou mightest appear righteous?” ( Job lx. 8 , LXX.)But why is it that in the case of these paralytics Christ bringeth forward their sins? For He saithalso to him in Matthew who lay on a bed, “Son, be of good cheer, thy sins are forgiven thee” (Matt. ix. 2 ): and to this man, “Behold, thou art made whole; sin no more.” 1005 I know that someslander this paralytic, asserting that he was an accuser of Christ, and that therefore this speech wasaddressed to him; what then shall we say of the other in Matthew, who heard nearly the same words?For Christ saith to him also, “Thy sins be forgiven thee.” Whence it is clear, that neither was thisman thus addressed on the account which they allege. And this we may see more clearly from whatfollows; 1006 for, saith the Evangelist, “Afterward Jesus findeth him in the Temple,” which is anindication of his great piety; for he departed not into the market places and walks, nor gave himselfup to luxury and ease, but remained in the Temple, although about to sustain so violent an attackand to be harassed by all there. 1007 Yet none of these things persuaded him to depart from theTemple. Moreover Christ having found him, even after he had conversed with the Jews, impliednothing of the kind. For had He desired to charge him with this, He would have said to him, “Artthou again attempting the same sins as before, art thou not made better by thy cure?” Yet He saidnothing of the kind, but merely secureth him for the future.[2.] Why then, when He had cured the halt and maimed, did He not in any instance make mentionof the like? Methinks that the diseases of these (the paralytic) arose from acts of sin, those of theothers from natural infirmity. Or if this be not so, then by means of these men, and by the wordsspoken to them, He hath spoken to the rest also. For since this disease is more grievous than anyother, by the greater He correcteth also the less. And as when He had healed a certain other Hecharged him to give glory to God, addressing this exhortation not to him only but through him toall, so He addresseth to these, and by these to all the rest of mankind, that exhortation and advicewhich was given to them by word of mouth. Besides this we may also say, that Jesus perceivedgreat endurance in his soul, and addressed the exhortation to him as to one who was able to receiveHis command, keeping him to health both by the benefit, and by the fear of future ills.And observe the absence of boasting. He said not, “Behold, I have made thee whole,” but,“Thou art made whole; sin no more.” And again, not, “lest I punish thee,” but, “lest a worse thingcome unto thee”; putting both expressions not personally, 1008 and showing that the cure was ratherof grace than of merit. For He declared not to him that he was delivered after suffering the deservedamount of punishment, but that through lovingkindness he was made whole. Had this not been the1004al. “ from loose living, ” ῥ αθυμίας1005See p. 129.1006al. “ from another reason. ”1007al. “ chased thence by all. ”1008ἀ προσώπως , i.e. not referring to Himself.201