God is ready to do good, and slow to punish
God is ready to do good, and slow to punish those who deserve punishment. He could bring the penalty on those he has condemned in silence, without first bearing witness against them. He never does that. Even when he condemns, he speaks, and he speaks so that the one about to be condemned may turn from the sentence.
There are many examples of this in the Scriptures. A few that come up at once will be enough, so that we may reach the aim of the readings set before us.
The Ninevites had become sinners, and they were condemned by God. Yet three days, and Nineveh was about to be overthrown. God did not wish to condemn the city in silence. He gave them room for repentance and turning, and sent a Hebrew prophet, so that when the prophet said, 'Yet three days, and Nineveh shall be overthrown,' those already condemned might not be condemned, but might repent and meet with the mercy of God.
Those in Sodom and Gomorrah had been condemned, as is clear from God's words to Abraham. Even so the angels did their part, wanting to save those who did not want to be saved. They said to Lot, 'Have you anyone here, sons-in-law or sons or daughters?' They were not ignorant that those others would not follow Lot. They were doing the work of their own kindness, and of the kindness of the one who sent them.
Greek
Ὁ θεὸς εἰς ἀγαθοποιίαν πρόχειρός ἐστιν, εἰς δὲ τὸ κολάσαι τοὺς ἀξίους κολάσεως μελλητής. δυνάμενος γοῦν ἐπαγαγεῖν τὴν κόλασιν τοῖς ὑπ᾿ αὐτοῦ καταδικαζομένοις μετὰ σιωπῆς, μετὰ τοῦ μὴ προόιαμαρτύρασθαι, οὐδαμῶς τοῦτο ποιεῖ· ἀλλὰ κἂν καταδικάζῃ λέrει, τοῦ λέγειν αὐτῷ προκειμένου ἐπὶ τῷ ἐπιστρέψαι ἀπὸ τῆς καταδίδκης τὸν καταδικασθησόμενον. τούτων μὲν παραδείγματα ἔστιν ἀπὸ τῶν γραφῶν λαβεῖν πολλά, ὀλίγα δὲ ἀρκεῖ τὰ ἐπὶ τοῦ ὑποπίπτοντα, ἕνα ἔλθωμεν καὶ ἐπὶ τὸν σκοπὸν τῶν προκειμένων ἀναγνωσμάτων. οἱ Νινευῖται γὰρ ἁμαρτωλοὶ ἐγεγόνεισαν καὶ κατεδικάσθησαν κάσθησαν ὑπὸ τοῦ θεοῦ· ἔτι τρεῖς ἡμέραι καὶ ἔμελλε Νινευὴ . οὐκ ἠθέλησε σιωπῶν ὁ θεὸς καταδικάσαι αὐτήν, ἀλλὰ διδοὺς αὐτοῖς τόπον μετανοίας< καὶ ἐπιστροφῆς ἔπεμψεν προφήτην, ἴνα εἰπόντος αὐτοῦ· ἔτι τρεῖς ἡμέραι καὶ Νινευὴ καταστραφήσεται«, οἱ καταδεδικασμένοι μὴ καταδικασθῶσιν, ἀλλὰ μετανοήσαντες τύχωσι τοῦ ἐλέους τοῦ θεοῦ. οἱ ἐν Σοδόμοις καὶ Γομόρροις ἠσαν καταδεδικασμένοι, ὡς δῆλον ἐκ τῶν λόγων τοῦ θεοῦ τῶν πρὸς τὸν Ἀβραάμ· ἀλλ᾿ ὅμως τὰ αὑτῶν πεποιήκασιν οἱ ἄγγελοι, θέλοντες σῴζεσθαι τοὺς μὴ θέλοντας σῴζεσθαι, λέγοντες τῷ Λώτ· «εἰσί τινές σοι ὡδε γαμβροὶ ἢ υἱοὶ ἢ θυγατέρες«; οὐκ ἀγνοοῦντες ὅτι οὐχ ἕπονται ἐκεῖνοι τῷ Λώτ, ἀλλὰ ποιοῦντες τὰ τῆς ἑαυτῶν ἅμα καὶ τοῦ πέμψαντος αὐτοὺς χρηστότητος καὶ φιλανθρωπίας.
About this text
Origen on Jeremiah. Twenty Greek homilies survive. This page publishes the Pass B English for Homilies 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20. Homily 8 remains a machine draft and is not shipped yet. The rest of the volume is still being translated.
English follows Erich Klostermann, Origenes Werke III (GCS, 1901). A second transcription of that same edition (First1KGreek TEI) was checked; where the TEI drops or garbles a line, the page image wins. This is a reading translation for study, not a new critical edition of the Greek. Homilies that survive only in Jerome’s Latin are not on this page yet. When they are, they will be marked at those homilies.
Witnesses
- Copy-text Klostermann, Origenes Werke III (GCS, 1901) (Greek · Homilies 1–20 Greek (this page: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20))
- Checked print Archive.org page image and DjVu of GCS III (Greek · Same print as the copy-text)
- Checked print First1KGreek TEI of GCS III (Greek · Same print; encoding errors deferred to the page image)
Where the prints differ
- Homily 1.1 — The TEI omits Ἑβραῖον. English follows the GCS page image: Jonah is “a Hebrew prophet.”
- Homily 1.5 — The TEI dropped Ἰσαάκ. English follows the GCS page image: Isaac born of promise.
- Homily 1.11 — The TEI/OCR of this line is garbled. English follows the GCS page image and the quoted verse: “I have sanctified you.”
- Homily 3.2 — The TEI gaps Matthew 5:45 (sun on the evil and [gap]; rain on [gap] and the unjust). English follows the Gospel wording.
English is newly prepared for study from the stated edition. Open Greek on each section for the source text. This is not a complete critical edition.