The Folly of the Flesh-Lovers

Only once does he call those who encounter him ants and worms, fleeting wisdom of temporary glory; but when he is snatched away from life and, like a slave of lashes, is deprived of those things of which through ignorance he thought himself a master, humility is imposed upon him in response to his pride. Like a goat putting forward the wails of a mourning woman, he calls upon the patriarch from afar and ignorantly, saying: 'Father Abraham, have mercy on me and send Lazarus, so that he may dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue, for I am suffering in this flame' (Luke 16:24), seeking a mercy which was not given when it was easy for him to do good because he possessed the authority; and demanding that Lazarus arrive to help against the fire, praying to suck the finger of the leper slightly moistened with water. Such are the follies of the flesh-lovers; this is the end of the lovers of wealth and the lovers of pleasure.

And it is fitting for the prudent and the provident of the future, having taken as a parable something like a preventative medicine for a disease, to flee the experience of such evils, regarding compassion and philanthropy as the cause of life.