Matthew 5:25–26

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Suppose someone, he says, brings charges against you before one set in authority, then points you out to those who lead to court and has you hauled off. While you are still with him on the road — that is, before you reach the judge — give diligence: do not hesitate to use every effort to be freed from him.

If that does not happen, he will hand you to the judge. When you are found liable for the debts, you will be handed to the exactor — the collectors — and after shutting you up they will demand even “the last lepton.” (Matthew 5:25–26)

So all of us on earth are liable for faults. Each person’s adversary and accuser is Satan, for he is enemy and avenger. While we are still on the road — that is, before we reach the end of this life — let us be freed from him, loose the charges against ourselves, and seize the grace through Christ that frees us from every debt and sets us outside judgment, punishment, and fear.

Otherwise, still carrying the stain unwashed, we may be carried to the judge and handed to “the exactors,” the punishers, whose harshness no one escapes. Then penalties will be demanded for every fault, small and great. Far from this will be those who prove the time of Christ’s coming and have not ignored the mystery in him.

Greek

Ὑποκείσθω τις, φησίν, ἐφ' ἑνὸς τῶν τεταγμένων εἰς ἀρχὴν αἰτιά ματά τινα ποιησάμενος κατά σου, εἶτα τοῖς ἀπάγουσιν ἐπὶ τὸ δικαστήριον ὑποδείξας ἀποφέρεσθαι ποιεῖ· ἕως τοίνυν, φησίν, μετ' αὐτοῦ εἶ ἐν τῇ ὁδῷ, τοῦτ' ἔστιν πρὶν ἀφικέσθαι πρὸς τὸν κριτήν, δὸς ἐργασίαν, ἀντὶ τοῦ πᾶσαν θέσθαι μὴ ὀκνήσῃς σπουδήν, ἵνα ἀπαλλαγῇς ἀπ' αὐτοῦ. εἰ δὲ μὴ τοῦτο γένηται, παραδώσει σε τῷ κριτῇ. εἶτα ὅταν ἔνοχος τοῖς ὀφλήμασιν εὑρεθῇς, "παραδοθήσῃ τῷ πράκτορι", τοῦτ' ἔστιν τοῖς ἀπαιτηταῖς, κἀκεῖνοί σε κατακλείσαντες ἀπαιτήσουσι καὶ "τὸ ἔσχατον λεπτόν". οὐκοῦν ἔνοχοι μὲν πλημμελήμασίν ἐσμεν ἅπαντες οἱ ὄντες ἐπὶ τῆς γῆς. ἑκάστου γε μὴν ἀντίδικος καὶ κατήγορος ὁ σατανᾶς· ἐχθρὸς γάρ ἐστι καὶ ἐκδικητής· ἕως τοίνυν ἐσμὲν ἐν τῇ ὁδῷ, τοῦτ' ἔστιν ἕως οὔπω πρὸς τὸ τῆς ἐνθάδε ζωῆς κατηντήσαμεν τέλος, ἀπαλλαγῶμεν αὐτοῦ, λύσωμεν τὰς καθ' ἑαυτῶν αἰτίας, τὴν διὰ Χριστοῦ χάριν ἁρπάσωμεν ἐλευθεροῦσαν ἡμᾶς παντὸς ὀφλήματός τε καὶ δίκης ἔξω τιθείσης κολά σεώς τε καὶ φόβου, μὴ ἄρα πως ἀναπόνιπτον ἐσχηκότες τὸν μολυσμὸν ἀπενεχθῶμεν πρὸς τὸν κριτὴν καὶ παραδοθῶμεν "τοῖς πράκτορσιν" ἤτοι τοῖς κολασταῖς, ὧν οὐκ ἄν τις διαφύγοι τὸ ἀπηνές. ἀπαιτηθήσεται δὲ μᾶλλον τὰς ἐπὶ παντὶ πλημμελήματι δίκας, μικρῷ καὶ μεγάλῳ. τούτων ἔσονται μακρὰν οἱ τὸν τῆς Χριστοῦ παρουσίας καιρὸν δοκιμάζοντες καὶ τὸ ἐπ' αὐτῷ μυστήριον οὐκ ἠγνοηκότες.

About this text

Catena fragments on Matthew (CPG 5206). Contents follow Matthew chapter and verse. Edition fragment numbers stay in About this text and under each passage.

English follows the named copy-text (Aegean/khazarzar Migne PG 72 extract). Other prints were checked as noted; no silent merge of recensions.

Witnesses

Copy-text Migne PG 72 Commentarii in Matthaeum (Aegean Digital Patrologia / khazarzar) (Greek · CPG 5206 catena fragments (290 parsed heads))
Checked print matia.gr mirror of same Aegean extract (Greek · Byte-identical PDF; integrity check only)
Checked print Internet Archive PG 72 volume OCR (bim … 1859_72) (Greek (OCR damaged) · Locus confirmation only; not used as reading text)

This is an AI-assisted study translation. Source fidelity and completeness have not been independently certified. Open Greek on each section for the source text. This is not a complete critical edition.