The True Joy of the Righteous

Being according to what was said: 'and injustice lied against itself' (Job 21:13) because it lacks a secure foundation. By the lion starting from itself, having trampled the two legs and the lobe of the ear, the one who came for salvation scattered them, having corrected our wandering powers and our hearing. The place is often called instead of ranks and order: 'from where Judas passed over.' So also regarding the deceiver, who deceives the user without offering anything certain to him. Have you not seen such a destruction of the ungodly? And he brings as a witness all the things previously said concerning the ungodly, which he also named the destruction of the ungodly, because he does not remain upon those things on which he boasts, as these things fall away from him.

This is shown by: 'do not fear when a man becomes rich and when the glory of his house increases, for he will not take all things in dying, nor will the glory of his house descend with him' (Psalm 49:16-17). And whether poverty or prosperity alternate, they do nothing, for they are among the indifferent. But he who remains in wickedness until the end will have a great destruction. And from the earth he will sprout another; for the Lord will certainly not cast away the simple. It appears that even if the ungodly undergoes destruction, not all are lost; for there will be a diligent one sprouting anew. For God will not turn away from the simple, that is, He will not entirely exclude justice.

Here 'simple' means the one not having guile, not the well-disposed; for the name signifies both. For when he speaks concerning the heretics, saying, 'through fair speaking and blessing they deceive the hearts of the simple,' he means the well-disposed, those slow in understanding. And again: 'the simple and well-disposed clung to me,' which signifies the righteous, the 'simple believes every word' (Jeremiah 11:19) signifying the one who is uncontrolled and unable to discern the falsehood in the words, believing everything plausible. And he who says, 'but because of my simplicity, I received' signifies virtue. And every gift the ungodly will not receive. It is appropriate to the Lord, who does not cast away the simple, that not even one of the gifts of the ungodly be attached to him. 'For thanks are not good from the wages of a prostitute' (Proverbs 7:33), and 'the sinner sacrificing a calf to me as...

The one killing the dog. It is noteworthy, however, that 'all is a gift' is said instead of 'nothing is a gift' according to prophetic custom, just as when God says in the prophet: 'if a righteous man does one sin, all his righteousness shall not be remembered' (cf. Job 2:10), instead of 'not any'. And the mouth of the truthful shall be filled with laughter. Throughout the whole book, he remembers the truthful regarding the righteous. Thus also Job himself was testified at the beginning, that he was 'truthful, abstaining from an evil thing'.

And truly, he is the one who is truthful, who does not pretend or mimic virtue, who does not pretend temperance, but is temperate, the one 'pursuing the righteous thing righteously.' Therefore, God 'will fill the mouth of the truthful with laughter.' And from this it is to be imposed, lest even this one, having learned according to the 'inquiry of the first generation' concerning the coming age according to that which is said in the Gospel: 'blessed are those who weep now, for they shall laugh' (Luke 6:21), be lost.

For laughter is twofold: the one being false, occurring with pleasure, which is followed by weeping; the other being the gift of the Spirit, being joy, which shall be given to those weeping now in the life to come. For 'blessed are those who weep now, for they shall laugh' (Luke 6:21), they have the harvest of this from afar because of virtue; the holy one, having received the experience of this from afar, as I said, said: 'You have turned my mourning into joy for me, you have torn my sackcloth and girded me with gladness' (Psalm 30:11).

The example of Lazarus is here, first weeping because of suffering, but resting in the bosom of Abraham; whereas the rich man, laughing through pleasure, wept while being tormented in Hades bitterly concerning that laughter spoken of. He honored himself by making himself a god in some way, just as others make the belly, concerning whom it is said: 'of whom God is the belly.' It is also said concerning laughter: 'the altars of laughter shall be removed, the sins of Israel' (Hosea 10:5). For the preoccupations regarding sufferings and pleasures are altars of laughter, remembering these sufferings of their own.

He who does great and unsearchable things, glorious and wonderful, of which there is no number. The great one does great things by necessity; it is not necessary for one doing great things to be great. For he does not turn back. Indeed, the disciples doing great things...