God's vengeance through His servants

Being held, not knowing a zeal for piety, he was not struck by the arrow of truth.

Therefore, he who sees one perishing and does not show zeal, as Paul says, 'Who is weak, and is not weak?' (1 Cor 9:27), is not a disciple of Paul. Let him compare the achievements of the Father, and he will find him agreeing with the apostolic voices: 'Who is weak, and is not weak?' 'Who is stumbled, and am I not burned?' Those thinking thus are brothers of the apostles.

For the righteous does not only lose heart in those things in which he sins, but also in those in which he sees others sinning, as David says: 'Despair has seized me because of sinners who have abandoned your law' (Ps 118:28). If anyone loses heart over the sins of others, he has a zeal for piety. For the righteous, when his own life is being corrected, weeps and mourns to erase his own sin; and then, having ceased from his own sin, he mourns the remaining sins of others, just as Paul says: 'Lest coming, I should mourn many of those who sinned before and did not repent' (2 Cor 13:10).

Paul mourns those who sinned and did not repent. Samuel mourns Saul, as God says: 'How long will you mourn over Saul?' (1 Sam 16:1). You see a soul perishing, and you do not mourn? If anyone sees a dead man being carried out, and does not weep, he is proven to be impure, hard, and beastly. If you see a soul being baptized in impiety, and being condemned to eternal death, and remaining in unfaithfulness, do you not weep, tell me, and mourn? And this is a pious soul?

Indeed, all other sins the one thinking well must mourn, except, however, when he sees a soul baptized in the impiety of Hellenism. Over such a soul one must not only mourn, but also be burned and consumed by zeal, so that he may become a disciple of Paul. For, he says, while Paul was rubbing his way in Athens, his spirit was consumed, seeing the city to be a sepulcher. Why then do the saints think these things, just as this wonderful one was a father avenging piety? For just as a king on earth, holding the inhabited world under him, has advocates assisting him in each court of the palace, so God has the faithful shepherds as avengers of piety. For many, frequently spreading rumors among the Greeks, say whatever...

Lest Christians hear those saying to them, 'Why do you blaspheme? Why are you impious?' and immediately they are dragged away; 'Behold the avengers of God; is God not able to avenge himself?' But He does not avenge himself (for He does not insult the divinity), but through faithful servants, the ignorant slaves, He lashes. Does God have need of avenging? Yes; not because He is weak, but so that He may open for you a door of zeal. For if He did everything by Himself, the way of life would be closed to the zealot.

Pharaoh never fought against God, though he was submerged in impiety; and nowhere was a lash brought upon him until Moses the faithful rose up. The many-godded error with the false priests and false prophets was not trimmed away, and nowhere was a plague from God, until Elijah the zealot rose up. The saints are, it is confessed, the avengers of God. Therefore also Paul says: 'We are ready to avenge all offense, when your obedience is fulfilled' (Rom 12:19).

Furthermore, the wonderful Deborah, having the weakness of a woman but prophesying the courage of virtue, about whom the Scripture says, 'And Deborah arose, a mother in Israel' (Judg 4:4), and she became a mother to the people through piety, and she flourished so much that she even says to the generals of war, regarding those around Barak: 'If you do not come to war with us, we are not going.' They did not boast of the woman's courage, but of the power of prophecy. Many went out as co-workers of God's counsel, and they cut down the foreign tribes.

That blessed Deborah, bringing the truth, says: 'Lord, those who love you, like the rising of the sun; but your enemies, like the glimmer of a lamp' (Judg 5:31). Lord, those who love you, like the rising of the sun; because the sun is never extinguished; but your enemies, like the glimmer of a lamp; for a lamp has light for a short time, and again it is extinguished. Then He praises the general who ministered to God's counsel, and after these things He commands the inhabitants of Majore to be cursed, because they did not go out to the help of the Lord.

Did God then need help? Yes. It is necessary for those helping in piety to be revealed. Thus also this wonderful father does not help God as if He were powerless, but having been led to this, he avenges piety, demonstrating through the body toward destruction, but for souls...