Eve should have firmly responded to this wicked creature: “We understand that God commanded us not to partake of the fruit from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, but questioning His reasons is inappropriate. We must accept His holy will without scrutinizing its intent.” “For who has known the mind of the Lord? Or who was a counselor to Him? Or who gave Him beforehand that He should repay? For all things are of Him, by Him and to Him. To Him be glory forever and ever, amen” (Rom. 11:34-36). Some may argue that inquiring about the reasons for God’s commands is permissible at times. From whom is this claim made? Certainly not from God, who alone comprehends what is truly good or merely acceptable. When a servant asks a master or a subordinate seeks justification from a superior, the request is often seen as an insult or an act of rebellion. Yet, in your insolence, you dare to question God! The sole reason for God’s Providence is His holy will, essentially existing beyond all comprehension.
It is perplexing and astonishing that the Samaritans embraced the Lord's words and requested Him to remain with them, while the disbelieving Gergesians implored Him to depart swiftly. The unfaithful Jews, through neither words nor actions nor divine wonders, did not convert to faith in His sacred messenger: “Thy judgments, O Lord, are a great abyss!” Julian of Alexandria, a holy martyr unable to walk due to illness in his legs, was carried by two servants before the judgment of Christian persecutors. One of the servants, though a Christian, renounced both Christ and his master during the trial and succumbed to dreadful idolatry. The other, named Eun, steadfastly upheld his faith in Christ and refused to betray either God or his master. The two confessors were initially paraded on camels through the city of Alexandria in dishonor, beaten mercilessly, and ultimately thrown into a burning pyre, where they offered their souls to God in righteous confession. Observing their torment, a compassionate soldier named Vesa attempted to calm the people and prevent a riot, but he was brought before the judge, who sentenced him to death for professing faith in Christ; the executioner beheaded him. Vesa thus received the martyr's crown that had been forfeited by the cowardly Christian.
Saint Athanasius, Archbishop of Alexandria, recounts an episode in the life of Anthony the Great where two monks journeyed to visit him in the desert. While traversing the parched landscape, they succumbed to thirst; one monk died, while the other neared death. Although Saint Anthony was several miles away, he felt prompted by God to send two of his monks with a vessel of water to save the surviving brother; he revealed this divine will to Anthony while he prayed. Upon receiving the message, the messengers hurriedly set out and found the travelers; they buried the deceased monk and brought the revived one back to Saint Anthony. Athanasius insightfully notes that one may wonder why Saint Anthony did not send for assistance sooner, before the death of the first monk. Such inquiries are indeed improper for a Christian, as this situation was beyond Anthony's control— it was God's judgment that determined the fate of both the dying and the living. Saint Anthony, reflecting on the inscrutable mysteries of God, humbly beseeched Him: “O Lord, my God, You at times grant extended life to the seemingly useless who are engulfed in sin, while taking away the lives of those useful to society. Some who have committed few sins meet severe ends, while others live in happiness, emboldened to commit crimes: ‘their eyes are rolled out of fat, their thoughts wander in their hearts’” (Psalm 72:7). During this contemplation, Anthony heard a voice cautioning him: “Beware of your thoughts: what you meditate on is the judgment of God and is beyond your examination. Oh, how great are Thy works, O Lord! Very deep are Thy thoughts also: ‘The man of no understanding knows not, and the ignorant man understandeth not these things’” (Psalm 91:6, 7). Truly, You are the hidden God, beyond the comprehension of Your creation.
In the year 1117, amidst a widespread earthquake in Italy, as Rogerius reports, some residents of Mediolanus gathered in a house to address public needs when a voice suddenly called from the courtyard, summoning one of them to come outside. This person hesitated, uncertain of who was calling until a stranger urged him to exit immediately. As he stepped away from the house, it collapsed, claiming the lives of all those inside. Why was this individual saved while the others perished? Indeed, the judgments of the Lord are a great abyss! This incident echoes the ancient miracles: just as the angel of the Lord escorted Lot and his family from Sodom, sparing them from destruction while leaving others to perish. In similar miraculous circumstances, many have been preserved from calamities that befell others.
In 1597, in Sicily, there lived a defiant, immoral man on a place called "King's Mountain." Despite the repeated admonitions of a devout monk to abandon his sinful life, he remained obstinate. Days after the monk’s last warning, he died in an indecent manner, pierced accidentally by a bayonet while lying with a woman. Another lawless man, upon hearing of the first's demise, renounced his immoral lifestyle and turned to a life of chastity, repenting for his long-standing sins. What can one conclude from all this but the fitting acknowledgment: “Thy judgments, O Lord, are a great and immeasurable abyss!”
THEOSIS