THEOSISJohn Chrysostom
And from this again the meekness of this man is evident. When the other was beaten, he did not consider it an insult to himself. So bold were the Jews.
Oh, what shame they suffered! "And Gallio," it says, "cared for none of these things," though everything had been done to insult him.
They, as if they had some authority, beat the ruler. They shamefully performed an act of mad fury.
Why, then, did he not beat them in return, though he had authority over them? So that they might learn philosophy.
He did not beat them in return, so that the judge might learn which of them was more meek. This brought no small benefit to those present as well.
The meekness of some and the boldness of the others showed that a judicial decision was needed for all this. But they did everything disorderly.
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He did not say, "It is not lawful," lest they beat him another time, but, "I do not wish it." "I do not wish to be a judge."
So meek was this man. In a similar way Pilate also said concerning Christ, "Take Him yourselves, and judge Him according to your law" (Jn 18:31).
He wanted them to judge according to the law, but they acted like drunken and raving men.
Paul came from Athens to Corinth because there were "many people" here. He was beaten and said nothing. Let us also imitate him.
Let us repay those who beat us with meekness, silence, and longsuffering. These are heavier wounds, a stronger and more effective blow, because the grave wound is not of the body, but of the soul.
We strike many blows. But if this is done in friendship, it even pleases. If you strike someone in anger, you touch his heart and cause him great sorrow.
Thus we wound their heart more deeply. Let us prove, as far as possible, that meekness wounds more than resistance.
The clearest proof of this would come from deeds and experience. But if you wish, let us explain it by speech, though we have already done so many times.
In insults, nothing grieves us so much as the opinion of those present. It is not the same to receive an insult before all or in private.
We easily bear insults inflicted on us in private, when there are no witnesses and no one knows of it.
Therefore the insult itself does not grieve us, but the fact that it is inflicted before all. If someone praised us before all and reviled us in private, we would still be grateful to him.
Thus grief does not depend on the insult itself, but on the opinion of those present, before whom we do not wish to seem contemptible.
Now what if their opinion is in our favor? Will not the insulter himself suffer more, if they cast their vote for us?
Tell me, whom do impartial witnesses condemn: the one who inflicts the insult, or the one who suffers it and remains silent?
Anger carries us away at the time when the insult is inflicted. Let us look now, when we are free from this passion, so that we are not carried away then.
Whom do we all condemn? Certainly the one who inflicts the insult. If he is beneath us, we say that he is raving.
If he is equal, we say that he is mad. If he is above us, even then we do not approve.
Tell me, who is worthy of approval? The one who is agitated, raging, and savage like a wild beast, rising against those who share the same nature?
Or the one who remains in calm, as in a harbor, and preserves great philosophy? Is not the latter like an angel, while the former is not even like a man?
The one cannot restrain even his own evil, while the other restrains another's as well. The one cannot govern even himself, while the other bridles another also.
The one suffers shipwreck, while the other sails safely in his ship with a favorable wind. He does not allow the wind of anger to rush into the sails and sink his spiritual boat.
Rather, a light and pleasant wind, the breath of innocence, blows for him and brings him with great calm into the harbor of philosophy.
When a ship is wrecked, those sailing on it do not know what they throw into the sea, whether their own property or the goods of others entrusted to them.
They cast away indiscriminately everything in it, precious and worthless alike. But when the storm ceases, they reflect on what they threw away.
Then they weep and do not rejoice in the calm weather, because of the loss of what was cast overboard.
So it is here also. When anger rages and this storm rises, people do not consider what must be thrown away and what must not.
But when anger ceases, then, reflecting on what they cast away, they see only harm. They do not rejoice in the calm itself.
They remember with what words they disgraced themselves, and what great loss they suffered, not in money, but in humility and meekness.
Truly, anger is darkness. Scripture says, "The fool has said in his heart, 'There is no God'" (Ps 13:1).
It seems one may also say of the angry man, "The angry man has said, 'There is no God.'" Scripture says, "In the multitude of his anger he will not seek Him" (Ps 9:25).
If a pious thought appears, it removes, drives away, and overthrows all other thoughts.
If you do not feel how you suffer harm more than the one insulted, then insult. If no one condemns you, the judgment of conscience will overtake you in private and punish you a thousand times more.
Indeed, when you hear that the one you insulted did not say a single offensive word, do you not grieve more than he does?
Tell me, how did you shower a quiet, humble, and meek man with a thousand reproaches? We often say this, but we do not see it kept in deed.
How do you, a man, insult a man? How do you, a slave, insult a fellow slave?
But why marvel at this, when many insult God Himself? Let this be a consolation for you who suffer insults.
Are you insulted? God is also insulted. Are you reviled? God is also reviled. Are you subjected to spitting? Our Lord also endured the same.
In this He has something in common with us, but not in the contrary thing. He never unjustly insulted, may it not be, nor reviled, nor wronged.
Therefore we who are insulted have something in common with Him, not you who insult. To endure insults belongs to God, but to insult without cause belongs to the devil.
Here are two opposing sides. "You have a demon" (Jn 8:48), such words Christ heard. A servant of the high priest struck Him on the cheek (Jn 18:22).
Those who insult unjustly take the side of these men. It is truly so.
If Peter was called Satan for one word only (Mt 16:23), then much more may such people be called Jews when they do the works of the Jews.
And those men were called sons of the devil, because they did the works of the devil (Jn 8:44).
You insult another. But tell me, who are you? Or rather, you insult precisely because you yourself are nothing.
It is not proper to man to inflict insults. In a quarrel they say, "Who are you?" On the contrary, one should say, "Insult, for you are nothing."
Now, when we say to the insulter, "Who are you?" we hear in response, "In every way I am better than you."
Yet the opposite should be said. But because we put the question badly, they also give a bad answer. Thus we ourselves are at fault.
We address insulters as if they were some great men when we say, "Who are you, that you insult?" Therefore they answer in this way.
One should say the opposite: "Do you insult? Insult, for you are nothing." Rather, to those who do not inflict insults one should say, "Who are you, that you do not insult?"
"You are above human nature." Nobility and freedom consist in saying nothing degrading to anyone, even if someone deserves it.
Tell me, how many people deserve death? Yet the judge does not condemn them on his own, but examines them, and not even personally.
If it is not customary for a judge himself to speak with a wicked man, but some intermediary is needed, much more must we not insult people equal to ourselves.
We shall not gain as much benefit from insulting others as from being persuaded that in such a case we degrade ourselves.
Therefore wicked people must not be insulted for this reason. Good people must not be insulted for another reason also, because they do not deserve it.
There is also a third reason: one must not be an insulter. Now see what happens. A man is insulted and degraded, and together with him the insulter and all who observe it are degraded.
What then? Shall we bring beasts to them to settle the matter? This remains the only remedy.
If men rejoice in inflicting insults on one another, then it remains to entrust reconciliation to beasts.
In a house, when the masters quarrel, their reconciliation must be expected from the servants. The nature of the matter requires this, even if perhaps it does not happen.
So it is here also. Do you insult? It is no wonder, for you are not a man.
Insult seems to be some great thing, and is considered fitting for great men. But it is more fitting for slaves, while good words are fitting for free men.
As doing evil belongs to the former, so enduring evil belongs to the latter.
For example, a maidservant intending to steal secretly takes her master's goods. So it is with insult.
As a thief enters cautiously and looks around, seeking to steal something, so the insulter watches everything in order to hand something over to others.
Let us portray him by another example. Suppose someone stole unclean vessels from a house and carried them out before all.
He is not so much ashamed of the theft as of himself, when he sees that he stole and carried out such vessels.
So also this man, by uttering foul words before all, shames not others but himself. He has uttered them and defiled his tongue and mind with them.
When we quarrel with wicked people, the same happens as with a man who strikes another lying in the mud. He dirties himself by touching the mud with his hands.
Remembering all this, I exhort you, let us flee this evil. Let us have a tongue of blessing.
Then, keeping ourselves pure from every reproach, we may pass through the present life safely and be counted worthy of the good things promised to those who love God.
May this be by the grace and love for mankind of our Lord Jesus Christ. With Him, to the Father, together with the Holy Spirit, be glory, dominion, and honor, now and ever, and unto the ages of ages. Amen.
"Crispus, the ruler of the synagogue, believed in the Lord with all his household" (Acts 18:8). See how the faithful then did this by whole households.
Then soon many others also believed and were baptized. The one called ruler of the synagogue here is the same Crispus of whom Paul says in the epistle, "I baptized none of you except Crispus and Gaius" (1 Cor 1:14).
And this man, it seems to me, is also called Sosthenes. For this man was so faithful that he was beaten and was always with Paul.