{"slug":"khazarzar-john-chrysostom-ad-eos-qui-magni-aestimant-opes","id":"greek:khazarzar:khazarzar-john-chrysostom-ad-eos-qui-magni-aestimant-opes","title":"Ad eos qui magni aestimant opes","title_source":"Ad eos qui magni aestimant opes","author":"John Chrysostom","genre":"other","date":"","tradition":"greek","coverage":"not-located","coverage_claim":{"status":"not-located","text":"No English translation could be identified: a language model asked twice could not name one, though it could not rule one out either. That is not proof that none exists — translations in dissertations, recent books and other modern languages are easily missed."},"publication":{"status":"machine-draft","reviewed_by":null,"model":"deepseek/deepseek-v4-flash:floor","provider":"Relace","generated":"2026-11-15T06:43:02Z","cost_usd":0.004088},"source":{"registry_id":"greek:khazarzar:khazarzar-john-chrysostom-ad-eos-qui-magni-aestimant-opes","work_id":"khazarzar-john-chrysostom-ad-eos-qui-magni-aestimant-opes","edition":"khazarzar","language":"","license":"Migne PG text (public domain); khazarzar host and the digitising project state no licence for this layer","url":"http://khazarzar.skeptik.net/pgm/PG_Migne/John%20Chrysostom_PG%2047-64/Ad%20eos%20qui%20magni%20aestimant%20opes.pdf"},"stats":{"passages":7,"english_words":1853,"coptic_letters":0,"source_letters":7602,"commentary_units":41,"commentary_kinds":8,"derived_notes":0,"ambiguities":13,"work_notes":5,"external_links":2,"timeline":4},"summary":{"work":"khazarzar-john-chrysostom-ad-eos-qui-magni-aestimant-opes","abstract":"This work, attributed to John Chrysostom, is a hortatory homily or moral treatise addressing those who overvalue wealth. It employs rhetorical and scriptural arguments to critique the pursuit of riches and extol spiritual poverty. The text survives in Greek and was likely composed during Chrysostom's active career (c. 386–407 CE), possibly in Antioch. It was later excerpted in Byzantine florilegia on wealth and almsgiving, influencing monastic and patristic anthologies. The modern digital edition (khazarzar) lacks critical apparatus, so users must supply their own lexical and historical analysis.","historical_context":"John Chrysostom (c. 347–407 CE) served as a presbyter in Antioch (c. 386–397) and later as Archbishop of Constantinople. His homilies on wealth and poverty, such as this one, reflect the social and economic disparities of late antique urban centers, particularly Antioch, where conspicuous consumption by the elite contrasted with widespread poverty. The work belongs to the genre of moral exhortation, common in Chrysostom's corpus, and draws on biblical themes (e.g., the rich and poor in the Gospels) and classical rhetoric. Its transmission is primarily through Byzantine manuscripts and florilegia; no precise date or manuscript stemma is available. The text's survival in a modern digital edition without critical apparatus limits certainty about its original form and textual history.","significance":"This work exemplifies Chrysostom's influential moral teaching on wealth, a central theme in his corpus. It shaped later Christian attitudes toward poverty and almsgiving, especially in monastic and ascetic traditions. Its inclusion in Byzantine florilegia ensured its lasting impact on patristic anthologies and medieval moral theology.","timeline":[{"date":"c. 386–407 CE","event":"Active career of John Chrysostom; likely composition of this homily or treatise in Antioch."},{"date":"4th–5th c.","event":"Transmission of Chrysostom's works in Greek manuscripts, often collected in homiliary and florilegia."},{"date":"Byzantine period","event":"Excerpted in florilegia on wealth and almsgiving, influencing monastic and patristic anthologies."},{"date":"Modern","event":"Digital edition published by khazarzar, based on unspecified manuscript sources, without critical apparatus."}],"relations":[{"work":"Homilies on Matthew","relation":"Parallel themes on wealth and poverty; similar rhetorical style and scriptural exegesis.","key":"","label":null,"url":null},{"work":"Homilies on the Statues","relation":"Contemporary moral exhortation addressing social issues in Antioch.","key":"","label":null,"url":null},{"work":"De sacerdotio","relation":"Another Chrysostom work on clerical and moral duties, though focused on priesthood.","key":"","label":null,"url":null},{"work":"Byzantine florilegia on wealth","relation":"The work was excerpted in these collections, ensuring its transmission and influence.","key":"","label":null,"url":null}],"external_links":[{"key":"wikipedia:John Chrysostom","label":"John Chrysostom","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Chrysostom","reason":"Provides biographical and historical context for the author."},{"key":"wikipedia:Antioch","label":"Antioch","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antioch","reason":"Likely place of composition; important for understanding the social setting."}],"cautions":["The date is uncertain; only a range (c. 386–407 CE) can be inferred from Chrysostom's active career.","The edition (khazarzar) is a modern digital transcription without critical apparatus; manuscript variants and stemmatic relationships are unknown.","The genre is ambiguous: it may be a homily or a moral treatise; the title does not specify a liturgical context.","No external evidence confirms the place of composition; Antioch is assumed based on internal references to wealth and poverty."],"model":"deepseek/deepseek-v4-flash:floor","provider":"Relace","cost_usd":0.000392,"generated":"2026-11-15T06:43:02Z"},"links":[{"kind":"source","label":"Patrologia Graeca text (khazarzar mirror)","url":"http://khazarzar.skeptik.net/pgm/PG_Migne/John%20Chrysostom_PG%2047-64/Ad%20eos%20qui%20magni%20aestimant%20opes.pdf"}],"checks":{"work":"khazarzar-john-chrysostom-ad-eos-qui-magni-aestimant-opes","status":"pass","blocking":[],"warnings":[],"stats":{"passages":7,"translated":7,"commentary_passages":7,"commentary_units":41,"english_words":1853,"source_letters":7601,"commentary_kinds":8},"model":"deepseek/deepseek-v4-flash:floor"},"work_notes":[{"unit":"sense","kind":"sense","basis":"text","lemma":"","severity":"info","text":"The work is a homily or moral treatise, not a formal theological tract. Its register is hortatory and rhetorical, aimed at a general Christian audience.","cites":[],"named_sources":[],"dropped_cites":[]},{"unit":"dating","kind":"chronology","basis":"background","lemma":"","severity":"info","text":"Chrysostom’s active career (c. 386–407 CE) provides the likely range. No external evidence narrows the date further; internal references to wealth and poverty fit his Antioch period.","cites":[],"named_sources":[],"dropped_cites":[]},{"unit":"transmission","kind":"transmission","basis":"external","lemma":"","severity":"caution","text":"The edition (khazarzar) is a modern digital transcription, not a critical edition. It lacks apparatus for manuscript variants or stemmatic analysis.","cites":[],"named_sources":[],"dropped_cites":[]},{"unit":"reception","kind":"reception","basis":"background","lemma":"","severity":"info","text":"The work was excerpted in Byzantine florilegia on wealth and almsgiving, influencing later monastic and patristic anthologies.","cites":[],"named_sources":[],"dropped_cites":[]},{"unit":"sense","kind":"sense","basis":"text","lemma":"","severity":"caution","text":"This edition provides no translation or commentary; the user must supply their own lexical and historical analysis. No critical apparatus is included.","cites":[],"named_sources":[],"dropped_cites":[]}],"derived_work_notes":[{"kind":"coverage","severity":"info","text":"No English translation could be identified: a language model asked twice could not name one, though it could not rule one out either. That is not proof that none exists — translations in dissertations, recent books and other modern languages are easily missed."},{"kind":"limit","severity":"caution","text":"The English is a machine draft produced passage by passage from the transcribed Coptic; no human has verified it. The commentary is model-written and cites only keys the pipeline could resolve."},{"kind":"register","severity":"info","text":"Register: other in ancient Greek; the English keeps the liturgical formulae and the vocatives rather than normalising them."},{"kind":"structure","severity":"info","text":"Passages: 7 narrative."},{"kind":"source","severity":"info","text":"Source edition: khazarzar — Migne PG text (public domain); khazarzar host and the digitising project state no licence for this layer"}],"derived_structure":{"narrative":7},"term_index":[],"citations":{},"segments":[{"i":1,"ref":"p1","source":"ΟΜΙΛΙΑ Εʹ. Πρὸς τοὺς μεγάλα τὰ παρόντα νομίζοντας καὶ περὶ τὰ τοῦ βίου λαμπρὰ μάτην ἐπτοημένους.\n\nἈγγέλοις μὲν οὐρανὸς εὐφροσύνης χωρίον, Ἐκκλησία δὲ πιστοῖς ἀντ' οὐρανῶν ἓν διαίτημα καὶ νόμιμον, ταῖς ψυχαῖς ἡδονὴν δωρουμένη τῶν ἱερῶν ἐπῳδῶν τὴν ἀκρόασιν. Ταύτης ποτὲ τὴν Μαρίαν ἐκκρεμαμένην ὁ τῆς μακαριότητος δοτὴρ ἐμακάριζεν· Μαρία, φησὶν, τὴν καλὴν μερίδα ἐξελέξατο, ἥτις οὐκ ἀφαιρεθήσεται ἀπ' αὐτῆς. Μόνον δὲ τῆς εὐσεβοῦς διδασκαλίας τὸ κέρδος καὶ ζῶσιν ἡμῖν ἀγαθὸν φυλακτήριον, καὶ τεθνεῶσιν πρὸς τὸν κριτὴν συνοδεῦον· ἡ δὲ τῶν ἄλλων ἁπάντων εὐκατάλυτος κτῆσις, οὐ μόνον ὅτι τάφον τὴν διάδοχον ἔχει, ἀλλ' ὅτι καὶ πρὸ τοῦ τάφου μυρία τὰ τοῦ βίου ναυάγια. Καθάπερ γὰρ θάλατταν τὸν παρόντα ναυτιλλόμεθα βίον σφοδροτέροις κυμάτων συμπτώμασι χρώμενον. Οὐ πλοῦτος σταθερᾶς ἀπολαύει γαλήνης, ἀλλ' ἐξ οὐρίας πολλάκις τοῖς κεκτημένοις συμπλέων, αἰφνιδίῳ λαίλαπι πειρασμῶν ἐβαπτίσθη. Οὐ θρόνος τὸ τῆς δυναστείας ἀκατάσειστον ὕψος· ἀθρόαι γὰρ πνεύσασαι καταιγίδες κινδύνων αὐτόῤῥιζον τὴν εὐημερίαν ἀνέσπασαν. Οὐ τὸ τῆς ὑγείας ἀδιάδοχον δῶρον, ἀλλ' ἐφεδρεύει καὶ ταύτῃ νοσημάτων ἀπροσδόκητος βλάβη. Πτεροῤῥυεῖ ποικίλως τῆς εὐπραγίας ἡ κτῆσις, καὶ δένδρῳ τινὶ προσέοικεν ἄνθρωπος, νῦν μὲν τὸ τῆς εὐθηνίας ἀνθηρὸν περιφέρων, νῦν δὲ τῷ ταύτης ὡς δένδρον ἐκδυόμενος φύλλον. Οὐδὲν τῶν βιωτικῶν ἀνθηρῶν ἐξετάζων γείτονα κεκτημένον τὸν μαρασμὸν οὐχ εὑρήσεις.","english":"Homily 5. To those who think highly of present things and are vainly excited about the brilliant things of life.\n\nFor angels, heaven is a place of joy, but the Church is for the faithful a lawful dwelling in place of heaven, bestowing pleasure on souls through the hearing of sacred chants. Once, the giver of blessedness declared Mary blessed as she hung upon this: \"Mary,\" he says, \"has chosen the beautiful portion, which will not be taken away from her.\" Only the profit of pious teaching is a good safeguard for us while living and accompanies us to the judge when dead; the possession of all other things is easily dissolved, not only because the grave is its successor, but because even before the grave there are countless shipwrecks of life. For we navigate the present life like a sea, which uses more violent collisions of waves. Wealth does not enjoy stable calm, but often sailing with a fair wind for its possessors, it is sunk by a sudden squall of trials. A throne is not the unshakable height of power; for sudden gusts of danger have uprooted prosperity, root and all. Health is not an uninterrupted gift, but unexpected harm from diseases lies in wait for it as well. The possession of well-being variously sheds its feathers, and man resembles a tree, at one time bearing the bloom of abundance, at another shedding its leaf like a tree. You will find nothing among the brilliant things of life that has decay as a neighbor, upon examination.","structure":"narrative","commentary":[{"unit":"structure","kind":"structure","basis":"text","lemma":"ΟΜΙΛΙΑ Εʹ","severity":"info","text":"The title marks this as the fifth homily in a series, likely part of a larger collection of Chrysostom's sermons on wealth and worldly values.","cites":[],"named_sources":[],"dropped_cites":[]},{"unit":"scripture","kind":"scripture","basis":"text","lemma":"Μαρίαν","severity":"info","text":"The reference to Mary choosing the beautiful portion alludes to Luke 10:42, where Jesus says Mary has chosen the better part, though the exact phrasing differs from the canonical text.","cites":[],"named_sources":[],"dropped_cites":[]},{"unit":"background","kind":"background","basis":"text","lemma":"Ἐκκλησία","severity":"info","text":"Chrysostom contrasts the Church with heaven, reflecting a common patristic theme that the Church on earth is a type or foretaste of heavenly joy, especially through liturgical worship.","cites":[],"named_sources":[],"dropped_cites":[]},{"unit":"sense","kind":"sense","basis":"text","lemma":"πτεροῤῥυεῖ","severity":"info","text":"The verb πτεροῤῥυεῖ (sheds feathers) is a rare metaphorical term, emphasizing the fragility of prosperity; it is not a standard medical or biological term but a poetic coinage.","cites":[],"named_sources":[],"dropped_cites":[]},{"unit":"parallel","kind":"parallel","basis":"text","lemma":"θάλατταν","severity":"info","text":"The image of life as a stormy sea is a common topos in Chrysostom's moral exhortations, paralleling his other works such as the homilies on Matthew and on the statues.","cites":[],"named_sources":[],"dropped_cites":[]},{"unit":"caution","kind":"caution","basis":"text","lemma":"ἐκκρεμαμένην","severity":"info","text":"The participle ἐκκρεμαμένην (hanging upon) is ambiguous: it may mean Mary was intently listening to the Church's teaching, or it could be a textual corruption; the reading here follows the sense of devotion.","cites":[],"named_sources":[],"dropped_cites":[]}],"ambiguities":["The identity of Mary is uncertain: possibly Mary of Bethany (Luke 10:39-42) or the Virgin Mary; the context suggests the former.","The phrase 'giver of blessedness' (ὁ τῆς μακαριότητος δοτὴρ) could refer to Christ or to a saint; the reading takes it as Christ."],"confidence":"high","notes":[]},{"i":2,"ref":"p2","source":"Οὕτω γὰρ ἡμῖν τὸν βίον ὁ Κτίστης συνέθηκεν τῶν πρὸς τὴν γῆν κεχηνότων ἐκλύων τὴν ὄρεξιν, καὶ συνέζευξεν μαρασμῷ τὸ τοῦ βίου περίβλεπτον, ἵν' ὅταν σε τῶν γηΐνων τὸ τερπνὸν καταθέλξῃ, τὸ πρόσκαιρον ἐλπισθὲν ἀναστήση. Τοῦ γὰρ παρόντος αἰῶνος ὁδοιπόρος κατετάχθης, οὐ κτήτωρ, καὶ τὴν ἐν τῇ κτίσει μόνην ὡς πανδοχείου παροδεύομεν χρῆσιν. Καθάπερ γὰρ ὁδοιπόροι μικρᾶς ἐν πανδοχείῳ διατριβῆς ἀπολαύσαντες, τὴν ἐφεξῆς ἐκβάντες πληροῦσιν ὁδοιπορίαν, οὕτω καὶ τὸν τῆς ζωῆς ταύτης ὁδοιποροῦντες αἰῶνα, μικρὸν ὡς ἐν καταλύματι τῷ βίῳ προσμείναντες, τῆς ἐντεῦθεν ἐκδημοῦμεν οἰκήσεως.\n\nἌλλον γὰρ ἡμῖν ὁ Θεὸς προηυτρέπισεν βίον καὶ τοῦ πρὸς ἐκεῖνον δρόμου τὴν παροῦσαν ζωὴν ὁδὸν κατεσκεύασεν, τὰς παρὰ τῆς κτίσεως χρείας εἰς ἐφόδιον μόνον τῆς ὁδοῦ κατατάξας. Ταύτην δὲ ἡμῖν τὴν ὁδὸν ἐξελθοῦσιν ὁ τῶν κτηθέντων ἁπάντων ἀσυνόδευτος πλοῦτος· οὐδὲν γὰρ ὧν ἐσχήκαμεν, ἐσχήκαμεν ἴδιον. Ἣν γὰρ φοροῦμεν πρῶτον ὡς ἰδίαν ἐσθῆτα, τὴν τῶν προβάτων ἐξεθύσαμεν φύσιν· ἃ περιβάλλομεν τοῖς ποσὶν ὑποδήματα, παρὰ τῆς τῶν βοσκημάτων δορᾶς κεκομίσμεθα· τὴν τῶν βρωμάτων καὶ ποτῶν χορηγίαν ἐκ τῶν τῆς γῆς συμπορίζομεν κόλπων· ταύτης ἐστὶν καὶ χρυσὸς, ὃν πάντες ὡς ἡμέτερον σφίγγομεν. Μαργαρίτας ἐξ ὀστρέων καὶ βασιλεῖς ἐρανίζονται. Ἐξ ἀλλοτρίας ζῶμεν εἰσφορᾶς καὶ πλουτοῦμεν. Ἀπόδος τοῖς προβάτοις τὸ ἔριον, καὶ οὐδὲν ἕξεις τῆς σαρκὸς περιβόλαιον· ἀπόδος τὰς αὐτῶν δορὰς τοῖς βοσκήμασιν, καὶ σκέπην ἰδιόκτητον τοῖς ποσὶν οὐχ εὑρήσεις· ἀπόδος τὰ σηρικὰ τοῖς σκώληξι νήματα, καὶ σηρικὴν ἰδίαν οὐ προσοίσεις ἐσθῆτα.","english":"Thus the Creator has composed our life, dissolving the appetite of those who gape at the earth, and has yoked the brilliance of life to decay, so that when the pleasantness of earthly things charms you, the hope of the temporary may raise you up. For you have been appointed a traveler of the present age, not an owner, and we pass through the use of creation alone as that of an inn. For just as travelers, having enjoyed a brief stay in an inn, depart and complete the subsequent journey, so too, traveling through this age of life, having remained a short while in life as in a lodging, we depart from this dwelling.\n\nFor God has prepared another life for us and has fashioned the present life as a road for the journey to that one, assigning the needs from creation only as provisions for the road. And when we have departed this road, the wealth of all possessions is unaccompanied; for nothing we have had have we had as our own. For the first garment we wear as our own, we have stripped from the nature of sheep; the shoes we put on our feet we have obtained from the hide of cattle; the supply of food and drink we gather from the bosom of the earth; gold, which we all clutch as our own, is also of it. Even kings collect pearls from oysters. We live and grow rich from foreign contribution. Return the wool to the sheep, and you will have no covering for your flesh; return their hides to the cattle, and you will find no privately owned covering for your feet; return the silk threads to the worms, and you will not bring forth a silk garment of your own.","structure":"narrative","commentary":[{"unit":"sense","kind":"sense","basis":"text","lemma":"πανδοχείου","severity":"info","text":"The metaphor of life as a stay in an inn (πανδοχείου) is a common ascetic trope, emphasizing the transient nature of earthly existence.","cites":[],"named_sources":[],"dropped_cites":[]},{"unit":"term","kind":"term","basis":"glossary","lemma":"Κτίστης","severity":"info","text":"Κτίστης (Creator) is a standard epithet for God in Chrysostom, underscoring divine agency in the ordered design of life.","cites":[],"named_sources":[],"dropped_cites":[]},{"unit":"scripture","kind":"scripture","basis":"text","lemma":"μαρασμῷ","severity":"info","text":"The pairing of life's brilliance with decay (μαρασμῷ) echoes Ecclesiastes 3:11 (LXX) on the vanity of earthly splendor.","cites":[],"named_sources":[],"dropped_cites":[]},{"unit":"background","kind":"background","basis":"text","lemma":"ὁδοιπόρος","severity":"info","text":"The traveler (ὁδοιπόρος) metaphor aligns with the Cynic-Stoic tradition of life as a journey, adapted by Chrysostom for Christian moral exhortation.","cites":[],"named_sources":[],"dropped_cites":[]},{"unit":"structure","kind":"structure","basis":"text","lemma":"Ἄλλον γὰρ","severity":"info","text":"The particle γὰρ introduces an explanatory expansion, reinforcing the preceding analogy with a theological claim about God's preparation of a future life.","cites":[],"named_sources":[],"dropped_cites":[]},{"unit":"caution","kind":"caution","basis":"text","lemma":"ἐξεθύσαμεν","severity":"caution","text":"The verb ἐξεθύσαμεν (we have stripped) is a hapax in Chrysostom's corpus; its precise nuance here is debated, but context suggests forceful removal.","cites":[],"named_sources":[],"dropped_cites":[]}],"ambiguities":["The phrase 'τὴν ἐν τῇ κτίσει μόνην ὡς πανδοχείου παροδεύομεν χρῆσιν' is ambiguous: it could mean we pass through only the use of creation as that of an inn, or that we pass through creation as only the use of an inn. The translation adopted follows the former reading."],"confidence":"high","notes":[]},{"i":3,"ref":"p3","source":"Ἀλλ' οὐδὲ ψιχῶν εὐπορήσεις ἰδίων, ἂν μὴ τὴν τρέφουσαν γῆν οἷς φιλεῖ κολακεύσῃς. Τοῦτο καὶ Χριστὸς ἐνδεικνύμενος ἔλεγεν· Εἰ ἐν τῷ ἀλλοτρίῳ πιστοὶ οὐκ ἐγένεσθε, τὸ ὑμέτερον τίς ὑμῖν δώσει; Μή μοι τῶν ἐκ τῶν κτηνῶν καὶ τῆς γῆς προβαλλόμενος πλοῦτον, ὡς ἐπ' ἰδίοις τοῖς μὴ σοῖς καλλωπίζου. Ἑνὸς εἶ κτήματος μόνου εὐσεβείας ἰδιοκτήτωρ. Ταύτης σε θάνατος ἐπελθὼν οὐ συλήσει· τῶν ἄλλων δὲ ἁπάντων\n\nἐκβαλεῖ καὶ μὴ θέλοντα· εἰς ὑποκατάστασιν γὰρ τὴν βιωτικὴν πάντες παρελάβομεν κτῆσιν καὶ μόνην ταύτης τὴν χρῆσιν· ἕκαστος καρπούμενος ἄπεισιν, βραχὺ παρὰ τοῦ βίου κομιζόμενος μνῆμα. Τοῦτο γὰρ πάσης εὐημερίας τὸ τέλος, τοῦτο τῶν βιωτικῶν ἀγαθῶν τὸ συμπέρασμα. Μετὰ πολύπλεθρον κτῆσιν καὶ χρυσὸν πολυτάλαντον στενήν τινα καὶ δυσώδη κληρονομοῦμεν σορόν. Ὄντως Πᾶσα σὰρξ χόρτος καὶ πᾶσα δόξα ἀνθρώπου ὡς ἄνθος χόρτου. Μικρὰ σφοδρότης πυρετῶν ἐμπεσοῦσα πᾶσαν τοῦ βίου τὴν εὐθηνίαν ἐσκόρπισεν· προσέλεγε μὲν γὰρ ἔξωθεν ἡ τέχνη τὰ φάρμακα· τοῖς φαρμάκοις δὲ πυκτεύων ἀοράτως ὁ θάνατος, κατὰ μικρὸν προϊὼν χειροῦται τὸν ἄῤῥωστον· ὁ δὲ βλέπων τὸν ἄφυκτον ἐγκείμενον δήμιον, καὶ τὴν ψυχὴν βιαίως ὠθοῦντα πρὸς ἔξοδον, τρέπει μὲν στένων τὴν κεφαλὴν ἐφ' ἑκάτερα, περιφέρει δὲ τὸ βλέμμα σὺν δάκρυσιν. Οὐδαμόθεν δὲ τῆς βίας βοήθεια· οὐκ οἰκέται, τὴν κλίνην περιεστῶτες, ἑλκόμενον σώζουσιν, οὐ τὰ τῶν φίλων κολακεύει τὸν θάνατον δάκρυα, οὐ χρυσὸς τὴν πρὸς τὸν κριτὴν κωλύει παράστασιν.","english":"But you will not even have a supply of your own souls, unless you flatter the earth that nourishes you in the way it loves. This is what Christ also indicated when he said, \"If you were not faithful in what belongs to another, who will give you what is yours?\" Do not boast to me of wealth from cattle and land, adorning yourself with what is not yours as if it were your own. You are the sole owner of only one possession: piety. Death, when it comes, will not rob you of this; but of all other things it will cast you out even against your will. For we have received all worldly possessions as a temporary holding, and only the use of them; each person departs enjoying them for a short time, carrying away from life a small grave. For this is the end of all prosperity, this is the conclusion of worldly goods. After a vast estate and many talents of gold, we inherit a narrow and foul-smelling coffin. Truly, \"All flesh is grass, and all human glory is like the flower of grass.\" A slight onset of fevers scatters all the abundance of life; for medicine from outside applies its remedies, but death, wrestling invisibly with the remedies, advancing little by little, overpowers the sick man. And he, seeing the inescapable executioner pressing upon him and violently driving his soul toward departure, turns his head groaning from side to side and rolls his eyes with tears. But from nowhere is there help against the violence: neither the servants standing around the bed save him as he is dragged away, nor the tears of friends flatter death, nor does gold prevent the summons before the judge.","structure":"narrative","commentary":[{"unit":"scripture","kind":"scripture","basis":"text","lemma":"Εἰ ἐν τῷ ἀλλοτρίῳ πιστοὶ οὐκ ἐγένεσθε, τὸ ὑμέτερον τίς ὑμῖν δώσει;","severity":"info","text":"Chrysostom attributes this saying to Christ, but it is not a direct quotation from the canonical Gospels. It may be a paraphrase of a dominical logion or a saying from an apocryphal tradition.","cites":[],"named_sources":[],"dropped_cites":[]},{"unit":"scripture","kind":"scripture","basis":"text","lemma":"Πᾶσα σὰρξ χόρτος καὶ πᾶσα δόξα ἀνθρώπου ὡς ἄνθος χόρτου","severity":"info","text":"This echoes Isaiah 40:6-7 (LXX: ἐξηράνθη ὁ χόρτος, καὶ τὸ ἄνθος ἐξέπεσεν), but is not a verbatim citation. Chrysostom adapts the imagery to his moral argument.","cites":[],"named_sources":[],"dropped_cites":[]},{"unit":"background","kind":"background","basis":"text","lemma":"εἰς ὑποκατάστασιν","severity":"info","text":"The term ὑποκατάστασις, here translated 'temporary holding,' is a legal metaphor from inheritance law, denoting a provisional or substitute possession, not permanent ownership.","cites":[],"named_sources":[],"dropped_cites":[]},{"unit":"term","kind":"term","basis":"text","lemma":"εὐσεβείας ἰδιοκτήτωρ","severity":"info","text":"Ἰδιοκτήτωρ ('sole owner') is a rare compound, emphasizing exclusive possession. Chrysostom contrasts it with the illusory ownership of material wealth, asserting that only piety is truly one's own.","cites":[],"named_sources":[],"dropped_cites":[]},{"unit":"structure","kind":"structure","basis":"text","lemma":"Τοῦτο γὰρ πάσης εὐημερίας τὸ τέλος","severity":"info","text":"This sentence functions as a rhetorical climax, summarizing the preceding argument about the futility of wealth. The repetition of τοῦτο ... τοῦτο ... (anaphora) reinforces the inevitability of death.","cites":[],"named_sources":[],"dropped_cites":[]},{"unit":"parallel","kind":"parallel","basis":"text","lemma":"προσέλεγε μὲν γὰρ ἔξωθεν ἡ τέχνη τὰ φάρμακα","severity":"info","text":"The image of medicine failing against death is a common topos in Greek moral philosophy and early Christian homiletics, e.g., in Stoic consolations and in Gregory of Nazianzus.","cites":[],"named_sources":[],"dropped_cites":[]}],"ambiguities":["The source of the dominical saying attributed to Christ is uncertain; it may be a free paraphrase or from an extra-canonical tradition.","The phrase 'ψιχῶν εὐπορήσεις ἰδίων' is ambiguous: ψιχῶν could be a misspelling or variant of ψυχῶν ('souls') or ψιχίων ('crumbs'); the translation 'supply of your own souls' follows the former reading."],"confidence":"high","notes":[]},{"i":4,"ref":"p4","source":"Ἀδωροδόκητος γὰρ ὁ θάνατος δήμιος, καὶ δεξιὰν οὐκ ἔχων τῷ χρυσῷ πειθομένην, οὐδὲ πλουσίου ἐξαργυρίζων νεκροὺς, ἀλλὰ πάντας ἐν τάφοις ὡς ἐν εἱρκταῖς φυλακίζων. Πρὸς τὰ τῶν ὀστῶν παράκυψον λείψανα, καὶ πικρότερον κλαύσεις τοῦ βίου τὸ μάταιον. Τετέφρωται πρόσωπον, μελανθὲν ὑπὲρ ἄσβολον· ὀφθαλμοὶ διατέτρηνται σηπεδόνι γλυφέντες· διακέχηνεν στόμα καὶ πάροδον πολλάκις ἑρπετῶν ὑποδέχεται. Τί καθ' ἕκαστον μέλος ἐνδιατρίβω; Φθορᾷ σκώληκες, ἅπαν τὸ σῶμα καθάπερ πολέμιοί τινες συμμερίζονται καὶ σάρκας καὶ νεῦρα καὶ φλέβας ἀκριβῶς ἐρευνῶντες. Καλῶς ἄρα τὸ βρέφος τῆς γαστρὸς παρακύψαν, θρήνων εὐθέως οὐ γέλωτος ἄρχεται· κλαίει γὰρ ὥσπερ τοῦ βίου καταβοῶν, παρ' οὗ θνησιμαίων ἐκ προοιμίων ἀπογεύεται δώρων. Τεχθὲν γὰρ χεῖρας εὐθέως σπαργανοῦται καὶ πόδας καὶ δεσμοῖς ἐνειλημμένον τῆς θηλῆς ἀπολαύει, ὡς προοιμίου ζωῆς προδρόμου νεκρώσεως. Ἄρτι τὸ βρέφος εἰς ζωὴν παρελήλυθεν, καὶ νεκρῶν εὐθέως αὐτῷ στολισμὸς προσηνέχθη. Ὑπομιμνήσκει γὰρ τοῦ τέλους τοὺς τεχθέντας ἡ φύσις· διὸ καὶ τὸ παιδίον γεννηθὲν ἀποδύρεται καθάπερ τῇ μητρὶ διὰ τοῦ θρήνου βοῶν· Τί μὲ πρὸς ταύτην, ὦ μῆτερ, τὴν ζωὴν ἀπεκύησας, ἐν ᾗ τοῦ ζῇν ἡ προσθήκη προσκοπὴ πρὸς τὸν θάνατον; Τί με πρὸς πολυτάραχον αἰῶνα παρήγαγες οὐ τεχθέν; Τί μοι τὰ προοίμια σπάργανα; Τί μὲ τοιούτῳ παρήγαγες βίῳ, ἐν ᾧ καὶ νεότης ἐλεεινὴ τρυγωμένη πρὸ γήρως, καὶ γῆρας φευκτὸν ὡς ἐπὶ θάνατον ἄγον; Δεινὸν, ὦ μῆτερ, τοῦ βίου τὸ στάδιον, θάνατον ἔχον τῶν τρεχόντων καμπτῆρα. Πικρὰν τὴν βιωτικὴν ὁδοιποροῦμεν ὁδὸν, καὶ τάφον ἔχουσαν τῶν ὁδευόντων κατάλυμα.","english":"For death, the executioner, is unbribable, having no hand that yields to gold, nor does it ransom the dead for a price from the rich, but imprisons all in tombs as in prisons. Peep at the remains of the bones, and you will weep more bitterly at the vanity of life. The face is reduced to ash, blackened beyond soot; the eyes are perforated, carved out by decay; the mouth gapes open and often receives a passage for creeping creatures. Why do I linger over each limb? Worms, like some enemies, divide up the whole body, thoroughly searching out flesh, sinews, and veins. Rightly, then, the infant, peeping out from the womb, begins at once with lamentations, not with laughter; for it weeps as if denouncing life, from which it tastes the gifts of the dead from the very outset. For as soon as it is born, its hands and feet are swaddled, and, wrapped in bonds, it enjoys the breast, as a prelude to life, a forerunner of death. No sooner has the infant entered life than a garment of the dead is immediately brought to it. For nature reminds those who are born of the end; hence the child, when born, wails as if crying out to its mother through its lament: \"Why, O mother, did you bring me forth to this life, in which the addition of living is a step toward death? Why did you bring me into this turbulent age, as if I were not born? What are these swaddling clothes for me? Why did you bring me into such a life, in which even youth is pitiable, plucked before old age, and old age is to be fled as leading to death? Terrible, O mother, is the stadium of life, having death as the turning post for those who run. Bitter is the road of life we travel, having the tomb as the lodging for those who journey.","structure":"narrative","commentary":[{"unit":"sense","kind":"sense","basis":"text","lemma":"Ἀδωροδόκητος γὰρ ὁ θάνατος δήμιος","severity":"info","text":"Death is personified as an unbribable executioner, a common rhetorical trope in Chrysostom's moral exhortations, emphasizing the futility of wealth.","cites":[],"named_sources":[],"dropped_cites":[]},{"unit":"term","kind":"term","basis":"text","lemma":"δήμιος","severity":"info","text":"δήμιος means 'public executioner' or 'torturer', not merely 'judge'. Chrysostom uses it to stress death's violent, impartial agency.","cites":[],"named_sources":[],"dropped_cites":[]},{"unit":"background","kind":"background","basis":"external","lemma":"θρήνων εὐθέως οὐ γέλωτος ἄρχεται","severity":"info","text":"The idea that infants begin life with weeping rather than laughter was a philosophical topos (cf. Ps.-Plutarch, Consolatio ad Apollonium), used here to argue life's inherent misery.","cites":[],"named_sources":["Ps.-Plutarch Consolatio ad Apollonium"],"dropped_cites":[]},{"unit":"scripture","kind":"scripture","basis":"text","lemma":"νεκρῶν ... στολισμὸς","severity":"info","text":"The 'garment of the dead' (νεκρῶν στολισμός) may allude to burial shrouds or to the swaddling clothes as a type of death shroud, echoing themes of mortality in early Christian baptismal catechesis.","cites":[],"named_sources":[],"dropped_cites":[]},{"unit":"structure","kind":"structure","basis":"text","lemma":"Τί καθ' ἕκαστον μέλος ἐνδιατρίβω;","severity":"info","text":"This rhetorical question marks a transition from detailed description of bodily decay to a general reflection on human mortality, a common structural device in Chrysostom's homilies.","cites":[],"named_sources":[],"dropped_cites":[]},{"unit":"parallel","kind":"parallel","basis":"text","lemma":"θάνατον ἔχον τῶν τρεχόντων καμπτῆρα","severity":"info","text":"The metaphor of life as a stadium race with death as the turning post (καμπτήρ) is paralleled in Chrysostom's Homily 1 on 1 Corinthians and in Stoic moral philosophy.","cites":[],"named_sources":[],"dropped_cites":[]}],"ambiguities":["The phrase 'πρὸς ταύτην, ὦ μῆτερ, τὴν ζωὴν' could be read as 'to this life' or 'toward this life'; the translation takes it as 'to this life'.","The infant's lament 'οὐ τεχθέν' is ambiguous: it may mean 'as if I were not born' or 'to one not yet born'; the translation adopts the former."],"confidence":"high","notes":[]},{"i":5,"ref":"p5","source":"Χαλεπὸν τὸ τοῦ βίου διαπλέομεν πέλαγος· ᾅδην γὰρ ἔχει πειρατὴν ἐφεστῶτα. Οὐχ ὡς πονηρὸν στηλιτεύω τὸν βίον; Τοῦτο γὰρ τῶν τῆς μανίας ἐπωνύμων τὸ νόσημα· ἀλλ' ὡς προσκαίρου μὴ σφοδρῶς ἐξηρτῆσθαι μαρτύρομαι. Ταύτην τοῦ βίου καὶ Παῦλος κηρύττων τὴν ἀθλιότητα, τὴν τῆς κτίσεως φύσιν εἰσῆγεν στενάζουσαν· Πᾶσα, φησὶν, ἡ κτίσις στενάζει καὶ συνωδίνει ἄχρι τοῦ νῦν. Ὅλη γὰρ σκυθρωπότητος ἡ κτίσις ἀνάμεστος· κἂν ἀκριβῆ ποιήσῃ τῶν ὄντων ἐρεύνησιν, τὸν οἰκεῖον ἐν ἑκάστῳ στεναγμὸν καθοπτεύσεις· πρῶτος παρ' ἀνθρώπων στεναγμὸς ἀναπέμπεται τῇ τῆς φθορᾶς λειτουργούντων δαπάνῃ. Στένει μετ' ἀνθρώπων καὶ γῆ, τὴν κατάραν δι' ἡμᾶς δεξαμένη· ἀποδύρεται θάλαττα, καλὴ μὲν ἐξ ἀρχῆς παρὰ Θεοῦ γενομένη, τάφος δὲ μετὰ τὴν ἁμαρτίαν εὑρισκομένη πολλοῖς. Σκυθρωπάζει καὶ ἥλιος, τοὺς τὸν αὐτοῦ κτίστην οὐχ ὁρῶντας φωτίζων· ἀστέρες σὺν σελήνῃ στενάζουσιν, ὅτι διὰ τῆς εἰρηναίου μετ' ἀλλήλων χορείας τὸν εἰρηνοποιὸν δεικνύντες οὐ πείθουσιν. Οὐδὲ τῶν κτηνῶν τὸ γένος ἀστένακτον· οὐ μόνον εἰς ἡμᾶς ἀπαραιτήτῳ δουλείᾳ κοπτόμενα, ἀλλὰ καὶ δαίμοσι μάτην ἐν γωνίαις σφαττόμενα. Κοινός τις τῆς κτίσεως πανταχόθεν ὁ θρῆνος τὴν τῆς παρούσης ζωῆς κλαιούσης κατάστασιν, ἣν εὐστόχως κέκληκεν ὁ προφήτης εἰκόνα· Τὰ σύμπαντα","english":"We are sailing a difficult sea of life, for it has Hades as a pirate standing over it. Do I not denounce life as evil? For that is the disease of those named after madness. But I testify that one should not cling vehemently to what is temporary. Paul also, proclaiming this wretchedness of life, introduced the nature of creation groaning: \"All creation,\" he says, \"groans and is in travail until now.\" For all creation is full of gloom; and if you make a precise investigation of existing things, you will observe the particular groan in each. The first groan is sent up from humans, serving at the expense of corruption. The earth also groans with humans, having received the curse because of us. The sea laments, though originally made beautiful by God, but after sin found to be a tomb for many. The sun is gloomy, illuminating those who do not see its creator. The stars with the moon groan, because, while showing the peacemaker through their peaceful dance with each other, they do not persuade. Not even the race of beasts is without a groan, not only worn down by unavoidable servitude to us, but also slaughtered in vain in corners for demons. A common lament of creation from all sides, bewailing the state of present life, which the prophet has aptly called an image: \"All things","structure":"narrative","commentary":[{"unit":"term","kind":"term","basis":"glossary","lemma":"ᾅδην","severity":"info","text":"ᾅδην (Hades) here is not the underworld of classical myth but a personification of death as a pirate, consistent with Chrysostom's rhetorical use of pagan imagery to illustrate life's dangers.","cites":[],"named_sources":[],"dropped_cites":[]},{"unit":"scripture","kind":"scripture","basis":"text","lemma":"Πᾶσα, φησὶν, ἡ κτίσις στενάζει καὶ συνωδίνει ἄχρι τοῦ νῦν","severity":"info","text":"This is a paraphrase of Romans 8:22, where Paul speaks of creation groaning. Chrysostom adapts the phrase to emphasize universal lament over human sin and mortality.","cites":[],"named_sources":[],"dropped_cites":[]},{"unit":"background","kind":"background","basis":"background","lemma":"τῶν τῆς μανίας ἐπωνύμων τὸ νόσημα","severity":"info","text":"The phrase 'disease of those named after madness' likely refers to the Manichaeans, whom Chrysostom elsewhere accuses of denouncing life as evil. He distinguishes his own critique as a warning against attachment, not a condemnation of life itself.","cites":[],"named_sources":[],"dropped_cites":[]},{"unit":"structure","kind":"structure","basis":"text","lemma":"Κοινός τις τῆς κτίσεως πανταχόθεν ὁ θρῆνος","severity":"info","text":"This sentence introduces a climactic summary of the preceding catalogue (humans, earth, sea, sun, stars, beasts), each groaning in turn, building to the prophet's designation of life as an 'image' (εἰκόνα).","cites":[],"named_sources":[],"dropped_cites":[]},{"unit":"parallel","kind":"parallel","basis":"text","lemma":"εἰκόνα","severity":"info","text":"The reference to the prophet calling life an 'image' (εἰκόνα) likely alludes to Isaiah 40:6-7 or a similar prophetic passage, where earthly existence is depicted as fleeting and illusory, a common theme in Chrysostom's ascetic exhortations.","cites":[],"named_sources":[],"dropped_cites":[]}],"ambiguities":["The phrase 'τῶν τῆς μανίας ἐπωνύμων' is ambiguous: it could refer to Manichaeans (as commonly in Chrysostom) or generically to 'madmen'. The reading as Manichaeans is supported by context and Chrysostom's polemical habits.","The prophet cited for 'εἰκόνα' is not named; it may be Isaiah or another Old Testament figure, but the exact reference is uncertain."],"confidence":"high","notes":[]},{"i":6,"ref":"p6","source":"γὰρ, φησὶ, ματαιότης, πᾶς ἄνθρωπος ζῶν, μέντοιγε ἐν εἰκόνι διαπορεύεται ἄνθρωπος. Καὶ βλέπε τῆς φωνῆς τὴν ἀλήθειαν, τὴν ἀνθρωπίνην ἀκριβῶς ἀνερευνήσας ζωήν. Καθάπερ γὰρ ἐν εἰκόνι κάθηται μὲν ἐπὶ θρόνων βασιλεὺς χρυσοπάστων· προσφέρουσι δὲ πόλεις ἐν τοῖς χρώμασι δῶρα· δέχεται δὲ τοῦ βασιλέως ἡ χεὶρ τὰ διδόμενα· πάντα δὲ σκιὰ καὶ σκηνὴ τὰ φαινόμενα, καὶ ῥαγείσης τῆς σινδόνος ἐγυμνώθη τὸ σχῆμα· τὸν αὐτὸν τρόπον, καὶ τῶν ἀνθρώπων ἡ φύσις καθάπερ ἐν εἰκόνι τῷ βίῳ βασιλεύς τις ἐγκαθημένη, δέχεται μὲν τὰς τῆς θαλάττης καὶ γῆς ὥσπερ ἔκ τινων πόλεων εἰσφορὰς διδομένας· ῥαγείσης δὲ αὐτῇ τῆς ζωῆς ὡς σινδόνος, ἅπαν ἔσχεν τοῦ βίου διαῤῥέον τὸ κάλλος. Ἓν δὲ μέγιστον τῶν ἐν ἀνθρώποις καλῶν καρδίας συντετριμμένης ταπείνωσις καὶ τὴν τῆς τελευτῆς ἀεὶ μελετώσης ἡμέραν, καθ' ἣν γυμνοὶ τῆς βιωτικῆς ταύτης ἐξιόντες θαλάττης τὰς τῶν πράξεων ἐκπομπευούσας τῇ κτίσει κατοψόμεθα στήλας. Βούλει σοι τούτου παραγάγω παράδειγμα; Ἐπὶ μίας τινὸς ὁλκάδος συνέπλεόν τινες καὶ τὴν αὐτὴν ἀλλήλοις συνναυτιλλόμενοι θάλατταν, ποικίλας κατ' ἀλλήλων κλοπὰς ἐπεδείκνυντο. Ταύτας ὁ κυβερνήτης ἀκριβῶς κατοπτεύων, τὸν τῶν κλεμμάτων τέως οὐκ ἐπόμπευεν ἔλεγχον· ἀλλ' ὡς λιμένι τὸ σκάφος προσεγγίζον ἑώρα, γυμνοὺς πάντας τῆς ὁλκάδος ἐξιέναι κελεύσας, εὗρεν ἑκάστου τὴν κλοπὴν ἐν τῷ πλοίῳ κειμένην. Κατὰ τοῦτό μοι τῆς ζωῆς τὸ παράδειγμα σκοπεῖ· πρόκειται γὰρ ἡμῖν ἀντὶ θαλάττης ὁ βίος· σκάφος δέ τι πρὸς τὸν πλοῦν ἡ κτίσις συνήρμοσται, κυβερνήτῃ μὲν τῷ Θεῷ κεχρημένον, πάσας δὲ τὰς τῶν ἔργων ἐμπορείας δεχόμενον.","english":"For he says, \"Vanity, every living human,\" yet indeed a human passes through in an image. And see the truth of the saying, having accurately examined human life. For just as in a picture a king sits on gilded thrones, and cities offer gifts in the colors, and the king's hand receives what is given, but all the visible things are shadow and stage-scenery, and when the linen is torn, the form is laid bare; in the same way, human nature, as if seated like a king in life as in a picture, receives the tributes from sea and land as if given from some cities, but when life is torn for it like a linen cloth, all the beauty of life has flowed away. And one of the greatest goods among humans is the humility of a crushed heart and the day that always practices death, on which, going out naked from this sea of life, we will see the pillars of our deeds paraded before creation. Do you want me to bring an example of this? On a certain merchant ship, some sailed together and, voyaging the same sea with one another, displayed various thefts against each other. The helmsman, watching these closely, did not for the time being parade the proof of the thefts; but when he saw the vessel approaching a harbor, he ordered all to go out naked from the ship, and found each one's theft lying in the ship. Consider this example of life for me: for life lies before us instead of a sea; and a ship has been fitted for the voyage, creation, using God as helmsman, and receiving all the cargoes of deeds.","structure":"narrative","commentary":[{"unit":"scripture","kind":"scripture","basis":"text","lemma":"ματαιότης, πᾶς ἄνθρωπος ζῶν","severity":"info","text":"Chrysostom alludes to Psalm 39:6 LXX (38:6): 'Vanity, every living human.' The phrase is a scriptural echo, not a direct quotation from Paul.","cites":[],"named_sources":[],"dropped_cites":[]},{"unit":"background","kind":"background","basis":"background","lemma":"εἰκών","severity":"info","text":"The metaphor of life as a painted image (εἰκών) whose beauty vanishes when the linen is torn reflects a common patristic trope of the transience of worldly things, paralleled in Chrysostom's homilies.","cites":[],"named_sources":[],"dropped_cites":[]},{"unit":"parallel","kind":"parallel","basis":"text","lemma":"κυβερνήτης","severity":"info","text":"The ship-helmsman allegory, with God as helmsman and creation as the ship, echoes the Stoic and Platonic image of the soul's voyage, but Chrysostom adapts it to a Christian moral judgment of deeds.","cites":[],"named_sources":[],"dropped_cites":[]},{"unit":"structure","kind":"structure","basis":"text","lemma":"Βούλει σοι τούτου παραγάγω παράδειγμα","severity":"info","text":"This rhetorical question marks a transition from the general image of life as a picture to a specific parable of the merchant ship, structuring the argument as a concrete illustration.","cites":[],"named_sources":[],"dropped_cites":[]},{"unit":"term","kind":"term","basis":"text","lemma":"καρδίας συντετριμμένης ταπείνωσις","severity":"info","text":"The phrase 'humility of a crushed heart' is a key ascetic term in Chrysostom, denoting a state of contrition and lowliness, not mere modesty, but a spiritual discipline of constant meditation on death.","cites":[],"named_sources":[],"dropped_cites":[]},{"unit":"caution","kind":"caution","basis":"text","lemma":"ἐκπομπευούσας","severity":"caution","text":"The verb ἐκπομπευούσας ('paraded') is rare and may be a scribal variant; the sense is that deeds are displayed publicly at judgment, but the exact nuance of 'parading' could be ironic or literal.","cites":[],"named_sources":[],"dropped_cites":[]}],"ambiguities":["The phrase 'ἐκπομπευούσας τῇ κτίσει' could mean either 'paraded before creation' or 'paraded by creation'; the reading taken is 'before creation' as a passive display at judgment.","The identity of the 'helmsman' (κυβερνήτης) is explicitly God, but the allegory's source (whether biblical or philosophical) is not specified by Chrysostom."],"confidence":"high","notes":[]},{"i":7,"ref":"p7","source":"Ἂν διεφθαρμένον τις ἐμπορεύσηται βίον, ἐν τῷ τῆς κτίσεως αὐτὸν ἀποθήσεται πλοίῳ· ἂν εὐπολίτευτον ζωὴν πραγματεύσηται, ἐπὶ τῆς κρίσεως ἔσται τὸ πραχθὲν φυλαττόμενον.\n\nΕἶτα τῶν τῆς τελευτῆς ἐγγισάντων λιμένων, γυμνοὺς ἡμᾶς ἐκ τοῦ γηΐνου σκάφους ὁ κυβερνήτης ἐκβάλλει, καὶ μένει πάντων ἡ πρᾶξις ἐν τῇ κρίσει πομπευομένῃ. Ἄμεμπτοι τοίνυν τὸ τοῦ βίου ναυτιλλώμεθα πέλαγος· ἔργων ἀγαθῶν τὴν κτίσιν κτησώμεθα μάρτυρα· τὸν σκιώδη τῶν παρόντων ὑπερβαίνωμεν κόμπον· τῆς θνητῆς ἀποστήσωμεν τὴν καρδίαν τερπνότητος· τὴν εἰς φθορὰν τελευτῶσαν σπουδὴν ἀποφύγωμεν· τοῖς γηΐνοις τὴν ψυχὴν μὴ συνδήσωμεν βρόχοις· τῆς ἀποῤῥύτου τῶν θνητῶν ὑπερφρονήσω μεν δόξης· ὡς βαφὴν εὐαπόπλυτον τὸ τῶν προσκαίρων διαπτύσωμεν ἄνθος· οὐρανοπόρῳ τὸν βίον πτερώδει διαδράμωμεν εὐχῇ, οἱ τὴν βιωτικὴν ὁδοιποροῦντες ὁδὸν καὶ τὸ τῆς ἄνω κλήσεως βραβεῖον μεταδιώξωμεν ἐν Χριστῷ, ᾧ ἡ δόξα εἰς τοὺς αἰῶνας τῶν αἰώνων. Ἀμήν.","english":"If someone has traded in a corrupted life, he will deposit it in the vessel of creation; if he has managed a well-governed life, what has been done will be preserved for the judgment.\n\nThen, when the harbors of death draw near, the helmsman casts us naked from the earthly vessel, and the deed of all remains paraded in the judgment. Blamelessly, therefore, let us sail the sea of life; let us acquire creation as a witness of good works; let us surpass the shadowy boast of present things; let us remove our heart from mortal delight; let us flee from zeal that ends in corruption; let us not bind the soul with earthly snares; let us despise the flowing glory of mortals; let us spit upon the flower of transitory things as a easily washed-off dye; let us traverse life with heaven-bound prayer as a wing, we who travel the path of life and pursue the prize of the higher calling in Christ, to whom is glory for ever and ever. Amen.","structure":"narrative","commentary":[{"unit":"sense","kind":"sense","basis":"text","lemma":"Ἂν διεφθαρμένον τις ἐμπορεύσηται βίον","severity":"info","text":"The conditional structure contrasts a corrupted life with a well-governed one, framing moral choice as a deposit in the vessel of creation for eschatological judgment.","cites":[],"named_sources":[],"dropped_cites":[]},{"unit":"term","kind":"term","basis":"glossary","lemma":"κτίσις","severity":"info","text":"κτίσις (creation) here likely refers to the created order as a witness or repository of deeds, not merely the act of creation; the term carries theological weight in Chrysostom's cosmology.","cites":[],"named_sources":[],"dropped_cites":[]},{"unit":"scripture","kind":"scripture","basis":"text","lemma":"ἐν Χριστῷ","severity":"info","text":"The closing phrase 'in Christ' echoes Pauline usage (e.g., Rom 8:1, 1 Cor 1:2) and anchors the exhortation in a Christological framework, common in Chrysostom's homilies.","cites":[],"named_sources":[],"dropped_cites":[]},{"unit":"background","kind":"background","basis":"external","lemma":"ναυτιλλώμεθα πέλαγος","severity":"info","text":"The nautical metaphor (sailing the sea of life) is a standard topos in Greek moral philosophy and early Christian paraenesis, used by Chrysostom to illustrate the peril of earthly existence.","cites":[],"named_sources":[],"dropped_cites":[]},{"unit":"structure","kind":"structure","basis":"text","lemma":"Εἶτα","severity":"info","text":"The particle 'Εἶτα' (then) marks a shift from conditional scenarios to a universal eschatological image: death as a helmsman casting souls naked from the earthly vessel.","cites":[],"named_sources":[],"dropped_cites":[]},{"unit":"reception","kind":"reception","basis":"external","lemma":"Ἀμήν","severity":"info","text":"The concluding 'Amen' indicates liturgical or homiletic use, suggesting this passage was part of a spoken exhortation, possibly in a catechetical or festal context.","cites":[],"named_sources":[],"dropped_cites":[]}],"ambiguities":["The phrase 'τὸ τῆς κτίσεως αὐτὸν ἀποθήσεται πλοίῳ' is ambiguous: does κτίσις mean 'creation' as a vessel or 'the created world' as a ship? The translation takes it as 'vessel of creation', but the image may conflate the world with a ship.","The referent of 'τὸν σκιώδη τῶν παρόντων κόμπον' (the shadowy boast of present things) is unclear: it may denote worldly pride or the illusory nature of material wealth."],"confidence":"high","notes":[]}]}