CHAPTER 7

7:1-5 And the Lord God said to Noah, Enter you and all your family into the ark, for you have I seen righteous before me in this generation. 2 And of the clean cattle take in to thee sevens, male and female, and of the unclean cattle pairs male and female. 3 And of clean flying creatures of the sky sevens, male and female, and of all unclean flying creatures pairs, male and female, to maintain seed on all the earth. 4 For yet seven days having passed I bring rain upon the earth forty days and forty nights, and I will blot out every offspring which I have made from the face of all the earth. 5 And Noah did all things whatever the Lord God commanded him.

ATHANASIUS OF ALEXANDRIA. The example from Noah exposes the shamelessness of Christ’s enemies; for there too He said not, ‘I knew not,’ but ‘They knew not until the flood came (Mt. 24:39).’ For men did not know, but He who brought the flood (and it was the Savior Himself) knew the day and the hour in which He opened the cataracts of heaven and broke up the great deep, and said to Noah, ‘Come thou and all your house into the ark.’ For were He ignorant, He had not foretold to Noah, ‘Yet seven days and I will bring a flood upon the earth.’ But if in describing the day He makes use of the parallel of Noah’s time, and He did know the day of the flood, therefore He knows also the day of His own coming. [Discourse 3 Against the Arians, NPNF s.2 v.4]

AUGUSTINE OF HIPPO. (Gen. 7:4) We read in several Latin versions: Adhuc enim septem dies, ego inducam diluvium aquae super terram (In seven more days, and I will bring the flood on the earth.); but the Greek presents: ego inducam pluviam super terram. (I will bring rain upon the earth) In the Greek phrase we note the use of the genitive, and not of the accusative, so that, to use the same case in Latin, it would be necessary to say: Adhuc enim septem dierum, inducam pluviam super terram (In seven of days I will bring rain upon the earth).

It should be noted that in this sentence Delebo omnem suscitationem (I will destroy everything that lives.), Scripture does not use the word creationem (creature), which is created, but from the word suscitationem, which has received life; it is the meaning of the Greek word anastasin, which does not, however, allow to be used usually in the Greek versions to signify the resurrection, although the latter meaning is very well expressed by eksanatasis: and that it could have been consequently, to render by anastasis the action of being born, and by eksanatasis, the action of resuscitation. It is from this last expression that the Apostle used, when he said: Si quo modo occurram in resurrectionem mortuorum (So that I can at all costs reach the resurrection of the dead. (Philip 3:11); There indeed the Greek text carries eksanatasin, and not anastasin.

(Gen 7:5) This sentence: And fecit Noë omnia quaecumque praecepit illi Dominus Deus, sic fecit (Noah did all that the Lord had commanded him), presents a phrase similar to that which we find in the history of the creation of the world, where after saying: And so it was made (Gen. 1:15,24), so did Moses add, "and God made (Gen. 1:16,25).” [Locutions]

JOHN CASSIAN THE ROMAN. God at man’s creation implanted in him naturally complete knowledge of the law, and if this had been kept by man, as at the beginning, according to the Lord’s purposes, there would not have been any need for another law to be given, which He afterwards proclaimed in writing: for it were superfluous for an external remedy to be offered, where an internal one was still implanted and vigorous. But since this had been, as we have said, utterly corrupted by freedom and the opportunity of sinning, the severe restrictions of the law of Moses were added as the executor and vindicator of this (earlier law) and to use the expressions of Scripture, as its helper, that through fear of immediate punishment men might be kept from altogether losing the good of natural knowledge, according to the word of the prophet who says “He gave the law to help them:” and it is also described by the Apostle as having been given as a schoolmaster (Gal. 3:24) to little children, as it instructs and guards them to prevent them from departing through sheer forgetfulness from the teaching in which they had been instructed by the light of nature: for that the complete knowledge of the law was implanted in man at his first creation, is clearly proved from this; viz., that we know that before the law, aye, and even before the flood, all holy men observed the commands of the law without having the letter to read. For how could Abel, without the command of the law, have known that he ought to offer to God a sacrifice of the firstlings of his flock and of the fat thereof, (Gen. 4:4) unless he had been taught by the law which was naturally implanted in him? How could Noah have distinguished what animals were clean and what were unclean, (Gen. 7:2) when the commandment of the law had not yet made a distinction, unless he had been taught by a natural knowledge? Whence did Enoch learn how to “walk with God,” (Gen. 5:22) having never acquired any light of the law from another? [Conference 8.23, NPNF s.2 v.11]

JOHN CHRYSOSTOM OF CONSTANTINOPLE. (Gen. 7:1-5) And now, do you want to know what word the Creator of all things has deigned to address to him? Listen to the following: And, says the text, the Lord God said to Noah, Enter the ark, you and all your house. (Gen. 7:1) And now, to teach us that it is not only by an effect of his favor that he keeps the righteous, but that he gives him the reward of his labors, the prizes his virtue deserves, he says to him: why I command you that you enter the ark, you and all your house: That I have seen you righteous and perfect, before me, in the middle of this generation. Great testimony, and trustworthy; for what can there be more glorious than to hear the Creator Himself, the One who gave Himself, granting His vote to the righteous with such words; because I saw you right and perfect, says the text, in front of me. This is the true virtue, the virtue that shows itself before God, the virtue of which the eye can testify that can not be deceived. Then the kindly God teaches us the measure of the virtue that was then required of a righteous man: (Indeed, he does not expect from all the same measure of virtue: the variety of times brings the difference in virtue that he claims.) God says because I have seen you righteous and perfect before me in the midst of this generation, so depraved, so corrupt, so ungrateful. I saw you right, it's only you that I found pleasant; it is you whom I have seen taking into account virtue; you alone have appeared just in my eyes before me; All the others perish, and I command you to enter, with all your house, into the ark: animals that are pure, I command you to introduce seven couples into the ark; previously he had indefinitely ordered to introduce a single pair of all animals without distinction, and now to complete his command, he adds: Of all animals that are pure, take seven males and seven females; and all unclean animals, two males and two females. He soon gives the explanation; he adds: In order to keep the race on the face of all the earth. It is curious here to ask how this righteous man knew what pure animals were, what were the unclean animals. For it had not yet been distinguished which Moses later established and sanctioned in the laws of the Jews. How could Noah do it for himself? By the science that was natural to him and that reason also suggested to him. There is nothing unclean in the creatures that God has made; how could we call unclean a creature who has received from above the approval of the Creator? In fact, the divine Scripture tells us: God saw all the things He had done, and they were very good. (Gen. I, 32.) But, later, nature alone produced this distinction. And what will make you see that we are telling the truth is that in some countries, some people abstain from certain animals, looked like filthy animals, and despise, while others feed on same animals: it is the custom which authorizes them. Well at the same time, at that time, the only science that this righteous had in him, showed him what animals could be fed, which animals were filthy, not that they were actually, but adorned that they were looked like filthy animals. Why, indeed, answer me, I pray you, let us look at the donkey like a filthy animal, though it feeds only on plants, while we regard as suitable food of other quadrupeds, although feed on an unclean food? Thus natural science, which comes from God, teaches these things. One could, in addition, make another answer; it was because God, who had commanded, had at the same time given Noah the knowledge he needed. But that's enough about the filthy animals and those that are not.

But now there comes another question: Why, unclean animals, two couples; pure animals, seven couples? And again: why not six, eight, but seven? The development may be a little long, but if you are not tired, if you will, we will summarize, my brothers, our thoughts on this subject; we mean those that divine grace has inspired us. In fact, there are many different fables in this respect; it is for many minds an opportunity to attempt observations, by means of numbers. But this is not the wisdom that observes, it is the untimely curiosity of men who gives himself to fictions, fruitful in heresies, which you will see right away. Indeed, often (so much so that the abundance of evidence will close the mouth to those who make novelties, based on their opinions to them), we find in the Scripture numbers that mark couples So when the Lord sent his disciples, he sent them two by two; but they were twelve in all; and there are four gospels; but it would be useless, my brethren, to remind you of what you have learned too well from those who have deafened your ears.

We must now teach you why God gave the order to introduce seven couples of pure animals. This greater number of pure animals was to spare the just man and those who were with him a consolation, because of the utility they would derive from it. Now all these couples of seven males and seven females, if you seek the reason, give you a striking mark of the piety of the just man. The full, good God knew his virtue; he knew that this righteous man, touched by the mercy of the Lord, after having so much favored the divine favor, when he would be saved from so great a disaster, delivered from all danger, freed. of the captivity he endured in the ark, would show his gratitude, and offer him thanksgiving sacrifices and sacrifices. God did not want couples to be mismatched; This is why the Lord, who foresaw the sacrifices of gratitude, commanded the introduction of seven males and seven females of all kinds of birds; it was so that, when the universal destruction would cease, when the righteous man would manifest the piety of his soul, the pairs of birds and other animals would not be mismatched. This is what the rest of this speech will show you when. we will have arrived at the moment that I indicate. You will see, in fact, that the just man behaved thus; you have come to learn why the order was given to introduce into the ark seven males and seven females; therefore, do not support those who compose fables, who rebel against Holy Scripture, and who give the inventions of their brain as sacred dogmas. So, after God had communicated his clearly spoken orders about birds, pure animals and unclean animals, and food, he said to the righteous man, I will not wait more than seven days, and after that I will rain on the earth for forty days and forty nights, and I will exterminate from the earth all the creatures that I have made, from the man to the beasts of burden. (Gen. 7:4). Be careful here, I conjure you; see again, in what we have just told you, the excellence of divine goodness; after so long patience, God declares that he will wait another seven days; he wants, by terror, to correct men, and to bring them back to repentance. This. who proves that this is his thought, that he does not want to rain on men this deluge he announces, that is what happened to the inhabitants of Nineveh. See, understand, the difference between those of Nineveh and the men of old. It was in vain that, for so many years, these men heard repeated that the greatest misfortunes were at their doors; they did not give up their iniquities; this is indeed our habit; we become careless when we postpone the punishment; but when the plagues fall upon us; we humble ourselves, and we show that we are converted. This is what happened to the people of Nineveh: when they heard these words: Three more days and Nineveh will be destroyed (John iii. 4), not only did they not despair, but they awoke, and they abstained so well from all evil action, and they took so much care to confess that they extended confession to the animals; not that the animals have confessed; how could they have done it without speaking? but the Ninevites wanted it; by this means, to conciliate the mercy of the God of goodness. A fast was published, says the Scripture; The king commanded, with his mouth, that neither the sheep, nor the oxen, nor the other animals, should be brought to the pasture, nor carry water. (Jon III, 7). And all the people, covered with sackcloth, and the king himself upon his throne, did great penance with the animals, and the penance they did without knowing whether they would escape punishment, because they said: Who. know if God will not turn to us to forgive us? (John, IX.)

Have you understood the wisdom of these barbarians? Have you understood that the brevity of the delay has not struck them with numbness, nor thrown into despair? See now these men of the flood; After so many years of waiting, when they heard these words, "Seven more days, and the flood will come, they have not converted; they remained in their stupid insensibility; from which it must be said that it is our will that is the cause of all evils. In fact, these men and the men of Nineveh had the same nature, but not the same will; so their fate was not the same. Those of Nineveh escaped disaster; God in his goodness, in his clemency, approved their repentance; but the others were swallowed up, and perished all, with the universal destruction: I will wait no more, he says, than seven days, and after that I will rain on the earth. Then, to add to the terror, he said: For forty days and forty nights. What to say? Could not he, if he had wanted, in a single day to rain all the flood? What do I say, in one day? One moment was enough for him. But what he says is by design; he wants to inspire terror, and, at the same time, to give these men the opportunity to escape the punishment, which was already at their doorstep: And I will exterminate, from the earth, all the creatures that I have done, from man to animals. See how, once, twice, he predicts destruction, and yet he abstains; all he did was to show us that he was right in inflicting such terrible punishment on them so that no man could pretend ignorance so that we could not to say: If he had waited until the next day, perhaps they would have repented, perhaps they would have abstained from their evil deeds, perhaps they would have returned to virtue. It is for this reason that he has let us know the number of years, and that he has ordered the construction of the ark. And after all these preliminaries, he announces another seven days, in order to silence all the languages ​​that speak at random, without reservation and without shame. And Noah, saith the scripture, accomplishes all that the Lord God commanded him. (Gen. 7:5) See how divine Scripture here celebrates the wisdom and obedience of the righteous man. It teaches us that he neglected nothing of what had been commanded to him, and that in accomplishing everything he proved by this obedience the perfection of his virtue.

Let's imitate this just; we, too, are zealous in carrying out the commandments of God, and do not despise the laws that Christ has brought us; always keep them in our memory; let us hasten to do good works; let us not relax in the conduct which assures us our salvation, and this especially, if it is true that today Christ demands from us a virtue, all the greater, that we have received greater goods in sharing. This is why Christ said: If your righteousness is not more abundant than that of the Scribes and Pharisees, you will not enter the kingdom of heaven. (Matthew V, 20.) Let us therefore meditate on this word; let us know how to stop there; let us reflect on the rigor of the punishment reserved for those who not only do not work to surpass these scribes, but do not equal their works and do not worry about extinguishing the anger they feel against their neighbor; to preserve the purity of a language that does not know perjury; to preserve their looks from fatal spectacles; to fulfill the command of God, who commands us, not only to bear with courage the injustice of which we are victims, but to respond to hatred by filling it with our blessings. If anyone wants to plead against you, says the Gospel, to take your robe, give him your cloak again. (Math, V, 40.) On the contrary, we too often try to commit injustice against our neighbor, or to avenge ourselves for the one who hurts us, although we are commanded not only to love those who love us, because the publicans do the same (Ibid.46), but to be good, to be friends for our enemies. We do not even know how to give back to our friends the love they have for us. So I suffer and I cry when I see among us that virtue is a rarity; malice, a force that grows daily; that the fear of damnation does not stop our course in the perversity, that the love of celestial royalty does not excite us to walk in virtue; we are all, pass me the word, of the flocks that we bring; we go without thinking, neither at the terrible hour of the last terror, nor at the laws imposed on us by God, and all we look at what others think, we pursue the glory that comes from the world, and we do not want to listen to the Gospel: How can you believe, you who seek the glory that comes from men, and who do not seek the glory that comes from God alone? (John, V, 44.) If it is true that by desiring this human glory; we lose the divine glory, it is not the same for those who are constantly searching for divine glory; he does not even lose the glory that comes from men. God Himself has made this promise to us: first seek the kingdom of God, and all these things will be given to you in addition. (Matthew VI, 33.) Yes, he who possesses this divine desire, brings all the other goods in his train; who flies away to God, on the wings of the soul, looks as if it were not all the present prosperity; the eyes of faith, when they see these ineffable goods, no longer see, even the visible goods, so great is the difference between them. But I do not see anyone who prefers the invisible to the visible. So I grieve, and a continual pain is in my heart. The experience of things has taught us nothing; neither the promises of God, nor the greatness of his gifts, give rise in our souls to the desire to possess his kingdom; always on the ground and crawling, we prefer the earth to heaven, the present to the future, which flees before appearing to lasting bliss; the pleasure of a day to eternal drunkenness. I know that these words, for your delicate ears, are bites that hurt them, but forgive me. [Homilies on Genesis]

7:6 And Noah was six hundred years old when the flood of water was upon the earth.

AUGUSTINE OF HIPPO. That Noah was five hundred years old when God told him to make the ark, and six hundred when he entered the ark; which shows that the ark was made during one hundred years, which seem to correspond to the years of an age of the world. So the sixth age is occupied with the construction of the Church by the preaching of the gospel. The man who avails himself of the offer of salvation is made like a square beam, fitted for every good work, and forms part of the sacred fabric. Again, it was the second month of the six hundredth year when Noah entered the ark, and in two months there are sixty days; so that here, as in every multiple of six, we have the number denoting the sixth age. [Contra Faustum 7.18, NPNF s.1 v.4]

IRENAEUS OF LYONS. And there is therefore in this beast (Rev. 13), when he comes, a recapitulation made of all sorts of iniquity and of every deceit, in order that all apostate power, flowing into and being shut up in him, may be sent into the furnace of fire. Fittingly, therefore, shall his name possess the number six hundred and sixty-six, since he sums up in his own person all the commixture of wickedness which took place previous to the deluge, due to the apostasy of the angels. For Noah was six hundred years old when the deluge came upon the earth, sweeping away the rebellious world, for the sake of that most infamous generation which lived in the times of Noah. And [Antichrist] also sums up every error of devised idols since the flood, together with the slaying of the prophets and the cutting off of the just. For that image which was set up by Nebuchadnezzar had indeed a height of sixty cubits, while the breadth was six cubits; on account of which Ananias, Azarias, and Misaël (Dan. 3), when they did not worship it, were cast into a furnace of fire, pointing out prophetically, by what happened to them, the wrath against the righteous which shall arise towards the [time of the] end. For that image, taken as a whole, was a prefiguring of this man’s coming, decreeing that he should undoubtedly himself alone be worshipped by all men. Thus, then, the six hundred years of Noah, in whose time the deluge occurred because of the apostasy, and the number of the cubits of the image for which these just men were sent into the fiery furnace, do indicate the number of the name of that man in whom is concentrated the whole apostasy of six thousand years, and unrighteousness, and wickedness, and false prophecy, and deception; for which things’ sake a cataclysm of fire shall also come upon the earth. [Against Heresies, Book V, Chapter 29.2, ANF v.1]

JOHN CHRYSOSTOM OF CONSTANTINOPLE. Noah had, says the text, six hundred years, when the waters of the deluge flooded the earth. Apply, I pray you, do not neglect this word; it is short, and yet it encloses some hidden treasure; it will reveal to us if we are attentive, the excellence of the goodness of God and the excess of the malice of men. Noah was six hundred years old. It is not without reason that the divine Scripture taught us the number of years of the just, it is not only to teach us its age, but it is that the Scripture first told us: Noah had five hundred years. (Gen. V, 31.) And, after having shown us this number of years, she told us the corruption of men exceeding all measure, the thought of each man applying to the evil, in each of them, from her youth; and this is why God says, My spirit will not abide always with these men, because they are only flesh. (Gen. VI, 3.) He announces to them beforehand that his indignation overflows; Then, wishing to give them sufficient time to repent, to escape the effects of his indignation, he said: The time of man will be but a hundred and twenty years (Ibid., VI, 3); that is to say, I will wait still, I will add, to those five hundred years, during which this just man, by the name alone, has sufficiently warned them, sufficiently advised them, for little that they wanted to be attentive, to renounce iniquity, to convert to virtue. Even now, in spite of so much patience in the past, I promise them to support them a hundred and twenty years more, so that they may use the time that will flow again; so that they depart from the iniquity that they embrace virtue. And it was not enough for him to promise a hundred and twenty years, he just ordered to build an ark whose only aspect, was enough to revive their memory, and did not allow anyone to ignore the greatness of the punishment to come. For this fact alone, that this righteous man, who had attained the highest virtue, built the ark with so much ardor, was sufficient to inspire to all those who were not devoid of sense the anguish and terror; to persuade them finally to appease the God who thus showed them his clemency and his goodness. Indeed, if these barbarians, I speak of the inhabitants of Nineveh (it is necessary that I produce them still in the midst of you, it will be a more brilliant proof and the excessive malignity of the men of the flood and the great wisdom of the sinners who have saved themselves) .... indeed, our Lord in this terrible day, I hear the day of judgment, bringing the servants with the servants, will pronounce the condemnation, showing that those who enjoyed the same goods, who have received the same good from them, have not practiced the same virtue; he often compares the inequality of conditions, in order to more rigorously condemn the careless and the cowardly. Thus he says in the Gospels: The Ninevites will rise in the day of judgment against this race, and will condemn it, because they have done penance to the preaching of Jonah, and yet there is has here more than Jonah. These words amounted to saying: Barbarians, of whom no care was taken, who did not hear the teaching of the prophets, who did not see signs, who did not have not contemplated miracles, which have seen only one man, only one escaped from sinking; after hearing words made to throw them into despair, and the last perplexity, so much so that they would have been right to despise and this man and his speeches, these barbarians not only did not despise the words of the prophet but, in the short space of three days, these men thus surprised, have made such an active and fervent penance that they have revoked the judgment of the Lord. These Ninevites, he says, will condemn this generation for whom so much care has been expended, which has been nourished by the liveries of the prophets, who has seen signs and miracles every day. Then, to show the excess of the unbelief of these Jews, he notes the admirable wisdom of the Ninevites, because they have done penance to the preaching of Jonah; and yet there is here more than Jonah: See, said he, these Ninevites, at the sight of a despicable man, at the sight of Jonah, have welcomed his preaching, and they have accomplished there perfect penance: and these, at the sight of Him who is much more than Jonah, who is the Creator of the universe, living in their midst; operating so many great miracles, daily purifying the lepers, raising the dead, correcting the vices of nature, driving out demons, curing diseases, granting in full power the remission of sins, they did not show the same faith as the barbarians.

But let us resume our speech, to show the excesses of the delirium of some, the laborious diligence, the wisdom of others: the Ninevites, tightened in the narrow space of three days, did not despair of their salvation, they hastened to do penance, to wash their sins, to make themselves worthy of the goodness of the Lord; On the contrary, these men of the flood, to whom one added a hundred and twenty years to repent, have not gained any advantage from this delay. This is why the Lord, seeing the excess of their malignity, seeing them precipitated more and more in the crimes, inflicts upon them a remedy which acts promptly; he makes the ferment of the evil disappear; he purges the world. Hence these words: Noah was six hundred years old when the waters of the deluge flooded the earth. Already we have learned at what time the Lord declared his indignation, and predicted its effect; Noah was five hundred years old: when the flood fell, he was six hundred years old; so there was between the prediction and the flood an interval of one hundred years. In the course of so many years, they did not make the slightest progress towards good, in spite of this great teaching of the construction of the ark by Noah. But perhaps, one will ask, why the Lord who had said: The time of the man will be but a hundred and twenty years, the Lord who had promised that his patience would wait during this number of years, n does not he expect the promised years to be fully accomplished to achieve universal destruction? I say that this is the strongest mark of his kindness. When he saw that every day they committed irreparable faults; that no. only his inexpressible patience was of no use to them, but the ulcers extended, so he cut off time to prevent them from exposing themselves to more severe punishments. But, objecting to me, what punishment can be more severe than this? It is, do not doubt, my beloved, a punishment more severe, more terrible, the punishment without end, the punishment of the age to come. Some sinners, to have suffered punishment here, do not escape the other; only the other punishment will be lighter; the severity of the tortures endured here below is as much less for the future. Listen to Christ, bemoaning the misery of Bethsaida: Woe to you, Chorazim! he said; woe to you, Bethsaida! because if the miracles that were done in your midst were done in Sodom, long ago she would have done penance in the sack and in the ashes. This is why I declare to you that on the day of judgment, Sodom and Gomorrah will be treated less severely than you. (Matt XI, 21, 22, Luke, X, 13, 14.) You see, my beloved, how this expression, less rigorously, shows that these cities, although they have suffered on earth so great a punishment, this strange fire, astonishing, will also support, in the future, another punishment still, however lighter, because they have already experienced a terrible effect of the indignation of God? So, to preserve the men of the flood, more rigorous tortures to which the sins they heaped on them would expose, the God of goodness, the God of mercy, seeing that they were incapable of repentance, shortened the time during which he had promised to wait again. For, as with those who hasten to obey his warnings, he listens to his natural goodness, revokes his decrees, approves repentance, frees those who convert from the torments that threatened them; likewise, when he promises to give some goods, for example, a time to repent, if he sees that his promises were made to unworthy sinners, then he also revokes his promises. This is why he said by the voice of the prophet: When I have pronounced judgment against a people, or against a kingdom, to lose it and destroy it to the root; if this nation does penance, I will also repent of the evil that I have resolved to do to it. And then: When I declare myself in favor of a nation, or a kingdom, to establish it and to strengthen it, if this kingdom, or if this nation sins, I will repent too, says well that I had resolved to do it. (Jeremiah XVIII, 7, 8, 9, 10.) Do you see how it is from us that God receives the opportunities, as well as the mercy that he gives us? Nuncio, what anger does he cause to burst? That is why, at the time of the deluge, it shortens the time, because the men were abusing the length of time. So Paul was saying to those stupid people who do not admit the salvation made by repentance: Do you despise the riches of his goodness, his patience and his long tolerance? Do you not know that the goodness of God invites you to penance? and yet, by your hardness, and by the impenitence of your heart, you gather up a treasure of wrath, for the day of wrath and the manifestation of the righteous judgment of God. (Romans II, 4, 5.) Do you see how this illustrious doctor of the universe teaches us that those who abuse God's patience in waiting for our repentance are exposed to more serious punishment, to more rigorous punishment? And that is why, in the text that concerns us, the God of goodness, as if he wanted to excuse himself, to justify himself, to give us the reason which led him to rain the flood, before the time was over. says, Noah was six hundred years old. Those who, in the interval of a hundred years, did not want to convert, what would they have gained at twenty years older, than they would have added other sins to their sins? Besides, God, wishing to show his ineffable mercy and the excellence of his goodness, gave again seven days before the flood, to allow them, in this short interval, to show some semblance of repentance.

And consider the goodness of the Lord, the diversity of the means he uses for healing. Seeing that their wounds were incurable, he leaves them only a very short delay, because he wills, if they can, in such a short interval, return to resipiscence, revoke the cessation of his anger. For it is his habit, because he cares for our salvation, to predict the punishments he will inflict, and his reason is that he desires not to be compelled to inflict them; he takes care to announce them in advance, so that this warning inspires us with a terror which corrects us, which distracts his anger, which enables us to render his decrees useless. Nothing, indeed, rejoices him more than our conversion and our return to virtue. See, therefore, with what skill he tries to heal them from their evil; first he gave them a considerable time to repent; then, when he saw that they were as deprived of feeling, that the length of time was of no use to them, that they continued their vices at the very moment that the deluge was, so to speak, at their doors, he renews the prediction ; he does not say: in three days as for the Ninevites, but: in seven days. And I do not hesitate to say it, because I know how great is the clemency of our God, if, even in these last seven days, they had really wanted to do penance, certainly, they would have escaped the Flood. That is why, since the delays added to such a long time could not tear them from their vices, God rained down the Flood, the six hundredth year of Noah's life. Noah, says the text, was six hundred years old when the waters of the deluge flooded the earth. Have you understood well, my beloved, what great utility we have gathered to know the number of years of the life of the just ,. how old was he when the flood came? [Homilies on Genesis]

7:7-14 And then went in Noah and his sons and his wife, and his sons’ wives with him into the ark, because of the water of the flood. 8 And of clean flying creatures and of unclean flying creatures, and of clean cattle and of unclean cattle, and of all things that creep upon the earth, 9 pairs went in to Noah into the ark, male and female, as God commanded Noah. 10 And it came to pass after the seven days that the water of the flood came upon the earth. 11 In the six hundredth year of the life of Noah, in the second month, on the twenty-seventh day of the month, on this day all the fountains of the abyss were broken up, and the flood-gates of heaven were opened. 12 And the rain was upon the earth forty days and forty nights. 13 On that very day entered Noah, Sem, Cham, Japheth, the sons of Noah, and the wife of Noah, and the three wives of his sons with him into the ark. 14 And all the wild beasts after their kind, and all cattle after their kind, and every reptile moving itself on the earth after its kind, and every flying bird after its kind,

ALCUIN OF YORK. (Gen 7:8-14) WHY DID HE PRESCRIBE AN EVEN NUMBER FOR THE UNCLEAN ANIMALS AND AN ODD NUMBER FOR THE CLEAN ONES? — Answer. So that Noah could take some of the clean ones to sacrifice to God. [Question 111]

WHY WERE THE CLEAN ANIMALS MORE NUMEROUS [VARIANT: MORE BEAUTIFUL] THAN THE UNCLEAN ONES? — Answer. For the future use of mankind, because, out of the clean ones, it was needed for men that those that were useful should be more numerous [variant: more beautiful] than those that were harmful. [Question 112]

WHAT DOES IT MEAN THAT IT IS SAID ALL THE ANIMALS WENT IN TO NOAH INTO THE ARK? — Answer. They did so not gathered by Noah, but ordered by God. In the same way as it was said in the first creation, "he brought them to Adam to see what he would call them" (Gen. 2:19), so here did the animals, brought together by divine will, spontaneously come to the ark in the predetermined number. [Question 114]

HOW SHOULD WE UNDERSTAND THINGS TO HAVE BEEN WITH FISH OR BIRDS THAT CAN LIVE IN OR ON WATER? WERE THEY IN THE ARK OR NOT? AND WHAT ABOUT VERY MINUTE INSECTS LIKE BUGS AND FLIES AND THE LIKE? — Answer. Saint Augustine, in The City of God, book XV (chapter 27 paragraph 4) solves this problem as follows: "There is a customary inquiry about the very minute creatures, not only such as mice and lizards, but also locusts, beetles, flies, fleas, and so forth, whether there were not in the ark a larger number of them than was determined by God in His command. First, those persons who are moved by this difficulty are to be reminded that the words "every creeping thing of the earth" only indicate that it was not needful to preserve in the ark the animals that can live in the water, whether the fishes that live submerged in it, or the sea-birds that swim on its surface. Then, when it is said "male and female," no doubt reference is made to the repairing of the races, and consequently there was no need for those creatures being in the ark which are born without the union of the sexes from inanimate things, or from their corruption; or if they were in the ark, they might be there as they commonly are in houses, not in any determinate numbers; or if it was necessary that there should be a definite number of all those animals that cannot naturally live in the water, that so the most sacred mystery which was being enacted might be bodied forth and perfectly figured in actual realities, still this was not the care of Noah or his sons, but of God. For Noah did not catch the animals and put them into the ark, but gave them entrance as they came seeking it. For this is the force of the words, "They shall come unto thee,"—not, that is to say, by man's effort, but by God's will." [Question 115]

IF GOD HAD MADE ALL THINGS GOOD, AND EVEN VERY GOOD (GEN. 1:31), WHAT DOES IT MEAN THAT HE CALLED ANIMALS CLEAN AND UNCLEAN? CAN SOMETHING UNCLEAN BE GOOD? — Answer. Even an animal that is called unclean is good in its own nature, but compared to another, better nature, it is thought, in a way, unclean. [Question 129]

WHY IS THE OX BETTER THAN THE LION? — Answer. Because its nature is fitter to provide for the needs of man, for whom all animals were created. [Questions and Answers on Genesis, 130]

AUGUSTINE OF HIPPO. (Gen 7:8-14) UNEQUAL NUMBER OF CLEAN AND UNCLEAN ANIMALS. — In relation to what is written: And of clean flying creatures and of unclean flying creatures, and of clean cattle and of unclean cattle, and of all things that creep upon the earth, undoubtedly clean and unclean, though not expressed in the Scripture, entered two by twos in with Noah into the Ark, male and female (Gen. 7:9). Why is it that he first distinguished two of each species from the unclean, and now he says that two of each species, the same of the clean animals and unclean animals. The answer is, because it has nothing to do with quantity, but with the sex of animals: in all pure or unclean species, there is male and female. [Questions on Genesis, 8]

AUGUSTINE OF HIPPO. (Gen 7:14) In this passage: Et ommes bestiae secundum genus, et omnia pecora secundum genus, et omne repens quod movetur super terrain secundum genus, et omne volatile secundum genus, intrarunt ad Noë in arcam, bina ab omni carne, in quo est spiritus vitae. (All the wild animals according to their kind, all the domestic animals according to their kind, all those who crawl on the earth according to their kind, and all who fly in the air according to their species, entered with Noah in the ark, to the number of two of all living and lively flesh.), the pronoun in quo (in which) has no antecedent, unless one understands the word genus as if it were in quo genere (in which kind). For if one implied the word carne (flesh), one would have to say in qua (in which): or no interpreter made this change if it is not Symmachus. [Locutions]

CLEMENT OF ROME. (Verse 13) Noah, Sem, Cham, Japheth, the sons of Noah, and the wife of Noah, and the three wives of his sons with him into the ark. Wherefore let us give up vain and fruitless cares, and approach to the glorious and venerable rule of our holy calling.  Let us attend to what is good, pleasing, and acceptable in the sight of Him who formed us. Let us look steadfastly to the blood of Christ, and see how precious that blood is to God which, having been shed for our salvation, has set the grace of repentance before the whole world.  Let us turn to every age that has passed, and learn that, from generation to generation, the Lord has granted a place of repentance to all such as would be converted unto Him. Noah preached repentance, and as many as listened to him were saved.  Jonah proclaimed destruction to the Ninevites; (Jon. 3) but they, repenting of their sins, propitiated God by prayer, and obtained salvation, although they were aliens to the covenant of God. [1st epistle 7, ANF v.1]

HIPPOLYTUS OF ROME. (Verse 14) We find in an ancient Hebrew copy that God commanded Noah to range the wild beasts in order in the lower floor or story, and to separate the males from the females by putting wooden stakes between them. And thus, too, he did with all the cattle, and also with the birds in the middle story. And God ordered the males thus to be separated from the females for the sake of decency and purity, lest they should perchance get intermingled with each other. [Fragments section 6 ANF v.5]

JOHN CHRYSOSTOM OF CONSTANTINOPLE. Well, let's move on, let's see the rest now. "When the flood began, says the text, Noah entered the ark, and with him his sons; his wife and the wives of his sons, to save, the waters of the flood. And pure birds, and unclean birds, and reptiles, two and two, entered into the ark; and of all these animals males and females, as the Lord commanded Noah. (Gen. VII, 7-9.) It is not without design that Scripture has added: As the Lord commanded Noah; it is to praise, a second time, the praise of the just man who has accomplished all, as the Lord had commanded him, and who neglected none of his orders. After that the seven days were passed, according to the promise of the Lord, says the text, the waters of the flood spread on the earth, the year six hundred of the life of Noah, the twenty-seventh day of the second month. (Ibid., X, 11) See the care that Scripture takes to teach us, not only the year, of the flood, but the month and the day. Then, so that this story can be used to correct the descendants, to add to the terror, the Scripture says: In that day, all the sources of the great abyss of the waters were broken, and the cataracts of the sky were opened, and rain fell on the earth for forty days and forty nights. (Ibid, 12.) See how holy Scripture knows how to conform its expressions to our infirmity; all words are appropriate to human language. There is no cataract in the sky, but they are familiar ways of speaking; it is as if the Scripture were saying: the Lord confined himself to commanding, and immediately the waters obeyed the Creator's order, and reuniting all their currents from all sides, inundated the whole world. As to what the flood lasted forty days and forty nights, it is still a great mark of divine goodness. In fact, in his profound mercy, God wished that at least some men, of this generation whom he chastised, could escape the universal destruction, when they would perish, care for their eyes, creatures like them, when they would see the common loss ready to envelop them. It is probable, in fact, that a good part perished on the first day of the flood; on the second day the prey of the flood increased, and so did the third day and the following days. God, therefore, differed from forty days and forty nights in the completion of the flood, to take away all excuses for men. If he had wanted to limit himself to ordering the flood, in a moment he could flood everything, but still listening to his clemency, he used the length of days. Then the text says: As soon as that day came, Noah went into the ark with his sons, Shem, Ham, and Japheth, his wife, and the three wives of his sons. All the animals after their kind also entered, as the Lord God commanded Noah. (Ibid, 13, 14, 16.) Thus, says the text, when the flood began, according to the commandment of the Lord, Noah entered the ark, with his sons and his wife, and the wives of his sons, and all animals according to their species. And, says the text, the Lord God shut the ark out.

See, again here, the. deference of the word which adapts itself to our infirmity: God shut the ark out. It is to teach us that he put the just in perfect security. That is why the text says, closed, and the text adds: externally, so that this righteous could not see the universal destruction, which would have caused him too cruel pain; for if it had been represented in his soul this atrocious, this terrible upheaval, if he could have imagined the destruction of the human species, the common end of all beings without reason, death striking at once men and beasts of burden, and, so to speak, the destruction of the earth itself; seized with a black sadness, he would have been too much troubled in his heart. No doubt they were perverts who perished, but honest souls feel deep pity at the sight of the punishments that strike men. And you will see that all the prophets, the righteous, often pray to God for the wicked. Thus did the patriarch for the inhabitants of Sodom, so did the prophets continually; there is one who said: Alas! Lord God, will you lose all that remains of Israel? (Ezek 9: 8) Another now cries, "Do you then make men like the fishes of the sea, who have no chief? (Habak.1: 14.) Therefore, because a righteous man was confused and troubled, so that this dreadful spectacle would not plunge him into too bitter sadness, God, so to speak, imprisoned him in the world. 'ark; he spares his eyes a spectacle which would strike him with terror. It is to be believed, indeed, that if Noah had been able to see this flood, so many heaps, he would have feared himself to be destined to perish. Therefore, out of interest, out of goodness for him, God did not want him to contemplate the cruel rage of the waters, that he saw the destruction of men, the universal extermination. For me, when I meditate on the life of this righteous person in the ark, I am astonished, admired and still ascribed his existence, I attribute everything to the goodness of God. If this goodness had not strengthened his soul, would not have made him so exhausting an ordeal, how, answer me, I beg you, could he have remained, locked up as in a prison, as in a frightful dungeon? How, I ask you, could he have resisted the fury of so many waves? The men who are on a ship, sailing with the help of sails, who see the pilot sitting near the rudder, opposing his art to the violence of the winds, if they happen to see the waves in fury, they die of frightened, they almost despair of their salvation. What will we think of this just man? He was there, as I have said, like in a prison, which on all sides carried it in every direction. He did not see the sky; he had nothing to rest his eyes on; he was shut up captive there, and he could see nothing of a nature to console him. The sailors, so high that the waves rise, can often see the sky, the summits of mountains, large cities, it is a consolation. If the storm is redoubled, if it is impossible to resist, after ten days or more, after all these hurricanes, after all these dangers, they are thrown on the coast, and, comforting themselves little by little, they end up to forget tiredness and pain. But here, nothing like it. For a whole year, he was there, in this strange, horrible jail, full of stupor, without being able to breathe the pure air: was it possible, since the ark was closed all around? How, I beg you, has he resisted? How did it last? I suppose they had bodies, diamond bodies, how could these bodies themselves, deprived of air, deprived of the wind, which is no less useful than air to the health of the body? to endure this black, stifling captivity? How did they not become blind in such a long stay? If we want, to understand such a situation, to remind ourselves of our ordinary preoccupations, where did they find drinking water, these living beings shut up in the ark? Let us neglect this detail; How could he, this righteous man, with his sons and their wives, support this existence in common, with unreasonable beings, wild beasts, and all other animals? Bear the infection? to support cohabitation with them? But what am I saying? how could these very animals resist so long, how did they not perish, unable to breathe or move, in that one and only place where they were all so closely together? You know very well, you know perfectly well that we must necessarily, and to us, and animals, more than air, more than food, that we are locked up, that we are cramped in a unique place, we wither away, we die. How, then, could this righteous man, with all the living beings who were in the ark, survive so long? Do not seek any other cause than the grace from above, the all-powerful grace. This arch, agitated here, beyond, that such fury of the waters does not swallow, which has no pilot, explain this prodigy without the grace of above! Impossible to pretend that this ark was like a ship that could be directed. The arch was closed on all sides, and because the architect had so desired it, not only did the shock of the waves not hurt him, but the ark, rising on their heads, preserved in a perfect safety to those who lived in it.

When God works, my beloved, a work of his hands, whatever it is, do not seek to explain it by a human method: the works of God exceed our thought; never can the understanding of man reach, understand the reason of what is the industry of God.

So it is fitting, when we hear what God commands, to obey His command, to believe His words. He is the Creator of nature; he changes, he transforms everything as he pleases. And the Lord God shut the ark out. The virtue of this righteous man was great, and his faith excellent. This is even what made the ark built, that all supported such a dwelling, a prison so narrow, an existence in common with wild beasts and animals of all kinds. Hence the words of Blessed Paul, publishing the virtue of the righteous man: By faith Noah, divinely warned, apprehending what was not yet seen, building the ark, to save his family, and By building it, he condemned the world, and became heir to the righteousness that springs from faith. (Hebrews XI, 7.) Have you understood how faith in the Lord has been, for the just, a solid anchor; how did faith, which assured him of everything, made him build the ark, and endure such a habitation? This faith which animated him, procured him his salvation, and by building it, says the text, he condemned the world, and became heir to the justice which springs from faith. It is not that he himself was a judge, but. it is that God condemns by comparison men who, with the same resources as this just, have not taken, like him, the path of virtue; therefore, it is the faith he has shown that has condemned others, those unbelievers who have not believed the prediction. As for me, I admire, among all the other virtues of this righteous man, that he was able, thanks to the goodness, to the ineffable mercy of God, to live among these wild animals, these lions, these leopards. these bears, all the other ferocious beasts. [Homilies on Genesis]

7:15 went in to Noah into the ark, pairs, male and female of all flesh in which is the breath of life.

ALCUIN OF YORK. (Gen 7:15). ABOUT WHAT LIVING BEINGS WAS IT SAID, "WHEREIN WAS THE BREATH OF LIFE"? — Answer. Not only about men, but also about all others that feed on vital air. [Question 118]

WHAT SHOULD OUR OPINION BE CONCERNING PEACE AND CONCORD AND HOW IT WAS THAT ANIMALS OF DIFFERENT SPECIES DID NOT FIGHT ONE ANOTHER? — Answer. Just as they were led into the ark by God's will, so were they preserved within the ark by God's will. Whether they were separated in different rooms according to their species or whether they stayed together, they were [in any case] controlled by God's power. [Questions and Answers on Genesis 119]

AUGUSTINE OF HIPPO. (Gen 7:15) WHAT DOES SPIRIT OF LIFE MEAN? — It should be noted that the phrase: wherein is spirit of life, refers not only to men, but also to animals. Some authors want to see here an allusion to the Holy Spirit for what is said elsewhere: And God breathed into his face the spirit of life (Gen 2:7). However, some manuscripts bear with more accuracy: "a breath of life." [Questions on Genesis, 9]

7:16-19 And they that entered went in male and female of all flesh, as God commanded Noah, and the Lord God shut the ark outside of him. 17 And the flood was upon the earth forty days and forty nights, and the water abounded greatly and bore up the ark, and it was lifted on high from off the earth. 18 And the water prevailed and abounded exceedingly upon the earth, and the ark was borne upon the water. 19 And the water prevailed exceedingly upon the earth, and covered all the high mountains which were under heaven.

JOHN CHRYSOSTOM OF CONSTANTINOPLE. Whatever things we say from Scripture, you will say, are for the purpose of threatening. But with respect to future things this indeed might be said, but not so concerning things that have happened, and have had an end. You have heard of the deluge. And were those things also said by way of threat? Did they not actually happen? Those men too said many such things, and for a hundred years while the ark was building, and the wood was being wrought, and the righteous man was calling aloud, there was no one who believed. But because they did not believe the threat in words, they suffered the punishment in very deed. And this will be our fate too, if we shall not have believed. On this account it is that He compares His coming with the days of Noah, because as some disbelieved in that deluge, so will they in the deluge of hell. Were these things a threat? Were they not a fact? Then will not He, who then brought punishment upon them so suddenly, much more inflict it now also? For the things that are committed now are not less than the offenses of that time. How?— because then, it says, “the sons of God went in unto the daughters of men” (Gen. 6:4), and those mixtures were the great offense. But now there is no form of wickedness, which is unattempted. Do you then believe that the deluge took place? Or does it seem to you a fable? And yet even the mountains where the ark rested, bear witness; I speak of those in Armenia. [John Chrysostom, Hom. 8 on 1 Thessalonians NPNF s.1 v.13]

7:20 Fifteen cubits upwards was the water raised, and it covered all the high mountains.

ALCUIN OF YORK. (Gen. 7:20) DID THE WATER RISE FIFTEEN CUBITS ABOVE MOUNT OLYMPUS, WHOSE HEIGHT, ACCORDING TO WHAT IS SAID, RISES ABOVE THIS STORMY AIR, TO WHERE IT IS SAID YOU CAN NEITHER SEE CLOUDS NOR FEEL WINDS? — Answer. If the earth was able to penetrate the space of that calm ether, why could not the rising water have done so too? There are, however, some people who think that neither the unevenness of the earth nor the height of mountains was so great before the Flood as it now is. [Questions and Answers on Genesis, 119]

AUGUSTINE OF HIPPO. (Gen. 7:20) FROM THE RISE OF WATER ABOVE THE MOUNTAINS DURING THE DELUGE. — There is a difficulty regarding the height of the mountains, recalling the legend of the Olympus. (Cf. LUCANUS, Phars. 2, 271-273; cf. anche De civ. Dei 15, 27; De Gen. ad l. imp. 14, 44; De Gen. c. Man. 1, 15, 24.) It is written that the water exceeded fifteen cubits of the summit of the highest mountain. But if the earth has been able to invade the space of this tranquil region, inaccessible to winds and storms, why could not the water, rising, have reached this point? [Questions on Genesis, 10]

7:21-24 And there died all flesh that moved upon the earth, of flying creatures and cattle, and of wild beasts, and every reptile moving upon the earth, and every man. 22 And all things which have the breath of life, and whatever was on the dry land, died. 23 And God blotted out every offspring which was upon the face of the earth, both man and beast, and reptiles, and birds of the sky, and they were blotted out from the earth, and Noah was left alone, and those with him in the ark. 24 And the water was raised over the earth an hundred and fifty days.

ALCUIN OF YORK. (Gen. 7:21) WHY DID TERRESTRIAL CREATURES PERISH WITH MAN RATHER THAN AQUATIC ONES? — Answer. Because of the curse of the earth on which the animals of the earth fed. [Questions and answers on Genesis, 123]

AUGUSTINE OF HIPPO. (Gen. 7:22-24) IT IS WRITTEN, "THE WATER ROSE ABOVE THE EARTH FOR A HUNDRED AND FIFTY DAYS." — In relation to the phrase: And the waters prevailed on the earth a hundred and fifty days, it is wondered if it grew until that day or if it remained during all those days in the height that it acquired, because other translators seem rather to say the latter. Aquila, for example, says: “reached”; Symmachus: “they excelled”, the waters, is understood. [Questions on Genesis, 11]

AUGUSTINE OF HIPPO. When he said: And all that was made alive on the face of the earth, from man to beast, both of the creeping things and fowls of the air, was annihilated, and added: and they were blotted out from the earth. Note that repetitive expression is commonly used in Scripture. [Locutions]

CYPRIAN OF CARTHAGE. As the ark of Noah was nothing else than the sacrament of the Church of Christ, which then, when all without were perishing, kept those only safe who were within the ark, we are manifestly instructed to look to the unity of the Church. Even as also the Apostle Peter laid down, saying, “Thus also shall baptism in like manner make you safe;” (1 Pet. 3:21) showing that as they who were not in the ark with Noah not only were not purged and saved by water, but at once perished in that deluge; so now also, whoever are not in the Church with Christ will perish outside, unless they are converted by penitence to the only and saving lava of the Church. [Epistle 74.15 ANF v.5] 

JOHN CHRYSOSTOM OF CONSTANTINOPLE. Then, after having shown us how high the waters have increased, that is, so as to exceed the summits of the highest mountains by fifteen cubits, the text, with its accustomed exactitude, tells us: All flesh moving on the earth was consumed; all the birds, all the beasts of burden, all the wild beasts, all the reptiles, all the men died, and generally all that has life and breathes on the earth. (Gen. VII, 21, 22.) And it is not without design and without particular reason that the text said: And all that breathes on the earth, but it is to show you that all have perished, that the righteous alone, with all those who were in the ark, was saved; for these, according to the commandment of the Lord, having departed from the earth, had gone up into the ark. And the waters destroyed all the creatures that were on the face of all the earth, from the man to the beasts, both the reptiles and the birds of the sky, all perishes from above the earth. See how, once, twice, time and again, the text teaches us that the destruction was general, universal; that no living being escaped; that everything has been stifled under the waves, as well as all men and all animals. There remains only Noah, and those who were with him in the ark, and the waters covered the earth for a hundred and fifty days. (Ibid., 24.) During this great number of days, says the text, the waters remained this wonderful height; here again consider the greatness of the soul of the just man and the excellence of his courage. What has he not experienced in the soul when he conceives, by seeing, so to speak, by thought, the bodies of men, domesticated animals, pure or impure animals, undergoing death common to all, mixed together, without any difference, indistinctly? Moreover, what did he feel, when he reflected in himself on the devastated world, on this life full of pain, on every side devoid of tent consolation, without any maintenance, without any aspect to charm the eyes when he did not know how long he would have to endure life in that prison? As long as the clatter of the waters, the whirlwind of the waves resounded in his ear, he felt every day grow in him the terror. What sweet thoughts could recreate the one who saw, for a hundred and fifty days, always the same level of the waves, the waves carried at this height, and nothing to indicate that they began so little that it was, to lower itself. But, be it known, he endured everything with courage, because he knew the omnipotence of the Lord; he did not doubt this truth, that the Creator of nature does everything, transforms everything as he pleases; and the just man resigned himself to his condition. It was because the grace of God vivified, strengthened his courage, gave him sufficient consolation, prevented failings in him, did not allow him to conceive a thought which was not virile, which was not generous. This righteous had begun by showing all that depended on him, I mean, the zeal of virtue, the vigor of justice, the excellence of faith; He soon obtained the abundance of the gifts of the Lord, that is, patience, strength, the sweetness of perfect resignation, the gift of enduring. the stay in the ark; without indisposition, without disgust, without complaining of the cohabitation with all these animals.

So let's imitate that just, too, I conjure you. Let us hasten, let us hasten to contribute on our part, to make ourselves worthy also of the gifts of the Lord. If he awaits the opportunities that come from us, it is only to show us all his munificence. So, our indolence must not deprive us of his gifts; be full of zeal, let us lay hands on the work of salvation; Let us resolutely take the road to virtue, so that we may, assisted by the help of above, attain promptly our blessed end; let us suspend ourselves to hope in the Lord, let it be for us, as a sure and solid anchor; Let's not look at what virtue has to do with work, but let's see after the labors, calculate the rewards, all the burden will be light. The merchant, out of the harbor, in the open sea, thinks not only pirates, shipwrecks, sea monsters, furious winds, continual storms, countless disasters; he calculates future earnings when he has escaped all perils; his hope is his strength; he braves all these misfortunes easily to swell the treasure which he will bring home. The farmer does not think only of hard work, rains, barren land, niello, and dismal grasshoppers; he represents his granary breaking under the weight of his sheaves, and his courage bears all, and the expectation of goods makes him insensitive to pain; however uncertain hope is, no matter! he feeds on hope, which shows him the happy future, and he does not renounce fatigue; he does, on the contrary, all that depends on him, expecting the day when he will receive, from his fatigues, the rich salary. The soldier who takes up his weapons and goes to fight does not think only of wounds, limbs. bruised, sudden attacks of victorious enemies, all other disasters; he represents himself victories and triumphs, and equips himself with all his arms, however uncertain the future may be, some loss that threatens him; driving away all these ideas, animated by a good hope, he shakes the numbness, the torpor, takes his arms, runs to the enemy. So, my beloved, if the merchant, if the soldier, if the farmer, no matter how uncertain the hope, despite so many disappointments, so many obstacles, you just heard, so many impediments so diverse, do not fear fatigue, do not give up the hope of seeing happy days, what will be our excuse if we recoil before the difficulties of virtue? if we do not willingly accept for her all the labors, when our hope is so solid, when we see, in reserve for us, so many rewards, so many crowns of a price infinitely superior to all our merits? Listen to Blessed Paul; after so many afflictions, so often dragged before the judges, so often loaded with chains, after so many deaths confronted every day: I am convinced that the sufferings of the present life have no proportion to this glory which will one day discovery in us. (Rom 8: 18) When every day, he says, we would suffer death, which is impossible for nature, though, by the goodness of the Lord, the soul triumphs over nature and is adorned with such glorious crowns, no, we do not bear anything he said, deserving the goods that await us, the glory that must one day be revealed to us. See what splendid glory the followers of virtue enjoy! this glory surpasses the splendor of the most beautiful works which the most saintly can show to God; had he attained to the highest peak of virtue, this glory radiates still more. After all, what magnificent works can show the man, who are enough to respond to the liberality of the Lord? If Paul, such a man, such a great man, said: I am persuaded that the sufferings of the present life have no proportion to that glory which will one day be discovered in us; if he said again: I die every day. (I Corinthians XV, 31); and again: I have worked more than all the others (Ibid., V, 10), what shall we say, we who refuse to take the least punishment for virtue? we who, in the slackening of our indolence, have for only concern to preserve us from some slight sorrow, although we know well that it is possible to reach the celestial bliss only by the patience which supports present pains aspiring to happiness to come? These pains make us agreeable to God, this short fatigue down here assures us the happiness enjoyed by the elect above: it suffices us to wish, to follow the advice of the doctor of the nations, to go where his voice tells us to walk. Consider, my beloved, that sad as misfortunes are, these misfortunes have but a time; the goods that await us up there are imperishable, eternal. Visible things are temporal, invisible ones are eternal. (2 Corinthians IV, 18.) Let us therefore bear with courage these temporal afflictions, do not weary us with the work that makes virtue, in order to enjoy eternal goods assured for ever; may we all enter into this sharing, by the grace and goodness of our Lord Jesus Christ, to whom belongs, as to the Father, as to the Holy Spirit, glory, strength, honor, and now and always, and forever and ever! Amen. [Homilies on Genesis]