Chapter XVI.
It impels the rich to rest from vices and confess to the Lord. How they are to be told: Pray and give; what prayer and gifts to commend to God? Finally, it is shown that these words are also applicable to the poor, and who should not turn away from God.
66. It is good that you now rest and refrain from committing wicked acts, and that you respect the power of the Lord. That is why it was said to the murderer Cain: 'You have sinned, rest' (Genesis 4:7), so that he would put an end to his sin. Let your thoughts confess to the Lord. Do not say: 'We have not sinned.' Paul said: 'Even though I am not aware of anything against myself' (1 Corinthians 4:4), yet he added: 'But that does not make me innocent.' And even if you are not aware of anything, confess it to the Lord, so that nothing escapes you. Indeed, whoever confesses the Lord and employs the remnants of thought in confession, will celebrate a festive day of the mind in secret (Psalm 75, 11) and will feast not on the leaven of malice and wickedness, but on the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.
Therefore, in conclusion, the Prophet turns to you and says: Pray, and render to the Lord your God (ibid., 12), that is: Do not hide, rich ones, the day is here, pray for your sins, render for the benefits that you have received gifts. You have received from Him what you offer: it is His that you pay. Gifts, he says (I Chron. XXIX, 14), are mine, and my gifts, that is, the gifts that you offer to me, have been given to me: I have given and bestowed them upon you. Finally, the Prophet says: I do not lack in my blessings (Ps. XV, 2), therefore I offer yours to you, because I have nothing that you have not given. It is faith that obtains gifts, and humility that recommends offerings. By faith, Abel offered a great sacrifice to God: Abel's gift pleased God more than Cain's, because he conquered by faith. For why does the offering of a poor person please more than that of a rich person? Because a poor person is richer in faith, and wealthier in sobriety; and though they are poor, they are among those of whom it is said: Kings shall offer you gifts (Ps. LXVII, 30). For the Lord Jesus is not pleased by those who offer in purple garments, but by those who govern their own movements, who have dominion over the physical indulgence of the mind. Therefore, pray, you rich ones! You do not have in your works that which pleases. Pray for your sins and vices and offer gifts to your Lord God. Give to the poor, pay off the needy, support the helpless, whom you can only please due to your vices in no other way. Whoever you fear as an avenger, make him your debtor. 'I will not accept calves from your house, nor goats from your herds; for all the beasts of the forest are mine' (Psalms 49:10-11). 'Whatever you offer is mine, for the whole world is mine. I do not demand what is already mine. You can only offer me what is yours, the devotion and faith of your heart. I do not desire sacrifices out of ambition, but only offer to God the sacrifice of praise and fulfill your vows to the Most High.' (Ibid., 14).
68. However, if you please, we will accept it thus: since he said that his rich ones had fallen asleep, he preceded the Lord's chastisements to them, he instilled terror, he proclaimed power, to which even the rich do not resist; turning to everyone, he said: Let the rich ones sleep, let the rich ones be reproached: you, poor ones, pray and return all to the Lord your God, you who bring offerings around Him (Ps. XXV, 12), that is, give thanks, poor ones, because God is not a respecter of persons. Let them build riches, accumulate money, amass treasures of gold and silver: you pray, who have nothing else: you pray, because you have only this, which is more precious than gold and silver. You who do not depart from the Lord, who are around him; for those who were far away have become near. But those who seem close to themselves because of wealth and power have become far away because of greed. For no one is outside unless they have been excluded by fault, as Adam was expelled from paradise, and Eve was excluded. No one is far away, except those whom their own vices have exiled.
Therefore, you who are positioned nearby, pray and offer gifts to the terrifying one, the one who takes away the spirit of princes, terrifying among the kings of the earth. For he is not redeemed with the reward of a rich man, nor is he swayed by the frown of the powerful, who assesses the price of guilt, who demands more from someone the more he has given. Saul granted the kingdom to himself, but because he did not keep the commandment, he lost the kingdom and the spirit. He made many kings of the nations become captives because of their treachery towards the people of their ancestors. And let us now speak about the aforementioned story (III Kings XIX), where Achab, an ungrateful king of the heavens, ordered to be killed in such a way that his wounds were licked by his own dogs. Indeed, because he coveted the vineyard of a poor man, he was reduced to extreme poverty by the Lord, not being satisfied with such great wealth of his reign. No one was found to wash his wounds, nor to cover his body. Human kindness failed around him, and the fierceness of dogs took its place. Surely the miser finds worthy ministers of his funeral.