About judging others. John Chrysostom - about anathemas and condemnation of others (including heretics)

The sin of condemnation is rightfully considered one of the most soul-destructive and dangerous for a Christian. All the holy fathers of the Church, its ascetics and teachers wrote about its inadmissibility from the very beginning of Christian history, since the Gospel clearly and repeatedly warns us about this. The condemnation itself begins with idle talk: “I tell you that for every idle word that people speak, they will give an answer on the day of judgment. For by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned.”(Matt. 12:36-37). In fact, a timely and to the point spoken word, seasoned with mercy and love, can work miracles, inspire a person, console him in sorrow, give him strength, and revive him to a new life. But a word can also be destructive, crippling, killing...

“On that day, when over the new world
God bowed His face, then
Stopped the sun with a word

They destroyed cities with words” (N. Gumilyov).

One of the typical examples of condemnation is given by Christ in the Sermon on the Mount: “I tell you that everyone who is angry with his brother without cause will be subject to judgment; whoever says to his brother: “raqa” is subject to the Sanhedrin; and whoever says, “You are a fool,” is subject to fiery hell.”(Matt. 5:22).

It is interesting to note that in the ancient copies of the Gospels the word “in vain” is not found at all: it appears later, closer to the Middle Ages. Perhaps, for clarification and some clarification, anger can be justified, as, for example, you can read from the Apostle Paul: “When you are angry, do not sin; Let not the sun go down on your anger."(Eph. 4:26). However, due to his weakness and passion, everyone can justify himself in the fact that his anger at the moment is not in vain... But is it worth it? After all, it is precisely in this state that idle talk and condemnation of one’s neighbor most often emerge, even if he was wrong and sinned against us.

In fact, the Gospel sets the bar for us at a dizzying height: not to be angry at all, not to talk idlely and, therefore, not to condemn, and even just... not to judge. “Judge not, and you will not be judged; do not condemn, and you will not be condemned; forgive, and you will be forgiven"(Luke 6:37; Matt. 7:1). But how is it possible at all - not to judge? Perhaps this was only accessible to great saints, whose hearts were filled with endless love for every sinner, and at the same time they themselves were given the ability to see, first of all, their own imperfection and fallen state before God, against the background of which the sins of other people seemed to them mere trifles? “Once there was a meeting in the monastery on the occasion of the fall of one brother. The fathers spoke, but Abba Pior was silent. Then he got up and went out, took the bag, filled it with sand and began to carry it on his shoulders. He also poured some sand into the basket and began to carry it in front of him. The fathers asked him: “What does this mean?” He said: “This bag, which contains a lot of sand, means my sins. There are many of them, but I left them behind me so as not to get sick or cry about them. But these are a few of my brother’s sins, they are in front of me, I talk about them and condemn my brother” (Fatherland, 640). But this is a state of perfection, this is the virtue of divine humility, exceeding natural human abilities!

And yet, Christ calls us all to this perfection (Matthew 6:48). You should not convince yourself that this is obviously not achievable for us, weak, careless and sinful, living in the bustle of the world and somehow carrying our own cross through life. The answer to this is also given in the Gospel: “He who is faithful in little is also faithful in much; but he who is unfaithful in a little is also unfaithful in much.”(Luke 16:10). That is, if we remain faithful, starting with small things, the Lord Himself will give us more (see the parable of the talents in Matthew 25:21). And this little is expressed in the “golden rule” of Scripture: “So in everything that you want people to do to you, do so to them; for this is the law and the prophets"(Matt. 7:12). And since none of us can live without evaluations - other than for a Christian to “avoid evil and do good” (Ps. 33:15) or “test everything, hold on to what is good” (1 Thess. 5:21) - but evaluations ours in relation to the behavior of others can be very approximate, inaccurate or completely incorrect, then here we must proceed from this “golden rule” in relation to our neighbors. That is, there is no simple prohibition - “do not judge” - but there is an important addition to this: “For with the judgment you judge, you will also be judged; and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.” (Matt. 7:2). The Apostle James remarks on this matter: “For judgment is without mercy to him who has shown no mercy; mercy prevails over judgment"(James 2:13). And Christ Himself calls upon the Jews who condemned Him and were at enmity with Him: “Do not judge by appearances, but judge with righteous judgment”(John 7:24). Now, only such a court has value - one that rejects sin, but has mercy and forgives the sinner. The court of love and mercy - for only such a court can truly be right judicial - impartial and not superficial, not in appearance. Otherwise, every judgment leads to condemnation, since condemnation is precisely judgment without mercy and without love; he is always passionate, and personal hostility is certainly mixed in with him.

As Abba Dorotheos remarked, “It is another thing to slander or blame, another to condemn and another to humiliate. To censure means to say about someone: such and such lied, or became angry, or fell into fornication, or (did) something similar. This one slandered (his brother), that is, he spoke biasedly about his sin. And to condemn means to say: such and such is a liar, angry, fornicator. This one condemned the very disposition of his soul, pronounced a sentence on his whole life, saying that he was like this, and condemned him as such; and this is a grave sin. For it is another to say: “he was angry,” and another to say: “he is angry,” and, as I said, to pronounce (thus) a sentence on his entire life.” It can be added that even in this case the same words “he is angry” can be pronounced in different ways... “He is angry!!” - pronounced with inner hostility, this will be exactly a condemnation according to Rev. Dorofey, but at the same time: “he is angry... God, help him” - if it is said with regret and sympathy, without the slightest indignation, then this, of course, is not a condemnation, since what was said can relate to a well-known person with his personality noticed by many weakness.

However, there can sometimes be a trap here too. Rev. John Climacus writes: “Hearing that some were slandering their neighbors, I rebuked them; the perpetrators of this evil responded in apology that they were doing it out of love and concern for the slandered. But I told them: “Leave such love, so that what was said does not turn out to be false: “Whoever secretly slanderes his neighbor—I have driven him out...”(Ps. 100:5). If you truly love your neighbor, as you say, then do not ridicule him, but pray for him in secret; for this form of love is pleasing to God. You will be careful not to condemn those who sin if you always remember that Judas was in the council of Christ’s disciples, and the robber was among the murderers; but in an instant a wonderful change happened to them” (Ladder 10, 4).

Reproof must be distinguished from condemnation. In external form they can be very similar, but in internal motives, content and effectiveness - completely different, almost opposite. “If your brother sins, go and tell him his fault, between you and him alone...” (Matthew 18:15). Both the accuser and the condemner proceed from a vision of the shortcomings in their neighbor. But the one who condemns, at best, states the bare fact of a person’s shortcomings, doing this with hostility towards him. The one who reproaches does this solely from spiritual motives, not seeking his own will, but wanting only goodness and benefit from the Lord for his neighbor.

The prophets of the Old Testament denounced the kings of Israel or the entire people for trampling the commandments of God, for idolatry, hardness of heart, etc. The prophet Nathan denounced King David for committing adultery with Bathsheba, which caused David's repentance. Reproof can serve to correct a person; it contributes to the healing and revival of a sinner, although not always, since much depends on the very state of his soul and the direction of his will. “Do not rebuke a blasphemer, lest he hate you; rebuke a wise man and he will love you"(Proverbs 9, 8). But condemnation never causes anything like this - it only hardens, embitters or plunges into despondency. Therefore, it is in no way appropriate for a spiritually weak person, who himself is in passions, to undertake reproof - he will certainly fall into condemnation, damaging both himself and the one whom he undertook to admonish. Moreover, it is important to know when to stop and when to say something to your neighbor about shortcomings or to remain silent and be patient. And this measure can only be revealed by God Himself, whose will a pure heart seeks and feels.

It is worth noting that the culture in which we grew up and were brought up, unfortunately, more often favors the development of the passion of condemnation than prevents it. And the parish environment or some Orthodox publications, alas, may not be an exception here at all.

For example, there is often an opinion that only in the Orthodox Church is salvation, and those who do not belong to it, accordingly, will not be saved. If they are not saved, it means they will perish and be condemned. We - right-glorious ones, only we worship God correctly, while others do it incorrectly, we have the fullness of the truth, while for others it is flawed or even distorted to such an extent that they cannot be called anything other than seduced by demons!

But if a person denies salvation in advance to someone, or entire groups of people, then this is another classic example of condemnation as an anticipation of God’s perfect judgment and replacing it with his own imperfect and biased judgment! Yes, dogmatically we have the most sublime and precise teaching, but why not think about whether we live in accordance with it? But another person of other faiths may turn out to be higher than us in life, and besides, the Gospel testifies that to whom more is given, more will be asked! - see Luke. 12, 47-49. And the question has long been asked: the catastrophe of 1917, 70 years of militant and aggressive atheism, then a general decline in morals, a general increase in crime, drug addiction, suicide, disregard for the human person, everyday rudeness, corruption... - despite all the fact that from 50 to 70 percent Russians now call themselves Orthodox! And in the non-Orthodox countries of Europe and America there is stability, social justice, security and safety, law and order, and many of our compatriots have firmly settled there in recent years. “By their fruits you will know them”(Matt. 7:20). Is it not because many people now have so much “Orthodox” pride that the Lord still humbles us? Truly, the best antidote to judging others is self-judgment and self-reproach! “The main reason for all confusion, if we thoroughly examine, is that we do not reproach ourselves. This is why any such disorder stems from this, and this is why we never find peace. And there is nothing to be surprised when we hear from all the saints that there is no other way but this. We see that no one, bypassing this path, has found peace, but we hope to find peace, or we believe that we are following the right path, never wanting to reproach ourselves. Truly, if a person accomplishes dozens of virtues, but does not adhere to this path, then he will never cease to be offended and insult others, thereby losing all his labors” (Abba Dorotheos). How nice it would be to remember every hour, and not just during Great Lent, the words of the prayer of St. Ephraim the Syrian: “Hey, Lord the King, grant me to see my sins and not condemn my brother.”.

Of course, there are no final and specific recipes for firmly and definitively insuring yourself from condemnation. Living life does not fit into any clear recommendations, and for any specific person or for a certain type of character there may be a different approach. For example, people who are angry, emotional and prone to categorical assessments should remember the relativity and approximateness, and therefore the probable fallacy of their judgments about their neighbors. And for those who themselves are afraid to show their position in life and express their opinion (as a rule, timid and suspicious people, afraid, among other things, to judge someone, prone to despondency from themselves), on the contrary, greater internal freedom and emancipation are required. While we live in this world, there is always the possibility of breakdowns and falls, but we learn from mistakes; The main thing is not to persist in sins, of which the most universal is the sin of pride, which most often manifests itself in exaltation over one’s neighbors and condemnation of them. However, it is worth remembering the following points.

1) What we condemn or suspect others of, we most often do it ourselves. And with this distorted vision we judge our neighbors, from our specific inner experience. For how could we otherwise have an idea of ​​supposed vices? “To the pure all things are pure; But for those who are defiled and unbelieving, nothing is pure, but their mind and conscience are defiled” (Titus 1:15).

2) Often in such condemnation lies the desire to rise above the person being judged and to show myself that I am certainly not involved in this, but in reality this is easily accompanied by hypocrisy and partiality - see paragraph 1. If we judge our neighbor, we should approach ourselves in the same way, but more often it turns out that we are ready to excuse and justify ourselves, to wish forgiveness and leniency for ourselves more than for others. This is already the injustice of our court, and a conviction is a deliberately unjust court.

4) Relapse into condemnation occurs from a lack of love and forgiveness of offenders. As long as we live, we can always have enemies or ill-wishers. It is impossible to love enemies with your natural powers. But to pray for them, according to the word of the Gospel, and not to wish them harm and revenge, may well be within our power from the very beginning, and we must try to establish ourselves in this little way. Seeing little, the Lord will give more over time, that is, inspired love from above. Love is long-suffering, merciful, does not boast, does not think evil (1 Cor. 13:4-5), and then, as the blessed one said. Augustine, “love and do what you want.” It is unlikely that a loving mother will condemn her negligent child, although she will take measures to educate him, including possible punishment, if necessary.

5) It may often seem to us that people who express harsh assessments of people we know are condemning them. In fact, we cannot say with certainty that others around us are judging if we ourselves are not always sure whether we are judging. Only I myself, at best, can say about myself, based on my inner state, whether I have condemned or not; Do I have hostility, ill-will and a thirst for revenge when assessed negatively?

6) We ourselves can increase condemnation around ourselves, provoking the weak to it. We must remember that Orthodox Christians, willy-nilly, are asked more than others, and not only will God ask them in the future, but also those around them here and now. For persons invested with clergy, the demand is even stricter and the requirements are higher. If it is reliably known about the sin of a neighbor, the sin must be resolutely rejected, the sinner must be pitied and prayed for his admonition, remembering that today he has fallen, and tomorrow it could be each of us. A negative example also teaches and edifies: “Shun evil and do good; seek peace and follow it"(Ps. 33:15). “For this is the will of God, that by doing good we should stop the ignorance of foolish people.”(1 Peter 2:15).

Saint John Chrysostom:

Even if we had not committed any sin, then this sin alone (condemnation) could lead us to hell...

He who strictly investigates the misdeeds of others will not receive any leniency towards his own. God pronounces judgment not only according to the nature of our crimes, but also according to your judgment of others.

If, forgetting about yourself, you sit as a judge over others, then you imperceptibly accumulate for yourself an increasing burden of sins.

Someone sinned and severely condemned another who committed the same sin. For this, on the Day of Judgment, he will be subjected to not such a punishment as the nature of his sin requires, but more than double or triple - God will assign him a punishment not for what he sinned, but for the fact that he severely condemned another who sinned in the same .

If we want to reduce our sins, we will take care most of all not to condemn our brothers, and we should not allow those who invent slander against them to come to us.

If you judge others, wishing them good, then first wish it for yourself, who has more obvious sins. If you do not care about yourself, then it is clear that you are judging your brother not out of goodwill towards him, but out of hatred and the desire to disgrace him.

If it is bad not to pay attention to your sins, then it is twice or three times worse to judge others; having a log in your eye, do not feel any pain from it; but sin is heavier than a log.

We need to mourn our own vices, and we condemn others; Meanwhile, we should not do this even if we were clean from sins.

When you say: such and such a person is evil, harmful, vicious, then pay attention to yourself, carefully examine your affairs, and you will repent of your words.

Such a common sin for everyone - condemnation of our neighbors brings upon us the gravest.

Despite the fact that condemnation subjects... to punishment, and does not give any pleasure, we all run towards evil, as if trying and hastening to enter the Gehenna furnace not by one, but by many roads.

Venerable Anthony the Great:

If you see that your brother has fallen into sin, do not be tempted by him, do not despise or condemn him, otherwise you will fall into the hands of your enemies...

Saint Basil the Great:

Don’t judge for unimportant things, as if you were a strict righteous person yourself.

If you see your neighbor in sin, do not look at this alone, but think about what he has done or is doing good, and often, having thought about the general, and not the specific, you will find that he is better than you.

Saint Gregory the Theologian:

Judge yourself more than the deeds of your neighbors: one thing benefits you, the other benefits your neighbors.

He who judges the vice of others would rather be accused himself than put an end to the vice.

It is better to hear bad things about yourself than to talk bad things about someone else. If someone, wanting to amuse you, exposes your neighbor to ridicule, then imagine that you yourself are the subject of ridicule, and his words will upset you.

Venerable Ephraim the Syrian:

If you refrain from judgment, then you will show mercy to yourself.

If you hold a neighbor who has sinned against you responsible for this, then you expose yourself to the fact that you were also able to sin neither against God nor against your neighbor.

Reverend Abba Isaiah:

He who truly repents does not condemn his neighbor, but only mourns his sins.

He who always thinks about the final punishments that he must undergo for his sins will not have his thoughts occupied with condemning others.

Non-judgment of one's neighbor serves as a protection for those struggling with passions under the guidance of spiritual reason. The blasphemer madly destroys this fence.

Whoever depresses himself with great deeds, but humiliates someone who sins or lives carelessly, thereby ruins the entire feat of his repentance. By humiliating his neighbor, he humiliates the member of Christ, anticipating the Judge - God.

We are all on earth as if in a hospital. Some have pain in their eyes, others in their arms or throats, others have deeper wounds. Some have already been cured, but the disease recurs if the person does not abstain from foods that are harmful to him. Likewise, one who is committed to repentance, condemning or humiliating his neighbor, thereby destroys the beneficial effect of his repentance.

If someone in your presence begins to condemn your brother... say to the condemner with humility: “Forgive me, for I myself am sinful and weak and guilty of what you say: I cannot bear it.”

He who judges his neighbor, reproaches his brother, humiliates him in his heart, reproaches him with anger, speaks ill of him in front of others, drives out of himself mercy and other virtues with which the saints abounded. From such an attitude towards one’s neighbor, all the dignity of exploits is lost and all their good fruits perish.

Venerable Neil of Sinai:

It is a great sin for one, wounded by many iniquities, not to pay attention to his own sins and to be curious and talk about what is bad in others.

If you see that someone is dirtier than all unclean people and more crafty than all crafty people, do not show any desire to condemn him - and you will not be abandoned by God.

Just as a good winegrower eats only ripe berries and leaves the sour ones, so a prudent and prudent mind carefully notices other people's virtues... A crazy person looks for other people's vices and shortcomings.

For whatever sins of body or soul we condemn our neighbor, we ourselves fall into them, and it cannot be otherwise.

Venerable Isidore Pelusiot:

It is necessary to turn the spiritual eye from considering the mistakes of others to one’s own and to accustom the tongue to speak strictly not about one’s neighbors, but about oneself, for the fruit of this is justification.

Venerable Abba Dorotheos:

(The Lord) likened the sin of a neighbor to a branch, and condemnation to a log: condemnation is so heavy that it surpasses all sin.

Sayings of nameless elders:

Do not condemn someone who has fallen into fornication if you are pure: by condemning him, you, like him, are breaking the law.

Saint Athanasius of Alexandria:

“Judge not, lest ye be judged; for with the same judgment ye judge, ye shall be judged; and with the measure ye use, it will be measured to you also” (Matthew 7:1-2). The Lord says that those who judge and those who measure endure the same thing in equal measure; however, he does not say this in the sense in which the heretics understand, deceiving themselves, “not understanding either what they say or what they affirm” (1 Tim. 1:7). For, allowing for money those who bring unreasonable and disastrous repentance, they are ready to assert that one should not judge the one who committed a mortal sin, because the Lord said: “Judge not, lest ye be judged.” But if this is really so, as they assert , then, without a doubt, the righteous Noah was condemned, who condemned Ham, who ridiculed him, to be the slave of his brothers. And Moses condemned the one who gathered wood on the Sabbath, ordering him to be stoned outside the camp. And his successor Jesus condemned Achar for theft, destroying him with his whole house. And Phinehas condemned Zimri for fornication and pierced him with a spear. And Samuel put Agag the king of Amalek to death before the Lord. And Elijah condemned the false prophets and killed them like swine. And Elisha condemned Gehazi for accepting money and punished him with leprosy. for slander and punished them according to the law of Moses. And Peter, having accepted the keys of the Heavenly Kingdom, condemned Ananias and his wife when they hid part of their property, and they fell dead. And Paul condemned the forger Alexander, saying: “May the Lord reward him according to his deeds. !" (2 Tim. 4:14), and he handed over Hymenaeus and Alexander to Satan, “so that they might learn not to blaspheme” (1 Tim. 1:20), and he accused the Corinthian Church of not judging: “Is there really not one reasonable person among you who could to judge between your brothers?" (1 Cor. 6:5); "Do you not know that we will judge angels?" (1 Cor. 6:3). So, if all the righteous judged and were not judged themselves, and were even chosen for spiritual service, then why should we not judge?.. The Lord said: “Judge not, lest you be judged” not so that we would act in anything or they did something without judgment, but having in mind the Pharisees and scribes, who judged each other, but did not correct themselves. So, for example, a murderer was condemned to death by law, but they themselves unlawfully killed the prophets; the adulterer was sentenced to death, while they themselves, like horses, neighed at other people's wives; the thief was condemned, but they themselves were stealers of other people's property, that is, they strained out mosquitoes and devoured camels. And that such were the Pharisees and scribes is clear from the following words of the Lord: “And why do you look at the speck in your brother’s eye, but do not feel the beam in your own eye? Or how will you say to your brother: “Let me take the speck out of your eye,” but behold, there is a log in your eye? Hypocrite! First take the beam out of your own eye, and then you will see how to remove the speck from your brother’s eye" (Matthew 7:3-5). If you yourself have a plank of lewdness in your own eye, can you warn your brother against the speck of small sin? God-wise Paul wrote to the Romans about such hypocrites who put on a form of piety: “How is it that when you teach another, you do not teach yourself? While preaching not to steal, are you stealing? When you say, “Thou shalt not commit adultery,” do you commit adultery? By abhorring idols, are you blasphemous? Do you boast about the law, but by breaking the law you dishonor God? (Rom. 2, 21-23); and again: “You are inexcusable, every man who judges another, for by the same judgment with which you judge another you condemn yourself, because in judging another you do the same” (Rom. 2:1). Thus, those who transgress the law of Easter, by transgressing this law, dishonor Christ, the Lord of Easter. Therefore, whoever condemns another for something, and does the same himself, condemns himself. Likewise, the two elders who judged Susanna as an adulterer were themselves condemned as adulterers according to the Law of Moses. And Pharaoh was meted out with the same measure that he measured: he ordered that babies be drowned in the river and he himself drowned in the Red Sea. And the bishops who killed Zechariah at the altar were themselves beaten at the altar by the Romans. All this is to teach you that with whatever measure someone measures, that is what he is rewarded with. And “whatever sins one is punished with” (Wis. 11:17).

Saint Tikhon of Zadonsk:

Everyone needs to know themselves, and not others, but notice and cleanse their own vices. Throw away anger, envy, hatred. Let us sympathize with our brother or the one who is falling with the spirit of love, and behave more carefully from his fall. Pray to the merciful God to raise up the fallen and convert the lost, and not allow you to fall into the same vices. Remember that for judging your neighbor you yourself will be judged, according to the word of Christ (Matthew 7:1). Beware of indecent conversations in which people are judged, and from what torments the glory of another. Move away from those who have the evil habit of judging others. Those who have this evil habit need to pray to the Lord: “Put a guard over my lips, O Lord” (Ps. 140:3).

Beware, beloved Christian, of condemning the fall of a leader, even if you truly know about him. Be even more careful about talking about his fall to others and sowing temptation through slander, so as not to become like Ham, the son of Noah, who announced his father’s shame to others. But cover with your silence, as Shem and Japheth did, the sons of the same Noah, who turned away and covered the shame of their father. At the same time, know that many false rumors are circulating about Christian shepherds and authorities; and this is the action of a common enemy for all - the devil, who sows temptation in order to give rise to all kinds of disorder and confusion in Christian society.

Saint Ignatius (Brianchaninov):

The sin of condemnation is so disgusting to God that He becomes angry and turns away even from His saints when they allow themselves to condemn their neighbor: He takes away His grace from them.

If we do not sow seed, lest the tares grow; let us forbid ourselves unnecessary judgment about our neighbors - and there will be no condemnation.

Saint Isaac the Syrian likens the prayer of a memory-bearing person to sowing on a stone. The same should be said about the prayer of one who condemns and despises his neighbors. God does not listen to the prayer of the proud and angry.

The first preparation (for prayer) is to reject the memory of malice and condemnation of neighbors.

One of our mental illnesses generated by the fall is that we do not see our shortcomings, we strive to hide them, but we long to see, reveal, and punish the shortcomings of our neighbor.

Condemning one's neighbor is a sign of hypocrisy, according to the all-holy instructions of the Gospel.

Conceit begins to manifest itself in secret condemnation of others...

He who condemns his neighbor admires... the dignity of Christ, who will judge the living and the dead on the Last Day.

Otechnik:

The brethren of the cenobitic monastery came to the desert and stopped with one of the hermits. He received them with joy, offered them a meal before the appointed hour and everything that he had in his cell, because they were tired from the difficult journey. When it got dark, we read twelve psalms, just as at night. The elder did not sleep and heard what they were saying to each other: “Hermits console themselves in the desert more than we do in hostels.” Early in the morning, when they got up to go to another hermit, the elder said to them: “Greet him from me and tell him: do not water the vegetables.” They came to their neighbor and conveyed these words. The second hermit understood the meaning of the elder’s words and left the visitors without food until late in the evening. When it was getting dark, he performed a long service to God, and after it he said: “Let us shorten the service a little for your sake, because you are tired from the journey.” Then he said: “We do not have the custom of eating food every day, but for your sake we will taste a little.” And he offered them dry bread and salt, adding a little vinegar to the salt of the visitors. Until the morning they practiced psalmody. Then the hermit said: “For your sake, we do not make a complete rule so that you rest: after all, you are traveling.” When dawn broke, they wanted to leave. But the hermit stopped them: “Stay for a while, at least three days, stay with us according to custom.” The brothers, seeing that he would not let them go, fled secretly.

Saint Theophan the Recluse:

“Judge not, lest ye be judged” (Matthew 7:1). What a disease - gossip and condemnation! Everyone knows that this is a sin, and yet there is nothing more common in our speeches than condemnation. Another will say: “Lord, do not place me in condemnation,” but nevertheless he will bring his condemnation to the end. Others justify themselves by saying that a reasonable person should have his own view of the current situation, and in gossip he tries to be a cool-headed reasoner; but even a simple ear cannot help but discern in his speeches exalted and gloating condemnation. Meanwhile, the Lord’s sentence for this sin is strict and decisive. He who condemns others has no excuse. How can this be? How to overcome troubles? The decisive remedy against condemnation is this: consider yourself condemned. Whoever feels like this will have no time to judge others. All he will say is: “Lord, have mercy! Lord, forgive my sins!”

The Lord's disciples pluck the ears of corn, rub them with their hands, and eat them on the Sabbath. The matter is very unimportant both in appearance and in essence; Meanwhile, the Pharisees could not resist and reproached them (Luke 6:12). What made them bring this up? In appearance there is unreasonable jealousy, but in essence there is a spirit of overjudgment. This spirit clings to everything and presents everything in a gloomy form of lawlessness and destructiveness. This is a weakness that is, to a greater or lesser extent, almost common among people who do not pay attention to themselves. In short, not everyone will express judgmental thoughts, but few people refrain from them. Someone approaches the heart and inflames it with gossip - it exudes it. But at the same time, the gossiper himself is ready to do evil deeds, as long as no one sees, and is certainly in bad order in some respect. It is as if he then judges and condemns, so that the sense of truth, insulted and suppressed in himself, is rewarded by attacks on others, even if they are wrong. He who is right-minded and upholds the truth, knowing how difficult it is to be correct in business, and even more so in feelings, will never judge; he is rather ready to cover with leniency not only the small, but also the great crime of others. The Lord does not judge the gossiping Pharisees, but condescendingly explains to them that the disciples did an act that anyone, having judged properly, can excuse. And it almost always happens like this: think about the action of your neighbor and you will find that it is not at all of such an important, terrifying nature as it seemed to you at first.

“If you knew what it means: “I want mercy, not sacrifice,” you would not condemn the innocent” (Matthew 12:7). So, in order to get rid of the sin of condemnation, you must have a merciful heart. A merciful heart will not only not condemn an ​​apparent violation of the law, but also one that is obvious to everyone. Instead of judgment, it will perceive regret and will rather be ready to cry than to reproach. Indeed, the sin of condemnation is the fruit of an unmerciful, malicious heart that finds pleasure in humiliating one’s neighbor, in denigrating his name, in trampling on his honor. This deed is a murderous deed and is being done in the spirit of one who is a murderer from time immemorial. There is also a lot of slander, which comes from the same source, for the devil is the devil because he slander and spreads slander everywhere. Hurry to arouse pity in yourself every time an evil urge to condemn comes. With a compassionate heart, then turn with a prayer to the Lord, so that He will have mercy on all of us, not only the one whom we wanted to condemn, but also us and, perhaps, more of us than that, and the evil urge will die away.

Memorable tales:

One brother asked Abba Pimen: how can a person achieve the goal of not speaking badly about his neighbor? The elder said: “We and our brothers are like two pictures. If a person sees his shortcomings, then his brother seems perfect to him, and if he himself seems perfect, then he considers his brother unworthy.”

Saint Basil the Great:

Don't be the judge of other people's downfalls. They have a righteous Judge.

Venerable John Climacus:

If you saw someone sinning even at the very departure of the soul from the body, do not condemn him then, for the Judgment of God is unknown to people.

Some fell into great sins openly, but performed great virtues in secret; and those who loved to ridicule them watched the smoke without seeing the fire.

To judge means to shamelessly steal the judgment of God, and to condemn means to destroy your soul.

Venerable John Cassian the Roman (Elder Makhet):

(A Christian) is subjected to the same offenses and vices for which he would decide to condemn others. Therefore, everyone must judge only himself; prudently, carefully observe yourself in everything, and not investigate the life and behavior of others... In addition, it is also dangerous to judge others because we do not know the need or reason why they act in one way or another. Perhaps what we are tempted by is right or excusable before God. And we turn out to be reckless judges and thereby commit a serious sin.

Saint John Chrysostom:

Let us not judge others strictly, lest they demand a strict account from us; we ourselves are burdened with sins that exceed any mercy. Let us have more compassion for those who sin without deserving leniency, so that we can hope for the same mercy for ourselves; although, no matter how hard we try, we will never be able to show such love for mankind as we need from the man-loving God. Therefore, is it not foolish, when we ourselves are in such great trouble, to strictly examine the affairs of our fellow men and harm ourselves? Thus, you are not so much making him unworthy of your good deed, as you are making yourself unworthy of God’s love for mankind. He who strictly demands from his brother, God will exact much more severely from him.

Venerable Ephraim the Syrian:

If you see that your brother is sinning and you meet him the next morning, do not consider him a sinner in your thoughts. Maybe when you left him, he did something good after the fall and appeased the Lord with prayers and tears.

Abba Moses:

To die for your neighbor means to feel your sins and not think about anyone else, whether he is good or bad. Do no harm to anyone and do not think evil about anyone in your heart. despise the one who does wrong. Do not associate with a person who harms his neighbor, and do not rejoice with someone who does harm to another. Do not reproach anyone, but say: God knows everyone. Do not agree with the slanderer, do not be amused by his slander, but also do not hate the one who reviles his neighbor. This is what it means not to judge, according to the Scripture: “Judge not, lest ye be judged” (Matthew 7:1). Do not be at enmity with anyone and do not harbor enmity in your heart, and do not hate the one who is at enmity with his neighbor. This is what peace is all about. Console yourself with the fact that labor is short-lived, but repose for it is eternal, by the grace of God the Word.

Saint Demetrius of Rostov:

Who is free from sin? Who is not guilty of anything? Who is not involved in sin, although he has lived only one day? For we are conceived in iniquities, and our mothers give birth to us in sins (Ps. 50:7). If not in one sin, then in another, if not in a great sin, then in a small one, however, we all sin, we all transgress, we are all sinners, we are all weak, we are all prone to every sin, we all demand the mercy of God, we all demand His love for mankind: “Do not “Not one living will be justified before You,” says the holy prophet David (Ps. 143:2).

Therefore, do not condemn the sinner, do not admire the judgment of God; do not be an enemy of Christ in what he has reserved for himself. If you clearly see someone sinning with your own eyes, do not reproach him, do not carry out judgment in pride, so as not to suffer for it yourself, for he who judges someone for something will certainly suffer for it, but mercifully cover his sin, philanthropically, if you can, correct his crime; if you cannot, then condemn yourself in silence. Your own evil deeds are enough for you to look at the sins of others.

Why do I liken those who condemn and blaspheme their neighbor to snakes or vipers? Wouldn’t I reveal their serpentine character more clearly if I likened them to some huge seven-headed serpent, whose tail carried away a third of the stars from the sky? (Apoc. 12, 3-4). Just as there is no greater serpent than the seven-headed serpent, so there is no greater sin than the sin of judging your neighbors. For all sins, like small snakes, have only one chapter, that is, they cause only personal destruction, but the sin of condemnation has not one, but seven chapters, seven causes of death.

The first chapter of the serpent: to conceal and not even remember the good deeds of one’s neighbor. Second: condemn every good deed of your neighbor. Third: not only do not recognize any virtue of your neighbor, but even classify him as obscene. Fourth: to disclose any secret sin of one’s neighbor. Fifth: exaggerate the sins of one’s neighbor with lengthy speeches and generate evil rumors about him among the people. Sixth: to lie about one’s neighbor, to invent and compose false rumors about him and about his misdeeds, which he not only did not commit, but did not even have in his thoughts. Seventh and last: to disgrace the good name and honor of one’s neighbor and in every possible way subject him to temporary and eternal torment. You see how terrible this seven-headed serpent is, how great this sin of judging your neighbor is! The seven-headed serpent seen by the Theologian was an omen of the Antichrist. And he who condemns his neighbor is in fact the Antichrist, as Saint Leontius, Bishop of Naples, says about this in the Fatherland: “He who judges his neighbor steals the dignity of Christ and is the Antichrist.” (Word 9 is about non-judgment).

The serpent, seen by the Theologian, carried away a third of the stars from the sky with its tail; the sin of condemnation destroyed, one might say, a third of the virtuous, who wanted to shine like the stars of heaven. There were many who, having condemned and blasphemed their neighbor, died with all their good deeds; there are many examples of this in books. I will only remind you that one great elder, John of Savvaitsky, speaks about himself in the Fatherland.

They told me,” he says, “about a certain brother who had a bad reputation and was not improving, and I said: “Oh!” And when I said “oh,” horror seized me and I saw myself standing on Calvary with my Lord, crucified on the Cross. I wanted to worship Him, but He said to the Angels standing before Him: “Take him away from here, for he is the Antichrist; he condemned his brother before My judgment.” When I was expelled from there, my robe fell from me. Having come to my senses, I understood my sin and why the protection of God was taken away from me. Then I headed into the desert, where I stayed for seven years, without eating bread, without entering under a roof, and without talking with a person until I saw the Lord again and He commanded that the mantle be returned to me.

Everyone, be horrified when you hear this. If for just one word, for one “oh” uttered with condemnation, such a great saint of God suffered so much - he was called the Antichrist by the Lord, was expelled from His presence, disgraced and deprived of the protection of God, until he appeased Christ with seven years of suffering, what then? will it happen to us when we condemn our neighbors every day and with countless blasphemous words?

Saint Tikhon of Zadonsk:

We should remember the rich man of the Gospel, who “in hell, being in torment, he raised his eyes, saw Abraham in the distance and Lazarus in his bosom, and cried out and said:

“Father Abraham! have mercy on me and send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue, for I am tormented in this flame" (Luke 16:23-24). You see: he is all in torment, he is all burning in the flames of Gehenna, and He asks for consolation and coolness only for one burning tongue. Why? Because the tongue, more than anything, is a poison that kills the soul.

Beware of judging your neighbor as he stands or falls before his Lord, since you yourself are a sinner. And a righteous person should not judge and condemn anyone, much less a sinner - a sinner. And judging people is the work of Christ alone: ​​the Heavenly Father handed over the Judgment to Him, and He will judge the living and the dead - you yourself stand before this Judgment. Beware of stealing the dignity of Christ for yourself - this is very serious - and judging people like you, so that you do not appear at the Court of God with this vile sin and be rightly condemned to eternal execution.

It often happens that many seem to be sinners, but in fact they are righteous. And vice versa, many seem righteous, but inside they are sinners and therefore hypocrites. And according to Scripture, “he who calls the unjust righteous and the righteous unjust is unclean before God.” Often a false bad rumor is spread by evil or envious people and haters, and the condemned suffers in vain... It often happens that although someone has truly sinned, he has already repented, and God forgives the repentant; and therefore it is a sin for us to condemn the one whom God forgives, allows, and justifies. Heed this, you slanderers, and correct your vices, for which you will be tortured, but do not touch strangers, you have nothing to do with them.

Condemnation comes from malice: an evil person, not having anything to take revenge on his neighbor, torments his glory with slander and slander. Sometimes it happens from envy: an envious person, not tolerating the honor of his neighbor, defames and reviles him with dishonor. Sometimes it happens because of an evil habit, rage, anger and impatience. The root of all this is pride and hatred of one’s neighbor.

Otechnik:

One day Abba Isaac of Thebaid came to the hostel. Seeing his brother there who had fallen into sin, he was angry with him and ordered him to be expelled. Then, when Isaac was returning to his cell, the Angel of the Lord came and, standing in front of the door of the cell, said: “I will not let you in.” Isaac began to ask the Angel to declare his guilt to him. The angel answered: “God sent me and said: go and ask Isaac: where did he command to place the sinful brother whom he condemned?” Isaac immediately repented: “Lord, I have sinned, forgive me.” The angel said to him: “Get up. God has forgiven you. But in the future do not do this: do not condemn anyone before the Lord condemns him.” People anticipate My judgment and do not forsake it to Me, says the Lord.

A presbyter from a nearby church came to a certain hermit and taught him the Holy Mysteries. Someone, coming to the hermit, spoke against the presbyter, and when the presbyter, according to custom, came to teach the Holy Mysteries, the hermit did not open the door for him. The presbyter left. And then the hermit heard a voice: “People have taken away My judgment.” After this, the hermit went into a frenzy: he saw, as it were, a golden well and a golden vessel, and a golden rope, and very clear water. He also saw some leper who was scooping up a coda and filling a vessel with it. The hermit wanted to drink, but could not because the person who drew it was a leper. And again a voice came to him: “Why don’t you drink this water? What do you care about who draws it? He only draws it and pours it into a vessel.” The hermit, having come to his senses and understanding the meaning of the vision, called the presbyter and , as before, asked him to teach him the Holy Mysteries (82, 500). In the communal monastery there was a monk, already old and of the most pious life. Struck by a serious, unbearable illness, he spent a long time in great suffering. The brethren could not figure out how to help him, because the funds that were required for his treatment were not available in the monastery. A certain servant of God heard about this and began to ask the father of the monastery to allow her to take the sick man to her cell, which was located in the city, where it was easier to get the necessary medicine. The father ordered the brothers to take the sick man to the cell of the servant of God. With great respect, she accepted the elder and began to serve him for the sake of the Lord. Three years have passed. People with evil thoughts, judging others by themselves, began to suspect impurity in the relationship between the old man and the maiden who served him. The elder heard about this and began to pray to the Lord Jesus Christ: “You, Lord our God, alone know everything. You know my illness and the mercy of Your servant, give her a worthy reward in Eternal Life.” When the day of his Death approached, many holy fathers and brethren from the monastery came to him, and he said to them: “I ask you, lords, fathers and brethren, after my death, take my rod and stick it into the grave mound. If it takes root and bears fruit, then know that my conscience is clear in relation to the servant of God who served me.” The man of God has died. The fathers stuck a rod on his grave, and the rod came to life, sprouted leaves, and in due time bore fruit. Everyone was surprised and glorified God. To see this miracle, many came even from neighboring countries and magnified the grace of the Savior.

One brother was falsely accused of adultery. He left the hostel and came to the monastery of Abba Anthony. The brethren of the hostel followed him, wanting to console him and return him to the hostel; but when they came, they began to reprove him, saying, “You have done this and that.” The brother claimed that he did not do any of this. While they were arguing, Abba Paphnutius happened to be there. He said to the disputants: “I saw a man on the seashore, stuck up to his knees in a quagmire. Others came to help him and drowned him up to his shoulders.” Abba Anthony, having listened to the parable of Abba Paphnutius, exclaimed: “Here is a man who can heal and save souls.” The brothers were moved, began to ask for forgiveness from their brother, and together with him returned to the hostel.

The brother said to Abba Pimen: “If I see a brother about whom I have heard that he has fallen, then I reluctantly accept him into my cell; but I accept a brother who has a good name with joy.” The elder answered him: “If you do good to a good brother, then do double for the fallen one, because he is weak.” In one dormitory lived a hermit named Timothy. The abbot of the dormitory, having learned that one of the brethren had been tempted, asked Timothy for advice: What to do with the fallen brother? The hermit advised him to be expelled from the monastery. When his brother was expelled, his abuse (the passionate indignation that was active in him) passed on to Timothy. Timothy understood the reason for the abuse and began to cry out to God: “I have sinned, forgive me! “And a voice came to him: “Timothy! know that I allowed you to be tempted precisely because you despised your brother during his temptation.”

What a grave sin. Modern man, however, has a question: why can’t we condemn? Television (there was even a program “School of Scandal”), the press, and social networks are permeated with condemnation. Not a single company, not a single party can do without washing the bones of someone (sometimes good-natured, and sometimes not so much). For what reasons is it still impossible to condemn?

The first reason is expressed in one significant statement: “There is a lot you don’t know, and it’s much more serious than you think.” Often appearances are mistaken for substance. As Pushkin accurately noted:

That there are too many conversations
We are happy to accept business,
That stupidity is flighty and evil,
That important people care about nonsense
And that mediocrity is one
We can handle it and are not afraid.

Often we not only don’t know much, but we don’t know anything. I remember the story of one priest about his brother, Priest Andrei. During his lifetime, both the bishop and the clergy did not say a single kind word about him: they considered him a bitter drunkard. And indeed, this sin was behind him. It seemed that he would die, and there would be no one to accompany him on his last journey. But at his funeral, something unexpected happened: more than one and a half hundred people gathered in a distant village in central Russia. There were dozens of cars with Moscow, Ukrainian and Belarusian license plates parked near the temple. Many had tears in their eyes, people grieved as if they were seeing off their own father. It turns out that Father Andrei had a rare gift of consolation and reconciliation. Sometimes, when he finds out that the spouses want to get a divorce, he first calls his wife to him: “Are you, servant of God, going to get a divorce? Do you want to trample God's law? What God has joined together, let no man separate!” - “Father, my husband, when he’s drunk, is kicking me at all costs, swinging his fists.” - “And you bow to him from the waist and say: “Forgive me, a sinner.” And indeed, after such an act, the drunken aggression disappeared somewhere. And then Father Andrei met with his husband and found such words that the man was clearly and visibly changing for the better. So he saved dozens of families from disintegration. This is the kind of person Priest Andrei really was.

Yes, by the way, about being drunk. At times appearances do not correspond to substance. I remember one day I was in a hurry from one job to another and walked up the escalator. I was quite unsteady from fatigue. One young man sympathetically grabbed me by the elbow and sympathetically, without a shadow of condemnation, asked: “Are you coming back from your birthday?” I replied: “No, I’m going from work to work. I haven’t taken a drop today.” And he breathed to prove it. The young man was surprised: “What’s the matter?” I answered honestly: “I’m exhausted beyond belief.”

By judging, we assign to ourselves the functions of the Supreme Judge - God Himself

However, often such a discrepancy can lead to tragic consequences. I remember a terrible story about how a teacher, a war veteran, froze to death in our area eight years ago. He was returning home, on the way he became ill with his heart and fell. He lay in the snow for 11 hours until the relevant services took away his body. Around 11 o'clock people passed by him, and no one wanted to help him. The question arises: why? I don’t think that these were all hard-hearted people, most likely they were under the influence of a well-known stereotype: if a man is lying down, it means he’s drunk, and nothing will happen to him: he’ll lie down and sleep it off; You shouldn't mess with him. Where did this stereotype come from? From superficiality and condemnation. And his victim in this case was a very worthy person.

The second reason why the Church considers condemnation a grave sin: by condemning, we assign to ourselves the functions of the Supreme Judge, that is, God Himself. As one hagiographic monument says: “People took My judgment for themselves.” In other words, those who condemn put themselves in the place of God. What are such persons called in political language? That's right, impostors. What was due to an impostor in Muscovite Rus'? That's right, the death penalty. It is known that the world will be judged by Jesus Christ - the Son of God, the Logos, the second Hypostasis of the Holy Trinity. What are people called who put themselves in the place of Christ? That's right, antichrists.

From the sermon of Archimandrite Kiril (Pavlov)

Our neighbor does not depend on us in anything, he does not owe us anything. We all belong to God; life and death of people are in His hands. We are children of one Heavenly Father, Who awarded each person with various gifts, mental and physical; therefore, only the Lord has the right to demand from our neighbor an account of whether he correctly uses the talents given to him, whether he abuses them to harm himself or his neighbors. We should not get involved in the proceedings of other people’s affairs, give them this or that assessment.

Rev. Ambrose

“You need to humble yourself, irritation and condemnation come from pride.” [The elder] drew a chain of rings and pointed out that sins, like a chain, are connected with one another and come from one another.

Do not rush to judge and condemn, because the people we see on the inside are not always what they seem on the outside. Often a person will begin to speak out of ordinary human weakness and, before finishing the conversation, he already begins to realize that he is not saying what he should, and, having arrived in his cell, bitterly repents of what he said or did. St. Mark the Ascetic writes: “From deeds and words and thoughts the righteous is one, but from the repentance of the righteous woman there are many.”

Don’t go into consideration of people’s actions, don’t judge, don’t say: why is this, why is this? It’s better to say to yourself: “What do I care about them? It’s not for me to answer for them at the Last Judgment of God.” Distract your thoughts in every possible way from the gossip of human affairs, and pray with zeal to the Lord, so that He Himself will help you in this, because without God’s help we cannot do anything good, just as the Lord Himself said: “without Me you can do nothing.” (John 15:5). Beware of suspicion like fire, because the enemy of the human race catches people in his net by trying to present everything in a distorted form as white as black and black as white, as he did with the first parents Adam and Eve in paradise.

Some are subjected to the sin of condemnation from habit, others from remembrance, others from envy and hatred, and for the most part we are subjected to this sin from conceit and exaltation; Despite our great incorrigibility and sinfulness, it still seems to us that we are better than many. If we want to correct ourselves from the sin of condemnation, then we must in every possible way force ourselves to humility before God and people and ask for God’s help in this...

Rev. Maxim the Confessor

He who is curious about the sins of others or judges his brother out of suspicion has not yet made the beginning of repentance and has not taken the trouble to find out his own sins, which are truly graver than the weight of many pounds of lead, and does not know why a person is hard-hearted, loving vanity and seeking lies (Ps. 4, 3) and therefore, like a madman wandering in the dark, having abandoned his sins, he dreams of strangers, true or imaginary, based on one suspicion.

Rev. Nikodim Svyatogorets

From pride and self-conceit, another kind of evil is generated in us, causing us serious harm, namely, strict judgment and condemnation of our neighbor, according to which we then despise, despise and humiliate him on occasion. By giving ourselves a high price and thinking highly of ourselves, we naturally look down on others, condemn them and despise them, since it seems to us that we are far from those shortcomings that we think are not alien to others. But you are not given the power to do this, and by arrogating this power to yourself, at this moment you yourself become worthy of judgment and condemnation, not before weak people, but before the all-powerful Judge, God of all.

Rev. Anthony the Great

If you see that your brother has sinned, do not despise him, do not turn away from him and do not condemn him, for otherwise you yourself will fall into the hands of your enemies.

Do not condemn any mortal, so that God does not despise your prayers.

Abba Dorotheus

Whose business is it to confuse, condemn and harm if not the demonic? And so we find ourselves helping demons to our own and our neighbor’s destruction. Why is this so? Because there is no love in us! For love covers a multitude of sins (1 Peter 4:8). The saints do not condemn the sinner and do not turn away from him, but have compassion for him, grieve for him, admonish him, console him, heal him like a sick member and do everything to save him.

Venerable Simeon of Pskov-Pechersk

A good person sees all people as good, but the evil and evil one not only crookedly, but also suspects those who walk upright, reproaches, condemns and slanders.

We condemn our neighbors because we do not try to know ourselves. He who is busy knowing himself, his shortcomings, sins, passions, has no time to notice others. Remembering our own sins, we will never think about others. It’s crazy to leave your dead body, your soul, and go cry over your neighbor’s dead body.

By judging vicious people, we condemn ourselves, because we are not free from sins. When we cover our brother’s sin, then God will cover our sins, and when we discover our brother’s sin, God will also reveal our sins.

The tongue of a condemner is more evil than hell: even hell will only take the evil, but the tongue devours both the evil and the good. Strict judgment of one's neighbor does not show goodwill, but hatred towards a person.

Prayer to St. Ephraim the Syrian

... "Lord, grant me to see my sins and not condemn my brother"

Do not ridicule or condemn someone who has fallen into temptation, but pray often so that you yourself do not fall into temptation. Before death, do not please anyone, and before death, do not despair of anyone.

It is good to raise someone who has fallen to his feet, and not to ridicule him.

St. John Chrysostom

Do not judge others, but try to correct yourself, so that you yourself are not worthy of condemnation. Everyone falls when God does not strengthen him; we cannot stand without God’s help. By judging your neighbor, you made the one who heard you worse. If this is a sinner, then he becomes careless, having found an accomplice in sin; and if he is a righteous person, then he falls into pride and becomes arrogant because of someone else’s sin, receiving a reason to think highly of himself.

St. Isaiah the Hermit

He who has a pure heart considers all people to be pure, but he who has a heart defiled by passions does not consider anyone pure, but thinks that everyone is like him.

Rev. Macarius

By the purity of our thoughts we can see everyone as holy and good. When we see them as bad, it comes from our dispensation.

About judging others

(Luke 6:37–38, 41–42)

1 - Do not judge, so that you are not judged. 2 Just as you judge others, you will also be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured back to you. 3 Why do you look at the speck in your brother’s eye when you don’t notice the log in your own? 4 How can you say to your brother, “Let me take the speck out of your eye,” when there is a plank in your own eye? 5 You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see to take the speck out of your brother’s eye.

6 Do not give what is holy to the dogs, otherwise they will turn around and tear you to pieces. And do not throw your jewels before the pigs, or they will trample them.