Letter 105: Why John called the Jews generations of vipers.

John called the Jews "offspring of vipers," as wicked progeny of wicked parents. For they say this beast devours its mother's womb in being born. Since, then, the Jews abandoned the God who begat them, and turned against the very one who fashioned them, they rightly received the name of those creatures that destroy the source of their own life.

Why John called the Jews generations of vipers[6]. John called the Jews “generations of vipers” as being more wicked than the offspring of wicked parents. For it is recounted that this wild species[7] devours the maternal womb when they are hatched. Since then they abandoned God who gave them birth and they mortified all the grace given to them through failing to make use of it, he quite reasonably likens them to those poisonous creatures, who negate their benefactions through ingratitude, or to put it otherwise devour them.

ΡΕ΄. – ΕΥΤΟΝΙΟ ΔΙΑΚΟΝΩ. Διὰ τι ὁ Ἰωάννης τοὺς Ἰουδαίους γεννήματα ἐχιδνῶν ἐκάλεσε. Γεννήματα ἐχιδνῶν Ἰωάννης τοὺς Ἰουδαίους ἐκά- λεσεν, ὡς πονηρῶν γονέων κυήματα πονηρότερα. Φασὶ γὰρ τουτὶ τὸ θηρίον κατεσθίειν (4) τὴν μητρώαν νηδὺν ἐν τῷ ἀποτίκτεσθαι. Ἐπειδὴ οὖν τὸν γεννή- σαντα αὐτοὺς Θεὸν ἐγκατέλιπον καὶ πᾶσαν δεδο- μένην αὐτοῖς χάριν ἐνέκρωσαν καταργήσαντες, εἰκότως ἐκείνοις αὐτοὺς ἀπεικάζει τοῖς ἰοβόλοις, ἀχαριστίᾳ τὰς εὐεργεσίας ἐξαφανίζουσιν, ἢ μᾶλλον εἰπεῖν κατεσθίουσιν. ΤηΔ΄. – ΕΚΔΙΚΙΟ. · Οἱ βόες μὴ κημούμενοι, προθυμότερον τὸν ἄμη · τον κατεργάζονται · τῶν δὲ πόνων μετέχειν κωλυό- μενοι, ἀργοῦσε καὶ ἀποτρέπονται. Καὶ διδάσκαλοι C ἀπειθείᾳ μὴ ὑβριζόμενοι, περιχαρῶς τῶν κόπων ἀνέχονται, καρπὸν δὲ τῶν πονηθέντων μὴ βλέ ποντες, ὀκνοῦσι διδάσκειν ἀνόνητα. Εἰ τοίνυν βούλει μαθεῖν ἃ νῦν πάλιν ἠρώτησας, δεῖξον ἔργῳ ὁ πρό τερον ἔμαθες. Εἰ δὲ φαίνῃ ἐκεῖνα μὴ ἐπιστάμενος, εἰς τί κέρδος (33) καὶ ταῦτά σοι σαφηνίσομεν; ΝΕ΄. – ΛΟΓΓΙΝΩ ΚΟΜΙΤΙ ΡΟΒ΄. – ΚΟΜΙΤΙ Πᾶς ἐκεῖνος τῆς ὀργῆς γέμει.