The Gospel of Barnabas · Chapter 103
The Weeping of the Sinner
'The weeping of the sinner ought to be as that of a father who weepeth over his son nigh to death. Oh madness of man, that weepest over the body from which the soul is departed, and weepest not over the soul from which, through sin, is departed the mercy of God!'
'Tell me, if the mariner, when his ship hath been wrecked by a storm, could by weeping recover all that he had lost, what would he do? It is certain that he would weep bitterly. But I say unto you verily, that in every thing wherein a man weepeth he sinneth, save only when he weepeth for his sin. For every misery that cometh to man cometh to him from God for his salvation, so that he ought to rejoice thereat. But sin cometh from the devil for the damnation of man, and at that man is not sad. Assuredly here ye can perceive that man seeketh loss and not profit.'
Said Bartholomew: 'Lord, what shall he do who cannot weep for that his heart is a stranger to weeping?' Jesus answered: 'Not all those who shed tears weep, O Bartholomew. As God liveth, there are found men from whose eyes no tear hath ever fallen, and they have wept more than a thousand of those who shed tears. The weeping of a sinner is a consumption of earthly affection by vehemence of sorrow. Insomuch that just as the sunshine preserveth from putrefaction what is placed uppermost, even so this consumption preserveth the soul from sin. If God should grant tears to the true penitent as many as the sea hath waters he would desire far more and so this desire consumeth that little drop that he fain would shed, as a blazing furnace consumeth a drop of water. But they who readily burst into weeping are like the horse that goeth the faster the more lightly he is laden.'
'A sinner's weeping should be like that of a father who weeps over his son when he is close to death. O madness of man! You weep over the body from which the soul has departed, yet you do not weep over the soul from which, through sin, the mercy of God has departed!'
'Tell me, if a sailor whose ship had been wrecked by a storm could recover everything he had lost by weeping, what would he do? Certainly he would weep bitterly. But truly I tell you that whenever a person weeps over anything other than his sin, he sins. For every affliction that befalls a person comes from God for his salvation, and so he should rejoice in it. But sin comes from the devil for a person's damnation, and yet a person is not grieved by it. Here you can clearly see that man seeks loss rather than gain.'
Bartholomew said: 'Lord, what should a person do if he cannot weep because his heart is unaccustomed to weeping?' Jesus answered: 'Not everyone who sheds tears truly weeps, O Bartholomew. As God lives, there are people from whose eyes no tear has ever fallen, yet they have wept more than a thousand who shed tears. A sinner's weeping is the consuming of earthly affection through the intensity of sorrow. Just as sunshine preserves from decay what is exposed to it, so this consuming sorrow preserves the soul from sin. If God granted the true penitent as many tears as there are waters in the sea, he would desire still more; and this desire consumes the little drop he longs to shed, as a blazing furnace consumes a drop of water. But those who readily burst into tears are like a horse that runs faster the more lightly it is loaded.'
'The weeping of the sinner ought to be as that of a father who weepeth over his son nigh to death. Oh madness of man, that weepest over the body from which the soul is departed, and weepest not over the soul from which, through sin, is departed the mercy of God!'
'Tell me, if the mariner, when his ship hath been wrecked by a storm, could by weeping recover all that he had lost, what would he do? It is certain that he would weep bitterly. But I say unto you verily, that in every thing wherein a man weepeth he sinneth, save only when he weepeth for his sin. For every misery that cometh to man cometh to him from God for his salvation, so that he ought to rejoice thereat. But sin cometh from the devil for the damnation of man, and at that man is not sad. Assuredly here ye can perceive that man seeketh loss and not profit.'
Said Bartholomew: 'Lord, what shall he do who cannot weep for that his heart is a stranger to weeping?' Jesus answered: 'Not all those who shed tears weep, O Bartholomew. As God liveth, there are found men from whose eyes no tear hath ever fallen, and they have wept more than a thousand of those who shed tears. The weeping of a sinner is a consumption of earthly affection by vehemence of sorrow. Insomuch that just as the sunshine preserveth from putrefaction what is placed uppermost, even so this consumption preserveth the soul from sin. If God should grant tears to the true penitent as many as the sea hath waters he would desire far more and so this desire consumeth that little drop that he fain would shed, as a blazing furnace consumeth a drop of water. But they who readily burst into weeping are like the horse that goeth the faster the more lightly he is laden.'