Matthew 23:35–36

In what manner will the justice for every blood come upon the last generation of the murderers (Matthew 23:35–36) — though God says through the prophet, “Fathers shall not die for children,” (Deuteronomy 24:16) and again the reverse, “each shall die by his own sin”? What then do we say? How will those to whom Christ spoke these things be made to give account for others’ bloodshed? Will Cain not be punished for Abel? And Lamech saying, “I have killed a man for my wound and a youth for my bruise” (Genesis 4:23)? So if each is weighed down by his own evils, how will the wretched undergo justice on behalf of all? For “God is not unjust,” but is a just and strong and long-suffering judge, according to what is written.

We say, then, that some such sense fits what was said. Suppose something like this: robbers arise in a certain country. They plunder the villages round about and kill those in them. The ruler of the province does not at once bare the ruling sword against them, but is eager rather to reform them by threats. They are no less cruel. So that the horror may at last be turned back, when some are caught he does not spare them, but subjecting them to most cruel tortures he sets the final danger upon them — not indignant only at those last crimes, but much more because the wildness of the first ones also deceived him while he was long-suffering. I think one of those last who were harshly punished will say that they themselves received everyone’s sins, because the judge’s anger ended upon them.

You will think something like this also about God. Having been long-suffering in the previous times, he was reasoning up to these that the measure of long-suffering must be defined; for the divine anger also had to strike upon these. The earlier ones were sinning against humans and fellow-slaves; but these have killed the Lord of all. He is not harsh because he punishes the last, but marvelous because he endured until the present.