John Chrysostom, on Jer 8:4

“And thou shalt say to them: Thus saith the Lord: Shall not he that falleth, rise again? and he that is turned away, shall he not turn again?”

“God is indeed good to everyone, but he shows his patient endurance especially to those who sin. If you want to hear a paradoxical statement—paradoxical because it is not customary but true for the great piety it reveals—listen. God always seems to be severe to the righteous. But he seems good to sinners and quick to clemency. He restores the one who sinned and fell, and he tells him, "Shall not he who falls get up? Or the one who turns away, shall he not turn back again?" And "Why did the stupid daughter of Judah turn away with a shameless revolting?" And again, "Return to me, and I will return to you."”

Imported from an open dataset — not yet checked against the printed edition.