Pleasing Men And God

Ὅτι ὁ Θεὸς διεσκόρπισεν ὀστᾶ  ἀνθρωπαρέκων, κ.τ.ἑ. Οὐκ εἴ τις ἀνθρώποις ἀρέσκει, ἀνθρωπάρεσκός ἐστιν· ἀλλὰ καὶ προθέμενός τις ἀνθρώποις ἔσθ' ὅτε ἀρέσκειν, καθηκόντως αὐτὸ ποιήσει, καὶ οὐκ ἀνθρωπάρεσκος ἔσται. Ὁ γοῦν Παῦλός φησιν· Ἀπρόσκοποι καὶ Ἰουδαίοις γίνεσθε καὶ τῇ Ἐκλλησίᾳ τοῦ Θεοῦ, καθὼς κἀγω πάντα πᾶσιν ἀρεσκω, μὴ ζητῶν τὸ ἑμαυτοῦ συμφέρον, ἀλλὰ τὸ τῶν πολλῶν, ἵνα σωθῶσιν. Ἀλλ' εἴ τις προτίθεται οὐδὲν ἄλλο ἤ ἀνθρώποις ἀρέσκειν, ἢ μᾰλλον ἀνθρώποις ἢ Θεῷ· καὶ ἐπίσης ἀνθρώποις καὶ Θεῷ, δέον μόνον Θεῷ· ὥστε δι' ἐκεῐνον γίνεσθαι καὶ τὸ, ἀνθρώποις· ὅτε τοῦτο ποιεῖν αἱρεῖ λόγος, ἐκεῖνος ἀνθρωπάρεσκος ἔσται. Δεῖ δὲ ἐπὶ τινων σκοπήσαντα, ὅτι οὐχ οἶόν τε τόδε τι διαπράξαντα ἢ εἰποντα, καὶ Θεῷ καὶ ἀνθρώποις ἀρέσαι, καταφρονῆσαι μὲν τοῦ ἀρέσαι τοῖς ἀνθρώποις, ἐλέσθαι δὲ τὸ ἀρέσαι τῷ Θεῷ.   Ὠριγένης, Εἰς Ψαλμους, Ψαλμος ΝΒ'

For God has scattered the bones of those who please men, etc. 1 It is not that if there is someone who pleases men he is nothing but a seeker after human favour, for if someone hurries before men to please them and does it because it is fitting, he is not just a seeker after human favour. As Paul says, 'Be without offense to Jews and the assembly of God, as even I through everything please all, not seeking what is profitable to myself, but to many, that they be saved.' 2 But if someone proposes nothing to himself but to be pleasing to men, or rather to please men more than God, or to please men and God equally, when only God it should be, unless he does it on account of human favour, this man indeed is a seeker after human favour. And if having thought on these things, he thinks he will not be able to act or speak in a way pleasing God and men at the same time, he should neglect to please men and choose to please God. Origen, On the Psalms, from Psalm 52 1 Ps 52.6 2 1 Cor 10. 32, 33