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but they resisted so steadfastly and vigorously against the violent and unbearable force of the devil, as if competing in bodies of stone and iron, but not in corruptible and mortal ones, as if having already passed over to an impassible and immortal nature, one that does not yield to the bitter and painful necessities of the body. For like some savage, cruel, and untamed beasts, the executioners, having surrounded their bodies on all sides, dug into their sides, scraped their flesh, uncovered and laid bare their bones, and nothing stopped them from that cruelty and inhumanity; but even touching their backs and entrails, and entering into the innermost parts, they did not find the treasure of faith laid up in them to plunder, but they suffered the same thing as if some men were besieging a most royal city, full of great wealth, and possessing sufficient treasures, and having torn down its walls, and come to the very treasuries of its wealth, should they break down doors, destroy bars, dig up the ground, having searched everything, they would not be able to depart having seized its wealth.

For such are the possessions of the soul; it is not betrayed by the sufferings of the body, when it holds them with security, but even if one should tear open the very breast, and taking the heart divide it little by little, it will not surrender the treasure once entrusted to it by faith. And this came from the grace of God which orders all things, and is able to accomplish paradoxes in weak bodies. And what is more wonderful: for not only did they, in their great madness, take nothing away from the treasures laid up in them, but they even caused them to be guarded with greater security, and made them more glorious and more wealthy. For no longer the soul alone, but the body itself also partook of greater grace, and not only did it not cast off what it had, after being cut through and hacked to pieces many times, but it also drew to itself a greater and more momentous influence. What could be more wonderful than this victory, that those whom they held fast and had in their power, and whom having bound they scraped with authority, these they were not able to conquer, but were miserably and wretchedly defeated by them? For they were not warring against them, but against the God dwelling in them; and that he who wars against God must by all necessity be defeated with great abundance, paying the penalty for the attempt alone, is surely clear to everyone. 50.696 2. Such are the victories of the saints. And if their contests and struggles are so wonderful and paradoxical, what might we say about the prizes and crowns laid up for them on account of their steadfastness? For they did not stop at these tortures, nor did they end their race here, but the contest was extended further for them, with the evil demon expecting to trip up the athletes by the addition of punishments, but the benevolent God permitting and not hindering it; so that both the madness of the faithless might be shown more clearly to all, and that for these more glorious and more numerous crowns might be woven. And just as it happened in the case of Job and the devil; the one asked for more punishments against him from God, expecting by the addition of terrible things to overcome the noble athlete of piety; but the other permitted it, and granted the wicked requests of the evil demon, making His own athlete more illustrious; so indeed it also happened here. For since, more fiercely than any wild beast, he had chewed their body on all sides, and bloodied his tongue and mouth, if not with the blood of the saints, yet with those inhuman and cruel sentences, being defeated by their steadfastness, and having been sufficiently sated by that inhuman feast, and having had his fill, he went away.

For see how great was the endurance of the saints, which sated such great madness with its own sufferings. He came again to contend with madness, and all the beasts through

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ἀλλ' οὕτω καρτερῶς καὶ εὐτόνως ἐνέστησαν πρὸς τὴν ῥαγδαίαν καὶ ἀφόρητον τοῦ διαβόλου βίαν, ὡς ἐν λιθίνοις καὶ σιδηροῖς, ἀλλ' οὐκ ἐν φθαρτοῖς καὶ θνητοῖς ἀγωνιζόμενοι σώμασιν, ὡς ἤδη πρὸς τὴν ἀπαθῆ καὶ ἀθάνατον μεταστάντες φύσιν, τὴν οὐκ εἴκουσαν ταῖς πικραῖς καὶ ὀδυνηραῖς τοῦ σώματος ἀνάγκαις. Καθάπερ γάρ τινες ἄγριοι θῆρες καὶ ὠμοὶ καὶ ἀνήμεροι τὰ σώματα κυκλώσαντες πανταχόθεν οἱ δήμιοι διώρυττον τὰς πλευρὰς, κατέξαινον τὰς σάρκας, ἐξεκάλυπτον ὀστᾶ καὶ παρεγύμνουν, καὶ οὐδὲν αὐτοὺς τῆς ὠμότητος ἵστησι καὶ τῆς ἀπανθρωπίας ἐκείνης· ἀλλὰ καὶ νώτων ἁψάμενοι καὶ σπλάγχνων, καὶ εἰς τὰ ἐνδότατα εἰσελθόντες, τὸν ἐναποκείμενον αὐτοῖς τῆς πίστεως οὐχ εὗρον συλῆσαι θησαυρὸν, ἀλλὰ ταυτὸν ἔπαθον, οἷον εἴ τινες πόλιν βασιλικωτάτην, καὶ πολλοῦ γέμουσαν πλούτου, καὶ ἱκανοὺς ἔχουσαν θησαυροὺς πολιορκοῦντες, καὶ καθελόντες αὐτῆς τὰ τείχη, καὶ πρὸς αὐτὰ τὰ ταμιεῖα τῶν χρημάτων ἐλθόντες, ἀνατρέψαιεν θύρας, καθέλοιεν μοχλοὺς, ἀνορύξαιεν ἔδαφος, πάντα διερευνησάμενοι, μὴ δυνηθεῖεν τὸν πλοῦτον αὐτῆς ἀφαρπάσαντες ἀπελθεῖν.

Τοιαῦτα γάρ ἐστι τῆς ψυχῆς τὰ κτήματα· οὐ προδίδοται τοῖς τοῦ σώματος πάθεσιν, ὅταν αὐτὰ κατέχῃ μετὰ ἀσφαλείας, ἀλλὰ κἂν αὐτά τις ἀναῤῥήξῃ τὰ στέρνα, καὶ κατὰ μικρὸν τὴν καρδίαν διέλοι λαβὼν, οὐ προήσεται τὸν ἅπαξ αὐτῇ παρὰ τῆς πίστεως ἐμπιστευθέντα θησαυρόν. Τοῦτο δὲ τῆς τοῦ Θεοῦ χάριτος γέγονε τῆς πάντα οἰκονομούσης, καὶ ἐν ἀσθενοῦσι σώμασι δυναμένης παράδοξα ἐπιτελεῖν. Καὶ τὸ δὴ θαυμαστότερον· οὐ γὰρ μόνον οὐδὲν ὑφείλοντο τοσαῦτα μανέντες τῶν ἐναποκειμένων αὐτοῖς θησαυρῶν, ἀλλὰ καὶ μετὰ πλείονος αὐτοὺς τῆς ἀσφαλείας φυλάττεσθαι ἐποίησαν, λαμπροτέρους τε αὐτοὺς καὶ εὐπορωτέρους εἰργάσαντο. Οὐκ ἔτι γὰρ ἡ ψυχὴ μόνη, ἀλλὰ καὶ αὐτὸ τὸ σῶμα πλείονος μετέλαβε τῆς χάριτος, καὶ οὐ μόνον οὐκ ἀπέβαλεν, ἣν εἶχε, μετὰ τὸ διατμηθῆναι καὶ κατακοπῆναι πολλάκις, ἀλλὰ καὶ ἐπεσπάσατο πλείονα καὶ μείζω τὴν ῥοπήν. Τί ταύτης γένοιτ' ἂν τῆς νίκης θαυμαστότερον, ὅτι οὓς κατεῖχον καὶ εἶχον ὑποχειρίους, καὶ δήσαντες ἔξαινον μετὰ ἐξουσίας, τούτους νικῆσαι οὐκ ἴσχυσαν, ἀλλ' ὑπὸ τούτων ἡττῶντο ἐλεεινῶς καὶ ἀθλίως; Οὐ γὰρ πρὸς αὐτοὺς ἐπολέμουν, ἀλλὰ πρὸς τὸν ἔνοικον αὐτῶν Θεόν· τὸν δὲ Θεῷ πολεμοῦντα ὅτι πᾶσα ἀνάγκη μετὰ πολλῆς ἡττᾶσθαι τῆς περιουσίας, δίκην διδόντα τῆς ἐπιχειρήσεως μόνης, παντί που δῆλόν ἐστι. 50.696 βʹ. Τοιαῦται τῶν ἁγίων αἱ νῖκαι. Εἰ δὲ τὰ ἀγωνίσματα καὶ τὰ παλαίσματα οὕτω θαυμαστὰ καὶ παράδοξα, τί ἂν εἴποιμεν περὶ τῶν ἐπάθλων καὶ στεφάνων τῶν ὑπὲρ τῆς αὐτῶν καρτερίας ἀποκειμένων αὐτοῖς; Οὐ γὰρ δὴ μέχρι τῶν βασάνων τούτων ἔστησαν, οὐδὲ ἐνταῦθα τὸν δρόμον κατέλυσαν, ἀλλὰ περαιτέρω τὰ σκάμματα αὐτοῖς ἐξετείνετο, τοῦ μὲν πονηροῦ δαίμονος τῇ προσθήκῃ τῶν τιμωριῶν προσδοκοῦντος ὑποσκελίζειν τοὺς ἀθλητὰς, τοῦ δὲ φιλανθρώπου Θεοῦ συγχωροῦντος καὶ οὐ κωλύοντος· ὥστε καὶ τὴν τῶν ἀπίστων μανίαν σαφεστέραν πᾶσιν ἐπιδειχθῆναι, καὶ τούτοις λαμπροτέρους καὶ πλείους πλακῆναι τοὺς στεφάνους. Καὶ καθάπερ ἐπὶ τοῦ Ἰὼβ γέγονεν καὶ τοῦ διαβόλου· ὁ μὲν πλείους ᾔτει κατ' αὐτοῦ παρὰ τοῦ Θεοῦ τιμωρίας, προσδοκῶν περιέσεσθαι τῇ προσθήκῃ τῶν δεινῶν τοῦ γενναίου τῆς εὐσεβείας ἀθλητοῦ· ὁ δὲ συνεχώρει, καὶ ἐχαρίζετο ταῖς πονηραῖς αἰτήσεσι τοῦ πονηροῦ δαίμονος, ἐπιφανέστερον τὸν αὑτοῦ ποιῶν ἀθλητήν· οὕτω δὴ καὶ ἐνταῦθα ἐγένετο. Ἐπειδὴ γὰρ θηρίου παντὸς χαλεπώτερον τὸ σῶμα αὐτῶν πανταχόθεν διεμασήσατο, καὶ τὴν γλῶτταν καὶ τὸ στόμα ᾕμαξεν, εἰ καὶ μὴ τοῖς αἵμασι τῶν ἁγίων, ἀλλὰ ταῖς ἀπανθρώποις καὶ ὠμαῖς ψήφοις ἐκείναις, ἡττηθεὶς ὑπὸ τῆς καρτερίας αὐτῶν, καὶ ἐμφορηθεὶς ἱκανῶς τῆς ἀπανθρώπου θοίνης ἐκείνης, καὶ κόρον λαβὼν ἀπῆλθεν.

Ὅρα γὰρ πόση τῶν ἁγίων ἡ ὑπομονὴ, ἣ τοσαύτην μανίαν τοῖς οἰκείοις ἐκόρεσε πάθεσιν. Ἐπῄει πάλιν ἐπαγωνιζόμενος τῇ μανίᾳ, καὶ πάντα τὰ θηρία δι'