5. Possibly too thou art come on another pretext. It is possible that a man is wishing to pay court to a woman, and came hither on that account  26  S. Ambrose on the 119th Psalm, Serm. xx. § 48, speaks of some who pretended to be Christians in order to marry one whose parents would not give her in marriage to a heathen. . The remark applies in like manner to women also in their turn. A slave also perhaps wishes to please his master, and a friend his friend. I accept this bait for the hook, and welcome thee, though thou camest with an evil purpose, yet as one to be saved by a good hope. Perhaps thou knewest not whither thou wert coming, nor in what kind of net thou art taken. Thou art come within the Church’s nets  27  Matt. xiii. 47. : be taken alive, flee not: for Jesus is angling for thee, not in order to kill, but by killing to make alive: for thou must die and rise again. For thou hast heard the Apostle say,  Dead indeed unto sin, but living unto righteousness   28  Rom. vi. 11, 14. . Die to thy sins, and live to righteousness, live from this very day.

Ἐγχωρεῖ σε καὶ προφάσει ἄλλῃ ἐλθεῖν: ἐγχωρεῖ γὰρ καὶ ἄνδρα βούλεσθαι γυναικὶ καθικετεῦσαι, καὶ διὰ τοῦτο προσελθεῖν: ἀντιστρέφει καὶ ἐπὶ γυναικῶν τὸ ὅμοιον ὁ λόγος: καὶ δοῦλος πολλάκις δεσπότῃ, καὶ φίλος φίλῳ ἀρέσαι ἠθέλησε. Δέχομαι τὸ δέλεαρ τοῦ ἀγκίστρου, καὶ καταδέχομαί σε, κακῇ προαιρέσει μὲν ἐλθόντα, ἐλπίδι δὲ ἀγαθῇ σωθησόμενον. Ἴσως οὐκ ᾔδεις ποῦ ἔρχῃ, οὐδὲ ποία σε σαγήνη λαμβάνει: γέγονας εἴσω δικτύων ἐκκλησιαστικῶν: ζωγρήθητι: μὴ φύγῃς: ἀγκιστρεύει γάρ σε Ἰησοῦς, οὐχ ἵνα θανατώσῃ, ἀλλ' ἵνα θανατώσας ζωοποιήσῃ: δεῖ γάρ σε ἀποθανεῖν καὶ ἀναστῆναι: ἤκουσας γὰρ τοῦ Ἀποστόλου λέγοντος: Νεκροὶ μὲν τῇ ἁμαρτίᾳ, ζῶντες δὲ τῇ δικαιοσύνῃ: ἀπόθανε τοῖς ἁμαρτήμασι, καὶ ζῆσον τῇ δικαιοσύνῃ: ἀπὸ τοῦ σήμερον ζῆσον.