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in a lawless time and to the coming stumbling blocks, as befits sons of God, let us resist. 4.10a Therefore, that the black one may not gain an entrance, let us flee from all vanity, let us completely hate the works of the evil way. Do not, withdrawing by yourselves, live in isolation as if already justified, but coming together in the same place, inquire together concerning the common good. 4.11a For the scripture says: “Woe to those who are wise in their own sight and understanding in their own estimation.” Let us become spiritual, let us become a perfect temple to God. As much as is in us, let us meditate on the fear of God and strive to keep His commandments, so that we may rejoice in His ordinances. 4.12 The Lord will judge the world without respect of persons; each will receive according to what he has done—if he is good, his righteousness will go before him; if he is wicked, the reward of his wickedness is before him. 4.13 Let us take heed, lest, resting at ease as men who are called, we fall asleep in our sins, and the wicked ruler, gaining power over us, thrust us out from the kingdom of the Lord. 4.14 And furthermore, my brothers, consider this: when you see that after such great signs and wonders were done in Israel, they were so forsaken, let us take heed, lest we be found, as it is written, “many are called, but few are chosen.”

5.1 For to this end the Lord endured to deliver His flesh to corruption, that we might be purified by the remission of sins, which is in the sprinkling of His blood. 5.2 For it is written concerning Him, partly to Israel, and partly to us —and it says thus: “He was wounded for our transgressions and bruised for our iniquities; by His stripe we were healed; as a sheep He was led to the slaughter and as a lamb silent before its shearer.” 5.3 Therefore we ought to give great thanks to the Lord, because He has both made known to us the things that are past and has made us wise in the things that are present, and concerning the things to come we are not without understanding. 5.4a And the scripture says: “Not in vain is a net spread for birds”—this means that a man will justly perish who, having knowledge of the way of righteousness, constrains himself to the way of darkness. 5.5 And further this also, my brothers: if the Lord endured to suffer for our soul, being Lord of the whole world, to whom God said from the foundation of the world, “Let us make man in our image and likeness,” how then did he endure to suffer at the hand of men? Learn. 5.6a The prophets, having grace from Him, prophesied concerning Him; but He, that He might abolish death and show the resurrection from the dead, because it was necessary for Him to be manifested in the flesh, endured, 5.7 in order that He might fulfill the promise to the fathers and, preparing for Himself the new people, might show while He was on earth that, having brought about the resurrection, He Himself will judge. 5.8 Finally then, teaching Israel and doing such great wonders and signs, he preached, and they loved him exceedingly. 5.9 But when He chose His own apostles who were to preach His gospel, who were more lawless than any sin, that He might show that He came not to call the righteous, but sinners, then He manifested Himself to be the Son of God. 5.10 For if He had not come in the flesh, how could men have been saved by seeing Him, when they who look upon the sun, which is to cease to be, a work of His hands, are not able to gaze directly into its rays? 5.11 Therefore the Son of God came in the flesh for this reason, that He might sum up the full measure of their sins for those who persecuted His prophets to death. 5.12a Therefore for this He endured. For God says the stroke of His flesh is from them: “When they shall smite their shepherd, then the sheep of the flock shall perish.” 5.13a But He Himself willed so to suffer; for it was necessary for Him to suffer on a tree. For he who prophesies concerning Him says: “Spare my soul from the sword, and nail my flesh, for the assembly of evildoers

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ἀνόμῳ καιρῷ καὶ τοῖς μέλλουσιν σκανδάλοις, ὡς πρέπει υἱοῖς θεοῦ, ἀντιστῶμεν. 4.10a Ἵνα οὖν μὴ σχῇ παρείσδυσιν ὁ μέλας, φύγωμεν ἀπὸ πάσης ματαιότητος, μισήσωμεν τελείως τὰ ἔργα τῆς πονηρᾶς ὁδοῦ. Μὴ καθ' ἑαυτοὺς ἐνδύνοντες μονάζετε ὡς ἤδη δεδικαιωμένοι, ἀλλ' ἐπὶ τὸ αὐτὸ συνερχόμενοι συνζητεῖτε περὶ τοῦ κοινῇ συμφέ ροντος. 4.11a Λέγει γὰρ ἡ γραφή· «Οὐαὶ οἱ συνετοὶ παρ' ἑαυτοῖς καὶ ἐνώπιον αὐτῶν ἐπιστήμονες.» Γενώμεθα πνευματικοί, γενώμεθα ναὸς τέλειος τῷ θεῷ. Ἐφ' ὅσον ἐστὶν ἐφ' ἡμῖν, μελετῶμεν τὸν φόβον τοῦ θεοῦ καὶ φυλάσσειν ἀγωνιζώμεθα τὰς ἐντολὰς αὐτοῦ, ἵνα ἐν τοῖς δι καιώμασιν αὐτοῦ εὐφρανθῶμεν. 4.12 Ὁ κύριος ἀπροσω πολήπτως κρινεῖ τὸν κόσμον· ἕκαστος καθὼς ἐποίησεν κομιεῖται- ἐὰν ᾖ ἀγαθός, ἡ δικαιοσύνη αὐτοῦ προηγήσεται αὐτοῦ· ἐὰν ᾖ πονηρός, ὁ μισθὸς τῆς πονηρίας ἔμπροσθεν αὐτοῦ. 4.13 Προσέχωμεν μήποτε ἐπαναπαυόμενοι ὡς κλητοὶ ἐπικαθυπνώσωμεν ταῖς ἁμαρτίαις ἡμῶν, καὶ ὁ πονηρὸς ἄρχων λαβὼν τὴν καθ' ἡμῶν ἐξουσίαν ἀπώσηται ἡμᾶς ἀπὸ τῆς βασιλείας τοῦ κυρίου. 4.14 Ἔτι δὲ κἀκεῖνο, ἀδελφοί μου, νοεῖτε· ὅταν βλέπετε μετὰ τηλικαῦτα σημεῖα καὶ τέρατα γεγονότα ἐν τῷ Ἰσραήλ, καὶ οὕτως ἐνκαταλελεῖφθαι αὐτούς, προσέχωμεν, μήποτε, ὡς γέγραπται, «πολλοὶ κλητοί, ὀλίγοι δὲ ἐκλεκτοὶ» εὑρεθῶμεν.

5.1 Εἰς τοῦτο γὰρ ὑπέμεινεν ὁ κύριος παραδοῦναι τὴν σάρκα εἰς καταφθοράν, ἵνα τῇ ἀφέσει τῶν ἁμαρτιῶν ἁγνισθῶ μεν, ὅ ἐστιν ἐν τῷ ῥαντίσματι αὐτοῦ τοῦ αἵματος. 5.2 Γέγρα πται γὰρ περὶ αὐτοῦ ἃ μὲν πρὸς τὸν Ἰσραήλ, ἃ δὲ πρὸς ἡμᾶς -λέγει δὲ οὕτως· «Ἐτραυματίσθη διὰ τὰς ἀνομίας ἡμῶν καὶ μεμαλάκισται διὰ τὰς ἁμαρτίας ἡμῶν· τῷ μώλωπι αὐτοῦ ἡμεῖς ἰάθημεν· ὡς πρόβατον ἐπὶ σφαγὴν ἤχθη καὶ ὡς ἀμνὸς ἄφωνος ἐναντίον τοῦ κείραντος αὐτόν.» 5.3 Οὐκοῦν ὑπερευχαριστεῖν ὀφείλομεν τῷ κυρίῳ, ὅτι καὶ τὰ παρεληλυθότα ἡμῖν ἐγνώρισεν καὶ ἐν τοῖς ἐνεστῶσιν ἡμᾶς ἐσόφισεν, καὶ εἰς τὰ μέλλοντα οὐκ ἐσμὲν ἀσύνετοι. 5.4a Λέγει δὲ ἡ γραφή· «Οὐκ ἀδίκως ἐκτείνεται δίκτυα πτερωτοῖς» -τοῦτο λέγει, ὅτι δικαίως ἀπολεῖται ἄνθρωπος, ὃς ἔχων ὁδοῦ δικαιοσύνης γνῶσιν ἑαυτὸν εἰς ὁδὸν σκότους ἀπο συνέχει. 5.5 Ἔτι δὲ καὶ τοῦτο, ἀδελφοί μου· εἰ ὁ κύριος ὑπέμεινεν παθεῖν ὑπὲρ τῆς ψυχῆς ἡμῶν, ὢν παντὸς τοῦ κόσμου κύριος, ᾧ εἶπεν ὁ θεὸς ἀπὸ καταβολῆς κόσμου· «Ποιήσωμεν ἄνθρω πον κατ' εἰκόνα καὶ καθ' ὁμοίωσιν ἡμετέραν», πῶς οὖν ὑπέμεινεν ὑπὸ χειρὸς ἀνθρώπων παθεῖν; μάθετε. 5.6a Οἱ προφῆται, ἀπ' αὐτοῦ ἔχοντες τὴν χάριν, εἰς αὐτὸν ἐπρο φήτευσαν· αὐτὸς δέ, ἵνα καταργήσῃ τὸν θάνατον καὶ τὴν ἐκ νεκρῶν ἀνάστασιν δείξῃ, ὅτι ἐν σαρκὶ ἔδει αὐτὸν φανερωθῆναι, ὑπέμεινεν, 5.7 ἵνα τοῖς πατράσιν τὴν ἐπαγγε λίαν ἀποδῷ καὶ αὐτὸς ἑαυτῷ τὸν λαὸν τὸν καινὸν ἑτοιμάζων ἐπιδείξῃ ἐπὶ τῆς γῆς ὤν, ὅτι τὴν ἀνάστασιν αὐτὸς ποιήσας κρινεῖ. 5.8 Πέρας γέ τοι διδάσκων τὸν Ἰσραὴλ καὶ τηλικαῦτα τέρατα καὶ σημεῖα ποιῶν, οὐχ ὅτι ἐκήρυσσεν καὶ ὑπερηγά πησαν αὐτόν. 5.9 Ὅτε δὲ τοὺς ἰδίους ἀποστόλους τοὺς μέλλοντας κηρύσσειν τὸ εὐαγγέλιον αὐτοῦ ἐξελέξατο, ὄντας ὑπὲρ πᾶσαν ἁμαρτίαν ἀνομωτέρους, ἵνα δείξῃ ὅτι οὐκ ἦλθεν καλέσαι δικαίους, ἀλλὰ ἁμαρτωλούς, τότε ἐφανέρωσεν ἑαυτὸν εἶναι υἱὸν θεοῦ. 5.10 Εἰ γὰρ μὴ ἦλθεν ἐν σαρκί, πῶς ἂν ἐσώθησαν οἱ ἄνθρωποι βλέποντες αὐτόν, ὅτε τὸν μέλλοντα μὴ εἶναι ἥλιον, ἔργον τῶν χειρῶν αὐτοῦ ὑπάρχοντα, ἐμβλέ ποντες οὐκ ἰσχύουσιν εἰς τὰς ἀκτῖνας αὐτοῦ ἀντοφθαλμῆσαι; 5.11 Οὐκοῦν ὁ υἱὸς τοῦ θεοῦ εἰς τοῦτο ἐν σαρκὶ ἦλθεν, ἵνα τὸ τέλειον τῶν ἁμαρτημάτων ἀνακεφαλαιώσῃ τοῖς διώξασιν ἐν θανάτῳ τοὺς προφήτας αὐτοῦ. 5.12a Οὐκοῦν εἰς τοῦτο ὑπέμεινεν. Λέγει γὰρ ὁ θεὸς τὴν πληγὴν τῆς σαρκὸς αὐτοῦ ἐξ αὐτῶν· «Ὅταν πατάξωσιν τὸν ποιμένα αὐτῶν, τότε ἀπολεῖται τὰ πρόβατα τῆς ποίμνης.» 5.13a Αὐτὸς δὲ ἠθέλησεν οὕτως παθεῖν· ἔδει γάρ, ἵνα ἐπὶ ξύλου πάθῃ. Λέγει γὰρ ὁ προφητεύων ἐπ' αὐτῷ· «Φεῖσαί μου τῆς ψυχῆς ἀπὸ ῥομφαίας, καὶ καθήλωσόν μου τὰς σάρκας, ὅτι πονηρευομένων συναγωγὴ