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she indeed will be cast out, but you will pay the penalty, lest the sin has happened on account of your negligence. Therefore, before all things, take thought for chastity; for fornication has been defined by God as exceedingly grievous. But there are many kinds of fornication, as Clement himself will also relate to you; but the first adultery is for a man not to have relations with his own wife only, and for a woman not to have relations with her own husband only. If anyone is chaste, he is also able to become benevolent, on account of which he will obtain eternal mercy. And just as adultery is a great evil, so benevolence is the greatest good. Therefore, love all your brothers with pure and merciful eyes, to orphans doing the things of parents, and to widows the things of husbands, providing food with all cheerfulness, for the young, marriages, and for those among them without a trade, devise means through employments for their necessary food, for the craftsman, work, for the idle, mercy. And I know that you will do these things, if you establish love in your mind. And for its entrance there is one sufficient occasion, the common partaking of salt. Therefore, be eager to eat together more frequently, as you are able, so that you may not sell it away; for it is the cause of well-doing, and well-doing is the cause of salvation. Therefore let all of you make your livelihoods common to all the brothers according to God, knowing that by giving temporal things you will receive eternal things. Much more, feed the hungry and give drink to the thirsty, clothing to the naked, visit the sick, appearing to those in prison help as you are able, receive strangers into your own houses with all readiness. But, that I may not speak of particulars, benevolence will teach you to do every good thing, just as malevolence suggests evil-doing to those not willing to be saved. Brothers who have disputes should not be judged before the authorities, but let them be reconciled by the presbyters of the church in every way, readily obeying them. But also shun covetousness in this way, as being able on the pretext of temporary gain to cause you loss of eternal goods. Balances, measures, weights, the just standards of the place, carefully observe; be honest with regard to deposits.

But these things and things similar to these you will endure to do until the end, if you have in your hearts an inseparable memory of the judgment which comes from God. For who would sin, being fully persuaded that from the just God, who is now only longsuffering and good, a judgment has been appointed to take place at the consummation of this life, so that the good for the future may eternally enjoy the unutterable good things, but the sinners, having been found to be evil, will obtain unutterable punishment for eternity? And that these things are so, if the prophet of truth had not said with an oath that they would be, perhaps it would have been reasonable to doubt. Therefore, being disciples of the true prophet, lay aside dissension, from which evil-doing arises, and readily undertake to do good. But if any of you doubts that the things which have been spoken will come to pass, let him not be ashamed to confess it, if indeed he cares for his own soul, and he will be fully convinced by the one who presides. But if he has believed correctly, let him conduct himself with confidence, as one fleeing a great fire of condemnation and entering into the eternal good kingdom of God.

Therefore let the deacons of the church be the eyes of the bishop, moving about intelligently, inquiring into the deeds of every member of the church, as to who is about to sin, so that being apprehended by the admonition of the one presiding he may perhaps not accomplish the sin. Let them bring back the deserters, that they not fail to come together to hear the discourses, so that they may be able to cleanse the despondencies that from time to time fall upon the heart from both the misfortunes of life and evil conversations by the word of truth; for when they have lain fallow for a long time, they become the work of fire. And let them learn of those who are sick in the flesh and to him who does not know

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αὐτὴ μὲν ἔκβλητος ἔσται, ὑμεῖς δὲ δίκην δώσετε, μήπως παρὰ τὴν ὑμετέραν ἀμέλειαν γέγονεν ἡ ἁμαρτία. διὸ πρὸ πάντων περὶ σωφροσύνης φροντίζετε· λίαν γὰρ παρὰ τῷ θεῷ χαλεπὴ ὥρισται ἡ πορνεία. πορνείας δὲ εἴδη πολλά, ὡς καὶ αὐτὸς Κλήμης ὑμῖν διηγήσεται· πλὴν πρώτη μοιχεία ἐστὶν τὸ ἄνδρα μὴ ἰδίᾳ μόνῃ χρήσασθαι γυναικὶ καὶ γυναῖκα μὴ ἰδίῳ μόνῳ χρήσασθαι ἀνδρί. ἐὰν σώφρων ᾖ τις, καὶ φιλάνθρωπος γενέσθαι δύναται, οὗ εἵνεκεν ἐλέους αἰωνίου τεύξεται. ὡς δὲ ἡ μοιχεία μέγα κακόν, οὕτως ἡ φιλανθρωπία μέγιστον ἀγαθόν. διὸ ἀγαπᾶτε πάντας ὑμῶν τοὺς ἀδελφοὺς σεμνοῖς καὶ ἐλεήμοσιν ὀφθαλμοῖς, τοῖς μὲν ὀρφανοῖς ποιοῦντες τὰ γονέων, ταῖς δὲ χήραις τὰ ἀνδρῶν, παρέχοντες μετὰ πάσης εὐφροσύνης τὰς τροφάς, τοῖς ἀκμαίοις τοὺς γάμους καὶ τοῖς αὐτῶν ἀτέχνοις διὰ τῶν ἐπιτηδευμάτων ἐννοούμενοι τὰς προφάσεις τῆς ἀναγκαίας τροφῆς, τεχνίτῃ ἔργον, ἀδρανεῖ ἔλεος. οἶδα δὲ ταῦτα ποιήσειν ὑμᾶς, ἐὰν ἀγάπην εἰς τὸν ὑμέτερον ἱδρύσητε νοῦν. πρὸς δὲ τὴν αὐτῆς εἴσοδον μία τίς ἐστιν ἱκανὴ πρόφασις, ἡ κοινὴ τῶν ἁλῶν μετάληψις. διὸ σπουδάζετε πυκνότερον συνέστιοι ἀλλήλων γίνεσθαι ὡς δύνασθε, ὅπως αὐτὴν μὴ ἀπεμπολήσητε· αἰτία γάρ ἐστιν τῆς εὐποιίας, ἡ δὲ εὐποιία τῆς σωτηρίας. κοινοὺς οὖν πάντες πᾶσιν τοῖς κατὰ θεὸν ἀδελφοῖς τοὺς ἑαυτῶν παρέχετε βίους, εἰδότες ὅτι πρόσκαιρα δωρούμενοι αἰώνια λήψεσθε. πολλῷ μᾶλλον πεινῶντας τρέφετε καὶ διψῶσι παρέχετε ποτόν, γυμνοῖς ἔνδυμα, τοὺς νοσοῦντας ἐπισκέπτεσθε, τοῖς ἐν φυλακαῖς ἐπιφαινόμενοι ὡς δύνασθε βοηθεῖτε, τοὺς ξένους μετὰ πάσης προθυμίας εἰς τοὺς ἑαυτῶν οἴκους λαμβάνετε. πλὴν ἵνα μὴ τὸ κατ' εἶδος λέγω, πᾶν καλὸν ἡ φιλανθρωπία ὑμᾶς ποιεῖν διδάξει, ὥσπερ ἡ μισανθρωπία τοῖς μὴ βουλομένοις σóζεσθαι τὴν κακοπραξίαν ὑποδείκνυσιν. οἱ πράγματα ἔχοντες ἀδελφοὶ ἐπὶ τῶν ἐξουσιῶν μὴ κρινέσθωσαν, ἀλλ' ὑπὸ τῶν τῆς ἐκκλησίας πρεσβυτέρων συμβιβαζέσθωσαν παντὶ τρόπῳ, ἑτοίμως αὐτοῖς πειθόμενοι. πλὴν καὶ τὴν πλεο- νεξίαν οὕτως φεύγετε ὡς προφάσει προσκαίρου κέρδους ἀπὸ τῶν αἰωνίων ἀγαθῶν ζημιοῦν δυναμένην. ζυγά, μέτρα, σταθμία, τὰ τῶν τόπων δίκαια ἐπιμελῶς φυλάσσετε, πρὸς τὰς παρακαταθήκας εὐγνωμονεῖτε.

Πλὴν ταῦτα καὶ τὰ τούτοις παραπλήσια μέχρι τέλους ποιεῖν ὑπομενεῖτε, ἐὰν ἀχώριστον μνήμην περὶ τῆς ἐκ θεοῦ γινομένης κρίσεως ἐν ταῖς καρδίαις ἔχητε. τίς γὰρ ἂν ἁμαρτήσῃ πεπληροφορημένος ὅτι ἐκ θεοῦ δικαίου, τοῦ νῦν μόνου μακροθύμου καὶ ἀγαθοῦ, ἐπὶ τῇ τοῦ βίου συντελείᾳ γενέσθαι ὡρίσθη κρίσις, ἵνα οἱ ἀγαθοὶ τοῦ λοιποῦ τῶν ἀπορρήτων ἀγαθῶν ἀιδίως ἀπολαύσωσιν, οἱ δὲ ἁμαρτωλοὶ εὑρεθέντες ὡς κακοὶ ἀπορρήτου κολάσεως τεύξωνται τὸν αἰῶνα; καὶ ταῦτα μὲν οὕτως ἔχειν, εἰ μὴ ὁ τῆς ἀληθείας προφήτης ἐνόρκως εἰρήκει ἔσεσθαι, τάχα ἂν εὔλογον ἦν ἀμφιβάλλειν. διὸ προφήτου ἀληθοῦς ὄντες μαθηταί, ἀποθέμενοι τὴν διχόνοιαν, ἐξ ἧς γίνεται ἡ κακοπραξία, προθύμως τὸ εὖ ποιεῖν ἀναδέξασθε. εἰ δὲ περὶ τῶν εἰρημένων ἔσεσθαι ἀμφιβάλλει τις ὑμῶν, μὴ αἰδεσθεὶς ὁμολογείτω, εἴπερ τῆς αὑτοῦ φροντίζει ψυχῆς, καὶ ὑπὸ τοῦ προεστῶτος πληροφορηθήσεται. εἰ δ' ὀρθῶς πεπίστευκεν, θαρρῶν πολιτευέσθω ὡς μέγα καταδίκης πῦρ φεύγων καὶ εἰς ἀιδίαν ἀγαθὴν θεοῦ βασιλείαν εἰσερχόμενος.

Oἱ μὲν οὖν τῆς ἐκκλησίας διάκονοι τοῦ ἐπισκόπου συνετῶς ·εμβόμενοι ἔστωσαν ὀφθαλμοί, ἑκάστου τῆς ἐκκλησίας πολυπραγμονοῦντες τὰς πράξεις, τίς μέλλει ἁμαρτάνειν, ἵνα νουθεσίᾳ καταληφθεὶς ὑπὸ τοῦ προκαθεζομένου τάχα οὐ μὴ τελέσῃ τὸ ἁμάρτημα· τοὺς λειποτάκτας ἐπιστρεφέτωσαν, τοῦ μὴ ἐπιλείπειν τοὺς συνερχομένους τῶν λόγων ἐπακούειν, ὅπως τὰς ἑκάστοτε τῇ καρδίᾳ προσπιπτούσας ἀθυμίας ἔκ τε βιωτικῶν συνπτώσεων καὶ ὁ μιλιῶν κακῶν λόγῳ ἀληθείας καθαίρεσθαι δύνωνται· ἐπεὶ γὰρ ἂν χρόνῳ πολλῷ χερσεύσωσιν, πυρὸς ἔργον γίνονται. τοὺς δὲ καὶ κατὰ σάρκα νοσοῦντας μανθανέτωσαν καὶ τῷ ἀγνοοῦντι