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powers to the only-begotten Word of God. But if in another way some have become philanthropic and merciful, showing sympathy and fellowship towards their neighbors, they will experience the same as what they did, receiving mercy according to the mercy and philanthropy of God. And another order of the blessed according to the promise would be that of those who are purified in heart, that is, in mind; and another again of the peacemakers; of whom the former will receive as a prize for their purity the vision of God, since they will see him with the purified eyes of the soul; while the latter will become sons of God, as having accomplished a similar work, just as the Son of God made peace in all things through himself, both things in heaven and things on earth. But these, for different achievements, will obtain different honors in the proclaimed kingdom of heaven. Indeed, those who will reign with the Son of God were first the aforementioned poor in spirit; and second after them, the noble martyrs of God, concerning whom he next taught, saying: Blessed are they who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake; for through these words he blessed those who were to contend for the kingdom as noble soldiers of God; necessarily promising to them also, as brothers of the aforementioned blessed poor, the kingdom of heaven as the prize of their contests. And with great order and sequence he imparted his kingdom to these after the poor in spirit; for one must first live in a God-loving way for the whole time of one's life, having passed it in a possessionless and philosophical manner, and then so come to a God-loving end. The first, therefore, pursued the highest, possessionless conduct of life, contending in the contests of virtue throughout their whole life; while the second, for the sake of their testimony to him, 24.537 were persecuted, warred against and hated, and slandered with false accusations for no other reason than for their confession of Christ. For we will see those who hunger and weep and are reproached for Christ’s sake also in Luke; but the meek and the merciful and the pure in heart and the peacemakers Matthew sets before us for examination. And he said these things, arming and fortifying his disciples for the war against their adversaries, which they were about to endure while preaching to the whole world and testifying to the kingdom of the one God over all. For since they were about to be persecuted and warred against by all on account of the new preaching, he was securing and fortifying them beforehand and deemed them worthy of blessings; because, while they would display an irreproachable life, so as not to provide occasions for slander even to enemies hunting for pretexts against them; nevertheless, for their confession of him alone, and for the sake of his commandments, they would be persecuted and warred against, being defamed and enduring all reproaches and insults and revilings, not for their own transgressions, but for their virtuous and supreme life in righteousness; which very thing, having been spoken according to divine providence, also met with a true fulfillment in the time that followed. But he remedies the painfulness of his word, showing them to be of equal honor with the ancient prophets of God. Therefore he exhorted them to rejoice and be glad in all that came upon them, as being about to suffer the same things as the prophets, and clearly as being about to be deemed worthy of the same honor from God as they were. From this Paul, taking courage in these things, rightly said: If indeed we suffer with him, that we may also be glorified together; and, The sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us. And he did not say these things in words while falling short of what was said in deeds, but also by his very actions he displayed the contests for piety, which he also enumerated, saying: Therefore I take pleasure in weaknesses, in insults, and the rest. And these things were still the preludes of the contests; but the conclusion of his whole struggle was completed for him in the city of the Romans, where he was beheaded in martyrdom. But Peter considered death by the cross a prize on account of

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δυνάμεις τῷ μονογενεῖ τοῦ Θεοῦ Λόγῳ. Εἰ δὲ ἄλλως τινὲς φιλάνθρωποι καὶ ἐλεήμονες γεγόνασι, τὸ συμπαθὲς καὶ κοινωνικὸν πρὸς τοὺς πέλας ἐπιδεικνύμενοι, ταὐτὸν πείσονται οἷς ἔδρασαν, κατ' ἔλεον Θεοῦ καὶ φιλανθρωπίαν ἐλεηθέντες. Ἄλλο δὲ τάγμα γένοιτ' ἂν τῶν κατὰ τὴν ἐπαγγελίαν μακαρίων, τὸ τῶν τὴν καρδίαν τουτέστι τὴν διάνοιαν κεκαθαρμένων· καὶ ἄλλο πάλιν τῶν εἰρηνοποιῶν· ὧν οἱ μὲν πρότεροι γέρας λήψονται τῆς καθαρότητος, τὴν τοῦ Θεοῦ θέαν, ἅτε δὲ ὀφθαλμοῖς ψυχῆς κεκαθαρμένοις αὐτὸν ὀψόμενοι· οἱ δὲ δεύτεροι υἱοὶ Θεοῦ γενήσονται, ὡς ἂν ἔργον ὅμοιον κατωρθωκότες· οἷον καὶ ὁ τοῦ Θεοῦ Υἱὸς εἰρηνοποιήσας τὰ πάντα δι' ἑαυτοῦ, τά τε ἐν οὐρανῷ καὶ τὰ ἐπὶ τῆς γῆς. Ἀλλ' οὗτοι μὲν ἐπὶ διαφόροις κατορθώμασι διαφόρων τεύξονται τιμῶν ἐν τῇ κατηγγελμένῃ τῶν οὐρανῶν βασιλείᾳ. Οἵ γε μὴν αὐτῷ συμβασιλεύσοντες τῷ Υἱῷ τοῦ Θεοῦ πρῶτοι μὲν ἦσαν οἱ δηλωθέντες πτωχοὶ τῷ πνεύματι· δεύτεροι δὲ μετ' ἐκείνους οἱ γενναῖοι τοῦ Θεοῦ μάρτυρες, περὶ ὧν ἑξῆς ἐδίδασκε λέγων· Μακάριοι οἱ δεδιωγμένοι ἕνεκεν δικαιοσύνης· διὰ τούτων γὰρ τοὺς μέλλοντας ὑπεραγωνίζεσθαι τῆς βασιλείας ὡς εὐγενεῖς Θεοῦ στρατιώτας ἐμακάριζεν· ἀναγκαίως καὶ αὐτοῖς ὡς ἀδελφοῖς τῶν προμεμακαρισμένων πτωχῶν βραβεῖα τῶν ἐπάθλων τὴν τῶν οὐρανῶν βασιλείαν ὑπισχνούμενος. Τάξει δὲ πολλῇ καὶ ἀκολουθίᾳ τούτοις μετεδίδου τῆς αὐτοῦ βασιλείας μετὰ τοὺς πτωχοὺς τῷ πνεύματι· βιῶναι γὰρ δεῖ πρότερον θεοφιλῶς τὸν πάντα χρόνον τῆς ζωῆς ἐν ἀκτήμονι καὶ φιλοσόφῳ τρόπῳ διατελέσαντας, εἶθ' οὕτως ἐπὶ τὸ θεοφιλὲς τέλος ἐλθεῖν. Οἱ μὲν οὖν πρῶτοι τὴν ἄκραν ἀκτήμονα μετήρχοντο ἀγωγὴν τοῦ βίου, διὰ πάσης αὐτῶν τῆς ζωῆς τοῖς τῆς ἀρετῆς ἄθλοις ἐναγωνιζόμενοι· οἱ δὲ δεύτεροι τῆς εἰς αὐτὸν μαρτυρίας 24.537 ἕνεκεν ἠλαύνοντο πολεμούμενοι καὶ μισούμενοι, συκοφαντούμενοί τε ψευδέσι διαβολαῖς δι' οὐδὲν ἕτερον ἢ διὰ τὴν εἰς Χριστὸν ὁμολογίαν. Ἀλλὰ γὰρ τοὺς μὲν πεινῶντας καὶ κλαίοντας καὶ διὰ Χριστὸν ὀνειδιζομένους καὶ παρὰ τῷ Λουκᾷ ὀψόμεθα· τοὺς δὲ πραεῖς καὶ τοὺς ἐλεήμονας καὶ τοὺς καθαροὺς τῇ καρδίᾳ καὶ τοὺς εἰρηνοποιοὺς ὁ Ματθαῖος ἡμῖν εἰς ἐξέτασιν παρατίθεται. Καὶ ταῦτ' ἔλεγεν ὁπλίζων καὶ περιφράττων τοὺς μαθητὰς εἰς τὸν κατὰ τῶν ἐναντίων πόλεμον, ὃν ἔμελλον ἐπαναντλεῖσθαι κηρύττοντες παντὶ τῷ κόσμῳ, καὶ μαρτυρόμενοι τὴν ἑνὸς τοῦ ἐπὶ πάντων Θεοῦ βασιλείαν. Μέλλοντας γὰρ αὐτοὺς διὰ τὸ νέον κήρυγμα πρὸς ἁπάντων ἐλαύνεσθαι καὶ πολεμεῖσθαι, προησφαλίζετο καὶ προέφραττε μακαρισμῶν τε ἠξίου· ὅτι δὴ ἄληπτον βίον προβαλλόμενοι, ὡς μηδὲ τοῖς ἐχθροῖς προφάσεις κατ' αὐτῶν θηρωμένοις ἀφορμὰς διαβολῆς παρέχειν· ὅμως διὰ μόνην τὴν εἰς αὐτὸν ὁμολογίαν, καὶ τῶν αὐτοῦ παραγγελμάτων ἕνεκεν, διώκεσθαι καὶ πολεμεῖσθαι μέλλοιεν, δυσφημούμενοι καὶ πάσας ὑπομένοντες λοιδορίας καὶ ὕβρεις καὶ ὀνειδισμοὺς, οὐ δι' οἰκείας πλημμελείας, διὰ δὲ τὸν ἐνάρετον καὶ ἄκρον ἐν δικαιοσύνῃ βίον αὐτῶν· ὃ δὴ καὶ αὐτὸ κατὰ τὴν θείαν προμήθειαν εἰρημένον τέλους ἐτύγχανεν ἀληθοῦς ἐν τῷ μετὰ ταῦτα χρόνῳ. Πλὴν ἀλλὰ θεραπεύει τὸ λυπηρὸν τοῦ λόγου, ἰσοτίμους αὐτοὺς ἀποφαίνων τοῖς πάλαι τοῦ Θεοῦ προφήταις. ∆ιὸ καὶ χαίρειν καὶ ἀγαλλιᾷν ἐν πᾶσι τοῖς ἐπιοῦσι παρῄνει, ὡς ἂν τὰ ὅμοια τοῖς προφήταις πεισομένους, καὶ δηλαδὴ ὁμοίως αὐτοῖς τῆς παρὰ τῷ Θεῷ τιμῆς ἀξιωθησομένους. Ἔνθεν εἰκότως Παῦλος τούτοις ἐπιθαῤῥῶν ἔλεγεν· Εἴπερ συμπάσχομεν, ἵνα καὶ συνδοξασθῶμεν· καὶ, Οὐκ ἄξια τὰ παθήματα τοῦ νῦν καιροῦ πρὸς τὴν μέλλουσαν δόξαν ἐκκαλυφθῆναι εἰς ἡμᾶς. Καὶ οὐ λόγοις μὲν ταῦτα ἔλεγεν, ἔργοις δὲ ἀφυστέρει τῶν λελεγμένων, ἀλλὰ καὶ αὐταῖς πράξεσι τοὺς ὑπὲρ εὐσεβείας ἄθλους ἐνεδείκνυτο, οὓς καὶ κατηριθμεῖτο λέγων· ∆ιὸ εὐδοκῶ ἐν ἀσθενείαις, ἐν ὕβρεσι, καὶ τὰ ἑξῆς. Καὶ ταῦτα μὲν ἔτι τὰ τῶν ἄθλων προοίμια· τὸ δὲ συμπέρασμα τοῦ παντὸς ἀγῶνος αὐτῷ ἐπὶ τῆς Ῥωμαίων ἐτελειοῦτο πόλεως, ἔνθα μαρτυρίῳ τὴν κεφαλὴν ἀπετμήθη. Ὁ Πέτρος δὲ ἁρπαγμὸν τὸν διὰ σταυροῦ θάνατον ἐποιεῖτο διὰ