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Inequality has an equality, change in all things. For all things easily move around, and shift, and are replaced; so that one would rather trust breezes and letters on water than human prosperity. And envy indeed checks prosperity, while mercy checks misfortune; and this wisely, at least in my judgment, and wonderfully, so that neither should grieving be without comfort, nor faring well be without discipline.

5. But it is for prudent men, who are disciplined by misfortunes, and, like gold purified by fire, say: It is good for me that you have humbled me, that I might learn your statutes; since humiliation gives birth to knowing the statutes. And they experience what Peter did, who called for salvation when he was about to sink; and they draw somewhat closer to God because of their pain, and make the benefactor their own through affliction. Since a weary soul is near to God, and need turns to the One who is able to give, who, because of the abundance of his gift, is perhaps even despised. For this reason let us look upward, brothers, at every time and in every circumstance let us put forth good hope, neither in times of cheerfulness let us cast away fear, nor in sorrowful times, our hopefulness. Let us be mindful in fair weather of the storm, and in winter of the pilot; but let us not lose heart in afflictions, nor become wicked servants, confessing the Lord when he does good, but not cleaving to him when he disciplines; and yet at times toil is better than health, and endurance than ease, and visitation than neglect, and repentance than forgiveness. To put it briefly, let us neither fall because of misfortunes, nor grow insolent through abundance.

6. Let us be subject both to God and to one another, and to the rulers on earth; to God for all things, to one another for brotherly love, to rulers for good order; and 35.975 all the more, the gentler and better they may be. It is a terrible thing to exhaust gentleness by constant pardon, lest we ourselves be required to pay the penalty for their harshness, having broken tranquility with our spirit, and bringing darkness upon light, and mixing wormwood with honey. This too is one of our laws, and one of those that are praised, and most excellently ordained by the Spirit, who tested what is possible with what is good, and made it law, just as servants are to obey masters, and wives their husbands, and the Church the Lord, and disciples their shepherds and teachers; so also we are to be subject to all the higher authorities, not only because of wrath, but also for conscience' sake, as being liable for tribute; and, not doing evil, to not hate the law, nor to wait for the sword, but being purified by fear, to be praised by the authority.

7. One and the same standard; but it spares what is right, and cuts off what is excessive. One sun; but it illuminates healthy sight, and dims weak sight. Do you want me to speak boldly something of our own matters as well? One Christ; but he is set for a fall and a rising; a fall for the unbelievers, but a rising for those who believe; and to some he is a stone of stumbling, and a rock of offense, as many as have not known, nor understood, but walk in darkness, whether serving idols, or seeing only as far as the letter, and neither willing nor able to be enlightened beyond it; but to others a cornerstone, and a praiseworthy rock, as many as are bound together by the Word, and have stood firm upon it; or, if you will, that pearl, which the good merchant buys with all that he has. But we are suffering something like this, brothers, not setting our own affairs aright, but being displeased with the authority; just as if someone were to blame the judge of the contest as being wicked, while he himself is wrestling; or the physician as ignorant and reckless for using incisions and cauterizations, while he himself is in a bad state, and in need of the harsher remedies. These things are from me to those who are ruled, as both a comfort and an admonition; these things the poor shepherd

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ἴσον ἡ ἀνισότης ἔχει, τὴν περὶ πάντα μεταβο λήν. Περιχωρεῖ γὰρ τὰ πάντα ῥᾳδίως, καὶ μεταχω ρεῖ, καὶ ἀντικαθίσταται· ὡς αὔραις εἶναι μᾶλλον πι στεύειν καὶ γράμμασι τοῖς καθ' ὕδατος, ἢ ἀνθρώπων εὐημερίᾳ. Καὶ φθόνος μὲν εὐπραξίαν, συμφορὰν δὲ ἔλεος ἵστησιν· καὶ τοῦτο σοφῶς, κατά γε τὸν ἐμὸν λόγον, καὶ θαυμασίως, ἵνα μήτε τὸ ἀλγεῖν ἀπαραμύ θητον ᾖ, μήτε τὸ εὖ πράττειν ἀπαιδαγώγητον.

Εʹ. Σωφρόνων δὲ ἀνδρῶν, οἵτινες παιδεύονται ταῖς συμφοραῖς, καὶ ὡς χρυσὸς πυρὶ καθαιρόμενοι λέγουσιν· Ἀγαθόν μοι, ὅτι ἐταπείνωσάς με, ὅπως ἂν μάθω τὰ δικαιώματά σου· ὡς τικτούσης τῆς ταπεινώσεως τὸ γινώσκειν τὰ δικαιώματα. Καὶ τὸ τοῦ Πέτρου πάσχουσιν, ἐπικαλεσαμένου τὴν σωτηρίαν ἐν τῷ μέλλειν καταδύεσθαι· καὶ μᾶλλόν τι προσχωροῦσι Θεῷ διὰ τὸ ἀλγεῖν, καὶ τὸν εὐεργέτην οἰκειοῦνται διὰ τῆς θλίψεως. Ἐπειδὴ κάμνουσα ψυχὴ ἐγγύς ἐστι Θεοῦ, καὶ τὸ χρῄζειν ἐπιστρέφει πρὸς τὸν δοῦναι δυνάμενον, τῷ ἀφθόνῳ τῆς δωρεᾶς τυχὸν καὶ καταφρονούμενον. ∆ιὰ τοῦτο ἄνω νεύω μεν, ἀδελφοὶ, ἐν παντὶ καιρῷ καὶ περιστάσει πάσῃ προβαλώμεθα τὴν καλὴν ἐλπίδα, μήτε ἐν ταῖς εὐθυμίαις ἀποβάλωμεν τὸν φόβον, μήτε ἐν τοῖς λυπηροῖς τὸ εὔελπι. Μνησθῶμεν καὶ ἐν εὐδίᾳ τῆς ζά λης, καὶ ἐν χειμῶνι τοῦ κυβερνήτου· ἀλλὰ μὴ ταῖς θλίψεσιν ἐκκακήσωμεν, μηδὲ γενώμεθα δοῦλοι κα κοὶ, ἀγαθύνοντι μὲν ἐξομολογούμενοι τῷ ∆εσπότῃ, παιδεύοντι δὲ μὴ προστιθέμενοι· καίτοι ποτὲ κρείσ σων ὑγιείας πόνος, καὶ ὑπομονὴ ἀνέσεως, καὶ ἐπίσκεψις ἀμελείας, καὶ ἐπιστροφὴ συγχωρή σεως. Εἴπω συντόμως, μήτε διὰ τὰς συμφορὰς πίπτω μεν, μήτε διὰ τὸν κόρον ὑβρίζωμεν.

ςʹ. Ὑποτασσώμεθα καὶ Θεῷ καὶ ἀλλήλοις, καὶ τοῖς ἐπὶ γῆς ἄρχουσιν· Θεῷ διὰ πάντα, διὰ τὴν φιλ αδελφίαν ἀλλήλοις, δι' εὐταξίαν τοῖς ἄρχουσιν· καὶ 35.975 τοσούτῳ μᾶλλον, ὅσῳπερ ἂν ὦσιν ἡμερώτεροι καὶ χρηστότεροι. ∆εινὸν ἐπιείκειαν δαπανῆσαι τῷ συνεχεῖ τῆς συγγνώμης, ἵνα μὴ καὶ τῆς ἐκείνων τρα χύτητος αὐτοὶ δίκας ἀπαιτηθῶμεν, γαλήνην πνεύματι λύσαντες, καὶ φωτὶ ζόφον ἐπάγοντες, καὶ μέλιτι καταμιγνύντες ἀψίνθιον. Ἔστι καὶ οὗτος εἷς τῶν ἡμετέρων νόμων, καὶ οὗτος τῶν ἐπαινουμένων, καὶ κάλλιστα διατεταγμένων τῷ Πνεύματι, τὸ δυνα τὸν μετὰ τοῦ καλοῦ δοκιμάσαντι, καὶ νομοθετήσαντι, ὥσπερ δούλους ὑπακούειν δεσπόταις, καὶ γυναῖκας ἀνδράσι, καὶ Κυρίῳ τὴν Ἐκκλησίαν, καὶ μαθητὰς ποιμέσι καὶ διδασκάλοις· οὕτω δὲ καὶ πάσαις ἐξου σίαις ὑπερεχούσαις ὑποτάσσεσθαι, οὐ μόνον διὰ τὴν ὀργὴν, ἀλλὰ καὶ διὰ τὴν συνείδησιν, ὡς ὑποτελεῖς φόρου τυγχάνοντας· καὶ μὴ κακοποιοῦντας μισεῖν τὸν νόμον, μηδὲ ἀναμένειν τὴν μάχαιραν, ἀλλὰ τῷ φόβῳ καθαιρομένους ἐπαινεῖσθαι ὑπὸ τῆς ἐξουσίας.

Ζʹ. Μία καὶ ἡ αὐτὴ στάθμη· ἀλλὰ φείδεται μὲν τοῦ ὀρθοῦ, περικόπτει δὲ τὸ περιττόν. Εἷς ἥλιος· ἀλλὰ φωτίζει μὲν τὴν ὑγιαίνουσαν ὄψιν, ἀμαυροῖ δὲ τὴν ἀσθενοῦσαν. Βούλει τι καὶ τῶν ἡμετέρων εἴπω θαῤ ῥήσας; Εἷς Χριστός· ἀλλ' εἰς πτῶσιν κεῖται καὶ ἀνά στασιν· πτῶσιν μὲν τοῖς ἀπίστοις, ἀνάστασιν δὲ τοῖς πιστεύουσι· καὶ τοῖς μὲν ἔστι πέτρα προσ κόμματος, καὶ πέτρα σκανδάλου, ὅσοι μὴ ἔγνωσαν, οὐδὲ συνῆκαν, ἀλλ' ἐν σκότει διαπορεύον ται, εἴτε εἰδώλοις θρησκεύοντες, εἴτε μέχρι τοῦ γράμματος διαβλέποντες, καὶ ὑπὲρ τοῦτο αὐγασθῆναι μήτε θέλοντες, μήτε ἰσχύοντες· τοῖς δὲ λίθος ἀκρογωνιαῖος, καὶ πέτρα ἐπαινουμένη, ὅσοι συν δεσμοῦνται τῷ λόγῳ, καὶ ἐπ' αὐτῆς βεβήκασιν· εἰ βούλει δὲ, ὁ μαργαρίτης ἐκεῖνος, ὃν πάντων ὧν ἔχει ὠνεῖται ὁ καλὸς ἔμπορος. Ἡμεῖς δὲ τοιοῦτόν τι πά σχομεν, ἀδελφοὶ, μὴ τὰ ἑαυτῶν κατορθοῦντες, ἀλλὰ πρὸς τὴν ἐξουσίαν δυσχεραίνοντες· ὥσπερ ἂν εἴ τις αἰτιῷτο τὸν ἀγωνοθέτην ὡς μοχθηρὸν, αὐτὸς ἐκ παλαίων· ἢ τὸν ἰατρὸν ὡς ἀμαθῆ καὶ θρασὺν ταῖς τομαῖς καὶ ταῖς καύσεσι κεχρημένον, αὐτὸς πονήρως διακείμενος, καὶ τῶν αὐστηροτέρων δεόμε νος φαρμάκων. Ταῦτά μοι πρὸς τοὺς ἀρχομένους πα ραμυθία τε ἅμα καὶ νουθεσία· ταῦτα ὁ πενιχρὸς ποι μὴν