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There the wings of a dove covered with silver, and her back with the pale color of gold. Like a certain golden and living dove she flies; having a gentle eye, a mild eye; nothing is better than that eye. The peacock is beautiful, but compared to her a jackdaw; so this bird is a certain beautiful and wonderful thing. She always looks upward; she is surrounded by the great glory of God. She is a virgin, having golden wings, modestly dressed, having a white, gentle face. She is winged and nimble, standing beside the royal throne. When we are being judged, she suddenly appears and is seen, and she snatches us from punishment, enveloping us in her wings; God desires her rather than sacrifices. So also faith, if it has no works, is dead in itself. But someone will say, You have faith, and I have works; show me your faith from your works, and I will show you my faith from my works. You believe that God is one; you do well. Even the demons believe—and shudder. For even if one believes correctly in the Father and in the Son and in the Holy Spirit, but does not have an upright life, his faith is of no profit to him for salvation. Therefore when he says, "And this is eternal life, that they know you, the only true God," let us not think that what is said is sufficient for us for salvation; for we also need a most pure life and conduct.

Faith is indeed a great and saving thing, and without it one can never be saved; but it is not sufficient in itself to accomplish this. But there is also need of an upright life; so for this reason Paul also exhorts those already deemed worthy of the mysteries, saying: Let us therefore strive to enter that rest; let us strive, he says, as though faith were not sufficient, but that life must also be put forward, and great effort be made. For indeed great effort is needed to enter into heaven. For if those who suffered so much in the wilderness were not deemed worthy of the land, and were not able to obtain the land, because they grumbled and because they committed fornication, how shall we be deemed worthy of heaven, living indifferently and lazily? Therefore we need great effort. And again. Faith without works is dead. Rightly so; for just as a beautiful and flourishing body, when it has no strength, but resembles those things that are painted, so is right faith without works.

CHAPTER 3.

Not many of you should become teachers, my brothers; knowing that a stricter judgment

we will receive. For since teaching without doing brings not only no profit, but also great loss and condemnation to the one who manages his own life with such carelessness, cutting off the contentiousness of those unwilling to work, he forbade teaching to those who teach without works, imposing a great judgment. For he is condemned for things that are not so, just as he is also perfect who does not stumble in the work and word of teaching, and is able also to bridle the whole body.

For if he teaches these things, and defines faith by right words with splendid works in harmony with faith; clearly he bridles his whole body, not allowing it to have any friendship with the world. So also the tongue is a small member and boasts of great things. Behold, how small a fire kindles so great a forest; and the tongue is a fire, a world of unrighteousness. Therefore guard the pupil of your eye more than your tongue; the tongue is a royal horse. If, then, you put a bridle on it and teach it to walk rhythmically, the king rests upon it and sits enthroned; but if you let it be carried along unbridled and to leap about, it becomes a vehicle for the devil and the demons. But no human being can tame the tongue; a restless evil, full of deadly poison. The tongue is a sharpened sword. But let us not bring wounds upon others; but the

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Ἐκεῖ Πτέρυγες περιστερᾶς περιηργυρωμέναι, καὶ μετάφρενα αὐτῆς ἐν χλωρότητι χρυσίου. Καθάπερ περιστερά τις χρυσῆ καὶ ζῶσα πέτεται· ὄμμα προσηνὲς ἔχουσα, ὀφθαλμὸν ἥμερον· οὐδὲν ὀφθαλμοῦ ἐκείνου βέλτιον. Καλός ἐστιν ὁ ταὼς, ἀλλὰ πρὸς ἐκείνην κολοιός· οὕτως ἡ ὄρνις αὕτη καλή τίς ἐστι καὶ θαυμαστή. Ἄνω διὰ παντὸς ὁρᾷ· πολλῇ τοῦ Θεοῦ τῇ δόξῃ περιστοιχίζεται. Παρθένος ἐστὶ πτέρυγας ἔχουσα χρυσᾶς, περιεσταλμένη, λευκὸν ἔχουσα πρόσωπον, ἥμερον. Ὑπόπτερός ἐστι καὶ κούφη, παρὰ τὸν θρόνον ἑστῶσα τὸν βασιλικόν. Ὅταν κρινώμεθα, ἄφνω ἐφίσταται καὶ φαίνεται, καὶ ἐξαιρεῖται τῆς κολάσεως ἡμᾶς, ταῖς αὐτῆς πτέρυξι περιβάλλουσα, ταύτην θέλει ὁ Θεὸς ἢ θυσίας. Οὕτω καὶ ἡ πίστις, ἐὰν μὴ ἔχῃ ἔργα, νεκρά ἐστι καθ' ἑαυτήν. Ἀλλ' ἐρεῖ τις, Σὺ πίστιν ἔχεις, κἀγὼ ἔργα ἔχω, δεῖξόν μοι τὴν πίστιν σου ἐκ τῶν ἔργων σου· κἀγὼ δείξω σοι ἐκ τῶν ἔργων μου τὴν πίστιν μου. Σὺ πιστεύεις ὅτι ὁ Θεὸς εἷς ἐστι, καλῶς ποιεῖς· καὶ τὰ δαιμόνια πιστεύουσι, καὶ φρίσσουσι. Κἂν γὰρ εἰς τὸν Πατέρα καὶ εἰς τὸν Υἱὸν ὀρθῶς τις πιστεύῃ, καὶ εἰς τὸ Πνεῦμα τὸ ἅγιον, βίον δὲ μὴ ἔχῃ ὀρθὸν, οὐδὲν αὐτῷ κέρδος τῆς πίστεως εἰς σωτηρίαν. Οὐκοῦν ὅταν λέγῃ, Καὶ αὕτη γάρ ἐστιν ἡ αἰώνιος ζωὴ, ἵνα γινώσκωσί σε τὸν μόνον ἀληθινὸν Θεὸν, μὴ νομίσωμεν ἡμῖν ἀρκεῖν εἰς σωτηρίαν τὸ λεγόμενον· δεῖ γὰρ ἡμᾶς καὶ βίου καὶ πολιτείας καθαρωτάτης.

Μέγα μὲν πίστις καὶ σωτήριον, καὶ ταύτης ἄνευ οὐκ ἔνι σωθῆναί ποτε· ἀλλ' οὐκ ἀρκεῖ καθ' ἑαυτὴν τοῦτο ἐργάσασθαι. Ἀλλὰ δεῖ καὶ πολιτείας ὀρθῆς· ὥστε διὰ τοῦτο καὶ Παῦλος τοῖς ἤδη τῶν μυστηρίων καταξιωθεῖσι, παραινεῖ λέγων· Σπουδάσωμεν εἰσελθεῖν εἰς τὴν κατάπαυσιν ἐκείνην· σπουδάσωμεν, φησὶν, ὡς οὐκ ἀρκούσης τῆς πίστεως, ἀλλ' ὀφείλοντος προτεθῆναι καὶ τοῦ βίου, καὶ πολλὴν τὴν σπουδὴν γίνεσθαι. ∆εῖ γὰρ ὄντως καὶ πολλῆς σπουδῆς ὥστε εἰσελθεῖν εἰς τὸν οὐρανόν. Εἰ γὰρ γῆς οὐ κατηξιώθησαν οἱ τοσαῦτα ταλαιπωρηθέντες ἐν τῇ ἐρήμῳ, καὶ γῆς τυχεῖν οὐκ ἠδυνήθησαν, ἐπεὶ ἐγόγγυσαν, καὶ ἐπειδὴ ἐπόρνευσαν, πῶς τὸν οὐρανὸν ἡμεῖς καταξιωσηθόμεθα ἀδιαφόρως ζῶντες καὶ ῥᾳθύμως; ∆εῖ τοίνυν ἡμῖν πολλῆς σπουδῆς. Καὶ πάλιν. Πίστις χωρὶς τῶν ἔργων νεκρά ἐστιν. Εἰκότως· ὥσπερ γὰρ σῶμα καλὸν καὶ εὐανθὲς, ὅταν ἰσχὺν μὴ ἔχῃ, ἀλλὰ τοῖς ἐζωγραφημένοις ᾖ προσεοικὸς, οὕτω πίστις ὀρθὴ χωρὶς ἔργων.

ΚΕΦΑΛ. Γʹ.

Μὴ πολλοὶ διδάσκαλοι γίνεσθε, ἀδελφοί μου· εἰδότες ὅτι μεῖζον κρῖμα

ληψόμεθα. Ἐπειδὴ τὸ διδάσκειν ἄνευ τοῦ ποιεῖν οὐ μόνον κέρδος οὐδὲν, ἀλλὰ καὶ ζημίαν πολλὴν καὶ κατάκρισιν φέρει τῷ μετὰ τοσαύτης ἀπροσεξίας διοικοῦντι τὸν βίον τὸν ἑαυτοῦ, τὴν φιλονεικίαν τῶν μὴ βουλομένων ἐργάζεσθαι ἐκκόπτων, τὸ διδάσκειν ἀπεῖπε τοῖς ἄνευ ἔργου διδάσκουσι, κρῖμα μέγα ἐπιτιθείς. Ὁ γὰρ τὰ μὴ ὄντα κατάκριτος, ὥσπερ καὶ τέλειος, ὁ μὴ πταίων ἐν ἔργῳ καὶ λόγῳ τῆς διδασκαλίας, καὶ δυνατὸς καὶ ὅλον τὸ σῶμα χαλιναγωγῆσαι.

Εἰ γὰρ ταῦτα διδάσκει, καὶ τὴν πίστιν ὁρίζεται λόγων ὀρθῶν μετὰ ἔργων λαμπρῶν συμφώνων τῇ πίστει· δηλονότι ὅλον ἑαυτοῦ χαλιναγωγεῖ τὸ σῶμα, μηδεμίαν φιλίαν πρὸς τὸν κόσμον ἔχειν αὐτὸ ἐῶν. Οὕτω καὶ ἡ γλῶσσα μικρὸν μέλος ἐστὶ καὶ μεγαλαυχεῖ· ἰδοὺ ὀλίγον πῦρ ἡλίκην ὕλην ἀνάπτει· καὶ ἡ γλῶσσα πῦρ, ὁ κόσμος τῆς ἀδικίας. Οὐκοῦν πλέον τῆς γλώσσης φύλαττε τὴν κόρην· ἵππος ἐστὶ βασιλικὸς ἡ γλῶσσα, Ἂν μὲν οὖν ἐπιθῇς αὐτῇ χαλινὸν καὶ διδάξῃς βαδίζειν εὔρυθμα, ἐπαναπαύεται αὐτῇ καὶ ἐπικαθιεῖται ὁ βασιλεύς· ἂν δὲ ἀχαλίνωτον ἀφῇς φέρεσθαι καὶ σκιρτᾷν, τοῦ διαβόλου καὶ τῶν δαιμόνων ὄχημα γίνεται. Τὴν δὲ γλῶσσαν οὐδεὶς δύναται ἀνθρώπων δαμάσαι· ἀκατάσχετον κακὸν, μεστὴ ἰοῦ θανατηφόρου. Μάχαιρά ἐστιν ἡ γλῶσσα ἠκονημένη. Ἀλλὰ μὴ ἑτέροις ἐπάγωμεν τραύματα· ἀλλὰ τὰς