is able neither to build a city nor to plant, nor to sow seed nor to accomplish any other work of the world; 123 for it is an infant. So also souls that are inexperienced and have not been tested in various afflictions by the spirits of wickedness are still infants and untrained and (so to speak) are not yet useful for the kingdom, as the blessed Paul says: «But if you are without discipline, in which all have participated, then you are illegitimate and not sons». Behold, how much afflictions (and trials and temptations) are for the benefit of man, making the soul useful and approved. Only let one prepare himself eagerly and nobly and courageously, bearing what comes with patience, and let him hold fast to hope and confidence, having the expectation of redemption always and trusting in the compassion of Christ, that He does not allow a soul seeking him to be tempted beyond its ability to the end, «but with the temptation will also make the way of escape, that you may be able to bear it».

β νρ. 20ξ φ. 134ρ9135ῃ4 β νρ. 20ξ φ. 138ρ26139ῃ8 And moreover he judges this in himself, that even if he will kill me and I suffer a myriad of other worse things, being permitted by my Lord to suffer and be afflicted by the spirits of wickedness, I will not forsake him. For he is faithful, who will deliver me from every affliction and «from the depths of the earth again» bring me up, and so having given himself wholly and entirely to the Lord and having endured to the end, he will later have experience of the benefaction and the help and the recompense of good things, as the Lord says: «But he who endures to the end will be saved». For if in this life men cannot come to dignities and advancements nor receive any greater dignity from a king, unless they first undergo much training and show many deeds of valor, having entered into war, having learned and practiced every art of war and having demonstrated victory by experience and having raised up trophies against their opponents and having been well-pleasing to the king in all things (for then they are deemed worthy of great royal dignities and honors)how much more from the heavenly and true king 125 does no one immediately become worthy to receive the dignities of grace and the gift of the Spirit and the heavenly gifts from God, unless the mind is first constantly trained in the meditation of good thoughts and in the observance of the holy commandments and in confidence toward God, and so is deemed worthy of grace and receives a heavenly weapon (the Spirit itself) and in it is greatly well-pleasing against the spirits «of wickedness»; striving, and agreeing and being united with the grace given to him by God and with the heavenly weapon, having become an ally and fellow warrior against evil at all times and having routed through many labors and struggles and trials the war «against the spiritual forces of wickedness». And when he has won the victory against the enemies, then he is deemed worthy to obtain divine and heavenly dignities and glorious and spiritual honors from the heavenly king, this man being able henceforth to equip and teach others for war. For if an ordinary man is simply taken from the flock, not knowing war nor having experience of military matters, and is immediately appointed a general, he is worthy of everyone's laughter, wishing to command military affairs while not knowing war himself beforehand. So also in spiritual matters, he who teaches the word of God and is a leader of souls ought to be experienced in all spiritual matters, so that, by demonstrating through experience the practice of the words which he teaches, he may each time bring benefit and help through himself to his hearers. For the wisdom of God and the way of Christianity and the work of grace being perfected in the faithful soul are accomplished with a certain great subtlety and increase and progress, and when one thinks he has finished, then he must begin a more inward matter, of the

πόλιν οἰκοδομεῖν οὔτε φυτεῦσαι δύναται, οὐ σπόρον καταθέσθαι οὐδὲ ἕτερόν τι ἔργον τοῦ κόσμου ἐπι 123 τελεῖν· νήπιον γάρ ἐστιν. οὕτω καὶ ψυχαὶ ἀπείραστοι καὶ μὴ δοκιμασθεῖσαι ἐν διαφόροις θλίψεσιν ὑπὸ τῶν πνευμάτων τῆς πονηρίας ἀκμὴν νήπιαι καὶ ἀγύμναστοι τυγχάνουσι καὶ (ὥσπερ εἰπεῖν) οὐδέπω χρησιμεύουσι τῇ βασιλείᾳ, ὥς φησιν ὁ μακάριος Παῦλος· «εἰ δὲ χωρίς ἐστε παιδείας, ἧς μέτοχοι γεγόνασι πάντες, ἄρα νόθοι καὶ οὐχ υἱοί ἐστε». ἰδού, πόσον αἱ θλίψεις (καὶ οἱ δοκιμασμοὶ καὶ οἱ πειρασμοὶ) εἰς συμφέρον εἰσὶ τῷ ἀνθρώπῳ, χρήσιμον καὶ δόκιμον τὴν ψυχὴν ἀπεργαζόμεναι. μόνον ἵνα τις προθύμως καὶ γενναίως καὶ ἀνδρείως ἑαυτὸν ἑτοιμάζῃ, φέρων ἐν ὑπομονῇ τὰ ἐπερχόμενα, καὶ ἵνα κρατήσῃ τῆς ἐλπίδος καὶ τῆς πεποιθήσεως, ἔχων τὴν προσδοκίαν τῆς λυτρώσεως πάντοτε καὶ θαρσῶν τῇ εὐσπλαγχνίᾳ τοῦ Χριστοῦ, ὅτι οὐκ ἀφίησιν εἰς τέλος ψυχὴν ζητοῦσαν αὐτὸν πειρασθῆναι ὑπὲρ δύναμιν, «ἀλλὰ ποιήσει σὺν τῷ πειρασμῷ καὶ τὴν ἔκβασιν τοῦ δύνασθαι ὑπενεγκεῖν».

β νρ. 20ξ φ. 134ρ9135ῃ4 β νρ. 20ξ φ. 138ρ26139ῃ8 Ἔτι δὲ καὶ τοῦτο ἐν ἑαυτῷ κρίνει, ὅτι καὶ ἐὰν ἀποκτενεῖ με καὶ μυρία ἕτερα χείρονα παθῶ παραχωρηθεὶς ὑπὸ τοῦ κυρίου μου παθεῖν καὶ θλιβῆναι ὑπὸ τῶν τῆς πονηρίας πνευμάτων, ἐγὼ αὐτὸν οὐκ ἀφίημι. πιστὸς γάρ ἐστιν, ὃς ἐξελεῖταί με ἐκ πάσης θλίψεως «καὶ ἐκ τῶν ἀβύσσων τῆς γῆς πάλιν» ἀναγάγῃ με, καὶ οὕτως ἑαυτὸν ὅλον ἐξ ὅλου τῷ κυρίῳ ἀποδεδωκὼς καὶ εἰς τέλος ὑπομείνας ὕστερον τῆς εὐεργεσίας καὶ τῆς ἀντιλήψεως καὶ τῆς τῶν ἀγαθῶν ἀνταποδόσεως πεῖραν λήψεται, καθώς φησιν ὁ κύριος· «ὁ δὲ ὑπομείνας εἰς τέλος, οὗτος σωθήσεται». εἰ γὰρ ἐν τῷ βίῳ τούτῳ εἰς ἀξιώματα καὶ προκοπὰς οὐ δύνανται ἐλθεῖν οἱ ἄνθρωποι οὐδὲ ἀξίωμά τι μεῖζον παρὰ βασιλέως λαμβάνειν, ἐὰν μὴ πρότερον ἐν πολλῇ γυμνασίᾳ γένωνται καὶ ἀνδραγαθήματα πολλὰ ἐπιδείξωνται εἰς πόλεμον εἰσελθόντες, πᾶσαν πολεμικὴν τέχνην μαθόντες καὶ ἐγγυμνασάμενοι καὶ πείρᾳ τὴν νίκην ἐπιδειξάμενοι καὶ τρόπαια κατὰ τῶν ἐναντίων ἀράμενοι καὶ εἰς πάντα τῷ βασιλεῖ εὐδοκιμήσαντες (τότε γὰρ ἀξιωμάτων καὶ τιμῶν μεγάλων βασιλικῶν καταξιοῦνται)πόσῳ μᾶλλον παρὰ τῷ ἐπουρανίῳ καὶ ἀληθινῷ βασιλεῖ 125 τὰ ἀξιώματα τῆς χάριτος καὶ τῆς δωρεᾶς τοῦ πνεύματος καὶ τὰ οὐράνια παρὰ θεοῦ δόματα οὐδεὶς καταξιοῦται εὐθὺς λαμβάνειν, ἐὰν μὴ πρότερον ἐγγυμνάζηται διὰ παντὸς ὁ νοῦς τῇ τῶν ἀγαθῶν ἐννοιῶν μελέτῃ καὶ τῇ τῶν ἁγίων ἐντολῶν προσοχῇ καὶ τῇ πρὸς θεὸν πεποιθήσει, καὶ οὕτω καταξιωθῇ χάριτος καὶ λάβῃ οὐράνιον ὅπλον (αὐτὸ τὸ πνεῦμα) καὶ ἐν αὐτῷ μεγάλως εὐδοκιμήσῃ κατὰ τῶν πνευμάτων «τῆς πονηρίας»· ἀγωνιζόμενος, καὶ συμφωνῶν καὶ συνενούμενος τῇ δοθείσῃ αὐτῷ παρὰ τοῦ θεοῦ χάριτι καὶ τῷ οὐρανίῳ ὅπλῳ σύμμαχος καὶ συμπολεμιστὴς κατὰ τῆς κακίας διὰ παντὸς γεγονὼς καὶ τροπωσάμενος διὰ πολλῶν πόνων καὶ ἀγώνων καὶ δοκιμασιῶν τὸν «πρὸς τὰ πνευματικὰ τῆς πονηρίας» πόλεμον. καὶ ὅτε τὴν νίκην ἄρηται κατὰ τῶν ἐχθρῶν, τότε ἀξιωμάτων θείων καὶ ἐπουρανίων καὶ τιμῶν ἐνδόξων καὶ πνευματικῶν παρὰ τῷ ἐπουρανίῳ βασιλεῖ τυχεῖν καταξιοῦται, δυνάμενος οὗτος καὶ ἑτέρους λοιπὸν καταρτίζειν καὶ διδάσκειν πόλεμον. εἰ γὰρ ἀπὸ ἀγέλης ἁπλῶς ἄνθρωπος κοινὸς ληφθῇ μὴ εἰδὼς πόλεμον μήτε πεῖραν ἔχων πολεμικῶν πραγμάτων καὶ εὐθὺς στρατηλάτης καταστῇ πάντων γέλωτος ἄξιός ἐστι τῶν πολεμικῶν κατάρχειν βουλόμενος αὐτὸς πρότερον μὴ εἰδὼς πόλεμον. οὕτως καὶ εἰς τὸ πνευματικὸν ὁ τὸν λόγον τοῦ θεοῦ ὑφηγούμενος καὶ ψυχῶν προϊστάμενος ἔμπειρος κατὰ πάντα τῶν πνευματικῶν πραγμάτων εἶναι ὀφείλει, ἵνα ὧνπερ ὑφηγεῖται λόγων πείρᾳ τὴν ἐργασίαν ἐπιδειξάμενος ὠφέλειαν καὶ βοήθειαν δι' ἑαυτοῦ τοῖς ἀκούουσιν ἑκάστοτε προσάγῃ. ἡ γὰρ τοῦ θεοῦ σοφία καὶ ἡ ὁδὸς τοῦ Χριστιανισμοῦ καὶ τὸ τῆς χάριτος ἔργον ἐν τῇ πιστῇ ψυχῇ καταρτιζόμενον ἐν πολλῇ τινι λεπτότητι καὶ αὐξήσει καὶ προκοπῇ ἐπιτελεῖται, καὶ ὅτε τις νομίσει τετελεκέναι τότε ἄρξασθαι αὐτὸν δεῖ ἐνδοτέρου πράγματος, τῶν τοῦ