For "God is divided against himself; for how shall his kingdom stand?" And if "the judgment is God's," as the oracles say, and the priests are messengers and interpreters after the hierarchs of the divine judgments, learn from them in a fitting manner the divine things through the ministers, when the time is right, through whom you were also deemed worthy to be a therapist. Or do not the sacred symbols also cry this out? For not simply is the holy of holies set apart from all, but the order of the hierophants draws nearer to it, then the order of the priests, and following them that of the ministers; but for the appointed therapists the gates of the sanctuary are set apart, at which they are initiated and stand, not for its guarding, but for order and self-knowledge, drawing nearer to the people than the priestly orders. Whence the holy hierarchy of the sacred things decrees that they partake of the divine things, having entrusted their administration to others, that is, to those further within. For those standing, to speak symbolically, around the divine altar see and hear the divine things luminously revealed to them and, proceeding in a good-like manner to the things outside the divine veils, they declare to the subject therapists and to the sacred people and to the orders being purified, according to their worth, the sacred things which have been well and immaculately preserved, until you, having burst in upon them tyrannically, forced the holy of holies to be paraded out to you against their will. And you say you have and guard the sacred things, and yet you have neither seen nor heard nor have any of the things befitting priests, just as you have not known the truth of the oracles, wrangling over them daily for the ruin of those who hear. And if some ethnarch undertook what was not commanded him by the king, he was justly punished. And if anyone standing by from among those ranked under him dared to cross-examine the ruler as he was justifying or condemning some (for I do not yet say to insult and at the same time cast him out of his office)? But you, O man, are you so bold against the meek and good one and his hierarchical legislation? And these things should have been said, when someone undertaking things beyond his worth nevertheless seemed to do what was fitting; for not even this is possible for anyone. For what was Uzziah doing wrong by offering incense to God? And what of Saul sacrificing? And what of the tyrannical demons truly theologizing about Jesus? But every busybody is excommunicated from theology, and "each will be in the order of his ministry," and "the high priest alone will enter the holy of holies," and that "once a year," and this in all hierarchical purity according to the law. And the priests will attend to the holy things, and the Levites "shall not touch the holy things, lest they die." And the Lord was angered with wrath at the rashness of Uzziah, and Miriam is made a leper for attempting to lay down the law for the lawgiver; and the demons leaped upon the sons of Sceva. And, "I did not send them," he said, "yet they ran," and "I did not speak to them, yet they prophesied," and the impious one "who sacrifices a calf to me is as one who kills a dog." And, to put it simply: the perfect justice of God does not tolerate the lawless. And when they say, "in your name we have done many mighty works," he answers, "I do not know you; depart from me, all you workers of iniquity." Therefore it is not lawful, as the sacred oracles say, to pursue even just things not according to one's worth. But each must pay attention to himself and not the higher things

γὰρ «ἐφ' ἑαυτὸν» ὁ θεὸς «ἐμερίσθη· πῶς» γὰρ «σταθήσεται ἡ βασιλεία αὐτοῦ;» Καὶ εἰ «τοῦ θεοῦ ἐστιν», ὡς τὰ λόγιά φησιν, «ἡ κρίσις», οἱ δὲ ἱερεῖς ἄγγελοι καὶ ὑποφῆται μετὰ τοὺς ἱεράρχας εἰσὶ τῶν θείων κριμάτων, πρὸς αὐτῶν τὰ θεῖα προσηκόντως σοι διὰ μέσων τῶν λειτουργῶν, ὅταν ᾖ καιρός, ἐκδιδάσκου, δι' ὧν καὶ τὸ εἶναι θεραπευτὴς ἠξιώθης. Ἢ οὐχὶ καὶ τὰ ἱερὰ σύμβολα τοῦτο βοᾷ; Καὶ γὰρ οὐχ ἁπλῶς ἁπάντων μὲν ἐξῄρηται τὰ ἅγια τῶν ἁγίων, πλησιάζει δὲ μᾶλλον αὐτοῖς ὁ τῶν ἱερο τελεστῶν διάκοσμος, εἶτα τῶν ἱερέων ἡ διακόσμησις, ἑπομένως δὲ τούτοις ἡ τῶν λειτουργῶν· τοῖς δὲ τεταγμένοις θεραπευταῖς αἱ πύλαι τῶν ἀδύτων εἰσὶν ἀφωρισμέναι, καθ' ἃς καὶ τελοῦνται καὶ παρεστᾶσιν οὐ πρὸς φυ λακὴν αὐτῶν, ἀλλὰ πρὸς τάξιν καὶ ἐπίγνωσιν ἑαυτῶν μᾶλλον τῷ λαῷ παρὰ τοὺς ἱερατικοὺς πλησιάζοντες. Ὅθεν ἡ τῶν ἱερῶν ἁγία ταξιαρχία μεταλαμβάνειν αὐτοὺς ἱεροθετεῖ τῶν θείων, ἑτέροις, δηλαδὴ τοῖς ἐνδοτέ ροις, αὐτῶν τὴν μετάδοσιν ἐγχειρίσασα. Καὶ γὰρ οἱ περὶ τὸ θεῖον συμ βολικῶς εἰπεῖν ἑστηκότες θυσιαστήριον ὁρῶσι καὶ ἀκούουσι τὰ θεῖα τηλαυγῶς αὐτοῖς ἀνακαλυπτόμενα καὶ προϊόντες ἀγαθοειδῶς ἐπὶ τὰ ἔξω τῶν θείων παραπετασμάτων τοῖς ὑπηκόοις θεραπευταῖς καὶ τῷ ἱερῷ λαῷ καὶ ταῖς καθαιρομέναις τάξεσιν ἐκφαίνουσι κατ' ἀξίαν τὰ ἱερὰ τὰ καλῶς ἄχραντα διαφυλαχθέντα, μέχρις ὅτε τυραννικῶς αὐτοῖς ἐπεισπηδήσας ἐκπομπευθῆναί σοι τὰ ἅγια τῶν ἁγίων ἠνάγκασας οὐκ ἐθέλοντα. Καὶ ἔχειν φῂς τὰ ἱερὰ καὶ διαφυλάττειν, καίτοι οὔτε εἶδες οὔτε ἤκουσας οὔτε ἔχεις τι τῶν προσηκόντων τοῖς ἱερεῦσιν, ὥσπερ οὐδὲ τὴν ἀλήθειαν τῶν λογίων ἔγνωκας ἑκάστης ἡμέρας αὐτὰ λογομαχῶν ἐπὶ καταστροφῇ τῶν ἀκουόντων. Καὶ εἰ μὲν ἐθναρχία τις ἐνεχείρησεν οὐ προστεταγμένον αὐτῷ παρὰ βασιλέως, ἐνδίκως ἐτιμωρεῖτο. Καὶ εἰ τὸν ἄρχοντα δικαιοῦντά τινας ἢ καταδικάζοντα παρεστώς τις τῶν ὑπ' αὐτῷ ταττομένων ἐπανακρίνειν ἐτόλμησεν (οὔπω γάρ φημι προπηλακίζειν ἅμα καὶ τῆς ἀρχῆς ἐκβάλλειν); Σὺ δέ, ἄνθρωπε, οὕτω τολμηρὸς εἶ κατὰ τοῦ πράου καὶ ἀγαθοῦ καὶ τῆς ἱεραρχικῆς αὐτοῦ θεσμοθεσίας; Καὶ ταῦτα ἐχρῆν εἰπεῖν, ὅταν ὑπὲρ ἀξίαν τις ἐγχειρῶν ὅμως εἰκότα πράττειν ἐδόκει· καὶ γὰρ οὐδὲ τοῦτο ἐφικτὸν οὐδενί. Τί γὰρ ἄτοπον Ὀζίας ἐποίει θυμιῶν τῷ θεῷ; Τί δὲ ὁ Σαοὺλ θύων; Τί δὲ οἱ τυραννικοὶ δαίμονες ἀληθῶς θεολογοῦντες τὸν Ἰησοῦν; Ἀλλ' ἐκκήρυκτος τῇ θεολογίᾳ πᾶς ἀλλοτριεπίσκοπος, καὶ ἕκαστος ἐν τῇ τάξει τῆς λειτουργίας αὐτοῦ ἔσται, καὶ μόνος ὁ ἀρχιερεὺς εἰς τὰ ἅγια τῶν ἁγίων εἰσελεύσεται, καὶ ἅπαξ τοῦ ἐνιαυτοῦ, καὶ τοῦτο ἐν πάσῃ τῇ κατὰ νόμον ἱεραρχικῇ καθα ρότητι. Καὶ οἱ ἱερεῖς περιστελοῦσι τὰ ἅγια, καὶ οἱ λευῖται οὐ μὴ «ἅψωνται τῶν ἁγίων, ἵνα μὴ ἀποθάνωσι». Καὶ ὠργίσθη θυμῷ κύριος ἐπὶ τῇ προπετείᾳ Ὀζία, καὶ Μαριὰμ λεπροῦται τῷ νομοθέτῃ θεσμοθετεῖν ἐγ χειρήσασα· καὶ ἐπὶ τοὺς Σκευᾶ υἱοὺς ἐφήλατο τὰ δαιμόνια. Καὶ «οὐκ ἀπέστελλον» αὐτούς, ἔφη, «καὶ αὐτοὶ ἔτρεχον», καὶ «οὐκ ἐλάλουν πρὸς αὐτούς, καὶ αὐτοὶ προεφήτευον», καὶ ὁ ἀσεβὴς «ὁ θύων μοι μόσχον ὡς ὁ ἀποκτέννων κύνα». Καὶ ἁπλῶς εἰπεῖν· οὐκ ἀνέχεται τῶν παρανόμων ἡ παντελὴς τοῦ θεοῦ δικαιοσύνη. Λεγόντων δὲ αὐτῶν· «ἐπὶ τῷ ὀνόματί σου δυνάμεις πολλὰς ἐποιήσαμεν», «οὐκ οἶδα ὑμᾶς», ἀποκρίνεται, «πο ρεύεσθε ἀπ' ἐμοῦ πάντες οἱ ἐργάται τῆς ἀνομίας». Ὥστε οὐ θεμιτόν, ὡς τὰ ἱερὰ λόγιά φησιν, οὐδὲ τὰ δίκαια μὴ κατ' ἀξίαν διώκειν. Προσέχειν δὲ ἕκαστον ἑαυτῷ χρὴ καὶ μὴ τὰ ὑψηλότερα