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they may have sufficient encouragement and consolation, looking to them, and remembering the evils that befell them. Seventh, that when we exhort you to their virtue, and say to each of you, "Imitate Paul, and emulate Peter," you may not, thinking that because of the excess of their achievements they partook of another nature, shrink from the imitation. Eighth, that when it is necessary to call blessed and to call wretched, we may learn whom we must consider blessed, and whom miserable and unfortunate. And these are the reasons; but it is necessary to confirm them all from the Scriptures, and to show with accuracy that all that has been said is not an invention of human reasoning, but a decision of the Scriptures. For thus our discourse will be more trustworthy, and will be more deeply seated in your souls. That affliction, therefore, contributes to the saints' being moderate and humble-minded, and not being puffed up by signs and achievements, and that for this reason God permitted it to happen, let us hear from the prophet David and from Paul saying the same things. For the one says: It is good for me, O Lord, that you have humbled me, that I might learn your statutes; and the other, after saying that I was caught up to the third heaven, and was carried away to paradise, added, saying, And lest I should be exalted above measure through the abundance of the revelations, there was given to me a thorn in the flesh, a messenger of Satan to buffet me. What could be clearer than this? Lest I should be exalted, he says, for this reason God permitted the angels of Satan to buffet me; and by angels of Satan he does not mean certain demons, but men who serve the devil, the unbelievers, the tyrants, the Greeks, who continually afflicted him, and continually persecuted him; and what he says is this: God was able, he says, to put a stop to the persecutions and the successive afflictions; but since I was caught up to the third heaven and carried away to paradise, lest I should be puffed up by the abundance of these revelations and think great things of myself, He permitted these persecutions, and allowed the angels of Satan to buffet me through the persecutions and afflictions, lest I should be exalted. For even if Paul and Peter and all such as these are holy and wonderful, as indeed they are, yet they are men, and they need great security, so as not to be easily puffed up; and especially the saints of all people. For nothing is so wont to lift one up to arrogance as a conscience full of achievements, and a soul living with confidence. Therefore, that they might not suffer any such thing, He permitted the trials and afflictions to exist, which are able to restrain them and persuade them to be moderate in all things.

7. And that these great things also contribute to the showing of God's strength, hear this also from the same apostle who said this before. For lest you should say what the unbelievers think, that God who permits these things is in some way weak, and not able to rescue His own from dangers, allowing them to be continually afflicted. And consider this, how through these things 49.25 Paul demonstrated, showing that not only do the events not accuse Him of weakness, but they also display His power all the more to everyone; for having said, There was given to me a thorn in the flesh, a messenger of Satan, to buffet me; and having indicated the successive trials through this, he added: For this I besought the Lord three times, that it might depart from me; and He said to me: My grace is sufficient for you; for my power is made perfect in weakness. Then is my power shown, he says, when you are in weakness; and through you who seem to be weak the word of the preaching grows, and is sown everywhere. When, therefore, after receiving countless blows, he was brought into the prison, he bound the jailer; his feet were in the stocks, his hands in chains, and the prison was shaken in the middle of the night, as they were singing hymns. Do you see how His power was made perfect in weakness? If the one had been loosed

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ἱκανὴν ἔχωσι παράκλησιν καὶ παραμυθίαν, εἰς ἐκείνους ἀφορῶντες, καὶ τῶν συμβεβηκότων αὐτοῖς μεμνημένοι κακῶν. Ἑβδόμη, ἵνα ὅταν παρακαλῶμεν ὑμᾶς πρὸς τὴν ἐκείνων ἀρετὴν, καὶ πρὸς ἕκαστον ὑμῶν λέγωμεν, ὅτι μίμησαι Παῦλον, καὶ ζήλωσον Πέτρον, μὴ νομίζοντες διὰ τὴν τῶν κατορθωμάτων ὑπερβολὴν ἑτέρας αὐτοὺς μετεσχηκέναι φύσεως, ἀποκνήσητε πρὸς τὴν μίμησιν. Ὀγδόη, ἵνα ὅταν δέῃ μακαρίζειν καὶ ταλανίζειν, μάθωμεν τίνας μὲν χρὴ μακαρίους ἡγεῖσθαι, τίνας δὲ ἀθλίους καὶ ταλαιπώρους. Καὶ αἱ μὲν αἰτίαι αὗται· δεῖ δὲ αὐτὰς ἀπὸ τῶν Γραφῶν πιστώσασθαι πάσας, καὶ δεῖξαι μετὰ ἀκριβείας, ὡς οὐκ ἀνθρωπίνων λογισμῶν ἐπίνοια, ἀλλὰ τῶν Γραφῶν ἐστιν ἀπόφασις τὰ εἰρημένα ἅπαντα. Οὕτω γὰρ καὶ ὁ λόγος ἡμῖν ἀξιοπιστότερος ἔσται, καὶ μᾶλλον ἐγκαθεδεῖται ταῖς ὑμετέραις ψυχαῖς. Ὅτι μὲν οὖν εἰς τὸ μετριάζειν καὶ ταπεινοφρονεῖν, καὶ τὸ μὴ φυσᾶσθαι ἐκ τῶν σημείων καὶ τῶν κατορθωμάτων, συμβάλλεται τοῖς ἁγίοις ἡ κάκωσις, καὶ διὰ τοῦτο συνεχώρησεν αὐτὴν ὁ Θεὸς γενέσθαι, καὶ τοῦ προφήτου ∆αυῒδ, καὶ τοῦ Παύλου τὰ αὐτὰ λεγόντων ἀκούσωμεν. Ἐκεῖνος μὲν γάρ φησιν· Ἀγαθόν μοι, Κύριε, ὅτι ἐταπείνωσάς με, ὅπως ἂν μάθω τὰ δικαιώματά σου· οὗτος δὲ εἰπὼν, ὅτι Ἡρπάγην εἰς τρίτον οὐρανὸν, καὶ εἰς τὸν παράδεισον ἀπηνέχθην, ἐπήγαγε λέγων, Καὶ τῇ ὑπερβολῇ τῶν ἀποκαλύψεων ἵνα μὴ ὑπεραίρωμαι, ἐδόθη μοι σκόλοψ τῇ σαρκὶ, ἄγγελος σατᾶν ἵνα με κολαφίζῃ. Τί τούτου σαφέστερον; Ἵνα μὴ ὑπεραίρωμαι, φησὶ, διὰ τοῦτο συνεχώρησεν ὁ Θεὸς τοὺς ἀγγέλους τοῦ σατανᾶ κολαφίζειν με· ἀγγέλους δὲ τοῦ σατανᾶ οὐχὶ δαίμονας λέγει τινὰς, ἀλλὰ ἀνθρώπους τοὺς ὑπηρετουμένους τῷ διαβόλῳ, τοὺς ἀπίστους, τοὺς τυράννους, τοὺς Ἕλληνας, οἳ συνεχῶς αὐτὸν ἔθλιβον, καὶ συνεχῶς ἤλαυνον· ὃ δὲ λέγει, τοιοῦτόν ἐστιν· ἠδύνατο, φησὶν, ὁ Θεὸς καταστεῖλαι τοὺς διωγμοὺς, καὶ τὰς θλίψεις τὰς ἐπαλλήλους· ἀλλ' ἐπειδὴ ἡρπάγην εἰς τρίτον οὐρανὸν καὶ ἀπηνέχθην εἰς τὸν παράδεισον, ἵνα μὴ τῇ ὑπερβολῇ τῶν ἀποκαλύψεων τούτων ἐπαρθῶ καὶ μέγα φρονήσω, συνεχώρησε τοὺς διωγμοὺς τούτους, καὶ τοὺς ἀγγέλους τοῦ σατανᾶ ἀφῆκε κολαφίζειν με διὰ τῶν διωγμῶν καὶ τῶν θλίψεων, ἵνα μὴ ὑπεραίρωμαι. Εἰ γὰρ καὶ ἅγιοι καὶ θαυμαστοὶ οἱ περὶ Παῦλον καὶ Πέτρον, καὶ πάντες ὅσοι τοιοῦτοι, ὥσπερ οὖν καὶ εἰσὶν, ἀλλ' ἄνθρωποί εἰσι, καὶ δέονται πολλῆς γε τῆς ἀσφαλείας, εἰς τὸ μὴ ῥᾳδίως ἐπαίρεσθαι· καὶ μάλιστα πάντων οἱ ἅγιοι. Οὐδὲν γὰρ οὕτως εἰς ἀπόνοιαν αἴρειν εἴωθεν, ὡς συνειδὸς γέμον κατορθωμάτων, καὶ ψυχὴ μετὰ παῤῥησίας ζῶσα. Ἵνα οὖν μηδὲν τοιοῦτον πάσχωσιν ἐκεῖνοι, τοὺς πειρασμοὺς καὶ τὰς θλίψεις συνεχώρησεν εἶναι, δυναμένας αὐτοὺς καταστέλλειν καὶ πείθειν μετριάζειν ἐν ἅπασιν.

ζʹ. Ὅτι δὲ καὶ εἰς τὸ δειχθῆναι τοῦ Θεοῦ τὴν ἰσχὺν τὰ μεγάλα τοῦτο αὐτὸ συντελεῖ, καὶ τοῦτο ἄκουσον παρὰ τοῦ αὐτοῦ ἀποστόλου, τοῦτο πρότερον εἰρηκότος. Ἵνα γὰρ μὴ λέγῃς, ὅ τι οἱ ἄπιστοι νομίζουσι, τὸν Θεὸν τὸν ταῦτα συγχωροῦντα ἀσθενῆ τινα εἶναι, καὶ μὴ δυνάμενον ἐξαρπάσαι τῶν κινδύνων τοὺς ἑαυτοῦ, συγχωρεῖν αὐτοὺς κακοῦσθαι συνεχῶς. Καὶ τοῦτο σκόπει, πῶς διὰ τούτων 49.25 ἀπέδειξεν ὁ Παῦλος, δεικνὺς, ὅτι οὐ μόνον ἀσθένειαν αὐτοῦ οὐ κατηγορεῖ τὰ γινόμενα, ἀλλὰ καὶ μειζόνως αὐτοῦ τὴν δύναμιν ἐπιδείκνυται πᾶσιν· εἰπὼν γὰρ, ὅτι Ἐδόθη μοι σκόλοψ τῇ σαρκὶ, ἄγγελος σατᾶν, ἵνα με κολαφίζῃ· καὶ τοὺς ἐπαλλήλους πειρασμοὺς διὰ τούτου δηλώσας, ἐπήγαγεν· Ὑπὲρ τούτου τρὶς τὸν Κύριον παρεκάλεσα, ἵνα ἀποστῇ ἀπ' ἐμοῦ· καὶ εἶπέ μοι· Ἀρκεῖ σοι ἡ χάρις μου· ἡ γὰρ δύναμίς μου ἐν ἀσθενείᾳ τελειοῦται. Τότε μου δείκνυται ἡ δύναμις, φησὶν, ὅταν ὑμεῖς ἐν ἀσθενείᾳ ἦτε· καὶ δι' ὑμῶν τῶν δοκούντων ἀσθενεῖν ὁ τοῦ κηρύγματος αὔξεται λόγος, καὶ πανταχοῦ κατασπείρεται. Ὅτε γοῦν εἰς τὸ δεσμωτήριον μυρίας λαβὼν πληγὰς εἰσηνέχθη, τὸν δεσμοφύλακα ἔδησεν· ἐν τῷ ξύλῳ ἦσαν οἱ πόδες, ἐν τῇ ἁλύσει αἱ χεῖρες, καὶ τὸ δεσμωτήριον ἐσείετο κατὰ μέσην τὴν νύκτα, ὑμνούντων αὐτῶν. Ὁρᾷς πῶς ἡ δύναμις αὐτοῦ ἐν ἀσθενείᾳ ἐτελειοῦτο; Εἰ ἦν λελυμένος ὁ