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the city of the abomination, and each one, taking the suffering before his eyes, shuddered as if it had been dared against himself; and there was a haste of the starving towards death, and a blessing of those who had gone before, before hearing and seeing such great evils. And quickly the suffering was reported also to the Romans. And of them, some disbelieved, others pitied, but it happened that the majority advanced into a more vehement hatred of the nation. 6. And they suffered these things, and much worse than these, not only because they crucified Christ, but because also after these things they prevented the apostles from speaking the things for our salvation. Therefore, the blessed Paul also, accusing them, prophesied these evils for them, saying, that wrath has come upon them to the uttermost. And what are these things to us? he says; for we do not lead away from the faith, nor from the preaching. And what is the benefit of faith, tell me, if life is not pure? But perhaps you are ignorant of these things, since you pay no heed to anything we say; but I will recount to you the decisions of Christ. And you observe whether a life is nowhere brought into question then, but the punishments are decreed for faith and doctrines alone. For when He went up on the mountain, seeing a great crowd surrounding Him, after the other exhortations He said: Not everyone who says to me, Lord, Lord, will enter into the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of my Father; and, Many will say to me in that day: Did we not prophesy in your name, and in your name cast out demons, and in your name do many mighty works? And then I will declare to them: Depart from me, you who work iniquity, I do not know you. And He said that the one who hears His words but does not do them is like a foolish man building his house on the sand, and making it an easy prey to rivers and rains and winds. And in another place, speaking publicly, Just as the fishermen, He says, when they have drawn the net, they separate the bad from the fish, so it will be in that day, with the angels throwing all the sinners into the furnace. And speaking about licentious and unclean men, He said that they will go where the worm is unceasing, and the fire is unquenchable. And again, a king, He says, made a wedding for his son, and seeing a man clothed in filthy garments, he said to him: Friend, how did you come in here not having a wedding garment? And he was speechless. Then he says to his 47.328 servants: Binding his hands and feet, throw him into the outer darkness; threatening these things to the licentious and dissolute. And the virgins who were shut out of the bridal chamber suffered this because of cruelty and inhumanity. And others again for the same reason go into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. And those who speak simply and in vain are condemned; For by your words, He says, you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned. Do we seem to you to have feared in vain for our life, and to make great effort for the more ethical part of philosophy? I do not think so, unless you would say that Christ has said all these things in vain, and more than these; for not all things have been said. But if I were not hesitant to make the discourse long, I would have taught from the prophets and from the blessed Paul and from the other apostles how much effort God has made concerning this part. But nevertheless I think that these things are sufficient; or rather, not only these, but even a small part of what has been said. For when God makes a declaration, even if He speaks once, what has been said must be received as if it were said many times. 7. What then, he says, will those who stay at home not be able to accomplish these things, which not being accomplished bring so great a punishment? I myself wished not less than you, but much more, and I often prayed for the need of monasteries to be done away with, and for such good order to come to be in the cities that no one would ever need to flee to the desert; but since things have become upside down, and the

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τοῦ μύσους ἡ πόλις, καὶ πρὸ ὀμμάτων ἕκαστος τὸ πάθος λαμβάνων, ὥσπερ αὐτῷ τολμηθὲν ἔφριττεν· σπουδὴ δὲ τῶν λιμωττόντων ἐπὶ τὸν θάνατον ἦν, καὶ μακαρισμὸς τῶν φθασάντων, πρὶν ἀκοῦσαι καὶ θεάσασθαι τηλικαῦτα κακά. Ταχέως δὲ καὶ Ῥωμαίοις διηγγέλθη τὸ πάθος. Τῶν δὲ οἱ μὲν ἠπίστουν, οἱ δὲ ᾤκτειρον, τοὺς δὲ πολλοὺς εἰς μῖσος τοῦ ἔθνους σφοδρότερον συνέβη προελθεῖν. ςʹ. Ταῦτα δὲ ἔπασχον, καὶ πολλῷ τούτων χαλεπώτερα, οὐκ ἐπειδὴ τὸν Χριστὸν ἐσταύρωσαν μόνον, ἀλλ' ἐπειδὴ καὶ μετὰ ταῦτα τοὺς ἀποστόλους ἐκώλυον τὰ πρὸς σωτηρίαν λαλεῖν τὴν ἡμετέραν. Ὅπερ οὖν καὶ ὁ μακάριος Παῦλος αὐτῶν κατηγορήσας, ταῦτα αὐτοῖς προεφήτευσε τὰ κακὰ, εἰπὼν, ὅτι Ἔφθασεν ἐπ' αὐτοὺς ἡ ὀργὴ εἰς τέλος. Καὶ τί ταῦτα πρὸς ἡμᾶς; φησίν· οὐ γὰρ δὴ τῆς πίστεως ἀπάγομεν, οὐδὲ τοῦ κηρύγματος. Καὶ τί τῆς πίστεως ὄφελος, εἰπέ μοι, βίου μὴ ὄντος καθαροῦ; Ἀλλ' ὑμεῖς μὲν ἴσως ἀγνοεῖτε καὶ ταῦτα, ἅτε καὶ τῶν ἡμετέρων ὄντες ἀνήκοοι πάντων· ἐγὼ δὲ ὑμῖν ἀπαριθμήσομαι τοῦ Χριστοῦ τὰς ἀποφάσεις. Καὶ παρατηρεῖτε ὑμεῖς, εἰ μηδαμοῦ βίος ἐγκαλεῖται τότε, ἀλλ' ὑπὲρ πίστεως μόνης καὶ δογμάτων τὰ τῶν κολάσεων ὥρισται. Ἐπειδὴ γὰρ εἰς τὸ ὄρος ἀνῆλθε, πολὺν ἰδὼν ὅχλον περιῤῥοῦντα αὐτὸν, μετὰ τὰς ἄλλας παραινέσεις ἔλεγεν· Οὐ πᾶς ὁ λέγων μοι, Κύριε, Κύριε, εἰσελεύσεται εἰς τὴν βασιλείαν τῶν οὐρανῶν, ἀλλ' ὁ ποιῶν τὸ θέλημα τοῦ Πατρός μου· καὶ, Πολλοὶ ἐροῦσί μοι ἐν ἐκείνῃ τῇ ἡμέρᾳ· Οὐ τῷ σῷ ὀνόματι προεφητεύσαμεν, καὶ τῷ σῷ ὀνόματι δαιμόνια ἐξεβάλομεν, καὶ τῷ σῷ ὀνόματι δυνάμεις πολλὰς ἐποιήσαμεν; Καὶ τότε ὁμολογήσω αὐτοῖς· Ἀποχωρεῖτε ἀπ' ἐμοῦ, οἱ ἐργαζόμενοι τὴν ἀνομίαν, οὐκ οἶδα ὑμᾶς. Καὶ τὸν ἀκούοντα μὲν, οὐ ποιοῦντα δὲ τοὺς λόγους αὐτοῦ, ὅμοιον ἔφησεν ἀνδρὶ μωρῷ εἶναι τὴν οἰκίαν ἐπὶ τὴν ψάμμον οἰκοδομοῦντι, καὶ ποταμοῖς καὶ ὑετοῖς καὶ ἀνέμοις εὐχείρωτον αὐτὴν κατασκευάζοντι. Καὶ ἐν ἄλλῳ δὲ τόπῳ δημηγορῶν, Καθάπερ οἱ ἁλιεῖς, φησὶν, ὅταν τὴν σαγήνην ἑλκύσωσι, τοὺς φαύλους ἀποκρίνουσι τῶν ἰχθύων, οὕτω κατ' ἐκείνην ἔσται τὴν ἡμέραν, τῶν ἀγγέλων εἰς τὴν κάμινον ἐμβαλλόντων τοὺς ἡμαρτηκότας ἅπαντας. Καὶ περὶ τῶν ἀσελγῶν δὲ καὶ ἀκαθάρτων ἀνθρώπων διαλεγόμενος ἔλεγεν, ὅτι Ἀπελεύσονται, ὅπου ὁ σκώληξ ὁ ἀτελεύτητος, καὶ τὸ πῦρ τὸ ἄσβεστον. Καὶ πάλιν, Βασιλεὺς, φησὶν, ἐποίησε γάμους τῷ υἱῷ αὐτοῦ, καὶ ἰδὼν ἄνθρωπον ἐνδεδυμένον ἱμάτια ῥυπαρὰ, πρὸς αὐτὸν εἶπεν· Ἑταῖρε, πῶς εἰσῆλθες ὧδε μὴ ἔχων ἔνδυμα γάμου; Ὁ δὲ ἐφιμώθη. Τότε λέγει τοῖς διακό47.328 νοις αὐτοῦ· ∆ήσαντες αὐτοῦ χεῖρας καὶ πόδας, βάλετε αὐτὸν εἰς τὸ σκότος τὸ ἐξώτερον· τοῖς ἀκολάστοις καὶ ἀσελγέσι ταῦτα ἀπειλῶν. Καὶ παρθένοι δὲ αἱ τοῦ νυμφῶνος ἀποκλεισθεῖσαι, δι' ὠμότητα καὶ ἀπανθρωπίαν τοῦτο ἔπαθον. Καὶ ἕτεροι δὲ πάλιν διὰ τὴν αὐτὴν αἰτίαν πορεύονται εἰς τὸ πῦρ τὸ αἰώνιον τὸ ἡτοιμασμένον τῷ διαβόλῳ καὶ τοῖς ἀγγέλοις αὐτοῦ. Καὶ οἱ ἁπλῶς καὶ εἰκῆ φθεγγόμενοι καταδικάζονται· Ἐκ γὰρ τῶν λόγων σου, φησὶ, δικαιωθήσῃ, καὶ ἐκ τῶν λόγων σου καταδικασθήσῃ. Ἆρά σοι δοκοῦμεν μάτην ὑπὲρ βίου πεφοβῆσθαι, καὶ πολλὴν τοῦ ἠθικωτέρου μέρους τῆς φιλοσοφίας ποιεῖσθαι σπουδήν; Οὐκ ἔγωγε οἶμαι, πλὴν εἰ καὶ τὸν Χριστὸν ταῦτα πάντα εἰκῆ εἰρηκέναι φαίης, καὶ τὰ τούτων πλείονα· οὐδὲ γὰρ ἅπαντα εἴρηται. Εἰ δὲ μὴ ὤκνουν μακρὸν ποιῆσαι τὸν λόγον, καὶ ἀπὸ τῶν προφητῶν καὶ ἀπὸ τοῦ μακαρίου Παύλου καὶ ἐκ τῶν ἄλλων ἀποστόλων ἐδίδαξα ἂν, ὅσην ὑπὲρ τούτου τοῦ μέρους πεποίηται σπουδὴν ὁ Θεός. Πλὴν ἀλλὰ καὶ ταῦτα ἀποχρῆν οἶμαι· μᾶλλον δὲ οὐδὲ ταῦτα μόνον, ἀλλὰ καὶ μικρὸν τῶν εἰρημένων μέρος. Ὅταν γὰρ ὁ Θεὸς ἀποφαίνηται, κἂν ἅπαξ εἴπῃ, ὡς πολλάκις εἰρημένον, οὕτω δέχεσθαι χρὴ τὸ λεχθέν. ζʹ. Τί οὖν, οἱ οἴκοι μένοντες, φησὶν, οὐ δυνήσονται ταῦτα κατορθοῦν, ἃ μὴ κατορθούμενα τοσαύτην φέρει τὴν κόλασιν; Ἐβουλόμην καὶ αὐτὸς οὐχ ἧττον ὑμῶν, ἀλλὰ καὶ πολὺ πλέον, καὶ πολλάκις ηὐξάμην τῶν μοναστηρίων ἀναιρεθῆναι τὴν χρείαν, καὶ τοσαύτην ἐν ταῖς πόλεσι γενέσθαι τὴν εὐνομίαν, ὡς μηδένα δεηθῆναί ποτε τῆς εἰς τὴν ἕρημον καταφυγῆς· ἐπειδὴ δὲ τὰ ἄνω κάτω γέγονε, καὶ αἱ μὲν