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Your and in you yourself a work of resurrection taking place, even if you are ignorant of it, O man. For perhaps you once fell into a disease and lost your flesh and your strength and your form, but having obtained mercy from God and healing, you received back again your body and your form and your strength; and just as you did not know where your flesh went when it disappeared, so you do not understand from where it came into being or from where it came. But you will say, "From foods and juices being turned into blood." Well, but this too is the work of God who created it so, and of no one else. Therefore, do not disbelieve, but believe. For I too disbelieved that this would be, but now, having understood these things, I believe, having also chanced upon the sacred writings of the holy prophets, who also foretold through the spirit of God the things that have happened in what way they happened, and the things that are present in what manner they are happening, and the things to come in what order they will be accomplished. Therefore, having received proof of the things that are happening and have been foretold, I do not disbelieve, but I believe, obeying God; to whom, if you wish, you too should submit, believing in him, lest having disbelieved now you be persuaded while being distressed, then in eternal punishments. Of which punishments, foretold by the prophets, the poets and philosophers who came later stole from the holy scriptures, in order that their own doctrines might become trustworthy. Nevertheless, they too spoke beforehand about the punishments that were to come upon the ungodly and unbelieving, so that it might be a testimony to all, in order that some might not say that we did not hear nor did we know. But if you wish, you too should diligently study the prophetic writings; and they will guide you more clearly to escape the eternal punishments and to obtain the eternal good things of God. For he who gave a mouth for speaking and formed an ear for hearing and made eyes for seeing will examine all things and will judge righteously, giving to each according to the worth of his wages. to those who by patience in good works seek for incorruptibility, he will give eternal life, joy, peace, rest and a multitude of good things, which eye has not seen, nor ear heard, nor have entered into the heart of man; but to the unbelieving and contemptuous and to those who disobey the truth but obey unrighteousness, when they are mixed up in adulteries and fornications and homosexual acts and covetousness and unlawful idolatries, there will be wrath and fury, tribulation and anguish; and in the end eternal fire will possess such people. Since you added, O friend, "Show me your God," this is my God, and I advise you to fear him and to believe in him. Since before these days a conversation took place between us, O most excellent Autolycus, when you asked who my God is and for a little while lent your ears to our talk, I set forth to you concerning my piety; and furthermore, having taken leave of each other with the greatest friendship, we each went to our own house, although at first you were hard towards us; for you know and remember that

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σον καὶ ἐν σοὶ αὐτῷ ἔργον ἀναστάσεως γινόμενον, κἂν ἀγνοεῖς, ὦ ἄνθρωπε. ἴσως γάρ ποτε νόσῳ περιπεσὼν ἀπώλεσάς σου τὰς σάρκας καὶ τὴν ἰσχὺν καὶ τὸ εἶδος, ἐλέους δὲ τυχὼν παρὰ θεοῦ καὶ ἰάσεως πάλιν ἀπέλαβές σου τὸ σῶμα καὶ τὸ εἶδος καὶ τὴν ἰσχύν· καὶ ὥσπερ οὐκ ἔγνως ποῦ ἐπορεύθησάν σου αἱ σάρκες ἀφανεῖς γενόμεναι, οὕτως οὐκ ἐπίστασαι οὐδὲ πόθεν ἐγένοντο ἢ πόθεν ἦλθον. ἀλλὰ ἐρεῖς· "Ἐκ τροφῶν καὶ χυμῶν ἐξαιματουμένων." καλῶς ἀλλὰ καὶ τοῦτο ἔργον θεοῦ καὶ οὕτω δημιουργήσαντος, καὶ οὐκ ἄλλου τινός. Μὴ οὖν ἀπίστει, ἀλλὰ πίστευε. καὶ γὰρ ἐγὼ ἠπίστουν τοῦτο ἔσεσθαι, ἀλλὰ νῦν κατανοήσας αὐτὰ πιστεύω, ἅμα καὶ ἐπι- τυχὼν ἱεραῖς γραφαῖς τῶν ἁγίων προφητῶν, οἳ καὶ προεῖπον διὰ πνεύματος θεοῦ τὰ προγεγονότα ᾧ τρόπῳ γέγονεν καὶ τὰ ἐνεστῶτα τίνι τρόπῳ γίνεται καὶ τὰ ἐπερχόμενα ποίᾳ τάξει ἀπαρτισθήσεται. ἀπόδειξιν οὖν λαβὼν τῶν γινομένων καὶ προαναπεφωνημένων οὐκ ἀπιστῶ, ἀλλὰ πιστεύω πειθαρχῶν θεῷ· ᾧ, εἰ βούλει, καὶ σὺ ὑποτάγηθι πιστεύων αὐτῷ, μὴ νῦν ἀπιστήσας πεισθῇς ἀνιώμενος, τότε ἐν αἰωνίοις τιμωρίαις. Ὧν τιμωριῶν προειρημένων ὑπὸ τῶν προφητῶν μεταγενέστεροι γενόμενοι οἱ ποιηταὶ καὶ φιλόσοφοι ἔκλεψαν ἐκ τῶν ἁγίων γραφῶν, εἰς τὸ δόγματα αὐτῶν ἀξιόπιστα γενηθῆναι. πλὴν καὶ αὐτοὶ προεῖπον περὶ τῶν κολάσεων τῶν μελλουσῶν ἔσεσθαι ἐπὶ τοὺς ἀσεβεῖς καὶ ἀπίστους, ὅπως ᾖ ἐμμάρτυρα πᾶσιν, πρὸς τὸ μὴ εἰπεῖν τινας ὅτι οὐκ ἠκούσαμεν οὐδὲ ἔγνωμεν. Eἰ δὲ βούλει, καὶ σὺ ἔντυχε φιλοτίμως ταῖς προφητικαῖς γραφαῖς· καὶ αὐταί σε τρανότερον ὁδηγήσουσιν πρὸς τὸ ἐκφυγεῖν τὰς αἰωνίους κολάσεις καὶ τυχεῖν τῶν αἰωνίων ἀγαθῶν τοῦ θεοῦ. ὁ γὰρ δοὺς στόμα εἰς τὸ λαλεῖν καὶ πλάσας οὖς εἰς τὸ ἀκούειν καὶ ποιήσας ὀφθαλμοὺς εἰς τὸ ὁρᾶν ἐξετάσει τὰ πάντα καὶ κρινεῖ τὸ δίκαιον, ἀποδιδοὺς ἑκάστῳ κατὰ ἀξίαν τῶν μισθῶν. τοῖς μὲν καθ' ὑπομονὴν διὰ ἔργων ἀγαθῶν ζητοῦσι τὴν ἀφθαρσίαν δωρήσεται ζωὴν αἰώνιον, χαράν, εἰρήνην, ἀνά- παυσιν καὶ πλήθη ἀγαθῶν, ὧν οὔτε ὀφθαλμὸς εἶδεν οὔτε οὖς ἤκουσεν οὔτε ἐπὶ καρδίαν ἀνθρώπου ἀνέβη· τοῖς δὲ ἀπίστοις καὶ καταφρονηταῖς καὶ ἀπειθοῦσι τῇ ἀληθείᾳ, πειθομένοις δὲ τῇ ἀδικίᾳ, ἐπὰν ἐμφύρωνται μοιχείαις καὶ πορνείαις καὶ ἀρσενο- κοιτίαις καὶ πλεονεξίαις καὶ ταῖς ἀθεμίτοις εἰδωλολατρείαις, ἔσται ὀργὴ καὶ θύμος, θλίψις καὶ στενοχωρία· καὶ τὸ τέλος τοὺς τοιούτους καθέξει πῦρ αἰώνιον. Ἐπειδὴ προσέθηκας, ὦ ἑταῖρε, "∆εῖξόν μοι τὸν θεόν σου", οὗτός μου θεός, καὶ συμβουλεύω σοι φοβεῖσθαι αὐτὸν καὶ πιστεύειν αὐτῷ. Ἐπειδὴ πρὸ τούτων τῶν ἡμερῶν ἐγένετο λόγος ἡμῖν, ὦ ἀγαθώ- τατε Aὐτόλυκε, πυθομένου σου τίς μου ὁ θεὸς καὶ δι' ὀλίγου παρα- σχόντος σου τὰ ὦτα τῇ ὁμιλίᾳ ἡμῶν, περὶ τῆς θεοσεβείας μου ἐξεθέμην σοι· ἔτι δὲ καὶ ἀποταξάμενοι ἑαυτοῖς μετὰ πλείστης φιλίας ἐπορεύθημεν ἕκαστος εἰς τὸν ἑαυτοῦ οἶκον, καίπερ σκληρῶς τὰ πρῶτά σου ἔχοντος πρὸς ἡμᾶς· οἶδας γὰρ καὶ μέμνησαι ὅτι