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storerooms and the inexpressible luxuries and eternal life, and what more shall I say? and the greatest wonder of all, that the one who has a pure mind sees God himself with his inner eyes. How then do you not want to weep and to mourn, you who see these things? For he weeps and laments, so that he may be delivered from the terrible punishments; and again he weeps and asks, praying, that he might be deemed worthy of those heavenly goods.

18 For this reason the saints hated this world, knowing what sort of goods they are about to inherit. Therefore, let him who has rest in the world not hope to receive eternal rest; for the kingdom of heaven is not for those who rest here but it is for those who in much affliction and hardship have lived this life; for they did not receive it for free, but with great toil and noble sweat those who were deemed worthy acquired it. It does not matter to them how much they may toil here; for having entered there they forget the labors and the pains which they suffered in this vain world because of the great and inexpressible rest that has been given to them. What do you say, O man? Behold, two ways have been set before you, life and death; wherever you wish, go. And behold fire and water; wherever you wish, stretch out your hand; it is up to you, if you wish to acquire life, and it is up to you, if you wish to acquire death. Death then is the world, and life is righteousness. Therefore the world is far from righteousness, just as death is from life; if then you walk in the world, you walk in death and you become outside of God according to the divine scripture. if you walk in righteousness, you have walked in life, and death shall not touch you; for there is no death among the righteous, but a translation; for one is translated from this world to eternal rest; and just as someone might go out from a prison, so also the saints go out from this wretched life to the good things prepared for them; “what eye has not seen, and ear has not heard, and has not entered into the heart of man, what God has prepared for those who love him;” but sinners both toil badly here and there again the fire awaits them; and one must weep for such people twice, because both here they are in distress and there they do not obtain spaciousness. for this reason the divine scripture has said: “wherever the ungodly man turns, he perishes.” for things are narrow for him from all sides; both there pains, and here afflictions; for there is no man who does not toil in this wretched life; both the poor and the rich and the slave and the free and the sinner and the righteous, all toil alike, and one event will happen to all, both to the sinner and to the righteous here in this world.

19 But there it is not so, but one order and another; for the toil of the righteous man in this world is one thing, and that of the sinner another. For the righteous man toils, not to fill his belly, for he takes no thought for the flesh at all, nor does he consider that he wears flesh; but he toils night and day seeking God, not getting his fill of much sleep, not sating his soul with bread and water, wandering in deserts, disciplining his body in much hardship, until he receives the unfading crown that is laid up for him. But the sinner toils and labors not for the sake of righteousness, but for the sake of this miserable flesh, for the sake of a shameful woman, laboring in one way and another, not being content with what he has, living in malice and envy. But the foolish understand none of these things; for matter and the many cares of the world have blinded them, and they wander, until the stern soldier is sent upon them. who shows no partiality nor will he take bribes. For their souls will be led away by force by merciless angels and they will receive their sentence from God. For being empty into empty things and

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ταμιεῖα καὶ τὰς τρυφὰς τὰς ἀνεκδιηγήτους καὶ τὴν ζωὴν τὴν αἰώνιον, καὶ τί ἔτι λέγω; καὶ τὸ μεῖζον πάντων θαῦμα, ὅτι ὁ ἔχων καθαρὸν τὸν νοῦν καὶ αὐτὸν τὸν Θεὸν ἐν τοῖς ἔνδον ὀφθαλμοῖς καθορᾷ. πῶς οὖν οὐ θέλεις κλαῦσαι καὶ πενθῆσαι ὁ ταῦτα βλέπων; κλαίει μὲν γὰρ καὶ ὀδύρεται, ὅπως ῥυσθῇ ἀπὸ τῶν δεινῶν κολάσεων· καὶ πάλιν κλαίει καὶ ἀξιοῖ δεόμενος, ὅπως ἀξιωθῇ τῶν ἐπου ρανίων ἐκείνων ἀγαθῶν.

18 ∆ιὰ τοῦτο οἱ ἅγιοι ἐμίσησαν τὸν κόσμον τοῦτον, εἰδότες, ὁποῖα ἀγαθὰ μέλλουσι κληρονομεῖν. ὥστε οὖν ὁ ἔχων ἀνάπαυσιν ἐν τῷ κόσμῳ τὴν αἰώνιον ἀνάπαυσιν μὴ ἐλπιζέτω λαβεῖν· ἡ βασιλεία γὰρ τῶν οὐρανῶν οὐκ ἔστι τῶν ἀναπαυομέ νων ἐνθάδε ἀλλ' ἐκείνων ἐστὶ τῶν ἐν θλίψει πολλῇ καὶ στε νοχωρίᾳ διαξάντων τὸν βίον τοῦτον· οὐ γὰρ ἔλαβον αὐτὴν δωρεάν, ἀλλὰ μετὰ μεγάλου μόχθου καὶ γενναίων ἱδρώτων αὐτὴν ἐκτήσαντο οἱ καταξιωθέντες. οὐ μέλει αὐτοῖς, ὅσον ἐὰν κοπιάσωσιν ὧδε· εἰσελθόντες γὰρ ἐκεῖ ἐπιλανθάνονται τῶν πόνων καὶ τῶν ὀδυνῶν, ὅσα ἔπαθον ἐν τῷ ματαίῳ κόσμῳ τούτῳ ἀπὸ τῆς πολλῆς καὶ ἀνεκδιηγήτου ἀναπαύσεως τῆς δε δομένης αὐτοῖς. τί λέγεις, ἄνθρωπε; ἰδοὺ δύο ὁδοὶ παρετέθησαν ἐνώπιόν σου, ἡ ζωὴ καὶ ὁ θάνατος· ὅπου ἐὰν θέλῃς, πορεύου. καὶ ἰδοὺ πῦρ καὶ ὕδωρ· ὅπου ἐὰν θέλῃς, ἔκτεινον τὴν χεῖρά σου· ἐπὶ σοί ἐστιν, ἐὰν θέλῃς κτήσασθαι τὴν ζωὴν, καὶ ἐπὶ σοί ἐστιν, ἐὰν θέλῃς κτήσασθαι τὸν θάνατον. ὁ οὖν θάνατός ἐστιν ὁ κόσμος, ἡ δὲ ζωή ἐστιν ἡ δικαιοσύνη. μακρὰν οὖν ὁ κόσμος ἀπὸ τῆς δικαιοσύνης, καθ' ὅσον ὁ θάνατος ἀπὸ τῆς ζωῆς· ἐὰν οὖν πορεύῃ ἐν τῷ κόσμῳ, ἐν τῷ θανάτῳ πορεύῃ καὶ ἐκτὸς τοῦ Θεοῦ γίνῃ κατὰ τὴν θείαν γραφήν. ἐὰν τῇ δι καιοσύνῃ πορεύῃ, ἐν τῇ ζωῇ πεπόρευσαι, καὶ οὐ μὴ ἅψηταί σου θάνατος· οὐκ ἔστι γὰρ παρὰ τοῖς δικαίοις θάνατος, ἀλλὰ μετά θεσις· μετατίθεται γὰρ ἐκ τοῦ κόσμου τούτου εἰς τὴν αἰώνιον ἀνάπαυσιν· καὶ ὥσπερ τις ἀπὸ φυλακῆς ἐξέλθοι, οὕτως καὶ οἱ ἅγιοι ἐξέρχονται ἀπὸ τοῦ μοχθηροῦ βίου τούτου εἰς τὰ ἀγαθὰ τὰ ἡτοιμασμένα αὐτοῖς· «ἃ ὀφθαλμὸς οὐκ εἶδε καὶ οὖς οὐκ ἤκουσε, καὶ ἐπὶ καρδίαν ἀνθρώπου οὐκ ἀνέβη, ἃ ἡτοί μασεν ὁ Θεὸς τοῖς ἀγαπῶσιν αὐτόν·» οἱ δὲ ἁμαρτωλοὶ καὶ ὧδε κακῶς μοχθοῦσι καὶ ἐκεῖ πάλιν τὸ πῦρ αὐτοὺς μένει· καὶ τοὺς τοιούτους διπλῶς δεῖ κλαῦσαι, ὅτι καὶ ὧδε ἐν στενο χωρίᾳ εἰσὶ καὶ ἐκεῖ τὴν εὐρυχωρίαν οὐκ ἀπολαμβάνουσι. διὰ τοῦτο εἴρηκεν ἡ θεία γραφή· «ὅπου ἐὰν στραφῇ ὁ ἀσεβὴς ἀφανίζεται.» στενὰ γὰρ αὐτῷ πάντοθεν· καὶ ἐκεῖ ὀδύναι, καὶ ὧδε θλίψεις· οὐκ ἔνι γὰρ ἄνθρωπος ὁ μὴ κοπιῶν ἐν τῷ μοχθηρῷ βίῳ τούτῳ· καὶ ὁ πτωχὸς καὶ ὁ πλούσιος καὶ ὁ δοῦλος καὶ ὁ ἐλεύθερος καὶ ὁ ἁμαρτωλὸς καὶ ὁ δίκαιος, πάντες ὁμοίως κοπιῶσι, καὶ ἓν συνάντημα τοῖς πᾶσι συμβήσεται καὶ τῷ ἁμαρ τωλῷ καὶ τῷ δικαίῳ ὧδε ἐν τῷ κόσμῳ τούτῳ.

19 Ἐκεῖ δὲ οὐκ ἔστιν οὕτως, ἀλλὰ ἄλλη καὶ ἄλλη τάξις· ἄλλος γὰρ ὁ κόπος τοῦ δικαίου ἐν τῷ κόσμῳ τούτῳ, καὶ ἄλλος τοῦ ἁμαρτωλοῦ. ὁ μὲν γὰρ δίκαιος κοπιᾷ, οὐχ ἵνα πλήσῃ γαστέρα, οὐδὲ γὰρ ὅλως τῆς σαρκὸς πρόνοιαν ποιεῖται, οὐδὲ λογίζεται. ὅτι σάρκα φορεῖ· ἀλλὰ κοπιᾷ νυκτὸς καὶ ἡμέρας ζητῶν τὸν Θεὸν, πολλὰ τοῦ ὕπνου μὴ χορταζόμενος, ἄρτου καὶ ὕδατος μὴ ἐμπιπλῶν τὴν ψυχὴν, ἐπὶ ἐρήμοις πλανώμενος, ὑπωπιάζων τὸ σῶμα ἐν κακοπαθείᾳ πολλῇ, ἕως οὗ ἀπολάβῃ τὸν ἀμαράντινον στέφανον τὸν ἀποκείμενον αὐτῷ. ὁ δὲ ἁμαρτωλὸς κοπιᾷ καὶ μοχθεῖ οὐχ ἕνεκεν δικαιοσύνης, ἀλλ' ἕνεκεν τῆς ταλαιπώρου σαρκὸς ταύτης, ἕνεκεν τῆς αἰσχρᾶς γυναικὸς, ἄλλως καὶ ἄλλως μοχθῶν, μὴ ἀρκούμενος τοῖς παροῦσι, ἐν κακίᾳ καὶ φθόνῳ διατρίβων. ἀλλὰ τούτων οὐδὲν ἐπίστανται οἱ ἄφρονες· ἀπετύφλωσεν γὰρ αὐτοὺς ἡ ὕλη καὶ αἱ πολλαὶ φροντίδες τοῦ κόσ μου, καὶ πλανῶνται, ἕως ἀποσταλῇ ἐπ' αὐτοὺς ὁ ἀπότομος στρατιώτης. ὅστις οὐ θαυμάζει πρόσωπα οὐδ' οὐ μὴ λάβῃ δῶρα. ἀχθήσονται γὰρ αἱ ψυχαὶ αὐτῶν μετὰ βίας ὑπὸ ἀγγέλων ἀνελεημόνων καὶ λήψονται τὴν ἀπόφασιν αὐτῶν παρὰ τοῦ Θεοῦ. κενοὶ γὰρ ὄντες εἰς κενὰ καὶ