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in your book all shall be written, days shall be formed, and no one in them; and again: Let them be blotted out of the book of the living, and not be written with the righteous. Do you see that some are blotted out, and others are written in? Do you wish to learn that 50.462 not only the righteous are written in those books, but also our sins are written there? It is a time of festival, let us learn about things that can deliver us from punishment; the word is fearful, but also useful and profitable; for it delivers from the experience of these things through deeds; let us learn therefore that sins are written down, and whatever we utter here is immediately brought up there and written down. And from where is this clear? For one must not simply make pronouncements about such things. Micah says to the Jews: Woe to those who provoke the Lord. And how, he says, have we provoked him? By your saying, Everyone who does evil is good in the sight of the Lord. The words of ungrateful servants; and in them he has taken pleasure; in the corrupt, he says, in those who have not served him. Behold, we have kept his ordinances, and we call strangers blessed; for we, he says, serve every day, and others enjoy the good things.

Slaves often say such things about their masters; but for a man to say these things about a man is not so terrible, although it is terrible; but to utter these things about the common Master of the world, a Master who is merciful and loving, would be greater than any condemnation and worthy of the utmost punishment. But so that you may learn that such words are written down, hear what the prophet says: Behold, these things are written in a book of the living for a memorial before God. And they are written down, not because God will remember the day, as if bringing the book into the midst for a refutation and accusation. Perhaps I have shaken your mind with fear; not yours, but my own first. Come then, let me dispel the word, or rather the fear; or rather, I will not dispel it, but I will console it; for let it remain, cleansing your mind; but let us take away its unbearable part. How then shall we be able to take it away? If we show that sins are not only written down, but also blotted out. For in a court of law whatever the one on trial utters in the records is certainly written down perpetually, and it is not possible for it to be blotted out thereafter; but in that book, even if you utter some evil things, and you wish it, it is blotted out again. From where is this clear? From Scripture: Turn your face, he says, from my sins, and blot out all my iniquities. But no one will blot out what has not been written; so since they had been written, he asks for them to be blotted out. And another teaches how they are blotted out, saying: By almsgiving and faith sins are cleansed away. They are not only blotted out, but also cleansed, so that not even a trace of the stain remains. Not only are sins after baptism blotted out, but also those written before the washing were all blotted out by the water of baptism and by the cross of Christ, just as Paul says, that Blotting out the handwriting that was against us, which was contrary to us, he has taken it out of the way, nailing it to the cross. Did you see how that handwriting was blotted out? And not only blotted out, but also torn apart, with the nails of the 50.463 cross splitting it, so that it became useless. But those things have all been blotted out by the grace and love for mankind of the power of the crucified Christ; but the things after baptism have need of much diligence, so that they may be blotted out again. Since there is no second washing, but it requires our tears, repentance, confession, almsgiving, prayer, and all other piety; so also after baptism are sins cleansed away with much pain and toil. Let us therefore show all diligence, so as to blot them out from here, and be delivered from the shame and the punishment there. For even if we have sinned ten thousand times, if we are willing

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τῷ βιβλίῳ σου πάντες γραφήσονται, ἡμέραι πλασθήσονται, καὶ οὐδεὶς ἐν αὐτοῖς· καὶ πάλιν· Ἐξαλειφθήτωσαν ἐκ βιβλίου ζώντων, καὶ μετὰ δικαίων μὴ γραφήτωσαν. Ὁρᾷς ὅτι οἱ μὲν ἐξαλείφονται, οἱ δὲ ἐγγράφονται; βούλει μαθεῖν, ὅτι 50.462 οὐχ οἱ δίκαιοι ἐγγράφονται ἐν ταῖς βίβλοις ἐκείναις μόνον, ἀλλὰ καὶ τὰ ἁμαρτήματα ἡμῶν ἐκεῖ ἐγγέγραπται; Ἑορτῆς καιρὸς, μάθωμεν περὶ πραγμάτων δυναμένων ἀπαλλάξαι ἡμᾶς τῆς κολάσεως· φοβερὸς ὁ λόγος, ἀλλὰ καὶ χρήσιμος καὶ λυσιτελής· ἀπαλλάττει γὰρ τῆς πείρας τῆς διὰ τῶν πραγμάτων· μάθωμεν τοίνυν ὅτι τὰ ἁμαρτήματα ἐγγράφεται, καὶ ὅπερ ἂν ἐνταῦθα φθεγξώμεθα, ἀναφέρεται εὐθέως ἐκεῖ καὶ ἐγγράφεται. Καὶ πόθεν δῆλον τοῦτο; οὐ γὰρ δεῖ ὑπὲρ τῶν τοιούτων ἁπλῶς ἀποφαίνεσθαι. Ὁ Μιχαίας φησὶ πρὸς Ἰουδαίους· Οὐαὶ οἱ παροξύνοντες τὸν Κύριον. Καὶ πῶς, φησὶ, παρωξύναμεν αὐτόν; Ἐν τῷ λέγειν ὑμᾶς, Πᾶς ποιῶν πονηρὸν καλὸς ἐνώπιον Κυρίου. Οἰκετῶν ἀγνωμόνων ῥήματα· καὶ ἐν αὐτοῖς αὐτὸς εὐδόκησεν· ἐν τοῖς διεφθαρμένοις, φησὶν, ἐν τοῖς μὴ δεδουλευκόσιν αὐτῷ. Ἰδοὺ ἡμεῖς ἐφυλάξαμεν τὰ φυλάγματα αὐτοῦ, καὶ μακαρίζομεν ἀλλοτρίους· ἡμεῖς γὰρ, φησὶ, καθ' ἑκάστην δουλεύομεν, καὶ ἕτεροι τῶν ἀγαθῶν ἀπολαύουσι.

Τοιαῦτα καὶ δοῦλοι πολλάκις περὶ τῶν δεσποτῶν λέγουσιν· ἀλλ' ἄνθρωπον μὲν περὶ ἀνθρώπου λέγειν ταῦτα, οὐχ οὕτω δεινὸν, καίπερ ὂν δεινόν· τὸ δὲ περὶ τοῦ κοινοῦ τῆς οἰκουμένης ∆εσπότου ταῦτα φθέγγεσθαι, ∆εσπότου τοῦ ἐλεήμονος καὶ φιλανθρώπου, πάσης ἂν εἴη μεῖζον καταδίκης καὶ τῆς ἐσχάτης ἄξιον τιμωρίας. Ἀλλ' ἵνα μάθῃς, ὅτι ἐγγράφεται τὰ τοιαῦτα ῥήματα, ἄκουσον τί φησιν ὁ προφήτης· Ἰδοὺ ταῦτα ἐγγέγραπται ἐν βίβλῳ ζώντων εἰς μνημόσυνον ἐνώπιον τοῦ Θεοῦ. Ἐγγράφεται δὲ, οὐκ ἐπειδὴ ὁ Θεὸς ἀναμνήσῃ τὴν ἡμέραν, ὥσπερ ἔλεγχόν τινα καὶ κατηγορίαν εἰς μέσον παράγων τὸ βιβλίον. Τάχα κατέσεισα ὑμῶν τὴν διάνοιαν τῷ φόβῳ· οὐχὶ τὴν ὑμετέραν, ἀλλὰ τὴν ἐμαυτοῦ πρότερον. Φέρε οὖν ἐκλύσω τὸν λόγον, μᾶλλον δὲ τὸν φόβον· μᾶλλον δὲ οὐκ ἐκλύσω, ἀλλὰ παραμυθήσομαι· μενέτω γὰρ καθαίρων τὴν διάνοιαν ὑμῶν· τὸ δὲ ἀφόρητον αὐτοῦ περιέλωμεν. Πῶς οὖν αὐτὸν δυνησόμεθα περιελεῖν; Ἂν δείξωμεν, ὅτι οὐκ ἐγγράφεται μόνον, ἀλλὰ καὶ ἐξαλείφεται ἁμαρτήματα. Ἐν δικαστηρίῳ γὰρ ἅπερ ἂν ἐπὶ ὑπομνημάτων ὁ δικαζόμενος φθέγξηται, πάντως ἐγγράφεται διηνεκῶς, καὶ ἐξαλειφθῆναι οὐκ ἔνι λοιπόν· ἐν ἐκείνῳ δὲ τῷ βιβλίῳ κἂν φθέγξῃ τινὰ πονηρὰ, καὶ βουληθῇς, πάλιν ἐξαλείφεται. Πόθεν δῆλον; Ἀπὸ τῆς Γραφῆς· Ἀπόστρεψον γὰρ, φησὶ, τὸ πρόσωπόν σου ἀπὸ τῶν ἁμαρτιῶν μου, καὶ πάσας τὰς ἀνομίας μου ἐξάλειψον. Οὐδεὶς δὲ ἐξαλείψει τὸ μὴ γεγραμμένον ὥστε ἐπειδὴ ἐγγεγραμμένα ἦσαν, παρακαλεῖ ἐξαλειφθῆναι. ∆ιδάσκει δὲ καὶ πῶς ἐξαλείφονται ἕτερός τις λέγων· Ἐλεημοσύναις καὶ πίστεσιν ἀποκαθαίρονται αἱ ἁμαρτίαι. Οὐχὶ ἐξαλείφονται μόνον, ἀλλὰ καὶ ἀποκαθαίρονται, ὥστε μηδὲ λείψανον μένειν τῆς ἀλοιφῆς. Οὐ τὰ μετὰ τὸ βάπτισμα δὲ ἐξαλείφεται μόνον, ἀλλὰ καὶ ἃ πρὸ τοῦ λουτροῦ ἐγγέγραπτο ἐξηλείφθη πάντα ἐκεῖνα τῷ τοῦ βαπτίσματος ὕδατι καὶ τῷ σταυρῷ τοῦ Χριστοῦ, καθάπερ Παῦλός φησιν, ὅτι Ἐξαλείψας τὸ καθ' ἡμῶν χειρόγραφον, ὃ ἦν ἐναντίον ἡμῶν, καὶ αὐτὸ ἦρεν ἐκ μέσου προσηλώσας αὐτὸ τῷ σταυρῷ. Εἶδες πῶς ἐξηλείφθη τὸ χειρόγραφον ἐκεῖνο; καὶ οὐκ ἐξηλείφθη μόνον, ἀλλὰ καὶ διεῤῥάγη, τῶν ἥλων τοῦ 50.463 σταυροῦ σχισάντων αὐτὸ, ὥστε γενέσθαι ἄχρηστον. Ἀλλ' ἐκεῖνα μὲν χάριτι καὶ φιλανθρωπίᾳ τῆς τοῦ σταυρωθέντος Χριστοῦ ἰσχύος πάντα ἐξήλειπται· τὰ δὲ μετὰ τὸ βάπτισμα πολλῆς χρείαν ἔχει σπουδῆς, ὥστε ἐξαλειφθῆναι πάλιν. Ἐπειδὴ μηδ' ἔστι δεύτερον λουτρὸν, ἀλλὰ τῶν δακρύων δεῖται τῶν ἡμετέρων, μετανοίας, ἐξομολογήσεως, ἐλεημοσύνης, εὐχῆς, καὶ τῆς ἄλλης ἁπάσης εὐλαβείας· οὕτω καὶ μετὰ τὸ βάπτισμα ἐκκαθαίρεται ἁμαρτήματα μετὰ πόνου πολλοῦ καὶ καμάτου. Πᾶσαν τοίνυν ἐπιδειξώμεθα σπουδὴν, ὥστε αὐτὰ ἐξαλεῖψαι ἐντεῦθεν, καὶ αἰσχύνης καὶ τῆς κολάσεως ἀπαλλαγῆναι τῆς ἐκεῖ. Κἂν γὰρ μυρία ὦμεν ἡμαρτηκότες, ἂν ἐθέλωμεν