1 And it is necessary, while still young, to fear God, before giving oneself over to evils, before the great and terrible day of the Lord comes, when the sun will no longer shine, nor the moon, nor the other stars, and the higher powers will be shaken, in that winter and turmoil of all things, the angels who guard the world; so that powerful men will cease, and working women will also cease, fleeing into the dark places of the dwellings, with all the doors shut; and a woman, refraining from grinding because of fear, will use a very thin voice like a very small bird; and all the shameless women will fall to the earth, and cities and their blood-stained rulers, awaiting the punishment from above, when a most bitter and bloody time is at hand, like a blossoming almond tree and continuous punishments impending, like a multitude of flying locusts, and the lawless being cast out of the way, like a black and contemptible caper-bush. And the good man will go rejoicing to his eternal home; but the wicked will fill all their places with lamentation, and neither stored-up silver nor tested gold will be of any use. For a great plague will seize all things, 1017 even to the water-jar standing by a certain spring, and the wheel of a chariot, which happens to have been left in the hollow when it stopped, and the time of its revolution, and the water-bearing age of life by water having passed by. But for men lying on the earth there is one salvation, if their souls would recognize, and fly up to him by whom they were also created. Therefore I say again what I have also said before, that men are disposed very vainly, and that the vanity of the things they devise admits of no exaggeration at all. But my labor is superfluous as I wisely address the assembly, because I attempt to teach this people who are unteachable and incurable. But it requires a noble man to be able to understand the words of wisdom. But I, being already an old man, and having passed a long time of life, have grown weary in seeking out the things pleasing to God through the mysteries of truth. And I know how the precepts of the wise rouse souls and prick them no less, than bodies are affected when pierced by an ox-goad or a nail. And some will give those wise teachings, having received them from one good shepherd and teacher, as if from one mouth, all relating to one another more abundantly in concord the things entrusted to them. But of many words there is no benefit; nor do I advise you, O friend, to write down unprofitable things concerning what is fitting, in which there is nothing more than to labor in vain. But for what remains I will need an epilogue of this sort, that: O men, behold I proclaim to you expressly and briefly, to fear God who is both the master and overseer of all, and to keep his commandments; and to be persuaded, that everyone will afterwards be judged, and each will receive according to worth the reward for his own works, both good and evil.

1 Χρὴ δὲ ἕτι νέον ὄντα φοβεῖσθαι Θεὸν, πρὶν ἢ ἑαυ τὸν παραδοῦναι κακοῖς, πρὶν ἐλθεῖν τὴν τοῦ Θεοῦ με γάλην ἡμέραν καὶ φοβερὰν, ὁπότε ἥλιος μὲν οὐκέτι λάμψει, οὐδὲ σελήνη, οὐδὲ οἱ λοιποὶ ἀστέρες, κινηθή σονται δὲ αἱ ὑπέρτεραι δυνάμεις, ἐν ἐκείνῳ τῷ ὅλων χειμῶνι καὶ ταράχῳ, οἱ κοσμοφύλακες ἄγγελοι· ὡς παύσασθαι μὲν ἄνδρας δυνάστας, παύσασθαι δὲ καὶ γυναῖκας ἐργαζομένας, φευγούσας εἰς τὰ σκο τεινὰ τῶν οἰκημάτων, κεκλεισμένων ἁπασῶν τῶν θυ ρῶν· καί τις γυνὴ τοῦ ἀλήθειν ἀποσχομένη διὰ τὸ δέος, ἰσχνοτάτῃ φωνῇ χρήσεται ὥσπερ λεπτότατον ὄρνεον· ἅπασαι δὲ ἄναγνοι γυναῖκες εἰς γῆν πεσοῦν ται, καὶ πόλεις καὶ αἱ τούτων ἀρχαὶ αἱ μιαιφόνοι, πε ριμένουσαι τὴν ἄνωθεν κόλασιν, ἐνστάντος καιροῦ πικροτάτου καὶ αἱματώδους, ὥσπερ ἀνθοῦντος ἀμυγδά λου καὶ συνεχῶν ἐπικειμένων κολάσεων, ὥσπερ πλή θους ἐφιπταμένων ἀκρίδων, καὶ ἐκποδῶν ῥιπτουμένων τῶν παρανόμων, ὥσπερ μελαίνης καὶ εὐκαταφρονή του καππάρεως. Καὶ ὁ μὲν ἀγαθὸς ἀνὴρ εἰς αἰώνιον οἶκον τὸν ἑαυτοῦ χαίρων πορεύσεται· οἱ δέ γε φαῦλοι, πάντα τᾲ αὐτῶν ἐμπλήσουσι κοπτόμενοι, καὶ οὔτε ἀργύριον ἀποτεθησαυρισμένον, οὔτε χρυσίον δόκιμον ἐπωφελὲς ἔτι. Μεγάλη γὰρ ἅπαντα καθέξει πληγὴ, 1017 καὶ μέχρις ὑδρίας ἑστώσης πρός τινι κρήνῃ, καὶ τρο χοῦ ὀχήματος, ὃν ἂν τύχῃ καταλελεῖφθαι ἐν τῷ κοι λώματι παυσαμένης, χρόνον τε περιδρομῆς, καὶ τῆς δι' ὕδατος ζωῆς παροδεύσαντος τοῦ λουτροφόρου αἰῶνος. Ἀνθρώπων δὲ ἐπὶ γῆς κειμένων μία σω τηρία, εἰ ἐπιγνοῖεν αὐτῶν αἱ ψυχαὶ, καὶ πρὸς αὐτὸν ἀναπταῖεν ὑφ' οὗ καὶ γεγέννηνται. Λέγω τοίνυν αὖθις ἂ καὶ πρότερον εἴρηκα, πάνυ ματαίως ἀνθρώπους διακεῖσθαι, καὶ μήτε ὑπερβολὴν ὅλως ἐνδέχεσθαι τῶν ἐπινοουμένων πραγμάτων τὴν ματαιότητα. Περιττὸς δέ μοι ὁ κάματος ἐκκλησιάζοντι σοφῶς, ὅτι διδάσκειν ἐπιχειρῶν τὸν λαὸν τοῦτον ἀδιδάκτως καὶ ἀνιάτως ἔχοντα. ∆εῖ δὲ ἀνδρὸς γενναίου, πρὸς τὸ συνιέναι λόγους σοφίας δυνηθῆναι. Ἐγὼ δὲ ἤδη πρεσβύτης ὢν, καὶ μακρὸν βίου διελθὼν χρόνον, ἔκαμον εἰς τὸ ἀνευρεῖν τὰ τῷ Θεῷ ἀρεστὰ διὰ τῶν τῆς ἀληθείας μυστηρίων. Ἐπίσταμαί τε ὡς ἐπεγείρει ψυχὰς, καὶ νύττει οὐχ ἧττον τὰ τῶν σοφῶν παραγγέλματα, ἢ διατίθεται σώματα βουκέντρῳ, ἢ ἥλῳ ἐμπερονηθέντα. ∆ώσουσι δέ τινες τὰ σοφὰ ἐκεῖνα διδάγματα, παρ' ἑνὸς ἀγαθοῦ λαβόντες ποιμένος καὶ διδασκάλου, ὥσπερ ἐξ ἑνὸς στόματος ἅπαντες αὑτοῖς συμφώνως δαψιλέστερον τὰ πιστευθέντα διηγούμενοι. Λόγων δὲ πολλῶν οὐδὲν ὄφελος· οὐδέ σοι συμβουλεύω, ὦ φίλος, ἀνόνητα καταγράφειν τὰ περὶ τὸ προσῆκον, ἐν οἷς τοῦ κάμνειν εἰκῆ ἐστὶν οὐδὲν πλέον. Ἀλλά μοι λοιπὸν ἐπιλόγου δεήσει τοιοῦδέ τινος, ὅτι· Ὦ ἄνθρωποι, ἰδοὺ διαῤῥήδην ὑμῖν καὶ συντόμως προαγορεύω, φοβεῖσθαι μὲν Θεὸν τὸν πάντων δεσπότην τε ὁμοῦ καὶ ἐπόπτην, τηρεῖν δὲ αὐτοῦ καὶ τὰ παραγγέλματα· πείθεσθαι δὲ, πάντα τινὰ μετέπειτα καὶ κριθήσεσθαι, καὶ κατ' ἀξίαν ἀπολήψεσθαι ἔκαστον τῶν αὑτοῦ ἔργων τὴν ἀμοιβὴν ἀγαθῶν τε ὁμοῦ καὶ φαύλων.