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39. These things, then, require a longer discourse than the present occasion, and I think even a lifetime, to understand and to present sufficiently and worthily; or rather, both now and always they require the Spirit, by whom alone God is understood and interpreted and heard. For only the pure may touch the pure and what is like itself; but the reason why we have now briefly discussed them is to make this clear, that it is difficult, especially in a crowd composed of every kind of age and disposition, when discoursing on such great matters, like a many-stringed instrument needing different kinds of striking, to find some discourse that can attune everyone, and illumine them with the light of knowledge; not only because, when the danger lies in these three things—thought, speech, and hearing—it is necessary to stumble in at least one of them, if not all; for either the mind was not enlightened, or the speech was weak, or the unpurified hearing could not grasp it; and so from one or all of these the truth must necessarily limp; but also because that which makes the discourse easy and acceptable for those who promise to teach anything else—namely, the reverence of the hearers—this becomes here a loss and a danger.

40. For since our contest is concerning God and the greatest of beings, and concerning salvation itself, and the first hope for all, the more fervent they are in faith, the more contrary they are to the discourse, supposing easy persuasion to be a betrayal of the truth, not piety, they would sooner give up everything than the reasonings from home, with which they come, and the familiarity with the doctrines with which they have been brought up. And I say this still is the affliction of the more moderate and not entirely evil people, who even if they err from the truth, 35.449 yet because they suffer this through reverence, and have a zeal, but not according to knowledge, they will perhaps be among those who are not severely condemned, nor beaten with many stripes, like those who through malice and wickedness fall away from the master's will. And perhaps these might one day be persuaded, and changed by the same reverence by which they also resisted, if some discourse should touch them, striking opportunely either from within or without, like iron on a flint stone, their mind which is pregnant and worthy of light; in which also very quickly from a small spark the torch of truth might blaze forth.

41. But what could one say about those who, through vainglory or love of power, speak unrighteousness on high, with the boastfulness of some Jannes or Jambres, arming themselves not against Moses, but against the truth, and rising up against sound doctrine? or about the third part, those who through lack of education and its consequent rashness charge at every argument with a swinish passion, and trample underfoot the goodly pearls of truth?

42. Or those who, bringing no opinion of their own from home, nor any model of doctrines concerning God, whether worse or better, but submitting themselves to all arguments and teachers, as if to select from all the better and safer course, and having trusted themselves as poor judges of the truth; then, being carried about and turned by one plausibility after another, and washed over and trampled by every argument, having changed many teachers and many writings, casting them off easily like dust to the winds, finally, growing weary in both hearing and mind (O, the unreasonableness!), they are equally vexed with every argument, and inscribe a wicked model for themselves, to mock and despise our faith itself as unstable and having nothing sound, passing unlearnedly from the speakers to the doctrine; just as if someone with badly disposed eyes, 35.452 or corrupted ears, should accuse the sun or sounds—the one for being dim and not shining, the others for being discordant and weak.

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ΛΘʹ. Ταῦτ' οὖν μακροτέρου μὲν ἢ κατὰ τὸν παρ όντα καιρὸν, οἶμαι δὲ καὶ βίον, τοῦ λόγου καὶ νοῆσαι καὶ παραστῆσαι ἱκανῶς τε καὶ ὅσον ἄξιον· μᾶλλον δὲ καὶ νῦν καὶ ἀεὶ τοῦ Πνεύματος, ᾧ μόνῳ Θεὸς καὶ νοεῖται καὶ ἑρμηνεύεται καὶ ἀκούεται. Κα θαρῷ γὰρ μόνον ἁπτέον τοῦ καθαροῦ καὶ ὡσαύ τως ἔχοντος· οὗ δ' εἵνεκα νῦν ἐν ὀλίγῳ διεληλύθαμεν, ἵν' ἐκεῖνο δηλώσωμεν, ὅτι χαλεπὸν ἐν πλήθει μάλιστα, περὶ τηλικούτων διαλεγόμενον, ἐκ παντο δαπῆς συγκειμένῳ καὶ ἡλικίας καὶ ἕξεως, οἷον ὀρ γάνῳ τινὶ πολυχόρδῳ διαφόρων δεομένῳ καὶ τῶν κρουμάτων, εὑρεῖν τινα τὸν πάντας καταρτίσαι δυνάμενον λόγον, καὶ λαμπρῦναι τῷ φωτὶ τῆς γνώσεως· οὐ μόνον ὅτι ἐν τρισὶ τούτοις τοῦ κινδύνου σαλεύοντος, διανοίᾳ καὶ λόγῳ καὶ ἀκοῇ, ἀναγκαῖον περὶ ἕν γέτι τούτων, εἰ καὶ μὴ πάντα, προσπταῖσαι· ἢ γὰρ οὐκ ἐνελάμφθη νοῦς, ἢ λόγος ἠσθένη σεν, ἢ οὐκ ἐχώρησεν ἀκοὴ μὴ κεκαθαρμένη· καὶ ὁμοίως ἐξ ἑνὸς τούτων καὶ πάντων χωλεύειν ἀνάγκη τὴν ἀλήθειαν· ἀλλ' ὅτι καὶ ὃ τοῖς ἄλλο τι διδάσκειν ὑπισχνουμένοις ῥᾷστον ποιεῖ τὸν λόγον καὶ εὐπαράδεκτον, ἡ τῶν ἀκουόντων εὐλάβεια, τοῦτο ἐνταῦθα ἡ ζημία καθίσταται καὶ ὁ κίνδυνος.

Μʹ. Ὡς γὰρ περὶ Θεοῦ καὶ τοῦ μεγίστου τῶν ὄν των ἔχοντες τὸν ἀγῶνα, καὶ τῆς σωτηρίας αὐτῆς, καὶ τῆς πρώτης πᾶσιν ἐλπίδος, ὅσῳ τὴν πίστιν εἰσὶ θερμότεροι, τοσούτῳ προσαντέστεροι τῷ λόγῳ, καὶ προδοσίαν τῆς ἀληθείας, οὐκ εὐσέβειαν τὴν εὐ πείθειαν ὑπολαμβάνοντες, πάντα πρόοιντ' ἂν πρότερον ἢ τοὺς οἴκοθεν λογισμοὺς, μεθ' ὧν ἕρ χονται, καὶ τῶν δογμάτων οἷς συνανεστράφησαν τὴν συνήθειαν· καὶ τοῦτο ἔτι λέγω τῶν μετριωτέ ρων καὶ οὐ πάντη κακῶν τὸ πάθος, οἳ κἂν τῆς ἀληθείας 35.449 διαμαρτάνωσιν, ἀλλὰ τῷ γε δι' εὐλάβειαν τοῦτο πάσχειν, καὶ ζῆλον μὲν ἔχειν, ἀλλ' οὐ κατ' ἐπίγνωσιν, τυχὸν ἔσονται τῶν οὐ σφόδρα κατακρινομένων, οὐδὲ πολλὰς δερομένων, ὡς οἱ διὰ κακίαν καὶ πονηρίαν τοῦ δεσποτικοῦ θελήματος ἀποπίπτοντες. Καὶ τάχα ἂν οὗτοι μεταπεισθεῖέν ποτε, καὶ μετα βληθεῖεν ὑπὸ τῆς αὐτῆς εὐλαβείας, ὑφ' ἧς καὶ ἀντέβαι νον, εἴ τις αὐτῶν ἅψαιτο λόγος, ἢ οἴκοθεν ἢ ἔξωθεν κρούσας καιρίως, ὥσπερ σίδηρος πυρῖτιν λίθον, τὴν ἐγκύμονα καὶ ἀξίαν φωτὸς διάνοιαν· ἐν ᾗ καὶ τάχιστα ἂν ἐκ μικροῦ σπινθῆρος ὁ τῆς ἀληθείας πυρσὸς ἐκλάμψειε.

ΜΑʹ. Τί δ' ἂν εἴποι τις περὶ τῶν διὰ κενοδο ξίαν ἢ φιλαρχίαν, ἀδικίαν εἰς τὸ ὕψος λαλούν των, Ἰαννοῦ τινος ἢ Ἰαμβροῦ μεγαληγορίας, οὐ κατὰ Μωϋσέως, τῆς δ' ἀληθείας ὁπλιζομένων, καὶ τῆς ὑγιαινούσης κατεξανισταμένων διδασκαλίας; ἢ τῆς τρίτης μοίρας τῶν δι' ἀπαιδευσίαν καὶ τὴν ἐπομένην ταύτῃ θρασύτητα ὁμόσε παντὶ λόγῳ χωρούντων συώδει πάθει, καὶ καταπατούντων τοὺς καλοὺς μαργαρίτας τῆς ἀληθείας;

ΜΒʹ. Ἢ ὅσοι μηδεμίαν μὲν οἴκοθεν ὑπόληψιν φέ ροντες, μηδέ τινα τύπον τῶν περὶ Θεοῦ λόγων ἢ χείρονα ἢ βελτίονα, πᾶσι δὲ ὑποτιθέντες ἑαυτοὺς λό γοις καὶ διδασκάλοις, ὡς ἐξ ἁπάντων ἐκλεξόμενοι τὸ κρεῖττον καὶ ἀσφαλέστερον, καὶ κριταῖς οὐ καλοῖς τῆς ἀληθείας σφίσιν αὐτοῖς πιστεύσαντες· ἔπειτα ὑπὸ τῆς πιθανότητος ἄλλοτε ἄλλης περιφερόμενοι καὶ στρεφόμενοι, καὶ παντὶ λόγῳ κα ταπλυνθέντες καὶ πατηθέντες, πολλοὺς ἀμείψαν τες διδασκάλους καὶ πολλὰ γράμματα, ὥσπερ χοῦν ἀνέμοις ῥᾳδίως ἀποβαλόντες, τέλος ἀποκαμόντες καὶ ἀκοὴν καὶ διάνοιαν, (ὢ τῆς ἀλογίας!) πρὸς πάντα λόγον ὁμοίως δυσχεραίνουσι, καὶ μοχθηρὸν τύ πον ἑαυτοῖς ἐγγράφουσιν, αὐτῆς καταγελᾷν ἡμῶν καὶ καταφρονεῖν ὡς ἀστάτου καὶ οὐδὲν ὑγιὲς ἐχούσης τῆς πίστεως, μεταβαίνοντες ἀπαιδεύτως ἀπὸ τῶν λεγόντων ἐπὶ τὸν λόγον· ὥσπερ ἂν εἴ τις τοὺς ὀφθαλ 35.452 μοὺς κακῶς διακείμενος, ἢ τὰ ὦτα διεφθαρμένος, κατηγοροίη τοῦ ἡλίου ἢ τῶν φωνῶν, τοῦ μὲν ὡς ἀμαυροῦ καὶ οὐ στίλβοντος, τῶν δὲ ὡς ἐκμελῶν καὶ ἀτόνων.