10

those into despondency, and you did not cast your cares upon the Lord; but your mind was broken, and you grew old in your griefs. Why then did she sit on a chair, I wished to know, Lord. Because every weak person sits on a chair on account of his weakness, so that the weakness of his body may be supported. You have the symbol of the first vision. But in the second vision you saw her standing and having a younger and more cheerful appearance than before, but her flesh and hair were older. Listen, he says, also to this parable. When a certain old man, having already despaired of himself on account of his weakness and his poverty, expects nothing else but the last day of his life; then suddenly an inheritance was left to him, and having heard of it he was aroused and, becoming overjoyed, put on strength, and no longer reclines, but stands, and his spirit, already ruined by his former deeds, is renewed, and he no longer sits, but acts manfully; so also you, having heard the revelation which the Lord revealed to you, because he had compassion on you and renewed your spirits, and you put away your weaknesses, and strength came to you and you were made strong in the faith, and the Lord, seeing your strength, rejoiced; and for this reason he showed you the building of the tower, and he will show you other things, if you are at peace among yourselves with your whole heart. But in the third vision you saw her younger and beautiful and cheerful and fair in her form; for as if to someone who is grieving some good news should come, immediately he has forgotten his former griefs and expects nothing else but the news which he has heard, and is henceforth strengthened for what is good, and his spirit is renewed on account of the joy which he received; so also you have received a renewal of your spirits on seeing these good things. And that you saw her sitting on a bench, the position is strong; because the bench has four feet and stands firmly; for the world also is held together by four elements. Those, therefore, who have repented completely will be new and well-founded, those who have repented with their whole heart. You have the revelation completely; no longer ask anything concerning revelation; but if anything should be necessary, it will be revealed to you. The fourth vision which I saw, brethren, after twenty days from the former vision that had occurred, as a type of the tribulation that is to come. I was going into the country by the Campanian way. From the public road it is about ten stadia; and the place is easily traveled. Walking alone, therefore, I ask the Lord that he would complete the revelations and visions which he showed me through his holy Church, that he might strengthen me and give repentance to his servants who have been offended, that his great and glorious name might be glorified, because he considered me worthy to show me his wonders. And as I was glorifying and giving thanks to him, something like the sound of a voice answered me: Do not be double-minded, Hermas. Within myself I began to reason and say: What reason have I to be double-minded, being so well-founded by the Lord and having seen glorious things? And I went forward a little, brethren, and behold, I see a cloud of dust as if to the sky, and I began to say within myself: Are cattle perhaps coming and raising a cloud of dust? And it was about a stadium's distance from me. As the cloud of dust became greater and greater, I suspected it to be something divine; a little

10

τοὺς εἰς τὰς ἀκηδίας καὶ οὐκ ἐπερίψατε ἑαυτῶν τὰς μερίμνας ἐπὶ τὸν κύριον· ἀλλὰ ἐθραύσθη ὑμῶν ἡ διάνοια, καὶ ἐπαλαιώθητε ταῖς λύπαις ὑμῶν. ∆ιατί οὖν ἐν καθέδρᾳ ἐκάθητο, ἤθελον γνῶναι, κύριε. Ὅτι πᾶς ἀσθενὴς εἰς καθέ δραν καθέζεται διὰ τὴν ἀσθένειαν αὐτοῦ, ἵνα συνκρατηθῇ ἡ ἀσθένεια τοῦ σώματος αὐτοῦ. ἔχεις τὸν τύπον τῆς πρώτης ὁράσεως. Τῇ δὲ δευτέρᾳ ὁράσει εἶδες αὐτὴν ἑστηκυῖαν καὶ τὴν ὄψιν νεωτέραν ἔχου σαν καὶ ἱλαρωτέραν παρὰ τὸ πρότερον, τὴν δὲ σάρκα καὶ τὰς τρίχας πρεσ βυτέρας. ἄκουε, φησίν, καὶ ταύτην τὴν παραβολήν. ὅταν πρεσβύτερός τις, ἤδη ἀφηλπικὼς ἑαυτὸν διὰ τὴν ἀσθένειαν αὐτοῦ καὶ τὴν πτωχότητα, οὐδὲν ἕτερον προσδέχεται εἰ μὴ τὴν ἐσχάτην ἡμέραν τῆς ζωῆς αὐτοῦ· εἶτα ἐξαίφ νης κατελείφθη αὐτῷ κληρονομία, ἀκούσας δὲ ἐξηγέρθη καὶ περιχαρὴς γενόμενος ἐνεδύσατο τὴν ἰσχύν, καὶ οὐκέτι ἀνάκειται, ἀλλὰ ἕστηκεν, καὶ ἀνανεοῦται αὐτοῦ τὸ πνεῦμα τὸ ἤδη ἐφθαρμένον ἀπὸ τῶν προτέρων αὐτοῦ πράξεων, καὶ οὐκέτι κάθηται, ἀλλὰ ἀνδρίζεται· οὕτως καὶ ὑμεῖς, ἀκού σαντες τὴν ἀποκάλυψιν, ἣν ὑμῖν ὁ κύριος ἀπεκάλυψεν, ὅτι ἐσπλαγχνίσθη ἐφ' ὑμᾶς καὶ ἀνενεώσατο τὰ πνεύματα ὑμῶν, καὶ ἀπέθεσθε τὰς μαλακίας ὑμῶν, καὶ προσῆλθεν ὑμῖν ἰσχυρότης καὶ ἐνεδυναμώθητε ἐν τῇ πίστει, καὶ ἰδὼν ὁ κύριος τὴν ἰσχυροποίησιν ὑμῶν ἐχάρη· καὶ διὰ τοῦτο ἐδήλωσεν ὑμῖν τὴν οἰκοδομὴν τοῦ πύργου, καὶ ἕτερα δηλώσει, ἐὰν ἐξ ὅλης καρδίας εἰ ρηνεύετε ἐν ἑαυτοῖς. Τῇ δὲ τρίτῃ ὁράσει εἶδες αὐτὴν νεωτέραν καὶ καλὴν καὶ ἱλαρὰν καὶ κα λὴν τὴν μορφὴν αὐτῆς· ὡς ἐὰν γάρ τινι λυπουμένῳ ἔλθῃ ἀγγελία ἀγαθή τις, εὐθὺς ἐπελάθετο τῶν προτέρων λυπῶν καὶ οὐδὲν ἄλλο προσδέχεται εἰ μὴ τὴν ἀγγελίαν ἣν ἤκουσεν, καὶ ἰσχυροποιεῖται λοιπὸν εἰς τὸ ἀγαθόν, καὶ ἀνανεοῦται αὐτοῦ τὸ πνεῦμα διὰ τὴν χαρὰν ἣν ἔλαβεν· οὕτως καὶ ὑμεῖς ἀνανέω σιν εἰλήφατε τῶν πνευμάτων ὑμῶν ἰδόντες ταῦτα τὰ ἀγαθά. καὶ ὅτι ἐπὶ συμψελίου εἶδες καθημένην, ἰσχυρὰ ἡ θέσις· ὅτι τέσσαρας πόδας ἔχει τὸ συμψέλιον καὶ ἰσχυρῶς ἕστηκεν· καὶ γὰρ ὁ κόσμος διὰ τεσσάρων στοι χείων κρατεῖται. οἱ οὖν μετανοήσαντες ὁλοτελῶς νέοι ἔσονται καὶ τε θεμελιωμένοι, οἱ ἐξ ὅλης καρδίας μετανοήσαντες. ἀπέχεις ὁλοτελῆ τὴν ἀποκάλυψιν· μηκέτι μηδὲν αἰτήσεις περὶ ἀποκαλύψεως· ἐάν τι δὲ δέῃ, ἀπο καλυφθήσεταί σοι. Ὅρασις δ ἣν εἶδον, ἀδελφοί, μετὰ ἡμέρας εἴκοσι τῆς προτέρας ὁράσεως τῆς γενο μένης, εἰς τύπον τῆς θλίψεως τῆς ἐπερχομένης. ὑπῆγον εἰς ἀγρὸν τῇ ὁδῷ τῇ Καμπανῇ. ἀπὸ τῆς ὁδοῦ τῆς δημοσίας ἐστὶν ὡσεὶ στάδια δέκα· ·α δίως δὲ ὁδεύεται ὁ τόπος. μόνος οὖν περιπατῶν ἀξιῶ τὸν κύριον ἵνα τὰς ἀποκαλύψεις καὶ τὰ ὁράματα ἅ μοι ἔδειξεν διὰ τῆς ἁγίας Ἐκκλησίας αὐτοῦ τελειώσῃ, ἵνα με ἰσχυροποιήσῃ καὶ δῷ τὴν μετάνοιαν τοῖς δούλοις αὐ τοῦ τοῖς ἐσκανδαλισμένοις, ἵνα δοξασθῇ τὸ ὄνομα αὐτοῦ τὸ μέγα καὶ ἔν δοξον, ὅτι με ἄξιον ἡγήσατο τοῦ δεῖξαί μοι τὰ θαυμάσια αὐτοῦ. καὶ δοξά ζοντός μου καὶ εὐχαριστοῦντος αὐτῷ, ὡς ἦχος φωνῆς μοι ἀπεκρίθη· Μὴ διψυχήσεις, Ἑρμᾶ. ἐν ἐμαυτῷ ἠρξάμην διαλογίζεσθαι καὶ λέγειν· Ἐγὼ τί ἔχω διψυχῆσαι οὕτω τεθεμελιωμένος ὑπὸ τοῦ κυρίου καὶ ἰδὼν ἔνδοξα πράγματα; καὶ προσέβην μικρόν, ἀδελφοί, καὶ ἰδοὺ βλέπω κονιορτὸν ὡς εἰς τὸν οὐρανόν, καὶ ἠρξάμην λέγειν ἐν ἐμαυτῷ· Μήποτε κτήνη ἔρχον ται καὶ κονιορτὸν ἐγείρουσιν; οὕτω δὲ ἦν ἀπ' ἐμοῦ ὡς ἀπὸ σταδίου. γινο μένου μείζονος καὶ μείζονος κονιορτοῦ ὑπενόησα εἶναί τι θεῖον· μικρὸν