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The sun shone out, and behold, I see a very great beast like a certain sea-monster, and from its mouth fiery locusts were coming forth. The beast was in length about 100 feet, and it had a head like an earthen vessel. And I began to weep and to ask the Lord that He might deliver me from it. And I remembered the word which I had heard: 'Do not be double-minded, Hermas.' Therefore, having put on, brothers, the faith of the Lord and remembering the mighty things which he had taught me, taking courage, I gave myself to the beast. And the beast came on with such a rush that it could have destroyed a city. I come near it, and the great sea-monster stretches itself out on the ground and put forth nothing but its tongue, and did not move at all until I had passed it. And the beast had four colors on its head: black, then fiery and blood-red, then golden, then white. And after I had passed the beast and gone forward about 30 feet, behold, a virgin meets me, adorned as if coming forth from a bridal chamber, all in white and with white sandals, veiled down to her forehead, and her head covering was a turban; and her hair was white. I knew from the former visions that it was the Church, and I became more cheerful. She greets me, saying: 'Hail, O man.' And I greeted her in return: 'Lady, hail.' Answering, she says to me: 'Did nothing meet you?' I say to her: 'Lady, so great a beast, able to destroy peoples; but by the power of the Lord and by his great mercy I escaped it.' 'You escaped well,' she says, 'because you cast your care upon God and opened your heart to the Lord, believing that you can be saved by nothing else but by the great and glorious name. For this reason the Lord sent his angel who is over the beasts, whose name is Thegri, and shut its mouth, that it might not harm you. You have escaped a great tribulation because of your faith, and because, seeing so great a beast, you did not become double-minded. Go, therefore, and declare to the elect of the Lord his mighty deeds, and tell them that this beast is a type of the great tribulation that is to come. If, therefore, you prepare yourselves and repent with your whole heart toward the Lord, you will be able to escape it, if your heart becomes pure and blameless, and you serve the Lord blamelessly the remaining days of your life. Cast your cares upon the Lord, and he will set them right. Believe in the Lord, you double-minded, that he can do all things and turns away his wrath from you and sends scourges upon you, the double-minded. Woe to those who hear these words and disobey; it were better for them not to have been born.' I asked her about the four colors which the beast had on its head. And she answering says to me: 'Again you are curious about such things.' 'Yes,' I say, 'Lady; make known to me what these things are.' 'Listen,' she says. 'The black is this world in which you dwell; the fiery and blood-red means that this world must be destroyed by blood and fire; the golden part is you who have escaped this world. For just as gold is tested by fire and becomes useful, so also are you tested, you who dwell in them. You, therefore, who remain and are tried by fire by them will be purified. Just as gold casts off its dross, so also you will cast off all sorrow and

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ἐξέλαμψεν ὁ ἥλιος, καὶ ἰδοὺ βλέπω θηρίον μέγιστον ὡσεὶ κῆτός τι, καὶ ἐκ τοῦ στόματος αὐτοῦ ἀκρίδες πύριναι ἐξεπορεύοντο. ἦν δὲ τὸ θηρίον τῷ μήκει ὡσεὶ ποδῶν ρ, τὴν δὲ κεφαλὴν εἶχεν ὡσεὶ κεράμου. καὶ ἠρξάμην κλαίειν καὶ ἐρωτᾶν τὸν κύριον ἵνα με λυτρώσηται ἐξ αὐτοῦ. καὶ ἐπανεμνήσθην τοῦ ·»ματος οὗ ἀκηκόειν· Μὴ διψυχήσεις, Ἑρμᾶ. ἐνδυσάμενος οὖν, ἀδελφοί, τὴν πίστιν τοῦ κυρίου καὶ μνησθεὶς ὧν ἐδίδαξέν με μεγαλείων, θαρ σήσας εἰς τὸ θηρίον ἐμαυτὸν ἔδωκα. οὕτω δὲ ἤρχετο τὸ θηρίον ·οίζῳ, ὥστε δύνασθαι αὐτὸ πόλιν λυμᾶναι. ἔρχομαι ἐγγὺς αὐτοῦ, καὶ τὸ τηλικοῦτο κῆτος ἐκτείνει ἑαυτὸ χαμαὶ καὶ οὐδὲν εἰ μὴ τὴν γλῶσσαν προέβαλλεν, καὶ ὅλως οὐκ ἐκινήθη μέχρις ὅτε παρῆλθον αὐτό· εἶχεν δὲ τὸ θηρίον ἐπὶ τῆς κεφαλῆς χρώματα τέσσερα· μέλαν, εἶτα πυροειδὲς καὶ αἱματῶδες, εἶτα χρυ σοῦν, εἶτα λευκόν. Μετὰ δὲ τὸ παρελθεῖν με τὸ θηρίον καὶ προελθεῖν ὡσεὶ πόδας λ, ἰδοὺ ὑπαντᾷ μοι παρθένος κεκοσμημένη ὡς ἐκ νυμφῶνος ἐκπορευομένη, ὅλη ἐν λευκοῖς καὶ ὑποδήμασιν λευκοῖς, κατακεκαλυμμένη ἕως τοῦ μετώπου, ἐν μίτρᾳ δὲ ἦν ἡ κατακάλυψις αὐτῆς· εἶχεν δὲ τὰς τρίχας αὐτῆς λευκάς. ἔγνων ἐγὼ ἐκ τῶν προτέρων ὁραμάτων ὅτι ἡ Ἐκκλησία ἐστίν, καὶ ἱλαρώ τερος ἐγενόμην. ἀσπάζεταί με λέγουσα· Χαῖρε σύ, ἄνθρωπε· καὶ ἐγὼ αὐτὴν ἀντησπασάμην· Κυρία, χαῖρε· ἀποκριθεῖσά μοι λέγει· Oὐδέν σοι ἀπήντησεν; λέγω αὐτῇ· Κυρία, τηλικοῦτο θηρίον, δυνάμενον λαοὺς διαφθεῖραι· ἀλλὰ τῇ δυνάμει τοῦ κυρίου καὶ τῇ πολυσπλαγχνίᾳ αὐτοῦ ἐξέφυ γον αὐτό. Καλῶς ἐξέφυγες, φησίν, ὅτι τὴν μέριμνάν σου ἐπὶ τὸν θεὸν ἐπέριψας καὶ τὴν καρδίαν σου ἤνοιξας πρὸς τὸν κύριον, πιστεύσας ὅτι δι' οὐδενὸς δύνῃ σωθῆναι εἰ μὴ διὰ τοῦ μεγάλου καὶ ἐνδόξου ὀνόματος. διὰ τοῦτο ὁ κύριος ἀπέστειλεν τὸν ἄγγελον αὐτοῦ τὸν ἐπὶ τῶν θηρίων ὄντα, οὗ τὸ ὄνομά ἐστιν Θεγρί, καὶ ἐνέφραξεν τὸ στόμα αὐτοῦ, ἵνα μή σε λυμάνῃ. με γάλην θλῖψιν ἐκπέφευγας διὰ τὴν πίστιν σου, καὶ ὅτι τηλικοῦτο θηρίον ἰδὼν οὐκ ἐδιψύχησας· ὕπαγε οὖν καὶ ἐξήγησαι τοῖς ἐκλεκτοῖς τοῦ κυρίου τὰ μεγαλεῖα αὐτοῦ, καὶ εἰπὲ αὐτοῖς ὅτι τὸ θηρίον τοῦτο τύπος ἐστὶν θλί ψεως τῆς μελλούσης τῆς μεγάλης· ἐὰν οὖν προετοιμάσησθε καὶ μετα νοήσητε ἐξ ὅλης καρδίας ὑμῶν πρὸς τὸν κύριον, δυνήσεσθε ἐκφυγεῖν αὐτήν, ἐὰν ἡ καρδία ὑμῶν γένηται καθαρὰ καὶ ἄμωμος, καὶ τὰς λοιπὰς τῆς ζωῆς ἡμέρας ὑμῶν δουλεύσητε τῷ κυρίῳ ἀμέμπτως. ἐπιρίψατε τὰς μερίμνας ὑμῶν ἐπὶ τὸν κύριον, καὶ αὐτὸς κατορθώσει αὐτάς. πιστεύσατε τῷ κυρίῳ, οἱ δίψυχοι, ὅτι πάντα δύναται καὶ ἀποστρέφει τὴν ὀργὴν αὐτοῦ ἀφ' ὑμῶν καὶ ἐξαποστέλλει μάστιγας ὑμῖν τοῖς διψύχοις. οὐαὶ τοῖς ἀκού σασιν τὰ ·»ματα ταῦτα καὶ παρακούσασιν· αἱρετώτερον ἦν αὐτοῖς τὸ μὴ γεννηθῆναι. Ἠρώτησα αὐτὴν περὶ τῶν τεσσάρων χρωμάτων ὧν εἶχεν τὸ θηρίον εἰς τὴν κεφαλήν. ἡ δὲ ἀποκριθεῖσά μοι λέγει· Πάλιν περίεργος εἶ περὶ τοιού των πραγμάτων. Ναί, φημί, κυρία· γνώρισόν μοι τί ἐστιν ταῦτα. Ἄκουε, φησίν· τὸ μὲν μέλαν οὗτος ὁ κόσμος ἐστίν, ἐν ᾧ κατοικεῖτε· τὸ δὲ πυρο ειδὲς καὶ αἱματῶδες, ὅτι δεῖ τὸν κόσμον τοῦτον δι' αἵματος καὶ πυρὸς ἀπόλ λυσθαι· τὸ δὲ χρυσοῦν μέρος ὑμεῖς ἐστε οἱ ἐκφυγόντες τὸν κόσμον τοῦ τον. ὥσπερ γὰρ τὸ χρυσίον δοκιμάζεται διὰ τοῦ πυρὸς καὶ εὔχρηστον γίνεται, οὕτως καὶ ὑμεῖς δοκιμάζεσθε οἱ κατοικοῦντες ἐν αὐτοῖς. οἱ οὖν μεί ναντες καὶ πυρωθέντες ὑπ' αὐτῶν καθαρισθήσεσθε. ὥσπερ τὸ χρυσίον ἀπο βάλλει τὴν σκωρίαν αὐτοῦ, οὕτω καὶ ὑμεῖς ἀποβαλεῖτε πᾶσαν λύπην καὶ