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of the perfect. For it is necessary not only to do the just act, but also to work from a just disposition; according to what was said, that You shall pursue what is just justly; 29.256 that is, to accomplish the act with the principle of justice. For example, a layman does something medical that brings benefit to the sick, but such a person did not do it medically, by not having any of the art accompanying the action. Therefore, walking blamelessly is the one who is perfect in mind; and working righteousness is the workman of the Lord who need not be ashamed, according to the voice of the Apostle. But pay attention to the precision of the language. It did not say, 'Having walked blamelessly,' but, 'Walking blamelessly'; nor, 'Having worked righteousness,' but, 'Working.' For not one action makes the virtuous person perfect, but it is fitting for the actions according to virtue to be extended throughout one's entire life. Speaking truth in his heart, who has not practiced deceit with his tongue. Again, here too, 'speaking truth in his heart' and 'not practicing deceit with his tongue' have the same relationship to each other as 'being blameless' had to 'working righteousness.' For just as there the word presents both the one who is perfect in secret and the one who prospers in practice, so also here, since what is spoken is from the abundance of the heart, flowing as if from a spring of the inner disposition of the word, it first spoke of the truth in the heart, then the guilelessness in the word that is enacted through the tongue. We shall find two meanings of truth: one is the comprehension of the things that lead to the blessed life, and the other is sound knowledge about any of the things of this life. Therefore, that truth, the helper of salvation being in the heart of the perfect one, one must hand down to one's neighbor without guile in all things; but in the matters of this life, if the virtuous person should happen to fall away from the truth, it will be no obstacle to him for the things set before him. For how many stadia of land or sea, and how many of the stars move, and how much one surpasses another in speed, if we do not know the truth in these matters, it will not hinder us at all from attaining the blessedness in the promises. Perhaps also the word presents something like this to us, that it is fitting to speak the things concerning truth, that is, the mystical things, not to everyone, but to one's neighbor; which means, not to reveal them to chance persons, but to those who have partaken of the mysteries. And if our Lord is the truth, let each of us have this truth impressed and, as it were, sealed in his own heart; concerning which, when we speak in our hearts to ourselves, let us not corrupt the word of the Gospel in proclaiming the message to our neighbors. Who has not practiced deceit with his tongue. In many places in Scripture, 29.257 deceit is slandered as an enemy of God. 'May the Lord,' it says, 'cut off all deceitful lips'; and, 'Deceit is in the heart of those who devise evil.' And everything better is said to be corrupted by the admixture of the worse, just as wine is corrupted when something worse is mixed with it, or water is blended with it; and gold is corrupted in combination with silver and bronze; so also truth is corrupted, when the more blasphemous are woven into the holy words. Nor did he do evil to his neighbor. Whom the word means by 'neighbor,' no one who has heard the Gospel doubts, in response to the one who asked, 'And who is my neighbor?' To whom the Lord told the parable of the man going down from Jerusalem to Jericho; whom he also asked, 'Which of these do you think proved to be a neighbor?' And he answered, 'The one who showed mercy on him.' For through these things he taught that every human being is to be considered a neighbor. And this too is difficult to achieve, and requires great care, not to harm one's neighbor in any small or great thing; not to harm in word; not to deprive of anything due; not to wish evil for him; not to use envy against the successes of one's neighbors. And he has not taken up a reproach against

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τε λειῶν. ∆εῖ γὰρ οὐ μόνον ποιεῖν τὴν δικαίαν πρᾶξιν, ἀλλὰ καὶ ἀπὸ διαθέσεως δικαίας ἐργάζεσθαι· κατὰ τὸ εἰρημένον, ὅτι ∆ικαίως τὸ δίκαιον διώξεις· 29.256 τουτέστι, μετὰ τοῦ λόγου τῆς δικαιοσύνης ἐπιτελεῖν τὴν πρᾶξιν. Οἷον ποιεῖ μὲν γάρ τι ἰατρικὸν πρὸς ὠφέλειαν φέρον τῶν ἀσθενούντων ὁ ἰδιώτης, ἀλλ' οὐχὶ καὶ ἰατρικῶς ἐποίησεν ὁ τοιοῦτος, τῷ μὴ ἔχειν τι τῆς τέχνης τῇ ἐνεργείᾳ συνεπόμε νον. Πορευόμενος οὖν ἄμωμος ὁ κατὰ νοῦν τέ λειος· ἐργαζόμενος δὲ δικαιοσύνην ὁ κατὰ τὴν τοῦ Ἀποστόλου φωνὴν ἀνεπαίσχυντος τοῦ Κυρίου ἐρ γάτης. Πρόσχες δὲ τῇ ἀκριβείᾳ τῆς λέξεως. Οὐκ εἶπε, Πορευθεὶς ἄμωμος, ἀλλὰ, Πορευόμενος ἄμωμος· οὐδὲ, Ἐργασάμενος δικαιοσύνην, ἀλλ', Ἐργαζόμενος. Οὐ γὰρ μία πρᾶξις τελειοῖ τὸν σπουδαῖον, ἀλλὰ παντὶ προσῆκε τῷ βίῳ τὰς κατ' ἀρετὴν ἐνεργείας συμπαρατείνεσθαι. Λαλῶν ἀλήθειαν ἐν καρδίᾳ αὐτοῦ, ὃς οὐκ ἐδόλωσεν ἐν γλώσσῃ αὐτοῦ. Πάλιν καὶ ἐνταῦθα τὴν αὐτὴν ἔχει κοινωνίαν πρὸς ἄλληλα τὸ λαλεῖν ἀλήθειαν ἐν καρδίᾳ, καὶ τὸ μὴ δολοῦν ἐν γλώσσῃ αὐτοῦ· ὁποίαν εἶχε τὸ εἶναι ἄμωμον πρὸς τὸ ἐργάζεσθαι δικαιοσύνην. Ὡς γὰρ ἐκεῖ καὶ τὸν ἐν κρυπτῷ τέλειον, καὶ τὸν ἐν τῷ πρακτικῷ εὐοδούμε νον ὁ λόγος παρίστησιν, οὕτω καὶ ἐνταῦθα, ἐπειδὴ τὸ λαλούμενον ἐκ τοῦ περισσεύματός ἐστι τῆς καρ δίας, οἷον ἀπὸ πηγῆς τῆς ἔνδον διαθέσεως τοῦ λόγου ῥέοντος, πρότερον εἶπε τὴν ἐν καρδίᾳ ἀλήθειαν, εἶτα τὸ ἐν τῷ λόγῳ ἄδολον τῷ διὰ τῆς γλώσσης ἐνεργουμέ νῳ. ∆ύο δὲ τὰ σημαινόμενα τῆς ἀληθείας εὑρήσομεν· ἓν μὲν τὴν περὶ τῶν πραγμάτων τῶν ἐπὶ τὸν μακά ριον βίον φερόντων κατάληψιν, ἕτερον δὲ τὴν περὶ οἱουδήποτε τῶν κατὰ τὸν βίον εἴδησιν ὑγιῆ. Ἐκείνην μὲν οὖν τὴν ἀλήθειαν, τὴν συνεργὸν τῆς σωτηρίας ἐν τῇ καρδίᾳ οὖσαν τοῦ τελείου, χρὴ ἀδόλως ἐν πᾶσι τῷ πλησίον παραδιδόναι· ἐν δὲ τοῖς κατὰ τὸν βίον πρά γμασιν, ἐάν που καὶ διαπίπτῃ τῆς ἀληθείας ὁ σπου δαῖος, οὐδὲν ἐμπόδιον αὐτῷ εἰς τὰ προκείμενα ἔσται. Πόσοι γὰρ στάδιοι γῆς ἢ θαλάσσης, καὶ πόσοι κι νοῦνται τῶν ἀστέρων, καὶ πόσον ἕτερος τοῦ ἑτέρου προέχει τῷ τάχει, ἐὰν μὴ εἰδῶμεν τὴν ἐν τούτοις ἀλήθειαν, οὐδὲν ἡμῖν ἐμποδίσει πρὸς τὸ ἐπιτυχεῖν τῆς ἐν ἐπαγγελίαις μακαριότητος. Τάχα δέ τι καὶ τοιοῦτον ἡμῖν ὁ λόγος παρίστησιν, ὅτι τὰ περὶ ἀλη θείας, τουτέστι, τὰ μυστικὰ, λαλεῖν προσῆκεν οὐ παντὶ, ἀλλὰ τῷ πλησίον· ἀντὶ τοῦ, οὐκ εἰς τοὺς τυ χόντας ἐκφαίνειν, ἀλλὰ τοὺς κεκοινωνηκότας τῶν μυστηρίων. Εἰ δὲ ἀλήθεια ὁ Κύριος ἡμῶν ἐστιν, ἐντετυπωμένην καὶ οἱονεὶ ἐσφραγισμένην τῇ ἑαυτοῦ καρδίᾳ ταύτην τὴν ἀλήθειαν ἕκαστος ἔχωμεν· περὶ ἧς λαλοῦντες ἐν ταῖς καρδίαις ἑαυτοῖς, μὴ δολῶμεν τὸν λόγον τοῦ Εὐαγγελίου ἐν τῷ ἀναγγέλλειν τοῖς πλησίον ἡμῶν τὸ κήρυγμα. Ὃς οὐκ ἐδόλωσεν ἐν γλώσσῃ αὐτοῦ. Πολλαχοῦ ὡς ἐχθρὸς τοῦ Θεοῦ ὁ 29.257 δόλος ἐν τῇ Γραφῇ διαβέβληται. Ἐξολοθρεύσαι, φη σὶ, Κύριος πάντα τὰ χείλη τὰ δόλια· καὶ, ∆όλος ἐν καρδίᾳ τεκταινομένων κακά. Πᾶν δὲ τὸ κρεῖττον ἐν τῇ τοῦ χείρονος ἐπιμιξίᾳ δολοῦσθαι λέγεται, ὡς οἶνος δολοῦται τῷ χείρονα αὐτῷ πα ραμίγνυσθαι, ἢ τὸ ὕδωρ αὐτῷ παρακίρνασθαι· καὶ χρυσὸς δολοῦται ἐν τῇ πρὸς ἄργυρον καὶ χαλκὸν κοινωνίᾳ· οὕτω καὶ ἀλήθεια δολοῦται, τοῖς ἁγίοις λόγοις τῶν δυσφημοτέρων παραπλακέντων. Οὐδὲ ἐποίησε τῷ πλησίον αὐτοῦ κακόν. Τίνα λέγει τὸν πλησίον ὁ λόγος, οὐδεὶς ἀμφιβάλλει τῶν ἀκουσάντων τοῦ Εὐαγγελίου πρὸς τὸν ἐρωτήσαντα· Καὶ τίς ἐστί μου πλησίον; Ὧ ὁ Κύριος εἶπε τὴν παραβολὴν τοῦ ἀπὸ Ἱερουσαλὴμ καταβαίνοντος εἰς Ἱεριχώ· ὃν καὶ ἠρώτησε· Τίς τούτων δοκεῖ σοι γεγονέναι πλησίον; Κἀκεῖνος ἀπεκρίνατο, Ὁ ποιή σας τὸ ἔλεος μετ' αὐτοῦ. Ἐδίδαξε γὰρ διὰ τού των πάντα ἄνθρωπον ἡγεῖσθαι πλησίον. ∆υσκατόρ θωτον δὲ καὶ τοῦτο, καὶ πολλῆς δεόμενον ἐπιμελείας, μήτε μικρῷ τινι, μήτε μείζονι καταβλάπτειν τὸν πλησίον· μὴ ἐν ῥήματι βλάψαι· μὴ ἀποστερῆ σαί τι τῶν καθηκόντων· μὴ βουληθῆναι αὐτῷ πο νηρόν· μὴ βασκανίᾳ χρήσασθαι πρὸς τὰς εὐπρα γίας τῶν πέλας. Καὶ ὀνειδισμὸν οὐκ ἔλαβεν ἐπὶ