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the Lord the sinner. But this is the impious man who is arrogant and is praised in his own desires. And he has provoked the Lord to such an extent that his wrath has become intense, which he himself has stored up for himself according to what was said, According to your hardness and impenitent heart you are treasuring up for yourself wrath in the day of wrath. Nevertheless, even if the wrath stored up by him is great, yet there will not be an inquiry according to its multitude and magnitude on the day of judgment, because of the goodness of God the judge. For if an inquiry were made according to the multitude of the wrath, the evil would be utterly destroyed at once. Seeing this very thing, they say to the one who shows goodness, If you, O Lord, should mark iniquities, O Lord, who shall stand? And the pretext for the sinner provoking the Lord is not having him before his eyes and in his presence, since he has turned away from God. For everyone who sins does this; wherefore God says concerning everyone of this kind, They have turned to me their backs and not their faces. Cain, having become the father of this impiety, went out from the presence of the Lord God, clearly having turned away from him. If these things are said about sinful men, how much more also about the devil who provoked God and does not have him in his presence. For especially the following words are said about him: His ways are profaned at all times. For what man's ways are profaned at all times, since the impious fittingly accomplish many things many times? And he walks profanely, not only leading men into blameworthy actions, but also defining a lack of providence. For he persuaded many to teach that the world is without a guardian, having himself first fallen away from the right opinion concerning God's administration and judgment. This is shown from what is said by God concerning him, Your judgments are taken away from his sight, he will lord it over all his enemies, not as if he will have this in every case, but because he has proposed this to himself; for it is a falsehood that he is or will become lord of all his enemies. For his enemies are especially those who are perfect in holiness, over none of whom he reigns. But he lords it over only those who commit sin; for it has been said, Everyone who commits sin is a slave to sin. And the slave of sin is lorded over by the devil who has worked sin in him. And according to the insatiability of his wickedness is what is brought in next: For he said, it says, 'I shall not be moved from generation to generation without evil.' The saying of his arrogance shows at once audacity and shamelessness. Paying attention to this utterance, one will interpret "He will lord it over all his enemies" to have been said concerning only those men who have become his enemies. For if he said in his heart that he would never be shaken from generation to generation without evil, it is clear that it is said concerning only men, who have their being in succession. Nevertheless, this is not entirely true; for he did not lord it over the holy patriarchs and prophets and apostles; for rather they had him under their feet, Jesus having granted this authority. 67Ps 9,28 He who has fallen from his holiness, having led himself far from the truth and blessing, has his mouth full of cursing, through which things he speaks, trying to bring the deceived under punishment and a curse. And his word, along with being deceitful, has great cleverness; wherefore along with the curse, his word is full of bitterness and deceit, being called his mouth. And since he utters each of these things to harm and to destroy, under his tongue, which is the deceitful word, there are toil and trouble; for he utters nothing gentle or good, but whatever causes trouble and toil. 68Ps 9,29-32 Being harmful in all things and proposing to be the cause of destruction, he selects men who seem to be rich in speech (having a falsely called knowledge), and sitting with them secretly in order to conceal who he is, he tries to lie in wait, that the innocent

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κύριον ὁ ἁμαρτωλός. ουτος δ' ἐστὶν ὁ ὑπερηφανευόμενος ἀσεβὴς καὶ ἐπὶ ταῖς ἐπιθυμίαις ἑαυτοῦ ἐπαινούμενος. εἰς τοσοῦτον δὲ παρώξυνεν τὸν κύριον ὡς ἐπιτεταμένην τὴν ὀργὴν γενέσθαι, ην αὐτὸς ἑαυτῷ ἐθησαύρισεν κατὰ τὸ λεχθὲν Κατὰ τὴν σκληρότητά σου καὶ ἀμετανόητον καρδίαν θησαυρίζεις σεαυτῷ ὀργὴν ἐν ἡμέρᾳ ὀργῆς. Πλὴν εἰ καὶ πολλὴ ἡ θησαυρισθεῖσα ὑπ' αὐτοῦ ὀργή, ἀλλά γε οὐκ εσται κατὰ τὸ πλῆθος καὶ μέγεθος αὐτῆς ἐκζήτησις ἐν ἡμέρᾳ κρίσεως δι' ἀγαθότητα τοῦ κρίνοντος θεοῦ. εἰ γὰρ ἐκζήτησις κατὰ τὸ πλῆθος τῆς ὀργῆς ἐγίνετο, αρδην ἀπώλλυντο καὶ παρ' αὐτὰ οἱ κακοί. τοῦτ' αὐτὸ θεωρήσαντες τῷ ἀγαθότητα ἐνδεικνυμένῳ φασὶν ̓Εὰν ἀνομίας παρατηρήσῃ, κύριε, κύριε, τίς ὑποστήσεται; Πρόφασις δὲ τοῦ παροξύναι τὸν ἁμαρτωλὸν τὸν κύριόν ἐστιν τὸ μὴ πρὸ ὀφθαλμῶν καὶ ἐνώπιον αὐτὸν εχειν, ἐπείπερ ἀπεστράφη θεόν. πᾶς γὰρ ἁμαρτάνων τοῦτο πράττει· διό φησιν ὁ θεὸς περὶ παντὸς τοιούτου Εστρεψαν ἐπ' ἐμὲ νῶτα αὐτῶν καὶ οὐχὶ πρόσωπα. ταύτης τῆς ἀσεβείας ὁ Κάϊν πατὴρ γεγονὼς ̓Εξῆλθεν ἀπὸ προσώπου κυρίου τοῦ θεοῦ ἀποστραφεὶς αὐτὸν δηλονότι. Εἰ περὶ ἀνθρώπων ἁμαρτωλῶν λέγεται ταῦτα, πολλῷ μᾶλλον καὶ περὶ διαβόλου παροξύναντος τὸν θεὸν καὶ οὐκ εχοντος αὐτὸν ἐνώπιον αὐτοῦ. μάλιστα γὰρ αἱ ἑπόμεναι λέξεις περὶ αὐτοῦ λέγονται· Βεβηλοῦνται αἱ ὁδοὶ αὐτοῦ ἐν παντὶ καιρῷ. τίνος γὰρ ἀνθρώπου Βεβηλοῦνται αἱ ὁδοὶ ἐν παντὶ καιρῷ, τῶν ἀσεβῶν καθηκόντως πολλὰ πολλάκις ἐπιτελούντων; βαδίζει δὲ βεβήλως οὐκ εἰς μόνας πράξεις ἐπιλήπτους αγων τοὺς ἀνθρώπους, ἀλλὰ καὶ ἀπρονοησίαν ὁρίζων. πολλοὺς γοῦν επεισεν ἀπροστασίαστον τὸν κόσμον δογματίσαι, πρότερον αὐτὸς ἐκπεσὼν τῆς ὀρθῆς περὶ διοικήσεως θεοῦ καὶ κρίσεως γνώμης. παρίσταται τοῦτο ἐκ τοῦ λεγομένου τῷ θεῷ περὶ αὐτοῦ ̓Ανταναιρεῖται τὰ κρίματά σου ἀπὸ προσώπου αὐτοῦ, πάντων τῶν ἐχθρῶν αὐτοῦ κατακυριεύσει, οὐχ ὡς πάντως τοῦτο σχήσοντος, ἀλλὰ διὰ τὸ αὐτὸν τοῦτο προτεθεῖσθαι· ψεῦδος γὰρ τὸ κύριον αὐτὸν Πάντων τῶν ἐχθρῶν αὐτοῦ ειναι η γενήσεσθαι. μάλιστα γὰρ ἐχθροὶ αὐτοῦ εἰσιν οἱ ἐν ἁγιότητι τέλειοι ων οὐδενὸς βασιλεύει. μόνων δὲ τῶν ποιούντων τὴν ἁμαρτίαν κατακυριεύει· ειρηται γὰρ Πᾶς ὁ ποιῶν τὴν ἁμαρτίαν δοῦλός ἐστιν τῆς ἁμαρτίας. ὁ δὲ δοῦλος τῆς ἁμαρτίας κατακυριεύεται ὑπὸ τοῦ διαβόλου τοῦ ἐνεργήσαντος ἐν αὐτῷ τὴν ἁμαρτίαν. Κατὰ δὲ τὸ ἀκόρεστον τῆς κακίας αὐτοῦ ἐστιν τὸ ἑξῆς ἐπιφερόμενον· Ειπεν γάρ, φησίν, Οὐ μὴ σαλευθῶ ἀπὸ γενεᾶς εἰς γενεὰν ανευ κακοῦ. δηλοῖ τὸ ῥῆμα τῆς ἀλαζονείας αὐτοῦ θράσος ὁμοῦ καὶ ἀναισχυντίαν. Ταύτῃ τῇ φωνῇ ἐπιστήσας τις ἑρμηνεύσει περὶ μόνων τῶν ἀνθρώπων ἐχθρῶν αὐτοῦ γεναμένων εἰρῆσθαι Πάντων τῶν ἐχθρῶν αὐτοῦ κατακυριεύσει. εἰ γὰρ ἀπὸ γενεᾶς εἰς γενεὰν ειπεν ἐν τῇ καρδίᾳ ανευ κακοῦ μηδεπώποτε κεκλονῆσθαι, φανερὸν ὡς περὶ τῶν κατὰ διαδοχὴν ἐχόντων τὸ ειναι μόνων ἀνθρώπων ειρηται. πλὴν οὐδὲ τοῦτο πάντως ἀληθές· τῶν γὰρ ἁγίων πατριαρχῶν καὶ προφητῶν καὶ ἀποστόλων οὐκ ἐκυρίευσεν· μᾶλλον γὰρ αὐτοὶ αὐτὸν ὑπὸ πόδας εσχον τοῦ ̓Ιησοῦ τὴν ἐξουσίαν ταύτην ὀρέξαντος. 67Ps 9,28 ̔Ο τῆς ἁγιότητος αὐτοῦ ἐκπεσών, τῆς ἀληθείας καὶ εὐλογίας πόρρω ἑαυτὸν ἀπαγαγών, τὸ στόμα πλῆρες εχει ἀρᾶς δι' ων λέγει πειρώμενος ὑπὸ κόλασιν καὶ ἀρὰν ποιεῖν τοὺς ἀπατωμένους. εχει δὲ αὐτοῦ ὁ λόγος σὺν τῷ δολερῷ πολλὴν δεινότητα· διὸ σὺν τῇ ἀρᾷ καὶ πικρίας καὶ δόλου ὁ λόγος αὐτοῦ πλήρης ἐστίν, στόμα αὐτοῦ καλούμενος. καὶ ἐπεὶ τούτων εκαστον ἐπὶ τὸ βλάψαι καὶ ἀπολέσαι προφέρει ὑπὸ τὴν γλῶσσαν αὐτοῦ, αὐτὴ δὲ ὁ λόγος ὁ δολερός ἐστιν, πόνος καὶ κόπος ὑπάρχει· οὐδὲν γὰρ προσηνὲς η χρηστόν, ἀλλ' ει τι κόπον καὶ πόνον ἐμποιῶν προφέρει. 68Ps 9,29-32 ∆ιὰ πάντων βλαπτικὸς καὶ ἀπωλείας προθέμενος ειναι αιτιος, ἐπιλέγεται δοκοῦντας ειναι πλουσίους ἐν λόγῳ (ψευδώνυμον γνῶσιν εχοντας) ἀνθρώπους, καὶ σὺν αὐτοῖς καθεζόμενος κεκρυμμένως ἐπὶ τῷ λανθάνειν τίς ἐστιν ἐνεδρεύειν πειρᾶται, ινα ἀθῷον