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it is indeed pre-existent according to the first creation, but it appears and is made known then, when, having sufficiently accustomed ourselves to the higher life through attention and care, we strip for action against the stronger of the athletes. 2.45 But so that riddles may not be solved for us by means of a riddle, I will set forth more plainly the thought concerning this. There is a certain account, having its credibility from patristic tradition, which says that when our nature had fallen into sin, God did not overlook our fall without providence, but appointed some angel, of those allotted an incorporeal nature, as an ally for the life of each person, and that from the opposite side the destroyer of nature contrived the same thing, through a certain wicked and evil-doing demon, bringing ruin to the life of man, 2.46 and that man, being in the middle of the two, each of the attendants having an aim opposite to the other, makes one more powerful than the other through himself, the good one showing beforehand to the thoughts the goods of virtue, as many as are seen through hope by those who succeed, and the other showing the material pleasures, from which there is no hope of good things, but the present, and that which is partaken of and seen, enslaves the senses of the foolish. 2.47 If, then, someone should be alienated from the things that entice to evil, having turned his thoughts to what is better, and should, as it were, put wickedness behind his back, setting his own soul, like a mirror, face to face with the hope of good things, so as to impress the images and appearances of the virtue shown to him from God on the pure part of his own soul, then the alliance of the brother meets and joins him. For the angel is in a way a brother with respect to the rational and intellectual part of the human soul, who then, as has been said, appears and stands by, whenever we draw near to Pharaoh. 2.48 But let no one, thinking that the exposition of the history is entirely set beside the train of such a spiritual contemplation, if anywhere something of what is written should be found outside this thought, reject the whole on account of that; but let him always remember the aim of our discourses, looking to which we go through these things, having said right in the proems that the lives of reputable men are set forth as a model of virtue for those who follow. 2.49 Since, therefore, it is not possible for those who emulate their deeds to come through the very matter of the events (for how could there be found again the people from the migration multiplying in Egypt, and again the enslaving tyrant who is hostile to the male offspring, but increases the softer and weaker to a multitude, and all the other things that the account contains), since, therefore, it has been shown impossible to imitate the wonders of the blessed through the events themselves, the possible things from the material sequence should be adapted for some moral teaching, through which there might be some assistance for such a life for those who are zealous for virtue. 2.50 But if the necessity of the events should force something that happened in the history to fall outside the train of the elevated thought, having passed over this, as being unprofitable and useless for our aim, it is possible not to interrupt the exposition of virtue.

2.51 I say these things concerning the things understood about Aaron, anticipating the objection from what follows. For someone will say that he does not doubt that the angel has a kinship with the soul in what is intelligible and incorporeal, and that he is pre-existent to our constitution, and that he joins with those who are contending with their adversaries, but that it is not right to understand Aaron as a type of him, the one who led the Israelites in idolatry. 2.52 To whom we will say, passing over the train of thought, these things which we have said: that what is outside the aim should not overturn the harmony in the rest, and that the term "brother" and "angel" is something homonymous, perhaps being applied to each of the opposite meanings. 2.53 For indeed, not only of God, but also of Satan is an angel named; and not only the good, but also the wicked we call brother. For thus says the

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προγενεστέρα μέν ἐστι κατὰ τὴν πρώτην γένεσιν, τότε δὲ φαίνεται καὶ γνωρίζεται, ὅταν ἱκανῶς τῷ ὑψηλοτέρῳ βίῳ διὰ προσοχῆς τε καὶ ἐπιμελείας ἑαυτοὺς οἰκειώσαντες πρὸς τοὺς ἰσχυροτέρους τῶν ἀθλητῶν ἀποδυώμεθα. 2.45 Ὡς δ' ἂν μὴ δι' αἰνίγματος ἡμῖν τὰ αἰνίγματα δια λύοιτο, γυμνότερον ἐκθήσομαι τὴν περὶ τούτου διάνοιαν. Λόγος τίς ἐστιν, ἐκ πατρικῆς παραδόσεως τὸ πιστὸν ἔχων, ὅς φησι, πεσούσης ἡμῶν εἰς ἁμαρτίαν τῆς φύσεως, μὴ περιιδεῖν τὸν θεὸν τὴν πτῶσιν ἡμῶν ἀπρονόητον, ἀλλ' ἄγγελόν τινα τῶν τὴν ἀσώματον εἰληχότων φύσιν παρακαθιστᾶν εἰς συμμαχίαν τῇ ἑκάστου ζωῇ, ἐκ δὲ τοῦ ἐναντίου τὸν φθορέα τῆς φύσεως ἀντιμηχανᾶσθαι τὸ ἴσον, διὰ πονηροῦ τινος καὶ κακοποιοῦ δαίμονος τῇ τοῦ ἀνθρώπου ζωῇ λυμαινόμενον, 2.46 ἐν μέσῳ δὲ ὄντα τῶν δύο τὸν ἄνθρωπον τὸν ἑκατέρου τῶν παρεπομένων σκοπὸν ὑπεναντίως πρὸς τὸν ἕτερον ἔχοντα δι' ἑαυτοῦ ποιεῖν κατὰ τοῦ ἄλλου ἐπικρατέστερον, προδεικ νύντος τοῖς λογισμοῖς τοῦ μὲν ἀγαθοῦ τὰ τῆς ἀρετῆς ἀγαθά, ὅσα τοῖς κατορθοῦσιν δι' ἐλπίδος ὁρᾶται, τοῦ δὲ ἑτέρου τὰς ὑλώδεις ἡδονάς, ἀφ' ὧν ἐλπὶς μὲν ἀγαθῶν οὐδεμία, τὸ δὲ παρὸν καὶ μετεχόμενον καὶ ὁρώμενον τὰς αἰσθήσεις τῶν ἀνοήτων ἀνδραποδίζεται. 2.47 Εἴπερ οὖν ἀλλοτριωθείη τις τῶν ἐπὶ κακῷ δελεαζόντων, πρὸς τὸ κρεῖττον τοῖς λογισμοῖς ἐπιτρέψας, καὶ οἱονεὶ κατὰ νώτου τὴν κακίαν ποιήσειεν, ἀντιπρόσωπον τὴν ἑαυτοῦ ψυχήν, οἷόν τι κάτο πτρον, πρὸς τὴν ἐλπίδα τῶν ἀγαθῶν στήσας, ὡς τῆς προδεικ νυμένης αὐτῷ θεόθεν ἀρετῆς τὰς εἰκόνας τε καὶ τὰς ἐμφάσεις τῷ καθαρῷ τῆς ἰδίας ψυχῆς ἐντυπώσασθαι, τότε αὐτῷ ἡ τοῦ ἀδελφοῦ συμμαχία συναντᾷ καὶ συνίσταται. Ἀδελφὸς γὰρ τρόπον τινὰ κατὰ τὸ λογικόν τε καὶ νοερὸν τῆς ψυχῆς τοῦ ἀνθρώπου ὁ ἄγγελος, ὁ τότε, καθὼς εἴρηται, φαινόμενός τε καὶ παριστάμενος, ὅταν τῷ Φαραὼ προσεγγίζωμεν. 2.48 Μηδεὶς δὲ διόλου τὴν τῆς ἱστορίας ἔκθεσιν παρατε θεῖσθαι τῷ εἱρμῷ τῆς τοιαύτης τοῦ νοῦ θεωρίας οἰόμενος, εἴ πού τι τῶν γεγραμμένων ἔξω ταύτης τῆς διανοίας εὑρίσ κοιτο, δι' ἐκείνου καὶ τὸ πᾶν ἀθετείτω· ἀλλ' ἀεὶ μεμνήσθω τοῦ σκοποῦ τῶν ἡμετέρων λόγων, πρὸς ὃν βλέποντες ταῦτα διεξερχόμεθα, εὐθὺς ἐν προοιμίοις ἐπειπόντες τῶν εὐδοκίμων ἀνδρῶν τοὺς βίους εἰς ἀρετῆς ὑπόδειγμα τοῖς ἐφεξῆς προ κεῖσθαι. 2.49 Ἐπεὶ οὖν δι' αὐτῆς τῶν πραγμάτων τῆς ὕλης ἐλθεῖν τοὺς ζηλούντας τὰ ἐκείνων οὐχ οἷόν τε (πῶς γὰρ ἂν εὑρεθείη πάλιν ὁ ἐκ μετοικεσίας ἐν Αἰγύπτῳ λαὸς πληθυ νόμενος καὶ πάλιν ὁ καταδουλούμενος τύραννος ὁ πρὸς τὴν ἄρρενα γονὴν δυσμενῶς ἔχων, τὸ δὲ μαλακώτερόν τε καὶ ἀσθενέστερον εἰς πλῆθος αὔξων καὶ τὰ ἄλλα πάντα ὅσα περιέχει ὁ λόγος), ἐπεὶ οὖν ἀδύνατον ἀπεδείχθη δι' αὐτῶν τῶν πραγμάτων τὰ τῶν μακαρίων μιμήσασθαι θαύματα, μεταληπτέον ἂν εἴη πρός τινα ἠθικὴν διδασκαλίαν ἐκ τῆς ὑλικῆς ἀκολουθίας τὰ ἐνδεχόμενα, δι' ὧν ἄν τις γένοιτο τοῖς πρὸς ἀρετὴν ἐσπουδακόσι πρὸς τὸν τοιοῦτον βίον συνεργία. 2.50 Εἰ δέ τι τῶν ἐν τῇ ἱστορίᾳ γεγονότων ἔξω τοῦ εἱρμοῦ τῆς ἀνηγμένης διανοίας ἡ τῶν πραγμάτων ἀνάγκη πεσεῖν ἐκβιάσαιτο, ὑπερβάντας τοῦτο, ὡς πρὸς τὸν ἡμέτερον σκοπὸν ἀλυσιτελὲς καὶ ἀνόνητον, μὴ διακόπτειν ἔξεστι τῆς ἀρετῆς τὴν ὑφήγησιν.

2.51 Ταῦτα δέ φημι περὶ τῶν κατὰ τὸν Ἀαρὼν νοηθέντων, τὸ ἀντιπίπτον ἐκ τοῦ ἀκολούθου προθεραπεύων. Ἐρεῖ γάρ τις τὸ μὲν συγγενῶς ἔχειν πρὸς τὴν ψυχὴν ἐν τῷ νοητῷ τε καὶ ἀσωμάτῳ τὸν ἄγγελον καὶ τὸ προγενέστερον τῆς ἡμετέρας κατασκευῆς εἶναι καὶ τὸ συνίστασθαι τοῖς πρὸς τοὺς ἀντιπάλους συμπλεκομένοις μὴ ἀμφιβάλλειν, μὴ μέντοι καλῶς ἔχειν εἰς ἐκείνου τύπον τὸν Ἀαρὼν νοεῖν, τὸν τῆς εἰδωλολατρείας τοῖς Ἰσραηλίταις καθηγησάμενον. 2.52 Πρὸς ὃν ἐροῦμεν, τὸν εἱρμὸν ὑπερβάντες, ταῦτα ἃ εἰρήκαμεν ὅτι τὸ ἔξω τοῦ σκοποῦ μὴ ἀνατρεπέτω τὴν ἐν τοῖς λοιποῖς ἁρμονίαν, καὶ ὅτι ὁμώνυμόν τι χρῆμα καὶ τὸ τοῦ ἀδελφοῦ καὶ τὸ τοῦ ἀγγέλου ἐστίν, ἴσως ἐφ' ἑκατέρῳ τῶν ἀντι κειμένων ταῖς σημασίαις ἐφαρμοζόμενον. 2.53 Οὐ γὰρ δὴ τοῦ Θεοῦ μόνον, ἀλλὰ καὶ τοῦ Σατανᾶ ἄγγελος ὀνομάζεται· καὶ οὐ τὸν χρηστὸν μόνον, ἀλλὰ καὶ τὸν πονηρὸν ἀδελφὸν καλοῦμεν. Οὕτω γάρ φησιν ἡ