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you keep these things (edd. them), you will have offspring (ut cod. Alex.): He called the correct thoughts and the spiritual contemplations the offspring of the mind; for which reason a soul is also childless that does not have these offspring, which are naturally born from the spiritual bridegroom. And every drowsy person will be clothed in rags: A torn and ragged garment is not a wedding garment. And do not despise your mother because she has grown old: I heard one of the elders say that the soul is the mother of the mind; for she, he says, through the practical virtues brings the mind forth into the light; and by 'soul' he meant the passible part of the soul, which is divided into anger and desire; for through courage, he says, and temperance we acquire wisdom and knowledge of God; and courage and temperance are virtues of anger and desire. Do not be drunk with wine: These wines are from the vine of Sodom. 108 Do not associate with men, and associate in walks: A mind associating in walks walks worthy of the calling to which it was called. For if you set your eyes on the bowls and the cups: Sin according to thought is like a bowl, but sin in act is like a cup. Afterwards you will walk more naked than a pestle: The pestle strikes many times and does not open the place it strikes. but to the disciples the Lord says: Knock, and it shall be opened to you. When your eyes see a strange woman, your mouth will then speak perverse things: A mind that has received a strange thought will meditate on evil thoughts; but he who keeps himself will inherit life. And like a helmsman in a great surge: Tossed about by every wind of doctrine. When will it be dawn?: The dawn of the soul is the recognition of sin. War is waged with governance: Those who are shipwrecked concerning the faith do not war with governance against the spirits opposed to theology. but it is possible to say this same thing about every virtue; for there is shipwreck concerning temperance and concerning love and concerning freedom from the love of money, and likewise shipwreck occurs concerning each dogma of the catholic and apostolic church. but if we must war with governance against our opponents, our life on earth is like a naval battle. In the gates the wise do not turn aside from the mouth (edd. add. of the Lord): The gates of the wise are the practical virtues, through which the wisdom of God enters. But impurity will be defiled for a pestilent man: If vice diminishes virtue, then obviously virtue destroys vice; and this will happen in the age to come until vice fails; for he has put 'will be defiled' 109 instead of 'will be destroyed'; and impurity is destroyed either by practice or by harsh 109 punishment. Deliver those who are led to death, and redeem those who are being slain; do not spare them: This saying must be used with regard to those who have been deemed worthy of knowledge and neglect teaching, since many are being led away by vice to death. Eat honey, my son, for the honeycomb is good, that your throat may be sweetened: He who benefits from the divine scriptures eats honey; but he who brings forth the words from the things themselves, from which also the holy prophets and apostles received them, eats the honeycomb; and eating honey is for anyone who wishes, but the honeycomb is only for the pure. Do not bring the ungodly to the pasture of the righteous: Do not betray God for the sake of pleasure; for he is the pasture of the righteous, and he will by no means abandon you. If your enemy falls, do not rejoice: God turns away his anger from the one who has fallen, having mercy on him; but he is angry with the one who is exalted over the fall of his enemy; for everyone who rejoices over a perishing soul is like the devil, who does not want all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. it should be noted that here he has called the enemy a man, for whom the Lord has legislated in the gospels that we should also pray. For there shall be no offspring for evil men: Evil men will not beget virtues and correct doctrines, for these are the offspring of the soul, because they do not fear the Lord; but those who are in the fear of the Lord all the day will have offspring, and

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τηρήσῃς ταῦτα (edd. αὐτά), ἔσται σοι ἔγγονα (ut cod. Alex.): Τοὺς ὀρθοὺς λογισμοὺς καὶ τὰ πνευματικὰ θεωρήματα ἔγγονα εἶπεν τοῦ νοῦ· διὸ καὶ ἄτεκνός ἐστιν ψυχὴ ἡ μὴ ἔχουσα ταῦτα τὰ ἔγγονα, ἅπερ πέφυκε τίκτεσθαι ἀπὸ τοῦ πνευματικοῦ νυμφίου. Καὶ ῥακώδη ἐνδύσεται πᾶς ὑπνώδης: Οὐκ ἔστιν ἔνδυμα γάμου διερρηγμένον ἱμάτιον καὶ ῥακῶδες. Καὶ μὴ καταφρόνει ὅτι γεγήρακεν ἡ μήτηρ σου: Ἤκουσά τινος τῶν γερόντων τὴν ψυχὴν εἰπόντος μητέρα τοῦ νοῦ· αὕτη γάρ φησιν διὰ τῶν πρακτικῶν ἀρετῶν εἰς φῶς προάγει τὸν νοῦν· ψυχὴν δὲ ἔλεγεν τὸ παθητικὸν μέρος τῆς ψυχῆς, ὅπερ διαιρεῖται εἰς θυμὸν καὶ ἐπιθυμίαν· διὰ γὰρ ἀνδρείας, φησίν, καὶ σωφροσύνης κτώμεθα σοφίαν καὶ γνῶσιν θεοῦ· ἀνδρεία δὲ καὶ σωφροσύνη θυμοῦ καὶ ἐπιθυμίας εἰσὶν ἀρεταί. Μὴ μεθύσκεσθε οἴνῳ: Οἱ οἶνοι οὗτοι ἐκ τῆς Σοδομιτικῆς εἰσὶν ἀμπέλου. 108 Μὴ ὁμιλεῖτε ἀνθρώποις, καὶ ὁμιλεῖτε ἐν περιπάτοις: Νοῦς ὁμιλῶν ἐν περιπάτοις ἀξίως περιπατεῖ τῆς κλήσεως ἧς ἐκλήθη. Ἐὰν γὰρ εἰς τὰς φιάλας καὶ τὰ ποτήρια δῷς τοὺς ὀφθαλμούς σου: Ἡ μὲν κατὰ διάνοιαν ἁμαρτία ἔοικε φιάλῃ, ἡ δὲ κατ' ἐνέργειαν ποτηρίῳ. Ὕστερον περιπατήσεις γυμνότερος ὑπέρου: Πολλὰ κρούει τὸ ὕπερον καὶ οὐκ ἀνοίγει τὸν τόπον ὃν κρούει. τοῖς δὲ μαθηταῖς ὁ κύριος φησίν· Κρούετε, καὶ ἀνοιγήσεται ὑμῖν. Οἱ ὀφθαλμοί σου ὅταν ἴδωσιν ἀλλοτρίαν, τὸ στόμα σου τότε λαλήσει σκολιά: Νοῦς δεξάμενος ἀλλότριον νόημα μελετήσει λογισμοὺς κακούς· ὁ δὲ τηρήσας ἑαυτὸν κληρονομήσει ζωήν. Καὶ ὥσπερ κυβερνήτης ἐν πολλῷ κλύδωνι: Παντὶ ἀνέμῳ τῆς διδασκαλίας περιφερόμενος. Πότε ὄρθρος ἔσται: Ὄρθρος ψυχῆς ἐστὶν ἐπίγνωσις ἁμαρτίας. Μετὰ κυβερνήσεως γίνεται πόλεμος: Οἱ περὶ τὴν πίστιν ναυαγοῦντες οὐ μετὰ κυβερνήσεως πολεμοῦσιν τοῖς πνεύμασι τοῖς ἀντικειμένοις τῇ θεολογίᾳ. δυνατὸν δὲ καὶ ἐπὶ πάσης ἀρετῆς τὸ αὐτὸ τοῦτο εἰπεῖν· ἔστιν γὰρ καὶ περὶ σωφροσύνην ναυάγιον καὶ περὶ ἀγάπην καὶ περὶ ἀφιλαργυρίαν, καὶ περὶ ἕκαστον δὲ δόγμα ὁμοίως τῆς καθολικῆς καὶ ἀποστολικῆς ἐκκλησίας συμβαίνει ναυάγιον. εἰ δὲ μετὰ κυβερνήσεως πολεμεῖν δεῖ τοῖς ἀντικειμένοις, ναυμαχίᾳ παραπλήσιος ἡμῶν ἐστὶν ὁ βίος ἐπὶ τῆς γῆς. Ἐν πύλαις σοφοὶ οὐκ ἐκκλίνουσιν ἐκ στόματος (edd. add. κυρίου): Αἱ πύλαι τῶν σοφῶν αἱ πρακτικαί εἰσιν ἀρεταί, δι' ὧν εἰσέρχεται σοφία θεοῦ. Ἀκαθαρσία δὲ λοιμῷ ἀνδρὶ ἐμμολυνθήσεται: Εἰ ἀρετὴν ἡ κακία μειοῖ, καὶ τὴν κακίαν δηλονότι ἡ ἀρετὴ διαφθείρει· τοῦτο δὲ γενήσεται ἐν τῷ αἰῶνι τῷ μέλλοντι ἕως ἂν ἐκλείπῃ ἡ κακία· τὸ γὰρ Ἐμμολυν109 θήσεται ἀντὶ τοῦ ∆ιαφθαρήσεται τέθεικεν· διαφθείρεται δὲ ἀκαθαρσία ἤτοι ὑπὸ πρακτικῆς ἢ ὑπὸ δριμείας 109 κολάσεως. Ῥῦσαι ἀγομένους εἰς θάνατον καὶ ἐκπρίου κτεινομένους, μὴ φείσῃ: Χρηστέον τούτῳ τῷ ῥητῷ πρὸς τοὺς καταξιωθέντας γνώσεως καὶ ἀμελοῦντας τῆς διδασκαλίας, πολλῶν ἀπαγομένων ὑπὸ τῆς κακίας εἰς θάνατον. Φάγε μέλι υἱέ, ἀγαθὸν γὰρ κηρίον, ἵνα γλυκανθῇ ὁ λάρυγξ σου: Ἐσθίει μέλι ὁ ἀπὸ τῶν θείων γραφῶν ὠφελούμενος· ὁ δ' ἀπ' αὐτῶν τῶν πραγμάτων ἐκβάλλων τοὺς λόγους, ἀφ' ὧν εἰλήφασι καὶ οἱ ἅγιοι προφῆται καὶ ἀπόστολοι, τρώγει κηρίον· καὶ τὸ μὲν φαγεῖν μέλι παντὸς τοῦ βουλομένου ἐστίν, τὸ δὲ κηρίον μόνον τοῦ καθαροῦ. Μὴ προσαγάγῃς ἀσεβῆ νομῇ δικαίου: Μὴ ἕνεκεν ἡδονῆς προδῷς τὸν θεόν· οὗτος γὰρ νομὴ δικαίου, καὶ οὐ μὴ ἐγκαταλείπῃ σε. Ἐὰν πέσῃ ὁ ἐχθρός σου, μὴ ἐπιχαρῇς: Ἀποστρέφει μὲν ὁ θεὸς τὸν θυμὸν αὐτοῦ ἀπὸ τοῦ πεσόντος, ἐλεήσας αὐτόν· ὀργίζεται δὲ τῷ ἐπαρθέντι ἐπὶ τῷ πτώματι τοῦ ἐχθροῦ αὐτοῦ· πᾶς γὰρ ὁ ἐπιχαίρων ἀπολλυμένῃ ψυχῇ ὅμοιός ἐστιν τῷ διαβόλῳ τῷ μὴ θέλοντι πάντας ἀνθρώπους σωθῆναι καὶ εἰς ἐπίγνωσιν ἀληθείας ἐλθεῖν. σημειωτέον δὲ ὅτι ἄνθρωπον ἐνταῦθα εἴρηκε τὸν ἐχθρόν, ὑπὲρ οὗ καὶ προσεύχεσθαι ἡμᾶς νενομοθέτηκεν ἐν τοῖς εὐαγγελίοις ὁ κύριος. Οὐ γὰρ μὴ γένωνται ἔγγονα πονηρῶν: Οὐ γεννήσουσι πονηροὶ ἀρετὰς καὶ δόγματα ὀρθά, ταῦτα γάρ ἐστι γεννήματα τῆς ψυχῆς, διὰ τὸ μὴ φοβεῖσθαι αὐτοὺς τὸν κύριον· οἱ δὲ ὄντες ἐν φόβῳ κυρίου ὅλην τὴν ἡμέραν ἕξουσιν ἔγγονα, καὶ