20

is taught to be humble. 235 22, 4 the generation of wisdom is the fear of the Lord, and wealth and glory and life. "These are the generations of Noah," these are the generations of Abraham. 236 22, 5 Thorns and snares are in crooked ways; but he who guards his own soul will keep away from them. And the Lord says to Adam: "thorns and thistles shall it bring forth to you," the earth, that is, the soul. He calls the sins thorns and thistles, from which also the crown of Christ was woven; for he himself took away the sin of the world. 237 22, 7 The rich shall rule over the poor, and servants shall lend to their own masters. In the age to come, those who have been enriched in every way with all knowledge and all wisdom shall rule over the unclean and those deprived of this wealth. But who the servants are and who the masters are, it is not now necessary to make public, because the account concerning them is mystical and deeper. 238 22, 8a God blesses a cheerful and generous man; but he will bring the vanity of his works to an end. The Lord brings the vanity of works to an end through virtue and knowledge. 239 22, 9a He who gives gifts obtains victory and honor, but he takes away the soul of the possessors. He calls the virtues the gifts of man, through which, by conquering the devil, he presents himself as precious to God and takes away his own soul from the demons who possessed it. 240 22, 10 Cast a pestilent man out of the council, and strife will go out with him; for when he sits in the council, he dishonors all. He called the worst condition a council, from which wise Solomon wants man to be cast out through spiritual teaching; and strife signifies contentiousness. He can also call the devil a pest, who must be driven from the soul. For if he sits in it, through impurity he dishonors all right thoughts. And the apostle also shows the soul to be a council, through which he introduces accusing and defending thoughts; "for between one another," he says, "their thoughts accusing or even defending them"; and where there is accusation and defense, there is also a council. 241 22, 11.3 A king shepherds with his lips; 22, 12 but the eyes of the Lord will preserve perception; but a lawless man makes words worthless. The Lord himself who preserves our souls also shepherds us through spiritual knowledge, which knowledge he who transgresses His law makes worthless. And it should be noted that Christ, being a king, is said to shepherd us through condescension; "for I," he says, "am the good shepherd." But if he is king of kings, but a shepherd of sheep, he will one day be only a king, when the sheep have passed over to the royal dignity. 242 22, 13 A lazy man makes excuses and says: a lion is in the roads, and murderers in the public squares. Our enemy the devil goes about like a lion seeking whom he may devour, and fearing him the lazy man shrinks from the practice of the virtues. 243 22, 14 A deep pit is the mouth of a lawless person; and he who is hated by the Lord will fall into it. Job, not being hated by the Lord, but for the sake of a test, has fallen into it. 244 22, 15 Folly is bound in the heart of a youth; but a rod and instruction are far from him. Far from the heart of the foolish is the rod from the root of Jesse. 245 22, 16 He who oppresses a poor man makes many his own evils; but he gives to a rich man to his loss. Just as the devil oppresses us, taking from us the virtues which he has not given us, so also we oppress him, taking from him the vices which we have not given him. And in that we take vices from him, we take them as from one poor in virtues; but in that we give our virtues to him to our own diminishment, we give them as to one rich in vice. And one of the elders said that we are the oppressors who oppress Christ who became poor for our sakes and owes us nothing, and we take much from him and give it to Satan for the humbling of our souls. 246 22, 17 Apply your ear to the words of the wise and hear my

20

ταπεινοφρονεῖν ἐκδιδάσκεται. 235 22, 4 γενεὰ σοφίας φόβος κυρίου καὶ πλοῦτος καὶ δόξα καὶ ζωή «Αὗται αἱ γενέσεις Νῶε», αὗται αἱ γενέσεις Ἀβραάμ. 236 22, 5 τρίβολοι καὶ παγίδες ἐν ὁδοῖς σκολιαῖς· ὁ δὲ φυλάσσων τὴν ἑαυτοῦ ψυχὴν ἀφέξεται αὐτῶν Καὶ ὁ κύριος τῷ Ἀδάμ φησιν· «ἀκάνθας καὶ τριβόλους ἀνατελεῖ σοι» ἡ γῆ, τουτέστιν ἡ ψυχή. Ἀκάνθας δὲ καὶ τριβόλους λέγει τὰς ἁμαρτίας, ἀφ' ὧν καὶ ὁ στέφανος ἐπλάκη τοῦ Χριστοῦ· αὐτὸς γὰρ ἦρε τὴν ἁμαρτίαν τοῦ κόσμου. 237 22, 7 πλούσιοι πτωχῶν ἄρξουσιν καὶ οἰκέται ἰδίοις δεσπόταις δανιοῦσιν Ἐν τῷ αἰῶνι τῷ μέλλοντι οἱ ἐν παντὶ πλουτισθέντες ἐν πάσῃ γνώσει καὶ πάσῃ σοφίᾳ ἄρξουσιν τῶν ἀκαθάρτων καὶ ἐστερημένων τούτου τοῦ πλούτου. Τίνες δὲ οἱ οἰκέται καὶ τίνες οἱ δεσπόται, νῦν οὐκ ἀναγκαῖον δημοσιεύειν διὰ τὸ εἶναι τὸν περὶ αὐτῶν λόγον μυστικὸν καὶ βαθύτερον. 238 22, 8α ἄνδρα ἱλαρὸν καὶ δότην εὐλογεῖ ὁ θεός· ματαιότητα δὲ ἔργων αὐτοῦ συντελέσει Τὴν ματαιότητα τῶν ἔργων διὰ τῆς ἀρετῆς ὁ κύριος καὶ τῆς γνώσεως συντελεῖ. 239 22, 9α νίκην καὶ τιμὴν περιποιεῖται ὁ δῶρα διδούς, τὴν μέντοι ψυχὴν ἀφαιρεῖται τῶν κεκτημένων ∆ῶρα τοῦ ἀνθρώπου τὰς ἀρετὰς ὀνομάζει, δι' ὧν νικῶν τὸν διάβολον τίμιον ἑαυτὸν παρέχει θεῷ καὶ ἀφαιρεῖται τὴν ἑαυτοῦ ψυχὴν ἀπὸ τῶν κτησαμένων αὐτὴν δαιμόνων. 240 22, 10 ἔκβαλε ἐκ συνεδρίου λοιμὸν καὶ συνεξελεύσεται αὐτῷ νεῖκος· ὅταν γὰρ καθίσῃ ἐν συνεδρίῳ, πάντας ἀτιμάζει Τὴν χειρίστην κατάστασιν συνέδριον εἶπεν, ἀφ' ἧς ὁ σοφὸς Σολομὼν ἐκβάλλεσθαι τὸν ἄνθρωπον βούλεται διὰ πνευματικῆς διδασκαλίας· τὸ δὲ νεῖκος τὴν φιλονεικίαν σημαίνει. ∆ύναται δὲ λοιμὸν καὶ τὸν διάβολον λέγειν, ὃν δεῖ ἀποδιώκειν τῆς ψυχῆς. Ἐὰν γὰρ καθίσῃ ἐν αὐτῇ, διὰ τῆς ἀκαθαρσίας πάντας τοὺς ὀρθοὺς λογισμοὺς ἀτιμάζει. Συνέδριον δὲ καὶ ὁ ἀπόστολος τὴν ψυχὴν ἀποδείκνυσι, δι' ὧν κατηγοροῦντας λογισμοὺς εἰσάγει καὶ ἀπολογουμένους· «μεταξὺ γάρ, φησίν, ἀλλήλων τῶν λογισμῶν κατηγορούντων ἢ καὶ ἀπολογουμένων»· ὅπου δὲ κατηγορία καὶ ἀπολογία, ἐκεῖ καὶ συνέδριον. 241 22, 11.3 χείλεσι ποιμαίνει βασιλεύς· 22, 12 οἱ δὲ ὀφθαλμοὶ κυρίου διατηρήσουσιν αἴσθησιν· φαυλίζει δὲ λόγους παράνομος Ὁ διατηρῶν τὰς ψυχὰς ἡμῶν κύριος αὐτὸς καὶ διὰ τῆς πνευματικῆς γνώσεως ποιμαίνει ἡμᾶς, ἥντινα γνῶσιν φαυλίζει ὁ παραβαίνων τὸν νόμον αὐτοῦ. Σημειωτέον δὲ ὅτι βασιλεὺς ὢν ὁ Χριστὸς λέγεται διὰ τῆς συγκαταβάσεως ποιμαίνειν ἡμᾶς· «ἐγὼ γάρ, φησίν, εἰμὶ ὁ ποιμὴν ὁ καλός.» Εἰ δὲ βασιλεὺς μέν ἐστι βασιλευόντων, ποιμὴν δὲ προβάτων, ἔσται ποτὲ μόνον βασιλεύς, τῶν προβάτων εἰς τὸ βασιλικὸν μεταβάντων ἀξίωμα. 242 22, 13 προφασίζεται καὶ λέγει ὀκνηρός· λέων ἐν ταῖς ὁδοῖς, ἐν δὲ ταῖς πλατείαις φονευταί Ὁ ἐχθρὸς ἡμῶν διάβολος ὡς λέων περιέρχεται ζητῶν τίνα καταπίῃ, ὅντινα φοβούμενος ὁ ὀκνηρὸς πρὸς τὴν ἐργασίαν τῶν ἀρετῶν ἀναδύεται. 243 22, 14 βόθρος βαθὺς στόμα παρανόμου· ὁ δὲ μισηθεὶς ὑπὸ κυρίου ἐμπεσεῖται εἰς αὐτόν Ὁ Ἰὼβ οὐ μισηθεὶς ὑπὸ κυρίου, ἀλλὰ δοκιμῆς ἕνεκεν ἐμπέπτωκεν εἰς αὐτόν. 244 22, 15 ἄνοια ἐξῆπται καρδίας νέου· ῥάβδος δὲ καὶ παιδεία μακρὰν ἀπ' αὐτοῦ Μακρὰν ἀπὸ τῆς καρδίας τοῦ ἄφρονός ἐστιν ἡ ῥάβδος ἡ ἐκ τῆς ῥίζης Ἰεσσαί. 245 22, 16 ὁ συκοφαντῶν πένητα πολλὰ ποιεῖ τὰ ἑαυτοῦ κακά· δίδωσιν δὲ πλουσίῳ ἐπ' ἐλάσσονι Ὥσπερ ὁ διάβολος συκοφαντεῖ ἡμᾶς, λαμβάνων παρ' ἡμῶν τὰς ἀρετὰς ἃς μὴ δέδωκεν ἡμῖν, οὕτω καὶ ἡμεῖς συκοφαντοῦμεν αὐτόν, λαμβάνοντες παρ' αὐτοῦ τὰς κακίας ἃς μὴ δεδώκαμεν αὐτῷ. Καὶ καθὸ μὲν λαμβάνομεν παρ' αὐτοῦ τὰς κακίας, ὡς παρὰ πένητος ἐν ἀρεταῖς λαμβάνομεν· καθὸ δὲ τὰς ἀρετὰς ἡμῶν διδόαμεν αὐτῷ ἐπ' ἐλαττώσει ἡμῶν, ὡς πλουσίῳ ἐν κακίᾳ διδόαμεν. Ἔλεγεν δέ τις τῶν γερόντων ὅτι ἡμεῖς ἐσμὲν οἱ συκοφάνται οἱ Χριστὸν συκοφαντοῦντες πτωχεύσαντα δι' ἡμᾶς καὶ μηδὲν ὀφείλοντα ἡμῖν καὶ λαμβάνοντες παρ' αὐτοῦ πολλὰ καὶ διδόντες τῷ σατανᾷ ἐπὶ ταπεινώσει τῶν ἡμετέρων ψυχῶν. 246 22, 17 λόγοις σοφῶν παράβαλε σὸν οὖς καὶ ἄκουε ἐμὸν