20

a teacher, before this, persecuting the church and going about everywhere and dragging men and women and confounding and disturbing everything and displaying great madness, when he enjoyed the loving-kindness of the Master and, having been enlightened by the intelligible light, put off the darkness of error and was led by the hand to the truth and through baptism washed away all his preceding sins, at once, not delaying even for a moment, he who before this did all things for the sake of the Jews and laid waste to the church, immediately confounded the Jews who dwelt in Damascus, preaching that the crucified one is himself the Son of God. 4.8 Have you seen his gratitude? Have you seen him showing us through the very deeds that he did the former things out of ignorance? Have you seen how through the very experience of the events he taught us all that he was rightly deemed worthy of the loving-kindness from above and was led by the hand to the way of truth. For the good God, whenever he sees a soul that is grateful, but wandering because of ignorance, does not overlook nor leave it uncared for for long but displays everything from himself and omits nothing of those things that contribute to our salvation, only if we make ourselves worthy to draw down abundantly the grace from above, just as this blessed man did. 4.9 For since all that he had formerly done, he did out of ignorance and thinking that he was vindicating the law with zeal, he became a cause of tumult and disturbance to all, having learned from the lawgiver himself that he was walking the opposite path and going over cliffs without realizing it, he did not postpone, he did not delay, but immediately when the intelligible light shone upon him, putting aside all error, he became a herald of the truth and wished to lead first to the way of piety those to whom he was also carrying the letters he had received from the chief priests, just as he himself, addressing the crowd of the Jews, said: "As also the high priest bears me witness, and all the presbytery, that having received letters from them I was journeying to Damascus to the chief priests so that I might bring those who were there bound to Jerusalem." 4.10 Have you seen him like a raging lion, running about everywhere? See him again at once being changed into the tameness of a sheep, and he who before this was binding and throwing into prisons and driving out and persecuting all those who believe in Christ, suddenly for the sake of Christ being let down through the wall in a basket in order to escape the plots of the Jews, at another time being sent away by night to Caesarea and from there dispatched to Tarsus so that he might not be torn to pieces by the madness of the Jews. Have you seen, beloved, how great the change? Have you seen how great the transformation has become? Have you seen how, having enjoyed the honor from above, he contributed his own part with abundance—I mean, his zeal, his fervor, his faith, his courage, his endurance, his lofty mind, his intrepid spirit. Therefore he was also deemed worthy of greater support from above. Wherefore also writing he said: "I have labored more abundantly than all of them: yet not I, but the grace of God which was with me." 4.11 This one, I beseech you, you also imitate, you who have now been deemed worthy to come under the yoke of Christ and have enjoyed adoption as sons, and show immediately from the beginning such fervor and faith in Christ, so that you may draw down more grace from above and make the garment given to you more splendid and enjoy the abundant good will from the Master. For if he deemed those who have as yet done nothing good, but even having such great burdens of sin laid upon them, worthy of so many gifts, imitating his own loving-kindness, for not only did he deliver them from sins and bestow righteousness, but he also made them holy and granted adoption as sons, if, then, anticipating, he gave so many things, if you will be eager to contribute your own part after so many gifts and, together with the guarding of what has already been given, also a strictness of life

20

διδάσκαλος πρὸ τούτου διώκων τὴν ἐκκλησίαν καὶ πανταχοῦ περιὼν καὶ σύρων ἄνδρας καὶ γυναῖκας καὶ πάντα συγχέων καὶ ταράσσων καὶ πολλὴν τὴν μανίαν ἐπιδεικνύμενος, ἐπειδὴ φιλανθρωπίας ἀπέλαυσε παρὰ τοῦ δεσπότου καὶ καταυγασθεὶς τῷ φωτὶ τῷ νοητῷ ἀπέθετο τὸ σκότος τῆς πλάνης καὶ πρὸς τὴν ἀλήθειαν ἐχειραγωγήθη καὶ διὰ τοῦ βαπτίσματος ἀπελούσατο τὰ προλαβόντα ἅπαντα ἁμαρτήματα, ἀθρόον οὐδὲ τὸ τυχὸν ἀναβαλλόμενος, ὁ πρὸ τούτου ὑπὲρ Ἰουδαίων ἅπαντα πράττων καὶ πορθῶν τὴν ἐκκλησίαν, εὐθέως συνέχυνε τοὺς Ἰουδαίους τοὺς κατοικοῦντας ἐν ∆αμασκῷ, κηρύσσων ὅτι ὁ ἐσταυρωμένος αὐτός ἐστιν ὁ υἱὸς τοῦ Θεοῦ. 4.8 Εἶδες εὐγνωμοσύνην; Εἶδες δι' αὐτῶν τῶν πραγμάτων ἡμῖν δεικνύντα ὅτι καὶ τὰ πρότερα ἐξ ἀγνοίας ἔπραττεν; Εἶδες πῶς δι' αὐτῆς τῆς πείρας τῶν πραγμάτων ἅπαντας ἡμᾶς ἐδίδαξεν ὅτι δικαίως ἠξιώθη τῆς ἄνωθεν φιλανθρωπίας καὶ πρὸς τὴν τῆς ἀληθείας ὁδὸν ἐχειραγωγήθη. Ὁ γὰρ ἀγαθὸς Θεός, ἐπειδὰν ἴδῃ τὴν ψυχὴν εὐγνώμονα μέν, δι' ἄγνοιαν δὲ πλανωμένην, οὐ περιορᾷ οὐδὲ ἀφίησιν ἐπὶ πολὺ ἀπρονόητον ἀλλὰ τὰ παρ' ἑαυτοῦ ἅπαντα ἐπιδείκνυται καὶ οὐδὲν παραλιμπάνει τῶν εἰς τὴν ἡμετέραν σωτηρίαν συντεινόντων, μόνον ἐὰν ἡμεῖς ἑαυτοὺς ἀξίους κατασκευάσωμεν τοῦ μετὰ δαψιλείας τὴν ἄνωθεν ἐπισπάσασθαι χάριν, καθάπερ καὶ ὁ μακάριος οὗτος· 4.9 Ἐπειδὴ γὰρ ἃ πρότερον εἰργάζετο ἐξ ἀγνοίας ἅπαντα εἰργάσατο καὶ νομίζων τὸν νόμον ζήλῳ διεκδικεῖν, θορύβου καὶ ταραχῆς πᾶσι αἴτιος καθίστατο, μαθὼν παρ' αὐτοῦ τοῦ νομοθέτου ὅτι τὴν ἐναντίαν ὁδὸν βαδίζει καὶ κατὰ κρημνῶν ἀπιὼν οὐκ αἰσθάνεται, οὐχ ὑπερέθετο, οὐκ ἀνεβάλετο, ἀλλ' εὐθέως ἐπειδὴ κατέλαμψεν αὐτὸν τὸ φῶς τὸ νοητὸν πᾶσαν τὴν πλάνην ἀποθέμενος κῆρυξ τῆς ἀληθείας καθίστατο καὶ ἐκείνους πρώτους ἐπὶ τὴν τῆς εὐσεβείας ὁδὸν ἄγειν ἐβούλετο πρὸς οὓς καὶ τὰς ἐπιστολὰς ἐκόμιζε παρὰ τῶν ἀρχιερέων λαβών, καθὼς καὶ αὐτὸς τῷ τῶν Ἰουδαίων πλήθει δημηγορῶν ἔλεγεν· «Ὡς καὶ ὁ ἀρχιερεὺς μαρτυρεῖ μοι καὶ πᾶν τὸ πρεσβυτέριον ὅτι ἐπιστολὰς δεξάμενος παρ' αὐτῶν εἰς ∆αμασκὸν ἐπορευόμην πρὸς τοὺς ἀρχιερεῖς ὥστε καὶ τοὺς ἐκεῖ ὄντας δεδεμένους ἀναγαγεῖν εἰς Ἱερουσαλήμ.» 4.10 Εἶδες αὐτὸν καθάπερ λέοντα μεμηνότα καὶ πανταχοῦ περιτρέχοντα; Ὅρα αὐτὸν πάλιν ἀθρόον εἰς ἡμερότητα προβάτου μεταβαλλόμενον καὶ τὸν πρὸ τούτου δεσμεύοντα καὶ εἰς φυλακὰς ἐμβάλλοντα καὶ πάντας τοὺς εἰς τὸν Χριστὸν πιστεύοντας ἐλαύνοντα καὶ διώκοντα ἐξαίφνης διὰ τὸν Χριστὸν διὰ τοῦ τείχους ἐν σπυρίδι χαλώμενον ἵνα διαφύγῃ τῶν Ἰουδαίων τὰς ἐπιβουλάς, ἄλλοτε διὰ νυκτὸς εἰς Καισάρειαν ἐκπεμπόμενον κἀκεῖθεν εἰς Ταρσὸν ἐξαποστελλόμενον ἵνα μὴ διασπασθῇ ὑπὸ τῆς τῶν Ἰουδαίων μανίας. Εἶδες, ἀγαπητέ, ὅση ἡ μεταβολή; Εἶδες ὅση ἡ μετάστασις γέγονεν; Εἶδες πῶς ἀπολαύσας τῆς ἄνωθεν φιλοτιμίας μετὰ δαψιλείας τὰ παρ' ἑαυτοῦ εἰσήνεγκε, τὸν ζῆλον λέγω, τὴν θερμότητα, τὴν πίστιν, τὴν ἀνδρείαν, τὴν ὑπομονήν, τὸ φρόνημα τὸ ὑψηλόν, τὴν γνώμην τὴν ἀκατάπληκτον. ∆ιὸ καὶ πλείονος ἠξιώθη τῆς ἄνωθεν ῥοπῆς. Ὅθεν καὶ γράφων ἔλεγε· «Περισσότερον αὐτῶν πάντων ἐκοπίασα, οὐκ ἐγὼ δέ, ἀλλ' ἡ χάρις τοῦ Θεοῦ ἡ σὺν ἐμοί». 4.11 Τοῦτον δή, παρακαλῶ, καὶ ὑμεῖς μιμήσασθε, οἱ τὸν τοῦ Χριστοῦ ζυγὸν νῦν ὑπελθεῖν καταξιωθέντες καὶ τῆς υἱοθεσίας ἀπολαύσαντες, καὶ τοσαύτην ἐκ προοιμίων εὐθέως ἐπιδείξασθε τὴν θερμότητα καὶ τὴν εἰς τὸν Χριστὸν πίστιν ἵνα πλείονα ἐφελκύσησθε τὴν ἄνωθεν χάριν καὶ τὸ παρασχεθὲν ὑμῖν ἔνδυμα φαιδρότερον ἀπεργάσησθε καὶ δαψιλοῦς ἀπολαύσητε τῆς εὐνοίας τῆς παρὰ τοῦ δεσπότου. Εἰ γὰρ μηδέπω μηδὲν ἐργασαμένους ἀγαθὸν ἀλλὰ καὶ τοσαῦτα φορτία ἁμαρτημάτων ἔχοντας ἐπικείμενα τοσούτων ἠξίωσε δωρεῶν, τὴν οἰκείαν φιλανθρωπίαν μιμούμενος, οὐ γὰρ μόνον ἁμαρτημάτων ἀπήλλαξε καὶ δικαιοσύνην ἐχαρίσατο ἀλλὰ καὶ ἁγίους ἀπέδειξε καὶ υἱοθεσίαν παρέσχεν, εἰ τοίνυν προλαβὼν τοσαῦτα ἐδωρήσατο, εἰ τὰ παρ' ἑαυτῶν μετὰ τοσαύτας δωρεὰς εἰσενεγκεῖν σπουδάσετε καὶ μετὰ τῆς φυλακῆς τῶν ἤδη παρασχεθέντων καὶ πολιτείας ἀκρίβειαν