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good of the Lord. An icon one painted from an archetypal icon, having placed it before him, and the panel received the form; but one looking at you, would walk the opposite path. And this is the only benefit from your wickedness.” Thus the loud-voiced herald. But I for my part fear what I have heard of glorious Moses, 1237 who alone saw God face to face within the cloud, and commanded the others, remaining at the foot of the mountain, most pure in pure garments and trembling, to hear only the divine voice. For it was not better even for the very beasts to tread the ground of the heavenly place, lest they be subdued by the rending rocks. And I fear again the fate of Aaron's sons, who placed offerings on a strange fire, and were strangely and immediately destroyed, and the place of sacrifice became a place of death, and though they were the sons of great Aaron, they were subdued. And so also a grievous destruction befell the sons of Eli, the sons of Eli, because they had a mad mind. For they cast not holy hands over the holy cauldrons. Nor indeed did Eli escape the wrath, but also the 1238 unholy belly of his sons angered the just one against him, even though he always burdened them with reproachful words. And if such great wrath is upon such sins, how much fear there is for greater evils! And he who touched you, the royal ark, with a profane hand when it was leaning, died at once. And he made the temple of God untouched by hands, the supports outside the walls. For this reason I cry out, and I fall at your feet, Christ Lord, lest some trouble meet me as I retreat. I am weary from fighting for a long time with the destructive wolves of the flock, with the shepherds. My spirit has flown from my shriveled limbs, and I breathe a little, worn out by toils, and by our disgraces. Of whom, some, having a quarrel about the sacred thrones, 1239 surging against each other, being struck with successive evils, and striking, are unwearied fighters, shouting “Peace,” while exulting in bloodshed. How I wish they would fulfill the Gittite's sorrow, a just session, taking vengeance for a throne. And others, being divided on either side, shake both East and West, and God in the flesh has ceased, from whose quarreling both the name and the story belong to others; "Paul is my god, Peter is yours, and Apollos is his." But Christ has been pierced with nails in vain. For we are not called from Christ, but from mortals, though having glory from his hands and blood. So much desire has cast a mist over our lights, 1240 or of empty glory, or of possession, or of dreadful envy, wasting, delighting in evil, having a fitting pain! And the pretext is the Trinity, but the reality, an unfaithful enmity. Each one is twofold, a sheep concealing a wolf, and brass lying in wait with bitter food for its descendants. Such are the leaders; and the people follow closely, eager for evil, even without a leader. And there is no distinction of good or of evil, nor of wise old age, nor of foolish youth, nor of a toilsome, God-fearing life, nor of a soft one. There is one law, for the worst to have more. May that man perish, who first brought the wicked here. Let the world be theirs, let God be theirs, all that for the best 1241 follows uncertainly in the last days; and let the good toil in vain. Such things pleased our judges. Let justice go hence as an exile. Let all things then be one, Christ, mortal, sun, star, light, darkness, good angel, Lucifer no longer shining. And let the God-killer Iscariot be considered equal to Peter, and most wicked Samaria equal to holy Jerusalem. And let gold and silver, and iron, be held equal, a pearl with a jagged stone, and springs with torrents; and let all things, mixed together, be brought into one. As it once was, when the first-created matter was without order, still in travail with a world not yet firmly distinguished. 1242 There was a time when the great temple was not to be trodden by the Moabites, nor indeed by the Ammonites, since they had afflicted the good army. And others Jesus numbered among the water-carriers, and the wood-haulers, since they had deceived him. These things for the wicked. But they honored the offspring of Levi with a great gift. For they made him a servant of the heavenly tabernacle; and here were boundaries of sacrifices and of the threshold, and of labor. For one man had his hands on some tasks, another on others, as many as there were, busying themselves with the temple and things outside. Those men, indeed

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ἐσθλὸν Ἄνακτος. Εἰκὼ μέν τις ἔγραψεν ἀπ' εἰκόνος ἀρχετύποιο, Στησάμενος προπάροιθε, πίναξ δ' ὑπεδέξατο μορφήν· Ὑμᾶς δ' εἰσορόων τις, ἐναντίον οἶμον ὁδεύοι. Καὶ τόδε μοῦνον ὄνειαρ ἀφ' ὑμετέρης κακότητος» Κήρυξ μὲν δὴ τοῖα βριήπυος. Αὐτὰρ ἔγωγε ∆είδια μὲν Μωσῆος ἀγακλέος οἷον ἄκουσα, 1237 Ὃς μοῦνος νεφέλης εἴσω Θεὸν ἔδρακεν ἄντην, Τοὺς δ' ἄλλους ἐκέλευσεν ὑπὸ προπόδεσσι μένοντας, Ἁγνοτάτους ἁγνοῖσιν ἐν εἵμασι καὶ τρομέοντας Μούνης εἰσαΐειν θείης ὀπός. Οὐ γὰρ ἄμεινον Οὐδ' αὐτοῖς θήρεσσι πατεῖν πέδον οὐρανίοιο, Μὴ καὶ ῥηγνυμένοισιν ὑπὸ σκοπέλοισι δαμεῖεν. ∆είδια δ' αὖ παίδων Ἀαρὼν μόρον, οἵ ῥα θυηλὰς Θέντες ἐπὶ ξείνοιο πυρὸς, ξείνως καὶ ὄλοντο Αὐτίκα, καὶ θυέων χῶρος θανάτοιο τελέσθη, Καὶ παῖδές περ ἐόντες Ἀρὼν μεγάλοιο, δάμασθεν. Ὣς δὲ καὶ Ἡλείδῃσιν ἐπέχραε λυγρὸς ὄλεθρος, Ἡλείδαις, ὅτι μάργον ἔχον νόον. Ἦ γὰρ ἔβαλλον Οὐχ ἱερὰς παλάμας ἱερῶν καθύπερθε λεβήτων. Οὐδὲ μὲν οὐδ' Ἡλεὶ χόλον ἔκφυγεν, ἀλλὰ καὶ αὐτὸν 1238 Οὐχ ὁσίη γαστὴρ παίδων ἐχάλεψε δίκαιον, Καί περ ἀεὶ βρίσαντα ὀνειδείοις ἐπέεσσιν. Εἰ δὲ τόση τοίῃσιν ἁμαρτάσι μῆνις ἔπεστιν, Ὁσσατίης δέος ἐστὶν ἐπὶ πλεόνεσσι κακοῖσι! Καὶ σὲ, κιβωτὸν ἄνασσαν, ὃς ἥδρασε χειρὶ βεβήλῳ Κλινομένην, θάνεν αἶψα. Θεοῦ δέ τε νηὸν ἔθηκεν Ἄψαυστον παλάμῃσιν, ἐρείσματα τἄκτοθι τοίχων. Τοὔνεκεν αἰάζω, πίπτω δ' ὑπὸ σεῖο πόδεσσι, Χριστὲ ἄναξ, μή μοί τις ἀπαντήσειεν ἀνίη Χαζομένῳ. Κέκμηκα λύκοις δηλήμοσι ποίμνης, Ποιμέσι μαρνάμενος δηρὸν χρόνον. Ἐκ μελέων δὲ Ῥικνῶν ἔπτατο θυμὸς, ἀναπνείω δ' ὀλίγον τι Τειρόμενος καμάτοισι, καὶ αἴσχεσιν ἡμετέροισιν. Ὧν, οἱ μὲν θώκων ἱερῶν πέρι δῆριν ἔχοντες, 1239 Ἀντία κυμαίνοντες, ἐπασσυτέροισι κακοῖσι Βαλλόμενοι, βάλλοντες, ἀτειρέες εἰσὶ μαχηταὶ, Εἰρήνην βοόωντες, ἐφ' αἵμασι κυδιόωντες. Ὡς ὄφελον Γετθαῖαν ἀναπλήσαιεν ἀνίην, Ἔνδικον ἑδρήεσσαν, ἐφ' ἕδρῃ τίσιν ἔχοντες. Οἱ δ' ἄρα τοῖς ἑκάτερθε μεριζόμενοι, κλονέουσιν Ἀντολίην τε δύσιν τε, Θεὸς δ' ἐς σάρκας ἔληξεν, Ὧν ἄπο μαρναμένων καὶ οὔνομα καὶ μόθος ἄλλοις· Παῦλος ἐμὸς, Πέτρος δὲ τεὸς, κείνου δέ τ' Ἀπολλὼς Εἰσὶ θεοί. Χριστὸς δὲ μάτην ἥλοισι πέπαρται. Οὐ γὰρ ἀπὸ Χριστοῖο καλεύμεθα, ἐκ μερόπων δὲ, Κείνου καὶ χείρεσσι καὶ αἵματι κῦδος ἔχοντες. Τόσσος ἔρως φαέεσσιν ἐπήχλυσεν ἡμετέροισιν, 1240 Ἢ δόξης κενεῆς, ἢ κτήσιος, ἢ φθόνος αἰνὸς, Τηκεδανὸς, κακόχαρτος, ἐναίσιμον ἄλγος ἔχουσι! Καὶ πρόφασις Τριάς ἐστι, τὸ δ' ἀτρεκὲς, ἔχθος ἄπιστον. ∆ιπλόος ἐστὶν ἕκαστος, ὄϊς λύκον ἀμφικαλύπτων, Καὶ χαλκὸς λοχόων πικρὴν νεπόδεσσιν ἐδωδήν. Τοῖα μὲν ἡγητῆρες· ὁ δ' ἕσπεται ἐγγύθι λαὸς, Πρόφρονες ἐς κακίην, καὶ ἡγητῆρος ἄνευθεν. Οὐδέ τίς ἐστ' ἀγαθοῖο διάκρισις, οὐδὲ κακοῖο, Οὐ πινυτῆς πολιῆς, οὐκ ἀφραδέος νεότητος, Οὐ μογεροῦ βιότοιο θεουδέος, οὐ μαλακοῖο. Εἷς νόμος ἐστὶ, κάκιστον ἔχειν πλέον. Ὡς ἀπόλοιτο Κεῖνος ἀνὴρ, ὃς πρῶτος ἀνήγαγεν ἐνθάδ' ἀλιτρούς. Αὐτῶν κόσμος ἔοι, αὐτῶν Θεὸς, ὅσσα τ' ἀρίστοις 1241 Ἕσπεται ὑστατίοισιν ἐν ἤμασιν ἀμφιτάλαντα· Οἱ δ' ἀγαθοὶ μογέοιεν ἐτώσια. Τοῖα δικασταῖς Εὔαδεν ἡμετέροισι. ∆ίκη φυγὰς ἔνθεν ἀπέλθοι. Ἓν δ' ἄρα πάντα πέλοι, Χριστὸς, βροτὸς, ἥλιος, ἀστὴρ, Φῶς, σκότος, ἄγγελος ἐσθλὸς, Ἑωσφόρος οὐκέτι λάμπων. Πέτρῳ δ' ἴσα φέροιτο θεοκτόνος Ἰσκαριώτης, Καὶ Σολύμοις ἱεροῖσιν ἀλιτροτάτη Σαμάρεια. Ἴσα δ' ἔχοι χρυσός τε καὶ ἄργυρος, ἠδὲ σίδηρος, Μάργαρος ὀκρυόεντι λίθῳ, πηγαῖς δὲ χαράδραι· Πάντα δ' ἅμ' ἀλλήλοισι πεφυρμένα εἰς ἓν ἄγοιτο. Ὅς ποτ' ἔην, ὅτ' ἄκοσμος ἔην πρωτόκτιστος ὕλη, Κόσμον ἔτ' ὠδίνουσα διακριδὸν οὐ βεβαῶτα. 1242 Ἦν δ' ὅτε Μωαβίταις νηὸς μέγας οὐ βατὸς ἦεν, Οὐδὲ μὲν Ἀμμανίτῃσιν, ἐπεὶ στρατὸν ἤκαχον ἠΰν. Ἄλλους δ' ὑδροφόροισιν ἐνηρίθμησεν Ἰησοῦς, Καὶ ξυλοφορτηγοῖσιν, ἐπεί ῥά μιν ἐξαπάφησαν. Ταῦτα κακοῖς. Λευὶ δὲ γόνον μεγάλοιο γέρηραν. Σκηνῆς γάρ μιν ἔθηκαν ἐπουρανίης θεράποντα· Κἀνθάδ' ὅροι θυέων τε καὶ οὔδεος, ἠδὲ πόνοιο. Ἄλλος γάρ τ' ἄλλοισιν ἀνὴρ χέρας εἶχον ἐπ' ἔργοις, Ὅσσα τ' ἔην νηοῖο καὶ ἔκτοθεν ἐγκονέοντες. Κεῖνοι μὲν