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of things that seemed to be terrible, when the occasion demanded it. When, therefore, you see him shrinking and afraid, remember those words, by which he surpassed the heavens, and contended with the angels, saying: Who shall separate us from the love of God? shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or peril, or sword? Remember those words, by which he says these things are nothing, saying: For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory; while we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen. Add to these the daily afflictions, the deaths each day; and having considered these things, both admire Paul, and no longer despair of yourself. 6.2 For this very seeming weakness of his nature is the greatest proof of his virtue, that he was such a man without being freed from the necessity of the many. For since the excess of dangers might have given this impression to many, and perhaps made them suspect that, having become superior to human things, he was such a man; for this reason he was permitted to suffer, so that you might learn that while he was one of the many according to nature, according to his zeal he was not only above the many, but was also one of the angels. For with such a soul and such a body he endured countless deaths, and despised present things, and future things. Therefore he also uttered those great and to many unbelievable words: For I could wish that I myself were accursed from Christ for my brethren, my kinsmen according to the flesh. 6.3 For it is possible, if only we are willing, to overcome every struggle of nature by the power of our zeal; and there is nothing impossible for men of the things commanded by Christ; for if we apply as much zeal as we have, God also brings much momentum to us, and thus we shall become unconquerable by all the terrible things that come upon us. For to fear stripes is not worthy of condemnation, but to endure something unworthy of piety because of the fear of stripes, so that to have feared stripes shows him who is invincible in the contests to be more admirable than the one who does not fear. For in this way the will shines forth more; for to have feared stripes, is of nature; but to have endured nothing unseemly because of the fear of stripes, is of the will correcting the defect of nature, and prevailing over that weakness; since to be grieved is not a fault, but because of grief to say or do something of the things not pleasing to God. For if I were saying that Paul was not a man, you would rightly bring forward to me the defects of nature, as if intending to refute my argument by this; but if I say and affirm that he was a man, and in no way better than us in nature, but became better in will, you bring these things forward to me in vain, or rather not in vain, but on behalf of Paul. For you show from this how great he was, so as in such a nature to be strong in things beyond nature. And you not only praise him, but you also sew up the mouths of the indolent, not allowing them to take refuge in the superiority of nature, but pushing them towards the earnestness that comes from will. 6.4 But, he says, did he ever fear death? For this too is of nature. But nevertheless this very same man who feared death said again: For we that are in this tabernacle do groan, being burdened. And again: we ourselves groan within ourselves. Do you see how he introduced a power from his will to counterbalance the weakness of his nature? Since many martyrs also, when about to be led away to death, often grew pale and were filled with fear and anguish; but for this reason they are most admirable, that even they, fearing death, did not flee death for the sake of Jesus. Thus also Paul

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τῶν δοκούντων εἶναι φοβερῶν, ἡνίκα ὁ καιρὸς τοῦτο ἀπῄτει. Ὅταν οὖν ἴδῃς αὐτὸν ἀποτεινόμενον καὶ δεδοικότα, ἀναμνήσθητι τῶν ῥημάτων ἐκείνων, δι' ὧν ὑπερέβη τοὺς οὐρανούς, καὶ πρὸς τοὺς ἀγγέλους ἡμιλλᾶτο, λέγων· Τίς ἡμᾶς χωρίσει ἀπὸ τῆς ἀγάπης τοῦ Θεοῦ; θλῖψις, ἢ στενοχωρία, ἢ διωγμός, ἢ λιμός, ἢ κίνδυνος, ἢ μάχαιρα; Ἀναμνήσθητι τῶν ῥημάτων ἐκείνων, δι' ὧν οὐδὲν ταῦτα εἶναί φησι, λέγων· Τὸ γὰρ παραυτίκα ἐλαφρὸν τῆς θλίψεως ἡμῶν καθ' ὑπερβολὴν εἰς ὑπερβολὴν αἰώνιον βάρος δόξης κατεργάζεται ἡμῖν, μὴ σκοπούντων ἡμῶν τὰ βλεπόμενα, ἀλλὰ τὰ μὴ βλεπόμενα. Πρόσθες τούτοις τὰς καθημερινὰς θλίψεις, τοὺς θανάτους τοὺς καθ' ἑκάστην ἡμέραν· καὶ ταῦτα ἐννοήσας, καὶ Παῦλον θαύμαζε, καὶ σαυτοῦ μηκέτι ἀπογνῷς. 6.2 Αὐτὴ γὰρ ἡ δοκοῦσα τῆς φύσεως εἶναι ἀσθένεια, αὐτὴ μέγιστον δεῖγμα τῆς ἀρετῆς ἐστι τῆς ἐκείνου, ὅτι οὐκ ἀπηλλαγμένος τῆς τῶν πολλῶν ἀνάγκης τοιοῦτος ἦν. Ἐπειδὴ γὰρ ἡ τῶν κινδύνων ὑπερβολὴ πολλοῖς ἂν ταύτην παρέσχε τὴν ὑπόληψιν, καὶ ὑποπτεύειν ἴσως ἐποίησεν ὅτι, ἀνώτερος τῶν ἀνθρωπίνων γενόμενος, τοιοῦτος ἦν· διὰ ταῦτα συνεχωρεῖτο πάσχειν, ἵνα μάθῃς ὅτι εἷς τῶν πολλῶν ὢν κατὰ τὴν φύσιν, κατὰ τὴν προθυμίαν οὐ μόνον ὑπὲρ τοὺς πολλοὺς ἦν, ἀλλὰ καὶ τῶν ἀγγέλων εἷς ἦν. Μετὰ γὰρ τοιαύτης ψυχῆς καὶ τοιούτου σώματος τοὺς μυρίους ὑπέμενε θανάτους, καὶ κατεφρόνει τῶν παρόντων, τῶν μελλόντων. ∆ιὸ καὶ τὰ μεγάλα ἐκεῖνα καὶ πολλοῖς ἄπιστα ἐφθέγξατο ῥήματα· Ὅτι ηὐχόμην ἀνάθεμα εἶναι ἀπὸ Χριστοῦ ὑπὲρ τῶν ἀδελφῶν μου, τῶν συγγενῶν μου κατὰ σάρκα. 6.3 ∆υνατὸν γάρ, εἰ βουληθείημεν μόνον, πᾶσαν φύσεως ἀγωνίαν τῇ τῆς προθυμίας νικῆσαι δυνάμει· καὶ οὐδέν ἐστιν ὅπερ ἀδύνατον ἀνθρώποις τῶν ὑπὸ Χριστοῦ κελευσθέντων· ἂν γὰρ ὅσην ἔχωμεν προθυμίαν ταύτην ἐπιδῶμεν, καὶ ὁ Θεὸς πολλὴν ἡμῖν συνεισάγει ῥοπήν, καὶ οὕτω πᾶσι τοῖς ἐπιοῦσι δεινοῖς ἀνάλωτοι γενησόμεθα. Οὐδὲ γὰρ τὸ φοβεῖσθαι πληγὰς καταγνώσεως ἄξιον, ἀλλὰ τὸ διὰ τὸν φόβον τῶν πληγῶν ἀνάξιόν τι τῆς εὐσεβείας ὑπομεῖναι, ὥστε τὸ δεδοικέναι πληγὰς τὸν ἐν τοῖς ἀγῶσιν ἄληπτον θαυμαστότερον δείκνυσι τοῦ μὴ φοβουμένου. Μᾶλλον γὰρ ἡ προαίρεσις οὕτω διαλάμπει· τὸ μὲν γὰρ φοβηθῆναι πληγάς, τῆς φύσεως· τὸ δὲ μηδὲν διὰ τὸν φόβον τῶν πληγῶν ἀπρεπὲς ὑπομεῖναι, τῆς προαιρέσεως διορθουμένης τὸ τῆς φύσεως ἐλάττωμα, καὶ κρατούσης τῆς ἀσθενείας ἐκείνης· ἐπεὶ οὐδὲ τὸ λυπεῖσθαι ἔγκλημα, ἀλλὰ τὸ διὰ τὴν λύπην εἰπεῖν τι ἢ πρᾶξαι τῶν τῷ Θεῷ μὴ δοκούντων. Εἰ μὲν γὰρ ἔλεγον ὅτι οὐκ ἦν ἄνθρωπος Παῦλος, καλῶς μοι τὰ τῆς φύσεως ἐλαττώματα εἰς μέσον ἦγες, ὡς μέλλων ταύτῃ τὸν λόγον ἐλέγχειν· εἰ δὲ λέγω καὶ διαβεβαιοῦμαι ὅτι ἄνθρωπος μὲν ἦν, καὶ ἡμῶν οὐδὲν ἀμείνων κατὰ τὴν φύσιν, βελτίων δὲ γέγονε κατὰ τὴν προαίρεσιν, εἰκῇ μοι ταῦτα προφέρεις, μᾶλλον δὲ οὐκ εἰκῇ, ἀλλὰ ὑπὲρ Παύλου. Καὶ γὰρ δεικνύεις ἐντεῦθεν ἡλίκος ἐκεῖνος ἦν, ὡς ἐν τοιαύτῃ φύσει τὰ ὑπὲρ τὴν φύσιν ἰσχῦσαι. Οὐκ ἐκεῖνον δὲ μόνον ἐπαίρεις, ἀλλὰ καὶ ἀπορράπτεις τῶν ἀναπεπτωκότων τὰ στόματα, οὐκ ἀφιεὶς αὐτοὺς εἰς τὴν τῆς φύσεως ὑπεροχὴν καταφυγεῖν, ἀλλ' ὠθῶν αὐτοὺς εἰς τὴν ἀπὸ προαιρέσεως σπουδήν. 6.4 Ἀλλὰ καὶ θάνατον, φησίν, ἔδεισέ ποτε; Καὶ γὰρ καὶ τοῦτο τῆς φύσεως. Ἀλλ' ὅμως οὗτος αὐτὸς πάλιν ὁ θάνατον δεδοικὼς ἔλεγε· Καὶ γὰρ ἡμεῖς, οἱ ὄντες ἐν τῷ σκήνει, στενάζομεν βαρούμενοι. Καὶ πάλιν· Ἡμεῖς αὐτοὶ ἐν ἑαυτοῖς στενάζομεν. Εἶδες πῶς ἀντίρροπον τῆς φυσικῆς ἀσθενείας τὴν ἀπὸ προαιρέσεως εἰσήγαγε δύναμιν; Ἐπεὶ καὶ μάρτυρες πολλοὶ πολλάκις ἀπάγεσθαι μέλλοντες ἐπὶ θανάτῳ ὠχρίασαν καὶ φόβου καὶ ἀγωνίας ἐνεπλήσθησαν· ἀλλὰ καὶ διὰ τοῦτο μάλιστα θαυμαστοί, ὅτι καὶ οὗτοι δεδοικότες θάνατον, οὐκ ἔφυγον θάνατον διὰ τὸν Ἰησοῦν. Οὕτω καὶ Παῦλος