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2.61 (61) Scripture calls "the mountain country," the lofty contemplation of nature in the spirit, which is cultivated by those who have been weaned from sensible phantasies, and have passed over intelligibly through the midst of the virtues to their inner principles.

2.62 (62) Insofar as the intellect holds the living memory of God within itself, it seeks the Lord through contemplation; and not simply, but in the fear of the Lord; that is, in the practice of the commandments. For he who seeks the Lord through contemplation without practice, does not find him, because he did not seek the Lord in the fear of the Lord. And the Lord made him prosper; for the Lord gives success to everyone who acts with knowledge, teaching the ways of the commandments and revealing the true principles of beings.

2.63 (63) The lofty discourse concerning the Godhead is a tower in the soul, fortified by the energies of the commandments. And this is what it says, that Uzziah built towers in Jerusalem. For he who is rightly prospered in the seeking of the Lord through contemplation, with the requisite fear, that is, the practice of the commandments, 15∆_108 builds towers in Jerusalem, that is, according to the simple and tranquil state of the soul, raising up discourses concerning the Godhead.

2.64 (64) The principles of particulars, by yielding to the universals, effect the unions of divided things; because the more universal principles unitively contain the principles of the more particular, to which particulars have their reference by nature. But also of intellect to sense, and of heaven to earth, and of sensible things to intelligible things, and of nature to its principle, there is also a certain relational principle of these in the spirit, which gives to them union with one another.

2.65 (65) He who has been able to banish the passions from the senses, and to separate the soul from its relation to the senses, has prevailed to wall off the entrance of the devil to the intellect through the senses; and for this reason, in the desert, I mean in natural contemplation, he has built, as it were, safe towers, the pious doctrines concerning beings; in which he who takes refuge does not fear those in this desert; I mean the nature of visible things, the plundering demons, who both deceive the intellect through sensation, and drag it down to the darkness of ignorance. For he who has acquired a pious doctrine concerning each thing does not fear the demons who deceive men through appearances.

1245 2.66 (66) Every intellect having strength for contemplation is a true farmer, preserving the divine seeds of good things pure from weeds through his own zeal and care, so long as he has the memory of God preserving him. For it says: And he was seeking the Lord in the days of Zacharias in the fear of the Lord. But the discourse knows Zacharias, translated into the Greek tongue, as "memory of God." Therefore let us always beseech the Lord that his saving memory be preserved for us, lest even that which is achieved corrupt the soul, 15∆_110 being lifted up on high, and daring things beyond nature, like Uzziah.

2.67 (67) The unerring contemplation of beings requires a soul free from passions; which is called Jerusalem, on account of both complete virtue and immaterial knowledge; which comes to be not only by the privation of passions, but also of sensible phantasies.

2.68 (68) Without faith, hope, and love, nothing evil is completely abolished, nor is anything good achieved at all. For faith, on the one hand, persuades the intellect, when it is assailed, to approach God, becoming for it an encouragement to take courage in every preparation of spiritual weapons. Hope, on the other hand, becomes for it a most truthful guarantor of divine assistance, promising the destruction of opposing powers. Love, however, hard to move, or rather, completely

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2.61 (ξα΄) Ὀρεινήν ἡ Γραφή, τήν ὑψηλήν ἐν πνεύματι θεωρίαν τῆς φύσεως λέγει, ἥν γεωργοῦσιν οἱ τῶν αἰσθητῶν ἀπογενόμενοι φαντασιῶν, καί πρός τούς αὐτῶν νοητῶς διά μέσου τῶν ἀρετῶν διαβάντες λόγους.

2.62 (ξβ΄) Ὁ νοῦς ἐφ᾿ ὅσον ἔχει ζῶσαν ἐν ἑαυτῶ τήν τοῦ Θεοῦ μνήμην, διά τῆς θεωρίας ἐκζητεῖ τόν Κύριον· καί οὐχ ἁπλῶς, ἀλλ᾿ ἐν φόβῳ Κυρίου· τουτέστιν, ἐν τῇ πράξει τῶν ἐντολῶν. Ὁ γάρ ἐκζητῶν διά θεωρίας τόν Κύριον χωρίς πράξεως, οὐκ εὑρίσκει αὐτόν, ὅτι οὐκ ἐν φόβῳ Κυρίου τόν Κύριον ἐξεζήτησε. Καί εὐώδωσεν αὐτῷ ὁ Κύριος· παντί γάρ τῷ μετά γνώσεως πράττοντι, εὐοδοῖ ὁ Κύριος, τούς τε τῶν ἐντολῶν διδάσκων τρόπους, καί τούς τῶν ὄντων ἀληθεῖς λόγους ἀποκαλύπτων.

2.63 (ξγ΄) Ὁ περί θεότητος ὑψηλός λόγος, πύργος ἐστί κατά ψυχήν, ταῖς τῶν ἐντολῶν ἐνεργείαις ὠχυρωμένος. Καί τοῦτό ἐστιν ὅ φησιν, ὅτι ᾨκοδόμησεν Ὀζίας πύργους ἐν Ἱερουσαλήμ. Ὁ γάρ καλῶς εὐοδούμενος ἐπί τήν διά θεωρίας ἐκζήτησιν τοῦ Κυρίου, μετά τοῦ ἐπιβεβλημένου φόβου, τουτέστι τῆς τῶν ἐντολῶν 15∆_108 πράξεως, οἰκοδομεῖ πύργους ἐν Ἱερουσαλήμ, κατά τήν ἁπλῆν δηλαδή καί ἡρεμαίαν τῆς ψυχῆς κατάστασιν, τούς περί θεότητος ἀνυψῶν λόγους.

2.64 (ξδ΄) Οἱ τῶν ἐπί μέρους λόγοι, τοῖς καθόλου προσχωροῦντες, τά τῶν διῃρημένων ἑνώσεις ποιοῦνται· διότι τῶν μερικωτέρων ἑνοειδῶς οἱ καθολικώτεροι τούς λόγους περιλαμβάνουσι, πρός οὕς φυσικῶς τήν ἀναφοράν ἔχει τά κατά μέρος. Ἀλλά καί νοῦ πρός αἴσθησιν, καί οὐρανοῦ πρός γῆν, καί αἰσθητῶν πρός νοητά, καί φύσεως πρός λόγον, ἔστι τις καί τούτων σχετικός ἐν πνεύματι λόγος, τήν πρός ἄλληλα διδούς αὐτοῖς ἕνωσιν.

2.65 (ξε΄) Ὁ τῶν παθῶν δυνηθείς ἐξηλῶσαι τάς αἰσθήσεις, καί τῆς τῶν αἰσθήσεων σχέσεως τήν ψυχήν ἀποδιαστείλας, κατίσχυσεν ἀποτειχίσαι τήν γενομένην τοῦ διαβόλου πρός τόν νοῦν διά μέσων τῶν αἰσθήσεων εἴσοδον· καί διά τοῦτο κατά τήν ἔρημον, φημί δέ τήν φυσικήν θεωρίαν, οἱονεί πύργους ἀσφαλεῖς, τάς εὐσεβεῖς περί τῶν ὄντων ᾠκοδόμησε δόξας· ἐν αἷς ὁ καταφεύγων, οὐ φοβεῖται τούς κατά τήν ἔρημον ταύτην· λέγω δέ τήν φύσιν τῶν ὁρωμένων, λῃστεύοντας δαίμονας, καί πλανῶντας τόν νοῦν διά τῆς αἰσθήσεως, καί πρός ἀγνοίας κατασύροντας ζόφον. Ὁ γάρ τήν εὐσεβῆ περί ἕκαστον δόξαν κτησάμενος, οὐ δέδοικε τούς διά τῶν φαινομένων πλανῶντας τούς ἀνθρώπους δαίμονας.

1245 2.66 (ξστ΄) Πᾶς νοῦς ἰσχύν πρός θεωρίαν ἔχων, ἀληθής ἐστι γεωργός, καθαρά ζιζανίων διά τῆς οἰκείας σπουδῆς καί ἐπιμελείας τά θεῖα τῶν ἀγαθῶν διαφυλάττων σπέρματα, μέχρις οὗ συντηροῦσαν αὐτόν ἔχῃ τήν τοῦ Θεοῦ μνήμην. Φησί γάρ· Καί ἦν ἐκζητῶν τόν Κύριον ἐν ταῖς ἡμέραις Ζαχαρίου ἐν φόβῳ Κυρίου. Ζαχαρίαν δέ, μνήμην Θεοῦ πρός τήν ἑλλάδα φωνήν μεταφερόμενον οἶδεν ὁ λόγος. ∆ιό πάντοτε δεηθῶμεν τοῦ Κυρίου, τήν σωτηρίαν αὐτοῦ φυλαχθῆναι ἡμῖν μνήμην, ἵνα μή καί αὐτό 15∆_110 διαφθείρῃ τήν ψυχήν τό κατορθούμενον, πρός ὕψος ἀρθεῖσαν, καί τῶν ὑπέρ φύσιν, ὡς ὁ Ὀζίας, κατατολμήσασαν.

2.67 (ξζ΄) Ἡ τῶν ὄντων ἀπλανής θεωρία, παθῶν ἀπηλλαγμένης δεῖται ψυχῆς· ἥτις Ἱερουσαλήμ λέγεται, διά τε τήν ἄρτιον ἀρετήν καί τήν ἄϋλον γνῶσιν· ἥτις οὐ μόνον κατά στέρησιν παθῶν, ἀλλά καί φαντασιῶν αἰσθητῶν ἐπιγίνεται.

2.68 (ξη΄) Χωρίς πίστεως καί ἐλπίδος καί ἀγάπης, οὐδέν οὔτε τῶν κακῶν καταργεῖται παντελῶς, οὔτε τῶν καλῶν κατορθοῦται τό σύνολον. Ἡ μέν γάρ πίστις, πείθει τῷ Θεῷ προσχωρεῖν τόν νοῦν πολεμούμενον, πάσης αὐτῷ γινομένη παρασκευῆς ὅπλων πνευματικῶν πρός τό θαῤῥεῖν παραμύθιον. Ἡ δέ ἐλπίς, τῆς θείας αὐτῷ καθίσταται βοηθείας ἐγγυητής ἀψευδέστατος, τήν τῶν ἐναντίων καθαίρεσιν ἐπαγγελλομένη δυνάμεων. Ἡ δέ ἀγάπη, δυσμετακίνητον, μᾶλλον δέ, πάμπαν