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The brother advised this, but the whole thing came from the providence of God. This also happened in the case of the Egyptian woman. For what reason, tell me, did the man so hot-tempered and irascible—for this passion is theirs to an excessive degree—whom he believed to be an adulterer and to have wronged his own wife, not cut him to pieces at once, nor hand him over to the fire, but, being so irrational as to pass judgment from one side and not even to grant a word to the accused, at the time of punishment showed great forbearance? And this, seeing the woman raving, maddened, lamenting violence done to her, wearing her garments torn, and from this being even more inflamed, and wailing and mourning. But yet none of these things drove him to slaughter. From where, tell me, is it not perfectly clear that He who bridled the lions and cooled the furnace, this one also restrained the immoderate temper of this beast and extinguished his unspeakable wrath, so that the punishment was blended with measure? One might see this having happened also in the prison. For He allowed him to be bound and to be with the convicts, but He rescued him from the harshness of the jailer—for you know what a jailer is like, but to him he was then mild and gentle—and not only did he not wear him down with any labors, but he also made him ruler of all who were there. And this, having received him as a convicted adulterer, and a notorious adulterer; for not in a humble house, but a great and splendid one, was this deed thought to have been dared. But yet none of these things frightened him, nor persuaded him to be harsh to that man, but the crowns were woven from the sufferings, and the alliance of God flowed forth with great abundance. I wished to add other length to the letter, but, since I think that even this has with great abundance exceeded the measure, having stopped my discourse here, I exhort your piety to that which I have always continued to exhort. To be delivered from despondency, and to glorify God, which you have always done and continue to do, confessing thanks to Him for all these difficult and painful things. For thus you yourself will reap greater goods, and you will give a timely blow to the devil, and you will provide much comfort to us, and you will be able to make the cloud of despondency disappear with great ease and enjoy a pure calm. Do not, then, grow soft, but having recovered from this smoke—for it is smoke—and, if you wish, you will easily scatter all this despondency, make this clear to us again, so that even being far off we may reap much gladness from such letters.

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συνεβούλευσε μὲν τοῦτο ὁ ἀδελφός, τὸ δὲ πᾶν τῆς τοῦ Θεοῦ προνοίας ἐγένετο. Τοῦτο καὶ ἐπὶ τῆς αἰγυπτιακῆς συνέβη γυναικός. Τίνος γὰρ ἕνεκεν, εἰπέ μοι, ὁ θερμὸς οὕτω καὶ ὀργίλος-καὶ γὰρ τοῦτο μεθ' ὑπερβολῆς αὐτοῖς πρόσεστι τὸ πάθος-ὃν ἐπίστευσεν εἶναι μοιχὸν καὶ τὴν γυναῖκα ἠδικηκέναι τὴν αὑτοῦ, οὐκ ἀπέτεμεν εὐθέως, οὐδὲ πυρὶ παραδέδωκεν, ἀλλ' οὕτως ἀλόγιστος ὤν, ὡς ἐκ μιᾶς μοίρας ἀποφήνασθαι καὶ μηδὲ λόγου μεταδοῦναι τῷ ἐγκαλουμένῳ ἐν τῷ καιρῷ τῆς τιμωρίας πολλὴν ἐπιείκειαν ἐπεδείξατο; Καὶ ταῦτα ὁρῶν τὴν γυναῖκα μαινομένην, λυττῶσαν, βίαν ἀποδυρομένην, τὰ ἱμάτια διερρωγότα περιφέρουσαν καὶ μειζόνως καὶ ἐντεῦθεν ἐκκαιομένην καὶ θρηνοῦσαν καὶ ὀλοφυρομένην. Ἀλλ' ὅμως τούτων οὐδὲν αὐτὸν εἰς σφαγὴν ἐξέβαλε. Πόθεν, εἰπέ μοι, οὐκ εὔδηλον ὅτι ὁ τοὺς λέοντας χαλινώσας καὶ τὴν κάμινον καταψύξας, οὗτος καὶ τοῦ θηρίου τούτου τὸν ἄμετρον ἐπέσχε θυμὸν καὶ τὴν ἄφατον ὀργὴν ἔσβεσεν ὡς κερασθῆναι συμμέτρως τὴν τιμωρίαν; Τοῦτο καὶ ἐν τῷ δεσμωτηρίῳ συμβὰν ἴδοι τις ἄν. ∆εθῆναι μὲν γὰρ αὐτὸν συνεχώρησε καὶ μετὰ τῶν καταδίκων εἶναι, τῆς δὲ τοῦ δεσμοφύλακος ἀπηνείας ἐξήρπασεν-οἶσθα γὰρ οἷόν ἐστι δεσμοφύλαξ, ἀλλ' ἐκείνῳ τότε πρᾶος καὶ ἥμερος ἦν-καὶ οὐ μόνον οὐ κατέτεινεν αὐτὸν πόνοις τισίν, ἀλλὰ καὶ ἄρχοντα πάντων ἐποίησε τῶν αὐτόθι. Καὶ ταῦτα ὡς μοιχὸν δεξάμενος κατάδικον καὶ μοιχὸν ἐπίσημον· οὐ γὰρ εἰς οἰκίαν εὐτελῆ, ἀλλὰ μεγάλην καὶ λαμπρὰν τὸ δρᾶμα τοῦτο τετολμῆσθαι ἐνομίζετο. Ἀλλ' ὅμως οὐδὲν τούτων ἐκεῖνον ἐφόβισεν, οὐδὲ ἔπεισεν ἐκείνῳ γενέσθαι χαλεπόν, ἀλλ' οἱ στέφανοι ἀπὸ τῶν παθημάτων ἐπλέκοντο καὶ ἡ τοῦ Θεοῦ συμμαχία μετὰ πολλῆς ἐπέρρει τῆς δαψιλείας. Ἐβουλόμην καὶ ἕτερον προσθεῖναι τῇ ἐπιστολῇ μῆκος, ἀλλ', ἐπειδὴ καὶ τοῦτο μετὰ πολλῆς τῆς περιουσίας οἶμαι τὸ μέτρον ὑπερβεβηκέναι ἐνταῦθα καταλύσας τὸν λόγον ἐκεῖνο παρακαλῶ σου τὴν εὐλάβειαν, ὅπερ ἀεὶ διετέλεσα παρακαλῶν. Ἀθυμίας μὲν ἀπαλλάττεσθαι, δοξάζειν δὲ τὸν Θεόν, ὅπερ ἀεὶ πεποίηκας καὶ ποιῶν διατελεῖς, χάριτας ὁμολογῶν ὑπὲρ πάντων αὐτῷ τῶν χαλεπῶν τούτων καὶ ὀδυνηρῶν. Οὕτω γὰρ καὶ αὐτὸς μείζονα ἀγαθὰ καρπώσῃ καὶ τῷ διαβόλῳ καιρίαν δώσεις πληγὴν καὶ ἡμῖν πολλὴν παρέξεις παράκλησιν καὶ τῆς ἀθυμίας τὸ νέφος μετὰ πολλῆς ἀφανίσαι δυνήσῃ τῆς εὐκολίας καὶ καθαρᾶς ἀπολαῦσαι γαλήνης. Μὴ δὴ καταμαλακίζου, ἀλλ' ἀνενεγκὼν ἀπὸ τοῦ καπνοῦ τούτου-καπνὸς γάρ-καί, ἐὰν θέλῃς, ῥᾴδιον διασκεδάσεις πᾶσαν τὴν ἀθυμίαν ταύτην, δῆλον τοῦτο πάλιν ποίησον ἡμῖν, ἵνα καὶ πόρρωθεν ὄντες πολλὴν ἀπὸ τῶν τοιούτων γραμμάτων καρπωσώμεθα τὴν εὐφροσύνην.