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is both strong and wonderful, because he created the world for the sake of man and subjected all his creation to man, and gave him all authority to have dominion over all things under heaven? If then, he says, man is lord of all God's creatures and has dominion over all things, is he not able also to have dominion over these commandments? He is able, he says, to have dominion over all things and all these commandments—the man who has the Lord in his heart. But those who have the Lord on their lips, but their heart is hardened, and are far from the Lord, to them these commandments are hard and difficult to walk in. Place, therefore, you who are empty and fickle in the faith, your Lord into your heart, and you will know that nothing is easier than these commandments, nor sweeter, nor gentler. Turn, you who walk in the commandments of the devil, which are difficult and bitter and wild and wanton, and do not fear the devil, because in him there is no power against you; for I will be with you, the angel of repentance who has dominion over him. The devil has only fear, but his fear has no power; do not fear him, therefore, and he will flee from you. I say to him, “Lord, hear a few words from me.” “Say,” he says, “what you wish.” “Man indeed,” I say, “Lord, is eager to keep the commandments of God, and there is no one who does not ask of the L[ord th]at he might be strengthened in his commandments and be subject to them; but the devil is hard and tyrannizes over them.” “He cannot,” he says, “tyrannize over the servants of God who hope in him with their whole heart. The devil can wrestle against them, but he cannot wrestle them down. If therefore you resist him, being conquered, he will flee from you ashamed. But as many as are empty, he says, fear the devil as if he had power. Whenever a man fills very many jars with good wine, and among those jars a few are empty, he comes to the jars and does not inspect the full ones, for he knows that they are full; but he inspects the empty ones, fearing lest they have turned sour; for the empty jars quickly turn sour and the pleasantness of the wine is destroyed. So also the devil comes to all the servants of God, tempting them. As many, therefore, as are full in the faith, resist him strongly, and he departs from them, not having a place where he might enter. He comes then, therefore, to the empty ones, and having a place he enters into them, and whatever he wishes he works in them, and they become subject to him. But I say to you, I, the angel of repentance, do not fear the devil. For I was sent, he says, to be with you who are repenting with your whole heart and to strengthen them in the faith. Believe in God, therefore, you who because of your sins have despaired of your life, and are adding to your sins and weighing down your life, that, if you turn to the Lord with your whole heart and work righteousness for the remaining days of your life and serve him rightly according to his will, he will grant healing for your former sins and you will have power to have dominion over the works of the devil. And do not fear the threat of the devil at all; for he is powerless, like the sinews of a dead man. Listen to me, therefore, and fear the one who is able to do all things, to save and to destroy, and keep these commandments, and you will live to God.” I say to him, “Lord, now I have been strengthened in all the ordinances of the Lord, because you are with me.” And

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ἐστὶ καὶ ἰσχυρὰ καὶ θαυμαστή, ὅτι ἔκτισε τὸν κόσμον ἕνεκα τοῦ ἀνθρώπου καὶ πᾶσαν τὴν κτίσιν αὐτοῦ ὑπέταξε τῷ ἀνθρώπῳ, καὶ τὴν ἐξουσίαν πᾶσαν ἔδωκεν αὐτῷ τοῦ κατακυριεύειν τῶν ὑπὸ τὸν οὐρανὸν πάντων; εἰ οὖν, φησί, πάντων ὁ ἄνθρωπος κύριός ἐστι τῶν κτισμάτων τοῦ θεοῦ καὶ πάντων κατακυριεύει, οὐ δύναται καὶ τούτων τῶν ἐντολῶν κατακυριεῦσαι; δύναται, φησί, πάντων καὶ πασῶν τῶν ἐντολῶν τούτων κατακυριεῦσαι ὁ ἄνθρωπος ὁ ἔχων τὸν κύριον ἐν τῇ καρδίᾳ αὐτοῦ. οἱ δὲ ἐπὶ τοῖς χείλεσιν ἔχοντες τὸν κύριον, τὴν δὲ καρδίαν αὐτῶν πεπωρωμένην, καὶ μακρὰν ὄντες ἀπὸ τοῦ κυ ρίου, ἐκείνοις αἱ ἐντολαὶ αὗται σκληραί εἰσι καὶ δύσβατοι. θέσθε οὖν ὑμεῖς, οἱ κενοὶ καὶ ἐλαφροὶ ὄντες ἐν τῇ πίστει, τὸν κύριον ὑμῶν εἰς τὴν καρδίαν, καὶ γνώσεσθε ὅτι οὐδέν ἐστιν εὐκοπώτερον τῶν ἐντολῶν τούτων, οὔτε γλυκύτερον, οὔτε ἡμερώτερον. ἐπιστράφητε ὑμεῖς οἱ ταῖς ἐντολαῖς πορευό μενοι τοῦ διαβόλου, ταῖς δυσκόλοις καὶ πικραῖς καὶ ἀγρίαις καὶ ἀσελγέσι, καὶ μὴ φοβήθητε τὸν διάβολον, ὅτι ἐν αὐτῷ δύναμις οὐκ ἔστι καθ' ὑμῶν· ἐγὼ γὰρ ἔσομαι μεθ' ὑμῶν, ὁ ἄγγελος τῆς μετανοίας ὁ κατακυριεύων αὐτοῦ. ὁ διάβολος μόνον φόβον ἔχει, ὁ δὲ φόβος αὐτοῦ τόνον οὐκ ἔχει· μὴ φοβήθητε οὖν αὐτόν, καὶ φεύξεται ἀφ' ὑμῶν. Λέγω αὐτῷ· Κύριε, ἄκουσόν μου ὀλίγων ῥημάτων. Λέγε, φησί, ὃ βούλει. Ὁ μὲν ἄνθρωπος, φημί, κύριε, πρόθυμός ἐστι τὰς ἐντολὰς τοῦ θεοῦ φυ λάσσειν, καὶ οὐδείς ἐστιν ὁ μὴ αἰτούμενος παρὰ τοῦ κ[υρίου ἵν]α ἐνδυνα μωθῇ ἐν ταῖς ἐντολαῖς αὐτοῦ καὶ ὑποταγῇ αὐταῖς· ἀλλ' ὁ διάβολος σκλη ρός ἐστι καὶ καταδυναστεύει αὐτῶν. Oὐ δύναται, φησί, καταδυναστεύ ειν τῶν δούλων τοῦ θεοῦ τῶν ἐξ ὅλης καρδίας ἐλπιζόντων ἐπ' αὐτόν. δύναται ὁ διάβολος ἀντιπαλαῖσαι, καταπαλαῖσαι δὲ οὐ δύναται. ἐὰν οὖν ἀντισταθῆτε αὐτῷ, νικηθεὶς φεύξεται ἀφ' ὑμῶν κατῃσχυμμένος. ὅσοι δέ, φησίν, ἀπόκενοί εἰσι, φοβοῦνται τὸν διάβολον ὡς δύναμιν ἔχοντα. ὅταν ὁ ἄνθρωπος κεράμια ἱκανώτατα γεμίσῃ οἴνου καλοῦ καὶ ἐν τοῖς κεραμίοις ἐκείνοις ὀλίγα ἀπόκενα ᾖ, ἔρχεται ἐπὶ τὰ κεράμια καὶ οὐ κατανοεῖ τὰ πλήρη· οἶδε γὰρ ὅτι πλήρη εἰσί· κατανοεῖ δὲ τὰ ἀπόκενα, φοβούμενος, μήποτε ὤξισαν· ταχὺ γὰρ τὰ ἀπόκενα κεράμια ὀξίζουσι καὶ ἀπόλλυται ἡ ἡδονὴ τοῦ οἴνου. οὕτω καὶ ὁ διάβολος ἔρχεται ἐπὶ πάντας τοὺς δούλους τοῦ θεοῦ ἐκπειράζων αὐ τούς. ὅσοι οὖν πλήρεις εἰσὶν ἐν τῇ πίστει, ἀνθεστήκασιν αὐτῷ ἰσχυρῶς, κἀ κεῖνος ἀποχωρεῖ ἀπ' αὐτῶν μὴ ἔχων τόπον, ποῦ εἰσέλθῃ. ἔρχεται οὖν τότε πρὸς τοὺς ἀποκένους καὶ ἔχων τόπον εἰσπορεύεται εἰς αὐτούς, καὶ ὃ δὲ βούλεται ἐν αὐτοῖς ἐργάζεται, καὶ γίνονται αὐτῷ ὑπόδουλοι. Ἐγὼ δὲ ὑμῖν λέγω, ὁ ἄγγελος τῆς μετανοίας· μὴ φοβήθητε τὸν διάβολον. ἀπεστάλην γάρ, φησί, μεθ' ὑμῶν εἶναι τῶν μετανοούντων ἐξ ὅλης καρδίας αὐτῶν καὶ ἰσχυροποιῆσαι αὐτοὺς ἐν τῇ πίστει. πιστεύσατε οὖν τῷ θεῷ ὑμεῖς οἱ διὰ τὰς ἁμαρτίας ὑμῶν ἀπεγνωκότες τὴν ζωὴν ὑμῶν καὶ προστι θέντες ἁμαρτίαις καὶ καταβαρύνοντες τὴν ζωὴν ὑμῶν, ὅτι, ἐὰν ἐπιστραφῆτε πρὸς τὸν κύριον ἐξ ὅλης τῆς καρδίας ὑμῶν καὶ ἐργάσησθε τὴν δικαιοσύνην τὰς λοιπὰς ἡμέρας τῆς ζωῆς ὑμῶν καὶ δουλεύσητε αὐτῷ ὀρθῶς κατὰ τὸ θέλημα αὐτοῦ, ποιήσει ἴασιν τοῖς προτέροις ὑμῶν ἁμαρτήμασι καὶ ἕξετε δύναμιν τοῦ κατακυριεῦσαι τῶν ἔργων τοῦ διαβόλου. τὴν δὲ ἀπειλὴν τοῦ διαβόλου ὅλως μὴ φοβήθητε· ἄτονος γάρ ἐστιν ὥσπερ νεκροῦ νεῦρα. ἀκού σατε οὖν μου καὶ φοβήθητε τὸν πάντα δυνάμενον, σῶσαι καὶ ἀπολέσαι, καὶ τηρεῖτε τὰς ἐντολὰς ταύτας, καὶ ζήσεσθε τῷ θεῷ. λέγω αὐτῷ· Κύριε, νῦν ἐνεδυναμώθην ἐν πᾶσι τοῖς δικαιώμασι τοῦ κυρίου, ὅτι σὺ μετ' ἐμοῦ εἶ. καὶ