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He said; "I want you to be wise as to what is good, and innocent as to what is evil." But the serpent, wanting them to be wise as to what is evil, wished to open the eyes that incline toward this, which are not opened when virtue is active but remain closed, enduring a beneficial blindness, which Jesus says he brings about in the gospel, saying. "I came so that those who do not see may see, and those who see may become blind." But Jesus, in the historical account, has made no one blind, but has granted sight to the blind. It is clear, then, that he blinds those who see badly and makes them see with beneficial eyes, which belong to the inner man, preserving clear sight not by sense perception but by the mind, before they know and by applying reason to sense perception, they hide it according to what is 82 said: "The wise will hide perception." And so that what is said may become clear through an example, the sense of touch is perceptive of hot and cold, hard and soft, rough and smooth, and these things are clear through touch to both an irrational animal and a child; but when, for example, a physician touches a pulse, he hides perception, applying reason to the movement of the pulsations. Thus also, laypeople look at images with sense perception alone, but artists with reason. Therefore, man before the transgression had eyes that looked at things, that is, an understanding that applied itself to things with knowledge, as it should. So as long as he had these eyes that were applied to the appropriate sights, he did not know evil, meaning he did not receive an experience of it; but when these were closed, and those that incline toward evil were opened, then they were also cast out. The devil, having the desire for these things, deceives the woman, introduces the thought of God's envy to her, and promises great things, so that through these also he might entice her, saying: "You will be as gods, knowing good and evil", in addition to suggesting the idea of multiple gods, when idolatry through images had not yet been established, hinting at the angels who apostatized with him. iii, 6-7. And she saw that the tree was good for food and that it was pleasing to the eyes and beautiful to contemplate, and taking of its fruit she ate, and she gave also to her husband with her, and they ate, and the eyes of the two were opened, and they knew that they were naked. The things of the serpent's deception, having prevailed, produced a contrary test for her; for what is set out for food is not tested by sight, except that the deception, having begun, first produces some delight and pleasure, and then it rouses the deceived one to the act. After <being> persuaded by what was said by the serpent, she took it by consent and ate, completing the act, and she accepts her husband as a partner, making and ministering things for deception; for such is sense perception, which 83 we said holds the place of the woman. And when their eyes were opened "they knew that they were naked". For this tends to happen to those who are deceived. For after the act, the shame of their evil is revealed as they realize that they have been stripped of virtue, this again being granted by the merciful God, so that the one who performs evil, by not remaining completely without perception, might not remain completely outside of virtue. The deception of the devil, therefore, is this, that he should cause the things seen according to the true reason by the pure eye of the soul to be seen in a contrary way, positing the pleasant in place of the good, and showing the good as toilsome. Thus, indeed, are opened the eyes that were formerly usefully closed. For in the soul there is an eye that applies itself on its own to intelligible things, and an ear that follows the instruction from another, which the serpent, having distorted, fulfilled the things of deception, so that also

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ἔλεγεν· "6Βούλομαι ὑμᾶς σοφοὺς μὲν εἶναι εἰς τὸ ἀγαθόν, ἀκεραί[ο]υς εἰς τὸ κακόν."6 Ὁ δὲ ὄφις θέλων αὐτοὺς εἶναι σοφοὺς εἰς τὸ κακὸν τοὺς ἐπὶ τοῦτο ὀφθαλμοὺς ῥέποντας ἀνοῖξαι ἠβούλετο, οἵτινες τῆς ἀρετῆς ἐνεργουμένης οὐ διανοίγονται ἀλλὰ κεκλεισ[μ]ένοι τυγχάνουσιν τύφλωσιν ὠφέλιμον ὑπομέ- νοντες, ἥντινα [ἐ]νεργεῖν φησιν <Ἰησοῦς> ἐν τῷ εὐαγγελίῳ λέγων. "6Ἐγὼ ἦλθον ἵνα οἱ μὴ βλέποντες βλέπωσιν καὶ οἱ βλέποντες τυφλοὶ γένωνται."6 Ἰησοῦς δὲ καθ' ἱσ[τ]ορίαν οὐδένα τυφλὸν πεποίηκεν, ἀλλὰ τυφλοῖς τὸ βλέπειν δεδώρηται. ∆ῆλον οὖν ὅτι ἐκείνους τυφλοῖ τοὺς κακῶς ὁρῶντας καὶ ἀν̣αβλέπειν ποιεῖ τοῖς ὠφελίμοις ὀφθαλμοῖς, οἵτινες τοῦ ἔσω ἀνθρώπου τυγχάνοντες, σῴζοντες τὸ καθαρῶς ὁρᾶν οὐκ αἰσθητῶς ἀλλὰ νοητῶς, πρὶν γν[ό]ντες καὶ τῇ αἰσθήσει λόγον ἐπιβάλλοντες, κρύπτουσιν αὐτὴν κατὰ τὸ 82 εἰρημένον· "6Σοφοὶ κρύψουσιν αἴσθη[σιν]."6 Καὶ ἵνα διὰ παραδείγματος σαφὲς γένηται τὸ λεγό[με]νον, καὶ αἴσθησις ἡ ἁφὴ ἀντιλημπτική [ἐ]στιν θερμῶν καὶ ψυχρῶν, [σκ]ληρῶν καὶ ἁπαλῶν, τραχέων καὶ λείων, καὶ ἀλόγῳ δὲ καὶ παιδίῳ ταῦτ̣α̣ κατὰ τὴν ἁφὴν δῆλα τυγχάνει· ὅταν δὲ φέρε ὁ ἰατρὸς ἅπτηται ἰπω´̣[σ]εως, κρύπτει τὴν αἴσθησιν, λόγον τῇ κινήσει τῶν σφυγμῶν ἐπιβα´̣λ̣[λων]. Οὕτω καὶ τὰς εἰκόνας οἱ μὲν ἰδιῶται αἰσθήσει μόνῃ, οἱ δὲ γρα[φεῖς] τῷ λόγῳ θεωροῦσιν. Εἶχεν οὖν ὁ ἄνθρωπο[ς π]ρὸ παραβάσεως ὀφθαλμοὺς πρ[οσ]βλ[έ]ποντας τὰ πράγματα, τοῦτ' ἔστι [νόη]σιν ἐπιστημονικῶς ἐπιβά[λλου]σαν τοῖς πράγμασιν, ὡς δεῖ. Ἕως οὖ[ν τ]ούτους εἶχε τοὺς ὀφθαλμοὺς π[ροσ]- βάλλοντας τοῖς καταλλήλοις θεά[μα]σιν, οὐκ ἐγίγνωσκεν τὸ κακόν, ἀντὶ τοῦ πειρᾶν αὐτοῦ οὐκ ἐδέχετο· [ὅτ]ε δὲ οὗτοι ἔβυσαν, ἠνοίχθησαν δὲ οἱ ἐπὶ τὸ κακὸν ῥέπ[ο]ν̣[τ]ες, τότε [κ]αὶ [ἐ]ξώβλητοι γεγένηνται. Τούτω̣ν ὁ διάβολος ἔχων τὸ θέλημα σ[οφίζε]ται τὴν γυναῖκα, φθόνον εἰσά[γε]ι Θεοῦ ἐννοεῖν αὐτήν, ἐπαγγέλ[λεται] δὲ μεγάλα, ἵνα καὶ διὰ τούτω̣[ν] δελεάσῃ λέγ̣ω̣ν· "6Ἔσεσθε ὡς θεο[ὺς γιγν]ώσκοντες καλὸν καὶ πον[η]ρόν"6, πρὸς τῷ καὶ ἔννοιαν ὑποβάλλ[ει]ν πλειόνων θεω῀̣ν, μήπω σ̣υσπ̣[·]·σ̣ ουσης τῆς δι' ἀγαλμάτων ε[ἰδ]ωλολατρείας, αἰνιττόμενος̣ τοὺς συνα- ποστάντας ἀγγέλους αὐτῷ. ιιι, 6-7. Καὶ εἶδεν ὅτι καλὸν τὸ ξύλο[ν] εἰς βρῶσιν καὶ ὅτι ἀρεστόν ἐστιν τοῖς ὀφθαλμοῖς καὶ ὡραῖόν ἐστ[ιν] τοῦ κατανοῆσαι, καὶ λαβοῦσα τοῦ καρποῦ αὐτοῦ ἔφαγεν, καὶ ἔδωκ[εν] καὶ τῷ ἀνδρὶ αὐτῆς μετ' αὐτῆς, καὶ ἔφαγον καὶ διηνοίχθησαν οἱ ὀφ[θαλ]μοὶ τῶν δύο καὶ ἔγνωσαν ὅτι γυμνοὶ ἦσαν. Τὰ τη῀̣ς ἀπάτης τοῦ [ὄφε]ως κρατήσαντα ἀντίστροφον αὐτῇ τὴν δοκιμασίαν ἐνεποίε̣[ι]· τὸ γὰρ εἰς βρῶσιν ἐκκείμενον οὐκ ὄψει δοκιμάζεται, πλὴν ἀρξαμ[ένη] ἡ ἀπάτη πρότερον τέρψιν τινὰ καὶ ἡδονὴν ἐργάζεται, εἰθ' ο̣ὕτ̣ω̣ ἐπὶ τὴν πρᾶξιν ἐγείρει τὸν ἀπατώμενον. Μετὰ <τὸ> ᾐσθῆναι ἐπὶ τοῖς ὑπο`̣ ὄφεως εἰρημένοις ἔλαβεν διὰ συγκατ̣αθέσεως καὶ ἔφαγεν τελ̣ε̣σ̣ι̣ουργοῦσα τὴν πρᾶξιν, κοινωνὸν δὲ καὶ τὸν ἄνδρα δέχεται, πο̣ι̣ο̣υ῀̣σα καὶ διακο- νοῦσα τὰ πρὸς ἀπάτην· τοιοῦτον γὰρ ἡ αἴσθησις, ἥντ̣ι̣ν̣α̣ 83 λόγον ἐπέχειν τῆς γυναικὸς ἐφάσκομεν. ∆ιανοιχθ̣έντων δ[ὲ] τῶν ὀφθαλμῶν "6ἔγνωσαν ὅτι γυμνοὶ ἦσαν"6. Φιλεῖ γὰρ τοῦτο τ[οῖς] ἀπατωμένοις συμβαίνειν. Μετὰ γὰρ τὴν ἐνέργειαν τὸ αἰσχρ̣ο`̣ν τῆς κακίας αὐτῶν φανεροῦτα[ι] ἐπιγιγνωσκόντων ὅτι τῆς ἀρε̣[τῆς] ἐγυμνώθησαν, τοῦτο πάλι[ν] τοῦ οἰκτίρμονος Θεοῦ χαριζο[μέ]νου, ἵνα μὴ ὁ τὴν κακίαν ἐν[ε]ργῶν, παντελῶς ἀναίσθητος δ[ια]τελῶν, ἔξω παντελῶς τῆς [ἀ]ρετῆς διαμείνῃ. Ἡ οὖν ἀπάτη τ[οῦ] διαβόλου αὕτη ἐστίν, ἵνα τὰ [θ]εωρούμενα κατὰ τὸν ἀληθῆ λόγον ὑπὸ τοῦ ὄμματος τοῦ καθα[ρο]ῦ τῆς ψυχῆς αὐτὸς ἀντιστρόφως ὁρᾶσθαι ποιήσῃ, τὸ μὲν ἡδὺ [ἀν]τὶ τοῦ ἀγαθοῦ ὑποτιθείς, τὸ δ' ἀγαθὸν ἐπίπονον παραδει[κ]νύ[ων]. Οὕτω γοῦν καὶ διανοίγονται ὀφθαλμοὶ οἱ πάλαι χρησίμως κ[εκλεισ]μέ[ν]οι. Ἔστιν γὰρ ἐν ψυχῇ ὀφθαλμὸς μὲν ὁ δι' ἑαυτοῦ τοῖ[ς νοη]τοῖς ἐπιβάλλων, οὖς δὲ τὸ τῇ παρ' ἑτέρου παιδεύσει ἑπόμ[ενον], ἅπερ διαστρέψας ὁ ὄφις τὰ τῆς ἀπάτης ἐπλήρωσεν, ὡς κα[ὶ