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what is lacking, what has been achieved will also be unprofitable in what is lacking. Therefore, just as when we effect motion with two feet, if something should happen to one of them, the unaffected one is also useless for running because of the weakness of its partner, so if measure is lacking to the right time, or the right time to the measure, the present thing is certainly rendered useless by what is lacking. But both due proportion in the right time and the right time in the measure have usefulness. Time, then, is understood by us as a substitute for measure, because time is the measure of everything that is individually measu<red>. 5.377 For things that happen, certainly happen in time, and with the extension of each of the things that happen, the interval of time is also co-extended, a little in the lesser and more in the greater. Time is the measure of pregnancy, the measure of the growth of the ears of corn, the measure of the ripening of fruits, the measure of a voyage, the measure of a journey, the measure of each age: of an infant, a little child, a youth, a boy, a young man, a man, a middle-aged man, a mature man, one past his prime, an elder, an old man. Since, therefore, the measure derived from time is not one for all things that come to be (for it is not possible for all things to become equal in measure to one another on account of the difference of their subjects), but, as has been said, time is the common measure of all measured things, containing all things in itself, for this reason he did not say 'a measure' for all things, because of the great inequality of the things measured with respect to more and less, but he said 'a time' for all things, the generic measure by which everything that comes to be is measured. For just as in human life the advanced age is weak, and that which is not yet settled is disorderly, but the mean between the two is best, by which one may escape the unpleasantnesses from either side, in which the strength of youth is shown separated from disorderliness, and the wisdom of old age disjoined from inactivity, so that there is 5.378 strength mixed with wisdom, equally fleeing both the inactivity of old age and the rashness of youth; so he who defines a time for all things separates by his word the evil arising from lack of measure in either direction, dishonoring that which is beyond the time and dismissing that which is deficient. But it would be time for us also to set forth in order the contemplation of the divinely inspired oracles. A time, he says, to be born, and a time to die. Well did he in the first place join this necessary pairing in his discourse, connecting death with birth; for death necessarily follows birth and all generation is dissolved into corruption; so that by showing death and birth connectedly, as with a kind of goad, by the memory of death, he might awaken those who are immersed in the life according to the flesh and love the present way of life, and might rouse them to care for the things to come. These things Moses, the friend of God, also philosophizes about secretly in the first titles of the books, having written Exodus immediately alongside Genesis, so that those who encounter the titles might be instructed in the things concerning themselves even through the very order of the books; for it is not possible for one who hears of a beginning not to think immediately of an exodus. This very thing the great Preacher, having understood it, also demonstrates here, showing death to be corresponding to birth. For a time, he says, to be born, and a time to die. The time came and I was born, 5.379 the time will come and I shall die. If we all looked to this, we would not, having abandoned the short course of life, go about in a circle with the impious, willingly wandering the cyclical error of life in positions of power and prominence and riches, through which, being at a loss in the many paths of this life, we no longer find the exit from this labyrinth of life, confusing for ourselves the signs of the unerring journey by means of those things which we seem to pursue eagerly. How blessed indeed are those among men, who, having abandoned the cyclical deceits of life, lead themselves to the short road of virtue! And this is not to turn the soul toward any of the things here, but to be intently fixed with eagerness on that which is set forth through faith in hope. But let us examine again what was said. A time,

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λειπόμενον, ἀνόνητον ἔσται καὶ τὸ κατορθωθὲν ἐν τῷ λείποντι. οὐκοῦν καθάπερ δύο ποσὶν ἐνεργούντων ἡμῶν τὴν κίνησιν, εἴ τι συμβαίη περὶ τὸν ἕτερον, ἄχρηστός ἐστι καὶ ὁ ἀπαθὴς πρὸς τὸν δρόμον διὰ τὴν τοῦ συνεργοῦντος ἀσθένειαν, οὕτως εἰ λείποι τῷ καιρῷ τὸ μέτρον ἢ τῷ μέτρῳ ἡ εὐκαιρία, τῷ λείποντι πάντως καὶ τὸ παρὸν συνηχρείωται. ἀλλὰ καὶ ἐν τῷ καιρῷ ἡ συμμετρία καὶ ἐν τῷ μέτρῳ ἡ εὐκαιρία τὸ χρήσιμον ἔχει. χρόνος οὖν ἀντὶ τοῦ μέτρου ἡμῖν νενόηται, διότι παντὸς 5.377 τοῦ καθ' ἕκαστον μετρου<μένου> ὁ χρόνος μέτρον ἐστίν. τὰ γὰρ γινόμενα ἐν χρόνῳ γίνεται πάντως, καὶ τῇ παρατάσει ἑκάστου τῶν γινομένων καὶ τὸ διάστημα τοῦ χρόνου συμπαρα τείνεται, ὀλίγον ἐν τῷ ἐλάττονι καὶ ἐν τῷ πλείονι πλεῖον. ὁ χρόνος μέτρον κυήσεως, μέτρον τῆς τῶν ἀσταχύων αὐξή σεως, μέτρον τῆς τῶν καρπῶν τελειώσεως, μέτρον ναυτιλίας, μέτρον πορείας, μέτρον τῆς καθ' ἕκαστον ἡλικίας, βρέφους, παιδίου, μειρακίου, παιδός, ἐφήβου, ἀνδρός, μεσήλικος, τελείου, παρήλικος, πρεσβύτου, γέροντος. ἐπειδὴ τοίνυν οὐχ ἓν τὸ ἐκ τοῦ χρόνου μέτρον πᾶσι τοῖς γινομένοις ἐστίν (οὐδὲ γάρ ἐστι δυνατὸν γενέσθαι πάντα ἀλλήλοις ἰσόμετρα διὰ τὴν τῶν ὑποκειμένων διαφοράν), κοινὸν δέ, καθὼς εἴρηται, πάντων τῶν μετρουμένων μέτρον ὁ χρόνος ἐστὶν ἐν ἑαυτῷ περιέχων τὰ πάντα, τούτου χάριν οὐχὶ μέτρον εἶπε τοῖς πᾶσι διὰ τὸ πολλὴν εἶναι τῶν μετρουμένων τὴν περὶ τὸ πλεῖόν τε καὶ ἔλαττον ἀνισότητα, ἀλλὰ χρόνον εἶπε τοῖς πᾶσι τὸ γενικὸν μέτρον, ᾧ πᾶν τὸ γινόμενον παραμετρεῖται. ὥσπερ γὰρ ἐπὶ τῆς ἀνθρωπίνης ἡλικίας τὸ μὲν προβεβηκὸς ἀσθενεῖ, τὸ δὲ μήπω καθεστηκὸς ἀτακτεῖ, ἄριστον δὲ τὸ μέσον τῶν δύο, ᾧπερ ἂν τὰς ἑκατέρωθεν ἀηδίας ἐκφεύγῃ, ἐν ᾧ δείκνυται τῆς μὲν νεότητος κεχωρισμένη τῆς ἀταξίας ἡ δύναμις, τοῦ δὲ γήρως διεζευγμένη τῆς ἀδρανείας ἡ φρόνησις, ὥστε εἶναι 5.378 δύναμιν φρονήσει συγκεκραμένην, ἐπ' ἴσης φεύγουσαν τήν τε τοῦ γήρως ἀδρανείαν καὶ τὸ θρασὺ τῆς νεότητος· οὕτως ὁ χρόνον ὁρίζων τοῖς πᾶσι καθ' ἑκάτερον χωρίζει τῷ λόγῳ τὴν ἐξ ἀμετρίας κακίαν, τό τε ὑπὲρ χρόνον ἀτιμάζων καὶ τὸ ἐλλεῖπον ἀποπεμπόμενος. Ἀλλὰ καιρὸς ἂν εἴη καὶ αὐτὴν ἡμῖν δι' ἀκολούθου προτεθῆ ναι τῶν θεοπνεύστων λογίων τὴν θεωρίαν. Καιρός, φησί, τοῦ τεκεῖν καὶ καιρὸς τοῦ ἀποθανεῖν. καλῶς ἐν πρώτοις τὴν ἀναγκαίαν ταύτην συζυγίαν τῷ λόγῳ συνέζευξε συνά πτων τῇ γενέσει τὸν θάνατον· ἕπεται γὰρ κατ' ἀνάγκην τῷ τόκῳ ὁ θάνατος καὶ πᾶσα γένεσις εἰς φθορὰν διαλύεται· ἵνα διὰ τοῦ συνημμένως δειχθῆναι τὸν θάνατόν τε καὶ τὴν γένεσιν οἱονεὶ κέντρῳ τινὶ τῇ τοῦ θανάτου μνήμῃ τοὺς ἐμβαθύνοντας τῇ κατὰ σάρκα ζωῇ καὶ τὴν παροῦσαν ἀγαπῶντας διαγωγὴν διυπνίσῃ καὶ πρὸς τὴν φροντίδα τῶν μελλόντων διαναστήσῃ. ταῦτα φιλοσοφεῖ κατὰ τὸ λεληθὸς ἐν ταῖς πρώταις τῶν βιβλίων ἐπιγραφαῖς καὶ ὁ φίλος τῷ θεῷ Μωϋσῆς, εὐθὺς τῇ Γενέσει συμπαραγράψας τὴν Ἔξοδον, ὡς τοὺς ἐντυγχάνοντας τοῖς ἐπιγεγραμμένοις καὶ δι' αὐτῆς τῆς τῶν βιβλίων τάξεως τὰ καθ' ἑαυτοὺς παιδευθῆναι· οὐ γὰρ ἔστι γένεσιν ἀκούσαντα μὴ καὶ ἔξοδον εὐθὺς ἐννοῆσαι. ὃ δὴ καὶ ἐνταῦθα νενοηκὼς ὁ μέγας ἐκκλησιαστὴς ἐπιδείκνυται, τῇ γενέσει σύστοιχον ἀποδείξας τὸν θάνατον. Καιρὸς γάρ, φησί, τοῦ τεκεῖν καὶ καιρὸς τοῦ ἀποθανεῖν. ἦλθεν ὁ καιρὸς καὶ ἐτέχθην, 5.379 ἥξει ὁ καιρὸς καὶ τεθνήξομαι. εἰ πρὸς τοῦτο πάντες ἐβλέπομεν, οὐκ ἂν τὴν σύντομον τοῦ βίου πορείαν καταλιπόντες κύκλῳ μετὰ τῶν ἀσεβῶν περιῇμεν, τὴν περιοδικὴν τοῦ βίου πλάνην ἑκουσίως πλανώμενοι ἐν δυναστείαις καὶ περιφανείαις καὶ πλούτοις, δι' ὧν ταῖς πολυοδίαις τοῦ βίου τούτου ἐναμηχα νοῦντες οὐκέτι τοῦ λαβυρίνθου τῆς ζωῆς ταύτης τὴν ἔξοδον ἐξευρίσκομεν, δι' ὧν δοκοῦμεν σπουδάζειν, διὰ τούτων ἑαυτοῖς τὰ σημεῖα τῆς ἀπλανοῦς ὁδοιπορίας συγχέοντες. ὡς μακάριοί γε τῶν ἀνθρώπων ἐκεῖνοι, οἳ τὰς περιοδικὰς τῆς ζωῆς ἀπάτας καταλιπόντες ἐπὶ τὴν σύντομον τῆς ἀρετῆς ὁδὸν ἑαυτοὺς ἄγουσιν! αὕτη δέ ἐστι τὸ πρὸς μηδὲν τῶν τῇδε τὴν ψυχὴν ἐπιστρέφειν, ἀλλὰ συντετάσθαι τῇ σπουδῇ πρὸς τὸ διὰ πίστεως ἐν ἐλπίσι προκείμενον. Πάλιν δὲ τὸ ῥηθὲν ἐξετάσωμεν. Καιρός,