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what has been said; for wisdom and folly are not compared. For comparison is of similar things, not of opposites. Therefore, he says, the words of the wise are heard in quiet, that is, when the hearers happen to receive gladly what is said, rest comes to be in the souls of the hearers; but the cry of the foolish is worthy of condemnation, even if they are rulers; for the soul, having been filled with folly, utters words with a shout and in a disturbed manner, not with quiet, or any order, or composure. Otherwise: The servants of wisdom, the divine apostles, gave rest to the souls of their hearers; but the misplaced cry of the foolish Jews, of those who said, "Away with him, away with him, crucify him," destroyed both them and those who followed them. "Wisdom is better than weapons of war." Indeed, every plan of an intelligent man is better than the aid of weapons. And for a higher meaning, the power of Wisdom itself, of our Lord Jesus Christ and God, was shown, overthrowing the weapons of war, that is, the devil and the demonic hosts; and showing every form of evil to be ineffective. "And one sinner destroys much good." Adam sinned, and prepared for the whole race that sin and death would become transmissible, having himself lost the image of the good God, and having produced many such. And simply one who sins, destroys his own goodness, which he perhaps acquired through previous virtues, and draws many to the same imitation. CHAPTER 10. "Dead flies make the preparation of fragrant oil to stink." Prepared oil is ointment, as Aquila has also rendered; and the fly is an unclean animal, which alights on wounds and putrefactions, and seeks out the cuts of the body. The fly brings death by throwing itself into the perfumer's oil. For it both dies itself and ruins the oil. The Jews therefore, having lost their own minds, happen to be dead flies, having been eager to corrupt the sweet-smelling word of the Savior, and desiring to find pretexts against him 93.596 "A little wisdom is more precious than the glory of great folly." Many have been glorified in folly: the one skilled in tongue, in unjust advocacy; the rich man in the world who has become conspicuous; those of worldly wisdom who have labored in vain things. But incomparably better is the one who begins in the wisdom according to God, and is introduced to it, and begins to touch it, and despises the glory found in folly. "A wise man's heart is at his right hand; but a fool's heart at his left." By "heart" we must understand the "mind"; for the bodily heart is certainly located in one place, in what is called the diaphragm. The mind of the wise man, therefore, always inclines toward things that are right and praiseworthy; but that of the fool toward things that are sinister and blameworthy. "Yea also, when he that is a fool walketh by the way, his heart faileth him, and all that he will think is folly." In this life, which is called a way, the fool, having his heart in sinister things, always falls short, not pressing toward the mark for the prize of the high calling; not reaching forth unto those things which are before, nor hastening to the end. But even if he seems to be walking, he will fall short, both doing and thinking all things that are incomplete and irrational. And if he attempts the way of righteousness, or pretends to study it, that is, the divine commandments, since he has not inclined his heart to the right, he falls short, neither understanding what is commanded nor doing anything according to the will of the lawgiver. "If the spirit of the ruler rise up against thee, leave not thy place; for yielding pacifieth great offences." The spirit of the ruler of this age, of the sons of disobedience, who not by necessity, but by choice, have subjected themselves to the power and tyranny of the devil. If therefore, he says, while you are mindful of the things above, and are journeying to the things above, the spirit of the ruler should leap upon you, wanting to drag down your mind from its journey to the things above, hinder him, shut off the ascents to him, admitting him from nowhere,

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τὸ εἰρημένον· οὐ γὰρ συγκρίνονται σοφία καὶ ἀφροσύνη. Τῶν γὰρ ὁμοίων, οὐ τῶν ἐναντίων ἡ σύγκρισις. Οἱ λόγοι οὖν, φησὶ, τῶν σοφῶν ἀκούονται ἐν ἀναπαύσει, τουτέστιν, ὅταν οἱ ἀκροαταὶ ἡδέως τὰ λεγόμενα καταδεξάμενοι τύχωσιν, ἀνάπαυσις γίνεται ἐν ταῖς τῶν ἀκουόντων ψυχαῖς· ἡ δὲ κραυγὴ τῶν ἀφρόνων, καταγνώσεως ἀξία τυγχάνει, κἂν ὦσί τινες δυνάσται· πληρωθεῖσα γὰρ ἡ ψυχὴ τῆς ἀνοίας, μετὰ κραυγῆς καὶ τεταραγμένως ἐκφέρει τοὺς λόγους, οὐ μεθ' ἡσυχίας, ἤ τινος τάξεως, ἢ καταστάσεως. Ἄλλως· Οἱ τῆς σοφίας ὑπηρέται θεῖοι ἀπόστολοι τῶν ἀκουόντων ἀνέπαυσαν τὰς ψυχάς· ἡ δὲ τῶν ἀφρόνων Ἰουδαίων ἔκτοπος κραυγὴ, τῶν φασκόντων, Ἆρον, ἆρον, σταύρωσον αὐτὸν, αὐτούς τε ἐκείνους ἀπώλεσε, καὶ τοὺς αὐτοῖς ἀκολουθήσαντας. "Ἀγαθὸν σοφία ὑπὲρ σκεύη πολέμου." Ἀγαθὸν μὲν καὶ πᾶν τὸ συνετοῦ βούλευμα, ὑπὲρ τὴν ἐκ τῶν ὅπλων ἐπικουρίαν. Πρὸς δὲ ἀναγωγὴν, Ἐδείχθη τῆς αὐτοσοφίας ἡ δύναμις, τοῦ Κυρίου ἡμῶν Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ καὶ Θεοῦ, τὰ τοῦ πολέμου σκεύη, τουτέστι τὸν διάβολον, καὶ τὰς δαιμονικὰς φάλαγγας καθελοῦσα· καὶ πάντα τὰ τῆς κακίας εἴδη ἄπρακτα δείξασα. "Καὶ ἁμαρτάνων εἷς ἀπολέσει ἀγαθωσύνην πολλήν." Ἀδὰμ ἥμαρτε, καὶ τῷ παντὶ γένει τὴν ἁμαρτίαν καὶ τὸν θάνατον διαδόσιμον γενέσθαι παρεσκεύασε, αὐτός τε τοῦ ἀγαθοῦ Θεοῦ τὴν εἰκόνα παραπολέσας, καὶ πολλοὺς τοιούτους ἀπεργασάμενος. Καὶ εἶς δὲ ἁπλῶς ἁμαρτάνων, τήν τε ἑαυτοῦ ἀγαθωσύνην ἀπόλλει, ἢν τυχὸν καὶ διὰ προτέρων ἀρετῶν ἐκτήσατο, καὶ πολλοὺς ἐπὶ τὴν ὁμοίαν ἐφέλκεται μίμησιν. ΚΕΦΑΛ. Ιʹ. "Μυῖαι θανατοῦσαι σαπριοῦσι σκευασίαν ἐλαίου ἡδύματος." Ἔλαιον σκευαστὸν, τὸ μύρον, ὡς καὶ Ἀκύλας ἐκδέδωκε· ἡ δὲ μυῖα ζῶον ἀκάθαρτον, τοῖς τραύμασι καὶ ταῖς σηπεδόσιν ἐφεζόμενον, καὶ τὰς τοῦ σώματος τομὰς ἐπιζητοῦν. Θανατοῖ δὲ ἡ μυῖα εἰς ἔλαιον μυρεψικὸν ἑαυτὴν ἐπιῤῥίπτουσα. Αὐτή τε γὰρ ἀποθνήσκει, καὶ τὸ ἔλαιον ἀφανίζει. Οἱ οὖν Ἰουδαῖοι τῶν ἰδίων ψυχῶν παραφρονήσαντες, μυῖαι θανατοῦσαι τυγχάνουσι, τὸν ἡδύπνοον τοῦ Σωτῆρος λόγον σαπρίσαι σπουδάσαντες, καὶ λαβὰς ἐφευρίσκειν κατ' αὐτοῦ ποθοῦντες 93.596 "Τίμιον ὀλίγον σοφίας ὑπὲρ δόξαν ἀφροσύνης μεγάλης." Πολλοὶ ἐν ἀφροσύνῃ ἐδοξάσθησαν· ὁ δεινὸς τὴν γλῶτταν, ἐν ἀδίκῳ συνηγορίᾳ· ὁ ἐν κόσμῳ πλούσιος περιφανὴς γενόμενος· οἱ τῆς ἔξωθεν σοφίας περὶ τὰ μάταια πονήσαντες. Ἀλλ' ἀσυγκρίτως ἀμείνων ὁ ἐναρχόμενος τῆς κατὰ Θεὸν σοφίας, καὶ εἰς ταύτην εἰσαγόμενος, καὶ θιγγάνειν αὐτῆς ἀρχόμενος, καὶ τῆς ἐν ἀφροσύνῃ δόξης παραφρονῶν. "Καρδία σοφοῦ εἰς δεξιὸν αὐτοῦ· καὶ καρδία ἄφρονος εἰς ἀριστερὸν αὐτοῦ." Καρδίαν τὸν νοῦν ἐκληπτέον· ἡ γὰρ σωματικὴ καρδία πάντως ἐν ἑνὶ τόπῳ κεῖται, ἐν τῷ καλουμένῳ διαφράγματι. Ὁ τοίνυν τοῦ σοφοῦ νοῦς ἀεὶ ἐπὶ τὰ δεξιὰ καὶ ἐπαινετὰ νεύει· ὁ δὲ τοῦ ἄφρονος ἐπὶ τὰ σκαιὰ καὶ ψεκτῶς ἕχοντα. "Καί γε ἐν ὁδῷ ὅταν ἄφρων πορεύηται, καὶ καρδία αὐτοῦ ὑστερήσει, καὶ ἃ λογιεῖται πάντα ἀφροσύνη ἐστί." Ἐν τῷ βίῳ τούτῳ ὁδῷ καλουμένῳ, ὁ ἄφρων ἐν ἀριστεροῖς ἔχων τὴν καρδίαν, ἀεὶ ὑστερεῖ, μὴ κατὰ σκοπὸν διώκων πρὸς τὸ βραβεῖον τῆς ἄνω κλήσεως· μηδὲ τοῖς ἔμπροσθεν ἐπεκτεινόμενος, μηδὲ πρὸς τὸ τέλος ἐπειγόμενος. Ἀλλὰ κἂν δόξῃ πορεύεσθαι, ὑστερήσει, πάντα ἀτελῆ καὶ ἄλογα καὶ πράττων, καὶ λογιζόμενος. Εἰ δὲ καὶ τὴν ὁδὸν τῶν δικαιωμάτων ἐπιχειρήσει, ἢ προσποιήσεται μελετᾷν, τουτέστι τὰς θείας ἐντολὰς, ἐπειδὴ τὴν καρδίαν οὐκ εἰς τὰ δεξιὰ κέκλικε, ὑστερεῖ μήτε νοῶν τὰ ἐντεταγμένα, μήτε τι πράττων κατὰ τὸ τοῦ νομοθέτου βούλημα. "Ἐὰν πνεῦμα τοῦ ἐξουσιάζοντος ἀναβῇ ἐπὶ σὲ, τόπον σου μὴ ἀφῇς, ὅτι ἴαμα καταπαύσει ἁμαρτίας μεγάλας." Πνεῦμα τοῦ ἐξουσιάζοντος τοῦ αἰῶνος τούτου, τῶν υἱῶν τῆς ἀπειθείας, οἵτινες οὐκ ἀναγκαστικῶς, ἀλλὰ προαιρετικῶς ὑπέταξαν ἑαυτοὺς τῇ τοῦ διαβόλου ἐξουσίᾳ καὶ τυραννίδι. Ἐὰν οὖν, φησὶ, τὰ ἄνω σοῦ φρονοῦντος, καὶ πρὸς τὰ ἄνω ὁδεύοντος, ἀναπηδήσῃ ἐπὶ σὲ πνεῦμα τοῦ ἐξουσιάζοντος, κατασπάσαι σου τὴν διάνοιαν τῆς πρὸς τὰ ἄνω πορείας βουλόμενος, ἀποκώλυσον, ἀπόκλεισον αὐτῷ τὰς ἀναβάσεις, μηδαμόθεν αὐτὸν εἰσδεχόμενος,