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to call. For he is not called simply "serpent", as was also said of them: "Serpents, brood of vipers", but the serpent, which indicates the devil himself, who indeed became the cause of evil for others; for he is at work in the sons of disobedience, and he works by instilling his own qualities in them with sophistic deceit. Therefore he also receives an exceeding penalty; for it says, "Cursed" "are you above all the beasts upon the earth". For as the cause of evil, he is rightly subject to a penalty beyond all those who from him have become serpents and beasts in their manner and beasts of the earth, against whom the Savior gives authority to his own disciples, saying: "Behold, I have given you authority to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy." And to the one dwelling in the help of the Most High it is said: "You will tread upon the asp 97 and the basilisk, and you will trample the lion and the dragon." But the devil, called serpent, surpassing all these things that have the savagery of evil, is consequen[tly] condemned above all. And there is added to the penalty, "On your breast and on your belly you shall go"; for since, thinking he had an exalted understanding and feigning to have great foods, he deceived, the word explains his fall, saying that earthly things will be his food, having nothing divine or lofty, but being coiled around earthly things, with his ruling faculty having fallen, which the breast signifies, no longer bringing forth anything divine or heavenly, because the generative power, which is signified by the belly, has its zeal for matter and earthly things. That the belly is understood in this way can be learned from the opposite, from the blessed David singing: "And your law in the midst of my belly", which signifies not the perceptible limb but the power of the soul. Indeed, at any rate, men who have come to repentance, knowing that their understanding, which ought to partake of heavenly foods, was cast down to earth, say: "Our belly has cleaved to the earth", having become in all respects earthly by being fed on earthly things and by bringing forth earthly things. For as the belly is a receptacle of foods, so also it is a workshop of things formed. Those who generate evil things therefore go crawling on the earth, but those who bring forth divine things say: "From fear of you we have conceived in the womb and have been in travail and have brought forth"; and the same thing is an offspring of the mind and also its nourishment. And it is well added: "And you shall eat earth all the days of your life"; for he did not say simply "of life", but of your life, which you chose from your own inclination, as if one were to say also to one not living as he ought: All the days of the life you chose to have you will be wicked; sins will be your food in all your wicked days that you have preferred. For each one 98, according to his own manner, having departed from the necessary life, procures a life for himself. Similar to this is what was said to the rich man: "You received your good things [in] your life, and Lazarus likewise the bad things." And observe that of the wicked man he called the indifferent things good; since he himself considered them as good things and hoped in them, for this reason he also said "your good things"; but in the case of Lazarus, they were not called his own bad things; for he did not suffer from his own intention, even though he bore it nobly. And Job, when deprived of pleasant things, since he did not consider them his own good things, but knowing their nature, that they were given by God, he had used them, did not say: "If we have received my good things", but "If we have received good things from the hand of the Lord". For what good things he himself chose were virtues, but the things that follow, indifferent by the judgment of God, he used as was fitting, supplying those in need; thus at any rate he also said: "But my door was open to everyone who came". iii, 15. And I will put enmity between you and between the woman, and between your seed and between her seed; he shall watch for your head, and you shall watch for his heel. When the simpler one is with the wicked one, he has no small harm; for the wicked one

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καλεῖν. Οὐ γὰρ "3ὄφις"3 ἁπλῶς λέγεται, ὥσπερ καὶ περὶ ἐκείνων ἐλέχθη· "6Ὄφεις γεννήματα ἐχιδνῶν"6, ἀλλ' ὁ ὄφις, ὃ δηλοῖ αὐτὸν τὸν διάβολον, ὃς καίτοι ἄλλοις τῆς κακίας αἴτιος κατέστη· ἐνεργεῖ γὰρ ἐν τοῖς υἱοῖς τῆς ἀπειθείας, καὶ ἐνεργεῖται τὰ ἴδια ἐμποιῶν ἐκείνοις σοφι- στικῇ ἀπάτῃ. ∆ιόπερ καὶ τὴν ἐπιτιμίαν ὑπερβάλλουσαν δέχεται· "6Ἐπικατάρατος"6 γάρ φησιν "6σὺ ἀπὸ πάντων τῶν θηρίων τῶν ἐπὶ τῆς γῆς"6. Ὡς γὰρ αἴτιος κακίας, εἰκότως καὶ τῇ ἐπιτιμίᾳ ὑπὲρ πάντας ὑπόκειται τοὺς ἀπ' αὐτοῦ τὸ ὄφ<ε>ις εἶναι ἐσχηκότας καὶ κτήνη τῷ τρόπῳ καὶ θηρία γῆς, καθ' ὧν τὴν ἐξουσίαν δίδωσιν ὁ Σωτὴρ τοῖς ἰδίοις μαθηταῖς λέγων· "6Ἰδοὺ δέδωκα μὲν ὑμῖν ἐξουσίαν πατεῖν ἐπάνω ὄφεων καὶ σκορπίων, καὶ ἐπὶ πᾶσαν τὴν δύναμιν τοῦ ἐχθροῦ."6 Καὶ τῷ ἐν τῇ βοηθείᾳ τοῦ Ὑψίστου κατοικοῦν[τι] ἐπιλέγεται· "6Ἐπ' ἀσπίδα 97 καὶ βασιλίσκον ἐπιβήσῃ καὶ καταπατήσεις λέοντα καὶ δράκοντα."6 Ταῦτα δὲ πάντα ἀγριότητα κακίας ἔχοντα ὑπερβάλλων ὁ διάβολος ὄφις καλούμενος ἀκολού[θως] ὑπὲρ πάντα καταδικάζεται. Πρόσκειται δὲ τῇ ἐπιτιμίᾳ καὶ τὸ "6Ἐπὶ τῷ στήθει σου καὶ τῇ κοιλίᾳ σου πορεύσῃ"6· ἐπεὶ γὰρ δοκῶν νόησιν ἐπηρμένην ἔχειν καὶ τροφὰς ἐπιμορφα- ζόμενος ἔχειν μεγάλας ἠπάτα, τὴν πτῶσιν αὐτοῦ ὁ λόγος ἑρμηνεύει φάσκων ὡς γήϊνα αὐτῷ ἔσται τροφή, οὐδὲν θεῖον ἢ ἀνηγμένον ἔχοντι, ἀλλ' εἰλυσπωμένῳ περὶ τὰ γήϊνα, τοῦ ἡγεμονικοῦ αὐτοῦ ἐκπεσόν<τος, ὃ> τὸ στῆθος σημαίνει, οὐκέτι ἀποτίκτοντός τι θεῖον ἢ οὐράνιόν τι διὰ τὸ τὴν γεννητικὴν δύναμιν, ἥτις διὰ τῆς κοιλίας σημαίνεται, περὶ τὴν ὕλην καὶ τὰ γήϊνα ἔχειν τὴν σπουδήν. Ὅτι δ' ἡ κοιλία οὕτως νοεῖται, ἐκτοῦ ἐναντίου ἔστι μαθεῖν, ψάλλοντος τοῦ μακαρίου ∆αυίδ· "6Καὶ τὸν νόμον σου ἐμμέσῳ τῆς κοιλίας μου"6, ὅπερ οὐ τὸ αἰσθητὸν μέλος ἀλλὰ δύναμιν ψυχῆς σημαίνει. Ἀμέλει γοῦν οἱ ἐν μετανοίᾳ γεγενημένοι ἄνθρωποι γνόντες ὅτι ἡ νόησις αὐτῶν ὀφείλουσα οὐρανίων μεταλαμβάνειν τροφῶν εἰς γῆν κατεβλήθη φασίν· "6Ἐκολλήθη εἰς γῆν ἡ γαστὴρ ἡμῶν"6, κάτα πάντα γήϊνα γεγενημένη τῷ καὶ γήϊνα τρέφεσθαι καὶ γήϊνα ἀπο- κυίσκειν. Ὡς γὰρ δοχεῖόν ἐστιν ἡ κοιλία τροφῶν, οὕτω καὶ ἐργαστήριον τῶν πλαττομένων. Οἱ μὲν οὖν φαῦλα γεννῶντες ἐπὶ γῆς ἕρποντες πορεύονται, οἱ δὲ θεῖα ἀποτίκ- τοντές φασιν· "6Ἀπὸ τοῦ φόβου σου ἐν γαστρὶ ἐλάβομεν καὶ ὠδινήσαμεν καὶ ἐτέκομεν"6· τὸ δ' αὐτὸ γέννημα διανοίας καὶ τροφεῖόν ἐστιν. Εὖ δὲ καὶ τὸ προσκεῖσθαι· "6Καὶ γῆν φάγῃ πάσας τὰς ἡμέρας τῆς ζωῆς σου"6· οὐ γὰρ ἁπλῶς "3ζωῆς"3 εἶπεν, ἀλλὰ τῆς σῆς, ἣν εἵλω ἐκ τῆς σεαυτοῦ ῥοπῆς, ὡς εἰ λέγοι τις καὶ τῷ μὴ καθηκόντως ζῶντι· Πάσας τὰς ἡμέρας ἣς εἵλω ἔχειν ζωῆς φαῦλος ἔσει, ἁμαρτίαι σοι τροφὴ ἐν πάσαις αἷς προέκρινας ἡμέραις σου φαύλαις. Ἕκαστα 98 γὰρ πρὸς τὸν ἴδιον τρόπον, ἀποστὰς τῆς δεούσης ζωῆς, ἑαυτῷ ζωὴν περιποιεῖται. Τούτῳ ὅμοιον καὶ τὸ πρὸς τὸν πλούσιον εἰρημένον· "6Ἀπέλαβες τὰ ἀγαθά σου [ἐν] τῇ ζωῇ σου, καὶ Λάζαρος ὁμοίως τὰ κακά."6 Καὶ παρατήρει ὅτι τοῦ μὲν φαύλου τὰ ἀδιάφορα̣ ἀγαθὰ εἶπεν· ἐπεὶ αὐτὸς ὡς ἀγαθὰ αὐτὰ ἐλογίζετο καὶ ἐν αὐτοῖς ἤλπισ̣εν, διὰ τοῦτο καὶ "6τὰ ἀγαθά σου"6 εἶπεν· ἐπὶ δὲ τοῦ Λαζάρου οὐκ ἐρρέθη τὰ κακὰ ἑαυτοῦ· οὐ γὰρ ἀπὸ τῆς ἰδίας προθέσεως ἔπασχεν, εἰ καὶ γενναίως ἔφερεν. Καὶ ὁ Ἰὼβ δὲ στερηθεὶς τῶν ἡδέων, ἐπεὶ οὐχ ἑαυτοῦ ἀγαθὰ αὐτὰ ἐλογίζετο, ἀλλ' ἐπιστάμενος αὐτῶν τὴν φύσιν, ὡς ἐδόθησαν παρὰ Θεοῦ, αὐτοῖς ἐκέχρητο, οὐκ εἶπεν· "3Εἰ τὰ ἀγαθά μου ἐδεξάμεθα"3, ἀλλ' "6Εἰ τὰ ἀγαθὰ ἐδεξάμεθα ἐκ χειρὸς Κυρίου"6. Ἃ γὰρ αὐτὸς ᾑρεῖτο ἀγαθά, αἱ ἀρεταὶ ἐτύγχανον, τοῖς δ' ἀκολουθοῦσιν, κρίσει Θεοῦ ἀδιαφόροις, ὡς ἔπρεπεν ἐκέχρητο, ἐπαρκῶν δεομένοις· οὕτω γοῦν καὶ ἔφη· "6Ἡ θύρα δέ μου παντὶ ἐλθόντι ἠνέῳκτο"6. ιιι, 15. Καὶ ἔχθραν θήσω ἀνὰ μέσον σοῦ καὶ ἀνὰ μέσον τῆς γυναικός, καὶ ἀνὰ μέσον τοῦ σπέρματός σου καὶ ἀνὰ μέσον τοῦ σπέρματος αὐτῆς· αὐτός σου τηρήσει κεφαλήν, καὶ σὺ τηρήσεις αὐτοῦ πτέρναν. Ὅτε ὁ ἁπλούστερος σύνεστιν πονηρῷ, οὐ μικρὰν ἔχει τὴν βλάβην· ὁ πονηρὸς γὰρ