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Let there be a law against those who deem it worthy to look upon august and divine things, but not in an august and God-fearing manner, to inflict the punishment of blindness. If you wish to be ruled by God, do not wish to sin. But if you sin, how will you be ruled by God. The pure mind is naturally disposed to contemplate the truth, and God is naturally disposed to reveal Himself to it. Therefore, 95.1172 as many as have erred concerning the truth, have erred because of living wickedly. Therefore heretics are punished, not because they are heretics, but because they have become so by living wickedly. For it is not possible to become a heretic without having lived wickedly, whether in word or in deed. Therefore they will be judged justly, not because they stumble, but because, blinding themselves through drunkenness, disobedience, and avarice, they walk in darkness.

TITLE XIII. -Concerning sinlessness; that no one is sinless, except God.

Shall a mortal be pure before the Lord? Who is clean from filth? no, not one, even if his life be but one day upon the earth. Heaven is not clean in His sight. What is man, that he should be blameless? how shall a mortal be just with the Lord? If thou, Lord, shouldest mark iniquities, O Lord, who shall stand? Enter not into judgment with thy servant: for in thy sight shall no man living be justified. Who will boast of having a clean heart? or who will dare to say he is pure from sin? There is not a just man upon earth, that doeth good, and sinneth not. If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.

TITLE XIV. -Concerning those who have renounced. and turning back do those things which they

renounced. Those who turn aside into crooked ways, the Lord will lead away with the workers of

iniquity. As a dog, when he has gone to his own vomit, and becomes hateful, so is a fool by his own wickedness returning to his sin. When the righteous turns away from his righteousness, and commits iniquity, according to all the abominations that the wicked man doeth, all his righteousness that he has done shall not be remembered: in his trespass that he has trespassed, and in his sins that he has sinned, in them shall he die. The righteousness of the righteous shall not deliver him in the day of his transgression: and the wickedness of the wicked shall not harm him in the day that he turns from his wickedness. I will judge you every one according to his ways, O house of Israel. One that is washed from a dead body, and toucheth it again, what has his washing availed? So a man that fasts for his sins, and goes again and does the same things, who will hear his prayer? and what has he profited in his humbling himself? Do not stumble on stony ground. 95.1173 He that turns back from righteousness to sin, the Lord will prepare him for the sword. No man, having put his hand to the plough, and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God. For if, after they have escaped the pollutions of the world through the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, they are again entangled therein, and overcome, the latter end is worse with them than the beginning. For it had been better for them not to have known the way of righteousness, than, after they have known it, to turn from the holy commandment delivered unto them. But it is happened unto them according to the true proverb, The dog is turned to his own vomit again; and the sow that was washed to her wallowing in the mire. A pitiful sight, after fasting, after austerity, after earnest prayer, after copious tears, after a continence of some twenty or thirty years, through inattention of soul and negligence to be shown naked of all things, and for one who was prospering in the working of the commandments to become like some very wealthy merchant, who, bringing in great quantities of cargo, with his ship borne along by a fair wind, the

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Νόμος ἔστω κατὰ τῶν σεμνὰ καὶ θεῖα, οὐ σεμνῶς καὶ θεοπρεπῶς ὁρᾷν ἀξιούντων, κόλασιν ἐπιφέρειν ἀορασίας. Εἰ βούλει ὑπὸ τοῦ Θεοῦ βασιλεύεσθαι, μὴ βούλει ἁμαρτάνειν. Εἰ δὲ ἁμαρτάνεις, πῶς βασιλεύσῃ ὑπὸ τοῦ Θεοῦ. Ὁ καθαρὸς νοῦς πέφυκεν θεωρεῖν τὴν ἀλήθειαν, καὶ ὁ Θεὸς τούτῳ πέφυκεν ἐμφανίζεσθαι. Ὅσοι οὖν 95.1172 περὶ τὴν ἀλήθειαν ἐσφάλησαν, παρὰ τὸ κακῶς βιῶσαι ἐσφάλησαν. Κολάζονται οὖν οἱ αἱρετικοὶ, οὐχ ὅτι αἱρετικοί εἰσιν, ἀλλ' ὅτι γεγόνασι κακῶς βιώσαντες. Οὐκ ἔστι γὰρ αἱρετικὸν γενέσθαι, μὴ κακῶς βιώσαντα, εἴτε λόγος, εἴτε πράξει. ∆ικαίως οὖν κριθήσονται, οὐχ ὅτι προσκόπτουσιν, ἀλλ' ὅτι ἑαυτοὺς διὰ μέθης, ἀπειθείας, καὶ φιλαργυρίας τυφλοῦντες, ἐν σκότει διαπορεύονται.

ΤΙΤΛ. ΙΓʹ. -Περὶ ἀναμαρτησίας· ὅτι οὐδεὶς ἀναμάρτητος, εἰ μὴ ὁ Θεός.

Μὴ καθαρὸς ἔσται βροτὸς ἐνώπιον Κυρίου; Τίς καθαρός ἐστιν ἀπὸ ῥύπου; ἀλλ' οὐδὲ εἷς, κἂν μίαν ἡμέραν ὁ βίος αὐτοῦ ἐπὶ τῆς γῆς. Οὐρανὸς οὐ καθαρὸς ἐναντίον αὐτοῦ. Τίς βροτὸς, ὅτι ἔσται ἄμεμπτος; πῶς ἔσται βροτὸς δίκαιος παρὰ Κυρίῳ; Ἐὰν ἀνομίας παρατηρήσεις, Κύριε, Κύριε, τίς ὑποστήσεται; Μὴ εἰσέλθῃς εἰς κρίσιν μετὰ τοῦ δούλου σου, ὅτι οὐ δικαιωθήσεται ἐνώπιόν σου πᾶς ζῶν. Τίς καυχήσεται ἁγνὴν ἔχειν τὴν καρδίαν; ἢ τίς παῤῥησιάζεται καθαρὸς εἶναι ἀπὸ ἁμαρτίας; Ἄνθρωπος οὐκ ἔστι δίκαιος ἐν τῇ γῇ, ὃς ποιήσει ἀγαθὸν, καὶ οὐχ ἁμαρτήσεται. Ἐὰν εἴπωμεν, ὅτι ἁμαρτίαν οὐκ ἔχομεν, ἑαυτοὺς πλανῶμεν, καὶ ἀλήθεια ἐν ἡμῖν οὐκ ἔστιν.

ΤΙΤΛ. Ι∆ʹ. -Περὶ ἀποταξαμένων. καὶ ἐξ ὑποστροφῆς ἐκεῖνα πραττόντων οἷς

ἀπετάξαντο. Τοὺς ἐκκλίνοντας εἰς τὰς στραγγαλιὰς, ἀπάξει Κύριος μετὰ τῶν ἐργαζομένων

τὴν ἀνομίαν. Ὥσπερ κύων, ὅταν ἐπέλθῃ ἐπὶ τὸν ἑαυτοῦ ἔμετον, καὶ μισητὸς γένηται, οὕτως ἄφρων τῇ αὐτοῦ κακίᾳ ἀναστρέψας ἐπὶ τὴν ἁμαρτίαν. Ἐν τῷ ἀποστρέψαι δίκαιον ἐκ τῆς δικαιοσύνης αὐτοῦ, καὶ ποιήσει ἀδικίαν, κατὰ πάσας τὰς ἀνομίας ἃς ἐποίησεν ὁ ἄνομος, πᾶσαι αἱ δικαιοσύναι αὐτοῦ ἃς ἐποίησεν, οὐ μὴ φυλαχθῶσιν ἐν τῷ παραπτώματι αὐτοῦ, ᾧ παρέπεσεν, καὶ ἐν ταῖς ἁμαρτίαις αὐτοῦ αἷς ἥμαρτεν, ἐν αὐταῖς ἀποθανεῖται. ∆ικαιοσύνη δικαίου οὐ μὴ ἐξέληται αὐτὸν, ἐν ᾗ ἂν ἡμέρᾳ πλανηθῇ· καὶ ἀνομία ἀσεβοῦς οὐ μὴ κακώσῃ αὐτὸν, ἐν ᾗ ἂν ἡμέρᾳ ἀποστραφῇ ἀπὸ τῆς ἀνομίας αὐτοῦ. Ἕκαστον ἐν ταῖς ὁδοῖς ὑμῶν κρινῶ ὑμᾶς, οἶκος Ἰσραήλ. Βαπτιζόμενος ἀπὸ νεκροῦ, καὶ πάλιν ἁπτόμενος αὐτοῦ, τί ὠφέλησεν ἐν τῷ λουτρῷ αὐτοῦ; Οὕτως ὁ ἄνθρωπος νηστεύων ἀπὸ τῶν ἁμαρτιῶν αὐτοῦ, καὶ πάλιν πορευόμενος, καὶ τὰ αὐτὰ ποιῶν, τῆς προσευχῆς αὐτοῦ, τίς εἰσακούσεται; καὶ τί ὠφέλησεν ἐν τῷ ταπεινωθῆναι αὐτόν; Μὴ προσκόψῃς ἐν λιθώδεσι. 95.1173 Ἐπανάγων ἀπὸ δικαιοσύνης εἰς ἁμαρτίαν, ὁ Κύριος ἑτοιμάσει εἰς ῥομφαῖαν αὐτόν. Οὐδεὶς ἐπιβαλὼν τὴν χεῖρα αὐτοῦ ἐπ' ἄροτρον, καὶ βλέπων εἰς τὰ ὀπίσω, οὐκ εὔθετός ἐστιν εἰς τὴν βασιλείαν τοῦ Θεοῦ. Εἰ ἀποφυγόντες τὰ μιάσματα τοῦ κόσμου ἐν ἐπιγνώσει τοῦ Κυρίου ἡμῶν καὶ Σωτῆρος Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ, τούτῳ δὲ πάλιν ἐμπλακέντες. ἡττῶνται, γέγονεν αὐτοῖς τὰ ἔσχατα χείρονα τῶν πρώτων. Κρεῖσσον γὰρ αὐτοῖς μὴ ἐπεγνωκέναι τὴν ὁδὸν τῆς δικαιοσύνης, ἢ ἐπιγνοῦσιν ὑποστρέψαι ἐκ τῆς παραδοθείσης αὐτοῖς τῆς ἁγίας ἐντολῆς. Συμβέβηκε γὰρ αὐτοῖς τὸ τῆς ἀληθοῦς παροιμίας· κύων ἐπιστρέψας ἐπὶ τὸ ἴδιον ἐξέρασμα, καὶ ὗς λουσάμενος εἰς κύλισμα βορβόρου. Ἐλεεινὸν θέαμα, μετὰ νηστείαν, μετὰ σκληραγωγίαν, μετὰ προσευχὴν ἐκτενῆ, μετὰ δάκρυον δαψιλὲς, μετὰ ἐγκράτειαν ἐτῶν εἴκοσί που ἢ τριάκοντα, δι' ἀπροσεξίαν ψυχῆς καὶ ἀμέλειαν γυμνὸν ἁπάντων ἀποδειχθῆναι, καὶ παραπλήσιον γενέσθαι τὸν τῇ ἐργασίᾳ τῶν ἐντολῶν εὐθηνούμενον ἐμπόρῳ τινὶ μεγαλοπλούτῳ, ὃς τὰ πλήθη τῶν ἀγωγίμων ἐπαγόμενος, ἐξ οὐρίας αὐτῷ τῆς νηὸς φερομένης, τὰ