47

as one might suppose, is not only the useless one, but also the one spoken by us before the action and the knowledge from experience. For when I do not despise earthly glory (111) nor abhor it from my soul, as soul-harming and depriving me of the glory above, but I teach others about it and command them to abstain from it, will not my word be idle and ineffectual and empty, and will I not be condemned as a liar? And when again I do not receive the grace of the Spirit in perception and knowledge nor become taught by God through it, nor receive a word of wisdom and knowledge from above, but I shamelessly leap to interpret the divinely-inspired Scriptures and assume for myself the rank of teacher, that is, using for this only falsely named knowledge, will God indeed leave these things unexamined and not demand an account from me for this? By no means indeed. But if you wish, learn the things above and divine from the things below and human. What man, tell me, even if he is admired above all for wisdom and knowledge and science of laws, even if he boasts in all righteousness and piety, dares to sit with judges as a judge and to name himself a judge and to legislate for others? And if he does this, will he not be dishonored by the king and punished by the rigor of the laws? O the shamelessness! No one dares to despise the earthly king and to seize his honor or dignity and set it apart for himself, and you despise the heavenly one as nothing and dare to attempt the apostolic dignities without His assent and will? Being in such a state, do you think the Master will leave this unexamined? Certainly not, by no means.

But O Lord, grant us to know you and to fear you worthily and to abide in your holy wills. I beseech you therefore, brothers, cease from these discussions and hasten through repentance and tears and humility, and moreover by the fulfillment of all the other commandments (112) to cleanse your own souls "from all defilement of flesh and spirit," that you may enjoy the good things both present and to come in revelation and perception and contemplation, by the grace and loving-kindness of our Lord Jesus Christ, with whom be glory, power, honor and worship to the Father and to the Holy Spirit, now and ever and unto the ages of ages; amen.

DISCOURSE II.

The chapters of the contemplation of the discourse. (113) a. An exhortation from the proems to repentance and to the saying of the Apostle:

"Those whom he foreknew, he also predestined" and what follows; and against those who distort both it and all the divine Scripture.

b. That all who have been baptized into Christ and have believed in him are foreknown and predestined by God to be conformed to his Son, and to the saying of Moses: "When the Most High divided the nations" and what follows; in which also concerning the calling and rejection of Israel and its union again with the nations.

c. A recapitulation of the things said in the first discourse concerning Adam and Eve and the seven days and ages and the natural contemplation of paradise.

d. Concerning the flood and of what things the things in the ark were images, and concerning Abraham and the remnant according to election, and what this remnant is, and concerning Israel and circumcision.

47

ὡς ἄν τις ὑπολάβοι, ὁ ἀνωφελής μόνον ἐστίν, ἀλλ᾿ ὁ καί πρό τῆς πράξεως καί τῆς ἐν πείρᾳ γνώσεως λαλούμενος παρ᾿ ἡμῶν. Ὁταν γάρ μή καταφρονήσω τῆς κάτω δόξης (111) μηδέ βδελύξωμαι ταύτην ἀπό ψυχῆς, ὡς ψυχοβλαβῆ καί τῆς ἄνω δόξης ἀποστεροῦσάν με, ἄλλους δέ διδάσκω περί αὐτῆς καί παραγγέλλω ταύτης ἀπέχεσθαι, οὐχί ἀργός καί ἄπρακτος καί κενός ὁ λόγος μου ἔσται καί ὡς ψεύστης κατακριθήσομαι; Ὅταν δέ πάλιν μή ἐν αἰσθήσει καί γνώσει λάβω τήν χάριν τοῦ Πνεύματος μηδέ διδακτός Θεοῦ γένωμαι δι᾿ αὐτῆς, μηδέ λόγον λάβω σοφίας καί γνώσεως ἄνωθεν, τά δέ τῶν θεοπνεύστων Γραφῶν ἀναιδῶς διερμηνεύειν ἐπιπηδῶ καί διδασκάλου τάξιν ἐμαυτῷ περιτίθεμαι, μόνῃ δηλαδή τῇ ψευδωνύμῳ γνώσει πρός τοῦτο χρώμενος, ἆρά γε ἀνεξέταστα ταῦτα Θεός ἐάσει καί λόγον ὑπέρ τούτου οὐκ ἀπαιτήσει με; Οὐδαμῶς δή. Εἰ βούλει δέ, ἐκ τῶν κάτω καί τῶν ἀνθρωπίνων διδάχθητι καί τά ἄνω καί θεῖα. Ποῖος, εἰπέ, τῶν ἀνθρώπων κἄν ὑπέρ πάντας ἐν σοφίᾳ καί γνώσει καί ἐπιστήμῃ νόμων θαυμάζηται, κἄν δικαιοσύνῃ καί εὐσεβείᾳ πάσῃ κομᾷ, μετά κριτῶν ὡς κριτής καθεσθῆναι καί κριτήν ἑαυτόν ὀνομάσαι καί ἄλλους νομοθετῆσαι τολμᾷ; Εἰ δέ καί τοῦτο ποιήσει, οὐχί παρά τοῦ βασιλέως ἀτιμασθήσεται καί παρά τῆς ἀκριβείας τῶν νόμων τιμωρησθήσεται; Ὤ τῆς ἀναιδείας! Τοῦ ἐπιγείου βασιλέως οὐδείς καταφρονῆσαι τολμᾶ καί τιμήν ἤ ἀξίωμα τούτου ἁρπάσαι καί ἀφορίσαι ἑαυτῷ, καί σύ τοῦ ἐπουρανίου ὡς οὐδενός καταφρονεῖς καί τῶν ἀποστολικῶν ἀξιωμάτων ἄνευ τῆς ἐκείνου ῥοπῆς καί θελήσεως ἐπιχειρῆσαι κατατολμᾷς; Ὅλως δέ οὕτως ἔχων, οἴει ἀνεξέταστον τοῦτο τόν ∆εσπότην καταλιπεῖν; Οὔμενουν οὐδαμῶς.

Ἀλλ᾿ ὦ Κύριε, δός ἡμῖν ἐπιγνῶναί σε καί ἀξίως φοβεῖσθαί σε καί τοῖς ἁγίοις σου ἐμμένειν θελήμασι. Παρακαλῶ οὖν ὑμᾶς, ἀδελφοί, παύσασθε τῶν συζητήσεων τούτων καί σπεύσατε διά μετανοίας καί δακρύων καί ταπεινώσεως, ἔτι δέ καί τῇ τῶν λοιπῶν ἁπασῶν ἐντολῶν (112) ἐκπληρώσει τάς ἑαυτῶν ἐκκαθᾶραι ψυχάς "ἀπό παντός μολυσμοῦ σακρός καί πνεύματος", ἵνα καί τῶν παρόντων καί τῶν μελλόντων ἐν ἀποκαλύψει καί αἰσθήσει καί θεωρίᾳ ἐπαπολαύσητε ἀγαθῶν, χάριτι καί φιλανθρωπίᾳ τοῦ Κυρίου ἡμῶν Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ μεθ᾿ οὗ δόξα, κράτος, τιμή καί προσκύνησις τῷ Πατρί καί τῷ Ἁγίῳ Πνεύματι, νῦν καί ἀεί καί εἰς τούς αἰῶνας τῶν αἰώνων· ἀμήν.

ΛΟΓΟΣ Β΄.

Τά κεφάλαια τῆς θεωρίας τοῦ λόγου. (113) α΄. Προτρεπτικός ἐκ προοιμίων εἰς μετάνοιαν καί εἰς τό ῥητόν τοῦ Ἀποστόλου·

"Οὕς προέγνω, τούτους και προώρισε" καί εἰς τά ἑξῆς· καί κατά τῶν στρεβλούντων αὐτό τε καί πᾶσαν τήν θείαν Γραφήν.

β΄. Ὅτι πάντες οἱ εἰς Χριστόν βαπτισθέντες καί πιστεύσαντες εἰς αὐτόν προεγνωσμένοι καί προωρισμένοι εἰσί τῷ Θεῷ εἰς τό συμμόρφους γενέσθαι αὐτούς τοῦ Υἱοῦ αὐτοῦ καί εἰς τό ῥητόν τοῦ Μωσέως· "Ὅτε διεμέριζεδν ἔθνη ὁ Ὕψιστος" καί εἰς τά ἑξῆς· ἐν ᾧ καί περί τῆς κλήσεως καί ἀποβολῆς τοῦ Ἰσραήλ καί τῆς μετά τῶν ἐθνῶν αὖθις τούτου ἑνώσεως.

γ΄. Ἀνακεφαλαίωσις τῶν ἐν τῷ πρώτῳ λόγῳ ῥηθέντων περί τῆς τοῦ Ἀδάμ καί τῆς Εὔας καί τῶν ἑπτά ἡμερῶν καί αἰώνων καί τῆς τοῦ παραδείσου φυσικῆς θεωρίας.

δ΄. Περί τοῦ κατακλυσμοῦ καί τίνων εἰκόνες ἦσαν τά ἐν τῇ κιβωτῷ, καί περί τοῦ Ἀβραάμ καί τοῦ κατ᾿ ἐκλογήν λήμματος, καί τί ἐστι τό λῆμμα τοῦτο, καί περί Ἰσραήλ καί τῆς περιτομῆς.