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neither is it firmly fixed on its feet, nor does it have a steady flight. Such also are the demons; they are neither Angels, nor humans; having lost the dignity of the former, and not having the nature of the latter. And they have teeth, which birds do not have; and demons are defensive, which Angels are not. But they also do not lay eggs, like birds; but they immediately give birth to live animals. Such also are the demons; immediately and with great speed accomplishing their wickedness. So that those who worship demons are said, tropologically, to worship bats. But when someone puts away the vanity of idols and ceases to worship bats, then he will seek to enter into the holes of the solid rock and into the clefts of the rocks. I think that the holes are the many dwelling places, which are divided to each according to the proportion of their faith in Christ; and the clefts of the rocks are the passion of his body, in whose shelter those who are saved pray to take refuge and be hidden. 2.98 Cease from man, whose breath is in his nostrils; for in what is he accounted of? In the copies of the common edition, this is not found, but being in the Hebrew, it was brought over from the other versions. And the meaning is this: Spare man, from wrestling with him and warring against him; who is of such a weak constitution, that he has his vital breath in his nostril, which if it be held back for a little, he is no more. He seems therefore to command these powers, which he tropologically called bats, to abstain henceforth from plotting against men; who are weak in the flesh, but are counted among the honorable by God, and nothing concerning them is unexamined.

3.t CHAPTER 3

3.99 Behold, the Lord, the Lord of Sabaoth, shall take away from Judea and from Jerusalem the strong man and the strong woman. After the Jewish people had devised an evil plan against the Lord, he who was crucified by them out of the weakness of the flesh, but lived by the power of God the Father, left that weakness to them. For you shall die (he says) in your sins; but to us he has granted the power of the resurrection; For he who believes in me, even if he dies, shall live. For the unbelievers are weak in their unbelief because of the cross; but the righteous say with confidence: I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me. Therefore he who does not have Christ, the power of God, does not have strength. For this reason the Lord will take away from Jerusalem and from Judea the strong man and the strong woman, such as was Sarah, strong and ruling over the great Abraham, according to the command of the Lord who said: In all that Sarah shall say to you, listen to her. Such as Rebecca, drawing water out of hospitality and strengthened by her virtue; Deborah leading an army; Jael distinguishing herself; Hannah being heard; and Elizabeth prophesying. No longer strong men, nor strong women. And the cause of the weakness is added: because they do not have the strength of bread and the strength of water. For just as our bodies are strengthened by appropriate foods, so there is something that nourishes the soul and gives it vigor for good things. What then is this? What the Lord said, that My flesh is true food, and my blood is true drink. For those who do not have these things, the strength of bread and the strength of water does not exist. And where the foods are weak, there of necessity those who are fed are also such. 3.100 But may it not be that the Church suffer the sins of Jerusalem, so that there be taken from it one who is strong in every good work and word, for the sake of the truth; strong in fasting, strong in prayers; strong in temptations, strong in

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οὔτε τοῖς ποσὶν ἀσφα λῶς ἐστήρικται, οὔτε τὴν πτῆσιν βεβαίαν ἔχει. Τοιοῦτοι δὲ καὶ οἱ δαίμονες· οὔτε Ἄγγελοί εἰσιν, οὔτε ἄνθρωποι· τῶν μὲν τὴν ἀξίαν ἀπολέσαντες, τῶν δὲ τὴν φύσιν μὴ ἔχοντες. Καὶ ὀδόντας ἔχουσιν, ὅπερ οὐκ ἔχουσιν ὄρνιθες· ἀμυντικοὶ δὲ καὶ οἱ δαίμονες, ὅπερ οὐ ποιοῦσιν Ἄγγελοι. Ἀλλὰ καὶ οὐκ ὠοτοκοῦσιν, ὥσπερ οἱ ὄρνιθες· ἀλλ' εὐθὺς ζῶα τίκτουσι. Τοιοῦτοι δὲ καὶ οἱ δαίμονες· εὐθὺς καὶ σὺν πολλῷ τῷ τάχει τελεσιουργοῦντες τὴν πονηρίαν. Ὥστε οἱ δαίμοσι προσκυνοῦντες, νυκτερίσι τροπικῶς εἴρηνται προσκυνεῖν. Ὅταν δέ τις ἀποθῆται τὴν ματαιότητα τῶν εἰδώλων καὶ παύσηται προσκυνεῖν ταῖς νυκτερίσι, τότε ζητήσει εἰσελ θεῖν εἰς τὰς τρώγλας τῆς στερεᾶς πέτρας καὶ εἰς τὰς σχισμὰς τῶν πετρῶν. Οἶμαι ὅτι τρῶγλαι αἱ πολλαὶ μοναὶ, αἳ κατὰ τὴν ἀναλογίαν τῆς εἰς Χριστὸν πίστεως ἑκάστῳ διῄρηνται· καὶ σχισμαὶ πετρῶν τὸ πάθος ἐστὶ τοῦ σώματος αὐτοῦ, ᾧ οἱ σωζόμενοι προσφυγεῖν καὶ ἐγκατακρυφθῆναι αὐτοῦ τῇ σκέπῃ εὔχονται. 2.98 Παύσασθε ἀπὸ ἀνθρώπου, ᾧ ἀναπνοὴ ἐν μυκτῆρι αὐτοῦ· ὅτι ἐν τίνι ἐλογίσθη αὐτοῖς; Ἐν τοῖς ἀντιγράφοις τῆς κοινῆς ἐκδόσεως, οὐ κεῖται τοῦτο, ἀλλ' ἐν τῷ Ἑβραϊκῷ κείμενον, ἐκ τῶν λοιπῶν μετε κομίσθη. Ὁ δὲ νοῦς τοιοῦτός ἐστι· Φείσασθε τοῦ ἀνθρώπου, προσπαλαίειν αὐτῷ καὶ στρατεύεσθαι κατ' αὐτοῦ· ὃς τοιαύ της ἐστὶ κατασκευῆς οὕτως ἀσθενοῦς, ὥστε τὴν ζωτικὴν ἀναπνοὴν ἔχειν ἐν τῷ μυκτῆρι, ἧς ἐπισχεθείσης μικρὸν, οὐκ έτι ἐστίν. Ἔοικεν οὖν ταύταις προστάσσειν ταῖς δυνά μεσιν, ἃς νυκτερίδας τροπικῶς ὠνόμασε, τοῦ ἀποσχέσθαι λοιπὸν τῆς ἐπιβουλῆς τῶν ἀνθρώπων· οἳ ἀσθενεῖς μέν εἰσι κατὰ τὴν σάρκα, ἐν τοῖς τιμίοις δέ εἰσι καταλελογισμένοι παρὰ Θεῷ, καὶ οὐδὲν ἀζήτητον τῶν κατ' αὐτούς.

3.t ΚΕΦΑΛΑΙΟΝ γʹ

3.99 Ἰδοὺ δὴ ὁ ∆εσπότης Κύριος Σαβαὼθ ἀφελεῖ ἀπὸ τῆς Ἰουδαίας καὶ ἀπὸ Ἱερουσαλὴμ ἰσχύοντα καὶ ἰσχύουσαν. Μετὰ τὸ βουλεύσασθαι τὸν Ἰουδαϊκὸν λαὸν βουλὴν πο νηρὰν κατὰ τοῦ Κυρίου, ὁ σταυρωθεὶς παρ' αὐτῶν ἐξ ἀσθενείας τῆς σαρκικῆς, ζήσας δὲ ἐκ δυνάμεως Θεοῦ Πα τρὸς, τὴν ἀσθένειαν ἐκείνοις ἐναφῆκεν. Ἐναποθανεῖσθε γὰρ (φησὶ) ταῖς ἁμαρτίαις ὑμῶν· ἡμῖν δὲ τὸ δυνατὸν τῆς ἀναστά σεως ἐχαρίσατο· Ὁ γὰρ πιστεύων εἰς ἐμὲ, κἂν ἀποθάνῃ, ζή σεται. Οἱ μὲν γὰρ ἄπιστοι ἐνασθενοῦσι τῇ διὰ τὸν σταυρὸν ἀπιστίᾳ· οἱ δὲ δίκαιοι μετὰ πεποιθήσεως λέγουσι· Πάντα ἰσχύω ἐν τῷ ἐνδυναμοῦντί με, Χριστῷ. Ὁ οὖν μὴ ἔχων τὸν Χριστὸν, τὴν τοῦ Θεοῦ δύναμιν, τὴν ἰσχὺν οὐκ ἔχει. ∆ιὰ τοῦτο ἀφελεῖ Κύριος ἀπὸ Ἱερουσαλὴμ καὶ ἀπὸ Ἰουδαίας ἰσχύοντα καὶ ἰσχύουσαν, ὁποία ἦν Σάῤῥα, ἰσχύουσα καὶ ἄρχουσα τοῦ τηλικούτου Ἀβραὰμ, κατὰ πρόσταγμα τοῦ Κυρίου εἰπόντος· Πάντα ὅσα ἐρεῖ σοι Σάῤῥα, ἄκουε αὐτῆς. Ὁποία Ῥεβέκκα, διὰ φιλοξενίαν ἀντλοῦσα καὶ ἐνισχύουσα διὰ τὴν ἀρετήν· ∆εββῶρα στρατηγοῦσα· Ἰαὴλ ἀριστεύ ουσα· Ἄννα εἰσακουομένη· καὶ Ἐλισάβετ προφητεύουσα. Οὐκέτι ἰσχύοντες, οὐδὲ ἰσχύουσαι. Καὶ ἡ αἰτία τῆς ἀσθενείας ἐπῆκται· διὰ τὸ μὴ εἶναι παρ' αὐτοῖς ἰσχὺν ἄρτου καὶ ἰσχὺν ὕδατος. Ὥσπερ γὰρ τὰ σώματα ἡμῶν ταῖς καταλλήλοις τροφαῖς ἐνδυναμοῦνται, οὕτως ἐστί τι καὶ τὸ τὴν ψυχὴν τρέφον καὶ παρέχον αὐτῇ τὴν περὶ τὰ καλὰ εὐτονίαν. Τί οὖν ἐστι τοῦτο; Ὃ εἶπεν ὁ Κύριος, ὅτι Ἡ σάρξ μου ἀληθής ἐστι βρῶσις, καὶ τὸ αἷμά μου ἀληθής ἐστι πόσις. Οἷς δὲ ταῦτα μὴ πρόσεστιν, ἰσχὺς ἄρτου καὶ ἰσχὺς ὕδατος οὐχ ὑπάρχει. Ὅπου δὲ αἱ τροφαὶ ἀσθενεῖς, ἐκεῖ ἀνάγκη καὶ τοὺς τρεφομένους εἶναι τοιούτους. 3.100 Ἀλλὰ μὴ γένοιτο παθεῖν τὴν Ἐκκλησίαν τὰ ἁμαρτήματα τῆς Ἱερουσαλὴμ, ὥστε ἀφαιρεθῆναι αὐτῆς ἰσχύοντα ἐν παντὶ ἔργῳ ἀγαθῷ καὶ λόγῳ, τῷ ὑπὲρ τῆς ἀληθείας· ἰσχύοντα ἐν νηστείαις, ἰσχύοντα ἐν προσευχαῖς· ἰσχύοντα ἐν πειρασμοῖς, ἰσχύοντα ἐν