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to one who asks, but he defends one who endures. For blessed David also sings such a thing, saying: "Waiting, I waited for the Lord, and he attended to me." It is possible also to say these things, refuting their own assumption: you think thus, that both the help and the visitation of the Lord has overlooked me. He himself knows that for this reason God handed him over for the sake of a test, as "blessed is the man who endures temptation, for when he has been approved, he will receive the crown of life, which he promised to those who love him." "Those closest to me did not look upon me; like a failing torrent or like a wave they passed me by." And this happened to him for a test; for the absence of friends in afflictions is no small grief. Enduring this affliction, holy David also sang: "I looked to my right hand and beheld, and there was no one who knew me." And if he also indicates that the holy, invisible powers passed him by for a little while so that his great virtue might appear, consider it; for this thought agrees with that which was rendered for: "but the visitation 173 of the Lord has overlooked me." For just as the Lord of all did not visit him out of hatred, but in order to show the adversary that his wickedness is not able against human virtue, so perhaps also the divine powers, having been deemed worthy to know the will of God concerning Job, allowed the contest to take place, so that the blessed man's achievement might appear more brilliant. "Those who were cautious of me have now fallen upon me." Gently, perhaps, he refutes them thus: ignorant of the cause of these visitations, you assail me, daring to say such things as you have not said before. It is likely that many others also despised him on account of his suffering, and this being suggested by the one who had asked for him. But see, lest just as we have stated that the divine powers passed him by for a little while so that his virtue might be known, so also other opposing powers were permitted to leap upon him and make war. "As snow or frozen ice, which, when it melts because of heat, is not recognized for what it was, so I too was abandoned by all. And I was lost and became 174 an exile." The phrase "as snow or frozen ice, which, when it melts" is stated by hyperbaton, to be rendered thus: as melting snow or ice. And the example is fitting for the excess of his transformation, making him completely unrecognizable, like snow or ice dissolved by intense heat and thus making unrecognizable the place where it happened to be. And it is well to have used such an example; just as snow and ice, being dissolved by heat, make the place indistinguishable, so also one who seems to be a friend is revealed when temptations arise, and what he concealed before this, he makes manifest. When a time of affliction is at hand and those who pretend to be friends are opposed, the saints have steadfastness, towards those they love, both in ease and in adversity, keeping this standard of friendship uncorrupted. And it is no wonder, since they extend love even to their enemies, being peaceful with those who hate peace, according to what was said by the Lord through the prophet: "Say, 'our brothers,' to those who hate you, so that the name of the Lord may be glorified, but they themselves will be ashamed." But since the discourse has once begun concerning friendship, it is fitting to distinguish the different kinds of friendship. One kind, then, 175 is that for the sake of the good itself, which the saints also achieve, and another is for the sake of usefulness, as for instance when someone is a friend of a physician for this very reason. And although this friendship is not perfect, it at least is not blameworthy, being a certain human thing. And another is for the sake of pleasure, which no longer existing, the friend no longer exists, and for the sake of ambition, so that they may seem to the many to be friends of greater men, while they themselves contribute nothing to their honor. And if also he who chooses a friend for the sake of usefulness is most unreliable according to the no longer

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ἐξαιτήσαντι, ἀλλ' ἐπαμύνει καρτερήσαντι. τοιοῦ. τον γὰρ καὶ ὁ μακάριος ∆αυὶδ ψάλλει λέγων· "ὑπομένων ὑπέμεινα τὸν κύριον, καὶ προσέσχεν μοι." δυνατὸν δὲ καὶ τὴν αὐτῶν ἐλέγχοντα διάλημψιν ταῦτα λέγειν ὅτι· ὑμεῖς οὕτω νομίζετε, ὅτι καὶ ἡ βοήθεια καὶ ἡ ἐπισκοπὴ κυρίου ὑπερεῖδέν με. αὐτὸς οἶδεν, ὅτι του´̣τῳ θεὸς δοκιμασίας χάριν αὐτὸν παρέδωκεν, ὡς "μακάριος ἀνὴρ ὃς ὑπομένει πειρασμόν, ὅτι δόκιμος γενάμενος λήμψεται τὸν στέφανον τῆς ζωῆς, ὃν ἐπηγ γείλατο τοῖς ἀγαπῶσιν αὐτόν." "οὐ προσεῖδόν με οἱ ἐγγύτατοί μου, ὥσπερ χειμάρρους ἐκλείπων ἢ ὥσπερ κῦμα παρῆλθόν με." καὶ τοῦτο αὐτῷ πρὸς δοκιμασίαν συνέβαινεν· οὐ γὰρ μικρὰ ἀνία ἐν τοῖς θλιβηροῖς ἀπουσία τῶν φίλων. ταύτην ὑπομένων τὴν θλῖψιν καὶ ∆αυὶδ ὁ ἅγιος ἔψαλλεν· "κατενόουν εἰς τὰ δεξιὰ καὶ ἐπέβλεπον, καὶ οὐκ ἦν ὁ ἐπιγιγνώσκων με." ει᾿̣ δὲ καὶ τὰς ἀοράτους δυνάμεις ἁγίας διὰ τὸ τὴν ἀρετὴν αὐτοῦ μεγάλην φανῆναι ὀλίγον παρελθούσας αὐτὸν δηλοῖ, συνεπίσκεψαι· συντρέχει γὰρ αὕτη ἡ διάνοια τῇ ἀποδοθείσῃ εἰς τό· "ἐπισκοπὴ 173 δὲ κυρίου ὑπερεῖδέν με." ὡς γὰρ ὁ τῶν ὅλων κύριος οὐ μισῶν οὐκ ἐπεσκέπτετο αὐτόν, ἀλλὰ πρὸς τὸ δεῖξαι τῶι ἀντικειμένῳ, ὅτι πρὸς ἀνθρώπου ἀρετὴν ἡ κακία αὐτοῦ οὐ δύναται, οὕτω μήποτε καὶ αἱ θεῖαι δυνάμεις, τὸ βούλημα τοῦ θεοῦ ἀξιωθεῖσαι εἰδέναι τὸ περὶ τὸν Ἰὼβ συνχωρῆσαι τὸν ἀγῶνα γενέσθαι, ἵνα λαμπρότερον τοῦ μακαρίου φανῇ τὸ κατόρθωμα. "οἵτινές με διευλαβοῦντο, νυ῀̣ν ἐπιπεπτώκασίν μοι." ἠρέμα μὲν ἴσως τούτους ἐλέγχει ὅτι· ἀγνοοῦντες τὴν αἰτίαν τῶν ἐπαγωγῶν ἐπιβαίνετέ μοι τολμῶντες τοιαῦτα λέγειν, ἃ πρότερον οὐκ εἰρήκατε. εἰκὸς δ', ὅτι καὶ πολλοὶ τῶν ἄλλων διὰ τὸ πάθος κατεφρόνουν αὐτοῦ, καὶ τοῦτο τοῦ ἐξαιτησαμένου ὑποβάλλοντος. ὅρα δέ, μὴ ὥσπερ ἀποδεδώκαμεν τὰς θείας δυνάμεις ὀλίγου αὐτὸν παρεληλυθέναι ἵνα γνωσθῇ αὐτοῦ ἡ ἀρετή, οὕτω συνεχωρήθησαν τῶν ἐναντίων δυνάμεων καὶ ἄλλαι ἐπιπηδᾶν αὐτῷ καὶ προσπολεμεῖν. "ὥσπερ χιὼν ἢ κρύσταλλος πεπηγώς, καθὼς τακεῖσα θέρμης γενομένης οὐκ ἐπεγνώσθη ὅπερ ἦν, οὕτω κἀγὼ κατελείφθην ὑπὸ πάντων. ἀπωλόμην δὲ καὶ ἔξοικος 174 ἐγενόμην." ὑπερβάτως εἴρηται τό· "ὥσπερ χιὼν ἢ κρύσταλλος πεπηγώς, καθὼς τακεῖσα", οὕτως ἀποδιδόμενον· καθὼς τακεῖσα χιὼν ἢ κρύσταλλος. οἰκεῖον δὲ καὶ τὸ πα ράδειγμα πρὸς τὴν ὑπερβολὴν τῆς μεταβολῆς αὐτοῦ ἄγνωστον αὐτὸν παντελῆ ποιούσης κατὰ τὴν χιόνα ἢ κρύσταλλον τὴν ἀπὸ διακαύσεως διαλυομένην καὶ οὕτως ἄγνωστον ποιου῀̣σ̣αν το`̣ν τόπον ὅπου ἐτύγχαν̣ε̣ν̣. εὖ δὲ καὶ τὸ τοιούτῳ χρήσασθ̣αι παραδείγματι· καθὼς ἡ χιὼν καὶ κρύσταλλος ἀδιάκριτον ποιοῦσι τὸν τόπον ὑπὸ θέρμης̣ δ̣ι̣α̣λυόμενα, οὕτω καὶ φίλος δοκῶν εἶναι πειρασμῶν ἐνστάντων φανεροῦται, καὶ ὅπερ πρὸ τούτου ἔκρυπτεν, φανερὸν καθίστησιν. ἐνστάντος θλιβηροῦ καιροῦ ἀντικειμένων δὲ τῶν σχηματιζομένων φίλων εἶναι οἱ ἅγιοι ἔχουσι βεβαιότητα, πρὸς τοὺς ἀγαπωμένους ἔχοντες καὶ ἐν ἀνέσει καὶ ἐν περιστάσει τοῦτον τὸν ὅρον τῆς φιλίας ἀδιάστροφον φυλάττοντες. καὶ οὐ θαῦμα, ὅπου γε καὶ πρὸς τοὺς ἐχθροὺς τὴν ἀγάπην ἐκτείνουσι, μετὰ τῶν μισούντων τὴν εἰρήνην εἰρηνικοὶ ὄντες κατὰ τὸ ὑπὸ κυρίου διὰ τοῦ προφήτου λεγόμενον· "εἴπατε, ἀδελφοὶ ἡμῶν, τοῖς μισοῦσιν ὑμᾶς, ἵνα τὸ ὄνομα κυρίου δοξασθῇ, αὐτοὶ δὲ αἰσχυνθήσονται." ἅπαξ δὲ ἐπεὶ περὶ φιλίας ὁ λόγος τὴν ἀρχὴν ἐδέξατο, ἀκόλουθον τὰς διαφορὰς διαγνῶναι τῆς φιλίας. ἡ μὲν οὖν 175 τίς ἐστιν ἡ δι' αὐτὸ τὸ καλόν, ἣν καὶ ἅγιοι κατορθοῦσιν, ἡ δέ τις διὰ τὸ χρήσιμον, οἷον ὅταν τις φέρε ἰατροῦ φίλος ὑπάρχῃ δι' αὐτὸ τοῦτο. αὕτη δ' ἡ φιλία εἰ καὶ μὴ τελεία ἐστίν, ἀλλὰ γοῦν οὐκ ἔχει τὸ ψεκτὸν ἀνθρωπίνη τις ὑπάρχουσα. ἑτέρα δὲ εἰ μὴ διὰ τὸ ἡδύ, οὗ μηκέτι ὑπάρχοντος μηδ' ὁ φίλος ἔστιν, καὶ διὰ φιλοδοξίαν, ἵνα δοκῶσι τοῖς πολλοῖς μειζ̣ο´̣νων εἶναι φίλοι αὐτοὶ οὐδὲν προσφέροντες εἰς φιλοτ̣ιμίαν ἐκείνων. εἰ δὲ καὶ ὁ διὰ τὸ χρήσι μον αἱρούμενος φίλον ἀβεβαιότατος κατὰ τὸ μηκέτι