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with patience, in humility; in the chief of the Commandments, love. And likewise also strong, in incorruption, in gravity, in mercy, in perseverance in prayers, in the toils of sleeplessness. Nor the strength of bread and water, the occasion for the most nourishing power of the word, to be taken away; as the strength of the prophetic spirit failed the Jews, and they happen to be very thirsty for the word, desiring the word of God, and not having it. For the Lord has taken away the strength of bread and the strength of water. There is, then, a certain food also among us, which does not impart strength, but does not permit one to die, such as Paul prepares for the Corinthians who are still infants in Christ. And there are also vegetables, the food of the weak; and for the perfect, solid food is suitable, for those who by reason of use have their senses exercised to discern both good and evil. And if ever the Church is at a loss for those who hand down firm and vigorous doctrines and ones filled with the divine mind, it is a sign that the strength of its bread is being taken away. And there is in water both strength and weakness, according to what the Lord says: Everyone who drinks of this water will thirst again; but whoever drinks of the water that I shall give him will never thirst. And just as we take solid food as a primary substance, and liquid so that it may become a vehicle for the dry and guide it to assimilation, so it would also be in the nourishment of the soul: the mind, the first and most proper nourishment of the soul; and the word, by its own energy making a way for the doctrines, works their assimilation. And we must open our eyes, that we may be filled with this bread and water. For "Open" (he says) "your eyes and be filled with bread." And in Genesis also: the eyes of Hagar were opened and she saw the water. 3.101 A giant and a strong man and a man of war and a judge. We find here the appellation of giant used in a good sense, and if anywhere, it is rare. As in, "He will rejoice as a giant to run his course." Therefore He will take away the giant. Those having certain natural advantages and who excel many in the constitution of the flesh, for the acquisition of knowledge or for the practice of virtue, these we consider to be called giants; and strong men, those who by their own diligence and practice have perfected the good that is from nature. No longer are there men of war among the Jews, for they are not numbered in the military registers; nor a judge; for they were delivered up to the judges who took them captive, because a ruler was lacking from Judah. However, each of the things threatened to them on account of their unbelief in the Lord can also happen to us, if we disobey. For we too are lacking men of war, who take up the full armor of the Lord and stand nobly against the wiles of the devil, whenever unbelief overcomes us, and we are delivered to our adversaries. But let us pray to the Lord, that a man of war may not be taken away from us, a man fortified with the breastplate of faith and wearing the helmet of salvation protecting his vital parts, and having his feet secured in the preparation of the Gospel, having drawn the sword and holding it ready to avenge all disobedience; and in sum, as a good soldier of Christ who suffers hardship with the Gospel, not entangled in the affairs of this life, that he may please the one who enlisted him. 3.102 And the Church also has judges, those able to reconcile brother with brother, by whom also the world is judged, who will also judge angels. If, therefore, at any time empty talkers and deceivers should multiply, teaching things they ought not, upsetting whole households for the sake of shameful gain, and there is no one in the Church to silence such people, nor to pull down their high things that are raised up against the knowledge of God, it must be known that because its disobedience has multiplied, it has been abandoned. And if there is no one wise, who is able to judge between brother, but before unbelievers

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ὑπομονῇ, ἐν ταπει νοφροσύνῃ· ἐν τῷ κεφαλαίῳ τῶν Ἐντολῶν, τῇ ἀγάπῃ. Ὁμοίως δὲ καὶ ἰσχύουσαν, ἐν ἀφθαρσίᾳ, ἐν σεμνότητι, ἐν ἐλεημοσύνῃ, ἐν τῇ προσεδρίᾳ τῶν δεήσεων, ἐν τοῖς κόποις τῆς ἀργυπνίας. Μηδὲ τὴν τοῦ ἄρτου καὶ ὕδατος ἰσχὺν τῆς τροφιμωτάτης τοῦ λόγου δυνάμεως τὴν ἀφορμὴν ἀφαι ρεθῆναι· ὡς ἐπέλιπεν Ἰουδαίους ἡ ἰσχὺς τοῦ προφητικοῦ πνεύματος, καὶ κατάδιψοι λόγου τυγχάνουσιν, ἐπιθυμοῦντες λόγου Θεοῦ, καὶ μὴ ἔχοντες. Ἀφεῖλε γὰρ Κύριος ἰσχὺν ἄρτου καὶ ἰσχὺν ὕδατος. Ἔστι μὲν οὖν τις καὶ παρ' ἡμῖν τροφὴ, ἰσχὺν μὲν οὐκ ἐντιθεῖσα, ἀποθνήσκειν δὲ οὐκ ἐπιτρέπουσα, ὁποίαν Παῦλος τοῖς ἔτι νη πίοις ἐν Χριστῷ Κορινθίοις παρασκευάζει. Ἔστι δὲ καὶ λάχα να, ἀσθενούντων τροφή· ἔστι δὲ καὶ τελείοις ἐπιτήδειον ἡ στε ρεὰ τροφὴ, τῶν διὰ τὴν ἕξιν τὰ αἰσθητήρια γεγυμνασμένα ἐχόν των πρὸς διάκρισιν καλοῦ τε καὶ κακοῦ. Καὶ ἐάν ποτε ἀπορῇ Ἐκκλησία τῶν στεῤῥὰ καὶ εὔτονα δόγματα καὶ πεπληρωμένα τοῦ θείου νοῦ παραδιδόντων, γνώρισμά ἐστι τοῦ ἀφαιρεῖσθαι αὐτῆς τὴν ἰσχὺν τοῦ ἄρτου. Ἔστι δὲ καὶ ἐν ὕδατι ἰσχὺς καὶ ἀσθένεια, καθ' ἅ φησιν ὁ Κύριος· Πᾶς ὁ πίνων ἐκ τοῦ ὕδατος τούτου, διψήσει πάλιν· ὃς δ' ἂν πίῃ ἐκ τοῦ ὕδατος, οὗ Ἐγὼ δώσω αὐτῷ, οὐ μὴ διψήσει εἰς τὸν αἰῶνα. Ὥσπερ δὲ τὴν στερεὰν τροφὴν κατὰ προηγούμενον λόγον προσφε ρόμεθα, τὴν δὲ ὑγρὰν ὥστε ὄχημα γενέσθαι τῇ ξηρᾷ καὶ χειραγωγῆσαι αὐτὴν πρὸς τὴν ἀνάδοσιν, οὕτως ἂν εἴη καὶ ἐν τῇ τροφῇ τῆς ψυχῆς· ὁ μὲν νοῦς, ἡ πρώτη καὶ οἰκειο τάτη τροφὴ τῆς ψυχῆς· ὁ δὲ λόγος, διὰ τῆς οἰκείας ἐνερ γείας ὁδοποιῶν τοῖς δόγμασι, τὴν ἀνάληψιν ἐργάζεται. Ἀνοῖξαι δὲ δεῖ τοὺς ὀφθαλμοὺς, ἵνα τούτου τοῦ ἄρτου ἐμπλησθῶμεν καὶ τοῦ ὕδατος. ∆ιάνοιξον γὰρ (φησὶ) τοὺς ὀφθαλμούς σου καὶ ἐμπλήσθητι ἄρτων. Καὶ ἐν Γενέσει δέ· ἠνοίγησαν τῆς Ἀγὰρ οἱ ὀφθαλμοὶ καὶ εἶδε τὸ ὕδωρ. 3.101 Γίγαντα καὶ ἰσχύοντα καὶ ἄνθρωπον πολεμιστὴν καὶ δικαστήν. Ἐπὶ καλοῦ τεταγμένην τὴν τοῦ γίγαντος προσηγο ρίαν ἐνταῦθα εὕρομεν, καὶ εἴ που, κατὰ τὸ σπάνιον. Ὡς τὸ Ἀγαλλιάσεται ὡς γίγας δραμεῖν ὁδόν. Ἀφελεῖ οὖν γίγαντα. Τοὺς ἔχοντάς τινα ἐκ φύσεως προτερήματα καὶ κατὰ τὴν σύγκρισιν τῆς σαρκὸς πολλῶν διαφέροντας, εἰς ἀνάληψιν ἐπιστήμης, ἢ εἰς ἄσκησιν ἀρετῆς, τούτους ἡγού μεθα γίγαντας λέγεσθαι· ἰσχύοντας δὲ, τοὺς ἐκ τῆς ἰδίας ἐπιμελείας καὶ μελέτης τὸ ἐκ φύσεως ἀγαθὸν τελειώσαντας. Οὐκέτι παρὰ Ἰουδαίοις πολεμισταί, οὐδὲ γὰρ ἐναριθμοῦν ται τοῖς στρατιωτικοῖς καταλόγοις· ἀλλ' οὐδὲ δικαστής· παρεδόθησαν γὰρ δικασταῖς τοῖς αἰχμαλωτεύσασιν αὐτοὺς, διὰ τὸ ἐκλείπειν ἄρχοντα ἐξ Ἰούδα. Ἕκαστα μέντοι τῶν ἐκείνοις διὰ τὴν εἰς τὸν Κύριον ἀπιστίαν ἀπειληθέντων, δυνατὸν καὶ ἐφ' ἡμῶν γενέσθαι, ἐὰν ἀπειθῶμεν. Ἐπιλείπουσι γὰρ καὶ ἡμᾶς πολεμισταὶ, οἱ ἀναλαμβάνοντες τὴν τοῦ Κυρίου πανοπλίαν, καὶ ἱστάμενοι γενναίως πρὸς τὰς μεθοδείας τοῦ διαβόλου, ὅταν κατακρατήσῃ ἡμῶν ἡ ἀπισ τία, καὶ παραδοθῶμεν τοῖς ὑπεναντίοις. Ἀλλὰ δεώμεθα τοῦ Κυρίου, μὴ ἀρθῆναι ἀφ' ἡμῶν πολεμιστὴν, ἄνδρα τῷ θώρακι τῆς πίστεως ὠχυρωμένον καὶ τὴν περικεφαλαίαν τοῦ σω τηρίου σκέπουσαν αὐτοῦ τὰ καίρια περικείμενον, καὶ τοὺς πόδας ἐν ἑτοιμασίᾳ τοῦ Εὐαγγελίου ἠσφαλισμένον, ἐσπα σμένον δὲ καὶ τὴν μάχαιραν ἑτοίμως ἔχοντα ἐκδικῆσαι πᾶσαν παρακοήν· καὶ τὸ ὅλον, ὡς καλὸν στρατιώτην Χριστοῦ συγκακοπαθοῦντα τῷ Εὐαγγελίῳ, μὴ ἐμπλεκόμενον ταῖς τοῦ βίου πραγματείαις, ἵνα τῷ στρατολογήσαντι ἀρέσῃ. 3.102 Ἔχει δὲ καὶ δικαστὰς ἡ Ἐκκλησία, τοὺς δυναμένους ἀδελφὸν μετὰ ἀδελφοῦ συμβιβάσαι, ἐφ' ὧν καὶ ὁ κόσμος κρίνεται, οἳ καὶ Ἀγγέλους κρινοῦσιν. Ἐὰν οὖν ποτε πληθυνθῶσι ματαιολόγοι καὶ φρεναπάται, διδάσκοντες ἃ μὴ δεῖ, ἀνατρέποντες ὅλους οἴκους αἰσχροῦ κέρδους χάριν, καὶ ὁ ἐπιστομίζων ἐν Ἐκκλησίᾳ τοὺς τοιούτους μὴ ᾖ, μηδὲ καθαιρῶν αὐτῶν τὰ ἐπαιρόμενα ὑψώματα κατὰ τῆς γνώσεως τοῦ Θεοῦ, εἰδέναι δεῖ, ὅτι διὰ τὸ πληθυνθῆναι τὴν παρακοὴν αὐτῆς ἐγκαταλέλειπται. Καὶ ἐὰν μηδεὶς ᾖ σοφὸς, ὁ δυνάμενος κρίνειν ἀνὰ μέσον τοῦ ἀδελφοῦ, ἀλλ' ἐπὶ τῶν ἀπίστων