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and having brought him down to the bottom of Hades and bound him, he leaves him. Let us flee, beloved, this destruction, I beseech you.

For he craftily plants in such people and sophistically produces despair to such an extent, that they neither think they are in despair, nor are persuaded by the divine Scriptures, nor indeed consider trustworthy those who speak to them about such things, but place everything second to their own prudence, or rather to speak of their folly and insensibility, and though bound by the neck they remain insensible (144), which is worse than all despair. For it is one thing for someone who has fallen into a multitude of evils to despair of his own salvation, and another thing to use evil as if it were good and to be fully convinced that he is doing something good. For the former, if he is taught about repentance and the love of God for mankind and learns that there is no multitude of sins which repentance does not blot out and that "where sin abounded, grace did much more abound" and that "joy shall be in heaven over one sinner that repenteth," perhaps coming to himself and being filled with compunction, he might someday desire to be delivered from those many evils and for his conscience to be lightened of its unbearable burden, he will rise up and all other things—I mean the things of this life—will be counted as nothing and he will fervently approach repentance; but the latter, being more difficult to recall, utterly refuses to be healed by such remedies. For how will he consent to be healed, who is not at all persuaded that he lies in sickness or in a fall? In no way!

But it is necessary for us first, as much as we are able, with spiritual words, having gathered them from both the divine Gospel and the other holy Scriptures, to fully convince and show them, how, having started from the straight path, they were deceived by turning aside, and how the enemy, finding them isolated, deceitfully tied the rope of attachment around their necks, then also how he led them around to the cliffs and chasms of sins; and after this we will show them also how he threw them into the deepest pit, and where and how, having brought them down into Hades, he fastened the rope upon their neck, (145) and how, since they were no longer able to be set free and ascend to the earth, he left them and withdrew. And thus to those who are persuaded by the words of the divine Scripture and come to an awareness of their own evils and confess and agree that their affairs are so, then we will also administer the medicines suitable for their wounds through their words.

But as I am about to come to the proofs of the matters and am hastening to undertake the struggle of the word against the irrational and ignorant, I ask all of you to pray with me, that the grace of the All-Holy Spirit, shining more brightly, may illuminate my whole understanding and mind and grant me to say something worthy, not because of my own worthiness, but for your benefit, sounding forth as it were the words themselves and at the same time by its light revealing and pointing out all that we have said before, and saying to us, as it were: "Behold the way, behold its fall, behold the enemy, the rope. Behold the brother, how with joy he accepts the bond. Behold where the devil, dragging him, carries him off," and having shown everything in order and without omission and having taught how we might be able to escape his snares, may she, taking us with her, free, ascend to the heavens. But this would not otherwise be possible for us, unless we trace our account from above and from the beginning of our life and our entry into the monastic contest, and make our beginning from there. For thus the discourse, proceeding as on a path, might clearly prove to those who are attentive what it promised through the grace of the Spirit. But do not grow weary, for the discourse is beneficial, insofar as

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καί ἐν πυθμένι ᾅδου καταβιβάσας καί ἐνδεσμήσας ἀφίησι, φύγωμεν, ἀγαπητοί, τόν ὄλεθρον τοῦτον, παρακαλῶ.

Πανούργως γάρ ἐνριζοῖ ἐν τοῖς τοιούτοις καί σεσοφισμένως ἐμποιεῖ τήν ἀπόγνωσιν ἐπί τοσοῦτον, ὡς μήτε νομίζειν τούτους ἐν ἀπογνώσει γενέσθαι, μήτε πείθεσθαι ταῖς θείαις Γραφαῖς, μήτε μήν πιστούς ἡγεῖσθαι τούς περί τοιούτων λέγοντας πρός αὐτούς, πάντα δέ δεύτερα τῆς ἑαυτῶ τιθέναι φρονήσεως ἤ μᾶλλον εἰπεῖν ἀφροσύνης καί ἀναισθησίας, καί δεδεμένους ὄντας ἀπό τοῦ τραχήλου ἀναλγήτους (144) διακεῖσθαι, ὅπερ χεῖρον πάσης ἐστίν ἀπογνώσεως. Ἄλλο γάρ τό εἰς πλῆθος ἐμπεσόντα κακῶν τῆς ἑαυτοῦ σωτηρίας ἀπογινώσκειν τινά, καί ἕτερον τό ὡς καλῷ τῷ κακῷ χρᾶσθαι καί ἐν πλήροφορίᾳ εἶναι ὅτι καλόν τι ποιεῖ. Ὁ μέν γάρ πρότερος, εἰ περί μετανοίας καί τῆς τοῦ Θεοῦ φιλανθρωπίας διδαχθῇ καί μάθῃ ὅτι οὐκ ἔστι πλῆθος ἁμαρτιῶν ὅ μή ἐξαλείφει ἡ μετάνοια καί ὅτι "ὅπου ἐπλεόνασεν ἡ ἁμαρτία, ὑπερεπερίσσευσεν ἡ χάρις" καί ὅτι "χαρά μᾶλλον γίνεται ἐν τῷ οὐρανῷ ἐπί ἑνί ἁμαρτωλῷ μετανοοῦντι", ἴσως ἑαυτοῦ γενόμενος καί κατανυγείς, ἐπιθυμήσειέ ποτέ τῶν πολλῶν ἐκείνων ἀπαλλαγῆναι κακῶν καί τοῦ δυσβαστάκτου φορτίου κουφισθῆναι τό αὐτοῦ συνειδός, διαναστήσεται καί πάντα ἄλλα - τά βιωτικά λέγω - εἰς οὐδέν λογισθήσεται καί τῇ μετανοίᾳ θερμῶς προσέλθῃ· ὁ δέ δεύτερος, δυσανακλητότερος ὤν, εἰς ἅπαν ἀπαναίνεται τοῖς τοιούτοις φαρμάκοις ἰατρευθῆναι. Πῶς γάρ καί ἰατρευθῆναι καταδέξεται, ὁ μηδέ ὅτι ἐν νόσῳ ἤ πτώματι κεῖται ὅλως πειθόμενος; Οὐδαμῶς!

Ἀλλά δέον ἡμᾶς λόγοις πρότερον, καθ᾿ ὅσον οἷοί τε ὦμεν, πνευματικοῖς, ἔκ τε τοῦ θείου Εὐαγγελίου καί τῶν λοιπῶν ἁγίων Γραφῶν ἀναλεξαμένους, πληροφορῆσαι καί δεῖξαι αὐτοῖς, πῶς μέν τῆς εὐθείας ὁδοῦ ἀπαρξάμενοι, ἐκκλίναντες ἠπατήθησαν, πῶς δέ ὁ ἐχθρός αὐτούς μεμονωμένους εὑρών τό τῆς προσπαθείας σχοινίον ἀπατηλῶς τοῖς ἑαυτῶν τραχήλοις ἐμπεριέδησεν, ἔπειτα καί πῶς αὐτούς εἰς κρημνούς καί βάραθρα ἁμαρτημάτων ἐμπεριήγαγε· καί μετά ταῦτα δείξομεν αὐτοῖς καί πῶς τῷ βαθυτάτῳ λάκκῳ ἐναπέρριψε, καί ποῦ καί πῶς ἐν τῷ ᾅδῃ καταβιβάσας, τό ἐπί τοῦ τραχήλου αὐτῶν σχοινίον ἐναπέδησε, (145) καί ὡς οὐκέτι δυναμένους ἐλευθερωθῆναι καί πρός τήν γῆν ἀνελθεῖν, ἀφείς αὐτούς ὑπεχώρησε. Καί οὕτω τούς πειθομένους τοῖς λόγοις τῆς θείας Γραφῆς καί εἰς συναίσθησιν τῶν οἰκείων ἐρχομένους κακῶν καί συνομολογοῦντας καί οὕτως ἔχειν συντιθεμένους τά κατ᾿ αὐτούς, τηνικαῦτα καί τά φάρμακα τοῖς τραύμασιν ἁρμόζοντα διά τῶν λόγων αὐτῶν ἐπιδώσομεν.

Μέλλοντί μοι δέ πρός τάς ἀποδείξεις τῶν πραγμάτων ἐλθεῖν καί τόν ἀγῶνα τοῦ λόγου τῷ ἀλόγῳ καί ἀμαθεῖ ἐπειγομένῳ ἀναδέξασθαι, συνεύξασθαι δέομαι πάντων ὑμῶν, ἵνα ἡ χάρις τοῦ Παναγίου Πνεύματος φαιδρότερον ἐπιλάμψασα ὅλην μου καταφωτίσῃ τήν διάνοιαν καί τόν νοῦν καί δῴη ἀξίως εἰπεῖν τι, οὐχί διά τήν ἐμήν ἀξίαν, ἀλλά διά τήν ὑμετέραν ὠφέλειαν, ἐνηχοῦσα οἷον αὐτήν τούς λόγους ἅμα τε τῷ ταύτης φωτί φαίνουσα καί ὑποδεικνύουσα πάντα ἅπερ προείπομεν, καί οἱονεί πως λέγουσα πρός ἡμᾶς· "Ἴδε ἡ ὁδός, ἴδε ἡ ἔκπτωσις αὐτῆς, ἴδε ὁ ἐχθρός, τό σχοινίον. Ἴδε ὁ ἀδελφός, πῶς μετά χαρᾶς τόν δεσμόν καταδέχεται. Ἴδε ποῦ σύρων ὁ διάβολος αὐτόν ἀποφέρει", καί πάντα καθεξῆς ἀνελλιπῶς ὑποδείξασα καί πῶς τούς ἐκείνου βρόχους δυνηθῶμεν διαφυγεῖν ἐκδιδάξασα, πρός τούς οὐρανούς ἐλευθέρους ἡμᾶς συμπαραλαβοῦσα ἀνέλθῃ. Τοῦτο δέ οὐκ ἄλλως ἄν γένηται ἡμῖν δυνατόν, εἰ μή ἄνωθεν καί ἐξ ἀρχῆς τοῦ βίου καί τῆς εἰς τό μοναχικόν στάδιον εἰσόδου ἡμῶν τόν λόγον ἀναγαγόντες, ἐκεῖθεν τήν ἀρχήν ποιησόμεθα. Οὕτω γάρ καί ὡς ἐν ὁδῷ βαδίζων ὁ λόγος, ἅπερ ὑπέσχετο διά τῆς τοῦ Πνεύματος χάριτος καθαρῶς τοῖς προσέχουσιν ἀποδείξειεν. Ἀλλά μή ἀποκάμητε, ὠφέλιμος γάρ ὁ λόγος, καθ᾿ ὅσον