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of the summit of virtues, of which I might at least be a little above the foothills, being helped by their prayers. 15.t ACEPSIMAS 15.1 Acepsimas lived at the same time, whose fame was widespread throughout all the East. This man, having shut himself in a small cell, passed sixty years neither being seen nor speaking, but inclining towards himself and imagining God, he received spiritual delight from there, according to the prophecy that says: "Delight in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart." And through a certain small opening, extending his hand, he received the food brought to him; but the opening was not dug straight through, so that he would not be exposed to those wishing to see, but was transverse, constructed in a winding manner. And the food brought to him was lentils soaked in water. 15.2 And once a week, going out at night, he would draw enough water from the nearby spring. And once a certain shepherd from afar, pasturing his flocks, as it was dark, seeing him moving and supposing him to be a wolf—for he walked bent over, weighed down by much iron—moved his sling as if to hurl a stone; but as his hand remained motionless for a very long time and was unable to release the stone until that divine man drew the water and returned, he realized his ignorance, and after dawn, he arrives at the school of virtue and recounts what had happened and asks for forgiveness and receives pardon for his transgression, not by hearing a voice speak, but by perceiving the benevolence through the movements of his hand. 15.3 And another man, using malignant curiosity and desiring to know what he did all the time, dared to climb into the plane tree planted near the enclosure. But immediately he reaped the fruits of his audacity; for half of his body, from the top of his head to his feet, having withered, he became a suppliant, confessing his sin. But he indicated that health would come by the cutting of the plane tree; for so that another, doing the same things, might not suffer the same things, he commanded the tree to be cut down immediately; and the release from the punishment followed upon the cutting of the tree. This divine man practiced such great endurance, and he received such great grace from the giver of the prize. 15.4 And when he was preparing for his departure from here, he signified beforehand that after fifty days he would receive the end of his life; and he received all who wished to see him. And when the president of the church also arrived, he urged him to accept the yoke of the presbyterate; "I know," he said, "O father, both the height of your philosophy and the excess of my poverty, but having been entrusted with the administration of the high priesthood, I make ordinations according to this, and not according to that. Accept, therefore," he said, "the gift of the priesthood, with my right hand ministering, and the grace of the all-holy Spirit bestowing this." To this he is said to have replied that "since I will depart from here in a few days, I will not contend at all about these things; for if I were going to live for a very long time, I would have fled completely this heavy and fearsome burden of the priesthood, dreading the accounts of the deposit. But since I will not be long in departing, leaving the things here, I will obediently accept what is commanded." Immediately, therefore, with no one leading him, the one, bending his knees, awaited the grace, while the other, laying on his hand, ministered to the Spirit. 15.5 And having survived for a few days in the priesthood, he exchanged life for life and the

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τῆς τῶν ἀρετῶν κορυφῆς ἧς ἐγὼ τῆς γοῦν ὑπωρείας μικρὸν ἄνω γενοίμην ταῖς τούτων προσευχαῖς βοηθούμενος. 15.t ΑΚΕΨΙΜΑΣ 15.1 Ἀκεψιμᾶς κατὰ τὸν αὐτὸν γέγονε χρόνον οὗ κλέος εὐρὺ κατὰ πᾶσαν τὴν ἕω. Οὗτος ἐν οἰκίσκῳ καθείρξας ἑαυτόν, ἑξήκοντα διετέλεσεν ἔτη μήτε ὁρώμενος μήτε φθεγγόμενος, ἀλλ' εἰς ἑαυτὸν νεύων καὶ τὸν θεὸν φαντα ζόμενος ἐκεῖθεν ψυχαγωγίαν ἐδέχετο κατὰ τὴν προφητείαν τὴν λέγουσαν· "Κατατρύφησον τοῦ κυρίου καὶ δῴη σοι τὰ αἰτήματα τῆς καρδίας σου". ∆ιά τινος δὲ βραχέος ὀρύγματος τὴν χεῖρα προτείνων τὴν κομιζομένην τροφὴν εἰσεδέχετο· τὸ δὲ ὄρυγμα οὐ διαμπερὲς ἦν κατ' εὐθὺ διωρυγμένον ἵνα μὴ προκέηται τοῖς ὁρᾶν βουλομένοις, ἀλλ' ἐγκάρσιον ἦν, ἑλικοειδῶς κατεσκευασμένον. Τροφὴ δὲ αὐτῷ ἐκομίζετο φακὸς διάβροχος ὕδατι. 15.2 Ἅπαξ δὲ τῆς ἑβδομάδος νύκτωρ ἐξιὼν τὸ ἀρκοῦν ὕδωρ ἀπὸ τῆς πελαζούσης ἀνιμᾶτο πηγῆς. Καί ποτέ τις πόρρωθεν προβατεὺς θρέμματα νέμων, σκότους ὄντος, κινούμενον θεασάμενος καὶ λύκον ὑποτοπήσας-συγκεκυφὼς γὰρ ἐβάδιζε σιδήρῳ πολλῷ βαρυνόμενος-, τὴν σφενδόνην ὡς λίθον ἀκοντίσων ἐκίνησε· τῆς δὲ χειρὸς ἐπὶ πλεῖστον ἀκινήτου μενούσης καὶ ἀφιέναι τὸν λίθον οὐ δυναμένης ἕως ὁ θεῖος ἐκεῖνος ἀνὴρ τὸ ὕδωρ ἀρυσάμενος ἐπανῆκεν, αἴσθησιν τῆς ἀγνοίας ἐδέξατο καὶ μετὰ τὴν ἕω καταλαμ βάνει τὸ τῆς ἀρετῆς φροντιστήριον καὶ διηγεῖται τὸ γεγονὸς καὶ συγγνώμην αἰτεῖ καὶ λαμβάνει τῆς πλημμελείας τὴν ἄφεσιν οὐ φωνῆς φθεγξαμένης ἀκούσας, ἀλλὰ διὰ τῶν τῆς χειρὸς κινημάτων καταμαθὼν τὴν εὐμένειαν. 15.3 Ἄλλος δέ τις κακοήθει πολυπραγμοσύνῃ χρησάμενος καὶ γνῶναι ποθήσας τί δρῶν ἅπαντα τὸν χρόνον διατελεῖ εἰς τὴν τῷ θριγκίῳ παραπεφυτευμένην πλάτανον ἀναβῆναι τετόλμηκεν. Ἀλλὰ παραυτίκα τῆς τολμῆς ἐδρέψατο τοὺς καρπούς· τὸ γὰρ ἥμισυ τοῦ σώματος ἀπ' ἄκρας κορυφῆς μέχρι τῶν ποδῶν αὐανθεὶς ἱκέτης ἐγένετο τῆς ἁμαρτάδος κατηγορῶν. Ὁ δὲ τῇ τομῇ τῆς πλατάνου τὴν ὑγιείαν ἔσεσθαι προεμήνυσεν· ἵνα γὰρ μὴ καὶ ἕτερος τὰ ἴσα δράσας ὑπομείνῃ τὰ ἴσα τμηθῆναι παραυτίκα τὸ δένδρον ἐκέλευσεν· εἵπετο δὲ τῇ τοῦ δένδρου τομῇ καὶ τῆς τιμωρίας ἡ λύσις. Τοσαύτῃ μὲν οὗτος ὁ θεσπέσιος ἐχρήσατο τῇ καρτερίᾳ, τοσαύτην δὲ παρὰ τοῦ ἀγωνοθέτου ἐδέξατο τὴν χάριν. 15.4 Ἡνίκα δὲ τὴν ἐντεῦθεν ἀποδημίαν ἐστέλλετο, προεσή μανεν ὡς μετὰ πεντήκοντα ἡμέρας δέξεται τοῦ βίου τὸ τέλος· ὑπεδέξατο δὲ ἅπαντας τοὺς ἰδεῖν ἐθελήσαντας. Ἐπειδὴ δὲ καὶ ὁ τῆς ἐκκλησίας ἀφίκετο πρόεδρος, ἤπειγεν αὐτὸν ὑποδέξασθαι τοῦ πρεσβυτέρου τὴν ζεύγλην· "Οἶδα, λέγων, ὦ πάτερ, καὶ τῆς σῆς φιλοσοφίας τὸ ὕψος καὶ τὴν τῆς ἐμῆς πενίας ὑπερβολήν, ἀλλὰ τῆς ἀρχιερωσύνης τὴν οἰκονομίαν πεπιστευμένος, ταύτῃ τὰς χειροτονίας, ἀλλ' οὐκ ἐκείνῃ προβάλλομαι. ∆έξαι τοίνυν, ἔφη, τῆς ἱερωσύνης τὸ δῶρον, τῆς μὲν ἐμῆς δεξιᾶς ὑπουργούσης, τῆς δὲ τοῦ παναγίου πνεύματος τοῦτο χάριτος χορηγούσης". Πρὸς ταῦτα φάναι λέγεται ὅτι "μετ' ὀλίγας ἐντεῦθεν ἐκδημήσων ἡμέρας, ἥκιστα περὶ τούτων ζυγομαχήσω· εἰ μὲν γὰρ ἔμελλον ἐπὶ πλεῖστον βιώσεσθαι, πάμπαν ἔφυγον ἂν τὸ βαρὺ τοῦτο καὶ φοβερὸν τῆς ἱερωσύνης φορτίον, τῆς παρα καταθήκης ὀρρωδῶν τὰς εὐθύνας. Ἐπειδὴ δὲ οὐκ εἰς μακρὰν ἀπελεύσομαι καταλείψων τὰ τῇδε, εὐπειθῶς τὸ κελευόμενον δέξομαι". Αὐτίκα τοίνυν, οὐδενὸς ἄγοντος, ὁ μὲν τὰ γόνατα κάμπτων τὴν χάριν ἀνέμενεν, ὁ δὲ τὴν χεῖρα ἐπιτιθεὶς ὑπούργει τῷ πνεύματι. 15.5 Τῇ δὲ ἱερωσύνῃ ὀλίγας ἐπιβιώσας ἡμέρας βίου βίον ἠλλάξατο καὶ τὸν