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23. And when these things had been said, as they were greeting one another, Theodosius the consul said:

Behold, all things have become well. Will the emperor deign to issue a conciliatory command? MAX. He certainly will, if he wishes to be an imitator of God, and to be humbled with him, for the common salvation of us all; considering that if God, who by nature saves, did not save until he willingly humbled himself; how will man, who by nature is saved, either be saved or save unless he is humbled? And Theodosius the consul said that, I hope, God preserving my memory, that I will say this word to him, and he will be persuaded. And having greeted one another on these terms, they departed in peace, after the bishop had given to Abba Maximus a small sum sent to him, and a sticharion and a kamasion; and indeed the sticharion immediately at that very hour, the Bishop of Bizye; but in Rhegium not only the sum given to him, but also whatever else he had from charity, along with his other pitiful belongings and garments, they took away.

24. And after the aforesaid men had departed, on the eighth of the month of September

of the present fifteenth indiction, Paul the consul came out again in Bizye to Abba Maximus, carrying a command containing the following: We command your eminence to go to Bizye, and to bring Maximus the monk with much honor and flattery, both because of his old age and weakness (161) and because he is our kinsman, and has become honored by them; and to place him in the holy monastery of Saint Theodore, which is situated near Rhegium; and to come and inform us, and we are sending on our behalf two patricians, who are to discuss the matters presented to us, who love us with their soul, and are loved by us; and to come and announce his arrival to us. Therefore the same consul, having brought him and placed him in the aforementioned monastery, departed to make his report.

25. And on the next day there come out to him Epiphanius and Troilus the patricians

with much pomp and display, and Theodosius the bishop, and they go up to him in the catechumenate of the church of the same monastery; and after the customary greeting had been made, they sat down, compelling him also to sit. And Troilus, beginning the discourse with him, said: Our master commanded us to come to you and to speak to you the things that have seemed good to his divinely-supported majesty. But tell us first, will you carry out the command of the emperor, or will you not? Maximus said: My lord, let me hear what his pious majesty commanded, and I will answer accordingly; since concerning what is unknown, what answer can I give? Troilus insisted, saying: It is not possible for us to say anything, unless you first say whether you will carry out the command of the emperor or not. And when he saw them insisting, and looking more bitterly at his delay, and answering more harshly along with all those accompanying them, and puffed up with the dignities of their offices, Abba Maximus answered and said: Since you do not deign to tell your servant the things that have seemed good to our master and emperor, behold, I say in the hearing of God and the holy angels, and all of you, that whatever he commands me concerning any matter whatsoever

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ΚΓ΄. Καί τούτων εἰρημένων, ἐν τῷ ἀσπάζεσθαι ἀλλήλους, εἶπε Θεοσόσιος ὁ ὕπατος·

ἰδού γέγονε τά πάντα καλῶς· ἆρα καταδέχεται ὁ βασιλεύς παρακλητικήν ποιῆσαι κέλευσιν; ΜΑΞ. Πάντως ποιεῖ, ἐάν θέλῃ μιμητής εἶναι τοῦ Θεοῦ, καί συνταπεινωθῆναι αὐτῷ, διά τήν κοινήν πάντων ἡμῶν σωτηρίαν· λογιζόμενος, ὡς εἴπερ ὁ φύσιν σώζων Θεός, οὐκ ἔσωσεν ἕως ἐταπεινώθη θέλων· πῶς ὁ φύσει σωζόμενος ἄνθρωπος ἤ σωθήσεται, ἤ σώσει μή ταπεινούμενος; Καί εἶπε Θεοδόσιος ὁ ὕπατος, ὅτι Ἐλπίζω τοῦ Θεοῦ σώζοντός μοι τήν μνήμην, τοῦτο αὐτῷ τόν λόγον λέγω, καί πείθεται. Καί ἀσπασάμενοι ἀλλήλους ἐπί τούτοις, ἀπῆλθον μετ᾿ εἰρήνης, δεδωκότος τοῦ ἐπισκόπου τῷ ἀββᾷ Μαξίμῳ πεμφθέν αὐτῷ ποσόν μικρόν, καί στιχάριν καί καμάσιν· καί τό μέν στιχάριν εὐθέως κατ᾿ αὐτήν τήν ὥραν Βιζύης ὁ ἐπίσκοπος· ἐν τῷ Ῥηγίῳ δέ οὐ τό δοθέν αὐτῷ ποσόν μόνον, ἀλλά καί ἄλλο εἴ τι δήποτε ἐξ εὐποιίας εἶχε, μετά τῶν λοιπῶν οἰκτρῶν αὐτοῦ πραγμάτων καί ἐσθημάτων, ἀφείλαντο.

Κ∆΄. Μετά δέ τό ἀπελθεῖν τούς εἰρημένους ἄνδρας, τῇ ὀγδόῃ τοῦ Σεπτεμβρίου μηνός

τῆς παρούσης πεντεκαιδεκάτης ἰνδικτιῶνος, ἐξῆλθεν αὖθις Παῦλος ὁ ὕπατος ἐν Βιζύῃ πρός τόν ἀββᾶν Μάξιμον, κέλευσιν ἐπιφερόμεος περιέχουσαν οὕτως· Κελεύομεν τῇ σῇ ἐνδοξότητι ἀπελθεῖν ἐν Βιζύῃ, καί ἀγαγεῖν Μάξιμον τόν μοναχόν μετά πολλῆς τιμῆς καί κολακείας, διά τε τό γῆρας καί τήν ἀσθένειαν (161) καί τό εἶναι αὐτόν προγονικόν ἡμῶν, καί γενόμενον αὐτοῖς τίμιον· καί θέσθαι τοῦτον ἐν τῷ εὐαγεῖ μοναστηρίῳ τοῦ ἁγίου Θεοδώρου, τῷ διακειμένῳ πλησίον τοῦ Ῥηγίου· καί ἐλθεῖν, καί μηνύσαι ἡμῖν, καί πέμπομεν ἐκ προσώπου ἡμῶν δύο πατρικίους, ὀφείλοντας διαλεχθῆναι τά παραστάντα ἡμῖν, φιλοῦντας ἡμᾶς ψυχικῶς, καί φιλουμένους παρ᾿ ἡμῶν· καί ἐλθεῖν, καί ἀναγγεῖλαι ἡμῖν τήν παρουσίαν αὐτοῦ. Ἀγαγών οὖν ὁ αὐτός ὕπατος, καί θείς ἐν τῷ προειρημένῳ μοναστηρίῳ, ἀπῆλθε ἀναγγεῖλαι.

ΚΕ΄. Καί τῇ ἑξῆς ἡμέρᾳ ἐξέρχονται πρός αὐτόν Ἐπιφάνιος καί Τρώϊλος οἱ πατρίκιοι

μετά πολλῆς περιβολῆς καί φαντασίας, καί Θεοδόσιος ὁ ἐπίσκοπος, καί ἀνέρχονται πρός αὐτόν ἐν τῷ κατηχουμενίῳ τῆς ἐκκλησίας τῆς αὐτῆς μονῆς· καί τοῦ συνήθους ἀσπασμοῦ γενομένου, ἐκάθισαν, βιασάμενοι καί αὐτόν καθίσαι· καί ἀπαρξάμενος τοῦ πρός αὐτόν λόγου Τρώϊλος, εἶπεν· Ὁ δεσπότης ἡμῶν ἐκέλευσεν ἡμᾶς πρός σέ γενέσθαι, καί λαλῆσαι ὑμῖν τά δόξαντα τῷ αὐτοῦ θεοστηρίκτῳ κράτει. Ἀλλ᾿ εἰπέ ἡμῖν πρῶτον, ποιεῖς τήν κέλευσιν τοῦ βασιλέως, ἤ οὐ ποιεῖς; Μάξιμος εἶπε· ∆έσποτα, ἀκούσω τί ἐκέλευσε τό εὐσεβές αὐτοῦ κράτος, καί δεόντως ἀποκρίνομαι· ἐπεί πρός τό ἀγνοούμενον, ποίαν ἔχων ἀπόκρισιν δοῦναι; Τρώϊλος ἐπέμενε λέγων· Οὐκ ἐνδέχεται ὅτι λέγομεν τί ποτε, ἐάν μή πρῶτον εἴπῃς εἰ ποιεῖς, ἤ οὐ ποιεῖς τήν κέλευσιν τοῦ βασιλέως. Καί ὡς οἶδεν αὐτούς ἐνισταμένους, καί ἐπί τῇ ἀναβολῇ αὐτοῦ πικρότερον βλέποντας, καί τραχύτερον ἀποκριναμένους μετά πάντων τῶν συνόντων αὐτοῖς, καί τῶν ἀξιωμάτων κόσμοις ἐπηρμένων, ἀποκριθείς ὁ ἀββᾶς Μάξιμος, εἶπεν· Ἐπάν οὐκ ἀνέχεσθε εἰπεῖν τῷ δούλῳ ὑμῶν τά παραστάντα τῷ δεσπότῃ ἡμῶν καί βασιλεῖ, ἰδού λέγω ἀκούοντος τοῦ Θεοῦ καί τῶν ἁγίων ἀγγέλων, καί πάντων ὑμῶν, ὅτιπερ εἴ τι δήποτε κελεύει μοι περί οἱουδήποτε πράγματος τῷ