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you must know. He is our overseer, and nothing is impossible for God. 6.23 And Diphilus the comic poet, mixing true philosophy with comedy, says these things: Do you think, O Niceratus, that the dead, having partaken of every luxury in life, have escaped the divine as if they have been forgotten? There is an eye of Justice, which sees all things. And indeed in Hades we believe there are two paths, one for the just, and the other for the impious. And after a little: Be not deceived; there is a judgment in Hades, which God, the Lord of all, will execute. 6.24 For since not all who transgress pay the penalty here, nor indeed do all the victorious athletes of virtue receive the prizes of their contests according to their worth in this place, he very reasonably pointed out the all-seeing eye and foretold the coming judgment, so that, fearing those things and believing that this one sees, all might embrace the lovely contests of virtue and not be disheartened when they do not see the rewards of their labors. 6.25 And Pindar the Theban, bidding farewell to destiny and fortune and fate, teaches the ignorant the all-powerful might of God; for he says that it is possible for God to raise an unstained light out of black night, and with a dark cloud to cover the pure brightness of day. 6.26 And the son of Ariston more clearly shows us the ruler of all things holding the rudders of the universe; and he says these things in the Laws: "God, then, as the ancient story has it, holding the beginning and the end and the middle of all things that are, travels a straight path, moving according to nature; and Justice ever follows Him, the avenger of those who fall short of the divine law, whom he who is to be happy cleaves to and follows in humility and good order; but anyone who is puffed up by pride or exalted by wealth or honors or by beauty of body along with youth and folly, has his soul inflamed with insolence, as if he needed neither a ruler nor a guide, but was himself able to lead others, is left deserted by God; and being so left, and having taken to himself others of a like mind, he leaps about, throwing everything into confusion, and to many he seemed to be somebody, but after a time, paying a penalty not to be scorned to Justice, he brought utter ruin upon himself and his house and his city." 6.27 Through these words the philosopher showed both the guardian of the universe and the long-suffering sometimes shown toward some, and the resulting outrage committed by the foolish, and the utter destruction subsequently brought upon them. 6.28 And in the Gorgias he also makes clear the reasons for punishment, saying thus: "It is fitting for everyone who is undergoing punishment, when rightly punished by another, either to become better and profit by it, or to become an example to others, so that they, seeing him suffer whatever he suffers, may become better through fear. Those who are benefited and pay the penalty by gods and by men are those who commit curable sins. Nevertheless their benefit comes to them through pains and sufferings, both here and in Hades; for it is not possible to be rid of injustice in any other way. But those who commit the ultimate injustices and because of such injustices become incurable, from these the examples are made; and these themselves no longer derive any benefit, since they are incurable, but others do benefit, who see them for their sins suffering the greatest and most painful and most terrible afflictions and being hung up for all time simply as examples." 6.29 It seems that the philosopher has plundered these things from the divine oracles. For he surely heard what the divine Moses wrote that God had said to Pharaoh, that "for this very purpose I have raised you up, that I might show my power in you, and that my name might be proclaimed in all the earth." For since that man had become utterly wicked, God brought all kinds of punishments upon him, not so as to make him better—for He knew that his mind was resistant and his affliction incurable—but so that the stories about him might become examples of benefit to all. 6.30 For just as cities maintain public executioners, so that murderers and burglars and others

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γινώσκειν σε δεῖ. Αὐτός ἐσθ' ἁμῶν ἐπόπτης, ἀδυνατεῖ δ' οὐδὲν θεῷ. 6.23 Καὶ ∆ίφιλος δὲ ὁ κωμικός, ἀληθῆ φιλοσοφίαν τῇ κωμῳδίᾳ προσμίξας, τάδε φησίν· οἴει σὺ τοὺς θανόντας, ὦ Νικήρατε, τρυφῆς ἁπάσης μεταλαβόντας ἐν βίῳ, πεφευγέναι τὸ θεῖον ὡς λεληθότας; Ἔστιν ∆ίκης ὀφθαλμός, ὃς τὰ πάνθ' ὁρᾷ. Καὶ δὴ καθ' Ἅιδην δύο τρίβους νομίζομεν, μίαν μὲν δικαίων, ἑτέραν δὲ ἀσεβῶν. Καὶ μετ' ὀλίγα· μηδὲν πλανηθῇς· ἔστιν ἐν Ἅιδου κρίσις, ἥνπερ ποιήσει θεὸς ὁ πάντων δεσπότης. 6.24 Ἐπειδὴ γὰρ οὐχ ἅπαντες οἱ πλημμελοῦντες τῇδε τίνουσι δίκην, οὔτε μὴν οἱ ἀξιόνικοι τῆς ἀρετῆς ἀθληταὶ τὰ τῶν ἀγώνων ἆθλα πάντες πρὸς ἀξίαν ἐνθάδε κομίζονται, μάλα εἰκότως οὗτος τὸν πάντα ἐφορῶντα ἐπέδειξεν ὀφθαλμὸν καὶ τὴν ἐσομένην προηγόρευσε κρίσιν, ἵνα κἀκεῖνα δειμαίνοντες καὶ τοῦτον ὁρᾶν πιστεύοντες, ἅπαντες τοὺς ἀξιεράστους τῆς ἀρετῆς ἀγῶνας ἀσπάσωνται καὶ μὴ δυσχεραίνωσι μὴ ὁρῶντες τῶν πόνων τἀπί 6.25 χειρα. Καὶ Πίνδαρος δὲ ὁ Θηβαῖος, ἐρρῶσθαι φράσας εἱμαρμένῃ καὶ τύχῃ καὶ πεπρωμένῃ, τὴν παναλκῆ δύναμιν τοῦ Θεοῦ δι δάσκει τοὺς ἀγνοοῦντας· θεῷ γάρ φησι δυνατὸν ἐκ μελαίνας νυκτὸς ἀμίαντον ὄρσαι φάος, κελαινεφεῖ δὲ σκότει καλύψαι καθαρὸν ἁμέρας σέλας. 6.26 Ὁ δέ γε Ἀρίστωνος σαφέστερον ἐπιδείκνυσιν ἡμῖν τῶν ὅλων τὸν πρύτανιν τῶν τοῦ παντὸς οἰάκων ἐπειλημμένον· λέγει δὲ ταῦτα ἐν τοῖς Νόμοις· "Ὁ μὲν δὴ θεός, ὡς καὶ ὁ παλαιὸς λόγος, ἀρχὴν καὶ τελευτὴν καὶ μέσα τῶν ὄντων ἁπάντων ἔχων, εὐθείᾳ περαίνει κατὰ φύσιν περιπορευόμενος· τῷ δὲ ἀεὶ ξυνέπεται ∆ίκη, τῶν ἀπολειπομένων τοῦ θείου νόμου τιμωρός, ἧς ὁ μὲν εὐδαιμο νήσειν μέλλων ἐχόμενος ξυνέπεται ταπεινὸς καὶ κεκοσμημένος· ὁ δέ τις ἐξαρθεὶς ὑπὸ μεγαλαυχίας ἢ χρήμασιν ἐπαιρόμενος ἢ τιμαῖς ἢ καὶ σώματος εὐμορφίᾳ ἅμα νεότητι καὶ ἀνοίᾳ φλέγεται τὴν ψυχὴν μεθ' ὕβρεως, ὡς δή γε οὔτε ἄρχοντος οὔτε αὖ ἡγε μόνος δεόμενος, ἀλλὰ καὶ ἄλλοις ἱκανὸς ὢν ἡγεῖσθαι, καταλεί πεται ἔρημος θεοῦ· καταλειφθεὶς δὲ καὶ ἔτι ἄλλους τοιούτους προσλαβών, σκιρτᾷ ταράττων πάντα ἅμα, καὶ πολλοῖς τισιν ἔδοξεν εἶναί τις, μετὰ δὲ χρόνον ὑποσχὼν τιμωρίαν οὐ μεμπτὴν τῇ δίκῃ, ἑαυτόν τε καὶ οἶκον καὶ πόλιν ἄρδην ἀνάστατον ἐποίη 6.27 σεν." ∆ιὰ τούτων ὁ φιλόσοφος καὶ τὸν τοῦ παντὸς ἔδειξε κηδε μόνα καὶ τὴν ἐπί τινων ἔσθ' ὅπῃ μακροθυμίαν καὶ τὴν ἐντεῦθεν τοῖς ἀνοήτοις προσγινομένην λώβην καὶ τὴν εἰς ὕστερον αὐτοῖς 6.28 ἐπιφερομένην πανωλεθρίαν. Ἐν δέ γε τῷ Γοργίᾳ καὶ τὰς τῆς τιμωρίας αἰτίας δηλοῖ, λέγων ὡδί· "Προσήκει δὲ παντὶ τῷ ἐν τιμωρίᾳ ὄντι, ὑπὸ ἄλλου ὀρθῶς τιμωρουμένῳ, ἢ βελτίονι γί νεσθαι καὶ ὀνίνασθαι ἢ παράδειγμα ἄλλοις γίνεσθαι, ἵν' ἐκεῖνοι ὁρῶντες πάσχοντα, ἃ ἂν πάσχῃ; φοβούμενοι βελτίους γίνωνται. Εἰσὶ δὲ οἱ μὲν ὠφελούμενοί τε καὶ δίκην διδόντες ὑπὸ θεῶν τε καὶ ἀνθρώπων οὗτοι, οἳ ἂν ἰάσιμα ἁμαρτήματα ἁμαρτάνωσιν. Ὅμως δὲ δι' ἀλγηδόνων καὶ ὀδυνῶν γίνεται αὐτοῖς ἡ ὠφέλεια, καὶ ἐνθάδε καὶ ἐν Ἅιδου· οὐδὲ γὰρ οἷόν τε ἄλλως ἀδικίας ἀπαλ λάττεσθαι. Οἳ δ' ἂν τὰ ἔσχατα ἀδικήσωσι καὶ διὰ τὰ τοιαῦτα ἀδικήματα ἀνίατοι γένωνται, ἐκ τούτων τὰ παραδείγματα γίνε ται· καὶ οὗτοι αὐτοὶ μὲν οὐκέτι ὀνίνανται οὐδέν, ἅτε ἀνίατοι ὄντες, ἄλλοι δὲ ὀνίνανται, οἱ τούτους ὁρῶντες διὰ τὰς ἁμαρτίας τὰς μεγίστας καὶ ὀδυνηρότατα καὶ φοβερώτατα πάθη πάσχοντας καὶ τὸν ἀεὶ χρόνον ἀτεχνῶς παραδείγματα ἀνηρτημένους." 6.29 Ταῦτα δὲ ἔοικεν ὁ φιλόσοφος ἐκ τῶν θείων σεσυληκέναι λογίων. Ἤκουσε γὰρ πάντως, τίνα Μωϋσῆς ὁ θεσπέσιος εἰρηκέναι ξυ νέγραψε τῷ Φαραῷ τὸν Θεόν, ὅτι "εἰς αὐτὸ τοῦτο ἐξήγειρά σε, ὅπως ἐνδείξωμαι ἐν σοὶ τὴν δύναμίν μου, καὶ ὅπως διαγγελῇ τὸ ὄνομά μου ἐν πάσῃ τῇ γῇ." Παμπονήρῳ γάρ τοι γεγενημένῳ ἐκείνῳ παντοδαπὰς κολάσεις ἐπήνεγκεν ὁ Θεός, οὐχ ὥστε ἐκεῖνον ἀποφῆναι βελτίονα-ᾔδει γὰρ αὐτοῦ καὶ τὸν νοῦν ἀντίτυπον καὶ τὸ πάθος ἀνήκεστον-ἀλλ' ὅπως τὰ περὶ ἐκείνου διηγήματα πᾶσιν ὠφελείας γένηται παραδείγματα. 6.30 Καθάπερ γὰρ αἱ πόλεις τρέφουσι τοὺς δημίους, ὥστε τοὺς ἀνδροφόνους καὶ τοιχωρύχους καὶ τοὺς ἄλλα ἄττα