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these things might not happen in this life, but at least in the future he is snared in the snare he has prepared. For many observe these sensible things and consider them to be false, among which is this: "all who take the sword will perish by the sword". But this is not irrefutable; but it says this: those who take the sword will be subject to punishment. In many places of the scriptures the sword signifies punishment, as in: "I will make my arrows drunk, and my sword shall devour the blood of the wounded", and: "my sword has been made drunk in heaven"; for it has also touched those 86 who sinned there and in the manner of a punishment drew them down here. "Our soul has been delivered like a sparrow from the snare of the fowlers". And see the difference: perhaps some of those hunted by these evil fowlers are caught whole within the snares, while others only their feet. Those who say, therefore: "Our soul has been delivered like a sparrow" were snared whole. So you say immediately: "The snare is broken, and we are delivered". But here the saint, since he has his eyes always on the Lord, says of more trivial sins that: "my feet have become a snare". Pull them out from there, therefore, so that, having become unimpeded hereafter, they may run the way of the commandments of God and say: "I ran and was directed aright without iniquity". 16 Look upon me and have mercy on me. When God looks upon, mercy comes to those who are looked upon; for they are worthy to be seen; for the one who sins is removed from the sight of God and from his face. So Adam, when he sinned with Eve, "hid from the face of the Lord God". They cannot endure to be seen by the face of God, especially when they know in themselves that they have sinned. But the insolent Cain led himself away outside the face of God; for "Cain went out". The one who goes out does this voluntarily. So concerning Adam and Eve it is said that: "the Lord cast them out". He cast them out while they longed for the things within; for it was no longer profitable for them to be inside. Nevertheless, they were encompassed by longing. They are not so evil as the one who went out from the face of the Lord. These are they of whom it is written: "transgressors shall not stand before your eyes". But they are voluntarily outside the sight of God; for the eyes of God, watching over, enlighten those who are looked upon. 16 because I am only-begotten and poor. Aetius the leader of the Eunomian heresy said to some: "As if you are doing a great favor by saying that Christ is the only-begotten of God. And many other creatures are only-begotten. For example, the sun is only-begotten". I say to him: it is not the same thing for something to be only-begotten and to be an only-begotten offspring or an only-begotten son, I say. Therefore these things that are called only-begotten in other cases are not said with the addition of "son" or "from the Father" or "offspring". But the Savior, if he is named anywhere, is spoken of with such an addition: "and we have seen his glory, glory as of an only-begotten from the Father". But the only-begotten from the Father is the only son of the Father. And again: "God so loved the world that his only-begotten Son". I say: since he is an only-begotten son, therefore, it is impossible for there to be another son of the one who has an only-begotten son. But none of the created things is only-begotten; for even if the sun were only-begotten, it is not an only-begotten creature, not an only-begotten product, but an only-begotten sun. Thus, we also speak of an only-begotten child of men, not that there is only one child, but that for that person there is only one. And this: "but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only-begotten Son of God". Since, therefore, the one saying these things is not an only-begotten son, we shall consider how it is said otherwise; for if you take David the man, he was not only-begotten. He had six other brothers. Thus, therefore, it must be understood that "only-begotten" is said here just as: "and I alone am left, and they seek my life to take it away". But in what sense they say the sun

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τῷ βίῳ τούτῳ ταῦτα μὴ γένηται, ἀλλ' οὖν γε ἐν τῷ μέλλοντι παγιδεύεται ᾗ ἐσκεύασεν παγίδι. πολλοὶ γὰρ τηροῦσιν τὰ αἰσθητὰ ταῦτα καὶ ὡς διαφευδόμενα αὐτὰ ἡγοῦνται, ὧν ἐστιν καὶ τό· "πάντες οἱ λαβόντες μάχαιραν μαχαίρῃ ἀπολοῦνται". οὔκ ἐστιν δὲ ἀναντίρρητον τοῦτο· ἀλλὰ τοῦτο λέγει· οἱ λαβόντες μάχαιραν κολάσει ὑποπεσοῦνται. ἐν πολλοῖς δὲ τόποις τῶν γραφῶν ἡ μάχαιρα δηλοῖ τὴν κόλασιν, ὡς ἐν τῷ· "μεθύσω τὰ βέλη μου, καὶ ἡ μάχαιρά μου καταφάγεται αἷμα τραυματιῶν", καί· "ἐμεθύςθη ἐν τῷ οὐρανῷ ἡ μάχαιρά μου"· ἥψατο γὰρ καὶ τῶν 86 ἐκεῖ ἡμαρτηκότων καὶ κολάσεως τρόπῳ ἐπέσπασεν αὐτοὺς ὧδε. "ἡ ψυχὴ ἡμῶν ὡς στρουθίον ἐρύσθη ἐκ τῆς παγίδος τῶν θηρευόντων". καὶ ὅρα γε διαφοράν· τάχα τινὲς τῶν ἀγρευομένων ὑπὸ τῶν φαύλων τούτων θηρευτῶν ὅλοι ἐντὸς εἰς τὰς παγίδας λαμβάνονται, οἱ δὲ μόνους τοὺς πόδας. οἱ λέγοντες οὖν· "ἡ ψυχὴ ἡμῶν ὡς στρουθίον ἐρύσθη" ὅλοι ἦσαν παγιδευθέντες. λέγεις γοῦν εὐθέως· "ἡ παγὶς συνετρίβη, καὶ ἡμεῖς ἐρύσθημεν". ὧδε δὲ ὁ ἅγιος ἐπεὶ τοὺς ὀφθαλμοὺς ἔχει διὰ παντὸς πρὸς τὸν κύριον, περὶ ἁμαρτημάτων εὐτελεστέρων λέγει ὅτι· "οἱ πόδες μου γέγοναν εἰς παγίδα". ἔκσπα οὖν αὐτοὺς ἐκεῖθεν, ἵνα ἀνενπόδιστοι λοιπὸν γενόμενοι ὁδὸν τῶν ἐντολῶν τοῦ θεοῦ δράμωσιν καὶ εἴπωσιν· "ἄνευ ἀνομίας ἔδραμον καὶ κατηύθυνα". 16 ἐπίβλεψον ἐπ' ἐμὲ καὶ ἐλέησόν με. ὅταν ἐπιβλέψῃ θεός, ἔλεος γίνεται τοῖς ἐπιβλεπομένοις· ἄξιοι γάρ εἰσιν τοῦ ὁρᾶσθαι· ὁ γὰρ ἁμαρτάνων μακρύνεται τῶν ὄψεων τοῦ θεοῦ καὶ τοῦ προσώπου αὐτοῦ. ὁ Ἀδὰμ γοῦν ὅτε ἥμαρτεν ἅμα τῇ Εὕᾳ, "ἐκρύβη ἀπὸ προσώπου κυρίου τοῦ θεοῦ". οὐχ ὑπομένουσιν ὀφθῆναι τῷ προσώπῳ τοῦ θεοῦ, ὅτε μάλιστα συνίσασιν ἑαυτοῖς ὅτι ἡμαρτήκασιν. ὁ δὲ θρασυνόμενος Κάιν ἔξω τοῦ προσώπου τοῦ θεοῦ ἑαυτὸν ἀπήγαγεν· "ἐξῆλθεν" γὰρ "Κάιν". ὁ δὲ ἐξερχόμενος ἐθελοντὶ τοῦτο ποιεῖ. περὶ γοῦν τοῦ Ἀδὰμ καὶ τῆς Εὕας εἴρηται ὅτι· "ἐξέβαλεν αὐτοὺς κύριος". ἐφιεμένους τῶν ἔσω ἐξέβαλεν αὐτούς· οὐκέτι γὰρ ἐλυσιτέλει αὐτοὺς ἔσω εἶναι. ὅμως περιείχοντο τῷ πόθῳ. οὔκ εἰσιν οὕτω κακοὶ ὡς ὁ ἐξελθὼν ἀπὸ προσώπου κυρίου. οὗτοί εἰσιν περὶ ὧν γέγραπται· "οὐ διαμενοῦσιν παράνομοι ἀπέναντι τῶν ὀφθαλμῶν σου". ἐθελουσίως δὲ ἔξω τῶν ὄψεων τοῦ θεοῦ γίνονται· οἱ γὰρ ὀφθαλμοὶ θεοῦ ἐφορῶντες φωτίζουσιν τοὺς ἐπιβλεπομένους. 16 ὅτι μονογενὴς καὶ πτωχός εἰμι ἐγώ. Ἀέτιος ὁ ἔξαρχος τῆς Εὐνομίου αἱρέσεως ἔλεγέν τισιν ὅτι· "ὡς μεγάλα χαριζόμενοί ἐστε λέγοντες ὅτι μονογενὴς τοῦ θεοῦ ἐστιν ὁ Χριστός. καὶ ἄλλα πολλὰ κτίσματα μονογενῆ εἰσιν. ὁ ἥλιος γοῦν μονογενής ἐστιν". λέγω αὐτῷ· οὐ ταὐτόν ἐστιν τὸ εἶναί τι μονογενὲς καὶ τὸ εἶναι μονογενὲς γέννημα ἢ μονογενὴς υἱός, λέγω. ταῦτα οὖν τὰ ἄλλοις λεγόμενα μονογενῆ οὐ μετὰ προσθήκης τοῦ "υἱοῦ" ἢ "παρὰ πατρὸς" ἢ "γεννήματος" λέγονται. ὁ δὲ σωτὴρ εἴ που ὀνομάζεται, μετὰ τοιαύτης προσθήκης λέγεται· "καὶ ἐθεασάμεθα τὴν δόξαν αὐτοῦ, δόξαν ὡς μονογενοῦς παρὰ πατρός". ὁ δὲ παρὰ πατρὸς μονογενὴς υἱός ἐστιν τοῦ πατρὸς μόνος. καὶ ἔτι· "οὕτως ἠγάπησεν ὁ θεὸς τὸν κόσμον ὥστε τὸν υἱὸν αὐτοῦ τὸν μονογενῆ". λέγω· υἱοῦ οὖν μονογενοῦς ὄντος ἀδύνατόν ἐστιν ἄλλον υἱὸν εἶναι ἐκείνου τοῦ μονογενῆ υἱὸν ἔχοντος. οὐδὲν δὲ τῶν κτισμάτων μονογενές ἐστιν· κἂν γὰρ ὁ ἥλιος μονογενὴς ᾖν, οὐ κτίσμα μονογενές ἐστιν, οὐ ποίημα μονογενές, ἀλλὰ ἥλιος μονογενής. οὕτω γοῦν καὶ ἀνθρώπων λέγομεν μονογενὲς τέκνον, οὐχ ὅτι ἓν μόνον ἔστιν τέκ87 νον, ἀλλ' ὅτι ἐκείνῳ ἓν μόνον ἐστίν. καὶ τό· "ὁ δὲ μὴ πιστεύων ἤδη κέκριται, ὅτι μὴ πεπίστευκεν εἰς τὸ ὄνομα τοῦ μονογενοῦς υἱοῦ τοῦ θεοῦ". ἐπεὶ τοίνυν ὁ ταῦτα λέγων οὐ μονογενής ἐστιν υἱός, σκοπήσομεν πῶς ἑτέρως λέγεται· κἂν γὰρ τὸν ∆αυὶδ τὸν ἄνθρωπον λάβῃς, οὐκ ἦν μονογενής. εἶχεν ἄλλους ἓξ ἀδελφούς. οὕτω τοίνυν ἐκλημπτέον τὸ μονογενὲς ὧδε εἰρῆσθαι ὡς τό· "κἀγὼ ὑπελείφθην μόνος, καὶ ζητοῦσιν τὴν ψυχήν μου τοῦ λαβεῖν αὐτήν". οἵῳ δὲ λόγῳ λέγουσιν τὸν ἥλιον