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Such sayings are heard, that: "They are lots to which I am subject. Make me outside of these, release my fate." We do not understand the saying this way, but it calls demonstrations "necessities." This is also stated in Job: "Six times he will deliver you from necessities, and in the seventh no evil will touch you." What he says is this: The world was made in six days. The one who does not transcend it is under six necessities. And this number is perfect. What he says is this: the one who is contained by the world and its parts and so lives is under a perfect necessity. But when he leaps over the world and ascends beyond it, on the seventh he rests from the works of the world. And in the seventh, the hallowed and pure day which is left "for the people of God," he becomes untouchable. This "to touch" signifies an evil, to approach it and to work it. If then he says that: "it is good for a man not to touch a woman," this does not mean that it is evil to impose a touch on the body of a woman. "Bring me out of my necessities." But since we have given it to your judgment, consider what seems to me: I say, "bring me out of my necessities," so that no 89 longer being constrained by sin I may become readily disposed toward virtue. Then you bring me out of these, if you will give me remission of sins. It is also possible to take this: the future punishments, the painful and grievous necessities. "The tribulations of my heart were enlarged." Often we do not doubt concerning a different reading. But now it is necessary to know that it is "were enlarged" and not "were multiplied"; for the one who is afflicted in heart is no longer zealous but also wicked. But what comes before this verse and after it does not permit one to take the one saying these things as wicked, the one who has his eyes always toward the Lord. 18 Look on my humility and my labor and forgive all my sins. He labors in this world, being still burdened with "the body of our lowliness." Along with this evil it happens that he is also humbled; for often affliction is called humility, according to that: "You have humbled us in a place of affliction." When we had come into the place of affliction, we were humbled. But it is also possible to say that: when he had his eyes always looking toward the Lord, then he saw himself as humble, even if he is righteous, as they said concerning Abraham: at no other time did he see himself as "earth and ashes," but when "he began to speak to the Lord." 19 See my enemies, that they have multiplied, and they have hated me with an unjust hatred. He is hated with an unjust hatred who is hated for no other reason than that he is zealous. Thus, at any rate, were the disciples of Jesus hated. Concerning these he teaches to offer up a prayer: "pray for those who hate you, love those who hate you." We do not hate anyone; for it has been said: "You shall not hate every man, you shall love every man." But they hate. It is not our sin to be hated by some, but rather a misfortune, when we provide no cause for hatred. He says therefore that: "See my enemies, that they have multiplied, and they have hated me with an unjust hatred." They do not hate me with a just hatred. They hated me as unjust, as covetous. But since they hate me having none of these things, they hate me unjustly. And such men are multiplied; for if the righteous man is hated on account of virtue, he has all the virtues, according to what has often been said about the interconnectedness of the virtues. The unjust hate the just, the intemperate the temperate, the boastful the humble-minded, and in short, those in vice hate the righteous. The righteous man therefore is one, even if he has all the virtues; for vice divides those who have it; for it is not possible for one person to have all the vices. Therefore the cowardly man cannot be rash, 90 the superstitious man cannot be impious, the unscrupulous man cannot be foolish. In a way, therefore, the Egyptian woman hated Joseph, causing him to be tried with bonds and prison as an evildoer. This hatred was unjust. Jezebel against Naboth and death

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εἰσακούονται τὰ τοιαῦτα ῥητὰ ὅτι· "κρισσαί εἰσιν αἷς ὑπόκειμαι. ἔξω τούτων με ποίησον, λῦσον τὴν εἱμαρμένην". οὐχ οὕτως ἐκλαμβάνομεν τὸ ῥητόν, ἀλλὰ τὰς ἀποδείξεις ἀνάγκας λέγει. τοῦτο δὲ καὶ ἐν τῷ Ἰὼβ φέρεται· "ἑξάκις ἐξ ἀναγκῶν σε ἐξελεῖται, ἐν δὲ τῷ ἑβδόμῳ οὐδὲν ἅψεταί σου κακόν". ὃ λέγει, τοιοῦτόν ἐστιν· ὁ κόσμος ἐν ἓξ ἡμέραις γέγονεν. ὁ μὴ ὑπερβαίνων αὐτὸν ὑπὸ ἕξ ἐστιν ἀνάγκας. τέλειος δέ ἐστιν ὁ ἀριθμὸς οὗτος. ὃ λέγει, τοιοῦτόν ἐστιν· ὁ περιεχόμενος τοῦ κόσμου καὶ τῶν μερῶν αὐτοῦ καὶ οὕτω ζῶν ὑπὸ τελείαν ἐστὶν ἀνάγκην. ὅταν δὲ ὑπερπαίσῃ τὸν κόσμον καὶ ὑπεραναβῇ αὐτόν, ἐν τῷ ἑβδόμῳ σαββατίζει ἀπὸ τῶν ἔργων τοῦ κόσμου. καὶ ἐν τῇ ἑβδόμῃ τῇ ἡγιασμένῃ καὶ καθαρᾷ καὶ ἀπολειπομένῃ "τῷ τοῦ θεοῦ λαῷ" γινόμενος ἄψαυστός ἐστιν. τὸ ψαῦσαι δὲ τοῦτο κακὸν σημαίνει τὸ πλησιάσαι αὐτῷ καὶ ἐνεργῆσαι αὐτό. ἐὰν γοῦν λέγῃ ὅτι· "καλὸν ἀνθρώπῳ γυναικὸς μὴ ἅπτεσθαι", οὐ τοῦτο σημαίνει ὅτι ἁφῇ ἐπιβαλεῖν σώματι γυναικὸς κακόν ἐστιν. "ἐκ τῶν ἀναγκῶν μου ἐξάγαγέ με". ἐπειδὴ δὲ τῇ ὑμῶν κρίσει δεδώκαμεν, θεώρει τὸ φαινόμενόν μοι· λέγω· "ἐξάγαγέ με ἐκ τῶν ἀναγκῶν μου", ἵνα μη89 κέτι κατηναγκασμένος ὢν τῇ ἁμαρτίᾳ εὔλυτος πρὸς ἀρετὴν γένωμαι. τότε δὲ ἐξάγεις με τούτων, εἰ ἄφεσιν ἁμαρτημάτων μοι δώσεις. δυνατὸν δὲ καὶ τοῦτο λαβεῖν· τὰς μελλούσας κολάσεις τὰς ἐπιπόνους καὶ θλιβηρὰς ἀνάγκας. "αἱ θλίψεις τῆς καρδίας μου ἐπλατύνθησαν". πολλάκις περὶ ἀνάγνωσιν διάφορον οὐκ ἀμφιβάλλομεν. νῦν δὲ ἀναγκαῖόν ἐστιν εἰδέναι ὅτι "ἐπλατύνθησαν" καὶ οὐκ "ἐπληθύνθησαν"· οὐκέτι γὰρ σπουδαῖός ἐστιν ὁ τῇ καρδίᾳ θλιβόμενος ἀλλὰ καὶ φαῦλος. οὐκ ἐπιτρέπει δὲ τά τε πρὸ τοῦ στίχου τούτου καὶ τὰ μετ' αὐτὸν φαῦλον ἐκλαβεῖν τὸν ταῦτα λέγοντα, τὸν ἔχοντα διὰ παντὸς τοὺς ὀφθαλμοὺς πρὸς τὸν κύριον. 18 ἰδὲ τὴν ταπείνωσίν μου καὶ τὸν κόπον μου καὶ ἄφες πάσας τὰς ἁμαρτίας μου. κάμνει ἐν τῷ κόσμῳ τούτῳ τυγχάνων ἀκμὴν ἐπηχθισμένος "τὸ σῶμα τῆς ταπεινώσεως". σὺν τούτῳ τῷ κακῷ συμβαίνει καὶ ταπεινοῦσθαι· πολλάκις γὰρ ἡ θλῖψις ταπείνωσις λέγεται κατὰ τό· "ἐταπείνωσας ἡμᾶς ἐν τόπῳ κακώσεως". ὅτε εἰς τὸν τόπον τῆς κακώσεως ἐληλύθαμεν, ἐταπεινώθημεν. δυνατὸν δὲ καὶ εἰπεῖν ὅτι· ὅτε τοὺς ὀφθαλμοὺς ἔσχεν διὰ παντὸς πρὸς τὸν κύριον ὁρῶντας, τότε εἶδεν ἑαυτὸν ταπεινόν, κἂν δίκαιος ᾖ, ὡς ἔλεγον περὶ τοῦ Ἀβραάμ· οὐκ ἄλλοτε εἶδεν ἑαυτὸν "γῆν καὶ σποδόν", ἀλλὰ ὅτε "ἤρξατο λαλεῖν πρὸς κύριον". 19 ἰδὲ τοὺς ἐχθρούς μου, ὅτι ἐπληθύνθησαν καὶ μῖσος ἄδικον ἐμίσησάν με. μῖσος ἄδικον μισεῖται ὁ διὰ μηδὲν ἄλλο μισούμενος ἢ ὅτι σπουδαῖός ἐστιν. οὕτω γοῦν ἐμισοῦντο οἱ τοῦ Ἰησοῦ μαθηταί. περὶ τούτων εὐχὴν ἀναπέμπειν διδάσκει· "εὔχεσθε περὶ τῶν μισούντων ὑμᾶς, ἀγαπᾶτε τοὺς μισοῦντας ὑμᾶς". οὐχ ἡμεῖς μισοῦμέν τινα· εἴρηται γάρ· "μὴ μισήσεις πάντα ἄνθρωπον, ἀγαπήσεις πάντα ἄνθρωπον". ἐκεῖνοι δὲ μισοῦσιν. οὐχ ἁμάρτημα δὲ ἡμῶν ἐστιν τὸ μισεῖσθαι ὑπό τινων, ἀλλὰ μᾶλλον ἀτύχημα, ὅτε ἡμεῖς πρόφασιν μίσους οὐ παρέχομεν. λέγει οὖν ὅτι· "ἰδὲ τοὺς ἐχθρούς μου, ὅτι ἐπληθύνθησαν καὶ μῖσος ἄδικον ἐμίσησάν με". οὐ δίκαιον μῖσος μισοῦσίν με. ἐμίσουν με ὡς ἄδικον, ὡς πλεονέκτην. ἐπειδὴ δὲ τούτων με οὐδὲν ἔχοντα μισοῦσιν, ἀδίκως με μισοῦσιν. πληθύνονται δὲ οἱ τοιοῦτοι· εἰ γὰρ διὰ ἀρετὴν μισεῖται ὁ δίκαιος, ἔχει πάσας τὰς ἀρετὰς κατὰ τὰ πολλάκις εἰρημένα περὶ τῆς ἀντακολουθίας τῶν ἀρετῶν. οἱ ἄδικοι μισοῦσιν τὸν δίκαιον, οἱ ἀκόλαστοι τὸν σώφρονα, οἱ ἀλαζόνες τὸν ταπεινόφρονα, καὶ ἁπαξαπλῶς οἱ ἐν κακίᾳ μισοῦσιν τὸν δίκαιον. ὁ δίκαιος οὖν εἷς ἐστιν, κἂν πάσας τὰς ἀρετὰς ἔχῃ· σχίζει γὰρ ἡ κακία τοὺς ἔχοντας· οὐ γὰρ δυνατὸν πάσας τὰς κακίας ἕνα ἔχειν. οὐ δύναται οὖν ὁ δειλὸς θρασὺς εἶναι, 90 ὁ δεισιδαίμων ἀσεβής, ὁ ῥᾳδιουργὸς ἄφρων. τρόπον τινὰ οὖν ἐμίσησεν ἡ Αἰγυπτία τὸν Ἰωσὴφ δεσμῶν καὶ φυλακῆς αὐτὸν ποιήσασα πειραθῆναι ὡς κακοῦργον. ἄδικον ἦν τοῦτο τὸ μῖσος. ἡ Ἰεζάβελ κατὰ τοῦ Ναβουθὲμ καὶ θάνατον