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of them. And the songs themselves are suitable, and full of friendship toward God. In the nights, it says, lift up your hands to God; and again, From the night my spirit rises early to you, O God, because your commandments are a light upon the earth. And the Davidic songs move many springs of tears. For when he sings, saying: I have grown weary with my groaning; every night I will wash my bed; I will drench my couch with my tears; and again, that I have eaten ashes like bread; and again, What is man, that you are mindful of him? Man is like vanity, and our days pass away like a shadow; and, Do not be afraid when a man becomes rich, and when the glory of his house is increased; and again, He who makes the solitary to dwell in a house; and, Seven times a day I have praised you for the judgments of your righteousness; and again, At midnight I arose to give thanks to you for the judgments of your righteousness; and, God will redeem my soul from the hand of Hades; and, If I walk in the midst of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; and again, I will not be afraid of the terror by night, nor of the arrow that flies by day, nor of the thing that walks in darkness, nor of the mishap and the noonday demon; and again, We were accounted as sheep for the slaughter; he shows their fervent love for God. And when again they sing with the angels (for angels too sing then), saying, Praise the Lord from the heavens, while we are yawning, scratching, snoring, or even simply lying on our backs, and considering countless deceptions; what a thing it is for them to spend the whole night in this? But when day is about to break, they finally rest; and when we begin our labors, they have a time for rest. And when day has come, each one of us calls another, he gives an account of the expenses; if he enters the marketplace, he stands before the magistrate, he trembles, he fears the reckonings; another is at his stall, another to his own trade. But they, having again completed morning prayers and hymns, turn to the reading of the Scriptures; and there are those who have also learned to copy books. Each one having taken one assigned dwelling, practices stillness always, with no one chattering, with no one saying anything. Then they perform the prayers of the third, sixth, ninth hours, and the evening prayers, and having divided the day into four parts, as 62.577 each part is completed, they honor God with psalms and hymns. While all the others are having breakfast, laughing, playing, bursting from gluttony, these men attend to the hymns. Nowhere is there a time for the table, nor for these sensual things. Again after breakfast they hold to the same things, having previously given themselves over to sleep. The worldly, therefore, sleep even during the day; but they keep watch even during the night. Truly they are sons of light. Then those men, having spent the greater part of the day in sleep, go forth heavy-headed; but these are still sober, remaining without food until late, and attending to the hymns. And when evening comes again, some hasten to baths and relaxations; but they, having released themselves from their labors, then attend to their table, not rousing a multitude of servants, nor running about the house, nor making a disturbance, nor setting out many dishes, nor ones full of the smell of roasting meat, but some have only bread and salt, and others adding oil, and others, who are weaker, have also vegetables and legumes. Then, having sat for a little while, or rather having concluded everything with hymns, each one rests upon a pallet made only for rest, not for luxury. There is no fear of rulers there, there is no arrogance of masters, there is no fear of slaves, there is no noise of women, there is no disturbance of children, there is no multitude of chests, nor excessive storage of clothes, no gold, no silver; there are no

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ἐκείνων. Καὶ αὐτὰ δὲ τὰ ᾄσματα πρόσφορα, καὶ φιλίας γέμοντα τῆς πρὸς τὸν Θεόν. Ἐν ταῖς νυξὶ, φησὶν, ἐπάρατε τὰς χεῖρας ὑμῶν πρὸς τὸν Θεόν· καὶ πάλιν, Ἐκ νυκτὸς ὀρθρίζει τὸ πνεῦμά μου πρὸς σὲ, ὁ Θεὸς, διότι φῶς τὰ προστάγματά σου ἐπὶ τῆς γῆς. Καὶ τὰ ᾄσματα τὰ ∆αυϊδικὰ πολλὰς πηγὰς κινοῦντα δακρύων. Ὅταν γὰρ ᾄδῃ λέγων· Ἐκοπίασα ἐν τῷ στεναγμῷ μου, λούσω καθ' ἑκάστην νύκτα τὴν κλίνην μου, ἐν δάκρυσί μου τὴν στρωμνήν μου βρέξω· καὶ πάλιν, ὅτι Σποδὸν ὡσεὶ ἄρτον ἔφαγον· καὶ πάλιν, Τί ἐστιν ἄνθρωπος, ὅτι μιμνήσκῃ αὐτοῦ; Ἄνθρωπος ματαιότητι ὡμοιώθη, καὶ αἱ ἡμέραι ἡμῶν ὡσεὶ σκιὰ παράγουσι· καὶ, Μὴ φοβοῦ, ὅταν πλουτήσῃ ἄνθρωπος, καὶ ὅταν πληθυνθῇ ἡ δόξα τοῦ οἴκου αὐτοῦ· καὶ πάλιν, Ὁ κατοικίζων μονοτρόπους ἐν οἴκῳ· καὶ, Ἑπτάκις τῆς ἡμέρας ᾔνεσά σε ἐπὶ τὰ κρίματα τῆς δικαιοσύνης σου· καὶ πάλιν, Μεσονύκτιον ἐξηγειρόμην τοῦ ἐξομολογεῖσθαί σοι ἐπὶ τὰ κρίματα τῆς δικαιοσύνης σου· καὶ, Ὁ Θεὸς λυτρώσεται τὴν ψυχήν μου ἐκ χειρὸς ᾅδου· καὶ, Ἐὰν πορευθῶ ἐν μέσῳ σκιᾶς θανάτου, οὐ φοβηθήσομαι κακὰ, ὅτι σὺ μετ' ἐμοῦ εἶ· καὶ πάλιν, Οὐ φοβηθήσομαι ἀπὸ φόβου νυκτερινοῦ, ἀπὸ βέλους πετομένου ἡμέρας, ἀπὸ πράγματος ἐν σκότει διαπορευομένου, ἀπὸ συμπτώματος, καὶ δαιμονίου μεσημβρινοῦ· καὶ πάλιν, Ἐλογίσθημεν, ὡς πρόβατα σφαγῆς· τὴν εἰς Θεὸν αὐτῶν διάπυρον ἀγάπην ἐνδείκνυται. Ὅταν δὲ πάλιν μετὰ τῶν ἀγγέλων ᾄδωσι (καὶ γὰρ καὶ ἄγγελοι τότε ᾄδουσιν), Αἰνεῖτε τὸν Κύριον ἐκ τῶν οὐρανῶν, λέγοντες, ἡμῶν χασμωμένων, κνωμένων, ῥεγχόντων, ἢ καὶ ὑπτίων ἁπλῶς κειμένων, καὶ μυρίας λογιζομένων ἀπάτας· οἷόν ἐστιν ἐκείνους ἐν τούτῳ τὸ πᾶν τῆς νυκτὸς ἀναλίσκειν; Ἐπειδὰν δὲ ἡμέρα μέλλῃ γίνεσθαι, διαναπαύονται λοιπόν· καὶ ὅταν ἡμεῖς ἀρξώμεθα τῶν ἔργων, ἐκεῖνοι καιρὸν ἔχουσι τῆς ἀναπαύσεως. Ἡμέρας δὲ γενομένης, ἡμῶν μὲν ἕκαστος καλεῖ τὸν ἕτερον, τὸν λόγον ποιεῖ τῶν ἐξοδιαζομένων· εἰ εἰς ἀγορὰν ἐμβάλλει, ἄρχοντι παρίσταται, τρέμει, δέδοικε τὰς εὐθύνας· ἕτερος ἐπὶ τῆς σκηνῆς, ἄλλος πρὸς τὸ ἐπιτήδευμα τὸ ἑαυτοῦ. Ἐκεῖνοι δὲ πάλιν εὐχὰς ἑωθινὰς ἐπιτελέσαντες καὶ ὕμνους, πρὸς τὴν τῶν Γραφῶν ἀνάγνωσιν τρέπονται· εἰσὶ δὲ οἱ καὶ βιβλία γράφειν μεμαθηκότες. Ἕκαστος οἴκημα ἀποτεταγμένον ἓν λαβὼν, ἡσυχίαν διαπαντὸς ἀσκεῖ, οὐδενὸς φλυαροῦντος, οὐδενὸς οὐδὲν λέγοντος. Εἶτα τρίτην, ἕκτην, ἐννάτην, καὶ τὰς ἑσπερινὰς εὐχὰς ἐπιτελοῦσι, καὶ εἰς τέσσαρα μέρη τὴν ἡμέραν διανείμαντες, καθ' 62.577 ἕκαστον μέρος πληρούμενον, ψαλμῳδίαις, ὕμνοις γεραίρουσι τὸν Θεόν. Πάντων δὲ ἀριστώντων τῶν ἄλλων, γελώντων, παιζόντων, διαῤῥηγνυμένων ὑπὸ τῆς γαστριμαργίας, οὗτοι τοῖς ὕμνοις προσανέχουσιν. Οὐδαμοῦ τραπέζης καιρὸς, οὐδὲ τῶν αἰσθητῶν τούτων. Πάλιν μετὰ τὸ ἄριστον τῶν αὐτῶν ἔχονται, ὕπνῳ πρότερον ἑαυτοὺς ἐκδεδωκότες. Οἱ μὲν οὖν κοσμικοὶ καὶ τὴν ἡμέραν καθεύδουσιν· ἐκεῖνοι δὲ καὶ τὴν νύκτα ἐγρηγόρασιν. Ὄντως υἱοὶ φωτός εἰσιν. Εἶτα ἐκεῖνοι τὸ πλέον ἀναλώσαντες ἐν τῷ ὕπνῳ τῆς ἡμέρας προΐασι βεβαρημένοι· οὗτοι δὲ ἔτι νήφουσιν, ἄσιτοι μένοντες ἕως ὀψὲ, καὶ τοῖς ὕμνοις προσανέχοντες. Ἑσπέρας δὲ πάλιν καταλαβούσης, οἱ μὲν εἰς λουτρὰ καὶ ἀνέσεις σπεύδουσιν· ἐκεῖνοι δὲ τῶν πόνων ἀπολύσαντες ἑαυτοὺς, τότε τῇ τραπέζῃ προσανέχουσιν, οὐκ οἰκετῶν πλῆθος ἐγείροντες, οὐδὲ περιτρέχοντες τὴν οἰκίαν, οὐδὲ θορυβοῦντες, οὐδὲ ὄψα πολλὰ παρατιθέμενοι, οὐδὲ κνίσσης γέμοντα, ἀλλ' οἱ μὲν ἄρτον μόνον καὶ ἅλας, οἱ δὲ ἔλαιον προστιθέντες, ἕτεροι δὲ, ὅσοι ἀσθενέστεροί εἰσι, καὶ λαχάνων ἔχονται καὶ ὀσπρίων. Εἶτα μικρὸν καθίσαντες, μᾶλλον δὲ ὕμνοις τὸ πᾶν κατακλείσαντες, διαναπαύονται ἐπὶ στιβάδος ἕκαστος πρὸς ἀνάπαυσιν μόνον πεποιημένης, οὐ τρυφήν. Οὐκ ἔστι φόβος ἀρχόντων ἐκεῖ, οὐκ ἔστι δεσποτῶν ἀπόνοια, οὐκ ἔστι δούλων φόβος, οὐκ ἔστι γυναικῶν θόρυβος, οὐκ ἔστι παίδων ταραχὴ, οὐκ ἔστι κιβωτίων πλῆθος, οὐδὲ ἱματίων ἀπόθεσις περιττὴ, οὐ χρυσίον, οὐκ ἀργύριον· οὐκ εἰσὶν