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Hear the divine Paul saying: "Who being the brightness of His glory and the express image of His person" and the exact image of God the Father. Therefore the Son is the image of the Father, and the Holy Spirit is the image of the Son; he therefore who has seen the Son has seen the Father; he who has seen the Holy Spirit has seen the Son; for the Apostle says: "The Lord is the Spirit", and again: "The Spirit Himself makes intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered" crying "Abba, Father". Well then did he say that the Spirit is the Lord in crying "Abba, Father," not as though the Spirit is the Son, far from it, but as in the Holy Spirit the Son of God is seen and beheld, and never is either the Son revealed to anyone without the Spirit, or the Spirit without the Son, but in the Spirit Himself the Son, and through the Spirit crying "Abba, Father."

If, therefore, you are ignorant of these things, beloved, do not cast yourself into despair, saying: "I neither know these things nor am I able to learn them; nor will I ever be strong enough to reach and ascend to the height of this knowledge and contemplation and purity." Nor again say: "Since, if one does not become such and already from this point put on Christ as God and behold Him whole and possess Him as an indweller, he does not enter into His kingdom, what benefit is it to me to struggle at all or even to be deprived of the enjoyment of present things?" Do not say this, do not think it; but if you wish, listen to my counsel and I will announce to you the way of salvation, with the (164) grace of the all-holy Spirit cooperating. First, therefore, believe with all your soul that all these things we have said according to the divine and God-inspired Scriptures are true and that thus every one who believes in the Son of God ought to become, since He gave us the power to become children of God, and if we are willing, there is no hindrance, and that for this reason the whole economy and condescension of the Son of God came to be, that through faith in Him and the keeping of His commandments He might make us partakers of His divinity and of His kingdom. For, if you do not believe that these things truly happen in this way, you will certainly not seek; and if you do not seek, you will not receive. "For seek," He says, "and you will find; ask and it will be given to you." But believing, follow the divine Scriptures and do whatever they tell you, and you will find everything without fail just as it is written, and indeed much more than is in the divine Scriptures. And what are these things? "What eye has not seen, nor ear heard, nor has entered into the heart of man" the good things "which God has prepared for those who love Him." These things, if you believe steadfastly, as has been said, you too will undoubtedly behold just as Paul did; and not only this, but you will also hear unspeakable words, being snatched up, that is, into paradise. Which paradise? The one where the thief entered with Christ and is now there.

But do you want me to tell you in another way what are the good things which eye has not seen and ear has not heard and have not entered into the heart of man? I know that you by all means long to hear what not even he who saw them said or interpreted. Why is this? So that it might not be disbelieved, I think, by those who hear. If, therefore, you too are going to disbelieve the things about to be said, stop here; for it is better for you not to approach what is ahead with the eye of the mind at all, since, if you reject (165) what is said to you and disobey my words, or rather the words of God Himself, since both we and our words are His, this Word will judge you on the day of judgment, because even after hearing you disbelieved. But listen without doubting to our words, or rather, as has been said, to those of God; and learn at once the solution of the question from those who clearly explain it to you in wisdom.

The unspeakable words spoken to Paul in paradise, these very eternal good things, I say, which eye has not seen and ear has not heard and into the heart of man have not

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Ἄκουσον αὐτοῦ λέγοντος τοῦ θείου Παύλου· "Ὅς ὤν ἀπαύγασμα τῆς δόξης καί χαρακτήρ τῆς ὑποστάσεως" καί εἰκών ἀπαράλλακτος τοῦ Θεοῦ καί Πατρός. Τοιγαροῦν εἰκών τοῦ Πατρός ὁ Υἱός, εἰκών δέ τοῦ Υἱοῦ τό Πνεῦμα τό Ἅγιον· ὁ ἑωρακώς οὖν τόν Υἱόν ἑώρακε τόν Πατέρα, ὁ ἑωρακώς τό Πνεῦμα τό Ἅγιον ἑώρακε τόν Υἱόν· φησί γάρ ὁ Ἀπόστολος· "Τό Πνεῦμα ὁ Κύριος ἐστί", καί πάλιν· "Αὐτό τό Πνεῦμα ἐντυγχάνει ὑπέρ ἡμῶν στεναγμοῖς ἀλαλήτοις" κράζον "Ἀββᾶ, ὁ πατήρ". Καλῶς οὖν εἶπεν ὅτι τό Πνεῦμα ὁ Κύριός ἐστιν ἐν τῷ κράζειν "Ἀββᾶ, ὁ πατήρ", οὐχ ὡς Υἱοῦ ὄντος τοῦ Πνεύματος, ἄπαγε, ἀλλ᾿ ὡς ἐν τῷ Ἁγίῳ Πνεύματι βλεπομένου καί ὁρωμένου τοῦ Υἱοῦ τοῦ Θεοῦ καί μηδέποτε ἤ τοῦ Υἱοῦ δίχα τοῦ Πνεύματος, ἤ τοῦ Πνεύματος δίχα τοῦ Υἱοῦ, ἀποκαλυπτομένου τινί, ἀλλ᾿ ἐν αὐτῷ τῷ Πνεύματι τόν Υἱόν καί διά τοῦ Πνεύματος κράζοντα αὐτόν "Ἀββᾶ, ὁ πατήρ".

Εἰ τοίνυν ἀγνοεῖς ταῦτα, ἀγαπητέ, μή εἰς ἀπόγνωσιν ἐμβάλῃς σεαυτόν λέγων· "Ἐγώ ταῦτα οὔτε οἶδα οὔτε μαθεῖν δύναμαι· οὔτε μήν εἰς τό ὕψος τῆς γνώσεως ταύτης καί θεωρίας καί καθαρότητος φθάσαι καί ἀνελθεῖν ἰσχύσω ποτέ". Μηδέ πάλιν εἴπῃς· "Ἐπειδή, ἐάν μή τις τοιοῦτος γένηται καί τόν Χριστόν ἀπ᾿ ἐντεῦθεν ἤδη ὡς Θεόν ἐπενδύσηται καί αὐτόν ἐκεῖνον ὅλον θεάσηται καί ἔνοικον ἑαυτοῦ τοῦτον κτήσηται, εἰς τήν βασιλείαν αὐτοῦ οὐκ εἰσέρχεται, τί μοι τό ὄφελος κἄν ποσῶς ἀγωνίζεσθαι ἤ καί τῶν παρόντων ὑστερεῖσθαι τῆς ἀπολαύσεως;" Μή δή τοῦτο εἴπῃς, μή δή λογίσεσαι· ἀλλ᾿ εἰ βούλει, ἄκουσόν μου τῆς συμβουλῆς καί ἀναγγελῶ σοι τήν ὁδόν τῆς σωτηρίας, τῆς (164) χάριτος τοῦ παναγίου Πνεύματος συνεργούσης. Πίστευσον οὖν ἐν πρώτοις ἐξ ὅλης ψυχῆς ὅτι οὕτως ταῦτα πάντα ἅ εἴπομεν κατά τάς θείας καί θεοπνεύστους Γραφάς ἀληθῆ εἰσι καί οὕτως ὀφείλει γενέσθαι πᾶς ὁ πιστεύων εἰς τόν Υἱόν τοῦ Θεοῦ, ἐπειδή ἔδωκεν ἡμῖν ἐξουσίαν υἱούς γενέσθαι Θεοῦ, καί ἐάν θελήσωμεν, τό κωλύον οὐδέν, καί ὅτι διά τοῦτο ἡ πᾶσα οἰκονομία καί συγκατάβασις τοῦ Υἱοῦ τοῦ Θεοῦ ἐγένετο, ἵνα διά τῆς πρός αὐτόν πίστεως καί τῆς τηρήσεως τῶν αὐτοῦ ἐντολῶν μετόχους αὐτοῦ τῆς θεότητος καί τῆς βασιλείας ἡμᾶς ἀπεργάσηται. Καί γάρ, εἰ μή πιστεύσεις ταῦτα οὕτως ἀληθῶς γίνεσθαι, πάντως οὐδέ ζητήσεις· εἰ δέ μή ζητήσεις, οὐδέ λήψῃ· "Ζητεῖτε γάρ, φησί, καί λήψεσθε· αἰτεῖτε καί δοθήσεται ὑμῖν". Πιστεύων δέ, ἀκολούθει ταῖς θείαις Γραφαῖς καί ὅσα σοι λέγουσι ποίησον, καί εὑρήσεις πάντα ἀνελλιπῶς καθώς γέγραπται, μᾶλλον δέ καί πολλῷ πλείονα τῶν ἐν ταῖς θείαις Γραφαῖς. Ποῖα δέ ταῦτα; "Ἅ ὀφθαλμός οὐκ εἶδε καί οὖς οὐκ ἤκουσε καί ἐπί καρδίαν ἀνθρώπου οὐκ ἀνέβη" τά ἀγαθά "ἅ ἡτοίμασεν ὁ Θεός τοῖς ἀγαπῶσιν αὐτόν ". Ταῦτα, εἰ πιστεύσεις βεβαίως, ὡς εἴρηται, θεάσῃ ἀναμφιβόλως ὡς ὁ Παῦλος καί σύ· οὐ μόνον δέ, ἀλλά καί ἀκούσεις ἄρρητα ῥήματα, προαρπαγείς δηλονότι εἰς τόν παράδεισον. Ποῖον τοῦτον; Ὅπου ὁ ληστής μετά τοῦ Χριστοῦ συνεισῆλθε καί νῦν ἐκεῖ ἐστιν.

Βούλει δέ καί ἄλλως εἴπω σοι τίνα εἰσί τά ἀγαθά ἅ ὀφθαλμός οὐκ εἶδε καί οὖς οὐκ ἤκουσε καί ἐπί καρδίαν ἀνθρώπου οὐκ ἀνέβη; Οἶδα ὅτι πάντως ἐπιποθεῖς ἀκοῦσαι ἅ οὐδέ αὐτός ὁ ἰδών εἶπεν ἤ διηρμήνευσεν. Τί τοῦτο; Ἵνα μή παρά τῶν ἀκουόντων, ὡς οἶμαι, ἀπιστηθῇ. Εἰ τοίνυν μέλλεις καί σύ ἀπιστεῖν τοῖς ῥηθησομένοις, στῆθι μέχρι τούτου· συμφέρει σοι γάρ καί μή προσβῇς τῷ τῆς διανοίας ὀφθαλμῷ ὅλως τοῖς ἔμπροσθεν, ἐπειδή, εἰ τά λεγόμενά σοι (165) ἀθετήσεις καί παρακούσεις τῶν λόγων μου, μᾶλλον δέ τῶν λόγων αὐτοῦ τοῦ Θεοῦ, ἐπειδή καί ἡμεῖς καί οἱ λόγοι ἡμῶν αὐτοῦ εἰσιν, ὁ Λόγος οὗτος κρινεῖ σε ἐν τῆ ἡμέρᾳ τῆς κρίσεως, ὅτι καί ἀκούσας ἠπίστησας. Ἀλλ᾿ ἄκουε ἀδιστάκτως τῶν λόγων ἡμῶν, μᾶλλον δέ, ὡς εἴρηται, τῶν τοῦ Θεοῦ· καί μάνθανε αὐτόθεν τοῦ ζητουμένου τήν λύσιν παρά τῶν ταύτην ἐν σοφίᾳ διατρανούντων σοι.

Τά ἐν τῷ παραδείσῳ λαληθέντα τῷ Παύλῳ ἄρρητα ῥήματα, αὐτά δή τά αἰώνια, φημί, ἀγαθά ἅ ὀφθαλμός οὐκ εἶδε καί οὖς οὐκ ἤκουσε καί ἐπί καρδίαν ἀνθρώπου οὐκ