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The judge of injustice in the Gospel exists parabolically and is spoken of as our reasoning power, which from the beginning, from transgression, has made its judgment unjust; as not having received the Creator’s commandment, but having chosen the destroyer’s counsel; from which it much preferred being of dust to being, and to becoming a god. And his city is sensation, or the visible world; in which, resting irrationally by habit, (14A_354> he exchanged his dwelling for a sojourn; neither fearing God, nor respecting the man who for our sake became the same; the one, because of folly; the other, because of contempt; the former not foreseeing the magnitude of the judgments, and the latter not being restrained, which for a time kindness, awaiting change, suspends, that is, the torment; with which he willfully ensnared himself, having improperly used the honor of free will given by the Creator for the fulfillment of duties; and judging the apparent good to be more preferable than the intelligible good, which was not lawful.

And the troubling widow, the rational soul, since it does not have the Logos who sows good things according to nature for the fruitfulness of sacred and holy works. being held fast only by this complete affection and disposition toward it; but not waiting, because of its indifference, and its self-chosen inclination toward things here.

And her adversary, I mean that of the soul, is the material movement and mind of the wretched flesh, through which the unclean demons strive both to defile the beauty of the divine image in us and its corresponding dignity, and to obscure its transparency, whenever, falling through pleasure, they terribly introduce to us the shames and passions of dishonor; on account of which death was also condemned of nature, for not having chosen from the beginning to revel in the true life.

And the "bruisings" are the entreating torments from the conscience with a certain prompting, by which, being extended from the soul, the severity of the reasoning faculty, unyielding toward good things because of long-standing habit, is accustomed to be bent somehow gently, not bearing the torment dwelling deep within, 1397 and, as it were, continually torturing and troubling it; until it should destroy the passions that destroy the soul, through self-control, and the voluntary (14A_356> mortification of the members of the flesh. Then also, may it lead to a kinship with the Logos himself through piety and more perfect zeal for better things, by which things being naturally activated, our Lord Jesus Christ, God beyond substance and nature, comparing his own and the Father’s things, says, “and will not God bring about,” he says, “your vindication,” through me having become incarnate and bringing about the purification of the corruptible nature.

Thus, then, have I briefly recounted the things concerning this, insofar as the available measure of my intellect has sufficed; even if others, having understood the passage differently, have taken it to refer, some to Christ, others on the contrary to the Antichrist. But I am afraid to think or to say either; the one, as incomparable; for the vindication is not less than the Son's but greater than the Father's; or through another, and different altogether, besides the Son. And how does he say comparatively on the same matter, "and will not God," he says, "bring about your vindication"? For it has no place; or it will be shown to be entirely different, and with a nature unable to do the same; and for this reason, then, not being compared; but only imaging the superior one as being above. The other, as unacceptable and impossible, for the inventor and teacher of evil to do good; "for a corrupt tree," he says, "cannot bear good fruit"; and vindication is a good thing, and for the one who approaches to duly put away the trouble; or perhaps for the Father to be compared to this, which is not lawful, He who is the provider of all virtue and life from the Son, and this one only-begotten, and equal in nature and goodness. For good things are not by nature revealed through evil things, just as light is not through darkness, or

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Κριτήν ἀδικίας ἐν τῷ Εὐαγγελίῳ παραβολικῶς ὑπάρχειν καί λέγεσθαι, τόν ἡμέτερον λογισμόν, ἀρχῆθεν ἐκ παραβάσεως ἄδικων πεποιημένον τήν κρίσιν· ὡς τήν τοῦ Κτίσαντος μέν οὐ δεξάμενον ἐντολήν· τήν δέ τοῦ φθείροντος ἑλόμενον συμβουλήν· ἐξ οὗ καί τό χοϊκός εἶναι, τοῦ εἶναι, καί τοῦ θεός γενέσθαι πάμπολυ προετίμησε. Πόλιν δέ εἶναι τούτου, τήν αἴσθησιν, ἤ τόν ὁρώμενον κόσμον· οἷς παραλόγως κατά σχέσιν ἐπαναπαυόμενος, (14Α_354> τῆς κατοικίας τήν παροικίαν ἠλλάξατο· μήτε Θεόν φοβούμενος, μήτε μήν ἄνθρωπον τόν αὐτόν γεγενημένον δι᾿ ἡμᾶς ἐντρεπόμενος· τό μέν, διά τήν ἄνοιαν· τό δέ, διά τήν καταφρόνησιν· ἐκείνην τε μή προορωμένην τῶν κριμάτων τό μέγεθος καί ταύτην οὐκ εἰργομένην, ἥν τέως ἡ χρηστότης προσμένουσα τήν μεταβολήν ἀναστέλλει, τήν βάσανον· αἷς ἑαυτόν αὐθαδῶς περιέσπειρε, τῇ δεδομένῃ παρά τοῦ Κτίσαντος εἰς ἐξάνυσιν τῶν καθηκόντων αὐτεξουσίῳ τιμῇ παρά τό δέον ἀποχρησάμενος· καί τοῦ νοουμένου τό φανέν ἀγαθόν κρίνας, ὅ μή θέμις ἦν, αἱρετώτερον.

Χήραν δέ διοχλοῦσαν, τήν λογικήν ψυχήν ἅτε δή πρός καρπογονίαν ἱερῶν καί ὁσίων ἔργων οὐκ ἔχουσαν τόν τά καλά κατά φύσιν σπείροντα λόγον. Μόνῃ τῇ πρός αὐτήν ὁλικῇ ταύτῃ στοργῇ καί διαθέσει κρατούμενον· ἀλλ᾿ οὐ προσμένοντα διά τήν ἀπόνευσιν, καί τήν αὐθαίρετον πρός τά τῆδε ῥοπήν.

Ἀντίδικον δέ ταύτης, φημί τῆς ψυχῆς, τό τῆς δυστήνου σαρκός ἔνυλον κίνημά τε καί φρόνημα, δι᾿ οὗ τῆς ἐν ἡμῖν θείας εἰκόνος καί τοῦ κατ᾿ αὐτήν ἀξιώματος, τό τε κάλλος καταμολύνειν σπουδάζουσι, καί τό διαυγές ἀμαυροῦν οἱ ἀκάθαρτοι δαίμονες, ὁπηνίκα, δι᾿ ἡδονῆς ὑποπίπτουσιν, ἐπεισφρήσουσι δεινῶς ἡμῖν τά τῆς ἀτιμίας αἴσχη καί πάθη· δι᾿ ἅ καί ὁ θάνατος κατεκρίθη τῆς φύσεως, οὐχ ἑλομένης τό ἀπαρχῆς τῆς ὄντως κατατρυφῆσαι ζωῆς.

Ὑπωπιασμούς δέ τούς ἐκ τῆς συνειδήσεως μεθ᾿ ὑποφωνήσεώς τινος παρακλητικούς αἰκισμούς, οἷς προτινομένοις ἐκ τῆς ψυχῆς, ἡρέμα πως εἴωθεν κάμπτεσθαι τό αὐστηρόν τοῦ λογισμοῦ, καί πρός τά καλά διά τήν χρονιωτέραν ἕξιν ἀνύπεικτον, οὐ φέροντος ἐνδομυχοῦσαν, 1397 καί οἷον αἰκίζουσάν τε συνεχῶς καί διοχλοῦσαν τήν βάσανον· ἕως λυμῄνηται τά τήν ψυχήν λυμαινόμενα πάθη, δι᾿ ἐγκρατείας, καί τῆς πρός τά μέλη τῆς σαρκός (14Α_356> ἑκουσίου νεκρώσεως. Εἶτα καί πρός ἀγχιστείαν αὐτοῦ τοῦ λόγου δι᾿ εὐσεβείας, καί τῆς περί τά κρείττω τελεωτέρας ἀγάγοι σπουδῆς, οἷς φυσικῶς ἐνεργουμένοις, τά οἰκεῖα καί πατρικά παραβάλλων, ὁ ὑπέρ οὐσίαν καί φύσιν Θεός Κύριος ἡμῶν Ἰησοῦς Χριστός, «ὁ δέ Θεός οὐ μή ποιήσῃ», φησί, «τήν ἐκδίκησιν ὑμῶν», δι᾿ ἐμοῦ σαρκωθέντος, καί τήν τοῦ καθαιρέτου τῆς φύσεως ποιουμένου καθαίρεσιν.

Οὕτω μέν οὖν τά περί τούτου διεξῆλθον ἐπιτόμως ἐγώ, καθ᾿ ὅσον τό ἐγχωροῦν τῆς διανοίας μέτρον ἐπήρκεσεν· εἰ καί ἄλλως ἄλλοι τόν τόπον κατανοήσαντες· οἱ μέν εἰς Χριστόν· οἱ δέ τοὔμπαλιν, εἰς τόν Ἀντίχριστον ἐξειλήφασι. ∆έος δέ μοι νοεῖν, ἤ λέγειν ἑκάτερα· τό μέν, ὡς ἀσύγκριτον· οὐ γάρ μείων μέν Υἱοῦ· μείζων δέ Πατρός, ἡ ἐκδίκησις· ἤ δι᾿ ἄλλου, καί ἄλλη τό σύνολον, πλήν τοῦ Υἱοῦ. Καί πῶς ἐπί τῆς αὐτῆς συγκριτικῶς φησι, τό, «ὁ δέ Θεός», φησίν, «οὐ ποιήσει τήν ἐκδίκησιν ὑμῶν»; Οὐ γάρ ἔχει χώραν· ἤ διάφορος πάντως δειχθήσεται, καί μετά τῆς φύσεως οὐ δυναμένης τό ἴσον δρᾷν· καί διά τοῦτο λοιπόν οὐ συντασσομένης· εἰκονιζούσης δέ μόνον, ὡς ὑπερκειμένην, τήν ὑπερέχουσαν. Τό δέ, ὡς ἀνέκδεκτον καί ἀμήχανον, τό καλόν ποιεῖν τόν κακίας εὑρετήν καί διδάσκαλον· «οὐ γάρ δύναται», φησί, «δένδρον σαπρόν καρπούς καλούς ποιεῖν»· καλόν δέ ἡ ἐκδίκησις, καί τόν τήν ὄχλησιν ἀφοσιοῦσθαι δεόντως τοῦ προσπελάζοντος· ἤ τούτῳ παραβάλλεσθαι τυχόν, ὅ μή θέμις, τόν Πατέρα, καί πάσης ἀρετῆς καί ζωῆς χορηγόν ἐξ Υἱοῦ, καί ταῦτα μονογενοῦς, καί ἴσου τήν φύσιν καί τήν ἀγαθότητα. Οὐ γάρ τά καλά διά τῶν κακῶν μηνύεσθαι πέφυκεν, ὥσπερ οὐδέ διά σκότους τό φῶς, ἤ