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in whatever needs and desires and pleasures they wish to spend, so also our good Master gives Himself as a gift to His genuine servants and fulfills their every longing and desire, as they wish and beyond what they wish; and He fills them abundantly with every good thing and lavishly and unceasingly supplies to them incorruptible and everlasting delight.

And first, they are filled with ineffable joy, because they have acquired not the world nor the things in the world, but the Creator (184) of all things and Lord and Master within themselves. Then they are clothed with the light, Christ and God Himself, whole in the whole body; and they see themselves adorned with ineffable glory and a flashing divine robe and they cover their own faces, unable to bear seeing the incomprehensible and unbearable radiance of their robe, so that they seek a place of hiding, that they might be there and put off the great weight of glory. Then thus the same Master becomes for them everlasting and immortal food and drink; to some He is seen as a light-like breast put to the mouth of their mind and He allows them to suckle, as many as are still infants in Christ and are not yet able to partake of solid food, to whom He becomes at once both food and drink, producing in them such sweetness that they do not wish, or rather are not even able, to be separated from Him at all; but to those who have been weaned, He presents Himself like a child-loving father, training and educating them.

For just as a loving father makes his own sons table-companions, but when he sees them being negligent about their studies and distracted by some useless matters, he pushes them away from his table and orders his servants not to give them food, teaching them not to be contemptuous and negligent, so also our good Master and God deals with his servants also as sons according to philanthropy and grace; for He gives Himself to them, "the bread coming down from heaven and giving life to the world"; and from Him and with Him they are fed to satiety everlastingly and are transformed into eternal life by participation, being sanctified in both soul and body. But when they neglect the commandments and by their (185) free will choose to be indolent or contemptuous and occupy themselves with some of the affairs of the world, turning aside to useless things and things not befitting piety, then the nourisher of all deprives them of Himself. But when they come to an awareness of the good of which they were deprived, having turned back again and having sought Him as usual and not found Him, they beat their breasts, they weep and they lament for themselves, and they bring upon themselves every hardship and long for every affliction and every trial and dishonor, so that their philanthropic father might see their afflictions and their voluntary hardship and, having had mercy on them, might turn back and again give Himself to them; which also happens. And to their former intimacy and glory and to the very delight of good things "which eye has not seen and ear has not heard, and which has not entered into the heart of man" with greater boldness they are restored, revering their own father more than before and trembling before him as a master, so that they might not through inattention again be ensnared by the same evils and be cast away from the all-good father.

And those who repent with toil do and perform these things, and obtain the aforementioned good things. But as many as will give up in the face of the toils and the afflictions and hardships of repentance, but will give themselves over to indolence and comforts, as unworthy and illegitimate sons, or rather to say, as scorners, and having preferred the pleasures of the body above the eternal good things and above God Himself, are no longer deemed worthy of this delight, nor indeed of the garment of God's glory, but also themselves of the riches of the goodness of God

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ἐν οἵαις ἄν βούλωνται χρείαις καί ἐπιθυμίαις καί ἀπολαύσεσιν ἀναλίσκουσιν, οὕτω καί ὁ καλός ἡμῶν ∆εσπότης ἑαυτόν δωρεῖται τοῖς γνησίοις δούλοις αὐτοῦ καί πᾶσαν αὐτῶν ἔφεσιν καί ἐπιθυμίαν, ὡς βούλονται καί ὑπέρ ὅ βούλονται, πληροῖ· καί ἐμπιπλᾶ αὐτούς ἀφθόνως παντός ἀγαθοῦ καί δαψιλῶς καί ἀδιαλείπτως ἐπιχορηγεῖ αὐτοῖς τήν ἄφθαρτον τρυφήν καί ἀέναον.

Καί πρῶτα μέν πληροῦνται ἀρρήτου χαρᾶς, ὅτι οὐχί τόν κόσμον οὐδέ τά ἐν τῷ κόσμῳ, ἀλλά τόν Ποιητήν (184) τῶν ἁπάντων καί Κύριον καί ∆εσπότην ἐκτήσαντο ἐν ἑαυτοῖς. Ἔπειτα ἐπενδύονται τό φῶς, αὐτόν τόν Χριστόν καί Θεόν, ὅλον ὅλῳ τῷ σώματι· καί ὁρῶσι κεκοσμημένους ἑαυτούς ἀρρήτῳ δόξῃ καί ἀστραπτούσῃ θείᾳ στολῇ καί τάς ὄψεις καλύπτουσιν ἑαυτῶν, μή φέροντες ὁρᾶν τήν ἀκατανόητον καί ἄστεκτον τῆς στολῆς αὐτῶν λαμπηδόνα, ὡς ἐπιζητεῖν αὐτούς τόπον ἀποκρυβῆς, ὅπως ἐκεῖσε γένωνται καί τό πολύ βάρος τῆς δόξης ἀποθῶνται. Εἶθ᾿ οὕτως ὁ αὐτός ∆εσπότης καί τροφή καί πόσις γίνεται αὐτοῖς ἀέναος καί ἀθάνατος· τοῖς μέν ὡς φωτοειδής μαζός τῷ τοῦ νοός αὐτῶν στόματι ἐμβαλλόμενος καθορᾶται καί θηλάζειν αὐτοῖς παρέχει, ὅσοι νήπιοι ἔτι κατά Χριστόν πέλουσι καί οὔπω στερεᾶς τροφῆς μεταλαβεῖν εἰσιν ἱκανοί, οἷς καί γίνεται ἅμα τροφή τε καί πόσις, τοσαύτην ἐμποιῶν αὐτοῖς τήν ἡδύτητα, ὡς μή βούλεσθαι, μᾶλλον δέ μηδέ δύνασθαι, ὅλως ἀποσπασθῆναι αὐτοῦ· τοῖς δέ γε ἀπογαλακτισθεῖσι καθάπερ πατήρ φιλότεκνος προσφέρεται παιδαγωγῶν καί παιδεύων αὐτούς.

Ὥσπερ γάρ ὁ φιλόστοργος πατήρ συνεστίους μέν ποιεῖται τούς ἑαυτοῦ υἱούς, ἐπάν δέ περί τά μαθήματα αὐτῶν ἀμελῶς ἴδῃ διατεθέντας αὐτούς καί μετεωριζομένους ἔν τισιν ἀνωφελέσι πράγμασιν, ἐξωθεῖ τῆς ἑαυτοῦ τραπέζης καί τοῖς αὐτοῦ δούλοις παρακελεύεται μή δοῦναι αὐτοῖς τροφήν, παιδεύων αὐτούς μή καταφρονητάς εἶναι καί ἀμελεῖς, οὕτω καί ὁ καλός ∆εσπότης ἡμῶν καί Θεός ἐν τοῖς δούλοις αὐτοῦ καί κατά φιλανθρωπίαν καί χάριν υἱοῖς διατίθεται· ἐπιδίδωσι γάρ ἑαυτόν αὐτοῖς, "ὁ ἄρτος ὁ ἐκ τοῦ οὐρανοῦ καταβαίνων καί ζωήν διδούς τῷ κόσμῳ"· καί ἐκ αὐτοῦ καί σύν αὐτῷ εἰς κόρον τρέφονται ἀενάως καί πρός ζωήν ἀΐδιον μεθαρμόζονται τῇ μεθέξει, καί ψυχήν καί σῶμα καθαγιαζόμενοι. Ὅτε δέ τῶν ἐντολῶν ἀμελήσουσι καί ῥᾳθύμως ἤ καταφρονητικῶς διατεθῆναι τῷ (185) αὐτεξουσίῳ θελήσουσι καί πρός τι τῶν τοῦ κόσμου πραγμάτων ἀσχοληθῶσιν, ἀποκλίναντες εἰς ἀνωφελῆ καί τά μή προσήκοντα τῇ θεοσεβείᾳ, τότε ἀποστερεῖ αὐτούς ἑαυτόν ὁ τροφεύς τοῦ παντός. Ἀλλά γάρ εἰς συναίσθησιν ἐλθόντες τοῦ ἀγαθοῦ οὗ ἐστερήθησαν, ἐπιστρέψαντες αὖθις καί συνήθως τοῦτον ζητήσαντες καί μή εὑρόντες, κόπτονται, κλαίουσι καί ἑαυτούς ἀποδύρονται, πᾶσάν τε κακοπάθειαν ἑαυτοῖς ἐπιφέρουσι καί πᾶσαν θλῖψιν καί πάντα πειρασμόν καί ἀτιμίαν ἐπιποθοῦσιν, ὅπως ἴδοι ὁ φιλάνθρωπος τούτων πατήρ τάς θλίψεις αὐτῶν καί τήν ἐθελούσιον κάκωσιν καί ἐλεήσας αὐτούς ἐπιστρέψῃ καί αὖθις αὐτοῖς ἑαυτόν ἐπιδῷ· ὅ καί γίνεται. Καί εἰς τήν προτέραν οἰκειότητα καί δόξαν καί εἰς αὐτήν τῶν ἀγαθῶν τήν τρυφήν "ἅ ὀφθαλμός οὐκ εἶδε καί οὖς οὐκ ἤκουσε καί ἐπί καρδίαν ἀνθρώπου οὐκ ἀνέβη" μετά πλείονος τῆς παρρησίας ἀποκαθίστανται, εὐλαβούμενοι πλέον ἤ πρότερον τόν ἑαυτῶν πατέρα καί τρέμοντες ὡς δεσπότην, ὅπως μή τοῖς αὐτοῖς ἐξ ἀπροσεξίας καί αὖθις περιπαρῶσι κακοῖς καί τοῦ παναγάθου ἀπορριφῶσι πατρός.

Καί ταῦτα μέν οἱ ἐμπόνως μετανοοῦντες ποιοῦσιν ἅμα καί πράττουσι τῶν εἰρημένων ἐπιτυγχάνουσιν ἀγαθῶν. Ὅσοι δέ πρός τούς πόνους καί πρός τάς θλίψεις καί στενοχωρίας τῆς μετανοίας ἀπαγορεύσουσι, πρός ῥᾳθυμίαν δέ καί ἀνέσεις ἑαυτούς ἐπιδώσουσιν, ὡς ἀνάξιοι καί νόθοι υἱοί, μᾶλλον δέ εἰπεῖν ὡς καταφρονηταί, καί τάς τοῦ σώματος ἡδονάς ὑπέρ τά αἰώνια ἀγαθά καί ὑπέρ αὐτόν τόν Θεόν αὐτῶν προτιμήσαντες, οὐκέτι τῆς τρυφῆς ταύτης οὔτε μήν τοῦ ἐνδύματος τῆς τοῦ Θεοῦ δόξης καταξιοῦνται, ἀλλά καί τοῦ πλούτου τῆς χρηστότητος τοῦ Θεοῦ ἑαυτούς