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they justly deprive and are like masterless dogs. For just as masterless dogs go about in the squares and alleys of the city, that they might take a bone (186) somewhere or a piece of old leather thrown away, or lick up dung or the blood of slaughtered animals, and if a carcass is found by them, they eat insatiably and are not separated from the corpse beforehand, but fighting, they drive away the other dogs as well, until they lay bare not only the entrails but also the very bones of their sinews, so also these run about begging at the doors of the rich and the poor, so that they may pocket gold or silver or bronze being given somewhere, since they have fallen away from the true and unfailing wealth; and when they achieve their purpose, then for a little while, as though satiated and needing nothing, they are so disposed; but when the famine of insatiability unexpectedly seizes them, they give themselves over again to their former begging, pitiable in their present state, even if they should acquire all the wealth of the world, more pitiable in the things to come, because they have willingly thrust away eternal life.

For God revealed to them the wealth of His grace, so that they might be without excuse; and He deemed them worthy to taste the heavenly gift and has made them partakers of the Holy Spirit, just as the divine Paul cried out; "But they did not glorify Him as God," or love Him, or reverence His infinite goodness, "or give thanks to Him, but they became futile in their thinking and their foolish heart was darkened; for claiming to be wise, they became fools." But not so are all who fear the Lord; but as many as endure the disciplines of their own father and master with joy, as well-disposed servants and as genuine sons, saying: "I will bear the discipline of the Lord, because I have sinned against Him," and elsewhere: "The present sufferings are not worthy to be compared with the (187) glory that is to be revealed to us," and so they remain in the daily, as we have said, discipline and perpetual repentance, not shying away or being vexed by it, being tutored in the aforesaid manner, they remain forever brightly adorned in their father's house, becoming table companions with their own father and beholding His glory and the wealth which they are about to inherit. And when they are well brought up and, having been disciplined, attain to the measure of the stature of a perfect man, then the all-good father also gives all his possessions into their hands.

But let us first say what the measure of the spiritual age is and the height of the fullness of Christ, and so let us go through the things belonging to the Father and how He gives these into the hands of those who believe in Him. Pay attention wisely then to the power of the things that will be said to you.

The measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ are these things, spiritually considered: and that I may make its beginning from below, its feet are faith and holy humility, a firm and unshakable foundation. Legs and ankles, shins and knees and thighs, are poverty, nakedness, exile, submission for Christ's sake with knowledge, obedience, and willing servitude. The members and parts that must be covered are unceasing prayer in the mind, the sweetness engendered from the shedding of tears, the joy of the heart and its ineffable consolation. Kidneys and loins are the stance and endurance for prayers and synaxes and the kindling of desire engendered from there for the contemplation and communion of God, just as the divine David is recorded saying thus: "Purify by fire my kidneys and my heart." And Paul says: (188) "Stand therefore, having girded your loins with truth." And Peter, the chiefest of the apostles: "Therefore," he says, "girding up the loins of your mind, being sober completely, hope for the grace that is brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ, as children of obedience." Grace, that of the all-holy

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ἐνδίκως ἀποστεροῦσι καί κυσίν ὁμοιοῦνται ἀδεσπότοις. Καθάπερ γάρ οἱ ἀδέσποτοι κύνες ἐν ταῖς πλατείαις καί ῥύμαις τῆς πόλεως περιΐασιν, ἵν᾿ ὀστοῦν που (186) ἤ δέρματος παλαιοῦ μέρος ἀπορριφέν λάβωσιν, ἤ καί κόπρον ἤ αἷμα λείξουσι σφαγέντων κτηνῶν, εἰ δέ καί θνησιμαῖον αὐτοῖς εὑρεθῇ, ἀκορέστως ἐσθίουσι και οὐ χωρίζονται τοῦ πτώματος πρότερον, ἀλλά καί τούς ἄλλους κύνας μαχόμενοι ἐκδιώκουσιν, ἕως ἄν οὐ τῶν ἐγκάτων μόνον ἀλλά καί αὐτά τά ὀστᾶ γυμνά τῶν νεύρων ἀποδείξωσιν, οὕτω καί οὗτοι ἐν ταῖς τῶν πλουσίων καί πενήτων θύραις ἀγυρτικῶς περιτρέχουσιν, ἵνα χρυσόν που ἤ ἄργυρον ἤ χαλκόν διδόμενον ἐγκολπώσωνται, ἐπεί τοῦ ἀληθινοῦ καί ἀρρεύστου πλούτου ἐξέπεσον· καί ὅταν τύχωσι τοῦ σκοποῦ, τότε πρός ὀλίγον, ὡς κεκορεσμένοι καί μηδενός χρῄζοντες, οὕτω διάκεινται· ἐπάν δέ ὁ λιμός τῆς ἀπληστίας ἐξ ἀνελπιστίας αὐτούς καταλάβῃ, τῇ προτέρᾳ καί αὖθις ἀγυρτίᾳ ἑαυτούς ἐκδιδόασιν, ἐλεεινοί τῶν παρόντων, κἄν τοῦ κόσμου τόν πλοῦτον ἅπαντα κτήσωνται, ἐλεεινότεροι τῶν μελλόντων, ὅτι τήν αἰώνιοιν ζωήν ἐκουσίως ἀπώσαντο.

Ἐφανέρωσε γάρ αὐτοῖς ὁ Θεός τόν τῆς χάριτος αὐτοῦ πλοῦτον, εἰς τό εἶναι αὐτούς ἀναπολογήτους· καί τῆς ἐπουρανίου δωρεᾶς γεύσασθαι αὐτούς κατηξίωσε καί Πνεύματος Ἁγίου μετόχους πεποίηκε, καθά καί ὁ θεῖος Παῦλος ἀνέκραγεν· "Οἱ δέ οὐχ ὡς Θεόν ἐδόξασαν", ἤ ἠγάπησαν, ἤ τό ἄπειρον τῆς αὐτοῦ ᾐδέσθησαν ἀγαθότητος, "ἤ αὐτῷ εὐχαρίστησαν, ἀλλ᾿ ἐματαιώθησαν ἐν τοῖς διαλογισμοῖς αὐτῶν καί ἐσκοτίσθη ἡ ἀσύνετος αὐτῶν καρδία· φάσκοντες γάρ εἶναι σοφοί, ἐμωράνθησαν". Οὐχ οὕτως δέ πάντες οἱ φοβούμενοι τόν Κύριον· ἀλλ᾿ ὅσοι τάς τοῦ ἰδίου πατρός καί δεσπότου παιδείας ὡς εὐγνώμονες δοῦλοι καί ὡς υἱοί γνήσιοι μετά χαρᾶς ὑπενέγκωσι, λέγοντες· "Παιδείαν Κυρίου ὑποίσω, ὅτι ἥμαρτον αὐτῷ ", καί ἄλλως· "Οὐκ ἄξια τά παρόντα παθήματα πρός τήν (187) ἀποκαλυπτομένην ἡμῖν δόξαν εἰσί", καί οὕτως ἐμμείνωσι τῆ καθημερινῇ, ὡς ἔφημεν, παιδείᾳ καί διηνεκεῖ μετανοίᾳ, μή ἀποσκιρτῶντες ἤ πρός ταύτην ἀχθόμενοι, τῷ προειρημένῳ τρόπῳ παιδαγωγούμενοι, ἐν τῷ οἴκῳ τῷ πατρικῷ ἐστολισμένοι λαμπρῶς ἀεί διαμένουσι, συνέστιοι τῷ ἑαυτῶν πατρί γινόμενοι καί τήν δόξαν καθορῶντες αὐτοῦ καί τόν πλοῦτον ὅν κληρονομεῖν μέλλουσιν. Ὅταν δέ καλῶς ἀνατραφῶσι καί παιδευθέντες εἰς μέτρον ἡλικίας τελείου ἀνδρός καταντήσωσι, τηνικαῦτα καί ὁ πανάγαθος πατήρ πάντα τά ὑπάρχοντα αὐτῷ δίδωσιν εἰς τάς χεῖρας αὐτῶν.

Ἀλλά γάρ εἴπωμεν πρότερον τί τό μέτρον τῆς πνευματικῆς ἡλικίας καί τό ὕψος τοῦ πληρώματος τοῦ Χριστοῦ καί οὕτως περί τῶν ὑπαρχόντων τῷ Πατρί καί ὅπως δίδωσι ταῦτα εἰς τάς χεῖρας τῶν πιστευόντων αὐτῷ διέλθωμεν. Πρόσεχε οὖν τῇ δυνάμει τῶν ῥηθησομένων σοι συνετῶς.

Μέτρον ἡλικίας τοῦ πληρώματος τοῦ Χριστοῦ ταῦτά εἰσι πνευματικῶς θεωρούμενα· καί ἵνα κάτωθεν τήν ἀρχήν ταύτης ποιήσωμαι, πόδες αὐτῆς ἡ πίστις καί ἡ ἁγία ταπείνωσίς ἐστι, βάσις στερρά καί ἀκράδαντος. Σκέλη καί ἀστράγαλοι, κνῆμαι καί γόνατα καί μηροί, ἡ ἀκτημοσύνη, ἡ γυμνότης, ἡ ξενιτεία, ἡ διά Χριστόν ὑποταγή μετά γνώσεως, ἡ ὑπακοή καί ἡ εὐπρόθυμος δουλεία. Μέλη καί μόρια ἅ ἐγκαλύπτεσθαι χρεών, ἡ ἀδιάλειπτος εὐχή κατά νοῦν, ἡ ἐκ τῆς χύσεως τῶν δακρύων ἐγγινομένη ἡδύτης, ἡ χαρά τῆς καρδίας καί ἡ ἄφατος ταύτης παράκλησις. Νεφροί καί ὀσφύς, ἡ πρός τάς εὐχάς καί τάς συνάξεις στάσις καί καρτερία καί ἡ ἐκεῖθεν ἐγγινομένη πύρωσις τοῦ ἐπιθυμητικοῦ πρός θεωρίαν καί συνουσίαν Θεοῦ, καθώς ὁ θεῖος ∆υίδ ἀναγράφεται οὕτω λέγων· "Πύρωσον τούς νεφρούς μου καί τήν καρδίαν μου". Καί ὁ Παῦλός φησι· (188) "Στῆτε οὖν περιζωσάμενοι τάς ὀσφῦς ὑμῶν ἐν ἀληθείᾳ". Καί τῶν ἀποστόλων ὁ κορυφαιότατος Πέτρος "∆ιό, φησίν, ἀναζωσάμενοι τάς ὀσφῦς τῆς διανοίας ὑμῶν, νήφοντες τελείως, ἐλπίσατε ἐπί τήν φερομένην ὑμῖν χάριν ἐν ἀποκαλύψει Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ, ὡς τέκνα ὑπακοῆς". Χάριν, τήν τοῦ παναγίου