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of me, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world," and concerning the impious, as when he says to those on the left: "Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire, which is prepared for the devil and his angels", so that he might say: For the just, above in heaven, within this visible firmament, but for the impious, down around the earth, where also the devil was cast down. 5.185 It is therefore necessary to seek the place of those in the middle. He says, then, in the parable of the ten virgins that the five who were wise entered with the bridegroom into the wedding hall, that is, into heaven, since they had chosen both virginity and almsgiving; but the foolish, he says, having chosen the one, but having despised the other, remained outside the wedding hall, finding the door shut and hearing: "Depart from me, I do not know you," neither permitted to enter, nor condemned with the impious, but remaining outside the wedding hall. Thus, therefore, each one having an unhypocritical right faith and a good life with boldness enters into the kingdom; but the opposite, those who have neither of these things, neither right faith, nor an upright life, are condemned with the devil around the earth. But those who have one but do not have the other are a certain middle group, condemned to remain outside the wedding hall, that is, of the firmament. 5.186 But it is impossible for us to know the nature of the good things or the punishments, unless we come to be within those realities themselves; but he indicated the things to come only as an example of the punishments here and the good things here. For it was not possible for us to hear otherwise, having not yet taken experience of any new things, but as much as it was possible to speak enigmatically, he said that: "The kingdom of heaven is likened to a king, who made a wedding feast for his son", having chosen the things superior to all the good things of this life and likened them to the good things there; likewise also the worst things, fire, worm, Tartarus and the gnashing of teeth, and darkness and as many things as are similar to these, since these happen to be more terrible than the punishments here, he likened them to these. But it is not possible to reckon the good things there, nor the terrible things, nor the things in between these. 5.187 But there is a certain other state, much and very much better in general than the things here, just as this life is better than when we were in our mother’s womb. For one must consider how we were living inside the womb, in darkness, in blood, in phlegm, in bile, in mud, in dung, and mixed with all impurity and foul odor and existing in all ignorance, but having looked into this life we behold certain other things, of which we had not yet received experience, an extent of relief, breathing of air, enjoyment of the most beautiful light, the structure of the world, the creation of an skillful and all-wise creator, and being filled with the knowledge of God, all of which it was not possible for us to know or to think of or to hear or to enjoy a single one of them, while still being in the womb. 5.188 Thus also it is not possible for us to reckon the future state, which is generally better than the things here, while still being in this life, or to consider or to imagine it, unless we come to be within those realities themselves. "For what eye has not seen and ear has not heard, he says, and has not entered into the heart of man, what things God has prepared for those who love him." Just as, therefore, here God has granted a common gift to all, making his sun rise on the just and the unjust and sending rain on the good and the evil, so also in the future state he grants a common gift to all, immortality and incorruptibility and life and immutability; but according to his former actions each draws to himself either the kingdom, or the punishment, or an ascent into heaven, or an abode around the earth, or around the middle rank. And all things happen to be eternal and endless, both the good things and the worst of them. And in general that state differs much and very much from the one here. But contrasted with the good things prepared for the just

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μου, κληρονομήσατε τὴν ἡτοιμασμένην ὑμῖν βασιλείαν ἀπὸ καταβολῆς κόσμου," περὶ δὲ τῶν ἀσεβῶν, ὡς ὅταν τοῖς ἐξ εὐωνύμων λέγῃ· "Πορεύεσθε ἀπ' ἐμοῦ, οἱ κατηραμένοι, εἰς τὸ πῦρ τὸ αἰώνιον, τὸ ἡτοιμασμένον τῷ διαβόλῳ καὶ τοῖς ἀγγέλοις αὐτοῦ", ἵνα εἴπῃ· Τοῖς μὲν δικαίοις ἄνω ἐν τῷ οὐρανῷ ἐσώτερον τούτου τοῦ ὁρωμένου στερεώματος, τοῖς δὲ ἀσεβέσι, κάτω περὶ τὴν γῆν, ἔνθα καὶ ὁ διάβολος κατερρίφη. 5.185 Λοιπὸν τῶν μέσων ἀνάγκη ζητῆσαι τὸν τόπον. Λέγει τοίνυν ἐν τῇ παραβολῇ τῶν δέκα παρθένων ὡς αἱ πέντε αἱ φρόνιμοι εἰσῆλθον μετὰ τοῦ νυμφίου εἰς τὸν νυμφῶνα, τουτέστιν εἰς τὸν οὐρανόν, ἐπειδήπερ καὶ τὴν παρθενίαν καὶ τὴν ἐλεημοσύνην ἐπελέξαντο· αἱ δὲ μωραί, φησί, τὸ ἓν ἐπιλεξάμεναι, τοῦ δὲ ἑτέρου καταφρονήσασαι, ἔμειναν ἔξω τοῦ νυμφῶνος, κεκλεισμένην εὑροῦσαι τῆν θύραν καὶ ἀκούσασαι· "Ἀπέλθατε ἀπ' ἐμοῦ, οὐκ οἶδα ὑμᾶς", οὔτε εἰσελθεῖν συγχωρηθεῖσαι, οὔτε μετὰ τῶν ἀσεβῶν κατακριθεῖσαι, ἀλλὰ μείνασαι ἔξωθεν τοῦ νυμφῶνος. Οὕτως οὖν ἕκαστος ἔχων πίστιν ὀρθὴν ἀνυπόκριτον καὶ βίον καλὸν μετὰ παρρησίας εἰσέρχεται εἰς τὴν βασιλείαν· οἱ δὲ ἐναντίοι οἱ μηδὲ ἓν τούτων ἔχοντες, μήτε πίστιν ὀρθήν, μήτε βίον εὐθῆ, μετὰ τοῦ διαβόλου περὶ τὴν γῆν κατακρίνονται· οἱ δὲ ἕνα μὲν ἔχοντες, ἕνα δὲ μὴ ἔχοντες, μέσοι τινές εἰσιν, ἔξωθεν μένειν τοῦ νυμφῶνος κατακρινόμενοι, τουτέστι τοῦ στερεώματος. 5.186 Τὸ δὲ εἶδος τῶν ἀγαθῶν ἢ τῶν τιμωριῶν ἀδύνατον εἰδέναι ἡμᾶς, εἰ μὴ ἐντὸς αὐτῶν τῶν πραγμάτων γενώμεθα· ὡς ἐν ὑποδείγματι δὲ μόνον τῶν ἐνταῦθα τιμωριῶν καὶ τῶν ἐνταῦθα ἀγαθῶν ἐσήμανε τὰ μέλλοντα· οὐδὲ γὰρ ἐνῆν ἡμᾶς ἄλλως ἀκοῦσαι, μήπω πεῖραν εἰληφότας καινῶν τινων πραγμάτων, ἀλλ' ὅσον ἐνῆν αἰνιγματωδῶς εἰπεῖν, εἶπεν ὅτι· "Ὡμοιώθη ἡ βασιλεία τῶν οὐρανῶν ἀνθρώπῳ βασιλεῖ, ὅστις ἐποίησε τῷ υἱῷ αὐτοῦ γάμους", τὰ πάντων ἀνώτερα τῶν τοῦ βίου τούτου ἀγαθῶν ἐκλεξάμενος καὶ ὁμοιώσας τοῖς ἐκεῖσε ἀγαθοῖς· ὁμοίως καὶ τὰ χείριστα, πῦρ, σκώληκα, τάρταρον καὶ βρυγμὸν ὀδόντων, καὶ σκότος καὶ ὅσα τούτοις παραπλήσια, ἐπειδὴ ταῦτα τῶν ἐνταῦθα τιμωρητικῶν δεινότερα τυγχάνουσι, τούτοις αὐτὰ ἐξωμοίωσεν· οὔτε δὲ τὰ ἀγαθὰ τῶν ἐκεῖ δυνατὸν ἀναλογίσασθαι, οὔτε τὰ δεινά, οὔτε τὰ μέσα τούτων. 5.187 Ἀλλ' ἑτέρα τις κατάστασίς ἐστι κρείττων πολὺ καὶ λίαν πολὺ καθόλου ὑπάρχουσα τῶν ἐνταῦθα, ὥσπερ κρείττων ὑπάρχει ὁ βίος οὗτος οὗ ὅτε ἦμεν ἐν τῇ κοιλίᾳ τῆς μητρὸς ἡμῶν. Ἀναλογίσασθαι γὰρ δεῖ πῶς ἦμεν ἔσωθεν τῆς κοιλίας διάγοντες, ἐν σκότῳ, ἐν αἵματι, ἐν φλέγματι, ἐν χολῇ, ἐν βορβόρῳ, ἐν κόπρῳ, καὶ πάσῃ ἀκαθαρσίᾳ καὶ δυσωδίᾳ συμφυρόμενοι καὶ ἐν πάσῃ ἀγνωσίᾳ ὑπάρχοντες, παρακύψαντες δὲ ἐν τῷ βίῳ τούτῳ ἕτερά τινα θεωροῦμεν, ὧν τὴν πεῖραν οὔπω παρειλήφαμεν, ἀνέσεως ἔκτασιν, ἀέρος ἀναπνοήν, ἀπόλαυσιν φωτὸς καλλίστου, κατασκευὴν κόσμου τεχνίτου καὶ πανσόφου δημιούργημα, καὶ γνώσεως Θεοῦ ἐμπιπλάμενοι, ἅπερ πάντα οὔτε εἰδέναι ἡμᾶς ἦν δυνατὸν οὔτε ἐνθυμηθῆναι οὔτε ἀκοῦσαι οὔτε ἀπολαῦσαι ἑνὸς τούτων, ἔτι ὄντας ἐν τῇ κοιλίᾳ. 5.188 Οὕτως καὶ τὴν μέλλουσαν κατάστασιν καθόλου κρείττονα τυγχάνουσαν τῶν ἐνταῦθα οὐ δυνατὸν ἡμᾶς ἀναλογίσασθαι, ἔτι ὄντας ἐν τούτῳ τῷ βίῳ, ἢ ἐνθυμεῖσθαι ἢ φαντασθῆναι, εἰ μὴ ἐντὸς αὐτῶν τῶν πραγμάτων γενώμεθα. "Ἃ γὰρ ὀφθαλμὸς οὐκ εἶδε καὶ οὖς οὐκ ἤκουσε, φησί, καὶ ἐπὶ καρδίαν ἀνθρώπου οὐκ ἀνέβη, ἃ ἡτοίμασεν ὁ Θεὸς τοῖς ἀγαπῶσιν αὐτόν." Ὥσπερ τοίνυν ἐνταῦθα κοινὸν δῶρον ἅπασι κεχάρισται ὁ Θεὸς τὸν ἥλιον αὐτοῦ ἀνατέλλων ἐπὶ δικαίους καὶ ἀδίκους καὶ βρέχων ἐπ' ἀγαθοὺς καὶ πονηρούς, οὕτως καὶ ἐν τῇ μελλούσῃ καταστάσει κοινὸν δῶρον πᾶσι χαρίζεται, ἀθανασίαν καὶ ἀφθαρσίαν καὶ ζωὴν καὶ ἀτρεπτότητα· κατὰ δὲ τὰς προτέρας πράξεις ἕκαστος ἑαυτῷ ἐφέλκεται εἴτε τὴν βασιλείαν, εἴτε τὴν τιμωρίαν, εἴτε ἄνοδον ἐν οὐρανῷ, εἴτε μονὴν περὶ τὴν γῆν, εἴτε περὶ τὴν μέσην τάξιν. Πάντα δὲ αἰώνια καὶ ἀπέραντα τυγχάνει, καὶ τὰ ἀγαθὰ καὶ τὰ τούτων χείριστα. Καθόλου δὲ ἐκείνη ἡ κατάστασις τῆς ἐνταῦθα πολὺ καὶ πάνυ πολὺ διενήνοχε. Πρὸς δὲ τὰ ἀγαθὰ τὰ ἡτοιμασμένα τοῖς δικαίοις ἀντιδιαστελλόμενα