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for from the renewing Spirit he acquires eyes, and likewise new ears, and for the rest he does not see sensible things sensibly as a man, but as one who has become more than a man, he beholds sensible things spiritually and as images of the invisible, (221) and the forms in these things as formless and without shape. And he hears not, as one might say, the voice or voices of a man, but only of the living Word, when It proceeds through the voice of a man. For this one alone, being familiar and beloved, the soul receives through hearing and yields entrance to this one, and gladly embraces It when It has come within, as the Lord said: "My sheep hear my voice, but they will not hear the voice of strangers." But all the other words of men he hears but does not accept; but he does not allow them to enter within at all, but turning them away empty, he sends them away; sometimes he is not even aware of their presence or their knocking, but as though deaf, not hearing—though he does hear them—so is he disposed toward them.

Therefore, when he has become such a one, God immediately dwells in him and all things become for him whatever he wishes, or rather, even beyond what he wishes. For God, being all that is good, fills the soul in which He dwells with every good, as far as is possible for our nature, since God is uncontainable and not to be held by any created nature. And I mean those good things which eye has not seen, and ear has not heard, and have not entered into the heart of man, that is, of one who has not become such. Therefore, God dwelling in him also teaches such a man about things to come and things present, not by word but by deed and experience and actuality. For revealing his noetic eyes, He shows him whatever God wills and whatever is profitable for him, and persuades him not to search, nor to seek, nor to be curious about other things, (222) since not even those things which God reveals and points out to him can he ever behold shamelessly; but stooping down into the depth of the riches and the wisdom and the knowledge of God, he immediately becomes dizzy and is astounded, considering himself and who he is, that he has been deemed worthy to become a spectator of such things. For looking upon the greatness of the philanthropy of God and being ecstatic, and considering himself from his soul unworthy of the vision of such good things, he does not wish to look clearly at them nor to comprehend them, but being overcome by trembling and fear and reverence, he cries out, "Who am I, Lord, and what is my father's house," "that you have entrusted such mysteries to the unworthy one, and have paradoxically made me not only a spectator of such good things of yours, but also a partaker and a sharer?".

Such a one, therefore, having become above all creation, does not wish to turn back and be curious about the things of creation. For having acquired the Master of angels, he does not endure to inquire about the essence and nature of the ministering angels, because he knows that this is not pleasing to God, for a man to be curious about things that are above man; for if we were commanded not to be curious about the divine Scriptures, how much more should we not be inquisitive at all about things beyond what is written. Such a one sees God, as much as it is possible for a man to see and as much as it seems good to God Himself, who also strives to behold Him constantly and after the end prays to see Him always, being content, that is, with the sight of Him alone, needing nothing else, whence he does not desire to leave the Master and God, by whom he is filled with light and (223) from whom he has the enjoyment of incorruptible life, and to look upon his fellow servants. Such a one, being seen, that is, illumined from above by God, and himself beholding His surpassing glory, to be seen by others as he is and in what glory he is, does not even ever consider

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γάρ παρά τοῦ καινοποιοῦ Πνεύματος κτᾶται ὀφθαλμούς, ὦτα δέ ὡσαύτως καινά, καί τοῦ λοιποῦ οὐχ ὡς ἄνθρωπος βλέπει τά αἰσθητά αἰσθητῶς, ἀλλ᾿ ὡς ὑπέρ ἄνθρωπον γεγονώς, τά αἰσθητά πνευματικῶς καθορᾷ καί ὡς εἰκόνας τῶν ἀοράτων, (221) καί τάς ἐν τούτοις μορφάς ὡς ἀμόρφους καί ἀνειδέους. Ἀκούει δέ οὐχ, ὡς ἄν τις εἴπῃ, ἀνθρώπου φωνῆς ἤ φωνῶν, ἀλλά μόνου τοῦ ζῶντος Λόγου, ὅταν διά τῆς τοῦ ἀνθρώπου φωνῆς προέλθῃ. Τοῦτον γάρ καί μόνον, ὡς γνώριμον καί προσφιλῆ πέλοντα, διά τῆς ἀκοῆς εἰσδέχεται ἡ ψυχή καί τήν εἴσοδν τούτῳ παραχωρεῖ, καί ἀσμένως ἔνδοθεν γενόμενον κατασπάζεται, καθώς ἔφη ὁ Κύριος· "Τά πρόβατα τά ἐμά τῆς φωνῆς μου ἀκούει, ἀλλοτρίων δέ οὐκ ἀκούσονται". Τούς δέ γε λοιπούς τῶν ἀνθρώπων ἅπαντας λόγους ἀκούει μέν οὐ προσδέχεται δε· ἀλλ᾿ οὐδέ ἔνδοθεν εἰσελθεῖν τούτους ὅλως ἐᾷ, κενούς δέ ἀποστρεφόμενος αὐτούς ἀποπέμπεται· ἔστιν ὅτε οὐδέ τῆς παρουσίας ἤ τῶν κρουσμάτων αὐτῶν ἐπαισθάνεται, ἀλλ᾿ ὡσεί κωφός οὐκ ἀκούων - καίτοι γε ἀκούων αὐτῶν , οὕτω πρός τούτοις διάκειται.

Τοιγαροῦν καί τοιούτου γενομένου αὐτοῦ, εὐθύς οἰκεῖ ὁ Θεός ἐν αὐτῷ καί γίνεται αὐτῷ πάντα ὅσα ἄν θέλῃ, μᾶλλον δέ καί ὑπέρ ἅ θέλει. Πᾶν γάρ ἀγαθόν ὤν ὁ Θεός, τήν ἐν ᾗ οἰκήσῃ ψυχήν παντός ἐμπίπλησιν ἀγαθοῦ κατά τό ἐγχωροῦν τῇ φύσει ἡμῶν, ἐπειδή πάσῃ κτιστῇ φύσει ἀχώρητός ἐστιν ὁ Θεός καί ἄστεκτος. Ἀγαθά δέ ἐκεῖνα λέγω, ἅ ὀφθαλμός οὐκ εἶδε καί οὖς οὐκ ἤκουσε καί ἐπί καρδίαν ἀνθρώπου οὐκ ἀνέβη, τοῦ μή γενομένου δηλονότι τοιούτου. Τοιγαροῦν καί διδάσκει τόν τοιοῦτον ἄνθρωπον ὁ οἰκήσας ἐν αὐτῷ Θεός περί τῶν μελλόντων καί ἐνεστώτων, οὐ λόγῳ ἀλλ᾿ ἔργῳ καί πείρᾳ καί πράγματι. Ἀποκαλύπτων γάρ τούς νοερούς αὐτοῦ ὀφθαλμούς, δείκνυσιν αὐτῷ ὅσα βούλεται ὁ Θεός καί ὅσα συμφέρει αὐτῷ, τά δ᾿ ἄλλα πείθει μή ἐρευνᾶν μηδέ ζητεῖν μηδέ πολυπραγμονεῖν, (222) ἐπειδή οὐδέ ἅπερ Θεός αὐτῷ ἐκκαλύπτει καί ὑποδείκνυσιν, ἀναιδῶς ποτε δύναται καθορᾶν· ἀλλά παρακύπτων εἰς τό βάθος τοῦ πλούτου καί τῆς σοφίας καί τῆς γνώσεως τοῦ Θεοῦ, εὐθύς ἰλιγγιᾷ καί καταπλήττεται, ἐννοῶν ἑαυτόν καί τίς ὤν τίνων θεατής γενέσθαι ἠξίωται. Εἰς γάρ τό μέγεθος τῆς φιλανθρωπίας τοῦ Θεοῦ ἀποβλέπων καί ἐξιστάμενος, ἀνάξιόν τε τῆς τῶν τοιούτων ἀγαθῶν θέας ἑαυτόν ἀπό ψυχῆς λογιζόμενος, οὐδέ ἀποβλέψαι τρανῶς πρός αὐτά οὐδέ καταμαθεῖν ταῦτα βούλεται, ἀλλά τρόμῳ καί φόβῳ καί αἰδοῖ συνεχόμενος, "Τίς εἰμι ἐγώ, Κύριε, καί τίς ὁ οἶκος τοῦ πατρός μου" βοᾷ, "ὅτι τοιαῦτα μυστήρια τῷ ἀναξίῳ ἐθάρρησας, καί τοιούτων με ἀγαθῶν σου οὐ μόνον θεατήν, ἀλλά καί μέτοχον καί κοινωνόν παραδόξως πεποίηκας;".

Ὁ τοιοῦτος τοίνυν ὑπέρ τήν κτίσιν ἅπασαν γεγονώς, οὐ βούλεται ἐπιστρέψαι καί πολυπραγμονεῖν τά τῆς κτίσεως. Κτησάμενος γάρ τόν τῶν ἀγγέλων ∆εσπότην, περί οὐσίας καί φύσεως τῶν λειτουργούντων ἀγγέλων αὐτῷ ἐρευνᾶν οὐκ ἀνέχεται, ἐπειδή γινώσκων ἐστίν ὡς οὐκ ἀρεστόν ὑπάρχει τοῦτο Θεῷ, τό πολυπραγμονεῖν ἄνθρωπον τά ὑπέρ ἄνθρωπον· εἰ γάρ τάς θείας Γραφάς μή πολυπραγμονεῖν ἐκελεύσθημεν, πολλῷ μᾶλλον ὑπέρ τά γεγραμμένα μή δεῖν ἡμᾶς ὅλως περιεργάζεσθαι. Ὁ τοιοῦτος βλέπει τόν Θεόν, ὅσον ἀνθρώπῳ ἰδεῖν δυνατόν καί ὅσον δοκεῖ αὐτῷ τῷ Θεῷ, ὅς καί διαπαντός καθορᾶν σπουδάζει αὐτόν καί μετά τέλος εὔχεται ἀεί βλέπειν αὐτόν, ἀρκούμενος δηλαδή καί μόνῃ τῇ ἐκείνου θέᾳ μηδενός ἑτέρου δεόμενος, ὅθεν οὐδέ ἐπιθυμεῖ τόν ∆εσπότην καταλιπεῖν καί Θεόν, ὑφ᾿ οὗ πληροῦται φωτός καί (223) παρ᾿ οὗ τῆς ἀκηράτου ζωῆς τήν ἀπόλαυσιν ἔχει, καί ἐναπιδεῖν πρός τούς συνδούλους αὐτοῦ. Ὁ τοιοῦτος βλεπόμενος ἤτοι ἄνωθεν ἐλλαμπόμενος ὑπό τοῦ Θεοῦ, καί αὐτός τήν ὑπερβάλλουσαν δόξαν αὐτοῦ καθορῶν, θεαθῆναι παρ᾿ ἑτέρων οἷος ὑπάρχει καί ἐν οἵᾳ δόξῃ ἐστίν οὐδέ ἐννοῆσαί ποτε