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to purchase the time of his beloved; then considering procuresses for himself as matchmakers, practicing corrupting words, contriving for himself opportunities for encounters, drinking parties and banquets, long conversations ... Through so many things, all those in between, bringing upon himself the evil of fornication, this is he who draws sin to himself as with a long rope; and all malice, to speak simply, against one’s neighbor (not accomplished by chance, but accomplished by design and ambush, through long preparations) is a long rope, by which people drag to themselves sins that lie far off. And these ropes, being so long, are difficult to break, because of the sinners' vigor in wickedness, and because they vehemently and densely weave their sins for themselves. 5.171 For this reason he says: And as with the strap of a heifer’s yoke. For the yoke-straps are not easily broken even by the strongest teams of animals violently pulling their loads. And the word intensified the strength, saying that the strap of the yoke is from a heifer, that is, from a very strong animal, weakened neither by labors nor by age. Woe, therefore, to those who practice certain long preparations for sinning, and these vigorously and strongly. Nevertheless, it is possible for one who has become a prisoner of sin to follow Christ, who will say to those in bonds: Come forth, and to those in darkness: Be revealed. And having come out from prison, the prisoners, and from darkness having looked upon the true light through repentance, they follow Christ confessing, bound in handcuffs, until from the change to good things they become worthy to be loosed by him from the bonds thought until then to be inescapable. But these, who draw sins to themselves and despise the divine judgment, often hasten with their words the things threatened, as if they will suffer nothing from them, and they say: Let the things he will do draw near with speed, that we may see; and let the counsel of the Holy One of Israel come, that we may know. But this is a long rope, dragging in the sin that lies far off. For it is clear that, disbelieving in the age to come and despising the things threatened, they say such things. For he who fears the judgment seat of Christ and calls to mind the sins from his youth will not dare to hasten the judgment scornfully. On the contrary, he even seeks for himself longer delays, in order to be able in more time to wipe his soul clean from the filth of sins. And of rushing irrationally toward future things, Ahithophel and Judas are proof, who because they judged present things heavier than those after them, and the reproach among men heavier than the punishment in Gehenna, preferred a death by hanging of their own accord. For they would not have hanged themselves if they believed in the age to come, but even if they were displeased with life, they would have endured things here, judging future things more fearful than present ones. Such was Job, saying: Would that I could overpower myself, or having asked another he would do this for me. For from such things he showed both the intolerability of his wound and preserved his caution about plotting against himself. For on those who violently take themselves away lies the condemnation of murder. And since in Paul we also find it said by some, Let us do evil, that good may come, we consider that practice also to be a rope that draws on great sin. For it is said that from great perversity such an opinion also arose among the Jews, that, since destruction is expected to come (because of the multitude of sin), come, let us do evil and fill up the final measure of iniquity, so that the change of present things may come upon us, and all things may come to be in a better state. 5.172 Woe to those who call evil good and good evil; who put darkness for light, and light for darkness; who put bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter.

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ἐξωνήσασθαι τὴν ὥραν τῆς ἐρωμένης· εἶτα προμνηστρίας ἑαυτῷ προαγωγοὺς περινοῶν, ῥήματα ἐπιτηδεύων φθοροποιὰ, συντυχιῶν ἀφορμὰς ἑαυτῷ κατασκευάζων, πότους καὶ συμ πόσια, ὁμιλίας μακράς ... ∆ιὰ τοσούτων, ὅσων τῶν ἐν τῷ μέσῳ, τὸ κακὸν τῆς πορνείας προσάγων ἑαυτῷ, οὗτός ἐστιν ὁ ἐπισπώμενος τὴν ἁμαρτίαν ὡς σχοινίῳ μακρῷ· καὶ πᾶσα, ἁπαξαπλῶς εἰπεῖν, ἡ κατὰ τοῦ πλησίον κακία (μὴ ἐκ τοῦ περιτυχόντος ἐπιτελουμένη, ἀλλὰ ἐκ βουλῆς καὶ ἐνέδρας, διὰ μακρῶν κατασκευῶν συντελουμένη) σχοινίον ἐστὶ μακρὸν, δι' οὗ καὶ πόῤῥω κειμένας ἐπισύρονται ἑαυτοῖς τὰς ἁμαρτίας οἱ ἄνθρωποι. Οὕτω δὲ μακρὰ ὄντα τὰ σχοινία ταῦτα, δυσδιά λυτά εἰσι, διὰ τὸ ἐν κακίαις εὔτονον τῶν ἁμαρτανόντων, καὶ σφοδρῶς ἑαυτοῖς καὶ πυκνῶς ἐπιπλεκόντων τὰ ἁμαρτή ματα. 5.171 ∆ιὰ τοῦτό φησι· Καὶ ὡς ζυγοῦ ἱμάντι δαμάλεως. Οἱ γὰρ ζυγόδεσμοι οὐδὲ ὑπὸ τῶν ἰσχυροτάτων ζευγῶν καὶ βιαίως ἐπισπωμένων τὰ βάρη εὐκόλως διαῤῥήγνυνται. Ἐπέ τεινε δὲ τὴν ἰσχὺν ὁ λόγος, τὸν ἱμάντα τοῦ ζυγοῦ ἐκ δαμά λεως εἶναι λέγων, τουτέστιν ἀπὸ ἰσχυροτάτου ζώου, οὔτε διὰ πόνων, οὔτε διὰ χρόνων ἠσθενηκότος. Οὐαὶ οὖν οἱ καὶ μακράς τινας κατασκευὰς πρὸς τὸ ἁμαρτάνειν ἐπιτηδεύον τες, καὶ ταύτας εὐτόνως καὶ ἰσχυρῶς. ∆υνατὸν μέντοι γε νόμενον δέσμιον ἁμαρτίας ἀκολουθῆσαι Χριστῷ, τῷ ἐροῦντι τοῖς ἐν δεσμοῖς· Ἐξέλθετε, καὶ τοῖς ἐν τῷ σκότει· Ἀποκαλυφθῆναι. Ἐξελθόντες δὲ ἀπὸ φυλακῆς οἱ δέσμιοι καὶ ἀπὸ τοῦ σκότους τῷ ἀληθινῷ φωτὶ διὰ τῆς μετανοίας ἐμβλέ ψαντες, ἕπονται Χριστῷ ἐξομολογούμενοι, δεδεμένοι ἐν χει ροπέδαις, ἕως ἂν ἐκ τῆς τῶν ἀγαθῶν μεταβολῆς ἄξιοι γέ νωνται τοῦ λυθῆναι ὑπ' αὐτοῦ τῶν ἀφύκτων τέως νομιζο μένων εἶναι δεσμῶν. Οὗτοι δὲ, οἱ ἐπισπώμενοι τὰς ἁμαρ τίας καὶ καταφρονοῦντες τῆς θείας κρίσεως, ἐπείγουσι πολλάκις τῷ λόγῳ τὰ ἀπειλούμενα, ὡς μηδὲν πεισόμενοι παρ' αὐτῶν, καὶ λέγουσι· Τὸ τάχος ἐγγισάτω ἃ ποιήσει, ἵνα ἴδωμεν· καὶ ἐλθέτω ἡ βουλὴ τοῦ Ἁγίου Ἰσραὴλ, ἵνα γνῶμεν. Ἀλλὰ τοῦτο σχοινίον μακρὸν, τὴν πόῤῥω κειμένην ἁμαρτίαν ἐπισυρόμενον. ∆ῆλον γὰρ, ὅτι ἀπιστοῦντες περὶ τοῦ μέλλοντος αἰῶνος καὶ καταφρονοῦντες τῶν ἀπειλου μένων, τοιαῦτα λέγουσιν. Οὐ γὰρ ὁ φοβούμενος τὸ τοῦ Χριστοῦ δικαστήριον καὶ ἀναλαμβάνων τῇ μνήμῃ τὰ ἐκ νεότητος ἡμαρτημένα, τολμήσει καταφρονητικῶς ἐπισπεύ δειν τὴν κρίσιν. Τὸ ἐναντίον μὲν οὖν, καὶ προθεσμίας ἑαυτῷ μακροτέρας ἐπιζητεῖ, πρὸς τὸ ἐν πλείονι χρόνῳ δυνηθῆναι τὴν ἑαυτοῦ ψυχὴν ἀπὸ τοῦ ῥύπου τῶν ἁμαρτιῶν ἀποσμῆξαι. Τοῦ δὲ ἀλόγως ἐπείγεσθαι πρὸς τὰ μέλλοντα, ἀπόδειξις Ἀχιτόφελ καὶ Ἰούδας, οἳ διὰ τὸ βαρύτερα κρίνειν τὰ παρόντα τῶν μετὰ ταῦτα, καὶ τὸν ἐν ἀνθρώποις ὀνειδισμὸν τῆς ἐν γεέννῃ κολάσεως, τὸν δι' ἀγχόνης θάνατον τοῦ αὐτομάτου προετίμησαν. Οὐκ ἂν γὰρ πιστεύοντες περὶ τοῦ μέλλοντος αἰῶνος ἀπηγχονίσαντο, ἀλλ' εἰ καὶ δυσηρεστοῦντο τῷ βίῳ, προσετίθεσαν ἂν τοῖς ἐνταῦθα, φοβερώτερα κρίνοντες τῶν παρόντων τὰ μέλλοντα. Ὁποῖος ἦν ὁ Ἰὼβ, λέγων· Ὄφελονδυναίμην ἐμαυτὸν χειρώσασθαι, ἢ δεηθείς γε ἑτέρου καὶ ποιήσει μοι τοῦτο. Ἐκ τῶν τοιούτων γὰρ καὶ τὸ τῆς πλη γῆς δύσφορον ἐνεδείκνυτο καὶ τὸ περὶ τὴν ἑαυτοῦ ἐπιβουλὴν εὐλαβὲς διεσώζετο. Τοῖς γὰρ βιαίως ἑαυτοὺς ὑπεξάγουσι κατάκρισις ἀνδρο φονίας ἐπίκειται. Ἐπεὶ δὲ καὶ παρὰ τῷ Παύλῳ εὑρή καμεν ὡς λεγόμενον ὑπό τινων τὸ Ποιήσωμεν τὰ κακὰ, ἵνα ἔλθῃ τὰ ἀγαθά, ἡγούμεθα κἀκείνην τὴν ἐπιτήδευσιν σχοινίον εἶναι ἁμαρτίας μεγάλης ἐπακτικόν. Λέγεται γὰρ γεγονέναι ἐκ τῆς πολλῆς διαστροφῆς καὶ τοιαύτη τις γνώμη παρὰ τοῖς Ἰουδαίοις, ὅτι, ἐπειδὴ ἡ φθορὰ προσδοκᾶται (τῷ πλήθει τῆς ἁμαρτίας) γενήσεσθαι, φέρε ποιήσωμεν τὰ κακὰ καὶ τὸ ἔσχατον μέτρον τῆς ἀδικίας πληρώσωμεν, ὥστε ἐπελθεῖν τὴν ἀλλαγὴν τῶν παρόντων, καὶ ἐν τῇ βελτίονι καταστάσει γενέσθαι τὰ σύμπαντα. 5.172 Οὐαὶ οἱ λέγοντες τὸ πονηρὸν καλὸν καὶ τὸ καλὸν πονηρόν· οἱ τιθέντες τὸ σκότος φῶς, καὶ τὸ φῶς σκότος· οἱ τιθέντες τὸ γλυκὺ πικρὸν καὶ τὸ πικρὸν γλυκύ.