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87

This is not a passion of God; for it is said: "You sent forth your wrath"; a passion is not sent forth. But your pride will turn out for you equal to ashes. The word reveals the state of sinners after the wrath, as they are made worthless in the manifestation that comes through the wrath, which swallows the conceit of those who judge secretly. That ashes signify worthlessness, one can learn from one of the twelve prophets, who says: "and you will tread down the lawless, and they will be like ashes under your feet." For ash is something burnt that has lost its own power. Indeed, a threat in Deuteronomy is brought forward concerning burning, as the fruits are hindered because the earth has lost its own power. 346 It is for one's benefit for sins to be turned to ashes; just as thorns and thistles, when burned, bring no small harm, so also sins, if burned according to what is said, "lawlessness will be burned like fire, and like dry grass will be devoured by fire," it no longer defiles the soul, but calls it to repentance, according to what is said in the Gospel: "If the mighty works done in you had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago, sitting in sackcloth and ashes." For if one receives in the mind the saving fire, about which the Savior said: "I came to cast fire on the earth, and what do I wish, if it is already kindled," he turns his former sins to ashes; and sitting, instead of "ceasing from sinning," he turns to repentance, choosing a certain austere and laborious life. But the body is of clay. Man is composed of soul and body. And there are times when the body is brought into subjection by the soul and in a way is no longer of clay, being led †subject with logical things† henceforth serving the soul, acting with reason and with 347 mind. But when someone, having turned to evil, cares nothing for the salvation of his soul and henceforth serves the flesh, doing such things that are no different from an irrational animal, he shows that his body is of clay, as it is not helped at all by the movements of the soul. For the body is of a different substance from the soul, as the Savior himself taught, saying: "Do not be afraid of those who kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul." Since they can kill a man's body, but not the soul, it is clear that the substance of soul and body is not the same. When, therefore, the soul is hindered from its own and proper impulses, then man appears as a body of clay, not with the soul changing into a body, but because its actions are no longer heavenly, but bodily, just as Paul calls men "those who walk according to the flesh" and "according to man," saying that they have human and not divine activities. For indeed it was said by the blessed Paul to all those who have given themselves over to bodily things and for this reason are hu348man: "for where there is strife among you, are you not carnal and do you not walk according to man?" But when "walking on earth, they have their citizenship in heaven" and "they bear the image of the heavenly one," ..... ..... they are not a body of clay. Be silent, that I may speak and be relieved of my anger. Urging them to pay attention to the things brought forward by him, he says these things, adding the reason in saying: "and I will be relieved of my anger," teaching that, if they should obtain correction from having permitted him to speak, his anger would be relieved, which he justly had, being angry at their folly not with passion, but as the law would be established to be angry against sinners. But the name of being deaf signifies silence, as in the passage, "I was deaf and did not open my mouth, because you are the one who made me." For he calls not speaking being deaf. And again: "When the sinner stood against me I was deafened and humbled and kept silent from good things." For when the sinner, who is the devil, having persuaded a soul to sin, 349 stands before

87

αὕτη οὐ πάθος θεοῦ ἐστιν· εἴρηται γάρ· "ἐξαπέστειλας τὴν ὀργήν"· πάθος οὐκ ἐξαποστέλλεται· ἀποβήσεται δὲ ὑμῖν τὸ γαυρίαμα ἴσα σποδῷ. τὴν μετὰ τὴν ὀργὴν τῶν ἁμαρτανόντων κατάστασιν ἐνφαίνει ὁ λόγος, εὐτελιζομένων αὐτῶν ἐν τῇ φανερώσει τῇ διὰ τῆς ὀργῆς γινομένῃ καταπινούσης τὸ οἴημα τῶν λαθραίως κρινόντων. ὅτι δὲ τὴν εὐτέλειαν ἡ σποδὸς δηλοῖ, ἔστιν ἐξ ἑνὸς τῶν δώδεκα προφητῶν μαθεῖν λέγοντος· "καὶ καταπατήσετε ἀνόμους καὶ ἔσονται ὡς σποδὸς ὑπὸ τοὺς πόδας ὑμῶν." ἡ γὰρ σποδὸς καυστόν τί ἐστιν ἀπολέσαν τὴν ἰδίαν δύναμιν. ἀμέλει γοῦν ἀπειλὴ ἐν τῷ ∆ευτερονομίῳ περὶ καύσεως φέρεται ὡς διὰ τοῦ τῶν καρπῶν ἐμποδιζομένων διὰ τὸ ἀπολωλεκέναι τὴν γῆν τὴν ἑαυτῆς δύναμιν. 346 ἔστι δὲ ἐπ' ὠφελείᾳ τινὸς τὰ ἁμαρτήματα τεφροῦσθαι· καθάπερ ἄκανθαι καὶ τρίβολοι καυθέντες οὐκ ἐλαχίστην ἐπιφέρουσιν βλάβην, οὕτω καὶ τὰ ἁμαρτήματα, εἰ καίεται κατὰ τὸ εἰρημένον "καυθήσεται ὡς πῦρ ἡ ἀνομία καὶ ὡς ἄγρωστις ξηρὰ βρωθήσεται ὑπὸ πυρός", οὐκ̣έτι τὴν ψυχὴν λυμαίνετ̣αι̣, ἀλλ' εἰς μετάνοιαν ἐκκαλε̣ι῀̣τ̣α̣ι̣ κατὰ τὸ ἐν εὐαγγελίῳ εἰρημένον· "εἰ ἐν Τύρῳ καὶ Σιδῶνι ἐγενήθησαν αἱ δυνάμεις αἱ γενόμεναι ἐν ὑμῖν, πάλαι ἂν ἐν σάκκῳ καὶ σποδῷ καθήμενοι μετενόησαν." εἰ γάρ τις δέχεται ἐν τῇ διανοίᾳ τὸ σωτήριον π̣υ῀̣ρ, π̣ε̣ρὶ οὗ εἶπεν ὁ Σωτήρ· "πῦρ ἦλθον βαλεῖν ἐπὶ τὴν γῆν καὶ τί θέλω, εἰ ἤδη ἀνήφθη", τὰς μὲν προτέρας ἁμαρτίας τεφροῖ· καθήμενος δέ, ἀντὶ τοῦ «ἀργήσας ἀπὸ τοῦ ἁμαρτάνειν», εἰς μετάνοιαν τρέπεται αὐστηρόν τινα βίον ἑλόμενος καὶ ἐπίπονον. τὸ δὲ σῶμα πήλινον. ὁ ἄνθρωπος σύνκειται ἐκ ψυχῆς καὶ σώματος. καὶ ἔστιν ὅτε δουλαγωγεῖται τὸ σῶμα ὑπὸ τῆς ψυχῆς καὶ τρόπον τινὰ οὐκέτι πήλινόν ἐστιν ἀγόμενον †ὑποκειμένη μετὰ λογικὰ† ὑπηρετοῦν λοιπὸν ψυχῇς σὺν λόγῳ καὶ σὺν 347 νῷ ἐνεργούσῃ. ὅτ̣αν δὲ μηδὲν φροντίσῃ τις τῆς σ̣ωτηρίας αὐτοῦ τῆς ψυχῆς πρὸς κ̣ακίαν τραπεὶς καὶ τῇ σαρκὶ λοι̣πὸν δουλεύῃ ποιῶν τοιαῦτα, ἃ οὐδὲν διαφέρει ἀλόγου ζῴου, δείκνυσιν, ὅτι αὐτοῦ τὸ σῶμα πήλινόν ἐστιν ὡς οὐδὲν βοηθούμενον ἀπὸ τῶν ψυχικῶν κινημάτων. ἑτερούσιον γάρ ἐστιν τὸ σῶμα παρὰ τὴν ψυχήν, ὡς αὐτὸς ὁ Σωτὴρ ἐδίδαξεν λέγων· "μὴ φοβεῖσθε ἀπὸ τῶν ἀποκτεννόντων τὸ σῶμα, τὴν δὲ ψυχὴν μὴ δυναμένων ἀποκτεῖναι." ἐπεὶ τὸ σῶμα ἀνθρώπου δύνανται ἀποκτεῖναι, τὴν ψυχὴν δὲ οὐ´̣, σα̣φὲς ὅτι οὐχ ἡ αὐτὴ οὐσία ψυχῆς καὶ σώματός ἐστιν. ὅταν τοίνυν ἐμποδισθῇ ἡ ψυχὴ τῶν ἰδίων καὶ οἰκείων ὁρμῶν, τότε ὁ ἄνθρωπος ὡς πήλινον σῶμα φαίνεται, οὐ τῆς ψυχῆς εἰς σῶμα μεταβαλλούσης, ἀλλὰ τῷ τὰς πράξεις αὐτῆς οὐκέτι εἶναι οὐρανίους, ἀλλὰ σωματικάς, καθὰ καὶ "τοὺς κατὰ σάρκα περιπατοῦντας" καὶ "κατ' ἄνθρωπον" ἀνθρώπους καλεῖ ὁ Παῦλος τῷ ἀνθρωπίνας ἔχειν καὶ μὴ θείας ἐνεργείας λέγων. εἴρηται γοῦν π̣αρὰ τοῦ μακαρίου Παύλου πρὸς ὅλους τοὺς τοῖς σωματικοῖς ἑαυτοὺς ἐπιδεδωκότας καὶ διὰ τοῦτο ἀνθρωπί348 νους ὄντας· "ὅπου γὰρ ἔρις ἐν ὑμῖν, οὐ σαρκικοί ἐστε καὶ κατὰ ἄνθρωπον περιπατεῖτε;" ὅτε δὲ "ἐπὶ γῆς περιπατοῦντες ἐν οὐρανῷ τὸ πολίτευμα ἔχουσι" καὶ "φοροῦσι τὴν εἰκόνα τοῦ ἐπουρανίου", ····· ···· οὐκ εἰσὶν πήλινον σῶμα· κωφεύσατε, ἵνα λαλήσω καὶ ἀναπαύσωμαι θυμοῦ. αὐτ̣ο̣ὺς̣ ε᾿̣πιστῆσαι τοῖς παρ' αὐτοῦ ἐπιφερομένοις προτρεπόμενος ταῦτά φησιν ἐπάγων τὴν αἰτίαν ἐν τῷ λέγειν· "καὶ ἀναπαύσωμαι θυμοῦ" παιδεύων ὁ´̣τ̣ι, ει᾿̣ διορθώσεως τύχοιεν ἐκ τοῦ συνκεχωρηκέναι αὐτῷ λέγε̣ιν, ἀναπαύσεται αὐτοῦ τοῦ θ̣υμ̣ο̣υ῀̣, ο̣ὗ εἶχεν δικαίως κατὰ τῆς ἀν̣ο̣ίας αὐτῶν ὀργιζόμενος οὐκ ε᾿̣μπαθῶς, ἀλλ' ὡς ἂν ἔκειτο ὁ νόμος κατὰ τῶν ἁμαρτανόντων ὀργίζεσθαι. σημαίνει δὲ τὸ τῆς κωφώσεως ὄνομα τὴν σιωπὴν ὡς ἐν τῷ "ἐκωφώθην καὶ οὐκ ἤνοιξα τὸ στόμα μου, ὅτι σὺ εἶ ὁ ποιήσας με". τὸ γὰρ μὴ λαλῆσαι κώφωσιν λέγει. καὶ πάλιν· "ἐν τῶι συστῆναι τὸν ἁμαρτωλὸν ἐναντίον μου ἐκωφώθην καὶ ἐταπεινώθην καὶ ἐσίγησαν ἐξ ἀγαθῶν." ὅταν γὰρ ὁ ἁμαρτωλός, ὅστις ἐστὶν ὁ διάβολος, πείσας ψυχὴν ἁμαρτάνειν 349 σ̣τῇ κατενώπιον