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of the preceding advances. And it is well said that this mountain is "toward the east"; for it has lights from every side. For whatever conception you may take of this mountain, it is luminous; for it is called wisdom, word, life, truth, righteousness, sanctification, redemption. All these are rising lights, not many lights in substance—for they have one subject, the Son of God—but according to different energies. "Toward the east" therefore of the house of God, which is wholly illumined, the holy one came, being led by the hand by the virtues; and it is possible to call the various doctrines of piety "east," through which Abraham, having come, pitched his tent, which he used for his advances—for this is what the tent signifies—while the house of God happens to be permanent; for, "I will pass over" "in the place of a wonderful tabernacle, even to the house of God". Having passed therefore through the tent, he pitches it into the ever-abiding house, after which there is no other ascent. This is also said in another psalm: "How lovely are your tabernacles, O Lord of hosts! My soul longs and faints for the courts of the Lord". For he who has not yet reached the courts has his love in the tents, advancing 222 and expecting perfection in saying: "My heart and my fle[sh] shall rejoice in the living God", when he co[mes] to be in that sta[te], after which there is no other, in which those who have arrived are blessed, as the psalm says: "Blessed are all they that dwe[ll] in your house", not sojourning but dwelling; for this is proper to those in tents and advances, but for dwellers to come into the h[ous]e of G[od], in which they are blessed as praising him "forever and ev[er]", which signifies the end of all things, into which he pit[ched] the tent, having passed through by advances and henceforth lay[ing] claim to perfection, into which he will come who obeys the word that exhorts: "K[ee]p your foot when you go into the house of God and be near to h[ea]r"; for thus he will be able to dwell in the house, saying: "Th[at] I m[ay d]well in the house of the Lord for length of days". It m[us]t be kno[wn] t[hat] by these things the divine way of life is signified symbolically, even if the per[so]n of Ab[ra]am still admits of perfection; for he has not yet been renamed. And he pitches the tent "by the sea", being firm and un[shak]en because of completely cleaving to virtue, so that one might say: "Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, <or> persecution?" and the rest, which you would not be wrong to call a sea. For where[ver] the holy one may be, even in perfection, he has the storm lying in wait and the mutable aspect of created nature, which the perfect one, holding the reins, prevents the energy of evil, while remaining in its power, which is blessed; for this belongs to one who is good and exists in virtue, since the evil one also exists in the power of virtue, having been turned to this by his own intention and not having kept himself as he was made, good. And the same one also pitches the tent in "Aggai toward the south", appropriately to having arrived at the mountain of the house of God and being wholly enlightened from the east, 223 which are the virtues according to their kind, and taking no thought for any of the op[posi]ng things—for not even the t[emp]ests from the sea ov[ertu]rn his building, being well founded— -ju[st a]s he has transformed the words of Jesus into works, being in a feast; for this is how Aggai is interpreted. For the great feas[t] is the perfection of virtue. For this the psal[mis]t also sa[y]s: "With the voice of exultation and confession of the sound of those keeping a fe[as]t"; fo[r] he who exults in the presence of the Spirit and ma[kes] confession, not as one sinning and repenting but as o[ne] giving thank[s], keeps a feast, -for the n[am]e of confession is used instea[d] of thanksgiving, as in "I confess to you, Father, Lord of h[eav]en and of earth"; -for he says, "that the thought of man", evi[den]tly of him who exults, "shall confess to you, and the remn[an]t of thought

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τῶν προλαβουσῶν προκοπῶν. Εὖ δὲ καὶ τὸ ὄρος τοῦτο εἰρῆσθαι ὡς "6κατ' ἀνατολάς"6 ἐστιν· παντόθεν γὰρ φῶτα ἔχει. Οἵαν γὰρ ἂν ἐπίνοιαν τούτου τοῦ ὄρους λάβοις, φωτεινή ἐστιν· λέγεται γὰρ σοφία λόγος ζωη`̣ ἀλήθεια δικαιοσύνη ἁγιασμὸς ἀπολύ- τρωσις. Ταῦτα πάντα ἀνατέλλοντά εἰσι φῶτα, οὐ πολλὰ φῶτα κατὰ τὴν οὐσίαν, -ἓν γὰρ ἔχουσιν ὑποκείμενον τὸν τοῦ Θεοῦ Υἱόν, -ἀλλὰ κατ' ἐνεργείας διαφόρους. "6Κατὰ ἀνατολὰς"6 οὖν τοῦ οἴκου τοῦ Θεοῦ τοῦ δι' ὅλου καταυγαζομένου ἦλθεν ὁ ἅγιος ἐκ τῶν ἀρετῶν χειραγωγούμενος· δυνατὸν δὲ καὶ τὰ ποικίλα δόγματα τῆς εὐσεβείας ἀνατολὰς εἰπεῖν, δι' ὧν ἐληλυθὼς ὁ Ἀβρὰμ τὴν σκηνὴν ἔπηξεν, ᾗ ἐκέχρητο μὲν εἰς τὰς προκοπάς, -τοῦτο γὰρ ἡ σκηνὴ δηλοῖ, -τοῦ οἴκου τοῦ Θεοῦ μονίμου τυγχάνοντος· "6∆ιελεύσομαι"6 γὰρ "6ἐν τόπῳ σκηνῆς θαυμαστῆς ἕως τοῦ οἴκου τοῦ Θεοῦ"6. ∆ιελθὼν οὖν διὰ τῆς σκηνῆς πήγνυσιν αὐτὴν εἰς τὸν οἶκον τὸν ἀεὶ μένοντα, μεθ' ὃν οὐκ ἔστιν ἀνάβασις ἄλλη. Τοῦτο καὶ ἐν ἄλλῳ ψαλμῷ λέγεται· "6Ὡς ἀγαπητὰ τὰ σκηνώματά σου, Κύριε τῶν δυνάμεων· ἐπιποθεῖ καὶ ἐκλείπει ἡ ψυχή μου εἰστὰς αὐλὰς τοῦ Κυρίου"6. Ὁ γὰρ μήπω εἰς τὰς αὐλὰς φθάσας ἐν ταῖς σκηναῖς ἔχει τὴν ἀγάπην προκόπτων 222 καὶ προσδοκῶν τελείωσιν ἐν τῷ λέγειν· "6Ἡ καρδία μου καὶ ἡ σάρξ̣ μ̣ο̣[υ ἀ]γαλλιάσεται ἐπὶ Θεὸν ζῶντα"6, ὅτε ἐν ἐκείνῃ τῇ καταστα´̣σ̣[ει γί]νεται, μεθ' ἣν οὐκ ἔστιν ἑτέρα, εἰς ἣν οἱ φθάσαντες μα̣κ̣αρίζ̣ονται, λέγοντος τοῦ ψαλμοῦ· "6Μακάριοι πάντες οἱ κατοικο̣υ῀̣ν̣τ̣ε̣ς ἐν τῷ οἴκῳ σου"6, οὐ παροικοῦντες ἀλλὰ κατοικοῦντες· τοῦτο γὰρ̣ τ̣ω῀̣ν ἐν σκηναῖς καὶ προκοπαῖς ἴδιον, κατοικούντων δὲ τὸ εἰς Θ̣ε̣ο̣υ῀̣ ο̣ἶκ̣ον ἐλθεῖν, ἐν ᾧ μακαρίζονται οἷα "6εἰς τοὺς αἰῶνας τῶν αι᾿̣ω´̣ν̣ω̣ν̣"6 αἰνοῦντες αὐτόν, ὅπερ τὸ ἐπὶ πᾶσιν τέλος δηλοῖ, εἰς ὃ ἔπηξε̣ν̣ τ̣ὴν̣ σκηνὴν διὰ προκοπῶν διεληλυθὼς καὶ τελειότητος λοιπὸν με̣τ̣α̣π̣ο̣ιούμενος, εἰς ὃ ἥξει ὁ πειθόμενος τῷ λόγῳ παραινοῦντι· "6Φυ´̣λ̣α̣ξ̣ο̣ν τὸν πόδα σου ἐν ᾧ ἐὰν ἀπέρχῃ εἰς οἶκον τοῦ Θεοῦ καὶ ἐγγὺς τ̣ο̣υ῀̣ α᾿̣κοῦσαι"6· οὕτω γὰρ κατοικῆσαι τὸν οἶκον δυνήσεται λέγων· "6Τ̣ο̣υ῀̣ κα̣τοικεῖν με ἐν οἴκῳ Κυρίου εἰς μακρότητα ἡμερῶν"6. Εἰδέναι δε̣ι῀̣ ὁ´̣τ̣ι̣ δ̣ιὰ το̣ύτ̣ω̣ν συμβολικῶς ἡ πολιτεία ἡ θεία δηλοῦται, κἂν τὸ προ´̣σ̣ω̣π̣ο̣ν̣ τοῦ Ἀβ̣ρὰμ ἔτι τελείωσιν ἐπιδέχηται· οὔπω γὰρ μετακέκλη̣τ̣α̣ι̣. "6Κατὰ θάλασσαν"6 δὲ τὴν σκηνὴν πήγνυσιν βέβαιος ὢν καὶ ἄσ̣ε̣ι̣σ̣τ̣ο̣ς̣ διὰ τὸ τελείως ἀντέχεσθαι τῆς ἀρετῆς ὥστ' ἂν εἰπεῖν· "6Τίς ἡμᾶς χωρίσει ἀπὸ τῆς ἀγάπης τοῦ Χριστοῦ; θλῖψις ἢ στενοχωρία <ἢ> διωγμός;"6 καὶ τὰ ἑξῆς, ἅπερ θάλασσαν λέγων οὐκ ἂν ἁμάρτοις. Ὁπ̣ούποτε γὰρ ἂν ᾖ ὁ ἅγιος, κἂν ἐν τελειότητι, ἐφεδρεύουσαν ἔχει̣ τη`̣ν ζάλην καὶ τῆς γενητῆς φύσεως τὸ τρεπτόν, ὅπερ ἡνιοχῶν ὁ τέλειος κωλύει τὴν ἐνέργειαν τῆς κακίας ἐν δυνάμει αὐτῆς διαμένων, ὅπερ ἐστὶ μακάριον· ἀγαθοῦ γάρ ἐστι τοῦτο καὶ ἐν ἀρετῇ ὑπάρχοντος, ἐπεὶ καὶ ὁ κακὸς ἐν δυνάμει ἀρετῆς ὑπάρχει, τῇ ἰδίᾳ προθέσει τραπεὶς ἐπὶ τοῦτο και`̣ μὴ φυλάξας ἑαυτὸν ὡς γέγονεν ἀγαθός. Ὁ δ' αὐτὸς καὶ ἐν "6Ἀγγαὶ κατὰ νότον"6 πήγνυσι τὴν σκηνὴν οἰκείως τῷ ἐφθακέναι εἰς τὸ ὄρος τοῦ οἴκου τοῦ Θεοῦ καὶ δι' ὅλων πεφωτισμένος ἐκ τῶν ἀνατολῶν, 223 αἵτινές εἰσιν αἱ κατ' εἶδος ἀρεταί, καὶ μηδὲν τῶν ἀντι- στα̣τ̣[ού]ν̣τ̣ω̣ν ἐστὶ φροντίδα ποιούμενος, -οὐδὲ γὰρ αἱ ἐκ τῆς θαλάττης τ̣ρ̣ι̣κ̣υ̣μ̣ι´̣αι ἀν̣ατρέπουσιν αὐτοῦ τὸ οἰκοδό- μημα καλῶς ἱδρύμενον, -ὁ´̣σ̣περ τοὺς λόγους Ἰησοῦ εἰς ἔργα μεταβέβληκεν ἐν ἑορτῇ γ̣ινο´̣μ̣ενος· τοῦτο γὰρ ἑρμη- νεύεται Ἀγγαί. Ἡ μεγάλη γὰρ ἑορτ̣ὴ η῾̣ τ̣ῆς ἀρετῆς ὑπάρχει τελείωσις. Τοῦτο γὰρ καὶ ὁ ψαλμῳδός̣ φ̣η̣σ̣ι̣ν· "6Φωνῇ ἀγαλλιάσεως καὶ ἐξομολογήσεως ἤχου ἑορτα̣ζ̣ο´̣ν̣- των"6· ο῾̣ γὰρ ἀγαλλιώμενος ἐπὶ τῇ τοῦ Πνεύματος παρουσίᾳ καὶ ε᾿̣ξ̣ο̣μ̣ολογούμενος οὐχ ὡς ἁμαρτάνων καὶ μετανοῶν ἀλλ' ὡς̣ ε̣υ᾿̣χ̣α̣ριστ̣ω῀̣ν ἑορτάζει, -κεῖται γὰρ τὸ τῆς ἐξομο- λογήσεως ὄνομ̣α̣ α᾿̣ν̣τ̣ι`̣ εὐχ̣αρ̣ιστίας ὡς ἐν τῷ "6Ἐξομολο- γοῦμαί σοι Πάτερ Κύριε το̣υ῀̣ ο̣υ᾿̣ρ̣α̣ν̣οῦ καὶ τῆς γῆς"6· -φησὶν γὰρ "6ὅτι ἐνθύμιον ἀνθρώπου"6, δη̣λ̣ο̣ν̣ότι τοῦ ἀγαλλιωμένου, "6ἐξομολογήσεταί σοι καὶ ἐγκατα´̣λ̣ε̣ι̣μ̣μα ἐνθυμίου