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of the glory of his might, when he shall come to be glorified in his saints, and to be admired in all them that believe," he himself saying through it all that for the faithful saints great and ineffable glories are reserved, but for the unbelievers, a destructive penalty, that is, a punishment analogous to that state. For everyone is found in destruction and ultimate punishment and great regret, who does not enjoy the saints and the glories and the blessedness reserved for the just. 5.243 Therefore every Christian ought to bring himself into subjection and to submit himself henceforth to God and to believe in all of Holy Scripture, both Old and New Testament, and to be a precise guardian of dogmas and to achieve an upright life suitable to the faith, and to reject, just as we confessed when we were about to approach baptism, and to renounce every satanic, heretical, and Hellenic error and unbelief and vanity and hopeless hope. For they will be harmed in the greatest things by remaining in these, calculating and foretelling eclipses as divine learning, having no hope beyond this, but deceiving and being deceived, if ever anyone robbed of a garment or something else, approaching these men as prophets, heard the truth from them, he chanced upon them telling a lie, but if not, not even that. Such are the hopes of the vain-minded who bestow the spherical shape upon the heaven; they are not able to hope for anything beyond these things, neither resurrection, nor the kingdom of heaven, nor a better state, since they thrust forth the sphere, and it destroys the very hope which they have. 5.244 May it be granted to us, O honored head, at the revelation of our Lord Jesus Christ, through the prayers of all the holy patriarchs, prophets, apostles, martyrs, confessors, and teachers, to be numbered with those on the right hand and with them to hear that exceptional and blessed voice saying: "Come, you blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world." To him be glory with the Father and the Holy Spirit for ever and ever. Amen. A note concerning heaven 5.245 That the angels are also in this world, the divine Scripture most clearly shows, the Apostle for one saying thus: "We are made a spectacle unto the world, both to angels and to men," as both live in this world; likewise also David: "Praise the Lord from the heavens, praise him in the heights, praise him, all his angels, all his hosts, sun and moon, all you stars and light," showing that all things from the firmament downwards are together in the height under the firmament; and having first mentioned the heaven, and then the angels, he adds again: "Praise him, ye heavens of heavens, and ye waters that be above the heavens," mentioning only the water as being above the firmament, in agreement with Moses, according to the Hebrew idiom, saying 'heavens' instead of 'heaven'. 5.246 Likewise also in Daniel the three children, singing a hymn, said: "Bless the Lord, O ye heavens, all ye waters that are above the heaven," they too having clearly mentioned the water that is above the heaven, and having shown that all other things are under the firmament; and these also mentioned first the heaven, and then the angels. Likewise again David makes mention, saying: "Who stretchest out the heaven like a curtain, who coverest his upper chambers with waters, who maketh his angels spirits," he too again placing the waters above the firmament as being in an upper chamber and existing as a roof, and then again also mentioning the angels. 5.247 But the Lord most clearly declared, saying: No one has ascended into heaven, but he who descended from heaven." For except in the second state neither angels nor men enter into heaven, as has been shown. For only the Lord Christ, having risen from the dead, while this state still exists, entered as a forerunner on our behalf, giving faith to all that just as he has entered, so also all who walk according to his rule

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δόξης τῆς ἰσχύος αὐτοῦ, ὅταν ἔλθῃ ἐνδοξασθῆναι ἐν τοῖς ἁγίοις αὐτοῦ καὶ θαυμασθῆναι ἐν πᾶσι τοῖς πιστεύσασι", δι' ὅλων λέγων καὶ αὐτὸς ὅτι τοῖς πιστοῖς ἁγίοις μεγάλαι καὶ ἀνεκλάλητοι δόξαι ἀπόκεινται, τοῖς δὲ ἀπίστοις δίκη ὀλέθριος, τουτέστιν ἀνάλογος τιμωρία τῆς καταστάσεως ἐκείνης. Ἐν ὀλέθρῳ γὰρ καὶ ἐσχάτῃ τιμωρίᾳ καὶ μεταμελείᾳ πολλῇ εὑρίσκεται πᾶς, ὃς οὐκ ἀπολαύει τῶν ἁγίων καὶ τῶν δοξῶν καὶ τῆς μακαριότητος τῆς ἀποκειμένης τοῖς δικαίοις. 5.243 Ὀφείλει τοίνυν πᾶς χριστιανὸς δουλαγωγῆσαι ἑαυτὸν καὶ ὑποτάξαι ἀπεντεῦθεν τῷ Θεῷ καὶ πιστεύειν πάσῃ τῇ θείᾳ Γραφῇ, Παλαιᾷ τε καὶ Καινῇ ∆ιαθήκῃ, καὶ φύλαξ εἶναι δογμάτων ἀκριβὴς καὶ βίον εὐθῆ κατάλληλον τῇ πίστει κατορθοῦν, ἀπωθεῖσθαι δέ, καθὰ καὶ μέλλοντες προσιέναι τῷ βαπτίσματι ὡμολογήσαμεν, καὶ ἀποτάσσεσθαι πάσῃ σατανικῇ, αἱρετικῇ τε καὶ ἑλληνικῇ πλάνῃ καὶ ἀπιστίᾳ καὶ ματαιότητι καὶ ἐλπίδι ἀνελπίστῳ. Τὰ μέγιστα γὰρ βλαβήσονται ἐκείνοις ἐμμένοντες, ὡς μάθημα θεῖον τὰς ἐκλείψεις ψηφίζοντες καὶ προλέγοντες, περαιτέρω τούτου ἐλπίδα μὴ κεκτημένοι, ἀλλὰ πλανῶντες καὶ πλανώμενοι, εἴπου γε καί τις ἀποσυληθεὶς ἱμάτιον ἢ ἕτερόν τι, ὡς προφήταις τούτοις προσιών, ἤκουσε παρ' αὐτῶν, εἰ ἐπέτυχε ψευσαμένοις, ἀλήθειαν, εἰ δὲ μή, οὐδὲ τοῦτο. Τοιαῦται τῶν ματαιοφρόνων τῶν τὸ σφαιρικὸν σχῆμα τῷ οὐρανῷ δωρουμένων αἱ ἐλπίδες· οὐ δύνανται δὲ περαιτέρω τούτων τι ἐλπίζειν, οὔτε ἀνάστασιν, οὔτε βασιλείαν οὐρανῶν, οὔτε κρείττονα κατάστασιν, ἐπείπερ ἐξεῶσι τὴν σφαῖραν καὶ αὐτὴν ἣν ἔχουσιν ἐλπίδα ἀπόλλυσι. 5.244 Γένοιτο δὲ ἡμᾶς, ὦ τιμία κεφαλή, ἐν τῇ ἀποκαλύψει τοῦ Κυρίου ἡμῶν Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ, εὐχαῖς πάντων τῶν ἁγίων πατριαρχῶν, προφητῶν, ἀποστόλων, μαρτύρων, ὁμολογητῶν, διδασκάλων, συναριθμίους τοῖς ἐκ δεξιῶν γενέσθαι καὶ μετ' αὐτῶν ἀκοῦσαι τὴν ἐξαίρετον καὶ μακαρίαν ἐκείνην φωνὴν τὴν λέγουσαν· "∆εῦτε, οἱ εὐλογημένοι τοῦ Πατρός μου, κληρονομήσατε τὴν ἡτοιμασμένην ὑμῖν βασιλείαν ἀπὸ καταβολῆς κόσμου." Αὐτῷ ἡ δόξα σὺν Πατρὶ καὶ ἁγίῳ Πνεύματι εἰς τοὺς αἰῶνας τῶν αἰώνων. Ἀμήν. Παραγραφὴ εἰς τὸν οὐρανόν 5.245 Ὅτι ἐν τῷ κόσμῳ τούτῳ εἰσὶ καὶ οἱ ἄγγελοι σαφέστατα δηλοῖ ἡ θεία Γραφή, ὁ μὲν Ἀπόστολος οὕτως λέγων· "Θέατρον ἐγεννήθημεν τῷ κόσμῳ, ἀγγέλοις καὶ ἀνθρώποις", ὡς ἀμφοτέρων εἰς τὸν κόσμον τοῦτον διαγόντων, ὁμοίως καὶ ὁ ∆αυΐδ· "Αἰνεῖτε τὸν Κύριον ἐκ τῶν οὐρανῶν, αἰνεῖτε αὐτὸν ἐν τοῖς ὑψίστοις, αἰνεῖτε αὐτὸν πάντες ἄγγελοι αὐτοῦ, πᾶσαι αἱ δυνάμεις αὐτοῦ, ἥλιος καὶ σελήνη, πάντα τὰ ἄστρα καὶ τὸ φῶς", δηλώσας πάντα τὰ ἀπὸ τοῦ στερεώματος ἐπὶ τὰ κάτω ἐν ὕψει ὑπὸ τὸ στερέωμα ὁμοῦ εἶναι· καὶ πρῶτον εἰπὼν τὸν οὐρανόν, εἶθ' οὕτω τοὺς ἀγγέλους, πάλιν ἐπιφέρει· "Αἰνεῖτε αὐτὸν οἱ οὐρανοὶ τῶν οὐρανῶν καὶ τὸ ὕδωρ τὸ ὑπεράνω τῶν οὐρανῶν", τοῦ ὕδατος μόνου μνημονεύσας συμφώνως τῷ Μωϋσεῖ ὑπεράνω ὄντος τοῦ στερεώματος, κατὰ τὸ ἰδίωμα τὸ ἑβραϊκόν, ἀντὶ τοῦ οὐρανοῦ, οὐρανῶν εἰπών. 5.246 Ὁμοίως καὶ ἐν τῷ ∆ανιὴλ οἱ τρεῖς παῖδες ὑμνοῦντες ἔλεγον· "Εὐλογεῖτε, οὐρανοί, τὸν Κύριον, ὕδατα πάντα τὰ ἐπάνω τοῦ οὐρανοῦ", σαφῶς καὶ αὐτοὶ τοῦ ὕδατος τοῦ ἐπάνω τοῦ οὐρανοῦ μνημονεύσαντες, τὰ δὲ ἄλλα πάντα ὑπὸ τὸ στερέωμα εἶναι δηλώσαντες· καὶ οὗτοι δὲ πρῶτον τὸν οὐρανὸν εἶπον, εἶθ' οὕτω τοὺς ἀγγέλους. Ὁμοίως πάλιν ὁ ∆αυῒδ μέμνηται λέγων· "Ὁ ἐκτείνων τὸν οὐρανὸν ὡσεὶ δέρριν, ὁ στεγάζων ἐν ὕδασι τὰ ὑπερῷα αὐτοῦ, ὁ ποιῶν τοὺς ἀγγέλους αὐτοῦ πνεύματα", καὶ αὐτὸς πάλιν ἀνώτερα τὰ ὕδατα τοῦ στερεώματος ὡς ἐν ὑπερῴῳ ὄντα καὶ στέγην ὑπάρχοντα, εἶθ' οὕτω πάλιν καὶ τῶν ἀγγέλων μνημονεύσας. 5.247 Ὁ δὲ Κύριος τηλαυγέστατα ἀπεφήνατο λέγων· Οὐδεὶς ἀναβέβηκεν εἰς τὸν οὐρανόν, εἰ μὴ ὁ ἐκ τοῦ οὐρανοῦ καταβάς." Εἰ μὴ γὰρ ἐν τῇ δευτέρᾳ καταστάσει οὔτε ἄγγελοι οὔτε ἄνθρωποι εἰσέρχονται ἐν τῷ οὐρανῷ, καθὰ δεδήλωται. Μόνος γὰρ ὁ ∆εσπότης Χριστὸς ἀναστὰς ἐκ τῶν νεκρῶν, ἔτι ταύτης τῆς καταστάσεως οὔσης, εἰσῆλθε πρόδρομος ὑπὲρ ἡμῶν, πίστιν παρασχὼν πᾶσιν ὅτι ὥσπερ αὐτὸς εἰσελήλυθε καὶ οἱ τῷ κανόνι αὐτοῦ στοιχοῦντες πάντες