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we have been punished only by the expectation of terrible things; or rather we have not been punished, but have even been taught and have become better, since God softened the heart of the emperor. Let us therefore say continually and daily, Blessed is God, and let us attend to the assembly with greater earnestness, and let us run to the Church, from whence we have reaped this benefit. For you know where you took refuge in the beginning, where you ran together, from whence our salvation has come. Let us therefore hold to the sacred anchor, and just as it did not betray us in time of danger, so let us not abandon it in time of relief, but let us remain with diligence, and let us hold our assemblies and our prayers and the hearing of the divine oracles daily, and the leisure which we used to spend being overly curious, being busybodies, running about to those from the camp, being anxious about the impending evils, let us spend all this on hearing the divine laws, but not on untimely and unprofitable pastimes, so that we may not again place ourselves in the necessity of that occupation.

2. Now in the past three days we have examined one way of the knowledge of God, and we have brought it to its conclusion, explaining how The heavens declare the glory of God, and what is meant by that which is said by Paul, that His invisible attributes from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood through what has been made, and we showed how from the creation of the world, and how through heaven and earth and sea the Creator is glorified. Today, however, having philosophized a little again on this very subject, we will proceed to another argument; for not only did He make it, but He also prepared it, once made, to work, neither leaving the whole motionless, nor commanding the whole to move; but the heaven stands motionless, as the prophet says, Who established the heaven like a vault, and stretched it out like a tent over the earth; but the sun with the rest of the stars runs its course each day; and the earth again is fixed, but the waters move continually; and not only waters, but also clouds and rains, continuous and successive, are rendered in their proper season; and the nature of the rains 49.129 is one, but the things that come from them are various; for in the vine the rain becomes wine, and in the olive, oil, and in the other plants it is changed into their own saps. And the womb of the earth is one and bears various fruits; and the heat of the sun's ray is one and ripens all things in various ways, bringing some to maturity more slowly, others more quickly. Who would not be astonished and marvel at these things? Or rather, this is not the only marvelous thing, that He made it varied and diverse, but that He also set it forth as common to all, to rich and poor, and to sinners and righteous. Which is what Christ also said, that He makes His sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust; and having filled it with myriad living creatures, and having implanted natural dispositions in the creatures, He commanded that some be imitated, and others be shunned. I mean something like this: the ant is industrious, and makes its labor toilsome; if then you pay attention, you will receive the greatest exhortation from the creature, so as not to be effeminate nor to flee from sweat and toils. For this reason Scripture also sent the sluggard to it, saying: Go to the ant, you sluggard, and consider its ways, and become wiser than it. Do you not wish, it says, to learn from the Scriptures that it is good to work, and that he who does not work ought not to eat? Do you not wish to hear this from the teachers? Be instructed by the irrational creatures. So also we do in our houses, often when those who seem to be greater and more honored sin, we exhort them to pay attention to sober children, saying: See how your younger is diligent and alert. And you, therefore, from this creature receive the greatest exhortation to industry, and marvel at your Master, not

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τῇ προσδοκίᾳ τῶν δεινῶν ἐκολάσθημεν μόνον· μᾶλλον δὲ οὐκ ἐκολάσθημεν, ἀλλὰ καὶ ἐπαιδεύθημεν καὶ βελτίους γεγόναμεν, τοῦ Θεοῦ τὴν καρδίαν τοῦ βασιλέως μαλάξαντος. Λέγωμεν τοίνυν διαπαντὸς καὶ καθ' ἡμέραν, Εὐλογητὸς ὁ Θεὸς, καὶ μετὰ πλείονος σπουδῆς τῇ συνάξει προσέχωμεν, καὶ πρὸς τὴν Ἐκκλησίαν τρέχωμεν, ὅθεν ἐκαρπωσάμεθα τὴν ὠφέλειαν. Ἴστε γὰρ ἐν ἀρχῇ ποῦ κατεφύγετε, ποῦ συνεδράμετε, πόθεν ἡμῖν ἡ σωτηρία γέγονεν. Ἐχώμεθα τοίνυν τῆς ἱερᾶς ἀγκύρας, καὶ καθάπερ ἐν τῷ καιρῷ τῶν κινδύνων ἡμᾶς οὐ προέδωκεν, οὕτω μηδὲ ἡμεῖς αὐτὴν ἐν τῷ καιρῷ τῆς ἀνέσεως καταλίπωμεν, ἀλλὰ μείνωμεν μετὰ ἀκριβείας, καὶ τὰς συνάξεις καὶ τὰς εὐχὰς καὶ τὴν τῶν θείων λογίων ἀκρόασιν ποιώμεθα καθ' ἡμέραν, καὶ τὴν σχολὴν ἣν ἀνηλίσκομεν περιεργαζόμενοι, πολυπραγμονοῦντες, τοὺς ἀπὸ τοῦ στρατοπέδου περιτρέχοντες, σπουδάζοντες ὑπὲρ τῶν ἐπικειμένων κακῶν, ταύτην ἀναλώσωμεν ἅπασαν εἰς τὴν τῶν θείων νόμων ἀκρόασιν, ἀλλὰ μὴ εἰς ἀκαίρους καὶ ἀνονήτους διατριβὰς, ἵνα μὴ πάλιν εἰς τὴν ἀνάγκην τῆς ἀσχολίας ἐκείνης ἑαυτοὺς καταστήσωμεν.

βʹ. Ἐν μὲν οὖν ταῖς παρελθούσαις τρισὶν ἡμέραις ἕνα θεογνωσίας ἐξητάσαμεν τρόπον, καὶ πρὸς τὸ τέλος αὐτὸν ἠγάγομεν, ἑρμηνεύοντες πῶς Οἱ οὐρανοὶ διηγοῦνται τὴν δόξαν Θεοῦ, καὶ τί ποτέ ἐστι τὸ παρὰ τοῦ Παύλου λεγόμενον, ὅτι Τὰ ἀόρατα αὐτοῦ ἀπὸ κτίσεως κόσμου τοῖς ποιήμασι νοούμενα καθορᾶται, καὶ ἐδείκνυμεν πῶς ἀπὸ κτίσεως κόσμου, καὶ πῶς δι' οὐρανοῦ καὶ γῆς καὶ θαλάττης ὁ ∆ημιουργὸς δοξάζεται. Τήμερον δὲ ὀλίγα πάλιν εἰς αὐτὴν ταύτην φιλοσοφήσαντες τὴν ὑπόθεσιν, ἐφ' ἕτερον βαδιούμεθα λόγον· οὐ γὰρ μόνον ἐποίησεν αὐτὴν, ἀλλὰ καὶ γενομένην ἐργάζεσθαι παρεσκεύασεν, οὔτε πᾶσαν ἀκίνητον ἀφεὶς, οὔτε πᾶσαν κινεῖσθαι κελεύσας· ἀλλ' οὐρανὸς μὲν ἀκίνητος ἕστηκε, καθάπερ ὁ προφήτης φησὶν, Ὁ στήσας τὸν οὐρανὸν ὡσεὶ καμάραν, καὶ διατείνας αὐτὸν ὡσεὶ σκηνὴν ἐπὶ τῆς γῆς· ὁ δὲ ἥλιος μετὰ τῶν ἄστρων τῶν λοιπῶν καθ' ἑκάστην τρέχει τὴν ἡμέραν· καὶ γῆ πάλιν πέπηγε, τὰ δὲ ὕδατα βαδίζει διαπαντός· οὐχ ὕδατα δὲ μόνον, ἀλλὰ καὶ νεφέλαι καὶ ὄμβροι συνεχεῖς καὶ ἐπάλληλοι κατὰ τὸν οἰκεῖον ἀποδιδόμενοι καιρόν· καὶ μία μὲν ἡ τῶν ὄμβρων 49.129 φύσις. διάφορα δὲ τὰ ἐξ αὐτῶν γινόμενα· καὶ γὰρ ἐν ἁμπέλῳ γίνεται οἶνος ὁ ὑετὸς, καὶ ἔλαιον ἐν ἐλαίᾳ, καὶ ἐν τοῖς ἄλλοις δὲ φυτοῖς πρὸς τοὺς αὐτῶν μεθίσταται χυμούς. Καὶ μία δὲ τῆς γῆν ἡ γαστὴρ καὶ διαφόρους φέρει καρπούς· καὶ μία μὲν ἡ τῆς ἡλιακῆς ἀκτῖνος θέρμη καὶ διαφόρως ἅπαντα πεπαίνει, τὰ μὲν βραδύτερον, τὰ δὲ ταχύτερον πρὸς ἀκμὴν ἄγουσα. Τίς οὐκ ἂν ταῦτα ἐκπλαγείη καὶ θαυμάσειε; μᾶλλον δὲ οὐ τοῦτο μόνον ἐστὶ τὸ θαυμαστὸν, ὅτι ποικίλην αὐτὴν καὶ διάφορον κατεσκεύασεν, ἀλλ' ὅτι καὶ κοινὴν αὐτὴν προσέθηκεν ἅπασι, καὶ πλουσίοις καὶ πένησι, καὶ ἁμαρτωλοῖς καὶ δικαίοις. Ὅπερ οὖν καὶ ὁ Χριστὸς ἔλεγεν, ὅτι Τὸν ἥλιον αὐτοῦ ἀνατέλλει ἐπὶ πονηροὺς καὶ ἀγαθοὺς, καὶ βρέχει ἐπὶ δικαίους καὶ ἀδίκους· καὶ μυρίων αὐτὴν ζώων ἐμπλήσας, καὶ φυσικὰ τοῖς ζώοις ἐνθεὶς ἤθη, τὰ μὲν μιμεῖσθαι, τὰ δὲ φεύγειν ἐκέλευσεν. Οἷόν τι λέγω· φιλόπονόν ἐστιν ὁ μύρμηξ, καὶ ἐπίπονον ποιεῖται τὴν ἐργασίαν· ἂν τοίνυν προσέχῃς, μεγίστην παρὰ τοῦ ζώου δέξῃ παραίνεσιν, ὥστε μὴ καταμαλακίζεσθαι μηδὲ φεύγειν ἱδρῶτας καὶ πόνους. ∆ιὰ τοῦτο καὶ ἡ Γραφὴ τὸν ὀκνηρὸν πρὸς ἐκεῖνον ἔπεμψε λέγουσα· Ἴθι πρὸς τὸν μύρμηκα, ὦ ὀκνηρὲ, καὶ ζήλωσον τὰς ὁδοὺς αὐτοῦ, καὶ γενοῦ ἐκείνου σοφώτερος. Οὐ βούλει, φησὶ, παρὰ τῶν Γραφῶν μαθεῖν ὅτι καλὸν τὸ ἐργάζεσθαι, καὶ ὅτι ὁ μὴ ἐργαζόμενος οὐδὲ ἐσθίειν ὀφείλει; οὐ βούλει παρὰ τῶν διδασκάλων ἀκοῦσαι τοῦτο; παιδεύθητι παρὰ τῶν ἀλόγων. Οὕτω καὶ ἐν ταῖς οἰκίαις ποιοῦμεν, πολλάκις τοὺς μείζονας καὶ ἐντιμοτέρους εἶναι δοκοῦντας, ἐπειδὰν ἁμάρτωσι, παιδίοις νήφουσι προσέχειν παρακελευόμεθα λέγοντες· Βλέπε τὸν μικρότερόν σου πῶς ἐστι σπουδαῖος καὶ διεγηγερμένος. Καὶ σὺ τοίνυν παρὰ τοῦ ζώου τούτου μεγίστην λάβε φιλοπονίας παραίνεσιν, καὶ θαύμασόν σου τὸν ∆εσπότην, μὴ