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"nor are you outside their nature so as to have comprehended something more than the others," so that they may present themselves as attaining to precision, for which reason he is in pain. And those who introduce the soul as being sown together will make use of this, of whom are the Hieracites and the Stratiotai and the like, saying that "if not before the shores"—instead of "before the earth"; for he named the whole from the part—,"it was fixed after the shores," from which they will think to conclude that the soul is sown together with the body, with another refuting them by understanding the "fixing" to be a coagulation of liquid, which does not 388 fit the soul, but the body. Have you heard the command of the Lord, or has wisdom come to you? By putting forward the unsearchable nature of the judgments, from this he thinks to dissuade him from thinking that he suffers for another reason than for his sins, being himself ensnared by this. For he himself had not heard the command of the Lord nor did he have wisdom that had come to him, so that he might have a conception about the holy man as suffering for his sins. For what do you know, that we do not know, or what do you understand, that we do not also? He makes him common to all men, reasonably, since he is ignorant of the greatness of his virtue, from this, as has been said before, supposedly refuting his thinking himself righteous; whereas he himself, being ignorant, ought not to have prejudged the matter and been convinced that he is pained as a sinner. And indeed an elder and indeed an ancient among us, heavier than your #6 father in days. "Even if," he says, "you are an elder and ancient among us, happening to be older so as to have become heavier"—instead of "more aged"—"than your father, you do not know anything more than we do." And these things 389 he says from arrogant authority. We have "heavy" used for "old man" in the Books of the Kingdoms; for indeed concerning Eli who fell, the text, wishing to show that he was an old man, says: "and the man was heavy." But it also denotes what is honorable and numerous, as when it says: "I will give thanks to you, Lord, in a great congregation, in a heavy people I will praise you," instead of "in an honorable and numerous [people]." You have been #6 scourged for a few of the things you have sinned. This says that "you have sinned and for this reason you endure scourges. But since, while undergoing this, you ascribe injustice to God, your sin has become heavier for you." And he says these things not wisely; for he did not know his situation, so that he spoke falsely. And lying is a manifold thing. For it is possible to tell a falsehood without lying; for often we are disposed concerning something as being a certain way and we say it, having the disposition as if about something true, and what is reported is by its own nature a falsehood, but it is not spoken by one who is lying. But it is also possible for one who knows nothing at all to utter a false statement 390 out of arrogance, which has happened to this man. But there are also those who lie in another way, as you will know by paying attention. You have spoken greatly, exceedingly. What has your heart dared or what have your eyes endured? And they, being disposed toward him as a sinner and having heard his words of boldness, uttered these things. For since the blessed man uttered words out of purity, they considered this to be daring and an excess of arrogance, vainly and foolishly. That you have burst forth with anger before the Lord, and have brought forth such words from your #6 mouth. They considered the boldness that comes from exceeding purity to be anger, which happened to them because of their own unsound principle which they had supposed for themselves, considering the reasonable and, as has been previously explained, freedom of his words to be blasphemy. For what mortal is there, that he should be blameless, or that one born of a woman should be righteous? It is characteristic of those who do not have virtue to reckon its attainment difficult and to be disposed 391 as if no one has it, just as the present speaker says, being mistaken, likely on account of the weakness of the body. But if he had considered according to the soul and according to the mind, he would have beheld the greatness of human nature, which the psalmist, knowing, teaches both things, saying: "What is man, that you take account of him? Man has become like vanity," which is with respect to

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οὐδ' ἔξω τῆς φύσεως αὐτῶν ὑπάρχεις ὥστε πλέον τι τῶν ἄλλων κατειληφέναι», ἵν' ἑαυτοὺς ὡς ἐφικνουμένους τῆς ἀκριβείας παραστήσωσιν, δι' ἣν ἀλγεῖ αἰτίαν. τούτῳ δὲ προσχρήσονται οἱ συσπειρομένην εἰσάγοντες τὴν ψυχήν, ὧν εἰσιν Ἱερακαῗται καὶ Στρατιῶται καὶ ὅμοιοι, λέγοντες ὅτι «εἰ μὴ πρὸ τῶν θινῶν»-ἀντὶ τοῦ «πρὸ τῆς γῆς»· ἀπὸ μέρους γὰρ τὸ ὅλον ὠνόμασεν-, «ἐπάγη μετὰ τὰς θῖνας», ἐξ οὗ συνάγειν οἰήσονται τὴν ψυχὴν συνσπείρεσθαι τῷ σώματι, ἑτέρου τούτους ἀνατρέποντος ἐκ τοῦ νοεῖν τὴν πῆξιν συστροφὴν εἶναι ὑγροῦ, ὅπερ οὐχ 388 ἁρμόζει ψυχῇ, ἀλλὰ σώματι. ἢ σύνταγμα κυρίου ἀκήκοας, εἰς δὲ σὲ ἀφίκετο σοφία; προβαλλόμενος τὸ τῶν κριμάτων ἀνεξεραύνητον ἐκ τούτου οἴεται αὐτὸν περιτρέπειν εἰς τὸ μὴ οἴεσθαι, ὅτι δι' ἕτερον ἢ δι' ἁμαρτίας πάσχει, τούτῳ αὐτὸς ἐνεχόμενος. οὐδὲ γὰρ αὐτὸς συνταγὴν κυρίου ἦν ἀκηκοὼς ἢ ἀφικομένην εἶχεν πρὸς αὐτὸν τὴν σοφίαν, ἵνα διάλημψιν ἔχῃ περὶ τοῦ ἁγίου ὡς δι' ἁμαρτίας πάσχοντος. τί γὰρ οἶδας, ὃ οὐκ οἴδαμεν, ἢ τί συνίεις σύ, ὃ οὐχὶ καὶ ἡμεῖς; κοινοποιεῖ αὐτὸν τοῖς πᾶσιν ἀνθρώποις εἰκότως ἅτε ἀγνοῶν αὐτοῦ τὸ μέγεθος τῆς ἀρετῆς, ἐκ τούτου, ὡς προείρηται, ἀνατρέπων δῆθεν τὸ οἴεσθαι ἑαυτὸν δίκαιον· ὅπερ ἔδει καὶ αὐτὸν ἀγνοοῦντα μὴ προκαταλαμβάνειν τὸ κρίμα καὶ πεπεῖσθαι, ὅτι ὡς ἁμαρτὼν ἀνιᾶται. καί γε πρεσβύτης καί γε παλαιὸς ἐν ἡμῖν, βαρύτερος τοῦ πατρός #6σου ἡμέραις. «εἰ καὶ πρεσβύτης,» φησίν, «ὑπάρχεις καὶ παλαιὸς ἐν ἡμῖν προγενέστερος τυγχάνων ὡς καὶ τοῦ πατρός σου βαρύτερος»-ἀντὶ τοῦ «γηραλεώτερος»-»γεγονέναι, οὐ πλε̣ι῀̣όν̣ τι ἡμῶν ἐπίστασαι.» καὶ ταῦτα 389 δὲ ἀπὸ αὐθεντίας ἀλαζονικῆς λε´̣γ̣ει. ἔχομεν τὸ «βαρὺς» ἀντὶ τοῦ «γέρων» κείμενον ἐν ταῖς Βασιλικαῖς Ἱστορίαις· καὶ γὰρ περὶ τοῦ Ἠλὶ πεσόντος δεῖξαι θέλων ὁ λόγος, ὅτι γέρων ἦν, λέγει· "καὶ ὁ ἄνθρωπος βαρύς." δηλοῖ δὲ καὶ τὸ τίμιον καὶ πλῆθος, ὡς ἐὰν λέγῃ· "ἐξομολογήσομαί σοι, κύριε, ἐν ἐκκλησίᾳ πολλῇ, ἐν λαῷ βαρεῖ αἰνέσω σε," ἀντὶ τοῦ «ἐν τιμίῳ καὶ πολλῷ». ὀλίγα ὧν ἡμάρτηκας μεμα#6στίγωσαι. τοῦτο λέγει ὅτι «ἥμαρτες καὶ διὰ τοῦτο μάστιγας ὑπομένεις. ἐπειδὴ δὲ τοῦτο ὑφιστάμενος προσάπτεις ἀδικίαν τῷ θεῷ, βαρύτερον γέγονέ σοι τὸ ἁμάρτημα.» καὶ ταῦτα δὲ λέγει οὐ συνετῶς· οὐ γὰρ ᾔδει τὸ κατ' αὐτόν, ὥστε ψευδῶς ἔλεγεν. καὶ ποικίλον δέ ἐστιν τὸ ψεύδεσθαι. ἔστιν γὰρ ψεύσασθαι μὴ ψευδόμενον· πολλάκις γὰρ διακείμεθα περί τινος ὡς οὕτως ἔχοντος καὶ λέγομεν αὐτὸ διάθεσιν ἔχοντες ὡς περὶ ἀληθοῦς, καὶ τὸ μὲν ἀπαγγελλόμενον τῇ ἑαυτοῦ φύσει ψεῦδός ἐστιν, οὐκ ἀπὸ ψευδομένου δὲ λεγόμενον. ἔστιν δὲ καὶ μηδ' ὅλως τι ἐπιστάμενον προφέρειν λόγον ψευδῆ 390 ἐξ ἀλαζονείας, ὅπερ τούτῳ συμβέβηκεν. εἰσὶν δὲ καὶ ἄλλως ψευδόμενοι, ὡς ἐπιστήσας γνώσει. μεγάλως ὑπερβαλλόντως λελάληκας. τί ἐτόλμησεν ἡ καρδία σου ἢ τί ὑπήνεγκαν οἱ ὀφθαλμοί σου; καὶ ταῦτα διακείμενοι περὶ αὐτοῦ ὡς ἁμαρτόντος ἀκούοντές τε καὶ τῶν ἐκ παρρησίας λόγων αὐτοῦ προήνεγκαν. ἐπεὶ γὰρ ἐκ καθαρότητος προέφερεν λόγους ὁ μακάριος, τόλμαν ἡγοῦντο τοῦτο καὶ ὑπερβολὴν ἀλαζονείας ματαίως καὶ ἀνοήτως. ὅτι θυμὸν ἔρρηξας ἔναντι κυρίου, ἐξήγαγες δὲ ἐκ στόμα#6τος ῥήματα τοιαῦτα. θυμὸν ἡγοῦντο τὴν ἐκ καθαρότητος ὑπερβαλλούσης παρρησίαν, ὅπερ αὐτοῖς συνέβαινεν ἐκ τῆς σαθρᾶς αὐτῶν ἀρχῆς ἧς αὐτοὶ ἑαυτοῖς ὑπέθεντο βλασφημίαν ἡγούμενοι τὴν εὔλογον καὶ ὡς προαποδέδοται τῶν λόγων αὐτοῦ ἐλευθερίαν. τίς γὰρ ὢν βροτός, ὅτι ἔσται ἄμεμπτος ἢ ὡς ἐσόμενος δίκαιος γεννητὸς γυναικός; ἴδιον τῶν μὴ ἐχόντων ἀρετὴν τὸ δυσχερῆ λογίζεσθαι τὴν ταύτης ἀνάλημψιν καὶ δια391 κεῖσθαι ὡς μηδενὸς αὐτὴν ἔχοντος, καθάπερ καὶ ὁ προκείμενος λέγει σφαλλόμενος διὰ τὴν τοῦ σώματος ὡς εἰκὸς ἀσθένειαν. εἰ δὲ κατὰ τὴν ψυχὴν καὶ κατὰ τ̣ὴν διάνοιαν ἦν σκοπήσας, ἐθεώρει τῆς φύσεως τοῦ ἀνθρώπου τὸ μέγεθος, ὅπερ εἰδὼς ὁ ὑμνῳδὸς ἀμφότερα διδάσκει λέγων· "τί ἐστιν ἄνθρωπος, ὅτι λογίζῃ αὐτόν; ἄνθρωπος ματαιότητι ὡμοιώθη," ὅπερ πρὸς