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he falls, he shall not be utterly cast down, for the Lord upholds his hand. But if it should happen that he ever slips and falls, and having been in temptation should slip, and giving way should fall under some sin, yet he shall not be utterly cast down; but like a noble athlete who is forced and gives way for a little while, he will immediately recover himself. I have been young, and now am old, yet I have not seen the righteous forsaken, nor his 23.333 seed begging bread. But having carefully observed the life of the righteous from childhood to old age. That there has not been a single time in which the righteous one has been left desolate, but he always has his own Lord as an assessor and helper. Therefore he says: I have been young, or according to Symmachus, I became young, but I have also grown old, and I have not seen the righteous forsaken, nor his seed begging bread. For how was it possible for the seed of the righteous to be in need of bread, when he himself, on account of the wealth supplied to him from God, is merciful and lends all the day long? And you will understand this according to the mind, having learned that, having received talents from the householder and the mina from the Lord, he uses these for business, obeying the one who said: You ought to have put my money on the table. The words of the Lord are pure words, silver tried in the fire, tested for the earth. Therefore, he who is devoted to the exercise of the divine words, and has gathered much spiritual wealth, knows to do nothing else but to be merciful and to lend throughout the whole day. And according to Aquila, all the day long he gives gifts and lends; to some he gives gifts, and to others he lends; he gives the dogmas and theorems as gifts to the souls of those who can receive them; but what is in the moral commandments he lends, so that those who have received may through works pay back the fruit of the loan. Thus you will also hear Moses promising to the keepers of the divine laws: You shall lend to many nations, but you shall not borrow. And in this way indeed the divine apostles lent to many nations, and especially Paul; and for this reason those who were their disciples, being their seed, were never in need of bread; seeing that they had those who supplied them with spiritual food, by partaking of which, they were filled with blessings. Therefore it has been said: And his seed shall be for a blessing. And even according to the bare letter, if one should consider how it was said by the Savior, "And in this age he shall receive a hundredfold," and should see with his own eyes the word fulfilled through his disciples, he will see how the righteous is merciful and lends all the day long. For if the soul and the heart of all who believed were one, and no one said that any of the things he possessed was his own, but they had everything in common, and as many as were owners of possessions selling them laid them at the apostles' feet, and they distributed to each as anyone had need; it is clear how all the day long these men were merciful and lent, Depart from evil, and do good. Having freed yourself from all evil, for this is up to you, and if you wish you will be able; yet you will not yet be perfect for having done this, unless the second part is also present for you; and this is to work what is good. For in addition to not stealing it is fitting for you also to share your own possessions with those in need; and in addition to not being greedy, another thing, also to do good to those in need; and in addition to abstaining from evil, also to rescue others from evil. And when you have done these things, dwell, he says, for ever and ever. Instead of which 23.336 Symmachus rendered, And you shall rest forever; For this end of eternal life awaits you. For the Lord, being a judge, loves judgment, and will not forsake His saints, but will preserve them forever. The lawless shall be punished, and the seed of the wicked shall be destroyed. But the righteous shall inherit the land, and shall dwell for ever and ever upon it; in accordance with what has been said before, it teaches that those who have not kept the commandment are lawless

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πέσῃ οὐ καταῤῥαχθήσεται, ὅτι Κύριος ἀντιστηρίζει χεῖρα αὐτοῦ. Εἰ δὲ καὶ πεσεῖν αὐτόν ποτε ὀλισθήσαντα συμβῇ, καὶ ἐν πειρασμῷ γενόμενος ὀλισθήσειεν, ὀκλάσας τε ὑποπέσοι τινὶ ἁμαρτήματι, ἀλλ' οὐ καταῤῥαχθήσεται· οἷα δὲ γενναῖος ἀθλητὴς ἐκβιασθεὶς καὶ πρὸς ὀλίγον ἐνδοὺς, παραχρῆμα ἑαυτὸν ἀναλήψεται. Νεώτερος ἐγενόμην, καὶ γὰρ ἐγήρασα, καὶ οὐκ εἶδον δίκαιον ἐγκαταλελειμμένον, οὐδὲ τὸ 23.333 σπέρμα αὐτοῦ ζητοῦν ἄρτους. Ἀλλ' ἐκ παίδων μέχρι γήρως τὸν τοῦ δικαίου περιεργασάμενος βίον. Ὅτι οὐδὲ εἷς γέγονε καιρὸς καθ' ὃν ἔρημος καταλέλειπται ὁ δίκαιος, ἀεὶ δὲ πάρεδρον καὶ βοηθὸν κέκτηται τὸν ἑαυτοῦ Κύριον. ∆ιό φησιν· Νεώτερος ἐγενόμην, ἢ κατὰ τὸν Σύμμαχον, νέος ἐγενόμην, ἀλλὰ καὶ ἐγήρασα, καὶ οὐκ εἶδον δίκαιον ἐγκαταλελειμμένον, οὐδὲ τὸ σπέρμα αὐτοῦ ζητοῦν ἄρτους. Καὶ πῶς γὰρ οἷόν τε ἦν τὸ σπέρμα τοῦ δικαίου ἐνδεὲς ἄρτων γενέσθαι, ὁπότε αὐτὸς διὰ τὸν παρὰ τοῦ Θεοῦ χορηγούμενον αὐτῷ πλοῦτον ὅλην τὴν ἡμέραν ἐλεεῖ καὶ δανείζει; Νοήσεις δὲ τοῦτο κατὰ μὲν τὴν διάνοιαν μαθὼν, ὅτι, τάλαντα λαβὼν παρὰ τοῦ οἰκοδεσπότου καὶ τὴν μνᾶν τὴν παρὰ τοῦ Κυρίου, τῇ τούτων χρῆται πραγματείᾳ πειθαρχῶν τῷ φήσαντι· Ἔδει σε τὸ ἀργύριόν μου βαλεῖν εἰς τράπεζαν. Τὰ λόγια Κυρίου λόγια ἁγνὰ, ἀργύριον πεπυρωμένον, δοκίμιον τῇ γῇ. Ὁ τοίνυν ἀνακείμενος τῇ τῶν θείων ἀσκήσει λόγων, καὶ πολλὰ λογικὰ χρήματα συναγαγὼν, οὐδὲν ἕτερον οἶδε πράττειν, ἢ διὰ πάσης ἡμέρας ἐλεεῖν καὶ δανείζειν. Κατὰ δὲ τὸν Ἀκύλαν, ὅλην τὴν ἡμέραν δωρεῖται καὶ δανείζει· τοῖς μὲν δωρεῖται, τοῖς δὲ δανείζει· τὰ μὲν δόγματα θεωρήματα δωρεῖται ταῖς τῶν χωρούντων ψυχαῖς· τὰ δ' ἐν ἠθικαῖς ἐντολαῖς δανείζει, ἐπὶ τῷ τοὺς εἰληφότας δι' ἔργων τὸν καρπὸν ἀποδοῦναι τοῦ δάνους. Οὕτως ἀκούσῃ καὶ Μωϋσέως ἐπαγγελλομένου τοῖς τῶν θείων νόμων φύλαξιν· τὸ, ∆ανιεῖς ἔθνεσι πολλοῖς, σὺ δὲ οὐ δανιεῖ. Καὶ τοῦτόν γε τὸν τρόπον οἱ θεῖοι ἀπόστολοι ἐδάνειζον ἔθνεσι πολλοῖς, καὶ μάλιστά γε ὁ Παῦλος· καὶ διὰ τοῦτο οἱ μαθητευόμενοι αὐτοῖς, σπέρμα ὄντες αὐτῶν, οὐδεπώποτε ἐνδεεῖς ἦσαν ἄρτων· ἅτε δὴ ἔχοντες τοὺς χορηγοῦντας αὐτοῖς τὴν λογικὴν τροφὴν, ἧς μεταλαμβάνοντες, εὐλογίαις ἐπληροῦντο. ∆ιὸ λέλεκται· Καὶ τὸ σπέρμα αὐτοῦ εἰς εὐλογίαν ἔσται. Καὶ κατὰ ψιλὴν δὲ τὴν λέξιν, εἴ τις λογίσαιτο ὅπως εἴρηται τῷ Σωτῆρι τὸ, Καὶ ἐν τῷ αἰῶνι τούτῳ ἑκατονταπλασίονα λήψεται, ἔργοις τε αὐτοῖς θεάσαιτο πληρούμενον τὸν λόγον διὰ τῶν αὐτοῦ μαθητῶν, ὄψεται πῶς ὁ δίκαιος ὅλην τὴν ἡμέραν ἐλεεῖ καὶ δανείζει. Εἰ γὰρ πάντων τῶν πιστευόντων ἦν ἡ ψυχὴ καὶ ἡ καρδία μία, καὶ οὐδεὶς ἔλεγεν ἴδιόν τι ἑαυτοῦ εἶναι, ἀλλ' ἦν πάντα κοινὰ, ὅσοι τε ἦσαν κύριοι κτημάτων πιπράσκοντες ἐτίθεσαν παρὰ τοὺς πόδας τῶν ἀποστόλων, διεμέριζόν τε ἑκάστῳ, καθότι ἄν τις χρείαν εἶχε· δῆλον ὅπως ὅλην τὴν ἡμέραν οὗτοι ἠλέουν καὶ ἐδάνειζον, Ἔκκλινον ἀπὸ κακοῦ, καὶ ποίησον ἀγαθόν. Ἐλευθερώσας σεαυτὸν πάσης κακίας, ἐπὶ σοὶ γάρ ἐστι τοῦτο, καὶ βουληθεὶς δυνήσῃ· οὐ μὴν ἤδη τέλειος ἔσῃ τοῦτο πράξας, εἰ μὴ καὶ τὸ δεύτερόν σοι παρείη· τοῦτο δ' ἐστὶ τὸ ἐργάζεσθαι τὸ ἀγαθόν. Πρὸς γὰρ τὸ μὴ κλέπτειν προσήκει σε καὶ τῶν σῶν ὑπαρχόντων τοῖς δεομένοις κοινωνεῖν· καὶ πρὸς τὸ μὴ πλεονεκτεῖν, ἕτερον, τὸ καὶ εὐεργετεῖν τοὺς δεομένους· καὶ πρὸς τὸ κακίας ἀπέχεσθαι, τὸ καὶ ἑτέρους ἀπὸ κακίας ῥύεσθαι. Ἐπὰν δὲ ταῦτα ποιήσῃς, κατασκήνου, φησὶν, εἰς αἰῶνα αἰῶνος. Ἀνθ' οὗ ὁ 23.336 Σύμμαχος ἐξέδωκε, Καὶ ἠρεμήσεις εἰς αἰῶνα· Τοῦτο γὰρ περιμένει σε τὸ τέλος τῆς αἰωνίου ζωῆς. Κριτικὸς γὰρ ὢν ὁ Κύριος ἀγαπᾷ κρίσιν, καὶ οὐκ ἐγκαταλείψει τοὺς ὁσίους αὐτοῦ, ἀλλ' εἰς τὸν αἰῶνα αὐτοὺς διαφυλάξει. Ἄνομοι ἐκδικηθήσονται, καὶ σπέρμα ἀσεβῶν ἐξολοθρευθήσεται. ∆ίκαιοι δὲ κληρονομήσουσι τὴν γῆν, καὶ κατασκηνώσουσιν εἰς αἰῶνα αἰῶνος ἐπ' αὐτῆς· ἀκολούθως τοῖς προειρημένοις διδάσκει, ὅτι οἱ μὴ τὸ παράγγελμα φυλάξαντες ἄνομοι