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casts a shadow; "for wickedness was not from the beginning," he says, "nor will it be forever." nor may the dark#6ness escape. And rightly so; for the one who is the cause of evil for others has an inescapable punishment. Let the wind wither his shoot. Even if he seemed to sprout in those whom he deceived and in those in whom he fulfills his wickedness, yet this shoot by the wind is wi405thered; for it has no root. For wickedness is not essential, but comes in from the outside, which by the assault of temptation, which is called wind, is exposed and falls and is withered. And may his flower fall off. The flower is the beginning and prelude of the fruit, and so this falls off. For even if he who partakes of wickedness boasts, yet a little later he is humbled. And this is often also beneficial, just as a physician often cuts out with a knife the ruin growing on the body and does not cease applying painful things until he fulfills the purpose, which is health. xat 12 let not the impious man who stumbles against God consider his own affairs secure, he says. for they will turn out empty for him. For every action of his is vanity because it has no substance. His harvest will be destroyed before its time. For this reason his flower falls off and his shoot withers, because it does not await the season of perfect fruit. Similar to this is, "do not become hard, lest you die not in your time." Some, being troubled by such words, introduce fate and say that "we are under time in what we do." But "before its time" here means "before the bearing of fruit," just as we say it is the time of vintage or of harvest. Thus, at any rate, Job "has come to the grave like ripe grain harvested in its season." And a beneficence of God 406 is for the shoot of wickedness to be destroyed before its time. And his young branch will not grow thick; but may it be gathered like an unripe grape before its time, and may it fall off like an olive blossom. His flower is not permitted to come to perfect fruit-bearing. Nonetheless this also, as was said before, is advantageous and useful... wickedness to be of those who are at work. But the things of the righteous are not so; for the branches of the true vine, remaining in their natural union, sprout and bear fruit. For the witness of an impious man is death. Having gone through the things that preceded, he declares the end of the impious man to be death. For the consummation of wickedness works death, not the common one, but that of punishment. And fire will burn the houses of bribe-takers. And on a superficial level it has a benefit, that those who take bribes certainly endure this for their wrongdoings and impieties. For it is said: "The ruler asks and the judge has spoken words of peace, it is the desire of his soul." But how the house of the bribe-taker is burned, one must consider. It is said: "And I will take out their goods like a moth eating out and walking on a rule in the day of the watchtower." For in the examination of their affairs there will be a recompense according to what was said: "Depart into the eternal fire." And there are times when in this life also the retribution will come upon the bribe407takers. For since "the judgment is God's," all who pervert the judgments of God fall under punishment. And in the womb he will receive pains. This he says, that he will be the father of evil offspring, becoming the cause of punishments. But the divine rewards man does not beget, but God bestows as a grace; "for the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory that will be revealed in us." And we do not say this, that the virtuous man is not the cause of good things, but that the graces of God and his gifts with an insuperable excellence are provided by him; "for every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights." But that the things of punishment follow the wicked, they in a way bringing these things upon themselves, while God extends his graces to the virtuous, has been said: "Those who honor me I will honor, but those who despise me will be dishonored." For the despising of God brings dishonor upon them. This Paul also writes: "to those who

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βάλλει σκιάν· "οὔτε γὰρ ἦν ἀπ' ἀρχῆς", φησίν, ἡ κακία "οὔτε εἰς τὸν αἰῶνα ἔσται." οὐδὲ μὴ ἐκφύγῃ τὸ σκό#6τος. καὶ εἰκότως· ὁ γὰρ τῶν ἄλλων παραίτιος εἰς κακίαν ἀναπόδραστον ἔχει τὴν κόλασιν. τὸν βλαστὸν αὐτοῦ μαράναι ἄνεμος. εἰ καὶ ἔδοξε βλαστάνειν ἐν οἷς ἠπάτησεν καὶ ἐν οἷς ἐκπληροῖ αὐτοῦ τὴν κακίαν, ἀλλ' ὁ βλαστὸς οὗτος ὑπὸ ἀνέμου μα405 ραίνεται· οὐ γάρ ἐστιν ῥίζαν ἔχων. οὐ γὰρ οὐσιώδης ἡ κακία, ἀλλὰ ἔξωθεν ἐπεισελθοῦσα, ἥτις προσβολῇ πειρασμοῦ, ὅστις ἄνεμος εἴρηται, ἐλέγχεται καὶ πίπτει καὶ μαραίνεται. ἐκπέσοι δὲ αὐτοῦ τὸ ἄνθος. τὸ ἄνθος ἀρχὴ καὶ προοίμιόν ἐστιν καρποῦ, καὶ τοῦτο οὖν ἐκπίπτει. κἂν γὰρ ἀλαζονεύηται ὁ μετέχων κακίας, ἀλλὰ μικρὸν ὕστερον ταπεινοῦται. τοῦτο δὲ πολλάκις καὶ εὐεργετικόν ἐστιν, καθὰ καὶ ὁ ἰατρὸς τὴν ἐπιφυομένην λύμην τῷ σώματι πολλάκις διὰ σιδήρου ἐκτέμνει καὶ οὐδὲ παύεται προσάγων τὰ ἀνιαρά, ἕως οὗ τὸν σκοπόν, τὸ ὑγιεινόν, ἀποπληρώσῃ. ξατ 12 μὴ ἀσφαλῆ, φησίν, τὰ καθ' ἑαυτὸν νομιζέτω ὁ ἀσεβὴς πταίων εἰς θεόν. κενὰ γὰρ ἀποβήσεται αὐτῷ. ματαιότης γάρ ἐστιν αὐτοῦ πᾶσα πρᾶξις διὰ τὸ μηδὲν ὑφεστηκὸς ἔχειν. ἡ τομὴ αὐτοῦ πρὸ ὥρας φθαρήσεται. διὰ τοῦτο τὸ ἄνθος αυ᾿̣τ̣οῦ ἐκπίπτει καὶ ὁ βλαστὸς αὐτοῦ μαραίνεται, ὅτι οὐ μένει καιρὸν τελείου καρποῦ. ὅμοιον τούτῳ τὸ "μὴ γίνου σκληρός, ἵνα μὴ ἀποθάνῃς ἐν οὐ καιρῷ σου." τινὲς ἐκ τῶν τοιούτων λέξεων ταραττόμενοι εἱμαρμένην εἰσηγοῦνται καὶ λέγουσιν ὅτι «ὑπὸ καιρόν ἐσμεν ἐν οἷς πράττομεν». τὸ δὲ "πρὸ ὥρας" ἐνταῦθα «πρὸ τῆς τελεσφορήσεως» λέγει, καθὸ λέγομεν ὥραν εἶναι τρυγητοῦ ἢ ἀμήτου. οὕτω γοῦν ὁ Ἰὼβ "ἐλήλυθεν ἐν τάφῳ ὡς σῖτος ὥριμος κατὰ καιρὸν συνκομισθείς". εὐεργεσία δὲ θεοῦ 406 ἐστιν τῆς κακίας τὸν βλαστὸν πρὸ ὥρας φθαρῆναι. καὶ ὁ ῥόδαμνος αὐτοῦ οὐ πυκάσει· τρυγηθείη δὲ ὥσπερ ὄμφαξ πρὸ ὥρας, ἐκπέσοι δὲ ὡς ἄνθος ἐλαίας. οὐκ ἐπιτρέπεται εἰς τελείαν καρποφορίαν ἐλθεῖν τὸ ἄνθος αὐτοῦ. οὐδὲν δ' ἧττον καὶ τοῦτο ὡς προείρηται λυσιτελές ἐστιν καὶ χρήσιμον̣ ··ε̣λετην κακίαν εἶναι τῶν ἐν̣εργ̣ο̣ύν̣τ̣ων. τὰ δὲ τῶν δικαίων οὐχ οὕτως· τὰ γὰρ κλήματα τῆς ἀληθινῆς ἀμπέλου μένοντα ἐν τῇ συμφυίᾳ βλαστοῦσιν καὶ καρποφοροῦσιν. μαρτύριον γὰρ ἀσεβοῦς θάνατος. τὰ φθάσαντα διελθὼν τὸ πέρας τοῦ ἀσεβοῦς θάνατον ἀποφαίνεται. ἡ γὰρ τῆς κακίας τελεσιουργία θάνατον ἀπεργάζεται, οὐ τὸν κοινόν, ἀλλὰ τὸν τῆς κολάσεως. πῦρ δὲ καύσει οἴκους δωροδεκτῶν. καὶ κατὰ τὸ πρόχειρον ὠφέλειαν ἔχει, ὅτι οἱ δωροδοκοῦντες πάντως ἐπὶ ἀδικήμασι καὶ ἀσεβήμασιν τοῦτο ὑπομένουσιν. εἴρηται γάρ· "ὁ ἄρχων αἰτεῖ καὶ ὁ κριτὴς εἰρηνικοὺς λόγους ἐλάλησεν, καταθύμιον ψυχῆς αὐτοῦ ἐστιν." πῶς δὲ καίεται τοῦ δωροδέκτου ὁ οἶκος, ἐπισ̣τῆσαι δεῖ. εἴρηται· "καὶ ἐξελοῦμαι τὰ ἀγαθὰ αὐτῶν ὡς σὴς ἐκτρώγων καὶ βαδίζων ἐπὶ κανόνος ἐν ἡμέρᾳ σκοπιᾶς." ἐν γὰρ ἐξετάσει τῶν πραγμάτων ἔσται ἀπόδοσις κατὰ τὸ εἰρημένον· "ὑπάγετε εἰς τὸ πῦρ τὸ αἰώνιον." ἔστιν δὲ ὅτε καὶ ἐν τῷ βίῳ τούτῳ ἡ ἀνταπόδοσις γενήσεται κατὰ τῶν δω407 ροδεκτῶν. ἐπεὶ γὰρ "ἡ κρίσις τοῦ θεοῦ ἐστιν", ὅσοι διαστρέφουσιν τὰ τοῦ θεοῦ κρίματα, οὗτοι ὑπὸ κόλασιν πίπτουσιν. ἐν γαστρὶ δὲ λήμψεται ὀδύνας. τοῦτο λέγει, ὅτι πατὴρ ἔσται κακῶν γεννημάτων αἴτιος γινόμενος κολάσεων. τὰς δ' ἀμοιβὰς τὰς θείας οὐκ ἄνθρωπος γεννᾷ, ἀλλὰ θεὸς χαρίζεται· "οὐ γὰρ ἄξια τὰ παθήματα τοῦ νῦν καιροῦ πρὸς τὴν μέλλουσαν δόξαν ἀποκαλυφθῆναι εἰς ἡμᾶς." καὶ οὐ τοῦτο λέγομεν, ὅτι τῶν ἀγαθῶν ὁ σπουδαῖος οὐκ̣ ἔστιν αἴτιος, ἀλλ' ὅτι αἱ χ̣άριτες τοῦ θεοῦ καὶ αἱ δωρεαὶ ἀνυ̣π̣ε̣ρβ̣λήτῳ ὑπεροχῇ παρ' αὐτοῦ παρέχονται· "πᾶσα γ̣ὰρ δόσις ἀγαθὴ καὶ πᾶν δώρημα τέλειον ἄνωθέν ἐστιν καταβαῖνον παρὰ τοῦ πατρὸς τῶν φωτῶν." ὅτι δὲ τοῖς μὲν φαύλοις ἕπεται τὰ τῆς κολάσεως τρόπον τινὰ αὑτοῖς αὐτῶν αὐτὰ ἐπαγόντων, τοῖς δὲ σπουδαίοις θεὸς ὀρέγει τὰς χάριτας, εἴρηται· "τοὺς δοξάζοντάς με δοξάσω, οι῾̣ δὲ ἐμὲ ἐξουθενοῦντες ἀτιμασθήσονται." ἡ γὰρ ἐξουθένωσις τοῦ θεοῦ ἐπιφέρει αὐτοῖς τὴν ἀτιμίαν. τοῦτο καὶ ὁ Παῦλος γράφει· "τοῖς