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And this has become a very great achievement of God, that He made our conscience and our will, for the time being and before the action, friendly to virtue, and hostile to wickedness. As I was saying, then, the knowledge of both of these things lies in the conscience of all men, and we do not need any teacher to learn these things; but correction, for the rest, has been entrusted to will and diligence and labors. Why so? Because if He had made the whole thing a matter of nature, we would have departed without crowns and without prizes; and just as the irrational animals would not receive a reward or praise for the advantages which they have by nature; so neither would we have enjoyed any of these things. For natural advantages are not the praise and encomium of those who have them, but of the One who gave them. For this reason, then, He did not entrust the whole matter to nature; again, He did not allow the will to take up the whole burden, both that of knowledge and that of correction, lest it should give up in the face of the labor of virtue; but the conscience dictates to it what must be done, and for the accomplishment, it contributes its own labors. And that it is good to be temperate we know without any labor; for the knowledge is from nature; but we would not be able to achieve temperance without laboring or bridling desire and enduring much toil. For this is no longer present in us from nature, like 49.141 the knowledge, but requires eagerness and diligence. But not in this way only has He lightened the burden for us, but also in another way again, by allowing some of the very achievements to be natural in us. For we all have it by nature to be indignant with those who are insulted; therefore we immediately become enemies to those who abuse others, even if we ourselves have suffered nothing, and to rejoice with those who enjoy help and assistance, and to be grieved at the misfortunes of others and by the natural affection towards one another. For even if the circumstances of affairs seem to introduce a certain faintheartedness, yet we still have a common affection for one another. And a certain wise man, hinting at this, said: Every animal loves its like, and every man his neighbor. 4. And God has set over us many other teachers besides the conscience: for fathers to their sons, and masters to their slaves, and husbands to their wives, and teachers to their students, and lawgivers and judges to their subjects, and friends to their friends. And often we have profited from enemies no less than from friends; for when they reproach us for our sins, they stir us up to their correction, even against our will. And He has set so many teachers over us, so that the discovery and correction of what is profitable may be easy for us, since the multitude of those driving us toward it does not allow us to fall away from what is advantageous for us. For even if we despise our parents, fearing our rulers we will certainly be more reasonable; and if we spurn them while sinning, we will never be able to escape the rebuke of our conscience; and if we dishonor and evade this, fearing the opinion of the many we shall be better; and if we are shameless towards this, the impending fear of the laws will be able to chasten us even against our will, and while we are young, teachers and fathers, but when we are grown, lawgivers and rulers take us in hand and regulate us; and the household slaves, being more carelessly disposed, in addition to the things mentioned, also have the compulsion from their masters for discipline, and wives their husbands; and on all sides there are many walls for our race so that we may not easily slip and fall into evil. And in addition to all these things, diseases and circumstances of affairs also instruct us; for both poverty restrains, and loss chastens, and danger subdues, and many other such things. Does your father not make you afraid? Nor your teacher? Not your ruler? Not your lawgiver? Not your judge? Does a friend not make you ashamed? Does an enemy not sting you? Does a master not chasten you? Does a husband not teach you? Does your conscience not correct you? But often a bodily illness, coming upon you, has set everything right, and a loss has made the more audacious man more reasonable;

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Καὶ τοῦτο Θεοῦ κατόρθωμα γέγονε μέγιστον, ὥστε τὸ συνειδὸς ἡμῶν καὶ τὴν προαίρεσιν τέως καὶ πρὸ τῆς πράξεως οἰκειῶσαι μὲν τῇ ἀρετῇ, ἐκπολεμῶσαι δὲ τῇ πονηρίᾳ. Ὥσπερ οὖν ἔφην, ἡ μὲν γνῶσις ἑκατέρων τούτων ἔγκειται τῷ συνειδότι πάντων ἀνθρώπων, καὶ οὐ δεόμεθα διδασκάλου τινὸς πρὸς τὸ ταῦτα μαθεῖν· ἡ δὲ διόρθωσις λοιπὸν προαιρέσει καὶ σπουδῇ καὶ πόνοις ἐγκεχείρισται. Τί δήποτε; Ὅτι εἰ τὸ πᾶν τῆς φύσεως ἐποίησεν, ἀστεφάνωτοι καὶ χωρὶς βραβείων ἀπήλθομεν ἄν· καὶ ὥσπερ τὰ ἄλογα τῶν πλεονεκτημάτων ὧν ἔχει κατὰ φύσιν, οὐκ ἂν λάβοι μισθὸν οὐδὲ ἔπαινον· οὕτως οὐδὲ ἡμεῖς ἀπελαύσαμεν ἄν τινος τούτων. Τὰ γὰρ τῆς φύσεως πλεονεκτήματα οὐ τῶν ἐχόντων, ἀλλὰ τοῦ δεδωκότος ἐστὶν ἔπαινος καὶ ἐγκώμιον. Τῇ μὲν οὖν φύσει τὸ πᾶν οὐκ ἐπέτρεψε διὰ τοῦτο· πάλιν τὴν προαίρεσιν ὁλόκληρον ἀναδέξασθαι τὸ φορτίον οὐκ εἴασε, καὶ τὸ τῆς γνώσεως, καὶ τὸ τῆς διορθώσεως, ἵνα μὴ πρὸς τὸν πόνον ἀπαγορεύσῃ τῆς ἀρετῆς· ἀλλ' ὑπαγορεύει μὲν αὐτῇ τὸ συνειδὸς τὰ πρακτέα, πρὸς δὲ τὴν ἐργασίαν αὐτὴ τοὺς παρ' ἑαυτῆς εἰσφέρει πόνους. Καὶ ὅτι μὲν καλὸν τὸ σωφρονεῖν μηδὲν καμόντες ἐπιστάμεθα· τῆς φύσεως γὰρ ἡ γνῶσις· σωφροσύνην δὲ οὐκ ἂν δυνηθείημεν κατορθῶσαι μὴ καμόντες μηδὲ τὴν ἐπιθυμίαν χαλινώσαντες καὶ πολὺν ὑποστάντες πόνον. Τοῦτο γὰρ οὐκ ἔτι ἐκ φύσεως ἡμῖν πρόσεστι, καθάπερ 49.141 ἡ γνῶσις, ἀλλὰ δεῖται προθυμίας καὶ σπουδῆς. Οὐ ταύτῃ δὲ μόνον ἐπεκούφισεν ἡμῖν τὸ βάρος, ἀλλὰ καὶ ἐτέρῳ τρόπῳ πάλιν, καὶ αὐτῶν τῶν κατορθωμάτων ἔνια φυσικὰ ἀφεὶς εἶναι ἐν ἡμῖν. Καὶ γὰρ τὸ συναγανακτεῖν τοῖς ὑβριζομένοις φυσικὸν ἅπαντες ἔχομεν εὐθέως οὖν τοῖς ἐπηρεάζουσιν ἐχθροὶ γινόμεθα, κἂν μηδὲν ὦμεν αὐτοὶ πεπονθότες, καὶ τὸ συνήδεσθαι τοῖς ἀντιλήψεως καὶ βοηθείας ἀπολαύουσι, καὶ τὸ κατακλᾶσθαι ἐπὶ ταῖς ἑτέρων συμφοραῖς καὶ τῇ φιλοστοργίᾳ τῇ πρὸς ἀλλήλους. Κἂν γὰρ πραγμάτων περιστάσεις δοκῶσι μικροψυχίαν τινὰ εἰσάγειν, ἀλλ' ὅμως ἔχομεν κοινὸν πρὸς ἀλλήλους φίλτρον. Καὶ τοῦτό τις σοφὸς αἰνιττόμενος ἔλεγε· Πᾶν ζῶον ἀγαπᾷ τὸ ὅμοιον αὐτῷ, καὶ ἄνθρωπος τὸν πλησίον αὐτοῦ. δʹ. Πολλοὺς δὲ καὶ ἑτέρους μετὰ τοῦ συνειδότος ἐπέστησεν ἡμῖν διδασκάλους ὁ Θεός· καὶ γὰρ πατέρας τοῖς υἱοῖς, καὶ δεσπότας τοῖς δούλοις, καὶ ἄνδρας ταῖς γυναιξὶ, καὶ διδασκάλους τοῖς μαθηταῖς, καὶ νομοθέτας καὶ δικαστὰς τοῖς ἀρχομένοις, καὶ φίλους τοῖς φίλοις. Πολλάκις δὲ καὶ παρ' ἐχθρῶν ἐκερδάναμεν οὐκ ἔλαττον ἢ παρὰ φίλων· ὅταν γὰρ ἡμῖν ὀνειδίζωσι τὰ ἁμαρτήματα, καὶ ἄκοντας εἰς διόρθωσιν αὐτῶν διεγείρουσι. Τοσούτους δὲ ἡμῖν διδασκάλους ἐπέστησεν, ἵνα εὔκολος ἡμῖν ἡ τοῦ λυσιτελοῦντος εὕρεσίς τε καὶ διόρθωσις γένηται, τοῦ πλήθους τῶν πρὸς αὐτὸ συνελαυνόντων ἡμᾶς οὐκ ἀφιέντος ἐκπεσεῖν τῶν συμφερόντων ἡμῖν. Κἂν γὰρ τῶν γεγεννηκότων καταφρονήσωμεν, τοὺς ἄρχοντας δεδοικότες ἐπιεικέστεροι πάντως ἐσόμεθα· κἂν ἐκείνους διαπτύσωμεν ἁμαρτάνοντες, τὴν τοῦ συνειδότος οὐδέποτε δυνησόμεθα διαφυγεῖν ἐπιτίμησιν· κἂν ταύτην ἀτιμάσωμεν καὶ διακρουσώμεθα, τὴν παρὰ τῶν πολλῶν ὑπόληψιν δεδοικότες ἀμείνους ἐσόμεθα· κἂν πρὸς ταύτην ἀναισχυντήσωμεν, ὁ τῶν νόμων ἐγκείμενος φόβος καὶ ἄκοντας ἡμᾶς σωφρονίσαι δυνήσεται, καὶ νέους μὲν ὄντας διδάσκαλοι καὶ πατέρες, αὐξηθέντας δὲ οἱ νομοθέται καὶ ἄρχοντες παραλαβόντες ῥυθμίζουσιν· οἵ τε οἰκέται, ἅτε ῥᾳθυμότερον διακείμενοι μετὰ τῶν εἰρημένων καὶ τὴν παρὰ τῶν δεσποτῶν ἀνάγκην εἰς σωφροσύνην ἔχουσι, καὶ αἱ γυναῖκες τοὺς ἄνδρας· καὶ πολλὰ πανταχόθεν ἡμῶν τῷ γένει τὰ τειχία πρὸς τὸ μὴ ῥᾳδίως εἰς κακίαν ἐξολισθῆσαι καὶ καταπεσεῖν. Πρὸς δὲ τούτοις ἅπασι, καὶ νόσοι καὶ περιστάσεις πραγμάτων ἡμᾶς παιδεύουσι· καὶ γὰρ καὶ πενία κατέχει, καὶ ζημία σωφρονίζει, καὶ κίνδυνος καταστέλλει, καὶ πολλὰ ἕτερα τοιαῦτα. Οὐ φοβεῖ σε πατήρ; οὐδὲ διδάσκαλος; οὐκ ἄρχων; οὐ νομοθέτης; οὐ δικαστής; οὐκ ἐντρέπει σε φίλος; οὐ δάκνει σε ἐχθρός; οὐ σωφρονίζει δεσπότης; οὐ διδάσκει ἀνήρ; οὐ διορθοῦταί σε τὸ συνειδός; Ἀλλ' ἀῤῥωστία πολλάκις ἐπελθοῦσα σωματικὴ τὸ πᾶν κατώρθωσε, καὶ ζημία δὲ τὸν θρασύτερον ἐποίησεν ἐπιεικέστερον·