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I do not think that a swift harmony running together from all sides towards one purpose of mind is without providence. And the father began to say to Peter: Do not think, my dearest Peter, that I have no thought for the word preached by you. Indeed, at the end of this past night, when Clement was much urging me to the truth preached by you, I answered: For what newer thing can one command than what the ancients advised? But he, gently laughing, said: There is a great difference, father, between the words of godliness and those of philosophy. For the one of truth has its proof from prophecy, but the one of philosophy, providing elegant language, seems to present its proofs from conjectures. And nevertheless, having said these things, for the sake of an example he set forth to me the discourse on philanthropy, which you had taught him, which seemed rather most unjust to me. And I will tell you how. He said it was just to turn the other cheek to the one who strikes his jaw, and to the one who takes his cloak to give also his mantle, and to the one who compels him for a mile to go with him two, and such things as these. And Peter answered: But you thought unjust that which is most just. If you please, listen. And the father said: Very much so. And Peter: Does it not seem to you, there being two enemy kings who have divided countries, if one of the subjects of the one should be caught in the country of the other and for this reason should be liable to death, if he is released from the punishment with a blow and not with death, does not the one who released him seem to be philanthropic? And the father said: Very much so. And Peter said: What then? If this same person should take something of someone's own or something else, and being arrested for this should give double, when he owes fourfold and to die, as one caught within the boundaries of the enemy, does it not seem to you that the one who took the double and released him from death is philanthropic? And the father said: It seems so. And Peter: What then? Is it not necessary for the one who is <in> the kingdom of another, and this an evil enemy, for the sake of living to flatter all and to submit more to those who compel, to greet those who do not greet, to reconcile enemies, not to contend with those who are angry, to give one's own things without fear to anyone who asks, and such things as these? And the father: He might rather reasonably endure all things, if indeed he prefers living to these. And Peter: Therefore, those whom you said are wronged are themselves transgressors, since they are in the kingdom of another, and are so much gainers, by as much as <they> may possess? But those who are thought to do wrong are bestowing so much on each one from the opposite side as they allow them to have. For these things belong to those who have chosen the present things. And they are philanthropic to such an extent as to grant them life. And so the parable is thus, but listen now to the matter itself. The prophet of truth, being present, taught us that the creator and God of all assigned two kingdoms to two certain ones, to the good and to the evil, giving to the evil one the kingdom of the present world with law, so that he would have authority to punish the unjust, but to the good one the eternal age to come. And he made each of men free to have the authority to assign himself to whom he wishes, either to the present evil one or to the future

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ταχεῖαν ἁρμονίαν πανταχόθεν συνδραμοῦσαν εἰς ἕνα γνώμης σκοπὸν οὐκ οἶμαι ἀπρονόητον εἶναι. καὶ ὁ πατὴρ τῷ Πέτρῳ ἤρξατο λέγειν· Μὴ νόμιζε, φίλτατέ μοι Πέτρε, ἐν ἐννοίᾳ μὴ ἔχειν περὶ τοῦ ὑπὸ σοῦ κη- ρυσσομένου λόγου. πέρας γοῦν ταύτης τῆς παρῳχηκυίας νυκτὸς πολλὰ τοῦ Κλήμεντος προτρεπομένου με τῇ ὑπὸ σοῦ κηρυσσομένῃ ἀληθείᾳ, ἀπεκρινάμην· Τί γὰρ καινότερον ἐντέλλεσθαι δύναταί τις παρ' ὃ οἱ ἀρχαῖοι παρῄνεσαν; ὁ δὲ ἠρέμα γελάσας ἔφη· Πολλὴ διαφορά, πάτερ, μεταξὺ τῶν θεοσεβείας λόγων καὶ τῶν τῆς φιλοσοφίας. ὁ γὰρ τῆς ἀληθείας ἀπόδειξιν ἔχει τὴν ἐκ προφητείας, ὁ δὲ τῆς φιλοσοφίας καλλιλογίας παρέχων ἐκ στοχασμῶν δοκεῖ παριστᾶν τὰς ἀποδείξεις. καὶ ὁμῶς ταῦτα εἰπὼν δείγμα- τος χάριν τὸν περὶ φιλανθρωπίας μοι ἐξέθετο λόγον, ὅνπερ αὐτῷ ὑφηγήσω, ὃς ἀδικώτατός μοι μᾶλλον ἐφαίνετο. καὶ τὸ πῶς ἐρῶ. δίκαιον ἔφασκεν εἶναι καὶ τῷ τύπτοντι αὐτοῦ τὴν σιαγόνα παρατιθέναι καὶ τὴν ἑτέραν, καὶ τῷ αἴροντι αὐτοῦ τὸ ἱμάτιον προσδιδόναι καὶ τὸ μαφόριον, ἀγγαρεύοντι δὲ μίλιον συν- απέρχεσθαι δύο, καὶ ὅσα τοιαῦτα. καὶ ὁ Πέτρος ἀπεκρίνατο· Ἀλλ' ἐνόμισας ἄδικον ὅτι δικαιότατόν ἐστιν. εἴ σοι φίλον ἐστίν, ἄκουσον. καὶ ὁ πατὴρ ἔφη· Πάνυ μοι φίλον. καὶ ὁ Πέτρος· Oὐ δοκεῖ σοι δύο ἐχθρῶν βασιλέων ὄντων καὶ διῃρημένας τὰς χώρας ἐχόντων, εἴ τις ἐκ τῶν τοῦ ἑνὸς ὑπηκόων ἐν τῇ τοῦ ἑτέρου χώρᾳ φωραθείη καὶ διὰ τοῦτο θάνατον ὀφείλοι, ἐὰν ·απίσματι καὶ μὴ θανάτῳ τῆς τιμωρίας ἀπολυθῇ, οὐ φαί- νεται μὴν ὁ ἀπολύσας φιλάνθρωπος εἶναι; καὶ ὁ πατὴρ ἔφη· Καὶ πάνυ. καὶ ὁ Πέτρος ἔφη· Τί δέ; εἰ καὶ ἴδιόν τί τινος αὐτὸς οὗτος ἀφέληται ἢ καὶ ἄλλο τι, ἐπὶ τούτῳ συλληφθεὶς ἐὰν διπλάσιον δῷ, τετρα- πλάσιον ὀφείλων καὶ τὸ θανεῖν, ὡς ἐν τοῖς τοῦ ἐναντίου ἁλοὺς ὅροις, οὐ δοκεῖ σοι ὅτι ὁ λαβὼν τὸ διπλάσιον καὶ θανάτου αὐτὸν ἀπολύσας φιλάνθρωπος τυγχάνει; καὶ ὁ πατὴρ ἔφη· Φαίνεται. καὶ ὁ Πέτρος· Τί δέ; οὐ χρὴ τὸν <ἐν> ἑτέρου βασιλείᾳ ὄντα, καὶ ταῦτα πονηροῦ τινος ἐχθροῦ, τοῦ ζῆν χάριν πάντας κολακεύειν καὶ ἀγγαρεύουσιν ἐπὶ πλεῖον ὑπείκειν, μὴ προσαγορεύοντας προσαγορεύειν, ἐχθροὺς διαλλάσσειν, ὀργι- ζομένοις μὴ φιλονεικεῖν, τὰ ἑαυτοῦ ἀδεῶς παντὶ αἰτοῦντι παρέχειν, καὶ ὅσα τοιαῦτα; καὶ ὁ πατήρ· Πάντα μᾶλλον εὐλόγως ὑποσταίη, εἴπερ τούτων τὸ ζῆν προκρίνει. καὶ ὁ Πέτρος· Oὐκοῦν οὓς ἀδικεῖσθαι ἔλεγες, αὐτοὶ παρορισταὶ τυγχάνουσιν, καθὰ ἐν ἑτέρου εἰσὶν βασιλείᾳ, καὶ τοσοῦτον πλεονέκται εἰσίν, ὅσον <ἂν> κεκτημένοι ὦσιν; οἱ δ' ἀδικεῖν νομιζό- μενοι τοσαῦτα ἑκάστῳ τῷ ἐξ ἐναντίας ὄντι χαρίζονται, ὅσα ἂν αὐτοῖς ἔχειν συνχωρῶσιν. αὐτῶν γάρ ἐστιν ταῦτα τῶν τὰ παρόντα ἑλομένων. καὶ εἰς τοσοῦτον φιλάνθρωποί εἰσιν, ὡς τὸ ζῆν αὐτοῖς συγχωρεῖν. καὶ τὸ μὲν παράδειγμα οὕτως ἔχει, ἄκουε δὴ αὐτὸ τὸ πρᾶγμα. ὁ τῆς ἀληθείας προφήτης παρὼν ἐδίδαξεν ἡμᾶς ὅτι ὁ τῶν ὅλων δημιουργὸς καὶ θεὸς δυσίν τισιν ἀπένειμεν βασιλείας δύο, ἀγαθῷ τε καὶ πονηρῷ, δοὺς τῷ μὲν κακῷ τοῦ παρόντος κόσμου μετὰ νόμου τὴν βασιλείαν, ὥστ' ἂν ἔχειν ἐξουσίαν κολάζειν τοὺς ἀδικοῦντας, τῷ δὲ ἀγαθῷ τὸν ἐσόμενον ἀίδιον αἰῶνα. ἕκαστον δὲ τῶν ἀνθρώπων ἐλεύθερον ἐποίησεν ἔχειν τὴν ἐξουσίαν ἑαυτὸν ἀπονέμειν ᾧ βούλεται, ἢ τῷ παρόντι κακῷ ἢ τῷ μέλλοντι