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you are clearly His, nor having received Him beforehand did you accept Him, nor did you receive Him in yourself, and for this reason He has neither given you authority nor can you become a child of God; but not having become a child of God, how then will you see God in heaven and your Father? No one before being born has ever seen his own father, and no man will see God, unless he is first born of Him. For this reason the Lord also said: "Unless one is born from above, he cannot enter into the kingdom of heaven," and again: "That which is born of the flesh," (286) he says, "is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit," that is, holy from holy; "but the Spirit searches even the depths of God." But you, if you have been born only of flesh and have not yet known the birth from the Spirit, nor have you yourself, having been born, become spirit, how then can you search the depths of God, or rather how can you see God? In no way at all, you yourself, even unwillingly, will confess, O brother.

So be it. What then? "But are you," he says, "such a one yourself? And how shall we know that you are such a one?" I indeed without grace from above am not able to say this, but neither Paul himself, I think, nor John; nevertheless I groan at the hardening of the hearts of those who propose these things to me and seek how to recognize the one who has attained to a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of Jesus. Whence, if you wish to learn, the blind recognize other men; whence Isaac recognized Jacob, clothed in the garment of Esau his brother. For you all know how, being perplexed, he said: "The hands are the hands of Esau, but the voice is the voice of Jacob." Whence it is shown that he did not know the deceit of the garment—for he was blind—but he recognized the familiar voice of his son; if, therefore, he had also been deaf, he would certainly not have been able to recognize his speech either. Thus, therefore, you also, whoever you are who are so perplexed, being not only blind but also deaf, how can you recognize a spiritual man? In no way indeed. But that this is true, and that those who do not see spiritually cannot hear spiritually either, listen to the Lord speaking thus to the unbelieving Jews: "Why do you not understand my speech? Because you cannot hear my words," and a little after: (287) "He who is of God hears the words of God; for this reason you do not hear, because you are of God. You are of your father the devil, and you want to do the desires of your father." If, therefore, you also, because of unbelief and wickedness and neglect and transgression of the commandments, are flesh, thick, I say, in your hearts, and have the ears of it stopped up, and the eye of the soul covered by the passions, how then will you be able to recognize a spiritual and holy man?

But, I beseech you, let us be diligent, my fathers and brothers, each one of us in every way to know ourselves, so that from the things concerning us we may one day be able to know the things beyond us. For it is impossible for one who has not first known himself, so as to be able to say with David: "But I am a worm and not a man," and again, as Abraham: "I am earth and ashes," to know any of the spiritual and divine oracles spiritually and worthily of the transcendent and wise Spirit. Let no one deceive you with empty and sophistical words, that anyone can at all comprehend the divine mysteries of our faith without the Spirit who initiates and illumines; but indeed neither without meekness and humility can one become a receptacle of the gifts of the Spirit. For it is necessary that we all first indisputably lay well the foundation of faith in the depths of our soul, then raise up the inner piety through the various forms of virtue as a strong wall; and thus, when the soul has been walled on all sides and, as it were, fixed in it as on a good foundation of virtue, then it is necessary also for the roof of this building, which is

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ὑπάρχεις αὐτοῦ δηλονότι, οὐδέ προλαβών ἐδέξω αὐτόν, οὐδέ ἔλαβες αὐτόν ἐν σεαυτῷ, καί διά τοῦτο οὔτε ἐξουσίαν σοι δέδωκεν οὔτε δύνασαι τέκνον γενέσθαι Θεοῦ· τέκνον δέ Θεοῦ μή γενόμενος, πᾶς ἄρα τόν ἐν τοῖς οὐρανοῖς θεάσῃ Θεόν καί Πατέρα σου; Οὐδείς πρό τοῦ γεννηθῆναι τόν ἑαυτοῦ πατέρα ποτέ τεθέαται, καί οὐδείς ἀνθρώπων τόν Θεόν ὄψεται, ἐάν μή πρότερον ἐξ αὐτοῦ γεννηθῇ. ∆ιά τοῦτο καί ὁ Κύριος ἔλεγεν· "Ἐάν μή τις γεννηθῇ ἄνωθεν, οὐ δύναται εἰσελθεῖν εἰς τήν βασιλείαν τῶν οὐρανῶν", καί πάλιν· "Τό γεννώμενον ἐκ τῆς σαρκός, (286) φησί, σάρξ ἐστι, τό δέ γεννώμενον ἐκ τοῦ Πνεύματος πνεῦμά ἐστιν", ἐξ ἁγίου ἅγιον δηλονότι· "τό δέ Πνεῦμα ἐρευνᾷ καί τά βάθη τοῦ Θεοῦ". Σύ δέ, εἰ ἀπό σαρκός μόνον γεγέννησαι καί οὔπω τήν ἐκ τοῦ Πνεύματος γέννησιν ἔγνως, οὐδέ Πνεῦμα αὐτός σύ γεννηθείς γέγονας, πῶς ἄρα δύνασαι τά βάθη τοῦ Θεοῦ ἐρευνᾶν, μᾶλλον δέ πῶς δύνασαι ὁρᾶν τόν Θεόν; Πάντως οὐδαμῶς, αὐτός σύ, καί μή βουλόμενος, καθομολογήσεις, ὦ ἀδελφέ.

Εἶεν. Τί δαί; "Ἀλλά σύ" φησί "τοιοῦτος ὑπάρχεις αὐτός; Καί πόθεν σε τοιοῦτον εἶναι ἐπιγνωσόμεθα;" Ἐγώ μέν ἄνευ τῆς ἄνωθεν χάριτος οὐχ οἷός τέ εἰμι τοῦτο εἰπεῖν, ἀλλ᾿ οὐδέ Παῦλος αὐτός, οἶμαι, καί Ἰωάννης· πλήν ὅμως στενάζω ἐπί τῇ πωρώσει τῶν καρδιῶν τῶν ταῦτα προτεινομένων μοι καί ζητούντων πόθεν ἐπιγνῶναι τόν εἰς ἄνδρα τέλειον, εἰς μέτρον ἡλικίας πεφθακότα τοῦ Ἰησοῦ. Ὅθεν, εἰ βούλει μαθεῖν, οἱ τυφλοί τούς ἄλλους τῶν ἀνθρώπων ἐπιγινώσκουσιν· ὅθεν ὁ Ἰσαάκ ἐπέγνω τόν Ἰακώβ, τήν στολήν ἐνδεδυμένον Ἡσαῦ τοῦ ἀδελφοῦ αὐτοῦ. Ἴστε γάρ ἅπαντες πῶς ἐπαπορῶν ἔλεγεν· "Αἱ μέν χεῖρες χεῖρες Ἡσαῦ, ἡ δέ φωνή φωνή Ἰακώβ". Ὅθεν δείκνυται ὅτι τῆς μέν στολῆς τόν δόλον οὐκ ἔγνω - τυφλός γάρ ἦν , τήν δέ συνήθη φωνήν ἐγνώρσιε τοῦ υἱοῦ· εἰ τοίνυν καί κωφός ἦν, πάντως οὐδέ τήν λαλιάν αὐτοῦ γνωρίσαι ἴσχυσεν ἄν. Οὕτως οὖν καί ὑμεῖς, οἵτινές ἐστε οἱ οὕτως ἐπαποροῦντες, οὐ μόνον τυφλοί ἀλλά καί κωφοί τυγχάνοντες, πῶς δύνασθε ἄνδρα γνωρίσαι πνευματικόν; Οὐδαμῶς δή. Ὅτι δέ τοῦτό ἐστιν ἀληθές, καί οἱ μή βλέποντες πνευματικῶς οὐδέ ἀκούειν πνευματικῶς δύνανται, ἄκουσον τοῦ Κυρίου πρός τούς ἀπίστους τῶν Ἰουδαίων οὕτω λέγοντος· "∆ιά τί τήν λαλιάν τήν ἐμήν οὐ γινώσκετε; ∆ιότι οὐ δύνασθε ἀκούειν τῶν λόγων τῶν ἐμῶν", καί μετ᾿ ὀλίγα· (287) "Ὁ ὤν ἐκ τοῦ Θεοῦ τά ῥήματα τοῦ Θεοῦ ἀκούει· διά τοῦτο ὑμεῖς οὐκ ἀκούετε, ὅτι ἐκ Θεοῦ ἐστέ. Ὑμεῖς ἐκ τοῦ πατρός τοῦ διαβόλου ἐστέ καί τάς ἐπιθυμίας τοῦ πατρός ὑμῶν θέλετε ποιεῖν". Εἰ οὖν καί ὑμεῖς ὑπό τῆς ἀπιστίας καί πονηρίας καί τῆς τῶν ἐντολῶν ἀμελείας καί παραβάσεως σάρκες ἐστέ, παχεῖς, λέγω, τάς καρδίας, καί τά ταύτης ὦτα βεβυσμένα ἔχετε, τόν δέ ὀφθαλμόν κεκαλυμμένον τῆς ψυχῆς ὑπό τῶν παθῶν, πᾶς ἄρα πνευματικόν καί ἅγιον ἄνδρα ἐπιγνῶναι δυνήσεσθε;

Ἀλλά, παρακαλῶ, σπουδάσωμεν, πατέρες καί ἀδελφοί μου, παντί τρόπῳ ἑαυτούς ἡμῶν ἕκαστος ἐπιγνῶναι, ἵνα ἐκ τῶν καθ᾿ ἡμᾶς τά ὑπέρ ἡμᾶς γνῶναί ποτε δυνησώμεθα. Ἀδύνατον γάρ τόν μή ἐπιγνόντα ἑαυτόν πρότερον, ὥστε δύνασθαι μετά τοῦ ∆αυίδ λέγειν· "Ἐγώ δέ εἰ μι σκώληξ καί οὐκ ἄνθρωπος", καί πάλιν, ὡς ὁ Ἀβραάμ· "Ἐγώ εἰμι γῆ καί σποδός", ἐπιγνῶναί τι τῶν πνευματικῶν καί θείων λογίων πνευματικῶς καί ἀξίως τοῦ ὑπερφυοῦς καί σοφοῦ Πνεύματος. Μηδείς ὑμᾶς πλανάτω κενοῖς καί σεσοφισμένοις λόγοις, ὅτι τά θεῖα τῆς πίστεως ἡμῶν μυστήρια δύναταί τις ὅλως καταλαβεῖν ἄνευ τοῦ μυσταγωγοῦντος καί φωτίζοντος Πνεύματος· ἀλλά γάρ οὐδέ πρᾳότητος καί ταπεινοφροσύνης χωρίς δύναται γενέσθαι δοχεῖον τῶν χαρισμάτων τοῦ Πνεύματος. Χρή γάρ ἀναντιρρήτως τόν θεμέλιον τῆς πίστεως καλῶς πάντας ἡμᾶς καταβαλεῖν πρότερον εἰς τά τῆς ψυχῆς ἡμῶν βάθη, εἶτα τήν ἐντός εὐσέβειαν διά τῶν ποικίλων τῆς ἀρετῆς εἰδῶν ὡς τεῖχος ὀχυρόν ἀνυψῶσαι· καί οὕτω πάντοθεν τειχισθείσης τῆς ψυχῆς καί οἱονεί ἐμπαγείσης ἐν αὐτῇ ὡς ἐπί θεμελίῳ καλῷ τῆς ἀρετῆς, τότε δεῖ καί τήν σκέπην τῆς οἰκοδομῆς ταύτης, ἥτις ἐστίν