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my [soul], and why do you trouble me? Hope in God, for I will confess to him"· for he did not speak to another; he conversed with his own mind: "Why are you sorrowful and why do you trouble me"? You have near you the one who stops the disturbance. As if one said to someone who was feverish and weak: "3Why do you lament so? A physician is present who is able to rid you of the fever"3. "Hope" therefore "in God, for I will confess to him". When it persuaded itself to hope in God, it was restored from fear and disturbance, which fear and which disturbance came from the evil-doing of wicked powers and of the devil himself. "from lions my only-begotten". He called these very evil-doers lions, those wishing to make war, those attacking and coming against him like scourges. ἐπερ · -since "he has been tempted in all things without sin in like manner," we attribute to it a pre-passion. But the pre-passion is not sin; for if you do not grant this, you introduce another substance of soul, and one that is not shaken has no glory, nor is it worthy of praises and crowns. At any rate, you have in the gospel that: "He began to be amazed and to be distressed"; for is "3to begin"3 anything other than the pre-passion? This beginning is just this, a beginning only, it has nothing after it. This alone, before the choice of evil things, chose the good. ἐπερ · -this has often been said. The substance of the rational [soul] is receptive of those things it is by nature able to receive. It is receptive of anger, desire, grief, disturbance, fear. When something that incites fear is present, the rational substance is by all means disturbed. But sometimes it stops the disturbance immediately, so that nothing comes after it. This they call a pre-passion. ἐπερ · Do you say that a man and a quality are the same? -If I say that a man has died, I do not mean the quality, such as the just man. The death of the just is not in every case the separation of the soul from the body, but to cease to be just. This is the corruption of a just man. Often, being ignorant of the false opinions of the impious, we fall into them. And having fallen into them, we destroy the right opinion. ἐπερ · How do you say that I have not understood? I do not grant that he is just. -But if another understands as has been said and grants that he is just, the same one is both just and unjust. But listen, why those of Protagoras said this into another opinion—and Protagoras was a sophist—; he says, that for things that exist, their being is in their appearing. He says that: "I appear to you who are present to be sitting; but to the one who is absent I do not appear to be sitting; it is unclear whether I am sitting or not sitting." And they say that all existing things are in their appearing; for example, I see the moon, but another does not see it; it is unclear whether it exists or does not exist. To me who am healthy, the perception of honey is that it is sweet, but to another that it is bitter, if he has a fever; it is unclear therefore whether it is bitter or sweet. And thus they wish to dogmatize incomprehensibility. If, therefore, we too say that: "3since it does not appear to me with what reasoning he has spoken, I consider him unjust and impious"3. If it appears to another with what reasoning he has spoken, he appears just and pious to that one. And another again does not even pay attention to the things said by him; he is neither pious nor impious, and we fall into the Protagorean opinion. Let us see, then: it is necessary first to understand the matters and thus either to judge or not to judge. The one who said that he does not speak correctly nor soundly, what meaning of the words does he state? ἐπερ · How then does Job speak? -If I say: "Let the day perish on which I was born," let the birth perish; for from better things I have come to worse; for it is beneficial for someone that evil should perish. As if Jeremiah says concerning the people of the Hebrews—and each of the captive Hebrews will say— : "Let the day of the captivity perish," he does not mean this: "3let there no longer be a captivity"3. "3Let it not be"3, he says, "3that day, let it depart"3; for does it still exist? He was one hundred and forty-eight years old when he said these things. How did that day on which he was born remain? For it passes away and it is not possible to call it back. And 225 says:

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μου, καὶ ἵνα τί συνταράσσεις με; ἔλπισον ἐπὶ τὸν θεόν, ὅτι ἐξομολογήσομαι αὐτῷ"· μὴ γὰρ ἄλλῳ εἶπεν· τῇ ἑαυτοῦ διανοίᾳ διελέχθη· "ἵνα τί περίλυπος εἶ καὶ ἵνα τί συνταράσσεις με"; ἔχεις ἐγ γὺς τὸν παύοντα τὴν ταραχήν. ὡς εἰ ἔλεγέν τις καὶ πυρέττοντι καὶ ἀνειμένῳ· "3ἵνα τί οὕτω ὀλοφύρῃ; πάρεστιν ἰατρὸς δυνάμενός σε ἀπαλλάξαι τοῦ π̣υ̣ρ̣ετοῦ"3. "ἔλπισον" οὖν "ἐπὶ τὸν θεόν, ὅτι ἐξομολογήσομαι αὐτῷ". ὅτε ἔπεισεν ἑαυτὴν ἐλπίσαι ἐπὶ τὸν θεόν, ἀπεκατέστη ἀπὸ τοῦ δέους καὶ τῆς ταραχῆς, ὅπερ δέος καὶ ἥπερ ταραχὴ ἀπὸ κακουργίας πονηρῶν δυνάμεων καὶ αὐτοῦ τοῦ διαβόλου γεγένηται. "ἀπὸ λεόντων τὴν μονογενῆν μου". αὐτοὺς τούτους τοὺς κακούργους καὶ λέοντας ὠνόμασεν τ̣οὺς πολεμεῖν θέλοντας, τοὺς ἐπιτιθεμένους καὶ οἷα μάστιγες ἐπερχομένους κατ' αὐτοῦ. ἐπερ · -ἐπεὶ "πεπείρασται κατὰ πάντα χωρὶς ἁμαρτίας καθ' ὁμοιότητα", δίδομεν αὐτῇ προπάθειαν. οὔκ ἐστιν δὲ ἡ προπάθεια ἁμαρτία· ἐὰν γὰρ μὴ δῷς τοῦτο, ἄλλην οὐσίαν εἰσάγεις ψυχῆς, καὶ οὐδὲ κλέος ἔχει οὐδὲ ἀξία ἐστὶν ἐπαίνων καὶ στεφάνων μὴ κλονηθεῖσα. ἔχεις γοῦν ἐν τῷ εὐαγγελίῳ ὅτι· "ἤρξατο θαμβεῖσθαι καὶ ἀδημονεῖν"· μὴ γὰρ ἕτερόν τί ἐστιν τῆς προπαθείας τὸ "3ἄρξασθαι"3. ἡ ἀρχὴ αὕτη αὐτὸ τοῦτο ἀρχὴ μόνον ἐστίν, οὐκ ἔχει τι μετ' αὐτήν. μόνη αὕτη πρὸ τῆς αἱρέσεως τῶν κακῶν τὸ ἀγαθὸν εἵλατο. ἐπερ · -πολλάκις ἐλέχθη τοῦτο. ἡ οὐσία τῆς λογικῆς δεκτική ἐστιν ὧν πέφυκεν δέχεσθαι. δεκτική ἐστιν θυμοῦ, ἐπιθυμίας, λύπης, ταραχῆς, φόβου. ὅταν παραστῇ τι τὸ κινοῦν φόβον, πάντως ταράττεται ἡ λογικὴ οὐσία. ἐνίοτε δὲ ἵστησιν εὐθέως τὴν ταραχὴν ὡς μηδὲν μετ' αὐτὴν γενέσθαι. ταύτην προπάθειαν λέγουσιν. ἐπερ · ταὐτὸν εἶναι λέγεις ἄνθρωπον καὶ ποιόν; -ἐὰν λέγω τεθνηκέναι ἄνθρωπον , μὴ τὸν ποιὸν λέγω, οἷον τὸν δίκαιον. θάνατος τοῦ δικαίου ἐστὶν οὐ πάντως τὸ διαλυθῆναι τὴν ψυχὴν ἀπὸ τοῦ σώματος, ἀλλὰ τὸ παύσασθαι τοῦ εἶναι δίκαιος. φθορὰ δικαίου αὕτη ἐστίν. πολλάκις ἀγνοοῦντες τὰς ψευδεῖς δόξας τῶν ἀσεβῶν περιπίπτομεν αὐταῖς. ἐκείναις δὲ περιπεσόντες ἀπόλλυμεν τὴν ὀρθὴν δόξαν. ἐπερ · πῶς λέγεις ὅτι οὐ νενόηκα; οὐ δίδωμι αὐτὸν δίκαιον. -ἐὰν δὲ ἄλλος νοήσῃ ὡς εἴρηται καὶ δῷ αὐτὸν δίκαιον, ὁ αὐτὸς καὶ δίκαιος καὶ ἄδικός ἐστιν. ἄκουε δέ, διὰ τί εἶπον εἰς δόξαν ἑτέραν οἱ Πρωταγόρου-σοφιστὴς δὲ ἦν ὁ Πρωταγόρας-· λέγει, ὅτι τὸ εἶναι τοῖς οὖσιν ἐν τῷ φαίνεσθαι ἔστιν. λε´̣γει ὅτι· "φαίνομαι σοὶ τῷ παρόντι καθήμενος· τῷ δὲ ἀπόντι οὐ φαίνομαι καθήμενος· ἄδηλον εἰ κάθημαι ἢ οὐ κάθημαι". καὶ λέγουσιν ὅτι πάντα τὰ ὄντα ἐν τῷ φαίνεσθαι ἔστιν· οἷον ὁρῶ τὴν σελήνην, ἄλλος δὲ οὐχ ὁρᾷ· ἄδηλον εἰ ἔστιν ἢ οὐκ ἔστιν. ἐμοὶ τῷ ὑγιαίνοντι ἀντίλημψις γίνεται τοῦ μέλιτος ὅτι γλυκύ, ἄλλῳ δὲ ὅτι πικρόν, ἐὰν πυρέττῃ· ἄδηλον οὖν εἰ πικρὸν ἢ γλυκύ ἐστιν̣. καὶ οὕτω τὴν ἀκαταλημψίαν θέλουσιν δογματίζειν. ἐὰν οὖν καὶ ἡμεῖς λέγωμεν ὅτι· "3ἐπεὶ οὐ φαίνεταί μοι, ποίῳ λογισμῷ εἴρηκεν, ἄδικον καὶ ἀσεβῆν αὐτὸν ἡγοῦμαι"3. ἐὰν ἄλλῳ φαίνηται, οἵῳ λογισμῷ εἴρηκεν, δίκαιος καὶ εὐσεβὴς ἐκείνῳ φαίνεται. καὶ ἄλλος πάλιν οὐδὲ ἐπιστάνει τοῖς εἰρημένοις ὑπ' αὐτοῦ· οὐδὲ εὐσεβὴς οὐδὲ ἀσεβής ἐστιν, καὶ εἰς τὴν Πρωταγόρειαν ἐνπίπτομεν δόξαν. ἴδωμεν οὖν· δεῖ πρῶτον νοεῖν τὰ πράγματα καὶ οὕτως ἢ κρίνεσθαι ἢ μὴ κρίνεσθαι. ὁ μὴ λέγειν αὐτὸν ὀρθῶς μηδὲ ὑγιαίνειν εἰρηκώς, ποίαν λέγει διάνοιαν τῶν λέξεων; ἐπερ · πῶς οὖν λέγει ὁ Ἰώβ; -ἐὰν λέγω· "ἀπόληται ἡ ἡμέρα, ἐν ᾗ ἐγεννήθην", ἡ γένεσις ἀπολέσθω· ἐκ κρειττόνων γὰρ εἰς χεῖρον ἐλήλυθα· ἐπωφελὲς γάρ τῳ τὸ κακὸν ἀπόλλυσθαι. ὡς ἐὰν λέγῃ ὁ Ἰηρεμίας περὶ τοῦ λαοῦ τῶν Ἑβραίων-καὶ ἕκαστος δὲ τῶν αἰχμαλωτισθέντων Ἑβραίων λέξει- · "ἀπόλοιτο ἡ ἡμέρα τῆς αἰχμαλωσίας", οὐ τοῦτο λέγει ὅτι· "3μὴ ἔστω ἔτι αἰχμαλωσία"3. "3μὴ ἔστω"3, φησίν, "3ἡ ἡμέρα ἐκείνη, ἀπέλθῃ"3· ἔτι γὰρ ὑφέστηκεν; εἶχεν ἔτη ἑκατὸν τεσσαράκοντα ὀκτώ, ὅτε ταῦτα ἔλεγεν. πῶς ἡ ἡμέρα ἐκείνη, ἐν ᾗ ἐγεννήθη, ἔμενεν; παρέρχεται γὰρ καὶ οὐκ ἔστιν ἀνακα´̣μ̣ψαι αὐτήν. καὶ 225 λέγει·