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to consider it unworthy of God. See also the great progress in virtue; for he continues, saying: For your sake we are killed all the day long; we are accounted as sheep for the slaughter. For it is a great thing to remain serving God, and not to leap away to another; but it is much greater, when continuous deaths and daily dangers are imminent, to maintain such love. And consider what a form of philosophy this is, which Paul also uses, when enumerating the torrents of apostolic dangers in the Epistle to the Romans. Of how many crowns, then, would these be worthy, when in the Old Testament they are seen to have reached the measure of the struggles in the New? For what Paul says, I die daily, this they also say, not in experience, nor in the final result, but in their will. But why does he say, For your sake? Because it was possible for us, he says, to change sides, and to abandon our ancestral way of life, and to be in safety; but we choose rather to suffer evil, and to keep the ways of our fathers, than to enjoy peace after having fallen away from the ways of our fathers. We are accounted as sheep for the slaughter. So easily, he says, they kill us. And here he also shows their gentleness. But nevertheless, being so easily exposed, we remain holding an unwavering resolve. Here it is also worthy to be amazed at the power of God, that He preserved those so exposed as sheep for the slaughter, and did not let those who were dying daily fall into death. Awake, why do you sleep, O Lord? Another says, Why are you as one who sleeps? Another, Be awakened. Another, Wake up. Arise, and do not cast us off forever. Why do you turn away your face? Another, You hide. Do you forget our poverty and our affliction? Another, Our wickedness? But what he says is this: You are able to put an end to the evils; for these things do not happen because of your weakness, but by your permission. For here he calls stillness "sleep," and "arising" retribution, and "face" help, providence, care, alliance. 9. Why do you forget our poverty? See again the good sense. He did not say, "Of our achievements;" he did not say, "Of our unwavering resolve;" he did not say, "Of the soul tested in temptations;" but when they are making a defense for themselves, they put forward those things; but when they seek an alliance, they ask to be saved by the very things for which the condemned are judged. Since they have paid the penalty, he says, since they have suffered the worst. This Paul also does often, and other of the prophets. And these things 55.181 they said, knowing nothing yet about Gehenna, nor about the kingdom, nor having been taught to philosophize in such a way, and they bore everything with ease. For our soul is humbled to the dust; our belly cleaves to the earth. For since he said: Do you forget our poverty; that is, our affliction, he then speaks of the affliction. And what he says is this: We are lost, we are buried, we are in no better state than the dead. And one might justly say also that the soul of those who have melted away into present things has been humbled to the dust, and that the belly of the gluttons has cleaved to the earth. For indeed the one who is bound by love, and who gapes at clay, and enslaves the incorporeal power within him to ashes, might reasonably be said to suffer these things. For what else is the beauty of the body, but dust and clay, or rather even more hideous than these? And if you disbelieve, examine the tombs of men, and you will see the clay and the dust. For when the face puts off the present life, then what it is appears; or rather, even before the end. For when old age comes on, when sickness attacks, then you will see what is apparent; for it is clay; but as a wise creator, even from humble matter He made an incomparable beauty to come into being, not that

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λογίσασθαι ἀνάξιον Θεοῦ. Ὅρα καὶ τὴν ἐπίδοσιν ἀρετῆς πολλήν· ἐπάγει γὰρ λέγων· Ὅτι ἕνεκεν σοῦ θανατούμεθα ὅλην τὴν ἡμέραν· ἐλογίσθημεν ὡς πρόβατα σφαγῆς. Μέγα μὲν γὰρ καὶ τὸ μένειν θεραπεύοντας τὸν Θεὸν, καὶ μὴ πρὸς ἕτερον ἀποπηδῆσαι· τὸ δὲ πολλῷ μεῖζον, τὸ συνεχῶν θανάτων καὶ καθημερινῶν κινδύνων ἐπικειμένων διατηρεῖν τὴν τοιαύτην ἀγάπην. Καὶ ἐννόησον ὅσον φιλοσοφίας εἶδός ἐστιν, ὅπου γε καὶ ὁ Παῦλος αὐτῷ κέχρηται, τὰς νιφάδας τῶν ἀποστολικῶν κινδύνων ἀπαριθμούμενος ἐν τῇ πρὸς Ῥωμαίους ἐπιστολῇ. Πόσων οὖν ἂν εἶεν ἄξιοι στεφάνων οὗτοι, ὅταν ἐν τῇ Παλαιᾷ φαίνωνται πρὸς τὸ μέτρον φθάσαντες τῶν ἐν τῇ Καινῇ ἀγωνισμάτων; Ὃ γάρ φησιν ὁ Παῦλος, Καθ' ἡμέραν ἀποθνήσκω, τοῦτο καὶ οὗτοι, οὐχὶ τῇ πείρᾳ, οὔτε τῷ τέλει, ἀλλὰ τῇ γνώμῃ. ∆ιὰ τί δέ φησιν, Ἕνεκεν σοῦ; Ὅτι ἐξῆν ἡμῖν, φησὶ, μετατάξασθαι, καὶ ἀφεῖναι τὴν πατρῴαν πολιτείαν, καὶ εἶναι ἐν ἀσφαλείᾳ· ἀλλ' αἱρούμεθα πάσχειν κακῶς μᾶλλον, καὶ τὰ πατρῷα φυλάττειν, ἢ εἰρήνης ἀπολαύειν μετὰ τὸ τῶν πατρῴων ἐκπεσεῖν. Ἐλογίσθημεν ὡς πρόβατα σφαγῆς. Οὕτως ἡμᾶς εὐκόλως, φησὶν, ἀναιροῦσιν. Ἐνταῦθα δὲ καὶ τὴν ἐπιείκειαν αὐτῶν ἐνδείκνυται. Ἀλλ' ὅμως οὕτως εὐκόλως προκείμενοι, μένομεν ἀπερίτρεπτον τὴν γνώμην ἔχοντες. Ἐνταῦθα καὶ τοῦ Θεοῦ τὴν δύναμιν ἄξιον ἐκπλαγῆναι, ὅτι τοὺς οὕτω προκειμένους ὡς πρόβατα σφαγῆς διετήρησε, καὶ καθ' ἡμέραν ἀποθνήσκοντας οὐκ ἀφῆκεν ἐμπεσεῖν εἰς θάνατον. Ἐξεγέρθητι, ἵνα τί ὑπνοῖς, Κύριε; Ἄλλος φησὶν, Ἵνα τί ὡς ὑπνῶν εἶ; Ἄλλος,Ἐξυπνίσθητι. Ἄλλος, Ἐξύπνισον. Ἀνάστηθικαὶ μὴ ἀπώσῃ εἰς τέλος. Ἵνα τί τὸ πρόσωπόν σου ἀποστρέφεις; Ἕτερος, Κρύπτεις. Ἐπιλανθάνῃ τῆς πτωχείας ἡμῶν καὶ τῆς θλίψεως ἡμῶν; Ἄλλος, Τῆς κακίας ἡμῶν; Ὃ δὲ λέγει τοιοῦτόν ἐστιν· ∆ύνασαι λῦσαι τὰ κακά· οὐδὲ γὰρ παρὰ ἀσθένειαν σὴν ταῦτα γίνεται, ἀλλὰ παρὰ τὴν συγχώρησιν. Ὕπνον γὰρ ἐνταῦθα τὴν ἡσυχίαν φησὶ, καὶ ἀνάστασιν τὴν ἀνταπόδοσιν, καὶ πρόσωπον τὴν ἀντίληψιν, τὴν πρόνοιαν, τὴν κηδεμονίαν, τὴν συμμαχίαν. θʹ. Ἵνα τί ἐπιλανθάνῃ τῆς πτωχείας ἡμῶν; Ὅρα πάλιν εὐγνωμοσύνην. Οὐκ εἶπε, Τῶν κατορθωμάτων· οὐκ εἶπε, Τῆς ἀπεριτρέπτου γνώμης· οὐκ εἶπε, Τῆς ἐν πειρασμοῖς δοκιμασθείσης ψυχῆς· ἀλλ' ὅτε μὲν ὑπὲρ ἑαυτῶν ἀπολογοῦνται, ἐκεῖνα τιθέασιν· ὅταν δὲ τὴν συμμαχίαν ζητῶσιν, ἀφ' ὧν οἱ κατάδικοι, ἀπὸ τούτων ἀξιοῦσι σώζεσθαι. Ἐπειδὴ δίκην ἔδοσαν, φησὶν, ἐπειδὴ τὰ ἔσχατα πεπόνθασι. Τοῦτο καὶ Παῦλος ποιεῖ πολλάκις, καὶ ἕτεροι τῶν προφητῶν. Καὶ ταῦτα 55.181 ἔλεγον οὗτοι, οὐδέπω περὶ γεέννης εἰδότες οὐδὲν, οὐδὲ περὶ βασιλείας, οὐδὲ τοιαῦτα διδαχθέντες φιλοσοφεῖν, καὶ πάντα ἔφερον ῥᾳδίως. Ὅτι ἐταπεινώθη εἰς χοῦν ἡ ψυχὴ ἡμῶν· ἐκολλήθη εἰς γῆν ἡ γαστὴρ ἡμῶν. Ἐπειδὴ γὰρ εἶπεν· Ἐπιλανθάνῃ τῆς πτωχείας ἡμῶν· τουτέστι, τῆς κακώσεως, λέγει λοιπὸν τὴν κάκωσιν. Ὃ δὲ λέγει, τοῦτό ἐστιν· Ἀπολώλαμεν, κατωρύγημεν, τῶν νεκρῶν οὐδὲν ἄμεινον διακείμεθα. ∆ικαίως δ' ἄν τις εἴποι καὶ τῶν τοῖς παροῦσι προστετηκότων τὴν ψυχὴν, εἰς χοῦν τεταπεινῶσθαι, καὶ τῶν γαστριμάργων εἰς τὴν γῆν τὴν γαστέρα κεκολλῆσθαι. Καὶ γὰρ ὁ ἔρωτι προσδεδεμένος, καὶ πρὸς τὸν πηλὸν κεχηνὼς, καὶ τὴν ἀσώματον δύναμιν τὴν ἐν αὐτῷ καταδουλῶν τῇ σποδῷ, εἰκότως ἂν ταῦτα λέγοιτο πάσχειν. Τί γάρ ἐστιν ἄλλο κάλλος σώματος, ἀλλ' ἢ χοῦς καὶ πηλὸς, μᾶλλον δὲ καὶ τούτων εἰδεχθέστερον; Εἰ δὲ ἀπιστεῖς, περιεργάζου τοὺς τάφους τῶν ἀνθρώπων, καὶ ὄψει τὸν πηλὸν καὶ τὴν κόνιν. Ὅταν γὰρ ἀποθῆται τὸ πρόσωπον τὴν παροῦσαν ζωὴν, τότε φαίνεται ὅπερ ἐστί· μᾶλλον δὲ καὶ πρὸ τῆς τελευτῆς. Ὅταν γὰρ τὸ γῆρας ἐπέλθῃ, ὅταν ἡ νόσος ἐπισκήψῃ, τότε ὄψει τὸ φαινόμενον· πηλὸς γάρ ἐστιν· ἀλλ' ὡς σοφὸς δημιουργὸς, καὶ ἐξ εὐτελοῦς ὕλης κάλλος ἀμήχανον ἐποίησεν ἐπιγενέσθαι, οὐχ ἵνα