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"I have found," he says, "David the son of Jesse, a man after my own heart, who will do all my will." The wills of God are the virtues according to their kind. But the general one is called one will; for he says that: "Not everyone who says to me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter, but the one who does the will of my Father." Here he called the general virtue singularly 'will'. And he who does the virtues according to their kind, does all the wills of God, if he is a doer of God's wills, if he turns his commandments into works, if he casts away things that must be thought, if the truth of God has been shown. This one is a servant of God. And see, he who said these things was a king and he preferred the servitude of God to his kingship; for it is a great nobility to be a servant of God. Indeed, it has often been said that the saints designate themselves thus in their opening words: "James, a servant of the Lord God Jesus Christ," and: "Paul, a servant of Christ," and Jonah, being asked: "from what country and what people," then says: "I am a servant of God." And just as those who, because of rank, place their dignity and rank before their own compositions, these saints confess the servitude of God as the greatest nobility and surpassing glory and great rank. The servant of God, knowing the will of God, knows also the things that are opposed to the will of God. And opposed to the will of God are impiety, lawlessness, every kind of evil. Therefore, the servant of the Lord, having known the goal, virtue over all things, knew also lawlessness; for of opposites there is the same knowledge. The one who has medical skill knows not only the healthy remedies, but also the harmful ones, so that he may use the one and turn away from the other. Therefore the servant of the Lord says, referring the ode to the end. "The transgressor says of sinning within himself." The saying is ambiguous. It means one thing thus: "the transgressor says within himself of sinning." "within himself he says of sinning." First he consents to lawlessness and sin, and so he comes to do it. It is impossible to sin without having been previously disposed toward sin. Therefore, "the transgressor says of sinning within himself." "within himself he says." For it must be read thus, as "within himself the transgressor says of sinning." But it is possible also to take the other side of the ambiguity thus: "the transgressor says within himself of sinning"; for he knows that he has no boldness in sinning. Every sinner, when he follows through, hides the evil; for no one reveals who he is. Even if he is a fornicator and wishes to be introduced to some people, he does not want the one introducing him to call him a fornicator. Therefore, they are even more condemned, because what they do, they wish to hide. But no one doing good wishes to be unknown—even if he sometimes does this for the sake of humility—, but he is eager to have such works illuminated before men, so that the Father in heaven may be glorified; for "let your light shine before men, so that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven." 2 There is no fear of God before his eyes. No one sins who has the divine fear before his eyes; for the divine fear is destructive of sin. To sin belongs to those who are contemptuous, who have come to be outside of the divine fear. Thus, indeed, the divine scripture of Proverbs also introduces wisdom, saying: "The fear of the Lord hates injustice, and arrogance and pride and the ways of evil men." If the fear of God hates these things, no one who has it does injustice; for "the fear of the Lord hates injustice." He is not insolent, he is not a reviler, he is not stubborn. The name of 'hubris' sometimes means reviling, and at other times haughtiness and arrogance. "And the fear of God hates the ways of evil men." And the "ways of evil men" are impious thoughts, lawless actions. Since, therefore, he does not have the fear of God before his eyes, for this reason he says within himself of

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"εὗρον", φησίν, "∆αυὶδ τὸν τοῦ Ἰεσσαί, ἄνδρα κατὰ τὴν καρδίαν μου, ὃς ποιήσει πάντα τὰ θελήματά μου". θελήματα τοῦ θεοῦ αἱ κατ' εἶδός εἰσιν ἀρεταί. ἡ δὲ γενικὴ ἓν θέλημα λέγεται· λέγει γὰρ ὅτι· "οὐ πᾶς ὁ λέγων με κύριε κύριε, εἰσελεύσεται, ἀλλ' ὁ ποιῶν τὸ θέλημα τοῦ πατρός μου". ὧδε τὴν γενικὴν ἀρετὴν ἑνικῶς θέλημα ὠνόμασεν. ποιεῖ δὲ τὰς κατ' εἶδος ἀρετὰς κατὰ πάντα τὰ θελήματα τοῦ θεοῦ ποιῶν, εἴ τις ποιητής ἐστιν τῶν θεοῦ θελημάτων, εἴ τις τὰς ἐντολὰς αὐτοῦ εἰς ἔργα μεταβάλλει, εἴ τις τὰ φρονητέα ἀποβάλλει, εἰ ἡ ἀλήθεια τοῦ θεοῦ δέδεικται. οὗτός ἐστιν δοῦλος θεοῦ. καὶ ὅρα γε, βασιλεὺς ἦν ὁ ταῦτα λέγων καὶ προέκρινεν τὴν θεοῦ δουλείαν τῆς βασιλείας· μεγάλη γὰρ εὐγένειά ἐστιν τὸ εἶναι θεοῦ δοῦλον. αὐτίκα γοῦν πολλάκις εἴρηται, ὅτι τάττουσιν ἑαυτοὺς ἐν ταῖς προγραφαῖς οὕτως οἱ ἅγιοι· "̓Ιάκωβος κυρίου τοῦ θεοῦ Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ δοῦλος", καί· "Παῦλος δοῦλος Χριστοῦ", καὶ Ἰωνᾶς ἐρωτώμενος· "ἐκ ποίας χώρας καὶ ποίου λαου῀̣", εἶτα λέγει· "ἐγὼ δοῦλος θεοῦ εἰμι". καὶ ὥσπερ οἱ διὰ ἀξίωμα προταττόμενοι τῶν συνταγμάτων ἑαυτῶν τὴν ἀξίαν καὶ τὸ ἀξίωμα, οὗτοι οἱ ἅγιοι ὥσπερ μεγίστην εὐγένειαν καὶ ὑπερβάλλουσαν εὔκλειαν καὶ ἀξίωμα μέγα τὴν θεοῦ δουλείαν ὁμολογοῦσιν. ὁ θεοῦ δοῦλος εἰδὼς τὸ τοῦ θεοῦ θέλημα οἶδεν καὶ τὰ ἐναντιούμενα τῷ θελήματι τοῦ θεοῦ. ἐναντιοῦται δὲ τῷ θελήματι τοῦ θεοῦ ἀσέβεια, παρανομία, πᾶν εἶδος κακίας. ἐγνωκὼς οὖν ὁ δοῦλος τοῦ κυρίου τὸ τέλος, τὴν ἐπὶ πᾶσιν ἀρετήν, ἔγνω καὶ τὴν παρανομίαν· τῶν γὰρ ἐναντίων ἡ αὐτή ἐστιν ἐπιστήμη. ὁ ἰατρικὴν ἔχων οὐ μόνον τὰ ὑγιεινὰ οἶδεν τῶν βοηθημάτων, ἀλλὰ καὶ τὰ βλαπτικά, ἵνα τοῖς μὲν χρᾶται, τὰ δὲ ἀποστρέφηται. λέγει οὖν ὁ δοῦλος τοῦ κυρίου ὁ εἰς τὸ τέλος ἀναφερόμενος τὴν ᾠδήν. "φησὶν ὁ παράνομος τοῦ ἁμαρτάνειν ἐν ἑαυτῷ". ἀμφίβολός ἐστιν ἡ λέξις. σημαίνει ἓν οὕτως· "ὁ παράνομος ἐν ἑαυτῷ φησιν τοῦ ἁμαρτάνειν". "ἐν ἑαυτῷ φησιν τοῦ ἁμαρτάνειν". πρῶτον δὲ συνκατατίθεται τῇ παρανομίᾳ καὶ τῇ ἁμαρτίᾳ καὶ οὕτως ἐπὶ τὸ πράττειν αὐτὴν ἔρχεται. ἀδύνατόν ἐστιν μὴ προδιατεθέντα κατὰ ἁμαρτίαν ἁμαρτῆσαι. "φησὶν" οὖν "ὁ παράνομος τοῦ ἁμαρτάνειν ἐν ἑαυτῷ". "ἐν ἑαυτῷ φησιν". οὕτω γὰρ αὐτὸ ἀναγνωστέον, ὡς "ἐν ἑαυτῷ φησιν ὁ παράνομος τοῦ ἁμαρτάνειν". δυνατὸν δὲ καὶ τὸ ἕτερον τῆς ἀμφιβολίας οὕτω λαβεῖν· "ὁ παράνομος ἐν ἑαυτῷ λέγει τοῦ ἁμαρτάνειν"· οἶδεν γὰρ ὅτι οὐκ ἔχει παρρησίαν ἐπὶ τῷ ἁμαρτάνειν. πᾶς ἁμαρτάνων ὅτε παρακολουθεῖ, κρύπτει τὸ κακόν· οὐδεὶς γοῦν φανεροῖ ἑαυτὸν ὅστις ἐστίν. κἂν πόρνος ᾖν καὶ θέλῃ συνσταθῆναί τισιν, οὐ θέλει ἵνα ὁ συνιστῶν αὐτὸν εἴπῃ αὐτο`̣ν πόρνον. ἔτι οὖν πλέον κατακρίνονται, ὅτι ὃ πράττουσιν, κρύπτειν θέλουσιν. οὐδεὶς δὲ πράττων τὸ καλὸν θέλει ἀγνοεῖσθαι-κἀ´̣ν ποτε τοῦτο ποιῇ ἀτυφίας ἕνεκα-, ἀλλὰ σπουδάζει τοιαῦτα ἔργα ἔχειν φωτιζόμενα ἐπίπροσθεν τῶν ἀνθρώπων, ἵνα δοξασθῇ ὁ πατὴρ ὁ ἐν τοῖς οὐρανοῖς· "λαμψάτω" γὰρ "τὸ φῶς ὑμῶν ἔνπροσθεν τῶν ἀνθρώπων, ὅπως ἴδωσιν ὑμῶν τὰ καλὰ ἔργα καὶ δοξάσωσιν τὸν πατέρα τὸν ἐν τοῖς οὐρανοῖς". 2 οὐκ ἔστιν φόβος θεοῦ ἀπέναντι τῶν ὀφθαλμῶν αὐτοῦ. οὐδεὶς πρὸ ὀφθαλμῶν ἔχων τὸν θεῖον φόβον ἁμαρτάνει· ὁ γὰρ θεῖος φόβος ἀναιρετικός ἐστιν τῆς ἁμαρτίας. καταφρονούντων ἐστὶν τὸ ἁμαρτάνειν, ἔξω γενομένων τοῦ θείου φόβου. οὕτω γοῦν καὶ ἡ θεία τῶν παροιμιῶν γραφὴ εἰσάγει τὴν σοφίαν λέγουσαν· "φόβος κυρίου μισεῖ ἀδικίαν, ὕβριν τε καὶ ὑπερηφανίαν καὶ ὁδοὺς πονηρῶν". εἰ ὁ φόβος τοῦ θεοῦ ταῦτα μισεῖ, οὐδεὶς ἔχων αὐτὸν ἀδικεῖ· "φόβος" γὰρ "κυρίου μισεῖ ἀδικίαν". οὔκ ἐστιν ὑβριστής, οὔκ ἐστιν λοίδορος, οὔκ ἐστιν αὐθάδης. τὸ δὲ τῆς ὕβρεως ὄνομα ὁτὲ μὲν τὴν λοιδορίαν σημαίνει, ὁτὲ δὲ τὴν ὑψαυχενίαν καὶ ἀλαζονείαν. "καὶ τὰς ὁδοὺς τῶν πονηρῶν μισεῖ ὁ τοῦ θεοῦ φόβος". "ὁδοὶ" δὲ "τῶν πονηρῶν" εἰσιν τὰ ἀσεβῆ φρονήματα, αἱ πράξεις αἱ παράνομοι. ἐπεὶ τοίνυν οὐκ ἔχει τὸν φόβον τοῦ θεοῦ ἀπέναντι τῶν ὀφθαλμῶν, διὰ τοῦτο ἐν ἑαυτῷ λέγει τοῦ