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having done business, even if he was with them, suffered the loss of the opportunity, having benefited nothing from being found at the festival? And if others, on the one hand, in the expectation of profit, despise the attack of robbers and the weariness of travel and a long road, but the other, being struck with fear of these things, even if he is urged by all to travel with them, even if he hears them promising to guard him from the evils he expects, does not choose to follow them and to go away to do business with them at the festival, did not the ones redeem the time, having done business well and made a profit, while the other foolishly suffered the loss of it, having feared there a fear where there was no fear?

So therefore it is also with every spiritual action and work. For when others walk in the commandments of God and practice all the virtues with zeal and fervor, (350) but we live in carelessness and idleness, they have redeemed the time and have been benefited the most, while we have lost both ourselves and the time. But let us examine the meaning further. What then does he say: "Redeeming the time, because the days are evil"? How then does one redeem the time, and what is this, and what are the evil days for which we ought to redeem the time? The time for the business of every man is this time of the present life; and of this life, the days are clearly evil for those who do not use them well. Everyone, therefore, who lives his life temperately and justly with a sound mind, and bears with fortitude and patience of soul the toilsome and sorrowful things of the trials and tribulations that come upon him, whether from visible or invisible enemies, redeems the time wisely and makes a profit from the evil days of the present life. And that this may be made clearer, I will make my argument from the things that happen daily in life.

He who knows well how to make use of the present time, whenever tribulations and reproaches and dishonors and mockings are brought on, as one who recognizes the goods and clearly foresees the profit from them, snatches these things and takes them upon his shoulders and goes on his way rejoicing, paying down patience alone instead of gold and thus redeems the time in the twinkling of an eye, which others, by fasting for many years, keeping vigil, sleeping on the ground and toiling much at home, are not able to find or to take or to gain. But he who does not know how to conduct business in this way loses the time of his salvation. If it seems good, let us also work out the argument in another way, by an example. If two men are tyrannically summoned by someone to transgress a commandment of God, if one of them through cowardice and fear of the punishments and torments that are about to be inflicted on him should take to flight and go away and hide, (351) but the other should speak boldly and endure many tortures for the sake of the commandment of God, or even undergo death itself, which of these has redeemed the time? The one who hid and fled the tribulations, or the one who suffered much and endured or perhaps even died? It is clear that by all means the one who endured the tribulations and did not refuse death is the one who redeemed the time, while the other suffered the loss of the salvation of his own soul along with the time.

Therefore, those who think rightly, through the tribulations and trials of this life, purchase the eternal goods and unending joy, and through bodily death, the eternal and immortal life and dwelling with the immortal and eternal God. And just as a merchant, having found many and very precious goods being sold for a small price, perhaps for a single obol or coin, with joy and zeal pays it, desiring to receive those precious things, so also he who strives for the commandment of God chooses to die in gladness and zeal, as if through one obol, I mean death, he is about to acquire eternal goods. But not so the lovers of the world,

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πραγματευσάμενος, εἰ καί συνῆν αὐτοῖς, ἐζημιώθη τόν καιρόν, μηδέν ἐκ τοῦ εὑρηθῆναι εἰς τήν πανήγυριν ὠφεληθείς; Εἰ δέ καί ἄλλοι μέν αὖθις τῇ προσδοκίᾳ τοῦ κέρδους καί λῃστῶν ἐφόδου καί κόπου ὁδοιπορίας καί μακρᾶς ὁδοῦ καταφρονοῦσιν, ὁ δέ, φόβῳ τούτων βαλλόμενος, κἄν ὑπό πάντων παρακαλῆται συνοδοιπορῆσαι αὐτοῖς, κἄν ὑποσχομένους φυλάττειν αὐτόν ἀκούῃ ἀπό τῶν προσδοκωμένων αὐτῷ κακῶν, οὐ προαιρεῖται ἀκολουθῆσαι αὐτοῖς καί ἀπελθεῖν πραγματεύσασθαι μετ᾿ αὐτῶν ἐν τῇ πανηγύρει, οὐχί οἱ μέν καιρόν ἐξηγοράσαντο, καλῶς πραγματευσάμενοι καί κερδήσαντες, ὁ δέ τοῦτον ἀφρόνως ἐζημιώθη, φοβηθείς ἐκεῖ φόβον οὗ οὐκ ἦν φόβος;

Οὕτω τοιγαροῦν ἐστι καί ἐπί πάσῃ πράξει καί ἐργασίᾳ πνευματικῇ. Ὅταν γάρ ἄλλοι ἐν ταῖς ἐντολαῖς πορεύωνται τοῦ Θεοῦ καί τάς ἀρετάς πάσας μετά σπουδῆς καί θέρμης ἐργάζωνται, (350) ἡμεῖς δέ ἐν ἀμελείᾳ καί ἀργίᾳ διάγωμεν, ἐκεῖνοι μέν ἐξηγοράσαντο τόν καιρόν καί τά μέγιστα ὠφελήθησαν, ἡμεῖς δέ καί ἑαυτούς καί τόν καιρόν ἀπωλέσαμεν. Ἀλλά γάρ ἔτι τό νόημα ἐξετάσωμεν. Τί οὖν φησιν· «Ἐξαγοραζόμενοι τόν καιρόν, ὅτι αἱ ἡμέραι πονηραί εἰσιν»; Πῶς οὖν ἐξαγοράζεταί τις τόν καιρόν καί τίς ἐστιν οὗτος καί τίνες αἱ πονηραί ἡμέραι δι᾿ ἅς ὀφείλομεν ἐξαγοράζεσθαι τόν καιρόν; Καιρός πραγματείας ἀνθρώπου παντός ὁ χρόνος οὗτός ἐστι τῆς παρούσης ζωῆς· ταύτης δέ τῆς ζωῆς προδήλως πονηραί εἰσιν αἱ ἡμέραι τοῖς μή καλῶς χρωμένοις αὐταῖς. Πᾶς οὖν ὁ σωφρόνως καί δικαίως μετά φρονήματος ὑγιοῦς πολιτευόμενος ἐν τῷ βίῳ καί φέρων ἐν ἀδρίᾳ καί ὑπομονῇ ψυχῆς τά ἐπίπονα καί λυπηρά τῶν ἐπερχομένων αὐτῷ πειρασμῶν τε καί θλίψεων, εἴτε ἐξ ὁρατῶν, εἴτε ἐξ ἀοράτων ἐχθρῶν, ἐξαγοράζεται τόν καιρόν φρονίμως καί καταπραγματεύεται τῶν πονηρῶν ἡμερῶν τῆς παρούσης ζωῆς. Καί ἵνα τοῦτο σαφέστερον γένηται, ἐκ τῶν ἐπισυμβαινόντων καθ᾿ ἑκάστην τῷ βίῳ τόν λόγον ποιήσομαι.

Ὁ εἰδώς καλῶς τόν παρόντα πραγματεύσασθαι καιρόν, ὅποταν θλίψεις ἐπενεχθῶσι καί ὀνείδη καί ἀτιμίαι καί σκώμματα, ὡς γνωρίζων τά χρήματα καί τό ἐξ αὐτῶν κέρδος σαφῶς προειδώς, ἁρπάζει ταῦτα καί αἴρει ἐπ᾿ ὤμων αὐτοῦ καί χαίρων πορεύεται, ὑπομονήν μόνην ἀντί χρυσίου καταβαλλόμενος καί οὕτως ἐξαγοράζεται τόν καιρόν ἐν μιᾷ ῥοπῇ, ὅν ἕτεροι ἐν πολλοῖς ἔτεσι νηστεύοντες, ἀγρυπνοῦντες, χαμευνοῦντες καί πολλά οἴκαδε κοπιῶντες, εὑρεῖν ἤ λαβεῖν ἤ κερδῆσαι οὐ δύνανται. Ὁ δέ μή εἰδώς οὕτως πραγματεύσασθαι ἀπόλλει τόν καιρόν τῆς σωτηρίας αὐτοῦ. Εἰ δοκεῖ δέ, καί ἄλλως ἐν ὑποδείγματι τόν λόγον γυμνάσωμεν. ∆ύο τινῶν εἰς παράβασιν ἐντολῆς Θεοῦ τυραννικῶς προσκαλουμένων ὑπό τινος, εἰ ὁ μέν αὐτῶν δειλίᾳ καί φόβῳ τῶν μελλόντων ἐπενεχθῆναι αὐτῷ κολάσεων καί τιμωριῶν φυγῇ χρήσοιτο καί ἀπελθών κρυβηθῇ, (351) ὁ δέ γε ἕτερος παρρησιάσεται καί πολλάς ὑπέρ τῆς ἐντολῆς τοῦ Θεοῦ βασάνους ὑπενέγκῃ, ἤ καί θάνατον αὐτόν ὑποστῇ, ποῖος τούτων ἐξηγοράσατο τόν καιρόν; Ὁ κρυβείς καί τάς θλίψεις διεκφυγών, ἤ ὁ πολλά παθών καί ὑπενεγκών ἤ καί ἴσως ἀποθανών; Εὔδηλον ὅτι πάντως ὁ τάς θλίψεις ὑπομείνας καί τόν θάνατον μή παραιτησάμενος οὗτός ἐστιν ὁ τόν καιρόν ἐξαγορασάμενος, ὁ ἕτερος δέ σύν τῷ καιρῷ καί τήν σωτηρίαν τῆς ἑαυτοῦ ψυχῆς ἐζημιώθη.

Τοιγαροῦν οἱ ὀρθῶς φρονοῦντες διά θλίψεων καί πειρασμῶν τῶν ἐνταῦθα, τά αἰώνια ἀγαθά καί τήν ἄληκτον εὐφροσύνην ἀξαγοράζονται καί διά τοῦ σωματικοῦ θανάτου τήν μετά τοῦ ἀθανάτου καί αἰωνίου Θεοῦ αἰώνιον καί ἀθάνατον διαγωγήν τε καί κατοικίαν. Καί καθάπερ ἔμπορος, πολλά τινα καί πολύτιμα εὑρών πράγματα, ὀλίγῳ τιμήματι πιπρασκόμενα, ὀβολῷ τυχόν ἑνί ἤ νομίσματι, μετά χαρᾶς αὐτό καί ἐν σπουδῇ ἀποδίδωσι, τά τίμια ἐκεῖνα λαβεῖν ἐφιέμενος, οὕτω καί ὁ ὑπέρ ἐντολῆς Θεοῦ ἀγωνιζόμενος ἐν εὐφροσύνῃ καί σπουδῇ θανεῖν αἵρεται, ὡς δι᾿ ὀβολοῦ ἑνός, τοῦ θανάτου λέγω, τά αἰώνια μέλλων κτήσασθαι ἀγαθά. Οὐχ οὕτως δέ οἱ φιλόκοσμοι,