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of the prophets; "And this is the covenant which I will make with them in those days, says the Lord, putting my laws into their mind, and on their hearts I will write them." And Paul also says: "You are our letter, known and read by all men, being revealed that you are a letter of Christ, ministered by us, written not with ink but with the Spirit of the living God, not on tablets of stone but on tablets of fleshly hearts." But some priests understood this to mean the angels, to whom it is also fitting to be able to speak in hearts. But the consolation in the judgment having been released, itself having become twofold, both in being attached to the desires of the flesh (for this itself is the greatest punishment for those who have perception) and in being punished for those things, 2337 That is, both in falling away from God, the true fount of life, and in approaching the demons, broken cisterns, according to the voice of Jeremiah, unable to hold water. But some say that just as affectionate fathers consider the small sin of a child to be much greater than its due, so God through loving-kindness determines that which is less than its due to be double. For otherwise it is not worthy of His goodness to punish doubly, as He said: "The Lord will not take vengeance twice for the same thing in affliction. For the Lord is compassionate and merciful, long-suffering and full of mercy and true." And, "He has not dealt with us according to our iniquities, nor rewarded us according to our sins." And in harmony with, "Prepare the way of the Lord," Zacharias, the father of the Baptist, says: "And you, child, will be called a prophet of the Most High. For you will go before the face of the Lord, to prepare His ways." Concerning whom the Savior says: "He was the burning and shining lamp. But you were willing to rejoice for a while in his light." For Christ is the sun of righteousness and the true light. And the difference between the two is incomparable, even if the human were to become most full of wisdom and light. But to those who have despaired, He gives a sign of consolation. For when you hear a voice from the desert concerning repentance, then understand that the expected one is present. And he has taken the saying from a highway, some parts of which are uphill and others are hollow, and for this reason difficult to travel; which would become smooth, by the heights being brought down, and the hollows being filled up, such as the way of piety became through Christ, which was formerly impassable under the world-rulers of darkness who bound us down to earthly pleasures. And he calls the Son the glory of the Lord, as being above all creation and of the same divinity as the Father. And this He also showed when He became man, always working wonders, and transforming creation with a word, becoming salvation for all, since the sacrifices under the law were not able to take away sins. But being perfected in Christ, we have all been honored with the spirit of adoption, as far as the gift of grace is concerned, since God extended it to all; even if some did not accept it because of the darkness of unbelief. And the prophet, showing that he says nothing of his own or fabricated, called it the word of God, And in what way it is possible to see the salvation of God, he teaches that one must despise visible things, saying they are unstable and quickly fading, taking to mind only the word of God as ever-living, and abiding, and being the cause of eternal life. You might also call the word of the Lord His commandment, as the Savior Himself said: "Truly I say to you, if anyone keeps my word 2340 he will never see death for ever." But some say that when the prophet was commanded to proclaim with a loud voice the grace that was to come to all, out of sympathy for his own nation, which was about to have nothing exceptional, as when it was the inheritance of God, but would be cast out from such an honor, being cut off in his mind, he said, what must I cry? At which God says to him who did not comprehend such great grace, All flesh is grass. For even you, he says, who minister my words, having your mind overshadowed by the flesh, will not even be able to comprehend it. Nevertheless, he says, all human opinion

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τῶν προφητῶν· "Καὶ αὕτη ἡ διαθήκη, ἣν διαθήσομαι αὐτοῖς ἐν ταῖς ἡμέραις ἐκείναις, λέγει Κύριος, διδοὺς νόμους μου εἰς τὴν διάνοιαν αὐτῶν, καὶ ἐπὶ τὰς καρδίας αὐτῶν ἐπιγράψω αὐτούς." Καὶ ὁ Παῦλος δέ φησιν· "Ἡ ἐπιστολὴ ἡμῶν ὑμεῖς ἐστε, γινωσκομένη καὶ ἀναγινωσκομένη ὑπὸ πάντων ἀνθρώπων, φανερούμενοι ὅτι ἐστὲ ἐπιστολὴ Χριστοῦ, διακονηθεῖσα ὑφ' ἡμῶν, ἐγγεγραμμένη οὐ μέλανι, ἀλλὰ Πνεύματι Θεοῦ ζῶντος, οὐκ ἐν πλαξὶ λιθίναις, ἀλλ' ἐν πλαξὶ καρδίας σαρκίναις." Ἱερεῖς δέ τινες τοὺς ἀγγέλους ἐνόησαν, οἷς ἐμπρέπει καὶ τὸ ἐν καρδίαις δύνασθαι λαλεῖν. Ἡ δὲ παράκλησις ἐν τῷ λελύσθαι τὴν δίκην αὐτὴ διπλῆν γενομένην, ἔν τε τῷ σαρκὸς ἐπιθυμίαις προσκεῖσθαι (κόλασις γὰρ αὐτὴ μεγίστη τοῖς ἔχουσιν αἴσθησιν) ἔν τε τῷ δι' ἐκεῖνα κολάζεσθαι, 2337 Ἤγουν, ἔν τε τῷ ἀποστῆναι Θεοῦ τῆς ὄντως πηγῆς ζωῆς, καὶ τῷ προσχωρῆσαι τοῖς δαίμοσιν, λάκκοις συντετριμμένοις, κατὰ τὴν Ἱερεμίου φωνὴν, συνέχειν ὕδωρ μὴ δυναμένοις. Τινὲς δέ φασιν, ὅτι ὡς οἱ φιλόστοργοι πατέρες τὴν σμικρὰν κατὰ παιδὸς ἁμαρτίαν μείζω πολὺ τῆς ἀξίας νομίζουσιν, οὕτω διὰ φιλανθρωπίαν ὁ Θεὸς τὴν ἐλάττω τῆς ἀξίας διπλασίαν ὁρίζεται. Ἄλλως γὰρ οὐκ ἄξιον τῆς αὐτοῦ χρηστότητος ἐν διπλῷ τιμωρεῖσθαι τοῦ λέξαντος· "Οὐκ ἐκδικήσει Κύριος δὶς ἐπὶ τὸ αὐτὸ ἐν θλίψει. Οἰκτίρμων γὰρ καὶ ἐλεήμων ὁ Κύριος, μακρόθυμος καὶ πολυέλεος καὶ ἀληθινός." Καὶ, "Οὐ κατὰ τὰς ἀνομίας ἡμῶν ἐποίησεν ἡμῖν οὐδὲ κατὰ τὰς ἁμαρτίας ἡμῶν ἀνταπέδωκεν ἡμῖν." Σύμφωνον δὲ τῷ, Ἑτοιμάσατε τὴν ὁδὸν Κυρίου, καὶ Ζαχαρίας ὁ τοῦ Βαπτιστοῦ λέγει Πατήρ· "Καὶ σὺ, παιδίον, προφήτης Ὑψίστου κληθήσῃ. Προπορεύσῃ γὰρ πρὸ προσώπου Κυρίου, ἑτοιμάσαι τὰς ὁδοὺς αὐτοῦ." Περὶ οὗ φησιν ὁ Σωτήρ· "Ἐκεῖνος ἦν ὁ λύχνος ὁ καιόμενος καὶ φαίνων. Ὑμεῖς δὲ ἠθελήσατε ἀγαλλιαθῆναι πρὸς ὥραν ἐν τῷ φωτὶ αὐτοῦ." Ἥλιος γὰρ δικαιοσύνης καὶ φῶς ἀληθινὸν ὁ Χριστός. Καὶ τὸ μέσον ἀμφοτέρων ἀσύμβλητον, κἂν ὅτι μάλιστα τὸ ἀνθρώπινον πλῆρες γένοιτο σοφίας τε καὶ φωτός. Τοῖς δὲ ἀπεγνωκόσι σημεῖον δίδωσι παρακλήσεως. Ὅταν γὰρ ἀπὸ τῆς ἐρήμου περὶ μετανοίας ἀκούοις φωνῆς, τότε νόει παρεῖναι τὸν προσδοκώμενον. Ὡς ἀπὸ λεωφόρου δὲ τὰ μὲν ἐχούσης ἀνάντη, τὰ δὲ κοῖλα, καὶ διὰ τοῦτο δυσπορεύτου, τὸν λόγον εἴληφεν· ἥτις ἂν γένοιτο λεία, τῶν μὲν καθαιρουμένων ὕψους· τῶν δὲ, πληρουμένων κοιλότητας, ὁποία διὰ Χριστοῦ γέγονεν ἡ τῆς εὐσεβείας ὁδὸς, ἄβατος πρότερον ὑπὸ τῶν κοσμοκρατόρων τοῦ σκότους ὑπάρχουσα ταῖς γεώδεσιν ἐγκαταδησάντων ἡμᾶς ἡδοναῖς. ∆όξαν δὲ κυρίου καλεῖ τὸν Υἱὸν, ὡς ὑπὲρ πᾶσαν ὄντα τὴν κτίσιν καὶ τῆς αὐτῆς θεότητος τῷ Πατέρι. Τοῦτο δὲ καὶ γενόμενος ἄνθρωπος ἔδειξε θαυματουργῶν ἀεὶ, καὶ τὴν κτίσιν μεταπλάττων τῷ ῥήματι, γενόμενος πᾶσι σωτήριον, τῶν ἐννόμῳ θυσιῶν ἁμαρτίας καθαιρεῖν μὴ δυναμένων. Ἐν δὲ Χριστῷ τελειούμενοι τῷ τῆς υἱοθεσίας πνεύματι τετιμήμεθα πάντες, τό γε ἧκον εἰς τὴν τῆς χάριτος δωρεὰν, πᾶσιν αὐτὴν ἁπλώσαντος τοῦ Θεοῦ· εἰ καὶ τῷ τῆς ἀπιστίας σκότῳ ταύτην τινὲς οὐ προσήκαντο. Μηδὲν δὲ ἴδιον ἢ πεπλασμένον λέγειν ὁ προφήτης ἐπιδεικνὺς, Θεοῦ τὸν λόγον ἐκάλεσεν, Τίνα δὲ τρόπον ἔστι τὸ σωτήριον ἰδεῖν τοῦ Θεοῦ, διδάσκει καταφρονῆσαι δεῖν τῶν φαινομένων, ὡς ἀστάτων εἰπὼν καὶ θᾶττον μαραινομένων, λαβόντας εἰς νοῦν τὸν Θεοῦ λόγον μόνον ὡς ἀεὶ ζῶντα, καὶ μένοντα, καὶ πρόξενον ὄντα τῆς αἰωνίου ζωῆς. Εἴποις δ' ἂν ῥῆμα Κυρίου καὶ τὴν ἐντολὴν τὴν αὐτοῦ τοῦ Σωτῆρος εἰπόντος· "Ἀμὴν λέγω ὑμῖν, ἐάν τις τὸν ἐμὸν λόγον 2340 τηρήσῃ, θάνατον οὐ μὴ ἴδῃ εἰς τὸν αἰῶνα." Τινὲς δέ φασιν, ὡς προσταχθεὶς ὁ προφήτης κηρύξαι μεγαλοφώνως τὴν εἰς πάντας ἥξουσαν χάριν, ἀπὸ συμπαθείας τῆς πρὸς τὸ ἔθνος ἑαυτοῦ, μηδὲν ἔχειν ἐξαιρετὸν μέλλοντος, ὡς ἡνίκα κλῆρος ὑπῆρχε Θεοῦ, ἀποβλήτου δὲ τῆς τοιαύτης ἐσομένου τιμῆς ἐκκοπεὶς τὴν διάνοιαν, τί δέοι βοήσειν ἔλεγεν. Ἐφ' οἷς Θεὸς τὴν τοσαύτην μὴ χωρήσαντι χάριν φησὶ, Πᾶς ἄνθρωπος χόρτος. Καὶ σὺ γὰρ, φησὶν, ὁ τοῖς ἐμοῖς διακονούμενος ῥήμασιν, ὑπὸ τῆς σαρκὸς τὸν νοῦν ἐπισκιαζόμενος, χωρεῖν οὐδὲ δυνήσῃ. Πλὴν πᾶσα, φησὶν, ὑπόληψις ἀνθρωπίνη