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having removed the superfluous branches of thoughts that had grown up, you have grafted your holy love onto hope alone, as onto the single root of a tree. Seeing this, therefore, growing daily and always speaking to me, or rather, through it You both teaching and illumining me, as one who has already gone beyond all faith and hope, I am so disposed to rejoicing, just as Paul also cries out, saying: "For what a man sees, why does he still hope for?". If, then, I have You, what more shall I hope for? "Hear something," you said again, Master: "Just as you see the sun in the waters, (459) and yet you do not at all see the sun itself by looking down, so also understand what is happening in you for me, and secure yourself and strive always to see me within you clearly and distinctly, as the sun in clear waters; and then in this way you will be deemed worthy to see me, as I told you, even after death. But if not, the entire cycle of these works and labors and words of yours will profit you nothing, but rather they will condemn you even more greatly and cause you more affliction, since, as you hear, 'the mighty will be mightily tested.' For poverty is not so much a cause of shame to one who is poor from birth, nor does the grief from it grieve so much, as to one who has become rich and been glorified and exalted and become intimate with the earthly king, and then has fallen from all those things and been brought down to utter destitution, although the situation is not the same for earthly and visible things as it is for the spiritual and invisible things themselves. For those who for some reason have fallen from the friendship and service of the earthly king, it is possible for them to be masters of their possessions and to enjoy them and to live, but if anyone should fall from my love and friendship, he cannot live at all for I am his life , but is at once stripped of everything and handed over as a captive to my enemies and his own, whom they, having seized him, because of his former goodwill and love which he possessed toward me, assault him more furiously, punishing, mocking, and deriding him."

Yes, truly, most holy King, I too believe it is so for you, my God, and falling down I beseech you, protect me, the sinner and unworthy one whom (460) you have pitied, and the plant of your love, which you have grafted into the tree of my hope, strengthen by your power. May it not be shaken by winds, nor broken by a storm, nor torn out by some enemy, nor burned by the scorching heat of neglect, nor withered by indolence and distractions, nor completely destroyed by vainglory. For you know, you who have both granted this and worked it in me, that because of this I am without help from any man, for my co-worker and helper, and your apostle, you have separated from me in the body, as you yourself willed. You know my weakness, you understand my misery and my complete powerlessness. Therefore, for this reason, have even more compassion on me from now on, O most compassionate Lord. I fall down before you from my heart, that you may not leave me to my own will, you who have done so many good things for me, but establish my soul in your love and cause your love to be securely rooted in it, so that according to your spotless and holy and true promise, you may be in me and I may be in you, and I am sheltered by it and I shelter and guard it in me, and you, Master, see me in it, and I am deemed worthy to see you through it, now as in a mirror, as you have said, and in a riddle, but then in all of love, all of you, who are love and have deigned so to be called, for to you is due all thanksgiving, might, honor, and worship, to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit, now and forever and unto the endless ages of ages. Amen.

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ἀναχθέντας περιττούς κλῶνας τῶν λογισμῶν ἀφελών, τῇ ἐλπίδι μόνῃ, ὡς ἐν μιᾷ ῥίζῃ δένδρου, τήν σήν ἁγίαν ἀγάπην ἐνεκέντρισας. Ταύτην οὖν ὁρῶν ὁσημέραι αὐξάνουσαν καί ἀεί ὁμιλοῦσάν μοι, μᾶλλον δέ διά ταύτης σύ καί διδάσκων καί περιλάμπων με, ὡς ἤδη ὑπέρ πᾶσαν πίστιν γεγονώς καί ἐλπίδα, οὕτω χαίρων διάκειμαι, καθά καί Παῦλος βοᾷ λέγων· "Ὅ γάρ τις βλέπει, τί καί ἐλπίζει;". Εἰ οὖν ἐγώ σέ ἔχω, τί πλέον ἐλπίσω; "Ἄκουσον τι" πάλιν ἔφησας, ∆έσποτα· "ὥσπερ τόν ἥλιον ὁρᾷς ἐν τοῖς ὕδασιν, (459) ἐκεῖνον δέ αὐτόν οὐδόλως τότε μᾶλλον κάτω νεύων ὁρᾷς, οὕτω καί τό ἐν σοί γινόμενον νόει μοι καί ἀσφαλίζου σεαυτόν καί σπούδαζε ἀεί ἐντός σοῦ καθαρῶς καί τρανῶς, ὡς τόν ἥλιον ἐν τοῖς καθαροῖς ὕδασι, καθορᾶν με· καί εἶθ᾿ οὕτως ἰδεῖν με, ὥσπερ εἶπόν σοι, καταξιωθήσῃ καί μετά θάνατον. Εἰ δέ μή, ὁ κύκλος ὅλος τῶν ἔργων καί κόπων καί λόγων σου τούτων ὠφελήσουσί σε οὐδέν, μᾶλλον μέν οὖν καί μειζόνως κατακρινοῦσι καί πλείονα θλῖψίν σοι προξενήσουσιν, ἐπειδήπερ, ὡς ἀκούεις, "δυνατοί δυνατῶς ἐτασθήσονται". Καί γάρ οὐχ οὕτω πένητι ἐκ γενετῆς αἰσχύνης αἰτία γίνεται ἡ πενία, οὐδέ ἡ ἐκ ταύτης λύπη ἐπί τοσοῦτον λυπεῖ, ὡς τῷ πλουτήσαντι καί δοξασθέντι καί ὑψωθέντι καί τῷ ἐπί γῆς βασιλεῖ οἰκειωθέντι, εἶτα πάντων ἐκπεσόντι ἐκείνων καί εἰς παντελῆ πτωχείαν κατενεχθέντι, καίτοι μή οὐχ οὕτως ὄντων τῶν πραγμάτων ἐν τοῖς ἐπιγείοις καί ὁρωμένοις καί ἐν αὐτοῖς τοῖς πνευματικοῖς πράγμασι καί ἀοράτοις. Τοῖς μέν γάρ ἐκπεσοῦσι τῆς φιλίας καί δουλείας τοῦ ἐπιγείου βασιλέως ἔκ τινος αἰτίας, τῶν ὑπαρχόντων αὐτοῖς κυρίους εἶναι καί ἐπαπολαύειν αὐτῶν καί ζῆν ἔξεστιν, ἐμοῦ δέ τῆς ἀγάπης καί φιλίας εἰ ἐκπέσειέ τις, ζῆν ὅλως οὐ δύναται ἡ ζωή γάρ αὐτοῦ ἐγώ εἰμι , ἀλλ᾿ εὐθύς ἁπάντων γυμνοῦται καί τοῖς ἐχθροῖς ἐμοῦ τε καί αὐτοῦ αἰχμάλωτος παραδίδοται, ὅν ἐκεῖνοι λαβόντες ὑπέρ τῆς προτέρας αὐτοῦ εὐνοίας καί ἀγάπης, ἧς πρός μέ ἐκέκτητο, μανιωδέστερον αὐτῷ ἐπεμβαίνουσι, τιμωροῦντες, καταγελῶντες καί καταπαίζοντες".

Ναί ὄντως, πανάγιε Βασιλεῦ, οὕτως εἶναι κἀγώ πιστεύω σοι τῷ Θεῷ μου καί προσπίπτων καθικετεύτω σε, φύλαξόν με τόν ἁμαρτωλόν καί ἀνάξιον ὅν (460) ἠλέησας, καί τό φυτόν τῆς ἀγάπης σου, ὅπερ ἐνεκέντρισας ἐν τῷ δένδρῳ τῆς ἐλπίδος μου, τῇ δυνάμει σου στήριξον. Μή ὑπό ἀνέμων σεισθῇ, μή ὑπό καταιγίδος θραυσθῇ, μή ὑπό ἐχθροῦ τινος ἐκσπασθῇ, μή ὑπό ἀμελείας καύσωνος φλεχθῇ, μή ὑπό ῥᾴθυμίας καί μετεωρισμῶν ξηρανθῇ, μή ὑπό φιλοδοξίας τέλεον ἐξαφανισθῇ. Σύ γάρ οἶδας, ὁ τοῦτο καί χαρισάμενος καί κατεργασάμενος ἐν ἐμοί, ὅτι ἕνεκεν τούτου ἀπό παντός ἀνθρώπου εἰμί ἀβοήθητος, τόν γάρ συνεργόν μου καί βοηθόν, σόν δέ ἀπόστολον, ὡς αὐτός ἠβουλήθης ἀπ᾿ ἐμοῦ σωματικῶς ἀπεχώρισας. Σύ γινώσκεις μου τήν ἀσθένειαν, σύ ἐπίστασαι τήν ταλαιπωρίαν καί τήν εἰς ἅπαν ἀδυναμίαν μου. Τοιγαροῦν διά τοῦτο σπλαγχνίθητι ἐπί πλεῖον ἀπό τοῦ νῦν ἐπ᾿ ἐμοί ὁ πολυεύσπλαγχνος Κύριος. Προσπίπτω σοι ἀπό καρδίας, ἵνα μή ἐάσῃς με εἰς τό θέλημά μου, ὁ ποιήσας τοσαῦτα καλά μετ᾿ ἐμοῦ, ἀλλά ἐν τῇ σῇ ἀγάπῃ ἵδρυσόν μου τήν ψυχήν καί ἐν ταύτῃ ῥιζῶσαι τήν σήν ἀγάπην ποίησον ἀσφαλῶς, ἵνα κατά τήν ἄχραντον καί ἁγίαν καί ἀψευδῆ σου ἐπαγγελίαν σύ ᾖς ἐν ἐμοί κἀγώ ὑπάρχω ἐν σοί, καί σκέπομαι ὑπ᾿ αὐτῆς κἀγώ σκέπω καί φυλάττω αὐτήν ἐν ἐμοί, καί σύ μέν βλέπεις με, ∆έσποτα, ἐν αὐτῇ κἀγώ δέ ὁρᾶν σε καταξιοῦμαι δι᾿ αὐτῆς, νῦν μέν ὡς ἐν ἐσόπτρῳ, καθώς εἶπας, καί ἐν αἰνίγματι, τότε δέ ἐν ὅλῃ τῇ ἀγάπῃ ὅλον σε, τόν ἀγάπην ὄντα καί οὕτω καλεῖσθαι καταξιώσαντα, ὅτι σοί πρέπει πᾶσα εὐχαριστία, κράτος, τιμή καί προσκύνησις, τῷ Πατρί καί τῷ Υἱῷ καί τῷ Ἁγίῳ Πνεύματι νῦν καί ἀεί καί εἰς τούς ἀτελευτήτους αἰῶνας τῶν αἰώνων. Ἀμήν.